The Apple Tree
Emma hefted the chainsaw and, with no small amount of satisfaction, cleanly sliced off a rather large branch from the tree. She turned to look up at the house as, no doubt, the chainsaw had drawn the attention of a certain mayor, which was, of course, the entire point of the exercise. She saw the dark-haired woman in a window for a moment, before she vanished. Emma smiled, knowing precisely what would happen next.
Sure enough, not a minute later, Regina was striding angrily across the backyard, eyes blazing, body tense, ready for a fight.
Emma was ready. She revved the chainsaw's motor for no reason other than to prove to the other woman, mayor or not, that she was in control of this situation.
"What the hell are you doing?" she demanded.
"Picking apples," Emma replied, insolently. She tossed the chainsaw to the ground behind her, having made her point.
"You're out of your mind!" growled Regina, getting right into Emma's personal space. Emma found she enjoyed being this close to the mayor. It was clear that Regina was used to getting her way. Little did she realize that Emma had decided that she wasn't about to let that trend continue.
"No," Emma responded, "you are, if you think a shoddy frame job's enough to scare me off. You're gonna have to do better than that."
Regina narrowed her eyes, but Emma continued, holding the other woman's gaze. "You come after me one more time, I'm coming back for the rest of this tree. Because, sister, you have no idea what I'm capable of," she said, throwing Regina's words back at her.
There was a moment of silence, as the two women stared at each other. The mayor's eyes flicked across Emma's body before locking with Emma's once more. A smirk appeared on Regina's lips for a moment. The tension between them was thick, heavy.
Emma smirked right back and, despite enjoying the energy arcing between them, walked away. "Your move," she said, filled with confidence. Not only did she know, deep in her bones, that she could go toe-to-toe with Regina and win, but she also knew it would be one hell of a lot of fun fighting with her. Her smirk remained intact the entire way back to her car.