Henry Mills yawned so loudly and so wide that his birth mother, Emma Swan, stared at him like he had three heads as she silently wondered if you could dislocate your jaw from yawning. His adoptive mother, Regina Mills, was the more practical not to mention responsible of his two mothers and prodded him softly in the back with her stockinged foot.

"Bed." The young boy and his blonde mother were sat on the floor leaning their backs against the couch that Regina was curled up on, they had been playing some inane video game for what felt like the last three days. The pair of them turned and wrinkled their noses in almost identical ways at her sensible command and one of them, though she couldn't be sure which, whined like a puppy.

"But we're almost at the big boss…"

Emma stated the fact as if it were something the brunette woman should be bothered by. "My apologies Miss Swan you seem to have confused me with someone who cares about ogres or knights or witches or whatever you are." She said with a dismissive wave of her hand at the TV screen.

Emma exchanged a look with her son and they shared a snigger which did nothing but earn her a death glare from her former majesty. She shrugged innocently "I thought you might care seeing as we seem to experience them on a weekly basis since magic beans and portals came into play."

Regina rolled her eyes at the feeble excuse but decided to bite her tongue and instead swallow a sip of red wine choosing, for once, not to entertain the infuriating blonde and start an argument with her. She glanced over at the puppy dog eyes of her son and simply met them with an arched eyebrow.

Henry sighed and shrugged at the blonde who was chugging back the beer that had been sitting on the side for much longer than intended. "We can pick up tomorrow I guess."

"Oh, you can, can you?" Regina sat up bristling at the news the annoying Sheriff would be a visitor in her home again tomorrow.

The younger pair exchanged a look again and Emma gave a small shake of her head; Regina was prickling at that, there was no way she was going into the plans her and her son had been hatching for his half term week. She threw him a lopsided grin before ruffling his hair in the way he hated so much "Night kid."

"Night Mom…night Mom."

The latter was said with an undertone of bitterness that Regina opened her mouth to reprimand him for but her words were cut off by another jaw stretching yawn and he padded off to bed anyway. No point picking fights with him when things had become tense enough lately. They had gotten over the Evil Queen thing, or as best they could at any rate but he did seem to be acting out, as a first-time mother it was hard to know what was the root cause or whether this was a typical growing up thing. She was jerked out of her thoughts by a heavy lump collapsing on the opposite end of the couch bouncing her up and down nearly spilling her wine. She glowered at the blonde who was too busy sucking her beer bottle dry to notice. She rolled her eyes and took a deep calming breath, the Sheriff just knew how to push her buttons. Speaking of which she watched in horror as the younger woman went to place her dewy beer bottle down on her end table with no coaster in sight. She launched herself across the couch landing with a well-placed elbow to Emma's thigh earning her a satisfying ouch as she swiped the offending dripping bottle from her grasp before it ruined her furniture.

Emma was brutally attacked and rubbed at the sore spot on her thigh whilst frowning at the former Evil Queen who looked entirely too pleased with herself. "What was that for?!" she cried out defensively. Regina slowly stood up from the couch and shot her an unimpressed look before sauntering off to the kitchen. The blonde watched her leave and then stretched out looking around for something to distract her away from thoughts of the shapely ass she had just watched far too intently. She shook her head at the unbidden thought Not now Swan, dangerous thoughts like that belong in the comfort of our own home, and probably not wise to have them even then. She sighed, it was a lecture she had given herself a thousand times but it never seemed to sink in. She glanced over at the paused game on the TV and climbed off the couch to turn the console off. Whilst she was knelt in front of the TV she perused the stack of DVDs that were uncharacteristically laid out in a haphazard pile. She spotted one of the titles she had brought round on a previous night and smirked, an expression that was wiped off her face when she felt the tell-tale eyes of the mayor on her. The hairs on the back of her neck stood up and she reprimanded her body for always reacting to the brunette's mere presence.

