Evil still loves- part 3

Booboo asked for a oneshot of a third and final instalment carrying on from Ch2723 "Evil still loves- part 2" where a teen Emma runs away and finds solace with Regina, who is still kind in this reality. They bond as friends. Emma's parents come looking for her, but when they find her, Emma protects Regina and the people in the village by telling them if they kill any of them she'll crush her own heart. They don't believe her, so Emma calls their bluff. The spell making them dark is then broken. They feel immeasurable remorse.

Soooooooooo: I suspect you're the same person as the long hey, so, gap rule :).

JRocks: Please see my Twitter for a description of all rules.

blpenn: I can't seem to find the video you're referring to. Any chance you can tweet me the link?

She had just…snapped. She couldn't face it anymore. She was so different from both her parents, and they simply refused to change. No matter what Emma tried, they continued to be, for want of a better word, evil. Never to Emma, although they were clearly growing increasingly frustrated that she wouldn't be like them. Emma knew the time was coming when they would expect her to take more royal responsibility. Then there would be even more pressure on her to act like them. Emma just couldn't do it. So she had snuck away stealthily in the night, riding off on her horse. She was never coming back.

Emma had came to a village on the fringe of the kingdom. That's where Emma met her. Regina. Emma had heard stories about her, but somehow, always felt the stories never quite matched up. Now that Emma heard Regina's side, things made so much more sense. More than that, Regina wasn't scared of Emma just because of who her parents were. She liked her spunk, her nerve for running away. Regina agreed to help hide the princess, and the two quickly became friends. But they knew that it wouldn't be long before Emma's parents came looking for her. So together, they began to formulate a plot that would force them to give up their evil ways, or give up their daughter for good.

Sure enough, less than a week later, Emma heard the distinct sounds of panic that always came with her parents arriving amongst the peasants. Emma was bunkered down in Regina's small hut, as was Regina. If Snow White laid eyes upon her she was as good as dead. Emma's heart was hammering in her chest.

"The princess is missing." Emma heard her mother announce coldly. "If we find out any of you have any information on where she might be and do not share it, we shall kill everyone here." Emma gulped. They all knew she was here. Would they give her up? She wouldn't blame them.

"With that in mind. Does anyone have anything they want to say?" Emma heard her father ask. They all stayed silent. "Darling wife, do you wish to make sure someone isn't forgetting something?" Emma's eyes widened. A second later, Emma heard the sound of someone choking. She scrambled to her feet. Regina was right behind her. She couldn't go back now.

"Stop!" Emma yelled, bursting out the house. Snow let the man she was strangling plummet to the ground. "Stop." Emma repeated. "It isn't anyone here's fault I ran away. It's yours." Emma told them, but her parents weren't even looking at her. They were looking behind her, at Regina.

"You." Snow snarled. "You have corrupted our daughter."

"Regina hasn't done anything except take me in and keep me from dying of exposure." Emma quickly said, throwing a protective arm behind her. "If you hurt her, or anyone else, I will take my own heart out and crush it. You will lose me for good." Emma warned them. She saw their eyes narrow.

"Emma, don't be ridiculous." Her mother snapped. "We're not leaving you here with that slippery little bitch. Get your stuff. We're going home. But you don't need to worry. Now that I've found her, your new friend will be coming back with us." Snow hissed. Emma sighed.

"You're never going to change, are you?" She said, heartbroken. She had really hoped her parents might see sense and be able to share the love they had for her with everyone else. She wasn't going to let them hurt Regina. So she reached up and plunged her hand into her chest.

"No!" Her parents yelled as Emma's hand came back out with the heart curled in her fist.

"I'm sorry." Emma told them. "But this might be the only way you'll learn." Without giving them a chance to stop her, Emma crushed the heart to dust, collapsing on the ground. Suddenly, both her parents eyes seemed to clear of the cloudiness that had always surrounded them.

"No." Her dad breathed. "No!" Both he and Snow ran forward, the spell that had kept them evil had been lifted, but it was too late. Their daughter was dead.

"Emma?" Snow whispered. She had her hand on her daughter's cheek…when suddenly her eyes opened. Emma smiled at their shocked expressions.

"Good call, Regina. It did work." She said, as her dad helped her to her feet.

"How?" He asked. Emma smiled.

"It was Regina's idea to use a fake heart. She's suspected you've been under some kind of spell since before I was born. She seems to have been right." Snow and Charming didn't know what to say. They both just reached forward and pulled Emma into their arms. They were just glad they hadn't actually had to lose their daughter for the spell to be broken.

Did I forget to mention it was all a trick and they were to use a fake heart? Silly me.