Finally, the ladies discuss their feelings for each other. I am planning to have a more in-depth conversation between the two of them. Please leave reviews so that I know if there are any questions or thoughts. I hope you enjoy!

It was finally summer again, which meant that Emma was no longer confined to the castle halls and could go out and explore, one of her favorite pastimes. She decided to share her excitement with her new friend and give her a long list of all the hobbies that she intended to enjoy during the warm weather.

"I guess that means you won't have much time for our visits anymore" Regina gave a wry smile. The former queen had finally gotten used to the connection she and Emma had formed and the reality of the situation finally hit her, exacerbating insecurities that had laid dormant for the past sixteen years. Eventually Emma would grow bored of her; she would find more interesting friends in other kingdoms. Why shouldn't she? After all, Regina was a murderer who couldn't leave the castle. She hadn't been able to enjoy any of the hobbies that Emma described in nearly two decades. For some reason, this fact made her chest burn. It pained her to think that she would be resigned to being a prisoner for the rest of her life without any hope for escape with a fresh start.

The young blonde was also lost in her thoughts. She hadn't even thought about what her new schedule meant for her daily routine with Regina. Currently, she would visit Regina as soon as she woke up often times waking the brunette who she discovered was not an early riser. She had started having lunch delivered to her quarters so that she could share the meals with Regina. Often times, she would request a heavier serving so that there was more than enough for the two of them. Once her classes were over, she would run straight to the brunette to tell her the events of her afternoon. She would check in right after dinner to let her know the discussions she had with her parents and finally, she visited right before she went to bed in order to wish her friend a good night. In total, that was five visits a day. The blonde pouted as she realized she would have to cut out all but two of the visits with her new schedule.

"I hadn't thought about that. I'll just have to cut out some things" Emma started but Regina began shaking her head.

"Nonsense. It's of no use to you to spend your days locked up in here with me" she let out an exasperated sigh. The brunette wanted the princess to enjoy life and she didn't want to get in the way of Emma's fun. For now, she would be resigned to live vicariously through the younger woman, knowing that she would tell her all about her adventures.

"Besides, I am looking forward to hearing stories about your clumsiness" she said with a genuine smile causing Emma to laugh.

"Well I better get to bed since my days will be starting earlier" to this Regina groaned. She loved that Emma wanted to see her at the start of her day but, did it have to start so early?

The next few weeks were tough on both women. Emma found it hard to keep up with the visits sometimes going four or five days without seeing Regina at all. She felt guilty but couldn't deny that being out in the fresh air felt great. As she paced in her room after a long day filled with riding, archery, and even sword practice, she realized that it had been about a week since she had last saw Regina. She checked the time and decided to go see her friend.

As she stepped into Regina's cell, she noticed that the brunette was still asleep in bed with her back facing the door. As she crept closer, thinking that she would surprise the brunette, she realized that Regina was awake and that she was crying.

"Regina" she called out softly

"Go away, princess" she spoke with a venom that she hadn't used since their initial encounter.

Emma immediately rushed to the brunette's bedside, confusion written all over her face.

"Hey, what's wrong?" she tried to soothingly whisper.

"Emma, I said get out!" startling the princess. Regina raising her voice at her was an unwelcome shock and her features let it be known. She really didn't understand what had caused the brunette to be so frustrated with her.

"What's your problem?"

"I want you to leave"

"NO! Can you just talk to me?" she grabbed Regina by the shoulders forcing her to face her.

"Now you want to talk to me?" this question instantly clarified everything. Suddenly, guilt washed over Emma's face. "Emma, I have been wanting to talk to you for an entire week. You're cutting me out of your life like I knew you would". This hit Emma in the gut and she had to let Regina know that none of what she was saying was true.

"I am not cutting you out of my life Regina. I admit that I have let myself get so busy that I stopped coming by as often. I figured you'd be glad to be rid of me"

It was Regina's turn to seem shocked. "Why on earth would you think that? You have to know that your visits make me very happy. The happiest I've ever been to be honest" her cheeks turned red; she hadn't meant to say the last part out loud.

"The happiest, huh?" Emma smirked. Her chest fluttered and her hands began to sweat as she thought about Regina's comment. Did she really make Regina happy? Was Regina making her happy? She rolled her eyes as she answered her own question. The time she spent getting to know the brunette was definitely the best time of her life. She had gotten attached to her in a way that she didn't really understand.

Before she knew what was happening, she found herself leaning down towards Regina's face. As soon as their lips were about to touch, the brunette turned back on her side.

"I think it's time for you to have dinner, yeah?" Regina reminded with a weak smile.

