It had been a week since the giant attacked David, and except for the night David proposed he hadn't seen Regina since. No one had. He sat in the booth next to Emma. Henry and Snow sat across from them. "You think she's okay?" Red asked as she served the table.

Henry looked incredibly sad as he picked up a chicken tender. "I think she's fine," David said, trying to reassure the boy. When Henry was looking down at his plate, though, David gave a look of concern.

She patted him on the shoulder supportively. "How about I get you a milkshake on the house, Henry?" She walked back to the kitchen to put in the order.

"Henry, I'm sorry she couldn't be here," Emma said with genuine sadness.

"It's not your fault," he responded. "I just wish I could see her on my birthday."

Like clockwork, the first sight of Regina in a week happened as she walked through the door. "Mom!" Henry cried, running to her and hugging her around the waist. "I can't believe you're here!"

She smiled widely as she embraced him. "You didn't think I was going to miss your eleventh birthday, did you?" She said as they made their way to the booth.

David stood and hugged her tightly. "I've missed you so much," he whispered.

Tears stung her eyes. "I miss you too." He kissed her before sitting down. Snow cringed a bit in her seat as Regina scooted in beside him.

"How are you here?" Emma asked as she grabbed a chair to sit in, having switched places with Regina.

"Cora is taking a nap. This world apparently exhausts her," she said, taking a fry off David's plate. "So I took the chance to sneak out for a bit. Hook promised to cover for me while I'm gone in case she wakes up. I feel like I'm sixteen again," she teased, nudging David.

"Hook's covering for you?" David asked.

"Don't be so jealous, dear," she said, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "He's really not as bad as he seems."

"I'm really glad you're here, mom," Henry said.

"Me too, Henry." She reached into her purse and pulled out a small box. "Happy birthday, dear," she said with a smile.

Henry's eyes lit up as he ripped the paper. "An iPod?! Thanks, mom!" He jumped up and ran to the other side of the table to hug her.

"You're welcome." She looked him in the eyes. "You know you're my favorite person in the whole world, right?"

He nodded, the smile never leaving his face as he hugged her again. He went back to the other side of the table and started opening the package. Emma admired the gadget as he opened it.

"Can't help but be a little jealous he's your favorite," David muttered in Regina's ear.

"Well, he's been my son for eleven years. You were one of my mortal enemies until six months ago. Odds are in his favor, my dear," she said, kissing him again before taking another fry.

Snow had busied herself helping Henry in order to distract herself from the couple across the table, but she couldn't help the churning of her stomach at Regina and David. She had apologized for kissing him, but she wasn't really sorry. As far as she was concerned, he was her Charming, not Regina's.

"How long do you have?" David asked.

Regina looked at the clock above the counter. "Only a few minutes. I have to be heading back soon."

"You have to leave?" Henry asked. Snow smiled inwardly but felt a bit guilty because she knew how much it upset Henry that she'd be leaving.

"I'm still trying to figure out how to send my mother away. I'm worried my magic is just not as powerful as hers, and I don't want to try anything until I'm certain I can get rid of her. Until I can find another way to send her back, I have to keep her away from you."

Tears formed in his eyes. "When can I come home?"

Emma and Snow exchanged a glance at the words. It stung a bit that Henry didn't want to stay with them anymore, especially since Emma had missed out on ten years of his life.

"I don't know, dear. I hope it will be soon."

A few minutes later, David, Regina, & Henry walked out of the diner. Snow and Emma hung back, talking to Red. "I'm going to try to see you more. See if I can sneak out more often," she said.

Henry hugged her again. "I love you, mom," he said.

"I love you too." She put her hand on David's cheek and kissed him softly.

"My, my, what a lovely picture." A blue cloud of smoke appeared in front of them, and Cora appeared. "So this is the little family you've created yourself in this world." Regina instinctively pushed Henry behind her. "I never would have expected to find my daughter with Prince Charming," her mother continued, moving toward her.

"Leave them alone, mother," Regina said sternly.

Cora ignored Regina's request and looked at Charming, her eyes flicking to the left side of his chest. Regina knew that look. It was the same look she herself had given to all those people whose hearts she ripped out. The huntsman, Rumple's student, her father…

"David, take Henry inside," she said, her eyes never leaving Cora.

The Queen of Hearts bent down, meeting Henry's level. "You're my grandson, are you?"

Henry clutched his mother's skirt, barely peeking out from behind her. He nodded his head slowly. "Leave him alone, mother," Regina warned.

"You're coming with us now, Henry."

