As old alliances change within the little magical town, Rumple moves closer to finding out what's happened to make four people change in character completely. Meanwhile, Emma starts to understand what she's been doing for the last ten days.
Granny's Diner
"Neal? David? It's good to see you finally out and about. How's Dorothy?
It was the first time David had set foot in the diner, something they used to do several times a week, since Snow told him she was ending their marriage, to live with her new lover, the proprietor's granddaughter. Thus destroying two marriages in one fell swoop. He just couldn't face them, knowing everyone in the town was probably talking about him behind his back. Besides, most of them were close allies of Snow, if not friends, from her past. She was their rightful queen; and now, that made him an outsider. The lowly shepherd who couldn't hold onto his royal wife.
But he knew he had to face the world sooner or later, even if only for his son's sake. He had to make a fresh start, even though it was going to be tough. Especially for Neal.
"Better than she was, Granny. She's proving to be a great help on the farm. How are you coping?"
"As well as can be, given the circumstances."
The old wolf smiled at the boy, who'd only turned eight less than a week ago. She'd originally offered to put on a little party for him and his friends last week. But coming days after his own mother had arrived at school to tell him, bluntly, in front of his friends, that she was leaving his father. Leaving home, because she'd fallen in love with Ruby and was going to live with her from now on. So on the day he turned eight, he was in no mood to see anyone, or even leave the farm. He'd retreated into himself completely.
Too wrapped up in her new life and her new lover, Snow hadn't even sent over a birthday card, let alone seen him!
"Neal my dear, could I have a private word with your dad? Why don't you go sit over at that back table there, and I'll send him over with an extra little treat for you in a minute?"
The boy looked up at her, giving her a sad smile. Smiling wasn't something he'd been doing much of recently.
"Okay, Granny. Dad, can I have a hot chocolate, and one of those blueberry muffins?"
David knew he'd have to face this sometime. "Sure, no problem. I'll be over in a minute."
She waited till he was out of earshot.
"David, first, I'm so sorry! About Snow and Ruby? I was shocked when it happened."
He nodded silently, sighing. "Not as shocked as I was, Eugenia."
"The whole town was stunned..." She rested a sympathetic hand on his arm. "Neither of them made any friends that day. Quite the opposite! You heard about what happened?"
"About you getting mad and chucking them out?" He finally managed a snigger. "Dorothy told me something about it. Haven't lost your touch, have you, Eugenia Lucas?"
"I wasn't mad, I was livid! After what they did to you and that poor girl? She's no granddaughter of mine, David! I'm thoroughly ashamed of both of them. And what she did to your sweet child in the school playground?" She looked over at Neal, a waitress having now arrived at his table. "Oh, I heard about it all right! No mother should ever break bad news to her child like that! It was unforgiveable." David nodded, not quite sure how to reply. "But I just want you to know, I'm on your side." Was that a tear he spotted in the old wolf's eye? "We all are."
"We?" David hadn't noticed anyone standing behind him, until he turned, spotting three of the dwarves.
"She means us!" Leroy spoke up for them. "We saw it all, Charming. And Sneezy here saw what they did in the park? I don't know why it all happened, but…" he looked to his fellow dwarves, Doc and Bashful giving him a nod to explain. "We just want you to know that…well, Snow's let us all down bad! Real bad! And we can't support her no more. But, well, despite everything, you've never failed us. So we're still right behind you this time. You, and your boy."
David understood the significance of what he was saying, but couldn't quite believe his ears. The dwarves' reputation for fierce loyalty to Snow, even to the point of death if needed, was legendary. They, along with the Blue Fairy, were her eyes and ears in the old world, and here. And now she was lost to them?
"Thanks Leroy, and the rest of you guys too, it's appreciated; and I'm touched, really! But we'll be fine, okay? I just want to start making my boy smile again. Personally, I hope we don't run into either of them anytime soon."
"Well, if you do brother, and you need help handling an angry she-wolf, let me know!"
