A/N: Hello again friends! This story now has over 100 followers, which makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. Thank you so much for supporting it!
I've been working on some more stuff too, like a one-shot I uploaded a few days ago (hint hint go read it) and there's some more coming so watch this space!
Enjoy :)
Since arriving back at Regina's house a while earlier, the two women had been filling Henry in on what had happened in Storybrooke since he was last here. Regina was sat on the sofa right next to Henry, reluctant to leave his side for even a second, and Emma was slowly pacing across the room. Both of them were yet to broach the subject of them as a couple; while Henry without his memories had been open to them together, neither of them were sure about how he'd feel about his two mothers in a relationship.
"So you've got nothing to go on? At all?" Henry questioned, still in disbelief that all of this had been happening under his nose.
"I'm afraid not," Regina admitted, feeling fury rise up in her at the thought that since they'd arrived back in Storybrooke, they still didn't have a single clue as to who had done this to them.
"We're working on it though, kid. Now that you're in on it, it might be a bit easier for us to try." Emma chimed in, still pacing up and down the room.
"What have you called it then?" Henry asked both of them.
"Called what?" Emma asked.
"You know… the mission! You must have named it something!" Henry exclaimed, clearly horrified at the idea that his own mothers would be on a name-less mission.
"Well, I've been calling it Operation Dragon… in my head, I mean, not out loud." Regina admitted, a little embarrassed.
"Dragon? Really?" Emma smirked at the Henry-ness of Regina's choice.
"Sorry that I didn't waste precious time picking the perfect name, dear, it was simply the first thing that came into my head." Regina responded, glaring at Emma.
"Operation Dragon is perfect, Mom." Henry smiled at them both. "About you two, I'm still ok with it, by the way. I mean, it's a bit strange, but when you think about it, it fits together perfectly. It's the best happy ending that there could be; just like it would be in the book!" Henry seemed to have momentarily transformed into a younger version of himself before them; his eyes glinting at the thought of his book, and his talk of happy endings.
"You're a great kid, Henry. If only other people would see it that way.." Emma looked at Regina wistfully, and walked a little shakily to sit down next to her.
"Maybe they would; you just need to give them a chance!" Henry responded. It struck the two of them individually the child-like innocence he still had about matters like this, even after all he had endured.
"Henry, you know it's not as simple as that. The people here can be… judgemental, at the best of times. I think for now it's best if we keep this to ourselves, until we can be sure what everyone's reactions are going to be." Regina said earnestly, looking sympathetically at Emma.
"Your mom's right, Henry. No telling anyone, especially not David and Mary Margaret."
"But they're your parents, they have to support you!"
"Your grandparents have never been my biggest fans, heaven knows what their reaction to this would be. Your grandmother would probably go into labour on the spot!" Regina laughed a little at the absurdity of it, until Emma gave her a look to stop.
"Alright, alright." Henry relented, "But hiding the truth never works out well. You guys should know that better than anyone." While both were reluctant to admit it, they both knew Henry had a point.
That night, after informing everyone about Henry regaining his memories (but failing to mention how it happened), everyone decided to gather for a 'Welcome Back Henry' party of sorts at Granny's. Emma entered the diner with the boy in question a little after 7, he was met with a hero's welcome. While leaving her son to catch up - properly, this time- with everyone, Emma went and took a seat next to Regina at the counter.
"You look incredible, as always," she offered by way of a greeting, her voice dropped to a low murmur.
"Is now really the time for this, Miss Swan?" Regina sighed a little, shooting Emma a coy glance.
"Probably not. When can I see you? In private, I mean. As great as it is spending time with Henry as a family… I need some time alone with my lady." Emma coughed to cover the last part of the sentence.
"Call me 'your lady' again, and you will have no 'lady' left," Regina turned in her seat to face Emma. "Meet me in the bathroom in 10 minutes." She muttered, before getting up out of her seat and joining a conversation between Henry and Belle.
Emma spent the next 10 minutes watching the clock with bated breath. Never had time seemed to move so slowly, and trying to pay attention to a conversation with her father and Granny was downright painful. The second she saw the minute hand reach quarter past the hour, she practically ran out of the room and into the ladies bathroom. Once she'd checked the coast was clear, she leaned back against the sink and awaited Regina.
As soon as the Regina entered, Emma grabbed her by the waist, and pushed her up against the wall.
