Disclaimer: Nothing belongs to me. No profit is being made.
Henry Mills carefully listened at the door, and smiled when the sound of soft voices were suddenly overridden by the television. Abigail had bought his excuse about needing to finish his homework, so he had at least half an hour before she would interrupt him by bringing him some snacks. He wasted no time moving to the window and pushing it open. The window was on the ground floor, so it was going to be easy to make his escape.
He was tired of being left behind while his mom and Emma got to do all the cool stuff. He was the reason the curse broke after all, and it wasn't fair that he was always left out whenever anything exciting happened. His mom had refused to tell him what she'd gone off to do, but Henry knew it was something big, given by how closed off she'd been when she was driving him over to Abigail's.
The whole afternoon had been a bit strange, even by Storybrooke standards. It had started off normally enough. Emma had walked him home after school, and her and his mom did their usual thing at the door, which was arguing about whatever the topic of that particular day happened to be. He never could figure out why his mom always answered the door instead of letting him use his key. It's not like he wasn't capable of unlocking the door for himself. Emma, for her part, didn't need to walk him all the way to the door either. Once he crossed over the wards around the house, he was pretty much safe as his mom's magic would protect him. He'd tried pointing that out to her once, but she'd just shrugged and continued to walk him right to the door. Adults were rather strange at times.
He'd left them to it knowing that he would see Emma at dinner later, regardless of the outcome of their argument. Everything had continued on as normal, with Henry doing his homework and his mom starting on dinner preparations. It wasn't until they had sat down together to go over his completed homework, that things started getting weird. His mom had been checking it over like she always did, when she'd just stopped mid sentence and stared off in the distance. Henry had actually had to call out to her to break her out of it, and she'd smiled at him and carried on like nothing had happened. After that though, she'd been tense and distracted, up until her phone had rung. It was odd, but his mom seemed to relax instantly when she answered the call, well for a second anyway, then she got really tense again. He was just glad he'd been in the room, since it meant that he was close enough to overhear her mention his castle. That was definitely going to make it easier, knowing where to go.
He did feel a little bad about deceiving Abigail and Frederick though. They were always really nice to him and Abigail made awesome chocolate chip cookies. Henry picked up his backpack and with a final guilty glance behind him, snuck out the window.
Emma's hand dropped from her chest as she spun around to see that the Jabberwocky was no longer lying down. It pawed the ground with its front claws, before flapping its wings and rearing up on its hind legs. Emma felt magic building in the air and she gritted her teeth. It felt like something was tearing against her magical senses, like sandpaper on skin. The feeling suddenly intensified and she shut her eyes, grabbing at her head in pain. A soft hand covered Emma's, familiar magic washing over her. The onslaught on her senses abruptly cut off.
"Thanks". Emma opened her eyes and looked gratefully at Regina.
"Believe me that was as much for my benefit as it was for yours". Regina released her hand and rubbed at her own temple.
"You could feel its magic?" Emma didn't think that Regina could sense magic the way she could.
"Not exactly". Regina answered distractedly. Her attention was focused on the Jabberwocky. A strange black smoky distortion, was slowly spreading over the dragon's armoured hide.
"What's happening?" Emma's eyes widened as she took in the change. The distortion looked like black smoke, but it had a weird wrongness to it that made it look like it was out of focus.
Regina's lips set in a thin line. "The Jabberwocky is adapting to you being my champion."
"And that means what exactly?"
"It's gaining something that's specific to countering your particular abilities." Regina said grimly. "You won't be able to tell what it is until you actually engage it."
"Great". Emma ran a hand through her hair. "So it's a freaking Borg?"
Regina looked at her blankly.
"You know from Star Trek?" Emma dropped the pitch of her voice and spoke in a monotone. "Resistance is futile".
Regina continued to stare at her blankly, a trace of impatience colouring her features.
"Seriously?" Emma threw her hands up in the air. "Never mind. It's probably for the best anyway. Wouldn't want you picking up tips from the Borg Queen."
"If you're quite done ranting, Ms Swan?" Regina folded her arms irritably. "I believe there are pressing matters that require your attention".
