Disclaimer: Once Upon a Time, Storybrooke and any recognizable characters are property of ABC Studios and the Walt Disney Co. No copyright infringement intended.

A/N: So this is the rest of the scene from last chapter. It was probably the biggest scene I wrote so far, so it makes for the entire chapter. As always, thank you so much for reading and reviewing! =) Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 4 - The Rebel

When Emma opened her eyes, she was not sure how much time had passed.

"Really, I've been trying to see anything special about the top of this horrid cave. I don't know what you saw there," the blonde turned her head to the side to see no one other than the former queen, lying on her mattress which had been taken from the bed, right beside her.

"Comfortable there?" Emma grinned, turning her entire body around to look at the woman. She yawned, and looked at her watch – luckily she had the thing with her when they went through the portal, and, for some reason, it still worked – smiling lazily when she saw the time. Without a care in the world, she stretched as if she had just woken up from a full night of sleep. "I can't believe I slept for an hour and a half! You know what, I take back the whole being a morning person thing. My body is clearly missing the extra sleep." When she was done moving around, she sat herself up and eyed the woman carefully. "Are you ok?"

"I am," Regina kept on looking up as she spoke, "I was just thinking."

"About?"

"Far too many things," she closed her eyes, "I find some distractions sometimes when I'm alone. But it gets harder in a small space such as this one," she admitted.

Emma smiled. "I guess we need to make sure you have something else to think about, then. Or someone to talk to, at least."

"I thought I already did," the words were spoken with a soft tone which Emma was beginning to recognize as the one belonging to the real Regina, when she was calm and relaxed enough to be herself, without worrying about building her walls or keeping people at a distance. She looked more carefully and saw that the woman's expression turn into a small smile, and, in a rare display of shyness that was unlike her, the former Sheriff blushed.

"Can I ask you just one more thing, and then I promise we'll change the subject?" when Regina nodded, she went on, "How likely is it that your mother… drops by for a visit? Should I warn someone about her? Should we leave more guards outside the doors that lead here?"

The brunette shook her head. "Last time I saw her, she was… well, she wouldn't be able to reach me. But after a while I started believing that she might be powerful enough to find ways around that. I don't know if she has or not, but there is always a possibility. As for the guards, don't even bother, dear. If she sets her mind on it, more guards would just mean more people for her to take down before getting what she wants."

The last sentence sent a chill through Emma's spine, and she suddenly found herself fearful that one of these days she might walk down the dungeons and find nothing but an empty cell. She did not want to dwell on how much that thought frightened her. "Doesn't that scare you?"

That was the moment Regina chose to sit up as well, facing the blonde and looking into her eyes. "I did not enact that curse solely to curse your parents, Emma. And I did not resist coming back here just because I didn't want to be in this cell."

"You wanted to be free from her," the blonde whispered, and got the confirmation as soon as she did. "You wanted to be somewhere she wouldn't be able to find you." There was a moment in which neither woman spoke. "No one ever bothered to listen to your side of things, did they? Even before… all this."

"No," her voice cracked once more, "but that doesn't take my own responsibility away."

"Maybe it doesn't," Emma began, "But it helps to understand. And the things you did, they make more sense." After a couple of minutes of silence, she smiled. "Ok, I promised we would change the subject after that, so…" she shrugged, "Rock, paper, scissors?" she grinned.

"Please tell me you're joking," Regina brought her hand to her hair. There was no way she would be caught playing such childish games with another adult – well, someone who looked like an adult, as much as she didn't act like one most of the time.

Emma's hands shot up in a sign of surrender. "Fine, Your Majesty, you don't have to look so horrified about it. Don't you have any books or something?"

"Sorry, dear, I forgot to add 'library privileges' to my reservation when I booked this room."

"Well, lucky for you, you know the right people," the blonde winked at her, to which Regina reacted with an amused shake of her head, "I'll bring some books when I go get our dinner."

The brunette certainly did not expect the words, and could not hide the smile on her face as they were spoken. She quickly recovered, and turned back to a more serious expression, her eyebrows raised, "Bring me something decent, no stupid vampires or werewolves, and none of those silly stories that finish with happily ever after."

"How about ghosts?" Emma grinned. Regina did not dignify that with an answer.

