AN: *Comes crawling out of my hiding spot, cringing* I am so sorry this took so long to update. I've had these Christmas chapters done for a while now, but my computer that had this story and Moving Forward on it kinda crashed this summer, so I had to wait to get a new one, so I was working all summer, and then school started when I finally got my new computer, and then I got super busy with that, because college is just, ugh, so stressful. Then I finally got into a groove, finished up the Christmas chapters (thankfully everything was saved on a thumb drive, so I didn't have to start over) and now I'm working on the next chapter of Moving Forward.

Again, I am soooo sorry for the huge gap between updates, but I am going to try and update every two weeks at the most. If I find time between classes, homework, and working, I may update sooner, but for right now, I'm gonna stick with updating every other week, most likely on Thursdays or Fridays.

Also, I want to thank the guest reviewer who gave me the idea to have Regina talk some sense into Emma and invite her to Christmas dinner. Thank you! :)

Christmas Morning

Christmas was an exciting new thing for the Locksley-Mills family to experience. Regina had explained to Robin after Thanksgiving what Christmas was and everything she and Henry would do to get ready for the festive holiday. Robin was rather confused at hearing about this Santa Claus fellow. Wondering why people would allow someone to break into their houses at night and leave them gifts in exchange for cookies and milk. Regina had laughed and explained to him that Santa wasn't in fact real –though she didn't say this around the boys, especially Roland. She didn't want to ruin the holiday his first year of actually celebrating it. Robin just got even more confused but said he would just see what it was like instead of being told about it.

The week leading up to Christmas was crazy and hectic, especially with Regina being given the all clear only a week before Christmas. She had agreed to have Christmas dinner, partly because Henry asked her and partly because her house was the only one that could fit everybody, and she was still supposed to take it easy. Cora and Henry Sr. were still in town too which meant more people would be at Christmas dinner. Zelena was still living in the Mayoral Mansion, though she kept looking for her own place nearby. And the heroes were getting closer and closer each day to figuring out how to free Emma from the darkness. Some would say that it was a Christmas miracle with how well everything was going. One could say that Christmas this year was going to be perfect. Or almost perfect.

Regina had been trying to reach Emma, but to no avail. Even Henry wasn't having any luck, and Regina knew how much it would mean to him to have his other mother at Christmas dinner with the rest of his family. It just wouldn't feel like Christmas to him without his whole family there. He had said to Regina that it didn't matter and that he understood, but she knew better. She knew her son better than that to believe what he was saying, so, with only two more days until Christmas, Regina had had enough.

Walking up the front walkway to Emma's new house, Regina was determined to make Emma see some sense and to stop isolating herself. Emma was just going to end up hurting more people than she would care to admit if she kept to herself. Regina knew this all too well.

So, squaring her shoulders and with a determined set of her jaw, Regina raised her hand and knocked on the front door three times, ready to raise holy hell on Emma if need be. She waited on the front porch for five minutes before she knocked again, this time with a lot more force behind them.

"Miss Swan, open the damn door! We need to have a talk!" Regina calls through the door, and miraculously, the door swings open shortly after to reveal Emma standing on the other side in full Dark One apparel. "We need to talk." Regina repeats and walks right past Emma and into the living room on the right.

"I'm not in the mood, Regina. I'm trying to figure this all out and so that means I need to be left alone," Emma declares, while following Regina into the living room.

"See, now that is where you are wrong. Isolating yourself is not a good idea. It'll just give the darkness easier access to consume you. Believe me, I know what it's like," Regina replies then sits down on the sofa with all the grace of a queen, regardless of if she is pregnant or not.

"I didn't know you were pregnant," Emma observes, causing Regina to roll her eyes at the former Savior.

"See, that's my point. You have kept yourself hidden from everyone and everything and so you don't know what's going on around you!" Regina shouts, causing Emma to look like a chastised child. "Do you even know what day tomorrow is?"

"Christmas Eve," Emma whispers.

"Well, at least you keep track of the date," Regina sasses, rolling her eyes again.

"What do you want me to do, Regina? I don't know how to get rid of the darkness in me, and each day I can feel it take over something inside of me."

"Well, maybe you should spend some time with your family. It might help. The only reason I stayed as sane as I did during my reign as the Evil Queen was because I had my father. Without him, I don't even know what would've happened to me. He constantly kept me in check. He was my voice of reason, even if I chose to ignore it, I still had one," Regina explains.

"What do you suggest then, Regina? That I get a personal advisor? I may have been the Savior, but I don't think there would be a particularly long line of people clambering to be my personal advisor," Emma sasses back.

