I don't own these characters.
And this story now has a beta, so thank you MagicalInsanity for your work on this tale.
2: Passing Through
Emma practically grinned as she sped pass the "Welcome to Storybrooke" sign. Crossing the town line made her giddy inside in a way that nothing else ever had or probably ever would. The backseat of her car was filled bags, full of board games, video games, and books for a certain Henry Mills. There were a couple of things for his mother, too. She was eager to see both of them, even though she had just seen Regina a few days ago.
Hardly a couple of minutes into town, bright lights flashed behind her. Emma sucked her teeth and pulled over. A police cruiser eased up behind her and stopped a couple of feet from her car. Emma chuckled when she watched Graham swagger out of his car with a smug grin on his face. Could he be any more of an idiot? Does he honestly think he's cool? She exited the car with a smirk.
"How is that you always manage to pull me over? Are you like the only cop in town?" Emma asked. It was a joke she told often, even though from what she could tell it was true. He had several part-time deputies, but there did not seem to be a need for any full-time support. Storybrooke was probably the safest place she had ever been.
"How is it your work brings you through my little town several times a month?" he countered, clapping her on the shoulder.
Emma laughed and shrugged off his hand as best she could without being rude. She was not much of a "toucher" while Graham seemed to go out of his way to touch her or be close to her. She understood that was how some people were with friends, but she just was not like that. He never seemed offended or upset when she wiggled out of his grasp, so maybe he understood, but could not curb his habit of touching.
"This place has grown on me, so anytime I need to go north or east, I end up here," she explained. It was the truth.
Nodding, he smiled proudly. "It is a cozy little place, isn't it?"
Emma looked around. It was a small, sleepy town. It got very cold in the winter with tons of snow, which helped its economy as people came in droves for the skiing. In the summer, they had people come to the woods for camping, fishing, hunting, and other outdoor things like that. But, most of the year, it was one of those towns where everyone knew everyone. Emma always imagined places like this would bore her to tears, but Storybrooke had grown on her. Sure, it all started with the town's uptight, cranky, rather bitchy mayor, but she had friends here now.
"You going to see Regina and Henry?" Graham inquired, even though that was a given and everyone knew that.
"Of course. Them, probably pop in to see Ruby and check up on town gossip, and I was going to come see you, but here you are, as always," Emma replied.
Graham scoffed. "Coming to see me. Please, if I didn't pull you over every time you crossed the town line, I'd never see you until I got to the Rabbit Hole and you'd already be there with Ruby, three sheets to the wind."
Emma gave him another shrug and put her hands in her front pockets… well, tried to put her hands in her front pockets, but could only fit her fingers halfway down. "What can I say? She holds her liquor better than you do." Not to mention, Ruby kept Emma informed about the good sheriff, so she knew if he had been sniffing around Regina. Regina would never admit to it, after all.
He let loose a chuckle and shook his head. "Anyway. Just stop speeding through here. The town might be small, but there are still kids."
"And possibly a horse and buggy," she teased.
"We're small, not ancient. You'd do well to stop making fun of us. People have mistaken you for a townie, after all," he pointed out.
Rolling her eyes, Emma could not argue that. She spent a lot of time in town and was running out of excuses for being there so often. It was careless, but she did not care. This was the one place she wanted to be. She just had to use caution in showing that.
"Well, one of us has to get back to work and it might as well be me since you're never following anyone too dangerous when you come through here," Graham remarked, running his hands through his hair.
Emma laughed and waved him off. "Sometimes I come through here after I've caught the bad guy, just so you know. Now isn't one of those times, but it happens."
Giving her one more laugh and staring for a moment in silence, he turned to go back to his car, waving as he left. She got back into her car and drove to Granny's Diner. She had some time before Henry got out of school and more still before Regina was done doing… whatever the hell a mayor did. I might want to ask about that without making my "bored" face this time.
"Emma!" Ruby squealed as soon as Emma walked through the door. Ruby rushed over, hugging her as if it had been years since they had seen each other. Emma had just been in town a week ago… and now that she thought about it, she might have made this visit too soon. Too late to do anything about that now.
"Hey, Ruby." Emma returned the hug, but then quickly stepped away. She was never really a hugger, but Ruby was and Ruby did not seem to think someone might not be a hugger. Emma wondered if the touching and closeness had to do with being a werewolf, but she never bothered to ask.
