Emma watched Regina for a long while after the young woman had thought she had fallen asleep. Remorse stirred within her as she watched Regina pace around the lair. At one point the brunette even started talking to herself, mumbling incoherently as she stared blankly in the mirror with Emma's bracelet gripped tightly in her hand.
A part of Emma wanted to hug her and apologize, but Regina had hurt her badly. It was selfish to be this way, and she knew better, but she never thought Regina would be the one to lash out at her after all they had been through.
The blonde quickly shut her eyes as Regina cautiously approached her. "Emma? Are you awake?"
Emma thought about ignoring her, but she found herself sitting up. Regina sat down next to her. As she reached out to reattach her bracelet, Emma flinched and scooted away from her. The brunette pulled her arm back as if she had been burned. "I'm sorry, Emma. I never meant to hurt you. I just- "
"Don't." Emma interrupted her. She winced inwardly at the tone of her voice, and slowly reached her hand out to cup Regina's face. "Don't." She repeated softly. Regina shut her mouth, her bright brown eyes shining with tears.
Emma leaned forward, her eyes flicking up to meet Regina's. Then slowly, gently, their lips met. Neither of them pulled away, and Emma took the lead. She could feel Regina's pain, and she brushed away the tears that were streaming down the woman's face.
Regina broke the kiss first, a quiet sob escaping her throat. Emma stared at her in concern, grabbing her hand so she had something to hold on to. "I'm sorry." The brunette managed to gasp before she fully broke down. Emma knew the apology wasn't just for her.
"Regina. Regina." Emma repeated, trying to get the hysterical woman to look at her. "Zelena is gone because of my selfish mistake. My father hates me, my mother never loved me. I hurt you, I got us trapped here with one of the evilest villains known to man. I've turned into my mother." Regina cried.
"You are nothing like your mother, Regina Mills. I love you. I always have. We will get out of here. And when we do no one is ever going to separate us again. Not our parents, not anyone. I promise you that." Emma said. Regina finally looked up at her, wiping her eyes.
Just then, the door to the lair opened. Maleficent swept in, an unamused look etched across her face. "Would you stop all that blubbering? I can hear it clear out there and it's doing nothing to help this killer migraine." The woman rubbed her temple, gritting her teeth.
"I can heal you." Emma spoke. Both women looked at her in surprise. "Emma, what are you doing?" Regina asked quietly, glancing at their captor. "I can heal you for a price." The blonde continued. Maleficent waved her hand in dismissal. "I've dealt with my fair share of deals, dear. I don't care to owe anyone else."
"I'm not like Rumpelstiltskin. I'll be fair. All I ask is you let us go. We won't send anyone after you, you'll be safe to stay in your home." Emma said. Maleficent looked at her as if she had just grown two heads. "Do you honestly think I'm that naïve? To let a little princess trick me?"
"Fine. Suit yourself. But those headaches aren't going to go away you know." Emma shrugged her shoulders. Maleficent stepped forward, her eyes blazing now. "If I hadn't heard correctly I'd almost think that statement to be a threat."
"No. I'm just being honest." The blonde answered. Emma didn't know why, but it was as if she could feel Maleficent's pain. She knew the woman suffered from the migraines and had for many years. It was the cause of something very bad that had happened to her in the past, but Emma didn't know what.
"I can handle headaches. But I will not miss the opportunity for my revenge." Maleficent hissed. Her voice quavered a bit and pain flickered in her eyes for an instant. The villain quickly composed herself as she perched on a chair across from the women. "Your families have hidden many secrets from you." She began.
This time, neither Emma nor Regina stopped her from speaking. "Snow and Cora used to be best friends growing up. I was also very close to them both. Snow's mother and her husband were the best rulers of this kingdom. They were fair and treated their people like family. I stayed at the castle more often than my own home, as my mother was always off searching for my father."
The woman paused and grabbed something from her pocket. Emma bristled and shifted closer to Regina as she saw a familiar gleam of a needle in the dim lighting. Instead of attacking the girls like they anticipated, she pricked her own finger. Both women watched in mild confusion as she leaned back in her seat, letting her eyes drift shut.
Silence followed for several minutes. Emma finally cleared her throat to alert the woman of their presence. Maleficent lazily opened her eyes once more, squinting at them. Her eyes were glossy, and Emma could feel a strange numbness that was affecting the woman.
She slowly sat up again, her head lolling to the side. "Cora's mother was royal. Princess Lila. She fell in love with a miller." Maleficent snorted quietly at that. "Against her parent's wishes she married him and he became a part of their family. King Thomas they called him. A poor fool that was blind to the Queen's objectives. Cora and I witnessed many times as her mother sent the King off to the guest quarters as she lay with a royal guard of her choosing. She also convinced her husband to use the taxpayers money for personal use."
Maleficent paused and conjured up a table in between the three of them. Plates of food along with glasses of wine lay before them. "Go on." The woman motioned for them to begin eating. "I don't treat my prisoners so badly as you think."
Emma and Regina reluctantly began eating, enjoying the tasteful meal as they listened to Maleficent's story. "Rumors spread around the kingdom, and soon word got to King Leopold and Queen Eva. Cora's mother was shunned, and publicly humiliated. King Thomas tried to defend his wife, and when no one believed him he attacked Eva and Leopold directly. He declared war."
