Emma glanced back over her shoulder to watch her parents' carriage set off. Two weeks had seemed like a long time when she had left the Dark Palace, but now that she was back, it seemed like it had passed by in a heartbeat.
"Don't look at your parents," Regina hissed, before catching her tone and correcting herself. "We have so much to talk about, Emma. I've missed you. Did you miss me?"
Emma turned to look at the Queen, who was smiling at her, but the smile didn't quite reach her eyes, and Emma had the sinking feeling she wasn't being honest. "I, um," Emma stammered, not quite sure how to answer the question. "I thought about you."
Regina's smile widened, and Emma guessed her answer must have been deemed acceptable. At least she hadn't angered the Queen yet. She was determined to try to avoid a repeat of her last visit - especially if she was to spend an entire week here.
"Good," Regina said, beaming her approval, as they continued the long walk out to the stables. Emma wasn't dressed for riding and she wasn't really ready to get back on a horse yet, so she hoped that wasn't Regina's intention for their afternoon.
"Now, tell me princess, what did you tell your parents of our last visit?" Regina asked, sounding only mildly interested.
"Nothing," Emma replied. And it really was true, she hadn't really told them anything, just as the Queen had requested.
"Nothing? Really? I'm impressed. I expected you would be the type to tell Mommy everything."
Emma looked at Regina in surprise. "But you asked me not to."
"I did," Regina agreed. "And it would appear you listen much better than your mother ever did. You're such a good girl. I have a surprise for you."
Emma bit her lip, wondering what sort of surprise Regina could possibly have in store for her. Whatever it was, she was sure she wasn't going to want it.
"Come inside," Regina instructed, as they reached the large stable and she pulled open the door. Emma caught sight of Diablo right away, and avoided him, remembering how terrifying their ride had been. There were a few other, smaller, horses, but Regina led Emma right past them, all the way back to the last stall.
"Look inside," Regina said, smiling widely as she urged Emma closer to the door. Emma put her hands on the stall door and peeked over, gasping when she saw a tiny foal, perfectly white with a long flaxen tail and matching mane. The foal turned her head and to look back at the girl, and Emma laughed when she noticed the single beige patch around her left eye.
"He's only three days old," Regina commented, reaching forward to stroke the tiny horse on her soft cheek. "His mother is quite a prize, and he will grow into a fine horse, I'm sure. Do you like him?"
"Yes, he's beautiful," Emma grinned, nodding enthusiastically. "What's his name?"
"You tell me. He's yours," Regina replied, simply.
"Really?" Emma gasped, her eyes growing wide in surprise. She'd never owned a horse before - she'd never owned any animal before - and she wasn't expecting this.
"Yes, darling. I know the larger horses make you nervous, and I thought if you could help raise a young one, you might feel more comfortable around them," Regina explained.
Truthfully, she knew there was still a fair amount of damage control to be done, in order to win back Emma's trust, but she was sure this gesture couldn't hurt. Emma's smile told her she was at least on the right track.
"Thank you, Regina, I don't know what to say."
"You don't have to say anything, darling. Seeing you happy makes me happy," Regina said, holding out her arms. She was relieved when Emma eagerly accepted her embrace, falling against her and hugging her back tightly.
Regina thought perhaps the damage was not severe as she had feared. Perhaps Emma felt as strong a pull to her, as she did to Emma.
She hoped she was right, since she would need Emma on her side for what was coming.
Regina stroked one hand lightly up and down Emma's back, while the other arm was firmly wrapped around Emma's shoulders, holding the girl securely against her. "I'm sorry for what happened last time you were here, my little swan," Regina breathed against Emma's hair. "I don't want you to be afraid of me. I just want you to be my princess."
Emma stiffened, still unsure of exactly what Regina meant by that. Either way, she liked this Regina, and this was the Regina she would prefer to spend a week with. "I'm not afraid of you," Emma said, finally.
Regina spent some time that afternoon teaching Emma how to care for her new pet. By the time they were done, Emma still hadn't thought of a suitable name, but Regina assured her it would come to her in time, and not to fret.
Despite having no interest in horses previously, Emma could feel herself quickly becoming attached to the little colt, and she supposed horses were really not all that bad. She also supposed having her horse here would actually give her a reason to look forward to coming to the Dark Palace, instead of dreading it.
As the afternoon wore on, Regina finally told Emma it was time to say goodbye to her horse for now, as she informed her that they had a dinner to attend.
"What dinner?" Emma asked, confused. She couldn't imagine anyone in the Kingdom who would invite Regina to a dinner.
