I still don't own anything.
Thank you all for your reviews, you're sweet :)
It seemed like it was raining without pause for a whole week now. She could hear the wind outside her house, the blinds shaking on the walls. Sensing it was no use to hope for the weather to improve she decided to stay at home today and enjoy her solitude. At least, that was her plan until she heard her phone ring and seeing who was the caller a frown made its appearance.
"You finally decided to stop avoiding me?"
"Emma told me to give you some space."
"For a time yes, not for a whole fortnight." Not that she was missing the woman but her son on the other hand ...
"You said weeks."
"I know what I said! But I didn't think you of all people would take my words for it." The former Queen said curtly. The woman could be so frustrating sometimes it was hard for her to keep calm. "Why are you calling?" She asked in the same manner.
It took some time for Snow to answer, so much so that Regina thought for a second that the line had been cut.
"I need a service." Snow finally voiced.
Of course, thought the former Queen.
"A few weeks back, we planned a day with Charming, just the two of us. Emma was supposed to watch Neal for us but she's sick. So we need someone to take care of the kids while we're away."
There was so many reasons she could have given to refuse. Frankly she was surprised to not have said no right away. Mostly it would have been to annoy Snow but after thinking about it she thought she didn't have anything planned for today and that could be her chance to spend time with Henry and Neal, precious time. She loved her son and the little baby too. Since his birth she has been more open to the Charming family, spending time at their house, keeping an eye on the baby whenever she could.
Knocking on the door, it took a second for Snow to open to her. The woman was already ready to go, her jacket and boots were on and a bag was waiting on the side by the door. Regina entered the apartment surprised to not see her son appear to greet her.
"Where is Henry?" She asked.
Snow looked at her frowning, "He's spending the day with Gold. I thought you said it was ok for him to do so?"
Searching her memories, she recalled having this conversation with Henry, she had just forgotten it was this saturday.
"Yes but you told me on the phone that you needed someone to watch the kids, as in kids plural." She said moving around the apartment getting rid of her drenched jacket and shoes. "If Henry is not here then ..." She trailed off seeing the woman laying on the couch. "Absolutely not." The former Queen said pointedly, realizing suddenly what Snow meant on the phone.
"What is she doing here?" Asked Emma at the same time barely making it to the end of her question before a fit of coughing unabled her to say more.
"Please Regina." Said Snow ignoring her daughter. "We really need this and we can't ask anyone else. With the exception of us and Emma, you're the only one Neal doesn't mind to be around of right now. And there's no way I'm letting Emma alone."
"I don't need a babysitter and I can take care of him." The Sheriff said offended.
Again, Snow ignored her. "It's just for a day, we'll be back by noon tomorrow." She informed trying to convince the Mayor.
"Tomorrow?" Questioned the former Queen starting to regret ever getting out of her house.
Charming chose this moment to enter the room carrying Neal. He quickly gave the child to Regina not without kissing his head first and pressured his wife to leave the place before the former Queen realized what was happening.
"We'll see you tomorrow. Be good." Charming instructed to Emma before getting out of the apartment.
"I can't believe they left." Emma said looking at the front door. "You don't have to stay, despite what my mother said I'm perfectly capable of taking care of Neal."
Regina shood her head at the words. "Idiot." She murmured to herself before starting to heat up Neal's bottle.
The afternoon went smoothly, her two burden spent their time sleeping and she enjoyed the calm to read and work on a few files. By dinner though, the atmosphere changed. The blond woman woke up without her noticing and tried to cook herself dinner, that's the moment she realized horrified the woman could not be left alone around the kitchen. A disaster was avoided but the former Queen was still fuming.
"You eat like a child." Regina said glaring at the grilled cheese the sick blond forced her to cook.
"I'm sick, I can eat whatever I want."
The former Queen scoffed, "Sick or not, your eating habits are terrible. I don't understand how Snow can allow this." Her words seemed to have a strange effect on the savior in front of her, her eyes shifted before focusing on her food. Suspicious, Regina stared at her, "What?" she asked an eyebrow raised, her posture rigid. "Spill."
Emma looked up, not sure if she should trust the woman and give up her little deal. "She doesn't actually. She asked Granny to stop serve me what she called junk food at the diner." Something that pissed her off when she first heard Granny refuse her her burger and fries. "I found a way to get round Granny."
