"What the hell was that?" Emma asked, holding the counter to keep her upright. The loud bang they heard didn't only sound loud it also gave a pretty big shock.
"It came from the town's square" Ruby said, her wolf senses on high alert.
"Then let's go check it out" David decided.
Regina turned to her children: "You two stay here with Granny."
Henry opened his mouth to protest but got interrupted by his other mother: "Henry…promise you'll stay here."
Henry sighed: "All right…but it's not fair."
"Do you think he will really stay at the diner?" Regina asked Emma while they walked out of Granny's.
"Not a chance" the blonde replied.
Lena kept pacing around in the diner. A nervous feeling had overwhelmed her ever since Regina and everyone else had left the diner. Something's wrong something's wrong, was all that was going through Lena's mind. Henry sat at the counter drinking another hot cocoa. Granny stood behind the counter cleaning some glasses.
"Can you stop pacing around. You're making me dizzy" Granny said.
"Something is wrong" Lena said worried: "I can feel it."
"I'm sure everything is fine" Henry tried to reassure his new sister: "Remember, our mothers are both very powerful." Suddenly Lena doubled over. A sharp pain her chest took her breath away. Henry jumped of his chair: "What's the matter? Are you okay?"
"Regina…" was all Lena said before she ran out the door. Although Henry couldn't follow Lena's pace he knew exactly where she was running too. They arrived just in time to see Regina loose her fight with Zelena. She got knocked out by the wicked witch.
"Mom" Henry called out.
"Henry, we told you…" Emma started when Lena ran past her.
"I know…But Lena ran out. She felt something was wrong with mom" Henry explained.
"Let her go!" Lena yelled at Zelena, who was holding Regina by the collar.
Zelena laughed wickedly: "And what are you gonna do about it…little girl…" Again a wicked laugh and with that Zelena and Regina disappeared into a cloud of green smoke.
"Nooooooo! Regina!" Lena screamed. She started breathing very heavy, almost like an animal. Anger rising in her.
"Lena?...It's okay…We'll get Regina back" Ruby carefully stepped closer to the young girl, but Ruby didn't seem to get through to her.
"I know that look in her eyes" Snow stated.
"What do you mean?" Ruby asked confused.
"It's the same look like you have right before you turn into a wolf" Snow explained.
"She's right" Dorothy agreed.
Before someone could say or do anything else green light started to form around Lena. It seemed to come from inside her and it only grew bigger until the light completely surrounded her. Too bright for anyone to look at. When the light faded away an emerald green dragon had taken the place of Lena. From shock and bewilderment everyone took a step back. The dragon seemed confused too. Looking around and taking everything in, carefully. This was all just too strange. With one big push of its wings the dragon lifted itself from the ground, flying straight up in the sky and disappearing towards the woods.
"What the hell…" Emma begin.
"…was that?" Henry finished.
"That…was Elliot" Dorothy simply stated.
"Elliot…the dragon…who's soul is been living inside Lena's body the past year?" Emma asked open-eyed.
"Uhu" was all Snow could bring out.
"Regina…where is she?...Elliot…Find Regina…"
The dragon shook his head trying to shake the voice out of its head. He needed to concentrate on flying, otherwise a nasty crash would follow.
So this is how it feels for Elliot to see the world through me, Lena thought. It was weird moving and doing things without having a say about it. Just following. It took Lena a while to get used to the voice in her head but she had learned to co-exist with Elliot's voice guiding her. It was only natural Elliot needed some time to adjust too.
At the moment Elliot was just flying around trying to make sense of what just happened. He and Lena had sort of switched places but how…or why? Elliot remembered feeling angry and scared. Lena was worried about someone and she was definitively angry about something. But what?
"Elliot" Lena tried to make contact with her friend: "It's Regina. She's been abducted by Zelena."
Zelena, that name sounded familiar. Of course the wicked witch of the west. Elliot had learned of the witch back in Oz. Dorothy had told him about her. And now that wicked witch had taken Regina. We like Regina, Elliot thought back at the time he and Lena spend with the woman. Regina had become a mother figure to Lena. No wait, she was Lena's mother. It seemed like the memories he made as Lena were coming in a bit late.
Elliot shook his head again. He had to find Regina, for Lena. He closed his eyes and let himself glide through the air with stretch out wings. Elliot listened hard for anything that could be of help to get a location... There! He opened his eyes and set a straight course to where he had located the one he was searching, Regina.
"Do you think we made it in time?" Ruby asked worried. They had just arrived at the old farm house where Zelena had lived for a while. It was the only place they could think of where the wicked witch would hide. And they weren't wrong. She was standing outside with Regina tight up behind her against the porch. It was like Zelena was waiting for them.
"I don't think Lena is here" Emma said, looking around.
"Yet" Dorothy continued. They ran forward to the wicked witch. Close enough to talk but far enough to keep Regina save.
"Stay back" Zelena warned, her hand already squeezing Regina's throat as a warning.
"Zelena give it up. Let Regina go, please" Snow said.
"Well, since you asked so nicely" Zelena said sarcasticly: "Do you really think I'm just gonna give up so easy. I'm not so weak as my sister." Zelena threw a nasty look at Regina.
