Emma knew that there was going to be a council later and she would be required to give an account for what she learned but Emma told them that she was indisposed and that they would have the council in the morning.

Her husband needed her.

They went to their apartments. Grace was sitting in front of the fireplace repairing clothes. Alex steadied his walk. He was almost three, he was growing so fast. Emma and Alex were the only ones aging, that was going to be hard to explain to him when he surpassed his playmate in Roland.

"mama!" He stumbled forward to her, "Mama! Mama!"

Emma scooped him up and he gave her a wet kiss on the cheek, "There's my boy, have you been good?"

Whether or not he understood, he clutched her shirt and nodded.

Emma smiled and kissed his cheek. Jefferson walked wordlessly into their room and slammed the door.

Grace looked confused and worried, "what's happened."

Emma bit her lip, "Someone from his past came back."

"This Cora person everyone's talking about?"

Emma nodded, "Grace, stay close to the castle for awhile, alright?"

I'll stick close"But this mountain is safe, you've said so."

"Cora's different. She's the one that kept you and your father separated."

Grace was confused, "I thought Regina did that."

"Regina separated you, Cora kept it that way."

Grace finally nodded, "Alright."

"You're a good daughter," Emma told her and carried her son into the bedroom. She expected to find it locked but the knob turned. Emma sort of would've preferred it if it was locked, now she had to face facts with her decision.

Jefferson paced back and forth, "We have to execute her."

"Jefferson-," Emma started.

"she's done things, things that I know about, we have to execute her Before she finds out about me, before she finds out about those kids. We can't find her squid ink forever, where are we going to get a supply for eight years?"

"I don't know."

"We have to kill her"

"NOt without a trial," EMma let her old world senses take over.

"What's the point of a trial? You think I'm lying? I know what she's done. I'll tell you what she's done."

Emma knew and understood how he felt. Hadn't she been soothing his nightmares for nearly three years now? He always dreamed Cora could come back and take the kids and now she was a very imminent threat. But Emma wasn't sure she wanted blood on her hands without a sense of doing it right. And that meant having a trial in her eye.

He thought she didn't believe him. The betrayal broke her heart, because she did, "I do believe you."

"Then lets end her life."

"I won't do vigilante justice."

"This isn't the land without magic, Emma! You're the leader, you can decide things."

"There are trials here."

"Your family had a trial for Regina and look what that did

Emma flinched, she knew where that was going. If they'd stopped Regina for good. her family wouldn't have been ripped apart. She wouldn't have grown up alone, "stop. Please."

"What good will a trial do?" He asked, "We know what she did."

"Because I can't put myself in that situation."

"Where you order deaths? You have to if it's needed, you're a leader. You need to do what's best for all your people and that's to put her head on a block."

"I'll bet Cora thought that she was doing best when she raised REgina like she did. I'll bet REgina thought she was doing best when she wanted my mother's head on a platter.

He jerked back and his eyes filled with hurt, "Emma….you are NOT Regina and Cora, you never will be."

"I could be something similar," she whispered, "I can't start this little reign of mine off with outright murdering someone. It's wrong. I won't have blood on my hands like that."

"And it's right to let her live?"

"No, but we do this right."

"What's right in your world isn't always right here."

"I'm the leader as you all keep reminding me," Emma said and readjusted her son on her hip, "This is how I want to do it."

"The council won't abide by your decision," he snapped.

"She's going to die!" Emma yelled, "What difference does it make now or later from now?"

"The body count!" he screamed back, "What, you want to risk the safety of our children here? Do you know what she'd do if she got out? She will, you know. She'll get her magic back. And you may get to survive somehow long enough to break the curse in Storybrooke since it's your destiny…..but what about us? Will we be alive?"

Emma felt tears streaming down her face. She was trying to do right. If he demanded Cora's head on a plate, he'd demand Reginas, and then what was she going to do? Just have them executed with no trial? That wasn't justice, it was revenge.

"You are my life, Emma," she looked up at him and saw he was crying just as hard, "And the children are everything I want. But I can't support this, I can't."

"Jefferson-."

"I won't," he whispered and went out the door.

Emma stood stunned for a few moments and held her son close to her chest. she broke down sobbing. Alex was confused for a few moments but realized if his mother was crying, then he should too. Emma tried her best to comfort him. She lay in bed and sobbed and tried to figure out what she should do until she fell asleep.

She was awakened by a guard a few hours later who told her Cora was found in her cell, dead.