Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon a Time or any of the characters but my own OC's.
Chapter 9:
It was when Mia fell off the couch when she finally woke up. She sat up groggily and looked at her surroundings. The lounge was clean apart from the mess of pillows and blankets. After being momentarily confused, she thought back to the night before. Mia remembered watching a movie, couldn't remember what though, Regina was there as well, getting comfy in the bedding and falling asleep on Regina who has disappeared, probably to her room.
I fell asleep on the Queen, how embarrassing. That is no way to treat royalty, so I must apologize. Soon though, she thought while thinking about what she wanted for breakfast. With a heavy sigh, she took the bedding back upstairs. It was still slightly dark outside so Mia assumed it was early, but not to early to get ready for the day.
After making her bed, she picked out dark jeans, a simple tee, a new hoodie and tied her hair up nicely.
It's nice to be able to dress as you wish here, ladies can wear pants and have easy hair styles and it takes so little time, I could get used to this.
Once Mia had looked at herself in the mirror and deemed herself acceptable, she silently wandered back downstairs.
Once she had found everything, she made herself breakfast, with only a few mishaps including spilling the milk and forgetting where the cereal went. It had become rather easy following the daily routine of the new world.
She sat at the large table and ate in silence. It was rather boring at this time of the day and she had started to regret getting up so early. Staring at the soggy flakes on her spoon, she started wondering about the past few days, all the bad thoughts once again resurfacing. They took over the good ones like watching movies with Regina and getting to know Storybrooke and suddenly filled her mind with regretful and painful memories.
Why do I always do this to myself? Even in the Enchanted Forest I was such a pessimist.
It was strange, one minute Mia would be doing something completely normal like brushing her hair or having a conversation and then a sudden wave of emotions would cross her and random outbursts would happen. Back in the Enchanted Forest her mother would question it but her father would just dismiss it and assume it was just her magic. It would always happen so unexpectedly most of the time that Mia never knew when it would strike again. Like a ticking time bomb counting down.
Mia continued to slowly eat her breakfast but her mind seemed like it was the perfect time to irritate her. Even attempting to chew louder wouldn't drown out her thoughts. They always picked the wrong time to interrupt her and sadly, one of those times was now.
You know what's strange? The very fact that I am sitting at the Evil Queens table eating breakfast like I have no worries in the world and everything is perfect. But that's the thing. Nothing is perfect. And it will never be, because of that imp who destroyed my life.
Mia tried to focus on other things to rid herself of the poisonous thoughts, like looking at some of the pictures in the room. A lot of them had Henry at different stages in his life, they were quite cute. Regina also had very fancy ornaments littering the dining room. But the more she focused on the room around her, the more it looked like it was closing in. Mia could feel eyes on her even if it was just her imagination and her palms beginning to sweat around the spoon she was still holding.
Because I'm living in a world without my parents and because I have no one. I'm going to be forever alone in a world I barely know and I'm sitting here eating breakfast like it doesn't matter. This isn't the life my parents would've wanted for me, they didn't want magic to destroy my life and look what I've already done. You're pathetic, Mia. And you know it.
Tears started to fall into the bowl as the spoon dropped on the table in frustration. Mia took a staggered breath and tried to stop her subconscious from thinking these horrible things. But the more she tried, the worse it got.
I have to stop this, stop these thoughts. No… No, I need to stop pretending that I'll avenge myself and my parents because I know I won't. I'm not strong enough and sitting here wont do anything. I'm just a pathetic child who can't do anything, I couldn't even stand up to Rumpelstiltskin or escape. I could've been back home in the Enchanted Forest with my family and I could've learnt how to properly use my powers and we could've been safe. And happy. I could have had my happy ending. But no, everything is ruined.
"I have to stop this." She whispered frantically. The chair flew back as Mia stood up angrily. She could feel the magic at her fingertips and looked down to see deep blue magic seeping through. It was the first time seeing this and she freaked out. Her head was pounding and her mind wouldn't stop replaying every traumatic experience over and over. Mia looked down at the bowl of cornflakes and felt like puking. Her thoughts had got to her and she panicked. She ran to the front door, quickly put her shoes on while shakily wiping her overflowing tears away. With a slam of the door, Mia ran down the footpath sobbing uncontrollably. Her vision was blurry and she was beginning to get dizzy.
What in the world is happening to me?! The outbursts were never this bad!
The sun was beginning to rise and the streetlights were off now, however it was windy and cold still. The magic feeling was still tingling as she ran quickly down the empty street. After having slightly memorized the route to the park, she headed there, purposely avoiding the town center. Running there frantically didn't take long so Mia sat down on the bench she and Regina usually would, catching her breath. The tears didn't subside, but she had managed to calm down a little. She placed her head in her hands tiredly and continued to cry.
Please, please, please calm down Mia. You will look incredibly stupid and idiotic, especially in front of Regina… Regina! I just ran out of her house in the early hours of the day and she doesn't know where I am! Could this get any worse?
Sniffling a few more times, she wandered down to the pond and placed her hands in the icy water. The blue had began to disappear but that still worried Mia a lot.
