Ruby shuts the door softly behind her, runs a hand through her hair. Emma is sleeping fitfully, tossing and moaning softly. She walks over to her and nudges her on the arm. "Em," she whispers. No response. She nudges harder and says her name louder.
"What?" Emma asks, sitting up abruptly. Her eyebrows are knitted together and she's clearly annoyed.
"It's five o'clock. You have literally slept the day away again. Are you sick?"
"No, I'm just on a…weird schedule right now. It's fine, Ruby. I'm fine."
"You don't look fine."
Emma inhales deeply. "I'm up. Okay, I'm up. Happy?" she asks, throwing the covers off of herself. Her flipped blanket knocks a water glass off of the nightstand, shattering it on the floor. "Fuck," she says, trying to sidestep the glass. A large shard embeds in her foot, and she gasps sharply. Blood seeps out onto the hardwood.
"Jesus, that looks-" Ruby starts toward Emma again, reaching out for her foot.
"Don't!" Emma yells, putting a hand up to Ruby. They both freeze, open-mouthed, when Ruby is pushed violently against the far wall by an unseen force. "I'm…sorry, I don't know what happened."
Ruby stares at her, panicked. She inches toward the door while Emma removes the piece of glass lodged in her heel. Before the glass hits the floor, Emma's wound is sealed and no trace of incident remains.
Ruby sees this too. "Emma," she croaks, but flees the bedroom before she can say anything more. Emma continues to stare at her foot.
Once safely in her room, Ruby dials Mary Margaret furiously. "You have to come home, right now," she hisses. "Something's really wrong with Emma!"
Mary Margaret ends the call, not bothering to wait for Victor to return from the restroom. She runs out of the restaurant and hurries home.
…
"Ruby, come on," Emma knocks, pleading with the door. "I have to talk to you, please."
"No."
"Ruby, it's me! I'm your friend, just listen to me!" Emma leans her head on the door, feeling fog surround her brain once again.
"Are you going to kill me?"
"What?! No!"
The door opens a crack, and Ruby runs back to her bed. She puts her back against the wall and brings her knees up to her chest. Emma eyes the comic book sitting on her nightstand, Vampires Everywhere. Ruby watches her.
"What do you know about this?" Emma asks, nodding to the comic.
"Are you serious right now?"
Emma says nothing, only looks to the ceiling and closes her eyes.
"Those two crackpots at the comic book store said that…those things…were all over the place here. Obviously I didn't believe them, because I am NOT INSANE." Ruby yells out the last part, covering her face with her hands.
"I don't even know what to say. It was those girls, from the other night. Regina's "friends" or whatever they are. She told me they made me drink blood, I assume it was Mal's, and it turned me into this fucking…creature. Regina confirmed it."
Ruby looks at her incredulously. "So we just accept this, and stake you in the heart? Basically?"
"I don't know! I have to find Regina. She has to know something."
"Is that really the best idea? She did this! I called Mary Margaret, she'll be home any minute."
Emma shakes her head. "No, please don't tell Mary Margaret. Not yet. Please. I'll figure this out, I really don't want to involve her in this right now."
Ruby looks skeptical, but nods hesitantly. Emma's probably right. Mary Margaret would likely have a coronary if she found out what was really going on.
On cue, Mary Margaret bursts into Ruby's room, looking at the both of them expectantly. "What's going on? Are you okay?" she says, taking Emma's hand.
"I'm okay. I stepped on some glass, but it's not a big deal. Promise." Emma looks down, hoping Mary Margaret doesn't ask to see evidence.
"You cut your foot?" she asks, eyes wide, looking at Ruby. "You made it sound like her appendix burst."
Ruby chuckles nervously. "I totally overreacted, I'm really, really sorry. I thought it was way worse than it was. I know you were out with Victor, I didn't mean to interrupt you."
Mary Margaret was hiding her anger, poorly. "I'm glad you're okay," she tells Emma through gritted teeth. "I'll go call Victor now and apologize." She walks out of the room without another word, leaving Emma and Ruby to stare after her guiltily. Ruby chuckles again.