"The wolf."
The blond nodded in answer. It had been rather easy to convince Red, the woman seemingly more than happy to get her back, telling her she had waited a long time to play her godmother role.
"This can't get out of this house." The Sheriff warned.
"Oh no but I hope to be there the day your mother discovers your little deal. You know she doesn't really like when people are not doing what she orders."
"Well you two seem to share something." The blond said trying to be smart.
"Unfortunately it appears that we share more than this."
Neal chose this moment to start fussing. Emma stood up from her stool to get to him but got stopped by Regina who pointed at her plate, "Eat." The Sheriff stood agape for a second at the order but she sat back down dutifully and started eating to the surprised of the former Queen who expected the woman to throw a feat at the command, not liking being told what to do.
Regina walked toward the baby's bed, calming him down while thinking at the boy's sister behavior. The woman was acting strange lately, first avoiding her for days for no reason, then visiting her in the Mayor's office without notice often bringing lunch. It appeared to Regina that the woman wanted to spend time with her, willingly and the former Queen couldn't find a single reason of the why she would want to do something like that. First she thought Emma wanted something from her but she scratched that idea quickly knowing that was unlike the woman to act like this, if she wanted something she would just ask.
Bouncing the baby in her arms she could hear her name being called, it started as an even volume before turning into a loud call when she didn't answer.
She found the blond still in the kitchen. "Are you finished screaming like this?" The mayor asked thickly.
"You weren't responding."
"You could have walked toward the bedroom and talk to me there."
"Or maybe you should have your hearing check."
The remark was meant to get a rise out of her, she knew it but she was in no mood to play this game right now.
Emma let out a cry of surprise and pain as she felt an electric pulse touching her side.
"You did that?"
"I warned you to stop your jokes about my age."
"It doesn't give you the right to hurt me."
"Then stop acting like a brat." She said trying to convey her frustration without screaming at the woman to not frighten the baby still in her arms. "I'm trying to put your brother to sleep and you suddenly think screaming around the house is a great idea. And what are you trying to do?" she said pointing at the mess on the counter.
"I'm making pop corn."
With a swift gesture of her hand, Regina made everything disappear. "Not anymore."
She quickly turned around to try again to put the boy to bed. "Killjoy" she heard the sheriff say behind her before a cry a pain could be heard.
"Stop that!" Emma said massaging her side after receiving another electric current coming from the Queen's magic. Her cry though, only made the Queen smile.
After finally managing to put the boy to sleep, Regina walked back toward the apartment salon only to find the blond woman out on the couch. Checking to make sure, she realized the woman was deeply asleep. Sighing she move her hand envelopping the body of purple smokes effectively sending the woman into her own bedroom rather than letting her spend the night on the couch.
Sitting on the couch, trying to relax herself, she heard her phone vibrate on the coffee table.
"Snow."
"How is it going?"
"They're asleep."
"Good. Everything went fine today then?"
Regina took her time to answer. "I think I've just realized today how alike you and your daughter are."
"Really?" She could hear the hopeful tone of the woman.
"She's as much of a brat as you were."
"I wasn't that bad."
"You clearly have a selective memory."
"I wasn't at least not with you."
Even without seeing her face, she could still guess the sadness behind the former Princess's words. "Because you were afraid."
"No that wasn't it. I just …" She hesitated. "I just wanted you to like me, to be proud of me. All the other things, it was just to get your attention."
"Are you saying your daughter is trying to get my attention?" Regina asked sensing the woman knew more than she was allowing herself to say.
"She likes you. Your opinion seems to matter to her, as well as what may happen to you. She cares, maybe she just want you to care back."
"You're avoiding my question."
"Really Regina I can't explain it. Maybe she's seeing what I saw in you all those years ago, the kind part of yourself. Maybe she feels connected to you, you share magic and Henry after all. Things have changed, we managed to mend our relationship … maybe she wants what could have been."
"You're not making sense."
"Fate Regina. It's not a coincidence you ended up raising my grandchild. It's something that would have happened if you hadn't blamed me for the death of Daniel, maybe not raising him per say but you would have had a role in his life. And the same could be said for Emma. We should have been a family, at least if things went the way they were supposed to. She never had all this, she may be trying to make the most of it."
