Forbidden
The Lion and Dragon:
Regina is still tired when she wakes up the following morning. Tired and sore, but nevertheless very satisfied.
What was that expression Mal used? Ah yes, "thoroughly fucked". That's what she is.
Regina winces when she rolls onto her back. Her bottom and the back of her thighs feels rather sore. She grins a little. Last night was wonderful.
But where's Maleficent? The dragon sorceress is nowhere to be found in the bedchambers, and Regina is just about to call out for her when she hears something that makes her sit upright in the bed and wrap the sheets tightly around her.
There's someone in the Forbidden Fortress, and Regina doesn't doubt who it is when she hears that dreaded, damned high-pitched giggle.
Rumplestiltskin is right here in the Forbidden Fortress, and Regina swallows her nausea. She has to leave. And she has to leave right now. If he finds her here…
Regina immediately pulls her legs out of the tangled sheets and scrapples around to find her dress, but oh right, her dress isn't here. It's still lying abandoned in the bathroom. She waves her hand and makes both dress, corset and panties appear on the bedroom floor. She quickly slips her panties back on and binds the corset tightly around her upper body. She listens to Rumplestiltskin's high pitched taunting, and Maleficent low and calm reply as she sloppily steps back into the layers of underskirts. Then she pulls the dress over her head. Why on earth is that imp here? Then she knows. He's here because he's the one behind all of this. He's the one who asked Maleficent do to this in the first place. Of course, he is. Regina should have seen that. He and Maleficent is actually working together, and what she and Maleficent have is orchestrated by Rumplestiltskin.
Regina finally finishes buttoning her dress and then she waits for a moment. Now what? Maybe she should just transport right back home.
But as she lifts her hand to make herself disappear in a cloud of smoke, the door to Maleficent's bedchambers opens, and Maleficent steps inside, wearing her robe and with tousled hair.
"You are dressed," she states calmly and disappointment seeps through the words.
Regina ignores that. "What was he doing here?"
Maleficent shrugs. "I think he was looking for you. He said something about you missing a lesson last night."
"Did you ask him to come here?" Regina asks dully as she swiftly braids her hair.
"Me? No. Why on earth would I do that, darling?"
"Oh, I don't know," Regina sneers. "Perhaps you confide in him. Perhaps he's the one who encouraged you to try things on with me."
"And why would he do that?"
Regina shrugs. "To taunt me. To mock me."
Maleficent narrows her eyes. "Surely you don't believe that, darling." She takes a step closer to Regina and reaches out to touch her, but Regina holds her hand up. "Don't."
"What's the matter with you?" Maleficent demands. "Why are you suddenly like this?"
Regina laughs humorlessly. "You can drop the act now, Maleficent. In fact, it would be far easier for both of us, if you just admitted that Rumplestiltskin put you up to this from the beginning."
"He didn't. You are acting like a child!" Maleficent sneers and lowers her hand.
"And maybe that's all I am. A child who can easily be bent and manipulated to do your bidding!" Regina bites back. "To do everyone's bidding! Yours, Rumplestiltskin's, Snow Whites!"
"You are acting irrationally," Mal says and crosses her arms. She's suddenly completely calm, and that only annoys Regina further.
"I'm leaving!" she declares and pushes past Maleficent. "And I'm not gonna come back again."
"Very well. If that's what you want." Maleficent says calmly, and Regina's façade cracks for a moment when she realizes that Maleficent isn't gonna try and stop her.
"And you shouldn't come to my castle either," she adds and spits the words out like venom.
"Fine. If that's what you want, little queen."
Regina doesn't even look back at the blonde sorceress. She just leaves the Forbidden Fortress. And she's not planning on coming back again. All of this was a stupid mistake.
For three weeks, Regina keeps entirely away from the Forbidden Fortress. She's done with Maleficent, and she's certainly done getting tempted by wine and sweet words.
And then the next blow hits, when she's completely vulnerable and raw. On a night where she's particularly frustrated with everything, she runs out on her balcony and pounds again the railing. The rusty old railing comes loose, and Regina plummets to the ground. No doubt she would have killed herself if it hadn't been for a fairy.
The fairy, whose name is Tinkerbell, shows her kindness, and once again Regina is lured by sweet words and kindness. And she allows herself to hope when Tinkerbell starts talking about pixie dust and soulmates and second chances. She claims there's someone out there, waiting for Regina. A soulmate.
