Hey guys! Sorry it took so long; the holidays can be very busy for me. I can't believe we're already in December of 2018! I hope you all enjoyed the last update of MWTLT. I felt really good about that chapter. I hope you all enjoyed the sneak peek of the sequel; it should give you guys hope that everything will be okay for Robin, Regina, and the rest of the heroes. Also, I can proudly say that this is the penultimate chapter of the Missing Year. That means in the next chapter, we're preparing to see our heroes go back to Storybrooke. With that being said, on to the next chapter!

Xx

"That's definitely a problem," Snow said as she stood in Regina's chambers. She had called a secret meeting with, Snow, Charming, Granny, Belle, and Rumpelstiltskin. Maleficent was still in hibernation and dare not be disturbed.

"That's…quite unusual," Belle murmured, quite fascinated at seeing Regina pregnant.

"Will you stop gawking at me like I'm some sort of science project!?" Belle averted her eyes and murmured a quiet 'sorry'.

"So, your magic can't conceal it at all?" Charming asked.

Regina sighed heavily, running a hand through her hair; this was beginning to seem like it wasn't such a good idea.

"Do you think we'd even be having this conversation if I could?" Regina snapped.

"What do you think Gold?" Robin turned to face the imp. Surely if anyone could help them he could.

"It would seem as if we're witnessing a test of wills between mother and daughter," Rumple's voice was calm, annoyingly calm for Regina.

"A test of wills?" Robin tilted his head curiously.

"It means we're having a standoff, she's testing the limits of her magic…while simultaneously testing the limits of my patience," Regina muttered.

"So how do we fix it?" Robin could see the frustration radiating across Regina's face. She'd been experiencing strange surges in her magic, particularly if she was in any type of emotional distress, which seemed to be normal these days, given the way her hormones had been out of control. The last thing they needed was for someone to piss her off, lest she blow up the room on accident.

"With power that raw, it'd be hard to try and contain," Rumple said with a shrug.

"So, there's nothing we can do?" Charming asked.

"I think it's time people knew the truth, Regina," Snow said as Regina glared at her.

"Absolutely not; there has to be another way," Regina turned toward Rumple, desperate for answers.

"Are you sure there's nothing you can do? Some sort of spell, some kind of potion?"

"There's not much I can do dearie, your daughter's managed to stump even the Dark One," Regina sighed heavily.

"So I'm a sitting duck and so is she. Great, that's just…perfect," Regina folded her arms across her chest. She was furious, but underneath that fury was great fear. She hated feeling vulnerable and exposed. And with her little girl choosing the most inconvenient time to attempt to understand her magic, they were both targets.

"Regina, we'll find a way to keep you both safe," Snow reassured her, gently rubbing a hand along her shoulder.

"How? If she's managed to outsmart Rumplestiltskin, perhaps the most powerful practitioner of magic, how can any of you keep her safe?"

"Regina, I get that you're scared but we have to try; you can't control your magic in regards to concealing your pregnancy anymore, maybe this is how it has to be until we can find a way to-"

"No, Snow! It's too big of a risk," Regina said firmly.

"There seems to be no other way, Regina,"

"Robin, you can't be serious," Regina shook her head.

"Regina, you can't hide your pregnancy using magic anymore. We'll find a way to-"

"How?! You can't keep us safe Robin!"

"Neither can you! I'd rather know that I did something to keep my wife and daughter safe instead of-" Regina's eyes widened; no one was supposed to know that they were married.

"Wait, you two are married?" Charming frowned.

"Oh, for God's sakes; yes, we're married," Even Rumple was surprised.

"How the hell did you two manage to pull that off?"

"It was a private ceremony; nobody knew except Friar Tuck, Snow, and Granny," Charming turned to face Snow, completely surprised.

"You knew they were married?"

"Yes, but I was sworn to secrecy Charming I'm sorry!" Snow winced as Regina rolled her eyes.

"Well, looks like I'll be telling the council that I'm pregnant and I'm married," She sent Robin a withering glare.

