It wasn't very long until the news had spread throughout the small town. Even the kids were talking about it, but there was one who received the news rather late compared to everyone else.
Henry and a few friends were under the gazebo in the rec center courtyard when he noticed his former mother's arrival with the Snow Queen. It was always a big thing when they came to the rec center, even though they did so almost every day. Everyone else just lost their minds over them. He didn't understand it and he couldn't really try to. Besides a polite greeting from Regina every now and then, they never actually held a conversation since she gave him to Emma. She was always polite, always civil, but then would turn her attention to something or someone else and it was like he wasn't there anymore. Besides that, she just ignored him and he wasn't sure which was worse.
Not long later, he decided to go find his other friends. One of his best friends, Kristin, was already ice skating in the rink with Ingrid. His other one, Nick, was helping Regina clean up a storeroom. Both women were surrounded by so many kids trying to help or spend time with them that he couldn't get to either of his friends. In the end, he just admitted defeat and called Emma to come pick him up.
He waited at the doors for her, until he saw the last person he wanted to see walking down the halls towards him. It was Ryan, one of the Lost Boys and one of his former mother's strongest supporters, also a guy that annoyed the living hell out of Henry. The feeling seemed to be mutual, although Henry didn't know what he'd done to the guy. He knew the Lost Boys had never had any dislike towards Regina or Ingrid after being under the heel of Peter Pan, so it surprised no one that they were ones who were closest to them.
"Hello, Mr. Swan." Ryan smirked as he approached. He was of Irish descent, bearing the accent to prove it, but what Henry really hated about him was the smugness. Essentially, he would be the product if Conor McGregor had a baby with himself.
"Hey, Ryan." Henry turned back to the door.
"Hear the great news?" Ryan asked, leaning against the door next to him, that stupid smirk of his never leaving his lips.
"No, and I don't want to hear it."
"No? But it's amazing. Regina and Ingrid are having babies."
"What?" Henry instantly turned around. "Seriously?"
"Yeah. Now, Regina can have her own kids and she and Ingrid can start their own family. Isn't it wonderful?"
"Sure it is. Don't really understand why you're so happy about it." Henry replied.
"Anything that makes Gina and Ingrid happy, makes me happy. You know, they deserve it. Just because you didn't appreciate them, doesn't mean we don't."
"Like the Snow Queen and the Evil Queen need appreciation." Henry scoffed. "I don't get why you all treat them like they're so great."
Ryan rolled his eyes. "Do you know why you piss me off, Henry?"
"No and if you would be so kind as to tell me…" Henry crossed his arms and leaned against the door as well.
"You threw away something kids like me only dream about. You're ungrateful and selfish. Regina treated you like a prince. You grew up in a mansion. You had food everyday, and clothes and shelter and love, with a mother who loved you so much she would've moved the stars if you so much as asked. I get that you wanted to know about your birth parents, any adopted kid would, but you just threw Regina away in the process."
"She was the Evil Queen." Henry snapped.
"Yeah, but not to you. She should've been Mom to you. She gave you a home, her heart, everything. It was like the 10 years she took care of you didn't matter, not to you or the Charmings. Not to mention everything that happened afterwards." Ryan tilted his head. "You know, when she gave you her blood, sweat and tears for redemption and acceptance that went absolutely nowhere. She shouldn't have had to prove anything to you. Especially not because of a book of fairy tales."
"Tales that were true." Henry hissed. "Tales that spoke of a woman who was a murderer, an evil, cruel woman who ruined lives and massacred villages. She made me think I was crazy. That's the woman you all adore."
"It's also the same woman who bent over backwards to please you and save a town of people she hates and who treat her like shit half a dozen times. Gina deserves so much more and I'm glad she's finally dropping you and your family to get it. It's been a long time coming."
"You don't know anything about me or my family. So back off."
"You really think no one noticed you acting like an ass to Regina. Perhaps that's why Kristin won't give you the time of day."
Henry instantly scowled. "Shut up. Just leave me alone, Ryan."
Ryan smirked and raised his hands in surrender. "You know what, it's great. Everything is great. Everyone's happy and you're still a pain in the ass, so everything is as it should be. Good day, Mr. Swan. I'll be sure to tell Kristin you stopped by."
