Lily knocked on the mansion door and took a deep breath. It opened a moment later to reveal Henry, looking up at her. "Is Regina here?" She asked. He nodded and stepped aside for her to come in. She looked around as he lead her through the impressively home, a smile touching her lips at seeing so much of Regina within it. There were pictures of her half mother everywhere. Smiling and happy pictures of Regina over the years. Henry stopped at a door and knocked. There wasn't an answer although Lily knew that Regina usually up this time a day.
"She's in there." Henry said. "She hasn't been out in a while."
"I'll see what I can do." He nodded and went back into his room while she peeked into the room. First off, the room was huge. Ridiculously huge for one person. It was decorated in mostly greys and whites and the sheets on the bed were black. The curtains were closed, casting the room in near darkness. She could see Regina curled into a ball under the sheets, sniffling softly. "Mom?" Regina glanced over at the door but ultimately did nothing. Lily closed the door behind her and walked over to the bed. She could see that her mother had been crying and the fact that she didn't try to hide it assured Lily just how bad Regina was feeling.
"They're coming back today, aren't they?" Regina whispered.
"Yeah, supposed to be." Lily slipped off her shoes and crossed her legs. "I was worried, you didn't make our lunch date."
"Sorry, I didn't feel well." Regina's voice cracked and Lily immediately slid closer to her mother and pulled her into her arms. She could feel Regina just collapse into her embrace as she cried.
"It's okay, Mom."
"It's not." Regina hissed, sitting up and roughly wiping her eyes. Lily conjured a box of tissues for her. "The one person I love most in the world doesn't even want me. I pushed her away because I was so worried about losing this stupid little place in life. She was right, about everything and I'm so stupid-"
"No, you're not." Lily said sternly. "I get it, you lost Mom. I don't know exactly how to help, but berating yourself is not the answer. You're amazing in every way and I won't stand for you talking about yourself any other way." She honestly didn't know how to help her mother. Broken hearts take time to heal and even though it killed her to see any of her mothers unhappy, there wasn't much she could do either way.
After a while, Regina calmed down and they laid in bed and ate ice cream and watched some TV. It was nice for a while, until a blonde fool had to make her entrance. Lily and Regina were in the kitchen, eating some take out from Granny's when Emma arrived and Lily almost wanted to take her head off when she immediately asked about Mal and the Evil Queen. The woman possessed the tact of a fucking ant!
"Why does it concern you?" Lily demanded. "This is a family matter."
"I am part of the family-"
"Not this side."
"Enough." Regina said sternly. "The both of you. I'm tired of you two always arguing."
"Yeah, well, when she starts minding her own business then I'll stop." Lily replied.
"I'm the sheriff and the Savior, almost everything is my business." Emma smirked, stealing an apple off the table and biting into it.
"Bullshit. This doesn't concern your precious town, or your son. So, this isn't any of your business." Lily growled.
Emma glared at her before turning to Regina. "I'm sorry for what happened." Regina shrugged, looking down at the glass of wine she hadn't even touched. "Maybe...Maleficent could split herself in half, give you the other half." Lily instantly teleported the stupid blonde away.
"I swear, I need to rip her tongue out. I'm sorry for her idiocy."
"Runs in her family." Regina smiled sadly. "Besides, there would be nothing to split."
"What?"
"Mal is who she is. She's never needed to change. Who would want that?"
"Hey," Lily reached across the table to take her hand. "It's going to be okay. Everything will work out."
"It won't. There's no one like Mal and there's no one I want more." Regina gave her hand a squeeze. "Thank you for today, but I need to be alone now."
"Oh, okay. Call me if you need anything." Lily got to her feet as Regina did the same, taking the glass of wine with her. Lily stepped out onto the porch, giving her mom one last hug. "Promise me you'll call me tomorrow. I don't care if it's just to tell me you're okay. I don't want to treat you like...a child or something but I-"
"I understand." Regina said simply. "But you should be focusing on yourself, living your life. Go sleep with Aurora and Liam."
