Hope you all enjoy this chapter! Also, kudos to whoever spots the many Taylor Swift lyric references I added :)

"Okay, freeze that." Regina gestured toward the cup in front of her that was filled with water. Elsa stretched out her hand and sent a spiral of magic toward the cup, freezing it instantly. Regina frowned,

"So you have no issues with your magic itself. Making it work and all of that."

"Yeah, I don't have any problems with that. I used to make snowmen and hills for Anna all the time. We'd go ice skating on the ballroom floor or have snowball fights while we were supposed to be sleeping." Elsa seemed lost in her memories, a small smile on her face.

"What do you have a problem with then?"

"Unfreezing what I froze." Elsa said, shifting slightly as if she was nervous about what she was about to say, "I kind of set off an eternal winter back in Arendelle and I couldn't undo it. Anna came after me and we fought because I couldn't undo it and she didn't understand that. I-" Elsa sniffed, her eyes pooling with tears, "I lost control of my magic and it struck her in the heart. She eventually froze entirely later on and I-" Tears were rolling down her cheeks, "I thought I had lost her. I thought I had killed my own sister but when I was hugging her, she somehow unfroze."

"True love." Regina said in answer to that.

"Yes, so then I was able to unfreeze the kingdom using that but I still can't control it without Anna. I need to have her with me in order to have that control."

Regina nodded in understanding, "Well, it seems to me that all you need to do is use your memories of Anna or draw upon your love for her whenever you need to unfreeze something. So let's practice that. You also seem to connect it a lot with your emotions and lose control when you're angry or scared, but once we practice drawing upon your memories and feelings to unfreeze things, that should help."

"Thank you," Elsa breathed, "You have no idea how much this means to me. Once I have full control over my magic, it should make everything so much better. People won't view me as a-" Elsa broke off.

"As a monster." Regina finished.

"Yeah."

"Well, this is not the kind of attitude we need." Regina said after a moment, "Tell me about a happy memory of you and Anna."

Elsa smiled, "She would wake me up at night saying that the sky's awake so she was awake and that we had to play. We'd go to the ballroom and she wanted me to make it snow so we could play. There was one time," Elsa let out a little laugh, "We were playing the kingdom game and the princess was captured but instead of the prince saving her, Anna told me to create the princess's sister and she saved the princess."

Regina smiled, "It sounds like you had a lot of fun as kids." She glanced at the cup, "Look." The cup had unfrozen.

Elsa gasped, "I did it!"

"You did," Regina had a rare grin on her face, "Now you just need to practice that over and over again. Freeze the cup again." Elsa did. "Now unfreeze it and this time, just think about the memory."

Elsa reached out her hand again and closed her eyes, after a few seconds she opened them and groaned, "It didn't work."

"It's fine, this is going to be the hardest part. Try again." Regina commanded. Elsa repeated the process but the cup still didn't unfreeze.

"It still didn't work!" Frustration underlied Elsa's tone. Regina sighed,

"Try and imagine that you're pushing the love out like you would with your magic."

Elsa nodded slowly, "Okay." She closed her eyes once more and stretched out her hand. Regina could see a golden light emerge from Elsa's palm, stretching out toward the cup, unfreezing it.

"Good job." Regina praised as Elsa's eyes flew up and she stared at the cup, astonished.

"I did it!"

"Your magic is already heavily linked to your emotions so once you got the feel for it, there was no issue in controlling it in the way you wanted. Do it one more time and then we'll move on to something bigger."

Elsa had frozen and unfrozen practically everything in Regina's vault an hour later. Regina saw the confidence flow throughout Elsa as she proudly unfroze the whole floor, changing it back from the sheet of ice that had coated it.

"You've really got the hang of it."

Elsa nodded happily, "Thank you so much," She glanced at Regina, "How did you learn how to control your magic? Who taught you?"

Regina sighed heavily, "My introduction to magic wasn't like yours. Although I was scared of it for quite some time, that was long before I had actually tried to use it. My mother had magic and she used it to do horrible things." Regina grimaced, "I had swore off magic. I absolutely hated it."

"What changed?" Elsa asked innocently.

Regina bit her lip, trying to think of how to explain this, it was quite personal. But Elsa was genuinely curious and she finally had someone she could relate to who had magic so Regina felt like she should explain the whole story.

