The following morning, Zelena was the first one up and she had a plan for the day. It was a bit of a free day for her since the dragons were handling most of the tasks today and her assistance would not be needed. She glanced over at Pharoah who slept on her side, letting one of her wings provide a shelter for the orphan dragonlings who were still asleep. The rest of them were with their families or prospective families and everyone was slowly adjusting to their new lives. It would take some time of course, but she didn't mind helping where she could. Today was going to be a special day for the children though and if they were going to do it, she had to get them up.
Zelena walked back into the family tent. She lightly tapped Erec and his little head shot up almost instantly. She put a finger to her lips and he nodded, rubbing at his eyes as he climbed out of bed. She did the same to Adrienne, but hesitated in waking Cynara. Her blonde daughter absolutely hated to be woken up. Almost like her blonde mother. Before she had made her decision, Erec and Adrienne were already dragging Cynara from the bed, completely ignoring the thud she made when she hit the ground.
"Ow." She growled. "What are you two doing?" The rest of the children raised their heads and Zelena sighed.
"I meant to do this quietly, but everyone wake up and listen up." She commanded, conjuring a wet cloth in her hand. She laid it on Erec's face and grinned when she heard him giggle. "Now, today is a big day because Scarlett, Bright, Kye, you are going to shift into human form. Then we're going to see what you look like, clean you up and get the other children to do the same. After that, I have a surprise for you all in the Emerald City."
"What surprise?" Cynara asked, suddenly wide awake and bouncing up and down.
Zelena shook her head. "First things first." She helped Bright out of bed and Erec leaped up to give him instructions on how to shift.
"It's easy," Adrienne added. "Just picture your back without wings, your skin without scales. It might be harder to do without knowing what you look like."
"I don't really remember how we learned." Cynara frowned slightly as she tried to remember.
"It's instinctual." Zelena explained. "To explain is difficult…" she glanced at the curtain that hid their bed from view. Mal was asleep on the other side, exhausted from a long day and even longer night of helping the dragons. They were beginning to clean up the lake already, removing the scum and algae and dead or diseased fish. As she recalled, Mal only showed the children how to shift by shifting in front of them. They did the rest on their own. It would seem that dragon parents only needed to teach their children how to use their innate instincts and powers at a young age. Technique and new skills would come later. "Outside." She said, hoping that the same method would work with older children. They joined her in front of the tent, sitting neatly in a colorful row. "You're all so adorable." She commented before shifting into her dragon form. She shifted back into human form and then into dragon form again. She wasn't as fluid as Mal was or as fast as Helena, but her efforts paid off not long later when Scarlett finally managed to shift. It took her over a minute, but when the smoke cleared Zelena was already in place with a blanket to wrap around her.
"You did it!" Adrienne cheered.
Zelena smiled as she helped her stand. As expected, she was a little too skinny but was probably a lot better than she would've been a few weeks ago. Other than that, she was a pretty little girl with fair skin and bright green eyes. "Oh no." She said, noticing her mass of tangled and matted golden hair. "Someone go wake Mal."
"Why? Is something wrong?" Scarlet asked.
"Not at all. She's going to be really happy, I assure you. And she can fix your hair because she has a special product for it." Zelena gave her a smile and used magic to clean her up and clothe her in a gray shirt and dark pants.
Adrienne returned to them and Mal followed suit, carrying a clay bowl. She instantly burst into a grin. "A blonde! Yes! Blondes win again!" Zelena pouted as Cynara cheered as well. "You needed this?" Mal handed her the bowl of oil.
"You can do it, since you said I used too much last time."
"You did. This stuff takes three days to make." Mal replied, tipping the bowl just enough so that a single drop landed on the top of Scarlet's head. A golden sheen spread throughout her hair, from her roots to the ends of her hair, restoring her pretty natural waves to a brilliant golden shine. "My goodness, you are beautiful, Scarlet." Scarlet turned bright red at her words.
"What is with all the noise?" Lily asked, walking up with Ruby.
"We're teaching everyone how to shift." Erec answered. "Scarlet is blonde."
"Me next!" Bright called. It wouldn't take long for Bright to shift as well and then Ruby and Lily had a field day when they found out he was a brunette. He looked healthier physically and he sported sharp, angled features, as well as a matted mass of dark brown hair. After Mal cleaned it with her special oil, he decided to cut it and Lily gave him a nice haircut but left plenty to style.
"Your turn, Kye!" Erec said.
Almost as soon as the words were said Kye shifted and Zelena hurried to hide him with a blanket. He looked close to the children's age and sported a lovely honey toned complexion and long black hair.
Afterwards the children suddenly raced off. Zelena was confused until they returned with more of their friends who they wanted to see in human form. Erec came back pushing a puzzled Mercia in front of him. Cynara ran off to get Tsunami and Typhoon and Adrienne went to wake up Sanah, Guin, Regina, and Beth.
