NOTE: Thank you for happening upon this story and taking the time to read it! Apparently I need to say this up front, because it's getting repetitive in reviews, especially from Guests that I can't even respond to: This story is updated slowly. Back when I very first published it, there was a LOT of drama revolving around it, and it took me nearly a year to get the second chapter up because I had given up even trying for a while. However, I did decide I was going to continue, but it is still a slow update. I have a lot of things to do, and this is something I come back to for fun when I have the time. And note that these chapters are SUPER HEAVY in the word count: that alone makes the wait for updates longer than you'd probably like.
I AM NOT EXPECTING PEOPLE TO GET INVESTED IN SOMETHING THAT'S A SLOW UPDATE. I AM, HOWEVER, EXPECTING YOU TO MOVE ON WITHOUT STATING IT TO ME. If you're a Guest, and you're telling me you aren't reading my story because there's only a certain amount of chapters in the past year and a half, you're literally wasting your time. You got a reaction, yes, but this is more annoying than anything. This is FANFICTION. Can we please keep it fun as opposed to judgmental, or stating opinions that really don't have much of a point?
SECOND: THE FIRST TWO CHAPTERS ARE CS/OQ HEAVY. However, these ships have sunk by chapter three. If you do not like these ships and won't read them, even if they do eventually sink, please move on and refrain from loading my reviews with negativity. Let those that are enjoying this do just that.
Thank you, and I hope you enjoy!
CHAPTER ONE: NOT MY HAPPY ENDING
There was something cathartic about climbing into Regina Mills' bed, but climbing out of it was an entirely different story. It was like she was leaving a little bit of her dignity behind every time; a little flame of the fire Emma Swan was known for. It was her own damn fault. She had let herself get drug into this, and though she knew she was just Graham's replacement – a quick fuck to bring Regina's nerves under control – she still couldn't help but feel like this was some power play. Regina had found an upper hand on her, and it just happened to be when she had Emma's hips pinned to the bed, using her tongue and her thumb to drive her into an absolute frenzy of physical nerves and stimulation.
Sometimes, Emma swore she hated it. Other times, she found herself looking forward to the night. Oh, well. She couldn't win them all.
Regina watched her that night as Emma got dressed, a habit Emma noticed the Mayor had picked up recently. Her face was always inscrutable; like she could be plotting an attack on Emma in her own bedroom. Or she could be contemplating something to eat. Hell if Emma knew. But it was starting to get annoying, feeling eyes watch her while she attempted to stitch her modesty back into place.
"Can I help you?" Emma asked, voice flat as she shrugged her shirt over her shoulders. She scowled as she realized three of the buttons were missing. Regina noticed, too, and the corner of her lips twitched up into the slightest smirk.
"Uncomfortable?" the brunette asked in that sweet, fraudulent tone she tended to use when goading Emma. The blonde rolled her eyes.
"Hardly," she drawled. "But I could do without the audience."
Regina was smirking now. "You weren't saying that the other night, dear," she purred, and Emma felt her cheeks heat up just a bit. Regina had talked her into touching herself for her to watch. And despite her hesitance – she had never touched herself for anyonebefore – seeing Regina lose it just watching her had all but driven Emma crazy. She had never come so hard in her life. It figured Regina would find an opportunity to taunt her with it now.
The shirt was hopeless, so Emma settled with pulling at it and shaking it enough to sit naturally on her body. There was a hell of a lot more cleavage than she liked flaunting around (and she didn't miss Regina's gaze dropping to drink it in), but it wasn't like anyone else was going to see her. If they did, there were plenty of reasons for her shirt to be ruined. She was the Sheriff; wrestling some idiot who tore at her shirt and snapped her buttons off was a good enough excuse.
Though sometimes, she did wonder what everyone would say if they knew how it happened. What was happening when she appeared with bruises and torn clothes.
After taking a few extra minutes in front of Regina's mirror to make herself look more presentable, Emma knew it was time to go. She hadn't even wanted to stay this long, but she was walking; she couldn't do that looking freshly fucked. Hair swept up into a pony tail, the blonde snagged her wallet and phone from the floor and headed for the bedroom door. "Night," she called over her shoulder. It may have been a hit and run, but they at least had that many manners towards each other.
"Miss Swan."
Pausing, Emma glanced over her shoulder. Regina regarded her for a moment. "You have a lunch with Henry tomorrow. Eleven thirty sharp. Do not be late."
It was quite clear in her tone what would happen if Emma waslate, and her brows shot up in surprise. This was the first time one of their nights had granted her any time with Henry. Maybe Emma had done an extra decent job this time. After another moment of pause, Emma nodded, then stepped out of the bedroom. She had stopped questioning Regina a long time ago.
Three Years Later
"Honestly, Emma, all I ask is that you call when you won't be home for dinner," Snow White scolded her blonde daughter as soon as Emma walked through the door. "And where on earth did you get that scarf?"
Damnit,Emma thought, irritable as her right hand coming up to touch the scarf Regina had let her borrow for the night. She should have known her mother would notice that it wasn't hers. Now that the curse was broken, and Snow knew a hell of a lot more about Regina and her tastes again, Emma wouldn't be surprised if the pixie haired woman called her out on who it belonged to. Thankfully, it didn't come to that.
"It's old," Emma said, dismissive as she headed towards the rickety steps that led to her bedroom. "The air in my car won't shut off. Needed something to keep my neck warm." That was half true, at least. The air in her car wasmessed up and wouldn't shut off. But Emma thrived in the cold, so the black silk scarf wasn't necessary. She had begun to ascend the steps when Snow called out to her.