"My mother-" Regina started, her voice breaking off. Emotions had already started to swell up inside of her. Talking about Daniel had never been easy, "My mother always wanted me to be queen. An opportunity arose and I was betrothed to the king. However, I had fallen in love with our stable boy, Daniel. I never wanted to be queen so we planned to run away. But my mother found out and she killed him." Regina said the last part quickly, her eyes glimmering with tears. Elsa gasped in horror,

"She killed-"

"She ripped out his heart and crushed it in front of me. He died," Regina said softly, "Because he loved me."

Regina sniffed, brushing away a stray tear as quickly as possible, hoping that Elsa hadn't noticed.

"That's horrible! I'm so sorry Regina."

"Yes, well I found her spellbook and used magic to banish her to another realm. I just wanted her out of my life. After that, I started to learn and control my magic. Rumplestilskin taught me."

"Rumplestilskin," Elsa repeated thoughtfully, "It was his urn that I was in."

Regina rolled her eyes, "Of course that imp had something to do with it."

"So how did he teach you magic?"

"With my emotions. It's the easiest way to learn and once you get the hang of it, it becomes second nature and you don't have to focus on emotions for the simpler things."

"Like teleporting yourself!" Elsa said eagerly.

"Yes, like that."

"How do you do that?"

"Let's wait before I show you. I want to make sure you have enough control over your magic before we try that."

"Okay." Elsa froze the cup and then sent a stream of gold magic, unfreezing it. She did that a couple more times before looking at Regina,

"You were a queen?"

"Yes, I was." Regina said softly, being queen was one of the worst times in her life. She was stuck in a loveless marriage, left alone for most of the time. Left alone to her thoughts of Daniel and how her life should've been had Snow White not told her mother. Left alone to build on her anger, build her walls so high that no one would be able to get past them. Snow would occasionally seek her out, wanting Regina to do her hair or read her a story. Regina had hated it, playing the role of a glorified nanny to a soft, spoiled princess who had ruined her life.

Of course there were those nights where Leopold requested her presence. She had lost so much in such a short period of time, what more did it matter if he took her innocence. She was only seventeen when he married her, about three times her age. She was only seven years older than his daughter. He had been an awful person who deserved to die.

That was the only death she never would regret.

Especially when she became regent afterward and saw the devastation he had inflicted on the kingdom. Villages in a torn, bleak state, so many children lining the streets begging for food, the rocky roads full of holes that caused so many carriage accidents, and the debt. She had done her best, in the first couple years of her reign, to turn her kingdom around. But she had let revenge cloud her vision after a bit, turning her focus to killing Snow White, living up to every word of the Evil Queen.

"It's a lot of work," Elsa said, "Running a kingdom."

"Yes it is." Regina dipped her head in agreement.

"Did you like leading your kingdom? Did you like being queen at all?"

Regina tilted her head in thought, "I'm not sure. I wouldn't say I ever really loved being queen because to me, it was always a constant reminder of what I had lost. I had never wanted the crown or all the burdens that came with it. But when I was mayor, I did enjoy running the town. So it's complicated."

"How did you become mayor? How did you guys all get here in the first place?" Elsa asked curiously.

"I assume you've heard of my reputation?" Regina said flatly, this town was the result of the worst things she had ever done. The result of Rumplestilskin's manipulation and her own terrible choices.

Elsa shook her head, "Your reputation?"

Regina raised her eyebrows, "You've never heard of the Evil Queen?"

"Wait," Elsa's eyes widened, "You're the Evil Queen?"

"Yes." Regina said softly.

"How?" Elsa asked, astonished, "You're definitely not evil!"

Regina let out a weak chuckle, "Not anymore, but trust me when I say I was."

"Was it because you had magic?" Elsa asked timidly.

"More of how I used it. Magic itself was viewed as good but those who wielded it usually gained a reputation. Rumplestiltskin, Maleficent, and I were the most prominent magic-wielders and we were all classed as villains. But then you also had the fairies so on the view of magic itself, it was balanced."

"Oh."

"Was that not your case?"

