April 30th 2013 to May 1st 2013
He took a few steps back to kick down the door as Whale and Sarah were catching up with him. The trio gasped at the scene in front of them.
Regina was breathing hard against the gag, her feet and hands tied to the railings. She was writhing on the bed, trying to get away from the man who was supposed to be helping her. David was the first to recover from the initial shock. He grabbed the 'doctor' by the lapels of his white coat and threw him on the floor, away from Regina and his only escape.
Sarah and Whale rushed to Regina's side. As Sarah was removing the gag and the restraints, Whale tried to examine the wound. But as soon as she was free, Regina curled on herself, screaming in pain. "David!"
The blonde sheriff immediately left the unconscious doctor to be by her side. "Regina, I'm so sorry… shh… You're going to be ok." He kissed her temple and tried to move her hair away from her face.
"Please… please. I don't wanna die… don't let them… don't let them kill me…. don't let them burn me…." Her sobs were coming in rapid succession now and all present were afraid she would start hyperventilating soon.
Sarah looked at David questioningly but the man was too busy to try to calm down Regina to notice her. There would be time for questions later. Right now, they needed to manage her pain and her fears.
Whale reached for the drawers containing clean syringes and cursed under his breath when he saw the empty bottle of epinephrine sitting on top. He hurried to fill one with morphine and settled next to the still curled up Queen. He needed to have a look at her wound but she was in too much pain to let him properly examine her. He rubbed her arm. "Regina, I'm going to give you some morphine."
Regina was not listening to anyone. She was hurt and scared. She kept repeating the same words to David. "I don't wanna die…. please… don't let them kill me… I don't want to burn… no more pain… please."
David was holding her as best he could on the bed. He had one arm wrapped around her waist as he soothingly rubbed her back. He was leaning heavily on the bed, and Regina had buried her face in the crook of his neck. He could feel the wetness from her tears through the collar of his shirt. "I won't let anyone touch you, Regina. You're not going to burn. Shhh…." Her hands fisted his shirt. "I'm not leaving you again… I'm sorry. I'm right here with you." He kissed her cheek and looked toward Whale. "But you need to let Dr. Whale help you."
Whale rubbed her arm with a cotton dabbed in alcohol and placed the syringe near her skin. As soon as she felt the cold metal of the needle on her skin, Regina shrieked and jerked away from him, half-sitting on the bed. "No… please no more…. I'm sorry… please… please… please."
David held her tighter. "Shh… we're just trying to help you."
Whale just watched as David was trying to settle the frightened woman. He was concerned about the amount of blood she had already lost and he needed to have a better look at what Santo had done. But she was also scared and he did not know how much adrenaline she had been injected with. He did not want to give her a heart attack by treating her forcefully. "Regina, it will help with the pain. I know you're scared but I'm asking you to trust me. I won't do anything without your permission."
David kept holding on to her. "I'm here with you. And Sarah too… we won't let anything happen to you. ok?" He felt Regina weakly nod against his chest and he signaled Whale to proceed with treatment.
Whale dabbed a cotton ball one more time on her skin and injected the much needed pain medication. Regina jumped slightly but allowed for the injection. They all watched as Regina slowly relaxed in David's arms. He was stroking her hair, trying to keep her calm. "I'm going to lay you on the bed, sweetheart. I'll be right next to you but we need to let Dr. Whale have a look at your wound."
David took her lack of response as agreement and carefully laid her down on the bed. Her eyes were half-closed, fighting the sleep that threatened to pull her under. He kissed her forehead and took the hand that laid near her face. He stroke her palm with his thumb, all the while talking to her reassuringly. Sarah gently pried her left hand from her wound and held it. She whimpered slightly and David rubbed her cheek. "Shhh… you're going to be ok."
Regina tried to focus her eyes on David. "I don't want to die… I want our life together."
David wiped away her tears. "I won't let you die… I want to be with you… I want a long life with you." He was doing his best to hold back his own tears and frustration.
