Love, Fate And Magic

Chapter 3- Scars

Page after page was turned by the mayor, early the next morning. It was shocking how detailed the book was on the past, and how little it seemed to miss. Regina frowned as she came across a picture of a familiar face.

Emma

The mayor ran her fingers across the blondes face, flicking her eyes over to the other page, describing the picture. Regina smiled, realising it was the moment Emma had come riding after Hook to save him. The first time they met. She continued to turn the pages, looking at each depiction of their relationship, from their first kiss to Emma battling with her magic. Regina closed her eyes, reliving the moment between them. It had been beautiful, something Regina would always cherish.

The brunette frowned when she turned a few more pages, seeing images of Emma meeting with the Apprentice and receiving the curse. Regina felt her heart twinge, finally knowing the answer to one of her many questions about Emma and how she had gotten the curse to begin with.

She shook her head, snapping the book shut angrily. These emotions weren't welcome, and she had no interest in letting them back in. Emma had left her! Why should she let her back in? Regina sighed heavily, knowing no matter what she did, she could never be rid of her love for the lost Princess. Standing up, Regina brushed away the thoughts, reminding herself Emma had gone back to Boston. If she isn't here, the mayor wouldn't have to deal with her.

However, she did have to deal with Henry. Leaving her room, Regina briskly walked down the hall, barging into Henry's room, frowning at him.

"We need to talk." Henry glanced at her in his mirror.

"No we don't." he replied, continuing to do his top button up.

"Yes we do! You think I'm some Evil Queen! And that hurts me, Henry. I'm your mother." She said, grasping his arm and turning him to face her.

"No, you're not." He scowled, walking away and picking up books.

"Well, then who is? That woman you brought here? I don't like what she or this book is doing to you." He continued to put things in his bag, paying little attention to her. "Thankfully, neither are an issue anymore."

"You're just angry at her for leaving you." Henry shrugged, zipping up his bag. The mayor went to answer, but snapped her head towards the window at the sound of a bell toll. The clock tower?

Xxxxxxx

Marching down the street, Regina glared up at the offending clock tower. Ten years it had never moved, but now all of a sudden it starts up? Coming to a stop, she stared up to hear the faint sound of gears ticking away.

"Hey, how about that? Guess those rusty old innards finally straightened themselves out, huh?" Regina turned to reply to the cricket, but her attention was caught by something far worse. Emma's hideous car sat parked outside the bakery. She didn't leave? The mayor felt a fire roar inside her, and she glared at the yellow tin can, hoping it might burst into flames if she stared hard enough.

"Yes. How about that, indeed."

Xxxxxx

Emma moved around the room, sipping at her coffee as her body adjusted to the day. She wasn't sure what she hoped to achieve by staying in town, but something defiantly wasn't right around here. For starters, Regina had lied about knowing her as if she meant nothing. To be fair, Emma was used to being treated like nothing, however Regina acted as if they had some kind of history, and as a result Regina wanted nothing to do with her. Emma wasn't used to this. Over the last ten years, the only people who recognised Emma, were people she had met during that time. Never before had she encountered someone who might know her from before the car crash. The blonde frowned, staring out of the window. Where could Regina have fitted into her life? She could have met her during any of the eighteen years she couldn't remember. Perhaps they were childhood friends? Old school mates? Maybe even family? Emma shook her head, idea of them being family was rather out there.

The blonde jumped at a knock at the door, and moved to open it, forgetting she wore nothing but her underwear from the bottom down. Emma poked her head around the door, and fought an eye roll the threatened to come out at the sight of the mayor.

"Did you know the honey crisp tree is the most vigorous and hardy of all apple trees?" Emma stared opened mouthed at the older woman, who continued to talk. "It can survive temperatures as low as 40 below and keep growing. It can weather any storm." What is happening right now? The blonde frowned at Regina, who plucked an apple from the full basket in her arms.

"Here." She offered Emma the apple, smiling widely at her.

"Thanks." She replied, taking the apple from the brunette hesitantly.

"I'm sure you'll enjoy them on your drive home."

"Actually, I'm gonna stay for a while." Emma didn't miss the dangerous flash in Regina's eyes.

"I'm not sure that's such a good idea." The blonde tilted her head at the mayor. "Henry has enough issues. He doesn't need you confusing him."

"All due respect, Madame Mayor, that fact that you're now threatening me makes me want to stay even more." Emma smirked, pulling her top down at bit, hoping to conceal her underwear a little more.

"What's threatening about apples?" The brunette's eyes darted down, and lingered on her chest. Emma tried not to cringe, knowing exactly what the mayor found so interesting about her chest, and for once it wasn't her boobs.

"I can read between the lines." Regina looked back up at Emma, an emotion in her eyes that the blonde couldn't pin point exactly. "Sorry, I just want to make sure Henry's okay."

"He's fine, dear. Any problems he has are being taken care of."

"What does that mean?" Emma asked, watching as the older woman stepped a little closer.

"It means I have him in therapy. It's all under control." Emma nodded. "Take my advice, Miss Swan, only one of us knows what's best for Henry."

"Yeah, I'm starting to think you're right about that." The fake smiled on Regina's face melted away, being replaced by a sneer.

"It's time to go."

"Or what?" Regina invaded Emma's personal space, bringing their faces close together.

"Don't underestimate me, Miss Swan. You have no idea what I'm capable of."

