Regina held onto her wheel driving. The atmosphere was very tense. Even Snow didn't dare to speak. Emma was in the passenger seat, her gaze lost outside, and David and Snow were in the back seat. Little Snow was still afraid of him, so she was sitting in a corner.
"Where are we going?" Snow spoke for the first time, approaching a little to look at her stepmother. This carriage was very strange for her.
"We are going to see a man who's going to help us." Emma said, coming around to hear the voice of the little girl. Snow frowned, and returned to put her back against the seat, returning her gaze to the man sitting next to her.
He didn't stop looking at her since he met her. She didn't know why. He would have seemed friendly if he hadn't tried to hurt Regina. But after that, Regina didn't seem quite angry at him. Maybe the woman Emma was right and he wasn't evil.
"Are you... a prince?" Snow asked curiously, watching David.
David was speechless to notice that she was speaking to him. His heart was breaking to see the little girl look at him with fear from the other side of the seat. "Yes, I'm a prince."
Snow's green eyes opened wide in surprise. "Really?" But her eyes fell suddenly confused. "But why did you want to hurt Regina? Princes don't do those things against the ladies." She said with some pride to remember one of the lessons from her mother.
"I know, I'm sorry you had to see that." He tried to smile. "I'm not going to do it again."
"I hope so. I don't want anyone to harm my new Mama. If you try to hurt her again, I'll hit you." She said firmly, causing a small smile on David. This little girl was his wife; she would defend whom she loved. Even if Regina was one of them.
Regina remained attentive to the whole conversation. She didn't budge until she heard that if David was trying to hurt her again, that little girl would defend her. Of course, she couldn't do anything, but the impact in Regina was to hear that. It was strange to know that a child loved her. And all that was happening was very ironic, because a child loved her, but she didn't want this child. And she wanted Gold have a solution for this.
"Regina, stop, it's here!" Emma yelled, making Regina suddenly stop. She was so deep in thought that she didn't even see Gold's shop. "Are you okay?" Emma asked confused to see the look on the brunette.
"I'm fine." Regina said sharply, turning off the car engine. Emma rolled her eyes and left the car as David did. But the blonde opened the backseat door to find her little mother watching her.
"I do not want to go with you." Snow quickly said, crossing her arms over her little chest. Emma sighed and shook her head.
"I'm sorry because I did that. I'm not going to do it again. You have to come with me. Regina is here, too." She tried to say in a last effort. But little Snow didn't move, nor did she intend to do so. She was stubborn as a child, too. "Regina." Emma lifted her gaze to see Regina starting to walk toward Gold's shop.
"What?" The brunette said with annoyance, knowing what the blonde wanted. "You can't deal with a five year old? How are you doing with my son?"
"I'm not going to answer this. And this is..." She sighed, shaking her head. "She just trusts you, although it may seem absurd."
Regina rolled her eyes and walked around the car, heading to Emma. She stood next to her, and uncrossed her arms watching the little girl with a defiant look and her crossed arms. She had no intention of leaving the car.
"Snow, you must come." Snow moved her gaze to her, confused.
"Are you sure? She tried to take me from you." Regina shook her head, starting to get frustrated.
"Just get out of there. We have to go see Gold."
Snow sighed, not convinced. But if her stepmother said it she had to. She jumped out of the car, and instantly, Regina closed the door behind her. She started walking to Gold's with Emma, and Snow couldn't help but run after them to take Regina's hand.
Regina was frozen in place, lowering her gaze to the girl. "What are you doing?" She snapped, feeling uncomfortable.
"C'mon, Regina." Emma said, trying to not make things worse for little Snow. Regina turned her gaze to Emma and snorted.
"Why don't you take her?!"
"No!" Snow yelled, holding on to her hand. Emma stared at Regina, and the brunette sighed in surrender. She had to move on to Gold's with the child clinging to her hand.
David was already inside the shop and Gold in front of him, with his two hands on his stick, as always. When they came in, he didn't bother to look at women; he just stared at the child. He formed a small smile on his lips.
"Indeed, she is." He said in his gravelly voice. Emma took a few steps forward.
"You can fix this?" Gold returned his gaze to her, but he frowned and turned his gaze to Regina.
"What have you done?" And this time, that question wasn't in an accusatory tone.
"I didn't want this." Regina said quickly. "I found a cupcake and a candle on my porch." She put her eyes anywhere to avoid having to look at the faces of all of them. "And I asked for a wish."
"You caused this?!" David yelled, taking a step toward her. But he remembered the girl that was next to the witch, and he had to stay in place to remember what he had told her. "What have you done, Regina?" He said trying to sound calmer now.
"I didn't want this!" She snapped angrier now. "I asked for my child. My child. Can you understand that?!" She yelled at him. And Emma was the one who looked down for a few seconds and turned her gaze to her.
"You wanted Henry!" She took a step towards her, absolutely furious. "How could you do that?!"
