Chapter 2

Regina

As soon as Regina was alone in her bedroom, the same room she had recently begun sharing with Robin, the tears she had been holding back all night began to fall. She felt embarrassed and ashamed at the way Robin treated her in front of their family, especially her son. She was a strong independent woman, why did she allow him to treat her this way? She quickly got ready for bed, hoping to be sound asleep before Robin stumbled to bed. She didn't have the energy to deal with him again before the morning. She eventually fell into a restless sleep, tossing and turning all night, until she was awoken by a light tap on the shoulder. She opened her eyes, expecting to see Roland's smiling face, but instead found Tinkerbell standing next to her bed, with a finger over her lips.

"How did you get in here?" She asks, her voice scared at the intrusion.

"Follow me." Tinkerbell whispers, motioning towards the bedroom door, indicating for Regina to follow her into the hall. Regina quickly climbed out of bed, careful not to wake Robin in the process, and followed the fairy into the hallway, eager to find out how the fairy got into her house.

"Will you answer me? How did you get into my house?" Regina asked again, once they were out in the hallway, and out of earshot of a sleeping Robin.

"I'm not Tinkerbell." Tinkerbell answered, a smile on her face.

"What do you mean you're not Tinkerbell? Of course you're Tinkerbell." Regina said, confusion written on her face. She realized then that the woman wasn't wearing the modern clothing she had taken to wearing since relocating to Storybrooke. She was dressed as the Green Fairy she had once known.

"I only look like the fairy from your past. In reality, I am The Ghost Of Love That Hath Come To Pass. I am here to show you the first great love of your life." Tinkerbell explained. Regina looked at the fairy, as she tried to comprehend what she was just told. Regina's mind started to run a mile a minute as she desperately tried to process everything the fairy was telling her. As Regina stood silent, Tinkerbell reached out her hand for Regina to take, indicating their journey is about to begin.

"This isn't real. I'm clearly dreaming. I went to bed upset, and now I'm having strange dreams about past loves." Regina said, clearly skeptical of this whole endeavor.

"Then why are you being so difficult. If it's a dream, why not just take the ride?" Tinkerbell asked, holding out her hand once more for Regina to take. As soon as Regina grabbed her hand, the hallway began to fade.

Regina instantly knew where they were as soon as the world around them began to come into focus. They were standing on a familiar hill in the Enchanted Forest, the manor she grew up in standing behind them in the distance. Her eyes focused on the handsome man leaning against the tree, staring off into the distance.

"Daniel…" Regina said, rushing towards her former love, hoping to feel his arms around her once again. She stopped short when she heard the sound of a horse galloping towards them in a hurry. Turning her attention to the incoming visitor, spotting a much younger version of herself galloping towards them. She jumps off her horse as soon as she could, running directly into Daniel's arms, their lips meeting in a soft kiss.

"I remember this day…" Regina said, as she watched Daniel guide her former self towards a blanket he had sprawled out under the tree, a small basket of food sitting on the edge. They sit down together, laughing and giggling as they share another sweet yet passionate kiss. "This was the first time Daniel told me he loved me. He told me he wanted to be with me forever, and would wait as long as he had to, in order to ensure we can have a future together." Regina said, as she remembered the sweet day. "He died not to long after this…" She added, with a sadness in her voice.

"He was your first love. The purest of all love. Being with him felt easy. It felt right." Tinkerbell said. Regina nodded in agreeance, unable to take her eyes off the scene in front of them. "You fall in love with three people in your life. Three great loves. The first love is one that you fall quick. You fall hard. A love that looks and feels right. But it is also a love that doesn't last long, and leaves an overwhelming hole inside you when it is inevitably over." Tinkerbell explained.

"I don't agree." Regina said, pulling herself away from watching the young couple kissing on the blanket. "I was going to marry Daniel. We were going to run away and spend the rest of our lives together. We were going to last. He died before we could make that happen." Regina defended, angry at the fairy's implication that her relationship with Daniel would not have lasted.

"It only seems like that in the moment. The first love is a deeply passionate one, filled with lust and longing. You want a beautiful life with your true love and you project those feeling onto this love. But that's all it is, a projection of your hearts desire, and it eventually ends just as quickly as it starts. The same would have happened with you and Daniel. Eventually your heart would have been broken." Tinkerbell explains.

