AN: Okay, before you jump into conclusions (that's something people around here like to do) I published this story before when my pen name still was It's a Quinntana Tale. So, yes this story is mine! I'm just bringing it back to life because I really like it. Hope you enjoy it!

CHAPTER 1

Her mother always told her she was special. She told her she was innocent and pure and she couldn't have this nasty world corrupting her. That's why Regina never left the house. She didn't know a thing about the world outside those four walls, she just knew what her mother wanted her to know. Which was very few. They didn't have a tv or a computer where Regina could search for information about... Anything. Pray was the only thing they did. Day and night. Her mother taught her to read, write and almost everything else you'd learn at school, expect for sciences and sexual education that's it. Regina knew every book on the bible by heart but that's all she really knew about. Every day she would ask herself how would it be like to go outside. How would it be like to have friends, to hang out with them. How would the beach, the sea, look like. Every time she would ask her mother to take her somewhere, the woman would hit her hand with a wooden ruler and tell her there was nothing good to be seen outside. And altough Regina was hurt she didn't hate her mother because she didn't know her mother's behavior wasn't normal. She thought that's what every single mother did to their kids. So she eventually learnt to just let it go and stop talking about leaving the house.

Regina was fifteen but she was just as naive as a five year-old girl. Or even more so. Sometimes she felt a heat and wetness at a specific part of her body (that her mother told her never to touch) at night and it was starting to get in her nerves. She knew she would feel better if she could touch herself but Regina has always been a good girl, she would never disobey her mother. She told the woman about it once and her mother told her it was the devil trying to get her to fall into his trap and sin. Regina was so scared that she never asked about it again.

And everything stayed the same until Cora got sick. At first she refused to go to a hospital but she was getting worse and worse day by day and she finally decided to leave the house, afraid she would die and leave her Regina alone. Before going to the hospital she took Regina to a neighbor's house. The one she thought would be less dangerous to her girl. It was an old lady who lived alone and barely left the house. She sure was the best choice.

Cora knocked on the door and the old lady opened it up. Cora told her what was happening and asked her to take care of her kid while she was always. The lady, who didn't know Cora or her kid, told her she would. When Regina got out the car and walked to them, the old woman frowned and glared at Cora as if she was crazy. She thought the kid would be six or seven years old but that girl was a teenager. However, she couldn't take her word back so she didn't say anything and let Regina in. Cora told her daughter to not watch tv, or read anything but the holy bible. She told her to keep praying and not leave the house. Regina promised her mother she wouldn't and Cora left in a hurry.

Regina was fascinated with that woman's house. Everything was so new and modern, it didn't look an old lady's house at all. The old lady noticed Regina's surprise and smiled.

"My granddaughter decored the house after my husband passed away. She's an inside designer. A real good one, don't you think?"

Regina turned around, facing the woman and simply nodded.

"Are you mute?" Asked the woman, who was sure Regina couldn't talk.

"No. I'm not, ma'm." She politely replied.

"Oh, okay. Don't call me ma'm, will you? My name is Julie."

"My mother said it's not right to call old people by their first names." She explained, still standing there.

"Well, that would be the right thing to do in the past century. Nowadays, you will only get people mad calling them 'old people'. Just call me Julie, okay honey?" Regina was surprised to hear the lady calling her 'honey', not even her mother called her that but she just nodded. "And about about you? What's your name?"

"Regina."

"Well, are you hungry, Regina?

"No, I'm good. Thank you."

Julie thought that girl really was special, just not in a good way.

"Okay. You can watch tv if you want, I must bake some cakes for tomorrow. I'll be in the kitchen if you need anything." Julie walked into the kitchen and Regina just looked around, not knowing what to do. She couldn't watch tv and she forgot to bring her bible. She thanked God Cora didn't notice it or she would have hit her with the ruler in the car. The tiny brunette sat down, staring through the window. There was a beautiful back yard and a huge pool. They had a pool at her house as well but her mother had forbidden her to use it since she had her first period. Regina didn't know why but she never asked. She was too afraid of that ruler.

An hour went by and the front door flew open, revealing a blonde woman. The woman was beautiful and Regina mentally hit herself for thinking that woman was pretty. The blonde woman closed the door, walking into the living room staring at Regina who was sitting there like a princess. Her knees touching, her legs slightly bent to the side, both hands on her knees and her back perfectly straight. The blonde's first tought was that girl was the most beautiful girl she had ever seen and the second was what was that pretty girl doing there?

"Hey." She said, walking closer to the girl.

"Hello." Regina got up, looking at the woman. "I'm Regina."

