"I need to talk to you," Regina spoke quietly, looking up at him through her lashes, scratching the top of Pongo's head as the dog nuzzled her leg.

"Sure, Regina," Archie stepped closer to her, hugging his coat tighter. "is here alright?"

"So I suppose you heard?" She didn't elaborate but Archie knew what she was referring to. He'd been there, after all. Invited to help celebrate Emma and Mary-Margaret's return, Archie had been in the street when they'd all stepped out to hear the confrontation between David and Regina. And Archie wondered if anyone else had read as much into that moment as he had.

Regina was a complicated woman; he'd known that for years. She was stoic and immovable, but she had a vulnerability to her that baffled him. Sometimes that vulnerability was so raw, he feared she'd tear in two; but she never did. It constantly surprised him, with each of the sessions they'd had together, that the more he learned about Regina's past, the more he realized why she was so strong.

She had no choice. Whilst he'd seen bitterness and vengeance in her eyes, he'd also seen fear.

"I did hear, Regina." He nodded. "And whilst normally I'd assume congratulations are in order, I can only imagine the timing is not ideal?"

"Nothing about it is ideal." She hissed and Archie sighed. He'd hoped Regina wouldn't regress but sometimes old habits were hard to kick. And Regina's worst habit was her almost venomous defensiveness.

"David's the father, isn't he?"

Regina narrowed her eyes angrily at the question, but it was answered surely enough in her silence that Archie found himself looking down at her with a certain level of pity. This woman had cursed them all, she'd banished them to a fate worse than death; but for all the pain she'd suffered, he hated the thought of seeing her only dig herself in deeper.

"You don't know that." She snapped.

Archie ignored her denial. "I do, Regina."

"If you so much as utter a word..." She let the words trail off and Archie held his chin high. He and Regina had come a long way since she'd first stepped foot in his office, wanting help with staying away from magic. But even though Archie had come to respect – even care for – Regina, there was still that nagging part of him that feared her.

"I won't, I promise."

"You'll regret it, Bug."

Archie watched her as she walked away down the dock. He offered Ruby a faint smile as the younger woman jogged past, eyeing Regina as she left. "You okay?" Ruby asked and Archie nodded, keeping one eye on Regina as the woman attempted to climb into her car with as much grace as possible; he could only imagine what it was going to be like for her in that cramped Mercedes in a few months.

"Yeah, fine, Ruby."

"That looked pretty heated."

"We're fine, Ruby," He met her eyes finally and smiled. "I promise."

"She really got to you, huh?" David looked up sharply, seeing a steaming mug of hot chocolate hovering in front of his face. It took him a moment to realize Snow was dangling it in front of him, waiting for the question to sink in.

"What do you mean?"

"Regina," She sighed, lowering herself to sit beside him on the sofa as he took the mug. Emma and Henry had already gone to bed and it didn't really surprise David that Snow would wait until now to bring the subject back up. "You two are awfully close." She tried to smirk, but he could see the forced mirth was a struggle for her.

"She's been through a lot." He took a sip of the warm chocolate. "And I've learned a lot about her."

Snow tucked her feet up on the sofa, burying her toes underneath his thigh as she hugged her mug to her chest and studied the side of his face carefully. David was there with her, but he was also off in his own little world. The whole day he'd been distracted, even though she'd seen in his eyes the moment he woke up, that he was happy to have her back.

"David, she's our enemy." Her voice sounded so defeated he almost lost his resolve.

"She was, Snow," He sighed. "But for twenty-eight years she was also just Regina; she was a friend to me." Snow opened her mouth to protest but David held his hand up, knowing that if he didn't get it all out, he never would. "I know that it's hard for you to understand; your relationship with Regina is different to mine, it always will be. But I've seen a side to her that I can't ignore, and I've made promises I have to keep."

"But why this unflinching loyalty? Why argue with her out in the street? She's right David, it's her child. What does it matter to you, to us?" She searched his eyes.

"It's not that simple." He turned away.

"But it can be, David." Snow reached for his arm; forcing him to turn his head so that she could meet his eyes. She studied his face closely, seeing something there that scared her. She took a deep breath, bracing herself to ask the questions she didn't want to ask. "You care about her, don't you?" David turned to her quickly and she caught the faint glimmer of shame in his eyes before he concealed it. But for that one brief instant, she felt her heart shatter. "Oh my god, you do."

Snow sat up quickly, setting her mug on the table and attempting to take deep breaths. "Snow, I can explain..." He reached for her hand, but Snow pulled it away.

She watched him, carefully, out of the corner of her eye and David could practically see the pieces falling into place. This wasn't how he'd wanted her to find out. He was supposed to be brave and charming; fearless. But he was too afraid to the look in her eyes, to bring himself to say it.

Snow had always been the stronger one and he hated that she had to be the one to venture there. "This isn't about the baby..." She hesitated, not entirely sure if she wanted to know. "...is it?"

"Snow,"

She shot up from the sofa – effectively cutting David off – holding her hand over her mouth as she crossed the room in shock. She paced back and forth, hot tears springing to her eyes as she internally berated herself.

"David," Snow's tone was almost a warning, her eyes set on him resolutely. "Tell me that child isn't yours."

"Snow,"

"Tell me!" She shouted, practically shaking with the fear of it. David flinched at the sound, pressing his eyes closed for a moment and hoping that Emma and Henry hadn't been woken by the sound. He heard a rustle in the next room and felt his heart sink, but not another sound was heard for the long, silent stretch after Snow's shout; until she finally uttered: "Please."

