Regina begins kissing Robin when the sky is light and the bright colors have faded to the blue of morning. His kisses in return are earnest and passionate, and Regina doesn't realize that she had been fearful until she breathes a sigh of relief when Robin wastes no time in letting his hands roam under the silk of her pajamas.

She had wondered whether things would be different after Marian's return. Or perhaps after her dream. If Regina is honest with herself, she had been so afraid that Robin would see her differently once he knew that particular demon. She had kicked at him last night and cried out at his touch, and maybe she had pleaded or said Leopold's name.

But Robin is touching her like he always does. Like he can't get enough of her. Like he wants her body and soul. This morning it is less frightening how intense his gaze is. This morning Regina blinks away the past and focuses on the way Robin's hands trail against her bare skin.

They're kissing on a blanket under the bright sun, and Regina thinks of Daniel, of stolen kisses on picnics and declarations of love on riding lessons. But then Robin is removing her pajama shirt and Regina remembers that she's far from that young girl. Robin sets to kissing the newly bare skin, and Regina feels so cherished by this wonderful, good man that she thinks that maybe the woman she is could deserve love and care.

And then his hands are moving lower and he is kissing her now bare legs like she is precious and beautiful, and Regina looks at this amazing man and thinks of nothing but him and how very much she feels for him.

Regina tries not to blush when Henry asks about her night with a wiggle of his eyebrows.

"It was very nice," Regina tells Henry. "Tell me about your sleepover."

"It was fun. The closest I got to trouble was staying up late watching movies and eating junk food. And then I grabbed breakfast with Emma and Snow this morning. They say hello."

Regina reaches out for Henry's hand and takes it loosely in hers. "You know that it's all right with me if you stay with Emma sometimes don't you?"

"Yeah."

"I love having you here honey, but I don't want you to feel like you can't spend time with Emma."

"I don't," Henry says, and he hates that here are suddenly tears in his eyes and a lump in his throat. "You're my mom," he manages to say before a few tears start to fall down his cheeks.

"Oh honey, come here." Regina pulls Henry into her arms and wonders at the outburst. "Of course I'm your Mom." Regina kisses Henry's head and it hurts to say this, but she will do right by her son. "And I am so, so sorry that I tried to keep you from Emma. I was wrong and scared, and I will never do it again."

Henry moves back to look up at Regina. She wipes the tears from his cheeks and keeps his face cradled in her hands. "I'm happy that I found Emma. She's my birth mom," Henry starts nervously. The words shock Regina, because she's heard Henry call Emma mom and his real mom but never has he identified her this way. "And she loves me."

"Of course she does sweetie," Regina tells him, overwhelmed by hearing what she knows had been an old fear of his. She had never let him express his feelings about being adopted or his desire to find the woman who gave birth to him. "Emma loves you so much, and I am sorry that I didn't understand why you wanted to meet her."

"It's ok Mom. And I'm sorry too. I said so many terrible things to you."

Henry's voice cracks and it kills Regina that she hadn't helped her son navigate his feelings about being adopted better. She runs her fingers along his cheeks. "Everything is forgiven. And I am so sorry for how much I've hurt you these last few years."

Henry shakes his head. "But you haven't. I kept pushing you away and saying you were evil, but that isn't true."

"I imagine it was a shock finding out who I was."

And then Henry is hiccuping and crying, and Regina can't quite figure out what set off these tears. Last night he had been occupied by his matchmaking and teasing. "Honey, can you tell me why you're crying?"

Henry shrugs his shoulders and says nothing. Regina waits a moment, her thumbs rubbing away a few stray tears, until he finally speaks. "I yelled at Emma this morning. She started talking about moving back to New York again. She never even asks me, just says that we might go back. And today I got really mad at her and told her that she isn't my mom and she doesn't even have any right to take me anywhere because she gave me away."

"What did Emma say?"

"She just got really quiet and told me that I was right. I apologized, because she looked so sad. But I'm still angry at her. I get why she put me up for adoption, and I'm happy she did because it means that you are my Mom," he adds with a smile at Regina that makes her feel like she might cry at how much love she feels for Henry. "But she acts like I'm her kid now all of a sudden. Like our memories from New York are real or something."

Regina runs a hand through Henry's hair. "I'd imagine that it's a lot for her to deal with having these memories of a happy life with you and knowing that she didn't really have that. Would you feel better if you went and talked to Emma?" Henry shakes his head. "Ok darling. What can we do that will make you feel better? I'm here to listen if you want."

"Brownies?"