Xxxxxxx

Emma stared down unamused at the paper in her hand. Stranger Destroys Historic Sign, good lord. Emma had a feeling the mayor had something to do with this. Emma shrugged, lifting the apple to her lips, but pulled away when Ruby placed a mug in front of her. The blonde had taken it upon herself to try and learn names.

"Thank you, but I did not order that." Emma said, looking at the red loving woman with a puzzled expression.

"Yeah, I know, you have an admirer." She smirked at Emma, who turned to spot the Sheriff in one of the booths. The blonde huffed and picked up the mug, walking over to the scruffy man.

"So you decided to stay?" He said, leaning back to look at her.

"Observant. Important for a cop."

"It's good news for our tourist business. It's bad for our local signage." Graham's eyes flicked up to Emma's unimpressed expression.

"It's a joke" he explained. "Because you ran over our sign." The blonde shook her head at the flustered man and cut across him.

"Look. The cocoa was a nice gesture. And I am impressed that you guessed that I like cinnamon on my chocolate, cause most people don't" She said, placing the mug down on the diner table. "But I'm not here to flirt. So thank you, but no thank you."

"I didn't send it." He said, frowning at the mug.

"I did." Emma's head snapped up to see the Henry grinning at her. "I like cinnamon, too."

"Don't you have school?"

"Duh, I'm ten." He jumped out from the booth, and walked over to the blonde. "Walk me."

The two walked cheerfully from the diner, Henry quickly engaging Emma in conversation. Emma listened to him talk for a moment, but decided to use their time together to get some answers on Regina.

"So what's the deal with you and your mum?" The blonde asked, throwing her apple from hand to hand as they crossed the street.

"It's not about us, it's about her curse." Emma frowned at his answer, but didn't interrupt as he began to talk about his fairy tale fantasy again. "We have to break it. Luckily, I have a plan."

"You do?"

"Step one, identification. I call it Operation Cobra"

"Cobra?" Emma questioned, scrunching up her face in confusion. "That has nothing to do with fairy tales."

"Exactly. It's a codename. To throw the Queen off the trail."

"So everyone here is a fairy tale character, they just don't know it?" She asked, trying to wrap her head around the strangest thing she had ever heard.

"That's the curse. Time's been frozen. Until you got here." Emma huffed, lifting the apple to her lips, but jerked back when Henry spoke up again. "Hey! Where'd you get that?"

"Your mum."

"Don't eat that." Henry snatched the apple from the blonde's hand and quickly tossed it behind him.

"Okay." She said, a little shocked. "All right. What about their pasts?"

"They don't know. It's a haze to them. Ask anyone anything and you'll see."

"So, for decades people have been walking around in a haze not ageing, with screwed-up memories, stuck in a cursed town that kept them oblivious?"

"I knew you'd get it." He smiled up at her, and Emma couldn't help but grin back. "That's why we need you. You're the only one who can stop her curse."

"Because I'm the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming?"

"Yes. And right now we have the advantage." He stopped and turned to look at her.

"What's that?"

"My mum is at a crossroad because of you." Emma frowned at him.

"Why me?"

"Because she's still in love with you." He shrugged.

"In love?" Emma gaped at him.

"Yep. You fell in love with the Evil Queen back in the Enchanted Forrest, but you left her. That's why my mum cast the curse, to find you."

"Henry, that's completely…"

"I know it's crazy but it's true. But don't worry, I know the hero never believe in the begging. If they did, it wouldn't be a very good story."

They continued the short walk to Henry's school. The brunette telling Emma all about the relationship between her and the Evil Queen. Emma knew what he said couldn't be true, she couldn't be a fairy tale character. But she could have had some kind of a relationship with Regina. Maybe that's why Regina want's her gone so bad, maybe it didn't end well. The blonde continued to think over the possibility that she could have ever been in love with the cold woman. She was pulled from her thoughts however as they reached the school.

"I gotta go. But I'll find you later and we can get started." He began walking up to the school, but whirled around quickly to yell back to Emma. "I knew you'd believe me."

"I never said I did."

"Why else would you be here?" Emma watched him run into school, and her mind quickly went back to previous thoughts. Why was she here? Was it to look out for the kid? Or to discover something that may or may not be there? Her eyes drifted over to a petite pixie haired woman walking over to her.

"It's good to see his smile back." She said, smiling at Emma, who shrugged.

"I didn't do anything."

"You stayed." Emma sighed, nodding. "So, does the Mayor know you're still here?"

"Oh, she knows. What is her deal?" Emma asked. "She is not a great people person. How did she get elected?"

"She's been mayor as long as I can remember. No one's ever been brave enough to run against her." Mary Margaret paused for a moment. "She inspired quite a bit of, well, fear. I'm afraid I only made that worse by giving Henry that book. Now he thinks she's the Evil Queen."

"Who does he think you are?" The brunette let out a breathy laugh.

"It's silly."

"I just got five minutes of silly. Lay it on me."

"Snow White." Emma felt her breath catch in her throat as she stared at the chuckling woman. Snow White? If it's true, is this her moth- no! It's not real! "Who does he think you are?"

"I'm not in the book." The blonde shook her head, ridding it of the ridiculous thoughts. "Can I ask you a favour? Regina mentioned the kid's in therapy. Do you know where I could find the doctor?"

A/N: I'm sorry, I started this like four days ago, but got really distracted. I start College on Monday so I'm pretty swamped with that. However I do now have this chapter up and will try to get the next one up before Monday. Till next time Kids.