Poison & Wine
Chapter 10
Regina was pacing the sidelines of the field nervously. She had two reasons for being nervous: one was that Henry was about to take field and possibly get hurt: two was that Emma would soon be there. She was hoping that the blonde had forgotten about last night, or at least the events involving her. She had a back-up plan in case she didn't, which in a nutshell explained that previous advances were not welcomed.
The mayor was getting fed up with the stubborn blonde. She didn't get the woman. If Regina knew who her true love was, she would at least give it a shot, but it seemed the savior was ignoring it all together. She knew that she would have to find a way to bring it up. She didn't understand why Emma wasn't talking about it with her. There were only a few people in Storybrooke who knew of the blonde's sexuality and Regina was one of them!
A thought entered her mind abruptly. 'Hook' She thought. He knew of the sheriff's sexual orientation and the two had been spending an awful lot of time together lately. Surely Emma had told him something about the mystery woman.
"When does practice start?" Regina was startled by the voice of said stubborn blonde.
She had to gather her composure rather quickly and cleared her throat. Their son came first, always. Any other topics could wait. "Should be any minute now. Henry said Marco would be assigning positions today."
Emma nodded and took it upon herself to sit on the bleachers. The mayor followed and straightened out her dress after she made herself comfortable next to the younger woman. "Did he say he had a preference?"
Regina cracked a small amused smile. "I asked and he said some position, but I'm afraid I know next to nothing about this sport so it was foreign to me."
The sheriff laughed next to her. "Well you better start figuring it out. Seems our kid loves it."
Despite the flutter she felt at the word 'our' Regina managed to stay composed. "I suppose I will." She noted that the savior was acting her usual goofy way. As much of an annoyance as it could be, the brunette found a strange comfort in it that was rare for her. She found comfort in very few things and even fewer people. In fact, Henry and Emma were the only ones she found comfort in. "I must note that your face looks absolutely awful." She stated, changing the subject.
It seemed that the blonde found humor in her observation. "Just a few cuts and bruises. I'll be fine. You don't have to go worrying about me like you always do."
Regina hoped she wasn't blushing at the comment. "Well somebody has to worry about you because Lord knows you won't."
Emma grinned big at the mayor's profile. Regina wasn't looking at her, but her cheek was painted in a light flush. Maybe playing clueless was working. If she could say 'innocent' friend things and continue to get subtle blushes from the older woman, she would be a happy woman.
"I wanted to thank you." The blonde said, causing the former queen to look in her direction. "For getting me from the station last night- well, this morning actually. I know you didn't have to-"
"Do you remember anything from last night?" Regina cut her off, too eager to wait for the woman to finish.
The desperation in the brunette's voice almost made Emma cave and tell her that Hook had told her every stupid thing she did and said, or at least everything he knew about. God knows that she did after they left the station. But the sheriff stayed strong.
The plan of being oblivious could work. She knew how stubborn the mayor could be, but she also knew how hotheaded the woman was. There was no doubt in her mind that Regina would get mad at her for something and bring up the events of the previous night to use them against her. Emma was betting on it.
So the sheriff shook her head in a lie. "No. Why? Did I do something stupid?"
"Yes. You went drinking with Hook to pick up women." The brunette answered honestly.
Emma was stunned at the amount of anger in the older woman's voice. "We were there to have fun. Not pick up women." She lied. She figured it didn't matter though because she hadn't picked up a woman. Her mind had been too focused on the woman she had a kid with.
Regina scoffed, obviously not believing her. "That's not what your precious pirate told our son."
The blonde tried to hide her smile at the apparent disapproval of the mayor. "Okay, fine, so maybe that was the initial plan but-"
"How can you do that?" The brunette demanded to know, brown eyes glaring into green ones. "How can you so easily fall into bed with someone you don't even know?"
Emma laughed dryly at the woman's audacity. It seems a fight would be happening sooner rather than later. "I wasn't planning to fall into bed with anybody."
"Oh, I'm sorry I didn't include a bathroom stall or the backseat of a car on the list of places you could screw a girl." The former queen spit out with an eye roll.
The blonde huffed. "You're a little high and mighty for a woman who ripped a guys heart out and used him as her sex slave for twenty-eight years! At least the girls I sleep with have a choice in the matter!"
