Swan Queen: A Powerful Weakness

by hausofswen

This is a Swan Queen fanfic for the whole Swen family. It focus' on Emma and Regina's friendship/relationship as a well known villain attempts to ruin their lives.

Chapter 1. Emma

As the clouds parted in the freshly drawn sky, the morning sun shone down onto the streets of Storybrooke. Birds of many shapes and sizes, flapped their wings in time with the wind as they set off on new adventures. The time was a little after 7am and Emma was already bundled into her usual seat at Granny's Diner; clutching onto a cup of hot cocoa. The tired blonde stifled a yawn as she delicately shook a few flecks of cinnamon into the dark frothy goodness in the small fat mug. The steam rising from the mug wavered around her nostrils as she breathed in its chocolatey aroma. "Penny for them" a familiar voice sounded from beside her. "What?" Emma asked lifting her gaze to the tall friendly man peering down at her, "Dad, Hi, what are you doing here?" she asked with a deadpan expression on her face. "Your thoughts, A penny for them?" David continued, prompting an answer from his daughter. "Oh it's nothing, I- I just didn't sleep very well last night". David sighed, "You and me both, Neal cried most of the night, I'm surprised you didn't hear him" he began, pulling out the chair opposite Emma and perching on it. "How is he, Neal?" Emma asked dragging her eyes onto her father's once more. "Well, other than a few teething pains, fine, he has lungs like his big sister" David joked thinking back to the very moment Emma was born, kicking and screaming as she entered the world. He discarded the rest of the memory as it led on to the magical wardrobe. Just then Ruby appeared beside them both with a cup of coffee to go and a brown paper bag that smelled like doughnuts. "Here you go Charming, without sugar this time" Ruby grinned as David's eyes lightened up whilst he smiled. "Thank you Red" He said with little excitement in his voice. "No sugar?" Emma asked as if something was wrong with her father. "Your mother has decided that we eat too much sugar, so i'm not allowed to have any in my coffee anymore" he chuckled. "No sugar in your coffee but you can eat doughnuts?" Emma asked suspiciously, "Well, she doesn't know about the doughnuts, there's two in here" he pointed to the brown bag, "One for me and one for you, if you want it" he added. "Maybe later" Emma breathed. David reached out across the table and took his daughter's hand. "Are you ok Emma?" he asked with concern in his voice. "Yes dad, I'm fine, honest" she began, "Can you- can you open up this morning there's something I have to do" she suddenly blurted out, "Of course Emma" David agreed taking the keys to the Sheriff's station from his daughter and sliding the key ring down his finger. "Thanks" Emma mumbled, she then took a swig of cocoa before abandoning it along with her father.
A brisk cold air swooped by as Emma set off across the road. "Good Morning" Archie called out as his path met Emma's. "Hey Archie, Hi Pongo" she nodded, not stopping to chat. The town was mostly quiet, the odd car drove past and a few people were out walking their dogs, just like Archie, but other than that it was peaceful, something Emma was glad of at this time. She hadn't lied to her father, she really had been awake most of the night but not really because of the tossing and turning that she'd let David think. For days now she didn't know what was wrong with her. She really cared for Hook, being with him had once made her feel happy and content but lately something just wasn't right. The chemistry between them had boiled over, at least that is how she felt, Hook was probably none the wiser. He still held her the way he always had, still called her 'love' and kissed her forehead the same way he had right from the beginning. She didn't know why she felt this way, it had just creeped up on her. Her heart longed for another, she just couldn't work out who. A vibrating sensation formed against her thigh, which meant her phone was ringing in her jeans pocket. As she slid the white iphone out into the open; Mary Margaret's face smiled up at her. "Mom, sup?" She asked faking a cheery voice. "Emma you didn't stay for breakfast" Mary Margaret blurted out from the other side of the phone. "Yeah I went for a walk, ended up at Granny's" before she could let her mom dig for information she spoke again, "How come you won't let dad have sugar?" she asked not necessarily listening to the answer. As Mary Margaret chattered on about sugar levels and health risks, Emma continued concentrating on getting to her destination. "Mom I gotta go, I'll call you later" she interrupted. As she hung up, her homescreen glimmered in the dull sunlight, a picture of her and Henry taken on his birthday last year showed for a moment before the screen faded to black. Emma sighed and shoved the phone back into her pocket, marching onwards. The smell of the sea appeared as she grew closer to the docks. The waves rippled against the boats on the harbour, seagulls cried from over head. As usual Hook was fussing with something on his boat. "Swan" He called as his girlfriend climbed aboard. "I thought you'd be here, on the boat" Emma said. Hook dropped his grip on the rope he was tying. "Ship, love, she's a ship, not a boat" he corrected her before leaning in to give her a kiss. Emma pulled away before his lips could touch hers. "Killian, we need to talk" she uttered. "What's the matter love?" He asked confused. Whenever Emma called him 'Killian' he knew there was something wrong. "Look if it's about the toilet seat again, I'm sor-" Emma cut him off. "It's not about the toilet seat, it's about- us" she mumbled taking another step back. Hook looked confused, he sucked his teeth and sighed, "What about us love?" he asked. "I think we should take a break for a while" there was a slight pause and the tension built up in the silence. "What? Why? I thought we were good" Hook asked raising his hand to his chin, running his fingers over his stubble. "We are, well, we will be, It's just. Killian please don't-" Emma stuttered, "I just need some time to think ok, will you allow me that?", "Aye, if that's what you want love" he sounded hurt and it killed Emma to hear the waver of emotion in his voice, but right now she needed to get away from him. Emma nodded, "thanks", and then she turned and stepped off the ship. As she receded away Hook called after her, "Swan!" but she ignored him and turned quickly around the corner. A single tear fell from her eye and she aggressively pushed it away with the help of her sleeve. Once again her phone began to ring, only this time it was Regina. She stared down at the phone as it continued to ring, just as she thought about declining the call her subconscious took control. "Regina" she muttered into the speaker. "Ms Swan you were supposed to pick Henry up at 8am, it is now 8:17am and he is late" Regina scolded. "Sorry I had business to take care of, i'll be there as quick as I can" Emma apologised. "Too late, Henry's already left" Regina responded. "I'm sorry Regina, to be honest I forgot all about it", "Oh never mind, it's already happened now" Regina muttered in annoyance "But I still want you to come over here, there's something I want to discuss with you and that conversation is not one i'd like to have over the phone, and hurry up too" "Ok, I'm on my way" Emma reassured her before ending the call and ditching the footpath for her trusted yellow bug.
Within a few minutes Emma arrived at Regina's home and parked just outside. As Emma stepped out of the car she noticed Regina standing on the porch with her hands on her hips. "What?" She shouted across the garden as she slammed the car door. "Nothing, I just hate that car, why does it have to be so yellow?", "What's wrong with yellow?" Emma asked striding closer to her son's other mom. "Nothing, other than it being all up in my face, why didn't you get a normal car?". Emma rolled her eyes, "Regina you didn't call me all the way out here just to insult my car did you, and besides you've already done so in the past?", "No I didn't, come inside" she announced stepping aside to let Emma squeeze past.
She had never been jealous of Regina's home, it was a lot bigger than anywhere she had ever lived, bigger than David and Mary Margaret's, and much bigger than her apartment back in Boston but, Regina's house didn't feel like a home. Emma compared the difference in sound as her boots thudded the marble floor in comparison to the light clacking of Regina's designer heels. It made her think about just how different they were. "Apple cider?" Regina asked. "It's eight thirty" Emma acknowledged. "Right, of course, come through" she muttered kicking off her heels and entering the lounge. She smoothed out her grey skirt as she sat on the sofa. Emma took a seat opposite, a glass coffee table stood between them. She eyed the bowl of red apples placed on the surface. "Still with the apples?" Emma asked. Regina ignored her comment and decided to stand up. Emma noticed that beneath her skin coloured tights, Regina's toenails were painted pink, not a colour she expected to see upon the former 'Evil' Queen. "Emma as you know trouble has a way of finding us here at Storybrooke, it's never too long before some villainous creature or whatever tries to take over my town, and as Mayor I want something done, some more protection for myself, Henry and the people residing here", "What are you talking about Regina? What do you suppose I do? I'm already doing all I can to help keep everyone safe" Emma asked uncertain of Regina's point. "I know that, You think I'd still let you be Sheriff if I didn't think you were doing your best?". Emma glanced away from Regina. "Sorry" Regina sounded before sitting back down on the sofa. "I'm just tired of fighting all the time". An awkward silence filled the room before she spoke again. "I know i've done bad things, terrible things, in my past, I was a bitch, I was evil, but I've changed, all I want now is a peaceful life with our son". 'Our Son' Emma re-played Regina's words in her mind. They'd come a long way since they had first met. "Regina, Henry is fine, he's happier than he's ever been, happier than I've ever seen him" she said, "I know, I just, I don't want anything bad to happen to him because of me, because of my past" a flicker of emotion appeared in Regina's voice. "Nothing bad is going to happen to Henry, We will protect him, both of us. Now stop worrying everything is going to be alright". "But what if it isn't Emma?" Regina asked her eyes filling with tears. Emma got to her feet and pulled a tissue from an already open box on the coffee table. Emma didn't often see Regina cry, it was a rare event but something she was learning to deal with. Regina watched as Emma made her way towards her, slumping down at her side. "It will be, you just have to have hope" she said with a smile, handing the tissue over. Regina screwed the tissue up in the palm of her hand then dabbed at her eyes, careful not to ruin her makeup. "You sound just like your mother" Regina smirked. Emma smiled weakly and placed her hand on Regina's shoulder. When their eyes met she could suddenly feel the blood rushing through her body, her mouth immediately went dry and her heart skipped a beat. Quickly, she pulled her hand away from her old enemy and launched herself onto her feet, unsure of what was happening to her. "I gotta go, I just remembered something" she lied, turning and running into the hall. Regina looked taken aback and made no attempt to stop her. She watched from the window as Emma dived into her car and sped off down the road and out of sight.
Emma flopped down onto her bed and buried her face into the pillow. "What the hell was that?" she whispered to herself, half expecting her subconscious to answer on her behalf. Emma screwed her eyes tightly and recalled that feeling she had just ran away from. In the darkness of her mind she saw Regina hiding behind a tissue, all dewy eyed and pale. Almost in slow motion her hand reached out and came into contact with Regina. Once more the feeling made Emma jump and she sat bolt upright on the bed. Her heart definitely skipped a beat.

Chapter 2. Regina

Did that really just happen? Regina sat staring at the space Emma had been sitting in before her dramatic exit. She raised her perfectly manicured hand and placed it upon her own shoulder but didn't wince. Had Emma hurt her or was the pain simply caused by herself? Why didn't it hurt when she copied Emma's actions? She swallowed hard and sat back, her arm still throbbing with a sweet tingle that reached the very tips of her fingers. The clock then chimed nine and she was forced to forget about the experience and head off to her office.
The stack of paperwork sat on her desk; was ready to be proof read and signed before she was to send it off. She hated the paperwork side of her job, actually she was getting pretty sick of the job all together but instead of complaining to an empty room she grasped her fountain pen and got started. "The quicker I do this the quicker I can-" she said aloud stopping before the end of her sentence. "Before I can what?" She asked herself. She searched her mind for answers to what she was rushing home for. "Nothing" she whispered softly, peering down at the fuzzy lettering on the page. A tear fell from her eye, missing the ink words by millimeters. "Get a grip Regina" she told herself once again dabbing her eyes with the screwed up tissue Emma had handed to her.
"Hey Mom" Henry called, appearing in the doorway. "Why aren't you at school?" Regina snapped. "It's 3:30" Henry said glancing at the clock second guessing himself. Regina followed his gaze, it was indeed three thirty. "Oh I didn't realise" she sounded, "Sorry Henry", "It's ok Mom, I just came to tell you that I'm going over Emma's, we're getting pizza. "What no, no take out you had one last night, they're supposed to be treats" Regina said rising from her swivel chair. "It is a treat, a treat from Emma, can't both my Moms treat me to a pizza now and then?" he asked with a cheeky grin. His smile meant everything to Regina and she found herself unable to say no. "Fine, but no more takeouts for a month young man", "Thanks Mom, see you later" Henry half left the room. "Henry, call me when you're ready to leave, i'll come pick you up". "Okay" he called back from the corridor and then left. Regina was alone once again.
As the hours drifted by, Regina spent most of her time looking at old photographs before soaking in the bath, surrounded by bubbles and the lingering scent of vanilla.
Before long the sound of a vehicle approached, its headlights bursting into the house. Quickly, she leaped out of the bath and slithered into her silk dressing gown, tying it tightly around her waist. "Mom i'm home" Henry called. Regina raced to the top of the staircase and quickly ran down the steps. Just as she reached the bottom Emma appeared behind her son. "Ms Swan, what are you doing here? Henry I said i'd pick you up", "Pick me up? I called you four times but you didn't even pick up your phone" he sulked, slinking off into the kitchen, helping himself to a slice of apple pie. "Sorry, I was, in the bath" Regina told Emma. "No need to point out the obvious Regina" she smiled, nodding at Regina's long wet legs. Regina squirmed and tried not to think about the daring length of her dressing gown. "Just give me a second to get dried and, dressed" Regina announced. "Hey no it's fine I was just dropping Henry off, I'll get out of your hair" Emma spoke with an awkward look in her eye as she tried to look anywhere other than at Regina's bare flesh. "No please wait I want a word" Regina spoke. Emma nodded. "I'll be right back" she then turned and ran upstairs as fast as she could.
"I helped myself, hope you don't mind" Emma raised a glass of apple cider. "I thought you didn't drink at eight thirty?" Regina questioned, entering the room, "That was AM, i didn't say anything about PM" Emma grinned taking a swig of the bitter yet sweet drink. Regina smiled weakly and sat beside Emma. Emma poured Regina a sturdy amount of apple cider. "Thank you" Regina noted taking the glass from Emma the same way she had taken the tissue. "Did you do what you had to do?" Regina asked. Emma tilted her head, confused. "When you rushed off earlier?", "Oh, um yeah I did, yeah" Emma lied. Once again unknowingly to each other, they both re-played that strange sensation they had felt when they sat right there only hours before. "How is things with Hook?" Regina asked, trying to flee the awkward silence. "We broke up" Emma gulped. "Oh, I'm sorry" Regina replied now raising the level of awkwardness between them. Regina thought of Robin Hood, her days of happiness with her second chance at true love seemed so long ago. She didn't miss him as much now but she hadn't forgotten him or Roland, or Marian. "Don't" Regina spoke as she sensed Emma summoning the words to ask after Robin. Emma bit down on her lip and took another swig of her apple cider. "Men" she growled. "Tell me about it" Regina agreed chucking back her drink and placing her empty glass beside Emma's. "Another?" Emma asked as if the alcohol she was offering were her own. "Yep" Regina nodded. The two of them threw back their second glass and sat in silence for a few moments.
Before long their second bottle of cider was empty. "I better go" Emma announced tearing herself from the sofa, fishing for her car keys. "Emma" Regina bleated. "what? The blonde slurred a petulant look on her face. "You are in no fit state to drive home" Regina notified. Emma looked down at her feet, feeling herself swaying back and forth, the room spinning. Regina turned into two Regina's. "I'm fine" she mumbled. "No you are not fine. You'll have to stay here tonight, you might crash your car or" Regina was interrupted. "You don't have to worry about me Regina" Emma motioned smiling drunkenly. Regina rose to her feet "I'm not worrying about you Emma, I'm the Mayor I can't let you drive home drunk" she told her denying any care for Emma's safety, She pushed her back down onto the sofa. Untouched by the affects of drinking, Regina trotted into the hallway and pulled a spare quilt from a cupboard. "You will sleep on my sofa tonight, then you can drive Henry to school on your way home tomorrow morning" Regina commanded. "Yes Madame Mayor Ma'am" Emma mocked, saluting Regina before hiding beneath the purple quilt. "Go to sleep Ms Swan" Regina said sternly, switching off the light, and leaving the room. "Leave the door open" Emma called out. "What are you, five years old?". Emma smirked, "There could be monsters". "Emma the only monster in this house is me", "You're not a monster Regina, not anymore" Emma turned over and fell asleep immediately. Regina smiled to herself, a warm feeling crept over her. "Sweet dreams" she whispered and then left, leaving the door open as Emma had asked before retiring to her own bed.
Daylight brightened the room. The scene was a bit of a blur but she could see that Emma was sat beside her, she reached out her hand and passed over a tissue. Regina watched herself wipe her eyes dry, then Emma slowly reached out her arm and placed her hand on her shoulder. That same tingling feeling rushed through her veins. She then sat bolt upright in her bed. The room was dark. It was still night and she had been dreaming. A trickle of sweat coursed her forehead as she regained control over her breathing and beating heart. Once settled back into a rhythm, Regina threw her legs out from under the duvet and made her way downstairs to pour herself a glass of water. As she passed the living room she remembered leaving Emma sleeping on the sofa and decided to peek in on her. The moonlight illuminated Emma's face as she lay peacefully sleeping, tucked up warm on the leather sofa. Regina entered the room and sat on the armchair at Emma's side, staring down at her face, just watching as she slept. She only intended sitting there for a minute or two to make sure Emma was ok but when morning came she found herself waking up in the armchair with the purple quilt thrown over her. As the room appeared before her, Regina jumped and tried to remember why she wasn't in her bedroom. "Good Morning" Emma spoke. Regina shot a look to her right. Emma sat on the sofa, her arms bumpy from the cold. "You were shivering in your sleep so I gave you the quilt" Emma nodded. Regina looked confused and felt embarrassed. "Thank you" she quietly said sitting up. Regina glanced at the clock. "10:30am?" She shouted surprised. "It's ok, I've already taken Henry to school" Emma mentioned. "Then why are you still here? Why am I waking up next to you Ms Swan?", "I could ask you the same question Ms Mills". Both women then immediately looked away from each other to draw breath.

Chapter 3. Emma

Emma had ignored three calls and a voicemail from Hook. She had nothing to say to him, she'd already told him the day before that she wanted space. Just then there was a tap on the door, "Get that for me Emma" Mary Margaret bellowed from the bedroom. Emma pulled herself onto her feet and yanked the door open. "Hi Emma" Belle smiled from just outside the apartment. "Hi come in" Emma replied allowing the short brunette into her home. At that moment Mary Margaret appeared with baby Neal, "Thanks again Belle" she announced her gratitude, "Not a problem" Belle chirped taking the small baby into her arms. Mary Margaret wrapped her scarf around her neck and picked up her handbag. "Emma you're going to be late" she badgered giving her daughter a suspicious eye. "I'm leaving now" Emma mumbled stifling a yawn. Mary Margaret rolled her eyes but left her daughter alone. "See you later" she said waving goodbye to Neal before heading out the door. As soon as her mother was out of sight Emma traipsed back upstairs. "Emma, excuse me for poking my nose in but, are you ok?" Belle asked. Emma paused on the steps before turning around. "I'm fine Belle" she groaned a bleak look etching upon her face. "I'm here if you need to talk" Belle added placing Neal down in his crib. "Well I don't, not to be rude or anything Belle but I couldn't talk to you about it even if I wanted to" Emma exploded. "Sorry I-" she added as she watched Belle's face change from hopeful and concerned to embarrassed. Belle slapped her hands at her sides and turned to fetch a bottle of milk for the baby. Emma felt bad for snapping and decided to go to work.
"What time do you call this?" David called from behind his desk. "Sorry" Emma croaked, slumping down in her chair. David decided not to bother asking what was wrong, he knew Emma wouldn't tell him anyway, instead he brought her over a cup of tea that he had originally made for himself. "Thanks" Emma mumbled, taking a gulp. Just then the door to the station flew open. "Mr Gold, what can I do for you?" Emma asked pulling a pen out of the pot on her desk. "Something has been stolen from me and I need it back" he grumbled, supporting his weight on his cane. "Ok, what was it?" Emma asked underlining the heading she had just written in her notepad. "It was a cloak" Mr Gold spoke clearly. "A cloak? Sentimental value?" David butted in. "No dearie it's a magical cloak and in the wrong hands; a dangerous cloak". Emma threw her head back as she thought of the many villains of the past, that could have taken the cloak. "Where did you last see it?" David asked. "No need to worry with all of that, I think I know who has it, all I ask is you go get it" Mr Gold huffed. "Who has your cloak Gold?" Emma questioned. A glimmer appeared in Mr Gold's eye, it matched the colour of his gold tooth, "The Pirate of course, he was snooping around this morning making out he was looking for a new telescope, he obviously took it when my back was turned". "Hook? What would he want with a magical cloak?" Emma blurted out sitting up straight, "If I knew that I would have just turned up on his ship to get it now wouldn't I?" Mr Gold started to get impatient. "Look, I'll go check Hook's ship, in the meantime, go back to your shop and await my return" David informed. Emma was thankful her father had spared her the job of questioning Hook. Mr Gold nodded and hobbled out onto the street. David slung his jacket on and headed to the docks leaving Emma behind.

"Can I have some breakfast now?" a voice echoed from the other side of the room. "Will" Emma piped up, strolling over to the cell, "Didn't break into the library again did you?" she chuckled to herself. "No, well yeah I did but it wasn't my fault, I heard a weird noise, I was gonna offer my assistance" he stammered. "Sure you were" Emma rolled her eyes, passing the young man a glass of water through the bars. "You can eat when David gets back", "That'll be ages that will, come on i'm starving to death in here" Will pleaded. "If you didn't break into the library you wouldn't be here, you could have been at home stuffing your face" Emma said. As she turned around she opened a cupboard door and retrieved a sandwich. Will jumped up and stood staring at the grilled cheese. Emma pulled the cling film from around the bread and raised the sandwich to her mouth. "No, come on Emma please, I thought you were different" Will begged with desperation in his voice. Emma cackled and then passed over the sandwich. "Aw cheers" he cried excitedly, biting deep into the thick fluffy bread, somehow managing to get cheese smothered up his cheeks. A short while later Emma's mobile buzzed on the desk, as she peeked at the caller ID she unintentionally smiled. "That lover boy is it?" Will smirked, cheese still up his face. Emma shot him a wry look and he immediately shut up. "Regina hi" Emma answered the call. "Are you home?" Regina asked from the other side of the line, "No i'm at the station, is something wrong?", "No nothing's wrong, it's just Henry was wondering if you wanted to come round for dinner tonight, I need to know before I start preparing" Regina said, she sounded a little offput. "Um, sure if that's what the kid wants, what time do you want me" she froze, "To come round, what time do you want me to come round?" she rushed her heart beating a little faster, "seven will do just fine Ms Swan, goodbye" "Bye" Emma whispered and then hung up. "What time do you want me?" Will mimicked, "Shut up Will" Emma growled slamming herself down into her chair.
Jeans? Trousers? Maybe a dress? Emma panicked as she flicked through the clothes in her closet. She nervously paced the room hoping the right idea would pop into her head, by now it was already six thirty, if she was going to go she'd have to act fast. Suddenly she came to a stand still and fished out a pair of black tights and a stylish black dress that she had bought but never worn, in fact the tag was still fastened to it with a price sticker. As she smoothed out the slight creases around her waist she puffed out her cheeks and dared to look in the mirror. "Oh" she mouthed surprised. Turning on her heel she peeked at the back of the dress. "Not bad Swan" she complimented herself. "Emma" Mary Margaret gasped as she stuck her head round the door. "Mom? What?" Emma asked jumping at the interruptance. "You look beautiful, do you have a date?", "A date? no, I'm having dinner with Henry" she tried to play it cool. "Henry? Then what's with the dress?". Emma felt a shiver down her spine as she began to lie "It's getting too small, I just want to get my money's worth before I bin it". Mary Margaret smiled and nodded towards her daughter, not believing a word she had said. Emma ran her fingers through her blonde locks and took one last look at herself before pulling on her jacket and leaving for Regina's.
When she pulled up outside number 108, Emma needed a moment to compose herself, for some reason she was nervous about eating with Regina, not because she had in fact tried to poison her in the past, but because she really wanted Regina to like her. She had tried so hard to put their past behind them so that they could move ahead as friends. Emma tiptoed down the path careful not to draw attention to herself before she knocked on the door. A shadow appeared in the hallway and the light was switched on. As the figure grew closer Emma took a deep breath and gripped onto the bottle of wine she had brought along. The door shifted and Regina stood before her, her mouth dropped open. "Emma", "Hi" she replied. Regina couldn't help but look Emma over, "Nice dress" she said pushing a lock of hair behind her ear. "Thanks" Emma smiled awkwardly. The two of them paused. "I brought this" Emma nodded down at the bottle in her hand, "Great, great, come in" Regina stammered once again stepping aside to let Emma enter her home. "I was actually about to call you to cancel" Regina voiced. "Oh sorry" Emma put in, now slightly embarrassed. "No it's ok, Henry decided to go to, um, Mr Gold's for dinner. You may as well stay now that you're here". Regina smiled weakly, "Well if you're sure?" Emma asked, "I wouldn't offer if I wasn't sure Ms Swan, come on through". Regina led the way into the kitchen where dinner was slowly progressing. "You like parsley I hope" Regina queried, whilst stirring a thick sauce. "Can't get enough of the stuff" Emma admitted taking in a whiff of the mouthwatering scent. Regina smiled widely and her cheeks formed two small dimples. Emma caught the smile and looked away.

Chapter 4. Regina

"Regina this is delicious" Emma claimed, taking a bite into the perfectly cooked fillet steak. "I'll pass your compliments on to the chef" Regina grinned, popping a piece of potato into her mouth. The two women sat opposite each other with a cinnamon scented stick burning between them. A welcome silence filled the air as they ate, with nothing but the scraping of forks interrupting it. "I can't believe Henry ditched us last minute" Regina spoke, pushing her plate aside, "That is so typical of him" she added. Emma swallowed her last piece of steak and placed down her knife and fork. "I know right" she managed to chip in. Regina sighed, "At least I didn't have to eat on my own tonight", Emma looked Regina in the eye, she was going to bring up Robin weather she liked it or not. "Do you miss him?" Emma asked. Regina rested her chin on her fist, "Sometimes, not as much now but I do miss having company, I mean what with Henry being out most of the day, I'm alone here". Emma sympathised and actually felt her smile drop into a frown hearing Regina's words. "Regina, you don't have to be alone", "I haven't much say in the matter Ms Swan", "You will find somebody", "Thanks but the last thing I need right now is having my heart broken again". Emma sighed. "What happened with Hook? You can tell me" Regina confided. Emma hesitated but said "It felt like it was over even though it wasn't, I wasn't excited anymore it became, boring". Regina's eyes looked sad, she knew the feeling all too well, after Marian had come back into Robin's life. "Enough about men" Regina sounded suddenly, "lets get this bottle open" she added grabbing a corkscrew from the drawer behind her. "I'll get some glasses" Emma smiled standing and turning to the many cupboards. "Top left" Regina murmured after watching Emma open the wrong doors. "I knew that" Emma lied reaching down two glasses. "Sure you did" Regina tutted almost laughing to herself.

As Emma spoke, telling a story about her days before storybrooke, Regina found herself lost in a trance. Emma's eyes sparkled as she laughed, her hands floating around as she gestured. 'She has such nice eyes' Regina's subconscious spoke in her mind. As Emma's lashes fell through the air when she blinked, Regina smiled agreeing with the thought sweeping through her mind, she carried on staring at the blonde woman, noticing parts of her that she hadn't picked up on before, such as the tiny wrinkles that appeared either side of her eyes when she smiled and how she used her index finger to push back a lock of hair that had fallen into her face. "Are you even listening to me?" Emma asked, waving her hand in front of Regina's face. Regina blinked rapidly and zoned back in on the conversation. "What, yes of course I am" Regina lied, not remembering a word of what Emma had said. Promptly after footsteps echoed in the hallway. Regina jumped and widened her eyes in shock, Henry was home early. "Why is Emma's car here?" Henry asked as he hung up his coat, when he arrived in the room he noticed his birth mother perched on a stool. "Mom, what are you doing here?" He beamed. Emma turned to her son, he had definitely grown a lot over the past year. "Emma was just leaving" Regina remarked, a slight panic taking over. "I was?" Emma asked confused, Regina stared right through her, "I mean, yeah I was" Emma added climbing to her feet. Henry didn't look convinced, he had that suspicious look in his eye. "Okay" he said slowly, shrugging his shoulders. "I'll see you to the door" Regina piped, leading Emma to the front door. "Thanks for an- unexpected evening" Emma struggled to find the right words to say. Regina smiled weakly, "My pleasure, the food would have just, gone to waste otherwise" she pointed out, resting against the doorframe. The moon once again lit up Emma's face and Regina's mind was cast back to the night she watched her sleep. "We should do this again sometime" Emma suggested, a silvery mist escaping from inside her as her warm words sailed through the chilly air. Regina smirked, "Sure next time Henry abandons me I'll give you a call". Emma grinned and nodded before awkwardly shrugging her shoulders. "Well see you round" Regina said quietly, stepping forward, slightly invading Emma's personal space. She hesitated to hug her former enemy and immediately regretted making such a bold move. Emma ducked back and held out her hand, which Regina gently gripped and shook. "Goodnight Ms Swan" the pale brunette huffed now standing up straight, "Goodnight Regina".
Regina watched from afar as Emma and her bug drifted out of sight. "So what was that all about?" Henry cheekily asked, swinging on the staircase banister. "What?" Regina asked not expecting her son to have witnessed the moment the two had, or had not shared on the doorstep. Henry beamed and tugged on his shoe laces, kicking his trainers aside. "Why was my Mom here?" he asked, looking up at Regina as he began removing his socks. Regina lowered her voice, "Sheriff stuff, and apparently she likes parsley sauce". Henry squinted his eyes but asked no more questions. Instead he said goodnight and went to bed.
Mere minutes passed before Regina began to clear up. The warm water soothed her cold hands as she washed the dishes, scrubbing at the pots and pans. As she grabbed the two empty wine glasses she noticed a lipstick stain. Emma's lip print clearly visible along the rim. She exhaled sadly as her sole breathing echoed around the empty room. She then threw the glass into the murky water and scrubbed the red stain off. A golden shimmer appeared at the window, a figure stood looking inside. Regina pursed her lips and opened the blinds. "What do you want?" she asked grumpily. "Rude" Tinkerbell pointed out, "But alas, I've come to talk to you about true love" the fairy said excitedly. "No, I don't want to hear it, I've had enough of your false soulmate claims, now go away or I'll hit you with this fly swatter" Regina threatened. Tinkerbell's eyes widened but the tiny fairy stayed put. "Regina, don't you want to know if you can love again? Because you can, it came to me earlier tonight, I can show you", "No Tinkerbell, now leave me alone" Regina shouted. She quickly turned to the hallway, Henry hadn't heard or if he had, he had not come to investigate. Tinkerbell frowned and tucked her wand into her pocket. "All you have to do is call me if you change your mind" and with that she flew off into the distance.
The next morning Regina woke early and headed to Granny's for breakfast. She ordered a stack of pancakes and a strong coffee before sitting in her usual seat. "Smile love, it might never happen" an Irish accent slurred into her ear. "It already has" Regina muttered before realising who it was she was talking to. "Hook, you've been drinking already?" she scoffed, smothering the syrup over her pancake. "No" he announced "but I had my fair share of rum last night", "Clearly" she mumbled taking her first bite. "Have you seen Emma lately?" he asked. "No why would I?" Regina blurted out loudly. Hook puffed his cheeks out. "Swan has been ignoring my calls", "That's no surprise" Regina rolled her eyes. "Do you know something I don't Madame Mayor?" Hook asked suspiciously. Regina shook her head, "If you spent less time worrying about your precious boat and invested more time into Emma, then perhaps she wouldn't have left you" Regina declared deserting her bar stool and marching out of the diner. Hook screwed up his fist but let it drop, "It's not a bloody boat, she's a ship" he snarled before sliding Regina's breakfast in front of himself and taking a bite.
Regina marched across the troll bridge and mingled amongst the trees, where to her surprise an arrow whizzed by, missing her head by centimeters. She threw a glowering look in the direction the arrow had been shot. A woman with short dark hair appeared from behind a bush. "Really? I thought we were passed all that" Regina spat. "Sorry, I really wasn't aiming for you" Mary Margaret apologised. Regina chose not to get angry, instead she sat down on a tree stump. Mary Margaret cocked her head to the side, "Something wrong?" she asked, slowly walking towards her. "No, well yes" she admitted, rubbing her forehead. "You wanna talk about it?" Mary Margaret pushed. Regina shrugged her shoulders. "Tinkerbell came to see me last night", "Something to do with Robin Hood?", "No worse, she says I have a new soulmate", "Really? Who?" Mary Margaret cooed. "I don't know, I threatened her with a fly swatter before she could say another word", "Oh Regina, there's no need to be afraid, love is a wonderful thing". Regina interrupted "Yes wonderful, until you're left heartbroken", "You don't know that's going to happen, why don't you give it a go? This new love could be the best thing to happen to you, third time lucky?". "Henry is the best thing to happen to me, I don't need anyone else in my life". Mary Margaret forced her arrow out of the neighbouring tree. "Tell you what Regina, why don't you just find out who it is and then decide if he's worth it or not?". Regina groaned but nodded, weakly smiling up at Mary Margaret. "Ok, but if it goes pear shaped i'm holding you responsible" she warned.