"At the Silver Palace," Regina said, nonchalantly, as they headed toward the castle.
Emma stopped dead in her tracks and spun around to face Regina. "Why? Why would we go there?"
"Hush, child," Regina sighed. "Don't fret. The King would like to discuss the terms of a treaty with me. Did you know he wishes to start a war?"
Emma bit her bottom lip. She had heard hushed talks about a possible war brewing, but her mother had insisted that there was no merit to it. She insisted that King Markus of the Silver Kingdom would not be foolish enough to start a war with Regina, but Emma had overheard her parents mentioning the King's favour from Rumplestiltskin when they thought she wasn't listening.
Regina ignored Emma's silence and continued. "If he wishes to start a war, then he is a bigger idiot than I thought."
"He wants to force me to marry his son," Emma said, quietly.
"I am aware," Regina sighed, as she put an arm around Emma's shoulders and turned her back in the direction of the castle, and started walking again, leading her inside the main entrance. "I can assure you, I'm not about to let you suffer the same fate as I did."
The revelation took Emma by surprise. She hadn't expected Regina to make another telling statement so soon. "Because you were forced to wed my grandfather," Emma acknowledged, quickly realizing she might have an in to get some more information from Regina, perhaps another piece of the puzzle. "What was he like?"
Of course Emma had heard all about her grandfather from her mother, from Snow's earliest memories, to her father's mysterious death, but she wanted to hear Regina's side in all of this. She was growing more and more curious as to exactly what made this woman tick.
But it only took a moment to realized she'd made a mistake in asking. Regina's face went dark - darker than Emma had ever seen - as the woman pursed her lips and her eyes took on an intensity that made Emma want to run.
"Listen to me right now," Regina said, her voice dripping with venom, harsher than Emma had ever heard it, even after she had gotten lost in the hallways on her last visit and sent Regina into a fiery rage. "I told you not to mention your mother to me, and you have, several times. I have forgiven that transgression, but mark my words, if you ever, ever, ask me about your grandfather again, I will not be so lenient. Do I make myself clear?"
Emma gaped at Regina, her mouth dropping open and her eyes going wide. Her mother had told her that her grandfather had been a loving, caring, gentle man and a good, strong King. Regina's reaction seemed to imply much the opposite, and Emma had no idea why.
This was one mystery she thought might be best left alone.
"I, I…" Emma stammered, Regina's hard eyes still boring though her, "I'm sorry. I didn't know. I'll never do it again, I promise!"
As quickly as her face had changed before, Regina's features softened again, and a small, forced smile replaced her former sneer. "Good," she said, curtly, her voice still terrifyingly cold. "Get changed for dinner. I gave you lots of pretty dresses, make yourself look nice. We leave shortly and I will not be kept waiting."
Emma nodded, and when Regina turned to walk away, Emma ran in the other direction, down the hall, through Regina's bedchambers and into her own, slamming the door shut and leaning back against it, blinking back tears as she looked up the the ceiling, trying to centre herself.
She had no idea what had just transpired inside the Queen's head, but that was a side of Regina she never wanted to see again.
She stepped over to her wardrobe, and examined the selection of dresses that were inside. She'd never really taken much time to look at the clothing Regina had provided her with. The dresses were gorgeous, several were very ornate, with beautiful, intricate patterns and beadings.
They were beautiful.
Too beautiful.
She couldn't wear these to see Prince Michael. She didn't want to look beautiful. She didn't want to draw his attention. She didn't want him to look at her. She didn't want him to want her.
She rifled through the dresses until she saw one that caught her eye. It was different than the others. It was a deep purple velvet, with long sleeves that had black lace accents around the wide cuffs. There was also thin black lace over the otherwise open back.
This didn't look like a dress for a princess. This looked like a dress for a Queen; perhaps even an Evil Queen.
And Emma was enticed.
She knew her mother would never allow her to wear such a thing, but her mother wasn't here, and she supposed Regina wouldn't have provided it for her if she didn't want her to wear it. What could be the harm in at least trying it on?
She slipped into the dress. It was more form fitting than anything she'd ever worn before. It hugged her curves in all the right places, and when she stood in front of the full length mirror, she couldn't force herself to look away.
She didn't look like a child in that moment. She looked like a woman.
She wasn't filled out in the way that Regina was, but in this dress, she knew she looked much older than fifteen. But it wasn't the ramped-up sex appeal that attracted her to this dress. The dress made her look intimidating. Emma smirked at her own reflection, revelling in what it would feel like to be a Queen, dark and powerful, like Regina.