"That's good to know, my friend. But I'm not worried about that woman. Not after I made her take the Lycaon oath."
"LYCAON?"
The name alone made Granny's jaw drop, as she shuddered. "How the hell do you know about Lycaon?"
"I read up. You remember that time Spencer tried to frame her, saying she'd killed that poor guy and dumped him in the skip? Before he whipped up the mob with pitchforks? Yeah, well I read up on wolf-lore. Just as well, because after I caught her in my own bed with my wife, I made her make the oath with a gun to her throat. It seemed the only way to stop her ripping out mine!"
Granny winced. "What precisely, did you make her vow? You do realise, as another wolf, I've no choice but to kill her myself if she breaks it?"
"She has to stay away from me, and my family, apart from Snow. I'm not proud of what I did, Eugenia. But my life was on the line, so given the circumstances?"
"And Emma and the Mayor? You know about what's been going on there, don't you?"
"Henry's been keeping me updated, and Dot visited Mulan yesterday. I gather they've both been suspended, and left Storybrooke?"
"Three days." Leroy nodded. "I guess they knew without magic because of those weird cuffs, they were the same as the rest of us, and couldn't avoid the consequences! Sir Morgan's acting Sheriff now. He's a decent sort, if a bit stuffy? But he's got to carry out the investigation, so he's planning to arrest them both and interview them when they come back. Damn right too! Sorry Charming, I know she's your daughter and all, but seeing what Emma did to the young Locksley lad and his dad in here?"
Granny saw the dispirited look on his face. It was bad enough losing his wife, but had he lost his only daughter as well?
"Okay boys, that's enough. Let's leave the Prince in peace to go have lunch with his son? David, you go sit and I'll come take the order. Whatever Neal wants is on the house today. And tell him…" She ducked under the back of the display cabinet, bringing out a large whole chocolate and fudge cake, resting it on the counter. "…to hold off on that blueberry muffin? Me and the boys have a little something for him. Kathy?" She called to the waitress standing nearby. "Go fetch me some birthday candles? Leroy, go bring the boys over to sing."
The Gold Mansion
She sat at Rumple's desk in his study, looking over the bottles and jars. And the congealed tray of hair in a dark substance he'd been using yesterday.
Belle was worried.
Rumple was currently somewhere in the centre of the forest, with Robin Locksley and Henry Mills, on a mission to find a hidden cottage. A cottage that might help uncover the reasons why Henry's two mothers had changed so dramatically, less than two weeks ago. Henry said they'd been cursed, or were now being controlled; and Rumple seemed to agree.
Seeing the moving images displayed on the dreamcatcher yesterday had been disturbing. Not least when Emma Swan-Jones violently struck young Roland , then used magic to throw his father into the wall like he was a rag doll. And Regina, his supposed soulmate and true love, merely stood by, smirking. Then finally slapping her own son hard around the face.
None of that could have been Emma. Emma adored Henry.
But troubling though those images were, what was worrying Belle far more right now, was what Rumple had told her just before he left this morning. That once he returned, he would start working on two more vials sitting near the back of the desk, away from the rest. Vials containing the hair of Ruby Lucas and Snow White. To discover how and why the rightful queen of Misthaven, and the she-wolf, both happily married to other people, should suddenly change character overnight, just like Emma and Regina had, and destroy two of the strongest relationships ever. Relationships where each had woken their partner from a sleeping curse. It was more than co-incidental.
Belle wasn't stupid. Far from it. So, when she'd discovered Rumple had obtained fresh locks of hair from Emma and Regina, intertwining them and creating a serum to view all their recent times spent together on that screen catcher, she'd been intrigued, fascinated by the result.
And when she saw the more intimate moments between them, she felt a little turned on, quite frankly.
But knowing he also had hair from Ruby and Snow and was planning to do the same with them? Well, that was very different! Neither of those two had magic, and as far as she knew, they weren't likely to become violent like Emma and Regina. Or at least, she hoped not. But knowing that once the next batch of serum was ready to use, Rumple could watch all their interactions from the last fortnight, as he had the others, left her very uncomfortable.
