If Hope had woken up during the night, Regina had no idea. The natural light of the morning was peeking through the curtains when she finally woke up herself. She stretched her muscles out and rolled over, expecting to come into contact with her favourite blonde. However, the other side of the bed was empty and the cold sheets indicated that it had been for a while. Frowning, Regina slowly sat up and sleepily gazed around the room. The clock on the bedside table read that it was nearing nine o'clock. Yawning, she slipped out of the bed and quickly nipped into the bathroom to brush her teeth. Once that was done, she donned Emma's dressing gown that was hanging on the back of the bathroom door and slowly made her way downstairs, presuming that would be where the blonde had disappeared to.

Upon entering the kitchen, she saw Hope sitting in her high chair hitting a plastic spoon on the tray. She didn't have any food in front of her, but the spoon was enough entertainment as she was giggling to herself. Emma was by the stove, flipping what looked to be pancakes. It was Regina's turn this morning to lean against the door frame and watch the blonde.

Emma had no idea that Regina was stood there at first. She'd woken a couple of times in the night, familiar with Hope's sounds. She'd managed to sneak out of bed and sooth or change the baby when needed. Hope had woken again around seven thirty which was pretty late for her. Not wanting to wake Regina up when she clearly needed her sleep after so many late nights recently, Emma scooped up the baby and headed downstairs. She'd watched a bit of TV while she fed and burped her before reading up on baby things. She was still so new to everything and she was embarrassed at having to ask Snow so much. Sure, she'd helped out looking after Neal when he was a baby, but that was only for a few hours, Hope was her responsibility 24/7.

At around half eight, she'd started to get a bit peckish and realised that Regina would be waking up soon, so she picked up the baby and put her in the high chair in the kitchen. She was reluctant to sit there at first, so Emma placed a few items in front of her to distract her and Hope was immediately drawn the plastic spoon. She was a little reluctant to leave her in case she broke the spoon and it became sharp, so she quickly cast a charm on it so that, as hard as it was hit, it would never break. Satisfied with her quick thinking, Emma decided to start with some breakfast and surprise her girlfriend with some food. They'd still not had that chat but as far as Emma was concerned, if you tell someone you love them and they tell you too and you're both not with anyone else, you're together. Plus she also loved the idea of Regina being her girlfriend.

She'd just started the cooking process when she had the odd feeling that someone was watching her. She ignored it at first, she knew it would be Regina anyway. Instead she just finished the batch that was in the pan. Once they were plated up, she turned the heat down and turned round to face the brunette.

"Well isn't this the best sight to wake up to," Regina said first. She stood straight from where she was leaning on the door frame and started walking up to the blonde.

"I could say the same," Emma replied smiling. Reaching out, she placed her hands on Regina's hips as Regina's went around her neck. Leaning in, they shared their first kiss of the morning. "I could get used to this. Good morning, beautiful."

Humming her approval, Regina kissed Emma again. "Good morning to you too."

A babbling sound from behind them cut them off and Regina turned round to see Hope staring intently at her. A few seconds later, Hope started making grabby motions towards Regina who quickly made her way over and picked up the baby.

"And good morning to you too, precious girl," she greeted, kissing Hope all over her face, making the baby giggle brightly. The sight and sound once again making Emma's heart melt.

The precious moment was soon interrupted when Emma's belly started to rumble.

"I think someone's hungry," Regina said to Hope. "Shall we go watch mama cook? I think we should."

At the subtle request, Emma walked back over to the stove and continued with breakfast, pausing every now and then to kiss Regina. It was domestic bliss at its finest. Emma cooked while Regina entertained the baby. Emma just hoped that it wouldn't be the last time.

Once the food was cooked, Regina placed the baby back in her chair and the two ate their breakfast making casual conversation. After they'd finished and cleared up, Emma took advantage of someone being there and asked Regina to keep an eye on Hope while she showered and got ready and offered the brunette to shower if she so desired.

