More Than She Wanted

Who's behind the mirror?

Regina keeps having shooting pains in her back, so she decides that it simply wasn't worth it to sit at a desk all day. She leaves her office a little early and tries to soothe her back with a nice, warm, bath. It works only partially. Her lower back is cramping up at the slightest movement.

Well, it's not exactly surprising. She's close to being five months along, and as far as she knows, back pains are very common. It doesn't make it less annoying and painful though.

She shifts slightly in the tub and rubs her lower back. God, what she wouldn't give for a proper back massage right now.

But obviously, Maleficent is nowhere to be found. Of course she's out when Regina needs her. Typical.

Being pregnant sure can be difficult, Regina realizes as she stands from the tub and dries herself of with a towel. She looks down at her ever-expanding stomach. Pretty soon she won't be able to see her feet. Maybe it was a good thing she gave up her high heels after all.

Regina runs a comb through her dark locks, and redresses in a light, blue dress. The closet is crammed with maternity clothes, and Regina finds it hard to believe that she actually somehow will be able to fit into her normal clothes one day.

The maternity clothes aren't too bad, though. Several pantsuits have joined the one Mal bought for her, and there's a fair amount of dresses and even a few pair of jeans.

It's quite easy to see which clothes Regina bought and what Maleficent bought. Maleficent tends to buy dresses with plunging necklines.

That woman definitely has a one tracked mind, Regina thinks to herself as she glances at herself in the mirror. The dress she's wearing today is decent, however. Just a simple blue dress with short sleeves and a neckline that isn't outrageous in any way.

Regina is just about to tie her hair back into a ponytail when she hears the faint sound of someone knocking on the front door.

Regina abandons the hairbrush on her vanity table and heads downstairs to open the door. Her back is protesting as she goes down the stairs. A couple of painkillers wouldn't be half bad right now. That or a throughout massage. But sadly, she can't have either of it right now.

She walks into the hall and opens the door. She didn't really expect company early in the afternoon, but oh well.

,,Hello," Snow says.

,,Hey," Emma adds and flashes Regina a grin.

,,Hello," Regina says and lets the visitors into the mansion.

,,What brings you here?" she asks as they heads into the living room.

,,Maleficent," Snow says with a glint in her eyes.

,,Don't tell me she burned something down," Regina deadpans.

,,No no," Snow assures and chuckles.

,,But," Emma adds with a chuckle. ,,Apparently, she saw you leave the office early and more or less commanded us to check up on you."

,,Seriously?" Regina says disbelieving. ,,She send you two over here?"

,,Yes," Snow says and giggles. ,,She was worried."

,,If she's so damn worried, then why didn't she come herself?" Regina says and sighs deeply.

,,Because she's stuck in a store at the moment," Emma shrugs.

,,Ah."

,,So, why did you leave the town hall early?" Snow asks and frowns a little. ,,You are not feeling unwell, are you?"

,,You are as bad as Maleficent," Regina deadpans. ,,No, I'm not feeling unwell. I'm just unable to sit for longer than five minutes, so I couldn't really see the point in staying at the office."

,,Oh. Backpains?" Snow asks understandingly.

,,Indeed," Regina confirms and winces slightly. ,,And I think the babies might have found a new favorite spot to kick."

,,Where?" Snow asks.

,,My kidneys," Regina deadpans.

Emma sniggers. ,,Are they kicking a lot, Regina?"

,,Oh, they are having a grand old time in there," Regina says through gritted teeth as she rubs her lower back.

,,Being pregnant is hard," Snow observes with a soft smile.

,,Especially when there's two of them," Emma adds with a chuckle.

,,If we ever decide to have more children, I'm not gonna carry the next one," Regina says darkly.

Snow splutters a little. ,,I'm sure Maleficent would like that."

,,She would probably be delighted," Regina agrees and rolls her eyes. ,,Stupid dragon."

,,Do you often call her that?" Emma asks.

,,What, stupid? Or a dragon?"

,,Both," the blonde says and sniggers.

,,Yes. Often. I think I've called her that from day one," Regina says flatly.

