Operation Baby Dragon
Back Again:
"Ugh!" Regina groans as the jump into the portal completely messes with her balance. She knocks Maleficent over and lands on top of her. "Why does this keep happening?!"
"I think I landed on top of you last time," Maleficent half-chuckles underneath her.
"Sorry," Regina mutters as she tries to de-tangle her legs.
"Did you hear me complain? This is very nice," Maleficent drawls and takes the opportunity to grope Regina's rear.
"Thank you for the soft landing," Regina says as she finally manages to de-tangle her legs and rolls off Maleficent.
"Anytime, sweetheart," Maleficent chuckles.
Regina laughs quietly as she rubs her temples slightly. Portal jumping will never be her favorite way of travelling.
Maleficent recovers quicker and stands up, brushing the dirt off her slacks. Then she extends a hand out to Regina.
"Thank you," Regina says as she takes Maleficent's hand and stands up. They've landed right on a lawn. Regina recognizes this lawn. This is her old garden when she lived at the castle.
"This is not Lake Nostos," she comments.
"No, it's not," Maleficent agrees. "I might have thought about your castle instead of Lake Nostos when I threw that bean."
"Oh," Regina chuckles. "Feeling a little nostalgic?"
Maleficent shrugs. "Perhaps. But Lake Nostos isn't far from here."
"So it isn't," Regina nods. And then she smiles. "We've got some memories from this place too, haven't we?"
"Indeed. It's strange to be back," Maleficent says as they walk through the garden and up to the castle.
"I can only imagine." The last time Regina was here, was during the Missing Year. The year where they were fighting Zelena, and Regina was missing her son. This time it's different. It's just Regina and Maleficent here. Almost like the old days.
"I always did like your castle better," Maleficent comments as she takes Regina's hand.
"There's a better view from your castle," Regina says and squeezes Mal's fingers slightly. "I liked yours better. I felt more at home there."
"I should have thought of the Fortress instead," Maleficent muses. "But this one was closer to Lake Nostos."
"Indeed."
They walk inside the castle, and it looks so big now that Regina and Maleficent are the only ones here.
Maleficent looks cautious as she follows Regina into the grand library.
"What is it?" Regina asks and waves her hand. Fire immediately starts crackling in the big fire place. Good. The place is pretty drafty.
Maleficent shakes her head and laughs a little. "I keep expecting someone to burst in here and see us together."
"Oh," Regina chuckles slightly. She walks over to Maleficent and wraps her arms around her waist. "I can assure you that's not gonna happen. It's just you and me here. And we're quite official."
"Mates for life," Maleficent says plainly and smiles as she toys with the scaly, silver ring on Regina's finger.
"Exactly."
Maleficent kisses her deeply and quite convincing. So convincing, Regina almost forgets the actual purpose of this journey. Which is not to relieve old days.
"We could go into my old bedchambers," she hears herself suggest.
"What a lovely idea," Maleficent chuckles. "But I don't think that's why we came here."
"Just imagine..." Regina continues. "We wouldn't have to use any protection spells or put the entire castle to sleep. We could leave all doors wide open if that's what we wanted..."
"Oh, you're just full of good ideas, aren't you?" Maleficent snickers as she plants a light kiss on Regina's cheek. "Focus, my love. Lake Nostos."
"Right. Lake Nostos," Regina mutters and tries to snap out of it.
Maleficent chuckles again as she guides Regina over to one of the armchairs. "Now tell me, sweetheart. Did the flake of snow have anything useful to say regarding Lake Nostos?"
"You can't call her that anymore," Regina reminds the blonde and raises an eyebrow.
"Fine. Did the princess have anything useful to say?"
Regina shrugs. "Only what drinking the water did to her."
"And what did it do to her? I mean, besides the obvious? Is there anything we should look out for?" Maleficent asks, and she sounds so eager, Regina almost cringes.
"She felt warm. And happy," Regina says. "And sleepy. I suppose that's a part of the healing process or something like that."
"Alright. So if you feel the urge to take a nap after drinking the water, I'll know why," Maleficent says and snickers.
"Mmm," Regina mutters halfheartedly and looks into the flickering flames. Maleficent is so happy and excited. What if drinking from the lake won't work? What if I can't be healed? That potion was meant to be irreversible. How should drinking from the lake even help? Do I even deserve to be healed? I did this to myself. I chose to. Snow White was tricked. That's gotta make some sort of difference, right?
"You're nervous," Maleficent says gently as she takes Regina's hand.
"Yes," Regina nods. "You are so excited about this, and I don't want you to be..."
"Regina. Stop." Maleficent says firmly and puts a finger on Regina's lip. "Nothing you do will ever disappoint me, do you hear me? The fact alone that you're willing to try this..."
"But what if it won't work, Mal? What if the water can't heal me?" Regina mumbles.
Maleficent cups her cheek. "Then we've tried, right?"
"I suppose so." Regina sighs and leans into the touch. She flashes Maleficent a little smile. "I really want to carry your baby."
"I want that too," Maleficent smiles as she kneels down on the floor in front of Regina's chair. "But I would also be honored to carry our second child."
"At least that method is foolproof," Regina says halfheartedly and tries to joke a little.
And her bad joke elicits a little smile from Maleficent. "This is going to sound awful, my darling, but you just have to, ah... have hope."
"Oh my god," Regina says and shudders in mock fear.
"I know, I know. Dreadful, isn't it?" Maleficent chuckles.
Regina snickers as she pulls Maleficent in for another kiss. No, it doesn't sound particularly dreadful. It sounds like something she could do.
Have hope. Henry would be proud of her.
