Emmerson's brain short circuits the moment Regina's lips touch his. Cinnamon, apples, and something that smells a lot like the Earth after it rains invades his senses. He wraps his arms around her frame and spins them around, so Regina's pressed against the wall. The move breaks the kiss momentarily, and Emmerson brushes his thumb across Regina's bottom lip. Her chest presses against his with each breath she takes. Emmerson smiles at the light swirls of magic mixed with brown. Regina blinks, and the magic is gone.

"Sorry," she murmurs.

"Are you?"

Regina swallows roughly and whispers, "No."

Emmerson grins and places soft kisses up and down her jaw, her forehead, and her nose, studiously avoiding the lips he's already addicted to. Regina grabs his face and directs him where she wants him. The second kiss is a lot like the first. An exploration combined with the passion and intensity of at least a years' worth of suppression. Regina pulls back just enough to whisper something under her breath that Emmerson doesn't catch, but before they can go any further, someone yanks Emmerson backward. Seconds later, David comes around the corner, and Emmerson fixes his hair.

"Thanks," he mutters to Rosalie.

Rosalie nods and stands next to Regina. David ignores both Regina and Rosalie in favor of Emmerson.

"Your Mom wants to see you. They put her in one of the rooms," he says.

"I'll take that as my cue," Regina says. "Sheriff Swan, our conversation is nowhere near finished."

"Not in the least."

Regina and Rosalie walk out together. Emmerson watches them go before he turns to David. David points at the back of Rosalie's head and frowns.

"Who was that?"

"A friend."

David waits, but Emmerson leaves it at that. David scratches the back of his head and escorts Emmerson to the room where Snow waits. The two of them reach Snow's room, and David pulls back the curtain. Emmerson rolls his eyes at how pitiful Snow looks with the ice pack on her head.

"Snow. I seem you have recovered from your spell."

"Oh, Emma! I had the worst dream," Snow bemoans.

"Did it involve me telling you I was gay?" Emmerson deadpans.

Snow scowls and looks down. Emmerson folds his arms and leans on the wall.

"Nice try, though."

"You can't be gay!" Snow exclaims. "It's not right! It's immoral. It's-it's-

"Not any of your business who I sleep with," Emmerson interrupts. "And I would prefer it if you stopped calling me Emma."

"But it's your name!"

"No, it's a name. One you gave me before you stuffed me in a tree and left me to fend for myself when I was an infant."

"That's not fair."

"Neither is having my parents drug me over my choice of friends."

"It's more than that," David cuts in. "Regina is the reason we were separated, and for all the pain we went through."

"We are not having this conversation again." Emmerson frowns and adds, "Also, stop telling Neal I'm interested in him."

"But he's your True Love!" Snow whines. "You have a child together. You're meant for each other!"

"Like hell we are!"

"Emma!" Snow gasps.

"Quit calling me that!"

Snow and David both flinch at the raw anger in Emmerson's voice, and he takes a deep breath to calm down.

"Look, I will investigate what happened to Neal. Beyond that? No more. No more of this Blue Fairy nonsense, no more disparaging my friendship with Regina, no more Neal, and definitely no more of this Enchanted Forest bullshit you guys keep spouting to everyone. I want to love you guys. I really do. I like knowing I have parents out there, but I will not bow to anyone else's will from now on. My life is my life, and if you are unable to make peace with who I am and who I will love, then I cannot have you in it. My peace is more important than the blood we share. I am your child biologically, no one can deny that or take that from you, but I am not your Princess. I am not your ticket home. Accept me for who I am, and we can start over. If not, I'm done."

Emmerson shoves his hands into his pocket and turns to leave. He stops and looks over his shoulder.

"And consider this my resignation from being your so-called Savior."

"You can't quit being the Savior!"

Emmerson looks Snow dead in the eyes and says, "Watch me."

"Please don't do this," David begs. "Please."

Emmerson leaves and ignores the shocked looks from the nurses that were nosey enough to listen in on the argument. He cocks an eyebrow when he sees Bella.

"Wow. Twice in one day, I'm one lucky son of a bitch," he jokes.

"Rosalie told me you were here. So I came to keep my promise." Bella glances at him. "You alright?" she asks.

"No," he sighs. "I feel numb and angry and tired. I want nothing more than to drink a glass of wine and sleep, but I'm still on the job."

"Well. When you come home-

Bella stops suddenly.

"Home?" Emmerson repeats.

"I mean, the house. Whatever. You're homeless, so the point remains."

Emmerson smirks and decides not to push it any further. The two of them make their way out of the hospital, and Emmerson unlocks the cruiser.

"You heading back to the house?"

"Might as well. Alia went hunting. Emmett's helping Jax load some boxes for the trip back to Miller Heights and Rosalie's playing secretary to get to know Mom more. Actually, I may go see Hook if he's awake. If not, definitely back to the house."

"Want a lift?"

"Nah. I could use the exercise."

"You sure?"

"I'll be fine, jeez. I'll call you when I get there."

"Alright. Be seeing you."

Bella salutes and walks off toward the house. Emmerson's instincts go haywire the further Bella gets, and he hops in his car. He drives up beside Bella and unlocks the door.

"Get in," he says.

"What?"

"Just… my gut. Let me drive you home."

"Fine. Fine."

Bella gets inside, and Emmerson drives off.

Rosalie looks up when the door opens.

"Madam Mayor. A moment?" the woman glances at Rosalie and adds, "In private."

"Anything you say to me, you can say in front of her. Now, what can I do for you, Mother Superior?" Regina asks.

Rosalie goes back to glancing over documents and tries not to react to the scent clinging to the woman. She smells like the crap they washed off Emmerson not too long ago, and Rosalie has a feeling this is the infamous Blue Fairy everyone hates.

