Chapter 4: The Truth
Cora was just waking up from her nap. She came down the steps, yawning, with her hand covering her mouth.
"Who was that dear?" She asked still a little groggy from her nap.
"Henry and his friend." She answered angrily.
"Why so angry, darling? Your son just came to visit you. You should be happy." She said walking towards Regina and putting her hand to her daughter's face.
Regina pushed her hand away. "That's not why I'm angry." Cora just stood there with a bewildered look on her face.
"You lied to me! You told me my daughter had died soon after giving birth to her, but that wasn't true was it?!" Regina screamed. Cora never thought Regina would find out, she didn't know what to say.
"Regina I…" was all that Cora could get out before Regina cut her off. "I would choose my words wisely if I were you. You're on thin ice as it is."
Cora wanted desperately to re-connect with her daughter. She was on the road to redemption with Regina just as Regina was with Henry. She had to tell Regina the truth, something she didn't really want to do but knew she had to if she had any chance to redeem herself. She was hoping it wouldn't put her in an even worse position with Regina, which was possible.
"This story calls for a drink" Cora said letting out a sigh before walking into Regina's office where she kept her alcohol, followed by Regina who was eager to hear this story. Cora filled two glasses and handed one to Regina.
"You're going to need this…and you might want to take a seat." Regina grabbed the glass and took a seat without saying a word. She waited until her mother began speaking.
On their walk back to Snow's apartment, Henry filled Mandy in on what Regina told him about her past.
"That's one hell of a story! And it was so sad." She had tears coming down her face. She wiped her tears away quickly hoping Henry wouldn't notice. "It's okay, I cried too." He said trying to comfort her in a way.
"It's hard not to." She muttered as she quickly regained her composure. "So she wasn't always evil. She seemed like a really sweet girl that was manipulated in so many ways, she finally cracked, resulting in her becoming the Evil Queen." She said trying to sum up the story she was just told.
"I know she's not all evil and she really is trying, which I appreciate." He said with hope in eyes.
"Well I'm glad to hear that. You're so lucky that you have so many people who love you."
"I suppose so." He said when he noticed they were just outside Snow's apartment building.
"I'll pick you up at 7 for the dance and wear something you wouldn't mind getting dirty, just in case." She said before she turned and kept walking.
"Why?" He shouted.
"You'll see!" She shouted back and continued walking.
Emma and Gold continued on with their journey to NYC. They were almost there by now. They woke up at 7am and drove for hours. Emma was determined to get there later that night.
"So what are you going to say to your son when we find him?" She was curious as to how he planned this was all going to go down.
"I'm not sure yet." Was all he said.
"You might wanna figure that out soon. We are a half hour from the City." She said hoping he would come up with something soon.
"Don't worry about me dearie. You should be concentrating on what you're going to say to him." He muttered.
"How about this, 'Hey dude, why don't you come back to Storybrooke, Maine with me and your dad and we can throw a party when we get back' how's that?" She asked sarcastically. Gold just gave her a wicked glare.
"Okay, okay! I was going to bribe him with candy…" She felt like messing with him for this stupid trip he forced her to go on.
He was getting really irritated with her remarks. "This isn't funny Miss Swan." His voice elevating with every word.
"Sound like someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed…"
"I'm in no mood for your sass, Miss Swan." He hissed.
"Well I wasn't in the mood for a road trip to NYC with you…but I'm here aren't I?" She said more seriously.
"For the rest of the ride let's not say anything to one another." He muttered.
"My pleasure!" She agreed. They continued to ride in silence until they reached NYC.
Fairytale Land-Daniel's Final Moments to Regina Giving Birth
Regina was meeting Daniel on Firefly Hill the day after she told him she was pregnant. They were going to finalize their plans when they heard a scream from a little girl on a horse. Regina, without thinking twice, jumped on her horse and began chasing the girl who was in desperate need of saving. She managed to save the girl and was later proposed to by the girl's father, who just happened to be a King. Cora accepted on her behalf and Regina was to be married and become Queen. Snow knew about Regina and the stable boy and let it slip to Cora that they were going to run away together. Cora was not going to let her daughter marry a stable boy so she stopped them and ripped his heart out, resulting in Daniel dying. Regina was later married to the King.
