Archive of Our Own

The thing about magic is, there aren’t many concrete rules about it.

Yes, yes, Emma knew that “all magic came with a price,” or whatever Gold had said time and time again. Regina had taught her that magic is tied to emotion, and strong emotions can trigger magic. And her parents had showed her that true love was the rarest and most powerful magic of all.

But aside from those facts, Emma knew next to nothing about magic in her world.

It wasn’t like the magic systems in TV shows, like Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood and Avatar: The Last Airbender. The magic in those shows was very specific, clearly detailing what a character can and can’t do with magic. In Emma’s world, it seemed as though anything was possible. Witches, sorcerers, dragons, mermaids, fairies, monsters, magical items, spells, potions, curses, portals, freeform magic, teleportation magic, transformation magic, different colors of magic, light magic, dark magic, all of these things were real components of magic that Emma had to learn. On top of that, there were no textbooks, reliable internet articles, or consolidated information on this stuff, meaning that Emma had to learn from various handwritten records and first-hand experience. Learning magic was nothing short of an exhausting experience for her.

Granted, if Emma had discovered magic when she was ten, she imagined that she’d be excited and eager to learn everything there was to learn about magic. She would have imitated the characters from fantasy books and chanted made up spells. She would have played with her magic every day after school, like all the other nerds. She would have shown off her powers and be the coolest kid in the school, and she would have had so many friends. Now that she was entering her thirties, however, magic didn’t seem nearly as appealing anymore. Maybe she had become too attached to a land without magic, or maybe she was too old, or too cynical to get excited.

Point being. Emma Swan, a woman who had grown up without believing in magic in a land without magic, had suddenly discovered that she had magic and that she had to learn how to use it. And without a standardized guide of sorts, there was much she didn’t know about magic.

So, it didn’t bother Emma much that the magic within her body hummed whenever she spent time with Regina.

Regina had taught Emma how to sense her magic, appealing to Emma’s more scientific mind. “Magic,” she had explained, “runs similar to a conduit. It starts in the heart, and travels through your arteries and veins with your blood. When you’re angered, or feeling some other heightened emotion, your heart pumps faster, and your magic thrums with it. If you’re aware of your heart and mind, you can detect your magic.” She forced Emma to practice breathing exercises until Emma could reliably detect the magic circulating through her body.

Emma didn’t know quite when it started, but once she became aware of her magic, it was impossible not to notice it. Whenever she had a magic lesson with Regina, or whenever she dropped by the mansion for family dinner, she felt it. Her magic would surge within her body, thrumming more quickly than baseline, and her heart rate would increase to match her magic. Additionally, her skin would pulse from the magic circulation, as though a thin current of electricity was running through her body. She didn’t even have to touch Regina for the phenomenon to occur. Simply being within range of the other woman was enough to trigger her magic, as if her magic was being pulled towards Regina. It was a pleasant sensation.

But again, all of this was normal to Emma. After all, no one told her that it was abnormal for magic to behave this way. And in a world where a tiny bean can open a large portal to another realm, pulsing magic didn’t seem very farfetched. For all Emma knew, this was a common occurrence among magic users. Therefore, she never questioned it.

Sometimes, Emma wondered if Regina’s magic reacted to her presence, though she never dared raise the question aloud. Because Regina had a history of belittling Emma whenever she asked a dumb question. Because Emma didn’t know how to explain the magical phenomenon in a way that made sense. Because (and this was the most important reason) there was always the possibility that Regina didn’t experience the magical pull from being in proximity to Emma. Had she expressed a potential connection between them, and Regina didn’t feel the same, well, that would be nothing short of mortifying to Emma. Of course, the connection was magical in nature, not romantic, but Emma still couldn’t bring herself to tell Regina.

(Wasn’t magic tied to emotion though?)

***

Several months passed without major incident. Every now and then, a monster would fly out of a book or a portal, but it was nothing that Regina and Emma couldn’t handle. Emma’s magic had improved considerably, and she could perform a variety of complex spells under the right conditions. Once, Regina had suggested Emma practice magic independently since she was no longer at risk of blowing herself up. Emma wholeheartedly rejected. Emma had little confidence in her individual magic abilities. She also preferred having lessons with Regina, as they gave her a good reason to be close to her mentor, thereby triggering that pleasant sensation within her body. Although it took some convincing, the magic lessons continued as normal.

Family dinners had become an almost daily occurrence. When they had been drafting their tentative co-parenting schedule, the two women had agreed to spend Saturday nights at the mansion. “To get Henry used to having two moms,” Regina had said once, “to give him a sense of stability.” The first dinner went off without a hitch. Regina cooked a wonderful meal, Emma brought Mario Kart, they played until Henry got sleepy, and everyone went to bed. Regina had let Emma sleep in the guest room, declaring that Emma would not drive home when she was feeling sleepy. The small gesture warmed Emma’s heart, just knowing that Regina was looking out for her.

Following the success of the first dinner, Emma began receiving invites for family dinner more often. Emma never turned down an invitation, always eager to spend time with Henry and eat Regina’s cooking. She slept in the guest room so often that she had her own pair of pajamas and a toothbrush.