"Yes, well. This is a sensitive topic-

"Blue," Regina interrupts. "If it is as important as you make it seem, say it. If not, put it in an email."

"I wish to discuss your retirement."

Rosalie can practically taste the tense silence that falls over the room. Regina clears her throat and sits back in her seat, the sound echoing in the small space.

"I see."

"You do not have the town's best interest at heart. We have been fighting to return to the Enchanted Forest for months now, and you have not signed off on any of the suggestions we placed on your desk."

"Because these suggestions are either magical or impossible. You do not have the magical ability to do anything other than wave your little wand over a well and make it glow. Gold does not wish to return to the Enchanted Forest, so you can count out his assistance, and I sure as hell do not want to go back. That leaves you with Mary Poppins and her magic bag."

"And that is why I believe you are unfit to rule this town."

"Rule? Darling, this was a democracy, remember? After you idiots put Snow in charge, this town was on the verge of financial and physical ruin. I keep it running, and if you wish to test that theory, by all means. I will have no problem relinquishing my seat to anyone who beats me fair and square by the rules of this realm."

"You are that confident in your position?"

"I will never be confident as long as you are involved."

"So get rid of me."

"If it was as easy as snapping your neck, I would have done it ages ago. Now, if you are done pissing me off, lock the door behind you."

Rosalie smirks and flips the page. Her smirk falls when she sees the budget for this town. Her eyes land on a particular club. She vaguely remembers seeing it earlier and searches through the other documents for the one she's looking for. When she finds it, Rosalie compares the numbers in silence. She frowns and sets the papers aside just when this Mother Superior woman speaks once more.

"Release whatever spell you have over Emma. I can sense your magic all over her."

That gets Rosalie's attention. She lifts her head a little to see the confusion on Regina's face before it's replaced by annoyance.

"Get out."

"This was your last warning, Regina."

"And this is yours. Get. Out."

Rosalie shudders at the power building in the room. Mother Superior bows her head and exits. Rosalie waits until the woman is out of City Hall before she clears her throat.

"Hey, Regina?" she calls out. "What's the etiquette club?"

When Blue is back in her personal office, she picks up her phone and dials a number. The phone rings once before the person on the other end answers.

"Be quick about it."

Emmerson stands in the middle of the empty lot, confused, and scratches the back of his head. Who the hell called him out there? Something sharp pierces the side of his neck. He reaches up and yanks out a small dart. A weird liquid drips from the tip, and Emmerson wavers. He tries to stay upright, but his knees give out on him. His legs go numb first, this his torso, and finally his arms. Emmerson lies on the ground, temporarily paralyzed and unable to do anything but lie there until his eyes grow heavy. The last thing he sees and feels is a pair of boots and the sensation of being lifted from the ground.

Bella's ears twitch when a floorboard creaks on the stairs. Crawling off her bed, Bella focuses on keeping her heart rate calm. The last thing she wants is her mother showing up and getting hurt or worse. Instead, she slips behind her closet door and waits. Bella exhales through her nose. Finally, the door to her room opens, and through the cracks of the closet, Bella sees a gun. Frowning, Bella bides her time and watches the intruder makes his way through her room. In the back of her mind, she wonders how they got in, and then it hits her. Her mother never sets the barrier unless they're actually in the house.

Bella knows the closet is the next choice, so she takes her stance. As soon as the intruder makes his way over to her, she rips the gun from his hand and empties the clip. Bella kicks the clip further into her closet before dodging the punch aimed for her head. Bella blasts him back with enough air to disorient him and then swipes his legs, but she feels the magic before it comes. She drops down and rolls to avoid the fire that came from the intruder's mouth. It incinerates the wall and leaves scorch marks behind.

"Okay, before you destroy the house. Let's take this outside."

Bella jumps up and does the stupidest thing imaginable. She tackles the intruder through the bedroom window, off the balcony, and to the backyard below. Bella twists to ensure he takes a brunt of the hit, but it knocks the wind out of her for sure. The guy rolls over, and Bella immediately flicks her wrist. The roots from the apple tree grab hold of the intruder and lift him into the air. She clenches her fists, and the roots tighten and tighten until she hears the snapping sound she's been waiting for. Bella drops her hand, and the roots return to their natural state. The intruder falls to the ground like a rag doll, his spine broken but his heart still beating, and Bella points toward the house. Two streams of water fly out of the kitchen, and Bella hardens them both until they become ice. Not wanting to risk it, she stabs each icicle through his wrists, pinning him to the Earth. Watching him closely, Bella kneels beside him and lets panic and fear take over her emotions.

Moments later, Regina and Rosalie both appear in a cloud of purple smoke. They look at Bella, then the body, and Bella snorts sarcastically.

"I do believe someone's trying to kill me."

Alia, done with her hunt, catches Emmerson's scent and decides to surprise him. Still, when she arrives at the empty lot, all she finds is an abandoned cruiser. Alia sniffs the air again, really focusing on the different scents, and that's when she smells it.

"Fuck."

Alia sprints into the woods, already dialing Emmett.

Emmett beats Alia to the house and hears Regina, Rosalie, and Bella in the backyard. He hops the fence and skids to a stop. He spots the body and decides to table that for another time.

"Someone may have taken Emmerson. Alia followed his scent to an empty lot and found his cruiser, but not Emmerson. And," he pauses and grimaces, "she smelled a very diluted form of atropine mixed with his blood."

"Hold on, atropine?" Bella repeats. "Isn't that-

"Atropa Belladonna," Regina says softly, the kind of soft that hints at restrained fury. "And I know exactly who makes it."