"Okay, prepare some clothes and blankets, Mal. We don't need a bunch of naked children running around. Maybe a magic curtain?" She quickly held up a blanket as smoke pooled off of Tsunami just as Mal rushed to create a curtain as Mercia shifted as well.
"Okay, I see the problem now." Mal chuckled softly.
It turned into a rather large conundrum when more and more children started to gather, woken by the commotion and intrigued about their own appearances. Zelena was rather tired by the end of it after having to conjure so much clothing and slightly annoyed with the fact that she no longer recognized any of the children. Lily, Ruby and Mal were kind enough to file their nails and give those haircuts who desired it. Lily even conjured a book of hairstyles so they could see what they wanted to look like.
After that came breakfast. By then the other adults had awoken and assisted in cooking, some even going off to hunt. While the children ate and got used to their human forms under the supervision of the others, she decided to go to the Emerald City to make sure everything was set for her surprise. She had to make a quick trip to the vault first and she was pleased when Mal offered to join her.
"You aren't too tired?" Zelena asked as they walked through the portal to their shared vault. It wasn't long after their marriage that they decided to combine both of their hidden vaults into one massive vault and it was magnificent. Most of the interior was decorated in polished marble or blackstone with dark wooden doors to separate most of the rooms, although Mal had added in some fountains and plants and decorated it with pieces of her hoard.
"I will admit that I am a little tired," Mal replied. "However, I am not too tired to spend time with you." She purred softly, reaching out to pull Zelena into her arms. Zelena closed her eyes and accepted the soft kiss against her lips and smirked when Mal placed a few more kisses along her neck.
"It has been a while since we made love. I'm surprised you're not going crazy."
"I am internally."
Zelena rolled her eyes and stepped away to go collect some gold. She grabbed a small chest and handed it to Mal, who went to fill it up with some gold from her hoard.
"So what is this surprise?" She asked when she returned.
"I'm taking the kids to the candy store in the Emerald City." Zelena said, bouncing up and down. "Well, candy store/bakery. It's huge and I know they'll love it. I made sure to reserve the whole store for the day."
"And does this store have a past with the Wicked Witch?" Mal asked, quirking an eyebrow.
"Maybe." Zelena said. "It's not a bad one if that's what you mean. Not too bad, I guess, just some mild property damage. I actually bought a lot of their candy under false names, lest they try to poison their beloved Wicked Witch." She smiled at the smirk the dragon gave her. "You know I love sweets. Ooh, and tea. There's a shop that has the best tea. Remind me to stop there on the way back. I'm glad of this week at home. As much as I love helping the dragons, I miss my bed. Remind me to stop and get some cloth as well. I want to do some sewing for the kids." She hadn't realized she had gone off on a bit of a tangent until she heard Mal's purring increase in volume. Her wife took her by the chin and kissed her again, this time with even more passion. She abruptly put down the chest of gold and pressed Zelena against the wall, capturing her lips yet again. Zelena knew that if they continued that Mal wouldn't want to stop, but Mal's lips on hers, her touch, her scent, it was slowly driving her mad with desire. "M-Mal…" Fuck, this woman was irresistible. She broke their kiss and pressed a soft kiss to her mate's neck before leaving a gentle nip there.
"I think we have time before you have to go to the candy store, right?" Mal panted softly.
"Absolutely." Zelena grabbed her wrist and pulled her down the hall to one of the bedrooms. She pushed open the door and yanked Mal inside. The room was one of Mal's most lavish and favorite rooms for it was heavily adorned with the animal pelts from the creatures she'd hunted or those that dared to intrude on her lands in the Enchanted forest. The bed itself was mostly furs. Zelena didn't care about any of that at the moment. "Clothes." She commanded, already magically stepping out of hers. Maleficent followed suit and hungrily kissed her again. She was already purring with excitement and wasted no time in pinning her wife to the bed with a single hand.
"What? Mal, you can't-" The dragon growled and gave her a look that told her to hush her protests.
"You know the rules, my love. I get my turn first."
"And as I said before, those rules are ridiculous and unfair. Don't forget we actually have stuff to do today. We have one hour."
Mal only smirked. She would take her time whether Zelena liked or not; not that Zelena ever minded. Besides, she would have her time and Mal would have to relinquish her control.
An hour later found her walking stiffly down the streets of the Emerald City. She tried her hardest not to glare at the blonde at her side. Mal simply looked ahead, holding the chest of gold atop her shoulder as though it were empty.
"I will make it up to you." The dragon said.
"I said we only had one hour and I didn't even get a turn."
"You taste too good, my love. I couldn't stop." Maleficent purred.
"Be prepared for my wrath."
"I cannot wait for it."
