A/N: BLAH! Life is getting crazy right now! I'm so sorry for the delays in updates everywhere. If you're reading any of my other stories, I'm sorry to disappoint but those will be on hold for the time being. I'm going to focus on this story and hopefully update every few days. Either once this story is over or once I get some more time in my life, I'll continue on with the others.

And once again, thank you Morganlafay for the amazing idea and for being my awesome beta!

After the confirmation of Cora's return, Regina buried her face in Daniel's neck, wishing she could hide from the world and its problems,(even if it was just for a short time). Snow watched her and couldn't imagine what the woman must be feeling after the events of the past couple of hours. She grabbed Emma's arm and pulled her daughter up with her as she stood. "We should probably go check on Henry," Snow stated. Daniel nodded at her, his hand still rubbing along Regina's back. "Let's go," Snow reiterated, yanking on Emma's arm again - the blonde seemed to still be frozen in shock over Regina's story. The tug seemed to pull her out of it however and she nodded, allowing Snow and James to lead the way out of the room.

Emma couldn't resist stealing one last glance at the couple still sitting on the loveseat as she shut the door behind them. "So that is Regina's true love. Who knew the woman had it in her?"

"Regina was a very kind and gentle woman at one time," Snow reprimanded. "her heart wasn't always rotten. And now that Daniel is back, I wouldn't be surprised if it heals."She sounded hopeful

"That may be so," James cut in. "But I'm more concerned about her mother. If her mother is worse than Regina, we are in for a wild ride."

Snow nodded her head at his words. "Cora is much worse. Regina was merely a torn-up and broken woman. She didn't want to hurt, she just didn't know how else to act. She was never taught any better. Cora, on the other hand," Snow's teeth worried her lower lip, "Cora is just mad and power hungry."

"Worse than Regina. Great. And here I thought all our problems would be over," Emma grumbled and stomped off down the hallway. Snow and James shared a look before following after her. "So what are we going to do about this? If Regina is afraid of her and we couldn't even beat Regina, what hope do we have against Cora?" She shoved the main door open a bit harder than she had meant to and winced as it slammed against the wall, looking around for any sign of trouble. Nothing was there though. The trio continued on their way, ears open for the slightest hint of danger.

"You overcame Regina on your own against the odds. This time we have the entire town. And Regina, I'm sure. I don't see her standing idly by when the woman who tore out her love's heart in front of her is still around," Snow commented. She paused and James stopped with her. It took Emma a second to realize her parents were no longer with her. She looked behind her to see the two in a heated argument; James was looking stubborn and kept shaking his head, Snow had the same determination on her face as her mouth moved to words Emma couldn't hear.

"Are you two coming or am I going to have to find Henry on my own?" Emma demanded, moving closer to the couple.

James and Snow exchanged a few more words until finally James sighed in frustration and nodded, his hand running over his head. "Fine. We'll try it."

"Try what?"

Snow looked at Emma. "You go find Henry alone. James and I have somewhere we need to go."

"Where are you going?"

"Emma, go find Henry. Your father and I will be back soon. I promise." Snow squeezed Emma's hand before linking her arm with James' and they hurried away. Emma watched them, her unhappiness clear in the way she stared after them. But she had to admit, she was worried about Henry after the kid had been out of her sight for so long so she spun in the other direction and continued on her way to the diner.

wishwishwishwishwishwishwish wishwishwishwishwish

As soon as the door had closed them in, Regina allowed the tears to start spilling over again. They soaked into the shoulder of Daniel's shirt, but he didn't notice. He stayed silent, letting her cry herself out.

"I'm so sorry," Regina managed to squeeze out.

"Regina, what could you possibly be sorry about?"

"For everything. I've done horrible things I'm not proud of. But I didn't know what else to do. I lost you and there was nothing for me. Leopold ignored me, Snow was a constant reminder. My mother continued to magic everything in her sight. Daddy wouldn't stand up to her. It all became too much. I couldn't take it anymore," Regina rambled until Daniel's lips quieted hers. She melted against him and let his quiet strength seep into her.

"Can I say something before you continue?" Daniel asked before Regina could open her mouth to speak again. She nodded. "You were hurt, lost, and confused. You had no one to comfort you, no one to teach you how to cope with anything. No one can blame you for the way things turned out." Daniel tried to meet her eyes but she wouldn't look at him, still ashamed that he knew of all the things she had subjected her world to. "Regina, look at me." She continued to avoid eye contact. "Look at me!" He grabbed her chin forcing Regina to meet his eyes. "Whatever you have done in the past is over. What matters is what you do in the now. Do you want to help and take us back home or do you want to continue torturing Snow White for a mistake she made as a young, impressionable girl? That is all I will ever judge you by."

"I killed my own father," she sobbed.

"For a fresh start! I'm not saying I approve. I know if there were any other way you would have. But you needed to get away and start over again. It was the only way to move on."

"How can you be accepting of all I have done? I'm the Evil Queen for gods' sakes. My own son can't even stand me!" The tears started falling faster again atthe thought of her son. She had tried so hard to be a good mom, so hard to give him everything she never had. But it had never been enough for him. He couldn't look past all the evil she had committed and even if she had denied it all year, she knew it was all true and each accusation tore whatever had been left of her heart into smaller and smaller pieces.

"Your son doesn't love you like I do," was Daniel's reply. He rested his chin on the top of her head and held her tightly against him. Regina sniffled as the tears seemed to near their end. "I love you, Regina. Nothing is going to change that."

"I love you too," Regina murmured.

Daniel once again sat quietly to let Regina's thoughts settle. Finally he had to ask her, "So what are you going to do now?"

She untangled herself from her arms to get a better look at her true love, a smile breaking through the tear-streaked face. "Right now, I want to take advantage of having you back in my life again."

Daniel's brows rose, a playful grin as he took in the glint in Regina's eyes. "Lead the way, m'lady."

Regina's smile grew as she stood on her feet. She took his hand in hers and pulled him up to his feet. A second later, a puff of purple smoke was all that remained of the two after she magicked to her bedroom.