I was reading your guys' comments on how you thought I should incorporate Emma and Snow in to James' thoughts again and it made me laugh because that is exactly what I was thinking and doing before I read any of your reviews. Great minds think alike I guess ;) anyhow enjoy this chapter! It's a bit longer than the others.

"You know I heard rumors that your mother was quite the horsewoman herself," Henry was a little more hesitant to go back out to the stables after the previous week's event. He loved the kid but he had to continue to work on getting Emma and Snow back and he had to find something for Henry to do. James could see he had the boys attention now though.

"Really?" he had a hard time picturing his mother on a horse let alone riding circles around everyone.

"Yeah! I'm sure she'd love to go out with you," he smiled, "she'd probably teach you tricks of the trade that I don't even know about," it was likely a very true statement.

Excitement spread over his face but it soon faded when he remembered what she had done there, "I don't think she will want to go back there though," his gaze dropped to the floor in disappointment.

"I'm sure she'd try for you," James reached forward and lifted the boys chin, "lets give it a shot hmm?" He smiled as Henry nodded and the excitement returned to his face.

...

Regina stared at the toes of her black boots peaking out from the hem of her charcoal slacks with every step she took. She needed to get out of her house and the bruises on her neck were nearly invisible so she figured she would take a walk through the town. Her hands hung in the pockets of her coat and her head was kept down as she watched her feet take slow purposeful steps down the sidewalk kicking away any small pebbles that came across her path.

"Hey uh good to see you out and about your majesty," Grumpy almost didn't recognize her, she was lacking her proud posture and her cold disposition that you could even feel from behind her. His voice was polite, he had agreed to at least try to communicate with the woman but he had no intention of being overly friendly. He couldn't help but smile, however, at the surprised and dumbfounded look on her face when she stopped and turned to face him.

She never expected anything to come out of the dwarf's mouth that wasn't an insult to her, be it direct or indirect. She didn't understand his sudden change in behavior toward her in the slightest, "uh thank you," the confusion creased her face. That confusion only increased when she felt a nervous hand rest carefully on her arm.

It was Doc, "I'm sorry for your loss," he whispered gently afraid of what she could do to him. His nerves were calmed when she didn't do anything but stand there and watch him with a quiet confusion. He removed his hand and followed the rest of the dwarves.

Her eyes followed them as they continued ahead of her with their pick axes over their shoulders. She caught Grumpy's eye when he looked over his shoulder and she smiled and nodded once as a good bye. He nodded back before he rounded the corner toward the mines. She was sure they'd find something useful soon, something to bring back Snow and Emma.

James was spending every waking minute looking for a way to bring them back when he wasn't with her or Henry. She didn't particularly want them back herself but she knew James did and she knew Henry missed them so she was willing to go along with it.

Taking a deep breath she started walking again, she didn't know where she was going she was just walking. She had made it another block when she was stopped by the sound of James' voice.

"Hey, what are you up to?" He stopped the truck next to her and leaned over the passenger seat so he could talk to her.

Regina smiled and walked up to the vehicle and kept her hands in her pockets, "just walking," she shrugged.

"Well do you mind if we steal you away for a bit?"

"We?" She looked at him questioningly until she saw Henry move forward from the back seat, "Henry!"

"Hi mom! We were just headed out to the stables, you wanna come?" he tried to hide the disappointment when her smile vanished and she shook her head.

"No I don't think that's a very good idea."

"Come on Regina, the boy wants you to teach him how to ride," he could see the want in her eyes as her smile slowly returned.

"Does he not think a prince can do it justice?" She teased him trying to will herself to get in the truck with her son.

"Oh I'm sure he does, but why be taught by a prince when you can be taught by a queen?"

Regina smirked at the question, "well I guess I can give it a shot," she nodded in agreement before she opened the door and stepped into the truck.

"Alright let's go," James was happy she made the decision to come on her own rather than him having to go out there and pick her up and stick her in the truck himself. He grinned at the very idea of her thrown over his shoulder as she threatened him to put her down. He turned his head to look at her and found her fiddling anxiously with her fingers.

Looking back at the road he placed a hand over hers before looking back at her with a comforting smile. Neither one of them said anything, she returned his smile and held his hand between hers grateful for the distraction and he turned his eyes back on the road enjoying the small circles she was tracing on his hand.