Regina listened with disbelief at the former Princess's words. If she hadn't blamed her 10 years old self, what would have happened indeed? She never took the time to think about what their life could have been. Surely, if Daniel had not been killed she would have fled with him, far away from Leopold, far away from Snow White. But of course the woman wasn't thinking about this, she wanted her to marry her father, she wanted her to be her new mother and Regina realized that despite the years that have passed, despite everything that had happened between the two of them, Snow seemed to still hold on onto this possibility.
"Whatever improvement we allowed in our relationship, it doesn't mean I want to take up any role in anyone's life. We can be civil with each other but I hardly think there could be more than that." She was not being totally honest, she also sensed their relationship shift since the second curse, since Snow's pregnancy. And her attitude toward the new baby in the Charming's family was proof of it, as well as the Charming's attitude toward her, trusting her to protect their son, and their daughter. A daughter she wanted to kill, a daughter who should blame her for her ruined childhood but who on the contrary wanted to spend time with her. Nothing was making sense.
"Don't push her away, that's all I'm asking." Finished Snow before ending the call.
Regina put her phone done next to her and stayed there unable to move after the conversation she just had. Her world was changing, her priorities too and she didn't know if she was liking it.
"How did I end up in my bed?" Emma asked going down the stairs. "Please tell me you didn't carry me up there."
"I did no such thing. You seem to forget I have magic." Said the Mayor cursing at herself for not noticing the woman was awake. She stared at her looking for clues as to know of she heard her talk on the phone.
"Does your magic can cure a throbbing headache?"
"Aspirin can." Walking toward the kitchen she took a glass of water and the bottle of aspirin on the counter. "Here" she said handing them to the sheriff.
"Thank you."
Regina witnessed the woman's grateful smile at the simple gesture. She sat next to the blond on the couch, a silence surrounding them.
"You should go back to bed. Sleep will help with your headache." The mayor finally uttered refusing to look at the woman next to her.
"I don't think I can walk back up." Trying to move from the couch, Emma almost fell off it. "I'll stay here. Poof me again when I'm asleep."
"I'm not waiting here for you to fall asleep, I was preparing myself to go to bed."
"You were on the phone when I woke up. I heard. Either that or you were talking to yourself which would be creepy even by your standard."
"Really?" Regina said glaring at the woman. "Your mother called to ask how the day went."
"Oh. It's late though."
"She must have been busy with your father-"
"EW!" The Sheriff said way too loud.
"Shh!"
Silence fell between, both anxiously waiting to hear or not the wail of the baby boy in the bedroom not far away. Thanksfully it appeared the boy hadn't heard his sister voice.
"Sorry" Sheepishly murmured the sheriff to a furious Queen. "But I don't want to hear anything about what my parents may or may not be doing when they're alone. I walked on them once, it was enough scarring for a lifetime."
"Wake up your brother and you will learn what it really means to be scarred for a lifetime."
"No need to be menacing, I said I was sorry." Emma said frowning at the vehemence of the older woman.
Seeing the look on the blond's face, Regina realized she must have gone too far. "Habits ... they're not the easily put aside." She said as a way of explanation. "It took me forever to put him to bed, I certainly don't want to try it again anytime tonight."
The sheriff looked down sheepishly, "Sorry."
"You already said that."
"I can't even apologize?"
"Once is enough. Twice you look weak."
"Are you giving me a life lesson at ..." Emma swiftly took a look at the clock, "11 pm on a saturday night?"
Standing up from the couch, Regina stood in front of the blond. "I'm going to bed. It's your last chance."
Knowing there was no way she could go back up by herself, she relented. "All right, poof me."
With a simple gesture, the blond woman was sent back to her bed. Looking at her night stand, Emma could see a full glass of water and a bottle of aspirin, she smiled and before thinking about it shouted "Thank you and good night."
Less than a second later, baby's cries ripped the silence of the apartment followed by cursing from a seemingly very furious mayor.
"I'm so sorry" Emma shouted again before feeling again an electric current touch her skin, strong enough for her to be unable to suppress a cry at the jolt. "This is already getting old Regina." Another jolt. "Stop it!"
"I don't want to hear a word from you from now on."
"Seriously?" Another jolt. "Okay Okay I'm shutting up."
And indeed she did.
