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Song: A Case of You by Joni Mitchell
Regina woke slowly and arched her back, readjusting her position. Her stomach and back pulled deliciously, stretching the muscles she'd abused the previous night. She loved that feeling as much as she loved magic. Her eyes cracked, nose wrinkling in confusion at the bright light of day. She'd slept thru the entire night. That only ever happened with sleep aides. Rolling onto her back, she noticed the missing warmth of Emma pressed against her. The thought transformed into a feeling that dropped into her gut, and confused her. It wasn't pleasant, not like most of the emotions Emma inspired.
"Hey, you're up," a soft voice called from across the bathroom door.
Regina glared at the previously absent blonde and sat up, blanket and sheet falling to her waist. Emma slipped into the bed, still naked and blinked up at her. Her face fell slowly as she noticed Regina's unreadable expression and flinched when Regina moved too quickly for her comfort, but The Queen only shifted in the bed to better glare at her.
"Can you warn me if you're going to throw a fireball at me?" Emma asked and sat up slowly. Still Regina only stared, eyes flicking over Emma's face. The knot in her stomach loosened slightly. She raised her hand, and Emma flinched again. Regina rolled her eyes and lifted blonde hair from her pet's shoulder and studied her neck.
"Yeah, it totally looks like Ruby's chew toy during the full moon," Emma joked and crossed her arms over her bare chest self-consciously. She'd known there would be marks and accepted them happily, but Regina's silence unnerved her. Had she woken with regret?
It wasn't exactly how she'd envisioned their first time, but she finally understood. She'd met Regina halfway, and they'd created something beautiful together, beautiful and satisfying… very satisfying. Regina needed to heal before she could feel, and their night together took them a giant, flying leap in that direction. Despite Emma's promises of obedience and submission, Regina took a huge chance (at least to her) that Emma betrayed that and harmed her as others had. The fact that she'd practically asked Emma to stay at the end of the night forged a bridge of mutual trust and respect between them, combining the pain Regina needed with the tenderness Emma craved.
It wasn't a tiny step, it was a catapult launch over Regina's thick, icy walls.
Regina raised an eyebrow and dropped her hair, smirking. Emma cocked her head to the side, eyes squinting in confusion. "Are you having feelings again? Is that why you're not saying anything?"
"Do you ever shut up?" Regina sniped. "I've only awoken, and I will throw a fireball at you if don't zip your flapping hole," she threatened.
Emma made a zipping motion across her lips and snuggled under the blankets, content to gaze up at her new lover. Regina really was a striking woman. "Hey," she caught Regina's attention, her vow of silence lasting all of ten seconds. "Come here," she pleaded softly.
Regina allowed The Savior to guide her to the bed once more and rested her head on Emma's shoulder. She traced the purple bite marks she'd left on Emma's breast during her last orgasm with light fingertips, proud of them. She wanted the world to know that Emma Swan belonged to her, yet… did she really?
"I'm having feelings," Regina confirmed and sighed in frustration.
"Do you need help with them or do I just need to be quiet?" Emma asked, holding Regina's ribs firmly.
"Are you capable of such a feat?" Regina snapped. Emma chuckled, brushing a thumb over Regina's side absently. It felt so fucking wonderful to be with Regina like this. If she played her cards right, it stood to reason this would become her morning every morning. The thought tugged the corners of her mouth upward.
"I have doubts about the meaning of last night's liaison," Regina admitted quietly, her voice rasping with morning and the deepness of her confession. She remained unaware of Emma's thoughts and smile, and The Savior sincerely doubted her ability to understand them if she had noticed.
"Insecurity," Emma murmured and nuzzled the crown of brown hair tickling her chin. "You have nothing to worry about. I meant everything I said last night, Regina. I want this, but I need to have veto power," she soothed The Queen's fears.
"I shall not force anything upon you," Regina vowed, mindful of the agreement they'd created the previous night.
"It's not just that," Emma said and craned her neck to the side, muscles tweaking from The Queen's abuse. "If I think something is going to hurt you, I'm going to say no. There's a difference between rough sex and harmful sex, and I reserve the right to draw that line," she stated firmly, leaving no room for argument. Though she entered this aspect of their relationship for her own selfish reasons, Regina still benefited from her humanity and love. As long as Regina treated her as a person and not as a thing, she knew she'd continue.
