Part VI
The Truth Unfolds

Green eyes sparkled in the sunlight that shone in through the large windows of the Mayor's office, their gaze boring into the dark woman's back, urging her to turn around. As she stared at the brunette, her lips still tingling with the kiss they shared, Emma slowly walked forward, approaching Regina cautiously. Her memories from the past couple of days were blurred and fuzzy, but the one thing that the blonde did remember was the love that she had felt for the Mayor. The notion was frightening, and tugged viciously on Emma's heart strings, but it wasn't nearly as terrifying as the fact that her love for the brunette still remained; the foreign feeling was hot and suffocating as it poured through the blonde's veins.

"Regina…" Emma whispered, her voice broken and quiet as she finally reached Regina, "…it's true, isn't it—Henry's storybook…the curse?"

The Mayor's body stiffened considerably when she felt the blonde standing directly behind her; the hair's at the base of her neck rising as warmth encompassed her stomach. There was too many thoughts racing through her mind that the brunette didn't pull away when Emma's hand touched her shoulder. The slender fingers squeezed gently and the sensations calmed Regina for a moment, the worries seeming to flutter away from the Mayor's mind. So much had happened in the last couple of days: the brunette had broken the curse that had turned the blonde into a lovesick puppy with true love's kiss; Emma had eaten the apple meant for Henry, the candy apple that had contained the potion to make the emotion of love heightened—something snapped inside of Regina then, and she quickly pulled away from the blonde's touch.

Emma knew the truth, she knew about the curse; the Mayor had ruined everything, she had unknowingly destroyed her own possibility of happiness. A silent sob tore through her as green eyes rapty watched her every move. Letting her dark gaze lift to meet the blonde's, the brunette weakily nodded her head; there was no way to run away from the truth, not this time. But thoughout all of her body laid the tension and it, surprisingly, wasn't caused by Emma beliving in the curse. No, it was about something altogether different. It was about the love potion that the blonde had consumed. Shivers ran down the length of Regina's spine at the thought of her greatest fear possibly blooming to life.

Lifting a hand to her mouth, the Mayor realized the most important aspect of the potion: it could not create emotion, it simply heightened love that had already existed—a potion that would have let the brunette see if Henry truly loved her. A gasp fell from Regina's lips and she gripped onto the desk, her fingernails digging into the black wood; Emma's emotions were true—the blonde was in love with the Mayor. Tears sparkled within the brunette's black eyes then, as the truth unfolded within her mind: she and Emma were destined to be together, their love for one another had been decided by Fate itself, and regardless of how much Regina planned to fight against it the blonde was her true love, the key to her happy ending.

"No," the Mayor breathed, turning away from Emma, her dark eyes shining with tears as the black orbs filled with frustrated anger, "this can't be!"

"What can't be?" The blonde asked curiously, her pale brows knitting in confusion, "can you elaborate, because I'm completely lost?"

"Shut up!" The brunette clipped as she spun around, a rough hand scrubbing over her face, trying to desperately get a grasp on the situation that was quickly spiraling out of control. "I need to think."

Emma opened her mouth to say something, but the heated look that Regina shot her quickly made her lips contort in a sneer. Biting on the inside of her cheek, the blonde shoved her hands into her jeans as she tried to wait patiently for the Mayor to saying something—anything about what was happening. All that Emma could seem to come up with on her own was that Henry had been right all along about the curse, that the citizens of Storybrooke truly were fairytale characters. Regina, herself, had indicated as much.

Sighing, the blonde hoped that she had somehow been exposed to magic which caused her to have those strange loving feelings for the brunette. Because, if magic hadn't created the emotions she felt for Regina, Emma wouldn't be able to cope with the fact that she had miraculously fallen in love with the Mayor. As the thoughts ripped through her mind with the force of a cyclone, the blonde's head spinning in confusion, Emma nearly stumbled when everything within her head stopped.

Only one thing seemed to continue to spin within the blonde's brain after all of the other thoughts had abruptly settled: the brunette. Biting her lip, Emma dug into her memories, trying to remember a time that she didn't have the urge to smack Regina across the face. Closing her eyes, the blonde slowly realized that there had always been…something else there, aside from anger or hatred, which Emma felt for the Mayor. A strange and unusual heat would settle within her chest, a heat that seemed to burn whenever the brunette was near. Was that love?

The notion scared the blonde terribly, and she had to snap her eyes open in an attempt to run away from the realization that was quickly dawning on her. But once Emma had opened her eyes she regretted it, because dark eyes were staring directly into her own, and the blonde distinctly felt the familiar rumbling fire within her chest. Indigestion, is all, she muttered to herself as she rolled her eyes, but from the moment the reassuring thought prickled within her cerebrum, Emma knew it was a lie.

"So…" the blonde started, trying to avoid making eye contact, "are you going to explain this…whatever this is…to me, or what?"

"There's nothing to explain," Regina retorted, her voice even and smooth, "at least nothing that I am at liberty to explain."

"Fuck liberty," Emma shot back, her shoulders squaring as she invaded the Mayor's personal space, her hands gripping the lapels of Regina's blazer. A wince contorted her face when the blonde felt that annoying heat grow hotter. "I know you know what I'm talking about, so stop playing dumb and give me some answers."

