The rain on the wet pavement caused her to nearly slip as she exited the diner. Her dripping auburn hair whipped her face, and her scarlet scarf nearly flew off her neck, but she didn't care. As she climbed into her car to escape the rain and all-too-recently befallen heartache, Regina Mills only had one thought in her mind:

Kill Emma Swan.

The words rang over and over like a battle cry from an angry crowd. But the chant was hers alone, playing on repeat as Regina drove home through the rain, hands clamped to the steering wheel, eyes glued to the road and teeth clenched until her jaw ached.

Kill Emma Swan. Kill Emma Swan. Kill Emma Swan.

Regina knew she couldn't actually execute the blonde life-ruiner; she had merely gotten Henry back, and she wasn't about to lose him again. And killing Emma Swan would definitely result in her losing him. Again. Still, something had to be done to mend the irreparable damage to Regina's heart. Damage caused by Emma. So Regina's mind worked in overtime until she concocted a new chant to occupy her mind:

Ruin Emma Swan's life.

The house was quiet when Regina entered the kitchen, and although the quietness had been a staple in the large mansion lately, tonight the lack of sound was especially palpable.

Recently, Henry had been staying with Emma, and Regina had been left alone to her own devices…and her own peacefulness. Even though she missed having Henry around, Regina had to admit that she often enjoyed the unobtrusiveness the house offered when it was just her. But not tonight. Tonight, the silence was almost too much to bear.

After flipping on all of the lights in the kitchen and living room, Regina proceeded to find a music station on her TV after scrolling through the thousands of channels she never bothered to take advantage of. The sounds of country rock drifted through her television speakers, the first music channel Regina could find. Normally she hated country music, but tonight it served its sole purpose: background noise to block out the voices in Regina's head and the pain in her heart.

The rational side of Regina tried to tell her that Marion returning to Storybrooke wasn't Emma Swan's fault; she had accidentally got sucked into the past and thought that bringing back a stowaway – one that Regina had killed in a past life – was a harmless, courteous gesture. But Regina knew better than anybody, if someone altered the past, their present was also changed. And for Regina, that one tiny alter that Emma made was a life changing one.

Regina was done being rational. Anyone that knew her knew that she wasn't a rational person. If she wanted something done, she'd do it. If she needed something to be taken care of, she'd take care of it. It was as simple as that.

The solution to Regina's problem, however, wasn't as simple as just "taking care of something." There was Henry to consider. If something were to mysteriously happen to his birth mother, who wouldn't immediately turn around and blame Regina? They had every right to, too. If something bad happened to Emma Swan, Regina was usually the one to blame.

So outright harming Emma wasn't going to work for Regina. She needed a much, much sneakier plan.

Even with the hideous country music playing in the background, when the doorbell rang twenty minutes after she had returned home, Regina was more than startled. Who the hell would be visiting her at this time of night? Honestly, besides a select few people, who the hell visited Regina at all?

Despite her best forced efforts, Regina couldn't compose a nonchalant face when she opened the front door to find Robin Hood standing before her, dripping wet from his scruffy beard all the way down to his pant cuffs. And although her brain told her that he was probably freezing standing there in the cold rain, Regina's brain couldn't work fast enough to invite him in.

He smiled at her, much like he had been doing too often over the past month, his head slightly cocked to the side, his mouth barely showing teeth.

"Can…I come in?" He finally asked, his small smile never leaving his face.

Regina stepped back, a wordless invitation, and Robin Hood's feet planted on the rug inside the entryway, closing the large door behind him.

"By the look on your face," he said, slowly peeling off his jacket and draping it over one arm, holding it uncomfortably with the other, "you're surprised to see me."

"Uh, can you blame me?" Regina stammered, her first spoken words since her threat to Emma at the diner almost an hour ago. "What are you doing here, Robin?"

"I came to explain."

"There's nothing to explain," Regina deadpanned and walked through the kitchen into the living room.

Without looking behind her, she could hear Robin Hood remove his shoes and follow her. She thought about sitting down – Robin Hood's visit was beginning to make her dizzy – but sitting would imply a lengthy conversation, and Regina earnestly preferred to get this over with.

"I had no idea she was back," Robin Hood told her, sincerity and hope swimming in his eyes.

"I know."

"You have to believe me."

"I do."

The two stood facing each other, soft twangy music engrossing the tension-filled air.

"You have to understand," Robin Hood finally spoke, "that it was never my intention to hurt you."

"Oh, for God's sake, Robin, would you just get this over with?" Regina snapped.

She was beginning to empathize with her victims to whom she had forced slow and painful deaths upon.

Regina looked up at Robin Hood, his eyes unable to meet hers. He looked guilty. He looked sad.

"I thought she was dead," he said, his voice merely a whisper. "We have a son together. It's wrong not to give it another try."

"I understand," Regina said, using the same soft tone he had.

And the sad thing was, she really did understand. If the ex-love-of-her-life had appeared out of the blue, alive and well, there would have been no stopping Regina from pursuing the relationship and throwing her whole heart into it again. In fact, she had already done that once before.

But understanding or not, Regina Mills was not someone you dumped and left by the curbside. She wasn't to appear vulnerable or heartbroken. She was strong and fearless, her head always held high. She was the Evil Queen, for crying out loud!

"I think you should go," Regina said suddenly, and she floated towards the front door.

She wanted to end with a snarky comment about not wanting to leave the wife waiting or not letting the door hit him on the way out, but she couldn't find it in her heart to make the words come out. What had happened to her? Where had the strong and fearless Evil Queen gone? And more importantly, what did Regina need to do to get her back?