A/N: Finally have another update for you! As always, thanks for following and favoriting, and especially, reviewing! I really appreciate all of you who are reading and sticking with me as I tell this story. Seeing so many people following and reading, really helps to motivate and encourage me, and the reviews really help a lot.

Now, about this chapter…there's a lot in it, even if it's not as long as a few of the others. I had almost the entire thing planned out from the time I thought up this story. The only thing that sort of developed by itself, was what happens between Regina and Emma toward the end (more on that after you've finished reading this). So, I hope you enjoy it and please let me know what you're thinking by the end of this.

Disclaimer: I don't own Once Upon A Time.

Chapter 7-Understanding

Henry's back was to Emma and Regina, as they stepped into his room. He was sitting on his bed, staring out the window, while Pongo was by him resting his head on the boy's knee.

"Is it okay if we come in?" Emma asked hesitantly, hoping for Regina's sake he wouldn't object.

"I guess," Henry shrugged, not turning around.

Emma's green eyes shifted from her son to the woman standing beside her. She could easily see the pain, regret, and nervousness Regina wasn't even trying to hide. It was interesting how all it took was a young boy to bring out that vulnerability and insecurity in the woman.

Regina could feel Emma's eyes on her and knew it was her turn to speak, but didn't know what to say. With her luck, she'd end up saying the wrong thing and push Henry further away. The only thing that gave her a little confidence was the encouraging smile Emma offered her and a small nudge forward, which she glared at her for.

"Henry," His adoptive mother began tentatively, her voice wavering, as she moved towards the bed. "I-I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. You were just asking questions, and rightfully so."

Her son shifted on his bed, and he looked up at her, while she took a deep breath. Regina saw the same hurt and betrayal in his eyes that she'd seen when they were downstairs, but it had begun fading into something else that she couldn't quite define. Whatever it was, the emotion was less hostile. She took a seat near the foot of his bed, and rested her hand over the one of his that was closest to her. "My reaction wasn't fair to you. I'm just upset and worried about my mother being here…a little afraid too."

Regina held his gaze, even as her voice shook, though so much of her wanted to turn from her son, so he wouldn't see the fear in her. His palmed turned up to meet hers and he gripped her hand in comfort. "I'm sorry," she said sincerely and Henry accepted the apology with a small tilt of his head.

"Thank you," Henry gave her a small smile. But Regina couldn't help the confusion that she knew was written all over her face. "For apologizing," He clarified. "I'm sorry too. I could tell you were upset, but I just…" The boy trailed off, trying to find the right words.

Regina placed her free hand on his cheek. "I understand. We've barely started gluing the pieces between us back together, and it's going to take time. Sometimes you're going to have to take some space and I don't want you to feel badly about that. What I do hope is that you'll always talk to me whenever you're ready. "

From where she stood, leaning against Henry's desk, Emma could see and feel the tenderness in Regina, and noticed the conflict of emotions that were rising to the surface in their son. He may have recently turned eleven, but the need for the woman who raised him his entire life was obvious in the way he stared at her with relief, understanding, and guilt, leaning into her hand, before his body fell toward her. Warmth rose in Emma's cheeks and heart, as she watched mother and son hold desperately onto one another.

Henry wrapped his arms around his mother, burying his head against her, surprising her, but Regina quickly slid her arms around him to reciprocate the hug. She felt something warm and wet on her exposed skin, just under her collar bone, where her shirt wasn't buttoned, and realized her son was crying. He sniffled against her and she held him tighter, trying to keep the tears at bay that had begun to fill her own eyes. "I'm sorry," he breathed against her shirt. Regina sensed the weight of his words, and knew that they were an apology for so much more than him running away and slamming the door to his room earlier.

She pressed her lips on top of his head, taking in the boyish smell that was his—shampoo mixed with fresh air; salty and sweet at the same time. "I love you," she told him softly, stroking his back, before she lifted him away from her a little, so he would meet her eyes. She watched him wipe roughly at the moisture on his pink cheeks before she spoke. "And since you love stories so much, I'm going to tell you the part of ours that you may not know."

