Chapter 6

Part Two: Storybrooke, Maine

"Hey Mom, can I talk to you?" Henry asked, knocking on the door of his mother's home office.

"Of course, Henry. You can talk to me about anything," she said, looking up from the paperwork spread across her desk, giving her son her undivided attention.

"Not here, come into the den with me," Henry said, leading his mother into the den next door. She gasped silently when she saw that he had set up the room with two cups of hot chocolate, piled high with whipped cream. Sitting on the table next to the mugs was a large brown book that she had never seen before, as well as her son's laptop.

"Henry, what's all this?" she asked.

"I need to talk to you about something," Henry repeated, sitting on the couch, signaling for his mother to join him. "And I just really wanted hot chocolate, and I thought you might like some too."

"Thank you," she said, taking a sip of the sweet drink. "What did you want to talk about?"

"A few things actually, but they all fit together," Henry explained, taking a sip of hot chocolate. "The first thing I wanted to talk about is this." He grabbed the strange book off the coffee table and presented it to his mother.

"A book? Of fairy tales?" she asked, confusion falling across her face.

"Not just any fairy tales, Mom. All the stories in this book are real," Henry said, flipping through the pages.

"What are you talking about?" she asked, even more confused than before.

"Every story in this book is true. And all the people in these stories are here in Storybrooke," Henry continued.

"Henry, are you feeling alright?" she asked her ten-year-old son.

"I feel fine. I can prove it," Henry said, flipping through the book, stopping at a familiar picture. "This is Snow White and Prince Charming." He pointed to a picture of Snow White kissing Prince Charming. "Snow White is really my teacher, Miss Blanchard. And look." He flipped more pages, landing on a picture of Little Red Riding Hood and her Granny, clutching a crossbow. "Little Red Riding Hood is Ruby, and Granny is her Grandmother, the women who run Granny's Diner."

"Henry, be serious. Your teacher is not a princess, nor is Ruby from the diner Little Red Riding Hood," she said, trying to knock some sense into him.

"I am being serious, Mom. These stories are real!" Henry insisted.

"Henry! Enough! This is silly! Now stop!" She raised her voice, ready for this conversation to end.

"Yes it is, MOM! They are all real!" Henry yelled, his face turning red from frustration.

"Fine, show me proof. Show me the proof that this is all real!" she yelled, her own frustration rising.

"Because of this!" Henry said, flipping to the story The Swan and The Queen , pointing at the picture of Eala and Regina, sharing their first kiss. "This is you, Mom." Henry smiled, pointing to the picture of Regina.

"No, it's not, Henry. The resemblance is uncanny, I'll give you that, but I am certainly not this woman," she responded, her voice suddenly slightly shaky.

"Yes, it is. Look, her name is Regina, just like you. It can't just be a coincidence that a character named Regina looks just like you. She is you, Mom."

"Henry..." Regina pleaded.

"Mom. I'm not crazy. I know these stories are true. Why won't you just admit it?" Henry begged, frustration in his voice. He looked at her with such determination and all she could see was the little boy she adopted ten years ago. She knew she couldn't keep lying to him, no matter how hard it was for her to admit.

"Because...because if I admit that those stories are true, then I am also admitting to my son that I did the terrible things that woman did. That woman, the Regina in your story, she became a monster. She was evil. And I don't think I could live with myself if you believe that too," Regina said, tears welling in her eyes.

"So, it's true. These stories are true." Henry smiled. His plan was finally coming together. Regina simply nodded.

"Henry, let me explain. The things I did..."

"You don't have to explain, Mom. I read the end of The Swan and The Queen. I know what happened to her. What happened to your Soulmate. That pain would cause anyone to do unspeakable things. I don't blame you. But, I have good news..." he said, reaching out for Regina's hand, a wide smile reaching across his face. "I think Eala is alive."

Tears formed in Regina's eyes at the briefest thought of seeing Eala again. It had been over forty years since she saw Eala, since she held her in her arms, and being the only one "awake" during the curse has done nothing but remind her of the passing of time. The idea of seeing her beloved again brought a tiny sliver of hope to her. But she knew it wasn't true. Eala was dead.

"Henry, that's very cruel. Why would you say something like that?" Regina asked, willing her voice not to crack, tears spilling out of her brown eyes.

