Thank you for the very thoughtful comment!
The way I headcanon it myself is that what the Queen and the Hero did get to have was a fully realised relationship, weird as it was and not meant to last. They saw each other for who they truly were and were irrevocably changed by their time together--for the better, one could argue (when death is viewed metaphorically). Not exactly a classical happy ending, or even one that shouldn't be mourned, but not entirely unkind either.
Such a beautiful way to put it! If viewed metaphorically, it is not as tragic and, perhaps, a bit more hopeful! Because if the Queen just dies there, her change in understanding had little meaning in the grand scheme of things. But if this is to be taken as, perhaps, a shortly-lived relationship, like one would have in real life, then her change would impact both herself and the world even after the end of her and Hero's relationship! This is what one would call "cope", but your canon accounts for it ;)
