Retrospective
Chapter 9
It was close to 3am and Emma hadn't slept a wink since Charlie was born. She couldn't. Her mind and heart were racing in a way they never had before. She had a baby for fucks sake! A baby with Regina that she couldn't stop looking at as he slept in her arms, a baby who had the brunette's ears and eyebrow furrow.
She had heard the mayor comment about how much he looked like her, but Emma swore he was all Regina. She saw the cleft in his chin and the light baby fuzz on his head, but he resembled her fiancée greatly.
"You look so smug." Said fiancée teased from the hospital bed. She had been sleeping on her side until something she couldn't recall woke her from her slumber. When she opened her brown eyes and saw Emma in the nearby rocking chair gazing down at their newborn son with such an arrogant smirk, she couldn't help up feel her heart expand with happiness.
The blonde looked up from her sleeping son but kept the grin on her face as she locked eyes with the woman who gave birth to the child in her arms. "He looks like you." She told her.
Regina blushed slightly and laughed. "He's all you, Miss Swan. I don't know what baby you're looking at."
"You're wrong." The sheriff shook her head with a laugh. She looked back down at him when he let out a tiny sneeze. "He's got your mad face." She pointed out.
The former queen just beamed at her true love. "Blue eyes though. You can count on those to be green when he get older." She listed.
Light eyes rolled all in good humor. "Henry had blue eyes when he was born and those turned brown." She fired back quietly. The couple just laughed together at that and after several minutes in the quiet, the blonde spoke up again. "I think I love you more than before." She confessed. "And I didn't think it was even possible to love you more than that."
Her words were shocking to the mayor. "What do you mean?" She asked, her mind starting to wake up more.
"You birthed him." Emma exclaimed in amazing, like giving birth to the seven-pound boy was some unheard of miracle, and maybe to her it kind of was. "I- I just can't believe he grew inside of you."
The former queen laughed. "Did you have this same revelation when you had Henry?"
Emma shook her head. "Not until he was ten and knocking on my door." She said in good humor. "But Charlie is just this little life that we made."
"I had a feeling close that when I met you." Regina revealed.
A blonde eyebrow rose. "Really?"
The mayor really thought about it. "Well, maybe not at first but the more time you spent with Henry, on one hand I hated you and on the other… you brought it into the world."
"Expect for me it's, I love you more than anything. You raised our first son… and now you brought me our second." Emma explained. "You're amazing, baby. I don't think I've ever been more attracted to you."
Brown eyes rolled. "Now you're just being ridiculous."
Charlie started to stir awake and blinked his little eyelids open. His barely visible eyebrows furrowed and he made a pout. "I think someone is hungry." Emma said in her baby voice. She looked back up to her fiancée. "Do you want to try breast feeding him again?"
Regina nodded. "Yeah, bring him to me." She requested and moved into a sitting position.
A wet nurse had come in earlier to help the older woman's breast milk to come in. It was still spotty, but much better than before. Regina knew from the beginning that she wanted to breast feed their son. It was a connection thing for her, something she wanted to experience. So far it had been trying, but worth it. Not only would it save them money, but also breast milk was significantly more healthy than formula.
The mayor yawned. She had gotten some sleep here and there but she was already feeling exhausted.
When Emma placed the baby in her arms and the mayor attempted to latch him, she told her lover, "You should get some sleep, dear."
The savior shook her head and grinned when the hungry baby started to going to town. "No. I'm fine."
Regina raised an eyebrow as she rubbed her thumb over Charlie's fingers. "I haven't seen you sleep since you got here. You have to be tired."
"It's his first night here. I don't want to stop looking at him." The blonde confessed.
The former queen let out a breathy laugh. "I know what you mean, honey, but we'll both be tired enough with sleep as it is. After I feed him we all three need to sleep." She said sternly.
"You got it, mommy." Emma teased.
"Oh my God. You're driving like Miss Lucas and I don't mean Ruby when I say that." Regina hissed as she rode in the back of the Honda with Charlie. Her fiancée was driving with their first-born riding shotgun.
