AN: Sorry about the last upload and thanks to those who sent me messages about it!

AN2: This fic is personal to me and it is written in detail because it is meant to evoke an emotional reaction from you - and I am glad it is doing its job! I understand my style and the level of detail is not for everyone I ask that you all take care of yourself and if you would like to see it go another way then I encourage you to take the idea and write it the style and level of detail you want...I'd read your fic and enjoy it. I wont go into detail as to why I write the way i do - I simply ask that you keep yourself safe and move on if it is not for you. I do not believe Emma at this stage (or at any point in the fic) has been humiliated, I think she is incredibly strong and coping fantastically considering. I am looking forward to Emma (with Regina's help ;) ) reach her happy ending, I know she is very vulnerable at the moment but she is a survivor and I am looking forward to her recovery. Unfortunately to get the "comfort" you must first endure the "hurt".

Sorry for the long AN but I felt it needed to be said. Please keep your reviews and constructive comments coming!

Emma was confused. She moaned as she catalogued the aches and pains that plagued her body. Emma seemed to gravitate towards the soft voice that was whispering reassurances without her permission. Emma gasped as she realised that the owner of that soft voice making so many promises of safety and protection belonged to Regina. She frowned, searching her brain for a memory of the circumstances that resulted in Regina Mills swearing she would keep Emma safe.

The memory of HIM slammed into Emma as though he had physically punched her. She clawed at the tubes attached to her arm as she felt they were restraining her, adrenaline flooded through her system as she sat up desperate to get away from him. It did not occur to Emma for an instant that Neal was not there, pressing against her. Emma gulped air down as she let panic completely control her actions, pushing her body towards the safe harbour of Regina.

"SHERIFF SWAN!" Regina said, loud and firm.

Emma's head snapped around to the direction of Regina's order, everything else fading away except her one working eye making contact with Regina. She searched the brunette's eyes as Regina held her gaze; wordlessly promising safety, protection and love. The blonde suddenly flushed with shame, tears silently tracing lines down her bruised face as she realised that HE was not physically in the room.

Emma felt shame as to why she was there, shame that she had not been able to keep the way Neal treated her; a secret any longer, shame that she could not protect her baby from him and shame that she was so exposed, so vulnerable with Regina.

Emma curled into herself, almost into Regina's lap as she clung to her friend silently crying, letting the despair wash over her. She pushed the pain, shame and disgust she felt, away, stuffing it down into some hidden box hopefully where it would stay. Resting her head on Regina's shoulder, hiding her face in the brunette's neck, Emma sobbed as she clenched the collar of Regina's blouse in her fists.

Emma focused on the small hand that tenderly swept the hair out of her face, gently sweeping away tears from her cheek and gently reassuring her with those touches. Bringing her knees up to her chest, Emma began to rock herself as she worked to control her breathing and swallow the panic down that she was feeling. As her breathing slowed, the thundering of her heart lessened and she was able to listen to the words spilling from Regina's lips like a flowing tap.

"You are safe with me Emma, No one will hurt you again. I swear to you that you are under my protection and he will not dare come here, if he does it will be his death." the Evil Queen rose in Regina and the Mayor pushed her back down, unwilling to compromise herself or Emma during this horrendous time.

Regina considered Emma as the blonde continued to take comfort from the Mayor's soft touches and promises of safety. She thought of the way the beaten woman before her was rocking herself in comfort, a method of self-soothing a by-product of her childhood no doubt. Emma was beginning to calm despite the shaking of her body, her breathing was beginning to regulate; and Regina smiled tenderly at her as she leaned down and ghosted her lips onto Emma's bruised forehead.

"Emma, I can see those wheels turning in your head, darling you must stop. You are not to blame for this, any of it. There is only one person responsible for this and that person is not you." Regina continued to make heartfelt pledges.

Emma looked up at Regina, "He will be so mad that you know," she confessed in a shaky whisper.

The Evil Queen surged to the surface as Regina growled, "Then he will be mad but that is on him." she promised.