Regina smiles and presses a kiss to his forehead. "I love you Henry. I have since the moment I first held you. Do you remember before the curse broke you told me that you wished that you had a large family."

Henry smiles at his mom. "You told me that one day I'd have more family than I knew what to do with."

"You have a large and complicated family, but you just remember that no matter what you decide you want your relationship with any other members of your family to be, I will always be your Mom. And I will always love you more than anything."

"I love you too."

Regina doesn't know what to expect when Marian asks to meet her to talk this afternoon. But if nothing else, Regina knows that owes at least this to a woman from whom she has taken so much.

"Gina!" Roland yells, barreling at Regina as she walks up to the playground where she is meeting Marian.

Regina stoops down so that Roland can run into her arms. "Hi sweetheart."

"I missed you," Roland tells Regina.

"I missed you too, and I am very excited that you and your Papa are coming over tonight."

"Me too," Roland says, pulling out of her hug and grabbing Regina's hand. "Come play with me."

He pulls Regina back to the playground where Marian is sitting on a bench next to the slide. There are dark circles under her eyes, and Regina wonders at the pang of guilt that stabs at her chest.

"Hello your Majesty," Marian says, a tight smile on her lips.

Roland giggles. "Mama, you're silly. Her name is Gina."

Regina smiles down at the little boy before looking back at Marian. "Roland is right. Please call me Regina."

"As you wish. I was hoping that we could talk for a few minutes. Roland do you think you can play by yourself briefly while I speak with Regina?"

"But I want to play with you both," Roland whines.

Regina crouches down to be eye level with Roland. "Give your Mama and me a few minutes to talk first and then your Mama will come play with you again, ok?"

"I want you to play with me too!"

"We'll see sweetie. I'll definitely see you later though, ok?"

"Ok," Roland agrees with a grin before running off to play.

"May I sit?" Regina asks.

"Of course," Marian replies. "I asked you here."

"Yes, I was surprised."

"Roland has told me many stories about you. I understand that you protected him in the Enchanted Forest, and that he lived in your castle."

"The forest wasn't safe with my sister's monkeys."

Marian wonders why Regina down plays her relationship with Roland. Is it possible that this woman who once laughed at Marian's pleas for help now is trying to spare her feelings? Marian shakes her head. "You read him bedtime stories. He asks if I can read in funny voices the way you do. He told me that you promised to keep him safe."

"I did, and I still do."

"Good," Marian says fiercely. "You tried to take my life once. And for that I will ask for no explanation or apology."

"There is no explanation for what I did, but I am truly sorry."

"I want you to do something for me," Marian says, daring Regina to refuse. She remains silent. "Take care of Roland."

"I already promised that I would. I know that you have every reason not to trust me, but I would never hurt your son."

"I am beginning to believe that. I don't know you here, but Robin and Snow seem convinced that you have changed a great deal."

Marian looks at the woman sitting beside her and she looks uncertain, like she too is hoping that this change is real.

"There's something that I haven't told anyone yet," Marian says, her eyes returning to watch Roland play. "And perhaps you'll think it strange that I choose to share this with you first, but I believe my reasons will become clear. When you captured me and sentenced me to death, you did not know that I already had that sentence on my head. When I was pregnant I became very ill and the healer told Robin that I would not make it through the pregnancy. He stole a wand from Rumpelstiltskin and used it to save my life. There's a saying that I imagine you are familiar with," Marian tells Regina, tearing her eyes away from Roland to look at Regina. "All magic comes with a price. I realized the cure was temporary not long after I gave birth. It seems that illness has followed me to this new land."

"Have you been to see Dr. Whale? Medicine in this land is very different from what the healers in the old world knew."

Marian nods solemnly. "He's the one who told me that I shouldn't expect to have more than a month."

"And have you spoken with Rumple?"

"No, I don't want anything more to do with magic."

"Let me do some research into this wand. It's too soon to give up hope."

"I was resigned to my fate before I found myself in your dungeons. That's why I put myself in such a position. I thought it better to die a martyr than to have Robin blame himself for not doing enough to heal me."

Regina's chest aches when she thinks of the guilt that Robin carried none the less. She thinks of his devastation at the possibility of losing Marian again. "Please allow me to try to help you. I know you don't trust magic, but let me investigate whether they may be a cure."

"That isn't the reason I'm telling you this."

"Regardless, I hope you will allow me to try to help."

