Chapter 5 is here! I hope you are all excited. There will be a lot of feelings going on in this chapter. So I hope you like it and please review!

Regina´s mansion, a few days earlier…

After making sure that her daughter was really out cold she went into the kitchen and took a big pair of kitchen shears out of the top drawer. After closing the drawer again the vain woman went back to the large living room and kneed in front of the younger woman. Driven by anger and jealousy she grabbed a portion of silky soft brown hair and cut it off. She watched it falling slowly to the floor with a smug look on her face before she continued to cut off another portion of hair. Then another and another. More and more hair fell to the carpeted floor but she still continued. Soon though there was more hair on the floor than on the beauty´s head so she stopped. Cora smiled to herself as she admired her work and when she was satisfied she teleported the two of them to Hook´s ship.

Hook´s ship, a few days earlier…

Archie was sleeping in his cell when Cora came into the small room with an unconscious Regina. However she didn´t look like Regina he thought as he looked closely, his eyes still heavy with sleep. She had short hair, he noted, much like Snow´s but rougher and a little shorter. He also noticed the gash she had at the back of her head as the witch threw her down on the ground.

,,Hey!" he shouted at her but was ignored by the wicked enchantress. The therapist looked at the beautiful woman on the ground and went over to her. He couldn´t believe what Cora had done to her own daughter. Carefully he lifted her head up and ripped a piece of cloth from his shirt to stop the bleeding and wrapped it around her head. She looked so peaceful but he knew better than to be fooled like that. The doctor knew her more than anyone in town. He knew most of her secrets but sensed that there were many more that he still didn´t know. Slowly and carefully the young man stroked her now much too short hair and sighed.

A few hours later…

It was dark when she awoke in Archie´s lap. The only light was coming from a small dimmed lamp at the other side of the room. It was not her house she noted and immediately panicked. Where was she and why? What made her tense even more was that she had been lying on a person´s lap. As she looked closer she could make out the person. It was Archie! But that couldn´t be, Archie was dead. Was she dead? Or was this all just a dream?

The last thing she remembered was her mother throwing her into a wall. Cora! She was behind it all. She made it look like Archie was dead so that she would work with her. Sighing the chocolate-eyed woman ran a hand through her hair and was shocked to find that it was only a few inches long. Almost immediately she began to sob with tears rolling down her cheeks. Her head was pounding from when Cora threw her into the wall and she felt a piece of cloth around her head.

At hearing the faint sound of sobbing Archie awoke and saw Regina crying into her hands. The ginger-haired man slowly crawled over to her before embracing her. ,,Shh, it will be okay. Your hair will grow back." He tried to sooth her but sadly it was in vain. She just wouldn´t stop crying. Seeing her like this made him want to kiss away all her pain but he knew that the brunette wouldn´t want that. Stubbornly she shook her head and ended the comforting hug.

,,But that will take ages! Do you have any idea how long it took to grow it out after Cora cut it the first time? Eighteen years! It took me eighteen years just so that gets short again because of this fucking curse!" she shouted angrily at the poor guy. He sat there dump-founded for a moment.

He gulped before adding: ,,Regina, I know your life must have been terrible. Especially after losing Daniel but keeping it to yourself won´t help you. You have to talk about it someday." Regina seemed to think it through for a long moment. He was right though she concluded. Silence never helped anybody.

She sighed before wiping her tears away and began to speak.

,,I don´t know when it started but I must have been really small. It first thing I can clearly remember is that she almost choke me to death one day because I went to see my horse without her permission. I think I was seven or eight." the brunette confessed in a scared tone of voice. She shivered at the thought of it.

Flashback:

Her mother wasn´t at home so her father took her to the stable to ride Rocinante. However when Cora came home and found them practicing in the field she was furious. Her daughter was supposed to be at her lessons but instead her husband let her waste away her day riding on the stupid horse she seemed to love so much. Without them noticing she flicked her wrist and Regina got suddenly lifted into the air. The little girl then noticed her mother standing a few meters behind her confused father. At his daughters scared look he turned around and looked into his wife´s smug face.

,,Cora, let her go!" he ordered. The witch just laughed into his face before tightly choking her daughter with magic. By Regina´s ear piercing scream he stared shocked between his wife and his daughter. He could only watch though. The prince knew that Cora wouldn´t listen to him. All he could do was staring helplessly at the small girl and saw how her face began to turn slightly blue. After what felt like hours to him she finally let go and the little brunette fell to the ground.

,,Next time you better ask before you go outside without my permission, young lady!" shouted Cora before strolling back to the castle. After getting out of his trance the olderly man ran over to his weak daughter and took her in his arms.

,,Daddy?" Regina asked weakly.

,,I´m here, princess. I´m so sorry that I couldn´t do something. I´m a terrible father." He answered with tears in his shining brown eyes.

Archie couldn´t believe it. He knew it wouldn´t be good but this was not in the slightest what he expected. ,,I´m sorry. No child should be treated like that. Especially not by its own mother." At that Regina laughed darkly.

