It was kindly pointed out to me that Emma's bug doesn't have four door like I wrote it to have in the previous chapter, so from now on if I need to address in any way how many doors she has, it'll be two. I'm not going to go back and fix it in the last chapter. Thank you, reviewer, for pointing that out to me. I appreciate it. :D
Enjoy Chapter 17 and if you've seen 2x20...oh, boy.
Emma slowly sat up in the backseat of her bug as she ran a hand through her hair. When she adjusted herself to sit upright, her feet on the floor of the car, she noticed something different about her appearance in the rear view mirror.
She squinted and leaned forward to get a better look as she positioned herself straight in front of the mirror. It was a note written in lipstick.
You're mine -R
Emma rolled her eyes then looked around outside, the sun not as high in the sky as it used to be.
Emma's eyes shot wide open, completely awake.
"Henry," she exclaimed in the empty car.
She pulled out her phone and checked the time. She sighed with relief when she saw she still had twenty minutes before school let out.
As she put away her phone, she noticed she wasn't wearing a bra. She frowned and felt her chest as though feeling around would make it magically appear. She sighed and patted down the rest of her body.
As she felt around, she noticed a cloth in her lap that wasn't previously there when she fell asleep. She picked it up and rubbed it between her fingers.
Makeup remover, she inwardly noted.
She quickly ran it over her forehead and smudged the lipstick until she wiped it clean off. She inspected herself one last time in the mirror and deemed herself presentable before she climbed from backseat into the driver's seat.
When she sat down, she realized her pants weren't in the best condition. She'd slept in wet panties and had stained the seat of her pants. She groaned and rolled her eyes before she started the car and headed for the apartment.
There, she changed her pants and underwear, put on a new bra, and applied a little makeup to cover her bruised cheek. Then she put on some eyeliner and mascara just because it's what she normally did to make herself look decent then went to the school. She waited a few minutes before Henry happily jogged to her car. She smiled as he cheerily threw his bag inside and shut the door behind him.
"Where to," he asked.
"I'm the driver. Shouldn't I be asking you that question?"
Henry smiled at her.
"We could always go to Granny's," he suggested.
"Or I could take you back to Mary Margaret's and we can make something ourselves."
"Do you even cook?"
"Not really, but I know the basics. I can make anything that's boxed up and goes in the freezer and I can make eggs and pasta salad. But we can always find recipes online and try to make those. What do you say? Quick and easy experimentation?"
"I don't know how quick and I don't know how easy it'll be, but I'm up for it."
Emma chuckled.
"Buckle up then. It's time to make us some crazily concocted dinner."
Emma had her hair pulled back into a loose ponytail to keep it out of the food as she cooked. She beamed down at Henry as he worked alongside her in the kitchen.
He giggled as he brought a jar of sauce onto the counter top and opened it. He turned to a drawer to his right and pulled out a wooden spoon. He dipped it into the sauce and flicked it at Emma.
Emma gasped.
"Henry!"
He laughed.
He'd spattered sauce across Emma's shirt, chest, a bit on her face, and some in her hair on her right side.
"You think that's funny," she played along.
"Yeah," he continued to laugh.
"How funny do you think this is," she asked.
As Emma emphasized the word "this", she scooped up a handful of sauce straight from the jar and flung it at him. It hit him directly in the face and settled in the tips of his bangs.
She laughed as he laughed harder.
He reached over and took the ladle in Emma's clean hand before he grabbed a bundle of pasta and threw it at her.
She turned off the stove to make sure she didn't burn anything, or anyone, and turned to Henry. Within seconds of turning, he grabbed the jar of sauce and continued to attack her with it.
She defensively raised her hands and backed away from him until she collided with the refrigerator.
Henry laughed as he reloaded the wooden spoon and flicked more sauce at Emma.
Emma turned and opened the refrigerator then used the door as protection as she searched for food weapons.
Henry repositioned himself so the door no longer saved Emma from the sauce. He stained the back of her shirt and got some more in her hair before she picked something up and spun around.
Emma faced him with a bottle of chocolate syrup.
"Things are about to get messy," Emma said before she pulled open the top and squirted it at Henry.
"Ah, no," Henry exclaimed as held a hand in front of his face and ran from Emma.
Emma laughed.
"You thought you had me, didn't you? Nothing defeats chocolate syrup."
Henry held the sauce jar slightly under his arm like a football and ran to the living room. He ducked behind the couch as Emma ran after him. He crawled around to the other side, the back of the couch, as Emma rounded the front end and plotted her attack.
Emma walked around the couch slowly like a serial killer in a horror film sneaking up on their unsuspecting victims.
Henry moved to the back of the couch and faced the kitchen, knees to chest as he waited for Emma to come around the right side of the couch as he had.
Instead, Emma grinned as she carefully knelt down on the couch and leaned over.
"Gotcha," she yelled and caused the boy to jump.
Henry looked up at Emma as she hovered above him with a smirk. He barely had time to notice it before she squirted the bottle and covered him in chocolate syrup.