Chapter 5. Emma

Back home after a tiring day posting 'Keep safe this Halloween' leaflets through people's doors, Emma was glad to finally rest her feet. David arrived home not long after she had. "Find out anything about that cloak?" Emma asked as she watched her father pick Neal up out of his pram. "Nope, Hook was clean, well he wasn't clean but he didn't have any stolen objects". Emma chuckled. "Your mother and I were thinking about taking a hike tomorrow morning, could you look after Neal for us? I asked Belle but she already has plans". "Sure" Emma yawned, reaching out for her baby brother. She peeked down on his chubby face and let him latch onto her finger with his tiny hand. "I've just left Regina in the woods" Mary Margaret told as she stumbled through the door. "And?" David asked. "She was kind of upset, but I have a feeling she's going to be ok, if not, I better find a place to hide" she joked. Emma took Neal over to his crib and lay him down. "I'm going in the bath" She said stretching. "You're not going to eat with us first?" Mary Margaret asked, a hint of disappointment in her voice. Emma shook her head and traipsed upstairs. David and Mary Margaret looked at one another and shrugged before heading into the kitchen together to prepare their dinner.
Emma placed her toe under the tap and just stared helplessly as countless water droplets dripped onto her flesh. "You're going to get wrinkly in there" a cheery voice giggled. "What the heck?" Emma called out covering up her bare body, causing water to splash onto the floor as she moved. "Sorry, I'll look away" the voice said. Emma rolled her eyes as she caught a glimpse of a golden blob out of the corner of her eye. "What do you want Tinkerbell? Couldn't this have waited until later?" Emma gasped, desperately trying to hide her body from the pixie at the window. "If I waited until you got out of this bath it would be too late. I'll wait in your room, get dressed we have to talk" Tinkerbell chuckled. Emma rolled her eyes and then stepped out of the bath, wrapping herself in a warm fluffy towel before entering her bedroom. Tinkerbell lay across the bed. "Comfortable?" Emma asked closing the door behind her. "Yes" Tinkerbell answered, "But I came here to talk about your soulmate", "Woah, hey look sister, I've just dumped Hook", "I know, I'm a pixie" Tinkerbell said pointing her wand at Emma. "Where's this going Tink? I kinda want to go to bed". "You can't go to sleep yet, I've found your new soulmate". Emma peered at Tinkerbell. "But I'm tired! Anyway I thought Hook was my soulmate?", "He was, but now he's not, your heart is elsewhere", "I think i'd know if my heart was 'elsewhere'", "See that's the thing, you DO know, at least your heart knows where it belongs, your brain hasn't clicked on yet. That's why I'm going to lead you there, to your true love" Tinkerbell pounced to her feet excitedly. Emma groaned, "Are you for real?". The fairy nodded, "All you have to do is" she spoke, lifting her hand, revealing a fistfull of glitter, she then blew the sparkling dust into the air and it formed a route leading across the street, "Is just follow the glitter, and there your true love will be waiting". Emma now grew curious as to who could be awaiting her arrival, she suspiciously eyed Tinkerbell and then nodded. "Ok, but I'm not going in this towel" she mentioned grabbing her jeans off a hanger and redressing. "If you leave now you may get there first" Tinkerbell smiled, and with that she fluttered away leaving Emma to prepare for her mysterious walk to true love.
The gold glitter lingered over the empty road, carrying on further than she could tell. It first led her down the front yard and past Atlantic Twine and Net. Then past Granny's and the animal shelter, straight past the garage and the clock tower. Emma's teeth chattered as the air grew colder, but she didn't turn back, she wanted to learn the identity of this soulmate of hers. After almost twenty minutes of following the glittering dust she arrived at what could only be the final destination; the graveyard. There was nobody around. "Great" Emma moaned "Did my soulmate die from the cold or something?" she asked no one in particular. She sat down on a damp bench and waited for a sign, a person, somebody. Her phone suddenly started to ring, 'Henry calling', "Hey Kid" she said answering her son's call. "How do I cook pizza?" he asked. "You just bung it in the oven, why where's Regina?" Emma asked curiously. "She said she had to go meet someone, I don't know, she was in a weird mood" Henry told. "Oh right" Emma disclosed. After that she saw what looked like another trail of glitter. 'Did I go wrong?' She asked herself. "Kid I gotta go, try not to burn the house down" she then hung up and rose to her feet. Somebody was coming, a movement by the bushes made her nervous. "Well here goes" she whispered, patting her thighs nervously. The figure wasn't as tall as she was expecting, it was also slim, whoever it was, he wasn't some hunky muscle man. Emma's heart began to thud as the person drew closer, she bit her lip and waited. All of a sudden the figure became clearer, it wasn't her true love. It was Regina. Emma stared ahead and waited for her to get closer before speaking. "Regina, what are you doing here?" she asked when the time was right. Regina took her hands out of her pockets. "Blame Tinkerbell" she said frustratedly. "What?" Emma gasped. "I'm supposed to be meeting my true love" she said pushing past to sit on the bench. "Why are you here?" she added looking up into Emma's misty green eyes. "S-same as you" she stammered from the cold. "Great a double date" Regina cried in false excitement. Emma sat next to Regina and waited for the next person to show up.
"How long have you been here?" Regina asked impatiently, "I got here five minutes before you did" Emma said truthfully, beginning to grow tired of waiting. "If this is a no show that fairy better watch out", "Tell me about it" Emma replied. She started twiddling her thumbs, Regina just sat glaring into the distance, her eyes following every potential human arrival. "This is ridiculous" Regina growled, "That fairy obviously hasn't forgiven me for getting her wings taken away" she added balling her fist. "I have actually" a small voice answered. Both Emma and Regina turned round to see Tinkerbell standing behind the bench. "Then where is this soulmate you told of" Regina asked sarcastically. Tinkerbell laughed, "Why, sitting beside you of course" Regina turned to Emma, Emma turned to the empty space to her left and then back again. "Wait, what?" Emma mouthed confused. Regina drew in a sharp breath, "Is this a sick joke?", "Nope, Regina; Emma is your true love, And Emma; Regina is your true love". Both women eyeballed each other. Tinkerbell then disappeared in a poof of smoke. "How is this even possible?" Regina asked as if it was the most ridiculous idea in the world. "You drive me up the wall, you're annoying and you get on my nerves" Regina snapped. "Well thanks but you're not exactly a barrel of laughs yourself" Emma growled. The two women folded their arms and huffed. Emma thought back on her memories with Regina. She thought of the awkward situations, the strange feelings and the lingering looks. Emma observed Regina's face, she could tell she was also thinking around the same lines. Of course there was a possibility that Tinkerbell had spoken true, it wasn't as if enemies couldn't become friends, or even lovers. She hesitated but decided to go with her gut and find out for herself what was really happening between them. Slowly Emma raised her shaking hand from her lap and placed it onto Regina's shoulder. Once again she relived the same feeling, her veins bursted with a tingling sensation, her mouth became completely dry and her heart began to slow. Regina stiffened and gasped as Emma's touch sent her body into a rush of satisfaction. Gradually she turned and glanced at Emma's confused face. At that very moment, their eyes locked and both of them felt a strange and overpowering rush of lust. Emma's heart rebooted itself and slammed continuously into her ribs as she looked deep into Regina's heart. Regina's mouth fell open, she was shocked and looked as though she had been slapped in the face. She never would have guessed that her one true love would turn out to be the savior. "Regina, I-" Emma faltered. Regina interrupted "Don't speak" Regina rushed, realisation swarming in her mind.
The blonde and the brunette continued to try and make sense of the situation. Everything around them seemed to fall away as they focused on each other. Emma's breathing hollowed, she gasped shakily tilting her head slightly. Regina's face changed from shock to tranquil. She instantly wanted to get closer to the blonde. Emma watched nervously as Regina summoned the strength to close in on her, their faces only inches apart. It was then that Emma knew what her heart was longing for. She'd always wanted somebody strong, smart and sexy to share her life with, and Regina was definitely all those things, if not more; as she looked deeply into Regina's eyes, Emma admitted to herself that she'd always found Regina attractive, but she'd never thought of it as a romantic thing, just a woman appreciating how another woman looks, that's normal isn't it? Turns out she may just be her unexpected dream come true. As Emma found herself lost in lust for the brunette, Regina unexpectedly held out her hand and set it gently upon Emma's cheek. Emma longed to know what Regina was thinking, did she feel something for her? Or was she trying to trick her? Were those lengthy stares rooted deeper? The touch to her face made her entire body tremble. Emma gritted her teeth and summoned the strength to find out what could happen between them. She counted to three in her mind and then closed her eyes and guided her lips to Regina's. Suddenly they found themselves locking lips, sharing a kiss that neither of them could have seen coming. A desperate yearning sored through Emma's body, she set her hand on Regina's waist and pushed herself harder into her as she got lost in the moment. The risk paid off, Regina held onto Emma's upper arms and kissed her back with an equal amount of desire. Regina licked Emma's bottom lip and moved on to exploring her mouth, letting her tongue run over each perfectly shaped tooth, their noses rubbing together as they found the perfect position. For a moment the two of them forgot everything and gave over their hearts as they let their imaginations run wild. Both passion and anger seemed to be the overwhelming vibe they gave off, but within seconds it was over and they both let go of one another and gasped for breath. Emma watched Regina's hand retreat and for some reason she thought of Hook. Immediately she felt guilty and even more confused. She jumped to her feet, taking one last look at Regina, who understandably looked somewhat unbalanced. She panicked, How could she do this to Hook? They were only on a break, he still loved her, he didn't deserve this. She took a few steps back, shaking, before running off into the darkness, not speaking a word.

Chapter 6. Regina

Time seemed to disappear. Regina remained seated on the damp bench, alone at the graveyard. She stared aimlessly into the distance and tried to make sense of what had just gone on. She pictured Emma's face so close to hers that her features became a blur, she held her own hand where Emma had placed hers and she conducted the feeling of intense passion she had experienced with the savior. Her hands shook with pure adrenaline, her knees were so weak she almost couldn't stand. She was confused and turned on and angry. 'How could this be?' she asked herself, her voice failing. While her subconscious was screaming like an emotional teenage girl, her heart felt fresh, as if any broken parts had been healed thanks to Emma's embrace. She wanted to be disgusted with herself, she wanted to make Emma pay for this, but she couldn't. She tried to force her anger but instead her heart grew stronger. Emma had fixed her broken heart and broken her ability to hate her. She had ruined everything; again.
Regina lay awake most of the night, unable to sleep or think about anything else, no matter how hard she tried. Henry had passed out in front of the television with his hand in a packet of biscuits, so she needn't have explained where she'd been, not yet, she at least had time to come up with an excuse. It was getting late now and all the excitement and overthinking had worn Regina out. Once she climbed into bed she lay staring at the ceiling in the dark. The swirled pattern made for great focus but she couldn't concentrate on anything besides kissing Emma. She thought about the day she poisoned her apple turnover, she was going to kill Emma, the savior, the woman who ruined her quiet life with her son. Now she was sticking her tongue down her throat and holding her tight. "This is not what I had in mind" she whispered to herself, hoping the fairy was lurking nearby listening. Fortunately her eyes began to flutter and she slipped into a peaceful sleep, escaping from her deafening thoughts for a few hours.
"Mom?" a small voice cooed. Regina turned her head, "Mom, wake up" the voice spoke again. A groan escaped from Regina as she slowly peeled her eyes open. The first thing she saw was Henry's round face above hers. "Henry?" she asked stifling a yawn. "Mom, there's someone on the phone asking for you", "Who is it?" "I don't know" he shrugged climbing off the spacious double bed. Regina stretched and sat up, she threw back the duvet and trotted downstairs. Regina picked up the handset "You have disturbed my beauty sleep" she said forcing her tone to sound more annoyed than she actually felt. "My apologies love" the voice spoke, it was not easily recognised due to the 'change of voice' but Regina knew immediately who she was speaking to. Hook. "What do you want guyliner?" she asked with a bitter taste, now wishing she hadn't bothered leaving her bed to answer his call. "I want to know why the Evil Queen gets to see my girlfriend more than I do". Regina froze, her body broke out into a cold sweat as memories from the night before flooded back to her. "What do you mean?" she panicked. "I saw Emma leaving yours yesterday, and the day before, what are you now; Best friends all of a sudden?". Regina closed her eyes and thanked her lucky stars that he had not mentioned their meeting at the graveyard the previous night. Once she regained power and control of her voice she spat, "Myself and Ms Swan are no more than acquaintances who just so happen to share a son, we were discussing Henry and his academic performance. Also I remember Emma telling me that she had dumped you so, correct me if I am wrong but, I'm sure that means she isn't your girlfriend anymore. So I suggest that you stop following her about like a lovestruck puppy and get a hobby". The line went dead. Suddenly the thought of Emma being with Hook had filled her with a tension she couldn't even explain to herself, all she knew was Emma had gained power over her and she needed to find out what the hell was going on. Regina pulled a face and growled at the handset and then slammed it down. "Henry get a move on, I'm taking you to school early, I have something important to do" she blurted out stomping up the staircase. Henry watched in disbelief as his mom disappeared into her bedroom.
Regina donned a purple panelled dress and threw on a black blazer over the top before having a quick wash and running a brush through her hair. "Ready?" she called to Henry as she retook to the staircase. Henry stood at the front door waiting for her, with his bag on his back. Still weary of his mother's outburst, he swallowed and handed her her car keys.
"Have a nice day" Regina exclaimed, giving Henry a quick peck on the cheek before allowing him out of the car and onto the school grounds. She watched him enter the building and then sped off; ignoring the red light and making straight for Mary Margaret's apartment.

Outside the apartment Regina took a look in her rearview mirror, she scrubbed her finger over her perfectly white teeth, pursed her lips and took a deep breath. The morning sun appeared above, the clouds drifting into the distance. Looking up at the apartment window; she noticed a light was switched on. Somebody was home. "Okay" Regina sighed unbuckling her seatbelt and stepping out of the car. She made the short walk into the hallway and made her way to number three. The green door stood tall and intimidating as it kept Regina waiting outside. She clenched her fist and knocked on the wood, nerves taking over. Seconds later, the very person she had come to confront answered the door. Emma's green eyes locked onto Regina's brown eyes. Her mouth fell open and she stammered before speaking. "ugh, R-Regina hi" she wavered. Regina said nothing and pushed her way inside. "Is there anyone here?" she asked turning to expect the seemingly empty room. "David and Mary Margaret went on a hike this morning, they both took the day off, they're not due back until later tonight" Emma said calmly, pushing her true feelings aside. Regina bit down on her lip and closed her eyes tightly. She stepped forward and took Emma's hand in hers. Using the little strength she had, she directed her cold hand to her chest. Emma stayed silent daring not to question Regina's movements. As her hand came into contact with her old rival, she picked up on the beating of her heart. Regina looked down at her own hand, holding onto the saviors. Regina's heartbeat was fast, it beated rapidly. "How are you doing this to me?" Regina whispered, she sounded like a scared little girl. Emma swallowed and maneuvered her hand so that she was now clutching onto Regina's wrist. She pushed the Mayor's palm over her own chest and let her feel her own wild heart. "The same way you're doing it to me" Emma replied, a longing look bellowing into Regina's eyes. The two women stood staring at each other. "Emma.." Regina mouthed, her voice trapped inside. Emma's smile was languid, and barely made a change to her face. As she drew in closer she felt the savior's shaky breath caress her face. Regina muttered, her bottom lip quivering as her eyes stared deeply into Emma's. Emma tilted her head to the right and touched Regina's nose with her own. Opening her mouth slightly she took one last frightful breath before placing her lips upon Regina's. The warmth of her pink tongue filled her mouth and caused a glowering desire to coarse through her body, taking root in the pit of her stomach. Without warning Emma then pulled away. "No" she declared, "No, no" she repeated storming into the kitchen. Now even more confused than before she arrived, Regina left the apartment without another word and slowly sauntered through the corridor. Almost instantly the sound of footsteps emerged, growing faster until she was spun around to the way she had walked away from. Before she knew it, Emma threw herself into her, once again their lips positioned on top of one another. The blondes fingers ran wildly through Regina's short dark hair. Regina responded by manhandling Emma's body, letting her hands explore the saviors curves. Together the two women stumbled back into the apartment, neither letting go of the other as they found themselves falling onto the bottom of the staircase. The cold steel bit at Regina's skin as her silky legs rested on the metal step. Emma slid her hands over Regina's shoulders, forcing her blazer to fall to her elbows and then skim to the floor like a feather. "Emma" Regina moaned between kisses, she could barely catch her breath through the excitement and intimacy. Emma's hair fell into Regina's face as she bit down on her lip, sending sparks down her body. The only thing visible through the lashings of golden blonde hair were Emma's piercing green eyes. In one swift move Regina gathered all of her strength and stood up, holding Emma in her arms. Carefully she climbed the staircase and took Emma into her bedroom.
The pink wallpaper matched the patches on Emma's cheeks. As Regina dropped Emma gently onto the bed, she proceeded to undo the many tiny buttons holding her shirt together. Emma closed her eyes and let Regina continue to strip her down to her bra and cute blue boy shorts. Regina threw Emma's jeans onto the floor and crawled down closer to her almost naked body. Emma extended her arms and started to pull on the zip of Regina's dress. As the zip hurried down her spine, the purple dress ceased to a useless piece of fabric and found it's fate on the floor entwined with Emma's discarded clothing. Outside the window, birds chirped and cars drove by, oblivious to what was happening in the bedroom above the street.

Chapter 7. Emma

Emma's body began to pulsate as she watched Regina lingering above in her matching black lace underwear. Her bra straps slid over her shoulders and Emma couldn't help but run her fingers over them before she unfastened the material at the back. Regina seductively raised an eyebrow and began to trail kisses down Emma's neck, then onto her chest. Emma clenched her eyes shut and focused on Regina's touch, her hands pulling at her shorts, leaving her completely naked from the waist down. Without hesitating Emma pulled down Regina's black thong and stared up at her beautiful toned body. Regina smirked and crawled down to Emma's crotch, gliding her fingers over her flesh. Emma's mouth fell open and she winced a little, both in pleasure and pain as their two bodies became one. Over and over again, Regina eased her fingers in and out picking up a pace that trapped Emma in a pure form of desire. When Regina positioned herself directly on top of her, the most delicious vibes amassed in their bodies, running through their veins as they rubbed together rhythmically, their legs caressing beneath the sheets. Regina threw her head forward, kissing Emma harder, gripping her shoulders tightly while the savior dragged her nails down her back. Emma then lifted her hips and moaned loudly with fulfilment as her body begged for release. "Regina.." she cried, flinching out of control as she reached her climax. Regina bit down hard onto Emma's lip, drawing blood before licking it away. "I prefer Your Majesty" She teased, making Emma suffer. Emma's eyes rolled to the back of her head as the intensity of her climax increased, "My Majesty" she moaned. Suddenly her body went numb, Regina screamed out Emma's name as her body lost its dominance, a not so subtle cramp unleashing itself between her thighs. Emma felt herself explode, her whole body becoming weak and fatigued. Regina's elbows gave way and she fell into Emma, closing her eyes and focusing on the sweet sensation leaving her body. Their breathing slowing slightly as their hearts returned to their own steady beats.
Two hours had passed since Regina turned up on the doorstep. Both women had fallen asleep next to one another, rebuilding their strength. Emma woke first, a gentle smile creeped up her face as she watched Regina soundly sleeping next to her, their legs still entwined beneath the cotton sheets. Why had it taken them so long to find this haven? They had been too busy trying to kill each other, when deep inside all they needed to do was find that special connection. Regina's breathing became louder as she slowly woke from her sleep. Her long dark lashes flickered as she regained consciousness. "Hi" Emma whimpered nervously, reminding Regina of the very first time they met. Regina smiled as she stretched, her breast appearing over the reseeding blanket. "Ms Swan" she smirked, staring up into Emma's glittering eyes. "You're beautiful" Emma exclaimed, smoothing Regina's cheek. Regina smiled again and ran her tongue over her lips. "Ms Swan I do believe you need to brush your hair". Emma inhaled and lay her head on Regina's chest, "That was-" she began. Regina grinned, "It was, wasn't it?".
Neal was still sleeping in his crib when Emma returned to the living room. Regina paced herself on the stairs and exclaimed "ah there it is" as she caught sight of her blazer. "So what now?" Emma asked, watching Regina slip her arms inside her blazer. "Now, I leave here for Granny's, because believe it or not I've worked up quite an appetite". Emma sauntered over to Regina and wrapped her arms around her waist. "Or you could stay here and I could cook for you?" Emma suggested hopefully. Regina smiled. "And risk someone popping round?", "My mom and dad are out until at least six, it's only 11 now, we have plenty of time". Regina glanced at the clock and nodded, "Ok" she agreed, slumping down on the sofa. Emma rolled her sleeves up and wandered into the kitchen.
"Pasta? I thought you were cooking" Regina scoffed when Emma returned with two bowls of steaming carbohydrates. Emma raised an eyebrow, "Well it was pasta or cereal, which would you prefer?", "I think i'd prefer Granny's lasagna". Emma forced the bowl away from Regina, "Well if you don't want it-", "I didn't say I didn't want it". Regina reached out for the black bowl and picked at the food with a fork. After they finished eating Emma began to giggle. "What's so funny?" Regina asked, "This. It's just... crazy". "Yes I must admit I never saw this coming". Emma's phone began to ring, interrupting their conversation. "Hook?" Regina asked, sneaking a peek at the caller ID. "No, It's Gold" Emma sighed. "Gold hi, what can I do for you today?" Emma answered the call, "Ok- well I'm kind of busy at the moment- Regina? No I haven't seen her- What right now?- Alright fine, I'll give her a call and meet you there- bye" Emma threw her head back. "What did he want?", "He wants us to meet him at the shop because there's apparently something we have to see, it sounded pretty urgent". Regina pulled herself up onto her feet, discarding her bowl. "Then what are we waiting for?". Emma slipped her boots on over her odd, inside out socks. Regina picked Neal up from in his crib and placed him in the pram. "You ok with him?" Emma asked, watching her strap the tiny baby in place. "Ms Swan, you forget that I raised Henry by myself until you showed up ten years later", Emma frowned, "I'm here now" she mumbled taking control of the pram, "Sorry, I don't know why I said that" Regina gasped. Emma shrugged and forgave her, thinking no more of it.
Storybrooke took a break from the hard work, the stench of lasagna drifted through the vents at Granny's as lunch hour came into full swing. Emma walked on ahead, making her way to Mr Gold's pawn shop whilst Regina kept a safe distance, arriving a minute later. "Gold, Ms Swan" Regina greeted as she swept in, "What do you want from me today?". Mr Gold held his hand over what looked to be a doll's house. "That's very pretty but I'm a little too old to be playing with dolls" Regina moaned. "It's not a toy Regina, it's an important and potentially dangerous magical object" he hissed. "Everything is always a potentially dangerous magical object when it comes to you" Regina muttered, rolling her eyes. Mr Gold stopped himself from being rude and instead he pulled the house apart making it split down the middle, revealing the many rooms and halls. "Did Barbie win the lottery?" Emma snuffled at the grand interior. "This house is a replica of Zelena's new, shall we say; hideout". Regina's face crumpled up, "What does she have to do with anything?". Mr Gold smirked, "Your sister is up to something, I don't know what it is yet but I have a feeling it has something to do with the disappearance of my cloak". "What that old raggedy brown thing? I would have thought green may have been more her colour" Regina put in. "Regina shut up" Mr Gold became impatient. "Little does anyone know but that cloak is enchanted with one of the the darkest forms of magic; invisibility. And with invisibility and a portal the witch will be able to return to storybrooke or in fact, any other realm, undetected". "What can we do to make sure this doesn't happen?" Emma asked fearfully. Regina folded her arms and grew serious. Mr Gold nodded, "I want you to get friendly with the mansion, find any secret doors, rooms, anything that could hold information on what Zelena is up to. But you must hurry, the spell will only last while she is out of the building and I fear she may return home soon". Emma looked at Regina confused but Regina knew what to do. She grabbed the tiny replica house and walked out of the shop. Emma followed behind with the pram. "Are you gonna tell me what's going on or are you going to make me guess?" Emma croaked, a cold wind taking her by surprise. "Not here, we need to get to my vault" Regina warned, checking the road for passing cars. The two women and the baby crossed the street and headed for the graveyard.
"How am I supposed to get a pram down those steps?" Emma asked frustratedly. Regina rolled her eyes and lifted her hands. A white source of light emitted from her palms and swirled around the pram, lifting it into the air, carrying itself down the steep concrete steps. Regina held out her hand, "After you Ms Swan". Emma took to the steps and walked into the all too familiar vault, an uneasy sensation forming in her gut, the only time she ever came down here was when something bad was happening. Regina pushed past and pulled open a draw. Inside it, sat a tray full of empty potion bottles. Regina took hold of one, and pulled the cork from the top. She then flicked the glass bottle and it started to fill with a frothy pink liquid. As Emma watched the liquid rise Regina sneakily plucked a single hair from Emma's head. "Ouch" Emma gasped, throwing her hand to her head to sooth herself. Regina didn't apologise, instead she dropped the hair into the potion and held it out to Emma. "Drink it" she said flatly. "Seriously? What even is that?", "It's a shrinking potion", "Like Alice in Wonderland?", "Something like that. Now here's what you've got to do, drink the potion, you'll become small enough to fit inside the house, go inside, check out as many rooms as you can, see if there's anything harmful lying around, Gold's cloak may be there, and God knows what else, should she come back before you leave, or for some reason you need to get out, I'll whip you out of there, but there would be no going back in once you've left". Emma looked back at Neal, "You'll keep an eye on him?" she asked, "Yes, now hurry we don't know how much time we have, by the way, it may look like a tasty milkshake but strawberries play no part in this drink" Regina warned. Emma raised the bottle to her lips and swallowed its contents in one go. Regina was right, it wasn't anything like strawberry milkshake, it tasted more like a bitter perfume. Suddenly Emma felt a pain shoot down her spine as she started to shrink. In seconds she was no bigger than a pen lid. Regina knelt down and picked up the pocket sized savior and placed her in front of the tiny door. "Be careful" Regina pleaded. Emma nodded and reached out for the door handle.
The wooden floorboards beneath her boots creaked as she stepped into the grand hallway. A crystal chandelier lingered down from the ceiling, a giant portrait of a flying monkey hung on the dark red wall and a busy patterned rug lay at the foot of the staircase. To the left was an oak door. Emma pushed it with the palm of her hand and it revealed a small library. Four tall shelves packed with books stared threateningly at her. "There may be a secret passage in here somewhere" Regina said quietly, watching Emma's every move. Emma crept up to the first shelf and started to pull out books. By time she got to the third shelf she came across a book that seemed to be glued into the shelf. "Try pushing it" Regina suggested. Emma extended her arm and gently pushed the spine of the hard covered copy of "Clues to the Curse". With that the shelf began to turn, taking Emma into another room. Unlike the library, this room was more of a dungeon. Two black leather armchairs sat side by side, with nothing other than a writer's desk for company. Emma's breath shook as she stepped closer to the desk, lifting up the lid. "What's that?" Regina asked. "I think it's a mirror" Emma replied "Only my reflection isn't there, It just shows what's behind me" she added, picking it up by the chipped metal handle. Carved on the back was the letter Z. "An Initial?" Emma asked, "Zelena" Regina replied, "Keep looking". Emma searched the desk drawer and rummaged through Zelena's belongings. All together she found the compact mirror, an empty cardboard box of some kind, a pacifier, a sheet of blank paper and a green quill. "I'm gonna go check another room" Emma spoke, closing the desk lid. She returned to the library and walked back into the hallway.
Upstairs Emma came across what looked to be the main bedroom; Canopy bed, velvet drapes, huge wardrobe, dressing table and an enormous mirror. Near the window was another door, behind it, a children's nursery. The room was painted white, everything smelt fresh and new. A moses basket hovered above the ground by itself, stuffed animals lined a shelf and a rocking horse sat in the corner. As Emma looked around a creaking sound came from behind. The rocking horse began to move and breathed out a deep dark gray smoke. "Regina" Emma called out, running away from the smoke. Regina immediately cast a spell over the savior, her protective powers placed Emma in a bubble and floated her out into open air. Within seconds she was back in the vault, full size. "What the hell was that?" Emma shouted, panting for breath. "A deadly gas, Zelena obviously cast a spell that will kill anyone, besides herself from entering that room" she huffed, glad to see Emma make it out alive.