"I thought you were standing me up," Emma muttered between placing a series of kisses along the base of Regina's neck.
"Well then clearly dear, you don't know me at all." Regina's voice was husky and low: the mere sound of it almost reduced Emma to a mumbling mess. Fighting down every urge she had to make a sarcastic comment, or a fool of herself, she continued to kiss Regina's neck, grabbing both of the woman's hands and pinning them up against the wall above her head.
Regina ached to put her hands on Emma's body, anywhere and everywhere, and she pushed her body as far up to Emma's as she could, with a pleading look in her eye. Emma relented, releasing her hands, which Regina immediately ran through the blonde's hair and down her back. The two began to kiss passionately, with Regina's tongue tracing lines around Emma's lower lip. Just as Emma began to place her hand up Regina's skirt, the door opened.
The two of them sprang apart, as though a fire had been lit inbetween them, and Emma hurriedly entered a stall and locked the door, while Regina stood over the sink preening herself in the mirror.
"Hey Regina," Emma heard Ruby's voice through the stall door.
"Miss Lucas. Are you out patrolling again tonight?"
"Yep, gotta keep this up until we find her, right? No rest for the wicked."
"Indeed. If you'll excuse me.." Emma heard the sound of high heels on the tiled floor, and the door opening and closing. Assuming the coast was clear, Emma exited the stall, and greeted Ruby.
"Hey, Ruby. How's it going?" Emma washed her hands and tried to hide the fact she was shaking.
"Not bad. It's great Henry's got his memories back, right? Regina must be so happy. I nearly asked her, but then I thought it's not really my place…"
"Yeah, she is. I think she was getting a bit crazy, not being able to talk to him properly and all," Emma maintained a vacant look on her face, trying to seem as impartial as possible at the talk of Regina. "I better get back in there, anyway."
"Sure, see you in a minute," Ruby replied, and frowned a little as the door closed behind Emma.
Once Emma returned to the hub of the party, she was again greeted with a barage of questions about the investigations.
"Are you sure there's something you aren't telling us?"
"You've really got nothing?"
"You must have SOME idea what's happened!"
A final question from one of the dwarves almost sent Emma into a flying rage. Why would nobody believe that she didn't have any idea? She was working on it, damnit, and they just had to give her a chance!
"Actually, I'm, uh, going to go for a walk. A bit of a patrol, seeing as no-ones out right now. I'll be back in later," Emma directed towards Mary Margaret, who smiled weakly as her daughter shrugged her coat on and walked briskly out of the door.
Emma had been sat for about 2 minutes on the pavement to the side of Granny's, her head on her knees, when she heard the sound of high heels approaching.
"Emma, what on earth are you doing out here?" Emma heard her favourite voice say.
"Just thinking." Emma mumbled into her knees as Regina awkwardly attempted to sit down beside her. "Hey, don't sit down, I'll get up now."
"Nonsense. I shall sit with you until you tell me what's wrong." The caring side of Regina was still a little unfamiliar to Emma, but the warm feeling it mustered in her stomach wasn't.
"It's this whole witch thing. People won't stop bugging me about it! Can't they see that I'm trying? I'm sick of being the saviour; do they have any kind of idea what pressure that puts on me?" Emma picked up a rock to the left of her foot and threw it out in front of her.
"No-one's expecting a miracle from you, Emma. Well, the idiotic may be. But send them my way and I'll be sure to explain to them the precariousness of this situation. It's unfortunate that you're the saviour when there's a situation like this; it shouldn't be your responsibility alone. I mean, I'm the mayor, and what am I doing?" Regina glances to Emma at her side, who is staring absently into the distance. She puts her arm around her shoulder, and pulls Emma's head into her lap. "We will catch her, as you've reassured me countless times before. We just need a little more time. People will stop relenting soon enough, and who knows, they might actually volunteer to help." Regina snorted a little at the idea of people accepting that they could be of assistance.
"I know, you're right. It's just… I don't know. It'll be fine. I love you." Emma responded, into Regina's thigh where her head was still resting.
"Yes, yes it will. We'll make sure of that. Love you too." Regina replied vehemently, stroking strands of Emma's hair behind her ear.
From their position facing away from the diner, and the intimateness of their pose, they were unable to see Ruby stood behind them, who had bore witness to their entire exchange.