"How long are you in town for?" Ruby asked with a smile.
Emma put her hands in her pockets, again as best she could, and shrugged. "Just today. I'm going up north to grab up a runner. You know how it is."
Ruby nodded. "So, you're going to spend the day with Henry?"
"And Regina. You know she doesn't let him out of her sight." Emma moved to sit at the counter.
Smiling, Ruby shook her head. "I don't know how you can stand it. I mean, I like the mayor and all. I'll vote for her again when time comes, but she's… I don't even think there's words to describe her."
"I'll agree with you there." There certainly were no words for Regina, but the townspeople seemed to think that was because Regina was damned scary and walked around like her shit did not stink. For Emma, there were no words because Regina was willing to share Henry with her. Of course, that took a lot of work, annoyance, and a damn near death experience, but they made it there.
Ruby scanned the diner quickly, probably to make sure no one needed her. The place was not particularly crowded since it was the middle of the day. She then turned her complete attention back to Emma. "So, any chance of us catching a drink or something before you go?"
"Probably not. I just wanted to hang out with Henry for a couple of hours. I'll come back this way when I'm done with my job, though. We'll catch up then. I mean, not like I have any other place to be," Emma said.
Ruby nodded and then someone waved her over to their table. "Okay, sounds good. Well, lemme get back to work. If you're still around in a few minutes, we can talk. I'll be on break."
That sounded good, so Emma turned to see who was behind the counter. Granny was there and served up hot chocolate and a bear claw seconds after she put her butt on the stool. This sort of familiarity would have bothered Emma not too long ago, but she had learned to deal with it. This town and these people accepted her, not because they had to, but because they wanted to.
Even calling Granny "Granny" would have been a big deal a few short years ago. Emma had no problem with street names, but nicknames and monikers that were practically terms of affection had been lost on her. But, Granny had insisted. Then, when Emma became friends with Ruby, it was almost an order. It took a while, but now she could not imagine calling Granny anything else.
"Don't let my granddaughter get you into too much trouble," Granny remarked with a smirk.
Emma chuckled. "It's nice for someone to think I'm the good one for a change."
Granny gave her a look that made her suspect Granny knew with her and Ruby it was more a mutual troublemaking more than one or the other. Emma enjoyed her hot chocolate and her pastry. Ruby sat down with her for a few minutes, too.
"You might as well live here with the way you keep coming through. Henry's grown on you that much?" Ruby asked.
"He's adorable. You know he has," Emma answered.
Ruby laughed. "Yeah, he has that effect on everyone. But, I guess since you're his hero, it's even more so."
"Believe me, it's not hard to be a hero to a seven-year-old." Of course, when it first happened, it frightened the hell out of her, but that was about a year ago. Within that time, lots of things had changed. She had changed.
Ruby snorted and drummed her nails against the counter. "Says you."
"Says me. So, how's things going with you and Doctor Creep?"
There was a long snort accompanied by an eye roll. "As you can imagine. He's a creep."
"Broke up with him?" Emma hoped, not caring that it came across in her tone and her smile. She considered Ruby her best friend, and she knew those were hard to come by, and it bothered her to find out Ruby was dating the most misogynistic man Emma had ever met. And she had met a lot considering the life she led.
"Yeah. I broke up with him. I caught the bastard in bed with one of his nurses." Ruby's shoulders dropped and she sighed.
Now, Emma rolled her eyes. She was sure that was not the first time he had been in bed with one of his nurses. She had warned Ruby about getting involved with Victor Whale, but life taught her some lessons needed to be learned on their own. But, she really wished she could have saved Ruby this heartache.
"It's cool, Rubes. We'll have a girl's night and pick you up a nice guy. If push comes to shove, I'll have Regina scare 'em and you can come in and save the guy from her before she decapitates him… or whatever the hell you guys seem to think she'll do if she gets angry," Emma remarked.
Ruby laughed. "We've got the running gag that she'll do like witches in the past, pull your heart out through your chest. All the kids around here are convinced she can do it. Hell, some of the adults might believe it, too."
"Which explains why they're scared as shit of her. How the hell did she get elected as mayor?" She figured the way the town cowered at the mere mention of Regina's name, she could not have been elected dog catcher, let alone mayor.
