Hello My Doves!
Dear Guest, I haven't a clue how to help with your problem. I don't have a tumbler account. I'm not sure I even understand what twitter is, and my extent of technological knowledge includes Excel for statistics and Word for writing. I still haven't figured out how to make my Facebook feed not show me friends of friends' posts, which is annoying. That said, I was totally born into the wrong generation and will defer to those more wise than I in this department. Also, I agree with everything you've said in the post.
Now, that the fun stuff is over, I must go do things like fix my truck. Warning: This is a rant, and I appreciate you listening. My loving and wonderful and never boring partner has a taillight out on her car, which I found out about and promised on Friday evening night before I left for work to fix but haven't gotten around to it because I split wood for my partially disabled mom on Saturday and then took her grocery shopping yesterday. Hey, I work nights so it's a bitch to be up all day, and I was exhausted by the time I got home, not mentioning: recently dislocated and aching knuckle! So after a minor argument and to make a statement, she decided to take my truck this morning to that germ-infested place where she teaches severely cognitively impaired, bacteria-filled but incredibly sweet and adorable little monsters. She returned less than two minutes later with tears in her eyes and shaking hands. She handed me my keys, which I looked at in confusion, not knowing she'd decided to take my truck, which she loathes driving, and told me that I had to add the garage door track and my truck to my list of things to do on top of everything else I normally do on my only day off. So, I probably won't get to my nightly installment this evening. Mama was right when she told me that I'd never be bored with this one. She's so clumsy, and, gods help me, but I fall for her again every time, no matter how pissed I am.*Rant over*
At any rate, enjoy Lovelies!
Songs: I Choose You by Sara Bareilles, Say Something by A Great Big World and Christina Aguilera
Regina raised one eyebrow in amusement at the sight that greeted her in the foyer. Henry's hair had been styled into a Mohawk by some force far more sinister than magic, hair gel. His shirt was open to reveal a white tank top beneath it. Ruby wore incredibly bagging pants, barely held in place by her slim hips, flat skater boy shoes, a white tank top and open shirt, like Henry. They both had sunglasses on and bobbed their heads and bodies to the horrible beat.
Ruby shouted encouragements or corrections of her boy's dance method, though neither of them looked particularly graceful or talented. She stopped and simply watched the two laugh and carry on for two songs. While she fervently disapproved of Ruby's choice in music and Henry's hairdo, she ignored the urge to chastise either of them. Whether Ruby distracted Henry or herself from the bleak situation, Regina wasn't sure, but her heart warmed at her son's wide smile and bright eyes.
Regina clicked down the stairs, unseen until she landed on the hardwood of the foyer. Ruby waved, and Henry whipped around and struck a pose with arms crossed over his chest. Perfectly sculpted eyebrows shot skyward at the attitude in her son's antics, but Regina smiled.
"Hey Mama Bear! Care to join us?" Ruby shook her hips suggestively and wiggled her eyebrows.
Regina shook her head, refusing to yell over the racket. She kissed her son's cheek and waved over her shoulder on the way to the kitchen. She silently blessed Ruby when she found a full coffee pot awaiting her and filled her cup, adding a teaspoon of sugar. Ruby knew how to make the most of a cup of coffee. She sipped it as she waited for a bagel to toast. It popped.
Breakfast and go-go juice in hand, she returned to the door leading to the foyer and leaned as she ate and watched the two dance. They seemed content to ignore her presence in lieu of moving to the beat. Regina swallowed her last bite of bagel and pushed herself off the wall, intending to return to the kitchen when Emma's joyous whoop held her in place.
She moved gingerly, clearly not ready to shake her hips, but her arms and bent knees were very emphatic as she came down the stairs. She wore her normal dark blue skinny jeans, mid-calf boots and a white tank top. Black, thick-framed glasses hung in the hem of the tank top between her breasts. Ruby and Henry cheered and happily accepted her into their mid-morning dance party. Regina smiled widely and felt another laugh bubble in her chest. She laughed rarely, but Emma simply being Emma had inspired the emotion twice in less than an hour.
