Well...I've worked on this chapter for hours, tweaking and adding and removing things, but not feeling any better about it. I don't know if I've been staring at it so long that I've convinced myself it's terrible, or if it actually is. I decided just to post it before I deleted it all together. Please excuse any errors, as I'm too burned out to do a final proofread. My sincerest apologies if it sucks - if not, feedback is welcome. *manic laugh*


"David?" Snow's mouth gaped as she touched his arm, looking like she didn't believe he was really in front of her. "Oh David!" She cried and threw herself at him, clinging to his waist in a tight hug.

It struck him how foreign her embrace felt and how it failed to stir the feelings it once had in him, hesitating briefly before he wrapped his arms around her shoulders. He'd been too distracted by the chaos when the curse first ended to realize his disconnect with Snow before she'd disappeared down the portal. His anger at Regina had blinded him and he'd lived in denial, but there was no ignoring his vastly different reactions to the women when he held them in his arms.

"Dad!"

David looked up to find Emma and Henry running down the sidewalk and sighed in relief at the sound of his son's voice and the sight of his daughter. It eased some of his panic to know they were alright, but his mind was still spinning with unanswered questions.

"We were just coming to check on you! What happened? How did you-?" Snow sputtered, shaking her head as she finally let go to look up at him.

"I don't know…I just…woke up," he frowned as the trio stood before him with dumbfounded expressions. "You didn't wake me?"

"I tried! Of course, I did," Snow nodded, teary-eyed, "But it didn't work. It's been days. We thought we'd never see you awake again," her voice cracked as she swiped at her cheeks.

"Nobody was in there when you woke up?" Emma questioned, squinting suspiciously towards Gold's shop.

"No, I checked the whole place," he sighed as his eyes scanned Main Street, finding himself searching for any sign of Regina.

"Whatever curse she put on you must've worn off," Snow sniffled.

David's attention snapped back to her and he bristled, "What do you mean?" He asked, watching Henry shoot daggers at his grandmother and Emma wince.

"We don't know that she was behind it," Emma replied in a tone that indicated this wasn't the first time she'd said it, and looked uneasy at the glare she received from her mother.

"Who else would have done this?!" Snow huffed incredulously, "But good always wins. True love always finds one another," she turned back to David with a watery smile, "And Regina failed again."

"What do you mean?" David's brow knitted in frustration. He was sorely behind on whatever had happened and it added to his anxiety over Regina's well-being, wearing thin on his brittle patience. "Does somebody want to explain what I've missed? How did you two get back? And what are you accusing Regina of?"

"We found a portal and got through before Cora could stop us," Emma began to explain.

"And Gold tried to destroy it to keep Cora from coming back. He tried to get Mom to help him, but she wouldn't," Henry piped in with a sense of urgency, "She-"

"She only did that so we'd come back to find out my kiss wouldn't wake David," Snow interrupted, earning another glare from the boy. "It was all a part of her revenge."

"But she absorbed Rumple's spell!" Henry argued, looking back at David with worried eyes, "She didn't even try to take me back home with her, and she hasn't tried to see me since!"

"She absorbed a spell? Is she alright?" David ignored the way Snow's mouth dropped at his question and eyed his daughter for an answer.

"It uh…apparently took a toll on her, but she's getting better," Emma nodded, her eyes shifting hesitantly to her mother before back at David, "Granny went to check on her and took her some food."

"They wouldn't let me go," Henry muttered and shifted away from Emma, who at least had the decency to look apologetic.

"She was sick, kid. She didn't want you to see her like that," his blonde mother explained softly.

"Granny went to check on Regina?" Snow's face was tight, still stuck on Emma's previous confession, and David could see it had clearly been news to her.

"Ruby said she could barely walk. You saw her at Gold's shop, she wasn't acting right," Emma defended before glancing meekly at David, "And she had me take Henry…without a fight."

"So none of you have seen her? Just Granny? When was the last time anyone checked on her?" David asked, jaw clenching.

"Archie visited her yesterday evening and says she seems to have made a full recovery from the spell," Emma reassured.

"Am I the only one who remembers what this woman has done to us?" Snow scoffed bitterly, eyeing them all like she was concerned for their sanity, "There was a time we gave Regina chance after chance to be better, but she cursed us. She destroyed our family and just tried to do it again. Why do we care what happens to her?!"

