Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Spoilers: See last chapter

A/N: Thanks so much for the reviews! They really brighten my day!

TW: Mentions of past Black Queen in this chapter

"Survivors of abuse show us the strength of their personal spirit every time they smile."

Jeanne Mcelvaney

Chapter 7: Past Transgressions

Regina took slow bites of her pancakes as she and Emma listened to their son rattle on about a school project. She tried to push the conversation with Rumple from her mind. The fact that he remembered she used to have flashbacks when she'd forgotten unnerved her. Of course, after she cast her mother through the looking glass, she had started her own process of forgetting her past. She had been Queen. But when Rumple began teaching her magic, the thought that he'd bind her, try to control her with his magic, made her concentration hard, hard enough that conjuring a simple fireball was impossible at first. She never discussed the flashbacks with him, but he saw her go through them, trusting her to get herself out of them. Which, with magic, became easier. After she had Leopold killed and became the Evil Queen, the flashbacks stopped. She caught her lower lip between her teeth softly. She and Emma were connected by magic, yes, but surely that didn't mean that her flashbacks would start again. She shuddered. Gods, I hope not.

"What do you think, Mom?" Henry's voice snapped her from her thoughts, and she looked over at him.

"I'm sorry, sweetie, what do I think about what?"

He rolled his eyes, something that she was sure he got from Emma, and repeated, "I was wondering if I could stay at home with you for a while. I miss my bed, and Ma says she doesn't want to wake me in the middle of the night if she has another nightmare."

She looked over at the blonde seated next to her, but Emma wasn't paying attention, stirring her hot chocolate, biting at her lower lip, self-conscious. She wanted to say something, truly she did, but she looked back at Henry instead, "That sounds wonderful, sweetheart. We'll go back to your grandparent's house and pack yours and Emma's stuff."

Like she predicted, Emma's head shot up, looking over at her so fast she was almost afraid the blonde would get whiplash. Henry looked at her too, confusion on his face, but Emma spoke before he could open his mouth, "Why am I packing?"

She took another bite of her pancakes before answering, a smirk on her lips, "Because that bed you sleep on in the apartment isn't nearly as comfortable as the guest room at my Mansion, dear. I can't have the town's Sheriff having a bad back."

"But…"

She looked over at her, giving her a pointed look that told her that they'd discuss it later, before turning towards their son again, "You don't see a problem if Emma comes and stays with us for a little while, do you, Henry?"

"Well, no," he frowned, his eyebrows knitting in confusion, "but, I mean, is this because my dad's in town?"

"Of course not, kid." Emma quickly interjected, "Why would you think that?"

"Well, when I woke up this morning," he looked away, pink tinting his cheeks, "You and Mom were tangled together and looked so happy. And now it's almost like seeing my dad's put you guys in a bad mood."

She reached across the table, taking a hold of his hand gently, "Oh, Henry, it's nothing to do with your father, I promise you."

"Yeah, kid," Emma smiled softly, "besides, I was going to try and convince your mom to help me with my magic anyway," she leaned across the table and mock-whispered, "You can't tell her though."

Henry grinned at them both, his voice taking on an excited tone as he spoke, "That's so cool, Ma!"

She smiled softly, remembering that not even a week ago, Henry was weary of magic. Afraid of it, even. She wanted to ask him about it, but instead, she looked over at Emma, raising an eyebrow, "I'm going to be doing what now?"

Emma tilted her head, a small smirk on her lips, "Where better place to practice than the Mansion, right?"

She merely rolled her eyes and muttered, "I suppose." She turned back to Henry, eager to know what his thoughts about magic were, but just as she opened her mouth, she felt Emma give her hand a gentle squeeze, their hands out of sight and on the seat beside them.

Emma smiled hesitantly, "Thank you."

She nodded curtly but gave a small squeeze back, "You're welcome."

"Come on, Moms," Henry spoke up, drawing their focus back to him to find him looking out the window. They followed his gaze to see that there was a light drizzle of rain, "if we hurry, we can walk to grandma and grandpa's."

It was the sound of laughter that made Snow and Charming look up from their individual books from where they were sitting together on the couch. They didn't have time to wonder what was going on because the door was suddenly thrown open, and Henry came running into the apartment, laughing. A grin was on his lips, and without even acknowledging them, he took the stairs two at a time. They noticed that he was soaked, no doubt from the storm outside, water clinging to his clothes. They didn't have a chance to ask him what had happened, rather, they didn't have to. Regina and Emma entered the apartment moments after Henry, both as soaked as their son, mirrored looks of agitation on their faces. Shutting the door behind her, Emma took a seat on the floor, tugging off her boots; she had her back to them, unaware that they were on the couch, and it seemed like Regina didn't even know they were there, if the way she was focusing on their daughter was any indication.

