Chapter Seven
The fire in Regina's palm extinguished in response to that voice.
It was the one that she felt so guilty about wanting to hear again while in the Underworld.
How could she claim to have loved Daniel Colter and yet also hope that he had spent decades under the tyranny of Hades just so that she could get a chance to talk to him before returning to the land of the living with the latest love of her life?
Seeing the overturned headstone had caused a swirl of pain but she'd ultimately decided that it was for the best.
Now that she was faced with the heartbreakingly young man, attired the same as the day he'd died, Regina decided that she'd been right about that.
It would have meant that she could have avoided the expression painted across his features. It was somewhere between shock and disgust.
How often had the two of them expressed disdain for her mother's magic and here she was allowing the same woman to heal her and wielding the power herself.
As he inspected his fiancee and murderer, however, another emotion was thrown into the mix.
Horror.
A burst of physical pain reminded Regina that it was likely because of her multiple remaining injuries.
Running her tongue over her cracked lips, Regina tried to step forward but thought better of it.
Despite years of yearning, it didn't feel right to actually touch him.
Perhaps it was the age difference that had extended since his death?
As if it were a defence, Regina said, "Your headstone was overturned…I thought that meant that you had moved on?"
Daniel shook his head, "I did that myself when news of your mother's arrival here came, I thought it would be the safer option."
Regina looked over to Cora, who was refusing eye contact with either of them.
Did the fact that her heart allowed her to feel remorse entitle her to forgiveness for her heinous actions?
In the presence of another victim of her power hungry triadem it felt unattainable.
Then again, how many denizens of the Underworld would feel the same about the Evil Queen
This led to a flash of worry that Daniel may have slowly been fed stories about what she became. She wanted to ask if he'd ever talked to Cruella or the blind witch but instead, she said, "You have been here all this time?"
Still eyeing Cora, who had yet to speak, he said, "How could I move on without knowing what became of you? How are you here? And what are you wearing?"
As if she were once again a teenager, she had the urge to do up a button on her blouse.
It was a stark reminder of the innocence of first love, but things had not been that simple in decades, so she resisted the juvenile impulse.
"That is an extraordinarily long story," Regina admitted, glad at least to note that he appeared ignorant of the Dark Curse.
"One that you could perhaps recount somewhere more comfortable?" Cora piped up.
Daniel gritted his teeth and stepped in front of Regina, "Stay away from her."
Regina sighed.
Years ago, the threat would have incited anxiety within her, sure that someone was about to get hurt.
Today, Cora appeared too tired for violence, besides the fact that the three of them were too dead for pain to mean much.
"Daniel," Regina objected, lacking the fire from the last time they were all in a stable together.
"Believe me, there are so many reasons as to why she would not need your protection," Cora bit.
Daniel frowned, cautiously turning his back on the Queen of Hearts to face her daughter.
"All part of the story," Regina assured despite the overwhelming sensation of being judged by her first love.
"Which we could perhaps share in great detail once I have assured that Zelena is safe?" Cora implored.
Finding her half-sister in the Underworld had exhausted Regina at first. She may have vehemently disagreed with Rumple's decision to take revenge so directly but that wasn't because she wanted to get to know the woman who had dedicated so much to trying to kill her.
She hadn't come to the Underworld for a family reunion but that didn't stop it from happening and watching Zelena trying to rebuff Hades' advances did incite some sympathy from her.
Unfortunately, she couldn't help the Wicked Witch of the West to move on when she continually refused to talk to their mother, which became impossible when the woman disappeared from Underbrooke.
"Zelena?" Daniel asked.
Sighing again, Regina answered, knowing that it would only invite more questions, "My sister."
"What?" he said, throwing his hands up in exasperation.
Regina stared at his bewilderment, wondering where would even be the best place to start with all of it.
It was plausible that he wasn't even aware that she had become the queen of the White Kingdom, let alone all that followed.
Leaning past him to address Cora, she instead focused on the most immediate issue here.
"She is safe, mother. Hades loves her even if she does not feel the same," she promised.
Daniel appeared incapable of asking whatever questions this statement brough to his mind, who could blame him really?
"I would like to confirm that for myself," Cora replied and Regina nodded in agreement.
By all indications, Henry was safe in Storybrooke and she ached to be able to make sure he was okay for herself so she got the urgency with which her mother wanted to find her other child.
"Will you please come with us?" Regina asked softly to Daniel, "I promise that I will explain everything you wish to know."
Daniel looked between the Mills women, hesitating for a second or two before he inclined his head, unable to reject the offer for answers now that he'd had a taste of how much the status quo had changed.
S
Emma Swan was never one to spend much time in graveyards, she'd never had anyone to visit.
That changed when Regina Mills became her friend and she would often walk through Storybrooke's cemetery to meet her in her vault. It took time for that trip to become less creepy, to stop wondering how many of the graves actually had a real person in it.
There was one that definitely did, which was what had drawn Emma there today.
For the last few days, Emma had sunk back into her hopelessness unable to adhere to her promise to try and be happy. She didn't even have the comfort of the small chance that her mother and Belle could find a way back to the Underworld.
Snow had officially stopped obsessing after her talk with Henry and it had all hit her like a truck the night before, bursting into tears during dinner. No one had the words to comfort her, they all missed the woman that Snow was crying over too.
Seeing her tears was a hit to Emma's resolve to return to work the following day. If she told her father that she wasn't ready, he would have covered for her like he had every other time she'd put it off.
Rather than giving into the lethargy that begged her to stay in bed that morning, she decided to do something that could be considered productive.
