So here is a chapter for you all. To let you all know I have added up all the votes and the Outlaw Queen story has won so that shall be the next story on my list so keep your eyes out if you are interested in that. If you voted for the other stories I will hopefully be writing them at some point. Also just for those who don't know I did write what was maybe going to be a one shot (I wasn't sure) but is now not as man asked for it to be continued. The story is called Darkness Within and is about Regina becoming the dark one instead of Emma so if you are interested in that check it out :-) I hope you enjoy this chapter!
As soon as Regina and Emma got back to the mansion Regina hurried in bypassing Mary-Margaret and David who had come out of the living room once they heard the door open and she stormed up the stairs and into her bedroom slamming the door behind them making them all flinch at the noise. Mary-Margaret and David looked over at Emma and Henry came up behind them to see what was going on.
"She's still angry at us." Mary-Margaret said in more of a statement than a question as it was quite clearly obvious that Regina was still angry at them.
"Well that is an understatement." Henry sassed reminding them all of the adult Regina from before as well as the teenage Regina now. "How is she?" Henry asked gently pushing past Mary-Margaret and David to look at Emma more.
"She's angry, she's hurt…" Emma started trying to figure out all of Regina's feelings. "She is confused. Really confused. She has no idea why everyone is so mad and scared that she has her magic when they aren't that way with me. She's hurt and angry with you because you have made her wear this cuff to block her magic and to protect the town and the people even though you know it has side effects."
"We aren't just doing this for the town and the people. We are doing this to help Regina as well." Mary-Margaret said.
"Regina doesn't see it that way and to be perfectly honest with you I can't see it that way either." Emma said with a shrug of her shoulders. "You have made Regina wear this cuff even though Gold told you there would most likely be ill side effects. I have witnessed a side effect of the cuff…"
"You have? What happened?" David asked worry showing in his tone and on his face.
Emma sighed. "Regina was ranting to me, she needed to get everything off her chest. As she got more and more emotional the magic must have been building up inside her and when it tried to fight through the cuff obviously stopped it and well she said she felt a shooting pain running up and down her arm. She said it was horrible."
"Is that the only side effect so far?" Henry asked. "There hasn't been anything else so far?"
Emma shook her head. "Nope. Not yet and I hope there won't be anything else. That was bad enough."
"We did this to help her." Mary-Margaret repeated although Emma wasn't sure whether Mary-Margaret was saying this convince herself or the rest of them.
Regina sat up in her bedroom on her bed. She had her legs up to her chest, her arms wrapped around them and her head resting on her knees. She had discovered another side effect of the cuff, a raging migraine. She had suffered from headaches before now but nothing as bad as the one she had right now.
Regina groaned and she pushed her legs out onto the bed and looked up, the light of the sun shining into the room hurting her eyes and head even more. She placed her hands over her eyes for a minute shutting out the light. It had only been an hour since she got this stupid cuff on and already she wasn't sure how much more of it she could take. She threw herself back on the bed and turned over burying her face into her pillow.
She could feel tears building up, she could feel anger rising up. Anger at her mother and father for doing this to her, anger at William Nottingham for doing what he did to her, anger at how everyone in town seemed to now react to her. Just lots of anger. She then felt her magic building up again. All the emotion building up and then a pain shot up her arm and Regina winced, sitting up a little and holding onto her arm.
She breathed through the pain and tried to calm herself down. She had figured out quickly that her magic was tied into her emotions and if she calmed herself down then her magic would calm down. She looked down at the black leather cuff wrapped around her arm. She reached over and pulled on the cuff but it didn't budge. Gold had told her as much when he had put it on her earlier. She sighed.
Why did she have to wear it? Why should she listen to her parents? They didn't listen to her. They didn't consider what she wanted. So why should she consider what they want? She could just walk out now and go back to Mr Gold and ask him to take the cuff off. He said he could do it, him or Emma but Regina had a feeling that Emma wouldn't take it off. So Gold was her only option. He was the only one she could fully trust at the moment right? He after all had told her what the cuff could do to her. He had said they wouldn't want to go with this option. It was her mother and father who pushed the cuff on her. Her mother and father that had cared more for their precious town and people than they did for her. She couldn't trust them. Not anymore.