"At least I didn't go looking for meaningless little sluts to screw. Tell me, how long do your usual bar hook-ups last? Hm? Will Henry be meeting his third mommy anytime soon?" Regina practically growled at her, crossing her arms.
Emma was quickly losing her temper. She could tell Regina was too. They were always zero to sixty in a split second that way. "Oh my God!" She exclaimed. "What is the matter with you? So I left town to go have fun with my friend and didn't completely dismiss the idea of finding a girl I could maybe hook-up with and you're acting like it's a regular thing! I didn't even meet anybody for fucks sake, Regina! God, if I didn't know any better I'd say you were jealous." She goaded the woman beside her.
The older woman scoffed a laugh. "Please, Miss Swan. If I wanted to have sex with random people and contract STD's I very well could. Unlike some people though, I have standards."
Emma knew that the plan to play oblivious was still in progress, but she was absolutely furious with the mayor. She was tired of the stinging fights they fell into. She was sick of all the things that were left unsaid between them. She suddenly had this overwhelming demand within herself to spill her feelings. She needed to tell Regina exactly how she felt. She needed the former queen to understand!
She stood up, furious. She needed to be free of the hold the brunette had on her so she leaned towards the brown-eyed woman and glared right through her. Regina was livid and- dare Emma say- jealous. The fire behind brown eyes was vibrant and abundant.
Before she walked away towards Marco in the middle of field she began harshly, "For your information I didn't go there last night looking for some girl to screw." She paused as chocolate eyes showed a flash of vulnerability. "I went there to forget one. By all the messages I sent you last night, you of all people should know that it didn't work." Emma gave her a frustrated shake of her head and walked away without a glance back.
She reached Marco at midfield, her nerves reaching new heights as she thought about the reality of what she had just done. She couldn't deny the nauseous feeling in the pit of her stomach, but she also felt as if an enormous weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Of course she didn't reveal the whole 'true love' fiasco and she didn't plan to. But now Regina knew without a doubt that her feelings for her were real.
"Practice hasn't even begun and already you've managed to anger the mayor." Marco observed and pointed his pen at the mayor who looked rather stoic on the bleachers by her lonesome.
Emma dared a glance at the brunette, feeling her heart constrict when brown eyes avoided eye contact. She turned back to Marco and plastered on a fake smile. "Yeah, well I figured that the more pissed off at me she is, the less anger she'll have for you if Henry so much as falls down."
The older man chuckled and handed her the clipboard. "I go grab the boys. Since you're here, would you like to help out with drills?"
"Sure." The sheriff agreed quickly. Parents usually didn't attend practices, but both Emma and Regina wanted to be there for the first one. However, after the argument they just had and the revelation the blonde had just poured unto their already sticky relationship, she figured distance would be a good thing. "What can I do to help while you rile up the hoodlums?"
Hook entered the diner and sat at the bar. Emma had dropped him off on her way to Henry's practice. It was rather dead in Granny's as opposed to usual. He nodded at Red. "One rum and coke, love."
"What happened to your face?" Ruby asked as she poured the drink for him.
Killian laughed. "That bad, huh? Me and Swan got into a little battle last night with some of the navy's least finest when we went out drinking."
The waitress joined his laughter and handed him the drink. "Is she okay?"
He scoffed. "She's better than the lads we fought. She has a mighty fine right hook."
Ruby leaned close to the pirate and whispered quietly. "I'm assuming your fight prevented you and Emma from meeting any girls?"
Hook nearly choked on his drink when he heard that. Blue eyes widened. "No…"
She giggled. "Oh yeah. She told me a couple of days ago. Well, actually I've known for a while, but it wasn't confirmed by her until a couple days ago."
"What?" The pirate asked, surprised. "How did you know?"
"I told Emma it was because of the way she dressed and other lesbian stereotypes like that." She said quietly. It was important no one overheard them, but luckily there was no one at the bar and only a few tables were occupied.
Killian raised a dark eyebrow. "Did you deceive our lovely sheriff?" All response he got a mischievous smirk. "How did you really know?"
"Promise not to tell?" Red asked in all seriousness.
"You have my word." He crossed his heart in promise.
The waitress leaned closer to the pirate and whispered, "She totally digs the mayor." Ruby expected a loud and disbelieving reaction. When she got neither her eyes widened. "You know!" She whisper yelled.
