Just a piece of inspiration that I had to get out of my mind… ;)
It has been a particular slow day at the office for Regina. There simply wasn't much to do, so she went home a little earlier than usually.
I still need to go grocery shopping. And I could search for the Christmas tree decoration in the attic, Regina thinks while opening the door to the mansion.
Walking through the foyer she sees Emma's red leather jacket thrown lazily over one of the chairs. Regina somehow had gotten through that thick pretty head of Emma and had convinced her to buy a winter coat that would actually keep her warm, instead of wearing that ridiculous piece of clothing all winter.
Sometimes I think she is sloppy on purpose to annoy me, Regina thinks grabbing the jacket and hanging it tidily into the cloakroom.
After having changed into more comfortable clothes, Regina goes to the top floor and pushes the door to the attic open, effectively pulling the ladder down so she could move up there.
She climbes three steps and immediately is having a fit of coughs due to the dust she has whirled up.
I really should come up here more often.
Skillfully she scans the room for the decoration she has stored there after last Christmas. Quickly finding what she was looking for she grabs the package when a beautiful wooden treasure chest appears in her vision. She stops to regard it more closely.
It certainly is covered in a layer of dust, indicating that it hadn't been touched for some time, still there is less powder on it than on any other object in the attic. She touches it lightly seeing an engraved "E" on the closure.
Must be Emma's then, she thought, but why haven't I seen this before when she moved all her stuff and boxes here? I would have recognized it.
Curiosity gets the better of her and within a second she has opened the beautiful object.
Maybe here she stocks her beloved Jack Daniel's bottles thinking I wouldn't find them, she smirks thinking of Emma and her cute antics.
However what she finds in it is nowhere near what Regina has expected. There are several bundles of paper. Some neatly folded, a few of them on letter paper. Grabbing the first two packages she immediately spots Emma's handwriting, which seems rather elegant, Regina admits to herself.
The way the letters flow delightfully over the cream-colored paper is beyond belief.
It isn't her style to go through Emma's private stuff like that so she doesn't bother to read the letters, even if she is a bit curious to whom they are addressed.
I'm sure going to find that out later.
Underneath she finds another bundle neatly packaged and tied together with a bordeaux red ribbon around it. Daring to take a closer look she finds in a cover page in golden letter's with the title:
"How The Grimm's and Disney Got It All Wrong – The Story of Snow White & the Queen"
Regina gasps upon reading it and swiftly browses through the first few introductory pages, when a few certain lines catch her attention.
..For some reason the story everyone knows is wrong. The Evil Queen never deserved the title "evil".
Yes, she did some terrible things, but it all comes down to consequences and situations in life. They can make good people do bad things. Evil isn't born, it's made.
For Regina
Tears spring to her eyes, threatening to spill and ruin her mascara. She only hopes Emma wouldn't come home early today, she always immediately sees when Regina has been crying. It is like a sixth sense, just like her inner lie detector that tells her when someone is not telling the truth.
"Regina? I'm home. Where are you?" Emma calls from downstairs most likely from the kitchen.
Perfect timing, Miss Swan. Why must she be early today?, Regina sighs fastly trying to appear as if she hadn't been crying, putting the stuff back in the treasure chest and grabbing her Christmas decoration package.
"I'm here" she says friendly coming into the kitchen, placing the package on the kitchen-counter.
She goes over to Emma and places a light kiss on her lips.
"What is that?" Emma asks already munching on some pastry. Regina switches on the coffee machine before removing some of the dust from the package.
"Our Christmas tree decoration, I was up in the attic. Quite dusty up there" Regina says casually.
Emma suddenly chokes and starts coughing upon hearing where Regina had been.
"In the attic? Why didn't you tell me? I could have grabbed that for you. I know how you don't like dust on your clothes and hair, Regina" Emma tries to play it down, but is already thinking if she has hidden the box good enough or if Regina could have seen her secret passion. Creative writing.
"It's okay, I found it relatively fast and saw some other stuff that I nearly forgot about" Regina is watching intently for reactions on Emma's face.
"Really? Such as?" Emma seems a bit anxious if she has been detected or not, suddenly finding her feet very interesting to look at, which doesn't go unnoticed by Regina.
"Oh you know, just some old stuff…" Regina immediately sees the relief on Emma's face. She decides to let it go for now and let the blonde tell her about her secret in her own time.
"I'm going to take a shower, this dust in my hair and on my clothes makes me look…dishevelled" Regina said.
"You'd even look beautiful covered in dust from head to toe, Regina" Emma smiles and pulls Regina into an embrace kissing her lovingly on the lips and then letting her go upstairs.
As Emma hears the door to their bathroom shut she lets out a breath she didn't knew she had been holding.
Damn, that was close. Does she know? Has she found my writings? God, I hope not. I really should tell her. We're engaged for God's sake! This secret of mine is nothing I need to be ashamed of. Tonight I'll tell her about it…., Emma nods to herself, determined to get a cup of coffee into her system, she really needs the caffeine.
Two hours later, both women are sitting outside on the patio, both of them enjoying the silence of the night with a glass of white wine in hand. Thinking. Reflecting. Enjoying each other's company in silence. Until Emma interrupts it.
"What do you think about honesty, Regina?" Emma looks up curiously.
"Honesty is one of the most important things in a relationship…" she watches Emma lowering her head and nodding slightly.