"Emma! Dinner!"
Sighing, Emma shut her eyes and counted to five. When she turned around on the step, her features were arranged into a patient look as opposed to the annoyed one she had sported just a few seconds ago. "I'm sorry," she said. "Someone busted up a few windows on Main Street again, so I had to go check it out." Again, not untrue. She had just made a pit stop on the way home. A two-hour pit stop that ended in quite a few marks that forced her into wearing the stupid scarf in the first place. She supposed she was lucky that Regina had even let her wear it; they had gotten into quite a nasty verbal spar before Emma had left, and Regina had made sure to let Emma know that she didn't care if her parents found out that the Evil Queen was fucking their daughter.
The only reason Emma cared was because she wasn't willing to get involved in a murder. If Killian found out, she was positive Regina would kill him for his attempt at her.
Snow was staring hard at Emma, who blinked back at her in what she hoped was a normal form. But Snow had always been able to pick up on something strange in the air. She might not have acknowledged it out loud, but she was suspicious, and her eyes said so. "I'll leave it in the oven for you to have after you shower," Snow said. "I made chicken."
"Great," Emma said with a small smile. "Thanks, Mom."
That seemed to placate Snow for the time being, and Emma managed to turn and get up the stairs without interruption. She'd had half a mind to tell Snow to mind her own business and calm down, but she didn't have it in her to act like that towards someone who was still letting her stay with them. Someone who was trying so hard to be the mother Emma had always wanted. It was almost sickening to look at. But she knew she was going to get questioned soon, and she knew she was going to get the third degree about Killian if Snow had already figured out the signs.
Emma opened the door to her bedroom and tugged the scarf from her neck, tossing it to the floor as her fingers brushed a couple of the marks that still stung her skin. Her other hand searched around her pocket for her cell phone, which she turned on to check. She had gotten Killian one of his own not too long ago, but he was a complete idiot when it came to using it. Three text alerts flashed over her screen; one from the One Handed Wonder himself, and two from Regina. The only reasons Regina ever contacted her after one of their sessions was if Henry needed something, or if Regina was feeling vindictive. When she opened the first message, she was rolling her eyes to find that Regina had chosen door number two tonight.
'I fully expect to see that report at the beginning of the week. I've waited long enough on your lazy antics. I need to review it before the meeting.'
Emma deleted the message. The report would have been finished by now if Regina had given her some free time that week. It had been the first night in almost a month that they had been together, but the Mayor…Queen…whatever the hell she was calling herself, had a bad habit of piling Emma with work when she was in a bad mood. Clicking down, she opened the second message.
'And I do hope you're aware that the Sheriff's station is eligible for a fine if that report does not get finished before deadline.'
It wasn't the first time Emma had been threatened with a fine. Regina had never followed through with it, but the blonde knew better than to put it past her. They may be a little more…tolerant…of each other, but the crazy bitch that Emma had met upon first coming to Storybrooke was still alive in Regina today. Even so, that message got deleted, too.
The call she made to Killian was quick. They often were on nights like this. There was a large decrease in her cheating ways, but they were still happening, and even though she knew what she was doing, she still felt a bit guilty. She liked Killian. He stuck around for her, and he liked her, and it was nice to feel wanted and sought after again. But the longer it went on, the less guilty she felt. She was still wondering why that was.
"I love you," Killian said to her when they were ready to hang up. He had said it a few times already, and Emma really wished he would stop that. Her silence stretched on until she closed her eyes and muttered, "Yeah. Good night." She hung up the phone and tried not to let it haunt her as she turned out the light.
The next three days were busy and exhausting, and Emma was ready to tear Regina's throat out. "For someone who wants that report so fucking badly, she sure does find all this last minute paperwork to throw at me that needs to be done right now," Emma growled, throwing down a fresh manila folder with several printed pages in it that had shown up on her desk sometime between leaving for lunch and returning. Sometimes, she wished this town had just let Snow take over as Mayor. But no. Because Regina had always taken care of Storybrooke during the curse, they just had to go and trust her to keep doing so now that everyone knew who they were. Emma was all for redemption and notpissing Regina off, but it was getting exhausting to stay in her cordial circle of hell.
"You need to hire a Deputy," David said from where he stood across the room, an open filing cabinet taking up all his attention as he rifled through it. For what, Emma could only guess. She was sure it was something the blonde needed days ago, and now couldn't even think of due to the number of white sheets she was now drowning in.
"Isn't that what you were supposed to be here for?" Emma snapped, tone vicious. It made David whip around and give her an incredulous look. "Sorry," Emma muttered as she pushed things around on her desk. She wasn't. Where the hell was that folder for the report? She had justhad it!
As if things weren't already frustrating, the station phone chose that exact moment to ring. Emma groaned; she didn't have the patience to go get those little thieves again, or fish a cat from a tree. She didn't have the time.Snatching up the phone, Emma pressed it to her ear, ready to snap into it before David gave her the easy therelook, and she forced herself to expel a breath before taking another one. "Sheriff's station." Her voice was a hell of a lot more calm than she felt.
"Miss Swan," came the liquid voice that Emma really didn't want to hear right then. Emma shut her eyes, counted to ten, and then tried her luck.
"Regina," Emma replied, a bit curt. "What do you want? I'm busy."
"I need that report today," Regina said, cutting straight to the point. She sounded almost gleeful, making Emma wonder if she had been planning this from the start.
"You said next week," Emma growled. "I'm not finished."
