Regina finally comes face to face with the man she cheated on and hurt so badly. Emma sees her mother again at her lowest point ever. And Belle and Ruby start to get used to life outside Storybrooke. Meanwhile, a surprising visitor and his daughter appear in Portland.

Sherwood

Regina sat in the passenger seat of Henry's car, looking out over the pebbled track a few hundred yards from The Sherwood Arms. The pub that had never even existed three years ago. Not until after Robin's return, when he and his men built from it scratch, together with a hamlet of some fifty dwellings, to house the poor and needy.

It was typical of Robin that, when the men had insisted the inn be called The Locksley, after his once noble family whose lands had been confiscated by an avaricious king, he'd refused. Instead he named it after the forest and village he grew up in. Robin was like that. Intelligent, learned, yet humble in nature. A born leader, yet self-effacing. The grandson of an earl, a man who'd once rubbed shoulders with the nobility, yet preferred to live among his people. Loved by the poor and destitute, and hated by the aristocracy from whom he used to steal to feed and clothe them. A living contradiction. And the man Regina loved more than any other, bar Henry. The man who she'd hurt so badly three weeks ago, possibly destroying their relationship forever. The father of the baby growing within her once-thought barren womb.

Although it was a bright, sunny day, Regina shivered as she stepped out of the car, more in fear of his reaction than anything else. Having crossed the town line only thirty minutes ago, Emma had taken her own car to go to the hospital to check on her mother, before no doubt being arrested. Regina had instead transferred into Henry's, to head straight for the hamlet. To face the inevitable. As she sat looking up at the front of the inn, she could hear noise coming from inside. That was odd, it was only four in the afternoon? There were clearly plenty of people inside, and she was reminded this wasn't the first time she'd been too frightened to go into an inn to meet him. Many years ago Tinker Bell had used pixie magic to help her find her supposed true love, her soulmate. And she'd been too cowardly to go inside then, too. But now, she knew she had to face him.

Henry had asked her to wait until he came back. But that was fifteen minutes ago! Fifteen minutes that felt like fifteen hours. She couldn't wait any longer as the suspense was killing her. So, leaving the car, she walked nervously up the gravel drive and over the lawn to the entrance of her husband's pub, looking up at the sign, steeling herself for what was about to happen.

~oOo~

Although there was a boisterous hubbub, the sound of friends and revellers died almost immediately once she walked through the door. Some even gasped, making others turn to see what had caused the reaction. Regina was used to being the centre of attention. But this time, she'd never felt smaller.

"You!"

Worse still, as he stood behind the bar, Alan-a-Dale scowled right back at her, before reaching down behind the bar to grab something unseen, no doubt ready to fight. Robin had once told her he Alan could throw a knife and maple an enemy from thirty foot away. And now, without magic, she stood no chance!

"ALAN, WAIT! Please?" Regina put her hands up. "I'm not here to cause trouble, I swear! I just need to see Robin?"

"See him? I hardly think he wants-"

"STOP!" Sheriff Hank Morgan, seeing her frightened expression, moved between her and the barman, shielding her. "DROP THE KNIFE, DALE! NOW!"

But the barman still held the knife at his shoulder, lined up, ready to throw. "Not a chance! You didn't see her threaten to kill him, after the blonde bitch thumped Roland!"

"ALAN, HOLD!" A new, calmer voice came from the side, but even more authoritative. Robin had entered from a back room when he heard yelling, Henry immediately behind him. "There's no need for that. Lower your knife? Please?"

Reluctantly, Alan did as asked by his leader, lowering the blade slowly, before tucking it away, his eyes never leaving her as she turned to face her husband, her own eyes wide in shock.

"Robin?"

Storybrook Hospital

"STOP!" She yelled, Snow looking up at her, shocked. "FOR GOD'S SAKE MUM, NO!"

Having waited until the nurses had left after their last check-in, Snow had pulled out the small bottle she'd carefully secreted in her knickers to avoid anyone detecting it when they changed the sheets. She wouldn't make the same mistake as last time! This time, she would take sips of water and swallow them one at a time, to finish the entire bottle before her stomach started reacting.

But as she tipped the first batch of tablets, sufficient for one swallow, into her shaking palm, she hesitated. And in that moment, as she lay in the hospital bed, lit only by the reading light, the door suddenly opened to a new arrival.

Emma was mortified. Henry had already told her that her mother was in a bad way. So it was pretty clear what she was about to do!

"Emma?"

Her daughter was by the bedside in a heartbeat. "Don't do that mum? Please?" She put her hand over the pills in her mother's now-trembling palm as the tears came. "How many?" But Snow just looked down, unable to face her. "How many pills have you taken?"

"None." Her voice was almost pitiful. "Not yet."

