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Their distraction had worked but at what cost? The dagger was out of Zelena’s reach, but not before she had sent Regina flying through the face of the clock tower. Emma continued to put as much of her energy into a barrier encompassing her and the dagger, which had landed a few feet behind her under a car, but she knew she wasn’t trained enough to last long against the pissed off, and obviously mentally unstable, witch—and Zelena knew it too.

“Aw, poor “Savior”. Regretting your decision to play with the big girls?” she mocked, throwing green energy at the blonde and her shield as she came closer.

Emma flinched as her barrier shrunk and she was pushed back a few inches, but at least it held. Emma didn’t need to look around to know she was in a tight spot, the side alley not having much room to maneuver in. Zelena’s grin widened as she came closer.

Then a loud crash came from Emma’s left (Zelena’s right) and up high. Regina soared from the wrecked tower, landing in the street with a loud thud and surrounded by a cloud of glass she seemed to have brought along for the ride.

“Oh sister dear,” she called out in a sing song voice. “You didn’t really think you could get rid of me that easily, did you?”

Zelena growled as she stalked back into the middle of the street while Emma tried to see if Regina was hurt. Her outfit looked worse for wear and her cheek had a visible thin scratch along it, but against all odds, Regina didn’t seem injured in any other way. The blonde had to remember to concentrate on maintaining her shield as the relief flooded her.

“Simply taking advantage of your distraction,” Zelena countered smoothly with a smirk. “I do hope you’re not in too much pain. I wouldn’t want the fun to be over so soon, but I know glass can be… sharp.”

Regina threw back her head and laughed. It was one of the most unsettling things Emma had ever heard. Even bag-of-crazy Zelena looked taken aback.

Regina brought her head back down. “Oh, if you think this is pain, I do not understand how you can stomach wanting my life, wanting my mother.” The look in the brunette’s eyes was not a sane one and the glass shards suddenly shot forward at her silent command. “Let me educate you, dear sister, about being the daughter of Cora.”

Zelena blocked many of the shards, hissing at the ones that did manage to strike her, and sending a few back at the former queen. She opened her mouth to speak, but Regina interrupted.

“Uh, uh, uh,” Regina tisked. “My turn to talk.” She batted aside all the glass that had been in the return volley. Well, almost all. One managed to slice along her upper arm, but she didn’t even seem to notice. “First lesson: Mother is always right and Mother wants what’s best for you because Mother loves you,” her voice was mocking, but the last line was full of fury and pain. Fireballs ignite in her hands, lighting her face eerily from below, “So what happens when you disobey? When you make a mistake? How would you have handled it, big sister? When you were late for tea time?”

The fireballs grew and grew with every word she spoke until she was shouting to be heard above their crackling. At the final word, she sent the inferno streaming at Zelena, the fire engulfing the shield the redhead only barely managed to put up in time. But the fire, tinged blue from heat and purple from Regina’s magic, lingered. When it finally dissipated, even Emma, with her limited magical knowledge and senses, could tell Zelena’s barrier had been overwhelmed.

Zelena’s face betrayed panic for the first time as she patted the singed ends of her hair. Regina advanced, her face commanding, dark, and deadly—every inch the Evil Queen. “What of when you did not talk to the right people at the balls or for long enough? When you failed to secure the alliances and marriages she desired?” Now she made a sort of exaggerated clawing motion with her hand across the other witch’s torso.

Despite the fact that Regina was still several yards away and the faint shimmer around Zelena that showed her attempt to protect herself, four long slashes appeared on her front. Zelena didn’t seem very injured, for all it was the first blow that actually managed to fully break her defenses. She just seemed angrier. She snarled, pushing sideways with her magic and sending Regina flying into a building. Regina to let out a loud hiss when she struck. “Poor little princess. Just because you were never enough for Mother, doesn’t mean I wouldn’t have been. And my so called father was not easy to please either—you don’t need magic for that.”

“Oh?” Regina mused, rolling her shoulders as she pushed off the building she had been so unceremoniously shoved against. “But what if you were late for piano lessons? Magic can make it so that no matter what you eat or drink, the hunger and thirst remains. Did you know?”

“What if your tutor claims you aren’t paying enough attention nor doing as well as you should during your lessons?” She made a gesture and Zelena is lifted off of the ground, like Regina was earlier, but this time thick belts wrap around the other witch.

Regina had gotten even closer by the time Zelena managed to disintegrate her bonds, falling to the street as the enchantment disappeared altogether. That clearly caught her off guard as she landed hard on her back. She was on her feet quickly, but she was disheveled and swaying slightly, her glare no less fierce. “Is that all you got, baby sister?” she spat.

“Of course not.” Regina’s reply was sickly sweet, her eyes full of manic violent intent. “For what of standard punishments?” She made a motion and the sound of it told Emma it was a magic whip. It whished through the air, curling around Zelena’s side before she could even realize what was happening and struck her back. It didn’t break skin due to her clothing, but the force of and the sting are more than enough to bring her to her knees.

As a last ditch effort, Zelena flung one of the many pieces of broken pavement at Regina, but the former queen simply brought up a forearm to block it. Now the brunette was only a few feet or so from the wicked witch. “And what of love?” Regina’s voice was deceptively quiet. “What of the beautiful boy with the kind smile and the gentle manner?” It was rhetorical as she doesn’t wait for an answer before plunging her hand into Zelena’s chest and pulling out her pulsing black and green heart.

Zelena let out a gasp as Regina held the organ a little too tight, her eyes wide with shock.

Regina leaned closer, “And what of after? What of the old man she sells you too? Marionette to replacement to wind up doll. Do you still want my life, sister?” She began to squeeze and Zelena convulsed. “Because you can have it.”

-x-x-x-

Emma was moving before she considered whether or not it was a good idea to approach Regina when the Evil Queen had so much control. She was too worried about Regina doing something she’d regret, and she would regret it, that she was running, stumbling toward her without conscious thought.

She needn’t have worried. After Regina gave one particularly hard squeeze and Zelena slumped to the ground unconscious, she loosened her grip until her sister’s heart was merely resting comfortably in her hand.

“Regina,” Emma panted as she came to a halt next to the older woman. “Are you alright?”

For the first time since the witch fight began, an emotion besides fury, bloodlust, and pain, moved over Regina’s face: confusion. “I’m fine, dear,” Regina said, too surprised by the blonde’s apparent concern for her to be defensive. She had thought after such a display, even the pig-headed Sheriff would be warier of her.

Emma wasn’t so sure about that but decided not to push it. The wildness had faded a bit from her brown eyes, but not completely, which was enough to make Emma worry. Emma turned her gaze to the woman on the ground. “What should we do with her?”

Regina raised a brow as if it was obvious. “Why Sheriff, we’re going to escort her to jail.” She used her empty hand to make a gesture and purple smoke surrounded them.

