11Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon A Time or any of its characters. I only own Winter, my OCs, and the plot. Everything else belongs to ABC and Disney.
Regina's POV
I got a call from Gold and didn't hesitate to head over to his shop, taking Henry with me. It seemed that Gold never failed to disappoint. He had managed to bring Henry to me and now he had managed to find me another child, and in a shorter time span. I had to admit, I was impressed.
"Where we going mommy?" Henry asked as I took him across the street towards the shop. "Why we here?"
"You'll see my little prince."
We walked into the shop and I stood in front of the door with Henry as the bell rang. Gold popped out from the back and I walked up towards. "I take it you have good news?" If he had called me, I assumed it could only about my request.
"Follow me." I picked up Henry and Gold led me into the back room. When we got there, I noticed a young girl on the couch. She looked much older than I would have imagined. She looked about seven, if I were to take a guess. "Henry," Gold looked at my son once I set him down. "This is Winter." The girl turned around to face us. She had dark brown hair that went past her shoulders and brown eyes.
"Hi." Henry waved at her and she waved back. I noticed a slight hesitation.
"Why don't we leave them to get to know each other while we have a chat?" Gold suggested and I nodded, crouching down.
"Go on," I urged. "I'll be right back." Once Henry went over and sat next to the girl, I followed Gold out of the room.
"I imagined Henry having a younger sister." I stated once we had enough distance between the kids. "She looks…seven?" Definitely older than I would have imagined. I had raised Henry practically since he was born and I guess I had been hoping for the same thing again.
"Well, dearie, you should have been more specific." Gold remarked. "And to be precise, she's eight."
"I raised Henry since birth," I had assumed if he had found me a baby then, he could manage to do the same again. "I thought being two years apart would have been perfect."
"Well, we can't get everything we want, can we?"
I rolled my eyes. "Alright, well tell me about her." I assumed there would things I need to know and this wouldn't be like the adoption last time. This girl wasn't a baby and she's obviously been somewhere else. And there had to be a reason why she needs a family now.
"Well, she's had a rather hard time." He took out a file.
"Define hard time?"
"In another foster home, she saw her friend die." Gold explained. Hard time seemed like an understatement. "Edgar Donta, was murdered by their foster mother. Though it was deemed accidental."
"Since then, her placements haven't worked out." Gold quickly flipped through the file.
"And you thought it might work out with me?"
"Winter does well with younger children."
"I assume because of her friend."
Gold nodded. "And I figured you might be able to," He seemed to struggle on the right word. "Understand." I nodded. I definitely understood what it was like to lose a person you care about. "But if you would rather me search for an infant, I could—"
"No!" I said, rather too quickly. I cleared my throat. "We could give this a try."
"Alright, then, how about I properly introduce you to your daughter?"
Winter's POV
I stayed in the office with Henry while Mr. Gold was talking to this woman. I wasn't sure why I was here. I thought I would have been in my next foster home by now. I wasn't in any hurry to get shipped off. All of my foster homes were terrible as far as I could remember. Even the one where I met Edgar. I hated that place. He was one of the only things that made it bearable. Without him, nothing would ever be the same. I should have protected him. If it weren't for me, he would still be here.
"Win'er" I was snapped from my thoughts as Henry spoke, reaching for one of the books on the coffee table.
"The book?" He nodded and I grabbed it. "Want me to read it?" I asked and he nodded happily, moving closer to me. I looked back at the book. Adventures of Alice in Wonderland. It seemed interesting enough. I opened it and began reading it to Henry. We got through about five pages by the time Mr. Gold came back in the room with the woman.
"Sorry to interrupt," He said as he came over. I shut the book and looked to him. "Winter, this is Regina." I looked over to her and let a small grin show. "She is the mayor of this town and she's—"
"His mother." I assumed as Henry reached out to her.
"I am." The woman, Regina, nodded as scooped Henry into her arms.
"You're going to be going with her." I went to put the book back on the counter but Mr. Gold stopped me. "You can hang on to that. Young Henry seemed to enjoy it." I nodded and put it under my arm as I went with the woman, first turning back to thank Mr. Gold for the book.
I sat in the backseat with Henry and then we were taken to this big house. I think it was the biggest I had ever seen. "Just you and Henry live here?" I looked up at Regina and she nodded. As far as I could remember, all the places I had lived before had been crowded with a lot more kids than there was space. She brought me upstairs to a room.
