A/N: I can't believe it's been so long since I last updated this story! Apart from saying that time flew by much faster than I anticipated and that life has been crazy busy I don't really have an excuse. Still I want to thank you all for your reviews, your follows and favourites, you guys rock. A big shoutout to my darling Manon (Lolymoon here) for her beta work. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

A Mother's Love

Regina arrived at the school with no memories of the road and no idea how she made it there in one piece given with how distracted she had been. Her mother was here, she had found a way through to Storybrooke and had already started wreaking havoc into what little Regina had managed to build back up after the Curse broke. She couldn't let her continue, she had to put a stop to it before it was too late.

She didn't even notice the distrustful looks of the other parents, too focused on trying to find her son. He ran to her, a wide grin on his lips, and she sighed in relief. She clutched his shoulders the second he was in arm's reach and crushed him against her, resting her cheek on his head.

"Mom, what's wrong? You're shaking," Henry asked, pulling back slightly to look at her.

Regina gave him an uncertain smile, reining herself in, Henry was safe and in her embrace, she could calm down now, Cora didn't get to him. A nagging doubt invaded her mind though, reminding her that her mother had already fooled several people, and it compelled her to question her son.

"Henry, sweetheart, do you remember what I gave you when you came home from school saying you were the only child who knew how to read?"

He frowned at her desperate tone and the way she couldn't let go of him. He raked his brain to call back the memory and it suddenly dawned on him.

"My first comic book. You took me to the store and bought it and I read it to you that night. I had been looking at them for weeks and you said I could only get them when I could do more than look at the pictures," he chuckled at the souvenir, at the way his mom had laughed at his attempt at imitating different voices for each characters, at her pride when he had been able to read from cover to cover without help.

Tears gathered in Regina's eyes and only sheer willpower prevented them from falling. "It's really you," she murmured, hugging him to her again.

"You're being weird, Mom," Henry said against her chest, confused, but he didn't move from her arms.

Regina let escape a broken laugh. "I know, honey, and I'm sorry about that. We need to talk, but not here," she said, sweeping a look around to see the other parents hastily turning away, pretending they hadn't been avidly watching the exchange.

She led him to the car, keeping a hand on one of his shoulder to reassure herself. She drove them to where his Castle by the sea once stood. She knew that despite its destruction by the last storm, he still loved the view and she hoped it would bring him some comfort after she delivered the gruesome news.

"Henry, sweetheart, I've got something to tell you and it won't be easy to hear," she started.

"Does it have something to do with why Pongo was on his own and acting crazy this morning?" Henry asked, frowning.

Regina sighed. "It does, yes. Archie was hurt very badly last night."

"What does that mean, Mom? Will he be alright?"

Her eyes filled with tears again and she cupped her son's cheek. "I'm so sorry, Henry, but no, he won't be alright," she swallowed the lump that was forming in her throat. "Archie is dead," she whispered.

Henry blinked several times, trying to understand what she was saying because it didn't make any sense to him. "But… but… he can't be," he stammered, his bottom lip trembling, his eyes begging her to refute what she just announced, and a single tear fell along her cheek as she stroked his gently.

"I wish I could tell you it's all a lie but I can't. Archie is gone."

He threw himself at her, squeezing her fiercely, fully crying, and it tore Regina apart. "He was a good guy. Good guys aren't supposed to die," he sobbed brokenly.

There was no word she could offer him, she knew that his vision of the world was still so very black and white, as any child's should be, that his illusion that good always wins and only villains are hurt in the fight was very strong. She couldn't bring herself to tell him that it unfortunately wasn't the case, that she herself had made it her mission a long time ago for it not to be the case.

They stayed like this, locked in their embrace for long minutes, until his sobs subsided. "What happened?" Henry asked, his forehead pressed against her neck, the slow caress of her hand in his hair lulling him to a calmer state.

"What we feared finally happened, my mother found a way to get through. She is in Storybrooke, she is the one who hurt Archie," Regina explained, trying to hide the utter panic she felt at the simple mention of the woman who was supposed to love her unconditionally, more than anyone else in all the worlds but who had never been able to show it.

Henry straightened up, gasping. "Why would she do something like that? Archie never hurt anyone, he didn't deserve this!"

Regina thought that maybe she didn't do too bad raising her son if he still viewed the world through those innocent and naive eyes even in spite of recent events. Something in his statement hit her though, why indeed would Cora kill Archie? What did she have to gain from it? Apart from turning everyone against Regina once more of course, but that wasn't exactly a hard fit.