Elsa shook her head sadly, "I'm the only person with magic in my kingdom, throughout our whole land. When I was born and my parents saw my powers, they were scared and decided to keep it a secret. I still used it a bit whenever Anna wanted to play and my parents were trying to help me control it, but they had no experience. When I was eight, Anna had woken me up to go play and she was jumping from snow pile to snow pile but she was going too fast and I couldn't keep up. I accidentally hit her in the head."

Elsa's voice was weak as she recalled the memory, "Luckily, it didn't do any permanent damage but we took her to the rock trolls and they erased her memories of us. My parents gave me gloves to prevent my magic and I stayed in my room until my coronation."

"Your parents did what?" Regina said, a hint of anger in her tone. No parent should've done that to their child. Cause their sibling to forget them, lock them in their room, suppress their magic. No wonder Elsa couldn't control it very well, if she had suppressed it for as long as she had, that would definitely explain a lot.

"It was to protect me." Elsa said defensively.

Regina shook her head adamantly, "No, protecting you would be to find someone to teach you how to control your magic. What they were doing was protecting others from you."

"Yeah, well anyway, I was still scared of my powers on my coronation day. Scared that people would find out and declare me a monster, unfit for the throne. I was scared that Anna would be one of them. I hadn't talked to her since. Well we had a fight when I refused to give her my blessing to marry a man she just met and she ripped off one of my gloves. I got so upset that I shot icicles out. I-" Elsa swallowed heavily, "I still remember the fear in their eyes. They called me a monster and I fled."

"Oh, Elsa," Regina placed a hand on her shoulder, "I'm so sorry you had to deal with that. You're not a monster, I can promise you that. You're the furthest thing from one."

Elsa reached up and placed a hand over Regina's, "Thank you, that means a lot. You're not a monster either."

"Maybe not now, but I was once."

"I don't believe that."

"You should, the things I've done," Regina shook her head bitterly, "I'm well-deserving of that title. Snow White had caught Daniel and I together, I was to marry her father and so I ran after her and begged her not to tell anyone, especially my mother. But she couldn't keep it a secret, she told my mother. My life was ruined because of that and I sought revenge for so many years. I cast the Dark Curse, bringing everyone here, erasing their memories of their past life, taking away their happy endings. Once Emma came, the savior, she broke the curse."

"Who's Emma then, if she's the savior?"

"The daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, born of True Love so she has magic because of that love. Not that she ever learned how to use them." Regina scoffed, "She was destined to be the one to break my curse, to bring back all the happy endings."

"So she broke the curse."

"Yes, my son, Henry, he's adopted. Emma is his biological mother. Henry discovered a storybook filled with all of our stories from the Enchanted Forest, well, not all our stories, they left some parts out, but he figured everything out." Regina's voice carried some hurt, "He went to find Emma, to bring her back. He told me that I wasn't his real mother, that I was the Evil Queen. I was so desperate to get rid of Emma that I tried to give her an apple turnover with a sleeping curse but Henry, wanting to prove to Emma that what he was saying was true, ate it instead."

Regina bowed her head, trying to conceal the tears that were streaking down her cheeks, it was a moment before she trusted herself enough to speak without her voice wavering, "He died. It was all my fault, I was so blinded by revenge that I hurt the one person I truly love. Emma kissed him with True Love's Kiss breaking the curse and he woke up." Regina looked at Elsa, "Still think I'm not a monster?"

Elsa shook her head, "I think you were just in a lot of pain and let that hurt control you. Just like I was afraid and let my fear control me. I don't think that makes us monsters even though we did some bad things. We also tried to make up for them."

Silence fell between them as Regina considered Elsa's words. She did have a point, while she did bad things in the past, she was making up for them. That's what Henry had told David and Emma yesterday, that's what Regina herself had said when Emma told her about Marian. She might've been a monster in the past, but she wasn't now, she had changed. She was as close to a hero as she could be and even if fate seemed to work actively against her, against her happy ending, she could still take pride in how far she'd come and how much further she would go.

Elsa broke the silence, "Is Henry your only family?"

"Pretty much. Technically Mary Margaret, Snow White," Regina clarified in response to Elsa's puzzled look, "Is my stepdaughter. Both of my parents are dead, along with my sister. Well, half-sister, my mother gave her up before she had me. That caused a lot of problems. My sister had a really bad jealousy problem, she was jealous of my life, I don't know why. But she wanted to go back in time and prevent Cora from giving her up, that's actually the reason why you're here. Emma and Hook accidentally brought the urn back with them."

