Chapter 2

A Taste of the Past

Rachel walked out to the waiting room feeling rather confused. What matter could the mayor of Storybrooke possibly with to speak with her on? She took in a deep breath, as she would soon find out.

As Rachel entered the room, she found Mayor Mills standing in front of the door with a black umbrella. The dance room was located in the interior part of the building, with no windows, so Rachel did not even know it was raining.

"Hello, Ms. Bates," Mayor Mills greeted pleasantly, as she handed her umbrella to Sydney, who left the room.

The mayor then extended her hand.

"Madame Mayor," Rachel muttered, shaking the mayor's hand.

"Please, call me Regina," she said as she pulled her arm back.

The ballet teacher smiled and replied, "You can call me Rachel. So what brings you to my dance studio, Regina?"

Regina took a couple steps towards Rachel and began with, "Well, first I want to say, my son, Henry, has always enjoyed your performances. He begs me to take him all the time."

Rachel smiled. "Well, I'm glad to know we have a loyal fan. He must enjoy fairy tales since that's mostly what we do."

"He does," Regina answered a little more quietly tilting her head down for a brief moment. "That's actually what I came to talk with you about. You see, I fear fairy tales are having an unhealthy effect on my son's perspective. It has gotten a bit out of hand."

"What do mean?" Rachel asked, curiously.

"Well, he sees everyone here as a fairy tale character, and…" Regina sighed as she admitted, "he thinks I'm the evil queen."

Rachel could not help but chuckle. "That's not so bad. I'm sure a lot of kids see their moms as the evil queen at times. You probably even thought of your own mother as so at some point in your life."

"You have no idea," Regina mumbled in response, and then stated with more volume, "Anyway, as I said, his imagination had gotten a bit out of hand and it is affecting his sense of reality."

Rachel was unsure of how to respond to this so she simply nodded trying to look sympathetic.

"You are likely wondering why I am telling you this," Regina said, noting the curiosity in Rachel's eyes. "I here you plan to do Sleeping Beauty for your studio's next performance. I was wondering if you would reconsider?"

Rachel gawked at the mayor. She could not believe she actually expected her to change her entire performance all because of her son.

"I beg your pardon, Madame Major…"

"Regina," she insisted, sternly.

"Regina," Rachel took in a breath as she continued, "but my students have been working on this performance for months. Forgive me, but I don't think its fair to them to change…"

"I'm not trying to force you to change," Regina interjected, politely. "I was only going to make a suggestion. After all, it is your studio. The final decision is yours."

Rachel nodded. "Thank you, and I do choose to stick with the ballet we have been working on."

Regina smiled, politely. "It is your decision."

"Thank you for understanding," Rachel replied, anxiously running her fingers through her hair.

The mayor nodded and bade farewell and turned, walking towards the glass exit door. But before she opened the door, she turned her head and asked, "Rachel, may I ask you a personal question?"

"Um… I suppose," Rachel muttered, apprehensively.

Regina took a couple steps towards her and asked, "Are you really getting everything you want out of this studio?"

"I guess so," Rachel answered, not looking the mayor in the eye. "I'm not quite sure what you mean."

"Are your performances really what you want them to be?" Regina pressed on. "Do these fairy tales represent your true passion, or is there something else you would rather do?"

Rachel finally met Regina's eyes, and admitted, "Well, I do enjoy fairy tale stories but I do not necessarily feel passionate about them."

"I see." Regina's hard stare did not fall. "And what do you feel a passion for, Rachel?"

"Well…" Rachel brushed her hair behind her ears as she spoke, "I have always really enjoyed the ballet, Swan Lake. I can't explain, but I have always felt a special connection with that story. The ballet itself is just beautiful."

"Interesting," the mayor commented. "And what is stopping you using this

particular ballet?"

"Well," Rachel took a moment to consider, "I fear the storyline is a bit dark. It might not be the best for children. Are you familiar with it?"

"Ah yes, a curse is placed on the white swan, causing her to only be human in the moonlight and swan by daylight. Only the prince's declaration of true love can break her curse. Though unfortunately, he declares his love to the wrong woman, the black swan, leading to the white swan's death," Regina summarized.

Rachel's eyes moved downward. As she listened to the plot aloud, she knew the mayor would never approve of this for her son.