She knew her mother, Cora never did anything for just one reason, and only killing someone that could prove as valuable as Archie didn't make sense. Her file had disappeared from his office, David had told her as much, but Cora would never trust words on paper if she could get the informations directly from the person who had written them.

"Henry, you're a genius!" She exclaimed suddenly, and her son looked at her, completely bewildered, as she restarted the car.

Back at the pawn shop, David and Emma were trying to make sense of what they had seen earlier in the dream catcher.

"What does it really mean? That Cora is here? What is going to happen now?" David asked, his arms crossed over his chest as he looked at Gold, but it was Emma who answered.

"That woman is a crazy psychopath. She pretended to be this Lancelot guy for months to rule over the Enchanted Forest's survivors and she ripped all their hearts out when it suited her best. She felt no remorse, it meant nothing to her," she said, grimacing at the memory of the zombie attack.

"I get the picture but I would like to hear what Gold has to say. How dangerous is she? What's the story here between you two?" David demanded, still not taking his eyes away from the shop's owner.

"I don't see how it is any of your business," Gold replied with a sneer.

"If we are to face this witch, I would like to know what we are up against, and it seems you have many answers on that front," David insisted, stepping closer to the Dark One, towering over him.

"I don't remember when anything was said about a "we" being needed to defeat Cora. I can take care of this," Gold said, rolling his eyes.

"Really? Because when you were standing in front of the well, trying to seal the portal shut, taking the risk of killing Emma and Snow in the process, you didn't seem very confident in your abilities to defeat her. You looked more like a desperate man, afraid of what would come for him and ready to do anything to stop it from happening," David retorted.

"Rumple," Belle intervened when it appeared the wizard was about to reply nastily. "We only want to help," she told him in a soft voice, squeezing his forearm soothingly.

Gold studied her for a moment, and then he huffed and turned back to the two Sheriffs. "All you need to know about Cora is that she is very powerful, very ambitious and will stop at nothing to get what she wants, which for now seems to be her daughter back in the fold. You think Regina was bad, you have no idea what your lives will be like if Cora manipulates her into doing her bidding."

"We had a glimpse of that," Emma said darkly.

The Dark One chuckled darkly. "I don't think you realise what a threat a reunited mother and daughter could be for this town."

"Regina doesn't have any reason to let her mother get to her, we won't let it happen," David intervened in a strong, assertive tone.

Gold smirked. "Really? May I ask what your dear wife thinks about the situation? I don't see her here, I would have expected Snow White to be at the front row. Not as convinced as you are about the Queen's redemption? Trouble in paradise?" He needled.

"We have proof now, proof even Snow can't deny," David replied.

"Better tell her quickly then, we wouldn't want her to spread some unfounded rumours to her loyal followers, would we?" Rumplestiltskin said and David exchanged a dark look with Emma.

"He is right, David, you need to talk to Mary Margaret," his daughter told him and David sighed.

He took his cellphone out of his pocket to call his wife and cursed under his breath when he realised he had left it on silent. He had 10 missed calls from Snow and about as many voicemails, each one sounding angrier than the precedent, he would never hear the end of it. Her latest message stated she was at the loft, he decided to head there without warning her first.

"What will you do?" He asked Emma.

"I'm gonna ask around if anyone noticed someone looking like Cora. She came straight from the Enchanted Forest, she doesn't know this world, she's bound to attract some attention," the young woman explained and her father nodded.

"Good plan. We will be in touch," he added towards Gold.

"Looking forward to it," the sorcerer deadpanned and both Sheriffs rolled their eyes before leaving the shop.

David was dropped off in front of their building by Emma, who attempted to give an encouraging smile, but it looked more like a grimace. She promised to call him with an update as soon as possible and then drove off in the squad car. The once Prince Charming gathered his courage and climbed up the stairs leading to the apartment he shared with his family.

He found Snow curled up on the couch, clutching a mug tightly in her hands, eyes unfocused. She hadn't noticed him yet, he called her name gently and she startled, righting her mug before the content could spill out.

She glared at him. "Well, look who finally decided to show up."

"I'm sorry, my phone was on silent, I wasn't ignoring you," he replied.

"It certainly looked like it," Snow muttered. "What kept you so busy?" She asked louder.

