Sorry! My muse and I have been at war lately, and this chapter was quite possibly the worst to have to write with that problem. I've written a large part of the next chapter already, so hopefully it won't be too much longer. Thanks to all of you for sticking with me through this story!

Holiday Spirit

Chapter 29

They'd showered, dressed and were both standing in the kitchen when the doorbell rang.

"They're here," Regina said, pulling nervously on her sweater.

At the request of both David and Regina, Emma and Snow were bringing Henry to the house – and staying for lunch.

David wanted to say it was going to be fine, but he swallowed the words, placing a supportive hand between her shoulder blades instead. There'd been so much loss on all sides and he knew it was going to take time to heal. There was not enough magic in the universe to make everything suddenly alright.

"I'll get it," he told her. One last comforting stroke down her back and he moved down the stairs to open the door.

The second it was open, Henry was past Emma like a shot. "Mom!" he shouted.

She barely had time to brace herself as he launched himself into her arms. "I missed you," he told her quietly.

"You saw me yesterday," she told him.

"I know, but it's not the same," he whispered sadly.

"No, it isn't, is it?" She tightened her grip on him and pulled him in even closer. "I love that I can do this again," she said, resting her head against the top of his. "I'm not going to waste another second of enjoying you being smaller than me."

Henry groaned. "Mom," he whined, but he was still smiling. "This is kind of embarrassing."

"Don't care," she mumbled, but she finally let him go and stood up straight. "We should eat. David's starving."

Henry pulled back from her hold, nodding. After a minute of her not moving, he quietly asked, "Are you okay, mom?"

She swallowed heavily, attempting a smile that came out more heartbreaking than reassuring. "Come on, let's get something to eat," she said without answering his question.

He looked over at David sadly before bowing his head and following his mother to the kitchen.

"It's so quiet," Emma commented absentmindedly, looking around at the seemingly empty house; no toys lying around or pictures covering the wall by the stairs, no children running around screaming and laughing. But realizing what she'd said and the fact she'd said it aloud, she snapped back into the moment. "Shit, David...I'm sorry," she said softly.

He shook his head. "It's alright, just...don't let Regina hear you. I know we're going to get them back," he said determinedly, "but Regina's convinced they're gone forever."

"How can you be so sure we will?" Emma asked in a near-whisper. Olivia's absence had haunted her since she'd woken up without her and Neal.

"Because that woman was showing us what we could have if we chose it. It would be too cruel for it not to be possible."

"David's right," Snow agreed emphatically, hand moving to rest on her stomach. "We'll get them back. We can't lose hope."

They all stood silently for a moment.

"Are you guys coming?" Henry's voice broke into the solemn atmosphere and the three jumped slightly.

"Be right there," David called back.

"Regina, wake up," David coaxed. He sat on the edge of the bed and glanced at the clock in concern. It was nearing the afternoon, and Regina had barely stirred. Every day closer to Christmas she slept later and later, and he'd begun to worry about the depression that was slowly building in her. He was used to the Regina that would fight back, and he wondered if this latest loss had been the one to finally push her over the edge and into giving up completely.

Determined not to let that happen, he called her name again, this time reaching out to brush her cheek softly.

She blinked her eyes open, looking up at him without moving her head. "What?" she asked in a gravelly voice.

"I made lunch," he told her. "Henry was hoping you'd join us since you missed breakfast."

At the mention of Henry, she finally managed to sit up, rubbing at her eyes groggily. "Okay," she conceded. "Give me a few minutes? I don't want to look like I've just woken up. Tell Henry I was reading or something?"

David looked at her, eyebrows raised in a move that was more reminiscent of her. "I can tell him that, but he won't believe me. He thinks you're avoiding him."

"I'm not!" she said immediately, turning defensive.

"I know that," David said gently. "And I know how much you're hurting," he said carefully, laying a hand on her knee. "But Regina, you're not alone in this. I'm here, talk to me. Locking yourself away isn't going to change anything, and Henry needs us both. He's blaming himself," he raised his free hand as she opened her mouth to protest, "and we both know it's not his fault, but he's a child and all he understands is what he sees and hears."

"It's my fault he's blaming himself," she said miserably.

"No!" he told her firmly. "You can't be blaming yourself, either. This is no one's fault."

"Except for the wretched fairy creature that did this to us!" she said defiantly. "If I find her..." she trailed off, fire blazing in her eyes, and it actually brought a small smile to David's face.

"That's the Regina I know," he said affectionately, relief flooding through him with the knowledge that she still had fight left in her.

She looked at him with a sort of bewildered expression before he patted her knee.

