"No…." Esme whispered. She couldn't even begin to understand what was happening. Regina, her mother, was standing side by side with the woman Esme had been running from, the woman she had cried over. What was she doing here?

"Recognise her, little brother?" Zoe said in the same distinct purr that resembled a cat as it played with a dead mouse.

"The seer's mother.." Cyrus said, as unsure as Esme was about what exactly was going on. While Cyrus had an entire army of men behind him, Zoe had just Regina.

"The Evil Queen," Zoe said with a smile that exuded pride. How could Regina stand there like she was Zoe's prized possession and do nothing? Zoe's words caused a chorus of sharp breathes on the men's side; Regina's reputation had preceded her.

"Regina.." Esme whispered to herself. As she stared at Regina, she felt like the entire world would crumble around her and she wouldn't care; she was so focused. Focused on finding out why she was there. Focused on finding out what she was planning to do. Was she angry that Esme had sent her away? Is that why she had gone to Zoe? Esme knew that that was the most logical reason, but in her heart, she couldn't believe that. Regina was an experienced queen and a master at concealing her emotions, but Esme could tell, somehow, that she didn't want to be here. When Esme caught her eye, she saw a hint of pain, of utter despair, flash across her eyes; Esme couldn't believe Regina was there to hurt her.

"Evil Queen or not, little sister. She is still the seer's mother; do you really expect her to kill her?"

"Hmmm, I too was concerned about that. Which is why I took this," Zoe explained as she held up a red, pumping heart and smiled with glee. She truly was quite evil. Esme looked at Levi for some sort of reassurance that this was planned, but he too was staring at the scene that had began to unfold before them and the two watched in horror.

"So let's just see what the Evil Queen can do shall we?" Zoe said.

"Attack your daughter," Zoe whispered into the heart. With those three words, all hell broke loose. The state of shock Esme had been in, the trance that had kept her firmly rooted to the spot she had fought for, was broken when Regina hurled a glowing red fireball straight towards her. The men that had once surrounded her dispersed like mice, and Esme was left alone, beaten and bruised. She deflected the fireball, then a few curses. Within seconds Regina was throwing countless spells towards her, and all she could do was stand back and deflect them. During the few seconds that Esme had between each of Regina's spell, she saw that Zoe's real army had also emerged from the shadows and now, as well as having to fight her own mother, she had to deflect Zoe's army, all of whom were now in full battle with the men.

"Why are you doing this?!" Esme screamed as she deflected another nasty curse. Her entire body was shaking; her bones and muscles ached, she was confused and so very angry. Esme didn't believe Regina was here to hurt her. She couldn't be.

"I have to!" Regina said as she threw another curse at Esme.

"Why?!" Esme shouted. All around them men and women were slashing each other, screaming out of pain or anger, but nothing they all avoided Regina and Esme. The two women were standing opposite each other; there was no escape for either.

"You sent me away Esme! I had no choice!" Regina shouted before casting another spell towards Esme. Esme was too sore and tired to even try counteract it; all she could do was continue to deflect the spells her mother threw her way.

"Fight back, little seer!" Zoe screamed angrily as she stood safely behind a barrier of women who were fending away the men that tried to capture her. The sight of her on the pedestal sickened her; she was watching them as if they were her own personal entertainers; and Esme got the feeling she wasn't quite living up to Zoe's expectations. Esme looked at Regina, who paused for a brief moment; she looked her bruised and beaten daughter in the eye and threw another fireball at her.

"Focus Esme. Fight back." Regina shouted as she threw another curse towards Esme. Esme was even more confused, but Regina kept fighting her while screaming for her to fight back. It was then that it clicked. Fight back. That was the thing Regina said when they were training. The spells she had used were the ones that the two used to spar with. Maybe Regina was here to save her. When Esme fired back her fireball, Regina couldn't help but smile. She returned another curse to which Esme retaliated accordingly and it as then that Regina knew she understood. She maintained her hardened exterior, an act Esme quickly adopted, but they knew what they were doing. They fought for what felt like hours, until Esme's body simply couldn't take much more. She trusted Regina, but she couldn't be sure Regina knew how exhausted she was. When Esme returned a spell that was a mere flicker of the spell it was supposed to be, Regina looked around, saw that nobody was watching them, as they were all engaged in battle, and gave Esme a moment to regain some strength. As grateful as Esme was, that moment of inaction allowed men and women to penetrate the circle of safety their spells had earned them; now men and women were fighting all around them. Esme lost sight of Regina for a moment and panicked. It was silly really; she was in the middle of a war but she felt like a lost child because she had lost her mother. Irregardless of how silly Esme felt, she fought her way through everyone until she finally caught a glimpse of Regina who was doing the very same thing. Esme stared at her for a moment; she looked exhausted. Her eyes were bark, her lips were pale and her skin was almost grey. Esme was horrified at how Regina looked ill, but she was more horrified when she saw a woman raise her sword and aim the sharp tip at Regina.

