He couldn't run fast enough. Bushes and leaves raked his ears and fur, but he pushed himself harder, carrying his prize strapped to his back. Jack felt them just behind him. It was a struggle to even breathe, but he couldn't stop now. They had come too far to stop now. He made it to the bridge before one of his legs gave out and he was sent sliding across the cold stone, throwing up piles of snow. He felt cold hands in his fur, trying to tear the book away. "Dark Wolf! Help!"
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
For the 10th time, maybe hundredth time, Ruby blinked into consciousness. She heard the beeping again. That annoying beeping! She ground her teeth in anger, but she couldn't move. Her limbs were heavy and it took all of her energy to open her eyes. She was in a hospital, full of people she didn't recognize and the smell of antiseptic and other chemicals were almost overwhelming.
"You're awake." A pretty black haired woman came into her line of sight. Ruby stared at her hair. Black hair? Why did that sound familiar? Did she know someone with black hair? The woman kept talking on and on about something she didn't quite understand. Her voice was very annoying. She shined a bright light in Ruby's eyes. "Can you speak? Can you tell me your name?"
"Where am I?" Ruby managed to croak. There was something important happening. She could feel it. What was it?
"You're in Greyson Hospital in Portland, Maine. Some hikers found you almost buried under a pile of rocks...In the forest… where there were no rocks." She gave Ruby a suspicious look.
"I need to get out of here." She didn't know where she needed to be, but here was not it.
"Ma'am, you sustained multiple injuries, including over 2 dozen broken bones and you're paralyzed on your right side. You've been in a coma for over a month. The fact that you are alive is a miracle. You need to answer some questions. Especially regarding your blood-"
The door opened, cutting off her words. A man in a white coat motioned to her with two fingers. The woman stepped out of the room and Ruby sat up. She lifted her right arm rather easily. Clearly that lady didn't know what she was talking about. She started pulling the many cords and tubes attached to her arms off.
The door opened again and a blonde walked in wearing a red jacket and a badge. She smiled and locked the door before running to hug Ruby. "You're alive!"
"I am." Ruby pushed her away. "Who are you?"
"What? I'm Emma." The blonde, Emma, walked to the foot of her bed and grabbed her chart. "Retrograde amnesia? Are you fucking serious?"
Ruby ignored her. Maybe she could run fast enough and get away. She climbed out of bed and a bag was dropped nearby. She looked up at the blonde.
"Get dressed. Whether you remember or not, I'm a friend and I didn't spend the last week erasing you from this hospital's records to lose you. Do you remember Regina? Jack? Snow? Charming? Anything?"
"No." Ruby frowned. "Should I?"
Emma rolled her eyes and turned her back to her. "Get dressed. Come on. You have about 90 seconds before these people realize I'm not a U.S. Marshal and their records have been hacked."
"You had to do all that to get me out of here?" Ruby reached into the bag and pulled out underwear, jeans and a long sleeved shirt. She got dressed as fast as she could.
"Yeah, and I'm jamming their security cameras too. You're a werewolf in a human hospital. They probably already noticed something weird about you, but that doesn't matter. As long as they don't have any proof, I'm good. 20 seconds."
Werewolf? Was she crazy? Ruby growled softly and put on the black tennis shoes this Emma had brought and put on the dark jacket, pulling up the hood as well. She tapped Emma's shoulder and the blonde removed her chart and walked over to the machines around her bed. She pushed a few buttons and then shoved the chart into the bag. She nodded to the door and Ruby followed after her. Was this really a good idea? This woman was obviously a dangerous individual. She tried to find a different way to leave, but Emma seemed to expect this and kept a firm hand around her arm. "Where are you taking me?" She asked, once they had made it outside.
"Home."
"Where is home?"
"Storybrooke, Maine." Emma pushed her into the tackiest yellow car she had ever seen and walked around to the driver's seat, tossing the bag in the back.
"That sounds completely made up." Ruby scoffed. "Look, I appreciate this, but you can just drop me off at the nearest bus station or something."
Emma sighed and whipped out her phone, scrolling through it before handing it to her, showing her a picture of a small family. Ruby arched her eyebrows at the sight of her, some woman she didn't recognize, and a kid. The woman was actually stunning and seemed familiar but she couldn't place where she'd seen her before. The boy looked similar to her though. He looked familiar too…
"That's your family. Regina and Jack. There's a lot more people, but they're your immediate family, I guess you could say." She brought the car to a halt, being stuck behind a truck in traffic. Emma reached into her glove compartment and pulled out one of two small red vials. She handed one to Ruby. "Drink it." She made a point of locking the door as well.
