A/N: I'M BACK! I know an apology is wayyy overdue, but I had this chapter wrote months ago, but actually forgot about it. I've been off the grid so to speak! I went to America and a few places in Europe and it was the most amazing experience ever! Please don't hate me too much for the lack of updates for any of my fics, I know I've more than one! Think of it as an early christmas present - keep an eye out for my other fics - they may be getting an update too.
This first small time jump we have, it's only a small one of two years, which makes Eve 6 - almost 7, Henry at 9, Regina at 38 and Emma at 27 this is really more of a run down chapter on what's been happening.
Please let me know your thoughts, I'm not 100% confident with this so your thoughts will help greatly!
Emma and Regina had celebrated their two year wedding anniversary, 8 birthday's within the Swan-Mills household, well ten if you include Swan in that, and things could not be better for the couple who always seemed to still be in the honeymoon phase, even after two years. A lot has happened over the past two years that even Regina and Emma have a hard time getting their heads around it. Regina and Emma were stronger than they had ever been, especially since the arrival of her half brother - Robert - after her grandfather- she was not even considering calling him her step-son, that ship had sailed long ago, things with her mother, thanks to Emma, had improved, her Mother had, thawed since telling Regina of her pregnancy, and the brunette realised that having her mother in her life, but this time a mother who was on her side for a change and wasn't out to one up her daughter, wasn't such a bad thing, yes it meant that family gatherings were slightly awkward seeing as Henry Snr had since entered into a relationship with Widow Lucas and his relationship with Cora was nothing more than polite conversation which had both Emma and Zelena smirking and quietly giggling earning both of them a smack from Regina every time, which in turn earned giggles from Eve, Henry and almost every adult in the room.
Eve had grown up in the two years since their marriage, she was no longer the shy little four year old girl that called Regina 'He'ry's Mommy' she was now an enthusiastic six - almost seven year old who was her mother's daughter through and though, if she wasn't out skateboarding while her brother rode his bike, she was in the den reading a Harry Potter book or arguing with Henry that DC was better than Marvel, which was going nowhere, as one kid loved DC while the other loved Marvel, it did make for interest movie nights when it came to superhero movies, she was growing faster than Emma and Regina would have liked, seeing as the once tiny child who would always be attached to her mother's hip was now quite tall for her age, cheeky beyond words, and who's bond with her blonde mother was stronger than everyone had known would happen but yet didn't expect.
"Mommy?" Eve said as she barrelled into the living room, Swan hot on her heels, Emma looked up from her file and smiled at her daughter, she loved being called "Mommy', even if the six year old only did it now and then. Eve was tall for a six year old, taller than Emma was at her age, but she was the image of her mother, long, untamable, blonde hair that hung half way down her back, Emma chuckled as she remembered Regina's attempts at trying to tame it the first day of first grade.
"Evelyn Lucia Swan-Mills" Regina said in a firm tone that made the giggling girl stop giggling and her equally giggling blonde mother stop as well,
"Oh, you got the full name kid, you're in for it now" Emma said, Eve glared at her mother but couldn't help the small smirk that graced her face, Regina glared at Emma through the mirror before looking at her daughter,
"if you don't hold still I will seriously consider sending you to the naughty step" Regina said making eye contact with her daughter through the mirror, Eve opened her mouth to respond but the raised eyebrow from her brunette mother and the subtle shake of a head from her blonde made her close her mouth with a huff, cross her arms and pout, Emma had to bite her lip to stop from laughing at the adorableness of her daughter and the smug smile that was planted on her wife's face, Regina set to brushing her daughters hair trying, in vain, for ten solid minutes, to tame it's unruliness, after three more attempts she looked up with a sigh to see two blondes grinning widely back at her, Emma chuckled,
"It's like mine babe, you aren't gonna make it cooperate" Emma said holding her fist out to her six year old who bumped her own tiny fist against it, Regina sighed but smiled, she knew there was no way of taming the young blondes hair, just like there was no way of taming the older blondes, she looked on with a lazy grin at her two favourite girls interact, she rolled her eyes when they went back to giggling uncontrollably.