"She's still Henry's mother," David said sternly and fixed Snow with a pointed look, irritated that she'd talk so carelessly in front of the boy.

"Emma is Henry's mother! Henry is our grandson!" Her eyes narrowed at him. "Regina is the Evil Queen!"

"Not anymore! She's my mom," Henry protested, but his confidence faltered when he remembered Emma and his eyes shifted down to his feet awkwardly.

Emma gave a weak smile and placed her hand on his shoulder, "The kid is right. And I promised him we wouldn't let anything happen to Regina."

"And nothing will," David glanced down the street in the direction of the mansion, "I should go check on her."

"David!" Snow gasped.

David sighed deeply and studied her look of betrayal for a long, silent moment, waiting to feel something. Walking away should feel harder than it did. He should be wracked with guilt for loving another, but he wasn't. It was going to destroy Snow when she found out who his heart wanted, and that was the part he felt guilt over. He was once her true love,yet he was running off to the woman who'd been their demise.

Nothing he could say now would make things easier and it wasn't a conversation they needed to have in front of others. His worry for Regina took precedence, and he wouldn't be able to think clearly until he saw for himself that she was unharmed.

"We'll talk later," he said to Snow, ignoring her anger as he side-stepped her and turned to his daughter.

David put a hand on Emma's shoulder to hug her but stopped himself when she stiffened, her gaze shifting towards Snow then back at him, her green eyes apologetic. He smiled weakly in silent understanding, hating the difficult position he'd put her in. They'd just been reunited and now she'd be stuck in the middle of his drama with Snow. He would prove to Emma that he wanted a relationship with her, but he couldn't push right now, for it would only make things harder. "I'm so glad you're back. Can we talk later, too?" He asked quietly and sighed in relief when she nodded.

David crouched in front of Henry next, seeing his concern for Regina reflected in the boy's eyes, "It's going to be alright. I'll make sure of it," he soothed, kissing the top of his head before he straightened and turned in the direction of the mansion.


Regina sat on a trunk in her vault and stared blankly into space, trying to process her overwhelming emotions and failing miserably. There was too much bombarding her at once, nudging her closer and closer to a breakdown. Her mind raced with flashes of memories, haunting moments and poor decisions that'd led her to the present. It landed briefly on her visit with Archie the night before, when his check in turned into an unofficial therapy session, and her anxiety heightened as she played back the conversation.

"Have you considered that Snow's kiss didn't work because she's not his true love anymore?"

"Nonsense," she'd snapped, recoiling at the idea, "It says so in that stupid book. We know they're true loves."

"The story also indicates that true loves always find one another. Yet Snow and David didn't come back together in nearly three decades," Archie reasoned carefully.

"So? They didn't remember who they were. They were cursed."

"Cursed for a very long time," he nodded, "We also know from Emma and Henry breaking the curse that true love comes in different forms."

"What are you getting at, cricket?" She glared.

"Maybe David's heart changed during the curse…maybe he's no longer in love with Snow," Archie suggested. "And maybe David has come to that realization himself now that he is no longer cursed, now that he knows who he is…and who you are."

"Not this again," Regina rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, "It's impossible."

"Is it? You considered Daniel to be your true love, yet you fell in love with David," the cricket winced as if he expected a fireball at any moment. "As we've discussed before, and as you well know, time and circumstance can change one's heart. Snow and David had true love at one time, but maybe that isn't the case now."

"Why are you saying this? What good is this hair-brained hypothesis now?" She snarled, "David is under a sleeping curse. None of this even matters if we can't wake him up!"

"Have you tried…?"

"Tried what?"

"Tried to wake David yourself."

"You don't think I wouldn't have already tried to if I knew how? I've searched every spell book in my vault for a cure. Nothing will wake him but true love's kiss!"

Archie gave a patient nod, "Precisely my meaning, Regina. Have you tried kissing him?"

She inhaled sharply at the memory of the cricket's question and tilted her head back against the vault wall, eyes fluttering shut in exhaustion. She'd tried, really tried, to forget Archie's insane suggestion, but it had taunted her through the night. Despite how adamantly she told herself it was nonsense, she'd ached to believe in the possibility. The sun was rising by the time her heart won the battle against her logic and she'd found herself outside of Gold's shop earlier, peering in to make sure David was alone.