"No, there wouldn't be, you're right. But, you would have people willing to help you. I can name about half a dozen people that would be and are willing to help you."

"Are you one of those people, Regina?" Emma asks quietly.

"Yes. Yes, I am. Because despite our history together, and our constant threats to each other, you have become one of my closest friends. You were my first friend. That is if you don't count Maleficent, but she and I have a different kind of history together. More complicated."

"It wouldn't have anything to do with you trapping her in dragon form and keeping her in the basement of the clock tower for twenty-eight years is it?" Emma smirks.

"That contributes to it, yes," Regina smiles.

"Well I'm glad to be considered your friend, Regina. You're the first friend I've had in a long time," Emma says sincerely.

"Thanks, Emma," Regina says, then grimaces and shifts a little, trying to get into a more comfortable seated position.

"You okay?" Emma asks, noticing Regina's discomfort.

"Yeah, she's just got her feet up in my ribs and it's hurting," Regina replies.

"She? You're having a girl?" Emma questions, a smile growing on her face.

"Yeah, and you'd know that if you got out more," Regina jokes, finally finding a comfortable position on the couch.

"I know."

"In all seriousness though, you need to be around people," Regina says.

"I suppose you're right," Emma relents.

"Well, since you've seen some sense, I came here to invite you to Christmas dinner on Friday," Regina says.

"I don't think that's the best idea, Regina," Emma starts to argue before Regina interrupts her.

"I don't care. You aren't going to hurt your family, that much is abundantly clear, so stop your sulking, and get your ass to my house on Friday at four. Dinner is at six," Regina demands.

"You sure are stubborn," Emma mutters.

"What was that?" Regina asks, her eyebrow raising in a silent show of daring Emma to say something she might regret.

"Nothing."

"Good. Now," Regina says, standing up with less grace than she did when she sat down. "I will see you on Friday then."

Regina walks to the front door, opening it and then stopping to turn around and say one last thing to Emma before leaving.

"You better be there. Henry misses you and would like it if you came. And I'm sure the rest of your family would like to see you as well."

And with that, Regina shuts the door behind her and walks to her car to head back home before Robin did. She still wasn't supposed to be going places on her own or for long periods of time.

When she gets home, she sees Robin's truck in the driveway and her heartrate picks up speed. She knows she isn't supposed to go anywhere without someone coming with her, and now with Robin getting home while she isn't there, she knows he is probably worried sick.

When she walks in the front door, she sees Robin sitting at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the second floor, with his face in his hands and his knees drawn up to his chest. She tries to be quiet, but her heels make too much noise on the hardwood floors as she walks up to stand in front of him. He doesn't even look up, but she knows he knows she is standing in front of him.

They remain silent for a good five minutes before saying anything. And when someone does speak, it's Regina.

"Robin, I'm s-"

"Where the hell were you? I came home to surprise you with lunch and you were gone," Robin asks calmly.

Regina takes a deep breath in before answering. "I went to talk to Emma-"

"You went to the Dark One's house?! Seriously?" Robin interrupts, and this time he is no longer calm.

"I went for Henry. I went to invite her to Christmas dinner because she needs to stop isolating herself otherwise she has no chance of fighting off the darkness. She has no one who is pushing her to be around people, and that is just going to make things worse. Her parents are doing a knock-up job of helping her," Regina answers, finally getting to explain everything.

"I wish you had told someone or, or, left a note. I was worried sick, Regina. I thought something had happened again and I wasn't told about it," Robin admits, standing up and taking Regina's hands in his own. He brings them up to his lips where he kisses both before releasing them.

Regina cups his cheek in her right hand, while her other snakes around to his back. "I'm sorry I worried you. I promise to leave a note next time," Regina soothes, smiling slightly up at Robin.

"I'd prefer there not be a next time, but I know you better than to think there won't be," Robin says, smiling back down at Regina.

"Yes, you do know better. Now," Regina says sassily then releases him and takes a step back. "I would really like that lunch now."

"You're going to be the death of me, Woman," Robin jokes as he follows his pregnant wife into the kitchen where he has left the bag of takeout from Granny's on the island counter.

They eat their lunch together in much better spirits than when Regina first came home. Once they are done eating, Robin cleans up and then heads back to work after he makes Regina promise to stay at the house and to call someone if she needs anything. She was a little reluctant at first, but gave in soon after he suggested it.

The rest of the day went smoothly, as did Christmas Eve. Robin helped wrap the boys' presents Christmas Eve night, and then both he and Regina made their way up to bed shortly after midnight.

"Merry Christmas, Love," Robin mumbles after checking the bedside clock as he crawls into bed.

