A/N: Who's ready for some more adorable Swan-Mills Family goodness? Audrey and Sophie Swan-Mills are precious and I just can't get over how much fun they are to write. I hope you all enjoy this next update.
"Girls!" Regina yelled from the foyer, "Come down for a snack!" The brunette turned around and started for the kitchen. Halfway through the doorway a pair of arms snaked around her from behind startling her.
Emma Swan-Mills growled hungrily into her wife's neck and caressed her body with soft squeezes… everywhere. "Did someone say snack?"
Regina smiled and covered her wife's hands with her own trying to pull them from her body. "I am not on the menu, dear."
"Awww," Emma sulked, rubbing herself suggestively against Regina's backside, "Are you sure about that?" The blonde's arms embraced her tighter and her hands wandered to Regina's ribs, a very sensitive tickle spot.
"Emma…" Regina warned, trying to stifle laughter as she wiggled in her wife's arms.
"Oh yeah, move just like that…"
"Emma!"
A burst of laughter erupted from the brunette as the younger woman probed at Regina's sides. Emma chuckled and seduced softly in her ear, "I say we put you on the menu. I have a craving for some Regina…"
They were interrupted by the sound of running Converses and appearing in the doorway were their twin daughters, each carting a sheet of drawing paper and two crayons. The older twin, Audrey, had only the sides of her hair pulled back into a hair clip and she was dressed in a pair of black leggings under a flowered pilgrim blouse and purple low top converses. Sophie, in contrast, wore a pair of faded jeans and a horizontal thick striped polo shirt with red high top converses.
"Ooh!" Sophie exclaimed, laying her crayons and drawing on the table and sidling up to her moms. She wasn't sure whether she wanted to help one mom to tickle or save the other. She'd gauge the situation first. "Is it tickle Mommy time?"
Audrey sat at the table and waited for an answer before deciding whether she wanted to get involved at all. She was a bit more methodical than her sister and always liked to think and plan things through before acting.
"No!" Regina pried herself away from Emma, who twisted her face in surrender. Regina put her arms around Sophie and walked a few paces away. "It is NOT tickle-Mommy time. As a matter of fact…" she lifted her chin pretending defiance at her wife, "… NEVER tickle Mommy again."
When the older woman stuck her tongue out playfully, Emma quipped with a smirk, walking to Audrey, seated at the table, "Stick it out at me one more time and I'll put that tongue to good use."
"LIKE EATING ICE CREAM!" Sophie shouted enthusiastically, the innuendo lost on her, and she was too excited at the possibility of ice cream that she missed Regina's smirk at Emma in return with an arched eyebrow.
Audrey's attention was piqued. "Are we eating ice cream, Mommy?" Audrey thought it was always a good time for ice cream. She absently put her arms up when she felt Emma behind her who hugged her affectionately. She liked how sometimes Ma would pick her up and throw her over her shoulder and hold her upside down. Her Ma was strong and always gave the best swings and piggy-back rides.
"No…" Regina simpered handing Sophie the carton of milk which she carted to the table."
Emma snickered into Audrey's hair and kissed the top of her head. "Nice try, Aud."
"What?" Audrey argued and faced Regina, "Mommy. I think ice cream is healthy."
"Do you?" Regina smiled affectionately, leaned against the counter and encouraged, "Explain." Her daughters were always surprising her with their ideas. She always encouraged them to think things through for themselves and she was happy to patiently listen and guide them. Parenting small children was still a challenge, but very rewarding, and easier this second time around for her.
"Well…" Audrey caught her bottom lip between her teeth and tipped her eyes up in thought. "Our Rocky Road ice cream has almonds in it and almonds are healthy. Plus it has milk in it, so that's a good source of Vitamin D."
Emma blinked down incredulously at Audrey who was debating the benefits of ice cream consumption, probably on a daily basis. When she was 5, Emma didn't care what was in it. She just wanted ice cream "mustaches." She glanced up at Regina who was grinning proudly and clearly well entertained.
"Don't forget the chocolate. Chocolate is good for you too," Sophie piped up. Emma smiled inwardly at that. She loved that her girls were brave enough to try and convince Regina Swan-Mills that chocolate and marshmallow ice-cream is beneficial to one's health.
"Cacao can be good for you but not necessarily chocolate," Regina reminded.
"Oh yeah." Sophie sat next to her sister and slowly tried to pour herself a glass of milk.
"Uh… Do you need help, Soph?" her blonde mother asked, stepping a little closer.
"No," the little girl with the ponytail replied back, arms a little shaky with the weight, but Emma recognized the determined set of the child's jaw; she had seen the same look on Regina many times. She probably wore a similar look a few times herself. "I… got… it…" Proud that she had successfully poured herself a cup of milk from the heavy new milk jug, she moved to close it when she stopped and glanced at her sister.
Emma could see her younger daughter thinking something over and, engaged, the mother noticed Sophie shrug, pass the filled cup to her sister and began to pour another cup for herself, struggling a little bit again. Emma's heart filled with pride at the selfless action.
