A/N - I just got back from my trip this week. Here's a chapter. The fish scenario actually happened to my current pet fish friend Jasper, without the magic part, but yeah...No fish were harmed in the writing or inspiration of this chapter, though. He's just dandy.
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Previously... From flashback
"You are the most stubborn and determined person I know. You'll get us there." Emma placed her other hand on top of both of theirs. "When the time is right, you can give back my memories of this conversation and others I'm sure we'll have. It will have all been worth it. I can't fuck up what I don't know I really want and by the time both sides of me trust you it will be time to come home."
A delicate brow rose, "It is that simple then?"
Green eyes met brown. "With us, it never is Regina."
"If we are to do this the way you described, then there is much to discuss, but not here." Regina stood, keeping hold of the savior's hand to help the blonde stand up.
"Come."
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On Saturday morning little Emma awoke with the sun, but without her big side in sight. She grinned, rolling out of bed and ran over to her new friend, switching off the tank light. Jasper seemed to smile at her from between the green curtains of his hiding place. She'd missed him yesterday while at school and wanted him near her. She twisted her face up in deep thought to figure out how to make that happen.
Her bright idea had her rushing into the bathroom. She stepped up on the stool by the sink and washed out her clear rinsing cup before running back to her room. Careful fingers removed the lid of the tank and dipped the cup into the water. Jasper swam right inside, as if ready for a field trip. With both hands hugging the fish to her chest Emma went downstairs and into the kitchen. She set him on the counter by the sink and happily went to the front door to get the paper from the mail slot with the comics she liked so much.
Her mouth formed a shocked 'O' when she returned and saw the cup without a fish. She dropped the paper and rushed to the counter, jumping to look in the sink. Tears burned behind her eyes when she saw her dear fish flopping in the bottom on the top of garbage disposal.
Apparently this fish was a gymnast.
A little hand froze over the sink, remembering the warning she'd received earlier that week when she'd reached into the disposal for her dropped spoon. Regina had explained she could get cut on the blades.
Running upstairs she threw her little body onto the high sleigh bed and slammed into the sleeping Queen. "Wake up, wake up, WAKE UP!"
Regina bolted upright, frantically grabbing for the little girl bouncing on her legs. "Emma what's wrong? Are you hurt?"
"He…It… I… HELP!" Emma minced her words pulling hard at the Queen's arm.
Regina followed running feet quickly downstairs. A shaking finger pointed to the sink as the owner began to bawl. She saw the water glass that belonged upstairs and put two and two together. "Oh Emma, you didn't."
Rushing to the sink, she saw the fish with gills rising slowly in the bowels of the disposal. She concentrated and magically eased the gasping fish upwards and into the cup of water. A wave of her conjured a lid with holes to ensure the fish stayed put before she pulled a hysterical Emma into her arms.
"Sssshhhhhh. He's alright, Emma. Look."
Emma sniffled, snot running down her face as she gazed red wet eyes on her friend. "H-he is?"
"Yes, sweet one he is." Regina realized that she was dealing with a completely little savior at that moment. The difference was striking. Little Emma clung to her for dear life, resting fully against her naturally.
"I-I'm s-sorry Jasper. I didn't m-mean for you to get hurted."
"Hurt." The correction came softly as she rubbed the small back. Sitting down on a stool, she took a breath, letting her heart return to a normal pattern. "Why did you put Jasper in a cup?"
"He wanted to hang out with me."
"I bet he did, but what did we talk about when Jasper came to live with us a few days ago?" Smoothing the blonde curls she kissed Emma's head.
"That he n-needed to stay in his h-house and to wait for you if his tank got dirty." Emma sniffled, rubbing a balled fist across her eyes.
"Yes, and did you follow those instructions this morning?" The Queen asked, referring directly the acrobatic fish.
Emma shook her head and allowed Regina to wipe her face and nose with a napkin.
"No and what happened when you chose not to listen?"
Wet green eyes looked up. "He jumped ship."
If Emma hadn't looked completely crestfallen Regina would have chuckled at that. Instead she nodded. "We are lucky he is not hurt. No more taking him out of his house. Understand?"