Uncomfortable, because Belle held a secret. A secret known only to one other person. And it wasn't Rumple. But remembering his reaction to his first wife's infidelity, it was a secret that, if disclosed, could kill her.
Belle loved Rumple. She really did, despite his terrible history and reputation. She understood The Dark One better than any other human being alive, barring Henry. And she'd grown to love him even more since Gideon's safe return. Having learnt from the mistakes he'd made with his first son, Henry's father, Rumple had fought his darker instincts to become a little more like his old self. The Dark One would have almost certainly done nothing to help fix Henry's problems with his mothers. He would instead have relished the pain they were going through, no doubt offering his services, at a price, when things became intolerable.
But that was the old Rumple. Not the man he'd tried so hard to become over the last five years.
The trouble for Belle, was that his darkness always brought with it an excitement. She'd always found his unexpected and volatile nature strangely arousing? So much so, that frequently, after a particular outrage he may have committed, the pattern to forgiveness was often the same. She would scream at him, threaten to leave him for good, then go stay with a friend while she cooled off. He would then come over, begging forgiveness, taunting her naivety on occasion, trying to explain. Finally she'd forgive him, and they'd resolve their differences with wild, passionate sex.
She knew she often needed that even more than he did!
But that was the problem. Because becoming a better man made Belle realise how much she missed the worse man. The evil one. The exciting one. The energising one. The one who made her wanton, debauched, base, behind closed doors. Rumple hadn't becoming boring by any means, he'd just become a little…predictable?
Then one night she'd confided her innermost feelings about it to someone she trusted. Ruby Lucas.
One late Friday night over two years ago, when Rumple had gone to New York on business, after too many drinks in the Rabbit Hole, she confessed to her newly-returned friend about how much he'd changed, and how she often missed that old excitement of hot passionate, almost animalistic, sex between the sheets with the Dark One, as opposed to making love with Rumple.
Ruby had been surprisingly sympathetic as she listened, also confessing that being in a stable relationship of her own now, certainly lacked the old excitement of spontaneous hot liaisons with others in secret, be they men or women. Later, seeing her friend safely back to the little flat above the library (Henry had already offered to childmind his uncle at home for the night), Ruby had joined her for a final drink. Which turned to two. As conversation flowed, normally too inhibited to talk about such things when sober, Belle had asked her about the differences between having sex with women, and men. Ruby had said it tended to be much more intense with a woman, with a lot more foreplay and could last longer. But on the downside, there was too much talking about feelings and emotions, instead of just getting down to good old plain fucking for the sheer sake of it! That's when she missed men the most. Or at least, the men she used to hang out with.
More drinks followed, and one thing led to another, and the two women found themselves in Belle's bed.
That was two years ago. And although they both'd felt enormously guilty afterwards, the resulting passion they'd both experienced in that one night of hot, forbidden sex had led them to repeat the experience a month later, after another girls' night out. And again, a month after that. The excitement of possibly getting caught just added to the intensity, spurring them on to repeat it. So much so, that every three months or so, Ruby would plan to spend the night at the little flat above the library, in Belle's arms, even after she was married, using the excuse that she'd stay over at a friend's if she got too hammered to come home, rather than wake her or anyone else up. Belle's excuse to Rumple was that she needed occasional time away from the stress of raising Gideon while working. Fortunately, her husband agreed, knowing he was also a difficult man to live with, and she deserved a regular break.
Despite all of the guilt that came every time they cheated, it soon became an itch that both women needed to scratch from time to time, despite all the risks.
But if Rumple every found out about her illicit extra-marital fling, by using that hair in the glass vial, her itch would quite possibly kill her. It'd definitely kill Ruby!
The Ritz Carlton Hotel, Miami, Florida
It was a bright, sunny July afternoon when they finally arrived at the beachfront hotel.