"Because I think it's true. I think Eala is alive," Henry repeated. The sound of Eala's name after all these years felt like knives on Regina's heart.

"Henry. Please..." Regina pleaded with her son, the pain rising though her body.

"Listen to me, Mom. I really think Eala is alive."

"HENRY! STOP!" Regina cried out. "She's dead, Henry. Eala died in my arms. I felt her take her last breath. She's gone." Regina's tears became a constant stream down her cheeks.

"Mom. Please listen to me. I know this hurts, but please listen to me," Henry said, grabbing her hands to comfort her. Regina took a deep breath to calm herself down and nodded again, giving in to her son's crazy idea, and listened. "Okay. So I've been doing a lot of research recently. Looking for my birth mother."

"Your birth mother? Since when? You've never mentioned a desire to find your birth parents," Regina asked, her sadness suddenly forgotten.

"It has nothing to do with you, Mom. And it doesn't mean that I love you any less. It's just that, I've always had this feeling that my birth mom was somehow connected to the stories in the book. And once I realized that every story in the book was true, I knew I had to find her," Henry explained.

"Did you find her? Your birth mother?" Regina asked.

"I did. Her name is Emma..." Henry said, flipping to the end of the book, to a picture of Snow White kissing her newborn daughter's forehead, the baby wrapped in a white blanket with the name Emma stitched in purple thread on the side. "This is Snow White and her newborn daughter, moments before Prince Charming placed her in the magical wardrobe and sent her to the Land Without Magic, to save her from your curse." He pointed to the name Emma in the picture. "I think this baby, Snow White's daughter, is my birth mother."

"Henry, Emma is a very common name," Regina answered.

"Yes, that is true. But think about it. The timeline adds up. What year was it when the curse started?" Henry asked.

"October 1983," Regina answered, trying to follow Henry's thought process.

"Okay, so if Emma was born in 1983, then she would have been..." Henry started to say, trying to do the math in his head.

"...eighteen. She was eighteen when she gave birth to you. That's the only thing I know about her," Regina answered, knowing exactly where Henry was going.

"That works! If she was eighteen when she had me, that would make her twenty-eight now. The exact age Rumplestiltskin said she would be when she breaks your curse."

"Henry, there's no real proof that she's the same Emma from the story. Emma is a common name. It's too much of a coincidence. And what does any of this have to do with Eala?" Regina asked, wishing this conversation was over.

"Look at her last name." Henry smiled. He saved the best for last.

Henry opened his computer, revealing the email he had received with the information of his birth mother. Regina's face turned white, as if she had just seen a ghost, as she read the words on the screen.

Emma Swan

"How do you say Swan in Gaelick?" Henry smiled, already knowing the answer.

"Eala..." Regina whispered, the tears she had been holding back cascading down her face.

"We have to find her, Mom," Henry whispered, reaching for Regina's hand.

"Henry, we can't. She requested a closed adoption. It means she didn't want contact with us. We have to respect her wishes," Regina said, her heart shattering at her own words.

"But she's your Soulmate. Somehow, she came back. You need to be with her, Mom. We can't just ignore this," Henry said, trying to convince his mom.

"No, Henry. We can't. We can't find her. The terms of the adoption prohibits any contact. There's nothing we can do. It was a nice thought, but that's all it can be," Regina said, standing and walking out of the room.

As soon as she was back in her office, she broke down again, falling to her knees, her tears creating a puddle on the floor in front of her. For one fleeting moment, she thought she would be able to see her beloved once more.

<~**~>

Henry glanced at the slip of paper in his hand one last time. The number "205" was scrawled on the top. Taking a deep breath, he pressed the doorbell beside the yellow door. He could instantly hear shuffling inside before the door was yanked open a few moments later. Standing in front of him was a familiar-looking blonde woman in a tight red dress, looking very confused.

"Uhh...can I help you?" she asked.

"Are you Emma Swan?" he asked, her face even more confused.

"Yeah...who are you?"

"My name is Henry...I'm your son," he said with confidence as he pushed his way into the woman's apartment.

"Oh hey, Kid...Kid...KID...I don't have a son," Emma said, following Henry into the apartment. "Where are your parents?"

