Although you lovely lovely people might not believe me I do apologize for the wait. I had hoped to get this out like a month ago. But alas life, moving, and starting Uni all got in the way. Speaking of Uni I really should be writing a paper right now... oh well. I do believe this is the longest chapter yet and breaks 100k words. Holy shitzle. Let's celebrate since the 250th reviewer never answered my offer of a one shot. Instead I'll offer a one shot to the first reviewer who can guess which TV show loosely I pulled Peter and Nathan from. (Hint: They are neither blonde nor children in this show.)
I am only human (regrettably) and all mistakes are my own. Enjoy!
"Oh my god how long is this going to take?"
Emma rolled her eyes and continued to examine the bulletin board in Storybrooke's Animal Shelter's waiting room. The shelter just happened to have the only vet in Storybrooke who would go near Balto without the intention of putting him down. The other two would only consider putting him down. Too much wolf in him.
"It's going to take as long as it does." Emma shrugged and plucked a help wanted flyer off the board.
"I can't believe that Regina is making you get him shots before she agrees to watch him again." Lily huffed, "We could be halfway to Boston by now."
Emma rolled her eyes and pocketed the flyer as Lily whined about wasted time. Really she was worse than Peter who was discovering the joys of coloring books from the comfort of a waiting room chair. The blonde knew her friend wasn't all that upset about staying in Storybrooke for a little longer. The longer she stayed, the more likely she was to run into the willowy woman that had captured her attention very quickly. In the past week and a half Lily had gripped about Zelena being taken by "that damned tree hugger who won't move out of his tent" and tried to talk to the redhead every chance she got.
"Yes, yes. Robin is an ass. I know." Emma elbowed her friend, it had become a daily rant now. "I'm the one who told you he was an ass."
"They are fighting you know."
Emma sighed but amused Lily by asking, "What?"
"Robin and Zelena." Lily spoke slowly as though to an infant, "They are not so quietly fighting, arguing in the middle of Granny's isn't exactly a way to keep your problems a secret. Anyway, he won't even try to live in an apartment and she doesn't want to live in a tent anymore. Is it wrong of me to hope they break up over it?"
"No." Emma said thoughtfully, "It's not wrong to hope. But you shouldn't try to sway her into breaking up with him. If it goes sideways then you might get the blame for them breaking up. And then you might not get your chance with her."
"But she's too damn good for him!" Lily whined, very nearly stomping her foot like a child. "God Em, I really like her."
"Do you even know her?" Emma shook her head and glanced at the picture Peter was coloring. Of all the Disney characters he found, he had declared Snow White was the worst, and so completely ignored all of her cartoon renditions. Emma was sure Regina had encouraged him to draw little x's where Snow's eyes should be in an image of her lying in her glass coffin.
"Not as well as I would like." Lily bemoaned, "Once we get past all the cultural differences and shit, I think we really connect."
"Then just be her friend, get to know her."
"She's snarky, and funny, and curious, and doesn't seem to mind a little blood." Lily smiled to herself, as she remembered the collected calmness Zelena exuded when she wrapped the bounty hunter's latest scrape. Really Lily counted herself lucky that she had been spared Emma's first aid skills on the side of the road while trying to fix the blonde's turck.
"And you have no idea how important that is. Coming home injured to your significant other after a job that didn't go so well sometimes scares them off."
"That's because you go home instead of to the hospital after you've been sliced open or shot."
"Details." the brunette waved off the specifics. "Point being she is absolutely-"
"Taken."
"-wicked."
Emma groaned and collapsed into the seat next to Peter. Very much done with Lily and her unrequited love for one day.
"Are you ready to go to Regina's?" The blonde turned her attention to Peter, doing her best to ignore Lily and her pining.
Bright green eyes remained focused on the coloring book. "No."
"Why not?" Emma frowned, they had packed his bag last night. Not to mention Regina still had some of Henry's old clothes that fit Peter at her house. "Do you not want to stay at Regina's?"
Peter shrugged noncommittally continuing his coloring without looking at her.
"What's going on? I thought you liked Regina."
"I do!" Peter insisted finally looking up at her with big green eyes.
"Then what's wrong?"
"You're leaving."
