She Lives In a Fairytale (OUAT)
Title: She Lives In a Fairytale
Fandom: Once Upon a Time
Characters: Regina, Maleficent (brief Cora)
Rating: E for Everyone
Summary: She thinks, for a terrible moment, that her mother can see the light scorch marks on the wood, or the tiny scratches in it. If she does, she says nothing.
A/N: This, like so many of my fics, was put in my head by madameshocking. So you can blame her. If you would like a visual…
“Regina!”
The young girl’s eyes widen. She spins around right as the door to her room opens, blocking the window ledge from sight. Cora steps into the room, eyeing her daughter.
“Regina, what are you hiding?”
“Nothing, mother,” Regina lies smoothly.
“Then step away from the window,” Cora gives her a look that suggests it isn’t a request, but an order. Regina’s eyes widen slightly, but then she feels a tug on the back of her dress. “Don’t make me ask again, Regina.” Regina steps away quickly then, to reveal a perfectly bare window ledge. She thinks, for a terrible moment, that her mother can see the light scorch marks on the wood, or the tiny scratches in it. If she does, she says nothing. She simply picks a loose bit of thread from Regina’s dress, strokes her cheek (with perhaps a little more force than is really necessary) and leaves.
Sighing, Regina flops rather ungracefully onto her bed. A squawk makes her jump up immediately.
“Oh, gods!” Regina scoops up the tiny creature from her bed. The dragon looks up at her, glaring with yellow eyes. Regina flinches when its – her – mouth opens, fighting back a laugh a moment later when nothing put a small puff of smoke comes out. The dragon growls, baring her teeth.
“It’s okay, Mally,” Regina giggles. She scratches lightly under her chin, and try as she might, the dragon can’t hold back a small purr. “There, see?”
Shaking her head, the dragon hops from Regina’s hand, landing on the bed. There is a puff of smoke, and within seconds the dragon has been replaced by a blonde girl – around nine years of age, not much older than Regina herself.
“That’s cheating!” Maleficent pouts, folding her arms over her chest. Regina laughs again and leans over to press a quick kiss against her friend’s cheek. “So is that,” the blonde narrows her eyes.
“So is sneaking into my room as a dragon,” Regina points out. She frowns, eyes suddenly filling with worry. “If my mother caught you…”
“She won’t,” Maleficent insists. “I promise.”
“You shouldn’t make promises you can’t keep, Mally.”
“I will keep it!” She moves to kneel on the bed and grabs one of Regina’s hands between both of her own. “And I promise I’ll get you away from her. Away from here.”
“Why would you do that?” Regina asks, though her lips slowly spread into a smile.
“Because,” Maleficent shrugs, smiling. “You’re my only friend.”