Zelena glared at her again and turned down the street. This street was full of shops and stores, each one grander than the last. She had to stop several times when Mal paused to examine something in the window. She seemed particularly enamored with a lion toy carved from wood. Its mane was painted a variety of colors and there was an emerald stone set into its forehead.
Mal had never had much of a childhood, not in the traditional sense anyway. She didn't have a very stable home life or a permanent house to grow up in, few friends and even fewer chances to indulge in the pleasures and peace of just being a child. And it was not the first time since their marriage that Zelena had found her curiously examining one of the children's toys or books. The witch found it adorable and a little sad at the same time.
Zelena smirked and waved a finger at the lion. She heard Mal gasp when the lion stood up on its hind legs and started to dance. The wood changed colors to match the rainbow of its mane. She smiled at the soft purr she heard from the dragon and stepped around Mal to go into the store. It was a simple toy store with almost all of the toys being handcrafted by the store owner, who was a tall, silver haired old man. She purchased the wooden lion and was looking around when she spotted a box that opened into a skating rink that had an ice skater in the very center. All of it was made of wood and hand carved in intricate detail.
"May I buy this as well? Without the ice skater?"
The man looked slightly offended at the request, but after she explained what she wanted to do, he removed the ice skater and fixed the lion to the ice skating rink instead. She took another look at it before taking the ice skater as well and asking if he could make a special figurine for her. She conjured a picture of Mal and showed it to him. He promised to have it done as soon as he was able to and she happily took her toys, paid the man and rejoined Mal on the sidewalk.
"Did you buy the lion?" Mal asked.
"Yes, and something else, but you can't see what it is until tonight." She showed her the box and teleported it back to their tent.
"You didn't have to do that. It was just a toy."
"What's wrong with playing with toys?" Zelena asked.
"Besides the fact that we are much too old for such things?"
"Age means nothing. Especially to you." Zelena smiled, giving her mate a peck on the lips. "Besides, if a toy makes you smile, I have to get it. If you won't play with it, we can give it to the kids, or put it in the vault." She shrugged. "Speaking of kids, we should get going before-" Mal suddenly took her by the chin and gently brought their lips together for a tender kiss. "Um, what was that for?" She whispered.
"For being so thoughtful...and adorable."
Zelena blinked as Mal turned around and continued walking. "How dare you kiss me like that and walk away!" She heard the dragon laugh as she caught up to her. She put an arm around Mal and steered her through the gathering crowd to the candy store that stood out like a sore thumb. The exterior was painted in varying shades of pink and gold that made it pop against the monotonous green of the Emerald City. The windows looked dark so at least the store owner had chosen to listen to her. "Follow me." She led the way to the door and knocked three times. It was opened almost immediately by a small woman with long red hair that was turning gray. She walked hunched over and leaning on a cane and unsurprisingly, she was dressed in emerald green. "Miss Lolena!" Zelena smiled.
"Save it, Witch. I kept the store closed like you asked, now what's the reason?"
"Where's the other one? Could you please call him? I do hate to repeat myself."
Miss Lolena tapped her cane on the ground three times and watched Mal closely as she looked around. The candy store was gaudy, bright and vibrant, even without the lights on. There were shelves of jars with candy in it lining the walls, everything from jawbreakers to twizzlers to caramel and fudge. There were plenty more that Zelena didn't know the names of. In the center of the floor there were mixing vats of chocolate, cotton candy machines, a tree made of colorful lollipops, a pool of jelly beans and candy corn, tables and more shelves covered in licorice and rock candy and nougat and taffy and so much more. There were plenty of Ozian delicacies too that had names she knew Mal would think were crazy. Even now Mal's eyes were dilated and Zelena could see her nostrils flare every few seconds as she took in all of the sweet smells and unique scents.
"You said there's a bakery here too?"
Zelena nodded and took Mal's hand, leading her through the store to where a new section opened into a grand bakery with tables and chairs and booths to sit at. There were a multitude of cakes, cookies, muffins, bread, brownies, and pie on display and listed on a sign next to the counter. "Neat, huh? The kids can come here too."
"And this Lolena has agreed to this arrangement?"
"Not exactly."
Mal narrowed her eyes. "What'd you do to her?"
"Nothing! Just...threw a munchkin through the front window accidentally knocking over one of the vats of chocolate and causing thousands of silver pieces worth of damage. And I refused to fix it or pay for it. Wicked Witch and all." Zelena smirked when Maleficent rolled her eyes. "Anyways, they reopened as you can see, but Lolena hasn't forgotten. This is the best candy store in the city so if we can get them on board, we're set."
"And that was the mild property damage you mentioned?"
"Maybe."
"Witch!" Lolena yelled.
Zelena and Mal returned to the candy store counter. They were now joined by a small man dressed in a fancy green suit with red hair.
"Is he the one?" Mal asked.