So that was it. Emma wrapped an arm around his small shoulders and pulled him into her side. "Peter we talked about this. It is only going to be for a few days. I am going to come back."
"But what about bandits? Or ogres?" Peter insisted snuggling into her side. "They might get you and then you'll leave like father and Nathan."
"There are no bandits or ogres in this realm Tiger." Emma rubbed his back in soothing circles. "Besides, I'm not going alone. I'm going with Lily and she is great back up, we'll keep each other safe. She's like the human version of Balto."
"Oi! I heard that!"
Emma grinned crookedly at her friend as the boy against her side broke out in giggles at Lily's reaction.
"My point right there. I will be fine, trust me." Emma pressed a kiss to the top of his head.
"Ok."
"Miss Swan?" Emma sat up straight to face the door where Dr. Thatcher was opening to allow Balto back into the waiting room. "Balto has gotten all his shots and we drew blood for testing just to make sure he is healthy. I'll call you in a week or so with his results."
"Excellent. Thanks Doc." Emma shook the man's hand and turned around to find Peter trying to climb on Balto's back like a horse and Lily zipping up the boy's bag ready to go.
"Alright let's get this show on the road!" Lily cheered leading the way out of the shelter. Emma snagged Peter before he could properly clamber onto the wolfhound and carried him to the car, trusting Balto to follow without command.
"Are we all set?" Lily asked twisting around in the driver's seat to watch Peter buckle up.
"No." came the simple reply.
"Why not?" Lily demanded in confusion. "Didn't you sort out everything with Emma? I'm not going to let her get hurt kid."
"My bag is on my bed at home." Peter answered simply before turning his attention to the wolfhound who laid his head in the boy's lap.
Lily groaned dramatically as she spun around, knowing they were going to have to double back for the bag and waste more time. "This is your fault you know."
Emma blinked, "How in the world is it my fault. Go left here, it will be faster."
"Forgetting to bring the packed bag is totally something you would do. It's why you are late to everything, always doubling back for things." Lily grumbled as she steered the car down the road Emma directed.
"Fair enough." Emma shrugged, there was no denying the truth of the statement. The blonde ignored Lily's grumbling as she played with the radio, trying to find a decent radio station for the journey before pulling out her phone to send Regina a quick text to give her an update.
"What the hell is he doing here?" Lily growled as she pulled into Emma's driveway.
Emma looked up from her phone to see Neal sitting on her front steps. His broken arm was cradling his ribs as he scrolled through his phone with his free hand. He was obviously waiting for her to return home.
"Hell if I know, Peter stay in the car with Lily. I'll grab Kodi for you." The blonde exited the car, shooting Lily a look silently telling her to stay in the car.
Neal looked up at the sound of the car door closing. A smile crossed his lips as he lurched to his feet to meet Emma halfway. "Em."
"What are you doing here Neal?" Emma crossed her arms and stopped a few feet from the brunette. The distance just enough to convey her continued displeasure with the man.
He frowned at her chilly manner, but if he was honest with himself he should have expected it. She had been avoiding him ever since she woke up in the hospital.
"I wanted to apologize for the things I said in the hospital." Neal ducked his head sheepishly. Even after so long he knew how to read Emma Swan, and he was most definitely angry with him. "I didn't mean what I said."
"You should have been the one in the accident not me and Henry!"
Emerald eyes narrowed, "Which part. You said a lot of things Neal."
"When I said you should have been the one in the accident." Neal rubbed the back of his neck, "I don't know why I said that. It was totally my fault, I shouldn't have tried to teach my son-."
"My son." Emma cut him off, uninterested in his apology. "Henry is my son, mine and Regina's."
"Emma, of course is your son. But he is also my son too. Henry is ours. We are a family." Neal took half a step closer, and when Emma didn't move he took another. "You don't have to run anymore."
"Were you planning to run away again? Is that why it took you so long?" Neal demanded, face reddening as he worked himself up. "If that's what you were planning on doing then you should have just stayed dead. You should have kept playing house with your new son and left Henry out of this."
Anger welled up inside of Emma, "Piss off Neal, you're not family." She shouldered past him roughly, trying to tamper down on the desire to throttle the man.
"Come on Em- you don't mean that." Neal grabbed her arm just before she moved out of reach.