Regina raised herself onto her elbow and studied Emma's face, the sincerity and blatant care she felt. Emma always looked so kind, even when she was angry. "I shall honor my agreement and respect your wishes should you ever decline my attentions or request an end to our physical relationship," she clarified, hoping like hell she at least got this response right and loathing herself for caring if she spoke correctly in the first place.
Emma's lopsided grin told her that she had.
"Come here," The Savior whispered and pushed her fingers into black tresses, pulling Regina forward gently to keep from spooking her. For her part, Regina accepted the request with fervor and claimed Emma's lips.
Her body slid easy onto Emma's, legs tangling, breasts expanding and molding with the pressure of their breaths. Emma allowed Regina to set the pace as she had the previous night, and opened her mouth willingly when her tongue probed for permission. Emma flicked hers out to meet her queen's, slick muscles gliding sensually, and Regina moaned at the unexpected contact.
Emma grinned into the kiss and traced light hands over Regina's sides. They slid over the contour of her lower back and the swell of her ass, pulling a hum from The Queen's throat. With very little encouragement from her hands, Regina moved her hips lazily, rubbing her clit against Emma's thigh and hip bone. Her leg bumped Emma's on each upward roll, and the slow stimulation suited her just fine.
"My Queen, I apologize for the intrusion, but Emma…. Oh!" Astrid called frantically at first, clearly freaked out that Emma hadn't slept in her own bed. Regina detached her lips languidly, unconcerned with the image they painted for the blushing maid. Astrid squeaked and turned her back.
"Found her. Apologies, Majesty. I was only concerned for her safety," Astrid explained and tensed to bolt back into Emma's room.
"Astrid, what did you need?" Emma asked before the former fairy sprinted towards the safety of the kitchen.
"Mason is up but refuses to have breakfast until both of you come down to eat with him," she explained, her voice quivering with emotion. Fear, maybe, or embarrassment. She wrung her hands and awaited a proper dismissal. Emma nudged Regina and jerked her head towards Astrid.
The Queen cleared her throat. "Thank you, Astrid. You may inform him we'll be down in 30 minutes," Regina instructed. The maid scurried off, and Regina waited for the click of the door closing behind her before she turned to Emma.
She pressed a finger to Emma's lips when they opened to protest the short amount of time she'd given them to complete their morning workout and get properly cleaned up to have breakfast with Emma's son. Dragging the digit downwards, she stole a brief kiss. "We shall continue later," she assured Emma and then rolled away.
"We could continue in the shower," Emma suggested, following Regina and catching her hips before she exited the bed. She pressed sloppy, open mouth kisses to her shoulder and neck from behind.
Regina hummed in pleasure but shrugged her away and flung the covers to the side as she stood. "Later, Miss Swan. Use your own shower," she ordered and sauntered across the room with a gentle sway in her hips. Emma watched every delectable swish with rapt attention. Tossing her hair, Regina smirked over her shoulder a moment before closing herself in the bathroom.
"Fuck," Emma muttered and fell backwards onto the bed, arms thrown carelessly over her head on the pillows. Regina Mills became her lover in the blink of an eye, and she knew that one day she'd die of excitement because of that.
What a way to go, she thought and pulled herself out of the bed to prepare for her day with Mason. They'd planned to go at the movies and video games as hard as they could today, and though she'd missed her good morning fuck with Regina, the thought of her son's greeting yesterday left her full of energy. He hadn't hated her as she'd expected.
With renewed vigor, she forced herself from the bed and made a bee line for her shower. As usual, she finished faster than any other person alive and toweled at her hair, studying her wardrobe. Her normal clothes were completely out of the question as they exposed her throat, so she grabbed an itchy turtleneck that Graham had bought when she first arrived.
As she pulled the garment onto her arms, hands grabbed her hips, nails sinking into her flesh. Emma jerked and twirled, more out of surprise than fear. Who the hell would attack her in Regina's house? Well, okay, Cora, but she'd been awfully docile as of late. Regina's amused smirk awaited her when she whipped about, and Emma glared at the playful queen.
"Geez, invest in a freakin' bell," she griped and returned her attention to the sweater. Regina snatched it away and tossed it onto the bed, inspiring Emma's hands to her hips.