"He's grounded," Emma growled out as she slipped her socks off her feet.

"Forever." Regina agreed.

"Come on, Moms," Emma mimicked their son, "if we hurry, we won't get caught in the storm."

The brunette chuckled softly, the sound surprising the two royals, before flipping her wrist, causing two towels to appear. She handed one to Emma, smirking softly, "My father used to tell me that children could make their parents believe anything if they tried hard enough," She ran her towel through her hair, catching stray droplets as they slid down her face and neck, "I never believed him until I got Henry."

Emma smiled, pressing the towel into her hair, "He was right."

Regina nodded, extending her hand to help the blonde to her feet, "That he was," she let out a soft sigh, "Alright, go make sure Henry's packed. And into dry clothes, the both of you."

The younger woman tossed the towel back at Regina, grinning softly, "Yes, Your Majesty."

Snow and Charming watched with mild fascination as Emma headed up the stairs, before they turned their attention to Regina. They didn't have a chance to ask anything, though, because the regal woman spoke before they could, "Henry and Emma are going to be staying at the Mansion for a little while. No need to worry about her though. It'll only be for a few days, not another 28 years."

Charming frowned, standing from the couch and taking a step towards her, "Just because I'm grateful that you helped bring Snow and Emma home doesn't mean that I'll listen while you make stupid jokes."

Regina grinned, "Stupid jokes? I'm afraid I don't know what you mean, dear."

Snow gently grasped her husband's arm, "It's alright, Charming."

"No, it's not, Snow. She –" Whatever else Charming was going to say died in his throat as Emma came bounding down the stairs, a small bag slung over her shoulder.

She descended the stairs quickly, standing next to Regina, "I've just got to go hurry Henry up and change. We can go after that."

"Tell me you're joking," the brunette spoke up, looking at the small bag, "that can't be it."

Confusion clouded green eyes, "What? Yes, this is it. I'm good, Regina."

Brown eyes rolled in irritation before Regina flicked her wrist. Purple smoke appeared in front of the blonde, and when it cleared, a suitcase was resting on the floor, "Pack. Go."

"Regina, really…"

"Now," the mayor cut her off, "before I poof you upstairs."

Emma grabbed the suitcase, something akin to annoyance flashing through her eyes, before stalking quite loudly up the stairs; Snow and Charming watched as she headed up the stairs and disappeared around the corner, turning back towards Regina for an explanation. The brunette sighed softly before flicking her wrist once again. Her purple magic swirled around her body, and when it cleared, she was dressed in black slacks similar to what she had been wearing and a button-up blue shirt. She leaned back against the counter before inclining her head to the side to look at the two royals as they continued to stare at her.

"If you have something to ask, speak. Otherwise, go back to your books."

For a moment, they remained silent, but then Snow let out a soft sigh and spoke, "We just wanted to know why Emma's going to go with you and Henry, is all, Regina."

The former queen sighed and looked away. How do you tell your sworn enemies that their daughter needed some space without telling them the reason? She thought back to what Emma had said back at Granny's and turned back to them.

"I'm going to be helping Miss Swan with her magic. Better to practice at the Mansion than here, wouldn't you agree?"

Charming frowned, "I suppose it wouldn't hurt. If she has the power to use it, she should."

"I think it's awesome," Henry chimed in as he walked down the stairs, his backpack slung over his shoulders, changed into dry clothes. He stood next to Regina, smiling as he looked up at her, "Hey, Mom, do you think you can teach Ma how to do the clothes changing spell so she can change faster?"

Regina smiled back, "I suppose I should teach her that first. I'll go see what's taking her so long."

As she began to walk towards the stairs, Snow's voice cut her off, "No, I can do it, Regina."

Lightning flashed in the sky, thunder booming in the distance. Regina frowned, feeling her magic spike, "It's fine," she said calmly, contrast to the sudden wave of fear that coursed through her body, "We'll be right down." She walked up the stairs quickly.

The mayor was only slightly surprised to see Emma sitting on the bed, the suitcase on the floor beside her, but she was pleased to see that she had changed into dry clothes. She took a step closer, lowering her voice, "Emma?"

The blonde looked up, tears slowly slipping down her cheeks, but she made no move to stand. She held her baby blanket tightly in her hands as she addressed the regal woman, "I…I really don't need the suitcase, Regina," she swiped at the tears, cursing softly, "I don't have a lot of stuff."

"Emma," Regina walked over, sitting on the bed, "I didn't –"

"I mean," the Savior continued as if she hadn't spoken, "all I have is a few extra pairs of clothes and my gun and badge."

"Emma," Regina tried again, gently squeezing her hand, "magic is emotion. You have to try to calm down."

Angry green eyes connected with brown before Emma pulled away and stood, glaring at her, "I don't even have my dignity. I can't look at myself in the mirror. I don't have my fucking dignity anymore, Regina, because your mother took that from me!"

