Chapter 13: A Girl and her Dragon

Emma just stared up at Regina. She had no idea what to say. Her eyes were wide. There were so many questions she wanted to ask, but her tongue wouldn't work.

"Say something, Miss Swan."

That did it. Those words brought her back. Her lips formed a snarl and shw almost spat as she hissed out her next words.

"My name is Emma Swan."

Regina had the decency to look properly chastised. She nodded at Emma, not trusting herself to speak anymore. She didn't know what to say to her anyway. She didn't know how to explain herself to her. How could she? How could she make Emma understand that she'd been worried about her for years. a feeling at the back of her mind, niggling and nagging with no resolution?

She knew when she landed in Storybrooke that she might never find June Black again. Now, not only was June Black sitting in front of her, she was Emma Swan, daughter of Snow White and David Charming. She was her son's birth mother. She was the breaker of the Curse and the Saviour prophesied to stop her reign. The girl that she lost sleep over was the woman she lost sleep over. Oh, how the wheels have turned. She didn't know what to do. She moved towards the table where her tumbler sat. She needed more to drink to deal with this, now.

"How long have you known?" Emma asked her.

"Known?"

"Who I was," Emma replied.

"Today."

"Today?"

"Yes, Miss...Emma, I learned that you were the girl I helped so many years ago today."

Emma's eyes watched her every movement, like she waiting for a coiled snake to strike. Instead, Regina moved slowly and with a purpose back to her desk. It was a defensive measure and they both knew it. She was putting her desk between them, a metaphorical and physical barrier.

"Why did you help me?" Emma asked.

"Originally or after I got there?"

"Both," Emma replied quietly.

"At first, I was repaying a debt owed by Rumple. I was still his apprentice. A being from another realm came to tell me about you and that they were scared of you. They didn't know how to help you help them. You baffled them. I was called in because Rumple simply didn't want to go. He figured since I was hated enough that I could be what they were looking for in order to scare you," Regina explained.

"But, you didn't scare me. You protected me. You stayed with me all night. Why?"

Regina looked down at her desk. She fiddled with her tumbler. She wasn't sure how much she should tell Emma.

"Because I recognized the signs as soon as I saw your eyes. I couldn't let you live like that. If I could, I would crawl out from under every bed of someone like that and deal with their own personal demons head on. I wasn't afforded that opportunity. As fate would have it, I was given you. I had no idea at the time who you were to me. Snow hadn't had you yet and I hadn't gone full Evil Queen."

"How is that possible?" Emma asked.

"Time moves differently between realms. You found this out when you went back to the Enchanted Forest through Jefferson's hat. Evidently, I came to you when you were about five, almost six, I think. When I cast the curse, we landed in Storybrooke the morning of your birth. I had no way of knowing who you were. And, when I realized that you...well, June hadn't been named June yet, I realized that there was nothing that I could do to help you. I hoped my scale would be enough to ward off any other potential abusers. I hoped that you would never have another reason to call on me."

"Why?"

Regina closed her eyes. When she opened them, she looked up into Emma's pain-filled eyes. The normal electric green was subdued and hidden. The anger wasn't as strong, but she knew that Emma was at her boiling point and she couldn't blame her.

"You've met my mother, but you never met my father. Oh, don't worry, Prince Henry of Felix never touched me. If he had, I wouldn't have named our son after him. My mother abused me in ways that I don't want to repeat in order to control me. But, she was easier to deal with than your grandfather."

"Snow's father?"

"Yes."

"Does she know?"

"No."

"You never told her?"

"Do you think that she would believe me? We've spent too much of our lives hating each other. We've tried to kill each other. We've banished each other. There are some things that you just don't do. And, telling her about her father, while cruel, would have crossed a line that I am not even comfortable crossing. So forgive me for not shredding your mother's heart to pieces by telling her that her father was a rapist and almost a pedofile. I may hate her somedays, but that...that isn't something that I would do even as the Evil Queen," Regina explained.

"You aren't evil, Regina. You are just really angry, but now, I am beginning to understand. My family has never been kind to you...ever."

"Don't apologize for them, Emma. You are not to blame for your family's sins. My family hasn't been the kindest to yours, either. We've been fighting since your grandfather turned away my mother. I don't know whether to be grateful or not."

"Your mother killed my grandmother."

"And, your mother killed mine."

"Okay, so...well, yeah. Your mother was a real piece of work. But, that still doesn't explain why..."

"Your mother was a child and my step-daughter. I think that there was a part of me that didn't want her to die, but I was so clouded by anger that I couldn't find that place easily. I was so angry with her father, so I pushed that on her. She was angry because I had her father killed. I also tried to have her killed on several occasions, none of which ever worked. But, the same could be said of her. Every time she had the opportunity, she let me walk away. This curse was merely the extension of our war. It just changed the playing field," she explained.

"But, you never killed her."

"And, she never killed me."

"I don't understand why you were happy to cast the curse," Emma stated.

"It would give me a second chance at free life, a life that I wanted. I wanted to try and be better. I didn't want to be the Evil Queen. I was groomed to be here, but that was never what I wanted."

"What did you want?" Emma asked her.

