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The first time it happens Red is having a nightmare. She sees teeth and claws, there is blood and she has no control over anything. Snow wakes up from Red twitching and turning. She shakes her shoulder. "Red, wake up. Red." Nothing. So Snow scoots closer, shakes harder. Red only fusses more, even tries to hit Snow (well, Snow knows she's aiming at an imaginary attacker). Snow grabs her hand and almost gets hit with a knee. That's it. Snow gets up halfway, swings one of her legs over Red's waist and sits on top of her. "Red! RED!" She holds her wrists above her chest, trying not to put too much pressure on her, knees firmly against her side though. "WAKE UP!" And finally Red jolts awake. Eyes wide open, trying to throw Snow off, but not with much force, she's too disoriented. She blinks and takes a few seconds to gather herself. "Snow..." And she softens, all the tension leaving her body Yes, okay, Snow is here, everything else was a bad dream. "Hey." "Hey." Red feels safe. The nightmare was terrible, but in reality Snow grounds her.
The second time is quite different and far more desperate. It also requires more strength on Snow's part. The black knights of the Evil Queen are very close. It is wolfstime, but Snow does not want to see her friend get hurt. There are too many men and she doesn't have anybody else. She needs Red. But she needs her by her side, not in combat. "I can give you time, so you can get away." "I don't want to get away. Not without you! Where would I go anyway?" But Red turns around, she already has her hands on her cloak, ready to throw it off. But Snow tackles her from behind. She puts every ounce of strength she has built over the last couple of months into this. The impact forces Red to the ground and Snow makes sure that the cloak stays on. Her knees press against Red's thighs this time and she puts her hands on Red's shoulders, trying to pin her down with her whole weight. "Stay down, Red, please." Red puts her hands flats against the dirt, starts to push herself up and Snow knows she won't stand a chance. But she lets her hands glide all the way down Red's arms and lies on top of her now. Her chest pressing against Red's back. "Please, Red, please. Please, please, please..." It's this pleading that stops her. Being surrounded by Snow and the wish she makes with her whole body.
And then it's not wolfstime anymore, so Red loses her key advantage. Which is bad, especially when they face an ogre. Yes, okay, so even as a wolf she would not take on one of those. They run. For a moment they lose sight of each other which is the scariest part. Red can hear the sheep and cows nearby, the more likely prey. If only they can hide. And Red spots the haystack. She finds Snow again and speeds up. The timing could not be more close, but Red jumps into that itchy hiding spot, pulling Snow with her. Snow lands on top and Red puts her arms around her immediately, pulls her as close as she can. Snow buries her face in Red's neck, their legs entangle and both try to calm their breathing. Don't make a sound. Be quiet. But their hearts are beating fast. Snow can feel it practically jumping out of Red's chest. So close. And yet Snow feels safe, even though danger is only a few feet away. Red holds her with ease, bodies fitting together like puzzle pieces.
Then the curse hits. They are Mary Margaret and Ruby. Barely acquaintances for a long time. But finally things change. Slowly. And after they've been out together, talked a bit more and warmed up to each other, Mary Margaret sees that some of the comments about her style get to Ruby. In a quiet moment Ruby confesses. "Nobody ever taught me how to do a more subtle make-up. And now I don't want to experiment." Mary Margaret invites her home and sits her down. If Ruby wants to put on all that make-up, she sure can. But she has become more confident and the mask is slipping, so all she needs is a nudge. "Let me try something here." And Mary Margaret gets to work with eyeliner, mascara, lip gloss, some rouge. Ruby is holding still as best as she can, but the way Mary Margaret has to lean is uncomfortable and suddenly she sits down on Ruby's lap. Yes, that's better, this works. Ruby puts her hands on Mary Margaret's hips to steady her. Neither says anything about this. Not even when they look into each other's eyes, finding something they don't know they've lost. It feels like something they've done before. A new place they discover that instantly is home.
When the curse breaks they can finally hug and know exactly what was missing. But with the new found truth come new dangers. And a new found recklessness even. Out in the woods, hunting a mean gargoyle to get back a magic amulet. Almost like old times. Mary Margaret is aiming with her bow and arrow, but the gargoyle attacks and Ruby pushes her out of the way. They tumble down a slope, Ruby trying to shield her, bearing more of the impact, but it doesn't work. When they finally stop, Mary Margaret has the wind knocked out of her lungs and this time Ruby is on top. She immediately slides her legs off of her, so her knees hit the ground and Mary Margaret doesn't have to carry her weight. Ruby still leans over her though. She smiles. "Like no time has passed at all." "We're still a fine team, huh?" Ruby brushes away some of the dirt on Mary Margaret's face. "Hey, Snow." "Hey, Red." Snow pulls a leaf out of Red's hair, lingering her hand on her cheek for a moment. Red puts her own hand on top, holds it there. She tilts her head a bit and places a kiss on Snow's pulse point. "Sorry, I think I broke your bow", she whispers. "Didn't work anyway." They lock eyes. So many memories between them. "I know what will..." "I told you not to do that, Red." Snow puts her other hand on Red's face as well. Red closes her eyes, feels the tender caress. "David needs the amulet before sunrise." She opens her eyes. "And you need him." "I need you, too. So don't think about doing something stupid." Red leans down. Closer. Closer. Their lips brush. Barely. So soft Snow isn't sure this is really happening. She lifts her head to push into the kiss. And then it's over and Ruby pulls back. "I'll come back." The moon isn't full yet, but Red has all the confidence in the world that she can take on the gargoyle. At least to get what they came for to save the love of Snow's life. Even if it means shattering the tiny piece of Snow's heart that belongs to only her.