"This started out nice, but I'm starting to feel a little threatened." Ruby said, starting to bare her teeth. "I don't know these people and I don't know you."
"I'm not in the mood for this. We need you right now, so shut up and drink the damn potion." Emma snapped.
"Potion? Did you escape from a mental hospital?!" Ruby grabbed the door but Emma almost dove across the seat to stop her.
Nearby, a pair of children started laughing and pointing from the backseat of their mom's minivan as the little yellow car started bouncing up and down. The horn blew a few times and more cars going by blew their horns as well.
Ruby growled, licking the disgusting substance from her lips. She wanted to throw up, but a look from Emma told her that she was very willing to do this again. Drinking the nasty 'potion' felt amazing though. Any aches and pains she had from leaving the hospital early were gone in an instant and she felt well enough to run a mile right now.
"What's my last name?" Emma asked.
"I don't fucking know, you psycho."
"Seriously? Not even with a health potion?" Emma sighed and started the car again. "I guess Regina can figure out how to help you. Maybe…" She suddenly swerved the car and Ruby's head snapped back against the window hard enough to make her see stars for a moment. That's when it all came flooding back…
"What's my last name?" Emma asked again.
"I ought to rip your fucking throat out, Swan!" Ruby exclaimed, clutching her head.
"You're back!" Emma grinned.
An hour later saw them sitting in a small diner. Ruby was looking out the window, having barely spoken since Emma told her what had happened with her family. "You should order something."
"I'm not hungry."
"Yes, you are. You've been fed through an IV for over a month. You need to eat something solid. Please?" Emma slid a menu across the table.
Ruby didn't turn her head, chewing on her bottom lip. "That thing managed to split my family apart in just a month. I need to get back to Regina."
"You need to eat. Regina's fine, I just talked to Lily. She's moved out but they're keeping an eye on her and making sure-."
"Hold the fuck up. Moved out?" Ruby said, her head snapping around. "You never said she moved out. Moved where?"
"Just across the divide. They built her a neat little den and everything. I guess she didn't want to be around Zelena or Mulan. I think she might be mad at Mal too."
Ruby growled softly, slowly processing this information. "And you're sure her pregnancy is going well?"
Emma nodded. "She's moving faster than Lily though. Other than that, I assure you she is fine and in good hands. She just wants you to come home." She tapped the menu again. "But eat something first. It's a long drive back home."
"And Jack? You said he was almost crushed in the tunnels-"
"Almost." Emma said. "Order and I'll explain more."
Ruby glared at her, but eventually waved over a waitress and ordered a full breakfast platter. Emma ordered one as well and kept telling Ruby what had happened. Ruby dug into her food when it was brought, her hunger betraying her desperate need to get home.
"You're not going to leave Regina, are you? For sleeping with the Dark Wolf." The blonde ventured to ask.
"Absolutely not." Ruby replied instantly. "That's my mate, the mother of my children, the love of my life. I'm with her to the end. She doesn't have a choice in that."
Emma smiled. "Tell her when we get home. I think she needs to hear it."
"She really thinks I'll leave her?" Ruby frowned.
"She does." Emma slipped some of her hot chocolate. She reached into her pocket and pulled out Ruby's phone to hand to her. Ruby took it and scrolled through it. A few moments later she heard Regina's laughter and Ruby let out a soft smile. Then another voice joined hers, sounding similar but deeper and maybe wilder. Emma held out her hand and Ruby turned the phone around, replaying the video. It showed Regina laying in a bed. Makeup less, a bed head that still managed to be flawless and all smiles, Emma had never heard her laugh so hard in her life. Jack was sitting crossed legged on the bed next to her, laughing at something as well.
"Oh my gosh, I'm so funny." Ruby said in the video.
"Not really." Jack replied, making Regina snicker.
"Rude."
Emma smiled and handed her back the phone. "I'm gonna make her laugh like that again." Ruby promised. "I'm gonna find a way for us to be happy again."
"How are you going to play this? Grand return or sneak in without anyone noticing?" Emma asked.