"Interesting choice," Regina mused, from her place in Emma's doorway.
Emma's head snapped around. She hadn't heard the Queen enter - she'd been too preoccupied admiring herself in this dress. Her face flushed immediately from embarrassment - both at being caught in a moment of unbridled vanity, and at Regina's eyes taking in her figure in this dress.
"But perhaps not appropriate for this evening's affair," Regina continued, walking past Emma, toward the wardrobe to select a more appropriate dress for the meeting at the Silver Palace.
"Of course not," Emma stammered. "I just wanted to see…"
"How it looked?" Regina asked, raising an eyebrow as she turned back to Emma, watching her turn an even deeper shade of crimson. "Well, I must say you look absolutely stunning in that dress, my little swan, but I want to save that one for a special occasion. Put this one on for tonight, darling."
Emma turned to look at the dress Regina had her hands. It was simple, and mint green. It was made of soft satin and Emma could already tell it would fit looser than the one she had on currently. She smiled thinly and took the dress from Regina.
"Leave your hair loose, darling," Regina instructed. "I like it like that. I'll be waiting for you." With that, Regina handed Emma the dress, and left her alone in her bedchambers to change again, closing the door behind her as she went out.
Emma blinked at the door for a moment, mesmerized by the quick change in Regina - yet again. Gone was the fiery rage and the sinister dark eyes, replaced once again by the sweet, doting Queen that Emma could already feel herself growing fond of.
Emma changed quickly into the green dress, and took a glance at herself in the mirror again. Gone was the sultry vixen in the purple velvet dress, replaced once again by the innocent, wide-eyed, fifteen-year-old princess. She supposed it was for the best, she didn't know how to play the role of vixen anyway. And she certainly didn't want Prince Michael getting any ideas if he were to see her in that dress.
No. This was better. But she couldn't help but wonder about what special occasion Regina could possibly have planned for that purple dress. Perhaps she had reconsidered Emma's idea of her hosting a ball at the Dark Palace?
Emma supposed it didn't matter right now. She knew she was stalling, because she wanted to put off going to the Silver Palace. And she knew Regina didn't like to be kept waiting.
She stepped gingerly over to the door, and pushed it open. She noted immediately that Regina had changed as well. She was in a tight burgundy dress with a wide skirt that opened in the front, revealing tight leather pants underneath. Her hair was piled high up on her head, and her make-up was dark and imposing.
Emma drew in a deep breath as she stepped into the room. She'd never seen Regina look the part of the Evil Queen more so than she did in this moment, and it was unsettling, to say the least.
But, to her surprise, Regina smiled when she saw her. "Much better," the Queen cooed, stepping closer to the princess. She brushed a few stray hairs back from Emma's forehead with a perfectly manicured red fingernail. "My sweet, innocent, swan princess."
In spite of her nervousness, Emma smiled. She found she liked the Queen's 'swan' nickname for her, and she was pretty sure Regina knew it, too.
"Are you ready to go?" Regina asked, as she gave Emma's appearance one final look over.
"Not really," Emma admitted. "I wish we could just stay here."
"My sweet," Regina sighed, cupping Emma's face in both her hands. "The only reason we are attending this parlay is to ensure that you can stay here, without interference from the Silver Palace. I'm only doing this for you."
Emma bit her lip and nodded. She wasn't exactly sure what threat the Silver Kingdom posed to Regina, with her magic, but she supposed there must be something if Regina was worried enough to meet with King Markus.
"Come, princess, take my hand, and stand close to me," Regina instructed, taking Emma's hand in hers. "We will travel by magic."
Before Emma could even ask what that meant, she saw the cloud of swirling purple envelop both of them. When the smoke cleared, the entrance of the Silver Palace came into view. She had never actually seen the palace, but she knew that's where they were, since King Markus and Prince Michael were standing in the entryway, surrounded by guards and knights.
"Regina," the King drawled, taking a few steps closer, "so lovely of you to join us."
Regina smirked and glanced at Emma, whose hand she was still clinging to, tightly, and then back to the King. "Your Majesty," she said, with a mock bow, "I wouldn't have missed it for the world."
"Well, then let's get started, shall we?" the King asked, turning to lead the way into the palace.
"Come along, little swan, let's not keep the King waiting," Regina said, tugging at Emma's hand, when the girl's feet seemed to lock into place.
Emma swallowed hard and nodded, following Regina as she started to walk, dreading whatever was about to transpire behind the castle walls.