A month and a half passed by and Regina was beginning to show. Regina told everyone that she was expecting a child. She didn't want to pretend it was the King's child but she knew she would have to in order to keep the child and please her mother, and the rest of the Kingdom for that matter. The King was ecstatic, thinking it was his baby. Cora believed this was also the Kings' baby. A few more months passed and Regina was ready to give birth.
"Regina, we need you to push." A nursemaid said waiting for the baby to come out. Cora was holding her hand as Regina let out a scream while she pushed. "Keep going, almost there." The nursemaid said, encouraging the young woman. Regina pushed again and screamed in agony. Her screams were accompanied by wailing. The baby finally came out crying. Regina was happy it was all over and she finally relaxed. The nurses went to clean the baby off before it could be given to Regina.
"You did it sweetheart! How are you holding up?" Cora asked as she wiped the sweat off of Regina's forehead.
"I'm fine. When can I see my baby?" She asked anxiously.
"The nursemaids are cleaning her up, you can see her soon." Regina nodded and shut her eyes for it was only meant to be a moment, but turned into a three hour nap. She was awoken by a nursemaid who told her that the baby needed to be fed.
"Here's your daughter." The nursemaid said as she placed the baby in Regina's arms and left mother and daughter alone. Regina couldn't stop staring at her newborn daughter. She already knew she loved her so much. She reminded her of Daniel. Regina let out a sob that she was trying to hold back but couldn't. She and the baby began crying at the same time, both comforting one another.
The next day, Regina was rocking her daughter when the King and Snow came into the room to visit Regina and the new edition to the family. Snow was so excited to have a little sister.
"Can I hold her?" She asked Regina. Regina was hesitant at first but decided she could. Snow sat on the bed so Regina could place the baby in her arms.
"Make sure you support her head." Regina said as she placed the baby in Snow's arms then sat next to her on the bed.
"She's so tiny." She said and giggled. "Have you decided on a name yet?" She asked Regina. Cora walked into the room over hearing Snow's question.
"The King and I have been discussing possible names and we came up with Corinne." Cora said walking over to stand next to the King.
"Oh that's such a pretty name!" exclaimed Snow. Regina hated it. She had a look of disgust on her face that she couldn't hide.
"You do not like it, Regina?" Asked the King.
"Well, it's not my favorite." Regina said honestly. The baby began to cry in Snow's arms and Snow began to panic so Regina took the baby from her.
"Well what do you want to name her dear? You need to decide quickly. We need to make the official announcement to the Kingdom." Cora muttered.
"I don't know yet. I will need a little more time to decide." Regina said as she walked away to put the baby down for a nap. She wanted to name the baby Miranda in honor of Daniel but knew her mother would find out somehow so she had to pick a new name but nothing was coming to her except the name Miranda. She was certainly not going to name her child after her mother, knowing the name Corinne came from the name Cora.
Later that night
Cora snuck into the nursery to see her granddaughter. The baby was awake and playing with her feet. Cora picked up the child and began rocking her. She studied the baby's face and features and noticed something familiar about the baby. She has seen those eyes before. A vision of Daniel's eyes the moment she ripped his heart out flashed in front of her. She suddenly realized this baby was Daniel's child, not the Kings. She couldn't risk anyone finding out the truth of the baby's true paternity and she was furious with Regina.
Cora decided it would be best to tell everyone the baby had suddenly died and that there was nothing anyone could do. She wasn't going to kill her granddaughter though, she still loved her. She left in the middle of the night so no one would notice she and the baby were gone. She left the baby on someone's doorstep in the woods in a basket with a note. The note had the baby's name on it, Corinne, and that the baby's mother couldn't take care of her. It was left unsigned. Before she left her granddaughter at someone's door, she placed a necklace around the baby's neck which was supposed to protect the baby.
