108Dark hearts and bright smiles

Headache. Pain every-freaking-where, to be honest. Emma was sure that even her hair was aching. " Fuck..." she weakly murmured, covering her eyes with a hand. Light. Painful, white light. " Hell..."

" Hey, Swan, I thought you'd have never awakened!"

Hook. " Shit."

" Was that an insult?"

" Shut the fuck up, Hook, my head is a... oh, shit! Gimme some morphine! "

" I could give you something better..."

" Shut the fuck up and call Whale."

" As you wish, ma'am." he sighed. Emma heard him stand up and walk out of the room. She moved her hand: the room was empty. Weird. Where were David and Mary Margaret, and Henry, and Regina? How sweet from them, to leave her with a pirate. Very, very caring. Thank you, family. She was full of joy to have to stand his mocking eyebrows. " Ah, fuck everything." " Me too?"

Whale? Emma opened one eye. Whale. " Hey, doc, stop this pain because I'm freakin' out." He leaned on her making her open one eye at time, her mouth, somehow studying her by her tongue and her pupils. He stretched a hand above her head, and the light upon her suddenly shut off. The pressure on her forehead sensibly reduced.

" Oh, God! Thank you!"

She could even oped her eyes now, so she saw the doctor smile.

" I'm not God yet, but I'm working on it!" Whale winked, but stopped smiling seeing Emma's raised eyebrow. " Never mind. The only thing that I can do for you is tell you to sleep. You need rest, Emma. There's nothing wrong in your body, you're simply tired. "

Emma sighed loudly. " How am I supposed to sleep with this headache?"

" I'm taking you some aspirin." he smiled, gently rubbing her shoulder. Emma tried to smile back at the doctor.

" Thanks."

As Whale exited the room, Killian took his place beside her. Emma looked at his cute face. He was trying to hide the worry with a smirk.

" Maybe some rum could..."

" Hook, rum isn't the solution to every problem, ya know?"

" Who says it?" he sneered, opportunely taking a sip from his flask. Emma wondered how much liquor that flask could contain. Maybe it was empty from days, and he was only pretending to drink in order to appear manlier and more... pirate. She laughed innerly at the thought.

" Ah, caught: the Swan smiled!" he exclaimed, almost making her head implode.

" Yeah, I was thinking about your last braincell suiciding itself after that you killed your liver." she grimaced. He looked only confused.

" Braincell? And what has my liver to do with this? You must be more tired than we thought, Swan, you're delirious! "

" No, it's science. Ask Whale if you don't believe me."

The pirate frowned. " I'll do." he muttered, still unconvinced.

There was a beautiful silence for a while, then Whale came back and handed her a glass full of fizzy water. Emma thanked him and drank it all at once, even because she now realized that she was damn thirsty. She was already feeling better when she collapsed back on the bed. " Let her sleep now. You can come back tomorrow, Killian. Go take a shower, have a dinner, chill out... we can meet at The Rabbit Hole at ten."

" I don't wanna drink tonight."

" Then you won't. I'll teach you to play billiards, it'll be funny!"

Emma watched them with narrowed eyes. Doctor Frankenstein and Captain Hook were becoming friends. Great.

" See you tomorrow, Emma. Sleep well, and if you have problems, just call me." Whale was telling her. She slightly smiled at him.

" Thanks."

" Yeah, goodnight, love." Killian said winking while walking out the room. Fortunately they closed the door a second after, because Emma realized with horror that she was blushing. That damned sexy wink! She hated him. She really hated Killian Jones.

Moss, soil, water, leaves. Some birds, a frog, a fox, but no people. They weren't in the forest, well, not in that side of it, at least. She was alone, finally! Ruby smiled at the woods.

" I won't fucking mate with three big werewolves, not at all. Fuck you, hormones! I was about to jump on Belle, damn you! Have you an idea of what that would have meant? Friendship ended, skin ripped out by the Dark freaking One. No, dear hormones, no, no! Goodbye people, goodbye mating, that's it. Problem: solved. " she sighed, looking around. " Hoping that someday they'll go away chasing another she-wolf." she added in a whisper. " Maybe I could ask Rapunzel if she can convince them to go away. She's pretty dominant, after all."