"What the hell, woman?" She demanded, cocking her hip to the side for sass effect.
"I wish my marks to be displayed," Regina explained with a shrug and stepped into her personal bubble. Warm, pampered hands gripped her waist possessively, and Regina dropped a kiss onto her collarbone.
"Mason doesn't exactly know about our arrangement," Emma countered gently. Like everything pertaining to Regina, this situation required her to not only read between the lines but dig through the three feet of cement and unlock a steel cage with no key in order to figure out Regina's deeper meaning.
"You are ashamed of your queen's brand?" Regina asked haughtily, but a sliver of hurt appeared on her face, or perhaps shame. She wanted to show her off like a 14-year-old who had just given her first hickey.
Emma sighed and tucked a strand of hair behind Regina's ear before cupping her cheek. "Of course I'm not ashamed of your marks, Regina, but he's my son. What if he thinks I'm still a prostitute?"
Regina raised her chin. "In our land, such women were revered and highly sought after. They possessed more power than even I had as queen before Leopold's demise. Is that such a horrible position to hold?" She asked, genuinely seeking answers.
"When one of my… her… other Emma's customers beat him and tossed him away like he was nothing, which put him in the system? Yes, it's not something I want him to think," Emma explained patiently, falling easily into the flow of Regina's constant search to understand.
Regina nodded, apparently deeming that acceptable. She retrieved the shirt and held it out, intending to dress her pet. Emma slipped into it and pulled her hair free. "You may wear this in the mansion. When we dine at Granny's later this afternoon, I expect full display. A scarf, I believe undone on one side while Mason sits at your other."
Emma grinned. "You got a deal," she agreed, meeting the compromise before Regina revoked it completely. She thought perhaps she should have been offended by the fact that Regina presented her to the public like a trophy, but the bashful grin and slight lowering of Regina's eyes told her that it went far deeper than that. Regina was proud to have selected her as a pet and wanted everyone to know that. Yes, it served as the physical manifestation of her possession but also blazed as an emblem to Regina's commitment to truly change.
"Holy shit, you look hot," she blurted, losing momentum to decipher the reasons behind their newest compromise as she noticed Regina's outfit. Black dress slacks, a crisp white shirt with a black and white vest and blazer on top, and of course a set of those giant black pumps.
"Definitely like the power dyke look for you," Emma blubbered and eyed the other woman lasciviously.
"What on earth is a power dyke?" Regina snapped, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Uhh, crap… it's like, lesbians who dress like they're in charge," Emma explained horribly.
Regina cocked an eyebrow and huffed. "I am in charge, Miss Swan," The Queen proclaimed, growing more irritable by the second.
"Yes, but… power dykes are women who… I'm not sure I can explain this without assistance from Google," Emma admitted defeat.
"The Google is useless," Regina muttered, remembering her failed attempts at apologizing to Emma with it's suggestions. A smile tugged at her lips, though.
"Yes, but…" Heat flushed Emma's cheeks, tipping her ears uncomfortably. Regina's grin turned into a devilish smirk, and Emma deflated dramatically. "You're fucking with me," she deduced. Regina Mills made another joke? She laughed out loud and ran a hand thru her tangled blonde hair. "You're evil. Sexy, but evil."
Regina cleared her throat. "Honestly, Miss Swan, can you find no other genre of thought or has time travel shrunken your brain?" She squirmed under Emma's attention. No one had ever venerated her intelligence, strength, and physical form so openly and equally before. It confused and exhilarated her.
Emma rolled her eyes and offered Regina her arm. "You're welcome," she sassed and led Regina from the room.
Mason smiled up at them when they entered, and Emma dropped Regina's arm self-consciously but remembered to pull out her chair. She slumped into her own and ruffled her son's shaggy hair, hoping to distract him from their odd behavior. "Hey, kid."
"Hey Mom," he returned the greeting. "Good morning, Regina," he offered a bit more graciously to The Queen. "I already got us all breakfast. I hope that's okay. It's that queen's breakfast thing that you keep getting me," he babbled anxiously, clearly seeking Regina's approval.
