Nearly to the end. I've loved every moment of it, I hope you all have too.

Enjoy.


Regina woke up to the sound of birds and waves of water. She knew the sound very well after all these years but she never had the time to actually enjoy the beach. With all the running and fighting, when did someone like her have the time?

But that wasn't the problem with being there. The problem was how she was there. And why.

"You think too much, babe."

She looked up as the sun was blocked out by someone standing above her. As if on cue, the realization of how she was lounging in a chair with a book in her lap came slowly to the forefront of her mind. When the sun's intensity was gone, the true light of her life appeared.

Emma was smiling down at her holding out a colorful drink.

"Thank you," Regina said. Her eyes slowly took in Emma's glistening skin, lightly tanned in the bikini she wore. She took a drink from it and tried not to frown at the taste. Her preference was always strong rather than pretty when it came to alcohol.

"What's on your mind?" Emma questioned, taking a seat on Regina's legs knowing the woman would mind.

"Nothing …I …" She wasn't sure what to say. It was too good to be true? How the hell did they get there? Where was there? "I'm a bit disoriented. That's all."

"Maybe I need to get you out of this sun," Emma said with a smile.

Though Regina enjoyed the feel of Emma's cool hand against her thigh, she had to risk concerning the woman because she was completely confused. "Where are we?"

"We're on the beach, Gina," Emma said. She chuckled, almost uneasily, looking a bit concerned.

"I see that but …on the beach where?"

"Are you fucking with me?" Emma grinned.

"Humor me, darling."

"Salvador …Brazil."

"Brazil," Regina murmured to herself. She frowned out at the beach behind Emma before she looked back up to her. "Where are Ruby and Graham? Henry?"

"As much as I love them, I would never invite them to our honeymoon."

"Honeymoon?"

"Regina, are you feeling okay? You're asking some strange questions."

Without even acknowledging Emma's question, Regina reached out and took Emma's left hand. She was surprised to find a stunning engagement ring, along with a wedding band. And then she looked down at her own hand seeing two rings on her finger.

They were married?

Regina gently settled Emma's hand back down on her thigh and lifted her eyes back to the other woman. She loved her more than anything, but she never recalled proposing or being proposed to. And judging by the ring on Emma's hand she went all out for that proposal in hopes that it would be enough for her to say yes – as if Emma Swan would need too much persuading in the end.

It really was too good to be true.

"This isn't real," Regina said.

"No." Emma looked back at her, no longer appearing concerned. "It isn't."

"What kind of cruel joke is this?"

"I'm flattered." Emma smiled. "At least I know I'm your paradise."

She took Regina's hand in hers and kissed her knuckles.

"It isn't a joke. This is what you created, Gina."

"But it isn't real."

"It could be," Emma said. She leaned close to her face and placed a chaste kiss on her lips. "You just have to wake up."


Her eyes snapped open meeting a white ceiling. The air was sterile and cold and the only sounds she could hear were of machines – beeping and clicking.

She blinked once. And then again.

After a moment, she could finally make out the brown door several feet away from her. With little feeling in her body, Regina flexed her fingers. And as soon as she was sure they were all accounted for and functional, she felt around for the wires and tubes she could feel invading her body. It was a new, uncomfortable sensation and she didn't like it.

"Hey."

There was Emma's voice again. A hand on her arm followed and Regina sighed in relief. That was real.

She looked to her left and found Emma sitting there. Her arm was in a sling and she had a few stitches on her jaw. Minor cuts and bruises littered any visible skin but overall, she seemed to be fine.

"You're awake," Emma said. It came out more like a sigh of relief than a statement.

Regina opened her mouth to say something but if she had ever lost her mind long enough to chew on some sandpaper in her lifetime that's exactly what her mouth and throat felt like. Emma noticed and released the hold on her arm, grabbing for a cup on the side table.

After a few sips from it, she cleared her throat, but held on to the cup.

"How do you feel?" Emma asked.

"Horrible," Regina said, "Where am I?"

"Portland Medical." She saw Regina beginning to panic but continued before she could jump to any conclusions. "Don't worry. Ruby and Graham handled the details."

