Red Apple, Green Apple
Chapter 4
Disclaimers::: I do not own OUAT or it's characters, just my colorful imagination. Ohhh now its Showtime! Regina is gonna go gunning for our Wicked Witch, Ohh Zelena... What wicked business have you stirred up? Well the wicked witch certainly has points right now. She KNOWS things about the savior that Regina doesn't. What will our new dark one do once those favorite sisters of ours get into a cat fight? Will the Charmings do something about what they've discovered from watching the security tape? Will Emma let them kick the mother of her child outta storybrooke? Now that Emma is the dark one, will she be as angry at Zelena? Let's find out what happens next…
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Regina sat locked up in her own study in front of the television replaying the security tape over and over again, memorizing the entire conversation between Emma and Zelena. She kept rewinding and repeating it, not wanting to miss any detail of what had happened up until the moment Emma killed Rumplestiltskin. She studied the image of Emma very carefully and then studied her sister's. Knowing what had happened between Emma and Zelena sickened her. She was very disgusted with her redheaded sister knowing she'd taken advantage of Emma in ways she would never be able to forgive. She wanted so badly to obliterate Zelena, to wipe her very existence out of her life. If she ever thought Zelena deserved a second chance, she didn't right now. That bitch not only wrecked her life, she'd tainted it very badly, beyond repair. She felt deep unadulterated fury bubbling up from deep inside. It was enough to push her over the edge. To allow the evil queen out and to show her sister a thing or two just how evil she could be. Zelena went too far when she'd practically raped Henry's biological mother. She'd drugged her and taken advantage of her when she wasn't able to defend herself. She knew had Emma been in her right mind, and had she not been drugged, none of this would have happened. Zelena had touched what did not belong to her. Regina saw red as she blasted the tv and destroyed it on the spot. She'd had enough. If it was war her sister wanted, then it was war she would get. She was so furious and she wanted to hurt her, to make her scream and beg for mercy. Her claws were out. She was ready to have it out with the wicked witch. She left in purple smoke.
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David and Mary Margaret were having a small meeting with the dwarves and with Granny and Ruby as well as Archie. They'd opened their mouths and told them what happened with Emma and what Zelena did with her. They were all dismayed by what happened. Especially Ruby.
The wolf girl couldn't help but to worry about Emma since she still felt as if introducing Zelena to her friend was her fault. At the same time, the Savior had been avoiding her as much as possible except for when she delivered meals to her. She felt something else was going on with Emma, but couldn't get the blonde to slow down enough for them to really sit down and talk about things. She just wanted to know if she did anything wrong to make Emma want to stay away. She hated it that Emma felt she needed to put up walls around her like that. At the same time, she felt uneasy about Snow and David airing Emma and Zelena's dirty laundry. Snow really didn't need the dwarves here for this. She was angry to hear what Zelena put Emma through but dismayed to hear that Emma was now the dark one. She tried to pull Snow aside and to suggest she let the dwarves go home, but of course Snow wouldn't listen.
"They're family Ruby! They have a right to know what happened." Had been her response to Ruby's suggestion. Ruby had then stormed out. She couldn't believe how dense Snow could be. Granny had left when she saw how upset Ruby was. She agreed with her granddaughter.
"Maybe they are family to YOU. But don't forget, this is Emma we are talking about. What would a bunch of dwarves know or understand about what happened to your daughter? I don't think Emma would want seven men knowing her private business. What you shared with us was not meant for their ears. You know how Leroy gets when he's drunk." Granny had left after saying her two cents worth to Snow.
Mary Margaret didn't quite understand the concept of not revealing too much for wayward ears. She didn't understand why it wasn't a good idea for the dwarves to know absolutely everything that happened with her daughter.
