Chapter 5

Lily and Emma hadn't made it to the kitchen. They were standing in living room, Lily pointing at pictures on the fireplace mantel and chatting away.

"That's me and Regina at my birthday last year. And that's Mom holding me when I was a baby. And this is Zelena and Cora, that's Regina's sister and mom...they're kinda like my aunt and grandma. They buy really good presents. And this one is all three of us, mom, me and Regina. That's all of my family," Lily explained, looking over at Emma to gage her reaction to this story time of sorts.

Family. For some reason the word made Emma feel strange, unsettled, even more so than anything else that had happened today. "Family?" She repeated the word out loud, testing it out, wondering if that would help her understand why she felt the strange ache in her chest at the word. It didn't.

Lily misinterpreted Emma's reaction as one of confusion about the composition of her family and not about the word family itself. "I, like, don't have a dad if that's what you're wondering. He bounced before I was even born." She shrugged as if it were no big deal, which to her it really wasn't. She had an awesome mom and now she had Regina too. She was happy.

The look on Emma's face only got more confused at this added information she hadn't asked for, or even known to ask for. Her thoughts were interrupted by the front door opening and she startled.

"Relax," Lily shook her head, "It's just mom and Gina."

Emma nodded, shifting on the balls of her feet, unsure what to do as she watched the two women approach. She tugged uncomfortably on the neck of the hospital gown she was still wearing. She really didn't like it. It itched her neck and she couldn't figure out how to make it stop.

Regina noticed immediately the way Emma was tugging on the hospital gown and even though she'd promised lunch, she wondered if getting the child cleaned up first would make more sense. The hospital had given her a sponge bath of some sort when they'd examined her when she first came in but they hadn't touched her hair. She glanced over at Mal quickly before looking back to Emma, "Did you want to take that off, Emma?"

Emma's tilted her head in contemplation, her nose crinkling slightly, "How?"

Regina smiled at the curious word and the semi-perplexed expression on Emma's face, which she couldn't help but think was adorable. She shared another look with Mal to confirm they were on the same page before she said, "How about Lily and Mal get lunch ready and you and I go upstairs and find you something more comfortable to wear and give you a bath?"

At the offer, Emma glanced hesitantly at Lily who nodded her head encouragingly. Feeling reassured, she nodded too, "Okay."

Regina smiled again, leading Emma towards the stairs. She turned back to look at Mal, "We'll be quick."

Mal waved her off with a hand, "Take your time."

When they stopped in the room that Regina said was Lily's so that Regina could grab Emma a change of clothes, Emma couldn't help but look around in fascination. She was starting to feel more at ease, natural curiosity at every new thing she saw taking over. She wandered over to a bookshelf that took up most of one wall, her eyes wide as she scanned the shelves.

Regina pulled a pair of shorts and a t-shirt out of Lily's drawer, deciding that loose fitting clothes would probably be best for Emma since she was pretty sure, if what she'd been wearing when they'd found her was any indication, that the child wasn't used to being clothed. She added clean undergarments to the pile and spun around, finding Emma crouched down reaching for something on the lowest shelf of the book case.

Emma pulled a book from the shelf and dropped it onto the floor, kneeling in front of it she looked up at Regina, smiling in what seemed to be awe, "I have this book."

"You do?" Regina smiled back walking over and crouching beside Emma to get a look at it. She'd never seen this book before, it was from a stack of books on the bottom shelf that Lily had outgrown long before Regina had come into her life. She read the title out loud, "Elliot Gets Lost." At the word Elliot, she tilted her head curiously over at Emma, recalling the girl's previous mention of her friend Elliot. "Emma?" She asked, pointing at the picture of the puppy on the cover, "Is this what Elliot is? A puppy dog?"

Emma studied the picture a minute and then looked over at Regina, smiling in a way that suggested something about what Regina had just said was really funny. She shook her head, "No."

Regina shrugged, it had been worth asking. She was sure she'd figure out the mystery of Elliot eventually. She reached over and ran a hand over the back of Emma's head, smoothing her hair, or at least as much as the wild hair could be smoothed, the comforting gesture more a subconscious action than anything. "Well, maybe we could read this book later. Would you like that?"

Emma smiled wider, nodding her head.

Regina smiled too. She was glad to see that Emma seemed to be relaxing, at least enough to smile. "Now how about that bath?"