The blonde groaned in pain as the adrenalin in her system bled away and her awareness of her body settled back in the forefront of her mind. Regina reached for the IV pump to give Emma some pain relief when she hears a keening noise coming from Emma's throat, Regina instantly moved her hand away from the pump.

"It will make you feel better dear, it is just a pain killer." the brunette clarified, working hard to hide the wince she felt at seeing Emma in pain.

"No please don't make me sleep; I want to stay with you, please no sleep." Emma begged and Regina's heart broke all over again.

"It is alright dear, I am not going anywhere, at least lay down so that your ribs are in a better position to heal. You cannot be comfortable like that." Regina pleaded with her.

"Will you stay?" Emma asked in a whisper.

"Of course dear," Regina responded frowning, did she not just say that?

"No," Emma said and she gently loosened her grip on Regina's blouse and scooted over, pointing at the space on the bed beside her, "but will you stay here? Please?" she whispered.

Regina processed the request then slipped her heels off and climbed onto the hospital bed desperately trying not to add to Emma's pain by bumping into her various bruises. She lay on her side and gently threw a leg over Emma's thighs while she slipped one arm under the blonde's head and laced her fingers through the sheriff's fingers. Emma relaxed as she held tightly to Regina's hand despite the pain she felt as she did so.

Regina leaned over and placed a kiss on the side of the sheriff's head

"I won't go anywhere dear; I will stay right here as long as you want me to." Regina reassured the woman clinging to her.

It must have been the right thing to say because Emma relaxed some, though her free hand wrapped itself in Regina's shirt as though she might keep her there.

As Emma drifted off to sleep Regina hummed a melody from her childhood, every other verse she would lean over and kiss the side of Emma's head and all while she hummed she very gently skimmed her thumb over the bruised and broken knuckles she tenderly cradled in her hand.

As Emma slept Regina started to plot and plan the next steps that she would take to protect Emma, she planned how to keep Emma calm as her parents and Henry visited, how she might keep Emma in the hospital to rest and recover, knowing that she would fight to leave.

Once she worked out all the possible scenarios and her responses to them she allowed herself to think about Baelfire; she was thinking about the practicalities of killing the long lost son of the Dark One. There would be consequences, of that she was certain, what she wasn't certain of is if she cared about those consequences.

There were so many thoughts running around Regina's head that sleep was a distant dream and so she gave up the desire to sleep as she chased the thoughts. Her heart felt tight as she realised the swell of emotions that were stacking one on top of the other were all centred on Emma. Regina heard her mother's voice in her head, love is weakness, she squeezed her eyes shut blocking her mother's scolding reprimand out of her mind. She glanced over at the woman resting beside her, whom she loves.

Slipping out of the hold she had on Emma, the troubled brunette swung her legs over the side of the bed, got up and began to pace as she fought to control her breathing and push her panic away. A gentle tap on the door caught Regina's attention and she strode over opening it with one hand while she had a fireball burning in the other.

"Whoa, don't shoot." Kathryn said quietly as she entered the room and handed Regina a coffee.

Regina's cheeks coloured as she took the coffee and turned away from her friend to hide her shaking hands from Kathryn.

Kathryn grabbed the chart from the end of the bed, stepped over to Emma and read the latest report from the nurses. Regina continued to pace in her stockings, occasionally glancing at Kathryn.

The paramedic replaced the chart and checked the drip attached to Emma's IV as she regarded her friend in a clinical manner, despite Regina's efforts her trembling hands were evident to Kathryn, as was the sweating, laboured breathing and the slight stumble in her step.

"Panic attack?" Kathryn asked quietly.

Regina looked up, the rebuttal almost making it past her lips before she sighed, nodded her head and resumed her pacing. The blonde stepped over to Regina, took the coffee cup back out of her hand and placed it on the side cabinet then took both of her hands in her own and led Regina to sit on the couch.

"Deep breath, you know the drill beloved." Kathryn instructed.

