Author's Note - Still plugging away :) Thank you for the comments and our new followers/readers, especially your patience in waiting for updates. We hope you like the gift, a bit of Regina's past that we expanded on with an OC we barely used in another story for this one, and what happens at the end.

Regina took as deep a breath as she could as she climbed, with minor assistance, out of deputy mayor's car. Despite the general weakness she was experiencing, Regina had to admit that the sun on her face felt exquisite. So did wearing her own clothes and light make-up after a week of looking the part of a hospital patient!

She turned toward Nikole, who was still in the driver's seat, as she set a steadying hand on Henry's shoulder. "Thank you, my dear, for the escape vehicle and the ride here."

The well dressed, dark haired woman behind the wheel of the BMW slipped her sunglasses off to offer a more direct smile. "Anytime, Regina. Until you're cleared to drive, I'm more than glad to assist."

Beside her, Regina could almost feel Henry thrumming with energy. No doubt, he was itching to know who Nikole was in the Enchanted Forest. She gave his shoulder a gentle but meaningful squeeze as she smiled back at the deputy mayor.

"I'm very thankful for that. We should just be a moment in the shop… would you mind phoning the garage to learn if my car is repaired yet?" she asked.

"Of course," she answered quickly and pulled out her cellphone. "Is there anything else I can do?"

Regina paused, then shook her head. "You're already being a great help, my dear. Thank you."

"If you say." Nikole dialed the garage and smiled at mother and son. "Take all the time you need. I don't need to be back at city hall for quite some time." Regina knew how much pressure the deputy mayor was under in keeping the town running smoothly and gave her a dubious look. Nikole took it in stride and chuckled. "I promise."

"Thank you, Nikole. Let's go find a gift, Henry." She patted his shoulder this time and turned as he closed the car door.

Relieved to be moving under her own power and not trapped in a wheelchair, she drew on her inner strength to keep steady on her feet and moving forward as they stepped inside. The bell of the door offered a polite ding.

"Well, hello, Mayor Mills. Henry. What can I do for you on this fine day?" asked Mr. Gold from the back counter. He stood with his hands against the wooden edge of the case, eyeing them with an enigmatic smile.

"We need a gift!" Henry blurted out before Regina could respond more diplomatically.

With a level look at the pawnbroker, she nodded in confirmation. "Miss Swan has joined the sheriff's department. I thought it would be appropriate to send her a gift, welcoming her to the staff."

Gold barely withheld a smirk. "I see. Well, that's quite thoughtful of you, Mayor Mills. We do not often see new hires, now do we? Did ye have anything in mind?"

Looking around the shop, nothing jumped out at Henry that screamed Emma, which was sad because there were very few things that he knew about her likes - besides jeans, red jackets, sweets, and the jewelry she wore. She was a woman that didn't take stock into too many personal possessions. So he took a different approach, remembering what little was mentioned, or seen, in the book about baby Emma. Then it came to him.

"Got any unicorns?" he asked on instinct.

Regina blinked, then frowned at Henry. "Unicorns? Henry…"

"Aye, I do." Gold moved from where he stood, coming around the counter to direct their attention to the mobile. He looked at Regina and she offered back an opaque stare, trying to figure out if he knew what he was doing or not. "Now, an entire mobile would not be an appropriate gift for our new deputy… but, one of the wee unicorns did escape its delicate wire. Perhaps he alone would be a fitting gift?"

"Which one came loose?" asked Henry, looking up at his mother's mobile. "The dark one or the clear one?"

Regina's eyes narrowed at him as he asked the question but, Mr. Gold seemed unfazed by her expression. "The clear one. What do ye think, young Henry? Would Deputy Swan take this as a fitting gift?"

"Cool," he said with a grin, thinking that it made sense that one came loose. The clear glass unicorn was as close to pure you could get for the savior of Storybrooke! He turned to his mom with an enthusiastic smile. "We should get it!"

Regina pursed her lips. "May I see this unicorn in particular, Gold? I don't want to find that you've sold us a chipped and damaged piece of the mobile."

"But of course. The wee unicorn is right here." He'd flinched slightly at the word she'd emphasized. Gold stepped behind the counter again and presented it to the mayor, resting on a piece of fabric. "Still in perfect shape, as you can see. Just as it would've been over the babe's crib."