"Mom!" Esme screamed and with every ounce of strength she had, she forced herself to use a spell. Within seconds of pointing her finger towards the woman, the soldier was flung back into the shadows with a glorious white light; and Esme was now the focus of attention.

"She lied! " Zoe screamed a scream that was shrill and filled with anger. Regina and Esme knew that Regina's plan had been revealed and began to run to each other; but it was too late. Zoe's scream had enraged the women soldiers and each and every one of them - there must have been 100 in total - fought their way through the confused mass of males with their vengeful eyes set on Regina. Esme watched as Regina sent waves of women through the air with a mere flick of her wrist, but as impressive as this was, Esme knew that she wouldn't be able to do that for long; Regina was exhausted. Esme also knew that Regina would never be able to fight Cyrus if she lost much more strength and so she desperately wanted to help her. Esme looked frantically around her for some sign of aid, and when she looked down to her right she saw the body of a man she recognised. He was one of the men that sat at the table the very first day she had arrived; she delicately closed his old, war-torn green eyes before taking his sword. The sword was horribly heavy in her right arm, but the sight of Zoe's soldiers getting dangerously close to Regina gave Esme some strength; Regina had risked her life to save her, she couldn't let her down now. As Esme used every trick Cyrus had ever taught her, she ducked as men and women flew past her head. Just as she was within touching distance of Regina, she felt a sharp tug at her waist, and a horrifyingly sharp edge at her throat.

"Stop!" Zoe screamed. Her calm demeanour began to waver, and her shrill scream vibrated its way through Esme's ears. Regina was panting and looked furious, but when she saw Esme in the firm grasp of Zoe, she was consumed by fear.

"You know Regina, I don't like being lied to," Zoe explained in a story telling-like manner that chilled Esme to her core. She began to walk around, circling Regina as if she was prey, and all Esme could do was go with her.

"It was me that lied to you, not Esme," Regina said as she attempted to reason with Zoe, but Zoe was enjoying her terror far too much to care. It ticked her that she could reduce the notorious Evil Queen to a quivering wreck with just one knife and a young woman.

"Exactly! So what could be worse than killing her right in front of you?!" Zoe said with a horrendous smile plastered across her face. With every word, Esme felt the sharp knife press closer to her throat and she knew Regina could do absolutely nothing to stop her; Zoe was sure to use Esme's body to protect her own from any unwanted spells and by this stage, Zoe's followers had grabbed Regina too.

"Hurt my daughter and I will end you," Regina seethed through gritted teeth and clenched fists. Thus while Esme was grateful for her mothers defiance but Zoe was not; Esme felt the tip of Zoe's knife pierce through the left side of her throat and panic immediately set in. She could feel a tiny trickle of blood gently cascade down her neck, and although she the trickle of blood was all that came of the wound, it was an unwelcome reminder that Zoe, unlike Cyrus, wanted her dead. As Zoe continued to parade Esme around, the women had formed a protective barrier around them and the men simply stopped the fighting, too mesmerised by events to continue their battle. They had halved in numbers, those who survived were bloody and Cyrus was nowhere to be seen; Zoe was winning this war. Just as Zoe began to speak again, a huge bolt of light flashed through the sky and engulfed Esme and Zoe in a bright wave of a horrendously bright light.

"No!" Regina screamed a blood curdling scream as her legs began to give way. The women who had grabbed her made no attempt to support her as she fell to her knees and as she watched, the light burned her eyes. After waiting a few moments, and hearing the sickening screams from inside the light that had engulfed her daughter, Regina wailed at the sight of her daughter. Gone.

"Mom? Mom!" Esme screamed as she emerged from bright light and ran towards her mother. Her eyes were painful and her vision was blurred due to the sheer intensity of the light but she could make out her mother.

"Esme!" Regina cried as she held her tightly in her arms; the way Esme sank into her made Regina want to hold her forever more.