Ruby shrugged. "She uses her powers for good. She's a good sport about it. During Past Day, she always dresses up as a witch and tells the kids stories about when there were witches and so much magic in the land almost anyone could wield. She also bakes them sweets and things. She's good with kids and she does her job."
Smiling, Emma nodded. She always felt proud and somewhat light whenever someone spoke kindly of Regina. She wanted to puff out her chest and brag about how Regina was hers, but she could not do that. After all, Regina was engaged to some lucky bastard who was not her. Remembering that made her frown.
"Ruby, I need to get going if I want to surprise Henry. I'll bring him by for a snack or something," Emma said.
"Regina is going to kill you if you spoil his dinner, you do know that, right?"
Emma tossed her a boastful grin. "She can't kill me. I'm way too adorable." Besides, even if she did pull out hearts, she's got mine already. She shook that thought away. Again, Regina was someone else's and it would do her well to keep that at the forefront of her mind.
Ruby only laughed. Emma dropped down some money to pay for her bill and then drove off to Storybrooke Elementary School. She only had to wait a few minutes before the classes let out. She got out of the car and leaned against it.
"Emma!" Henry called out, charging off of his class line. His book bag bounced up and down as he bounded toward her.
Laughing, Emma caught him and hugged him tightly. He giggled as she ruffled his hair. Before meeting him and being around him, she thought things like picking a kid up from school and hair-ruffling were things in television shows. He showed her a very different side of childhood and Regina showed her a different side of motherhood. It had perplexed her early on, but she learned as she went.
As she put him down, Emma made eye contact with his teacher. They were familiar enough for the teacher to know it was all right Emma to pick Henry up. They waved at each other, just to acknowledge they saw each other and then Emma turned her attention back to the kid.
"Ready to go get some milkshakes, kid?" Emma proposed as they got into the car.
Henry hopped in the front seat, even though Emma was aware he would never even think to do that in Regina's car. He bulked his seatbelt without needing to be told and glanced at Emma, making sure she had done the same. Once they were both fastened in, she pulled off.
"Does Mom know we're doing this?" Henry asked.
"Nope. Can we try to keep this a secret longer than an hour this time?" she teased.
Instead of lying, he grinned at her, letting her know he would rat her out the second Regina asked what they had been up to. The kid did not seem to believe in lying. Emma was not sure if it was his age or if Regina had just raised him that way or if it was part of his personality. Either way, Emma did not know kids were like this until she met him. Sometimes, she could not believe this kid came out of her. Nature versus nurture my ass.
"You just like getting me in trouble, don't you?" Henry remarked.
Emma laughed. "I wouldn't get in trouble if you could just keep a secret!"
-8-8-8-8-
Regina sat at her desk, reviewing documents. She wanted to rush through work, but she could not. She took her work very seriously and understood the town depended on her, so she had to be thorough and careful. But, Emma was in town and she wanted to spend time with her.
"I've never felt this way before, except with…" She could not say the name. Daniel. As soon as the thought floated across her mind, she shook her head. No one would ever make her feel what Daniel felt and it did not matter anyway. Daniel was gone and she was being forced to get married.
The ring on her finger felt heavier than usual and the ring around her neck burned. Shaking the feeling away, she thought of Emma and Henry, undoubtedly eating ice cream or having milkshakes right now. Emma trying to involve Henry in some conspiracy and finding he was only good for those when they were his own. A smiled settled on her face until she saw what was next on her desk. The old mine.
"Of course this would come up when Emma's in town." She needed to decide what to do with the area. It was too dangerous to just leave it fenced off and hope for the best. She knew better than that now, even if people continued grumbling about how it was a historical landmark. It was also very dangerous.
Her heart clenched in her chest and she could not focus for a long moment. Her mind just wandered to Henry. Sweet, precious Henry. My son. She felt panicked and trapped, ready to claw at the walls of her office, but she quickly shook it off. Henry's fine. He's with Emma. Of course, him being with Emma had once been a problem. But, it's not now. He's fine. She's fine. Just get through work and you'll see.
There were numerous proposals on what to do about the old mine, but she could not read them. The sentences, words, and letters all blended together. She would look through them later. Right now, she just wanted to see her son and Emma and make certain they were all right. They were all she could think about. So, she packed everything up and in a rush out of the door told her assistant she was done for the day.