"The one she threw through the window? Yes." The man said in a high pitched voice.
"Maleficent, meet Lolena and Pip. Owners of the Emerald City Candy Hall." Zelena said.
"Pip?" The dragon murmured. "Your name is Pip? Your mother named you Pip and you're okay with that?"
Zelena nudged Mal and faced the store owners. "Look, I know you both hate me and you have every right to. However, I am not the woman I used to be so please don't let my reputation as the Wicked Witch ruin this chance."
"Chance?" Lolena scowled. "Chance for what? For you to pay for what you did that day?"
"I will." Zelena nodded. "Name your price for it. But that's not why I contacted you. There are a bunch of children across Oz who are just really beginning to experience life. They've never had much because of certain circumstances befalling them and their families. Anyways, they've never had a single piece of candy in their lives."
"What?!" Lolena exclaimed. "Never had candy?"
"I know. Unbelievable." Zelena said. "I want to bring them here and let them try some candy and bring some home with them. It's mostly for the children but there are some adults who might want to join. Today, you have the chance you show them your work and have them taste a little sweetness for once. On top of that, I can assure you that you will make more money today than you have ever made in your lives." She nodded to Mal, who stepped forward and placed the wooden chest on the ground. She opened it up, showing the pair the treasure trove of gold. Oz had jewels aplenty. There were even mountains made of gems and they traded mostly using silver. Gold was rare and highly sought. Lolena and Pip's eyes lit up at the sight of her offer. Whether or not they hated her, this was an offer they could hardly refuse.
"Alright." Lolena said. "When will they get here and what do I need to know?"
It took a while to explain the situation with the dragonlings. Pip and Lolena were reluctant to believe her tale about Glinda but she didn't really care if they believed it or not. In the end the woman seemed more outraged about children never having had a piece of candy before than anything else. With them in agreement, Mal and Zelena returned to the dragons and found them running around and trying out life on two legs. Some of them were still moving around on all fours as if they were monkeys. Two such ones were Erec and Kye, who were chasing each other across the ground. Mal quickly scooped up both on her shoulders.
"You sure they need candy?" The dragon shook her shoulders and the boys burst into laughter.
"Yes. It'll be fun." Zelena went to find Regina while her wife was tackled by their daughters. She went into Regina's tent and was not surprised at all to find her former apprentice sitting on the table next to her sister. "Break it up, Lovebirds. Let's go, we need chaperones."
"Chaperones for what?" Oziana asked, without taking her eyes off of Regina.
"We're taking the children to the Candy Hall. Regina, did you feed them?"
"Yes. They ate just after you left and I'm sure they've worked it off by now."
"Excellent." She pointed at Oziana. "You. Get out."
"What?" Oziana frowned.
"I wish to speak to my baby sister privately. You can shadow her later. Out." Oziana playfully glared at her as she left and Zelena threw up a sound barrier around the tent to prevent her apprentice from listening in.
"Before you say anything," Regina said, "I have to ask if it bothers you that-"
"Oziana is head over heels for you? For a moment I was a little bit envious of how much time you two were spending together, I mean I did rescue her and everything, but I'm over it. I just want to make sure you're okay with it. I know she has a tendency to be forward. More so than necessary. Maybe even clingy. I know that would bother you."
"I'm fine." Regina replied, standing up.
"Has she asked to date you yet?"
"Please," Regina scoffed. "She's asked me to marry her twice."
Zelena laughed and put a hand on her sister's shoulder to stop her from leaving. "Listen, if you want to talk, me and Mal are here. In regards to your relationship with Ozi, I don't really care. If you end up together, great. If you don't, both of you are young, you'll get over it."
Regina scoffed again. "I am not looking for a relationship right now."
"You can be a mother and have a romantic relationship, Regina. I assure you that it is possible. Being with someone does not make you any less of a mother either." Zelena replied, patting her sister on the head. "Come along. The children are ready for their gift." She led the way outside. She was more than surprised to find her wife playing a game of tug of war. Mal and Lily were pulling as hard as they could on one end of the rope while Helena and Ashara pulled on the other end. Even from her place she could see that Helena and Ashara had the advantage. "What the hell is going on?"
"Mom and Helena made a bet." Cynara answered, walking up to her.
Zelena rolled her eyes and made a cutting motion with her fingers. The rope snapped and the four women fell to the ground. Mal glared at her. "What? We can organize a whole day of events between you two, but I want to show the kids their surprise. Let's go!" She turned to Regina. "We should probably take them in groups to start off."
"Regina!" A small silver haired boy ran over to jump into Regina's arms and she laughed as she picked him up. "Look at me, I have fingers now."
"Yes, you do. Tiny fingers."
Zelena smiled and tapped Regina's shoulders. "Who is this?"
"Argent. The silver one who likes mangoes."
