Chapter 1

"It is 3:00am, Miss Swan you had better have a good reason to be calling me." Regina's voice was sharp and she sounded tired.

"It's Henry, he's sick and he wanted y-." Emma heard the phone go dead. 15 minutes later Emma heard a banging at her door. Regina was on the other side. And before Emma could let her in the brown haired woman pushed past her racing to see her son.

Henry lay in bed, cold wash rag on his forehead. Regina crawled in bed with him and wrapping him up into her arms. She kissed his forehead, feeling how warm he was. Only then noticing Emma had followed her.

"He is burning up have you given him anything for the fever." The brunette said with an angry glare.

"I called David and he is going to the store right now to get some children's Tylenol." Emma said crossing her arms over her chest.

"Motrin, Henry's allergic to Tylenol. Call David now and tell him to get that instead, also red Gatorade. Honestly Miss Swan, have you read the list of things you should already have on hand." Regina said as the small boy clung to her.

Emma hadn't even bothered to look at the list the evil queen flung at her that day. It was a few weeks after getting back from FTL. She decided to move out of Snow and David's and she took Henry with her. She refused to let Regina anywhere near him. Then out of the blue Regina came barreling into the police station throwing the list down in front of her. Yelling something about making sure their son was taken care of. Emma had been so mad at her she threw her out of her office. Emma was still not over the fact that Regina ruined her life. And damn it Emma wasn't going to let the witch ruin her son's life. She didn't trust anything that came out of the evil woman's mouth. She sure as hell didn't trust any list she had written for that matter.

"I put all his allergies on the list, and everything you would possibly need to know about taking care of him."

"I threw it away without looking at it," Emma admitted, looking down at her feet.

"Why would you do that?" Regina said her anger evident on her face. Her usual mask she hid behind gone.

"Hello, evil queen why would I trust anything you have to say."

"I would never ever hurt him." Regina said looking down at the boy. Emma almost thought she saw sadness in her brown eyes. It was gone moments after it appeared, and Regina's cool calm mask back in place.

"Mom for tonight could you two please get along." Henry said his voice sounded so small. Regina looked down at her son whose eyes were shut tight, and face grimaced in pain. Regina then looked at Emma; she knew that the fighting needed to stop in front of their sick son. So with a nod the unspoken agreement was made no fighting while Henry was sick. At least not in front of him, theyboth thought.

David arrived shortly after with the Motrin. Regina instructed him to mix it in with the Gatorade, because Henry hated the way the medicine tasted. Regina then helped the sick boy drink the mixture. Henry was clearly worn out; he fell asleep in his mother arms shortly after. Regain keep holding him and humming a tune as he sleep. Emma just watched their inter action with awe and a little jealousy. She had wished it was her he wanted. No instead her son cried and demanded the witch instead. He yelled out for his mom after throwing up. Emma found the boy on the bathroom floor. She ran to him, and he asks for her to call Regina. "Call my mom she will know what to do. She always knows how to make me feel better." Henry said practically pushing Emma away, while he threw up again. Emma only did it to make him happy, and truth be told she had no idea what to do with a sick kid. Emma had never seen Regina so... Emma couldn't even bring herself to image Regina so loving, caring, and dare she think compassionate. Things Emma could never think the evil queen capable of. Hell things she didn't think the bitchy mayor was capable of.

David left shortly after, Emma passed out in a chair next to Henry's bed. It had been so long since Henry had wanted to even be in the same room with Regina, she didn't care if the boy got her sick. Regina eventually fell asleep with Henry in her arms. Emma noticed that Regina keep waking up every few hours to check on him, and gave him sips of Gatorade.

Emma set Henry up an appointment to see Dr. Whale. Emma and Regina both went to the office. Regina didn't even complain when she climbed in the back seat of Emma's bug to be close to their son. Emma was surprised that not one single word was said about how ugly, dirty, or just plan crappy her car was. Emma waited the whole drive for a death trap commit that never came. Dr. Whale said Henry caught the flu and needed rest, and he would be fine in a few days.