But her all-time favorite part of the night was when the three of them played videogames together. She and Regina would sit on the couch while Henry laid on the floor in front of them. They would yell and cuss each other out and occasionally throw their controllers. In the heat of the action, Regina’s arm would occasionally brush against Emma’s arm and body, causing Emma’s magic to surge within her veins. Feeling that sensation several times a night was Emma’s secret guilty pleasure, one that she shamelessly indulged in every time she visited the mansion. She found herself paying more attention to her magic than the game itself.

One day, after many family dinners, Emma showed up at the mansion for dinner unprompted. Regina looked surprised when she greeted Emma at the door, but she let her in without question. They ate chicken rice, played Mario Party, and went to bed. Only when Emma’s body landed onto the familiar mattress did she realize that she wasn’t invited for dinner that day. Yet, neither Regina nor Henry was bothered by her impromptu appearance. The evening was…normal. Routine, even.

From that day forward, Emma knew that something had changed between her and Regina and Henry. She didn’t know quite what it was, or what it meant for them all, but it felt good, and that was enough for Emma. Her magic hummed in agreement.

This particular day was another one of those family dinners. It was a Friday night, and Emma had arrived unannounced again. Like always, she enjoyed a warm dinner with Regina and Henry. They were settling down to play a few rounds of Mario Kart, Regina being particularly determined to win after losing to a blue shell last time. Then, Henry asked Emma to grab the third controller from his backpack upstairs. He had brought it to a friend’s house for a sleepover a few days prior and hadn’t taken it out yet.

Now, the correct course of action would have been to use magic to bring the backpack downstairs. Running to his room and bringing the controller down was much slower and more impractical, but also a doable action. However, in her haste to get the controller, Emma ran up the stairs two to three steps at a time. This was her mistake, as when she was halfway up to the second floor, her foot got caught on one of the steps. Losing her balance, Emma’s body lurched forward, and she fell all the way down the stairs, hitting her head several times in the process. She landed on the first-floor hardwood with a loud *THUD*

“Ma!” “Emma!”

Emma’s head was spinning. She could hear Henry and Regina rushing to her side and lying her on her back, but she couldn’t open her eyes and reassure them that everything was alright. Then again, she wasn’t doing very well. Her entire body ached in pain. The magic within her body was thrown into disarray, moving sporadically within her body. If magic normally traveled through the circulatory system, this felt as though several blood vessels had burst, causing her magic to bleed out. Emma was powerless to control it.

“Mom! You have to help her! You have to save Ma!” Emma heard Henry call to his other mother.

Regina’s voice was hesitant. Almost like she was scared. “I…I’ll do my best Henry,” she said cautiously, “but my light magic is…unpredictable. It might not work.”

“You can do it Mom! I believe in you! Ma needs you.”

Taking their son’s words to heart, Regina took a deep breath and lifted her hand above Emma’s heart. Her hand glowed white, and she directed her magic into Emma’s body slowly, hoping that it would soothe the pain.

Lying on the floor, Emma could feel every ounce of Regina’s magic pouring into her, surging alongside her own. Emma’s magic reacted well with Regina’s. It seemed to realign itself to move with Regina’s, almost as if it was guided. Their magic traveled along her blood vessels, passing through every sore spot. And fuck, Regina’s magic was warm like fire, burning so strongly that Emma couldn’t feel anything else, not even the pain. It felt as though Emma was receiving a soothing massage from the inside out.  

“Mmmrgh,” Emma groaned, finally able to open her eyes. Regina’s face was right above her own, looking down at Emma with a concerned expression. Her eyes had unshed tears, and her mouth was parted open slightly. Emma felt a sudden urge to move closer, to feel Regina’s mouth against her skin, to wipe away Regina’s tears and tell her that everything would be alright. Had she not been so exhausted, she might have actually done it.

“Ma! You’re awake!” Henry leaned over and wrapped his arms around her body. Regina moved back, allowing Henry some space. As she moved away, her magic left Emma’s body, causing the blonde woman to whimper from the loss.

“I’m so sorry Ma; I should have gotten the controller by myself,” Henry apologized in between sobs. “Are you still hurt?”

“It’s okay Henry, I’m okay now,” Emma reassured him. She pushed herself up with her elbows so she could sit comfortably. She turned to Regina, who was now looking at her with an expression of indifference, masking her previous worry. Her arms were crossed, as if to hide the fact that she almost cried.

“Well. That’s what you get, Miss Swan, for running so irresponsibly. Honestly, why were you even in a hurry? The game wasn’t going anywhere, you know,” Regina scolded her.

“Hey, don’t ‘Miss Swan’ me. I thought we were past that,” Emma pouted.

Regina shrugged her shoulders. “You deserve it this time,” she said.

Emma didn’t have a counter to that. “Maybe you’re right,” she conceded.

“I always am.” Regina rose to her feet and straightened her pants. “Since you’re obviously feeling better, I assume that you can walk on your own. Go sit down on the couch. I’ll get you a cooling pad for your head.” She began to walk away the traces of her magic leaving with her.