Ruby jumped a fallen tree. " Gah, I'd only put her in danger. Then Regina would skin me alive. Together with Rumple, he's friend of them both, after all. Friend. As if he could really be friend with someone. I really don't know what Belle sees in him. She's too cute for him... Oh, no, I'm doing it again! Shut up, wolf, shut the fuck up! I don't like you at all, ya know? Horny hell dog. I don't wanna bang Belle, nor Rapunzel, nor, absolutely not Regina and... And why are they all women? Are you a lesbian wolf? What the hell! I thought that I was bi by myself, but seen this, maybe I'm straight and you are gay. As if we were two different things. I'm talking alone as a lunatic! Mpf. Funny, really funny Lucas. Really, really..."

" I thought I was the only one talking with myself."

Ruby barely held a scream. The man jumped down from a large branch of the tree in front of her.

She immediately recognized him: the creepy red haired Little Pig.

" Who are you?" she asked him, showing a bravery that she didn't feel. He was damn tall, and with those shoulders he could have been a great football player. The muscles under the t-shirt looked like wild animals themselves. He grinned.

" The name's Steven. Nice to meet you, Red."

" How do you know my name?"

He snorted. " You're the only female for miles. It'd be weird if I didn't know it."

Ruby nervously swallowed. So, there was no possibility to be replaced as "female" for them. Shit.

" I don't wanna have sex with you, Steven." she said, determined. He laughed.

" You smell of the contrary."

Red blushed. " I... It's not for you! I feel nothing with you, holy shit! You're the only one I don't want to fuck these days, to be honest. Oh, crap! I said it loud."

The werewolf suddenly became alert, and stepped forward, forcing her to step back to keep the distances from his menacing body. " Really?" he asked, his light blue eyes narrowed, his pupils impossibly dilated. He smelled of man, leather and wolf.

" Yes! Now leave me alone. I ate my last boyfriend. It's an advice." she glared at him, letting her eyes flash yellow. Yet, he didn't stop walking.

" He was just a human. I'm like you. You don't have to restrain your nature with me." His eyes gradually turned amber color, his beard slightly thickened. Red swallowed, feeling her teeth lengthen.

" I told you that I feel nothing towards you. " she made another step back, and hit a tree with her back. Steven came closer, imprisoning her with his arms beside her head, leaning on the old tree. Her heartbeats accelerated so much that she thought her chest would have exploded.

" I don't want to hurt you, lady. I'm not that kind of beast, trust me." he slightly smiled narrowing his eyes. Ruby clenched teeth.

" Then let me go." she growled.

Steven frowned, not hiding the amusement in his eyes, then stepped back opening his arms.

" You're free to go. " he said half smiling. " But you're mine." he added with a smirk. Red showed him her fangs with a snarl.

" I'm none's!"

He softly laughed. " Tell your wolf."

" Why can't we come with you? You can talk to her even if we're there with you!"

Shaya smiled at the child. He was bloody stubborn, just as his mothers. " I need just little time with her, then you'll stay with her all the time that you want, little Prince. Patience, Henry. It's a very important quality."

" But..."

" Give your mother the time to take a shower and enjoy some time with you alone." she said in a whisper, winking to him. He widened his eyes when the understanding hit him. She glanced at Regina, who was in the kitchen putting the washed dishes in the cupboard, knowing that she'd heard them. The woman gave her a brief, grateful gaze.

" Oh. Alright." he said under his breath. " I didn't think about it... Thanks. "

She smiled and patted his shoulder. " Don't mention it. It's normal, little Prince. You won't understand it until you'll become father."

He sighed. " Mh, guess it's long time, then. I'll mess it up a million times before that." Rapunzel burst into laughter. " Trust me, time is always little, and your mother knows it: she'll understand."

The boy frowned in confusion. " I didn't understand what you said."

Shaya snorted. " You will. " She ruffled his hair. " Go to prepare now."

" I'm ready since three hours!"

Regina's sweet laughter made them turn to watch her, beautifully leaning on the doorjamb with her arms crossed under her breasts.

" But you didn't frame the drawing for Emma yet."

He goggled. " Oh, you think it's better?"

" Yes!"

" But... Do we have a frame? I mean, we didn't buy it toda..."

While he was talking, Regina elegantly waved a hand in the air. From the thin purple fog a golden frame appeared, finely inlaid with delicate figures of swans and trees. She handed it to her son with a smile.

" You could use this one."

Henry took it almost with reverence. It was beautiful indeed, precious. " Oh. Thanks, mom!" Her smile warmed up. " Let's see if it fits your work." she encouraged him, tilting her head towards the upper floor. He immediately ran upstairs.

