Well, My Doves, it's been a helluva ride! This is the final chapter to this emotionally taxing and wonderful journey. There will be an epilogue and probably a sequel. Thank you all so much for taking this journey with me and for loving these characters as much as I do.
Songs: Think I'm Sick and Theatre by Icon for Hire, I'll Try by Cassidy Dickens (this is an original song by a very good friend of mine. Please check out this wonderful and beautiful and talented human being on you tube. Her channel is under her name. This song is my Cora/Regina/Emma song, but I saved it for last because it always makes me cry knowing the story behind it. It's just too perfect.)
Emma rolled over again, squirming until she found a cool spot on the bed. The last time she'd checked the clock on her cell phone, it had informed her it was after three and that she'd been wallowing on the bed for nearly four hours without succumbing to the bliss of sleep. She sighed and rolled herself to the edge. Her stomach stretched and complained; she ignored it. She was fine. Regina ensured that during their fight and their lovemaking.
She ran her hands through her hair and stood with a glance in Henry's direction. He slept soundly on the cot they'd set up across the room. She shimmied out of her pajama pants quickly and changed into jeans, eyes anxiously watching her unconscious son. She'd worn a bra and t-shirt to bed since her son slept in the same room. He was already scarred, and she felt certain waking up to his mother's nipples pointing all over the place would have pushed him over the edge. She secured her holster and gun, grabbed her boots, and slipped out the door silently.
When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she found her mother staring into a cup of coffee at the small island. She glanced at a fully clothed Emma and then silently crossed to the coffee pot and poured her a cup. Emma accepted it gratefully, not even bothering to sweeten the dark liquid.
"I couldn't sleep either," Mary Margaret commented absently and reclaimed her stool. Emma studied her tired face. After everything, Snow White still loved the woman who had acted as her step-mother for nearly a decade. It was remarkable.
"I'm going over there. She and Ruby should be with Cora by now. David said no one was there when he went over there earlier. Is it okay if Henry stays here? I don't want to wake him." Emma explained her plans in a voice that left no room for argument.
"Of course, he can stay," Snow answered immediately, joy filling her heart. Emma had begun to trust her again. "What are you going to do?" Emma blew out a harsh sigh.
"Honestly? I'm going to go try and sleep in her bed. It's the only way I know how to be near her right now," Emma answered, slightly embarrassed. Snow only smiled and nodded.
"Call if you need anything," she answered neutrally and sipped her coffee. Emma nodded, gulped half of hers in one go and then left without further comment, snagging the keys to her cruiser on the way.
She blew through the wet empty streets of Storybrooke. Not even the earlier rain tapping soothingly against the window had lulled her into unconsciousness. It was one of her favorite things about Storybrooke, the frequent rainstorms. They usually calmed her but not this night. This night nothing would have soothed her nerves except for the soft hands and shy smile of her lover.
She paused when she pulled up to Regina's walkway. The front door stood wide open. The foyer was dark. Light came only from the streetlamps and the automatic lights at the corners of Regina's mansion. Emma stepped out of her cruiser and unsnapped her holster, hand resting on the butt of her gun. She called Mary Margaret.
"Emma? Is everything okay?" Asked the confused voice of her mother on the other end in the middle of the first ring.
"I'm not sure. I'm fine, but Regina's door is open. Can you wake up David and ask him if he left it open?" Emma clipped proficiently. She hadn't the time for niceties. Mary Margaret shuffled on the other end, and then muffled voices murmured in the back ground.
"Emma, he said that the door was open when he got there as was the blood," Snow said in a slightly frustrated voice.
"Blood?" She pulled her gun and ran towards the front door, not bothering to wait for a response.
She held the gun in front of her and flipped on the light. The house was silent, no creaking of floorboards or thumping of feet. It seemed empty, but Emma climbed the stairs vigilantly. A quick glance around the foyer to ensure safety and then her eyes turned to the floor. She pulled the phone back to her ear just in case she missed something. At least Mary Margaret would know something had happened to her.
"Mary Margaret?" Emma confirmed, eyes glued to the dark red spot on the floor. She glanced around again.
"Cora has them. There's a small pool of blood, maybe the size of a plate and drag marks. She figured out our plan. She has them," Emma babbled, her voice raising hysterically with each word.
"Where would she take them?" Snow asked on the other end, pulling her daughter's focus away from thoughts of the worst case scenario.
