Chapter 16 - Reencounters

[REGINA'S POV]

"Zelena?!"

"Hi... Can I come in?" She asked after an awkward silence.

"Of course..."

I opened the door and she entered, Robin was asleep in her arms. She looked at all the visitors, and no one said a word. As if everything could not get even weirder.

"Zelena, please, sit here." Emma said, standing up and offering her place. Zelena silently obeyed her and sat down.

Silence again seized the room. Emma and I were standing, and I realized that I was open-mouthed up to that moment. I pulled myself together, closed the door, and walked to the sofa. I sat down beside Zelena and smiled shyly. She looked tired and rather uncomfortable. I tried to chitchat to ease the mood.

"Where have you been? You just vanished, I didn't know where to start looking for you... I was worried." I looked at my lap. My fists were clenched by the recent tension and twist.

"I'm sorry." Her voice came out almost like a whisper, and only I could hear it.

"Well, Regina. It was great, but we need to grab some lunch." David said, standing up. Snow looked at him and bought the idea, getting up quickly as well.

"It's true. We're hungry. Henry, shall we?" She looked at Henry, who quickly got up too. Luckily, his belly rumbled just then, relieving some of the tension and making everyone smile.

"Mom, see you later?" He asked tenderly.

"Yes, Henry. I'll call you." He smiled at me and went to the door.

"Emma, are you coming?" David asked, already at the door. Only then did she realize that she was standing there, just looking at us.

"What?" She woke up from her daydream. "Oh, yes! I am. Er... Bye... Regina. Emma bit her bottom lip and walked past the door without looking back. Everyone murmured "goodbye" and left. David shut the door behind him.

I stood up and conjured a bottle of Whiskey and two glasses. I sat down on the other couch and poured my drink into my glass. When I was about to pour Zelena's, she interrupted me.

"No need... I'm breastfeeding." She said, smiling and looking at her daughter in her arms. "I still can't."

"Oh." That's all I said, before taking a long sip of the drink that was coming down ripping my throat.

"Sorry to come without warning, it's that..."

"No problem!" I said, maybe a little too fast.

"Regina..." Her eyes filled up with tears. "I'm really, really sorry. I missed you so much." It was my turn to tear up.

"I missed you too." My voice cracked and I cleared my throat, trying to hide the tears that insisted on coming.

"I couldn't stay. Not after Robin -" A tear trickled from her eye. "Especially because it was Hades' fault. Oh, how could I be so stupid!" Zelena looked at the ceiling, conjured up a crib, and put Robin inside. Then she began walking in circles.

"I think this whole misfortune in love must run in the family. I said, smiling slightly. Zelena gave one of her gorgeous smiles and then we all laughed together. She came over to me and sat down, wiping away some restrained tears that were coming down with the laughter.

When we finally stopped laughing, we hugged each other.

"Where did you go?"

"Well..." Zelena said, taking a deep breath and standing up. She walked in circles again, staring at the floor. "I went to Oz."

"What?! How..."

"I know, I know! It was the last place I should go, I know... But then again, it was the only home I knew."

"But what… How?"

Zelena sat down again on the other couch. She looked sad now, talking about it. I chose not to push her any further. I waited patiently until she felt the urge to say something.

"I came back using the Apprentice Wand. I looked for Dorothy and... I know she just didn't kill me right there because of Robin. She took me to a cell... I did not even protest. I guess Ruby didn't even know. It was all done very stealthily; Dorothy didn't want anyone to know that I was back. Maybe to not incite panic or violence in the residents... Maybe she didn't know what to do, herself."

"Ruby doesn't know. She would have told me." I said. Zelena just nodded.

"She made me pay, in a way. She took Robin out of me and the wand. I felt miserable, all I wanted was my daughter back. Every day I screamed, begged... And she went there, just to see me suffer, and left. Then, one day, everything changed. Ruby left. So she went to my cell." Zelena swallowed hard.

