Pairings: Slowly making our way towards Regina/Emma, but not really quite there yet. ;)
Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, nor do I own anything from the show. I just have crazy ideas. So shoot me if I wanna write them down! Thank you to my lovely beta.
Side Note: And another thing, laser tag was the only thing that honestly came to mind for me. I needed a game where Emma and Regina could end up hiding somewhere. The laser tag idea was given to me by lovely gf. =) Oh, and yet another thing, this one was not beta-ed. I was too eager to get it up. Sorry for making y'all wait for over a week. All mistakes are mine.
Though she would never admit it to anyone…ever, Regina Mills had had a bit of trouble conjuring up ideas for games. Henry and she hadn't had game night in quite some time. She'd heard ideas from Henry, mentally wincing at most of his suggestions. They all just sounded so brutal and unbefitting of a queen. Even though she wasn't a queen anymore, she was still Mayor and finding herself playing some of the games Henry mentioned did not mesh too well together with the reputation she had built in this town. Regina, however, knew that there was really only one way to win over Henry and Emma. She wanted to gain their affections, their love. There was that dark side of her that told her she didn't deserve their love. She believed it, but once she set her mind on something there was no way she was going to be swayed. This particular time was no different. No different except for the fact that she was trying to gain love from someone that wasn't Daniel. While she certainly surprised herself, she knew this was exactly what she wanted.
The fact that she needed to go along with at least one of Henry's ideas was not lost to her. Especially if she was trying to satisfy him the best she could. After contemplating it far more than she should have, Regina finally came to a conclusion. She had to pick the lesser of the evils, begrudgingly deciding to tell Henry that he was finally being allowed to play laser tag. With precautions of course. He'd always wanted to play it, always wanting to do so inside her home. Regina had never even budged to think about letting him…until now. But she'd decided she'd rather have him running around her home than getting pegged with paintballs. That was, of course, his other suggestion.
Regina only hoped like hell that this little game night would somehow convince Emma that they could be a good family together. Of course, Emma didn't know this was why Regina had set all this up. Usually Regina would take Saturday's to finish up extra work and tend to her apple tree, but this Saturday was certainly going to be different. Regina had taken most of the day padding around town with Henry, trying to find equipment for this laser tag game. It took nearly most of the day to find the damned stuff. And thankfully they found enough for three people.
Regina was nearly aggravated with the whole thing, but the smile on Henry's face nearly vanquished all aggravation. What squashed the rest of it was the fact that she kept reminding herself that this was to win over Emma. Of course, part of this was for Henry as well. There was nothing more she wanted than for Henry to be happy. Henry was always her first priority, but today she as going to make damn sure to put on her best behavior and perhaps find herself hiding somewhere with Emma during this game. She had a few ideas in mind for tonight. However, there was no telling if any of them would turn out well tonight.
Maybe it was her anticipation of seeing Emma. Or maybe it was because she was ready to win Emma over this damn minute, but the day seemed to be crawling by far too slowly. Every two minutes Regina would glance at a clock and practically growl at it for not being seven o'clock yet. It was times like these that she wished she had the power to move time forward. But that hadn't even been possible in Fairy Tale Land. Henry seemed to be moving along just fine, keeping himself occupied in his room, but Regina was a bundle of frayed nerves. There was something else swimming in the pt of her stomach though. An emotion she hadn't felt in what seemed like centuries. Regina Mills, Mayor of Storybrooke and former Queen, was actually nervous. Her stomach felt like it had tens of millions of knots in it.
Every now and then she'd feel clammy and she'd place a hand on her stomach. She'd keep her palm flat on her stomach and will herself to settle down, only for the emotion to pop back up minutes later. "This will not do." Regina said to herself as she lifted herself from her office chair and went straight for the decanter of scotch. Unfortunately she had not made any of her famous apple cider recently and she was fresh out. Scotch would have to do for now. In quick succession, Regina downed two glasses of scotch. Her nerves retreated just a little, enough for her to bear. But heavens could she feel the heat rising up her neck. The alcohol in her system now would certainly make for an interesting night.
