"Emma, this isn't a good idea!" Regina fought to keep up with the blonde's long strides, but she could only gain so much distance in four-inch heels. It didn't exactly help that the wind seemed to be rooting against her, pushing her backwards every time it blew past.
Several feet ahead of the mayor, Emma soldiered on, clenched fists at her sides, fierce determinism in her veins. "You said the curse broke, right? Well, there's only one way to find out for sure."
Main Street was barren, save for the few vehicles that lined the sidewalks. Most people were inside, moping alongside friends. Amidst the gloomy darkness of the evening, the streets lights were on and shone down on the bickering women. A lot had happened in just a few minutes, neither Emma or Regina had been able to recover from it completely. They still weren't totally sure t hadn't been some bizarre, shared dream.
"It's too dangerous; what if he doesn't remember me?" Regina asked, still trying to match Emma's pace.
"Then at least we'll know that we tried, now come on!" Emma backpedaled just enough to grab Regina's hand, and oddly enough, the brunette didn't pull away. If anything, she found the Savior's touch to be somewhat soothing, like a security blanket she was suddenly afraid of losing.
Emma yanked open the doors of the apartment complex, still towing Regina, and stomped up the long flights of stairs. Their footsteps enough should have alerted the entire building that something was up, or at least shaken them out of their dazed states. The blonde wasn't exactly known for her tactfulness.
When they got to the Charmings' residence, Emma and Regina let go of each other's hands and said nothing. They made a silent agreement not to bring it up. Regina just hoped no one had seen them outside, skipping together like schoolgirls; oh, the mortification if anyone found out!
Before Emma got the chance to knock, the door flew open and revealed a heavily pregnant Snow. Her pixie-cut hair was sept to one side and her palm rested against her bulge, as if to comfort her unborn child. It felt as if hours went by before Snow broke the silence with a grave exhale. "We've got a problem."
"Mom?" a young voice from inside called out. Regina all but knocked Snow aside to find Henry lounging on a chair, distractedly by his handheld gaming console. Emma followed closely behind and gave Regina a "just a sec" eyebrow raise.
"Kid?" the blonde tested the waters. She slowly advanced on her son, her own breathing kept her grounded. It was the moment of truth.
Henry tossed his device next to him and slide out of his seat, taller than Regina had remembered him. Her heart sunk to the very pit of her stomach when she realized he was talking to Emma- his other mother. "Hey, did you know that clock's been stuck on the same time since we got here?" Henry asked, his voice at least several octaves lower than last year.
"I did, it's uh, a tradition," Emma fibbed weakly. "Listen Kid, lemme ask you, do you know who this is?" she lead him towards Regina by the shoulder and waited for some light of recognition in his face.
"Yeah," Henry mumbled, sparking a flare of relief in Regina. "You're the lady who dropped the cup at the diner, right?" A frantic look was exchanged between the three women, and it wasn't lost on Henry; any bubble of hope that swelled in Regina's chest had just been suffocated. "Did I say something wrong?"
"No, Henry, you didn't," Emma dismissed. "But, she's more than the lady from the diner, Kid. She's the mayor of Storybrooke; her name's Regina Mills."
Henry extended his hand like a gentleman and thrust it forward, "It's nice to meet you." His formality not only broke Regina's heart, but Snow and Emma's as well.
It took the Queen everything she had in her to repay the pleasantry without spontaneously combusting. "It's certainly nice to meet you too, Henry. Your mother's told me a lot about you. Maybe someday I could show around the town, give you a tour?" No one would know it, but there was a fire terrorizing Regina's insides, engulfing her very existence. She felt as if she were choking on the smoke, gagging for her life. No one would be able to detect her suffering, except for Emma.
"Sure, that'd be cool," Henry bellowed. "Mom? Can I go back to my game?" he asked Emma.
"Uh, yeah, go ahead." The mothers of Henry Mills watched him return to his spot in the living room, turn his console back on, and tune out the rest of the world.
Just as Emma was about to- discreetly- comfort Regina, David and Hook came charging in with similarly morose expressions. "We need to talk," Prince Charming proclaimed.