Regina took the time to inspect it herself, her mind racing back to that fateful night when the curse had ripped them away from their land, to come here. As she touched the unicorn with her fingertip, Regina gasped as the force of those memories and sensations overwhelmed her. She rocked slightly and Henry was quick to steady her. His touch brought her back to the moment.

Ignorant of what had really happened, Henry's voice was wrought with concern. "Are you okay mom? Do I need to get Miss Nystrom?"

"Just a… moment's dizziness," Regina replied, knowing Henry wouldn't believe that for a moment. She hoped that he'd have the tact to realize she'd put off a real answer because of Mr. Gold standing there with a hard-to-read look on his face. "Thank you for… steadying me, my prince."

Intuitive as he was, Henry rolled with it. "I knew it was too soon for you being outside like this. We should hurry up and get you back home."

Henry gently took the unicorn from his mother's hand and held it out to Mr. Gold. "Are you okay with getting this?" he asked, hopeful that she was. He was well aware that Regina had recognized the gift's significance, but would she brave enough to go along with purchasing it?

"Yes… still quite perfect. And it is a fitting gift for Miss Swan," she whispered. "We'll take it."

"Very good," Gold said with the enigmatic smile on his lips still. He lifted a brow at Regina as he turned his back to gift box the token. "I trust you'd like to carry this, Henry? For safekeeping?"

He smiled exuberantly up at his mother, "Definitely! I'll take care of it until you can give it to Emma."

Regina paused, having imagined delivering it to the station without Emma being there. She swallowed hard and nodded, bracing herself for the opposite scenario.

"Yes. In a day or two, when I'm back up and running at one hundred percent," she said, recovering and sounding confident.

As much as Henry wanted to argue and have Nikole drive them straight to the sheriff's station right now, he couldn't fault his mother's logic. This was her first venture outside since being discharged and she needed to rest. Plus, they had a lot to talk about! Did Regina really like the unicorn? What happened when she touched it? She wasn't fooling him at all that something had happened! And who was Nikole because he usually had a pretty good idea who most everyone was in town from the storybook …

"Of course, Mom. You need your rest." He smiled up at her.

And Emma's not going anywhere, anytime soon. We have time. The curse is making sure of that.

With Henry's aid and Nikole's insistent help, Regina was moved back into the mayoral mansion. Finding the couch in the living room to be the right height to settle into easily, Regina waited there with a glass of juice while they unpacked her. It felt wonderful to be home, though she was keenly aware of how much work there was to be done, and how much change would come with Operation Moms, as Henry had termed it.

"Hey Regina. Everything's all set up for you upstairs," Nikole's voice carried into the living room before she appeared. She had long ditched the suit jacket and rolled up the sleeves of her blouse. "Henry and I rearranged everything to make it easier on you when you get up. Personal effects on the nightstand, favorite items laid out on the vanity since I know you'll be far too stubborn to not primp everyday ... " She couldn't help smirking at that. "And lastly, I'm going to install a handrail in the tub later today at your son's insistence."

Regina felt it too personal that they were arranging her items and her make-up like that. It felt even more intimate that Nikole was talking about her tub like that. Absurdly, all she could think was, That requires Nikole to be in my bathtub. While she could have protested and insisted that her friend, the deputy mayor, had done so much already, Regina knew it would be a losing battle to fight. So, she offered a tired nod instead.

"Thank you, dear. This is a kinder gesture from you than I fear I deserve," Regina said softly.

"Nonsense," she said with a wave of her hand. "It's no trouble. Though... is there anything else I can do before I head back to the office? Just a few things need doing before I can come back."

Regina blushed and wondered how much of that was simply Nikole, or how much was due to the weakening of the curse… thanks to Emma's continued presence. She shook her head.

"I think we're covered for now, Nikole. Thank you," she said genuinely. "I'll let Henry order us pizza, since God only knows what Graham has let him eat all week. I promise to take my medications as prescribed, and will listen to what young Dr. Mills has to say about my taking it easy. I promise."

Henry's radar went off for junk food because he appeared a second later after that announcement. "We're having pizza?!"

Nikole laughed richly at that before regarding Regina. "Well, then. Since you've covered about everything I could grill you on, I'll leave you in the capable hands of Dr. Mills. I'm a phone call away."

