Regina was sipping coffee at 9:03 am, cursing the fact that Emma was late. Again. Every nerve in her body was on high alert, most likely rendering the coffee unnecessary, but Regina took comfort in her little rituals. She was standing in the living room, staring out the window, when she saw the minivan pull up to the curb in front of her house.

A minivan? she thought. You have got to be kidding me.

She walked out the front door, reaching the curb as Emma stepped out of the van. "What the hell is that?" she asked.

"We can't all fit in the Bug," Emma replied. "I borrowed it from Ashley."

Regina looked longingly at her Mercedes. So much for riding in comfort.

Emma reached out and grabbed her elbow. "Are you ready, Regina? It's time to proclaim this free the outlaw day."

Regina smiled a tight smile. "Let's get on the road."

With traffic, it took them until 4:00 to reach New York. Regina became more and more tense the closer they came to New York. For the first time, she was grateful that her magic held no power in New York, because she was sure she would have burst into flames long before they ever reached Connecticut otherwise. She fiddled with her Blackberry, pretending to check her email messages, when in reality she kept looking at the message Robin had sent the night before.

I'll be waiting. Thank you.

She had a feeling Emma wasn't fooled, but she wasn't going to give her an opportunity to ask.

Emma had no trouble navigating the route to Baelfire's (no, Neal's) apartment, and the two women had a heated argument about where to park. Emma was all in favor of finding a spot in front of the building and charging in, but Regina favored a more subtle approach, parking several blocks away to keep Zelena from seeing the van with Maine plates and guessing they were in town again. They compromised by parking in a garage two blocks from the apartment.

"Now what?" Emma asked.

"One problem at a time," Regina had said. Unfortunately, she hadn't yet thought of a way to get Zelena to drink the potion.

Emma had no problem picking up the blank look on Regina's face. "You didn't plan this part out, did you?"

"Well, Swan, you didn't give me a lot of time to figure it out."

Emma sighed and pulled out her phone. "I just hope she's not around," she said, and tapped on Robin's contact.

Regina heard him answer, and turned her head to the window as if to protect herself from the muffled sound of his voice. "We're here. Where are you?" Emma said.

He answered, and Emma said, "Meet us at the bar around the corner. Charlie's. You know where it is?"

He had apparently answered yes, because Emma ended the call. She turned to Regina. "You ready?" she asked.

No, Regina thought, but she steeled herself. She'd lived with Cora, torn out her own father's heart, and watched the love of her life walk away from her. Surely she could handle this. She nodded and reached over to open the door of the van.

Emma had ordered them two glasses of Glenlivet when they'd sat down at the bar. Regina raised an eyebrow, and Emma held up her glass. "To courage," she said. Regina was not a day drinker, but it seemed that the situation called for it. She smiled in response. "To hope," she said. She didn't really believe it, but it felt like the right thing to say.

She had just downed the last bit of her drink when Robin entered the bar. She could feel his presence almost immediately, and she tensed when he came to stand by her elbow.

"You're here," he breathed, reaching out to put a hand to the small of her back. She shifted on her stool, trying to put some space between them. "We, uh, have a potion," she said. For once, the composure of the Evil Queen completely failed her.

He bent his head to her. "Thank you," he whispered. It was almost unbearable, having him that close.

"We need to get Zelena to drink this without knowing what it is," Emma said, drawing Robin's attention away from Regina. "Can you do that?"

Robin furrowed his brow. "What is it?" he asked. And then, after a beat, "Will it hurt the baby?"

The baby. Regina felt like he'd dumped a bucket of ice over her head. That's why they were there – to protect the baby and Roland.

"It'll be fine," she said steadily. "It's a weak potion. No lasting effects. Can you get her to drink it?"

Robin was already nodding before she finished her sentence. "She has a cup of tea before dinner. She says it settles her stomach. I'll put it in her tea tonight."

"We won't have much time," Regina said. "Give it to her, and then call Emma immediately. We'll come and get you." She pushed the vial at him, dismissing him.

"Regina," he said, drawing her attention back to him. His blue eyes bored into hers. "Thank you."

She nodded, not trusting herself to speak. He walked out the door with the vial, leaving her staring behind him.

To her left, Emma cleared her throat. "Well. That went well."

Regina rarely let her guard down, but in that moment she was too overwhelmed with emotion to protect her walls. She dropped her head on the bar and took deep breaths, finding a small measure of comfort in the hand that that Emma placed on her shoulder.

The call came less than an hour later. Emma sent Regina ahead to the apartment and went after the minivan. Regina let herself in cautiously, not loving the idea of reliving the scene from the previous week. When she opened the door, she saw Zelena, sitting at the table with a faraway look on her face. Roland's face brightened when he saw her, and he shrieked "Regina!" and ran into her arms. Regina took a moment to enjoy the embrace, and to relish the feel of a little boy once again in her arms.

"Regina," came a voice from behind her. "We're ready."

Robin had a bag packed and Roland's stuffed monkey in his hands. "Are you ready to take a trip, my boy?" he said. "Little John and Friar Tuck will be happy to see you."

Roland scrambled out of Regina's arms. He grabbed the monkey out of his father's hand just as Emma came through the door. Regina stood and held out a hand to him. "Let's head home, shall we?" she asked, turning her back on Robin. "Take her," she said over her shoulder.

Robin pulled Zelena to her feet and led her toward the door. Behind them all, Emma walked over to the apartment window and pulled a dreamcatcher off the frame.

"Are you coming?" Regina asked.

"Yes," Emma said. "Just needed to grab one last thing."

Regina nodded. The look on Emma's face was enough for her to know that it wasn't the time to ask questions. She turned to Roland with a smile and led him out the door.

Robin guided Zelena to the curb and helped her into the minivan. He pushed her to the back row of seating, and as an afterthought searched out Regina's face to see if that had been the right decision. Regina nodded and reached out a hand to guide Robin into the first row of seats, next to Roland, She crawled into the rear of the van, pulling the binding cuff out of her pocket.

"Time to go home, sister dear," she said, pressing the cuff to her arm.

"Time to go home!" Roland echoed with a smile, and for a brief moment, Regina's heart lifted.