Ahem, I know it's been a long time! A very long time ... But I'm back now and I hope you'll like this chapter!

Enjoy!

The few minutes drive from Mifflin Street to the Storybrooke stables was very long for the four occupants of the car. Only Graham seemed to enjoy the trip, rejoicing in the good weather, enjoying the pleasant temperatures of this late summer day … In the back, the children maintained their anger, waiting for their revenge to come. Regina had not opened her mouth since leaving the mansion. Regina had not opened her mouth since leaving the mansion, not even bothering to pretend to be interested in the sheriff's jokes at her side to ease the mood.

She didn't smile until they finally arrived at their destination and when the odor so recognizable from the stables went up to her nostrils. She cherished this smell enormously. Whenever she smelled this animal scent, she remembered her childhood with her beloved father. He had transmitted his passion for horse-riding to her from an early age and she had tried to do the same with her son.

"Ugh! What is that smell? It stinks!" Graham said, plugging his nose as soon as he got out of the car.

"LANGUAGE Graham! And "that smell", as you say, is the smell of horses. You shouldn't have come if you're so delicate."

Regina seethed with anger. But what had taken her? Why hadn't she just stopped Graham from coming? She was so angry with herself for having been weak, and here she was going to be lumbered with the sheriff all day. She sighed beforehand, tired of the day ahead. Henry and Matthew, while unloading the trunk, watched the adults' verbal joust, smiling discreetly. If Regina would get cracking too, their revenge would be all the better!

Each rider grabbed his whip and put his riding cap on his head. Tenderly, Regina checked the children's riding cap clips, and that attention touched Matthew. He took advantage of her being near him to speak to her in a low voice, a little ashamed of what he was going to reveal.

"Ahem, Regina. I'm a little embarrassed but I don't really know how to ride a horse. I did some at the camp with Henry but I really don't have the same level as you. I don't want to slow you down ..."

Regina smiled at him and replied kindly.

"Don't worry, sweety. You are going to ride a very nice horse. And you'll just have to let yourself be carried, you'll see, it's very easy."

"But ... what if I fall?"

"You will not fall. Henry and I will be there to help you. Besides, I don't want to give you back to your mother completely messed up."

"Thank you Regina, I'm sure I'll be okay then!" He replied, a little reassured.

"I'm sure of it too, big boy. Come on, we have to saddle the horses."

Following these words, Regina took Matthew by his shoulders and led him to the boxes. The boy appreciated the kindness of the woman and thought that, he would be really very happy if she was his second mother.

"Right, everybody is ready?" Asked Regina, looking like a queen on a magnificent black horse.

By her side, Henry looked like a prince, sitting on his saddle, his back straight on a horse almost as big as his mother's, but pure white. By their sides, on his little brown horse, Matthew felt quite miserable. For a moment he imagined himself to be the simple squire of a great queen and her prince. This thought made him smile. In this case, what character would have been Graham? He was railing at this moment against the horse who refused to let him ride, stepping forward as soon as the sheriff put his foot in the stirrup. No doubt the court Jester, thought Matthew, who swore to himself to tell Henry about his discovery a little later.

"Everyone is ready, mom!" Henry replied with joy, totally ignoring Graham who had not yet climbed on his mount.

"So let's go." Regina said without looking at the poor sheriff who still had not gotten on his horse.

"What about me, mom? Can I go fast, please? See you at the tree over there, okay?" Matching the words with action, Henry pointed to a large weeping willow a hundred meters straight ahead.

The grass in front of them was flat, there was no risk for Henry who was an excellent rider, so Regina agreed and asked him to wait for them under the weeping willow.

Then she placed her horse next to Matthew's and guided him, giving him instructions to help him make the animal move along.

Henry glanced at his mother and brother. They were busy. Perfect. So he got closer to Graham who had finally managed to get on his horse.

"Hey Graham, I'll race you."

"Wow kid, no, it's been too long since I have ridden, I no longer have the reflexes to start galloping right now!"

"Well, never mind."

Henry pretended to leave but at the last moment, he approached the rump of Graham's horse and discreetly hit the animal with his riding whip. The horse immediately responded to the order and began to gallop, followed closely by Henry's horse.