"That's wonderful, Mason. Thank you," The Queen praised, and the teenager beamed, his mother right along side him. She loved watching this Regina interact with her son. Not that she hadn't enjoyed Henry and the original Regina, but that Regina had done things to intentionally hurt him in order to hurt Emma. This Regina wasn't like that, even though she'd threatened many times to be exactly that. She protected him from Cora, kept her temper in check, and indulged his whims of fancy with patience. She preferred this much more, she decided.
Coffee appeared in front of the two women, and their breakfasts followed a moment later. Astrid blushed profusely, nearly spilling a plate on Mason's lap. She glanced nervously between The Queen and Savior and then scurried to the kitchen. Mason watched her curiously, noticing the odd behavior shift since she'd returned from retrieving the women.
He squinted at Regina's nonchalance, and Emma's reddened cheeks hidden that she tried to hide behind her coffee cup. Finally, the pieces clicked into place, from their awkwardness of the previous day to their embarrassed expressions. "How long have you guys been together?"
Emma choked of the coffee, nearly sending it flying across the table. "How?"
"I'm not stupid, and I know how to read people," Mason answered the question with a shrug. Of course, he knew how to read people. He spawned from her womb and now carried a lot of the same experiences of her childhood.
"Not long, kid," Emma answered. "It's all sort of new." Honesty was probably best at this point. They'd already told him lies that could have crumbled at any second with the wrong word from someone. "You okay with that?" She asked, pushing the darker thoughts away in light of gaining her son's approval.
Mason shrugged and crunched into a strip of bacon. "As long as I get to have bacon every day," he chirped happily. His mom's girlfriend was awesome, odd but awesome. He couldn't have cared less if Emma had fallen in love with a woman. She wanted him, and Regina wanted him.
"I believe that arrangement is agreeable," Regina humored the boy's way of handling the situation. She understood him much better than most adults, even Emma. He chose not to feel things, only to survive not to be cruel. She adored him, terrifyingly so. The number of potential weaknesses in her life grew each day, and the task of protecting each of them overwhelmed her.
She hid the discomfort in a swallow of coffee and cleared her throat. "Have you two decided on activities for the day?"
Emma smirked at her son who grinned cheekily around a mouthful of food. The Savior answered, "We're going to raid your huge movie selection in the living room and put that Xbox to good use."
Regina brow pulled together. "That room is mostly used by my guards and servants. I'm uncertain it's appropriate for a boy," she stopped just short of forbidding their plans.
"Nah, it's fine. As long as we have snacks, right, Kid?" Emma nudged his shoulder with her elbow, and he nodded enthusiastically.
"Very well," Regina conceded with a sigh. Mason beamed at her, and The Queen's face softened under his attention. His happiness filled her chest with unexpected warmth, and with a searching glance towards Emma for guidance, she allowed it.
Emma smiled up at her from the hunched position over her plate, the posture mimicked by the boy at her pet's side. One side of her mouth tugged upwards, displaying that liquid heat in her chest. Blinking, she opened her eyes to find Emma fully invested in breakfast once more, but her eyes refused to look away from mother and son. She'd brought them together, fulfilling their mutual wish to reunite and giving them the only person they ever needed.
Neither had a choice to leave, and yet, they'd both chosen to stay, chosen her.
"Hey," Emma caught her attention quietly, touching her hand that loosely gripped the coffee mug. "You okay?" She asked with a foolish lopsided grin.
Familiar panic swelled and crashed in her chest, electrocuted her heart into a frenzied tempo. She recoiled, jerking her hand away so quickly that the cup of coffee tipped onto the bright white table cloth, staining it instantly in a dull brown. Regina stood with a harsh scrape of her chair on hardwood.
"I've lost my appetite. I'll take coffee in my office and begin my work," she clipped, more for Mason's benefit than Emma's. Had he not watched her reaction in confusion, she'd have simply stomped off without explanation.
She bolted from the dining room, heels tapping smartly, and shut herself in her office. The moment her back leaned heavily on the closed door, she pressed a hand to her chest and winced lightly as it sunk beneath the surface to free her heart from its anatomical constraints. For a moment, the world moved around her but time stood still. Her chest heaved painfully at the sight of something she'd not seen since casting the curse.
There, in the center of blackness, a tiny tendril of bright pink pulsed and swirled, a beacon in the darkness meant to lead her back to what she'd embodied before the darkness shrouded it.