"What happened to your sister?"

"I defeated her with light magic and we had stripped her of her magic. She was in our jail cell and I wanted to give her a second chance, like I had been given. I told her that evil wasn't born, it was made, and so was good. I wanted her to take it. It would've been nice having some actual family in town. I've always wanted a sister," Regina smiled slightly, "But she had enough residual magic to do herself in."

"I'm sorry Regina. I wish the two of you could've reconciled."

"Me too, but that's the past and I've spent too much of my life being caught up in it."

"You and me both." Elsa said, shooting Regina a grin, "So can you teach me how to teleport now?" She asked hopefully.

"We can try."

"Yay!"

Robin sat on the log, the same log that he had stolen the letter from Regina's pocket, where they had first really connected, staring out into the moonlit trees. He wasn't going to lie, he missed her and he felt so guilty that he did. His wife was back, his true love, the person he would've walked through hell and back to be with again. That was before Regina though.

His heart had moved on.

Whenever he hugged Marian or kissed her, he compared her to Regina. Her hair wasn't dark enough and it was way too thick. He missed running his fingers through Regina's black tresses, marveling at how soft and silky her hair always felt. He missed the familiar scent of apple and vanilla that always followed wherever she had been. He could still smell her on some of his shirts, wearing them to bed just to be able to breathe in her comforting scent as he drifted off. Whenever they hugged, Robin couldn't help but notice how her figure didn't mold into his body like Regina's did. The kisses weren't the same either, far from it. In the past, Robin had loved kissing Marian, feeling her soft lips touch his, sending tingles throughout his body.

But after kissing Regina where it was all fire and passion whenever their lips touched. Even the briefest kiss sent electricity racing down his veins and whenever she was with him, he truly felt complete. He wanted to be by her side so badly, wanted to be hugging her instead of Marian, kissing her and waking up next to her every morning. Instead he woke up next to Marian. He always had a flicker of disappointment whenever he opened his eyes and saw the brown curls instead of glossy black locks.

Yet, he was so conflicted. As much as he wanted to be with Regina, he had made a promise to his wife, to love her and be with her until death. He might've made a living breaking laws, but he had his own and what kind of man would he be if he broke them? The sky had grown darker and the last peaks of the sunset had long-since fallen behind the trees, he should be getting back to camp. He stood up and traced the familiar path back to camp, his mind still filled with images of him and Regina.

"Robin?" Marian's distressed voice called to him as he strode down the embankment.

"Yes?"

"Roland won't go to bed." As he approached her, he was startled to see her wide brown eyes, the same ones that Roland had, filled with tears.

"Marian?" He said worriedly, stroking her cheek, "What's the matter?"

"He won't go to bed! He doesn't want me, his own mother." She cried, "I can't do anything right, he's my baby and I can't even tuck him in at night."

Robin opened his mouth to comfort her but Little John approached them,

"Robin, I'm so glad you're back. Roland's been calling for you." Robin nodded at Little John, and turned to Marian,

"Let me go put him to bed and then we'll talk."

Marian nodded dejectedly as Robin hurried toward Roland's tent. Lifting up the flap, he entered, his eyes immediately meeting his son's.

"Papa!" Roland exclaimed excitedly, "I didn't think you were coming back."

Robin sat down at the edge of Roland's bed, stroking his son's curls, "I'm here. I heard you wouldn't let Mommy put you to bed."

Roland huffed, "She didn't know our routine. She forgot to do the eskiskissamo kiss like Gina and you do!" Robin smiled at Roland's pronunciation of eskimo. He and Regina had tried teaching him how to say it properly but Roland insisted on adding the extra "ikiss" to the word.

"Roland, you have to remember that Mommy doesn't know all of our routines, we have to teach them to her. She's been gone awhile."

"I know Daddy, I'm sorry." Roland whimpered, cuddling into Robin's side, "But she doesn't feel like a Mommy, not like Gina or like you."

Robin scrunched his nose playfully at his son, "I feel like a Mommy?" He said with mock indignation, "Me?"

