Author's Notes: There's a lot of dialogue in this chapter, and I'm not sure I'm entirely happy with it. Hopefully it's not too out of character though. Let me know in your reviews if I need to fix it.

Regina storms out of Gold's shop and throws the magical orb into the seat of her car. As she glances up at Mary Margaret, she feels it again. That spine tingling sensation of wrongness that something here in Storybrooke isn't quite right, that nagging suspicion that the obvious is staring her right in the face if only she'd slow down and look. She pauses for a moment and glances around, but she doesn't see anything out of the ordinary.

"Regina?" Snow has noticed her pause, but Regina still can't put her finger on the exact cause of her discomfort, and she decides to keep ignoring it.

"So, New York," Regina says as she starts the engine and glances at Snow. "You'll need a bag."

"What?"

"Did you think it was just your blood that I needed? No, you're coming with me."

"But I…. can't. I've never left Storybrooke."

"You've never been able to leave Storybrooke. But this is your curse now. There are perks," she winks at her.

"Then what about you?"

"Well I helped cast it. And since I still have my memories, I'm going to assume you didn't try to curse me?"

"No."

"Good, then we should be fine."

Regina throws the car into reverse and Snow White knows the conversation is over. She hopes her stepmother is correct and that everything will be ok, but she can't seem to find her usually steadfast optimism. Right now, everything seems to be very far from "fine". She sighs and twists her wedding ring around her finger absently as the witch drives on.

Snow stares into her closet in shock. "I don't understand how this is possible Regina. Everything else is exactly the same but, I've never seen these before, these aren't my things."

Regina chuckles at the woman's confusion. "Well they are now dear. And apparently," she says as she reaches for a garment, "somebody likes yellow." Snow frowns at her and Regina shrugs. "I told you, every curse is different, and this one's yours. It adapted itself to you."

"It's still creepy" Snow muses as she examines the maternity wear.

"Well there's certainly no accounting for taste," Regina responds as she crinkles her nose up at the item in front of her and then tosses it aside in disgust. "At least they fit you. But if you ask me nicely I can probably conjure you something better."

"No thanks." Snow snatches a blouse away before Regina can grab it. "I think I'm a little too old to have my mother dressing me."

Regina suddenly stills at the comment, and Snow realizes why: she didn't say step. It was a simple omission, an off-hand remark that wasn't entirely thought out. She could easily take it back. Regina turns to face her then with an open mouth, a protest on her lips that never forms, her eyes conveying a mixture of surprise, reluctance, and affection. Snow decides to let the moment hang. She smiles at the older woman and squeezes her hand. Regina, at a rare loss for words, only squeezes back.

They finish packing Snow's bag in comfortable silence. "Ok, I think that's good," she states as she hoists the slightly worn luggage onto the bed. "What about you?" Are we stopping by your place next to pick up your things?"

"No need." Regina flicks her wrist, and what can only be described as a magical explosion rocks the small apartment. Snow coughs and wafts away the purple smoke.

"Regina! What the hell was that?"

"I….. I don't know," she coughs and kicks at the suitcase now in front of her.

"Regina, what is going on? You've been off all morning," Snow demands.

"I said I don't know ok!" Regina yells frustratedly. "But something's definitely wrong. I could feel it the second we got back here."

"And you just ignored it? Shouldn't we be trying to find out what it is?"

"We don't have time." Regina grabs both cases and beelines toward the stairwell. "Zelena won't stay clueless forever, and we need to be gone from here when she figures it all out."

In her current condition Snow can't really keep up, and Regina is already slamming the trunk closed by the time she grabs her trusty bow and arrows and waddles down the stairs. "Regina…" Snow says haltingly in a warning tone, but the queen just glares at her.

"Get in the car Mary Margaret. I don't want to talk."

Normally Snow would push, but she doesn't have the energy right now to fight, so she just sighs heavily and lets Regina evade the issue. "You know we're going to have to deal with this sometime." "Later," Regina concedes.

Later however comes sooner than either woman thought, as halfway through town Regina suddenly slams on the brakes. "Snow," she asks with trepidation, "what time is it?"

"Umm, 8:15 according to your clock. Why?"

"Because it was 8:15 when we left Gold's shop."

"Are you saying that…."

"Time is standing still? That's exactly what I'm saying."

"Well isn't that just part of the curse? Time didn't move for 28 years when you cast it."

"Yes but that's because I designed it that way. I wanted your suffering to last forever," she admits sheepishly "so I trapped you in a place where you wouldn't age. Time could have moved along normally if I'd wanted it to."

"So what does that mean then?"

"Snow…" Regina pauses for a moment, considering how best to explain it. "Magic is powerful and dangerous. So when you cast a spell, you have to be deliberate. You have to focus all your energy into what you need to do and what you want to accomplish. Any hesitation, any distraction, and things can go awry. Believe me I know."

"So if you don't aim carefully you can shoot an arrow into the wrong target?" Snow surmises.

"Something like that yes. I admit I don't know much about archery. But it's more complicated than that. With magic your emotions can manifest themselves physically, your thoughts can become reality. You have to learn to control them. Usually a sorceress will have years of practice channeling herself mentally before she's able to obtain any real power, but…"

"But you gave me the dark curse," Snow finishes with growing dread. "So this is my fault?"

"No. It's both of ours. I should have instructed you better. But now I have to ask Snow, what were you thinking about when you cast it?"

"David" Snow replies sorrowfully, and Regina's heart breaks for her. "I know Snow, but what exactly were you thinking about?"

"Umm," Snow wipes a tear from her face. "Wishing I could stop the moment. You being there for it. Spending the rest of my life in Storybrooke alone."

Regina pales at Snow's last statement and audibly sucks in a breath.

"What?"

"Alone. You said you were thinking about being alone in Storybrooke. Snow, since we've been here, have you seen anyone else?"

"No…..Oh. OH."

TBC