...

Henry was the first out of the truck and he practically bounced through the stable doors and it brought a smile to Regina's face but she didn't move from her seat. She wasn't sure if she would be able to make it in there. The stable used to be the place where she would go to be happy but now it was the place where she had to kill Daniel. Dark and sad.

She hadn't noticed that James had gotten out and walked around until her door was opened and he stood offering her a hand without speaking a word. She looked over his shoulder at the building and then back at James as she took his hand and reluctantly got out on to the ground. She let out the air she was holding in and shook her head to remove the hair from her eyes before she walked forward with her head held high. Sometimes the illusion of her confidence was all the confidence she had.

He followed close behind her with his heart being pulled at by how she was trying to face her tragedy. He was one of the few people that knew her tells, and by reading them he knew she was in no way as confident as she had made herself look to be. It made him a little sad for her but he couldn't risk holding her to comfort her, not here where people came and went on no particular schedule.

He had to settle for walking a friendly distance behind her and convinced himself that she needed to do this on her own anyway. They rounded the corner to the stalls and Regina froze in place and he noticed she wasn't breathing. Henry was already in the stall with his horse and he grinned over the door at them.

"Which horse is my mom's?" He could see the desire to run away in his mothers eyes and he noticed she wasn't breathing as she stared at something that wasn't there. He had his fingers crossed that she would find the strength to stay with him.

"She can take her pick," he touched Regina's arm carefully to bring her back from her thoughts. At his touch she started slightly and began to breathe again, uneven and short but breathing. He watched with sadness as she intentionally walked around the area in front of Henry's stall and he figured that that must have been where she had killed seemed to relax a little more once she had passed that area and moved her eyes from one horse to the next.

He heard someone walking behind him and found one of the stable hands stopping next to him as she caught sight of Regina. He wished she would continue on her way but it didn't exactly bother him that she stayed to watch. He turned his attention back to Regina who was nearing the stall on the end, "oh Regina, I-" and he was cut off by the vicious squeal of the mare in the stall.

That mare was not particularly friendly and everyone knew it. It lunged at Regina with its ears pinned against its head and teeth bared ready to bite. With its neck still extended the horse's face was inches away from Regina's but Regina didn't even blink. She stood in front of the door facing the horse straight on and didn't move until the mare perked her ears up and relaxed her neck dropping her head so it was perpendicular to the ground. Only then did Regina step forward and stroke its face, tracing the markings on its brown head.

"Whoa!" Henry laughed in disbelief as he leaned on the stall door.

The stable hand laughed to herself, "what a pair," she elbowed James jokingly and looked up at him with a grin. It soon faded when he looked down at her with a look of 'seriously? Is that supposed to be funny?' which made her turn on her heels and continue on her way.

It was a little funny, he had to admit but he couldn't encourage that perspective on Regina. He focused his attention back on Regina and the view made him smile like an idiot. She had intertwined her fingers together behind the mare's ears and let her arms hang down as she leaned in to the horse and rested her head on the mare's forehead. Regina's small torso was no longer than the horse's head which made her look so much smaller than she really was, "well it seems you have everything under control," he laughed and saw her laugh along, "I'm going to leave Henry with you and you two can get in to all sorts of trouble."

Regina let go of the mare and pushed herself so she was standing up straight, "we'll keep busy, don't you worry," she smiled and began playing with the horse's lips with her fingers.

James watched the animal lip at Regina's fingers harmlessly and still couldn't believe she trusted it enough to let it play with her delicate fingers after it just tried to take her head off. He laughed and shook his head, "I'll be back in a couple hours," he waved his hand in the air as he turned and left.

...

James barged in to the pawn shop and the bell rang behind him, "Rumplestiltskin!" James stood in the middle of the shop with his hands on his hips impatiently.

"James," he surfaced from the back of his shop, "to what do I owe this pleasure?" He leaned on his cane behind the counter.

"Look, I know we agreed to stay out of each others way," he walked forward and leaned against his hands on the counter, "but I am stuck."

"Yes I would imagine so. Having difficulty getting your family back are we?" He gave him a smug grin, "I've been waiting for you to show up."