"Thank god!" She forcefully pulled the bottle from her. "This really isn't the way mum, believe me!"

~oOo~

Two minutes later, having taken the remaining tablets and put them back into the bottle, Emma moved it further way for safety, as Snow broke down in tears. She climbed onto the hospital bed to lie next to her, taking her head and resting it against her chest. Having never seen her mother so completely broken before just brought on her own tears; and for the next few minutes mother and daughter clung together, overcome with everything that had happened.

"It's alright mum! It's not your fault, and it isn't mine, either. It's that fucking poison from the cottage. I hope Henry's right, and that bloody witch is dead! Hopefully, one day I hope I can make Killian see I wasn't in control either. I'd never do anything like that to him normally."

"I hope so for your own ake Emma. And Hope's. He's a good man. But unfortunately, for your father and I, it's too late."

"What makes you say that? Henry told me dad watched the dream catcher? Surely he'll see you couldn't help yourself?"

"He's seen it, and we've talked. But he's bitterly upset about something else I did, or more importantly, something I didn't do, before we were even married."

"Like what? What could be so bad compared to this?"

"I lied about a previous relationship. About never having had one, when I had."

"Is that all? Because you weren't a virgin when you went up the aisle? Hell, most of us aren't these days! I never thought he was so small minded? After all, Killian's lived for centuries, and he's had loads of-"

"You don't understand, Emma," Snow cut her off. "I was the heir to the throne of Misthaven, destined to become Queen. He said he wouldn't have cared about my past, but I blatantly lied to him all the time we were courting. And to a man like David…"

"So that's it? You told him a white lie about being a virgin? Hell, this isn't the Middle Ages, mum! Were you ever unfaithful after you married? Well…apart from Ruby recently?"

"Never. Not from the moment he proposed to me."

"So you had a few lovers before you met him? Big deal! So what?"

"I mislead him about my past, not to keep him, but to make sure I became queen. An heir to the throne with a previous lover? A female one at that. A bisexual queen with a hidden past? The Court would've booted me out in a heartbeat! They'd've banished me quicker than the Evil Queen ever could. No, I lied to him, Emma. And it finally came back to bite me."

"How'd he find out? Henry said the dreamcatcher only covered the last few weeks?"

"I threw it all back in his face when he caught us." Snow looked away, her guilt obvious.

"Caught you?" Ouch! Emma just could imagine how that must have hurt her father. "Where?" And please don't say at home? Not his own bed, surely?"

But Snow wasn't listening. "I taunted him with all my past. Even with the reasons why I didn't tell him. I lost my temper, and it all came flooding out."

"So what are you saying? That she was a better lover than him? What you felt for him wasn't real? That you married him just to keep the throne?"

"No of course not! I loved your father from the first moment I saw him. What we had was real, Emma! He's my soulmate, my true love. That's why you've got magic in the first place. Merlin says Neal has it too, apparently."

"So this previous lover of yours?" She remembered what Henry had told her. "I'm guessing we're talking Ruby, right? You knew her before you knew dad, didn't you?"

Snow didn't want to say but knew it would probably come out at some point, anyway. "Ruby and I were in a relationship, although we kept it secret, because we lived in a very different realm and time. Attitudes there were completely different! We met after I fled Misthaven, to save my own life. Ruby and I were close for a while. I admit, I loved her at the time, and probably always will. But I was never in love with her! She felt the same about me. I suppose you could call it comfort? Nothing else. That's why she accepted my engagement to David so easily. In time, the two of them even became close friends themselves."

"You know what Henry told me? He said that potion we inhaled was originally designed for me and Elsa. It was supposed to give us sisterly feelings towards Ingrid, enough to persuade us to leave Storybook, and go off with her. But she screwed up the ingredients mix or something. She realised the mistake and left it in the cottage just before she died. Gold has the original potions book she used, and told Henry it would never have worked unless the victims had real feelings for one another. Ruby, in your case? Ingrid's potion just, sort of, exaggerated everything."

"Henry told me that, too. It'd explain what happened to you and Regina. The two of you have become very close since Hope was born, haven't you?"

Emma definitely didn't want to open top that can of worms again, so she ignored the question. "So dad's got to understand that, surely? He'll understand…given time."

"No. After he caught us, I ridiculed him. Can you imagine that? I actually taunted him after he...well, at the worst possible time. He lost his temper, and nearly killed Ruby, he was so angry. I tried to apologise for everything yesterday, when he was here. I asked him if he could ever forgive me, but he said he didn't think so. No, I've hurt him too much this time, Emma."

They fell silent, Emma still hugging her. And as she did so, Snow's mind went back to her best friend, and David's gun rammed hard under her chin, ready to fire.

"Have you seen Ruby? I haven't since I was in the loft, and that was days ago. I woke up to find myself in here."