,,She is not my mother, Archie. My real mother gave me away after I was born. I don´t blame her she didn´t know who she was giving her child to. Cora played the nice and caring wowan with her." The young man was shocked to hear that. ,,I know big news. I only found out a week ago. My real mother was my chamber maid back in our land." She explained with a sad smile.

,,And how does this make you feel?" the doctor in him wanted to know it so bad. He wanted to know everything about this beautiful woman in front of him. Even with her hair short she still was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.

,,I don´t know." She started with a big sigh. ,,I mean Cora was terrible and Johanna is so kind and loving. I could talk to her about everything and now finding out that she is my mother it´s just all so overwhelming. I still feel resentment towards her because she gave me away but I already love her as if we always had that mother\daughter bond. It is just all so complicated." The brunette explained while playing with her short hair.

,,It is okay to say that, Regina. She gave you away and it is alright to feel resentment but you have to try and forgive. I understand that for you forgiving isn´t easy but she is your mother. Maybe this is the second chance you dreamed of for so long." The therapist added in a comforting voice.

,,Yeah maybe. But Cora did such terrible things to me. She killed Daniel, cut off all my hair and so many other things." At that point he just wanted take her in his arms and never let go. He wanted to protect her from all this however he knew that it was already too late for that.

,,How old were you? When she cut your hair I mean?" he suddenly found himself asking. By that she started to cry again and fought with her words for a little while.

,,I was sixteen. It was my first haircut and she did it to punish me for running away." She finally said.

Flashback:

Regina rode Rocinante as fast as she could through the still dark forest. She never wanted to do this but she had to get away from her mother. She was almost over the border to King George´s Kingdom however suddenly Rocinante neighed scared and threw the young brunette off.

A few hours later...

Cora was fuming. Her daughter had really run and the only thing she got was a scared horse!
,,Cora, she will come back. Don't worry." her husband tried to calm but it was in vein.

,,Oh yes she will! And when she gets back her horse will be dead and her tree will be burnt!" she shouted furiously. Henry couldn't believe her. Would she really go that far?

,,No Cora! You can't do that! Please don't!" he begged her.

,,What should I do then, hm?" it was a rethorical question and he knew. He just feared for his daughter´s happiness. He knew killing Rocinante and burning her tree would likely make her unhappy. Before he could say anything else though Cora disappeared in a puff of purple smoke.

The old witch reappeared in the middle of the forest where Regina sat leaning on a tree with her head on her knee. She had been crying all night. However of course Cora didn't care she just dragged her by her almost foot long hair to her room after transporting herself and her daughter back to the castle. Henry followed them suit and shouted after his enraged wife.

,,Sit!" the witch ordered and pointed to the girls vanity. The young princess did as she was told but she was scared.

Cora just smirked while picking up a big pair of scissors. ,,Such beautiful hair and such a shame." She mocked sighed while running her fingers through Regina´s silky soft locks. ,,But well, it is a good thing then that I never liked your hair." She added smirking while tugging on a portion of the long hair.

Regina watched her nervously through the mirror and flinched away from the offending silverly object. But she would not escape Cora's grip.

Her grip around Regina's hair was so strong that she couldn't move away.

As her mother started cutting and the first locks were falling the young girl started crying again. She loved her hair so much she couldn't take it. More and more hair fell and Cora enjoyed every bit of it. While Regina still tried to get away.

Henry was watching it all and couldn´t believe his wife. After a long while Cora put away the scissor and smiled at Regina through the mirror. Her hair just touched her ears and was a little uneven. The young girl didn´t dare to look at herself now. She felt so ugly and her head felt so much lighter without her hair.

,,Look at yourself now, Regina. Look closely than this happens to girls who try to run from their mothers. Try it one more time and the next thing you lose will be your father." After saying this she looked at her scared husband and smirked. Then she left the room without another word.

When her mother was gone Regina ran past her father and out of the castle to her only friend Daniel the new stable boy.

Daniel was tending to Rocinante when suddenly Regina burst into the stable. He saw her short hair and how heartbroken she was and immediately pulled her in a tight embrace.

,,Hey, it is okay. You are still beautiful." He tried to sooth the crying princess.

,,You think so?" he just nodded and she smiled sadly.

He didn´t know what to say it was all so mush. All the talking wore Regina out and she laid her head in his lap while he stroked her hair.

,,It is terrible! I look so ugly now." The brunette said sad. He just shook his head and smiled at her.

,,No you aren´t! You are and will always be the most beautiful woman I know. It is not your hair that makes you beautiful but your personality." Archie reminded her with a loving smile on his face. Regina smiled back and asked: ,,You think so?" he nodded and she smiled proudly.

After that she fell asleep again and when the green-eyed doctor was sure that she was really asleep he planted a sweet kiss on her forehead and then went to sleep too.

I know it is very long and there is a lot of talking going on but please don´t hate! And thank you my lovely readers for your ideas!