"It wasn't for you!" The brunette nearly screamed her emotions and frustrations getting the better of her. With Emma gripping the material of her jacket it made them surge closer, and Regina remembered the way the blonde's lips had felt against her own; they felt perfect, they felt like home. The very thought made the Mayor angry and she couldn't clamp down on the fear and rage that consumed her. "Henry was supposed to eat that candy apple, not you!"

"W—what?" The blonde stammered, her hands falling away from the brunette's blazer as she stumbled backward. When she lifted her head she saw tears glimmering in the Mayor's eyes and she had the sudden urge to comfort the woman, but she quickly swallowed it. "What are you talking about?"

"The apple was cursed; its power was to make hidden love rise to the surface." The brunette whispered, all strength ripped from her. "I needed to know that Henry still loved me—I needed that confirmation!" The tears began to fall from her eyes then as Regina let the truth fall from her lips, but her mouth quickly turned into a sneer as she looked Emma directly in the eye. "But you ruined everything—you've continuously ruined everything for me ever since you got here, Ms. Swan."

"But if that's true…" the blonde breathed, her head growing dizzy as the truth buried inside of her rose to the surface, rearing its powerful head and consuming her heart. "…then that means that I—that I'm in—"

"No!" The Mayor roared, her hand slamming down on the surface of the desk for emphasis; the very idea of Emma speaking of the love she felt for her would only make the truth of the brunette's own feelings all the more real. This was something Regina couldn't begin to fathom. "That is absurd. There is nothing but animosity between us. Love is—love is not something we could possibly feel for each other."

Green eyes narrowed in anger as she watched the Mayor try to blanket her fear by lashing out in rage, it was a feeble attempt and the blonde could easily hear the tremor of terror within the brunette's voice. There were so many things she wanted to say; so many painful, crippling retorts she could heave at Regina, but deep down Emma knew that that was not the reasonable solution. Of course, for a few moments, it would make the blonde feel better about herself, but she knew that once she left the Mayor's office she would still feel the same emptiness she had always felt. Emma, herself, needed to come to terms with the feelings she felt for the brunette, and she wouldn't be able to understand them if she merely walked away.

No, the blonde needed to take action, whether Regina approved of it or not. It was this thought alone that made Emma take hurried steps toward the sneering Mayor, made her lift her hands so they were cupping the brunette's cheeks. And it was certainly that thought that made her lean forward until the blonde felt her own lips press fervently against Regina's. Their mouths danced against each other greedily as their tongues slowly snaked out to taste one another. The Mayor moaned into the kiss as she pressed her body against Emma's, reveling in the wondrous feeling of their bodies fitting together perfectly.

Perfect. The idea of having something so beautiful and perfect in her life made the brunette's heart flutter within her chest. It had been such a long time since Regina believed that her destiny was capable of any form of happiness, but here it was, pressed tightly against her, and yet the Mayor couldn't help but feel the cold grip of fear that grasped her throat. The sensation seemed to smother her, and the brunette felt tears well up in her dark eyes, slipping beneath the closed lids as they tumbled upon her cheeks. She couldn't—she just couldn't allow herself to become so weak to the trivial idea of love; that was the only useful tip that her mother had given her.

With her heart breaking within her breast, Regina pushed the blonde forcefully away from her. Lifting her hand she tried in desperation to wipe the taste of Emma from her lips, but she couldn't. No matter how hard she scrubbed the delicious flavor of the blonde's kiss remained. Blinking in confusion, Emma looked over at the shaking Mayor and took a step forward, in an attempt to comfort the woman, but the brunette quickly slapped Emma's hands away from her.

"Don't touch me," Regina seethed through her tears, and she took in a couple shuddering breaths to try and gather a modicum of control. "Please leave, Ms. Swan."

"Regina…" the blonde started, reaching her hand out towards the Mayor once more, but she was interrupted when strong, firm hands collided against her chest. Emma stumbled backward on shaking legs from the force of the shove.

"Leave!" The brunette screamed as torturous tears continued to fall down her face in hot, unrelenting strokes. "Just leave…"

Deep down, Regina didn't want the blonde to leave, but her fear and need for control seemed to bury the pleading voice that craved love. The Mayor swallowed the lump within her throat as she looked at Emma beneath her thick lashes; the blonde's jaw was set and she was worrying her bottom lip between her teeth, she seemed torn. But the battle of wills seemed to quickly disappear from the green eyes as Emma turned on her heel and headed towards the door. For a moment, the brunette had the inexplicable urge to chase after her, to pull the blonde back into her office and collapse into her arms. But the need was fleeting and it was quickly quieted by the sound of the door slamming shut. Tear stained eyes lifted and gazed around the room sadly. She was alone, like she had wanted, and yet Regina felt her heart breaking, an excruciating pain tearing through her chest. No love, no happy ending. But this time it had been preventable, this time they weren't ripped from her, she had pushed them away.

A/N: Wow, sorry I took so long to update this fic, I lost all inspiration for it and it just kind of...disappeared from me. But, I decided to try and do an update for it due to all of the messages I got because of lack of updates. So, here is is, part six! I hope you all enjoyed reading it, though I do believe it seems a bit forced and trite, not to mention it kind of turned to angst. I can't help it, fluff is just…not my thing. Anyway, regardless of all that I still hope you like the update. Review if you'd like!