"Wait a minute, I'm not sleeping with either one of them!" Regina flashed a grin as she closed the door. Lily smiled to herself and teleported away. Behind the front door Regina let out a heavy sigh. She felt the glass crack in her hand, felt the shards slice into her palm and the wine burn as it splashed to the floor. She left it where it lay to go back upstairs and sleep, not interested in being in the waking world today.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
The dragon estate was quiet when Lily walked up the front steps. She walked inside, kicking her shoes off at the door, hearing the sound of laughter coming from the kitchen. She walked in and found the Evil Queen laughing at the top of her lungs as her blonde mother looked on with a proud smirk at having induced such laughter. Lily leaned against the doorway and smiled seeing them so happy. The Evil Queen had even toned down her wardrobe for some jeans and a long sleeved black shirt. Of course she accessorized with diamonds and a vast assortment of other jewels, but hey, she was a queen after all. Maleficent however, wore no such jewelry, still managing to be stunning in light blue jeans and a purple shirt. She was the first to notice Lily's presence and held out a hand to her.
Lily smiled and crossed the room to enter her blonde mother's embrace. "I see you guys are happy. Had a good...mating? I guess."
"More than good." Mal kissed her forehead and released her so the Evil Queen could welcome their eldest child home. She pressed her forehead to Lily's in a silent welcome before Lily stepped back. "How was your day?"
"It was good. I spent it with Regina." Lily poured herself some water and hopped onto the kitchen counter.
"How is she?" Mal inquired with genuine curiosity and concern.
Lily shrugged. "She's fine."
"Perhaps I should see her?"
"I wouldn't." Lily replied. "So, what are you guys planning on doing now? Just making babies?"
"Not at all." The Queen said. "Well, for now of course, but eventually we'll need to find something to occupy our time during recovery times and we've decided to do that by buying up the southern part of town and redoing the entire street. If I'm going to stay here, I'm going to have fun doing it and you are going to help me."
"Alright, when do we get started?"
"Tomorrow." The Queen lazily threw her mane of hair over one shoulder and turned to face her. "It has come to my attention that I cannot be as I have always been. I'm not Regina. Well, I am and I'm not. Make no mistake I have no intention of adhering to some law or any rules or spending any amount of time with the Charmings or Regina." She sighed and glanced around, almost nervously. "And I can't just be called the Evil Queen for the rest of my life in order to differentiate me from my former counterpart."
"You're going to pick a new name?" Lily asked, a bit surprised. She'd expected for her mothers to live their lives away from Storybrooke, staying away from the drama and rage inducing people that dwelled there, but that didn't seem to be the case. Although it really should've been a no brainer. People didn't want them there? Well, let's make sure we show up and piss everyone off. A villain's mindset of course. The name thing didn't really surprise her either considering Evil Queen seemed to be more of a title than a name. The Queen still responded to Regina, but Mal never called her that anymore and Lily never had.
"I haven't yet." The Evil Queen said. "But I'm looking. As well as names for our future son or daughter. What would you like, Lily?"
Lily shrugged. "I don't know. I don't even know anything about kids." She admitted.
"You'll be fine." Mal smiled at her. "I know it. Besides, it's much too early to be thinking about all of this. We haven't even confirmed a pregnancy yet."
"Without Regina's...softness…" The Evil Queen said, looking at Mal. "Do you think I could be a good mother?" A certain fear entered her voice then, one Lily had only heard once before. As far as Lily could gather, the Evil Queen did not seem to care about Henry in any capacity. To her, he wasn't her son and even seemed to dislike the fact that he bore the name of her father. Neither did she recognize Snow as her stepdaughter, she was more like an enemy. Any part of her marriage to Leopold and any member of the Charming clan were things she either wanted to forget or ignore the existence of. When it came to Maleficent however, and Lily, all of that changed and she proved that she did care for someone, only those she chose. This child, the baby they were going to have, it meant the world to her. She didn't even need to say it for Lily to know that.