"Yes I do!" Emma threw off Neal's hand and rounded on the man. "Family might not be something I have a lot of experience with, but I'm pretty damn sure that family, doesn't send each other to jail! Father's shouldn't be emotionally manipulating their sons just to spend time with them!"
Guilt washed over Neal's face clear as day. "Em-."
"No! I don't want to hear your excuses or your apologies Neal." Emma hissed, body trembling with the effort of restraining herself from beating him senseless. "Look at the car Neal." She pointed angrily at the car where Lily opened the door and stepped out ready to intervene. "Do you see Lily and that little boy? They are my family. Regina and Henry are my family. Those are the people who have stood by me. Not you."
"Everything ok?" Lily called from the car, blatantly eyeing Neal with distrust.
"Yeah we're fine here." Emma waved Lily down without looking at her.
"This is Regina's doing isn't it?" Neal's face reddened, either from pain or anger Emma didn't know. "She's tearing our family apart."
"We aren't a family to be torn apart." Emma spat, emerald eyes flickering yellow for a second. "You did that long before we could even be one. Now I'm going inside to get Peter's bag. If you are still on my lawn when I come back out I will redefine your definition of pain."
Emma spun back around and marched up the steps, nearly falling through an half rotten board that cracked ominously under the force. She snarled at it and kept going. Replacing the steps was going to have to wait until she came back from Boston.
Neal thankfully, had taken off by the time she had retrieved Peter's bag. The blonde took several deep breaths before climbing back into the car. She shared a frustrated look with Lily and settled in for the quiet car ride. The ride was thankfully long enough for her temper to dissipate and be replaced with an eagerness to see Henry and Regina before she left town.
"Alright I'll wait for you here. Don't take forever saying goodbye Swanny. We seriously need to get on the road." Lily warned as Emma opened her car door.
Peter undid his seatbelt and shoved his door open as Emma leaned back into the car for his bag. "The road isn't going anywhere."
The blonde straightened and caught sight of Peter and Balto tearing across Regina's lawn, "Peter! Shit, Lily don't you have child locks on your doors!"
"Why would I?"
"Gina!" Peter squealed excitedly as he let himself into the house, Balto close behind him.
Emma was hot on their heels calling after the boy, "Peter you can't barge into other people's homes!"
Regina appeared in the doorway of the kitchen just in time for Peter to barrel into her legs. Wrapping his arms around them in a fierce hug.
"Hello Peter." Regina smiled fondly at the child wrapped around her and straightened his hair affectionately. She eyed the wolfhound Emma was trying to herd outside. "You know Balto isn't allowed inside."
"Can we play in the backyard?"
"Of course you can sweetie." Regina returned Peter's grin with a smile of her own as he took off towards the backyard, Balto following behind him.
"I'm sorry about that, they escaped the second I had my back turned." said the blonde as she joined Regina by the window to watch Peter race around the backyard with Balto loping behind him.
"It's quite alright. That pair have quite a lot of energy."
"Are you sure you're ok with watching them? I can still take them with me." Emma offered Regina an out, knowing that her life was going to be considerably more hectic with an extra child and a dog.
Regina just smiled at Emma, "I am more than ok with watching them Emma. Peter is a gem and Balto is surprisingly well behaved." They had discussed this at length already, it was probably too much for Peter to travel outside of Storybrooke just yet. The boy was still getting used to the new realm, and taking him to a place where magic simply didn't exist was bound to be overwhelming.
"Thank you Regina." Emma shifted her weight on her feet almost nervously.
"Emma it's nothing-."
"I don't just mean for babysitting." Emma cut her off, unsure of how to express her gratitude for everything that the brunette has done. "I want to thank you for well everything. Everything you have done for me, and Henry, and Peter and Balto. You are the most caring person I have ever met."
"Have you forgotten who you are talking to dear?" Regina scoffed, "I am the Evil Queen."
"No. You're not." Emma insisted dropping Peter's bag so she could pull the brunette into a hug. "You aren't that person anymore. The Evil Queen couldn't have raised Henry into the fine young man he is becoming. The Evil Queen wouldn't have sucked up a killing curse in a well saving Snow White. The Evil Queen wouldn't have been ready to lose her life to save the town and turn off a kill switch. The Evil Queen wouldn't have willingly gotten on a ship with her arch enemies and work with them to sail to Neverland and save Henry. Much less have saved them dozens of times in the process. The Evil Queen wouldn't have spent months trying to help me travel across realms. She certainly wouldn't have cared what happened to Peter and Balto while I was in the hospital. Those are all things Regina Mills would and has done. And I am so thankful to her for every bit of it."