Roland giggled, "Yes!"

Robin tickled him, "I don't believe that. I'm as manly and daddy-like as they come!"

Roland's laughs flooded the tent, "Stop, please!" He said between fits of giggles, "Okay fine, you feel like a Daddy not a Mommy."

Robin withdrew his fingers, "See that wasn't hard, was it." He drew up the covers, tucking them neatly around his son before leaning in and brushing his nose against Roland's little one.

"Goodnight, my boy. Make sure you're patient with Mommy, okay? We have to help her."

Roland nodded solemnly, "Gina told me it was my own knight mission," He looked up, wide-eyed at Robin, "Does this mean I failed the mission? Cause I didn't tell Mommy about the eskiskissamo kiss?"

"No, you didn't fail," Robin tried to ignore the way his heart beat just a tad bit faster at the mention of Regina's name, "When did you see Regina?"

"Yesterday at Granny's. I snuck downstairs and talked to her. But she told me I shouldn't run off cause you and Mommy would be worried. She was going to take me upstairs but she had to get her drinks. I told her I could get back because I'm a good finder, right Papa?" Roland looked up at him, letting out a deep yawn, his eyes drooping.

"That's right, you are a good finder." Robin said, plastering a smile on his face as he looked at his son. He really shouldn't be jealous that Roland got to talk to Regina.

"Goodnight Roland. Sweet dreams."

"Night Papa." Roland said sleepily.

Robin placed a kiss on Roland's forehead before heading back out the tent and over toward where Marian was sitting by the fire. She looked up as he approached, the fire illuminating her face, casting shadows over her delicate features. Robin admired her beauty as he sat down beside her.

"Did Roland go to sleep okay?" She asked.

"Yes, he was fine."

"What's wrong with me Robin?" She said, turning to him, "He's my son, I'm his mother and he won't even let me tuck him in."

"Nothing's wrong with you Marian," He said, placing his hand over hers, rubbing circles on her skin, "You have to understand that it's been about thirty years for us, Roland's just not used to you yet. But he will be, I promise."

"I hope you're right Robin."

"Come on Marian, have some hope. You were always so full of it back in the Enchanted Forest." Robin said with a smile, nudging her playfully.

"Well that was before I came back and found out that the Evil Queen has more of a relationship with my son than I do." Marian said brusquely.

Robin frowned, taken aback by the bite in Marian's remark, "Don't call her that."

"Oh, I forgot," Marian sneered, "She's changed. Well no one changes that easily. I can't believe you let her near Roland!"

"Marian!" Robin chided, "This isn't who you are. You're always the person to seek to see the best in others. That's how we ended up together."

Marian softened, "You're right, I'm sorry."

"You're fine." Silence fell between them as they stared at the fire, watching it crackle and burn. Robin had always found the sight soothing and captivating, there was a certain beauty to the way the fire consumed the wood. The flames licking the bark in various shades of orange, red, or yellow.

"So," Marian said, breaking the silence, "What do you say we go to our tent and find some way to occupy ourselves." She winked at him suggestively. Before Robin could answer, a small cry came from Roland's tent. Marian and Robin shared a worried look before standing up and rushing inside Roland's tent. Marian bent down at the shaking figure, touching his shoulder gently,

"Roland," She said, shaking him a little, "Roland, honey, wake up, it's just a nightmare."

Robin crouched down beside his wife as Roland sat up, his eyes popping open, looking around frantically, tears streaming down his face. Marian sat on the bed and rubbed his back soothingly,

"Hey, honey, you're fine. It was just a bad dream."

Roland glanced up at her, his eyes still scared, sobs wracking his small body.

"Roland, did you want to talk about your dream?" Robin asked, "It always helps me to talk about my scary dreams."

Roland shook his head, whimpering, "I want Gina." Robin felt his insides freeze, he glanced at Marian who had stiffened, a stony look on her face. As if she felt his gaze on her, she turned, her jaw set,

"Robin, no. I don't want him around her."

"Papa, please." Roland pleaded, tear-streaks still visible on his cheeks.

"No, Roland!" Marian said loudly, "You can't see her!" Roland shook violently at her words, the sobs wracking his body once again. Robin shot a glare at Marian as he scooped Roland up,

"It's okay Roland, I'll take you to see Regina."