"Emma and I found some evidence against Archie's murderer. We know who really did it," he hoped this would finally put an end to Snow's doubts but her skeptical expression didn't bode well.

"Really?" She inquired.

"Cora," he answered simply and she blanched.

"What?" She cried out.

"Cora is here. She managed to find a portal or something, we're not sure yet, but she is the one who killed Archie while pretending to be Regina," David explained.

Snow looked down, swallowing heavily at the last part of his sentence. "Oh," she let out, for lack of anything better to say.

"I won't ask you to apologize for doubting me, though Regina would probably appreciate a word from you," David started but decided not to insist as she squirmed uncomfortably. "You know what Cora wants, or rather who. We can't let that happen, Snow."

His wife stayed silent and he sighed, sitting beside her. "Regina is trying, isn't it what you always wanted? When you came back from the Enchanted Forest, you were so confident in that, you even said you wanted to be sure she was alright in the Netherworld. What happened?"

Snow fidgeted with her hands, unable to look at him. "I thought things would be different, I thought we could finally make some progress, but nothing has changed. She hates me, she doesn't want anything to do with me. She is trying for Henry, she even trusts you, but she can't with me," she admitted quietly and David's eyebrows flew up.

"So you reacted that way because you are jealous?" He blurted before he could stop himself and she laughed self-deprecatingly.

"Regina isn't always exaggerating when she calls me a selfish brat," she said.

"That's not what I meant..." David defended.

"But it's the truth," Snow cut him off. "I wanted her all to myself. I didn't realise what it would mean for her at the time. There are some things I still don't know and that I probably never will, and there is nothing I can do to make it better because she won't let me."

"I don't think you can make anything better with the attitude you had lately Snow."

"I know," Snow whispered. "Some habits are hard to break."

David exhaled, looking for the right thing to say, but the ringing of his cell phone saved him the trouble.

Regina hesitated at the morgue's entrance, on the one hand she didn't want Henry to be confronted to what they were about to see, on the other she knew they were still on shaky grounds and maybe this would help him trust her.

She took a deep breath, squeezing the hand Henry had slipped in hers and pushed the door open. They were greeted by one of the dwarves -she didn't even try to pinpoint his name, she could never bring herself to care-, in a security guard uniform. His eyes widened in surprise and fear at the sight of her but he quickly stood up from his post to place himself in their way.

"I don't care what you want, you're not welcome here," he said and the Evil Queen in her laughed at his attempt to look brave.

She was about to retort harshly but Henry spoke first. "I just want to see Archie, Sleepy. I asked my mom to be here to support me."

The dwarf's expression softened. "Oh, sure, Henry, of course, I'm sorry," he stammered and stepped away.

"Since when are you so sneaky and manipulative, young man?" Regina asked lowly as soon as they were out of earshot, a hint of amusement in her voice.

"Well I am your son," he replied in a 'duh' tone that made her chuckle.

"I'm not sure if this is a compliment or a veiled insult," she said, smiling.

"Maybe a bit of both," he told her cheekily.

They both stopped in front of a room labeled 'Autopsy'.

"You don't have to come in here with me, honey. It's alright," Regina said comfortingly, seeing the uneasy look on his face.

He gulped and straightened up. "I can do this, Mom," he answered, nodding.

She smiled fondly, brushing her thumb along his cheek. "My brave little prince. Okay, let's do this, then."

They entered the room and Regina could immediately feel the pulse of her mother's magic slithering along her skin. It felt acrid, corrosive, biting, like restraints making it impossible to move, like flesh being opened and then closed back up just to teach her a lesson, like sharp disappointed words hurting as much as any wounds. Bile rose up in her throat suddenly and she must have paled for Henry looked at her, concerned.

"Don't worry, sweetheart, I'm fine."

He didn't seem convinced but he humoured her. Regina knew instinctively where 'Archie's' body was and she headed straight to the freezer containing it, the pulse beating stronger and stronger as she approached.

The table slid, letting appear the black cover, she zipped it opened, closing her eyes, stalling the moment his face would come into view, even if she knew it wasn't really him.

"Henry," she called. "You do realise that to lift my mother's spell, I need to use magic."

Her son nodded. "I know, Mom, and it's okay. You're using it for good this time."

He makes it sound so easy, Regina thought. He didn't understand that after giving up magic the way she did, calling it again wouldn't be a walk in the park. She would need to find the right balance between enough power to work her spell but not too much that she would fall off the wagon. You can do this, she encouraged herself.