"We only got back ourselves half an hour ago. But yeah, I saw her and Belle in Portland this morning. They stayed at the same hotel as me and Regina last night."

"What's she doing in Portland?"

"It's a long story. But it seems before you and Ruby 'got back together', she was already cheating on Dorothy, with Belle of all people? And it had absolutely nothing to do with Ingrid's potion. Gold found out, again from the dreamcatcher, and he nearly killed her. Somehow, he stopped himself and threw them both over the town line instead. Henry said it's made the darkness take over Gold even more than normal."

"Belle?" Snow was mortified. She knew some of Ruby's past indiscretions, even during her marriage, but tried to overlook them for the sake of their friendship. "Good god, what a mess!"

"Yeah. You don't know the half of it!"

The Sherwood Arms

As Regina looked at him standing on the other side of the room, she suddenly felt herself starting to shake. Trying hard to hide her emotions, she walked closer, before slowly dropping onto one knee, then both, as she looked up at him, her eyes red and tired with dark lines under them like he'd never seen before. Then she lowered her head to face the floor.

"What on earth are you doing, Regina?"

"Surrendering. Where I come from, when a king or queen loses a throne in battle, or has wronged another and is forced to submit, we show public humiliation to the victor's side. I've wronged you Robin, so now I'm-"

"There's no need for that. Get up."

"No, I need to publicly-"

"No wife of mine ever bows before me! We're either equals, or we're nothing. Get up, Regina!"

The other drinkers, some thirty or so, had all watched in disbelief as the former Evil Queen, now a very different, broken woman to the one they feared for so long, slowly got back up off her knees, having humiliated herself before them. Even though Robin didn't like it, they understood the significance. She was surrendering for final judgment, even if he couldn't see it himself. But he still didn't move towards her, merely pointing to a side door.

"We can't talk out here. Let's go in the back room. Henry, if you wouldn't mind, your mother and I need to be alone?"

~oOo~

As he sat down on the sofa, she remained standing nervously, opposite.

"Regina, please come sit down?"

But she didn't. She'd been rehearsing the words she wanted to say ever since she'd left Portland, and she had to get them out, while she could.

"I'd prefer to stand, thank you." She twitched, wringing her hands, looking down. "Robin, Henry tells me you saw everything that happened on Gold's dream catcher. Everything between Emma and myself?"

"Everything." He nodded slowly. "Not just what you did, but what you said to each other, too." He stayed impassive, his eyes revealing nothing, just looking straight back at her while she tried to avoid the judgmental look, despite the occasional nervous glance up.

"First, you need to know that everything I did, and everything you heard me say, over the past few weeks, from the moment I inhaled that wretched potion, was not me! I realise my actions since then have hurt you and Roland so very much. But I swear to you, on my life, and even Henry's, that I wasn't in control of myself. I was bewitched in ways that even now I can't understand. And Emma was, too. And I've now learnt that Snow and Ruby were affected in much the same way." She paused, waiting for him to at least say something. But he just kept staring back. She gulped, took a breath, and carried on. "I really can't explain it other than that. Only to say that I'm so very sorry for everything I've put you through with my awful behaviour. I love you as much as I ever have, and I can only hope one day you'll believe me enough to forgive me."

He carried on looking at her in silence, weighing up what he'd heard, before finally:

"What were your feelings for Emma before you went into the cottage?"

Well that was one she hadn't expected!

"Well, erm, we started off as bitter enemies when she first came here. I even tried to use a sleeping curse on her. But gradually, over the years, as we fought many battle together and even saved each other's lives, I came to realise we had a lot in common, besides Henry. As we came to trust one another, we stopped fighting over him, accepted each other, and gradually became closer. After your murder, closer still, as she helped me through my grief. She's the closest friend I've ever had, but we were never romantically involved. Never!"

"So when you told Emma, after that first time you fucked her in that cottage..." He tried, but failed to hide the bitterness in of his voice as he used the coarse language. "...that you wished you'd known sooner she had deeper feelings for you, as you already had them for her, it would've made things easier for both of you, you were lying? You had no real feelings towards her?"

This was not going the way she intended. "I…I don't believe I ever said that."

"I disagree! I heard every word! And you know I'm a very good listener, Regina. You told her your feelings for her grew when you were in Neverland. Something about the 'mixing of your streams'?"

She vaguely recalled the incident. "I was only referring to streams of magic, nothing more. When we combined our magic streams to move some clouds covering the moon to break one of Pan's protective barriers, I discovered we were much more powerful working together, then in tandem. There was nothing romantic about it, despite what I might have said."

