97Oh god I don't even know what possessed me to do this thing.
Swan Queen Week v.4
Prompt 7: Forbidden Love
Really, I don't know. I wrote this in a day and I'm just leaving this here. I saw this one one post on tumblr a while back that for the life of me I can't find, but anyway, it goes along the lines of one person that keeps killing people in other to ask Death out on a date. Plus I saw Book of Life yesterday night [I recommend everyone to watch it because it is great], and remembered that the last SQW prompt from yesterday was Forbidden Love so I guess this is the result!
Like I sort of implied in the summary, this is Dark Swan Queen, since it does teeter on the darker side of life [geddit?].
Also on the realm of fair warning there is one tiny mention of suicide [not outright but also not implied], talk about death, and Leopold things.
Let's get this started!
The first time Regina met Death, it was while she held Daniel's lifeless body, crying as she watched her mother leave the stable. The dark hooded figure appeared without a sound or a word, startling Regina to the point that she yelped and let go of Daniel's body in fright, backing away, trying not to trip on her cloak as it was spread out beneath her.
"Wh-who are you?" she asked, her voice already scratchy and broken from all her crying, but also breathy and quiet from fright.
"Death," was all she said.
Regina's eyes widened. She had heard that people claimed to have seen the menacing figure that was Death. Imposing and unidentifiable, they would whisk away those that had passed away. But Regina had no idea that Death was a woman.
"You're here for Daniel," Regina redundantly stated.
"I am."
"Please," Regina pleaded, looking to where she assumed Death's eyes were. "Please take me with you."
"It is not my place, neither is it your time," Death simply replied.
But Regina at that moment was not deterred in her pain. Her true love was gone, and her mother was sending her off to marry the repulsive King Leopold. "Can't you make an exception?"
Death sighed, and moved to crouch in front of Regina. "I am not allowed to."
"Not allowed to, or don't want to?"
"Both."
Regina attempted another tactic. "Can I at least speak to Daniel one more time?"
Another sigh, but Death conceded, standing back up and turning to thin air. "You have 5 minutes, and like all ghosts, he is translucent."
Regina glanced to where Death was looking, and let out a teary gasp as she saw Daniel materialize.
She spoke to him, pleading him to forgive her for what happened. Daniel was understanding, and made her promise one thing.
"Promise me that you won't live in regret for my death. I am gone, and you are destined for greatness Regina. Go and get it, and don't ever let anyone walk over you again. Be happy."
"I will," she promised with a solemn nod. Regina wished she could hug her lover, but it was not to be, and her 5 minutes were up. Death walked out of the shadows where she had been waiting while her charge and Regina spoke. Turning to the cloaked figure, Regina attempted a smile. "Thank you."
"You're welcome," was her response, before both she and Daniel disappeared.
"Excellent, my apprentice, you have mastered it!" Rumpelstiltskin gleefully exclaimed as he watched Regina squeeze the other girl's heart to dust. "And just in time to meet an old friend!"
Regina turned to where her teacher was pointing, and recognized Death.
"We've already met," Death said with a hint of amusement.
"Oh really?"
"Daniel," Regina explained, keeping her eyes trained on Death, who was looking down at the girl she had just killed.
Rumpelstiltskin's eyes widened in understanding. "I see," he said, although he knew it fell on deaf ears.
Once it seemed that Death was done, she turned to them. "You're losing your touch Rumple, she's not exactly your usual type of student."
"Ah, that's because she was a test for my apprentice here." The Dark One pointed to Regina, who was still staring intently at Death. He knew that his student was no longer focused on her lesson, and he rolled his eyes. "I will see you tomorrow night for your lesson, dearie."
It seemed that broke the young brunette out of her reverie, and she turned to her teacher, before nodding. "Yes, thank you for giving me another chance."
He said nothing, and just disappeared in a cloud of dark smoke.
Regina was crestfallen as she wondered if she had upset or disappointed the Dark One again.
"Don't take it to heart, he's always been broody." Death was still there, and Regina turned to give a shy smile.
"I just don't want to mess up another chance." It was hard to tell what Death might be thinking as Regina couldn't discern anything from her. Not receiving an immediate response, she decided to change the subject. "How long can you stay?"
"As long as I want really," was the response with a shrug.
Regina furrowed her brows. "But what about...the other uhm, dead people?" She felt awkward just asking it.
What she received was a rich laugh, certainly not one that she would have expected for such a sombre figure. "You are quite eloquent."
She let out a dignified huff. "I'm working on it."
"I see. Well to answer your question, I am in many places at once, different realms, countries, kingdoms."
With a nod, she understood. "So there are many Death's?"
