AN: I may not have any updates tomorrow through Sunday as I will be spending time with my family and just know I won't have the privacy to write. Quick question before I proceed with the chapter. How many of you would follow a tumblr blog dedicated to this fic? Answer in a review or PM, please and thank you.
EDIT: The aforementioned tumblr blog is now made. Url is swanqueenguardianangel. Have questions? Ask. Have fanart? Please do send. Wish a chapter was different? Alternates are just an ask away! Want a scene not included? Begin your ask with 'what if' and continue on. For example: What if Jasmine lived? I would respond with a scene or ficlet providing the scene you enquire. Hate on Leopold and Cora all you like, but not on the overall story or me or each other.
Regina kept her promise as long as she could; staying long after the blonde had fallen asleep. She'd called Mary to let her know something came up at work, which wasn't quite a lie if you looked at it a certain way. She'd been called while at work, and it had been certainly an event that came up. The implied part that she was still at the office was what wasn't true. Still, by the time five in the morning rolled by, Regina knew she had to relieve Mary, and possibly David, at some point. She hadn't been home yet, so she didn't know who all was there. As long as she didn't come home to an impromptu party or interrupt any sexual activities, she'd be good. Mary wasn't that type, anyway. It was with a bit of reluctance, or a lot, that she left the hospital, but it needed to be done. She wasn't sure how possible it was for someone to slip back into a coma after they'd awakened, and that had been part of the reason she'd stayed so long in the first place. After the first hour or so, Regina could tell that Emma was different in sleep compared to her comatose state. She stayed with her longer because she'd promised not to go and she simply wanted to. But she did have to go, and Emma would be fine.
Emma had been afraid to fall asleep, so she'd stayed awake as long as she could. If she fell asleep, she'd be back where she'd been before. But her angel wouldn't. She'd only promised to stay where she was, which wasn't there. And that place was so lonely and unbearably bright without her angel. Regina. She doubted that would change. The only times she'd felt really peaceful had been when that lovely voice was surrounding her. But her presence really did have a calming affect, and as their hands were held together, it all but forced Emma's eyes closed and she succumbed to sleep. She never felt that warmth leave, so though she couldn't see or hear her, she assumed Regina was still there.
Which made it harder to wake up to an empty room.
Well, it wasn't empty. It may as well have been, though. A doctor was present, but Emma found she was still apprehensive in their presence without Regina round. As she adjusted to wakefulness, she realized that the warmth actually had gone at some point, though she didn't know when. Was Regina even real, or had she imagined her? Or maybe she was dead, like a real and proper angel, and had only been corporeal long enough to help Emma readjust to being in the land of the living. She had no other name for the place she'd been before than Limbo, as she always felt like she'd been hanging in the balance. It made sense; she was in a hospital after all. But there was only one way to find out.
"Is she real?"
"Oh! Ms. Swan, you're awake. If you mean Madame Mayor, yes, she's very real."
Emma was confused. "I mean Regina."
The doctor nodded. "Yes, that's her. Don't worry, she exists, you weren't hallucinating. I'm sure she'll come in again later. How are you feeling today?"
"Okay, I guess." But she hurt. Not physical pain, but hurt. She'd known she would always leave, after all she always did, but she'd believed her promise. Angels weren't supposed to break promises.
"Are you sure?"
The question puzzled her. Had she not just said? Then she realized there was a wet trail on her cheek. Damn, she hated that someone caught her crying, even if it was only a single tear.
"You know you have to tell us if something's bothering you, right? Even something small. Mayor – er, Regina, would fire someone if anything happened to you on our watch."
Was something bothering her? Yes. Was it something a doctor needed to know? No. Why? It was embarrassing. Also it wasn't anything a doctor could fix. "I'm fine," she insisted.
"Alright." The female doctor decided to give her the benefit of the doubt. "Are you thirsty?" The first step in weaning Emma off of the provided nutrients would be to take out the water IV and see how she handled bottled water.
