Chapter 11: The Reunion
The two sisters, Snow and Lillian, sat on the bench beneath Regina's apple tree discussing the new connection Lillian had discovered between her mother and herself. Henry sat on the ground nearby lost in his own thoughts. His "sister" had just asked him to help her save their mother by lying to his biological mother and grandparents. His head was swimming.
Lying to Emma was going to be tricky if not impossible because of her so-called super-power. Plus, he'd rather not lie to his mom if he didn't have to. Their relationship had improved so much and he didn't want to do anything that might set them back. So, he had to figure out how to get him and Lillian to Regina's vault before they went to meet Emma and Charming at Granny's.
Suddenly an idea struck him: what if he told Snow that his mother had told him in her letter that she had left something for him in her vault? They could swing by the cemetery on the way to Granny's. That part felt believable, at least he thought his grandmother would buy it. But distracting her so she couldn't stop Lillian from going through the portal, that would be more difficult.
"I'm going to go up to my room for a minute, there's something I need to grab," he explained to Lillian and Snow. He decided to try to find something that could help cause a distraction.
Henry opened the door to his old room, his old life. He recalled the last time he had been there: his mom had used magic to intimidate everyone in town and forced him to come home with her. When he tried to climb out the window she used magic to stop him, and tried to convince him that magic could make their lives better. He rejected her and her magic.
But then she did something completely unexpected: she let him go. She told him she wanted to change, and he wanted to believe her so badly. She spent the next several weeks trying to prove that she meant what she had said, and now she was sacrificing herself to protect everyone. That was not something she would have done before, she HAD changed and Henry was proud of her for keeping her promise. He truly wanted her to come back. Lillian was the key, if Regina knew that they both wanted her to come back then she might find a way to defeat Cora without closing the portal. He would help his sister, he had to, for his mom.
He looked around the room for anything that he could use as a distraction. Then he remembered a box of firecrackers he had stashed in the back of his closet. He went to the spot where he had hidden them, they were still there. He stuffed them unto his backpack and went down to the kitchen to find a lighter. Once he found one he went back outside, "Here goes nothing," he thought.
Lillian and Snow were smiling, apparently their chat had been pleasant. They both looked up and smiled him when he closed the door behind him. Henry noticed how natural they looked together, and sitting next to each other like that the resemblance between them was more obvious. They truly looked like sisters.
"Did you find what you were looking for?" Snow asked casually.
"Yeah, I did." Henry shot Lillian a look, trying to warn her to follow his lead. "I was wondering," he continued. "My mom said in her letter that she left something for me in her vault, do you think we could go get it before we go to Granny's?"
Lillian understood that he was trying to get them there to get her through the portal. She also understood that it would be much easier to get past Snow than if Emma and Charming were there too. "Yeah,"she added. "She said she left something for me too. Can we?"
Snow considered this and looked at her watch. They were supposed to meet Emma and Charming in 30 minutes. "I don't know guys, we don't have a lot of time..."
"Please," Henry begged. "It won't take long, I promise." Snow was still wavering.
"Please, Snow," Lillian put her hand on her sister's arm. "I feel like I'm finally getting to know my mother."
That did it. Snow always melted for people who missed their mothers. She smiled at her little sister sympathetically. "Alright. Let's hurry."
As they walked toward the cemetery Lillian began to feel more and more nervous. She wasn't sure what she was getting herself into. But she knew why she was doing this: to save her mother. Despite the evil things Regina had done the fact remained that she was her mother, and she had been trying to change. She wasn't sure what she hoped would happen after she saved her mother, if they would ever be able to have any sort of mother/daughter relationship, but she knew that if she didn't do something to save her then the answer would be no.
They reached the cemetery and made their way toward the center of the grounds, where Regina's vault lay. Henry reached behind him and slowly unzipped his backpack. He reached inside and pulled out the firecrackers. They were approaching the vault from behind and to the right, which was good because it meant he could wait until Snow turned the corner of the building before he lit and threw them. He positioned himself so that Lillian was between him and Snow and waited for the right time.
Snow turned the corner and in one quick move Henry struck the lighter and lit the fuse. He threw the firecrackers behind him as hard as he could and grabbed Lillian's hand. He sprinted toward the door dragging his sister behind him. Just as they passed a bewildered Snow the firecrackers began exploding, diverting her attention. The two men that had been asked to guard the entrance came running over to Snow for orders.