He bolted and ran back to the kitchen.
Emma pushed off the couch and ran to catch him.
Henry turned to see Emma gaining on him as he ran around the island and scooped up a spoonful of sauce. He flung the sauce over his shoulder when Emma raised her bottle-wielding hand to hit him with a downward attack.
Sauce compromised her vision as it spattered across her face, but she squirted the bottle as she brought her arm down in a pitch-like motion. She almost looked like a baseball player when she did it.
Henry smiled though he shied away from the syrup as Emma wiped the sauce off her face to see clearly.
"What's going on," Mary Margaret's voice boomed through the commotion.
Emma and Henry abruptly stopped like two kids caught with their hands in the cookie jar. They looked at Mary Margaret as she crossed her arms over her chest at the base of the stairs and expectantly tapped her foot against the floor as she waited for an answer.
Emma nervously smiled and raised her shoulders as she tensed most, if not all, of the muscles in her body and replied.
"Food fight?"
Mary Margaret sighed then smiled. She dropped her arms to the side and shook her head.
"As long as you clean up the mess you make and don't ruin the furniture, I'm okay with that."
Emma's smile went from nervous to genuine at the pixie haired woman's words.
Henry flicked another spoonful of sauce at Emma and broke up the short lived moment. He laughed as she shook her head with a mischievous grin.
Emma turned to Henry and playfully grinned at him for a moment before she took a step toward him.
With a smile on his face, he took a step back.
Emma started to close the space between them one step at a time and for each step forward, Henry took a step back. It was an obvious game of cat and mouse and both of them clearly enjoyed it.
Mary Margaret laughed under her breath as she watched the two of them play. She slowly walked toward the kitchen as she focused her attention on mother and son. She leaned against the wall between the open area and the kitchen and crossed her arms over her chest.
Emma reached out to grab Henry and the boy ran off around the island to escape her and the syrup.
"Oh, no. You're not getting away that easy," Emma smiled as she chased after him.
Henry laughed as he fled to the comfort of the living room again. He dove under the coffee table and crawled to the other side.
Emma hurdled over the back of the couch and cut Henry off as he attempted to flee. She laughed as she gently pressed against his shoulder to stop him and raised the syrup above his head.
"Say 'ah'," Emma victoriously said.
"Ah," Henry obliged as he tipped his head back and opened his mouth wide.
Emma grinned as she squeezed the syrup into his mouth.
He laughed as he gulped down the syrup, a huge smile on his face.
"You'll spoil his dinner like that," Mary Margaret informed the blonde though she continued to smile.
"Kid's got a sweet tooth like me," Emma happily said as she kept her focus on Henry.
After a few more seconds, Emma eased up on the bottle of syrup and took a step back.
Henry wiped the back of his hand cross his face to clean up the syrup. Instead, he ended up smudging it and caused Emma to shake her head and laugh.
Emma reached out and swiped the pad of her thumb across the corner of Henry's mouth.
"Missed a spot," she joked.
Henry was covered in chocolate, including his clothes and hair.
As she cleaned him up in a very mothering way, Henry scrunched up his face and squirmed away.
"My mom does that," he semi-whined as he rubbed his hand over his face to get rid of the mess. "I'm ten. I can do it myself."
Emma smiled.
"Okay," she nodded. "I hear you."
Emma headed back to the kitchen and put the syrup back in the fridge.
Henry followed her and set the sauce on the counter.
Emma turned back around and closed the jar before she grabbed a paper towel. She cleaned up the bits of sauce that had dirtied the outside of the jar then put it where it belonged. When she threw out the paper towel, she looked Henry over as he stood only a few feet away.
"Why don't I finish making dinner while you go take a shower," Emma suggested.
Henry looked down at his clothes then back into Emma's eyes.
"Okay."
"The bathroom is right down the hall there," Emma pointed.
Henry turned to follow the direction of Emma's finger and noticed the slightly ajar bathroom door. He smiled as he looked back at Emma.
"Thanks," he said. "Oh, um, I don't have a change of clothes."
"Right," Emma slowly said as she tried to think of a solution. "I think I've got something that'll fit you. Hop in the shower and I'll bring some clothes down in a minute."
"Okay."
Henry started toward the bathroom when Emma looked over at Mary Margaret. The woman didn't say anything, but one look reminded Emma of something.
"And Henry?"
"Yeah," he asked as he stopped and turned back to Emma yet again.
"Use the red towel. The white one is Mary Margaret's. Also, use the black bottle of shampoo 'cause that's mine."
"Got it," Henry nodded then continued toward the bathroom.
Mary Margaret smiled as she watched him close the door then looked at Emma who went back to the stove.
"He's a great kid," Mary Margaret said. "I'm glad you're getting to spend so much time with him."
"Me too," Emma warmly smiled.
"I could help finish dinner if you'd like," Mary Margaret offered. "That way you can go look for something for Henry to wear right now."
"Are you sure?"