It did not take long until she left for the food and the books, promising she would be back soon enough. As soon as the blonde was out of her sight, Regina let herself lie back down on her mattress. The thoughts that invaded her mind this time were not the bad ones, about her mother or anyone else wanting to hurt her. No, they were thoughts of the person who had been there, day after day, to listen, to try and understand, or simply to keep her company and make sure she was alright. She couldn't help questioning Emma's reasons. Why, with an entire kingdom at her disposal, would she willingly spend her days in the cold dungeons with a prisoner? Why would she wake up early in the morning, when she clearly didn't like that, and bring her coffee every day? She had honestly thought, at some point, that Emma would not hesitate to take Henry away from her and leave without a second thought. When they found a way to open up the portal and the insufferable couple said she could come along if she agreed to be locked up in a cell, she scoffed, saying there was no way in hell she was agreeing to that. And then she looked at Henry, and saw the sadness in his eyes at her tone. More than that, she saw the confusion in them as he tried to fight the sadness, probably trying to convince himself he shouldn't care about her, but not being able to let it go completely. What she saw in his eyes was enough to make her agree. From that moment, she had decided she would be better. She would do anything to prove to her son how much she loved him, even if it meant being stuck in a filthy cell, prisoner of Snow White of all people, not even trying to resist it. The first week had been hell. As they got to the palace, her mind was flooded by memories of her mother and everything the woman had put her through. She could never let that happen to Henry. That was when the nightmares began. She never, ever expected anyone to listen, let alone want to help her. But, of course, Emma had. She had come because of the nightmares, but they weren't the reason she stayed. Either way, Regina was finally beginning to admit how thankful she was for that. It shouldn't surprise her, really. Emma Swan was the saviour, after all.

She shook her head and tried to listen to the sounds around her, now certain that the blonde had been away for quite a while. A weird feeling settled in her stomach – she was worried.

It took a few more long minutes until she smelled the food before anything else. And then she heard the unmistakeable voice, although it did seem to have a bit of an edge to it.

"Honestly, sometimes I think you're the lucky one," Emma came and dropped the bag on top of the same cloth she'd used before, when they had lunch. "At least you don't have to deal with them," she went on as she kneeled to organize their food.

Seeing the woman's distressed expression, Regina got closer and reached her arm – luckily, Emma was close enough – to touch the blonde's, causing her to stop for a moment and look at her. "What happened?"

She did stop at the unexpected touch, and took a deep breath before sitting on her legs. "I'm sorry," she whispered, "And I'm sorry I took so long, but I ran into David on my way out of the library, and then he went on and on about hearing it from the guards that I was here all along, and he doesn't trust you and doesn't want me coming here."

"Not that I like your father, but you said it yourself, dear, he has reasons not to trust me. Good ones," Regina tried to calm her down.

"He wants me to stay with them," she said, shaking her head, "He said I should be at least trying to learn how things work around here, and start getting ready because some day… well, some day it will be me sitting on that damn throne."

"Trust me, Emma, when that day comes, you will want to be ready. It will be much easier if you know what you're doing."

"But I don't care about any of that!" she raised her exasperated voice, "Look at me, Regina! Do I look like a queen to you?"

"You already saved them all. You already broke the curse and helped find a way to bring them all back. It will be enough for a while, and then… well, by then you will have learned."

"But that's the thing…" Emma brought her hands to her hair, brushing them to the back of her head, "I didn't do any of that, did I? I broke the curse by accident, and the portal… I didn't even do anything. Everyone else was looking for a way and I just went along, I didn't even want to come back." When Regina raised an eyebrow, clearly not sharing Emma's views on the facts and how they happened, she decided she did not want to hear anything about this anymore. "You know what? Let's just eat. They may drive me crazy up there, but boy, do they know how to cook," she tried a small smile, and it did not come out as forced as she expected it to be.

They did not talk much this time, Regina seemed to be deep in thought and Emma did not know what to say after her little outburst. Once she was finished, though, the blonde remembered something and took the books from another bag, silently handing them over to the other woman, one by one so that they fit through the bars.

Regina examined them carefully, not giving away any emotion while Emma bit her lower lip, waiting for any indication of whether she got the right ones.

"The literature in this world is not like ours, is it?"

"I would say it's quite limited in comparison, yes," Regina spoke, still browsing through around ten different books, some talking about magic or other worlds, some of stories from old realms, legends from the ancient times.

"I was kinda hoping to find some Harry Potter books in there until I remembered he is probably walking around this world somewhere and..." at that point, Emma's eyes widened comically and Regina couldn't help smirking, waiting for the rest, "Wait a second. Please tell me Hogwarts is real! Oh, please, cause that would be so so awesome!"

The huge roll of Regina's eyes was enough of an answer for Emma, who deflated visibly after that.

"Sorry to disappoint, dear," Regina chuckled softly, "and thank you for these," she pointed out the books on her hands, "It's a nice selection, I'm sure they will keep me distracted for a while."

"And I'll keep bringing different ones once you're done," Emma assured her, once again starting to put things away when they both finished their meal.

"Problem?" Regina asked, noticing the way Emma kept on looking at the direction of the entrance a bit distraught.

She quickly shook her head. "No, I just… I keep thinking someone is going to burst through the door and drag me out of here." Regina stiffened at that, immediately thinking about Cora, "I'm surprised they haven't, really. He seemed so determined to keep me out of here."

And then she understood this was about David, mostly, and relaxed a bit more. "If he talked to Snow about it, she probably put some sense into his head and told him to leave you be for a while. I wouldn't worry too much."

The blonde's head turned back to Regina quickly at the mention of her mother in a phrase that did not involve revenge or stupidity. "You know her really well, don't you?" she was not sure where the question had come from, or to what purpose she had said it out loud, but now that it was uttered, she found she wanted to know about these things. She wanted to get to know both of them from each other's perspective, from a time before everything got so messed up.

