I feel this is both an Outlaw Queen and a Swan Queen fic. If you don't like either, I ask you give it a chance anyway.
Once Upon a Time is owned by Disney and other people who make more in a minute than I have in my entire life. I make no money from this story and gain nothing. Please don't sue me.
The sunlight streaming in from the slightly parted curtains landed fully across Regina's face, and she groaned as she turned her head into the pillow to avoid the burst of light assaulting her from behind her eyelids. She could move, of course, but she was warm and comfy. Besides, moving meant disturbing the human furnace behind her, and there was no way she was willing to expose her back to the cold air outside the little warmth bubble they'd created in the night.
She snuggled down into the heat, bringing the covers up enough to block out the sun. Soon they would need to get up and start the day. There was work to do, children to get off to school, and chores to be had, but she had a few more minutes of respite from reality, and she planned to enjoy every last second.
Her mind drifted lazily from check lists of things to do to how nice it was to wake up in the arms of someone she loved and who loved her in return. It'd taken two lifetimes, a string of drama, and too many deaths for them to reach this point. All the fighting, learning, and sharing over the years had been their strength in the end when they'd been met with what would seem to be their final challenge against the darkness.
She gave a small, sorrowful sigh. Robin had been right back then, though she hadn't wanted to admit it. She wanted to believe that some part of the young woman she'd been when Tinkerbell had thrown fairy dust on her was still a part of who Regina was on an intrinsic level, but there really had been too much. She was an entirely different person, and, no matter how much she mourned the death of the young woman who loved to wear light blue and ride horses, she found that she was content with who she is now.
Robin knew. He'd figured it out, and she'd been willfully blind to it, but, regardless, she loved him and he her, which is why he'd made the choice no one had wanted to make. It was the second greatest sacrifice anyone had ever made for her happiness, though, at the time, it felt as though he was ripping her heart out. She realized later he was giving her yet another chance at happiness and entrusting his legacy of happiness to her… to both of them.
The alarm sounded, throwing her out of her thoughts, and Emma sat up with a grunt. "No, five more minutes," she grumbled, flipping her hand limply in the direction of the offending sound, which caused the clock to fly across the room and hit the chair. "Just five," she mumbled before falling back down into the covers and attempting to curl back into her sleep bubble.
Regina chuckled. "No, get up. We have to get ready and get the kids off to school."
"School sucks," the blonde muttered, rolling over and pulling all the covers with her.
"Every morning, Swan?" The older woman gave an amused sigh. "Come on, sweetheart, get up. You know Roland will be up soon, and the baby…"
"Is three, Regina. You've got to stop with 'the baby' stuff." Begrudgingly, Emma sat up again, smacking her lips and pushing at her unruly hair. "I don't suppose I could call in sick?"
"I have it on good authority that your supervisor is aware that you are, in fact, not sick, but," the brunette smirked as she slipped out of bed to head toward the bathroom, "you could give it a try and see what she says."
"Sometimes it's really inconvenient that I work for you," the younger woman grumbled as she slowly trailed behind.
"Well, Sheriff," Regina said between brushing her teeth, "you could always decline to run in the next election."
Emma snorted. "As if we ever have elections here, Madam Mayor."
The brunette chuckled. "You're just grumpy because you decided to stay up late with Henry last night."
"It was an important battle. We couldn't just walk away from that!" Emma held her hands up in earnest. "You can't stop playing a round of PVP in Halo in the middle like that, Regina. There are rules."
Regina sighed. "Yes, so you two tell me." Shaking her head, she took a moment to flip through her phone. "Today is the 23rd," she said with a hitch in her voice.
The other woman stepped closer, putting a hand gently on her arm. "Are you going to be okay?"
"Yes, but," Regina placed her phone back on the counter, "the children…"
"They'll be okay. We'll take them to visit his grave this afternoon, and maybe we should invite Little John to come over tonight for dinner."
The brunette gave a little nod. "They'll like that, and he knew Robin better than most. I just don't want them to forget."
"I know, and I don't either, just like I don't want Henry to forget Neal."
Taking in a deep breath, Regina swallowed down the swell of emotions threatening to escape. "You know, he knew. Robin… he figured it out." She turned to lean against the counter for support. "Before the last big battle when the darkness had you and we had to make a choice of who would make the final strike, he told me that fairy dust never lies but it can eventually be wrong."
Emma leaned against the wall, head tilted in confusion. "You never told me that."
"No," Regina shook her head slowly, "I didn't. It took me a long time to understand what he meant, and, by the time I did, you and I were already dating." She gave the other woman a watery smile. "I did talk to Blue about it a little while ago."
"What did she say?" The younger woman shifted nervously.
"She said that fairy dust never lies but people can change. Sometimes those changes are enough to completely alter who they intrinsically are, and, if that happens," the brunette wiped at her eyes and began to pull herself together again, "it would make a declaration made by fairy dust incorrect."
"Did you…"Emma's voice cracked, and she cleared her throat, swallowing away the dryness. "Did you ever try again? With the fairy dust?"
Regina's smile was weak, but the amusement was visible. "Yes, I did. She offered it as repayment for the few things I've done for the fairies since the first curse was broken, and I finally agreed after thinking on it for a few months."
"What did you find out?" Emma's eyes were filled with a conflict of fear and curiosity.
Pushing from the counter, Regina leaned over to give the other woman a gentle kiss. "I found out that my happiness has nothing to do with fairy dust, but, if it makes you feel any better," she added as she headed into the shower and turned the spray on, "you lit up like a Christmas tree."
Through her tears and the water streaming down, Regina couldn't help but laugh as she watched her soul mate do a victory dance in the middle of their bathroom in nothing but a pair of red boy shorts.