"That's interesting. You see, Gold told me Ingrid's potion wouldn't have been so powerful, had the unknowing victims not had very deep feelings for one another? Because all it did was exaggerate those feelings. So once again, I ask-"

"I'm not in love with her Robin, I swear! And Emma certainly isn't in love with me."

"Yet you told her things about the two of us? Intimate things. You even compared usi n bed. You-"

"The potion made me say all that!" Regina interrupted him, finally looked up, trying hard to hold back tears. "Robin, look. The only way I can explain it, is that once I came under its effects, all that mattered to me from then on, was Emma! Nothing else, only Emma. Not you, not Roland, not Henry. Only Emma. And I'd have done anything, killed anyone, for her. Do you know what I did to Henry when he came after me, furious after I'd kicked you out of our home? I stole his voice! I actually used magic to mute my own son. Can you seriously imagine me normally doing something like that to Henry?" Whatever he was thinking, there was a small change in Robin's expression. Was that sympathy? "And Emma was under the very same influence. So much so, she tried to choke her pirate to death, just for calling me a bitch? She tried to kill him in front of her own daughter? You know what that woman's like around Guyliner! She'd never hurt him in a million years, or Hope! You've seen Emma with that girl many times. Did you ever seriously imagine she'd do something like that if she was in control of her own mind?"

"I'll admit, it was a side of you both I never imagined I'd ever see."

"Robin, if there was any way I could undo the last three weeks, I would. You must believe me?"

But he ignored the question. "What hurt me the most, wasn't the fact I actually saw you having sex with her in that dream catcher. And oh my, there was a lot of sex, wasn't here? And it wasn't the vile things you said about me before and after; about our own sex life and my...shortcomings?" Regina visibly winced. "It was the way you broke Roland! I found that so unbelievably cruel. Especially the look on your face when Emma hit him. And do you know who I saw when you threatened me after? That last time I saw your face in the diner? The Evil Queen! Many people have told me all about her. But it's the first time I ever saw her for myself."

Regina knew this was going to be difficult. She knew she'd have to apologise many times over, not just to him but to everyone she'd hurt over the last few weeks. But hearing the man she loved refer to the monster she'd tried so hard to bury in her dismal past, hurt her more than she'd expected. Even if it was deserved.

"I tried to vanquish her a very long time ago! Again, I'm sorry. Robin, I love Roland like he's my own son, you know that! And there was absolutely nothing wrong with our love life. Nothing whatsoever! I've always been very happy with that side of our marriage, and before. But that potion made me see the world differently! But it's worn off now, leaving me to deal with the consequences of what I've done while I was under it. Dammit Robin, Snow White was so disgusted with herself, when she finally realised what she and Ruby had done to Charming, she tried to kill herself!"

"I know. I saw Snow in the hospital when I went to visit Mulan this morning. She's a mess."

"Exactly! That woman was the very symbol of all hope around here! That potion destroyed the strongest marriage in all the realms, bar ours, and for what? Do you seriously think that nauseatingly sugary princess would ever deliberately do anything to hurt David?"

Robin sat taking it all in, before nodding slowly. But his face still remained stony.

"I accept you make a good point. But then there's the little matter of Sydney Glass? You've held that man under some sort of 'enslavement charm', as Gold called it. Even after all this time? After you renounced the Evil Queen? You deliberately made him spread bile about us, so we'd be evicted from the forest and our homes. A false rumour that Much had been touching a fifteen-year-old girl inappropriately? That I'd been beating Roland? That this place was infested with rats and should be closed down? Imagined thefts in Storybrooke caused by my men? Why did you get so personal in your attacks on us? On me?"

"At the time I wanted revenge for what you did to Emma. I-"

"WHAT I DID TO EMMA?" Robin rarely raised his voice, but this time he was up on his feet, and in her face, in seconds. "THAT CUNT HIT MY SON!"

"I know that." She stayed looking at the floor, desperately trying to remain calm in the heat of his sudden rage. She's never even heard him use that word before. "And now the potion's left her body, she's as devastated for what she did, as I am. She now thinks she deserved the beating you gave her, after she struck him. You broke her jaw. But at the time, in her confused state, she thought she was acting to protect me. And I sought revenge on you, in any way I could think of, for putting her in hospital. Again, it was the potion."

"And Glass? Surely even you can't blame Ingrid's potion for keeping that pathetic bastard a prisoner all these years? To do whatever you want? Like a slave?"

"You're right, I can't. Sidney was kept back as my very last failsafe, if ever I needed him. I couldn't give him up, even though I should've. He was once under an enslavement charm, but Ingrid broke it and released him years ago. I found him and re-cursed him, to my shame. He believes himself to be madly in love with me to the point of obsession. I have no excuse, and I know it violates the Absolution of Former Villains charter that we passed while you were dead. When I leave here, I'll be surrendering myself to Hank Morgan, who will no doubt arrest me for that, and possibly more. It's likely I'll be spending quite some time in prison very shortly, as a result."