Emma huffed. "I'm going the speed limit."
Brown eyes rolled before the mayor looked down at her snoozing newborn. "Which should make you realize how slow you're going. When's the last time you ever followed the speed limit?"
"Excuse me for trying to keep our children safe." The sheriff complained.
Henry laughed. "You went fifty down this road with me last night."
"You did what?" The mayor hissed.
The blonde gasped and covered his mouth. "I did no such thing. Oh look! We're home!" She let out a sigh of relief and pulled into the driveway quite slowly.
Regina scoffed as the vehicle came to a stop in the garage. "Will you carry him, baby?" She asked her true love as the family all opened their car doors. She was sore from delivery and extremely exhausted. Her breasts hurt. She had a million complaints.
"Yep. Unlock the door for us, kid." Emma agreed and tossed the keys to Henry who easily caught them and headed to the door.
The savior helped her fiancée get out of the car, gave her a loving kiss on the cheek, and then moved to unbuckle Charlie.
Regina watched as the blonde gently pulled the car seat from the Honda and looked in at the sleeping infant. "How do you think the dogs will react to him?" She questioned.
Emma chuckled as they walked towards the front door. "They'll probably eat him."
The mayor glared at her true love. "Don't even joke about that. I'm already worried they'll be aggressive and we'll have to get rid of them."
Green eyes rolled. "They're great with DJ, aren't they?" An idea sparked in the sheriff's head. "Oh, let me introduce them. I'll hold Charlie while they sniff him out."
"Don't you dare!" The brunette hissed, halting her attempt to unlock the front door.
Emma sat the car seat on the porch and un-strapped Charlie. "No. This will be adorable."
The former queen shook her head vehemently. "It's going to end bad. Our dogs are not gentle creatures, honey."
"Will you just let me be his mom?" The sheriff asked. Her tone wasn't accusing or rude. If anything it was teasing. She offered the older woman a smirk.
Brown eyes rolled with exasperation. "If I had more than four hours of sleep in the last forty-eight hours maybe I'd protest more." She watched with only mild worry as Emma lifted Charlie up and cradled him in her arms.
Regina led the way into the house and was immediately bombarded by Chief and Boss. They whined and licked her hands. "Hey boys. Hi. Mommy's home. Yes, I know." She cooed and petted them.
The blonde followed her true love and when the dogs saw her with an unknown human in her arms, they turned their attention to her. "Calm down." She said to them quietly and squatted down to showcase the newborn. "This is Charlie, guys."
Both dogs sniffed and nosed at him, but they were being gentler with him than Regina expected. "Do you think they know he was in my stomach?" She asked the savior.
Emma nodded with a grin as the dogs whined at Charlie, wanting him to wake up. "I like to think they do."
Henry came from downstairs and laughed. "Do they like him?" He asked.
"They're getting to know him." The mayor told the teenager.
The blonde beamed. "It's your first day home, buddy."
Regina smiled. "This is when the real challenge begins."
"Bring it on." Emma smirked.
Killian was bouncing the baby while he held him, but Charlie was extremely pissed. Regina was upstairs taking a shower and Emma had left him of all people alone with the infant while she and Henry went outside to work on the lad's throwing motion.
The pirate couldn't take it anymore. The boy was screaming in his ear and he was losing his mind. He held the baby against his chest and went outside.
"Put more in the wrist." Emma told her son. "Your arm is strong, but accuracy is in the wrist."
Henry nodded and threw the ball with more wrist, aiming for the trash bin twenty yards away. He got the rim of it, but missed the sink shot. The savior clapped anyways. "That was good, dude." She squeezed his shoulders. "Little more practice and you'll have it down."
Both her and her son's ears perked at the sound of a crying baby. They looked to the side and saw Hook storming towards them with an angry Charlie on his chest. "You told me he was full! You said he wouldn't cry!" The pirate complained.