"The farmhouse, the one where she attacked you before. You guys never went in, right?" Emma suggested quickly.
"It can't hurt to go look now. I'll wake David and be on the street by the time you drive by the apartment. Be careful, Emma," Snow added, and then the line went dead.
Emma closed her eyes and simply breathed for a moment. If she panicked, she'd be no good to Ruby and Regina. She breathed, in and out, in and out. Her eyes flew open as a calming and steady rage settled into her chest. She'd totally had enough of this chick. Her strides were wide and slow, sauntering down the walk, door slamming behind her, holster popping with each step.
She drove in a similar manner, and when Snow slid into the seat next to her bow and quiver in hand, her eyes widened at Emma's eerie and unnerving calm. She said nothing, however, save directions as they drove further into the oppressive night. The empowering serenity filled the cab of the cruiser, and soon Snow found herself breathing evenly, preparing for what they were about to do. The agreement was unspoken: take no prisoners, don't stop until Regina and Ruby were safe, or die trying.
Emma stopped the cruiser in the woods just before the long field in front of the house. The darkness surrounded them, pushing them together at the front of the cruiser. Without speaking, they moved forward simultaneously in a light jog. They hadn't bothered crouching until they reached the last 100 yards. Clouds covered the moon and stars. They were completely alone and shrouded in darkness. Emma's weak lung protested, but Eva had encourage short spurts of jogging during exercise walks for strength training. She was within the acceptable parameters, not that she'd even considered herself for a moment in all of this.
They pressed their shoulders into the side of the house beneath a lit window. When air flowed easily into their lungs, they moved again as one unit, peeking into the window quickly. An empty room greeted them, so they moved to the front door. The knob turned, and the door cracked. Of course, Cora wouldn't have locked her front. Arrogant and narcissistic, she assumed no one challenged her or even knew she'd managed to capture her daughter. Emma seethed. David begrudgingly gathered backup, unhappy with staying behind with Henry, but at this rate, they'd be finished before they ever arrived.
Snow nocked an arrow and nodded to her daughter. Emma pulled her gun and moved through the door, body turned to the side to make for a narrower target. Snow studied her tight shoulders and straightened spine. Her daughter exuded unadulterated confidence. It intoxicated her senses and killed any lingering hesitation. Emma unwaveringly believed in her cause, and she believed in her. She followed with a slight tension on the string of her bow but not enough to wreck her arm before she needed it.
They cleared the house quickly, moving silently and efficiently, the small living room to the kitchen to a sitting room and then to a hallway. Emma covered her as she opened the door and then stepped back, fingers falling to her bow string. It was a bedroom. It was empty, but someone had clearly slept in the bed recently. Emma crossed to the disheveled covers and touched the sheets.
"It's warm. Either someone had to pee or they know we're here," she deduced quietly and then moved back to the hallway without further comment, still with that same confidence as before.
The rest of the rooms were in similar states with the exception of a warm bed. At the end of the hall, the door opened to a set of stairs. Emma steeled her nerves, released a steadying breath, descended slowly. Snow held back, waiting until Emma reached the concrete floor at the bottom in case an attack came before her daughter found solid ground. Emma halted long enough for her to join her in the basement and then moved towards the only door left unchecked.
Again, she covered Snow as she opened the door. It was dark, and Emma squinted, seeing a faint light at the end of a long hallway. Regina was at the end of this hall, she had to be, she assured herself. She nodded at her mother and then moved forward, steps finally slowing. The tension in the air snapped tightly, and they both felt it, knew they neared their goal.
She forced deep, silent breaths in and out of her chest. Her hands trembled lightly with her growing adrenaline and pounding heart. She pushed forward, squeezing her gun tightly. It burned hotly beneath her sweaty palms. Snow pulled the bow string taut, resting her thumb against her jaw. They rounded the corner.
Regina sat in the middle of the room, tied to a chair. Her eyes were wide and she made indistinguishable words through the thick cloth gag in her mouth as she struggled against her restraints. Cora stood near the wall, using Ruby as a shield. The wolf's eyes glowed an angry yellow, and Emma sneered. Good. She needed a pissed off werewolf in her corner right now. She stepped towards Regina but still out of arm's reach.
"Hello Savior, I had wondered if you'd ever find your way here," Cora greeted as if they had arrived late to tea time. Her voice slithered up Emma's spine, and she gritted her teeth.
