Regina felt her heart constrict as she sat up. Her son looked completely shattered. The look on his face was the saddest she had ever seen, and she just knew what it all meant. She had seen the blonde hair that was matted with blood. Her mother had taken her first love. It only made sense that even in death she would take her true love. Henry's head turned slowly as he heard his mother take in a sharp breath.
His eyes widened before he ran over to her throwing himself into her arms. Regina felt her heart swell and constrict at the exact same time. Henry's tears flowed freely onto her neck. She rubbed his hair trying desperately hard to provide some comfort to the heart broken boy, but she couldn't. The life she had planned for them flashed before her eyes. Regina had let herself think of marrying Emma Swan. Regina had thought about adding to their family one day. She thought about silly things like camping trips and all the things Emma had promised to show her how to do. That list seemed meaningless now as her son cried in her arms.
He looked up at her with relief in his eyes. Regina had no idea how long she had been out, but she knew that her son had been sitting there contemplating losing both of his mothers on the same day. He finally spoke. "I'm so glad you're ok."
Regina ran her hands through his head. "I'm fine Henry. Everything is going to be alright."
He looked back at her with fear and concern written all over his face. "She is going to be ok. She has to be." Regina's heart broke all over again. She knew that her son must be thinking that there was some form of magic that she could do to bring the blonde back. She hated that she was going to have to be the one to tell him that bringing back someone from the dead wasn't possible.
"Henry. She is gone." Regina said looking in his eyes. The tears she had been trying to hold back rushing out of her eyes.
Henry looked at her like she had just told him that the sky was green. His eyes were wide. He seemed hurt. He seemed angry. He stood from his mother's lap before running right out of the room. Regina thought that she should go after him, but when she turned her head to see her least favorite and most favorite piece of clothing sitting beside her she broke down. She reached out for the jacket before inspecting the back. There was no blood on it. Emma had been wearing it when everything happened. She almost laughed at the situation. If Emma left her anything behind, it had to be this. She wrapped the jacket around her feeling a cold shudder shoot straight through her entire being.
She sat the jacket down. As soon as it hit the makeshift bed, a lot of people rushed into the room. She looked into the concerned faces of Snow, David, and Dr. Whale.
"Regina, are you alright?" Dr. Whale began crouching down beside her. "Does anything hurt?"
"I'm fine." Regina snapped. She hated how close everyone was to her. Dr. Whale searched her face before backing away from her. He had sorrow in his eyes. She didn't need his sympathy. She needed her son. She looked up into Snow's face and noted the tears that had dried.
"How long have I been out?" Regina asked still looking at Snow.
"Just a few hours." Snow responded in a small voice. "Henry insisted on staying in here with you. Dr. Whale checked on you every hour. We've been with Emma."
Regina felt a fresh wave of tears slide down her cheeks, and she saw her own expression mirrored in Snow White's face.
"Do you want to see her?" Snow finally asked. Regina didn't have any idea how to respond. She didn't want the last image she had in her head of the blonde to be lying in the street with blood pooling from her head, but she also didn't want the last image to be of Emma's lifeless body.
"No." Regina finally said. "I don't see where that would help anything."
Snow seemed shocked. "Regina." Dr. Whale began. "There is a chance that she can still hear you. There is a chance that you could help her."
Regina's head shot up to look into his face seeing no lies there. "She is alive?" Regina asked tentatively feeling her heartbeat rapidly in her chest. She wanted to cry from relief now. She wanted to run to the blonde.
"She is in a coma." Dr. Whale said.
"Where?" Regina asked quickly standing up in an instant.
"I will take her to Emma." Snow said with a soft smile to Dr. Whale.
They walked in complete silence. Regina couldn't believe this. She was relieved that the woman was alive, but she wondered how much hope she should have in a coma. Emma might not ever wake up. "She has been improving even over a few hours. Dr. Whale says her blood pressure and heart rate are normal. They can't tell what her brain activity is because all of the equipment at the hospital was destroyed. They did stitch up her injury, and Dr. Whale doesn't think she has any bleeding internally. They're concerned because she hasn't responded to anyone by squeezing their hand or something like that." Snow finally said as they turned another corner to a room that Regina wasn't sure she had ever been in.
Emma was lying on the bed in a white t-shirt and athletic shorts. She looked like she was asleep. Regina walked across the room to the makeshift hospital bed. Snow gave her a reassuring look before leaving her to sit with Emma. Regina looked her up and down. From this angle the only indication that anything bad had occurred was the gauze wrapped around her forehead.
Regina took Emma's hand as a single tear slid down her face. She wiped it away with her free hand. She had to be strong for Emma and Henry. She smiled down at the blonde. "Emma, if you can hear me, I need you to wake up. Henry needs you. I need you." She wanted more words to come. She pictured the movies she had seen where situations like these lead to perfect speeches from lovers before the person in the coma woke up.
She just let her hand rest in Emma's as she sat there looking down at her face before an idea struck her. She leaned in and placed a soft kiss on Emma's lips. She hated the way they didn't move against her own. She pulled back. Emma's eyes were still closed. It was silly to think that would work. This wasn't a sleeping curse. This was a medical injury. She wondered how long it would be before she saw those beautiful blue eyes again.
