I'm not going to lie to you all…I made myself cry with this one. The movie that plays in my head when I write all of this down got way too sad, I blame the fact that it is 01:27am here and of course my obvious love for all things Regina!

"Oh my god, is she okay?!" Snow practically screamed into the phone, she waited impatiently for her husband's reply, ever aware of his baited breath even when she couldn't see him.

He struggled to find the right way to word his reply, he didn't want to be dishonest with his wife but he also didn't want her to come rushing to the scene, she would cause more fuss than necessary and he needed her there in town awaiting instructions. "She…she's upset understandably, she just wants to get Regina to safety but…I don't think it's possible…"

She furrowed her brow at his confusing deduction of the situation; she was frustrated that he had told her to stay in Storybrooke instead of going to her daughter which is what she wanted with all of her heart at this moment in time. "What do you mean it's not possible...David?"

He was well aware of Snow's deep rooted love for her step-mother no matter how she tried to deny it, plus her engagement with Emma had forced the two to finally sit down and actually talk for once, neither would reiterate what had been said in their meeting but the air had seemed considerably thinner with each meeting between the two – it was a start at least. "Snow…I-I don't know if she's going to make it, the-the car it…from what it looks like…as it hit the ice it must've flipped and…well…Regina's trapped underneath it."

"Oh…Oh, no David," her hand flew to her mouth to cover the whimper that automatically rose in her throat, she was mindful of Henry who was sat on the sofa in their apartment watching a cartoon on the television, he may be mature for a 13 year old but he didn't need to be told yet, especially when they didn't know themselves what was going on, he didn't need the unnecessary stress. "Can you get to them?" she already knew the answer, if they could David would be by their daughter's side within seconds of arriving.

"That's what I need you for my darling," he started; the only resource they had left was one he wished they didn't need, Gold. The blue fairy had arrived at the scene with him to assess the situation but upon arriving she informed him that since the border was born from dark magic there was no way she could harness enough power to shatter it, it was beyond her abilities, beyond white magic's capabilities. "We need him."

Bile rose in her throat as she realized what she had to do, it was dangerous and highly unlikely that he would actually help them plus a deal would have to be made, he would never do it out of the kindness of his black heart – especially not for Regina, David seemed to catch on to her train of thought as he spoke again, "he may not even agree to help us but we have to try for Emma…for both of them." Snow's heart hammered in her chest as she nodded slowly before remembering that her husband couldn't see her response.

"Okay honey, just…just tell Emma to be strong alright?"

"Of course."

"I'll call as soon as I have spoken with him," she spoke softly sensing Henry's shift in concentration; he was trying to listen in with as much subtlety as he could muster and due to the genes he had inherited from his birth mother, that wasn't much at all. "I love you."

"I love you too Snow."

"Who was that?" Henry was immediately at her with his blunt questioning, she could see the suspicion dancing behind his green eyes, and he was too inquisitive for his own good sometimes.

She schooled her features as best she could painfully aware of his ability to deduce when somebody lied to him, another trait he had gained from his relation to Emma. "Just your Grandfather, he just wanted to check everything was okay." This wasn't a complete lie.

His brow furrowed as he regarded her, "okay…did he say when my moms are gonna be home?" She fought as best she could to stop the flash of guilt from flowing from the pit of her stomach and onto her face but she was too slow. "What's wrong?" immediately his guard was up, the hairs on his skin were standing on edge as an icy chill ran through the apartment, "what's happened?"

Snow lowered herself down to his eye level, which these days wasn't too far thankfully, "Henry, I need you to stay calm for me okay?" This sentence was one that people chose to utter when they were about to tell someone something that was going to panic them and so never ever worked to calm someone's emotions – made poignantly clear in this instance as her Grandson took a few tentative steps backwards as if being close to her would hurt him all the more than her words were going to, his breathing increased as panic laced his features. Her heart clenched as she wished she could ease his fears with news that wasn't going to be quite so distressing but…when were things in their lives ever so simple.

"Henry…there's…" she was searching for the best way to break it to him that his adoptive mother was currently stuck, unconscious underneath a car and there was a very slim chance that she would actually make it out alive, "there's been an accident."

"Wh-what?!" he stumbled into the wooden post behind him, the thud his head created when it connected sharply with the material made Snow visibly wince but he seemed not to feel it, the pain in his heart overpowering any physical injuries. "Are…are they okay?!"

"Emma's fine honey…" she left the status of his other mother hanging in the air much to his dismay, a tear rolled down his cheek as his Grandmother moved forward to pull him into a tight embrace. As it was with most embraces meant to comfort it did nothing of the sort, it only made the severity of the situation that much more obvious. Why did she need to hold onto him so tightly? To keep him together in case he couldn't do it himself?