"Argent! Good to see you!"
"Hi, Miss Zelena."
"Hello, dearie. I'm sorry, I can't recognize anyone right now."
It would take half an hour to get the children organized and into groups of at least ten. Zelena and Mal would take the first group and the next group would arrive ten minutes later. It might be a mess when all of them got to the store, but at least there was some order at the moment. Erec went with her in the first group and as soon as she teleported them to the store front she heard a lot of gasping and curious murmuring. Lolena and Pip had cut on the lights and started the machines so there was a soft hum in the air and a gentle vibration pulsing through the floor. The lights were a rainbow of colors which matched the rainbow of colored candy around the rooms. Pip came out with little goodie bags for them to fill up with candy.
"Feel free to try a piece and take as much as you like. Your friends here have pretty much bought out the whole store." The munchkin said.
The children accepted the bags and looked at Zelena, who had to encourage them to try some candy. Eric was glad to help and instructed the dragonlings on what to do. She walked over to a jar of candy and pulled out one of the wrapped pieces of pink candy. She showed them how to unwrap the candy and turned to the nearest child and tapped his head. "Open your mouth." He obeyed and she placed the candy on his tongue. "Eat." The boy chewed the candy slowly and his eyes snapped open wide.
"It's good." He said.
That got the ball rolling. Zelena did a giddy bounce as the children really got into their surprise. Regina, Lily and Ruby began bringing in the rest of the children in groups and they too joined in the fun.
"Z, this place is amazing." Lily said, taking a bite out of an oversized chocolate bar. "Hmm, this is so good."
"I know!" Zelena grinned, bending down as one of the children came over to her, dragging her to a shelf of taffy.
Across the room Mal was receiving the same treatment in the bakery. She helped the children with their boxes that could be filled with cookies, cakes and pastries. Pie seemed to be the strangest thing to them because anything could be on the inside. She wasn't sure how many she helped the baker cut. They loved the cake too, especially chocolate, and the baker had to put on another batch of cookies.
For the children, it was like walking through Wonderland, except you could eat just about everything.
As Adrienne moved throughout the room, she had Scarlet clinging to her side. Her friend was nervous and uncomfortable around all the other children while being in a strange, new environment. So much so that Adrienne asked her if she wanted to go back to the tent.
"Everything okay?" Cynara asked, returning with more candy for Scarlet to try.
The little blonde shook her head and touched her ear. Adrienne covered her ears for her while Cynara ran to get one of their mothers. Mal returned with her and touched Scarlet's head.
"I'm so sorry, dear. I forgot that your senses might not adjust well to new stimuli. We'll have to do something about that soon."
"That feel better, Scarlet?" Adrienne asked. Scarlet smiled and nodded.
"Let us know if you need something." Mal said. "Don't be shy." Scarlet nodded again and Mal looked down when her hand was grabbed by Erec. He pointed at Regina as Ahren offered her a piece of candy with a smile. She arched an eyebrow as Regina accepted it and ate it. She made the most hilarious disgusted face Maleficent had ever seen. Ahren burst out laughing and ducked behind Elizabeth when Regina glared at him. Zelena and Oziana had quite the laugh at the former queen's expense.
Mal smiled and watched Erec run to sit in a booth with Kye and Argent, both of whom were eating giant slices of cake. She could only imagine how hyped up they would be later on.
"It's a hit." Zelena said, coming to her side. "They love it!"
"Of course they do. They get to eat a lot of sugar and sweets. The next question is how you are going to get them all to leave."
"Hopefully on the promise that they can come back anytime."
Mal looked around at the happy children. Beneath the talking and laughing she could hear purring. Amongst the children she saw some of the older dragons and even a few adults enjoying the store and its goodies. Her eyes found Eric and she rolled her eyes at his attempts to flirt with a beautiful woman with raven black hair. The woman had to be Pharaoh. She wondered if that relationship would flourish, especially after Pharoah adopted her clutch of seven dragonlings. That would be interesting to see but she was happy for him. Now if Lily and Ruby would give her some grandchildren, everything would be perfect!
/
By that evening Regina was exhausted and the children were only hitting their second wind. After they finished at the candy store, Zelena had also taken them to a few toy stores. Once they returned to the settlement dragonlings were running everywhere. She gave up trying to get them under control in a few minutes and sat down to keep watch lest they play too rough or hurt themselves. She cast her gaze around for Elizabeth and found her sitting with Ashara, Guin, Argent and Ahren under the mango tree. In the candy store she'd helped Beth make up a goodie bag for Ashara, who had taken the day to continue reconstruction on the city. Nearby, Mal and Lily had children running around them and sliding off their backs and their laughing had Regina smiling despite her exhaustion.
"Tired?" Oziana asked, conjuring a chair to sit next to her.
"Yes." She sighed.