After checking in, Regina found and made an appointment with a private clinic for the following morning to confirm the results of the pregnancy test. She needed certainty! Emma went on a short run along the seafront, before returning, insisting they both get on the beach to catch the rest of the afternoon rays. She wanted to see Regina in her bikini, and the view she now got, didn't disappoint!
As the brunette lay on the sun lounger on the hotel's private beach, in her sunglasses, under the parasol, Emma had a very different idea for what she wanted to do next. But she waited until a waiter leaving two glasses of chilled white wine, had gone.
"I knew you'd look great in my bikini! How about we drink these, have half an hour down here, then head back to the room? Preferably for a bit more of what we started before the maid came in?"
"What, again? You're insatiable, Swan! What's got into you today?"
"A gorgeous former mayor's fingers, for one thing!" She chuckled. "Anyway, that was this morning; this is now. What do you say?"
"I'd say my fiancée shouldn't still be horny after a three hour flight, a quicky, and a run? I like the idea, but we've only just got down here. Let me get at least an hour's sun before we think about heading up. Why don't you go take a swim, and cool yourself off?"
"Spoilsport," she grinned, leaning over, poking her tongue out before pecking her on the lips. "Fair enough, I'll go. Fancy joining me?"
"In a little while. I always need to get hot first, before I cool off."
As Emma walked down to the water, swaying her hips, Regina couldn't help admiring the view. But her gorgeous athletic frame, sculpted arms and legs, and long blonde hair also drew interested glances from several men sitting at a nearby table, as they watched her walk by. 'Get lost creeps, she's mine!' She thought to herself, as Emma finally reached the water. Regina's mind went back over the last ten days. Without doubt, the best ten days of her life. Everything else had been a mere footnote leading up to this, and if it meant they were never to see Storybrooke ever again; never see Henry again; then it'd all be worth it if she could be with her blonde goddess for the rest of her days. Nothing else mattered.
Meanwhile a hundred yards away, Emma shivered when the expectedly cold water of the Atlantic hit her belly as she walked in.
"Shit!" She gasped, before taking the plunge and submersing below the waves. Closing her eyes against the salty water, she began to swim. And as she swam, she thought of what she and Regina would do tonight, namely dinner and an early passionate night, like so many over the last ten days.
However, as she moved, completely different images came into her mind! A vision of Killian Jones cradling his baby daughter, their daughter, staring up at her in contempt. A vision of a door being opened to a very young Henry, looking up at her. But this time, his stare was an angry one. A vision of Hope. her three-year-old daughter, cradling her doll, with tears in her eyes.
What the hell?
She immediately resurfaced to stand, wiping water from her face, before opening her eyes. There was Regina, still lying on the lounger in her shades, book in hand.
Something felt...wrong?
Meanwhile…
Instead of using The Dark One's magic to teleport them into the deepest part of the forest, Robin had insisted they go by foot, him leading, making it easier to navigate accurately. After all, he probably knew the forest better than anyone.
"Robin, I don't know how on earth you find your way around?" They'd already been walking a good thirty minutes under the dense canopy of tall trees, and Henry, walking several paces behind him, was beginning to tire. "I think if I got lost, I'd keep going around in circles. Are you sure you know where you're going?"
The former outlaw smiled, stopping to let them rest a minute. "You tell by the trees, Henry. And the smells, and even birdsong? For example, we've just passed over a dozen variety of tree, like that big cedar over there. Opposite the Aspens? They have particular wildlife on them, and-"
"Can we save the dendrology and ornithology lessons for another day, Locksley?" Rumple drawing close, interrupted him. "I may have the powers of the Dark One, but even I can find walking around in semi-darkness a little tedious. Now, do you know where this hidden cottage actually is, or not?"
"Thanks for being so patient, Mr. Gold." Robin gave him a sympathetic smile. "But we're almost there. I suspect the place you're looking for may be one Will Scarlett and his wife used in darker times. And it's just over there." He pointed to a large clump of trees to the left.
"What, you mean the trees behind the trees?" Henry sarked.
