Emma was doing so much paperwork she thought her hands were going to fall off. David wasn't any better, as he was also struggling to stay awake. Emma burst out laughing when David's head finally hit the desk, startling him awake. He stuck his tongue out at Emma before going back to work.

Still smiling, Emma reached for her phone to text Regina. If anyone could brighten her day, her wife could. They'd only been married for 2 years, but it felt like 20.

Just as she was starting to send a text, Henry texted her. The text only had two words, but they had Emma cursing under her breath.

Dark day.

Emma drove home as fast as she could. It was a good thing that she was the sheriff, otherwise she would probably have been pulled over for speeding.

As soon as she shut off the ignition, Emma ran inside the house. Henry was waiting for her in the foyer. "How bad is it?" she asked.

Henry sighed. "Pretty bad. I managed to hide everything sharp, but she'll probably use her magic to make something."

"What happened to the magic cuff?" Emma asked.

Henry chuckled. "She burned it." Emma sighed. Of course she did. Emma hugged Henry quickly before heading up to the bedroom.

Regina sat on the bed, knees hugged to her chest. Emma's heart broke. Regina had a very dark past, and every once in awhile it came back to haunt her. It had taken Emma a couple months of dating for her to realize that Regina had days where the past came back too much.

Emma knocked gently on the door frame, hoping to draw Regina's attention. Regina didn't even look up. Emma winced. This one was bad.

"Gina?" Emma asked. She walked slowly over to the bed, waving her hands. If she managed to get Regina's attention, she could bring her back.

Emma sat on the edge of the bed and tugged gently at the covers that Regina was sitting on. "Come on Regina. Come back to me love," Emma said.

Regina finally looked up and shakily breathed in. "Emma?"

"Hey there beautiful," Emma said softly. She reached out tentatively and grabbed Regina's hand. Regina scoffed, but let her hand be held.

"If you're going to call me something, at least make it accurate," Regina said.

"That was accurate," Emma said strongly. "You are beautiful, and you are loved. So much. No matter what anyone said to you before, what matters is what I say now. And I say that you're beautiful, and funny, and smart, and a wonderful mother."

Regina looked at her with tears streaming down her face. "Why are you lying to me?" Regina asked.

Emma smiled patiently. It usually took awhile before she got through to Regina's mind. "I'm not lying. I promise. You can tell when I'm lying right?" Regina nodded.

"Am I lying to you?" Emma asked her. Regina looked deep into Emma's eyes and saw that she was indeed, not lying.

"You're not lying," she said tearfully. Emma smiled before wrapping Regina in a hug and tenderly kissing her. Regina relaxed into Emma's embrace and sighed happily.

"I'm sorry for being a burden," Regina said.

Emma gently grabbed Regina's chin and forced her to meet Emma's eyes. "You are not a burden," she said. "I enjoy helping you, because it's the one time that you actually let me."

Regina smiled. She could be very stubborn. "I love you," she said, resting her head on Emma's shoulder.

"I love you too," Emma said. "Dark days and all."