“Thank you,” Emma blurted out.

Regina turned around. “Pardon?”

“Thank you,” Emma repeated, “for saving me. And…healing me.”

“Oh.” Regina nodded. “Yes, think nothing of it.” She disappeared into the kitchen and began rummaging through a cabinet.

“Ma, I’ll go get that controller now.” Henry pulled away from Emma.

Emma stopped him. “Actually kid, I’m going to skip games for tonight. I’m not feeling up to it right now. I’ll just sit on the couch and watch you and Regina play.” She stood on wobbly legs, slowly making her way to the couch.

“You sure?” Henry asked. “You have the fewest wins: 11 to my 30 and Mom’s 17.”

“I’m sure. I don’t think I’d be able to keep my eyes open long enough to win a game anyways.” As she spoke, Emma flopped onto the couch and rolled over. It was too early for her to move around much. She really should be lying down.

“Make some space for me,” Regina said, pushing Emma’s body out of the way so she could sit down. She held Emma’s face in her hands and slapped a cooling pad onto her forehead. “You don’t have a fever, but this will help.”

“Mmmmm. That feels gooooood.” Emma’s head sunk into the crook of Regina’s neck.

Regina let out a started noise. “Emma! What are you doing?!”

“Feeeeeeels gooooooood,” Emma mumbled. She wasn’t lying. Regina’s skin was so soft, and being this close to the other woman made Emma’s magic happy.

“Mom? Are we starting the game now?” Henry handed Regina a controller and pointed to the TV screen.

Regina looked at the TV, then at Emma, then at Henry. “Yes, I’m ready. Tonight, you’re going to taste defeat,” she declared.

“Hmm, I don’t know about that.” Henry said. And with that, mother and son began playing. Emma enjoyed a long nap buried into Regina’s side, her magic singing all the while.

***

The following morning, Emma noticed a change. She noticed it when she woke up in the guest bedroom, Regina obviously moving her during the night. She felt much better, the long rest doing her body good. Emma laid in bed, taking deep breaths to regulate her heart rate and magic. Emma felt that familiar pull of her magic, as she always did when she stayed at the mansion. But this time, she sensed something new, something from outside her body. If her own magic was being pulled out of her body, this thing was seemingly being pulled towards her. Curious.

Whatever she was sensing seemed to be moving around below her, so she got out of bed to investigate. She walked downstairs (making sure to hold the rails this time), and went to the kitchen, where the pull seemed to be the strongest.

There, Regina was cooking, breakfast. She wore a simple blue apron and hummed a little song as she cooked. She flipped the bread in her pan with a flick of her wrist and paced around the stove. Emma stood in the kitchen entrance watching. Her heart was pounding in her chest. Her magic was going haywire again, but not in a bad way like when she fell. This felt like…her magic was celebrating.

“You’re up earlier than usual,” Regina commented. She put some food onto a plate and placed it on the table beside Emma. “French toast?”

Without thinking, Emma rushed forward and pulled Regina into a hug. The other woman yelped and tried to pull away, but Emma held her still. Her magic was leaping out of her skin, and the pull from the outside was rushing into her. Now that she was in her arms, Emma could feel the new sensation emanating from Regina’s body.

There was no doubt in Emma’s mind. She was sensing Regina’s magic.

“What are you doing?!” Before Emma could think of anything else, a strong hand slapped her face.

“Ow! What the hell?!” Emma pulled away and rubbed her cheek.

“I should be asking you that!” Regina snapped. “Are you still delirious from yesterday? Is that why you’re behaving so strangely?”

“I was…I was…” Emma was at a loss for words. She didn’t really know why she hugged Regina either. Unable to explain her actions, she lowered her head, ashamed. “I don’t know. I’m sorry, Regina.”

Regina sighed and shook her head. “Just get your act together. And eat your breakfast.” She went back to cooking as if nothing had happened. Emma took a seat and ate quietly, glad to escape an awkward situation.

Ever since that day, whenever she and Regina were in proximity to one another, Emma would be able to feel Regina’s magic. It didn’t pulse as strongly as her own magic, but she felt it, nonetheless. It hummed in a similar manner to Emma’s magic, as though it was calling out to her. This, Emma thought, was decidedly not normal.

It couldn’t be normal, Emma thought. She shouldn’t be able to feel someone else’s magic, no matter how powerful she was. Regina would have told her about this if it was possible, and she never mentioned anything of the sort. Then again, Regina also didn’t mention the fact that she could be drawn to another person’s magic.

This line of inquiry led to another question. Regina could sense her own magic. Since that was the case, she surely must have felt her magic being drawn to Emma the same way that Emma’s was drawn to her. But if that was the case, then why didn’t Regina ever mention it before? Was she truly not aware of the phenomenon within her own body? Or did she know, and chose not to tell Emma about it?

Emma decided to confront Regina directly. So, the next day, she visited Regina’s office with a bag of take-out in her hand.