Death shook her head. "No, just me, but I can duplicate myself, and have helpers."
"Doesn't it get depressing though?" Regina asked. "Having to witness so many people dying?"
"Not always. Some people are happy, and welcome me with open arms. Some people are reunited with long-lost loves and I get to watch as they dissolve into tears and meet again. It's really quite touching."
Regina nodded. She would probably do the same if she was faced with Daniel. Looking up at the sky she saw that it was dark out. She probably should get back to the palace lest she wishes to answer probing questions regarding her whereabouts so late. Thankfully her mother was no longer in the picture so Regina didn't have to answer to her anymore. "Would you accompany me home?"
"Certainly, your Majesty," Death said with a small bow.
She made a face at the title. "Please don't call me that."
Death didn't ask for any explanations, instead just amending. "My apologies, Regina."
Regina discovered that she liked hearing Death say her name. They walked in silence, or rather, Regina walked in silence. If she wasn't seeing Death keep pace with her, she'd have thought she was walking by herself.
Suddenly, a branch snapped under her foot, and Regina's eyes widened, bandits came from all around them, surrounding them.
"Well well well. Looky what we have here. Rich blood here was walking by her lonesome. What do you say boys?" One of the bandits sneered, clearly the leader. Hearty guffaws answered him.
"I'm not alone." Regina hated how pitiful her voice sounded. She wished she knew more magic to get rid of these scumbags.
Death spoke up. "They do not see me. To them, you are alone, but worry not."
The mood shifted suddenly. The bandits gasped as Death materialized in front of them. Regina felt the air grow immensely colder as it seemed that darkness had taken hold of the area. Regina saw her lift a gloved hand and all 10 men flew back as they were thrown at tree trunks.
The air was filled with pleas of forgiveness and mercy, but Death only had eyes for the burly bandit leader, who was still suspended against the tree he had been thrown against. Regina was watching transfixed as Death lowered her hood, revealing the back of a skeletal head. She wasn't sure what she had been expecting for someone named Death, but she supposed it fit.
The bandit leader was absolutely quaking with fear. Even Regina had chills running down her spine as she heard her companion speak. Death's voice sounded scratchier and less human as she declared, "Vincent Tethys, you have hurt many people for your selfish needs throughout your life. You will be taught humility and respect."
Tethys was then released, and Regina just knew the man was dead as he collapsed onto the ground in a mangled heap, and didn't get up.
Before she could react, she screamed as a rough arm grabbed her, encircling her neck, feeling the cool blade of a knife near her throat. She scrambled to try and get loose, but no success.
Death whipped around, and Regina saw for the first time, that where the eyes would have been on the skeleton, red fire was in its place. It was like seeing burning embers. The bandit holding her slackened his grip ever so slightly at being faced with Death.
"Unless you wish to face the same fate as your leader, you will release her." It seemed the man was at least smart enough to value his own life, and let Regina go with a sharp shove.
She went tumbling into the ground, stopping the fall with her hands and knees, certain they were scraped from the rocks and twigs beneath her. Sitting up, she glanced and saw that she was alone with Death. No matter how much she tried, she couldn't make eye-contact with the dark cloaked figure, so instead she looked at her hands and knees through the scraped fabric of her riding pants, trying to assess the damage.
"Are you alright?"
Regina whipped her head up before looking away again. It seemed that Death realized that her appearance was still a tad bit intimidating. She went to kneel by the young woman, and changed her appearance. She also recalled the darkness, returning warmth to the area, not realizing that she'd reacted so strongly.
"Hey, if you want, I can heal you." Regina looked up once more, hearing Death's more normal-sounding voice. But what made her gape was seeing how Death looked now with her hood down. No longer was she looking at an intimidating skeleton with fiery eyes, but rather a young woman with luscious blonde hair, and vibrant hazel-green eyes.
"I-I..." Regina was speechless. She was convinced that she would never fall for anyone after Daniel, but here she was, incoherent at seeing Death, and how gorgeous she looked.
Death, for her part, let out a chuckle, as her gloved hands glowed white and healed Regina's scrapes.
"You have magic?" was the only thing Regina managed to say.
"I do," she responded with a smile.
Regina then realized her manners. "Oh, I'm sorry, thank you. For healing and rescuing me."
"It's not a problem," Death brushed it off, standing up. She extended a hand for Regina, to help her stand up.
Once they both were standing, Regina needed to ask. "I thought you weren't allowed to kill?"
Death knew what this was about. "I'm not allowed to kill anyone by request, nor should I mess up the times for my own selfish deeds. But for Tethys, it was his time to go, and I was meant to end his life. Does that make sense?"