She almost allowed it to escape her throat until the emotion turned into something warmer when Ruby grabbed Emma's hips from behind and pressed against her, swaying and grinding suggestively on the more rigid Emma. She saw the desire to move similarly against Ruby in those green eyes, but she refrained from trying, knowing it would only lead to a premature ending in pain after their long session of lovemaking only a few hours ago. Water dripped onto the white tank top from her wild hair as she whipped her head about. Regina's lips parted.
Ruby ran her hand up Emma's side sensually, and then their bodies parted under mutual agreement but continued moving. The entire moment had lasted ten seconds and meant nothing, at least not them, other than having a good time with a trusted friend, but to Regina, it bred something akin to jealousy, arousal and a desire to give this sort of dancing a second chance before dismissing it completely. When Emma healed completely, perhaps she'd give her a private lesson in their room. Her breathing hitched, head jerking to attention with the thought. Heat and rouge blew up her chest, neck and face, settling in an uncomfortable burn on the tips of her ears.
She barely heard the doorbell over the music and the pounding of her heart in her ears. She moved across the foyer quickly, thankful for the genuine distraction from thoughts of Emma grinding on her like Ruby had just demonstrated. Her mood, however, darkened when she discovered Snow White on her porch shuffling her feet self-consciously. She clutched a container of something tightly to her stomach, doe eyes wide with anxiety and fear.
"Regina, hi," she greeted. When Regina said nothing, she tried again. "I couldn't sleep, so I made nut bread… a lot of nut bread. This one is blueberry walnut. Blueberry everything used to be your favorite, so…" She shifted weight on her feet again and held out the container.
"Neither could I," Regina deadpanned and then leaned forward and whispered darkly, "So your daughter and I had a lot of s…
"Oh oh oh, oookay," Emma interrupted, barreling to the door and fumbling to get her glasses on her face, but it wasn't soon enough to thwart Regina's pointed statement from piercing its target.
Snow's eyes widened cartoon-ishly. Of course she knew that her daughter was a sexual being - she did have a son after all - but having it thrown in her face by her step-mother/arch nemesis/ former Evil Queen shocked her system. Regina grinned smugly but held further comment.
"Okay," Emma said again. She touched Regina's lower back instinctively when she reached the door. "Hey, Mary Margaret. Thank you, for… whatever that is," Emma waved her hand at the still outstretched container.
"And you, you have got to stop saying shit like that. Sex life off limits as leverage to torture Snow White," she chided Regina, a little offended and very hurt that what they'd shared last night had been reduced to a childish barb thrown at her mother for the sake of making her uncomfortable. Regina realized her mistake immediately.
"I'm sorry, Emma," her words were sincere and slipped out easily, but dark eyes told green that their connection last night meant more than what she'd just made it. What Regina hadn't said earned her forgiveness more than what she had.
Snow watched the interaction curiously and slightly mortified. She snapped her jaws shut when Emma turned back to her after the silent but tense conversation.
"What do you want, Mary Margaret?" Regina adjusted her shoulders and spoke in a more civilized tone. Snow's mouth dropped open again.
"To… check on you," she mumbled, eyes finding her naval. "I was worried, but David wouldn't let me come last night. He's…" she waved her hand, searching for words. "Struggling."
"And have you informed him that Emma is safe and protected and loved, and I tried to kill my mother yesterday. Pales in comparison, doesn't it?" Regina sniped, crossed her arms, turned to the side in silent invitation for Snow to enter her home. Emma and Mary Margaret both stared at her in surprise.
"Quickly. Before I decide to kill you on my stoop," Regina muttered, eyes on her manicured fingernails as the two younger women gawked.
Snow stepped between them and into the foyer. Ruby stood at the top of the stairs leading to the foyer, hands protectively on Henry's shoulders. Her eyes were frozen chocolate, shoulders rigid, but she said nothing. Snow clutched her breakfast treat to her stomach nervously. Emma watched the two for a second and then stepped into Regina bodily, trapping her crossed arms between them.
Regina's head snapped up, eyes only an inch from bright green. Emma kissed her, hard and passionate and slow; one hand slid around Regina's neck, thumb brushing over her windpipe, the other at her hip. Regina was just as surprised as the other three when Emma pulled back.
Snow wasn't horrified like the first time she'd seen them kiss at Granny's. She was clearly uncomfortable, but her eyes held something a little deeper that Emma couldn't identify. Ruby smirked, eyebrow raised, and visibly less tense than she had been 30 seconds ago. Henry looked between his mothers nervously, but hesitant acceptance shown in his eyes.
