Henry ran off to keep himself busy while he tried to avoid thinking about his mothers out in the dark running from ogres in the hopes that they could help his grandfather, or at least find him.
Snow always finds him, Henry thought as he left Hook and Tink standing side by side in the grand foyer.
Since he was raised by Regina and not his grandparents, he was a bit of a skeptic, but his Charming genes prevailed as he focused on and solely believed in the optimism of his grandparents being able to find each other no matter what.
The same could not be said for the two people who chose to stay behind with Henry. Hook and Tink knew what the Enchanted Forest was like and they'd each been through one ordeal or another that convinced them positive thinking took a lot of work, and if it was easy it was because of naivety.
Which is why Hook diverted their attention with another subject matter.
"When do you plan on telling the Queen you heard their private moment in her chambers earlier," he asked as he slowly turned to face the blonde fairy.
Tinker Bell looked at the pirate and hesitated before she answered him. "I probably won't," she admitted. "It's none of my business what they do and if Regina's happy then I won't stand in the way."
"But it hurt, didn't it," he said as more of a statement, like he already knew the answer.
"It certainly wasn't a comfort to hear just how pleased Regina was with Emma, especially since I had hoped that I might have been the one to make her feel that way."
"Well, if it's any comfort to you, I'm not exactly ecstatic that Emma chose Regina either."
Tink flashed a sad and empathetic smile.
"Guess that's yet another thing we have in common," she said then walked off to find and keep an eye on Henry.
It seemed sleeping with Regina had several pluses. Not only did Emma enjoy the physical aspect of being with the brunette or the fact that they understood and connected with each other on so many levels, but it also meant Emma heard no argument for carrying a weapon like she had while in Neverland. Things had definitely changed between them.
They had been walking for what felt like hours, but Emma knew from all the Neverland trekking it had been no more than twenty minutes. It was dark and there was a chill that came with the occasional breeze that blew past them. So far the three of them were the only ones out in the middle of the forest and Emma hoped it stayed that way.
Although, maybe another person or even an ogre would make things more exciting than the awkward silence between Snow, Regina, and herself. At least then Emma wouldn't have time to wonder if the silence had something to do with Snow knowing about her pre-dinner roll in the sheets with Regina. Because how could she possibly know?
"So, why are we walking," Emma asked. "Couldn't we just poof to David?"
"You apparently think differently," Regina started to correct her, "but I am not a magical lo-jack. I can't just poof to David. I could poof to a place like the lake, but we don't know if he's there yet and if he's not, he could be in trouble somewhere along the way."
"We should have taken the horses," Emma mumbled.
"He should have told me," Snow said more to herself, though she'd spoken loud enough for anyone in her general vicinity to hear.
"You know him better than I do," Emma started, thankful for conversation that had nothing to do with the fear that Snow might know about her and Regina. "You said he's done this before, too. That's why you knew it was serious when you realized he'd left without telling you where he was going."
Snow nodded and stared at her daughter as though waiting for a question she knew had to be coming.
"What were his reasons for not telling you before?"
Snow shook her head and sighed. "For the same reasons I wouldn't tell him where I was going if I didn't want to say anything; he didn't want to worry me or put me in what he believed to be danger."
"It seems for a pairing of True Love, the two of you still have trouble communicating," Regina dryly piped up. "Some couple."
"We keep trying to protect each other, is all," Snow explained. "What would you know about relationships anyway?"
The second the words left her mouth, Snow's eyes widened and she gasped.
Regina didn't respond. For once, she glared and didn't supply a biting and witty comeback. Her eyes shot daggers as a fire wildly burned inside them, her gaze solely on Snow.
"Seriously," Emma asked, exasperated and on edge. Suddenly, her earlier stress relieving tryst with Regina wasn't enough to keep her calm given the new development.
"I'm sorry," Snow quickly apologized. "I didn't mean that. I wasn't thinking."
"That's your problem. You generally don't think," Regina barked.
"Okay," Emma exclaimed as she held out her arms between them. "Don't start, you two. David's out there trying not to die and apparently, there are still ogres and last time I was here, they could only find us by sound. With all the yelling right now, it could lead to Regina throwing fireballs around and then we're sure to attract attention."
"I really am sorry, Regina," Snow said, genuinely heartfelt, and kept her eyes focused more on the ground than the other two women.