She pushed herself off her bed, ignoring her headache as much as she could and she quickly walked over to her bedroom door. She opened it as slowly and quietly as she could and crept out over the landing and over to the stairs. She leaned over the banister a little and peaked down the stairs to try and see where everyone was. She could hear voices and by the sounds of it they were coming from the living room.
Damn! Regina thought as she stepped back from the banister. Even if she did creep down the stairs as best she could they would no doubt still spot her and catch her before she could leave the house and she just knew they would want to talk and she really had no desire to talk to her mother and father at the moment. She sighed and leaned against the wall thinking about what she could do now.
An idea soon came to her and she quickly and quietly darted back into her bedroom, quietly closing the door behind her. She walked over to the window in her bedroom and opened it and peered down seeing a trellis and smiled to herself. She could easily climb down that. She pushed herself away from the window and grabbed a bag. She quickly went about stuffing some clothes into the bag and anything else she might need. She was going to stay elsewhere that night. She really did not feel like staying here.
She then walked back over to the window, pulling the bag onto her back. She slowly and carefully climbed out of the window and onto the trellis. She jumped down when she was close to the bottom and looked around her. Now all she had to do was head to Gold's shop and ask him to take the cuff off.
David sighed and he ran his fingers through his hair. "How long do you think she is going to be angry at us?"
Emma shrugged her shoulders but Henry was the one to answer them. "Well how long would you be angry at someone if they made you wear a cuff to block your magic when you didn't want it?" He asked and everyone could detect his annoyance.
"Easy Henry." Emma said placing a hand on his shoulder.
"No. Listen I get why you did it I do but Regina really didn't want this but you forced her to do it anyway. Wouldn't you be angry if someone did that to you?" Henry replied.
David nodded his head. "Yes I would be."
"Exactly. So you need to let her just be angry. If you remember her from before then you will remember that you just need to let her calm down and let her come to you. You can't push her." Henry said.
"Henry's right. You need to let her calm down and sort everything out in her head." Emma added. "Although I think we really need to think over whether this cuff is a good idea or not."
Mary-Margaret nodded her head. "Yes you are both right. But I do think someone should check on her. Just to make sure she is okay up there."
"I'll go." Henry said standing up. No one argued with him. They just let him go. He made his way up the stairs quickly and over to Regina's bedroom. He knocked on the door lightly and leaned in waiting for a response but nothing came. He frowned and he knocked on the door again. "Regina?" He called but once again there was no response. He turned the door handle and pushed the door open, walking into the bedroom he looked around not seeing Regina anywhere. It was then that he noticed the bedroom window was open. He walked further in and over to the window looking out but couldn't see Regina anywhere. she could have left at any time while they were all downstairs talking and gone anywhere. He sighed and stood up running his fingers through his hair.
He turned on his heel and head back out of the bedroom and down the stairs to the living room. As he entered Mary-Margaret, David and Emma all looked up at him. "How is she?" Mar-Margaret asked sitting on the edge of the sofa.
"Well…you see the thing is…" Henry started. He was not going to enjoy telling them that Regina was gone. "She's not up there." Henry said slowly.
"What? What do you mean she's not up there?" Mary-Margaret almost shrieked as she shot up from the sofa.
"She's not in her room…and the window is open so…" Henry added.
"God she has run away!" Mary-Margaret gasped as she turned to David. "What do we do? Do we go and look for her?" She asked turning to look at Emma. She had no idea what to do. They had been told to leave Regina to calm down but now she was gone and she wasn't so sure she wanted to leave her to calm down. She wanted to find her and make sure she was okay.
"Yes we go and find her." Emma said as she stood up from her chair. "Did she leave a note or anything Henry?"
Henry shook his head. "Nope. Nothing."
"Okay. Well why don't you and Henry go into town to find her?" David said. "And Mary-Margaret and I will go to the park and the docks and see if she is around there."
Emma nodded. "Don't forget the forest as well."
"We won't." David said as they all started to make their way out of the house to find Regina.