"I watched her growing up," the words held bitterness in them, but also something else Emma still couldn't grasp. "And then I made her life a living hell," she continued, emotionless, "When you spend that much time focusing on someone else's life, in one way or another, you get to know them well enough."

"I can't really see her as this spoiled little princess," Emma mused.

"Oh, she was," Regina laughed, "Spoiled, I mean. She was royalty, after all. She always got everything she wanted. Including a stepmother," there it was again, the bitterness and that something else. And then, letting out a deep breath, she admitted, "But she wasn't a bad kid. She never mistreated any of the servants, or avoided people outside the castle walls. It's just that… when you spend your whole life surrounded by only good things, you become blind to the evil in the world. You think everyone always has the best intentions and happiness is a given, that it will just come to you naturally."

"And when all you see is darkness, you stop believing in true love and true happiness altogether," Emma whispered, and Regina honestly couldn't tell if she was referring to the former queen's life or her own. Either way, it became painfully obvious that they understood each other in a way that Snow would probably never understand either of them.

Without much thought, Emma reached inside the cell and grabbed the first book she could get her hands on, deciding she needed a distraction almost as much as Regina. The brunette decided to do the same.

"This is boring," she threw the book back inside after a few minutes and tried to find another one, "It's like History class."

"It's the History and legends of the world you live in right now, you might want to get acquainted to it."

"How many times have I told you I don't care about this?" she grunted, right about the time another book flew on her direction. She took it and examined. "The Northern Realms – a study of Helena the Mindless and how she destroyed an empire," Emma read it out loud and looked back at Regina with a murderous expression.

The woman simply smirked at her reaction and shrugged. "What? I thought you would need a role model for when you rule these lands."

"Gee, it makes me feel so much better that you have so much faith in me."

"It's not that hard, dear. If your father can do it, anyone else can, really."

They both laughed easily now. "He's not that bad, you know?" Emma tried, but as she saw the lifted eyebrows of the other woman, she gave up and opened her stupid book, deciding to give it a chance.

It didn't take long until she started yawning.

"It's a story of a crazy queen who married four different guys and had even crazier children, how can you be that bored already?" Regina looked from her own book, shaking her head with an amused smile.

"I'm not. I'm just sleepy," the last word came with yet another yawn. "What time is it, anyway?" Looking at her watch, she almost jumped as she realized the day was already ending. "Shit, it's almost 10, no wonder I'm so tired."

Regina's face fell then. She knew she did not want the blonde to go. Her presence there was so natural now that it seemed wrong when she wasn't around. But then she figured this must be what everyone else – including Henry – felt when she wasn't anywhere to be found, either. "Maybe you should get some sleep," she spoke softly.

"I probably should," Emma replied. She placed the book back within Regina's reach and grabbed the bags she had brought with her. "Good night, Regina."

She looked the other way, not wanting the blonde to see her suddenly becoming so emotional, "Good night, Emma."

"I'll be back tomorrow with breakfast," she smiled, trying her best to change the suddenly heaviness around them.

Regina had a sad smile when she looked back at Emma with a nod, and the blonde walked away. Regina then let out a sigh and dropped back in her mattress, not bothering to drag it back to the bed.

"You know what?" Regina almost jumped at the unexpected voice, and looked to the side to find the blonde standing in front of her, taking the tablecloth and spreading it on the floor. She then proceeded to arrange her bag as something close to a pillow and lied down, her arms crossed in front of her chest. "I'd rather stay here, if that's ok," she glanced at Regina, who was still trying to understand what had just happened, and nodded quickly when the woman smiled at her. It was becoming more and more common, and Emma found that she liked that. It was nothing like the fake politician smiles she used to get from the woman back home, the menacing ones. These were simple and true, the kind she had only seen before whenever Regina was close to Henry.

The blonde then turned to her side and curled in a ball, trying her best to remain warm. She hadn't realized how cold it already was. When she failed to cover herself with half of the tablecloth while still lying on the other half, she started to get frustrated.

"It's not that I don't want you to stay," Regina's voice made her stop, "But you do have a perfectly comfortable bed in your room. Is this really worth it just so you don't run into your parents tonight?" her voice was soft and light, a hint of a smile appearing on her lips.

"Yes," Emma, ever the stubborn, replied with ease, "Plus, I like here better anyway."

Their eyes met, and it was familiar and comfortable. "Here," Regina uncovered herself and managed to squeeze the blanket through the bars, handing them over to Emma, "I would hate it if you froze to death because you are too stubborn to sleep in your own bed."

"No, come on," she tried, unsuccessfully, to give the blanket back, "You shouldn't be cold because I am too stubborn to sleep in my own bed!"

"I'm more used to this dreadful place than you, I am sure I will survive," she was also turned to the side, the same position as Emma's, and watched, satisfied, as the woman covered herself and gave a content sigh. "Good night now, Emma."

"Good night," she closed her eyes, Regina regarding her carefully. She finally started to believe the blonde when she said she wasn't going anywhere. With the thought in mind, she fell into a peaceful slumber.