I do not own OUAT.
Somewhere in the months that have passed, Regina let Belle go. I am going to write a chapter that explores the months I now sort of skipped over/ summarized in the first chapter, and that will include Regina letting Belle go. Don't know when that will be up.
Sorry for the long wait & I hope you enjoy!
(also really sorry for still not having edited the rest, I haven't forgotten. I am just really bad at not postponing editing forever)
Regina paces, and curses and wrings her hand together- what she wouldn't do for a fireball or a sleeping curse right now- and is generally behaving as a wild animal that is caught and shoved into a too-small cage. The only thing that is keeping her from snapping at every single person she encounters, from telling Marco just how dissatisfied she is with the door he repaired (Emma wasn't allowed to come over for days after foolishly destroying it) and answering Archie's smile and 'it is a fine day, is it not? ' with several well-placed jabs, is Henry's face in her mind.
He will despise me, all over again. I will lose him.
It is made slightly easier by the fact that she actually been more cordial these past months, that she has allowed Emma to drag her to a girl's night, and chatted with Ruby whenever she was in the diner. That she has accepted Archie's chit-chat with only the bare minimum of scorn, and actually allowed Pongo to stay with them when he was ill. But still, it is like an itch somewhere she can't scratch, and she is glad when she is home and no longer has to feign smiles and pleasantness at the entire town.
" Mom! How did it go, is she okay, ¿Qué pasó?" a voice that has Regina's tense muscles relax slightly says, and Henry skids to a stop in front of her. For a moment she thinks he is going to hug her, and she is already smiling in anticipation, but then he hesitates.
She realizes she probably has a frightful look on her face, as she dropped the pretence when she entered her home. " Yes. Everything went- " Regina can't bring herself to say well. It didn't go well, she will be giving Snow her happiness. She will be giving the loathsome little snitch – " I slipped the potion in Mary Margaret's drink ".
"Yes! So how long will it take? Wil she already be better tomorrow?"
Regina shakes her head. " No, mi cielo. It will be a slow progress. Things will make more sense to her however, and she will no longer be quite as troubled".
Her stomach calms when Henry smiles brightly at her, and she even manages a smile back. " That's awesome! Good job, mom".
Regina just nods, jerkily. Henry doesn't seem to notice, pretty much bouncing with enthusiasm. She is startled when he suddenly grabs her hand, and starts to pull her towards the study. " come on, we got to discuss the rest of the plan"
She stares down at his hand. Even though he has slowly warmed up to her throughout the months, he still has been hesitant with the shows of affection that were once so normal between them. Just that small fact, the way he unthinkingly grabs her hand and pulls her with him and keeps smiling at her is enough for her stomach to settle.
He only lets her go when they are at the study, and immediately runs towards her desk. They've cleverly hidden the book where Emma would never think to look; between paperwork. Henry very nearly throws it all on the floor in his enthusiasm, but catches himself at the last moment.
He grins at her. " Sit down, mom"
Mom. Regina very nearly grins herself, but instead just smiles at him. "All right, mijo"
After she has closed the door and sat down, Henry immediately shoves the book in her direction. "I did my job as well" he tells her happily
She arches an eyebrow. "I was unaware you had a job"
" My job is to make the plans , to figure out ways to bring back the happy endings" he tells her.
" You are very good at that, mi cielo" Regina just says, staring down at the additions. If only Henry put this much thought and energy in his homework, as the result is impressive. He managed to write down at the names and specifics of at least fifty people, and has marked their connection to each other in a way that is somehow understandable and structured.
There are suggestions for happy ending's, for things that could lead to happy endings. There are couples that were separated, their names connected to each other by rainbows. There are people who used to be friends ( Regina very nearly scowls when she sees Snow's name connected to her little pet wolf with a lot of arrows pointing at it).
" Did you stay up late for this?"