"Thanks, Soph," Audrey nodded, her eyes never leaving the page she was doodling on.
"Uh huh." Sophie leaned in to whisper at her sister, "I think ice cream is a no-go."
"You would be right, Sweetheart," Regina smiled and then turned to praise Audrey, "and that was clever reasoning, love, but I'm afraid ice cream is not quite as healthy as you think but maybe we can have ice cream for dessert."
"Score!" Audrey high-fived her twin and Regina shook her head and chortled as she placed a plate of apple slices, mini pretzels, cheese cubes and cucumber slices in front of the girls.
While she was making coffee she felt Emma pass behind her and joke, "What? No Oreos?"
She shot her wife an inflexible glare and scoffed. "Please. It's bad enough you've got them hooked on grilled cheese, greasy onion rings and…" Regina stared meaningfully at Emma, "… banana-split sundaes at Granny's?"
"What?" Emma pressed up against her again. "It's got fruit in it and the three of us always split one. Don't worry. I usually make them eat more of the banana and I eat the ice cream." The blonde winked indicating she was joking.
"Miss Swan…" Regina still used the old moniker occasionally, usually when annoyed or stressed.
"MILLS!" Their twins giggled loudly from the table, as they always did to finish their Ma's true name now. Emma chuckled and kissed Regina's cheek and whispered for her ears only.
"Don't worry, R'gina. I won't die on you." The corners of Regina's lips curled up as she continued to prepare their coffees. Emma moved away to fumble around the kitchen. "I believe I told you once before that you weren't getting rid of me that easily."
Yes, the savior had told her that more than a couple times; when she was so exasperated with the blonde that she wanted her to get lost, when she had tried to push the woman away in order to save her life, and when the woman would stalk her on missions even after Regina would repeatedly assure the woman loudly that she "got this".
Emma Swan-MILLS, Regina added grinning, had never given up on her and had shown her in more ways than one, that she was Regina's true love and happy ending.
She heard the crunching of apples between teeth and looked out at her lovely apple tree.
"These are our apples, aren't they Mommy?"
"Yes. You know we never need to buy apples, Sophie." As their parents, she and Emma were still the only ones who could tell them apart just by sound.
"Our apples are the best apples in town," Audrey proudly whooped and Regina could hear the proud grin on the little girl's face, which was the spitting image of the dimpled smile her other mother often wore.
The brunette sighed happily but then got a little sentimental missing Henry, who was away at college. Even though he lived a four hour's drive away he was rarely ever far from her mind. Maybe they'd FaceTime with him tonight.
Picking up the mugs, she turned and gasped in surprise at the scene before her. The three other Swan-Mills females were sitting at the table with a big jar of peanut butter between them. Audrey had just heaped a spoonful of the sticky nutty concoction on her sisters apple wedge and then her own. She watched her youngest daughter bite down on the wedge and her beautiful brown eyes go wide in deep satisfaction and the delectable taste. Emma was no better as she whipped a finger through the glob of peanut butter and sucked it into her mouth.
"Uh-oh," Audrey muttered as she caught Regina blinking and frowning at them all. Then she giggled a little finger in her mouth.
Sophie looked over with a small morsel of peanut butter on her chin. As regina walked closer she addressed them all mockingly, "Defiling my beloved apples with this glop." The girls giggled again; they were always giggling and Regina loved that.
Emma bit into an apple as Regina placed her coffee in front of her. There was a dollop of peanut butter left at the corner of Emma's lips and before the blonde could act, Regina grabbed her wife's chin and cleaned it up with a quick unnoticeable lick and suck. As she raised her head again she saw that Emma's eyes had darkened.
"It's good, Mom. It's nutty."
"You two are nutty." Regina quipped rounding the table and sitting next to Sophie, fully aware that her wife's eyes were still glued to her.
She passed napkins to both daughters who were messily licking peanut butter off their fingers.
"It is delicious, mom, you should try it."
"No. I don't think so." Regina unfolded a napkin into her lap and ate a slice of cheese on a cracker.
"Chicken," Emma kiddingly provoked sipping her coffee and then popping some pretzels into her mouth. The younger mother grabbed an apple wedge off the plate and scooped a chunk of peanut butter onto it and held it out to her wife. "Come on, you'll like it."
"Oh, and you know this, how?" Regina scoffed sipping her coffee.
"Because I know the kinds of things you like to have in your mouth." Emma's cheeks dimpled indecently and Regina's eyes widened over the rim of her cup. Then Emma turned to the twins. "I think your mommy needs some encouragement."
They were on their knees now bouncing in their chairs while encouragingly chanting, which Emma had started first, "Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!..."
Regina's slow grin and narrowed eyes directed at her wife, indicated her suspicion. "This had better not be a repeat of our wedding cake, Miss Swan…"
"MILLS!" More giggles. "Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!"
Emma wiggled her eyebrows and Regina laughed and pointed at the blonde. "If I get peanut butter up my nose… You had better run, that is all I have to say."