"I haven't had a chance to make it up yet."
"It's nice." I didn't see anything wrong with it.
"When you're finished with your stuff, you can come downstairs." Once she left the room, I put my trash bag on the floor in the corner of the room and then began emptying it. I threw my clothes into a drawer and then took out a bracelet and put it on my wrist. I just stared at it for a few moments. It was the only thing I had left of Edgar and it was my most prized procession. It was leather with a sapphire stone. If only he could be here too.
"Sorry," I was interrupted from my thoughts as Henry wandered in. A few seconds later, followed by Regina. "I just put him down for second."
"It's fine." I smiled slightly as Henry tried to grab the book off the bed where I had set it down. I got the book and held it out to Henry. "Is this what you want?"
Henry nodded but then he pushed it back towards me. "Read."
I looked up at Regina. "If you have to work, I will watch him." I figured she probably had work to do. Most adults did and I preferred that. Usually when they stuck around is when it got bad.
"I guess I can get a head start on dinner, if you're alright." Regina looked unsure.
"It'll be okay. I've done this before."
"I'm sure." Did she know about Edgar? Is that why she was hesitating? But eventually she did leave and I opened the book. Henry sat next to me, trying to see the pictures as I read.
"Find her!" I heard the Queen of Hearts tell the guards. I was hiding. "And then I will kill her." The looked cross and out looking for blood. She was after me but I was never going to let her find me. I took off running…
Then suddenly I stood in front of a different queen. I stood there and watched as the boy in front of me had his heart ripped out of his chest. He fell to the ground as the heart was crushed in the Queen's hands and then I fell onto my knees…
"WINNIE!"
"Take her away!" The queen ordered and I was grabbed by guards. I was dragged away and then thrown into a cell. And somehow, I knew I was going to die soon…
I woke up from the bad dream screaming. The room was dark and I had been in bed. I then looked next to me and noticed—Henry? He looked terrified. I blinked and rubbed my eyes as I attempted to catch my breath. We read more of the book after dinner and we must have fallen asleep…
"Henry? Winter?" Regina came in and looked between the two of us. Henry ran over to her. He was clearly frightened. She picked him up and looked to me. "What happened?" I suddenly felt this strong wave of fear hit me and I backed up to the corner of the bed so my back was against the wall. I felt afraid of what she might do to me because I had scared her child.
"I j-just had a b-bad dream." I flinched and she took a step closer. "I'm s-sorry! I didn't mean to—I didn't know he was still here!"
"She hit the wall mommy." Henry finally spoke and I noticed a dent in the wall about the size of my hand.
"It's alright," Regina sighed. "We can deal with it in the morning."
I gulped and then tried to get comfortable in bed after she took Henry to his own bedroom. But I couldn't sleep. Not because I was afraid of what tomorrow would bring or what I imagined Regina would come up as a punishment. But because I was afraid to sleep. Something about those dreams were terrifying, even though I knew they were only dreams.
Regina's POV
That next morning I went back to Gold, after leaving that pregnant Cinderella to watch Henry and Winter in my absence. I couldn't take them with me while I had this conversation. If not Henry, Winter would overhear and likely remember it. And this had to be a private conversation. I walked into this shop and he seemed to be expecting me. "Shouldn't you be spending time with your new daughter?" I wanted to burn that smirk right off his smug face. "What? Are Henry and Winter not getting on?"
"They were until last night."
"Is that so?"
"What exactly is wrong with her?"
"I do not know what you mean." I shook my head as Gold acted all innocent. He had to know every well who he sent home with me and my son.
"She started screaming in the middle of the night and almost put a hole in the wall."
"Is that all?"
"All?" Was he serious? Was he expecting her to do much worse? "Henry had fallen asleep in her bed—if he had been on the other side, she could have hurt him." And I did not like having someone in my house that could hurt my son in the slightest; Henry was my first concern. "You said Winter's had a difficult past?"
"And I explained that to you." I nodded, he had. "Witnessing a loved one's death can be traumatic, especially for a child." And I could sympathize. At times I still had nightmares about Daniel's death. But I was concerned and not just for Henry, but for her. "Winter suffers from night terrors as a result."
"That would have been good to know."
"She did not intend to hurt anyone, especially your son." I gathered that.
