Regina and baby Odette went home three days after the birth. The brunette was hoping to be able to walk some but was still quite weak. She hated that she couldn't get to her baby when she wanted or needed to.
"Mother!" Regina shouted from the living room when Odette started to fuss. Cora walked into the room and picked up the baby. "Mother, I can take her."
"You just rest, sweetheart. I've got her. She needs to be changed anyway."
"I can do that."
"Regina, you can't stand up for very long right now. We'll be right back."
When Cora left, Regina began to cry. She knew her mother was just trying to help, but it hurt to know that she was unable to care for her own baby. Emma walked in after having gone to the store. "You're back already?"
"I'm a pro at grocery shopping now," Emma teased. She examined her wife and saw that she was upset, "what's wrong?"
"I can't take care of Odette. I keep trying to but my mother won't let me."
"She's just trying to help."
"I know, but it doesn't make it easier."
Cora walked in with the baby, "there," she said, "all clean. Hi, Emma," she gave the blonde a side hug, "look, Odette. Mama's home."
"You are so great with her," Emma said.
"Thank you, but she makes caring for her easy. Do you need help with the groceries?"
"My mom's helping me but thanks."
"Your father-in-law and father are still trying to put that crib together. It's really a sight."
"I told them they could wait. I have six months to go."
"It may take them that long to finish it."
"Mother," Regina spoke up, "may I hold my baby."
"Of course," Cora handed Odette to Regina. The baby began to fuss and Regina tried calming her daughter. She became anxious when she couldn't and Odette's cries got louder.
"Honey, here," Emma took the baby and soothed her rather quickly. "She can sense when you're worked up."
"I think I'm going to go lie down," Regina began to stand, but her mother stopped her.
"Sweetheart, I'll help you."
"No!" Regina snapped. "I don't need your help."
"Honey," Emma tried to calm her wife.
"I don't want to hear from you either. It's bad enough that the baby I gave birth to prefers my mother and wife more than me. I can't take care of her and I have to sit here all day and watch you all bond with her. The least you can do is let me take care of myself."
"Emma, I'm going to go help your mother," Cora said.
"Would you take Odette? Her bouncy seat is in there." Emma handed the baby to her upset mother-in-law and waited for the woman to leave. "Regina, that was uncalled for."
"Go to hell." Regina slowly shifted into her wheelchair. Emma reached out for her, "don't touch me." Regina got settled and wheeled herself to her room. She was able to make it into the bed. Emma watched with great concern for her wife. This was a lot harder on Regina than any of them thought. Emma sighed and went to the kitchen. She found her mother holding a crying Cora in her arms. A sight she never thought she'd see.
"She told me to go to hell and not touch her," Emma said.
Cora looked up, "I don't know what to do."
"Maybe she just needs some space," Snow said.
"She needs to bond with Odette. The problem is that she's too anxious and isn't able to move around," Emma said.
"I should have been letting her do more," Cora said.
"You have done nothing wrong. We've all been busy trying to allow Regina to relax that we forgot to let her be a mother," Emma commented. The three women continued to put the groceries away. Two hours later they were working on dinner and Emma got a text from Regina. The blonde took Odette out of her seat and went to the bedroom. "Hey, what's up?"
"I need help getting up."
"Do you need to get up right now?"
"No, but I want to."
"Before you do, I want to try something."
"I'm not holding her."
"Regina, just trust me." Emma handed Odette to Regina and the baby began to fuss. "Don't worry," she told the woman. "Just take deep breaths and gently rock her." Regina did, but the baby was still a little fussy. "Talk to her."
"What?"
"Talk to her."
Regina looked at her daughter, "princess, it's alright. Mommy's here," she said softly, "it's okay." Regina checked the baby's diaper, "she's clean and it's not time for her to eat."
"Do you remember how they placed her on your chest after she was born?"
"Yes."
"Try that."
Regina did and Odette started to calm down until she was cooing. "It worked," Regina said with a smile.
"Maybe she needed to hear mommy's heartbeat. Why don't you hold her for a while to get more comfortable?"
"Are you going to stay with us?"
"I can, but I think you have this under control."
"I know, but I would feel more comfortable."
"Okay," Emma climbed in on her side of the bed.
"I'm sorry for earlier."
"I know," Emma said.
"I need to apologize to my mother."
"I know," Emma repeated.
Regina rolled her eyes, "this is a lot harder than I thought it would be."
"Well, you have me and we'll figure this out together."
When it was almost time for dinner, Emma wheeled her wife to the kitchen, "mom, could you give me a hand with something in the dining room?" the blonde asked.
"Sure," Snow had a pretty good idea what her daughter was doing.
Once the two women left, it was just Regina and Cora. "Do you feel better?" the older woman asked without looking up.
"I feel more rested, but not better." Regina noticed that her mother refused to look at her, "I'm sorry about earlier. I should have never snapped at you like that. This is just a lot harder than I thought it would be. You have been great and were only looking out for me."
Cora stopped what she was doing but didn't look up, "thank you," she said softly.
Regina could tell that her mother was more hurt than she initially thought. She sent a message to her wife to come and get her. Emma took Regina out of the kitchen but stopped before reaching the dining room. She knelt in front of her wife, "what happened?"
"I apologized and she thanked me, but I think it will take a while for her to forgive me. I didn't think I had hurt her that badly."
"Why don't I help you walk to a chair at the table?"
"Really?"
"Yeah, it's been two weeks and you're never going to recover if you don't start moving around." Emma helped her wife and the family ate dinner. Cora and Henry Sr. didn't join them. Instead, they ate in the kitchen because Cora was too upset to be with Regina. The next day, Regina's parents moved out. It was Henry Sr. who broke the news to his daughter.
"Daddy, have you seen mother? I feel like she's avoiding me."
The man took a seat facing his daughter, "she's at our new apartment."
"Your new what?"
"Your mother begged me to find a place for us. She feels that she has failed you and thinks it's too much for you to have her here."
"That's not true."
"I'll come over every day to help until you tell me otherwise. I'm so sorry it didn't work out." The man kissed his daughter and left.
Later that night, Emma arrived home to the sound of Odette screaming. She rushed into the living room where she found Regina on the couch in tears and Odette was a few feet away in her swing. Emma picked up the baby and took her to the bathroom. Odette desperately needed a bath and changed. The swing was going to need to be washed too. When she returned to the living room, Emma placed Odette in her bouncy seat and went to Regina. "What the hell happened?"
"My parents left and I couldn't get to her."
"Why didn't you call someone?"
"I left my phone on the nightstand when I got up and forgot about it. Is she alright?"
"Yeah, she's fine. You're the one I'm worried about."
"I seem to worry you quite often."
"Only when I'm awake," Emma commented making her wife chuckle slightly, "do you want to talk about your parents?"
"No, but my dad said he'd come over while you were at work to help."
"My parents are supposed to come over for dinner tonight but I can reschedule it."
"They can still come over."
Snow already knew about Regina's parents since their apartment was in Snow and David's building. She offered to temporarily move in with Regina and Emma to help with Odette until Regina was back on her feet. The brunette told her that it wasn't necessary and Snow said the offer remained on the table.