"I wanted to be with Daniel. I didn't care if we lived in the country and were poor. Being the daughter of a prince gave me many opportunities, but my mother took most of them away. Her control of me started building my anger and my want to learn magic. I wanted to be stronger than she was. I needed to find a way to stand up to her. I couldn't do that one my own. I'd proven that over and over and over against with her. Coming here was a way for me to be free and try to find my happiness."

"But, you didn't?"

"No, I didn't."

"Did you ever try to be happy?"

"Yes, several times."

"Really?"

"I dated but no one could compare to Daniel. I tried to find you, but I didn't know where to look. I went to Rumple to have a child and I got Henry."

"I am sure that was a very uncomfortable conversation," Emma stated.

"You have no idea, but I was still hopeful. By 1988, I could use the mirror again to find you. But, there was a problem."

"Problem?" Emma probed.

"When I woke up here, I read the newspaper. I realized the date. Then I realized that June didn't exist on paper let along in real life. I was going to have to wait for years and even then i wasn't sure if I could even come find you. So, I started my searches.

"Do you know how many girls were born in late October in various Suffolk counties around the country? It was a staggering amount. The internet wasn't like it is today. Graham did everything he could, like the good Huntsman he was, to find you. Unfortunately, he didn't. It was like we could have certain contact without outside world," Regina stated.

"Did you ever try to leave?"

"Yes."

"But, you didn't?"

"Oh, I found that I was the only who could cross the town line and keep my memories very late in the game. The day that we came to be Storybrooke, I travelled to the town line and forfeited some man to figure things out. Magic always came with a price and not only did my father pay it, but you did as well."

"How?"

"I couldn't save you since I knew what was going to happen and when. I failed you and I failed myself that day. There were things that I could do, but I know that it might put Storybrooke on a list of small towns to come visit. We weren't prepared for that. We were meant to be. The Curse would provided everything for us...jobs, food, drink, housing and it did. I was content for the first few years, but as the time drew to your birthday..."

"What?"

"I wished that I still had my mirror to see you. I knew that sometime your name would be changed and then the mirror would be able to find you again. Unfortunately the first trip to the town line cost me that mirror," Regina told her.

"But..."

"I don't know how I got it back, Emma. I really don't. I watched it go sailing down the asphalt and break apart. To be holding it again in my hands today brought back so many memories and wants that I feel like I am breaking inside. I wanted to make sure that you...that June survived and was happy. When the fog in the glass parted and I saw you..."

"What?"

"I didn't know what to do. I thought that it was highly ironic that my own step-granddaughter's life was almost as bad as mine and that I ended raising her son. I was and am still at a loss. I don't know how to not worry about you. Maybe that is why I let you stay last night."

"Or..."

"I understand the nightmares. I understand doing whatever you can to make them go away. But, even I know that sometimes, we can't fight them alone."

"You took him on for me," Emma stated.

"I did."

"Why did you pick the form of a dragon?"

"It was the only poster in your room. I assumed that you liked the dragon pictured there. A dragon was a lot easier for me to glammor for you than trying to make myself into some kind of strange looking monster like those that had been visiting you at night," Regina told her.

"Wait, so you're saying that Monster's Inc. is real?" Emma asked, eyes blown.

"Yes, Dear."

"I thought that it was just another Disney movie."

"Well, that is one of the few that they got right, Dear. All the way down to Roz. She is quite the character and I wonder who got her to allow the story to be told in this realm. She was very adamant that I not cross any lines with you, but I broke so many rules that night. I didn't care. I didn't want him touching you again. I wouldn't stand for it," Regina admitted.

"He didn't."

"I know."

"You know?"

"I saw him being arrested in the mirror. That actually caused me to allow things to return to normal for a while in the Enchanted Forest. I knew that you were alright and you were being taken care of. I didn't need to find a portal to you to protect. I would have if needed, but I had my mirror. When in doubt, I asked to see you up until I threw it over the town line."

"Any now you have the mirror again?"

"I do."

"Any clue where it came from?"

"Yes."

"So?"

"It was in that sack that you took back to Rumple."

"Then it belongs to him," Emma started.

"It did once. It has been mine for years. And, I doubt that he has need of it, since Baelfire is back."

"Yeah, he is..."

"So, the Imp's son..."

"Don't."

"Was it good?" Regina asked, teasing her.

"Each your food. We've got to figure out what to do with the Lost Boys some time today. And, just because I am hungry and changing the subject doesn't mean you are off the hook," Emma told her as she started passing out the food.

"I wouldn't dream of it, Emma. Nothing has ever been free for me. Not even being mayor. I always have to give up something."

"Not with me, you don't. You talked to me that night like an equal. You treated me well and stopped the situation at hand. This friendship has cost you what exactly, if you want it?" Emma asked her.

"A scar," Regina answered as she turned her arm again.

"Then, I'll return it."

"Keep it. You never know. You might need it one day and I would be unhappy to hear that I could have helped but wasn't called upon."

Emma smiled at her as she dug into her bacon cheeseburger. She watched Regina. There was something different about her when it was just them. Maybe it was because they understood each other. Maybe it was because they were mistreated as children. Maybe it was because they just wanted to be happy. But, maybe, just maybe, they could find more common ground and they could find a way to share Henry and be a weirdly constructed modern family.

"We'll see...especially around here."