As she ruffled Henry's hair, he pouted. "You're not staying?"

"Lots to do at the office and then shopping for your request," she explained with a patient smile. "I'll be back later."

"Thank you again, Nikole, for all of your help." She gazed at her for a long moment, then smiled. "We'll save you a slice for later."

Henry looked at his mother with a bugged eyed expression, really wanting to know who Nikole was from the Enchanted Forest!

"That's kind of you." She returned the smile. "Until later then."

"Bye, Miss Nystrom!" As Henry watched her leave, Regina could tell he was about to burst from curiosity. So eager for the door to shut, he was leaning slowly forward in anticipation to hear it. He knew of the deputy mayor growing up and Nikole was one of the few people that Regina seemingly tolerated. Nikole was kind and patient, and got along easily with his mother, but Regina was genuinely kind to her right now, and always had been. He really hadn't noticed it until now.

As soon as the door clicked closed, his eyes were on her in the next heartbeat.

"Who is that?!" he all but demanded.

Regina leaned back into the couch as best she could and sighed. "She led my knights, Henry. Commander Kalyn."

"Oh?" He remembered Kalyn being referenced in the book, but there wasn't even a chapter dedicated to her story. Just her allegiance to the Evil Queen and a picture depicting her in uniform with the black helmet covering her face. "She's not really in the book."

"Hers is not one for a ten-year-old's storybook," Regina said gently and seriously. "But, back in our land… we had been… close. For a time. And, while she's always been a good employee in this land, now that the curse is weakening, her old tendencies at wanting to protect me are kicking in."

The smart boy that he was, Henry pieced together what Regina was trying to delicately express without outright saying it. Eyes narrowed towards his mother as he hoped he digested the information right because he would hate to be wrong and make this more uncomfortable for her. Or any more uncomfortable a conversation like this was between a mother and her ten year old son. "Close? Like you and Emma were close? Or …?"

"Yes. Exactly like that. She came into my life after the King was dead," Regina said quietly.

"Huh," he sat next to Regina, stunned. "The book really left out a lot of stuff, Mom." And that made him really wonder as to what else had been omitted from it and why.

"Clearly," she replied. Her tone softened then, looking at her son. "Your storybook has a definite angle to it which painted me as a villain. In many ways, I was. But, it also forgot to mention how I came to be that way. It also forgot moments like Kalyn, who made me better… even if for a time."

Regina fell silent for a moment, pondering that.

"I suspect that your book was written that way specifically because you needed to be inspired to find Emma. A story where your Evil Queen mother wasn't quite so evil wouldn't be as captivating." Realizing she might be talking over his head, Regina sighed. "In other words, the story was written to match its reader and encourage you to take action. So, here we are."

Henry hadn't considered that. He had been swept up in reading the book and piecing everything together that he took the stories at face value, believing them wholeheartedly. Which was not wrong since they were true, but he didn't realize to look further to understand the why behind Regina's actions. She was the Evil Queen and that was all he needed to know to find the savior in order to bring back the happy endings in Storybrooke.

Now that mission hadn't changed. Emma needed to still do that, but she also needed to help get her own happy ending with Regina. Just it was weird to think that his mother could've been happy back in the Enchanted Forest …

"Yeah. But I know better now," he said with an encouraging smile. "I know most of the truth. Even if my mom decided to omit a rather big part of her past. But I'm sure I can forgive her."

Regina chuckled softly, mindful of her still-healing ribs. Color rose on her cheeks. "Well, my prince. At least you know now. Just… remember when Nikole comes back that she remembers nothing of our past. And, when I enacted the curse, we were no longer together. She was my commander and nothing more."

"I've got a feeling if I ask for more information, I'm going to get it's 'a grown up' thing, or it's 'none of your business, young man'," he said with a smirk. "But I get it, Mom. I don't want to confuse Miss Nystrom further if she's starting to remember her old life."

She matched his smirk and finished her juice. Regina consciously took a new approach with her inquisitive son in this moment. "I will answer what I can and what is appropriate. What questions do you have, Henry?"

"What? Really?" he asked quickly, unable to contain his excitement that they could talk about this.

"Yes, really," Regina replied.