Regina slowly walked down the main street of Storybrooke trying to ignore the stares from people around her. She held her head up high and looked every bit the queen she used to be, even if she didn't remember it. She stopped outside of Gold's shop and bit her lip for a moment. Was she doing the right thing? Would Gold help her? Emma had said not to trust him. She sighed and looked down at the cuff on her arm. Her head still ached. Pain still shot up her arm every so often. No. She was doing the right think. Gold could help her. He could take this cuff off and stop this pain. Emma might not trust Gold but it didn't mean she couldn't trust him. She took a deep breath and she pushed the door to his shop open and walked in the bell signalling her arrival.
Gold looked up as he heard the bell and a smirk fell onto his face as he saw Regina walking into the shop. "Why hello again dearie." He greeted happily. "How can I help you?" He asked pushing himself off of the stool he had been sitting on and now standing and leaning on the counter top.
"I…well I was wondering if you would be able to help me…" Regina started feeling a little nervous.
Gold smiled at the young girl. As he looked at her it felt like déjà vu only they were in a different world and a different time. Regina was just as innocent and naive as she had been before at this age, maybe even more so now having been raised by the Charmings. "What do you need help with Regina?"
"This…" Regina said holding up her arm with the black leather cuff wrapped around it. "I was wondering if you could remove it for me."
"Remove it?" Gold asked with a frown, playing his part well. He had known she would come back to him alone wanting him to rid the cuff from her. "But your parents wish you to wear it dearie."
"I know they do but I don't wish to wear it. I can't stand the pain. The migraines and the pains in my arm when my magic tries to fight through. I can't stand it." Regina replied.
"You have only been wearing the cuff for half a day Regina. I'm sure it will settle down soon enough when you learn to control your magic." Gold said.
Regina shook her head. "No. I have no idea how to control my magic. Not properly. I have figured out it is tied to my emotions but sometimes my emotions get the better of me and I struggle to control it. I don't want this thing blocking my magic and causing me pain. I don't care if my parents wish it I don't!" Regina said firmly.
Gold smirked as he listened to her. She still had some of her fire it seemed and he liked that. She would need that. "And how do you suppose to control your magic if I take this cuff off?" He asked her.
"Well…I thought…maybe if you didn't mind…that you could teach me?" Regina said. "I know you know magic."
"And what do you think your dear family would think of that dearie?" Gold asked.
Regina shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not sure they would like it but you could help me couldn't you? Control my magic I mean."
"I could dearie. Whether I will is another thing." Gold said.
"Please. I have money…" Regina said pulling her bag off her back and opening it. She pulled out all the money she had and placed it on the counter. It wasn't much but Gold suspected that to a teenager it was quite a lot. It was probably all the savings Regina had at that moment.
He took his time in answering. He played out his part well. He had planned all this. He had known the Charmings would make Regina wear the cuff. He had known they would think back to the Regina from years ago and what her magic had done. He had known they would panic and do what was best for their town and people and not necessarily think about the girl they had raised. He had played into this and played into the trust issues that he knew Regina would have deep down at this fragile time of her life. Being a teenager was hard enough without the added stress of magic. He looked up at the young girl in front of him, her pleading and innocent eyes staring at him awaiting his answer. "Well I suppose I could help you control your magic but the money won't be necessary."
"You will?" Regina asked. "But how will I repay you for helping me?"
"You will just have to owe me a favour dearie." He replied giving her a wicked smile that made her slightly nervous but she shook it off.
Regina just nodded her head and then held out her arm that wore the cuff. "Will you take this off now?"
"I shall…but I don't think we should mention our magic lessons to your family. You need to promise not to tell them." Gold said knowing that if the young girl did it would ruin any plans he had.
"I promise I won't tell them." Regina answered quickly and Gold could see she meant it. So with a wave of his hand the black leather cuff disappeared from Regina's arm and Regina felt huge relief as there was no longer anything blocking the magic running through her. "Thank you…" Regina sighed.
"You are welcome Regina." Gold replied as nicely as he could. "Now I shall see you tomorrow lunch time and we will work on your magic and control."
"Where should I meet you? Here?" Regina asked.
"No not here. To close to home so to speak. There is a little cabin in the forest, do you know of it?" Gold asked and Regina nodded her head. "Meet me there."