Regina nodded slowly, trying to make sense of this new information. "So you know how and when everyone will die?"
She shook her head with a smile. "Thankfully no, only when it is their time am I privy to the reason."
They were silent, and then Death said, "Come on, I'll return you to your room, you should arrive just in time for dinner and no one will notice your absence."
The white smoke took over before Regina could say anything. When it cleared, she was alone in her room.
For the next year, Regina didn't see Death again. But she still did plenty of research in books found in the castle's library, keeping them away from Snow's prying eyes, lest she wanted the loud-mouthed brat to blab to the King that Regina was thumbing through dark magic and macabre books searching for more information on Death.
It seemed that Death was a slippery person. She was apparently lucky enough to have seen her face, since the skeletal head was the most anyone had seen. There was also mention of Death having magic, but not much was expanded on it. Really she found nearly nothing that she didn't know before.
The only thing she found was that only magic-users would see Death freely. Everyone else could only see Death if she allowed it.
Regina had tried to ask Rumpelstiltskin, but she didn't get anything from him. He would only smirk at her, and say that she should ask herself.
"But how?"
The Dark One sighed. Sometimes his apprentice could be quite thickheaded. "Death appears when someone dies, so...go find a poor soul on the precipice of death, or kill someone yourself, you know how."
Regina first tried to see if she could attend some of the public executions, but she was constantly told that a woman shouldn't have to witness such things, and marched right back around.
After a week of fruitless attempts, she scowled at the lone guard who had barred her way. Letting out a frustrated growl she plunged her hand into the guard's chest. With a strangled gasp, the man was frozen in place as he tried to make sense of what was happening when she removed his heart. Regina ignored his horrified stares and strained pleas, pulverizing the heart without second thought, letting the dust fall to the ground by the man.
"I'm going to guess you were trying to summon me." Regina grinned at hearing Death appear. She whipped around, and smiled at the hooded figure.
Putting on her most innocent expression, Regina asked, "Me? Now why would you think that?"
"The guard did nothing to truly warrant your wrath."
Regina shrugged. "Debatable. I despise being told my place continuously. My being a woman somehow means I am supposed to be queasy with death."
Death approached her with an unseen smirk. "You don't seem queasy in front of me. Nonetheless, what did you wish to speak to me about?"
So Regina explained that she was curious about finding more about her. What she kept to herself was the nagging question of what relation they had. Were they friends? In her mind, Regina considered them acquaintances. Regina, the unhappy Queen, was an acquaintance of Death. It was a laughable matter.
Walking to Regina's chambers, no one paid any attention to the Queen. They saw her alone, as always, face betraying nothing. Once the door closed, her shoulders slumped as she relaxed.
"What do you wish to know?"
They were seated on opposite sides of a settee near the fireplace. Regina bit her lip, and said, "First, could you lower your hood? I - just, do you keep it up for any specific reason?"
Death lowered her hood, and Regina could once more see the gorgeous face and blonde curls that had captivated her for the past year. "Not really, I just never see a reason to lower it."
"No one has ever asked you to?"
Death shook her head. "Not many. You, Rumple at one point practically demanded it, and this one poor bastard who was on the verge of dying for an entire decade. He annoyed me so much that one day I snapped at him and showed myself. Man nearly had a heart attack and died then, but he ended up living for 2 years more."
Regina smiled at the story. "Have you always been Death?"
"No, it's like a job-"
Regina interrupted with a frown. "Job?"
The blonde chuckled. "Right, you guys don't have that word yet. It's work."
She nodded in understanding. "Wait, 'yet'? Do you travel in time?"
"No no, that is for Time only. I can merely travel to different realms, some already have that word in use. But anyway, no, I inherited this from Hyperion. He was a good man. Taught me a lot."
Regina inquired, "Then, were you a human before this?"
"No."
This shocked Regina. "Aren't you curious though? Don't you want to experience what it's like?"
"Sometimes, but I prefer like this."
Regina didn't believe that. "Have you even tried it?"
"Once, suffice it to say that the moment people found out what I really was, things changed and I became a pariah." Death gave a mirthless chuckle. "Not that I blame them. Who would want to be with Death?"
Regina fought against saying that she wouldn't mind, for fear that it wouldn't be well-received. So their conversation went to other topics. She learned quite a bit about Death, and then they reached another interesting topic.
"Has your name always been Death?"
With a laugh, she shook her head. "No, my actual name is Emma, but due to my profession, I can't exactly carry any other name except for Death, nor would anyone know my name for too long."
"Would you like to be called Emma?" Regina asked.
Looking at her intently, it seemed that the blonde was trying to gauge what Regina was up to. Finally deciding, she nodded. "That would be nice."
