That Simple
by misscam
Disclaimer: Not my characters, just my words.
Author's Note: Written to the prompt: Snow giving love advice to Regina. Set after 3x22, but makes no references to the Frozen arc.
II
The door bell makes Regina almost jump out of her skin. Oh, she has everything ready, but she still feels strangely nervous.
She's having the Charmings for dinner.
The Charmings.
Regina isn't sure exactly when she started finding comfort in Snow and Charming's relationship, as unthinkable as that would have been years ago. Maybe she just gradually got so used to seeing it that it's comforting being so constant. Maybe it was the return of the memories from their year in the Enchanted Forest and all she saw of it there. Maybe it's knowing how close Snow came to lose Charming. Maybe it's her own mess of a heart. Maybe it's all of those and more.
But somewhere along the line what used to make her angry and want to claw Snow's heart out is now a comfort. Oh, she still rolls her eyes at them and make pointed comments, as she is still Regina, but sometimes that feels more like a cover than anything else.
A bad cover, given that she actually invited them to dinner – the Charmings -, and they actually accepted, and here they are.
Snow is smiling as she opens the door, holding Charming's hand. They've even dressed up slightly, with Snow is a red dress and Charming in a dark sweater, which makes Regina feel less odd about wearing a dress herself.
"Hello, Regina," Charming says. "Sorry we're late. Neal was slightly fussy and Snow wanted to calm him down before leaving him with Emma."
"Of course," Regina says. She has many memories of Henry as a fussy baby, especially at first when she didn't even know what she was doing. It is perfectly natural, she knows now, but it still makes for very worried mothers. "How is the baby?"
"Wonderful," Snow breathes, her whole face seeming to light up. Charming looks at her lovingly, and Regina swallows.
"Come in," she says, managing a sort of smile. "I made lasagna and strawberry cake."
II
The lasagna is excellent, of course. The strawberry cake isn't as good as her apple cake, but she wanted to avoid apples for this. She even bought pear cider for Snow rather than apple, as she figured wine would be for Charming only with Snow still breastfeeding.
She's made an effort, and she feels extremely self-conscious about it.
Snow and Charming seem to appreciate it without making a big deal out of it, happily. The conversation has a few awkward moments, but they manage to keep it mostly light. Snow and Charming are happy to talk about baby Neal, and she's strangely happy to listen, occasionally offering anecdotes about Henry that they seem to enjoy.
They both offer to help with the cleaning, but Regina sternly orders them to the living room couch instead. She catches glimpses of them curled up together and holding hands as she cleans, exchanging a few kisses, and she tries not to think too much about how she would look curled up against Robin on that couch.
When she's finally done and joins them, Charming excuses himself to make a call to check on Emma and baby Neal, but also to give herself and Snow a moment, Regina is pretty sure. Subtle, the pair of them have never been, especially not in love.
Snow watches him walk into the hallway with a smile, then looks at Regina with a slightly worried expression. "Why did you invite us to dinner, Regina?"
Tact has never been a strong trait with the Charmings either, Regina thinks faintly, and wonders if she might actually be starting to appreciate that. But she has no good answer to that, and all the sarcastic ones she can think of, she finds herself not wanting to say.
Snow regards her calmly, then leans forward. "How are you doing, Regina?"
Regina glances down at her hands, realizing she's clasping them together so hard it hurts. "I'm... I got Henry again. He's all I ever wanted."
"That's not true anymore," Snow says softly, but her words feel like they're cutting into Regina.
No, it isn't, Regina knows. Oh, she still loves Henry, her beautiful, bright son. She loves him so much it aches, and having him back in her life is like light returned to her life. But she wants something more than just her son in her life now.
She had something more, after all. For a brief, wonderful time, she had Robin too.
Robin.
"His wife called me a monster," she says, not quite looking at Snow. She, more than anyone, would know how true those words was once. They were true. Robin never saw her as the Evil Queen. That he might start to now, that hurts more than Regina would like to admit.
"It took Charming a while to accept that I still cared about Regina after all the Evil Queen had done to me," Snow says softly after a few moments. "But he did."
"You think Robin will care about me after this?" Regina asks, trying very hard not to sound hopeful.
"I don't know," Snow replies. "I'm not him. I just know it's not impossible."
Not impossible. Strangely, that makes her feel better. Not impossible is hope, and hope is... Hope has worked for Snow and Charming. Maybe it can work for Regina Mills too.
"You two always make love seem so simple," Regina says after a moment, but not angrily. In a strange way, she's come to respect how impossible it proved to tear them apart.
"We love each other," Snow agrees, touching her ring gently. "That might be simple, but it's also the important part. Do you love him, Regina?"
Regina exhales. Does she? She enjoyed flirting with him even before she saw the tattoo, and afterwards... Afterwards she opened herself up to the possibility, and at Snow's advice no less.
And everything seemed so possible when she was with him, when she smiled at him, when he kissed her, when he held her hand and let Roland hold her other.
"It's possible," she says, and Snow's hand touches her gently. "Yes."
"Then that's the simple and important part," Snow says, and Regina finds herself oddly nodding. "No matter how complicated everything else gets... Don't underestimate love. It might be simple, but it is strong."
"It is," Charming agrees, and they both look up to see him leaning against the frame of the door. He's looking at Snow, who looks up at him with an equally love-struck expression.
They still love each other. After everything, they still love each other. They're still together.
That is why their relationship is a comfort to her now, Regina realizes. She needs... She needs to believe love can actually be enough to get through anything. It was for Snow and Charming, after all.
Maybe it can be for Regina and Robin too.
Maybe it can be that simple.