"Yes." The girl nodded, readily agreeing as her tears turned to sniffles.
Regina eyed the sink in thought, "Did you reach in to try and get him?"
Thoughtful little eyes looked down at hands then back at Jasper.
"Little miss swan?"
"Nooo I almost did, but 'membered what you said."
"Good girl. You did the right thing coming to get me." Relieved some of her rules were beginning to stick.
"Am I in trouble with you?"
"No, sweet one I think you learned a lesson the hard way today and I don't imagine you will make that same choice again. Am I right?"
Emma nodded and snuggled up into the Queen's arms.
Regina felt the shift as the little body stiffened. She swallowed. "Emma?"
"I'm here Gina."
"Were you ever entirely absent?" She questioned, wondering the reason for the sudden switch.
"No… Just passive. I wanted to see what she would do if I just let her be. I-I couldn't stop her from… I froze." Emma pulled back and looked at the fish.
"It's not your fault. She knew better and learned the hard way. Sometimes that needs to happen."
"Thanks for not getting mad at her… At me. I—she tried to do the right thing."
"Yes and it saved her friend's life."
Emma lips turned up. "Yeah she did." He stomach grumbled in agreement.
Regina lifted the girl off her lap, glancing at the clock. If she started now, she'd have enough time to make a full breakfast before she had to get ready for her meeting. "Will turkey bacon with toast and fruit salad be alright?"
"Yes please."
"Let's take Jasper back upstairs first."
Emma followed the Queen up to her room and sighed happily as Jasper was put back. He swam right into the igloo and poked his head out. Regina waved a hand over the tank, magically anchoring it to the shelf and sealed the lid closed. It wouldn't budge without her touch.
The girl approached the shelf and little eyes peered up at her fine finned friend. "You're safe now, Jasper. Welcome home."
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"Can we have popcorn later?" Emma sung her legs against the side of the sleigh bed and Regina finished getting ready.
"You mean may we, and yes. I already set up the air popper for Ruby." She fastened a gold hoop and fluffed her hair, eyeing Emma in the mirror of her vanity. "Do you have any questions about the rules?"
"Nope." Emma's lips smacked over the 'p'. "I know not to try and get her to remember and to listen to what she tells me to do." She rolled her eyes. 'Not that she'd believe me anyway.'
"There is egg salad and cut apples for your lunch in the fridge. I should be home just when you are getting up from your nap."
The door bell rang and Emma made a beeline for the stairs. "Walk Emma." Regina shook her head, following downstairs and watched in amusement as Emma jumped to try and undo the high bolt lock. "Whenever someone is at the door you need to wait for me to open it or tell you it is alright to do so." She waited for acknowledgement before unlatching the door and welcoming Ruby inside.
"Ruby!" Little arms wrapped around the waitress' legs in greeting.
"Hey there, are you ready for a fun day? I brought a movie for us to watch." Ruby handed a DVD to Emma who looked curiously at the cover. She then offered a smile to Regina. "It's The Princess Bride. She'll love it!"
"I'm sure she will. I've set up the air popper. She may have that as a snack and her lunch is in the fridge. I made extra for you, as well. No matter what she tries to tell you she is allowed zero sugar and her nap time is at one o'clock sharp. I refuse to come home to her bouncing off the walls on a sugar high and cranky." Regina slipped on her coat and tied the waist sash, taking her purse in hand.
"You got it Madam Mayor."
"Emma? I'm leaving. Be a good girl for Ms. Lucas today." She bent to hug and kiss the little one goodbye.
The girl stilled long enough to return the hug. "I will!"
"And Ruby?"
The she wolf stilled in the act of shedding her coat at the sound of her first name leaving those burgundy lips. "Yes, Madam Mayor?"
"Please call me Regina."
Ruby's wolfish grin blossomed. "Regina, I'll take good care of her."
They waved goodbye and Emma watched through the side window as the Benz rolled away. The little in her felt some apprehension at being left behind while big Emma was gung-ho about getting alone time with her best friend.
