Author's Note: Hey, guys! I'll be returning to work on Monday, so I wanted to get another chapter posted for all now. Happy reading!


"Okay, Mrs. Mills, I've placed your boarding pass in your bag and I sent a copy of your itinerary to your personal email." Kathryn told her as Regina took the time to look around her office, her thoughts running rampant as she thought about the conversation that she and Zelena had at the beginning of the week. They'd talked extensively over the last few days, her older putting an end to any of her doubts whenever they threatened to surface, and how here she stood. "I've taken the liberty of renting you a car because I know how much you dislike having to depend on a driver." Kathryn continued, breaking her from her inner musings as she handed Regina her bag. "If you come across any problems, don't hesitate to call me. I've given you my home number, mobile number, my parents' number-"

"Kathryn, breathe. I can't thank you enough for taking care of everything for me." Regina said as she took a hold of her assistant's hands in her own, gripping them reassuringly as a small smile pulled at her lips. "You're a wonderful assistant, okay?"

"Yes, ma'am." Kathryn answered her with a smile and an affirmative nod.

"Ugh." Regina rolled her eyes playfully. "I've asked you a million times to stop referring to me that way, yet here we are."

"I'm really sorry." Her assistant laughed lightly.

"It's a habit. I know." Regina laughed. "We're the same age, Kathryn." She reminded the other woman as she readjusted her bag on her shoulders and made her way towards the door. "I'll see you soon."

"I'll see you soon, Mrs. Mills."

"I think it's time you start referring to me as Regina." She told the other woman as she walked out of her office, not bothering to look behind her as she made her way to the elevators feeling lighter than she had in a long time.


Regina sat somewhat impatiently in her seat, watching as the other passengers made their way onto the plane and down the aisle. She was nervous, that much was obvious by the light tapping of her fingers on the armrests of her seat, but she couldn't pinpoint why exactly it was she was nervous. She'd flown before, frequently in fact, so she knew it had nothing to do with that.

"I can hear the cogs turning in your head already and I haven't even sat down yet." An all-too-familiar voice said, putting an abrupt end to her thoughts.

"Zelena?" Regina asked in confusion as she watched her the redheaded woman pull her carry-on bag up and over her head, placing it in the overhead bin before she took her seat beside her without offering much more than a smile. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, like everyone on this flight, I'm getting ready to spend an hour on a flight to Maine instead of driving there."

"That's not what I meant." Regina muttered out as the stewardesses started their before flight routines.

"Oh, of course it's not, Regina." Zelena told her with a small laugh. "I told you that I was going to Maine too, or did you forget?"

"No, I didn't forget, but I wasn't expecting to see you on my flight since you were supposed to be flying in from California." She told her as she snapped her seatbelt into place and shuffled around to make herself comfortable, knowing that it wouldn't be long before the chosen stewardesses would make their way into the middle of the isles so that they could go over safety procedures while the airplane was guided onto the runway.

"You didn't think I'd leave you to drive to Portland by yourself, did you?" Zelena asked in what Regina assumed to be mock-offense. "I told you that we were going to do this together, Regina, and I meant it."

Okay, maybe it wasn't mock-offense. Regina thought to herself guilty. "I didn't mean to make it seem like I didn't believe that you were being honest with me, Zelena." Regina whispered quietly as the stewardesses began their demonstration. "I guess I just wasn't expecting you to take it all so literally."

"We'll talk more about this once we're in the air and I've gotten the chance to order myself a drink." Zelena whispered back.

"We're not even going to be in the air two hours!" Regina whisper shouted, not missing the smirk on her older sister's face at the incredulity in her voice, nor the look on the stewardess' face as she tried to keep herself focused on her task instead of directing her attention to the two bickering sisters sitting in the first-class cabin.


"Is it safe to assume that Cora has no idea that you've hauled ass yet?" Zelena asked as she took a sip of her scotch.

"She has no idea." Regina muttered as she closed her eyes, taking a moment to gather herself as she allowed her head to fall back against her headrest.

"So, where does she think you're going?" Zelena asked, not bothering to pause long enough to allow Regina to answer before she continued. "Surely, she's not going to be satisfied with you simply calling out sick for a few weeks."

"Therein lies the beauty of being the boss." Regina said with a satisfied smirk on her face.

"Oh, Regina, if only that were true." Zelena sighed out, causing Regina's eyebrows to furrow in confusion. "I love you, you know I do, but no matter how many times you try to convince yourself that you're in charge of your company, Cora has her claws in you so deep for so long that she's not going to simply let sleeping dogs lie." Zelena offered her an apologetic smile. "Now, what does our dear mother think you're up to right now?"

Regina sighed, barely resisting the urge to start tapping her fingertips against her arm rests again. "She thinks I'm on my way to Versailles to consider potential prospects for company expansion."

