Don't Dream It, Be It
A/N: So I had planned to work on updating my ongoing fic, Baby It's Cold Outside, but I got this idea and it would not let me go. So, um…I hope you enjoy this. It combines my current Swan Queen love with the film that was my first cult favorite. As always, much gratitude and appreciation for the support of my beta lupwned who is kind enough to deal with my craziness twice in one weekend. Please read and review!
"I can't believe you've dragged me out for this." Regina glared at Emma as they walked up to the Storybrooke Cinema.
"Oh, come on, Madame Mayor. You lost the bet fair and square. It's time to pay up. Besides, this should be a lot of fun. Even you need a night out every now and then."
"Miss Swan, I look ridiculous. Couldn't I at least keep my coat on for the show?"
"Absolutely not! You are required by the terms of our bet to wear exactly that. Besides, you don't look ridiculous. You look terrific and nobody will notice anyway."
Emma was not exaggerating; the skimpy French Maid costume the mayor was currently hiding beneath her trench coat was stunning. When Emma had gone to pick her up and seen the outfit, her mouth had gone dry and she had to take several deep breaths to calm herself. This was not a date; it was merely collecting on their bet and supporting a charity event. Not a date at all.
"Well I suppose compared to the absurd outfit you are wearing I look positively conservative."
This was also true. Emma's outfit of a rainbow-sequined corset, striped shorts, gold sequined jacket and top hat, pink sequined bow tie, and tap shoes was much more noticeable. However, Emma strutted proudly, knowing she looked hot.
"Aww…C'mon Madame Mayor. It's for a good cause. You wouldn't want the town to think that you don't support raising money for the pediatric wing at Storybrooke Hospital."
With a sigh, Regina nodded her assent to this notion as they approached the box office. She was surprised when Emma strode to the clerk and asked for two tickets.
"There's no need, Sheriff. I am perfectly able to purchase my own ticket."
"You're right, there is no need. But it is my pleasure to treat you this evening. After all, you've been such a good sport." Emma's rakish wink only deepened the frown across the mayor's face, although the corners of her mouth twitched.
They walked into the cinema surprised to find the auditorium already nearly filled with excited citizens talking in hushed tones.
"Well, I suppose we'll have to take a seat toward the back."
"That's my preference anyway, Miss Swan. The fewer people see us dressed like this, the better."
Emma sighed. "Look around, Regina. Nearly everyone is dressed up." It was true. The theater was filled with colorful costumes, people were wearing make-up, party hats; it was quite a scene.
As the lights went out, contrary to the typical movie theater etiquette, the crowd erupted into raucous cheers. Dr. Whale was visible in the front howling like a wolf. David and Mary Margaret walked out onto the stage in front of the screen and held their hands up to quiet the crowd.
"Thank you so much for coming out to support the pediatric wing at Storybrooke Hospital by viewing our screening of the Rocky Horror Picture Show." Snow began beaming at the crowd.
"We hope that you will enjoy the show and see a member of the cast in the lobby afterward if you wish to make an additional contribution. Let the fun begin!" David took Mary Margaret's arm and they swept offstage.
The crowd went wild once again, ecstatic for an opportunity to throw of the conservative confines of Storybrooke's everyday culture for an evening of decadence.
The lights went completely out now and the film began to roll.
As the ruby-red lips began to sing the opening song to the show, Emma looked over the crowd and grinned at how enthralled everyone was. She glanced at the program that had been handed to her upon entering and was amused, if not slightly disturbed, to learn the full cast list. This was going to be an interesting evening to be sure.
She could not resist sneaking a glance at Regina, who she knew was extremely uncomfortable. She expected this would be like torture for the buttoned-up mayor. She would probably never deign to see a movie such as Rocky Horror let alone in a theater full of rowdy townspeople, and certainly not dressed in character.
As she lifted her gaze to the mayor, however, her jaw fell slack. Regina was mouthing along with the lyrics to the song. She even seemed, now that the movie had started, to be smiling. Emma was in shock as she elbowed the mayor.
Regina looked over indignant at being manhandled in such a way. Emma's alarmed expression took her by surprise.
"You know the words" Emma hissed. It was not really a question.
"Well, dear, I had twenty-eight years to pass the time. VH1 shows this every year for Halloween, it's become something of a traditional guilty pleasure." Regina was unblushing in her admission.
Emma found she was astonished and wondered at this newfound information and what other guilty pleasures the mayor might be holding back. The thought moved to the back of her mind for later inspection, however, as Mary Margaret and August walked out in front of the screen to begin the first scene of the movie. She craned her neck and became enthralled listening to the audience shouting responses to the song as August sang "Dammit, Janet, I love you."
When Sydney came onstage in an ascot as the criminologist, she had to laugh out loud. As she snorted, she couldn't help murmuring, "Sydney Glass as the voyeuristic storyteller. If that isn't typecasting I don't know what is" to her companion.
Regina let out a bark of laughter before shaking her head with a rueful smile at Emma.
Emma felt strange warmth at the camaraderie between them this evening. Their typical interactions were fraught with tension but for the moment their tentative peace felt easy. She was enjoying the evening out with the mayor far more than she expected. She smiled to herself as the scene proceeded.