"Let her go, or I'm going to put a bullet between your eyes," Emma threatened.
Cora's answering laugh stopped abruptly when an arrow whizzed through the air. Ruby howled in pain and dropped to the floor, clutching the arrow sticking from her thigh. Cora grunted and slumped against the wall, like she too felt the pain. Emma squinted at the evil witch and stepped towards Regina again; Snow nocked another arrow and loosed it at Cora.
She deflected it easily and threw her hands out, catching both Snow and Emma about the throats with magic. They lifted from the ground, gasping for air. Emma lost her grip on her gun, and it clattered to the ground. Ruby growled and pushed herself to her feet miraculously, like she'd felt no pain at all, like there wasn't an arrow in her leg. She grabbed Cora's arms and shoved her hard against the wall. They dropped to the cold floor, coughing and wheezing.
They grappled, Ruby slamming the elder sorceress into the wall repeatedly with bone-crushing force. Emma took the opportunity to jerk at the cloth in Regina's mouth. Suddenly, Ruby froze, arms dropping to her sides in submission. Emma squinted at the odd behavior and fumbled with the gag. Snow shot another arrow at Cora, drawing her attention from Emma.
Cora again stopped it easily and flung her hands out in retaliation. They flew through the air, backs slamming into the concrete wall several feet from the ground. Regina's gag hung from Emma's fingers. Rather than falling, though, Cora held them in place. One slim finger sliced the air, and a gash appeared across Emma's chest and stomach. It was deep, and blood gushed onto her pants and the floor.
"Ruby!" Regina screamed, panic rising. If Ruby failed to break free at least once more, they were doomed to watch Emma and Snow die.
Ruby shook her head, a guttural war cry ripping from her throat. She grabbed Cora's shoulders and flung her into the wall, fists flying into the older woman hesitantly. Even now, she fought her mother's control.
"Emma, shoot Ruby!" Regina commanded. Emma held one hand to her stomach and clamored for her fallen gun. She pointed it at the wolf's back and faltered.
"Shoot me!" Ruby growled. "Do it! Do it now, Emma!" Ruby's arms froze, but her body quaked and trembled with rage. Emma took careful aim, hesitated.
An arrow whizzed by her ear and pierced Ruby's side. She survived only if they got her help quickly, Emma realized. Snow retrieved another arrow and released it into the wolf in the shoulder this time. It wasn't fatal but probably shattered her collarbone. Ruby grunted and fell to the knee of her uninjured leg, struggling to stay upright. Regina cried out and turned her head, tears already spilling onto her cheeks. Cora pressed a hand to her stomach. It came away bloody.
"Emma, untie me!" Regina pulled against her ropes. Emma looked up at her in shock, not quite understanding.
Snow moved first, using the razor sharp head of an arrow to cut the ropes. Emma snagged one from her quiver and worked on her hands.
"Emma, her heart! Get Ruby's heart! Go now. It's on a pouch on Cora's belt. Get it now before she crushes it!" Regina ordered, an almost hysterical fear in her voice.
Emma scrambled to the two fallen women. She stepped over Ruby and cut the string of the cloth bag with the arrow and then moved away quickly. The arrow clattered to the concrete as she jerked the bag open. Ruby's heart pulsed dimly, and it freaked her out, like Regina's had.
"Hold on, Ruby!" Regina called and then brushed past Emma, shackles still around her wrists.
She and Snow dragged Ruby out of Cora's reach and then dropped to their knees. Cora gasped and searched for the strength to stand. Red liquid seeped from beneath her body and joined with Ruby's on the cold concrete. Emma moved forward and stomped her boot into the elder witch's face. She fell to the floor, and Ruby cried out.
"Emma, no! They're linked, their lifelines. Don't hurt her, not yet," Regina ordered, and Emma knelt beside her lover and rubbed a soothing hand over her back.
Regina's hand sunk into Ruby's chest. "Hold on, Ruby. We've got you. We're here," Regina soothed the wolf's groans of pain.
Snow held Ruby as still as possible as Regina pulled back bodily and revealed a blackened heart from years of rage and evil deeds. Regina gasped as one solitary tendril of pink pulled to the surface at her touch. Tears spilled onto her cheeks as she cradled the dark heart in her hands and moved slowly to her mother.
"Mary Margaret, go get the car," Emma whispered as she switched places with her lover and knelt beside Ruby. Snow nodded, realizing the dismissal for what it was despite the need to get Ruby to help.