"You already are one." Lily replied.
The Evil Queen beamed at her. "Thank you, Princess. Will you be wanting company tonight?"
"No, I'm tired, and I know you guys are going to have sex so sound proof, will ya?"
"Hmm, if we remember." Mal smirked, already looking her half mother up and down.
"Can we go stab some dwarves before bed?" The Queen asked, bouncing up and down.
"Not my idea of foreplay." Mal commented, reaching out to her outstretched hand.
"I can do it naked. It's no problem."
"And on that note, I say good night. Your majesties, have a wonderful evening. I will sound proof myself." She accepted a goodnight kiss from each mother and made her way to her bedroom, only to be stopped by a knock at the door. "I got it!" She walked to it and opened it, finding Henry standing on the other side.
"Is Maleficent home?" He asked.
"Um, she's busy right now. Is there something I can do to help?"
"I'm worried about Mom." He said. "I found broken glass today. She won't even talk to me. I need Maleficent to talk to her. She-she caused this...She has to fix it, because I don't know what to do."
Lily sighed. "Be there for Mom when she needs it. That's all you can do. No one can force themselves to feel a certain way for someone. Things like this take time."
"Time to do what?!"
Unbeknownst to the pair, another had heard the squabble. The Evil Queen was silent as she listened to the boy begging for someone to fix his mother. She rolled her eyes and pulled out her phone to send a text to Regina. That night, when she was certain the dragons were sound asleep, she crept away to meet her counterpart on the old toll bridge. "You look like hell." She commented, scanning Regina with disdain and disapproval. The madame mayor had put on one of her favorite pantsuits and applied her makeup flawlessly, but she couldn't hide the sadness in her eyes. Heartbreak radiated off of the woman. The Evil Queen almost felt bad for her...for a few seconds and then she was overcome with happiness at her victory.
"You called me here to gloat?" Regina let out a tired sigh and crossed her arms.
"No, I wanted to tell you your son, with his undeserving name, came by the house today. He was whining about his broken mother."
"So? That's all you wanted to see me about?" Regina demanded. The Evil Queen smirked seeing the barely contained rage behind her counterpart's facade.
"You feel like killing me, don't you?"
"Of course I do. I've always felt that way."
"Mmm, no you haven't. But you're right, I did call you to deliver a final message in the hopes that it will help you move on, as well as deter you from trying anything stupid in the future." The Evil Queen walked forward as she reached into her own chest and pulled out her heart, placing it on the stone railing next to Regina. It was bigger than it used to be and just as dark. There was no hole anymore either. Beneath the darkness however, it glowed with a bright red and gold light, like a hunk of gold itself. Without it she felt empty, soulless. It connected her to the two most important people in her life.
"Bold of you. I should crush it right now." Regina replied.
The Evil Queen smirked again. "We both know you won't because Mal and Lily would never forgive you. This proves what you hate the most. They love me. They did whatever they could to bring me back to life after you killed me. Which is fine, I'll let it go this once. I'm a changed woman now. I have to set a good example for my future little dragonling." She grinned at Regina's pained expression as she put her heart back in her chest, almost instantly feeling rejuvenated in doing so.
"I never should have released you."
"You're probably right, but you did that of your own volition. You separated us because you didn't want to have your darkness weighing you down anymore. You didn't want to be the Evil Queen anymore, you didn't want the name staining your good girl record. So you set me free. Your problem is you want the best of both worlds. You want to be the reformed villain, the good guy, the hero, but you were too afraid to walk down the street with Mal. You were afraid that showing her love would ruin everything you worked for. You wanted a secret romance. Mal is too great to be a secret anything. She deserved the world. She deserved more than your world. She should have been your world."
"Don't talk to me about Mal." Regina growled, her lip curling in anger.