When the rain began to fall, some of the more prepared audience members brought out water pistols and began to spray water over the rest of the audience. Regina gasped as cold water hit her directly in the face. Emma cringed, thinking that perhaps the fun was at an end. She was surprised as Regina simply laughed and downright shocked when Regina pulled her coat over both of their heads to protect them from further squirting.
She gazed at the brunette realizing how closely they were sitting under the cover of her coat and felt a flush creeping up her neck. For a moment, the pair simply gazed at one another, brown eyes piercing green before Emma cleared her throat and looked away.
As August and Mary Margaret as Brad and Janet knocked on Dr. Frank-N-Furter's door, the tension was eased as the typecasting caught Emma off-guard and she had to giggle. Mr. Gold as Riff Raff opened the mansion door looking appropriately creepy. He shared a salacious leer with Belle, playing Magenta as she cackled "We're all lucky".
The opening strains of the Time Warp had the audience in the aisles, preparing to dance along. Emma grabbed Regina's hand and forced her into the aisle in front of her. Regina scowled and firmly stated "I have no intention of dancing the Time Warp, Miss Swan."
"Aww…c'mon Madame Mayor, we're all the way in the back, nobody has to know." She gave a crooked grin and refused to allow the mayor to return to her seat.
Regina surveyed the crowd and determined that this was true enough; everyone seemed too consumed with positioning themselves to pay any mind to the town officials in the back of the auditorium. With a sigh, she relented, determined that if she was going to do this dance, she was going to do so properly.
Emma was impressed with the Mayor's ability to Time Warp and wondered if she had practiced in her living room after a few ciders for years. As the image entered her mind, she snorted with laughter once again.
"Something funny, dear?"
"Erm…no. I just didn't know that Ruby could tap dance like that. She's pretty perfect for Columbia, actually."
As they stood to resume dancing at the end of the tap solo, Emma blushed madly when her pelvic thrust was ill timed and she ended up bumping her backside into the mayor's front.
Regina sighed audibly and said "Really Miss Swan, you should be careful with that thing, you could injure someone" but her eyes were sparkling when she said it. In truth, the intimate contact with the sheriff was causing heat to flow throughout her body in a way that caught her unprepared.
As they returned to their seats, both women were flushed and slightly breathless, which had little to do with their dancing. They silently watched the cast as Jefferson appeared in a wig and full make-up. He looked surprisingly comfortable in his fishnets and heals as he performed "Sweet Transvestite".
It occurred to Emma how uncomfortable it was to watch her mother prancing about in a bra and slip, but she supposed that this would only get worse as the night went on. As the movie continued and her father emerged from a tank only to be stripped down to his gold underwear, she shifted down in her seat a little.
Regina noticed her shrinking down in her seat and smirked "Seeing Mommy and Daddy in a bit of a different light, dear?"
Emma just mumbled something about "…bad enough if it was David and Mary Margaret." As she blushed crimson and reflected on how much of the night her face had been red.
When Leroy burst onto the scene and began to sing "Whatever Happened to Saturday Night" all embarrassment was forgotten. Both Emma and Regina burst into laughter at the sight of the generally grouchy dwarf spinning Ruby around with a shit-eating grin on his face.
Regina's foot was tapping as she bopped to the music and Emma chanced another look at her, noticing that the mayor's face was lit with a huge smile. She was really beautiful when she beamed like this. Especially as the low cut front of her maid's outfit revealed cleavage bouncing in time with the music.
Emma snapped her eyes back up at the screen; she could not think about Regina like that. She had brought her here to collect on the bet and that was all.
As Jefferson as Frank-N-Furter snuck into Mary Margaret's room to seduce her, Regina snuck a glance at Emma. She had hoped to find her crimson from seeing her mother in such a position, and she wasn't disappointed. She was surprised to find herself smiling at the grimace pulling the sheriff's face. She knew that the younger woman had intended for this evening to be uncomfortable for her, which seemed to have backfired spectacularly. Suddenly a wicked grin crossed her face as she determined to make this evening even more interesting by playing on the sheriff's discomfort.
When Mary Margaret approached the tank to heal David's wounds, Regina leaned over and whispered "I bet you never expected to see your parents like that either."
Emma groaned and covered her eyes.
Regina gave a throaty chuckle and pushed it further, moaning along with the song "More, more, more" right next to Emma's ear. Emma felt Regina's breath upon her ear and closed her eyes, sighing.
When Magenta and Columbia growled "Down, down, down" Regina traced a finger down Emma's thigh to her knee again singing along in Emma's ear. She knew that this was pushing things but she had a sense that the sheriff might not object. She was rewarded when Emma looked up at her under heavy eyelids and she felt their gazes connect. For a moment her breath hitched and she felt their breath mingle.
The cracking of a whip in the movie broke their gaze and they both shifted uncomfortably in their seats looking up at the cast once again. As Archie entered the scene in a wheelchair, they watched in silence. Both women felt the presence of the other beside them as though electricity flowed between them.