Emma laughed and took her nearly one-month-old son from her friend. "I said he shouldn't cry." The sheriff said and patted her baby's diaper. She kissed his fuzzy hair and fiddled with his ears. "Is your tummy hurting, mister?" She asked in her baby voice. "Let me put him down and I'll come back."
"I'll show Hook how to throw." Henry teased and threw the football at the pirate, who nearly dropped the ball.
"You trying playing sports with one hand." Killian scoffed.
The blonde walked into the house and rocked her fussy son. "You're okay you big whiner." She chuckled.
"Is mama picking on my baby?" Regina asked as she descended down the stairs.
Emma grinned as dark blue eyes moved around. "Do you hear mommy?" She chuckled. "He wants the boobies."
The mayor made a face of disgust. "Stop talking." She instructed as they made the transfer. Regina walked back up the stairs towards his nursery, her fiancée following right behind her. Charlie was still whining, but he wasn't screaming his head off anymore.
"I'm super jealous of the kid. When I cry you don't put your nipple in my mouth." Emma laughed.
Brown eyes rolled before she sat in the rocking chair in the dark green nursery. "You don't need my milk to survive." She pointed out.
The savior nodded. "Damn right I don't. Your milk is nasty. Your boobs though, those are super tasty." She wiggled her blonde eyebrows.
Regina ignored her fiancée and latched her Charlie unto her nipple. "Quit comparing our sex life to me breastfeeding our son."
"What sex life? We're shut down for at least another month." Emma huffed.
"How's Tinkerbelle doing in my office?" The mayor wondered.
The blonde moved to the crib and adjusted the sheets a little better. "Uh, actually my mom took over the office. Tinkerbelle isn't that adjusted in this world."
Dark eyebrows furrowed. "Your mother is in office?" Emma nodded. "Well who's teaching Henry at school then?"
"Ariel took over." The sheriff revealed.
"Well then who the hell is the art teacher?" Regina felt so out of the loop.
"Tinkerbelle is filling in." The savior told her.
The former queen grumbled. "Just because I'm on maternity leave doesn't mean you can leave me out of the loop, Emma."
The sheriff groaned. "Baby, I know."
"How is your mother handling my job?" Regina questioned.
Emma let out a dry laugh. "She hates it, so when election comes around again in four months, expect to run unopposed." Then she remembered. "Oh! That reminds me! In two months me and Hook have to go to this police seminar in Boston."
Dark eyebrows furrowed. "What! Why?"
"Our lovely friend officer Collins told his boss about our town and apparently we're required to attend a seminar every three years at the very least." Emma complained.
"Why doesn't your father have to go?" The older woman questioned.
"I 'fired' him because he can't exactly leave Storybrooke." Emma pointed out.
Regina nodded. "Well do you have to stay overnight?" She wondered.
"I'll try not to, baby, but I'm not sure." The sheriff shrugged. "We'll deal with it more later." She yawned.
The mayor smirked slightly at the sight. They were both tired. It had been a long two weeks since Charlie was born and neither of them got more than four hours of sleep every night. "After he eats I'm going to let him cry himself to sleep. Why don't you go take a nap before dinner?"
Emma shook her head. "I can't. I told Henry I'd help him work on his throwing motion today."
"Oh the joys of having two kids." Regina teased and her fiancée just chuckled.
Charlie was finally a full month old and while Emma loved him to absolute death, she was beat. Exhausted to no end both physically and emotionally.
Unlike her fiancée, she got only a week off of work so not only was she up and about throughout the night and early morning, but she also had to wake up at seven and work until four in the afternoon.
Her phone alarm went off and she grumbled before turning it off. She felt the hot sweat of the baby on her back and slowly sat up so she wouldn't disturb him. When she turned her head to look behind her she saw Regina with one of her breasts hanging out of her nursing bra, sleeping soundlessly. The sight made Emma chuckle softly. Charlie was right next to his brunette mother, drooling away on their grey sheets.
Him sleeping in their bed wasn't planned or even welcomed, really, but it's been happening since he was eight days old. Both mothers were nearly delirious from lack of sleep. Regina was breast-feeding him in their bed one night and she fell asleep. It was the first time Charles slept through the night and the couple had never looked back. He still slept in his crib during the day, but bedtime he took up room in his parent's bed.