"Wow! Thanks." He calmed himself, practically bouncing on his heels and finally joined his mother on the couch. Henry took a moment to collect his thoughts and asked the first thing that came to mind he was most curious about. "How did you two meet?"

"Initially, it was when I helped her rise above her station, offering her the chance to be a knight," she said, brown eyes taking on a thoughtful cast as she remembered the hell Kalyn had been through. "She needed and wanted a new life, so becoming a knight was that opportunity."

"So, she impressed you?" he wondered. "You weren't really big on granting people requests if it didn't suit you."

Regina pursed her lips. "No… I mean, yes, she was quite impressive. But, when we first met… I knew what it felt like to want to start over, to leave behind the terrible mess you were in. I saw in her a kindred spirit. Someone who had been hurt, but who wasn't going to be bested by it."

She looked at her son, wondering if Henry could really understand what she meant and from what Regina had shared with her son, he could grasp what she was trying to explain. "Someone hurt Kalyn as badly as you were hurt then."

He wouldn't ask what happened, because that wasn't polite and it really wasn't his mother's place to tell Kalyn's story when she didn't even remember it.

"So you must've kept an eye on her. Made sure she was okay? Well, at least in the beginning since she became your commander eventually."

Regina shook her head no. "Honestly… no, not really. We lived very different lives back then. Kalyn set out to improve her situation with training and hard work. I delved further into the darkness. We only had cursory interaction as she advanced, until one night…"

She fell silent, her gaze far away as she recalled the night that Kalyn had had the temerity to rouse the nightmare-tormented Evil Queen, trying to protect her even from her bad dreams. No one but the then-Commander had ever had the courage to disturb her sleep! Regina recalled it all, then blinked and looked at Henry. She opted for simplicity in their tale.

"I was having terrible, violent nightmares by then. Kalyn had become my knight's commander, but was on post outside my chamber that evening. She'd heard me screaming in my sleep and came to my aid. I was vulnerable… and asked her to stay. One thing led to another, with her becoming close to me for a time." Regina smiled sadly. "We were good together, the knight and her queen."

Henry gazed at his mother warmly and placed a hand atop hers that was resting on her leg. He squeezed it and found himself further sympathizing with her. Even without knowing the details yet, he was intuitive to know what probably led to his mother and Kalyn's relationship to end. Regina turned her hand so she could squeeze his.

"It wasn't good enough to last though," he said faintly.

"On the contrary. You know what the cost of the curse was, Henry," was her quiet reply.

He nodded. "You had to take the heart of the person you loved the most."

"Yes. It came down to a choice. I loved my father… but I loved Kalyn more. I saw the woman she was able to become, as a knight. The pride she took in her duty. I loved her." Regina looked down at their clasped hands, wondering what Henry thought of her now. "And I sacrificed her… what chance we had together… and then sacrificed Daddy in order to enact the Dark Curse."

Dazed by his mother's confession, it took Henry a few minutes to regroup. Regina had admitted to loving someone again and instead of that person being taking away, she willfully pushed them away because her desire to end Snow White eclipsed the happiness she could have had. Of course, if the curse was never enacted, Henry wouldn't be sitting here either. It was almost like Emma, except that Regina willfully sabotaged that relationship from the start before realizing that she was in love with her.

But we're going to fix this. Mom's not going to lose another chance at happiness.

There was one part of the story that he was unclear on though.

"I … guess I don't understand how that worked. If you loved Kalyn more than your father, shouldn't you have still used her heart to cast the curse?" he asked gently, trying to keep his racing thoughts from injecting into his voice. He knew this was hard for her and Henry didn't want to come off as callous.

"I… loved them equally. So, I sacrificed both their hearts, in a matter of speaking. By breaking Kalyn's heart. And by crushing my father's," she whispered.

Regina pursed her lips, trying to keep old grief and guilt from bubbling back up. It would surely overtake her if it could. He'll see me, again, with the moniker I've come to deserve. Evil.

Henry frowned, and not for the reasons that Regina had suspected. All he could see was his mother had been so broken that she couldn't accept being happy despite it being all right there in front of her. All she had to do was accept that she could love again, and Regina could've had the life she always wanted.

"You weren't ready to love again." He gazed up at her without judgement. "Were you?"

Regina's brows hit her hairline as her gaze shifted back to her son. "What?"

