Emma nodded to Regina, though mostly it felt as a reassurance to herself, and knocked on the door.
When it swung open, her mother invited them in, beaming brightly at Emma. Regina followed, feeling a little invisible. David had already set about making everyone some drinks, and eventually Snow, David, Regina and Emma were all sat at the table nursing similar mugs of warm tea.
"So, what did you want to talk to us about? Did you find out who cursed us?" Snow asked, while subconsciously rubbing her swollen belly in cirlces.
"Uh, no- no it's not that." Emma fumbled over her words, searching for Regina's hand under the table. When Regina squeezed her hand in support, she took a breath and continued.
"I uh, I mean, how do I put this?" She mumbled, though Regina heard her.
"What you're daughter is so eloquently trying to say, my dears-"
"-Im gay!" Emma suddenly interrupted, feeling like she had to be the one to say it. Snow just stared at her, not understanding, while David took a sip of his tea, like nothing had happened.
"And?" Snow implored.
"And what?" Emma asked, having expected a blown-up reaction.
"And you're pointing this out because?"
"I-I.. What?"
"I mean, I thought it was obvious so-"
"It's obvious?" Regina cuts in, suppressing a smirk for Emma's benefit, who still can't find her words.
"Well... yeah."
"I-I... what?"
"You've already said that, dear." Regina snarks.
"Emma." David finally speaks. "It's okay, you're still Emma. In our land, it was quite common, and here, no one cares, really. We love you, nothing changes that."
"I ... uh, thanks, Dad." Emma smiles, as he gives her hand a final squeeze before returning it to his tea again.
"How was it obvious?" Emma now asks, having found her voice again.
"Emma, honey, you are many things but subtle is not one of them." Snow adds softly, chuckling into her tea.
"Hey, I can be subtle!" Emma pouts, turning to Regina for help.
"As much as I loathe to agree with Snow, Emma, no. That is not something in your skill set." She teases lightly, squeezing Emma's hand once more under the table.
"I am subtle" Emma mumbles petulantly. Earning a smirk from Regina.
"Wait, why is Regina here?" Snow asks, suspicious of their behaviour, and the fact that Regina had to be here. Though she keeps her smirk on the inside, she's burning to know if she's right..
"Yeah, well...that. I'mgayandIlikeReginalikealotandshelikesmetoohopefullyandpleasedon'tbemad." She gushes out in one final breath.
"You are?" Snow asks, her excitement showing through.
The high pitch to her tone however, comes across as anger to Emma who instinctively flinches and sits up straighter.
"Yes, we are." Regina speaks, as Emma looks like she is unwilling to breathe for a moment, she runs the pad of her thumb over the back of her palm.
"FINALLY!" Mary margaret yells, sitting back in her seat. "It took you guys forever! I mean all the fighting before the curse and the fire at town hall-"
"What's going on?" Emma conspiratorially whispers to Regina.
"I have no idea." Comes the reply, and David has joined in with Snow, by this point.
"And she wouldn't let Regina die!"
"I KNOW!" Snow yells, sounding like Monica from friends. "And then we had to deal with the wraith! SHE PUSHED HER OUT OF THE WAY, DAVID!"
"I KNEW IT! Oh god - And I'm sure she helped with the portal! The whole time you guys were away she worked on a way to get you back! IT WAS SO OBVIOUS!" he squeaks, sounding very unlike himself.
"And she made lasagne! And Emma invited her and- and.." Mary margaret seemed to need her breathing now more than talking.
"She sucked up a death curse, too!"
"You did what?" Emma asks, while Snow perked back up again and the two across the table had started yelling at each other, somewhat happily.
"There was a death curse put over the well, to ward of my mother. Henry insisted so I-I consumed the magic."
"You did what? Regina I-"
"OHMYGOD DAVID!" Suddenly interrupted them "THEY'RE HAVING A MOMENT!" Snow squeaked, slapping her husand furiously on the arm.
Regina chuckled anxiously at Snow's antics before getting up to leave.
"While this was all very ... exciting, We should probably be leaving."
"No! You can't go yet!" Snow pouted, sounding like a toddler, "We need to have separate conversations with you both! Emma, can I speak to you in upstairs?"
Emma gapes, before glancing to Regina who rolls her eyes and sits back down. She follows Snow who's already halfway waddling up the stairs like a big fat duck momma.
"Hurt her, and you die." Is the menacing words she hears as soon as she makes it up the stairs.
"I- what?" she asks incredulously.
"That woman has had too much lost love in her life, hurt her, and I do not care if you are my own daughter, I will hunt you down, chop you up and feed you to Frank."
"Frank?"
"One of my birds who is hungry and isn't opposed to your body parts."
"Sure that this isn't pregnancy brain?" Emma tries to joke, because jesus do snow's eyes look like she would actually gut her and feed her to the birds.
"This is not a joke, Emma." She says sternly, before softening. "I love you honey, and I'm happy for you, but I also love Regina...somehow. And I don't want to see her hurt again -or ever- understood?"
"Yeah, I don't wanna hurt her either, Mom." and suddenly she is engulfed in an awkward hug, her sibling stuck between them by the swell of snow's stomach.
"I've been waiting SO long for this!" Snow squeaks into the hug.
"I thought you liked Hook? Or Neal?" She asks, genuinely confused.
"I did, but did either of their kisses ever break a curse? HHMM? NOPE! That's what I thought!"
"You know, Regina hasn't broken a curse, either. It was a potion that brought back my memories."
"But you guys so will! Hey, maybe I can put you under a sleeping curse so we can break this one!"
"MOM! No curses! What the hell?"
"You're right, I'm sorry honey, but this has been about three years in the making! Make that four, now!"
Emma sighs, and follows her mother downstairs to where she sees Regina's head poking out of an awkward looking hug with David.
"HELP ME." She mouths, arms poking out to the sides as David squishes her. David pulls back, and pats her on the arm, before growling playfully.
"I assume I don't have to make the 'hurt her and I'll hunt you down' speech?" He jokes, grabbing the empty mugs to rinse in the sink.
"Yeah, mom already did that." Emma lets out, coming to Regina's side.
"Your mother what?"
"Oh, yeah" Emma snorts. "Apparently she'll cut me into little tiny pieces and feed me to frank."
"Frank?" Regina quirks a brow, whilst simultaneously wrinkling her nose at the thought of Emma being cut up into bits.
"One of her crazy-ass birds." Emma waves it off.
"I should feed him, actually." Snow muses as she comes back over to them.
Emma immediately backs-the-fuck-up, while Regina chuckles at her behaviour.
"While I thank you, Snow- for that- We really must be going, Emma."
She gathers up their things and heads for the door, waiting while Emma once again hugs her mother.
"Frank is always hungry, Emma." Snow whispers, coming out of the hug with a creepy smile.
Emma gulps, turns to Regina and grabs her hand while they head out of the door.
"DAVID THEY HELD HANDS OHMYGOD!" Is heard before Regina poofs them away in fear.