Just a few moments later, or maybe it was an hour? Perhaps half an hour. Regina had lost track of time as she'd sat back in her office chair and actually daydreamed. But Henry's feet stomping down the stairs shocked her and she jerked upright in her chair, eyebrows coming together and bringing a small scowl to appear on her features. Regina huffed and pushed herself out of her chair, marching towards the door and stopping when she saw a shock of blond hair. It was almost like she had no control over what her body was doing. Before she could even process what was happening, her body was immediately carrying her towards the blond. And could she feel a smile on her face? Was that…happiness she could feel swirling deep within her. It was baffling and yet Regina couldn't stop herself no matter how hard she tried.
"Sheriff Swan." Regina said smoothly as she approached Henry and Emma. "Glad you're here on time. I'm impressed." Ah, there she was. That was a typical comment for her to make and it just made the grin on her lips widen further. Emma rolled her eyes and shrugged. "Yeah, didn't wanna be late for the fun." Emma was being half sarcastic and half truthful. She was actually looking forward to this. Ruby hadn't been too keen on the idea, but Emma was not about to give up time with her kid. Even if Regina was going to be there the whole time.
Regina had to really restrain herself to keep from rolling her eyes. Of course Emma would be sarcastic about spending time around her. And as much as she didn't want to admit it, it kind of hurt her to know that Emma was so against the idea of being around her. Well, she would show Emma a different side of her tonight. Regina would show that she did in fact know how to have fun. It had just been so long since she'd experienced any kind of fun at all. It made her smile to think Emma would be there to see it. Although, she knew she still had to keep up appearances. Well….sort of. After all, this was game night.
Regina's gaze moved from Emma to Henry and back again, watching the excitement in their eyes as they smiled at each other. Regina had to smile herself at that. Her lips lifting into a bit smile almost involuntarily. After a moment, Regina cleared her throat and softened her smile. "Sheriff, we'll be playing laser tag. Is that alright with you?" Regina raised an eyebrow, interested in Emma's response. Immediately Emma lit up and nodded enthusiastically. She reminded Regina of Henry in that moment. "That's more than alright with me. I love laser tag!"
Regina gave a short nod and turned to Henry, smiling wider. "Go get the equipment for us?" She asked, tilting her head a bit and letting her smile widen just a tad more, this time letting it reach her eyes. Henry nodded and dashed out of the room. Regina then turned back to Emma, that same smile she gave to Henry shining at the beautiful blond standing next to her. "Would you like a drink before we start?" She questioned, nodding her head towards her home office. Before Emma could answer, Regina turned and headed down the hall for her office. Emma quickly followed, falling in step with Regina. There was a smile on both women's faces and Regina had to keep herself from staring at Emma too long. Opening the door to her office, Regina stepped back and let Emma in first, her eyes immediately going to Emma's ass. Damn her and those skin tight jeans. After a moment of staring, Regina noticed the outline of what seemed like a folded letter in Emma's back pocket. Regina raised an eyebrow and grinned. She had a feeling she knew what it was. She wanted to ask what about it, but knew that is she did she'd give away that she had been looking at Emma's ass.
Closing the door behind her, Regina made her way to her little cabinet of alcohol. Turning around, she eyed Emma for a moment before speaking. "Apple cider okay?" She let a small smile play in her lips as she waited for Emma to answer. Emma raised her head for a moment, gazing at Regina. She was just now noticing the casual clothes Regina was wearing. Regina saw a small twinkle of something in Emma's eyes as she stared at her. This of course made her curious, now wondering what was going through Emma's mind. After a moment, Emma seemed to realize she hadn't answered. With the clearing of her throat, Emma nodded. "Yeah, apple cider's fine." She mumbled, tearing her eyes away from Regina's lovely form of a body. Emma lowered herself into the chair nearest her, training her eyes away from Regina and just staring at the floor.