Since they're already here, they might as well use to Regina's old castle to something sensible. They end up scouring the library, and they actually find quite a few books about Lake Nostos and the lake's healing powers.
Maleficent gets more and more optimistic with each book they read.
Regina gets more and more nervous, but she tries her best to keep it at bay.
"See? Any curse can be broken, my darling," Maleficent says triumphantly as she slams another book closed.
"Yes, it would appear so," Regina says with a slight nod.
"Have hope," Maleficent teases.
Regina rolls her eyes.
The sky is beginning to darken, and they agree to head out on their journey first thing tomorrow.
"You'll get a full night of sleep before we leave," Maleficent says sweetly.
"I'm not sure I'll be able to sleep tonight," Regina says truthfully. "I'm too nervous."
"Do you want me to help you relax?" Maleficent asks and licks her lips. "Because I would be more than happy to assist you with that."
Regina chuckles. "Perhaps I'll take you up on that offer."
Maleficent's eyes gleams as she slinks closer to Regina. "Do you realize you look a bit silly wearing a pantsuit in the Enchanted Forest, darling?"
"I haven't really thought about that, but now that you mention it..." Regina says with a light shrug.
Maleficent smirks and then she flicks her wrist once.
Regina is immediately engulfed in Maleficent's signature grey magic, and when the grey swirl vaporizes, she finds that her hair is suddenly flowing all the way down to her back, and she's wearing a blue nightgown. A rather thin blue nightgown.
"Seriously?" she mock scowls at her life partner.
Maleficent just chuckles as she plays with a lock of Regina's now much longer hair.
"This nightgown is see-through, Maleficent," Regina complains. And now she's actually scowling. The castle is chilly, and the effect of the cold temperature is easy to spot if one looks at her chest.
And obviously, Maleficent does. And she's smirking as she does so.
"I like this nightgown," she tells Regina.
Regina shakes her head and sends her magically longer hair tumbling over one shoulder. "Was adding length to my hair really necessary? I look like I'm twenty years old again."
"Exactly," Maleficent says and flashes her a big smile.
"You do realize I'm not, right?" Regina says and sighs. "That was a long time ago."
"Not to me," Maleficent says and entwines their fingers. "You still look exactly the same."
"I'm pretty sure I have wrinkles," Regina says a bit dryly.
"Where?" Maleficent asks and squints. "I can't see any."
"Perhaps you need glasses," Regina quips.
"Oh. Well, I'm sure I would look fetching in glasses," Maleficent chuckles.
"I'm sure you would too." Regina snickers and then mutters under her breath. "I should have brought my anti-wrinkle cream."
Maleficent bites her lip. "I might have thrown that out."
"You what?" Regina narrows her eyes at her life partner.
"You don't need it," Maleficent defends.
"So you decided to just throw it out?"
"Yes."
Regina sighs. "Great. Do you realize how expensive that cream was?"
"No." Maleficent says innocently.
No, of course not. Maleficent hasn't lived long enough in Storybrooke to be familiar with how expensive anti-wrinkle cream is.
"I suppose I just have to buy a new cream," Regina mutters.
"Why?" Maleficent asks. "You don't need that anti-wrinkle stuff. You don't have wrinkles."
"Because I use the cream. If I stop, I will get them."
"No, you won't," Maleficent huffs stubbornly.
Regina shakes her head and abandons the argument. And reminds herself to buy a new anti-wrinkle cream when they get back.
"I really like this nightgown," Maleficent drawls.
"I'm pretty sure you already said that, dear," Regina chuckles. She flicks her own wrist and leaves Maleficent dressed in one of those thin, purple nightgowns the sorceress was so fond of in this realm.
"There," Regina teases. "That's better."
"Oh, really?"
"Mmm."
"You know, maybe we should head into your bedchamber and... leave the door open," Maleficent says saucily.
"Maybe we should," Regina snickers, but she doesn't attempt to move or initiate anything. Instead she silently counts. One. Two. Three. Four. Fi-
Maleficent grabs her hand and tugs her towards her old bedchambers. "Come on, little queen."
Regina chuckles. "I'm coming, dear."
Maleficent seems positively eager as they make it into Regina's old bedchambers and she pushes Regina down on the bed.
Regina snickers again. "Tell me, dear. What was the point with the nightgown?"
"I just figured you would be positively scandalized if my little spell left you naked," Maleficent smirks as she climbs on top of Regina.
"No," Regina denies. "Surprised, perhaps. But not scandalized."
Mal chuckles as she rucks Regina's nightgown up. "Oh, this is so much easier than those bras."
"I thought you loved my bras?"
"I do. But not the ones that are difficult to get off," Maleficent says as she slides the straps down Regina's shoulders. "I like the ones with front clasps. You should buy more of those."
"Duly noted."
"And thongs," Maleficent continues and now she's grinning again. "You should buy more of those too."
"You are awful," Regina laughs.
"Or perhaps we could shop for those together?" Maleficent suggests as she pulls the nightgown over Regina's head. It lands somewhere on the floor with a soft thud.
"Oh. You want me to try them on for you, is that it?" Regina drawls.
"Yes. That could be fun," Maleficent says plainly as she lowers her hands to Regina's breasts. "And I think we've talked enough about clothes now. I'd like to concentrate on what's underneath your clothes. Can you live with that, little one?"
"Definitely," Regina assures, and her head lolls back as Maleficent kisses her neck.
"I'll leave the door open," Maleficent quips.
"Good. There won't be coming anyone in here," Regina half-moans.
The thought of that certainly spurs Maleficent on, and Regina has to admit that it makes her ecstatic to know that for once, they don't have to sneak around in this castle.
They don't need to hide anymore.
To Be Continued...