"Grand entrance, obviously. But I want to be the one to talk to Regina." Ruby said firmly. Emma nodded again. They were quiet as they finished their food and made to leave. When they got to the car, Ruby touched Emma's shoulder, making her pause. "Thank you for this."
Emma shrugged. "It's no problem."
"No, you found me, brought back my memories...painfully… but in a few hours I can see my family again, because of you. If there is ever anything you need, you let me know and it's yours."
"Know anything about rebellious teenagers?"
"Um, no, my son usually does whatever he wants." She smirked. "Regina's the disciplinarian."
"Right." Emma sighed.
"Hey, we'll figure it out. Want me to drive?"
"Should I let someone drive who's been in a coma for the past month?" Emma motioned to the passenger seat and Ruby rolled her eyes, climbing into the car. Emma got behind the wheel. They didn't have much farther to go anyways. Soon, the pack's alpha would be home and maybe the pack could be reunited. With Regina's ability to hold grudges, she highly doubted it. But she hoped Regina would see the sense in at least moving back into the den for the kids' protection. With the secret out and Excalibur reforged, there was no telling what the Dark Wolf would do next.
When they crossed the border back into Storybrooke, Emma parked her car at the edge of town. Ruby was quick to hop out and shifted into her wolf form, doing a few stretches before throwing back her head and letting loose a long howl. Silence followed and she whimpered softly before howling again. There was an answering one off in the distance, deeper and stronger. "That's Mal." Ruby barked. She howled again but halfway through the entire pack cut her off, louder than before. They were moving closer. Emma changed into her white wolf form and followed Ruby as the werewolf took off, sprinting through the trees like her life depended on it. Emma had no hope of keeping up with her, but she knew where she was going and how to cut her off. She arrived at the lake just in time to see Ruby bombarded by a dozen different furry bodies as her pack welcomed her home. Emma wagged her tail watching Ruby be mauled by her loved ones. Mal walked over to her and nuzzled her head.
"Thank you, Swan."
"You're very welcome. Where's Lily? I didn't hear her howl."
"Back at the den. She asked for privacy."
"What? Lily had the baby?!" Emma didn't even wait for a reply before taking off back to the den. She tore through the front door and down into the den Lily had built for her lair. She found her girlfriend in her dragon form, curled up in her nest. "Lily!" The dragon jumped awake, looking around in confusion. "You're still pregnant. Mal said you asked for privacy, I thought you were in labor or something! I don't know what I thought. Are you okay? Is everything alright?"
Lily purred, making the stone rumble around them. "Everything is fine. I just entered labor. It won't be another few hours before I have the egg." Her voice came out as a deep rumble, as if she were growling the words rather than speaking them. It was also weird to hear her speak without opening her mouth, but apparently dragons could do that.
"Why didn't you call me?" Emma asked, changing back into a human to remove her shoes and coat, perfectly content to sit here and wait.
"You don't have to be here for this part. I don't even want to be here for this."
"Well, I am. I promised to be here and I want to be." Emma slid closer to her and laid her head on Lily's paw, looking up at her. "You're a very cute dragon by the way." Lily snorted and laid her head back down. "Do you need anything?"
"No. I'm good. Just having you here will be fine."
/
Ruby barely managed to extract herself from the rest of the pack and make her way to the divide. She sent the others back to the den so they wouldn't be out in the cold. They could catch up later but right now, she had to find her mate and child. The splinter pack's den was irritatingly far from the mountain den and it started to worry her that Regina may've walked all the way here.
"Um….she did." Tink confirmed, trotting at her side.
Ruby rolled her eyes. "I'm going to kill her. That walk must've been hell on her feet." She just wanted to massage them just thinking about it. "Is she okay? Well fed? Well groomed? Her tail literally catches every branch she walks past. Leaves are always stuck there."
Tink snickered. "She knows. She goes for walks with Jack and we clean her tail. We keep her active. She's been pregnant before, Ruby, we know what to do."
"I know, but I was there last time. Her pregnancy doubled in like a month and it was the one month I wasn't here." Ruby growled.
"The Dark Wolf took care of her." Ruby immediately stopped walking and glared at the unbothered fairy. "Hate it as you will, Ruby, it did. I hate it too, okay? But there is no changing the past." Tink continued on and Ruby trotted after her. They came to a tight group of trees and Tink lead the way to the underground dwelling where her mate had moved. As soon as Tink opened the door they were met with bared teeth. Jack paused a little seeing but Regina was unconvinced and continued to guard the door, fluffing out her fur and raising her hackles.