"Aaaaaaaah, what's wrong with it?" Graham yelled. "Reginaaaaaaa! It's going too faaaast!"

Regina looked up at the screams, and saw the two horses galloping at full speed towards the tree, the meeting point planned. Seeing that Henry seemed to be in control, she was not alarmed and continued to guide Matthew.

Proud of his move, but unwilling to hurt Graham, Henry caught the sheriff's horse and slowly brought him back to a walking pace.

"Woow, what happened exactly?"

"Oh, you know, he may be a little nervous. And then the appeal of the open air, it undoubtedly made him want to unwind."

"Yeah, well, luckily you were there to catch it!"

*Yep, luckily I was there. And it's not over, old chap …*

Matthew felt a little more confident, thanks to good advice from Regina. He was beginning to rediscover the pleasant feelings of freedom he had felt during his first rides at the camp. Then, Regina encouraged him to gain speed and it was at a trot that they both joined the two other riders already arrived next to the weeping willow. Seeing them arrive, Henry came to meet them, smiling.

Everyone seemed to find their feet, so Regina offered to make the horses run at a sustained pace and her offer was greeted with joy by the children. But Graham didn't even pretend to be enthusiastic. He had not yet recovered from the crazy race he had suffered a few moments earlier. However, when he saw the three riders speeding out, he had no choice but to follow them reluctantly. Watching Matthew on her horse, Regina could not help but think that he was really talented. It only took a few minutes for him to feel perfectly at ease. For a moment, she began to think that he was really part of her family. Of course, they did not family ties, common genes and she did not raised him. But Regina felt close to Matthew and she began to love him as much as she loved Henry.

*Someday I'll teach him everything I taught Henry, someday he'll be my son too.* She began to think.

Uncomfortable, she forced herself to think of something else. Would that mean she was starting to seriously consider her life with him and Emma? She felt her heart beating wildly at the idea.

As always, the Mills had planned their usual route: two hours at a cool walking pace, followed by a picnic at the top of a cliff by the sea. The children were rhapsodizing about everything they discovered: a landscape, an animal seen on the way, or a acquaintance greeted with a friendly hand gesture. Trotting behind the brothers, Regina was moved and was looking at them with emotion. They were so close, so collusives. She felt proud to offer them this special moment. And she especially felt privileged to be able to share it with them. Matthew was not her son, but right now she made no difference between them, both were her sons, at least in her mind. The only thing missing from this happiness was the presence of Emma. Regina's thoughts were directed against her will towards the her. What was she doing now? Maybe she had retreated alone in her little hotel room, crying her heart content. Or alone at Granny's, cursing the brunette, brooding over her anger. Alone, always alone. How Regina felt bad! She was the only one who had put her in this situation. She hoped she would not hold it against her, even if she would have had every reason in the world to do so. She would so much have liked to share this moment with her, riding by her side.

Indeed, Emma had cried. As soon as Regina's car had disappeared around the corner, she had rushed to her yellow bug and let out a few silent tears. However, Emma did not blame Regina for having leave her, she was the one who asked her to go with Graham. She did not blame herself for having propose this, it was best for everyone. She did not even blame Graham for having outstay their welcome, he was as much allowed as herself, if not more, to share this family day with the Mills. No, she did not blame anyone. She did not even know why she was crying. All she knew was that it was good for her.

After a little while, she decided to go back to her room to go back to bed. After all, a Swan never got up before ten o'clock on a Saturday morning. So she decided to take advantage of the absence of children to rest. But her nap was short-lasting because, just a few minutes after falling asleep, her phone began to ring. Panicked that something might have happened to her family, she quickly grabbed it and read with surprise the name of Belle written on the screen.

"Hello?"

"Emma? Did I wake you up?"

"No, no, it's okay. Well, yeah, actually, but go for it now… are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm okay, but I just found something at the library and I think you should come to see it."

If Belle bothered calling her so early, it was because the discovery must be significant. Very impatient, Emma prepared herself at lightning speed before joining the librarian.

