Save Me From The Dark

Chapter One: Falling into Darkness

A/N: So this is my first Once Upon A Time fic and I am really excited about it. I have to say that I only recently jumped on the SwanQueen ship but since I did it's become somewhat of an obsession of mine and this idea has been rolling around in my head for a while now so I hope you all enjoy it. I also feel it's important to let you know that it has been a while since I have written anything so I am a little rusty, and as I don't have a beta all mistakes are my own.

Disclaimer: This is the only time I'll be putting this in here but just so everyone knows I do not own any of the characters in OUAT I just want to play with them for a bit.

Regina walked hand in hand with Robin Hood and little Roland towards Granny's diner. They had just gotten ice cream together and for the first time in a long time, she felt happy and was smiling a genuine smile. Robin stopped them just outside giving her a lingering kiss that made her smile even more before they followed Roland up the steps to the diner.

She knew half the town was in there celebrating Emma and Hook's safe return from the past as well as Zelena's defeat and for once she was looking forward in just enjoying the celebration with everyone else. She wasn't the Evil Queen today; today she was one of the heroes. She had used light magic to stop her sister, surprising everyone except for Henry perhaps and life was pretty good at the moment. For the first time she didn't feel like she was the villain in this story.

Little did she know that everything was about to come crashing down around her again.

O O O

"She's a monster!"

Marion practically shouted. At that Regina moved towards her like she wanted to strike her but stopped herself. Barely.

"No she's…." Emma trailed off as Regina turned and walked away from them all without a backwards glance.

"Regina wait," she started to follow her but Hook was suddenly pulling her to a stop. "Let her go love, nothing good has ever come from pushing that woman, she needs space."

David agreed with hook but decided to voice his own concerns "It's what she does in that space that worries me."

Henry appeared more worried than all of them looked to his mother for comfort "You don't think she'll turn evil again do you? She can't, she's come too far." Henry's words snapped something inside of Emma and brought the reality of what just happened back into focus and she looked at all of the people around her in a new way. They all looked worried but she couldn't figure out if that worry was for Regina herself or for what she might do to them over this and the thought made her cringe inside. How was Regina supposed to believe that she wasn't a monster if that's what everyone around her still saw, even Henry had just assumed that she might turn evil again over this, like it was a switch that one could just flip on and off at will.

"Henry, go home with David and Mary Margaret, I'm going after her." It was Snow this time that attempted to stop her from leaving. "I think that they are right Emma, I think you need to let her be for a while." Emma turned to them and studied them all for a minute. "That's exactly why I need to go after her, maybe because no one has ever cared enough about her before to go after her when something bad has happened to her, to try and talk to her and let her know that there are people who care about her." They all appeared a little shocked at Emma's outburst and at the implications behind it but before they could even begin to react, Emma had turned and started off in the direction that Regina had gone.

O O O

When Regina entered her vault, she didn't even know why she had come here. It was her safe haven; it was where her magical items were, where her books were and where she could shut herself away from the world.

This hurt. All of it just hurt. How had her life gone from being good for once to having a happy ending taken away from her again in a matter of minutes? It's not that she was in love with Robin, she wasn't, at least not yet but she did think she could grow to love him and she cared about Roland as well. It was the first time since Daniel had died that she opened herself up to the possibility of finding happiness again, of loving and being loved in return again, and then Emma Swan with her time traveling blunders took that possibility away just like her mother had stolen everything that mattered from her once before.

What hurt most of all was that it was Emma that had done this, intentionally or not? She and Emma had been doing well; they had stopped arguing for the most part anyway. They had found a way to put the past behind them, mostly, for Henry's sake, and they even worked well together and seemed to understand each other more than anyone else in this town could. She thought they had almost been on their way to being friends even, not that she would ever admit that aloud, but now she had hurt her with her recklessness, without thinking of the consequences of her actions. She was just like her mother Snow White, never considering the consequences until it was too late.

She started going through the things in her vault as she was thinking about everything that had happened, not even knowing what it was she was looking for until she came across a potion that she remembered making not too long ago during the forgotten year in the enchanted forest.

Staring down at the vial in her hand she voiced the only thing that kept coming to mind in that moment "villains don't get happy endings." She laughed bitterly as she made that statement and it seemed to echo in the room until she was engulfed in utter silence once more. Even when she wasn't the villain, she was, she would always be seen as the Evil Queen, the villain, no matter what she had done to change herself.

