Her father didn't stay long, he couldn't, he informed her. "I'm…meeting someone for dinner," he commented as she walked him to the door. That pronouncement, the way he'd said it, it was enough to stop her in her footsteps.

"Meeting someone? A-a woman?" she questioned.

Her father stopped by her side and looked her over timidly as if judging her reaction. "Are you angry?" he inquired.

She was silent for a moment, and it wasn't until she saw his face fall that she finally forced the breath out of her lungs and shook her head. "No! No, of course, I'm not angry! Surprised! But not angry. Papa…that's…that's great!"

"I don't want you to think too much of it for now. It's just a customer I've gotten to know over the years, but it's good…and…"

"Papa," she smirked, because she'd never seen him so dumbstruck in all her life or at least not since her mother had died. "It's a good thing," she assured him before reaching up to hug him. "You deserve to be happy."

It was odd. How could it not be? She missed her mother, still loved her mother more than anything, and her memories of her mother and father together made it difficult for her to picture her father sitting down even to eat dinner with another woman! But she knew that her memories of her mother were not the same memories her father had. And she knew that if her mother could speak she would be happy for him. She would want him to live again, to love again as he once had. If this woman was a passing fling or something more, he deserved whatever it was that she offered. Though she was happy that he chose to tell her now, instead of letting her discover it later on. She wasn't quite sure she was ready to meet her yet. That might take some time.

Still, after he left, she found herself shaking her head and smiling. Rapunzel and her father both…it must have been in the air. She sighed as she looked into the back room and her smirk faded. Part of her wished it was in the air. Part of her wasn't sure if falling like that would be good for her. Want and need…she wished this wasn't so confusing.

The bell to her shop chimed again. It seemed like it had done nothing but chime all day! But luckily for her, most of the visits had been pleasant. This one was no different. "Robin!" she sighed with relief as he stepped inside with Roland and Regina. She reached out and wrapped her arms around his neck despite the unhappy feelings she had just under her skin.

"I'm fine," he insisted. "Thank you for your help."

Her help?! She'd hardly done anything but the research! So…

She pulled away and looked at Regina, who held Roland in her arms. "What happened?" she questioned.

Regina shook her head and looked the small boy over. "I was going to ask you, actually," she stated handing Roland over to Robin. He took the boy and told her he'd wait outside for her, then reached out, squeezed her shoulder and smiled, before turning to leave. He didn't want to stay? Was it that bad? Or was it just because Roland was there with them?

"What happened?" she asked again when they were gone.

"I'm not really sure," Regina answered stepping further into the shop and folding her arms over her chest. "When we got there a boat was already on the water and the Fury was taking something from Robin. I stepped forward to offer myself for Robin and felt…draining," she explained. "It's hard to describe. But then…it lessened. And lessened. And lessened and lessened. And then…there was breath again. The fury disappeared and when I looked up the boat and the man was gone. Mary Margaret, David, Leroy, and Arthur…they were all with me…holding hands and looking like they were just as stricken as I was. Gasping for breath, unable to stand…I haven't got the faintest idea what to make of it. It's all a blur!"

What she was describing…she knew logically what it sounded like, but she just didn't know if it was possible magically. It seemed plausible, but she'd need to do more research in order to understand!

"You know what this was…I can see it in your eyes," Regina muttered looking her over.

"I have a theory, nothing more," she admitted.

Regina nodded in encouragement. "Go on…"

She sighed. Was this what doctors felt like when they had to give diagnoses before knowing they were right?! It didn't feel right. "Well…the Fury requires a soul, a life force…perhaps what all of you gave for Robin was the equivalent of a soul or life force."

Regina was quiet for a moment, her eyes wide, looking at her like she was crazy before she shook her head in disbelief and asked "what kind of effects would that have on us?"

That was an excellent question that she also wasn't sure she had the answer to. Though if she had to hazard a guess, as she was certain Regina wanted her to do…

"Perhaps the loss of years," she suggested. "Maybe the average lifespan of a person divided among the five of you? But I can't be sure of that. There won't be any way to prove that without time."

"Without seeing if we die young you mean," Regina questioned.

She didn't exactly want to say it as crudely as that but now that Regina had, yes that was exactly what she meant. And now that it had been said and laid out between the two of them, now that the look on Regina's face had changed she could tell that she hadn't been as clueless as she'd thought she was. She'd suspected this from the beginning, and she'd just wanted someone else to confirm it for her. And now that she had…why was Regina smirking? Why was her smirk growing into an outright smile?

