A/N I enjoyed writing this chapter way too much :D I hope you enjoy reading it as much. I wasn't actually going to have Regina in this fic, because I wanted to cut this story short, but it just came out automatically when I was writing it up. So apologies, but I have an intense love for drama. :D Next chapter should be pretty fluffy, to make up for intensity of this! Thank you so much for the reviews guys, your reviews are what's keeping me continuing this. (not even joking, I willed to delete those stories I don't receive much response!)
And for those, who had pm'ed me about Changes, thank you for your interest and pushing me to continue it, so Changes shall be updated next!
Thank you, and as always, please review! :)
Snow yawned trying to keep her eyes open, but the tv's monotonic sounds were not helping. There was nothing good on for as long as she's been back from her friends, so all she did was lounge inside, with a cup of hot chocolate, wrapped in a blanket. She realized how chilly it has gotten, so she made a call to Charming to check if Emma was dressed warmly enough and if he needed any help. She couldn't pick point where they were at, but it was clear as a day they were outside, supposingly 'all under control'. She relaxed and started drifting into a snooze in front of the telly.
There was a knock on a door. Snow checked her watch, confused who could that be at this hour. She knew Charming had keys, but it made sense to be back because it was getting late already. She paused for a second considering the options but the knocks were growing aggravated. Snow sighed, picked herself up from the coach and walked to the door. She opened them unsuspecting anything and her face became pale, her mouth hanging wide open as her very step mother stood there.
"Where's Henry" Regina asked in a no bullshit tone. She was visually already suspecting something.
"Uh. " Snow tried to think of anything at all to say, which was really inconvenient right now because they haven't discussed what they were going to say when they finally come into face with Regina.
Regina showed herself inside the apartment pushing Snow away, checking everywhere.
"Henry!" Regina shouted, looking around.
"Henry's not here, Regina" Snow sighed patiently. Regina, not trusting, kept checking every room.
"Where did you take him? Where's your stupid daughter?"
Snow pursed her lips tight holding back her anger. "She's not here either"
"Did she take him? She did didn't she? Did she just run away again?"
"Regina, no one took Henry away. Calm down!"
Regina fumed. Not the best idea to tell her to calm down this very moment. She grabbed Snow's hands shaking her. "Tell me where the hell is my son!" she shouted desperation mixed with anger.
"What the hell is going on here?"
Snow sighed hearing her husband's voice in the doorway. Then as soon as the relief came in, her heart raced up in fear. Emma. Regina cannot see Emma.
"Don't touch her" Charming grabbed Regina by her hand shoving her off Snow.
Snow desperately looked for Emma, but she wasn't inside with Charming, so she breathed with relief hoping Charming had come up with a smart plan.
"Tell me where the hell is my son or I swear to God I'll burn this place down with you two idiots inside!" Regina threatened in a serious, willing tone.
"Henry's not here Regina, if you let us explain and calm down, we need to talk to you" Charming tried to approach her calmly.
That didn't go so well. Instantly, before Snow could even blink, she saw how her husband flew to the wall with a loud thud, vines wrapping around his neck.
"Regina stop!" Snow cried out. " Please. Stop."
Which seemed to be a big mistake, because with these words she saw how her little daughter entered the apartment, panicked looking for them. Snow froze inside, dashing for the door, as any mother would, to hold her daughter safe to her.
"Snow, watch-" before David could even finish his warning and Snow to be able to feel the warmth of her child in her hands, she felt flying in the air until she was met with a cold hard surface rattling her bones.
"What the hell?" Regina stared at the child.
"EMMA RUN" Snow shouted desperately, making another big mistake answering the exact doubt in Regina's question.
"Emma" Regina replied in all too cold tone now staring at the child. She grabbed little Emma by her hand roughly, to which Emma let out a whimper, too scared and hurt that moment, still with a shock not realizing what was going on.
Regina turned to Snow and David.