"Are you okay? Are you alright?" Regina asked, as she studied every inch of her daughter; soaking in hear beauty and thankful that she had the opportunity to do so.

"Yeah i'm okay. Mom," Esme said as she pulled away slightly and looked at Regina. It felt nice to say that word; like it was meant to be specifically for Regina, it suited her. Esme saw Regina smile at the mention of it, but she had to talk to her before the reality of what had occurred set it. Zoe was gone. Esme didn't know how, but the white light that had engulfed them burned her, and only her; she heard the scream but before she could help, Zoe had gone and all Esme could do was try to find her way out of the beam of light.

"I am so, so sorry. I hated sending you and Dad away, okay? I hated it! But I needed you both to be saf-" Esme said but the tears that she had suppressed for too long were beginning to fall down her cheeks and her throat began to catch.

"I know. Oh, sweetheart I know," Regina said as she planted a kiss firmly on Esme's head and held her for as long as she possibly could. There was nothing she wanted more in that second than to bring her daughter home, but the women were beginning to stir; the battle wasn't quite over yet. The light had dissipated and people were wondering why Esme had been allowed to emerge and not Zoe. It was when the realisation of her death set in that all hell broke loose. The magic that had primarily been confined to simply Esme and Regina, to their knowledge, was now used across the battle; casualties doubled within minutes. Regina looked around at the horrendous fighting that was occurring and saw an opportunity; the only people that truly used Esme were Cyrus and Zoe. Zoe was dead, so if she could just get Esme out of this, Cyrus would be much less of a threat.

"Come on," Regina said as people began to stand over them while casting their spells; nobody cared they were there. She grabbed Esme's hand and began to run. The two raced through corridors, darted through doors and hid in the dark until they felt relatively safe all the while clinging to each others hands. They had been running so fast and so desperately that neither truly knew where they were. The corridor was masked by the night sky, the only light available was offered by the bright white moon. As Esme and Regina took a moment to catch their breath, Esme supported herself with the help of the strong stone wall and steadied her breath; she felt so exhausted she felt physically ill.

"Are you okay? Esme look at me, you okay?" Regina said as she joined her daughter and placed her back against the wall. Esme had gone a horrible shade of grey and she was breathing so hard Regina could practically see her lungs.

"Yeah. Yeah i'm fine," Esme said as she continued to stare at one little black spot on the otherwise stony ground. She needed to bring down her heart rate; otherwise it felt like her heart would pump right out of her chest. As she slid into a sitting position, Regina joined her and as ridiculous as it seemed, Esme grabbed her mothers arm and placed her head on her shoulder. With their arms interlinked, Esme felt safe.

"How did you not obey Zoe? She had your heart?"

"There's only one person that has my heart honey and that certainly isn't Zoe," Regina explained but it took Esme a minute or two to understand what had happened.

"It was from your vault."

"Yes. I would never put you at risk like that-"

"No I know," Esme stated. Although Esme was curious, she trusted Regina, and she knew that she owed her an explanation about why she sent her away. She had replayed that scene when Regina was crying over a dozen times in her brain; she couldn't ever let her down like that again.

"I am so, so sorry-"

"Esme, I understand-" Regina said, knowing exactly what Esme meant.

"No please let me say this. Yes I am so sorry for sending you and Robin away but I am more sorry for ever making you think I didn't want a family. That was so not the issue I swear," Esme explained. She looked at Regina who had a wonderful, calm look on her face, and a hint of a smile, so Esme continued.

"I've never been a daughter before so I've only ever had to look out for myself. It's not that I didn't want a mom or dad, I was worried that you wouldn't want me. Not really. You have these two gorgeous boys who you have raised and have this incredible bond with and I was worried that because you didn't get to raise me that I would be different -"

"Esme, I need you to listen to me okay? Yes, Robin and I were robbed of our chance to raise you, and yes our situation as a family is… different, but we are still a family. It's you, me, Robin, Henry and Roland, okay? I love you so, so much and that doesn't change one ounce just because I raised Henry. Do you understand?"

"I do now," Esme laughed a little as she allowed a tear to roll gently down her cheek and wrapped her arms around Regina's neck, clinging to her.

"I want to go home, mom," Esme said as she rested her head on Regina's shoulder. Regina smiled at how Esme called her mom. Finally.

"And we will. I promise," Regina said and kissed her daughters head.