She gathered her focus, her magic flooding in her veins slowly, too slowly, she tried to quicken the process but it was too intense, too much, too fast, she felt like her blood was boiling, her stomach churned, sweat broke out on her brow and she griped the sliding table tightly, the cool metal a relief to her overheated body.

You need to calm down, it's a simple spell, no need to work yourself up over it, a little voice that annoyingly sounded like Rumple's whispered in her ear. Funnily enough it worked, she got her control back and raised her hand over the body lying in front of her. It shimmered a glowing purple and Archie's features disappeared, the suit replaced by a yellow oilskin, the hair lengthened, the reddish brown becoming a greasy salt and pepper.

Once the metamorphosis was complete, Henry came to stand by her side.

"He is one of the fishermen," Regina stated, searching through her mental inventory of the curse to pinpoint his identity.

"Emma said they came across Captain Hook during their trip in the Enchanted Forest. He was working with your mother," Henry informed her and her eyebrows raised at the news.

"Well then I think we know how they came here," she said.

"On his ship!" Henry exclaimed.

Regina nodded. "And where do you find a ship?"

"The harbour."

"Exactly," Regina replied, looking for David's number on her phone.

They picked him up on the way to the harbour. Regina and David both trying to convince Henry to stay behind but they knew better.

Emma joined them, Archie riding shotgun in the squad car.

"Belle found him on Hook's ship, told him to go to Gold while she held him back," she explained and Regina winced.

"Not sure what we're going to find over there if these two are reunited. You three stay behind, especially you Henry, and let me deal with it."

"Don't think so, Madame Mayor, this is Sheriff business," Emma told her and the brunette rolled her eyes.

"Right, because you think that with your newly discovered powers you can be a match for the Dark One in his wrath? Or that maybe your gun would be enough?" Regina argued, standing toe to toe with the blonde. "You would be nothing more than an annoying fly on the wall for him and do you know what he does to annoying flies on walls? No, of course you don't, because you have no idea what you are up against. Surviving a trip in the Enchanted Forest is one thing, Miss Swan, very impressive, but this is a whole other league, so stand back and keep Henry safe. Isn't that supposed to be the whole point of you coming to this town?"

She pushed past the younger, stunned woman, not waiting for an answer. The same pulse of magic she had felt earlier at the morgue guided her to the right pier. She noticed some sand on the ground and guessed that Belle must have used it to locate the ship. Clever girl, she thought as she raised her foot into what appeared to be thin air and found one of the wooden steps.

The others followed cautiously and they all paused as they took in the scene beyond the cloaking spell: Rumplestiltskin beating up Captain Hook with his cane, while Belle tried to dissuade him.

"You know, as much as it pains me to say it, the pirate would be more useful to us alive. You should probably stop at a few broken ribs, it ought to be enough for the lesson to sink in," Regina mused out loud, in an infuriatingly calm tone.

"You stay out of this, Regina," the Dark One growled, not looking at her, still focused on hitting the man lying in front of him.

"He has dreamed of it for so long, no one can stop him now," Hook gasped out.

"You should learn to shut up and let the grown-ups talk," Regina threw at the pirate, rolling her eyes. "And I'm afraid I can't stay out of it," she added, speaking to Rumple again, moving closer until she stood beside him. "He helped my mother to come here, he may know some things that could help us, isn't that more important than this little dance you two have been playing for the past three centuries?" She asked, putting her hand over his on the cane when he seemed to consider her words.

"I can't promise not to finish the job once he has ceased to be of any value," Rumple said through gritted teeth.

"You can resume your game later for all I care," she replied and her former teacher nodded, taking a step back.

Hook attempted to get up but Regina prevented it by placing her foot on his chest. "Not so fast, dear. You have managed to get on the bad side of both the Dark One and the Evil Queen, that's quite an impressive feat here," she told him in that low, seductive tone that had done a number on so many men back in the day.

She leaned forward, cupping her cheek, resting her elbow on her knee, putting more pressure on his chest and he hissed in pain. "I seem to remember that we had a deal the two of us. You tricked me, made me believe she was dead. Not a very smart move."

"You never had any intention to deliver. Cora told me that the curse would wipe out everyone's memories, replace them, I would have been as clueless as the rest of them," Hook spat, struggling under her but she moved her foot so her spiked heel would be right over his heart and he stopped.