Whale sighed at the sight of her wound. Santo had tried to suture her but without an anesthetic, she must have been moving too much for him to properly close the wound. He would have to cut the sutures and stitch her up again. Whale rubbed her uninjured side to get her attention. "Regina?" He waited for her to focus on him. Her pupils were slightly dilated from the morphine injection. Combined with the flushing of adrenaline from her system, he knew she would soon lose her battle against sleep. "I'm going to numb you. You'll feel the needles but that's it. Ok?"
Regina looked up at David. She did not want to be touched. She just wanted to be left alone. He must have understood her internal conflict as he spoke softly to her. "Once Viktor is done with the sutures, I'll take you somewhere you can rest. Away from anyone who wants to hurt you." He hoped that his own fears did not betray his tone. He had no idea where to hide with Regina.
Regina finally nodded, too weak to fight any longer. Whale started the local anesthetic injections far from her wound. After everything she had been through he wanted to minimize her discomfort. Regina shivered as the needles pricked her skin. But the numbness that came with them gently lull her to sleep.
As soon as the Queen's breathing evened out, Sarah asked the question that had been burning on the tip of her tongue for the past half hour. "Who wants to kill her? Who wants to burn her alive?"
David looked at the angry nurse. He sighed and started narrating the events of the past fifteen hours.
EC
Cora was furious. The idiot had already blown the whistle on her carefully laid-out plan. First, isolate Regina. She had tried to do just that by killing the White princess but for some reason, the shepherd did not believe in her culpability. Maybe he was more stupid than she originally thought or, even worst in her opinion, too blinded by love. And so was her daughter. She thought she had instilled that lesson into Regina a long time ago. Love was weakness. And her daughter was weak again.
She had provided the perfect opportunity for her daughter to escape. But instead, Regina had poofed herself into her shepherd's arms. For her plan to succeed, Cora needed the strong sorceress her daughter had once been not the idiot girl in love.
But apparently Regina needed a reminder. Cora walked inside the sheriff's station, intent on making sure that this time her daughter would not forget her lesson. She smiled to herself. She would rip the shepherd's heart out but Regina would be the one to crush it.
Her smile faded when she arrived in the empty room. Her eyes caught the bloody blanket and Cora used all the self-control she possessed not to scream her frustration. She clenched and unclenched her fists several times. Regina had allowed herself to get hurt. And she was too weak to heal herself. Cora shook her head. Maybe she could go on with her plan without Regina's help? No, her enemy was too formidable to confront by herself. She had tried once - and almost succeeded - but the battle had left her vulnerable. With Regina by her side, she would be invincible.
Cora jumped slightly at the sound of the grunts coming from behind her. She turned around quickly and for the first time noticed that one of the cells was not empty. The man was slowly standing up, a hand rubbing his bruised jaw. He jumped when he saw the woman standing in the middle of the station. "Who are you?"
"You're in no position to ask question, dear."
"I'm the deputy sheriff…"
Cora chuckled. "And you locked yourself in your own cage?"
The man was fuming. "That cursed prince… and his whore did that."
Cora had to restrain herself not to kill him on the spot. But she needed more information. She had used a spell to track Regina but it had misled her to the station. Regina was losing too much blood for the locator spell to work properly. She was new in town and as much as she hated herself for admitting it, she needed his help. "Where are they now?"
The man smirked. "Get me out of here and I'll lead you to them."
Cora was rapidly losing her patience. She had no time for these idiotic games. It would not take long for Rumplestiltskin to figure out who really killed the stupid princess and she did not want to give him time to prepare. She would defeat the Dark One with the help of her daughter but for this, she also needed the element of surprise. Her hand shot in front of her in a gripping motion.
Frank's eyes widened in fear. He could not breathe as he felt himself being lifted from the floor. He had seen the Evil Queen perform the same trick back in the Enchanted Forest. But this woman could not be Regina. The Queen had been on the verge of death, unable to protect herself. He tried to speak.
The witch smirked. "Can you repeat, dear?" She slightly relaxed her grip on the man's throat to hear what he had to say.
"Hospital…. if she has not croaked on the way there."