I waited for a few seconds, not pressing her. Robin made a noise and seemed to wake up. Zelena took her in her lap lovingly and started breastfeeding. The gleam in her gaze was evident... She had become, indeed, a mother. I could not help but smile.

"Well, Dorothy went to my cell and... She said she was going to kill me." She swallowed again. "She even tried... I know she did. But in the end... She just sat on the floor and started crying. I hugged her. She resisted, at first. Hit me, tried to get me away from her... But then she accepted. She said there was no point. None of it had, since Ruby was gone."

"And then?" I asked, unable to contain myself this time.

"Then she let me go. She handed me Robin back, safe and sound and, oddly enough, the wand too. That's how I got back."

"But Ruby came back some time ago, why did you take all this time?"

"It took Dorothy a few days to finally let go. I ended up coming back just over a week ago, but..."

"You didn't know how to talk to me." I said, looking into her eyes. She nodded silently and looked back at Robin.

"There wasn't a single person who trusted me in this city. Nobody. And with Robin... I could not take my chances. I set up a well-hidden house in the forest and put in several protection spells, including one to prevent it from being seen by anyone but me."

"I understand. I know we've had our differences before, but... I hope we can trust each other now. A lot has happened since then, and we are two different people now." Zelena nodded again, not looking at me.

"Aren't you going to ask?" I was surprised by the question, but I smiled.

"I've been waiting for you to say it spontaneously." We both laughed lightly.

"Dorothy didn't want to come with me." My heart sank. "Not because she does not love Ruby... But precisely because she loves her. She thinks Ruby doesn't want her anymore. Especially for not coming back to her. Now, without beans, it's impossible."

"Ruby misses her so much. If she only knew..."

"Ah, love!" Zelena laughed and I followed her. "I don't know why people insist on something so irrational, with such destructive potential." She sighed.

"By the way, we're trying to get more beans. It's a long story." Zelena looked a little confused. "I need to update you on a lot of things, sister."

-x-

[RUBY'S POV]

Snow, David and Henry went home, Emma and I decided to go to Granny's. We both seemed rather apprehensive about Zelena's return - much more than the others, at least. We sat in a booth closer to the other end and ordered burgers and beers. A short time later Grandma brought the beers and gave me a reproachful look for drinking at lunchtime. I didn't care, that situation had been too sentimental with me and I needed to let it out. Recently, alcohol had become a good friend despite the risks. I drank the first mug in just two long sips and signaled Grandma to fetch me another one, making Emma a little worried.

"Hey, take it easy, Lindsay Lohan!" I took a deep breath and closed my eyes.

"Zelena is back, and I can only think of one place for her to have been all this time." I looked at Emma at the end of the sentence.

"Oz."

"Yes." Grandma brought a new mug and left mumbling something.

"You think she'd be back there, after all?"

"Well... Where else would she have gone, then?"

Emma grunted something as if she were trying to think to herself, without coming up with an answer.

"What are you thinking?" She asked. I took a deep breath and took a sip of the beer.

"Assuming Zelena went to Oz, she may have found Dorothy there. And if Zelena found her, and now she's back... Dorothy could have come back, too."

"There's a lot of assumptions in your sentence, Ruby. Until we talk to her or Regina, we will never know. After all, they both hate each other. There would be no reason for them to come together or come back together in the first place."

"You're right about this. Aaah, it's extremely agonizing not knowing the truth!" I said, drinking again. Emma was also drinking quickly, and signaled for Grandma to get her a second beer. She was also apprehensive. "What about you, what are you thinking?" It was Emma's turn to take a deep breath.

"Well... Where do I begin? Uh…" She drank the rest of her beer and waited for Grandma to bring her the second one. She took another sip and only then began to speak. "They never trusted each other much. The sisters' relationship has always been very troubled. I don't know if this return will be good or bad for either of them. And also... You can relive some memories..." Emma took another sip... Bigger, this time.

"Are you afraid Regina will remember Robin, now that Zelena is back?"