It wasn't always easy. Her heart was so dyed in darkness that doing the right thing and the good thing didn't come easy to her anymore, but she was trying, not only for Henry but for herself as well, but she didn't believe that there would ever be a time when it was easy. When Marion had called her a monster earlier, her first instinct had been to rip out her heart and show her what a monster really looked like. She had even started to reach towards her, but she stopped herself, because she wasn't that person any more. She didn't want to be the Evil Queen anymore. She didn't want Henry or Emma to see her like that. So she had walked away instead, knowing they would likely all think of her as a monster anyway.

Staring at the potion in her hands she thought of all the things she would miss and would never have because she was always destined to be the villain in the story, and really who could ever truly love the Evil Queen. As she sat there knowing in her heart that they would always see her that way, she came to a decision that would make sure that she never gave in to her dark side, and she would make sure that the only person that she would hurt because of this was herself. She was afraid that if she didn't do something to stop herself the darkness that stained her soul would win and she would lose the fight to be 'good' and would end up hurting the only people that mattered to her. She would never want Henry to see her the way she was before.

Steeling herself for what she was about to do she heard the sound of footsteps coming into her vault. There was only one person who would be brave enough or stupid enough to follow her right now and she didn't even have to look to know who it was.

"What do I have to get you to do to leave me alone Swan? Go away!" She called over her shoulder harshly without turning to face Emma. She heard Emma freeze and the room was quiet and for a moment Regina thought she might actually do as she asked and leave but it seems luck was never on her side as Emma replied. " I came to check on you. " Regina snorted bitterly at that, "I can promise you I'm not here cooking up some evil plan to hurt you or Marion, I just want to be left alone, so you can go now."

Regina still hadn't looked at her and Emma knew that she didn't want to turn around because she didn't want Emma to see her in a vulnerable state, but even knowing this she couldn't make herself walk out that door without at least trying to talk to her. "You don't have to talk just listen. I'm sorry I hurt you Regina, that was never my intention and I know that in this case my intentions don't matter because you still got hurt." Regina scoffed at that but didn't offer anything more so Emma continued. "I want you to know that I'm here for you though, and I know that you can have a happy ending you just have to fight for it, and if you won't then I will. Henry brought me back here to bring back all the happy endings and that includes yours, so my job is not finished yet. And I know it's not going to be easy and it's complicated but I also want you to know that I'm here for you. I want to help you. I like to think of you as my friend even though you probably don't see it that way."

Regina tilted her head at that because hadn't she just been thinking something similar but she still refused to turn and face Emma as she rambled on "You and I are friends and I want you to keep being my friend because no one else in this town really understands me they don't know what it feels like to be rejected and misunderstood, not the way I do and not the way you do, but that makes us I don't know unique, or special even and it means I understand you better than anyone else and I know how much this must have hurt you, and I'm sorry for that, but you're not alone. You have people that care for you and will help you through it."

Regina sat silent still turned away from her for a long time and Emma wasn't sure what to do. She had come here to talk to her and she had said what she wanted to say and she meant every word of it. She would help Regina through this, and would help her find her happy ending but now Regina wouldn't even look at her still and this silence was becoming oppressive.

Regina finally turned to look at her and the look of anguish on her face nearly broke Emma. She looked as though the world was falling down around her. She cleared her throat and looked like she was trying to find the right words to fill the silence. As she turned more fully toward her Emma could see she was holding what looked like a really long needle that she pulled out of some potion bottle before setting it away. Regina looked at her then and she didn't even try and stop the tears flowing down her cheeks and to Emma she looked more broken and fragile than she had ever seen this woman before. Regina was never supposed to look this broken and it hurt knowing that she had caused this, she was always the strong one, who never gave up even if it meant years of plotting revenge and making plans and now she just looked defeated before she had even begun to fight.

Finally seeming to get her bearings and regain some semblance of her usual composure and meeting Emma's eyes she rasped, "That's all well and good dear but I've already made a decision about my fate. I want you to take good care of Henry and tell him that I love him but I finally realized what all the stories in his book have tried to point out, that villains don't get happy endings and I will always be the villain in this story" Before Emma realized what she was saying or could process what those words meant Regina pricked her finger on the needle she was holding and almost immediately began to drop. Emma was barely able to catch her before she hit the floor. Emma cradled her to her chest as she sunk to the floor holding her and looked into those fathomless brown eyes that were slowly closing and grabbed her face wiping the tear tracks from her eyes "Regina, Regina, what did you just do? What's going on?"