“You free to eat lunch? I brought orange chicken,” she called out, though she didn’t need to ask. Unless she had a meeting that couldn’t be rescheduled, Regina adamantly refused to work during her lunch break.

“At least you’re eating something other than Granny’s,” Regina said. She gestured for Emma to sit on the couch with her.

“Hey, I love Granny’s as much as the next person, but she can’t have a monopoly on the town’s restaurant economy. I have to support the other local businesses from time to time.” Emma laughed and sat down. Again, she felt that familiar urge to move closer, to touch Regina, to engulf herself into her. Emma resisted those urges, not wanting a repeat incident of the day prior. So, Emma sat still, making sure to avoid sudden movements.

“Something wrong? You’d normally be halfway done with your food by now,” Regina teased her.

Emma laughed along. “True that. Although,” she rubbed her chin nonchalantly, “I guess I have noticed something different about my magic lately.”

Regina frowned. “Is your magic still acting up from before? I know I healed you, but if you’re still in pain, you really should go to a doctor.”

“No, no, nothing like that. Actually, my magic has been feeling really good lately. Especially after you used your magic to fix me up.”

Regina’s head tilted slightly. “That’s good then, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it is good. But I’ve come to notice that my magic, well,” Emma took a deep breath, afraid of what she was going to confess, “it only feels good whenever I’m around you.”

Regina was silent for a few moments. Emma wondered if her words made sense to the other woman. Eventually, she said, “I’m sorry, I don’t quite follow. Could you say that again?”

Emma sighed. Why was Regina being so obtuse? “I mean, that whenever I’m close to you, like in proximity of you, my magic starts pulsing. It’s like my magic is being drawn to your magic and vice versa. It feels like electricity, and I just get this compulsion to touch you.”

God, that sounded crazy when she said it out loud.

Regina seemed to agree. She burst out laughing. “Emma, did you have a weird dream or something? Did you eat something funny? This sounds like an outlandish daydream.”

“Wait, you think I’m making this up?” Emma couldn’t help but feel a little hurt. She knew it was an outlandish tale, but she had hoped that Regina would at least entertain her story.

“You must be,” Regina said. “According to your claim, my magic is responsive to your magic in some manner, and that’s just not true.”

Ping

Emma’s body jerked in alarm. Her lie detector had just gone off. And with Regina, her lie detector was never wrong. “You don’t feel anything? Not even right now?” she asked.

“I think I’d know if my magic started acting differently whenever you were in the same room as me. Including right now.”

“You really don’t feel anything right now?” Emma pressed. “Even when I touch you?” To prove her point, she held Regina’s hand. Regina’s magic was radiating, intermingling with the magic in Emma’s hand.

“Stop that!” Regina quickly yanked her hand away, and the connection was lost.

“You had to have felt that!” Emma exclaimed.

“Felt what?! Your sweaty palms?!”

“No. Don’t do this. Don’t play dumb with me and act like you didn’t feel our magic just now. I know when you’re lying.”

“I assure you, whatever you think I felt is nothing more than the product of your own delusions,” Regina spat. “I recommend a therapist. Maybe a few sessions with Archie?”

“Listen to me, damnit!”

“Emma!”

The cold, threatening voice made Emma pause. Regina was glaring daggers into her. “Don’t test me,” she said firmly.

“…Ok.” Emma wanted to push more, but Regina was far too agitated. Any attempts to get the truth would only result in more fighting and yelling. Conversely, if this magical phenomenon was causing such as strong reaction from Regina, then it must be extremely significant. Though it didn’t look like Regina was willing to disclose that information anytime soon. “You’re right. I was just imagining things.”

Regina looked relieved. “I’m glad you’ve come to your senses,” she said. “Now then, shall we eat?”

They opened up their take-out boxes and ate in a semi-comfortable silence. Emma occasionally snuck glances in Regina’s direction, looking for any signs that she knew more than she was letting on. But Regina’s mask held firm.

Regina knew. She had to know. But for whatever reason, she refused to admit that there was anything going on.

Fine. If Regina wanted to play ignorant, then there was only one thing left for Emma to do. She had to prove, without a shadow of a doubt, that the connection between them was real.

It was time to gather some evidence.

***

“What are you doing, Ma?”

Emma slammed her pocket notebook shut in a hurry. “Kid! Didn’t your mother teach you not to sneak up on people?”

Henry shrugged and shot her a look that 100% inherited from Regina. “Mom also said that you were supposed to be spending time with me today. But all you’ve been doing is scribbling away on some paper. You’ve barely looked at me. I’m bored.”

He was right. Today was Emma’s day with Henry, but Emma was busy working on her investigation. She bought Henry ice cream, and they were now sitting on a bench at the park. “I’m sorry, I was going over some data. I can deal with it later though.”

“Data?”

“Yeah, I’m working on a little experiment. It’s not done yet, but here, you can take a peek.” Emma opened her book and showed Henry her notes, grateful that she used shorthand.

Is a Reaction Present?

Number of walking steps (distance) (G.)