"I don't like the idea of this any more than you do, but what other choice do we have Regina?" Robin sighed heavily as he took her hands into his.

"Fine, but it doesn't mean I like it," Regina muttered.

"We will get through this, I promise you," Regina shook her head and sighed before turning toward Rumple one last time.

"And you're sure there's nothing you can do? "

"Just because she's powerful, doesn't mean I won't find a way to keep you safe," Regina's eyebrows rose in surprise.

"Didn't think you cared," Rumple gave her a half smile.

"You and I have history dearie; it's in my best interest to have you both safe," Regina rolled her eyes but took it for what it was.

"Fine, have everyone assemble in the great room in an hour…and make sure Tinkerbell's there as well. The last thing I need is that moth to hear about this through the grapevine and come whining to me about why I didn't tell her," Regina ordered.

oOoOo

"So…you're Merlin," Neal stared in amazement at the man he'd spent the better part of a year searching for.

"The one and only,"

"Wow,"

"Not what you were expecting, am I?"

"Not really; I was expecting someone…" Merlin raised an eyebrow at Neal; he knew what Neal was implying but said nothing.

"Someone…"

"Old, with a long white beard; some sage old bastard who'd be decrepit and frail," Merlin chuckled.

"Well it's a good thing I stopped aging when I drank from the chalice isn't it?" Neal shook his head slowly.

"Uh, yeah I guess; so, how the hell do we get out of here? I-"

"You were sent here to find me because Zelena wants to combine the blade of the Dark One and Excalibur," Neal blinked out of surprise.

"How did you-"

"Just because I've been trapped in a tree for the last millennia doesn't mean I don't know about the prophecy of the Gray," Neal scoffed.

"The Gray isn't real,"

"She certainly is real and should be here in a few months," Neal frowned.

"Wait, she?" Merlin chuckled.

"It's been a myth for many millennia, but it's always had the ability to exist. The Gray can only be born from the strongest love of all: soulmates," Neal stared at Merlin and shook his head.

"Okay, I'll bite; who's the Gray?"

"Regina and Robin Hood's unborn daughter," Neal snorted and shook his head once more.

"Good one man, there's no way-"

"Neal, aside from being the sorcerer I also have the power of a seeer like your father, Rumplestiltskin," Neal sighed heavily.

"So you're telling me that Regina, the Evil Queen-"

"She wasn't always evil,"

"Yeah, and neither was my father,"

"He's alive you know; safe and sound. The heroes freed him some time ago," Neal let out a sigh of relief; he was hoping his papa had managed to escape Zelena.

"That's good, but that still doesn't explain how-"

"Regina and Robin are soulmates,"

"Huh? But they just met-"

"Neverland wasn't their first encounter. It's a bit of a long story, but Regina and Robin crossed paths in a tavern when she was just starting out as the Queen,"

"But what does that have to do with-"

"For the last millennia or so, there's been talk of a powerful magic, a magic one so strong that in the wrong hands, it could destroy life as we know it," Neal swallowed thickly, a chill moving down his spine.

"How does this power work?"

"The Gray is said to come from the strongest love of all, stronger than that of True Love; the Gray is said to have been birthed by someone who has the ability to weld both light and dark magic,"

"Regina's the only person I know who can use both light and dark magic,"

"She's perhaps the only person that can use both light and dark magic," Merlin replied.

"Holy Shit…"

"Holy Shit indeed,"

"This is all so fucked up," Neal sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"I know it's a lot to take in but-" Merlin gently reached out and placed a hand on Neal's shoulder, sure that he wouldn't be able to understand all that was happening and what it meant.

"That's an understatement,"

"I know you have a hard time trusting magical beings or regular humans for that matter, but I need you to trust me when I tell you that this will all work out,"

"I sure hope so; in the meantime, what the hell do we do?"

"Nothing,"

"Nothing? What do you mean nothing?" Neal frowned.