Cora quickly returned to the palace and informed a nursemaid that the baby had died. The nursemaid went to the nursery where Cora had placed a deceased baby she had killed. Cora then went to wake Regina and inform her of the news. Regina couldn't stop crying. Her mother sat on her bed holding her daughter and rocking her back and forth trying to calm her down. Cora didn't want to hurt Regina, she just wanted what was best for her daughter and she thought she was doing the right thing.
Storybrooke-Present Day
Cora finished telling her story, waiting for Regina's reaction.
"You took my daughter away from me and pretended she was dead!" Regina screamed as she stood up from the couch. "You couldn't let me have some happiness in my life, could you?!"
"I couldn't risk anyone finding out the true paternity of that baby. It would ruin you!" She hissed.
"You're unbelievable, you know that!?" Regina shouted.
"I wanted what was best for you, dear." Cora argued
"No, you wanted what was best for you." Regina said bringing her voice down a bit trying to hold back tears.
"I was helping you." Cora said flatly.
"I didn't need help! I needed you to understand that I wanted to live my own life and do things my way." Regina began shouting again. "And you just left my daughter, your granddaughter, with random strangers in the woods unprotected? Something could've happened to her!"
"I wouldn't do that. I enchanted the necklace I put on her. No one with magic would be able to harm her as long as she was wearing the necklace."
"Well what if someone took the necklace off of her? She would be powerless." Regina was so pissed by now.
Cora shook her head no. "The only way to remove the necklace is if she removed it herself."
"At least you gave her protection." Regina muttered, still pissed with her mother for taking her daughter away from her.
"I wasn't going to let my granddaughter go unprotected." Cora said.
"I can't listen to this anymore." She said putting her hands up to stop Cora from speaking." I've had enough for one day." Regina walked to the door opening it.
"Regina I…" were all the words Cora could get out before Regina interrupted her.
"No, stop talking!" Regina yelled. "I'm so tired of you ruing my life and don't think I'm still helping you with your little plan to get Rumple's dagger. I can't even talk to you right now." Regina left and slammed the door before Cora could reply. Cora knew she screwed up and she had to figure out a way to fix this and still go through with her plan.
Later That Same Night
Henry was waiting for Mandy to pick him up for this Indian dance they were attending.
"So let me get this straight…you met a girl at the playground a few days ago and now you're going to a dance with her?" Snow questioned.
"Yea, but it's not a regular dance. It's an Indian Dance." Henry responded.
"A what?" She asked with a confused look on her face.
"An Indian Dance. It's something they only do in Neverland I guess, but I don't know all the details. I'm guessing it's a bunch of Indians dancing…." Henry said while putting his shoes on.
"You sound like David." Snow said smiling seeing the family resemblance in Henry. "And do I get to meet this girl?"
"Yea, she's picking me up. She should be here any minute now." Said Henry.
"Who will be here any minute?" David asked as he came down the stairs.
"Henry has a date tonight!" Snow said smiling.
"You go kid." He said as he tossed Henry's hair.
"It's not a date, we're just friends. Besides, she's older than me." Henry declared.
"You're on a roll, kid!" David said giving him a light punch to the shoulder.
"David, stop teasing." Said Snow realizing it was beginning to bother Henry. When she finished scolding David, the doorbell rang.
"I'll get it!" Exclaimed Henry. Before Henry could take a step, David grabbed him, giving Snow a chance to get the door so they could meet this girl.
Snow opened the door. "Hi, you must be Mandy."
"Yea, that's me. Is Henry here?" She asked.
"Yes, please come in." Snow said waiting till she came in before shutting the door behind her. David had let Henry go by now.
"I'm ready, let's go!" He said eagerly, wanting to get out of there quickly.
"Wait a minute Henry. We haven't gotten a chance to talk to Mandy." Snow said catching the boy's arm before he could get out the door. Snow looked at this girl more intently, knowing she's seen this girl before. She suddenly remembered where she met this her.
Flashback
It was few years after The Evil Queen banished her from the Kingdom. Snow was trying to set a trap for her next meal but she kept having difficulty. She thought she finally got the trap figured out and was satisfied with her result. She was too preoccupied with her achievement to realize that someone had come up behind her.
