This story takes place during Season 6. Regina has sent Robin off and dealt with The Evil Queen herself.

There's no Fiona plot, no Gideon and I moved up the time in which Hook wanted to propose.

"We can't do this."

That's what started it. Four simple words. Emma wasn't quite sure exactly when she realized that she wasn't really in love with Hook but when she heard that he was planning to propose, she knew she needed to end things. Her infatuation with him had faded over time and she came to realise that her feelings for him were a fabrication. Neverland and every bump in the road since then drove her into his arms. She'd felt like she was drowning. She'd accepted her role as The Savior but even heroes needed their own saviors from time to time and Hook was there, arms wide open.

"It's because of her, isn't it?"

It was so easy to fall into them, to him but as time passed, Emma's feelings faded. No. They hadn't faded. They were redirected. She'd never been in love with him because she'd been in love with someone else the entire time. It started small, so small that Emma never noticed how far she'd fallen until Robin of Locksley from the Wish Realm came back to Storybrooke with them. She couldn't understand why it bothered her so much when he and Regina began to bond. Regina was her best friend, even if the other woman was reluctant to admit it as so, so Emma figured she was just a little jealous that someone else was taking up her best friend's time but it was more than that. Every time their time together was interrupted by Robin and Regina would go after him, Emma would find herself in Hook's arms as if his presence could shield her from her true feelings. It would only hurt her that much more however whenever she woke up, tangled in her sheets with him. She was betraying him and she was betraying herself but Regina had Robin so she stayed with Hook…

"I-I'm sorry…"

That is, until Regina didn't have Robin anymore. The relief Emma felt when he left their world scared her. Her best friend was in pain, love whisked away from her once again and Emma was...happy? She was so disgusted with how joyous she felt that she distanced herself from Regina. She ignored her calls, found excuses around their usual family dinner plans, mysteriously disappeared whenever she heard the tell-tale sound of Regina's three inch heels coming down the hall at the station, and expertly maneuvered Henry's questions as he no doubt noticed how she'd been acting with his other mother. It'd been three weeks since Robin left and one since she'd broken things off with Hook. Avoiding her own mother had become a chore since then but the time Emma didn't spend at work, she spent in the gym or hiding out at Granny's. Ruby tried in the beginning but after dodging all the questions, she eventually gave up pestering her, much to Emma's relief. She just wanted to drink her hot cocoa in peace and quiet and figure out exactly when she'd fallen in love with-

"Miss Swan." Speak of the devil. Emma winced but she drew herself up from the table of the booth she was currently occupying. She dared not lift her eyes however. She kept them focused on the mug in front of her. "So this is where you've been hiding in the evenings," Regina muttered as she sauntered over, leaning a perfectly manicured hand down on the table.

Emma didn't say anything. She didn't know what to say. She could feel Regina's eyes boring into her skull but still she kept her eyes downcast. The silence went on for a good minute before Regina sighed heavily.

"Honestly Miss Swan, if I've done something wrong, I'd appreciate it if you'd just tell me what it is so I can apologize and we can move on," Regina said exasperatedly. Emma's eyes shot up at that. She hadn't meant to make her feel like it was her fault.

"N-No, Regina. You didn't do anything..."

"Oh so you do speak?" Regina snapped. Emma winced again and Regina's brow knitted in concern. Resting her pocketbook on the table, Regina slid into the booth next to her and quickly observed her. Emma looked a little tired and her usually flowing hair was quickly bundled into a messy ponytail at the base of her skull. She was wearing a grey sweatshirt instead of her trademark red leather jacket and she was sitting dejectedly with her shoulders hunched over.

"You look like a kicked puppy..." Regina muttered, arching her brow. Emma didn't even sniff at her faux insult; something was terribly wrong. "Miss Swan, what happened?"

"I just...I haven't been feeling myself lately and well, I didn't want to be all weird around you because of that and make things awkward. Like right now," Emma sighed, taking a sip of her cocoa. Cold.

"Emma." First name. Important. Emma cocked her head towards her as Regina's hand rested on top of hers. It burned. "I'm your friend. Your best friend as you keep stressing. Whatever is the matter, why do you not think you can talk to me about it?" Still Emma remained tight-lipped. "I heard about Hook. Is it because of that?"

"What? No!" Emma replied a bit too hastily. "No it's...not that. I'm sorry."

"Well sorry doesn't fix this! I..." Regina snatched her hand away and ran it through her hair, clearing her throat. "I needed you after I sent Robin off and you weren't there. I needed a friend who I could really confide in and it looks like you needed me too." Regina paused to level Emma with an intense look. "Why have you really been avoiding me?"

"I told you. I just didn't want to bog you down."