Regina took a deep breath and slowly released it as a way to relax. She clenched and unclenched her fists at her sides as she kept her eyes fixed on the forest foliage ahead of them.
Emma usually didn't opt for public displays of affection or touching in any way aside from whatever applied to her sex life, but she sensed Regina needed an extra push to resist the urge to harm Snow in any way. She discretely slipped her hand in Regina's and laced their fingers. She ensured they kept their hands between their bodies at a particular angle to avoid it from catching Snow's attention.
The instant Emma's fingers tangled with hers, Regina subtly gasped and jumped a little at the contact as though the blonde's hand was electrically charged.
And though Regina's gasp was subtle, it was not quiet. Emma was the only to hear it and when she did, her eyes locked on Regina and she smirked.
It only took a second before Regina noticed Emma's eyes on her. She turned to meet Emma's eyes and rolled her own when she saw the smug expression on the other woman's face. She squeezed Emma's hand and although Emma wished she could kiss the other woman, she settled for handholding.
They walked through a clearing before they were soon crowded by trees, bushes, and tall blades of grass. Things seemed harder to maneuver through and their surroundings appeared darker and more intimidating. That part of the forest screamed, "This is where things go bump in the night."
Emma had just found her family and already, her father had gone out in the darkening night where ogres roamed in an attempt to save himself from a fatal poison he refused to tell anyone he was hit with days ago. She had left Henry in her family's palace with Tinker Bell and Captain Hook so she could search for her father with her long lost mother Snow White and the Evil Queen, recently reformed and even more recently her lover or girlfriend or one night stand—whatever they were to each other after what they'd done before dinner. All of that hit her hard like she had just smacked into a solid wall.
Her breathing became shallow and hurried and she'd never had a panic attack before, but she was sure she was having one then. She was one step away from violently wheezing as thigh-high grass sharply brushed against her arms and made her itch. The need to scratch where the grass tips had touched spiked her temperature and she swore she was breaking out in hives.
She felt a pressure on her hand and realized Regina had just squeezed it, her brown eyes already focused on Emma. Her breathing slowed a little bit and her inhales gradually deepened.
"Thanks," Emma quietly said with an appreciative gleam in her eyes.
Emma could tell by the questioning and concerned look on Regina's face that the brunette wanted to understand what had set her off, but for the time being the other woman only offered her silent support. For all that had changed between them, at least one thing would probably always be the same: they knew when to push and when to give the other space.
Emma's attention was pulled away from Regina when she heard Snow sigh out of frustration beside her.
"What," Emma asked with a hint of panicked concern.
"The lake is still a long way away and, like Regina said, there's no telling if he even made it there," Snow started to get hysterical for the second time that night.
"Relax, Snow," Regina cut in and saved Emma from having to be the strong one. "He was alone and as much as he trips over his own feet, I doubt he's attracted anything out here to himself."
"What did he expect to do when we got back to Storybrooke?! If we hadn't ended up here, where would he have gone to get rid of the Dreamshade? Would he have just let it kill him instead of fighting it, instead of finding a way to stay with us?"
Emma took a deep breath and tightened her grip on Regina's hand. She felt another panic attack coming on and all she wanted was for Snow to stop making absolutely everything worse. All the pixie-haired woman was doing was adding to the upsetting thoughts in Emma's head that pointed out for every time her "parents" claimed to want to be a family with her, they never seemed to think of how their actions affected Emma more so than any of their words ever could. Snow was freaking out about how David was perfectly content to die even after he was reunited with his daughter, like finally having her in his life wasn't enough to convince him to work with the others to find a way to keep living. And Snow didn't even realize what her unfiltered thoughts and unchecked emotions did to Emma on top of how the blonde interpreted David's actions. The blonde may have been an adult, but that didn't mean she didn't still need or want a mother. She wasn't the parent in her relationship with Snow, but she seemed to be the only one holding up the Charming family when things got tough—until she'd gained Regina as a much needed and welcomed ally.
"Snow, if you don't shut up I will gladly tie you to a tree and leave you here until Emma and I bring David back."
"I appreciate your help, Regina, but with all due respect you're only here because of Emma."
"Someone has to be here for her and that's clearly not going to be you anytime soon."