"Before, how did other foster parents take it?" I wanted to know. Her reaction last night hadn't gone unnoticed.
"Not well." Gold answered. I didn't need the details to imagine. I could remember quite well how my own mother would handle such outbursts. "Like I said, Winter's had a difficult life—a hard upbringing." And it now it was beginning to make more sense.
"She talked about a murderous queen." I had spoken to her before I left. And she told me a little bit about her dream after apologizing ten times. "Not her exact words but I made an assumption."
"An active imagination." It could be written off as a dream, but I knew in another land, many people had these nightmares. And I had to admit I was curious.
"Where exactly did you get Winter?"
"Why does it matter?" Gold wasn't answering my question. "But if you must know, she's been all over the place. In foster care, you get moved around a lot." I nodded, but I wasn't convinced. I knew that could mean a number of things. And I wondered if this child was from outside the town. Because if she had come here in the curse, what was her story?
"An evil queen?"
"What?!"
"In her dream?" I cleared my throat and nodded. "Well the book she and Henry were looking at yesterday, the one I gave her, was Alice In Wonderland." I hadn't even noticed what the book was; I didn't think it mattered. But just maybe, it did. And I knew firsthand how vicious the Queen of Hearts could truly be. I knew what she was like before I had banished her to that land. "I think it was nothing but a nightmare—inspired by fiction."
"Must be." That had to be it. It's not like Storybrooke had any orphanages and I would have seen her around before. She wouldn't have gotten here if not for the curse. "But what do I do? About these nightmares—night terrors?" There had to be a way to stop them. And the last thing I needed in this town was someone having dreams resembling those tales.
"She's your daughter." Gold replied. "You'll figure it out." Of course, he would be useless to me. "Unless you've decided it's not the right fit."
"No." It hadn't been long but I felt what I did from the minute I held Henry in my arms for the first time. She was my child. I just had to get these nightmares under control. "Like you said," I smiled slightly. "Winter is my daughter. And I will figure it out." And I might have an idea; I just needed to go to vault.
"Are you going to send me back?" Winter asked when I came back to the house and told Ashley Boyd to leave. "I'm sorry about the wall and scaring Henry—I don't want to hurt him."
"I know you don't." That much I knew. And I had the feeling she and Henry would get along nicely; which was according to the plan.
"What are you going to do to me?"
"Well, I have two things for you." I poured a small amount of liquid into a glass. "I am going to have you drink this." The liquid was a dark blue color and filled less than a quarter of the small glass I had poured it into.
"What's it for?"
"It's going to take those bad dreams away."
"Really? You can do that?"
I smiled. "Yes I can." Only I could do of such things. Luckily I had managed to carry a few things over from the Enchanted Forest which allowed me to do some magic when needed. "How does that sound?" Winter didn't hesitate to drink the liquid, coughing on it as she finished. "Not the best tasting." I chuckled slightly. But I knew the results would be worth it. "But it should help you sleep." But then I remembered something. "And there is something else that may help with that."
"What is it?"
I stood up and went out to the car. I left the back door open and the white dog ran in and over to Winter, licking her. She laughed loudly. "A dog?! For me?"
"Figured my princess deserves a sleeping companion." And the look of disappointment and heartbreak on Claire Fairchild's daughter was priceless. I don't think that child could have wailed any louder as I purchased the dog her heart desired. And there was nothing Claire nor Penelope could do to protest. I almost would have left bad, but I certainly couldn't allow her daughter to have the very thing that was ripped from her and her family in the first place.
"Dog!" Henry exclaimed as he slid off the couch and ran over to the puppy, whom licked him in response.
"Bolt." Winter said. That was the name of the dog's collar. She hugged the dog. "He's perfect!" She then ran over and hugged me. "Thanks…mom." She looked up at me. "Is it okay if I call you that?"
"More than alright." I crouched down. "This is your home. And I am your mother."
A/N: Regina has adopted Winter and it seems Regina knows or at least worries that her dreams may be more than just childish nightmares. And she found a way to keep them unwraps, at least for some time. Also, I decided to add some elements from the Disney movie "Bolt" and the OUAT book "Regina Rising".There will be a time skip next chapter to be set in S1 of OUAT and we will see what happened to Winter in Wonderland through a series of OUAT-Style flashbacks.
Claire Fairchild is portrayed by Rachel McAdams and Winter will be portrayed by Laura Marano.
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