"Shh!" Hook calmed her down before nodding. "Yes." He admitted with a quick glance around them. "It's a bit… It's more complicated than that though."
"How?" The nosey woman questioned, more intrigued than before. "Is she in love with her?"
Killian took a swig from his drink. "Not yet." He debated on telling her about the whole 'true love' thing, but decided against it. Instead he went for a different approach, one that was less telling but more productive of the endgame him and Emma were trying to reach. "Would you mind doing something for the savior, Red?"
Ruby's red lips split into a grin. "Oh of course."
Regina nearly left the field after the blonde's declaration. She was panicking. Her heart was beating wildly within her chest. Emma liked her. Emma was attracted to her. The sheriff had confirmed it while she was stone cold sober.
She could barely breathe and all she really wanted to do was scream at the infuriating blonde that she felt the same about her because she did. Regina Mills liked Emma Swan in a romantic sense. She could admit that in the privacy of her own mind. She wanted to wrap herself in the sheriff and hold on for dear life. She wanted to feel the woman's arms wrap around her just as tightly. She wanted to feel safe and secure.
None of that mattered though. A relationship between the two women could never work. Emma had a true love looming out there that she had already met. Regina knew she could never compare to a true love. Nothing could. She had heard Tinkerbelle in Neverland. By not being with your true love, not only do you ruin your life, but you ruin their life as well.
Regina put her feelings for the blonde aside and made a note to visit the pirate at his precious ship after Henry's practice. Emma had their son tonight so her schedule would be free enough to get the information she needed from the pirate.
Brown eyes gazed to the sheriff who seemed to have volunteered herself to be an assistant coach or something. She was separating the boys into two lines and finding a way to somehow not be biased towards their brunette child. Regina allowed a tortured and sad smile to cross her face. She really did find it incredible to watch Emma interact with kids, showing off her white pearls with each laugh she gave them.
Although she wasn't much of a disciplinary to Henry, the savior had always been great at bonding with him. Regina was quickly finding out that it was a turn on for her to see Emma parenting. There was something… sexy about it that the mayor couldn't deny.
"Damn, look at that face." The voice scared Regina and she pressed her hand to her chest when Ruby sat next to her. "What happened to her?" She casually asked the older woman and she chewed her bubble gum, even though she already knew the answer.
The former queen cleared her throat. "She went out drinking with a hotheaded pirate and they ran into some woman beating navy men."
Ruby laughed and her indifference about men hitting a woman bothered the mayor. "That girl has balls."
"What are you doing here?" Regina asked with an annoyed tone.
"You don't know?" The waitress asked. "Granny is fostering one of the lost boys. His name is Silas." She pointed to a black haired boy that was currently running suicides. "He's the short one." Her alibi was true at least.
The mayor nodded. "Oh." Is all she said. Her eyes landed on the blonde woman again whom was talking to Marco and making gestures with her hands in demonstration.
"Emma is kinda sexy all bruised up and beaten." Ruby commented, hoping to get a rise out of the mayor. She had briefly spoken to Hook about his theory of the mayor. He seemed convinced that she returned the sheriff's feelings and Ruby was going to figure out if it was true. A little jealousy wouldn't hurt the brunette and it would be easily recognizable on a hothead like the Evil Queen.
A brown eyebrow rose in contest. She looked irritated. "Excuse me?"
The wolf laughed and shrugged. "I mean, don't get me wrong, she's smoking hot without all the cuts and shit, but those battle wounds give her the badass trademark. Don't you think?"
"I think you need to stop objectifying our sheriff, Red." Regina refrained from growling and refused to even glance at the slutty woman beside her.
Ruby smiled at the reaction. She could tell the former evil queen was annoyed at someone just finding the blonde attractive so she decided to kick it up a notch. "You and her are friends. Right?"
After much deliberation in Regina's head, she gave a curt nod, eyes focused on the practice before her. "I suppose we are."
"Do you know what her type is?" She dared.
The question was surprise enough to get the mayor to finally look at her. "I'm sorry, what?"
Ruby looked around them to make sure no one was around. "Look, I know that you know she's a lesbian, Regina-"
"It's Mayor Mills to you." She corrected.