"Right. Borg dragon to fight." Emma started shrugging out of her jacket. "Anything else I should be looking out for?"
"Try to stay out of its breath. It's meant to be rather unpleasant".
"Avoid breath. Check".
Emma made to hand Regina her jacket and changed her mind when the dark haired woman shot her an incredulous look. She held it out to Snow instead. "You mind holding on to this for me please?"
"Sure Emma." Snow took the jacket from her and held it against her chest.
Regina raised an eyebrow as she deliberately swept her eyes over Emma's thin white tank top and her now bare arms.
"What? That jacket is real goatskin and cost $1400." Emma enjoyed the look of shocked surprise that flashed briefly in dark eyes. "I'm not risking it fighting a fire breathing dragon".
There was another roar from the Jabberwocky, and Emma instantly sobered. The black smoky distortion now completely covered its entire body. She strode over to her newly made sword and swung it a couple of times, testing it out. The sword felt perfectly balanced and Emma was impressed.
"Time to get this show started."
"Be careful Emma", Snow said softly. She had a white knuckled grip on Emma's jacket.
"Aim for the neck." James said as he wrapped a comforting arm around Snow's waist. "It's usually the weak spot."
"Right. Thanks for the tip".
That peculiar tugging feeling in her chest made itself known again and Emma met inscrutable dark eyes. Regina blinked slowly, and Emma felt warmth spread through her chest, her nervousness disappearing. She took a breath, and the air warped around her, magic fizzing in her blood.
Emma charged the Jabberwocky.
She blurred towards its back leg and swung her sword at the juncture where the leg met the dragon's body. Her sword did not sink into the dragon's flesh as she expected. Instead it seemed to hit a brittle obstruction that splintered under her blade, sending bits of black dust shearing off into the air. The black smoky layer covering the dragon boiled out from the wound and spread rapidly down her sword, completely covering it in less than a second. As the smoke came into contact with Emma's hands, pain instantly sparked along her nerve endings. It felt like the magic was being sucked right out of her skin. The network of veins on the back of her hands distended and turned black, and the taint started spreading down her wrist.
Emma gasped and wrenched the sword away. Her limbs felt heavy and weak and she realised that most of the magic in her blood had been drained. She stumbled away, her sword trailing bits of black smoke and was shocked to note that there was only one lit gem left on it.
The Jabberwocky twisted its head towards her, its jaws snapping, but she was out of reach. It started to turn its body, flapping its wings for balance. Emma was still too close to it and the wing clipped her, tossing her sideways into the air. She drained the last gem and tried to control her tumbling body, but her flight came to an abrupt end when she slammed hard into a nearby container. She bounced off and slid bonelessly to the ground.
Emma groaned and rolled over, forcing herself onto her knees. She leaned heavily on her sword. The black taint in the veins on her hands faded away, and her skin returned to normal. Her left side had taken the brunt of the impact and she knew she'd have bruises at the very least. She pushed to her feet, using the side of the container and her sword to brace herself. She gingerly straightened up, and was surprised when she could move freely without any noticeable pain.
A strange sense of urgency jolted through her and she looked up to see that the Jabberwocky had turned to face her. It lowered its head and pawed at the ground. She could feel magic gathering in the air, tearing at her senses like greedy claws. The Jabberwocky opened its jaws and a black ball of energy began to form inside its mouth.
"That can't be good".
There was a terrible sound of metal screaming and the Jabberwocky launched a stream of black flames at her. She blurred out of the way. The flames slammed into the container she had been in front of, and it started to disintegrate. The metal simply began to crumble into dust, as the black flames sheared through like acid.
Emma blurred back towards the others. She appeared beside Regina in a woosh of displaced air. "You guys need to get further back. That breath has a huge range."
James nodded and immediately headed back towards the security cordon, with a reluctant looking Snow in tow.
"Sword, Ms Swan". Regina held her hand out and Emma automatically handed it over.
She didn't take her eyes of the slowly disintegrating container. Bits of debris were flying off from the leading edge of the flames, leaving trails of dust in the air. The sound was horrific, like metal ripping and tearing under stress, and a third of the container had already been consumed. "That's not your average dragon fire".
