Part One "Face your demons…"

With a soft sigh Regina Mills sat down behind her desk, offering herself a moment of rest. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the silence around her. Time had dragged along the past hour as she tried to focus on her clients words. But her mind kept trailing off to her next client, causing an unfamiliar shiver through her spine.

Her first session with Emma Swan left a mark on her, although she couldn't exactly pinpoint why. This young, healthy and stunning woman with an obvious scarred childhood and trust issues. The sadness in her eyes, her lack of self-esteem and yet she somehow found a way to shine more brightly than most of the people Regina had ever met.

But she knew it was just a mask, a huge wall to protect her shattered heart. She decided to make it her purpose to break through the layers, to find out who this woman really was.

There was something to her, something quite unfamiliar. Something raw and yet so incredibly gentle. Something that increased her curiosity to levels she didn't even knew existed within herself. She closed her eyes briefly and rested her head in her hands. Why did this woman affect her this much? She always managed to keep her distance from her clients, trying not to get involved to deeply. And she always succeeded.. Until now.

Her head snapped up when she heard footsteps approaching and quickly pushed herself up out of her chair. She unconsciously straightened her blouse and inhaled sharply when the door slowly opened. She felt how her lips curled up when her eyes met Emma's tentative gaze. Her eyes seemed even more bright than she remembered and she couldn't decide if they were green or blue. She found herself staring a moment too long and released a breathy laugh.

"Good morning, Miss Swan.."

Emma tucked her hands in her pockets and grinned shyly, ducking her head for just a moment. Regina watched her blonde curls falling around her face, before their gazes locked again.

"Good morning, Regina.." she said slightly above a whisper, staring back at her from under her lashes.

There was hope and fear and something else swirling in Emma's bright orbs, but Regina couldn't establish what it was. She motioned to the couch and cleared her throat.

"Please, take a seat…"

Emma nodded and seemed to consider her offer, before she walked towards the couch. Regina watched her tentative steps and the way her shoulders were hanging. Almost as if she had to force herself to be here and instantly realized that was probably the case. She settled herself in the chair opposite to Emma and offered her a warm smile.

"Why do I feel like I'm at the dentist?" Emma smirked and glanced down, fiddling with her hands in her lap.

Regina watched her for a second and wondered what was going on inside her head. She could tell how Emma tried to lighten the mood, but she clearly didn't succeeded as her eyes wandered around the room.

"I know you're out of your comfort zone and that it makes you feel uncomfortable.." she said gently, searching for Emma's eyes.

"Take all the time you need…" she continued. "However, I can only help you if you want me to..."

She watched Emma's expression change as she inhaled a soft breath. She noticed how Emma struggled with her emotions, unsure if she was ready to share her story. She took a huge step with showing up and Regina had noticed how she carefully picked her words last week. Trying to avoid the subjects she wasn't ready to talk about. And she let her dodge her questions, determined to explore them in a later stage. Giving her the time to adjust, to feel comfortable.

She witnessed the carefully build up fortress around her, almost as if she needed to take out Emma's guards one by one. A carefully build up wall that seemed so familiar and the main reason she choose this profession. She wanted to help others to open up, to cope and to move on. Something she'd never managed to complete in her own life, desperate to provide others with the peace she wasn't able to find. With every accomplishment her heart swelled and broke at the same time. Pleased to help others, but devastated she couldn't help herself. Daniel's loss had been too much to handle, a burden that weighted far too heavy on her fragile shoulders.

Although she lost him many years ago, the aching pain in her heart let her believe it only happened yesterday. Her breath caught in her throat and she quickly blinked away her tears. When was the last time she'd cried? She couldn't even remember. She never showed her weaknesses and maybe that was why she couldn't cry anymore. Because what was the point of crying when there was no one there to comfort her? And worse, she couldn't even comfort herself.

"Regina?" Emma whispered, her eyes scanning Regina's face.

Regina's head snapped up and she released a breath she wasn't aware she had been holding. She noticed the questions in Emma's eyes and quickly pulled herself together. This wasn't about her, this was about Emma.

"Please try to let me in, Miss Swan..."