Chapter 8. Regina

Back at Mr Gold's shop Regina and Emma told of everything they saw in the tiny house. "You're lucky Regina was able to get you out, not many people encounter such a strong dose of carbon monoxide and live to tell the tale" Mr Gold said to Emma. Emma looked to Regina and back again. "I don't understand though, how can anything I saw in there confirm that she's up to something, for all we know she could just be trying to protect her unborn kid?", "That may be true, but this is Zelena we are talking about, you know they don't call her The Wicked Witch of the West for nothing deary" Mr Gold spoke stroking his chin. "Was there anything odd in there? Something not normal?" Mr Gold asked. Emma suddenly remembered the absence of her reflection. "The mirror, It didn't show my reflection" Emma spoke up. Regina froze as a sudden realization struck her, "That's because it wasn't a mirror" she whispered. Mr Gold interrupted, "It seems our wicked friend has an ally in another realm".
At three thirty Henry returned home from school. Regina was sat at the kitchen table. "Where's my mom?" He asked Regina. "How should I know?" she clucked as her son threw his bag onto the floor. "I just thought she'd be here, she's come round a lot this week" he mentioned. "Yeah, well she loves you" Regina said, "I know she does, it's just, she always seems to leave when I show up lately" Henry shrugged his shoulders. Regina twitched and took a sip of apple cider. She didn't tell him about the new possible threat to Storybrooke, or that she had in fact seen Emma that day. As her name lingered in her thoughts, Regina embraced the memory of the way she and Emma had spent their morning. As she swallowed the last sip of cider, she flinched at the memory and it sent a fresh shower of excitement through her body. On that note the doorbell rang. "I'll get it" Henry said, racing to the front door. "You again?" Henry asked. "Oh nice to see you too kid" Emma said flatly, making her way inside. "What are you doing here?", "Your Uncle wanted to see you so we came round for an apple cider, is Regina home?" she asked with a little too much interest. "Oh right" Henry quipped, "Should my ears be burning?" Regina said sarcastically as she stepped into the hallway. "Regina, Hi" Emma smiled, almost drooling at the sight of Regina's long slender legs, disappearing under her dress. "Ms Swan" Regina nodded, "To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?", "Neal wouldn't stop crying so I took him out in the pram and ended up near by, I thought it would be nice for him and Henry to spend some time together" she confessed. "Yes, I think that would be nice for them. Plus it'll keep Henry off his gameboy for a while". Emma followed Regina into the kitchen and sat in silence opposite the dazzling brunette, until Henry took Neal into the living room. "Ok so what's the real reason you're here?" Regina asked quietly, raising an eyebrow. "That was the real reason", "Of course it was". Emma's cheeks tinted pink, "Shut up" she whispered hiding her smile behind her hand. Regina huffed, a silent laugh escaping from inside her. "I had a great time this morning" Emma said. Regina's eyes widened and she held a finger to her lips, "Henry is just in there" she hissed nodding towards the living room. Emma bit her lip and giggled. Regina caught Emma's infectious smile and showed her pearly whites. "Yeah, well I didn't know you had that in you" she replied. "There's a lot of things you don't know about me Madame Mayor", "Really? Well I intend to find out what you're hiding very soon Ms Swan" Regina flirted.
Emma left at six o'clock, David and Mary Margaret were due back at any moment and would probably want to see their baby. Henry wanted to watch a film and instead of finishing off paperwork like she usually did, Regina joined her son on the couch and sat through two and a half hours of Pirates Of The Caribbean, or at least she pretended to be paying attention to Captain Jack Sparrow as she sent sultry text messages to Emma. Simultaneously, Regina and Henry's jaws dropped open, Henry's because a character had just been killed; Regina's because Emma suggested round two should take place the next day.
Friday night slinked away and soon it was Saturday morning. Regina had gotten up early and was flicking through her wardrobe for something inappropriately appropriate for her, dare she say; date with Emma. She'd already pulled on countless dresses and thrown them back off, by the time Henry woke up and stumbled into her room; she was standing in a sea of designer labels. "What are you doing?" Henry asked, making his mother jump. "Henry, don't sneak up on me like that. I'm- I'm having a sort out" she lied, continuing her search for something to wear. Regina puffed out her cheeks and checked the time. "Henry you're going to be late" she called to her son glancing at her gold chained watch. "What? Late for what?" he asked confused. "I told Mr Gold you would help out in the shop today", "Oh, i'll go get dressed then" he said with a shrug. Since finding out Mr Gold was his Grandfather; Henry didn't very much mind spending time with him, even if he was the dark one. Just as Henry left the room, Regina called him back. "There's $10 in my purse, get yourself dinner while you're out, I have a meeting so I won't be home to cook" Regina lied again. Henry smiled weakly and then returned to his own bedroom. Regina stepped over the sea of clothes and closed the door. She then searched through her drawers and picked out her best underwear, something she hadn't worn for a long time. An idea then sparked in her mind, she rushed over to her closet and fished out her snap button dress. "This is the one" she mumbled to herself, growing excited. "I'm going, see you later" Henry called from the other side of the bedroom door. "Ok see you later" Regina shouted back as she did up the final button on her dress. Henry then ran down the stairs and out of the house, letting the door slam behind him. A smile crept up Regina's face and she dived onto the bed and grabbed her phone. She opened her text box with Emma, 'Coast is clear' she sent, almost immediately Emma replied, 'On my way'. The brunette then squeaked as she finished getting dressed in front of the mirror, the only thought on her mind being 'The more I put on, the more Emma can take off'. Once she was fully dressed she skipped to the front door and left it open on the latch.
Thirty minutes later Emma arrived, she'd walked over, not risking Henry being near and spotting her car outside his home. Regina was waiting at the bottom of the stairs when Emma walked onto the porch. Regina's heart began to beat faster as Emma's fingers wrapped around the door frame, and then suddenly her heart skipped a beat as she caught a glimpse of the hot blonde. Her long legs were wrapped in a pair of black jeans but what caught her eye was the grey silk shirt. "Ms Swan, is that my shirt?" Regina asked, her eyes baring into Emma's torso. "Yeah, well you told me to enjoy it" she smirked, bolting the front door before walking closer to Regina. Emma wrapped her arms around Regina's waist and squealed as she felt Regina pinch her bottom. Their lips came together in a passionate kiss as if they had never been parted, Only this time Regina felt a different kind of desire clawing at her heartstrings. It were as though she had picked up on Emma's innocence and felt the urge to protect her. As she pulled away, Emma looked confused. "What's wrong?" the blonde asked. "I'm sorry" she started "I'm sorry for ruining your life, for trying to kill you, and your mother, and your father, I'm sorry for putting our son in danger by focusing on ruining other peoples lives instead of giving him the love and attention he deserves" Regina stumbled over her words, tears pricking at her eyes. Emma placed her hand on Regina's cheek and looked lovingly into her eyes. "I know you're sorry Regina, and I forgive you" she admitted. A tear fell from Regina's eye as she nodded; a weight lifted off her chest, but almost immediately, a smile pushed away the salty tears and she was able to hold herself together and resume her kiss. Emma ran her fingers through Regina's hair and bit down on her painted red lips.
Once again Regina cradled Emma in her arms and carried her up the stairs and into her bedroom before dropping her onto the silk sheets. Emma lay on her back looking up at Regina as she climbed on top of her and sat upon her waist. Suddenly Emma pulled herself up and launched herself at Regina, knocking her backwards. "Close your eyes" Emma whispered. Regina obeyed and focused on Emma's every move, every touch and every breath. Thousands of tiny bumps popped up all over her body as a lock of Emma's hair tickled at her skin. Emma placed both hands on Regina's shins and pushed so that her knees bent. She then grabbed hold of the hem of the dress and forced the buttons to pop open revealing Regina's enviable figure. Eventually Emma stopped staring at Regina's body and planted a kiss upon her breast. Regina groaned and flinched as her insides screamed. Her bra became loose as Emma prised open the clasp. Regina then felt a warm, wet sensation as Emma glided her tongue over her breasts, causing her nipples to harden. Regina clawed at the bedsheets, scagging the silk material with her nails. "Emma" she moaned as the savior trailed kisses down her body. Emma then giggled, her breath felt warm beneath her underwear. Regina opened her eyes just in time to see Emma gnaw at her knicker line, lifting the material with her teeth. Her heart began to beat faster as her G-string fell to her ankles. "What do you want my Majesty?" Emma asked seductively, her voice low and husky. "Emma" Regina moaned again, her voice shaking as she gripped tighter onto the silk sheets. Emma raised an eyebrow and lowered her head, her nose rubbing against Regina's crotch as she kissed her inner thighs. As the longing for Emma's touch became more intense, Regina thrusted her hips, her body causading with Emma's mouth. The room filled with Regina's screams of ecstasy as Emma worked her magic. A trickle of wetness raced down her leg as she grew nearer to her climax, but before she let her body succumb, she ripped Emma's shirt over her head and began unbuttoning her jeans. Emma shifted her body so that Regina was able to strip her down to her innocence. With one hand skimming Emma's torso, massaging her breast, Regina used the other to slap Emma's bare flesh, leaving a pink handprint on her bum. Emma threw her head back as the stinging sensation caused an uproar inside of her, she screamed and groaned louder as Regina's touch became more vigorous. Rocking back and forth, their bodies caressing, the bed squeaking and their hearts beating out of control, Emma groaned, but was silenced when Regina kissed her hard, pushing her tongue down her throat.
Emma's back was red raw with scram marks leading up and down her skin. "Sorry" Regina chuckled when she saw the masterpiece she had created on the saviours skin. "Don't be" Emma said, a smile creeping up her face. Both women lay down for a while, just staring up at the ceiling. "So how does Henry seem to you?" Emma asked breaking the awkward silence. "He's ok I think, why is something wrong?", "I don't know he's just been acting different around me lately, quieter". "Why don't you take him out later? I mean it's been awhile since it was just the two of you", "What's that supposed to mean?", "Nothing, it's just, now that Hook's out of the picture-", "What does he have to do with this?" Emma snapped, "Well, There was a time when Henry was the only man in your life, maybe he feels left out", "But Hook and I, we're over", "But you haven't told Henry that yet" Regina explained. Emma sighed, "Yeah, i'll tell him in the morning, but for now I need a shower", "Second door on the left" Regina whimpered sitting up. Emma clambered off the bed and found her way to the bathroom.

Chapter 9. Emma

The bathroom was full to the brim with steam by time Emma got out of the shower. The overwhelming aroma of vanilla and apple shower gel pulsated from her body as she dried and pulled her shirt back over her head. Regina was no longer in the bedroom so leaving the rest of her clothes on the floor, Emma went to find her, with her bum cheeks on show. "Regina?" She called as she arrived in the main hallway downstairs. A clattering sound surfaced from the kitchen. When Emma went to expect the sound she found Regina standing at the table, fully naked besides a white apron limping hanging from her body, dishing up a bowl of pasta. "I was going to bring this up to you", "I didn't have you down as an eat away from the table kind of girl" Emma joked. Regina smirked, "And I didn't have you marked as a screamer, you never fail to surprise me Ms Swan". Emma blushed, "Likewise" she whimpered, dimples forming on her cheeks as she smiled.
The saviour and the not so evil Queen returned to the bedroom and climbed into the bed. As Emma tucked into her bowl she noticed Regina was empty handed, "Are you not having any?" she asked. "No, I'm not hungry but you need to keep your strength up Ms Swan", "I do?" Emma asked excitedly. Regina took the fork from the bowl and stabbed at a piece of pasta. "Open" she nodded to Emma's mouth as she raised the fork. Emma took the pasta from the fork, allowing Regina to feed her. After her second mouthful of steaming carbs, Emma knocked the fork out of Regina's hand and pecked her on the lips playfully. She felt Regina smile beneath her lips and wrapped her arm around her waist. "That pasta is good stuff" Emma said pushing Regina onto her back. Regina giggled, grinning from ear to ear. Before they had a chance to say another word a rattling noise submerged from downstairs. Both women froze and then sat bolt upright covering themselves with the bed sheets. "Mom?" a voice called from outside. "Shit" Emma cursed jumping out of bed. Regina panicked and put her dress back on, fumbling with the buttons. The noise from the front door disappeared. As Emma fastened her jeans Regina opened the bedroom door and listened out for her son. Just as they thought the coast was clear the back door slammed shut. "Mom, are you in?" Henry called. "Regina" Emma whispered loudly. "Climb out the window", "I'm not Grahame" Emma hissed. "Do you want our son to find you in my bedroom?" Regina asked. Emma hesitated but opened the window, she quickly gave Regina one last kiss. Footsteps appeared at the top of the staircase. "Mom, are you in there?" Henry called again. "Go" Regina insisted as the footsteps grew closer. Quickly Emma slid through the window and climbed down the side of the house. Just as she reached the ground she ran across the garden and out onto the street.
"Where have you been all morning?" Mary Margaret asked the second Emma came in through the door. "Mom, chill, I'm a grown woman" she disclosed flopping onto the sofa. "Have you been running?", "No" Emma lied, trying to discreetly catch her breath. "You're up to something" Mary Margaret jibed, poking her daughter in the arm, "No I'm not", "Yes you are, you've met someone haven't you?" Mary Margaret asked, watching for tell tale signs on Emma's face. Emma couldn't help but smile. "You have" Mary Margaret cried excitedly, "Come on, tell me all about him", "Mom no" Emma squirmed, "You can tell me Emma, I'm your mother", "Alright fine, there is... someone, but i'm not saying anything else" she vowed. Mary Margaret smiled smugly. "Pay up" she called out. Emma turned to see David strolling into the room. "Dad, woah you two, did you really put a bet on me?" Emma asked shocked. Mary Margaret held out her hand and took $5 from her husband, "Yep, and I won" she answered. Emma shook her head, "Unbelieveable". Before long Emma's phone began to ring. "Henry, alright?" She asked, swiping the screen, worry creeping into her voice, "No, i'm not doing anything, meet you at Granny's? Ok, I'm on my way" she hung up. "Gotta go, my kid needs me" Emma said glad to be getting away from her parents. "See you later" Mary Margaret joked.
"Cocoa?" Ruby called out to Emma as she let herself in to the bustling cafe. "Two please, Henry's on his way" she said, sitting at a booth. Minutes later Henry arrived, and he didn't look too happy. "Kid what's up?" Emma asked as Henry slumped down opposite her. "I think my mom's got a new boyfriend" he huffed. Emma's heart stopped beating. "What, what makes you say that?". Henry paused as Ruby came to the table with their cocoa's topped with cinnamon. "Thanks Ruby" Emma said handing her the correct money. "Well she's up to something, she's been acting weird, smiling at her phone and spending longer to get ready, she doesn't think I notice these things but I do, also there were two bowls of pasta in her bedroom; she told me she was home alone" "Well would that necessarily be a bad thing, if Regina found happiness with someone?" Emma asked, interested in her son's answer "Sure, I love it when she's happy, I just don't want her to have her heart broken again" Henry mumbled, his eyes saddened. Emma felt her stomach flip over, "Henry, Regina's a strong woman", Henry interrupted "But what if she does get hurt? Will you help me be there for her? You don't have to do anything, I'll do the hard work, I'll warn him off before he gets the chance to hurt her". Henry's words tugged on Emma's heart strings. "I'll keep an eye on her, I promise" she sighed, feeling bad about letting her son worry. "I have to tell you something" Emma announced, Henry's ears pricked up, "Hook and me, we, we're not together anymore", "Why? What did he do? Did he break your heart?" Henry asked scared that his other mom was suffering from a broken heart, "No, he didn't do anything wrong, if anything I may have broken his, but, it just wasn't working between us" Emma told truthfully. Henry smiled weakly, "Now drink your cocoa it's getting cold" Emma added picking hers up. Henry gripped onto his, they clinked their mugs together and sipped, both ending up with a creamy mustache.
Emma lay in bed that night thinking about what Henry had said about Regina. Was she really acting that way? Was it on her behalf? She grabbed her phone, the bright screen blinding her as she unlocked it. It was just gone midnight, she hesitated at first but sent a text to Regina. 'Are you awake?'. A minute later she received a reply. 'I am now'. Emma pulled a face at the text, 'Sorry didn't mean to wake you, but I have to see you'. 'Emma, it's the middle of the night, can't it wait?', 'It's to do with Henry', 'Come round, I'll meet you outside'.
Emma switched off the engine and stepped out of the car, true to her words Regina appeared on the porch, made her way over to the car and got in. "Henry thinks you have a boyfriend that's going to break your heart, he said he's going to do everything he can to find out who it is. He wants to try and warn him away before you get too close and get your heartbroken" Emma spoke clearly. Regina placed her hand on her heart, "Henry said that?". Emma nodded, "He really wants you to be happy but he's afraid it's going to be like Robin all over again". Regina sighed, "But I don't have a boyfriend". Emma tapped the steering wheel. "I know you don't, if you did you wouldn't be" she paused unable to finish her sentence. "Wouldn't be what?" Regina asked. Emma stayed silent. "is this about, us?" Regina asked confused. "I don't know Regina, you tell me, is there an us? What are we doing?" the conversation suddenly turning, "I don't know Emma, it's a lot to take in", "Maybe we should just stop while we're ahead. Someone is going to get hurt, if not one of us, Henry". Regina looked shocked. "Is that what you want?", "No, but we can't keep this up, I can't be sneaking out of your window every time someone gets close to finding us", "What are you saying?" Regina raised her voice. "I don't want to be your dirty little secret Regina" Emma shouted back. "Emma, I can't" Regina began, "I know you can't, I can't either, and I will not live my life like this, I'm sorry". Regina sat back and puffed out her cheeks. She then turned back but Emma looked away. Regina opened the car door and went back inside the house. When she disappeared from sight, Emma began to cry.

Chapter 10. Regina

Regina leaned against the door frame of Henry's room and watched him sleep. His face lit up by the moonlight, peering in through his window. She watched as his chest raised and fell as he breathed, letting him continue his peaceful dreams.
The next morning she awoke early and decided to go for a walk, she wanted to clear her head and be alone for a while. As she crossed the troll bridge and headed deeper into the woods she bumped into Mary Margaret. "Hello again" Mary Margaret called cheerfully as she spotted Regina in the distance. Regina ignored her and sat back down on that same tree trunk. Mary Margaret came over. "Did you find your soulmate?" she asked. Regina looked up at Snow, she could kind of see the resemblance of Emma's face in hers. "Something like that" Regina muttered, hiding her face. Mary Margaret sat on the ground beside her, she placed her hand on her knee. "It wasn't what you were expecting? Anyone we know?". Regina had wanted Snow White dead for so many years, she had spent so much time plotting revenge, she never imagined she would end up getting dating advice from her. "Does it have something to do with Robin?", "Why does everyone keep mentioning Robin Hood, he's gone, he left me, I got over it", "Then Regina, what's the problem?", "I can't fall in love with- with this new person, there's too much history, too much mess", "Regina you can't let things that happened in the past affect your happiness in the future. How did this potential soulmate make you feel? How do YOU feel". Regina thought for a moment. "When we're together, I forget who I am. I'm no longer the Evil Queen I was branded, I'm just Regina. I feel the weight of the world disappear and all that's left behind is passion and happiness" she paused, "but I don't deserve it. I don't deserve love. True love is my happy ending but I'm a Villain and Villains don't get happy endings". Mary Margaret smiled. "Regina, you need to stop thinking that way. You have to grab happiness with both hands and refuse to let go". "But I'm afraid, Snow, you don't understand, you won't understand", "Try me" Mary Margaret exclaimed. Regina shed a single tear and sighed. "It's-" She began, as she spoke David appeared in the distance. "There you are" He called to Mary Margaret. "We've been looking for you" He said, waving Neal's hand as he grew closer. Regina wiped her eyes and nodded towards David, then she walked back into town.

"Regina" a voice called from behind her, "Regina" he called again. "What?" She asked spinning around to see Mr Gold hurrying towards her. "We've got a problem, I need you to come back to the shop with me, I've called Ms Swan, she's on her way". Regina begrudgingly followed Mr Gold back to the pawnbrokers and waited for Emma. Emma arrived shortly after, "Gold, what's so important?" she asked the second she walked through the door. When she spotted Regina she fell silent. Mr Gold looked from Emma to Regina and back, then stood behind the counter. "The person on the other side of the mirror is in Storybrooke", "How do you know that?" Emma asked, "Belle has been helping out and she found the missing link I needed to find out", "And?" Regina interrupted, "I need you both to find out who our little evil follower is so I can put a stop to this", "How are we supposed to find this out by ourselves? There's a lot of people in Storybrooke, it could be anyone" Emma announced. Mr Gold hung his cane on a hook on the wall. "Very well, update Snow White and Prince Charming and get them to help, but no one else must find out, especially Henry", "Why not Henry?" Emma asked "Because last time he almost died giving Pan his heart, I don't want him ruining this plan". "Don't talk about Henry like that" Regina barked. Mr Gold did not respond. "Go now, we don't have much time, these enchanted mirrors only last a certain amount of time, and the spell casted over this one Zelena has been using is almost out of magic. If we're going to stop this, we need to act fast". Emma glanced to Regina. "Fine, we'll go tell Mom and Dad".
"Emma, why didn't you tell us sooner?" David asked, trying to make sense of the news. "I couldn't tell you, but now we need your help" she told. "What do you think she wants?" David asked. Mary Margaret looked up at Regina. "This is Zelena we're talking about, do you think she just may not be finished winding you up Regina?", "What's left to take from me, she's already got Robin, she's having his baby for goodness sake". Mary Margaret frowned, "But even after all that she still hasn't ensured you won't get a happy ending, it could still happen Regina and you know it. If somehow Zelena knows you are in love she's going to want to destroy that". Regina felt her body break into goosebumps. Emma stared right at her but she dared not to look back. "Ok so there's a possibility she's after Regina, but she could also be after Emma" David spoke up, "What? Why me?" Emma asked alarmingly, "Emma you're the saviour, you're the reason the villains never get away with their evil plans, so chances are she's out to kill you". The tension in the room rose and everybody became silent. "So what do we do now?" Emma asked. David sucked his teeth, "Emma you and I stay here, Mary Margaret you go with Regina, and-" "No" Mary Margaret spoke up. Everyone turned to Mary Margaret confused "No, David I think you and I should go out looking, if it's true and someone is coming to harm Emma, nine months pregnant or not, I'm sorry but I want Regina with her, she can use her magic to protect her better than we could". "Alright fine, lets waste no more time" David agreed. Mary Margaret kissed Neal on the head and then wrapped her scarf around her neck before leaving the apartment. "We'll see you later on ok" David spoke from the door. Emma and Regina both nodded, and then he left, closing the door, shutting them in the apartment together. "I'll take the back of the house, you watch the front-" Emma gave orders, "No Emma wait, let's talk" Regina said. "We don't have time to talk", "Yes we do, Emma I'm serious please". Emma placed her hands on her hips. "Alright fine, you want to talk, let's talk about this; You're in love? Who the hell are you in love with Regina and when did you plan on telling me? Did you even stop to think how that makes me feel?", Regina took a step closer to Emma. "Emma, you really are as barmy as you are beautiful looking". Emma craned her neck, an impassive look upon her face. "Emma, I'm not in love with anybody, If I was I wouldn't be climbing into bed with you. Please, give me some credit" she added. "W-what are you saying Regina?" she asked massaging her face confused. "Emma I care about you, I care for you, I'm not trying to hurt you" Regina paused mid sentence and took a deep breath, "As crazy as that may sound it is true, this spark between us, it's dangerous and completely crazy, but so much fun. But if you want to stop this tell me now before somebody really does get hurt".

Chapter 11. Emma

Did she really just say that? Emma's subconscious began to spurt random thoughts, all racing through her mind at 100 miles an hour. She wasn't angry now, she felt relieved. Regina pressed her lips together. Emma's heart rebooted itself, "Really?" She queried. She didn't want whatever this was between her and Regina to end, because she was right, them being together was dangerous and fun, but she was terrified to carry on and even more scared to walk away. It was tough to get her head around. Regina immediately succumbed to the same fate as Emma and stood staring into the others eyes. After a moment of hesitation Emma ran to Regina, enveloping her in an embrace full of tenderness and emotion. Both women stood in the centre of the room gripping each other tight. Suddenly Regina began to laugh, "What?" Emma asked, "There's a wicked witch out there planning on destroying us and here we are-" she giggled. Emma's face lit up with a smile that could melt a thousand hearts as she watched Regina laugh.
A few hours passed. Regina asked Granny to watch Henry until she got back, she even let slip that there could be some sort of danger. The old girl was probably sat with her crossbow ready to strike Zelena down right now. Emma fed Neal and put him to bed, thankfully he fell asleep straight away, taking a night off from the screaming and crying. Regina made them both a cup of cocoa and brought them into the room. She placed her own mug down on the table, but before she passed the second mug to Emma she stuck her finger through the frothy surface and licked at the cream and cinnamon. "That is wrong on so many levels" she gibed, pulling a face as the taste lingered on her tongue. Emma scoffed and took the cup from her. The sound from the television lulled in the background as they sat peacefully drinking their cocoa, curled up together on the sofa; The thought of Zelena's possible attack no longer on their minds.
All of a sudden a smashing sound came from the kitchen; A powerful breeze had knocked over a vase. Emma jumped causing Regina to spill her cocoa down her shirt. "Oh my god Regina i'm so sorry" Emma apologised using her sleeve to try and dry her off a little. Regina laughed "it's fine, call it karma, i'll just find another shirt." She groaned thinking back to when she lead Emma to spill her own cocoa down herself at Granny's. She put down her cup and took to the stairs while Emma swept up the broken glass on the tiled floor. After waiting a minute or two Emma traipsed up the stairs after Regina. "What do you think?" Regina asked when she spotted Emma lurking in the doorway. "Very nice, it looks better on you than it ever did on me" She joked. Regina grinned and began to fasten the shirt. Emma held out her arms and helped button the shirt, "The top ones a bit stiff because it kind of melted when I ironed it once" Emma mumbled pushing the button into it's holder forcefully. Regina looked down at Emma's face and planted a kiss on her cheek. Immediately Emma closed her eyes and threw her head back, allowing Regina to trail kisses down her neck. As one thing led to another they found themselves lying on the bed kissing and touching one another, giggling like school girls. "What are you doing?" an unexpected voice boomed from the doorway. Emma pulled herself upright, her heart stopping as the sound of her mother's voice echoed in her mind. At that exact moment she felt a burning sensation biting at her arm but she chose to ignore it, fixated on what her mother had just witnessed "Mom?" Emma exclaimed, panic rising in her voice. Mary Margaret span around and ran down the stairs. Emma climbed off Regina's lap and ran after her, Regina straightened herself out and followed. "Mom I can explain" Emma called after her as she raced down the stairs. David looked up from his phone to see the three women staring at each other. "What's happened?" He asked, not having a clue what was going on around him. Mary Margaret raised a finger and pointed at Emma and Regina, but words failed her. She clenched her fist and walked to the other side of the room. "Mom, it's not what you think" Emma spoke up, "No, actually, It is what you think, please let me expl-". Mary Margaret reached into the crib. But everyone could see immediately that something was wrong. With fear in her voice Mary Margaret asked, "Where is Neal?". Emma's heart stopped. "What? No?" Emma exclaimed rushing to her mother's side. The crib was empty. Neal was gone. David tried to remain calm. "Emma when did you last see your brother?" he asked, anger hidden in his voice. Emma began to cry, "He was right here, I only left him for a few minutes, he was asleep. I was only away from him for a few minutes". Emma's heart shattered. Her brother was gone. Somebody had taken him and it was all her fault. Mary Margaret raced outside the apartment and screamed for Neal, the kind of voice that would make the hairs on your neck stand up. Simultaneously, lights in nearby houses turned on and people glanced out of their windows in search for who was screaming. Mary Margaret screamed again "NEAL" She cried. Emma ran to her. "I'm so sorry-" She began, a lump in her throat. "GET AWAY FROM ME EMMA" Mary Margaret roared, her eyes filled with outrage. Regina grabbed Emma's hand and dragged her away from Mary Margaret while David went to comfort her. Just as she was about to fall to the floor David caught her in his arms and held her tightly. Emma could only watch on in horror as her parents broke down in the middle of the street.
David somehow coaxed Mary Margaret from the floor and he led her to Mr Gold's. "You better come with us" David said flatly to Emma and Regina. Slowly they followed the way to the pawnbrokers.

"Now try not to panic, this was obviously done on Zelena's commands. She won't harm Neal, she's going to use him as bait" Mr Gold surmised. "How can you tell me not to panic my son has been kidnapped by a wicked witch" Mary Margaret sobbed. David clutched her hand tightly. Emma felt awful, she was pale and cold and she hated herself for letting this happen. "Did either of you see anything, anyone?" Mr Gold asked Regina. "No we-" Regina began but Mary Margaret spoke over her, "Of course they didn't see or hear anything they were too busy running their hands over each other in the bedroom". "What?" David and Mr Gold gasped. "That's right, our daughter was in bed with HER instead of looking after our son" Mary Margaret hissed. "What?" David spoke, not sure weather to believe what he'd been told or not. "I'm sorry Dad" Emma replied, fresh tears roaming from her eyes. Mr Gold leaned in close to Regina. "What the hell happened?" he asked. "All you need to know is Neal has been taken and Emma and I weren't there when it happened. A vase smashed in the kitchen a few minutes before but we put it down to the wind because the window was open. I spilt cocoa down my shirt, I had to get changed and" Regina retold what happened. Mr Gold raised his hands to his ears. "I don't think I want to hear any more, take Emma and calm her down. I will come to you when I work out our next move". Regina nodded and put her arm around Emma's waist, leading her out of the store. Mr Gold watched sternly as David watched his wife cry. His forehead wrinkled as he tried to make sense of what was going on.

When they arrived at number 108, Regina poured Emma a large glass of brandy and sat with her at the kitchen table. Regina called Granny to check on Henry, glad to hear they were both fine playing a board game in the back room. In the meantime, neither Emma or Regina spoke a single word to each other, instead they sat in silence and waited for Mr Gold. Emma gently placed her empty glass on the table. Regina offered her a top up. "No" Emma whispered. "How could I let this happen?" She asked staring at the floor. "Emma you weren't know. We thought she was after us, not Neal" Regina said, trying to comfort Emma, "This is not your fault Emma and we will get Neal back, I promise you, we will bring him back home, ok?". Emma nodded. Regina rose from her chair and gave Emma a loving, protective hug. And then without notice Mr Gold let himself in. "Gold, what did you find out? Is Neal ok?" Emma asked, rushing over to him and out of Regina's arms. "Ms Swan, patience. If we are going to get the baby back, the only way is to cross realms", "But how are we going to do that? There's no magic beans, and Jefferson's hat was destroyed" Emma asked, "As true as that is Ms Swan there happens to be another way to get to Zelena", Regina's eyes widened as her thoughts triggered a memory. "A looking glass" she mouthed. Mr Gold nodded. "But the looking glass takes you to Wonderland, not Oz" Emma tried to make sense. "Yes, it does, which is why we need it, because Zelena is not in Oz, she is in Wonderland", "What? Why?" Regina questioned, "When your mother, Cora, gave Zelena up she was taken to Oz in a cyclone, now that Cora is dead, Zelena sees it fit, that she takes over her mother's throne in Wonderland. She is of course, the first born." Mr Gold revealed. Emma and Regina both gasped. "What do I need to do?" Emma asked Mr Gold, "You need to travel to Wonderland and kill Zelena". Emma's eyes focused as she thought about the price she was willing to pay to save Neal, and Storybrooke. Emma nodded, "Ok". "No, not ok" Regina burst in, "Emma you can't do this alone", "I'm not afraid Regina", "I know you're not but this isn't going to be a walk in the park, I won't let you do this alone", "I don't have any other choice Regina", "No Emma, you don't have a choice, but luckily for you, I do. I'm coming with you", "What no, I won't let you put yourself in danger for me.", "There was a time when I told you that we weren't partners but you still stuck by me, which is what i'm going to do now. Plus there's Henry too, and if you think i'm going to just sit back and do nothing to protect our son, you have another thing coming." Regina growled, "I'm going with you Ms Swan and you're not going to stop me". Emma didn't know weather to be sad or glad that Regina was being so stubborn, she also didn't have time to argue about it. "Alright fine, let's go". Mr Gold, stood tall, and nodded. He waved his arms out in front of him and using his most trusted magic, relocated the three of them to an abandoned house near the Storybrooke town line. The house was old and decrepit. The paintwork on the house's window shutters was chipped and sun bleached, the shutters themselves hung loosely from their hinges. The grass of the front lawn was overgrown, with weeds standing tall over the dying flowers. The front door to the house was nowhere to be seen and showed off the dark dingy corridor inside. "Is this place safe?" Emma asked, "Yes, I cast protection spell when I first found this place, only I know of its whereabouts, it has been vacant since the beginning of the curse" Mr Gold told, before walking down the gravelled path. Emma looked to Regina, who shrugged her shoulders before following Mr Gold into the house.
The inside smelled of mold and rotting wood, the wallpaper had partly peeled off and hung limply from the walls. The dark red carpet was thick with dust, as were the furniture. Other than that the house itself wasn't too bad. When Emma, Regina and Mr Gold entered what you could call the dining room, Mr Gold cast a spell causing the looking glass to appear. It's solid gold edges shone as the magic flooded the glass. "How will we get back?" Emma asked suddenly thinking of what Jefferson had told her about the hats rules. "When you get to Wonderland, at some point, you will meet a Rabbit, the White Rabbit, he will show you how to get back" Mr Gold told, "And this Rabbit, he can be trusted?", "Yes Ms Swan I believe he can be, but the question is Can he trust you? All you have to do, is be nice to him and not give him a reason not to help you", "Why do I have this feeling that that is easier said than done?" Emma questioned, raising an eyebrow. "Well" Mr Gold fumbled, "Regina is going with you and technically the last time she was in Wonderland she"-, Regina interrupted "Yes thank you we all know what happened when I left Wonderland but that was decades ago, I've changed", "then let's hope he believes that" Mr Gold said. The looking glass then stood firm in front of them ready to transport them to the magical realm. Regina and Emma both took a deep breath and then simultaneously stepped through the mirror.