Regina, who was already in bed, under the covers, and laying on her side, mumbles a "Merry Christmas" before falling asleep.

Robin scoots closer to her, bringing her back to his front as they succumb to sleep together.

Robin wakes up sometime around six o'clock Christmas morning, stretching and yawning as he tries to wake his body up. He looks over at his sleeping wife laying on her back, breathing in and out deeply. Every now and then little snorts escape on an exhale causing Robin to chuckle at the woman who claims to be nothing short of a queen when it comes to her manners, and no, she doesn't snore because that's not lady-like. Robin always rolls his eyes at her insistence that she doesn't snore, but doesn't ever call her out on it because it is just too cute.

He watches her for another minute or so before peppering her face with little kisses until she wakes up, a full-fledged smile gracing her features.

"Ah, there it is. There's that beautiful smile I think about every time I close my eyes," Robin says, bringing back memories of stolen kisses and passionate love-making in her vault all those months ago.

"Good morning," Regina says, voice still raspy from sleep, as she stretches her arms and legs. "What time is it?"

"Just after six," Robin answers, looking over at her alarm clock on her bedside table.

"What?!" Regina exclaims, eyes popping open wide as her entire body freezes mid-stretch and she imperceptibly tenses.

"What's wrong?" Robin asks, worried about what might have gone wrong.

Regina doesn't say anything, just gets out of bed, throws on her robe and rushes out the door, leaving Robin laying on the bed with a confused look on his face. He's also pretty sure he heard her say something that would not be becoming of a queen. He gets up, puts his robe on, and follows his wife downstairs. He hears noises coming from the kitchen, so he walks in there, and sure enough, there's Regina pulling out pans and bowls among ingredients to what looks like pancakes.

"Pancakes?" Robin asks, coming up beside his wife and leaning against the counter by the stove.

"Mmhmm. Cinnamon pancakes, to be exact. I've made them every Christmas morning since Henry was two years old. He calls them Christmas Pancakes," Regina answers as she begins mixing all the ingredients together.

Robin just nods his head and smiles. Even after everything they have been through together, and even though they are married, Regina constantly shows him parts of her that surprises him and makes him love her even more than he thought possible. He goes and sits at one of the barstools and just watches her work her magic in the kitchen. When he first learned of her exceptional cooking abilities he was shocked but that soon turned into sympathetic understanding after hearing of her reasons for learning how to cook. It was her escape from her responsibilities as a daughter, a wife, a stepmother, and a queen. So, whenever she was in the kitchen cooking, he never bothered her or interrupted, and only stepped in to help when she asked for it.

Ten minutes later, a substantial stack of Christmas Pancakes resided on a plate next to the stove and there was still quite a bit of batter left in the bowl.

"I think there's enough pancakes there, Milady," Robin observes, causing Regina to chuckle from her spot in front of the stove.

"Yeah, maybe for Henry and Roland, but in case you hadn't forgotten, but there's also you, me, Zelena, and my parents that still need to eat," Regina quips, turning around to face Robin once she has flipped the most current pancake on the griddle.

Robin's eyes widen in disbelief, looking between the stack of pancakes and Regina. "That's only enough for two people? I know Henry's a growing teenage boy, but he usually only eats three or four pancakes and Roland is lucky if he can eat two, and that's on a good day."

Regina smirks before planting a chaste kiss to Robin's lips and then turning back around to take the pancake off and then pour more batter on the griddle. "True, but these are Christmas Pancakes, and Henry only gets them once a year, so he usually eats more or just saves a few for the next couple mornings. Besides, Snow, Charming, and little Neal are coming over later this morning to open presents and Henry mentioned these pancakes and insisted they try some. So, naturally, I'm making more so that there are enough to fill everyone's wishes."

Robin smiles and gets up and walks over to his wife where he wraps his arms around her swollen midsection, letting his hands splay over her belly. He plants a lingering kiss to her temple before saying, "I love you. You know that?"

Regina just hums in response and nods her head before saying, "I love you, too."

They stay like that for a few more minutes before Robin realizes something that Regina had said.

"Wait, your parents? As in plural? As in, your mother is coming too?" He asks apprehensively.

Regina has the decency to look somewhat guilty. "I thought I had mentioned that she was coming over?"

"No," Robin states shortly, causing Regina to wince slightly.

To be fair, she honestly thought she had told Robin yesterday when her dad had told her he had accidently let slip to her mother that she had been in the hospital for a few days a couple weeks ago. Apparently she had been furious that she had not been informed, but because she still didn't know about the baby, she hadn't been told about the hospital visit.

"Honestly, Robin, I thought I had told you she was coming over. I'm sorry I didn't. Daddy only just told me yesterday she was planning on coming over this morning," Regina apologizes.

