Regina Mills: I was an awful stepmother.
Mary Margaret Blanchard: Regina, come on, that was the past.
Regina Mills: I know I was. How did you maintain hope during those terrible times?
Mary Margaret Blanchard: Well, when my mother died... then my father... I mean, I had nothing. And then I realized, while y- well, the Evil Queen was trying to kill me, that the only way I could stay alive was to never give up. You taught me how to have faith. You were the one who taught me that hope is a choice.
Regina Mills: I think Hades was wrong. Robin is at peace.
[pause]
Regina Mills: You know, I've been sitting here thinking about these new people and how pathetic they were for hiding in some horrible land, so their stories didn't have to play out. And then I realized... that's exactly what I used to do.
Mary Margaret Blanchard: [chuckles] I don't remember you hiding from *anything*.
Regina Mills: Oh, I did. My life just stopped. The only story I heard was the one I kept telling myself - that I was... the Evil Queen. Until finally, I forgot the most important thing. My life was never just one story. It was many stories. To some, a villain. I hurt people... in ways I can never make up for. To others I'm... a hero. They've seen my strength, my ability to do the hard things, even when I thought I couldn't. I want to start a new story. One where the Evil Queen doesn't get a part. And I choose to believe that *this* story will have a better ending than my last.