"You shouldn't make promises you can't keep Your Majesty," said a deep, menacing voice from the shadows. Esme and Regina both bolted to their feet and Regina instinctively put her arm protectively across her daughter.

"Who's there," Regina demanded. It was then that Cyrus emerged from the dark with a menacing smile on his face and blood spattered armour.

"Now now, Your Majesty, you are supposed to bow in the presence of an Emperor. Surely you would know that, Evil Queen," he stated. Neither Esme nor Regina knew what to do; Cyrus was a powerful warlock and they were exhausted.

"I said, bow," Cyrus said and with a flick of his wrist, both Esme and Regina felt an excruciating pain in their abdomen that forced them to their knees within seconds. Esme was still holding Regina's hand but it was more for some sort of support or relief; the pain was horrendous and unrelenting and Cyrus was enjoying it.

"Stop," was all Esme could do. She caught his eye for a moment and that was just enough to compel him; the entire incident was eerily reminiscent of her encounter with Levi. It worked, but only for a brief moment. The pain subsided long enough for Regina and Esme to sit back up and catch their breath but Cyrus was quick to use his magic once again; he flung Regina hard against one wall and Esme hard against the other; taking great delight in treating them like dolls and watching as they broke.

"Come on little seer, I taught you more than that," Cyrus said as he began to stride towards her. Esme's ears were ringing but her heart sank when she looked around and saw that Regina was unconscious with a bloody gash on her head. It was then that her fear and helplessness bubbled into anger; she immediately raised her hands and flung Cyrus hard against one of the walls.

"Stop." Esme said as she hurled him once again.

"Hurting," and again.

"My." Again.

"Mom!" she screamed. The effort it had taken to remove the smugness from his face left Esme breathless but she didn't care. She looked and saw that Cyrus was lying on the ground unconscious and so she ran and fell beside her mother.

"Regina?" Esme asked but there was no response. She was alive, she was breathing, but she needed to wake up; Esme needed her to wake up.

"Please, come on. Mom?" Esme said as her shaking hands began to wipe away the blood that had trickled down the side of her head. Esme knew that technically she could heal her with a wave of her hand but she had tried to heal before but she was never any good at it. Despite this, she quickly concluded that she had no other option and so she carefully moved her mothers head. Once Esme could see Regina's inch long head gash more clearly, she raised her hands and focussed; it was then that she instantly felt a gentle heat radiate from her hands and she watched as the gash gradually disappeared before her eyes. Once the gash was gone, Regina slowly began to come around.

"See…. I..I told you you could do it," Regina said slowly as she groggily began to return to reality. Esme smiled with Regina but her happiness was short lived for within minutes of her mother waking up, she was so engrossed in their conversation that she hadn't noticed Cyrus. That is, not until his hand was placed harshly around her mouth and nose, and his other arm was digging a knife firmly against her hip, which terrified Esme all the more as he was still unsteady from his head injuries. Regina tried to get up but before she could even raise her hand Esme heard a sharp intake of breath and a very sharp edge against her back. Seconds after the breath, Cyrus made a horrific gasping and gargling noise and the pressure of the knife against her side vanished as he fell to the floor, his armour making a loud crash as he landed. Esme was frozen in terror.

"Are you alright, miss Esmerelda?" Levi said in an unusually polite tone. Esme was too terrified to move, but the tough of his hand on her shoulder immediately made her whirl around; he looked genuinely concerned. He also looked dishevelled and had blood smeared all the way up his arms and armour but Esme recognised his voice immediately.

"The blood…" Esme said, all to aware that Cyrus was now a bloody corpse at her feet.

"My uncles. I tried to save him but-"

"I'm sorry." Esme couldn't begin to imagine what he was going through, nor did she ever want to, but she also couldn't feel a great deal of sympathy for him; he was a cold man, much like his uncle, who cared more about his kingdom than his humanity. This wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but it did scare Esme. Esme helped Regina get to her feet and provided her with some support while Levi continued to stare at him in deathly silence.

"You killed Cyrus." Esme asked carefully. He was a volatile character at the best of times let alone when he was engulfed in grief.

"Yes."

"Your sword, it… it went straight through him.." Esme said as she felt ill.

"I believe so. I don't think it scratched you tho?"

"No it didn't. Why?"

"We require your assistance once again." Levi had had enough of Esme's attempt at conversation; he was more a man of action than words.

"Why?"

"Because now both armies are without a leader. The war doesn't simply end."

"I'm not going to fight for you people."