Henry shifts uneasily on his chair. " That doesn't matter "
" Henry Daniel Mills, sleep deprivation- "
" Mom, we only have like a few months to do this, right?" he interrupts her
She shakes her head. " I do not- the curse was never supposed to break"
" Okay, but don't you have an idea of what will happen? You knew of the prophecy and everything right, so you must know something"
" I – " Regina tries to think, to focus back on that moment before the curse. But she can't think of anything, apart from the feelings she had thought were excitement and anticipation, and- well. She can hardly tell Henry what her 'solution' for the issue the savior posed was. " I have no idea. The curse was never truly mine, Rumple handed it to me".
" Rumple- "
" Mister Gold. Rumpelstiltskin"
" Can we ask him? "
" No " her voice is so harsh that Henry immediately flinches, and Regina feels her throat close when his expression becomes that awful mix of distrust and hatred and betrayal again for a second.
" He is dangerous- he is more dangerous to you than anyone else in this town, and possibly this world"
Henry still glares at her. " Why don't you want me to talk to him, is it because he can help?"
" Even if he could, he would not. And even if he would, it would only appear he was helping. Right until the moment you realized that you have crossed all the lines you promised yourself you would never cross. And perhaps you would still think he had just helped you"
Henry stops glaring. " But maybe he could- ".
" No, Henry. I forbid you to even think about asking that – to ask him for help"
" But he might know something! And if he knows anything, it could buy us time or – I don't know, it could at least make this easier".
" Henry, I will ground you if you- "
He jumps up, and she actually doubts whether magic is truly gone. Surely, only her heart being ripped from her chest and crushed to dust would hurt as much as the expression Henry levels at her. " I knew it. You're not even trying!" he spits, and runs away.
She doesn't even stand up. She doesn't scream or follow him. She doesn't make the same mistake she has been making for so long, for once, and doesn't close off and force him to remain safe.
She just sits there, and waits.
She can't breathe. Hands- on her body, wrinkled and digging into her, clutching her like the possession she is to them. Hands, around a softly glowing heart, and her heartbeat must be screaming- but all the other hearts in the rooms are louder. Hands, everywhere she goes, they burst through the ground and grab her ankles. The ground is bodies, her air is earth and there's maggots on her-
"Mom?"
She startles awake without a sound on her lips and with her entire body frozen. She has been conditioned to have nightmares like they're just dreams, and that is why Henry just smiles at her without the slightest hint he knows her head can't stop thinking are hands are bloody, and there is a crushing weight on top of her.
She has to get rid of the urge to run towards the shower, and scrub for so long and with so much force her skin will be chafed. She struggles to force a smile, and reminds herself that Henry isn't them ,and that there's no reason to snap or to push him away. Nor too hold on too tightly- she has made that mistake.
"It is the middle of the night, why- "
He frowns. "It's morning"
She swallows. She would think her dry throat was caused by screaming, but Regina has not screamed after a nightmare since she was ten. She doesn't know whether Cora used actual magic- or whether it was just the terror of another punishment for being a 'foolish girl' that stopped it all. "What?" she croaks
"I had another idea? If you - " he falters, and she blindly reaches for his hand.
" No, that's - just let me get my robe and clean up a little, all right".
He nods. " okay" he grins at her. " Emma is already in the kitchen though, I have told her we are working on a special operation for her. She thinks it is for her birthday"
" That's nice" Regina replies distractedly, and slowly gets out of the bed. It is only when she has thrown cold water over her wrists and inhaled deeply several times that she feels better. She almost breaks another mirror, because how can she still let these foolish dreams impact her like this?
She should know better
She knows better. Especially because breaking the mirror will lead to Emma barging upstairs, and asking annoying questions and looking at her like she knows. And Henry will – she doesn't know. He no longer sits at the kitchen counter, staring down at his cereal with an angry frown and leaving abruptly, but he isn't her little boy who would kiss her head because 'it's magic, mami, you always tell me. You feel better' anymore either.