Regina buried her face in Emma's neck as she fought not to cry. It was hard not to believe she was still the Evil Queen when she lived in a town full of people who saw her that way and kept reminding her of it, despite her attempts to prove everyone to the contrary. She certainly hadn't been thanked for hardly anything she had done since the curse had been broken.
Despite the warmth Emma's thanks brought her Regina felt compelled to remind the blonde of one irrefutable fact. "Emma I am still the reason you grew up without your parents. I made horrible decisions as the Evil Queen and that was one of them. You shouldn't be thanking me."
"You made mistakes that were fueled by grief and anger. But Regina, despite what everyone seems to think, I don't blame you for growing up an orphan." Regina reared back from the safety of Emma's neck to stare at the blonde as though she had lost her mind. Emma gently cupped her cheek to keep her from looking away. "Yes you chose to enact a Dark Curse that ripped people from their homes and took away their memories. But you didn't choose to separate me from Snow and David. That was their choice, and I don't hold you accountable."
"But you want to court her."
Aurora's words echoed in Emma's skull as she locked gazes with Regina. It was clear as day that the brunette needed to hear that, despite her struggle to believe it. It was becoming even clearer to Emma that she definitely wanted to court Regina. Hell she wanted to chase all of Regina's demons away and take care of her.
"What the hell is taking so long- oh shit."
Regina stepped out of Emma's embrace and wrapped turned her back on the pair. Arms wrapping around her middle as she tried to compose herself. Emma shot Lily a glare that could have rivaled one of Regina's. The bounty hunter had the grace to look sheepish and held her hands up in an "I surrender" gesture.
"I'll just go wait in the car then." Lily turned around and fled the house before Emma threw something at her.
"I suppose you had better get going Miss Swan, it appears Miss Page cannot wait to get on the road."
Emma eyed Regina's turned back, the brunette was watching Peter and Balto romp in the back yard. She knew Regina was just trying to process, she had done this in Neverland too. Except she could throw fireballs at wild children trying to kill them as a form of venting.
"I'll just go say bye to Henry real fast." Emma muttered, grabbing Peter's bag off the floor and darting up the stairs.
The blonde dropped Peter's bag on the bed of the guest room that had somehow become his second room. The sound of a guitar caught Emma's attention, she smiled as she approached Henry's room. He still had her old ipod, she hadn't asked for it back and he hadn't offered. Maybe she should pick up another one while in Boston.
She leaned against the doorway watching Henry whose attention was fixated on his computer. He hadn't noticed her yet, and that was ok it gave her a chance to watch him. In her absence he had grown another inch or so. He was truly on his way to becoming a gangly teenager. When she looked at him, Emma saw more Regina in him than herself. He sat up straight, and was truly focused on the task at hand. He even pursed his lips in the same way when he was thinking that the brunette downstairs did.
He had Neal's unruly hair, and his ears. Emma wasn't sure where Henry got his nose from, it certainly wasn't hers or even Snow and Charmings. He had her ears though, so that was something. At least he had her sense of humor. Emerald eyes watched Henry tap out the beat to the song with his uncasted foot under the desk. Maybe he had her musical talent too.
Henry was growing up so fast.
It hurt that Emma had missed so much of his life. And then she missed another seven months not counting the time lost in Neverland. Emma promised herself she wouldn't miss any more. As the song approached the end she began to sing along.
"My heart's always with you now
I won't question why so many have died
My prayers have made it through yeah
'Cause with all these things we do
It don't matter when I'm coming home to you"
"And with all that we've been through
After all this time I'm coming home to you"
"Ma!" Henry's head whipped around and he grinned at her, waving her over so he could hug her.
Emma crossed the room and bent over to hug him, "Hey kid. Working on homework?"
"Yeah I got a book report due." Henry swung his chair around so he could face her as she sat on his bed. "You leaving with Aunt Lily soon?"
