"So…yeah. I'm sorry I went behind your back while you were taking care of Lynn, but it had to be said."

Regina eyed the woman sitting across from her strangely, almost as though she were amused. If the subject of their conversation had not been so grave, it likely would have been. Emma had left the used, burner mobile on her desk, having let Regina already go through the call log. As she had suspected, the entire conversation was on video and audio recording. Regina had pulled it from the circulation on her cameras and saved them into her personal computer. Everything was sorted. At least, on paper everything was sorted. Still, things did not feel quite right. For Emma, it came from the blush she was beginning to feel when she looked at Regina for too long, or if they touched. Something about it felt wrong. But it overwhelmingly felt right. As though it were something she had been waiting for years to feel. For Regina, the tension came from a much darker place. Her thoughts had not yet left her alone, and the fear of what could happen to her children was chasing her. Finding out her mother had escaped from jail and had not been seen since had only worsened the feeling. She and the two women with her were certainly out of town, by now. But would they return? Would they try to harm Lynn again, or worse than they already had? The fear was palpable, dizzying.

And it wasn't something she had felt in a long time.

"I'm not surprised they were angry with you," Regina said, glancing towards one of the photographs of Lynn with her and Henry. The one which caught her eye had been taken shortly after Lynn had been released from hospital, after she had been nearly murdered. "But I appreciate you taking the initiative."

Emma shrugged. "It had to be said. If I weren't going to say it to them, then who would? Seems like most people don't have much of a problem with them being such disgusting liars."

"They're worse than that," Regina's voice darkened. "But your point is clear."

Why do I feel as though she is protecting our family and not just mine? How am I seeing her as family? I can't possibly, could what Lynn said years ago be true about this woman?

The woman with the pretty hair.

Is she sitting across from me? Is she someone Daniel sent to me instead of him since he's gone?

"There's something about the way Leah spoke to me that I found a little alarming, though," Emma nervously glanced around, swirling her wine glass in her hands. "She sounded as though she's working actively to break the curse, but not to help anyone, but so she could kill you."

Regina flinched. "What in the world compelled her to say something to make you think that?"

"A couple of things," Emma awkwardly admitted. "But…" She spoke quietly, feeling childish. "I think I've come to at least…accept who my parents are. At least their real names, anyways."

Regina raised an eyebrow. "How are you feeling about them, then?"

"Honestly?" Emma shook her head. "I'm angry with them. Don't get me wrong, what you did then was horrible, and you have a lot to atone for. But they sent a child into a world they had no idea what it would be like. I could have died at any point in my childhood, especially in how awful some of the group foster homes I stayed in were. All they cared about was making me some sort of perfect and untouched thing. They cared more about themselves than me. Henry said I had only been born hours to a day or two before they had me sent to a world that could have not even existed."

Regina frowned. "I'm surprised to hear you say anything negative about them."

Emma snorted. "How can I not be negative about them? Again, they threw a fucking baby out with the bathwater."

"They did," Regina narrowed her eyes at the thought. "I've done plenty of things I'm not particularly proud of, and certainly not anymore, but I would never abandon my children. I would never take anyone's children away from them unless I knew they were unsafe. And what they did…my daughter was never going to be hurt, not with me. But they hurt her. That was unforgivable. My revenge with the curse was not just for what they did to me, but for what they did to Lynn."

Emma eyed her strangely. "You're an enigma, Regina. I'm not sure I'll ever understand you."

Why do I still want to run over and kiss her?

"You haven't called momma 'the evil queen' in awhile, Henry," Lynn sat down on the couch next to her brother, he was paging through the storybook on the floor next to her. "Have you finally changed your mind for sure?"

Henry sighed. "I don't think she's the evil queen now," He said. "But I still think she could have been then. O don't know. I'm just confused."

"Why?" Lynn winced when she saw one of the images in the book. "Oh. Are you still mad about what she did…when she…"

"She didn't have to go after Snow," Henry said quietly. "Especially not after she got you back."

"Momma was just trying to protect me," Lynn reached over to take the book and close it for a minute. Henry stared at her before climbing onto the couch to sit across from her. "Did I tell you what they did to me? When they took me away from momma, that is?"

Henry shook his head. "No? Do you want to?"

Lynn hesitated. "I guess you should know," She eventually said. "Since the book doesn't show how bad it really felt. At least, what I can remember of it, anyways. I was still a little kid, and younger than you."

Henry tightly hugged her. "You don't have to go quickly through it, Netta," He told her. "Just try to explain it as best you can."

"Lynn!" Snow had torn out of Charming's arms, grabbing the little girl, who, in shock, stopped screaming and throwing a fit, just staring at her step sister. "Shush," Snow had irritably sung. "Everything is just fine."

"No!" Lynn had whimpered, trying to scream but unable to sustain it much more. "I want tiara!"

"You can't have a tiara," Snow had scolded her. "You're in hiding."

"I don't want hide!" Lynn had started sobbing, her arms flailing. "I want momma!"

"Lynn?" Red had finally said. "Do you like me?"

Lynn had rubbed tears out of her eyes but then nodded. "You're nice…"

Red had looked at her in confusion.

"I thought you were afraid of me," Red paused when Lynn stared up at her. "Lynn? Are you sure you're okay?"

"You take care of me," She had started to cry. "You're not scary…"

Red hesitated but then sighed.

"Who scares you?"

"Him," Lynn sobbed. "He's scary…"

"Shh…" Red had murmured, continuing to slowly brush Lynn's hair. "It's okay, Lynn. I'll protect you."