"Ten years ago, did you give up a baby for adoption?" Henry asked. Emma's face fell serious. "That was me." Emma's face looked terrified. That was all the proof Henry needed.

"Give me a minute," Emma said, rushing into the bathroom. Henry started idly scanning the apartment before helping himself to a container of orange juice in the refrigerator. A few minutes later, a still very shocked Emma emerged from the bathroom, cautiously approaching him.

"You know, we should probably get going," he said, in between taking sips of juice straight from the container.

"Going where?" Emma asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I want you to come home with me," Henry announced, pride welling in his voice.

"Okay, Kid, I'm calling the cops," Emma said, trying to end this awkward encounter.

"Then I'll tell them you kidnapped me," Henry answered, with defiance in his voice.

"And they'll believe you because I'm your birth mother," Emma said with defeat in her voice. "You're not going to do that."

"Try me," Henry countered.

"You're pretty good. But here's the thing. There's not a lot I'm great at in life, I have one skill, let's call it a superpower. I can tell when anyone is lying. And you, Kid, are," Emma said, pressing the buttons on her phone.

"Wait, don't call the cops," Henry pleaded. "Please, come home with me."

"Where's home?" Emma asked, tired of fighting with the strange kid standing in her living room.

"Storybrooke, Maine."

"Storybrooke? Seriously?" Emma asked, raising her eyebrow in confusion. Henry nodded his head. He always thought Storybrooke was a stupid name for a town too. "Alrighty then. Let's get you back to Storybrooke." She made her way to the bedroom to change out of her dress. Henry secretly wished she would have kept the red dress on. His mom would have loved her in that dress.

Fifteen minutes later, they were in Emma's yellow Bug, making their way back to Storybrooke. Henry talked non-stop, trying to gather any and all information he could about his birth mother. Before he knew it, they were pulling up in front of 108 Mifflin Street, every light on in the house. Henry knew his mother only did that when she was worried or scared. She must have been terrified when she realized he was missing.

As soon as they opened the front gate, the front door flew open, and Regina came rushing out, pulling him into her arms.

"Henry? Henry, are you okay?" Regina said, wrapping her arms around her son. "Where have you been?"

"Follow my lead," Henry whispered into her ear as Regina held him tight in her arms. "I found my REAL MOM!" Henry screamed, pulling out of Regina's arms and running into the house.

Regina's heart stopped.

She struggled to breathe as she looked at the blonde stranger in front of her.

"You're...you're Henry's birth mother?" she asked, her voice shaky and uncertain.

"Hi..." Emma whispered, clearly a little uncomfortable.

"How would you like a glass of the best apple cider you've ever tasted?" Regina asked, once her brain and lungs started working again.

"Got anything stronger?" Emma asked as Regina led them into the house.

"I'm so sorry for Henry's intrusion. I know I raised him better than to show up at someone's house uninvited," Regina said, handing Emma a glass of whisky.

"It's fine. I completely understand," Emma said, choosing a seat across from Regina, taking a small sip of the liquor. "To be completely honest, I would have done the exact same thing if I ever found information about my birth parents."

"You were adopted as well?" Regina asked, intrigued by the new woman.

"Not quite. I grew up in the foster system. I wasn't lucky like Henry was. I was never adopted, so I bounced between foster homes and group homes, until I eventually ran away at sixteen."

"And you were never able to find any information about your birth parents?" Regina asked.

"There was no information to find. I wasn't placed for adoption, I was abandoned. I was found by the side of the road, not far from here actually. My birth certificate doesn't have parents listed at all."

"I'm so sorry, Miss..." Regina asked, pretending she didn't already know Emma's name.

"Swan. Emma Swan."

"Regina Mills, it's nice to meet you," Regina said, extending her hand to Emma. A slight shock sparked between them when their hands met for the first time. They both chuckled as they nervously sipped their drinks. A clock chimed somewhere in the house, announcing how late it had become.

"I...uh...I should probably get going. It's a bit of a drive back to Boston, and it's getting pretty late," Emma announced, placing her glass on a coaster on the wooden coffee table in front of her.

"Oh yes, of course, yes," Regina said, standing to walk Emma out. "Miss Swan..." Regina started to ask as they reached the front door.