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Regina had debated with herself whether or not to try finding Emma first, or to confront her sister about what happened. She was angry enough to find her sister and put an end to Zelena for good. She took out the dark one's dagger, seeing Emma's name engraved on the blade. She knew if she were to confront her sister right now, she wouldn't be able to control herself. She needed Emma right now. Even if she were the dark one, Regina just needed to see her, to hear her. She wanted to talk with her more than anything. But if she were to call the dark one to her vault, would she be talking with Emma Swan, Sheriff of Storybrooke… Her son's mother. OR would she be talking with the dark one? There was only one way to find out. She held out the dagger and called for Emma's presence.
"You rang? My Queen?" Emma made herself known as she moved around the brunette.
Regina gasped when she saw Emma as the dark one. Her luscious wavy blonde locks replaced with stark white hair. Her eyes dark and strangely intoxicating. Her lips crimson red. Her trademark red leather jacket was gone, replaced with black leather. Her jaw dropped as she took in the sight of her friend. She was trying to compose herself and to gather her wits about her, but this Emma was distracting her in so many ways. Regina remembered she had so many things she wanted to talk to her about, but seeing her like this… Her thoughts became a jumbled mess. "Emma…" The way the dark one was looking at Regina, caused the Mayor's thoughts to take an interesting turn. She didn't know what to make of the situation, her rage all but forgotten for the moment.
The dark one moved closer to Regina, giving her an intoxicating look as she licked her lips and smiled sensually at her, as if she knew what she wanted. "You called me, my Queen. How may I be of service to you?" She spoke huskily.
Regina felt her knees buckle but forced herself to stand her ground. The way she talked… It was doing things to her. She found herself wondering what it would be like to kiss her, to let the dark one have her way… She shook her head, trying to remember why she called her in the first place. She wouldn't allow herself to be distracted by Emma. Not like this. She heard Emma laughing softly as she felt Emma move to stand behind her. Regina shivered, feeling Emma's breath at the back of her neck.
"You know… We can take care of your curious nature and see how it goes." Emma's breath moved to Regina's ear as she murmured, "We can take this fast… Or as slow as you like." She purred, eliciting a moan from Regina. Emma chuckled knowingly. She pulled Regina flush against her front and kissed her neck, feeling Regina tremble as she held her in her arms. She knew Regina had oftentimes wondered what it would be like to have Emma hold her like this. Knowing Regina's deep dark secrets and every thought she's had was one of the perks of being the dark one. Emma let go of her reluctantly and moved away, getting serious. "You called me here, to talk about your sister."
Suddenly the moment between them broke as if a bucket of ice cold water had been poured on her. Regina gasped in surprise at how much she enjoyed being in Emma's arms. But then, she remembered everything clearly again. And she was brought back to the harsh reality of what had happened between Zelena and Emma again. She took a few deep breaths, running her hand through her hair. "How did it start?"
Emma moved to lean against a crate. "The night I first met her. At the White Rabbit. Several months after we returned from Neverland. I'd had a long day at work. Gotten sick of Neal and Killian fighting over me… Mary Margaret pushing me to be with the pirate… Yammering on and on about wanting another baby with David. I just wanted to get away from it all… To de-stress. You were mad about something… Maybe Robin or something else. I didn't know at the time. So Ruby joined me for some shots and introduced me to a certain red headed woman. Said her name was Lena. But then later she said her name was really Zelena. I guess she must have fooled Ruby. And now Wolf Girl's been feeling guilty ever since then. Because that was also the night your sister drugged me when Ruby wasn't looking. She took me somewhere to dig up information on you. She really wanted to hurt you bad. Before I became the dark one, I remembered nothing from that night. I was completely out of it. I had no recollection of what happened between me and your sister. And now since Becoming the dark one, I know exactly what happened. Your sister found out the truth about me and what I really wanted. And that wasn't the pirate."
Emma chuckled. "Otherwise what happened wouldn't have come to pass. Your sister wanted to exploit my feelings. Maybe she knew something about you… Your real feelings perhaps. She turned into you and then made me believe it was you I made love with." She watched the look on the mayor's face, taking interest in what she was seeing right now.