"Back then. You were too scared to fall in love and accept it again. It was harder to do than be angry at Snow White," he said far too wisely for his age. "And it probably didn't help that Mr. Gold was using you too. He did want you to cast the curse."

Her astonished expression turned to that of a frown as she worked through Henry's assertion. He was such a bright boy, but Regina hadn't anticipated he was so wise. His point of view made a lot of sense. But, she wasn't sure if she could admit that. At this point, what did it matter?

"Perhaps. All I do know is that I made the choice to protect Kalyn and express my love that way, because Rumpelstiltskin was no one to trifle with."

"I get it. And to be extremely serious, things worked out because you got me eventually," he said with a twinkle in his eye. "And you'll get together with Emma too. You're ready to love again!"

She smiled because Henry's enthusiasm was indeed contagious. Regina hoped his certainty was as well!

"Yes, you're right, my prince." She sighed softly. "Now… do you have other questions? Or did you want to get our pizza ordered?"

"Just one. Well … two," he admitted.

Regina looked at him, curious to whether this would be serious or about the pizza. "Go ahead…"

"Well, back at Mr. Gold's shop, it seemed like the unicorn affected you," he started and squished his lips thoughtfully. "Did something happen? Or… was it just bad memories?"

"Touching the unicorn took me back to the night the curse carried us away from the Enchanted Forest," she replied softly.

"So it was magic?" he said in awe. Emma's presence was unraveling the curse far more rapidly than he imagined.

"Or… if not magic, a definite tactile reminder of the past." Regina nodded, looking pensive. Seeing Henry's puzzled expression at the terminology, she explained. "You know how you'll say that the smell of cinnamon reminds you of my apple pies? It's the same sort of thing. Touching an object can bring back memories too."

"Oh," he said with disappointment. "That make sense too."

Regina half-smiled at his reaction, then the look faded. "Either way, my prince, it was a very intense memory to see and experience your mother's nursery as if I was back there again, in my gown, as the curse swirled around and enveloped us…"

"Are you okay?" he asked tentatively. "You're trying not to be that person anymore and it all … just came back."

Regina shifted her shoulders, trying to discern the answer to that question. "When you… reached out to steady me, it pulled me back to the moment. To being myself. Who I was then… was very tightly connected to magic. To dark magic." She sighed. "I don't think I can go back to that without it. Despite popular opinion."

Henry gazed towards his mother with a critical expression. "But … you're … changing. For the better. Even if you had magic, I don't think it would be the same like back then. You've got a lot more good in your life that overrides all that anger you held."

"Thank you, Henry. I think you are right," Regina replied with a smile. She waited a beat, then asked, "And what was your other question?"

"Oh …" He said meekly, his passion fading. The other question he had was delicate, but it was a genuine concern considering what he had learned about his mother tonight. "This past with Miss Nystrom …" he began nervously, "... this won't change things with Emma right? I mean, I know you and Emma are true loves, but … you kinda gave up a lot for ... well, for Kalyn too."

"Ah. Wise question, my prince." Regina nodded thoughtfully. "I did have very strong feelings for Kalyn. That's true. But, I knowingly sacrificed any chance for happiness we had together when I chose as I did. And here in our present lives, Emma is my true love and my future."

Her son's eyes brightened with that. Henry could admit the question was partially selfish because he wanted his moms together. Under the surface of that need, he did want his mother happy. It was just fortuitous that both paths intersected!

"See, Mom? That's just the determination you need to get Emma to understand that you're serious about her. I'm sure she'll come around. You just can't give up."

"I know, Henry." Regina nodded, thinking again of the unicorn figurine from the mobile. "We'll have to speak with Graham about her schedule, so we know when I can give her her gift."

If she'll accept it. No. She will. Right? Henry says to believe.

"Good idea." Twisting his small frame to grab the phone off the end table, he already started to dial the station. "No time like the present to find out!"

"Henry… wait," she said with a startled chuckle that made her ribs twinge. "How about dinner first, and we can check in on her schedule later?"

"You sure?" He asked with his voice bordering on whiny.

"I'm certain. For one thing: I'm hungry!" she replied.

Sighing, he lifted his finger off the second to last number for the station, hit the button for a new dial tone, and started to dial the pizzeria.

"Okay. But after dinner!" he declared.

