I'd like to honor and mention one of my favorite writers of all time, The magnificent and incredible master Edgar Allen Poe who wrote the priceless Tell Tale Heart. In no way am I plagiarizing his title. I am only honoring and paying my respects with my chapter title here.

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XOXO

Chapter 22

Emma's "tell tale heart."

Emma looks at Regina like she's seeing her for the very first time. She notices the way her full lips part as she's breathing heavily, how she closes her cinnamon eyes and holds back her tears as Henry embraces her. The way her delicate yet strong hands clutch at her chest. How her silky hair caresses her face, falling short of her long and full eyelashes. She's stunning, even sitting, sprawled out on the grass. The way she looks around and smiles at Henry despite her obvious discomfort. 'Always protecting him,' Emma thinks. Regina protects those she loves fiercely.

She embodies passion itself for those she loves and with reckless abandon like a wild animal protecting their young.

Emma feels honored and touched so deeply that she has felt that fierce blanket of protection. Even in hell Regina risked her life to protect Emma. She gave her life for her. 'Regina gave her life for me.' Her greatest flaw is also her greatest virtue. Regina feels deeper than anyone Emma has ever met. Perhaps that's why from the very beginning Emma couldn't help but admire the mayor of Storybrooke. Despite how angry Emma felt and how protective she was of the child she once bore and gave up for adoption she couldn't help but secretly admire Regina. She realizes this now more than ever. She certainly noticed her beauty from the beginning, 'I mean how could anyone not?'

But it is was more than a "hot woman" in a power position. Regina felt passion, albeit rage at the time directed at Emma, but there was something inside her Emma had never encountered. Regina would never give up. There was no relenting with this woman, defeat was not in her vocabulary. Her anger is savage like a bull driving forward onto an enemy; her loyalty unbreakable like the waves roar and heave in the middle of a storm; and her love... Regina loves with ever fiber of her being. Knowing what she's been through, what she became from losing love and how she loves Henry...Emma took a deep breath. Emma sighed aloud to think of what that kind of love directed at her would make her feel. Not that she would ever be the recipient of such attention from Regina. Emma had been loved and had felt passion but it was always fleeting. Nothing ever felt safe nor permanent. Somehow she believed it wouldn't be that way with Regina. And now as if on cue Regina turns her attention to Emma.

'The way she's looking at me...Oh God! The way she's looking at me!' Emma feels her walls crumble around her, the way Regina is looking into her eyes. She feels naked and exposed somehow, vulnerable. She's never felt comfortable in vulnerable nor has she ever so willingly let anyone see it. And even though Regina, like her, is simply sitting across from her on the grass she has completely dismantled her with that look. What's in that look? That loaded, passionate, raw and understanding gentle look. And the worst part is that Emma is loving it. She loves the way it makes her feel. Like she's the only human alive right now. And that makes her feel safer than any person has ever made her feel and this also makes her petrified.

Emma wants to run towards her and far away at the same time. The realization of a thousand dreams hitting her like a dozen houses from Kansas. 'Is this seriously happening?... Regina?... Seriously? All this time...all this time...' Emma's mind is reeling but she can't keep her eyes off her. She feels an overwhelming sensation of simply wanting to reach out right now and hold her. She has the strangest urge to feel the other half of her heart beating soundly in that chest. Her other half. Literally her other half. 'Oh my God!' Realization is dawning on Emma like the sun gives light to the darkness but her thoughts are quickly interrupted by the persistence of Snow and Charming asking if, "she's ok" and going on and on about time.

"Oh Emma...honey...I'm so sorry."

Emma stares blankly at her mother confused.

"You couldn't get him back." Snow looks so sad.

'That's right,' Emma thinks to herself, 'Hook.' As if she didn't have enough on her plate right now without being reminded that she purposefully chose Regina over her "supposed love."

"At least you brought yourself back." Charming hugs her. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

Emma feels sudden guilt at her father declaring such love and devotion to her. Clearly a gene she didn't inherit when she couldn't even be loyal to the man she sought to save. One look at the woman she..well..she..one look at Regina and she didn't hesitate to throw him away. 'Oh God is that what I did? No, even if Regina's life hadn't been on the line, Hook didn't want to be saved. He was already going to be saved, literally, by...I don't know? God? Or the higher power? Or whatever but he wanted to stay with Milah...which is completely understandable given the circumstances.'