"It's chaos magic", Regina said tightly as she started refilling the gems on the sword. "The flames are literally annihilating any matter they come into contact with".
"That's just great". Emma felt the familiar pull of Regina's magic and her eyes were automatically drawn to the other woman. She frowned as she noted the magical glow around her was now a lot dimmer than normal.
"Are you ok?"
"Yes", Regina answered shortly. She finished refilling the empty gems and handed the sword back. "Try not to allow this fight to drag on, Ms Swan. I don't have an infinite store of magic".
"I'll do my best".
Emma didn't know quite how she was going to manage that at this stage. She couldn't touch the dragon without its aura power draining both her and her sword. The only good thing if you could call it that, was that the Jabberwocky hadn't attempted in the slightest to compensate for her moving out of the breath. It seemed locked into the direction it was facing when it started breathing.
The terrible screaming noise stopped as the flames cut off. The entire front half of the container had been sheared off, and the edges continued to crumble into dust. The dragon immediately spun back towards her.
"You might want to move further back as well". Emma didn't wait to see if Regina followed her advice. She sucked in a breath and drained a gem.
She blurred forward again. Emma decided to go for a repeat of her original attack with James, hoping that if she was fast enough, she could maybe cause enough damage to dissipate the draining aura around the dragon. She held her sword out sideways and slashed at the dragon's right side as she blurred past. Her sword hit that brittle obstruction again, shearing through it, causing the black smoky distortion to boil out. She could feel the drain on her magic. Her hands were burning, the veins turning black and spreading rapidly down her arms. Only a couple of seconds had gone by, but Emma could already feel herself starting to slow. The Jabberwocky began to turn, responding to the initial slash on its right side.
Emma had already rounded the dragon's tail and started slashing down the other side. She felt the magic in her blood fizzle out, and immediately attempted to draw on another gem, only to come up empty. She stumbled to a halt and ripped her sword away, staring in horror at the three completely drained gems. Her arms had spidery black lines stretching all the way to her elbows.
There was another sudden spike of urgency, and Emma looked up to see the Jabberwocky's tail heading straight for her. She struggled to dodge out of the way, but her limbs felt like lead. The tail smacked into her chest and catapulted her into the air. She lost her grip on her sword as she went flying backwards and smashed into the ground, several feet away. Emma lay on her back, winded from the impact. She gasped for breath, trying to clear her head.
"Get up, Ms Swan".
Emma could hear Regina's voice as clear as day. There was tingling feeling in her chest and Emma could suddenly breath properly again. She dug her fingers into the ground and forced herself to sit up.
Regina was still standing where she'd left her, with her hand outstretched. There was a flash of purple smoke and Emma's sword appeared in Regina's hand. The dark haired woman swayed slightly and caught herself. She began to pour her magic into the sword.
The Jabberwocky had turned back to face Emma, and she struggled to her knees. If it decided to breathe in her direction, she was pretty much done for.
An arrow slammed into the side of the dragon. The Jabberwocky snorted and swung its head away from Emma to look over its shoulder. Snow was already notching another arrow. She let fly again, nailing the dragon just under the eye. Black smoke covered the arrow and it disintegrated into dust.
"Hey, get away from her", a small voice suddenly piped up. A rock skittered along the ground, falling well short of the dragon.
Horror froze Emma in place, as she saw Henry scramble out from behind one of the undamaged containers. He launched another rock and it smacked into a piece of metal debris with a loud clang. That seemed to push the Jabberwocky over the edge. It roared and spun in Henry's direction.
No.
An avalanche of mind numbing fear cascaded through her, and Emma forced herself upright, willing her feet to move. The Jabberwocky lowered its head and opened its mouth, black energy forming between its jaws.
"Henry, no!" Regina's cry was desperate. She dropped Emma's sword and disappeared in a cloud of purple smoke.