"Alright," Regina conceded. "After dinner."

As he ordered, she considered all that was happening. The stasis that had been life in Storybrooke had surely broken! It remained thrilling and terrifying to experience. And, Regina had the feeling that those sensations were only going to deepen with time.

"Use your talents for a higher calling. You're good at what you do. Help take care of the people of Storybrooke, he says," groused Emma as she hugged the apple tree branch. Her black boots hooked under the thickest part and pressed against the trunk, keeping her secure.

Her latest call was so cliche that it had to have been a hoax but when Emma arrived on scene with an older woman balling under a tree and clutching two kittens in her arms, she knew it was true. She was here to rescue a damn kitten from a tree.

Puckering her lips, she cooed at the frightened grey kitten in hopes to coax it just a little closer to her. It wasn't too far back that it was in danger of falling, but Emma didn't want to take a chance.

"Here kitty, kitty. Come here so we can all find our best friend the ground again."

Kalyn's car rolled slowly up the street and Regina and Henry peered, puzzled, at the sight that was unfolding at… or on… the tree.

"Is she rescuing a cat?" Henry asked.

"Kitten, more like… but yes," Regina said, clarifying needlessly. For some reason, the sight of Emma dangling there on kitten rescue made her blush. "I suppose we aren't kidding when we market the town to be a peaceful seaside community, are we, Kalyn?"

"Well, unless you want to include our new deputy's arrival and the storm we've just endured, then yes. This is the usual front page story material the Mirror's used to," she agreed, parking the black BMW closer to the scene so Regina wouldn't have to exert herself too much.

Regina patted Kalyn's arm. "Thank you for the ride, dear."

She climbed out of the car gingerly, Henry nearly bowling her over in his enthusiasm to climb out and see Emma in action!

"Is that Berlioz up there?" he called to her, then added, a soft, "Oh" as the name took on new meaning now that he was in-the-know.

The kitten barely moved, crying out with pathetic mewls for his brother and sister.

"Oh, Deputy Swan! Please hurry!" the elderly woman said in desperation, voice trembling as the kittens she held continued to cry out.

Regina came up to stand beside Henry, now worrying that they were an unnecessary distraction. Emma would not likely be happy to see them right now, she supposed.

"It is Berlioz! Tell him you have a treat, Emma!" Henry called up to her. "He loves his kitty treats!"

He ran for the porch, looking to Mrs. Gabor, thinking he could run relay and bring Emma the treat in question to coax the kitty down. Regina clutched the small, wrapped gift box with both hands and watched as it all played out.

Emma shot both Henry and Regina an incredulous look. It was bad enough that she was still struggling with her feelings about and for the mayor, but this was not the type of situation she needed them being an audience for.

But then again, she needed to get the damn kitten out of the tree.

"Alright thorn in my ass, how about you and me climb down from this tree and get an awesome treat from my friend Henry down there?" she asked with the most plastic smile, carefully pointing to where Henry was standing. "See? My friend is friends with your mom down there, and she's really worried about you."

Instead of crying out, Berlioz gave out a hesitant, almost curious, meow, which melted a layer of Emma's tough exterior.

"Yeah? Sounds like a good plan right? C'mere. I promise you're not going to fall. I mean, I might, but you won't…" Her voice fell into that soothing tone that had made similar promises to Ava and Nicholas when she saved them. "Just a couple paws forward, okay? Then I'll get ya."

Berlioz meekly mewled, his tiny paw hesitantly reaching out to take a step.

Regina smiled despite herself, focused on Emma and how she was talking down the kitten. In her peripheral vision, Henry too was watching with rapt attention.

"There you go. You got up here. Means you can take a few steps. Easy peasy …Right?"

He cocked his head, eyes wide and hopeful, as he took a step. Then another. It made Emma grin despite how ridiculous this entire ordeal was, and soon Berlioz was snuggled up against her chest, tucked safely into her arm. "See? Told ya it wasn't hard."

"Hooray!" Henry shouted, fist pumping.

Regina smiled, wanting to clap. But she couldn't, not with the gift box in her hands. She stayed quiet, letting Emma do her work while she waited on the sidewalk.

"Oh thank heavens!" Mrs. Gabor quickly approached the tree as Emma carefully hugged the trunk now and reached for the branch below her with her boot. "Thank you, Deputy Swan!"