Chapter 12. Regina

Wonderland hadn't changed. It was still incoherently weird with its oversized mushrooms and blades of grass. The only true difference was the lack of blue skies. "Maybe we should have brought an umbrella" Regina muttered sarcastically as the dark grey clouds lit up with a flash of bright white lightning. Nightfall was biting at their heels and the looking glass soon evaporated and ceased to exist. "Under here" Emma said grabbing Regina's arm and pulling her beneath a mushroom for shelter. "Regina you've been to this Wonderland before, where do we go from here?" the saviour asked. Regina looked out into the distance. The path stretched out ahead of them for miles, with nothing else to see other than the odd patch of trees forming miniature forests. "Looks like we're just going to have to follow the yellow brick road", "This isn't Oz Regina", "It's called a joke Emma" Regina mumbled. "Maybe we should stay put until the storm eases off?" Emma suggested, "No, I don't think this storm is going to stop anytime soon, we'll keep walking until we find somewhere to sleep tonight, then we can dry off and come up with a plan" Regina sassed. Together the two women set off on their journey deep into Wonderland, getting soaking wet on the way. Nobody was to be seen in any direction, no birds were out flying and no children out playing, it was like a ghost town. As they journeyed on Emma gave Regina a funny look. "What?" Regina asked not knowing what she had done wrong, "This was such a stupid plan, there's no shelter and I'm freezing and i'm wet and i'm tired" Emma moaned. Regina rolled her eyes, "We're almost there" Regina insisted as they came to a sharp corner. Unexpectedly Emma's eyes fell upon a huge fire flickering in the near distance. "Told you" Regina smirked picking up her pace, leaving Emma standing behind.
As they appeared closer to the fire a few people looked over at them, their faces struck with shock horror. "It's the evil queen" a young girl whimpered pointing at Regina. A man standing closest to her took a few steps back. Regina stared at the little girl. "Uh, guys please listen to me, I know you know this is the evil queen but that's not quite true anymore. Regina has changed, for the better, she's a hero now" Emma spoke up. "And why should we believe you, stranger?" a man called from the crowd. "Because, I'm the saviour, I'm Snow White and Prince Charming's daughter" Emma told truthfully. An elderly lady took a step closer to Emma and examined her face. "Why are you here?" the old lady asked, "We're here because the wicked witch kidnapped my brother, we've come to get him back, please you have to believe me" Emma replied. Everyone turned to Regina, "Has she really changed?" somebody asked,"Yes, I promise you she has, she's my friend, she's helping me". The crowd began to murmur amongst one another, as they did, they began to part down the middle. A white rabbit made himself visible. "Emma Swan, I wondered if I would ever get the pleasure of meeting you" The rabbit said. The crowd fell silent. Emma smiled weakly, "You know who I am?" she asked. "Yes, I understand you're looking for your brother?", "Yeah, Zelena took him", "And how can we help?", "Regina and I, we need a place to stay for tonight, we were also told that you might be able to help us get back to Storybrooke". The white rabbit turned to the people gathered behind him. "Alright, you may stay here tonight, you can have my tent, but be warned, any funny business from her" he said pointing to Regina, "And you're out of here, you got that?" he added. "Yes, thank you, thank you so much" Emma said relieved, "You can thank me when I get you out of this realm. In the meantime, please get some rest".
The tent was smaller than Regina expected and the thought of spending the whole night sleeping in there didn't fill her with much joy. As she and Emma crawled inside the tent their eyes met a single sheet on the ground with two small pillows and a blanket. The White Rabbit had left them fresh towels and a lantern, other than that, the tent was empty. "Is this a joke?" Regina questioned kicking off her shoes. "Nope, this is home for the night" Emma responded, pulling an awkward face. "Great" Regina breathed. "Get your clothes off" Emma wheezed, trying desperately to slide her tight leather jacket off. "Ms Swan I hardly think this is the time or the place" Regina said seriously. Emma rolled her eyes, "As pretty as you do look in the firelight Regina, I was thinking more about getting dry". Regina raised an eyebrow, "You think I'm pretty?" she asked suddenly feeling shy. Emma scoffed, "Just take your clothes off Ms Mills".
Regina forced off her wet clothes and piled them next to Emma's before wrapping herself in the harsh cotton towel. "Ok now I'm dry but freezing my behind off, how is this any better?" Regina asked growing frustrated in the tiny capacity. "Well, for one, if you kept your ringing wet tshirt on you would probably catch pneumonia, at least now that you're dry your body has a chance to reheat itself" Emma dribbled as she cleared herself a sleeping place. Regina watched Emma climb under the tiny single sheet before she lay down herself. For a moment she thought of Henry, she hoped he was ok even though she knew he was safe under Granny's protection. As the minutes passed by her body heat seemed to lessen. It was still raining heavily outside though the thunder had stopped. An icy mist slithered from her lips as she shivered. Her thoughts were then cut short when she felt what could only be Emma wiggle over to her side. Without saying a word, Emma draped her arm over Regina's side and held her close. Regina shifted and turned to face her, she neither said anything, instead she nestled her head on Emma's chest and closed her eyes. Emma planted a kiss upon her forehead before she too drifted off to sleep.
Regina was awoken by the sounds of birds tweeting in the nearby trees. The rain had stopped and the scent of due lingered in the mist. "Good morning" Emma whispered when she noticed Regina stirring. A faint hint of a smile creeped upon Regina's face as she rubbed her eyes, "Good Morning Ms Swan" she groaned as she stretched. "I miss my castle" she added as she sat up, her back aching from laying on the floor. Emma chuckled, "Yeah, I'm sure anyone in their right mind would prefer a luxury castle over a tent", "I'd sleep here again if it meant waking up next to you" Regina smirked, "Or, you could just take me back to your castle and have your wicked way with me?" Emma suggested. "Wicked? I think you have the wrong sister there" Regina mumbled crawling up to Emma and kissing her softly on the lips. Emma laughed and kissed Regina back. Just as they lay down for a bit of fun a voice called from outside the tent. "Good Morning?" The white rabbit spoke, clearing his voice. Emma rolled her eyes whereas Regina's reaction was to blow out a breath of air, making a stray piece of her hair stand. Emma partly opened the zip. "White Rabbit, Good Morning" She said, Regina covered her bare body with the blanket. The white rabbit smiled weakly at Regina. "You are more than welcome to join the village and I for some breakfast, you must be hungry". "Oh, yes we are, thank you, we'll just get dressed and we'll come join you" Emma quipped. The White Rabbit smiled and hopped off.
The sound of sausages sizzling in a pan joined the tweeting and singing of the birds, which in all honesty was starting to get on Regina's nerves. "Woah, thank you" Emma sounded, jumping a little as a small boy handed her a plate of food. Regina looked down at the boys now empty hands and rolled her eyes. She leaned in closer to Emma as whispered, "Where's mine?", Emma giggled and took a bite of sausage. "You'll have to excuse the children, they're afraid of you, and if you don't mind me saying; with good reason too" The White Rabbit interrupted. He handed Regina her own plate of food. "Yeah? You'd think they'd be more afraid NOT to bring me my breakfast" Regina moaned. "In all fairness, many of them know of your legacy, if I were a young 'un, I'd be uneasy around you too. But I can see that you've changed" The white Rabbit chirped looking Regina up and down. "You think?" she asked as if she were not expecting his kind words. "I know so, the Evil Queen would have killed us all by now, you never did have any patience. Just as Regina you seem much easier to get along with", "Thank you" Regina hesitated to say as she tried to work out if the rabbits words were a compliment or not. Together Emma and Regina sat down to eat their breakfast on two camp chairs provided to them by a man with a hooked nose and greasy black hair. All the while Emma laughed silently to herself, tears forming in her eyes as Regina shoveled forkfuls of food into her mouth. "What's so funny?" Regina asked defensively. "I'm a Queen and a bit more refined" Emma imitated Regina. "You're not even funny Swan" Regina announced sitting up straight. "No but you are, especially with butter smothered up your face" Emma pointed out, dipping her finger into the yellowish margarine blobbed on the tip of her nose before licking it from her finger.
After breakfast the white rabbit walked the two women to the outskirts of the forest. "I'm afraid this is where I must leave you" he announced, shuddering in the shadows of the surrounding trees. "If you follow the stream it will take you into the heart of Wonderland, you will then come across a sign pointing in many directions, reading many destinations. I believe the route to the mansion that the wicked witch has taken for her own will get you there in a few minutes. Though I must warn you, there are all manor of dark creatures that have taken her side, not to mention the remaining of the Queen's guards", "Why would they help Zelena?" Regina asked confused, "I wouldn't know, but it may have something to do with your mother" the white rabbit suggested. Regina nodded and looked out across the horizon. The sun was only now beginning to rise, but it was cold and looked as though rain may fall again soon. "Thank you for your help Mr Rabbit" Emma vowed, shaking his small fluffy paw. The rabbit grinned from floppy ear to floppy ear. "When you want to leave this land all you have to do is give this a blow" he said, taking a chain from his neck. "A whistle?" Emma stated, "Specialised for my hearing, it's a rabbit thing" he smiled, "Give the whistle a blow and I will be with you in no time, and then I will cast your portal out of here", Emma fastened the chain around her neck and shook the rabbit's hand again. "Good Luck" he spoke to both Emma and Regina. He then hopped back into the forest to rejoin his village. Regina looked to Emma and together they started their journey beside the stream.
A gentle breeze blew by as they trekked out of the forest. Regina had to keep grabbing onto Emma to stop herself falling into the water as she attempted to follow in her footsteps. "People actually do this kind of thing for fun?" Regina enquired, slightly peeved that she had scuffed her shoe on a bit of rock. "Just try to keep up, we need to find Neal", "Yes I know that Swan, I didn't come out here for my health". Emma suddenly came to a standstill, causing Regina to walk into her. "Who the hell is that?" The blonde asked as she stared menacingly at a huge blue caterpillar which was laying back on a giant leaf. "Who am I? Who are you?" The caterpillar asked not bothering to open his eyes and look at the people standing in front of him. Emma noticed a pipe in the caterpillar's hand and it jogged her memory of the book Alice In Wonderland. "You're the Hookah" she addressed. The caterpillar opened one eye, "That is correct, but, who are you?" He asked taking a puff on his pipe. "I'm Emma Swan and this is Reg-", "I know who she is Emma Swan. Everybody in this Realm knows who she is. Although we don't know what she is doing here. What ARE you doing here, your Majesty?" The caterpillar questioned sarcastically. "Never you mind why I'm here. Don't you have a cocoon to build?" Regina said sardonically. The caterpillar puffed out a ball of smoke causing both Emma and Regina to cough. "Very well, it is none of my business why you are here, but I trust you know I can't let you carry on your little adventure", "Why not?" Emma growled, the thought of Neal springing to her mind. "Anybody who goes looking for trouble ends up in trouble themselves and you my lovelies are about to walk into a whole lot of trouble", "What are you talking about?", "Do you deny that you are seeking the wicked witch of the west?", "I thought you didn't know why we were here?" Regina asked scornfully. "I did not say that, I merely wanted to hear what you would tell". Emma pulled a face and coughed again as the caterpillar blew another wad of smoke into her face. "Look, what's the deal here?" she asked becoming impatient. "There is no deal Emma Swan, I am just simply warning you of the dangers that lay ahead", "Well that's very nice of you but we have a baby to rescue" Regina spat walking on. Emma hesitated but followed Regina. The caterpillar called after them, "Don't say I didn't warn you, you would have been wise to return home". "Crazy insect" Regina intoned. "I know right?" Emma agreed catching up with Regina who now seemed to be determined to get away from the soggy mud surrounding the stream. "The sign post can't be too far away now, can it?" Emma voiced from behind. Just as she spoke the sign post came into view. "Good timing saviour" Regina mentioned alongside a sigh of relief. The tall light wooden post pointed in many directions. The path to their left would take them to Tulgey Wood, the right; Salazen Grum. "Ah there" Regina pointed out. An arrow pointing straight ahead read 'Wicked Witch's Mansion'. Of course this was painted on in a dark green paint, which covered the previous engravement that had once been 'Red Queen's Mansion'. "Well what are we waiting for, let's go" Emma said arriving at Regina's side. "I don't think so" a low hair raising voice snarled from behind. Emma and Regina span around to see that they were completely surrounded by playing cards. Unfortunately they had arms and legs and carried sharp spears. Each of them stared remorselessly at Emma and Regina. "Look we don't want any trouble" Emma breathed, nerves showing in her voice. "Oh I know you don't" one of the cards barked. The letter 'J' was stained upon his white cardboard body. "Hey look, Jack" Emma started, "How'd you know my name?" the playing card shouted defensively. "I know who you are, and I know who you work for. I also know how to defeat you" Emma replied, clenching her fists. "Is that right?" the card chuckled not feeling any kind of threat from Emma's words. Emma sighed, "Alright, Regina he's all yours". Regina smirked and produced a great ball of fire from the palm of her hand. As she flicked her wrist the flame ball shot from her grip and hurled towards the cards. A look of delight flooded Regina's eyes as she awaited the burning to begin, but for some reason the flame halted in mid air just in front of the cards. "Lovely, we may be made of card paper but it's gonna take a lot more than fire to destroy us" the Jack spoke. All the other cards began to laugh. "You see before the wicked witch left she enchanted us with a flame proof elixir, so it looks like you're going to need to think outside of the box on this occasion". Regina backed closer to Emma, "What now?" she whispered, "I don't know" Emma replied. "Alas, I know; why don't we take you to your new home, the penitentiary", "The what?" Emma questioned. "Prison lovely, you're going to prison". With that the Jack raised his spear and let out a ferocious roar of attack. Each and every card ran forward, there was nowhere to run. Spears came at them from every direction, it was only a matter of time before they were captured.

Chapter 13. Emma

Emma woke up with a few strips of straw stuck to her face. The cards had knocked her and Regina out so that they could not attempt an escape. A dripping sound echoed around her. When she looked up she noticed a steel bucket beside her, the black brick walls were letting in water and the bucket was catching the droplets, though many of them slipped through the bars of the drain the bucket was placed over. As she sat upright Emma looked for Regina. "Regina?" she called not able to see very far into the distance. "Emma, over here" Regina panted from the left. Emma crawled across the wet stone floor, following the sound of Regina's voice. She'd not moved very far until she came across a set of steel bars. "Regina" Emma repeated using all of her strength to pull herself upright. Regina sat with her hands wrapped around the bars, she could just about reach her hand between them. Emma took Regina's hand in hers. Both hands were extremely cold but somehow managed to comfort one another. "Where are we?" Emma asked. "I have no idea" Regina admitted. Suddenly a flickering of light appeared in the near distance, along with a guard. "Well, look who's awake" the guard bellowed, holding his fat belly as he laughed, his chubby fingers brushing over the painted number nine on his body. "Let us go" Regina growled. "Easy kitten, you just got here. How about I fetch you a nice saucer of milk?" the guard said, laughing again. "How about I make you regret the day you were born?" Regina warned pulling herself onto her feet. She stared deep into the guards eyes, a gaze he was more than happy to return. "Oh, Meow" the guard sounded, "That's not very nice is it?" he added, "I'm not a very nice person" Regina hissed, "Neither was your mother, neither is your sister, your whole family are just as bad as one another" the guard teased. Regina suddenly thought of Henry. "You're wrong" she gloated, an inner strength encouraging her to be brave. Emma watched on from her cell as Regina and the guard taunted each other. She knew better than to get involved, Regina could handle this. A short time went by until the guard stepped back, a siren wailed overhead. "As much as I am enjoying our little heart to heart, I am officially off duty, but you are more than welcome to give your new supervisor the same treatment you gave me". Regina frowned and looked over at the door. Sure enough another guard marched into the cell. Emma watched as the guard grew closer, although he looked much alike the guard before him, there was something about him that felt less threatening. "Three? Why are you here?" the guard asked. "Seven isn't here, said something about his bird getting out of her cage. Sent me instead". Guard nine looked angry but quickly tried to hide his true emotions from the prisoners. He then pulled guard Three to the side and whispered something into his ear. Emma glanced at Regina who was trying to hear what was being said. With that guard Seven handed over the set of keys and marched out of the room, leaving guard Three in charge. For a while nobody spoke, Regina sat back down opposite Emma. "The guards a half wit" she whispered between the bars, "You're telling me" Regina replied. "There must be some way we can trick him and get out of here", "Like what, because I'm not exactly flooding with ideas Swan" Regina moaned. Emma thought for a moment, looking around the dark cells for inspiration. Many minutes passed before Emma came up with an idea. "Water" she whispered with excitement. "What about it?" Regina queried, keeping her eyes on the guard. "Water can destroy fire", "What's your point?", "We can threaten to set this guy on fire, he doesn't know we already tried that with the Jack's. He will think he's clever by letting you take a swipe at him with one of your fireballs, then when the times right i'll sneak over with some water and throw it over him. He will think i'm helping him." Emma explained, Regina looked confused, "Somehow I don't think he's just going to melt to the ground like Zelena did", "No, but he IS made of card paper, and what happens to paper when it gets wet?", "it rips" Regina gasped suddenly understanding Emma's plan. "You clever girl" she muttered. Emma smiled and crawled over to the wall. The guard watched as she slinked into the background, "What?" Emma shouted at him as she leaned against the brick wall. The guard said nothing and instead continued keeping a closer eye on Regina. After sitting still for a moment, Emma began to shimmy over to the steel bucket, by now there was a fair bit of water inside it just waiting to be used. Emma slowly moved her hand and gripped onto its handle. Regina looked behind her and saw that Emma was ready. They only had one shot at this and so she had to time it just right. Emma counted to three in her head and then gave Regina the signal. "I've always wondered how you keep your whites so clean" Regina mentioned to the guard. The guard furrowed his brows and looked confused. Regina rose to her feet and walked to the front of the cell. With nothing but thin bars between her and the guard she pressed herself up against them. "It comes naturally" The guard spoke trying to keep authority. Emma waited patiently for Regina to spark a flame. "Oh, you see I'm always getting mucky, take a look at my hands" she mentioned, The guard took his eyes from Regina's and glanced at her palms. Instantaneously fire appeared the guard jumped but then chuckled softly to himself. "Fire can't hurt me" he spoke matter of factly. "Oh yeah, how about water?" Emma asked, with that she threw the contents of the bucket over the guard soaking him from head to toe. His clean white self turned instantly into a dark soggy grey. He shrieked with fear as he watched the water soak through. Regina sniggered and tore the card right down the middle. The guard now literally in pieces, fell to the ground. Emma snatched the keys from around his fingers and yanked on the chain. She fumbled with a few before the lock unclicked. Emma squealed in delight as her cell door sprung open. She then rushed to Regina's aid and set her free. "Swan, I could kiss you" Regina said proudly. "Maybe we should get out of here first" Emma suggested, "Right, yeah, lets go" Regina agreed heading for the door. Just on the other side of the door was a hallway split into sections. "Alright, we need to find a way of repressing this deck of cards" Regina explained keeping an eye out for the changing of the guard. "Woah, what about the sorcerer's hat?, that can trap people inside" Emma mentioned, "Are you gonna tell me you have that thing in your back pocket?", "No, what I was thinking is, playing cards come inside a box, if we can find the box these guys came out of perhaps we can trap them back inside". Regina wrinkled her forehead and laughed silently to herself. "Boy am I glad you're on my side" She said, taking complete faith in Emma's plan. Emma grinned, glad Regina approved of her idea.
Regina pushed the door open and together they snuck down the corridor in search for the playing cards box. The first hallway lead to what looked like another set of cells. The second was almost exactly the same. How many people did Zelena think she was going to have trapped down here? Thankfully the third corridor lead to a study. A giant desk stood alone in the centre of the room. Something about the room looked familiar. Emma squinted into the drab room and spotted two armchairs. Then it hit her. "We're in the mansion. Regina this is the secret room behind the library" Emma exploded. Regina thought back to the tiny doll house and recovered the memory of Emma searching through the desk. Together they both said, "The box". Emma grew kind of excited as they tiptoed into the room. Regina kept a lookout while Emma lifted the lid of the desk. Sure enough, inside was the card box, the pacifier, blank paper and green quill. Although the compact mirror was not amongst the other objects it didn't really matter, they got what they needed. Emma picked up the box and forced open the top, a red light glowed from inside, powered by magic. This was it.
Emma and Regina strolled over to the bookshelf and pushed against the 'Clues To The Curse' book. As Regina's fingertip clicked the book into place the bookshelf began to spin. Many voices belonging to the guards began shout alarmingly, the sound of running footsteps grew louder. "Freeze" one of the Jack guards boomed over the stomping of feet. He pointed his spear at them both. "I wouldn't do that if I were you" Regina chuckled. With that Emma produced the card box and pointed the glowing red light at the guards. "I think it's about time you got back in your box" Regina smiled. The guard suddenly looked panicked and tried to scramble backwards, but it was no use, the magic of the box was stronger than he and so dragged him and the fifty other cards towards their fate. The guards shouted and screamed out, cursing Emma and Regina as they shrunk in size and drew into the box. Just as the last guard was placed inside; the two ripped pieces of guard Three floated towards them. He too disappeared inside the box. Emma laughed and shut the lid. Regina noticed a roll of sellotape on a table in the library. She bit off a piece of the sticky tape and wrapped it around the two openings to the box before dropping it into the bin. "Let's get out of here" she spoke smiling to Emma. Emma returned Regina's look of achievement and followed her out of the house. Once they got into open air Regina was able to poof them somewhere safer to come up with a new plan to get Neal back.

It was now early evening and the blue sky turned into the colour of whiskey as the sun began to set. Regina sat on a large rock staring into the distance. Emma walked slowly over to her and knelt at her feet, peering into Regina's chocolate brown eyes. "Gold said Zelena was here" Regina said after a moments silence. Emma sighed, "Well perhaps she was and she left just as we got here. There's no reason for Gold to lie to us", "How can you be so sure of that?" Regina asked, "Rumpelstiltskin doesn't exactly have a great previous record of telling the truth" she added worryingly. "What should we do?" Emma asked, "I don't know but I think leaving the mansion was a mistake. We're out in the open here, that rabbit said there were many dark creatures on her side. We're not safe" Regina told a slight fear sounding in her voice. "Then let's go back to the mansion, there are other rooms, loads that I didn't get chance to look in, perhaps the cloak is in one of them" Emma suggested, "Maybe, maybe not, but it's worth a shot" Regina agreed. With that she summoned her magic and the purple smoke took them back to the grand mansion.
This time Emma reached out for the door handle for real. She and Regina stepped into the real hallway and took in their surroundings. Everything looked so fresh and expensive, including the ugly painting of the flying monkey. The staircase perched up ahead, Regina lowered her gaze and stared at the red carpeted steps. "Ready?" She asked when Emma joined her gaze. Emma nodded. Together they took their first step up the stairs and steadily made their way to one of the unexplored rooms. All the doors were the same; tall, narrow and wooden. Emma went to twist the doorknob. "Wait" Regina said stopping Emma from touching. She lifted her own hand and attempted to touch the door. As she got closer a green light flashed in front of them. Emma gasped and jumped back. Regina waved her hand and brushed away the spell. She then opened the door and stepped aside, allowing Emma to enter the room. The interior wasn't what Emma expected. Unlike the other rooms this one had been completely destroyed. A mirror that hung to the wall was smashed and gave off a thousand reflections due to the many chipped pieces of glass. The curtains were ripped to shreds, pillows and cushions had been torn apart, the white stuffing sprawled across the blood stained floor. "What the hell happened in here?" Emma mouthed. Regina didn't reply, instead she ran her finger across a dusty tabletop. When she looked down at the grey grime clinging to her fingertip she noticed a transparent trail in it's wake. The table was made of glass. She used her elbow to wipe away the remaining dust and almost choked on the shock of what she had appeared to have found. "Emma" she breathed shakily. Emma put down the vase she had been looking at and shot to Regina's side. When she looked through the glass her jaw dropped open. The compact mirror that had once resided in the desk downstairs was now locked inside, fully enchanted allowing them to see into the realm where its sister resided. The image from the other realm shone through the glass, glimmering with a bright light. "I know that place" Emma said. Regina swallowed making Emma think that she also knew the place the mirror portrayed."We need to get back to Storybrooke" Regina disclosed turning and marching from the room.
Back outside Emma gripped onto the whistle around her neck and blew it firmly. "Did it work?" Regina asked when Emma removed the whistle from her lips. "I don't know" Emma replied, slightly confused by the lack of sound the whistle made. It was silent for a moment until a rustling sound reverberated from behind. Emma grabbed Regina's hand meaning to protect her from whatever was about to become known to them. A silver light emitted from her palms and locked itself tightly around both Emma and Regina. Just then a small white figure materialized. The white rabbit emerged before them. "Oh thank god" Emma panted relieved, the silver enchantment fizzling out. "Did you get what you came for?" the white rabbit asked, "No but we're a step closer to finding Neal, we need a portal back to Storybrooke" Emma told without mentioning why. The white rabbit nodded and immediately began to cast a spell. A large blue circle formed on the ground, growing deeper as it spread in width. "Good Luck" The white rabbit jested taking a step back. Emma took Regina's hand and together they leaped inside the magical rabbit hole. In a flash they fell onto a grassy embankment outside of the abandoned house, back in Storybrooke.

Chapter 14. Regina

"Emma, Emma are you alright?" Regina asked as she helped the saviour up off the floor. Emma stared into Regina's eyes as if she didn't know how she felt, for a second she was silent before shouting "I'm gonna kill her". Regina wrapped her arms around Emma's waist and pulled her back, refusing to let her go charging off. "Emma calm down, you can't just march over there, we have to think this through". Emma struggled to break free but eventually calmed down when she realised she would never escape Regina's grip. "Alright, now let's go find Gold" Regina added letting Emma loose.
Mr Gold was in the back room painting over a chip in an old chair. When Emma and Regina walked in the bell above the door sounded and he looked up to see them lingering in the passage. Before he could ask what they had found out Regina delved straight into what had happened. She told him about the white rabbit helping them find their way, the hookah and what happened at the mansion. "Are you absolutely certain of what you saw?" He asked, a growing look of angst on his face. "Yes, the second compact mirror is here in Storybrooke" Regina croaked. Mr Gold rose from his stool and paced the room. "So we have a villain in Storybrooke" Mr Gold spoke aloud, "Well not necessarily, Zelena could be blackmailing her" Emma said, shocking herself with her new found sense of hope. "Her?" Mr Gold asked confused in the confidence of the mystery person's gender. Emma began to grow angry again. "Emma seems to think it's Lily", "Lily? The girl from your past? Maleficent's daughter?", "Yeah" Emma said unfolding her arms. "What makes you think this?" Mr Gold questioned. "The room the mirror showed was a cave, exactly like the one Regina kept Maleficent locked up in, and hanging in the background was a moon shaped necklace; exactly the same as Lily's". Mr Gold nodded as he took in the information. "Did you find out anything about your cloak?" Emma asked, breaking the growing silence. "Yes, the pirate had nothing to do with it, the locater spell I cast showed no signs of it being anywhere near him or his ship", "Why did you think Hook had it?" Emma asked. Regina placed her hands on her hips and looked away at the mention of Emma's ex boyfriend. Mr Gold turned from the window back to Emma and Regina, "I thought maybe, Milah would have told him something about it when they… attempted to elope. It was quite infamous amongst the pirates back then, countless captains spoke about finding the cloak and using it to raid other ships unnoticed, but I knew where it was and I knew how dangerous it could be so I locked it away somewhere only myself and Milah knew where it was". Emma bowed her head and forced away her thoughts of Hook. "So what do you want us to do now?" Regina blurted out. Mr Gold snarled, his gold tooth glistening. "Find Lily and take her to your vault. We'll interrogate her there".
The full moon was now shimmering in the dark velvet sky. A wolf howled from deep inside the forest. Emma smiled as she heard, automatically knowing it was Ruby.

As they walked through the streets of Storybrooke, Regina looked over at a window above Granny's Diner. Henry was probably asleep on the other side and she found comfort in knowing her son was in safe hands away from Zelena. She was also glad he didn't know anything about what his moms were up too. "You ready?" Emma asked interrupting Regina's concentration. Regina tore her eyes away from the window and faced Emma, "Yeah" she nodded, tearing the lock from the door to the library. "Careful, you don't want to wind up Belle" Emma joked watching her toss the lock into the darkness inside.
The books were lined up neatly on the shelves, in alphabetical order thanks to Belle's need for perfection; nothing was out of place. The clacking of Regina's shoes echoed around the room as she walked up to the hidden lift shaft. The mirror showed Emma's face looking over to her from the door. Regina turned to Emma, "You alright?" Regina asked warmly. Emma just nodded and took a few steps closer to Regina and the mirror. "Ok, I will be right here, when you want to come back up just yell to me" Regina told Emma seriously. Emma stared at the empty lift, remembering the exhausting fight with Maleficent in dragon form. Regina looked deeply into Emma's eyes and sensed that the saviour wasn't up to this. "What are you doing?" Emma asked as Regina stepped into the lift. "I'm going down" she replied, summoning her energy. "Regina no, I can't let you go-" Emma began, "No Emma, you're not prepared, and I'm not willing to let you face whatever is down there knowing that. Now please don't argue with me, just lower me down". Emma took Regina's hand and tried to smile, her bottom lip quivering as she fought back huge salty tears. Regina pulled her hand from Emma's grip, "I'll be back before you know it" she said trying to reassure Emma. Emma hesitated but pushed the lever, the lift then began to lower Regina down into the darkness.
The cave was pitch black and Regina seemed to be alone down there. She stepped out of the lift and began searching for any sign of Lily or Neal. It was cold in the cave, and Regina could feel her body starting to shiver. "Lily?" She called out, "Lily are you down here?". Nothing. Regina produced a fireball and used it for both light and warmth as she continued searching the cave. Just up ahead she caught sight of the mirror, and hanging on the wall just across from it was the necklace. Regina picked up the mirror and stared into its foggy throw back, being able to see into the messy room of the mansion. She stuffed the mirror into her coat pocket then reached out and lifted the necklace down from the wall. It was heavier than she had expected it to be. Suddenly without warning a loud terrifying screeching sound roared from behind her. Regina dropped the necklace in fear and span around. Only a few metres away sat an angry dragon, chained to the wall. "Lily?" Regina whispered in fear. The dragon cried out once more, it's eyes peering deep into Regina's. The dragon tried to stand but could not seem to support its weight. Blood trickled from its ankle. "You're hurt" Regina muttered no longer feeling threatened by the creature. "It's alright Lily, I can help you, you're going to be ok" Regina spoke, attempting to convince her. Regina dropped to her knees and held out both hands. The dragon crept back and lowered its head, looking away from the deep thick cut. Regina then cast a spell, purple smoke pulsating from her palms. The smoke wrapped itself around the dragons injured foot and began to heal the wound. As the magic began to work, Regina sensed the dragon calming down, it now looked sad rather than angry. "It's going to be alright" Regina began. As she rose to her feet the dragon's strength grew stronger and it was able to return to its human form. "Lily are you-" Regina began, her words suddenly failed as Maleficent appeared before her. "Regina, thank you" Maleficent instantly uttered, the once tight chain crashing to the floor around her slim body. "What the hell is going on?" Regina shouted confused. "It's Lily, she's out of control, Regina you've got to help me" Maleficent pleaded, telling her what was going on. Regina rubbed her forehead and tried to take in the new information. "Ok so you're telling me, Lily stole Neal to give to Zelena in order to become good? That makes no sense", "I know it doesn't, Lily told me Zelena was going to take away her darkness if she helped her destroy Emma", "But why go after Neal? He's just a baby", "Because the best way to get to Emma is to take away her family, without them she's vulnerable. Zelena vowed she won't stop until everyone Emma loves is dead. Only then will she face her in a battle". "Why should I believe you?" Regina queried, squinting her eyes trying to read Maleficent's facial expressions. "Regina please, I'm worried for Lily's safety, she has no idea what's she's gotten herself into, as a mother please, I'm begging you, help me". Maleficent's eyes filled with tears, her hands were shaking with agitation. "Ok" Regina agreed, but only because she hoped Maleficent would do the same for her if it had been Henry in danger.
When the lift shaft rose back up to the library Emma's eyes widened. "Why is she here?" Emma growled immediately assuming Maleficent was up to no good. "Maleficent is going to help us, and we're going to help her" Regina began. "Emma you have to believe me, we need to defeat Zelena before something happens to Lily". Emma allowed both Regina and Maleficent out of the lift and slumped at an empty table. Maleficent told Emma everything she had just explained to Regina, and thanks to her super power, Emma knew Maleficent was telling the truth. Emma sighed, "So you think Zelena is using Lily as some kind of puppet?" she asked. Maleficent nodded, "Lily asked if I could show her the cave, she said she wanted to see where I'd been trapped all these years, said it would help her forgive me somehow. Only when we got here Zelena was waiting, I didn't see her at first, she just appeared from nowhere. She sent the three of us deep into the cave and slashed my leg with a knife and chained me up. So I transformed into the dragon to try and overpower her but she used Lily as a shield and I couldn't hurt her, not without hurting Lily. Then they both disappeared, together." All went quiet. Regina looked to Emma and placed her hand upon her thigh, out of Maleficent's sight, and squeezed gently. "We will stop her Emma" Regina put in breaking the lengthy silence.
Regina, Emma and Maleficent left the library in order to see Mr Gold. Mr Gold listened carefully to everything the women had to say. "So Zelena has the cloak" he grumbled, something he hoped wasn't true. "It would seem so" Regina said "But we have this" she told, pulling the mirror out of her pocket. Mr Gold's hands shook with anger as he thought of the unique power Zelena now possessed. True they had the mirror but it meant nothing now that Lily was with Zelena in person. Mr Gold explained that under the cloak nobody would be able to be seen, and no spell could track it. Zelena had the upper hand. "How's my Mom and Dad?" Emma asked attempting to change the course of the conversation. "I don't know, I haven't seen either of them since they left here. They went back to their apartment. If I were you I'd give them both some space, don't go home tonight. Regina take her back with you", "What about me?" Maleficent asked. "If you want to help, the best thing you can do is get back to the cave and act like you know nothing, if either Zelena or Lily come back you let us know; using this" Mr Gold took two pieces of velcro from a drawer behind him. "What is that?" Emma asked. "Ms Swan, both you and Maleficent need to strap the velcro around your wrists, if Lily is in this realm, you'll both feel a burning sensation below the velcro. I'm afraid this is the only way we will know when she has returned to Storybrooke. First thing in the morning I will collect Henry and keep him under my own protection away from Zelena". Mr Gold then opened up the front door, "Now go, rest up, because after tonight, the whole town could be in danger".

Chapter 15. Emma

Emma lay in bed beside Regina. She felt numb and worthless. Her mother despised her, her brother had been kidnapped and her loved ones were in danger, all because she was the saviour. And no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't sleep, so after a while she gave up and just lay staring into the darkness thinking of Regina. She couldn't believe how close they had become, they had literally fought like cat and dog, even tried to kill each other but now Emma was starting to feel as if she wouldn't be able to go on if it weren't for Regina.
Regina is strong and independant. She is powerful and stubborn and beautiful, everything Emma could see in her right from the moment they first met. And she wanted her to know that every time she closed her eyes she saw her face and everywhere she went she was thinking about her. "Regina, are you awake?" she whispered. There was no reply. Emma turned to see Regina sleeping peacefully beside her. For a moment she stayed silent and just watched as her chest rose and fell before she leaned in close and kissed her soft lips. Regina stirred, her eyes flickered open. Before she had the chance to ask what was going on, Emma blurted out, "Regina, You're the most beautiful sight I have ever seen". Regina sat up and gazed into Emma's eyes, but again, before she could say a word; Emma lunged at her and kissed her, again and again, her newly formed tears dropping onto Regina's face. Regina wrapped her arms around Emma's body but pulled away from her kiss, "Emma, what's wrong?" She asked as she tasted one of Emma's salty tears. "Nothing, please just kiss me" she whispered, sobbing. Regina sat up and hugged Emma tightly, allowing her to let her emotions flow. "It's alright, It's alright I've got you" Regina lulled, rocking back and fore, stroking Emma's hair. "Emma stop torturing yourself, none of this was your fault", "I should have been there" Emma stuttered between breaths. Regina felt a lump form in her throat. She pecked Emma on the cheek then pulled her back down onto the mattress, where she cradled her in her arms for the rest of the night.

Emma woke alone in Regina's bed the next morning. When she glanced at the clock it was just after eight. She swung her legs out from beneath the duvet and prowled onto the landing. Regina's voice drifted from downstairs, she sounded groggy and a little stressed. Emma went to investigate. "yes, I know that but I won't wake her up she's been- I'll call you back" Regina uttered as she noticed Emma approach the office. "Emma, how are you feeling?" Regina asked jumping up from behind her desk to hug the saviour. Emma shrugged, "Who was that?" she questioned, nodding towards the phone. "Gold, he wants us over there asap, but we can wait a while, have some food", "Zelena isn't waiting", "No-no I doubt she is, but Emma" Regina began, "I'm fine, please, I want to go find my brother". Regina nodded and grabbed her jacket from the back of her chair. "Well come on then" she burst out before marching out of the room.
"So what now?" Emma asked Mr Gold half heartedly. "Well, you have one of two options; you can either go back to Wonderland and hope Zelena has returned to her mansion, or" Mr Gold paused. "Or what?" Emma fretted. "Or you can contact her directly, via this" Mr Gold picked up the mirror from the counter top and placed it into Emma's hands. "I thought this was useless now?" She catechized. Mr Gold thought about his answer before voicing it, "Emma, Zelena is trying to destroy you, but she's going to keep going after your nearest and dearest until you're too weak to fight back. The only way we can make sure nobody else gets hurt, is if you offer yourself up to her", "What, and let her win?" Emma questioned. "No, Regina and I will be there to protect you, but you need her to believe you would trade your life for your loved ones". Emma turned to Regina who looked tense. "Ok, I'll do it" She confirmed, tightly clasping the mirror in her hand. "When?" Regina asked, "No time like the present" Mr Gold suggested. "What no, this isn't something she can rush in to" Regina objected. "Regina it's fine, i'm not afraid of her" Emma said truthfully. Thankfully Regina backed down. "Alright, go to the well, summon Zelena, I'll fetch Henry and leave him with Belle, then I'll be right there to back you up" Mr Gold drawled, picking up a few bits and pieces.

