i apologise for the delay of updating but with Christmas and all things have been pretty busy. I hope everyone has had a good Christmas and was spoilt by Santa. I know I was!
Regina felt an immense feeling to push but she didn't want to. She rested her head back on the pillows propping her up and felt tears welling up in her eyes. "It hurts." Regina cried as she felt pain in her back and all around really.
"That's childbirth dear." Cora replied unemotionally. Regina cried out as a contraction hit her. "Push Regina." Cora ordered and Regina done as she was told the feeling and the pain getting to much for her. She pushed as hard as she could until the contraction was over and she huffed out a breath and she threw herself back on the pillows positioned behind her back.
"How is she doing?" Rumple asked walking into the room and making Regina jump. She glared at the man.
"What are you doing here?" Regina snapped.
"Oh just here for my share of the prize dearie." Rumple smirked and turned his attention back to Cora. He was stood nearer Regina's head but wanting to see quite what was happening down there. "How is she doing?"
"She is right here and doesn't appreciate being talked about when she is right here." Regina said sarcastically.
Rumple chuckled but did not look at Regina. "She's turned into a fiery little thing since she got out of your clutches Cora. I'd squash that if I were you."
"Oh don't worry I will." Cora said, her hand wrapped around one of Regina's ankles, her nails digging into the skin making Regina gasp and flinch.
"Ow mother."
"Stop your whining." Cora hissed. Cora then looked up to Rumple "She is doing fine. We are in the pushing stages of labour so it won't be long." Just as Cora finished talking Regina gasped as another contraction hit her. She started pushing again as hard as she could breathing quickly as she did so. She could feel her hair sticking to her forehead and she started sweating and she really did feel exhausted. "Keep pushing Regina." Cora said and Regina did as she was told. "I can see the head." Cora smiled.
Regina threw herself back onto the pillows. "It really hurts." Regina said quietly as she rolled her head from side to side. "I need to go back to the hospital mother. Please."
"Too late for that now Regina. You have started here so you must finish it here." Cora replied.
Another contraction ripped through Regina and she started to push again. She pushed and pushed as hard as she could an she could feel her baby slipping out of her. She let out a breath as she felt her baby leave her and she rested back on the pillows again. She waited and for a few seconds there was silence before screams of her little baby filled the room and Regina let out a sob as she looked over to catch a glimpse of her first born. "Which one was born first?" She asked desperate to know. She hoped her mother wouldn't be so cruel and to not let her see her beautiful baby. "Can I see my baby? Please let me see my baby."
Cora looked down at the little baby and then up at her daughter. She may want the babies but she couldn't withhold them from her daughter so she leaned over and placed the baby in her daughters arms. "It's a boy." Cora said and watched her daughter cradling the baby in her arms.
Regina gasped as she looked down at her beautiful baby boy. "Hello my little prince." Regina said softly and just at that moment there was a rumble and the house started to shake making everyone gasp. A light shone down to Regina and her baby from above and then she let out a cry as another contraction ripped through her.
"Rumple take the baby and clean him up." Cora ordered.
"No. I don't want him touching my baby." Regina cried out holding a little tighter to her baby.
"Regina you have another child on the way. You need to start pushing and your little boy needs to be cleaned up. Rumple won't be going anywhere with your little boy. They will not leave this house." Cora said and Regina looked into her mother's eyes seeing she was telling the truth. She planned to keep her babies prisoners in this house just like herself. Oddly that thought comforted her right now so she let Rumple take her bay from her arms and over to the side to clean him up as she started to push for her next baby.
This baby didn't seem to take as long and within minutes her baby girl was out and screaming for the world to hear. Cora lifted the baby up into Regina's arms, not even waiting this time for Regina to ask and Regina gave her a grateful look before her eyes landed down on her beautiful baby girl. "Hello Princess." Regina cooed softly and once again another rumble ripped through the town and the light shining above Regina got brighter before exploding and sending magic all through the town spreading like wild fire.
As the magic hit everywhere memories flooded back to the people of Storybrooke. Memories of the curse, memories of their lives before. Everything came back to them. Regina gasped as her memories hit her and she looked up at her mother. "It's true. You did cast a curse on us all." Regina said.
"What? But how do you…" Cora started and looked over to Rumple who was holding the baby boy. He limped over to Regina and he handed the baby boy to her so she had each of her babies in her arms.
"The babies were the key to the curse breaking Cora. The product of true love. That true love being born broke your curse." Rumple explained.
"You never wanted to steal the babies did you? They were never the key to helping us…" Cora said in realisation.
"No they weren't. They were the key in breaking the curse and I always knew it. When you cast the curse it froze Regina in the state she was when she left the Enchanted Forest being pregnant but the pregnancy could not continue. That is why I subtly convinced Henry to go and find Miss Swan. With someone from the outside coming into Storybrooke it would weaken the curse. As well as Henry figuring it all out and trying to convince everyone else I knew it wouldn't be long before you curse was broken down." Rumple said with a smirk.
"You tricked me." Cora hissed.
"I did what was best for us all Cora." Rumple threw back. "Although one thing I did not trick you about was the power those babies hold. Along with your daughter they hold a great deal of magic."
"You cast the curse to keep me away from Robin…" Regina said drawing Cora's attention. "You kept him from me and his children. I have gone through this pregnancy not understanding how it happened or who the father could be." Regina said angrily clutching her babies. "How could you do that?!"
"REGINA!" came a shout from the bottom of the stairs. It was Robin and she could hear Zelena with him to. She sighed in relief as she heard them running up the stairs. They both burst into the room and Robin ran to her side while Zelena went to tend to Leopold. "Are you okay?" Robin asked as he sat by her side.
"I'm okay." Regina replied and looked up at him.
Robin then looked down at the two babies in her arms and he smiled. "They're mine." He said in a statement rather than a question and Regina nodded her head. He grinned and looked up at her. "I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you through all this."
"You were Robin. Although you didn't know about them you were there." Regina said and leaned forward placing a kiss on his lips.
Cora stood back and watched her daughter with the thief and their babies. Something was changing in her. She didn't know what was happening. She shook her head. She couldn't change her tactics now. "They are mine. I will get what I want and they will give it to me." Cora said stubbornly.
Regina handed the babies over to Robin not wanting them to get caught in the firing line. She would do whatever she could to protect her babies. "No mother. They are my children and you will not touch them." Regina said. She then felt something rise within her. It was strange and felt like energy and static running through her body and then a bright white light shone out of her hands and straight for Cora hitting her and sending her flying back into the wall with a thump. "How did I do that?" Regina gasped out as she looked down at her hands.
"You have always held the potential for magic Regina you just never had the courage to show it." Rumple said. "Now you have. Like I said before you and your babies hold a great deal of magic."
"I…I have magic? No…mother has magic…I don't…" Regina said shaking her hand.
"You have light magic, your mother has dark magic. You are completely different from her." Rumple said easing Regina's fears.
Leopold woke up and he darted over to Regina as soon as he could. Robin had now given the baby boy over to Regina to hold onto. Leopold smiled down at his daughter as did Zelena as she joined them. "They are beautiful Regina. Just like their mother."
"Thank you daddy." Regina smiled. Robin wrapped his arm around Regina and held her tight to her. The curse was broken, her mother had been stopped for now and her babies were in the world. She felt happy being in Robin's arms again. She felt happy again.