Henry turned to run, but tripped. He sprawled on the ground, the impact jarring his backpack from his grip. He scrambled quickly to his feet as he saw the dragon open its mouth, a ball of black energy crackling between its jaws. There was a screeching noise, like metal tearing, and that ball of energy became a jet of black flame headed directly for him. He froze in panic. There was an explosion of purple smoke and then his mom was there. She wrapped him up in her arms, placing herself between him and the dragon. He clung onto her blazer and squeezed his eyes shut.
The terrible sound of metal screaming surrounded them, and his mom made a strange breathless noise. Henry opened his eyes cautiously to see sheets of black flame bending around to either side of him. He flinched as his backpack, which was only a couple of feet away to the left of his foot, simply disintegrated as the flames passed over it. It crumbled to dust in a matter of seconds. His mom made another gasping sound, and he looked up at her. She had her head turned looking back over her shoulder at the dragon, with her right arm held out behind her. A purple energy shield glowed in the air in front of her palm, and it was that shield that was deflecting the dragon's breath around them.
The shield was flickering though, as black energy screamed against it. Her magic was fading. He could see the edges of the cuff on his mom's jacket sleeve, just below the shield, start to disintegrate. She never flinched, but he felt the arm she had around him tighten.
"Mom", he whispered softly, his voice shaking.
"It's going to be okay Henry". Her jaw set and the shield started to take on a streaky purple overtone. Henry gasped as he saw a drop of red trickle from her nose. The bottom edge of her blazer on her right side started to crumble, revealing the blue silk blouse underneath it. Henry gripped the arm around him tighter, as the fabric of her blouse began to disintegrate. Fear choked him as he realised that his mom was going to get hurt because of him.
The terrible scream of the flames suddenly cut off and the black energy disappeared with it. The dragon shook its head from side to side, its front claws flexing and digging deep gouges into the ground.
His mom drew a shuddering breath, and lowered her arm, the purple shield flickering out completely. The right bottom half of her blazer was shredded, and the cuff on one of her sleeves was only hanging on by a couple of threads. "Henry, go". She released her grip on Henry and pushed him away gently.
Henry took a couple of steps away from her, then realised she wasn't following. He turned just in time to see her sink to her knees.
"Mom"! Henry rushed back to her. The ground shook, making him stumble and he realised that the dragon was moving towards them.
"Henry no, you need to get out of here". She cast a desperate look over her shoulder at the dragon. She put one hand on the ground and struggled to push herself up
"I'm not leaving you". Henry tugged on her arm trying to help her to her feet, but it was no use. Her arm gave out and she nearly dragged him down with her as she sank back to her knees.
"Henry".. She gave a strange gasping sob and clenched her fists. Wisps of purple smoke flickered weakly around him, and then his mom pitched forward and lay still on the ground.
"Mom, no"! Henry cried as he shook her.
Emma put a hand to her chest, hunching over at the strange feeling of emptiness there. Regina wasn't moving, and the usual vibrant magic aura that surrounded her was gone completely. It was like she didn't exist on Emma's radar. Something shifted inside Emma, rage replacing the mind numbing fear.
She took the last few steps separating her from her sword and her hand closed around the hilt. The air around her warped, magic fizzing in her blood as the glow around the single lit gem on her sword faded away.
Emma's lips drew back into a snarl and she charged the Jabberwocky. She blurred past Regina and Henry and ducked under a swinging claw, putting her up close and personal to the beast. She dropped her sword and slammed both palms against the dragon's chest. Black lines instantly crept down her wrists, as the magic rapidly leeched out of her blood. She concentrated on her hands, completely encased by the Jabberwocky's crippling aura. Emma inhaled and pulled on the magic.
Agonising pain sparked along her skin, but she could feel magic rush into her veins. She raised her head and growled as she pulled harder, feeling the draining aura weakening. Her hands burned, like they were being dipped in acid and she bit down hard on her lip, tasting blood. Black smoke spread up her arms, obscuring the skin beneath it. The smoke spread rapidly up her arms and across her shoulders, and continued downwards over her chest, until it completely covered her torso and legs.