"Over there," she shouted over the commotion, pointing in the direction they had just come. Then she addressed Henry and Lillian you two stay here, we'll be right back!" The three of them took off to investigate the disturbance.
"Hurry," Henry called to Lillian as he pushed open the door to the vault. The quickly ducked inside and found a board to brace the door with, that would hopefully buy them a little more time.
They raced down the stairs into what appeared to be the main room. Lillian looked all around, she didn't see anything that looked like a portal. "Where is it?" she asked.
"Under here," Henry gestured to the tomb of Regina's father. He pushed it as hard as he could, Lillian jumped in to help him and together they moved it aside, revealing another staircase. There was no time to be amazed by this, they hurried down the stairs into the actual vault. This time Lillian didn't have to look around for the portal, the swirling vortex of black and purple took up a good portion of the floor. Her nerves suddenly took over and she backed slowly away from the portal.
Henry noticed her fear and took her by the hand, "It's ok, I've seen lots of people go through." Lillian looked at him but still seemed afraid. Suddenly there was fierce pounding on the door to the entrance. Snow could be heard shouting their names. "You have to hurry," he urged.
Lillian knew he was right, it wouldn't be long before Snow and the guards broke through the board keeping the door locked and then someone would probably come through the portal after her and bring her back. It was now or never.
"Where will I come out?" she asked.
"In Snow and Charming's castle, " Henry replied.
Lillian nodded and then asked, "And she'll be there?"
Henry considered her question. Of course he couldn't know for certain that their mother would still be there, but he understood that that wasn't what she was really asking. She wanted his assurance that they really had a shot at saving Regina.
Henry smiled, "She'll be there."
Lillian returned his smile. She had truly grown fond of her little brother. "Thank you Henry." She pulled
him into a quick hug and then released him before she jumped into the portal.
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Inside the portal Lillian felt like she was in a free fall. He arms and legs flailed frantically, helpless against the force that pulled her downward. A small light appeared below her and gradually got bigger, "This must be my exit," she thought. Unsure how she would enter the room she crossed her arms in front of her face and braced herself for impact as the light encompassed her.
Bracing for impact turned out to be a good idea as she was flung head first out of the portal landing full force on her stomach and arms, then sliding about three feet. The impact knocked the wind out of her so she laid there for a moment gasping for breath before she could take in her surroundings.
Regina had been standing by the window watching the storm outside grow as her mother drew nearer. She was close, very close and Regina had begun preparing herself to face Cora when a loud noise from the direction of the portal diverted her attention. She turned swiftly to face the portal, afraid that her mother had appeared behind her. When she saw the dark haired girl sprawled on the floor she knew instantly who it was.
"Lillian!" Regina ran over to where her daughter laid and knelt down by her side to help her sit up. "Are you alright?"
Lillian struggled to catch her breath as she rolled over onto her side. With Regina's help she rose to a sitting position, and found herself face to face with the Evil Queen, her mother. The two sat in silence for a few seconds, each drinking in the sight that was before them. For Lillian, this was the first time she had seen Regina since learning that she was her mother. And Regina, while she had kept an eye on Lillian discreetly since she was a child, had not been able to observe her this close since she was very young.
"Yes, I'm fine." Lillian tried to appear fine despite the fact that her right arm had been injured when she came through the portal.
"What are you doing here?" Regina was slightly panicked that her daughter was there, so close to the danger. Lillian knew she had to talk fast to convince her mother not to send her back.
"I wanted to see you."
This touched Regina, but she quickly shrugged it off. She had to get Lillian to safety. "No, it's too dangerous."
Lillian's voice filled with sudden emotion, "But I HAD to see you! Even if it's only this once."
"Lillian, you can't be here. My mother is coming NOW. You have to go back." Regina tried to speak firmly but gently. She stood up and Lillian followed suit.
"Then come with me."
The pleading in her voice pulled at Regina's heart. "I can't. I have to stop her."
"We can stop her from Storybrooke. You can destroy the portal from that side and she won't be able to get through."
"She'd find another way. This is how it has to be. I have to stay here and face her." Regina turned toward the portal preparing to send Lillian back.
"You can't close the portal!" Lillian was almost shouting, her voice quivered with emotion. She took a step closer to Regina who turned to look at her daughter. "If you do, then I'll never have the chance to know you." Lillian took another step, closing the gap between them. "Don't you want to know me?"