"Emma, it's not like you're making a three course meal at a five star restaurant. And...I'd like to help. It'd be nice to cook for someone other than myself."
Emma flashed an appreciative smile.
"Thank you. It'll only take me a few minutes."
"Not a problem," Mary Margaret shook her head.
"Okay. Uh, the recipe is on the counter next to the stove. I was about to start step five."
Mary Margaret nodded and went to the recipe as Emma headed for the stairs.
After several minutes, Emma brought down a gray sweatshirt and basketball shorts. She looked over at Mary Margaret when she reached the bottom of the stairs and smiled as the pixie-haired woman seemed at ease as she moved about the kitchen.
Emma turned to the left and stopped outside the bathroom. She could still hear the water running so she knocked on the chipped white door.
"Henry?"
"Yeah?"
"I have clothes for you," she yelled through the door. "Are you almost done?"
"Yeah, I'll be out in a minute."
"All right. Well, I'm gonna leave them on the couch, okay?"
"Okay."
Emma laid the outfit over the back of the couch and went to the kitchen to help Mary Margaret. She peered over Mary Margaret's shoulder and looked at the food in the pan.
"Wow. Nice job," Emma complimented her as she stepped around to stand beside her friend.
"Thank you," Mary Margaret smiled.
"Oh, hey. I don't know if you've seen Ruby recently, but she and I are planning another girls night tomorrow. We wanted to know if you could join us."
"Really? Tomorrow?"
"Yeah. I only have Henry for a little while on Wednesdays so I was thinking we could get together here at the apartment for dinner or something then figure out what we're gonna do the rest of the night."
"That sounds good. I'm interested."
"Great. Do you have Ruby's number?"
"Um, yeah, I think I do."
"Think you can give it to me? One of us should tell her to meet us here and I should probably have her number anyway."
"Sure."
"Cool. I can take over with dinner now."
"I'm almost done."
"You want to finish it?"
"Yeah, it'll only take maybe five to ten more minutes."
"Okay," Emma shrugged. "I don't know how I do it, but for the last week I think I've gotten myself out of making food for me...and Henry!"
Mary Margaret laughed.
"Must be one of your skills."
"Yep. I'm gifted like that," Emma grinned.
The bathroom door opened and Henry walked out with the red towel around his waist as the water from the shower glistened all over his body in the light. He acknowledged Emma and Mary Margaret were in the kitchen then directed his attention to the living room as he walked over to the couch.
Emma turned and watched him pick up the sweatshirt.
"What do you think, kid," Emma asked as she walked over to him.
Henry looked over his shoulder for a brief moment then lifted the shorts.
"They seem big enough. I don't know if the shorts will actually look like shorts on me, but who knows."
Emma smiled at him.
"I was thinking the same thing. Wouldn't hurt to try, though, right? Any pants I could give you would drag on the ground."
"Yeah."
"Want to get dressed in my room?"
"Okay," Henry shrugged. "Just let me get something out of the bathroom. I left something in there."
"Go for it," Emma said as he went back into the bathroom.
Within seconds, he reappeared with his dirty clothes and briefs in one hand and the clothes he'd taken from the couch in the other.
"Ready," Emma asked as she reached out a hand.
"Yeah," Henry answered as Emma touched his shoulder.
Emma guided Henry to the stairs then let him go up first. She followed behind, still covered in sauce, and watched him walk over to her bed. He set the clothes down on the comforter and turned to Emma.
"You gonna be okay up here?"
"Yeah. It'll just take me a second."
"Okay. Mary Margaret said dinner should be ready in a few minutes. I'm gonna take a quick shower. See you downstairs?"
"Mhmm."
Emma started to leave when Henry stopped her.
"Emma?"
"Yeah," Emma asked as she turned to him.
"I really like spending time with you."
"Aw, kid...I like spending time with you too."
Henry smiled, but it soon faded.
"I wish I could say that about my mom. I know it's because she's the Evil Queen, but sometimes...I wish things could go back to the way they were. No, I wish she never was the Evil Queen."
"Oh, Henry. Don't worry about the whole Evil Queen thing."
"But if I don't worry about it then no one else will. She's bad news, Emma."
Emma studied his features before she sat in front of him on the bed.
"Then let me worry about it."
"You don't even believe me about her or the book."
"Just because I don't believe something doesn't mean it's not true. So...I'll be on guard. If I see any Evil Queen behavior, I'll do something about it."
"You will?"
"Yeah. Something subtle, though. I don't want her to know we're on to her."
"That's smart."
"Mhmm. So...what kind of stuff should I be aware of? What kind of things does the Evil Queen do?"
"She'll do anything to make sure she's happy, especially if it means others are unhappy."
"Anything?"
"Yeah. And she gets really mean."
"Well, I can be mean sometimes too."
"Not like she is. She makes threats and hurts people."
"Okay."
"If you really want to know more about her, read my book."
"And where is your book?"
"Somewhere she won't find it. I hid it in the one place that only you and I know about."
