It had been six weeks since Emma had returned from New York and most of Storybrooke's citizens wished she had never returned. Emma Swan was a force to be reckoned with and she brought her wrath down on a daily basis.

It had all started when Emma and Henry had been walking through town and Happy – the dwarf – accidently bumped into Henry, causing him to stumble back while he regained his balance. Emma had screamed and shoved Happy into the nearest wall, her hand wrapped around his throat, as she hissed, "Careful, you insolent midget. You almost killed my son."

Regina had watched the entire scene unfold from across the street and came to Happy's aid as she pulled Emma away from him, "Miss Swan, what in the hell are you doing?" The anger she felt immediately died down when she noticed the sheer look of panic on Emma's face. "Emma?"

"I-I.." Emma looked at Happy, "God, I'm sorry. I don't know what came over me."

"It's okay," Happy mumbled as he took off, leaving a dumbfounded Emma behind.

"Are you okay, Henry?" Regina asked as she placed a hand on his shoulder and she smiled when he nodded. "Why don't you go to the arcade for a while, hm?" She gave him some money and looked at Emma when Henry had left. "What's going on, Emma?"

Emma burrowed her hands into her hair, "I don't know. I thought Henry was hurt."

"He's fine, he just stumbled a bit. I'm sure Happy didn't mean to hurt him. Accidents happen all the time," Regina said calmly as she took in Emma's features. The woman looked fatigued, and as if she'd lost weight over the past couple of weeks. She wanted to reach out to Emma, but when she noticed the way the blonde's chest was heaving, she knew the gesture would be unwelcome. "Emma?"

"Yeah, I know. I should go," Emma said as she took off and Regina didn't bother to follow.

It wasn't even a week later when Emma had snapped at Mary Margaret when she tried to hug her daughter at Granny's. Regina had sat in one of the booths and lightly shook her head at the hurt that she caused within her family. Emma Swan had become a walking time bomb, she would snap and become irritated when people brought up New York, and Regina couldn't remember the last time she had seen a genuine smile on the woman's face.

"Mom, something's wrong with Ma," Henry had said quietly later that evening as they huddled together in front of the TV. "She has nightmares and she's... She's not very kind lately, except to me."

Regina nodded, Emma had become extremely protective of Henry over the last couple of weeks and was ready to shoot anyone who even dared to look at him twice. She had tried to speak to Emma about her behavior, but it was nearly impossible to have a decent conversation with the blonde. Even Mary Margaret and David were at their wit's end with their daughter's behavior. Emma had become bitter, numb and was constantly on edge when she was in the company of other people.

"I know, My Little Prince," Regina murmured as she placed a kiss on the top of his head. "How do you know about the nightmares? Does she talk to you about them?"

Henry shook his head, "I hear her scream at night, she always wakes up drenched in sweat, but when I try to talk to her she just smiles and tells me to go back to bed. It's like she's not really here anymore."

Regina nodded, "You know she loves you, right?"

"I know, but I don't like to see her like this. I just want my mom back," he whispered before throwing his arms around Regina as he softly cried. "Please, help her."

"I will," Regina said as she comforted her son. "I promise."

Later that night, as she lay in bed, she sighed. Making a promise to her son that she would help Emma might be more problematic than she initially thought it would be. She tried to think back to the night that the younger woman had left. Wasn't that when it had all started?

"Regina, I'm leaving for a while. I've already said goodbye to Henry. You have my number in case you need to get in contact with me," Emma rattled her words off quickly before she turned around to leave for her car.

"Emma, wait!" Regina called after her." Why are you leaving? What's going on?"

"I'm going to New York. Killian and I... We- We broke up and I need some time. I can't stay here, Regina. It hurts too much," Emma stammered out.

Regina frowned as she looked at Emma, "You broke up with Captain Guy-Liner? Why?"

Emma shook her head, "He broke up with me. Or it was mutual, I don't know. It doesn't matter anyway. Please don't make this any harder than it already is, Regina. I don't want to talk about it, I just want to go."

" So you're running," Regina huffed. "Typical Emma Swan move." She frowned when she noticed the tears well up in the blonde's eyes. "You're not telling me the entire story, Emma." Her eyes narrowed in frustration, Emma Swan was stubborn as hell and it was damn near impossible to let the blonde leave like this – except, she didn't have a choice.

"I have to go and pack. I'll call Henry when I've arrived." With that Emma turned around and left a flabbergasted Regina behind.

