Disclaimer: none of these characters belong to me . This story is non-profitable and is meant for entertainment purpose only.

Trigger warning: aftermath of rape!

Henry was watching her silently, his eyes inquisitive in a way only a child could manage. Her little boy was home and she could hardly believe it was really him sitting there, looking comfortable and uncomfortable all at the same time. Her baby boy whom she had missed so much was just simply sitting there, watching her with a worry she hated, despised with every fiber of her being. God, she was so relieved to finally lay her eyes on him again, so relieved he had actually allowed her to hug him and kiss his cheek the way she had done a hundred times before the Curse had been broken, before he'd known her to be the Evil Queen, rotten to the core. Regina couldn't even be upset that Snow was here, in her dining room, watching her like a hawk.

Nothing mattered anymore in this moment, for her little boy had returned home.

But how long would that last? And Regina quickly shut those traitorous thoughts out, she didn't want them to torture her any longer. Not right now, not when she wanted to allow herself to feel that warm and fuzzy feeling inside of her that she felt came awfully close to happiness.

Her mother would laugh at her.

Regina could feel the tense muscles in her back, could feel them sizzling with the strain she put on them. She was sitting rigid, her back as straight as a plank for her mother had drilled it into her that it would hide the curve of her waist. Mother had always said she had inherited her father's genes for weight gain. Looking back, Regina wanted to cringe. She had always been skinny, maybe even bordering on too skinny, but right now Regina felt like she needed it. Surely she must because she had been sucking in her belly for about twenty minutes now. It was so unnecessary, there was nothing to see yet. The curve she had imagined there was hardly noticeable to the outside world. No one knew, no one saw. It was impossible.

Fucking stupid.

But as always, there was that small twinge of doubt, telling her are you sure, Regina? I did notice a little bit of a belly when I glanced in the mirror this morning, Regina. The Charming spawn can't be hidden anymore, Regina. And so, she stayed seated in that uncomfortable pose, back straight, belly tucked in, chin high. Every bit as regal as her former title suggested.

She swiped her eyes across the scene in front of her. Henry was still watching her with a fascination Regina thought was irksome. She wasn't some exhibit in a museum to be stared at. Snow wasn't faring much better. Her dark eyes, which had always reminded Regina of the King's, were studying her in the most intrusive of ways. When Regina accidentally made eye contact, immediately cursing the fact, Snow shot her that polite smile and turned her eyes down towards the steaming mug of coffee in front of her. Politeness more than anything else had made Regina suggest some coffee to the Princess.

One cannot have a guest go thirsty, Regina mother was echoing in her mind. And so it came to be that Snow was now nursing a cup of coffee and Henry was all too happy sipping his chocolate milk from his favorite mug. Regina herself had opted for a small cup of tea. Apparently, she had also made the unconscious decision to take care of herself better for the sake of the child – the baby – the Charming spawn.

You know what you mean.

Whilst Regina was busy with her thoughts, staring into the steaming liquid. Snow had opted to go back to her intrusive observing. She wasn't being too obvious, she assured herself. If Snow was being honest with herself, and she always was, Regina was not looking very well. She was looking rather terrible, actually. Not that she wasn't as stunning as always, for Regina Mills could hardly be anything but that. It was more like it was apparent that the last couple of months had been hard on her. There were dark circles under her eyes, clearly visible on too pale skin. The former Queen looked exhausted and about to fall asleep on them both. The wardrobe change did also not go unnoticed by Snow. Regina was wearing the usual dress pants and high heels, but instead of some form-fitting shirt, she was now donning a loose blouse that almost swallowed her up entirely, hiding away the curves the woman had always been proud to display. It was obvious what Regina was trying to do and it broke Snow's heart.

Henry had, during all her staring, actually started talking to his brunette mother, hands animatedly gesturing and Snow watched Regina was trying, and failing, to pay attention to whatever it was the boy was saying.

