Regina fell onto the bed that night exhausted. Somehow when the Dark One said he was going to teach her some magic she thought it would be one unsuccessful lesson and then it would be over. Instead, it was one unsuccessful lesson after another, but he wouldn't let up on her.
At first, he started out almost kind. But that changed as she failed again and again. Despite her protests that she couldn't do it because he was mistaken about her having magic, he kept pushing her. In the end, it was him pushing her that made her get angry. He was yelling at her at this point and then it happened – a little fireball formed in her hand. She was so shocked that it was gone in seconds, but it had been there.
And when she looked up at the Dark One, he was smiling at her.
She didn't like the way he was smiling at her like he knew a secret that she didn't. It made her uncomfortable.
He told her that it was her anger that helped her do the magic; that it was about emotion and once she could repeat the action it would begin to be easier for her. He said soon, she would be able to do the magic without drawing so much emotion into it.
They had worked throughout the day but she was only able to do make a fireball about five times. They had worked through meals; Belle bringing them food and drink but he kept on about the magic throughout.
Knowing she could do magic made her feel conflicted. He had said that her mother could do magic; that she had great potential and while Regina had not believed him, she had no choice but to consider the possibility now.
She could understand if her mother would keep it a secret. Being a magic user wasn't exactly a premier kind of standing to have, especially in court life. Still, Regina wondered how young her mother had been when she came in contact with the Dark One. Was it like this, she wondered. Had the Dark One taught her like this?
The thing was, the entire time she had been concentrating on the magic lesson, she hadn't once thought of Emma.
Now as she lay in bed she thought about her.
She thought of those stolen moments at court, or in their special hiding place. She thought about those lazy afternoons when she would sit there beside Emma, leaning against her. That is all they had wanted. They wanted to be free to love each other.
She imagined what it would be like to be able to kiss Emma's lips, to hold her in her arms and she wondered when exactly she would be able to.
As she drifted off to sleep Emma was the only thing on her mind.
…
For the second morning in a row, Emma was woken by one of her handmaidens because she slept late. She hadn't slept well again. She had laid in bed that night thinking about Regina, wishing Regina was there with her.
Emma finished getting dressed and ate breakfast in her chambers. She had no desire to be around other people. In the last week, she had become more withdrawn, refusing to go to court or speak with any of the suitors who had stopped by to check on her well-being.
The night before she and her mother had gotten into a fight when her mother had demanded she go to court. And Emma had said things she knew she shouldn't have.
"You have to attend. It's not good for your image to continue to skip it," Snow said.
"I don't care about my image or how it reflects on you."
"Emma, I know you are concerned about Regina …"
"I am not just concerned about her. You don't even understand how much she means to me."
"She's your friend, I understand that."
"No, she isn't just my friend. I am in love with her."
The words were out of her mouth before she could stop herself. Her mother took a step away from her after she had said it.
"I had forbidden you to see her before, did you disobey me?" Snow said with an edge in her voice that Emma had never heard directed at her. She had heard it before when her mother spoke to others who had disappointed or angered her.
"Yes."
"I assume you did this in secret and she was agreeable to it."
Emma didn't like the tone at all. "Yes, I met her in secret."
Snow walked further away from her. "I should have known Cora's daughter would be capable of something like that. And I like a fool brought her here to be friends with you so she could help you choose a suitor."
"You what?"
"I can guess that this 'disappearance' on her part is just another of her manipulations."
"What? No. It's not like that," Emma said. "I love her and she loves me. I don't want to marry one of these men you have propped as a suitable companion for me. I don't need you to choose a spouse for me; I've already chosen who I want to be with and that is Regina."
"That will never happen," Snow said. "I suggest you think very carefully about your future."
Snow had bolted her from her room and Emma had been up all night fretting over what had happened. She hadn't meant to tell her mom the truth, but she wasn't thinking straight. She had become increasingly nervous because she had not gotten any word from Rumplestiltskin and it was coming up on a month since Regina had gone.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.
"Come in."
She stood as her mother entered.
"Good, you are dressed. Come with me."
Emma followed her mother out, wondering what this was all about and knowing it couldn't be anything good. They went to Snow's private study and her mother picked up a piece of paper from the desk and handed it to her.
"What's this?" Emma asked after reading it.
"I would think that would be obvious from reading it, but it's the invitation to the ball we will hold here in three months. Even now that letter is being copied so it can be sent across the kingdom for those who are invited. At that ball, we shall be announcing your impending marriage to Killian Jones."
"You can't do this."
"I can and I will. You have left me little choice. Riders will be sent out to deliver these by the week's end. I have also recalled the soldiers who were out looking for Regina. I have no doubt she is safe somewhere and this was nothing more than a ploy on her part. You should thank me for pulling you out of whatever plan she had for you before it was too late."
"I will not go along with this. You can't force me to marry him."
"Again, you are wrong. I can. You can fight me on this if you want, but it will still come to pass."
"No it won't," Emma said walking out.
…
Regina levitated the bucket of water while using more magic to keep an arrow that was fired at her frozen in the air.
"Hold it for 10 more seconds," the Dark One said as she circled her.
She could feel the strain of keeping the magic going as he counted down. As soon as he said zero she used the magic to lower the bucket and the arrow so it fell harmlessly to the ground.
"Not bad," he said. "Not bad at all. You've come a long way in a short amount of time."
She had to agree with him. She had been here a month and in that time she had learned much about this magic inside of her.
"I have a treat for you today. A new lesson," he said.
"You have a new lesson every day for me," she replied.
"Come with me," he said. She followed him back into the castle. They went up to a tower and in it was a giant pool of water.
"What is this?" she asked, standing at the edge of it.
"This will allow you to look across great distances, to see anything, or in your case anyone you want. You won't be able to hear them but you will be able to see them."
"Emma," she said.
"Yes, Emma and your parents if you wish."
"Of course my parents too. How does it work?"
"Let me show you," he said.
He went through the magical words she would need to master and spoke to her about clearing her mind to concentrate on seeing what she wished to see.
Like most lessons, it took her more than one try to get it to work. The magic had become easier for her but she was by no means an expert. When it worked though the pool began to shimmer and then there was an image of Emma. She was sitting in the garden, the place where they had first met, and a smile came across her face.
"She's so beautiful," Regina said out loud, not caring that Rumple was still there in the room with her. She wanted to reach out and touch her, but she knew that was foolish as she was only looking at an image of her.
She watched as Emma stood and smiled. She watched as another person came into view and took Emma's hand, sitting down beside her on the stone bench. Regina had only seen this man maybe once, but she recognized him as one of Emma's suitors, Killian Jones.
Emma was smiling at him like she once smiled at Regina. She watched as Emma laughed at something he said. When she saw Emma kiss him, she backed away from the pool, her magic wavering and the image disappearing before she ran from the room.
Rumplestiltskin looked down at the water and smiled.