"What do you want to do first little swan?" Ruby set her things on the table by the door, trying to distract the obviously anxious kid.
"Candy Land!" Little Emma answered and made a dash for the game closet down the hall. She discovered it when Regina was cleaning last week and they'd ended up spending a whole evening playing different board games.
Big Emma loved the competition and creamed the wolf in round after round before becoming bored with the juvenile game. She thought back to Thursday at the diner and remembered that now was the perfect time to do some digging for answers to how to change herself back. Regina mentioned she had a lock-box and the bounty hunter in Emma bet it was somewhere in the Queen's bedroom or study. She wasn't entirely sure what she was looking for, but knew she'd feel better with more information about her situation or maybe even some more insight to why Regina did this to her.
'Maybe she has a diary or something?' She had to get Ruby to leave her alone for a little while, first. 'I got it!'
"Wanna play hide and seek?" Emma jumped up and ran out of the living room calling over her shoulder. "You're it! Count to 300!"
"300?"
"Yeah, that's the rule!" It wasn't, but Ruby didn't know that. Emma hid behind the corner waiting until she heard the waitress start to count before grinning. 'That was too easy.' She hurried upstairs deciding to check the master suite first. Her slim body eased through the cracked door, suddenly feeling weird at being in the Queen's personal space without permission. Shaking off the misplaced guilt she shimmed under the bed looking for anything that resembled a safe or lock-box. She found several shoe boxes filled with summer sandals, but not what she was looking for. Under the dresser and inside the drawers came next. Her little hands dug through the top drawer and held up a black lacy thong. Little eyes looked at it briefly before big eyes bugged. She slammed the drawer shut, trying to bleach the image from her mind.
Knowing she didn't have much time left before Ruby came searching for her she tried the walk in closet. Designer suits, blouses, skirts and slacks hung on one wall and the other housed the Queen's famous footwear collection in neatly stacked rows. She spotted what she was looking for on the top shelf above the shoes. Using the wooden grid that housed the foot wear she scaled the wall and pushed the lock-box off the shelf, accidentally knocking a box of scarves with it. Both landed with a loud thump on the taupe colored carpet.
She shimmied down and tried to pry the lid off before realizing it had a numbered keypad. 'What would Regina use as a code? Maybe Henry's birthday… nope, not it… Damn it! I'm running out of time. Maybe it's…"
"Emma? Come out come out wherever you are."
Ruby's faint call jarred her out of her thoughts. Sighing she tried the last combination she could think of; Regina's birth date. The keypad flashed at her and she scowled before shoving the box away from her in disgust. She heard the bedroom door creak and quickly threw herself behind the row of hanging suits.
"Emma? If you're in here I don't think your mom would—There you are! Got 'cha!" Ruby tickled a little foot that was poking out and grinned at the muffled squeal.
"No tickling! No fair Ruby!" Emma parted the sea of clothing and panted, out of breath.
"What happened in here?" Ruby knelt down indicating the pile of scarves and the upside down lock-box on the floor. "I don't think your mom would leave her closet like this." Knowing Regina was a stickler for order and neatness.
Emma sobered at that question. "Uhhhh… I was just playing and I wanted… 'Shit! What to say, what to say…' She bit her lip. "Toooo play dress up. I like her scarves and stuff sorta' fell… Please don't tell that I climbed up." She whispered that last part, a tingling beginning to rush across her skin at the thought of Regina's face if she were to find out.
Ruby cocked her head, not sure if she bought that excuse, but shrugged it off. "Let's get this cleaned up then. Put the scarves back in the box and I'll put this up." They made quick work of righting the closet and Emma felt the knot in her tummy loosen at Ruby's next words.
"Let's go down and watch our movie. I think I've had enough games for one day." She took Emma's hand and led her downstairs. They made popcorn and laughed though the first half of 'The Princess Bride.' Ruby paused at the sword fighting scene and served up their lunch, insisting they eat in the dining room despite Emma's begging to eat on the couch.