The leaves on the trees had suddenly changed from green to dark browns and reds. It was slap bang in the middle of October and everything seemed more beautiful and relaxing. Everything besides the trouble that would soon descend upon Storybrooke. Emma and Regina roamed leisurely; deep into the forest. After a short time they stumbled upon the well. Emma sighed and held out the mirror. "You know you don't have to do this" Regina stated, "No, I do, I have to do this" Emma exclaimed, "Stay quiet, don't give her any reason to believe i'm not here alone" she added summoning the courage to call Zelena. Regina's eyes saddened but she nodded and took a few steps back and hid behind a tree, peeking around the trunk to keep an eye on Emma. "Zelena, I know you can hear me, answer me" Emma ordered clearly into the glass mirror. Her eyes switched from the mirror to Regina and back again. "Zelena, there's no need to make this any harder for either of us. If you want me, come get me". Expeditiously a glimpse of green skin appeared in the reflection. "Well, if it isn't the saviour" Zelena smirked, widening her eyes playfully. "Where is Neal?" Emma asked seriously, "He's ok, last time I saw him he was anyway", "What do you mean?", "Well, I left him with Lily, she's quite a good babysitter, who would have guessed". Emma ignored this bit of information. "Zelena, you can stop playing games, you and I both know you're after a fight, so lets just get this over and done with". Zelena sniggered, "But we haven't discussed the terms and conditions". "What do you want?" Emma asked, growing frustrated. "Well, besides you dead; obviously. I want my happy ending", "Yeah and what's that?", "You know what, I haven't really decided yet, something to do with me having a family of my own, power and, oh yeah, I want my dear little sis to get down on her knees and beg me to kill her instead of torturing her beyond all limits". Emma had to use every strength in her body not to glance at Regina. "Fine, but if I win this fight, what happens then?", "That's not going to happen, but I'll tell you what, If somehow you win; you'll be rid of me forever", "And you guarantee that?", "Yes I guarantee it, because the only way you're going to beat me is by killing me and you don't have it in you. See you at sundown" Zelena hissed and then disappeared. Emma swallowed hard, within hours, one of them would be dead. Emma looked up, her eyes met Regina's. Neither of them knew what to say and so remained silent and still. "Where the hell is Gold?" Regina whipped scouring her surroundings. "He probably has a good reason for not being here" Emma mumbled but Regina didn't seem to agree.

Chapter 16. Regina

Mr Gold never showed up. Regina and Emma waited in the forest for near an hour before they gave up and went back into town. A few heads turned and stared as the queen and the saviour walked into Granny's together and took a seat opposite one another. Regina glowered at each of them and they soon looked away and continued their own conversations. "What are we going to do?" Emma fretted. Regina thought of filling Emma with false hope, she wanted to tell her everything was going to be ok but she couldn't bring herself to lie to her. Instead she reached out for her hand and gave her a sympathetic look. "I don't know" she admitted, "But I will not leave your side, I will do all I can to protect you". Emma's bottom lip began to tremble but she refused to break down in public. "I want to see my mom" Emma noted. "I don't think that's such a good idea" Regina declared, holding Emma's best interests at heart. "Probably not, I'm the last person they'll want to see, but they do deserve to know that Neal is ok". Regina agreed and nodded. "Mom! Mom!" a voice filled the quiet diner. Henry raced through the door and jumped onto the booth Emma and Regina were sitting at. "Henry" they both cooed, at the sight of their beautiful son. "Where have you been? What's going on?" he asked inquisitively. Both women muttered and mumbled as they attempted to think of what to tell him. Emma decided it should be the truth and so she took a deep breath and looked Henry deep into the eye. "Zelena has Neal, she kidnapped him, he's ok, he isn't hurt, but Zelena is after everybody I love, and so you are in danger. Henry promise me you will listen very clearly to what I'm about to tell you". Henry didn't look so happy, his eyes saddened. "In order to keep you safe, I have to offer myself up to Zelena", "What? No! She'll kill you" Henry blurted out. The diner fell silent. Regina whispered, "No she won't, Emma is going to be fine", "How can you be so sure?" Henry argued, biting back at Regina. "I'm going to help her" Regina added emotionally. "Why? You don't care" Henry shouted. Regina looked hurt. Emma grabbed Henry's wrist tightly and dragged him outside. "Now listen kid, you're scared, I get it, but this is something I have to do. And believe it or not Regina is going to help me, because-", Regina interrupted, "Emma no" she warned, frightened, "He's going to find out sooner or later" Emma said. Henry stood confused as his mom's looked longingly at each other. "You wanted to know why I have been coming around a lot lately? I wasn't just coming to see you, I was visiting Regina" Emma breathed nervously. Henry looked confused, Regina stammered as she groaned, unable to find the right words to say to her son. Instead she took Emma's hand and entwined her fingers with hers. "It's early days but". Henry's jaw dropped open so Regina fell silent. Emma widened her eyes in surprise as Henry stared open mouthed at the two of them. "Well say something" Regina muttered unaware of Henry's thoughts. "This is AMAZING" Henry suddenly exclaimed throwing his arms around his moms. "You're not, freaked out?" Emma asked taken aback. Henry grinned from ear to ear, "You're kidding, the two people I love the most in the entire world, together. I'm so happy" He cried, his words muffled as he squeezed tightly onto his moms. Regina giggled nervously and smiled widely. Emma did the same and lightly kissed Regina on the forehead as the three of them stood together, sharing a moment of affection. "We should go celebrate" Henry suggested looking up at his moms. "Sure, the three of us can go home and get pizza" Regina nodded excitedly. "There's just one thing I need to do first" she added. Emma's nerves came back as Regina mentioned going to speak to David and Mary Margaret. "Emma take Henry home, I won't be long" Regina told, reassuring the blonde. Henry smiled as Regina stroked Emma's cheek before she left to see his grandparents.
No sound came from Mary Margaret's home as Regina arrived on the doorstep, but the silence was deafening. "I haven't come here to cause an argument" Regina voiced, as though she were surrendering from a fight that had not yet began. Regina stared at the door, "Zelena has it in for Emma, she's going to kill her" Regina called. "Again there was no reply. "Fine, you may not care what happens to Emma now but I do" she added, kicking the lower end of the door in frustration before marching angrily out of the apartment building.
Back home Regina let herself in quietly. Henry had managed to cheer Emma up by letting her play computer games with him. For a while she stood in the doorway watching them have a good time, but the sound of them both laughing soon saddened her as she thought of the danger that lay ahead. Sundown was no more than a few hours away. "Mom" Henry called out as he spotted Regina lurking in the doorway. Emma looked up. "What happened?" she asked nervously. "I'm sorry Emma" Regina murmured, Henry glanced back at Emma, not knowing what was happening. "Henry, can you give us a minute?" Regina asked. Henry placed down his controller and left the room, closing the door behind him. Emma stared aimlessly at the fireplace. Regina sat beside her on the sofa, she placed her hand on Emma's thigh, "They hate me don't they?" Emma mumbled. "No, They're upset, they're not thinking straight, they probably just need time alone together, to cope" Regina breathed looking Emma in the eye, "I won't let anything bad happen to you" she added stroking her cheek. Emma dropped her head into her hands and sighed. "What are we going to do?" she questioned. "What we always do. Fight back" Regina told. Emma nodded, then wrapped her arms around Regina, hugging her tightly.

"No, seriously Emma you need to give it all your effort" Regina shouted from across the garden as Emma dived away from yet another spell heading her way. "I can't do it" Emma shouted back. Regina sighed impatiently, tied her hair back then stood with her hands on her hips. "You need to practice, Zelena is going to give you hell tonight", "I know but what's the point? I can't do it and she's going to beat me anyway. You heard her, the only way I can win is if I kill her", "Emma we will find a way, but honestly? You've already killed. Cruella is dead because of you, so why not wipe Zelena's face off the Earth too?", "Because purposely killing people is your thing Regina; not mine". Regina raised an eyebrow and smiled, then half turned, casting an unexpected spell directly at Emma. Emma immediately threw out her hands in order to protect herself, casting her own defense spell, avoiding Regina's magic, instantly causing Regina to fall backwards onto the ground. Emma gasped, "Regina?" She called out worrying that she may have hurt her friend. Regina sat up, "Nicely done Ms Swan" she panted clambering to her feet, "Now, do it again" she insisted, setting herself up for another fall. Emma grinned and looked down at her hands, somewhat proud of herself, before getting ready to shield herself once more. Regina allowed Emma to send her crashing to the ground a few times before attacking her with her full potential. As Emma steadied herself for the first dangerous curse, Regina swiped her hand through the air and launched a vicious curse. Emma focused and shielded herself, then immediately catapulted her own vicious spell. For an hour they sent each other flailing across the garden in an attempt to practice for Zelena's fight, before calling it quits and heading back inside the house. "I could have done more" Emma panted as they reached the porch. "I know, but we don't want you using all your energy up" Regina replied, opening the front door. Henry was helping himself to a sandwich when they closed the door behind them. "So, are you gonna tell me what's going on yet?" He asked, biting into the bread. Regina sighed, Emma copied and placed her hand on her hips. "Zelena is coming to Storybrooke", "When?" Henry shouted almost choking, "Tonight, but it's ok, Regina and Mr Gold are going to protect me. I'm going to win Henry" Emma fained confidence but Henry saw right through her, "No you can't go" he chirped, "I have to kid, if I don't she's going to take away everyone I love until i'm the only person left, I have to trick her", "Then I want to be there to protect you too", "Absolutely not" both Emma and Regina cried at the thought of their son being anywhere near Zelena. "You will be staying with Granny, Henry I am serious I don't want you sneaking off" Regina said pointing her finger at him.

Chapter 17. Emma

Mr Gold arrived at Regina's a little while later and together he, Regina and Emma dropped Henry off at Granny's before driving into the forest. The forest seemed creepier at night. The trees dark shadows casted by the setting sun lurked all around them, and there seemed to be little noise, besides that of the twigs snapping and crunching beneath their feet. As they drew nearer to the well, Emma felt a strange burning sensation biting at her wrist, causing her to stop walking and grab hold of her arm. "What's wrong?" Regina asked, suddenly panicking as Emma gasped in pain. "My arm" she noted, rolling up her sleeve to reveal a red rash gnawing at her skin. Mr Gold took a step closer and checked over Emma's arm. Tightly strapped around it was the velcro he had given her. "Looks like Lily has returned" Mr Gold addressed. Both Emma and Regina glanced around them to avoid an unexpected attack. "If Lily's here that means Neal is too right?" Emma asked, continuing to search her surroundings. "Possibly" Mr Gold spoke quietly as he ripped the velcro away and shoved it into his coat pocket. With that Regina stepped a few feet ahead and waved her hand in front of them. "What are you doing?" Emma asked confused. "Cloaking spell, this way we can see if Zelena turns up and she won't see us" she explained, emits of purple smoke disintegrating in the air. Mr Gold nodded, even though he knew the spell wouldn't last very long. Almost right after the spell had been activated two dark figures appeared up ahead, stepping out of a dark green ocean of smoke. Emma took a deep breath as she watched the figures appear in full sight beneath the red tinted skyline. "Gold, what'll I do?" Emma breathed silently. Mr Gold stared through at Zelena and placed his arm upon Emma's shoulder. "That's up to you, but whatever happens, she needs to think you're here alone, don't give her any reason to change the plan" he whispered. Regina's forehead wrinkled as she attempted to remain calm despite the growing nauseous feeling swelling her up inside. "I've got your back" Regina told Emma, with honesty in her eyes. Emma smiled weakly and nodded. "I know" she said before taking her first step outside of the cloaking spell.

The wind began to pick up outside of the hidden bubble and Emma was immediately filled with adrenaline. Now in the open, standing only metres away from Zelena and her old friend, Emma was ready to fight. "Well, look who actually showed up. To be honest, I didn't think you would" Zelena cackled. "Don't underestimate me Zelena" Emma warned, clenching her fists at her sides. Zelena guffawed, "Why not? My little sister been teaching you magic has she? "Why would Regina help me?" Emma asked defensively. "Ooh easy now, don't get yourself all worked up sweetheart" Zelena soothed stepping closer to the saviour. "Darling I've been watching you for weeks, I know all about your little...lessons with my sister, and the kissing, and the touching" she added, her breath cold and harsh against her cheek. Emma swallowed as she thought of Zelena watching her and Regina while they thought they were alone. Shaking the thought from her mind Emma focused back on the here and now. "Zelena you wanted to fight, lets just get it over with" Emma hissed, keeping her eyes on Lily who looked rather content with the torment Zelena was unleashing upon her. "There isn't going to be a fight, I'm going to kill you and then I'm going to get my happy ending", "I could kill you" Emma called as Zelena stepped away, "I killed Cruella, who's to say I won't kill you" she added. Zelena turned around slowly and smirked, her bright white teeth glowering. "Never compare me to 'Cruella De Vile darling'" Zelena spoke, imitating the dead villains voice. With that she then catapulted a spell towards Emma that soon saw her held against a tree by its branches. Lily laughed quietly to herself as Emma struggled to break free from the bone crushing grip of the tree. "The more you struggle the tighter the grip will become" Zelena teased, roaming around the tree. Emma let her body go limp and the tree dropped her onto the ground with a thud. "Get up" Zelena suddenly raised her voice in anger having shaken Emma up enough to take her on. Emma climbed to her feet, gritted her teeth and hissed "Bring it on" lowering the tone of her voice. Then she raised her hands, and stretched her arms out in front of her. Zelena craned her neck and hurled a colossal of thick green smog towards her. Emma instantly blocked the spell from consuming her and it ceased to exist. "My, you have gotten a lot better at controlling yourself haven't you" Zelena noted, throwing another curse Emma's way. Emma ignored her comment and once again deflected Zelena's spell. At this point Lily stepped into the shadows and watched from behind a tree, out of harm's way as the two women threw bolts of light and smoke at one another. Emma had completely lost track of time, she no longer knew if she had been fighting a few minutes or hours. Her blood gushed through her veins and a vast amount of sweat trickled down her forehead as her body ran on adrenaline alone. "Give up" Zelena shouted, "I will never give up on my family" Emma cried out forcing her body to hold on. She could feel her fatigue creeping in as her strength weakened.
Zelena was right, there was no way she was going to win. She just wasn't strong enough. Doubt settled in her mind and she almost gave up when the footsteps of somebody approaching nearby sounded. In the darkness a boy stepped out into the open. "Henry" Emma yelled in fear as her son appeared before her. Zelena threw Emma off balance and turned to the young boy behind her. "It's a little past your bedtime isn't it young man?" Zelena asked, pushing forward. Henry ducked as a spell headed right for him. Emma clenched her fists so tightly, the skin around her knuckles turned yellow and her veins raised and stood out. "Stay away from my son" she bellowed, running at the witch. As she grew near enough, Emma launched herself onto Zelena, attempting to overthrow her as she shoved her against the well. The two women struggled, clawing at each other to gain the upper hand. "Mom" Henry cried as a bright light appeared from inside the well. Without time to get away, the light sucked both Emma and Zelena inside and they disappeared without a trace.

Chapter 18. Regina

"Emma" Regina shrieked running wildly from the protection of the cloaking spell and to the well. As she peered down inside, she saw nothing. Neither Emma or Zelena were there, they had vanished. Regina let out a piercing scream as she thought the worst. Mr Gold hurried over to Henry and asked if he was ok as Regina sobbed. "You should have let me go, I could have saved her" Regina scorned Mr Gold, who had disallowed her to interfere with the fight by holding her back. Mr Gold stormed past Regina "It would have been unwise to go rushing in like that". "Where did my mom go?" Henry asked Mr Gold worriedly. Mr Gold did not answer, instead he dragged Henry away. Regina stood tall and composed herself, "You" she called pointing to Lily. Lily's eyes widened and she instantly fell under the wrath of terror. "Where has she taken her?" Regina asked, spitting with fury. "I don't know" Lily panicked, stuttering. "You don't know?", "I don't know" Lily repeated, shaking. Regina grabbed hold of Lily by the collar and lifted her from the ground before slamming her into the dirt. Lily froze as Regina's hand smashed through her chest, pulling out her beating heart. Regina began to squeeze on the pulsating red organ, intent on killing the young woman right there, before she restrained her clawed fingers. "No, no you're going to get her back" she spluttered. Her desperate need to bring back Emma outgrowing her want to kill. Lily crawled back, clutching her chest as her body reacted to her missing heart. Regina breathed heavily as she frowned upon Lily in despise.
Regina casted herself and Lily into the cave below the library, where Maleficent sat waiting, oblivious to what had just happened. "Lily?" the relieved mother called out rushing towards her daughter. Regina tossed a spell that glued Maleficent's feet to the ground she stood on, not allowing her to run to her daughter's aid. Maleficent looked down at her feet confused and attempted to pull herself free before scouring at Regina for an explanation. Regina threw Lily towards Maleficent, sending the slim, limp brunette crashing into her Mother's arms as she fastened the iron chains around both her wrists and ankles. The chains rattled and clinked as Lily desperately tried to break free. "I wouldn't do that if I were you" Regina forewarned, dangling her heart before her eyes like a deadly weapon. "What is going on?" Maleficent barked. "Your daughter clearly did inherit Emma's darkness at birth, and much more" Regina sassed admiring the family portrait that stood helpless ahead of her, before she told Maleficent all that had happened in the forest.
Not long later Mr Gold arrived at the library and called for Regina from above. "I'll be back for you" she hissed at Lily before making her way over to the lift shaft. "Where is Henry? Is he ok?" She asked anxiously as her eyes met Mr Gold's. She had not yet forgiven him for holding her back. "I'm right here mom" Henry's small voice spoke. "Henry" Regina gasped, wrapping her arms around her son. "I told you to stay at Granny's, why the hell didn't you listen to me?" she asked, growing angry. "I'm sorry, I just wanted to help" he declared, fresh tears forming in his eyes. Regina took a deep breath and sighed. "Henry, what you just did was stupid, and dangerous, and brave and- and stupid" she stammered, briefing her son on his actions. "Promise me you will never do something like that again" she commanded. Henry nodded, "Where is Emma?" He asked fearfully. "I don't know, but I promise, I will find her. I will get her back" Regina assured, gripping Henry's shoulders and lightly shaking him. "Let me help you, please mom" Henry begged. Regina covered her eyes with her hand and thought about her answer. She knew Henry was just as worried about Emma as she was, she also knew he wouldn't take no for an answer and would sneak off on his own mission behind her back as he had done that night. "Alright but you have to do exactly as I say, I will NOT lose you too", "You won't mom, and you haven't lost Emma. We're gonna go find her and bring her home, you said so yourself" Henry spoke, hugging his mom. "What would I do without you hey?" She whispered, hugging him back tightly. Mr Gold then cleared his throat. "I hate to break this up but we need to make a move and sort out a plan" he grunted. Regina and Henry loosened their grip on each other and followed Mr Gold back to the pawn brokers.
Back at his shop, Mr Gold unlocked a small wooden box, where he had locked away Lily's way of contacting Zelena. "Our best bet is to use our new friend to get back at Zelena" he suggested, referring to Lily. Regina slammed the girl's heart onto the counter and stared furiously at it until her sight turned to nothing more than a blur of colour. Henry stood in silence at his mother's side, observing the handing over of the magical objects. Regina stared into the mirror, a vain popping from her forehead as she focused on the trashed room at the mansion back in Wonderland. As she imagined the pain and torture she was going to inflict upon Zelena, Regina snarled, lost in a trance. "Mom?" Henry spoke out, tearing Regina's eyes from the mirror. "Sorry" she mumbled smiling to her son. "Let's go get your mom" she added, grabbing Lily's heart off the counter, stuffing it roughly into her pocket before heading out of the pawn brokers.

Regina lead the way to the library, breaking open the lock allowing her and Henry inside. The clock upon the wall read 9:47pm, the ticking of the passing seconds echoed throughout the room, seemingly louder than their beating hearts. "Right, all I want you to do is press this button right here, it will take me down into the cave. Henry listen to me, this is very important, the only way I can get back out is if you follow my instructions. Don't go running off, no matter what happens ok?" she drilled into him. Henry nodded and slid the lift door across. Regina cupped her hand around Henry's chin and smiled sweetly before stepping into the lift. Henry then secured the door and pressed the big red button that took Regina deep underground.
Both Maleficent and Lily were still in the exact positions Regina had left them. They both looked up as they heard the clanking of the lift shaft. "Sorry I was gone for so long" Regina announced stepping into the cave for what felt like the one hundredth time. Maleficent placed both her hands on her hips and eyed Regina suspiciously. "So what are you going to do to me now?" Lily piped up, feeling brave enough to question Regina hoping her mother would be able to protect her. "Lily my lovely you're going to do exactly as I say" Regina told, "And why would I do that?" she asked. With that Regina withdrew the beating heart from her pocket. "You're forgetting I hold the power to end your life in my hand. If you help me get Emma back, I will spare your life, If not I will kill you right here in front of your mother and show your lifeless body no more respect than I would a dead dog" Regina taunted. Lily backed down, fearfully. "So are you going to help me or not?" Regina asked squeezing the heart. Lily clutched her chest, gagging in pain. "Yes" she spluttered, "What was that?" Regina smirked, "YES, I will help you" she breathed in agony. Regina smiled, "That's what I thought". Maleficent helped comfort her daughter as she recovered from the pains in her chest. Regina withdrew the mirror from her other pocket and handed it to Lily.

Lily clasped the cold handle and looked into the ever so familiar throwback. "Now, tell the witch you want to get back to Wonderland to be with her, to help kill the saviour. Show no remorse and do NOT mention that you have seen nor spoken to me" Regina said, tilting her head ready to listen in to the forthcoming conversation. Lily sighed and closed her eyes for a moment before licking her lips and summoning Zelena to the enchanted realm reflector. "Zelena, Zelena it's me, Lily, where are you?" she queried. A moment of silence passed. "Zelena, Zelena are you there?". "Yes, i'm here what do you want?" Zelena snapped. Regina held Lily's heart in plain view, reminding her of what her fate could be if she took a step out of line. "Are you ok? You disappeared in that well, I've been worried" Lily spoke, "I'm fine no need to worry about me, I'm always fine" Zelena muttered, fixing her hair. "What about Emma?", "What about her?", "Have you killed her yet?". Zelena chuckled to herself, "No, I'm going to keep her locked up for a while first, just to see her suffer. You know I like to play with my food before I eat it", "I want to be there, I want to see you kill her" Lily panted. Zelena looked confused and a little suspicious, "Why?", "She ruined my life, I'm the way I am because of her, I want to see her dead". Zelena then laughed, "My, are you sure you want to become good? You've got so much potential to be wicked". "I'm not sure what I want right now, all I know is that I want Emma Swan dead just as much as you do. Please Zelena, let me come back". Zelena cleared her throat. "Ok, be at the well in one hour, I'll open a portal, it will only be activated for all of five seconds so you need to be quick. Any body part outside of the spell will stay in Storybrooke, and you're not going to be any good to anyone with missing limbs". "Thank you Zelena, I won't let you down" Lily sighed in relief hoping that Regina was satisfied with her work. Zelena then disappeared from the mirror and the spell cut off. Regina snatched the mirror out of Lily's hands and scoured at the glass. She then whipped the chains from Lily's wrists and ankles. "Sorry Mal, but I'm going to have to leave you here for now. I'll ask Gold to come set you free when I've gone through the portal. Now come on oh heartless one" Regina mocked, hiding Lily's heart out of sight once more.
Regina called up to Henry and the young boy activated the lift, bringing her and Lily up to the ground floor. "Good work Henry" Regina applauded her son. Henry shrugged his shoulders, "No big deal. What are we doing next?" he asked. "Next, I go through the portal and rescue Emma", "What about me?", "I need you, with the bookworm's help, to find a way for me to get back to Storybrooke with Emma, you know that only the amount of people who go through the portal can come back", "I want to help, let me come with you, Belle could find a way by herself", "No Henry please, I need you here, safe, besides this is helping me AND Emma, it's down to you to get us home" Regina pointed out. Henry looked down at his feet but didn't argue, instead he agreed with his mother and did as he was told.
Regina practically manhandled Lily the whole way into the forest, exactly the same way she had dragged her out from there a few hours previously. Regina allowed Henry to tag along under the strict instruction that as soon as the portal closed he was to run to Mr Gold's and help Belle find a way to cheat the the rules of the portal. A dark green smoke began frothing from inside the well, the centre swirling around like a mini cyclone. Regina knew immediately that this was Zelena's portal, and she was more than ready to go and save the saviour. "Alright Henry, you know what to do. Ready?" she called over the wind. Henry nodded, and took Lily's heart from his mother. Regina climbed upon the well. "Now Henry" she shouted jumping inside the thick smog. Henry smashed his hand through Lily's chest, returning her heart. As Lily fell to the floor to regain her strength, Regina dived into the darkness vanished into thin air.

Chapter 19. Emma

Zelena had been gone for hours and had left Emma chained and gagged, alone in the bright white room. Though she was glad not to be back in the damp dark cell, this new prison was just as bad. The room itself was empty besides a door. There was no windows and no furniture, Emma was its only inhabitant. The ceiling was white; the walls were white and the floor was white, besides the few droplets of ruby red blood that had dripped from Emma's forehead and onto the marble flooring. The witch didn't say where she was going, neither did she say how long she was going to be but Emma didn't care. If Zelena had told her her plans it would just make her worry more about getting out of there, at least she could use this time to piece everything together and work out some sort of plan. As she recalled her fight with Zelena, Emma's thoughts suddenly turned to Henry and Regina. Was they ok? Were they looking for her? Had they given up? She came to realise the more she thought about her loved ones; the more determined she was to get home to them. She thought about her mother, the tone she had used with her when she realised Neal was missing. She thought of the emptiness in her father's eyes when she looked to him for redemption. As far as she knew Neal was ok. Zelena had said so herself, she had no reason to lie. If she had ended the baby's life she would have said so.
A long while later the sound of footsteps could be heard outside of the room, followed by the clicking of a key turning in the lock. Emma sat up and stared at the narrow door. Unsurprisingly a flicker of green flesh emitted into sight. Zelena had returned. Her black velvet dress clung tightly to her huge swollen stomach. The baby would be here anyday now, she can't have had much longer to go. Zelena stared pitifully at Emma as she walked slowly into the room. "I hope the floor isn't too uncomfortable" she simpered. Emma lifted her gaze to the witch's face and squinted her eyes. Zelena held out a hand and cupped Emma's face, examining her every feature before ferociously ripping the tape from her mouth. Emma whimpered as her skin began to sting. "I think it's time we had a little chat don't you?" Zelena whispered invading Emma's personal space. "I don't think I want to talk to you" Emma voiced, "Alright then" Zelena shrugged attempting to smother Emma with the tape once again. Emma turned her face and Zelena chuckled to herself. "I thought you would change your mind" she stated with a grin. "Where is Neal?", "He's sleeping", "What have you done to him? If you've hurt him I swear-", "Calm down, I've not hurt your brother", "Zelena please, take him back to my parents, he's just a baby", "True but that is only temporary, he will grow and age and pretty soon he will be a man, and he would side against me just like you have. So giving him back isn't an option", "So what do you plan to do? Keep him? Use him as a slave?", "No, worse. I'm going to bring him up as my own and one day he's going to kill Snow White and Prince Charming without a clue of who they are", "You can't be serious" Emma gasped. "Oh I am more than serious", "And what about me? What are you going to do with me?" Emma questioned. Zelena sat back and licked her lips, "I was going to kill you right away, But then I thought why not kidnap another child, why not bring your precious son to Wonderland. You could both live in this room together, and watch each other rot and starve to death", "You lay a finger on my son I swear-", "Enough of the swearing Emma, you and I both know you're not going to do anything, how can you? I have you here, tied up against your will. I'm the one with the upper hand. If I want you son, there's nothing you can do to stop me", "Maybe, but if you want to get to Henry you'll have to get through Regina first" Emma warned, but Zelena wasn't threatened. She cackled, loudly, her wicked laughter filling the empty room. "Ah yes, my dear little sis. You know; I almost forgot about her. You've gotten rather close to your step grandmother recently", "She's not my step grandmother. Regina was forced into a loveless marriage with King Leopold years ago", "Quite defensive aren't you?" Zelena resorted, a sly look in her eye. Emma bit her tongue. "Is she a good kisser? Regina", Emma stayed silent, "Oh the look on your face when 'Mommy' walked in was hilarious" Zelena added. Emma gulped a breath of air. "Wait, how do you know that?", "I was there hun", "No, My dad was downstairs, Neal must have already been gone by then, how could you have seen my face if you weren't in the room with us. There was nowhere for you to hide". Zelena backed off, her grin fell from her face. She didn't say another word, instead she left the room, slammed the door and locked Emma away again. Emma groaned and lay back, closing her eyes. "May as well get some sleep, don't think I'm going anywhere soon" she sighed, talking to herself, but before she could drift off the door opened again, only this time two of Zelena's flying monkeys appeared. Emma shifted her weight and looked the monkey's right in the eye. "Sorry, I'm all out of bananas" she mentioned refusing to let the ugly animals scare her. Both monkeys knuckles cracked as they ventured over to Emma, the monkey on the left held out its hand and blew a powder into Emma's face. She tried desperately not to inhale it but soon found herself gagging for oxygen, allowing the chloroform to knock her out.

Chapter 20. Regina

Regina appeared to be back in Wonderland. Although she couldn't tell where in the realm she had transcended to, there was something familiar about the way the moonlight reflected on the river running by in the near distance. Everything beneath the smooth velvety sky was wet, for the rain clouds had dispersed but left behind evidence of its presence. Dark liquidish mud had squelched up Regina's arms and legs, with the odd splatter smothered up her face. She exhaled deeply and pushed herself up onto her elbows. Emma was here, weather she was near or not didn't matter, Regina was determined to find her and take her home to her family no matter what. As she climbed to her feet, Regina squinted into the darkness in the hopes she could find a footpath or road that would lead her to the mansion.
Pushing her way through a soggy field nearby, the only other sound besides her own heavy breathing was the caressing of overgrown grass. Regina seemed to be alone, which was frightening. With no friend or ally to help her get to Zelena's home, she hoped that she wouldn't bump into anyone or anything that could harm or delay her from getting to Emma. Bright glistening stars burning millions of miles away gave off little light as Regina continued her tiring walk deeper into Wonderland, and although she became tired she refused to stop.
After a night of rambling through the pitch black outskirts of Wonderland, the sun finally rose and took its place in the sky, safely leading Regina into the heart of the realm. The wet mud upon her flesh had hardened and dropped off, leaving her skin a dusty grey colour. "What I wouldn't do for a shower right now" she moaned to herself as she scrubbed at her arms with her fingernails. Just then she felt a prick of pain bite at her ankle. "What the hell?" she gasped as she looked down to see a small white ball of fluff withdrawing a tiny sword from her leg. "Are you going to the treacle well?" the small animal asked. Regina blinked, "Why what's it to you, rat?" she spat. "I'm not a rat, I'm a mouse", "Rat, mouse, hamster, they're all the same". The mouse threw her sword to the floor and folded her arms like a sulking child. "Tell me" she shouted, "Tell me why you stabbed me" Regina replied. The mouse turned away, refusing to give an answer. Regina smirked and picked her up by her long pink tail. "Alright alright, I'll tell you, oh I feel sick" the mouse pleaded as her tiny body lingered upside down in the open air. Regina placed her hand under the mouse's feet, giving it a platform to stand on. "Why did you stab me?" Regina asked again. The mouse sighed, "I'm training" she whimpered, "for what?", "to join the army". Regina laughed, "You join the army? But you're much too small to fight off those revolting monkey's" she mentioned. The mouse folded her arms once more, "You don't think I could do it?", "It's highly unlikely. But now tell me, what is this Treacle Well you speak of?", "You're a stranger, that's where strangers go". Regina looked taken aback. "You don't know who I am?" she asked, "No, should I?" the mouse asked. Regina smiled weakly, "No, no I'm nobody" she told, keeping her identity to herself. "Oh, then if you're not going to treacle well, where are you going?", "I'm looking for my friend, she was brought here by The Wicked Witch Of The West". The mouse covered her eyes and fell to her knees. "What? What's wrong?" Regina asked in shock of the mouse's reaction. "The Wicked Witch Of The West, is a very Wicked Witch. They say she fears nobody, of course there is a rumour about a sister but we're not allowed to talk about her". Regina widened her eyes, "Why not?", "Because, to speak of her is against the law, Zelena said so herself. Anyone who talks about the sister ends up in the penitentiary, or worse, dead". "but why can't anybody speak of this potential sister?", "Some say she is more powerful than Zelena, and that makes her jealous of her, they tell stories of her around the campfire, she's a most evil woman, others say she was here in Wonderland just the other day, a changed woman". Regina's eyes saddened as she thought of her past. She had come a long way from there, but thanks to Emma she really was a changed woman. "Don't worry though, if she comes back I will protect you" the mouse puffed out her chest. "You don't need to protect me, the evil queen isn't going to attack anyone", "How can you be so sure?". Regina smiled sweetly. "Because, I am Regina, Zelena's sister" she admitted. The mouse's jaw fell open and for a slight moment he looked afraid. "Please don't kill me" she murmured. "I'm not going to kill you, in fact, I think we could help each other". The mouse sat in Regina's palm and listened as she came up with an agreement. "I'll help you get into the army, if you help me find my friend", "Deal" the small mouse answered straight away, thinking solely of her dream of joining the army. Regina grinned, "Ok, so where do we go from here? How can I get to Emma?" she asked. The little mouse pointed up onto a high hill across the way. "Treacle Well" he breathed.