"Mock all you want, young man, but…" as they ducked under some low branches, Robin spotted the cottage in question in the near distance. A cottage well hidden, with blackened moss on its thatched roof, which looked in imminent danger of collapsing. "As you were saying?"
"That old ruin?" Henry sighed, frustrated as they drew closer. "That can't be what we're looking for? It looks like it's going to fall down any minute!"
Robin reluctantly admitted to himself he was probably right. It couldn't have been used in years. But Rumple seemed to have suddenly recovered his enthusiasm, almost skipping past them.
"A ha! I thought I'd seen it somewhere before. Oh yes, of course! This was used by an old adversary."
"Fiona? Your mother? They were searching for her, weren't they?"
"No Henry. As I told the fools on the day, the Black Fairy is long dead. I should know, I killed her!"
"So who was the adversary?"
"An extremely cunning and devious woman. Ingrid, the Ice Queen."
"Ingrid lived in this old shack? But she was classy. A royal lady, like Regina."
"Used temporarily, not lived in. And many people would use very different words to describe your mother than 'lady', lad! Locksley himself these days, probably..." He saw the frown on Robin's face. "But this was most definitely one of the last places I met the Ice Queen before her demise."
"So, she's definitely dead?"
"As the proverbial dodo." They'd arrived at the ruin. "But I do sense magic! It's very weak, but it's definitely present. I suggest you both remain out here while I go inside first, lest she's left any…traps?"
A minute later, checking for wards, the Dark One entered the property. The moment he spotted the lit fire and the lighting he realised he had to tread carefully, touching nothing until he was sure. He looked around, firstly at the fire itself, then the bed. The sheets seemed to be ruffled? His mind went back to the images in the dreamcatcher.
Oh yes, this was definitely the place!
As he searched for clues, his hands raised ready to ward off any dark magic, he moved over to the dusty sink and drainer. It clearly hadn't been used for years, despite the bed bearing signs of recent use. Then he spotted something broken in the sink. A glass jar, and some sort of congealed green residue within. Another unbroken jar, it's lid still on, lay nearby. But what was that inside? Dried bainberry? That definitely wasn't from this realm! Sensing danger, he quickly cast a spell over the entire sink, sealing whatever it was. Then he looked up to see the little cupboard door ajar. About to reach in and feel for whatever was inside, he thought better of it, using his magic to bring a little stool over, about to stand on it to look within, when he heard the yell from outside.
"GRANDPA? IS IT OKAY TO COME IN YET?"
"YES. BUT TOUCH NOTHING, DO YOU UNDERSTAND? NOTHING!"
The two men stepped inside, Robin instantly spotting what was so strange. "Outside it looks like a ruin, but inside it's…fine. Pretty nice, for a little cottage. And the fire? Why would anyone have a coal fire lit in July?"
"Look closer, dearie. Anything unusual about that fire? Or the lighting in here?"
"There's no light switches!" Henry twigged "And yet it's quite bright; a lot brighter than outside. So this is all...magic?
"Ingrid's magic. I can sense her signature. The lights and the fire are spells that can easily last a decade without interference, though the protections on the door degrade much more quickly, hence the reason we could walk in."
Robin was already by the drainer, and spotted the broken glass in the sink, and its twin nearby. Pulling an arrow out from his quiver, he used the tip to open the cupboard door wider. As he was taller than Rumple, he could see the contents.
"I think the broken jar here fell out of this cupboard. There's a bunch of other jars with things inside. And a book at the back."
"A book? How many jars exactly?" God, Rumple hated being short.
Robin totted them up. "Nine in total, plus a book. Shall I bring them out?"
"A book? No, step back." He focused his magic, and within seconds all the contents appeared on the little desk nearby. "Anything else in there?"
"No, it's clear now." Led by Rumple, all three of them walked over to the desk. He cast a spell over the collection, searching for any signs of magic. "What are they anyway."
