Prompted by anonymous on Tumblr: " It's just rain, you aren't gonna melt!"
Regina knew running away wouldn't be easy. It didn't mean she didn't try.
There was the time she took a "good will mission" to a neighboring mission and "forgot"how much time had passed. The king found her and dragged her back. She still had the scars from that. There was the near escape in Agrabah while they were traveling to a wedding, but one of the guards asked her where she was headed.
Regina knew how it looked to the outside world when she refused to smile. She had a wardrobe full of beautiful gowns. A jewelry box to brink with diamonds. And yet, she wasn't happy. She couldn't be. Her mind replayed Daniel's heart turning to dust at her feet. She could feel the cold band go on her ring finger like a shackle on her wedding day, making her Leopold's prisoner.
How was she supposed to be happy when her dreams, her freedom died that night?
She got her small breakaways when she could. At night, she'd sneak into the garden, wearing nothing but her white nightgown. Her feet submerged in the dirt. She listened to the crickets and gazed up at the moon. She wondered if where Daniel was, he was looking at the same one. What even happened when someone died? Her father used to tell her about the Gods, the Underworld, Mt. Olympus, but she wasn't even sure what to believe anymore.
If they existed, maybe she could run away there.
That night, rain fell in soft pellets on the ground. Regina held out her palm and watched it fall, one by one. She could feel the dirt turn to mud. She'd make the carpets dirty. Oh well. Maybe she could blame it on the stupid cat Snow insisted on getting.
"Regina?"
Speak of the annoying devil.
Snow stood in the doorway to the garden, wearing a pink nightgown. Her ratty curls were barely tamed by the pink ribbon Johanna had pulled them under. Regina had such a hard time with them most days.
"What are you doing?" Snow asked.
Regina rolled her eyes. "Standing."
"You're getting wet."
"I'll live."
She saw Snow's big green eyes and wanted to be annoyed, but instead felt a tug of compassion. She hated that her heart didn't let her fully hate this girl.
"Come join me."
"But…"
"It's just rain. You won't melt."
Snow hesitated, before kicking off her sleep shoes. She walked out into the mud and stood beside Regina. The young girl followed her glance up to the sky.
"Why do you come out here?"
"Huh?"
"I see you from my window sometimes. Why do you always stare at the moon?"
Regina didn't answer at first. She didn't know how. As far as Snow knew, Daniel ran off. Regina willingly married the king. She wanted to be here. Snow was so naive and happy.
Regina both hated and loved that about her.
"I guess I just like that it's consistent," Regina said, finally. "Even on nights like this...if you look hard enough...you can see it."
Snow nodded. "Oh." She looked down at their feet. "We'll need a bath."
"There are more things to life than clean feet."
And in a few years, Snow would be the one with bare feet in the dirt and on the run. But they didn't know that yet.
Snow's hand slid through with Regina's. It was slippery, clammy and wet. Regina's head told her to pull away but her heart let it stay.
"You should go inside," she mumbled.
"Okay," Snow said. "Come with me?"
Regina looked ahead. She was so close to freedom. Almost there.
She'd only be dragged back. What was the point?
"Sure."
They dragged their muddy feet inside, closing the door behind them.