Regina came back from the kitchen with two tumblers of her potent apple cider, knowing full well that she had no beer left and she was not going to waste a good bottle of red on the woman who once described wine as grape juice gone bad. She paused in the doorway however, as she was presented by the other woman swatting on the floor, she took in her strong thighs straining against those ridiculous tight jeans she insisted on wearing and she found herself momentarily lost in the image. Emma shuffled and she blinked herself out of her gaze and briskly curled back into her spot on her couch with her feet tucked underneath her; it had taken her a long time to get to the stage where she could be so informal and relaxed around the blonde but in the end, it was a mixture of weariness and the other woman's sheer stubbornness that wore her down. It seemed to be out of the question that the woman could go home to her own place after seeing Henry, for some unknown reason she always insisted on hanging around like a bad smell. Though she smells more like vanilla with a hint of cinnamon.Regina blinked startled by the errant thought and frowned, when exactly had she noticed what the other woman smelled like? She gave a small shake of her head and tried to swallow down the nagging feeling she had. Probably spilled hot chocolate that I can smell, I can't imagine she does her own laundry regularly. She scoffed inwardly at the irritating blonde though she had to admit, albeit begrudgingly, as she watched the other woman stand and stretch in front of her which did wondrous things to her ass in those jeans and she found herself questioning what choice of underwear the Sheriff had gone for this morning, there were perks of Emma Swan hanging around. Not that she would ever admit that, even under torture…or several glasses of cider despite the other woman's best attempts. They had grown quite close over recent events and whilst Regina held the other woman at a distance she did silently consider her one of her best friends, again something she had point blank denied on many occasions when the blonde had been under the giggly influence of her cider and demanded a confession from the former Queen. She smiled in spite of herself, she was fond of the younger woman and did enjoy evenings like this, she felt free, she felt young again and they barely ever discussed the heavy things weighing on either of their minds. Her smile vanished almost instantly as the Sheriff plonked herself on the couch bouncing her up and down again. "Miss Swan!" she reprimanded.

Emma shrugged off the scold; Regina wasn't Regina unless she was having a go at her in one way or another and she had spent enough time with the brunette to know when she was actually in trouble and when she wasn't; this time she wasn't. She took the tumbler of cider from her hostess with a shit eating grin she knew would wind the other woman up instantly. It worked. She was rewarded with a scowl and huff, she hid her smile by sipping the cider handed to her – she didn't have a death wish after all.

Regina didn't know how many glasses of cider they had had but it must have been a fairly high number as they were currently discussing what super powers they would wish for and which they think they would probably have. She had stretched her legs out across the couch and her toes would occasionally graze rough denim when the blonde shifted in her seat and as her head swam with the alcohol she had to admit the sensation between stocking and denim was quite pleasurable.

Emma shook her head and crossed her feet on the coffee table in front of her, when she didn't hear her name being bellowed she grinned to herself; Regina's defences were down which meant she was more likely to get some truth out of her. "No! You can't choose magic that's cheating!"

"But that is my super power Miss Swan."

"No…that's what you have…like that's part of you, you know?" Emma swirled the last of her current glass of cider around the bottom thoughtfully. "Like, I'd wanna fly you know, just to be able to go anywhere I wanted, just get away…"

"Once a flight risk…" Regina muttered and frowned at herself when it came out laced with a bitterness and she wasn't sure where it had come from. She glanced over but luckily the blonde was too busy in her own thoughts to have heard her comment. She sipped her cider and waited patiently.

"I mean, knowing my luck I'd end up like Squirrel Girl or something." Regina raised an eyebrow. "She can command squirrels…and has a tail…" she drifted off "Although she did meet Iron Man…"

Regina sniggered and earned herself a dirty look from the blonde.

"All right, all right your turn."

The brunette sighed and downed the last of her cider and chewed her lip thoughtfully.

Emma was transfixed by the lip captured between teeth that she almost missed the older woman's confession.

"Time travel…"

Emma held her breath knowing that if she interrupted she would miss something precious from Regina. It was in these moments that she felt close to the woman and loved finding out these nuggets about her.