"Yes you will. That is, if you and your precious mother want to return to Storybrooke."

"What?" Regina spat.

"You two aren't powerful enough to even attempt to make a portal. So the way I see it, i'm your only chance of getting home, and I will only open that portal when we are victorious," Levi explained. Regina and Esme looked at one another but deep down, they knew that he was right. They were weak, and exhausted and simply couldn't muster the power to try and open a viable portal home.

"Fine. But if you so much as think of going back on your word-" Regina began.

"I'm well aware of your various threats Evil Queen. There's no need to waste your breath," Levi stated before he turned on his heels and began to strut calmly back towards the battle with Esme and Regina behind him.

After a few moments of walking, they were greeted by the familiar sound of swords clanging, the bright flashes of spells and the loud cries of soldiers; none of which Esme wanted to see or hear. She looked at Regina who squeezed her hand reassuringly; it was then that the floodgates opened.

"The Seer!" a women screamed as they turned the corner and within seconds they were being bombarded by spells and soldiers with swords. Regina immediately stepped in front of Esme and warded of the spells, hurling just as many back, while Esme grabbed a sword she found and fended off the men and women that came at them, all of whom were drunk with blood-lust. However, after what felt like hours of unrelenting fighting, Esme and Regina grew weaker and weaker; they were so grateful for the momentary break that occurred that they didn't really care about the cause of it.

"Stop!" They heard a man's voice bellow through the night air. They watched as everyone stopped, clearly as war weary as Regina and Esme were and so they slowly walked to a place of relative safety and watched as Levi gave an empowered speech. He discussed how the men had decided he should be their emperor, how there was no sense in spilling further blood when the true battle should be between the male ruler and the female ruler. He asked the women who they wanted to be their tribute and it was then that dozens of eyes turned straight to Esme.

"No. Absolutely not!" Regina told them all as they turned to her but they didn't care. One women had already grabbed her and began to drag her away as the people of Messene made a circle within which a shell shocked Esme would have to fight Levi.

"I'm sorry little seer," Levi said before hurling a curse her way. Esme ducked below it and watched as it burned a black hole in the stone wall behind her. She immediately got to her feet and was forced to understand the very real danger she was in; if she killed him, Regina would have no way home, if he killed her, it would destroy Regina. So she fought.

She hurled every curse imaginable at him, and deflected every spell he threw at her but it was no good; only a few spells wiped the smug smile off his face and he was more determined to be Emperor than she was. She was grateful that the crowds that had encircled them were relatively calm but she would have been grateful for even the slightest help. Instead all she heard was Regina screaming desperately; had it not been for that, Esme would have given up. She continued to fight and was successful in doing so, but she realised that magically, he was stronger than she and so she used the one thing he simply didn't have; her seer abilities. Just as Cyrus had made Regina and Esme bow prior to the battle, Esme deflected one last spell, held out her hand and slowly began to cause Levi the most unbearable head pain. He tried to retaliate with a few spells but they were easily deflected and Esme punished him with a sharp burst of excruciating pain.

"Stop fighting!" Esme screamed, desperate to stop hurting him; she didn't and never had enjoyed using her powers to cause that pain.

"Ahhhhh! Please!" Levi begged and Esme was seconds away from doing so when a particularly fierce looking soldier stepped in and asked Levi a question.

"Do you relent?"

"Ahhh! Yes! Yes I relent!" he said as he curled into the foetal position and desperately clutched and bashed at his head. Esme had won. The ferocious looking woman came towards a terrified Esme, took her hand and raised it.

"The seer has fulfilled the prophecy; our land is now saved. All hail Empress Esmerelda!" she shouted and Esme watched as men and women knelt before her; even Levi. Regina ran to her daughter's side and watched it happen; all the while her heart breaking. Her daughter was now a queen of her own kingdom; Esme wouldn't come home with her now, and she didn't expect her to. But as Regina approached her and Esme turned to look at her, she looked scared, not happy.

"Umm, can I take a few moments with my mom please?" Esme politely asked the very scary soldier, who smiled and nodded.

"Of course, Empress."

Esme quickly grabbed Regina's hand and pulled her to a place that she was confident they wouldn't be overheard.

"What's wrong?" Regina asked.

"What's wrong! I don't want to stay here! I don't want to be an empress!" Esme whispered.

"You don't?" Regina said, totally incapable of hiding her joy.