Emma practically carried the boy to bed, when they all got back. Emma and Regina sat on opposite sides of the bed and tucked him in. He was getting older but being sick made him seem so much smaller to both women. Henry smiled up at his moms, he was actually feeling better but was enjoying the attention. So he decided to see how long their truce could last.

"Mom can I have some silly sicky soup please." Emma looked down at him confused. Regina just smiled and headed off to the kitchen. Emma pated Henry on the head then went to see what the other woman was up.

"You're pretty good with the whole Henry being sick thing, thank you." Emma said walking into the kitchen to find the older woman cooking something. Emma wasn't even surprise that the evil witch rifled threw everything without permission.

"I know my son pretty well, Miss Swan. It was only me and him for 10 years. No father to go out and get meds in the middle of the night. I had to keep things on hand at all times, like you should have done." Regina sad coldly, Emma rolled her eyes.

"Please don't start, can't we just have a normal civil conversation, like two adults."

"Miss Swan, your recklessness could have hurt my son last night, and you want me to just forget about that. You don't deserve to have his love." Regina said bitterly with her back turned to the other woman.

"Really who has ever heard of an allergy to Tylenol?"

"It was on the list Miss Swan." Regina said walking past Emma back to Henry's room with soup in hand. Emma followed without saying anther word. Regina sat down on the bed and gave the soup to her son, who started to take a few small sips.

"Mom, tell me the story please," Henry's voice sounding so small and week.

"I though you didn't like that one because it's not in the book." Regina said glancing over at Emma to see the confused look on her face, and then smiled.

"Please you always tell me it when I am sick and I want my other mom to hear it." At hearing other mom Regina frowned but couldn't resist the small child's charm.

"Ok fine, a long time ago in a land far away lived a small girl with big hopes and dreams. But they weren't for money or power, no the little girl dreamed of love and a happy family. The little girl so badly wanted someone to accept her and love her for who she was. She wanted kids and someone to grow old with. The girl had a horrible mother who did terrible things to her. She would tell the little girl love was weakness. She made the little girl feel horrible about herself every day. The evil mother said it was to make the little girl strong. She wanted the little girl to grow up and be a queen. Power is strength the evil mother would tell her. She tried very hard to corrupt the girl. She wanted the little girl to be as ruthless and as evil as she was. She would use magic and punish the girl when she had done nothing wrong. But this didn't affect the girl at all her heart stayed pure and good because she had true love. She met a boy one day in the stables while he was helping a horse give birth. But when the baby horse came out he wasn't moving. The little girl went to the horse and rubbed and pushed on his chest over and over. Eventually the little horse came back to life, and that's when the boy fell in love with the girl. Her evil mother came in and yelled at the girl, for being dirty and getting blood on her dress. She was going to beat the little girl but before she could hit her the little boy jumped in front of her, the blow knocking him down. The evil mother grabbed the girl and made her leave. The little girl had never had any one stand up for her before. The little girl new she would love the little boy forever and ever. As time went by their love grew and grew. The horse the little girl saved turned into a strong stead, and she would ride for hours with stable boy at her side. "

"You forgot to say once upon a time." Henry said smiling.

"I purposely left that part out, do you want to hear the story or not." Regina said with a grin.

"Go on it was getting to my favorite part." Henry grinned up at his mother with the same kind of smile she had just given him.

"Where was I, oh yes, on the day the boy and girl were going to run away together they were betrayed by someone the little girl loved as much as the stable boy."

"Mom, you have never told me who the betrayer was."

"It doesn't matter it's just part of the story, completely uneventful to how this story turns out."

"Mom tell me." Henry had an idea who it was, but wanted to hear his mom say it.

"You really don't want me to finish do you," Regina said.

"I know how it ends; the girls love for the stable boy was so pure and good. The evil mother saw that and wanted them to be happy. Even though they were betrayed it didn't matter. Her evil mother let them go and they lived happily ever after. The evil mother realized just what a wonderful daughter she had and never hurt the girl again. And the evil mother was no longer evil or something like that. The moral of the story is true love gave her strength. Everyone even the evil mother learned that. But for once I want the real story because there is no way that's how it ended."

"Why don't you believe that, you're the one who says good always wins?"