He was quiet, but stared at her inquisitively and Regina could see he was eager for her to continue. "Once upon a time, a tiny baby boy was brought to me because I wanted someone to share my life with; to love. It was a little selfish at first, since what I was really doing was trying to fill something inside of myself too. But as soon as I held him, all I wanted was to give him the best; to give him as much love as I could. That hasn't changed, and nothing will ever cause it to change."

Henry's lips tugged faintly upwards, but his eyes told her he was grateful for her openness and the declaration. Regina used her thumb to wipe at a tear rolling down his cheek. "I'm sorry I haven't always done the best job of showing you how much I love you, but I do. So much. And to be honest it scares me."

"Why?" Henry used his shirt sleeve to wipe at his nose, which had Regina motioning for Emma to bring over a box of tissues sitting on his dresser.

"I've disappointed so many people I've loved," Regina admitted softly, taking a tissue from the box Emma held out to her, and handed it to Henry, who accepted it appreciatively. "I've lost many of them too."

"Like Daniel."

"Yes," His mother confirmed remorsefully, and Emma hated the sadness filling the small word. "I want this story to end differently," The brunette continued, as positively as she could, catching a glimpse of the sorrowful expression on Emma's face out of the corner of her eye. "I'd like it to say that Regina and Henry lived happily, until he moved out and had a family on his own," Their smiles mirrored each other's. "Of course, it would also be written that he never forgot to come visit her with the grandkids, even if Grandma Emma always insisted on seeing them first, so she could spoil them with cookies."

"Hey!" Emma objected from behind Regina.

"C'mon mom, you know you would," Henry laughed at his blonde mother, and then looked back to Regina. "I like that ending. Just remember, all you have to do is bake an apple pie, and we'll stop by here first. We can make Emma walk over with the cookies," He whispered, but loud enough for his other mom to be able to overhear.

Emma scowled at them. "Can't you at least pick me up on the way over?"

"You can always drive the bug. At this rate, I'm sure it will still be around," Regina smirked over her shoulder.

"Maybe I'll just move into Henry's room when he leaves," Their son threw his arms out in front of him to protest. "What? You won't need it anymore."

But then Regina scoffed in response. "You and I living under the same roof for a prolonged period of time? We're lucky to have made it through last night."

"And yet, you still haven't convinced me that you want me to leave," The blonde eyed her critically, waiting for a witty retort, but Regina turned to Henry, forcing the comment to hang between them.

"Don't be scared about your mom or losing me," Henry had become serious again, and Regina knew he could still sense the worry and fear in her that she'd tried to suppress. "It's going to be okay. Emma and I will make sure, right?"

His eyes met Emma's over Regina's shoulder, and the brunette adjusted her position on the bed, so she could see the blonde as well. "As long as a piece of apple pie is always set aside for me before the grandkids get here," Emma bargained, but held up her hands in surrender when Henry narrowed his eyes at her. From the way her son stared at her, she could have sworn she was under Regina's scrutinizing gaze and not his. Emma would never get over how he had unconsciously taken on and mastered so many of Regina's facial expressions, which she had noticed now that he was staying with her. "I'm kidding…mostly. And we need to stop talking about the future. It's freaking me out."

"But you're still going to make sure nothing bad happens to my mom?" Henry crossed his arms, and Emma could tell he was anticipating that she would break the promise she had made earlier.

Green eyes fell to Regina, and she didn't understand herself for not answering Henry right away. There wasn't a single part of her that wasn't going to protect the woman she was staring at; she was sure of that, no matter what the reason for it was. A part of her would have sent her away from all of the craziness if she could; not that Regina would willingly leave Henry right now. And since that was the case, Emma would settle on keeping her safe and from sinking into her evil past in whatever other ways she was able.