"Yes." Emma placed her forehead on the table with a thud, avoiding my gaze.

"How are you two?"

"Great." She said in a muffled voice. "We've never been better."

"So why worry?"

"I ask you the same thing." Emma said, looking up at me. We laughed subtly at the rhetoric.

"Cheers to this drug called 'love'!" I said, raising my mug.

"Cheers." Emma said, tinkling her mug in mine.

-x-

[REGINA'S POV]

"... So you and Emma... ?" I bit my lower lip and nodded. "By Merlin's beard! How did this happen?!"

"Ah, well..." I thought about it for a moment, staring at the ceiling, before looking back at Zelena. "She tried to use our romantic approach as a form of control for the Evil Queen not to come back, but she fell in love. She broke up with Hook, who obviously did not take it very well... Henry hated us a little, her parents were a little shocked, we tried to avoid it, until Henry gave us his blessing and she decided to give us a chance." I took a deep breath after vomiting all of this.

Zelena's mouth was open and she was quite scared.

"I know, I know... I've never thought about it until now, you know... Women. But with her... It's different." I blushed and looked away.

"Oh. My. God. Are you..." Zelena whispered the next words. "In love?"

"Yes, we are." I whispered as well.

"I lived long enough to see it. Wow. I mean... You don't waste time, do you? Robin has barely died and you-" Zelena stopped talking as soon as her eyes met mine. She swallowed hard.

My eyes got teary, and I still wasn't able to deal 100% with everything that happened. Yes, I still felt guilty for falling in love with Emma so fast. Yes, Robin had died a short time ago. I got up and turned my back on her, pretending to organize something that was supposed to be out of place.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean..."

"It's all right." I said, turning around and forcing up a smile. "It's all right. It's nothing I hadn't thought about myself." I looked at the floor. "But hey. Now that you're here and you have that wand... You can take Ruby back, can't you?"

"I-I-if she wants to, yes."

"Great! I'll talk to her as soon as possible. I bet she'll be beaming!"

Zelena smiled. Her smile did not meet her eyes.

"What's it?" I asked.

"Do you think I... Is it safe for me to show up?"

"Yes, it is. Let's talk to the people together. It will work." I sat down again, taking another sip of Whiskey. Zelena seemed like she wanted to say something, not knowing how.

"Zelena? What do you really want to ask?"

"I... I was thinking..." She lowered her head and tossed her hair back behind her ear. "Can I-" Zelena took a deep breath. "Nevermind."

"Please, say it." I said, encouraging her.

"I just..." She looked me in the eyes "I wish I had a little more... Contact with you. You know, visit more, these things. You're the only family I have left." Her voice came out like a whisper in the end. I smiled.

"Of course. Let's start all over again. From scratch. A new page from our book."

Zelena smiled and hugged me again.

"You should live here, in the city... And not in the forest."

"Yeah... I'll think about it." We smiled at each other. "Well, I'll go now. It was too much information and emotion for one day." We laughed together. "See you tomorrow?"

"If you want, of course." I put my arm around her back, lovingly.

Zelena went to the crib, took Robin in her lap, and said good-bye.

-x-

I called Emma and she didn't pick up. I thought it was odd, but I didn't call her again. All that commotion had made me hungry, and lunchtime had passed some time ago. I decided to go to Granny's and have something to eat. The day was warming up gradually, contrasting with the chill of the dawn. How did I know that the dawn had been cold?

I walked over and greeted some people on the way. As I entered the restaurant, I heard two people laughing hotly. I was surprised when my eyes found Ruby and Emma sitting together, drinking. I went to the table and greeted them.

"Oh, hi, Regina!" Emma said, trying to stop laughing. "Ruby was telling me about some stories of her as a wolf... Did she tell you about that time when she got a flea infestation in her..."

"Yes!" I said quickly, changing the subject. They both laughed again. I looked around, a little embarrassed, but people did not seem to care much. "It looks like you've been here for a while."

