Thank you for the reviews, My Doves! So, who do you think is targeting whom and why?

Apologies for not throwing in a warning in the last chapter but I didn't want to ruin the ending. Suicide is an issue very close to my heart and the reason I am no longer a teacher, so I understand the shock of being blindsided by the mention of it.

If you can forgive me that, Enjoy, My Sweets, and leave me some love. Some rough chapters coming up.

Songs: I Won't Give up by Jason Mraz, Hold Me by Savage Garden


A gasp tore through the emergency room when four bodies appeared in a swirl of purple magic. Amelia straddled Katy's hips and performed chest compressions while Eva breathed for the girl every few seconds.

"I need an Evzio!" Eva yelled. Breath. Regina squeezed Katy's hand.

Amelia pumped, sweat beading on her brow. "Come on, Katyline. I will not lose you, too. Damn it! Breathe!"

A nurse hit her knees at their side, cocked some type of medicine dispenser and pressed it against Katy's leg. Regina stared. "What… what is that?"

"Naloxone," Amelia said, words bouncing with her body. "Reverses the effects of opiates."

"Give her another dose," Eva ordered. Another nurse tossed the pack to her cohort on the floor. She injected the pack and stepped back.

"Come on, Katy!" Amelia yelled, probably pushing harder than she should have been in her heightened emotional state.

Regina observed the flurry of motion dumbly. Her mind refused to believe this actually happened. So many questions floated through her head but none latched onto her consciousness long enough to make it to her mouth.

"Where's my gurney! Give me a crash cart!" Eva screamed at her staff. She'd not been to work since Lauren's disappearance, but her staff scrambled as though she'd not been gone an hour.

"No, wait." Katy inhaled once. Amelia pressed her fingers to her neck. "Got her!" Amelia yelled, relief in her voice. "Eva, we got her!" Amelia ripped the stethoscope from the hovering nurse's pocket and pressed it to Katy's chest.

"Oxygen! Where's my damn gurney!" Amelia yelled. "Pulse is weak. Lungs sound clear. Regina, get the hell out of the way!"

Regina propelled from the doctors a moment before a back board slid beneath her daughter. A team hefted her onto the gurney. Amelia climbed on top of her, straddling her hips once more. A mask slid over her nose, and tiny breaths puffed steam onto the plastic.

"When we stop, I want a damn IV in her before I get off this thing," she ordered. "Get a drip of saline and Naloxone in this girl, an EEG, EKG, and a CT to check for organ failure. Her blood gets to the lab first. I don't care what they're doing down there. We need to know her levels now!"

Amelia spoke as the gurney moved, the stethoscope never leaving her chest. "Someone get Dr. Hopper here. I'm chaining him to her damn bed until she wakes up," was the last thing she heard before they disappeared behind double doors.

Regina stared at the doors as though they may have reopened at any moment. Her breaths sound loud in her ears, slow and echoing. They surrounded her. They were everywhere. Spots of black fingers slid around the edges of her vision, lurking, waiting. They stalked her, spotting the perfect opportunity to pounce. Katy might die.

"Regina!" Ruby slammed into her, barely catching her before she toppled over. Hot breaths puffed against her cheek, and Ruby's flushed face stared down at her. She'd run all the way from the diner in less than five minutes.

"Katy?" She asked when Regina responded by grabbing her shirt with both hands.

The world crashed into her again, the black slivers receding from her vision. "She's alive. I don't know. Amelia's getting a bunch of tests." Her forehead fell into Ruby's shoulder. "What if she's brain dead, Ruby?"

"Shh, she's strong, Mama Bear," Ruby whispered, unable to control her own tears. "Eva and Amelia won't let her die." They believed in their medicine like Ruby believed in her wolf and Regina in magic. Once again they held the life of someone they love in their hands, both heartbroken and grieving for a love they feared losing, both fighting for them.

"Regina!" Emma called from the door and ran to them. "I got here as fast as I could." She wrapped her arms around Regina, taking Ruby's place.

Regina shoved her away roughly. Emma glanced between her and Ruby, shocked and hurt. "Stay the hell away from me, Emma."

"Regina, what did I do?" Emma asked, her little girl voice lacing the words.