When Regina turned her head to look at her, Shaya felt the usual warmth fill her chest. The brunette's eyes were filled with joy, finally, though that almost invisible shadow of fear and sadness never left them.

" I'd better go now." she murmured, hypnotized by those brown eyes, now slightly narrowed by a

little smile.

" Thank you. I... You're so good in talking to him, in making him understand things. I can't do it." The warrior shrugged. " When you can only read to spend your time, you learn a lot of things about how people think, even if they're just legends or characters of a story. You learn how to think in different ways from yours, and so you can understand better even real people. I used it to kill people, to anticipate their moves, but I think that applying it to these situations is better." she explained glancing down. When she locked gaze with her love again, Regina was looking at her in total admiration. The surprise hit Shaya as a mace.

" Is that the reason why you can do... what you do?"

Rapunzel frowned. " What do you mean?"

" I mean..." Regina seemed in difficulty, as if she couldn't find the proper words. " I mean that..." the brunette paused again, looking right in her eyes. She looked lost again. Shaya swallowed back the immediate pain. " You see the best part of me, even though I am..." Regina glanced down, swallowing hard. " ... a monster."

The rage burned high in Shaya, as it always did. She forced Regina to look at her with her hand, not very delicately this time. Yet, she didn't see a trace of fear in her dark eyes.

" How many times will I have to say it to you? You're not a monster! You just put one foot wrong and then you fell, your dress and your face dirtied, you got bruises and scratches, you messed up your hair, so, when you hit the bottom, none could recognize you, neither yourself. But you never enjoyed ripping the roots you clutched at while you were desperately trying to survive. You always stayed the same, that's why you're suffering so much. If you were a monster, Regina, your son wouldn't be here, as Snow White would be long dead."

" I wanted her dead! Why...?"

" If you really wanted her dead, she'd be. It isn't so difficult to kill somebody, and you know it! I know that she was just little more than a child when her father died, so you could easily kill an unprotected girl who trusted you. But you didn't, and you know why? Because you're not a monster. Monsters kill children, trust me. I know well."

Shaya had to take a deep breath. Even after all that time, Gregory's memory still killed her.

Regina's eyes were wide open, and wet. " I... I wanted her to suffer as I did..."

" Regina..." Shaya sighed, her gaze now sweetened. She cupped Regina's face with her hands. She wasn't sure to be strong enough, but she had to do it. " You know that I'm right. Stop lying to yourself. If I were you, if I'd really hated Snow, I'd have made her my personal slave, and humiliated and tortured her every day, healing her wounds with magic, until she'd begged me to kill her, and over. You say that I'm the one who sees the good in you, but perhaps you're the one who sees only the good part of me. There's only one monster in this house. I don't even hate myself for this. I decided who I am decades ago, and I never regretted it, even though I always knew it was wrong. I killed, I tortured, sometimes for revenge, sometimes just for dirty money. It's time you realize who I am, my love. I'll never hide you anything, they've lied to you enough for ten lives, and I'll accept the consequences of this. If you'll be disgusted by me, by my past, I'll understand it. After all, that's why I've never told you anything about my feelings towards you: I thought you deserved something better than me, and I still do, but I'm too weak to let you go, unless you ask me to. " Shaya had to pause to bite back her tears. Regina looked shocked. The warrior sighed, shivering in pain. She suspected that the woman didn't realize who she was yet, but she secretly hoped the opposite. She inspired deeply and continued. " You're my True Love, that's why my heart shines in your hands. But my love towards you doesn't have to change your decision: if you're not happy with me, if you're afraid of me, just tell me, and I'll let you go. I just want you to be happy."

A thick silence fell painful between them. Shaya left Regina's face, making a step back, too afraid of her next words to look at her.

" I don't care." Regina simply said.

Shaya eyed her in surprise. " What?"

" I don't care! I know who you are, Shaya I always knew. There's one reason why everybody knew your name in the Enchanted Forest, and it's because of the atrocities you've been able to commit, apparently without a reason. They talked about whole armies murdered by you in one night..."

" Well, that was exaggerated..."

Regina snorted. " Really? How much? I saw you fight. You killed the Bogeyman in a heartbeat,

Shaya. They still fear him, in this world. "

" He was overvalued."

" They talked about the worst tortures perpetrated by you..."

" That... that was true, indeed..."

