"Regina please just stop," Emma cried in frustration, "this is not why I told you!"
"No Emma," she yelled back as she continued to storm through the streets, her dark hair blown backwards due to her speed. She'd forgone the use of her car, aware enough to deduce that there was no way she should drive in such a state. "Some things I can let lie, some things I can let go but not this. Never this."
Emma's gut was churning, her guilt flaring up as she pictured the outcome of this little revelation. "Look, it was years ago, it feels like a whole other life time to me now!" She yelled hoping her voice would carry forward to the streak of a woman still moving, "you don't need to do this!"
The blonde almost smacked right into the back of Regina for she had stopped so abruptly, her face set hard like stone as she pivoted on the spot to face the younger woman. "Tell me one thing then," she spoke, her voice low with the anger currently being restrained, when Emma nodded quickly she continued, "what if it were me?"
Her brow furrowed then, "what?" her face clearly showing her confusion at the question.
"What if it were me who had told you? What if it were me who had recounted that night? Who had recalled how alone and scared I was, lying on the cold, wet ground clutching my split lip, blood pouring from a wound inflicted by the one person supposed to love me hmm?"
Slowly Emma's arm lifted, her hand up and index finger extended to trace the scar she had always wondered about on Regina's top lip, dark eyes never moving from her face as her stomach roiled. "Your mother?"
They had never spoken about Regina's past, her time before she had become the Evil Queen…it seemed she felt safer talking about her life as a murderer than as a child. Dark eyes filled with water before flicking down to the ground in order to hide the emotion, "it doesn't matter."
"Of course it matters," Emma brought her face back up with a finger under her chin, "you matter."
"And you matter to me Emma," she allowed the emotion to show then for it was for the blonde and not herself, a show of how much she truly loved and cared for the woman standing before her, "why won't you let me do this?" but before Emma could speak Regina only continued on, "I can't stand knowing that he did that to you, that he put his hands on you in anger rather than love."
Emma's head tilted then as she looked at the brunette before her, the woman who had wanted her heart on a plate only a couple of years ago and yet now was ready to kill her ex boyfriend for even daring to lay a finger on her, strange times. "Like I said, he was drunk" she raised a hand when full lips parted ready to protest, "and I am not making excuses for him, he shouldn't have done it anyway but that's not who he is…plus I have him a swift kick to the groin once I had regained my footing" she tried to joke, "he came off much worse than I ever would."
Regina only turned her head to look away in frustration when Emma pulled her closer with tender hands on her waist. She repressed a smile at the feeling of the blonde nuzzling her cheek with her nose, fingers rubbing soothing lines over her silk covered torso.
"I know you're only trying to defend me, to protect me and you know I would do the same for you but…we're different people now, they were different times and Neal has to live with it for the rest of his life and believe me," she moved her head to catch Regina's eyes, "he's still punishing himself for it now."
The brunette turned then, her hands coming to cup Emma's cheeks, "I love you Emma Swan and I will lay down my life to protect you-"
"Not necessary-"
"But true," her tone was firm as she locked onto green eyes, "I would do it in a heartbeat but I also trust your judgement and, no matter how much it kills me inside to just let this slide, I won't take it any further than this conversation"
Emma sighed deeply in relief then, "thank you-"
"But mark my words," she cut in, fire flashing in dark eyes, "if he puts even one foot out of line, I will not hesitate to cut off his pitiful excuse of a manhood"
"Noted," Emma nodded before pulling the woman flush against her body, "hey," she whispered softly and waited until Regina had turned her face fully to her in question, she leaned in slowly and captured full lips in a tender kiss, revelling in the way they softened at her touch, "I love you"
"And I love you," Regina replied, her heart warming at the feel of the woman she truly would give her life for, strange but completely and utterly true.