"Maybe next time we could save time and shower together?" Regina teased winking in Emma's direction and Emma's eyes darkened at the thought. She then passed the baby over, so she could shower, and kissed Emma at the same time. She deepened the kiss just slightly, slipping her tongue into Emma's mouth but when Emma's went to meet hers, she pulled back from the kiss and winked. She then started her walk to the bathroom, slipping her top off and throwing it on the floor, revealing her braless state.

"You're going to be the death of me," Emma called over to her as Regina sashayed her hips. All the brunette did was chuckle in return. "Oh yes she is," Emma added to Hope who was giggling at her mother, though she had no idea what she was saying.

Before long, both women were showered and dressed. Regina had conjured up another skirt but found a maroon blouse in Emma's wardrobe that she hardly wore but it smelt like Emma which is why Regina wanted to wear it.

The two settled on the sofa, about to discuss what to do for the day, when Regina's phone started to ring. Glancing at the caller ID, Regina saw it was her sister and immediately picked it up. She was barely on the phone for more than two minutes before hanging up and looking at Emma.

"I have to go," she said sadly. "Zelena wants to talk to me about something."

Nodding, Emma replied, "I get it, your sister needs you. I think I'm going to clean the house before I take Hope out."

Emma then walked Regina to the door. She automatically took her in her arms and kissed her soundly. Her tongue slipped in within seconds and she felt Regina's hands tighten on her waist, pulling her closer.

"I need to go," Regina whispered breathlessly, breaking the kiss and backed off regretfully. "I'll call you later."

After one final sweet peck, Regina opened the door and started to walk away but halted when she heard her name. She turned to see Emma just behind her, the blonde sneaking up behind her once more.

"I love you," Emma said and kissed her again before running back into the house and Regina swore she saw the blonde wink before the door shut behind her.

Smiling brightly, Regina flicked her wrist and appeared on the outskirts of her sister's farm house. The car she'd gotten her years ago was on the drive beside tire tracks that belonged to a car that she presumed was Chad's. She walked up the door and knocked twice before walking in.

"Why bother knocking if you're just going to walk in," sassed a voice coming from the kitchen. Upon entering the room, Regina saw Zelena sitting at the table and two steaming cups of tea in front of her. "Hey sis," Zelena greeted not standing up, she looked angsty, absentmindedly twisting her engagement ring on her finger.

"What's up?" Regina asked as she slid into the chair beside her. She took a sip of the tea and hummed happily as it was perfect.

Zelena didn't answer at first. She hadn't given anything away on the phone either. She'd just said that she wanted Regina to come over as soon as she could.

"Where are the others?" Regina asked trying to get conversation out of her sister. Nook and Alice had been staying with them too and there were no signs that there was anyone else in the house.

"Robin and Alice are at Granny's, Chad is at the accountancy office enquiring about a job and Nook, I have no idea," Zelena replied, looking at Regina for the first time. "I'm not sure what Nook does for the most part when he isn't here. Perhaps he's looking for a new ship." She took a sip out her tea.

"You've not answered what's going on though?" Regina pushed gently. Zelena looked kind of dazed, like she couldn't believe something was happening or that her head was full of things she wanted to talk about but couldn't get out. Reaching out, Regina placed her hand on top of her sister's and squeezed. "Whatever it is, you can tell me."

The redhead was silent for a few more moments, just sipping at her tea.

"Chad and I were talking about where to get married," she said eventually. She placed her tea down and looked at Regina. The brunette knew when to not interrupt her sister, so she stayed quiet, waiting for her to finish. "I suggested where Emma and Hook married, it was really pretty." She paused when she saw Regina flinch at what she'd said. She muttered sorry before continuing to get passed it. "But then Chad surprised me."

Always one for a little bit of dramatic flair, Zelena stopped talking again, choosing to finish her tea before finally continuing.

"I was telling him about the curse that you're working on. It baffles me with how okay he is about everything, it makes me love him even more. But then he says, "Well when all the realms are united, why don't we get married in Oz? It's where you're from." Can you believe that? He actually suggested that we married in the place where I was hated, not only by the people who lived there but also by myself. "You can make a positive out of a negative," he said. I can't get married there, Gina, I just can't." The mask Zelena had put on finally came crumbling down as she started to cry.

