Chapter Two
Emma found herself at the front door of 108 Mifflin Street just a few short days after her surprisingly successful dinner with Regina and Henry. Leaving her son with his other mother for some quality time together had proven to be a hit with both of them, so she'd arranged for Regina to care for Henry while she attended a council meeting. In the wake of the curse breaking Regina's governance of Storybrooke had been suspended and a temporary council was overseeing the running of the town until a more formal and democratic local government could be formed. Emma knew it was difficult for Regina, as the former mayor, to have to sit idly by while others took the helm of running the town. So, she was relieved that she'd taken her request to watch Henry in the good spirit with which she'd made the suggestion.
As Emma waited for Regina to answer the door, she turned and caught her son smiling at her. "What's got you looking so happy, kid?" she asked.
"You." he beamed.
"Oh yeah? Glad to hear it! And what exactly have I done to inspire your good mood?" the blonde inquired happily.
"This" he gestured between himself and the front door, "Giving my Mom a chance. Letting me see her."
Emma smiled warmly at her son. Knowing that all the effort she was putting in to making things work for Henry was actually helping him made all the hassle she was getting for giving Regina the benefit of the doubt worthwhile. "I'm trying to do what's best for you, Henry and I think that means you having both your parents in your life. If your Mom keeps doing her best for you, then I will too, okay?"
Henry opened his mouth to reply, but was cut short by the appearance of Regina flinging the front door wide in a flurry of excitement. "I'm sorry if I was slow answering the door, I was busy baking your favorite, Henry." his flour smudged mother enthused as she pulled him into a bear hug.
"Chocolate lime cake?" the boy asked eagerly.
"Of course!" Regina happily confirmed, as she released her son, took him by the hand and led him inside the house. As she steered them towards the delicious aromas emanating from the kitchen she suddenly remembered she'd left the sheriff standing on her doorstep, unacknowledged. So, turning, she addressed Emma and attempted to rectify her oversight, "Please, join us for a slice of cake, Miss Swan, if you have the time."
The blonde was momentarily taken aback by the spontaneous invitation, but she managed to collect herself before her surprise became glaringly obvious. Emma was really trying to make an effort, not only to give Henry time with his Mom, but also to build a better relationship with the woman herself, for the sake of the son they shared. Emma knew that if she and his grandparents were constantly at loggerheads with the only mother he'd known for the first 10 years of his life, that it would tear the boy in two. So, as alien as it felt to her to be accepting invitations from Regina for dinners, cake and whatever else, Emma was prepared to make the effort for Henry. With that in mind she warmly replied, "Thanks, I'd like that." as she crossed the threshold and closed the door, quickly following behind her son and Regina towards the delightful smell of baked chocolatey goodness.
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Emma had to agree with Henry on his choice of favorite treat, the chocolate lime cake had tasted heavenly and she found that she could be more relaxed about sampling Regina's baked goods when the chef herself was partaking of her culinary creation.
Regina rose from the table and began clearing their plates. Sensing an opportunity to get out of helping with clearing up, Henry smiled sweetly at her as he asked, "Mom, can I go and pick out a movie for us to watch."
Regina was well aware of Henry's much practiced tactics for getting out of cleaning and tidying, but since they currently had so little opportunity for quality time together, she couldn't bring herself to enforce chores upon him during their short visits. "Okay, you pick us something good. I'll tidy up here and join you shortly." she conceded. Henry didn't need to be told twice and bounded from the room eagerly.
Emma took Henry's exit as her cue to leave and she too rose from her seat. "Well, thanks for the cake. I have to admit it, when you're not trying to poison me, you're actually a pretty great cook." the blonde joked.
Regina managed to stop just shy of openly rolling her eyes at the sheriff, "I suppose since that's as close as I'm ever likely to get to a compliment from you, I should be grateful." she dead-panned.
Emma couldn't help but laugh at the brunette's dry wit. This was the woman she knew and understood, sharp-tongued, quick-witted, and direct. It was a welcome relief to have her Regina back, well not her Regina exactly, but the Regina who kept her on her toes and who challenged her at every turn. In spite of the fact that Emma had so often found those very traits infuriating, she also realized that a small part of her had missed their sparring. "Ha! Yeah, I think you can safely consider that a huge compliment coming from me." Emma chuckled.
"Oh, I shall. Let me bask in the warm glow of your praise!" the brunette quipped in a tone that was thankfully more joking than sarcastic.
The blonde picked up their glasses from the table and helped Regina carry the items to the kitchen. Setting the glasses down in the sink, Emma was just preparing to make her exit and head to the meeting when Regina interrupted her plan of action. "Miss Swan, I was wondering if you could spare me a moment before you leave? There's something I've been wanting to discuss with you." the brunette asked.
"Oh, I'm sorry Regina, can it wait, because the chocolate cake pit-stop has slowed me down a bit and I really should get going to the meeting."
Undeterred by Emma's attempt to duck out, Regina persisted, "Actually, this matter is of some importance and I believe it's pertinent to your meeting. So, if you'd do me the courtesy of hearing me out, I think you'll appreciate that what I have to say may be worth missing a few minutes of your parents holding court over their subjects."
If Emma had wanted conclusive proof that Regina had dispensed with the false niceties, there it was, the former Evil Queen unable to resist the opportunity to insult Snow White and her Prince Charming."Says the woman who appointed herself mayor of the town she held captive in a curse for 28 years!" Emma quickly retorted.
"Yes, well if the two idiots you call parents hadn't cast me from that role so unceremoniously then there wouldn't even be the need for us to have this conversation, because I would already be taking whatever steps I deemed necessary to protect Henry." Regina replied tersely.
The mention of Henry got Emma's full attention and she immediately dispensed with the tit for tat sparring, needing to know exactly what Regina was talking about. "Protect Henry? Protect him from what exactly?"