The blonde nodded, "She's in the car. We are gonna clear out our storage unit and I'm going to buy a new car. The truck isn't reliable enough. We'll be back in a few days tops."
"Ok. Balto and Peter are staying here then, aren't they?"
"Yup." Emma popped the 'p' and regarded Henry thoughtfully. "Henry, is there something you want to talk about?"
"It's stupid." Henry shrugged his shoulders, averting his eyes away from his mother's knowing ones.
"If it's bothering you then it's not stupid." Emma assured grabbing her son's hand and squeezing it gently. "I can make time to talk if you want to talk."
"Emma hurry up! You'll see the kid in a couple of days, we need to hit the road to avoid traffic!"
"Miss Page what have I said about shouting in my home!"
Emma groaned, "I swear I am going to kill Lily one of these days."
"Not if Mom kills her first." Henry grinned and squeezed her hand. "Ma, I want to talk. But not yet, I still need to sort out some things."
"Are you sure?" Emma searched Henry's face looking for any sign that she should tell Lily to piss off for a couple of hours. "I really can tell Lily to shove off for a couple of hours."
"It's fine, I'll see you when you come back." Henry turned around to face his computer again. Ending the conversation. Emerald eyes rolled as Henry dealt with his emotions the exact same way his mother did downstairs.
She huffed and pressed a kiss to his temple. "Alright I'll see you in a few days." She ruffled his hair and followed the sound of Regina lecturing Lily in the kitchen on house rules.
The pair were in the kitchen, Lily rolling her eyes and making a yapping motion with her hand while Regina's back was turned.
"Finally let's get this show on the road." Lily interrupted Regina and jumped to her feet as soon as she caught sight of the blonde in the doorway.
"Yeah, yeah I'll be right out." Emma waved her off, eyes focused on Regina.
"You better be." Lily grumbled, "I don't want to come back in here and have to hose the two of you down or anything."
"It's not like that!" Emma protested as Lily sauntered past.
"I know what I saw."
Emma shook her head and refocused on Regina who was collecting ingredients for dinner from her pantry. "Peter likes macaroni and cheese doesn't he?"
"Yeah. Loves the stuff."
"Good." Regina set a pot of water on the stove to boil. "Remember that you need to be back by Friday, there is a council meeting I need to attend and you agreed to watch them."
"I'll be back in time, I promise." Emma grabbed Regina's hand and pulled her gently away from the stove. She was unsurprised to see worry shining in those chocolate depths. "I will come home. I will call you and Henry and Peter every night if that will make you feel better."
"I will hold you to that."
Emma offered her a crooked smile, "Good. I will call when I get to Boston then." Emma gave Regina's hand a squeeze and on a whim pressed a kiss to Regina's cheek.
"Are you going now?"
Regina stared wide eyed at Emma, touching her cheek where the blonde had just kissed her as Emma scooped Peter up into her arms.
"Yup. I will see you in a few days Tiger. Don't you worry." Emma pressed a kiss to Peter's temple and swung around to face Regina. The brunette dropped her hand quickly and smiled at the pair. It was different to see Emma interact with a young child. The image made Regina wonder what Emma would have looked like with Henry in her arms when he was that age.
"Now you are going to behave for Regina, right?" Emma raised an eyebrow at the young boy. "That means no sneaking out trying to sleep with Balto in the backyard. You have Kodi upstairs in your room to sleep with instead."
Peter nodded solemnly and flung his little arms around Emma's neck, squeezing tightly. "You havta come back."
"Always." Emma promised meeting Regina's gaze. "Alright why don't you help Regina with dinner or play with Balto, I need to go before Lily comes barging in here for a third time."
Emma put Peter down and offered Regina one last smile, before heading for the door. Peter and the brunette trailing behind her. "Bye Emma!"
"Bye Peter, I'll call tonight ok? Before you go to bed."
"Stay out of trouble Emma." Regina scooped up Peter as he tried to follow Emma out the door.
"I'll do my best, but you know trouble always seems to find me." Emma offered one last wave to the pair in the doorway and slipped into the car with Lily.
Peter craned his neck to watch the pair drive off until it turned the corner and was out of sight. "She is gonna come back right?"