"You're right, I shouldn't have to tell you about my mate." The Evil Queen nonchalantly reached into her boot and pulled out a dagger. She turned it over so that it reflected the moonlight, admiring the jagged edge before teleporting straight to Regina and forcing her back against the railing with the dagger pressed tightly to her neck. "You know how far I was willing to go to destroy Snow White. I will go a thousand times farther to remain at Mal's side. I will slaughter you, the Charmings and everyone in this town to do it. The only time you will ever feel Mal's love again will be in memories and dreams."
Regina's response was a powerful sonic blast that caught her completely off guard. The next thing she knew she felt the harsh slap of the water as she crashed into the lake. She scowled and swam to the surface, in one motion, tearing apart the bridge and sending her counterpart into the water as well. More powerful blasts of magic began ripping through the water. They reappeared on the bank and the fight began again…
/
"What the hell happened to you?" Maleficent asked when a dripping wet Queen walked into their bedroom.
"Just had a friendly little chat with Regina."
"Friendly huh? That was you two making all of that noise?" Mal got off the bed and walked to her, using magic to remove her clothes and assess her wounds. There were plenty of bruises and a couple of cuts. She had to pull a dagger out of the back of her lover's shoulder and then the Queen went to take a quick shower. She returned swiftly, joining her dragon in their bed without any clothes on. "We will talk about this in the morning."
"Yes, my dear Maleficent."
Mal kissed the top of her head as she fell into the dragon's arms, relishing in the warmth of her embrace. A peaceful silence settled over the home and it wasn't too long later that the Evil Queen found that same silence strange. Something was wrong. The house was never this quiet. What was missing? A minute later she received her answer when Mal finally fell asleep and she started purring, the gentle hum of a content dragon filling the room. The Queen smiled and snuggled closer to her dragon, placing a few kisses along her jaw and on the side of her neck. Her purring changed to a growl.
"Do I need to kick you out of the bed again?" Mal asked, without opening her eyes.
"As if you don't like it." The Queen purred.
"I do, but I am exhausted. I'll make it up to you in the morning."
"First thing?"
Mal opened one eye. Her lip quivered as she tried to fight off a smirk. "So be it."
The Evil Queen grinned and kissed Mal full on the lips. The dragon groaned softly as she returned it, her hands snaking up the Queen's back before moving back down again, her nails gently scratching the soft flesh and making the Queen all the more hungry for her. Without warning, Mal threw her across the large bed and curled up beneath the sheets.
"You would throw the mother of your children?!"
"When she is distracting me from my sleep? Absolutely." Mal replied. She started laughing when the Queen dove on top of her and pulled the brunette into her arms. "Okay, okay, go to sleep now."
"As you command." Her lover giggled softly. The dragon started purring again and eventually that beautiful sound lulled her into sleep.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Early the next morning, Lily found herself dragged out of bed by her brunette mother, who had yet to learn the beauty of sleeping in like her blonde one. The Evil Queen was excited to take her out this morning and show her something. Lily showered and stepped out to find that her half mother had laid out an outfit for her. "Practicing for the baby?" She smirked.
"No." The Queen smirked. "I just think that you would look nice in this. I tried to adhere to your style sense and tone down all the silks and diamonds on the fabric, but I brought plenty of jewelry."
Lily rolled her eyes and slipped into the dress her mother had selected. It was a simple little black number. It was soft to the touch and hugged every one of her curves to perfection. She was bid to sit and the Evil Queen did her makeup, hair, and draped her in priceless diamonds and rubies. "Whoa…" She whispered when the Queen had finished and pushed her in front of the mirror.
"Whoops. Almost forgot." Her mother smirked and snapped her fingers, making elegant heels appear on her feet. "Beautiful. Well, you're always beautiful actually. This just accentuates what's already there." Lily was still staring at herself in the mirror. Her hair had volume now. Thick and luxurious and perfectly curled, the Queen gave it a little more length and touched up her face with makeup. Fancy dresses, heels and makeup were three things she never cared about growing up. Food was more important. "Where have you been hiding this figure? It's gorgeous. You should show it off more often." She took Lily's hand and was prepared to lead her out of the room.