,,I really don't understand your relationship," Snow chuckles.

,,Oh, I think our relationship is based on mutual dislike, my dear," Regina drawls sarcastically.

,,Right, dislike," Emma says and shakes her head.

Suddenly, Snow looks up towards the ceiling and frowns.

,,What?" Regina inquires.

,,Do you hear that?" Snow asks.

Regina listens carefully. She half expects to hear the sound of wings flapping outside her window. But it doesn't sound like wings, it sounds like a distant whizzing.

,,It sounds like it comes from your bedroom," Emma points out.

,,You're right," Regina agrees. ,,It does."

All three of them heads upstairs, towards the strange sound. It indeed comes from the bedroom, and Regina pushes the door open.

There's no one to see in the bedroom, but the strange, whizzing sound grows louder.

,,What is that sound?" Snow asks and frowns in confusion.

Regina looks around to find the source and put an end to the annoying sound. She soon picks up on the fact that the bedroom mirror looks strange. The normally smooth surface is covered in strange, whirling smoke.

,,What the hell is that?" the Savior inquires and raises an eyebrow.

,,Somebody is trying to reach me," Regina explains and looks at the mirror.

,,What, like an incoming video chat?" Emma sniggers.

,,Something like that," Regina says.

,,Who?" Snow asks and stares at the whirling smoke in the mirror.

,,I have no idea. Let's find out," Regina says and waves her hand.

The whirling smoke immediately vanishes from the mirror, and someone appears where Regina's reflection normally would be.

At first, Regina stupidly thinks that it is in fact her own reflection, but she quickly realizes that her "reflection" is wearing a very regal and over the top black dress with a plunging neckline, and well, it's not hard to figure out who it is then.

,,Queenie?" she asks slightly confused.

The queen laughs. ,,Hello to you too, dear."

Regina tries to find a very good reason as to why the queen suddenly would feel the need to "check in", but she can't think of anything really.

,,To what do I owe the pleasure?" she drawls.

,,Oh, just checking in," the queen dismisses. ,,Hello, Snow. Emma."

,,Hey," both women says in unison. They seem equally surprised to see the queen.

,,So?" Regina inquires and shifts slightly on the chair in front of the mirror. ,,How is life in the Enchanted Forest?"

,,Good. Very good," the queen says and grins.

,,Happy to hear that," Regina says sincerely. ,,And how is Robin?"

,,Oh, he's very good," the queen cackles.

Snow somehow manages to keep a straight face, but Emma scrunches up her nose in disgust.

,,Uh.. Good. I think," Regina says a bit strained. She really didn't need to know that. She completely forgot how indelicate the queen sometimes could be.

,,So?" the queen challenges with a grin. ,,What's going on with you?"

,,Nothing," Regina dismisses. ,,Same old, same old."

She's not sure why she lies. Maybe because it's easier or something like that. Emma and Snow keep their mouths shut and doesn't comment on Regina's lie.

,,Right," the queen says and flashes Regina a cheeky smile. ,,So you're definitely not sleeping with Maleficent? Oops. My mistake."

Regina's mouth falls open with a pop, and Emma and Snow bursts out laughing behind her.

,,If you already know, then what's the point in asking me?" she snarls, and the queen laughs in her face. Literally.

,,I just wanted to catch you in a lie."

,,Well, you succeeded."

The queen cackles. ,,You are a terrible liar, my dear. Always has been. Always will be."

,,Shut up."

,,And such bad comebacks as well. Is there a reason why you're lying to my face?"

,,Well I'm not anyone."

,,Surely, you're not embarrassed, are you?"

,,Why on earth would I be that?" Regina bites back.

The queen laughs again and shakes her head. ,,Well, I can't say that I blame you, dear. Considering how much time we spend staring at her when she didn't look. Oh wait, you weren't the evil queen back then, so technically, it was just you who stared at her."

Emma looks like she's struggling to keep it together, and Snow is already chuckling.

,,Really, queenie? That's why you're here? To taunt me?"

,,Oh no, no, no." the queen denies and shakes her head firmly. ,,I just wanted to hear you confirm it. So I could congratulate you. On your catch."

