Hey guys, happy halloween! Thanks for the reviews! As promised, here is the second part of Regina's Halloween party. But before that, a few responses to questions and comments:
To those of you who think Emma is being a dick; yeah, she is. However, it won't be one sided...I'll show you a flashback of their relationship and we'll see some of Regina's cruelty as well.
To the reviewer who felt Emma is a bit immature; yeah, I agree with you a bit. I think this is actually not completely uncommon in the SQ fandom. However, she's not immature so much as really bad and inexperienced at handling this type of complexity. Emma's instinct is to run, or to try to make things better, but usually I see her as lacking complete foresight...she gets tunnel vision for outcomes and that leads her to make poor choices.
To Jade St. Jims, who was curious about Kate's relationship with Hook...just a friendly acquaintance...her kissing his hand before he could do the same is more her demonstrating her ability to handle everyone and their fairytale identities. It's a lot for an outsider to take on; she's self conscious about it, but handles it with finesse.
To Mysterio-Lady: Regina is wearing that fabulous red velvet dress that she wore for the promo pictures for season 2 (in her office and standing in front of Emma's bug). I imagine her hair to be shorter though.
To Idntknow; Kate does not have a fairytale identity. She's simply a college student who Emma met after moving back to Boston; we'll see how they got together :)
A final note: during the tango scene in this chapter, Carlos Gardel's "Por Una Cabeza" ( ** watch?v=ZgcqijaUxdg**) is playing. Check it out.
Other than that, enjoy the drama that is chapter 16 of This Remarkable Ride :)
With Kate's arm still draped around her neck, Emma turned as she watched Regina make her way down the staircase. Her mouth opened slightly at the sight of her Majesty, as her heels clicked beneath the velvet dress. She red material hugged the contours of her body with grace. With her eyes, Emma traced the velvet upward as it trailed under a fitted outer corset that shimmered against the light of the hallway. A thin transparent bit covered her neckline, giving only a mere suggestion to ignite anyone's fantasies.
"Holy shit," Neal let out, "the queen has arrived."
The music picked up once more as people resumed their conversations. But Emma could only stand mesmerized by Regina, as she mingled in the crowd, all smiles, and thanked guests for coming.
"I guess a flapper is no comparison, eh?" Kate asked, leaning into Emma.
"What?" Emma said, having half heard what Kate had said, given she was still gawking at her ex. "Oh, no," she finally said, turning to Kate, "flappers are more my style."
Kate smiled and kissed Emma passionately before pulling her to the dance floor.
Regina may have been all smiles, but inside, she was dying. She was sweating with such anxiety over seeing Emma again. Where is she?—she thought as she scanned the crowd. But she didn't see the blonde anywhere. Instead, Kathryn found her.
"Hey," she let out, "you finally came down."
"Only after drinking several glasses of wine upstairs," she smiled as she spoke, keeping face as she gave a wave to another guest.
The two of them walked the crowd. "Well, there's something you should know," Kathryn began. "It's Emma. She—". But before she could finish, Regina found herself completely captivated by someone on the dance floor.
Her white dress glistened and shimmered from a distance. It flowed in the most elegant way, allowing her movement such grace. Her neckline plunged to a perfect low cut. Her golden locks were tucked into a bun that let her most beautiful curls wave down the side of her face. It was all held together with the beautiful white feathers of a swan.
Her arm was extended outward. Regina traced it to see—it was attached to the hand of another. As Emma pulled her lover in for a kiss as the ballad's melody played on, Regina put her hand to her lips to hold back her sorrow.
"—She brought Kate."
Snow, from the warm embrace of Charming's arms as they swayed, saw the entire scene play out. Including when Regina walked away from Kathryn. As the song came to an end, she pulled from David.
"I should go talk to her," she said.
Her husband nodded, placing a kiss on her forehead.
Snow quickly moved through the crowd to follow Regina out to the apple tree. She approached slowly, hearing Regina suppress her sobs into her hands.
"Hey," Snow said warmly, as she stroked Regina's arm. Regina looked to her, a bit started, and then eyed her outfit.
"What the hell are you supposed to be?!" she asked. "Oh, a fuzzy, cute animal—I am so surprised!"
Snow laughed at her snide remark, and proceeded to rub Regina's arm in comfort.
"I didn't even want her to come," Regina said finally, "and then I get surprised by her kissing her juvenile girlfriend?!"
"I know," Snow said, "I thought Emma would have the decency not to bring her."