Once she'd worked up the courage to go inside, she'd stared at his sleeping form nervously and tried to talk herself out of doing something so foolish. She knew the outcome would only break her heart again by proving something she'd known all along. There was no way David could truly love her, not after everything she'd done.

She let out a pent up breath that sounded more like a sob, the sound filling the stillness of her quiet vault and making it seem suddenly claustrophobic. She brought her fingers up to ghost over her lips, remembering the tingling feeling that sparked when she'd pressed them against David's in a timid kiss.

She'd gasped at the gust of wind that followed the kiss and recoiled from him as the iridescent light rippled through Gold's shop, sitting paralyzed on the edge of the bed when David's chest rose suddenly with a deep inhale. Her heart lurched when his hands began to twitch and his brow creased in a familiar way she'd seen it do so many mornings before. Panic had gripped her when she recognized it, knowing it meant that his eyes were about to flutter open.

It worked. Her kiss had worked.

How would he react? What would he say? The fear of his rejection struck her like a bolt of lightning, and she'd done what came most naturally to her….She fled.

Uncertainty ate away at her now, not knowing if the cloud of purple smoke she'd vanished in cleared before David's eyes opened. If he'd witnessed it, she knew it was only a matter of time until an angry mob arrived at her vault's door. They were likely already barging through her mansion with their pitchforks and nooses.

Snow had accused her of David's eternal sleep and if she'd been caught in the room upon waking, then she'd only further incriminated herself.

How would she explain it? How could she defend herself against their accusations without it leaving her completely vulnerable? They didn't even think she had a heart, let alone that she could be capable of love, and especially not for her former enemy. No one would believe she was in love with David, and they'd never accuse their Prince Charming of reciprocating it for the Evil Queen.

It would be easier to let them draw their own conclusions and take the punishment. The town already believed she was the reason Snow's kiss didn't wake him. Admitting they were right would be confessing to her own guilt in their eyes. Even if she hadn't done this intentionally, no one would buy that it wasn't an act of revenge.

Regina startled at the sound of the vault door grating open and remembered she'd left the hidden passage downstairs open in her haste. She inhaled deeply and squared her shoulders, channeling the Evil Queen facade they all expected. Her punishment was inevitable and she had no plans to cause harm, intent on keeping her promise to Henry, but it'd be a cold day in hell before she let them see her fear.

The sound of a single set of hurried footsteps on the stairs rather than a thundering mob didn't register with her until she looked up, and her weak grasp on her alter-ego slipped at the sight. David skidded to a halt at the door, looking like he'd ran the whole way there as he stared at her and tried to catch his breath.

"Regina," he sighed and cleared the distance between them in a few large strides.

"How did you know I was here?"

"I went to the house and your office, but couldn't find you. Then I remembered how you'd sometimes come to your Dad's grave when you were upset…"

She shrank back when he knelt on the floor in front of the trunk and met her at eye level, her back pressing against the wall as she watched him warily. He appeared so worried as his gaze frantically searched her body before it lifted to meet hers and she worked down a hard swallow, struggling for a response.

"You're alright? They said you absorbed a spell. Are you hurt?" David rubbed a hand over her arm as his other came to rest on her knee without hesitation. It filled him with such relief to find her alive and unharmed that he didn't give a second thought to their complicated situation or how they'd left things.

"I'm a-alright," she rasped, voice suffocated by the heavy emotion rushing her at his gentle touch, "Are you?"

"I'm fine. Nothing happened, I just… woke up," David shook his head, dismissing it like nothing mattered in the moment except her. "But you..you've recovered? Are you having any side effects? Did anyone bother you while I was gone?"

"No, I'm - I'm okay," Regina whispered, realizing his concern for her blinded him to the fact she hadn't asked how he came back. He'd mistaken her speechless reaction as shock over him being awake, when it was the fact he'd sought her out and hadn't blamed her that had her reeling.

"Are you sure?" David frowned as he studied her guarded expression, noticing her stiff posture and the way her hands fisted into the fabric of her dress, "Snow seemed to think…"

"I know what Snow thought," her jaw twitched as she shifted her gaze to her lap, "Do you believe her?"