Emma decided that the earlier atmosphere of companionship without tension was needed, and she nudged Regina as Ruby belted out "Eddie" she gave a lopsided grin and started to hand jive along with the crowd. Regina recognized the attempt to return to levity and joined in with her own small smile.
As Sydney gave his speech before the floor show, Regina leaned forward to the edge of the seat with a huge smile, muttering to Emma "This has always been my favorite part". She was fully singing along now and dancing along in her seat to the floor show.
Emma wore a huge smile as she watched the woman. She had never seen the mayor so easy-going before. It made her believe that perhaps they could spend more time together. After all, Henry would certainly be happy if they did. She continued to stare at Regina, oblivious to her parents dancing in garter belts in front of her, oblivious to the crowd around them. She was riveted to the fascinating, complicated, and utterly stunning woman next to her.
As Regina looked back to her with her face lit in a huge smile, Emma grinned back. She couldn't resist reaching out and pushing Regina's hair off of her forehead saying "I'm so glad you came. I didn't realize what a fan you were."
Regina blushed at the intimacy of the gesture, but did not push Emma away, merely turning back to watch Jefferson as he sang "Don't Dream It, Be It". She sat back in her seat and looked at Emma, whose attention was completely on the cast now. She wondered at how she felt so at ease with the blonde, when she usually felt so much tension between them. As Emma cringed at the sight of Ruby kissing her mother, she grinned and then spontaneously leaned over and kissed Emma on the cheek.
Emma's head snapped over to look at her, green eyes widened in surprise. As the tempo and volume increased in the song, she found that the crowd and noise vanished until they were the only two people in the room. Over several long moments they stared at each other while inching closer. It was impossible to tell who kissed who as their lips met briefly and both felt an explosion of tingling spread from their lips.
When Mr. Gold and Belle entered the aisle just feet away from them and eyes turned to the back of the theater they flew apart. They both attempted to pay attention to the cast, but as their hearts raced and their breath quickened the rest of the film was lost on them. They stole glances at one another throughout the remainder of the movie, but missed each other's eyes each time.
Mr. Gold screeching "They didn't like me, they never liked me" caused both of them to giggle again, and they finally caught one another's eyes. Emma swallowed hard, gathering her courage before reaching to take Regina's hand. Regina's eyes widened, but she allowed Emma to grasp her hand and take it into her lap. Emma began to trace her fingertips over Regina's palm making feather-light patterns over her fingers.
Regina felt warmth spreading through her body and suppressed a moan. She felt her pulse beating madly and shivered.
Emma felt the shudder and feeling bolder began to trace finger tips up toward Regina's elbow. Regina crooked her fingers and returned the caress causing Emma to inhale sharply.
Both women started as the movie finished and the lights came on for the cast to take their bows in front of their film counterpoints. They stood with the rest of the crowd and applauded loudly, Emma whooping for her parents and friends. They both smiled at each other as the credits ended and moved out to the lobby.
They mingled among the crowd in the lobby and congratulated the cast. When they came to Mary Margaret and David, Regina made a sizable contribution. Seeing Mary Margaret's raised eyebrows, Regina shrugged.
"Never let it be said that I will not participate in a worthy cause, dear."
"Well, that's very generous of you, Regina. I hope that you enjoyed the show."
"It was perfectly adequate for an amateur production."
Mary Margaret shook her head at the mayor's inability to be civil even under these circumstances and excused herself to collect a donation from Marco, who was waiting off to the side.
As they walked out and felt the chill evening air, Emma bumped Regina with her hip and said "Perfectly adequate? You really couldn't have said they were good?"
"I spoke my mind, dear. The performance was acceptable, but I think some casting changes might have made for a better show."
"Ah, I see. Well, maybe next year you could participate in the cast. It seems like you've got the costume to be a breathtaking Magenta."
As Emma spoke, she made a show of ogling the mayor's outfit openly; smiling appreciatively at the way it hugged her curves. Regina preened and swayed her hips more than was necessary eliciting a wolfish grin from the sheriff. Without discussing it, they were making the short walk to the mayor's mansion together, not touching but walking more closely side by side than was typical.
"Hmmm…Yes, well, I suppose that I can see the appeal of the vampy domestic, but really, dear, don't you think that I should set my sights a bit higher?"
"Higher? Well, what exactly did you have in mind?"
Already they were at the mayor's front walkway and Regina allowed the tension to build as she walked to the porch without answering. Once she had slipped the key in the door, she turned a heavy lidded gaze on Emma before huskily stating "To tell the truth, I have always wanted to play Dr. Frank-N-Furter."
Emma stared at the brunette's full lips mesmerized as the corners turned up in a wicked grin. "And what role do you imagine me in?" she breathed.
Regina pressed her body into Emma's and whispered into her ear "Well dear, I do think you'd make a rather fine Rocky. I'd love to see the costume, anyway."
Emma moaned and leaned into the touch feeling uncomfortably aroused from the evening's flirting and the pressing warmth of the mayor. She allowed herself to be pulled into the mansion stating wryly, "Well, I suppose it's like the movie says…don't dream it, be it."