"What a bloody mess…" he shook his head. "Frankly, I'm not sure what to think any more." He went silent again and she finally sat down on the little armchair opposite, waiting. He studied her face. He'd never seen her looking so careworn, tired…almost haggard. Then he noticed something else. "What's that on your left wrist? A tattoo?"

"It's the magic-blocking bracelet." Regina pulled back the sleeve of her jacket, so he could see more clearly. "It changed into this the moment we left and crossed over the town line. Only Henry can remove it, though we tried."

"He told me you went to Miami?"

"We just needed to get away. We'd been stripped of magic because of these things..." she rubbed at the tattoo. "We were both removed from office, and we'd alienated everyone here. We also needed to get these off and get our magic back, because we were vulnerable. We drove to New York first, thinking there was someone who could help. There's a Chinese mystic there called The Dragon. You remember I told you about him when we were both trapped behind mirrors by the Evil Queen? Well he couldn't. He just confirmed what Gold said, that only Henry can."

"Then from New York to a five-star, beach-front hotel in Miami? Henry showed me the website. Looks very nice!" His sarcastic tone obvious. Clearly, you weren't worried about the mess you left behind. Why'd you come back, if you knew you'd be arrested?"

"We nearly didn't! It sounds ludicrous now, but with only each other to consider, we imagined ourselves starting a new life together, in Florida. Just the two of us. We even talked about getting married? Perhaps raising another child together. That's how bizarre things had become. Nothing else mattered to us while we were under the influence. Then a day or so after we arrived, it began to wear off. Emma first, then me a day later. The awful realisation of what we'd done, what we'd left behind, was devastating! We first reached out to Henry, to apologise and ask his forgiveness. It's then we found out about Ingrid's potion, and you both seeing the dream catcher. That was bad enough, but when he told us Snow had tried to commit suicide, well that just broke Emma. We finally realised we had to come back and face the music. Even if we were never forgiven by those we love."

Robin sat back down, cupping his face in his hands, trying to figure out what he should do next. It was another interminable silence for Regina.

"For Emma, it's bad enough she almost lost her mother. But to lose her husband and her daughter too, possibly for good? Henry doesn't even know where Guyliner's taken Hope. Possibly another realm? That bloody man-"

"THAT BLOODY MAN SAILED TO STOP HER TAKING HIS DAUGHTER!" Robin suddenly cut in. "Or worse, leaving her fatherless. At least finally have the decency to finally refer to Killian by his proper bloody name instead of that stupid fucking moniker? He does it for you, after all and he's as reformed as you are!"

"I'm sorry..." She felt like she'd just reverted to childhood being chastened by her father for bad behaviour. This was so very different to the Robin she knew and loved. But she new she deserved everything he threw at her. "I'm just saying that she can't even find him to start to apologise, to either of them. And without magic, she has no way of finding him if he's even in this realm!"

"He is, and I know where he's gone with her." He stood, walking over to the small drinks cabinet, picking up a glass. "I can get a message to him."

"Well at least that's something? I'll let her know, or at least tell Henry. Thank you."

"Scotch?" He lifted a whisky tantalus. "If you're about to be arrested, it might be your last for a while?"

"I'd love one." The mere fact he was at least willing to be in the same room as her, and offer her a drink, after everything that had happened to him, wasn't lost on Regina. The way she felt, she could have easily drained the entire tantalus, but reminding herself of her current condition, she knew she had to decline. Could she tell him now? Should she tell him now? "But I can't. Thank you, anyway."

She watched him turn and pour himself a measure, knowing this could be her last chance to salvage something from their relationship. Didn't the child within her deserve that, at least?

"Robin, I know I keep repeating myself, but everything I did was down to Ingrid's potion. I love you. And I'm in love with you, and no one else. I will do anything. Anything you ask of me, even if it's just staying away from you. But I need to know that there's going to be the slightest chance that you'll forgive me one day? If only for the sake of our children? Despite the fact you must hate me right now."

"I don't hate you, Regina." He downed the large measure in one slug. "I've ever hated you, despite everything. I fell in love with you and trusted you. That's what makes this all so painful! But I need time to think. My first priority has to be Roland right now. And there's always a risk, as far as you and Emma are concerned." Her eyes rose at that, and she suddenly felt a harsh tingling sensation coming from her stomach "What if this weird potion you inhaled is still inside you? Maybe it's dormant while your magic's suppressed? Regina, once you and Emma get those bracelets off and your magic comes back, you have the ability to kill any of us in a heartbeat! How do I know we'll be safe? How do I know-"

"ROBIN, I'M PREGNANT!" She suddenly yelled out, as though as force within her compelled her to finally admit it.