With one last look at her son, Regina joined the rest of the adults in the tightly packed circle they'd formed in the hallway. The only open spot was right next to Emma. "What's wrong?" the blonde wondered with fake innocence.
"You're the Savior, you tell us," Hook chided. "It seems as if people have regained their memories."
"Like me," Snow confessed.
"And me," said David. "I think we may have just redefined 'rude awakening.' We've got some news, but first, does wanna explain how it happened? How exactly did this curse break?"
"I think the more important question here is, who else remembers?" Regina demanded. While it served as a redirect from the inevitable topic, it also sent a thousand needles through her skin as she thought to Henry, who clearly still had no idea who she was.
"We don't know," David responded for both himself and Hook. "It's too early to tell, but I wouldn't doubt it. I have a feeling it's going to be pandemonium soon, and not like the last time… worse."
Snow frowned at her daughter and noted the way she kept peering over at Regina, shifting her weight from foot to foot. She may not have known Emma for a long as she would hoped, but she knew her daughter well enough to sense something wasn't right. "Emma, how did the curse break?"
Her daughter's spine stiffened as if she were a marionette puppet being pulled by strings. "Ok, here's the thing… the thing is… well, Regina and I," Emma started with a venomous glare from Regina, "we, uh, we…"
"We're not exactly sure how it happened, Snow, but it no longer matters. All the matters now is finding who did this to us. And I know exactly who to go to," Regina seethed, the image of the green woman as fresh in her mind as if their first meeting were yesterday.
"Like we needed any more good news, we found Little John. The problem is, he's not so little any more," David exhaled, his forehead glistening with sweat.
"What do you mean?" Snow pressed.
"The man's been turned into a flying monkey; happened right in front of us," Hook said.
Emma's drop slackened, "Flying monkey? Wait- like—"
"The Wicked Witch," Regina, Snow, and David all said in choral unison.
"Of course, yeah, no, that makes total sense… Dunno why I didn't think of her before," Emma droned flatly. "Ok, we need a plan." She drummed her fingers against her thighs, already forming a strategy in her head. It was a long shot, but for the time being, it was all they had. "Mary Margaret, can you watch Henry for an hour? David, Hook, gather everyone you can into City Hall. Whoever did this wouldn't be stupid enough to show up if they knew everyone remembered. Regina and I'll meet you guys there soon."
Everyone nodded in agreement of the arrangement and no one thought to question Emma's choice of pairing. And while Regina was somewhat miffed at the sheriff for suggesting such a collaboration, there was something she had to tell the blonde- something no one else knew. So, she went along with the Savior, just a few steps behind her. Whatever thoughts were floating in Emma's conscious, the Queen would soon find out.
"Look, I'm sorry about Henry. I should've been thinking clearly," Emma said as they filed into the mayor's office. Everything was just as they left it; magical chemistry set and all. No one had been in there, and no one had tampered with any of their toys. Their trap had failed.
"Yes, well, I'd be naive to assume it would have been so easy," Regina said, her hard exterior restored to its formal glory. "Now, what are we doing here? It's obvious it didn't work."
Emma peeked out the window and scanned the road; there was no one around. "First off, are you really gonna act like nothing happened? Like you and I weren't the ones to break the curse?"
Regina walked around the open space, her heels clacking against the tile. Even in distress mode, Emma was deeply attracted to the woman; the way Regina carried herself so confidently, so carefree. "Like I told your father, dear, how it happened is not of any importance. The person responsible for all of this is here, in Storybrooke."
"The Wicked Witch of the West?" Emma asked skeptically.
"That would be correct," the mayor affirmed. "I can assure you, she's not like any of the stories you may have heard. Hopefully, you've learned enough by now to know nothing is what it seems." Still turned away from Emma, Regina continued. "The woman who enacted this curse isn't like any of the other 'characters' we've faced, Emma. She's ruthless, conniving, cunning, and extremely powerful."
Emma snorted and tossed her head back. "Yeah, doesn't sound familiar at all."
"Think what you must, but we are nothing alike."
"So, how do we get her? Dump some water on her?"
