Henry took a deep breath, steadying himself for what he was about to do. It had taken him a long time to figure everything out and he finally felt it was time to tell his mothers, yet he was still nervous about it.
He actually didn't think that either Regina or Emma would mind, but there was still that part of him that wanted to be the perfect son for them. He wasn't sure if this would take him out of the running or not.
So, he had decided to start with Maleficent.
If you were to ask someone to describe the dragon in one word, their answer would probably be 'patient.' She was certainly easy to talk to. It did not matter what the subject was, Mal would always listen and never judge. No matter what.
Henry knocked on the door to the basement, where Mal spent the majority of her time when her lovers were not home. He took one last deep breath as he heard her call to come in before turning the knob.
The blonde looked over her shoulder and smiled at Henry coming down the steps, yet she scrunched her brow in confusion. "Hey, what are you doing home? I thought you and Violet were going to the arcade after school."
"We were," the teen shrugged his shoulders and stuffed his hands in his pockets, "but there was something else I needed to do. What are you up to?"
"Nothing much, just rearranging some things. This room and my portion of the closet are the only areas of the house that your mother has freely given me complete decorating control." She was happy to see the boy give a small grin. It was obvious from the look on his face when he came in that something was bothering him. "What was it you needed to do Henry? Anything I can help with?"
"Yeah, actually, umm...can we sit down, please? There's something...something I want to talk to you about if you don't mind."
"Of course," Mal stepped toward him and took his shoulders to steer him towards the small seating area she had put on one side of the room. "I know I'm not your mother Henry, but I hope you know that you can trust me as if I was."
Henry smiled a little larger as he sat down, nodding his head, "Yeah I know, and I do, that's why I'm here. I uh...figured something out recently and wanted to talk to you about it before I tell my moms."
The blonde leaned back in her seat while Henry was leaning forward and tense. She hoped that seeing her so relaxed would help him to not be so nervous. "Take your time. Talk when you're ready."
The boy smirked, "How are you so patient all the time?"
"Centuries of living would make anyone patient. That being said, however, don't change the subject. Obviously, there's something you need to discuss. Anything you say is safe with me, I promise."
He blushed a little at getting caught trying to get off topic. He ran his hands over his knees and sighed, "Violet and I broke up last week."
"I'm sorry Henry," Mal reached out to squeeze his shoulder. "What happened?"
"I...I just realized that I didn't really feel the same as her I guess," he spoke almost tentatively. "When I told her we had a long talk about it and agreed to still be friends. I still care about her, just...just not in the way that she wanted me to I guess."
"I understand. Your first break-up is always hard, but I'm glad you followed your heart and went with how you feel. That takes a lot of strength Henry. I know it's hard but, you should be proud of yourself."
"Thank you," he gave a polite yet forced smile. Mal could easily tell there was something more to this story.
"You're very welcome. But was else is bothering you? And don't be like your mothers and say 'nothing.' Remember that I'm the reason you're passing algebra. The tutoring may stop if you begin lying to me," Mal smirked when Henry gave a small laugh.
"Yeah...yeah, there is more to it," he was glad he went to Maleficent. He was still nervous, yet a bit more relaxed. His mothers would probably just reflected his own nervousness.
"Um..." he wasn't sure how to start.
"Take your time," Mal smiled gently as she rubbed the shoulder where her hand still was.
Henry swallowed and licked his lips before he settled back against the seat. "I don't have the same feelings that I probably should," he spoke while looking down at his hands in his lap.
"What do you mean?" the dragon asked as she slowly lowered her hand to settle on the boy's forearm.
"I like her...but not, um, not sexually..." He looked away as he felt his cheeks heat up.
Mal smiled at the boy. She knew how embarrassing it must have been for him to talk about that.
"Henry that's perfectly normal. You can care for someone and not feel attracted to them. There's nothing wrong with that."
"What if...?" Henry paused. He knew that once he told Maleficent that everything would become much more real. There would be no going back. He looked back over to Mal with his blush still present. She was waiting patiently for him to speak.
"What if I'm not attracted to anybody? I...I think I might be asexual." He licked his lips nervously before looking the dragon directly in the eye to gauge her reaction. He was honestly expecting her to look at least a little surprised, yet her face still only showed understanding.
"Henry," she reached for his hand, "This is nothing to be embarrassed or ashamed about. If anything you should be proud of yourself."
"For what? It's not like this is a good thing."
"And having sexual attraction is? Henry, there is nothing good or bad about a person's sexuality, it's just a part of them. It's normal. Look at your mothers and I. There are many that would say that our relationship is wrong or abnormal, but it's not. It's who we are. We are women who fell in love with two other women. It's not bad. It's not good. It's just who we are and we are not ashamed of it."
She squeezed his hand and made sure to lock eyes with him before she continued, "As long as it always consensual for all parties involved, then there will never be anything wrong with a person's sexuality, including yours. It just makes it a part of you."
"You think my moms will think the same way? I know they both want me to find my happy ending one day. I doubt the type of relationship I want is what they have in mind."
"You think you'll be disappointing them?" After Henry gave a shy nod she spoke again, "Henry they love you more than anything. They won't care in the least about who you choose to love or how you love them. Happy endings come in all shapes and sizes. Not all of them have to end the same way your grandparents did. As long as you stay true to yourself then both your mothers will be proud of you and," she takes a moment to run her hand through his already ruffled hair, "so will I."
The boy gave a soft smile before scooting over to the dragon and pulling her into a hug. "Thanks, Mal."
Maleficent smiled and hugged Henry back, "You're welcome dear. And I meant every word. Never be ashamed of who you are."
Henry pulled back from the hug while nodding, "Can you still be there when I tell my moms? I believe you, that they'll always love and be there for me," he said with a shrug before blushing again. "But it still might easier if you're there."
"Of course I will Henry."
Suddenly the boy smirked, "What is it about you that makes you so easy to talk to?"
"Your mother. After she showed me what having other people in my life could feel like it became easier for me to listen to others. When Regina first entered my fortress I wanted her gone, but she wormed her way into it and into my life. Dragons are very solitary creatures so I was not used spending time with others. With Poppet, however, I quickly found myself looking forward to her visits. She made me realize how lonely I was. I hung onto every word she spoke because I was afraid that a day may come where she would not speak to me again. I was afraid one day that she would see the beast that I am and run and never look back. I am eternally grateful that, despite my rudeness towards her at first, she did not back down and persisted on being a part of my life."
"That makes four of us then," Henry said with a smile, knowing that if it was not for what happened in the past that their family probably would not exist the way it did today.
The dragon's eyes watered slightly before she leaned forward to kiss the boy on his temple. Henry was the closed thing she would ever have to a son of her own. Since the day he had accepted her into his family, she vowed to love and protect him just as she would Lily.
"We still have a few hours before my moms get home. Need help with the shelves?"
"You were the one that helped me set them up in the first place so I suppose you could certainly help me rearrange them. If you don't mind, that is."
"Not at all. You're much easier to work with on these sort of things. Mom always changes her mind about what would look good where and Ma tries her best to show off by lifting the heavy stuff herself and won't let me help her until Mom tells her to."
Mal laughed at loud at that, "Certainly sounds like them."