Taken by surprise, Robin's eyes widened as he was left temporarily speechless.

"I'm six to seven weeks pregnant, with your child!"

Portland, Maine - Several hours later

It was just before seven in the evening as the warm summer sun bathed the harbour front, and the collected bars and cafes lining it. It was their fourth evening in Maine's largest city. And Belle and Ruby, having spent their morning taking their minds off current difficulties by shopping for essentials and Ruby's wardrobe, now sat at a table by the seafront facing the port inlet, as various ships of all sizes came in on the evening high tide. Belle wore a large-brimmed floppy straw hat to protect her bare shoulders, while Ruby merely wore the white bikini she'd bought earlier, and sunglasses.

"I tell you Belle, some of the guys on these boats..." They watched as a sloop went by, a suntanned, topless, and extremely handsome young dark-haired man, possibly not even thirty, at the helm. "...are bloody gorgeous! I mean, take a look at him?"

Belle sniggered, slurping on the last of her iced coffee while looking down at her phone. "And that's the third boat you waved at, in the space of ten minutes! So, what were you saying about your call from Henry? Before we were...interrupted?"

"He said he's coming here tomorrow morning, and bringing Merlin with him. He also said he might try to bring Gideon with him after he talks to Gold tonight."

"I can't see Rumple letting him do that, as much as I'd love it if he did..." The former librarian looked glum. "He'll be too scared I run off with him."

"Well he said he'll try. it was only a short call. Apparently when they got there earlier, Emma went in to check up on Snow, though he's heard nothing back from her. Oh, and apparently there's a friend of his who owns a farm somewhere near here. There a bed and breakfast with it and they need someone to look after so they can go on holiday. He thought I might want to stay there, and maybe earn some cash? Let's face it, I could do with the money!"

"I might be joining you if I can't get back to Storybrooke anytime soon. Why's Merlin coming with him?"

"To held me with an identity, papers, that sort of thing. I even thought I might try to find some temp work on the boats out here."

"So that's why you've been flirting with every sailor that went past?"

"Well, yeah...though admit it, some of these guys are pretty hot? And if they've got money, even better!"

Belle shook her head. It would have felt wrong to remind her that she was still married. She'd destroyed her marriage to her supposed true love, as much as she'd wrecked her own. By infidelity. Seeing the way she easily flirted with everyone she encountered, male or female, she had to remind herself that Ruby was a werewolf-hybrid, not a wolf-hybrid. And she now learnt that, unlike wolves, they definitely weren't monogamous. Over the last few evenings together, as they slowly began to accept their fates outside the magical town, Belle had grown to realise that they were very different!

As an even larger boat, a schooner, edged slowly past them nearer to where they were mooring, Belle noticed this one had a very attractive, tall chestnut-haired woman at the wheel. She was nicely tanned and wore sunglasses. While at the bow end, a tall, even more tanned blonde man stood ready to jump off, rope in hand, to tie the boat up.

Ruby was the first to spot him. "Now that one is bloody stunning!" As she spoke, she noticed the woman at the wheel turn to smile at Belle, who gave her a little wave back. "And the girl he's with, is pretty hot too! I'll invite them over to join us. Which one do you fancy tonight then?"

"Join us?" Belle signalled for the waiter to order another iced coffee. "What are you talking about?"

"Inviting them over for a drink? Belle, if we wanna get some work while we're here, we need to make some friends. That's an expensive boat, so one, or both of them, probably have money and may even have some part-time work going? If not, then we've made a couple of friends anyway. What do you say? She definitely seems interested in you, and I can tell you like her too! Besides, I'd be more than happy to take care of him tonight."

"What do you mean, she's interested in me?" Belle took her shades off, hardly believing what she was hearing. "And what on earth makes you think I'd be interested in another woman, anyway?"

"Oh, some on!" Ruby drawled sarcastically, tapping the side of her nose with her finger. "I may not be able to shapeshift out here, but I can still 'smell' the interest on you! Wolf senses, remember?"

"That's impossible," she hated to admit it, but Ruby was onto something. The young woman on the boat had piqued her interest. She lowered her voice. "What makes you so sure I want to swing that way? Apart from...well, you?"

Ruby chuckled, leaning closer so not to be overheard as another couple walked past. "Because let's face it babe, like most of us girls, if you're honest, once you've had the taste and experience of another woman, it's not something you want to give up for good now, is it? Besides, where's the harm? We're all single now. If they're not interested, or we don't get on, it's no problem. But if they are...well, you could even take him instead and I'll take her? Or we can swap over? I've got a feeling in my bones about those two."

Belle didn't know whether she should be shocked, or offended. But she was right about being single again. And perhaps making new friends out here could help them?