"I hope Ma's underpants are fire-proof," Audrey said to her sister behind her hands. Sophie smacked her forehead in laughter and began chanting encouragement again. Her moms were so funny.
Regina leaned in slowly watching the food coming closer and then at Emma warily.
She opened her mouth and Emma slipped the food in slowly and the brunette bit down quickly before her wife could pull anything tricky. In doing so she had peanut butter on her lip.
"Wait!" Emma bolted out of her chair and was in front of Regina lightning fast as the older woman grabbed her napkin. Emma delivered a loving smile before she bent down and kissed the peanut butter off. Then she stood up straight arms in a victory pose and cheered at the girls, "She did it!"
There were loud howls and whoops as Regina slowly chewed with a mouth full of peanut butter. "Mm… Hrmm." She held fingers up to her mouth and nodded, the challenge of consuming the big amount of peanut butter Emma had given her evident.
"Well?" Audrey asked curiously. "What do you think? Delicious, right?"
Regina gulped and smacked her lips grabbing her coffee cup. "Mm. Good."
"She hated it." Sophie simply stated taking a pretzel and running it along the rim of the peanut butter jar.
"No. It actually wasn't terrible." Regina admitted and smiled at all of them. She felt Emma's foot stroke her leg under the table, not entirely suggestive but more affectionate.
"Ma? What's on TV tonight?" Audrey had gone back to coloring since she was done with her snack.
Emma reached for the newspaper and flipped through to the TV Guide. She guffawed and purposefully looked at Regina. "Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarves…" She closed the paper.
Sophie laughed and then put her hands up in a ghoulish stance and wiggled her fingers in the air for dramatic flair. Her voice went deeper than normal in a sinister way, "Mirror, Mirror, on the wall… who is the fairest one of all!"
"That was never my catch phrase," Regina pointed with a newly bitten into cucumber slice.
"It's silly anyway. In real life Mommy is way prettier than Grandma." Audrey expressed her opinion bluntly and then smiled at her moms, "Though Grandma is pretty, I'm just saying Mom is prettier."
"Hey, you got my vote, Aud."
"Thank you, dear," Regina beamed at her daughter, leaning back in her chair. She so enjoyed quality family time, especially in the afternoons on the weekends.
"Yeah," Audrey nodded, "Cartoon Snow White is a dumb virgin anyway."
Emma and Regina both sputtered their coffee at the same time and Sophie looked up from her drawing with an inquisitive crinkle in her forehead.
"What did you just say," a shocked Emma inquired wondering if she had heard right.
"That Snow White is a dumb virgin?"
"That's what I thought you said." Emma looked at Regina, who was leaning her elbow on the table, her mouth covered by her palm, intensely eyeing Audrey as if wondering how to proceed.
That's when the other twin piped up with confusion and hard curiosity in her eyes looking to her moms, "What's a virgin?"
Emma mouth opened and then closed, then opened again. Her gaze darted to Regina who was still frowning and blinking. "Well…" Emma started and then looked at Regina, who seemed about to address her daughters when Audrey interjected.
"A virgin! Soph, you know. Like another virgin of a story. How mommy makes her own virgin of chocolate cream pie."
The light shone in both their mother's eyes as realization dawned, but it was Regina who spoke up, while Emma hid her laughs behind her coffee cup.
"VERSION, Audrey dear. The word you're looking for is version."
"Oh."
"Phew," Sophie expressed relief. "At least it wasn't me messing up a word this time. I'm usually the one messing a word up." The younger twin smiled sheepishly at her parents.
"That's how you learn, kid."
"Yeah." Audrey said and then held up her drawing. "Finished!"
Three pairs of eyes took in the colorful drawing. There were five figures standing in front of a big house that looked close to 108 Mifflin Street. They were all holding hands.
"Is that Henry in the middle?"
"Yep. With his headphones on."
"You gave your brother a beard?" Regina groaned.
"He wants to grow one. He told me." Sophie informed them in ecstatic approval.
"He's in the middle because we wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Henry." Audrey pointed out matter of factly. Sophie nodded over her milk and grinned widely in agreement.
"Let's try and FaceTime him, shall we?" Emma could hear the catch in Regina's voice and felt the warmth of it in her middle. Thanks to Henry.
The twins were jumping with excitement and Emma grabbed the drawing. "This is going on the fridge."
Sophie called out as she exited the kitchen, "I'll get the iPad!"
Regina collected a few dishes and placed them on the counter and then she stepped into Emma's waiting embrace. As they slowly stroked each other's backs and cherished the closeness of the moment, Regina viewed the cute new drawing added to the others on the refrigerator's door.
"Audrey. What is this thing here?" Regina pointed to an object on the drawing and Emma turned to look at it too.
"A puppy?" She gave a hopeful chortle and ran out in search of her sister leaving her moms to stare incredulously after her and then groan at each other.
"Uh-oh."
"It begins!"
They smiled at each other and laughed, pressing their cheeks together.
The End