It was one week before a pale hand squeezed her own as she sat there talking to her. During that week the cleanup process had begun. Supplies had been ordered and delivered, and everyone had their assignments. The blue fairy would be assisting with magic if necessary. Regina wanted to help, but she couldn't make herself leave Emma's side. Henry spent his time between being outside with David and sitting with his mothers.
It was three more weeks before green eyes fluttered open right after Regina had placed a quick kiss to Emma's cheek. By that time the majority of the houses had been repaired including the mansion. Construction on the school and hospital had slowly begun. Everyone wanted to get back to their previous lives. The sooner they could move on from all of this the better.
It was two more weeks before Dr. Whale finally allowed Emma to stand up. She had a concussion, and they wanted to take it slow considering the lack of medical equipment available at the location they were in. The school had been completed at this point as well as the structure of the hospital. It was amazing how much faster things went with magic, but Regina knew the blue fairy had to be exhausted. Leroy was currently working with Gepetto to fix all of the electronic machines in the hospital that had been destroyed.
It was two more weeks before Dr. Whale finally allowed Emma to go home. Regina was ecstatic about this. Emma had spent most of the last two months asleep because everything that she did was exhausting to her. When she stood to leave town hall for the last time, she looked up at Regina after running a hand down her stomach. "I worked so hard to get these abs." Emma said with a grin. "Honestly though I just want a cheeseburger." So, Regina did the only thing she could think of. She took Emma to Granny's to get a cheeseburger.
It was another month before Emma could do any type of physical activity. That included running and intimacy. They didn't want anything to compromise her recovery. Regina had spent the month since Emma had been home making sure that she was perfectly comfortable and following the doctor's orders to a T. Emma hated it. By this time, the town had been completely rebuilt. They were having a festival in a week to celebrate that everything could finally get back to normal. The school calendar had been made again, and the newspaper had released its first edition since everything had happened with Cora.
Emma was standing on the treadmill in their basement with Regina sitting next to her. "He said you can walk for five minutes, run for five minutes, and then walk for five minutes. That is all." Regina said looked down at her paper.
"I know. I know." Emma said as she turned on the treadmill. Regina watched her. Emma hadn't really gotten skinner, but she had lost a lot of muscle tone from being in bed so much. The only thing she had been able to do physically was go on walks. Regina limited that.
"If this goes well though, you know what you get at the end of the week." Regina said with a shy smile. Dr. Whale had developed a running program for Emma that followed over two weeks. If she completed the first week without getting a headache, they could be intimate. He had reminded Emma that they had to take things slow. He said not to do anything crazy. Emma had winked at him and said, "I don't know about you doc, but Regina and I don't have the slightest clue how to have slow sex."
At the end of the week, Emma hit the stop button on the treadmill that indicated that she was done with her requirements for the first phase of the program.
"Do you have a headache?" Regina asked with a smile.
"I sure don't." Emma responded stepping closer to the brunette.
"You swear?" Regina asked as Emma's arms wrapped around her waist.
"I sure do." Emma responded before pale lips attached to Regina's neck. Regina tilted her head back letting herself enjoy the feeling of her lover's lips on her neck. It had been so long. They hadn't even had a heavy make out session since the accident. Regina didn't want to cause Emma any harm during her recovery.
Regina had to stop Emma as pale hands slid under her shirt. "We have to get ready to go to the festival." Regina said with a sharp grin at Emma.
"Since when do you want to hang out with anyone in this town?"
"Since they decided not to send me to prison for thirty years since I saved their asses." Regina responded before walking past Emma. Emma slapped her on the ass as she walked by.
They showered together with Regina constantly stopping Emma's advances. She wanted it. There was no question about that, but she wanted it to be special. She wanted them to have all the time in the world to rediscover each other's bodies. She didn't want their first time in over three months to be a quickie in the shower.
They walked hand in hand towards Henry, Snow, and David. Their son had been spending most of his time with his grandparents since the accident. He said that he didn't want to be a burden, but Regina knew that he couldn't bear to see Emma hurt. The hair that hung just below her ears now was a daily reminder of what happened. They had to shave it to give her stitches. Emma hated it. Regina didn't care what her hair looked like as long as she was alive.
They spend the afternoon talking to everyone in town. Regina had been fascinated by the booth that was selling fried candy bars. When she realized what it was, she was appalled. She wouldn't let Henry have one, but Emma managed to sneak him one when Regina went to the bathroom. They played silly games, but Regina grinned from ear to ear when Emma won her a little stuffed bear.
The sun was going down as they sat eating dinner with David, Snow, and Henry. The conversation was pleasant. A lot had changed since Cora's death. Regina knew that she may not have made it out of there alive without the arrow that Snow had shot. They had come to a mutual understanding without saying a single word that they were going to be involved in each other's lives for a long, long time. They had to get along. The bottom line was that they both loved Emma, and they each had to respect that.