As her eyelids started to close she looked up into the face of the crying savior who cradled her so gently and she knew that Emma really did want to help her she experienced a moment of regret that maybe this wasn't the right decision but it was too late for second thoughts so she breathed deep one last time and locked eyes with her as her strength started to fade and she whispered the only two words that she could think of on how Emma could help her now. "Save me" and that was the last thing she remembered before she closed her eyes and was engulfed in the darkness.

"REGINA, REGINA" Emma called her name over and over again while still cradling her still form. She was crying freely now and she didn't know what to do or how to help Regina. The only time she had seen anything like this before was when Henry fell under the sleeping curse. She knew this was the same thing. She didn't know how she knew but she could feel it. Regina was still there, still alive in her arms but she had just cursed herself. There was a moment right after she had done it that she appeared to regret it and with her last breath asked Emma to save her. The problem was Emma didn't know how to save her. "Why, why would you do this?" She sobbed. "You're not the villain anymore, so why would you do this." Emma knew she would get no answers from the woman she still cradled gently in her arms but still she continued to beg the unconscious woman for answers she knew wouldn't come as she gently stroked the tears that had tracked down Regina's cheeks.

After what seemed like hours of her just holding Regina on the floor of her vault her phone started ringing. She ignored it the first two times not wanting to speak to anyone, especially if it was Henry. Oh god what was she supposed to tell him about his mother. After the third ring went to voicemail and her phone started ringing again she knew whoever was calling wasn't going to give up so she reached down to her pocket to fish out her phone while trying not to jostle Regina and still keeping a firm hold on the brunette. Looking at the caller id it was her mother. They were probably trying to make sure Regina hadn't fried her to a crisp, so she took a moment to compose herself and tried to sound as normal as possible as she answered, "Hello" Snow's worried tone immediately came over the line, "Oh Emma we have been so worried about you, why haven't you been answering your phone?"

The way her mother asked the question she knew that she was right in her assumption that they were afraid that Regina had hurt her or had done something terrible to her and for some reason that really pissed her off at the moment. "I'm fine mom, I'm just sitting here with Regina, and we were talking." It wasn't exactly a lie they had been talking before Regina decided to remove herself from the conversation in a way that Emma couldn't reply too. Damn that woman for always wanting to get the last word.

Snow didn't sound convinced at that but didn't call her out on it either. "Oh well ok, we just wanted to check on you and make sure everything was ok. How long do you think you guys will be talking?" She didn't know what to say to that. She couldn't just leave Regina here, she had to make her more comfortable and she didn't want to leave her alone. She would have to find a way to fix this but she didn't want Henry freaking out until she was able to talk to him in person either. Sounding exasperated, she finally answered "look I'm not sure, I'm probably going to be gone all night, put Henry to bed for me and tell him I will come get him in the morning, and I will see you all tomorrow." She disconnected the call before Snow could ask anything more and turned her phone off.

She slowly rose to her feet and picked Regina up and carried her out of the vault and to her car. After making sure the brunette was safe and strapped in she drove them back to the mansion and carried Regina up to her room before settling the brunette on the bed.

She pulled a chair up by the bed and plopped down into it before reaching for Regina's hand. It was cold to the touch and Emma couldn't help but be afraid of what that might mean. She knew Regina was still alive because she could feel her magic just under the surface where she was holding her hand. She would have to tell Henry what happened in the morning and she would need to talk to Gold and try and get some answers but for right now she refused to leave the brunette just lying there all alone so she stayed there until she fell asleep in the chair never once letting go of the hand she was holding.

O O O

A/N: Well this is the first chapter. I pretty much have this story planned out in my head but I don't know how often I will get the chance to update it. I'm working crazy hours and working a lot of overtime so it doesn't leave a whole lot of time for writing but I will do my best to update as frequently as possible. Please let me know if you guys like it or think it's worth continuing, it really motivates me to write faster if I know someone is looking forward to it. Hope you all enjoyed it.