The movie ended right before the girl was scheduled to go down for her nap. The wolf left Emma to watch the credits as she cleaned up their dishes. When she returned she found the little body passed out on the couch. Smiling at the sight she easily carried Emma upstairs and put her to bed in the lavender room. As promised near 2:00 the Benz pulled into the drive way and Ruby turned off the TV before going to the door to greet the Mayor.
"Hey! How was your meeting?"
"It was productive, as always, but too long. Was she well behaved for you?"
"A complete doll. She kicked my tail at Candy Land and those green eyes of hers are SO hard to say no to."
Regina smirked at that. "Yes she can be quite persuasive. I take it she is still sleeping?"
"Out like a light right at one o'clock. Oh, you should know that we played hide and seek. Emma kind of made a small mess in your closet. I helped her clean it up, but she was so cute hiding behind your suits I couldn't be mad at her." She kept her promise about not mentioning the climbing, but felt uncomfortable hiding the fact that she'd been in the Mayor's private space.
The Queen jarred at the thought of the wolf or anyone snooping through her things, but relaxed realizing it had been innocent. "Thank you for telling me." She slipped four twenties into Ruby's palm as she showed the young woman out. Apparently she'd have to have a chat with little Emma about playing dress up with her expensive things and perhaps buy the girl a set of dress-up clothes.
As she locked up, she heard little feet speed walking downstairs. Just as she turned Emma threw her arms around Regina's legs.
"You're home!"
Regina ran her fingers through tussled curls, smoothing the bed head away. "Hello there. I heard you were a good girl for Ruby today."
Emma grinned up, showing the gap in her teeth. "I was! Does that mean I get ice-cream after dinner?"
"We shall see. How do you feel about a walk to the park in a little bit? I need check my messages and get out of these clothes first, though."
Tiny feet bounced affirmatively. "I'm gonna go tell Jasper."
Regina followed and once on the upstairs landing they went their separate ways. As she entered her room, the Queen shrugged off her red blazer and tossed it in the hamper along with her black dress. She felt off immediately upon entering her closet, sensing a disturbance in her space. Uncomfortable at the warning scratching at the back of her mind, she found a pair of tan casual slacks and a blue button down V-neck fitted sweater. She reached up for a matching silk scarf and a red flash caught her eye.
"What…? No… " Realization punched her stomach.
Pulling down the lock-box she felt a wet burning starting behind her eyes and she swallowed hard as she leaned into the shoe tower. That light only flashed when a wrong code had been attempted. She had a theory of which version of Emma had been in her closet, but knew that she needed more information before jumping to conclusions. Deliberate versus curious fingers would determine how she dealt with this.
Setting the box on her bed, she took time to brush her hair and scroll through text messages, returning one to Henry confirming they could all FaceTime that night. It came to her then that Emma must have scaled the shoe wall to get to the box and the scarves. Sighing, she now understood what Ruby had meant by the girl being 'hard to say no to' when they'd been talking in the foyer. She really hoped her theory was wrong.
After searching the upstairs the Queen descended to the ground floor, finally finding Emma in the living room working on a maze in a coloring book. Bright eyes found brown as the girl leapt to her feet.
"Time to go?
"Not just yet. I need to speak with you first."
"Oh…" Big Emma shifted from foot to foot, deciding to play dumb. "About what?"
"I think you already know about what. Come with me please." She turned towards her study, preferring the formal setting for the talk at hand. Emma slowly followed and stopped in the doorway when the Queen sat on the favored chaise lounge.
"Am I in trouble?"
"That depends. Should you be?"
Emma licked her lips, finally approaching when beckoned with a finger. She stopped just out of reach. "I don't—"
"I know you were in my closet. Ruby mentioned she caught you playing in there. Something about dress up and hide and seek." She watched, sure the red face was big Emma's anger at being told on. "She did not tell me about your rock climbing adventure. I figured that out for myself when I noticed the light on my lockbox flashing."
"She—"
Regina held up her hand for silence wanting all the cards on the table to give Emma a chance to explain. "It only ever does that when the code has been entered incorrectly. What I want to know is if little Emma was playing and got curious about the locked box or if big Emma was hunting for something deliberately." She decided to cut directly to the chase, not believing in baiting the child just to catch her in a lie.