When it cleared, Emma saw they were indeed in the sheriff’s station. She and Regina were by her desk while Zelena was laid out on the cot in the cell.

Emma blinked, “But we can’t keep her there, right? As soon as she wakes up she’ll just poof herself out. Do I need to go find Blue or whoever to get the fairies to magic proof it?”

Regina gave her an arrogant look before turning and picking up a black box from Emma’s desk that definitely wasn’t hers. “Some of us think ahead, dear.” The brunette pulled up the lid to reveal a black leather cuff bracelet.

Emma frowned before she realized what it was. That was the thing that stopped someone from using magic. But how, and why, did Regina have it? Then it hit her, Regina was the last one to wear it, when Tamara and Greg tortured her. She felt the bile rise in her throat at the sight of it, sitting in its box in Regina’s hand.

“If you would do the honors, Sheriff Swan?” Regina commanded, angling the box towards the blonde.

Emma’s first instinct was to balk against any of Regina’s orders. Then she saw the way Regina was eyeing the cuff, like it was a snake that might strike at any moment. Her previous thoughts came back to her and she instantly decided she was an idiot. Of course Regina wouldn’t want to touch it and of course she wouldn’t just come out and say that. “Sure,” Emma acquiesced with deliberate casualty.

Emma picked it up, a little warily, but it seemed normal, just a little on the cold side. Perhaps a bit heavier than it looked. She walked over to the cell, making sure Zelena didn’t seem to be moving before carefully slipping it onto her wrist.

“Take off her necklace while you’re in there. I believe it is the artifact that heightens her powers.”

While the wicked witch didn’t move, Emma still noticed the difference as soon as she let go of the cuff. It had just seemed a little cold at the time, but now as she felt warmth flow back into her fingers, she realized it had been more than that. She shivered as she grabbed the necklace as she quickly left the cell, locking it behind her. “It’s got a crack in it now,” Emma said as she placed it in Regina’s outstretched hand.

“I thought it might.” Regina placed it and Zelena’s heart into the black box. Emma realized she hadn’t moved from that spot the entire time they’d been here. Her gaze was locked on her unconscious sister.

“Now what?” Emma’s voice seemed too loud as it ended the tense silence.

Regina dragged her eyes from Zelena’s form, raising a brow. “Now you go back to make sure no one else gets a hold of the dagger and reassure your family that the town is safe from the Wicked Witch.”

Emma nodded, she supposed she had known that. “What will you do?”

Regina hadn’t planned on answering, disliking the presumption and implications of telling Emma her plans, but the blonde’s eyes were so wide and nonjudgmental that she did. “I am going to see if she wakes up in the next few minutes, and if she doesn’t, I am returning to my house for the night.”

Emma frowned, but said nothing. Why couldn’t Henry remember? She was sure just him being there would help his other mother. But he wasn’t here and he didn’t remember anyways—in fact, it would probably only hurt Regina more to see him now so Emma just nodded, understanding Regina’s desire to be alone rather than with people she only liked on a good day. And today was definitely not a good day. “Alright. Do you… I could wait with you, if you want?”

Regina shook her head, though she was surprisingly touched by the offer. “No thank you. And you really should go check on the idiots—before they do something—”

“Idiotic?” Emma finished for her with a wry smile.

“Precisely.”

-x-x-x-

When Emma trudged back into the rooms she was sharing with Henry, she found him mostly asleep in front of the TV. She sighed, by the time she got back to the street, most people had come out of their hiding places, but were obviously confused as to what exactly had happened. Explaining what happened to everyone had taken time, and a lot of her patience for dealing with the people not exactly reassured by Regina doing so much magic—even though it was to protect the whole town—but Snow helped vouch for the older woman and so everyone went home more or less relieved as far as general town safety was concerned.

As Emma took off her coat, Henry finally seemed to register her presence. Rubbing his eyes, he took in her tired expression, “What happened?”

Emma wasn’t sure what to say. She hated lying to him and he could obviously tell something had just happened, but she definitely couldn’t say that the Wicked Witch of the West and the Evil Queen had waged a magical battle in the center of town. “There was a fight,” was all she said instead.

“Really? Who was in it? Why? Who won?” Henry had always been pretty impressed by this part of her job. “Did you have to break it up?”

Emma couldn’t help but roll her eyes at his enthusiasm. “Relax, kid. Some people got hurt but not too badly. The one who started the fight is in jail right now.” He just continued staring at her, clearly waiting for details. Emma sighed, “Regina was involved.”

Henry titled his head to the side, unconsciously mimicking his other mother. “The Mayor? What, did they start a fight in front of town hall?” He assumed it had been at a bar or something.

“No. I mean, one of the people in the fight was Mayor Mills.”

Henry’s eyes went wide. “What.”

“Yeah. This woman attacked her.”

“Who? Why? So it was a girl fight?”

Emma sent him a look, “It was a fight between two women, yes.” Henry looked sheepish at the obvious disapproval in her voice. “The other woman was her sister. Apparently their mother abandoned her at birth, but kept Regina, and she only just tracked Regina down.”

“Whoa.”

“Yeah. Her sister has some anger issues and since their mother died about a year or so ago, she decided to take it out on Regina.”

“Wow. What did Regina do?”

“Regina fought back. She had no idea her mother even had another daughter. They had a pretty rough relationship themselves.” Emma thought about all that Regina had revealed and shuddered. She’d suspected—she had met Cora after all—but still.

“How rough?” Henry asked. This Henry wasn’t as sheltered as he used to be and he knew what Emma could be implying.

“Not that her sister’s life was easy at all, but I think she may have gotten the better deal.”

Henry’s eyes were wide, but he didn’t say anything. “So what happened to her sister? Is she alright?”

“Yeah, as well as can be expected. She did lose the fight and she’s in a cell, but nothing that required a trip to the hospital. Hopefully, after getting her butt kicked, she’ll take time to think some stuff through,” Emma said.

Henry smiled. “I’m not surprised she lost. The Mayor seems pretty bada—tough,” he corrected last minute. “I mean, she’s really nice and everything, but also like you don’t want to get on her bad side, you know?”

Emma bit back a laugh and nodded. “I do.”

Henry echoed her nod as he thought over what had happened. He knew some stuff about his mother’s childhood, though she didn’t like tell him too much, so he wasn’t surprised by how troubled Emma was by Regina and her sister’s story. “What’d you think will happen now? With Regina and her sister, I mean.”

“I don’t know,” Emma admitted. She frowned as she thought. “I don’t—” she coughed and corrected herself. “I mean, I’d like to think, if I found my family, even just a sister, that I wouldn’t hold stuff against her and try to get to know her instead of blaming everything bad that happened to me on her, especially if she hadn’t even been born when our mom gave me up. The situation is pretty complicated though. And Regina’s pretty hard to read, but her sister is the only family she’s got left,” Emma revealed. “I think she’ll want to get to know her, if her sister will let her.”