"Go away."
"Regina, it's me." Ruby said, taking a step back.
"I don't believe you. I won't fall for this again!" Regina roared. She bared her teeth, growling deeply and keeping herself planted between her and the doorway. It was only then that Ruby noticed how skinny she was.
"It's me, baby. I'm not the Dark Wolf. I know it hurt you and I don't care. I don't care about anything you did this past month. I just care about you. You are my mate, the love of my life, the only love I will ever want." Regina started to calm down, but she didn't give way. "Want me to prove it?" The former queen swallowed, her fur starting to lie flat and she nodded, hope starting to fill her eyes. "Alright. What if I tell you something only I would know?"
"Do it, or else I will kill you where you stand." She conjured a sword in her jaws. A terrible looking weapon that Ruby assumed to be Excalibur.
"Okay." Ruby took a deep breath. "Your middle name is Maria. Your birthday is February 1st. That scar on your lip came from Cora… She hit you because you cursed at a nobleman visiting during teatime and he disrespected your father. She was wearing a ring and it cut your lip. Your favorite color is blue. Not just any blue but sky blue, because that's the color of the dress you wore when Daniel Colter proposed to you and that was the color of the riding jacket you wore when you saved Snow. Daniel was your first love, he was a stableboy but he made you fall in love anyway and he was one of the reasons you became the Evil Queen. Rocinante was your prized horse. You won exactly 23 blue ribbons in equestrian events riding him." The sword fell out of Regina's open mouth, but Ruby kept going. "We met in 4 different battles during your war with the Charmings. I killed 210 of your Black Knights. When you cursed us, you made me a waitress and you gave me the greatest gift you could've ever given me at the time: peace. I didn't have to worry about being the wolf and hurting people that I cared about. It brought me peace for the first time since...since Peter. I served your meals for 28 years. You like coffee in the mornings, sweet and hot. You eat salads and healthy crap all the time but you don't really like them. You like good, homecooked meals, and cheeseburgers. You really like cheeseburgers. What else? You like singing, the sound of rain, literally anything apple related, your hair is the most gorgeous hair on the planet, your smile completely changes my life every time I see it. Just like your laugh. It always made the darkness go away." Ruby paused to take a deep breath. "And you're a hero, you're a villain. You're a wolf, you're a human, a mother, a sister, an aunt, a thousand different things. But most importantly, you're you, Regina. It took a thousand lifetimes, over thousands of years to create you and honestly, you are the greatest thing to grace this world, and it is an honor to stand at your side-"
"Stop." Regina whispered. She blinked, tears falling down her cheeks. She changed into a human and Ruby followed suit, catching Regina as she ran into her arms. "It is you. I'm so sorry-"
"No, no, no, none of that." Ruby whispered. "Ssh." She let out a deep sigh of peace, being able to hold Regina in her arms again. She kissed Regina's forehead, silently swearing that she would never allow something like this to happen again.
"But Ruby-"
"We can talk about the Dark Wolf later." Ruby took a step back, grinning as Jack almost tackled her.
"It's really you!"
"Of course it is." Ruby just wanted to hold her family and never let them go. She didn't even want to imagine what they had gone through, but she was here now. She was going to make sure nothing ever hurt them again. She glanced up, finding that Regina and Tink were gone. "Come on, let's get you inside. It's pretty cold out here." Jack lead her into the small home, closing the door behind her. It was neat and spacious and built more for a wolf than a human, but it was nice and warm. Ruby removed her coat and hung it by the door. Jack changed back into a wolf to make it through the doorways and she followed suit. She found the rest of the splinter pack in the living room, all in their own wolf forms. Tink had laid down next to Merida and Kathryn on one side of the room and Hansel and Gretel seemed to be asleep. She dipped her head politely and followed after Jack as he took her to the adjacent room where Regina was laying in her nest near the fire. Ruby moved closer to her, seeing the tiny movements in her belly fur. She glanced at Regina, swallowing hard as she approached. "You...you had twins?"
Regina shook her head. She stood up so Ruby could get a closer look, revealing that there were 3 little pups in the nest. They were so small… "Two boys and a girl." The boys both sported dark gray, almost black and silver fur. The female had a unique silverfish color all over and a pink nose, but she was even smaller. Ruby leaned down to sniff them and one of the boys snapped at her. She wagged her tail.