After a moment, Regina sat in the chair across from Emma and held the other glass in her hand out to her. Emma took it from her and mumbled a thank you before taking a slow sip. Regina smiled, nodded and then took a sip of her own. All the while, her eyes were trained on Emma's face. She'd always found Emma beautiful, ever since she first step foot in Storybrooke. The way her blond hair cascaded down like a beautiful, blond waterfall. Her green eyes were haunting, but familiar and beautiful at the same time. Emma Swan, as a being, was entirely captivating. She'd just been rejecting such thoughts for quite some time, until recently.
"Madame Mayor?" Emma's voice broke through Regina's thoughts, startling her. "Uh, are you okay?" Emma inquired with a tilt of her head. Regina blinked a few times and quickly placed a smile on her lips. "Yes. I'm fine." She gave no other explanation, just finished her apple cider and placed the glass on the counter. Just as Regina was getting the nerve to ask Emma about the letter in her back pocket, Henry burst through the door and thrust some equipment at Emma. "I'm ready! Come on! Get your vest and everything on!" Henry bounced in place, looking from Regina to Emma, smiling as wide as his mouth could go. Henry held out the equipment to Regina as well. His smile to her took her aback a little. She couldn't remember the last time he'd given her a genuine smile like that.
Regina reached for the equipment and stood from her chair, already strapping everything on as she made her way out of her office. She heard Henry's footsteps behind her, Emma following after him. She looked back for just a moment to see matching smiles on both of their faces. Regina's heart clenched a little. She realized in that very moment that this was what she had wanted in life. This was the happy ending she had been searching for. Now all she had to do was obtain it. And there was absolutely nothing she would do to do exactly that.
Without saying a word, Regina made her way towards the back door of her home. Regina had gone all out to make this night as fun as possible. Which, when it really came down to it, was out of the ordinary for her. But with Henry in tow as she'd went searching for all the right things to have for a proper laser tag game, he'd pointed out that playing in the back yard in the dark would be "so much fun." So Regina had made damn sure to find all that she needed, including foam walls to be set up in the back yard. How she'd found all of that, that was her secret to know. But either way, Regina had made very sure that her money went to good use for tonight.
She was a little worried about what to do with the stuff afterwards, but for now she was focused on starting the fun. Regina's own thoughts perplexed her. She had been sure she wasn't capable of feeling all these things ever again. But here she was wishing for Emma to be a part of her life…as her….girlfriend. "You're clearly losing your head." Regina mumbled to herself, making sure the two following her wouldn't hear. It came as a surprise that she didn't seem to care if she was losing her mind or not. Happiness was what she was aiming for.
As soon as she opened the door and revealed the back yard, Regina heard the gasp of surprise from Emma. This elicited a wide smile to spread across Regina's full lips. Surprise had also been a part of her plan. She was about to show these two that Regina Mills was, in fact, capable of participating in something fun. She turned slightly, brown eyes dancing over to Emma to engage the reaction on her face. Regina smirked. Oh, Emma was definitely more than surprised. Her jaw was hanging open, green eyes wide and staring in wonder. Regina tilted her head slightly, grinning like a Cheshire cat. From the corner of her eyes she could see Henry beaming wide, bouncing a little as he waited to move into the backyard.
It seemed he couldn't wait much longer because a second later he darted past both women, running around a few walls and circling them. "This is awesome, mom!" Henry called out in glee, practically acting like a wild man. From beside her, much closer than she remembered before turning to look at Henry, Emma spoke up. "That is pretty epic." She gave a smirk to Regina, obviously feeling odd by this different side of her. Regina smirked right back, only it was more of a predatory, flirtatious smirk. "Thank you, Emma." One more smirk and Regina walked off towards Henry, leaving Emma staring at her as she strode across the back yard. She clearly wasn't expecting Regina to use her first name. Well, that was going to change.
