Her Glass Heart [SwanQueen]

Chapter Twenty: Oct 31, 2017 - Regina

After running out of her bedroom, she was certain she'd heard Emma follow her outside, but Regina never confronted the blonde, remaining tucked behind a tree and trying to still her breath.

She slumped her body against the thick tree, sliding down until she was sitting completely in the snow, her head buried in her hands as she sobbed.

Hours passed, and Regina stared up at the trees, beautifully coated with snow, still consumed by her racing mind that refused to shut up.

She used the heel of her hand to wipe her fallen tears and finally stood up, brushing the loose snow off her body that had gone numb in the cold, night air.

She wasn't even sure what caused her to grow so upset, but she knew one thing for sure: Emma needed to know the truth... all of it.

The sun hadn't even begun to make an appearance in the sky yet, and Regina guessed it was probably around 4 a.m., but she quietly tiptoed down to Emma's bedroom.

She turned the handle, not wanting to knock and wake her yet. The truth was, all she wanted to do was climb into bed beside her and pull her tight until she felt better.

When she swung the door open, she was surprised to see Emma awake and peering at her behind her forest-green eyes that looked glossed over from tears and lack of sleep.

"I'm sorry, Regina. I shouldn't have kissed you. I would never have done it if I knew it would have upset you," Emma began, but then changed her mind. "Actually, no. I still would have. I don't know what came over me, it was like I couldn't control myself and something was pulling me toward you."

"Don't apologize," Regina whispered, sitting down beside her in bed and wiping a stray tear from the blonde's cheek. "It wasn't the kiss that upset me."

Regina's nervous fiddling of her hands made Emma go silent in confusion.

"When you kissed me, something happened," Regina lowered her voice. "Emma, I felt something."

"You mean..." Emma's voice trailed.

"Something inside me changed, it felt different. Like I was being electrocuted but in a way that woke me up, not causing me pain."

"I don't understand," Emma whispered, and Regina grabbed her hand, reaching to find her bracelet on her wrist but noticed it was missing.

"You have magic, Emma. You're a healer, and I think you might have healed me."

"I, I healed you? With magic?"

"I think so. I'm not certain," Regina knew of a way to find out, and she knew now was the time to give it a try. "But I have a good guess at how I can figure it out."

"How can you do that?"

"I lied to you, Emma. You asked if I believed in magic and I told you I did believe... but only because I had witnessed it. What I failed to tell you is that I have magic of my own."

Emma blinked, her lips parting and her eyes narrowing. "You do?"

"I didn't know how to tell you right away. And when I finally realized I needed to, I was afraid you'd be mad for keeping it from you for this long," Regina explained. "And I understand if you're angry now."

Emma's eyes softened as they took in the fear on Regina's face. "Regina, I'm not angry. I just wish you had told me instead of feeling like you had to keep it bottled up and hidden. I know how difficult and isolating that feels. Can you tell me about your magic? And why do you think that can help prove I used magic on you?"

"My magic allows me to manipulate glass. For example, I can break glass with my mind and then mend it back together. I can also create new objects out of glass, but I learned that by accident... when I created Graham."

Emma mouth hung open and her hand shot up to catch it. "What do you mean you created him?"

"I... he's made out of glass." Regina couldn't figure out what else to say, so she stopped here, turning to read Emma's face for any potential reaction.

When Emma opened her mouth to speak, Regina anticipated questions about Graham, but those questions didn't come.

"So how do you know I healed you based on your magic?"

"This is how I plan to find out." Regina stood up, walking over to the small vanity mirror mounted over her dresser. She reached out and touched it with her index finger. But nothing happened. Not only did the glass not move, but the feeling that always built inside her when she used magic was gone.

Could that mean...?

She looked back at the glass and frowned at her reflection staring back at her.

"I can't manipulate the glass. Does that... does that mean my heart is... normal now?" She breathed, a rush of relief she never expected to feel washing over her.

"I'm sorry, Regina. I didn't mean to take away your powers..."

"Emma, no. Do you understand? You healed me. My heart isn't glass, and yet I'm not dead. I feel better than I've ever felt in my entire life. I don't need magic... I have something much better."

Emma averted her gaze, unsure if she believed Regina's words. At this point, Emma wouldn't be surprised if she woke up any minute now and realized this was all a dream.

"Did you ever use glass to heal me?"

The question took Regina by surprise, and she cocked her head to the side briefly before nodding as she walked to sit back down beside Emma.

"When you fell out of the tree," Regina brought her thumb up to graze the fair skin on Emma's forehead. "Your head was bleeding, so I used glass to mend the cut back together." Her thumb trailed down, tracing over her temple then down her cheek and across her jawline.

Emma put her hands on Regina's shoulders. "Regina, this all makes sense now."

"What do you mean?"

"I always felt a pull to you, perhaps it was my magic wanting to heal you, or it was something much greater," She smiled, hoping Regina understood. "But after that day, the pull was even more intense. Like a piece of you was ingrained inside of me and I was magnetic, being tugged toward you at all times.

"Does it still feel that way, even if I don't have magic?" Regina's mind was racing, not able to understand the complexity of all of this when all she could think of was the way Emma's skin felt beneath her touch.

Emma nodded. "Your magic may be gone, but the glass was still a part of you. It always will be."

"I'm sorry," Regina apologized. "I shouldn't have healed you with glass like that."

"Regina, no. Don't apologize. I'm happy about it. Not only because you healed my head, but because now a piece of the woman I love is inside me."

A warm feeling of euphoria jolted inside Regina when she realized what Emma just said. Her cheeks burned, and her dark eyes locked on Emma. "You love me?"

"I think I've loved you from the moment I laid eyes on you. The day you arrived, as I was tucked behind a tree, I couldn't look away and knew I needed you in my life."

Regina's eyes said everything she needed to say, yearning to reach out and touch Emma as she parted her lips, hungry with desire.

When Regina's mouth collided with Emma's, both women let out a soft moan and for the first time, Regina's racing heartbeat made her knees go weak, knowing it was a real, beating heart and not just a piece of glass.