Cora's blood was boiling in rage: rage at the man in front of her for talking to her with no respect, rage at Regina for allowing herself to be weak, and rage at herself for not acting faster. She directed all her rage toward the only one present. Before she could ask him for directions to the hospital, she heard his neck snap. She released her grip on him and checked whether he was really dead. The sound had not been a deceit. Oh well, she would have to find that hospital by herself. Maybe the idiot pirate she had brought along for the ride knew where it was. After all, he had spent more time surveying the town than she had.
EC
David kissed Regina's cheek after he finished relating the day's events. She mumbled slightly and squeezed his hand in response. Sarah watched the prince, tears gleaming in her eyes. Despite their dire situation, she could not help but feel happy for the Queen. In spite of all the evidence against Regina, David truly believed her. She placed her hand on David's shoulder. "I gave that journal to Snow… a long time ago."
David and Whale gasped in shock. The doctor was about halfway through suturing her and although he wanted to make sure she was properly stitched up, he knew he had to hurry. Frank and Joe would be here any minute now. David looked at the nurse. "How… why?"
Sarah shook her head. "I don't have all the details. You would have to ask her." She nodded toward the woman sleeping on the bed. "But after her… last miscarriage, she spent a long time in the King's chambers with Jonas."
David frowned. "Jonas?"
Sarah nodded. "The anesthesiologist. He was the Royal Doctor in our land and is familiar with Regina's… history."
Whale nodded as he worked on Regina. He had always wondered why Jonas had offered to help him with Regina's surgery. He had been prepared to do it alone but Jonas had convinced him to let him assist. It had been a high-risk surgery and although everything had gone better than expected, Whale had been grateful for the extra help. "So he knew about her previous miscarriages."
Sarah nodded. "Only a few people were aware of them. Leopold did not want rumors about his young wife to spread. It would have weakened his position in the eyes of his enemies. He did not have a male heir to the throne…"
David finished for her. "... and he didn't want Snow to marry any prince for an alliance."
Sarah nodded again. "Your brother James was the likely candidate at the time. George was seeing to it." David closed his eyes. He did not know much about his brother but he shuddered at the thought he could have been much like his adoptive father. David was glad Snow did not have to marry him but he wished it would not have been done at Regina's expense. He was brought back to reality when Sarah continued. "After that night, the King had Regina moved to the furthest wing in the Palace. She was allowed an hour outside each day but no contact with Snow or anyone else in the Palace. She would appear at functions to keep up appearances but…."
David rubbed Regina's cheek. "She was a prisoner." He kissed the back of her hand before placing it on his cheek. He traced the inside of her forearm with his fingertips. Regina mumbled in her sleep.
Sarah squeezed her hand in comfort. "Yes. She was kept under constant surveillance and he started reading her journal." The old nurse closed her eyes at the memories. "One day, Regina had been allowed to spend the entire afternoon tending to her apple tree. He had her room searched in the meantime and all her journals brought to him. He was mad. He burned all of them, forbidding her to write anything about her 'condition' as he called it. Regina was devastated. She … "
Sarah's voice caught in her throat. She remembered how much Regina had cried that night. "She had poured her soul in the writing and the King took the last of it away from her." David nodded. He knew that some of the journal entries probably contained memories of Daniel. "Leopold must have felt guilty about burning all of her journals. The following day he had a new one delivered to her. She was allowed to write anything she wanted as long as it didn't concern their marriage. He would come to her bedchambers each night and read it while she was standing next to him. After a few weeks, Regina closed off completely. She wasn't eating nor sleeping. I… I didn't know what to do. So on her birthday, I bought her another journal… and told her to keep it hidden from the King. Somehow she managed to do so… Maybe he wasn't really looking for a second one."
Sarah took a deep breath. "A few days before Snow's sixteenth birthday party, Leopold had Regina moved to another wing in the Palace. No one was allowed to visit her. I was afraid he would search her bedchambers one more time so I took the journal and I hid it. When Regina did not reappear the day before the ball, I wrapped the journal and put in among the mountain of presents sent from the entire Kingdom. If Leopold had Regina killed for some reasons, I was hoping Snow would do the right thing after reading her stepmother's story. But Regina showed up for the ball…."
