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"Someone looks serious," Emma said, sitting across from Henry in the living room. "And also very nervous. What did you do?"
"I didn't do anything," Henry said. "Not yet anyway."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Regina asked, walking in and sitting next to Emma. "That sounds like you're planning something and need our permission to carry through with it."
Henry looked down at his hands. "I want to ask out a girl."
"Okay," Emma said. "You don't need our permission to ask out someone that you like."
"Normally, no," Henry said. "But she's, um, kind of from the Enchanted Forest."
Regina's eyes widened. "Then you already know what my answer is going to be. We had an agreement, and you're going to stick by it."
"Most of the people in this town are from the Enchanted Forest," Henry argued. "How am I supposed to find a girlfriend if I can't date anyone who came from there?"
"There are plenty of children at your school that came from Camelot of the Land of Untold Stories that are looking for handsome young boys like yourself," Regina said calmly. "Date one of them."
"I don't want to date one of them," Henry said, rolling his eyes. "Just hear me out. Her name is Annalise, and she's super sweet. Her parents run the bakery on Main Street, and she's an only child. She's not in the book, I checked."
"The answer is still no," Regina said. She stood up and left the room without another word, not leaving any room for argument.
Henry groaned in frustration before punching the pillow next to him. "Why can't she understand?"
"Easy on the pillow, it hasn't done anything to you," Emma said. "She does understand you, she just doesn't agree with you."
"Annalise wants to be with me for me," Henry said. "She doesn't care that my mom was the Evil Queen and terrorized their village countless times. She just wants to be my girlfriend."
"I'll talk to her," Emma said, patting Henry's knee before getting up and leaving the room. She immediately went to the back door and stepped outside, knowing exactly where Regina would be.
Regina didn't even glance at Emma as she sat next to her under the apple tree. "He really likes this girl," Emma said quietly.
"Rules are rules," Regina said. "I'm his mother and I know what's best for him. I'm protecting him."
"Protecting him, or protecting you?" Emma asked, looking at Regina knowingly.
Regina winced, knowing what Emma was thinking. "I just want what's best for him, and that isn't going to be a girl from the Enchanted Forest."
"Why not?" Emma asked. "What's so wrong about finding a girl from there?"
"They all know who I am and what I can do!" Regina snapped.
"Everyone in this town already knows that he's your son," Emma said soothingly. "If she had a problem with it, would she honestly have talked to him in the first place?"
"Perhaps she has ulterior motives," Regina said. "Maybe she's been acting interested just so he falls for her and then in front of us all she's going to break his heart because of what I've done."
Emma's jaw dropped in shock. "You can't seriously think that someone would be that cruel."
"Emma I did awful things to innocent people," Regina said. "I wouldn't put it past anyone to pay me back for it now."
"You need to stop thinking the worst about people," Emma scolded gently. "Henry likes this girl, and he genuinely wants to date her. The younger generation doesn't care about what you did because they know you now. It's the adults that you have to be careful of."
"So you think that her parents wouldn't let her date him, knowing who I am?" Regina asked. "That would devastate Henry."
"Regina, that is not what I said," Emma protested. She sighed, grabbing Regina's hand and squeezing it gently to get her attention. "Listen to me. You can't always be so afraid of how people in this town are going to react. People have moved on by now. Please, you should too."
Several beats passed before Regina nodded. "Okay, fine. But I want to meet this girl before they go on any dates!"
Emma laughed. "Oh boy. You're too stubborn for your own good."