Instead of going to Granny's, where she knew Emma and Henry were just from habit, she went grocery shopping. Since Emma was in town, she would make a special dinner, something both Henry and Emma would enjoy. Besides, it would give Emma time to bond with Henry. She needs and deserves that time.
Once dinner was picked up, she went home and flipped through the proposals for a short time. She still could not concentrate and decided to just move onto dinner. She had only started making the dough and preparing the lobster before she heard the front door open.
"Make sure those shoes are off," Regina called to them. Even though both Emma and Henry knew the rules, they would clump through the house with all of the outside dirt clinging to their shoes.
She could hear them grumbling, as they were wont to do when reminded of the rules. Less than a minute after that, she had arms wrapped around her waist. Henry hugged her tighter when Emma was around for some reason. Regina did not question it and looked down at his smiling face. A couple of feet away, Emma stood with the same smile, though smaller, holding a small bouquet of flowers.
"You started dinner?" Emma asked the obvious. Something she was prone to doing when she did not know what else to do. She shifted from foot to foot.
"Oh, you're making pizza!" Henry bounced on his heels.
Emma arched an eyebrow. "You're making pizza?"
"A special type of pizza. So, how about you two go make yourselves busy while I handle this," Regina suggested, shooing them away with a flicker of the wrist.
Henry wasted no time retreating from the room. "Come on, Emma. We can play video games."
"You can do homework first, young man," Regina called to him as he disappeared into the living room.
Emma chuckled. "You'd think he didn't know that." She stepped closer.
"He's just excited to see you, as always."
Emma wrapped an arm around Regina and eased closer to her. "Now, if only his mother was excited to see me."
Feigning annoyance, Regina turned away. "His mother is trying to cook and if you don't want to end up eating Granny's for dinner, I suggest you not distract her."
Emma just pressed closer, pushing as always. "Oh, but I bought flowers for her and planned to kiss a bit while the kid was out of the room."
Regina could not help laughing and she turned, giving Emma a soft peck on the lips. Emma leaned forward, thinking she would get more. Regina chuckled and turned back to what she was doing, finishing the dough. Scowling, Emma let loose a low growl.
"I have flowers for you. I think I deserve more than that," Emma huffed.
"I'm making you pizza and lobster rolls. I think I deserve more than flowers," Regina countered.
Emma just growled again before leaning down and kissing Regina properly. Regina should be upset, she really should be. This sort of thing was inappropriate to do with Henry nearby, but then Emma bit at her bottom lip and slid her tongue into Regina's mouth and it was hard to remember what was appropriate for where. A moan echoed through the kitchen, bouncing off the walls. Regina could feel her heart rate accelerate and then Emma pulled away as Henry called for her.
"Come on, Emma! If you help me with math, we can play Smash Brothers!" Henry shouted.
Regina groaned. "This is your influence on him. You have him screaming through the house like a barbarian."
Emma squared her shoulders and smiled proudly. "Every little kid should be a little barbarian."
Regina just glared at her and Emma wisely made a hasty retreat, even taking the flowers with her. Later on, Regina would not be surprised to find them on the living room coffee table in a vase with water. She went back to work, throwing together what she would consider junk food. Henry would find it a treat and Emma would just think it was dinner.
By the time everything was done, Regina could hear Emma and Henry whooping over whatever video game they played. She would have to check his homework and make sure it was truly done, and correct, before he went to bed. It was not that Emma could not be trusted to help him, but Emma would take his word for if he claimed he was done, which he would do if it meant playing games sooner.
Regina walked to the living room opening and watched the pair for a moment. Henry giggled while Emma nudged him with her shoulder, undoubtedly trying to get him to mess up. In retaliation, he leaned over and pressed buttons on her controller. Regina smiled a bit. She's good for him.
Before Emma, Henry really did not have anyone to do these sorts of things with. Sometimes, Graham would come over and play with him, but not as often as Henry would like. And, alas, Henry was introverted, perhaps because she was the same, so he did not have many friends and all of those were in school. No one ever came to their house after school to spend time with him and he did not like going over to other children's homes. In Emma, he had a friend to do things he liked. He would spend time with Regina, but usually for other interests, like reading or hearing stories.
"Dinner's ready," Regina informed them.
"Pizza," Henry cheered, pausing game. He moved quickly to the table while Emma took her time rising to her feet.
"That game looks new," Regina noted.
