After a stupid argument about literally nothing - Emma hadn't placed her beer on a coaster even though Regina must have mentioned that rule a hundred times, and now there was a sticky ring marking the remains on the beautiful wooden coffee table Regina had passionately bartered for on one of their many detours heading towards New York to rescue Robin from Zelena, so not only was it very beautiful but it held great sentimental value thank you very much, Miss Swan, because it represented solidity and strength and permanence in a time when Regina didn't have much of either of those things - Emma slipped out the back door, hands shoved in her jacket pockets, and made her way towards the Rabbit Hole for a much needed drink.
Autumn had come to Storybrooke in a wide range of colors; bronze and gold leaves crunched beneath Emma's combat boots, bits of yellow mulch were carried through the air, landing on her skin and clinging to her loose ringlets of hair. The crisp, cool air felt nice against her face and gradually began to help her calm down. She took deep breaths and slowed down her walking to a more comfortable, less aggressive pace as she reached Main Street and took a left, relaxing her face and nodding politely to a few faces as she passed familiar citizens.
The sun was starting to set, and it had just begun to rain, the lightest drizzle, a soft pitter patter not even worth mentioning by the time Emma pushed open the door to the bar.
"Ruh roh." Ruby greeted her immediately from behind the counter. "Your usual?"
Emma sighed, settling herself on a stool. "Is it that obvious?"
"That you've just had a fight with her highness? Yeah, kind of written all over your face. Double shot?"
"No - it's not that bad - um, just a beer, thanks."
"You sure?" Ruby gently shook the bottle of whiskey, smiling sympathetically at her goddaughter.
Emma nodded, and took the beer gratefully, tilting her chin up and taking a long swig. The soapy taste frothed over her tongue before settling. After a few more swigs - from just a couple more bottles - she started to feel warm and took off her jacket.
The bar wasn't very full that night, so she spent it chatting with Ruby, flipping through songs on the juke box, and playing a few rounds of pool with Leroy. The sound of a hard, satisfyingcrack made her smile, as did Leroy's sputtering indignations every time he lost a game.
"Don't you have the wife to get home to?" He grunted around eleven pm.
"She's not my - " Emma glanced over at the clock. "Oh - damn - gotta go."
She waved goodbye to Ruby and stepped out of the bar, heading back home. It had apparently rained harder without her noticing while she was inside, because the sidewalks looked drenched and the barest hints of fog encircled the town, peeking out from the tops of trees from the forest.
Emma was halfway home before she started to shiver in the darkness, her shadow jumping ahead and behind her every time she passed a lamppost. A few cars rolled by but otherwise the town was quiet, save for the chirping of crickets. The warmth of the beers began to wear off, and Emma realized she left her red leather jacket behind at the bar.
She considered snapping her fingers and retrieving it by magic, but was slightly apprehensive (she'd once accidentally summoned Regina's panties in the middle of a town meeting, which had been locked away in the same office drawer as some reports she'd intended to present publicly) and decided it could wait until the next day.
Rubbing her bare arms, Emma continued on home. The mansion was completely dark except for the porch light which flickered on and off. It was a school night and Henry had a test in the morning, so they were supposed to all go to bed early.
She slipped back into the house the way she came, through the back door that opened into the kitchen. Immediately there was a rush of warmth, and Emma sneezed into the darkness. Sniffling, she headed for the main staircase, and winced when the weight of her foot made the entire structure creek. She hesitated, and cocked her head. She didn't hear anything, but she didn't want to risk waking up Henry and throwing him off for the test. Plus, she felt a cold coming on. She didn't want to risk passing it onto Regina, especially after that argument.
Emma smiled a little to herself. Now that she'd calmed down, the whole thing seemed especially silly and stupid. Her wif - er - girlfriend was such a drama queen. But, Emma reflected as she stepped off the stairs and went into the linen closet, retrieving some blankets before settling onto the living room sofa, the loss of Regina's body warmth would be surely missed that night. She was definitely using coasters in the future.
The sheriff turned on her side and snuggled into the cushions, a small smile taking over her features as she imagined all the ways she'd make it up to Regina in the morning.
The sound of her soft, whistling snores coasted through the air, rising up the staircase, spreading thinner and dying out before they reached the door of the master bedroom. Still, Regina knew her girlfriend was down there after hearing the kitchen door open and slam close a few minutes ago.
She laid beneath the covers of the queen sized bed with her eyes open, staring up at the shadowed ceiling, waiting impatiently for Emma to come up and cuddle her.