It took her a moment, but Emma finally found her mobility again and made her way over to where Regina and Henry were standing. "So, are you two going to be on a team or are we all defending ourselves?" Emma asked, smiling down at Henry as he bounced in place once again. Regina looked down to Henry, unable to keep her own smile from showing from seeing him so happy. "What do you think, Henry?" Henry blinked a few times, screwed his mouth up tight for a moment and then suddenly beamed brightly with an idea. "What if the you guys were on a team against me?" Henry's eyebrows shot up in question, his eyes darting between Emma and Regina. While Regina rather loved the idea, and went well with one of her small plans to get Emma alone, she was unsure of what Emma thought about it. So she turned her head towards her, her own eyebrows lifting up in question. Emma blinked, clearly surprised by Henry's suggestion. She was even confused by the look on Regina's face. She wasn't sure if Regina was revolted by the idea or enthused. It was hard to tell in the dark. "I…I don't know, Henry." Emma's eyebrows scrunched up together, a concerned look on her face. Henry rolled his eyes, deciding to use a tactic he thought might would work on Emma. "That's okay. I'm sure the two of you couldn't beat me anyway." He gave a cocky smirk then, dawning a look that Emma knew he'd gotten from Regina. Emma narrowed her eyes and she heard Regina chuckle, clearly amused by Henry's goading. "Fine. We're taking you down buddy!" Emma's tone was cocky, mixed with some amusement.
"It's settled then. Emma and me against you, Henry. Perhaps we should begin?" Regina questioned, raising one eyebrow. "Yes!" Henry and Emma both shouted, Henry switching on his equipment and darting off into the darkness of the back yard. Regina watched in amusement, turning her own equipment on before turning to Emma. "Shall we?" She asked, smiling lightly at Emma. Emma blinked once, nodded and then made a motion with her hand for Regina to follow her. Regina rolled her eyes and grabbed Emma's wrist, stopping her movement. Emma came to a sudden stop and turned around on Regina, eyes giving her the 'what the hell' look. Regina only smirked. "What makes you think I'll let you take the lead?" Regina questioned, taking a few steps ahead of Emma. "Don't underestimate my tactical skills, dear." A flash of her pretty, white teeth and Regina hunched down a bit, moving with stealth as she ducked behind one of the walls. Emma watched, in astonishment and in admiration. She had to hand it to Regina, she was quite and moved with precision. Not to mention her ass looked amazing in those tight black pants.
Regina waved her hand at Emma, telling her to move behind her. After a small moment of hesitation, Emma did exactly that. As soon as Emma was behind her, Regina called out to Henry. "You can run, but you can't hide!" She stifled a laugh and then turned to look at Emma. "Follow me." She whispered, moving quickly out from the wall and darting to a lower wall, gracefully falling to the ground onto her stomach and looking over the small wall. Emma followed in suit, not so gracefully flinging herself onto the ground. Regina had to bite her lip to keep from laughing as Emma grumbled to herself about scratching her stomach when landing.
For a moment, their two bodies were close together. So close that the top of Regina's arm was touching Emma's, her thigh touching Emma's thigh. Emma seemed to realize this and mumbled a 'sorry' before shuffling over a little. Regina missed the contact immediately, but said nothing. Emma began to say something, but Regina threw up her hand, silencing her quickly. "Shhh." She said, before turning her head slightly. "Hear that?" She asked in a hushed tone, grinning wickedly as she heard Henry's shuffling feet. Now and then there'd be a sound of Henry's body hitting one of the walls and Regina shook her head, finding this oddly amusing. She was having more fun than she had honestly anticipated.
"He's looking for us." Regina mumbled, silently getting up and moving to yet another wall. Emma was actually having trouble keeping up with Regina as she scurried over to another wall to hide behind. She was shocked to find that Regina was moving better than she had initially thought she would. Emma could have sworn that after being behind a desk for so many years, as Mayor, she would have lost a bit of her skills. Apparently not. What she didn't know about Regina was that she always found time to do some kind of exercise. Henry didn't even know she exercised. It seemed she would be showing them exactly what she was capable of. Regina peeked around one of the walls, searching for Henry. She saw him dart across the yard towards a different hiding spot, gun hanging loosely from his hand as he did so. Emma finally appeared beside her, hitting against the wall harder than was necessary. Regina glanced a warning look to her, but she didn't seem to be too effected by it. Instead she just shot her own glare back and shrugged. Regina took in a deep breath and pointed towards the wall the Henry was hiding behind. "He's there. We can sneak up on him. You take one end and I'll take the other?" Regina followed the question with a questioning look. Emma smirked wickedly and nodded. "Let's get him."