"Today was a fun day though. Especially for the kids. It makes me angry all over again just seeing how much they don't know."
Regina arched an eyebrow and glanced over at her companion. "Was your experience similar?"
"To some extent. I was at least given some form of education and I was allowed to see the world a little."
"How so?" She inquired. "If you don't mind my asking."
"Not at all." Oziana gave her a smile. "It's all in the past and I've gotten over it. Back when I was that witch's prisoner, she took me with her when she had to gather alchemical ingredients or visit the market or something else mundane."
"You never ran?" Regina asked.
Oziana shook her head. "I didn't know there was anything else to life. Besides, that witch claimed to be all powerful and all knowing and me being a child, I believed her. Most of what she taught me were things she didn't want to do and every now and then she might give me a book to read. Then after all her talk of being powerful, Zelena shows up and kicks her ass in a few seconds and everything changed."
"And growing up amongst the Vinkus?"
"It was the best! Still is." Oziana grinned, making Regina smile. "Zelena was the best thing to happen to me. I got to eat until I was full, I could leave the house anytime I wanted. Enaeus taught me magic, Fiyero taught me to ride. I got to learn about Oz and my family."
"So you've always known your heritage? At least once you were freed."
"Yes, but I never really cared about it. Being the ruler meant more rules, more expectations, dealing with people I don't care about and listening to problems I also don't care about."
"You sound like a terrible queen."
"Exactly!" Oziana said. "I only announced my presence because of the plot to kill Zelena. I owed it to her to try everything I could to help. Now that I announced that I'm alive Glinda wants me to move to the Emerald City."
"Why?" Regina asked. If anything Glinda seemed like the type of person to bury such a huge secret or at least discredit her to the public. "She doesn't seem like the person who would share power over her dominion."
"She's not. She wants a puppet." Oziana replied. "Like the Wizard or the rulers before him. Someone who listens to everything she says."
"She must know she's barking up the wrong tree then."
"She should know by now. Anyways enough about my sad and boring life, answer me a question."
"Ask away."
"What are your plans?" Oziana asked, turning to face her.
"Plans for what?"
"The future. I'm pretty sure you're not moving to Oz, but I know you're going to help the dragons rebuild. Once that's done, what then? Are you going to go back and forth between your world and this one?"
Regina smirked. "You're thinking too far ahead. I haven't even thought about tomorrow yet."
"You don't strike me as the type to not know what's going to happen days in advance."
"I used to be like that, I must agree, but lately I realized that such thinking is foolish. Especially around here and especially when you have children."
"Are you going to adopt? The colorful dragon and the silver one?"
"I'm not sure yet." Regina said. "I have to talk to Elizabeth first, but I don't think she would mind." It was something she had been considering for a while now. Henry spent most of his days with the Charmings now or at a friend's house so he wouldn't be at the mansion too much and she doubted he would mind either. She looked over the children now and smiled. Argent was a sweetheart and would sit and listen to her stories as long as she would tell them while Ahren was more like an annoying little brother. And yet, both seemed to adore Beth. They already seemed to see her as an older sister. If they ever had a question they wouldn't even ask Regina, they'd run straight to Elizabeth and ask her. And spending all this time amongst other children close to her age, or appeared to be anyway, was clearly something Beth needed. Unlike Adrienne, Cynara, and Erec, she didn't have a strong bond with her siblings. Henry was older and focused on other things and she didn't spend as much as time with Roland as she should. There were others Regina could see herself adopting, but she wasn't sure yet.
"I think you should." Oziana said. "Having siblings must be nice." Regina couldn't help laughing and Oziana looked at her like she was crazy until it clicked just who her sister was. "I rescind my statement."
"It hasn't been all bad with her. It's gotten better."
"Obviously. Or you'd be dead." Oziana replied. "Although I am so glad that she failed in that mission."
"Zelena can't kill me." Regina scoffed, ignoring the second part of her statement. Oziana glared at her for a moment. "Problem?"
"Yes. I don't know if you've been ignoring me or what, so I'll make it clear. I would like to court you." Oziana said. "I think you're amazing and incredible and the most beautiful woman I've ever met and I want to be with you, if you'll give me the chance."
Regina flicked an eyebrow. "I have been ignoring you."
Oziana narrowed her eyes at Regina. "I'm serious."
"I know, but I don't have any interest in courting or being courted right now. There is too much to do." She said. "And I don't expect you to wait until everything is done. After we rebuild the city and help the dragons get back on their feet, maybe then we can talk about it."
"Well, I'm willing to wait." Oziana declared. She unconsciously threw a quick glare in Ashara's direction but Regina caught it. "In the meantime, can we at least go for a ride every now and then?"
"When there is time." She shrugged, looking up as Ashara came towards them with the children riding on the top of her head. She lowered her head enough for them to jump off into Regina's arms and she put them on the ground. "Enjoy your goodie bag?"
