Pip filled the room with the plucks of his lute. The dance they were working on was, in Regina's opinion, old fashioned but still fun. It involved lots of stepping towards and away from each other, but the entire dance rested on good timing, which Emma had insisted on practicing.
Emma was in a good mood. She smiled through the dance like she really enjoyed it. She smiled at Regina when she got the tricky parts right. They met in the middle of the floor, their left hands met flat against each other as they turned shoulder to shoulder.
Every time Emma smiled Regina felt her heart fill up. It was just the approval of her mentor, she told herself. They turned and their other hands met. She liked Emma's hands. They were elegant but strong. Her right hand was slightly rougher than her left. Regina thought this might mean she was half-way decent with a sword, but why she would need to be, she didn't know.
"Ow!" Regina's foot came down on Emma's. She hadn't been concentrating. Emma hobbled backward and tried to shake it out. Pain was written all over her face.
"Pip?" She strained
"Water?" He was out if the door in a second.
"I'm sorry!" Regina cried. She had obviously given her a good stomp. This happened fairly often, but Emma had never reacted so extremely before.
"It's ok. Ow" Emma said, hopping towards the chaise.
"Here, use me" Regina put her arm around Emma's waist and helped her to the sofa.
Emma tried not to lean on her, but after a few steps she needed the support. She let herself drop to the cushion. It was pretty hard; Regina suspected it was stuffed with horsehair.
Emma unbuttoned her boot and slid it off. Regina gasped, her feet were wrapped in bandages.
"It's ok, it's not as bad as it looks" she said as she carefully rolled each white strip away. The skin underneath was pink and red raw in some places.
"Emma!" Regina put a hand on her leg instinctively to comfort her.
She put her sore foot carefully down before reaching to unbutton the other boot.
"Let me" Regina interrupted
"No it's-" Emma began, but Regina was already kneeling on the floor unbuttoning the boot and sliding it gently off before she could stop her.
She found the edge of the bandage and rolled it up carefully as Emma had done. She passed the roll of clean gauze back to Emma.
"Shall I roll these up?" She asked, tugging the hem of one of Emma's trouser legs. Emma nodded. She rolled them up in the same way she did everything, carefully and with precision. She could feel the tightness of Emma's toned calves as she rolled the fabric over them.
Regina's mind was far away, remembering how hard Emma beat the floors at night and then came in and waltzed her around this room all day. She couldn't understand how she did it.
She was rolling the second trouser leg up when Emma interrupted her thoughts.
"Where did you go?" she asked
"What?" Regina asked, her mind crashing back into the room, though her face remained neutral.
"When we were doing the step dance. You were doing really well and then you just lost your concentration. What were you thinking about?" Emma asked.
Regina had finished rolling the trousers so there was nothing to distract her. She looked up into Emma's eyes completely lost for words. She couldn't tell her the truth, could she?
I was thinking about the feel of your hands on my skin, she thought.
Emma was staring back at her with a curious look on her face. Regina's lips parted slowly when she heard a grunt from the corridor. She stood quickly, hoping to hide the blush she knew was colouring her cheeks and went out to see what the noise was.
Pip struggled down the corridor with two pales of water. He must have run all the way from the scullery with them and made good time. It was a long way and clearly no one had offered to carry anything for him.
Regina rushed to his side.
"Let me help" she said and took one of the buckets from him with both hands.
"Princess, may I assist?" A guard jumped to help her
"Yes" Regina replied "you can take Pip's bucket"
Pip was panting for breath and protested, but the bucket was taken from him.
Whether it was because he was forced into helping Pip, or the fact that Regina had helped him in the first place, she would never know, but it was abundantly clear that the guard was deeply offended by what happened and shot Pip a look of pure loathing.
They set the buckets down in front of Emma and Pip collapsed slowly onto the floor, gasping for breath. Regina was touched by his exertions to help his sister.
"Bit stiff, Pip?" Emma smirked
"Fuck you" he rasped into the floor. Emma smiled and dipped her hurt foot in a bucket.
"Wow that's cold" she said, in mingled pain and pleasure.
Regina offered her a hand and pulled her to her feet. She slid the other foot into the second bucket and hissed a breath in.
Regina watched as goosebumps covered her skin. Emma still held her hand.
"Want to dance?" she asked and Regina laughed
"Another time, perhaps" She smiled.
Regina reclined on a deep leather armchair in the library, smiling to herself and not reading the book that was open in her lap when Zelena burst into the room.
"Well well well, little sis" she said with a very satisfied look on her face.
Regina closed the book she had been not-reading and eyed her sister. This was dramatic, something terrible must have happened to someone.