"Exactly what I said, nothing. You see, what Zelena doesn't know is that she's a pawn in a much bigger plan. A long time ago, there was a prophesy given about a battle between Regina and Zelena. In order for the prophecy to come true, that means we need to let things play out exactly the way they're meant to,"

"What does that mean?"

"That means that when Zelena comes through that portal in the next three days, we need to let her capture us along with Arthur and his men,"

"Wait, wha-"

"I know none of this makes sense-"

"You're damn right it doesn't,"

"-But I need you to trust me on this; if you stand any chance of getting back to Emma and Henry you need to let things happen exactly as they're supposed to," Neal sighed heavily; he wanted to get back to Emma and Henry desperately. Somehow, he felt in his gut that Merlin was telling the truth about everything.

"Suppose I do believe you; what do we in the meantime?"

"It means you never met me. The first time you'll see me will be when Zelena uses the amulet she finds in your father's castle to resurrect me," Neal's eyes widened.

"Wait, you're dead?" Merlin chuckled.

"Not really; the legend is that I was killed by Nimue, the first Dark One…who also happened to be the woman I loved,"

"Wow,"

"Pretty messed up isn't it?" Merlin chuckled once more as Neal shook his head slowly.

"So if she didn't kill you..."

"After she became the Dark One, I created the blade of the Dark One, but it was split. One half was used to control the Dark One; the other half is now what you know to be Excalibur. I was in possession of the Dark One dagger but, Nimue stole it from me and used its power to banish me to another realm where I was trapped for nearly a millennium,"

"So how were you able to get out?"

"I wasn't supposed to be able to; but somehow I was able to break through to this realm when the Gray was conceived," Neal shook his head.

"I still can't believe Regina is somehow the Gray,"

"Oh, she's not the Gray; the child she's carrying is,"

"Yeah, that doesn't sound any better," Neal deadpanned.

"I know it doesn't but it'll all work out I promise,"

"So you say," Neal rolled his eyes.

"Look, if Zelena gets her hands on the Gray, she could destroy magic as we know it, even eradicate light magic as we know it," As much as Neal disliked magic, he couldn't see himself living in a world where only Dark Magic existed.

"Alright, so how do we stop her from getting it?"

"We change nothing; like I said, Zelena will be coming through that portal in the next few days,"

"So I'm supposed to pretend I haven't found you and let Zelena come here and free you?" Merlin nodded.

"I know none of this makes any sense, but one change could-"

"Yeah, I know," Neal sighed angrily; he hated this. Zelena's held him and his father captive for over a year. He hasn't seen Emma or Henry in over a year, and just when he thinks he's found the key to getting back to them, he's forced to give it up.

"I understand your frustration, but you'll see Emma again, sooner than you think actually," Neal looks sharply at Merlin.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Merlin simply smirks and shakes his head.

"It means, have hope Neal,"

oOoOo

Regina sighed heavily the next morning; they were really doing this. She stood in the mirror and frowned. Though the longer she stared in the mirror, her frown turned into a smile. Slowly, she placed her hands on her ever-growing bump. There was a baby in there, an actual living, breathing child inside of her. Tears unwillingly began to well in her eyes as she gently rubbed circles on her stomach.

"Hi in there…I'm your mama," She blinked, unable to hold back her tears. This child was something she'd envisioned for so long, though she never expected that it wouldn't be with anyone besides Daniel. It was moments like these, the silent, intimate moments that she missed him the most. She closed her eyes and let out a deep sigh. It was this moment that she missed Henry the most; she opened her eyes and could almost see him standing next to her, a huge grin on his face. Ironically, at that moment the baby chose to kick, pulling her from her thoughts.

"You're so busy in there; slow down," A wet chuckle escaped her lips just as the baby kicked again. Her tiny foot pressing against Regina's hand.

