A/N: I'm so sorry for the long wait, but school is so hectic at the moment! Anyway, I have so many people to thank for all the faves/follows/reviews. So this chapter is dedicated to xLyraCharlottex, Rena Talmay, Fantasy-Mania21, gostcat, Travisgulch, Mrs Haynes, EvilRegalWriter, impureevilregal, StorybrookeLocal, VampWolf92 and EvilRegalTwinnies. Can't thank you guys enough!

Regina had, unfortunately, been right. From the moment Talulla realised her mother had gone without telling her, she was in a sulk. First had come the tantrum that not even Snow and Abigail had been able to calm, and then had come the moody silence. The young girl just couldn't understand why her mother had gone without waking her up to tell her goodbye, and being so little, even a day seemed like an awfully long time without her.

"Tallie, sweetheart, can I come in please?" Abigail called through the door. Talulla had just got the hang of locking her door now she was able to reach. Unfortunately, that meant that now nobody could get in.

"No! Go away!" came the stroppy reply.

"Talulla, your Mama won't be very pleased if she comes home to find you've been naughty whilst she's been away, will she? The King is already unhappy with you, it would do you no good to anger him further."

"I don't care! I want Mama now! Why did she go wivout saying bye-bye?"

Abigail sighed at the heartbreak in the toddler's voice. "Tallie, if you let me in, we can talk about it, sweetheart."

There came the sound of small feet shuffling across to the door and the click of the lock. The door opened slightly to reveal a small, tear-stained face. When she saw Abigail, she opened the door wider.

"Come in quick," she said, ushering her in before locking the door again.

"Do you really need to lock the door, Talulla?"

"Yes, or else people will come in and I no want them to!"

"Talulla, you have to snap out of this. You're a princess, princesses don't act like this. Look at Snow, she lost her mother completely and yet she's still happy. You need to be strong, I promise you that she'll be back soon."

"But what if she not?" Those warm brown eyes welled up with tears again. "What if she never come back!"

"Oh, Tallie, is this what you've been worried about? That she's leaving you?" The young girl nodded. "Oh, sweetheart, come here. There is nothing for you to be worried about. Your Mama loves you so much, she wouldn't dare leave you!"

Talulla let the maid pull her close. "But why no bye-bye?"

"She probably didn't want you to wake everyone else up. You would have made a fuss and I presume she didn't want that at that time in the morning."

"But it not fair!" the toddler protested.

"I know, I know, but remember what she told you. When she comes back, then she's going to take you for a picnic on Rocinante, but only if you're good while she's away. At the moment, I don't think you're being very good, are you?"

"No… sowwy Abigail."

"That's okay, now are you going to come down for dinner, or is your mother going to find out that you've been a naughty girl while she's been away?"

"I coming," Talulla said, sounding defeated.

"That's a good girl. Now come on, we'll make you look presentable." And with that, she took the young girl's hand and led her over to the mirror.

The dinner and every other meal after went well, even if Talulla never spoke unless she was directly addressed, and soon the week, and the wait, was over.

The young girl was playing with Abigail and Snow in her room when there came the knock on the door.

"Who is it?" Talulla called, getting up from the table where all three were sat playing chess, her and Snow against Abigail, and walking over to open it.

"It's only me, sweetheart," came Regina's voice and Talulla ran the rest of the way, flinging the door open wide. But then she stopped. There was something different about her mother, she could feel it in the air.

"Mama, why you wear black?" she asked.

"I decided the colour suited me, what so you think?"

"I no like," she pouted. "What you do this week? Why you take so long? I was lonely."

"I found my true self, something you will understand as you grow older. Now, have you been a good girl for everybody whilst I've been away?" Regina bent down to her daughter's level. "Hmm?"

"Abigail, tell her I been good!"

The maid came over when she was called, smiling gently and stopping beside Talulla. Regina stood up as Abigail spoke.

"Yes, she's been very good, apart from the first day where we had to have a little chat, didn't we, munchkin?" she said. "But after that she's been perfectly well-behaved. Even more so than normal, I would say."

"Is that so?" Regina asked, on the edge of a smile.

"Yes, will you take me for a ride on Rocinante and have a picnic like you pwomised?"

"Only if you keep us this perfect behaviour, how does that sound?" the Queen compromised. She had things to do. After the failure of the last week, she was going to spend more and more time learning magic. She was going to prove Rumple wrong. She was capable.

"Okay, Mama," the little girl sighed, as though disappointed. This softened Regina.

"Oh, I missed you so much, sweetheart!"

"Reawy? I miss you too, Mama. But why go with no bye-bye?"

"It wasn't to upset you, darling, I had to leave very early and seeing as though we said goodbye the night before, I thought it was best to leave you. All growing girls need their beauty sleep, don't they?"

"So they be as pwetty as you? I wish I was as pwetty as you." The young girl frowned.

"Oh, thank you, sweetheart, but you're pretty too, much prettier than I was at your age, so that means, if you get your beauty sleep, then you will even prettier than me."

Talulla's brow creased as she thought about her mother's words, then she smiled. "You think so?" she asked.

"I know so," Regina replied, making that smile even bigger.

"Come play chess. Me and Snow win!"

The Queen looked up, she hadn't realised that Snow was in the room. She really didn't want to spend much more time around that girl, so she quickly made a hasty excuse. "I'm sorry, sweetheart, but I must speak to the King. I haven't been to see him since I arrived and I can't let the news I'm back reach his ears before I get there."

"Okay, Mama. I tell you if we win, okay?"

Regina smiled and ruffled her daughter's dark locks. "You'll have to tell me all about it later when we have more time."

"Bye bye," Talulla told her and ran back to the table to sit beside Snow.

"I'll see you later," Regina called to her, then turned to Abigail. "Thank you for looking after her this week. I apologise if she caused you any trouble when she found out I was gone."

"We managed it perfectly fine, she soon came round."

"Well, thank you." The Queen smiled before she turned and strode out of the room, leaving the three to finish their game in peace.