The Life We Will Fight For

Two weeks of failure

„So, uhm", he cleared his throat and took a bite from the bread they had given him as they were all sitting around the fire, by now Alice had returned to their camp – she had simply gotten lost, but found her way back pretty quickly, „... how is she doing? I mean... Regina?"

He looked into the round, curious, but also a bit wary. From the time he had spent with her, he knew that fate hadn't always been in her favor, and he had no idea how she had been able to cope with his father's death – or not!

„She's great!", Henry replied, then noticed all the looks from the others that were hitting him from all sides, „Oh well, right now... I mean, not really, that's why we're here."

„What do you mean?"

„Her boyfriend is here, in this realm, locked up in the Evil Queen's dungeon."

„Oh..."

„We're here to get him back", explained Robin.

Roland frowned. „Apologies, but... the way I remember Regina, she'd be much more capable to do that all by herself than all of you... us together. Where is she?"

„She's home. In Storybrooke."

„But why?"

„Well, she's pregnant, actually... twins. It would be too dangerous."

„Oh... wow! That's great! But, I mean... the father of her babies..."

„Yeah", Henry nodded, „He's gone... temporarily."

His former step brother sighed. „Poor her... It's just... always the same."

„Yep. It is."

For a while, they were quiet. Then Henry found back his words. „Why did you never come back? Why did you never visit? Not even in the past months that the realms were united?"

He shrugged, drawing random lines in the sand at his feet with a stick. „I didn't think she'd want to see me."

„What?! What made you think that?"

He shrugged again. „I guess I didn't... want to remind her of what she had lost, you know? Being a family... with us, and my dad."

Zelena shook her head. „You're lying. Robin was always there, my daughter. She reminded her of your father every day. You were young, but you were never stupid. You must have known that."

He looked up at her with his big brown eyes, and somehow he still looked like the little boy that had melted their hearts so many years ago, who had had to endure so much so early on in his life, losing his mother once, twice... three times, if you want to count Regina, then losing his father too.

„You're right", he said, „I guess the truth is... that -I- didn't want to be reminded of what -I- had lost. When I was in Storybrooke... with Regina, I was happy."

„I know!", Snow smiled, reached for his hand and squeezed it comfortingly.

„When the realms got united I was briefly thinking about visiting, actually! But then I didn't. I didn't dare. We heard so much about Regina, the ‚Good Queen' of the united realms. I didn't want to disturb or distract her, you know? I was certain she wouldn't want to see me. That she... might even be ashamed of me. I just don't fit to her life anymore. Like a mole that is disrupting an otherwise flawless piece of skin."

All of them objected instantly and decisively.

„First: if you know my sister at all", said Zelena, „then you know that she is anything but flawless. And second: she never stopped thinking about you, you know? You were... somehow always her son."