Sarah closed her eyes. "She had lost so much weight and the makeup could not fully conceal her pale complexion nor the bags under her eyes. She was so weak she could barely stand…. But she stayed for the ball, sitting in a corner, trying her best to look entertained. I took her to her bedchambers that night. I asked her what happened but she refused to answer. She said she wasn't allowed. I stayed with her until she fell asleep and went looking for the journal. By the time I arrived in Snow's bedchambers... I was too late. The princess had already opened that particular gift and was reading it."
David let the tears fall. Snow had known all along. She had known about everything that had happened to Regina. And that betrayal felt like a white hot spear piercing his heart. The woman he had fallen in love with, the woman he had married had not been who he had thought she was. "What was in that journal? Who would want to kill Snow for it?"
Sarah shook her head. "I don't know. I never read it… it was so personal."
Whale finished with the stitches and started cleaning the blood from her abdomen. "David, Regina could not have killed Snow. She was too weak. Besides, if she had walked that far, she would have ripped her stitches long before tonight."
David looked at the doctor, hope reflected in his eyes. "Emma said they saw her poof herself out..."
Whale cut him off. "We don't have much time so you better listen." He paused to make sure he had the prince's full attention. "Regina was too weak to use magic to heal herself. I know how much she hated Snow but I don't think Regina would have chosen to kill her over healing herself. And you said that Red saw her entering Archie's building?" David nodded. "Regina was in no shape to climb the stairs to the good doctor's second floor office." David tried to protest but Whale stopped him. "I know. What if she healed herself, killed Snow and then somehow recreated the wound?" David looked at him surprised. "Not possible. I made the incisions and I stitched her up. Regina tore the superficial sutures but the deeper ones were still intact. That's why she didn't bleed to death faster." David tried to interrupt again; he did not need to know how many ways Regina could die. Apparently everyone in town was thinking about that. Whale continued before the Prince had a chance to voice his anger. "Each doctor has a particular style. I like the knot on the outside loop. It's very uncommon but it reduces the amount of scarring." David shuddered when he realized why Whale cared about reducing scarring… or rather why Dr. Frankenstein would. "So unless Regina recreated my ways of suturing, there is no way she healed herself long enough to kill Snow, go back home, and cut her insides again."
David let out a breath of relief. "Thank you."
Whale nodded. "We need to get you out of here before your deputies come looking for you, Sheriff." He removed his gloves after applying the bandage. He stood and walked toward the unconscious man on the floor. He checked for a pulse and turned toward David. "What do you want to do with him?"
David smiled. "Nothing." Sarah gasped and David explained his plan to them.
Sarah nodded. "I'll get both of you some scrubs you can change into."
"Thank you, Sarah."
Whale was preparing a bag containing clean bandages, disinfectant, and pain medication for the Queen. "You'll need to change her bandage every eight hours. And give her a dose of morphine every six. The anesthesia will wear off in a few hours and she may be in quite a bit of pain then." Whale turned toward the prince, who was removing her yoga pants. Regina whimpered slightly in her sleep. "I trust you know how to administer injections."
David looked at the man with wide eyes. "On dogs and cats… not..."
"It's pretty much the same thing."
David looked at him in shock. Regina was not a pet. Apparently, his bedside manners were not improving as fast as everyone in town hoped. "Can you give me tablets?" He remembered how Regina reacted to every injection and he was not looking forward to do this to her.
Whale shook his head. "We would have to get them from the pharmacy…"
"... and destroy any chance for my plan to work." David nodded. "Anything else?"
"Yes. She needs to stay lying down as much as possible. She has lost quite a bit of blood and I wish I could transfuse her. She needs rest, David. Lots of it."
The Prince sighed. "I'll try to get her to rest but it may be difficult." The pair helped Regina into a sitting position so they could remove her blood-soaked shirt. Her eyes fluttered open and she mumbled incomprehensibly. David kissed her cheek. "We're getting you into clean clothes." Regina nodded and closed her eyes once more.
As they slipped her shirt over her head, Whale continued with his instructions. "She needs to walk at least fifteen minutes each day…"
"... but not alone." David placed his hand on the man's arm. "I got her. I won't let anything happen to her."
Whale nodded. "She may be strong but there is so much more her body can take, David."