"I know I haven't seemed the most excited about you but I am. I am…I probably love you more than anything I've ever loved in the world. I've only felt love like this one time with your brother Henry...I miss him so much. He would be so happy to meet you; he's gonna be the best big brother, well, one of the best big brothers because Roland is…well, you're lucky baby girl. You've got two big brothers and an incredible daddy who just…your father is such an amazing man. He would give his life to protect you and Henry and Roland…" Regina looked up when she heard Robin's voice from the doorway.

"Regina, are you…love, what's wrong?" Robin was by her side in seconds when he spotted her tears. His hands roamed her figure to make sure she was okay. She surprised him with a kiss and a teary smile.

"Yeah, I'm fine I just…I was just talking to the baby," Robin stared at her strangely but smiled back.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive; she's kicking up a storm,"

"Oh?" Robin's hands moved to her waist as he leaned forward and kissed her.

"Mmhm; here, feel," Robin let out a surprised laugh when he too felt the baby's foot pressing against his palm.

"Roland wasn't this active when Marian was pregnant with him,"

"Well, this one is determined to let me know shes' in there," Regina laughed as Robin hummed, leaning in to press a kiss to her nose, then her lips.

"It won't be long before she's here and soon enough, we'll all be together,"

"I sure hope so,"

"Regina, no matter what happens, we're going to be fine, all of us-you, me, Henry, Roland, and our little-"

"I'm not telling you her name Robin, no amount of flattery or reassurances will get it out of me," Regina grinned.

"How can you not tell me what her name is?" Robin nuzzled his nose into Regina's neck, forcing a giggle out of her.

"I can't tell you because I don't have a name picked out yet. I mean, I've got ideas, but nothing feels…right,"

"So when you know-"

"You'll be the first person I tell," Regina shifted, turning so that she was now facing the mirror as Robin's hands moved to her waist. He could feel the tension now radiating through her; she was nervous.

"It's going to be fine love," Robin gave her one last kiss for reassurance before she pulled away.

"Let's get this over, shall we?" Robin smiled and shook his head but dutifully followed.

oOoOo

The war council room was more crowded than usual; sitting around the table was a group of heroes and villains. It was surprising to see Rumplestiltskin and Captain Hook sitting at the same table and not wanting to kill one another. It was even stranger to see them sitting across from Snow White, Prince Charming, and the Blue Fairy. Among the regular heroes and villains were new faces, Cinderella, or Ella as she was called, Princess Tiana and her newly reunited husband Prince Naveen. Surprisingly, Drizella sat amongst the heroes and villains, though she was only there because Mulan's presence was required.

"Alright, where's Regina?" Grumpy was more than annoyed to be here; they'd already had their usual council meeting. He hated being disturbed, especially by Regina.

"She'll be here soon," Snow said, just as the doors swung open.

To everyone's surprise, it was Maleficent.

"I thought you were on hibernation," Rumplestiltskin looked at the dragon slightly surprised.

"Yes well, things change…I got word that Regina called a special meeting. Where is she, and what's this all about?"

"I'm right here Mal," Everyone looked towards the door, though shock registered on most faces at the sight of Regina's swollen belly.

"Well, this is unexpected," Regina blushed when she saw Mal looking at her stomach.

"I thought you were hibernating," Regina raised an eyebrow at her friend.

"I thought you were keeping that a secret," Mal murmured once Regina got closer.

"I was but…my magic has been out of control since…" Mal nodded in understanding.

"That makes two of us," Regina frowned.

"What do you mean?" Mal sighed heavily and rolled her eyes.

"Well dear, it looks like there are two of us pregnant," Regina's eyes went wide as saucers. Clearly, she had heard wrong.

"Mal, did you just say-" Mal nodded quickly in confirmation, though she quietly murmured a request to Regina not to say anything.

"Uh, are we gonna ignore the huge elephant in the room, and by elephant I mean the fact that no one goes from not pregnant to pregnant overnight," Grumpy said, bringing everyone out of their trance.

Regina sighed heavily and turned to face the small crowd gathered.