"Why am I in the hospital?" Regina questioned.

"After your failsafe obliterated every vampire in town, you collapsed and never woke up. I was just surprised that nothing happened to you from the lights but-"

"How long have I been here?"

"A week. We were expecting longer after your surgery."

"A week?" Regina shook her head. "How is that possible? I should've healed by now. Surgery?"

Emma reached out for her hand and Regina unconsciously closed her hand around hers. "Listen, we're going to get through all of this together."

"What's wrong with me?"

"Nothing. You're perfect. You always will be but you're different now." Regina didn't look any less confused, but a bit more worried. Emma decided to continue on. "The syringe that Mal stabbed you with …it was …"

Seeing that it was hard to explain, Regina grew a little more afraid of what Emma was trying to say. "Am I dying?"

"Not any faster than the rest of us." Regina frowned. "Um, you're not a vampire anymore."

"What?"

"Whatever was in the syringe is changing your genetic makeup. I think that's what Graham called it. But yeah, it's not going to happen overnight. Right now, it's only affected your healing abilities but in time you'll be-"

"Human. Normal."

"No, you'll never be just normal. You're Regina Mills …that's all that matters. At least to me."

Emma noticed her expression wasn't changing much. She didn't seem devastated by the news. At first, she was confused by everything and now …well, she wasn't really sure. Emma didn't think she was even affected by it. Which was odd …right?

"Regina? Do you want to-"

"You didn't love me because I was a vampire, right?"

"I think I fell in love with you before I even knew." Emma grinned, ducking her head to hide the blush on her cheeks.

"Henry won't be bored with me?"

"Regina, he loves you. I think he loves the stories more than you actually being a vampire. I'm pretty sure you're in his dedication now. I've never seen him so motivated and inspired to write than before he met you." Emma lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles. "We'll love you no matter what and you know that."

"I think I'll …be okay."

"I know you will."


Against Regina's wishes, she stayed at the hospital for a few days longer, to convince the doctor's she was okay enough to be discharged. There wasn't too much need to keep her there anyway so they took their tests and released her.

And if Emma's behavior was anything to go by, Regina would be well taken care of. Emma insisted on driving them back to Storybrooke as she was right in assuming Regina would sleep through the entire drive.

Cora's defeat and her new-found freedom didn't appear to take long to settle in. Regina slept soundly through the entire drive which was proof enough for Emma that maybe the vampire thing wasn't something she was very worried about. After having everything you ever wanted fall into place the sleep afterwards must be amazing.

"Regina?" Emma turned the car off and touched her shoulder. Regina stirred, slowly waking up from her sleep. "How do you feel?"

"My head is pounding," Regina sleepily replied. She touched her forehead, forgetting the wound above her eye. She pulled her hand away and looked out the window. They were in Storybrooke, at Emma's apartment. "Why are we here?"

"I don't trust your mother. Ruby and Graham are still in the process of sweeping through your house for any surprises. You're staying with me and Henry."

"That's not necessary. My mother wasn't one for traps."

"Well, I don't trust her even if she is gone," Emma said, taking the bag Henry handed to her.

He leaned forward between the seats finally pulling his attention away from his game. Regina smiled at the sight of him, her memory still a little hazy. "Please stay? You never come over as much as we do," Henry said.

"He's got a point."

"It's hard to say no to those faces," Regina confessed.

"Can we get a puppy now, Ma?" Henry questioned, getting out the car the same time as Regina. "We saved the world and all. I think that deserves a puppy and ice cream for dinner …forever."

"Technically Regina saved the world kid and honestly I doubt that's the last time some vampire's going to want to rule the mortal world."

There was a pause between the two of them. Regina looked at the both of them, watching their eyebrows raise in realization as they walked into the apartment building and into the elevator.

"Are you both all-"

"Called it!" They both shouted at the same time pointing firm index fingers at each other.

"No. I said it. It was my idea," Emma said.

"Well, I'm the writer."

"You're already writing about vampires."