"We're here since that time… We had lunch and we decided to drink, a little." Emma said, trying to stop laughing. "Now I know why you like her so much. Ruby is a lot of fun."

"So are you, sheriff!" Ruby said, pretending to lower a cowboy hat with her hand.

They both laughed again and Grandma brought a beer to each of us, even though I hadn't even ordered mine. I looked at the beer and at her.

"Believe me, you'll need it." Grandma left reproving out loud the behavior of the two.

Ruby and Emma toasted and I joined.

"A toast to the shitty love!" Ruby said, tinkling our mugs.

"Wow, what happened here?" I said, taking a sip with them.

"Ruby has some theories, and I share them.

"Tell me, Regina. Zelena was in Oz... Wasn't she?" Suddenly, her eyes showed supplication and an intrinsic sadness.

"... Yes, she was."

I told her everything Zelena had told me, omitting some details about Dorothy wanting to kill her, for example.

"... This means she didn't wanna come." Ruby looked at nowhere specific, sinking into her seat a little.

"She didn't know if you still loved her, Ruby. She was scared."

"Me too." She mumbled. "But if Zelena came here, it means she can take me back... Right?!"

"Well... Technically, yes. But without the beans, you can't come back." I said, biting my lip.

"Oh." Ruby seemed not to have thought of that before. "I... I won't see you again? Nor Snow or the others?"

I shook my head.

"Not without the beans."

"Why does everything have to be so hard?!" Ruby put her hands to her temples, discouraged.

"Well, all we have to do is get some beans so Ruby can come and go at will, right?" Emma said.

"Technically, yes. It won't be so easy. We don't even know if this story is true."

"This is something for you to find out tonight." Emma said, determined.

Beth. She could give me answers.

-x-

I went home almost immediately, followed by Emma and Ruby. They were already dizzy, to say the least, and for those two to be altered, it means that they had already drunk a lot.

I wanted to drink a lot, too. The day had been full of strong emotions, but I needed to stay focused - unfortunately. I needed to talk to Beth in a reasonable state of consciousness.

It didn't take long time to go by, but a little before, I got a message from Beth.

"Regina, I'm afraid Jane will follow me, or somehow hear our conversation in a public place. Do you think it would be a bad idea if we met at your house?"

I looked at the cell phone for a few seconds and Ruby quickly took it out of my hands and read the message along with Emma.

"Does she want to come here?!" Emma asked, spontaneously.

"Emma..." I started, but I was interrupted by Ruby.

"As bad as it sounds, she's right, Emma. Public places are not good for this type of conversation. And also, we can stay here if anything happens. We'll stay in Henry's room."

I did not like any of the ideas, to be honest, but there was no escape from any of it.

"Okay, I'll see you here, then."

She would come in about half an hour, and all three of us suddenly became quite apprehensive. I knew Emma was jealous of Beth for obvious reasons, Ruby was nervous about the elephant in the room and I had no idea what was going to happen.

"Why is it that every time something like this happens, I have to be in the middle of it?" I asked, grouching.

"It's hard to be royalty." Emma said, pretending to make a serious face, mixed with mockery. Ruby didn't suppress her laughter, and I rolled my eyes.

"It's good to know that I have the support of my subjects." I crossed my arms.

"Aw, doesn't she look cute? It doesn't even look like she conjures fireballs in the blink of an eye..." Emma continued.

"Miss Swan, I'm warning you."

"Emma, we better get up there." Ruby said, pretending not to laugh. "Her girlfriend... Oops. Beth will be here any minute."

Emma looked at Ruby with extreme disapproval and it was my turn to laugh.

"Don't worry, Emma. She's just another subject." I said, winking at her.

"Behave with that subject."

Ruby and I both laughed and they went upstairs to Henry's room. As soon as they entered, I put up a sound spell on it. After drinking so much, and possibly spying on me, I know Emma would not control some exalted comments to Ruby during the process. That way, even if she screamed, no one outside would be able to hear. All she had to do was stay inside the room.

