don't have all that much to say right now, peeps! So enjoy the update! And please leave a review to let me know what you think or if you have any suggestions or scenes you would like me to write up for you :) don't be shy! I don't bite :)

With a huffed breath, Henry lifted the saddle up on to the mare's back and gently sat it there before pulling it forward just a little more. It wasn't exactly heavy but it wasn't all that light either. He was certainly getting stronger though and with each ride everything got easier. He had been riding every day now for the past couple weeks and was starting to get the hang of it. His mount was more than helpful to him as well.

Rocinante.

He was truly honoured to have been given the opportunity to ride her. He had heard much about her from his mother back in Storybrooke and to have the queen lend her to him now sent him over the moon with excitement and pride. The little mare was kind and gentle and patient, all of which were wonderful assets to him in his learning. Plus she was quite playful and that had him enjoying her all the more.

"Hey!" He laughed when she turned her head and stretched her neck so she could bump her soft muzzle against his neck and blow a warm breath against his skin. He shrugged his shoulder up and tilted his head to keep her from the ticklish area and pushed her head away with a laugh before he tightened the girth around her to keep his saddle in place. With his laugh still heard under his breath, he turned to go and take the mare's bridle from its place in the tack room but stopped when he saw David walk in to the stables.

"David!" He grinned and David looked back at him, curious of his enthusiasm, "you're coming!"

David nodded once and looked around the impressive stables before coming to a halt in front of the grinning boy and meeting his eye, "yes I am."

"That's great!" He cheered and then with a skip in his step he continued on to the tack room, "so I've got a few pointers for you so you don't set her off," Henry started and pulled the polished bridle from the wall and came back out in to the aisle and toward Rocinante with a glance at David.

"Oh?"

"Mhm. First," he nodded and put the bridle over the mare's face and as she took the bit in to her mouth, he pulled the leather bridle over her soft ears, "don't bring up anything about how Rocinante is not the grandest horse in the stable or how she stands out like a sore thumb when she's around all the other horses. She was mom's first horse. A gift from her father even though her mother completely disapproved. She learned how to ride on her and she is her favourite and if you say anything bad or imply anything bad then she'll have your head."

"Alright," David nodded and stepped up to the boy and the little mare as he finished buckling the bridle.

"Second; you can totally go right ahead and question her choice in her current horse."

"Oh? Why?"

"Because he's enormous and she's so little."

"She's not that little."

"Are you kidding?" Henry chuckled with a shake of his head and turned to look at him with a rather incredulous and amused expression, "she is just barely a head taller than me and I'm eleven years old! On what planet is that not little for an evil queen?"

David looked the boy up and down in disbelief, "she is not that little."

"She is! I'll totally prove it to you when she gets here," he laughed and David shook his head, his expression still comical, "she's shorter than Snow too actually. She just seems all big and scary to you guys."

David shook his head once again. There was no way that the queen was that much smaller than she made herself seem, "anything else I should know?"

"Don't mention that she's pocket sized," Henry shrugged and David closed his eyes and laughed quietly through his smile. Henry laughed with him and the laughter only faded when they heard the sound of hooves on cobblestone.

David watched in surprise and fascination as the woman sat easily upon the back of a truly enormous black stallion as he cantered up to the doorway in to the stable where she brought him back down to a walk. What he was surprised and fascinated by was that she sat upon his bare back rather than a saddle and there was no bridle on his head but merely his halter and his lead slung around his neck. And to her left was another horse who kept its gait identical to the stallion.

He had to assume the dark bay mare was the mount she had brought up for him and she was a mare with a beauty that indeed put the little chestnut Rocinante to shame but he did not bring it up as per Henry's instructions. The stallion she sat upon was an impressive beast to say the very least and the fact that she hadn't had her stablehands retrieve the horses for her brought a small smile to his face. And the fact that she had ridden bareback from the pasture rather than walking on foot had that smile staying in place.