Come to think of it, her throat did feel pretty dry and her voice sounded scratchy even to her own ears. Emma nodded.
"Okay, I'm going to take one of the tubes from your arms now, and then I'll bring you some fresh water." She was cautious after the way Emma had woken up the previous day. She was like a horse; one wrong move could frighten her and result in injury. Whose it was would be anyone's guess. She made sure to be kept in sight during her approach. "I need you to keep still for a moment while I remove these." With no obvious protest from Emma, she did what she had to do, leaving all the other tubes in place that didn't need to be removed yet. "There we go. I'll be right back."
Then Emma actually was alone. In the other woman's absence, she let a few more tears slide down her cheeks. She wanted Regina back. Not only that, she wanted to remember. What had happened to her in the first place that landed her in the hospital? She remembered her name and being bounced from home to home. She remembered her vow to run away to freedom. Was that when something had happened to her? Did she finally get out? She didn't know. And it pissed her off to no end. She hated not knowing. It was like that one foster father she'd had with many drunken personalities. He would strike at her, try to sleep with her, or simply pass out. She never knew which to expect and it had terrified her. Fear and anger had gone hand in hand her whole life. Fear of what was about to happen or what would happen again and anger that she was too powerless to stop it. Anger that no one was there for her, anger that her parents had abandoned her, and sometimes anger at herself for surviving being left on the side of the rode with some boy she couldn't remember. Now she couldn't remember what landed her in the hospital and that angered her, too. Life was so unfair.
The same woman reappeared, bottle of water in hand. "First we'll have to see if you can hold this on your own."
Emma rolled her eyes, which then made her slightly dizzy. Why were they treating her like an uneducated child who couldn't take care of herself? She was pretty sure she could manage holding a damn water bottle by herself. When the doctor was close enough, she snatched the bottle from her hands, just to show what she could do. She found her grip to be less than as satisfactory as she'd wanted it to be, but it still got the job done.
"Okay, that was the easy part. Open it."
Again, Emma thought it would be easy, but it proved to be quite the opposite. The stubborn cap refused to turn. Though it was likely because it was a tight cap that anyone would have some trouble opening.
Likely, but not the case. The woman took the bottle back and had it opened in less than a second. Emma couldn't stop her glare. If it was that easy how come she couldn't do it herself? She really wished someone would just tell her what the hell happened instead of beating around the bush. That's what they did in the movies and television shows, when a patient woke up, they immediately informed them of what had happened. But apparently real life didn't work that way.
"Okay, be careful not to spill and take careful sips." The woman handed the bottle back to her.
Emma found her hand shaking this time, that always happened when she got too mad, but thankfully the water didn't go sloshing out. She rose the bottle to her lips and took a small sip as directed. The cold water felt glorious, she hadn't realized just how parched she was. It took all her will not to guzzle the whole bottle down. "I feel like it's been ages," she stated once she forced herself to stop. The woman's expression was highly unreadable. What gives? Regina treated her with carefulness but at least she'd been emotive about it, human. Human in a completely radiant and angelic way, of course. Or maybe that was simply setting the bar too high. Perhaps Emma should cut them some slack.
"Still feeling okay?"
Why was the woman still asking her that? She was fine! "Yes."
"No uneasiness in your stomach?"
Emma tilted her head. "How would water make my stomach uneasy?" She seriously wished why everyone was walking on eggshells with her. What happened that was so bad that needed hiding? "And is anyone going to tell me why I'm here?"
The woman shifted uneasily. If the mayor hadn't told her, it obviously wasn't meant to be told. "Someone will," she answered vaguely.
"When?" asked Emma in exasperation. She held the water bottle out, no longer wanting it.
"When you're both ready." She took the water bottle back.
Well wasn't that all nice and cryptic. Emma sighed in frustration. That may as well mean never. "I'm going back to sleep," she mumbled. She had nothing else to occupy her time with.