I went back into the living room and sat down on a couch. I set up the whole place to be impeccable in organization and furniture. I was nervous, but couldn't let it show. Lucky for me, the doorbell rang almost instantly - so I would not be stuck in my thoughts, torturing myself.

I got up and went to the door. Each step made my heart beat faster exponentially. I paused at the door, took a deep breath, and opened it. Beth looked as nervous as I did, which relaxed me a little. I opened the door and gestured for her to enter, politely. She smiled shyly and entered.

I closed the door and pointed to the sofas. I sat down on one of them and she sat on the other one, at a reasonable distance from each other. I had separated a bottle of wine and two glasses on the coffee table, and I quickly poured ourselves a drink. I handed her a glass and took the other one. Bluntly, she took the first sip, and I did the same. After a few seconds just tasting the drink, I started talking.

"I'm sorry I didn't contact you sooner. We had a little setback with Ruby."

"Is she ok?" Beth tossed her hair behind her right ear nervously.

"Yes, she is." I smiled at her. "She had... Disappeared that day, and it took time for us to find her. Earlier today I finally got to see her safe and sound again." I said, genuinely relieved.

"You're very close. I can tell." I blushed a little. "And you make a good pair." I smiled.

"We do, yes. She's a great friend. I'll miss her..." The last sentence came out like a whisper.

"What?"

"Nothing." I shook my head as if I could force that thought away. "But what about you? That day..."

"Can we not talk about that day yet?" She asked, smiling sadly.

I nodded and we both took another sip of the wine.

"Do you happen to have beer?" She laughed, making me smile.

"Yes, I do. Just a minute, I'll get it." I said.

I walked to the kitchen and conjured up two cold cans of beer. I had lied, but I did not think it would be prudent to use magic indiscriminately in front of her. I went back to the living room and found her finishing the last sip of the glass of wine. I held out a can for her and opened my own. Now we toasted and smiled at each other.

"We lied to you." Beth said, looking at the can. "We are sisters."

"Why did you lie?" I took a sip of the beer. Beth sighed.

"We're half-sisters. We were raised by our mother and my father." Beth took a long sip of beer and I did the same. "It turns out my father-" Her eyes filled with water.

"It's okay if you don't wanna talk about it."

"No, I do." She took a deep breath and seemed to concentrate, looking at a particular spot on the floor in front of her. "My father sexually abused both of us. For years. He even... Raped us." Her voice failed and a tear fell from her eye. She quickly cleaned it. "My mother saw it and could not stand it. After she... Was gone, we lived just with him."

We drank silently for a few minutes, neither of us daring to break the silence. I noticed that her beer was nearing the end and I went into the kitchen again, under the pretext of getting more drinks. What Beth had told me was heavy, a burden she had been carrying for years, possibly without telling anyone. I was finally beginning to understand some of her attitudes and reactions to the way I had treated her. I looked out of the kitchen window - it seemed to be windy outside, announcing a possible storm. Again, I conjured up two cans, took a deep breath, and returned to the living room. I handed one to her and opened my second one. I quickly took a sip as I sat back down on the couch, and she did the same.

"The truth is... Jane hated him. And one day... She killed him."

I swallowed hard and took a sip to disguise it, which seemed to be coming down the wrong side. She didn't notice, still fixed on that spot on the floor.

"She used the gun he had and used to threaten us on himself. One shot at his cock. Since it was hard (he was going to start another rape session on me), the blood was concentrating on it intensely. It didn't take long for him to bleed to death. She wanted to stay until she made sure he was dead. We heard sirens, we knew we couldn't stay there." Beth took a long sip of the beer. "We ran with no money, no other place to go. We started by selling the murder weapon. This made the police later identify us as suspects. Soon everyone was looking for us, issuing warnings and rewards to find us. We are not from Montauk. Jane says yes, but it's just a reference to the movie Eternal Shine of the Spotless Mind. She doesn't want to forget what happened, what she became, even if it's her most desperate inner desire."

