If you have any reviews/requests, they always help me. Some of these chapters may be fillers, so I will take scene requests. This chapter ran away from me, but I'm fine with it. As always I hope you enjoy!

Regina kissed Mal goodbye and hugged Lily as she left for work. Lily's lip trembled and Mal held her daughter.

"Hey, relax baby, she's coming back after work." Mal assured. Lily nodded, but seemed miserable for the rest of the day, even after watching another dragon movie. It was nice to know that Regina had that effect on both of them.

Lily settled herself under the crook of her arm around her shoulder and hugged her arms around her waist.

"Hey, tomorrow I have to go and find a job, so Regina will pick you up from preschool tomorrow, is that okay?" She felt Lily nod against her.

Regina hurried through the door and slammed it behind her. She leant up against it and held her face in her hands, letting the tears wash over her.

Mal and Lily glanced to each other, than rushed off the couch to console the woman. Regina brushed them off as nonchalantly as she could. Lily hugged her legs while Mal brushed her chestnut hair out of her eyes and kissed her tears away, then kissed her fully, as her sadness radiated from Regina to Mal, who found herself crying and kissing her.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Regina drew in a quick breath then looked Lily in her dark eyes, now hugging both woman.

"It was a she said, he said case. The judge could see the marks she sustained, and the man had a history of assault, but we still lost. The first case I've lost in two years because a judge was too blind to see what was very clearly sexual abuse," Regina finished and sniffled, but quickly tried to erase any anguish on her face.

"I'm so sorry," Mal whispered.

"I know sexual abuse, I can see it clear as day," she remarked under her breath, and Mal didn't want to push her further. She led her to the couch and tried cooking supper, which ended up just being Kraft Dinner and salad after a failed attempt at potato casserole. Regina noted to make dinners from now on.

"I know I shouldn't be making a big deal about it, but I feel it signifies something deeper," Regina said while brushing her teeth alongside Mal.

"No, you have a right to. These topics are very serious and heartbreaking, especially when women get turned over for men again." Regina nodded and rested her head on her shoulders.

"I love you, especially for being able to tolerate me."

"It's not hard to tolerate you, let alone love you," Mal whispered, as she led Regina to their bedroom, kissing her head tenderly.

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Regina parked her Mercedes in the preschool parking lot. She entered, but the classroom devoid of Lily.

"Where is Lily? I'm supposed to be picking her up," she said to the teacher, not bothering to hide the stress tainting her voice.

"She was sent off with her father." The answer stabbed her heart and ripped it apart. Immediately she pulled out her phone and phoned Mal.

"Hi, Regina, what is it?"

"Lily. The preschool said she was picked up by her father." The other end went dead.

She drove to the sheriff's station, and found Mal's car parked outside.

"No, I don't know where they went, if I did I wouldn't be filing a missing child report," she heard Mal shout. A blonde woman nodded compliantly and scribbled something on a notepad.

"Mal, do you know where she could've gone?"

"No, her father's been off the grid for months. I thought we'd be safe here, but he found us nonetheless." Both their eyes brimmed with tears as the deputy and sheriff continued quizzing them. After, they told them to go home and wait to see if Lily would show up. They sat at the kitchen table and just squirmed in their seats, anxiety taking over their bodies.

"Does she know who her father is? What he looks like?"

"No, so that made it easier for her to go along with him."

They sent out an Amber Alert to all of Maine in the hopes of someone sighting them, and the sheriffs station got a call, beckoning them to a small town in northern Maine. They sat on the couch and turned on a movie, but neither of them were paying attention.

Regina insisted bringing out her gun, and Mal let her; Lily's father was a dangerous man.

A knock on the door and they were face to face with Lily's father. Mal gasped as he grabbed hold of her arm. Regina was in the other room, grabbing her gun.

"You've made quite the life for yourself, never expected the bottom of the food chain to get a house as big as this," he commented in a low, burly-sounding voice. Mal shook while Lily was crying from his unflattering green car sitting in the driveway.

"Get the hell away from my family or I'll shoot," Regina threatened, coming from around the corner and to the tall man. He pulled out a gun from his belt and pointed it at her. She shook in fear, but quickly got passed it. She closed her eyes as he pulled the trigger, but it only clicked. It clicked twice more before he faltered. She pointed the gun right at his foot and shot him in the calf.

"Next one is going in the chest."

He let go of Mal, limped to his car, opened the door for Lily, then peeled out of the driveway.

"Regina!" Lily called. She ran up to the two women who were hugging and crying and steadying their breath. Mal picked her up and they embraced.

"Don't ever go with anyone other than Regina or me, okay baby? We didn't know where you were, and he is very dangerous, okay?" Lily nodded fearfully and clung to them like glue. Mal turned to Regina.

"You saved us. We would've been gone with him if you weren't there, that was very courageous," Mal praised, then kissed Regina intensely.

"Anything for my family," Regina said caring.

"You're a hero!" Lily cheered.

"I'm not a hero."

"Of course you are. You said heroes are brave and going to do stuff for others without thinking about themselves. You're a hero."