The Jabberwocky roared and reared back from her, its wings flapping wildly as it rose into the air. Emma suddenly found herself airborne, thrown back by the force of the wing buffet. Magic fizzed in her blood allowing her to control her descent. She skidded backwards as she landed, her feet leaving furrows in the ground. She straightened slowly, her eyes never leaving the Jabberwocky as it touched down on an undamaged container further down the docks. The smoky distortion around its body was all but gone.
She wasn't going to give it a chance to recover.
Emma blurred to her sword and picked it up, her eyes skittering over the black smoky distortion covering her hand. She heard a soft groan behind her and a tiny spark of familiar energy tingled across her senses. The knot in her chest loosened slightly.
Emma blurred forward until she was directly opposite the Jabberwocky. The dragon's mouth opened, a ball of black energy forming in its jaws. Black smoke spread up her neck and face and her vision misted for a brief moment, before clearing. She blinked a couple of times, letting her eyes adjust.
The Jabberwocky roared releasing a burst of black flame directly at her. There was a sharp spike of panicked fear, that was distinctly not her own.
Emma tightened her grip on her sword and calmly stepped into the breath. The smoky distortion layer covering her skin immediately began to shear off into black dust. She blurred forward.
The sound of screaming metal was horrifically loud in her ears, and it was like moving against strong wind. She could feel the magic in her blood leeching out, as the black smoke covering her continued to tear off, exposing patches of her clothing to the dragon's breath. She leapt up into the air and drove her sword upwards, straight underneath the Jabberwocky's open jaw. Her sword pierced through the bottom of the dragon's jaw, and the flames abruptly cut off. For a frozen moment, Emma hung suspended in midair beneath the head of the Jabberwocky, and then she let go of the sword.
She landed hard, dropping to one knee and placing her palm flat on the ground to absorb the impact. The tattered remains of the black smoky aura around her faded away completely.
The Jabberwocky shook its head, trying to dislodge the blade that was buried hilt deep in its head. Cracks started appearing in the area around the sword, and spread rapidly, until they were crisscrossing the Jabberwocky's entire body. Black smoke poured out from the cracks and the outline of the dragon started to lose its definition. There was a woosh of displaced air, and from one breath to the next, the Jabberwocky imploded into a cloud of black dust. With nothing holding it up, Emma's sword came crashing down to land point first in the ground.
"You did it", Regina's voice was raspy and weak, but hearing it sent a surge of relief through Emma. The emptiness in her chest was gone, replaced by that odd tugging sensation.
Emma quickly got to her feet and turned around. Regina was sitting up, with Henry hovering anxiously at her shoulder. She looked pale and exhausted, her magic barely a flicker against Emma's senses. She blurred over to them and lifted Regina into her arms without saying a single word.
"Ms Swan!" Regina's voice rose an octave in outrage. She clutched at Emma's shoulders, her nails digging into bare skin.
Emma just looked at her and something in her expression made Regina's mouth snap shut. After a moment's hesitation, she gingerly wound her arms around the blonde's neck.
"Henry, are you alright?' Emma asked as she adjusted her grip on Regina, settling her more comfortably against her chest. She could feel her enhanced strength starting to fade.
Henry nodded. "I'm ok".
"Good". Emma started walking towards the security cordon. Snow and James were already rushing towards them.
"Emma are you ok?" Snow skidded to a halt in front of Emma. She looked like she wanted to physically check Emma for injuries, but the fact that the blonde was carrying Regina made that impossible. Snow settled for frantically looked her over with eyes.
"I'm fine". Emma brushed off her concern. Her eyes focused on Nova who had just arrived. "Help her please."
Nova hesitated a second, but when Regina made no sign of protesting, she extended her glowing pink hands over the dark haired woman. She pulled her hands back after a moment. "She'll be ok. It's just power burnout. Nothing that won't be cured with a little rest."
Emma released a breath that she'd been unaware she'd been holding. The last of the magic in her blood faded away, leaving a slight burn in her arm muscles as she supported Regina's weight without her enhanced strength.
"Would you kindly set me down now, Ms Swan". Regina said calmly, her voice taking on its usual note of command. "I am perfectly able to stand on my own. Plus I believe it's your turn to be subjected to fairy magic". The last two words were distinctly derisive.