"Well…surprise," Regina said with a shrug, though the room remained silent. Realizing that not many found her joke to be funny, she cleared her throat and continued; she smiled when she felt Robin move to stand beside her. He glanced over at her with an assuring smile and gently squeezed her hand.

"So, as you can all see, I'm pregnant. No, Leroy, I didn't get pregnant overnight. I've been pregnant for a while now. In fact, I'm about seven months along. Up until yesterday, I'd been hiding my pregnancy with a cloaking spell. I hid my pregnancy because I was worried about my child's safety. Someone in the castle helped Zelena escape, someone who's sat in on these meetings. Zelena will stop at nothing until she destroys me and what better way than to go after my child? So, I decided to keep my pregnancy hidden," Regina reached over and grabbed Robin's hand.

"I should also mention that…Robin and I got married not long after I found out I was pregnant,"

The entire room was silent for nearly five minutes before Hook comically blurted out,

"So, does that mean Robin is the king?" Robin smiled gratefully at Hook for trying to break the tension.

"No. Regina falsely obtained the throne, which means Robin Hood has no claims to royalty, and neither will that child," Regina could feel anger and rage coursing through her veins. How dare Blue insult Robin and her child like that!? However, Robin placed a hand at her back as a way to keep her from doing something she'd later regret.

"Mother Superior-" Snow began.

"I'm sorry Snow, but-"

"No, Blue; Regina's child is innocent and should be protected at all costs," Snow said.

"How do we know that child is innocent? Look at all its mother has done,"

"You said the same thing about Regina when I tried to help her. Robin is a good man and Regina's changed. That should count for something," Tinkerbell was less than surprised at the news than anyone. In fact, she was elated for Regina, happy that she'd finally decided to be happy.

"I had my reasons for not letting you Regina before Green,"

"I told you, my name isn't Green, it's Tinkerbell,"

"Alright, enough," Snow stood up from her seat and looked around at everyone gathered.

"Everyone in this room has done something he or she isn't proud of. Yet we've all been given second chances; some of us have had more than a second chance. I remember when I found out I was pregnant with Emma; I learned that she had the potential for both darkness and light. Because we wanted her to be good and only good, Charming and I we…we tried to rid Emma of her darkness. Regina has done some pretty terrible things, but not without a helping hand. I'm pretty sure most of us remember when Cora came to town. Because of me, Regina lost her first love; let's not forget who trained her. Regina's child deserves a chance to forge her own path. She shouldn't be forced to live in the shadow of others and pay for their sins." Snow turned to face Regina, reaching out to give her hands a squeeze.

"You said something to me once; you said that it was me who added evil to your name. You were right; now, I'm going to extend the same grace and protection to you and your child that you did all those months ago," Snow turned to face everyone gathered.

"As of this moment, no harm is to come to Regina or her child. Anyone who even thinks of attacking her for whatever reason will be dealt with swiftly. And anyone who opposes Regina should consider themselves an enemy of mine," Snow's voice was firm as she spoke.

"Snow-"

"Regina, I've seen how far you've come; I saw what you dealt with in Neverland. You saved us all, you saved us by giving up the thing you love most. You gave shelter to people who would have your head. You've been instrumental in making sure we're protected. It's about time we did something to protect you," Regina's eyes filled with tears.

"I...thank you, Snow," Regina whispered, wiping away her tears.

"Nothing will happen to either of you, I promise that with my life,"

Chapter 39 to follow…

Whew! Sorry it took so long to update; life got a bit hectic for a sec. Be prepared for a slight jump in the next chapter, possibly a few weeks, along with a surprising plot twist as to how we get back to Storybrooke. We may or may not see Henry and Emma in the next chapter. If not Chapter 39, Chapter 40 for sure. Also, because the site doesn't let you repost chapters, you may have to go back and read the prologue to catch up after the next chapter. I'm hoping to bring this story to a close at some point next year. It's been over three years since I reposted it and you all have been so patient with waiting for updates and with leaving reviews. I look forward to seeing y'all in the next chapter!

Take Care,

Xx