Henry nodded thoughtfully. “And Regina was alright, right? Not hurt or anything?”

“Yeah, I thought so,” Emma’s frown deepened as she recalled some of the blows Regina had taken. A normal person would be pretty badly hurt, but this was Regina, her magic had to have protected her, right? “She seemed fine.”

Henry studied her. “You wanna check on her, don’t you?”

“That easy to read, huh?” she said with a rueful smile.

Henry grinned cheekily at her, “Well, I am your son.”

“Yeah, you are.” Emma couldn’t help but think of the other woman whose son he was too.

“You should go then,” Henry encouraged. Something was up with his mom and the sad brunette, though he had no idea what. It was big though. And his mom was worried. He was worried. Regina always seemed so sad and alone. And after fighting with her long lost sister she never even knew she had, well, even the twelve year old boy knew she shouldn’t be alone.

Emma nudged his shoulder, “You just want the room to yourself.”

Henry laughed. “You got me.”

Emma was already standing up, making her way back to her coat. “Just remember—I can tell if you try and watch anything bad or order any movies like that.”

Henry gave her an exaggerated wounded expression. “It’s like you don’t trust me.”

Emma laughed, giving him a one armed hug. “Don’t stay up late cuz I don’t know when I’ll be back. Go find Granny or Ruby if you need anything.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Henry began herding her towards the door. “I’m not five, mom.”

“And just call if you need me,” Emma managed before the door shut behind her.

-x-x-x-

Emma was waiting at Regina’s front door. She had knocked and heard Regina call for her to wait, but she had sounded far away. The light in her bedroom was on so Emma assumed that was where she was coming from. Still, it was beginning to be long enough for her to get worried when she heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs.

Regina opened the door a few seconds later. She must have been getting ready for bed when Emma interrupted, if her silk pajama pants and tightly belted robe were anything to go by.

“Miss Swan,” Regina said with false politeness. It seemed the Evil Queen had left only to be replaced by Madame Mayor. Emma considered that progress. She knew what to expect from the mayor and she seemed less likely to magically set someone on fire when startled in that state. “What else can I do for you this evening?”

“Nothing!” Emma protested, “I just… Are you sure you’re alright? Because…” The rigid way she was holding herself and the even less well disguised than usual pain in her expressive brown eyes were convincing Emma that Regina really was hurt and just trying to keep it to herself for god knows what reason.

Regina huffed, “I am perfectly fine, dear.”

Emma only had to raise her brows at the obvious lie for Regina to scowl. “Obviously I am not “perfectly” fine, but it’s nothing I can’t handle. Alone,” she added pointedly.

Emma’s lie detector pinged ever so slightly, but she figured that the only reason it hadn’t started shrieking was more to do with Regina’s phrasing and innate, almost suicidal at times, stubbornness. “Tell me that I wouldn’t consider you to be seriously injured and I’ll leave you alone.”

Regina pursed her lips, eyes narrowing in a fierce glare. “I am not seriously injured,” she said through gritted teeth.

Emma shook her head, “That’s not what I asked.”

After a long stare where she seemed to be weighing just what she could get away with saying, she said, “How should I know what you consider a serious injury?” Regina ended up sounding almost petulant.

“Let me in and decide for myself. If it really is minor I promise to leave.” Emma held up her hands in a show of innocence and smiled.

“You aren’t going to let this go, are you?” Regina said shrewdly.

“Nope,” Emma responded cheerfully.

Regina sighed and moved aside to let her in.

Emma moved into the foyer while Regina shut the door behind them. It was then, as Regina was still turning back around to face her, that Emma got the first glimpse of what injuries Regina may have sustained. The back of her robe was slightly discolored, like blue dyed with…red.

Instantly she was next to Regina, grasping her upper arm and gently turning her back around, despite Regina’s rather resigned protests. “Miss Swan!”

“Oh god.” Not much had bleed through the fabric, but if she’d only just pulled it on to answer the door that didn’t mean much. The stain seemed to cover her entire back. “Regina…”

Regina firmly pulled her arm from Emma’s grasp and turned to face her, her face set in an inscrutable mask. “You’re certainly not leaving now, I suppose. Very well. Come with me. I told you I was taking care of it, but if you wish to watch…” She trailed off, her nonchalant attitude towards her injuries almost more unsettling than the injuries themselves.

“Although, if you think you’re tracking those muddy boots through my house, you can just leave right now,” she called over her shoulder.

Emma couldn’t even manage some amusement at the predictable as she shucked her boots and followed Regina up the stairs, eyes fixated on the older woman’s back. Aside from a measured pace and the slight stiffness in her walk, it was impossible to tell that Regina’s back was torn up. Well, almost. Emma’s eyes fell on Regina’s bare feet, realizing she had never seen the other woman without shoes of any kind, let alone without her power heels—she hadn’t even taken them off during their entire Neverland road trip through the jungle. “How are you even walking? Doesn’t that hurt?”

“Of course, but I took some pain medication. Don’t be so dramatic, Miss Swan,” Regina retorted sounding exasperated.

Emma decided to keep silent as they made their way down the upstairs hall, past a few open doors that showed what she assumed were guest rooms and one with the door shut tightly. She swallowed, Henry’s room. God, how did the woman stand it, being in this big empty house with no one but the ghost of her son.

With a start, Emma realized they must be going to Regina’s bedroom. She’d never been there—obviously—and she had no idea what to expect. When they got there, the door was already ajar and Regina didn’t even pause as she went in. Emma hesitated before following.

She wasn’t surprised that it was big, after all it was the master bedroom of a mansion, but the neutral to warm colors did catch her off guard. She wasn’t sure if she expected the black and white theme Regina seemed so fond of to permeate her bedroom as well or if she’d thought there would be dark black velvet with a deep purple canopy over a massive bed and torches on the walls, but still. To her surprise, Regina didn’t stop at her bed or her lounge chair, but continued through the room and into what Emma belated realized must be the master bathroom.

“Damn,” she said when she walked through. The bathroom was large and very modern looking. There was a glass walled shower in one corner and a large tub that looked like it might even have jets. She bet Regina never ran out of hot water. The theme was white with spots of lavender in the tile pattern and light purple towels on a rack. There were large mirrors over both sinks, a marbled white and black countertop.

That was when her eyes landed on what seemed to be a good sized shallow dish of some kind. It was filled with red-ish, glass like rocks. It was only when she moved closer that she realized it wasn’t some sort of decoration, but that it was actually full of blood stained glass shards. Instantly she sobered up from her jealousy and admiration for the bathroom and back to the reason she was here.

Regina didn’t seem to notice her change in attitude as she chuckled a bit smugly, “Yes, I know. Bathrooms in this world are such a step up from the old world. Really, people should be thanking me for bringing them somewhere with indoor plumbing.”