"That's bullshit and we both know it. Tell me the truth." But how does one tell their straight best friend that they're hopelessly in love with them? They don't…

"Why don't we talk about Robin first and then we can figure out my issues later?" Emma proposed, pleading with her eyes. Regina arched her brow again but nevertheless agreed.

"Fine but I will be getting to the bottom of this funk you're in Miss Swan. Rest assured."

"Yeah...sure."

"Swing by the mansion in an hour for dinner."

"I'm sure Henry will love that," Emma replied, glad to have a buffer between them at least.

"Oh, he's at a friend's tonight. It's Friday night after all," Regina replied as she stood up from her seat. Emma cursed inwardly but kept a level face, not wanting to alert Regina to her growing uncomfortableness.

"Oh. Well then I'll see you there," Emma said with a small smile. Regina nodded then made her way towards the door. The sheriff furrowed her brow. Wait a minute..."Regina, hold up!" The mayor stopped and looked over her shoulder. "How'd you know I was here?" Regina hadn't bought anything or spoken to anyone else. She just showed up with the purpose of finding her.

"I got an anonymous tip," she replied with a devilish smirk before striding out of the Diner. Emma cast a quick glance around and spied a particular waitress watching Regina go with a smile on her face. No tip for you Ruby.

Dinner wasn't as awkward as Emma had anticipated. She'd gone home to change into something other than sweats and Regina managed to pull together a painfully delicious three course meal in under an hour. It was just one of the many things about her that Emma absolutely adored. Their dinner conversation was light as usual but then they moved to the living room after they tidied up, each with a glass of Regina's cider in hand. As promised, Regina spoke first about how losing Robin a third time made her feel, even if he wasn't exactly her Robin and Emma slugged through it like the best friend she claimed to be.

Emma didn't want to be around her the past few weeks but she truly was sorry about leaving Regina by herself after what happened. No matter her feelings, they were best friends and her own internal struggle shouldn't have interfered with that.

"Augh, how do you feel about casual sex?" Emma nearly choked on the sip of cider in her mouth, eyes blown with alarm. What?! But Regina wasn't looking at her, her gaze instead trained on her own glass. "Perhaps I should take another lover," Regina went on with a sad little chuckle. "At the very least, they can help me forget about him for a night."

Emma floundered, unsure if she could even speak if she tried but Regina went on. "Maybe I should take a ride on down to that dreadful dive bar in town and see who I could snag to warm my bed." Emma was just about to snatch away her glass and tell her she'd had a bit too much to drink but Regina didn't stop there. No she laughed and continued, leaning back into the couch cushions. "Maybe a man with large arms who could hold me down and dominate me." Emma thought she was going to be sick. "Or perhaps a woman whose hair I could pull and dominate myself." Wait what?

"You're into women?!" Emma asked incredulously and a tad too loud for her liking. Regina leveled her with an impassive stare.

"Is that a problem Miss Swan?"

"No! Not at all! It's just that uhhh, well I didn't know you were bisexual." Regina rolled her eyes at that.

"Ah yes, I forgot about this realm's obsession with labels. Men. Women. I don't discriminate. I like who I like," Regina replied with a careless flick of her hand.

"So what? You slept with women in the Enchanted Forest?" Emma found herself asking, her heart skipping a beat. As far as Emma could remember, Regina had only been in relationships with men since she arrived in Storybrooke. She hadn't slept with any of the women here. Had she? Regina snorted.

"I had many handmaidens to attend to me when I was queen. Some attended in more ways than one," she replied. "But anyway, what do you think?"

"What do I think about what?" Emma replied dumbly, still reeling from this revelation.

"About me finding a bedwarmer. Honestly I'd just like to move on at this point. I'm so sick of feeling this way. Robin is gone and I need to accept it." Regina glanced down at her wristwatch. "Perhaps I can swing by the Rabbit hole tonight."

"No!" Emma exclaimed, grabbing Regina's attention.

"No?" Regina arched her brow. "You'd prefer it if I wallowed in sadness and self-pity?"

"Yes! No! Not...not that. I mean-" Emma's mind was going a mile a minute and she didn't know what to do. All she knew was that she didn't want Regina going off to get awful sex from some drunk bar patron in the middle of the night. Her feelings aside, Regina deserved more than that. She deserved someone who could love her without trying to change her. Someone who knew almost all of her secrets and could confide in. Someone who knew exactly how she took her coffee in the morning and how she enjoyed her toast with the morning paper. Someone who would pop by the office at just the right moment with a bearclaw from Granny's and gossip at her desk with her. Someone who would only grow to love her more and more every single day.

"Do you trust me?" Emma suddenly asked, coming to a crazy decision.

"On most days...Why?" Regina inquired, eyeing Emma carefully.

"Because I can help you," Emma stated, setting her glass down. "Give me your tie." Regina stared at the blonde blankly.

"What?"