       0   1   2   3   4   5   6   7  8   9  10 …

yes|     |   |   |    | ?  | ?  |?  |? | ? | ? | ?  | …

no | x | x|  x | x | x |x | x |x |x | x| x  |…

Other notes: Smells like dust and sweat.

Testimony: No reaction present.

Conclusion: No reaction present. Null Hypothesis retained

Number of walking steps (distance) (M.)

       0   1   2   3   4   5   6   7  8   9  10 …

yes| x | x| x | x| ?  | ?  |?  |? | ? | ? | ?  | …

no |   |   |    |   | ?  | ?  | ? | ? | ?  | ? | ?  |…

Other notes: Smells like fancy perfume. 0 and 1 are strong reactions.

Testimony: No reaction present.

Conclusion: TBD

Further directions: Further testing at next meeting (manipulate situations to stay apart at a fixed distance?)

Henry’s nose scrunched up, and he gave Emma a dirty look. “Ew. You’re doing science?” he asked.

Emma rolled her eyes. “You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

“But it’s STEM! It’s…math. And…science.”

“And engineering and technology,” Emma added. “Seriously, what’s wrong with science? It’s gathering evidence and drawing logical conclusions. It’s awesome.”

“Whatever. Enjoy doing your science. I’ll go read Gabriel Márquez’s 100 Years of Solitude, like a cool person.” Henry took out a fat book and a pair of headphones from his backpack, indicating that he did not want to be disturbed.

God, her own son was looking down on her, treating her like a boomer. He was definitely raised by Regina, Emma thought, because there was no way a child under her care would grow to dislike science. But Emma had to admit it made sense for someone like Henry to dislike STEM. He was the Truest Believer. In science, you had to doubt everything to reach the truth. A slight contradiction.

Emma looked back at her notes. She was lucky that a group of bored teenagers attempted to rob Gold’s Pawnbroker. It gave her the perfect opportunity to test how her magic responded around Gold without looking suspicious. She needed Gold’s data to serve as a control, since he was the only other magic user in the entire town. As she had suspected, her magic did not activate in any way when they were interacting, not even when she brushed up against his arm.

She received a dirty look for that little stunt.

Whatever. It was for a good cause.

More importantly, the absence of a reaction with Gold was significant, because it implied that Emma’s pulsing magic was triggered specifically by Regina. Now, Regina wouldn’t be able to deflect and say that Emma’s magic was naturally extremely volatile (it was at times, but not in this situation). Whatever was happening with their magic was between them, and them alone.

Emma wasn’t sure what that meant either, but she shelved the thought away for the time being.

Gathering Regina’s data was going to be more difficult. Unlike the limping old man, Regina had the propensity to pace and walk about whenever she was busy, stressed, or annoyed. Being the mayor, she was typically pacing around a lot.

Well. Emma would figure it out eventually. She always did.

***

9 steps. Approximately 14 feet (4.32 meters). That was the maximum distance in which Emma’s magic would react to Regina’s presence. Even if Regina was on a different floor, so long as the direct distance between them was less than or equal to 14 feet, their magic would respond to one another.

It took three weeks, multiple family dinners, and several lunches in Regina’s office, but Emma had finally done it. She was relieved to be done. It was an arduous task to be an exact number of steps away from someone else. At times, Emma would say that she was going to the bathroom, count exactly seven steps, and then Regina would get up and walk somewhere else, forcing Emma to try again. And she couldn’t tell Regina what she was doing either. Had Regina known about her experiment, she would have done something to block or reduce her magic output, thus interfering with the experiment’s validity.  

The range was shorter than Emma had expected. Perhaps because she was always physically close to Regina whenever they were in the same room. They were like magnets; their magic couldn’t be drawn to one another if they were too far apart. On the other hand, the pull became exponentially more powerful whenever they were close. During these past couple weeks, Emma found herself needing to stay a few feet away from Regina, so as to not become completely overwhelmed. If Regina had noticed the growing distance, she didn’t comment on it.

Technically, these were all observations that Emma had known beforehand, things she had picked up on from spending time with Regina. But now, she could explain those observations in concrete terms, with a tangible unit of measurement. Regina was stubborn, but even she couldn’t argue against the numbers.

Satisfied that she had sufficient evidence to prove the attraction between them, Emma decided to confront Regina. She waited until the next family dinner (One that she was invited to. Made her appear more unassuming) to make her move. After they ate dinner, after they played Mario Kart, and after Henry went upstairs to go to bed, Emma and Regina were finally alone, sitting together on the couch. It was then Emma brought up the subject of their magic.

“So. Regina. Remember when I told you about my magic being different a while back? That it was being drawn to your magic via some kind of magnetic pull?”

Regina’s body stiffened momentarily, but she remained composed. “When you said yourself that whatever you were feeling was the product of an overactive imagination? I remember.”

“You know I only said that bullshit because the conversation was going nowhere. My stance hasn’t changed one bit. I knew what I felt then, and I know what I feel now. And I know you feel it too.”