"Look at them. They're so little and cute, Regina." She cooed, laying down so she could continue looking at them. Regina laid down again as well, nuzzling them to her belly to nurse.
"They were premature." Regina said softly, causing Ruby to furrow her brow, looking up at her mate. "The girl was so small, they didn't even see her in the ultrasound. They don't think she'll make it…"
"Are they sick?"
Regina shook her head. "They were, but they're better. I called in 3 doctors, a veterinarian…"
"I'm so sorry, I should've been here." Ruby whispered. Regina said nothing, her ears flattening to her head. "I know you did the best you possibly could. They'll make it. They all will." She moved forward, pressing her forehead against Regina's. "Have you named them?" Ruby looked back down at her young litter.
"Yes, but I was waiting for you to see what you thought."
"What are they?" Ruby asked, bouncing up and down.
Regina chuckled softly and looked down at her nursing pups. "That one who snapped at you is named Fenris."
"Giant badass wolf from Norse mythology, yes!" She exclaimed. "Perfection! Next?" Regina's tail started to wag at her infectious excitement.
"The other boy is named Amaroq."
"Giant badass wolf from Inuit mythology, yes!" She said. "Maybe you should've named me. Then I would have a cool name. What's our daughter's name?"
"Rani."
Ruby tilted her head. "I don't know that one. Did we pick that?"
"We did. It means queen, duchess, sovereign-"
"Sounds exactly like something you would pick." Jack cut in.
"Of course it does." Ruby nuzzled Regina's head, furiously and happily until Regina had to push her away, only then for Ruby to lick her face until she started growling. "I'm happy, Regina, just accept my love." She snapped, laying on top of her mate, careful not to hurt her babies. Regina laughed softly and pushed her off again. Ruby moved to settle down behind her and laid her head across Regina's side. Both mothers probably wouldn't go to sleep any time soon. They still needed to have a good talk, but for now, Ruby was content. It wasn't until the next day, when Ruby had sent the others away so she could speak to her mate privately, did that talk occur. Regina was unable to leave the nest for more than minutes at a time so she was currently confined to her new den.
"Did Emma tell you?" Regina asked.
"She gave me the gist of things, but I want to hear it from you." Ruby said. She made sure to sit on the opposite side of the room, giving Regina her space. She didn't want to push her mate, but she also knew that Regina wanted to tell her, she was just afraid of her response.
"I tried to ignore it." said Regina, curling her tail over the 3 sleeping pups at her feet. "I did. I knew something was wrong, but I just...I never thought that you weren't you. You did things differently, spoke differently, I even told Zelena that it was like being with a different person at times, but I just thought it was because everything that had been going on. I hate myself for it."
"Don't." Ruby came forward to sit next to her mate. "It's okay."
"It's not, I slept with it." Regina snapped. "We had sex, multiple times and I enjoyed it. I've taken 50 showers since I found out the truth and I want to rip my own skin off just thinking about it. I will forever hate myself for that. The thought of losing you because of it…" Regina looked down. "Other than that, nothing much happened. The Dark Wolf pretended to be you, so we didn't have to worry about it hurting anyone. The only problem was the magic crystal, which you know about. I haven't talked to most of the others since."
Ruby thought about her words for a moment. She honestly didn't care that Regina had slept with the Dark Wolf. She was pissed at the Dark Wolf for trying to murder her and impersonating her, but none of that hate was geared towards Regina at all. She stepped away and changed into a human, commanding Regina to do the same. The former queen bent down to make sure the pups were warm before moving away from the nest. Ruby placed both hands on her mate's cheeks and tilted her head up to look her in the eye. Those beautiful eyes. "I don't blame you. I'm not angry with you. We'll work through this, we'll figure it out. You've had to worry about being pregnant, about our son, about our family, about some monster trying to tear us all apart, okay, I completely understand. You must've been scared and stressed and that fact that you made it through as well as you did, doesn't even surprise me. You are the definition, the purest example of resilience I have ever seen. I love you and nothing will change that. I am mad, but it's not at you. I am going to make the Dark Wolf bleed and suffer for this, believe me." She kissed Regina, pouring in all of her passion and rage into that one kiss. Regina tried to suppress a moan, but Ruby heard it and it almost made her smile. "I will reclaim you later." She smirked. Regina didn't smile. In fact, she started trembling… "Regina? Babe? What is this? Is it-is it a seizure? Do you need a doctor?" She asked.