Emma didn’t respond to that because, quite frankly, she agreed. “Alright, Regina. Tell what happened. How bad is it? And why haven’t you just healed yourself or something? With magic?”

Regina rolled her eyes, facing Emma once more. Since she was leaning back against the counter’s edge, Emma’s eyes kept flicking to the mirror and the reflection of the gradually growing stain on Regina’s back. “I was thrown through the face of the clock-tower, dear. Or did you miss that part?”

Emma huffed, her cheeks lightly flushing at the dig, “Well yeah, but seeing as you flew, literally, right back into action, I figured you’d protected yourself or healed or something.”

“I didn’t have the time, nor the magical energy to spare, to do anything beyond making sure it didn’t kill me. In case you hadn’t noticed, I was attempting to win my fight with the person threatening the entire town?” Regina shot back.

“Well, you won,” Emma refused to be cowed by Regina’s obvious coping mechanism of insults. “So why haven’t you just fixed it?”

Regina gave her a look that implied she was missing the obvious. “The fight used up a lot of my magic. What I have left I need to spend wisely. I was in the process of healing myself as best I could when you decided to drop by.”

“Why is it taking so much time though?” So much about magic still confused Emma. Why couldn’t there just be a magic Wikipedia or something instead of vague riddles and obscure dusty old books in made-up languages. “Why wait?”

Regina studied her, “You have no idea how healing spells work.” When Emma just looked at her as if to say “duh”, she continued in a voice somewhere between the mayor and a mom explaining something important to a child. “Healing spells are actually similar to localized time manipulation spells. You take the area where you are injured and quite literally cause weeks of natural healing to take place within seconds or minutes. You need separate spells to burn out infection and yet more spells for any cosmetic clean-up you wish to apply as well. Magic can indeed make it look and feel as if nothing had happened, but that takes skill and a lot of energy.”

While Emma could see why that made sense she still didn’t see why Regina hadn’t used what she had left to heal herself. It must have shown on her face as Regina continued her mini healing lecture, “With the glass I should think it was obvious why I haven’t acted already—the same reason this would take longer even without magic—I need to remove all the glass from the cuts first and then cleanse it of infection.”

Emma nodded at that, trying not to think too hard about pieces of glass stuck in Regina’s back. How was the woman still standing as she nonchalantly discussed this with her? Another question occurred to her, “Can’t you just magic them out?”

Regina sighed, why was it that those without magic thought it was all just so easy? “It would be a delicate process. I have no desire to rip more skin trying to pull them all out at the same time. Especially with my magic low, it is easier to take them out by hand and save my magic for healing the cuts themselves. The injuries without glass I have already treated.”

Emma looked startled. Wasn’t a back full of glass enough? “What injuries?” her eyes already scanning Regina’s form as she tried to think about what else had happened to Regina in the fight.

Regina sighed and began to untie the belt of her robe. It only took a second for Emma to realize she wasn’t wearing a shirt under it. Before she could say anything, it had fallen to the ground leaving Regina in her pants and bra. The older woman seemed not to notice Emma’s discomfort as she gestured with her right hand to her left upper arm.

Emma quickly moved her eyes to the spot, and away from the brunette’s sudden cleavage, firm stomach, and all that skin, and found a white bandage wrapped expertly around the area. “My other arm is injured as well, but not cut. I’ll simply have a couple large bruises there in the morning.”

“Right.” The glass Zelena had sent back at her, the piece of rubble she’d flung last minute. It was then that Emma’s eyes landed on her back in the mirror. She sucked in a breath as she took in the revealed damage. “Jesus Christ, Regina.” Regina’s back was completely torn up. More than a dozen gashes, from small to large, crisscrossed her back.

Regina almost looked embarrassed. “It’s not as bad as it looks.” It was hard to tell what was still bleeding and what was dried on, so it was possible it looked worse than it was, but not by much. “I’m almost done getting all the glass out. Then I can set about disinfecting and healing them as much as I can with my limited energies.” She very carefully boosted herself up onto the countertop, between the corner and the bowel.

“How have you even been finding the glass to get it out?” Emma asked. She’d known Regina was tough, but this was a new level. Some of the things Regina had yelled at Zelena probably answered a lot of her questions on how Regina built up this sort of pain tolerance. Some of her foster parents had knocked them around, but it sounded like Cora had straight up tortured Regina, her own daughter. Emma felt sick again.

“The bigger pieces weren’t too hard to find just by looking, but I’ve been using my magical senses to find the smaller slivers—that doesn’t use up energy. I’ve also been using my mirrors.” She gestured to a fair sized mirror that rested on the countertop. It looked like an expensive make-up mirror, angled so that Regina could use it to look at her back in the other mirror on the wall.

“I want to help,” Emma said firmly. “There’s no reason for you to be twisting around trying to do this by yourself. You should have called me in the first place, or at least gone to the hospital.”

“Nonsense,” Regina bristled. “As if anyone there would deign to treat the Evil Queen. And I was handling this fine on my own.”

“Damn it, Regina,” Emma said, frustrated. “The point isn’t if you can handle it on your own, it’s that you don’t have to.”

Regina merely blinked in surprise at Emma’s words, as if it had never occurred to her to ask for a little help just because she could. Emma realized with a sinking feeling that it most likely hadn’t occurred to the prickly brunette. “Right,” Emma said firmly. “I’ll take out the rest of the glass, at least. Maybe I can even help with the healing too—I don’t know what to do with my magic, but at least it’s not all used up.”

Regina gave her another measuring stare, but Emma just waited her out. Finally the older woman nodded. “Very well, if you insist,” she said in a long suffering tone, as if she were the one helping Emma out.

Emma rolled her eyes, but didn’t call her on it, realizing Regina needed to keep up this pretense even though she knew neither of them believed it. Regina carefully resituated herself so that she was facing the mirror and her back was to Emma.

Emma came closer, picking up the tweezers Regina had been using. “Alright. Where should I start?” She was rather overwhelmed by how painful this all looked close-up and it cowed her previous bravado. What if she just ended up hurting Regina more?

“My right shoulder. I was having trouble reaching it,” Regina said promptly.

It only took Emma a second to find the small piece, although since it was currently embedded in Regina’s shoulder it didn’t look that small. She realized this was a good piece for her to attempt to get out first, she had no trouble seeing it. She was pretty sure Regina was only having trouble with it was because it was hard for her to twist either arm in order to touch it, let alone delicately remove it with tweezers.