Emma frowned, but did as Regina requested, gently lowering her to her feet. "I said I'm fine. There's no need for a magical check up". She kept her hands braced on Regina's waist as the other woman cautiously straightened.
"Oh really?" Regina deliberately looked Emma up and down as she released the death grip she had on Emma's shoulders. "The state of your clothing seems to indicate otherwise."
Emma followed her gaze downwards and her eyes widened. Her tank top was hanging off her in shreds, and there was rips and tears all down the legs of her jeans. Fortunately her bra seemed to have been protected by the material of her top, so she wasn't giving everyone a free show.
Regina reached out and brushed at the shredded material on her torso. Both of them flinched as the cloth instantly crumbled to dust, leaving Regina's palm pressed against warm bare skin.
"Emma, let Nova check you out. Please", Snow's voice was pleading as she held out Emma's jacket.
Regina withdrew her hand, like she'd been burned. "I think that might be a good idea, Ms Swan", she said quietly.
"Fine", Emma blew out a breath in exasperation as she reluctantly let go of Regina's waist, and took the jacket from Snow.
Regina took a couple of cautious steps away from her, giving Nova room to work. Emma instantly missed the warmth from her body and shrugged her jacket on quickly, zipping it up over her exposed midriff. She watched Regina carefully, and although the dark haired woman seemed steady on her feet, there was still an ashen cast to her olive skin.
"I'm sorry Mom!" Henry rushed over to Regina and wrapped his arms around her waist. "I didn't mean for you to get hurt".
"I'm alright, Henry." Regina carefully hugged him back, running her hands soothingly over his back. "But we will be talking later about actions and consequences."
Henry nodded silently in response.
Nova once again extended her hands and Emma felt a wave of magic brush over her. Her eyes automatically shut at the sensation. It felt like a warm soothing rain was falling on her, and her body relaxed, tension leaching out of her muscles.
"There's not a scratch on you", Nova's voice held a note of surprise in it. "You're perfectly healthy".
Emma's eyes snapped open, and met dark eyes that were watching intently over Nova's shoulder. Regina instantly looked away, but not before Emma saw an unfamiliar expression cross her face. Wait. Was that jealousy?
"Thanks", Emma said gruffly as she tried to catch Regina's eye again. The dark haired woman was having none of it though, and instead focused her attention on smoothing Henry's hair. The kid had yet to let go of her.
"I'm so glad".
Emma suddenly found herself wrapped in a tight hug as Snow flung her arms around her. She soon felt a second pair of arms around her, and inhaled the familiar scent of James's cologne.
"We both are".
Emma allowed the hug for a few moments, before she shifted awkwardly. Her parents reluctantly released her and Emma stepped back, giving herself some space.
"Look, do you think you guys can handle the cleanup" Emma gestured at the mess the area was in. Debris from the half melted container was scattered all over the place. "I just want to run Henry and Regina home".
"Sure Emma", James nodded immediately.
"That really won't be necessary Ms Swan." Regina interrupted coolly. "I'm perfectly capable of driving my son and myself home".
Emma tilted her head and looked at the other woman. "You were unconscious, not so long ago, Regina. Can you really guarantee you can operate a vehicle safely"? She looked meaningfully at Henry, knowing that Regina would never risk their son's safety.
Regina's mouth set into a thin line. "Fine, you may drive us home, Sheriff. But we will be taking my car".
Emma just nodded, knowing when to pick her battles.
"Henry, let's go." Regina turned on her heel and ushered Henry along with her. Emma made a detour to pickup her sword and then jogged after them. She soon caught up with Regina, and the three of them carefully made their way to the car.
TBC
Ok this chapter took me forever to write. I had a really hard time with it, especially with figuring out the Jabberwocky's abilities and how it would interact with Emma's. But it's finally done. Hope you enjoy.
I am also toying with an interlude explaining how Emma got her sword and how she figured out her powers.
Thanks as always for all the wonderful reviews, follows and favourites. They really do make my day to see and help motivate me through the hard bits of writing.