"Do you think this is a joke?" Regina snarled, her grip tightening around her gloves. She spun around gracefully, never losing her balance. For the first time since the car, she locked eyes with Emma and really saw her. "You have no idea what she's capable of. Unfortunately neither does everyone else." At Emma's confused expression, Regina clarified. "They know of her, but they no one actually knows her, other than myself. We had a… complicated few months."
"Why do I not like the sound of that?"
"Look, our only two options here are to stay here and leave this town in anarchy, or we work to find a way to fix this," Regina declared. "It's your choice."
Taking one step closer to the guarded woman, Emma folded her arms across her chest. "Fine. Since you seem to know her so well, tell me what to do. How do we catch her?"
Regina lowered her head slowly until she was staring at the floor. "That is the question, my dear, isn't it?"
If Emma thought the riot from earlier was bad, this was absolute chaos. The angry mob of residents' blended shouting made it nearly impossible for Emma to get their attention. Even on the stage, no one so much as acknowledged her existence. Between herself, David, Hook, and Regina, they were all invisible. That is, until Regina shot her arms out and sent everyone falling to their seats, unable to stand up.
"Regina!" a man with a British accent grunted, stuck in the crowd of people.
"Do you know him?" Emma whispered to the brunette. Frozen, Regina suppressed the urge to disappear in another cloud of smoke. The frantic worry in Robin Hood's eyes still got to her, after everything that had just happened.
"What's she doing here?" Leroy demanded, bringing Regina out of her daydream. The head dwarf was struggling valiantly to wrestle out of his chair, as were the last of his brothers.
Emma was about to defend the Queen when Charming stepped forward. "If you remember anything at all, then you know Regina's on our side," he assuaged. "She's not the enemy here."
"Yeah? Then why'd she use magic on us?" Granny argued.
Regina merely scoffed as if Granny's comments were nothing more than drivel. "In case you didn't notice, you all were behaving like wild animals. I merely domesticated you."
"Not helping," Emma hissed. With dozens of anxious citizens waiting for some answers, Emma hopped off the stage and walked up to the first row of chairs. "Here's the thing; the curse is obviously broken. You guys have your memories back. I know there might be some holes, but I promise you, we will get whoever did this. And it is not Regina."
"How do we know they're not here in Storybrooke?"
"What if they're trying to kill all of us?"
"Is it true it's the Wicked Witch?"
It started with one voice and then escalated to the rest of the room rising in an uneven chorus. Their blended mutterings were enough to cause another earthquake. Eventually, it was impossible to differentiate who was speaking. Emma tried to raise her hands and get everyone's attention again, but it was useless. The room had lost its sanity.
In the end, the small fraction of heroes scurried outside and left the mob to their own devices. The moment Regina stepped out the door, the binding spell she'd used on them lifted. The group made it halfway down the road when people began pouring out of City Hall. At the forefront of the stampede was Robin Hood.
David and Hook were already more than half way back to the apartment, but Emma and Regina were lagging. "Regina!" the thief called out as he sprinted to the Queen, a little too close for Emma's comfort.
"Whoa, buddy, I know this world might be different but— wait, you're the guy from the border, aren't you? With your, um, Merry Men?" Emma titled her head. "No way… you're Robin Hood, aren't you?"
"You're correct," the man in the peacoat nodded. "You must be the daughter of the prince and princess. 'Ve heard a lot about you." Robin wasn't too concerned with the blonde woman, as he moved onto his target. "There is much we need to discuss, Regina. I think you know what I'm referring to."
As if it hadn't already been an eventful evening, Regina silently cursed herself and her sister, both of whom were responsible for this predicament in her mind. She felt Emma's heavy breathing next to her, the heat that arose from the blonde. Whether it was jealously to bewilderment, Regina wasn't sure. By now, though, the rest of the town was scattered along Main Street. Some were still buzzing with the news of the curse, and some were gawking at the scene before them. "Another time. There's business I have to attend to," informed curtly.
Robin lifted Regina's hand and placed a kiss on the back, bowing low enough to peer up at the Queen. "As you wish, m'lady."
Soon, Emma and Regina were alone again, on their way to the Charmings' home. "So, you wanna tell me what that was about?"
