AN: Shout out to my 100th follower Bricaro and the lovely guest reviewer who got me to 50 reviews!
I give you... Part Two:)
Chapter Ten
Regina opened the door to the mansion and stood back as Henry walked in ahead of her. He stopped in the foyer and she watched him look around for a moment. She did not expect him to compliment the pristine state of the house but rather waited for some hint that he had missed his home. Anything that suggested that his interlude with the Charmings was just a vacation and that this, his life with her in the mansion, was his real life. She held her breath as he slowly turned around and faced her.
"Is my stuff still in my old room?" he asked. Regina sighed slightly. There it was- his old room, old home, old life. For the first time, she realised that she had been in complete denial over the past few months. Some naïve part of her had not fully accepted that he was not only hers anymore. She was reminded of it well enough every day but it was only at that point, watching Henry looking back at her from the middle of the foyer, that she acknowledged the truth. She thought that all it would take was Henry coming back to this house- just a moment alone with her away from the Charmings' venomous influence- and she would have him back.
It would not be like before. It would be like the time before that. They would somehow go back to the time before the book and Emma Swan and the hatred that would burn in his eyes when he looked at her. They would be transported to a time when she was the only one who could cure him, make him smile or bake apple pie just the way he liked it. She may not have been the sugary sweet reincarnation of Mary Poppins but they had understood each other. They were bonded. They were happy.
It was a happiness she knew she did not deserve but she treasured it. She wrapped herself in its memory whenever she was in the mansion and had hoped that he would remember it too. But that was a long time ago. It was a great deal longer than she realised.
She kept her disappointment in check and simply replied "Yes. But you should come do your homework in the kitchen."
"Mom, it's Friday," Henry whined.
"Does that mean you have nothing due for Monday?"
"No. Just that it's Friday."
"I suppose you now do your homework five minutes before you leave for school on Monday?"
"No," Henry defended. "Five minutes before I go to bed on Sunday- like everyone else."
"What have I always said to you Henry?"
Henry rolled his eyes. "Get the work done then you have fun."
"Exactly. I'll make you some lunch and I have a special treat for dessert."
Realising he was fighting a losing battle; Henry shuffled toward the staircase but then stopped at the bottom. He turned back to Regina.
"You know, most moms in your shoes would be spoiling me rotten right now," he said.
"What's your point, dear?" Regina asked with an edge of defensiveness.
"Nothing," he smiled. Without another word, he made his way up the staircase under Regina's confused yet semi-amused gaze.
Watching him seemed to be the theme of this visit. She stood in the corner of the kitchen and observed him hunched over his books on the counter. She watched his differences: he was taller, his hair had grown, and his face was no longer that of her little baby boy but the early beginnings of a young man. She watched his mannerisms: the frown as he worked through a question, the way he chewed on the top of his pencil, his body frozen as he daydreamed in the middle of reading a sentence.
He ate. They talked. About school. About all of his new friends who weren't sure which was cooler- having the Saviour or the Evil Queen for a mother. Charming was teaching him sword fighting. Was it okay for him to talk about them? Regina insisted it was fine. Homework was a lot easier now that his former teacher was also his grandmother. Emma tried to make him dinner once and almost burnt down the kitchen. He was animated. He smiled. He looked like a normal child and not the centre of the most twisted family tree and an epic battle between good and evil.
It made her sad that she was not a part of his joy. It made her smile that she had not ruined him as badly as she had feared. It made her love him more to see how hard he was trying to share his new home and new life with her.
"Mom," he said suddenly.
"Yes, dear?" Regina responded still somewhat caught up in her own musings.
"I just… there were things I said- before- that weren't… I was so mad but I shouldn't have…" he struggled to find the words.
"It's alright, Henry."
Henry stared at his mother intently for a long moment, "I'm sorry."
"Me too," Regina fought the lump that formed in her throat. It did not absolve the guilt that she felt when it came to Henry. What was done was done. She did not possess the magic to take them back to those precious years before everything imploded. But she felt as though her son was offering her a clean slate- one infused with honesty and free of blame. One where he was not hers alone but, at least, she was a part his world. A world that included the Charmings; the responsibility that she shared with Emma and the chance to show him, in every moment with him, how much she loved him.
It was not her ideal but it was a world that had Henry in it. And so, she willingly accepted.
Sheriff Swan sat in her office with her feet up on her desk and her chair balancing on its hind legs. She was teetering over the edge both physically and emotionally. She was more unproductive than usual as her mind was consumed with concern over how Regina and Henry's little play date was progressing. Every time she picked up the telephone, her fingers itched to dial Regina's number. With every look at the door, her legs quivered with the temptation to run out, jump into the car and drive over to the mansion so she could spy on them.