"This is your last chance, Zelena" Ruby said.
"Or what? You're gonna lick me to death" Zelena mocked.
"Oh no…I won't hurt you" Ruby smirked: "He on the other hand…" Ruby pointed up to the sky. With her wolf hearing, Ruby had picked up on Elliot before anyone could even see the dragon. But yes, Elliot was on his way.
Zelena's eyes grew bigger, so did Regina's, when she realized what was coming closer and closer and what was coming straight towards her: "Where the hell did you guys find a dragon?!" Total panic in Zelena's voice.
A deafening roar sounded before the dragon dove towards the ground. Zelena knew that she didn't have much of chance against a dragon on her own. But that didn't held her back from trying. Shots of emerald green magic flew towards the dragon, who easily avoided getting hit. Another deafening roar before the dragon landed right in front of the wicked witch. The dragon was huffing, breathing very heavy from anger.
"Remember the 'little girl' from before?" Emma asked smirking: "Tadaaa."
"What?!" both Zelena and Regina reacted at the same time.
"You can't win this fight" David said: "Surrender now and you won't get hurt."
Zelena was furious but she saw her defeat, for now. She did a quick hand gesture to Regina, which made the ropes around the woman fall down, and then threw her hands in the air. Regina ran to Henry to give him a strong hug. "I'm okay" she assured.
David and Emma were about to step forward to get to Zelena but the dragon kept them back with his wings. He wasn't going to back down. This wicked witch hurt Regina. Lena cares for Regina, loves her. He couldn't just let the witch go after what she had done.
"Lena?" Regina said carefully: "Lena it's okay. I'm okay. She won't hurt anyone anymore."
Ruby stepped forward: "I don't think Lena is in control anymore, Regina. I think it's Elliot."
Regina looked from the brunette to the emerald green dragon. Slowly she stepped around the dragon, releasing Henry's hand, to go and stand right in between the dragon and Zelena. Elliot didn't like that and started growling at Regina.
"Regina…it's Regina…we found her…Elliot…we found her…" The dragon shook his head.
"Lena, I know you're in there" Regina tried: "I know it because Elliot would never get so angry or hurt anyone on his own. He would only do that to protect you…or if you wanted him too. Because you are angry and you want revenge." The dragon started breathing slower, totally focused on Regina now. "But revenge is not the answer. Maybe I'm not the best person to tell you this but I know that in the end it will come back and haunt you…Please, Lena. Stop this."
The dragon blinked his eyes a couple times and shook his head again. With the revengeful haze away now Elliot looked at Regina with sheepish eyes. He lowered his head. Regina laid a hand on his forehead.
"Well…now that's all out of the way" Zelena sighed: "I'm out of here." For the second time that evening she disappeared in a cloud of green smoke.
A loud roar. Elliot, the dragon, landed right in front of Granny's diner. Everyone else had come back by car. Another loud roar. Dorothy walked closer. "It's good to see you, my friend" she said and laid a hand on its forehead. Elliot rumbled softly in agreement.
"So, how are we going to get Lena back?" Regina asked.
"Can't she just turn back?" Emma responded.
"I don't think so" Dorothy said: "Lena and Elliot share a body. At first Lena was on the outside but when she got scared and angry for Regina Elliot felt that she needed help. I think that's why Lena changed into Elliot."
"How does that help us figure out how to change Elliot back into Lena?" Emma asked.
"Scared and angry feelings made Lena change. She needs to get control over her feelings and let them go" Dorothy explained.
"Why is she still feeling that way? Mom is safe now" Henry said confused.
Regina walked closer to Elliot and looked him straight in the eyes. She thought she could see glints of Lena's eyes in them just like in Lena's eyes there were emerald green glints like Elliot's eyes. Softly she laid a hand on Elliot's head.
"It's okay to feel scared or angry" Regina said. Although Regina didn't spoke loud, everyone's was listening close: "but you can't let those feelings take over…I am safe, we are all safe. You have to let it go." Slowly emerald green light was surrounding the dragon. Regina pulled her hand back and had to look away. When the light faded away, instead of a dragon, Lena was standing in front of Regina. They locked eyes. "Lena" Regina said softly. They jumped into each other's arms, hugging tightly.
"Well," Emma said: "I could use a drink…Anyone else?"
Everyone agreed and walked into the diner, Regina and Lena as last. Inside Henry picked out a booth while Emma and David pushed a table closer so everyone could sit. Granny was already making hot cocoa and Ruby had found a bottle of liquor.
Lena stayed back a bit, watching everyone. Than looking at Regina, Lena took a deep breath and spoke: "Mom…..Mom." It was only the second time Regina realized that the word was meant for her. For a moment she stood frozen to the ground, so did everyone else it seemed. "Mom?"
Now Regina turned around. She swallowed some happy tears away: "Yes?"
"Can we go home?" Lena asked.
"Yes, yes we can" Regina smiled. She pulled Lena in a tight hug and whispered: "I love you."
"I love you too, mom."
Next chapter coming soon.