,,She's not my catch," Regina protests. ,,And how the hell did you know about Maleficent in the first place? Have you been spying on me or something?"

,,Yes," the queen confesses gleefully.

Oh good god. Regina isn't very happy to hear that. She doesn't like the thought of a peeping queen one bit.

,,Out of pure.. curiosity," she says tentatively. ,,Are you always using the bedroom mirror to.. spy on me?"

,,Yes," the queen says blithely, and Regina's mood sinks further.

,,Oh, don't worry," the queen dismisses with a cackle. ,,I haven't been spying on your private moments."

Snow splutters.

,,Happy to hear that," Regina says coldly.

,,So?" The queen smirks. ,,What's she like?"

,,Good lord," Emma mutters.

,,If your life is so boring that you feel obliged to pester me, then I really feel sorry for you," Regina snips and ignores the rude questions.

,,Oh, my life isn't boring, dear. Not at all. I'm actually married and all," the queen says and waves a wedding ring in Regina's face.

Regina's heart swells at that. ,,You and Robin got married? That's…"

,,Yes, yes, incredible, I know," the queen waves her off. ,,But we were talking about you. And Maleficent."

,,No we weren't. It's none of your business," Regina dismisses.

,,You are so stubborn," the queen sighs.

,,Well, excuse me for keeping my private life private," Regina hisses.

,,Fine, suit yourself. Am I allowed to be impressed?"

,,About what?"

,,Well, you spend such an ungodly amount of time on convincing yourself that you weren't into women like that, so I'm quite impressed that you finally overcame that, after the whole Nina disaster and all."

Regina rolls her eyes. ,,Thank you. I guess."

,,But that you actually managed to score Maleficent," the queen says and shakes her head in mock shock.

,,I did not score Maleficent," Regina denies.

,,No? Did she score you then?"

,,I…Yes. Yes, she did," Regina sighs defeated.

The queen cackles and claps her hands together. ,,Ha! Oh, this is brilliant, nothing you say or do can surprise me anymore."

,,Oh, I don't think that's quite true, queenie," Regina drawls and stands up in her front of the full figure mirror.

The queens jaw drops at the sight of Regna's stomach. ,,You're pregnant?!"

,,Yes," Regina confirms with a smug smile.

,,And how the hell did that happen?"

,,Dragon magic," Regina shrugs. ,,And True Love."

The queens eyes widens. ,,Did you say true love?"

,,Yes dear, is your hearing failing?"

,,Maleficent is your true love?"

,,Correct."

,,You are one very lucky woman." The queen says dryly, and Emma and Snow chuckles.

,,Jealous?" Regina inquires with a smirk.

,,That wouldn't really be fair to Robin now would it?" the queen says. ,,So that's why it didn't work when he kissed you!"

,,He told you that, didn't he?"

,,Oh yes," the queen shrugs. ,,He told me you weren't very impressed by his skills. At least now I can tell him the reason why."

,,Very funny."

The queen sniggers and Emma and Snow laughs discreetly. Then, they hear rustling and bustling from inside the mirror, and the queen looks over her shoulder. She talks to someone, and then Robin comes into view. He wraps an arm around the queen's shoulder and then he raises an eyebrow at the sight of Regina.

,,Oh. There's two of you again," he observes, and Emma snorts.

,,Queenie found it necessary to check up on me," Regina states dryly.

,,Well, it looks like you're doing well," Robin smirks and tilts his head at Regina's growing stomach.

,,I am doing quite well," Regina confirms.

,,Who's uh… Who's the father?" Robin asks slyly.

,,It's… It's… complicated," Regina says vaguely.

The queen cackles and smirks at Robin: ,,I'll tell you later."

,,Don't you dare," Regina warns.

,,Actually, I dare it very much," the queen smirks. ,,I find it a little too hilarious."

,,And I think that's the end of this conversation," Regina says coldly and waves her hand, making the image of the queen and Robin disappear.

,,God, I forgot how annoying she is," Regina says and sighs deeply.

,,She was pleased," Snow says.

