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Regina tried not to think of how wrong things were going. How the soft hand in hers soothed her and upset her at the same time. How her priorities were blurring before her eyes when she looked at the woman in front of her. One last time, she told herself sternly, it has to end now. When Emma knocked at her chamber door four hours later, Regina was on her way to bed. Or that was what she'd told her staff anyway, glaring at the maid who had wanted to bring up dinner until the woman averted her eyes from Regina's red-rimmed ones and left again, steaming stew still on her tray.
"Enough!" Regina threw out her hands, streams of purple smoke flowing from her fingers and weaving around Neal's figure in dense swirls. The ward reacted immediately, crashing down on her in a wave of electric blue, tugging and yanking at the magic. A deafening noise filled her head, a sound like alarm bells mingled in the buzzing, shrilly ringing out the intrusion.
Curses, like chickens, come home to roost
"Me neither," Emma had shrugged and Regina arched an eyebrow. Emma hesitated for a second, but then shrugged again and continued despite herself. "But, I guess you kind of helped me, two years ago. You know, when I was running away and you forced me to go back? Turns out you were right..." She trailed off. Emma’s mouth had broken into a grin, the fine weather apparently improving her mood considerably. "That's the first time you actually answered when I called you," she'd said smugly, "Don't say you're not warming up to me, after all these years."
But of course, Regina reminded herself firmly, ignoring the sudden pang, Emma would never get to experience the White castle, unless the curse was ever broken. She longed to see Snow White ultimately defeated, wanted to see her collapse onto her daughter's lifeless body, her fluttering little heart breaking like Regina's had once broken. Emma's eyes narrowed further and all the humour had bled from her voice when she murmured; "But I could swear we... You calling them pea brains and midgets and..." She trailed off and suddenly Regina remembered.
What's the meaning of the phrase 'The chickens come home to roost'?
Regina bit her lip, the skin already torn and marked from the million times she had done the same to stop herself from falling apart. Feverish purpose had given way to a forlorn noodling around, her work seeming more pointless and hopeless with every day. The potion was a solid block of soot, clinging to the walls of the cauldron in irregular clumps, leaving only a narrow hole in its middle where the flame had been. Now it was filled with grimy water, clouded by particles and oily streaks. Regina swore again, a long stream of words that suddenly broke off and dissipated into choked sobs, low and furious sounds as she ran trembling fingers through her hair. Regina's brow wrinkled, the danger of tears almost entirely gone.
"That's such a ridiculous word," Regina said while already throwing her hands up to let the smoke engulf them. The wind picked up, carrying her voice over the snowy hills, now deserted again. "Is Emma at the stables again?" She still asked the maid, who silently shook her head. "Or training with the weapons?" She directed that question at a guard marching past and he denied it as quietly. Everything was too still, the outer lifelessness a stark contrast to the welling emotion inside Regina. Almost frantically she hastened towards Emma's room, rapped at the door, again and again, pressing her ear to the wood to hear if there was any sound coming from the inside but it was all quiet.
Chapter 16: in which a curse is broken
"Well, at least the dwarves always managed to get up on time." "Happy birthday," she simply said, and didn't look away, even though Emma was observing her affectionately enough to make Regina's stomach churn with nausea. This will all be over soon, she told herself, just one more day and Emma will be gone forever.
David tended to threaten Regina - as if there was anything she could still lose - and he'd pressed his sword against her throat for the length of their conversation. Regina in turn had been forced to fight even more than usual to keep her powers down, magic rising to her skin automatically at the cool, dangerous touch of a weapon, and now she felt weary and dizzy. Her head was spinning and she hadn't heard another word of what Snow White had said.
Chapter 14: in which a queen has been captured
"Fine, I'm going." She pulled up her backpack from a lower branch and hoisted it over her shoulder, careful not to let it scratch over her wounds. Regina couldn't see how she was going to climb like that, with only one free hand and unbalanced weight, but she managed, swinging down from the tree only marginally less graceful than usually. Down on solid ground again, she made a few firm steps away from the village, then hesitated. Her bow hung loosely over her shoulders, the backpack left behind on the tree, she strolled along the booths, inspecting the presented goods with poorly concealed excitement. A display of furs made her eyes shine, rows and rows of vegetables caused a delighted lip bite and when she spotted an array of weapons, Regina was sure she heard a squeal.
Regina's own arms were stained, speckled with drops of magic, pure power laced through her skin and woven into her hair. She almost laughed - if only Snow White could see her now, she wouldn't dare to turn her back on her again, wouldn't put her in prison again, not Regina. Regina blinked, surprised if not ungrateful about the sudden turn of events. The sun shone warmly on her back as she cautiously sat up, determined to not waste this opportunity of a second chance that had been given to her.
Emma was a silhouette in the twilight, breathing sharply as she stared down at Regina, arms hanging helplessly at her side. Her tattoo was hidden from view, only the edge of one petal implied as a blackish shadow. Regina couldn't lie, not even for Emma's benefit, not with I love you echoing in her head, coating her tongue with a bitter-sweet scent that elated and suffocated her at the same time. "I've made a horrible mistake," she finally choked out, and Emma's eyes were wide green ponds of poorly concealed dejection, reflecting Regina's failure in heart breaking detail. Regina swallowed, the words in her throat like sharp-edged shards, slicing her open from the inside as she tried to heave them out.
She could have sworn Emma's eyes would drop again at that, but although the blonde's gaze wavered, it stuck to her eyes. Regina raised an impressed eyebrow, even as she turned away to sit down on her bed. Regina's plan - though it was a long stretch to even call it that - backfired completely. Now, in those two days, Regina had completely forgotten about the incident in the corridor, and therefore didn't think twice about it when Emma paid her an evening visit. "See you at breakfast," she hurried to say, painfully aware of the strain in her voice.
Regina would feel the familiar ache in her chest, the memories of Daniel resurfacing and scratching at her insides, and still she couldn’t bring herself to forbid Emma to go. Not even when the pain dulled and changed into something else, an incomprehensible fear that the place's bad aura would somehow affect Emma too, hurt her and take her away from Regina. It didn't make sense, and Regina spent nights of sleepless tossing trying to rationalize her worries away, plastering the label 'enemy' over and over again on Emma's pale forehead. And finally, Emma looked up, her eyes alive with that familiar burning anger. "Because I grew up in a cottage, Regina," she spit, growling when Regina remained unperturbed, "with dwarves."
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