Snow's eyes widened and she gasped.
"How dare you. I am here for her."
"Really? Because all you've done since we started this little trip is go on and on about what an idiot your husband is while you haven't even considered that if David does die, you won't be the only one that loses him. Or am I just misinterpreting why Emma struggles to breathe every few minutes when you keep blabbering about how foolish your beloved prince is?"
Snow immediately looked at Emma as all three women stopped in place. For the first time since they left the castle, Snow saw her daughter. Emma looked up with tense shoulders and a wounded look paired with sad, little girl eyes that drastically shined in the moonlight. She looked back at Emma with an apologetic expression and sympathy in her own green eyes.
Even when the town had been cursed, Emma had never looked as small as she had in that moment. Though it seemed out of character, between finding out fairy tales were real and she was the savior, and then having to fight one evil after another before the endless portal travelling and Neverland, it was too much for one person to adapt to in such a short span of time.
"Oh, honey, I'm so sorry," Snow said and moved toward Emma with open arms.
Emma flinched and took a step back toward Regina before Snow could touch her and a look of hurt passed over Snow's features.
Emma and Regina's joined hands grazed the side of Emma's thigh before they tapped against the front of Regina's upper thigh given the newly diminished space between them. Like their combined magic, the touch was familiar and empowering. It calmed Emma and allowed her focus on the task at hand without a haywire emotional interference.
Snow took a deep breath and quickly became more positive and assertive like the optimistic woman she was known to be more than ninety percent of the time.
"We'll find him. And then—"
A loud, drawn out bellow came from the other side of the trees to their left.
"What the hell," Emma asked before she and Regina let go of each other's hand and the three of them ran toward the distressed yelling.
They all emerged from the brush after every low-hanging branch slapped them in the face and every other type of forest foliage scratched and clawed at their arms and legs. As soon as they were out of the thick of the unforgiving forest, they stumbled through sand and looked out at a stretch of beach. And then a bandana-wearing pirate with heavily applied eyeliner flailed his hands above his head while he ran down the shoreline in the same direction the women had previously been headed toward.
"Is that..?" Regina squinted at the man as he kicked up sand more than he made any significant stride forward and away from whatever he was trying to escape due to his sloppy running.
"Jack Sparrow," Emma answered Regina's unfinished question seconds before they realized what he was running from.
"Ogres," Snow exclaimed as though Emma and Regina hadn't been standing right next to her.
Suddenly, though not unsurprisingly, the band of ogres that were after the continuously yelling Captain Jack Sparrow divided their attention and added the three women to their list of dinner orders.
"Way to endanger us all, Snow," Regina bit out before the three of them followed Jack's lead and ran.
"We really should have taken those damn horses," Emma repeated her earlier expressed opinion with more disdain while they ran.
"We have to get Jack and hide," Snow said.
"I am not going to save that attention whore's life just so he can get us killed," Regina argued.
"We can't just let him die," Snow replied. "That's not the right thing to do. It's not what good people do."
Emma could tell by the look on Regina's face that she hadn't been the only one to know what Snow had implied by stressing the word "good" when she spoke to Regina. It was Snow's way of reminding the other woman that she claimed to no longer be evil and by letting a person die, it would be a step back for the reformed queen. Regina was not in a calm mood at that point and Emma thought the brunette would push Snow into the sand at any second so she could leave the woman to die with the pirate.
But she didn't. Instead, Regina grabbed Emma's hand and urged her to grab Snow. Emma did as told and the three were engulfed in purple smoke. They only reappeared on the beach for a split second before Regina closed her fist around Jack's vest and poofed away before the smoke even cleared.
The next time they reappeared, they were miles ahead of where they'd been running and were no longer on the beach. They were back in the forest, surrounded by trees and calf-high grass with one more travelling companion who only stopped yelling when Regina slapped him.
"Hey, what was that for," Jack semi-slurred and touched the heated part of his cheek that Regina's hand had made contact with hard enough to leave a red mark.
"Unless you want more ogres to chase you down, you have to control the volume of your voice," Regina sternly instructed him. "I won't bring you with us if that happens either, even if it's not what 'good' people do."
Regina sharply glared at Snow when she said the last part. Snow rolled her eyes and Emma momentarily looked away from the tense interaction to look around them in case there was anything to fear lurking in the shadows.