"Cause nothing really changes, no great climax happened, nothing changed the evil mother. That's not how things work. There has to be a grand battle, or someone dies, or someone gets cursed. Something has to happen besides love to change the evil mother and nothing changes. You made the whole thing up. It's not real, I may be a kid but I know that."

"Really this is the bed time story you always tell him." Emma said practically yelling due to being totally ignored. Something lately she was not use too. She could not believe what she was hearing.

"Yes, until he received that book." Regina said with a shrug, and pointed to the book her son loved so much.

"Looks like you finished your soup honey let me take your bowel to the kitchen." Regina rushed out of the room with Emma following after.

"What was that Regina?" Emma said getting in Regina personal space.

"A bed time story I used to tell my son, that's all." Regina said starting to wash the bowel.

"You don't have to that." Emma said snatching the bowel, from Regina.

"What kind of evil queen who has personally told me love is weakness tells a little boy a story like that. I mean really Regina, that story is so happy and hopeful, defiantly not something I would ever expect from you." Emma said as she washed the bowel.

Regina rolled her eyes and refused to speak. Emma glared at her waiting for a response. Regina took deep breath. Emma could see the small cracks in Regina's walls.

"He used to love that story when he was six he would ask me to tell him before bed every night. That was back when his whole world revolved around me. Then he got that book and suddenly my story wasn't good enough anymore." Regina had a faraway look in her eye.

"Still I don't get it, you were so angry and bitter you cursed all of us to unhappily ever after yet you tell him that. Like some hopeless romantic we both know you aren't. I thought the curse was your happy ending. But clearly that's not the case." Emma said looking Regina in the eye. Regina just shrugged and looked away, a few more cracks in Regina's hard shell.

"What's your point Miss Swan?" Regina said statically.

"I just don't get you at all, you're always trying to be so aloof and come off as thou you don't feel anything but anger or greed. Just Like you're trying to cover up everything thing else by being pissed off. Because heaven forbid you deal with how you really feel. Then you go and tell him a sappy story like you have a soul or something. I heard stories of all the horrible things the evil queen did, the horrible things that you did. Hell you did horrible things to me. In there all I seen was a mother. I am just having a hard time understanding everything." Emma said getting even closer to Regina. Regina looked like a caged tiger.

"All I ever wanted to be to him was his mother not the evil queen. I didn't want him to ever know I was the evil queen. He was the last person I ever wanted to find out about my past. My happily ever after died, but that didn't mean Henry's had to. You may not believe me but I wanted my son to believe in happily ever after. I wanted to be his happily ever after, give him all the things my mother never gave to me. I wasn't very good at loving but I tried for him. I wanted him to look at me like I was his hero forever. The way he looks at you, was the way he always use to look at me. That stopped the day your mother gave him that book and he found out about you. Then you came into are lives and ruined my last chance at not being her. Not being the monster I once was. If I was so evil, there are much worse things I could have done to everyone. No instead I made them forget. I made them forget I was a monster. For the first time in a long time I loved someone. I didn't even think that was possible. The hole in my heart was so big I didn't think anything but anger and hate would ever fill it, but he did. Then you came and destroyed everything. You took the one thing I cared about more than anything. You are your mother's daughter. "

"You self-indulged delusional bitch. I destroyed your happiness. I never had parents, I grew up unloved feeling like trash that didn't belong anywhere and it's entirely your fault." Emma said yelling and getting with in itches of Regina's face. Emma was angry but this was also the first time Regina had ever opened up to her.

"My fault, really I didn't know your parents plan to put you in a box and ship you Maine. Maybe you and Mr. Gold should have a talk." Regina said matching Emma's tone.

"I never had any one, who I could count on. I had been rejected so many times, and it's poor Regina. I'm so sad, so I'm going to make everyone miserable."

"Miss Swan, you're not the first person in the whole world who ever felt like unloved trash. So you were a little rejected by people that didn't matter. Snow, David, Henry all embraced you with open arms. Oh poor Emma had to grow up and have everyone love you and you get to be the hero. Gee that must be such a terrible burden you poor thing" Regina said with clench fists.

