Regina was more than certain no one would find her there, in this remote little cabin in the middle of the woods. She didn't know who it belonged to and quite frankly she didn't care. It looked like it hadn't been lived in in...well twenty eight years. And so she claimed it for her own.

There was no way she could return to the town and live in her own home. The darling Charmings had her head out for a murder, that this time, she did not commit. Emma had turned her own son against her and because Archie was dead there was now no one that could speak on her behalf.

She absolutely hated the thought of living alone but there was no life that waited for her back in Storybrooke. She even debated walking across the town line to forget everything she's ever done, to forget that everyone hated her and wanted her nothing but dead. To forget the hurt and the pain that came out of losing her only friend in the town, to losing her son and to losing Daniel...again. And though she decided against it for the moment, there was still that little part of her that kept that option open. It all depended on how long she lasted in this cabin all by herself. Her sanity was hanging by a very thin thread and it wouldn't hold out much longer.

She didn't bother lighting a fire. The people in that town were dumb but she didn't think they were that dumb. So instead she just found a blanket and curled up on the couch, getting lost in her thoughts.

She was roused from a light sleep she had dozed off into by a rustling coming from outside. She was immediately off the couch, the blanket falling to her feet and she turned toward the door, holding her hand out ready to fight off whoever had come to disturb her.

The rustling kept getting closer and closer and she could hear whoever it was circling the house. She narrowed her eyes, jumping only slightly as a bang came onto the front door.

And then, to her surprise she heard an animalistic whine. She knew it didn't belong to a human.

She slowly lowered her hand and made her way over to the door. As she neared the door she could hear scratching against the wood and soft cries emitting from the creature. Curiosity pulling at her more than anything, she pulled open the door and felt her jaw drop as she saw what stood at the door.

Archie's beloved dog Pongo looked up at her, his ears perked and tail wagging.

"Pongo?"

At the sound of his name, Pongo barked and ran past her into the cabin. She followed him with her eyes as he pranced in and watched as he sniffed around the cabin before turning around to face her and barked again.

She closed the door and began to walk toward him. Part of her began to wonder if he had become the sheriff's bloodhound and was leading them straight toward her but he wasn't trying to alert anybody, he just sat down in the middle of the floor, staring at her.

"What are you doing here, boy?" She reached out to scratched behind his ears and he leaned into her palm, swishing his tail against the wood floor.

Then he stood up and trotted over to the couch, hopping up on one side and barked. She furrowed her brow and walked over to stand in front of him.

He whined and lifted his paw toward her.

Regina turned her head curiously and then took a seat beside him on the couch. Almost instantly, Pongo turned to face her and moved so he was sprawled out across the couch, his head resting in her lap. Then he whined as he looked up at her with his big brown eyes, lifting his paw to rest over her knee.

She hesitantly reached down and ran her fingers over his soft fur. His tail started moving back and forth as he tilted his head, pressing it further into her lap.

Despite herself, Regina felt a sudden warmth and tightness in her chest and tears start to prick behind her eyes. She didn't even think of what would happen to Pongo now that Archie was gone but she knew Pongo was loyal to his master and now that he was gone...the one person he came to find...was her.

She hadn't felt the love of an animal since Rocinante and that had ended abruptly after Daniel was killed and she was shipped off to live with King Leopold in his castle.

She had never considered a love an animal to make her feel something other than absolute loneliness. She knew Maleficent had her unicorn but Regina always thought her love for that creature was ridiculous.

But as she sat now, with everyone hating her, except for this dog who was curled up on her lap, she realized it was not ridiculous at all.

She bit down on her lip softly and closed her eyes, a single tear rolling down her cheek. Her arm tightened around Pongo's body as she leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of his head. "Thank you." She whispered.

Pongo lifted his head with a whine and for once in a very long time, a genuine peel of laughter escaped her lips as his wet tongue slobbered her cheek with a kiss.