Regina had a truly dark look on her face as her hands curled up into fists. Emma knew the mayor was confused about her feelings towards her. She was warring with herself and the fact she was with Robin. If Regina were more like her sister, she'd be green with envy right now. "I wish she never had her way with you. It should have been…" She grunted angrily. "I hate it that she's…" She growled, her eyes dark with fury.
Emma nodded. "Pregnant with my baby. Yeah. Me too. But it happened and I have to deal with it. Believe it or not, she's sorry about it."
"Not sorry enough." Regina replied. "She's going to wish she had never been born by the time I'm done with her! She should never have touched what's mi… What doesn't belong to her!"
Emma stopped her as she moved and pulled her into her arms. "I can't let you hurt her. I'm sorry Regina." She kissed her before vanishing in dark smoke.
Regina gasped in surprise, never having expected Emma to kiss her like that. She could feel the heat of that kiss, lingering on her lips as she thought about what she was feeling right now. That kiss ignited feelings she never knew she was capable of having for Emma. She licked her lips, tasting Emma. She then decided it was time to see her sister. She left in purple smoke.
Emma arrived at the station, but didn't make herself known just yet as she looked at Zelena. She watched her and could see the redhead was pleased with herself. Emma could hear every dark thought Zelena was having and it was very intoxicating. She licked her lips in amusement but at the same time, she wanted to strip Zelena of her powers, to make her humble and to make her learn the hard way what it felt like to be messed with like that. She wouldn't harm her. Not as long as she carried her child. A part of her also wanted to shelter her, to show her what it was like to have someone care for her the way she deserved. She knew Zelena never really had love or kindness shown to her. Emma had not told Regina what she'd discovered about herself. That she was a shapeshifter, a powerful one at that. She knew certain things about Mary Margaret and David and wasn't happy with what she found out. They would be dealt with when the time came. She knew the very last thing Rumplestiltskin had done before she'd gone and killed him. The Charmings would have their hands full very soon.
Zelena looked up when she saw purple smoke fill the area there, signaling her sister's arrival. She smiled at Regina in a very snide way. "So I see you know what happened." She laughed, leaning back smugly as she rubbed her belly. "You're mad because I had her first. I took that away from you." She was clearly proud of herself.
Regina's hands itched as she prepared to create fireballs to throw at Zelena. "Either you're very brave or just very stupid. I could send you to Oz or kill you right here right now. I have magic. You don't. You violated Emma. All because you hate me for what OUR mother chose to do? You hate it that I'm the Queen and you're nothing! Nothing but a grown up woman behaving like a five year old, throwing a temper tantrum!"
Zelena laughed. "You wanna talk about temper tantrums? Take a look at yourself in the mirror sister. You think I didn't watch you while I was in Oz? You didn't think I saw you questioning yourself when it came to deciding whether or not you wanted Robin or Emma? I know you're in love with the Savior. How about the dark one? I knew I made the right choice going after her instead of Robin. Do you think you can love the dark one now?"
Regina was fuming as she glared at her sister, hating her with everything inside her. Yes she loved Emma more than anything. But she wasn't willing to admit it. Not yet. "You've been spying on me the whole time? So you're jealous of me. It's ridiculous what you had to do. Now you have an innocent child to think about. What will your baby think of you once it learns of everything you've done to Emma? I want you to think about that dear. Because I promise you, that child will hate you forever. You want me to feel sorry for you? You want me to apologize to you for the poor choices our mother made? You think gloating about the fact you turned Emma's life upside down will get you what you want? You think just because you're having Emma's child, she's going to want you for herself? I don't care if she's the dark one now. She's always going to be Em-ma to me. You want to see if being wicked is better than being evil? Bring it on. Show me what you can do sister." She smiled darkly. "Oh yeah, You can't can you?" She had a truly evil smile on her face as she looked at the magical brace Zelena was wearing, which was preventing her from using magic. "You're stuck in that cell now, defenseless and incapable of carrying out any more threats against me, against Emma's family…"
Zelena had a sour look on her face as she heard everything Regina said. If was gnawing on her and she was starting to turn green. Suddenly a light went on in her eyes as Zelena began smiling wickedly. "Maybe not, but I know some things about Emma that you don't. Maybe I shouldn't have gone after her son. But the Charmings on the other hand…" Zelena chuckled. "They need to watch their backs. I don't need to do anything about what I know will happen. They're threatening to separate me from our baby and to send me across the town line. What kind of people are they, that they would separate a mother from her child… Again?"