"The castle?"
He nodded.
"Well, I don't think I'll have time to get it today, but I'll tell you when I do."
"How?"
"With the walkie-talkies."
"Okay, but we should probably have a code name if we're going to talk about the book. My mom can't know that's what we're talking about."
"All right. What's the code name?"
Henry thought about it.
"Operation Cobra."
"That seems a little odd for conversations about fairytales, don't you think?"
"Exactly. We don't want it to be something she could figure out."
"Of course," Emma nodded.
She smiled when she realized he had a point, even though she was only playing along.
He smiled back.
"So...you'll read the book and keep an eye out for her?"
"If that'll make you happy."
He nodded.
"Then that's what I'm gonna do," she reassured him. "Now let me take a shower and we'll eat."
He chuckled.
Emma's smile widened before she rubbed his shoulder then headed back downstairs.
Emma finished drying her hair and put on just a bit of makeup. She realized it didn't matter if she wore any since she didn't have plans later, but she did it anyway to make sure the exhaustion in her eyes didn't scare Henry. She also had a few things to cover up like the giant bruise on her left cheekbone.
She slid into a clean pair of jeans and a black camisole. She'd put her boots on when the left, but for the time being she remained barefoot. She'd painted her toes not too long ago and they still held a well-polished red hue. She grabbed her dirty clothes off the floor and made her way from the bathroom to the stairs. She looked over at the dining room table and smiled when she saw Henry waiting patiently for the food Mary Margaret brought over.
"Give me a second to leave these upstairs," Emma said as she held up her bundle of dirty clothes. "And I'll join you."
Mary Margaret smiled and nodded.
"Okay," Henry said as he turned the upper half of his body to face Emma when he spoke.
Emma smiled back at Mary Margaret first then at Henry after he responded. She only stared at him for a few seconds more before she went up the steep staircase.
She dumped her clothes into her hamper in her closet then made her way back down to the dining room.
Mary Margaret took her time serving Henry and the empty spot next to him before she served herself. Emma had come down in time to see the pixie-haired woman give the plate at the empty spot a good portion of food.
"Wow. You really know how I eat," Emma noted as she came to sit in the empty spot beside Henry.
Mary Margaret chuckled with a sweet smile.
"I've noticed a few habits of yours since you've been here. I'm sure you've noticed some of mine."
"Oh, yeah. I don't think I know anyone that cleans more than you. And you only ever clean when it needs to be done, like if guests are coming, or if you're upset or scared or don't know what to do about something."
"Yes, that would be one of my habits," Mary Margaret somewhat nervously admitted, though she continued to smile.
"Don't get me wrong, I'm not judging you. If it works, it works. Nothing wrong with that. And you know me, I'm not one for much cleaning so it helps living with someone so opposite from me in that area."
Emma teasingly smiled though she was sincere.
"Thank you," Mary Margaret said as she moved on from Emma's plate to her own.
Emma made herself comfortable and smiled at Henry as she thought of something to ask him.
"So, what did your mom have to say about the 'A' you made on that test?"
"I...haven't told her yet."
"What? Why not? She knew you had a test, right?"
"Yeah."
"She didn't ask about it?"
"Actually no. I thought it was weird, but I didn't want to tell her so I didn't say anything."
"Henry, she'd be proud of you."
"No, not like you are. She expects me to get those kind of grades. It's when I don't make 'A's that she even reacts."
Emma sighed.
"Well, maybe you're not giving her enough credit."
Henry shot her an "are you kidding?" look and Emma gave him another option.
"Or maybe I should talk to her about it."
"She won't listen to you."
"I have my ways."
Henry furrowed his brow, not sure what Emma meant by that, but he shook his head to rid himself of the confusion.
"If you say so. I just...it's not that big a deal to her. I'd much rather keep making bets and deals with you about my grades."
Henry grinned at the last part.
Emma smirked, though at the same time she realized how much Henry resembled Regina. Genetically speaking, the two were not alike at all, but the facial expressions, and sometimes the tone of voice, were uncanny.
Nature versus nurture I guess, Emma thought.
The rest of dinner went well, mostly silent as they enjoyed the food, but occasionally, Emma smiled when she looked over Henry in the oversized sweatshirt and the baggy shorts. She knew he would never wear something like that nor would Regina let him, but the sight of it was comical as well as heart-warming. She liked being able to provide for him, even in the smallest way. She could feel herself starting to act like a mom with him and though the thought terrified her, she knew she couldn't play the part of the cool aunt forever. Thankfully for her, she hadn't had to scold him yet. The discipline still came from Regina and Regina alone. That little bit of information kept Emma from running away, what kept her from feeling all too responsible for the boy. Not having to raise him alone made Emma felt safe.
She knew if the brunette ever heard her talk like that, though, things probably wouldn't end well. She wasn't sure what any of her thoughts about Henry and parenting meant yet so she decided she'd keep those musings to herself. The only thing she knew for certain when it came to Henry was that she wanted to be there for him. And that was all anyone else needed to know at that time.