Emma's breath hitched with hearing her words and she clenched her jaw. The intensity in Regina's eyes brought her off balance and her heart skipped a beat. Why was she looking at her like that? Like her words actually meant something to her. Almost as if she cared..

She wrapped her hands tightly together in her lap and tried to focus on anything but those brown orbs that seemed to watch straight into her soul. Her eyes tracked over Regina's features, lingering a moment on the scar above her lip, instantly wondering what had caused it.

"I thought I already did that…" she mumbled, her cheeks turning slightly pink.

The unsettling feeling in her stomach only grew more as realization set in. Ofcourse she didn't let her in. She never let anyone in. And the knowledge that she had to open up if she wanted to move on, blew all the air out of her longs. How was she suppose to do that? To be vulnerable?

She never allowed herself to be vulnerable, to talk about her feelings, her emotions. She had to lower her walls, something that made her stomach tighten even more. She inhaled deeply to calm the feelings that were threatening to overpower her.

"Last week was merely an intake, Miss Swan.." Regina said gently.

Emma nodded and smiled bravely, but Regina noticed her brief quiver. She could tell that Emma was attempting to convince her that she was fine, but it had the opposite effect as Regina leaned forward. Her eyes scanning Emma's face, confirming all her previous doubts.

She tried to keep her out, to push her away. But at the same time begged her to proceed, to breach the wall. Mixed signals she knew all too well. But years of practice brought her to the point she found the turn off switch. Yet Emma managed to get under her skin, making her question everything she desperately buried away inside her. Creeping to the surface, even though she wasn't ready to face her own demons yet.

It made her respect Emma even more that she was willing to face her fears despite her obvious pain. She understood her inability to talk, she'd experienced it herself for so many years. She considered herself a strong woman, yet Emma made her witness how wrong she had been. If only Emma could see for herself how brave she was. She just needed to convince her that she possessed the light to fight her shadows and to stop hiding it away.

"What can you tell me about your childhood?" Regina asked, her eyes scanning Emma's face for any sign of inconvenience.

Emma swallowed hard and remained quiet for a long moment as she seemed to gather her mind. Regina watched how different emotions washed over her pale face, before she opened her mouth.

"Lonely…" Emma whispered, unable to meet Regina's gaze.

Regina's heart clenched and she noticed Emma's moistened eyes, as she tried to hold back the tears that threatened to fall. She cursed herself for feeling way too much. Her own wall seemed to be vanished the moment Emma stepped inside her office and she desperately tried to control her emotions. Yet she failed miserably as she couldn't keep her eyes off of the woman in front of her.

Emma could barely keep up her appearance as she felt Regina's eyes caress her. She allowed herself to feel every single emotion that had numbed her body for so many years as she closed her eyes. Her voice quivered when she continued.

"Lonely… People abandon me for some reason and it always seems to recur.. I can't get rid of the fear that I'm just not enough.. "

For the first time in her life she put a voice to the thoughts that lingered inside her head. Why was she saying those things out loud? She didn't even know the dark haired woman in front of her. But she somehow felt safe and unusually strong in her presence. Her mouth opened and closed as she seemed to search for the words she wanted to say. She ran her slightly trembling hand through her hair and took a deep breath to steady herself.

Regina stared at her with some kind of wonder in her eyes, instantly realizing that they had taken a huge step in the right direction. Surprised and grateful that Emma trusted her with her feelings. Despite the wall Emma maintained for seemingly everyone around her, Regina could have sworn she got a glimpse inside. And it was even more heartbreaking than she'd imagined, determined to peek inside some more.

She had to gather all her strength not to reach forward and grab Emma's hand to comfort her, so instead she squeezed her own hands together. What happened to this woman? Who had broken her like this? She startled with the heavy anger that boiled up inside her towards the person responsible for her pain.

"I never know if someone is going to leave or stay.. So it's easier to just push them all away.." Emma softly added.

Regina remained quiet and Emma hesitantly opened her eyes. She felt Regina's eyes rested on her and took a deep breath to calm her nerves. After a long moment she finally looked up and faced the woman in front of her, completely overwhelmed with the depth of understanding she saw in her eyes. She watched her with so much care and warmness that she had to swallow away the huge lump that had formed in her throat.