Regina was starting to feel more and more uncomfortable. She had half a mind to start snapping at the girl to just stop staring at her. Snow obviously thought she was being low-key, which she was clearly not. And had never been, now that Regina thought about it. It distracted her, and Henry noticed.

"Mom?"

Regina took a second to shake her head clear of the thoughts about Snow and… everything. She put on the smile she especially reserved for Henry and turned towards him, teeth sparkling and eyes kind. "Yes Henry?" She tried to put on her brave face, trying to reassure him that everything was alright, besides what his biological mother had done to his adoptive mother which in turn caused his adoptive mother to get pregnant though some very fucked up sort of magic. But Henry did not need to know that now, or ever if it was up to Regina. For how much she hated Emma Swan right now, knowing what his biological mother had done would most certainly traumatize Henry.

Henry was obviously not buying his mother's act. His brow furrowed in that adorable way that made Regina's heart ache. "Are you listening to me, mom?" He asked, a tinge of suspicion worming its way into his voice. He hated being lied to.

Her smile only got bigger and it made for an eerie sight combined with the dark circles around her eyes. "I'm sorry, Henry. I didn't quite catch what you said," her voice was warm, low, deep in a way that was meant to comfort and did exactly that, even to Snow's ears and she wasn't even the child here. "I got a little distracted, honey," Regina continued. "But please continue."

"Oh," he decided to let it go for now, whatever it was, his mother was certainly not going to tell with his grandmother sitting on the opposite side of the dining table. "I was just wondering if I could maybe get a cookie." The boy smiled brightly, his eyes twinkling at the prospect of the sugary treat. There was absolutely no way Regina could resist his childish delight. And so, she nodded.

"Of course, dear," she would do anything to keep him close to her, even if it meant letting him have a cookie late in the afternoon, just before dinner. Well, it was not as if she would be putting in the work to make his dinner. The thought appeared before she could stop it, it just popped up in her head.

"Thanks, mom," his smile was priceless, filling her heart with a warmth only her child could create. He jumped up from his chair, heading towards the kitchen and it felt so blessedly normal that Regina could cry. Which she immediately blamed on the hormones that were currently making her life that much more difficult. Henry knew exactly where she hid the cookie jar, probably because Regina had caught him more times than she could count, trying to sneak a cookie before dinner. She allowed herself to become lost in her thoughts for only a second and it brought a watery smile to her face. She listened to the all too familiar sound of the glass jar scraping over her granite countertop, which was already scratched mind you.

A memory came up and she couldn't help but let that smile grow into a fond grin. 'Henry, you have hands for a reason, namely to lift things so please stop dragging it! You'll scratch the granite!' She had said it a million times before and yet the boy continued to scrape it over the stone. 'But mom! You put it way too far for me to lift!' He would always reply.

"Henry, you're ruining my kitchen." Regina couldn't help it, she missed their playful banter. It was worth the confused look Snow shot her, for his reply nearly brought tears to her eyes in recognition.

Henry just shrugged as he came waltzing back into the dining room with a big grin on his face, holding two oatmeal cookies in his hand, and when had Regina allowed for two cookies? "It's already scratched so what's a few more? I can't help it you always put the jar too far," he sat down on his chair again, grin still intact.

Regina chuckled softly, moving closer to drop a quick kiss on the side of his face but she retracted when she remembered everything that had transpired. Would Henry still want her this close? Would he still be able to accept her love when she had done all those horrible things? To his mother, to his grandparents. Hell, she couldn't even forgive herself, how could she expect Henry to?

But Henry surprised her in the most wonderful of ways, leaning in instead and placing a kiss on her cheek before sitting back and continuing to munch on his cookie like he hadn't just made his mother the happiest woman on the planet for just a second or two.