Regina turned to Snow, surprised by the remark. "Why would you say that?"
"Really, Regina?" Snow widened her eyes. "Everyone knows you still have feelings for one another." Snow let a moment pass. "Quite honestly, I think she was a fool for leaving you."
Regina gasped a bit. "Really? This…coming from you?"
"Yes," Snow laughed a bit as she sighed. "She lost the best thing that ever happened to her."
"Well, I'm not sure about that," Regina sighed, regaining her strength, "but I'll tell you one part of that is correct—she lost me."
Snow eyed her again. "Really, Regina? She's lost you for good, eh?" She shook her head. "So if that's true, why are you crying?"
Regina froze for a moment, unable to move or say another word. But she didn't need to. She allowed Snow to wrap her arms around her and hug her in a warm embrace.
As Emma continued to frantically glance around the house, her nervous behavior became apparent to Neal as well. He saw Kate leave her side, walking into the other room with Ruby. He left Belle and his father to approach her.
"Hey there," he said, patting her on the back, "you okay?"
She looked up to him and narrowed her gaze. "You know full well that I'm not."
Neal sighed, wishing he had the solution to Emma's problem. "Why'd you come if you knew it would make you miserable?" he asked. "And why'd you bring Kate?"
She shrugged a bit. "I came because—," she hesitated before admitting the truth, "—I can't stop. I can't not need to be around her," she said. Before Neal could respond, she continued. "And yes, I'm fully aware how unhealthy that is, but forgive me, I'm having a bit of trouble keeping myself in check." Emma rambled all of this off, feeling the incredible urge to smoke a cigarette. "As for Kate, I didn't want to not invite her and have it look like something that it's not."
Neal scratched his light stubble as Emma tried to stop herself from lighting a smoke right in Regina's house. "Something that it's not," he repeated her words, "are you sure it's not something?"
Emma tensed her muscles. "I'm not sure."
"Well," he said, as he heard the opening of a melancholic tango play, "only one way to find out."
"How?"
Neal simply pointed to the regal woman who was now sitting on the side alone. She was watching partners walk hand in hand to the dance floor.
"Maybe," he suggested, "maybe you need to talk to her—not with words, maybe with movement." As Neal voiced his idea, he grabbed Emma's hand and led her straight to Regina.
"Neal!" she cried in protest, just as they had caught Regina's attention. But he pushed her. "Go."
Emma caught herself from his push, as she nearly landed in Regina's lap. Regina looked puzzled.
"Ms. Swan, what—?" but before she could ask her question, Emma took a breath and confidently extended her hand. Regina stared at her fingers for a moment, not wanting to give in. But she saw Neal plead silently from behind Emma. She rolled her eyes at him and reluctantly placed her palm to Emma's.
The two of them slid graciously toward the dance floor. Emma led her, walking backwards, never removing her gaze from Regina's eyes. Upon reaching the floor, Emma moved swiftly, placing Regina's arm on her shoulder, palming their other hands in a tight clasp and pressed her free hand just above the arch of Regina's back. They were a picture of the tango's alluring embrace. Emma now moved forward, guiding them to walk the line of the dance. They zig zagged seamlessly to shift direction.
"Why are you here?" Regina asked finally.
Emma led her into a two-step pivot turn. "Kathryn invited me," she answered when the two were once more face to face.
"That doesn't answer my question," she muttered, clasping Emma's hand tighter.
Emma shifted quickly, side stepping as she went. "You know why I'm here."
Regina glared at her. "How can you do this?"
"What do you mean?" Emma asked as the two walked down the line once more.
"You know damn well what I mean!" Regina shouted in a whisper.
Emma spun her away. Regina turned back, gripping Emma's shoulders with a burning fury. As the ostinato of the song's melody looped once more, they swept through the dance, repeating harsh words and stern moves.
"If you're referring to what happened a few weeks ago," Emma finally suggested as she glided them through a fallaway turn, "I have a good reason for leaving the way I did."
"Oh," Regina sneered, "is that so?" She shifted them back to promenade. "Care to explain?"
"Yes," Emma sighed, as she pulled them closer after another pivot. "If I had stayed—hell, even if I came inside to tell you I needed to leave…," she took a sweet breath, looking Regina in the eye, "I wouldn't have been able to leave you."
Regina looked mildly confused. "What do you mean?"
"Regina," Emma said, as the melody carried on with their turns, "I made a promise to myself that I wouldn't let us walk down this road again." She sighed as they slowed to an endless turn around one another. "But honestly, I'm having trouble keeping that promise. I can't stop thinking about you…and I haven't decided whether or not I want to stop."
