Once Upon A Time ~ Book 1

Chapter 119 - Rotten To The Core

Regina and Henry sat in the dining room, eating diner. Regina stared ahead at Henry, chewing her steak hard in her mouth. Henry glanced up at her and continued eating. Then Regina smiled happily at him but her face dropped as the doorbell rang. She put her knife and fork down and wiped her hands with her napkin.
"I don't recall us expecting any company." she said, staring at the door, through the hall next door, confused. She wiped her mouth with her napkin as the bell rang again.
She stood up and walked from the dining room, through the hall and to the front door. She opened the door to find Emma standing before her on the doorstep.
"Sherif Swan. What are you doing here?" she asked.
"Henry invited me."
"Do you honestly believe I'd allow you into my house for dinner after all the threats you made to my family?"
"I didn't come for dinner."
"Then what did you come for?"
"You."
Regina's face dropped in shock and she turned her head to see that Henry was no longer in the diner. She turned her head back again fearfully to see Emma joined by Mary Margaret, David, Archie, Ruby, Granny and Leroy. They all stood before her door, staring in at her, their eyes full of rage and hatred as they glared at her evily.
"We all did." Emma smiled evily.
Regina breathed heavily, fearful and turned away to see Henry before her in the hall, a rope noose over his shoulder.
"Henry!" she breathed, her dark eyes wide with fear.

Ruby and Archie tyed Regina up to her beautiful apple tree that now stood in the middle of the main street of Storybrooke, Mary Margaret, David, Emma, Henry, Leroy and some others standing before her, glaring at her, holding flaming torches.
"No. No. Let me go." cryed Regina, afraid. "I command it!" she demanded.
"After everything you've done to all of us?" shouted Ruby into her face.
"My apologies, Your Majesty. But my conscience is clear!" Archie shouted at her.
"You're not queen any more, sister!" spat Leroy.
"Tighter!" demanded Granny. "She needs to feel our pain!"
"You took our love ans ripped it apart!" shouted Mary Margaret, holding David's hand.
"And now you're gonna pay!" shouted David.
Leroy nodded in agreement and Henry glared at her.
Emma stepped forward and yanked from the apple tree a black as soon apple. She held it out in from of Regina and squeezed it. The black apple squished easily inheritance hands and the black liquid like blood poured to the ground before her.
Regina gasped in shock, staring at her precious apple.
"Rotten to the core." said Emma and she threw it aside.
"I just wanted to win........for once." cryed Regina.
Emma stepped closer and grasped her hand around Regina's neck. "You took away out happiness. And now it's our turn to take away yours." smeared Emma. She stepped away.
"What?" she breathed.
David handed Emma his sword with the golden handle. She took it.
"Henry!" she breathed, staring at him.
Henry stepped forward.
"Henry, please don't let them do this to me."
"You did this to yourself." he spat.
Tears filled in her eyes as Emma stepped closer, her sword drawn above her head, then she lashed it at her, splitting her in half.
Regina woke up suddenly in her bed, sitting up and panting heavily. She looked ahead fearfully, then jumped from her bed in her silk pjames and walked quickly accross the hall
She peered into Henry's room, fearfully to see his figure beneath the navy bedsheets, his colourful nightlight spining images around the room slowly. She sighed, relieved and turned away shuting the door to anew empty bed stuffed with pillowcases and blankets.

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Emma drove her yellow Bug ontje road out of Storybrooke, Henry next to her.
He looked around the car, surprised and then at the little bit of luggage in the back. "Is that all your stuff?" he asked.
"All I need."
"Wait. You wanna go now?" he said, a little afraid. "We're leaving now?"
"I'm getting you out of here. Away from all this. Away from her."
"No, no. Stop the car! You can't leave Storybrooke. You have to break the curse." he let out.
"No, I don't. I have to help you."
"But you're a hero! You can run! You have to help everybody."
She looked around at him, then back at the road. "Henry, I know it's hard for you to see it, but I'm doing what's best for you. That's what you wanted when you brought me to Storybrooke." she glanced at him again.
"But the curse, you're the only chance to bring back the happy endings."
"Henry......."
Henry looked out of the window, ahead at the Leaving Storybrooke sign. Then he pushed the steering wheel and her Bug swerved along the road, the tyres screeching loudly in the peaceful night.
"Henry!" she shouted as tryed to steady the car again but it swerved into the ditch, shaking the whole car vigorously.
Emma panted heavily and turned her head to Henry. "Henry! What were you doing? You could have gotten us killed!" she shouted.
"Please, please don't make me go." he cryed."We can't go! Everything's here. Me, your parents, your family. Please, Emma. They need you. Your family needs you." he let out, Emma's face full of fear.

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King George's gaurds threw Charming to the ground before King George standing in the courtyard of his castle as the peasants and gaurds stopped working and crowded around, listening fearfully.
"Did you really think that I would let you get away?" smeared King George down to him on the pebbled ground of the courtyard. "It would appear you've had quite the adventure since then."
"Whatever it is you're gonna do tome, get on with it!" Charming shouted up to him.
The two gaurds pulled Charming to him feet forcefully abs held him up before the King.
"I took you in as my son and you betrayed me!..... I would have given you everything. The crown, the kingdom. A you had to do was marry King Midas' daughter. But you decided to follow true love." he mocked.
"Losing my life for love? That's a sacrifice I'm hall to make." he said quitly, his face close to George's.
"As you wish."
The two gaurds pulled him away and walked him to the guillotine in the middle of the courtyard. They threw him to his knees and pulled up the wood, placing his head into the groove. They pulled the wood down again as King George sat down in front of the guillotine in his throne.
Charming glared up at King George, smiling smugly ahead. The silver blade shined in the little sunlight above him.
"Release the blade." demanded George.
The dark, anonymous, hooded, masked gaurd, holding the rope gave a brief nod and pulled the rope to release the blade th at would slice his head from his body and allow it to stumble into the basket. But as the blade fell down along the guillotine it transformed to watering soaked Charming and the wooden guillotine.
The crowds gasped fearfully and a little relieved and George sat up in his throne, furious. Charming looked around, confused, the water dripping from his unshaven chin.
"What is the meaning of this?" shouted George, getting to his feet.
The dark, hooded, masked gaurd looked up at the guillotine, confused, at loss of what to say or do as the King marched towards him.
The people in the courtyard became paralysed in fear as the Evil Queen walked down along the courtyard followed by her gaurds.
"Sorry to drop in on you." she said loudly to the King George.
He walked towards her. "Regina. What do you want?"
"I want the man you pretend is your son." she stopped before him, staring at him. "And I'm prepared to pay any riches Midas promised you in return for him." He raisers eyebrows. "And what do you plan to do to him?" he asked as the gaurds lifted the wooden guillotine from around his neck.
"Oh, I promise he'll suffer......"
The two gaurds dragged him towards them.
"........Far more than some swift and simple beheading."
"How?"
"By using him to destroy his one true love." she smiled and leaned forward. "By using him to bring an end to Snow White."
Charming stared at the Evil Queen, his face full of fear.

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Regina stared out into the garden from her office window her face down and fearful as she stared at the apple tree. She walked from her office and into the garden towards the apple tree in the centre. She yanked an rotten, dying, moulding apple from the weak branches and stared at it grasped in her hand, fury in her eyes. She then grasped her hand tight around her beloved, dead apple and stomped angrily from the garden.