She so calms down, doesn't destroy anything, and goes downstairs where Emma is being a fool like usually. It actually makes Regina smile, a genuine one that is very rare after nightmare-memories, how Emma is showing Henry how much cereal can fit into her mouth.
" We are not dogs, so we eat from bowls and not floors" Regina scolds lightly, stepping fully into the room
Emma just turns to her, mumbling something. Regina questions her sanity, honestly, as she has to force down a smile. " Miss Swan, despite my earlier misgivings, you are not animal so what is this?".
Emma swallows half of the cereal, and Regina grimaces as she spits the rest in a bowl. " Just a challenge, something I assume you've heard of madam mayor".
" I seem to be hearing one right now" she replies, as Emma's tone can indeed be described as 'challenging'.
Emma grins at her. "Well… I challenge you, madam mayor, to actually take the kid and me for a delicious grease-filled lunch at Granny's today".
" And why do you think I would be persuaded to do that?".
" Simple " Emma nods in Henry's direction. " It would make your son very happy".
Regina freezes for a moment, and maybe Emma really has a superpower and it is knowing the way Regina thinks. Maybe she really knows Regina immediately thinks she is being manipulated, and she won't allow it-
Maybe it's just how Regina has nearly hurt herself gritting her teeth.
" Of course, I could also do something I don't usually do in return"
Regina relaxes. " Such as eating food with actual nutritional value, dear?".
Emma rolls her eyes. " I eat healthy stuff as well, don't pretend like I never eat fruit and such".
"I know for a fact you have not eaten most of the apples I have graciously allowed to take with you as a work snack".
"Regina. Apples are not a snack. Chocolate is a snack. Donuts are a snack"
" Apples are a snack as well, as it is a light meal ".
" Snacks are meant to be tasty. Apples aren't ".
"Miss Swan, my apples are delicious"
Emma laughs. " You're not going to convince me. I am fine with eating apples, but I am not going to pretend I am crazy about th- "
Henry rolls his eyes when his mom ( the one with the apple obsession) leans and offers Emma a smirk. " Who said anything about pretending? "
" Are you challenging me, madam mayor" Emma counters, straightening slightly and giving Regina a cocky smirk.
" Yes. I can, and I will, make you love my apples".
Emma snorts. " Is this the moment you admit to pouring a love potion in my cup? "
Henry studies his mom with interest. He is sure she would have bristled at it even months ago, but now there is only a flash of discomfort before she counters with " I do not require love potions, just skill"
Henry grimaces, and looks away. He isn't really sure about what's happening in front of him, but he kind of wants to leave the room really badly when Emma flushes slightly and slowly licks her lips, and his mom responds by biting her lip slightly and giving Emma a look that –
He slams the book down on the counter, and immediately starts talking. He just wants them to stop –
Sure, it's good for his super-secret second operation, but whatever they're doing is kind of weird.
" So I got the book" he says happily
Emma blinks. He sneaks a quick look at his mom to see whether she has seen the split second of doubt and worry as well. Judging by her expression, she has. " I thought you were kind of done with the uh.. final battle" Emma says, glancing at Regina.
"Well- " he shrugs. "I can't be. Because the prophecy said it is coming so we have to prepare right? Just like you need to prepare to fight the final boss- "
" Which game?".
" Any of them. And all the heroes have to prepare too, you know. Captain America needed the serum and Wonder woman had to train really long and Superman didn't just become superman"
" Got it. Being a hero is hard work" Emma says.
He nods. " Yup. And it's even more difficult for team Swan-Mills- "
" Team Swan-Mills?"
Henry nods. " That's how I called us. You have the justice league and I first thought of something like 'the curse breakers' but- " he shrugs. " I don't know. I am still working on the name honestly"
Emma friendly pushes him. " I like it" her voice is oddly hoarse.
" You do? "
She just nods, and then quickly gulps down most of her hot chocolate. He stares at her for another second before deciding it just must be another weird thing, and looks at his other mom. " Mom?"