Suppressing an eye roll James continued, "I figure that there is no way we are able to open a portal on this side. Unless of course we just happen to stumble across one within the city limits which I highly doubt. So it is up to Snow and Emma to do that on their side and I'm certain they've figured that out but what I can't get is how they are supposed to find us," he stood waiting for an answer.

"Well look at you so clever!" He grinned darkly at him, "you are correct! They will have to open a portal from our land but yes they will need help finding us here in Storybrooke," his voice was almost mocking the prince and he grinned once again.

"How?" James leaned in closer.

Rumplestiltskin backed away slightly and waved his free hand around, "now now I'm not about to give up that information for free dearie! Everything has a price!"

"What do you want?"

"Oh I want a little peace of mind is all. See I've had an itch that I've been unable to scratch and it grows rather quiet here in my shop and I miss a lot of the entertainment this little town provides," he laughed quietly at James.

"What do you want to know?" he folded his arms over his chest. He didn't trust this man but he needed to know what he had to do and if quieting his mind was all he had to do then so be it.

Rumplestiltskin grinned momentarily before he asked his question, "it's seems that as of late you and our queen have been growing rather close," he watched James shrug and nod casually in agreement, "yes that's right. So my question for you is," he leaned closer to James, "how long have you been sleeping with her?". He grinned wildly as the stiff panic washed over James' face and he stopped breathing.

"Come now dearie, out with it! Unless of course you've changed your mind," he enunciated his last words and thoroughly enjoyed watching James squirm. It was the most fun he'd had in days and a welcome break from the frustration of his constant failure at trying to find a way to Baelfire.

"Fine," his whole body was tense and angry, "a few months now I would say," he glared at Rumplestiltskin and waited impatiently for him to hold up his end of the deal so he could leave. To his annoyance he simply stood there chuckling, savoring his discomfort.

"Is she good?" He scrunched his nose and grinned as he taunted James.

"The deal, Rumple, was I answer a question and you answer mine," he growled and pointed his finger on the counter, "now tell me how to get them here."

"I'm going to take that as a yes," his face creased as he squinted his eyes and nodded through his toothy grin. He had missed toying with people, he had promised Belle he would stop but this was an opportunity he just couldn't pass up. "As for your family, you're going to need to create something for them to follow. Something to light their way, like a lighthouse or a beacon of sorts," he rested his weight on the counter.

"A beacon made from what?"

Rumplestiltskin laughed, "well magic of course! It is up to you to figure the rest out, I'm sure you'll do fine," he nodded slowly and watched James turn and stalk out of the store. He stopped him at the door, "thank you for calming an old man's mind dearie," he smirked at how the prince's body tensed, "it is very much appreciated."

James slammed the door behind him but he could still hear the man's laughter echoing around in his head. He needed to take a shower.

...

"You know what I think?" Regina smiled at her son and ran her hand along his horse's neck.

"What?" M"I think you're almost ready to start riding this big guy," she laughed at the smile that took over his entire face.

"Really?! You think so!?" he leaned back in to his horse's chest and laughed in excitement. He reached his left arm over his head and scratched the horse's shoulder.

James walked into the stable and toward where he left Henry and Regina. He stopped in his tracks when he rounded the corner to find Regina's chestnut mare looking at him tied outside of Henry's horse's stall. The horse looked better than he had ever seen it and her coat shone a deep copper colour.

Nervously he reached his arm out to touch her but was ready to pull pack at the simple flick of an ear. His fingers reached the horse without incident and he released the air in his chest and relaxed. He stepped toward her and ran his hands over her neck while he smiled and whispered, "well would you look at that," and stared at her in wonder.

His attention moved to the stall when he heard laughter coming out of it. The horse was nowhere to be seen and neither were Henry or Regina. He took a couple steps closer and looked over the door to find all three of them laying on their sides in a newly cleaned stall. He rested his chin on his hands after he laid them flat on the door and watched them without their knowledge.

Henry had his head rested on the base of the horse's neck with the rest of his body leaning against its chest as he smiled at Regina who had her head a little further up his neck. "Looks like you two got a lot done," he announced himself and laughed at how Henry quickly stood up and ran to him.

"My mom says I'm almost ready!" He beamed and couldn't stop bouncing with excitement.

"Is that so?" He looked past Henry to find Regina sitting up straight and resting a hand on the horse's neck.