Beth again took a sip of her beer and I did the same. That spot on the floor looked very interesting to look at. Maybe she just could not look at anyone at that moment. In this moment, I decided to sit next to her and hold her left hand. She squeezed it with some strength because of the emotional load she was telling me, but she did not move away or repel the contact.

"I can't tell you where we're from… And also, it doesn't matter, really. We can never go back. Ten years have passed since the incident. We go from place to place, and she always takes care of me. We don't starve, and I never ask where Jane gets the money she manages to get. Maybe it's better not to know." Beth finally looked me in the eye. "That's how we met Gold. The man who gave us the bag of magic beans. Our life has improved a lot, because, literally magically, we were in a totally different place. The police were getting close, managing to surround us. Last time, we barely ran away. The beans made the trail cool down completely, and they don't understand what happened." One more sip. "If they only knew..." Beth laughed sadly. "But now we need more, if we want to continue. But I know there's something wrong. Jane has been weird, nervous... She leaves without me at odd times and has been pushing me farther and farther away. I'm afraid she's going down a path that there is no going back, you know?"

I was silent, staring into her eyes with my mouth parted for a few seconds. The whole story had been extremely surprising to me. I had been through some horrors too, but that was different. The idea of her own father raping her so often, violating her will and body, was inconceivable.

"Okay, I know it's too much information... Actually..." Beth said, standing up and walking around the coffee table. "I've never told this to anyone before." Beth finished her can and set it on the coffee table. "Is the kitchen over there? I'll get more beers for us-"

"No!" I said, terrified. "I mean, you're my guest." I forced a smile that, fortunately, she believed. "I'll get it."

Mental note: Conjure several beers to the refrigerator right now!

I got up again and went into the kitchen, noticing the rain outside. I added another 20 cans of beer to the refrigerator and removed two of them. As I walked back into the living room, I noticed that she had taken off her shoes and was seated holding her knees - a defensive position. I sat down beside her again, but at a safe distance, so not to frighten her in any way. I handed her a beer again and opened up mine.

"So, all this time... I guess you haven't really gotten close to many people." I said, taking a sip of the beer. We were drinking pretty fast, I knew it.

"No. Jane has some contacts, but no-one romantically attached. Believe it or not, we never even dated." She laughed, before she drank more.

"But you've been involved with other people before, right?" I asked, afraid.

"Oh yes of course." She said casually. "I mean, you weren't my first."

"Oh." I blushed, and she laughed. I took a long sip of the beer.

"It's ok. We never stayed long in any place, so... It was only once that I began to get involved with a woman. It's been five years. We were in this town for a few days, and we went to a bar. We spent all night staring at each other, but no one took any initiative." Beth laughed at the memory. I smiled at her. "So when it was time to leave, I was really mad at myself, you know? Thinking about how stupid I was, and if I was going to see that woman again... Jane noticed it, and even being risky, she promised me that we would be back there the following night. She really kept her promise." Beth let out a smirk and looked down at the floor, timidly.

"And how was it? Did you see her that day?"

"No." Beth laughed. I looked at her, confused. "Actually, we went back there five nights in a row, and there was no sign of her." Beth released her legs and sat comfortably on the couch. It seemed that, finally, she was relaxing.

"And what happened then?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"Well, on the sixth day, I saw her walk into another bar, by chance, while walking with Jane. Immediately she made us go there, even under my protests... I didn't want to look like a stalker or something."

"And did you?" I laughed in a casual tone, and she joined me.

"A little. As we entered, I saw her sitting in the bar. Gorgeous, in a very fair gold dress, high heels and a drink in her hand. I took only three steps until she looked at me. I froze where I was, and she smiled mischievously at me. I thought I was going to die right there." Beth laughed and drank more of her beer. "And then she came seductively, walking slowly toward me. I could tell that his hair was natural copper, with beautiful, bulky curls. Her eyes were green, with a few freckles around her nose. At no point did she take her eyes off mine, and then, when she got close enough..."