" I – " for a moment, he fears she will protest against the Swan part, saying that Emma isn't his mom. But she just swallows, and then whispers " I am part of your team?"
"No, it's a random person with our name" he grins at her. " Of course you are".
" But I am- "
"You are my mom" he says
" Yes?".
He swallows, and nods. " Yeah" he doesn't add that he is still so unspeakably mad, and he is all confused because he knows the person from the book should be locked up so she can't hurt anyone anymore but his mom is just the one who sings Spanish lullabies to him after bad dreams. And it's all- all he knows is she can't be hurt.
His mom doesn't say anything, just rushes towards him and hugs him like they haven't in ages. Usually she holds on too tightly or too carefully, like he is going to run or break. Now it's just like it used to be, and he didn't even realize how much he missed the way things were before lies and storybooks until he can pretend, just for a moment, nothing has changed at all ( apart from Emma. Emma is a good change, a really good one)
She finally pulls back and touches his chin. " Mi principito "she whispers.
" Si" he just says, not knowing what else to say.
" Fuerte, Bueno y cariñoso " she says, like she has a million times before.
He only hesitates a moment before giving the reply, the first words coming out like he is stuttering, but the last ones are strong and steady. " Como mi mamá me enseñó"
She smiles at him, for a really long time, until he slowly walks away and points at the book. Her smile drops, but not the one in her eyes. " So we need to find the rest of the happy endings. That is why I started this family meeting".
" Right" Emma mutters
" We need to find all the people that are someone's happy ending- '
" Wait" Emma interrupts
He glares at her, but she doesn't seem to take the hint. "Why would a happy ending be a person? That seems kind of really unhealthy "
Regina and Henry both stare at her, and Emma looks kind of uncomfortable but mostly really incredulous. "I mean, it is kind of crappy to expect someone to be your happy ending. That's a lot of responsibility to force on a person's shoulders, and why would you want it? Why can a happy ending be realizing your dreams?"
"For some people, finding true love and building a family is the greatest dream, miss Swan" Regina says
" And that's fine, but you shouldn't make it into a duty. I just don't think it's a good idea to expect so much from a person, it's just not realistic"
" But true love works that way " Henry insists
" I don't – I don't know about true love, kid. But usually, if one person thinks another person needs to be that much, the relationship isn't really equal. Sounds exhausting to me".
Henry narrows his eyes. " Wait. You mean something else can be a happy ending? ".
" I mean, why not? Love is important, but there are other things too"
Henry slowly looks at his mom. " She might be on to something" he says
Regina arches an eyebrow. " Odd, is it not?".
Emma just rolls her eyes, and takes the opportunity to steal Henry's cup. They're soon all laughing, right until the moment Emma grabs Regina and yells at Henry to 'get her too' ( a reference to the whipped cream Emma smeared on Henry's face when he giggled about the 'mustache' that the whipped cream had created )
Soon, Regina has convinced Henry to help her and really- Emma can't win when the diabolical geniuses join forces.
Regina stares at the book, the one that hasn't that many pages left and really how is her son doing it? She still thinks he must be staying up, but she has been checking in on him nightly and nothing. Her son is always just sleeping.
"Read it" he commands, happily eating the small mountain of waffles he managed to convince Regina to make.
She stares at it, at the new additions. At her own face, and that little brat's(Snow) and-
" Henry, where did you those pictures?".
Henry shrugs. "I told people I was doing a project. And someone helped getting them developed".
" Emma was involved in this?".
" No" he huffs a little. " I thought she would tell you, so I asked someone else. But they're going to be secret".
" Henry, if- ".
" They are my Robin"
" You have never before aspired to be batman, and I have never heard of him developing pictures for mr Wayne"
"Well, he is my sidekick and part of his job is helping me with this".
" All right. Did you also happen to borrow my wallet?".