"Don't thank me yet," she answered with a grunt as she moved to the next branch, finding her balance. "We're not down yet."

"Be careful," Regina whispered anxiously under her breath, so low that no one could hear.

Using one hand made the descent difficult but sure footing and hugging close to the trunk for support managed to get her down to the closest branch by Mrs. Gabor. She reached out with a firm grip on the kitten's belly, well within reach of the older woman's hand. "Here ya go. One Mr. Berlioz returned safe and sound."

Henry bounced forward eagerly, ready to high five or hug Emma, depending on what she'd go for. Regina stood off to the side, smiling proudly, and acutely aware of how out of place she was in this moment.

"Oh, Berlioz! You naughty kitty!" Mrs. Gabor cried out in admonishment. "You gave me such a fright!"

He leaned up and nuzzled her chin, purring in content as his brother and sister butted up against him with relief! Emma was busy swinging over the branch and dangling for a second before dropping to her feet to appreciate the reunion.

"Great job, Emma! I knew you'd make a great deputy!" Henry cheered.

She rose to full height, giving Henry a shrewd look as she slapped her palms clean of embedded bark. "Thanks, Kid."

Henry beamed at her, missing the funny look completely. He offered her a high-five though, figuring that was better. "Mom and me-"

Regina cringed inwardly at the misuse of the pronoun but kept quiet.

"-were looking for you. Dispatcher said you were out here on kitty rescue," he explained.

"That right?" she said, sparing a suspicious glance at Regina while high-fiving Henry. It finally registered that she was holding a gift box.

Regina stepped forward with a polite nod. "Yes. I had something for you… and we decided to seek you out in case you weren't headed straight back to the station."

"So, you thought bringing me a gift in front of others was a great idea?" she asked, clearly irritated that this had to be a public spectacle, at least in her eyes.

Before Regina or Henry could respond, Mrs. Gabor interrupted with another round of heartfelt thanks. "Thank you again, Deputy Swan. I honestly can't thank you enough!"

The scowl on Emma's face faded as she regarded the grateful woman with a patience, but heartfelt, smile. "Seriously, not a big deal. Glad that he's okay. And you..."

She gave the troublemaker a stern look and wagged a finger in warning at Berlioz. "Stay outta trouble."

His response was nuzzling her finger, putting a little teeth into it.

Regina shot Henry a worried look, silently asking him: Is this the right thing to do still? He caught his mother's nervous expression and gave her an encouraging nod, then jerked his head toward Mrs. Gabor meaningfully. She nodded back and waited until the cat lady had gone back indoors.

"It's a… professional gift, Deputy," Regina said with all the composure she could muster, her smile a touch artificial from nerves. "A formal welcome from the Mayor's Office to our newest member of the law enforcement team."

The brunette held out the small box as Henry watched with baited breath.

Emma stiffened at the implication that Regina felt that she owed the newest employee a gift because it was a professional courtesy. She eyed the small box briefly before fixing her gaze straight at the mayor.

If this really supposed to be some big spectacle, why wasn't the press here? This is the sort of thing that she would love to put to print. Or at one of the town hall meetings that Graham told me about.

Crossing her arms, her eyes demanded an explanation from Henry because she didn't believe Regina was telling her the whole truth about why she was getting this gift. It was far too convenient for it to be a 'welcome to the department gift'. "And you had nothing to do with it too. Right?"

Henry gave Emma a puzzled look. "'Course I helped. Not like Mom was ready to walk around and go shopping by herself yet."

Regina sighed. "What Deputy Swan means is that she suspects we have an agenda. Frankly, you're the first new employee the town has had in… a very long time. We don't tend to have turnover. Besides that, I was still touched by the gift you'd given me. The horse. I wanted to return the favor."

"And see you!" Henry chimed in helpfully.

Regina nodded affirmatively. "And see you."

Emma almost wanted to point out that the only reason Regina had even a received a present from her was because of being drugged out of her mind. There hadn't been any real intention behind that …

But that isn't entirely true. I was upset at fucking things up between her and Henry. I'll give her some props for not using the gift as an excuse to see me anymore since Henry outed her. She also didn't deny it either …

"Well, here I am," she stated plainly as Emma finally let her stiffened body relax. "You really didn't have to get me anything. Graham hired me. Technically he owes me the gift. Which he's already done."