"And I'm Emma. Nice to meet you." The blonde smiled and leaned in for a peck on the cheek but Regina seemed to get scared and pulled away.

"What are you doing?" She asked, confused and somehow scared.

"Relax, girl. I was just trying to be nice. I don't bite, 'kay? Unless you ask me to." There was a mischievous tone in Emma's voice that Regina didn't get.

Why would I want her to bite me?

"Emma, leave the girl alone, she's just a kid." Said Julie, coming back to the living room.

"Hi, granny." Emma hugged her grandmother. "I wasn't doing anything. By the way, who's the 'kid'?"

"She's the daughter of a neighbor. Her mother asked me to take care of her while she was at the hospital."

Emma looked at Regina and back at her grandma. "Take care of her? How old is she?"

Regina heard Emma's question and replied herself. "I'm fifteen years old."

Emma smiled warmly at her. "So, you are a kid after all. But old enough to take care of yourself. Your parents don't trust you or what? You're too crazy to be left home alone?" The blonde joked.

"I'm not crazy." Replied Regina, not getting the joke.

Julie took Emma's hand, leading her to the kitchen so they could talk in private. "Emma, that girl is weird. I don't know what's wrong with her but there sure is something."

"What are you saying, grandma? She's just a kid. Everybody's weird at fifteen."

"You can think whatever you want but she doesn't seem to be a normal girl. What kind of fifteen year-old needs to be taken care of? Teenagers want nothing but to stay home alone so they can throw parties and such."

"Not every teenager, grandma. And maybe that's exactly why her mother didn't want to leave her alone, so she won't throw a party."

"Throw a party? Have you seen that girl?"

Emma sighed, squeezing her grandmother's shoulder. "Are you afraid of the kid, granny?" She laughed.

Julie slapped the blonde's arm. "You're so funny, Emma. Listen, I've got some cakes to deliver. Stay here with her because I don't trust that girl to be alone."

Emma rolled her eyes. "You're being paranoid, grandma. But okay, I'll take care of the kid." She winked at her.

"Emma, you don't even think about touching that girl! She's underage, don't forget."

"For God's sake, grandma! You think I'm a pervert or what?"

"Just saying."

Julie grabbed her cakes, leaving the house. Emma laughed again and walked back into the living room so she could get to know the weird kid a little better.

Emma stared at the girl for a minute, she was still sitting there with the grace of a princess. She could see how Regina got tense when she saw Emma standing there, the brunette couldn't even look at her it's like she was afraid of looking her direction or something. The blonde knew if she didn't say something they would stay in silence until her grandmother came back so she decided to sit down and start a conversation, trying to get the girl to loosen up a little.

"So Regina, you go to Storybrooke High?"

"No. I study at home." Replied the teenager, not looking at the woman.

"Why?"

Regina didn't understand why that woman was so interested in knowing that. She was feeling uncomfortable and she just really wanted to go home. "Because."

"Wow, you don't talk much, huh?" Said Emma, lighting up a cigarette.

Regina didn't say anything she just stared at Emma as she smoked. Regina knew what a cigarette was, her mother told her, her father died because of it. Lungs cancer. Her mother used to call it the devil's stick. The smell was really disgusting and she soon started coughing.

"I'm sorry, does it bother you? Are you asthmatic or something?" Emma immediately stopped smoking.

"No. But why do you do that? It's terrible for your lungs." Regina couldn't believe that woman's stupidity.

Emma giggled. "You're right, it's no good for my lungs."

"Then why do you smoke anyway?"

Emma shrugged. "Because I can't quit. It's an addiction. And why are you being so dramatic about it? A lot of people smoke, it's like you never saw a cigarette before." She said, leaving the ashtray on the coffee table.

Regina had never seen a cigarette before. But she didn't want Emma to think she was stupid so she tried to play it cool. "I just think it's gross."

"Aw, kid. There are lots of grosser things out there." She winked at the teenager.

Kid? I'm a grown up girl. What is wrong with this woman? And why is she doing that with her eyes all the time? This woman sure is weird.

"I can imagine." Was the only thing Regina said.

Her mother would always say there was a lot of bad and nasty things and people outside their house but that's all. She never went into details, she would just say there was no good in the world and she wouldn't corrupt Regina's pure mind and heart telling her about those horrible things. And truth is, Regina didn't want to know. Or so she thought. Real truth is Emma had started her curiosity with her smoking and her 'there are grosser things out there'. Suddenly she was desperate to know what she was missing out.

"Hey, Emma... What kind of things are you talking about?"