"Promise?" Roland hiccupped.

Marian stood up, fury dancing in her eyes, "Robin! You can't do this-"

"This isn't about us, Marian. This is about Roland. This is about what he wants, what's best for him. I'm sorry that it hurts you but we always vowed to put our son first, ahead of whatever personal feelings we have."

"Fine." Marian scoffed, "Don't let me keep you from your precious queen." She stormed out of the tent causing a new wave of tears to fall down Roland's face.

"I failed again Papa. I made Mommy mad when I'm supposed to be helping."

"It's okay Roland, you didn't fail. Let's go see Regina." As Robin carried Roland out of the tent, he prayed that Regina wouldn't refuse them on his account. He knew the pain he must've caused her. Knew because his own heart was torn in two when he had told her he was choosing his wife.

Knew that his pain would be nothing compared to what she was feeling and he hated that he was the cause of it, but he didn't know what else he could do. He was a man of honor, above anything else. But Robin couldn't help the way his heart beat a little bit faster at the prospect of seeing her again, of hearing her voice, because no matter how much he tried to deny it, he was still in love with her.

He always would be.

Regina brought an ice cream scoop, four bowls and spoons out to the living room. Tinkerbell had come over proudly holding a gallon of Rocky Road ice cream and the movie The Aristocats for their movie night. Henry had set the movie up and Elsa was turning off the lights as Tinkerbell excitedly opened the lid.

"You know, I've never had ice cream before but when I looked up how to get over a break-up on that weird box thing, it said that this was one of them."

"Me either." Elsa said, "What does it taste like?"

"Cold." Henry said, nudging her, "Right up your alley."

Regina laughed as she sat down next to Tink and scooped them each out a serving of ice cream. Passing the spoons around, she took the carton and the scoop back to the kitchen and put the carton in the freezer and the scoop in the sink. Returning to the living room, she settled down between Tink and Henry as the movie started.

They had just gotten to the part when Duchess and her kittens meet Thomas O'Malley when Regina asked Henry if he could pause the movie so she could go wash the bowls. Standing up, she stretched before picking up the bowls and carrying them to the kitchen. Washing them quickly, she had just closed the dishwasher when she heard a knock on the door.

"I got it." She called out to the others and dried her hands before heading to open the door, wondering who had come by so late. She pulled open the door and felt her heart stop at the sight of him.

"Robin," She breathed, her eyes flickering curiously to Roland, his cheeks shining with tears, in Robin's arms. Roland wiggled a little before Robin set up down so he could run over to Regina, who swept him up.

"Gina!" He exclaimed, hugging her tightly, "You're okay!"

She met Robin's eyes, trying her best to ignore the flutter of her heart as he gazed at her warmly. She had missed him so much that it felt like she could finally breathe with him in front of her. Everything was right in the world with those blue eyes looking at her.

"I'm sorry, he had a nightmare and wanted to see you. I didn't know what else to do."

She waved at hand at him, "It's fine. You had a nightmare?" She asked Roland, rubbing circles on his back.

"Mmh," He said, burying his face in her neck, "A flying monkey was coming for me but you stepped in the way before it could get me but it got you. You wouldn't wake up! Even when I gave you eskiskissamo kisses. I was so scared." He said tearfully.

"Oh, Roland, I'm okay, you don't have to worry."

"But I thought that you wouldn't wake up cause you didn't like me anymore. Papa never brings me to play with you anymore and I missed you."

"Oh Roland," She said, her heart clenching at the fact that her and Robin's issues had hurt this little boy in her arms, "You saw me at Granny's yesterday, remember?"

"Yeah but we didn't get to play or anything! I like playing with you, Gina. I thought you didn't like me anymore because you never see me or Papa anymore." She met Robin's pained look, trying to ignore the rush of emotions swelling up in her. She had missed him so much but she was also very hurt at the fact that he had chosen his wife. She didn't blame him, she understood that, but it still ripped through her body at the sight of him and knowing that she hadn't been enough. She also felt a little angry at the fact that she had lost Roland too. If this whole thing didn't happen, Roland wouldn't have this nightmare, and wouldn't have thought that she didn't love him.