"Would I be here if I did?" He cupped her hands, working her stiff fingers free as he smoothed them between his own, "I know you wouldn't try to harm me, Regina."

"I tried to murder you in the Enchanted Forest," she puffed in disbelief as her head snapped up to look at him, "I imprisoned you, tore you from your wife and daughter, and cursed you into a marriage with me! What makes you think I wouldn't-"

David cut her off, "Henry said Gold tried to convince you to help him destroy the portal and you wouldn't. You saved them, just like you said you would," he smiled gently, "Thank you."

"Like I had a choice," Regina scoffed, her stomach sinking as his presence finally made sense. He'd come to express his gratitude for saving his family. That was it.

"You did," David tilted his head into her line of sight when she tried to turn away, forcing her to look at him. She was so intent in her self-loathing, so quick to deny herself any credit, and he refused to tolerate it any longer. "I'm proud of you. I know it wasn't easy."

"I don't need a pat on the back," Regina tried to sneer, but her throat was raw and tears blurred her vision. It sounded less than threatening and she resented it, hating the lack of self-control she had in his presence. She mustered as much vitriol as she could and attempted a scowl. "Why are you here? Shouldn't you be celebrating with your wife?"

"You are my wife, Regina."

Affection flooded David's chest as wide brown eyes blinked owlishly at him, her expression flickering with something beautifully raw and vulnerable. He cupped her face with his palm and watched her process what he'd said, gently swiping his thumb over a tear as it slipped down her cheek.

"Don't," She exhaled shakily, her eyes fluttering and squared shoulders slumping in defeat, "Don't say that, David."

"We can't ignore this," he persisted, stroking her temple as she visibly battled with her self-control.

"We have to."

"I can't," he stated with a painful swallow as his aching throat got the better of him, "There's a reason Snow's kiss didn't wake me..."

"Stop," Regina rasped, fighting not to sink into him and the promise of what he offered. She couldn't open herself up to the hurt it would inevitably bring. She couldn't believe he'd truly be hers, or that anyone would accept it. Choosing her would ruin him, and she couldn't be so selfish to allow it.

"I can't just go back to her and pretend," David pleaded, "I know you didn't mean what you said before I went under the curse. I know you were just trying to protect yourself."

Regina sucked back a quiet sob and struggled not to crumble, "Your family is back."

"My family is back, yes, but my family was also here the whole time," he lifted her hands and held them against the sides of his face as he leaned in, pressing their foreheads together and whispering, "Don't cry, Regina. You're killing me."

"I'm killing you?" Her disbelief came out more like a whimper when he brushed her nose with his, then slowly pulled back to look at her.

"I know it's scary. There's nothing in that fucking book about this and we don't know what will happen…but three decades of feelings don't just go away. I tried to ignore it when the curse ended. I tried to push you away and lie to myself about who you were. But all I could see was the woman who let down her walls and allowed me to know her, better than I have anyone. My Regina. I still see you in there, despite how we've tried to pretend our years together didn't happen. Living with you again just reminded me of how happy we were and had me constantly fighting myself. You have this effect on me like no one else, make me feel everything all at once," he chuckled softly under his breath, his eyes shining, "You get under my skin, take me from zero to ten with one snarky remark. Then you root me in place when I see the sadness in those expressive eyes. One minute I want to argue, then I want to hold you, and the next minute…" David stopped, pressing his lips together at what he nearly confessed.

Regina held her breath, overcome by the mixture of desire and adoration thundering in blue eyes. "A-and the next?" she croaked, her tongue slipping between her lips to wet them nervously.

David's gaze dropped to her mouth, his answer delayed by the sight of it sending his blood pumping south. He saw his own need reflected when he shifted his eyes back to hers and it made him answer without hesitation, "The next minute, I want to take you like the curse never ended."

"David," she inhaled sharply, withdrawing her hands from his and lifting one between them like she might push him back.

Regina looked to her hand when she pressed it against his chest, the warmth of the contact freezing her in place. Seconds passed in silence as she felt her mind and body caving to her heart and the one beating under her palm, finding herself unable to flee as her first instinct had urged her to. David didn't move except for covering her hand with his larger one, blanketing it against his sternum.

