More time passed than she'd have liked while the weight of the future discussion sat on her shoulders. She'd found herself shorter tempered than normal with everyone around her. But things being what they were, it felt like months passed before Emma even found an opportunity to be alone with Regina.

And it wasn't one she relished.

There had been a celebration for Henry. A happy occasion. Afterwards her mother and father somehow ended up with the kids. Hook had bowed out in favor of a sailing adventure with his crew onboard the Jolly Roger. Henry and his wife were celebrating in a way that Emma didn't want to think about. Even Zelena had ditched them last minute to pursue some hot little item of the moment.

So Emma found herself alone with the brunette, several glasses of alcohol in, with no one around to prevent this discussion. Biting her lip she stared into her glass willing the words to come and for her courage to form.

"Just spit it out Emma." Regina reached over and pushed the blonde gently with a small smile gracing her features. "You've been searching the bottom of your glass long enough. What do you want to ask?"

"I," Emma started, looking into those familiar brown eyes. "I am not sure how to say this."

Regina tilted her head to the side, frowning. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, everyone's fine." She responded anticipating the follow up question, "it's not that. It's just, I… er… well, I am in a bit of a dilemma."

Regina sat quietly waiting for her to continue.

"If… if I had a way to … know you better, to understand what you went through, before… you know… would you want me to?" Emma gazed up at Regina watching her face and listening for the truth.

"You… want to understand me better? Emma, you, out of everyone, probably understand me the best." Regina reached out and took Emma's hand in hers.

Emma was touched. Her mouth opened and closed a few times before she swallowed. "I … thank you. I didn't …"

"It's ok."

"It's just, it's not ok. Your other half, I mean the … other Queen," Emma couldn't bring herself to call her Evil, "when we were in Storybrooke, she … gave me something."

Regina somehow sat up straighter, and with her already impeccable posture that was saying something, "what did she give you Emma?"

"Well, at first it was insights."

"Insights?"

"Yes, she…" Emma bit her lip briefly before continuing, her voice fading lower and lower until it was barely a whisper. "She told me how Cora would make your bruises and cuts and scars invisible."

"Oh." Regina looked at her lap.

"I noticed before, you were surprised," Emma gestured with her hands toward her face, "when I … hurt you after Henry," she hurried past that as if the thought now hurt Emma, "and then again when Snow decked you on our way to Neverland, you seemed surprised to see the bruising. And then with Zelena you laughed at the blood at the clock tower."

"Emma," Regina's tone was calming and she squeezed the blonde's hand, reminding Emma she was still holding it. "I remember. I think part of me had hoped you would forget." She tried a half hearted smile which made Emma's chest ache. "I should know better by now. You Charmings don't give up easily."

"No, I was kind of a dog with a bone with this one." Emma admitted, shrugging.

"Mmmm," Regina hummed. "It is true." She squeezed again. Emma's eyes snapped to hers in attention. "What she told you, I mean."

"About Cora?"

"Yes. Mother used blood magic to keep me from showing the signs of her… punishments." Regina's free hand settled over her stomach as she inhaled deeply.

This time Emma squeezed Regina's hand and the brunette looked up appreciatively. "Is that why you were laughing after your fight with Zelena?"

"In a way, yes. I wondered if the blood magic might transfer to her as well."

"You didn't look nearly as hurt as I thought you would have been, plus you seemed to heal super fast." Emma remembered.

"Well, I learned how to heal myself with magic over the years dear." Regina smiled and tilted her head.

"But that doesn't explain why I surprised you or Snow for that matter." Emma watched a series of emotions overtake Regina's face and felt awful about pressing the topic.

"No, it wouldn't explain that, would it?" The brunette whispered. "Emma, there… there are some things that may be best left in the past. That once shared can't be… unshared." Regina took a slow breath. "I don't know that this conversation will do any good."

"You shouldn't have to bear the burden of this alone Regina." Emma ran her thumb gently over the back of Regina's hand. "I won't force you but I'm here to listen and I want to be here for you. Bottling things up hasn't helped either of us."

Regina swallowed. "I'm just not sure reopening old wounds is the best idea."

Emma sat up as if to protest, but Regina held up her free hand in a gesture of stop. "Hear me out please."

Emma stilled for a moment before she nodded and sank back down.

"Your mother and I have left it all behind us. Opening this now, that could injure our promise to do just that."

"This isn't about Snow."

"But it is, in a way. She was part of that past. I don't want you to … have to deal with feelings that might not fit with… her ideas of how things were back then. I don't want to hurt your family any more Emma, not your mother or your father inadvertently, and certainly not Henry." Regina swallowed hard. "I don't want to hurt you either Emma. You've done so much for … all of us, for Henry, for me, I … I just think you should enjoy your happily ever after. There's no reason to…"

"But there is Regina." Emma grabbed the brunette's other hand and squeezed them both gently. "And it's not because I'm the saviour. It's because… I care about you. I care about what you went through. I … I don't want you to have this burden that no one else understands. I don't want that for you. Not after everything we have been through. This isn't about Henry or Snow or any of them. It's about you. I… I want to help you."

Emma saw the moisture in her Queen's eyes. "Oh Emma. I…"

"Please, I am here for you. It's ok to let this go … for you. Not for anyone else."

"But what if…" Regina began biting her lower lip.

"No, no 'what ifs' Regina." Emma shook her head.

Regina gazed into Emma's eyes for a long time before nodding. "Ok." She sounded so small, it about broke Emma's heart. "Ok," she said again with a bit more confidence. "I was surprised by the fact that the blood magic didn't manifest with you or Snow either."

Emma's stomach coiled, she asked the question she knew was the elephant in the room, "why would our blood be tied to Cora's magic?"

"Because she cast the spell again when she married me off to the king."