"I want momma," Lynn had sobbed.

"And…" Red paused and then let out a heavy sigh before cupping her cheek. "Lynn," She whispered. "Can you keep a secret?"

Lynn stared at her but eventually nodded.

"Snow and Charming can't know this," Red added. "But, as soon as I run into your momma, I promise I'll give you to her. I know she loves you. And…I do too."

Lynn coughed and sniffled a little before hugging Red.

"You love," Lynn weakly got out. "Like momma."

"I'll take care of you," Red promised. "Do you trust me?"

Lynn hesitated but nodded again.

"I won't let anything hurt you," Red said, lightly scratching her behind her ears. "You deserve to be safe, and you deserve to be happy."

"Netta? I'm sorry they hurt you," Henry said, his voice quiet. "Hey, Netta? I'm going to let Miss Blanchard borrow the book tomorrow night so she can read to the John Doe. Do you think I shouldn't? It had been my idea, Emma just…made it more reasonable."

Lynn hesitated. "You know what?" She shook her head. "Do whatever you think is right. You don't have to decide right now. You'll…I guess you'll just know in the moment. At least, that's how it's been for me, and I don't know a better way to figure things out. Not anymore. I guess you just have to listen to what feels right…even if it's hard."

It had felt as though she had been there all night.

She still didn't want to stop reading.

Her voice soft and gentle, she found herself getting lost in the story as she read to the unconscious man. Every so often, someone would come in to see if she were still only reading.

Chloe hadn't been playing games. And Regina had certainly been behind her, pulling the strings the whole way. The thought made her heart sink.

She kept reading.

"And, so, as Snow and her prince were alone and searching for the queen's daughter and their friend, Snow began to express her fears," Mary Margaret hesitated when she looked at the image beside the text. "She said to him 'I'm terrified, Charming, of what might happen to Red and the princess if the queen is the one who finds them.'

"He turned to her and set a book down. 'I know," He said heavily. "But that is not too likely. The queen goes out, yes, but the odds of her coming across them are slim to none. They will be alright, I'm sure of it. Even if they become lost, they will be fine, as I trust Red, and the young princess does too.' Snow sighed when she looked to her prince," Mary Margaret glanced up as she read towards the John Doe, still unconscious beside her. "She began to whisper 'It is hard not to worry, after everything the queen has become. I can't bear it. I cannot bear the thought of the princess being hurt.' She closed her eyes and sat down. When her prince sat down beside her and touched her shoulder, she opened her eyes again."

I hope he will regain consciousness, even if he can't hear me. Why do I want to keep reading? The story is just a story. It's not even close to reality, not even a little.

She swallowed hard and made herself keep reading.

"The prince whispered to her: 'I wouldn't lie to you, Snow. If I did not truly believe the princess and Red will be alright, I would not put the thought or hope out there. The evil queen is not going to hurt them. She simply is incapable.' Snow went quiet again. 'I really hope you're right,' Snow said, her voice barely audible to anyone but him. 'Because I cannot stop thinking about what may happen, about the worst that may happen.'"

Mary Margaret looked up again, her eyes lingering on him longer.

"Snow's prince spoke to reassure her. 'This isn't your fault,' He said. 'That's on the princess' mother, and the queen was the one who made the choice to marry your father. She was the one who made the choice to kill him. That is on the queen, and is by no means a reflexion on you.'"

Her mind began to spin, and she found herself suddenly too tired to keep reading. Suddenly, the upset and anger that had drawn her to come this night came rushing back to her.

"Chloe?" Mary Margaret had stopped the woman as she stepped out of her car, still reeling from their conversation early that morning. Even the cover of the darkness of the night hadn't held her back, for once. "I'm sorry for whatever you think I've done to you, or Sherry, or Regina but I'm not a liar and you are."

Chloe had rolled her eyes, tossing her purse over her shoulder, and locking her car door. "Interesting theory," She said, not looking at her as she started up the steps to the townhouse she shared with her wife and, now, Emma. "Takes one to know one."

The door had slammed shut behind her just as Mary Margaret had reached the top step as she followed.

"Sometimes you have to follow the heart," Mary Margaret took a brief look around to ensure no one was looking at or near her and quickly pressed a light kiss to the unconscious, unidentified man's forehead. "I have to follow the heart, not the head."

She tucked the storybook Henry let her borrow for the night under her arm, tiredly running a hand through her hair while she began to leave the room. The machines started beeping when the doors opened. A few doctors and nurses pushed past her and pushed her to the side upon hearing it. The second she was no longer trapped amongst frantically moving people, she turned around. Through the glass, she saw the frantic moving and checking around the man. Her heart sank. Oh no. Was Chloe somehow right? Was she somehow - Then, she took a step back. Eyes. His eyes were open, and they were all but piercing. Something unfamiliar rose in her chest, and she started to fight the urge to run back into the room to be by his side. Hold his hand. Her thoughts began to whisper. Like a wife. She flinched and took another step back. Where had those words come from? She swallowed hard, taking one last look back into the room through the glass before stepping to the lift and out of the hospital, all the while resisting the urge to run. In those few seconds she looked back, something came over her. He was looking at her. Their eyes met, even several metres away and through the glass.

It took everything in her not to run away, run away so that she would not run recklessly into the nonsensical thoughts she felt might try to subsume her.

REPLIES TO REVIEWS:

jasouatfan: Emma's coming to understanding and acceptance is definitely important, and, yes, Mary Margaret absolutely has the saviour complex Regina accuses her of

barrattajennifer: i'm glad you enjoyed it! i'm happy to be returning to this after months away