"I'll stall with Henry for a few minutes, give you time to change and wash up before you come down to join us." Standing, he looked down at her. "I want to help, Regina. I love you." He bent down and left a kiss on her forehead before he turned and left the room.

"We found him, we found him!" Henry came bounding into the house, not even bothering to shut the door behind him as he took the stairs three at a time and came skidding to a halt in the doorway to the kitchen, where Regina stood with a surprised expression.

"Who'd you find, dear?" she asked.

"Derek!" Henry cheered. "He didn't find Snow earlier because he was lost out in the woods and he'd broken his ankle, so it took him awhile to make it into town, and he had to go to the hospital, but he's okay now, and Snow's with him!"

Regina blinked. "That's...good."

"Don't you see what this means?!" he asked cheerfully. "Everything's starting to happen the way it did with the spell! You and David are together, Emma and Neal are working things out, and now Derek's here and he's with Snow! This means things can go back to how they were!"

Regina sagged against the counter slightly. She'd tried so hard the last couple of days to be more present for Henry, to attempt to start to heal, but it was so hard. There was a constant reminder of her lost children hanging over her, and she wondered how she was ever supposed to heal with them there.

"Mom!" Henry called. "Mom, what's wrong?" He'd noticed his mother's posture and her withdrawn expression and moved toward her worriedly. He still wasn't used to seeing her so upset, and it scared him when she retreated into herself the way she was doing in front of him now.

"Nothing, Henry," she said quietly, managing a tight smile. "I'm fine."

Henry frowned at her. "No you're not."

When he started to sink into himself the way she had only a moment before, she snapped herself out of it and closed the gap between them. "Hey," she said gently, coaxing him to look up at her. "I love you." She cursed herself for allowing him to see her on the verge of falling apart and pulled him into a hug. He still blamed himself for her misery, despite her best efforts to convince him otherwise, and it was enough to keep her out of bed and hanging on. "Are you hungry?" she asked, raising her hand from his chin to run it through his hair. "I've been working on dinner, and maybe we can make dessert together later to celebrate finding Derek?"

"Really?" he asked, the smile returning as he looked up at her hopefully.

She nodded. "How about cupcakes?"

"Yes!" He cheered, and bounced over to the fridge to get himself a glass of water.

"Who left the front door open?" David's voice called from the entryway.

Henry looked up guiltily at his mother when she looked over at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Oops."

"Hey," David greeted when he rounded the corner.

"I told mom the news," Henry said. "We're having cupcakes tonight to celebrate!"

"Oh, are we?" he asked, looking over to where Regina gave him a tight smile. He could easily spot the pain in her expression, and he knew she was putting on a brave front for Henry.

"Yep."

As Henry turned back around to finish filling his cup of water, Regina's forced smile dropped, and David walked to her side and pulled her into him, kissing the side of her head in a gesture of comfort and support.

Henry's voice was what pulled them both from sleep.

"Guys? Mo-om…David! Come on, it's Christmas, wake up! Guys!"

Regina let out a sleepy chuckle as David groaned and rubbed her back a few times.

"You didn't warn me about the wake-up call," he mumbled.

"This is kinda weird," Henry said, scrunching his nose at the pair and the way they were still cuddled together. "I mean, I was kinda used to the two of you together during the spell, but this is different. Not that it's bad!" he hurried to say. "It's just…weird. Now, come ooonn! It's Christmas, and it's already almost nine!"

He bounced impatiently on his toes as Regina and David stretched and sat up. Regina stood, ruffling his hair before reaching for her robe and pulling it on. "Breakfast first, or presents first?"

"As if that's even a question?" Henry asked incredulously, shaking his head, and David laughed.

"Presents it is," Regina said. She gestured for Henry to lead the way and followed behind, hand clasped in David's.

They reached the living room, where David had helped Regina set up a Christmas tree that they'd all decorated together the night before. Regina had already had presents ready for Henry, and they were now all organized neatly underneath the tree.

Once they were settled on the couch, Henry eagerly began ripping through the wrapping paper on his presents, oohing and aahing over the items Regina had picked out for him this year, thanking her over and over again with each new gift.

"I'm afraid I didn't have much time to go shopping for you," Regina told David. "I didn't expect you to be here for Christmas before the spell hit," she said smiling. "But…I managed to get you this," she said, pulling a small package from the coffee table and holding it out to him.

He took it from her, wondering what she could possibly have bought for him that would fit in such a small box. It was flat, and small enough to fit in the palm of his hand. The box was glossy black with a deep purple ribbon tied around it. Untying it and opening the lid, he pushed aside the tissue paper to reveal a shiny, freshly cut gold key attached to a simple but elegant black and silver tag keychain– one he instantly recognized, though it wasn't yet scratched and worn with age. "My key to the house," he said quietly, pulling it out of the box.