Emma shrugged. "I wanted him to have a chance to lose at something besides Smash Brothers."
Regina shook her head. "What else did you bring this trip?"
"I bought him Trouble and Guess Who. I figure we can all play when I get back."
Regina nodded. It sounded nice, but then she realized Emma said more than that. "When you get back?"
"Yeah, I'm supposed to be on a job and I stopped here before I get to where I know the guy is. A day isn't going to make a difference. But, after I catch him, I'll come back and stay a few days. Okay?"
Regina shrugged, as if it did not matter to her, but she was already planning out meals and activities for all three of them. She would need to find out how many days Emma planned to stay on the return trip before she left. They went to the table, Henry already waiting, staring at the homemade pizza. Regina passed the slicer to Emma, letting her divide the pizza.
"There's lobster rolls, too? Today is awesome." Henry grinned as Emma handed him a slice of pizza. There were pieces of lobster meat sprinkled on as a topping along with peppers and grape tomatoes. Next to the pizza, there were a few lobster rolls, which would undoubtedly be taken care of after the pizza. There was also a bowl of salad, just because Regina needed something green in a meal or she felt like Henry was not getting proper nutrition.
"You know, I don't think I've had lobster on pizza until I started hanging out with you two," Emma remarked.
"Well, I never made pizza until you showed up," Regina countered. Henry would ask, but she did not see the point in making a whole pizza for just the two of them.
Emma playfully sneered at her. "Why is it always a contest with you?"
"You're just upset because I always win," Regina replied with a smirk. Henry laughed at them before biting into his dinner.
"Hey, I think I get my licks in, too." Emma then wiggled her eyebrows.
"Really, Miss Swan. Henry's present," Regina scolded her for being lewd, not that Henry understood what she meant.
Emma just gave her a grin. He looked between them, but did not ask any questions. They ate in silence. Regina was not surprised Henry tried to eat more than usual. He often tried to match Emma when she was around in food. So, when Emma was on her third slice, he tried to hurry through his second.
"Henry, remember, you want to save room for your lobster roll. And you should eat some of your salad," Regina told him.
"You made the lobster rolls just for me, didn't you?" Emma asked with a grin. There was that mischievous twinkle in her eye, which she imagined used to get Emma into all sorts of trouble as a child.
Regina just rolled her eyes. She would never admit to doing anything special for Emma, even though the only time she made lobster rolls was when Emma was around. The pizza was for Henry since there was always some leftover lobster meat to use. Emma loved the pizza, too, though.
"The lobster rolls are for all of us and be thankful I made enough for you to take some with you," Regina sniffed.
"With you?" Henry's eyes went wide as he turned to Emma. "You're leaving?"
Sighing, Emma pouted. "Yeah, but only for a few days. You know how I have to track down bad guys, right?" Henry nodded; this was one aspect of Emma that he practically worshipped. He seemed to think she was something like Batman. "I have to go find a bad guy, but I'll come back after and we'll spend a whole lot of time together, okay?"
Henry nodded. "Okay. You can have my lobster roll if it helps give you energy to catch him."
Emma smiled. "No, buddy. I'll be good. Your mom made more than enough."
"Yeah, Mom takes good care of us," he declared. Regina felt her face heat up with a blush.
Emma laughed. "That she does, kid. That she does." She then winked at him, as if they shared a secret. A little over a year ago, this would have driven Regina insane. Now, she was happy for Henry, even if he had someone to conspire with.
-8-8-8-8-
Emma was glad Henry's bedtime was eight. It seemed crazy to her for him to go to bed at eight, but she figured Regina knew what she was doing. Plus, he fell asleep as soon as Regina finished reading one of his favorite stories. With that, they retired to Regina's office. Emma reclined on the couch with a glass of apple cider while Regina sat at her desk, looking through folders.
"What do you have there?" Emma asked, staring at Regina. She noticed hints of Regina's forehead vein popping up. It's like a warning sign that I can see, touch, and taste.
"Some proposals." Regina's voice was tense and she spoke without opening her mouth. Emma thought she was playing the "annoyed regal mayor" as usual.
Emma sucked her teeth and threw her hands up. "I swear to the dead gods and the Fates, sometimes it's like pulling teeth with you. About what?"
"The old mine." Oh. That explained Regina's voice and the forehead vein. "I thought you had the place filled in."