"And how exactly did you pull that off?" Zelena asked in an obviously impressed tone.

"I didn't. Kathryn did."

"Of course, she did. Your personal assistant works wonders and mother still has the audacity to underestimate her."

Regina simply nodded her head in agreement, anxiety bubbling in her stomach as the captain's voice came over the speakers to announced that they'd be descending into Portland in the next few minutes.


Regina and Zelena had gotten off their flight, picked up their bags from baggage claim, and gotten their rental car in record time thanks to Kathryn's meticulous work. Now, they were driving out of Portland and about two hours away from their hometown and Regina couldn't help the sporadic tightening of her hands on the steering wheel as she felt her nerves growing. It had been years since she'd set foot in Storybrooke, Maine and even though she'd missed the small town, there were things, people, within the town that she'd missed so much more.

"What are you thinking about?" Zelena broke her sister's concentration, genuine concern on her face as she looked at Regina's whitening knuckles on steering wheel and the telling vein on her forehead.

"Nothing."

"If that's how you look when you're not thinking about anything, I'm genuinely worried about what happens when you've actually got something on your mind." Zelena retorted.

"I'm just thinking." Regina sighed out, not really wanting to vocalize the thoughts that had taken up residence in her mind.

"That much is obvious, little sister."

"I'm just thinking about how much could've possibly changed in the time that we've been away." Regina started, knowing that she wouldn't get anywhere if she continued to evade Zelena's attempts to get her to talk about what was bothering her, but the problem was that she couldn't pinpoint for herself what had caused such a shift in her mood.

The excitement that she'd felt as she'd walked out of her office earlier that morning had all but dissipated, and now she was left with a feeling that she could only describe as reluctance. "I left right after I graduated high school, Zelena, much like you did, and I promised my friends that I would keep in touch with everyone, but within a year or two, I broke that promise and I didn't do anything to mend my mistakes." She continued, knowing her sister had no intention of interrupting her as she got her thoughts out. "I haven't even bothered to call my godson's parents to see how he's doing! I mean, I remember how excited I was when they asked me to be a part of their child's life, but then I disappeared within months of his birth. I don't even know what he looks like!" Regina's voice rose an octave as she spoke, and she couldn't help but think about how out of control she felt in that moment.

"Regina, stop." Zelena spoke gently. "You're letting your nerves get the better of you. Yes, you've been gone a long time, longer than you expected, but you're not the only one who has ever left their hometown and lost touch." Regina took a deep breath, keeping her eyes on the road as she allowed herself to think about what her sister had said. No matter how much she hated to admit it, Zelena was right. She'd allowed herself to overthink everything and she'd started to panic.

"I'm going to hate myself for admitting this, but you're right."

"Am I?" Zelena asked with a hint of mischief in her tone. "Look, Regina, you're not walking into this alone, you have me, so just breathe. Everything is going to be okay."

Regina took a deep breath and allowed herself to be comforted by her older sister's words as she carefully switched lanes, shifting the car into the right lane, the exit that they needed to take to get off the highway less than two miles away.


Regina and Zelena had really spoken much to each other as they drove by the 'Welcome to Storybrooke' sign, it was obvious in that moment that Regina wasn't the only Mills sister who was lost in their thoughts.

They drove into the parking lot of their hotel, made their way inside, spoke to the receptionist who gave them each a key to their respective rooms, and they said their goodbyes, promising to meet each other in the hotel's restaurant for breakfast the following morning.

Regina sighed as the door clicked shut behind her, deciding that she'd worry about unpacking her bags in the morning and only opening her large suitcase long enough to pull out a pair of black flats.

She sat on her bed as she removed the heels that'd she'd been wearing all day, sighing in relief as she wiggled her toes before she slipped on her flats.

She sent a text message to Kathryn, letting her know that she'd arrived in Storybrooke and thanking her once again for taking care of everything for her, then proceeded to send one to Zelena letting her know that she was going on a walk before she grabbed her room key, slipping it into the back-pocket of her slacks as she walked out of her hotel room.


Regina couldn't help but smile as she looked at her surroundings. It had been over five years since she'd graduated from Storybrooke High School, and yet her she was making her way to the soccer field once again, like no time at all had passed. She reveled in the familiarity she felt in that moment and she couldn't keep herself from falling back into memories of all the time she'd once spent where she now stood.

She took a deep breath as she looked up to see the light posts illuminated the field, her eyebrows furrowed as she heard the rusting of a ball on the grass, and she felt her heart skip a beat as she walked onto the field, her legs automatically carrying her to where an all-too-familiar blonde was dribbling a ball, the woman's leg pulling back as she took her shot. The woman's name left her lips before she even realized that she'd spoken.

"Emma."