Regina was staring at her paperwork with a frown on her face.
She'd been so overwhelmed with everything lately. Emma had gone out of Storybrooke with Mr. Gold for an emergency so she didn't have her phone on her much, she and Regina couldn't talk nearly as much as they used to. Emma told Ruby to keep checking up on Regina and be there for her when Emma couldn't. Emma, Ruby, and Regina were all great friends and Regina loved spending time with Ruby. But, it wasn't the same as spending time with Emma.
Regina was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't register that her breathing was getting heavier and her heart was beating faster than normal. She felt like crying and screaming all at once. She was so upset and overwhelmed and she missed Emma so much. On top of all of that, she hadn't been able to regress since Emma left, which was a couple weeks ago. Part of her was angry at herself for being so dependent on Emma when it came to her regression.
Regina was an independent woman and she was fine to be by herself but, Little Gina was a different story. Little Gina hated being alone and she loved to be comforted and hugged. She liked someone being there for her. She was dependent, most definitely, and she missed her mommy dearly.
Regina flinched, snapping out of her thoughts when she heard her office door open. She tensed, hoping it wasn't someone there to complain to her about unimportant things or that it was someone she'd forgotten she had a meeting with.
"Regina? Is everything alright?"
Regina let out a soft sigh of relief when she heard Ruby's voice. She looked up and noticed that the lanky brunette was holding two bags from Granny's for lunch.
"You seem off... is something wrong?" Ruby asked again, getting worried when Regina didn't respond. She walked over to Regina's desk and set their food on it, watching Regina closely.
She could hear Regina's heart racing, thanks to her wolf senses, and that worried her even more.
"Regina?" She tried again.
Regina inhaled shakily and sniffed. "I'm just... I'm so stressed right now." She said, her voice sounding defeated. "I have so much work to do... Emma's not here and I'm worried sick about her... I'm so overwhelmed." Tears welled up in her eyes before she could stop them but she didn't feel ashamed. This was Ruby, her best friend. She knew she had nothing to be ashamed about.
Ruby frowned instantly. "Oh Regina," She said and went to stand in front of the sitting former queen. "Maybe you should take the rest of today off. Work can wait... you clearly need a break. When's the last time you've eaten?" She asked, concerned.
Regina bit her lip, feeling a certain warmth in her belly. She knew that Little Gina had been wanting to come out ever since Emma left. Ruby being so caring and concerned about her made her have to resist the urge to regress in front of her friend.
Ruby knew about her regression and that Emma was her carer. Regina and Emma had explained all about it to Ruby and Ruby understood why Regina did it. She knew that being a queen wasn't all it was cracked up to be. She knew that Regina had to grow up all too fast, that Cora had been grooming Regina to later become queen ever since she was a child. Regina was always in control so Ruby knew that it must be cathartic in a way to relinquish control completely and let herself be swept away into an innocent headspace.
"I think a couple days ago." Regina replied, looking down at her lap. She knew that it wasn't good to skip meals and go that long without eating. But, her appetite was just about gone and she was working all the time so she didn't really have enough time to eat.
Ruby sighed, "you need to eat, Regina. It's not good to go that long without eating. I can see why you're so overwhelmed... not eating for that long definitely can make you tired and more emotional than normal." she said and Regina sniffled, nodding slightly.
"I-I know..." is all Regina said.
Ruby could tell that there was something else going on besides Regina being stressed from work and Emma not being there.
"There's something you're holding back... what is it?" Ruby asked, sounding nothing but patient.
Regina sighed, "it's just that..." she started before her voice cracked and her tears finally started falling.
"I-I miss Emma so much and without her it's... it's so hard to... to..." she didn't know why she couldn't get the words out.
Ruby looked confused, "hard to what?"
Regina sighed, deciding to not stall and just say it, "I haven't regressed since the day Emma left... and it's taking a toll on me. Regressing always made me feel better. Always. It always helped me when I'm stressed or overwhelmed. But... I'm scared to regress without her here... it's been awhile since I fully regressed by myself and I don't know how I'll be able to handle that."
Ruby nodded, taking all that in for a moment. "Well... you don't have to be alone." She said.
Now it was Regina's turn to look confused. "What? What do you mean?" She asked, furrowing her brows.