"It marked me." Regina whispered.
"What?"
Regina moved her hair, showing Ruby the mark on the right side of her neck that she had put there when she turned Regina into a werewolf and took her as her mate. Then she turned her head and showed her the new mark on the other side of her neck. "It hid it for a long time, so I wouldn't notice."
Ruby sighed. "You know, I wanted today to be a quiet day where we could catch up but looks like it won't be." She kissed Regina again. "I will reclaim you later, as I said." She growled that statement, making sure that Regina knew she meant it. She was angry before, but now she was livid. She grabbed her phone and sent out a mass text message.
"What are you going to do?" Regina asked.
"You are going to stay here and take care of our little ones. I've got this under control. You okay with that?" Regina arched an eyebrow. Ruby was completely unaware that her eyes were glowing. Her teeth were aching to bite down on something and she could feel her wolf demanding to be let free.
"I am, but Ruby, please don't get hurt." She made a fist and cast a spell over her hand, making her skin glow bright red. She touched Ruby's chest and the werewolf let out a deep growl, feeling Regina's own rage like liquid fire in her bloodstream. "I want to be present when you skin that bitch."
"As you wish, your majesty." Ruby replied. Regina went to go get Excalibur and returned to hand her mate the mythical blade. She stormed towards the door, but just as she reached it, Regina grabbed her arm, spinning her around and placing a heart stopping kiss on her lips that made her lightheaded for a moment.
"I love you too."
Ruby smiled, but shook it off. "We'll continue this later." She walked out of the house, finding that the pack was waiting near the bridge. She sent the kids back to the new den to wait with Regina and addressed the adults. "I don't have magic anymore, so I'm gonna need some help. I need barriers. Magical barriers made from light magic. I want them built around both dens, the forest, the lake, and Storybrooke."
"Big barriers." Mal commented.
"How's Regina?" Zelena asked.
Ruby pointed the sword at her. "Mostly fine, probably bored and definitely doesn't look like she just had 3 babies." She pointed at Mal. "Is Lily okay?"
"The egg hasn't hatched."
Ruby nodded. "Anyways, I want the barriers to push the Dark Wolf out of them, I want it beaten into the outer edges of the town borders itself. Then we're going to go wolf hunting. How soon can you do that?"
"Give us 20 minutes." Zelena said. True to the witch's word, the barriers went up almost exactly 20 minutes later. Massive blue domes of magic rose over the town, spreading over the forest and wrapping the two wolf dens. The spells used not only isolated the Dark Wolf and pushed it across the barrier, but with so many magic users working as one, it prevented the creature of darkness from being able to cross it again. Ruby lead the hunt around the outer edges of the border. It wanted her family, it touched her mate, her child, it marked her queen...No more playing around. She was done. It took about an hour to find the Dark Wolf. It made the mistake of running. Mal and Zelena chased it to the ground and the pack dove on top. It was a mauling. Angry teeth and claws met the Dark Wolf on all sides. Ruby simply watched. There was no more fear of the Dark Wolf's power, no caution, no worry about injury. Only anger. Only hatred. Mal truly held nothing back, repeatedly the creature against the ground again and again. To its credit, the Dark Wolf didn't just take the beating like it had with Regina. It was yet another reminder of its unhealthy infatuation with her mate.
"Enough!" The fighting ceased at once and her pack backed away, leaving a bloody and bruised Dark Wolf in the center. She trotted forward, changing back into human form. The Dark Wolf did as well, glaring at her. "You know your fate is sealed then?"
"I'm not going to let you, of all fucking people kill me." The Dark Wolf growled. "If anyone should defeat the darkness, it should be Regina."
Ruby chuckly dryly. "You really think I'm that stupid. She told me everything, especially the part of you watching her, wanting to be tied to her. I would've let her kill you. She deserves to be the one to end you after you tricked her to sleep with her." She unsheathed Excalibur and for the first time, saw genuine fear in the eyes of her former counterpart. "But, if there is even the slightest chance that Regina could become the Dark One by killing you, then no. You are going to die slowly and painfully." She swung the blade hard and without warning, slicing open the Dark Wolf's cheek. Black blood oozed from the wound and the creature didn't even flinch. "She was not yours to mark. She was not yours to claim. And she never wanted to be!"