"Evie Bean" Emma said as she lifted Eve onto her lap, her daughter wrapping her arms around her neck and squeezed tightly, Swan sat at Emma's side, his tail hitting off the leg of the chair as he looked up at his tiny human and his master, Eve smiled widely when she pulled back,
"Can we go see Pops and Granny?" Eve asked as she turned around, leaned back against Emma, and swung her feet, just missing her mother's shins. Emma smiled, she loved that Eve still wanted to be held, even though at six, the once overly clingy child was nowhere to be seen, given, her daughter was still clingy but no where near like four year old Eve was, unless of course there was a nightmare of she just wanted some Mommy time, Emma kissed the back of her head, taking in the smell of her daughters lavender shampoo,
"Sure we can, we gotta wait for Momma and Henry though" Emma said squeezing her daughter who giggled, Eve nodded and leaned further back into Emma, enjoying being held by her blonde mother, as much as she loved Regina, her bond with Emma would always be that little bit stronger.
Henry on the other hand, who was no longer the six year old shy boy that Emma knew, he was now quite a lanky nine year old, who's love of books and comics only seemed to grow, all to his nerdy blonde mothers' delight who was so out of his shell it was hard for anyone to believe that he was the same kid, Henry was in Fourth Grade and doing so well that his teacher was giving him fifth grade work to do, along with his normal fourth grade, Regina, and Emma, could not be more proud of their son, Henry had also joined the local soccer team, after having to persuade his very reluctant brunette mother, with the help of his blonde, for months, had finally agreed to let him attend training, in full, Henry, which to both Emma and Eve's delight, was one of the star players.
"Takes after his Mom" Emma said proudly as she watched Henry dribble the ball, spin and score from the sidelines, Eve ran in circles with her arms out as she high fived her brother when he ran past with his hand out, Regina rolled her eyes at her wife, yes, Emma may have taught Henry a few tricks, but the skill the young boy had was very impressive, something that she knew she didn't get from her or Daniel.
"No need to boast dear, it will only expand that big head of yours even more" Regina said as she squatted down and wrapped her arms around a five year old Eve who was giggling at her blonde mother, she fake glared at Regina before squatting down to join her wife and daughter, she moved faster than Eve was prepared for and chuckled at the high pitch squeal that sounded around the pitch,
"What you laughing at blondie" Emma said, stopping when Regina batted her hands away and pulled her daughter closer, Eve turned and wrapped her arms around Regina's neck then sticking her tongue out at her blonde mother who narrowed her eyes and pointed her finger at her grinning daughter all the while Regina shook her head trying to stop herself from laughing at the pair.
Emma sighed and she positioned Eve on her knee better and lifted the report back up, scanning over it, Swan Motors had taken off in the past two years, so much so that they had to expand the garage, hire another mechanic and purchase another two tow trucks, being 27 didn't feel much different, other than being constantly reminded that she was now closer to 30 than she ever was before was not something she liked, the fact that her wife however was about to turn 38 was even scarier, she never had an issue with their ages, she never really cared for age, but knowing that her wife was going to be 40 before she was even 30 made her wonder if that still scared Regina more than her, Regina had voiced her concern at the start of their relationship, it never bothered Emma at all that she was dating an older woman, in fact she preferred to date an older woman, not because she she didn't like women her own age, but she felt that an older woman had more to give with regards to a relationship, they had seen more and experienced more of the world than Emma had, and that was a big attraction for the blonde, but the fact that age was a touchy subject for the brunette even after being together for almost 4 years was still a topic that Emma tried to avoid at all costs.