The words hit Regina like the waves of a cold, frozen ocean. She stared at Emma for the longest moment. She only listened as the song's melody carried on, telling the tribulations of their love it seemed. She moved both hands to Emma's cheeks, allowing them to slowly wrap around her neck. Allowing herself to feel the warmth of Emma's flesh with her advancing touches, she leaned in, resting her nose near to Emma's. After a moment of lingering, Regina kissed Emma.
The warmth of their kiss was broken soon enough. Regina raised her hand, knowing everything was wrong. Anger consumed her. She broke free and slapped Emma across the face, leaving her holding her reddened cheek as she fled the room in tears.
Snow and Charming had seen the entire dance from the side lines—along with most of the other guests. Snow dropped her jaw at the sight of Regina leaving the room.
"Holy—"
"—fuck," Charming said, finishing the sentiment.
Hook scratched his hook to his chin. "Well, that was—," he began, only to realize he didn't have words for what had just happened. None of them really did.
"What did I miss?" Kate asked, as she rejoined the group after using the bathroom.
Neal, whose mouth was still agape and eyes were still on a completely distraught Emma, answered the girl. "Nothing. Nothing at all."
Before Kate could see how broken her girlfriend was, Ruby swooped in, sensing a need for distraction. "Hey," she said, "I've been looking for you. Em said you brought your guitar?"
"Yeah," she answered, a bit of confusion in her voice as to why Ruby was asking now. "It's in the bug."
"Oh, sweet, can I see it?" she asked eagerly, swinging her arm around Kate to guide her to the car. She caught Kathryn before they left. "Make sure your friend doesn't murder mine, yeah?"
Kathryn nodded, patting Ruby on the shoulder as a thank you for distracting the last person who needed to see the drama that certainly was just beginning.
Emma stood still on the dance floor, unable to move any bit of her body. Neal rushed to her side and tried to comfort her. But as soon as his touch hit her back, she flinched, pulling away.
"I just need to be alone right now," she said, and fled to the backyard. But he knew that's not what she meant. What she meant was that she needed to go after Regina.
The night air was cool on her hot face. She pulled out a cigarette, placing her pack on the railing, and lit it up.
"Fuck," she said aloud into the night air. At the sound of her voice, the shadow that she knew was there emerged from beneath the apple tree.
"You need to leave," Regina said. Emma remained silent, unsure of how to respond. Regina continued. "And I don't mean the party," she said, "I mean town. I mean you need to stay away from here."
"Don't be ridiculous," Emma whispered as she exhaled.
"Ridiculous?" Regina echoed her word. "Is it so ridiculous to ask you to leave this place and stop coming back just to keep hurting me?!"
"We hurt each other," Emma tried to defend herself, but Regina didn't have it.
"WE?!" she screamed into the night air. "It's been YOU who's pursued me. YOU who fucking kissed me that night. YOU who fucking left the next morning without saying goodbye!"
She was beginning to feel herself choke up, so she cleared her throat, to regain her strength. "It was YOU who brought your girlfriend here and kissed her right in front of me. Did you really think that wasn't going to hurt me?!"
Emma knew better. But in this moment, she felt weak. She was losing a battle—not to Regina, but rather to common sense forces that it would seem wished to fate them as enemies once more. She fought back.
"Really!?" she yelled back. "Since when did you get a pure heart again?! Last time I recall, you didn't care about whether or not your insults hurt me!" she screamed, draining her voice as she ashed her cigarette. "You didn't fucking care when every word that came out of your mouth was a critique! I wasn't good enough, not smart enough, not ambitious enough—," Emma cried. "I was a shitty mother and I guess an even shittier lover, because you sure as hell had remarks to say about that too."
The anger boiled over on Regina's face. But Emma kept speaking. "You wanna know why we broke up? For all of those reasons—I couldn't stand sleeping next to someone as heartless as the Evil Queen."
The expression on Regina's face shifted. The anger hadn't disappeared, but a different emotion had joined the mix. It was one that Emma couldn't define. She saw pain. And as heavy this emotional pain was, it didn't compare to the physical bit that washed over Regina in that moment. She pressed her hand to her chest. Emma was confused by the gesture, but then saw that Regina's fingers were curling at the edge as she clutched the velvet dress. Suddenly, the pain took hold of Regina and Emma watched as she collapsed.