She slid easily from his back and took his lead with her so he would walk beside her and the mare toward Henry and himself. He already had a little more respect for her and with the way things were going, he imagined soon enough he would even find it a little more difficult to pick a fight with her. But maybe not.

"Hi mom," Henry smiled and bounced over to her to wrap his arms around her.

Regina hummed and wrapped an arm around his shoulders in return, the lead of her stallion still in her fingers, "hello."

David watched the scene attentively and cocked his head a little at the gentleness the vicious woman now used. And then he noticed her height when she lifted her chin a little to place Henry's head beneath it and just as Henry had said, the woman was hardly a head taller than him. His height only an inch or so above her shoulder when she stood flat in her riding boots. When the pair parted his eyes followed Regina as she walked up to him and handed the rope that belonged to the pretty bay. He smiled and took the rope and then glanced at the stallion with a daring smile, "you sure he's not too big for you, your majesty?"

His smile only grew when a smirk curved her red lips and she started leading her horse away, "you couldn't handle him, shepherd," she retorted smoothly and he laughed quietly as she passed.

...

The ride had been relatively quiet and rather begrudgingly he found himself enjoying it. She had remained quiet save for the odd instruction to Henry or an answer to one of Henry's questions be it about the horse or herself or whatever crossed his mind. The boy had been chattering endlessly but David didn't mind. His stories were actually quite intriguing and his tales of the queen both in the present and supposed future were quite informative and interesting.

He found his gaze lingering on the woman in question more often than not during this ride. If he were speaking objectively and did not put in to account the previous knowledge of who she was, he would be shocked to learn that this woman was the evil queen. He would not believe that this beautiful gentle woman could ever perform the acts of the evil queen. She was no more than a woman laughing quietly while teaching a boy the correct position to put his body in if he were to take his borrowed mare over a jump.

He supposed learning this woman to be the evil queen was equally surprising as learning the evil queen was this woman.

This must have been what Snow had been trying to get him to understand. But it had seemed so incredibly far fetched that he only agreed with her as much as to make her drop the subject. Now he was thinking that perhaps he should have actually listened to her sooner and helped her get through to Regina if this was what the result was.

"Can we race?!"

"Next time," she smiled and Henry let out a small whine of protest, "and only if you are able to canter all the way back to the palace today without incident."

"Fine. But what about you and David?! You guys should totally race!"

"No Henry-"

"What? Afraid I will beat you?" David chimed in with a smirk and she turned her head and looked at him over her shoulder, the beginnings of a smirk of her own gracing those perfect lips while Henry chuckled quietly to himself.

"I have never lost a race."

"Well there is a first for everything," he smirked with a tilt of his head and she looked him up and down with a smile that threatened to show her teeth.

"Well then to soothe your burning desire to lose a horse race then I suggest the lake shore as a more suitable venue," she complied and turned her horse to the left toward the lake with both Henry and David following suit.

Henry was laughing quietly to himself and when he met David's eye he gave him a thumbs up and a grin but David simply stared at his hand in confusion and Henry laughed a little more. He supposed they didn't do thumbs up there yet.

...

Henry sat on Rocinante's back as she stood knee deep in the cool lake water, the both of their heads turned toward David and Regina a ways up the shore standing side by side waiting for his go. There was a finish line drawn in the sand and he and Rocinante stood in line with it to see who would be the winner if it came to a nose to nose finish. He was thrilled beyond comprehension that his mother had agreed to race. She was learning to have fun again and David seemed to be quickly getting the hang of her.

"Good luck, your majesty," he teased and she scoffed a laugh and nudged her stallion's ribs with her heel causing him to step quickly to the side and in to David and his mare. The collision had him laughing as he regained his mare's steady footing before returning the gesture and having the mare crash in to Regina and the black stallion. It had her laughing in return, a warm and beautiful sound that was paired with a wide and open smile that creased the corners of her eyes while she sat easily upon her giddy stallion.