"I did until the little one gave me something sour."
Ahren snickered but stopped instantly. "Little?!" He snarled, throwing out his wings and puffing out his chest. "I won't be for long. One day I'm going to be the biggest dragon."
"And the strongest." Ashara purred. "One day your wingspan will cast the whole Emerald City in shadow. You'll cross the world in two flaps and swim the oceans in seconds."
"Whoa." Ahren whispered. "Really?"
"Yes, but only if you stop pranking people and listen to your elders. Especially Regina. She is but a human and yet is on par and likely better and stronger than many of the dragons here. You all would do well to learn everything you can from her. She will not lead you astray. Understand?" Ahren and Argent both nodded furiously. "Good." She looked over at Regina and met her eyes, letting out a soft purr.
"You can do that, Regina?" Ahren asked. "You can teach me to be a fierce dragon?"
"I can."
"Do you know more than Beth?"
"No one knows more than Beth." Argent said. "She knows about meerkats and whales and has dreams about the future."
Regina narrowed her eyes slightly at the two boys. Elizabeth was trying not to laugh at her mother, but failed miserably. "Children, who do you think taught Beth? She's a child, I'm an adult. One would think that I know more than her."
"Do you have dreams about the future?" Argent asked.
"No."
"She's the best." Elizabeth said. "I have dreams about the future, but Mommy can see the future too with a spell. She can see the past too. She knows all sorts of magic and has been to different worlds and conquered them. She is the greatest woman in the world." She beamed up at Regina, who felt like crying at her child's sincere words of praise.
"I agree." Ashara said softly.
Regina reached down to pick up her dragon daughter and cradled her to her chest. "Just like you are the greatest little girl in the world?" She kissed Beth's nose and placed her back on the ground. "Run along, you three. Continue playing before you crash from your sugar high."
"What does that mean?" Argent asked.
"I'll tell you." Beth said, taking off across the grass towards Mal. "Come on!"
Regina watched them join in the game and relaxed back into her chair. Today was a good day for them. Hopefully they would continue to have more.
"Well, I have more work to do before the day is up." Ashara said. "Good evening, Regina."
"Evening, Ashara." The iridescent dragon moved away. Regina looked up when she heard wingbeats and saw Lily seemingly falling from the sky. Ashara didn't even look up to dodge the attack.
"You have to do better than that, Lilith!"
"What tipped you off, huh? You didn't even look up-" Lily looked down and let out a growl. "It was my shadow, wasn't it?"
"Indeed." Ashara purred. "And I heard your wings. Even Regina noticed them." She spread out her wings and crouched. "Don't flap when you go to make a dive. Glide. Pass over, not straight down." Her wings tightened, as if she were diving. "Wings tight. You'll have a lot of speed so be careful. Other than that, you are an impressive flyer. I'm assuming Maleficent taught you."
"She did."
"Hmm. She is an excellent flyer as well for a dragon built more for war than flight. Oh yeah, you don't tuck your feet. You should watch that, especially when diving."
Lily growled again. "Mom always gets on my case about that." The pair walked off, discussing more flying techniques and Regina oddly felt...happy seeing their interaction. Ashara spoke about having few friends and while she and Lily had never gotten along over the years, she was glad to see her being a friend to Ashara.
"So, tell me more about you." Oziana prodded, sliding her chair closer to her, bringing her attention back to them.
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Maleficent was exhausted again as she walked into the family tent later that night. After the children had finally calmed down and watched a few movies and fallen asleep, she'd gone with the other dragons to prepare for the children were still sound asleep but her mate was wide awake, sitting at a table with her book that she'd been writing in since they arrived in Oz.
"What are you still doing up, Mitt Hjarta? I would have thought you'd be passed out with the children."
Zelena smiled at her. "No, I was going through my things and packing everything up since we'll be leaving soon." Her mate let out a tired sigh and ran her hand through her hair.
Mal took a seat across from her. "You were looking through this book when I left. What's on your mind?"
"It's nothing." Zelena replied, too quickly for her liking.
"Zelena." She pressed gently.
"I don't want to make too much of something. It could be nothing."
"Share your thoughts and we can both decide." Mal said, watching her closely as she turned the pages of her book and moved it across the table for her. "What is this?"
"Accounts from the dragons about the attack. I just wanted to get their perspective of everything because I talked to Wind and if that fool can lead a coup of any kind-"
"He is not that impressive, is he?"
"Not at all." Zelena scoffed. "It just felt weird to me. It could just be me wanting to believe there was more to this, but I could just be suspicious for nothing."
"Your suspicions and curiosity have kept you alive. I trust them." Mal replied. "Now, what are you suspicious about?"
"Read Sona and Ashara's account of the attack."