Henry was ready to punch the other boy in the face, but he paused when he spotted Regina coming down the hallway. Since she started dating Ingrid she had undergone a bit of a wardrobe change, but it wasn't he was used to seeing her in so it always surprised him to see her in something other than pant suits and heels. Today she was wearing jeans, a white shirt and black and white sneakers. All things he didn't even think she owned.
"Hello, Henry." She said with a smile.
"Um...hi."
Regina turned to Ryan and gave him a look, to which he only grinned again. "Mind helping me with something?"
"Not at all, your majesty. Anything for the queen." He made a show of bowing and Regina rolled her eyes and took the lead down the hallway. Henry glared at their retreating forms, silently choosing to ignore the irritating boy and his former mother. Why would he care if she was pregnant? He didn't.
Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Regina looked around her vault once more. The red glow was gone. The heartbeats were gone. It felt strange not to hear them, not to feel them. Ingrid took her hand and kissed it.
"Are you okay?" She whispered.
"I needed to do it. For the first time in my life, I am happy and I do not want my past or my mother's past taking that away. I want to feel without breathing in darkness again. I want our kids to be proud of me."
Ingrid leaned her forehead against hers. "They will. They will adore you a thousand times over."
Giving the hearts back was a challenge. Finding all of the people she and her mother took them from had taken almost a week, even with the help of the other children. Of course, not everyone received them, or could receive them considering Regina didn't bring everyone from the Enchanted Forest to Storybrooke and she had no idea who her mother might have considered an enemy. The rest were buried. She didn't know the names, but she at least could give them a proper burial.
"I feel so different." Regina said. It was only another step towards becoming the woman she'd always wanted to be. She wanted to be free, to be happy, to be healthy, to finally...have it all. She had it now. With Ingrid. There was hardly a moment anymore that she wasn't excited about life. Only when the darkness tried to creep in and remind her of the terrible deeds she'd done did it dampen her spirits, but she knew redemption wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. The greatest difference this time, that made all of this worthwhile, is that she wasn't trying to redeem herself for others. Not Henry, not Emma, not Robin, or the other heroes. Not even Ingrid, who already accepted her. She wasn't fighting for someone to love her, to see her as she truly was. This was for her. Her journey. Learning to love herself, learning to find her own place in the world. She could not undo everything she had done. She couldn't change the past and many people she'd hurt wouldn't care either way. Many still wanted her dead. Still, she had to try.
Regina walked into the vault, her gaze instinctively moving to where the many velvet lined drawers once stood to house her collection of hearts. She removed them. In their places, were dozens of little pictures and drawings that some of the younger kids had given her and Ingrid. They were mostly from the younger Lost Boys, who having had no sort of parental figure in their lives for quite some time, loved to bestow little gifts upon the women. They were too young to know who she used to be. Unless their parents spilled her little secret, they wouldn't know. She smiled at all the pictures, easily picking out the ones that belonged to Roland.
"You are different." Ingrid said, coming to her side. "Are you ready to go?"
"Yes. Is everything in order?"
"You know it is."
Regina took a deep breath and another look around. "Ingrid, are we moving too fast?"
"I don't really know. This is actually the first real relationship I've ever been in." Ingrid said. Regina frowned slightly as she looked at her. "You know I spent half my life locked in an urn and the other half being terrified of my powers. I don't know anything about this except that I love you and nothing would make me happier than to start a family with you." Regina smiled, accepting a soft kiss on the lips from the older blonde. "Also, the kids probably aren't worried about how fast we're moving. They're gonna get here whether we like it or not." She smirked. "And if I have to spend the rest of my life learning about every part of you, good and bad, then so be it." Ingrid kissed her forehead and took her hand again, making her feel all soft and warm on the inside at her heartfelt words. She gave it a small squeeze and made a motion with her other one, summoning a large white door in the middle of the room. Together, they walked through the portal to Arendelle.
/
The news hit Emma like a truck a few days later. "What do you mean they're pregnant?!" She demanded, looking at her son. She'd only just picked him up from school. She was only one of few now since most of the kids just ran to the rec center as soon as school let out.
Henry shrugged. "I just found out like a few days ago, Mom. I didn't think it was important."
"Regina can't get pregnant, can she?"
"Why couldn't she get pregnant?" Henry frowned.
"You know what, never mind." Emma slammed the gas pedal to the ground and made her way to the mansion. It was quiet when she arrived, but the lights were on. It was a little early for Regina to be home, but it was difficult to catch her at the office nowadays. She stormed up to the door and knocked. The door swung open a moment later to reveal a girl she didn't recognize.