Emma and Regina glanced at each other. War over such a little thing? This was the reason for their families' bitterness towards each other? "King James' father King George was a spiteful man and was suspicious of everyone so he joined in the fight. King Henry's father King Xavier wanted no part but silently declared the Mills enemies from that day forward. Soon, the war ended but they remained enemies."
"That's it?" Regina asked, her nose scrunched up in confusion. Maleficent held up her hand to silence the young princess. "When the royals passed away leaving each of your parents in charge, Cora and Snow tried to restore the royal ties. I became close with each of them again, that is until Cora ended up pregnant."
"With my sister." Regina said. The older woman nodded her affirmation. "But King Henry wasn't the baby's father."
Regina's mouth almost dropped open. Henry wasn't Zelena's real father? How could this be true? Regina always wondered about her sister's bright red hair opposed to her parent's brown locks, but she just assumed it to be genetics from earlier generations.
"Rumpelstiltskin made a deal with King Leopold years earlier to save Queen Eva's life. That deal is what caused the families to go to war. I don't know what he agreed to, but the conniving little imp tricked Cora into having an affair with Zelena's real father, Jonathan. He was a gardener of the royal court. Cora had thought it to be Henry, but was rudely awakened once the man revealed himself."
Regina pushed her plate away, her appetite lost. Emma stopped eating as well, daintily sipping her wine. "Cora found out she was pregnant, and having no one but Snow and I to turn to she told us the truth. Snow immediately turned on her. I tried to support her, but she pushed me away as well. She hid her dirty secret and passed her first born off to be Henry's."
"That must have been why my father was so cold towards Zelena. He must have known somehow." Regina spoke. "About a year after that, Cora announced she was expecting again. This time the child was Henry's. I myself had been pregnant for a while as well. A little way into the pregnancy, Cora lost the baby. She tried to keep it a secret, but the midwives were gossipy little women, and rumors began to spread."
The villain paused to take a long drink of her red wine. Emma stopped drinking hers, as she felt it beginning to affect her. "Soon, I gave birth to my daughter whom I named Lillith. Somehow Cora and Snow found out. They came after me and my family. Cora had lied and told Snow that I had made a deal with Rumpelstiltskin and that was the reason for me having a child and Cora losing hers. Snow believed her, of course. So they formed an alliance and my Lillith was ripped away from me."
The woman's hands clenched, and Emma could have sworn she saw claws extend from her fingers. She blinked to clear the fuzziness, and her hands were normal once more. "Your mother is not as innocent as you think, Emma. She's manipulative and backstabbing." Maleficent growled.
Emma hung her head in shame. She couldn't help but feel guilty of her mother's actions. "For years Snow held Cora's secret over her head. She finally backed off once she and Cora became pregnant with both of you but that was partially Cora's doing. She made a deal with Rumple that backfired on her. She meant to only erase the memories of her telling Snow of her betrayal to the King, but there is always a catch with him."
Maleficent kept her eyes trained on Regina. "He erased her very existence. He just was waiting for the perfect opportunity. And when you made that deal to save Emma… well, he took it."
A flood of emotions filled Regina. Anger, sorrow, confusion, pity. "It's not your fault your sister died. You can blame your mother for that."
Regina felt tears build in her eyes, and Emma squeezed her hand comfortingly. Hopefully Regina would stop blaming herself. Emma slowly put the pieces into place. "So you kidnapped us because our parents took your daughter away." She said. Maleficent nodded at her. "There is more to my plan. But that is for only me to know." The woman stood up to go, poofing away the table.
"But wait." Regina spoke up. The woman turned back towards them. "How do you know all this? Why did Rumpelstiltskin resurrect you?"
A small smile tugged at the corners of the woman's mouth. "I can't reveal all my secrets. If I did that then you might as well kill me."
"If we helped you find your daughter would you let us go?" Emma asked. "And how do you suppose you are going to do that?" Maleficent asked curiously. "We slayed you, didn't we? Escaped from our families for some time. We can find a missing person." Emma said confidently. "And how do I know you won't break your word?" Maleficent asked, suddenly suspicious.
"Can't you track us? With necklaces or something?" Regina asked. "I suppose I could. My daughter for your freedom." The older woman mused. "Alright. I'll take you up on your offer." She said. "There are some things that we need from you. After this is done and over with, you must help us escape this forest. Send us somewhere far from here."
"Somewhere safe." Regina added. "I suppose that could be arranged." Maleficent agreed, poofing black feather necklaces on both of them. "And one other thing. We need you to bring us some people. Old friends of ours." Emma said. "Oh, right. The wolf and the bookworm." With the wave of her hand, Belle and Red were standing before them.
"Ruby! Belle!" Emma and Regina hugged their friends tightly. "You've both gotten so big. Beautiful young ladies you've become." Red gushed. "How did you find us?" Belle asked. The two women jumped as Maleficent joined the four of them. "You have one week to find my Lillith. If you don't, you relinquish your freedom and become my prisoners forever. Do we have a deal?" She asked, pressing a small purple rattle into Emma's hand.
Emma and Regina slowly nodded, holding onto their friends. With a cackle and a wave of her hand, the group was transported out of the castle. "What happened? Why does Maleficent want you?" Red asked. "Long story. We'll explain on the way." Emma said, leading them into the forest.
Sorry if you found this chapter to be a bit boring. But now you know why Emma & Regina's families are enemies! Hope you enjoyed :)