Regina sighed. Emma had kept her promise and called Henry as soon as she had arrived, but then no one heard from her for days and she had to console her son and make up excuses for the woman who had left so suddenly.

She wracked her brain trying to come up with ways to make Emma open up but the only solution she could see was to slip Emma a truth serum and she was sure that was only going to backfire, not to mention that she needed a pure heart to make the potion, and she was no longer in the "taking hearts business."

She rolled over in bed and closed her eyes. Dealing with the savior might be more problematic than she thought it would be. She wanted to keep her promise to Henry, she just had no idea how to go about it. There was one thought that came to mind, but to actually go through with that plan meant she would have to invade Emma's privacy and she wasn't sure if she was ready to deal with the repercussions of that.

The decision was practically made for her though when she had entered the Sheriff's office and found Emma and David in a one-sided screaming match.

"Why can't you people just leave me alone?" Emma screamed as she stomped her foot on the floor in utter frustration. Tears were streaming down her face and Regina frowned at the scene she had walked in on.

"What the hell is going on?" Regina inquired as she stepped further inside.

David sighed, "It's family business, Regina. Stay out of it."

"Idiot," Regina hissed. "Emma is the mother of my child. I am practically family. Remember how your wife was my stepdaughter?"

David rolled his eyes, "That was forty years ago. Another lifetime. Out here you're Regina and we're Mary-Margaret and David who are having an issue with their child."

"Do not talk about me as if I'm not here," Emma yelled as she was on the verge of tears. "There is nothing wrong with me. Stop doting on me, stop treating me like a fragile flower, and for the love of god...stop touching me! I just want to do my job!"

It had taken a week of weighing pro's and con's and when Emma stopped showing up for work and completely isolated herself from her family and friends, Regina made the executive decision to do exactly as she had promised Henry. It was a decision that led her to knock on the door of a New York apartment. She inhaled sharply when the door opened and a kind-looking woman looked at her, "Hi, my name is-"

"Regina," the woman smiled.

Regina frowned, "You know me?"

"I'm Madison, Emma' s roommate for the last couple of months and her neighbor before that. You're Henry's other mother, Emma spoke about you quite a lot."

Regina's cheeks flushed a shade of pink for a brief moment, "Nothing but good words, I hope?"

"Only the best," Madison smiled as she looked past Regina. "Is Emma with you?"

Regina coughed, "No, but I'm here because of Emma. Do you think I might come in?"

Madison nodded and motioned for Regina to come in and sit down on the couch, "Can I get you anything to drink?"

"Water would be fine, thank you." Regina smiled as Madison walked to the kitchen. Her eyes wandered over the pictures on the wall, Henry had told her many stories about Madison and she felt as if she somewhat knew the woman, despite having never met her before. Madison was absolutely gorgeous, she would have to be blind not to notice it. She smiled when she saw a picture of Emma and Madison, they both looked happy and it was the first time in a while Regina actually saw Emma's genuine smile and it made her heart ache. Madison and Emma seemed like polar opposites of each other, Emma's skin pale and her hair blonder than she had ever seen it, while Madison's hair was pitch-black and her skin was brown with warm orange-red undertones.

Madison smiled as she handed Regina a glass of water and sat down, "Is Emma okay? She has completely dropped off the face of the earth for me, which makes sense, but I do miss her."

Regina nodded, "I don't really know what to say. The Emma that came back from New York is not the Emma that I have gotten to know over the last couple of years. We have all tried talking to her, but she refuses to tell us what happened after she arrived in New York. I was hoping you could shed some light on exactly what happened. I can understand if you would have issues with that, but I'm hoping you might be willing to look past that for the sake of our son."

Madison frowned, "You don't know what happened?"

"No. All I know is that Emma broke up with her boyfriend and needed space and in order to get some, she packed her bags and left for New York," Regina said matter-of-factly.

Madison frowned and sighed, "Emma called me after she broke up with... I can't remember his name."

"Killian."

"That's right, Killian. She asked if she could stay with me for a couple of months and I agreed. I missed her a great deal, she was a good friend of mine and I was happy to see her return. She didn't give me too much information, so imagine my surprise when she showed up, pregnant and all," Madison smiled a sad smile.

Regina blinked and stumbled over her words, "I-I'm sorry... Did you say… pregnant?"

Madison nodded, "Emma was six months pregnant when she left for New York, surely you knew that?"

Regina was absolutely flabbergasted. "I had no idea, no one did. Are you sure? This is Emma Swan we're talking about, right?"

"The one and only."