"This is unfuckingbelievable."
…
"I just wanted to do something nice for him, since I ran out on him like an idiot last night," Mary Margaret tells Ruby, pulling up in front of Victor's long driveway. She's carrying a large iced coffee, just the way he takes it. "Even though you should be the one apologizing."
Ruby rolls her eyes and leans out the window, letting the sun hit her face. "I said I was sorry."
Mary Margaret opens the gate to the driveway, closing it behind her. She gets up to the door and hears scratching on the pavement. "Hi Thorn," she greets warmly, reaching down to pet him.
His ears go back, he growls, he bares his teeth. Mary Margaret stands up quickly, unsure why the normally friendly dog is acting this way. She starts to back up slowly, but he's off, so she runs at full speed. She throws the iced coffee to the ground behind her, hoping to stall him. She yells for Ruby, who jumps out of the truck. Thorn latches on to the bottom of her skirt, tearing shreds away while Mary Margaret swings her legs over the fence. Ruby grabs her and pulls her over, where they both fall to the ground. They sigh in relief before realizing Thorn is trying to plow his way through the wooden planks to get at them. They scramble up quickly, leap into the truck and close the doors behind them. They watch as Thorn lazily walks back toward the house, wagging his tail.
…
"You have to kill her."
Mulan, Merida, and Ruby sit at a card table in the back of their shop, surrounded by comic books and gas station soda cups.
"Not an option, guys. She's my best friend. There has to be another way."
Merida cracks her knuckles and puts her feet up on the table. "The only other way to turn a vampire back into a human is to kill the head vampire. And that only works if they haven't made their first kill. Has she done that yet?"
Ruby shakes her head, cursing her life and everything in it. "I don't think so. She's pretty freaked out by this, obviously."
"Does she know the head vampire?"
"Doubt it."
"Then you have to kill her," Mulan shrugs, taking a long sip of Mountain Dew.
"No! We'll have to figure out who the head vampire is, because this is my life and I am now a supernatural Nancy Drew." Ruby throws her head down on the table.
"Can you at least try to be an adult about this?" Merida asks, the irony lost. "It's not that easy, but you could look for signs, I guess. The head vampire usually stays away from any other vampires. They're very personable. They're usually heavily guarded during the daytime – most likely by a dog or some sort of –"
Ruby cuts her off. "Guarded by a dog? Like a vicious dog?"
"Probably. It'd need to scare off any intruders."
Ruby tells them about their encounter with Thorn, but aside from that, she has no other evidence to go on.
"Well, it's a lead, if nothing else. We'll check out Victor," Mulan tells her, nodding solemnly.
…
Emma pedals Granny's ancient ten-speed, trying desperately to remember the route they took to the cave that night. The path is well-worn by motorcycle tracks, so she is following them closely. She saw Mal and the others on the boardwalk earlier that night Regina nowhere in sight. She stops to take a quick break after nearly wiping out on a tree root, breathing heavily. She's in shape, but it's been a very long time since she rode a bike any type of distance. She checks her phone to see a text from Ruby.
DON'T KILL ANYONE. Just trust me on this.
She shakes her head, certainly not planning on killing anyone. Although honestly, she's relieved that Ruby knows and is helping her figure out how the hell she should handle this. Unchartered territory to say the least.
Emma searches for the opening, leaning the bicycle against one of the enormous trees nearby. She flips on her phone flashlight and finds her footing.
"Regina?" she calls loudly, hearing herself echo. She makes her way through the cavern, awed at how big it really is. It is sectioned off into rooms with curtains and beads and it's both modern and a throwback from the seventies. "Regina?" she yells again.
"I'm here," a voice calls back her. Emma finds her sitting on a bed, hands clutching the side of the mattress.
"Thank god," Emma sighs, sitting next to her. "I'm sorry I freaked out on you the other night."
Regina laughs bitterly. "You hardly need to apologize. I dropped a lot of information on you. Completely illogical information, but…" she trails off.