"Kristin?" Henry said in disbelief. "What are you doing here?"
"Me and Ryan are helping Tinker Bell house sit for Regina and Ingrid. We switch with Brett and Jake tomorrow."
"Ryan?!"
Kristin rolled her eyes. "Get over it, Henry." The pretty brunette looked at Emma. "How may I help you?"
"First off, may I come in because it's freezing. Second, where's Tink?" Kristin stepped aside and allowed them to come in. She stayed in the foyer, talking softly to Henry, but Emma didn't care about that. She walked into the living room where Tink was sitting on the couch, reading, while a boy stacked some wood next to the roaring fireplace. "Where's Regina?" She demanded, stopping in front of the fairy.
"Arendelle."
"What?! Is it true that she's having a baby?"
Tink glanced up at her before sighing and closing her book. "Yes. She and Ingrid are both pregnant. They went to Arendelle so Regina could meet Ingrid's family and see where she grew up."
"It's that serious between them?" Emma said in disbelief. "Is she leaving?"
"I don't know. They just found out less than a week ago. You should talk to her about all this because whatever is between you and them is none of my business. However, you should probably leave."
"How-how long will they be gone?" She needed to talk to Regina now.
Tink shrugged. "They said about 3 weeks. Maybe longer, I don't know. They're not in a rush." The fairy paused to look at the boy. "That should be good, Ryan. Thank you. You and Kristin can go home and get warm. I'll take it from here."
"Yes ma'am." He hopped up and grabbed his jacket and made for the door.
"Is there a way to contact Regina?" Emma asked.
"Yes, but I'm not going to tell you that. She specifically said not to." Tink got to her feet. "Look," She said. "I know how you feel about her. You might really love her."
"Might?"
"She's happy. She's moving on. She's finding love, building a family. I know you think you can give her that too, but you can't." Emma glared at the fairy, feeling her eyes burn. "I'm not going to sit here and tell you what you already know. But as Regina's friend, I don't want her hurt...again."
"You know I never meant for any of that to happen." Emma said, remembering how broken Regina had been when she walked into Granny's to find that Marian had come back to life. She would never forget the fall of that smile, replaced by horror and then defeat as yet another happy ending was torn from her grasp. All she wanted was to love and be loved and Emma took that away from her. "If only I said something sooner." She whispered. Regina once said that not having someone was the worst curse imaginable and Emma just assumed that she was having a bad day, feeling miserable for herself. Now, she sort of understood. Not having a certain someone was a curse far worse than the dark one. Loving someone so deeply and then watching them walk into someone else's arms, watching them fall in love, start a family, it was like a blade through the heart. "It wouldn't have mattered, would it?" Regina would've never given her chance. Not after everything they had done to each other. Not after everything their families had done to each other.
"I'm sorry, Emma." Tink said softly.
Emma shook her head, swiftly wiping her eyes. "It's fine." It wasn't. No matter how much she loved Regina, Regina would never love her the way she wanted to be loved. Especially not with Ingrid around. A commotion at the door drew her out of her sad thoughts and she and Tink both bolted to the foyer to grab Henry and pry him away from the other boy. The two were trying to tear each other apart.
Regina watched the confrontation through the nearby mirror and rolled her eyes, trusting Tink to take care of things. She ended the spell and turned to finish getting dressed, choosing a pale blue dress for her attire for dinner. She pulled her hair into a ponytail and placed it on her shoulder.
"Is everything going well?" Ingrid asked, stepping into their bedroom.
"Well, Emma just found out we're pregnant and Ryan and Henry just got into a fight, so...yeah, everything's fine."
Ingrid smirked. "You look beautiful."
"Thank you."
"Nervous?" She asked. Regina nodded a little. "They will adore you as much as I do. I have so much to show you tomorrow as well. It's going to be so much fun!" She did a little bounce and Regina couldn't help but smile. "Remember, it's just Elsa and Anna...and Kristoff...and Sven...maybe Olaf."
"The snowman and the deer are joining us for dinner?"
"Possibly." Ingrid grinned, taking her hand. "Come on." She pulled Regina behind her and the former Evil Queen took a deep breath as she prepared to re-meet her lover's family.
/
Maybe the journey isn't so much about becoming anything. Maybe it's about unbecoming everything that isn't really you, so you can be who you were meant to be in the first place.
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