The prince looked at Regina. He was more worried about her mind. She had been falsely accused, threatened, tortured, and living under the threat of an execution. "She is strong."
Sarah came back a few minutes later with scrubs and a plastic bag for their clothes. While Whale and Sarah were helping Regina, he went to the bathroom to clean himself up and change. Once he got out, the doctor and the nurse had Regina wrapped in a blanket ready to go. The bag full of medication was by her side.
Sarah gave him an uneasy smile. "This leaves the last part of your plan."
"I'm sorry…."
Sarah stopped him. "You have no choice, David."
Whale filled a syringe with a tranquilizer and injected the nurse. She collapsed in his arms and he laid her down gently on the floor, in a position consistent with the staged attack. He then turned toward the Prince. "Now to the less pleasant part."
"I owe you one, Viktor."
"That you…" He did not have time to finish his sentence as David's fist connected with his jaw and he fell unconscious on the floor.
ECECEC
April 10th 2013
The smile David had been hoping for was gracing her features once more. David had troubles imagining Regina struggling with motherhood. He had seen her with Henry and she made it look so easy. "What are you doing this afternoon?"
If Regina was surprised by the question, she did not show it. "Going over some spells. I think I can 'repair' the hat but it may take some practice."
David frowned. "Repair it? How?" This was the first time he had heard of this plan.
"In much the same way you'd heal a person." She sighed. "But I was never a strong healer. Superficial cuts and bruises, yes. Gashing, deep wounds…" She grimaced.
David took her hand. "You'll get it."
Regina looked into his deep blue eyes. The Prince truly believed in her. "David, it's not that simple…. Magic… Magic is tight to emotions." She looked away from him, ashamed to admit her feelings.
David finished for her. "And you're exhausted?" She snapped her head back to face him. This is not what she had wanted to tell him but she nodded to him. David smiled and stood from the booth. He reached in his back pocket and paid for their bill. He then grabbed her hand. "Come on. I know exactly what you need."
"David, I should really get back to it."
"Regina, you said it yourself. You're exhausted. You've worked yourself to the ground trying to come up with a way to bring my wife and daughter back. It's time to take care of you."
Regina blushed. No one had ever thought about her well-being before. Everyone had always asked more from her, rarely thanking her for anything. Not that many people would be grateful to her. "Ok. What do you have in mind?"
David smirked. "That's a surprise, Your Majesty!"
Regina feigned her annoyance. "I hate surprises."
David laughed. "You and I both know that's not true."
Regina gasped. He could really read her like an open book! Over her years of marriage she had thought she had perfected her masks, but David had been able to see through all of them. Before she could reply, he grabbed her hand and half-dragged her out of the diner. "Will you at least tell me where we're going?"
Red looked at the pair leaving the diner, uneasiness settling on her stomach. Granny put a hand on her shoulder. "It's none of our business."
Red looked toward her grandmother. "You can smell it too, can't you?"
Granny nodded. "I've never smelled pheromones that strong before. Not even…"
Red finished for her. "Not even between him and Snow."
EC
David parked at the beach fifteen minutes later. Regina looked at him with wide eyes. "You have noticed that I'm not wearing proper beach attire."
David smirked. "Although I would love to see you in a bikini, it may be slightly too cold."
Regina blushed. "Careful, shepherd. Your wife may not approve of your fantasies."
The Prince seemed unphased. "Those outfits of yours did not leave much to the imagination, Regina." Her cheeks reddened even more and David laughed. "Come on, forget about your wardrobe. Let's go have some fun." He opened the door and slid out of the truck, helping her in the process. He kneeled in front of her and helped her removed her heels. He tossed the shoes back inside the cabin unceremoniously.
"Careful! Do you know how much these cost?"
David pretended to think about it seriously. "Nope! Probably a lot."
Regina laughed as he towered over her. He seemed confused about the height difference. "I will never understand how you walk in these things."
"With the poise and grace of a Queen!" She started toward the beach, swaying her hips.
David bit his lower lip. He should not be here with her, not after that dream. But he was not doing anything wrong. Just two friends spending some time near the ocean. He ran after her.
