Around double the time it took them to get to the alley, they reached the bar. Her employees couldn't run it without her permission so ever since she went missing it remained closed and thankfully intact. A warmth he had missed engulfed the homeless man the moment he stepped inside the establishment. He heard the feisty one explaining where the essentials were and giving instructions to the mellow one. He'd apparently be dressed with some old sweatpants and a hoodie of hers for the night, his clothes would be washed first thing in the morning and while he would shower at her room upstairs she'd make him something to eat. Sounded good to him. He went up the whirling staircase with the lad who showed him everything and disappeared inside the room. Henry came down the stairs with a blanket and after he left it on the couch he went at the bar, sat at a stool and watched his mom preparing a burger with whatever ingredients were preserved in the fridge.
As if he took the phrasing "the walls have ears" literally, the young author spoke like he and his mom were sharing a secret from the universe. "So….is it really him?" he almost whispered. She looked at her room's door before turning her attention to him. "Yes. It's him" she let out and even though Henry knew it deep down her certainty still took him by surprise. "Mom I don't doubt you, believe me but how can you be so sure?" Regina stopped her preparations and placed her arms on top of the bar, looking her son with earnesty and kindness. "Are you sure you want to know Henry?" He understood what she meant and a fleeting thought urged him to decline but he didn't let it take over. "Mom, I don't pretend to know everything, especially about human relationships and you are my mother so technically I should say no but….I saw the way you said goodbye to him that night. The only thing that matters to me is your happiness. And honestly….his as well" Regina grabbed her son's hands and squeezed, trying very hard to not get emotional. "Okay" she cleared her throat "first you have to know that when a shape shifting spell occurs, it affects the tone of voice and obviously the individual's appearance but never the way they naturally smell. I recognized him when he fell on me. Don't…ask me how I know his natural scent so well" Henry coughed and stirred uncomfortably on his stool "I wasn't going to but I can guess. Anyway" he emphasized to diffuse the tension "continue"
Regina resumed her work on making Rumple a decent plate to eat and continued. "He doesn't have any magic, I didn't sense anything. That can be because the Dark One is really gone and I always linked to his magic…" she pondered furrowing her brows "but nevertheless his wound would have healed by itself gradually if he possessed any kind of magic, especially one he couldn't control due to his memory loss" As if she forgot an important detail she took a steep breath and looked Henry in the eyes this time "Oh and his open wound is right on top of the mark of his old wound!...Don't ask me how I know about that either" she let her voice drop and cracked the egg she was going to fry open. "Mom I get it" Henry smiled and proceeded on letting her know he'd be leaving soon. Fortunately for him the place Jacinda, Tiana and Lucy used to reside in was bought by Tiana after the curse broke. Most of his clothes were there since he basically had moved in immediately. It was all working out, Henry was being optimistic.
Regina placed the full plate between them but when she spoke she sounded a bit worried. "You know we're going to need some people Weaver knew to come back here and help us right? Until he gets his memory back. He needs familiarity to jolt it and we need to protect him, keep an eye on him" Nervous fingers tapped on the surface of the bar until Henry's hand lovingly cupped them. "Don't worry mom. Operation Golden Phoenix is on the go. And our operations never fail" he smiled wide. As Regina observed the glint in his eyes she felt hopeful. That was his gift, always making her believe in the impossible, always giving her hope. Unbeknownst to them their current state could be observed by the freshly showered man who had just closed the door behind him.
"So I see you made good on your promise" he said as he approached the bar, sitting at the stool next to Henry and dragging the plate dead center in front of him. An open burger with a fried egg on top of it, seasoned well as far as he could tell and some fries on the side. "That's the best I could do without much fresh ingredients" her voice warm, her gaze sweet, only detected by her Prince. Henry took that as a cue for his departure, the man waved an obscure goodbye by waving his hand in the air briefly and Regina went to show him out and hug him goodnight. Upon her return she noticed he had placed his knife besides his by now half done meal. His eyes never left the plate; he was placing an almost ceremonial attention on his meal. Regina couldn't help but drink in his features she could see so clearly now… His long hair combed to the back, still damp, framing his face so beautifully. His beard, a very new characteristic on him for her, now neat and almost shiny. It becomed him. Her eyes lovingly took in every wrinkle, every moment his mouth made, the color of his eyes she dreamt night after night… He finished his plate without looking up although his voice suddenly boomed "Look lady, just because your boy toy left for the night, it doesn't mean I'm replacing him. I ain't fucking ya"
Regina felt her surprised anger bubbling up, her eyes widened but shot daggers at him nevertheless, her jaw clenched and with a swift move she reached for her bat and dropped it on the bar, the loud thump startling him. "Listen DEAR. If you ever even touch me without my permission, this bat will be the one giving you painful kisses all over the body. And you don't wanna know where your precious knife will end up. Understood?" she snarled. Her voice let alone her threat could have sent any other person running out the door but not him. He slowly looked up and when their eyes met he broke a crooked smile that made Regina's heart pump faster, the familiarity of it... "Misunderstanding. Forgive me?" Regina put up her act to perfection, rolled her eyes and after some fake deliberation she said a simple "Fine". Awkward silence fell between them and her mind tried to find ways to break it. Luckily she remembered his wound so she suggested he'd go sit on the couch and wait for her and her first aid kit.