"Your tie. Give it to me," she elaborated, gesturing to the black tie hanging loosely around Regina's neck. She hadn't changed after she'd met Emma at Granny's preferring to get started on dinner as soon as she got home. She'd only loosened her tie and removed her blazer before getting out the pots and pans and now she was slowly pulling it over her head, confusion etched into her face. Emma took the tie from her then scoped out the back of the couch for a moment, eyeing the woodwork. "That'll do."

"Miss Swan, what are you doing?" Regina asked as Emma undid the windsor knot in the tie.

"Give me your hands." Perhaps it was the alcohol and maybe even temporary insanity but Regina lifted her wrists to Emma. The blonde looped the tie around her wrists, effectively binding them together then stood up. "Pick a safe word." Regina sputtered.

"Pick a what? Miss Swan, surely you don't mean-"

"I meant what I said," Emma cut in as she guided Regina's wrists up and over her head. She then began to tie her wrists to the frame of the couch, looping the satin through the carefully sanded holes. Marco truly did some nice work on that frame. Emma would have to thank him later. "Pick a safe word or I'll pick one for you. Something you'll remember."

"I don't understand. What is goi-" but Emma cut her off again, this time with a finger to her lip. She pulled back to look at her, brow raised in a challenge.

"Pick," she stated before turning back to the knot.

"G-Gambino." That pulled a chuckle out of the blonde. "It's the first thing I thought of!"

"As long as you remember it, I don't care what it is. No matter how silly," Emma snickered, pulling back once she was satisfied with her handiwork. Regina's cheeks were rosy red and her chest was heaving slightly, eyes tracking Emma's every move. Emma wished she could take a picture but she was already pushing her luck with this stunt. Dropping to her knees, Emma scooted up in front of Regina, placing her hands on either of her calves.

"Say Gambino when you want me to stop."

"Miss Swan! E-Emma, what are yo-" Regina's words died on her lips as Emma's head dipped between her legs. In a moment, her skirt was bunched up high at her waist and her underwear was down by her ankles. At the first puff of hot air, Regina's breath hitched in her throat but as Emma dragged her tongue once through her folds, she let out a deep sigh of pleasure.

"Emma, what are you-Why are you doing this?" she managed to get out but Emma's answer came as a skilled tongue flicking against her clit. Then on, every time Regina tried to speak, Emma would do something that would kill the words just before she could get them out. The only sounds in the mansion were the gentle hum of the dishwasher and the embarrassingly cute noises escaping the mayor. She couldn't believe what was happening, what Emma was doing to her but every time she managed to regain some sense and think about how ridiculous the situation was, she'd be treated to a brilliant sensation down below. Emma certainly knew what she was doing.

There was a point in which Regina managed to catch her breath and think straight enough to speak but the blonde made her mouth click shut when a finger slowly entered her warmth. Emma was quick and aggressive with her tongue but she was slow and careful with her steadily probing finger, listening to the way Regina's moans went from sighs to gasps of pleasure. The mayor was panting now, slowly rocking her hips in time with Emma's steady pumping. She could feel her release gearing up to blow which was then heightened when Emma added a second finger, drawing a particularly guttural moan from her. Regina squirmed against her restraints, unable to handle much more until finally color exploded in her vision, jaw dropped in a silent scream.

Emma ceased her ministrations and instead of deft strikes, she switched to slow, broad strokes of her tongue, lapping up every last drop of Regina's essence. Meanwhile, the mayor's chest heaved as she tried to catch her bearings with deep, shaky breaths. Emma removed her fingers but she continued with the slow strokes, helping Regina through the last of her aftershocks. By time Regina opened her eyes again, breathing under control, Emma was sitting there staring up at her, head leaning against one of her olive thighs. The blonde smiled at her, green eyes twinkling with mischief and she couldn't help but smile back, as tired as it was. Emma then lifted her hand, never once breaking eye contact and stuck her fingers in her mouth, licking them clean. Regina bit her lip as she watched her, arousal swirling in her eyes.

The energy between them was magnetic, like a force pulling them towards one another so when Emma got up off her knees and leaned over her, Regina didn't lean away. Their lips connected gently, eyes falling shut as they kissed. It grew more and more passionate with each passing second, the both of them moaning into the kiss. When it finally became necessary to breathe, Emma pulled back. When Regina opened her eyes for the second time, she could see it. She could see the way Emma was looking at her, the way Regina realised she always looked at her but this close up, she could see how it quickly changed to a look of...panic?

"I-I'm sorry. Oh my God, what have I done?" Emma rattled off, guilt coloring her features. She hadn't meant to kiss her. Emma figured she could get away with what she'd done without revealing her feelings hiding behind the excuse that she just wanted to help out her best friend but she just had to go and kiss her. She got caught up in the moment, looking into Regina's beautiful brown eyes and just went for it. She knew that Regina knew it too. God, what did she do? Emma immediately shot up and moved to untie Regina's wrists, fingers trembling as she tried to undo the intricate knot. "God fucking dammit," she hissed under her breath, annoyed at both the knot and situation she'd gotten them both into.