The blonde rested one hand on the counter, bracing herself, and carefully moved the tweezers. She had never really used tweezers much, but her anxiety mostly dissipated as she delicately pulled the piece out and dropped it into the bowel. Regina hadn’t made a sound or moved at all throughout the process expect to grit her teeth once. “Very good,” Regina said in a calm voice. Emma tried to ignore the irony that not only had Regina noticed she was nervous, but also that the brunette was trying to reassure her instead of the other way around. “There’s a thin but longer sliver a few inches to the side…”

Regina carefully talked Emma through each removal, picking bigger pieces in the beginning before helping her spot the smallest slivers. To Emma’s rather guilty relief, there were only a couple more pieces left before Regina pronounced her back free of glass.

Emma tried not to give a little cheer at that as she set the tweezers down. “Now what?”

Regina leaned forward before Emma could stop her and handed Emma a washcloth. “First you need to clean my back of blood and then we need to disinfect the cuts.” Seemingly she had gotten over her pride regarding Emma’s help and had defaulted into giving orders. Emma was pretty sure she should be annoyed about that, but since she couldn’t stop staring at Regina’s painful back and she wasn’t completely sure what to do, she let it slide.

“Okay, I can do that.” Emma quickly ran the washcloth under some warm water in the sink before turning back to face Regina’s waiting back. Then she hesitated, how was she going to do this without hurting the other woman?

Regina looked at Emma in the mirror and saw her bite her lip in contemplation. She softened at how intently the blonde seemed focused on not causing her any more pain. “It’s alright, Emma. Just try to be as careful as you can.”

Emma nodded, knowing Regina was right. She carefully placed her right hand on Regina’s shoulder and began gently whipping at the area of her back above her bra. Regina winced once when she first started but otherwise made no other movements as Emma carefully rid her back of dried blood.

Emma focused on the upper half first, before she moved lower. Regina’s bra seemed to have been just enough of an extra layer that there was only one tear in it, more of a pointed stab that was small and isolated enough that Regina seemed to have been able to scab it over, more than she had the others, which still bled a bit.

As Emma cleaned she was able to see, to her relief, that most of the cuts were relatively shallow, no deep gashes. It looked more like they would sting like hell, rather than a deep ache which, while painful in the short-run, was probably much better in the long-run. Regina shivered when Emma reached the bottom on her back where there weren’t any cuts, only dried blood that had dripped.

“Done,” Emma pronounced, rinsing the washcloth thoroughly before leaving it on the edge of the sink. “Next?”

Regina’s thoughts had taken an uncomfortable turn due to the realization that she had never quite been cared for like this. Her mother only caused pain and her father only watched and ordered healers to treat her wounds. Henry was still a child, and couldn’t even remember her at the moment, and so this was the first time someone else had helped her treat and care for her pain. It was stirring up strange feelings she did not want to focus on right now, or ever preferably, because down that road was only heartbreak. If this ordeal with Henry’s memory loss had led to any important realization, it was that she was tired of wanting what she couldn’t have.

Instead of dwelling on her feelings, she mentally braced herself when she realized what the next step was. “If you open up that cabinet behind the mirror you’ll find the bottle of rubbing alcohol to disinfect the cuts. Cotton balls are underneath, left side.”

“I thought you could disinfect them with magic, cuz this is gonna sting like a—” Emma began as she nevertheless went to grab the mentioned items and only stopped when she saw the look the older woman was giving her. Emma merely smiled back and Regina rolled her eyes.

“I could, but, once again, I’m trying to conserve my magic. This can be done by hand—the actual healing cannot. It’s possible I could do both, but I’d only know that after it was done. I wouldn’t want to get halfway through the healing to run out of energy,” Regina explained.

“Right, right,” Emma said as she set the items down, pushing the dish of glass shards aside. She wet one of the cotton balls with the alcohol, unable to resist hesitating for a moment as she had when she went to wash off Regina’s back, knowing this would hurt even more.

Regina let out a hiss when it touched a cut, flinching, but Emma knew, without even glancing at Regina in the mirror, not to saying anything about it and kept going. “So, I thought Zelena had like, extra powerful magic and stuff,” she began, trying to think of something to talk about to distract Regina from the sting as she readied the next cotton ball. “I thought the best we were going to manage tonight was a draw.”

“Yes, well. We also confirmed that she had the dagger and Gold was alive, meaning we overestimated her personal powers. Getting the dagger away from her was key.” The only reason Regina hadn’t corrected the “we” was because of that first part Emma and the others had played in their plan. Managing to separate Zelena from the dagger and rendering her unable to use the Dark One to her advantage was a major tipping point and she wouldn’t have won if they hadn’t done that. “Recent events have also left me warier than usual and so I made sure I was prepared. First in making sure my heart wasn’t in my chest where she could take it and then in checking my vault for items that would help boost my own magic.”

Emma continued to keep her eyes on her work, but furrowed her brow as she tried to figure out what that might have been. “The red gloves?” she guessed. She had never seen Regina wearing them before and while that could mean anything, she thought she had felt something when she’d handed off the Wicked Witch’s necklace to the former queen.

“Very good,” Regina acknowledged. “Yes. The gloves and I share a certain proclivity towards pyrotechnics, but they can only be used sparingly. I thought the occasion warranted their use. I was right.”

Emma nodded in agreement. “Halfway there.”

“Then there was the fact that she underestimated me, or at least my pain tolerance. If I had been healing myself completely throughout the entire fight I wouldn’t have had any energy left to fight, which I’m sure had been her plan if she hadn’t thought her initial blow would knock me out of the fight all together.” Regina scoffed, “It takes more than that to stop me.”

Emma was inclined to agree, despite the bad shape Regina was in, she had gotten the job done. Then something occurred to me, “What did you mean, when you stopped her from taking your heart?”

She glanced at the brunette’s reflection to see her furrow her brow in confusion. “What do you mean? I think I was fairly plain when I told her I knew better than to have my heart within easy reach when fighting a witch.”

“Well, yeah, but you mean you put a spell on it or something ahead of time, not that you like, actually, took it out and left it somewhere, right?” Emma looked up again to make eye contact, but Regina still simply looked confused.

“That is exactly what I did. I certainly couldn’t let her get her hands on it—and heart protection spells take a lot of energy so I couldn’t simply protect it and then go fight. Hiding it made the most sense,” Regina explained calmly.

Emma was beginning to get really fed up with how nonchalant Regina was about serious bodily harm and taking out her literal heart and everything else. Had her sense of self-preservation completely evaporated? “What. You mean you took out your heart and just left it lying around somewhere?”

“Of course not,” Regina scowled. “I told you I hid it.”

“Right,” Emma said flatly. The problem was that she couldn’t tell if this was as worrying a sign as it felt like it was. Maybe that really had been the best idea. Maybe witches did that whenever they fought each other. Emma had no idea. All she did know was that Cora had taken out her heart and Emma was pretty sure that was why she had been so completely over the top evil, more than Regina or even Gold had ever truly been because she had been heartless and unable to care for anything or anyone. The idea of Regina becoming anything like that worried the crap out of her.

