True Love's Gift: Chapter 15
POV: Narrator
"Why…do…you…insist on running me…all over…the damn…court?!" The brunette grunted through gritted teeth of determination each connection the white birdie made to the crisscrossed material of her badminton racket as she ran back and forth across the court keeping up with the quick footed teenager who gave a small smile at the Queen's complaint before refocusing on the task at hand.
The two continued their back and forth with equal competitive vigor – exhaling heavily in exertion, both letting out the occasional grunt or loud profanity of frustration at not yet beating their competitor.
" I just…don't understand…why…you…do it…" Regina labored out the words with heavy breaths before releasing a loud vocalized sound of final effort with a crack of her racket that sent the birdie flying over the young woman's head despite her desperate leap to knock it back. " Because you know I'm still going to win either way, no need to wear yourself out for nothing dear." She smirked playfully, daintily threading her fingers back through her hair with a chuckle towards the defeated child.
" How in the hell did a prissy princess turn out to be so freakin athletic?!" The exasperated teen asked dropping her head back dramatically in defeat with a deep eye roll and heavy sigh as she pulled out her high ponytail, dark blonde hair tumbling down and past her shoulders as her hand reached up to push back the strands that had earlier fell and stuck to her sweat drenched forehead before tying her long tresses back up and making her way around the net to where the older woman stood watching her theatrics quick entertained.
" Prissy?" The brunette scoffed in mock offense at the girls accusation " I'll have you know I not only was an excellent equestrienne but quite the skilled swordswoman as well…to my Mother's horror of course." She chuckled lightly though the thought of the harsh, quick tempered red head never failed to send chills up the woman's spine, spinning the racket between her fingers she quickly pushed away the thoughts as her eyes met blue orbs holding onto every word of her tales adventures on horseback and secret sword fighting lessons in the Enchanted Forest. "And Queen…not princess." She corrected playfully with a wink causing Arena to let out a soft laugh.
"Here let me put our stuff up." The young woman offered warmly taking the former Mayor's racket from her hand with bright smile.
Regina gave a slight nod before watching Arena skip lightly to where the two stored their sporting equipment; she couldn't help but to smile thinking of how far they had come in the past few months. It had been hard in the beginning, even after her pledge to give the girl a life of joy while she was with her, the two found connecting hard – both of them with their own protective walls for their own unique reason made relationship building extremely difficult. She had found herself lying awake at night staring at the ceiling, praying for wisdom on how to bridge the gulf between them. The next morning she had woke up out of a dead sleep and as if by divine postal service the thought of finding a competitive sport for them to play together came to her mind. Her yard didn't provide an opportunity for horse-riding and sword fighting would certainly raise red flags to the town that saw her as a an ever present threat so they were left to find something new to learn, together. It was Arena who found the game of badminton on the internet after several days of searching and both of them turning down the options they had come up with but this one, this one they both seemed to love and so they began their new venture into the world of sports. It wasn't long before the two found out they shared athletic skill and even more than that, a very competitive nature. Every game was hard fought and sorely lost. They yelled, grunted, groaned and laughed during the course of every game – this lead to conversation, inside jokes and a closeness neither thought possible. Regina saw the girl blossom from the terrified, broken little creature shivering on her doorstep to a confident, loving darling of a child that she couldn't help but adore more and more every day despite her fears warning her of the temporary nature of this relationship, she would have to give her up in time when she found the girls' mother. The thought pinched her heart often but despite its plea for her to be cautious she couldn't help but find herself starting to love the blue eyed beauty and feeling fiercely protective over her.
"You did really well today, I'm proud of you." The brunette gave the soft compliment to the girl as they walked toward the house.
"Thanks Gina." Arena beamed but still looked down at the ground shyly before linking her arm with the older woman's and leaning against her a bit as they made their way inside.
Regina still found herself shocked that the young woman was so willing to be affectionate towards her, most kept as much distance as possible between themselves and the wicked woman but for reasons unknown to her Arena seemed to want to be near as much as possible. Initially it was hard for the Queen to receive but in time she welcome the loving gestures – something she had never really experienced in her life with the exception of Daniel and Henry before he was convinced she wasn't to be trusted – a thought that still hurt her deeply though the relationship she found in the girl acted as a healing balm to the heart of a mother that was the core of her being.
"Here, you need to stay hydrated." Regina firmly commanded pouring Arena a large glass of water once they were inside the former Mayor's mansion – her lips turning up in an amused grin at the scrunch of disgust the teenager made at the cool drink. " I know you prefer coffee but a woman cannot run on coffee alone." She teased "Now drink"
"I'm telling you I could 100% run on coffee…and really fast too!" Arena shot back with a grin before sighing in defeat and beginning to drink as the brunette raised a brow at the mock defiance.
"That's my girl." She chuckled turning to pour herself a glass, stopping midway at the sound of the phone ringing. Setting down the pitcher she made her way to the phone, picking it up casually.
"Hello?" She greeted without much thought but, as life often goes, in a moment the olive color draining from her face, leaving her pale and pained – she struggled to breath, heart all but stopping in her chest, sorrow flashing across naturally contoured features. " Th-thank you Rumple…I'll let her know. Goodbye."
"Gina…what's wrong? What's going on?" The teenager walked over to the brunette reaching out to place a hand on her shoulder, instantly discerning something wrong – a sick turn moving in the pit of her stomach as she awaited the news.
"Umm..I..." Words weren't coming easy to the usually eloquent Queen, her thick with emotion that desperately fought to push down and away. Taking a deep breath and gathering herself she painted on a long practiced, small, fake smile refusing to meet the girls' eyes as she responded "Rumple he found her…he found your mother."
The words hung in the air heavy between them, neither speaking. Neither knowing what to say or how to react – neither ever expecting in this moment they would feel so…sad.
(More soon! I know I have randomly restarted after years but I hope there are still a few following this story and hopefully a few new people will jump on board as well! Xo)