His expression was gentle but intense as he watched her and waited for her next move. The patience he exhibited made her spiral further, knowing he would never push her despite the longing he conveyed. And she was hopelessly weak to the tether between them, giving into the tension as her forehead fell to his and she tilted her chin, bringing her mouth closer.

David's eyes closed when her mouth brushed his, sighing in relief as he caught her ghosting lips with more pressure. She gave a quiet whimper and leaned in further, meeting him halfway for a languid kiss. It was heaven to experience her familiar intimacy again, to feel her acknowledge the connection between them instead of shutting him out.

The world outside, the reasons they shouldn't, and fears of the unknown slowly faded away, powerless against what was so uniquely theirs. It was a bond built by decades of memories, something intangible yet palpable when they touched. It was overwhelming and addicting and they let themselves indulge in it, foreheads and noses nuzzling as they traded soft, slow kisses. Lips pressed longer each time they came back together at a different angle, feeding into the tension between them until it reached a tipping point. Quiet gasps were let out in unison when they parted for breath and their eyes fluttered back open. Gazes locked meaningfully, sharing sentiments that couldn't be put into words, and a mutual decision was made.

Their mouths met again with a sudden sense of urgency, lips giving and taking in a hungry manner free of guilt. Her hands latched to his waist, fingers gripping his flannel to tug him forward, and he leaned closer as her knees parted, allowing his torso to slot in between. His hands caressed her parted thighs as her tongue brushed his bottom lip and he opened his mouth for her, both of them moaning at the taste of one another. His fingers threaded her dark hair and she tilted her head into his hand, deepening the kiss as she caressed her tongue along his.

Regina let out a pitiful whimper when his hands found her hips and pulled her to the edge of the trunk, the movement bunching her dress to the crease of her legs, allowing her to feel his jeans graze her inner thighs and his belt buckle against her core. She kissed him hard and hungry, untucking his flannel from his pants and slipping her hands underneath to his waist, tugging him closer as she mewled.

David broke their kiss with a rough tug on her bottom lip, earning a throaty noise from her as he nibbled his way from her jaw to her neck. He sucked on the sensitive spot below her ear that he knew made her especially wet and groaned when she arched into him, clutching at his back. His fingers dug into her hips before curving around to massage the swell of her ass, reveling in the way she squirmed and whined.

It made him want more and he was intent on coaxing her until she was trembling and dripping down her thighs. But then he scraped his teeth over her throat and she made a desperate choked sound that caused something inside him to snap, a low grumble escaping his chest, "I want you so fucking bad."

"Have me," Regina panted as she brushed her lips over the shell of his ear and grinded against the surface of the trunk, desperate for friction between her legs. She peppered wet kisses over his temple and cheek and jaw, nipping at his earlobe and grazing her nails up his rib cage, doing everything she knew would spur him on. "Don't make me wait."

David felt a powerful surge of love and desire for her hit him like a ton of bricks. This was his Regina, the woman who didn't hide from him, who voiced what she wanted and offered herself eagerly in return. The energy of this encounter was vastly different to their morning in the study, the uncertainty replaced by weeks of unresolved tension and need. The need to acknowledge their love, to kiss and touch and take one another like they had the right.

She tilted her head back with a flash of impatience, her expression so raw with arousal that it sucked him out of his daze and he groaned out loud. He grabbed at her crumpled dress and she shifted eagerly from one hip to the other, helping him work the constricting fabric up over her ass until it bunched at her waist, exposing black lace.

They both glanced down when she spread her legs wider and he cursed quietly, squeezing her thighs at the sight. Regina cupped the back of his neck and pulled his mouth closer, capturing him in a bruising kiss. He snaked arms behind her to unzip her dress and worked it over her shoulders until he could palm her breasts through her bra, thumbing the hard nipples poking beneath the thin lace. Her hips jolted forward when he squeezed and pinched and his hand dropped between her thighs instinctively, feeling her heat before he'd even touched her.

"Oh fuck, Regina," His voice went hoarse when his fingers slid over her panties, feeling her swollen clit through the soaked fabric. She let out a mewl that made his cock twitch painfully against his jeans when he pushed the sticky lace to the side and began circling her gently.