"I can't believe it. Six months? How could I not have seen that?" Regina bit her lip as she tried to think about the six months where Emma had been pregnant, but nothing stood out, except for the change in wardrobe. Oh god – the oversized sweaters. "I've been so blind."

"I'm a little shocked that she didn't tell you, to be honest. She often spoke fondly of you, it seemed as if you two were... close friends?" Madison asked in confusion.

"I suppose we became closer the last couple of months, but I don't know what to say. I've greatly failed Emma as a friend if I didn't even see that she was pregnant," Regina reasoned.

"I wouldn't be so harsh on yourself, she didn't have the huge belly, not even when she was about ready to pop. You could look at her from behind and not see a damn thing."

"I- I'm sorry. I'm just incredibly shocked. Why wouldn't she tell us? What happened to the baby? Oh- Oh god, did she give it up for adoption?" Regina asked in horror, she knew Emma would never forgive herself for that in the long run.

Madison took a deep breath, "I think I should tell you the entire story from the beginning. When Emma came here she was six months pregnant. She didn't know the first couple of months, she took a test when she was four months pregnant and when she finally went to speak to Killian about it, he freaked out on her. Said he wasn't ready to be a father, that a child wasn't something he wanted or had planned on in his endeavors with her."

Regina grumbled, "Fucking pirate."

"What?"

"Nothing, please continue."

"Emma was incredibly sad when she first came here. Wouldn't leave the bed for days, that all changed though when she got her first ultrasound. The moment she heard the heartbeat was the moment the light in her eyes returned. Before that she spoke of giving the baby up for adoption, much like she had done with Henry before. I think it greatly pained her to even think of it, but you know what Emma's like, always underestimates her own capabilities."

Regina nodded.

"She became more determined to take the baby home with her. Tried to think of ways to tell her family, but she always came up empty. She knew people would be furious at her for keeping this a secret, and I think that's why she never told anyone. She wasn't ready to deal with questions, she just wanted to be-"

"Emma," Regina finished for her. "Free of responsibilities."

Madison nodded, "Emma's water broke three weeks early." Madison took a deep breath, "The amniotic fluid... It had this almost kind of green glow to it. She was rushed to the hospital and as it turned out, there was meconium in her amniotic fluid and the baby inhaled it.

"Oh god," Regina gasped as she brought her hand to her mouth and her eyes glossed over. Madison leaned over and took Regina's hand in her own, her eyes were kind but shone with the same amount of sadness as she could always see in Emma's. "When the baby was born, he was blue."

"Emma had another boy?" Regina squeezed the hand that held on to hers as tears rolled down her cheek. "Henry has a brother?"

Madison nodded, "It took ten minutes before he was finally able to breath and he was brought to the NICU. Emma didn't get to see him for the first three hours. His heart... it beat too fast. He was placed in an incubator to make sure he got enough oxygen."

"Please tell me the baby is okay," Regina croaked out. "Please." A sob escaped her throat as her hands trembled. "Is he?"

"The baby died, Regina. There was bleeding in his lungs and his heart... he just wasn't strong enough yet."

"Oh god," Regina cried out as she fell into Madison's arms, completely overwhelmed by the hurt she felt for Emma and her baby.

"Ssh," Madison cooed as she let Regina go through her emotions. She had already been there and while it still hurt to think about the baby that Emma had lost, she also felt a bit disconnected from it all after Emma had left.

"I can't believe it," Regina finally said as she sat up straight and dried her eyes. "Why wouldn't Emma tell us?"

"She's hurt, she feels guilty and responsible. The first few days she kept saying it was her fault and that she was being punished for wanting to give the baby up for adoption. Emma's doctor suggested she should go to grief counseling, but Emma refused. Said she could work through it on her own. Maybe I should have done more for her. I think I felt a little lost as well. She stayed in her room for days and only came out to shower once in a while. So when she finally left her room and smiled at me I clung to it and perhaps did the same as Emma – forgot about what happened and tried to move on, I just wanted her to be okay again."

"It all feels so surreal," Regina murmured. "I can't believe she was pregnant for six months and none of us noticed and she... She lost her baby. Her behavior makes so much more sense now, she's grieving and depressed. And… we've all been pounding on her like vultures to a carcass."

Madison smiled, "That's on Emma though. You couldn't have known. You can't blame yourself for getting angry at her if she's been acting like a bitch."

"She hasn't. She's been very protective of Henry, which makes sense now. And she's just been incredibly agitated and annoyed with people."