"That's really not my problem, Sheriff," Regina said, and Emma could hear her typing up a few things on her keyboard. "You have until five. Be grateful I'm giving you that long." And with that, the line went dead, and Emma's patience shorted out.
"I should have let that wraith eat her soul," Emma growled as she slammed the phone down, tearing through her papers and folders in an attempt to find that folder. Of course, her words were empty; even with as big of a bitch as Regina was being, Emma would never wish any real harm upon her. Not anymore, at least. Something must be going on between her and Robin Hood, but no matter how much sympathy Emma had, she didn't react well to it being taken out on her.
When she found the folder, she flipped it open and read over what she had so far. Who the hell even cared about the Budget Report for the Security Assistance Team anymore anyway? Security had gone from random volunteers to Emma, David, and the dwarves. She was pretty sure a town full of magic folk didn't worry too much about their security teams anymore, seeing as they all looked at Emma as the Savior of Everything.
Regina had knocked her around enough for the week. She could wait on the report until Emma was finished with it. Slamming the folder shut, she shoved it in her bag to deal with at home that weekend, and let five o'clock come and go without a glance.
"Fuck!" Regina hissed, the leg not trapped in her tights wrapping around Emma's strong torso to drag the woman harder down on top of her. Emma's teeth pulsed at Regina's neck, earning another strangled noise when it was paired with a strong thrust of long fingers into her throbbing walls, and the blonde took pride in knowing that she had made Regina completely fall apart within ten minutes.
Regina had come to her that night. It was rare that Regina came looking for Emma for this, and even more rare that she deigned herself capable of lying on Emma's bed without flinching or making disparaging comments. It was Sunday night, and Regina had shown up at Emma's apartment in the closest thing to tears Emma had ever seen her in. She had looked horrible. And the blonde didn't know what it was, but she had developed the desire to wipe that look off of Regina's face, and it appeared that she had been successful. She lifted her head from Regina's neck to make sure, eyes tracing over features that were twisted in pleasure and concentration. Like this was the sole action that would keep her from slipping back into a place she didn't want to be in.
Emma hadn't asked, and she didn't plan to. She had better ways of fixing the problem, whatever it may be. And Regina looked sexed up that night, in a dark red dress that complimented her skin, black tights, and tall black pumps. As soon as she had gotten Regina into her room, she had her hands under that dress, ripping down the tights and the thin lace beneath them, and shoved her onto her bed. One shoe had been kicked off as Regina struggled to get at least one leg free so she could spread herself more easily. Emma hadn't had to work for it this time: she had climbed on top of Regina, slammed a bruising kiss to her lips, and shoved two fingers in with no prepping.
Regina had loved it. She'd cried out against Emma's lips and rolled her hips against her hand, and at the last second had the mind to cast a sound proofing spell in case Emma's parents came home. There were no insults when Emma took it in her own direction, no stopping her when Emma started biting in visible places. Whatever this was, it was a complete and total escape from something, and Emma planned on giving it to her.
It only took a few more thrusts and a brush of Emma's thumb to her clit before Regina was screaming, her whole body arching, then going rigid. Emma had made Regina scream once before, and it had been on a miserable, hot night when Regina's air was broken. Said heat had gotten to both of them. Emma didn't bother with any kind of victory parade in her head this time; she was just glad that Regina had gotten there at all. Her fingers kept moving through the jerking aftershocks, and when Regina went limp, Emma stilled. It was a couple of minutes of just watching Regina as she panted and squeezed her eyes shut before Emma realized she should back off. Pulling her fingers free, she crawled off of the brunette, settling next to her in a sitting position instead.
After a while, Regina opened her eyes. The scarred, hollow look had vanished, and the deep brown pools had reverted back to cold and unwavering. It was a good thing Emma didn't expect the favor to be returned, because Regina didn't look at all like she was willing to do it. "Well then," Regina said, and her cheeks scalded when her voice came out hoarse. Clearing her throat, Regina sat up, pushing a hand through her tousled hair before leaning down to work her foot back into the leg of her tights.
"Don't forget anything," Emma muttered, leaning over the side of the bed to grab a water bottle. Hook was coming over later, and that was the last thing she needed. Regina sniffed in response and her nose turned up when Emma offered her the bottle of water. So much for trying to be thoughtful.
Once Regina was dressed again, she stood in front of Emma's mirror, adjusting her hair. There was no way it was going to sit in its perfect style, but she still looked better than most people who just got fucked the hell out of and didn't have anything to fix themselves up with. It was odd, now that Emma thought about it, to realize that the tables were turned here; Emma was the one watching Regina ready herself to leave, and there was a faint tug in Emma's abdomen that felt a whole lot like disappointment. She put it down to wanting to know what had happened to send Regina right to her bedroom.
Bending down, Regina swiped her purse off of the floor where she had dropped it and slung it over her shoulder. The last time she was there, she hadn't spared Emma a glance as she waltzed down the stairs and out of the apartment. This time, she turned her head to face Emma, though she didn't look at her directly.
"Thank you."
Emma blinked in surprise. It was quiet, and for a minute she thought she had been hearing things, but no. Regina had just thanked her. For what? For fucking the hell out of her on a moment's notice? "Okay?" she answered, voice weak and confused. Regina didn't elaborate. She opened the bedroom door and stepped out onto the staircase, and Emma couldn't help but wonder if this would be the last time she heard from Regina for a while.
Two weeks passed without so much as a threat from Regina. Emma had turned in the report through the usual mediums, but she never heard a word about it. The meeting Regina had needed it so desperately for took place, but the Mayor wasn't even there. In a small bought of concern, Emma tried Regina's cell phone after work one night, but was sent straight to voicemail. She hung up with a frown; whatever had driven Regina into her bed must have been pretty serious if her phone wasn't even on.