The 180 from sad to angry surprised the brunette for a moment before she realized that lashing out was the younger woman's way of coping. She wanted to comfort the woman, she truly did; however, despite her best efforts to stay calm and collected, Regina felt her anger taking hold of her; she stood, glaring back at the blonde, "What my mother did to you wasn't my fault, Emma!"

Emma was up in her face before she even realized it, shouting at her, "Yes, it was! It was your fault!"

She felt a cold chill run down her spine. It felt like someone had dumped a bucket of cold water on her, her anger disappearing quickly. Her voice came out in a near whisper, "What are you talking about?"

"It doesn't matter," Emma said softly before turning away quickly; she opened her drawers and shoved jeans and tank tops into the suitcase before closing it and grabbing her blue leather jacket from her closet and slipping it on. "Come on, Henry's waiting."

"Wait, Emma," Regina gently grabbed her wrist, turning her back to face her. She searched green eyes before speaking again, "my mother…was it because of the…feelings you have for me?"

"I didn't mean to yell at you and say what I did," the blonde said instead, her voice soft, "I'm sorry."

Regina released her grip, her mind swimming. She didn't deny it. She closed her eyes. Gods, no. She quickly followed Emma down the stairs, making a reminder to get the answer out of her tonight.

Neal frowned softly as he watched his father flipped the closed sign on the door. It was pushing eight, and though he wasn't particularly tired, he just wanted the day to be over with. His dad and Belle had spent nearly the whole day trying to come up with a spell that would protect the town and keep outsiders out, and he'd been left to tend to the shop. It wasn't all that bad, he guessed. Not a lot of people came in. A fairy came in at one point. One of the dwarfs, Grumpy, wandered in around lunch, looking for something he'd had back in the Enchanted Forest. A small smile slipped onto his lips as he thought back to when he'd been in the Enchanted Forest. It had been nice, even after his mother had left them. But when his father became the Dark One, well, it wasn't good. He didn't have a lot of friends to start with, and he lost most of them after his mother had left, and then the rest left because his dad had scared them off.

"Bae," He looked up to see his dad looking at him.

"Papa," he began, "it's Neal now."

"You'll always be Bae to me," Rumple replied with a smile before he spoke again, "If you'd like, you can stay with me. There's an extra bed at my place, and I'm sure Belle wouldn't mind."

"No, Papa, really, it's fine. I'll just get a room at Granny's."

"Nonsense. You can stay with family."

Neal sighed softly, "If I could stay with Emma and Henry…"

Rumple frowned, walking over to him, "Bae, Miss Swan doesn't feel the same way you do anymore. You're going to have to move past it."

"How do you know she doesn't feel the same?"

He smirked and patted him on the shoulder, "Because her magic is drawn to another."

"She doesn't have magic."

"Oh, but she does. Powerful magic." Neal opened his mouth, but Rumple beat him to it, "It doesn't matter right now, Bae. Now, please, it's time to close up the shop and head home."

The man sighed softly, "I guess free room and board is better than having to pay."

He followed his father out the back entrance, locking the door behind him.

Emma leaned comfortably against the couch in Regina's study, sipping at the wine the brunette had given her. The rest of the day had gone on without another incident. Regina began to teach her magic – well if she was honest with herself it was mostly Regina showing her how to feel the magic building and then how to keep emotions in check – and they worked on that while Henry was finishing homework for Monday. After lunch, Henry somehow managed to con them into going for a walk, and while Emma was grateful for the distraction from magic, she couldn't help but check in on her father when they walked by the sheriff's station. As the day was beginning to wind down, she helped Regina make dinner. Well, okay, so she just stood around and talked while Regina made it, but still it all felt very domestic to her. Though there was a part of her that wanted to say that hated it, she found herself craving more days like this. They'd only put Henry to bed a little while ago and then wandered down to the study for a drink.

She sighed softly. A great end to a pretty shitty start. She thought back to this morning, at the way she went off at the brunette. Stupid thing to do, Emma. She needed to find a way to apologize to Regina for her actions. She never meant to blow up at her.

She looked up when Regina reentered the room, another bottle of wine in her hand. The brunette smiled softly, "I thought we could use some more."

"If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were trying to get me drunk," she answered with a smirk as Regina sat beside her.

"Only if you want to get drunk, dear."

She set her glass on the table and turned to look at the mayor, "Regina, I wanted to…"

"You don't need to say anything," Brown eyes locked with her green, "I understand that you were upset. It's okay."

"I didn't mean what I said," she continued, "What happened to me, it wasn't your fault."

If you hadn't loved my daughter, I would've killed you, simple as that. Cora's words came to her mind but she quickly pushed them away. They didn't mean anything, just a way for Cora to get into her head.