"This is just amazing isn't? I lose my child you get back yours, isn't?" she cried in anger. "Is this a part of some twisted plan of yours?" she shook Emma all angry.
"Regina, please let Emma go, she doesn't know you, she's just a kid" David tried to play Regina's emotions again.
"Oh, how convenient. Well you know what" Regina grabbed Emma. "If I can't get my son back, you're not getting your kid back either"
"MOMMY" Emma cried now full blown panic, starting to gather all pieces that this wasn't going well.
Snow couldn't hold back tears anymore. "It's okay Emma, nothing's going to happen to you, I promise" she tried to soothe the child who was staring at her pleading for help.
Regina just laughed. Maybe this, after all, was the best revenge she could ever get on Snow White. This was a hopeless child who could not protect herself unlike Emma she's met and the pain she saw in Snow's eyes, probably has been the most satisfactory payback to this day.
She rose her hand sending another wine over Snow's neck, squeezing it tight, which made Snow to start choking with the lack of air in her lungs. "I've had enough of you opening your stupid mouth, you stupid, naive girl."
Emma cried wiggling out of Regina's hold, but Regina didn't even flinch, this child, too small for anything, wasn't going to get away, not in her wildest dreams.
She then realized how sneakily David grabbed on scissors, as she hasn't paid attention, and she really wanted to just laugh at his desperate attempt. With one flick of her hand he was tied all up, his bones cracking, face turning blue.
Little Emma was so angry. She was so so angry, like she's never been in her life. She sure as hell had a share of downs, where she was pushed around, smacked over her head, sent down the stairs or unfairly blamed for things she's never done. She was angry once, a lot, with a boy that made fun from her blankie, but this was nothing alike. This was an evil witch, from the stories she's heard and feared and she was bad. She was so bad she did worse than Emma could even think of. She wasn't hurting Emma, not this much, she was actually hurting people Emma loved and she was taking them away from her.
"STOP" Emma screamed. This got Regina's attention, in a surprise she met Emma's eyes, who were flashing with anger, much like, she realized, the 28 year old Emma's eyes those times she's threatened her with Henry, or even, when she realized Henry ate her made apple turnover. In a moment of confusion, perhaps, slight fear that Regina experienced she got burned. In every sense of the word. Her hands, her entire body has burned with so much heat she thought she was actually being burned alive. It was as if she has emerged herself in a burning fire and she was stuck in the highest, strongest flames of it. She jumped back, throwing Emma down, as if Emma was this actual fire, Regina's face contracting in pain. It had to take a lot for someone who's been through so much to actually show pain, and Regina felt as if she was going to burn alive now, feeling her actual flesh ripping off her.
"EMMA" Snow ran over to her daughter as soon as she was released, with Charming behind her, both in a full fledged race to wrap Emma in their arms. "Shh, Emma, it's okay. Stop it, baby. We're fine" Snow caressed Emma's back who relaxed into her arms and with that Regina felt the heat diminishing in little intervals. She was so shocked and in so much fear like she's never been in her life. She stared at this family, angered and willing she could burn them all, right this second, wishing she already did. "THIS ISN'T FINISHED." She stared at the child, with so much hatred and before anyone could even acknowledge the Evil Queen, she walked out as fast as she could.
Snow breathed out all panic she had in a pit of her stomach, holding Emma very tight and that moment just thanking gods for being able to do it. There was some sort of power of goodness that must have protected them all because it was so close to torn their entire world apart and Snow just felt sick thinking about it.
"Is she okay?" she heard Charming's panicked voice, who unlike her, wasn't thinking how lucky they've gotten, he made her realize, this wasn't actually the best thing.
Emma was a child. And she used magic.
Tears welled up in Snow's eyes as she pulled back checking Emma for any signs of hurt, just as Charming was.
"Emma?" Snow cupped Emma's face, looking at her in panic. Emma, since the episode with Regina, hasn't said a word, just stared with her glassy eyes, into one point.
"Emmie" Snow caressed Emma's cheeks, her heart squeezing in panic.