"Yeah. My friend is seeing if there is anything we can do to um, make this go away," Emma says, waving her hand flippantly between them. "It's worth a shot, I guess."
"That it is," Regina nods.
"Are you and Mal together?" Emma asks, in amazement that such questions still burn for an answer in the midst of her nightmare.
"No. We were, a while ago. It's been over for a long time."
Emma shifts uncomfortably. "How long have you been like this?"
"Longer than I care to remember. It's miserable. I know that if I just…give in to it, I'll finally feel at peace. Sated. Alive. But I can't. I've been battling the darkness my entire life, it seems. Now it's just a tangible darkness." Regina eyes fill, but she quickly blinks any evidence away.
"Do you mean…feed? Kill?" Emma asks, grimacing.
Regina is silent, but nods her head slowly.
"I'm glad you have someone to help you, Emma. This is a…very lonely life. I'm not one of them, but I'm not not one of them. Again, I'm so sorry. I never meant to drag you-"
Before Regina can finish, Emma entwines their fingers together and leans in to kiss her. Regina is taken aback, but quickly melts into Emma's lips, relishing the warmth and tenderness that has been missing for so long. Emma cups her neck softly, letting her fingers skip gently along the top of Regina's spine. Regina mmms in approval, wrapping her arms around Emma's waist, pulling her closer. Their mouths explore easily, tongues cautiously dancing. The hunger that's been threatening Emma kicks into overdrive, and she has to physically remind herself that there is a line she does not want to cross. Regina pulls her down, so that their legs are both off the bed, but their torsos are touching, and hands begin to roam. The sound of motorcycles in the distance break them from their trance.
"I should go," Emma says, the taste of Regina still on her lips. Regina nods, her lips pink and swollen, as she pulls Emma in for one last kiss. It's tender and sweet but full of need and suggestion. Emma pulls herself together, dazed again by Regina's tragic beauty. She shakes it off and manages to smile at her, just a little, before hauling ass out of the cavern.
…
Across town, Ruby answers the door for a very well-dressed Victor.
"Nice to finally meet you," Ruby smiles, opening the door wider.
"You as well," Victor says, returning the smile. "May I come in?"
"Um, yes, of course," Ruby answers, motioning for him to walk into the living room.
"Thank you. Is Mary Margaret in the kitchen?"
"Yes, she is. Oh, Victor, these are my dinner guests, Mulan and Merida."
There are nods and handshakes and tight-lipped smiles.
"Victor!" Mary Margaret calls out, setting a basket of rolls down on the kitchen table. "Thank you for coming on such short notice," she says, kissing him lightly on the lips. Ruby looks to the ground, feeling slightly guilty for manipulating Mary Margaret into inviting him over. Ruby knew she thought it was weird, that she was so freaking adamant that Victor come over for their impromptu dinner party, but Mary Margaret was so happy that Ruby wanted to meet him that she let it slide.
They all sit at the table, conversation strained, but Mary Margaret keeps it going with inane chatter about the school system in Santa Carla. Ruby sees Merida watching Victor out of the corner of her eye, and kicks her under the table, silently telling her to stop being so obvious. Victor praises Mary Margaret for the spaghetti dish and Ruby feels the guilt niggling again.
"Parmesan cheese?" she asks, handing Victor a glass bowl.
"Yes, thank you." He sprinkles it liberally over his pasta. Victor twirls the spaghetti around his fork and takes a hefty bite. He begins to cough, hard. "That's not cheese," he sputters. "It's garlic."
"You hate garlic?" Mulan asks, eyebrows raised.
"No, I like garlic, just not a heaping spoonful of it."
"Ruby?" Mary Margaret asks, eyeing her suspiciously.
"I'm so sorry, Victor, I grabbed the wrong bowl."
Merida dribbles a little of the holy water she purchased from the church gift store into the pitcher while Victor is downing his glass of water and Mary Margaret went into the kitchen to get the cheese. "Here, let me give you a refill," Merida offers, leaning over to Victor. Purposely, she misses his glass and spills water all over his pant leg.