"No of course not! Mom, you guys are my family; I want to come home." Regina watched as Esme looked at her as if she could fix everything that was wrong in the world; her eyes were filled with such hope and adoration that Regina couldn't let her down. She pulled Esme close and held her while she though of a plan to get them out of this.

"Then that's exactly where we are going."

"Empress?"

"Hmmm, oh yeah, hi. Umm…" Esme stuttered but she couldn't think straight. She didn't want to spend another second here; she was sore, she was tired and she wanted to hug her brothers and dad. Dad. Mom and Dad. She would have to get used to that.

"We need to speak to Levi," Regina interjected. Esme looked at her curiously but imitated her regal expressions when she looked back at the man who had been sent to fetch them.

"Of course. Follow me," the man stated and before Esme knew what was going on, Regina was dragging her after him. As they turned the corner, Levi saw Esme and simply looked enraged.

"What can I possibly do for you empress?" Levi said in a manner that clearly didn't imply peace.

"Send us back to Storybrooke and we'll declare you emperor," Regina stated. Levi was astounded, as was Esme.

"What? Why? This is your home, your kingdom; you won," he asked.

"This isn't my home, it never was. My home is Storybrooke-" Esme explained. Levi didn't seem to care a great deal about the rationale behind her decision.

"The people will not be thrilled but if you word it correctly, they-"

"Deal or not, witchy boy," Regina demanded. Levi didn't look particularly impressed but he was quick to agree.

"Agreed." The second Levi said confirmed, Esme let go of Regina's hand, stood on the base of one of the broken pillars and used a spell to amplify her voice as hundreds of people stared at her expectantly.

"People of Messene, you have all been under the heavy hand of a dictator that has put their own personal needs above that of their people, and for that I am sorry. You need someone who deserves your loyalty and who's life is worth the blood spilled here but that just isn't me. I don't have experience as a ruler and more importantly, I don't love Messene. This place represents a time of my life I really would rather forget and that shouldn't be the mentality of your ruler. It is for this reason that I will abdicate my throne and propose that Levi be my successor." Esme stopped; she knew that she was rambling but she could think of nothing else to say and the entirety of the mass of people had began to chatter amongst themselves. It was at this point that Esme looked towards Regina and Levi for some sort of support; it was Levi that then offered it. The two swapped positions on the base of the colossal column and Esme watched him; despite his dirty, bloody physicality, he delivered an impassioned speech about his love for Messene.

"It is now that I invite our empress to the stage," Levi said and politely, albeit dramatically, extended his hand to help Esme up onto the 'stage'. She took it and stood awkwardly beside him, unsure about what exactly Levi had planned.

"Is there anyone who objects the the empress's decision?" Levi called and they both waited with baited breath; the crowds murmured but nobody opposed.

"In that case, it is my pleasure to introduce to you your Emperor!" Esme cheered and raised Levi's hand just as the soldier had raised hers. Much to Esme's delight, there was a loud chorus of cheers. Esme quickly let go of Levi's hand and jumped down from the base, hugged a very relieved Regina and waited; Levi was revelling in the people's delight and enjoying every second of begin up on the podium.

Ahghmm," Esme coughed which immediately brought Levi's attention towards her and Regina. He didn't seem happy that Esme had dragged him away from his adoring crowds, but he was just as anxious as her to get her and Regina out of Messene; should she decide to keep her crown, she was technically the legitimate Empress and he would be deposed immediately.

"Follow me," Levi explained in the came abrupt manner that Esme had grown accustomed to here, and so they did. They followed him to the centre of the palace courtyard, only a few meters away and watched as he cleared a pathway.

"I need something from Storybrooke," he demanded. Regina magically summoned a leaf and handed it to Levi and the two stood back while Levi conjured a huge, gleaming white portal. They two were about to walk towards it when Levi grabbed Esme's arm.

"Wait… you don't like me," Levi stated.

"No I don't," Esme replied. She was too anxious to return home to even attempt to soften her answer.

"Then why hand me the title?"

"I told you, this isn't my home. Besides, I don't have to like you to think you'll be a decent ruler. Can I go now?" She asked, to which he let go of her arm and allowed her to walk forwards.

"Oh and Esme?"

"What?"

"Don't come back." he was smiling in a way that made it seem like a joke, but Esme got the distinct impression it perhaps had greater undertones.

"Don't worry, I don't plan to."

With that, Regina took her daughters hand and the two stepped into the portal that would take them to Storybrooke. Esme's home.