Emma watched with wide eyes the entire time Regina prepared the bath water.

Regina added bubbles to the water, figuring that all children liked bubbles. When the water was ready, she tested the temperature with her hand and then turned to face Emma. The girl was likely old enough to bathe by herself, Lily certainly did so unassisted, but Emma wasn't exactly a regular child. Regina couldn't guarantee that she wouldn't accidentally drown, or try and escape out the window, if left alone, and, so, after a little internal debate, she decided it was best if she stayed. "Come here munchkin," she beckoned, carefully untying the knots on Emma's hospital gown when the girl shuffled closer, helping her out of the garment. "Can you climb in by yourself?" she motioned with her head towards the tub.

Emma stretched her arms wide, happy to be free of the constricting gown. At Regina's question, she nodded, gnawing her lip between her teeth as she carefully lifted one leg over the edge of the tub and in, her eyes instantly widening in surprise and then delight. She quickly swung the other leg in and lowered herself into the water with unceremonious plop, "It's warm!" She grinned over at Regina, the delight still evident.

Regina, who had perched herself on the closed toilet, grinned back, although the small pang of sadness at the realization that even warm water was a wonder to Emma was inevitable.

Before Regina could even realize what she was about to do and try to stop her, Emma dropped herself further down until her entire body, head and all, was encapsulated in water, disappearing from Regina's sight. Regina's eyes widened and when nearly a full minute had passed, she stood, worried, and approached the tub, intent on pulling Emma up before she drowned herself. There was no need to worry though, just as she reached the edge of the tub, Emma popped back up, sloshing water everywhere, including all over Regina.

Emma wiped the bubbles away from her face and shook her hair out, getting more water everywhere. She eyed Regina curiously, "You're wet."

Regina didn't have it in her to actually be upset and she just shrugged, her nose scrunched up, "It would appear so."

Emma giggled at Regina's expression and then cocked her head to one side, "All clean?"

It took Regina a moment to understand what exactly Emma was asking, although once she clued in, she wasn't sure why she was so surprised. Of course Emma, who'd been nearly mystified by warm water, would have no clue how a bath worked and assume that splashing around a bit was sufficient. It wasn't as if the forest was teeming with soap. "Not quite yet," she kneeled down beside the tub, pulling a bottle of shampoo off the shelf, "Can I wash your hair?"

Emma eyed the bottle uncertainly, green eyes tipping up to stare into Regina's brown ones, "Okay?" It was more a question than anything.

Regina squeezed some shampoo into her hand, showing it to Emma, "When you put this in your hair and scrub, it makes bubbles. It will make your hair clean and smell really nice."

"Okay," Emma nodded, sounding more certain in her answer now.

Regina smiled, leaning forward so that she could wash Emma's hair gently, the shampoo lathering up, until Emma's entire head was covered in bubbles.

Emma relaxed, sinking further into water, seeming content.

Once the suds had been washed away from the child's hair and Regina had produced a washcloth for Emma to scrub herself clean with, Regina wrapped Emma in the fluffiest towel they had.

"I'm just going to get changed and then I'll brush you hair, okay?" Regina offered, once Emma was changed into the clean clothes.

Emma's head tilted in the way that Regina was starting to recognize as meaning the child didn't understand what she was talking about. "Come on," Regina urged, waving for Emma to follow her, "I'll show you."

Emma nodded, following with hardly any hesitation.

It was another fifteen minutes before Emma and Regina descended back downstairs and headed for the kitchen, Emma's hair brushed and braided.

The scent of fresh baked cookies wafted Regina's way as soon as she stepped into the kitchen and she couldn't help but quirk an amused eyebrow at Mal. She urged Emma to go sit at the table beside Lily, and headed over to where Mal was standing at the counter, putting the fresh baked chocolate chip cookies onto a plate, "You made cookies?"

"Well, the kid already likes you and Lily, I figured the cookies might help her like me too," Mal smirked, her voice low enough that Lily and Emma couldn't hear her.

Regina snorted, shaking her head, "Remember all the times you made fun of me for my attempts to win Lily over? That's seeming a little hypocritical now."

"Not the same at all," Mal defended immediately.

Regina just quirked an eyebrow, "You keep telling yourself that. You're going to be a total pushover when it comes to her."

Mal quirked an eyebrow right back, "So we're keeping her?"

