Chapter Six

Emma knocked on the heavy white door, the number "108" gleaming in the sun, and waited for her son to answer. She was excited and nervous about sharing this with him but she knew he would meet the moment with enthusiasm. That would make it all worth it.

Just last night she had knocked on this same door. She'd gone home from the vineyard and had a hot shower, changed into some decidedly more dinner appropriate clothes and come to the mansion. Ok, maybe she had changed clothes a few times. Suddenly everything she wore seemed not quite right for dinner… with Regina. Regina her friend. But ultimately she had just pulled on some jeans and a tank and slipped on her jacket. If it ain't broke…

She had stood there on the porch, hands shoved into her back pockets and waited for the door to open. When it did, her heart had leapt into her throat. She had seen so many new sides of Regina in the last few weeks. Tonight was no different. Rather than being dressed in a power pant suit or a sexy black dress, the petite woman had on yoga pants, an oversized sweatshirt with the neck cut out so it slipped off one shoulder slightly, revealing a tank top of her own, and slouching socks on her feet. She hadn't reapplied her makeup after her bath and her hair was loose and natural about her face. She had never looked more beautiful to Emma.

"Hi." Emma had managed.

"Hi." Regina had smiled back before stepping back to allow her in.

They had eaten lasagna in the dining room but Regina had uncharacteristically permitted dessert in the living room. So, with a glass of vino santo and an extra-large serving of tiramisu, the women had curled their feet up onto the couch and searched through the offerings on Netflix before settling on a classic Regina had never seen—Fried Green Tomatoes. Over the course of the film, sipping on her wine and moaning around each bite of the delicious dessert, Emma had watched a full spectrum of emotions cross Regina's face. They had laughed and cried and sighed wistfully.

Emma knew she had seen the movie when she was a young teen, but she hadn't remembered it being so heavy on lesbian subtext. Although Emma had only been involved with men since she had come to Storybrooke, her life outside the town had been a little more diverse. She had learned to spot queer undertones in otherwise hetero stories for years. But this was one movie she hadn't seen since she had developed her penchant for finding the gay in the gray areas. She wondered if the sub-textual love affair bothered Regina—or it the woman had even noticed. But she need not have concerned herself. The brunette was observant.

"So, they were… in love. Like, in love in love. Right?" Regina had smiled shyly at Emma as the end credits rolled.

"What makes you think that?" Emma knew the answer to the other woman's question, but she was curious to see what had stood out to her.

Regina's cheeks flushed a becoming pink and she quickly looked down at her hands in her lap. Then, raising her eyes to look at Emma through soot-black lashes, she tried to answer with confidence. "Well, I just got that vibe. I guess with the honey scene or the one at the river. And the way Idgie defended Ruth against that asshole she married. Am I wrong?"

Emma grinned. "No. You aren't wrong. It isn't explicitly said in the film, but the book is a little plainer. They were definitely in love in love."

Relief washed over Regina's face. "Oh, thank God. I thought my gay-dar was broken. Especially after that food fight scene. That was a lovely metaphor for sex, don't you think?"

Emma sputtered and stammered trying to respond. The only coherent word out of her mouth though had been "Gay-dar?!"

Regina had chuckled darkly as she stood and started to take their plates and wine glasses to the kitchen. "Oh, dear, sweet, naïve Emma. You aren't the only one with a super power… or a colorful past. I wasn't called the Evil Queen for nothing. I didn't exactly follow conventional wisdom and social mores. "

With that, she had winked and sashayed away. Emma had watched dumbfounded. And she would have bet money there was just a bit of extra sway in Regina's hips as she disappeared across the landing and into the kitchen. Gay-dar?

Now, here she was again, waiting for their son and the chance to share something special with him. Today was going to be a great day. And soon—much sooner than she had expected—the grapes would be ready to harvest. And then Regina was going to help her make wine.

"Hey, Ma. What are you doing here?" Henry smiled at his blonde mother, holding the door open with one hand and a half-eaten sandwich in the other.

"Hey, kid. Have you got a minute? I want to show you something."

Henry shrugged and reached out for his keys from the dish on the table by the door. "Sure. Let's go."

Most of the drive had featured a running list of all the things Henry had done that day. He paused only to inhale his sandwich and Emma was reminded yet again that her son was growing up. He was a bona fide teenager now. The sheriff made a mental note to give Regina some money for groceries. Henry had to be eating her out of house and home by this point.

About a mile from their destination, Emma had broken in to explain the point of their little journey. "So, you know how I've been slipping off a lot to some unknown place?"

"And taking Mom along while totally leaving me out? Yes. I do seem to recall something like that." Henry smirked. He couldn't be more Regina if she had given birth to him herself.

"Ha. Ha." Emma laughed mirthlessly. "I know, I should've told you about it already. But it was complicated, ok. And I am telling you now. In fact, I'm going to show you."

Emma quickly gave her son the short version of her tale. She covered finding the vineyard and the reason it meant so much to her. She even skirted carefully around how much sharing it with Regina had meant to her. Henry, for his part, had sat quietly listening, nodding and making encouraging noises as she went along.

When the story was finished, the yellow bug rolled to a stop at the edge of the vineyard and the pair got out. Emma raised a hand and lowered the cloaking spell, exposing the secret garden to her son.

"Oh wow! Ma, this is amazing!" Henry jogged into the field and stooped to lift a bunch of deep purple grapes up slightly. "Wow! You did this yourself?"

Emma shrugged slightly and smiled shyly. "Well, me and your mom did. She's been a big help. And now I need your help too, kid."

Henry's green eyes danced. "What? How can I help?"

Emma laughed at his enthusiasm. "Well, it's almost harvest time and I'm afraid without magic there is no way your mom and I can do this alone. So, will you help? Do you think we can get a couple others to pitch in too?"

"Oh yeah! This is going to be so great! I've never had, like, real grapes from a vine before. And I know we can get some people to help. But, what are you going to do with them all?"

Emma surveyed the expansive field before her. "Make wine, of course."