"Marvelous, you're awake."
Ursula drawls huskily as her eyes linger on thin, indigo cotton and the pert flesh it does little to hide. Regina pulls the heavy covers that pool about her waist up to cover herself primly, unable to hide the cold bite to her tone the Sea Witch's open perversion has garnered.
"Good morning..."
Ice-ridden words go unnoticed, as the Sea Queen's attention falls to the blonde who remains sprawled beside the bed. She lies awkwardly on her back, propped up on her elbows, allowing fear-filled green to dart about the large woman's buxom frame frantically.
It's not the Sheriff's eyes in which Ursula's interests currently lie however; tongue protruding to wet thick lips as she drinks in pale thighs littered with the delicate flowers of healing bruises, splayed almost wantonly in the blonde's current position. The ruined scrap of the younger woman's underwear serves more to tease than to offer her any modesty; the tattered fabric all but begging to be ripped away once and for all.
"And a good morning to you, sweetness."
The Witch directs her words towards the brunette, but offers the Sheriff a coy wink which doesn't go unnoticed by either of the younger two women.
"I do hope I'm not interrupting anything..."
Hooded orbs lock with green and the blonde takes in a sharp breath as she is abruptly reminded of her dream starring the glowering brunette sat on the bed above her; inexplicably sure that Ursula can see right into her mind and that the Witch knows exactly what sordid images had awoken her during the night.
The Sea Queen smirks knowingly as Emma hastily lowers her eyes to the floor; pale cheeks pinkening prettily.
"Not at all, Your Majesty, I had only just awoken... May I help you at all?"
Regina's words are laced with brittle discomfort; not liking the predatory way the Witch looks down at the younger woman one bit.
Even if it is only Emma.
"Help? No, darling, I require no assistance... At least, not at present. No, I merely wished to stop by in person to inform you of the gala that will be held in the great ballroom tomorrow evening. I am currently the recipient of royal guests other than yourself as you may have heard, and the evening has been planned for some time now in celebration of their visit. I apologise, as it is for this reason that the matter of getting you and your spoils home is taking a little longer then you had perhaps expected, but I am nothing if not a gracious host, and these things are, unfortunately, not to be neglected due to unforeseen circumstances."
"Of course not, I understand. I am merely grateful that you would agree to help me at all..."
"Your mother was a dear friend, precious."
"And she was lucky to have a friend in yourself, I am sure."
"You are kind."
"I simply speak the truth, Your Majesty."
The words feel slick and nauseating as they drip from her tongue, but the Mayor forces herself to smile, while repeating over and over in her mind that her act is simply a means to an end. She is relieved that the blonde has so far kept her mouth shut, and only prays that this small notice is the Witch's only reason for visiting.
"You must come down, my darling, and meet my guests. I would find it most pleasurable should you attend."
"... I would be delighted to."
"Splendid!"
Ursula claps her thick-fingered hands together in a perversely childlike fashion, dark eyes glittering piggishly as she offers the brunette a simpering smile.
"Oh, how droll! I will have you escorted down to the east wing to find something fitting to wear after lunch tomorrow. I am still in possession of a great array of garments owned by the girls who once paid me company. I'm sure you will find something in your size, dear one."
Owned by the girls who once paid you company?
Delphine?
Stop this. Thinking upon the matter will get you nowhere.
"That is most kind of you..."
"Not at all, sweetheart, not at all... I will look forward to it."
With that, Ursula takes her leave, fluttering bejewelled fingers as she slips out into the hallway, leaving Regina to mull over her words with a frown.
"...Nothing changes, it's always the pretty, popular girls who get invited to the parties."
Emma's sarcastic drawl has the brunette jumping in surprise and she glares down at the younger woman angrily, her cheeks flushing ever so slightly when she takes in the blonde's position.
"Must you lie that way?"
Glancing down at herself and realising that she lies with her legs casually splayed and her hair tumbling down her back thus providing no cover, Emma curls up sheepishly, moving so that she sits with her knees drawn up in front of her chest with a small wince.
"Are you alright?"
"Apart from being pretty sure you've shattered my tailbone in your haste to get me out of bed, then yes."
"Oh, don't be so dramatic."
Regina snaps, despite feeling a small twinge of concern.
After all, if anyone should recognise the feeling of shattering one's bones it's her...
Yes, but if anyone should make insufferable, irrelevant comments, I believe Miss Swan would be the primary contender also.
"You're fine."
"Yes, doctor."
Rolling her eyes, the Queen sighs, watching expressionlessly as Emma reaches for the woollen throw that now lies forlorn beside the bed and wraps herself up before moving so that she sits with her back rested against the wall, her long hair tumbling over the thick fabric chaotically.
"So it looks like you're going to be mingling with the elite tomorrow..."
Whatever caustic teasing she had meant to inject into her tone falls flat, her brow furrowing instead as she nibbles nervously at her lip.
"... Are you going to be alright?"
Well kept brows arch in surprise, before the brunette answers pensively.
"I imagine so. I have played both host and guest at a great many galas and soirees in my time... They are invariably frightfully dull and involve a lot of heated gossip falling from liquored lips. My greatest fear is that I shall die due to boredom."
