No Regrets

Chapter 1

Hearing her sister's and Gold's heated argument, Regina cautiously approached. There was a shout "No!" Then a piercing scream.

Regina ran.

Gold stood alone at the edge of the cliff. "She's dead."

Regina looked over the cliff. Far below, on the rocks, body twisted at unnatural angles, lay Zelena.

"She killed my son. I told her I would kill her someday for that."

Regina glared at him. But inside, things were at war. One part of her raged at the loss of her sister. But another, darker side rejoiced that the woman who had been responsible for Robin's death, and so much pain before that, was dead. But overwhelming both was a resigned hopelessness. All that ever surrounded her was death.

"I wouldn't worry about her, dearie. She's certain to be plotting to take over the underworld already. She's merely dead, her soul, as you know now, lives on."

"You dare!" Rage tinged her voice at Gold's cruel reminder of Robin's death- not even his soul survived.

He reached into his jacket "Speaking of souls" Gold pulled a small bag out and held it toward her.

"You didn't."

"Glad I did now, aren't you?"

"Why?"

"Not for the reasons you might think. Nothing to do with him or you. I have no use for it anymore, but I think you do." He looked at her sympathetically.

For a moment, Regina tried resisting this probable manipulation, but this was Robin's soul heart. She took the strings of the bag. Once she held it close to her own heart she said "You think this will stop me from wanting to kill you."

He scoffed at her threat. "It's not always a game. I don't know if I'll ever have Belle back again. But I still have a chance. Perhaps I just feel you deserved to have a chance too."

Regina sighed. "I think something hates me even more than it hates you."

"Because you did what hasn't been done, not by anyone as deep in the darkness as you were. You not only wanted to come back to the light, you did. That breaks the rules."

"Whose rules?"

"Don't know much more than you, it's not the author though, at least not any of the recent ones. But this curse, if you will, it goes back further than your mother's birth, Perhaps even before mine."

"Are you saying there's a curse on my family on top of everything else? Now you tell me?"

"I haven't known about it that long, dearie." Gold sneered in annoyance

"What is it? Stop being cryptic, Gold."

"Not much to tell, at least from what I saw."

"Why were you researching my family?"

"I wasn't. I was looking for ways to free Belle-"

"From the sleeping curse, without true love's kiss."

"Yes. Your family curse was mentioned in one of the books, merely in passing."

Regina gave him a skeptical look. "No, I think you're holding something back, you know more."

Gold sighed and shrugged. "No details on why or when, but that it could be broken."

"How."

"By what you've done, turning back toward the light."

"Something wants me to fail, so the curse continues… Robyn, she's a Mills girl by blood… if I fail it continues onto her. I won't let that happen!"

"You're her only chance now."

"I already was."

"So you knew Zelena was falling back into darkness."

"Yes. I recognized it. Maybe she wouldn't have targeted Robyn or me, not intentionally, but she has no control, any frustration draws her right back into the darkness. Hades proved that."

"She freely choose the darkness, just like your mother. You didn't, not until you were broken."

"By you."

"Not just me, your mother, and your husband."

Regina shuddered, "You knew about that? I never told anyone. Even Robin, he guessed. I didn't, I couldn't talk about it, even to him, until…"

"Until your sister hurt him."

"I don't want to talk about that with you. Where did my sister leave Robyn?"

"In the Diner."

Regina hoped Zelena hadn't just left the helpless newborn there on some table. Someone would have stepped in to watch her anyway, but Zelena was not particularly skilled at taking care of anyone, far less a baby. And Gold was a master manipulator. If he had started the argument there, Zelena wouldn't even have had a passing thought of Robyn. Well, that would no longer be an issue. Regina was determined to give Robyn every bit of her devoted care, the same as Henry had when he was a baby. Save her from some horrid family curse as well, no matter the price.

She poofed into Granny's, Snow was trying to entertain both baby Neal and baby Robyn. Regina rolled her eyes, it would be her step daughter…

"Regina? Your sister just left, what happened?"

"Zelena's dead, Gold killed her."

"Regina?" Snow looked scared.

Regina sighed. "This isn't going to set me off the edge, Snow. I just want to take Robyn and go home. Could you call Henry and tell him what happened? Tell him I'm fine, as much as I can be."

"Do you want us to take care of things about Zelena?"

"Yeah. You'll probably need Emma's magic to get her body. Gold pushed her off the cliff."

"But Zelena has magic."

"Nufflication cuff. I could see it on her arm."

"What happened?"

"He followed through on his threat. She killed his son, so he killed her."

"I meant with you."

"It was odd. No mocking, no threats, we talked. Things I need to think on. I think he's nearly as resigned to his fate as I am."

"Regina, you're not alone, not anymore. You have us."

"I also have a newborn to get home and I need time just for us alone."

"Of course. Do you want Henry to stay with us for the night, like when Robin-"

"No, I'd rather have him home this time."

"I'll tell him, he'll be relieved."

"I know. But I'm really tired now Snow. I just want to get home and get some rest."

"Okay."

As soon as she got home she poofed a heart box onto her night stand and gently lay Robin's soul heart in it and closed the lid. She immediately did a protection spell so only she could open it.

Then she went into the spare room and poofed a nursery in place. She cuddled her sleepy niece and laid her in the crib.

As she lay in the bed, she wished Roland was here to be with what was left of his family. She had begun to see him as her child too, the family she and Robin were making together. If only she hadn't been a grieving, sobbing mess in this bed, when Little John took Roland through that damn portal. She was angry at the stupid man, but knew it had been his own grief that had caused the rash decision. He probably thought taking Roland away from the place where his friend had died he would keep Roland safe. If only she'd been able to keep it together, maybe she could have convinced the man to let Roland stay with her, not go to the dubious safety of a life on the run as outlaws in the Enchanted Forest

She had made it through that awful wake for Robin, made even more painful by the poor choice of that damn pirate to show his face there. Regina still felt angry and bitter about that now, three weeks later. After she'd had enough she'd just poofed herself away and collapsed here. Crying herself sick. Shutting everyone out. She'd only emerged three days ago, to find Roland gone. She'd tried opening the portal with that damn wand and failed. She'd even managed to get Zelena to try to reopen it, with no better luck. Not only had she lost Robin but she'd never see his dimple-cheeked son again. Now she discovers her family has been cursed for generations.. Even making it back to the light didn't break the curse, it just brought down the curse in more devastating ways. Yet, Regina opened her eyes, making it back to the light was the key, if only she could find out what would break it…