The horses had been advancing for a few minutes on a rocky path, having left the green meadows around Storybrooke. The four riders gradually sank into the surrounding forest. Only the sheriff did not share the good humor experienced by the children and Regina. He had sore back, sore buttocks, and the limping walk of his mount made him feel nauseous. However, he did not make his remarks aloud, wishing to show at all costs that he was enjoying the day. Nevertheless, Regina knew him well and she saw that something was wrong. Even if his presence had not been really desired, she still did not want him to feel bad. So she approached him and asked if everything was fine. She felt that his male ego prevented him from admitting that he was aching all over, she was proactive and shouted to the children, who were a little ahead of them.

"Children! We're taking a break at the clearing over there, okay? You must wait for us!"

"Okay, Mom!" They replied in unison.

Regina's heart started to beat wildly. Had she dreamed? Did Matthew call her 'Mom'? It only took a moment for her to snap out of it. Obviously it was Henry who had called her that. What if one day, Matt also came to call her 'Mom'? She smiled gently at the thought, completely forgetting Graham by her side.

Taking advantage of their advance far from adults, the brothers quickly agreed on the aftermath of the merry-making reserved for Graham. They were convinced that it was the moment or never to make him fall apart once and for all. Arrived at the clearing, Matthew let Henry take care of having the horses fed and watered, and he moved away a little on the rocky path, out of sight of the adults. There he opened his bag and filled it with big stones. Once his bag was half full, he covered the stones with the various picnic bags and headed for the clearing, just in time to welcome Regina and Graham who were just dismounting. Each of them put their backpacks on the ground and sat down for a moment.

The break was more than deserved. Even if the children did not show it, they were tired, and appreciated being able to finally stretch their legs. A little thirsty by this sports morning, Matthew took the water flask out of his bag and took a few refreshing sips. Hearing the sound of the water, Graham, who was sprawled out, asked with a voice that was sounding like the one of Darth Vader.

"Hey kid, can you give me some please? I don't have the strength to take mine from my bag."

"Yes, of course."

Matthew was about to hand over the flask when he felt Henry's hand stop his arm.

"Wait!" He whispered.

"What are you doing?" Asked his brother, whispering too.

He saw him turn around and bend over to pick up something from the ground. Henry immediately stood up with a strange greenish thing in his hand, which he placed on the top of the big flask.

"Here, now you can give it to him!"

He accompanied the request with a wink to his brother. They smiled, complicit in the surprise they had for the sheriff.

Graham was still exhausted when he straightened up, he did not bother to open his eyes, and reached out to receive the flask, which he immediately put it to his lips. After a few sips, he sighed in satisfaction and finally opened his eyes. What he saw immediately made him cried out with fear. A few inches from his mouth stood a large glowing toad which fixed him with his yellow eyes well installed, on the neck of the bottle. The man immediately dropped the flask and the poor animal, he was disgusted and began to scream.

"Aaaaaaah! It's gross! Damn it, it's horrible, it almost enter in my mouth, aaaah!"

It was no longer Graham who stood in front of the three others who were flabbergasted, but a hysterical version of him. He was gesticulating a lot, screaming and rubbing his mouth as if he wanted to erase all traces of the amphibian on his body when it had not even touched him.

The two brothers did not hide their joy and laughed openly at Graham's 'mishap'. More surprisingly, Regina herself seemed to appreciate the prank and smiled as she watched the poor sheriff struggle against the animal that had long since disappeared.

"They put it there!" He roared suddenly, pointing an accusing finger at the brothers, laughing out loud.

"Us? Not at all! Where do you want us to find such a toad?"

"It's disgusting. We would never touch that ..."

Then, they had another fit of the giggles. Regina was obviously not fooled. She had understood everything. And she would not have encouraged them for anything in their stupid things, yet, oddly enough, she appreciated the situation.

"Regina, you've seen them, haven't you? It's them!"

"What are you talking about? I have not seen them, no. And then, you know, we're in a forest, you'll find little animals everywhere. Who knows, it just jumped on the bottle when you grabbed it."

"Yeah, that's it …" He said, ironically.

"So, what if we continue the walk?" She asked to cut the discussion short. "I wish we could get to the cliff for lunch. On the saddle everyone!"

Regina and Henry immediately picked up their backpacks, and Matthew purposely took Graham's. After all, they all came from Regina and were exactly the same. Confusion could be possible. So he let Graham grab the bag full of stones. Still disturbed by the encounter with the toad, he did not even notice the error and put it on his shoulders. Then everyone got back on horseback and the riders set off again in the forest.