Mal looked at the book, skimming through the words until she found their names. Sona's account was much shorter than Ashara's. According to the book, Sona had been sunbathing on her balcony when she heard the first signs of fighting. She went into her room, calling for someone to tell her what was going on and when she found out, she got suited up in her armor and went out to help. The first dragon she helped was a female trying to protect her mate against three other dragons. She slew the dragons attacking them and moved on. Mal skipped through the parts of her fighting, the majority of which consisted of her talking about her own fighting skills. She moved to Ashara's retelling and hers was quite different. She was with her father in the garden when they were attacked. Well, her father was. They were set upon by at least five dragons and her father fought valiantly to protect her, but based on her words, they seemed to only want him. Their focus on her father allowed her to help dispatch them.
"Ashara was barely more than a child then. She helped kill five dragons?"
"Apparently she killed even more than that. She even asked me not to let her mother read it. She stopped talking, so I believe she was there when her father died due to his wounds. Do you notice a difference in their tales?"
Mal shrugged. "Other than the fact that Sona was not actually attacked at all?"
"Precisely. That's one thing that stuck out to me." Zelena said. "Earlier, we thought that Wind led a coup because he wanted more. Because he wanted to be made a king and one of the queens to be his mate. They all rejected him and no one wanted to follow him except the dragons that attacked that day."
"You don't think Wind was the leader."
"No. I think Glinda's involvement ruined their plans. I can talk to him again and rip out his heart to confirm it, but I was only theorizing before, and…" Zelena paused and Mal looked back down at her book. They attacked Ashara's father, not her, so their focus wasn't the children at least. They didn't attack Sona. She turned to Sanah's account and found that she hadn't been attacked either. She was in the nursery when the fighting nearly caused a cave-in.
"They weren't attacking all the kings and queens. They were attacking specific ones and leaving their partners alone." Mal realized. "What, did they think they could replace the loss of a loved one?"
"I guess so. With time, the dragons would've eventually learned to love again and they would need to choose new leaders. The love thing could take decades for a dragon but if they were smart, they could position themselves for a promotion to royalty right away. Especially if no one knew of their involvement in the attack."
Her words caused Mal to think of her own suggestion to the reigning queens about electing new leaders. Helena had chosen the newest ones and none of them had picked any more since. If the goal of the attacking dragons was to replace the royalty of the dragon kingdom then… "Glinda stepped in quickly when the attack began. I assume that attacking the rest of Oz was either part of the plan and they really did want more land or it was just a smoke screen. Some of those dragons could still be alive and among us. We can't assume that they all wanted what Wind wanted. Whoever the real leader was could've promised them anything in exchange for their loyalty."
"I agree." Zelena said, nodding.
"Do you have any suspicions on who it is?"
"No. I haven't found a reason not to trust anyone here. Except Likan because of that mess with Adrienne but I think he's just an asshole."
Both of them exchanged looks at this new information, both unsure of whether or not to tell the others. It would be unwise to sow mistrust if they didn't need to.
"The dragons couldn't know everyone that was involved in the coup so an enemy could be walking around here, although I doubt it. We can talk to the others but I don't know what we could do about it."
"Neither do I. As I said, it's just a theory."
"And yet it kept you from sleeping." Mal said, arching an eyebrow.
Zelena let out a sigh and leaned back in her chair. "I hate this. Helena and Sanah lost their mates to this bullshit. Glorya lost a mate and four children. Furia has only one sister now and she started with six. This is madness. To kill so many for what? Power? What kind of power would they gain? I know I've done terrible things but to systematically tear apart two lovers forever… Not to mention that Helena and Ashur were together for over a hundred years. Glorya alone was with her mate for hundreds. That's like tearing a heart in half."
"You can't rationalize their behavior, dear. You will go crazy trying to." Mal closed the book and slid it to the middle of the table. "Let's go to bed. Rest your mind and your heart." Zelena looked up at her and it surprised her when the redhead rushed into her arms. Mal purred softly and pulled her close, resting her chin on a bed of red hair.
"I don't know what I would do if someone took you from me." Zelena whispered.
"The gods could not take me from you, Zelena. Nothing will." She promised.
"I'm sorry I'm so emotional."
"Don't be."
"I better not be pregnant."
Mal smirked and led Zelena to bed. She practically collapsed onto the soft sheets and Zelena climbed in after her, burying herself in her arms. Mal wanted to stay awake and comfort her mate until she fell asleep but she could hardly keep her eyes open for more than a few minutes. It was the crack of dawn before she felt hands roughly shaking her awake. She opened her eyes and looked up at Cynara.
"What's wrong? Is everyone okay?" Mal sat up immediately, all traces of fatigue gone in an instant, but Cynara put a hand on her shoulder.
"It's nothing bad, Mom. It might be good. I don't really know."
"What is it?"
"Elizabeth had another dream."
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