"Okay, just invite them over to join us for a drink. Nothing else! You, Ruby Lucas, are incorrigible!"

"And that's why you love me."

~oOo~

Sure enough, Ruby had walked over to the young couple who'd arrived on the schooner, and Belle had watched from a hundred yards away while she chatted to them, pointing back in her direction. And a few minutes later, all three had joined her at their table. The couple, Jerard and Olivia, French and English respectively, had originally sailed all the way from the English Channel Islands five months earlier. Ruby made the introductions as Belle studied them more. Jerard was even more handsome than he'd looked from fifty yards away with his shirt off. The tan seemed to be deeper, clearly the result of spending time on the ocean, under the sun. The blonde hair seemed more golden now. And his perfect teeth, genuine smile and taught body under the cotton T-shirt showed a man at the peak of good health.

"Enchantée, Madame Belle." His French accent did all sorts of things to her, even more so as he kissed the back of her hand in front of them.

"Tout le plaisir est pour moi, Jerard." She replied. Belle remembered her French from her childhood days.

"See, I told you she looked clever, Jer!" Said the other woman as her partner passed belle's hand over as she watched. "Hello, Belle!" Surprisingly, she also turned the hand over, kissing it lightly while ever taking her eyes off her. "I'm Olivia. Call me Livvy? And you don't have to speak French with me. Or him! It's lovely to meet you both. Ruby tells me you guys are looking for some part-time work?"

If Jerard was handsome, Olivia was just stunning! And she reminded her of Ariel. Her tan was also genuine, and deep, and her skin unflawed. And she hadn't let go of her hand.

"You're beautiful!" The words left Belle's lips without thinking, earning a warm smile from the other woman as she pinked. From the corner of her eye, she could see Ruby grinning at her faux-pas. "Sorry, I, er..."

"Please don't apologise! I was thinking the same thing about you! You're lovely. Now, there was something about a drink?"

Forty minutes later, as the waiter brought over a second bottle of wine, Belle had finally relaxed as the alcohol started to take affect. The couple didn't have any real part-time work for them, as they planned to move on in a week or so. But Olivia invited them to join them the following morning for a cruise south. Ruby's legendary flirting skills were in force, and keenly appreciated by Jerard, while Olivia merely smiled back at him, blowing him the occasional air-kiss, something Belle found more than curious.

"So...you and Jerard? Are you a couple? Married, perhaps?"

That made them both chuckle, Olivia collecting his hand in hers as she poured the wine. "Couple? No. Lovers, from time to time? Definitely." She leant across, kissing his cheek. "I guess you could say we're...attached, but no strings attached. We're not exclusive. But this guy's my rock."

"And Livvy's my rose!" He pecked her lips lightly. "I couldn't survive without her."

"Sounds like my sort of people!" Ruby exchanged a look with Belle. The former librarian knew exactly what she was thinking. But what she hadn't been expecting was what came out next. "Just like me and Belle. No strings."

Belle gulped, saying nothing and just staring back. Ruby was always direct when it came to sex, but never when it involved her. Back in Storybrooke, even the slightest hint that she'd been unfaithful to Rumple could have got her, or anyone else, killed. But the other couple just seemed to be smiling back at her as Olivia took her hand again.

"I guessed when you smiled back at me earlier, that you might be into girls? I kinda sensed Ruby was. I certainly am." She squeezed her hand a little tighter. Her pupils now definitely seemed larger. "And boys. Tell me Belle, are you into boys too?"

"Erm..." Nervously, she looked back at Ruby, only to see her friend's hand was now resting on Jerard's thigh, her fingers decidedly close to other parts.

"Yeah, she is..." Ruby answered for her, earning a silent glower. "We both are, actually."

"Well that's good to know," Olivia now turned back to her, moving her chair in a little closer, while Jerard, already putting an arm around Ruby's shoulder, grinned a devilish grin. "What say we all get a bite to eat somewhere around here? Then perhaps, back to the boat for a...nightcap?"

Olivia's green eyes burned into Belle's. "Yeah, though I'm not hungry yet. Her, what say we show these beautiful ladies where we've been living? We can have a drink down there first, maybe two, then we can head off? What do you say, Belle?"

~oOo~

Ten minutes later, they found themselves inside the galley of the schooner, with a chilled bottle of wine in front of them, which he started to pour. Ruby was standing next to him, putting the glasses down as Belle and Olivia sat at the little table, opposite them.

"Ladies, this comes from my family estate, in the heart of the Alsace. It isn't one of my family's best, but well...I hope you like it. it's got some gooseberry notes, like a Sauvignon Blanc, but-"

"Jer, stop being pretentious and just pour the damn thing!" Olivia cut in, edging herself even tighter against the librarian. "Belle's getting thirsty here, and so am I!"