,,She was gleeful," Regina sternly corrects. ,,And there was absolutely no reason to be so smug."

,,I thought Maleficent was the one who stared at you, and not the other way around," Emma says with a small smile.

Regina shrugs. ,,Maybe we took turns at staring when the other one looked away."

,,That sounds like torture," Emma observes dryly.

,,It was."

,,Why didn't you just act on it?" Snow asks and tilts her head.

Regina shrugs. Why the hell didn't she act on it? ,,I don't know. Maybe I was scared or something."

Snow nods a little at that statement.

They leave the bedroom and returns to the kitchen where Regina pours herself and her guests a cup of tea. They sip the tea and chat. Then it looks like Emma remembers something and she says nonchalantly:

,,Who's Nina?"

Bollocks.

,,Pardon me?" Regina says calmly and takes a swig of her tea.

,,The queen mentioned the "Nina disaster", so I was just curious," the Savior shrugs.

,,Oh. Well, Nina was a woman I once knew," Regina quickly explains and hopes that's the end of it.

But obviously, it isn't. Snow wraps her fingers around her mug and frowns. ,,Nina. Nina. Why is that name familiar?"

Regina acknowledges the defeat. ,,You knew her."

Snow blinks a little. ,,I…I did?"

,,Yes. She was my handmaiden for a good while," Regina admits and her throat goes slightly dry. She quickly takes a sip of her tea to clear her throat, but it stays painfully dry.

,,That's right!" Snow says and nods. ,,I remember her. She was very sweet."

,,Yes she was," Regina agrees.

Emma immediately understands, but it takes Snow a good while before her eyes widens and her mouth falls open.

,,Wait, were you and Nina…?" she doesn't finish the sentence. She doesn't need to.

,,Yes and no," Regina says and takes another sip of her tea.

,,Meaning…?" Snow says.

,,We were close," Regina admits. ,,But not that close."

,,How long ago was this?" Emma asks gently.

Regina's mouth feels slightly dry again. ,,I cheated on your father," she quietly tells Snow.

Snow doesn't look one bit judgmental. She simply nods. ,,I understand."

,,I was twenty two," Regina says. ,,Nina was a few years older."

,,And how..?" Emma asks.

,,You don't have to tell us anything if you don't want to," Snow adds.

,,It's alright," Regina shrugs. ,,I was young and bored. And sick of everything. I felt like I was going mad. I just wanted someone to talk to."

,,I can understand that," Emma nods.

,,Out of pure desperation and loneliness, I began talking more and more with Nina. And I soon found out that she wasn't just a puppet-like handmaiden. She was kind and funny. She made me laugh."

,,And you needed a few laughs didn't you?" Snow says gently.

,,That I did," Regina agrees. ,,We began spending more time together, just talking and laughing. But for some reason we always did it in secret whenever the king was away."

Incredible. It's been a million years and yet she still says "the king", and not "Leopold". There are certain things time can't change.

Regina decides not to think about that, and continues the story: ,,I began to wonder as to why we always met in secret. It seemed odd that two friends had to sneak around like that."

,,It never occurred to you that something else was going on?" Emma asks.

,,Never," Regina says. ,,I was a very naïve twenty two year old. And same sex partnership was very taboo in the Enchanted Forest."

,,Great place," Emma says sarcastically.

,,Anyway," Regina continues. ,,I grew more and more confused, so one day I asked her what was going on."

,,And what did Nina say?" Snow asks gently.

,,She looked at me and said, "I think you already know". And then she kissed me."

,,Holy shit," Emma mutters.

,,Yes, I thought the same. I threw her out of my chambers," Regina says and laughs quietly. ,,I was so confused. And scared. At that time I had already met Maleficent a couple of times, and I had been fascinated, and awfully fond of staring at her. And kissing Nina sort of confirmed my suspicion."

,,Your suspicion?" Snow asks and gives Regina's arm a light pat.

,,That I was interested in both men and women," Regina says a bit strained. ,,As my life wasn't complicated enough already."

,,What happened then? Between you and Nina?" Emma asks.