Regina froze. She ran back through her last statement in her head and swallowed thickly. She hadn't really been thinking when she said it but there was no denying the clear implication in those words, "I-"

"Oh close your mouth," Mal snickered at Regina's bewildered expression, "I'm just teasing." She nudged Regina's side, "Grab two of these plates would you?" Mal didn't wait for a response, just grabbed two of the plates holding the sandwiches she and Lily had made and carried them over to the table, setting them down in front of the girls.

Regina remained frozen for a moment, despite Mal's insistence that she was teasing, still thinking it over. It was so easy to picture, Emma staying here, living with them. That was crazy though, right? They didn't even know where Emma had come from yet. She shook her head, shaking the thoughts away at the same time, and grabbed the other two plates, heading for the table.

Lily was asking Emma questions, the latest being, "How old are you anyway?"

Emma's nose scrunched up as she thought about that answer. She remembered being four and she knew she was older now. "Five?" She decided, although it sounded more like a question than anything.

Lily's nose scrunched up too, "You look pretty big for a five year old," her voice conveyed how ridiculous she thought that was.

"Oh," Emma just shrugged one shoulder and turned her attention to the food in front of her, studying it, trying to sort out what it was.

Regina and Mal shared a look as Regina slid into her place at the table, handing Mal her plate. Emma had to be at least 8, probably older. If she thought she was 5, she must have been in that forest even longer than they'd imagined. For what felt like the millionth time today, Regina's heart clenched, aching for this child.

Having no clue that Regina and Mal were having a silent conversation about her, Emma's focus remained on the sandwich on her plate. She poked at it with one finger, surprised at how much give the bread had.

"No, no," Lily shook her head at Emma, drawing Regina and Mal's attention as well, "Don't poke it. It's a sandwich. You pick it up. See?" She picked up her own sandwich and demonstrated.

Emma studied Lily carefully, watching her chew the bite of sandwich she'd taken. Slowly she picked her own sandwich up, eyeing it a moment longer, and then she shoved the sandwich towards her mouth, tearing at the bread with her teeth, the piece that came off was much too big but she grinned at her success as she started chewing. Swallowing the large bite with only a little bit of difficulty, she immediately brought the sandwich closer to her mouth again, taking another bite with gusto.

Mal watched amused as Emma ate her sandwich with what could only be described as great enthusiasm. "Do you like it?" She smiled at the child.

Emma looked up at Mal with wide green eyes, nodding her head vigorously as she continued to chew.

Watching Emma devour the sandwich, Mal couldn't help but wonder how she had survived for so long by herself out in that forest. What had she been eating? Where had she been sleeping? How had she protected herself? Even though Mal had told Regina that she was just teasing when she'd asked if they were keeping Emma, the idea nagged at her brain now. The thought of this child having to take care of herself for who knows how many years, seemed to spur something in her chest - maternal instincts. She was still thinking of Emma alone in the forest when the sandwiches were gone, which was probably why she handed Emma not two, not three, but four cookies, way more cookies than she would usually let Lily have, and chose to ignore the amused smirk on Regina's face.

Out in the forest, Zelena stepped carefully around fallen branches, following only a few steps behind Robin, John and a couple other members of the crew behind her. She clutched her own rifle tightly in her hands, as her eyes scanned the forest diligently for whatever had knocked that tree over.

Robin stopped as the fallen tree came into sight, turning to look back at Zelena and the crew, "I don't see anything."

"Then keep looking," Zelena hissed, "Trees don't knock themselves over." Seriously, sometimes it seemed like she employed nothing but inept people. She pushed passed Robin and moved closer to the fallen tree, scanning the ground around it. Spotting a very very large footprint, she looked up, her face conveying triumph, "Oh I don't see anything," she mimicked Robin in a mocking voice, pointing at the ground, "Then what do you call that."

Everyone shuffled closer to get a good look, all of their expressions conveying disbelief at the sheer size of the footprint. It was John who rubbed the back of his neck and said, "Well, whatever knocked that tree over is gone, at least. Won't cause any trouble. So we can head home?"

Everyone but Zelena nodded their agreement.

"If you sissy's want to go home, be my guest," Zelena rolled her eyes, "But I'm going to find what made that footprint." She didn't wait for a response, just spun on her heels and started heading deeper into the forest. She wasn't surprised in the least when she heard the footsteps behind her or when she looked back and saw that every single one of the men was following her.