Emma's hair was still wet when she pushed open the door to the library. The place seemed deserted: not a sound, not a light betrayed the presence of any visitor. She called her friend in a loud voice.

"Belle, are you here?"

"Yes, I'm in the back, in the archives room!" Cried a distant voice to her.

Emma went to the room in question and had trouble distinguishing the young woman from the heaps of documents that surrounded her. Some even reached the level of her head, and threatened to collapse at any time. Hearing Emma, she did not raise her head, absorbed by her reading.

"Come see what I found, Emma."

"Wait, how long have you been there?" Emma got concerned.

"I came at opening time this morning. But I have been studying these archives for a few days and there, I think I put my finger on something. Here, look."

Belle handed Emma a large book. It was covered with dust and looked like an old witch's grimoire, or a fairytale book from ancient times. When she glanced at the page opened by Belle, she was almost surprised not to see old magic formulas and beautiful illuminations, but only a newspaper article withered and decrepit by time.

"But … what's this?"

"It's the archives of the Storybrooke Daily Mirror, the local newspaper." Belle replied proudly. "All the numbers are bound and kept here for posterity, in case someone has research to do on the history of the city or its inhabitants. It seems that today, it's our greatest help!"

Emma observed the page carefully. The title caption 'DEATH OF THE MAYOR'S HUSBAND' covered the entire width of the page. Under this title, the article was developed over half a page. He thus occupied almost the entire front page of the newspaper. A large black and white photo showed in the foreground a haughty young woman holding a little girl with jet black hair. If the woman's expression was indecipherable, Emma could clearly see on the little girl's face a great sadness. Her beautiful gaze made her think of someone, but she could not define who. Beside them, possessively gripping the woman's shoulders, stood a man. Shoulder-length hair, small round glasses on the tip of his nose, he seemed to support the sorrow of the woman and the child. But Emma felt a chill when observing him. His smile seemed fake.

Emma's gaze finally moved away from the three people and she watched the background. Behind them was a large, bright white mansion. She would have recognized this stoop between a thousand. This mansion was Regina's!

Raring, she read the article aloud.

"The Mayor's husband for more than thirty years, a faithful and loving husband, Henry Mills died on the night of-" She paused and looked at Belle, questioning. "Wait, Henry Mills like in Regina Mills, like my son's grandfather?" The librarian nodded silently, encouraging her to continue reading with a nod. "Henry Mills died on the night of Thursday to Friday. The circumstances are unknown for the moment but it seems that he died of a heart attack. His wife and Mayor of Storybrooke, Mrs. Cora Mills, immediately called the emergency services who arrived quickly on the scene, at 108 Mifflin Street, residence of the Mills family. Unfortunately they could not do anything when they arrived, the heart of Henry Mills had stopped beating a few minutes earlier. Throughout his life, Henry Mills had chosen to support the woman he loved. He had thus spent his life in the shadow of his wife, the powerful Cora Mills, long before the voters of our small town chose to elect her as head of the town hall. Son of a farm worker and a-"

Emma paused again, in order to come to terms with the pieces of information she had just discovered. So, this little girl in the photo was none other than Regina. She could not have been more than five or six years old. The rest of the article briefly presented the life of Regina's father. When she discovered the life of this man whom she had not known a few minutes before, Emma felt embarrassed, as if she had discovered a secret that the brunette had not revealed to her. So, silently, she browsed more quickly, only speaking again to read Belle the last sentence, with an emotion in her voice that she could not hide.

"Henry Mills leaves a life of sacrifice, an inconsolable wife and a six-year-old girl, Regina Mills. The entire editorial staff of the Storybrooke Daily Mirror expresses them our sincere condolences. There is no doubt that the city of Storybrooke loses one of its most distinguished inhabitants."

After a moment Emma needed to record in her mind all of these new details, she asked Belle.

"Okay, so Regina is the daughter of the former mayor and she lost her father at the age of six. It's unfortunate but it doesn't help us much."

"Read the caption of the photo, you'll understand." Belle replied, pointing to the little line under the photograph that had escaped Emma's attention.