" They threatened me saying that they'd have sent you to kill me in the slowest way possible!" she said laughing. That magical sound loosened the painful knot in the warrior's heart. " And I was terrorized at the idea, trust me!"

Shaya stifled a soft laugh. Even the idea that she could hurt Regina, for George moreover, was ridiculously absurd for her.

" You believed them?"

Regina adorably shrugged, hiding a smile. " I doubted their words, but I was afraid that the messenger was saying the truth. I mean, if it was true, I was doomed."

Rapunzel pressed her lips in a smile. " I don't know. Maybe you could defeat me. You're better than me with magic. You're better than anyone but Rumplestiltskin, in truth."

" Yes, but you're very faster than me." Regina said making the step that separated them. " And I can cast just one spell at time, while you can cast a spell an throw a knife at the same time." she added, wrapping her arms around her waist, her face so close to Rapunzel's that they breathed each other's voices.

Shaya's heart suddenly calmed. She looked in her Queen's eyes, in search of fear, disgust, rejection, but she only found warmth.

" Or I could kneel before you, asking you to forgive me for who I am, begging you to take the right decision and find happiness, with or without me." she whispered. She needed an answer, she couldn't just get out of the house with that doubt in her heart. She would have gone crazy. But

Regina smiled so sweetly that every fear faded away in that light.

" Do you realize that this is exactly what you did?"

Shaya nodded once. " I knew what I was doing, what do you think?" she softly laughed.

Regina arched one eyebrow. " I could kill you."

" Indeed. One thing I never understood is why you didn't do it."

Regina tried to hide a smile, without success. " I don't know. Perhaps I knew... Perhaps my heart knew the truth."

They locked gaze and stayed that way for a while, in silence, simply staring at each other. " So you still want to be with me? Despite... me?" the warrior asked with inner dread, not really hidden.

Regina smiled. " I could ask you the same question, but I already know the answer, as you should."

" Aye but... Really, please, I need to hear it. I can't simply think it, I did it for too long, I'm never sure that..."

" Yes!" Regina hurried to say, caressing her face. " Yes."

Rapunzel leaned her forehead against hers, closing her eyes, letting a tear slide down.

" Thank you." she whispered with trembling voice. The relief was so immense that it almost hurt. Regina's hand gently stroke the back of her neck, sending shiver through her spine, and making her look at her.

" You can't thank me because I love you!" she said with a smile, frowned.

Shaya couldn't help but smirk at those words. " I'm the Golden Death and I do whatever the hell I want!" she archly exclaimed, yet still with trembling voice, making her laugh.

" Well Golden Death, you're already late, you'd better go to the hospital if you want to thank the Savior."

" Not before I obtain a kiss from my beautiful Queen." she objected sneering.

Regina narrowed her eyes in a challenging gaze, then suddenly took her face and pulled it towards hers, pressing her lips against Shaya's.

" Just because you said "beautiful"." she said when she let her go, already walking towards the staircase.

Rapunzel stifled a laugh, her hand on the door handle. " I love you." she said, smiling.

The former Queen smiled back at her, making her heart ache for her beauty. " I love you too."

" I love you."

" Uh? Yeah, I love you too."

" Hey." David turned on his right side, his head lifted and leaning on his right hand, the arm bent over the white pillow. " Are you okay?"

He watched his wife, well, actually half of her face: the rest of her body was buried under the thick blanket. Her green eyes were fixed on the ceiling in an almost disturbing way. " Snow?" " Uh? What?"

She finally locked gaze with him. Her mind was far away, he could see it. He caressed her face, her short hair. He liked it, it didn't hide her beautiful face as the long one. He liked it too, though.

Snow had wonderful, silky black hair, perfect to caress, and the sensation of them on his body while they made love was beautiful. Yet, he liked that haircut too. It was rebellious. Just like her. " I asked you if you're okay, but, don't worry, I know you're not. So, next question: what's wrong?"

Snow swallowed, then sighed. She looked sad. " I'm afraid, David. I can almost feel it."

David frowned in confusion. " What are you talking about?"

" My heart. It's getting darker, hour by hour. It's like if each breath I take, each word I say makes it blacken. Regina was right. She's always been." she murmured with a dismissed voice, her gaze blurred by dark thoughts. David rubbed his thumb against her cheek, leaning forward.

" Hey, you don't even have to think these things. I know you, Snow. You're a good person, you will always be. I see it everyday in your eyes, in the way you move, in your bright smile. And

Regina is wrong. She knows nothing about love, about its power."

