Emma knocked at the door of the mansion as best she could with her offering in hand, calling out as she did. "Regina? I came to see how you're doing." A moment passed without a response, and she added, "I brought you something to eat."

There was a click as the deadbolt unlocked, and the door swung open slowly to reveal an empty foyer. Emma stepped inside, closing the door behind her with a gentle push from her foot.

"Miss Swan, if you put your shoes on my door again I'll poof you outside of city limits. And I won't let you back in."

Regina's voice came from around the corner, hoarse and stuffy, and Emma made her way towards it. She couldn't help but smile at the brunette's use of the word poof to describe her teleportation, something she'd berated Emma for on more than one occasion.

"You'll what, exactly? Say again?" She teased, turning the corner to spot the brunette curled up on her sofa under a plush knit blanket. Her face was free of makeup, hair tucked into a loose ponytail, and her nose was red. She had a book in one hand, resting on her lap, thumb marking her page. She shot Emma a glare, but in her current state, it was more adorable than threatening.

Emma decided against expressing as much.

Instead she smiled, uncovering the thermos in her hands and holding it up. "I brought soup. Where do you keep your bowls?"

"I...thank you, Emma." Regina murmured, gesturing towards the kitchen. "Third cabinet on the left."

Emma nodded, heading into the kitchen and rummaging through Regina's cabinets and drawers until she'd found a bowl, plate, and spoon. She poured the soup into the bowl, added the crackers she'd brought with, and headed back to the living room. She held it out to the other woman, who was regarding her with something like bewilderment on her face.

"I didn't realize you were capable of such hospitality," Regina said, taking the soup from the blonde's hands. There was no hostility behind the comment, no venom behind the insult. Instead the brunette's words only sounded tired, and if Emma wasn't mistaken, there was a hint of gratitude buried in there as well.

"Crackers and everything. Eat up." She opted only to flash the other woman a grin.

Regina didn't respond to that, but the corners of her lips twitched up in a tiny smile as she crumbled one of said crackers over the soup. Emma tossed a pillow on the floor beside the couch, making herself comfortable with her back against the body of the sofa.

"Thank you for the food, Emma, but you should really go home." Regina murmured around a mouthful of broth and vegetables. "You're going to catch my bug."

"Are you kicking me out?"

"Not at all."

"Okay, then." She settled back into the cushion. "I'm staying right here. And I don't care if I get sick," She added, turning to lock eyes with the brunette just as she opened her mouth to protest. "So don't even try it."

Regina frowned. "You really don't have to do that."

"I know," Emma answered simply, and that was that. She leaned back against the couch once more. "I'll have you know that I have a fantastic immune system. I'll be fine."

She heard a soft, hoarse laugh from behind her, but that was the only response from the brunette. She grinned, allowing herself to enjoy the sound, even if it was tempered by the other woman's illness. They sat in silence for a moment, before Emma finally lunged forward to snag the remote off the coffee table.

"God, Regina, have you just been staring at the wall this whole time? No wonder you're not feeling any better."

"I was reading my book, Miss Swan, before you showed up unannounced."

"With soup," Emma added. "Unannounced with soup. Homemade soup, at that. A lot of hard work went into it."

"Yes, a lot of hard work on the part of your mother." Regina corrected her, and Emma frowned.

"Hey, how did you -"

"I taught her how to make it."

She turned back towards the other woman at that, surprised. "Really?"

Regina sipped at the broth before nodding. "Yes. Back when we were...amicable. Towards the beginning." She gave a soft smile, though she wouldn't meet Emma's eyes. And then she blinked, and the wistful look disappeared. "I can teach you too, if you like."

Emma found herself nodding, despite her general disdain for cooking. She swallowed, trying not to acknowledge the little voice in the back of her mind that knew exactly why she'd agreed.

"I'd like that," She replied, and she meant it.

That earned her another soft smile, and she turned back to the blank television before the flush on her cheeks could become too visible. She pressed the power button on the remote, opening up netflix on the fire stick she'd installed as part of an attempt to bring Regina into the twenty-first century.

"Anyway, we should watch a movie. Have you ever seen Toy Story?'

"I can't say I have."

She turned back towards the brunette, brows raised, and Regina only shrugged. She shook her head. "That's insane. We're going to fix that right now." She pulled the movie up and started it before the other woman could protest. "I used to watch this all the time when I was a kid."

The movie started and they watched quietly for the first few minutes. About ten minutes in, Reigna leaned forward around Emma and placed her empty bowl on the coffee table.

"This is ridiculous."

"What's ridiculous?" Emma asked, pulling one of the blankets from the basket by the couch and spreading it over herself. "It's a cute movie."

"Toys that can talk," Regina elaborated. "It's just a ridiculous concept."

"Regina." Emma turned to meet her eyes. "You know Pinnochio personally. You're not one to talk."

Regina scoffed, gesturing back towards the screen. "Yes, well, I also knew Bo Peep, and she wasn't nearly that nice."

Emma laughed. "Do you want me to change it?"

"No, no. It's fine."

"You're enjoying it."

"Mm," Regina hummed, and Emma found herself grinning. "Maybe a bit."

Emma leaned further against the couch. After awhile Regina began to thread her fingers through Emma's hair, and she swallowed, trying to quiet the thudding of her heart.

"Why are you doing this, Emma?"

Emma took as steady a breath as she could, trying to calm the waver that was inevitably going to make its way into her voice as she turned once more to meet Regina's eyes. "Because I care about you," She answered simply.

That seemed to satisfy the brunette. She held Emma's gaze for a moment, eyes soft, before she leaned back into the couch. She held a hand out wordlessly, and when Emma took it, she pulled the blonde up onto the sofa with her. Emma held her breath as Regina curled into her, resting her head on Emma's shoulder. Breath catching in her throat, Emma wrapped her arm around Regina's shoulder, pulling her closer. She hummed her satisfaction, tucking her knit blanket around the both of them.

"That's better," Regina murmured, turning her attention back to the movie.

The movie was most of the way over when they heard the door open and Henry called his arrival. "Hi, mom. I'm home." There was a thud as he tossed his backpack to the floor. "Are you feeling any better?"

"I'm alright, Henry, thank you." Regina called back, a smile appearing on her lips. "We're in the living room."

"We? Who else is here?" He appeared in the doorway then, and Emma poked her head over the couch."Oh, hi, Ma. I didn't realize you were here too."

"Hey, kid. How was school?" She felt a flush creep up her cheeks as she remembered the position they were in - her arm around Regina with the brunette curled up to her side, head on Emma's shoulder. Sharing a blanket, at that.

He shrugged, eyes lingering briefly on his mothers before launching into an account of his school day as if nothing had happened. As if it was the most natural thing in the world to come home to the both of them, cuddling on the couch like -

Like a couple. Like they were a little family.

Just as Emma began to push the thought away, she felt Regina's hand move against her own beneath the blanket. Her breath caught in her throat as Regina laced their fingers together, giving Emma's a light squeeze when she glanced over in surprise. She offered the blonde a tiny, knowing smile, before nodding subtly back towards Henry, who was still speaking. Emma broke into a grin, unable to help herself, before doing as Regina had implied and turning back to pay attention to their son's story. Their son. Their little family.

For the first time, it felt possible.