"Hurry," Regina choked on the plea as her body curled into his hand. Her blood ran hot, her skin sensitive to his touch, and mind spinning with too many feelings to pinpoint. Just this morning she'd grieved at the thought David may never wake, and then feared he would hate her when he did. She'd been convinced she would never see care in his eyes or have him like this again, that their morning the week prior was the last time. But he was here. He'd come to find her and still believed in her, still wanted her. He was here, in her arms instead of Snow's. He was kissing her and touching her, and she was unraveling.

"You're gonna feel so good," David murmured into her mouth, grunting softly when her hands grazed the bulge in his jeans as she worked at his belt. He exhaled a breath of relief when she opened the clasp and unzipped, releasing some of his strain.

Regina greedily reached for the waist of his pants to shuck them down but felt herself being suddenly lifted instead, gasping when he scooped her in his arms and rocked back on his heels. Her belly tightened and clit throbbed at the reminder of his strength and how easily he could handle her as he swiftly stood and kicked the trunk out of the way with his boot. She moaned a sinful yes when her back hit the cold stone wall and hooked legs around his waist, curling up to him when he rocked forward.

"Hold onto me," David instructed and she looped her arms around his neck without question. He pinned his hips under hers, keeping her anchored to the wall as he brought his hands down and slipped warm fingers under the waistband of her panties.

Regina shuddered at the sound of her lace ripping before his hands returned to cusp under her thighs, pulling his hips from hers enough for her to slip her hand in between them. She slid a hand into his boxers, her lips parting and eyes flashing wide when her fingers wrapped around his girth. "God, David," She whined in anticipation and pushed the front of his boxers down, freeing his length.

"Yes, baby," David's abdomen tightened as she stroked him and then rubbed him back through her folds, his eyes locking with hers. The head of his cock dipped into her and she released his shaft with a gasp, bringing her hand back up to loop her arms around his neck. He lifted her thighs up his sides higher, his tip probing at her opening as paused for a moment to look at her.

Regina held his intense stare and moaned loudly as he sank into her, watching his jaw clench at the sensation when he cursed under his breath. She wrapped an arm over his shoulder and gripped his hair, tilting his head to the side to whisper down his ear. "Don't be gentle."

"Goddamnit." His head fell forward to her neck, pressing his mouth against it as he moved his hands up the backs of her thighs to cradle her ass in his grip.

"Yes!" Regina hissed in approval when it tilted her pelvis up, forcing her to stretch for him and feel how incredibly hard and thick he was. Her hips bucked without consent, legs falling open wider as she tucked them higher up his rib cage.

David rocked back a few inches before he thrust into her deeply, ripping loud moans from her as he repeated the motion again and again. His head fell against the side of hers, pushing harder and deeper each time until he was pumping harshly and she was crying out into his neck. She dripped around him, walls grasping and pulling his cock deeper as her hips curled to meet his thrusts.

"So good," he panted and scraped teeth over her neck, jerking her into him tightly with each snap of his hips.

"Don't stop, yes, I'm…" She let out a strangled moan when the head of his cock hit the spot deep inside of her, over and over, sending a hot rush through her each time. She scratched angry red marks down his shoulder blades and squirmed in his hold, trying desperately to match his rhythm despite the boneless feeling taking over her body. Pleasure coiled deep in her belly as her muscles strained, the sweet burning in her core growing hotter and heavier until a searing wave swept her and she gasped, "I'm coming!"

David growled, biting her neck when her hips bucked from the wall and bore down on his cock, clamping around him tightly. He fought to keep her in place as she moaned and grinded to his root until his hips jerked with his own release, groaning into her skin.

Regina kept her arms locked around his neck and her eyes closed, their chests grazing with the rapid rise and fall of heavy breaths. She didn't want to let go, didn't want to lift her head from his and see the regret in his eyes. The fear of his rejection clashed with the humming high of her body, bringing her back to the dreaded reality of what she knew would come next. He shifted his hands back under her thighs and anxiety pitted in her stomach when he began to lift his head.

His hair was mussed, damp with sweat at the temples from his powerful exertion, and she ached at the thought of losing the passion they shared. She shifted her gaze to his reluctantly and her heartbeat faltered when she found him studying her features fondly, like he had so many times before the curse ended. It was unexpected but so familiar, and forced her to swallow down a confession of love that threatened to spill from her lips. She offered a wobbly smile instead and asked him something that scared her almost as much as what she'd almost admitted, "What now?"