Regina's heart ached and tears began to form. She saw the pleading in her daughter's deep blue eyes, desperately begging for her to concede. She wanted to pull her into an embrace and assure her that everything would be alright, but that was a promise she couldn't make. Instead she gently brushed the hair away from the girl's face and tried to explain. "Lillian, I want that more than anything. But I can't let anything happen to you, I have to keep you safe."
"And I have to keep YOU safe." Lillian kept her eyes locked on Regina's, as if she could hold her there with her gaze. "Mother," the word was spoken with a sob. "Please...let me stay with you."
For the second time in her life the word "mother" caused a reaction in Regina that made her change her mind. She had finally been reunited with her daughter and she couldn't bear to be parted from her now.
Her response was a whisper, "Alright."
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"Henry! Lillian! Open the door!" Snow continued to yell to her grandson and sister despite the fact that they had not yet responded. The two guards continued to shoulder the doors, trying to force them to open. She was starting to panic. "Keep trying, I'm calling Emma." She pulled out her cell phone and made the call.
Less than sixty seconds later Emma and Charming came barreling into the cemetery parking lot and drove right up onto the lawn all the way to the vault. They came running up to the doors.
"What the hell is going on?" Emma demanded.
Snow explained what happened, "They told me that Regina had left something for each of them in her vault and asked if we could come get them. As we were walking up to the door they lit firecrackers and threw them over there to distract us, then they ran inside and barred the door."
Emma looked furious. She marched up to the doors and kicked them violently. "Henry! Open the door right now!" When there was no response she yelled again, "Lillian!" Still nothing. "Alright," she addressed the group. "On the count of three we all rush the door and bust it open. Ready? One, two-"
"Alright, alright!" Henry interrupted.
Emma heard him, "Stop! Stop! Henry?"
"I'll open the door," came the sheepish reply. He removed the board and the doors blew open as Emma rushed in.
"Henry, what were you two thinking?! Why did you lock the door? You scared us all half to death!" She was down on her knees so she could look her son in the eyes. Charming and the guards did a quick sweep of the vault.
"Emma, Lillian's not here." Charming's voice was worried.
Emma's heart dropped. She turned to look at Henry again, "Where is she?"
"She went through the portal." Henry's head dropped in anticipation of the lecture he was sure to receive.
"What?! Why?"
"She wanted to save our mom...We both did." He looked up at Emma, hoping she would understand.
"How were you guys planning on doing that? You know how dangerous Cora is."
"Lillian's going to try to convince her not to destroy the portal. She's the only one my mom will maybe listen to. We couldn't just let her die."
That softened her heart. She didn't exactly like Regina, but she wasn't willing to let her die either. She could only imagine how Henry and Lillian had felt about saving her. "I know," she said softly and pulled him into a hug.
"What do we do now?" Charming was ready for action, they needed a plan.
Emma stood up, "Well, Regina doesn't want Lillian there, it's way too dangerous. She'll probably just send her right back."
"So...we wait?" Her father wasn't exactly a wait-it-out kind of guy.
Neither was Snow, "No! We can't wait. We go now and bring her back."
Emma took a step closer to her mother, "Listen, I understand that you're worried, we all are, but let's just give it a minute before we go busting in there, guns a blazing."
Her words did nothing to calm Snow. "That is my sister in there and I'm not going to sit here and wait around, hoping that things will work out. I mean, we don't even know what's been going on over there. What if something has already happened to Regina? Cora could have Lillian right now!"
Emma tried to be rational, "I don't think that's likely. If Regina was out of the way Cora wouldn't waste any time before coming to Storybrooke. I think we should wait this out for a bit."
"Why? Why are you willing to wait?"
"Because I think Henry is right. Lillian probably is the only person Regina would listen to. And it's not like we had a better plan. If she doesn't come back in a few minutes, then we will go after her, but let's at least give her a chance to save her mother." Emma looked at Snow with pleading eyes. Just a few weeks ago Snow had launched herself through a portal to protect her and the two of them had been trapped in Fairy Tale land until Henry and Charming put themselves in danger, including a sleeping curse, to find a way to bring them home. If anyone could understand doing something dangerous to save family, it was the Charmings.
All of this came into Snow's mind as well. She did understand, and she agreed. "Okay."
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"Cora will be here soon, so we've got to figure out where you-"
Lillian winced at Regina's touch on her forearm and a small cry of pain escaped.