Regina could see this was distressing the blonde, though she wasn’t really sure why. “I’ve put it back,” she found herself reassuring the younger woman. Wide blue-green eyes met hers again in the mirror. “After I realized she wouldn’t be waking up tonight. It was the first thing I did.”

“But what if you hadn’t?” Emma found herself asking. “What if you had convinced yourself you didn’t need it? What if something had happened to it? What if Henry had remembered but instead of getting his mother back he had gotten, gotten….”

“My mother?” Regina finished softly. Emma looked down, but Regina knew she had guessed correctly. Regina slowly turned in her spot so she was facing the blonde. “Emma?”

Emma had never heard her use such a gentle tone when talking to someone besides Henry. A soft hand gently griped her chin and didn’t let go until her eyes met the brunette’s own. “I have many faults, but that would never be a mistake I allowed to happen. Each person’s heart is unique and affects them in unique ways. Yours if physically impossible to remove, it is such a part of you. Snow’s makes her brave, inspires her, invites people in, and without it she wouldn’t have been able to survive for as long as she did. Mother’s made her loss her conscience, loose her empathy, her ability to care for anyone besides herself—I know that. I think I’ve known for a long time, for all that I liked to tell myself she had been able to love me despite it.”

“But my heart isn’t like that. Even without it, I still loved Henry. I could still feel things. Every second I spent without it, hurt. I could feel it, outside my body where it didn’t belong. Not having it striped me of some of my walls, causing certain emotions to be closer to the surface—not muted. I promise I would never have taken it out if I thought its removal had even the slightest chance of turning me into my mother.” Her voice was full of quiet emotion, her eyes pleading with Emma to understand.

Slowly the blonde nodded once then a second time, with more confidence. “Alright. Okay. I believe you.” She gave the other woman a small smile, trying to get over how completely the idea of Regina losing her heart had terrified her. The idea of Regina losing herself, and Emma losing her in turn—not to mention Henry losing her—had just been too much to keep to herself. Now as relief flowed through her, she began to feel silly and self-conscious for her reaction. She blushed lightly and looked away, scuffing her foot lightly on the smooth floor. “Sorry about that. I should have known you’d never…”

Regina was more intrigued by Emma’s reaction than she was offended by the implications of her fears. Especially as they didn’t seem to be that the former queen would go on some sort of homicidal rampage without her heart, but the damage she’d do to herself and Henry by not being herself. It made warmth spread through her at the thought that Emma was still worried about her, instead of what she might do. “It’s quite alright. Now, have you finished with the rubbing alcohol?”

Emma shook herself from her thoughts and tried to get her head back on the task at hand. Regina was still hurt, focus on that. “Yeah, I’d just finished the last one.”

Regina nodded. “Good. Now we can move on to the part you’ve been so focused on: the actual healing process.” She carefully got down from the counter and half turned, rearranging the mirrors so she could see her back clearly.

“Do you need to be looking at whatever’s hurt to fix it?” Emma asked curiously.

“Not necessarily, but it helps to see exactly what you are trying to fix and to watch everything as it heals.”

Emma nodded and then shut her mouth, not wanting to distract Regina any further.

Regina took a deep breath, closing her eyes. When she opened them, they swirled with the purple of her magic. Her gaze landed on her back and she breathed out slowly. Purple mist began to gather around her hands before flowing to cover her back. The look on Regina’s face was one of intense concentration. Emma could sense Regina’s magic as it gathered and worked, making the amateur magic user’s skin prickle and filling the room with the scent of cinnamon and a hint of apples.

After a long moment, Regina’s eyes closed once more and the smoky mist dissipated. To Emma’s dismay, the cuts were still there. They had all closed and looked at least a couple of days old instead of merely hours, but they would definitely still hurt.

She opened her mouth the say something along the lines of “that’s it” when Regina’s eyes opened and she sagged. The action probably seemed more dramatic than it was due to Regina’s normally perfect posture. Her tan hand landed on the countertop, bracing herself as she attempted to remain upright. She hadn’t over extended herself, but only barely.

She glanced at her back in the mirrors and gave a small grim nod. That was the best she could manage and now at least she wouldn’t bleed all over her sheets. In a few days when her magic levels recovered, she could heal them completely. Until then, this was more than adequate. She would make sure to eat more than she had been to replenish her energy levels. Perhaps she would even take some sleep medication, even though she’d stopped taking any when she’d gotten Henry, to ensure she got more than the couple of hours she’d been scraping by on recently.

She drew herself back up, noticing Emma’s hand out and obvious desire to hover over her worriedly. “There. As you can see, not only was I right in conserving what I had left, but I am also no longer seriously injured.” She gave the blonde a pointed look, hoping she’d take the hint.

Emma looked dismayed at the minimal amount of healing, but Regina refused to feel embarrassed about how little she’d managed. Emma seemed to realize this and was obviously trying to find some more tactful way to protest. “I have magic,” she said after a few awkward seconds.

Regina raised an eyebrow, “I fail to see why that is worth mentioning.”

Emma scowled, “Can’t I help in some way? Like give you some of my magic?”

Regina rolled her eyes, “You cannot simply give another magic user some of your magic, Miss Swan. We could perform a spell in tandem, but you cannot lend me some magic so I can work a spell. Magic is not a toy to be passed from one person to the next.”

“Well then, could you teach me how to heal or something?” Emma knew she was grasping at straws, but Regina’s back still looked like such a mess and she’d just saved the whole town. Didn’t that mean she at least deserved to fall asleep without pain, even if Emma couldn’t give her back her son, which was what she really deserved?

Regina was caught off guard once more by how much her pain seemed to upset the other woman. It had never bothered her before, a petty part of her mind muttered, but Regina hardly spared it a second thought. Emma had never truly realized what she had been doing just being in town, causing chaos with her mere presence. Regina could acknowledge that now. After Neverland, despite its bumps, and then when she had given her and Henry those memories, and even just now, figuring out how to defeat Zelena—they had become allies at the very least and perhaps something resembling friends as well.

She considered Emma’s proposal. “Normally, I would say “no” without hesitation because, as I mentioned, healing spells require a great deal of energy and skill. However, you are a… unique case. It’s possible, with your untapped potential, that you could manage such an advanced spell with your will and intent alone.” She looked Emma up and down, as if she could see her magical potential and was weighing it.

Emma resisted the urge to shift her weight uneasily from foot to foot. “So does that mean you’ll tell me what to do and let me try?”

Regina’s eyes snapped up to hers, boring into them, before she gave a short nod. “Yes. I suppose I will. But only for a few moments. If this doesn’t work, then you will go home and leave me in peace, understood?”

Emma nodded reluctantly, but she knew this was the best offer she was going to get. “Alright, so what do I do?”