She tried to reorganise the filing cabinet but never made it past the first shelf. She had to stop drinking coffee because it set her on edge. She couldn't make it through a game of solitaire on her computer without wanting to smash the screen in because she couldn't focus on the damn game. Where the hell was crime when she needed it? A shoplifter, a noise complaint, some dumb person's dog shitting where it shouldn't?!
It would be fine. She knew everything was going to be fine. She would have never suggested the visit if she thought otherwise. Regina would never do anything to jeopardise the chance she had been given. When she first arrived in Storybrooke, Emma may have doubted the mayor's maternal instincts but after the changes she had witnessed in Regina and the conversations that had been shared in Archie's office, she was convinced of the purity of Regina's love.
She was nervous about Henry.
The loud thud of a stack of papers landing on her desk snapped Emma back to reality and disturbed her perfect balance. She swung her arms about to avoid falling back until the chair crashed forward on its front legs. She remained still as she breathed heavily feeling as though she had just been saved from the grip of death.
She looked up to find David smirking back at her.
"What the hell?!" Emma huffed in annoyance.
"I called your name three times," David replied.
"So you thought you'd give me a heart attack?"
"Got your attention," David sat on her desk so that he faced her. "You wanna tell me what's going on?"
"Nothing."
"Emma, you've been in a daze all day. Talk to me."
Emma looked at him sceptically.
"Not as your father. Just as David."
How could Emma begin to explain this to him? She didn't fully understand it herself. She was risking everything for Regina. She had made a deliberate choice to encourage her being in Henry's life and, by extension, her life too. And she was so nervous. She was nervous because she wanted it to work. She didn't care about what that meant or what the consequences would be. She just wanted it to work.
How could she explain that to someone who hated Regina so much? David hadn't seen what she'd seen. But she needed someone, anyone, to tell her that she was doing the right thing. This business of living in her own head and wrestling with her own conscience was too much for her to deal with alone.
"I don't know. You're Prince Charming. Apparently, you're perfect," Emma teased.
He chuckled, "Far from it."
"Okay," she moved her chair so that she fully faced him. "Have you ever done anything that people think is wrong but that you know in your heart you have to do? Just… because it's bigger than you. It's about more than you."
"Yes," David's admission was loaded even in its simplicity. There it was again- the long complicated past of the Enchanted Forest that she would never be a part of and the reminder that they were all human and not just fairy tale characters.
"Do you regret it?"
"It led me to Snow. It gave me you and, later, Henry. It's hard to regret that."
"So the ends justify the means?"
David thought for a moment. "It's more about whether or not you can live with those means. We all make choices without fully knowing the consequences. Sometimes it's good, sometimes it destroys everything. It's all about faith. You deal with it, you learn from it and you move on."
Faith. She had never had much use for it growing up. She had never even considered it as an adult. When the world around one is ugly and cold, where does one keep one's faith?
"I won't ask you what this is about but I'm sure, whatever it is, you did the right thing," David continued.
"How can you be so sure," Emma challenged.
"Because I have faith in you. We may not have raised you but you have the kind of courage and strength and integrity that makes your mother and me very proud of who you are. Who you've become."
Emma cursed herself for getting misty eyed. She was wracked with guilt. But more than that, it crushed her that she wanted to hug her father. Because the man before her was everything the little girl she used to be imagined her daddy would be like- a father who said just the right thing to make her feel as though anything was possible. She wanted to bury herself in his arms even as she knew she wouldn't.
"I see how you got the name Charming," she joked instead.
"It's a blessing and a curse," he played along. He checked his watch. "Shouldn't you be getting Henry from his tutor?"
Extra math lessons was the best cover that Emma could think of for Henry's visit with Regina. It was really stupid considering he was Boy Genius and no one knew that better than his beloved former teacher Miss Blanchard. But, bless their hearts, they never said a word against it.
Emma thanked David for the advice and bolted out of the station.
Regina looked surprised by the sight of Emma standing on her doorstep. Emma had been standing on the porch for a few minutes in the hopes of calming her anxiety. She was about to face the first consequence of her choice and crossed every body part that could comply in the hopes that the result would be good.
"I'm not early am I," Emma asked tentatively.
"No. I must have lost track of time," Regina composed herself and called behind her. "Henry! Miss Swan's here for you!"
Emma could hear Henry's footsteps as he jogged to the door and popped up from behind Regina. He gave her a bright smile and Emma felt like she could fully breathe for the first time that day. He turned on his heel and bounded up the stairs.
"He looks good," Emma observed.
"Well, don't sound so surprised. You didn't think I was going to lock him up in a dungeon or something?"
"Jesus, Regina. You're so dramatic. I was just saying that it looks like he had fun. Which is a good thing," Emma explained.
The two women stood uncomfortably in the doorway. Emma was slightly disappointed that Regina did not invite her in. She felt like the dead beat dad that Regina wanted to have nothing to do with anymore.