"You've been keeping a little secret haven't you?" Zelena dropped into a nearby armchair.
Regina's heart leapt. How could Zelena possibly know? She hadn't even admitted it to herself. Maybe this was a trick. She hoped it was.
"And what is that?" Regina asked, feigning boredom.
"You've got more than a professional interest in half of your little dancing duo" she smiled wickedly.
Regina's face was a mask but she felt like her stomach had dropped out of her.
"Oh I'm not going to tell anyone" Zelena said "I can see the panic in your eyes, dear"
Regina tried to stop her jaw clenching but she couldn't help it. Zelena practically squealed with delight.
"This is so exciting! I haven't been this pleased for you since you developed that little crush on the stable boy" she gloated
Regina's heart sank at the mention of Daniel. It had only been a year since he and his father disappeared overnight. Cora had said he received a better work opportunity elsewhere. She couldn't imagine a better one that working for the royal family, but she chose not to investigate further, knowing her mother and choosing to remain hopeful and ignorant. Zelena had brought it up to wound and weaken her, she knew.
"Now here's the thing" Zelena was ready to lay down her terms "I very much enjoyed our little outing the other night and would like to make it through an entire evening without you spoiling it to go home early"
It was hardly early, Regina thought but kept her mouth shut.
"What if we're recognized?" Regina asked, knowing Zelena would bat the objection away in an instant but she needed time to think of some leverage if she was going to come out of this bargain unscathed.
"Oh the glamours worked a treat last time, no one recognized us. Heavens I barely recognized you. We do need to find some more fitting clothes though. I've sent one of the servants to get us dresses like they wear, said I was donating them to a couple of girls I saw in the market with nothing but rags"
"Oh yes" Regina rolled her eyes "That sounds just like you, how inconspicuous"
The glare Zelena shot her was pure venom.
"We're going, or mummy darling is going to find out all about your little love interest. How much longer do you think your lessons will continue then? There's only a month to the ball now"
Regina's heart sank further until she felt it must have fallen to the same place as her missing stomach. She felt empty.
"I'd hate to think you were unfinished, unprepared for the dancing. Besides, I'm sure you haven't even acted on it yet-"
Regina wanted to scream. How could Zelena know this? She hadn't acted on anything and she didn't intend to.
"-wouldn't want you to miss out. I'm sure you'll end up married to someone…charming. But until then you're free as a bird my love. I just want you to be happy" Zelena smiled though her words dripped with self serving malice.
Regina had hardly reacted the entire time. Should she confront her and ask her how she knew? Should she deny it? She hadn't done anything that could be proven besides stare open mouthed at her teacher like she was something to be devoured when she appeared at The Reel. She realised may have been her tell. She couldn't deny it. She would just ignore it.
"When?" she asked
Zelena sat up and clapped.
"Well, my friend-" she overemphasized so Regina knew exactly the squiring 'friend' she was talking about "is currently away for a tournament, so it will be next week at the earliest. Perhaps you should bring your own friend" she rose and flounced out of the room, turning to give Regina a parting smile that bordered on lascivious.
Regina grimaced. What Zelena did in private was her own business. She couldn't believe she was being dragged into it without even having done anything. Maybe she should do something to earn the predicament she was in, at least then it might be worth it.
Her mind wandered to Emma's touch at her lower back, the way her body bounced in that green dress, the glint in her eyes when Regina impressed her.
The door slammed and broke Regina's reverie.
"Sorry Your Highness, I didn't know you were here" one of the maids squeaked in apology.
"It's quite alright" Regina replied, her own voice low and rumbling in comparison "carry on your business"
"Thank you miss" she curtseyed and came to tend the fire.
Regina watched her. She didn't think the fire could be too difficult to manage. Throw some wood on it and be done. The maid seemed to be taking great care over it. She turned each log so it would burn all the way through. Very economical, Regina noted. She applied coal too and a new log. Regina had no idea where the logs would be kept. She looked around the room and saw none, only books. She smiled to herself, thinking how funny it was to have a fire in a room essentially full of tinder.
If I ever need to burn the palace down, this would be a great place to start, she mused.
When the maid was done she swept the fire debris away and stood.
"Can I get you anything, ma'am?" she asked
Regina thought for a moment.
"What is the weather expected to be like tomorrow?" She asked
"It is supposed to be a very fine day, ma'am" she said
"Thank you" Regina replied "that is all"
The maid curtseyed and scurried from the room, like a scared little mouse.
Tomorrow Regina would not be dancing, she would walk in the grounds and forget all about Emma Swan, her pretty laugh and outrageous dimples.