"I…I didn't mean too." A wave of heat flooded the girl's body and she took a step back.
Regina kept her face passive and tone encouraging. "So little Emma was playing in my closet and big Emma was nowhere to be found, like this morning with Jasper?" She wanted to be absolutely clear on what she was asking.
"Yeah..."
"Yes that it was little Emma just being curious and playful?" She highly doubted that, but wanted to give the girl the benefit of her doubts.
"Yes." Little thoughts slammed against big ones in protest of that untrue word.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes! I told you already." Emma turned away and crossed her arms suddenly defensive.
The Queen stood, running a hand through her hair, suddenly feeling terrible that she'd doubted Emma, especially after the morning they'd had. "Alright. Go and get your boots and coat on."
A blonde braid whipped around. "That's it?"
"That is all, yes. Unless you need to tell me something?" Regina lightened her tone. Their relationship was at such a delicate stage that she wanted to trust the girl's answer even when her gut said the opposite.
Emma stared at the brunette for a long moment before walking off to get ready. She was unusually quiet on their walk and avoided the Queen's attempts at conversation. Once they made it to the park the girl looked for the ducks and seeing none asked to play on the jungle gym. Regina allowed that and found a bench to sit on. After an hour Regina called her over, deciding they had been exposed to the cold air long enough.
Little Emma ran happily to hug the Queen's legs, but her joy disappeared as big Emma's heavy emotions took over. The brunette puzzled over the change and squeezed a little hand reassuringly, wondering if Emma was coming down with something. She took off her glove and placed her wrist to a cool cheek and forehead, feeling for a fever.
"I'm not sick Gina." Emma pulled back sharply and ran ahead to the path that led out of the park. The Queen caught up and took back the small hand.
They walked home in thick silence.
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The rest of the afternoon, Emma avoided the Queen, favoring spending time in her room with Jasper. By this time Regina knew something was seriously wrong. She decided to deep clean the kitchen while going over the morning and afternoon in her mind, thinking back to how defensive Emma had been in the study. As she finished mopping she knew that Emma had lied to her. She just didn't want to believe it.
Washing her hands, she decided to try talking to Emma again. She dried them quickly and put away the rest of the cleaning supplies in the cupboard of the laundry room, closing the door harder than she meant to. Eyeing the clock, she decided to wait another ten minutes and have some tea to fully calm down before calling Emma downstairs. Regina was halfway through the herbal brew when the girl made an appearance.
Emma went right to the fridge, ignoring her keeper and tried to get the juice down from the high shelf. A smooth hand caught the carton before it slipped.
"Careful, I just mopped the floor." Regina filled the glass with ¼ juice and ¾ water and handed it to the girl. "Both hands."
Emma took the offered cup and sipped, feeling the silence condense around them. She startled at the sound of a china mug touching marble.
"When you have finished your juice, I'd like you to join me in the study please." The brunette rose gracefully from her spot, without waiting for a reply, expecting the child to eventually follow.
Emma frowned knowing the gig was up. She took as long as she thought reasonable to finish her drink, even standing in a step stool to rinse the cup and put it in the dishwasher. Rubbing her sweaty hands on her leggings, she shuffled into the home office and found the Queen pacing the room.
"Shut the door behind you."
Biting her lip, the girl obeyed and fidgeted as she watched the regal woman sigh and sink onto the sofa.
"Come here to me. We need to talk."
"About what?" Emma tried without thinking, just to hear something over her pounding heart.
"You lied to me Emma, this afternoon about the lock-box."
"No I didn't."
There was just enough sass in that voice to set brunette on edge. Regina snapped her fingers pointing to the spot right in front of her, manner no nonsense.
The girl took her time obeying, never meeting the brown eyes studying her.
"You did lie to me and you are doing so again right now. Look at me Emma." She waited before shaking her head and lifting the little chin.
"Don't Gina."
"Emma—"
"No! You lie to me all the time, what's the big deal if I do it once?"