It was normally a long walk to Treacle Well, especially for mice but thanks to magic, Regina was able to teleport them both there in no time at all, but Treacle well was not at all like the well back in the forest in Storybrooke. Mainly because it was made entirely out of pastry. Regina placed the mouse down on the ledge of the well and looked down into the deep. "Is that treacle?" she asked as a golden liquid glistened up at her. "It is, you know they don't call it treacle well for nothing" the mouse replied with a chuckle. A long rope tied to a bucket dangled over the well. "Well let's go" the mouse cried, hopping inside the bucket. Regina took a scornful look into the big bucket before climbing inside. The mouse crawled up onto Regina's shoulder and shouted "Down". And with that, the rope unwound and lowered them into the bottom of the well.
The inside of the well wasn't as dim as Regina had expected, many candles flickered around them. "Elsie! Lacie! Tillie!" the mouse called out, her voice echoing. "Hello? Who's there?" a girl's voice drifted from behind a rock. "It's me, Mallymkun" the mouse told. And with that; three little girls appeared. "who is she?" the smallest girl asked, "This is my friend, she lost her friend, can you help her find her?" Mallymkun asked. The tallest girl smiled, "Yes" she informed taking the third girl's hand. Upon the girl's palm was an image of an eye. "You're a seer?" Regina spoke loudly, not expecting this. "Yes she is, but she does not speak" the smallest girl chimed passing the seer a piece of paper and a pen. "Tillie, can you see where the ladies friend was taken?". The girl nodded and began to draw on the paper. From what Regina could see, the drawing was of a large house, then it came to her. Emma was at Zelena's mansion. Regina took the paper from the girl to examine it but the girl suddenly snatched it back. "What is it?" Regina asked as the girl scribbled quickly. She had written something. The two other girls watched eagerly as the small girl continued to write. Mallymkun read aloud. "mansion, mother, madman's mountain, murder". "What does that mean?" Regina croaked, throwing her hand to her face. "Oh yeah, the girls can only draw and write things that start with the letter M", "Why?", "We don't know why" one of the girls spoke up, "We just can't seem to draw anything else". Regina looked confused, and nobody had yet answered her question. "But what does this mean?" she repeated trying to make sense of the five words. Mallymkun nodded at the seer. "thank you, we should go now" then the mouse jumped back into the bucket. Regina followed.

"So what you're telling me is; Zelena took Emma to the mansion but now she's on a mountain?" Regina questioned. "Madman's mountain, and she's about to murder her mother" the mouse added. "My mother is already dead, Snow White murdered her" she dribbled. "Then who's mother could it be?" Mallymkun gibed. Regina thought for a moment. There had been no answer at Mary Margaret's apartment, and Mr Gold hadn't seen her or David since they left his shop the night Neal was taken. "Oh my god, it's Snow". "Where? In October?" the mouse sounded surprised. "No not snow, Snow White. Emma's mother". "Wait, your friends mother is the woman that murdered your mother? That is confusing" the mouse stated. Regina agreed, "Yes, well I won't tell you the rest of the family tree. Now how the hell do we get to Madman's Mountain?". "We fly" Mallymkun shrieked excitedly. Regina turned so fast she almost gave herself whiplash. "Oh DoDo" Mallymkun called, looking into the sky, following up with a whistle. Regina protected her eyes from the sun as she followed the mouse's gaze, then just as she focused a giant bird swooped down to the ground. "You want me to get on that?" Regina interjected, "You want to save your friend?" the mouse sassed. With that Regina grabbed hold of the mouse and climbed onto the grubby bird's back. As the DoDo lifted its feet off the ground Mallymkun hid in Regina's pocket, using the zip of her jacket to strap her in so that she wouldn't fall. "Does this thing know where it's going?" Regina called out as the wind picked up, "DoDo's only go from one place to another, Madman's Mountain and Salazen Grum" Mallymkun answered looking anywhere but down. "Of course they do" Regina mumbled to herself sarcastically.
As the DoDo bird flew onwards the peak of Madman's Mountain became visible over the steep rocky walls that stood tall, high above the ground. Partly hidden by low venturing clouds, the mountain gave off a hair raising atmosphere. "Here we are, Madman's Mountain" Mallymkun addressed as Regina stared bug eyed at the snow filled peak. She suddenly felt a chill slither down her spine as she thought of Emma being held up here. Her thoughts then changed to Zelena, she was ready to give birth any day now, she couldn't possibly be up on the mountains torturing people. Could she? The DoDo descended and soon they were on the ground. The wind was boisterous and colder than any temperature she had ever enjoured before. Regina climbed down off the Dodo's back and thanked the bird by smoothing its neck, the bird looked back at Regina and then took back off to the sky, leaving them alone on the mountain top. Although it was still early in the day, the mountain was dark, it felt like the darkness was a permanent effect, causing its inhabitants to fear their surroundings more. There was nothing to see for miles around, the mountain went on and on into the distance with no sign of Wonderland below. The perfect place for torture. Regina span around, checking all directions hoping she would spot something that sparked an idea of where Emma may be. A silver mist loitered as the warmth of Regina and Mallymkun's breath swooped through the air, caressing with the strong breeze rushing by. "Emma" Regina bellowed, a blood curdling cry thrown into the darkness. The only reply was her echo, which seemed to sound even more agonized with each ring. Mallymkun shivered in Regina's pocket. Regina frowned down at the little white mouse as the echoing of her call died out. "We need to find Emma, there must be some sort of cabin or cave up here somewhere" she mumbled, taking her first step into the distance. Every minute or so she called out the saviours name, wishing for a reply, but nobody answered.

Chapter 21. Emma

The howling wind had always made Emma feel at peace, some nights it helped her relax before going to sleep, but there was a terrifying difference upon Madman's Mountain compared to the wind of Storybrooke. For hours now she had been cooped up in a tiny iced cage, similar to the wicker Neal had been trapped in in Neverland, only Emma's miniature prison dangled above an icy sea. The tide had been growing higher, deepening ever since she had woken up there. Zelena was nowhere to be seen, neither were any of her flying monkey's, she definitely felt alone even if she wasn't. If she couldn't get out of the cage soon, the sea level would rise over her head causing her to drown. By now she had almost given up on saving herself, so much of her energy was whipped away by the freezing temperature, she could barely keep her eyes open. As she fought against her fluttering eyelids, she pictured Henry in her mind. She had given him up to give him his best chance in life, but that had backfired. Now that things were finally falling into place her life was about to be ripped apart. It's true Henry had Regina, and everybody else back in Storybrooke to look out for him, but she had promised that she would never leave him again, that they would always be together but now that promise was about to be broken. She was going to die and will never see him or her parents again. "I'm sorry Neal" she murmured, thinking now of the baby she was unable to save. Just then the sound of snickering travelled through the cave. "What?" she cried as two guards appeared in the firelight near the entrance. The jack that had imprisoned her and Regina when they first travelled to Wonderland, stood to face her. His deep black eyes boring into her. "It's a shame the saviour couldn't actually save anyone isn't it?" he tormented. Emma decided not to bite back, instead she held her tongue and tried to save her energy, arguing with a piece of paper wasn't going to make her situation any better. The Jack was adamant on getting under Emma's skin and continued to tease her by making soothing sounds as he warmed himself by the fire, "Ah that's nice, I've always prefered the warmer weather" he cooed. Emma threw her head back and tried to ignore him. She thought of a warm place, her imagination was the closest thing to reality at the moment. She clenched her eyes shut, 'something warm, something warm' her conscience repeated. She thought of hot cocoa with cinnamon, summer time in Tallahassee and then Regina. A tear then rolled down her cheek, surprisingly emitting a fraction of warmth to her pale face. There were so many things she wanted to say to her. So many things she wanted to do with her by her side. Being close with her had been confusing and frightened her, her feelings for her had changed dramatically over night. One day they were at each other's throats, the next they were in bed together. There relationship was complicated but the thought of not knowing what was going to happen next excited her, it's all she ever wanted in life, and that's when it hit her. Tinkerbell was right, Regina really was her true love. Nobody had ever understood her as well as Regina had, nobody had ever felt the same rejection that they both had. More tears fell as the realisation sunk in. "Cheer up love" a voice soothed. "Zelena?" Emma asked looking around the cave. "Zelena are you there?" she added. The guards shot her a funny look before returning to their conversation."Yes, i'm here" the witch spoke. Suddenly the witch appeared, she'd been using Mr Gold's cloak. With her back turned Zelena spoke again, "Are you missing your family?" she asked. Emma felt no reason to lie, "Yes" she confessed, an ache pulling at her heartstrings. Zelena then slowly turned, holding a baby in her arms. "You gave birth?" Emma gasped, eyeing the tiny baby. "No I found it, of course I gave birth", "Is it a boy or a girl?", "Never you mind" she cooed, letting the baby latch onto her finger. "You see, I have a family now, I've got Robin Hood weather he likes it or not, and now I have my baby and It's made me sad to think about your last memory of your parents. Nobody wants to part on bad terms so, how would you like to see them one last time?". Emma sat up and pulled herself up against the iced bars. Zelena rummaged in her pocket and fished out her hand mirror, she then cast a spell and the mirror travelled over the gaping drop and hovered in front of the cage. As the spell began to work a distorted image became clear. "Mom?" Emma mouthed, her voice getting caught in her throat, "Dad?" her pupils suddenly dilated as she caught sight of her parents, gagged and chained in one of the dungeon cells back at Zelena's mansion. David and Mary Margaret were sat back to back with their arms chained above their heads, blindfolded with a rope tied tightly around their mouths. "Let them go" Emma roared, grabbing the iced bars, attempting to break out of her cage. Zelena cackled wildly, holding her newborn close. "And why would I do that?" she asked sharply. "You only need me dead, you don't need to hurt them. Please just kill me and leave my family alone" Emma begged, gallons of tears dripping from her face. Zelena coughed slightly to clear her throat, her baby looking up to inspect the sound coming from its mother. "Your parents gave you up, why do you care what happens to them?", "No, no my parents didn't give me up, they spared me from a curse, YOUR mother gave YOU up" Emma retaliated, still clawing at the bars. Zelena's green skin seemed to darken, her body tensed with anger, while she let her emotions get the better of her she unintentionally squeezed the baby, causing the tiny thing to let out a piercing cry. Immediately fear seized hold of Zelena and she cradled the baby lovingly attempting to hush its cries. "This is your fault" she howled when the baby continued to cry. Emma didn't care, she glared at the witch, flaring her nostrils. Zelena outstretched her hand and summoned the mirror back, the image of Emma's parents disappearing from sight. "Enjoy your swim" Zelena croaked, and with that she disappeared beneath the cloak and vanished. This whole time the Jack guards had been eavesdropping on the conversation, and the sea had risen over halfway. The freezing cold water was now only a few feet below the cage. It was only a matter of minutes before the whole cave would be flooded. "Come on, let's get out of here" the one guard said to the other, noticing the rising water. "Please, please don't leave me here, help" Emma cried out, panic sweeping through her whole body. The guards showed no remorse for their prisoner and left without saying another word, leaving Emma completely alone.

Chapter 22. Regina

Regina was beginning to realise why Madman's Mountain was called so, beside feeling incredibly cold, she felt lost and as if she and her tiny mouse companion had walked right into the middle of nowhere, with no way back. Dark red blood was still trickling down her leg from when she had tripped over and crashed into a jagged rock, her tight leather pants; ripped at the knee exposing her cut to the cruel wind. "Maybe we should get out of here" Mallymkun squeaked, "No, I'm not going anywhere without Emma" Regina cried, her voice running away in the strong breeze. She raised her hand to her face; attempting to block flakes of snow from going in her eyes. "Emma" she called out again, knowing all too well that the saviour wouldn't hear her. By now, Regina was so cold her lips started to turn blue. "This Emma, she must be important to you, we could die up here" Mallymkun spoke again. "I promised our son I would bring her home, I will not disappoint him" she fretted, thinking about how everyone back home would react if she didn't reach Emma on time. Snow lay in every direction, below her feet, above her head, at her sides, it was everywhere. "I miss the leather jacket" she suddenly blurted out, dropping to her knees. "I miss the tiny tent, I miss the stupid grilled cheese sandwiches and I miss, HER, oh god" she sobbed, her heart breaking into a million tiny pieces. Her tears sliced at her face as they froze, she could barely breathe due to the lump in her throat. She felt like a little girl, a poor child wailing for a lost teddy bear, completely distraught. Mallymkun clambered out of Regina's pocket and clasped her face, holding her head in her hands. Neither of them said a word, they didn't need to, the mouse's tiny eyes told everything that needed to be said. Slowly, Regina stood up off the ground and continued walking, wiping away her tears as she focused on the path ahead.

A deafening clapping sound thundered up ahead. Regina stopped dead in her tracks, her heart pounding. An immense drop threw itself between her and the far side of the mountain. Down below was an angry ocean, waves slammed continuously into the rocks. "This tide is really high, is it supposed to be?" Regina asked, hoping the mouse would ease her mind, instead it did the opposite. "Regina, we really need to get out of here" her little voice boomed. "I CAN'T LEAVE EMMA" Regina screamed, clenching her fists and spinning on her heels. As she turned, her squinted eyes instantly caught sight of something odd. A giant black hole seemed to be staring her right in the face, at least whatever it was the snow had not clung onto it. "Oh, I know what that is, it's the little grotto, you know, like a cave, before this place got out of hand people used to explore inside, only now the only adventurers that step inside there are sea creatures. The cave is now a realm of its own" Mallymkun squeaked. Regina continued to stare into the distance, "Sea creatures?" Regina questioned, "Yeah, the ocean rises up through it and would drown any land animal inside". That was when something snapped inside Regina, or rather clicked into place. "Emma could be in there" she whispered, more to herself than the mouse. Panic started to arise within her, if the Saviour was in that cave there really wasn't much time before the ocean claimed her. A high pitch sound pounded deep in her ears, everything else; Mallymkun's voice, the howling wind, the crashing waves, all fell away. Everything was silent. "EMMA" Regina screamed as loud as she could, almost deafening the tiny mouse in her pocket. With that she started to run, faster and faster towards the cave. Almost immediately her muscles began to ache, she was running on adrenaline alone.
As they reached the foot of the cave, a deep dark tunnel would lead them into the centre, and after just a few feet they were swallowed up by complete darkness. Immediately, Regina sparked her own fireball, holding it out in front of her, it gave her just enough light to see where she was going. The freezing cold rocks beneath her feet managed somehow to punch through the soles of her shoes but that wasn't going to stop her. There was a possibility that Emma was here and she was going to find out even if it was the last thing she could do. If this went badly and she died, nobody could say she didn't try. She owed Emma, she owed her everything, she'd come a long way. She was not going to give up one her, not ever.
Shaky breaths echoed around the curved cave walls, spiraling into the distance. "There" Mallymkun pointed out proudly, drawing her sword from its holder. Regina looked up from the ground. A few feet away, another fire seemed to be flickering, a much larger fire. Somebody was definitely here. "Emma?" Regina called out hopefully when suddenly another voice called back. It was quiet, very quiet, not the type of voice she would have expected, whoever or whatever it was, something was wrong. "Emma, Emma are you there?" Regina called again, picking up her pace, rushing through the tunnel. "Regina?" the voice chattered. "EMMA" Regina repeated, a charging relief flowing with her voice. Mallymkun jumped from Regina's pocket and let her run on ahead. Regina pushed and pushed through her fatigue, finally catching a glimpse of Emma. She fell still when she noticed her friend trapped inside the cage, the tide biting at its base. "Regina" Emma whispered, "You came for me" she sounded surprised. "Of course I came for you, now lets get you out of here" Regina gasped, her bottom lip trembling, almost joyful that she had reached her on time. As she grew closer to Emma she noticed the titanic gap between the ground and Emma's cage. "No, no no no" Regina muttered, knowing there was no way she could reach the saviour. Emma used all of her strength to pull herself against the bars, she looked defeated. "Regina, go, save yourself", "NO", "Regina p-please go, Henry needs you", "He needs you too, I'm not leaving you here Emma" Regina sobbed attempting to create some kind of bridge with her magic, but it didn't work, nothing worked. There was absolutely no way she would manage to save her. Zelena had done it, she'd won. Game over. Both women cried, adding more salty liquid of there own to the cave. Mallymkun watched silently from a distance as the two women stared longingly into each other's eyes. Emma suddenly gasped in pain, the tide was now high enough to start filling the cage. It's icy cold sting biting at her skin. "Regina get out of here" Emma pleaded. The gap was no longer there, the ocean had arrived and flooded the ground, already reaching Regina's ankles. Mallymkun clutched onto a stone on the wall and began to climb to a safer height. Regina hesitated as she searched for the best place to move to. "I am not leaving you to die" she called over the noise of the filling cave. Emma was now completely surrounded by water, reaching her chin she struggled to keep her head above the surface. "Thanks for trying Ms Mills" Emma replied, her eyes rolling to the back of her head. Without knowing so, without even thinking Regina suddenly shouted, "I love you Emma" she broke into tears once more as the blonde disappeared from sight. The water began to raise Regina from her feet, she was now floating above the ground, "I love you, I always have, right from that first day I met you, you terrified me and I couldn't stand to be around you but I just couldn't help myself, I fell for you" she gasped, holding her own head above the water, "I loved you then, and I always will" she wept until she too was fully submerged beneath the sea. As she floated down towards the floor, her body heavy, her muscles aching, a bright green light glittered from near the cage. Regina shook her head frantically trying to keep herself awake. As she watched the magic materialize the lock fizzled away, crumbling to nothingness. Emma's body lay in the water, still and lifeless. Somehow, like a bolt of lightning Regina felt a new found strength soar through her. She violently kicked out at the perishing water, attempting to swim in Emma's direction. The sound of the water was so powerful she couldn't seem to focus on anything else other than its aggressive roar. Emma was only a few feet ahead of her now, she kicked harder and faster and finally managed to grab hold of her arm. As she clasped tightly to Emma's body, her blonde hair flailed out in the water revealing her pale face. Her eyes were closed, those bright green eyes she had peered into every day for the last few years, clenched tightly shut. 'NO' Regina gurgled fearing the worst. As her panicked voice escaped with her last breath her strength deteriorated. Although nobody would ever be able to tell, Regina cried, the saltiness stinging her eyes. They were in too deep, the tide was surely touching the roof of the cave by now and she couldn't breathe. Regina's face screwed up with pain as she squeezed Emma tightly, holding her close. She ran her hand through the saviours blonde hair and inched closer to her face. In one swift move she pressed her lips against Emma's, pouring every ounce of love and emotion she had to give into the kiss, her lips locked unbreakable against her true loves.

Chapter 23. Emma

"Are you Emma Swan?", "Yeah, who are you?", "My names Henry, I'm your son". A vision of her son came to her mind, she watched as the little boy introduced himself before pushing past her and letting himself into her home. Suddenly the scene faded and switched, a beautiful dark haired woman stared emotionally into her eyes, "You're Henry's birth mother?" "Hi". Again the scene changed. Emma saw her parents, then her mind cast back to Henry and Regina, then onto a dragon, to Neal, Hook and back to Henry again. Moments of her life darted through her mind. All of the the good times, and even a few of the bad, memories she wished didn't exist and ones that she would keep forever. "I'm ok Regina, I don't need a babysitter", "Well maybe I need you". Again the scene changed, building dramatically. "We'll just go back to being stories again", "What will happen to us?", "I don't know", "That doesn't sound much like a happy ending", "It's not, but I can give you one". An unbearable pain unleashed within as Emma relived her most heartfelt memories. Her sights began to fade, darkening as her brain activity faulted and took rest. However, the very moment her body shut off she suddenly found herself waking up, her eyes shot open to see nothing but a beautiful white light lingering around her. For a moment she thought she was dead, this was her soul leaving her body, taking her to Heaven. Just then a magic she had never injured before struck her at the core, it was powerful and overbearing and stronger than any force in the world. She looked down at her feet to see Regina's legs entwined around hers. The sea below them grew deeper and deeper with every passing second, 'what's happening?' she thought to herself as the terrifyingly beautiful moment played out. Were they sinking deeper? Was she dreaming? Was she actually dead? Had she died in Regina's arms, and Regina in hers?. As many more confused thoughts swept her mind she finally managed to work out that they weren't drowning, in fact they were rising to the surface. The magic was saving them. Her mind cast back to something she had heard before, "Love, True love, is magic" she repeated that sentence over and over in her head. That's it. Even before the tide took them down, both Emma and Regina were trapped. There was no way either of them would have gotten out of there in time to escape their fate, but their declaration of love to one another had somehow saved them both just in time to avoid death. Magic always comes with a price but in this case the price was life, their love would not allow them to die in vain. Mr Gold was right, love really is the most powerful magic of all. With that one last thought they were lifted from the water. The roof of the cave had been pushed away, the rocks fell all around them but could not fall upon them. Emma stared at Regina, her eyes not yet open, she automatically gripped harder onto her freezing body as they transcended through an extremely bright ray of light before landing safely on the ground.

"Regina, Regina" Emma cooed, rubbing her hand over the mayor's cheek. She felt groggy and her muscles ached but somehow had much more energy than she expected, but Regina was still not responding and she had to get her back. "Kiss her" a voice sounded from the left. Emma jumped and glanced over her shoulder. "Who said that?" She asked looking all around for a source. "I did", Emma looked down to see a mouse gazing over at her. Emma closed her eyes and sighed "Of course, a talking mouse" she breathed. "Emma" the mouse began but Emma interrupted, "How do you know my name? Who are you?", "My name is Mallymkun, I know Regina, I helped her find you", "you did?", The mouse nodded. "She loves you very much, you need to kiss her" Mallymkun added. Emma looked confused, she remembered telling Regina that she loved her before she was dragged down under the water, but did Regina feel the same? She'd never said it before, if she kissed her now and she didn't wake, she would have lost her love and found out the truth, that Regina couldn't possibly feel the same way. "Emma kiss her, now!" the mouse shouted. A tear fell from Emma's eye, she pushed a lock of hair from Regina's face and knelt closer to her. She then, very gently placed her lips upon Regina's. They were cold and dry, not like any other time she had kissed them. Emma closed her eyes and kissed Regina harder, as if she knew this was going to be the last time she would ever be able to do so. Then she pulled away. Nothing happened, Emma threw her head back and wailed. The mouse looked at the ground, saddened. Emma's cries filled the sky, anyone nearby would be able to hear them. She entwined her fingers with Regina's as she struggled for breath, for a moment she held her hand and sobbed into her chest. It was getting late, the sun had almost set and the air grew colder even though Emma couldn't really tell because her body was still freezing cold, her clothes soaked and clinging to her body. Emma sat up and turned to the mouse but before she had the chance to let go, Regina's hand flinched. Emma turned so fast she felt a rush of pain travel down her neck, but that didn't matter, something was happening to Regina. She gawped down at the beautiful brunette, her eyes darting from side to side as she looked for any signs of movement. She squeezed Regina's hand tightly, and that's when it happened. Regina's huge chocolate brown eyes sprung open. A high pitch squeal escaped from within Emma as she flooded with happiness. "Regina" she sobbed once more, relieved. Regina focused on Emma. "Ms Swan" Regina breathed, a smile creeping up her face. "It worked, It worked" Emma repeated, completely shocked. "True loves kiss never fails" Regina whispered, pulling herself up onto her elbows. "But I don't understand, why did I have to do this? You kissed me first" Emma asked confused. Regina smiled weakly thinking back to the terror of drowning. "I gave my last breath to save your life, and now you've saved mine, look we're in Wonderland, Emma we transcended realms, through love" Regina told, her eyes filling with tears. Emma collapsed on top of Regina and held her tightly. They lay there, together, for a while before Mallymkun started to walk away. "Wait" Regina said, getting the mouse's attention. "Where are you going, I have to help you get into the army?" she said to her tiny friend. Mallymkun grinned, "You have already helped me Regina, there were moments on that mountain where I wanted to turn back, but your determination to rescue Emma made me much braver, and I thank you for that because courage was all I needed". Both Emma and Regina smiled and then the mouse walked away, excited to get started on her new life.

Chapter 24. Regina

"It won't be long until Zelena realises you're still alive, we need to get out of here and find a safe place to stay" Regina told Emma. "No, I think we need to carry on through the night", Emma paused then added "Are you tired?" Regina cocked her head, "No, you see, the thing about dying is, once you get back to your life, you're filled with the energy of a thousand stars". Emma's eyes seemed to twinkle with a thousand stars as Regina spoke those words. "I love you Regina Mills" Emma bubbled, filling with happiness. "And I love you, Emma Swan" Regina replied, kissing her with passion and tenderness, proving that she meant every word. "Emma there's something I need to tell you, Zelena has your parents" Regina stammered. "I know" Emma interrupted, "Zelena showed them to me through the mirror, she really wanted me to hurt, and as much as they may hate me right now, I NEED to save them". "Then that's exactly what we're going to do" Regina agreed. Together they stood up and took each others hands. Regina entwined her fingers with Emma's and cast the transportation spell, within seconds they appeared in a cloud of purple smoke amongst the trees opposite Zelena's mansion. A clap of thunder boomed from overhead. The air was surprisingly warm, in Storybrooke the temperature would be referred to as extremely cold, but after the time they spent on Madman's Mountain this weather was practically like summer. Flying monkey's stood guard at the front door, admittedly making it harder for them to break in. "You don't happen to have a couple bananas up your sleeve do you?" Regina asked Emma, keeping a watchful eyes on the monkey's. Emma didn't reply, instead she touched Regina's arm supportively before making her way along the edge of the forest. Regina pursed her lips and followed, keeping a loose grip on Emma's fingers as she trailed behind. Luckily for them the forest seemed to wrap itself around the mansion and within no time they found themselves at the back door. As expected Zelena's trusted friends were guarding all of the back entrances too. "Damn it" Emma mouthed in frustration. The monkey's marched back and forth holding sharp spears, making them look a lot more threatening than they would have without them. "Any ideas?" Emma asked Regina hopefully, not knowing anything to suggest. Regina looked around their surroundings and made a checklist in her mind, there were guards at the doors, guards at the windows, and even a few loitering where there was ivy growing up the brick work. She rubbed her forehead with the palm of her hand. As she pulled her eyes away from the mansion she picked up on something she had not spotted until that very moment. "There" she pointed towards the ground. Emma followed Regina's gaze. Emma sighed, "Normally that would disgust me but if that's really all we have to work with right now, we'll just have to go with it" Regina added as Emma realised what the plan was. For a moment they both stared halfheartedly at the iron grid fixed to the ground. "Alright your majesty, time to get down and dirty" Emma mumbled rolling up her sleeves. Regina pulled a face but did the same, revealing her pale arms. "Ok we need to distract the monkey's" Emma chimed. "Allow me" a voice spoke from behind. Emma and Regina turned, grinning up at them stood Mallymkun. "What are you doing here?" Regina asked surprised, "Helping you, if you'll let me" the mouse smiled. "Alright Soldier" Emma said with a sense of confidence. Another clap of thunder rumbled in the sky. Mallymkun saluted the women and slinked off into the forest. Emma and Regina stood by and waited for a signal. After a moment or two Mallymkun began to call out to the guards, "Hey, you big bunch of baboons" she yelled. The marching monkey's came to a standstill as they searched for the source of the voice. "Evil Queen at twelve o'clock" the mouse added pointing behind her. With that the majority of the monkeys's kicked off from the ground and flew into the forest in order to capture the intruder. Mallymkun threw herself into a hole in the ground and tunneled herself away from the mansion. Regina smiled, her white teeth glittering in the starlight, "clever mouse" she whispered. "Let's go" Emma insisted grabbing Regina's arm. Together they raced over to the drainage system. Regina forced a spell upon the iron grid, the bolts unscrewing, detaching the lid. Regina wafted her arm to the side, the grid moving out of the way, revealing a steep, smelly sewer. "After you" Regina said letting Emma take to the the tiny ladder first.
The sewer was disgusting. It smelled just as bad, if not worse than anyone would ever imagine a sewer could. Regina lifted the lid back over the entrance leaving no trace behind them, before creating a fireball for light. "How are you at trekking through poop Regina?" Emma asked. Regina tried desperately not to breathe through her nose, "You kidding? This is nothing compared to the mess Henry used to make as a baby" she joked. Emma smiled at the thought of their son, who was thankfully safe at home right now, unlike his mother's. The sewer seemed to go on forever, until finally, they reached the first sewage pipe. Thankfully the murky water wasn't as deep as it was in the main section of the sewer. Although the pipe was rounded and cramped, it was just about big enough for Emma and Regina to walk through, side by side. "I'm sorry I took so long to get to you" Regina mentioned in the silence. "It's ok" Emma smiled "Just try and be a little quicker next time" she added with a smile. Silence fell between them again. Emma thought about David and Mary Margaret and how, Mary Margaret in particular, had reacted upon finding her and Regina together the way she had. "Do you think my parents will ever accept us being together?" Emma asked. "Yes, I do" Regina confessed. Emma looked into her eyes. Regina spoke again "All your mother and father ever wanted was for you to be happy, even if the only person who could put a smile on your face was an evil queen" Regina smirked. "Less of the evil you" Emma warned, pointing a finger at Regina but retrieving it to kiss her instead. After a minute or so they arrived at the end of the pipe. Above their heads was a drain. Thankfully the room above was empty and Regina was able to use her magic to unscrew the bolts the same way she had outside. She then cupped her hands and gave Emma a boost. "Careful" Regina whispered as Emma pulled herself through the tiny gap. She watched as the blonde wriggled onto the tiled floor before turning to help her up. "Nice" Emma cooed looking around the cream bathroom, appreciating the interior. "Mm" Regina sounded, "Not as nice as my bathroom", "No, definitely not as nice as your bathroom, your majesty" Emma giggled.
The bathroom door lead them out into a dully lit corridor, but thankfully brighter than both the cave and the the sewer combined. "Right, you said Zelena showed you were the Charming's were, where are they?" Regina asked. Emma thought back to the image the mirror displayed, "The cells, possibly the same ones she kept us in", "Then we should head straight there". The two women agreed and tiptoed silently through the corridor. So far, Zelena was nowhere to be seen, though she was probably spending time with her child, or perhaps even out looking for Emma. Outside the storm continued, the rumbling thunder and flashes of lightning built an even more intense atmosphere as Emma and Regina crept through the hall. As they reached the top of the stairs, they hid behind the banister. Two guards stood at the front door, looking through the tiny window out across the garden. A few candles attached to the walls made the room a lot brighter than what Emma and Regina's eyes were used to at the moment. Regina placed a finger to her lips and nodded to Emma, squinting at the light. Together they took to the stairs, slowly, trying to make as little sound as possible. Regina could feel her heart slowing as she took to each step. The guards were fixated on their duty and did not suspect a thing behind them. Just as they reached the bottom step Regina threw her arm out, causing Emma to come to a standstill. She pointed down to their feet. If they were to step onto the wooden floor there was no way their footsteps would be quiet enough to avoid the monkey's attention. "Memorise the way, I'm gonna turn out the lights" Regina mouthed silently to Emma. Emma nodded and did as she was told before taking hold of Regina's hand. Regina then held out her free hand, casting a spell that plunged them into complete darkness. The guards jumped and started shrieking as Emma and Regina ran to the library room as fast as they could. Regina pushed open the door, together they stumbled into the room before locking the door with the little brass key sticking out below the handle.

Chapter 25. Emma

"Do you think they saw that it was us?" Emma asked, panting for breath. Regina pushed from against the doorframe. "No, but it won't matter if they did or not, Zelena will know, we need to do this quick, in and out ok?" Regina informed. Emma nodded and walked over to the bookshelf. The book, 'Clues to the curse' stood firm in its place. In one swift movement Emma pushed her finger against the spine the book, clicking it into place. The bookshelf then opened, allowing her and Regina to step inside the secret room. The secret room looked how it always had, two leather arm chairs and a shabby desk. Regina wondered over to the door that led to the cells and pushed down on the handle, but it was locked. "It's alright" she muttered, hearing Emma intake a deep breath of panic, "Leave it with me" she added. Emma nodded and decided to check the desks contents out of pure interest to see if there was anything new, or missing. As she lifted the lid her eyes fell upon the pacifier, quill and paper. The card box was no longer kept there, then Emma remembered Regina throwing it into the bin. She also knew the compact mirror was back in Storybrooke. Once she flipped the lid shut again, Regina had managed to unlock the door with her magic. The door flew open, "Piece of cake" she said, puffing out her cheeks.