“Pray tell, what do I know exactly?” Regina held out her hand and began listing off Emma’s personality traits. “I know that you’re a glutton, that you’re terrible at Mario party games, and that you’re a lackluster chef. And that you can never accept my words at face value.”

“You lied to me,” Emma corrected her, “and you refused to admit that you lied to me. It’s only natural that I wouldn’t believe you.”

“Right, because an unreliable superpower is all the proof you need to make a judgement.”

Emma smiled smugly. This was exactly where she wanted the conversation to go. “It is enough most of the time. But I knew you’d say that too. Which is why tonight, I brought something more than my finely tuned intuition.” She reached into her purse and pulled out the pocket notebook. She held it up proudly. “I brought evidence!”

Regina peered at the notebook with disdain. “A tiny notebook that looks like it’s been through a trash compactor? That’s your evidence?”

“It’s what’s on the inside that’s important.” Emma flipped open the book and showed Regina her figures. “I’ve spent the last month measuring the approximate distance in which our magic will be attracted to one another. Now, before you get mad at me, I—”

“You did what?!”

“—BEFORE you get mad at me, know that I worked really hard on this. I was measuring my steps over and over, making sure that my distances were perfect. I even got information on Gold for extra insurance. He testified himself that there was no connection between me and him. After all the work I’ve done, I’m practically a STEM major now.”

Regina looked at Emma incredulously. “You did STEM? You?”

“Not you too!” Emma exclaimed, clutching her chest in mock offense. “What do you and Henry have against STEM?”

“My reaction was in response to the thought of you doing anything STEM related, not STEM itself. You never struck me as the type,” Regina said. “Also, STEM is a far less worthwhile intellectual pursuit compared to literature, history, language, and the arts.”

“Whatever. Most of this town’s amenities wouldn’t be possible without technology and engineering. Remember that when you talk about how much better this place is compared to the Enchanted Forest,” Emma reminded her. For extra measure, she added, “And science is fun. I used to get straight As in that subject until middle school. I even wanted to be a chemist when I was a kid.”  

Regina perked up at the mention of Emma’s dream career. “A chemist? That surprises me.” Her brow furrowed slightly. “But then, how did you become a bails-bond woman?”

Emma shrugged. “Money. Or lack thereof. To get a job in that field, I’d need a bachelor’s degree at minimum. I was a dropout teenager that got pregnant and landed into prison. Even if I finished high school, I wouldn’t have ever been able to afford college, not comfortably at least. That is, unless I got a million scholarships, but I was never very good at writing.”

Regina didn’t speak, which Emma took as a sign to continue.

“Anyways, I never got a GED, so I could only apply for entry-level jobs. Delivery, industry, freelance gigs, those kinds of things. But I was lucky to connect with another bails-bond woman, and she got me introduced to the profession. Said I had potential. I ended up making a lot more money catching perps than bagging up groceries at the supermarket, so I stuck with it,” Emma explained. “Funnily enough, I was only able to apply for a deputy position because I had that bails-bond experience. You need a high school diploma to apply for a law enforcement position. A cop is basically the only non-entry level job I can apply for. Legally, of course.”

“I see,” Regina muttered under her breath. She seemed to be deep in contemplation. Emma could feel Regina’s magic flaring up underneath her skin.

Realizing that she created an awkward situation, Emma cleared her throat loudly. “Right. Let me show you what I’ve found.” She stood up from the couch and took ten steps away from Regina. “The pull of our magic works like magnets. At this distance, we’re too far away, so the pull is too weak to move our magic. But if I step a little closer,” Emma took a step forward, “there’s this slight hum. Faint, but noticeable if you’re paying attention to your magic.”

Regina hadn’t moved from where she was sitting, but her face was contorted into a grimace. Emma knew that Regina was feeling exactly what she was describing.

“The pull increases the closer we are.” As Emma spoke, she walked towards Regina, emphasizing each individual step. “For every step I take—roughly 19 inches in distance—the strength of the attraction increases exponentially.” She sat down next to Regina again, holding the small, soft, manicured hands with her own.

“And when there’s no distance between us, when we’re touching each other like this, the pull is at its strongest. We become attached to each other. Even if we want to pull away, our magic is pushing us closer and closer together.” To prove her point, Emma tilted her head backwards, only for her magic to push back, causing her to lean forward. Their faces were now a hair’s length apart. Regina’s magic was overwhelming. Regina’s perfume was overwhelming. Emma could feel Regina’s breath against her skin, and it drove her mad. Still, Emma refused to let go of Regina’s hands. Her magic all but guaranteed that she held on tightly.

Regina didn’t look like she was faring much better. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing was ragged and shallow. Her hair (which was normally perfectly combed) jutted out in all directions, frazzled from her magic. Even her clothes looked more disheveled. She gave off the image of a woman who was desperately trying to not lose control.

Finally, in a raspy voice, she said, “So what?”

Emma blinked once, then twice. “Huh?”

“So. What?” Regina repeated. Her eyes snapped open. They bored into Emma’s eyes, challenging her. “Let’s say that I believe this data that you’ve collected, and Gold’s supposed testimony. So, tell me, scientist Emma. Why is it that your magic reacts to my magic, but not Gold’s?”