"'Mrs. Cora Mills and her daughter Regina supported in their terrible sorrow by their longtime friend, Mr Rumple Gold.'! Gold?! Is it really him? So he has known Regina for all this time? You know what, Belle? I'm sure we're on the right track to find what scares her so much in this Gold. Let's continue the researches!"

Motivated as never before, Emma and Belle divided the newspaper's archives evenly between them and began to methodically go through all the pages: obituaries, political articles, civil registaries … even the boring articles about various urban works. If only they knew what they were looking for … Finding a link between Gold and Regina was as easy as finding a needle in a haystack …

"Ahhh, my back hurts so much, how it's possible? Did you take a picnic for three days?"

Regina sighed discreetly. So Graham could not just enjoy the walk? Or at least be silent for five minutes? He had only been grumbling since he got out of the car, and it was starting to really annoy her.

"We are almost at the picnic place. Can you hold out another ten minutes or will I have to call for an ambulance?"

The sheriff smiled, believing that it was a joke but Regina's face was expressionless. She hoped that he was not going to ruin this moment with the children. Then, leaving Graham, she quickened the pace of her horse to reach them.

"Are you all right, boys? Do you like the ride?"

"Oh yes! It's really great! Besides, my horse is really kind." Matthew replied with undisguised joy.

"He is the one Henry used to ride when he was little, he is rather old but he is very kind with the beginners. Here, look, we arrived!"

The three riders had indeed finally come out of the forest and there was a magnificent landscape in front of them: they had just emerged on the top of a cliff covered with a large patch of natural bright green grass. Just below, the sea stretched as far as the eye could see, the sound of waves hitting rocks was reverberating. Everything in this landscape gave an impression of greatness and magnificence.

Regina took a deep breath of fresh air and then turned to Matthew.

"Here is our secret place, to Henry and me. I'm very proud to introduce you to it today, Matt … I hope this place will one day be as familiar to you as it is to us. And I hope one day to come there with your mom …"

Matthew looked at Regina who was now staring into space, staring at the horizon.

"Do you love her … my mom?" The young boy timidly dared to ask.

"Yes." She simply replied.

Henry had not opened his mouth during the conversation between his mother and his brother, but his heart was beating very hard at that moment.

Once the horses were securely attached to a trunk that was lying around on the ground, the boys took care of giving them some carrots and other vegetables and they immediately feasted on it.

Graham took the backpack off his shoulders, not without a last groan.

"Aaargh, what did you put in it? It's super heavy in there …"

"Just our picnics, Graham. In the future, I would ask you not to complain anymore, you really start to make me regret having offered to come."

"Oooh, is my Gina upset?" He said approaching her, pretending to take her in his arms.

She immediately struggled, and Graham's questioning look spoke volumes about his misunderstanding.

"Well, what? I just want some comfort after the hard morning I just spent …"

"Now is not the time, Graham, that's all."

"Okay, okay. Why, it makes me wonder why I came."

"Yes, that's what I think too …" She replied with her voice so low that he did not hear her.

After the horses had lunch, lunch time arrived for the humans and everyone opened their bag, hungry and impatient to bite into their sandwich. But when Graham opened his bag and grabbed his sandwiches, he saw the stones and could not help screaming in horror.

"What is it again?" Regina asked, somewhat angry.

"Stones in my bag! They put stones in my bag! Those kids are insane!"

"Graham, calm down, is that understood?" Regina said before turning to the kids. "Did you put those stones in Graham's bag?"

Even if they were dying to burst out laughing, the boys dared not express their enjoyment, seeing Regina's angry look.

"Yes, it's me." Matthew replied honestly. "But it's because ... I collect them!"

"Do you really make a stones collection?" Roared Graham. "It makes no sense! It really makes no sense! They destroyed my back for a collection of stones! Seriously?!"

Matthew, looking down, dared not hold Regina's gaze. However, when he looked up, he saw in the brunette's eyes a special little glow. He was relieved when he realized that she did not hold it against him, but she lectured him anyway for form's sake.

"You have the right to make the collections you want, Matt. But you should have been careful to take your bag and not let Graham carry it."

"Yes, I'm sorry, Regina. Sorry, Graham."

"Right, this issue is over. Have a good meal everyone!" Regina concluded.

Matt was relieved and exchanged a knowing look with his brother. They were on the right track, Graham was going to crack up very soon!