"Emma," she blinked, coming back into reality.

"Sorry, I must have…" She froze mid-sentence when Regina leaned in; warm breath ghosted over her lips, and she felt her breath hitch. Their eyes locked for a moment, hesitation in brown, before Regina pressed a light kiss to her cheek, which was both satisfying and disappointing.

Regina pulled away and stood, looking more flustered than anything, "I'm heading to bed, dear. The guest room is made up, but you're welcome to have more to drink if you'd like."

"Uh, yeah," she replied, "Good night, Regina."

The regal woman tossed her hand up in some kind of reply and disappeared out the door. Emma sighed softly, tossing the rest of her wine back. Maybe this was a bad idea.

Warm fingers are splayed across her stomach, nails digging harshly into flesh, but she couldn't cry out. The gag in her mouth prevented it. She lay on her bed in her childhood home, bound tightly by magic. Daniel was still alive, she was aware of that, but her mother had found out she liked him. She had to get away. She struggled against the magic, but it felt like they were only growing tighter the more she fought.

"Stop struggling, dear. You'll only hurt yourself," her mother slipped into her field of vision, smirking, "What have I told you about that stable boy, Regina? He's no good. He'll only use you and then toss you aside."

She tossed her head back and forth, desperate to get the gag off her. He wouldn't do that, she wants to scream, He's a good man! Her mother grabs her chin as she lowers herself to the bed, flicking her wrist to make their clothes disappear. The gag disappears with another careless wave, and then her mother's kissing her, and she's being forced to kiss back. She feels her body jolt upwards as two fingers are driven inside her. She cried out against the harshness, but the tongue invading her mouth forced her complacence.

She doesn't want this, not again. No more. Cora pulls away, observing her face, two fingers still pumping harshly.

"Mother, please," she lets out a low moan, "please, I'll be good."

"Oh, I know you will, dear," Cora smirks, pulling her fingers away and then jamming back in with three, making her cry out.

She catches movement from the corner of her eye and turns to see her father, watching them with a sad look in his eyes, "Daddy! Daddy, help me! Stop her! Daddy, please!"

She watches, dejected, as he merely shakes his head and walks away.

"Focus, Regina," she turns back to her mother as the three fingers curl inside her, making her gasp.

"Mother…"

"Come for me, my love."

Regina jerked awake, breathing heavily. She rose from bed, standing on shaky legs. It had been decades since her last nightmare, so to have them now was completely idiotic. Flipping on the light, she walked into her bathroom, heading to the sink to splash water onto her face. Calm down, Regina. It was just a stupid night terror.

"Regina?"

She jumped, startled, before turning around to see Emma leaning against the doorway of her bathroom. She took in the blonde's disheveled appearance and wondered if she'd just woken up as well. She turned off the water and patted her face dry with a towel before facing the blonde again.

"Emma, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, I just couldn't sleep and heard you get up. You look like you've seen a ghost."

She frowned softly, "Nonsense, dear. I'm just getting ready to start the day."

"It's 4 am on Sunday, Regina."

"Yes, well," she brushed past the blonde, heading over to her closet, "nothing like getting an early start."

"Regina, you may not believe this, but I always know when you're lying."

She rolled her eyes and walked back over to the bed, laying back down before patting the opposite side of the bed, "It was just a nightmare. They happen."

Emma eased into the bed beside her, turning to face her. She was silent for a moment or two before she spoke, "Your dad never protected you."

She looked over at her, startled, "What are you…"

"That's what you meant when you said your dad said that kids could make their parents believe anything if they tried hard enough. You tried to get him to see what your mom was doing, but he didn't."

"No," she replied softly, feeling her eyes start to tear up, glancing at the blonde to see her looking at her, not expecting an answer, just wanting to listen, "No, Emma. No. He saw it. He just didn't help me and stop it." Emma didn't say anything. Instead, she scooted closer and pulled her into her arms. She felt her body tense, but it quickly relaxed, "Emma, what are you doing?"

She could almost see the eye roll, "I'm helping you go back to sleep."

"By holding me?"

The blonde merely shrugged, "It worked for me last night."

"Henry wanted it." She muttered, her eyes growing tired as she unconsciously relaxed into her hold.

"Keep telling yourself that," She heard Emma mutter before she fell into blissful sleep.

The air was warm as the shrouded figure headed further into the woods. It was blissfully quiet, and perhaps that was for the best. The figure walked up to the magic well, dropping ingredients into it one after another. A greenish tint began to glow from inside the well. The figure smirked, watching it. Soon, there would be nothing to keep the barrier between the two worlds closed. It was only a matter of time.

A/N: And there's chapter 7. More will be up soon, hopefully. Tell me your thoughts on the mysterious figure and how you liked the chapter.

Hime no Kowai Shumi