"It won't do any good." Marian shakes her head sadly. "I didn't intend to seek out Robin and Roland in this land. I didn't know if they would be here, but I thought that it would be cruel to them to find them only to have them watch me die. Roland has never known me. You've been more of a mother to him than I have."

"That isn't true," Regina says, and then the woman who had once ordered Marian's execution is reaching out to take her hand. "From what I understand Roland was nearly six months old when he and Robin lost you."

"Yes, Robin keeps speaking of a different path than I recall. The last I remember Roland he had just turned four months old."

"And you would have me believe that four months was not enough time for you to fall in love with your son."

"Of course I love him," Marian tossed back in anger. "That's why I am sitting here and trying to ask you to be his mother."

"You are his mother, Marian. For four months you rocked him to sleep and took care of his every need. You made him feel safe and loved. Even if he didn't remember you when you first came here, you still helped make him the amazing boy he is."

"I believe that Robin deserves credit for that."

"You are Roland's mother, and no one can ever replace you in his life."

"I shouldn't have run to them in the diner. Now Roland will know me, and it will be worse when I leave him again."

"I don't believe that," Regina replies adamantly. "And it isn't time to give up yet. Let me speak to Rumple and work on a potion."

"I suppose that would be all right, but as to my request…"

"I will promise you this: whether you live or not, I will always love and protect your son."

"I've met your Henry, and he is a very kind, brave young man."

It catches Regina off guard to hear Marian call Henry hers and moreover to credit her for what a wonderful person he is. "Thank you," Regina whispers.

"I know that this is a lot to ask of you, but I am asking it not for myself but for Roland. He loves you, and I want to beg you for one final thing in this life. Please love him like he's your own."

"I promise," Regina tells Marian, squeezing her hand. "Now we need to discuss how to help you."

Marian looks at Regina, and it is so strange to see this woman's face full of compassion. "Life is very strange sometimes," Marian muses.

"Indeed. When do you plan to tell Robin?" Regina asks, and even after this conversation it feels dangerous to speak of Robin.

"I knew that telling you would mean I would need to tell him, but even though he doesn't love me anymore it still feels so difficult to tell him."

"Robin loves you and he always will. He will want to be here for you through whatever comes." Regina tries to swallow back the fear that this will push Robin away from her, that he will choose Marian after all. She can't think of that now.

Robin's cheeks are streaked with tears when he wraps his arms around Regina. She cradles his head to her chest and grasps him tightly, and Robin begins to sob. The sobs wrack his body, the force of the motion making Regina stagger and struggle to support his weight, until she simply can't and they fall together to the floor.

Robin sobs and sobs against her chest until she can feel the wetness soak through her blouse, and she presses her lips to his cheeks and lets the tears run against her face. Robin curls against her, pulling his knees into his chest as Regina holds him and rocks him. He clings to her desperately, because nothing makes sense right now except the strong solid weight of Regina's body

Regina struggles to hold back her own tears, because it hurts so very much to see Robin this way. There are no words to say, no way to soothe away his grief. Regina wishes for a way to take Robin's pain upon herself. She wants to spare him this so badly.

Robin grasps at Regina's blouse like he is terrified that she will disappear before his eyes. Regina rubs her hands across Robin's back and presses a kiss into his hair. "I'm here," she promises.

Regina holds Robin until his tears calm and he sniffles brokenly against her chest, still clutching at her like she is the only thing keeping him afloat.

"I understand if you want to go to Marian," Regina tells Robin with an aching heart.

"I don't think that I can survive this again without you."

"You have me as long as you want me Robin. But Marian is dying, and I fear that you will regret not spending all the time you can with her."

Robin is looking at Regina with pleading eyes, and she knows, though she can hardly believe it, that Robin can't imagine being without her now. "Where is Marian?" Regina asks, because Henry and Roland are upstairs playing video games, and Regina hadn't expected Robin to come back to quickly after talking with Marian.

"She's at home," he tells Regina. "I told her that I would stay longer if she desired, but she sent me away. She asked me to keep Roland for the night as we planned."

Regina's heart breaks at the thought of Marian alone, without her child, and likely facing the prospect of dying very soon. It hits too close to home for Regina; this had felt like her own fate not long ago. "Call and invite her to dinner at least. She needs you and Roland now."

The mention of his son's name is all it takes for Robin to begin crying again, and Regina wastes no time in wrapping him up in the safety of her arms. "How am I going to explain this to Roland?" Robin chokes out through his tears.

"You and Marian will do it together. And I will be here for whatever you need. I promised Marian and I promise you, I will take care of Roland. I'll take care of you both, I promise."