"I could go back and right some of my…wrongs…make up for things I regret." She tried her hardest not to meet those emerald eyes because she didn't want to admit that given her time again she would do things differently, especially when it came to her actions that had a direct effect on Emma's life. But as ever, she couldn't help herself and when their eyes met her breath was taken away by the shining empathy that was in those orbs holding her gaze steadily. She cleared her throat and gave a small smile "I'd probably be the Human Torch if my magic is anything to go by."

Emma opened her mouth and shut it again with a frown before sitting up abruptly and fully turning to Regina "Wait, how do you know about the Human Torch?"

The brunette smirked "You'd be surprised what I know Miss Swan." She blinked as her voice came out far huskier and seductive than she had planned but the blonde was still sat just looking at her with a dumbfounded expression. Regina rolled her eyes and held out her glass for Emma to take "I raised our son remember." The slip of the word our made her internally wince and she wanted to correct herself but she saw the happiness bloom across the blonde's face and she didn't have the heart to take it back.

Emma tried to school her features but she got positively giddy when Regina referred to Henry as their son, she had never had a family until now and now…well she often thought she had two – her parents and Henry and then Regina and Henry, not that she could admit that to the brunette of course. She took the offered empty glass and dutifully went to the kitchen to get them both top ups.

Regina lay back on the couch and spread out down the cushions relishing in the warm spot where Emma had been. A thought occurred to her as she felt the blonde sit back down and swung her legs out of the way for her. "You'd be a healer." She felt green eyes on her and she opened her own as she half sat back up again. She went to curl her legs back under but as Emma's hand became free when Regina took her glass the blonde gently lay a hand on her calves and they settled across the Sheriff's lap. A warning bell went off inside the brunette's brain about the physical closeness but she dismissed it and looked at Emma earnestly. "Your super power, you'd be a healer."

Emma rolled her eyes as they clinked glasses and she settled into her seat her free hand settling over a warm stockinged leg. "Why? Because I'm the Saviour?"

Regina sipped her cider and shook her head "No, because that's just who you are, you look after people."

Emma frowned at her but didn't dispute the comment instead thinking about it for a moment before throwing a goofy grin at the older woman who eyed her suspiciously "You'd have mind control or something." She received an eyebrow rise and chuckled "Well, if you were back in the Enchanted Forest you would! I can imagine Gold at your beck and call, you'd have him crawling the streets as a dog or something!"

Regina smiled bemused at the thought but didn't respond as she was interrupted by thoughts of whispered commands into ripped out hearts and her cheeks coloured at the memory.

They sat quietly for a moment before a thought struck Emma and her mouth was opening to break the quiet before she had time to process whether this was a good idea or not. She put down her glass and frowned at the other woman "Something's been bugging me."

"Hmm?" Regina questioned, only half listening as the blonde had absent-mindedly begun tracing patterns on her calf with her thumb and it was gloriously distracting her from the dark thoughts in her mind from what now felt like a previous life.

"When you were the Evil Queen…" There was silence from the brunette as she visibly prickled at the mention of her former identity, not that the awkward silence was picked up by the bumbling Sheriff of course. "You had the magic mirror like in the stories and movies, right?"

Regina thought back to when the blonde had 'thoughtfully' brought said movie to her house to watch and she scowled at the thought of the old hag, she shot a look at the culprit sat next to her but it melted away as she looked into innocent green eyes that so reminded her of Henry. "Yes dear." She said between gritted teeth.

"But why?" The brunette opened her mouth to retort but the intoxicated blonde wasn't finished. "I mean, look at you!"

Regina frowned at the Sheriff who apparently wasn't put off as she pushed her legs off her lap and scooted closer to her. The brunette swallowed thickly as the blonde's thigh brushed up against her own. "Miss Sw-" A hand ghosted over her face before she could finish her word.

"Like, just look at you." Emma marvelled at the skin lying just beneath her gentle touch.