"What's wrong? Are you hurt?"
"I just scraped my arm a little coming through the portal."
Regina took Lillian's hand and turned it over so she could see her injury. She could only catch a glimpse before Lillian pulled her hand away.
"You're bleeding," Regina said with concern.
Lillian was hurt, it was a bad scrape and it stung a lot, but she didn't want Regina to think she was weak. She didn't want her to change her mind about letting her stay.
"It's nothing."
"It's not nothing. Let me see."
Lillian held up her hand obediently. Regina gently turned it over to get a better look. She grimaced as she saw the extent of her daughter's injury. "I can fix this," she offered warmly.
"Alright." Lillian was excited and a little nervous to see her mother use magic.
Regina led her to a pair of chairs that sat against the wall. They sat down and Regina slowly began passing her hand over Lillian's arm. She looked up at her daughter, and tried to think of something to say. "How did you get here? I thought Miss Swan was supposed to be watching out for you."
Lillian noticed the way Regina sort of spat out Emma's name. She didn't understand why, but she figured there was some bad blood there, probably because of Henry.
"Henry helped me."
Regina looked up quickly at the mention of her son's name, surprised that he would have been involved. "Henry?"
Lillian nodded. "He didn't want you to close the portal either." Henry had told her a little about the difficulties of his relationship with their mother, so Lillian wanted to reassure her. "He really cares about you."
Regina smiled slightly as she thought about her son. It warmed her heart to hear that.
"Oh, and he asked me to tell you 'Hi'."
That brought a full smile to Regina's lips, which Lillian returned. It was nice to see her like that, Lillian couldn't remember seeing her mother actually look happy before. She had always been so guarded and professional as the mayor and even more aloof as the Queen.
Regina recognized her own smile in her daughter's. She looked down at Lillian's arm, the injury was completely healed. She gently stroked the place where it had been damaged only moments before. "There, all better."
Lillian looked down at her arm in amazement. It was perfect, not a bruise or scar anywhere. She moved her arm around, relieved that the pain was gone. She looked up at her mother and smiled warmly. "Thank you."
Regina smiled back, "You're welcome."
They sat in silence for a moment, neither one sure what to say. Lillian looked down nervously, and then back up at her mother. "And thank you...for your letter."
Regina felt a little embarrassed, when she wrote that letter she never thought that she would see Lillian again. As she said in the letter, she knew that her daughter deserved more of an explanation than she could give that way, and now she had the chance to say everything. She took Lillian's hand, "I know it wasn't ideal, but I wanted you to know-" A crash of thunder interrupted Regina and she was reminded of the coming danger. She looked into her daughter's eyes, "She's here."
Lillian nodded. They stood up and Regina quickly formulated a plan. "Come over here." She led Lillian along the wall across from the portal to the spot where there was a corner she could hide behind. "Stay here, and try to keep out of sight as much as possible."
"Alright," Lillian agreed.
Regina continued her instructions, "And you have to do exactly as I say," Lillian nodded. Regina took a breath before she spoke again, her tone very serious, "Even if I tell you to go through the portal and leave me."
Lillian was confused, "But you said I could stay with you."
"And you can, unless it gets too dangerous." She waited for her daughter to agree but Lillian was reluctant. Regina put her hand on her Lillian's shoulder, "Promise me."
Lillian felt tears well up in her eyes, "I promise."
Regina smiled and squeezed her daughter's shoulder before she turned to walk back toward the window. Lillian looked around the room, taking in her surroundings. "Lillian," her mother called to her. Their eyes met and Lillian saw tears in Regina's as she spoke, "Thank you...for coming here." They exchanged one last matching smile, and then Regina walked out of sight. Her words felt a little like a goodbye, which scared Lillian, but they also made her very happy. She was glad she came too, no matter what happened.
Regina reached the window just as another clap of thunder sounded and the glass shattered. She covered her face and waited for the air to clear. The clouds that had been slowly forming around the castle all day were now thick and black. The air was heavy and the wind whipped fiercely through the broken window. With a final glance back in Lillian's direction Regina positioned herself in front of the portal. When she first arrived back in Fairy Tale land it felt strange to be wearing her gray dress and matching blazer instead of one of the dramatic gowns she had worn when she ruled this kingdom as the Evil Queen. But now, as she stood prepared to face her mother with her daughter near by it felt right. She was no longer the Evil Queen, she was Regina again. And Regina was about to take her life back.