Mary Margaret cleared her plate as she excused herself from the table.
Emma and Henry still had a little left to eat and remained seated in silence as they did. After a few seconds, Emma looked over at Henry.
"So," Emma started as she took the last bite of her food. "How are your sessions with Dr. Hopper?"
"Good. We talk about a lot of stuff, not just what I'm there for."
"What kind of stuff?"
"Well, one day I started asking about his dog Pongo, how he got him and why. He couldn't tell me much. He just said he's had him for as long as he could remember. So I asked him what he liked best about having a dog and the way he talked about Pongo made me want a dog. I kind of already wanted one since I don't have friends or siblings, but my mom would never let me have one."
"You know, you're not gonna be ten forever. Once you're old enough to move out of your mom's place, you can get one."
Henry smiled.
"For now I just take Pongo out for a walk every once in a while. And when Archie is out walking him and I run into them, he lets me give Pongo treats. Archie says one day, if my mom will let me, I can come over and dog sit for him."
Emma smiled back.
"Sounds like you and Archie have a little friendship going on."
Henry's smile widened.
"Yeah. He's really nice."
"Emma?"
The blonde looked at Mary Margaret as she came from the kitchen.
"What time are you supposed to have Henry back," she asked out of curiosity, not with authority or in an attempt to rush the woman.
Emma looked over at the clock.
"Shoot. Henry, we've got to go. If we leave now, we'll be back at the house ten minutes later than your mom will like."
"Okay," Henry said as he scarfed down the last three bites of his dinner as he stood and moved toward the kitchen.
Mary Margaret and Emma both inwardly laughed as they watched him pull off a very Emma Swan move.
Henry hurried to the sink with his plate and set it in the dirty side, which he only guessed was the dirty side by the plate he assumed Mary Margaret had just placed in there.
Emma followed his lead.
He grabbed his coat as Emma took her keys and hurried into her boots then headed toward the door.
Emma pulled her red leather jacket off the coat rack as Henry opened the door a few feet from her. She smiled back at Mary Margaret.
"See you in a few," she said.
Mary Margaret gave a single nod then looked at Henry.
"It was nice having you over," she said to him.
"I liked being here," he happily admitted.
"I'll see you in class tomorrow," she said as she waved goodbye.
He nodded and waved back before he turned and went out the door.
Emma watched him step into the hallway and shot a quick, smiley glance at Mary Margaret before she closed the door behind them.
Regina had packed up a few things in her office on her way out and went to grab her coat when a knock came at her office door. She turned and looked up to see an unwelcome guest give her a crocodile grin from the doorway.
"It's been a while, dearie," Gold eerily said, his voice bringing about the same unsettling feeling Freddy Kruger's sharp claws gave a person when knife-like nails scraped against metal.
"How not nice to see you again," Regina brusquely quipped.
Gold hummed in an attempt to stifle a satisfied chuckle. He limped further into the office and caused Regina to roll her eyes before she aggressively set her things down on her desk. His presence alone had upset her. He missed that.
"I decided to get out of the shop recently. I didn't think much was going on in this town, even with Ms. Swan's arrival, but now that I've asked for the sheriff's help I realized maybe there's more going on than what I'm seeing."
"Your point, you little imp," Regina darkly asked through gritted teeth.
"Well, I was out for a stroll earlier and saw our blonde friend driving around town with your boy. It's peculiar, especially when the only other person beside yourself to watch him is Kathryn Nolan and even she took a few years to gain your trust with him."
Regina frustratedly sighed.
"We have an arrangement," she reluctantly, grudgingly informed him.
"Do you now? I find it strange you would trust the boy to be with his birth mother. You're not worried she might try to take him from you?"
"As I said, we have an arrangement."
"If there's no contract, it's not binding. Who's to say she won't break your little agreement about him? Are you truly trusting her not only with your son, but with the hope that the time she spends with him now will be enough?"
"Enough for what?"
"To keep her from legally trying to get custody of him, of course. I doubt you two have much involvement so it wouldn't be wrong to think she'd want a second chance at raising him by herself. How would you know she doesn't regret not being able to take care of him back then if you two really hate each other the way the town perceives you to?"
Her patience, already thin, began to vanish.
"If she tries, there's not a judge in all of Maine that would give her legal rights."
"You sound sure of that, dearie."
"I am sure. He may like spending time with her and she may entertain him while I'm at work, but she's done nothing to change his life for the better. She's assisted me in some way, as far as the courts would see it, but I did just fine with Henry before she came along and I can do just fine without her. If you were to compare Henry's life to what it was before she showed up and what it is now, there would be no difference. That's not something to rule by at a hearing."
"Yes, but one could also argue she hasn't done anything to disrupt his life either. She may not be making drastic yet positive changes, but she hasn't made any negative ones either."
"That's easy to say when she's not the one supporting him. If he lived solely with her, he wouldn't have everything I could and have given him. She'd probably struggle to feed them while trying to pay rent off her horrid salary."