Emma got up, wanting to be close to Regina. This was a tough subject for Regina and the trauma was still fresh, for both of them. She suspected it was worse for Regina because Regina had not been the one to go down in the mine. Regina had just been stuck at the surface, not sure what was going on, worried out of her mind that she had lost the only person on the planet that mattered to her.
"Not fully." Regina eyed Emma as she stood behind the mayor and a hand on her shoulder. Emma felt Regina exhale when her fingers settled. Regina licked her lips before she continued. "There was not enough money in the budget at the time and no one would give me a lower bid. Now, I have quite a few options." Regina waved a hand over several holders spread out on her desk.
"Anything look good?" Emma leaned down, feigning like she wanted to look at the papers. Instead, she nuzzled Regina, gaining a little noise from the mayor. Emma smiled against her neck. "Don't do anything too big. I like that spot."
Regina scoffed and pulled away to stare at Emma as if she was crazy. "You like that spot? We almost lost Henry in that damned mine."
Emma continued to smile, rubbing Regina's shoulder. "I know and it was really fucking scary, but it helped get us here. So, I dunno." Emma shrugged. "I just consider it special. I mean, I like being around here."
Regina would never admit to liking having Emma around, but Emma already knew that to be true. When they first met, Emma learned what it was like for Regina to be her enemy, for Regina to hate her, and for Regina to not want her around. It all changed with that mine.
Emma had shown up on Regina's doorstep a little over a year ago, probably a little more than that, but she never was big on keeping track of time. She had news Regina never wanted to know – Emma was Henry's birth mother. Regina had adopted him when he was a baby, days old. Emma had had him in prison and gave him up for his best chance, as she was in no way, shape, or form ready to be a parent. Yet, years later, she suddenly wanted to meet the son she had given up. Of course, she was not in much better shape when she showed up to meet him.
"Why did you really want to meet Henry, Emma? I know you said you were curious, but I don't think that was your only reason," Regina said.
"Well, I wasn't trying to take him from you like you thought," Emma scoffed. The first time Emma met Regina, she learned how irrational, confrontational, nasty, and outright crazy the mayor could be when she felt threatened.
Regina frowned a bit. "Well, what was it?"
"My mother died a few months before that and other crap happened and I felt… I dunno, I guess alone in the world because I didn't have any more blood relatives. Or real family or something. I dunno. Maybe I never really had a real family." She could feel her brow wrinkle as she tried to get her thoughts together, but it was almost impossible. "It was just a crazy time. I just… I wanted to… connect with him, maybe? It was really crazy." Emma shook her head. She hated thinking about it and, apparently, trying to explain it was even worse.
"I'm sorry about your mother. I know what it's like to lose a family member." Regina's father died some years ago and she had named Henry after him. Henry liked to tell tales about the grandfather he never met as Regina told him many stories. She also took Henry to visit her father's grave, even though it was quite a journey, all the way at the southern edge of the Enchanted Forest.
"Yeah, but like I said, it was a crazy time, which is why I showed up at your door like a crazy person. I don't know why the hell I thought I could just demand you let me meet the kid and then I caused all of that trouble." Emma sighed, her stomach turning. Regina patted her hand, comforting her now.
"We both could've handled that better, dear."
"Well, hindsight is twenty-twenty and all of that shit."
Regina only rolled her eyes; she hated profanity. Emma wished she had handled things differently because her bullish behavior ousted secrets that were not hers to tell. She appeared in Henry's life when she had no right to and one day he heard her screaming about how she was his mother and Regina had "merely adopted" him. She made it seem like Regina had been holding Henry in trust for her and Henry had no idea he was adopted until she hollered it at Regina. It did not help she was drunk at the time, which was her normal mode of being for back then, but it did explain why her mouth was more reckless than usual. She had managed to spill a secret almost every adult in town knew and had kept to themselves, all of them knowing it was not their place to tell, yet she had blown it.
"I made you crazy, didn't I?" Emma asked, guilt gnawing at her guts now.
"I was crazy long before you came along. My upbringing saw to that," Regina remarked with a smile that did not quite reach her eyes. Emma knew there was something there, as that expression was much too sad to be a joke. She had been in enough shitty homes to see the signs, not to mention Regina's unhealthy obsession with her mother seeing them together.
"Well, I'm sorry. I was really going through some stuff." More stuff than she cared to discuss ever.