"If Madison hadn't shown up and called, she'd be dead by now!" She pushed Emma's shoulders violently, and Ruby grabbed her around the waist. "If I hadn't spent so much time focused making you love me, I might have stopped this!"

"Okay, enough!" Ruby yelled and jerked Regina away from Emma. "Emma, go home, go sit with the kids."

"No," she defied the order easily and reached for Regina again. "I want to be here. What if it was Alex in there?" Emma pointed towards the double doors with one hand, the other on Regina's trembling shoulder.

Regina broke free and poked an accusing finger in her chest. "You don't even remember her! You had to be your stupid hero self and go chasing after Belle." Regina beat Emma's shoulders with the sides of her fists.

"You went after her, and you never came home. You left me alone, Emma!" She hit her chest again, knocking the air from her.

Emma wrapped strong arms around the broken sorceress, barely controlling her descent as they both fell to their knees. "You left me alone," Regina whimpered, one fist clutching her shirt and the other pounding weakly onto her shoulder at random intervals.

Ruby knelt on the other side of Regina and held a supportive hand on her back, taking some of her weight from Emma's arm. Emma met her eyes over Regina's head, squinting in confusion. Ruby's face slacked in relief, deep even breaths releasing her tension.

"It's about damn time," she whispered to no one specifically and pressed her forehead to Regina's quaking shoulder.

Sob after sob broke against Emma's chest. "Come back, Emma," she whispered.

Emma's heart broke. She wasn't what Regina needed even if she wanted her. She needed older Emma, the one who took charge, took control. She'd become older Emma then. With a calming breath, she pushed Regina into Ruby's arms and stood.

"Hey," she called a nurse standing by with a syringe, perhaps in case Regina needed sedated. "I need all of your records. I want to know every single time someone in this hospital used morphine in the past four months."

"Sheriff, you're going to need a court order for that," the receptionist pointed out.

"Will the Head of Council's spoken approval work?" Violent hands wrapped around her hips to refrain from punching the woman in the face. What the hell was wrong with these people?

The nurse and secretary exchanged looks and shrugged. "It will have to meet Dr. Zambrano's approval."

"It will. Whoever gave my daughter those drugs is probably the same person who kidnapped her partner. You really think she's going to say no?" Emma's voice was cold and hard. Raw anger surged through her veins.

The women exchanged another glance, and Emma crossed her arms, brows raised in brazen defiance. She dared them to challenge her right now. "I'll call records."

"Do that. And while you're at it. I want an entire inventory of your morphine supply taken. That much of a missing narcotic is probably noticeable." Emma whipped out her cell phone as she barked orders, hiding the surprise that people actually listened to her.

She dialed the sheriff's phone number. "David, I need you to start an official court order for the records at the hospital," she clipped half way through his short greeting.

"I'm already on it, Emma," David set her mind at ease. She gulp a breath of cool, disinfectant-flavored air. She liked David. He was calm and supportive without being smothering like Mary Margaret at times. "We finally have a connecting point. I'll let you know when it officially reaches Council approval. I'll keep Henry here with me until you figure things out with Katy."

"Thanks Dad," Emma said and ended the call. Ruby's shocked face stared up at her, and Emma stared right back with the same wide eyes. "David's my dad."

Ruby nodded.

Emma shook the thought away. This moment tested her resolve to be what Regina needed, what her family needed. She could do this. She wanted this. Magic tingled in her hands, and she pulled it back as she dropped to her knees and grabbed Regina's face in both hands.

"Regina, look at me." The other woman obeyed, unable to do anything else in that moment. She was raw, broken. She'd lost as much as Ruby, too much, in the past couple months.

"I'll get us through this, Baby," she vowed. "From now until eternity," she whispered and bumped her forehead to Regina's.

The older woman gasped and pulled herself upright, "Our blood oath."

"Just give me more time, Baby. I'll make it home," Emma swore, sounding more like the woman she married than she had in the past six weeks.

Regina flung herself into Emma's waiting arms. A collective sigh filled the waiting room when they kissed. It never registered in their ears, only the soft gasps and warm lips and hands of the other.

"I'll get us through this," Emma whispered again, tucking her head into Regina's neck. "I love you."