Regina's heart flutters a little at that. A soulmate. Can that really be? Is there really someone out there for her?
Later on, she tells herself how utterly stupid it was, but she agrees to go with Tinkerbell to a nearby tavern and meet this soulmate.
The fairy points her to a man with a lion tattoo and tells her that this is the man Regina has been waiting for all along, and then she leaves Regina to "go and fall in love again"
And for a moment, Regina wants nothing more than that. To fall in love, to be loved, but as she looks at the man, the man who's turned away from her, only the lion tattoo visible to her eyes, she realizes that it's not that simple. Of course, this man isn't the answer to her prayers. How could he be? And he certainly isn't the key to her happiness either. Only one thing is. Snow White's head on a spike.
Tinkerbell probably tricked her. Pointed her toward a random man for her own benefits.
Why should Tinkerbell be interested in helping Regina? No. There has to be something in it for the fairy. A selfish reason. There's always a selfish reason.
Regina turns away from the tavern and leaves the man with the lion tattoo behind.
Tinkerbell isn't at all pleased with her, and claims that pixie dust never lies, but Regina does what she's best at, and acts cold and uninterested. The key to her happiness is being victorious. The key to her happiness is laughing while Snow White burns before her eyes.
Tinkerbell tries to reason with her, to understand her. That stupid fairy even claims that it's okay to be afraid. Regina immediately spits that she's not afraid, and after a heated argument, the fairy leaves.
Regina is grateful for a bit of peace, but Tinkerbell's words about that she seemingly has ruined the man with the lion tattoo's life too, sticks with her. And she wonders about it as she pours herself a well-deserved glass of wine. How could she possibly have ruined a stranger's life? And why should he love her? Because some stupid fairy dust told him to?
No. She'll never love again. There's only room for one man in her heart. And pixie dust and the promise of a soulmate won't tear her away from her revenge. That's the only happy ending for her. Watching Snow White die before her eyes. Hold on to her neck as the girl takes her last breath.
Regina pours herself another glass of wine. She's alone at the castle again. The king and his daughter is out, greeting his loyal subjects. It's Snow White's birthday in a few days, and the loyal subjects have gathered in the little villages to wish their beloved princess a happy birthday.
It goes completely above their heads that Regina's twenty first birthday is also coming up in a few weeks.
It's Snow White's birthday.
Truly a day for celebration.
From early morning to late evening, the entire castle has been abuzz. Regina has been smiling sweetly, falsely as the girl has received her gifts with childish excitement. Including the noble, white steed. Snow White had been over the moon about the present, and the king had smiled proudly as she clumsily mounted the horse.
Regina had both hoped and feared that the little brat would get thrown off the damn horse. Hoped, because it would take the edge off the sniveling brats excitement, and feared it, because the king without a doubt would have the horse put down.
Come nightfall, the king had invited everyone to a grand ball at the castle to celebrate the princess' birthday.
There had been laughing and dancing.
There had been Snow White eating birthday cake and dancing with her devoted father.
There had been the king, lightly tapping his glass and making speech for his daughter, starting the speech with: "My dearest Snow, if only your dearly departed mother could see you now…"
Regina had instantly felt nauseous.
The king had continued with: "To look at the young woman you have become today..."
Regina had felt even worse. Snow White wasn't even close to be a young woman. She was still a child. Nothing more.
Then the king had grown sickeningly sentimental as he spoke of what Snow had meant to him and continued to mean to him. He had then spoken of Eva and thanked her for Snow.
Snow, the stupid little brat had added gasoline to the fire and suggested that they all rose and toasted to her beloved mother. The king had nodded, and everyone had smiled, because wasn't the young princess sweet and compassionated?
Everyone had toasted.
Except Regina.
She had quietly slipped out of the door and left the ball early.
So much for celebration.
Sometimes it was awfully tempting to open the castle gates and run into the night. But she knows that would be a mistake. That wouldn't bring her any closer to her revenge. And revenge is what she wants.
Instead of going to her bedchambers, she chooses to spend a bit of time at the library. Sometimes it calms her down to study magic in plain sight, right under their noses.
But of course, no one takes notice of her. They're all at the ball.
No one ever takes notice of her.
Wouldn't it have been far better to fall to her death from that balcony?
Maybe that would have given her the freedom she so desires.