"What about my Mom?" when talking about them collectively he would always refer to them as his moms however when it came to them individually his birth mother was called by her first name, a request she had made early on in their relationship which had just stuck and now was a natural thing for the pair, Regina however had always been known as Mom. He had taken to saying her title even more when he addressed her since their return from Neverland – he had never realized how much he had hurt her in the time after he had found out about the curse but at the time he was angry, he didn't fully understand the consequences of his actions until it was almost too late. This notion wasn't lost on him as he found his gaze to be locked with that of Snow's and just like his adoptive mother he loathed to be looked upon with pity, he wasn't some stupid kid who'd found out their favourite pet had died or something, he was so much stronger than that and raised better than to wallow in self-pity. The anger in his eyes surprised her but she thought she understood why so she continued on through the suffocating lump that had formed in her throat.

"Well…Henry," his patience with her stalling was drawing thin as he glared at her in annoyance, "Regina-your Mom is hurt…badly." Her heart broke at his pained gasp, she wanted to be able to calm him down, tell him that everything was going to be okay but she couldn't get his hopes up, he needed to be prepared for the worst.

"I want to go to her." It wasn't a request.

"Henry-"

"No! I need to be there with her!" He was practically screaming, "what if…" a sob rose in his throat as his voice broke at what he was about to say, "what if…she-sh-she doesn't m-make it?" he was trying so hard to keep it together, he wasn't asking what was going to happen if she didn't survive, he was stating that he needed to be with her, to help her in case she wasn't going to live. He needed his chance to say goodbye if that was to be the case.

Snow knew not to argue, she knew that the likely outcome of this would be Regina's death, who was she to stop Henry from saying goodbye to his mother? "I'll call David."

"You okay buddy?" David placed his hand upon Henry's shaking thigh as he pulled away from the pavement outside of the apartment. As soon as Snow had informed him of Henry's request he had thundered back into town to pick up his Grandson.

Henry looked at the hand on his lap and up to its owner with such innocence in his watery eyes, it was so easy to forget how young he actually was after all he had seen and done – he was a remarkable young man and if David was honest it was most likely nurture over nature in this case, his strength was so reminiscent of Regina's it was truly breath taking. Why was it then that when the brunette had shown this courage they had taken it for threatening behaviour, something to be afraid and wary of? Maybe she was doing just what she had taught her son to do, use courage as a weapon, don't let people see your vulnerability and maybe, just maybe you'll be able to get through each day.

"Is my Mom gonna die?"

David had to fight to suppress the whimper that wanted to escape from his mouth, Henry's voice had broken as he spoke showing his innocence once again, it was painful to see and hear. "Henry I…" he couldn't lie to the boy, not now, not when so much was at stake. If this truly was the end for Regina, the least they could do would be to let the son she cared for so much, loved with all of her heart, fought for so hard for so long have a proper goodbye with her. "I don't know kiddo," he relented with a deep sigh as they neared the crash site.

The emergency services were still on standby should the world finally give Regina a break and allow the border to somehow miraculously break; he could almost feel her life slipping away with every tick of his watch, they needed to think of something fast if they wanted even to have the option and opportunity to save the brunette's life. Henry's eyes widened as he took in the scene before him, the fire engine had been driven as close to the line as possible whilst the ambulance was parked behind it – crew members stood silently taking in the sight of the blonde rocking back and forth once again on her knees holding the brunette's head. Regina was still unconscious – that wasn't a good sign.

The car had barely come to a halt when Henry leapt from it and ran towards the overturned vehicle, "Henry!" David shouted after him but to no avail, he had never seen the young boy move so fast.

The icy wind whipped at his flushed face like knives as he sprinted towards the boundary to the town, it didn't affect him since he was born in this world but he still felt the uncomfortable rush of heat that flooded his body upon passing through it, he could hear his birth mother's sobs and he hoped he wasn't too late.

Her head flew up at the sound of footsteps, she hoped with all her heart that it was someone coming to help, that they had somehow managed to find a way through the barrier, maybe then others could – people like the fire and ambulance crew. She was surprised but not disappointed when she found it to be her son, "baby, you gotta wake up…Henry's here. He needs to see his Mom." She tried in vain, if the arrival of her beloved son didn't wake her then surely nothing could. Hot tears splashed onto the brunette's blood marred face; it created a pebble dash effect in the almost dried liquid. "Baby…come on…"

Henry fell to his knees painfully as he skidded slightly on the ground coming to rest beside his two mothers'; in his haste to get to them he hadn't taken in the actual site. His Grandmother had forewarned him about what he would find but nothing could have ever prepared him for seeing his mother like this. He looked up at Emma and found her to be mirroring his despair, he let his tears fall as her placed his small hands upon Regina's cheeks, he lowered himself further to the ground in order to rest her head on his knees. Looking down she was upside down to him, her body facing away from his, her eyes the closest feature to him. He was glad they were closed; he couldn't witness the empty stare that would follow her death if that was the way things were going to go.