Emma blushed at the title “scientist.” It sounded so good when Regina said it. “W-what do you mean exactly?”

“If our magic is truly behaving like magnets as you’ve claimed, then your light magic must be attracted to my dark magic, similar to how a positive charge is attracted to a negative charge. But if that’s true, then why doesn’t your magic react to Gold’s? His magic is much darker than mine, I’ll have you know.”

It was a valid question, one that Emma had pondered over herself. It was also a question that science didn’t have an answer for, since Emma couldn’t dissect the properties of magic down to its base elements.

“A scientist can’t make a factual claim based on the findings from one experiment, Regina,” Emma told her meekly.

“Then tell me what you think it means,” Regina demanded sharply. As if in response, Emma’s magic sparkled wildly, and Regina bit back a groan. In a softer voice, she added, “I’m not asking for a perfect explanation. I just want to hear your reasoning.”

“O-Okay.” Emma nodded, also affected by the burst of magic she let out. With a shaky exhale, she began to explain her deductions.

“The thing about a magnet is, they have magnetic poles. You know, like the ends of a magnet, where the attraction is at its greatest. And the thing about magnetic poles is, they always come in pairs. Every one magnet has a set of two poles.”

“The ‘opposites attract’ principle can refer to positive and negative charges, but not always. For example, the Earth itself is a magnet with two geographically magnetic poles. Those are the North and South Poles. Therefore, while it’s true that like poles repel and unlike poles attract, that doesn’t mean that the poles have a positive/negative relationship. Rather, they have a ‘opposite’ relationship.”

“Go on…” Regina was listening intently, absorbing every word that Emma said.

“Regina, I wouldn’t classify your magic as strictly ‘dark.’ For fucks sake, you healed me with magic! And my magic is pretty light, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t hurt other people with it. I can create blasts of energy, send people hurling through the air, and disintegrate monsters. Could we truly call that ‘light’ magic? No. We couldn’t.”

“And that’s fine. We’re not cutout characters from a children’s book or fairy tale. We’re complex humans, with complex identities. And that complexity shows in our magic. Now, what I’m about to say, I can’t prove definitively. Even today, science can only measure emotion in terms of various symptoms, like eye-tracking, brain activity, skin conductivity, heart rate, and so on. I can only tell you what I think I feel, which isn’t the most reliable, but still—”

“Get to the point, Emma.”

“Right. Sorry,” Emma shook her head, steadying herself once more.

“It isn’t that our magic types are opposite. I’m light, but I can understand cruelty and pain. You’re dark, but you can open your heart to love and happiness.”

Emma looked down at their enjoined hands as she spoke.

“I think we’re like the magnets, Regina. We each have two poles. Within both of us, there’s the capacity for light and for darkness. We’re different from Gold in that sense, since he only has dark magic. Unlike him, our magic can complement each other.”

“And it makes sense, because we’re at our best when we’re working together. When we used our magic together to stop the trigger, to create the eclipse, we were in perfect sync. We’re still doing it with Henry, aren’t we? We’re both his mother, and we’re very different from each other in how we parent, but when we come together during the family dinners, everything works perfectly.”

“So maybe our magic is a reminder of what we already know. It pulls us together because the best place for both of us to be is right here, side by side. Touching each other.”

Emma shifted her gaze to Regina’s face. Had her eyes always looked so brown? Were her lips always so tantalizingly beautiful? “And if everything I’ve just said is true, and we’re at our best when we’re together like this, then the only thing I don’t understand is why we’re resisting the pull. Why we’re fighting against our magic. Why we’re denying ourselves.”

A pregnant pause lingered in the air. Emma bit her lip, waiting for Regina’s response.

Then, Regina said, “Will you just kiss me already?”

Emma didn’t need to be told twice. Her body slammed into Regina at full force. Charged magic exploded from their bodies. Their lips met in a heated frenzy, brushing over each other awkwardly until Regina let out a small moan, granting Emma access to her mouth. Emma drove her tongue in, exploring as much of Regina’s heavenly mouth as physically possible. She felt Regina’s hands grip the back of her head, holding her firmly in place. They kissed and kissed, rocking back and forth on the couch.

Dark magic crashed into light magic again and again, each collision creating a tiny explosion. Around them, the lights began to sparkle wildly, short-circuiting. The surrounding air filled with magic, further stimulating both women and driving them over the edge. They were getting drunk off of each other’s magic.

Regina released her hold on Emma and broke the kiss. “Upstairs. Now,” she rasped. Following her orders, Emma grabbed Regina by the waist and lifted her up to her feet. Regina threw her arms around Emma’s shoulders, letting Emma guide her movement.

Not letting go of each other, they stumbled up the stairs in a daze. They bumped against the dim hallway walls more times than they could count. Regina arched her head backwards, and Emma nestled her head into the crook of Regina’s neck. She planted several tiny kisses on Regina’s skin, eliciting a series of moans from the other woman.

