I Will Protect You

Chapter 19 Final Goodbyes (Regina)

My eyes are blotchy as Emma and I make our way to the seats in front of the crowd gathered to bid farewell to Henry. It’s only been three weeks since his… Anyways, as we all take our seats, Archie walks up to where the casket. He turns to the podium and faces us all, his eyes, like the rest of us, are red from crying.
    “We are here today to honor the passing of Henry Daniel Mills. He has passed on from mysterious circumstances and is being to rest after a week of said passing. He is being succeeded by his two mothers, Regina Mills and Emma Swan. If anybody wishes to say a few words, now would be the time.” He walks back to his seat where Pongo is waiting and pets the dog as the tears return to his eyes.
    The first person to step up is Snow.
    “Henry was,” she chokes up, “he was probably the most amazing kid I’ve ever known and had the honor to teach. If it wasn’t for him, none of us would remember, Regina would still be the evil queen, I never would have been reunited with David. I wanted to thank you Henry. You did so much more for us than we will ever be able to repay you for.” The tears have long since started flowing when she sits back down. David walks up next.
    “I never knew such a brave soul in my life. I have never been one for sentiment but, Henry, you will forever stay in our hearts.” Short and sweet.
    I stand up and trudge to the podium. When I face the crowd, I see red, tear stained faces. It’s hard to see who is who through my tears. This is going to be the longest I’ve spoken since he…
    “I was never the best mother to Henry. I wanted to force him to love me and when that didn’t work I wanted to kill the woman that he did love. It took me a lot longer than it should have to realize that he did love me back. We all owe Henry a debt but I more than I should. He took me from the Evil Queen and with his believing and love changed me for the better. I don’t know what I’m going to do without him.” I hurry back to my seat before I break down in front of everyone. I set my head into my lap until I hear who is speaking next.
    “When Henry brought me to Storybrooke, I never thought that I would stay. Hell I didn’t even believe he was my son. As we grew closer and he grew on me, I realized that he was an amazing little kid. I loved him. I wanted to be the mother I had failed to be because I gave him up. I wanted to buy him presents and make him smile. I wanted to make him laugh when he was crying and smile when he was scared. But most of all, I wanted to protect him.
    “I hate that I gave him up, yet I’m glad things turned out the way they did. If they hadn’t, he never would have believed, he never would have been the person that helped us all. I’ve been deemed the savior but it was really him. Without Henry none of this would have been possible. The heart of the town. The king of operations. The son we all wanted and could never get enough of. Henry, you’ll be missed but not forgotten. We love you.” With those final words, she hurries back to her seat on my right. We cling to eat other again, like we did before, like we have been since he left.
    We cling to each other when the casket is lowered and buried. We cling to each other during the car ride back to the Charming’s. We cling to each other through the night.
    We cling to each other because if we didn’t, we might fall into oblivion.