A week and a half later, Emma talked to Henry. She had been trying to get hold of him the whole time, but between her work schedule, his school schedule, and Regina's insistence that he be home by a certain time, she never caught him. She had heard from her mother that Snow was the one driving him home, as opposed to Regina picking him up. That rubbed the blonde the wrong way; if something was wrong, the least Regina could do was pick up the damn phone and let her help with their kid. And she told Snow as much the night she found out that her mother had been picking him up, and volunteered herself for the task for the next day. She was outside the school at three twenty on the dot, and Henry came wandering out ten minutes later, looking around for Snow's car. When he saw the bright yellow Beetle across the street, he looked surprised, but jogged over anyway.
"Hey, kid," Emma greeted with a small smile as Henry climbed into the front seat and dropped his bag onto the floor. He looked stressed, which worried Emma; were things really that bad?
"You're totally going to grill me about Mom, aren't you?" Henry asked, looking amused with himself as he clicked his seatbelt into place and looked over at her. Emma snorted, then smirked; he was definitely her kid.
"Yep," Emma said in a matter-of-fact voice, turning on the car and directing it back out onto the road. "But I figured we'd get lunch first. You know, catch up before I start harassing you."
As they drove towards Granny's, Henry cut right to the chase. That was one thing she could admire about him; he had stopped beating around the bush, learning it wasn't beneficial on his end. "She's just sad," Henry said. "She makes dinner and stuff, and comes down to see me when I get home, but she's locked in her room most of the time otherwise. Or at her vault. At least, I think that's where she is."
"Has she used magic?" Emma asked, a touch of concern edging her tone. That was one of the biggest things she worried about; Regina losing her patience or her temper altogether, and doing something stupid. Marian had pushed Regina in the wrong direction, away from all the progress she had made. Emma didn't know Regina back when she was the Evil Queen, but she was pretty sure the brunette was taking steps back towards that path. Emma couldn't let it happen.
"I don't think so," Henry said as they pulled into the parking lot of the diner. "I can't really tell. And I can't ask anyone. She took my phone after Robin tried to call me to get in touch with her because she wouldn't answer her phone." Emma's brows flew up. "They saw each other two weeks ago," Henry was quick to add. "I saw them walking towards the cemetery together when Grandma picked me up. I don't know what happened. She came home hours and wouldn't talk to me."
Emma had gone stiff while Henry spoke, listening with rapt attention while trying not to give herself away. Two weeks ago…Regina had come to her apartment two weeks ago, looking wrecked and pleading with her body for a distraction that Emma had been more than willing to give to her. She had known that it had to have had something to do with Robin, but now Emma was curious about what. What on earth could have torn Regina down like that?
"He's leaving Storybrooke," Henry said quietly. "With Marian."
Oh.
"That's rough," Emma muttered. "And not all that big of him. He leads her on, even after his wife gets here, and then just up and leaves?" Emma turned off the car when she was parked, leaning back in her seat and looking over at Henry. "Do you know when?"
Henry shook his head. "I heard three weeks, but I'm not sure."
Three weeks? Why the hell would he be waiting so long? And where the hell would he even go? Sighing, Emma rubbed a hand over her face, head thinking back onto the seat she sat in. All of this was none of her business. Then again, she had a habit of not minding her own business when she was curious about something, and she was a little worried. Regina had never acted like this, even when Graham died. She honestly couldn't figure out what to do to help. She couldn't believe she wantedto help.
"Let's eat, kid," Emma said finally, pushing open the car door. "I want to hear about what you've been up to."
It was a pretty uneventful lunch, though Emma couldn't deny her happiness to be around Henry again. Regina had let up a little more on her death grip around him since the curse broke. Emma thought maybe it was because she was realizing that she just couldn't keep him from Emma now, especially since the blonde was the one who had broken the curse and saved his life. Emma had long since quit the attempts at stealing Henry – which had never been her intention in the first place, but she had to admit, she was pretty determined to take him out of Storybrooke the night Henry crashed them into a tree – and even had him home long before curfew on the days Regina did let her take him. So they were at an understanding now.
Henry was determined to have ice cream before they left, so Emma relented and let him have a bowl of chocolate. He looked far too happy for his other mother being so depressed. She supposed it was nice to be out in clean air; it had to be stifling in the mansion, no matter how much Henry loved Regina. She would never say so out loud, at risk of upsetting him even further. How did one even go about talking to a kid about negative energy and being able to feel that kind of thing, anyway? He would probably understand better than any other thirteen-year-old…but it didn't matter.
When they were back in the car, Henry turned to look at Emma. She paused in putting on her seatbelt, brows lifting; she hadn't seen that look on his face since he insisted that the curse was real. "Please help my Mom," he said, tone quiet, and Emma drew back a little in surprise.
"Henry, she doesn't want my –"
"I know you two are friends," Henry interrupted. "I know she trusts you." He took a deep breath, looked her dead in the eye, and added, "And I know something is going on with you two."
Shit. If Henry had figured it out, who else had? Was it obvious? Hook was going to murderher if he ever –
Okay, slow down, Emma thought to herself. If it was that obvious, Hook would have already ditched her. Her mother was getting suspicious, though, and so was her father. But they lived with her. It was kind of hard to hide it when she was sneaking in at random hours after promising to be home for dinner, or getting caught letting Regina out at three in the morning when they thought everyone was asleep. That had been a close one; Regina had already been out the door and all but running down the steps when the lights had turned on. And as unprepared as she had been, coming up with an on-the-spot lie had been weak at best.