Ruby sighed and just decided to let it out, "what I mean is that... you aren't alone. You have me. And I know I'm not Emma and I'm not trying to be but... I'm here if you want to regress. I've... um... done my research. About age regression, I mean. To better understand it more. I'm not saying that I know everything because I don't. And now I'm rambling." Ruby chuckled nervously, "all I'm trying to say is that I'm here. If you want to regress..."
Regina wasn't expecting for Ruby to say this, not in the slightest.
"You... you'd really do that for me?" Regina asked with wide eyes.
Ruby nodded, "yes... yes I would. You're always there for me... let me be there for you, Gina."
When Ruby called her that, Regina couldn't help but give into the urge to regress and let herself get deep in her headspace.
Ruby's eyes slightly widened as she watched this. Now she understand why when Emma talked so fondly of Little Gina, she almost always got emotional and looked so filled with admiration. Seeing Regina regress right in front of her made Ruby feel something she'd never felt before. Never had she ever felt such a strong protectiveness for someone ever in her life. Yes, Regina was her friend so she cared about her but, this was different. This was a big responsibility and Ruby wouldn't blow it.
"Hi, sweetie." Ruby said softly and got down on her knee in front of Regina so they were closer to eye level.
Regina blinked a couple times before her eyes focused on Ruby. She shyly smiled and gave Ruby a small wave. "Hi!" She giggled softly, a sound Ruby had never heard come from Regina.
"I think a certain little girl needs to go home. You're much too little to be working right now, aren't you?" Ruby said, it surprised her how naturally this came to her. She wasn't trying to overstep boundaries at all. But Regina wanted her to be there for her during this so that was what she did.
Regina nodded and giggled before she stood up, rubbing her eyes with closed fists.
"Let's get going, sweetie. We can eat when we get to your house." Ruby said and grabbed the bags of food. Regina nodded and lightly took hold of the taller woman's arm so that she'd have something to hold onto as they went out of the office and to Ruby's car. Ruby put the food in the backseat before she helped buckle Regina up. She then got into the driver's seat and started driving to the mayoral mansion.
"So... what do you want to do when we get to your house besides eat?" Ruby asked Regina, who was just staring out the window and fiddling with her fingers in her lap.
"Um... I wanna color maybe. And maybe watch movies." Regina said and Ruby smiled, really hearing Regina's voice now and noticing how different it was from when she was in her adult headspace. It was just so much lighter and it sounded childlike and not heavy with the burdens of adult life.
Ruby smiled, "okay. That sounds good." She replied and finished driving to the mansion. She parked in the driveway once she got there and got out of the car. She grabbed both bags with one hand before opening Regina's door with the other. She helped unbuckle Regina before using her spare key that she'd been given months ago to open the front door.
Regina went inside, heading to the stairs before she realized that she should probably tell Ruby what she was doing. She turned around and said to Ruby, "I'm gonna go change into somefing comfy." Ruby nodded, "Okay." She said and watched Regina go upstairs before she sighed and put the food down on the kitchen table. She was nervous. Not because she didn't know what she was doing. Well, she kind of didn't but she'd read a lot about this on the internet so she wasn't completely clueless.
She was nervous because she knew how vulnerable of a headspace Regina was in right now and she didn't want to do something wrong or say the wrong thing.
She pulled out her phone and just called Emma. The call went to voicemail and Ruby left a message after the beep, "Em, um... okay so, I need to talk to you. Please call me when you can. It's about Regina. Nothing bad happened but... I just... I need to talk to you, okay? Thanks, bye." She ended the call and sighed.
She didn't think she was doing anything wrong. She didn't have any romantic feelings towards Regina, she just liked her as a friend. And she isn't think she was overstepping boundaries because Regina let her do this and it wasn't like she was taking Emma's place, she was just being there to support Regina.
Ruby put her phone up before she started taking their food out of the bags and setting everything up for them to eat lunch. It was her day off so she didn't have to go back to work that day.
Regina shortly came back downstairs, skipping her way to the kitchen which was so unlike adult Regina. She was now wearing one of Emma's baggy sweatshirts and some leggings. She was much more comfortable now that she was out of her work clothes. She was also not wearing her heels anymore, just some purple fluffy socks that Emma had gotten her months prior.