"Well…" He picked up the largest jar. "If I'm not mistaken, this is henbane, used in the old world to combat stress. When used in large enough quantities it can put one to sleep, and stop the heart. That wide jar over there, that's Mandrake Truffle. But this little item here…" He held up what looked like an old piece of tree bark. "Is the most interesting of all. It's bainberry root. A plant not found in this realm whatsoever. It has the most astonishing properties, though this little piece is long dead."
"So Ingrid was trying to make a potion? Judging from that mess in the sink, she just left it in the cupboard, where it fell out."
"Or someone pulled it out? That residue in the broken jar is still wet. After years of five hot summers? I hardly think so. No, I think it may possibly have been caused by whoever slept in that bed. The sheets are dishevelled. Ingrid was many things, but she was never untidy."
"So what do we do, grandpa?"
As he spoke, Rumple drew down his magic, a large wooden box appearing close by. "We do nothing, Henry. I, on the other hand, intend to take these home, and start working through that book. It's written in Old Norse, the ancient tongue of the Vikings. Rather fitting, considering Ingrid's origins."
"You can read that? You can translate Old Norse?"
"No. But I happen to know a very clever woman who can."
Miami – later that evening
Emma woke, as she had for the last ten days, in the arms of her fiancée. The only way to wake up.
She wasn't sure how long she'd been asleep, not long, but was surprised to find Regina still awake, looking back at her in the moonlight, smiling.
"Couldn't sleep?" The blonde nodded. "Me neither. Perhaps we can help each other do something about it?" Without another word, Regina rolled her onto her back before moving over her, parting Emma's knees with her own before settling herself on top, the blonde's feet curling around her, resting on the backs of her calves. "This okay?"
"Always. You're as light as a feather. Now hurry up and kiss me!"
More than willing to obey, lips connected and tongues invaded, in a series of moans and groans as both women began what they'd done so many times recently. Pausing to breathe, Regina briefly raised her torso, to get herself even more comfortable, pushing her pubic bone hard into the blonde's.
Emma opened her eyes again, to the glorious vision of her lover's naked upper body in the moonlight. "You are too bloody perfect. If only we could just stay like this forever, and shut the rest of the world out."
"Works for me. The view from up here's pretty good, too."
But it was just then that Emma noticed something out the corner of her eye? Something moving? Was there someone else in the room?
"WHO THE-" She jerked her head up violently, to see the shape of a tall, dark figure standing at the end of the bed! She immediately grabbed and pulled on the top sheet, desperately pulling it up over them to protect their modesty, before looking to the side table for anything she could use as a weapon. "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?"
But the figure stepped silently around the bed, drawing closer so his face could be seen in the moonlight. A face she recognised instantly, staring right back at her!
"HOOK?"
"I prefer to be called Jones, or Killian these days, as you're well aware, Swan? I notice you've only used 'Hook' since you cheated on me."
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING HERE? HOW'D YOU GET IN?"
"I merely came to deliver some news, and then I'll be gone. You'll be pleased to hear I've signed the divorce papers from your lawyer? Except for the bits about you having primary responsibility and control over our daughter? Yeah, I deleted those. That's never going to happen."
"GET OUT! JUST...JUST...GO!"
"Now that's no way to treat your ex-husband is it? After all the trouble we went to, to find you and get here? No way at all. I just thought, as she asked, that Hope should have a chance to see her mother one last time? It was Henry's idea, actually."
"Just go! Just…what do you mean?" Then her eyes caught the outline of two more figures walking around the bed to join him. "Hope? Henry? What do you think you're doing?"
Her three-year-old daughter and her adult son just stared right back at her, their eyes cold, until the youngest spoke.
"You hurt my papa! You not my mama now. I no want you anymore!"
Too bewildered to speak, she watched as Henry smiled down at his little sister, resting his hands on her shoulders. "I couldn't have put it better myself, Hope." The now tall twenty-year-old gazed down on her, then Regina, who'd been silent throughout, with a look of utter contempt. "We thought we'd let you know, after everything you both did, that nobody wants you back in Storybrooke. And I'll never let Grandpa Gold take off those bracelets, because the moment they come off you'll start controlling people again. And if you want to live here from now on, that's fine by me, because I never want to see either of you, ever again. Is that clear?" Henry turned to leave, taking Hope with him, Emma just watching, transfixed, keeping the sheets tightly pulled up against her body.