Holding steadfast, Regina didn't allow the deflection. "The big deal Emma is that you lied to me and then lied about lying. I admit there was a time in our early relationship where I was not honest with you or anyone else. I can promise you that ever since I redeemed myself I have not lied to you. Can you look me in the eye and say the same?"
Emma's face paled and she tried to jerk her chin away.
Regina waited, brows raised.
"No."
Nodding, the Queen allowed Emma to look away as she continued. "I may not give you all the information about something at one time because that is my right in this life as your parent, but I will always be truthful with you and I expect the truth from you every single time, young lady. We do not lie to each other and we are not going to start now."
Emma felt tears land on her socks. Her stomach flipped and she tried stupidly one more time to dig herself out. "It wasn't my fault. It was hers."
"Stop lying to me Emma."
"No, it was her… Really." Panic had her grasping at straws. She didn't want to believe she'd lied to the one person she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, despite everything that had happened between them, had her back.
Regina sat back watching Emma's tears, deciding to take back full control over the situation and lifted the dimpled chin again. "These walls you have up… it is time they start coming down. We will get to this truth and many others going forward." Still holding green eyes, she thought, 'No matter how painful.'
Emma wiggled and tried again to pull her face away, but stilled when she felt a warning tap to her hip.
"Yes Ma'am or No Ma'am. Those are the only two responses I care to hear from you right now. Do you understand me?"
Emma gulped, "Yes Ma'am."
"Today you went into my closet with the intent of trying to find something that doesn't belong to you. Am I correct that you thought you'd find some answers about your current state in my lock-box?"
"Yes."
Regina stared.
"Yes Ma'am."
"Good girl. Am I also correct that you actually had no idea what it was that you were looking for and that your little self had nothing to do with it?"
"Yes Ma'am."
"So you did lie to me a few different times today?"
A whisper. "Y-yes Ma'am."
Finally they were getting somewhere. The Queen shifted, pulling Emma to stand between her knees and placing her hands on small shoulders. "Thank you for telling me the truth."
"Are you mad?" Emma sniffed, focusing her eyes on a crease in the tan slacks.
"I am displeased with your choices. Mostly, I wanted to understand why you lied to me and I think I do now." Regina waved her hand, summoning the lockbox. It appeared on her lap between them. She turned the box so that it faced Emma. "011523."
Emma looked up quizzically.
"That is the code for the box and before you even ask; it is not the code for the parental controls on the television."
'But that's…' Emma pressed the sequence on the keypad and the boxed beeped, flashing green. "All our days of birth."
"Yes, with Henry in the middle and us as the bookends."
"Why?"
Regina tucked a stray curl behind a little ear. "We are a family and Henry brought us together. Open it and see if the answers you are looking for are inside."
The sudden display of trust had Emma guiltily lifting the lid and she was surprised to find the box nearly empty. Her medical file and what she assumed to be her and Henry's adoption papers were resting on the bottom with passports and other business looking paperwork. Daniel's ring was in a velvet pouch, Cora's locket and a small painting of Henry Sr. lay on top. Her hand shook when she picked up the single wallet sized photo tucked in a corner and found her own eyes staring back at her.
"You kept it?" The adult in Emma retreated under the weight of her feelings.
"I did." Regina felt a single tear escape her eye and saw the shift take place from adult to child, knowing now was the right time for another revelation; this time to little Emma. "I promised a dear friend I care for very much that I'd keep it safe. In doing so I have come to love that little girl."
Little hands froze and then dropped the picture back in the box as the emotions of her big half rolled through her mind, crashing their halves together. She began to shake so hard she couldn't breathe.
'Did she…she loves… me?'
The rightness of those words tugged at all the tangled pieces inside and the little girl didn't understand why her adult side fought so hard not to let them shift in place where they belonged. She decided to help and kept big Emma at bay long enough for little eyes to take in brown and with the beginnings of trust she reached up grabby hands.
Regina waved the box away and lifted Emma up into her arms, desperately needing to connect their hearts. After a time, the little body stilled and leaned heavily against her. A minute later it tensed signaling the adult half was once again present.