"I loved him so much…" Regina said, as she began to process what Tinkerbell had just told her. "It felt so strong...so permanent…so real..."

"First loves always do. But they never, ever last."

"If what you're saying is true, it never was as strong as we thought it was." Regina said, as her mind started to realize that maybe what Tinkerbell was saying was the truth. A single tear falls down her cheek, as footsteps pull her away from the scene in front of them.

Henry walked towards them, a slightly different spring in his step than usual.

"Henry? What are you doing here?" Regina asked, forgetting for a second what she is experiencing.

"I'm not Henry." He said, his voice cheerful. "I am The Ghost Of Love As It Is Today. I am here to show you the truth regarding the love you are experiencing right now." He explained, holding out his hand for Regina to take. Regina didn't hesitate to take her son's hand, even though she knew he wasn't really her son. As soon as her hand met his, a small white door appears out of nowhere a few feet in front of them. Henry guided them forward, pushing the door open and motioned for Regina to enter first, as they started the second leg of Regina's journey.

The door led directly into the Charming's loft amidst the Christmas Eve dinner they had attended a few hours ago.

"Look at the woman seated next to me." He said, pointing to Regina seated to Henry's right. "That woman used to smile more. She used to be so full of life. She used to have a sparkle in her eye. This woman is not the woman who raised me." Henry said, as they watched Robin once again belittle Regina at the table in front of her family. "The woman who raised me would never allow someone to treat her like this."

"It's just different with Robin. He wasn't part of my curse, so he doesn't quite know how he's expected to act in this society. Things were very different in the Enchanted Forest. Women were treated much differently there than they are here." Regina explained, making excuses for Robin's poor behavior.

"But you aren't just any woman, Regina. You were a Queen. You deserve to be treated as such." Henry said, his voice becoming angry like the real Henry had felt.

"I know Robin isn't perfect, but he deserves a chance to make it work." Regina continued to defend.

"What you just described is the second great love. The love that is hard. The love that takes a lot of work to maintain. Maybe it takes a little longer to fall in love, but it certainly feels like it takes a lot more work to keep. But after a while you realize that spark that was once there has faded, and yet you still cling to it. You think if you can just get over that hump, everything will be fine. But it never is." Henry explained. Regina released a heavy sigh as she started to realize that Henry might be right.

"I'm not even sure the spark was ever really there to begin with. Robin never fully accepted me, not really. He could never accept my past." She explained, a single tear falling down her face. "No matter what I do in this world, he will always see me as the Evil Queen." Regina said sadly.

"The second love is one of personal growth, it is meant to teach you a lesson. After the relationship is over and the love is gone, you are left with a sense of your self worth. You learn what you deserve from a partner, and what you don't. And in the end, you are a better person for having experienced it. You know what you deserve, and you no longer allow anything less into your heart."

"But all love is hard. It all requires work from both people. Love is never smooth-sailing. There is always going to be bumps in the road." Regina said, defending her relationship with Robin once more.

"This is true." Henry explained. "But even with the conflicts that each couple experience, the relationship remains equal. Each person is a equal. Robin will never see you as an equal. You said so yourself, he will always see you as the Evil Queen you were in your former life, and will continue to treat you as such. We both know this will never change, and it will only result in the loss of your confidence, until all that is left is a shell of your former self." Henry explained.

"Maybe not…" Regina said, not even convincing herself.

"Robin is your second love, meant to show you your worth. If you stay with him for too long, he will destroy you. You deserve better than this Regina, and you know it." Henry said, Regina's expression changing. She was starting to believe.

"Maybe you're right." She said, glancing over at herself at the table, remembering how hard it was for her to keep the smile on her face as Robin was whispering insults in her ear. "Maybe Robin isn't the man for me afterall."

"I'm so glad to hear that." Henry said, reaching out for Regina's hand. Regina took it without reservation, allowing Henry to lead her out of the apartment through the same door they had just entered.

This time the door led to a dark room. At least Regina thought it was a room. There was no reference points to indicate it was a room and not a black void. Suddenly a cloud of lavender smoke appeared in front of them. As the smoke cleared, a young woman appeared in front of them, someone Regina had never seen before. She was taller than her, with olive skin and dark brown eyes, long blonde curls cascading down her back.

"Who are you?" Regina asked, looking at the woman that looks so familiar and yet was a complete stranger.

"I am The Ghost Of Love That Is Yet To Come."