Magic was coming out of my fingertips… Meaning that I not only have power of the mind but also sorcery and witchcraft like Regina and… him. What am I supposed to do?
She took her hands out and stared down at the reflection before her. Mia saw a miserable and tired girl.
I definitely do look rather pathetic now.
Mia splashed the water away and stormed back to the bench in anger. She sat back down with her knees to her chest, looking out to the pond and lightening sky.
Regina heard a sharp sound from downstairs which caused her eyes to fly open. Looking around and blinking tiredly, she remembered she was in her dark bedroom. Thinking back to the odd sound, she slowly rose from the bed and wandered down the hallway. Before leaving her room she looked at the clock which said 7:04am.
Who would be making such a noise this early? A slam of the front door.
Her eyes widened when she heard the second sound. Regina began to speed-walk down the stairs to find the source of the noises.
I swear to god if I'm getting robbed, I will get them and make-
Regina stopped short at the bottom of the steps in bewilderment and looked at the mess at the table. The chair was knocked over and the spoon and cornflakes were dumped on the expensive table.
What the…?
Her eyes widened when she remembered Mia. Regina rushed into the lounge to see Mia nowhere in sight and all evidence of her sleeping on the couch was gone. She was shocked and very confused. Regina could also feel the worry creeping up on her. The mess in the dining room, the front door slamming and the girl disappearing raised many questions for Regina and she did the only thing she could think of.
"Mia! Mia, are you here? What's the matter?" Her voice cracking at the end. Regina was only met by an eerie silence. Panic was evident in her when she raced upstairs to search the rooms. First the guest bedroom, nothing was out of place in there. The few necessities that she owned were sitting nicely on the dresser and her cloak was hanging on the door. Their was no evidence of Mia running away in there. Next, the bathrooms which were empty. Laundry, empty. Henry's room, empty. Establishing that Mia was definitely not in Regina's home, she then went into her own room, throwing on the first thing which was a black dress followed by a coat. She quickly combed through her hair with her fingers but didn't bother with her usual make-up. Regina grabbed some boots and hurried back downstairs. While gathering her things into her handbag, Regina contemplated calling Emma or Charming to help but decided against it.
No, I will find her myself. And none of that family will go near her. They've destroyed enough.
She stepped out the door trying to stay calm. Regina walked fast down the path, towards the closest place in mind.
She couldn't have gotten too far, but she doesn't know this town. That's what worries me. Think Regina, think. Where would she go? And…Why? Why did she run away? Am I really that bad?
Regina walked as fast as her heeled boots could take her down the empty path. It was quite cold and the sun was barely up, the clouds taking over. Just then, an idea sprung to her mind. Regina took out her phone and dialed Henry's number. It only took a second for him to pick up.
"Mom..? Why so early? Shouldn't you be like going to work or something?" She heard Henry answer sleepily. Regina stopped dead in her tracks.
Work! I completely forgot. No, a missing child is more important.
"Henry," Regina began walking briskly again. "Have you heard from Mia since yesterday?" She tried not to sound desperate for his sake.
"Uh… No. What- Mom what is this about?" Asked Henry. Regina heard Snow asking questions in the background and decided to hurry this along. No need to for an unwanted discussion with the Charming's.
"She's just, feeling a bit down. That's all. Thanks though, you go get ready for school young man. I love you." Regina spoke rather quickly. She hated lying to her son but she didn't want to worry Henry.
"Mom, are you- never mind. Love you too." She heard him sigh. "Gotta go, bye." The beeping sound had signaled he had hung up.
"Bye." Regina whispered to no one. She put her phone away and quickly crossed the road onto the footpath, hoping to find any sign of her. Regina walked around the block not finding anything and continued to search the neighborhood.
After a while, Regina debated on heading into town but she got another idea. She turned around and headed in the direction of one of the only places Mia knew of. Regina fast-walked past the playground and hurried towards the path that lead to the pond, praying for her to be there.
She better be here… Regina thought, worried for the girls safety.
What if she really did run away? What do I do? She could get lost or kidnapped or killed and it'd be my fault. I've caused enough harm to people, especially when they get too close.
As Regina neared the area, she saw the pond come into view. The whole area was silent and still, like it was closed off from the outside world. No cars, no buildings, only one little person sitting on the bench. When Regina scanned the area, she saw the person and identified them as Mia. She recognized the small frame, her long hair and her clothes Regina had brought her only a few days ago.
A huge wave of relief passed through Regina. Actually, to say she was relived was an understatement. She didn't know what she would've done if she didn't find Mia here. Regina could feel her own heartbeat thumping and couldn't help thinking why. She had panicked, and panicking was something she didn't do. After taking a deep breath to calm herself down, she walked over to the bench as fast as her boots could take her. Regina didn't know what she was going to do when she confronted Mia.
Do I ask her what happened? Yell at her for running away? Comfort her? The same as when Henry ran away?
As Regina neared Mia, she noticed how she was hunched over, holding her knees and her face buried in her arms.
"Mia?"