"Be reasonable here Emma" Regina said as she stood in the blonde's kitchen, her hands on her hips as she glared at her girlfriend, Emma sighed and ran her fingers through her hair, thank god Ruby and Belle had offered to take Eve for the day and Henry Snr had taken Henry, cause she was not in the mood for hyper screaming children right now,
"I AM!" Emma said, "Jesus Regina, I know you're older than me, and I don't have a problem with that" Emma said, Regina raised an eyebrow at the blonde's tone, "but I honestly, couldn't care if your were fifty" Emma said, she paused for a second as her girlfriend smirked, "What?" Emma asked shrugging, "I would totally date you if you where fifty" Emma said with a smile, Regina just rolled her eyes and huffed once more, "I honestly don't Regina, am I bothered that you're older than me, no, do I know that you're worried that I'm gonna run off with someone younger than you" Regina's eyes widened at this, "yes I do, but you don't need to worry Regina" Emma said walking around the island and taking Regina's hands in her, Regina relaxed slightly at her girlfriends touch, but was still slightly on edge, "Honey, I don't wanna be with anyone else" Regina raised an eyebrow and Emma sighed, 'here we go again' she thought.
"You say that now Emma, but in a few years you may think different, I'm almost 40 for fuck sake" Regina said throwing her hands in the air, Emma gasped, Regina never cursed, so this was new,
"Regina, seriously" Emma said taking the hands of her girlfriend again, and watching as her touch, took a little longer, but still managed to calm her girlfriend, "you're not even pushing 40 darling, ok" Emma said leaning in and kissing her forehead, "Look, I'll make you a promise ok, if, and that's a very, very big if, I ever want to go out with someone who is younger than you:
"And sexier" Regina added, Emma scoffed and it make Regina smile,
"That is highly doubtful" Emma said with earned a wider and truer smile that reached Regina's eyes, "then we will discuss what we are gonna do" Emma said as she pulled Regina closer to her, wrapping her arms around her and smiling when the tension left Regina quicker than a waterfall fall, Emma smiled and kissed her head, "but believe me Regina, you" Emma said pulling back so she could look Regina in the eye, "you are it for me" Emma said, Regina smiled, she did believe her, but she couldn't shake the feeling that of being cheated on again, she knew that she was being rude to Emma's character, but having being cheated on countless times, she knows how betrayed and broken it makes you feel, but deep down, below all the worry, she knew that Emma, not matter what, would be hers, and only hers, as possessive as that did sound, it gave Regina a small piece of mind that for once, someone would actually choose her.
"Hey Gina" Emma said as she lowered the paper, Regina and Henry had arrived home two days previous from a week long trip to London, Regina had of course asked Emma and Eve to join her but the blonde refused, as did her blonde daughter, opting to spend time with each other, Henry and Regina both were disappointed at first, but they realised that this was a chance for them to spend time with each other also.
Regina and Emma had enjoyed a kid free weekend thanks to Ruby and Belle taking Eve and Henry, giving the married couple some well deserved alone time after being apart for a week.
"Yes my love" Regina said, swallowing the mouthful of coffee and smiling at her blonde sex-tossed haired wife, the top three buttons of her white button up left nothing to the imagination as Emma's, mostly, naked form sat opposite her at the table, Emma grinned toothily at her
"How you would feel about me entering law enforcement?" Emma said, watching as her wife took another sip of coffee and almost choked, Emma smirked, she knew her wife's reaction way before she had decided to ask the question, but seeing it, well, it gave Emma a chuckle, even if it was at her wife's expense.
"Excuse me?" Regina said, lifting an eyebrow as she dabbed the napkin at the sides of her mouth, Emma turned the paper around to Regina pointing at the photo of the recent NYPD annual Pride Celebration that was held in downtown New York, Regina all but grabbed the paper from Emma, and Emma chuckled as the vein in her wife's forehead started to bulge, Regina looked at her, and if Emma didn't know her wife, she would be a little terrified of her, Regina set the paper down, linked her fingers and set her hands down on top of the paper, she then looked calmly at her grinning wife before opening her mouth, "and why, pray tell, would you want a career in law enforcement?" Regina asked, all too calmly,
"I'm just considering a change of profession" Emma said as she grabbed the marmalade that was sitting in front of her and leathered a decent amount of a slice of toast, she knew being this calm with her wife was going to make her explode and more than likely withhold sex for a month, well two days tops, if previous attempts were anything to go by, but she really was considering a change of career, and why not be a cop, she wanted to be one when she was younger, but for whatever reason, the idea of her being a cop never came up again, until recently.