"It felt wrong for you not to have it." She looked up at him timidly.

"Thank you. This is…perfect," he said, and grinned to calm her obvious nerves.

Feeling more confident, Regina smiled. "There is just one more thing I have for you."

"Oh?"

"Mmm." She leaned in, pulling him down to meet her in an open-mouthed kiss. It was brief, but passionate, and when she pulled back, David leaned in to steal one more quick one.

"That was pretty good, too," he said.

"Merry Christmas," she laughed.

"Ew."

The couple looked over to find Henry sitting on the chair opposite them, a new comic clutched in one hand and a scrunched look, mouth open in a gagging expression. "I'm glad you guys are happy, but maybe don't do that in front of me?"

Regina laughed. "Sorry, honey. We'll keep it PG from now on."

Henry sniffed, smiling a bit. "Yeah, okay. I think I can deal with that."

As Henry pulled the next present from under the tree, David leaned in. "I have something for you, too, but I think we should wait until after Emma picks up Henry this afternoon."

"Oh?" Regina smiled mischievously, but David shook his head, smiling.

"Not that, though I wouldn't be opposed," he laughed.

"I could think of a present you could get for me right now," she said to him, watching Henry go to work on the ribbon. "A cup of coffee?"

He laughed, but stood up. "Any specific requests?"

"A very large cup of coffee," she amended, and he nodded, still laughing.

"I'm on it. Henry? Want anything?"

"No thank you," he said a little distractedly, still digging into wrapping paper.

A few minutes later David reappeared with two cups of coffee, the large one of which he handed down to Regina before reclaiming the spot next to her.

"Thank you."

"No problem. It's the least I could do."

Once he was settled, she scooched over to nestle into his side, drawing her legs up onto the couch as she leaned into him. He leaned back into the cushions, raising his arm to accommodate her and then bringing it around her when she was comfortable. They spent the rest of the morning that way, content just to watch Henry open and play with his presents.

The hours passed too quickly for Regina's liking and then it was time for Henry to go. Before she knew it, it was almost six, and she and David had the house to themselves.

They ate dinner together, not talking much, but it was a comfortable silence, so neither of them minded. It was after dinner, when they were settled on the couch again with their glasses of wine, that Regina cleared her throat lightly.

"So. Do I get my present now?"

"If you want it."

"I do. I've been curious all day. The suspense is killing me."

He smiled. "Alright. I'll be right back."

She watched curiously as he disappeared around the corner and she could hear him open and close a drawer in the entryway. A few seconds later, he reappeared holding a manila envelope.

"You got me paperwork for Christmas?" she asked with faint amusement. "I have plenty of that at work, dear." Even so, she was smiling at him, anxious to see what the envelope could possibly contain.

"Not just any paperwork," he told her, and she sobered at the seriousness he'd adopted. "After we found Derek, Snow and I had a chance to talk a little. She wants to be with Derek, and I want to be with you. She knows that – she understands it and she's okay with us being together, just like I'm okay with her wanting a future with him. She thought there was no point in waiting, so she gave me this." He handed her the envelope and watched as she opened it with shaky hands.

Flipping it over, she realized they were signed divorce papers.

"She'd already signed them," David told her. "I know how you've felt about my separation from Snow, so I wanted you to see this. We're still going to be in each other's lives; we still care about each other deeply, but not as husband and wife. We don't love each other anymore the way I love you and she loves Derek. Our marriage is over."

Regina looked up at him, eyes glassy and the papers hanging limply from her hand. "You didn't have to do this," she told him, barely managing the words without her voice cracking. "I didn't mean for you to make this decision so quickly. I know…I…"

"Regina," he said, pulling the papers from her hand to set them on the coffee table before taking her hand in his. "Regina, it's alright."

"I didn't want you to feel forced."

"I didn't. I don't," he told her firmly. "It's not an easy process, but it was an easy decision, and no one forced me into it."

"You're sure?" she asked.

"I'm positive."

"Okay," she agreed quietly, some of the tension leaving her. She picked up her wine glass and leaned back into the couch again. "You'd better start drinking, too," she told him, gesturing at his untouched wine. "At this rate I'll be on my third glass before you're halfway through your first."

He laughed. "Alright, alright."

He looked over at her right before he took a sip, taking in the way she sat sideways facing him, head leaned against the back of the couch as she watched him with a soft, loving gaze, and he realized that this had been his best Christmas ever.

His smile broadened. Because he knew that his Christmases - and his life - with Regina were only going to get better and better.