Regina gave her own nod and then headed towards the place Henry was hiding. She darted behind different places now and then, making sure Henry didn't catch them coming towards him. Her laser gun was held firmly in her hands, gripping tightly as she rounded her apple tree and hid one more time. She gave Emma one more nod and they both headed for Henry's hiding spot. She was crossing over to the other side when her foot was caught by Emma's, slinging them both to the ground. Regina twisted and fell to her back, her breath whooshing out quickly. Emma's arms flailed in the air, trying to move herself so she wouldn't fall on top of Regina. It was in vein though because Emma quickly fell on top of Regina, rendering them both breathless for a moment. Their limbs were tangled together and neither moved for a moment. Regina regained her breath first, lifting her head to gaze at the blond on top of her. Emma lifted her own head, looking down at Regina with an apologetic look. She even winced a little, clearly preparing herself to get yelled at.
Regina was tempted, a frown pulling at her mouth, but she swallowed down the insults and took in a deep breath. She forced a smile across her face as she moved a little beneath Emma. At first it was forced, but the longer she stared in Emma's eyes, the less forced the smile became. Time seemed to stop in that moment, Emma staring down at Regina with a slightly opened mouth. Regina licked her lips and Emma's eyes darted to the movement, sticking there even after her tongue retreated back into her mouth. Emma was staring almost longingly at her full lips now, Regina's skin tingling and her mouth going dry.
There was a moment of no movement from either woman, but suddenly Regina took a chance. Her head darted up and her lips crashed against Emma's in a searing kiss, closing her eyes immediately after. Emma went rigged for a moment, but then to Regina's surprise, she responded. Emma kissed back with fervor, Regina putting every ounce of her desire into the kiss. Her tongue flicked at Emma's bottom lip, demanding entrance. Emma complied and opened her mouth, inviting Regina in. Immediately their tongues were warring together, Regina's winning over with dominance in an instant. Emma's lips were smoother than she had expected. The feeling of them gliding easily against her own sent shiver after helpless shiver down her spine. Heat pool between her legs instantly, making her shiver just a bit. Emma's hand moved to cup Regina's face, the two really putting all their energy into this surprising kiss.
Suddenly there was a sound of feet hitting the ground rather hard, the sound getting louder and louder. Regina's eyes opened quickly and Emma jumped, rolling off of Regina as she pushed a little at her shoulder. Henry came around one of the walls then, finding the two women lying on the ground, breathing hard. He took that moment to shoot at their vest, the lights and sounds going off on both of them. "Ha! Got you both!" Henry shouted, jumping into the air in victory. "Told you!" He gloated, smirking and folding his arms.
Emma huffed and stood up quickly, head swimming for a moment. Her cheeks were red, skin heated fro what had just happened. Thank heavens it was dark, otherwise she was sure Henry would ask why she looked so unkempt. Her eyes darted to Regina for a moment as the woman gracefully picked herself up fro the ground, brushing the dirt from her cloths instantly. "No fair!" Emma finally said, finding her voice, but hating how it was shaking. "We tripped." She whined, lips turning down into a frown. Regina just chuckled beside her, looking to Henry. "Good job, Henry. That was quick of you." She gave him a genuine smile and he beamed back, happy to have some praise from Regina instead of a command. "Can we go again?" He asked, trying to win Regina over by giving her the puppy dog eyes.
Regina acted as if she was contemplating, but of course told him yes. The next few rounds were played with everyone defending themselves, no teams. Emma tried to avoid Regina the best she could, clearly confused about what had happened between them. Regina won the rest of the rounds played, practically patting herself on the back as they made their way back into her home. Emma mumbled to herself about cheating, but Regina just kept the smirk on her face as she turned to Henry. "Time to wash up and get ready for bed." She nodded her head towards the stairs. Oddly enough, there was no protest from Henry. He gave Emma a hug goodnight and ran up the stairs a moment later.