"I'm sorry Roland. Your daddy and I have some grown-up stuff going on but we're really sorry that it made you think I didn't love you anymore."

Roland sniffed and looked up at her, "You still love me?"

"Of course I do, you're my little knight!"

"Even though I failed the mission?"

Robin interjected, "Roland, you didn't fail."

"But I made Mommy upset, twice! I didn't tell her about the eskiskissamo kisses and then she got sad after I woke up."

"That wasn't your fault, Roland." Robin said softly.

"You didn't fail, Roland. You're still the best knight I've ever had." Regina said, rubbing his back comfortingly.

"Okay," He snuggled into her more, "Gina, can I stay with you tonight?"

Regina looked up hesitantly at Robin, "It's up to your daddy."

"I was hoping you would let him stay. Once he has a nightmare, he usually has a few more over the night and I rather not spend half my time running between here and camp."

"Of course he can stay." She said sweetly, hugging Roland before glancing at Robin, "You can pick him up tomorrow morning."

"Does ten work? We have a town meeting then and that seems more convenient for both of us."

"I won't be there." Regina said shortly.

"But you're the mayor?"

"Not anymore. Mary Margaret is in charge now."

"Regina-"

She cut him off, not wanting to hear anything he had to say on the subject, "You can get him after the meeting."

He nodded, "Thank you. Goodnight Roland, be good for Regina."

"Night, Papa." Roland yawned. Regina gave him a curt nod before closing the door and headed back to the living room.

"Whoa, Mom, you got another one." Henry said at the sight of her holding Roland.

"He had a nightmare." She explained, "Robin dropped him off." She sat back down, ignoring Tink's raised eyebrow as Henry started the movie. She sat there, stroking Roland's brown curls, letting herself get lost in the movie. Duchess and O'Malley reminded her distinctly of herself and Robin, both of them coming from completely different backgrounds, yet connecting over the kittens and eventually realizing their feelings for each other. She sighed, at least the cats didn't have to worry about time portals and dead wives coming back.

They had a simple, sweet romance, with a happy ever after, something she and Robin would never get. She had thought that it might've happened, her and Robin raising Henry and Roland as a family. They might've even gotten married one day. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with Robin, her soulmate, but regardless of what was destined to be, things had changed.

She was here without him, lost in the ghosts of what they used to have. She would forever be haunted by the memories. He was etched in her heart, every last detail of him. She could still feel the beat of his heart like he was right in front of her, hugging her. Could still feel his arms wrapped around her and the way she had just known that this was home. She could feel his lips on hers, whispering the kind of love that she had never heard before. Could hear his lips forming her name, breathing it out as something ethereal.

She had never thought they would ever have a last kiss, but they did. It was all over and she so desperately wanted to hear that it wasn't easy for him, that he missed her and that it killed him to walk away. But she didn't know how to be something he would miss. He would eventually forget about her, she could feel it, was feeling it already. Even when they had met, there was always some kind of electricity, some kind of tension or spark between, showing the passion. Now there was nothing. Even the air between them had grown cold. It was unbearable, having come so close just to end up so far.

He had come in so quickly and with such force, leaving such an impression but he was gone just as fast. She hadn't realized how much she had grown to depend on him, to love him until he had let her go and it had all come rushing back. The flashbacks and echoes that followed her around, everything reminding her of him. It would be impossible to let him go.

He was still all over her.

She knew it already. Knew because she kept tossing and turning at night, a new thought flooding her mind, taunting her with a new shard of pain. He had cut her deeply and it scared her, the depth of her feelings for him despite such a short time of knowing him. The year in the Enchanted Forest where they had fought like cats and dogs yet he had always been there, offering his silent support as she grieved for the son she thought she'd never see again. Then the couple of months here, trusting him with her heart, growing to depend on him, growing to love him.

But she supposed what they said was true. The greatest loves of all time always ended, they were proof of that. Soulmates, destined to love from the second the stars emerged from, ripped apart before they even really had a chance. She knew this pain she was feeling, this pure agony, the gaping hole in her chest where Robin should be, wouldn't go away by making anyone the villain. She had learned that last time. She would learn to live with it, eventually. Now she was just haunted by the look in her eyes.

The look that told her she would've loved him for a lifetime if he had let her.