No. She can't think like that. Her death isn't the answer. Snow White's is.
Regina bows her head over the books and soaks in the knowledge.
Once her mind is buzzing from memorizing the various spells, Regina takes the book under her arm and returns to her chambers for tonight. She hears Snow White's laughter float through the castle. They're all still busy celebrating. No one has even noticed Regina's absence.
Regina had every intention of going to bed, but there's a surprise waiting for her in her bedchambers.
Maleficent is lying nonchalantly on Regina's bed, looking through one of Regina's spell books.
Regina quickly shuts the door behind her, god forbid anyone sees Maleficent in her chambers, and then asks: "What are you doing here?"
Maleficent shrugs and continues to study Regina's book.
"I told you to stay away!" Regina reminds the blonde and pours herself a well-deserved glass of wine.
"Which I did. For three weeks."
Regina doesn't even have the strength to shout at her. She's too tired. Tired of everything, really. Tired of celebrating, tired of seeing people toast to good queen Eva, tired of being lured by false promises of awaiting soulmates when she knows that it's all a lie.
"What's the matter with you?" Maleficent asks.
Now it's Regina who shrugs.
Maleficent looks at her, measures her from head to toe and then she asks: "Are you pregnant?"
Regina splutters and sets the wine down. "And how on earth should that have come to be?"
Maleficent shrugs this time and continues to look at Regina.
Regina suddenly feels a wave of sympathy for the dragon. "Did you think that?"
"I… feared it," Maleficent admits. "I know you wouldn't want that."
Regina laughs dryly. "Well, I can assure you that my husband has never touched me."
Maleficent's shoulders uncurls and she draws in a breath.
"I thought I told you to stay away," Regina says again, but she can't quite find the correct, harsh tone.
"I'm afraid I couldn't keep my promise," Mal says.
Regina tries her best to stare her down. To make her leave just with her eyes. But of course, that doesn't work as intended. Maleficent rises from the bed and comes over to her. Regina backs away, but whatever anger she had for Maleficent slips away between her fingers.
"Your mentor didn't put me up to this." Maleficent states plainly, and Regina crosses her arms over her chest. She feigns skepticism, because she can't find the right words to tell Maleficent that she always thinks of her as a safe space. A place where Rumplestiltskin can't get into her head.
"Come back to me," Maleficent says softly and reaches out, cups Regina's cheek.
Regina stiffens. This isn't going as planned. Maleficent isn't supposed to do this. She's supposed to be angry and eager to pick another fight.
"I assure you, darling. Despite what you think, Rumplestiltskin have nothing to do with what's happening with us. I came to you because I wanted to, not because anyone told me to, and certainly not Rumplestiltskin. That imp can't tell me what to do."
Why is it so easy to believe her? Why is it so easy for Regina to want to believe her?
"Come back to me," Maleficent repeats gently, softly. She brushes her fingertips against Regina's cheek.
Regina huffs frustrated. The hell with it. She closes the gap between them and claims Maleficent's lips in a desperate kiss.
If the kiss surprises Maleficent, she's very good at pretending. Perhaps she can sense how much Regina needs this.
Regina throws her arms around the dragon witch's neck and deepens the kiss. She teethers slightly on her high heels, but Maleficent's grip on her lower back is iron-clad. There's no way she would let her fall.
Maleficent buries her fingers in Regina's hair, and Regina can feel how the crispy up-do is coming loose and falls in tendrils around her face.
Their kiss taste of reunion and unspoken apologies, Maleficent's tongue plunges into her mouth, and Regina immediately wants more than just kisses. After three weeks apart, after the "soulmate"-fiasco, she needs this.
So she breaks the kiss and murmurs: "Take me to bed," into Maleficent's heated skin.
Maleficent grips her upper arms and lowers her eyes to Regina's. "Is that what you want, little queen?"
"Yes," Regina breathes.
Maleficent doesn't say anymore. Instead she lets her actions speak and pushes Regina backwards onto the bed.
Regina inhales shakily as Maleficent swiftly is on top of her, devours her mouth again. For once, the dragon's touches are a bit clumsy as she unbuttons Regina's dress, peels it off her and simply tears the corset with her bare hands. Maybe the dragon is as eager as Regina feels.
And Regina feels nothing but sweet, sweet relief as Maleficent spreads her legs and settles between them. A moment of peace at last.
To Be Continued…