Part Eleven

It's almost morning again and I feel both tired and electrify. Tired because I didn't sleep at all last night, my mind was a mix of Henry and Emma. The worse part was that damn dream about me, Emma, and Henry living together like a happy family. If that wasn't a nightmare, I don't know what else it could be. I gave up sleeping at God's knows what time and just silently waited for the time to pass so I could resume our search for Henry. Not that the awake part of the night was any better. My mind kept on going to images of a certain blonde woman with those damn green eyes and a beautiful smile. If I didn't know any better, I would say Emma put some sort of curse on me. Perhaps she did.

What she shared last night, was intimate, in a way. I know for a fact she had never shared that with anyone, not even her parents, but she did it with me. Why? Why did she trust me enough to share that? I mean, on one hand, it did the trick to make the map work, but on the other hand…

And then there was that look of hurt that crossed her face when I suggested I might not tag along with them. And it wasn't just the look of hurt on her face, you know? It was what it made me feel. It felt like, she cared for me. It made me want to walk up to her and wrap my arms around her and kiss those pink pale lips of hers and tell her that everything was going to be okay. Tell her that we are going to find Henry and go back home. Together. Gods, what insanity!

Am I being blind here? And if I am, in which way? That damn woman confuses me. I don't know if she is just being friendly or if she is trying to kiss me too. She sends all sorts of mix-up signals. She flirts with Hook, there is no denying that but then she says she has no interest in him. She opens up to me but she doesn't cross a certain invisible line or whatever. It's like she is waiting for me to make the first move, but that is just not going to happen. I'm a Queen.

And she is the offspring of my enemies, whom I admit, are not all that hateful anymore. Maybe she is toying with me. Would she do that? It's not very hero-like but, neither is Emma. No, Emma wouldn't do that. She's not a villain, she just an idiot. A God damn beautiful idiot, I sigh as I bury my face between my hands.

"Regina?" Emma's voice says outside the tent.

"Yes?"

"We are leaving in ten minutes"

"I'll be right out"

I hear the sound of Emma's boot walking away as I rose from the bed. At least my heart is a little less heavy today. Now we have the map. Now we have a way to find Henry. I need to find him, and I need to find him fast. It has been too long already that he is here. That I am here. I know Henry, deep down, is probably seen all of this as some sort of adventure, but it's one thing to read about them in a book and another to actually live them. The tales of the Enchanted Forest aren't as great as the book he reads makes it seems. It's dangerous. People get hurt. Many dies. I walk to where I left my boots last night and sit down on the bed again to put them on. A quick wave of my hands to make sure my face looks presentable (Rescue mission or not I am still a Queen) and I leave the tent. They are all ready now, just waiting for me. I wave my hands in the air again to get rid of the tent and follow the pirate inside the heavy jungle.

It's still dark when we start to walk the path that dirty pirate takes us to. It's dark and yet, it's burning hot. How is that even possible? Where is the cool breeze of the early morning? We walk for about half an hour before I realize I'm walking in front of Emma. I look over my shoulder and caught Emma staring at my ass. She didn't notice me looking at her, I suspect she was quite entertained by the view of my backside. I look forward again and can't help the smile that forms on my lips. I even cooked up a flirt when the pirate says something to Emma and she laughs. It's amazing how that woman can take me from ten to zero in no time.

"How much further?" I ask feeling annoyed.

"We should be getting closer to Pan's lair if we walk a straight-line course"

We all stop ad Emma unfolds the map to look at. Gods, why is it so hot on this damn island? My cloth is soaked in sweat.

"Son of a…" Emma says and looks at Hook "How is he now behind us?"

"How can that be?" Snow says.

"You got us lost" I state the obvious.

What?

She did!

"No, she didn't," Hook says "It's the camp. Pan is moving it"

"He's playing tricks on us," Charming says.

"If Pan's camp keeps moving, how are we going to find Henry?"

