Slightly AU - The curse is still in place and Henry has yet to go searching for his birth mother. Regina is forced to leave Storybrooke following an unexpected event, and meets Emma. What would have happened if Emma and Regina hadn't gotten off on the wrong foot? 100% Swan Queen. Rated M for language and sexytimes in later chapters.

AU Swan Queen:: While pursuing a bounty, Emma Swan stumbles onto the path of Regina Mills, a single mother struggling to cope with her dying son. But when Emma finds herself suddenly dragged into Regina's world, she comes to realize maybe fate was just correcting an old mistake:: A story in which Regina pursues Emma:: M rating for later chapters and SQ sexy times

"I have hated you, liked you, loathed you and loved you, but not once have I thought you not to be a fool." Regina takes pity on the Sheriff when she finds her out in the storm; inviting her inside to escape its wrath. What starts as an aggressive game of sexual one-upmanship slowly evolves into something a little deeper; perhaps even a liking for one another...

When Emma and Mary Margaret disappear through the hat, Regina vows to find them and bring them back to make peace with Henry. On the other side, they find themselves first at Cora's mercy, before journeying to the Land Below Water to barter for aid from the Sea Witch, who is known for her rather salacious and twisted tastes when it comes to payment. Slow burn Swan Queen.

Regina could still smell her cologne and feel the cheap pleather pressing into her back. The brunette sucked in a breath. She was still lying on the floor at the staircase's base and she stared back up at it. Everything was different now. Changed. She felt broken by what had just happened, appalled and enraged, dirty. WARNING: NC17 for non-consensual sex. Dark. (But gets lighter.)

"Believe me, Regina, if I was gonna get on my knees, the last thing I would be doing down there is thanking you." •Emma/Regina•

AU: Emma Swan leads a life of crime as a con-woman and thief which keeps her crossing paths with criminal lawyer Regina Mills. When Emma is accused of a murder she claims she didn't commit Regina represents her amid the turmoil of their personal relationship.

"She doesn't even remember her family! How am I going to explain this to her when she hates me!" She was falling apart now. The way the women in the other room had just looked at her, with such disdain. That wasn't her wife. That was the Mayor, the Evil Queen maybe…but not her wife. (story re-edited 5-15-18)