Regina could see the sudden shift in Emma's demeanor, gone was the wise-cracking, self-confident attitude, replaced by concern and unblinkered focus on what she had to say. "Protect him from my mother." Regina stated simply, knowing that the blonde needed no fanfare to explain the gravity of the threat that Cora could pose, for Emma had experienced first hand the indisputable ruthlessness of the woman.
"I don't understand, you helped ensure that she can't harm him, by bringing us safely through the portal. Her only means of reaching Henry is gone." Emma stated with more confidence than she felt.
"Is it?" Regina asked rhetorically. "Surely even you must have established in your, albeit brief, foray into our land, that there are myriad magical resources that can be tapped into by those who have the knowledge and persistence to avail of them. I do not believe that we are dealing with a question of if my mother will track us down, but when she will succeed in this mission. Now that the curse is broken and Cora knows that passage between lands is possible, there is one thing I know for certain, my mother will be hell-bent on once again exerting her control over me and all that I hold dear. Which means that not only are Henry and I at risk, but so too are you and your parents. For anyone who stands between Cora and her family will be nothing more to her than collateral damage." Regina stated ominously.
Emma found herself at a loss for words, not only because of the serious nature of what Regina had just told her, but also and even more worryingly, because she could detect real fear on Regina's face. An emotion she'd seen so rarely from the brunette that she was surprised that she recognized it so quickly. Yet, coming face to face with it, it was undeniable to Emma, Regina was afraid. The woman a whole land had feared as the Evil Queen was now herself gripped with fear at the prospect of having to face her mother. Gone was her imposing presence, instead she had the air of a frightened young girl, barely able to hold her head up under the heavy weight oppressing her. This told Emma all she needed to know about how seriously she should take Regina's concerns. "What do you want me to do?" she asked without hesitation. "Tell me and I'll do it." Emma reassured her, placing a comforting hand on her forearm in an attempt to help calm her fears and coax the woman back to her usual strong self.
Regina looked up at Emma, understanding for once why she might be worthy of her savior title. For, although she knew it was the sensible plan of action to utilize every resource at her disposal to help protect Henry, she hadn't anticipated that sharing her concerns with Emma and receiving the woman's support in return would actually help to ease some of the weight of worry she'd been laboring under. The smile Regina gave her was small and the woman still appeared more vulnerable than Emma was used to seeing her, but she did at least look less troubled by worry than she had a moment ago. "I need your help, Emma. I need you to convince the council that Stroybrooke has to be prepared to protect itself from my mother."
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Emma tried to slink into the council meeting as surreptitiously as possible, knowing she must have missed at least the first fifteen minutes of the meeting, after the pleasantries had been covered. As the members of the council noted her presence, she smiled apologetically in lieu of a spoken apology, not wanting to interrupt Leroy, who was in full swing discussing ways in which the people of the town could be called upon to assist Sneezy in remembering his fairytale self. Thankfully nobody commented on her timekeeping as she took her seat at the meeting table, but she couldn't help but notice the fleeting look of disappointment that crossed Mary Margaret's face at her late arrival.
Emma loved having her parents in her life, she truly did. It made her feel complete in a way that she had given up hope of ever feeling. Very occasionally though, she could sense her parents' attitude towards her shifting ever so slightly from a warm and loving perspective to one of judgement. In spite of how grateful she was to be reunited with her family, the reality was that Emma wasn't used to having to justify her actions to anyone, least of all two parents who, thanks to the curse, hardly seemed discernibly different in age to herself. Mary Margaret and David had so quickly become invested in every aspect of her life, that it seemed nothing she did went beyond the bounds of their interest. Emma had gone from being almost permanently alone to living with three people who had an opinion on everything she did. She cherished her new found family and she loved her parents for their care and support, but things in her life had changed so overwhelmingly in such a short space of time that it was a huge adjustment for her. So, from time to time she had to remind herself to be patient with her parents' constant attention.
Emma turned to her mother and mouthed a silent "Sorry!" which was met with a warm smile from the brunette, that instantly served to relax the younger woman.
Emma sat patiently through seven different items from the agenda and two that weren't, initially not wanting to disrupt the meeting any more than she already had. Instead she chose to wait patiently for an appropriate moment to broach the subject that Regina had implored her to bring to the council's attention. She wanted to give them ample warning of the serious topic that they needed to discuss and the plan that she had made regarding the issue. But between her parents, the Mother Superior, Archie, Granny, Ruby and Leroy, she could barely get a word in edgewise. Twice she'd started to tell the assembled council what she needed to discuss with them and twice she'd been interrupted by previous items from their agenda resurfacing. Finally there was a lull in the intensity of discussions and Emma cleared her throat loudly in an attempt to get everyone's attention. She knew that she needed to seize this opportunity to inform the council of her important news, but before she could begin the doors to the council chamber swung open and in strode Regina. David and Leroy sprang to their feet defensively the moment they saw her and a murmur of disapproval rippled through the room. The displeasure that her sudden appearance had caused was voiced by Mary Margaret as she exclaimed, "Regina, what do you think you are doing barging in here? This is a private meeting!"
Regina couldn't quite prevent the slight sneer that curled her lip, provoked by the condescending tone of Snow White's inquiry. "I'm not barging in, dear, I was invited." she replied, in a voice that managed to be equal parts excessively sweet and utterly disdainful in unison.
"That's ridiculous, no-one here would..." Just as Mary Margaret was dismissing Regina's seemingly preposterous claim she was interrupted by a voice to her right.
"Actually, they would. I invited her." Emma stated unapologetically.
Mary Margaret turned to her daughter, wanting to know why she would do such a thing, but she found herself momentarily stunned into silence.