Emma tried not to keep glancing in the rearview mirror at the couple in the back of the police car. Regina sat in the middle of the seat, leaning into Archie's side. He kept an arm around her. Neither of them spoke, their minds perhaps filled with concerns over Cora's presence in Storybrooke they didn't wish to voice out loud.

At one point, Archie pressed a kiss in Regina's hair. Emma brought her eyes back to the road. Seeing the two of them together was odd … and yet, not odd at all. If Regina really was trying her best to change, then who else would have understood her underlying nature better than Archie? And if she was seeking for someone to understand her in that way, then why wouldn't they have found their way to each other?

It made simple sense, but it was still unexpected … and yet, not unpleasant news. She couldn't see Archie falling for the Evil Queen. Regina really had to have changed for Archie to take a romantic interest in her. And if he felt comfortable enough to be in a romantic relationship with her, then there didn't seem to be any reason for anyone else not to be comfortable around Regina or not to trust her.

"Maybe…" said Emma slowly, looking into the back seat via the mirror. "Once Cora is dealt with, Henry could spend the night at your place … or something."

Regina looked as though that was the last thing she had expected Emma to say. "I … would like that," she said.

Emma nodded. "I'll ask Henry when he'd like to come over."

"Thank you." Regina settled back under Archie's arm, smiling. He whispered something into her ear, and her smile grew wider.

Emma removed her gaze from the mirror and continued driving. It was an uneventful trip to Regina's house. Night had fallen long before, and there was no sign of life in the house.

"Wait here," Emma said before any of them had left the car. "I'll search the house." She got out of the car and started down the sidewalk.

"I can do it faster," Regina shouted after her, having climbed out of the car.

Emma turned back to her.

"It's a seeking spell," She explained to both Emma and Archie, who had gotten out of the car as well. "If my mother is here, it will let us know." She looked to Archie, who nodded, and then she looked to Emma, who nodded as well.

The three of them walked toward the house. Emma opened the front door while Regina sat the box she'd been carrying at her feet. She pressed her palms together, then slowly pulled them apart, a ball of blue light forming between them.

She shifted the ball to one hand, then threw it into the house. The three of them stood back from the porch and followed the blue light as it appeared in window after window as it searched the house.

At last, the ball came floating out the door into Regina's hands where it dissipated.

"Nothing," Regina told them. "She isn't here. She couldn't hide from it."

Emma touched the gun that hung in her holster. "Mind if I look?"

Regina opened her mouth to protest, but Archie quickly muttered, "She's just trying to help."

Regina swallowed her words. She had to get better at trusting people, especially Miss Swan, and not always assuming the woman was trying to take something from her. "Of course," she amended.

Emma gave a nod and entered the house. Regina and Archie followed, but they stayed in the lower floor while Emma searched. They waited impatiently until Emma finally finished searching the rooms and confirmed that Cora was indeed not in the house.

They discussed Henry for a few minutes - whether he was safe or if he needed to be moved somewhere else - and eventually even Regina had to admit Henry was probably safest with his birth mother. If Cora was looking for her, it was too dangerous for Henry to be with her. Though Regina doubted there was much Emma could do in the way of protecting Henry from Cora's magic, he would be in even grater danger if he stayed with herself.

She didn't even know if Cora knew about Henry, but if she'd come to the house and searched the rooms, then surely she'd noticed the boy's bed. She'd been fearful if her mother came to Storybrooke, she'd want to destroy everything she cared about, and that included Henry. But she also knew her mother would want to find her first. Destroying everything she loved without her present to watch wouldn't serve as much of a purpose.

There was little that she could do about it anyway. Henry was in Emma's hands now.

"I'll check on you the morning," Emma said. Then she looked to Archie. "Do you need a ride home?"

"No," said Archie slowly. "I think I'm staying." He looked to Regina for confirmation and her face folded in gratitude.

Emma smiled at them. "Good night then." She headed out.

Regina paced. "I'm going to put a warding spell on the house," she said at last. "No one will be able to come in unless we let them."

Archie thought that was a good idea. While she went outside to do the spell, he went into the kitchen to put on a kettle for tea.

"Here," he said later when they were seated in her sitting room. He handed her a fresh cup of tea and sat down next to her.

Regina sipped it carefully so as not to burn herself. "Chamomile?" she asked him. "You're trying to calm my nerves?"

"Well, you looked like you might need it," he admitted. They had hardly spoken since she'd come back into the house, and she kept fidgeting – straitening things, glancing at the covered windows, or just rubbing her hands against her arms or legs.

"I just hate waiting," she told him. She put her cup on the table and took his hands. "I'm so glad you are here with me."

He smiled at her and caressed her palm with his thumb. "I wouldn't want to be anywhere else," he said. "And I'll do whatever I can to take your mind off things."

She smiled, her lips curling to one side. "Really?" She leaned forward and kissed him.

Archie returned the kiss, his arm fumbling around before finding the edge of the table upon which he sat his tea. And then he put his arms around her, pulling her close. She responded by deepening the kiss, this method of distraction agreeable to the both of them.

At one point, Archie found himself laying back against the cushions, Regina hovering over him. He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her to him, their bodies coming together. She had her hands in his hair when she suddenly pulled away. She sat up on the edge of the couch, a hand pressed to her chest like she was having trouble breathing.

"Regina," he said, pulling himself up into a sitting position. "What's wrong?" When she didn't say anything he moved next to her and put an arm around her. "Talk to me."

She took a shaking breath and shook her head, but eventually she turned her fearful face toward him. "If my mother finds out about you–"

"Regina," he brought a hand to her cheek, saddened their distraction hadn't worked to keep her mother from her mind.

"She didn't know," she told him. "She must have thought you were just my doctor, but if she discovered how I feel about you–"

"Hush," he said taking her face into his hands. "She isn't here." He kissed her forehead. As she took another shuddering breath, he pressed his lips to her neck. "She can't hurt us."

He kissed her face and wrapped his arms around her. He kept kissing her – behind the ear, beneath the collar of her shirt, at the corner of her lips – until she kissed him back and gave in once again.

As they sought each other passionately, she started pulling at his clothing – taking off his sweater vest, tugging at his tie until it came undone. He took her fully into his arms and picked her up off the couch. He kicked off his shoes and continued kissing her, fumbling slightly as he navigated the house and finally found her room where he deposited her on the bed.

That night, as they gave into their passions, there was no one else in their thoughts – no Cora hunting them, no Henry to be concerned over, no Emma to check in on them in the morning, no loves of the past haunting them – it was just them two. And this night was theirs.