"Yes I do," she laughed and motioned for Henry to come back, "you ready?" She smiled knowing the first time he backed his horse would be one of the greatest feelings he would ever have. Getting to her feet she took Henry's shaking hand and pulled him closer, "alright let's let him get up a little," she stepped back and let the horse move up from his side and she stopped him with a steady hand on his shoulder when his legs were tucked beneath him and she crouched beside him, "now climb on," she motioned to the horse's back.

Henry quickly moved over to his horse's side and then thought through how he was going to get on. He could hear James' and his mother's quiet laughter as he went to try several times but then decided against that approach. After climbing on not so gracefully he sat up straight and let out a nervous breath as he looked down at his crouching mother, "now what?"

"Now you hold on here," she pointed to the horse's mane, "don't worry it won't hurt him," she smiled as his small hands took hold of a handful of hair. "Now, sit tall and when he starts to get up just lean forward a little so you don't slide off the back," she gave the horse a pat on the neck before she stood up and backed up a couple strides, "when you're ready ask him to get up."

Henry moved his fingers through his horse's mane to get a good grip, "alright boy, come on up," and he leaned forward following his mothers instructions as his horse moved beneath him. With a grunt the horse stood up tall on all four legs leaving Henry sitting proudly on top, "I did it! Look! Look I'm riding!" he let go of the mane and smoothed the horse's coat with his hands.

"Yes you did," Regina walked forward and affectionately squeezed Henry's leg.

"Look at you up there, you look like a great knight in the making," his words caused both Regina and Henry to laugh. He wished he could pause time and live in this moment a little longer with the three of them all laughing together and none of them with another care in the world for those few seconds. Regina's suit was dirty, dust covered the expensive fabric and there were a few wood chips stuck on as well but the majority of them were tangled in her dark hair. Her face and hands were smudged with dirt but she could care less.

Henry was in no better condition, his clothes were filthy and James was sure he'd have to take a power washer to him to get all the dirt off. But they were happy and that didn't happen often enough. "Come on young knight, lets get you cleaned up," he laughed as he opened the stall door.

"Alright," he complained and then looked around at the ground, "how do I get off?"

Both Regina and James laughed but it was Regina who helped him, "here, you lean forward a little, that's right. And then you swing your right leg over and slide down," she waited to catch him in case he fell, which he did, and she caught him before his hands hit the ground.

"Thanks," he giggled quietly and stood up dusting his clothes off with his hands before he turned and hugged his horse, "I'll see you later!" with that he ran off cheering.

Regina walked out of the stall laughing at Henry's enthusiasm and began untying the knot in her horse's rope. Holding the rope in her hand she turned to face James, "seems as though I'm a better teacher, I had him riding on my first try," she looked at him smugly.

"Well the playing field is not exactly even, I mean you've been doing this for much longer," he shrugged his shoulders and grinned.

Regina opened her mouth and let out a hurt gasp, "are you calling me old, Charming?"

James shook his head, he could see right in to her playful eyes, "no of course not, I'm calling you...wise. Wise like the beautiful sexy sorceress that you are," he took another step toward her and held her waist in his hands.

Regina laughed lowly at his comment, "nice save."

"You like that huh?" he laughed softly and pulled her closer in to him, "you are a filthy mess," he looked over her features as she laughed at him. "And I," he leaned in and kissed her, "love," another kiss in to her laughing mouth, "you," and he kissed her harder and longer giving her time to hang her arms around his neck with the rope still in her hand.

"We should get going before someone catches us," Regina smiled in to his mouth before she kissed him once more quickly and dropped her hands back down, "besides, we'll have plenty of time for that later," she grinned and waited for him to let go of her before she turned and walked her mare back to her stall.

James had made her forget where she was and the memory of Daniel flooded her and caused her heart to throb. The memories she had made during her time with Henry and then with James helped her deal with the that sadness. It wasn't at all gone, it was just a little easier to cope with.

He waited patiently as Regina walked down the aisle next to the horse and he contemplated which way would be the easiest to ask for her help in his quest to get Snow and Emma back. He needed magic and he trusted her now more than ever especially after his talk with Rumplestiltskin. He was going to have to tell her he knew about them too. He imagined it was going to be a bit of a rough night.