"Are you ready to eat?" Ruby asked her.
Regina nodded. "Yeah. Can I have juice though?" She asked and said down at the table, smiling when she saw her cheeseburger and fries. She was so glad that Ruby hadn't gotten her a salad.
"Yep. Apple, right?" Ruby made sure as she grabbed a cup and opened the fridge. "Mhm!" Is all she heard from Regina and she looked back, smiling when she saw that Regina was already eagerly eating her burger. She turned back around and got Regina some apple juice before going to the table and sitting down, giving Regina her drink.
"Have you heard from Em- I mean your mommy lately?" Ruby quickly corrected herself.
Regina nodded, "yeah... this morning but not much... just asking how I'm doing." She said, Emma checked in on her but they didn't have long conversations since Emma was busy. Adult Regina understood that but Little Gina couldn't help but be clingy.
"Oh, okay. She's coming back tomorrow, right?"
Regina nodded, "yeah... that's too far though." She said with a frown, starting to eat her French fries.
"Well, if you think about it, it's actually really close. After this we'll color or watch movies and before you know it, it'll be dinner. Then you'll go to bed and wake up and your mommy will be here." Ruby said and that made Regina think for a moment before grinning.
"You're right! And I can color pretty pictures for mommy too so I can give them to her when she gets back!" Regina said excitedly, starting to eat her food quicker so she'd be able to color.
Ruby chuckled lightly, "be careful, hun. So you don't choke on your food." She said and Regina nodded, only slowing down slightly. Before she knew it, she was done eating. She threw away the trash before she said, "I think I wanna color and watch movies at the same time."
Ruby nodded, "okay, great. How about I'll clean up while you pick a movie for us to watch?" She suggested and Regina smiled, "Otay!" She said and ran into the living room to pick a movie. As Ruby was wiping down the table, her phone rang. She looked down and it was Emma.
Ruby quickly answered it, "Emma?"
"Hey, Rubes. Is everything okay? I feel so bad for not being able to text Regina much this morning. We just finished what we needed to do and we're heading back."
Ruby smiled, happy Emma was on her way back, "I'll let Regina know. But um... I was calling you to tell you that when I brought Regina lunch today... she was very upset. She told me she was overwhelmed and stressed and then said that she hadn't regressed since you left." Emma felt a pang in her chest at that, feeling guilty that she'd been gone for that long.
"So... I told her that she could with me if she wanted. She was scared to let herself fully regress by herself... probably because she's so defenseless and vulnerable in that headspace that she didn't want anyone to take advantage of her. Anyways so... long story short, she's regressed right now. I took her back to the house and she's picking a movie for us to watch right now. I was trying to call you to make sure that this is okay. I don't think I'm doing anything wrong by being there for Regina but... I just wanted to make sure you were comfortable with me doing this." Ruby rambled.
Emma said, "I'm really glad you were there for her... that means a lot to me, Rubes. And thanks for calling me. Yes, it's okay with me. I trust you with her and I'm sure she's much happier now that she's regressed."
Ruby let out a sigh of relief. "So... you're okay with this? Whatever this is..." she wanted to clarify.
Emma nodded lightly and said, "yes, I'm okay. You're the only person I trust to look after her besides me... I know you'll take good care of her. How is she doing right now?"
Ruby looked over and saw Regina excitedly picking movies from their movie drawers. She chuckled lightly and said, "she's doing great. It's just... it's crazy seeing her like this, you know? I mean... I've researched it but it's so different in person. She just seems so... innocent and carefree."
Emma nodded, remembering the first time she herself had seen Regina regressed. "Yes, I know. But... I should ask, are you okay with this? I know you've never done anything like this before but I have to ask." She said.
Ruby smiled, "I'm okay with it. She's a little angel, I feel honored that she trusts me enough to let me see her like this."
Emma smiled at that. "Yeah, I'm glad she's okay. Can I talk to her?"
"Yeah, of course." Ruby went into the living room and said, "Gina, your mommy's the phone."
Regina instantly dropped all of the DVD boxes that were in her hands and stood up, running over to Ruby and taking her phone. "Mommy!" She shrieked happily, excited to hear Emma's voice.