"You know what you are all kinds of crazy. You did all of these things to yourself. People don't like you because you're mean. You hurt everyone, do horrible things and you think it's everyone else's fault. Hell you poisoned your own son." Emma new it was a low blow but she had to take Regina down a peg. "You're mad at me for something I had no control over, what so ever. I never asked to be the white knight. The savor of them all, Gold played my parents and then me. All I ever wanted was my parents to love me." Regina's eyes grew darker; Emma didn't know that was possible. Then a light went off in Emma's head, he played Regina too. Emma had been so wrapped up with hating her for everything she forgot Regina was just as much one of Gold's many casualties.

"Gold played you, you have no idea, what that man is capable off Miss Swan. You got off easy trust me."

"Then tell me, what is he capable of," Emma said her voice softened.

"I'm done with this conversation Miss Swan." Just like that the walls were back. Regina turned to go back to Henry's room. Emma grabbed Regina's arm and spun her around.

"This is not over, not by a long shot." Emma said holding onto the woman not letting her run away.

"Oh it is over, we are done here." Regina said trying to pull her hand away.

"Henry wanted me to her your story, why?"

"I have absolutely no idea."

"Stop lying, it's never worked on me before, who betrayed you."

"What's the point, you already know." Regina said looking Emma straight in the eye.

"Tell me the real story, your story. I deserve that much." Emma said tightening her grip on Regina's arm.

"You don't deserve anything; you have already taken everything from me just like your mother." Regina said with a tear falling down her face. Emma still holding one arm reached up with her other hand to wipe the tear away. The action only infuriated an already unstable brunette. Regina shoved Emma away with all her strength. Then she slapped Emma across the face. Emma looked up at her and was about to punch her when they heard yelling from Henrys room. Regina rush out of the Kitchen to be by her son's side. Emma followed behind rubbing her cheek, telling herself that this was not over.

Emma walked to Henry's room, seeing Regina sitting on the bed smiling down at their son. Standing in the door way she watched them. Interacting as any mother and son would. Not the evil queen with a prisoner being keep from his real family. No what she was seeing was a family. The family she wished she had a million times as a kid. As much as Emma hated the woman sitting on the bed with her son she had to admit to herself that the strong willed, smart, dedicated, kid who believed in her more than anything, was all because of Regina. Emma had always hoped it was her superior genetics, but she knew that wasn't the case. Regina raised him, to be all of those things. Regina was the reason he had such a big loving heart, and it nearly broke Emma's heart when he rejected her, while he was sick. Emma could only image the pain Regina went through every day for the last few years. Emma took a deep breath and walked in to join her son, and his mother.

"Moms can we play a game." Henry said smiling at both women. Regina just smiled down at the boy. She knew after he had eaten he must have been feeling better. Regina was not going to tell Emma that. This had been the first time she had been with her son since he ditched her for the diner. She also kind of enjoyed the idea that they had a shared secret. Something they never had when it was just the two of them. Emma shrugged her shoulder and plopped down at the end of the bed. The rest of the night was spent playing board games. Regina hadn't seen Henry happy in a long time even thou he was still sick. Eventually Henry passed out with is head resting on Regina.

"Whether you like it or not Miss Swan, I will never give up on my son. People may have given up on us, but I will never give up on him. You may be the savor, but he saved me." Regina looked down at their son. "I was in the blackest place imaginable, and I never thought I could have love for anyone, but I love him. You think I'm evil now you should have seen me before he came into my life. I know I need to be a better person for him, and I'm trying but it's really hard to fix all the things I have done wrong. There has been so many." Regina took deep breath "I just don't know where to start. My own son wanted nothing to do with me before he got sick. " Emma could tell the brunette wasn't lying, but had no idea what to say. Words and comforting people was Snow's thing. Plus it made Emma's head hurt that she might feel bad for the bitchy-evil queen mayor who tried to kill her family, cursed everyone she loved, and ruined her life. Who also looked strangely adorable lying with their son. It was all beginning to be too much for Emma to comprehend. So she just nodded her head. Regina again passed out in bed with Henry, and Emma feel asleep at the foot of the bed in a ball.