David let his shoulders slump, as though the weight of the secret had finally become too much. They'd wanted to keep it a secret as long as they could; make sure no one was going to assume the worst of himself or Regina, before letting the word out. Typical, he thought, he'd barely lasted a day before the guilt had consumed him.

"David," His prolonged silence was causing Snow's voice to shake as she pressed him for any kind of response.

He lowered his head into his hands, running his fingers through his hair as he let out a long sigh and an answer so quiet, but clear enough to break Snow's heart in two. "I can't."

"No," She rasped and David raised his head quickly.

"Snow, I can explain," He stood, reaching for her but she backed away. "It was before the curse broke."

"And you think that makes it okay?"

"No. No, Snow, it doesn't," He reached out again, desperately, but she stepped away again, looking down at his outstretched hand with disgust. "But I thought maybe it would make it easier for you to understand."

Snow's eyes were cast down to the ground, her brain churning over what she'd just learned. He startled a little, when her head shot up and her eyes went wide. "That's why it took so long."

"What?"

"The curse, true love's kiss." David furrowed his brow in confusion. "It took me three tries to get you to wake up." David stared at her, unaware of what to make of it. "She's why; she got to you."

"I don't love her."

"Then she cursed you."

"True love is stronger than Regina's magic, you know that." He sighed. "And it's not her fault."

"You're going to defend her?" She sputtered, incredulously.

"It's not her fault, Snow. She didn't seduce me. I was confused and I'd been rejected, by you. I needed to feel something and Regina was there. I told you, Snow, she was my friend."

"So you go and sleep with her." She spat.

"You slept with Whale." David bit back, venomously. He knew immediately that it was the wrong approach to take, but placing the blame solely on Regina's shoulders, was something that angered him more than he'd realized. She'd worked so hard to be better.

"You were married to Kathryn."

David pulled in a deep breath, reaching up to run his fingers through his hair in irritation. "We shouldn't do this."

Snow's shoulders slumped. "Why not, David? Why shouldn't we hold ourselves accountable for what we did in that life? Yeah, I slept with Whale and you slept with Regina. But you're about to have a child with her. How are we not accountable?"

"Because it wasn't us. We wouldn't have made the same choices."

"How do you know?"

"Because I love you, I don't love Regina. But that doesn't mean I can't care for her." He reached out for her hands and finally, Snow let him take them into his own. "And you can't tell me a part of you doesn't still love her, because I know you wish she'd go back to being the woman who saved you. I see it in your eyes, every time you look at her."

"She's pregnant with my husband's child."

"Forget that; take me out of the equation and tell me you haven't always cared for her. Tell me you haven't always wished she'd change."

"That doesn't mean she will, David; or that she even can."

"No," He smiled gently. "No it doesn't." David ran his thumbs over the backs of her hands. "But that doesn't mean she's not finally trying."

"How do you know it won't just be like last time?"

"Back home she had nothing. Now she's fighting for Henry and she's fighting to be better for this baby. I know you're angry, Snow, and you have every right to be. But if this child helps Regina become the woman she used to be, then I can't wish it didn't happen." Snow opened her mouth to protest, but David shushed her gently. "I'm sorry, Snow. I love you, but this could save her life."

"And what about our lives, David?"

"Our love was strong enough to break the sleeping curse," He half-smiled in hope.

"It almost wasn't." She shook her head forlornly.

"But it did."

"I'm afraid of this, David. What if your love is spreading too thin? It took me three tries to wake you up, but that magic is absolute," The fear in her eyes sent a shiver down David's spine. "You may love me truly. But you also love Emma now and Henry, and clearly a part of you loves this baby and I don't know," She shrugged, tears welling in her eyes. "Maybe with Regina you -"

David narrowed his eyes at the thought and Snow stopped herself with a sigh. "David, all I'm saying is; what if next time, my love isn't enough?"

David pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her against him. "Your love will always be enough, Snow. Just because I love my children, doesn't mean I'll ever stop loving you."

"Children? Plural?" Both of them startled at the sound of Emma's voice, turning their heads to see her standing in the middle of the kitchen in a baggy grey sweater and a pair of weathered yoga-pants. Her brow was deeply furrowed.

"David," Snow carefully extricated herself from his arms, stepping away from him slowly. "I believe that you love me, I do." His expression became worried as she stepped further away. "But I think you should sleep out here."

Just when David had thought they were coming to an understanding the hurt returned to her eyes. "Snow," He tried to reason but her lips pressed into a thin line.

"You can stay and sleep on the couch or you can leave, those are your only options; at least for tonight."

Defeated, he slowly nodded his head and watched with a pained expression as she left the room.

"What the hell did I miss?" Emma looked shocked and somewhat terrified; but mostly she was angry. "What did you do?"

"Put my marriage to the ultimate test."

Emma stared, dumbstruck. "No," She drew the word out in surprise. "No way, that kid's yours?"

David looked up at her. "It's a long story."

"Well I hope you told Mary-Margaret all of it."

"Yeah, I think so." David sank back into the sofa, dropping his chin to his chest forlornly. Emma nodded, studying him carefully.

"So we're giving Regina the benefit on this one, are we?"

"It's not her fault." David met her eye.

"Well it's at least half her fault." She clarified and David huffed, studying his toes intently.

To Be Continued.