Oh, Calamity

Chapter 6

The loud clang of metal was like music to Emma's ears as various swords met.

The blonde was too annoyed to take notice of anything else around her, all her concentration was going onto the match with herself, Neal and a few other guards and was currently the only thing keeping her attention.

It was Neal and Emma versus a few of the higher up members of the guard and the fight has been going on for at least an hour.

The sun was beginning to set creating a soft orange glow across the grounds.

A guard leaped at Emma, but she easily blocked him.

The young blonde watched as Neal came to a slow stop, she stared at the man in confusion.

Neal put his hand up and the other guards stopped as well, "why are we stopping?" Emma asked, wiping away the thick layer of sweat that was now covering her forehead.

Neal cleared his throat, "I believe someone is looking for you" he mumbled motioning across the field.

The young woman turned her head to see Regina standing at the side of the court leaning against the stone wall that encased it.

Neal cleared his throat, "she's been watching for a while now, you may want to go speak to her" he told his friend with a small curt nod in the brunette's direction.

Emma nodded and quickly handed the brunet her sword.

The Princess looked at the other guards and chuckled, "don't be taking this as a victory, this will be continued" she mocked lightly.

The group of men laughed.

Emma made her way over to the brunette.

Regina looked up at the young woman and the blonde nervously shoved her hands into the front pockets of her cotton pants.

The girl awkwardly cleared her throat, "I wouldn't be surprised if you hated me after my behavior at dinner" Emma mumbled softly.

'I was way out of line at dinner and I don't want my behavior to affect any form of friendship that we have managed to spark up within the past few hours.' The woman thought but never said.

Regina shook her head, "I could never hate you, Emma" she whispered.

The blonde raised an eyebrow but never questioned it, she decided to just ignore the comment for the time being.

The brunette cleared her throat, "your father told me I would find you out here" she explained to the taller woman.

Emma nodded, "yeah, I just had to let off some steam" she muttered dragging a hand through her wet curls.

The younger woman mentally groaned, 'so much for trying to impress this girl when I'm standing in front of her dripping with sweat after an angry sparring match' she thought to herself.

Regina chuckled, "I've been watching for a while now, you fight extremely well" she complimented.

Emma smiled, "thanks, my dad started teaching me when I was younger but now I mostly spar with the guards," she told the older woman, the brunette smiled.

The blonde dug the small heels of her boots into the soft dirt below her, "I'm sorry for my behavior at dinner" she apologized, "it was completely uncalled for and I shouldn't have reacted in the way that I did" the girl finished.

'The least I could do is apologize for probably making the dinner extremely uncomfortable for everyone, especially her' the Princess concluded.

The brunette shook her head, "it's fine, Emma. You did absolutely nothing wrong" she told the younger woman.

Emma raised an eyebrow at the older woman.

'I stepped out of line and was rude to my mother in front of our guests, of course, I did something wrong' the blonde thought curiously.

Regina sighed, "what you did took some guts to do, I would never have been able to do it," she told the girl softly.

The older woman shifted her weight slightly, "you don't like these arrangements, neither do I. You could express that without any fear of possible punishment. You were able to just walk away. If I did something like that I would have been punished for it" she explained.

Emma could sense a slight bit of fear in the brunette's tone.

The Princess stepped forward and gently rubbed her arm, "what's up, Regina?" she asked hesitantly.

The girl didn't want to press her too much but at the same time, the younger woman could tell that there was something wrong.

Regina shook her head quickly, "nothing. My mother and I don't really have the best of relationships, unfortunately. I get along much better with my father" she quickly explained to the girl.

Emma simply nodded and didn't press any further on the subject, she could sense that it was a sore topic for the older woman.

Regina frowned and let out a soft sigh, "she married my father for his wealth. My mother is now in a loveless marriage and she wants me to do the same" she mumbled a short explanation.

A small frown crossed the brunette's face, "I don't want that" she whispered biting her lower lip gently as though she was trying to stop herself from crying.

Emma couldn't help but close the gap between them and wrap the smaller woman in her arms. The older woman practically collapsed into the embrace as she wrapped her arms around the younger woman and cuddled deeper into her chest in response.

Emma felt her breathing hitch slightly.

The girl gently trailed her fingers through the woman's thick raven hair, "no one deserves to be stuck in a loveless marriage. That was your mother's choice, but it doesn't have to be yours" the blonde whispered gently.

Regina let out a soft content sigh, "you'll find someone who is worthy of you. No matter how long it takes, you don't need to go through with what your mother wants. You just need to show her that you're willing to fight" the Princess whispered gently.

Regina scoffed, "that's easy for you to say, you are a fighter" she muttered.

Emma gently brought her gaze up to meet her own, "there is a fighter in all of us, you just need to find something worthy to fight for to bring it out" she told the woman gently.

Regina's beautiful cocoa eyes stared up at the younger woman longingly, "and what's yours? What's worthy enough for you to fight?" she asked her softly.

Emma stared down at the brunette for a moment.

'You.' She thought.

There was something about the brunette that was completely entrancing to her and she couldn't quite figure out what exactly it was.

The blonde quickly shook the thought from her head.

The girl sighed, "the thought of being able to find someone and love them the way my parents did," she told the older woman honestly as she released the brunette from her hold.

The woman stared up at Emma with slight confusion for a moment, "I thought you didn't care much for that story?" she mumbled hesitantly.

Emma shrugged, "I grew up hearing it and I grew to like the idea of it. Sure, I see it as over told and slightly annoying, but I still like the idea of being able to fall in love, truly, with someone without the force of others around me," she explained to the woman in front of her.

Regina nodded slowly in response.

The blonde looked down at the older woman with a smirk, "anyways, shall we get started on that tour I was meant to give you?" She asked playfully as she offered the brunette her arm.

Regina chuckled and slipped her arm into Emma's, "we shall" she responded with a short giggle.

Emma smiled, 'I swear, this woman is going to be the death of me someday' she thought to herself as they made their way back to the castle.