As he was settling down, relatively away from the bar, Regina began making her magical paste. This kind of infection needed a hospital visit and she preferred not to get involved with the dreadful red tape of it all, taking care of Rumple would be her responsibility and their friends, it was too risky to get very involved in non magical people's lives and their systems. When she was done she went to him holding fresh bandages with the paste layered upon them. "This will help the infection recede and disappear and your skin will be good as new in a few days" she said as she sat at the edge of the coffee table and rolled the bandage around the lower leg with precision. As she was holding his leg up it occurred to her some small talk wouldn't hurt so she blurted the first thing that came to her mind while looking at his legs "I'm sorry for the old gym wear, it's all I had that could fit you. All worn out and black…" He chuckled softly "I like black. And it's comfy" That made her smile.
As she was finishing up her task he spoke again "So can I ask you something?" "Sure" "Is the young lad your boyfriend? Hook up? I don't know what you call him" Regina laughed because she remembered Kelly making the same mistake. Apparently their bond was pretty obvious to the outsiders and Henry was indeed a good looking man, her precious boy. Plus she was slightly flattered that she would be considered a woman that dated young men so they could keep up with her. If only you knew… "No Henry's nothing like that, he's a good friend. Has a family and all, maybe you'll get to meet them. All set" she said as she lowered the pant leg.
As she stood up ready to say goodnight, he looked her in the eyes and spoke again "Thank you… You said that Weaver was a friend of yours right?" "Y—yes, yes he was" The question took her by surprise. "So what kind of friend was he? You seem to care a lot about my well being since you apparently think I'm him…" Regina was startled but she tried to play it cool as usual, Roni was an unfazed chick she reminded herself. "He was checking out for bad crowd in the bar being a detective and all, getting his drinks here from time to time since the police station is pretty close. We just had a couple of happy hours together, that's all" The man raised his eyebrows "Oh… well that's… that's good to know" he smirked and laid his head on the large and curiously soft couch arm, tucking himself under the blanket. He closed his eyes and just stayed there. As Regina was hovering above him confused, he said simply "Aren't you going to sleep? I'm tired. Please turn off the lights as you go upstairs" She really wanted to know what he meant by that smirk but between him being infuriating as usual and her having to be chill about it, she didn't have that much of a choice but do as he said. "Goodnight" she said in the darkness before going up the stairs and got nothing in return.
Rolling her eyes she eventually walked up, reached her bed and splayed her limbs all over it with a sigh. Looking at the ceiling, her mind drifted away, her body trying to relax and release the tension of this crazy day. She realized that out of every bizarre thing that have happened to them over the years this was the strangest and out of all the complicated dynamics their relationship had, this was most definitely the most tangled judging by external factors. It occurred to her that this was the first time she really knew more about a situation than him. The first time she'd be the one hiding her true identity from him, being the magical one, having control. Whenever she used to dream of having that kind of power over him in the past, it always made her excited -a worthy goal to obtain. Now it only made her sad. Because it was also the first time she was fully aware that she loved him. No tricks, no buts or ifs, no emotional repressions, no traces of revenge. She loved him and she only cared about his well being. Then her mind drifted suddenly to what they both thought it was his happy ending. Why wasn't he with Belle? What happened to him? Her heart started to ache so she stopped thinking about it. She swore to herself she wouldn't think about that again unless it was necessary. Off course she was worried about him and his fate. She wanted to protect him and do what was the best for him. In the meantime though, she'd just… have him close. To her and her alone. The thought made her chest go up and down in waves, her eyes turned watery. She had missed him so much