"He's my child!" Regina protested, totally indignant.
"This is not now about Henry." Gold's calm voice was heard in the place, causing the women to calm down. But they didn't remove their eyes from one another. "And I must say, the next time you have to be more specific to which child you mean, dearie."
Regina frowned and moved her eyes to meet his cold stare. "What?" He smiled faintly, and she shook her head quickly. "Henry is my only child."
"From what I can see, I'm afraid that's not true." He turned his gaze to little Snow, who was more confused than ever. She knew no Henry, and she didn't know anything about that Regina had another child. She had a stepbrother?
"Okay, Snow, why don't you go there?" Emma pointed with her hand to where the curtains were. She didn't want the little girl to listen to all of this talk. She reached out her hand to her, but Snow hid behind Regina, still holding her hand. And Emma couldn't do anything but look at Regina.
"Alright," said Regina, heading for the living room behind the curtains. She took Snow and moved her to a chair, moving her hand away. "You must stay here, okay?" Snow sat in the chair and nodded, clasping her hands in her lap. Regina nodded and went back to where the adults were.
"How could you do this?" David asked totally confused now. "You don't even love Snow."
"Of course not." Regina said quickly. "Henry's my child. I have no idea why this turned out like this."
"She's your child, too." Gold said quietly, earning confused looks from everyone. "You loved her as your own child, once. She was your first child."
"She never was, nor will be my child!" Regina couldn't help yelling, feeling rage through her body to hear idiotic words. That wasn't true at all.
Gold smiled weakly and took a few steps toward her. "Are you sure? Then why you were treating her as one?" Regina frowned and opened her mouth to speak, "You look like you've lost memories, dearie. Who was the one that stayed with her always? Who was defending her from all harm?"
"Regina?" The voice of the little Snow was heard, and soon Regina saw her coming behind Gold. She looked scared, and very confused. "Why are you yelling?"
To find her green eyes, Regina quickly knew what Gold was talking about. She had treated Snow as her child, but by commitment. It wasn't like that? It had to be. She couldn't remember ever feeling Snow as her child... but it was true that she was always with her. And it was true that she'd tried to defend Snow from all danger. Or rather, of just one danger.
Regina almost ran from the palace to the gardens. King Leopold wasn't there, it was two days before their wedding, but even so, the king had to make a trip. She was in charge of the palace, and of her stepdaughter. The servants weren't an issue, neither was Snow, but her mother was the problem. She tried to make good orders to the servants, but her mother was always there telling her she should be more strict, otherwise no one would take her as a good queen. Regina didn't mind having to hear that. But when she went to have breakfast, her stepdaughter wasn't there. Neither was her mother.
The servants told her that her mother had taken Snow to the gardens, to give her lessons. And Regina didn't want to even imagine what those lessons were about.
Her mother could be ruining her life, but she wouldn't let her ruin her stepdaughter's life. Snow was too innocent to have to fall into Cora's hands, too.
"Mother!" Regina yelled, getting closer to Cora and Snow. They were almost at the bottom of the garden, and Snow was in front of her mother, completely rigid, and with a frightened expression on her face. When she came to, she stood next to Snow. "What are you doing?"
"I'm teaching Snow how to be a better princess." Cora smiled falsely, as she always did when they were in front of other people. "What's wrong, dear?"
"Snow doesn't need lessons from you. She's a good princess. She's a child, she has to have fun." Regina said quickly, trying to reason with her mother... though she knew that all this would be in vain.
"Have fun? Regina, sweetheart, she's a princess. And she should behave like a princess." Cora hardened her voice and looked coldly at her daughter, starting to bother.
"No. I'm her stepmother, she's my job now. I don't want her to take lessons." Remembering that the girl was next to her, she turned to Snow, forming a small smile to try to alleviate the uncomfortable situation she was going through. "You don't want lessons, don't you, Snow?"
"I – I'd rather spend time with you." Snow said with a small smile. Regina mirrored her smile and stroked her hair and then looked back to her mother.
"You heard her." But Regina frowned when she saw her mother laughing weakly.
"She's a girl. She doesn't know what is best for her and..."
"You're not her mother. I am." Regina cut her mother's words to hear those words. She'd always said those words to her; she didn't know what was best, and that she did it because she was her mother. But now, Regina could use those words against her. "And I'm doing what you taught me, Mother. I'm doing the best for my child."
Regina could see the eyes of her mother going angry, but she didn't care. She was trying to make her crazy. She was sure she was entering her mind for her to do bad things… but she refused. For some reason, her mother was adamant that she should hate Snow. She was sure that Cora was putting voices in her head to hurt the little princess.
She had a little grudge against Snow... but her mother was her problem. She had taken Daniel's heart in front of her. She killed him. And surely, Cora wanted her to turn against Snow. She'd felt so much hate when she found out that Snow had told her mother about her and Daniel... but then she started to try to take that hatred to remember the words she had said.