" I think she knows, David. About dark hearts and bright smiles, she knows better than any of us. And she knows me." she paused, and he let her think. He couldn't disagree, after all. She had a point. " I knew her, David. She was innocent. She was pure. I'm afraid... I'm afraid to become like her. If I... " Snow had started to weep. David moved and hugged her, holding her tight. It killed him to see her in that condition. It had already happened when she had killed Cora, and he thought that she had passed it over, but evidently it wasn't true. They simply had had something more important to do, and it had distracted her for a while. She'd never stopped hating herself. " Shhh, it's fine, love, it's fine..." he whispered to her, hoping with all himself that it would have worked. He really didn't know how to help her if not by being there for her and showing her his love.

" It's not!" she wept. " It will grow, I can't stop it..."

" Snow, this isn't true! You're not that kind of person..."

" Really?" she sneaked from his hug and locked gaze with him. " Then why did I let Regina kill her mother?"

" I... I... Snow, it was necessary!"

" Are you sure about that? Because I'm not, at all!"

" She'd have become the Dark One if you didn't stop her! You saved us all! There wasn't time to do anything else! "

" But if..." she paused, her empty gaze fixed on nothing. " If I'd just made Regina put her heart back, without using that candle..."

" Rumplestiltskin would have died." he interrupted her in a sigh.

She looked at him with despair on her face. " Maybe Cora could save him..."

David frowned. " Maybe? Snow, we couldn't risk! Cora was addicted to power, it was pretty evident! Maybe her heart would have stopped her for a while, but she would have tried again to kill Rumple to have his power."

Snow wearily shook her head, weeping. " Didn't you hear what she said to Regina a second before dying?"

" Snow..."

" She said: " you would have been enough". She wouldn't have done it again, David. I messed it up. I've become worst than the person I fought for my whole life. She should have killed me the first time she had the possibility to. Everything would..."

" Snow!" David almost yelled, unable to contain the anger. " Do you really mean it? Uh? Because if you do, it means that you wanted your daughter to have never been born! And your grandson!

Do you really want it?! To erase every moment lived with them, each moment spent with me?

Answer me!" he cried out, startling her.

With his chest heavy for the rage, he locked gaze with his wife. He didn't recognize her anymore. It wasn't the first time that she wanted to give up, but this one... He couldn't accept it. It was too much. His wife wasn't a coward. He knew that she wasn't.

" I just want to be happy." she whispered weeping, her eyes huge behind the tears.

David stared at her in disbelief. This couldn't be true. That one wasn't Snow. He didn't marry that woman. He didn't fall in love with that stranger.

He jumped out of the bed, hurrying to dress up.

" David?" he heard her call him with faint, trembling voice. " David, where're you going?" He glanced at her while furiously fastening his belt. " To see my daughter, as her mother abandoned her once again."

He almost felt her heart crack, and so his own, but she had to get aware of what she was doing. Despite his determination, he wasn't able to look again at his destroyed wife. He just left the apartment slamming the door behind him.

Her body was still aching as hell when she woke up for the third time. She wondered when it would get used to magic, and if it would ever. Her head was a balloon full of broken glass fragments that continuously hit the back of her eyes. She moaned profanities for a while before

Regina's voice stopped her.

" Language, Miss Swan. "

Emma opened one eye. The former Mayor was elegantly sitting on the chair next to her bed, clasped hands on her lap, a slight smile on her perfectly made-up face.

" Fuck you, Mills. My head is... " the Savior muttered.

" Momma!"

Emma's heart stopped. Did he just...?

She lifted her head with difficulty, but she finally managed to see Henry.

" What did you just say, kid?"

He frowned in his adorable way of frowning. " What? I said..." his voice vanished while his eyes widened. He was looking at Regina with worry.

Emma eyed the brunette, finding her gaze low, as her shoulders.

The silence lasted too long for her not to notice it. She eyed them both, the, with a slightly showed surprise, she understood. The former Mayor smiled to their son, but there was a resigned sadness in her eyes. " It's okay, Henry. She is your mother." she murmured.

Emma's eyes followed her swallowing, then glancing down again at Henry's dubious smile.