"…however I am also sure that you don't have to share everything with your partner." Emma watches her with an uncertain expression visible on her face.
"… you know about my past as the Evil Queen. Yet I don't tell you about every cruelty that I have perpetrated. It wouldn't benefit anyone if I did that. So I guess, in some ways having secrets is a legitimate thing… In moderation" Regina holds Emma's gaze with a little smile visible at the corner's of her lips.
"I guess you are right" Emma nods thoughtfully.
She knows it and still doesn't push do I deserve her? Swan, never let that woman go…, Emma thinks.
She sees that Regina's glass is empty. The woman is tucked into several layers of thick wool blankets and looks comfy and content with just sitting there watching the sky and stars.
What a beautiful sight, Emma thinks before getting up and offering to refill Regina's glass.
"No, I think I'll pass. I have an early start tomorrow. I'll go to bed, if you don't mind?" Regina says calmly.
"Sure, I'll drink another one and then I'll be right by your side again" Emma looks up warmly at her now standing fiancée.
"Don't be too long, love, the bed is too big without you next to me" Regina grins leaning down to kiss her and is already inside the house, before Emma has a chance to blink again.
Tomorrow, I'll tell her tomorrow. She loves me. What is the worst she can do? Laugh maybe. No, she wouldn't. Tomorrow it is.
She refills her glass and sits another 30 minutes outside before following Regina to bed.
The next morning Emma awakes to an empty bedside. Regina starts earlier than her on Wednesdays.
Luckily I don't have to be at the station before 10 o'clock. There's plenty of….Shit. Better hurry up, Swan, Emma jumps out of her bed after seeing the time – 9.35 a.m.
Nearly on time she arrives at the station to find a beautiful antique typewriter on her desk with a single white rose and cup of cocoa nearby. Being deeply touched by the gesture she cautiously examines the sight in front of her.
"I'm not an expert of those typewriters…" Emma spins around seeing Regina casually leaning against the doorframe walking towards her
"…but when I saw it it reminded me of you and I knew I found the right one" Regina stops in front of her. She places a fallen strain of hair behind Emma's ear gently.
"I found your treasure chest, when I was looking for the decoration. I didn't look through much of it, but enough to know that this writing thing means a lot to you, Emma…." Regina softly caresses her cheek, while tears form in Emma's eyes.
"…I hope that one day you will tell me about your passion, but for now it is okay if you don't want to. This is me showing you, that you can tell me such things about yourself, without having to fear anything. I won't judge you or mock you or whatever it is that you are afraid of…" She pauses to reassure Emma of her words through glances
"..And maybe this will inspire you to write something. Who knows…" Regina isn't able to finish her little speech, because Emma stops her abruptly with a passionate kiss that tastes a bit salty because of her tears now running freely down her cheeks.
"It's perfect. You are perfect. Thank you so much" Emma leans her forehead against Regina's.
"Anything for you, princess" Regina says through closed eyes and they kiss again lovingly.
Later that evening, Regina sits in front of the chimney, relaxing from her day at the office. Emma leans against the doorframe and knocks softly on it, attempting not to startle Regina.
"Do you mind if I show you something?" Emma asks cautiously. Regina just smiles assuring her.
Emma grins and leaves only to come back with a tray of two cups, her reading glasses and the ribbon tied manuscript.
She sits down next to Regina warming in front of the fire.
"So, you know that I sometimes need to be on my own" Regina nods not saying anything knowing that Emma needs to get this out uninterrupted.
"Well, in these times I normally grab my notebook and write. Whatever comes to my mind. Everything. It's a habit that I have developed in the foster system. It's hard to share your feelings when no one is willing to listen to them…" she swallows
"…my notebook always listened to me. Writing helped me through some hard times and it is something that still helps me today. To process things and to keep my sanity" Regina is speechless, she knows what immense meaning a hobby like that can have for you, but for Emma it even seems to be therapeutic.
"…Anyways, when I started developing feelings for you, I started a new project. I found the story and the image you have in my world here is wrong. People need to know that this fairytale is not told accurately, children learn to assume wrong things about you, because all has been misinterpreted…" she pauses to see if Regina can still follow her, which she does
"…so I wrote it again. I wrote your story the way it is supposed to be. And I want you to have it, Regina" she stops to wipe away a tear that has slid down Regina's cheek, catching it with her thumb.
"Emma… "Regina attempts to speak.
"No, I'm sure. My initial plan was to publish it, but now that I think about it, it's your story, you should do whatever you want with it. Read it or not. It's yours now" Emma smiles widely.
"No one has ever done something like that for me, thank you, Emma…" Regina gets out.
"Well, someone should do it, because you deserve everything, Regina… I love you" Emma kisses her pulling her towards herself.
Two weeks later both women find themselves in front of the post office, hand in hand.
"Are you really sure about it, Emma?" Regina asks for the hundredst time.
"Yes, I'm sure. The world needs to know that not everything is black and white" Emma pushes the envelope through the mailbox confidently.
Regina makes a step forward grabbing Emma by the waist
"I'm proud of you, Emma Swan" she smiles to which Emma answers with a sassy grin
"This story needs a sequel, something like The Queen – happily ever after. Think you can inspire me to write something like that?" Emma grabs her tenderly by the collar.
"I'll try my very best" Regina leans in.
"Then please kiss me, my muse. I need inspiration what happily ever after feels like" Emma whispers only a breath space between them.
They kiss.
Thanks for reading! :)