When Leopold was finally murdered, Regina was overcome with joy. She was free. She no longer had to be that man's arm-candy and be at his beck and call for whatever he wanted her for. The Genie was taken care of, and she could breathe easy. She wanted to collapse on the bed she was sitting on and sleep soundly like she hadn't in many yars.
"I never would have thought that I'd see someone so happy to hear someone had died."
"Emma." Regina hadn't seen her in a number of months, and she regrettably wasn't there when the King died, since she was locked in her own room due to the rumours of her infidelity.
Emma lowered her hood and strode over to the Queen. "Are you alright?"
Regina nodded, trying to keep the tears at bay, but still felt them pooling at the corners of her eyes. "I'm finally free. Leopold...he wasn't the kindest man, and it feels so liberating."
Emma went to sit beside Regina on the bed. "I'm sorry Regina, I wish I could've helped, or done something."
"It's fine, but thank you." Regina was truly thankful that someone else did care enough. The only other person was her father, who had helped her to be free of this cage.
Thinking about it for a second, Emma reached out and wiped the tears there. She hadn't ever touched someone so intimately, and certainly not with her own hands. Next thing she knew, Regina was smiling at her. It seemed ironic, but Regina felt safe around Emma; she didn't feel the need to be the Queen persona that she had been building.
In a bold and unexpected move, Regina burrowed into Emma's chest. This felt surreal for Emma, she didn't think anyone would seek comfort in Death's arms, but here was Regina. So she wrapped her arms around the Queen, and they stayed there for a while in silence.
"I'm blaming you for my overtime." Regina smirked and turned around, seeing Emma make her way to her.
With a shrug, Regina said, "It's not my fault they weren't cooperating."
"So I've heard. How goes your search for Snow White?" Emma and Regina had kept a constant stream of conversation ever since the Evil Queen had surfaced. Relentless and merciless, she was prepared to scorch the land to find and kill Snow White. Quite a few years had passed since Leopold's murder, and Regina had grown into herself, seeking to end all those who were responsible for her unhappiness all those years ago. Only Snow White remained, and she was determined to find her, even if it was the last thing she did.
"Nowhere. These people are all loyal to her! It's infuriating," Regina sounded like a child as she pouted, watching as Emma did her job. Once the entire family was taken care of, Emma stood and lowered her hood, walking over to Regina.
"Do you ever wear anything other than that ghastly black robe?" Regina asked, glancing at the black fabric that draped over Emma.
Emma looked down at her clothes with a frown. "What's wrong with this robe? It's comfy!"
Regina blinked, puzzled at the slang.
"Sorry, comfortable. But yes, I can definitely change if I want to." With a flourish, white smoke climbed to cover Emma, and once the smoke dissipated, Regina felt her mouth go dry.
Emma was wearing a gorgeous blood red dress, a generous v-cut showed cleavage that was previously well-hidden, and it did things to Regina's mind that made all the blood rush to her core. Her hair was gathered in a bun, showing off a splendid neck.
Regina licked her lips and had an idea. "Would you like to accompany me? There's to be a ball tonight..."
Emma smirked. "I'd love to."
The ball was a spectacle, and Regina felt like the luckiest woman ever to have Emma with her. She noticed the whispers wondering where Regina had procured the gorgeous blonde, but she ignored the gossip. Emma was here with her, and she couldn't be happier. Well, maybe if Snow White showed up on a silver platter so she could crush her heart and be done with this crusade, then she wouldn't be able to be happier.
Right now she was busy talking politics with the dignitaries of a foreign kingdom, and her eyes scanned the crowd. She found Emma easily enough, but she was not liking the attention her companion was receiving by a lecherous prince.
She murmured a quick apology as she excused herself and made her way to Emma.
"Prince Richard, may I help you with something?" Regina asked, sliding a hand to rest at the small of Emma's back, leaving no room for question as to what she was implying.
"Your Majesty! My deepest apologies, I was just taking my leave." Prince Richard quickly fled and left both women alone.
Emma turned and smirked at Regina. "I could have handled him you know."
"I do, but I still felt he deserved to be reminded of the Evil Queen's wrath."
Her companion chuckled at the quip, and Regina felt inspired. "Would you dance with me?"
Emma agreed and soon enough they were twirling around the room. "Congratulations Regina, you're officially dancing with Death."
Regina let out a laugh, finding a smile coming easily to her. "No, I'm dancing with Emma."
The vibrant smile she received in response was everything to Regina.
In that moment, Regina decided to take action. "Come on," she said, taking Emma's hand, leading them outside of the ballroom, and onto the quiet side hallway.