"Emma" Regina said, "you do realise that if you were to become a cop, there would be no guarantee that you would be coming home safely to your family every night?" Regina said, trying to keep her emotions in check, Emma knew that Regina was not fully over her little accident three years ago, Emma still wasn't 100% either, with pains coming into her leg mostly at night, where she would wake up and have to bit her pillow to stop from screaming out with the pain and Regina waking and trying not to panic as she tried her best to soothe her wife, who ended up in her arms in tears of pain, as she cried herself back to a restless sleep, she wasn't even sure if her leg injury would be held against her, she really needed to find out a little more before she gave her wife an actual heartattack.
"Gina, it's not like they're gonna send me out straight away, you've to go to the academy first, and then you're on probation for like a year before you're even allowed to go off on your own, and even then, you're always gonna have someone watching you back" Emma said, she had heard about the recruitment that was happening, she was still young, and extremely fit, minus her leg, so fitness would be no problem for her, she also knew that the mental evaluation would be a piece of cake, Emma learned, over time that is, that talking about her emotions was something that helped, even if it was mostly to Swan, but it still helped, bottling things up wasn't good for anyone.
"Darling, I don't know" Regina said, "I already worry about you, imagine what I would be like if you were to become a police officer, I would never sleep" Regina said, Emma smiled,
"I know babe, it's just a thought though, besides, I think I'd look pretty good in the NYPD uniform" Emma said, Regina opened her mouth and then paused, a small smile gracing her lips as the image of a uniform glad Emma popped into her mind, she couldn't help but lick her lips, Emma smiled smugly, her wife's eyes had darkened and she didn't miss her sticking her tongue out to lick over her lips, she knew the effect it would have, and she should not be proud of herself, but she was, if anything, she would wear it all day everyday if it got this kind of response.
"Well" Regina said, clearing her throat, "perhaps, in a few years, we can approach this subject again" Regina said ending the conversation, Emma chuckled, knowing that she had just lost this battle, but she was sure that she would win the war, if she could, one way or another, if need be, she would have to enlist the help of her new found friends, Olivia and Elliot Stabler, the cops who had worked her case when she got injured, Olivia had checked up on her a few times after, Emma had deduced that it was mostly to see Eve as Olivia would be whisked off to the playroom by her new friend, while Emma and Regina had coffee with Elliot, the ladies had found that in a matter of weeks, that they had come to consider the two NYPD detectives to be friends, so much so that they had invited the couple over to dinner, which has since ended in a friendship between the four, and Regina had made a point in having cops as friends was never a bad thing.
"So, how was London?" Emma asked, as she lifted her coffee cup to her mouth and smiled at the grin that graced her wife's lips.
And there we have it, the first time jump. Honestly, what do you guys think? Am I like a fish outta water and going in to deep? Or do we need more than one chapter to determine how bad it really is? OR do we need more than 2 years to really move this along? I'm gonna try to wrap this story up soon, this has given me so much joy, but my focus, has not been on any of my fics recently, and I feel like if I continued to write this after it was officially over, I would only be doing it more harm. But fear not, that won't be for a while yet.
I also decided to bring Liv and Elliot back, mostly because I love them and that the new SVU just isn't the same without Stabler, I'm not sure if I'll have them as a huge part of just come in here and there, I know that Emma's leg injury would prevent her from being a cop, so that idea is pretty much gone, but I may have her become Sheriff in a little quaint town in Maine before this story ends - if it could happen.