" What- "
She taps one of the pictures. " I recognize this one. It is the one I keep in my wallet, the one I have been searching for, the same one you told me must have disappeared"
" I needed a picture" Henry protests
" You could have asked. Stealing is not right Henry"
" Can you still scold me now that I know you've done really bad things? Doesn't that mean - "
" Henry Daniel Mills, you can justify nothing that way"
" But – "
" No"
Regina's heart is hammering, and she is already trying to compose herself, using her usual tricks to keep her emotions from showing when Henry just shrugs and smiles. " It was worth a try "he says , giggling slightly, like his mother isn't braced for angry words and angrier glares.
Regina very slowly relaxes. " That was not right either" she scolds, but she is too relieved to make her tone properly strict so Henry just grins at her and pushes the book even more her way.
"Have you read it?".
"I was " she says, continuing to study the pictures and the comments. Most only have a few lines, but some have paragraphs. She pauses at a familiar one. "How did you convince miss Ratched to pose for this picture, mijo? " Regina knows the woman isn't exactly fond of pictures, nor is she amicable to a lot of people. Besides, she has strict instructions to immediately inform Regina if Henry ever visits the asylum.
" My side-kick helped" he just says, and then immediately adds (with a small frown, but she knows that he is just thinking, and not upset) " where do you know her from ?"
" I beg your pardon?"
" The nurse. Were you friends, or something?".
Regina suddenly remembers fingers gently pulling her hair free from a braid, and a no-nonsense tone telling her to get in the tub. "Not quite" she answers, and now she remembers surging forward, and dry lips against her own and-
She clears her throat. "When I had just become queen, she was in charge of the staff. She sometimes took over the duties of one of my handmaidens, and we talked occasionally" more often, the woman gave her orders, wiped her tears away and came up with things she could do, anything that would calm her down.
" Oh. And when you ki- " Henry flushes, and looks away for several moments before gritting his teeth a little and saying " and when Snow was on the run?".
" She was still part of my staff " she just answers
"What about the roses?" he questions
She stares at him. How on earth does he know that?
" Does it have anything to do with Beauty and the beast – " he stares at her. "Was she your girlfriend?".
Regina nearly chokes on air, and instead straightens in her chair and places her hand on her stomach. Gods, how do I explain this without traumatizing him? She has given Henry some information, but she hasn't really discussed sex with him yet. And she most certainly has not discussed relationships of women who honestly can't love as they're too consumed with rage and pain, but who still have needs and some sort of twisted fondness for-
"uh, mom?"
" My apologies. I have not finished- "
" You are not going to make an excuse about how you need to finish reading, come on mom"
"Why do you wish to know?"
He shrugs. "I am curious. You never really talk about any of it. You have never told me much about what you were like growing up, and stuff".
"I suppose so "
"So? Girlfriend? "he prompts
"Something like that"
He frowns. " How can someone something like a girlfriend?".
"I was not really in the right state of mind to be a proper girlfriend, Henry "
" Okay, but- " she is sure he will ask about it again, most likely when she is in the middle of something, but he drops it for now. " Do you recognize any of the other people?"
She studies the pictures for a while, then taps one of them and pushes the notebook back to Henry. " That woman. Her head used to be one a wanted poster".
"What, why? She is really nice! "
"She was a thief, and all the royals were furious as she had a habit of slipping inside their castles or arriving at their balls and stealing from them- only to hand it back to the peasants, and help them hide it".
" Wait. Steal from the rich, give to the – is she maid Marian?"
Regina arches her eyebrow. "She is"
"Cool!" Henry is sort of bouncing on his chair, he is that excited. " Did she steal a lot?".
"Henry, this is not an inappropriate role model".
" But mom - capitalism is bad "
"What does capitalism have to do with this?".
"Just everything. You and the other royals, so a small amount of people, had a very large percentage of the money available while the other people, a really large amount of people, only had a small percentage. That's what it's like now, too, and capitalism is the blame and everything is bad. And Marian had to steal from the rich to make it right again, see? ".