"Is everything okay Regina?" Emma asked.
Without preamble, Regina brought their faces together, and closed the distance by joining their lips. Regina felt Emma's initial reluctance, before wrapping her arms around Regina.
Before their kiss could deepen, Emma backed off.
"Emma?" Regina asked, her voice sounding small, something which hadn't happened in years.
"I'm sorry, I can't." In a puff of white smoke, Emma was gone, and Regina was left alone.
The curse was upon them, and Regina waltzed in, seeing a tear-stricken Snow White cradling her beloved Charming, who was bleeding from a chest wound. Two of her guards stood behind her nemesis, in front of the wardrobe.
"Leave us," Regina commanded her guards. She could handle the Charmings, especially if one half of it lay near death. Death. Would Emma come to collect Charming? She hadn't seen Emma since the kiss, not even when she had crushed her father's heart to enact this curse, but now wasn't the time to dwell. "Were you thinking of running away, sweet Snow?"
Snow looked much like Regina did many years ago, cradling her love to her. "Please Regina, don't do this."
"On the contrary Snow, I want to do this, and you need to suffer. No one is escaping this curse."
Soon enough the curse broke through the windows. Regina looked up gleefully, Emma far from her mind. Maybe now she could get her happy ending.
Regina was bored. Her life in Storybrooke was always the same. Groundhog Day had just come out, and she was finding a kindred spirit in Bill Murray's character, perpetually stuck in a loop. She could get away from Storybrooke for a while, but she always wound up finding her way back to Storybrooke, like a magnet called to metal. Though she was thankful she could return when she wanted, unlike in the movie where he was stuck there eternally and woke up every day in his hotel bed without fail.
On one particular day visiting New York City, Regina was struck with a thought. Maybe she could find Emma. She was too far away to take someone's life in Storybrooke, and trying to kill someone here would do her no good, especially without magic. So she walked up to a cruiser and knocked on the window, waiting until the man rolled down his window.
"Can I help you ma'am?"
"Yes Officer, I was wondering if you could direct me to the Metropolitan?" Regina asked.
While the man explained, she listened to the blaring of the dispatch radio. "There's a 187 over on 5th and 47th..."
On one of her many bored days, Regina had checked out a book on police dispatch codes from the Storybrooke Library. 187 meant homicide. 5th and 47th was just a little bit away.
"Did you get all that?" the officer asked.
She smiled at him. "Crystal clear! Thank you!"
A crowd was gathered, but police was trying to draw people back. The deceased was already covered and being loaded onto a vehicle. She couldn't find Emma anywhere, but then again, she had no magic here, so she wouldn't be able to readily see her. Emma had once told her that she had acute hearing. She hoped it'd work.
"I need to see you Emma, please," she whispered.
Nothing happened, and the officer in charge of crowd control was ushering her to leave, citing that there was nothing of interest for her to see. So Regina began walking back to her car, dejected.
"Regina?" She could barely hold her excitement as she turned and saw Emma, hair tied up in a ponytail, wearing a leather jacket, looking like an average New Yorker.
Without thinking, she just launched into the woman, hugging her tightly. "I missed you."
It had been more than a decade that they hadn't seen each other. "Me too," Emma responded, hugging her back with as much force.
Once they parted, Emma seemed to realize something. "Wait, how are you here?"
So Regina explained, while Emma listened with interest. Thankfully for their subject topic, in a busy city like New York, they were in no danger of being overheard as they walked.
"And now I'm here, trying to not go insane."
Emma chuckled. "And you tried to locate a homicide to find me? I'm flattered."
Regina said nothing at first, because she wasn't sure what to say. Then she took a deep breath and stopped walking, turning to Emma, who had also stopped. "I know that you probably don't want to talk about it, but I just want to get this out here. I care about you Emma, and that kiss all those years ago, it wasn't just an in the moment thing, and I was wondering if maybe you wanted to go on a date?"
"Regina..." Emma started, before sighing. Shifting to stand closer to Regina, she continued, "You know who I am, and the billion reasons why this wouldn't work."
"Emma, I don't mind who you are. I'm not afraid of you. Please try to give this a chance. All I'm asking for now is one date."
The blonde sighed. It was true, Regina was one of the few people in history who treated her as Emma, not Death. And Emma was head over heels for the gorgeous woman in front of her, but she never in a million years believed that it could go anywhere. For who would fall for Death?
"Okay, let's do this."
Regina's smile was worth it all for her.
Okay, plot bunny out of the way! For the most part at least.
I might make a second part to this or something, but only if there's interest, this is certainly not along the vein of what I usually write.
I'll now return to writing my scheduled stories.
I'd love to know your thoughts!