Emma rubbed her tired face and yawned. She stretched and quickly got dressed. She tied her hair up into a ponytail and slipped on her brown leather jacket. After sliding her phone into her pocket she walked over to her lover's side of the bed and kissed her cheek.
She didn't mean to wake up her, but it did. Regina groaned and fluttered her dark eyes open. "Going to work?" She questioned sleepily.
The blonde flashed a grin of adoration at the mayor. "Yeah. Go back to sleep, baby."
Regina puckered her lips for a quick kiss. "Be safe today."
"It's Storybrooke, baby. I think I can handle getting some cats out of trees." The sheriff teased. "I love you."
The mayor gave her a tired smile. "I love you too."
Emma gave a featherlike kiss to Charlie's head. "I love you buddy." She whispered and headed for the door. On her way out she said to Regina, "Text me if you need anything and I'll pick it up on my way home."
Before she left the house, Emma made sure Henry was up and getting ready for school. He went to school on his bike after getting lunch money from his birth mother and reminded said mother of football practice that afternoon. The savior left the house shortly after her son and headed for Granny's.
When she entered the diner she saw Killian eating breakfast with Tinkerbelle.
"Hello love!" The pirate greeted with a smile.
Emma put a hand on the counter and looked a ruby. "My usual, please." She flashed a smile before crashing her best friend's lunch date with his girlfriend, sitting across from them in the booth. "Morning guys."
"You look like hell, Swan." Hook told her honestly.
The fairy scoffed and slapped his chest. "She has a baby at home." She pointed out. "How is little Charlie?" She wondered.
Emma gave the other blonde a lazy grin. "He's good. He's officially a month old today."
"And still as boring as the day you brought him home." Killian joked.
The savior gave him the finger just as Ruby brought her some hot chocolate and her stack of chocolate chip waffles with a side of hash browns. "Just because he can't walk and talk doesn't make him boring." She argued, digging into her hearty breakfast.
Before she could take her first bite, Leroy busted into the diner with Dopey behind him. "We're under attack!" He screeched, running straight to her. "We're under attack! We were driving home and some thing blasted us with magic! The whole van is iced over. We woke up in a meat locker! Who has the kind of magic?" He questioned.
Emma took a deep breath and ate the bite of waffle that was on her fork. As she was chewing she said to Killian, "Duty calls."
Emma had Leroy take her to the van and she saw a thin sheet of ice trailing behind some buildings. Her and Hook followed the trail with curiosity.
"What kind of magic is this?" The blonde asked with furrowed eyebrows. The trail led into the back fenced alleyway of Tony's. The pair looked at one another before running towards the area. Emma lifted her gun up and opened the door, prepared to shoot if need be.
The ice trail continued and before they knew it, snowflakes were flowing in front of them and a huge snowman ice creature appeared before them. Emma's jaw dropped open in disbelief.
"Aye, that's a new one." The pirate noted.
The sheriff put her gun to the side. "We don't want to pick a fight." She told the thing, not sure if she was doing more harm than good.
"Swan." Killian warned her and went to hold her back.
Emma brushed off his help. "I just want to see what he wants." Just as she finished her sentence, the big ice creature blew a cold gush of wind at them and knocked them down. The savior's gun went off, but she was able to grab it again as her and Killian made a run for it.
Just as they were about to turn the corner they ran into Leroy who's eyes widened. "Evil snowman!" He screamed and got the rest of the surrounding townspeople to go into panic.
The sheriff rolled her eyes in exasperation. Leroy could never keep his mouth shut about anything. She watched as the thing moved away. "It's headed to the forest. Call my dad. We'll get in on the way." She scrambled into the nearby cruiser and headed towards the station. Her phone started going off. Without even looking at the screen she answered. "Hello?"
"Honey, what did you do with Charlie's pacifier?"
Emma racked her brain as she sped to the station. "Uh… maybe it's in our bed?"