She sniffs arrogantly, but doesn't kid herself that she's fooled the Sheriff in the slightest; the younger woman offering her an awkward shrug and laying the topic hesitantly to rest.
"I guess it's going to be a while before she helps us then..."
"... I'm afraid so."
"I, uh... I'm not gonna lie; I'm itching to get out of here, you know? She's fucking creepy-"
"-hush, dear."
"What?! Like you-"
"-Emma!... You need to learn to keep such opinions to yourself... Not because they aren't understood, but because you risk the possibility of them being overheard."
"... You think she's listening?"
The blonde's hushed whisper is so similar to Henry's in its ridiculous extravagance, the brunette finds herself rolling her eyes with a peculiar fondness masquerading as irritability.
"I think it's best you keep quiet more often... I'd urge you to continue this same caution once we get home also."
"Oh, bite me."
A light blush follows these words as pale fingers whisper against bruised flesh of their own accord and the Mayor looks swiftly away.
"... Guess that's gonna be... too..."
"Excuse me?"
Regina barks with unnecessary venom as the Sheriff mutters inaudibly. She sighs; telling herself to refrain from doing this quite so often as it only serves to garner her that hateful doe-eyed look of hurt which doesn't seem to suit the Sheriff's features at all.
"I didn't catch that..."
Lower. Kinder.
Emma shrugs moodily, her eyes downcast to her knees which peek palely from the folds of the throw; the bandage to the left one fraying and filthy.
"It doesn't matter."
"No, go on."
"I just... I want to see my mom."
Soft lips form that ever familiar hard line as the younger woman looks up and readies herself for snide ridicule.
"Oh."
"I just... I need to see her, you know... I know you probably don't... But... Would it be okay if we went up there? Please?"
Regina frowns at the sudden earnest in the blonde's expression and she understands that this is something the Sheriff has been building up the nerve to ask for some time now.
She wonders just how long.
She wonders why Emma's mind works in such a peculiar fashion.
"Miss Swan..."
The hard line of the younger woman's mouth turns down at the corners and the brunette sighs, not accustomed to dealing with such matters with the patience she is currently trying to offer.
"You can't go up there..."
"Not on my own, I know, but if you went and took me with you... I'll be good, I promise. I'll, like, walk behind you or whatever... I just... She's my best friend and I'm worried about her... I know you said she's fine... But... She's my... My..."
"... She's your mother."
"Well, yeah... And I know you probably think that would be a stupid reason for me to want to see her given as we've never really-"
"- I think nothing of the sort. What I do think is that while you view Miss Blanchard first and foremost as your friend, she herself views you as her daughter. More that that, though... You are her princess, however much you may despise the term... You can't go visit her... Not like this."
The Queen gives a graceful sweep of her hand to gesture towards the blonde's lack of attire.
"But-"
"-You will be doing her no favours going to her in your current state, Sheriff."
Preparing for the next words of argument from the younger woman, the brunette frowns in surprise when the blonde proceeds to simply open and close her mouth wordlessly before lowering her face onto her knees. Clearing her throat awkwardly, Regina searches for something to say; recognising the Sheriff's position as one of upset and distress, but not entirely sure her mind can comprehend these emotions being expressed by the Swan woman quite to early in the morning.
Where on earth did all this suddenly come from?
It is a half-hearted thought however, as she imagines she understands most of it even before Emma answers her question in a low drawl; muttering into the heavy wool that covers her legs as she refuses to look up at the Queen.
"I'm sick of being in this 'state'. I don't want to do this anymore... I never even used to get changed in the locker room at the pool, and now everyone's looking at me and I don't want them to! Dinner was embarrassing for me, okay? Probably for you too, but more so for me and I don't care how childish you think that sounds. I'm the one that has to be naked and made fun of. I'm tired, and I don't feel all that good, and I just want Mary Margaret and I'm sorry because I know you've been trying really hard to be nice to me and that can't be easy of you, but I don't want you to be nice to me. I want my... My mom."
The blonde's explanation is hard to understand, both due to the fact that her voice comes out in muffled bursts, and due to the fact that as she speaks her mannerisms become more and more childlike, leaving the Mayor feeling both irritated and concerned as she stares down at the heavy waterfall of curls that shroud the younger woman messily. She is entirely unaccustomed to dealing with Emma admitting defeat, but she has always recognised a sense of pride in the blonde that she can fully understand is currently being put to the ultimate test; something that she can empathise with all too easily.
I've spent so long wishing for and working towards breaking the woman, and now that it's actually happening, I can't stand the sight.
"I can't let you take clothes belonging to Ursula..."
Silence.
Regina moves to the edge of the bed so as better to regard the Sheriff, taking in the motionless ball of wool and hair uncomfortably.
"You can't go to see her like this, Emma, you just can't... But..."
Closing her eyes as she makes her final decision, she places a brief prayer to any interested deity that she isn't going to royally regret extending such uncharacteristic kindness to the insufferable young woman, before glancing down at Emma once more and letting out a defeated sigh.
"...There is another way..."