The Savior stretched her hand, reaching Regina's. The brunette goggled at her at the contact. Emma smiled at her, holding back the tears as Regina herself was trying to do. She could feel it, her powerful, familiar sense of loss. But she wasn't losing anyone, and she had to tell her. Yet, not a word was spoken. Emma felt the flow of warmth, the warmth she wanted Regina to feel, the one that she herself would have wanted to be able to feel during her childhood, with each foster family they had sent her to. Regina's eyes were fixed on hers, wide open: she was flabbergasted. They felt as if there was an explosion of light though there was none, and the neon lights were the only source of light in the room, and the window showed the night of Storybrooke as after each dusk. It lasted only a heartbeat, and happened only for them, but it was enough to warm Regina's heart.

As the room returned normal at Emma's sight, Regina tried to slip her hands from Emma's, but the blonde tightened her grab on them.

" You raised him." she said with the hint of voice she had left. " He's our son, Regina, how many times have I to tell you? He will always be our son, not yours, not mine. We both love him and he loves us both, isn't it, kid?" she asked without looking at him, eyes on Regina. His agreement was full of astonishment, but sincere. She involuntarily nodded once. " Yes, because we're family, whatever my mother says, whatever anyone says." Emma concluded, swallowing then and heavily leaning back against the pillows. She was exhausted, again. Damned magic, she was beginning to hate it. If she could only stop using it without intent!

She felt a gentle squeeze on her hand, then another on her shoulder. The Savior turned her head. Regina gave her an embarrassed smile, but Emma felt so much gratefulness from her that she almost chocked.

" Sorry. Sometimes I just forget it. Habit, I guess." she pressed her lips together in a tight smile. Emma sighed nodding. Meeting Cora had told her something about Regina's childhood, knowing Rapunzel had told her everything else.

" Yeah, I know, I know. Now let me hug my son." she sneered at her, hoping with all herself that the brunette didn't forget her annoying sassiness. Fortunately the former Mayor stifled a laughter and shook her head.

Henry basically jumped on her, hugging her tight. He was becoming strong, too strong to hug her neck so tight. " Kid, I love you, but I love to breath too..."

" Sorry, sorry! It's just... I..." he blabbed breaking the stifling hug, blushing. She ruffled his hair. " Don't worry, I was kidding, I'm fine. Hey, I'm not that fragile, ya know? I'm the Savior!" she smiled, throwing him a soft, joking punch on the chest. He laughed softly.

" Henry."

The kid looked at Regina. She tilted her head towards her bag, on the other chair, next to the door.

" You're forgetting something."

The kid funnily slapped his forehead, making them laugh. " Right!"

He run to the chair while talking, and took something from the black leather bag. " I... we brought you this! " he said enthusiastically, handing her a squared, wrapped object. Emma took it, staring for a bit at them both with one eyebrow lifted.

" You brought me a present?"

" Yes!"

She focused on Regina. She looked amused, but not in a mocking way. Yet... " But... Why?" she asked, gazing at her son.

He shrugged smiling. " Because we thought you'd like it!"

Emma looked at Regina, who pointed at the mysterious object with a nod. " You're supposed to unwrap it now." she muttered, winking at her.

She winked. She actually winked at her. Emma swallowed. Something had to be wrong, like, there had to be a new curse, or another dragon to slay, or an ogre somehow had sneaked there from Fairy Tale Land. Or that one wasn't Regina Mills. But that one actually was Regina Mills, her "powers" were almost screaming it.

The Savior swallowed and slowly unwrapped the object. She screwed up the white and golden paper, finding under it a framed drawing. It depicted her, with her red jacket and a big smile on her face. There was a black writing on the right side, at the bottom. It was Henry's signature. She didn't know why, and felt stupid because of it, but those childish five letters preceded by a little heart brought tears to her eyes.

" I drew it, and mom made the frame." her son said.

She gazed at his visibly satisfied face, then looked back at the gift. The frame was simply beautiful, wood painted of gold, real gold she suspected, and it was so perfectly inlaid that it almost seemed that the swans on it were dancing with the trees. Apple trees, Emma suddenly realized as she caught sight of little, flawless fruits between the tiny leaves.

The Savior gazed at the former Queen. The brunette smiled, probably pleased by her amazement.

" What... How did you...?"

" Magic, dear. Obviously." she answered smirking.

" But it's... I've never seen something like this! It looks like it's moving, but it's still! It's..." " Emma, it's just a frame. I think that the work of art is inside it, not the frame itself." Regina suggested her with her eyebrows lifted by the slight scolding tone.

Emma blushed. She felt again as a scholar busted by the teacher.