So this didn't have to be a big deal. She could dumb it down for Henry and get away with it, too. First she had to wipe the shocked look off of her face, though.
"Henry, what exactly do you think is going on with me and your mother?" she asked. There. That was a good place to start. Not the absolute panic mode she had dissolved into for a minute there.
"I just do," Henry said with a shrug, which was notenough of an answer for Emma, and he could see it on her face that she was about to say so. "I can tell. I know both of you. And when you're both acting this way, I can tell that you're just…acting this way together."
"Henry," Emma started, struggling for the right words. "Your Mom and I just understand each other a little better than anyone realizes. That doesn't have to mean that there's something 'going on' with us. We're just…I don't know, civil, now." She wouldn't call them friends, even if they were sleeping together. They were more like two people who started out sharing one common interest, and now shared two. Hell, she didn't even have the right to call them civil; they still tried to tear each other apart at any opportunity they got, and neither one would be sorry if they succeeded.
"You don't look as interested when you're with Hook as you do when you're around Mom," Henry said. "That's how I know."
Letting out a soft sigh, Emma turned on the car and pulled from the parking lot. She needed to get this kid home before her head exploded. "Why does that have to mean something is going on?" she asked him. "I probably look less interested in Hook because I'm less interested in tearing his head off." Biggest lie on the planet. When Henry didn't say anything, she let out a silent breath of relief. Got out of that one. For now.
The rest of the ride was silent. When Emma pulled up in front of Regina's, she turned to face Henry with a small smile. "Call me, okay?" she said. "I'll see if she'll give you your phone back so you can at least talk to me." Henry nodded with a sort of defeated smile, and reached across to give her a hug. She returned it loosely; he was growing up too damn fast. He was getting to be as tall as her. His head didn't rest on her chest anymore, it was laying on her shoulder.
They released each other, and Henry got out of the car with his backpack, throwing a wave over his shoulder as he headed up the pathway and inside of the house. Emma sat there for a few moments, staring at the door he disappeared behind. Regina would throw a fit if Emma even tried to go in to see her. But Emma hadn't seen her in almost a month, hadn't even heardfrom her, and yeah – she was worried. Far more than she liked to admit, even to herself.
In the end, she ended up driving away. Emma was pushy, but she didn't have a death wish. Regina would come out of hiding on her own time. At least she wasn't blowing up half the town. But 'her own time' had better be within the next week, because Emma already had plans to go in, guns blazing, if not.
When Emma picked up the phone at the station four days later, she heard Regina's voice on the other end. The shock of it sent her into a lightheaded spiral.
"Miss Swan," Regina said coolly, in the same voice she tended to use when she was trying to mask something like exhaustion, or sadness. Emma scowled a bit, but only waited for her to continue. "I need you to fax over the budget report for the month."
Emma frowned. "Um," she said, floundering for a moment. "I did that last week. Eliza should have –"
"Eliza no longer works for me," Regina cut in. "Seeing as she didn't get a thing done during my leave, nor did she have any of the paperwork I required from her when I returned this morning." Regina was explaining herself. What the hell was going on? "So I need you to fax that report over, please." A pause as she seemed to notice her slip up, and then, sharper, "Now."
Please!? Emma felt like she had just stepped into an alternate world, where Regina was easy to work with, and even asked nicely. "Yeah," Emma said into the phone after a few beats of surprised silence. "Yeah, I'll…give me about five minutes, I need to get it out of the drawer." Another beat. "Are you…okay?"
"That will be all, Sheriff," came the clipped response, and the line went dead. Snorting, Emma rolled her eyes and hung up as well. Not like she expected Regina to talk to her over a business line, but it was a simple yes or no question. She sounded like she was getting back to normal, but she didn't sound all that well, either. Too much emotional turmoil? Was that even possible for Regina? Emma hadn't seen her feel a whole lot other than anger, animosity, and the love she had for Henry.
It took a few minutes to find the budget report. She had shoved it in the filing drawer for March as soon as she faxed it over to Regina's secretary the second week of the month. It didn't look healthy; there were a lot of cuts, but there were a lot of added on lines, too. It was a lot worse than February's, now that she thought about it, and she was not looking forward to the explosion Regina was going to have over that. If the woman was having some sort of mental/emotional breakdown, Emma knew she was just itching to take it out on someone else.
Once the report was faxed, Emma took it upon herself to start getting some of her own work done. No need to end up like Eliza. She was sure she would have been fired four years ago if that was really going to happen, and she wasn't all that concerned about it anymore, but there was always that inkling she had in the back of her head that told her not to push it. She couldn't focus all that well, too busy wondering if Regina would pick up her phone tonight if she called her, but she got at least half of the papers finished that she had decided to tackle. It was better than nothing.
She was halfway to packing up for the day when the phone rang again. Sighing, Emma picked it up, placing it to balance between her shoulder and her ear as she went about shoving a handful of papers in her bag. "Yeah?"
"Please explain to me why, in a town capable of magic, there is a three-thousand-dollar charge on this report for Firearms?"
Emma frowned. "What?" she asked, the shock of Regina calling for a second time that day dissolving with the even greater shock of a charge she didn't remember making. "What are you talking about?"
"You tell me, Miss Swan."
"I ordered two new guns, and both of them were out of my own pocket," Emma said. "There shouldn't be anything related to firearms on that report."
"Clearly, it wasn't out of your own pocket, because it's showing up on the town report," Regina snapped. "Three thousand dollars, Swan. What on earthwere you thinking spending that kind of money on two guns?"