If she went to lay flowers on her True Love's grave, maybe she wouldn't feel so guilty about going to the station like everything was normal. Like being the sheriff of Storybrooke was any fun without the knowledge that Mayor Mills could appear at any moment with a quip.
She walked slowly from the Mills mausoleum and towards the grave situated near it. She stared at the inscription, not quite able to comprehend the name on it despite witnessing her death first hand.
She plopped down at the end of the plot and added her bouquet to the substantial pile.
"Hey," she said unnecessarily, "I know that your dad moved on but I figured that you would still want him to have flowers. It's Wednesday, right? I can bring yours at the same time…"
Of course, she received nor response and Emma took in a long breath.
What had she ever thought that this was a good idea?
Blurting out, she admitted, "How am I supposed to just accept that you're gone? I know I promised but…fuck, Regina, I miss you so much and I don't know how this will ever be okay."
"Is this how you talked to my grave?"
Emma sat bolt upright, her hand going to her waist but her holster was in her office waiting for her to start her shift.
The slurring of the words proved that it wouldn't be needed anyway, she could handle an intoxicated pirate without a gun.
Sighing, she remained sitting and said, "Killian…why are you here?"
The pirate stumbled forward, leaning against a headstone.
Emma clenched her jaw but she didn't recognise the name to know if it was just for show or not. It wasn't disrespectful to lean against a fake grave marker, right?
"It seemed the most likely place to find this new you," he said tauntingly, not in the mocking way that would have made Emma smile if it was coming from a very specific person.
"New me?" Emma asked, not completely sure if she cared about the answer or not.
Pointing the flask at her unevenly, he explained, "The Swan who has been acting like a widow even though she was never married."
Emma's eyes fluttered closed, it turned out that he'd come up with an answer painful enough to make her care.
It was a reminder that they could have been so much more.
If she had just told Regina about her feelings when they first materialised, it wasn't inconceivable that she could have been a widow.
As awful as that would have been, at least Regina Mills would have been her life, she wouldn't have to conjure fantasies of what it would have been like to kiss her, hold her, wake up every morning with the love of her life.
Emma tore violently at a patch of grass and bit back, "Are you here to hurt me, Hook?"
"I'm trying to understand why you would go to the Underworld for someone you don't love. Why bring me back to break my heart?" he asked, punctuated with a hiccup.
Shaking her head to stem tears that she did not want him to see, she said, "I did love you, I really did. I thought you were my True Love. I wouldn't have taken that risk if I didn't."
"Only because you thought that she couldn't love you back?" he challenged.
"It wasn't intentional," Emma sighed, it didn't matter how many times he said it. She was aware that there were many who wouldn't believe her. It didn't help that Killian was making it exceedingly difficult to believe that she could have ever loved such a dick.
Maybe he would stop if she could explain her feelings satisfactorily?
"I have loved Regina for years but True Love has to go both ways. I thought that you were the one I was supposed to be with because you actually told me how you feel but that was wrong."
She almost followed it up with an apology but she'd already said sorry during the initial break up.
Why didn't he accept that? Why couldn't he leave her alone to give flowers to her True Love?
"And now that she's gone you think you have to be alone, Swan?" he shot back.
Emma ran her tongue over her lips and shook her head.
She could tell him that she'd promised Regina that she would move on (one day) but why did she have to defend herself to him. Why did he deserve to hear Regina's words when he was the reason that she was gone?
"Killian…please go away?" she pleaded, definitely too exhausted for this conversation, especially here of all places.
"I'm trying to understand!" he snapped back.
Emma clenched her fist and exploded, "When you died, Regina offered to come to the Underworld with me. She did everything I asked her to do. She was literally in love with me and she helped me save you because she thought it would make me happy. While Henry was crying over his mother's body, you said that the Evil Queen isn't capable of love, do you see the difference?"
Her tears escaped, mentally seeing Henry sobbing over Regina while she tried to register the fact that she loved her back and that she'd died.
She would have been extra angry at Killian for making her recall the very worst moment of her life if she didn't think about it at least ten times a day.
Peeling away from the headstone, Hook asked, "What are you saying?"
"I am saying that I miss Regina and I need you to stop thinking we're getting back together."
He frowned but persisted, "So…when can we…"
"You called my True Love a bitch at her funeral, Killian," Emma snapped, "You need to stop!"
Killian opened and closed his mouth but accepted that there was no coming back from that.
At last, he stormed away.
Emma sighed in relief and began to rearrange the array of flowers but was distracted by another new arrival, she prepared to snap again but this impulse evaporated upon turning her head to a lanky teen clutching purple flowers.
"Hey kid," she sighed, "Free period?"
"Yeah," Henry replied, holding up a second set of flowers for his grandfather, "It's Wednesday."
"We had the same idea," Emma replied, attempting to muster a smile for her son's thoughtfulness.
Henry looked over his shoulder, tipping the saviour off that he must have passed the other visitor to the cemetery.
"Did Hook bother you?" he asked, his jaw and fists clenched.
"What?" Emma said, with a single laugh, "Going to punch him again?"
"I wouldn't mind," Henry murmured, likely recalling that he'd never gotten a chance to get retribution for the funeral.
Emma held out her arm and said, "Come here." He complied wordlessly, sitting next to her and accepting the one armed hug, "Pretty sure your mom would say no punching?"
Henry shrugged, adding his flowers next to Emma's, "I think she would make an exception for him."
Emma laughed again and hugged him closer.
They could stay like this for at least a bit before they would both have to fulfil their responsibilities as if Regina Mills wasn't gone.