They walked along the beach, talking mostly about the few weeks after Henry's adoption. David admired the way the sunlight hit her smiling face. Regina was truly beautiful. She chuckled. "Do I have something stuck on my face?"
David blushed. "No… I was just...just noticing how beautiful you are..." Why did he say that?
Regina hid her discomfort with a snappy retort. "You're only just now noticing that, shepherd?"
David's heart raced in his chest. He shook his head. "No… not just now." A deeper shade of red graced his cheeks. He needed to stop before he embarrassed himself more.
Regina stepped away from him. Nothing could happen between the two of them. She would lose him as soon as Snow made it back safely from the Enchanted Forest. But most of all, she did not want to disappoint Henry. He would never forgive her if she was the one responsible for breaking Snow White and Prince Charming's marriage. She placed her hand on her abdomen. Unfortunately, she had already done so. She had wanted to leave Storybrooke but her new relationship with Henry had prevented her to do so. Not that it mattered anyway. If she gave birth in Storybrooke, he would know about what she had done. She had tried to convince herself that Henry would forgive her. After all, that fateful night happened before the curse broke, before she redeemed herself in his eyes. Henry might forgive her for spending the night with David but he would not forgive her for keeping her pregnancy a secret.
David rubbed Regina's arm. She was lost in her thoughts and judging from her sullen expression, they were not pleasant. "You're ok?"
Regina looked into his concerned blue eyes. "I'm fine…." She tried to approach the subject. "I was just wondering about the town's reaction to seeing the both of us together. Red did not seem pleased."
David took her hand. "If they want to gossip, let them. It's none of their business anyway. We don't have to justify ourselves to them, Regina. You're helping me bring my wife and daughter back." Regina looked down, unable to hide her disappointment. David placed two fingers below her chin to force her to look at him. "But most importantly, you're family. You're Henry's mother. We don't have to justify us spending time with each other." He looked into her chocolate brown eyes. She closed them once and nodded. Neither realized how close they were standing from each other. Certainly, close enough to kiss, or at least, appear to be doing so to the three men standing in the distance.
Grumpy shook his head. "This is not good."
Dopey shrugged. "Why not? Since he's been seeing her, she hasn't tried to curse us, dismember us, or kill us."
Grumpy punched his brother in the arm. "What about Snow? His wife? Our friend?"
Dopey looked at him. "Do you really think she is coming back?"
The trio watched as the Queen kicked one foot in the surf, splashing water all over the Prince.
"Regina!" David could not believe she had actually done it. "You know how cold the water is, right?"
She bit her lips, amused by the situation. David was a lot wetter than she had originally intended. "Nope."
David smirked. "Then let me help you find out."
Regina gasped and placed her hands in front of her. "David, no." She shook her head. "I don't like cold water." She was walking backwards, trying to get away from him.
David shook his head, advancing toward her. "Neither do I, Your Majesty!"
Regina abruptly turned on her heels and started running away from him. David laughed. Her designer dress was preventing her from running very fast. Besides, she had nowhere to go. He had the car keys. He yelled after her. "Run all you want, Regina!"
David gave her a fair head start before he ran after her. He caught up with her fairly easily. She dodged him several times by changing direction abruptly but eventually, he managed to wrap one arm around her waist, holding her back to his chest. She shrieked in surprise. "Let me go!" She started kicking.
He whispered in her ear. "Not until you get a taste of the cold water."
She turned her face so she could look at him. "David, please!"
The man chuckled. She had the cutest pouting face he had ever seen but he was not going to let her get off the hook so easily. "Begging won't work." He started toward the water. She kicked her legs in the air, hampering his movements. "Regina!"
She was laughing. They were far away from the ocean and by the sound of his panting, she knew he would not be able to carry her all the way. She placed her hand over the one holding her in place and tried to pry his fingers away. If he only slightly relaxed his grip, she should be able to writhe herself free. She immediately regretted her decision.
David felt her fingers trying to pry his open. He lowered his hand further down, tickling her in the process. He did not expect her reaction and almost dropped her. Regina squealed and squirmed against him, curling on herself to avoid his fingers. David chuckled. "You're ticklish?" He tickled her once more.