"...How long?" Emma's eyes flicked down curiously to Regina for a second before returning to the knot.

"I'll have you untied in a second."

"No Miss Swan. How long have you been in love with me?" Emma jumped back at that, meeting Regina's eyes sheepishly. The mayor however was giving nothing away. Her face was blank and her gaze was even, pinning Emma on the spot. The blonde looked frazzled and guilty and Regina almost felt bad for her. The poor dear looked like she might actually cry.

"I-I..." Emma stuttered but she couldn't formulate any words of substance.

"Breathe dear, then tell me," Regina stated patiently. She could see Emma take her advice, breathing in deeply and steadying herself. Then she leaned forward again and resumed trying to free Regina's wrists. She was silent for a moment but then she seemed to finally find her voice.

"I didn't come to terms with how I feel about you until Robin came back to Storybrooke with us. Wish Realm Robin I mean..." Emma began in nearly a whisper. It was easier for her to get the words out while she wasn't looking Regina directly in the eye. "But I suppose that wasn't when I fell in love with you. It might have been when you tried to stop the trigger by yourself. I was so afraid that I might lose you but back then I didn't understand what that meant in terms of my feelings..." She stopped and took a breath then shook her head. "But if I'm being completely honest?" She pulled the last of the knot free and slowly lowered Regina's arms. The mayor hissed softly as her shoulders cracked but then Emma's gaze dropped to meet hers. "I fell in love with you the moment you opened the door back when we first met."

Emma dropped her eyes to Regina's wrists again, getting down on one knee to undo the knot around them. The symbolism was not lost on either of them. Emma worked silently with steady fingers, able to focus now that her feelings were known but Regina still hadn't said anything. When Emma finally pulled the tie free and set it aside, she looked back up at Regina and gave a sad, little smile. "I've ruined things, haven't I?"

Regina stared at her, thoughts tumbling around in her head for a bit before she stood up. Emma cautiously got to her feet as well while the mayor smoothed down her skirt. Scanning the ground, she gently pressed Emma out of her way so that she could fetch her fallen underwear. Emma felt like she was sweating bullets at this time, unsure what this meant for them. If Regina didn't want to be her lover, she could understand and live with that. A broken heart hurt but it could heal over time. But if Regina didn't want her to be her friend anymore, Emma wasn't sure if she could handle that. She loved Regina in more ways than one and getting cut off in every aspect wasn't something she could even bear to think about. "Regina?"

"Henry wants to go bowling tomorrow, I'm sure you remember," Regina said out of nowhere. Emma blinked.

"I-Yeah? So what?"

"So I'm certainly not going to humiliate myself in those ugly and no doubt disgusting bowling shoes alone. You're still coming along." A statement. Not a question.

"Of course...Yeah. Sure. Right," Emma replied nervously, watching as Regina poofed her underwear away, to the hamper she presumed. "I'll uh...I'll meet you both there at eleven?"

Regina nodded her affirmative then scooped up the two wine glasses from the table, heading for the kitchen. Emma was paralyzed, unsure what to to do. Did she follow and get her answer or did she just leave? "Good night Miss Swan. I'll see you tomorrow," Regina called over her shoulder.

Ah. That was it then. Emma ran a nervous hand through her hair and made her way towards the exit. She slipped on her leather jacket and was out the door, closing it behind her with a soft click. Regina seemed angry with her, cold and decisive and Emma wanted to kick herself for even allowing the very thought of binding the mayor to her couch and fucking her to cross her mind. She thinks she would have handled a fireball better than the way Regina spoke as if nothing had happened. Was all further conversation going to be like that? Stilted and to the point? No more wine after dinner certainly and probably no more dinner at all if Henry isn't around. No more cuddling up together on the couch and watching old crime movies. No more casual drops by the mayoral office to distract her for an hour with sweets and gossip.

Emma shook her head and chuckled sadly to herself. Her friendship with Regina was the best thing in her life aside from Henry and she'd just gone and ruined it. So she resigned herself to her fate as she walked down the pathway to the street, stopping in front of the Bug. Patting her pockets for her keys, Emma paused as she felt something unfamiliar. Reaching into her left pocket, she felt cloth that certainly wasn't there before. A napkin from Granny's? She pulled it out and gasped, quickly shoving it back into her pocket. Not a napkin. No, that was most certainly Regina's black lacy underwear. Emma let out a bark of laughter, putting her head in her hands.

She supposed she got her answer after all.

I've literally never written smut before...This was a learning experience XD