"Ogres," Jack asked with noticeable confusion. "There are ogres here? Where is here anyway?"
"You're in the Enchanted Forest," Snow supplied him with the answer.
Emma, convinced they were alone, came back to the conversation and asked, "How did you get here? We thought you left us in Neverland."
"Aye. Just because my ship did the flippy thing to get me there didn't mean I signed up for whatever you were dealing with. I still don't want to be a part of any of it, but…my ship did a thingy again and I was here."
"What do you mean," Emma asked. "What other thingy did your ship do aside from flipping the first time?"
"Well, I was sailing away and hoping to get out of there by going back to the spot where my ship appeared in the water. There was this…mountain, rock-heap place and I just…I was sailing past it when…poof!"
Jack demonstrated what "poof" looked like by raising a closed fist and opening it with a popping motion.
"There was a flash of light and then I was here, running from ogres. …Guess I'm not getting back to my waters for a while."
"Maybe if you weren't drunk," Regina muttered.
Regina's words brought up a good point so Emma asked, "How much rum have you had?"
"The rum's gone, luv. Why is the rum always gone?"
Regina rolled her eyes.
"Look, maybe Rumple can help you get back to where you want to be," Emma started, "but we really need to find someone right now so if we could just get back to doing that…?"
Snow seemed lost in thought while Emma talked, but when the blonde left the rest of her sentence unsaid, an epiphany seemed to dawn on her.
"The compass! Jack, do you have your compass?"
"Aye! I figured you were done with it so I took it back to help me find where my ship had appeared."
"Give it to me," Snow demanded.
Jack looked at her with an expression twisted up with bewilderment.
"I need it to find my husband," she added.
Jack reluctantly forfeited the compass from his control and handed it to her. Snow immediately closed her eyes as soon as she had the closed compass in her possession. After a moment, she flipped open the lid and opened her eyes to see where the needle pointed. It slowly swayed between North and East as it tracked David's direction and Snow smiled.
"He's made it farther than we have," Snow told the group before she looked ahead and took in their exact location.
"We aren't far from the lake, are we," Snow said more as a statement than a question when she looked at Regina for confirmation.
"The clearing before the lake is just beyond those bushes," Regina said and pointed to the tall bushes ahead of them.
Snow's smile spread and she looked hopeful and relieved. Without another word, Snow took off toward the bushes and Emma and Regina followed. Jack stayed behind for a moment before he decided to go with them, though at a slower pace in his dubious state of mind.
Within seconds, the group pushed through the bushes and saw what was supposed to be the lake. It wasn't much, just a puddle in the middle of packed dirt. The water was calm, but had no room to really flow, but there was water. There was something.
Both mother and daughter scanned the area, but saw no sign of David. They shared a look of worry before both sets of eyes looked to Regina.
"Oh, no. No, no, no," Regina a little indignantly started with a shake of her head. "What do you expect me to do?"
"The compass isn't working just like it didn't the last time," Emma stated with a hint of a whine in her voice.
"My compass works," Jack loudly argued.
"It worked fine last time," Regina grudgingly muttered between gritted teeth.
Emma furrowed her brow, but Regina continued before Emma could ask any questions.
"You haven't used the compass since before I poofed us here," Regina explained.
"But he's supposed to be here," Snow exclaimed. "And he's not. I will not lose my husband, Regina. Do you understand me?"
Snow closed in on Regina and stood almost nose to nose with her.
"You will help me find Charming or I'll…I'll…" Snow tried and failed to intimidate Regina.
"I'll help you," Regina agreed, "but there's not much I can do right now."
"There isn't some locator spell you can do," Emma pleadingly asked with puppy dog eyes.
"I might—" Regina didn't get to finish her sentence.
A tree cracked and whomped down onto the ground on the other side of the hole in the ground lake and the ground shook with a force caused by something not yet seen by the group. Until that something emerged from the forest where the tree had crashed down, something huge and ugly and grayish tan in color. Then it roared and a blast of wind all but started a wind storm in the lake's clearing.
"Bloody hell," Jack flatly said as he stared up at the large monster.
"And there's another ogre," Emma a little sadly pointed out. "Why did it have to be an ogre?"
