"Would you at least let me stop the car, first?"
The passenger's side was already open and Regina was one foot out the door, long before the vehicle came to a rolling stop. There she went, strutting right up to her residence, leaving Emma behind to contemplate whether or not she should follow. This was about their son, right?
Placing his safety above all else, the blonde was quick to follow. It was so quiet inside that one could probably hear a pin drop. Emma was almost disappointed that her investigative skills wouldn't be put to good use.
"Like I said, false alarm."
She probably didn't have to be so smug about it, but since when was Regina Mills a modest person?
Standing by the doorway of Henry's room, Regina beamed at how clean and orderly it was. It reflected upon her as a parent, of course. "Not a hair out of place," she added with a slight grin, making the sheriff concede defeat with a simple upward tilt of her chin as she turned on her heel.
Emma was about to do the same, when she spotted a charm on the floor. Picking it up and rolling it between her thumb and her index finger, she let her eyes trail across the room and her lips parted slightly in intrigue at the movement under her son's bed. Grabbing a baseball bat from the closet, she carefully followed her suspicions.
Before she was level with whatever was under there, a hand reached out from under the covers and grabbed her wrist. "Please don't hurt her," Henry whispered with wide eyes, causing Emma's blood to run cold. "She doesn't have another place to go."
Heeding his warning, the savior reluctantly set aside the bat by his nightstand and leaned all the way down.
When her cheek pressed against the floor, her calm presence managed to coax the other being from underneath the bed frame. Her nose was licked, causing her to laugh in surprise and she pulled away to sit up. The little fluffy creature crawled into her lap and wagged its tail, peering up at her with wide eyes.
"You know your mother will never allow it."
"You're my mother, too."
Oh, crap. Yet another reason for Regina to hate her guts with the fire of a thousand suns. It's not like she could say no, when two sets of puppy dog eyes were staring back at her.
"I can't keep a dog either, Henry. I don't know how to."
"I'll come over every day, right? She just needs food and water."
"She?"
"Yeah, it's a girl. Obviously," Henry pointed out as the pup moved to its back on the floor, waiting to be pet. "But I haven't been able to figure out her name, yet."
"Obviously."
"So, can we, Mom? Please?"
The next morning, Emma found herself looking frantically for the newspaper, which she swore she'd placed on the kitchen counter. "It didn't just grow legs and walk - " The sound of paper being shredded was heard from the living room and the blonde found herself walking into what could probably pass as confetti.
"Really? You couldn't have spared the classifieds? I guess you really don't want to be found, do you?"
A brief scratch behind the ears was satisfactory for the little mutt, which bounded out of the room and into the kitchen.
Emma sighed as she swept the remnants of her daily routine into the trash bin, before hearing loud barks and yelling. Hoping that the dog hadn't lunged herself at the postman, she ran into the kitchen and nearly ran straight into none other than her almost lover. "Regina?"
"What the hell is that?"
"Don't ask."
The dog continued to bark, its fur bristling as it was backed up into the corner by the queen's menacing gaze.
"Did you even check to see what it was, before you invited it into your home? I swear, Miss Swan, you are about as clueless as you were when you first got here," Regina practically snarled, lifting her hands to form a fireball. "Show your true self, mongrel."
Emma looked on as the dog merely stared back at the dark-haired woman with wide, fearful eyes. Its whole body trembled and it looked like its legs were going to give out. When nothing happened, Regina lowered her hand and pursed her lips.
"Satisfied?"
"Not really," the mayor replied with a disinterested tone, looking away from the cowering animal to acknowledge the other woman. "I brought you coffee."
"Oh."
Regina grabbed her own styrofoam cup and felt it warming her hands, smirking slightly over the brim. "What's that now? Cat got your tongue?"
"No, no cats," came Emma's immediate response, glancing over her shoulder to see that the dog was gone. "Shit, did you leave the door open?"
"Possibly."
Emma ran out to the front door and stood by the entrance, peering out into the street as she watched the retreating form of the mutt going down the street. Great, now Henry was going to be mad at her, too. "Two for two," the sheriff muttered, sensing Regina's presence as she moved to stand beside her.
"That was Henry's, wasn't it? I knew I smelled dog in his room the other night..."
"You knew?!"
"Of course, dear. What kind of mother would I be, if I didn't snoop around in my son's life? I was just waiting for him to tell me."
Emma groaned as she closed the front door and repeatedly slammed her forehead against it.