Rockabye

Chapter Eighteen

The morning air has a chilly bite to match the frost clinging to the grass below. The night is about to give way to the day, but there's hardly any sun to warm their chilled bones. Emma is bouncing frantically next to Regina to keep warm while everyone else seems unfazed by the cool temperature surrounding them. Emma's mind is racing with a thousand different scenarios on how all of this will play out, but everything else around her is still. Not one single person is moving, hell, she can barely hear anyone even breathing at this point.

Rumpelstiltskin is standing parallel to the town line, that is so very clearly marked with a red thick paint line running across the pavement. Regina is standing directly in front of him, keeping a watchful eye upon him, while Emma is standing behind her, also eyeing the man carefully. Snow and Charming are a few feet back, prepared to attack. Emma can't even make eye contact with them because she knows she will burst into a fit of laughter from their stance. Snow White has her bow and arrow prepared for battle with her husband by her side, his sword drawn and ready to fight.

Neal is standing further back, he is leaning against August's car, that's parked perpendicular through the street, efficiently blocking the view of everyone who is standing at the town line. August is patiently waiting in the driver's seat while little Henry is sitting in the back of the car, because the moment that barrier is down, his parents, along with Regina and August will be crossing over that town line in a flash.

"Are you ready?" Rumpelstiltskin calmly asks while taking a step forward into Regina's personal space.

Emma swallows thickly and watches with great interest as Regina nods only once to confirm the man's question. The former queen holds out her wrist and it doesn't go unnoticed to Emma how Regina's fist is tightly balled together from her anxiety about their current situation.

Rumpelstiltskin slowly waves his hand over the thick leather restraint against Regina's dainty wrist. A black fog eliminates Emma's view of the restraint for a split second causing her heart to beat a little faster, the fear of the unknown consuming her brain. The thick smoke slowly dissipates into nothing, leaving Regina's wrist free and the leather bound nowhere to be seen.

Purely on instinct, Regina reaches out and wraps her fingers around the freed area, rubbing her wrist as though she was in pain the entire time. Her eyes flutter closed for a moment as she inhales slowly and exhales a long deep breath. She takes a full minute to breathe slowly and become accustomed to feeling magic pulsate through her veins again after twenty-six years.

Regina's limbs tingle as a warm familiar rush of euphoria buzzes through her blood. Her heart rate increases while her mind grows fuzzy from the overwhelming sensation that's slowly consuming every inch of her body. She quickly becomes lightheaded as the dark magic demands control and for a moment she panics. She wonders if after all these years she will be able to keep the darkness at bay now that it's in her system once again.

Emma tentatively reaches out for her loved one, knowing the distress look upon her face and rests her hand upon Regina's shoulder. The brunette jumps, slightly startled from being in her own world, breathing in the magic that feels foreign to her body after so long.

"Are you okay?" Emma whispers into Regina's ear for only the two of them to hear.

Regina nods slowly as her eyes spring to life, creating a smirk to creep across Rumpelstiltskin's lips as he watches Regina's brown eyes fill with a vibrant glow of purple.

"Welcome back," he chuckles maliciously and takes one step back to offer Regina some space.

"Whoa Regina, what the hell is up with your eyes?" Emma carelessly blurts out as once again she is completely taken by surprise from the power of magic.