" Yeah, I know well! I was keeping the best for last, killjoy!" she exclaimed, trying to ignore her arched eyebrow. " Kid, this is awesome! I didn't know you were this good with drawing!"

Henry frowned. " Really? D'you like it? You don't have to say it if you don't..."

" I love it! Thanks!" she insisted smiling widely. It was the truth, she really loved the gift. She opened her arms, and the kid immediately hugged her again. She rubbed his back with her free hand while continuing to watch the drawing. She really liked it. It was so... happy. And he drew her with really long legs, she liked the thing.

Emma eyed Regina. She was watching them with the shadow of a smile on her lips. Emma wondered if Henry had drawn her, too. The women locked gaze, and smiled at each other. By the relaxed face of the former Mayor, he probably did. Emma broke the hug and took her risks.

" Hey, if you drew something else, I wanna see it! You're an artist!" Henry predictably glanced at his adoptive mother, but she frowned smiling. " Are you asking for my permission?" she asked, evidently surprised.

He nodded once, and she unexpectedly laughed.

" You don't have to, Henry! She doesn't even have to ask! Our door is always open for your mother."

Emma stared at her, though she tried to hide the surprise.

Regina snorted. " You should see your faces..." she murmured. " You're so similar…" she added in a lower, thoughtful tone.

" Mh, maybe a little. The eyes. " Emma said eying Henry, trying then to ease the situation. " But he has your facial expressions. I mean, sometimes I mix you two up, and I don't know who am I talking to anymore. Then you say "Miss Swan", and everything becomes clear again. Don't ever say "Miss Swan", kid. It would be the death of me."

The effort to imitate Regina's voice was worth it, because both of them bursted into laughter.

" I don't say it that way!" the brunette objected while softly laughing.

Emma hardly stifled a laughter. " Oh, you most certainly do!"

" When will you come home?" Henry suddenly asked, stopping their laughters.

Home? What did he mean with home? Regina's house? That was a problem. A big, big problem.

A huge problem that they could discuss later on, though, or her head would have exploded. " Errr, Whale said that I can get out in a couple of days, but I'll just sneak out of here tomorrow when there's the shift change. " she grinned. He laughed in approval and, obviously, Regina glared at her, but with the hint of a smile on her face.

" What? I'm fine!"

Regina snorted. " Do what you want, Emma, but warn your mother before if you get hurt or something similar, or this time she will truly kill me."

Emma grinned. " Oh, come on, you're well protected!"

Emma never saw Regina smile that way. She was radiant. Emma couldn't help but smile back at her.

" Did you two talk?" the brunette asked her, obviously referring to Rapunzel. Emma nodded. " Yes, she came here..." she glanced at the clock on the wall. " ... almost one hour ago. She thanked me like two thousand times, then she left saying that I needed rest and that she wanted to talk with my mother. I'm afraid now, and not for Mary... Snow. "

Regina sympathetically smirked. " Do you still have problems with the names?"

" I do, too." Henry intervened.

Emma eyed Regina. She realized that they had the same, amused, challenging gaze now. She stifled a laughter and waited for the right moment. As Regina opened her mouth, she did too. " Your genes' influence is always evident, Miss Swan." she said together with her, but with a mocking tone. There was a little time of forced silence, then all of them bursted into laughter.

Emma had to stop soon, though, as her head had begun sending worryingly intense stabs of pain.

She moaned and put a hand on her eyes, waiting for the pain to fade away.

" You okay, momma?" she heard her son ask. She nodded and smiled. He didn't need further preoccupations.

" Yeah, don't worry, just headache."

" You have to sleep, Emma."

" It's what everyone keeps saying, but I tried and it didn't work." she muttered. The sudden contact on her shoulder unexpectedly surprised her. She gazed at the former Mayor with her eyes narrowed by the apparently never ending pain.

" Let me help." Regina murmured, then waited for her approval. Emma nodded once, and let her hand fall back on the bed. Regina's leaned on her forehead. Emma felt her power thicken the air, then a slight freshness on her head, and suddenly her body totally relaxed. She immediately felt sleepy as the pain disappeared. " Rest." was the last caring word she heard before falling asleep again.

Henry watched his natural mother fall asleep under his adoptive mother's spell. Emma looked better now. Her face didn't look so tired anymore, as it did in the last, stressing days: it was relaxed now. He sighed in relief, smiling proudly to his mom. She was great! She made friends with Emma! They always laughed and joked together now instead of fighting. It was awesome! Regina was now standing beside the bed and taking the picture from Emma's hand to put it on the little night stand. She then tucked her in, truly surprising her son, before turning and slightly smiling to him in that affectionate way that always made him smile back at her. " We'd better let her sleep now, sweetheart."

