Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Once Upon a Time.

Author's Note: Hello! To my loyal Repo! readers, I am not abandoning the story. My muse has been screaming for me to write this, and maybe now she'll shut up. Yes, Armina has returned, but she's not the same as the Underground version. Her husband is different, and so is his title. I mostly used her name and powers and shaped her into a completely different character. Enjoy! R&R

After an hour, the intersection began to clear, and the residents of Storybrooke went to their homes and businesses once more. Armina had since gotten up and talked with the citizens, remembering the life that was so cruelly taken away from them. Snow White and her prince snuck away to continue their reunion while Henry followed Armina around.

Armina and Andrew were dragged by Henry into Granny's Diner, where he insisted they sit and talk. The King and Queen of Beasts were good-natured about the boy's demands, and gladly followed him to his favorite booth in the corner of the diner.

"What do you want to know, Henry?" asked the queen, after they had sat down.

"Where were you all these years? My grandmother, Snow White, said that you used to teach Latin to the high school kids, but then you just disappeared," he said, his eagerness for her answer apparent on his face.

"I was…a prisoner, Henry. I lost all the power that my lineage afforded me. I was in a jail."

"I never saw you at the police station, though," Emma said, her brow furrowed in confusion.

"I wasn't placed in your jail, Emma. I was trapped by my lack of the power I had so foolishly taken for granted. When we came here, I still had the riches from my plundering in the other world. I built a house in the forest—the only place I've ever felt happy—and Andrew started a lumber business while I worked as the high school Latin teacher. I befriended the gypsies that I sent to find Regina. They were some former elven warriors for my cause, along with their families. In exchange for work, they lived on my property rent-free. The funny thing is, Regina thought she could keep Andrew and I apart," she added, a smile lighting up his face.

"Why couldn't you challenge her? You are the greatest of the beasts, right? It's in your title!" pressed Henry.

"I can't explain it, Henry. She just stripped me of all my power. Being that the power was inborn, and not gleaned from a dark outside source, I was left in such a state of weakness that I couldn't defend myself when she brought us here. I cursed her name with every word I spoke. I knew what my life was like before she cast the curse," she said, punctuating her sentence with a yawn.

King Andrew finally spoke as he got up out of the booth, taking her hand. "You need rest, love. The return of your power has drained you."

"Okay, can we talk again tomorrow?" asked Henry, still sitting in the booth.

"I suppose. Do you have a place to stay for the night?" asked Armina, looking to Emma for an answer.

"Um, I think Mary's apartment is probably…occupied. I don't think Henry wants to live in Regina's house, either. I don't want to impose, though," said Emma.

"It's no problem, my dear. I have a house that is more than sufficient. You may want to follow us in your car; I don't think it's legal for the boy to be sitting in the bed of my truck."

"Yeah, I've got a car," said Emma.

The queen indicated to Emma that she lead, following her and Henry to Emma's car. Emma and Henry piled in Emma's beetle, with Henry excitedly sitting in the front seat. He was ecstatic about seeing a real castle for the first time. Armina led them through the twisting road until it turned to a single-lane gravel road, which took a sharp incline.

The little Volkswagen struggled to keep its grip as it crawled up the gravel road. Just as Emma thought the drive couldn't be any longer, the road leveled off and revealed a sprawling estate. A three-story house stood proudly at the rear of the clearing.

Leading up to the house was a cobblestone driveway lined with quaint little houses, obviously for the gypsies she housed on the property. A barn hung off to the left of the house, its lights extinguished for the night.

The houses were all dark, their residents presumably asleep or in town at the moment. Emma stopped gawking and parked her car behind Armina's truck.

She climbed out and followed the monarchs into the largest house—the one at the end of the drive—that Armina must have bought with her plundered gold. The house wasn't as grand as it appeared on the outside.

The living room off to the right of the main staircase was adorned with old swords and armor. Paintings of mythical creatures covered the walls, their frames covered in gold leaf. An unfinished one sat on an easel, the light pencil outline still being perfected. The theme seemed to be gold and red. Red curtains trimmed with short gold fringe covered most every window in the place.

"Emma? If you will join us, your rooms will be on the second floor," said the queen as she began to ascend the red-carpeted stairs.

Emma grabbed onto Henry, who was closely studying the image of a centaur warrior. Henry caught on quickly, and passed her on the stairs, staying right on the monarchs' heels. "How many rooms do you have?" asked Henry in awe.

"Too many for Armina and me," said Andrew good-naturedly. "Truthfully, I've never bothered to count. Perhaps you could do that for me, mi pueri." Henry smiled at recognizing something the man said in Latin.

They made it to the second floor and stopped at the first room. "You will sleep here, Henry. I figured you would want your own room, yes?" asked Armina as she pushed the door open to his room. He poked his head into the room and saw it was furnished much the same as the rest of the house.

"I'll take my own room, thanks. Goodnight, Emma," he said with a smile. He turned to the King and Queen of Beasts and said, "Goodnight, your majesties."

With a nod from each of the monarchs, Henry went in to explore his room. "You'll be staying next door, if that's alright with you," said Armina, opening the next door.

"That's fine, thanks."

"There's a shower and a private bathroom in your room, like Henry's. There should be clothes in there that should fit you."

"How-" Emma started, but was cut off by Armina.

"I may be a little tired with my powers returning to me, but I've still got the ability to conjure clothing," said Armina as she began to walk away. "Goodnight, Princess Emma, your adventure begins tomorrow."

Without another word, the King and Queen disappeared into thin air, presumably to their own chambers. With a sigh, Emma walked into the lavish room, peeling off her leather jacket in the process. She tossed the jacked onto the bed and collapsed next to it.

After nearly falling asleep in her clothes, she decided a shower was in order. She walked over to the closet and opened it to find a modest collection of artfully-faded jeans and plain white t-shirts mixed with sweatpants and other articles of clothing. She picked out a t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants and walked into the massive bathroom.

She drew a bath and soaked for a while. After nearly an hour, she crawled into bed and needed no prompting to fall asleep.