Author's Note: I saw a video of a teacher that did this and I thought well since Regina is all about apples, why not let MM teach Henry this lesson and let him teach it too his mom.
The lesson of Apples.
The lesson of Apples.
"Mommy, Mommy," six-year-old Henry ran towards his mother. She was picking him up from school as she did every day. Regina bent down so he could run into his arms, he quickly did and she lifted him up and hugged him tight.
His teacher Mary Margaret came over saying, "Madam Mayor."
"Miss Blanchard," she greeted polite, adding, "I trust he behaved today?"
"Oh yes, on his behavior as always, unlike many of the others," said she, looking at the older brunette, holding her son close. He was really too big to be held like that, and the teacher knew that he most likely was too heavy as well, but Regina never minded she knew.
Regina sat him down ever so gently, getting down to his level and said, "Why don't you go into the hall and get your backpack and your jacket and wait for me there."
"You won't take long?" he looked at her with worried eyes.
"No of course not," she kissed his cheek ever so gently.
Henry smiled and run off as Regina reached to his Mary Margaret's level, being a few inches higher due to her heels. She took a deep breath saying, "I will be a little late picking him up tomorrow, there is a last-minute meeting. I asked his sitter, but she is having a late shift. Will this be a big problem for you ?"
"No, no, not at all," the young teacher assured her in a calm tone, nodding to a father picking up his son.
"Oh good, I feared it might be," Regina said with a sigh of relief, she had never asked for a favor from the teacher before, but this meeting she couldn't get out of. One of the disadvantages of being a Mayor.
"Don't worry about it happens every day," Mary Margaret said with a small laugh.
"I will send some extra food with him in case he gets hungry," she said as the other woman nodded. Regina got interrupted by Henry yelling from the door, "Mommy, are you coming?"
"You should go," Mary Margaret said with another small laugh.
"Yes, well I shall see you tomorrow for his drop off," she said with a small smile, walking towards her son. She took his hand as soon as she reached him and walked with him to the car.
Once at home Regina made sure to get the bags of glossaries out of the trunk, checking that Henry hadn't forgotten anything in the back, before closing up the car. He was already waiting at the door. Once she got there he said, "I want to show you my lesson today."
"Oh ?" she looked at him with wondering eyes.
"Mhm, Miss Blanchard taught us about apples and students today, and since you have apples I want to show you it," he explained excitedly.
"Alright," she nodded, wondering what his teacher might had shown him. She opened the door and got inside, putting the bags down, so she could get her black coat and scarf off. Henry got his coat off as well, hanging it on the hanger along with his scarf. He put his shoes neatly in the hallway closet and said, "I am just going to change and wash my hands."
She nodded and smiled at him as he ran upstairs. The young Mayor walked into the kitchen to put the glossaries away. Once she was almost done she heard his footsteps down the stairs and turned to watch as he walked into the kitchen. He beamed at her saying, "May I have two apples, please?"
Regina nodded and gave him two red apples from the bowl on the counter. He put on one on the chair and threw the other around on the floor, making sure it hit the floor hardly. Regina watched with a frown not saying anything. He got on the chair and put the apples on the counter in front of him, saying, "I want you to insult the apple that I just threw around."
"Insult the apple," she said confused.
"Uh-huh, say bad things to it," he encouraged, looking at his mother.
Regina was a bit, puzzled, but having once been the evil queen she looked at the apple and said, "You think you are better than me, I can assure you are not. You are stupid, and I loathe you. You are the most annoying thing in the whole world. You are disgusting, you are nothing. I hate you and you are ugly!"
Henry looked at his mother a bit surprised, he knew she was humoring him, but still he had never seen her insulting anyone or anything quite like this. Her voice, her eyes seemed to be filled with hate and he couldn't help but to wonder where it all came from. Once she was done, she looked at him with questioning eyes. He told her to cut both apples open and put them back on the table. She again nodded and did as asked, having no reason not to.
Henry pointed at the apple that had been on the table the whole time saying, "See this is fine, look at the other it is not, it is hurting on the inside, its feeling really bad. It's the same way with students and humans, this is how they look on the inside when they are being yelled at and told they are not good enough. This is sometimes how I feel, like a rotten apple."