"I didn't spend that from the town budget, Regina!" Emma insisted. They hadn't even been that expensive! She was at the filing cabinet now, tearing through some files, looking for where she had put the budget report. There had to be some kind of mistake in all of this. She barely had the file out of the cabinet when Regina snapped at her again.
"Either you fix this, or you are putting three thousand of your own money back into this town. I should fire you."
"But you won't," Emma snapped back. She heard Regina snort, though she couldn't tell if it was disbelief, amusement, or both.
"Oh, won't I?"
"No, you won't," Emma said. "Because then you'll have nothing to take out on me when Robin's the one pissing you off."
The line was dead silent for a few long moments, so much that Emma thought Regina had hung up. When her voice sounded over the line again, it was quiet, and more venomous than Emma had heard in three years. It made her insides go cold. "Excuse me?"
Shit. Well, this wasn't the way she had intended this to go, and she hadn't even meant to level that accusation. But it was out there now; there was nothing she could do about it. "You've been taking Robin's shit out on me for months," she said, trying not to be too harsh despite the topic. "You're making work impossible, but then you're showing up at my door in tearsbecause he did something to you – "
"How dareyou – "
" – and expecting me to be the one that shuts up and fucks you until you can't think! You thank me, you disappear for a month, you say pleaseearlier, and now you're threatening to fireme over something that doesn't even make sense!Grow up, Regina, because you're fucking with the wrong person now."
The line did go dead this time. Regina had hung up on her. Emma couldn't believe she had said all of that to her, and she almost felt sorry. It was like all the anger and underlying fear she had pent up from Regina's disappearance had just spilled out of her, aimed at the person she was so upset with in the first place.
And now she had to apologize, because Henry was going to have a complete fit if his Moms stopped getting along after making so much progress.
Emma went to drop into her seat, her eyes falling to the report in her hand. And there it was…Firearm Replenishment. Two thousand nine hundred and seventy-eight dollars. She hadn't put that on there. She handwrote all of the budget every month. So how had this shown up? It didn't make the least bit of sense, but it was on there, in her handwriting, and now she was fucked unless she could prove that the guns had notcost that much, and that she had bought them out of her own pocket money. Great. This was all she needed.
After making a copy of the report and putting the original away, Emma gathered the rest of her things and shut off the lights. Once she had locked up and was in the car, she turned her phone on, letting it load up as she pulled out of the station's parking lot. Soon after loading, the phone beeped with three text alerts. She didn't pick up the phone; the last thing she needed was to pass Regina on the street and get ripped into about texting while driving. She already wasn't in the mood.
It wasn't until she was in her parking spot at home that she picked up her phone and clicked open her messages; one from Killian, one from Snow, and one from Regina. Her curiosity peaked, but she forced herself to open Snow's first.
'Will you be home for dinner?'
She was already in the parking lot, so she would answer that question when she got upstairs. Killian's was next.
'Still having dinner tonight, love?'
Uh oh. She had forgotten she'd invited him over. Judging by the time stamp of three hours ago, and the agreement being seven thirty, he should have been upstairs already with her parents. They didn't have a lot of private dinners together anymore; Killian was too hell bent on making David accept his presence in Emma's life to miss out on opportunities for family dinners. She was having a hard time with the lack of intimacy they seemed to have becauseof this.
Regina's was last, and the one that surprised her the most.
'May I come over tonight?'
It was time stamped forty minutes ago. After the raging bitch fight they had gotten into today, Regina wanted to come over? All she could do for a while was stare blankly at the phone, confusion wracking every part of her as she tried to make sense, yet again, of something that made none at all.
'I have plans.'
Less than three minutes later, her phone beeped. Like Regina had been sitting on top of her phone, waiting for her to respond.
'Reschedule them.'
Emma's brows flew up. Who the hell did she think she was!? Expecting Emma to just give up her night's plans to accommodate sex. Was she out of her mind?
'I'm not cancelling my whole night to have sex.'
'Emma, I need to come over.'
Emma blinked. She hadn't expected that. The tone of that text was almost…afraid, maybe? No. Urgent. Emma had to wonder if this did have to do with sex.
'I'll text you in a few minutes.'
Hitting send, she shut her screen off and got out of the car, wondering how the hell she was going to get everyone out of the apartment. Why couldn't she just go to Regina's? It hadn't seemed like an option in Regina's mind, or she would have asked her to in the first place. This woman would never fail to confuse the hell out of her, and concern her at the same time.
"Emma!" Snow exclaimed in surprise when Emma stepped through the door. "We weren't expecting you, you didn't reply to my text, we just made reservations for –"
"It's okay," Emma cut in, holding up a hand. As expected, Hook was already there, lingering near the couch, but not sitting. He looked glad to see her. "I'm not staying. Something came up I have to go take care of." And then he didn't look happy to see her, and Emma almost winced. Almost.
"Oh," Snow said, looking disappointed. "What…is everything okay?"
Pausing for a few moments, Emma thought before she blurted, "Henry's sick." Well, at least it was something plausible this time. She was going to have to tip Henry off, ask him to just go with it for her. He already knew something was going on, anyway. Taking a breath, she turned to Hook. "I'm sorry. Next week?" She tried her best to look sorry, and realized it had been a long time since she had feltsorry for treating him a certain way. She should have been more disappointed in herself.
While Hook's expression was disappointed, it held a note of understanding now as he nodded. "Tell the lad to get better," he said, reaching out to take one of Emma's hands and squeeze. "Come by the docks tomorrow, aye?"