Emma gasped, blinking her eyes rapidly, which quickly filled with fresh tears, her lower lip quivering. "Mommy" Emma finally cried out. Her shock over.
"Oh my God" Snow relaxed, feeling her every muscle give in. She was okay. She just let that entire knowledge sink into her, holding Emma very tightly, feeling Charming's body doing exact the same thing, as he had his head borrowed into Snow's neck. Their Emma was okay.
"Everything's fine, baby. No one's going to hurt you now"
"Sh-she wanted to hu-hurt you" Emma cried in panic, still shaking in Snow's embrace.
Snow hasn't ever felt so much warmth filling her all at once. Her little girl wasn't panicked about everything that happened, she was panicking about them. She didn't want Regina to hurt them.
Snow smiled, unable to hold the flow of her tears, kissing Emma's forehead. "No, sweetie, she's never going to hurt us. Never ever, because we're together, okay?"
Emma nodded hugging Snow.
"Snow" she heard Charming's voice full of concern. This unnerved her again, not for a single moment could she finally breathe in peace.
"Snow"
Snow White looked at her husband who was pointing at Emma, his eyes wide, and then she noticed, Emma had blood coming from her nose. Her mouth opened in shock as she grabbed Emma. Emma still not realizing, as she was crying and her face was already full of wetness. Snow carefully carried Emma to the couch laying her down. "Should we call Whale?" Snow looked worriedly at Charming.
"I'll do it, stay with her." Chaming brought a cold wet towel, which Snow carefully used to wipe Emma's face, holding Emma's head, so the nosebleed could stop on it's own. "What if it doesn't stop?"
"Snow, please, don't panic, maybe it's just a normal reaction from the shock" Charming replied, trying to pacify not only his wife but himself too.
"Or from magic" Snow caressed Emma's head. "Can't we just catch a break, just once?"
Charming internally asked himself that too. Today, entire day, between nearly losing Emma on a horse, then Regina's antics, he was sure it has given him entire head full of grey hair.
"We will" he kissed Snow's head. "I'll call Whale, tell me if it stops"
Snow nodded, biting her lip just staring at Emma, who, thankfully had no idea what they were talking about. At least she was calming down, Emma's tears had ceased and she only had glimpse of fear left in her eyes. In a result not taking away her eyes from her parents, as if they were going to disappear any second.
"Tell me, what did you do today?" Snow tried to change the topic to ease the girl. She noticed Emma has less and less blood.
"We went to horsies!" Emma replied excitedly.
"Oh horses!" Snow smiled widely. Mentally, swearing she's going to kick Charming when she has a chance. Emma was too small for this yet!
"Yes! I got to ride daddy's horse"
Snow raised her eyebrows. "Charming get back here your sorry ass because I swear-"
David walked back in, confused, turning the phone off. "What happened? Did she stop-"
"HORSES?"
"Oh."
"YOU LET HER RIDE A HORSE?"
"Snow-"
"YOUR 1000 POUNDS HORSE?!"
"Let me—"
"I SWEAR TO GOD DAVID, I COULD KILL YOU RIGHT NOW"
"Snow White-"
"DON'T SNOW WHITE ME"
Snow picked up Emma from the coach, carrying her back to the bedroom as Charming tried to follow her with the 100 excuses all bursting from his mouth at once.
"I DON'T WANT TO HEAR ANY OF THIS. DON'T EVEN STEP INTO MY BEDROOM. YOUR SORRY ASS IS SLEEPING ON A COACH" Snow put Emma on bed, who now was staring at her parents, wide eyed, interested. She has never seen her mother this angry. Snow picked a pillow and threw it at David.
"There's blanket on the coach. Help yourself"
"Snow, come on"
Snow shot daggers at him, making him shut his mouth before finishing what he was about to say.
"Oh fuck" Emma gasped.
Suddenly there was a dead silence, not a movement was made.
Charming held his head in his hands, this moment, actually too even scared to look at Snow. Way to go Emma.