Regina did as she was instructed and slowed her breathing, "Sorry, dear."

"Oh please, you live to inconvenience me," Kathryn joked back smiling.

Regina raised an eyebrow in derision before letting out a small smile at her friends antics.

"Rough night, huh Sweetheart?" Kathryn asked as she rubbed the back of Regina's hands with her thumbs, "talk to me."

Regina's eyes flicked over to Emma, checking she was still asleep before she took a deep breath, "I have feelings," she responded.

Kathryn grasped her chest in mock horror and gasped, "I thought you were a robot," she whispered conspiratorially.

"Please do not mock me Kathryn," Regina replied sarcastically back, "Emma makes me feel things and I cannot control it."

"Is that a bad thing?" Kathryn asked.

"Of course it is a bad thing, it's a weakness!" the Mayor snapped before shooting a glancing look over to Emma.

"Well, that's Cora talking." Kathryn said softly but not without conviction. She studied her friend whose cheeks had flushed at being called out. "Look, that's Henry's birth mother, and your friend and she's kind of an awesome person of course you have feelings about this, about her, I would be worried about you if you didn't have feelings, especially tonight." Kathryn nudged Regina's shoulder.

"Yes, well I do not particularly enjoy these feelings," Regina spoke quietly, "I don't have a lot of exposure to these things aside from you, Henry, perhaps Maleficent" the Mayor got up and stepped over to the bed and pulled the blanket over Emma, "and of course, Daniel." Regina turned to Kathryn and held eye contact with her for a moment, "it is terrifying." she admitted.

"So, are we talking about feelings in your pants here?" Kathryn asked cheekily.

Regina rolled her eyes at her friend, "look at her, she is gorgeous, smart, funny, strong and brave...even a little, Charming!" Regina spat the last noun as though it tasted bad.

The blonde grinned at the admission, "You like her, you want to kiss her," she sang childishly but stopped when Emma stirred a little.

Regina immediately diverted 100% of her attention to Emma as she whispered reassurances to her until she calmed.

"It's not just the romantic feelings that scare you?" Kathryn asked and when she saw Regina shake her head she got up and walked over beside her, "Look Regina, there is no shame in feeling anger, even rage. Feeling these things does not make you the Evil Queen." She used air quotes as she said the title, " I feel those same feelings, when I look at these injuries on Emma, when I see my friend hurting and even when I have to tell my friend that her feelings are valid because neither of her parents ever taught her how to handle emotions." Kathryn offered a small smile to soften the blow of the statement she was making.

"Having feelings does not make you a bad person, and it's what you do with them that shape who you are. Dr Whale and I took one look at Emma earlier and we wanted to hunt down and destroy the person who did this.

Hell I still do; and I am certain that Ruby wants to tear the fucker limb from limb. You are not alone in these feelings, and I am not even saying don't act on them because I could not stand here and tell you that if he was standing in front of me right now I wouldn't rip his balls off and feed them to him while he bled out at my feet.

All I am saying is the only person who can say what the right actions for you to take are you, because ultimately you have to live with the Regina you become as a result. You will have to live through the consequences whatever they maybe."

Regina considered carefully what Kathryn had said to her, not sure whether her mind had been eased or just diverted onto new topics however she did find herself grateful for the new perspective and smiled appreciatively at her friend, "Thank you."

"Sure, try to get some rest and for now focus on Emma ok? I'm going to go get some sleep but I have a couple of loyal foot soldiers in the stairway and on the floor, Fred and I will be here in the morning to take over from them." Kathryn instructed.

Regina settled back onto the bed and stroked Emma's hair as she watched Kathryn open the door and quietly slip out onto the ward. Emma, sensing Regina's presence seemed to burrow closer to her and grasped her shirt, Regina scowled at the action in concern and gently massaged the hand until her blouse was released and the grip tightened around her hand instead. She watched Emma sleep for a while as she replayed her conversation with Kathryn over in her head, taking comfort in the validation she had received as she slowly drifted into a light sleep.