The brunette could feel the slight prickles of magic yearning to connect with hers, pulling at her purple energy that was locked deep inside her. It had been that way ever since they first joined their magic forces and now every time they got close it was like they were calling out for one another. She blinked herself out of her own thoughts before they led her down a dangerous path that she didn't want to take. She suddenly realised that the blonde had stopped her inane babbling and was gazing in wonderment at her, hand still hovering over her cheek. "Miss Swan?" Her voice trembled and she inwardly scolded it for betraying her but she noticed the Sheriff didn't even seem to hear her.

It felt like Regina was one of those Tesla ball things; she could feel her fingertips itching and she just wanted to touch. Her hand and gaze travelled down to those delicious plump red painted lips and a scar that Emma found endearing and sexy all at the same time, like the Evil Queen could be hurt and damaged and it was so sad and yet when she smiled, Hell, even when she scowled it was just so… The blonde suddenly realised she had gone quiet and was now staring at the brunette's lips. A tongue peeked out to swipe the bottom one and Emma's brain emptied of all rational thoughts except one. "Why did you need it?" Her voice barely above a whisper now cracked with sincerity "You're the most beautiful woman in any realm."

For a moment, she thought she'd imagined it but the soft puffs of air against her lips confirmed the words that had just barely been uttered. Regina felt her heart bloom at the kind words so much it almost hurt and something in the tiny bit of air still left between them crackled. She couldn't help but let her eyes flick down the blonde's lips that were parted so temptingly.

"What?" a cracked hoarse word escaped from lips.

The pair blinked at each other unsure of who had spoken but Emma jumped up like lightening, fumbling, took her phone out of her pocket and repeated the word "What? Hello?"

The brunette's eyebrow began to arch and the corner of her mouth twitched as she watched the Sheriff turn a deep blood red, not unlike that hideous jacket she insisted on wearing and did not look good on her Regina reminded herself.

Emma caught the amused glance of Regina's and scowled inwardly. Where the fuck had that come from? She suddenly felt utterly sober and could feel her cheeks and chest burning with embarrassment. "Yeah I'll be there right away." She told the non-existent person on the end of her phone and hastily stuffed the device into her back pocket and left her hands stuffed back there too, not trusting them if left to their own devices. "Gotta go…Sheriff…thing." She cringed at her own awkward bumbling.

Regina wanted to laugh, she could feel it bubbling up in the back of her throat as she watched the blonde try and clamber her way out of the situation and talk to an invisible entity on the end of the phone. She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms waiting for the Sheriff's next move as surprisingly she still hadn't bolted yet trying desperately hard not to focus on her lips, the bottom of which the blonde was worrying between her teeth, it was most distracting.

Emma hovered in the doorway hands furiously sweating in her pockets and something on the tip of her tongue. She opened her mouth to say it but instead turned and hightailed it as fast as she could out of the house.

The former Queen's smirk grew until she heard the slam of the front door echo around her empty mansion and she suddenly realised whose voice had let out the unsure word a few moments ago. The empty feeling sinking to the pit of her stomach confirmed it; it was her. No one had ever paid her such a compliment with such sincerity since she became the Evil Queen and it brought back uncertainty she had buried deep a long time ago. It wasn't until she got up and found herself stood facing the closed front door that she realised she wanted Emma to walk back in say more wonderful things. She let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding and felt her magic and conflicting emotions all swirling around inside of her. It was exhilarating…and terrifying.

Emma stood outside and leaned her back against the door as her mind raced to catch up with her. I almost kissed her…I would have kissed her… the realisation that if that word hadn't happened she would have done something that would irrevocably have ruined their friendship sat unsteadily and heavily in the pit of her stomach and she hung her head before sighing deeply. As she pushed off the framework to leave, the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end and she glanced back at the white door wishing she could change her super power and see through it right now. She laughed humourlessly, she didn't need X ray vision to know Regina was on the other side, she could feel her. She looked down at her hand that still tingled from being so close to touching the brunette's skin and she clenched her fists. Too close.

First serious foray into Swan Queen and OUAT would love feedback. This does have more chapters but they will be uploaded probably weekly if I can keep the flow going, I'm going slowly because I want to get these two right (hopefully!)

I own nothing but the idea and the writing :)

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