"That's wrong." Said a young voice from behind which made Snow jump and pull her knife from her belt. When she realized it was a little girl, she relaxed a bit.
"Oh, you scared me." She said relieved seeing a little girl rather than an attacker.
"Sorry, I didn't mean too." The girl said apologetically.
"What do you mean the trap is wrong, it looks perfect to me." Snow said looking at her work over again.
"You didn't tie that knot right. " She said pointing to a knot closest to Snow's boot. "The moment your trap is triggered, it will capture the animal but it will escape because the knot will become undone."
Snow couldn't help but stare at knot the girl pointed at. "Well how would you tie it then?" She asked frustrated with herself.
"I would have to set a new trap altogether. Yours is set in an entirely bad location."
"What do you mean?" Snow asked.
"You want to set a trap where there is running water. All animals need to drink sometime. You will have a better chance at capturing something there. I can help you, if you'd like." The girl offered.
"Fine, I'm starving." She said accepting the girl's help. "I'm Snow by the way."
"Corinne, nice to meet you." She began undoing Snow's trap. Snow recognized the name as the one Regina's baby, her half-sister, was going to be named and thought this could be her. She quickly shook off the thought knowing that baby had died soon after childbirth.
"Are you going to just stand there and let me do all the work?" Corinne yelled to Snow waking her up from her daydream.
"Ugh, no sorry." She said and began helping the girl with the trap. "So what are you doing out in the woods all by yourself anyway?"
"I was on my way to Oz on an errand for someone and then I have to go to Wonderland after that." Corinne answered continuing to undo Snow's knots.
"Sounds like quite the journey." Snow said wondering why she had to go to these two worlds.
"Yea and both worlds have crazy witches, or so I've been told. Hopefully I don't have any encounters with them. I really don't want to go to be honest." She said becoming frustrated with one of the knots.
Snow came over to help her undo the knot. "Why do you have to go?" she asked. "You're just a little girl, you shouldn't be facing witches and traveling to different worlds."
"You gotta do what you gotta do." She answered. "And I'm not a little girl. I'm 12, thank you very much."
"Alright, you're a big girl." Snow said not wanting to upset the girl any more than she already had. "But you never have to do something if you don't want too." Corinne thought about what Snow said for a while. They began walking towards a stream and began to set it up once they got there. They looked over their work and were both satisfied with the result.
"Where did you learn how to set traps like that?" Snow asked amazed at the trap set in front of them.
"In Neverland. We catch most of our food from these traps."
"You're quite the littler traveler, aren't you?" Snow smirked.
Corinne laughed. "I guess I am. Well I better get going."
"Thank you for helping me." Snow said giving the girl a hug. Corinne wasn't used to giving hugs to people, let alone receiving them. She awkwardly wrapped her hands around Snow's waist.
"No problem." Corinne said trying to get out of the hug. Snow let her go but kept her hands on the young girl's shoulders. "Stay safe." Snow said. "I will, promise." Corinne responded before running off in the direction they came from, Snow watching until she was out of sight.
Present Day
"You're name wasn't always Mandy, was it?" Snow questioned.
"No, my real name is Corinne. I think we met before." Mandy replied as she began to remember meeting Snow in the forest.
"Yes, we have. I thought you looked familiar." Snow said smiling.
"You two know each other?! How?" Asked Henry.
"Long story, I'll tell you on our way, we gotta go. Everyone is waiting for us" Said Mandy.
"Have him back by 10:30pm" David said before they could close the door.
"Gotcha! C ya later!" Mandy said before pulling the door shut behind her.
"Are you going to tell me how you two met?" David asked Snow as she began washing dishes.
"Sure. I never did find out what she had to get from those errands and who she was running them for, but I have a bad feeling it was Rumplestiltskin." Snow said with a worried look on her face.
"You think she was training with Rumplestiltskin?" Asked David shockingly.
"Unfortunately I do." Snow whispered as she continued washing the dishes.
(A/N) I hope you all enjoy this chapter and thank you for the reviews. They really help motivate me to write more. Keep them coming:)