"Mommy?" Regina whined and touched Cora's face, holding the heart against her chest.
Regina finally felt her mother's love for her, the last sliver of goodness remaining in her heart. No one but Emma and the two witches knew what one felt while touching the heart of another, that it brings their true emotions to the surface. Cora loved Regina, and now Regina knew it, no matter what the witch said.
"Mother, we'll get you help. I won't let you die," Regina whispered, a girlish whine in her voice. Tears dripped shamelessly down her face. "I love you, too, Mommy," she choked out before the emotion stole her voice completely.
Emma held Ruby tightly with one arm and clutched the pouch to her chest with the other hand. She pressed her forehead into Ruby's shoulder, giving her what comfort she could. The girl's breathing grew shallower by the second, and Emma knew they needed to move soon.
"Regina," Cora gasped, and Regina pressed her face closer to her mother's. "Love is weakness," she reminded her daughter.
Her hand shot out with the last of her strength and covered Regina's hand and her heart. She squeezed tightly, even as the pain tore through her body. Regina jerked back, but it was too late. Cora's hand fell away, and dust slipped through her trembling fingers. Ruby cried out and then went still. Regina's mouth hung open in disbelief. Emma jostled Ruby slightly, fear gripping her own heart. Their lifelines hadn't been disconnected.
"No, Mother," Regina pulled Cora into her arms and held her close, smoothing her hair and adjusting her clothes. "Mother!" She gave in to the tears and her head fell forward under the emotions.
"Regina," Emma called to her. "Regina, we need to get Ruby to the hospital." Regina cried as though she hadn't heard her.
"Regina! Now! Ruby is dying! Do you want to lose someone else you love tonight?" Emma hated herself for being so harsh, but Ruby faded quickly. It worked. Regina raised her eyes to Emma's, and Emma would have given anything to hold her in that moment.
"Baby, we have to go. I'm so sorry," Emma's tears cracked her voice. "Poof her to the hospital, put her heart back in, do something. Please Baby. Help me save Ruby."
"Taking her heart out didn't sever the lifeline," Regina said suddenly as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "I have no magic," she said. Her voice was hollow, deadened with her broken heart.
"Then help me get her to the car. We'll come back for her. I promise," Emma encouraged Regina to move, and puffed a relieved sigh when it actually worked.
She laid her mother down gently and stood on shaking legs. The urgency returned to her motions when she noticed Ruby's pale face and shallow breaths. If she returned Ruby's heart now, she'd die. The only string standing between Ruby and death was the fact that her heart had not been in Cora's chest when she'd died and was not in hers now. They were still linked, and she'd not have lasted much longer without intervention.
By the time they reached the top of the steps, both women puffed under the dead weight of the wolf. Emma's shirt and jeans were wet with her own blood, and she pushed through the pain. Snow White entered the hallway and sprinted towards them. She halted their progress for a moment and snapped the arrow heads off before taking Ruby's heart and leading the way to the running cruiser.
Regina handed Ruby to Snow who had considerably more strength in her uninjured state, and they pulled and pushed Ruby into the back seat. Regina slid behind the wheel, knowing Emma would never have allowed her to drive under normal circumstances.
Emma quietly relayed the situation with Ruby's heart to her mother as Regina took off through the field, tuning out what she already knew.
"All this time Ruby was controlled by Cora?" Snow sorted through her thoughts aloud.
"Regina doesn't know how to break the connection and has no magic until we get those shackles off. Wait, how did you get her heart out of Ruby with no magic?" Emma studied Regina's profile.
"I channeled yours like I did when using Jefferson's hat," Regina explained quietly. Snow gasped but held her tongue on the subject.
"I have an idea," Snow said and patted her pockets, producing a cell phone after a few seconds.
Emma leaned forward and pressed her forehead to Regina's shoulder, a hand on her stomach and one holding Ruby in place. Regina tensed beneath the contact but didn't move away as Snow talked quietly on the phone. She ended the call and tossed the phone on the front seat.
"David is getting a medical team ready. They'll meet us at the front of the hospital," Snow said, holding back the rest of her idea lest it failed to take flight.
The remainder of the tense and fast drive passed in silence. As promised, a team swarmed them the second they arrived and pulled Ruby from the car and onto a gurney. Snow searched the swarm for the face she most wanted to see and nearly cried out in relief when she found it.