They fumbled against the door for a while, Emma struggling to open the doorknob while holding onto Regina. Eventually, she turned the handle enough to push the door open. Emma pushed Regina until their legs hit the foot of the bed. Regina fell down first, pulling Emma down on top of her. They kicked their legs up and rolled around so that their bodies were lying comfortably on the mattress. The air continued to crackle from their conjoined magic.

One of Emma’s hands wandered down, cusping the hem of Regina’s pants. She tugged on the fabric, but Regina’s hand grabbed her wrist, stopping her.

“Emma. Wait.”

Emma understood. She wasn’t ready either. It couldn’t happen now, not when they were drowning in each other, unable to think coherently. So, she removed her hands from Regina’s waist and cupped her cheek.

“God, your face fits perfectly in my hands. Fuck, how are you so goddamn perfect?” Emma whined.

“Less talking dear,” Regina breathed out, sealing Emma’s lips with another kiss.

They laid in Regina’s bed together kissing. They kissed each other over and over until their magic was completely spent and they couldn’t move anymore.

***

“When did you first start feeling it?” Emma asked. They had both come down from the high of their intense make out session and were now lying together in bed. Emma was spooning Regina in her arms, letting her magic flow naturally into Regina’s body. “The magnetic connection. I know you’ve been aware of it for much longer than I have.”

“Do you remember the time when the wraith attacked? When we were trying to get Jefferson’s hat to work.”

“Yeah, I remember. My dad was swinging at it with a sword, trying to stall it, and you were crouching over the hat.”

“Then. The moment you touched me. The moment you made my magic come to life.”

“Hold on. I did that?”

Regina scoffed. “You really thought it was a coincidence that my magic activated the portal the moment you touched me?”

“Well, when you put it like that,” Emma smiled sheepishly. “It was a high stress situation. I didn’t know that touching you would make the portal work. I didn’t even know I had magic. I just wanted to give you some support, or something.”

“I didn’t understand what was happening at the time either. We only had a few seconds together before the wraith dragged you into the portal. Then, you were in another realm, so I couldn’t sense anything. For a time, my magic fell into disarray.”

“Henry told me about that. How you used a spell book in place of your innate magic,” Emma commented.

Regina shifted uncomfortably. “Yes, I was…particularly desperate to regain my magic. Henry saw a…worse side of myself during that time.”

“Hey, relax,” Emma murmured, stroking Regina’s hair. “You’re not that person anymore. You’ve changed, and Henry sees that.”

“I do know. Still, the memory of him looking at me with fear is…very strong.”

“Memories are like that. Always making us remember things that we’d rather forget.”

Regina hummed her agreement. “While you were gone, I didn’t know that you had magic. I didn’t know how the portal managed to activate. I had assumed that your touch was somehow involved, but I couldn’t understand how until you returned. The moment you came out of the well, I began feeling the pull. At first, I thought it was the side effects of absorbing the portal. But then, I learned you had magic. And I realized. My magic was reaching out to you.”

“Just your magic?” Emma teased.

Regina smacked her arm lightly. “When we stopped the trigger in the mines, when we used magic together for the first time, I began to feel your magic latching onto mine. I had hoped it meant nothing. I didn’t want to entertain the possibility of my magic latching onto yours. Magical bonds had only existed in legends, but the people in those legends, they—” her voice cut off abruptly.

Emma nudged her gently. “Go on. What about the people who have magical bonds?”

“They…” Regina’s voice dropped to a whisper. “They ended up being True Loves.”

“…Oh.”

“As I’m sure you’re aware, I’m not exactly good with love. The idea that I had a True Love was…frightening. That my supposed True Love was you, Snow White’s daughter, was even more horrifying. Especially since we weren’t on good terms back then. I suppressed those feelings. I wasn’t ever planning on telling you. I focused on other matters, such as saving Henry and defeating my crazy sister. But since there haven’t been any villains to defeat for a while, and I’ve only been using my magic during your lessons, well…”

She didn’t need to explain further.

“Do you think we are?” Emma asked a minute later. “Like the people in the legend?”

Regina snorted. “Emma, legends are legends for a reason. Those people in the stories? They may just be stories. Fragments of an old wives’ tale. Who’s to say if we’re like the legend, or if our magical bond means we’re True Loves?”   

Emma let out a noncommittal hum. “That’s nice to hear, actually.”

“Really?”

“True Love reminds me too much of my parents. I wouldn’t mind having a True Love of my own, but I’d like to feel distinct in some way. I’m fine if we’re just Emma and Regina.”

Regina hummed in understanding.

“It feels like our magic has settled quite a bit,” Regina said.

Emma looked around. Sure enough, there were no more sparking lights. Whatever need was driving them together had apparently been sated. “Yeah, it has. So uh, what do we do now?” she asked.

“Now,” Regina pried herself out of Emma’s grip, rolling over to face her. One hand slipped underneath Emma’s shirt, tickling her belly. With her other hand, cradled Emma’s chin with her fingers and brushed her lips with her tongue.

“I think it’s about time we explore each other’s bodies thoroughly, my dear scientist.”