Gold grinned.
"You forget she lives with Ms. Blanchard. That woman is kind and has known Henry for years. She adores him like he's family and I'm sure if her new friend and roommate were in trouble trying to provide for the boy, she'd help out however she could."
Regina didn't want to believe him. She'd dealt with him far too long in both worlds she'd lived in, as the Evil Queen and as Mayor. She knew he only wanted to get inside her head. He was manipulative just like her mother. It's how he got what he wanted. Regina knew she'd done the same thing to others plenty of times before to do the same, but she had to learn it from somewhere and her mother wasn't the only teacher she had when it came to bad habits.
She took a deep breath and tried to relax. She didn't want to let him under her skin and she certainly didn't want him to know if that were the case no matter how hard she tried to resist.
"Is that all you came for? To interrogate me about Miss Swan?"
"I just wanted to give you a little friendly advice."
"You gave it and now it's time for you to go," Regina callously said as she shooed him with the wave of her hand.
He bowed his head in understanding.
"Hope to see you soon, Mayor Mills," he said as he turned and limped out of the office.
Regina glared at the back of his figure while Gold made his exit. She placed a hand on top of the desk and leaned into it. She rested her weight on that hand as she set the other on her hip, displeased and utterly upset.
"That's not a hope we share," she muttered once he was out of earshot.
She frowned as she tried not to think too much about what he'd said, but she couldn't help it. If her dream was true about Emma being the Savior, then it made sense what he said about Mary Margaret. If Emma were to take Henry from her, the annoying woman would do anything to help her daughter even if she didn't know that fact. The nagging feeling that she needed to help the blonde no matter how she felt about the situation would take over. Regina may have been able to take away their memories of the Enchanted Forest, but that was analytical and intellectual. Thinking didn't have even half the power emotion did and she knew that from experience.
Flustered and unnerved, Regina didn't make a move to go home like she had before Gold arrived. Instead, she huffed out a sigh and pushed off the desk. She noticed half of her coat hung off the edge of her desk. She flipped it until it lay in a folded heap on top of the desk then made her way toward the stairs, leaving all her things behind.
Emma walked with Henry up the pathway to the front porch, but frowned when she noticed the Mercedes wasn't in the driveway. She pulled out her phone and checked the time. Regina should have been off work thirty minutes ago. It wouldn't take her more than ten to get back home. She should have been there.
She didn't let the absence of the brunette's car deter her from her routine, though. She stopped in front of the door with Henry at her side and rang the doorbell. She waited a long minute with no response at all. No heels click-clacking against the hardwood, no extra lights being turned on inside, and no shuffling of various household items on the way to the door.
Emma rang the bell again and didn't wait as long without a response before she knocked on the door. Even as she knocked, she knew the mayor wouldn't answer. She knew the woman wasn't home, but she didn't want it to be true. Not that she didn't like spending extra time with Henry, but Regina was punctual. She never deviated from her schedule. Emma figured if Henry were sick or in the hospital, she'd make plenty of exceptions, but it wasn't the case that night. She was just gone.
Emma sighed then looked down at Henry who was already staring up at her, a little confused but not too concerned.
"Do you have your house key," Emma asked.
"Yeah," he said as he shucked off his backpack and unzipped the smallest compartment.
He reached in and pulled out a key similar to the spare key Emma had but couldn't use in front of him. He slid it into the lock then twisted it inside until the lock clicked. He held down the handle and pushed forward then went straight to the base of the stairs with his backpack. He left the door open wide for Emma to come inside as he set his backpack down on the first step. He put the key back inside it before he turned to the blonde.
"Where do you think she is," Henry asked.
"Maybe she got held up at work," Emma casually suggested though internally, she was a little worried.
She didn't know what to do.
"You're probably right," Henry shrugged and nodded.
He didn't pick up on Emma's nervousness or concern. Either he was just an oblivious ten year old or Emma's acting skills were better than she'd thought.
"Want to watch a movie until she gets home," Henry asked as he went into the living room.
"Uh, sure," Emma slowly, awkwardly agreed.
Regina wasn't extremely late at that point so it wasn't a dire emergency. Emma could spend maybe another half an hour or so with Henry. It would just be one movie and by then, Regina was bound to walk in and apologize.
Yeah, Emma tried to convince herself. You won't even make it to the credits before she comes back.
But the end credits appeared all too quickly as they scrolled up the screen. Panic set in and not because she was alone in the house with Henry. She'd already fed him and he was old enough to get whatever he needed himself, but that wasn't the issue. Regina hadn't come home.
Emma had earlier recognized the house to look exactly the way she left it that morning with the folded clothes in the basket. The Lion King DVD menu had been playing on the TV when she and Henry walked in. She hadn't seen Regina since their shared lunch break and it was almost nine as the credits rolled.
Henry furrowed his brow and frowned as he checked the time.
"She's never this late. At least not if she doesn't have Ms. Nolan come over to watch me."