Infuriated by Emma's casual busybody-ness, the brunette fumed with rage. "I know this may be difficult for you to understand, Emma, but just because you're the Savior, doesn't mean you're entitled to the knowledge of everyone's life. I don't care what you think happened tonight, it doesn't change anything between us!"
Not impressed by Regina's irritated rant in the slightest, Emma rolled her eyes. "You know I'll find out one way or another. You can't hide it forever."
When they got to the front doors, Regina stopped short and sucked in a breath. "Henry," she gasped, the realization that he wouldn't be going home with her bulldozed into her. "He'll be safe with you tonight." It wasn't a question.
Emma heard her loud and clear. "Nothing's gonna happen to him. I won't let it."
When Regina got home, she went straight up to Henry's room. It was just as he'd left it; the bed was made, his clothes were all put into his drawers, his desk was clean, and the Book sat on his pillow, waiting for its owner to return. She'd been avoiding his room for days, or for however long it had been. She couldn't even bring herself to pass by it in the hall. Regina had kept the door closed, caging in his scent; the smell of the Old Spice Neal had passed down onto the boy wafted through the entire space.
With the book hugged to her chest, Regina sat on her son's bed, much like she had after his time in the hospital. For the first time in days, she let her heart feel it all. A waterfall of tears splashed down her cheeks as she rocked herself back and forth, back and forth, back and forth. She began hyperventilating so violently, she'd completely lost control. Henry didn't even know her name; he remembered nothing about her. A handshake? He'd given her a handshake? What Regina wouldn't have done just for one last hug, one more moment of him in her arms.
This was a different kind of pain than the last time, however. Henry hadn't consciously chosen Emma over Regina like he did when the first curse was broken. He didn't see her as the Evil Queen or anything like that. He just didn't remember Regina or how much she loved him. She was sure he must have felt something, but it wasn't enough to override the magical gift she'd given him.
'Gift' she sneered to herself. It wasn't a gift. It had seemed like it at the time, but now, it felt like a curse… another one. They'd gone through all of that, saying goodbye to their loved ones, getting a year wiped from their mind only to return, and Regina still didn't have her son. To her, that was the worst price imaginable.
Even in the depths of her grief, Regina knew that in the morning, her thirst for blood would return to its formal dominance; the one thing she wanted now more than her son- if that was possible- was revenge. She was the Evil Queen, dammit. If she wanted someone's heart, then she'd get it. And she already had a victim in mind.
Somewhere deep in the heart of the forest, a woman stood by the well. Her vivid red curls bounced as she stepped closer to the stone structure and glanced down through the dark pit. She'd felt the warmth earlier that night; the tidal wave of… joy. It was disgusting. The very moment she saw that annoying Australian bookworm drop her things in the library, she knew: someone had broken through her curse.
All of her hard work had been for nothing. Everything- her plans, her years of strategizing- had been thrust down the toilet. Soon, everyone would remember. Well, the only person who mattered would: Zelena's dear, dear sister Regina. The Wicked Witch had no doubt in her mind the Evil Queen would be after her soon enough with the entire kingdom behind her.
But, the more Zelena thought about it, the less her fury tightened around her like a boa constrictor. Regina was the only one who knew who she truly was. No one else in town had the pleasure of meeting the Wicked Witch back in the Forest. So far, everyone knew her as Zelena. She was just a stranger to them and to Snow White. If she played her cards right, if she used the teachings of Rumplestiltskin, Zelena could still end up on top. She had a feeling her sister would use her own common sense and keep their secret; if there was one thing she'd learned about Regina, it's that the Evil Queen was meticulous, not impulsive. Revealing their connection would indeed be impulsive. No one would ever suspect a thing, not even that meddlesome Savior. The Wicked Witch could still win.
Speaking of the Dark One, Zelena realized, it was just about his dinner time.
A/N - Hello, dearies! Wow! Thanks so much for the amazing responses. My readers have spoken, so here you are! I hope you enjoyed that chapter. Yes, everyone remembers, except Henry :-( Obviously, since the Bug scene was different here, it rippled and caused different affects on the following scenes after that. Meaning, it won't exactly line up with OUAT's storyline. There will be some similarities to the episodes (wasn't last night intense?), but I'll put my own spin on them ;-) Much more to come soon!