With a small smile at the offer, Emma nodded. "Yeah," she said. "I'll come by before work."
"You're welcome to still join us for dinner, Hook," David said, and Killian looked beside himself with joy. Emma wasn't sure why it irked her so much that he was winning her father's favor. Maybe the awkwardness of him being in the same room with her parents with her not there. Who knew what they talked about when they were alone? Maybe some weird plans to get them engaged. The idea made Emma shudder.
"I'm sorry," Emma repeated when it was just she and Hook in the vicinity. "I can't just leave Henry."
"Where's Regina?" Killian asked, and Emma lifted a brow. Here it went. More lying.
"I still haven't heard from her," she said. "She's probably home, but she's not really in shape to be taking care of him."
"Just take care of the lad, and come see me tomorrow," Killian said, repeating the same thing he said before. Emma nodded, and tried her hardest when he leaned in for a soft kiss that made her feel guilty all over again. He did care for her. It had been a long time since she'd had anyone who had. She needed to start paying better attention, and treating him better.
When everyone was gone, Emma dropped onto the couch and pulled out her phone. 'Everyone's gone. We have about two hours.'
Nothing.
Just when Emma was starting to get nervous again, there were three brisk knocks on the front door. It figured Regina wouldn't even send an 'on my way' text. It was a good thing Emma had thought to grab a few things off of the floor after firing off that last message. Running a hand through her hair, which she had taken out of the band she had thrown it up in that morning, Emma made her way to the door and pulled it open. Regina stood on the other side, looking regal as ever; the dress she wore clung to her figure, though it was oddly cinched, like Regina had thrown it on and not even bothered to straighten it. The deep purple brought out her skin tone, and the black tights led down to tall black heels. She looked just as she always would, like she hadn't been gone for a month, but her eyes…
Emma was positive she had never seen such a haunted look. There were dark bags under her eyes, and they weren't as bright with whatever emotion she was feeling. She looked defeated, and a bit scared. Emma wanted to throttle Robin Hood. He had drained one of the most put together women Emma had ever known into a lifeless corpse.
Wordless, Emma stepped aside, and Regina swept into the apartment without sparing a glance at her. Once the door was shut and locked, the blonde turned to look at Regina. She was staring around the living room, though it didn't look like she was seeing anything. While Emma would have started asking questions right off the bat in any other case, something stopped her this time. Regina turned to face her, and Emma noticed how pale she had gotten.
"Are you…" Emma trailed off, knowing it was a stupid question. Regina was notokay. She looked undoubtedly sick, and her suspicion was confirmed when Regina shut her eyes, her hand lifting to her mouth as she took a slow breath. Emma moved forward, reaching out to help her onto the couch, but Regina lifted a hand to stop her. So instead of touching her, Emma hurried for the kitchen to get her water.
This isn't right, Emma thought to herself as she dropped some ice cubes into a glass and filled it with water. 'Are you okay' wasn't even the question she wanted to ask. More like 'what the hell is going on' or 'why the hell do you look so sick?' She had a feeling these questions were going to be answered either way. There was somereason Regina was here, and she could see quite clearly now that it was notfor sex.
When Emma got back to the living room with the water, Regina was perched on the edge of the couch, one hand pressed to her stomach as she stared at the coffee table in front of her. Now she just looked small, and the fear was present more than ever. She looked startled when the glass clinked on the table where Emma set it, and her eyes shot up to look at the blonde that was righting herself from bending.
"I need…" Regina began to say, but trailed off, looking instead at the water glass. Emma waited for a good three minutes, just looking at her, before speaking.
"What do you need?" she prompted. Regina glanced at her, then looked back at the glass of water.
"I need you to go to the drug store for me," Regina said, words pronounced slow. "The one by the town line." She was silent for another few moments, ignoring the befuddled look on Emma's face. What she said next almost caused Emma to faint from lack of oxygen. "I need you to get me a pregnancy test."
Holy shit. It was the lone thought Emma could come up with at that present moment as she stared at Regina in complete and total disbelief. When Regina looked at her, it was with a sharp, no-arguing expression, and even Emma couldn't contend with it. Okay. Pregnancy test. She could do that.
"What," Emma tried, and had to clear her throat to work out the hoarse tone she had picked up. "How did, how did you tell in your world if you were –"
"The methods of the Forest aren't an option here," Regina cut in, though Emma could tell she didn't have a lot of conviction in the harshness of her diction. How could she? She was probably freaking the hell out over a pregnancy scare that might not be a scare, that might actually be –
Emma had to force herself to stop thinking. It shouldn't be so shocking: Regina had raised Henry. But she hadn't hadHenry. Emma had done that part on her own. The blonde hadn't considered Regina's capability of getting pregnant, didn't think it was possible for her to do so (which was ridiculous, she was just as much of a woman as any other). She was thinking so much again that she didn't realize Regina was glaring hard at her.
"Emma," Regina snapped, and the blonde returned to reality. Whenever Regina used her first name, she knew she was serious. And this was so far beyond serious that Emma wasn't sure how to handle it.
Fight or flight.
She wanted to run.
"Okay," Emma said, nodding to make sure she had convinced herself. "Okay. I can…I'll be right back." She grabbed her jacket and pointed at the water. "Drink that," she added. "You look really sick." Regina glared again as Emma shot out the door.