Her heart fluttered and she completely forgot about Snow for a minute as she smiled at her little boy. "I love you, my little Prince," her words were said softly, privately. She wanted to pull him into a hug and never let him go again. She wanted to keep him close to her and protect him from all the dangers out in the world. Which was ironic, that little voice in her mind told her again, for she was the danger he had to be protected from.

"I love you too, mom," he muttered with a mouthful of cookie and Regina wanted to tell him to swallow before he spoke, but the moment she caught a whiff of the oatmeal, her stomach turned and her face grew even paler than it had already been. With her left hand she clutched at her stomach, crumpling the loose fabric of her blouse in a tight fist. She all but jumped up, tipping over her chair in the process. The wood connected loudly with her floor, drawing startled glances from both Snow and Henry, eyes growing wide at the unexpected sound. Regina ignored the confused and worried expressions shot her way and instead practically ran towards her downstairs bathroom, stumbling over herself in her haste to keep herself from vomiting all over her expensive floor. At least she had the sense to pull the door closed behind herself before she fell to her knees in front of the toilet and heaved up the meager meal she had eaten a couple of hours ago.

Henry was right behind her, having quickly snapped out of his confusion which had almost immediately morphed into concern. He wanted to follow his mother, but Snow was just as quick to pull him back. She knew there was no way in hell that Regina wanted Henry to see her like this. "Henry," she said sternly, more so than she meant but there was no time to dwell on that, holding onto the boy's arm. "She doesn't want you to see her like this, sweetheart," Snow's voice turned soft, she knew he only wanted to help his mother. She looked worried and teary-eyed. Just like Henry.

Henry in turn frowned at his grandmother, trying to pull his arm away from her tight grip. "But my mom, she's sick," he sounded so young and upset, willing the woman to understand why he had to go after his mother.

But Snow wouldn't budge.

"Let me just check up on her, okay?" she asked softly with a comforting smile, well, as comforting as she could muster right this moment. "Just go and watch some TV in the living room, I promise your mom will be just fine, it's probably just a mild stomach bug, it's been going around," she hated lying to him, but she knew she had no other option. There was no way she would burden the boy with the truth.

He furrowed his brow, telling her he wasn't buying it for one second. "Are you sure, grandma?"

Snow nodded. "Yes, I'm sure Henry. Just stay in the living room for a bit, I will check up on your mom."

The boy sighed, but obeyed. Casting one last worried glance towards the general direction his mother had just disappeared in and nodded.

Snow didn't like to think so, but she was a little scared, mentally preparing to open the door and step into that bathroom. It had been ten minutes already and still no sight of the former Queen. At first Snow decided that it would be better to just wait for the woman to get out, instead of barging in herself. But this was taking very long and it had been eerily quiet for a little while now. So why wasn't Regina coming out?

Deciding to take her chances, she knocked on the door, fully expecting Regina to go all Evil Queen on her ass. "Regina? Regina, are you all right?" it remained quiet. "Regina, I've been waiting for a while now, but I'm worried so I'm going to come in now, okay?" Snow didn't wait for an answer this time, instead slowly pushing the door open.

It was shocking to say the least, Snow thought as she watched the proud woman looking oh so vulnerable. Hair wild and curled at the damp hairline, blouse crumpled and heels kicked off and into a corner in an effort to make herself more comfortable while she was heaving up her intestines. It seemed the onslaught had stopped for the moment for Regina was curled up, resting her back against the wall.

"Get out of here, Snow," it was clear it hurt Regina to speak. Her voice sounded hoarse and raw, eyes red and teary and there were dried tear-tracks on her pale cheeks. "I'm fi-"

Regina's attempt to placate Snow's worries was brutally cut off by another wave of sickness. It hurt Snow's heart to see the proud woman scrambling on the tiles in her haste to get to the toilet. The Princess wasn't sure what came over her and she was certain that if Regina wasn't currently preoccupied she would've gotten a fireball in the face, but Snow quickly made her way over to the older woman and softly pulled her dark hair out of the way.