"More than usual you mean," Madison winked and Regina chuckled, thankful for the brief moment of distraction that the woman offered her.

"Yeah, I suppose so. W-what happened to the baby?"

Madison took a deep breath, "He was cremated. I know she brought him home with her."

"What was his name?" Regina's lip quivered as she prepared herself for the answer. To know that Emma's baby had died was already killing her, but to know his actual name would just completely destroy her, but she had to know.

"I think Emma should be the one to tell you that," Madison said softly. "Here," she reached over and grabbed an envelope from the table. "I meant to send this to Emma, but when she stopped contacting me, I thought perhaps it would hurt too much, so I've been saving it for her." She handed the envelope to Regina who opened it with trembling hands.

A sob escaped her throat as she took out the picture. It was Emma with her hands on her belly as she smiled into the camera. Regina's thumb traced over the belly, "She looks so happy."

"She was, it took a while, but that picture speaks nothing but the truth."

"I don't know how she does it, continuing her everyday life as if nothing happened."

"Is she though?"

"I guess not. I just don't understand why she wouldn't tell us or why she wouldn't even tell us that she was pregnant in the first place. Her leaving makes sense now, but I just wished she would have reached out. We could have helped her."

Madison smiled, "You love her."

"What?" Regina asked, her voice slightly wavered in confusion.

"If you didn't, you wouldn't have come all the way here just to find out what happened. I know you did it for Henry as well, but it's evident that you care for her a great deal."

Regina nodded, "Of course I care about her."

Madison smiled, it was obvious to her that Regina's care for Emma was much more than that, but it wasn't her place to comment on it. "You should take that picture with you, maybe it will help to get Emma to talk to you."

"Thank you, I should probably make my way back home. I'm sure Henry is anxious to hear from me, I'm not quite sure what to tell him."

"I know it's not my place to tell you what to do. But, I wouldn't tell him the details just yet. Emma should be the one to tell him, or she should be the one to tell you that you can tell him. She needs time to deal with this and I think, if you really want to help her, that should be your first priority."

"You're right. I'm sorry, I'm not thinking clearly. It's a lot to take in."

"I completely understand, you forget that I've had months to deal with this. Please don't think I'm insensitive. If you see Emma, will you tell her I miss her? She doesn't have to contact me until she is ready, but I do hope she will eventually."

Regina smiled, "I will tell her. Thank you so much for speaking to me, you have been a great help and thank you for taking care of Emma while she was here. I would hate to think of Emma having to do this all by herself."

"She's my friend, I would do anything for her." She gave Regina a friendly hug when she stood up, "You know, Emma really did talk about you a lot. If anyone can get her to open up, it's most definitely you."

"Thank you for the vote of confidence, I will do my absolute best."

Regina was absolutely exhausted by the time she walked through her front door. Taking road trips wasn't her favorite thing in the world, especially not when she had to do it all in one day. She smiled when Henry came running down the stairs and engulfed her in a hug.

"Welcome back, Mom."

"Thank you, did you behave?"

Henry rolled his eyes, "Of course. I had dinner at Granny's and Ruby dropped me off at home and played some video games with me before she left. Did you talk to Madison?"

"I did, she is a lovely woman. I can see why you're so fond of her." She took his hand and brought them to the living room. "Sit down."

"Am I in trouble?"

"No," she smiled and sat down next to him on the couch. "I know you're eager to find out what happened to Emma, but I'm afraid you're going to have to wait a little longer. I've spoken to Madison in great lengths and I'm putting the puzzle together, but I need to talk to Emma first."

"Do you know what happened?"

Regina nodded.

Henry frowned, "But you're not going to tell me?"

"Not yet, Henry. I need some time to figure out the entire story and until I do, it's best that I don't give you pieces here and there. So, just like you've been giving Emma time, you need to give me some time as well. Do you understand?"

Henry shrugged, "I guess so, but I'm a little bit angry that you won't tell me. Is it really bad?"

Regina nodded, "It's definitely not good, Henry. But I promise you that Emma will be okay again, it's just going to take time. I'm going to talk to her tomorrow and you're going to stay with your grandparents because I have no idea how that conversation with her will go."

"Are you angry at Emma?"

"No, sweetheart. Not at all. But Emma does need someone to talk to and right now I think it's best if that person is me. She may not be open to it, but you know us, eventually we'll start talking to one another."

"You're not going to fireball her or anything, right?"

Regina smiled, "Not a chance. I would never do anything to intentionally hurt Emma."