"I'll be with you in just a minute, lad. Just wait downstairs for me?" Killian watched them leave before turning his attention back to her, as a thoroughly malicious look now appeared. "Which just leaves me with one more thing to do, I guess?"
He drew even closer, climbing onto the bed, looming over her. But now she found she couldn't even move her body?
"You broke your family's hearts. So I think I should return the compliment, don't you?"
Before she could say a word, he rammed his good hand, hard into her chest, making her shudder in cute pain. Then she felt a violent tugging, followed by absolute agony.
Seconds later, he was waving a pulsing heart in front of her?
"You know, the first time I saw this, it was white. But look at it now, Swan? The white's all disappeared and now it's red, just like ours, but with lots of black in there too! I reckon that's all because of your recent activities, don't you?" He brought it closer to his face, studying it. "Now then, normally I'd say something along the lines of 'It was lovely knowing you Emma, I'm sorry our marriage didn't work out, but nonetheless I wish you a long and happy life regardless, even if it isn't going to be with me?' However, I'm not feeling particularly generous of spirit considering everything you've done, so I thought I'd instead do to you what you did to me?"
He smiled as he started to squeeze the heart. "Farewell, Swan. See you in hell."
"Killian, wait?" But it was too late, as she clutched her chest, excruciating pain overwhelming her. "WAIT-"
~oOo~
"EMMA! EMMA!" She heard muffled yelling close by.
"Emma, for heaven's sake wake up? It's okay!"
"Ugh! Was…wassat?"
"You were shouting in your sleep! You were having some sort of nightmare?"
Emma finally opened her eyes, to a blurry vision of Regina, looking down at her, worried.
"It's okay, my darling," she pulled the trembling, sweaty woman into her arms. "You were just having a bad dream. You spent the last few minutes shouting. As you were getting louder, I tried to wake you, but…It's alright now. I've got you. I'm here."
As her breathing calmed, resting her head against the other woman's chest, Emma gathered her thoughts. "Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you." She glanced up at the locked door; the security chain was in place. Regina wore her grey and ivory chemise, while she herself still had on the white camisole she'd originally gone to bed in.
"God, it was just like, so real, you know?"
"I know, I've had plenty of nightmares of my own like that in the past, my love." Regina pulled the sheets back over them. "Want to talk about it?"
She shook her head. "Not really, maybe later?"
"Of course, but you do need to sleep." She rested a hand on her brow. "Emma, you're burning up! I think you're sickening or something? Should I call a doctor?"
"No, but I don't feel so great. I think I need the loo."
When she released her, Emma got up on surprisingly shaky legs, to walk into the en-suite bathroom. Sitting down on the toilet to relieve herself, she dropped her head into her hands as even more images started flooding through her mind.
Images of a husband looking down at her in horror and agony as she he hung in the air by his neck. Images of Hope's scared little face as she stood in the doorway, witnessing her father's pain. Images of hitting Roland Locksley hard across the face with the back of her hand. Images of launching his father, Robin Hood, across the room moments after, to collide heavily with a wall. And an image of her slapping Henry across the face as he challenged her. And his defiant response.
'You disgust me!'
That wasn't her imagination. It happened! She really did that! As the horrible dawning of reality overwhelmed her, realising what she'd done to her family over the last two weeks, Emma lifted herself off the seat, turning and dropping to her knees, just in time, before vomiting violently into the pan.
"Emma?"
She vaguely heard Regina behind her, feeling warm hands around her head, pulling her hair back as she hurled again, losing her dinner into the bowl.
"It's alright, I've got you!"
But she wasn't listening. Much darker thoughts now clouding her mind.
What the hell have I done?
~oOo~