'I should have been mad. I'm not even a little bit angry about him and Milah. I couldn't think about them. Regina was in danger. That evil bastard had her and I just wanted to save her. She was all that mattered to me.' If anyone was taking a close look at Emma they would see her pupils dilating as she gawked at Regina. 'She's all that mattered.' Emma thinks to herself. 'So many times...I've chosen to save her, at everyone's expense, at my own expense! How could I not have seen it sooner? I'd give my life for you in a heartbeat.' Emma laughs at her own thoughts. 'Literally.'

"Ma! You guys alright?"

Emma's now lost again on all the times Regina has put her own life on the line to save Emma. The countless times of sacrifice. She wonders if she's right about her own feelings...her current train of thought. She wonders if Regina knows? 'Could she possibly feel the same? Do I even know what I'm talking about?' She finds her voice for Henry. "Yeah kid. I'm alright."

"What happened back there?" Henry looks back and forth between his mothers as Emma doesn't seem to hear him. "It must've been something when you and my mom look like that."

"Huh?" Emma was lost in her own thoughts again as she sees Snow talking to Regina.

"You and mom."

"What about us?" Emma is quickly drawn from her trance. 'What does he know? He can't possibly know anything.'

"I'm not sure. But you both have this faraway look in your eyes. Like you're not even here."

Emma looks at her son feeling shell shocked. It will never cease to amaze her how incredibly insightful and wise her young son was. She struggles to keep her attention on him for long because she notices Robin is trying to lead Regina away. Suddenly, and Emma refuses to admit to herself why, she wants to tear his hands away from Regina and punch him across the face! She has to think fast!

"Henry, why don't you take your mom home. I'm sure she wants to spend some time with you." Emma wasn't asking.

"Sure. We'll catch up with you later."

"And Henry!"

"Yeah?"

"Make sure she's ok... I mean...Lock all the doors and stuff and call me if anything!"

Henry looks back at his biological mother oddly. He's never heard her voice this much concern towards his other mother. Sure he knows they are pretty much best friends and that they always have each other's backs but Emma is usually more 'actions than words.'

'I wonder what happened in Tartarus? They both look scared in a strange sorta way.' He decided to let it rest for now. He'd ask his questions in the morning or try to listen in while the adults are talking. Or...he could do some writing. Henry felt a blush creep his face. Somehow he felt he'd be invading both his mothers' privacy if he did that. There was always his grandfather who looked almost giddy now that Belle seemed to back with him.

He looks at the desperate expression written on his usually "cool" mother's face and he just wants to comfort her. He feels slightly angry at the thought of who may have put that expression on her face. 'Was it Hook? No, he wouldn't hurt her...'

He reassures Emma, "Sure thing Ma."

Snow comes hurriedly to Emma and wraps her arm around her back, "You ready to go honey? You must be starving."

"You know me. I'm always hungry." Emma absentmindedly smiles at her mother. Getting away from here right now seemed like the best idea anyway. Emma needed time to think.

"That's my girl." Snow beams with glee anytime she refers to Emma as her own.

"I invited Regina to Granny's but I think she needs some alone time."

"Um...yeah..ok." Emma could barely sit across the grass with the woman let alone dine in front of her parents with her. This made her freak out yet the idea of being alone with Regina...not so much.

"Emma? Is anything the matter?"

"No mom, sorry it's been a hard trip is all."

"Oh Sweetie I'm sure. Let's get out of here. David!"

She calls David over who had been standing with his hands on his hips, looking into the mist of the vast lake as if he expected something to jump out at them.

Henry looks between his two mothers again. They were both locked into each other's eyes. Their connection was palpable, especially their magic together. But there was an anguish about them; especially Emma. 'Did something happen to mom?' He looks at Regina as he walks towards her. She looked exhausted. Much more than Emma. 'She looks thinner too.'

Right now she's clearly trying to get away from the pine forest. Henry has always wanted his mother to be happy, he just wasn't buying it. The guy was okay but he just didn't match up to his mother. Henry usually pushed his thoughts away because he figured no man would.

"Mom...you ready to go?" 'Whatever with this dude.'

He sees the relief in her eyes and that's all that matters to him. She says her goodbye to Robin but doesn't drift her eyes away from Emma. She's clueless that he noticed. But he sees Emma also looking back at her as she's being led away by his grandparents. For once his mothers' attention is not focused on him but on each other. This has Henry curious. This has Henry curious indeed.