Regina narrows her eyes. " Who told you all this?".
"Uhm, should we discuss something- ".
"Henry"
" Emma "he mumbles.
Regina makes a low sound of displeasure.
" Mom?"
" Yes?" Regina answers, with no small amount of apprehension
" Are you a .. capitalist?" Henry says the word carefully, and very softly. And then immediately talks while she is still trying to overcome the ridiculousness. " Because.. I won't hate you for it! I can understand, with you being a villai- with having been the evil queen and all, that capitalism might seem like it's a good thing. I have that with really large chocolate milkshakes. It might seem good to drink it, but then my stomach will ache. So if you like capitalism, I will help you".
Regina just stares at Henry, and exhales slowly. " Thank you" she finally just says, after opening her mouth several times and imagining the rather intense discussion that would follow. She has never truly minded answering Henry's questions and talking to him about all manner of things for a long time, but she also is not in the mood for a conversation about capitalism.
(especially because the last time she actually had a long conversation with Henry about some idea Emma put in his head, it turned out that Emma had bribed him, for a reason Regina frustratingly still has to discover)
He just nods. " That's okay"
Regina massages her temple.
"So we know maid Marian and – " he mumbles something and Regina is already opening her mouth to protest the addition of 'mom's girlfriend!' to nurse Ratched's name, when she just gives up. She doesn't want to explain to her pre-teen son that his mother has needs as well, and sometimes that is all people are to you. A way to feel less lonely, and less frustrated.
" But who are the others?" he narrows his eyes slightly. " And what are their happy endings?".
" I have no idea"
She stares at the book, then at her son. " Henry?".
" That's your job. To write down who everyone is".
"Henry, I did not know everyone. As you remember, I was not exactly the person people flocked to and wished to befriend. And on the few occasions I did allow people close to me, I often did not bother to even learn their names".
Henry stares at her, then looks at the book. "Okay, so we've got to interview everyone?".
Probably anticipating the sassy remark that is on the tip of his mother's tongue, Henry quickly adds " I mean, we could ask them about the weird dreams and everything?".
"And you think that would not look suspicious?"
Henry sighs. " This is going to be more difficult than I thought "he complains
Regina almost tells him that breaking a curse isn't supposed to be easy. It is supposed to be as difficult as casting it, as ripping out the heart of the thing you love most and giving up a piece of your own heart. As living with an emptiness inside you, and doubting whether you made the right choice when the thrill fades and everything just seems so bleak.
It is supposed to be that difficult, and a saviour shouldn't have existed. She would have made sure –
She doesn't like to think about that. She certainly does not wish to remind Henry.
(gods forbid, she really does care for Emma Swan)
Carajo.
Emma has this awful habit of texting Regina random thoughts, or ideas, or stories. So that when Regina is supposed to be filling in paperwork, she instead spends an hour trying to proof that even homemade pizza is still unhealthy and that putting tomatoes on a pizza doesn't mean it's like eating salad, seriously miss Swan. Or that time Emma had laugh so hard that when her appointment walked in, they nearly tripped over their own feet at the image of mayor Mills with coffee dripping down her chin and tears in her eyes.
(not to mention that one time she made a dozen mistakes during her presentation, too distracted by the picture Emma had sent her, of that new tank top and a rather horribly distracting stomach)
Regina is so used to it by now that when her phone lights up, she just turns it off and continues with her paperwork. If it is truly important, Emma will barge into her office. The woman still has no sense of boundaries sometimes after all.
As Emma does not barge in, or even leave a message with her secretary, Regina manages to work the entire day and only turns her phone on when she is certain if she is affected strongly again, at least she will not embarrass herself in front of the entire town council, nor will there by pesky rumours that will have to be destroyed.
She rolls her eyes when she realizes Emma has left a long stream of texts, obviously as impatient as th- as Henry.