"Okay…thank you." Regina said again and she pulled her bag back onto her back. She turned on her heel and left the shop.
Gold watched her as she left the shop and he couldn't help the smirk that was on his face. He had her. He had her trust and his plans were on their way.
Emma and Henry walked along main street looking all around them for Regina. They had looked in shops and looked down alleyways, they had looked just about everywhere. "Hey have you seen Regina anywhere?" Henry asked Victor Whale as he was about to pass them.
"No…and if I were her I wouldn't be out here alone. Many are not happy about her having magic." Victor Whale replied.
Emma rolled her eyes. "People need to stop thinking of her as the person she used to be. She has basically relived her life. A different life. Regina having magic is not always a bad thing."
"Try telling the whole town that." Victor sneered before he walked away from them.
Emma sighed and Henry placed a hand on her shoulder. "Everything will work out." He said.
"How are you still so optimistic even though you have grown up? Your still like the ten year old kid that came to find me." Emma said with a laugh on the end.
Henry shrugged his shoulders. "Guess I'll never truly grow up." Henry said. He looked back out onto the street and it was then that he saw Regina stepping out of Gold's shop. He patted Emma's shoulder and motioned over to where Regina was.
"Oh god what has she been doing in Gold's shop." Emma sighed as they quickly made their way over to Regina who was stood staring down at her phone. Once they had got a little closer to her Emma called out to her. "Regina?"
Regina looked up and bit her lip, relief running through her as it was Emma and Henry and not her parents. "Oh hey…" She said.
"Oh hey? Oh hey is all you have to say to us?!" Emma burst out as they stopped in front of her. "Why the hell did you climb out your window and why the hell have you been in there?!"
"Whoa chill out Emma." Regina said holding up her hands in a sort of surrender.
"Chill out?! Regina you have had us all worried. Your parents, Henry and I have all been out looking for you. You could have got hurt or something." Emma said.
"Well I didn't get hurt…I'm fine." Regina shrugged off.
"You won't be for much longer." Emma muttered and Regina rolled her eyes at her older sister.
Henry decided now was probably the best bit to step into the conversation and ask a question that Emma had already asked but Regina had not answered. "Regina why were you in there?" He asked motioning to Gold's shop.
Regina looked behind her and then back to Henry and Emma. "Oh…well…I went to ask Mr Gold for help…" Regina replied slowly.
"Regina I thought I told you to stay away from Gold! I thought we discussed that we were going to figure all this out." Emma said in a frustrated tone.
"Yes I know we did and I know what you told me about Gold but I just couldn't stand wearing that damn cuff anymore. The pain was just too much." Regina explained and this made Emma soften a little. "I'm sorry Emma but I just had to get the cuff off and well…he took it off for me…" Regina said showing them her now bare arm.
"He took it off you…what deal did you make with him?" Emma asked.
"No deal. He didn't want anything." Regina answered quickly. She was going to keep her promise to Mr Gold and not tell them of the magic lessons he was going to give her.
"He didn't want anything?" Henry asked with a frown. "That doesn't sound like him."
Regina shrugged. "Well that's what he said. Anyway I now don't have that to bother me so…"
"Okay…Well come on let's get you home." Emma said about to walk away but stopping as Regina didn't follow her.
"I don't want to go home." Regina said firmly. "I'm not going back to them."
"Regina come on. Mom and dad are worried about you. They want to know that you are safe." Emma said.
Regina shook her head. "I'm not going home. They didn't care about me earlier when they had Gold put that cuff on me so why should I care now they are worried."
Emma rolled her eyes slightly. Regina always had been stubborn. "Alright then Regina so where are you going to go?"
Regina bit her lip a little. "I was hoping I could maybe come and stay with you…you and Henry…"
Emma sighed and she looked over at Henry who just shrugged his shoulders. Emma knew she wasn't going to get Regina back to the mansion and back to their parents tonight. She was still far too angry at them. The best thing would be for her to come and stay with them. At least then she could keep an eye on her and let their parents know that she was okay. "Alright then. Come on let's go." Emma said and she turned to head towards her loft with Henry and Regina following her.
Oh what has Gold got planned? Anyone have any ideas?!