"I should have let her die on that horse."
Those words were so cold and hateful. Regina didn't want to have to think about that. She didn't want to look like her mother, because that was something that Cora could have said. And, inevitably, she was going to be Snow's mother. And she didn't want to treat Snow as her mother treated her all her life. She wanted to be a better mother than her own.
"Come, Snow." Regina said taking the hand of her stepdaughter. She turned around to start walking towards the palace, but Snow didn't move. Confused, Regina looked at Snow, and frowned at her look, which was totally lost. "Snow?"
"She's in a trance." Cora said. Regina looked quickly at her mother, finding a little smile on her face. She frowned and shook her head quickly.
"No, Mother. You can't use magic on her! Leave her alone!" Regina yelled, turning to Snow, putting her back to her mother. She gently took the girl's shoulders and shook her slightly. "Snow, dear? Snow... came back."
Snow blinked back to reality and Regina smiled totally relieved. But when Snow opened her mouth to speak, she was quickly moved away from Regina, and raised into the air. Regina took a few steps back totally surprised and shocked. She looked up at the palace; there was nobody that could see that... and then she turned to look at her mother.
"Mother! What the hell are you doing?! Let her go!"
"I'm teaching her how to be better." Cora said quietly. Regina looked at Snow again; her face was completely full of confusion and fear. She tried to speak but she couldn't.
"Regina..." She could only hear, and that could only increase her despair.
Suddenly, Snow became totally rigid, her arms at her sides, as if she couldn't move. And Regina knew her mother was doing the same thing she did to her when she misbehaved. Or so Cora thought.
"Mother, let her go! Now!" That was the first time that Regina wanted magic to fight her mother and make her suffer. She couldn't be doing this to Snow. "Mother!" Regina shouted totally desperate, never taking her eyes away of Snow.
Cora dropped her hand as Snow fell on the floor, unconscious. Regina ran to the girl and took her in her arms, checking her face and moving her slightly.
"You shouldn't worry so much about this child." Cora said, taking a few steps toward them. "Love is weakness, my dear."
"Snow, Snow..." Regina didn't even have the strength to answer her mother's words. Everything she said was a lie. Love was not weakness. She loved her father, and she loved Snow. They always managed to get her smile and make her feel better. She knew that couldn't be a weakness at all. "Snow, sweetheart, wake up. Please."
Snow's eyes began to open slightly and her brow began to frown slowly. Regina smiled fully relieved and took a few strands of hair from her face, totally relieved that the girl was fine.
"She doesn't remember anything." Regina could hear her mother saying. She pressed her lips to not let them scream at her mother.
"Regina?" Snow asked, totally confused, watching the face of concern of her stepmother. "What happened?"
"You fainted... but you're okay now." Regina smiled, getting up and helping the girl to get on her feet. "You're okay, right?"
"I think so." Snow said totally confused, taking a hand to her head. She noted the presence of Cora and Regina could see the discomfort in her. "Will we continue with the lessons, Mrs. Mills?"
"No." Regina replied quickly. "Let's go to the kitchen, and we'll order hot chocolate. Do you want that?" Snow's eyes lit up, and nodded with a smile. "Let's go."
Putting an arm around the shoulders of her stepdaughter, Regina started walking, not even bothering to look back at her mother. She hadn't done that to Snow for her to better disciplined... what case would that if she wouldn't remember anything after that? She only did it to cause fear in her.
And maybe, Regina started thinking, her mother had a point. Love was weakness. Her weakness had always been her father, but now, she loved Snow as her child. Now she had two weaknesses.
There was no way she could feel Snow as her child again. A lot happened between them. Snow took all of her happiness; Daniel was dead because of her. She killed her mother. Henry was all she had now. He and no one else. And not even him, because he didn't live with her, and he didn't want to be with her... but still, she loved him. He was her child, not her.
"How do you fix this?" Regina lifted her gaze to Gold. He shook his head slightly.
"I can't do anything. You can." She frowned, totally confused. "Until your wish isn't complete, she will remain like this."
"What do you mean?" Emma intervened, approaching a few steps toward him. "How could be complete her wish?"
"Oh, she knows that." He smiled slightly staring at Regina.
She felt her body shudder, knowing what he meant. She'd wanted her child back. Slowly, she looked down to see the little girl in front of her, who was looking at her with confusion. She already had a child. But she didn't want this child... so... until her wish was complete, Snow would be a child.
And that meant, perhaps, that until she didn't love Snow as her child again, she was going to keep be that way.
Hey! I can't believe I had so many reviews. For me it's very important to read what all of you think about this story. I love reading your reviews! Thank you so much!
This chapter is a bit longer. I couldn't help it, haha. And I hope you've enjoyed this, too. :)
I love reading yours reviews, so please, R&R? I'm really happy that you all like this idea.