"Wait," Robin interrupts. "She invited herself?" Now he was really confused.

"Only because she found out that I had been in the hospital and she wasn't informed of this. That being said, we are going to have to tell her about our daughter today when she gets here because she will want an explanation as to why I was in the hospital for multiple days, that and she probably will be around more. Zelena said that their weekly chats with Dr. Hopper have been a lot better and Mother seems to be ready to make amends. Of course I'll be careful, but I would like to have a decent relationship with my mother, even if it is a lot later in my life than I would have originally wanted," Regina reassures, causing Robin to nod his head in acceptance and then place a lingering kiss to her forehead before she pulled his face down so that their lips met.

They only broke apart when they heard a throat being cleared and a little voice saying Ewww. They chuckle but step apart to find Roland and Henry Sr. standing in the doorway to the kitchen. Regina turned back around to finish up the pancakes while Robin and Roland went to set the table in the dining room.

Henry Sr. makes his way over to his daughter and places a kiss to the side of her head before walking over to grab a glass out of the cupboards and fills it with water from the tap.

"Hi, Daddy," Regina says while pouring the last of the batter on the griddle and then putting the bowl in the sink and filling it with water. She gives her dad a hug afterwards before walking back over to the stove.

"Hello, Princess. How're you feeling this morning?" He asks. He asks her this every morning and if it weren't for the sincerity and the fact that she knew he needed the reassurance after watching her and Robin race out of the house in the middle of the night, she would find it annoying. But instead she finds it sweet.

"We're doing great," She answers, placing a hand on her belly, over the spot where her little princess just kicked.

"Good. And I am sorry about letting slip to Cora that you had been in the hospital. I know you wanted to wait to tell her about the baby until Dr. Hopper gave the, what did Henry call it? Ah! The all-clear," Henry Sr. says, chuckling at the end causing Regina to smile.

Just then, Henry came bounding down the stairs in his pajamas and came to an abrupt halt in the middle of the kitchen, looking expectantly at his mother.

"Christmas Pancakes?" He asks, looking at Regina expectantly and hopefully.

"Just about done," She answers.

Henry fist-pumps the air above his head. "YES!" He exclaims before scampering off to the dining room to help Roland and Robin finish setting the table.

The rest of the morning goes by quickly. Too quickly in Regina's opinion, but she remembers and cherishes ever moment she has with her family. Once the Charming's get there, they eat breakfast together. Snow helps clean up the dishes and then they move into the family room where they open presents in front of the fire Robin built in the fireplace.

Around noon, someone knocks on the front door. Robin gets up off the couch next to Regina to go answer it. When he does, he is slightly taken aback to see Cora standing on the other side, but he isn't surprised to see her. He had been wondering when she was going to arrive.

"Good afternoon, Robin," Cora greets after a brief moment of silence.

"Cora," Robin says by way of greeting before stepping aside and letting the woman into the house.

Cora walks across the threshold and then walks into the living room where she hears laughter filtering out of. Robin follows her and when she stops just inside the living room, Robin goes and sits next to Regina, who is sitting on the floor with her back to her mother, playing with Roland and Henry with their new board game.

"Love, your mother's here," Robin whispers in Regina's ear.

"Oh Cora!" Snow exclaims when she walks in from the kitchen holding a tray of Christmas cookies and hot chocolate and eggnog, surprised to see the older woman standing in the living room.

"Hello, Snow," Cora greets coolly, turning slightly at the waist to look at the princess.

"Hello, Mother," Regina says from her spot on the floor, only twisting slightly at the waist to look behind her at her mother.

"Hello dear."

Regina attempts to stand up, but finds it to be too difficult with her growing belly. She looks up at Robin, who had stood up when he realized Regina was going to do the same, and gives him an exasperated look.

"Robin, could you, uh, maybe help me up," Regina mumbles, slightly embarrassed that she can't get up off the floor on her own anymore. She isn't even that big, which alarms her. She doesn't want to even think about how difficult walking and sitting down will get.

"Of course, Love," Robin chuckles. "Henry could you help me help your mom off the floor?"

"Oh, come on! I'm not that heavy," Regina complains, but takes one of Henry's hands and one of Robin's hands regardless.

Once standing on her feet, Regina fixes her shirt and pants and looks at Robin, silently asking if he's ready, before turning around to face her mother.

I will be posting the second chapter of this no later than tomorrow afternoon, I just have to read through it one more time and make sure I've got all the grammar errors and that what I wrote makes sense. Let me know what you thought of this chapter, and, again, I am so sorry it took me so long to update.

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