"I didn't hear her complain." The Dark Wolf chuckled. "Every night when she was in my bed, writhing from my fingertips-" Its words died in its throat. It slowly looked down at Excalibur, having been thrown so hard it buried itself in the Dark Wolf's chest up to the hilt. Ruby walked forward and twisted the blade, eliciting a strangled cry from her enemy.
"You made a big mistake messing with my family."
To her disgust, the Dark Wolf started laughing. "I'm not an actual wolf…" Its voice started to change. "Miss Lucas…" Ruby took a step back. "It wasn't a mark..." The Dark Wolf dissolved into a writhing mass of darkness, black tendrils of blackness coiling and whipping through the air. Excalibur fell to the ground and Ruby looked to the others, hoping that they knew what was going on. It wasn't a mark…
The mass of darkness suddenly shot through the air, slamming into one of the barriers. The barrier held for a moment.
"What's it doing?" Mulan asked.
Ruby scowled. "Will it hold?" She turned to Mal and Zelena.
"Not for long. We can try to hold it off-" The words had barely left the witch's mouth before the barrier exploded, sending a wave of wind outwards that nearly knocked them of their feet. The darkness continued on, making a beeline for Regina's den. Ruby turned around and grabbed Excalibur, passing it to Mal.
"Send it to Regina. Hurry!" The sword disappeared a moment later and they all took off for the den. Mal attempted to teleport them straight there, but not even that was fast enough. When they arrived, the den was in shambles, as if it had imploded. The trees had been ripped out of the ground, the house was nothing more than rubble. It was like a bomb had gone off, destroying everything within at least a mile. There was no sign of Regina or any of the kids. "Fan out. Look around." Ruby frantically went inside the rubble, digging any tunnels she could find, hoping that maybe Regina had put in an escape hatch or something and managed to get the kids out in time. "Regina!" The frantic mothers searched the entire area, calling out for their children.
"Where are they?" Belle whimpered.
Suddenly, a small head popped out of the blackened snow not far away. "Mom!" Shang called. "Down here!" The rest of the pack raced over and found that it was the entrance to one of the underground tunnels. They found that all the kids were safe, Regina having teleported them away as soon as the barrier collapsed. Marie, Jack and Benjamin were huddled around the small nest where the 3 tiny newborns were whimpering and crying for their mother.
"Where's Regina?" Ruby asked, coming over to check on her children. 2 of her pups were bleeding. "Oh no, what happened?" She signaled for Zelena to come over and the witch was happy to heal them. From the way she handled them, with such an extreme care and curiosity, Ruby realized it was probably the first time she had seen them.
"It happened really fast." Aaron piped to answer her question. "The barrier exploded and then the Dark Wolf attacked the den. There was darkness flying everywhere!"
"Some of it hit the little ones before I could protect them." Jack lifted his arm, revealing the long gash on his side. Ruby quickly nodded to Mal, who stepped forward to heal his wound as well.
"You did a good job." Ruby assured him. "What happened to Regina? Where is she?"
"We don't know." Marie said. "She stabbed the Dark Wolf with Excalibur and poofed us here. We heard an explosion and that was it."
Ruby looked around. "Stay here. Keep the kids warm, I'll be back." She exited the bolt hole and took another look around for her mate. This was the Dark Wolf's plan all along. It just wanted Regina to kill it so she could be the Dark One. That mark on her neck must've been a last ditch effort to stay alive if Ruby tried to kill it. If Regina was the Dark One now she was going to scream. "REGINA!"
"By the gods, why are you yelling?" Regina snapped, appearing next to her. She almost screamed when Ruby grabbed her in a bearhug. "Ow, Ruby, I'm sore."
"Oh, sorry." Ruby released her and looked her up and down. "What happened? Are you okay?"
"I hacked that stupid thing into pieces. It should be gone. Excalibur melted." She held up her hand, showing the burn mark on her palm and her wrist. "Is this over now?"
"I hope it is. We need to get you and the kids back inside. You deserve a fucking feast, a hot bath, a massage, a mani pedi-"
"I think a nap should come first." Regina said with a sigh. For the first time, Ruby noticed how tired her mate looked. She looked exhausted, the last few months finally taking its toll on the weary woman.