The waitress barely stopped herself from rolling her eyes. "Fine. But Emma told me that you knew about her sexuality. I'm just curious to know what her type is. Because if I'm in the scope then-"
"Then what, wolf?" Regina asked with a harsh laugh. "You think she would go for you; the little waitress from Granny's diner? Please." She scoffed.
Red could practically smell the jealousy seeping through the older woman. "I think we could at least have some hot sex." She shrugged and without another word, she stridden unto the field and up to the blonde.
Regina was left behind- once again- fuming with anger and utterly jealousy. She was glaring daggers at the slutty waitress. She yearned to tell her off so badly and claim the sheriff as her own, but she couldn't. At the end of the day, Emma wasn't hers and she never could be. She was beginning to wish that she had never sought out the savior's true love. If they were both oblivious to such a thing, maybe they could- Regina shook her head. Thoughts like that weren't helpful.
Brown eyes followed the wolf as she walked up to Emma and began talking. Green eyes looked up and down the girl's outfit and started laughing. Regina's heart clenched in pain.
'It shouldn't hurt this much.' She thought to herself as emotion filled her throat, making it difficult to swallow. She put on her politician face and refused to let her feelings show. She was there for her son and nothing else.
Marco blew the whistle signifying that practice was over. Regina watched as her son ran over to his birth mother and spoke to her. They both grinned and high fived. Emma looked towards the mayor and said something to the brunette boy before pushing him away.
Henry ran to the former queen with a huge grin on his face. Regina noticed- not for the first time- that him and Emma had the same smile. "Hey, mom! Guess what position I got!"
Regina stood up and smiled. "What?"
"Quarterback!" He exclaimed, very enthusiastic.
"That's wonderful, darling." The mayor said with a small squeeze to his shoulder. "I'll take a rain check on a hug though. You're quite filthy." She scrunched her nose in detest.
Henry laughed. "Okay, mom. Emma said she was taking me to Granny's for dinner to celebrate. Are you gonna come?"
Regina shook her head. "I'm afraid not, honey. I have a lot of paperwork to do and I need to check into the costs of your uniforms."
The boy beamed at the mention of his uniforms. The woman smiled brightly at the happiness she saw clearly written all over his face. It seemed like the sport would be a great idea after all. "Okay. Well I'll see you tomorrow, right?"
"Of course." She assured. "Emma should be dropping you off here sometime tomorrow afternoon."
Henry smiled and bid her a goodbye, promising her that he loved her and that he would text her goodnight. Regina placed a sweet kiss to his damp hair and returned his declaration of love before waving goodbye as he walked towards his birth mother.
Regina watched as Emma casually ruffled the brown hair of their son and nudged him forward. She thought about approaching them, but decided against it. She had nothing to say and she doubted the blonde wanted to hear anything from her so she turned towards the parking lot and left the field.
Emma was watching Henry suck down his milkshake at Granny's. She had told him to invite Regina when they were at the field, but he said that she denied the invitation.
"So my kid is going to be the Storybrooke Knight's Quarterback." She smirked excitedly. "You'll get all the ladies."
The eleven year old turned red. "Ma." He complained.
Emma laughed. "Are you excited to play?"
Henry nodded. "Yeah, it's gonna be so awesome! Mom said she's looking into how much the uniforms will cost."
They talked for several minutes about Henry's team and when things got quiet between them Emma debated on if she should talk to her son about his other mother. He knew she was lesbian, but he had never pushed for any information on the subject.
She had wanted to confide in him about everything that had been going on, but at the same time, she didn't want to get his hopes up in the very likely chance that the mayor wasn't interested in a relationship with her at all. But she wasn't the type of parent to keep secrets from her son. Henry and her had always had this connection. They were always honest with each other. The tiny brunette had always been her confidante. Every time she saw him, she wanted to spill everything to him. Hook was no doubt her best adult friend, but her best friend overall would always be her son.
Eventually she decided to bite the bullet. "Hey, kid, mind if I ask you something?"
He nodded and dipped a salty fry in his milkshake. "Sure."
"It's about… my true love…." She cringed in anticipation of his response.
Whatever she was expecting, a big grin from him wasn't it. "Do you know who she is?" He asked. "Is she in Storybrooke? Is that how Tinkerbelle got her wings back? Are you dating her?"