"Please, call me Emma."

"Emma...I was wondering if you might be interested in...perhaps...coming back for dinner sometime soon. To get to know Henry. I think he would really like to get to know you as well," Regina asked awkwardly.

"I'd like that, actually." Emma smiled. "He seems like a great kid. You've done a great job raising him," she added.

"Thank you," Regina said, fighting back the tears.

"Here, let me give you my card," Emma said, digging through the pockets of her red leather jacket, searching for her stack of business cards, scribbling something on the back of one of them. "That's my cell phone number on the back. Feel free to call or text me anytime."

"Yes, thank you. I'll send you a text shortly with my number as well. Same goes for you. Anytime," Regina said, her voice so soft as she looked down at Emma's business card.

"Thanks. Well...I better get going..." Emma said, looking between the door and Regina.

"Yes, of course. Drive safe, Miss Sw...Emma," Regina said, correcting herself.

"Thank you. Let me know about dinner," Emma said, clearly delaying her exit.

"Will do." Regina smiled. They stood in the foyer for another moment in silence before Emma smiled and walked out of the house, ushering one final goodbye before she closed the door.

Regina stayed rooted in place until she heard the tell-tale sound of the vintage yellow Bug drive down the street before she turned around and stormed up the stairs, making a bee-line to her son's room.

"HENRY DANIEL MILLS!!!" she screamed, barging into Henry's room. Henry was standing at his window, clearly watching Emma drive away, a smile so wide sprawled across his face. "WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?"

"Was it her, Mom?" Henry asked, completely ignoring Regina's question.

"Henry! Do you have ANY IDEA how dangerous it is to travel to an unknown city alone at ten years old? To find a woman you've never met before! Did you even THINK before you left?"

"I was thinking that I needed to find her, Mom. We both know we need to find her. And you said that we couldn't find her. But you never said that I couldn't find her. How could anyone be mad at an adopted child finding his birth mother?" Henry asked, his logic actually making sense to Regina.

"Still, it was incredibly dangerous, Henry. Anything could have happened..." she said, calming down.

"I was fine. I had explicit directions to get from the bus depot to Emma's apartment. And I knew I could trust her, Mom. I don't know why, but I just knew I could trust her," Henry said, taking a seat on his bed, beckoning for Regina to join him.

"You can't do stuff like that again. It's not safe," Regina said, sitting across from Henry on the bed.

"I won't do it again, I promise. But I had to do something. I knew you weren't going to contact her," Henry said, waiting for his mother to scream at him again. When nothing happened, he continued, asking the question burning a hole in his head. "So? Was it her? Was it Eala?" Regina took a deep breath as a wide smile formed across her face.

"It was her, Henry. It was definitely her," Regina said, tears welling in her eyes. "Her long blonde hair, the sparkle in her green eyes. Even the sound of her voice is the same. I don't know how, and I don't know why. All I know is that it's her, Henry. It's Eala."

"True Love." Henry smiled.

Tears fall down Regina's face as the reality of the situation hits her. She found her again. Her Soulmate. Her Mo Ghràidh.

"So, what happens now?" Henry asked, pulling her from her thoughts.

"I invited her to come have dinner with us some time soon," Regina answered. "Which she accepted. We just need to set it up." Regina smiled.

"That's so exciting, Mom! When can we do it?" Henry asked.

"One step at a time. And right now, you are grounded for the rest of the night, young man," Regina said.

"Mom, really?" Henry whined, thinking his good deed would get him out of a punishment.

"You ran away to a strange city to find a complete stranger. You're lucky you're only grounded for the rest of the night, and not a week," Regina said, standing to leave the room. "Too bad it's already nine o'clock and your bedtime is ten." Regina smiled, winking at her son. "Now, get ready for bed, you're grounded for the next hour." She laughed, walking out of the room.

Regina walked down the hall to her bedroom, closing the door behind her and making her way toward her bed. She stared at Emma's business card in her hand as more tears dripped down her face. After over forty years without her, she got to see Eala again.

"Emma. Her name is Emma now," she whispered to herself as she reached for her cell phone to send Emma a message with her phone number.

That night, Regina's dreams were filled with visions of Emma Swan, a woman she