I look at the fear on Emma's face and it takes a second or two for her words to finally sink in. That son of bitch! I'm going to kill him and I am going to enjoy it.

"So, this whole track has been for nothing," Emma says.

"I told you walking was idiotic. If we could just use some magic we could materialize in the camp and grab Henry"

"We don't know where the camp is, have you even been listening?" Snow says.

Forget the whole former enemies.

I want to murder her too.

"Pan has shields against magic and any attempt would end in your death and more importantly, mine," Hook says "That's why we are walking"

May I kill him too?

I suppress the eye roll because I could literally set the pirate on fire, right now, and let's face it, nobody would miss him. But instead, I gather my composure, as I am a Queen and say:

"Then what is your idea? How are we going to find it?"

"By using someone he trusts," Hook says.

"Who?" Charming asks Hook "Because I guess he certainly doesn't trust you"

"A fairy who lived here when I was about. She might still be on the island. She'll be an inside source, knows all about the camp and she can get us in. She might even have some pixie dusty left, perhaps she could fly in"

"You mean, fairy dusty?" Emma says.

"No. Pixie dust. It's stronger like nuclear fairy dusty" Charming says.

Please!

It's not that stronger. It never really defeated me.

"Wait, a fairy," Emma says as her face frown "Tinker Bell?"

Holy Shit!

Not Green!

I try to control my features but I know I lost for a second there. God, damn it, there is no way in hell Tinker Bell would ever help me. Not after what I did to her. Not after that whole true love's fiasco, which I still don't believe I was entirely wrong, just like I'm not entirely wrong about every single mistake I made in the past.

Crap!

"It's a bad idea," I say, noticing the way Emma looks at me "Mark my words, this Tinker Bell is not going to save us"

Well, she won't.

And for once in my life, I wish they would just listen to me.

But alas, they don't.

Hook says we need to get to Tinker Bell, says he has ways to convince her to help us.

Ew!

Just ew!

If Tinker Bell sank that low, we are all doomed.

The Charming idiots agree with Hook and this time I do roll my eyes. Of course, they do. Why wouldn't they?

It's up to Emma now.

I look at her and I wish that for once, she would just agree with me.

I wish she would take my side.

I wish she could see in my eyes how much I do not like this idea.

But, how could she? My face is hard as a stone.

I'm barely breathing.

Barely holding my shit together.

"I know you think this is not a good idea," Emma says looking at me "But we have to at least try,"

Of course, she doesn't take my side.

Why do I even have feelings for her is beyond my reason.

"Good call, Love" Hook says.

"This is ridiculous," I say "We should keep this between us. How do we even know if she is not working for Pan?"

"Don't worry about that, Your Majesty," Hook says looking at me "Tinker hates Pan just as much as we all do"

"And how do you know that?" I ask.

"I just know, Love" Hook says.

"How do we find her?" Emma asks.

"I know where she stays here on the island," Hook says "I can get us there"

"Then what are we waiting for?" Charmin says "Let get a move on"

"Aye. I just need a minute to situate myself on the island. Then we can go"

Hook walks away, leaving the four of us behind. I want to argue that this is not a good idea, that we are wasting our time, but I can't. Not because I don't have the words for it, but simply because I don't have the arguments. Not without telling them what happened between Tinker and me back in the Enchant Forest.

Gods, how many more of my past demons are going to come back from the grave and hunt me? Out of all the fairies I've wrong in the past why did it have to be her here? And why is it so damn hot is this island? I run my cloth behind my neck, and it comes back drenched. Is it really just the heat? No, I don't think so. I'm nervous and this is my body betraying me. Is it too much to wish that the pirate gets lost and we have to move on without him? Without Tinker Bell? I can use my magic, I can just magic us all around this damn island until we find Henry!

But as my luck keeps getting the best of me, the pirate comes back. He announces he knows the way to Tinker's lair and soon they all started to follow the pirate. I stay behind, walking as slow as I possibly can. He didn't get lost but before we even get there, I certainly will.