Regina patted her hand again and let her fingers linger on Emma's. "I know, dear. I know. I was scared of losing him, though, so I reacted poorly."
"He reacted poorly, too."
First, Henry had gone behind Regina's back, spending time with Emma. Emma, at the time, being "crazy" and "an idiot," as Regina liked to put it, allowed it, feeling like the kid accept her as his mother. He did not. He was just intrigued and curious, but it felt good to pretend for her.
One day, she kept him out late during a storm and when he got home, Regina went off on him. His response to that was to run away. He went to his castle, a playground area that looked like it would fall down on a good day, but had not survived the storm. Emma went to find him and showed how not ready she was to be a parent by barking and cursing at him for "being stupid" and running away in the rain. He did not take too kindly to that, nor did he take too kindly to her returning him to Regina.
Of course, Regina had not been kind to Emma and Henry did not seem to be happy with that. He ended up climbing out of his window and he went to hide in the old mine, claiming he would find fairy dust to fix everything. The mine had been dry of fairy dust for more than five centuries and he got very lost down there. Emma had been the one to venture inside to find him. Bringing him out on her own was the turning point of her relationship with Regina, who had been frightened in a way only a mother could be.
Henry went to the hospital, suffering from exposure and a big gash on his head from falling in the mine. When Emma came to the hospital, Regina not only let her stay to look over him, but hugged her for bringing him back. Much more than Emma expected and Regina was not done with surprises.
When Henry was allowed to go home from the hospital, Emma showed up at the house with some get-well comic books. Little did she know, but most young kids had fairly early bedtimes and Henry's had been eight. Emma showed up at nine. Regina had been halfway through a bottle of cider and kissed Emma as thanks. The first one was sweet and on the cheek. The second one was sweet and on the lips. All other kisses after made Emma want to write erotic poetry, using only things they did that night.
The morning after, Emma worried Regina would freak out and go back to hating her. Instead, Regina made her breakfast and they had to pretend Emma showed up that morning when Henry came down to eat. Ever since then, it had been smooth sailings. The town, not knowing about Emma being Henry's birth mother, thought Emma was allowed around because she saved Henry's life and they thought Regina was just eternally grateful, which was true, but there was so much more.
"Just do right by the site. Like I said, I like the place," Emma said.
A small smile played on Regina's lips. "I'll do my best and try to make the best decision for the town."
Emma chuckled. "Of course." She sighed. "I should probably get going. It's not a long drive, but I know you worry about me steering off the road."
"It's not that I worry. I've seen signs of what happens when you drive with little sleep and too much indignation."
Emma could not help smiling. "However you want to put it."
"Our poor town sign has never been the same," Regina pointed out.
Snorting, Emma rolled her eyes. "Oh, I was thinking of staying at Wonderland when I got back to Misthaven. Is that good?"
Frowning, Regina shook her head. "No, that place is crawling with nobles and wealthy merchants. My mother loves it."
"What if we went back to the Arabian Nights? You liked it, especially the whirlpool bath," Emma commented with a smirk. She loved the things Regina did in the whirlpool bath.
Regina waved that idea off. "No, we've gone to the Arabian Nights too many times as it is. And, again, nobles love that place as well."
"Well, I'm not taking you to some dive." Emma hardly cared where she stayed, but she could not have Regina in just any old place. Plus, they needed to stay some place Regina could hopefully explain away her presence if she were ever caught there by someone she knew. The only person Regina seemed to worry about, though, was her mother. Not even her fiancé.
"I did not ask you to do so. Give me other options," Regina pointed out the obvious.
"How about the Pixie? It's supposed to be quaint and it just opened. It's off hotel row. I doubt nobles are hanging out there. Maybe we could even have dinner in the restaurant." Something they never did.
"I will research it and then tell you when you come back."
Emma sighed as if this was a huge burden. "Fine. God, why can't you just say yes and make my life easy?"
Regina scowled. "I'm not here to make your life easy."
Emma only laughed and nuzzled Regina, nipping her earlobe just for the hell of it. Regina certainly made her life easy. Regina and Henry. They were the only things that were easy in life, even with all of this sneaking around. Emma was content for possibly the first time in life. She hated wondering, but she had to. How long can this last?
-8-8-8-8-
Next time: Emma gets the answer to that question and more. Both she and Regina won't like the answers.