It took all her concentration to not react. David laughed once more. "The all-powerful Evil Queen brought to her knees by a few tickles!"
"Careful, shepherd!" She tried to school her features into the mask of the Evil Queen. But the childish gleam in her eyes betrayed her. She enjoyed this.
"It seems I'm holding all the cards!" And he tickled her. Regina tried her best to not react but after a few seconds, she burst out in laughter. She curled around his arm and squirmed against him, forcing David to let her go.
As soon as she hit the sand, she tried to get away from him and his fingers. He was on her in a minute and he unmercifully tickled her until she could not breathe.
Dopey looked at his brother. "I don't think I've ever heard her laugh before."
Happy looked toward Grumpy. "She is happy. Do you really want to take that away from her?"
Grumpy did not reply.
They never made it to the water. Watching Regina trying to take a breath while squirming away from him on the sand was vengeance enough. She was panting and he knew he would have to stop his sweet torture soon. He sat on his heels and looked at the beautiful woman trying to catch her breath in front of him. "You're ok?"
She nodded on the sand and looked towards him. "If you tell anyone…."
"Your secret is safe with me." He actually wondered how many people knew how ticklish she was. He stood and offered her his hand. "We should go. We need to pick Henry up from school."
"We?"
"I don't have time to drop you off at Granny's. Besides, Henry would have my head if I went to Granny's right before picking him up."
She took his hand and he helped her on her feet. "What are you going to tell him?" She pointed to his wet shirt and pants.
"That I have been viciously attacked by his mother." He smiled.
"Oh! And are you going to mention your attack on me?"
"Nope. Unless you want me to tell your eleven-year old son that his mother is very ticklish."
"I'm going to kill you for this."
David laughed. "I'd like to see you try."
EC
David and Regina arrived just in time to hear the bell announcing the end of school for the day. She had enjoyed her time with David. More than she was willing to admit. And more than she should have. The man deserved the truth. "David?"
His eyes were scanning the children coming out of the building. "Mmh?"
"About earlier… at the diner?" He frowned. She seemed uneasy about something but he could not figure out what. She continued. "I told you the spell was tied to my emotions."
"Yeah… I remember."
She took a deep breath. "I'm tired, David. That's true but it's not the only reason I cannot perform the spell." She looked down at her hands. She did not want to see the betrayal in his eyes when she would tell him the truth. "Magic… magic is tied to emotions. All of them…. and ...and there is a part of me that doesn't want…." She took a shaky breath. Tears were running down her cheeks. She was about to lose her son and their friendship. She bit her lips and let out a choked sob. "... doesn't want them back." She turned her face away, afraid of his reaction.
David was proud of her. He had known all along. He gave her a way out at the diner because he did not want to have this conversation in front of everyone. She had the courage to tell him the truth and he was grateful. He shifted toward her on the seat and wrapped his arms around her. She immediately hugged him tight, her tears now running down his neck. "Thank you for telling me."
His tone betrayed him. She gripped his shirt tighter. "You knew?"
He rubbed her back. "I suspected." He gave her some time to quiet down, his eyes still searching for Henry. This conversation would stay between him and Regina. "I know you're afraid of losing Henry. And you're afraid that once Emma comes back, he will not want to have anything to do with you." She tensed in his arms. He rubbed her neck, trying to reassure her. "Regina, I don't believe Henry would do that. Not anymore. And even if he did, I won't let him. Can you trust me?"
She let out a shaky breath against his skin. "What about you, David? Will you be holding me like this when Snow comes back?"
He pulled away from her to give her his answer. "Yes." Regina believed him. She believed his tone, she believed the assurance in his eyes. He cupped her face with both his hands. "Yes."
David felt her relax slightly as he rubbed his thumbs against her cheeks. "David? There is something…"
She was interrupted when Henry opened the cabin's door and jumped on the seat beside her. "Mom?" He wrapped his arms around her as if it was completely natural for him to see his grandfather holding his mother so close.
David gave her a weak smile. They needed to talk more. He wanted to reassure her that he was not going anywhere.
Sorry about yesterday... But she'll be ok at the end of the fic, I promise.