"Actually, I'm not. A vampire just happened to be my inspiration," Henry said with a smug smirk and walked off the elevator in an almost proud march.

Emma sighed and shook her head, draping her arm over Regina's shoulders. They followed him to their apartment door and Emma asked, "So, savior of the free world, you want a puppy? It's the least the universe can do for you."

"If Henry would like one, I'll survive."

"But what do you want? It's not about Henry."

"I have what I want," Regina said, reaching up to brush her thumb over Emma's cheek. "My mate, soulmate. A family. Everything else is secondary."

"I'll take that as we'll decide later."

Henry unlocked the door to their apartment and walked inside. As soon as Regina and Emma stepped through, they were met with a small gaggle of people and bright smiles.

"Welcome home, love," Killian announced with a glass of - no doubt alcohol - raised in one hand.

Regina looked a bit confused for only a moment before she let a small smile show at the display. There was a simple banner hanging up over the island and food and alcohol seemed to be flowing already. August, Jefferson, Killian, Ruby, and Graham couldn't resist some sort of party.

"We would've invited your friends but it turns out all you got is us," Jefferson said.

He raised his shot glass over his head in salute and knocked it back as everyone laughed. He stood from the island and came over to them. Emma slipped away to bring her bag up to the loft as Henry disappeared into his room to change as Emma had instructed. Jefferson touched her shoulder and gave a simple grin and said, "I hope you don't mind us. Welcome back, boss."

"Thank you, Jefferson," Regina said, affectionately touching his arm before he let the others have a word with her.

Ruby left her station, manning the drinks, and walked up to her to gently pull her into a hug. "It's good to have you back, Gina." Regina returned the hug without a thought.

There was something so warm and comforting about Ruby's embrace, sometimes she never wanted to let go.

Party was more like drinks among friends and after drinks and toasts and speeches, everyone was taking in the relief. Cora wasn't a big rain cloud over them anymore and Emma seemed to be the way to brokering a tentative alliance with the Hunters and their tribunal, so it appeared they would have no worries for a while. August, Jefferson, and Killian would still have plenty of work to do but it'd be a lot easier now. Changes for Regina and her small family were obvious.

No more running.

Regina glanced over her shoulder as she sat on the couch, watching Jefferson and Graham losing a game of poker to Henry. She smiled softly at Emma who returned it before tuning back into the conversation she was having with August.

She had a plate of half eaten pizza in front of her but after being stabbed in the stomach her appetite was pathetic. Everything in her body was still stiff and sore as the pain killers wore off hours ago. Although the glass of whatever Ruby had been making her was taking the edge off nicely. She hadn't felt this relaxed in years.

The couch shifted as someone sat down next to her. "Looks like you live to see another day, Regina Mills," Killian said, tossing his arm over the back of the couch behind her. "How does it feel?"

"Exhausting." Regina turned her eyes to Henry again as Graham groaned his frustration at Henry taking all the winnings – cash. "But it was certainly worth the agonizing wait."

"The Swans." Killian hummed his agreement, taking a sip of his beer. "Not too many people get as lucky as you are. Emma's a keeper."

"She took all this chaos in stride and still loved me in the end. Emma is my mate. I'd be a fool to let her go."

"Who wouldn't drink to that." They tapped their drinks together. "So, what now? You're a free woman. What do you want to do?"

"I've been doing everything for a very long time. For once I'm going to let someone else make a decision. If Emma and Henry want to stay, we'll stay. If they want to live here, we'll do that. If they want to leave and live anywhere else, we'll do it."

"Sounds exciting."

"It's the kind of exciting I don't mind." Regina circled the last swallow of liquid around the bottom of her glass. "What about you?"

"Oh, you know better than that, Mills. Wherever the wind takes me."

"I can still drink to that," Regina said.

They're glasses clinked together a final time and drained the last of their drinks, contented to sit in silence and listen to sounds of real bliss.


It had been a few weeks since that welcome back party. Regina hadn't heard anything from Killian since he decided on taking a sabbatical to sail around the world. She got updates from the picture or two she received from him every week. It was as if the man was born to live on the sea.