Regina huffed from over the line. "You probably put it somewhere and Boss ate it. That makes it the third pacifier that's gone missing since he was born!"
"I'm sorry. I'll pick some more up before I come home." She said in a rush.
"You sound on edge. Is everything all right?"
The sheriff wanted to groan, but she didn't want her fiancée worrying about this until Emma knew what it was exactly. "Everything is good."
"Then why is your voice doing that high-pitched thing it always does when you're stressed?"
Emma damned the brunette and her inquisitive nature. "Baby, I don't know what to tell you. Everything is fine. I gotta go though. I'll call you when I'm headed home. Love you." She said quickly before hanging up.
"You know she's going to kill you for not telling her. Right?" Killian inquired.
The blonde nodded. "Yep. Just call David."
The trio of police was running through the forest in search for the large snow monster. "Where did it come from?" The deputy asked his daughter.
"No idea." The savior shrugged, coming to stop in the woods.
The ground shook with vibration. "It's coming from the north!" Killian alerted them just as the monster came into sight. "How are we supposed to stop this thing?"
"Emma can." David said, turning to the woman.
Light eyebrows furrowed. "What?"
"Your magic, love." The pirate reminded her.
Emma nodded and shoved her gun back into her jeans "Right." She shook her hands out to get loose, trying to remember what her fiancée had taught her. She closed her eyes and lifted her arms, conjuring her magic. A white spurt of magic escaped her and pushed the monster back a bit. "Take that frosty." Suddenly the snow monster got angry and grew spikes, growling at the trio. "Really?" The woman exclaimed in disbelief just before the monster blew cold hail in their face, effectively knocking them out.
The monster grumbled after that as a purple puff of smoke appeared in front of him. Regina looked around at where she was and saw the monster. She had Charlie transported with her, so she moved him to safety behind the tree in his car seat and gazed over at her unconscious fiancée.
'Fire.' Was the first thought that came to mind. You want to melt ice? Set it on fire. She wielded her magic and fired a fire blast at the monster, effectively destroying it.
It was the first time she used magic since she fought Zelena and it felt strange, but yet good at the same time. She rubbed her palm with her other hand and walked over to her whining son. "It's okay." She told him with a smile.
Emma and the rest of her police crew were coming back to consciousness. The blonde quickly looked around for the looming monster, and was highly confused when she saw her fiancée and infant by a nearby tree. "Baby?" She asked.
Regina had picked up the fussy baby from his seat and rubbed his back to sooth him. "That snowman is your definition of 'fine'?" She recalled the younger woman's previous words.
"I-"
The mayor cut her off. "Forget it. Just tell me what we're dealing with this time and you didn't tell me about it." She grumbled.
Emma licked her lips. "I would tell you what we were dealing with if I knew."
Regina took a deep breath. "So you're telling me that someone with magic is in town and we have no idea who it is?"
"That would be correct." The sheriff nodded.
"Wonderful. Just Wonderful." The older woman cleared her throat. "Well, we're wasting time. Let's find this person."
Emma shook her head. "Baby, I can handle this. Take Charlie and go home. I don't want him in danger."
"Well I don't want you in danger!" The mayor exclaimed. "That monster knocked you unconscious. That's your idea of 'handling' it? I'm helping. Nobody comes into my town and hurts my family. So let's go."
That's right! The Frozen arch of the show has made its way into my story! Now, I know that the vase Elsa was in on the show got brought back when Emma time traveled with Hook, but let's pretend it's been with Gold the whole time. You'll find out how she got out. Of course this is going to be different then it was on the actual show but I hope you guys like what I have in store for it.
Also, in case you're wondering, Gold will not be the pain in the ass evil Dark One like he was in the story.
I adore Swan-Mills/Swan Queen fluff so there will still be plenty of that, but I enjoyed doing the Wicked arch in Poison & Wine so I always planned to do the Frozen arch in this story. :)
Next post will be Wednesday! It will have some answers in it as well as some much enjoyed Charlie cuteness!
Until then :*