Regina couldn't help but to give it to Mary Margaret, she wasn't for all her teaching, but this was a wise one. She hugged her son tight, whispering, "You are not a rotten apple, you are my prince and my savior and I love you."
"That helps, thank you, but why doesn't the other children want to play with me?" he whispered, hugging her back.
"I don't know, Henry, I don't see why they don't want to play with a smart and kind boy like you," she hugged him closer. She really didn't get why the other children didn't want to be with him. She feared maybe it was their parents that told them not to play with him as he was the mayor's child.
"I just want to be liked," he said, hiding his head in her, dragging in the scent of apples, cinnamon and her rose and honey lotion, the smell of safety.
"I know and I am sure that some day you will," she said and kissed the top of his head lovingly.
He looked up at her with his big brown eyes, similar to her own, but not quite as he was adopted. He smiled warmly at her.
"You think we will ever have a family, more than us?" he asked in a serious tone.
"Oh Henry I am sure of it," she said with a soft laugh, kissing his nose, making him laugh also. Her favorite sound in the world.
"Thank you for feeling a little less like a bad apple," he said and beamed at her.
"You are welcome, and you know bad apples can be used also, like this," she said and held up one of the ruined pieces, "Is going to an apple pie we will have for dessert."
"Yay, mom?" he said looking at her with serious eyes again.
"Yes, my little prince," she wondered, not helping but to still smile at him.
"Did you ever feel like that apple," he wondered, pointing to the ruined part in her hand.
"I have and I do from time to time, people can be cruel," she sighed heavily. She knew she most likely had made others feel like that way, and for the first time she felt a sting of guilt over it.
"Mhm," he agreed holding on for some time, letting her go saying, "I am hungry."
"Alright, I shall start on dinner, why don't you go and play for a little while," she said, kissing the top of her head.
Regina thought for a second before she wrote a note to miss Blanchard. She would have Henry deliver it the next day.
It was a surprised Mary Margaret that opened the note from the Mayor the next day, while holding an apple in her hand. She took a bite, looking over at Henry that was reading in his English book, making some small notes as she read, "I want to thank you for teaching my son about the apples, it is a really good lesson. It made me think and I think you should continue using it. Have a good day. R. Mills. Ps, enjoy the apple."
She folded the note and put it in her purse with a small smile, glad that her teachings could help more than just the children.
It was only years later when Regina had yet thrown an insult at Miss Swan and the blonde walked away fuming, she remembered the old lesson. She took a deep breath and called after her, "Emma, wait."
"What?!" she turned to look at the brunette.
"I should have worded myself differently, I am sorry, you…you can take Henry to the movies tonight if you still want to," she slowly said, hoping she wouldn't regret it.
"Why the sudden change?" Emma said a bit surprised.
"I guess I didn't want you to feel like a rotten apple," she shrugged, walking towards her car.
Emma looked after her confused dialing her mother to ask about it. If anyone knew it had to be her. Once she got the explanation, a smile graced her lips. She knew it had to have taken Regina a lot to apologize and so she texted her, "Thank you for making me feel a bit more like a healthy apple, I will drive him to your house after the movies."
She laughed as she got a text back, "You are welcome, maybe I will offer you a piece of apple pie when you return him. Leftovers from yesterday, but I can assure you it is still good."
"What is funny?" she heard Henry ask as he walked towards her.
"Nothing, just a thing about apples," Emma said and ruffled his hair. Henry shook his head knowing he would never understand adults. He walked with her though, taking a bite of the apple he had taken from his mother's tree. Good as always, glad he never would feel like a rotten apple again.
Emma on the other hand whistled as they walked to her car, ready for operation popcorn love to start. It was what it called it every time they went to the movies because both loved popcorn. Not to mentioned she was looking forward to a piece of Regina's apple pie later, after all her apple pies was to die for. The thought of it made her feel a little more like a healthy apple.
Thank you for reading, feedback is always appreciated :o)