"We might live a few less years…but it's a lot of years we have together that we wouldn't have if we hadn't given them."

The sentence disturbed her. What she'd said was true, obviously, but the meaning behind it wasn't a fact it was a matter of opinion. Regina was saying it was worth it. And it might have been…for her.

"Would Mary Margaret and David agree with that statement?" she questioned staring her down.

The look on Regina's face fell as she realized what she'd said. She looked out the window to where Robin held Roland in his arms, and the two appeared to be having a conversation of some kind.

"I want you to know I really am going to tell them what happened between us," she stated after a minute. "But you should also know that I meant what I said earlier. I'm sorry I didn't give you the opportunity you wanted to help me. And I'm sorry that I had to take your memories-"

"But you don't regret it," she finished for her.

"No," she answered after a moment. "I'd do it all over again if it meant that I could save him. I'd go to hell and back to make sure he's safe from Zelena. But...you also need to know that I would never have killed you. I threatened to…but I never actually planned on doing it."

She doubted that. The truth was right there in what she said! Regina had never planned on killing her. But what if things hadn't turned out the way she'd hoped? What if Rumple hadn't gone after her heart; if he really hadn't cared? What if he had called Zelena? And if Zelena had slain Robin or even Roland out of spite, before Regina could save them? Of course, that hadn't happened because Rumple had folded as planned, because he loved her…

But still…if he hadn't done as expected, would she still have honored her "plan" and not crushed her heart out of anger for Rumpelstiltskin? The woman that had kidnapped her, locked her in a tower for years, then an asylum for decades? Yes…she had her doubts.

"Listen…Granny is reopening for dinner tonight, and everyone is getting together for dinner on her. You should come with us."

She shook her head and stepped away from her. "I'm not really hungry," she excused.

"It's not really about whether you are hungry or not. It's about getting out of this shop, spending time with someone who isn't unconscious for a couple of hours."

She figured as much. That was the problem. When it came right down to it, she wasn't sure that she wanted the company they offered over the silence Rumple offered. Though neither was listed in her preferred evening plans, this seemed better somehow.

"I think I'll pass," she concluded once more.

Regina was quiet for a few moments, so quiet for a moment she wondered if she'd magically decided to poof herself out of the shop. But then she heard the sound of her shoes on the wood behind her. "When I say 'I meant what I said before', I meant all of it. I understand if you never want to speak with me again and can't trust me again. I can live with that. I've lived with worse frankly. But don't punish the others because of what I did. I'm going to tell them what I did, you have my word and I know that doesn't mean much to you right now, but it is the truth. For your own sake…don't turn away from the others because of what I did. It's not good for either of us…"

Her jaw was set as she finally heard Regina turn to leave. She was angry…but oddly enough it wasn't at Regina. She was angry at herself. Even after Rumpelstiltskin she was too soft-hearted and forgiving. But…she could remember leaving Storybrooke what felt like only days ago and thinking that she needed to find some semblance of the person she'd been before Rumple had crushed her heart and broken her soul. Maybe her soft-heartedness and forgiveness was part of that. She wasn't ready to trust Regina yet, she wasn't ready to ever be as gullible as she once was, but she could learn to live with a lot too. It was going to be impossible to avoid her considering how closely tied they were together, and it certainly would be smart considering what they were both capable of offering the group.

The worth of a price…

Her feelings were not worth the good they could do together. Tonight proved it.

"Regina!" she called before she could get to the door. "What happened between us…it's private. It should stay between us," she allowed sadly.

She really was too forgiving.

And you thought the last chapter had some serious foreshadowing! There was a whole lot of it in this chapter! Usually, I'm not one for that kind of thing, but sometimes I cannot help it, and it just comes out. For the record I wasn't really going for full on forgiveness in this chapter, I just wanted to get Belle and Regina back to that "we can put our issues aside for the good of the town" because they both do have great qualities necessary for the group. If there is tension it makes things even more difficult.

Thank you, Fox24, Grace5231973, Curly J, Carlyle23, Teresa Martin, and Ladybugsmomma for the comments you left on the last chapter. I appreciated it! 5x02 is not done just yet; obviously, there's another chapter to come and with any luck you'll enjoy it, even if it is predictable. Peace and Happy Reading!