"Henry-" Regina sighed, taking Emma's silence and the way her eyes remained trained on her, as if considering the cost of such a commitment, to mean she was rethinking her earlier promises to both of them. It wasn't like the brunette had expected anything different. At some point, Emma would have a revelation and leave her alone, or Regina would have pulled too far out of the blonde's reach, causing her to give up on the formerly wicked woman. She hadn't counted on it being so soon, however, and couldn't help feeling the punch to her gut. Perhaps, she had ruined the bridge forming between them when she had avoided discussing the sweet things Emma had said downstairs. If that was her crime, she almost wished she had gone on in their conversation, because apparently, something had changed between them anyway and she was going to lose the other woman.

But for once, Regina had completely misread the blonde. "No," A pale hand rose up to stop the brunette from reprimanding their son. "It's a fair question. And yeah, kid, I'm going to make sure nothing bad happens to her. I promised you before. Trust me, there's no way I'm letting anything happen to her if I can help it."

"Good," Henry smiled, and threw his arms around his birth mother's middle, while her eyes locked with Regina's. She could see the hint of relief on the older woman's face, and surmised what she had been thinking. Emma grinned and shook her head, silently informing Regina that she was being ridiculous, which the brunette scowled at her for.

"You'd think by now you'd get it through your head that you're stuck with me," Emma chuckled, as Henry released her. "It's been more than a year and I'm still here, either stepping on your toes or finding some way to intrude on your life."

"Perhaps, I'm a slow learner."

"Doubt that, but we'll go with whatever excuse satisfies you, Madame Mayor."

"So, what do we do?" Henry interrupted, showing how out of place he felt with their usual, but gentler banter. His eyes moved from one mom to the other, searching for an answer.

"First, we tell your grandparents Regina didn't kill Archie," Emma stated before Regina had a chance to open her mouth.

Regina met her eyes, hopeful, but there was something like dread in them also. "The only proof you have are Henry's theories, a dog, and an earring," The grim reminder made Emma frown. When Regina put it like that, it didn't seem too promising. "They'll think I used magic to get you on my side."

The three of them stayed silent, their eyes cast down to different spots on the floor, each consumed with their own thoughts.

"Ow!" Henry startled them all back to the present, both women's eyes snapping to him in concern.

His mothers watched him wriggle uncomfortably into an awkward sitting position, while he tucked his hand into one of the pockets of his jeans, and pulled out the glass star he had found on the floor of his room.

"Forgot I put this in my pocket for safe keeping."

"Looks like you also forgot about it being pointy," Emma took it from his hand and studied it. "You know, we got side-tracked last night with Cora leaving your mom's room, but we really should figure out who sent this to you and why."

Regina stared at her with a bemused grin. "Aren't you still the sheriff?" Emma nodded. "Well, in a small town that would make you the detective as well. Detect."

Regina's order was said firmly, but Emma saw the teasing glint in her eye.

"All I know about this thing is that it obviously contains some kind of magic, broke Henry's window, and has a line written on it from Disney's Pinocchio," The blonde collapsed wearily onto her son's bed, her body slanted so she could fit in the space Henry and Regina weren't already occupying. She laid her head on Henry's pillow, while her knees settled a few inches from Regina's and her feet rested near the other woman's on the floor.

"That's…that's a start," Regina tried to sound reassuring, which had Emma shaking her head at the woman's weak attempt to encourage her. "Better than nothing," Regina tried again.

"More like, it is nothing. Nothing to go on, anyway."

"Not true," Henry piped up, interrupting his moms. "If it has to do with Pinocchio, only four people could have sent it: Gepetto, the Blue Fairy, Pinocchio, or well, Archie."

"So, Marco and Mother Superior…" Emma curled an arm under her neck, so she could see her son better, while she talked to him, going along with his plausible theory. "Don't know why they'd send this, but there's a possibility. August—I haven't seen him since he turned back to wood. It definitely couldn't be Archie."

"And how would any of them get it here," Henry sighed, falling into the bed, to lie next to Emma.

"You only need a pinch of fairy dust to send a shooting star," Regina revealed, looking down at them.

The blonde raised an eyebrow. "Sounds like you've had experience with these things?"

"When I was a child, I watched someone send me one."

"Did you make a wish on it?" Henry wondered, raising himself up on his elbows.

Regina nodded. "And it came true."

"What was it?" Their son asked before Emma could pose the same question.