So uh the kid had lunch with me?
You know, which he sometimes does when you're too busy and we can't all have lunch together
He had some interesting ideas
Turns out he is still in the middle of an operation
I think he has renamed it?
Anyways.
He talked to a lot of people
Does the kid even know about stranger danger?
I know the people here don't seem threatening, and everyone likes Henry but some of the people here I don't really like to be around him.
But okay, so he came bursting into the station
And had an entire presentation
He is SO your son.
So Regina 2.0. has spoken to the town, and listened to the people
I didn't really get all of it, mostly because he kept talking about happy endings and how it was all my idea?
Anyways- Belle wants to start a book club, and she already has this entire thing prepared for it
Sounds pretty good actually, I think she is going to give the plan to your secretary
She also has this NIGHTMARISH idea that we are all dying to hold a costumed ball?
Don't worry, I already told her it wasn't really a good idea
It didn't even end with anyone crying
Madam mayor
She still really wants it though
Henry is really excited
He has started 'research'
Which means going through all his favourite comics and everything
And trying to find someone to go as
He suggested you go as wonder woman
What would I need to do that get THAT to happen?
; )
He said there aren't many heroines
Definitely not ones you like
And apparently wonder woman is your favourite?
I would have thought that would be someone more like Poison Ivy
Then Henry changed his mind and decided I could be wonder woman
Because of my superpower (he started rambling about the lasso of truth)
And then decided I couldn't be a 'right' wonder woman
Whatever the fuck that means
He no longer thinks you should be wonder woman either
He is now going through all his comics, and the TV series
I think he is going to use the internet any moment now
He thinks you should go as pirate
Never mind
APPARENTLY YOU HAVE ALREADY DONE THAT?
Did you guys dress up for Halloween?
Omg you did
Henry told me
Are there pictures?
I am going to search for the pictures
I found the pictures
I am keeping them
Urgh, you're in so few of them
Are you dressed as Bellatrix?
Do you still have that outfit?
Do you still WEAR it?
Regina?
REGINA?
I am pretty sure Henry has started a third operation
He is really excited about this thing
Are you going to wear another Bellatrix outfit
She has multiple
So you could
Or if you want to keep it Harry Potter but still change a bit more
A quidditch flying costume maybe?
You know or Bellatrix
Whatever
You know we're going to have to do this
Henry REALLY wants it
We can't escape Regina
Regina doesn't really like costumed balls, as any ball reminds her too much of the enchanted forest. Of her mother enchanting her shoes to become more uncomfortable every time she made a mistake during dance lessons. Or of the times when Leopold's oppressive arm had been around her and Snow's chatter had been a constant, making the air hotter and the oxygen sparser, every time Regina had to accompany them to another ball ( or maybe even worse, the times she was left behind. Forgotten).
No, Regina does not enjoy balls.
But she still smiles, because Henry and Emma always make her smile. And she knows Henry will just be overjoyed if she says yes, and Emma will pretend to hate it and even dislike it but eventually she will have fun as well. And the town- the town might actually be grateful for something as exciting as this. Of course, the organization will be a nightmare and there is a certain risk that it will spur memories-
Regina is still almost excited.
It is because she wants her son happy
(it has nothing to do with the idea that she might be able to snatch a dance with Emma)
The truth is probably somewhere in the middle, as it usually is.
Because she really does love her son, and her feelings for Emma are a mystery to a woman who cast a curse so dark it ruined something in her. She doesn't know whether she can call it love, but it definitely changed something in her.
She is happy now, happier even than she and Henry had been pre-Storybook, it has raised the stakes that much higher. Because either the curse will not break, and Henry will hate her, or the curse will break and she will get whatever is coming for her.
She knows either her heart will break again, or there will be nothing left of her to break.
The Spanish is supposed to mean this, in case you are interested:
Regina : "Strong, good and loving"
Henry: " Like my mom taught me".