Cora reached to take the boy. Regina's hand flew up, a stream of purple magic coursing toward the older woman. Her mother's own blue magic met it, pushing back at the current being released from Regina's fingers. Cora was immediately pushed several yards away from her daughter, but she was not flustered at all.

David grabbed Henry and took him inside quickly, not wanting to put him in any more danger.

Regina stayed strong, focusing hard to keep Cora at bay.

"Love is weakness, Regina!" Cora shouted over the sound of the crackling magic. "It is only getting in the way of your power."

Cora's words registered in her head. Her whole life, all she'd ever wanted was love. Every time she loved, she lost something. She lost Daniel. She lost her father. She'd lost Henry for a while. Maybe her mother was right. Maybe she wasn't cut out for a life filled with love.

Cora's magic was moving closer to her. As it approached her, she began to feel cold. She could feel her body weakening.

She caught a glimpse of David out of the corner of her eye and remembered the last six months with him. She remembered the night he proposed—how safe and loved she felt. She felt just how fulfilled she felt when she was with him. The sensation of his arms wrapped around her as they fell asleep together. She remembered her new friendship with Red and how she'd been supportive of her relationship even though it betrayed Snow. She thought about Archie and how he'd believed in her and helped her. He'd been so kind even after all the horrible things she'd done.

Above all, she remembered her love for her son. She remembered how her heart swelled whenever he called her "mom" and hugged her. She thought about how excited he was to get his birthday present and to see her walking through the door of the diner. How he'd finally stopped seeing her as the Evil Queen and remembered her as his mom.

Regina's eyes watered as she felt the love from those people fill her body. Suddenly she felt strong. She looked Cora in the eye. "You're never going to hurt anyone again." Her eyes narrowed as she felt the power build up in herself. "Goodbye, mother."

With her final words, a current of white light flew from her hands, hitting Cora and blowing her back. She stood there for a moment, tears filling her eyes. She looked at her daughter desperately before fading into oblivion.

Regina stared at the spot where her mother had stood, and she could feel it in her bones. The toxic existence of Cora Mills was removed from the universe.

Henry was astonished at the sight he'd just witnessed. His mother had just defeated who was believed to be the most powerful sorceress in all the worlds. He moved to her, careful not to startle the frozen woman. He wanted to congratulate her, but he remembered the conversation he had with David at Archie's wake. "Mom?"

Regina looked down at him, unable to form words. "I know that your mother did a lot of really horrible things to you. She hurt you a lot. But this is probably still really hard for you because…well, she was your mom, and there were probably times when you felt like she was the only person who loved you, especially when everyone accused you of murdering Archie." He hugged her around the waist. "But I love you, mom."

Regina was crying profusely at the boy's speech. She finally felt like she had her son back. "I love you too, my sweet, sweet boy." She held him tightly, so happy that she had another chance with her son.

People had started filtering out of the buildings on Main Street to see what had happened. David stood in front of the diner, watching as Regina hugged her son. Tears of relief were streaming down his face. Henry looked at him and pulled away from Regina, who moved her attention to her fiancé. He ran to her and hugged her around the neck as she wrapped her arms around his midsection, sobbing into his shoulder. "Are you okay?" He choked out, kissing her hair.

She pulled away just enough to look up at him. "You two are safe," she said, looking between him and her son. "That's all that matters right now." She pulled Henry into the hug to join them.

"Holy shit," Emma said as she looked out the window of the diner. "That was crazy."

Snow looked out in confusion. "She saved us." It was almost a question.

"Yeah, she did," Emma said. "I guess she really has changed."

"She found herself again," Snow said more to herself than to Emma. That woman standing in the street was the Regina Snow met all those years ago. The woman who she was so excited to have as a stepmother, who saved Snow's life once. The Regina that Snow had once loved as a mother was back.

The former mayor released her family from the hug. For a moment, she was sad about her mother, but the moment passed when she realized that Cora's demise was a fresh start for Regina. She could live her life without fear of her mother. "Henry," she said, squatting down to his level "David and I have something to tell you."

The boy tilted his head to the side as Regina looked up at the man. He crouched down to Henry's level as well. She continued. "David has asked me to marry him," she said, putting a hand on her fiancé's knee. "And I said yes." She smiled happily.

Henry smiled brightly. "So we get to be a real family?" He asked.

David laughed. "Yes, Henry. Yes we do." He stood, pulling Regina up with him.

He kissed Regina on top of the head and she nuzzled a bit closer to him. "Come on, boys," she said, looking between them. "Let's go home."


I really hope you guys liked this chapter! I worked really hard on it. I promise to have another one up sometime this weekend. Please review! :)