"Emma," Regina breathed, the name barely registering in the ear of the woman attached to it. "I love you." She pulled back and pressed her lips to Emma's once more. It was chaste, a mere fitting of their mouths together, but it represented everything they stood for… passion, honesty, true love.

"Emma, I love you," Regina repeated. Emma responded by pulling Regina to her feet and holding her close. They remained rooted to the spot, content to stare at the double doors and cling to each other.

Ruby crossed her arm over her belly and held the other elbow. Regina needed to lean on Emma right now for her own sanity if nothing else. Emma understood that, it seemed. She was smart, quick with the draw, and perhaps the most important thing, willing. The other children required her comforting presence right now, the reassurance that Emma and Regina weren't capable of giving them.

"I'm going to go to the house and sit with Annabel and Alex just in case," Ruby bowed out gracefully. "I'll pick Henry up on the way." Her presence only wedged between her friends.

Emma handed her the keys to the Camry and nodded over Regina's head. "Thanks Ruby." She ducked her own and pressed a kiss to Regina's forehead. Regina whispered something indistinguishable, even to her wolf ears and nuzzled further into Emma's neck.

"Call me if you need anything else. I'll send Granny and Beth by with some dinner later." Ruby smiled at her friends, unsure if they even heard her while so wrapped up in each other.

Amelia chose that moment to emerge from within the depths of the hospital. Ruby waited. Amelia looked exhausted, defeated. "First, she's as stable as we can hope right now. She's young and strong, which can only help her, but…" The surgeon doubled over, supporting her upper body with hands on her knees, allowing the emotion of the moment to affect her for a moment.

She hung her head between her shoulders and breathed deeply as though she feared passing out. "She's not awake. It happens sometimes with overdoses," she said and straightened. "Sometimes, they wake up and they're fine. I don't know how long she went without oxygen. She may have cognitive delays or other physical issues. I don't know. I'm sorry."

She wiped tears with trembling fingers. "And sometimes," her voice squeaked at an impossible octave. "Sometimes they just go to sleep and never wake up again even if they are physically resuscitated."

A high-pitched sound of anguish vibrated in the back of Regina's throat. Fingers clawed painfully at Emma's side, inspiring her take control once more. "What are her chances?" Emma asked, squeezing Regina tighter. Nothing hit Regina harder than her children in danger.

"I don't know," she admitted honestly. "There's… Emma, there's something else you should know."

They waited. Amelia gathered her resolve. "She's… her body is miscarrying right now. The drugs and the stress… given the hormone levels in her body, Addison estimates around six to eight weeks."

Holy rage tore through Emma's veins. "I'm going to bash his head with a baseball bat," Emma seethed. "What's that boy's name? Jacob? I'm going to kill him."

"Emma," Regina chided breathily. "Enough." Emma nodded and zipped her lips but refused to relinquish her scowl. "Amelia, may we see her?"

"In a little bit. She's still getting scans right now, and my team is hooking up the EEG. The MRI shows activity. I just want to keep an eye on it, so I can better gauge what we might have to prepare for if and when she wakes up. Do you have any other questions?"

Emma shook her head. Regina mirrored the gesture and slid both hands over Emma's collarbones, hiding her face in Emma's neck. Emma enveloped her in strong arms and pressed her lips the black crown of hair even with her chin. Amelia smiled at the familiar comfort and support of their friends. They'd be okay.

"Okay-" she squeezed Emma's shoulder, "- Eva and I are going to stay with her until she gets settled in her room. One of us will come get you. We won't let her out of our sight."

Ruby piped up when Amelia disappeared behind the double doors once more, "Same goes for the other three when I get to the house. Just… just take care of each other right now." She kissed Emma's temple and then the back of Regina's head, knowing the small comfort failed to ease even the tiniest bit of grief in their hearts.

Emma led her wife to one of the bench seats away from others in the emergency room. Though they glanced in their direction, most everyone left them alone in their misery. Emma slouched into the hard vinyl seat and accepted Regina's weight against her chest. Regina slipped her arms around Emma's slim waist, clasping her fingers.

"I'm sorry, Emma," she whispered after a few minutes of silence.