"How much trouble am I in?" Emma whispered, trying to take everything in she just been forced to passively witness.
"A bit my dear. I do not like that you went through my things without permission or that you lied about which side of you was the responsible party."
Emma was quiet taking the weight of her actions in. She knew they had more to talk about in regards to the picture and felt conflicted over the brunette's disclosure, not understanding how the little side of her was lovable or her mini-me's reaction, and she didn't know how to approach either. Setting her focus on the present moment, she asked, "What happens now?"
Regina deliberated briefly, and confirmed her original plan knowing she was dealing with Emma's adult actions. "You are going to spend some time in the corner thinking about what we just discussed." More softly she added, "Then I am taking you across my knee for lying and you are grounded to my side the rest of the weekend for going through my things." Feeling Emma squirm in her arms at the reality of a spanking, she kissed the top of the blonde head. She knew both sides of Emma would need her close in the day to come once her words thoroughly soaked in about why she'd kept the photograph. "Up you go. Let's get this done so I can hold you again."
Emma eased off the warm lap and shuffled over to a far empty corner. She looked over her shoulder. "Six minutes?"
"Six minutes."
A little wobble. "You'll stay here with me?"
"Right here sweet one."
When Emma turned around fully Regina lost her perfect posture and dropped her head in her hands as another tear fell. She was exhausted, but felt lighter than she had in a long time. She'd finally told little Emma she loved her and the child hadn't shut her out. They were on the right track and finally were starting to make some real progress as to why they were here in this life in the first place. Her eyes quickly found the clock, not wanting to keep the girl in time out a second longer than promised.
Minutes passed too slowly for both of them.
Wiping her eyes, Regina focused on the task at hand when the clock struck the appointed time. She called once and the woman child came willingly. Without ceremony she lifted Emma over her lap and immediately pulled down the purple leggings.
The girl whimpered, but said nothing as she felt a cool hand rest on her backside and an arm around her waist.
"We do not lie to each other. Do you understand me?" Regina repeated the exact phrase from earlier, wanting that message to be absorbed in the next minute.
A small nod.
"Emma, I need to hear your voice."
"Yeeesss."
"Yes what?" The brunette pressed, the need acknowledgement surfacing again.
"Y-yes Ma'am."
Little feet kicked up at the sharp sting and Emma cried out at the second one that quickly followed. Regina wasn't going easy on her this time and she found herself starting to weep after three swats.
The Queen finished a full dozen without pause. Emma was breathing heavily and crying under her hand. She kept the girl in place to process as the cries eased to sniffling.
Emma winced when she was lifted up and her bottom made contact with the other side of the lap. "Ow G-gina!" She fist a sweater and burrowed into her keeper.
They sat together for a long time without moving, each deep in their own thoughts. Emma shifted trying to get comfortable, but her bottom stung too much. This spanking had been different, somehow more meaningful as if there were something at stake she didn't know about. Emma puzzled over that idea as she was consoled lovingly in those arms, but genuinely felt better now knowing they were on good terms again.
Little Emma poked her head upwards and whispered. "I'm hungry."
Regina rested her lips briefly atop a blonde braid, finally surfacing for air from the pool of feelings. "Yes, I'm sure you are. Let's look at what we can find for dinner." She lifted Emma down, pulling up the leggings and took a moment to gaze into big wet green eyes. "I meant what I said about your grounding. You are not to leave the room we are in without my permission until you wake up Monday morning."
Pale skin flushed. "What about the bathroom?"
"You will need to ask to leave the room. Don't worry I will let you, but you are not to leave my sight otherwise. A bit of required dependency will help reinforce our dynamic, which I think you are in dire need of remembering."
"Remember what about it?" Emma asked without tone.
Regina chose not to answer with words. She simply took the small hand and led the way to the kitchen.
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Now that you know that Emma actually wanted this whole thing, but doesn't remember she does, I'm curious your thoughts.
Next up- possible flashback... FaceTime with Henry, talk of Christmas plans and more school fun.