"What?! What happened?" I asked excitedly.

"Then she came very close to my ear," Beth said, mimicking the gesture she was describing, making me swallow hard. "And she whispered: Hey, stalker."

We were at a minimum distance from each other. As soon as Beth whispered the phrase in my ear, she turned her face towards mine, about an inch away. I swallowed again, looking into her eyes.

"And what did you do?" I asked, biting my lower lip.

"Well..." She said, returning to the original position, to my relief. "I stuttered a lot, tried to deny it... But she had told me she knew I had gone to the other bar every day. She also said that she'd entered that one on purpose, to see how far I'd go for her." Beth stopped to drink again, and continued. "Of course I was furious at first, but all of that was extremely seductive at the same time."

"I can imagine," I said, moving uncomfortably on the couch. That's when Beth put her left hand on my thigh, making me swallow hard once more.

"Can you?" She bit her inner lip, looking at my mouth. God, if Emma was watching it...

"Yes... Er... Mine is over, do you want one more?" I lied, pointing at my can (which I emptied using magic). I got up quickly and went into the kitchen without waiting for the answer.

"Uh... Yes, please."

In the kitchen, I took a few deep breaths, murmuring to myself, "It's going to be all right, calm down." I took two more cans and hesitated a bit before returning. When I reached the doorframe, the lights went out. The rain had indeed turned into a storm outside. Great, that was all I needed. Beth lit the way for me with her cell phone, and I quickly picked up a candle and lit it up. I put it on the coffee table. I couldn't deny that this only added to the mood Beth was creating between us, and I would have to think of something brilliant so that nothing would happen between us tonight.

"But then the woman…" I asked, sitting down on the other couch. Beth had taken off her shoes and had her legs folded beside her. "What happened between you two?"

"Well, we've had a pretty intense romance for three weeks. We usually met at the first bar and went to my hotel, which was nearby. In the hotel, well... You know."

I nodded and took a long sip of beer.

"And it was great, while it lasted." Beth sighed, staring out the window. "And then we had to run away again. And I never saw her again."

"I'm sorry." I said, genuinely.

"No, that's fine... I know romance is something I can never have. If I go back, I'll be arrested. I don't know if I'd ever see the sun again. If I don't come back, I'll never be able to stay anywhere for long. What can I do, right." Almost imperceptibly, Beth wiped away a tear that had fallen on her face. "But what about you? I feel like I've said too much." She smiled, but her smile did not reach her eyes.

"What do you want to know?" I asked, taking another sip of the beer.

"How can a woman like you be single?"

"A woman like me?" I asked, confused.

"Ah, Regina. You are wonderful. Besides, you've been a good friend to me." She took a long sip of her beer. "I know you're in love with someone else, I can tell." I blushed a lot with that speech "Otherwise, we wouldn't be just talking all this time." Beth looked at me sideways and laughed.

"Thank you, I think." I laughed back. She had excellent tact and insight "Answering your question... Things are complicated."

"And do I not know?" We both laughed.

"Storybrooke is a city with many mysteries, I would say. And that implies on a lot of things combined, a lot of responsibility. And, I wasn't always like this. I've hurt many people in the past, and because of me... They died."

"Excuse me?"

"I had two boyfriends, and both ended up dying because of me. The first one was killed by my mother, and the second one by my sister's ex-boyfriend." It was Beth's turn to be incredulous and gaping. I laughed at her expression and drank some more.

"It's okay, it's been a long time... But I have to be very careful, you know? It's like there's a part of me that's... Evil, and bad things always happen because of it."

Beth nodded, not quite understanding what I meant, and I could not explain. How would I tell her that I was once the Evil Queen of the fairy tale, responsible for countless deaths and tragedies? She would never believe me, and I wasn't sure I wanted to expose that part of me that I didn't appreciate to anyone.

"And when did you find out you liked women, too?" She asked, pulling me out of my reverie.