Emma sighed as she struggled to hide the worry in her eyes when she looked at him.
"I'm gonna find her and see if she's okay," Emma told him.
"Can I go with you?"
"No. You're gonna stay here."
"Alone?"
"Of course not."
Emma pulled out her phone and called Mary Margaret.
"You said a few minutes," Mary Margaret frantically greeted Emma over the phone with concern. "It's been over an hour."
"I know. I'm sorry. I should've sent a text or something. Regina's not here. She hasn't been home since I brought Henry back so I stayed with him to wait it out. We watched a movie and I thought she'd be back before it was over, but now... Look, I don't want to put any pressure on you, but could you come to the house and watch Henry? I'm gonna see if I can find Regina."
"Of course. I'm on my way," Mary Margaret said as Emma heard shuffling from the other end.
She assumed Mary Margaret was quickly getting ready.
"Thanks. I'll see you soon," Emma said before they both hung up.
Town Hall was quiet. No lights were on inside the building, but if it weren't for Regina's Mercedes parked in the nearby lot Emma would've thought the worst. She didn't know when thoughts like that started to infect her mind, but they had. As much as Regina could anger her, she then also caused the blonde great concern.
Emma's head told her to try the door, but her heart pounded in the direction of the yard behind the building. As if on autopilot, she followed her heart and went around back. Within seconds, her concern disappeared.
Regina stood in front of her apple tree with an apple in her hand. She intently stared at the fruit before she gently squeezed it a few times like a stress ball.
From her distance in the dark, Emma couldn't tell much more than that. She calmly closed the space between her and Regina until she could make out more than the brunette's silhouette.
"What are you still doing here," Emma asked. "Do you know what time it is?"
Emma tried not to sound too much like a worried parent scolding their kid for being out past curfew, but both she and Regina picked up on that particular edge in her voice.
"I had a few things to finish up here," Regina flatly, almost mindlessly, stated.
She didn't pay much attention to Emma, barely even looked at her when she gave the blonde her excuse.
"I've been with Henry the last hour and a half. Even longer if you count the fact that we were late to show up at your house!"
Gold's words settled in again as Regina squeezed the apple without hesitation. It was soft and discolored, but it didn't turn to mush. Instead, her fingertips bruised the apple where they harshly pressed into it before she violently threw the dying fruit onto the grass by her feet.
"I was busy," the brunette growled.
"You have my number. You should've told me," Emma argued as she tensed.
She didn't want to fight Regina, but she recognized all the signs of the older woman preparing to do so.
"Contrary to what you might believe, I don't have to run anything by you. He's my son and I figured if I stayed late he could take care of himself. And in case you didn't think so, I thought a little too highly of you, if I'm being honest, and figured you'd watch him until I got back."
"I did! That wasn't the problem."
"Is wasn't," Regina rhetorically asked as she stepped closer to the sheriff. "Then what was the problem?"
"You. I didn't know where you were and you're not me. You're not late or unreliable. You haven't been home since this morning. I thought..." Emma trailed off, not wanting to admit what went on inside her head to the older, intimidating woman.
"You thought what, dear," Regina furrowed her brow, but kept her glare ice cold yet predatory.
Emma huffed out a defeated and frustrated sigh.
"Nothing. It doesn't matter. What does matter is that you're okay and you're not so busy now. Mary Margaret's at the house now watching Henry. I don't want to keep her there all night."
"You let Miss Blanchard into my house?!"
Emma could tell not only by the authoritative boom in her voice, but also by her towering presence that Regina wasn't at all pleased.
Enraged, Regina stood nose to nose with the younger woman and clenched her jaw shut tight. Her eyes were fixed intensely on the sheriff as her gaze could easily burn holes into any object, but didn't.
Emma stayed strong. She still didn't want to fight, but Regina clearly did and she wasn't going to cower because of it. She stood defensively and refused to start anything. If Regina wanted it, she'd be the offender and attack first.
"I didn't have anyone else to call."
"You could've called me."
"You wouldn't have come."
"You don't know that."
"You're here staring at apples! You weren't busy, you were avoiding something."
"What I do with my spare time is none of your business."
"It is when it involves Henry."
"He's not yours to worry about."
"Maybe not legally, but I was the one watching him and he's my son too."
A flicker of fury appeared in Regina's darkened eyes.
Before Emma could react, Regina grabbed her biceps and spun the sheriff around. She threw Emma against the rough bark of the tree and punched her in the stomach.
Emma grunted and fell forward as the air left her lungs.
Regina didn't give her time to breathe before she forced the blonde to straighten up. She pressed her palm against the front of Emma's shoulder and shoved the blonde's back against the tree a second time. She wasn't one to do a lot of punching, but her body felt like a coil pressed too tightly then suddenly springing to life. She couldn't contain herself or her actions though she knew what she was doing.
Nevertheless, she gave only punch before she relied on other forms of punishment. She quickly leaned in and bit Emma's collarbone. The younger woman clawed at Regina's shoulders as she shied away from the brunette's teeth.