Victor jumps from the table, knocking his knee into the heavy wood. "Ahh," he says fanning his pant leg with his napkin.
"Does it burn?" Mulan asks, eyes wide and bright.
"Burn? It's freezing! Are you nuts? What is going on here?"
Ruby comes up from behind him, holding a compact in front of her. "You have a little of that garlic on your chin," she says, holding the compact directly in front of his face. He wipes at his reflection furiously and then walks away.
"What are you doing?" Mary Margaret asks Ruby, her eyes flashing. She is pissed.
"Look, I don't know what the deal is here, but I'm going to go. Thanks for dinner, Mary Margaret."
Victor walks away, Mary Margaret chasing after him. Ruby leans her head against the wall. "I hate you guys."
"We had to see. It's obvious Victor is not our guy. He seems to like your friend, I'm sure he'll get over it." Mulan shrugs, takes another forkful of spaghetti and puts on her jacket.
…
They sit on the beach, side by side, hips touching, looking out at the angry ocean.
"I was actually here on business," Regina explains. "Youngest executive on the board. At twenty-eight I was already on the fast track to VP. My drive was my greatest success and my biggest weakness. I could have executed the deal over conference call, but I was so determined to do it in person. I wanted to look him in the eye while we finalized the hostile takeover of his company." She scoffs. "The night before my meeting, I came out to the boardwalk to snub my nose at the two dollar pizza and watery coffee drinks. And then I met Mal," Regina takes a deep breath, looking down as Emma rubs her index finger along Regina's thumb. "She was very sweet, very sexy, and very persuasive. She took me on a midnight stroll in the woods and brought some very special wine. Her little minions were nowhere in sight, so there wasn't anything particularly threatening about it. If I had just stayed in my hotel room. If I had just watched a rerun of Friends and ordered an overpriced salad, I'd be sitting in my high-rise right now."
Emma moved closer as she felt Regina shiver, doubtfully from being cold. "Why didn't you just leave?"
"And do what? Go home, having no idea what was going to happen to me? I do still have to drink it, Emma. You will too, or you'll weaken to the point of no return."
"Blood?" Emma asks, knowing the answer.
"Yes. Wine as Mal calls it."
"Is it her blood?"
"As far as I know."
"I wish I had met you under different circumstances," Emma says sadly.
Regina laughs, hearty and full, the first time Emma has heard her express anything but pain. It's music to her ears.
"No, you don't. I would have been interested, definitely. You're very attractive, Emma. But I was solely focused on my career. I didn't earn the nickname the Evil Queen by accident. No one got in my way. If they did, I disassembled them, piece by piece. It was a gift, actually," Regina tells her, still smiling. "I wasn't the nicest person, I can admit that now. Mal probably sensed that and figured I'd fit in easily." She looks over at Emma and tucks a piece of blonde hair behind her hair. "I was surprised to find that she was wrong."
Emma kisses the top of Regina's shoulder and stands, stretching out her legs. "I'll be right back," she says, nodding to the stand-alone building nearby, the beach restrooms. She jogs away, her stomach a tumult of anxiety and fear, but tinged with happiness and excitement. Being with Regina did something to her, though she couldn't pinpoint what exactly. When Regina was close, everything else just drifted away. It was comforting and frightening and electrifying.
She exits the restroom, shaking excess sand from her sandal. She looks over to where Regina was positioned, only to find a head of blonde curls sitting in her place. Emma breaks out into a run, which was ultimately unnecessary. She was upon Mal before she even took another step.
"Where is she?" Emma hisses, her eyes ablaze.
Mal says nothing, just stands very close to Emma. Their noses practically touch.
"Where is she?" Emma asks again, grabbing Mal by the collar of her leather jacket.
Mal laughs, cocky and insincere. "Why do you want to know, Emma? Are you falling in love with her?" she mocks. "It will never happen. But if you ever want to see her again, you'll come with me. Now."