"I know. But that doesn't change my desire to do something for you too," Regina countered. She took a step forward, holding the gift box out to her. "This is for you."

"I dunno. The free bear claws for a month is really hard to top," she replied caustically.

Regina merely lifted an eyebrow and continued to hold the small package out toward her. Henry shifted from foot-to-foot anxiously, hoping Emma did not outright turn it down! He felt relieved as he watched her grab the delicately decorated box roughly, smooshing the purple ribbon that his mother painstakingly forced to curl just right. She pulled the thin fabric apart, letting it fall down as her hand kept it from hitting the ground, and popped opened the box. Wading through the tissue paper, she saw something glint in the sunlight when she moved the box just right. By touch alone, it felt like glass, and her suspicions were confirmed when she plucked the object out.

Emma was momentarily confused as to why Regina would buy her a glass unicorn of all things, but she remembered what had been said. That Regina was still touched by wooden horse that reminded her of Rocinante.

"Glass unicorn, huh?" she said, turning the gift thoughtfully from side to side. In the short time that the sun had kissed the concealed unicorn, clouds had obscured its position in the sky. Now as Emma found herself admiring the piece, a ray of sunlight broke through a small opening in the cloud cover which. It hit the glass and made it radiate so brightly that it forced Emma to squint - and that squint turned surprisingly painful all of a sudden. Her features tensed and she grabbed her forehead as the pain intensified without any probable cause.

She murmured some inaudible expletive and took a hard step back as images quickly bombarded her mind that were unfamiliar: knights wearing black armor with faces cloaked by the helmets they wore. They were wielding swords and the loud clang of metal on metal reverberated within her ears. She then saw the stark contrast of white fabric, its texture of cotton which touched her face, before the smell of perspiration and blood filled her nose. She screamed in the vision and little did she know that progressed, unknowingly screaming aloud before Henry and Regina …

Regina stepped forward at that scream. Henry launched toward her too, both of them touching her arms. Kalyn also climbed out of the car in a hurry, running to the scene to see what had happened.

"Emma?!" Regina cried, anxiously.

She didn't hear Regina's voice when her name was called but that of another familiar voice - Mary Margaret's. Her voice was distraught and her cries echoed down the stone hallways that quickly bounced in and out of eyesight of the same cotton shirt she saw before.

"No!" she cried out. "Don't leave me!"

"Oh, no," Regina whispered.

"What?!" Henry exclaimed, looking at her frantically.

"It's triggered a vision. From her brief life in the Enchanted Forest. Oh, Henry… Emma…! Hold on! We're here with you," she said emphatically, hoping to draw the blonde back to reality. Regina hoped she realized she wasn't alone here, even if her birth son and Regina were her reality for now. "Emma, come back to us..."

Cellphone in hand, Kalyn came up to them, just missing Regina's explanation of what was actually wrong with Emma. She looked to her friend for guidance as Emma thrashed around in desperation.

"Should I call an ambulance?"

What the hell would Whale do about this? Regina thought. She shook her head.

"No… not yet, anyway, Kalyn," she replied, giving her a quick glance. "Emma!"

She nodded and fisted the phone, feeling helpless as Emma shoved Henry away. Kalyn dropped to her knees to check on him as Emma cried out aggressively towards the knight that had tried to harm her father. "Get away from him!"

She gripped the fabric covering Regina's shoulder and tugged her closer, green eyes frozen in terror. "You can't leave me!"

Regina instinctively wrapped her arms around Emma, fingers digging into her hair.

"I'll never leave you," she whispered to the frantic, vision-tormented deputy. "Please don't leave me."

She hugged Regina tightly, unknowingly causing pain as the mayor's ribs were far from healed, as the visions suddenly stopped with the reassurance Emma desperately needed and believed.

"Thank you …" she whispered before her hands let go of Regina. Muscles immediately soften as the deputy sagged in Regina's arms, the emotional and physical strain of the visions forcing Emma into unconsciousness.

Author's note - Good guess on the reviewer that thought about the mobile! And hello Aristocats. Mrs Gabor was named as such as Duchess, the mother of the kittens, was voiced by Eva Gabor :)