"Whoa, kid. Slow down." She managed a nervous laugh. Her son was already getting excited and she hadn't even told him anything yet. "I do know who she is, but before I tell you, you need to understand that this is a very delicate situation. Okay? I don't want you to start planning a wedding or anything, kid. I just… I need some advice." She felt ridiculous for needing advice from her pre-teen son about her true love. She nearly rolled her eyes at her pathetic behavior.
"I don't know anything about girls." Henry stated. Brown eyes showed confusion. "Do I know her?" Emma nodded. "Who is it, mom?"
The sheriff bit her lip. "It's…" She sighed, backtracking already. "Henry, look I'm serious. You cannot get excited. The situation is fragile. I don't even know if she-"
"Mom, just tell me!" He complained impatiently.
"It's your mom." She confessed quietly. "Your other mom." Emma clarified, as if it needed to be.
Henry looked upset. "I thought you were serious, ma." He gave her a disapproving look that looked an awful lot like his adoptive mother. "I thought I was going to get to meet your actual true love."
"Kid." The sheriff used a serious tone and gave him an, 'I'm not kidding you' look.
It took several seconds for the young boy to realize she was being truthful. "It's mom?" He asked, utterly puzzled. "I… what… how… it's mom?"
Emma drank her soda with a humorous laugh. "My reaction exactly, dude."
Henry moved his milkshake to the side and leaned over the table dramatically. "How do you know this?" He demanded.
"Tinkerbelle's pixie dust." She explained.
"So that's how she got her wings back?" His mother nodded. "That was days ago, mom and you're just now telling me this?"
"I was processing." Emma defended. "Plus I didn't want you to get your hopes up. Just because she's my true love doesn't mean that-"
"I've got a plan!" The little boy grinned cheekily. "We can call it Operation Mongoose. Okay, so here's what you have to-"
Emma held up a hand to stop him. "Kid, no." She said firmly. "This is what I didn't want. We aren't going on some mission to get Regina to like me-"
"But she's your true love." He argued. "Just like grandma and grandpa. Don't you get it? You're her happy ending."
The sheriff shook her head, defeated. "No I'm not."
"If grandpa had thought that about grandma then you wouldn't have been born." He pointed out. His birth mother stayed quiet. "Are you scared?"
Emma scoffed. "I'm fucking terrified, kid." She admitted.
"But you said you needed my help." He said.
"I do. Just because I'm scared of rejection doesn't mean that I don't already have a plan in motion."
Henry smirked. "What is it?"
The blonde shrugged with a grin and quietly spoke. "I call it Operation Get Regina To Like Me."
"Operation Mongoose is better. Go on." Her son said.
She laughed. Of course she wasn't about to tell him that she had spilled her feeling to the brunette earlier because she didn't want to paint the brunette in a bad light. Still, she had to give him something because she needed his advice on her next move. "So, the other night when I went out with Hook, I sent your mom some texts that basically told her that I… liked her."
"Is that why she didn't want to come with us tonight?" He asked.
Emma shrugged. "See, I don't know. That's why I've enlisted you as my helper. I need you to scope out the situation for me. I need you to see if she could- maybe- like me back. If she doesn't then this ends. Got it?"
Henry was beaming. "So you do want to date her?" His voice was teasing and giddy.
The savior rolled her eyes playfully. "Just you wait until you start dating and I'm going to embarrass the shit out of you."
The boy laughed. "I can scope things out for you, mom. But if you really want to get her to like you then there are a few things you need to know. You'll want to write this down." He told her seriously.
Regina was on her third glass of cider. She was admittedly starting to feel the effects of the alcohol and it was only making her thoughts wander to the infuriating blonde. Who was she to admit such feelings to the mayor? Regina was doing just fine without the knowledge of Emma's feelings for her. Sure, she had her moments when she felt screwed over and cheated, but for the most part she was all right. Now though, she was coming apart at the seams. She was losing it.
The blonde was purposely ignoring her true love and instead pursuing the former queen! Did the younger woman not understand the repercussions of her actions? She wished more than anything that she should bring it up to the blonde. She wanted to yell and scream in Emma's face and ramble about her stupidity and inconsideration! All the sheriff was managing to do was prolong the inevitable. No doubt that whomever Emma's true love was, they'd be together at some point, and then Regina would be left out in the cold, feeling hurt once again.