The ground shook again, but the ogre the group was faced with hadn't moved. The four of them whipped their heads to the right and heard a grunt followed by the scrape and clang of metal. Another roar recreated the strong wind machine effect that had previously been done by the only ogre the group could see in front of them.
"Two ogres," Emma frantically whispered to keep from attracting more attention to their group.
"Aim for the eyes," Snow and Regina simultaneously said.
Regina readied a fireball while Snow picked up a handful of nearby rocks. Both opened their stance and, for all their differences and complicated history, they were unbelievably in sync. It scared Emma just as much as it inspired her and she turned back to the ogre with a wider stance herself. She gripped her sword tighter and held it a little higher, at the ready as much as she could be given the troubling circumstances that led them all there.
One of the ogres roared again then swiftly leaned in toward them. He immediately towered over the little group and Snow instinctively threw a rock at its eye before it could get too close.
The rock missed its target and nailed the ogre in the head. Emma's eyes widened as she watched the ogre go from mad to pissed off in a matter of seconds then open its mouth and let out a louder roar. The force of its roar at its much closer proximity knocked her and Jack onto the ground, but her mother and Regina managed only to stumble back a bit before they regained proper footing.
Regina stood taller once she was able to brace herself against the wind from the ogre's insanely large mouth and flicked a fireball at it. She didn't miss.
The ogre growled and raised a hand to its eyes as it staggered back a few steps. His movement caused the ground to shake and that time, Regina and Snow weren't so lucky.
Emma had just managed to sit up. As soon as she tried to push herself back onto her feet, the ground shook and Regina tumbled right on top of her. She grunted as the brunette landed ass first onto her chest and pushed her onto her back in the dirt.
Snow had fallen to the side, but caught herself against a thick tree trunk. She managed to stand up a lot faster than the other women, but she wasn't the first on her feet.
Jack, already up and jittery, clutched pebbles and sand and whatever else made up the ground on which they either lay or stood on. He let out a dubious battle cry as the ogre with the burned eyes started to lean in toward them again and then he threw his handful of earthy sediments at the scorch mark Regina had created that acted as a target for which to aim.
Emma placed a hand on Regina's hip and gave the other woman an idea as to her position beneath her so the brunette could find a way to get up without causing further injury. She nudged Regina with the hand on the other woman's hip and Regina rolled to the side. The two were promptly extricated and Emma's first action was to suck in as much air as possible. The impact against the hard ground had effectively winded her and it hadn't helped that Regina had, though not by choice, sat on her chest.
She coughed as she sat up and Regina, already on her feet, gently rested a hand between her shoulder blades while she slowly stood up.
Regina formed another fireball while Emma brushed herself off and waited for Jack's antics to draw the ogre closer. When Emma stood up straighter, Regina dropped her hand from the younger woman's back and kept it down at her side.
Jack threw handful of dirt after handful of dirt at the ogre and, to Regina's surprise, it got the ogre to back away. Dirt in its already burned eyes seemed to do the trick and it gave up the fight.
The ogre started to walk away, hopefully back to wherever it came from, and left them with only one of two ogres to either deter or defeat. But that other ogre seemed to be preoccupied with something else that none of them could see beyond the trees on the other side of the puddle they called a lake.
"As much as I don't want to get that thing's attention," Emma said, still a little breathless, "we gotta get rid of it."
"Agreed," Regina said. "Any suggestions?"
Emma shrugged then yelled, "Hey!"
The ogre whipped its head in their direction and narrowed its blind eyes at the group, but it made no move toward them.
"That was your plan," Regina judgmentally asked.
"It got its attention," Emma argued and motioned to the ogre.
"Yes, but it doesn't appear to be interested in us. Whatever's over there is more tempting than we are."
"What is over there," Emma asked.
No answer was provided. No answer could be provided and for two reasons. The first reason was that no one in the group had been over there so none of the group knew what had fascinated the ogre. The second reason was the pirate.
"Aaaaaaahhhhh," Jack yelled out with a wavering voice. It made him sound a little like Tarzan and the volume of his voice alone startled the three women.
Jack ran toward the ogre with more handfuls of dirt that seeped back onto the ground through his fingers and apparently poorly clenched fists. He threw what was left of the dirt in one of his hands at the ogre, which remained several feet away from him, and he missed the giant creature completely.
