"What did I miss?" she asked Ruby while she looked at Regina who was standing next to Gold.
"You missed how we defeated him. If I'm honest I don't remember much. I saw red. But anyway I got to bite him and I think Regina sort of shot him."
Emma's eyebrows raised till they almost met her hairline.
"However I'll walk over and ask her what's the plan now. Stay here" Ruby instructed her and she nodded not feeling strong enough to stand up. Her head was spinning and the only thing she wanted right now was to close her eyes and sleep.
When Ruby came back her eyes were glistening, "We have a plan. Stay here, keep your eyes open. We'll be back in some time. Call us when something's wrong."
Emma nodded and saw Ruby and Regina leave with Gold who was as insecure on his legs as she was feeling. Without noticing her eyes closed and she drove of to sleep.
Regina felt bad for leaving Emma behind but she had no choice. Bringing Emma out of here would cost them precious time. Time, Gold hadn't had left. He needed his magic to heal but they couldn't free him of the blocker till they possessed his dagger.
Belle was right with her assumption it would be nearer then they thought, because when Regina stopped at the cliff where they had a good sight on the portals she saw it. On the other side. In one of the rivers from the underworld.
Regina tried to use her magic to get the dagger put it didn't work. She cursed. No way they could get it. One drop of this magic water on their skin and they'd either forgot who they were or went mad by pain.
She gave up, letting herself sink to the ground like Gold had when she had let go of his arm.
"Memory potion" Gold muttered and Regina starred at him like he'd lost his mind.
"This is a totally different magic" she disagreed. "I don't think some memory potion can protect us from the virtue of mythological rivers."
"Make one", were his last words before he passed out.
In the mean time the other woman had called Belle and explained their situation. She put her on speaker.
"In which river is the dagger?"
"Um the left one" Ruby answered and Regina rolled her eyes even though she hadn't had a better answer.
"Be quiet for a second and concentrate, Ruby. Do you hear something?"
The brunette closed her eyes and her brow furrowed in concentration, "I hear crying."
Regina heard it too now. It seemed to get louder in every second of silence.
"From which direction?"
"The right one!" she answered, the voices so loud her ears started hurting.
"Than that's Acheron, which means the dagger is in Lethe" Belle concluded.
"How do we get it out?" Regina hurried to ask as the crying turned into screaming. Her heart suddenly weighed heavy in her chest.
"You need some kind of memory potion" Belle said. "I read about Mnemosyne, another river of the underworld. The river of memory. If you'd carry some water of it with you, you'll be safe."
"How do we get it?" Ruby wanted to know and Regina almost didn't hear her because the screams of many, many voices filled her ears now. She felt tears run down her cheeks and the weight that was pressing down on her chest made it almost impossible to breath. It was worse than when she lost Daniel, it was worse than when she thought she'd lost Henry, worse than when she killed her own father, worse than when she lost her mother-a kind of pain she never experienced before. It was like all of the misery she ever felt -at once.
That was the river! It made her feel this way!
"Are you okay? Regina!" she heard the other woman shout. Regina knew she needed to think clear. She needed to get rid of these emotions, so she did the one thing she knew would help -she grabbed in her chest and ripped her heart out. Finally she could breath again. When she looked down at the pulsing heart in her hand with it's black shadows where normal people only had red shining light, she got reminded why all of this was happening. Even though she never would admit it out loud, it really was her fault a revenge seeking mob almost murdered her this morning. If she only would have been stronger all those years ago... if she wouldn't have given in to the darkness... things would be different today. But still, she regretted nothing because that got her Henry and ...
"Are you okay? Regina?" Ruby repeated her question and when Regina met her gaze she seemed somehow worried. And like she was in pain too.
"I'm alright. What's the plan?", she wiped away the tears, embarrassed that she couldn't held it together.
"The plan is for you to get back to Gold's shop where Belle has a phial of that water he is using for special memory potions and then come back here so I can jump over there, get that damn dagger and we can close those portals."
Regina nodded and hurried over to Emma. She put her heart back in her chest and managed to concentrate despite of all those emotions. Looking at Emma somehow steadied her. Seconds later she stood in the pawnbroker' shop with the blonde at her feet.
The pain was gone immediately.
"Henry? Belle?" she called out and they came of the back of the shop.
"You need to clean Emma's wound. Her magic will heal her then. Where's the phial?" she instructed. Belle handed over the item and helped Henry pull Emma into a sitting position.
"Henry?" Regina asked again and her son looked up at her, only now noticing the wetness on her cheeks and her red eyes.
"Are you okay, mom?" he asked with concern. Regina laid an arm around his shoulder and walked with him to a corner of the shop.
"I will be. But I have a big task for you."
She ripped out her heart again, pressing it in Henry's palms, "Will you watch over it, till I come back?"
His eyes widened but he nodded, "Of course, mom. I'll protect it."
"Thank you, Henry", she kissed him on his forehead before she disappeared into a cloud of purple smoke.
Author's note:
Thank you all for your positive feedback. Next chapter will be up soon. If you have any questions, you can always pm me.
