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Emma ran her hand over her face. She had been staring at the Arendelle Royal Family Tree for the last few minutes. It was a lot to take in. This Ingrid woman had been following her around her whole life. They had met up at one point and formed some sort of attachment that Emma couldn't remember. It obviously had all gone south considering the Snow Queen had wiped Emma's memories.
Now, she was back and wanted Emma to become a part of her wacky family.
The spell Belle mentioned less than an hour ago seemed like the worst possible thing for Emma. The way Storybrooke had overcome every obstacle had been through some sort of teamwork or relationship. Whether it was Emma using True Love's Kiss on Henry or the showdown against Zelena and Rumple mere months ago, they won because of their connections to each other.
The Dairy Queen would take this advantage away from them. She would strip them of their greatest asset. It pained Emma to think that she would lose the support of her family.
"What's wrong, love? You'll incinerate the book if you stare at it any harder," Killian said, appearing over Emma's shoulder. He framed her back with his arms. Emma turned around in her chair so their noses were practically touching. She looked just past Killian's head, trying to find the best way to ask what she wanted to know.
It terrified Emma that Killian might turn on her soon. She had dealt with her parents not knowing who she was. That was awful though hating her would be much worse. There had been some spats with Henry during their year in New York. It was typical teen stuff, but it was a preview of what would be happening soon.
"How do you think her magic's going to make everyone hate each other? Like will it pick things that are already there and make them worse or create problems in everyone's head?"
Killian tilted his head and studied Emma for a moment. It was equal parts terrifying and relieving that Killian could read her so well. It was hard to be that vulnerable in front of someone, especially for Emma. She'd been so guarded her whole life that opening up was hard for her. That was where the relief came in. It was nice to not have to verbalize every single fear or thought that ran through her head.
Asking if she'd find out her loved ones darkest feelings toward her was daunting.
"I don't know. It's possible we'll encounter some ugliness that was there before the Snow Queen arrived. All I know is that we will make it out alright in the end. This woman has never fought against Storybrooke."
Emma smiled slightly. "We are pretty badass."
Killian rested his arm on Emma's shoulder. His fingers drew in a lock from her ponytail and toyed with it.
"Additionally, there's a lot of True Love in this town. A few kisses should mend most alliances," Killian said in a voice far too casual for the discussion.
Emma sucked in a small breath. Killian was avoiding her eyes, focused solely on her hair. Was he actually trying to tell her that he loved her? True Loved her? It scared Emma less than she thought it might. It didn't surprise her though. Killian had tried to use True Love's Kiss on her all those months ago in New York before they were even a thing. Emma didn't want to dwell on her thoughts on the subject. She was afraid they were too close to being on the same page.
If Emma had to give Killian up soon then she figured she should take advantage of every moment they had alone. It would give her something to cling to when things went wrong. Emma tilted her head back so her mouth was in line with Killian's. She pressed her lips against his gently, feeling his smile under hers. He leaned down to gain better access to her mouth. Emma felt herself being simultaneously pulled from her seat by Killian's hand in her hair and pressed down by his forearm along her other shoulder. Emma let her hands wander up his chest before they settled in the loops of his pants, tugging him closer.
Killian stood up without releasing his grip on Emma. She followed him and soon was standing up. Killian maneuvered them so he was in the chair and Emma was straddling his lap. It surprised Emma for a moment, but she quickly regained her bearings. Killian was now at eye level with Emma's chin. He trailed a line of kisses across Emma's collarbone, clearly enjoying how much skin her tank top revealed. Emma pulled him back up to her so she could be an active participant again.
Killian seemed to not mind the change of direction. He opened his mouth wider as Emma's tongue dipped in. They took turns delving into each other's mouths. Emma loved that he enjoyed having her in control just as often as he was. She liked being seen as an equal.
Killian's fingertips had just started flirting with the bottom of Emma's top when a noise interrupted them. Thankfully it was just Regina not Emma's parents or Henry. That would be mortifying and involve several conversations about boundaries and alone time.
"You can open that treasure chest another time, Pirate. I just wanted an update on that Ice Bitch before I go pick Henry up," Regina said in voice that was even parts boredom and derision.
All of the blood rushed to Emma's head as she tried to stand up. Her boot got stuck on the table and she ended up kicking Killian by accident, which just made things worse.
"Apologies, milady," Killian said sarcastically toward Regina.
Emma stood in between them. The quicker she dispatched Regina was the quicker that she got to go back to kissing Killian.
"The Dairy Queen, Ingrid, is trying to create some sort of warped family of magical women. She's using some spell called Shattered Sight. It'll turn everyone against each other except for the people she wants to join her side. Pleasant, right?"
Regina pressed her lips together. "I've heard of that one. It's brutal. Fortunately we'll be unaffected so we have a chance to defeat her once her guard is down."
Emma and Killian shared a look. "What makes you think you won't be affected?"
"I do have magic. If she's founding Kappa Kappa Spellcaster, I'd be an asset," Regina said with an arched eyebrow.
Killian grinned in amusement as Emma floundered for how to tell Regina the bad (or was it good?) news.
"Um well she really only wants me and Elsa," Emma's voice trailed off.
Regina frowned. "Why only you two? My magic is much more stable and I'm also a queen. I'm the ideal candidate!"
Killian smirked. "I believe she prefers blondes."
Emma shot Killian a warning glance. "That's sort of a coincidence. I think she wants people she already thinks of family. Elsa is her actual niece. I look just like her dead sister, and she stalked me my whole life so I'm practically like family. Really you're lucky. I feel like there must be something wrong with me because she wants me so much."
Regina rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Well, she's an idiot if she wants the icemaker on the fritz and you on her team over me. If that's all the information you found, this trip was worthless. I'm going home."
Emma nodded and let Regina go without a fight. She was acquiescing a lot more often when it came to Regina.
"Enjoy your booty, Leather Pants!" Regina's voice called out as she exited the building.
Killian laughed heartily as he pulled Emma back into his lap. "Well, love, you can at least take comfort in the fact that the mirror spell will have no impact on how Regina treats you.
Regina walked down the main drag in Storybrooke. She tilted her head back and looked at the stars. It made her stomach churn to see Emma and Killian together. It was more jealousy than actual disgust, but still.
It was getting harder and harder to avoid Robin. There was only one solution left, but she couldn't vocalize it. Her idea was so awful, so terrible that she didn't want to even discuss it.
Regina wanted to alter Robin's memories. If she was erased from them, then he would go back to loving his wife. Marian would wake up as soon as he kissed her.
There were several problems with that though. Regina would still have her memories. It sounded selfish, but that would destroy her. She had played that game with Henry after he returned from New York. Resilient as she was, Regina didn't think she could handle that again. The other problem was that if Regina was Robin's True Love, then him kissing Marian wouldn't help matters. A person couldn't have two True Loves. Regina's absence wouldn't make Marian take her place.
She had hinted that this was how things would have to be in order to save Marian. Her conversation with Robin skirted telling him outright her last ditch effort. She had tried to tell him to forget about her on his own. If he was feeling anything like Regina though, wanting to get over things wouldn't do anything.
It really was looking like this was the only way Regina could fix things. The question would be whether or not she got permission or just did what she wanted.
It was a drag trying to be a good guy. Evil Queen Regina never would've cared about permission.
(She also wouldn't have put her feelings aside and tried to help either.)