" Can't we stay here for the night?"

She leaned forward and touched his chin, slightly wrinkling her nose. " It's forbidden, dear. Dr. Whale let you do it only because... well, to be honest, only because I asked him to." she sneered, making him laugh with low voice. He didn't want to wake Emma up. His mother smiled widely.

Not evil. Not evil at all.

" We'll come back tomorrow before and after school, I promise." she added in a sweeter tone.

Henry sighed. So, he had to go to school, in the end. Great. " Okay. " he finally said. He turned to leave the room, but found his grandpa on the door. He looked a little tired, and soaking wet, but he smiled at him. Henry glanced out of the window: a thick rain was falling.

" Hey, Henry, here you are." he said quite enthusiastically.

" Shhh, speak quietly grandpa! She just fell asleep!"

" Oh." he just said, blushing a little. He stepped forward, wetting the floor. " Why are you here?

You said you'd come here tomorrow. Why are you here? You shouldn't be here."

" David, are you fine?" Regina asked, one protective hand on Henry's shoulder. The man glanced at her, shivered and then nodded once.

" Yeah, sure. Fine." he said, smiling at Henry as to reassure him. It didn't work. " Just wet. It suddenly started raining, and I didn't have my umbrella with me, as you can see." David smirked. " Well..." Regina seemed speechless. Henry alternated his gaze between them, not understanding the reason of their embarrass.

" What's the matter?" he asked. The adults shared a look, then both glanced down.

" I'm fine, don't worry. Go home, I'll stay here with Emma." David said quickly, too quickly.

Henry was missing something, he knew it, but he couldn't see what.

" You'll get ill if you don't..."

" I'm fine." David stated, a little too harshly. Henry frowned.

" Oookaaay..." he murmured while walking towards the door, followed by his mother. " Bye, grandpa." he said. The man greeted him with a hint of his head.

" See you tomorrow."

Henry exited the room, but his mother stayed on the door. He gazed at her: she had her "Mayor face". The boy swallowed. He was absolutely missing something. " Henry, wait for me for a minute out of the room. Please."

They locked gaze. She wasn't angry, he decided, but she was serious, as when she had to fix some business issues. He nodded once. " Okay. I'll wait for you in the waiting room, so that I can sit." She gave him a tight smile. " Thank you." she formally said, but then she winked. Yes, she was the Mayor again, but she was still his mom. Henry smiled widely at her and walked towards the waiting room.

" What do you want now?"

Charming was drenched, and, for how much it could rain, the short distance from the parking lot to the entrance of the hospital wasn't enough to get that wet. He had obviously walked from the apartment to the hospital despite the rain, so something had happened between him and Snow White. Perhaps they fought. Regina couldn't help but feel a slight inner pleasure at the thought.

Nasty habits...

She waved a hand in the air gathering her power, though. He was annoying and silly as his wife, but they didn't need an ill swordsman with the Lost Boys around.

As David realized that he was perfectly dry now, his face radically changed. " Oh. Thank you."

" What could Snow have said to reduce you to this?"

He sighed angrily. " None of your business. Now..."

" Oh, I guess it's the opposite, dear. It must concern our last meeting, I suppose? "

" Regina, leave me with my daughter or..."

" Your daughter, indeed. And where's her caring mother?"

She challenged him with her eyes. He clenched his jaw and balled his fists. He was furious. " She's in her bed, destroying herself as she feels too guilty for having killed that beast that your mother was." he spat. Regina felt stabs of anger and pleasure together hit her chest. She grinned at the so called "prince".

" And so it has to be. Or you want to punish only me for my actions? What is it, your deviated sense of justice? She's as guilty as I am."

" If she's guilty it's only because of you and Cora!"

" You'll awake your beloved daughter and half of the patients yelling this way, Charming." Regina sneered. The thought of a destroyed Snow White pathetically crying out her soul on her bed hadn't left her mind yet. Revenge had never been so sweet. " She made her choices alone, and she's now realizing it, realizing who she really is. The little child is finally growing up, Charming, deal with it. And she's everything but innocent." the former Queen concluded with a satisfied, devilish smile before leaving the room and its annihilated standing occupant.