Regina was in shock. Emma had been talking about all the evil things and people out there and Regina couldn't believe it. The list was endless. Murders, wars, pedofhilia, domestic violence, hunger, canibalism (that one really scared her to death), human and organs traffic, babies thrown in the trash, bullying, corruption and a lot of other things that Regina didn't even remember by the end of the blonde's rant. Now Regina could understand why her mother didn't let her go out. The world really was a nasty place. Now Emma's cigarette didn't seem so disgusting anymore.

"My mother always said there were bad things out there but I never thought it would that bad."

Emma frowned, looking at her. "Regina, do you ever leave your house?"

The teenager shook her head. "But after listening to you, I see I'm not missing anything."

Emma started to understand Regina wasn't just an innocent and shy girl like she first thought. She was starting to see the teenager was completly oblivious to everything. She heard about it before, about insane mothers who keep their kids locked home and don't let them out and Emma was starting to think Regina was one of these cases. It wasn't normal how naive the girl was.

"I see, and... You don't go out because you don't want to or because your mom don't let you?" Regina tensed up again and Emma knew she was right.

"My mother just wants what's best for me."

"I don't think being locked home is the best for you."

"And what do you know about it? You smoke this disgusting thing that's killing you slowly, I'm sure you've always go out a lot."

Emma put her hands up. "Hey, relax. I'm not trying to start a fight, okay? I'm sorry. I'm sure your mother loves you very much." Emma smiled, starting to use psychology.

"She does." Replied an angry Regina.

"Of course. She loves you so much that she can't have you going outside and seeing all the amazing things you're missing and decide to not come back home. I feel her, really."

Regina looked away but she was very curious to know what Emma was talking about. Of course she would want to go home. Why would she want to stay out when there was so many bad things going on?

The blonde continued talking. "I mean, you're beautiful and the boys would go crazy for you. And I'm sure all the girls would want to be your friends, everybody wants to befriends with cute girls like you. And well, that would mean you'd hang out with them a lot. You know, like going out for ice cream or to the movies or to a party. I suppose you've never been to a party before?" Regina could only shake her head, she was fascinated with the things Emma was telling her. "Well, you have no idea what you're missing. It's the coolest thing. You're there with your friends, dancing, drinking, eating, playing dumb games. And there are slumber parties too. Sleepovers, it's when you stay over at a friend's house and you watch movies, do your nails, eat junk food and etc. It's really nice at your age. Oh and don't get me started with the beach. Man, I love the beach. The sea, the sand, the sun. But what I love the most is going to the beach at night to watch the stars. It's so damn beautiful, Regina. I'm sure you would love it." Emma stopped for a few seconds and smiled at the girl who was day dreaming about the beach. "And you could drive a car in a year or two and go wherever you want. You could go camping in the woods for example. Do you know what's camping?" The brunette shook her head again. "It's when you sleep outside, like in the woods or any other place. You sleep in a plastic tent near a lake and can start a fire and cook canned food or marshmallow. You can swim and fish in the lake and-"

And Emma kept talking about all the good things in the world. The dawn and the twilight at the beach or a mountain, the car trips, the seven wonders, the carnivals, the movies, the music, the theatre, the exotic foods restaurants and the normal ones, the museums, the art galleries, the proms, the dates and many other things. She told Regina about her trips to England, Australia, Brazil, Italy and Japan. And she talked about places where she wanted to go. She talked about all the things she had seen and done and Regina sinned in that moment. She was jealous.

"All these things sound wonderful."

Emma smiled, nodding. "They are, Regina. Even though there's a lot of bad things in the world, trust me when I say there's a lot of good things too."

Regina didn't say anything and there was a few minutes of silence. The brunette was thinking about everything Emma told her, thinking about the pros and cons of disobeying her mother. She promised her mother she wouldn't leave the house but it was too late now. Emma told her too much and she couldn't just forget everything she heard. Her mind was already corrupted, so what if she corrupt her eyes too?

"Emma... Could we go to the movies?" She asked, looking down at her shoes. The cinema was the one thing that really awoke her curiosity.

"Regina, are you asking me out?" Emma joked but she kept talking before Regina got scared again. "I'm just kidding. Of course we can. We can watch the new of Angelina Jolie, you'll love her. Everybody loves her, she's wonderful." Emma got up, staring at the teenager. "Let's go."

"You mean... Now?" Regina didn't think it would happen so soon.

"Sure. Why wait?"

Regina smiled at her for the first time and got up as well. That's exactly what Regina thought as she left the house with that pretty and nice woman. Why wait?

TBC...

Reviews are greatly appreciated.