"Sorry, my darling. Belle, please forgive me?" He smirked, filling the glasses. All four took them and took a slug. Belle more than the rest of them.

"Mmm, that's lovely. Now Jerard, why don't you hurry up and and kiss that gorgeous woman next to you? I can tell Ruby's more than keen. Aren't you, my dear?"

"No argument there," Ruby, who seemed completely at ease with the unusual situation, merely smiled back as he turned to face her. She even wrapped her arms around his waist. "Come on then handsome, why don't you show me what you got?"

"By all means, anything for a beautiful lady..." Without any hesitation or awkwardness, he tilted his head as he slid a hand into her hair to support her, planting a soft kiss on her lips. Ruby instantly welcomed it, opening her own mouth wider to receive him as tongues came into play, followed by a long, drawn out moan. Olivia grinned as she watched, like this was an everyday event.

"You know Belle, he really is a very good kisser! As I'm sure you'll find out shortly, if you don't mind sharing?"

"Sharing?" Belle's eyes were on stalks as she watched them. "You mean...you do this sort of thing all the time? Share each other?"

"Not very often, but yes, on occasion. As you've realised, I'm bi myself, but so's Jerard. If we find someone who we're into, and who's into us, well why not? Mind you, I must admit I've never had a foursome before. Have you?"

"Erm..." she looked back up at Ruby, who seemed to be getting really into it, her left hand now sliding down to the front of his trousers, giving a gentle squeeze to the hardening bulge that lay beneath. "No. I've only ever been with one man, and one woman."

"Oh. Well that's surprising, for someone with your looks! Listen, if you're not comfortable, we can always leave them and well, go back up top? Or, maybe you could join me in the berth next door?"

But looking at the two now aggressively making out in front of them, and getting more and more heated by the second, was definitely turning her on! In all her years she'd only ever known Rumple, and in the last few years, Ruby. In it was the sheer excitement of doing some...debauched...that had made her turn to the wolf in the first place. And now, with the other woman merely inches away, those intense pale-blue eyes starting back at her weren't helping!

"No, it's...it's okay, I'm just nervous, I guess."

"I understand," she felt a warm hand settle on her thigh, just above the knee. "Belle, may I kiss you?"

~oOo~

Two drinks later, all four of them lay on the surprisingly-large double bed, in the bow of the schooner. Ruby was already stripped of her bikini, laying back and watching with a libidinous grin as, close to her side, Belle was on her knees, pressed up against Olivia, both women focused as they engaged in a torrid, open-mouthed kiss, while in the process of removing each others bras.

"Good god, you two look seriously hot together!" She gasped, seeing her friend looking so wanton and keen. "If those guys in your library could see you now Belle, they wouldn't recognise you!"

Olivia unsealed her lips from Belle's. "You work in a library?" She tilted her head down to seize a nipple between her lips. "I love books."

"Worked in...aah!" She hissed. "I left. I...ooh...that's worked in..." she couldn't string a sentence together anymore as she felt a warm hand across her bare backside. Jerard's!

"Don't tire her out too quickly, my darling?" His soft French accent sounded decidedly more heated as, having already removed his trousers, he pulled down his boxers, releasing a surprisingly thick and definitely erect member, making Ruby gulp. It had been a while since she'd seen, let alone experienced one. "We're supposed to be sharing, I recall?"

"Of course, my sweet." Olivia twisted her head, catching his lips with her own. But as she did, one side of the boat went significantly darker, as a much larger vessel passed by. "Though be a love, and close those curtains will you? Someone on that ship might see in, and I'd hate to cause a collision?"

Despite being naked, Jerard moved across to close each of the three small sliding curtains to shield their modesty. Though not before spotting a large, four masted galleon draw slowly past, up close. Being a sailing ship fanatic, he stopped to look over the vessel.

"Incroyable! That is one beautiful brig! She looks almost...authentique?"

"Jerard?" Ruby spoke up. "You're standing by that window, stark naked, with a hard-on I can hang my washing on! And I'm here, wanting you to use it? Now for god's sake, close that curtain, come over here, and fuck me. Otherwise I'll have to join in with the girls!"

"Pardon madamoiselle. Where are my manners?" He closed the curtain to join them.

Meanwhile, under the fading sunlight, within yards of the moored schooner, a large four-masted centuries old brigantine edged slowly past, its sails furled as the captain behind the wheel expertly edged closer to the part of the quay reserved for larger ships, yelling instructions to his skeleton crew. A small blonde girl sat beside him, on the top of the wheel housing, looking excited, despite the late hour.

"So daddy, we're really going to be see Henry tomorrow?"

"That's what your Uncle Robin told me, my love. Now sit still while we moor up, there's a good girl."

~oOo~