"What did you say back to him?" Regina asked gently. She knew exactly where Zelena was coming from. She couldn't imagine getting married in the Enchanted Forest after everything that happened there. Her heart then fluttered at the prospect of marriage and an image of Emma in a wedding dress flashed before her eyes and she couldn't help but smile at it.

"I didn't really," Zelena replied and wiped her eyes. Taking a deep breath, she tried to stop the tears from flowing. "I love him so much and can't wait to marry him, but I can't marry him there. He sounded so excited at the prospect of it that it almost broke my heart. He asked me to think about it and left to go into town. That's when I called you."

"Perhaps it's just the idea that it's a real place," Regina suggested. "How about, after the curse is cast, you take him there and show him around. Maybe don't wear what you used to and be a little less Wicked Witch and bit more you and no one will recognise you." Regina joked, nudging Zelena's shoulder. "Emma and I will come with you if you like?"

"Oh, Emma will come too, will she?" Zelena teased. "You know, Henry called me yesterday, warning me that you'd be walking around with a smile on your face. He refused to tell me what had caused it but that it was good. With everything Chad had said, it momentarily slipped my mind, but you bringing Emma up then clarified everything. So, little sister of mine, tell me all about you and Miss Swan."

Regina rolled her eyes but couldn't keep herself from smiling. "We're going to need more tea."

oOoOo

After Regina had left, Emma decided there was no time like the present. She wasn't the biggest fan of cleaning but sometimes it was pretty cathartic. She turned on her stereo and started the first track of her cleaning playlist.

"You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life. See that girl, watch that scene, dig in the Dancing Queen!" Emma sang along. No one, well except for Henry, knew Emma's weakness when she cleaned. The beats of ABBA automatically put her in a cleaning mood. Hope was sitting on her playmat in the corner, occupying herself with a toy duck that quacked when she pressed it. She was having the time of her life.

Emma started with the living room, dusting and the hoovering the space. She then went on to clean the rest of her house, bringing Hope to each room she went. The baby got a little fussy when she was placed in her crib at the bottom of Emma's while she cleaned her room. Hope didn't want to go to sleep which is why she was usually placed in the crib. Realising what was going on, Emma then placed her in the middle of her bed, keeping an eye on her so she didn't fall off, and that stopped her crying.

In the end, it didn't take her that long to clean the house, but she'd quickly overheated from it. Instead of taking another shower that would waste water, she decided to take Hope on her daily stroll through town to cool her down.

She picked up her baby and took her downstairs, quickly settling her in her pram before picking up an apple to eat on the way and leaving the house. Like the other day, she decided to walk along the docks. The more she faced it, the easier it became.

She'd been walking about half an hour and she thought her eyes were playing on her but the closer she got, the clearer it became. It really was Killian standing at the edge of the harbour looking out. Emma counted to ten and took a deep breath, assuring herself that it wasn't her Killian. The gloved hand proved that it wasn't. Her Killian, well he wasn't hers anymore, the original Killian always wore his hook on his left hand. It seemed this one had got used to wearing the fake hand while in Hyperion Heights.

Ideally, she wanted to just slip past him and continue with her walk but that wasn't to be, as she walked past him, he turned and saw her.

"Good morning," he greeted, and Emma cringed as his voice was obviously just the same. She tried not to, but tears automatically sprung to her eyes, her breathing became erratic.

"I can't," she managed to mutter but she couldn't move. She just froze staring at him.

Before she knew it, Henry was suddenly in front of her. He was running his hands over her, checking that she was okay. "Ma, it's okay," he said frantically. "It's Henry. Ma, can you hear me?"

"Hen…Henry?" Emma stuttered looking up at her son.

"It's not him, Ma, it's the other Hook," Henry told her. "It's Nook. He's not going to hurt you."

Emma's head felt woozy and she couldn't think straight. She tried to concentrate but it just wasn't working. She tried to get her breathing to go back to normal, but it was to no avail. Then everything went black.

A/N: please note that this is the last T rated chapter!