A/N: Wow, I totally didn't keep my promise of updating every week. I apologize, there were reasons for the first few, but then I simply didn't have the ability to write and put it off. But I hope I make up for it, if not with this chapter than at least the next few. Keep in mind, THIS IS NOT A LINEAR STORY. Obviously, it's going to slip between the past and the present and the future. Hopefully you can keep up.

Not everything can be reasoned with magic. Most things can be dealt with it, but not reasoned. They wondered what had made her how she was, what could have possibly caused her such evil? She always blamed the magic. Her, magic. But she lied. Was that any surprise? She wasn't particularly known for her truthfulness. She lied and schemed and manipulated - anything to get what she wants. That was a code she lived by, a rule she built her world around. Never get too close. And being honest - being honest was getting too close.

She stared at her reflection, intently watching her own eyes stare back at her. Dark orbs riddled with secrets. And secrets, Regina had quite a lot of those. Inhaling deeply, she parted her lips as she released her breath, shaky and somewhat stuttered. It didn't matter. No one was there to witness it anyway.

No one was ever there.

Henry had yet to return home. And this was his home. He had continued to sleep at that god awful apartment, cramped in with three other people, without a room of his own. Without his own room. Glancing over her shoulder, towards the door leading to the hall leading to Henry's room, Regina bit the inside of her cheek. Did he miss anything? His pillow, his toys, his books - her? Shaking her head, she stood from her vanity and padded towards her wardrobe, the silk of her robe barely brushing the back of her thighs as the material whipped in the air. Regina paid little attention to her state of undress. There was no one there for her to cover up for, and Regina was hardly modest. If Henry were home, she would be dressed differently. Since he's not - why bother?

Pulling the doors open, she blinked as a sunlit glint caught her eye, a flash of silver invading her vision and blinding her momentarily. Blinking away the sudden disorientation, she glanced to her wrist and frowned in confusion.

Nothing was there.

Pursing her lips, Regina glanced over her shoulder for some sign of attack, of an invader. She wouldn't be surprised if they attempted to mob her in her own bedroom. The townspeople of Storybrooke, Maine were, just as she was, rather adept at holding a grudge. Quirking her shoulder slightly, a shrug to herself than to someone else, she turned her back and stepped in to her wardrobe, fingers brushing against clothes hung on hangers in coordinated lines.

She always took extra long on the weekends to prep herself for the day. It wasn't so much that she didn't have the time during the week, she did. Especially now that she didn't need to worry about waking Henry in time, getting him ready for school, or dropping him off in the mornings. Did that make her a bad - or should she say worse? - person for enjoying the momentary peace not having Henry with her offered? Did that make her a bad mother?

She missed him. Truly, she did. As she dressed, pulling the zipper of her dress up her back and smoothing out any wrinkles she thought she saw, she couldn't help but wonder. Would he come back?

Regina was used to being alone. It had been that way for a very long time. But then she adopted Henry, and she wasn't alone anymore. She had someone to care for, and someone who cared for her. At least for a short while. Sighing, The Mayor - was she still the Mayor? - glanced at her reflection, worrying her lower lip between her teeth before she shook her head. She was being ridiculous. Slipping through her wardrobe doors, she gently closed them behind her back, a pair of heels dangling in her hands. Did she even check to see which ones she had chosen? Gaze flicking down to the shoes in her hand, she pursed her lips and conceded. At least they matched her dress.

Dropping the patterned pumps on the bed, she turned her back and sat, falling back on to the mattress with her eyes closing. She could take a few minutes, couldn't she? Just - to think. To breathe.

XX

There was something comforting about the stares. Despite the hostility that accompanied them, stares were something Regina could cope with. Stares were something Regina was used to.

Still, the hush that fell over the diner as she pushed open the door was, admittedly, a little unnerving. Her chin lifting as her straightened her stance, Regina pursed her lips and ignored the sudden silence that seemed to follow her wherever she went. That would be her curse now.

Gaze flicking around her, she paused momentarily as she caught sight of Henry. His eyes, meeting her own for barely a second, dropped to his lap. Burying the hurt that welled up in her chest, she shook her head and strode forward, moving to the counter only to be blocked by Ruby, the she-wolf's eyes boring in to her own. "You're not welcome here."

She should have expected that. In truth, she kind of did. But that didn't hide the surprise that seemed to flash in her eyes. Ruby was either very brave, or very stupid. Tilting her head slightly, she pondered what action she should take, whether she should let the comment slide and just walk away, or whether she should antagonise the girl further. Henry was watching, and if she had an inclination of winning his favour back, the first option would be in her best interests. Her lips parted, curved in to slight smirk as she prepared to simply snipe at the younger girl and take her leave, but the woman's grandmother interrupted her. "She's a paying customer Ruby. And I don't feel like cleaning you from the walls because you've pissed her off."

Ah, Granny Lucas. Perhaps the only resident Regina didn't hate. If anything, a begrudging respect was all she felt for the older woman. Smirk still in place, she flicked her gaze from Ruby to Granny and back, raising her eyebrow as she waited for the younger girl to step out of her way. She could make her, she could step around, but it was always much more fun to watch and wait. They stared at each other, eyes boring in to the other's as they sized each other up. The silence around them seemed to tense, as if waiting for something to make either woman snap. And Regina near laughed.

"How did you get like this?"

If she hadn't been so close to her, if Regina hadn't been waiting for the wolf to say something in jest or hate, she never would have heard the whispered words Ruby spoke. Blinking in shock, she stared at Ruby who, realising her whispered words had been heard, simply scowled. Turning on her heel, she moved to Henry's side, exchanging a glance with Emma, but Regina didn't move. She couldn't.

Standing still, like a marble statue being observes, critiqued, Regina swallowed the sudden rise of bile she felt build within her. Shifting on her feet, glancing around at the too-interested and too-judgemental patron's of Granny's Diner, Regina turned and wrenched the door open, striding through and leaving to slam shut of it's own accord.

"How did you get like this?"

How indeed.

A/N: Leave a review, or don't. No biggie. Updates will be given on my Tumblr account: regalcharming. If anyone wants them, they should be there. And if you'd like to give me any prompts, you can give them to me there as well. That's about it.