Regina sighed, “Typically, the process involves a great deal of study about the physical workings of wherever the injury is and how the body normally heals. One focuses on cells forming and muscle knitting together. In other words, a basic grounding in anatomy is required.” Emma began to look almost ashamed—she never studied anatomy or anything like that. Partially because she didn’t find it interesting, but also because she wasn’t really good at science. She knew that would come back to bite her someday.

Either because she knew what Emma was thinking or because she was going to say so all along, Regina continued briskly, not giving the younger woman a chance to mutter excuses, “However, I do not think that will be necessary in your case. As the product of true love, your magic is quite powerful and fairly instinctive. For you, I would recommend simply picturing my back healed and willing it to be so.”

“Okay,” Emma said slowly, her brow furrowed. That didn’t sound too hard. “I think I can do that.”

“Very well then,” Regina said and turned around so her back was facing Emma. “Go ahead. While I do believe the worst thing that could happen would be that nothing happens, do try not to accidently kill me or turn my back blue or some other such nonsense. Understood, Miss Swan?”

If she had been hoping to distract Emma from her growing nerves, it worked. Emma rolled her eyes, appreciating the effort and couldn’t resist saying, with an impish smile, “But I think you’d look good with a blue back.” Regina merely glared into the mirror, but Emma was already focusing on the older woman’s back.

The blonde held her hands out in front of her, open palms hovering a few inches away from the cuts. Emma focused in on them, trying to imagine smooth skin instead. Wanting Regina to be healed, the cuts closed, weeks older in a few moments. She thought about how the cuts marred and marked Regina’s flawless skin and how she wanted to restore it to its previous state.

She concentrated for what felt like a long time, Regina waiting patiently, but nothing happened. Emma began to get frustrated. She tried to will harder, to demand that Regina’s back be healed.

“Stop,” Regina said finally. She could tell the blonde’s magic was barely even responding, simply swirling beneath her skin as it usually did. This wasn’t getting them anywhere. She turned back around to find Emma glaring at the wall, her arms crossed. Her entire body seemed to scream her frustration and disappointment in herself at having failed. Regina’s softened for the blonde as she so often did these days, “What do you think is going wrong?”

“I don’t know!” Emma’s arms uncrossed and she began to gesture emphatically as her eyes pleaded with Regina’s own. “I swear, I’m doing it exactly like you said. Picturing and willing, but nothing’s happening.”

“I believe you,” Regina said. “That means that we’re going about this in the wrong manner. That must not be the best way to get your magic to work.” She frowned contemplatively. “The other times you have managed to get your magic to cooperate, what were you thinking about? Earlier when you were protecting the dagger, or on Neverland when was created the eclipse, or when we stopped the trigger, or even your first barrier with Gold’s shop.”

Emma frowned as she thought. “Gold… he told me to think about who I was protecting and why, not picturing a barrier around the shop. With the trigger I wanted to help you, to help protect everyone in town. With the eclipse, all I was thinking about was getting to Henry so we could rescue him.”

Understanding crossed Regina’s face, “I see. Then we are going about this all wrong.” Emma raised her eye brows and gestured for Regina to explain. “When we say magic is emotion, normally we mean that magic draws its power from your emotions, they fuel it. Your magic seems to not only derive its energy from emotions, but also its direction and intent. In order to work a spell, you need to focus on the emotions behind the action—the why instead of the how or what.” Regina kept her doubts to herself, that Emma could feel something strong enough for her specifically, to manage a healing on her. “Although, this is just a theory.”

Emma nodded, but thought Regina sounded right. It seemed to fit, if it was a little too Disney princess, feelings are magic, for her taste. “Okay. I can definitely give that a try.”

Regina turned around once more. Emma frowned in concentration. Instead of picturing Regina’s back healing, she tried to focus on why she wanted Regina’s back to heal. Regina had saved them all, not just today, but she was the real reason they got Henry back from Neverland, and then what she did for her and Henry when Pan’s second curse… Regina was still suffering the fallout from that bit of help; she didn’t deserve even more punishments for doing the right thing.

Emma was so focused on her thoughts she didn’t notice the way blue and white smoke began to slowly gather in her hands. Regina didn’t even need to see it to feel that magic building and focusing in the younger woman. The room began to smell of honey and vanilla, and the hair on the back of Regina’s neck began to stand on end.

Her thoughts drifted back to the fight with Zelena, the things Regina had said, the way she had pulled on her Evil Queen persona—one she recognized as a mask, just as Madame Mayor was, even if both had been worn so often that they were parts of her too. Emma knew about that, new masks for the family she was sent to, for the group homes, to survive on her own. Regina should be able to take off her masks in her own home though, relax without barriers and pain. She shouldn’t have had to completely deplete her magic reserves to beat her sister, Emma should have been able to help, she was the Savior.

The only person Emma seemed to be able to save, besides breaking the curse with Henry, was Regina. Whether it was from destructive triggers, angry mobs, fires, or even by giving up Henry to her, the brunette was the only one she consistently managed to live up to her title of Savior for. This time, Regina had done the actual saving, but that didn’t mean Emma couldn’t help save her from the unnecessary pain she sustained from that fight.

If Emma’s special powers were going to save anyone, they were going to save her family. And that meant Henry and Regina.

Magic flowed from Emma’s hands, enveloping Regina’s upper body completely, not just her back. Regina let out a gasp as she felt the tendrils of the blonde’s magic, pure and strong, wind around her. They twined over her back, wrapping around her arms, and one in particular seemed intent on reaching her heart, still sore from its time outside her body. Warmth effused her, waking her up and soothing her at the same time. Pain evaporated leaving only the feeling of being cared, of being… She closed her eyes to bask in the sensation even as it began to retreat.

Emma opened her eyes, not remembering when they had closed and saw the last wisps of smoke disappear. She blinked as she came back to reality and then she gasped. In front of her was Regina’s back, completely unmarred—the skin not even slightly pink. “It worked!” She resisted the urge to fist pump the air, relieved her emotions had been enough to heal those painful cuts. Then she frowned, studying the brunette’s back more closely. “Hey, I thought you said you needed other spells to make it look like nothing happened, that that wasn’t part of healing.”

“It’s not,” Regina said, her voice quiet and low. “Your magic is powerful.” Which confirmed that her emotions, her emotions for the brunette, must be strong as well. She knew what she had felt, but she still hadn’t quite believed… She glanced in the mirror and saw that Emma was right; her back was more than completely healed, it was good as new. She was fairly certain even the typical back pains she got from sitting in her office all day were gone too. The cut under the bandage on her upper arm was healed as well and her other arm no longer ached. She placed a hand over her heart. Even her tired and battered heart felt lighter, freer.

She turned and her eyes met surprised but delighted green. “Awesome,” Emma said, oblivious to Regina’s revelations and the true extent of what she had done. “I guess you were right about how my magic works. So maybe I’ll be able to get it to work more often, right?”

“Right,” Regina echoed automatically.