"She said that, didn't she?" Regina inquired. "And did she also tell you that I'm the one who chose everyone's punishment, that I could have had you keep your memories if I had seen it fit?"

He hadn't expected that, so she pressed on. "Yes, that's right, Captain, you could have been here with your arch nemesis completely oblivious and harmless. You could have had your fun, twenty-eight years of it if you had wanted to, but you gave it all away for my mother and what did it get you? Here are your options: either you help us, you cooperate and you might get a chance to survive, you might even get a shot at your revenge, or you don't and I let Rumplestiltskin finish the job right now. Choose wisely," and with that she stepped back and exchanged a dark look with Rumple.

Hook pondered her proposition for a moment. "What do you want to know?" He asked at last and Regina smiled.

It turned out that Hook didn't have much to tell them about Cora's plans. He only knew that she wanted Regina back by her side and was getting to go at great lengths for that to happen, which Archie confirmed, but he hadn't been really interested in the specifics, especially once they finally were in Storybrooke, he was only focused on his vengeance.

"Remind me to never get on your bad side again," David whispered in Regina's ear, as she stood watching Henry who was curiously studying the pirate Emma was securing in the car, making her jump slightly. She turned her head towards him with a questioning look. "It was quite an impressive little display you put on there. I think even Gold was amazed."

"Flattery will get you nowhere, Charming," she threw back coyly, the hint of a grin on her lips.

"Are you sure?" He murmured, sending shivers down her spine.

"What are you doing?" She asked him, confused by his attitude. Was he flirting with her?

He shrugged, not really knowing what he was doing either. He found it harder and harder to control his impulses around her. She was proving to be so much more that he had ever expected, while his relationship with Snow left a bitter aftertaste in his mouth. More and more, he surprised himself comparing the two women, and Snow rarely won, which had to be the mother of all irony.

"David?" Regina called, pulling him out of his thoughts.

He looked back down at her, smiling softly. "I was just thinking that you play the bad cop quite well, should I be worried you'll come after my job?"

She snorted and rolled her eyes. "As if I could ever work with your daughter. That would be a disaster waiting to happen."

"I don't know, it has a certain ring to it, two super-women working together, uniting their powers for the good of all," he said, looking faraway, over her head.

"If you are imagining me in one of those skimpy leather costumes, I'm gonna have to hit you," Regina threatened and he made the mistake of picturing the image. He coughed and bit his bottom lip and she punched him on the upper arm, hard enough for him to protest. "You have spent too much time reading Henry's comic books, dear," she said, while he rubbed the tender spot, "and you have things mixed up, I would not be a superhero in those, maybe a supervillain or one of those misunderstood vigilante with a tragic past that people fear and admire at the same time."

David quirked a brow at her. "You have given this a lot of thoughts."

"Who do you think introduced Henry to comic books in the first place?" She replied, smiling but it dropped when he gave her a strange look. "What?"

"I like it when you share stories of his childhood. I know it's not easy for you to accept that we are his family too and those memories are precious to you, so thank you for giving me this," he said solemnly.

Words were robbed from her, she realised as she opened her mouth to form a response that never passed her lips. Thankfully, Henry barrelling into them saved her the embarrassment of being speechless in front of Charming of all people.

"Archie says he would like to shower and rest a bit but he wants to meet up at Granny's later for dinner to thank us all for helping find him," he announced, his arms around her waist, his chin resting comfortably on her stomach, his head leaning back to look at her.

She hid a wince, this would be an awkward dinner for sure, but it seemed that the path of redemption had a couple of those in store for her. She sighed. "If we must," she said at last and was rewarded by a brilliant smile from her son.

"You and Archie still need to talk after all," David contributed, unhelpfully Regina thought.

He had insisted on accompanying them home, even after she argued that he would have to walk all the way back to the loft.

"I just want to be sure you get home safely, humour me," he had told her and she had complied begrudgingly.

So here they were parked in her driveway and some strange sense of foreboding made Regina slow to open her door, Henry would call it 'spidey sense', she called it 'too many years of having to watch over her shoulder'.

"You okay?" David asked, noticing her hesitancy.

She shook herself. "I'm not sure what it is but I'm having the strangest feeling, as if something was telling me to start back the car and leave."

Both Henry and David raised their eyebrows. "Why is that?"