August and Jefferson hadn't taken a break from bounty hunting. Still on the chase and more in contact with Regina now because even though she wasn't going to be using them for jobs anytime soon, she was still the boss and she'd always have the best tools of the trade.

Of course, she had tabs on the two lovebirds, ready to elope any minute against her wishes. Emma was still Sheriff and enjoying it more and more for it's minimal incidents compared to that of the big city and Cora and Mal. Henry was back to the quiet life, too. He had his job – being the mayor's favorite kid had its perks – and he had his girlfriend. Of course, school as well.

So, it made since that Regina would go back to what she liked being her normal.

She came back to work on a Thursday morning. Everything looked about the same. Riley had kept it orderly in her absence and her deputy mayor handled things smoothly even after Riley's absence as well. So, her pens were recently used and not a single thing had dust on it. Well, maybe the scotch she kept had a little dust.

Through stacks of paperwork and countless emails from nearly everyone in town, she felt right at home in her office more than the hiding and fighting of her past. There were a neat stack of cards and a few emails welcoming her back.

There had been two very detailed and surprisingly believable articles in the Daily Mirror from Sidney about the sudden illness that'd struck her estranged father and the near fatal car crash that occurred upon her return to Maine. It was certainly not Sidney's work alone. Surely, from the story that was spun, only Henry and Ruby could have been behind it.

A knock on her door pulled her out of her thoughts. As much as she missed the simplicity of being mayor, her hand was beginning to cramp from the number of documents that required her initials and signature. To her surprise, it wasn't Emma for lunch, even though she was the only one Regina was expecting to see around that time.

"Riley?" Regina frowned, not unhappy to see her, but surprised. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm still your assistant. I hope," Riley said, tentatively coming up to her desk.

"Only if you still want the job. I can understand if you wanted to leave Storybrooke after what happened."

"I'm not so easily scared off." Riley looked down at her hand, flexing her fingers. Regina was reminded once again what Maleficent had done to her. The memory still did horrors to her stomach but it was a relief to see that this hidden regeneration method or technology worked. No one would even know unless they had seen what she had. "I want to thank you for saving me."

"There's no thanks needed, dear." Regina removed her glasses, gesturing for Riley to have a seat. The younger woman accepted the offer still seeming a bit reluctant. "I'm not the person who would be the hero in a story. I'm a vampire and a thief but saving someone has never been a question for me. If I can, I will. If anything, saving you was the most important thing along with keeping Emma and Henry safe. And I don't know how I could ever repay you for not saying a word to my mother and Maleficent even when it could've very well costed you your life."

"Even so it is very much appreciated, Miss Mills."

"Call me Regina. We're past the formalities, don't you think?"

"Far beyond it actually." Regina gave her a questioning look and Riley took a deep breath. "There was something I needed to tell you."

"Yes, I remember. What was so urgent?"

"I haven't been very truthful with you. My motives for becoming a hunter and becoming your assistant have been quite selfish. I was never going to betray you or attempt to hurt you or your family. I just…it seemed like becoming a hunter was a sure way to find you and finding you would help me get back a lost relationship. A very important one."

"I'm afraid I haven't quite connected the dots," Regina said. The conversation was worrying her. What else could Riley need to keep hidden from her? And what relationship?

Riley took out something from the pocket of her shirt and placed it face down on the desk, within Regina's reach. Regina was hesitant to take it but she pulled it towards herself, pausing before she turned it over and looked at it. It was a photo worn from age and creased down the middle from being folded up. It was a photo Regina remembered from what felt like ages ago. A life she'd lived without Ruby and Graham. A beautiful, short lived life.

She looked up from the photo with a conflicted expression on her face. One of suspicion and a bit of fear and a tiny bit of …hope?

"Where did you get this?" Regina asked.

Riley sat up straighter in the chair, exhaling softly. Her eyes were nervous but determined. She answered, "That's not important."

"Who are you, Riley?"


Sorry for the cliffhanger...a little. I promise Riley's identity will be very clear to you at the very beginning of the next chapter.

*There will be one last chapter followed by an epilogue.*