Regina rolled her eyes while Snow furrowed her brow and cocked her head to the side as she watched his lame attempts to fight. Emma just sighed with a hint of defeat before she gripped the hilt of her sword tighter then moved past the other two women and walked toward Jack. The darker haired women almost immediately followed.
All four of them stood on the other side of the very small Lake Nostos, closer to the ogres and the trees it stood within, but they stayed a good distance from it. Thankfully, with all of them a little closer while Jack still yelled his lungs out, the ogre seemed to finally take the bait.
It took a few thunderous steps in their direction and crouched down like King Kong inspecting the humans it saw and didn't understand. The ogre was almost in their faces and just then, Jack stopped yelling and unsheathed his sword. He jabbed it in one of the ogres' eyes and right as he removed it, Snow flung a rock at the same eye. Regina weighed in and sent a fireball after the rock, which burned the ogre before it could move away out of pain from the other two attacks.
The ogre roared again and it fell to its death. As it thudded against the forest floor, the group's knees buckled and they struggled to remain upright. No one joined the ogre on the ground, however. The shaking stopped after a few seconds and everyone was able to right themselves before they had a chance to fall.
Emma breathed out her relief, but the feeling didn't last long.
Groaning came from where the fallen ogre had once been focused on and Snow gasped just before she sprinted toward the sound.
"Charming? Charming!"
Emma and Regina ran after Snow while Jack watched them run into the forest. He seemed a little lost even though he knew who they were looking for, but eventually he followed them. He, however, walked into the forest.
"Oh my god. Charming!"
He was there. Charming had a hand on his ribs and a pained look on his face while he lay on his side on the ground between a few trees. He was hurt, but he was there. They had found him.
"We need to get him to the lake," Regina said as soon as she saw Snow attempt to kneel next to him.
"You mean the puddle," Emma joked, her tone a little flat and too serious to actually lighten the mood.
"Yes, Emma, the puddle," Regina said with a small sigh and managed to avoid rolling her eyes.
Snow started to lift Charming off the ground and Emma swooped in to help. Mother and daughter worked together to get Charming to the lake, but he was almost dead weight in their arms and it wasn't exactly a short walk to the water.
"Well, don't you look dreadful," Jack said when he saw Charming.
Regina watched the other women struggle for a moment before she took a step back and readied herself. At that moment, only she knew what for, and when Emma looked at her with a question in her eyes and on the tip of her tongue, seconds from leaving her mouth, Regina gave her unvoiced question an answer of sorts.
"Brace yourselves, especially you, David," Regina said and raised her hands in a familiar way before purple smoke engulfed all four of them.
"Bloody hell," Jack exclaimed as he watched them disappear.
The smoke cleared and Charming almost fell out of Snow and Emma's grasp and face first into the lake. Emma grunted when she caught him and took on most of his weight, Snow a little slower and weaker.
Regina conjured a cup and dipped it into the lake. She filled it halfway while Emma and Snow eased Charming onto his knees.
Emma looked up at Regna who stood a little off to the side of them and Regina handed her the cup of water.
"Thanks," Emma quietly said before she handed it to Charming.
Regina gave Emma a small smile in response that Emma retuned before she watched Charming gulp down the water. When eye contact was lost, Regina walked over to stand by Emma's side. She leaned over and squeezed the blonde's shoulder while Emma and Snow were focused on Charming.
Emma placed a hand over Regina's and briefly looked up at her with another smile. As she turned back toward Charming, she leaned into the touch and rested her cheek over their joined hands.
It was strange and yet it wasn't. Neither of them were the type to be so quickly touchy feely with another person, but somehow the comfort they provided each other in in small touches and brief but meaningful and understanding looks fit them. It felt normal and right and they might have skipped a few steps in their undefined relationship, but it all seemed to work. They worked.
Emma lifted her head from the hands on her shoulder, but kept her hand over Regina's. The move pulled Regina's attention to the three people in front of her and she watched as David coughed then took a deep breath, no water left in the cup.
Snow lifted his shirt and they all saw how much the poison had spread since the last time they'd checked its progress. All of his veins were pitch black and his entire torso and chest, except for around his heart, revealed to be poisoned. A second later, however, and the poison seeped out of his veins and away from his heart.