"Right" the princess felt like she could die from the embarrassment. Of course Regina wasn't interested in her like that. When did she become interested in Regina? In that moment, she realized that she had always felt attracted to the brunette. How could she not be? The former queen had a beauty and grace that was all her own. The realization to this attraction was dampened by the fact that the older woman clearly did not return those feelings.

Emma quickly left Regina's cell burdened heavily by the rejection she felt. The whole night she couldn't focus on anything but her feelings for Regina.

The following morning, Emma hesitated before visiting the brunette. She didn't want things to be awkward between the two of them. As she entered the room, she kept her head down staring at her feet as she spoke.

"What do you have planned for the day?" Regina asked, seemingly unaffected by the events that transpired the day before.

"I'm journeying out to a nearby kingdom for the day to visit my friend Camila"

"That sounds lovely" Regina suddenly felt herself grow angry at hearing this. She didn't understand why but she did not like the idea of Emma traipsing about with some spoiled princess. This Camila girl could be a bad influence. Even worse, what if she and Emma started spending more time together and she spent less time at home? Regina realized that in all the stories that the two of them shared, this Carrie girl never came up once.

"You say she's your friend, correct? This is the first time you have mentioned her. How long have you known her? How did you meet? Is she older than you?" Regina recited the questions so quickly giving Emma no chance to actually respond.

The blonde's eyebrow raised as she realized something—Regina was jealous. She looked at her face and saw that her cheeks were red and she was scowling. Emma decided to have fun in this moment.

"Well we've known each other since we were both about five years old, I guess I just never mentioned the summers that I spent with her when we were younger. Her castle is so lovely and I get along so well with her family. She was invited to my birthday party and we hit it off so well that our parents organized play dates and we just became inseparable. Now that we are older, our duties come first and we have been unable to catch up. I must say that I am desperately looking forward to spending the day there" Emma glanced at Regina as she spoke and noted that the brunette was fuming.

"Oh well, don't let me stop you" Regina spat "by all means, go have fun!"

Emma laughed, "You're jealous!"

"Am not" Regina folded her arms and pouted causing the blonde to laugh even harder.

"Admit it. You were pissed when you heard that I was traveling to meet up with a mysterious girl that you had never heard of before. You forgot to ask me one thing"

"What's that?"

"If she was nearly as beautiful as you. To which, I would have responded most certainly not". Emma knew it was a risk to flirt with Regina, especially after yesterday but she couldn't help it. She stepped closer to the brunette and dropped right in front of her face.

"Emma" Regina whispered breathily.

"Yes?"

"Don't" she stated lightly slowly pushing at Emma's chest, trying to back her up.

"Why not?" Emma felt that familiar pain in her chest again as she remained right in front of Regina, searching her eyes. At this point, she knew that Regina felt something, she just was afraid for some reason.

"Well for starters, I am your family's mortal enemy and prisoner. You're just interested in me right now because I am a mystery to you. One day you will grow bored of me and move on to find happiness outside of this castle"

Emma couldn't believe that this is what Regina thought of her. She cupped the brunette's face with her hands, staring directly into her eyes.

"I will never grow bored of you Regina. During this time that we have spent getting to know each other, I have seen you to be a kind and loving individual. That's why I am able to separate the woman I know now from whatever bad blood you have with my family. You have let me in and I truly know you and your character. I would spend every minute with you if I could. I don't want you to ever think that I am here for any other reason than I enjoy being with you and getting to know you. These days have been some of the happiest for me too" she affirmed.

As she stared lovingly at the brunette, she began closing the gap between them. She waited for the rejection but it never came. As she pressed her lips against Regina's her eyes rolled shut and she leaned in further desperately trying to taste even more of the brunette. A low moan came from the older woman as they continued to explore each other's mouths. As things began to heat up, Regina used her last bit of self control to slowly push Emma back.

"You have to get ready for your trip" she smiled. Emma's cheeks began to grow pink as she let it sink in that she had finally kissed Regina.

"Are we okay?"

"More than" the brunette quipped with a sassy smirk causing Emma's cheeks to darken. "We'll discuss this in greater detail when you return".

"Okay" Emma replied suddenly shy around the former queen. Before she stood up, Regina grabbed the back of her neck and pulled her in for one last quick kiss.

When she left, the princess had the biggest grin on her face and found joy in all of the mundane activities that she usually did thoughtlessly. While she was excited to see her best friend, she did not want to leave Regina. When she woke up this morning, the last thing she thought she would be doing was kissing the brunette but it had happened. Emma pinched herself. She definitely hadn't been dreaming.