"Wait!" The Queen whipped around, looking concerned, her eyes scanning her daughter to see if something was wrong. "I've never worn heels before." Lily admitted. "I'm gonna fall."
Her mother smiled. "Then we will practice. A queen's walk is key to her image." She herself was wearing impressive open toe stilettos and walked in them as well as her other mother did. "Shall we?" She looped an arm through Lily's and lead her slowly into the living room, where Maleficent and Liam were waiting. "Mal, our child has never worn heels before. We must teach her before our trip today." She waved her hand, making heels appear on the dragon's feet. "Let's show her how to walk."
Lily sat down on the edge of the couch, subconsciously trying to hide her legs in the short dress. She was always careful of her surroundings, always noticing things others wouldn't. It came from when she had to change her name and move across the country, but that was a story for another time. She had noticed her mothers and the way they walked and they happily demonstrated it now. The Evil Queen's walk was a thing of beauty honestly. She had a pronounced strut, a bounce in her swagger that spoke volumes to her confidence. Maleficent walked with long strides and a natural glide. She was a dragon and hardly ever cared about someone else's eyes upon her, but if she walked by, you would be compelled to stop and stare. "I'm not going to be able to do this."
Maleficent took her hands and pulled her up. "Give it a try." Lily carefully stepped forward, trying to stay on her tiptoes. She felt the Queen behind her correcting her posture a little.
"Just think, Princess," The Evil Queen said. "You are the daughter of two of the most powerful people in the world. You are a dragon, whose bloodline has existed for thousands of years with dragons whose legacies and accomplishments are the stuff of legend. Based on your allowance from Mal, you are one of the richest women in the world. You alone bore the darkness of another person and survived and are currently thriving. You were born into greatness. A power like no other flows through your veins. Pour every ounce of that into your footsteps." She peeked over Lily's shoulder with a smile.
"You should be a motivational speaker." Lily said.
"She didn't say anything that was untrue." Maleficent replied. Lily looked down, blushing under the heavy praise of her mothers. They believed in her so strongly, expected her so much of her and she really didn't believe herself to be capable of such things.
The Queen took one of her hands and looked at it as she spoke. "You alone are enough, Lilith." She looked up and met her eyes. "Just you. You're more than enough. Nothing will ever change that. Not darkness, not vengeance, not madness."
"Thanks, guys." She whispered, feeling her cheeks burn again.
The Evil Queen kissed her cheek and perked up again. "That's enough practice for now. We have a lot to do today." She gave Mal a quick kiss and lead her and Liam out the door. The warrior followed a few steps behind them as they walked through Storybrooke, turning heads as they did so. It felt weird. She'd spent so much of life flying below the radar and trying to avoid detection that it was strange to have so much attention. The Evil Queen didn't care though, even though they were probably looking at her for a very different reason. She lead Lily down to the edge of town, where her mothers had bought up most of the unused buildings and empty houses. The Queen chose a large factory and took them inside. It looked deserted and rather empty, all of the equipment having been removed and taken to Mal's workshop for her to salvage parts for who knew what. "This is where it will begin."
"What will begin?" Lily asked, looking around.
"A new era." The Queen looked around with a devilish smirk on her face. "As much as your mother and I enjoy the peace of the last few weeks, we are very bored, so we have decided to...bring a little gift to Storybrooke."
"And that would be?"
"Chaos."
/
Everything ached. Even after healing all of her wounds, Regina could still feel the ache of the Evil Queen's fireballs searing her flesh and the bruises sustained from her angry fists. Everything hurt. Now she was in as much bodily pain as her heart was, knowing that Maleficent had chosen to mate with that monster over her. Without the Evil Queen's darkness, she should've felt lighter than air, happy, free, but...all she felt was pain. And anger. She was sitting in the living room, watching the fireplace when she felt another presence in the room. "Get out." She growled.
