"Are you sure they can't see us?" Hook questioned, shrinking away from the roof's edge every time someone walked a little too close to the building. Cora just chuckled, shaking her head at the Pirate's clear lack of understanding about magic.

"Those little ants don't know a thing." She turned her head to look up at him, smirking as she followed his line of sight to where her daughter stood, holding herself against the townspeople. She'd come in search of finding her daughter broken but she never thought she'd find her so close she'd shed a tear before these people that she loathed.

She was different somehow, Cora could see. Her hair was shorter and Cora found her clothes strange – though not as shocking since she'd encountered Emma and Snow in the Enchanted Forest. She and Hook were too far away to hear what was said as the Charming Prince confronted her daughter in the street, but from the looks of things, Cora could see that the argument was heated.

There was a spark between them, something Cora took note of to play with later.

She could see tears in her daughter's eyes though she was proud to watch her straighten herself up and guard her features when that insipid Snow White made her presence known to them. She only wished she could hear what was being said, but she was almost certain that if she used magic to hear them, Regina would sense it. She could hear their voices, but struggled to make out the words.

The conversation between Regina and the Prince made her curious. She wanted to know exactly what was going on; because clearly it was something her daughter didn't want to share with the rest of the town. What was curious to her was why this man her daughter claimed to hate could confront her like that. She wondered why he didn't fear that she'd break him down into dust.

Out of the corner of her eye she could see Hook watching Regina almost as intently as she was herself and for a moment she felt her blood boil. Hook had turned against her daughter before, but the reluctance in him had churned her stomach; watching him watch her now, only infuriated her more; especially because she knew that his alliance with her was merely a means to an end. He almost looked contrite, looking down at Regina with an expression that read of a man cradling a guilt he couldn't shake.

She knew her daughter was beautiful, she'd spent years attempting to force Regina to use that to her advantage, but the girl had never seen it as the useful tool that it was. With the look in Hook's eyes, though, Cora was starting to wonder if Regina had mastered the art after all.

Hook's lip twitched up when Regina managed to shove Charming out of the way and Cora wanted to swipe that look clean off his face. The last thing she needed was Hook falling for her daughter when she needed him to do a job.

She was about to drag him from the roof when she caught sight of the small boy pushing himself through the crowd. Snow and her little hoard of do-gooders were turning back towards the building they'd all emerged from but the boy stepped out onto the road. Curiously, Cora watched him jog his way up to Regina.

From the way her daughter looked down at the boy, Cora could only assume this was Henry. She moved closer to the edge of the roof, holding onto the gutter as she attempted to lean in, trying to hear them. She furrowed her brow when Henry wrapped his arms around Regina and anything they might have said was muffled in their coats.

Cora growled under her breath and rolled her eyes when she heard Hook's chuckle. "What's the matter Cora? Can't you hear your daughter's secrets?" He mocked. Cora slowly stood, turning to meet him with a murderous look.

"Be careful, Hook."

"Now now, Cora, be nice." He smirked and she had to mentally restrain herself from ripping his heart out. She could still use him and whilst he was still under her employ, she couldn't run the risk of Regina sensing she had control of his heart. She had things to do and needed Hook to look like he did them willingly.

"I'm going to find out all I need to know, just you watch." Cora winked, striding out over the rooftop, leaving Hook where he stood. He watched her go for a moment, wondering why it was that he let her pull him along. He told himself that it was for revenge; because she could get to Rumpelstiltskin. But as he watched the woman on the street down below, chatting quietly with her son, he wondered if his motives hadn't changed over the years.

He was about to follow Cora when something caught his eye and he leaned in, watching the pair intently. His lips spread into a smile as he watched the boy press his small hands to his mother's stomach and hear his bright chuckle as Regina beamed and ran her fingers through his hair fondly.

Hook grinned, glancing over his shoulder, seeing Cora making her way down the ladder. For once, there was something he knew that she didn't and as he watched Regina climb into what looked like a vehicle – powered by what, he didn't know – he was going to keep the information close to his chest. He could only imagine what Cora would do to her daughter if she knew.

Regina curled her feet up on the sofa, wrapping a thick blanket around her shoulders as she reclined, staring at the fire flickering. She wondered what she was going to do. She'd argued that she could do it alone, but she knew that the first time had been hard. She knew that this was going to be even harder because there was no way David was going to step back from this.

He was going to fight to be in the child's life. He was going to be infuriatingly supportive and she was going to accept it, because as much as she hated to be tied down to any of those insipid, bleeding hearts, she'd already come to love the small being inside her. There was little in any land she'd been truly able to call her own; not even Henry. But this child, this child was her's and no sword-wielding saviour was going to steal her away; maybe Henry might even decide she wasn't so bad.

Leaning back into the cushions, Regina smiled slightly as she ran her fingertips over her belly. She was getting bigger by the day and she knew, soon enough, she wasn't even going to be able to see her toes. She'd missed this part about having Henry. The spontaneity of Henry had been exciting. One day she wasn't a mother and the next day she was. But she had to admit that watching her baby grow, feeling her move and turn, thrilled her beyond expression.

She didn't have the urge to use her magic. She didn't feel its overwhelming pull; all she felt was the faint flutters of her baby moving and for the first time in a long time, she felt like the hole inside of her was filling.

Henry had been trapped inside that hole alone for so long, holding a torch to keep the light in her from going out; but as much difficulty as having a child with Prince-god damned-Charming, was going to be, she was glad of it. It meant that Henry would no longer be alone, keeping her from turning to the darkness. Her resolve would be stronger and her will, resolute. Maybe this time she'd get it right and she hoped that if this child could love her and look at her without the mistrust Henry carried on his shoulders, perhaps he'd learn that she truly loved him too.

Ruby dragged her feet as she made her way down to the road to grab the sign. It had been a long day, full of revelations and suspicious whispers, complicated coffee orders and a million and one burgers with the lot as the townspeople fussed and whispered over their coffee mugs. The town was abuzz with speculation; she'd even heard some of the dwarves placing bets on who the father of Regina's child was. She hesitated to guess. She couldn't imagine anyone in the town having the true desire to get that close to Regina. Granted, she could see the woman was beautiful, but she was also poisonous and vicious.

That beauty masked a deeper-set cruelty and Ruby couldn't imagine anyone she knew well, wanting to embrace that woman. And knowing Regina as she did, she couldn't imagine her pride allowing it. It had to be someone none of them knew, she was sure of it.

She shook her head as she reached for the sign, surprising herself that she was actually thinking about it.

She paused suddenly, her eyes widening as she saw Regina walking up the street. The woman's stride was as sure as her derisive tongue as she stepped up to the door of Archie's office. Ruby furrowed her brows, watching her as she glanced left, then right, then disappeared inside. She glanced at her watch, setting the sign on top of her boot as she frowned. It was a bit late for a therapy session.

Shrugging her shoulders, Ruby hoisted the sign back up and made her way inside; ignoring the nagging dread in her gut.

To Be Continued.