Ignoring those terrible sounds which seemed to go on for hours, Snow instead focused on that dark hair she was currently holding back, hair that she used to admire. Snow remembered that she had loved her stepmother's hair back then and always asked to braid it and brush it for the Queen. But it wasn't those beautiful curls that she loved the most, no, it was the dark, almost black color. A color that reminded her so much of her own. In Snow's young mind it bound them together as a family, for in her young mind, family always resembled each other.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

It was Regina's low voice that startled her out of her memories and Snow quickly pulled her hands away as if she had been burned. Which was still a very real possibility.

"I'm sorry, Regina, I didn't mean to overstep," Snow got up on her feet, offering Regina her hand, but Regina just stared at it as if it was a sword pointing at her instead. She ignored the offered help and pushed herself up slowly.

Snow was watching her like a hawk, noticing the way Regina's blouse got pulled tightly over her stomach and everything seemed to freeze for a moment. It wasn't hard to see that the former Queen was fuller in certain places and did she spot the tiniest curve to the woman's usually flat stomach? Her mind was racing, jumping from possibility to possibility. But it couldn't be, could it?

"Regina," she said softly to catch the woman's attention. "What I'm going to ask you is probably not true and is going to sound very stupid but I still have to ask," Regina just stared at her, eyebrows furrowed and a hand on her stomach. "Regina, are you pregnant?"

Snow knew it was true the moment she stopped speaking. There was no denying it now, not by the way she noticed Regina's eyes watering, or the way her hand grasped at her stomach. There was a look of desperation on the former Queen's face and something just clicked in Snow's mind.

"Emma?" her voice was close to a whisper as she watched the older woman break down.

Regina took a shuddering breath, she didn't know it would hit her so hard to hear the Savior's name in this vulnerable moment, but it did and she could feel herself starting to hyperventilate. "Yes," Regina hardly managed to get the word out, but it felt, dare she say it, good to finally tell someone the secret she had been living with for the last three months. To just let it all out, even if it was to Snow she was confiding in.

It was no use asking how, for Snow already knew. "Magic," she had heard of it before and it had not been uncommon back in the Enchanted Forest. Rare? Yes, but uncommon? Most certainly not.

"Well you did give birth to a daughter, did you not Snow?" Regina was feeling more and more vulnerable by the second and she did not like it one bit.

"But," Snow furrowed her brows in confusion. As she said, magical pregnancies had not been unheard of back in the Enchanted Forest, but it could not happen randomly either. Her tutor had told her stories pertaining the phenomenon, but in each case, there had always been a common factor. There had to be an element of True Love involved. Which meant…

"Magical pregnancies are only possible through True Love."

A dry, painful sounding chuckle left Regina's lips. She looked up slowly, knowing what the other woman was thinking right now. "Isn't it deliciously ironic, dear?" there was self-loathing obvious in her voice. "The Evil Queen gets a second chance at True Love," she clenched her jaw and curled both her hands into tight fists. "Only to get raped by that True Love, that second chance."

Snow was saved from responding by a bang resounding from the other side of the bathroom door. Almost as if something or someone fell against it. Both women flinched at the noise and Regina could immediately feel panic filling up her throat. It wasn't hard to imagine what the noise was for her son had always been a curious boy.

Snow quickly moved towards the noise, opening the door and revealing the boy behind it.

There were tears in his eyes and Henry, having always seemed so old in his behavior, looked every bit the ten-year-old that he was. "Did Emma really do that to you, mom?" his voice sounded so small, so unsure. He prayed he had misheard and that his mom wasn't really pregnant with Emma's baby. That the woman who was supposed to save everyone hadn't really raped his mom.

But looking at the fresh tears that were now streaming down his mother's cheeks and the way her body shook with sobs, Henry knew he hadn't misheard.

And so he ignored his pain and walked past his grandmother who was looking at him with sad eyes and stood next to his mother, letting her hold him as tight as she needed to, while he held her just as tight.