"It no longer matters," The brunette said dismissively through a long exhale, and stared out into the hallway. "But it taught me that all magic has its costs."

"Do you think Marco or Mother Superior would have a pinch of fairy dust?" Emma brought them back to the point of the conversation, after seeing Regina becoming somber.

"Mother Superior's the Blue Fairy! Of course, she'd have fairy dust," Henry said almost mockingly, and Regina had to bite the inside of her cheek from laughing or making a sarcastic comment. Emma noticed, however, and simultaneously glared at her, while knocking her boot against Regina's in an insolent, yet playful, half-kick.

Regina's eyes widened, but as much as she wanted to kick Emma back, she thought better of it with Henry right there. So she settled on a sneer, finally directing her attention back to her son. "After Gold and I used it on the well, she wouldn't have any. It had to be someone who brought it from our world."

"Well, I doubt you'd risk anyone but yourself bringing fairy dust with them during the curse," Emma guessed, realizing how harsh it came out and how prejudiced she sounded toward Regina. She looked away, feeling badly, no matter how true it was, especially when she'd been the one trying to support Regina in letting go of the past.

The other woman saw the guilty way she averted her green eyes, and she tapped her hand against Emma's knee in understanding. "No, you're right. No one brought fairy dust here, until Gold brought magic back and the diamonds appeared. I'm positive."

"So, that means only August could have had the star and dust. He must have had them with him when he got into the wardrobe," Henry sat back up, trying to read whether Regina thought he was correct.

She patted his leg. "You know, you're probably too smart for your own good."

"Talk about saving something for a special occasion," Emma muttered.

Henry nodded his agreement. "But why would he send it now?"

"Something else to add to our list of things to do today: find August," Emma said aloud, putting it on her mental list that she'd started earlier. "Actually, we should probably take care of that first."

"So that's: Find August. Find more proof mom's innocent and convince the grandparents. Come up with a plan to stop Cora. Am I missing anything?"

"Pack some clothes when we're at the apartment," Emma yawned, stretching as she sat up, and received odd looks from Regina and Henry. "I told you before, I'm not leaving you here alone and that means Henry and I need a change of clothes."

"Oh, that reminds me…" Henry abruptly darted out of the room with Pongo on his heels, leaving the two women staring after him confusedly for a few moments, until they turned back to each other.

"I told you, neither of you is safe here," Regina reiterated, bringing up their argument from earlier that morning.

"If your mother is here, we're not really safe anywhere," Emma countered, making a valid point. "And I prefer to take my chances here."

"Your parents won't approve."

"I'm an adult, and you're Henry's mom. If anything, he gets to stay with you, and I get to stay with my son. Hey, they can feel free to have you stay over at the apartment."

Emma could have sworn she saw Regina cringe at the offensive suggestion. "I would never; your mother would never…"

"Those are the choices," The blonde shrugged, standing up from the bed. "All I'm saying is that the three of us are staying together. Mary Margaret can feel free to have an opinion on where."

"There's no chance I'll stay in an apartment with those idiots for longer than necessary," Regina finally stood up as well, and crossed her arms in defiance. "Not to mention, I doubt you, Henry, and I would ever manage to fit comfortably in your room. And do not suggest having us sleep downstairs on the floor, couch, or your parents' bed, because I refuse."

"I don't think you'll have to worry," Emma chuckled at the stubbornness on Regina's face. "But if that's what they want, I'm ready to play the Henry card with you."

"Do you really think you can use Henry to manipulate me into staying with you?" The brunette stood a little taller on her heels, her posture perfect, as she stepped more into Emma's space.

"I have a feeling I won't have to try," There was amusement in the green eyes, as she mimicked Regina in moving intimidatingly closer. "Besides, no one makes you do anything you don't want to."

"Let's hope that remains true," Regina sighed, surprising Emma, who had been counting on a cheeky remark from the woman who could give lessons in sass. She focused on Regina's eyes then, drifting in the warmth of the brown, until she identified what had sprung up in the other woman's mind and affected her. Inside the vulnerable brown was that now familiar shadowy appearance of regret, inadequacy, and trepidation, which Emma only found there when Regina spoke of her mother.