"Lacey!" She waved her over as they followed Ruby and the medical team into the sliding doors. Regina and Emma looked at each other in confusion.
Snow stopped everyone when Lacey reached them. She was bleary-eyed and unbalanced, clearly having woken up only a few minutes ago. Gold seethed from across the room. The scrub-clad people glared at her, and she ignored them. She grabbed Lacey's shoulders and held her gaze.
"Lacey, you are Belle French. You've been told this before, I know. And I know you don't remember, but you and Ruby were in love. You are her true love, Lacey, and I need to ask you to do something unthinkable. I need you to save her life," Snow spoke at the wild child in her hands, looking for understanding in her big blue eyes.
"I'm not a doctor," Lacey started defensively, but Emma caught onto Snow's plan quickly.
She pulled Ruby's heart from the pouch and stepped forward, focusing her thoughts and energy on her hand and the heart. Lacey gasped and Gold jerked when Emma's hand disappeared into her chest. She probably should have gotten consent, but there wasn't time. Ruby died in front of them, and she refused to risk Lacey's refusal and watch Regina crushed further by more loss. If anyone's heart held the strength to break the bond with Cora, surely it was the heart of Ruby's true love.
Emma released the heart but kept her hand inside, uncertain if she'd be able to reenter the woman. Blue eyes widened a moment before Lacey wavered. Snow wrapped her arms around the slight woman and held her upright. Tears streamed down Lacey's face, and sobs tore from her chest in heaves that sounded almost like laughter.
"Ruby," she whispered and pushed Snow away. "Ruby's alive," she laughed and cried, and everyone looked around confused as hell.
"Belle?" It was Ruby's gravelly voice. It had worked, and Ruby now felt Belle's essence inside of her. Emma had linked their lifelines, effectively destroying her bond with Cora and restoring Belle's memories at the same time. While Ruby still needed surgery almost immediately, her wolf strength returned as her heart pulsed safely inside the chest of her true love.
"I'm sorry, Belle. I have to take it out now," Emma said gently, thankful that Mary Margaret prevented the other woman from bolting to Ruby's side. She nodded.
Emma took the heart out. It throbbed and swirled with new life, glowed brightly with love. They moved together to Ruby's gurney, and the medical staff stepped back, recognizing that the situation was far larger than them. Ruby's eyes flew open as the right heart finally beat within her chest again.
It was a short-lived moment because Belle suddenly appeared above her head. She pressed their lips together over and over again, feeling Ruby's strength move within her own chest. Emma returned to Regina's side and wrapped her in strong arms, wanting to watch the reunion in the embrace of her very own true love.
Belle and Ruby kissed and whispered and touched, oblivious to the world around them. Belle reluctantly allowed the medical team access when impatient hands pulled her back. Her eyes widened when she finally noticed the arrows impaling her lover.
"I'll be right here when you wake up, Ruby Lucas," she promised and stole one more kiss before standing back willingly.
She watched the team until they disappeared and then turned to Regina and Emma. The Savior squeaked and sorceress groaned in pain when Belle flung herself into their arms. Regina's shackled and aching wrists were trapped between them, so Emma wrapped an arm around the emotional librarian. She searched the room over her shoulder, but Gold had already disappeared. She'd never have forgiven him anyway, so it was probably for the best.
"Miss French, get the hell off me before I pass out," Regina bitched, out of patience for the entire situation. She ached inside and out, and she knew that she needed a shower.
Belle stepped back, only now realizing that Emma and Regina, too, were badly injured. She clasped her hands in front of her, embarrassed. Snow stepped forward and placed a hand on Emma's shoulder.
"David , Leroy and I will bring Cora's body to the morgue," she said quietly, and Regina's eyes jerked up in surprise. "Henry is with Granny. We'll make sure they both make it here safely."
"Thank you, Mar… Mom," Emma replied for her lover who looked like a fish out of water. Snow softened further at the term but said nothing as she disappeared out the door with her husband and head dwarf in tow.
Regina faltered, and Emma caught her before she fell over. Exhaustion, physical and emotional, settled over her, and she leaned heavily into her partner. Emma waved over a couple of nurses lingering. They'd obviously noticed the blood, fresh and dried, on the other two women and waited patiently until the larger crises ended before closing in on them.
"I'm here," Emma whispered into her hair, knowing that nothing else she said would have mattered.