"Baby! Mommy misses you so much." Emma said, almost getting emotional because of how much she missed Regina.
"I miss you more! When are you coming home?"
Emma said, "very soon, baby. We're on our way back right now so when you wake up, I'll be there. Is Ruby taking good care of you?" Emma's protective instincts came out.
Regina nodded quickly and said, "yeah! She is! She's takin' good care of me. But I still miss you."
"I know, baby. But, I'll be there very soon. I promise."
Regina sat down on the couch as Ruby picked up the movies Regina had chosen and set them down on the coffee table, gesturing for Regina to pick one to start out with.
Regina pointed to 'Tangled' before she returned to her conversation with Emma. "Guess what, mommy? Ruby and I are gonna watch 'Tangled'!" She said excitedly.
Emma smiled, happy that Regina was happy. Though she still felt bad for leaving for so long, even though she had to. "That's great, baby! I'm glad you and Ruby are having a good time."
Regina nodded as she quickly got up and went to get her coloring things before bringing them back into the living room.
"You sound like you're a bit busy. What are you up to?" Emma asked, she could tell that Regina was doing something else besides watching a movie.
Regina bit her lip. She didn't want to tell Emma that she was about to color pictures for her. "Nofing!" She said and blushed, she could practically see Emma raising her eyebrow at her.
"Nothing is it? Well, I'll leave you to it then." Emma said, she could tell that Regina wasn't doing anything bad so she wasn't going to force it out of her.
"Otay, mommy. I miss you lots! I can't wait to see you tomorrow!"
"I miss you too, baby."
Regina said, "bye bye." Before ending the call. She pulled out the coloring book she wanted to use and her jumbo crayons. She started coloring a picture for Emma as Ruby started the movie and sat down next to her. She could tell that Regina was focused on the coloring so she didn't want to disturb her, she just watched the movie but made sure to pay attention to Regina.
Once the movie was over, Regina eagerly told Ruby to please put the next movie in. They watched movies for the rest of the day until it was dinner time. Ruby made Regina a good sized dinner since she knew that Regina hadn't eaten much lately.
She could tell that Regina was struggling to stay awake during dinner so when they were both done, she helped Regina up and let the smaller woman hold onto her arm as they went up the stairs together. Ruby waited outside the bedroom to give Regina privacy as Regina got ready for bed. Once she was in her pajamas she told Ruby to come in.
"Can you tuck me in?" Regina asked and shyly looked down at her feet.
Ruby nodded and smiled, "of course. Which stuffie do you want to sleep with tonight?" She asked as she helped Regina into bed. Regina pointed to her stuffed panda so Ruby picked it up and put it in Regina's arms.
"Do you want to try to call your mommy? If she doesn't answer, we can leave her a voicemail."
Regina nodded. "I wanna." She said tiredly.
Ruby pulled up her phone and tried calling Emma but it went to voicemail, she was sure that Emma was probably busy with Mr. Gold, probably discussing what they'd need to do once they got back to Storybrooke.
"Hi, Em. Gina and I just wanted to call you and say..." She trailed off and looked at Regina.
Regina said, "I wuv you lots. I can't wait to see you t'morrow. I wuv you." She repeated herself, too tired to realize that. Ruby realized that Regina was younger in her headspace because of how she was talking.
"We miss you. Stay safe, Em." Ruby finished and ended the call. She looked over and saw that Regina's eyes were already closed and she was drifting off to sleep.
"Goodnight, pup." Ruby whispered and smiled at Regina, pulling the covers up to her chin, before standing up and turning off the light.
"W-wait.." Ruby heard a quiet mumble. She turned around and saw Regina looking up at her, barely able to keep her eyes open. "I... I wanna do this 'gain." She whispered. Ruby bit her lip, liking that idea, but she couldn't say yes until she and Emma talked about it.
"I'll talk to your mommy about that, okay hun?"
Regina nodded tiredly and closed her eyes, murmuring a quiet "'kay" before falling asleep.
Rubywent out of the room and quietly closed the door. She sighed, hoping she didn't do horribly at watching over Regina. She did like doing it, loved it actually. She didn't know what that meant, but she'd talk to Emma about it when she got there...
- to be continued -