"Henry needs a haircut. I can't have my son walking around looking like a sheep dog," Regina said.
"Gotcha. I can finally put that week I worked in a hair salon to use."
"Miss Swan, I'm mostly aware that you're joking yet I still feel the need to beg you to refrain from touching Henry's hair."
"That's because you don't have a sense of humour," Emma deliberately provoked Regina.
"I have one. I just know what to do with it," Regina responded with a smirk.
"You're such a tease Madam Mayor."
"I'm starting to think that these little chats are the full extent of your social life, Miss Swan."
"Right. And I had to fight through a crowd of men to get to your front door."
"Who said my social life includes men?"
Emma stopped at that. She was not exactly sure what was happening or where their conversation had changed from two mothers to… she had no idea what. How did this keep happening between them?
"One day, I'm gonna figure you out, Regina."
"Good luck with that," Regina said with a confidence that was a shadow of the Evil Queen. Any hint of Regina's former self should have unnerved Emma but in this context, her curiosity won out.
"If I didn't know any better-"
Emma was cut off by Regina looking up and past her. She turned to find Kathryn, two bottles of wine in hand, walking toward them. She had not seen Kathryn since the curse had broken and, truth be told, she had all but ceased to exist in the Charming house.
"I know I'm early…" Kathryn began in apology.
"That's okay. Miss Swan's just here to pick up Henry," Regina explained.
"Really?" Kathryn responded in surprise. "That's great. That he was here."
Emma nodded. They stood around awkwardly. This was a tough crowd for polite small talk. Emma took to shoving her hands in her pockets and staring at her shoes. What the hell was taking Henry so long?
"So, Emma, being the Saviour seems to suit you," Kathryn broke the silence.
"Thanks," Emma responded uncertain of the compliment and whether it either was or was not a compliment.
"How's David?"
"Um, fine… I guess," Emma suddenly felt a little hot in her jacket. They may all look her age but she was way too young to be discussing her father with his ex-wife while he was shacking up with her mother.
"That's good. I'm glad he hasn't tripped over one of Mary Margaret's shoes, stumbled along and fallen out of a window only to be impaled on a street sign," Kathryn mused with a smile.
Regina's hand flew to cover her mouth but Emma could spot the smile in her eyes. The sheriff wasn't used to being outnumbered when it came to the Charming fan club. She would have to take one for the team.
"Actually, they're very happy." Emma defended. "Really, really happy."
Way to oversell, Swan.
Emma straightened to show she was standing her ground. Kathryn's smile broadened and Emma was surprised to see the slight rise and fall of Regina's shoulders. They were laughing at her. She was the freaking Saviour and they were laughing at her!
"Forgive me, Sheriff," Kathryn giggled. "This was just too deliciously awkward. I'm really glad he's happy."
Emma turned to Regina who was turning red. "I expected better from you."
Regina hopelessly shrugged her shoulders. Emma had never seen her like this. She was like a sixteen year old girl who was busted for passing funny notes about the teacher to her best friend.
"It's called having a sense of humour Miss Swan," Regina replied coyly.
Finally, Henry appeared and made his way out of the house. He hugged Regina who, for a moment, looked as though she wouldn't let go of him then ran out to the car.
"Well, I should…" Emma gestured toward the car.
Regina nodded. The levity of five minutes ago completely gone. Emma gave a nod towards Kathryn and made her way down the walkway.
"Miss Swan!" Regina called behind her. Emma turned back to find Regina approaching her. The former mayor stopped with a frown as she struggled with what she wanted to say.
"What is it Regina?" Emma prodded.
Regina looked at her. "Thank you."
Emma smiled. She nodded and walked to the car before Regina could take it back.
Inside the car, she ruffled Henry's sheep dog hair as he grinned back at her. It was weird how much she missed the kid even though there was absolutely no reason to.
"So?" Emma asked dying to be debriefed.
"It was alright. She made me do my homework," Henry elaborated.
"Seriously? Lucky me, now I don't have to worry about it."
"She made tofu burgers."
"Ugh," Emma frowned.
"And rice cakes for dessert."
"I don't think that is a dessert," Emma argued.
"It was the yoghurt flavoured ones," He smiled. "She buys those when she's in a good mood."
"What happens when she's in a bad mood?"
Henry's smile faded. "It's kinda sad. Nothing's changed in there. It's like everything stopped when I left."
Emma brushed his hair off his face and cupped it. "Well that's what happens when you're a mom. Your whole life stops without your kid. I didn't even have a life until you found me."
"Are we gonna do this again?" he asked.
"Only if you want to."
"I want to."
Emma searched Henry's face for uncertainty but found none. Suddenly, she realised that she had found her faith after all. It was in Henry.