"On your marks!" Henry called with his hands cupped around his smiling mouth to focus the sound in their direction, "get set!" He paused and laughed quietly and then yelled, "go!" And instantly they were hurtling down the shore toward him with sand flying up behind them from their horses' thundering hooves.

David let out a low chuckle at the thrill of his mare sitting back on her haunches to push herself forward for the take off and pulled herself forward with her front legs and continued faster and faster until her stride matched Regina's stallion who was throwing his head side to side with excitement and the joy of running. He was begging her to let him go faster and David knew that the moment Regina let him do just that, he would have no chance of catching her again. But that only made him laugh as he urged his pretty mare faster.

She forgot her character, she forgot about her walls, she forgot that she was the queen, she forgot that she was evil, she forgot that he was Snow's, she forgot that she wasn't supposed to enjoy his company, she forgot that he wasn't supposed to enjoy hers, she forgot everything except for the four legs carrying her faster than she had run in a long time and the team beside her that was trying to outrun her. She met David's eye with a wild grin and then threw her head back a little with a joyous laugh before she lifted her hands up her stallion's neck a little and hooked a finger in to his flying mane to assure him that he would not lose her from his back.

With that settled, he pushed himself in to a whole other gear and shot past David and the mare with his nostrils flared as wide as possible for his heavy snorting breaths. Regina didn't bother looking behind her as she sped down the shore toward Henry cheering on Rocinante's back but she could hear David laughing and trying to push his mare faster.

Henry hollered and cheered through his laughter as his mother crossed the finish line and David followed an entire two horse lengths behind her. He threw his arms up over his head and hollered once again before shouting, "that was awesome!" When he opened his eyes again and looked down the beach, she was cantering back to him through the water and David trotting in the sand but the both of them were grinning and laughing. This was going to work, his mother was going to be fixed this time.

...

Unable to sleep, Regina wandered the many halls of her castle. The moon was full and bright in the sky and because of it her home was filled with the soft light shining from it. As she rounded the corner to get to her favourite hallway she laid eyes on David who seemed to have found it as well. She contemplated leaving him be but decided against it and continued on her way toward him. She didn't say a word and her bare feet walked silently across the cool stone until she stopped beside him and folded her arms on the railing as she looked out at the forest.

He was startled by her sudden appearance. He hadn't heard her approach and he jumped just a little when he saw her suddenly come in to view out of the corner of his eye. She didn't pay any mind to it and didn't say a word as he stared at her. She simply kept her dark eyes on the forest. He looked her up and down for he still did not know what to make of her claim of wanting him to help her change for the better. He had seen something during that horse race. He had seen that pure joy and that spark of life in her dark eyes right before she had let out a thrilled and easy laugh before she took off and left him behind.

He wasn't yet convinced though of her own commitment and dedication to herself. She had so easily reverted back to her malicious character when they returned to the palace and something happened that she did not approve of. Each slip was followed by a displeased or angry look from the young boy which had Regina looking like a kicked puppy in response but it never stopped her from losing her temper again.

He didn't know if she could be saved. But he was curious if it could be done as Snow had always hoped.

With her appearance now she looked to be an entirely different person and it was actually rather confusing. She was still a stunning woman but with her long wavy hair left to fall to the middle of her back and her face clean of any makeup while she wore nothing but a charcoal grey silk nightgown that hit just above her knee and gathered around her breasts, she hardly resembled the queen he knew. Her posture was straight and proud but it was also more relaxed as she stood with her weight on one foot and the other leg bent ever so gently so her foot crossed over behind its weight bearing match.

What surprised him more than it should have was that she was strong. Soft lines in her arms defined her muscles just as they did in her legs and he felt free to assume her torso would portray the same. The night gown had thin straps over her strong shoulders and as his eyes followed the sharp line of her collarbone they stopped at the small pendant hanging off the delicate chain around her neck. It was a grand tree stencilled out of what looked to be white gold and the entire thing was circled with a circle of the same precious metal. It was such a simple and delicate piece of jewelry and it was one he was fascinated by for he would never have imagined she would wear such a thing.