"Don't be. I know how hard this has been on you. You've never hidden that fact. I'm not quite sure why you haven't run for the hills yet, but…" Emma shrugged awkwardly and rested her cheek on Emma's head.

"I'll never leave you, Emma. There is not a single thing you could do that would make me walk away." Regina sounded sincere, and it broke Emma's heart a little bit more.

"Why? You can't possibly know that."

Regina clicked her tongue and nuzzled further into her neck. "You told me once that we make our own fate. We make the decision to stay and fix our problems, that walking away is a choice we both have to consciously refuse every day. I've found comfort in that throughout this trial."

She sat up and caught Emma's gaze. "I'm making the choice, Emma Swan, to remain at your side. Perhaps at first the decision came from obligation when you were terribly confused and scared, but you don't need me to hold your hand anymore.

"I choose to stay now because this is where I want to be, because this is what I promised when I married you. I bound myself to you. I didn't have to, you offered me your heart to keep. I made the decision to follow your soul for eternity. Fate didn't choose that for me, I did, and you gave me that option. You're not a burden, Emma, or a prison sentence. You're a choice. My choice."

Emma released a strong puff of air and averted her gaze. "Damn." Regina waited. Emma reclaimed her gaze. "Older me wasn't as much fun, but she had her shit figured out, didn't she? I mean, the unselfish bit. That's why my magic is linked to that. That's what she prized the most, her sacrifice for others."

Regina nodded and lowered her head to Emma's chest again, soothing herself with the thump of that steady organ beneath. "I think we can stop referring to you as Older Emma. You recover small memories every day."

"I'm still a mess," Emma laughed hollowly.

Regina slipped one hand beneath her shirt and played with the scar that stretched from her left shoulder to her right hip. "Do you remember this?"

"Cora," Emma answered honestly. "Magic hurts."

"That flash you had a few minutes ago, how much did you recover?" Regina asked, afraid to stop talking.

"Enough to know that you'd be an N'Sync fan if you'd actually listen to them." Regina chuckled, vibrating Emma's ribs with the sound in her chest.

Emma kissed her head and craned hers to the side to meet shimmering brown eyes. "Are you okay, Regina? You just discovered our daughter in her bedroom attempting suicide. I'll tell you everything later, I promise, but right now I want to focus on you."

Fingernails dug into belly, but Regina fell silent. Soft gasps puffed below her chin, and tiny salty droplets soaked into another ridiculous band shirt. Emma tightened her arms around Regina's ribs and let her cry until her eyes produced no more tears. Nothing she said could have made this better. The image of Katy unconscious on the floor with the syringe in her hand burned into Regina's mind. She'd never forget.

"What did the note say?" Emma asked suddenly. She kicked herself instantly when nails pressed tiny crescents into her stomach.

"I don't know. It's still on the floor in her room," Regina answered quietly, voice wet and soft and beautiful. How was this woman beautiful even when she cried?

"Emma, Regina," a gentle male voice called to them. They glanced up to find Ben standing a respectful distance from them. "We're moving her to her room. Eva's having her put on the surgical floor. Room 218. She's in the middle of the hall with at least three rooms in between her and anyone else if you want to post Belle's guards."

Regina stood and straightened Belle's clothes, missing the librarian more than ever. "That won't be necessary. Either Emma, Ruby, or I will be at her side until she wakes."

Ben nodded and jerked his head towards the elevator. "For what it's worth, I can't wait until you catch the bastard after you. Lauren is my best friend." He turned towards the elevator doors and discreetly wiped at his face. He'd been there for them almost as much as Lauren, just not quite as vocally.

"If you need anything, don't hesitate," he said with a nod as the elevators dinged and opened.

"Thanks," Emma said and returned his nod.

"I can't do this, Emma," Regina whispered harshly once in the elevator. "I can't look at her like that, hooked up to all those machines."

"Hey," Emma took her hand as the doors opened again. "I'll sit with her until you can, okay?" Regina nodded and allowed Emma to pull her forward.

She'd needed this, Emma's strength. When Emma set her mind to it, every single piece of her soul wrapped around a person, insulating them from the outside world until they caught their breath, found the courage to stand again. If anyone might bring Katy back from this, it's Emma Swan with her heart of gold.

Please, she prayed.