Regina smiled at Henry as he told a story about a shooting game he had played with David. He was growing so much that she wondered when she would wake up to him being a full-fledged teenager. David hadn't changed much, but that didn't surprise Regina. He was Emma's father. Because of the strange situation surrounding them, he still saw Emma as his baby girl. He also had heard implications about their sex life far too much since their relationship had started, and Regina knew that no father really wanted to know anything about that.
They joined everyone else in front of the stage that had been set up for the night's entertainment. Snow White walked out smiling at everyone before walking to the microphone.
"I want to welcome you all to this celebration. I know it has been a hard few weeks, but I am so happy to see the way that we have all come together. The town looks beautiful. I just have a few announcements before we get started. First, I would like to officially offer the reinstatement of her position as Mayor to Regina." Regina's head snapped up. "No one can run this town like you have Regina. A lot of things have come to light over the past few months. If this town is going to continue to grow and have a future, you are the one that needs to be leading it." Regina smiled wide at Snow before she nodded her head to indicate that she would be happy to take the position. "The second thing I would like to announce is very personal to David and I. We didn't want to tell anyone until we were sure, but we would like to announce that we are pregnant." Regina couldn't help the genuine smile that spread across her face. Children were always a blessing. She looked at Emma to see a smile on her face. David leaned across the table to smile at Emma. "You'll always be my little girl." He said with a silly grin. Emma smiled back. "The third announcement is that we have additional copies of the paper here for those who didn't get one. It details all of the stores that are open, their hours, as well as the plans for the new school schedule. Without further ado, I'd like to introduce Killian Jones who will be our entertainment tonight."
It wasn't long before the former pirate walked on the stage carrying an acoustic guitar. He had come a long way since his arrival in Storybrooke. His redemption had a lot to do with him falling in love with Amanda or Ariel as she was better known. He played a slow song as the many couples of Storybrooke started to slow dance.
"May I have this dance?" Emma asked with a wide grin.
"Of course dear." Regina responded with a smile.
They swayed slowly as the music filtered through the air.
"I love you." Emma said with a smile.
"I love you too." Regina responded before laying her head down on Emma's shoulder. There was nothing more calming to her now than the sound of Emma's heart beating in her chest.
"May I cut in?" Henry asked as the song changed to another. Emma stepped back to smile at her son. "Of course you can."
Emma stepped back to watch Henry dance slowly with Regina who smiled down at him. He almost came up to her shoulders now. Emma let herself watch them for a few minutes before she headed backstage.
After the song ended, Regina looked around for the blonde who was nowhere in sight. When another song didn't begin to play immediately, she looked up at the stage to see Emma walking out onto it. The room quieted instantly at the presence of the savior.
"Regina, will you come up here?" Emma asked. She sounded nervous. That made Regina nervous.
She joined the blonde on the stage. Every single eye in the crowd was looking at her.
"Just a few years ago I was living in Boston. I was alone, and I was miserable. I thought about Henry all the time. I wondered what he looked like. I wondered what he liked to do. I hoped every single day that he had a loving family. Then, he showed up on my doorstep talking about fairytales, and I thought great the kid is a maniac." The crowd laughed. "Then, I came here. The first thing I saw was the house he grew up in, and I knew that he didn't want for anything. I knew he was having trouble, but I knew without question that Regina loved him. You gave him everything that I couldn't." Emma said looking up at Regina. "A piece clicked into place when I knew that he was alright. Then there was you. I would have laughed in someone's face if they told me I would fall in love with my son's adopted mother, but I did. Through everything that has happened over the last year, you have been the constant in my life. You've been infuriating, but you've been understanding too. There is nothing normal about our relationship. I know that. Snow White's daughter falling in love with the Evil Queen. Someone should really write that story and try to publish it outside of Storybrooke to see what happens." Emma laughed nervously. "What I am saying is that coming to Storybrooke was the best thing that ever happened to me. I have friends." Emma gestured towards Belle and Ruby. "I finally have my parents. I have our son. I got to meet Mulan and Sleeping Beauty in the Enchanted Forest." The crowd laughed again. Regina was standing there in nervous anticipation. "Most importantly, I have you. I love you Regina Mills." Emma stepped closer to the brunette and smiled at her before dropping down to one knee.
"Regina, will you marry me?" Emma asked before opening a blue velvet box to reveal a sparkling diamond. It was the same diamond that had been resting in Emma's closet before all of this happened.
Regina felt the tears spring to her eyes as she looked into Emma's green ones.
"Yes." Regina said softly.
"We have a yes folks." Emma shouted into the microphone before she crashed her lips into the brunette's. They finally pulled back for Emma to slide the ring on her finger.
They spent the next hour being congratulated by everyone in town.
"We'll take Henry tonight." Snow said with a smile as she pulled back from the slightly awkward hug she had just given Regina. Regina smiled with gratitude.
"How about we go home?" Emma asked with a seductive smile.
"Lead the way dear." Regina responded before allowing the blonde to lead her to the car. She then allowed the blonde to carry her up to their bedroom before they spent the night reacquainting themselves with each other and celebrating the beginning of their newest chapter.
The End.