Regina didn't let up. She bit harder as Emma cringed and aggressively placed a leg between Emma's. She released Emma's bruising skin after a few more seconds then tossed her to the ground in front of the tree. She followed Emma to the grass and straddled her before she wrapped a hand around Emma's neck.
Emma's eyes went wide as she fought for air. She rested her hands on Regina's wrists and tried to rake her nails over olive skin to stop the brunette. It wasn't enough.
Regina wickedly grinned as she enjoyed the sight of Emma's curls as they flowed around her head in the grass. Though her expression was strained and she choked out sounds of discomfort due to Regina's death grip, the older woman still managed to find Emma attractive.
Emma squeezed her eyes shut. The look in the other woman's darkened brown eyes frightened her as Regina appeared deranged and distraught. She didn't seem like herself and Emma couldn't stand the sight. It was off putting to say the least, and though she didn't completely revel in being strangled the first time that day, at least then she didn't feel threatened. At that point, Regina hadn't made it a game. There was nothing sexual or sensual about it. The woman was set in her ways and Emma feared she'd actually kill her like they had talked about in the back of Emma's car.
Emma opened her eyes again, though she could feel herself slipping into a state of unconsciousness. She fought hard to keep them open as she shakily moved her hands from Regina's wrists to her hair. She pressed her hand against the back of Regina's head, doing the only thing she thought to do. She wasn't sure it would work, but even if it didn't save her life, she'd at least die with a sinfully intoxicating taste on her lips.
She used every last bit of strength she had and brought Regina's mouth to hers. She could only brush her lips against Regina's, but it didn't matter. That was enough.
Regina furrowed her brows in confusion as she closed her eyes and allowed Emma's lips to tease hers. The sensation reminded her of the time she magically broke the table in the study. The night they shared their first kiss.
The darkness she'd been fighting with since her massage at the apartment started to subside. It didn't disappear completely, but for the time being Regina felt herself normalize. She felt calm and stable, something she hadn't been since her dream about Emma, which the more she thought about it, the more she realized what a nightmare it had turned into.
She let go of Emma's neck and placed her hands on either side of Emma's head. She unintentionally pinned the blonde to the grass by her curls as she kept her lips close to Emma's and opened her eyes.
Emma gasped for air and tried to sit up, but she only tugged at her hair due to the position of Regina's hands. She turned away from Regina and coughed several times before she could even pant. When she could breathe, only erratically at the time, she turned back to look up at Regina.
"I'm sorry," the brunette apologized. "I just...there's things you don't understand."
"Like you? Trying to kill me," Emma asked as she continued to pant, still a bit breathless.
"You said something that set me off. I've been a little on edge lately."
Emma tried to take a deep breath. She scrunched up her face before she turned and coughed a few more times.
"If I could tell you what was going on, I..." Regina trailed off as she realized what she was about to confess to the younger woman. "Never mind. Are you okay?"
Regina sat up into her original straddling position. She brought her hands toward her lap and rested them lazily on Emma's stomach.
"Yeah," Emma said after a moment when she turned to face Regina again. "I don't get it."
"What?"
"Every time I do something nice for you or tell you stuff like, 'I was concerned about you' you hurt me. Why?"
"I..." Regina trailed off as she tried not to lower her guard and admit the truth.
"Are you okay," Emma asked as she studied Regina's distant expression for a moment.
When Regina met caring green eyes, her demeanor changed from distant to sad and troubled. She rolled off of Emma and laid on the grass beside the blonde.
"No," Regina honestly confessed as she stared up at the night sky.
Emma looked at Regina as she continued to lay on her back. Regina seemed lost and disappointed. She didn't know what to do or say, but her heart suddenly took over and she rolled on her side to give the brunette her full attention.
"Is there something you want to talk about," Emma asked.
Regina sighed and continued to stare at the sky for a moment longer before she turned her head and stared into Emma's eyes.
"Maybe," she almost sheepishly replied.
Emma propped herself up onto one of her elbows before she rolled halfway on top of Regina. She leaned in and chastely kissed the regal woman.
"I'll listen."
Regina just stared up at her for a moment before she shook her head, never breaking eye contact with the blonde.
"Just kiss me."
Emma, without another word, leaned in and kissed her again. It was chaste and sweet like the one before it. She pulled back and stared into brown eyes, not as dark as they used to be but gradually filling with need and desire.
"Kiss me until the sun comes up," Regina requested.
Normally, it would've been a command, but the change in the mayor's mood seemed to have a greater affect on the brunette than either woman realized.
Emma didn't think too much about it as she obliged. She didn't think the two of them would last until sunrise, but she could certainly try. If anything, she'd kiss her until one of them fell asleep and hopefully that would suffice.
For those of you that read it, I wanted to update Masquerade today as well, but unfortunately that didn't happen. It should be up on Wednesday. I'm going to try my hardest to make that happen. :)
As far as this story goes, what are your thoughts on this chapter? Leave a review and let me know.