"Is that any way to address an old friend?" Gold asked. She heard his footsteps on the carpet and out of the corner of her eye, saw him sit in the couch to her right. "I heard what happened." Regina said nothing, silently staring at the flames caressing the wood, burning away the bark layer by layer. "What are you going to do about this?" She ground her teeth together, trying her best not to explode on the old man. "I understand why you separated the two of you." Gold said. "But you have to know that the two of you will not be able to coexist apart. Without you to ground her, she could prove difficult to control. You were her logic and reason. Without you, there is only anger and madness. She could come after you or Henry-"
"Just stop. For fuck's sake, stop trying to manipulate me into doing your dirty work again!" Regina snapped, turning to glare at her mentor. "She already has come after me. She took Maleficent from me. She's trying to take Lily. All of this bullshit is just you trying to convince me to destroy the Evil Queen so you won't have to. If I could, I would, but I can't." She turned back to the fire with a scowl of disgust at her former mentor. "The Evil Queen doesn't care about you. Beyond Maleficent, you are nothing."
"Did Maleficent teach you all she knew?" Gold asked and she smirked. "Did Maleficent give you the power to-"
"Shut up! That upsets you after everything I just said? You and my mother were everything I hated about myself. The Evil Queen would not exist without you. You think you made me? You taught me magic, yes, but that was only to cast your stupid curse. You ruined my life and lied to me and manipulated me countless times because you are a selfish coward whose son was better off without him." The flames suddenly leaped out of the fireplace and wrapped around her throat, forcing her head back into the chair. Gold got to his feet and walked into her line of sight. She stopped being afraid of him a long time ago though and she knew she wasn't in any real danger. If he so much as hurt her, the Charmings would be on his ass in seconds.
"Watch your mouth."
"The Evil Queen hates you, Rumpelstiltskin. She always has. Because as much as you like to pretend that you actually helped me, all you did was nurse that anger and pain. She knows about all of your lies. The only reason she hasn't tried to kill you is because she knows she can't. Hell, the only reason half the world has not risen up to kill you is because you're the Dark One. If you could be killed without someone else becoming the Dark One, heroes and villains would walk hand in hand to cut you down. Bitter enemies would share drinks at the celebration of your demise. Maybe then there would be peace and everyone would live happily ever after without your meddling in things that never concerned you." Gold scowled at her, the flames tightening around her neck. They didn't burn, but she felt the heat. "Maybe that's why Belle left you too. I know I would. I wonder if Belle is with Killian right now." She grinned. "I wonder if she misses you…" She laughed deeply at the notion. "Who are we kidding, the pirate is probably a thousand times better than you in bed and I can safely say that he is nowhere near as much of an asshole to her as you. Almost all of your past loves managed to escape you, you know. Milah would rather you had died and ran off the first chance she got. Mother ripped out her own heart rather than stand by your side and little Belle...She truly loved you and all you did was lie to her. Yet another person who is better off without you, Dark One."
"Disrespecting me will not make Maleficent love you. Nothing will."
Regina only laughed, using her own magic to force back the flames, returning them to their proper place. "You're right, but thanks for making me feel better and besides, I didn't say anything that was untrue and we both know it. If the Evil Queen ever becomes a problem for you, deal with her on your own. Now, get the hell out of my house." Regina returned her gaze to the fire and ignored him. She heard his footsteps on the carpet as he made his departure. They were heavier and faster this time. He was pissed. It made her smile. It was finally time for him to hear the truth. The man had made an enemy of anyone who ever stood by his side. Even the villains hated him and the heroes barely trusted him. Belle left him for Killian a while ago and seemed much happier while he was miserable. That almost made her grin. It didn't last, however, because after a while, the pain returned. What was she going to do?
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