David and Mary Margaret sat back to back, tied and gagged just like Emma had seen in the mirror, in the very same cells she and Regina had been held in. Surprisingly there was nobody else around. Emma had kind of expected Zelena to have taken more prisoners, even if it was just to build tension and make her parents more afraid. One guard sat alone cleaning itself, not paying much attention to the prisoners. "What do we do?" Emma asked Regina in a whisper. Regina ran her tongue across her top lip as she thought. She already had thought of a plan but was hoping to think of another to avoid it but her mind remained blank. "We have to split up" she said flatly, "What, no" Emma interrupted. Regina pulled Emma aside. "It won't be for long, You go back into the secret room, I'll cause a distraction in one of the other cells, then when the fleabag comes to investigate you get inside the cells, take the keys and free your parents, then I'll meet you back at the desk". "Regina, that's crazy, how do you know that would work?" Emma bickered. Regina looked away, refusing to look into Emma's eyes "It will, trust me" she fained confidence. Emma hesitated but went along with the plan, she snuck back into the secret room and watched through the little window as Regina made her way into the the second cell block. A loud clattering sound echoed through the hallways and just as Regina had expected, the guard upped and left his post to find the cause of the sound. As soon as it scarpered out of sight Emma rushed into the cell.

A keychain hung from a nail on the wall, thankfully Emma recognised the key that had set her free the last time she tried to escape Zelena's prison. David and Mary Margaret attempted to look around them, both flinching not knowing who was there or what there fate was. Emma wanted to speak and assure them it was ok but she couldn't risk the guard hearing and coming back before she had a chance to save them. She fumbled with the lock and shook the door to the cell, it bounced open. Quickly, Emma grabbed a candle from the wall and fell to her knees. She held the flame against the tightly tied rope which burned through it releasing her parents hands. She then threw the candle aside and ripped off the blindfolds. "Mom, Dad" she gasped glad to see them. Mary Margaret cocked her head to the side, "Sorry?" she asked. Emma retreated slightly, "Mom?" she repeated, "Sorry, who are you?" her mother questioned. Emma's jaw dropped open, she turned to David hoping he would know who she was, but he looked just as confused as her mother. "It's me, Emma, your daughter, I've come to save you" she muttered. "Thank you for untying us but, we don't have a daughter" David spoke up. Emma felt a sense of dread run through her body but she didn't want to freak her parents out. "Sorry, sorry it's dark, you just look a lot like my parents" she lied to them trying her best not to get upset. Emma looked out into the other cells hoping to catch a glimpse of Regina, but she didn't. She didn't even see the monkey. "Ok, lets get out of here" she coaxed motioning towards the door. With that David and Mary Margaret rose to their feet and followed Emma into the secret room.

Minutes went by and Emma began to grow even more worried about Regina and she refused to sit tight any longer. "Ok, you guys sit here, there's something I have to do, please, please don't go anywhere, just wait until I get back" she begged. "Ok" Mary Margaret answered, a suspicious look etching upon her face. "I won't be long" Emma said and then she ran from the room and down the corridor of the second set of cells. This block was huge compared to the first, there were countless empty cells reaching on for miles underground, neither Regina or the monkey came into sight, but she kept searching.

Chapter 26. Regina

Regina and Emma had been parted for around twenty minutes by now, the guard monkey had not yet bumped into her and neither had Regina reached a dead end. The cells just kept on going, which had to be part of some dark spell. Not knowing if the guard was hot on her trail or not Regina raced on through the cells, unwilling to stand still and find out. Shadows of the hundreds of bars flickered in the candlelight as she moved, which was quite distracting and made her feel slightly dizzy. All of a sudden the cells came to an abrupt end, Regina pushed out her hands to stop herself from smashing her face into the wall in front of her. As her hands came into contact with the wall she realised that in fact, the wall was a door and she had fallen right through it and crashed into another room. A room that unfortunately, was being occupied by all four Jack cards. "Alert the wicked witch, tell her her there's a family reunion waiting to happen" one of the Jack's said to the others with an evil snarl on his face. Two of the guards gripped Regina's wrists and yanked her further into the room, away from the door.

"Now, I will give you one last chance sis, why are you in my house?" Zelena spat. Regina flared her nostrils, "I already told you, I was looking for Emma" she retold. Zelena shook her head in disbelief. "You really don't know what's happened to the saviour then?" she asked. "Emma Swan is dead" Zelena chirped, smiling as if she had just woken up on Christmas morning. Regina was partly confused but went along with the conversation not letting Zelena know the truth of why she was running around her house in the middle of the night. "No, NO" she shouted pretending to grieve for Emma. Zelena sat back and watched Regina's pretend agony, enjoying every second of it. "I am sorry sis but it's true, the saviour is sleeping with the fishes. But don't worry, that's like heaven compared to what I have lined up for you" she tormented. Regina almost forgot she was only acting, as her fake tears turned to real ones. "Take her to the tower" Zelena told the guards. With that two of them dragged Regina out into the main house and partly carried her to the tower. Regina sat in silence thinking about Emma as she waited for Zelena to get there. She hoped Emma was ok and that she had managed to free David and Mary Margaret, she also hoped she hadn't done anything stupid such as go looking for her.
Zelena arrived dramatically, forcing the doors open with her magic, sauntering into the room as if she were anything more than a wicked toad faced witch. Regina stared right through Zelena, which made her green sister angry. "You stole my life" Zelena came straight out with, not pussyfooting around the sure to happen confrontation. "I didn't even know you existed until it was too late" Regina boomed. "Even so, I hated you, you had everything I didn't", "What? A strict upbringing, a forced loveless marriage, a life wasted on revenge upon a ten year old girl" Regina began. "No, a mother and a father, a second chance, a son. You've had a life, a real one" Zelena listed. "If that's what you call a life then I feel sorry for you", "No sis, I feel sorry for YOU. Because weather you appreciate your life or not, you're about to be stripped of it". Regina's pupils dilated as her anger grew stronger, not for herself, she didn't care much for the threats her sister made over her life, but she thinks she's killed Emma, and she's reveling in it hoping that it would cause her distress. The longer she was kept aside in the tower the more she thought about Emma. Did she manage to free David and Mary Margaret? Were they still angry with her? Had they forgiven her? She could answer those questions in her head but she would be fooling no one. Without proof and solid facts she had no idea if Emma was ok. As she brushed away all thoughts of Emma being in pain, it was as though she brushed away Zelena too because with that one shake of the head, the wicked witch turned and left the room. For a moment Regina seemed to be in some sort of bubble, because she hadn't realised she was being chained by the guards until she felt the cold iron lock into place at her wrists. "You'll regret this" she panted to the guards, straining to break free. Surprisingly they said nothing, they kept their mouths shut and then they too left the room, bolting the large wooden door, plunging Regina into darkness.

Chapter 27. Emma

"Regina?" Emma whispered, her own slither of a voice making her jump. "Regina?" she repeated squinting ahead. Her boots splashed in a shallow puddle as she came to what looked like a door frame. The door was wide open and recently empty, she knew this because four small mugs, each containing different amounts of warm tea stood on a small table beneath a painting of Zelena; which hung from the wall on a single brass nail. Another door to her right lead back into the main section of the house. Again there was nobody around. Perhaps Zelena had called off her guards, thinking that the saviour surely would be dead by this hour? Whatever the reason this wasn't helping her find Regina, so she inhaled as deep a breath she could and traipsed silently through the corridor searching for a clue that may lead to her.
To be honest, in the beginning, Emma had always thought Zelena may have tried to get along with her sister, maybe try and lure her back into the arms of evil. Together they would have been even more powerful than when they were apart. She also liked to think Regina wouldn't destroy her work of becoming the good person she is today by allowing Zelena to influence her so easily. Luckily, Regina hates her sister as much as her sister hates her and even if she had wanted to go back to being bad it wouldn't be to convenience her green skinned foe. Emma was proud of Regina and she knew she always would be.
Further down the corridor, the gap between Emma and the walls seemed smaller. So much that if she held out both arms she would probably be able to touch each side. She didn't try this though, in fear of attracting unwanted attention. The corridor branched off into the kitchen. The walls were painted navy, the floor tiles; black. The two colours seemed to run into each other looking more like someone had began colouring in and their pen had run out halfway through. Upon the many counters, all in the same shade of navy, sat a few vases containing dead roses, a kettle and a knife block. Besides that, nothing else was left out. It was probably all stacked away in the cupboards. Emma hesitated at first but decided to take one of the bigger knives from the block. She slid it down the waistband of her still wet jeans, clutching the handle with her right hand, ready to withdraw it again if she became under threat. With no sound besides the humming of the fridge, Emma tiptoed back into the corridor feeling a little more at ease knowing she had a weapon to protect herself. She decided that her best bet would be to take the upstairs because it was highly unlikely that Regina would be lurking in any of the corridors. Thankfully the monkey's that had been guarding the front door were no longer there which allowed Emma to take to the stairs quicker than if she had to sneak up them like she had on the way down.
Once at the top of the stairs she took a right and traipsed down the landing. The door to the room that had been destroyed was left wide open, it looked exactly how it had when she and Regina had left. Emma caught a glimpse of her reflection in the broken mirror, her makeup had been washed off completely thanks to the sea, there wasn't even a dab of mascara smothered down her cheeks. Her stomach rumbled as she moved on, after not eating for almost 24 hours she wished she had taken the opportunity to swipe something to eat from the kitchen. Hanging from the walls either side of her, Emma noticed two identical paintings of the mansion, the only difference being that the one to the left was pictured in daylight and the one to her right; night. There was something different about the mansion though. At the back of the large stone house stood a tall spire that had not been included on Mr Gold's miniature version of the house. Maybe it was no big deal, maybe it was of great significance, whichever the answer may be Emma decided it was too big a risk not to take a look for it. "Hey" a voice sounded from behind. Emma jumped and pulled the knife from her waistband and held it out threateningly. At the sight of the pointed tip David and Mary Margaret threw their hands in the air. "I told you to stay put" Emma seethed, trying to calm her breathing down. "Sorry, but we began to wonder where you were" Mary Margaret confessed. Emma rolled her eyes at her parents knowing that even if they remembered who she was they would have done exactly the same. "Alright well, you might as well stick with me now, but please, be quiet" Emma breathed. "Ok" David nodded, taking Mary Margaret's hand in his before the three of them moved on.

Emma finally managed to spot the spire through a small window, they were just around the corner from its entrance. As they turned the corner a room just across from a set of spiraled steps came into sight. Inside sat two number Three Jack's who were more than likely supposed to be keeping a lookout, but the only thing they were looking at was the inside of their eyelids. The room itself was beautiful. Well lit by a chandelier similar to the one downstairs, beautifully decorated and it smelled of lavender. The guards were sat back to back, using each other as a headrest as they slept. Behind them was a large coffee table covered in diamonds and pearls; a fortune of treasures, And strangely, stored in a glass cupboard against the back wall was a tatty piece of brown material which looked completely out of place in such a sophisticated room. "Oh my God" Emma gasped, "Gold's cloak" she added staring deeply into the material. "Who is Gold?" David asked. Emma ignored his question. "Ok, I'm pretty sure Regina is up there" she said pointing towards the steps "So I'm gonna go check it out, this is what I need you to do; go back to the room I left you in" Emma was interrupted by Mary Margaret, "But we want to help you", "If you want to help me you'll do as I say, trust me. Go back to that room and wait there until I return". Emma handed the knife over to David knowing that he was a dab hand with a sword so should be able to work his way around this. Mary Margaret sighed heavily, causing her pink cardigan to slip down over her shoulder. "Ok" David nodded once again taking Mary Margaret's hand, they then slowly made their way back down the corridor, to the top of the staircase and then down the steps. Emma watched as they disappeared below the railings before stepping into the room in an attempt to snatch the cloak. Why Zelena had left the cloak with such low ranking guards she could only guess at but she didn't actually care, the lower the number; presumably the easier it was going to be for her to retrieve the magical cloak.

As she stepped over the door frame the sound of the guards snoring became a fragment louder, they held their spears loosely in their hands as the snoozed. Emma held her breath the whole time, not wanting to wake them. The glass cabinet stood tall as if it were proud to be holding such a rare object. Emma reached out her hand and clasped hold of the silver handle, then carefully pulled open the cupboard door. As her fingertips skimmed the material she realised the cloak had a velvet feel to it, in all honesty she was expecting it to be just plain old cotton to withdraw from the appeal to it but whatever, velvet it is. The cloak slipped from the hook similarly to the way Mary Margaret's cardigan had moments before. Finally in her possession, Emma's hands disappeared. The cloak actually worked and more importantly worked on her. She smiled as she covered the rest of her body in the cloak. Now completely invisible to the naked eye she was able to sneak back out past the guards and take to the concrete steps.

When she finally reached the top of the spiraled staircase, Emma came face to face with two more guards, this time each painted with the number ten. The two guards glared threateningly towards the spot in which Emma stood. For a moment she froze not knowing what to do but luckily she thought of a trick so basic and overused that it may work. She stepped aside from the edge of the steps, backing herself into the wall. She slowly reached her hand to her ear and unfastened a earring. Taking a deep silent breath she quickly threw the earring down the steps. The tiny fake diamond bounced down the steps with an echo. Both guards shot a look to one another alarmingly, one of them then marched over to the staircase to inspect the sound. As he took to the steps, Emma gave him a slight push and he tumbled down just as her earring had. The second guard rushed over to check on his colleage. While his back was turned, Emma heaved the heavy door open and slithered inside the tower before silently resealing it both unseen and unheard. Just ahead Regina sat, chained to the wall but unhurt. Emma threw her head back in relief, but just as she attempted to wriggle out from under the cloak, the clacking of heels on the slate floor sounded from behind. Zelena arrived.

Chapter 28. Regina

As Zelena reentered the room, Regina slowly lifted her head and peaked up at her sister through her tangled hair. "Come to finish me off?" She muttered, no sign of fear in her voice. Zelena blinked, a sullen look upon her face. For a minute or so, nobody spoke. The two women stared threateningly at each other. "Tell me, how does it feel, to have three lovers taken away from you?" Zelena questioned. Regina felt her hatred for her sister build up even more. She licked her lips, "Well, I would tell you but you wouldn't understand", "Try me", "There's no point, you've never loved anyone but yourself, so like I said, you wouldn't understand". Zelena pursed her lips angrily and lashed out at Regina, slapping her hard across the face. Regina grinned scornfully, raising her eyebrows. "You don't have a plan, do you?" Regina stated, "You didn't expect me to be here so you have no idea what to do with me, do you?" She added tormenting her sister. Zelena's skin changed to a darker shade of green. "No I know exactly what I'm doing sis, I wasn't going to tell you but I'll let you in on the secret" Zelena crouched down and held Regina's head in her hand, stroking her pink stained cheek with her index finger. She cooed, soothing the pink mark before standing once more "While you're here, tied down like a naughty dog, I'm going to pop over to Storybrooke and murder your son" she added. Regina scowled, her eyes filling with vexation. "You lay a hand on Henry and I'll end you" she warned. Zelena chuckled, "I killed the saviour, what makes you think you'll be able to stop me killing your little brat?". Regina struggled with the chains, Zelena watched as her sister attempted to break free before once again grabbing hold of her pale face. With one swift move she slammed Regina's head into the wall, knocking her unconscious. "Now, can I trust you to wait here while I go rip out little Henry's heart?" Zelena asked Regina's still body, throwing her head back as she cackled. Her filthy hate filled laugh engulfed the room as she kept the upper hand. But suddenly her howls of laughter turned to cries of pain as her heart seemingly, by its own accord removed itself from her body. Zelena's green fingers clutched at her empty chest as her body dramatically weakened. All at once Emma appeared clear as day before her. "Threaten the life of our son again and I'll end you" Emma hissed. Zelena stared up at Emma unbalanced, with no idea how any of this was happening. "But you're dead" she crowed not believing in Emma's presence. "Um, nope, I'm alive" Emma admitted, shrugging her shoulders, admiring the witches throbbing heart in the palm of her hand. Emma tensed her fingers tightly, squeezing the heart. "No" Zelena cried out as her heart grew closer to being crushed. Emma loose go and cocked her head to the side. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't just turn this lump of coal to dust?" she asked nodding towards the blackened heart. "You're not a villain, you won't kill me" Zelena faked confidence. Emma smiled weakly. "Where is Neal?", "Who?", "My brother" Emma shouted. "He's still asleep" the witch told truthfully. "You've put him under a sleeping curse haven't you?" Emma guessed. Zelena seemed proud of herself. "Yep and dear old mommy and daddy doesn't even know they have any children do they? So how could they possibly wake him? Nobody could ever truly love a child that isn't their own". Emma squeezed the heart again and Zelena winced in pain. "You're wrong" Emma gasped at the sudden realisation that the sleeping curse could only be broken by true love's kiss. "You can love a child that isn't your own. Regina is living proof of that. She loves Henry more than anything in the world", "Maybe, but dear Snow White knows nothing of this child". "My mother's heart is filled with love, she will be able to wake Neal, I know she will" Emma fretted. "We'll see" Zelena shrugged, still holding onto her chest. Emma felt her own heartbeat change rhythm as doubt flooded her mind. She glanced away from Zelena, her gaze falling upon the window. A thought came to her head and Zelena must have worked out just what is was because at that very moment she cried out "No" extending her arm to try and snatch her heart away from Emma's grip, but she was too slow, before she knew it, Emma punched through the glass with her elbow and dropped the heart out of the window, letting it fall four stories down to the ground below. "Oops" Emma mumbled looking down at her empty hand. With that Zelena summoned her every strength (which wasn't much) and headed for the door. Emma let her go, choosing instead to tend to Regina. She crouched down on her knees next to her, "Regina?" she cooed, gently shaking her by the shoulders, "Regina! she repeated. Regina's eyes flickered open. "Emma" she gasped, looking up into the friendly green eyes above her. "You found me" she added. "I'll always find you" Emma spoke clearly. Regina pulled a face. "Sorry, couldn't help myself" Emma giggled, helping Regina sit up. Regina wrapped her arms around Emma and held her tight. "Come on we don't have much time" Emma said pulling away from her embrace.

As they made their way back through the mansion, helpfully hidden beneath the invisibility cloak, Emma and Regina let themselves into the library and pushed open the bookcase, stumbling upon David and Mary Margaret, who thankfully had obeyed Emma's orders. As they materialized from beneath the cloak, David pulled the knife away from Emma's direction the second he realised they weren't being busted by Zelena or her guards. "You did it" Mary Margaret beamed. Regina panicked as she realised she was still holding Emma's hand, she loosened her grip. "It's ok, they don't even know who we are right now" Emma told Regina. "So let's get out of here?" David suggested. "No" Emma said abruptly, "We need to find Neal first", "Who's Neal?" Mary Margaret asked. "He's your son" Emma grunted. David and Mary Margaret looked to each other confused once more. "We already told you, we don't have children" David said. Emma rolled her eyes and opened the desks lid. She pulled out the sheet of paper and the green quill. Just as she was about to put pen to paper she realised her hand was shaking so much that her writing would be unreadable. Mary Margaret took the pen from her, "What should I write?" she asked, wanting to help the blonde out. "Address it to Zelena" she explained. Mary Margaret nodded and began to write; "Zel-" she wrote. Suddenly she stiffened and appeared to fall into a trance or daydream. "Mom?" Emma gulped rushing to her mother's side, hoping to catch her if she fell. Mary Margaret suddenly returned to reality. "Emma" she whispered, "Emma I remember" she added, pulling her daughter in close. Emma teared up, confused but glad that her mother now remembered who she was. David watched baffled as his wife hugged the stranger. Regina took the pen from Mary Margaret's grip and forced it into David's hand. He looked from each of the women before touching the paper with the pen, finishing off the spelling of Zelena's name. Just as she suspected, David too stiffened and fell into a daydream before blurting out that he remembered his family. The three of them hugged as Regina watched from the side. Regina took hold of the pen and pulled it apart. A thick dark liquid filled the nib and immediately she knew what it was. "Squid ink" she announced surprised that Zelena had somehow managed to get her hands on such a rare form of magic. As David, Mary Margaret and Emma let go of one another, both parents looked around the room. "Where are we?" Mary Margaret asked not recognizing her surroundings. "Zelena's mansion" Regina spoke up. "Why?" Mary Margaret queried. "What exactly do you remember?" Emma interrupted. "Um, We woke up early, had breakfast and went for a hike. It was great I think", "You don't remember anything else?" Regina asked, glancing to Emma beforehand. "No, I don't think we went home, did we?" David agreed with his wife. "No, we definitely didn't come home" David said thinking back to the moment where his memories cut off. Regina laughed nervously, "Oh my god" she added then realising they didn't know about Neal's abduction. Emma took hold of her mother and father's hands. "Try not to get worked up ok please stay calm. He is ok" Emma started, "Neal? What's wrong with Neal?" Mary Margaret panicked. "Zelena took him, she put him under a sleeping curse but he's ok, he's ok", "No, no" Mary Margaret broke out, her hand shaking. "Where is he?" she added, she looked petrified, even worse now than she had the first time it happened. Regina stepped forward, "wait, if you're saying you didn't come home from your hike, you're not going to remember" she told. "Regina, I think i'd know if I came home to find my baby had been kidnapped. I remember everything about that day, right up until we crossed the troll bridge". Regina looked to Emma, whose jaw proceeded to drop open. "Zelena" she screamed marching from the room.

Chapter 29. Emma

Emma's boots thudded the ground as she sprinted to the garden in search of Zelena; who she found on her knees rummaging in the bushes for her heart. "You" she bellowed, loud enough for the whole of Wonderland to hear, as Zelena turned to see Emma running towards her with her family traipsing behind. The saviour clawed at her head, pulling her to her feet by her hair. Zelena let out a piercing scream as Emma threw her against the wall and followed it up with a punch to the face. A trickle of ruby red blood dripped from her lip. "Emma stop" Regina called, rushing towards her. Emma ignored her and held Zelena by the throat. "It was you wasn't it. You let me think my parents hated me" Emma spat. Zelena struggled for breath. "Emma stop it" Regina shouted again, this time pulling Emma away from the witch. "Emma what are you talking about?" Mary Margaret asked. "It was her, I had my suspicions but it's clear now, you and Lily, you abducted my parents and Neal and then you came back" Emma broke into angry tears, "You took the form of my parents and PRETENDED TO CARE ABOUT NEAL'S ABDUCTION. YOU PUT THE BLAME ALL ON ME". David and Mary Margaret looked more confused than ever. Zelena grinned, "It was your fault, you left a tiny baby alone to go, play, with your friend". This time Regina punched Zelena, adding more blood to her chin. "Can someone please tell me what's going on?" David blurted out. Zelena slid onto the floor once more and continued her frantic search for her heart, which happened to be nowhere in sight. "I was upstairs when Neal was taken" Emma stumbled thinking back to when it all happened. "A vase smashed in the kitchen, Regina tipped cocoa down her shirt, I let her borrow one of mine, I went upstairs with her and we- uh, then when I came downstairs Neal was gone". Zelena looked up from between a rose bush, "You forgot the bit where you had your tongue down her throat" she said sweetly before disappearing again. Emma let out a frustrated groan. Regina looked to the ground. "W-what?" Mary Margaret stuttered. Emma inhaled deeply. "Mom, Dad, I'm in love with Regina" she exclaimed, nervously. Both David and Mary Margaret gasped. Regina looked back up. "Y-you are?" Mary Margaret questioned. "Yeah, I love Regina, I'm in love with her. I really love her" Emma broke down. Regina flushed a bright shade of red and began to tear up with happiness as everyone else tried to get their heads around what Emma had just said. Silence flooded them, "If it makes any difference, I love her too" Regina said, a little embarrassed to reveal her deepest most heartfelt feelings in front of her sister and her girlfriend's parents. David sighed and threw his hands to his head, turning slowly around in a circle as he let the words sink in. "Ok, cool, great, good. Now tell me where my son is" he ordered. Zelena looked displeased that David wasn't questioning his daughter more, but she was glad to hear Mary Margaret speak up, "Emma, really?" she asked as if the whole thing could just be a lie. "Really Mom" Emma nodded. "Alright, well we can talk about this later, but Zelena, you need to give me back my son. How would you feel if someone took your baby away from you?" she tried the soft approach, and for the first time Zelena feared for someone besides herself. "You won't touch my baby" she grunted, getting to her feet. "No, No I wouldn't, all I'm asking of you is to put yourself in my shoes. Please, where is my son?". Zelena looked up to a window of the mansion, possibly her newborn's room. "He's not here" she whimpered. "Then where is he?" Mary Margaret asked again, through gritted teeth. "I don't know, I told the girl to hide him", "Lily?" Regina cut in. "Yes, Lily, the dragon girl. I told her if she helped me with this I would rid her of her darkness", "Can you even do that?" Emma asked. "No, but she didn't know that. Really, why would I rid her of darkness when she could cause so much pain to you and your family? Neal isn't in Wonderland, he never even left Storybrooke". "Zelena, please, where is my son?" David asked, clenching his fist. Zelena snarled, all of her perfectly straight white teeth on show. "Why don't you try the Pawnbrokers?".

Chapter 30. Regina

"What? No, You're lying" Mary Margaret wavered. "No, she's not" Regina stated, scowling at her sister. Emma began to fill with rage, how could Mr Gold betray them all like this? She didn't bother hanging around to ask what the dark one would want from her baby brother. Instead she took off running through the garden. David held Mary Margaret in his arms whilst Regina chased after Emma, but before she caught up with her she heard a little voice calling from amongst the trees. She span around, her forehead wrinkled as she searched for whoever it was that wanted her attention. "Down here" the voice announced from below. Regina looked down to see Mallymkun smiling up at her. "Hey, I thought you were long gone?" she told greeting the mouse with a small smile. "I thought I'd stick around in case I could help, I was about to leave when I saw this, come flying out of the window" and with that, Mallymkun revealed Zelena's heart. Regina couldn't help but look over to her wicked sister who was still ducked down between the bushes, frantically searching for her missing organ. "At first I thought it was yours, but this heart gives off nothing but a dark, evil aura and then that's when I realised, it couldn't possibly be yours, these days you're nothing other than, the sweet young girl all grown up". Regina felt so overwhelmed by her new friends compliment that she couldn't seem to utter a thank you. Instead she knelt down and kissed her on the nose. Mallymkun offered up the heart to Regina, which she took and gently zipped in her pocket. She smiled once more to the mouse and then set off to find Emma. Luckily she hadn't gone far, she had slumped down onto a rock, holding her head in her hands. As Regina placed her hand upon her shoulder, Emma flinched and looked up, thinking it could be Zelena. When her eyes met Regina's she relaxed and pulled her into a hug. No words were said, the two women remained sat in silence until David and Mary Margaret approached them. "What do we do now?" Emma asked, for the first time not knowing what to do. "We go back to Storybrooke and we rescue Neal" Snow said, placing her hand upon Emma's other shoulder. "We can't just leave, Zelena will come after us" Emma spoke. Regina drew Emma's face so that she was looking right at her. "Without her heart, Zelena is borderline powerless. She's too weak to stop us, so let's get off her land and find a way home". "What happens when she finds her heart?" David questioned. Regina unzipped her pocket and let the others glance inside. "I don't think she's going to get it in time to stop us" she convinced. With that Emma rose from the rock and the four of them treked across Wonderland. As they carried on their journey, they arrived at a familiar signpost. Regina read the signs, as did Emma and together they both exclaimed, "The white rabbit". "Who?" David and Mary Margaret asked. "The white rabbit, he's going to get us out of here" Emma beamed, finally confident that they were going to make it back to Storybrooke after all.
By the time they made it to the village in the forest, where The white rabbit lived, it was already close to midnight, but everybody seemed to still be awake as countless people danced around a giant fire. "Hello?" Regina called over the music and singing. "Hi Regina" a young girl waved from a short distance, another noticing the Queen's presence, tugged on her mother's skirt and pointed. "Hello" she called with a cautious smile. "Regina, these people aren't afraid of you?" Snow questioned, surprised that nobody was running scared for their lives. "Oh nice, you just automatically assume the worst" Regina sighed. Snow didn't apologise but did back down. "Regina? Emma?" the white rabbit shouted from the fire before hopping over to greet them. "Lovely to see you again, how are you, did you come to join the party? I'm afraid you missed the harpist" he chatted. "Hello white rabbit, actually we were wondering if you would help us home again" Emma said politely. "By all means, but I cannot do so tonight as I have had a little to drink, what with the festival, but you are more than welcome to spend the night with us once again, your friends too". "Actually, these are my parents" Emma explained. The white rabbit jumped a mile and then took a closer look at the unfamiliar faces. "Could it truly be, Snow White and Prince Charming. What an honour it is to meet you" he gasped, excitedly shaking each of their hands. "Nice to meet you too" Mary Margaret cooed, not knowing exactly why the rabbit was so happy to be in her presence. "Come, I will show you to your tent" he took Mary Margaret's hand again and motioned for David to follow. "You ladies remember where my tent is located right?" he asked Emma and Regina. "Yes, thank you white rabbit, we will see you in the morning" Regina clarified. With that The white rabbit lead David and Mary Margaret to a free tent while Emma and Regina strolled to the patch of ground they had slept on once before.
"Ooh another night of luxury" Regina joked as Emma unzipped the tent to reveal the same pillows they had laid their heads on before. Emma rolled her eyes and pushed Regina into the tent. "I didn't know rabbits drank alcohol" Regina chuckled thinking of how merry the rabbit had seemed. "Well, I suppose animals have the same wants and desires as us humans" Emma replied, crawling over to Regina, pushing her cleavage together with her elbows. "Ms Swan are you flirting with me?", "Yes" she admitted, she then glanced at the floor bed and raised an eyebrow. Regina laughed to herself and allowed Emma to lay her down on her back before kissing her the way she always had. With love. Regina's tongue slowly swirled around the inside of Emma's mouth, as she fumbled with the buttons of her shirt. "Man, I hate this button" Emma whispered as she realised Regina was wearing the shirt with the melted button. Regina giggled silently. The button showed no signs of budging so instead Emma just pulled at the material and let it burst off, ripping a slight hole in the shirt. "Come here" Regina motioned as Emma pulled a face at the ruined shirt. Emma kicked off her shoes and pulled down her jeans. Regina did the same before wrapping her legs around Emma's waist and returning to their kiss. After seconds she loose go of Emma's body and turned onto her side "Goodnight". Emma's jaw dropped open as Regina pretended to sleep. "Really? Are you serious?" she asked, a groan escaping from inside her. Regina faked a snore. "Gina, I know you're not sleeping, you don't snore". Regina giggled but carried on fake snoring. "Gina, Gina?" Emma pouted. "Fine" she added, crawling down to her feet. Regina lay awaiting whatever it was Emma was about to do to her, which actually made her nervous. As she held her breath in anticipation she felt Emma's cold fingers tickle the soles of her feet, which lead to a scream. "Emma, no stop Emma" she cried out, laughing at the tickling. Emma slithered up through the blankets, popping her head up at the other side. Regina smiled, her eyes connecting deeply with Emma's. "Your Majesty" Emma spoke, clearing her throat. Regina bit her lip and pouted, "What can I do for you Sheriff Swan?", "I've heard you've been a naughty girl", "Am I going to be punished, Sheriff?", "That all depends on your cooperation", "My cooperation with what?", "This" Emma muttered straddling Regina's hips. Their two bodies began to move back and fore with rhythm as their flesh rubbed together. Regina's nails found their way to Emma's back, which she began to scratch as they picked up the pace. Emma began to trail kisses down Regina's body as she pulled off her underwear, proceeding to wear her lovers knickers on her head like a hat before her face disappeared between her thighs. Immediately the sweet sensation of Emma's tongue circling her most intimate parts, caused Regina to arch her back and let out a squeak. Emma then inserted two fingers into her queen and began to massage her from the inside. After a moment of silence, besides the steady moans and groans of pleasure, Emma looked up into Regina's eyes. "I love you" she told. Regina lifted her head off the pillow so that she could see Emma, "I love you too" she whispered. Emma grinned and then muttered, "Please, excuse me" before returning to Regina's sensitive spot. Regina threw her head back as Emma's touch caused her body to break out into a sweat. Emma managed to force Regina's body into a trance as she perfectly caused an irresistible agony inside of her. She then pushed her palms into the back of Regina's knees, as she buried herself deeper into her crotch. Regina let out a moan so loud, Emma was forced to hold her hand over her wet licked lips to silence her. Regina's moaning became muffled before she fell silent, remembering there were families sleeping in the tents around them, and though she was quiet now, Emma's hand remained at the opening of her mouth. Pouting her lips, Regina began to kiss Emma's fingertips as her innocence cascaded between her legs. "Emma" she purred quietly a dozen times, all sense of passion slinking out with the beautiful name. After one last taste, Emma welcomed Regina's orgasm and collapsed on top of her. Their mouths found each other once again and they kissed deeply and rough, showing their adoration for one another in the most intimate way possible. The atmosphere filled with tranquility as they lay together, still, allowing their breathing to return to a fixed pace. "I could really use a bowl of pasta right now" Regina revealed. Emma giggled and bumped her forehead against Regina's, her eyes crinkled at the sides as she laughed.