That did it. A dark cloud appeared as Emma finally revealed herself. "What the hell are you talking about? What do you know about it Zelena?" Emma asked, her eyes dark.
Regina gave a little start when Emma arrived like that. She'd realized she HAD felt magic nearby. She thought it was Zelena's magic being repressed by the bracelet. She then realized Emma had been eavesdropping. But didn't say anything about it for now, wanting to know more about what happened with the Charmings.
Zelena smiled and batted her eyes at Emma, giving her a flirtatious look meant for her alone. "Did you think Regina was the only one I watched all these years? Oh no sweetheart, I had to see what was so interesting about the thorns in my dear sister's side. I watched them too. You think this is the first time they've threatened a mother and separated her children from her? Would you like it if someone separated you from your mother? From your family? That's what they are threatening to do with me, with our baby. You must know you're so different. Ever since you were a baby, growing up in the foster system… You've always been special. You've already known things about yourself since becoming the dark one. Our baby is special, just like you dear." Zelena smiled, turning to smirk at Regina before she looked back at Emma. "Why do you think I felt so drawn to you? Because we're alike in so many ways. We understand each other in ways no one else would be able to. We know what it's like to be abandoned. To be rejected. To feel unloved. We won't let that happen to our baby will we?"
Suddenly, Regina felt as if she were in the way. She understood what her sister was implying. Emma was going to have a baby with her. They were going to be a family. Even though she'd like nothing more than to get rid of Zelena, she couldn't do that to Emma. Not when she'd missed out on being a mother the first time around. Even after Regina gave Emma her memories of what it was like to be Henry's mother and they'd lived in New York for a year before Hook found her and brought them back to Storybrooke. This was Emma's chance to be the mother she deserved to be. That was something she couldn't give to her. Even though Zelena had taken away her choice, she wasn't going to do the same to Emma. She left, feeling dejected. And her heart hurt like it never had before. Even worse than when she lost Daniel. She went to find Robin to see if he could make her feel better. A part of her felt guilty for having such feelings for Emma, and she didn't feel the same way for Robin.
Emma turned when she felt Regina leave. "Regina… Don't…" She was too late to stop her. She looked back at Zelena. "Why did you do that for? You know how I feel about your sister. Did you think I would be so cruel to do to you and our baby what you did to Regina? She's your family whether or not you like it. I will never love our child any less because of who her mother is. And I will never leave her. If you could learn to be a decent human being, then people would stop trying to push you away like your mother did. I want us to be friends for this baby's sake. But I cannot let you continue with this whole insanity! I could hurt you. I could do bad things. But I won't. Not to you. Not to this baby growing inside you. I won't be spiteful to you. Not when I know you inside and out. I know everything there is to know about you, Zelena Mills. I know the potential of who you can be if you'd set aside your hatred for Regina. I know things about you that good old Rumple never bothered to tell you. Because he wanted to put you against your sister. He knew things that even Cora kept from Regina, from you. And I'm going to show you whether or not you like it." She moved into the cell with magic and grabbed Zelena. Holding her tightly as they vanished together.