To her surprise, Regina looked at her and beamed, saying, "I think this story will make a fine production for Storybrooke."

Rachel gawked at her and choked out, "Really? You don't think it's too morbid?"

"On the contrary," Regina went on, swiftly, "I think it is a good lesson for the people here. Life does not always have happy endings, but we need to learn to make the best of what we have."

Rachel nodded and smiled. "Yeah, I suppose when you put it that way…" She took a few more seconds to consider and then nodded. "You know what, I think I'll do it."

"Wonderful," Regina said, turning back to the exit door. She turned her head and added, "I do look forward to your next production, Rachel."

xXx

Rachel spent the next few weeks rehearsing her students for the production of Swan Lake. She, of course, had Paige as the star, her White Swan. However, this role had a catch. Both roles of the White and Black Swan must be performed.

"Paige," Rachel motioned her hand, beckoning her dancer to come, after she finished her dance with the prince.

"Yes, Ms. Rachel?" Paige asked as she approached her.

Rachel smiled and said gently, "I want to say, first, that your White Swan is perfect. You really seem to become her when you dance the role."

"Thanks, Ms. Rachel," Paige replied, beaming.

Rachel gazed down, momentarily, as she continued, "Your Black Swan, however, though all the moves are spot on, you do not really seem to be as into the character."

Paige sighed. "It just hard because she's evil, and also, knowing she's going to win…"

"I know, Paige," Rachel interjected, putting her hand on her student's shoulder. "But you have to keep in mind, it's only a story, and not all stories have happy endings. Now, I'm not asking you to act evil. Just loosen your body more as you dance. Act more carefree. Pretend you are the kind of girl who doesn't mind doing something naughty every once in a while." She winked at Paige. "Who knows, it might be kind of fun. Just keep in mind, it's only pretend."

Paige smiled and giggled a little. "Okay, Miss Rachel. I'll give it a try."

On her next attempt, Paige did loosen her arms, but only on a couple parts. For most of the dance, her arms and legs remained precise and robotic. Her face, rather than reading the expression of the villainess black swan, was full of concentration and perfection.

Sitting on the ground, Rachel leaned over to the music box, and flicked the off switch.

The dance teacher stood up and said, "That was better, but I still don't think you are really into the part. I don't believe it."

Paige sighed, and replied, helplessly, "I don't know what else I can do."

"Perhaps, I can give you a demonstration of what I am looking for," Rachel suggested, bending over to the music player to start the song over. "Then, maybe you will have a better feel of what I am looking for."

As the music began, Rachel glided to the center of the room, ready to begin. Before her queue, she flapped her arms like a bird to loosen up her body. While dancing, Rachel felt that her mind had floated off to another world. She found that this felt surprisingly natural for her. She closed her eyes, allowing her conscious to completely absorb her character.

In her mind, as she leaped, Rachel saw the prince. His face was blurred, but she could make out his tall broad figure, and dark hair in wave locks. As she looked onto him, a rush of familiar emotions of tenderness bristled through her. Rachel could have sworn she was in love with this man, but yet, something felt wrong about it at the same time. Curious, she danced on and dug deeper into her mind, desiring to know more about this man, until…

BANG.

Rachel's body collapsed down as she did her final leap, landing on the side of her foot. The scathing pain forced her mind back to reality, as she found herself back in the studio.

"Miss Rachel!" Paige cried, rushing over to her teacher's side. "Did you sprain your ankle?"

"I'm not sure," Rachel gasped, clutching her ankle.

"What do we do?" another girl wailed out in panic.

"We should call her an ambulance," Paige said, more confidently. "Then the doctor can take a look at her and make sure she's okay."

As Paige grabbed Rachel's phone from her purse and begun to dial, Rachel remained on the ground, still thinking about what she saw while she was dancing. It seemed like just a daydream, playing out in her mind, but to Rachel, the images felt too real to be an ordinary daydream. The emotions she felt for the man were too familiar and real, as though she had known him somehow. For the first time in all her years in Storybrooke, Rachel began to feel as though part of her life was missing.

A/N: Well, I got one review for the last chapter. I want to take a moment to give a shout out to brharrypotter7 and let them know I am truly grateful for their feedback. Please guys, I really want to know what you think. I know it seems kind of slow moving right now, but I promise things will pick up after the curse is broken, which by the way, will happen in the next chapter. Thank you all for reading!