"It will," Emma's voice was firm, but quiet. She took Regina's hand soothingly in hers, since they were nearly brushing against each other anyway, due to the close proximity the women had ended up in. "Like Henry said, you've got us. If she knows what's good for her, Cora won't mess with your army."

Regina's breath caught in the back of her throat at the casual mention of us. Emma was doing it again; what she had done downstairs. It made the older woman nervous and hopeful at the same time, and Regina couldn't deny that she was torn between running and moving into the blonde, so they would be pressed against each other. What was she supposed to do when defining what she felt for Emma was nearly impossible, and she was certain the other woman was barely even aware of what she herself was feeling?

Yet, the way Emma stood so close, holding her hand, taking her in with her eyes, seeing through her, had Regina forgetting that the woman standing opposite her was Snow White's daughter. She forgot Emma was the one who had broken her curse; the mother her son had favored; the woman who riled her so profoundly that she needed to hate and destroy her. Regina forgot all of that, only remembering the woman who challenged her; amused her; and found it within her to offer her former rival empathy and a second chance.

"What?" Emma's face fell at the unreadable, yet heavy expression that had descended upon Regina. Green eyes suddenly flashed to their joined hands and Emma panicked, thinking that was the problem.

As Emma's hand began to fall away from Regina's, the brunette tugged it back into hers. "I thought-" The blonde eyed her questioningly, but didn't say any more.

"It's not that," Regina's smile went from reassuring to shy, when she laced their fingers together.

Emma squeezed her hand gently, too worried about Regina, to be stunned by their linked fingers. "Then, what?"

"I don't hate you anymore," Regina confessed, and Emma couldn't help but laugh at the randomness.

"That's a relief."

"Maybe for you," Regina snipped back.

"What? You want to hate me?" There was noticeable hurt in Emma's eyes.

A soft exhale escaped Regina's lips. "It's easier."

"Than?"

But instead of answering her verbally, Regina lifted her free hand confidently to Emma's cheek where it slid over soft skin, and guided her head down, so their lips were barely brushing against each other. Their eyes began to close in tandem, as they fell into the sensation of the warm wisps of breath caressing one another, along with the mutual tingles of anticipation and desire. Regina's lips parted slightly, when they moved to capture Emma's.

Just as their lips met, Emma felt Regina hastily breaking all contact with her, going so far, as to physically push her away, so that there was a decent amount of space between them. Anger, confusion, and hurt rushed through Emma, and from the apologetic look on Regina's face, the blonde knew she wasn't doing well to hide her feelings at all.

"What was that?" Emma practically hissed, until her eyes widened in realization, and Henry's feet pounded up the stairs in unison with the jingle of Pongo's collar. "Damn, you have good hearing."

All Regina could do was nod and run a hand over her face, before Henry bounded into the room carrying a basket filled with some of his clothes. "Sorry I took so long. I remembered you saying you were going to wash these for me the other day, and I went to check. Guess, I can put them back in my drawers now?"

Henry set the basket on his bed and began sorting through the clothes, oblivious to the way his mothers were glancing from him to each other. There was nothing they could do or say with Henry in the room that would ease any of the tension or frustration between them. It left Regina to wonder if this was how it was supposed to be, and if she had been saved from making a mistake she wouldn't be able to undo; a commitment she was not sure she could commit to. Yet, across the room Emma had been left wanting to kiss Regina again and not be interrupted. For the first time, it had really hit her how much she needed that connection, and how much Regina seemed to need it too, no matter how shocking and unusual it was.

A/N: Hoping you are all still with me. Don't be too mad at Henry. That little interruption was going to happen with or without him. I feel like Emma and Regina needed to wake up a little more to what they're really starting to feel, but they still need to figure themselves and their feelings out a bit, before they really start to make that type of physical connection. Yes, it's only a kiss, but these characters are made up and shaped by so many things that that's a big deal. I do promise to make the waiting worth it and it won't take too long for it to happen ;)