It didn't take as long as it should have. The speed limit was forgotten as Emma sped towards the small, twenty-four-hour drug shop out near the town line, just at the corner of the woods. It was a ridiculous place to put it; she'd always wondered why the owner had thought it was a good idea. It must have been for reasons like this that required a little more discretion. Emma couldn't think of any gossip that involved visits to this place. She wasn't fond of the idea of the owner thinking she was the one that was pregnant, but she knew she was going to have to suck it up and deal with it in this case.
She spent a few minutes in the women's products aisle, scrolling through the options that were presented on the shelves. She couldn't see a simple pregnancy test from a drug store being good enough for Regina fucking Mills, but whatever floated the Queen's boat was what Emma was going to go with. What if she was pregnant? What the hell did she intend on doing then? Robin was leaving, for God's sake. Maybe he'd reconsider…maybe he'd stay…
With a soft growl of annoyance, Emma snatched one of the most trustworthy looking boxes from the shelf and headed for check out. As expected, the owner gave her a startled look, which she returned with only a pointed stare. She wouldn't claim it wasn't for her; Regina would murder her if she told anyoneabout this, and she surprised herself by wanting to stay in Regina's good graces over this. The woman had trusted her enough to come to her and ask her for this. Regina neverlet personal information leak into anything.Emma must have done something right.
Snatching the plastic bag off of the counter once she had paid, Emma hurried out of the store and back into her car. She had been gone for about fifteen minutes, and she knew Regina was climbing the walls by now. So, yet again, the speed limit was ignored, and Emma was back home in record time. As expected, Regina was up pacing, impatience etched in every step she took. She had taken her heels off and was padding around barefoot along the floor, her hands clenching and unclenching as she closed her eyes and opened them. When she realized Emma was there, was quick to compose herself. It had been too late, and she knew it; Emma had seen her obsessing.
Not speaking, Emma held out the bag to her. Regina snatched it and turned, shooting up the steps towards Emma's room. Well, at least she was using Emma's private bathroom instead of the general bathroom downstairs. She waited a few minutes before picking up Regina's shoes and water glass, carrying them upstairs to her bedroom, where she deposited the shoes in front of her bed and the glass on the bedside table. Even as close to the bathroom as she was, she couldn't hear a thing on the other side. So she dropped onto the bed and tried to think of something other than Regina peeing on a stick, to absolutely no avail.
It was taking forever. Regina had been in there for close to thirty minutes, and Emma wasn't sure if checking on her was worth her life. She was halfway to deciding it was when the door clicked open, and Regina stepped out, ashen faced and shaking. Emma's stomach dropped. Uh oh. What did one say to someone they had been on a hate-but-still-civil level with when they found out they were pregnant? Instead of making herself sound like an idiot, she just stayed silent as Regina shut the bathroom door and leaned on it, her body weight giving out in that moment of clarity.
"No one can know."
It had been a long stretch of silence, so when Regina spoke, Emma almost jumped off of the bed in surprise. She nodded; she hadn't intended on saying anything anyway. "Of course," she said softly. "I wouldn't…"
"I know you wouldn't." Regina's voice was devoid of any kind of significant emotion. She was silent again for a while before a harsh, bitter laugh escaped her. "Can you imagine…what this town is going to say when they find out about this?"
Was this an invitation to talk? To give her opinion? Something told her no, that Regina was just speaking out loud for the sake of hearing the reality of it. Emma took a moment to think, though, because if anyone was going to give Regina a voice of reason, she wanted it to be her.
"I don't think you care what everyone is going to think," Emma said. "I think you're afraid of what Robin's going to think." It had been a long shot to voice that. It got half of the reaction Emma expected: Regina tensed up, jaw clenched, and she shut her eyes to reel in the bought of anger. But she didn't explode. She exhaled hard, and before Emma knew it, there were three tears streaking her cheeks, and Emma couldn't just sit there anymore.
Pushing herself off of the bed, Emma crossed the room to Regina, her hand gentle as it took her upper arm. "Hey," she said, pulling her from the door. "Sit down." Her own shock was pushed to the back of her brain, more focus going into getting Regina in control of herself. She was glad when Regina followed without a fight, and they both sunk onto the mattress next to each other, Emma with her leg curled up on the mattress so she could face the brunette. "Are you going to tell him?"
Regina snorted, eyes opening. "Do I have a choice?"
Emma was silent for a moment. "Yes," she said. "You do have a choice." Regina glanced at her, and Emma continued. "Neal didn't know he was Henry's father until a year ago. I never even tried to make him aware of it. It's completely up to you how you deal with this situation."
Lifting her hands, Regina wiped at her eyes, then let out another harsh exhale. "I'll have to see a doctor," she said, all business all the sudden. The change was making Emma dizzy.
"I can call Whale if you –"
"No," Regina snapped, turning a glare on Emma again. "No one in this town can know."
Emma frowned. "Then how do you expect to…" she trailed off when it hit her. "Oh." She paused, letting the information sink in."Oh."
"I assume you know some adequate doctors in Boston?" Regina asked, reaching down to slide her heels on. Her walls had gone up, and Emma wanted to bust them back down with everything she had, but what the hell was she supposed to do when Regina was this far gone?
"Regina," Emma said. "How do you expect to go see a doctor in Boston? Didn't you ever think…what if the baby has magic?"
That brought Regina to a pause. "Then I suppose I'll deal with it then," Regina said, still short. When she stood, she grabbed the glass of water, took a large drink, and then handed it to Emma. And then she stood staring at the blonde in silence for what seemed like eternity before speaking again. "Thank you."
Emma could only stare at Regina's back as she left the room and headed down the steps to escape. Emma was fucked. She was the only one that knew about this, and she had a feeling this was going to be the end of her sanity.