Emma took her back to a time when Zelena was a baby. To when she was growing up. To when she met Cora as a young girl. How she saved Regina's life and how they'd discovered they were sisters. How they loved each other and played together. How Cora stole their memories after separating them. She proceeded to show Zelena how harsh Regina's life had been, growing up with a mother like Cora. She showed her how it had all started with Cora removing her own heart because she was in love with Rumple and how Rumple changed Cora's life and not for the better. But for the worse. Emma then brought Zelena back to her cell. By then, Zelena was crying. She was now face to face with the reality of what had really happened all these years ago. How she had hated the wrong person and hurt everyone.
Emma looked at Zelena with compassion. "Now you see, everything you've ever done. Was it worth it?" She asked, gently.
Zelena sniffled. "Do I regret this baby? No. Do I regret how it happened? Yes. I wish things were different. I wish I handled it better. Maybe we'd be together. You and me. Maybe I would have been a better sister to Regina… I don't know. But Cora… She took my chance of ever knowing away. All I know is you've open my eyes to many things. I want you in my life. In our baby's life. If it's just as friends… I guess it's something I will need to get used to. I've never had a friend before… Or someone to care about me."
Emma nodded as she took a hold of her hand. "You have me Zelena. I want to help you and to show you things you can have without being so wicked about it." She chuckled. "Well at least to those who deserve it." Emma winked, earning an answering chuckle from the redhead. "You're alright. And I'm glad we did this. I want you to know you can call me and if you have questions or need anything, I will be here. I think it's time for me to take care of some things. I won't let those Charmings kick you out of Storybrooke. Or to separate you from our baby. If they try, they will answer to me. I promise." She had a dark look in her eyes as she caressed Zelena's abdomen and kissed her cheek before she got out of the cell and closed it.
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Ruby was at the White Rabbit, trying to get her mind off the whole situation with Emma and Snow. She couldn't help but worry about Emma. She was in deep thought when someone joined her.
"Hey Red. Have you seen Emma lately?" A man's voice asked, breaking through her thoughts.
Ruby looked and gasped. "Hook? I um what have you heard?" She was wondering if Snow or David had even bothered to let Hook know what was going on with Emma considering the fact Snow had been trying to push Emma to give Killian a chance, to try dating him.
Killian scratched his head and then looked at Ruby. "Uhh nothing. Why? Did something happen?" He took a swig of his rum. He noticed Ruby's jaw drop as she looked somewhere over his shoulder. He turned to see Emma standing there.
Everyone stopped their chatter and the bar became quiet as everyone looked at the new dark one. Ruby tried to say something, but her jaw wasn't cooperating. "Emma?"
Emma saw how everyone was acting and found it amusing. "Hello Rubes. Yeah I know… I killed Rumple yada yada yada."
Killian's eyes grew wide in shock as he looked her up and down. "Ye killed the Crocodile? Why? Should have been me who did it!"
Emma smirked then. "I killed him. And you need to accept it. Anyways, I'm here to talk about us. It's not going to work. So you can stop trying to ask me out. I've had enough of Neal to last me a lifetime after what that jerk did to me. And now with you… Since becoming the dark one, I know certain things about you. Well us… it's not going to happen."
"Yer dumping me?" Killian asked. "But why?"
Emma smiled. "Because I've discovered things about myself that I know you wouldn't be able to handle so I'm letting you go. You're free. I'm not interested in being with a man, not anymore."
"How would you know if you don't try? Please Emma! What can't I handle?" Hook asked.
"I got a woman pregnant. Became the dark one. And I have to deal with the fact I'm in love with someone else who is not carrying my baby. It's one huge mess. You understand?" Emma replied. "Thanks, now I gotta go talk to a certain dragon Rumple only recently brought back. It was good seeing you Rubes. We'll chat later wolfy." She winked before she left in dark smoke.
Ruby's jaw finally worked again. "Looks like you're outta luck pirate."
Killian looked at Ruby. "How the hell did that happen? She can't get a woman pregnant. She's..." He gulped down the rest of his rum. "She's probably under a spell or something..."
Ruby knew better. She knew things he wouldn't be able to understand.
