Chapter eight
"What did Gold do to you?" Graham asked while slamming his hands onto the interrogation table.
"I believe I have the right to remain silent," he quipped before making a zipping motion across his lips.
The sheriff growled in frustration, only to be interrupted by the arrival of the mayor being announced by a knock on the glass. He scowled at the reporter before leaving the room.
"Anything?" Regina asked, while handing him the coffee that she had promised him.
"He hasn't told me anything, but he does seem different, like he's not actually Sidney anymore."
Regina thought back to Sidney's time as a genie and then as her mirror, he had never acted like this, in fact there was only one person that she knew how acted that way.
"Complete mind control?" she suggested.
Graham held his hands up in surrender "how would I know?"
Regina smirked "good point, and why couldn't you have gotten yourself coffee?"
The hunter blushed and Regina raised her eyebrow, "no reason, I just figured that you owe me."
"Right, so it would have nothing to do with a certain wolf waitress who makes you forget how to speak?"
His blush deepened "that's really not important," he mumbled.
Regina just laughed "you would think that someone who could remember after so long wouldn't be afraid to ask someone on a date."
"Have you asked Emma out?" Regina looked at him in shock and he just quoted "'don't even think about developing feelings for her.'"
"That's really not important at the moment," she mumbled.
"So why is mine important?"
Regina just shook her head and made her way to through the door towards Sidney, "hypocrite," the sheriff mumbled.
Henry and Emma sat on the couch watching a random movie, and the blonde was very grateful that she had parent lock to guide her.
Grabbing a grape she looked at the engrossed boy curiously.
"Doesn't any of this feel weird to you?"
"The movie would make sense if you watched it," he replied without looking away.
"I'm talking about real life, kid," instantly Henry turned to her with his full attention, and nodded for her to continue. "I mean, everything just seems to be moving so fast, I met you yesterday and your mom is already inviting me to family dinners and letting me babysit you. Within twenty-four hours I got a roommate, a job and son and a...errr-"
"My mom?" he asked casually.
Emma immediately blushed "is it that obvious?"
"Please, it's not particularly like you tried to hide it, anyway what's your point?"
"My point is that life isn't this easy."
Henry thought about a few of the stories that Regina had told him about the alternate future and he couldn't help but agree with the blonde, "why not?"
Emma considered this for moment, prepared with many reasons from her own past, only to remember that she was talking to a ten-year-old. "It just never is."
"Well when it is being easy should you really make it difficult by fighting it?"
Emma tilted her head "how did you get to be so smart?"
"Have you met my mom?"he laughed "she read me classical books as bedtime stories."
A wide smile spread across the blonde's face, every time she heard something about Henry's childhood she felt the ten year guilt lessen.
"Wow, you like her a lot," he laughed, before turning back to the TV.
"What about the fairytale thing?" she asked.
"What about it?"
"Well within a day you seemed to forget about it," she explained.
"My mom talked to me," he replied, desperately trying not to lie, Regina had given him strict instructions to not try and make Emma believe.
"I thought she sent you to a shrink," she narrowed her eyes, starting to sense the beginnings of a lie.
"She said that I don't have to go anymore," he answered.
"Seriously, how could me being here suddenly cure you?"
Henry felt anger burst through him. He had been warned that Emma would be difficult to convince, but still she had basically just admitted that she thought he was crazy. Feeling tears gather in his eyes he had the overwhelming need to see his mom.
"You think I'm crazy?" he asked accusatorily.
"Well it was pretty insane," she answered, "your mom doesn't believe it."
"Yes she does!" he shouted before running out of the house.
Emma watched him go in complete shock, before realising what had just happened "shit."
"I know that it's you Gold," Regina said as she sat down.
"Very perceptive," he laughed in Sidney's voice.
"What did you do to him?"
"I told you, I'm resourceful, if you really want to destroy someone there's always a way."
"I have another deal to make," she said casually.
Raising his eyebrow he nodded.
"From what you have told me you have only seen as far as when the curse broke," he nodded again, "well I have met your son."
Both Graham and Sidney looked at Regina in shock, "I know exactly who he is and I have some even more interesting information, but I would need an air tight contract this time."
"Why are you so determined to break the curse," he growled.
"Because it's the only way to get everything that I want," she replied.
"You could always just have your little family without involving the Charming's."
Regina just shook her head, that had been something that she had considered many times. But she knew that Emma needed her parents and if she was being completely honest she knew that Henry needed them.
"If you want the information you have to promise not to ever harm anyone in this town again, that includes releasing Sidney."
"How can I be sure that this information is worth it?" he sneered.
"You'll never find out if you don't make the deal."
Gold's sigh of frustration was interrupted by the ringing of Regina's phone, looking down she saw that it was Emma, it was just one hour she thought with an internal groan.
"You have until morning or I will never tell you," she said before turning to Graham, "keep him in the holding cell."
The sheriff nodded and Regina quickly answered on the last ring while walking out of the room.
"What did you do?" she asked instantly.
Emma sighed "he ran away."
"You just had to watch TV with him," she tried not to shout.
"I may have called him crazy," she answered in a near whisper.
"Why would you do that?" she asked indignantly, mostly because she regretted doing so for far too long.
"He said that he still believes in the fairytale thing, I just thought that he may have been cured or something. He said he wasn't seeing Dr Hopper anymore, and I told him that you didn't believe him either" the blonde defended.
Regina pinched the bridge of her nose, "I know exactly where he is, just go home," she sighed before hanging up without another word.
Five minutes later Regina pulled up to Henry's castle to see him leaning against it.
"How many times have I told you not to sit on wet mud," she teased as she walked towards him.
Henry looked up at her with a small smile, before placing his head back on his knees.
Regina just smiled back, before sitting next to him, completely forgetting what she had just said, and putting her arm around his shoulder.
"I did warn you that she would be difficult to convince," she whispered.
Henry tensed and he shifted away, "it wasn't her."
Regina looked at him in shock, "then what upset you so badly?"
"She said that you didn't believe me, was you just lying to me so that I would stop calling you evil?"
"Of course not, do you really think I could have made that elaborate story up," she laughed.
Henry thought about for a second before shifting back into her arm, "I think that you should show me the dragon," he mumbled against her shoulder.
Regina just let out a laugh, "how about a different kind of proof?" Henry looked at her curiously before she explained, "you know that in this timeline I have never seen your storybook?"
He nodded, "I've never let out of my sight, you didn't know about it until yesterday."
"Well ask me anything about it, except for the last pages," she chuckled.
"Why?" he asked.
"You ripped them out, apparently you didn't want me to know the story of the saviour until the curse broke," she replied while softly stroking his hair.
Henry frowned "this alternate me sounds like a jerk."
"Considering everything I did to her, I think it was justified," she laughed.
"At least you have another chance," he smiled, before standing up and extending his hand to help her up.
"I thought you wanted proof?" she asked.
"Well I've already read the book like three times, so why don't we go home and you can tell me everything it missed out," he suggested.
Regina took his hand with a huge smile, "that sounds like a great idea."