Something in her voice must have finally tipped Emma off that she had missed something. She took in Regina’s expression, one she had never seen on her before. The brunette’s eyes were over bright. Emma’s triumphant smile faltered, “Regina? Crap, I did mess up, didn’t I?” Regina wasn’t able to respond quickly enough. “I’m sorry. I was trying to help and I still….” She looked down in defeat.

“Emma,” Regina’s voice was firm and Emma met her eyes again. “You didn’t do anything wrong. If anything, your spell worked too well.”

Emma furrowed her brow in confusion, “Huh?”

Regina reached up and unwound the bandage around her upper arm to reveal smooth skin, “I’m assuming you didn’t mean to do that?”

“Oh, no. I just thought I was fixing your back.” Emma tried to remember the last time she had done something too well.

“You’ll have to learn to focus your power more intently so you don’t start causing all sorts of mischief unintentionally,” Regina said with an almost fond smile.

“Oh,” Emma sounded sheepish, but proud too.

Regina rolled her eyes. “I assume you didn’t mean to try to heal my heart as well.”

“Your—?” Emma’s eyes darted to just above the swell of Regina’s bra-clad chest. “No, I didn’t—. God, I’m sorry. I would never try to mess with your heart, Regina.”

Regina nodded. “I know. That’s why you’ll need to be careful. Although, I don’t expect you to have that problem with people besides myself.”

“Why not?”

“Emma. Magic is emotion.” When Emma still seemed to be missing her point, she clarified, “What exactly do you feel for me?”

Emma looked confused before it slowly dawned on her. A faint blush spread across her cheeks. “Oh,” her voice was small. She wanted to look away, but she was caught in Regina’s expressive eyes. She didn’t find what she expected, no distaste or anger, just warmth. “I…”

It seemed Regina didn’t need her to say anything. Regina smiled, more genuinely and brightly than Emma had ever seen her do before to anyone besides Henry and even he had only had the smile directed at him rarely. It was overwhelming.

“I feel the same,” Regina admitted.

Before Emma could even process that, Regina’s mouth covered her own. She melted into the kiss instantly, her arms wrapping around the brunette’s slim waist. Her hands pressed against smooth and pain free skin. One of Regina’s arms wound around her in return while the other hand wove into blonde curls.

Emma moved her mouth firmly against Regina’s soft lips, lips she’d been dreaming about kissing for longer than can she remember, for longer than she had actually remembered—literal dreams of red painted smirks, dark hair, haunted eyes, and an ass that had definitely seemed too fantastic to be real. Yet here she was, wrapped up in Emma’s arms, kissing her. That as all Emma needed to know as she gave herself up to this feeling, this magic.

Any doubts that still lingered in Regina’s mind were kissed away by eager pink lips, nerve-endings tingling as the warmth of Emma’s kiss filled her every pore. That feeling of care and love was convey once more, with strong arms and insistent fingers and gentle lips. Regina lost herself in the sensations, in loving and being loved in return. It was more beautiful than she had ever imagined.

After what felt like an eternity, they parted. Regina burying her face in Emma’s neck as Emma pressed her face to the top of Regina’s head, inhaling the scent of her shampoo. The pair stayed intertwined, perfectly happy to remain in this moment, wrapped up together for as long as they could.

They didn’t have more than a moment before a ringing sound shattered the comfortable silence. Emma winced, and gave Regina an apologetic smile as she dug out her phone. Then she frowned, missing Regina’s concerned look, as she answered immediately. “Henry? Is something wrong?”

“Mom! Mom!” Henry’s excited voice came through the phone’s speakers loud enough for Regina to hear, especially since she was so close to Emma. Her worried eyes met Emma’s own.

“Spit it out, kid.” Emma was already pulling her keys from her other pocket, mind racing as she tried to think about what could have happened. “What’s wrong?” Although, Henry didn’t sound upset, just…

“I remember!”

Both women froze. “What?” Emma said, dumbfounded, although she was doing better than Regina who was staring with wide eyes at the cell phone, like it might hold the answers to everything in the universe.

“I remember!” Henry repeated excitedly, sounding like he was jumping up and down. “I remember Mom and Storybrooke and Grandma and Gramps and everyone!”

While neither made the conscious decision, Emma’s phone was suddenly clutched in Regina’s hand. “Henry?” she asked, her voice shaky.

“Mom! Hi! Are you alright? Emma said you got into a fight! I am so sorry I didn’t remember you,” Henry seemed trying to say fifty different things at once and the jumping questions were confusing, but nothing could take away from how wonderful it felt to hear her son’s voice once more, with his memories intact. “You have a sister? What happened? What’s been going on around here? How is everyone back from the Enchanted Forest? I missed you, I mean I didn’t know that’s what it was, but I could tell something was missing and it was you!”

Regina looked completely overwhelmed and close to tears. “Oh, Henry. Everything’s fine. I’m fine, I promise. I missed you so much, my little prince.”

“You have to come get me!” Henry said. “I wanna tell you all about New York and you need to tell me about whatever’s happening in Storybrooke. Please?”

“Of course, of course,” Regina agreed. She met Emma’s eyes and the blonde’s smile was nearly as wide as her own.

“Should I go get him or should we both go? It would make more sense to come here but that’s a lot of back and forth,” Emma rambled.

“Hey, how did you break the curse?” Henry’s voice sounded from the phone.

Emma and Regina froze. Oh. Well then… “We’re not sure,” Regina said slowly. “We’ll try to figure it out in person, alright sweetheart?”

Then she leaned a bit away from the phone. “You’re missing the obvious solution, dear,” she said, not unkindly. “Magic.”

“But you’re out of magic and I don’t know how to poof.”

Regina gave her a look that most likely had to do with her calling teleporting “poofing”. Emma just grinned in response. “Well, I think if we’ve learned anything today, dear. It’s that you don’t need much training, hm?”

Emma shrugged, the proud look back on her face, “I guess.”

“Henry?” Regina asked.

“Yeah?”

“Emma’s going to try to bring you to us, with her magic.”

“Really?” Henry sounded very impressed. “That is so cool.”

“Of course it is,” Regina said, dryly. “Miss Swan, if you would be so kind as to focus your thoughts on bringing our son here?”

Emma smiled, having already started. She thought about her son, Regina’s son, their son, here with them. Henry, with both of his mothers, the way it was supposed to be.

White and blue smoke began to coalesce in a tall cloud next to them. Before the magic finished dissipating, the boy shot forward, his arms around his mother’s waist. “Mom!”

“Henry!” Regina clutched him close. “Henry.” She rested her head on his and hugged him close. Emma merely watched from next to them, a wide smile on her face at their family being reunited at last.

After a few long moments, Henry spoke up, his voice muffled against Regina’s neck. “Mom?”

“Yes, dear?”

“How come you don’t have a shirt on?”