Snow smiled with tears in her eyes and Emma gasped. The blonde also might not have realized it, but she squeezed Regina's hand tighter before she breathed out a small bit of relieved laughter.
"You're okay," Emma said and removed Regina's hand from her shoulder, but kept it in her grip.
Regina stepped a little closer to Emma so that the other woman didn't yank her arm, even if that had never been Emma's intention.
"Looks like it," Charming beamed and looked over at her.
His eyes went from hers to her and Regina's joined hands almost instantly since their hands were at eye level with everyone but Regina. He furrowed his brow at the sight, only slightly, before Snow wrapped her arms around him in a tight and grateful hug. For a moment, he was distracted.
Emma looked to Regina again and she looked younger somehow, more hopeful and happy. She tugged on Regina's hand and used it to pull herself up.
Regina helped her up and Emma stumbled through some of the distance between them. Some of the space remained, but most of it was diminished. They stood toe to toe and Emma leaned forward the tiniest bit and Regina linked their fingers together.
"I'm so glad you're alright," Snow told Charming.
Emma glanced over her shoulder at the two of them before she turned back and stared at Regina with a lot of unspoken emotion.
"I really wish I could kiss you right now," she quietly confessed.
A hint of a blush colored Regina's cheeks.
"I would have enjoyed it," Regina replied with a small smirk.
"Enjoyed what," Snow asked as she and Charming separated and slowly started to stand.
Emma and Regina both let go of the other's hand and Emma turned to face the other two.
"Nothing," Emma nervously answered for Regina. "She was being sarcastic."
Regina definitely smirked that time.
"Can we get back to the palace now," Emma asked. "Henry will want an update and I'm really not a fan of the ogres around here."
"I think the feeling's mutual, dear," Regina practically purred then after a moment said, "We really should get back. It's been a long day and I don't want Henry to worry for much longer."
Charming nodded and started to walk back in the direction of the palace when Snow spoke up.
"But…what about Jack?"
As if on cue, the pirate came out of the forest and dramatically waddled toward the group.
"I suppose we could always bring him back with us," Charming suggested. "Then we can figure out a way to get him back to wherever it is he belongs."
"We can't exactly guarantee that until we find our own way back home," Regina argued.
"Well, if we need a portal and he needs a portal," Emma started, "why not use the same portal?"
Charming, Snow, and Regina looked enlightened just then. Regina hadn't thought about it before, and she was sure it hadn't occurred to the two idiots until then either, but that idea didn't seem so far-fetched.
"There might be a way for that to work," Regina said. "We'd have to be very precise about it and timing would be our biggest problem, but it could get all of us where we want to go without finding a way to create two portals. The real issue now is to figure out how we'll make even one portal."
"Well, I say there's no place like the palace, where there's a roof over our heads and nice, cozy beds for a good night's rest, to come up with a plan," Emma stated.
"I second that," Jack pointed at Emma when he spoke.
"Alright, back to the palace it is," Charming started to walk forward again and the rest—except Regina—did the same.
"Wait," Regina stopped them. "I can just poof us back there."
"Oh. Really," Charming asked.
"Yes. It'll be faster and we can be assured no ogres will stop us on the way," she explained.
"Let's do it," Emma said. "How does it work?"
Regina looked at Emma and grinned.
"Like this," she said in a sultry, almost suggestive tone and a giant cloud of purple smoke puffed up from the ground and surrounded them.
A/N: So sorry for the long wait between updates! Hopefully reading this chapter was at least a little worth that wait. And I think I have a couple of things I need to address about this chapter in case any of you are questioning it. I brought Jack back because it wasn't really my original intention to get rid of him by him just running off in Neverland. I also really wanted to incorporate his yelling into the story because he tends to run away from things yelling loudly. Him fighting just added to that as a way of poorly attempted self-preservation. Also, I was going to have a few other characters interact on the way to the lake, but I didn't remember that until I was almost done proof reading the chapter. So that interaction is going to have to wait a little longer, but I'll definitely be working some more things into this story before it's done. There will be a couple things that have yet to happen yet in the Enchanted Forest while everyone's there, but this story is actually nearing its end very soon. I wouldn't say it's only a couple chapters from being over, but I'd give it maybe five or six chapters to its conclusion. Thanks for reading. Leave a review and let me know what you think? Pretty please? :)