She had to put a stop to it. She needed to figure out the younger woman's true love once and for all and go from there. She needed to end Emma's apparent pursuit of her and force those feelings where they truly belonged: with her true love.
Regina downed the rest of her cider and did the smoke puff transportation spell. She stumbled when her heels hit the wood floor of the Jolly Roger. If there was anybody in Storybrooke that knew who Emma's true love was, it was Hook. The former queen knocked on the wooden door and waited patiently for an answer.
"Swan, this has got to-" The sleepy man furrowed his eyebrows at the woman in front of him. He managed a smirk despite his hazy state. "Well if it isn't the Evil Queen herself. What could I do for you at this hour, your majesty? I must tell you that if this is a booty call I'm too exhausted to do the work so you'll have to be on top."
Regina rolled her eyes. "I assure you, that's the last thing I want from you."
"What do you want from me then?" He asked, leaning against his wooden door.
"You know who Miss Swan's true love is." She stated.
He raised an eyebrow. "I'm sorry, is there a point you're trying to make?"
She cleared her throat and tried to seem like she wasn't intoxicated at all, but she was having trouble standing. "I need to know who she is."
Killian laughed. He could smell the cider on the woman's breath. "I'm afraid I cannot give you that information. It's on a need to know basis."
"You will tell me who she is, pirate, or I'll burn your whole ship to ash!" The former queen threatened and made a rather unstable fireball. Being intoxicated made her magic harder to rein in.
Hook laughed and crossed his arms. "No you won't."
"I will!" She assured him.
"No." He shook his head. "You don't do such a thing because you know that if you do then I'll tell Emma and she'll be angry with you."
Regina scoffed, but still put out the fireball she made. "You're overestimating how much I care about what the savior thinks of me."
"I don't think I am." He smirked wider. "I actually think that you're underestimating how much you care. Tell me, your majesty, why are you so concerned about who her true love is? How do you know she's even found her at all?"
"I'm not stupid. Tinkerbelle got her wings back and she told me how it happened." She didn't reveal the actual truth to Hook, thank God. She couldn't even imagine how bad that would be. "All I know is that she has found her true love and instead of falling in love with her true love, she's begun to have feelings for me. I simply cannot allow that." She shook her head violently. "So who is she and where can I find her?"
Hook was outright laughing in her face. "I'll tell you Regina. For as much thought as you've put into who Swan's true love could be, you've managed to miss the obvious."
The room was starting to spin a little for the mayor. "What are you talking about?"
"Oh, I can't go spilling secrets, your majesty. What kind of friend would I be if I told you who Emma's true love was?" He asked. "I'm sure if you ask Emma yourself then she'll tell you."
"I can't ask her!" She exclaimed loudly, wobbling backwards. Her alcohol was starting to turn on her and she felt lightheaded.
Killian noticed her drunken and stumbling state but he ignored it. Seeing the evil queen drunk was rather entertaining. "Why not?"
"Because…"
"You like her." He finished for her.
Regina huffed in denial. "That's absurd."
Hook shook his head. Both Emma and Regina were the most stubborn women he'd ever met. "Then I suppose you can ask her yourself."
"I suppose I can!" The mayor yelled and started to walk away, but her heel hit a deep crack in the wooden floor and she fell down, knocking her head on a nearby barrel.
Killian groaned and rolled his eyes. "I drink for sport and these women drink to forget their sorrows." He mused, walking over to the mayor to make sure she was all right. He turned her unconscious body around and noticed a small cut on her forehead. He laughed softly and dug in his pants pocket for the cellular device Emma showed him how to work. He held down the number two and put it to his ear when it started ringing.
"Hello?"
"I've got your true love here. She's drunk and unconscious." He said quickly.
"You're on your boat?"
"Ship, love. But yes. I suggest you hurry. She probably won't be unconscious for long."
"I'm on my way." He heard the blonde grumble on the line.
"Okay. And Swan? I think it may be time to tell her everything. She knows you found your true love."
I hope you guys enjoyed it! Next chapter will be up Thursday at the latest & I promise you won't want to miss that one ;) Review please! I love hearing what you guys think of the story.