Work Text:
Regina is left saying “Mother, wait. Mother, don’t go, mother, mother,” a little girl who has found and lost everything she ever needed in one fell swoop. “My hand did this. Mine.” but she promises that she will never lie to Henry about Cora. No matter how deep she has to dig, she will not create false moments when she loved her mother, when she was loved.
“When I was young,” she begins, “What I liked to do more than anything else was to ride horses. Your grandmother knew that and sometimes, as a treat, she would let me take my own pony out for a ride beyond our fields and into the woods. She always told me not to stray from the path and I never understood that she wanted to keep me close because every time I left her sight, she was afraid she would never see me again.” She sobs a little, remembering, and then turns it into a joke. “And could I help it if sometimes by accident the path strayed from me?”
Henry stares at Regina, shocked, but impressed by her daring. “You didn’t!” But even though she has been crying or completely out of it for the past few days, she is still Regina. “No, you did! You tried to run away!” He giggles at a new thought. “Just like--” and stops in his tracks as he realizes that it’s anything but a joke. “Oh, mom. I’m sorry. I didn’t know. I didn’t understand! I promise that I will never run away again.”
Regina gives him The Look. “Yes you will. You’re my son. How could you not?”
Henry is offended by the very idea. “I may be your son but I am also a Charming. We do not run from our problems and family is more important than anything.” Regina barely bothers to raise an eyebrow, and she’s certainly not going to waste The Look on this ridiculous statement. “Okay, fine. I guess we’re just a family of runners, aren’t we?”