"Mom?" his voice was nothing more than a broken whisper as he stroked his fingers along her cheeks as if the gesture would wake her up, it was something he had done as a small child when she had been asleep still after he had awoken, at least she still retained her warmth – that was something at least.

She could hear him trying and failing to supress his giggling with his small pyjama clad arm as he tickled her forehead, she fought to stop a smile from gracing her features allowing him to continue his game, moments like these were becoming fewer and further between as he grew and she wanted to hold onto it for as long as possible.

Upon sensing his frustration at not being able to wake her up from her supposed slumber, she whispered from the corner of her mouth, "hey," a giggle announced that her 6 year old had heard her, "want to know a secret?" in his innocence he didn't realize that she couldn't actually see him with her eyes closed but she felt his eager nod all the same. "The only way to wake a sleeping girl is with true loves kiss." She cracked her eye open slightly to find him with a bemused expression on his face, his little features scrunched up in confusion as he took in her words trying to make sense of them. She chuckled softly when understanding dominated his features as he remembered and placed his tiny hands on her shoulders to steady him as he inched slowly towards her with his lips glistening in loving anticipation, she waited for the perfect moment. When she felt his little breath on her cheek as he giggled nearing ever closer remembering the result of the game she had taught him so long ago she lunged forward and gripped his tiny form throwing him gently to the foot of the bed on his back where she pounced forward and peppered kisses all over his little face as she tickled him mercilessly.

She revelled in the sound of his unrestrained laughter, his pleas for release went over her head as she made note to take a mental image of this moment, she didn't know when it would happen again. It saddened her as she relented her attack on her little boy, she sat back to rest her bottom on the heels of her feet as she watched him gulping in air whilst trying to stop his laughter. When his breathing finally evened again as he kneeled up looking at her expectantly she simply smiled softly in response. Her heart fluttered as he placed his hands on her thighs in order to balance him as he stood slowly and made his way over to her, she laughed as he lost his balance due to the bounciness of her mattress and he threw his arms around her neck in what was first of all meant to be a loving embrace but had now turned into a technique to save his little life.

Regina held back the tears that threatened to spill from his gesture, this was something that was even rarer for them now, and he hardly ever showed her unrequested affection like this anymore. She nuzzled into his tiny neck laughing softly as he squirmed when her hot breath tickled his skin but he soon settled into it and locked his arms around her significantly more. She breathed in the scent that was all him and let a tear escape from her closed eye.

"I love you Momma."

"I love you too baby boy."

A sob wracked through his body when her eyes didn't flutter like they used to, when the corners of her mouth didn't turn up softly indicating to him that she was in fact awake and just waiting for the perfect time to strike. "I'm s-sorry!" He poured his heart into those two words as he let his forehead fall to meet hers, he let his tears fall from his own face to trail onto hers letting each one show his sorrow at the pain he had subjected her to by denying his love in the past, by making her think that he hated her when in fact he loved her so much it hurt. "I'm so sorry."

"Please…please don't go! Not yet" His body shook with the force of his despair, "I never even got to say goodbye."

His cries pierced Emma's skin as she wrapped her arms around him, their shared gasps for much needed air and sobs could be heard for miles around. Those at the border could hear them clear as day, most turned away feeling unbelievably helpless and not wanting to intrude on such a raw moment, David however could only drop to his knees with his hand pressing against the almost mocking restraint that was the barrier from the curse. No one was sure how long it went on but all were stuck in their state of sorrow for what felt like an eternity until the air around them went quiet as if a blanket had been placed over the area.

Henry shot up suddenly as he felt hot breath blow his hair softly, was he feeling things? Emma's strangled gasp told him all he needed to know as he looked down to find Regina's eyelashes fluttering slowly as she got used to the intrusion of light once again after being unconscious for so long. Her brow furrowed as she tried to remember what had happened, with the first thing she saw being the car she was brought back to reality and to her unrelenting pain. There was something different this time though, she could feel it.

"M-Mom?" Her already weakening heart almost stopped at his voice.

"H-Henry?"