"Regina!" Emma cries out loudly causing her focus to break just short of revealing the patch of skin that she hoped held the answers. The blond is motioning frantically and Regina realizes that It wasn't her heart beating that loudly - it was horses rushing towards them. "We have to go!"
Robin pulls free and rushes toward the treeline. This strange lady may be inexplicably intriguing, but he was not about to be caught.
"No!" Regina tries to take off after him only to be held in place by the savior. "Let me GO! I have to go after him! Robin! Wait! Please! " She struggles more frantically as he disappears from sight. "Let me go, Emma!"
"Regina...you can't! We have to hide! If they catch you, they will KILL you. What the Hell will I tell Henry then? That another version of HIM put YOU to DEATH? Not even Doctor Phil will be able to help him with that one."
"You don't understand!" She seethes between gritted teeth, shoving Emma off of her. "You got HOW many chances? How many times did your precious Captain Guyliner cheat death? Hell! If it wasn't for us taking leap of faith to bring him back from the Underworld, I wouldn't have had to bury MY soulmate." She angrily wipes away tears of frustration. Emma's eyes dart frantically between the frazzled woman and the knights that are rapidly closing in on them. But Regina is too riled up to acknowledge the urgency. "Robin was SUCH a good man. He was an amazing father with two small children. He helped so many people. He was so supportive and kind. He believed in me in a way I never thought someone would be able to again after all the things I'd done. He DIED to save MY life. But who gets the 'get out of Hell free card' from Zeus himself? The filthy pirate who left me to be tortured for days, that's who! The one handed homewrecker that had part in Rumple's downfall-the downfall that led me to become who I became. The womanizing bastard that killed his own father. His list of crimes is damn near as long as mine. But HE deserved to live and Robin didn't?! How is that even remotely fair?! It's BULLSHIT and everyone knows it! You got your love back and it cost me mine. Roland is an orphan and his daughter will never even know him." Tears stream down her now flushed face. "But what if….what if it doesn't have to be like that? What if he isn't really gone? What if Roland and Robyn can have their father back? You honestly expect me to walk away from a chance to put my life back together?"
"Regina-..." Emma tries to reach for her again. It was a topic they had tried to avoid at all costs. They had all tiptoed around it since Robin's death. Deep down, they all know that Regina and Robin were grown adults who made their own decision to go. But how much choice did Robin really have? Once Regina had set her mind to it - there was no way he was letting her do so without backup. Regina had followed them down to help her family and be the hero they all pushed her so hard to be. But Robin had gone to make sure she and Henry had remained safe. It was a decision that left his daughter vulnerable and triggered the series of events that led to that fateful day in the Mayor's office.
"I don't want to hear it, Emma. NONE of you can understand. Sure, I seperated your parents countless times but they were never without hope. They always had the chance to find each other. Their story never just….ended. Neither of them were OBLITERATED." The word still burns her tongue. Death was one thing, but obliteration? "And you...yes you lost Neal, but let's be honest...you couldn't have loved him all that much considering how fast you fell in love with the man who had been screwing Neal's mother before you were even born." Regina knows she's being cruel. But the words tumble from her mouth without hesitation. She is so tired of keeping it all bottled up and so tired of being lectured by the Charming family. No matter how far they'd all came, they still often treated her like a child. "If there is ANY chance that I can put my heart back together...I can NOT walk away."
Emma swallows hard, the words sting but one thing she has learned over the years is that arguing with Regina while she is like this is pointless. And the knights are now in sight, so there is no time. She has to try a new tactic. "Regina, we have to go. You can't find Robin if you're locked up inside a dungeon." The urgency in her tone increases as she tries to talk over the pounding of hooves.
There is finally a little bit of rational focus in the brown eyes looking back at her. Regina nods slightly and turns towards the forest. But it's too late. "The witch! Get her!" The familiar sound of her son's voice startles her. A bolt of light magic slams into her, freezing her body in place as the prince hops down from his horse. Angry strides carry him to stand in front of her, the blue fairy fluttering beside him. He sneers as he meets her eyes. "Well well well...look what we have here. You will pay for your crimes. My grandparents may have pitied you enough to take it easy on you - a simple banishment. But I am not them. You're a monster! And you'll be treated like one. I will make sure you feel every bit of pain you've caused others. And once you have - you will die!"
Regina flinches at every world, fresh tears welling up in her already red eyes. "Henry-..."
His gaze hardens more, fist clenching around the sword at his hip. "Do not speak to me so informally, Witch!" The hatred in his eyes is like daggers to her already battered heart. He doesn't so much as blink as he commands his knights. "Take this monster and lock her up and send word to the Doctor. We'll let him have a little fun with her while we wait for the executioner to arrive." His smirk sends cold shivers down her spine. Her Henry wasn't cruel. Her Henry didn't believe in hurting anyone - villain or not.
"Henry!" Emma gasps. This young man was so far from the boy who showed up at her door in their realm. That boy had pleaded for mercy for the Evil Queen. He had begged people not to harm her. And now, here he was finding joy in the thought of her being tortured and executed.
Blue flutters up to the Queen, attaching a leather cuff that would block her magic once the spell she had cast wore off. Two knights grab her arms, manhandling her into the enchanted carriage. They weren't taking any chances with her - taking every precaution to ensure she would be unable to escape.
"Henry, you can't do this. You don't know what you're doing." Emma pleads. "She isn't who you think she is."
His angry gaze turns to her. "I'm not a child, Mother. I know what I'm doing. She murdered your parents and yet you beg for her mercy? She must have you under a spell. So for the good of the kingdom, I will handle this on my own." He mounts his horse. "I will make sure she pays and that she never hurts anyone ever again." He kicks his heels, urging his horse back towards the castle.
"Henry!" Emma cries but he doesn't stop. The convoy of knights begins to follow him. Her gaze falls to the bars of the carriage. Broken eyes peek out at her. No torture can inflict more pain than she feels from Henry's hate. Emma wants to reassure her. They both know that it would be a promise she may not be able to keep. With Blue and all the knights, there is no way she can save her alone. And she's sure Henry will have every guard in the kingdom around the dungeon. She has to get help. "Robin…" Her eyes dart towards the treeline he had escaped into. This Robin didn't seem to be the hero they knew. And while he seemed taken aback by Regina, he wasn't the same man that willingly accepted oblivion willingly to keep her safe. But if any part of THAT Robin existed in this one - then there was hope - her only hope. If even Henry hated Regina here then there would be no one else in this land willing to stand up for her. Everyone that ever believed in her was gone her. She's killed "Snow" - Henry was against her - Henry Sr was assumingly long gone - that left Robin. If the man Regina loved existed within him...then there was a chance. With one last glance at the rapidly disappearing convoy, she turns with renewed confidence towards the direction the thief had gone. "Let's just hope that pixie dust does indeed never lie."