What the hell is taking her so long? Regina flexed her fingers above the blanket, small sparks dancing across her fingertips, too dim to light the room. She cannot possibly still be angry, can she?
The two of them frequently fought over inconsequential things, or rather, Regina shouted at her for breaking various household rules that a monkey could muster up the decency to respect, while Emma ran away for a few hours before coming back, climbing into bed with her and the two would make up between the silk sheets or against the bedroom door, the doorknob painfully imprinting itself onto Regina's lower back.
That was their routine and Regina was satisfied with it.
Okay, yes, sometimes she overreacted in such a way that reminded herself a little too much of her mother, and yes, sometimes she felt a pang of - well, fear was too strong a word - maybe a little jolt of anxiety that Emma wouldn't return.
Sometimes she worried that Emma only came back because of Henry.
When they had sex, it reassured Regina that Emma wanted something from her.
Maybe she's getting it somewhere else.
That was the last thought she had before she slipped into an uneasy sleep.
When she awoke a few hours later, it was still nighttime, but the air had shifted. It made the world feel as if it were on the edge of some great chasm. Regina shivered despite the warmth of her heavy blankets. Her body missed Emma, whose skin usually burned too hot, a light sheen of sweat staining the sheets, the result of her magic throbbing in subconscious excitement whenever it recognized Regina's presence.
She's just downstairs. Go to her. Regina pouted in the darkness. That wasn't how their routine worked. They argued, Emma left the house, Emma came back, climbed into bed with her and apologized with frenzied kisses burning a path from her clavicle to her belly.
If Regina made the first move she was basically the one apologizing and admitting fault. But Emma was clearly in the wrong here. How hard was it to use a fucking coaster? Disrespecting the rules of the house meant disrespecting its mistress. And with the suspicion that perhaps Emma wasn't mending the situation with sex as she usually did because she'd already gotten some, well… Regina certainly wasn't going to be the one groveling that night.
However, she couldn't sleep. Warm milk might do the trick. She was heading downstairs for the kitchen, nothing else.
Throwing off the blankets, Regina landed on the soft rug, bare feet flexing in quiet pleasure at the softness. The furniture was a relatively new addition due to the fact she and her lover weren't always able to make it to the bed in time. Sometimes Emma scraped her teeth across her pulse just right, jolts of electricity shooting directly towards her core, Regina's legs giving out, crumpling to the floor.
The bedroom door creaked open, the sound cast out in the eery silence of the night. Regina padded silently down the hallway, reaching instinctively for the invisible banister, easing herself carefully down the steps of the winding staircase. Soon enough, she was able to identify a soft, whistling sound permeating the air. Despite herself, her lips twitched in the shadow of a smile.
She moved into the living room, and lit a single flame on one of her fingers, shedding light on the curled up form of her snoring princess. A blanket was scrunched around her body, no crevice left unchecked, save for her toes poking out from the ends.
Regina extinguished the flame as she neared, reaching down to tug the blanket over Emma's feet. Her princess cooed a little in her sleep, and Regina's heart fluttered. God dammit.
Hesitantly, she tested the waters by sitting on the edge of the couch. When Emma did not wake, Regina began to stretch out, laying down until she was curled on the couch as well, lifting the dead weight of Emma's strong arm and wrapping it around her middle. There was a rush of heat and instantly the both of them sighed in relief, their magic awakening and flaring up between them.
Emma began to awaken too, nuzzling the nape of Regina's neck. Quietly, they adjusted themselves a little so that Regina was beneath the blankets as well. Turning around, Regina was greeted with the sight of sea soaked eyes glowing in the dark.
"This mean you're not mad?" Her voice was soft and slurred from sleep, slight congestion in her throat making her sound younger.
Regina huffed, but snuggled a little closer, ducking her head to escape the savior's gaze, strands of her raven hair tickling Emma's chin. "Why didn't you come up to bed?"
She felt the muscles of Emma's throat contract beneath her ear.
"Think I caught a cold. Didn't want you to get sick." As if to prove her point, Emma let out a cough, the sound scratchy, hot breath hitting the top of Regina's head.
Other than the faint hint of beer and cigarette smoke clinging to Emma's skin and clothes, there was nothing amiss about her scent. Regina detected no foreign perfume or cologne, her fingers trailing up and down the length of Emma's arm beneath the blanket, re-staking her claim with a possessive skim of her fingers.
"I hate when you leave." She whispered, the admission nearly sticking in her throat.
"I always come back." Emma murmured.
Regina sighed, relaxing a little more into her lover's arms, still slightly reluctant to make peace when war was so much more familiar to her. "Use a damn coaster next time."