"Oh. Not long ago, I would say. Before you, I had only had one experience with women."

"And how was that for you?"

"... It was the best thing that ever happened to me." I looked at the floor with a silly grin on my face that I couldn't suppress. "I love her so much."

"I'm happy for you, Regina. You deserve it, for real." Beth smiled at me, and I smiled at her.

"Can I ask you something? Changing the subject..."

"Of course, go ahead." Beth said, finishing her can.

"Those magic beans... Any chance you could get some for Ruby? No pressure."

"Well, I can try." Beth said "Actually, we still don't know when Gold will give us these beans, but I can try to 'lose' some, accidentally." She winked at me and I smiled. "Why so? If I may ask..."

"She needs to get back to someone, and the only way to do that is through the beans. Otherwise... She has just a one-way ticket."

"I'll see what I can do."

Beth said it at the same time the lights came back. We could see from the window that the rain was almost stopped by now, and the wind was gone.

"Well, I guess that's my cue." Beth said, standing up.

"Are you sure? You can spend the night here if you want. I have a guest room."

"Thank you, but I'm going. Jane wouldn't be happy if I spent the night away from home. She worries a lot, you know."

I nodded and got up, too. Beth came up to me and hugged me tight for a few seconds. I returned the hug with the same intensity, feeling relief from our conversation. When she was letting me go, Beth sealed our lips together for a long time. Since I was not expecting it, I stood with my eyes open, stupefied. Beth released me and whispered in my ear:

"Don't let the girl get away, okay?"

I smiled at her and lifted up my right thumb. She laughed and went to the door.

"Thank you for the conversation, Regina. And for being my first friend in ten years."

"I appreciate the trust, Beth. Call me if you need."

She smiled and stepped out in the faint rain, looking up at the sky. She seemed to be having fun with the feeling, and it was beautiful to look at. I closed the door, locked it, and could hear the door to Henry's room open. My heart raced as I heard hurried steps down the stairs. I was taking the cans to the kitchen when I heard Emma's voice calling me. Oh gosh. I hope I don't have to sleep on the couch tonight, I thought.

As I turned to look at Emma, I felt her arms wrap around me and hug me tightly. Her face was buried in my neck and I could hear her emitting a slight whimper.

"Baby... What happened?" I asked, releasing myself from the embrace and placing both hands on the sides of her face, worried. I stared into her eyes, an incredible sense of anguish and affection forming as I saw the woman I love so much, shedding tears, her chin trembling.

"You happened, Regina."

I didn't understand, looking at her with confusion in my eyes, and I heard Ruby's voice behind us, amusedly:

"She saw everything that happened." Emma glared at her, who just laughed and continued. "And she was all melted with her declaration of love for her."

"So that's it?" I asked, relieved. "You're not mad?"

"Mad? Oh, baby!" Emma pulled me by the back of my neck and kissed me passionately. Her hands pulled me closer, our bodies looking like they would melt together at any moment.

"Ahem." Ruby cleared her throat to get our attention. "Get a room." She said, rolling her eyes and leaving the kitchen.

We looked into each other's eyes again and smiled at each other. There was exactly where I wanted to be, in the arms of the only person who made me feel that way.

"Honey, let's sleep? I'm exhausted." I said, laughing.

"Come on, love."

We walked together, hand in hand to the bedroom. We took off our robes and put on nightwear without losing eye contact. It was amazing the connection we had to each other, and definitely something I did not want to miss. I wouldn't miss it. We laid side-by-side, holding hands. We kissed each other good night, under several promises of love, until we finally slept in a hug.

All was well until the nightmares began.

-x-

[EVIL QUEEN'S POV]

Despite all the overdose of love, I still managed to manifest myself. It was hard to get out of Emma's hug without waking her, but it was about time I started putting my plan into practice. Before, I had only a glimpse, an idea that might or might not work, but this new alliance brought me enormous thoughts and a perspective that until then I could not accomplish alone. It was time for me to become the Dark One once and for all.