The blinding sun woke up early, disturbing their peaceful sleep. Regina yawned and stretched out her arms. "Wakey wakey sleepy head" she lulled in Emma's ear. Emma groaned and pulled the blanket over her head, hiding from both Regina and the daylight. "What time is it?" Emma finally mumbled through a yawn of her own. Regina glanced at her watch but couldn't make out where the hand was pointing, so instead she told her "Breakfast time". "Mmm" Emma licked her lips at the thought of a decent meal. "Good morning" Mary Margaret's voice sounded from outside the tent. "Morning" Emma automatically replied. With that, Mary Margaret began to unzip the tent and looked in on her daughter. Somehow Regina seemed to have forgotten she was naked. Emma panicked and covered Regina's breasts with her hands, hoping to shield them from her mother's eyes. "Guys" she exclaimed, turning her head so fast it almost disconnected from her body. "It's not what it looks like" Emma shouted, her face growing red with embarrassment. Regina thought it was amusing and let out a sarcastic laugh, pointing to her knickers, that Emma still had on her head. Emma quickly tore them from around her ears and threw them into Regina's lap encouraging her to get dressed. "Ok mom you can come in now" Emma said, clearing her throat. "I don't think I want to now" Mary Margaret replied before peaking into the tent once more. "I was going to ask if you slept ok but" she waved her hand close to her face letting them know she no longer needed an answer. "White rabbit says breakfast will be ready in a minute" she nodded and then walked off. Regina laughed again at Mary Margaret's face when she saw... what she had saw. Emma tried hard not to laugh along with her but found herself laughing anyway. They thought they had gotten away with activities behind closed doors but it seemed only a matter of time before the real Mary Margaret caught them together. Normally Emma would have been distraught, having her mother see her in bed with another, but compared to the reaction Zelena had forced them to believe in, she didn't much mind because there was no screaming, no hatred and no awkward silence. Well maybe just a little awkward silence.
Out of the privacy of the tent, a few of the villagers were already wolfing down their breakfast, while others were clearing away the remains of last nights party. "Regina" a collection of voices cried out. Both Emma and Regina looked up to see, six children racing towards her, fighting over who got to give her her breakfast. Emma gasped as one child shoved a plate of toast and sausages into her hands. "Now that's more like it" Regina sassed, approving of the change of attitude the children were showing her. "Did you pay them to do that?" Emma asked, whispering into Regina's ear as the kids stood blinking up at them, grinning. "Funnily enough, I didn't bring any money with me, I was more focused on saving your life", "Aww" Emma gurgled at the tone of Regina's voice.
"So did you two sleep we-" David began to ask before Mary Margaret elbowed him in the ribs. David looked down at his wife confused but didn't ask why she had just attacked him. Regina laughed again. Mary Margaret threw her a look of displeasure. Regina stopped laughing and looked down at the beans on her plate instead. "What was with the whole, party, last night?" Emma asked, trying to steer the conversation away from awkwardness. "The white rabbit didn't say much but he did say something about yesterday being a festival in honour of the people, they get together annually to celebrate", "Oh, cool" Emma faked interest. "Good morning all" a cheery voice sounded making all four of them jump. The white rabbit hopped over, a lot cheerier than Regina thought he would be after so many drinks the night before. "Did you sleep well?" he asked. Emma and Mary Margaret groaned in unison, "We slept very well, thank you, your tent is very comfortable" Regina declared. David wasn't in on the whole sarcasm and told the white rabbit that he and Mary Margaret had also slept very well. "Oh lovely, will you be staying for today's festivities?" he asked. "We would love to, but we really need to get back home to Storybrooke" Emma sighed, the worry of her little brother being in the hands of Mr Gold flooding back to her. "No matter, come on with me, if you are ready?" he chided. Together they walked to the edge of the forest where the white rabbit formed a large portal. "Safe journey" he shouted as they jumped inside and disappeared from the realm.

Chapter 31. Emma

After what had seemed like an eternity of darkness, the sun was shining. As the four of them found themselves piled up on top of some fallen leaves, Emma, Regina, David and Mary Margaret realised they had made it back to Storybrooke, safely. Emma sat up and then held out her hand, helping Regina up from the wet ground, just as David did for Mary Margaret. "What should we do now?" Emma asked her parents. Mary Margaret seemed as clueless as she did but fortunately David spoke up. "If Neal is at Mr Gold's shop then I think we should just go there", "What, right now? With no plan?" Mary Margaret questioned. David looked into her eyes, "Why bother waiting, we've wasted enough time, let's get our son back before it's too late". Mary Margaret's stomach flipped as David spoke but she agreed that it was about time she took her son home. "Ok, let's go get the baby" Regina said looking to Emma for her opinion. Emma felt as her father had, so she nodded and led the way to the pawnbrokers.
Now filled with rage, trying to figure out why Mr Gold would take Neal, Emma marched towards the pawnbrokers and violently kicked out at the door. The door itself swung open and almost hit Emma in the face as it bounced back. She, Regina, David and Mary Margaret stepped into the shop where they all simultaneously stopped in their tracks. "Neal" Mary Margaret cooed, her voice breaking as she caught sight of her son, wrapped in a blanket upon an old tatty armchair. She rushed towards him and scooped him up in her arms and kissed him As her lips touched his soft skin, his eyes fluttered open. The curse broke, and his face filled with love as he saw his mother before him. His lone tooth on show as he smiled.
"A lovely family reunion" an unexpected voice spoke from across the room. The figure of a man stepped into sight, holding another close by. "Robin?" Regina choked, her eyes falling onto a man she had once loved. "Yeah" he answered casually. Promptly after this, the second figure was revealed. "Gold" Emma spoke in a low tone. She wanted to swing for him, hit him right in his ugly face, and she was about to, but as she clenched her fist she noticed Mr Gold looked unnervingly afraid. A black object seemed to be resting against his grey hair. Emma stepped back anxiously as she realised the object was in fact, a gun. Robin's huge fingers, wrapped around the gun, one resting on the trigger as he held Mr Gold at gunpoint. "Robin what the hell are you doing?" Regina spat furiously. He replied but did not give the answer to the question she had asked. Instead he looked into Regina's deep brown eyes. "Zelena told me about you and Emma" he started off, gripping Mr Gold tighter as he attempted to break free from his hold. "I didn't believe her at first, I thought she was just being a bitch. That was until I got back here. I paid a visit to Henry, it seems he isn't very good at keeping secrets either" he snarled, throwing a look to Mary Margaret. Emma clenched her teeth, wanting to speak out and defend her family but afraid of the consequences it may cause. "So is this just to get back at me or something?", "At you?" Regina questioned. "Yeah, you got with her to get one up on me for leaving you for your sister, who just so happens to be a better lover than you, in all departments" he sassed, letting his gaze fall down upon Regina's cleavage. Her shirt, thanks to the missing top button, revealing her chest. A swarm of not only jealousy but, nausea built up inside Emma. Robin could tell she was getting worked up and chuckled, "You should keep her on a leash" he nodded towards the blonde. He then hit Mr Gold over the head with the side of the gun. Everyone watched stunned as he fell to the floor unconscious. "Don't you dare speak about Emma like that" Regina snapped. Robin must have felt intimidated by her anger, his only defence was to aim the gun at her. "NO" Emma screamed as she watched Robin prepare to pull the trigger. Without hesitation she dived in front of Regina and knocked Robin to the ground. As they tumbled to the floor the gun was fired and a bullet brushed against Emma's arm, releasing a gushing flow of blood. Somehow Robin managed to clamber onto his feet and run from the shop, but David was hot on his heels and chased him into the street. Emma glanced through the window, paying no attention to her wound as Regina and Mary Margaret attempted to tie a cloth around the gaping hole in her flesh. Robin ran across the road, narrowly missing a passing car. David, still on the pavement, watched as a thick grey smog appeared in the distance and absorbed Robin, snatching him away from sight. "What the hell is going on?" Emma cried not knowing what to do next. Regina agitatedly, kept her hands gripped over the cloth tied around Emma's arm, hoping that she wasn't going to bleed to death. A throbbing pain pounded Emma's head as she lowered her eyes. She felt dizzy and extremely tired, she watched as Regina's face became panicked before blinking rapidly, each blink heavier than the last. Suddenly she couldn't lift her eyes and everything went dark.

Chapter 32. Regina

"Emma, Emma wake up, don't you dare leave me" Regina shouted, shaking her by the shoulders. Mary Margaret lingered above, "Regina, is she?" her voice broke off, full of emotion. "No, no she's breathing but something's wrong, we need to get her to the hospital". With that, David swept Emma up in his arms and took her from the pawnbrokers, out into the street and quickly carried her to the hospital. "We need some help over here" he cried out as Mary Margaret and Regina bustled in through the emergency doors behind him. Dr Whale stepped out from another cubicle when he heard David's call. He spotted Emma was unconscious and pointed to a bed. David placed her down gently, careful not to bump her head. Regina's heart seemed both incredibly fast and incredibly slow at the exact same time, as she worried for Emma's life once again. "Please, don't let her die, please please" Regina begged Dr Whale as he began to wire Emma up to a machine. Mary Margaret sat Neal upon her hip, supporting him with one hand, she then gripped Regina's hand with the other. Regina held onto her just as tightly, neither them saying a word. A team of nurses rushed to Emma's side and began working on her. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave the room" Dr Whale announced, "What? No" Regina sobbed, longing for Emma's eyes to open right there. David put his arm around Regina's shoulder and maneuvered her and Mary Margaret, along with himself, out of the cubicle and into the waiting area. Huge salty tears raced down Regina's cheeks as she watched through the window.
A couple of minutes passed by and Regina had cried herself dry, she had no more tears to shed. Instead she sat, numb, staring at the floor. "You really do love her?" Mary Margaret mumbled, just about loud enough for Regina to hear. David heard it too but decided to stay out of it as Regina looked up. "With all my heart" she croaked, her voice breaking. "And she loves you too?" Mary Margaret added, "Yes" Regina answered, looking into her eyes. "I'm sorry I ruined your life". Regina cocked her head, "You were just a child, it's me who should be apologising to you". Mary Margaret smiled weakly to Regina before looking away. A swift pause arrived where neither of them spoke but Regina thought back to a few moments ago, "Thank you for holding my hand in there" she muttered. Mary Margaret held out her hand and held onto Regina's once more. "She's gonna be ok Regina", "I know, I know, she's a fighter, like her mom". "I am ok with this you know, you and Emma. I can't place a single moment where I was happier than when I fell in love with David. It felt like a magic unlike any other. All I've ever wanted for Emma, was for her to someday feel the same way that I did. I thought perhaps, Neal was going to do that for her, I thought he was going to be the one, and then he-" she broke off, thinking of Neal's death, "I've seen the way you look at each other, I thought 'God, they've become such great friends' to be honest, I never expected you to fall in love with each other, ever, the thought didn't even cross my mind. But seeing you together last night, and again this morning, it became so obvious to me. She needs you and you need her, which is why she's going to be ok, she's going to wake up for you Regina". Regina's bottom lip trembled, "Thank you Snow" she whispered, taking her words to heart. Mary Margaret smiled with teary eyes, "And thank you Regina", "For what?", "For becoming the person you used to be, the person I felt privileged to know". Regina felt a warmth and new appreciation for Mary Margaret wash over her. "In the tent this morning, that wasn't-" Regina began. Mary Margaret shook her "LaLaLa, I don't want to know" she muttered, shaking her head. Regina laughed quietly, "I'm going to take really good care of her, I promise" she sounded. "I know you will, but if you don't, you better watch out" Mary Margaret warned, pretending to throttle Regina. They smiled warmly at each other before turning to David. David must have felt their eyes burning into him because he quickly looked up to the two women. "Welcome to the family, again" he beemed. Regina caught his smile and thanked him.
A few minutes later Dr Whale appeared in the doorway. "She's ok" he announced. Regina sighed in relief. "She's sleeping and will probably feel groggy for a while but she's going to make a full recovery". "Thank you so much Dr Whale" David said, rising from the plastic chair to shake his hand. "Can we see her now?" Mary Margaret asked. Dr Whale nodded, "Yes, but be careful not to wake her, she really does need to rest" he added. "I'll go get Henry, fill him in on what's happened" David announced, letting Regina and his wife get first dibs at Emma's bedside.

Chapter 33. Emma

The sound of machinery whirring, rang out in her ears. 'Stop' her conscience pleaded as each sound in the room seemed ten times louder than usual. Her green eyes started to flutter as she came round, waking up from what could possibly have been a long sleep. 'Where am I?' she thought, attempting to lift her heavy head from the pillow. The room was bright, and smelled an awful lot like bleach or some other cleansing spray. 'Hospital' she then told herself, remembering the smell of the room from when Henry was rushed in. From the corner of her eye she could see Neal sleeping in his pram and her mom, sitting on a small sofa, also asleep. She noticed a wave of dark hair sweeping across Mary Margaret's shoulder. 'Regina' she gasped on the inside, she couldn't hold it long but she smiled realising that Regina and Mary Margaret had fallen asleep holding onto each other. "Hey" a whisper sounded from her left. David smiled over at her and folded up the newspaper he was reading. "How you feeling?" he asked as Emma turned to face him. "Where's Henry?" she suddenly blurted out noticing he wasn't in the room and may not know what had happened. "He's ok, he's gone to get a drink. How do you feel?" he asked again. Emma paused and asked her body the same question, waiting for it to respond. "Everything aches, but I'm ok, I think" she told. "Good, that's good. Dr Whale says you'll be completely fine, you remember what happened?", "Robin Hood shot me" she breathed, sitting up more comfortably. David helped her as she puffed up her pillow. "How long have they been like that?" Emma asked, staring at her two favourite women. David smiled weakly, "A couple hours actually. Your mom found comfort in Regina while you were out of it. They had a bit of a heart to heart. It was odd" he announced, screwing up his face as he recalled the memory. Emma grinned but then her smile dropped into a frown, "Dad" she began but David cut her off, "Yes, Emma, we're completely fine with you and Regina being, together. It's almost a little bit weird but, I don't care, we don't care, as long as you're happy, so are we" he told truthfully. Emma's smile returned, as did Henry. "Mom" he called out, throwing his bottle of orange juice into David's lap as he reached out to hug her. Both Regina and Mary Margaret woke up, to find Emma awake. "Emma, thank god" Mary Margaret sighed a breath of relief. Regina clutched Emma's hand and held it tightly, squeezing what could only be the last of her worries from her system. "You had us worried for a second" she said with a small smile. "You can't get rid of me that easily" Emma insisted, squeezing Regina's hand back. "Mom, are you ok?" Henry asked from her side. "Yeah kid, I'm alright" she told. As much as she didn't want it to happen under these conditions, Emma looked up at her family, all smiling down at her. Her parents knew about her relationship with Regina, and so did their son. Finally, they could finish off that chapter in their lives, free to start a new one, together.

A few days went by and finally, Emma was discharged from the hospital "Ok, let's get you home" Mary Margaret announced, zipping up the overnight bag full of clothes. "Actually mom, I think I'm gonna go back to Regina's tonight. Do you mind watching Henry for us?", "Oh, sure" Mary Margaret sounded, trying desperately not to imagine what her daughter was going to be getting up to with Regina that night. David must have been thinking the same because he discreetly pulled a face and turned around, focusing on anything other than the conversation that was unfolding.
It was a tight squeeze in the car but David drove Emma and Regina home safely. "I'm glad you're ok mom" Henry hugged Emma tightly around the waist before letting her get out of the car. "But please, don't do it on the couch" he added. Immediately Emma's face heated up and turned the reddest shade of embarrassment possible. "Ugh, now I'm thinking about it" Mary Margaret wailed covering her eyes. David took the bag from his wife's lap and passed it back to Regina. Emma watched as he attempted to speak, but words baffled him. "Come on Mary Margaret, we should probably get to bed soon too" he winked. "EW" Henry pretended to be sick as his grandparents joined in on his mom's flirting. He then leaned over and turned up the radio, drowning out the conversation. "See you later" David said, as Emma unbuckled her seatbelt. Mary Margaret looked back and mouthed, "Be safe". Emma threw her hand to her face and jumped out of the car as quick as she could, Regina just watched and laughed as Emma hid her face away in embarrassment.
"I don't understand why Robin would do this" Emma addressed, taking a look at the faint scarring of the bullet wound etched upon her arm. Regina stepped closer to Emma and rested her chin upon her shoulder. She didn't physically say anything but the look in her eyes told Emma a story of itself. Emma sighed and slowly turned around and accepted a hug from Regina. Her arms enveloped her and promised her safety, as they stood wrapped in the warm embrace. "Gold was discharged earlier this morning" Regina announced when Emma eventually pulled away. "What, why?", "It's ok, he had nothing to do with this, it was a setup", "How do you know?" Emma asked not sure if she believed what she had been told. "It wasn't Robin that shot you, at least, he wasn't in control. He mentioned speaking to Henry about us, but Henry insisted he wasn't acting at all like himself", "Yeah, well maybe that's because he's insane?" Emma suggested, lowering an eyebrow as if it were obvious. Regina paused for a second. "Zelena isn't going to stop trying to kill you, not this easily. I think she was controlling Robin, via his heart". Emma looked confused, "But why would she do that, she has always wanted to be the one to end my life, why do it through Robin?", "Because she doesn't have this" Regina said, pulling Zelena's own blackened heart from her pocket. Emma gasped slightly shocked, she had almost forgotten the witch was without her heart. "Then, if she was going to have him kill me, why didn't he? He aimed the gun at you". "Maybe she thought that hurting me would hurt you more? Or perhaps she planned to kill us both, either way, this isn't over yet. If we don't put a stop to this, eventually one of her plans to kill us is going to work". Emma's eyes saddened, "I can't believe it's come down to this, I thought we could maybe, I don't know, bribe her with something", "Zelena wants for nothing, she has magic and power and control, the only thing she doesn't have is you and me" Regina clasped Emma's hand. Emma looked down at their two hands warming against each other, their fingers entwined. "Let's go to bed" she suggested, then she smirked as a better idea popped into her head, "Actually no, let's have a bath" then she looked up from their hands and peered into Regina's chocolate brown eyes. Regina smiled, her eyes twinkled as she nodded. Emma turned and made her way to the kitchen, grabbing a few items before slowly leading Regina to the bathroom.
The water trickled from the tap, filling the bath with luscious warm water, creating soapy bubbles as it caressed with the mixture as the scent of vanilla floated around the room. Emma sat on the side of the bath, her back leaning against the tiles on the wall; and Regina perched on her lap, each leg either side of her own. Regina picked out a strawberry from a bowl Emma had brought upstairs; and traced the tip of it across Emma's bottom lip. Emma's cute pink tongue licked up the juice it left behind and then bit into it, it's sweet relish clinging to her tastebuds. Regina took a bite of the same strawberry and then dropped it into the bin, discarding the fruit for Emma's lips. They kissed gently with tenderness, as the steam of the water danced up to the ceiling, causing condensation to appear on the window, locking them away from the disruption of the outside world. Before one thing could lead to another the bath was just about ready for them to get in. Emma reached her hands around Regina's back and hauled her shirt up over her breasts, shoulders and then finally her head, her gorgeous face springing into sight as her hair bounced back into place, skimming the tops of her shoulders. As Regina scrabbled to her feet, Emma watched lustfully as she began to unzip her trousers. Once the zip was open, she let them skim down her legs and drop onto the floor, her underwear going with them. "My Queen" Emma whispered, watching Regina flaunt her naked body. "You're the real Queen" Regina said, a sultry look on her face as she watched Emma unfasten her shirt. Emma smiled shyly at the compliment, "Can I sit on your throne?" she asked raising an eyebrow, Regina replied immediately, "I'd rather you sat on my face". After that comment Emma couldn't wait any longer, she ripped off her own clothes, forgetting about her wounded arm, stepped into the deliciously warm water and held out her hand to help Regina climb in with her. They sat down in the bath together, buried beneath thousands of tiny bubbles. Regina extended her neck and pecked Emma on the lips just once before starting a trail of wet kisses on her neck. Emma threw her head back, the tips of her hair plunging into the water as she caught sight of the ceiling. Each kiss felt like a free sample of Heaven to which she was more than happy to go out in a blaze of glory. Regina steadily worked her way down to Emma's breasts, her nipples immediately stiffened as she gnawed at them with her teeth. A groan escaped from deep inside her and echoed around the bathroom, thus making Regina bite harder, forcing Emma to moan again. Emma's hands found Regina's back, her nails dug into her flesh as she hung on for dear life. She shifted her weight onto her elbows and watched as the kisses travelled further south, growing nearer and nearer to her sweet spot. Regina then placed Emma's bottom upon her thighs, lifting her hips to the surface, the water washing up against her entrance, enticing her body. Within seconds the water was replaced by Regina's tongue, causing a welcoming excitement. More of Emma's hair grew wet as the sensation made her throw her head back once again. As her tongue worked its magic, swirling in a circular motion around Emma's clitoris, Regina introduced three fingers and inserted them one by one. Emma whined as Regina's fingers began to deepen inside her. She could already feel her orgasm building, just as she was about to reach her peak, Regina paused. Emma's body settled a fraction and then Regina started again, teasing her. "Gina" Emma whimpered as her climax rose and fell in the tedious goading, "Gina, please" she whimpered once more. This time Regina speeded up her movements and allowed Emma the release she was so eager to express. Regina lifted her head and watched as Emma wailed in satisfaction, clinging onto the taps behind her for support. Emma intensely cascaded down from heaven as her body sang, then wrapped her legs around Regina's waist and kissed her deeply, her tongue almost touching her tonsils. Emma's wet hands dampened the top of Regina's head, the water droplets glistening in the light as she positioned herself upon Regina's pulsating vulva. As their bodies glided together while they scissored, the now lukewarm water splattered over the side of the bath, soaking the little white rug.
By now, Emma and Regina had been in the bath for over an hour. Once they had both reached the pinnacle of pleasure, Emma turned on the hot tap and welcomed the new heat materialising in the cold water. Regina lay between Emma's legs, her back resting on Emma's front. She watched in the mirror as Emma attempted to plait her hair, her green eyes focusing on each strand, her wrinkled fingertips fumbling with each of the three sections. For a further twenty minutes they remained stretched out in the bath just enjoying each other's company.

Chapter 34. Regina

When they eventually climbed into bed, Emma insisted that she had to go to work in the morning to catch up on anything that had happened while she was away. Regina attempted to change her mind, that she still needed the rest but after the mind blowing sex she had given her, she realised that she was more than capable of reading a few files, no matter how much she would have enjoyed having her to herself until Henry would arrive back home. Instead of complaining she purposely woke before Emma and ventured downstairs into the kitchen to make her a packed lunch, knowing that she would naturally forget to feed herself, she may aswell make sure she ate something. She dived into the cupboard and pulled out a pan and a cheese grater. Then she grabbed the butter and a knife, two slices of bread and the all important; cheese.
Emma trudged downstairs ten minutes after her alarm went off, having hit the snooze button twice. When she appeared in the kitchen, she was fully dressed and stifling a yawn. Regina had just finished putting the food into a brown paper bag and was twisting the top down when she spotted the savior leaning on the countertop. "Good morning" she stated, "Good morning Sheriff" Regina replied, eyeing up Emma's badge. "Are you sure you have to go to work?" she added, giving it just one last shot at persuading her to stay home. "Yeah, I don't want to get behind, Dad suggested I get on top of it now before it all builds up", "I suppose that makes sense" Regina admitted. With that she lifted the paper bag from the table top and strolled over to the savior. "Have a lovely day Ms Swan", she then pecked her on the cheek, leaving a faint lipstick mark. Emma smiled with her eyes and took the packed lunch from Regina and peeked inside. Inside was a grilled cheese sandwich wrapped in foil, a small tub of pasta, a root beer and an apple. Emma took the apple from the bag and presented it to Regina. "It's not poisoned I promise" she stammered. Emma giggled. "I know. And thank you, I'll see you later" she then kissed Regina back and left the house, happily swinging the little brown bag.

Emma had been gone less than fifteen minutes before Regina got a call from David. "Hello?" she answered, lifting the handset of the house phone, "Hi Regina, It's David", "Yeah I know, caller ID", "Oh- Right of course, um. How do you fancy grabbing a bite to eat with Mary Margaret and I this afternoon, I think there's a few things we need to discuss". Regina looked around the kitchen as she thought of the answer, "Uh, Ok sure yes", "That's great, we'll meet you at Granny's at one", "I'll be there", "Alright, well see you later, bye", "Bye". Regina waited for David to hang up and then watched the little screen turn to black. As it did, she noticed a glimmer of gold light shimmering behind her. She turned to see Tinkerbell at the window again. "Are you going to thank me?" the pixie beamed, cupping her own face with her hands. Regina rolled her eyes, "I suppose, thank you" she mumbled, "Sorry what was that?" Tinkerbell asked making out she hadn't quite caught what Regina had said. "Nice try but that is all you're getting", "So how is... everything?" Tink asked cocking her head to the side, "If you're hinting at what I think you're hinting at you can forget it, I'm not telling you that", "Oh come on", "Absolutely not" Regina threw her hands in the air as Tinkerbell fluttered her eyelashes. Regina groaned, "Alright, it's great, more than great ok" she admitted thinking back to their bathtime. Tinkerbell grinned and suppressed an excited giggle, "Oh, you painted your nails" the pixie pointed out, motioning to Regina's subtle nude fingernails. Regina looked down at her hand, "Oh yeah, Emma did them for me last night" she told. "They look nice, right well I better be off, a pixie's work is never done, catch you later". Tinkerbell flew away, leaving Regina alone in the kitchen. It was now almost 9:30am, with only four hours until her lunch with David and Mary Margaret. She untied her apron and started clearing away the breakfast items, scooping up a few mouthfulls of left over pasta as she did. By time she washed up the dishes and wiped down the surfaces, the time had sneaked around to ten o'clock. With nothing else to do, she returned to her bedroom and grabbed her mobile from beneath her pillow. She lay on her side facing Emma's side of the bed and proceeded to text the savior. 'Everything ok?' she typed, in seconds Emma replied, 'Yep, but I might be a while, there's quite a lot to go through', 'ok, let me know when you're done, I'll come pick you up, if I'm not still with the charming's', 'Huh?', 'I'm having lunch with your parents, apparently they want to talk to me', 'haha, probably going to give you the birds and bees chat, so glad I'll be missing that'. Regina pulled a face as she imagined getting the sex talk from Mary Margaret. 'I'm gonna do some things around the house, don't work too hard x' Regina replied. Emma replied, 'Ok, see you later x'. She then locked her phone and dropped it onto the bedside table.
Regina left for Granny's at quarter to one, hoping to get there before David and Mary Margaret. After slipping on her best high heeled shoes, she jumped in her car and set off on the short drive to the town. After the heart to heart she had had with Mary Margaret at the hospital, Regina didn't feel the same way that she normally did about being around the Charming's. Sure they'd buried the hatchet a while ago but this time she felt completely at ease. Right up until the thought of David talking about hers and Emma's sex life. Surely this wasn't the real reason they wanted to meet? Once she arrived outside Granny's a brisk wind blew, causing her scarf to dance in the breeze. "Afternoon Madam Mayor" Archie chirped as he too made his way down the path to the diner. "Afternoon Archie" she replied with a faint nod. "Here let me get that for you" Archie blurted, reaching for the door. He plunged down on the handle and the gently pushed the door open. "Thank you" Regina smiled, and then she stepped in and took a seat at one of the booths. As she had hoped she was the first to arrive. "What can I get you?" Ruby asked with a cheery smile. "Oh, I'll just have a coffee while I wait please", "Coffee, ok coming right up" Ruby smiled again not needing to jot down the order on her notepad.
David and Mary Margaret must have had the same idea, to arrive early because seconds later they walked in, wrapped up warm in big coats, both their noses pink from the cold. "Oh Regina, you're here already" Mary Margaret addressed loudly. Loud enough to make a few of the other customers look up from their dinner plates. Regina rose from her seat, "Yes, I wanted to be on time", "Well you're early", "Sorry, is that a problem?", "No luckily not" Mary Margaret forced a smile and looked to David for support. "What can I get you Regina?" He asked taking his wallet from his back pocket. "I've already ordered, thank you". David nodded and proceeded to the counter to order tea for himself and his wife. Mary Margaret took a seat opposite Regina and stared nervously into her eyes. David joined them a moment later as Ruby saw to the order. He joined Mary Margaret's nervous gaze. "So?" Regina spoke up starting to feel a little awkward. David bit his tongue and blurted out, "Regina, what are your intentions with my daughter?". Mary Margaret gulped and sat up straight. 'God no, it really is the sex talk' Regina's conscience screamed in embarrassment. For a minute she looked down at the table top, "Um, well, to love her, protect her" she trailed hoping she was giving them the answers they wanted to hear. "If Emma did something, or said something, you don't agree with, how would you respond or, or react?" Mary Margaret muttered. "Well, I'd probably tell her I didn't agree or that she hurt my feelings- sorry, but why are we doing this?" Regina asked, confused. Before she could get an answer Ruby arrived with the the tea and coffee. "Here you go, enjoy" she spoke, a look of wonder in her own eye as she watched the old enemies sitting together. "Thank you Ruby" David said, raising an eyebrow. "Oh yeah" Ruby mumbled as she lingered at the table. She slipped the tray under her arm and sauntered away back behind the counter leaving them to it. "I don't know, isn't this what normal families do when their daughters get boyf- girlfr- partners?" Mary Margaret stammered, looking for the right term. "We're all grownups here, surely we don't need to do this?" Regina uttered. Again an awkward silence rose between them and simultaneously the three of them took a sip of their drinks. Mary Margaret glanced at the clock, it was now 13:15pm. As if it were purposely done on queue, Henry burst through the cafe door, again everyone looked up, this time mostly because the door swung so wide open it bounced off the wall. "Hi" he greeted his mom and grandparents. "Henry why aren't you at school? And come to think of it why aren't you?" Regina asked, first to her son, then to Mary Margaret. "It's Lunchtime" Henry and Mary Margaret spoke at the same time. Regina took another sip of coffee. "You look nice Mom" Henry declared. "Thanks" Regina said with a weary look. 'This is weird' she thought to herself. "Any plans for the rest of the day?" Henry asked another question, "Um, no I don't think so, unless there's something Emma wants to do, if not I'm happy to just go back to bed". David pulled a face. "To sleep, to sleep" Regina insisted knowing what they must have thought she was thinking of. "Mom, do you really love my mom?" Henry questioned, an honesty showing in his eyes. "Yes Henry, I do, very much" Regina grinned happily. As the words left her mouth a familiar voice sounded from behind. "That's nice to know" Emma gloated. Regina blushed. "I thought you were at work? I was going to pick you up" Regina chirped. "Yeah- I lied, I didn't go to work" Emma admitted. Before Regina could ask why she lied, Emma spoke again. "I went into town instead", "This is where we come into it" Mary Margaret interrupted excitedly. Emma glared at her mother. Mary Margaret fell silent. "I'm glad you love me Gina, because I love you too. Now more than ever. See last night I was thinking, 'what exactly is true love?' and I may be wrong but, I came to the idea that true love isn't flowers and chocolates and breakfast in bed. It's so much more than that. True love is continuously fighting for each other's happiness, always being there for the person you love, and not just whenever they need you, and transcending realms through special magic. That's love. Mr Gold once said that love is a weakness. If so, it is a powerful weakness, because Regina, for as long as I have been in love with you, even before I knew it, everything we have ever done and attempted to do, together, has succeeded. There is nothing we can't do as long as we have each other" she paused. Regina stared into Emma's glittering eyes. "I asked my mom and dad, and Henry, to bring you here and keep you busy while I made my way back from town. Because, I kinda needed not to bump into you, I also needed to hype myself up for this, I was nervous as hell, but seeing you here in front of me, I'm completely at ease, and I don't ever want to be away from you again" with that Emma took a deep breath and pulled a small box from her pocket. On one knee, she looked up at Regina and opened the box. An enormous diamond ring now on display. Every single customer at the diner looked over at Emma and Regina and gasped. "Regina Mills, Will you marry me?" Emma asked lovingly.

Was this really happening? Was she dreaming? She couldn't quite seem to tell if her heart was beating faster or slower. As the ring sparkled from inside the pretty black box, it almost lit up as beautifully as Emma's eyes. Regina threw her hands to her mouth in complete shock. This is why Emma insisted on painting her nails. This is why Emma insisted on 'going to work'. Immediately her eyes flooded with warm tears. Her bottom lip trembled as her emotions got the better of her. She nodded her head, slowly and then faster as Emma breathed a sigh of relief. "Yes, YES" Regina cried, throwing her arms around Emma who was still crouched down on the floor. She was so excited to hug her that she almost knocked the ring out of her hands. "I love you" Emma whispered, tears of her own now forming in her eyes. "I love you" Regina mumbled, her voice muffled as her tears sunk into Emma's neck. Henry screamed excitedly, happy for his mom's., fist pumping the air. Mary Margaret was crying with joy, while David smiled, a tear in his own eye as he watched his daughter holding her true love in her arms. The people of Storybrooke were confused, but being the loving, friendly people they were, most of them sprung to their feet and applauded as Emma glided the ring over Regina's finger.
This girl had come from nowhere and changed her entire perspective on life. She'd saved her from the darkness, from villains and more challengingly, from herself. The diner was fit to bursting from the amount of love held in the room.

Life with Emma was constantly changing, getting better and more exciting, each day;

a chapter in a story that will never end.
She had gone from Henry's Birth Mother, to Ms Sw an.

From Ms Swan to Sheriff Swan.

From Sheriff Swan to Emma.

From Emma to, My Fiance.

And in a matter of time, Mrs Mills.

And Regina couldn't wait to spend the rest of her life with her.