She shrugged. "I don't know," she answered, looking intently at her front door as if it could give her a clue. She pushed back the odd sensation and got out of the car, the boys following behind her. She put her hand on the handle of the door and the feeling grew ten times stronger. She fought it again, blaming it on raw nerve caused by her mother's presence in town.

She entered cautiously and she knew at once that the house had been visited.

"Stay back," she shot at David and Henry who had come in as well, but it was too late. The door slammed shut and they heard the click of the lock.

"No one is going anywhere," an all-too-familiar voice spoke, preceding Cora's appearance on top of the hallway's stairs, in full Enchanted Forest garb. "Not until we have had a chance to talk," she added, descending the steps slowly until she stood right in front of her daughter.

Regina's every instincts were screaming at her to take ten steps back for each of Cora's but she stood her ground to protect Henry.

"Hello, Regina. It's been so long," Cora said softly, stroking her cheek with the back of her fingers. "Look at you, this new world of yours suits you."

It was the tentative smile on her face that threw Regina off the most. Nothing could have prepared her for her mother showing… kindness? It certainly looked sincere enough. Which meant Regina had to be even more on her guard.

"Hello, Mother," she returned the greeting. "I was wondering when you would show up," she kept her tone calm and even, though she was a mess of emotions inside, betrayal and anger being the predominant ones at the moment.

"I was waiting for the right moment, sweetheart, but I didn't expect things to go as they did," Cora answered quietly, looking almost demure.

"Oh, so your little scheme didn't work out as you had planned? What were you expecting exactly? That everyone would turn on me, leaving me vulnerable to you?" Regina asked, her voice raw, on the verge of breaking.

Cora nodded to her daughter's surprise. "I wanted to show you what these people really think of you. I guess I underestimated them."

"If it hadn't been for David, there would have been no way anyone would have believed me, you made an airtight case, and all of that for what exactly?" Regina replied, not knowing what to make of her mother's apologetic attitude.

"Because I needed to tell you that I know why you sent me through the looking glass, why you tried to have me killed. I understand, and it's alright. You're my daughter and I love you. I know now that I went about it all wrong. I never should have made you marry the King," Cora explained, her eyes begging Regina to understand and to forgive.

Regina drew in a sharp breath, her eyes pooling with tears at the reminder of her arranged marriage. "You really think that it's alright? You really believe this makes up for everything you did to me?"

She looked up at the ceiling, reining herself in, exhaling slowly. "You needed me broken, you needed me to be completely dependent of you, and I understand. I understand now that it was the only way you knew to show that you cared. You wanted me to have the life you never had and I had it, Mother. I became Queen, I became more than that, I ruled on my own without a man by my side. I was the most powerful and feared monarch in all the realms, but what you can't accept is that I did it all without you. You set the path for me without ever considering my feelings on the matter and you thought you could reap the benefits but you never got the chance, and now you're trying to claim it all back. Well, here is the thing, Mother, I'm not broken, I have more in my life now," she looked back at Henry whom David was still holding back and she smiled reassuringly at them.

"Despite your best efforts, I built something here. I don't need power or fear to keep people close and I certainly don't need you. This little act you're playing doesn't fool me because no matter what you say or do, when I look at you I still see Daniel's heart becoming ash in your hands, I still see you tricking us into believing we had a chance at a life together." The tears slowly leaked along her cheeks but she didn't wipe them away.

"It was a long time ago, Regina, I have changed since then," Cora insisted. "I swear to you that things will be different if you give me a chance."

"A long time ago? It doesn't seem like a long time ago when I wake up screaming from a nightmare, it didn't seem like a long time ago when a mad scientist recently brought him back from the dead as a monster for me to kill. I have spent my whole childhood giving you chances, I'm done, I'm through. I won't have my son exposed to your toxic influence," Regina said, her fists clenched by her sides.

"I have seen you with him, it's all I dream about for us," Cora pleaded, moving forward but this time Regina did step back.

She shook her head frantically. "No, Mother, it's too late for that."

The older woman sighed. "I am not giving up, Regina. You will see that I mean everything I said," and she disappeared in a cloud of blue smoke.

Regina stood frozen for a moment and then a sob wrenched its way out and she covered her mouth with one hand, placing the other on her stomach, bending a little, desperately trying to regain control of her breathing.

Henry ran to her, sneaking his head beneath the arm over her stomach to embrace her. David followed, taking them both in his arms, pressing his cheek on the top of her head and letting her sob her heart out.