Her face was soft in the moonlight and her skin seemed to glow while her eyes and hair appeared darker than ever. It offered a truly stunning contrast that kept his attention for a little while.

He could not conclude who this woman was. Malicious queen? Or gentle beauty?

"This is my favourite place in the castle," Regina interrupted the silence between them with her gentle voice and kept her eyes out on the forest. She was aware of him studying her but she didn't pay any mind to it, "I have always wanted to take a couple days and just walk through those trees and see what I could find."

"...why don't you?"

"With people constantly trying to kill me or raid my home?" She raised and eyebrow with a small laugh under her breath and then shook her head and listened to her voice drop regrettably, "I haven't the time. Nor do I wish to be constantly watching my back."

"Magic?"

Regina smiled and gave a short hum as she shook her head and looked to him, "you are missing the point," she whispered and his expression remained creased and rather guarded, "I don't want to have to use magic. Why would I wish to escape everything here only to bring it with me out there?"

"...escape?" An odd word choice he believed.

"What on earth makes you think I am happy here?" She inquired quietly and gently. When he gave no quick answer she shook her head, "I hate it here. It is my cage. I do not have a key, I am a pet. A pet who fools herself and everyone else in to believing she is in control. Sure it is a luxurious life but by no means is it the one I wanted or begged for. I would happily be the wife of a peasant rather than live out my days in this glorified prison."

David's brow was furrowed in intense confusion and he opened his mouth to speak but then closed it again. As he watched her look out at the forest he felt the gears turning in his head to try and figure out this woman, "you would give up your life as queen for a life as the wife of what? A stableboy?" He gave a random example in exasperated confusion and then watched as she flinched subtly and swallowed as she avoided eye contact. It wasn't a reaction to his tone because while it was frustrated and confused it was not by any means directed to the idea of it but rather his inability to envision such a powerful and regal woman wearing the clothes of a peasant. And doing it happily.

No it was a reaction indicating he could not have said a more true statement. His expression softened immediately and his eyes remained focused on her. His gaze dropped momentarily when he caught glimpse of movement in her hands. The thumb of her left hand moving subconsciously and subtly over her the side of her ring finger on the same left hand. He closed his eyes in a slow blink with a long regrettable exhale and when he opened them again he was looking at her face again but she kept her eyes out on the forest.

"What happened to you?" He whispered gently and nodded toward her and she smiled the most insincere smile and paired it with a single sorrowful laugh hummed through her closed lips.

"That is not bedtime story material, David," she shook her head with a well practiced smile and placed a hand on his upper arm as she moved away from the railing and started walking away, "I hope you find it in you to get a good night's sleep," she whispered kindly and let her hand slide over his arm until she walked past him and it fell back to her side before she clasped them both loosely behind her back and walked down the hall.

David frowned at his arm for a little while and then turned his head the other way to watch her leave. He felt his heart lurch out of his chest when she looked over her shoulder. He was certain she didn't intend to look the way she did, it was how she moved and how she walked. A slow sway of her hips with every step, her bare calves flexing softly as she walked on her tip toes just because she could, a dropped shoulder because of her hands and arms behind her back as she looked back to him, her long soft hair reflecting the moonlight, a small more genuine smile curling her soft lips and gently creasing the corners of those perfectly dark eyes.

When she turned her head back to watch where she was going, he cleared his throat and shook his head to try and clear that perfect image of her from his head and then began working on trying to rid himself of the ache in his heart her words had put there.

"Regina," he called quietly and looked her way again to see she had stopped and turned a quarter turn to look at him with a silent question in her eyes, "I'm sorry. For earlier. And for in the past...I should have given you a chance," he shook his head a little, hoping his voice would match the apology written in the lines of his face she was so carefully analyzing, "today you convinced me to stay and help. Whether you want me to or not," he held her eye for what seemed like forever before she gave a single small nod of her head and turned and continued on her path down the hall and away from him without a word.