"Will you at least come back to the mountain den? We'll get you that nap. Anything you want. Just come home."
"I am not in the mood to forgive." Regina said firmly. "But seeing as how my new den is just a hole in the ground...I guess I have no choice. I do need to check on my apple tree." Ruby smirked and kissed her forehead. "Come on then, let's get you home."
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After a long bath and a good nap, Regina found herself in her old bedroom, laying on a giant fluffy pillow Ruby had bought. Her pups were snuggling into her belly fur and for the first time in a long time, she felt at peace. There was no monster lurking in the darkness, no unwanted suitor trying to win her affection, no threat to the safety of her children, no one trying to tear her family apart. She let out a content sigh and turned to look at her babies. Fenris and Rani had been hurt when the Dark Wolf attacked, but they seemed to be fine. She hoped that she could keep them healthy and they would make it. She wasn't sure what she would do if she lost any of her children. A knock at the door made her turn her head. Emma peeked in and she gave a little wag of her tail.
"Come in, Swan." Emma moved back before opening the door completely so she could carry both of her newborns in. "Twins?"
"Yep." The blonde gave a proud grin as she sat down carefully next to Regina's head. "A boy and girl. His name is Emyr," She gestured to the boy. He was already a cute little thing and she could see that he was going to be blonde by the golden fuzz on the top of his head. He even looked a little like Henry, but she decided to keep that thought to herself. "And her name is Kiona." Regina turned to the little girl. "I think she looks more like Lily." She did.
Regina smiled. "Both of them are gorgeous. A couple of little dragons added to the pack."
Emma nodded. "We decided they were going to stay with you guys and be members of the pack."
"And your parents? And Henry?"
"I don't want to think about any that right now. Maybe later. Just enjoying the moment right now."
"That feeling isn't going to go away." Regina replied.
Emma smiled again, looking at her newborns. "Is the Dark Wolf really gone?"
"It should be. If not…" She sighed. "I guess we'll deal with it when it comes time again."
"I guess so." Emma looked over at her. "I don't think I'm going to run for reelection."
"Oh?"
"Yeah,the town is just...less important than some of the people in it. I want to focus on my kids, being with Lily and helping Henry. I don't know what's going on with him, but I'm not giving up on him. I want my only job to be a mom and a girlfriend. I think that would be best."
Regina nodded. "Sounds like a plan."
"I should let you get some more rest. I just wanted to show them off."
Regina flashed a toothy smile. "I wouldn't expect anything less. You should get some rest too. I know you probably haven't slept much either."
Emma got to her feet very carefully. "Sleep tight, Regina."
"You too, Miss Swan." Regina watched her leave and magically closed the door behind her. She blinked twice and almost jumped up when the Dark Wolf appeared in front of her. "No. You're dead."
The Dark Wolf shook its head. "You can't kill darkness. You of all people should know it." Its gaze roamed over to her children and she growled. "They're my children. All of them. They will-"
Regina snarled. She turned around, laying so her back was to the creature of darkness. "They are not yours and they will never be anything like you." She glanced over her shoulder, finding that the Dark Wolf again and she relaxed again, putting it out of her mind. She looked back down at her little ones, finding that Fenris was crawling over to her paws and she gave the top of his head a little lick. He let out a squeak and raised his head. It was then that she noticed that his eyes...were bright gold. She gave him another lick anyway and he yawned, curling up between her paws.
"Regina?" She almost flinched when she heard Ruby's voice, having not heard her come in at all. Ruby came to lay down near her. "You okay?"
"Yes, I was just...thinking."
"Anything you want to share?" Ruby asked.
"No, I'm just glad it's over."
"By the way, our son stole a book from the fairies."
Regina instantly turned around. "He did what?"
"They wanted to find out more about the Dark Wolf and they figured the only people old enough to know would be the fairies. They stole some old tome from the Blue Fairy. She wants it back."
"That's all they told you?"
"Yes, but I know there's more. They probably read it. How do you want to play this?"
"I'll think about it after another nap. The Dark Wolf is dead, it is the least of my concerns now, as is the Blue Fairy." She laid her head down and Ruby snuggled close to her, laying her head across Regina's side. Regina was out a few minutes later, but Ruby stayed awake for a little while longer and enjoyed the sounds of her mate and youngest children sleeping and content. It would be a while before things came anywhere close to being normal again, but this, she would take.
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