"Of course she is. Emma is too stubborn not to." Regina assured the little blonde and put him down. "Do you want to play in the backyard some more?"
Peter nodded enthusiastically, and took off before Regina could say anything else. Maybe this is what Emma was like as a child. She shook her head and made her way back to the kitchen, ready to finish dinner and keep an eye on Peter in the backyard.
Her thoughts wandered as she started the cheese sauce at poured the pasta into the pot. Did Emma's kiss mean anything? Or was it just a friendly kiss on the cheek and it didn't mean anything. They really needed to talk, sort out what kind of relationship they had now.
"So Ma is really gone again."
Regina was pulled from her thoughts as Henry shuffled into the kitchen and plopped onto a stool at the island.
"Yes she is." Regina pulled the pasta from the stove to drain it. "She won't be gone long. Don't worry."
Henry was silent for a long moment before speaking again, "Do you really think she is going to come back?"
"Of course. I'm coming home to you, and Henry."
"Of course Henry. Emma will always come home. She might take an unplanned detour." Regina reached out and cupped his chin, tilting his head so that he would look at her. "Your mother is not going to leave you Henry."
"Neal says Emma is a runner." Henry bit his lip as Regina's expression darkened. "You've said it too."
Regina sighed heavily, "Yes I did say that didn't I? But that was before I really got to know Emma. And Emma used to run because she had no place to call home. There was no one waiting for her to come home every night. She didn't have anyone she was responsible for. But now she has you Henry, and she will move heaven and earth to make sure you are happy and healthy. Do not doubt that."
"Neal doesn't really know Emma does he?"
"Not anymore. At one time he might have known her very well. But it has been a very long time." Regina agreed and moved back to the pasta and began stirring it into the cheese sauce. "People change over time, and it appears Mister Cassidy does not see that."
"I know. You changed." Henry smiled at his mother then, one that warmed Regina's heart.
"And I have you to thank for that." She pressed a kiss to his head as she passed him on the way to the refrigerator. "Will you fetch Peter and make sure he gets washed up? Dinner is almost ready."
"Alright." Henry slipped off the stool and left the kitchen to find call Peter in from the backyard like he was asked to.
By the time the boys had returned Regina had finished plating up the macaroni and cheese and thrown together a simple salad to balance out the carbs. She didn't know what kind of battle she was going to be in for to get Peter to eat the salad, but she hoped it wouldn't be as bad as trying to get Henry to eat greens when he was little.
"What about the lil' trees?"
Regina blinked once, and then twice as she struggled to process what Peter was asking her. "What are you talking about sweetie?"
"Emma puts lil' trees in my mac." Peter speared some of the cheesy noodles onto his fork despite the apparent lack of trees he was happy to eat the food in front of him. "And dogs. But she's sure that it's not real dogs. They're just called that."
Regina looked to Henry for help but the teen just shrugged and dug into his own plate. Dinner proved to be relatively uneventful. Peter only needing a little coaxing to eat his "rabbit food". A term for salad he had no doubt learned from Emma.
Emma's promised phone call came late that night. Well after Peter's bath and a half hearted attempt to sneak Balto upstairs into his room on the insistence that the wolfhound was cold.
"You should just let Balto in the house Regina. He's gotten all his shots and stuff. Plus he figured out the pottying in the yard not in the house thing real fast."
"I will not let a beast into my home just because a five year old wants it." Regina sniffed as she closed the door to Peter's room. The boy was quickly headed to dream land after talking to Emma.
"What about Henry? He's been lobbying for a dog of his own now."
Chocolate eyes rolled, "He's been lobbying for a dog for years. I am not about to give in now." Regina smiled and settled herself comfortably on her bed, phone still pressed to her ear.
"If you say so." There was a pause before, "Hey Regina?"
"Yes dear?" Regina's brow furrowed, she could hear the nervousness in Emma's voice. "What is it?"
"I think we should talk about us, when I get back I mean."
"Is something wrong Emma?" Regina couldn't deny the small tinge of fear that seeped into her heart at the words 'we should talk'. It was irrational, she didn't even know why she was afraid.
"No! No. I just. I've been thinking and spent the last four hours with Lily trying to sort things out."
"Then what is it?"
"Our friendship, relationship, thing."
As always, don't be shy to tell me what you think!