,,Eventually we started a relationship. It was absolute madness, but neither of us cared at the time. I was just relieved. Nina seemed genuinely fond of me, and it was nice to be appreciated."

,,She sounds like a great girl," Emma observes with a smile.

,,She was. She was exactly what I needed at the time," Regina says fondly. ,,We laughed a lot."

,,What happened?" Snow asks. ,,I never heard of her during your period as Evil Queen."

,,The relationship ended eventually," Regina shrugs.

,,Why? What happened?" Emma asks. The Savior has been listening interested to Regina's tale.

,,Your mother happened," Regina says with a light snigger and shakes her head.

Snow's eyebrows knit together in confusion. ,,What do you mean I happened?"

,,Do you remember the winter before you turned fifteen, the winter your father was away? The winter you fell and hit your head?" Regina asks her former stepdaughter.

,,Yes," Snow nods. ,,I fell down the stairs. My memory was affected for quite some time."

,,That's right," Regina confirms. ,,But before you fell, well, let's just say you got the surprise of your life."

,,What do you mean?" Snow asks bewildered. ,,What happened?"

,,I'm not sure how it happened," Regina starts. ,,Maybe we you blundered in, or maybe I forgot to lock the door, but either way you walked in on us."

Emma's jaw drops. ,,Oh my god."

,,I suppose it could have been worse," Regina calmly reflects. ,,We were both dressed, but most definitely on my bed."

,,Oh god," Snow says and shakes her head. ,,I.. I don't even know what to say."

,,No, you didn't know what to say that day either," Regina remembers. ,,But the look of your face said everything. I don't think I have ever seen someone look so shocked."

,,Didn't I say anything?" Snow says and blushes.

,,You just stood and stared at us for a good two minutes. I don't think you heard a word I said. I feared you had gone into a permanent state of shock or something like that."

,,Very mature, mom." Emma comments with a snigger.

,,It was the Enchanted Forest, Swan. And she was fourteen," Regina says dryly.

Snow shakes her head. ,,Please tell me I said something, and didn't stare like an idiot."

,,Oh, when I put my hand on your shoulder and asked you if you could hear me, you said plenty," Regina says with a shrug.

,,Oh no. I was rude, wasn't I?"

,,A bit," Regina admits.

,,What did I say?"

,,Some less pretty things."

,,I can't imagine my princess-y mother be rude in anyway," Emma smirks. ,,What did she say?"

,,She literally flinched when I put my hand on her shoulder, and then she yelled at me not to touch her. She then screamed in my face and told me that I was disgusting and horrible."

,,Oh god," Snow whispers. ,,I'm so sorry, Regina."

,,It's alright," Regina assures. ,,You were shocked and angry, and I completely understand that."

,,Then what happened?" Emma inquires and shoots her mother a look of disapproval.

Regina looks at Snow. ,,You stormed out of my chamber, and I ran after you. I was so scared you were gonna tell someone, so I kind of chased after you to smoothen things out. I'm not sure I was planning on doing that, to be honest. And the next thing I heard was your scream when you fell down the stairs. I yelled at Nina to come and help me lift you up and get you back inside."

,,I remember that," Snow says, her cheeks are still pink. ,,I remember you and Nina carrying me into my chamber. I think I thanked you."

,,You did," Regina nods. ,,You didn't remember what had just occurred. It was so bizarre."

,,It sure sounds bizarre," Emma comments.

,,Anyway, you recovered," Regina says to her former stepdaughter. ,,But the damage was done. I lived in constant fear that your memory would return and you would tell someone, so Nina had to go. I dismissed her. She begged me not do, but I really had no choice."

,,I'm so sorry, Regina."

Regina chuckles. ,,Why on earth are you apologizing for something you don't even remember, my dear?"

,,It probably made you hate me even more," Snow says and shakes her head.

,,It didn't exactly help in the matter," Regina agrees.

Snow shakes her head, and all three women chuckle quietly.

,,Does Maleficent know all this?" Emma inquires.

,,Of course she does. She kindly pointed out that I'm an expect in being walked in on."

Snow chuckles again. ,,Well, she's right about that."

To Be Continued..