A/N: Thank you for everyone who voted in the SQ awards for 2015, and I'm so happy to announce little old me is your favorite swan queen writer! It's a huge honor and I'm really excited about it, so thank you dear readers!

Chapter 12: It's Voodoo You Do

Emma overheard Mal's comment to Regina about true love's kiss. She had walked to the side of the room in a daze and watched as inconspicuously as possible. The other girls were congratulating her on her dance skills, but she cared less about impressing her peers. Her mind was only on the tense, exciting dance she'd shared with her partner.

She waited with baited breath for Regina's reaction, but when her features turned hard and she turned away from Mally, Emma's hope dropped.

….

She was in a study room, and she was supposed to be composing a letter to send her parents to let them know how wonderful her experience at Princess School was going. She crumpled another parchment and tossed it into the trash on the side of the room.

Dear Mom and Dad,

Charm school is awesome! My roommate is a wolf who's never around. I'm aiding and abetting a rat princess and her brood of bastard babies. I tried magic (twice) and loved it! I have a hopeless crush on our kingdom's only enemy and I want to kiss the living daylights out of her. Yes, her. Every minute that goes by I care less and less about finding a prince and turns out I'm really unprepared and terrible at all social and cultural interaction. Things are peachy keen.

Lots of love,

Emma

She crumpled up the paper, shaking her head and fighting back tears. She tried again.

Dear Mom and Dad,

I miss you both so much, but I'm having so much fun at school. This is truly an experience I'll never forget. I'm learning so much, and of course, I'm the best ball room dancer. Well, I have to go and study for my politics of the realms test.

Love,

Emma

That attempt sounded better. It sounded right, even though it was a false depiction. She only wrote it because she knew it would set her parents' minds at ease. She had to play her part and do her duty. Which, she knew she'd fail this politics of the realm quiz if she didn't study.

The royal carrier pigeon rolled his eyes at her when she finally rolled up the scroll and motioned him over to attach it to his foot with a ribbon. He bowed to her and took off to deliver her letter.

She watched as all the other royal postal birds took off with the other princess's letters in a flock and disappeared over the barrier that protected the floating city from view. She rested her head on her hands and stared down lost in thought. She really needed to study for the test. Emma knew next to nothing about inter realm politics: truces and treaties.

She turned at the sound of the door opening and closing swiftly. Regina entered looking flustered.

"Hey," Emma greeted her quietly. She felt embarrassed and awkward in the other girl's presence. The dance had awakened something in Emma, but she knew Regina didn't feel the same way.

"Hi, Emma…" Regina smiled tightly and clasped her hands together in front of her. She looked over the crumpled parchments and texts spread out on the table. "Are you studying for the test?"

"I should be," Emma responded and moved to sit down at the table, fussing with her skirts. She felt restless like she needed to say something, but couldn't find the words to express her feelings.

Moving quickly to her side, Regina sat down next to her and picked up the study guide. "You probably know all this boring political stuff anyway, right?"

Emma didn't really hear her, she felt their skirts brush together under the table and a swirl of energy rushed through her veins. She swallowed back a gasp, and then found she was transfixed by Regina's stupidly gorgeous face concentrating on the boring study guide.

"I don't know anything," Emma replied long after Regina had asked.

"It's embarrassing to read this…I hate how my mother took over power of the realm formerly known as Wonderland. Did you know that there's even a debate about my Princess Hood? Zelena and I were only able to come to Princess School because they just passed the law to let non royal blood princesses in."

"You're not born of royal blood?" Emma asked blinking and wide eyed, in disbelief that Regina was what her mother would consider not a true Princess.

Regina rolled her eyes, "I didn't think that would be a surprise to you. Considering the debate regarding your lineage with your father, Charming."

"What about my dad?"

It was Regina's turn to look shocked, "its common knowledge." Regina pointed to the study guide showing the family tree of the Light kingdom. "That he only gained the throne because of your mother. Charming was born to an agricultural family."

"What?" Emma was confused, she had never questioned that she was a full blooded Princess. Something deep inside her clicked, she had never questioned it, but she had never felt right being a Princess either. It was all she knew.

"I'm sorry," Regina closed her eyes and set the paper down, pushing it aside. "I thought you knew."

Emma brushed it off, and automatically placed her hand over Regina's, hating that she had just made things awkward again. Her heart skipped a beat when Regina turned that intense focus solely on Emma.

"Let's talk about something else," Regina averted her gaze, and then quickly drew it back to Emma giving her a questioning look.

"I'm not…I'm not really informed about politics."

"Aww, but you're good at dancing. Any prospects for finding a prince?" Regina turned her tone light, but didn't sound convincing or sincere. "My magic teacher has a son, who is said to be quite interested in you."

"You have a magic teacher?" The more Regina opened up about herself, the more Emma wanted to know.

Regina laughed then, and the sound was sultry and deep. "That's what you took away from my question. I am asking you about Prince Neal…he's from a magic kingdom, and son of the Dark One…Are your parent's opposed to you marrying someone from a realm with magic?"

"Uh yeah," Emma answered feeling dumbstruck. Again, she was so ignorant to all of this, and was increasingly realizing she was the butt of some joke. Everyone else seemed to know everything about her family and her, but she didn't even know herself.