Silence enveloped the two women as they stood in Regina's kitchen. Emma shifted on her feet, clearly nervous about something. Regina folded her arms and leaned against the counter, raising an eyebrow. "Is there something bothering you, Emma?" There it was again, Regina using her first name. It was odd seeing her so…informal. Emma slowly looked up at Regina, worry lines in her forehead. She finally stopped fidgeting, but stuffed her hands in her pockets. Emma swallowed, mouth completely dry as she thought back to their kiss. That kiss in itself was toe curling. She could only imagine was sex with Regina was like. Emma immediately scolded herself mentally for thinking such a thing. After all, she was with Ruby. Well, she was having sex with Ruby. While sex with Ruby was pretty damn good, she couldn't remember having a kiss like that with her. Emma sighed and her shoulders slumped a little, eyes darting to the floor. "Yeah. Actually. I…" She stopped, trying to find the right words.
"Well, what the hell was that kiss all about?" Emma finally asked after another moment of silence. Regina threw her head back and let out an amused laugh. She should have known Emma would react this way. As she leveled her gaze with Emma's, she dawned her Cheshire cat smirk again and took a step towards Emma. "Perhaps it was my way of telling you something." Regina teased, taking another step, her body assuming it's own appealing stance as she stood in front of the blond. Emma swallowed one more time, tongue licking at her lips before she took in a d slow breath. "What exactly are you trying to tell me?" She asked in pure curiosity. Another amused chuckle and Regina's smirk grew wider. "If you don't know, Emma…" Regina breathed her name, leaning forward and letting her breath hit Emma's face before she continued. "Then I suppose I'll have to give you another hint."
With those words spoken, Regina took one more step towards Emma, bringing their bodies close together. Regina's hand snaked up Emma's arm and landed on her neck, keeping it there as she advanced on Emma slowly. Their lips met for the second time that night, amazingly stealing Emma's breath away. Regina pulled at Emma's lower lip, nibbling on it before releasing it and capturing her lips in another passionate kiss. Her tongue licked at Emma's teeth just before she pulled back, hand leaving Emma's neck and pushing a lock of hair behind Emma's ear in an intimate gesture. Regina's brown eyes gazed into Emma's surprised green ones, the most genuine smile gracing her lips at that moment.
This was probably the most honest she'd been with anyone in a while. Her innocence faded quickly though and her seductive side quickly appeared again. "By the way, you dropped this earlier." Regina said as she waved Emma's letter in front of her. Emma immediately patted at her back pocket, eyes wide. She blinked a few times and then snatched the letter out of Regina's hand. Regina only laughed and quirked her eyebrow. "Lovely letter. Quite beautiful really. Someone has quite the fixation on you." There was a knowing smirk on her lips that made Emma wonder just exactly what she meant. Regina turned at that moment, making her way towards the stairs. "Well, it's late, Sheriff. Perhaps we should all get some rest? I quite enjoyed little game. I do hope we get to do it again." Regina disappeared up the stairs, lights being flicked off quickly after and leaving Emma in the dark. She realized a moment too late that Regina had not been talking about laser tag.
Emma was confused as she made her way out of the Mayor's home and back to her car. What the hell was up with the Mayor? There had to be some kind of motive behind what she had done. However, as she slipped into her car, all she could think was the kisses they had shared. Each one had sent sparks flickering throughout her body, sending shiver after delightful shiver down her spine. Shit, if Ruby ever found out about that she'd be so pissed. Before Emma started her car, she took the letter out from its envelope, reading over it again. For a moment she wondered if perhaps Regina had something to do with all the gifts and letters she had been getting, but even the thought itself was absurd. Regina didn't seem like the type to do things like that. Oh no, she seemed like the type who seduced. Which was exactly what had gone down previously in her back yard and in the foyer. As Emma finally made her way towards home, she couldn't keep her mind off of Regina's soft lips. Regina had made her way into her head without hardly even trying. What baffled Emma the most though was how they'd gotten through an entire night without bickering and throwing insults at each other. Emma's eyes narrowed. "What the hell is she up to?"