"Remind me to be nice to you more often," Regina tossed at Snow as she passed her. "Follow me," she added halfway up the stairs.
"Mom, Aunt Ruby said I could go to the diner with her and help Granny in the kitchen again today. Can I?" Henry asked, pain in his voice. He was angry still with Snow White, his grandmother.
Regina hugged him to her chest, his spiked hair poking her chin. She caught Ruby's eyes over his head, and she nodded her permission. Bless this stupid mutt, Regina silently prayed just in case anyone was listening.
"Of course, Sweetheart. You and Granny must work on your hero lessons," Regina encouraged brightly, even if she wanted to rip out Snow's heart for hurting her son. "But only if you promise never to wear this in public," she added quickly.
"I promise!" He conceded easily and bolted for the stairs. Regina watched him a moment and then continued to the kitchen. Ruby stayed at her side.
"Aunt Ruby?" Regina asked quietly, and Ruby shrugged.
"He started calling me that last night. I liked it, so I gave it a dance party," she answered cheekily, a brightness in her eyes that she hadn't had since Belle's accident.
"It's nothing short of miraculous what can heal with the love of a child," Regina commented neutrally, unsure if even Ruby understood the happiness she felt. The wolf nodded.
Regina and Ruby leaned on the counter near the stove, shoulders a hairsbreadth apart; Snow and Emma sat on the other side of the island. An awkward silence stretched, so Emma tore open the container Mary Margaret sat in front of her, inhaling deeply. She'd missed the woman's baked goods.
"Oh my god, that smells amazing," Emma praised and then snagged a piece of the bread enthusiastically. She bit into it, and her shoulders fell dramatically as she stared at her mother. "This is amazing," she said and then shoved more into her mouth.
"Thank you," she mumbled around the moist bread in her mouth.
"Miss Swan," Regina scolded instinctively, and green eyes batted at her from behind square glasses. Regina rolled her eyes and pushed from the counter.
"Care for coffee, Miss Blan… Mary Margaret?" She asked politely as she remembered her own manners.
"That would be wonderful. Thank you," Snow accepted, though she'd already plied herself adequately with caffeine. She willingly exchanged the jittery hands it would surely cause for winning over Regina's continued civility. She wanted her daughter back, and Emma obviously came with Regina now.
"Seriously, Rubes, try this," Emma pushed the container towards Ruby who leaned her long lithe body over the space and snagged a piece. Her eyes squinted in bliss when she bit into the sweet bread, and she quickly steeled her features, not yet willing to give Snow the compliment.
Regina sat a steaming mug in front of Snow and then moved to the refrigerator for a moment before returning with Emma's, fixed perfectly to milky and sweet. Emma wrapped her arm around Regina's waist before she moved away. She held a piece of the bread in the other hand and stared up at Regina with puppy dog eyes.
"You really need to try this, Baby," she used the name intentionally and watched Regina's resistance fade away with an arrogant smirk. Regina huffed, knowing exactly what Emma had done and that she had no power to fight it.
"Blueberries are my favorite," she justified and straightened her spine. She retreated to Ruby's side with the bread, and like the younger woman refused to allow her pleasure at the delectable taste show on her face. Emma cleared her throat, took a sip of coffee, sighed.
"Ok, now that we are all here. What are we going to do about Cora?" She asked abruptly, knowing no gentler way to broach the subject.
"What about the others?" Snow interjected immediately.
"Oh come on, we all know who wears the pants and gives the orders. Your cretins will do whatever you say," Ruby snapped harshly at Emma's mother.
"We do nothing," Regina answered before an argument broke out in her kitchen. "Unless of course you are willing to risk an unknown number of lives in a war of attrition. She wants me, only me for now. One life is a small price to pay for saving an entire population, don't you agree?" Regina's tone might have ended the discussion if she were still queen or mayor, but three voices of protest met her suggestion fervently.
"Enough!" She held up her hand as no single thought rose above the cacophony. "I told you yesterday that Cora is twice as ruthless as I ever was. I have enough blood on my hands. Let me do the right thing, for once," Regina pleaded with them.
"The price is too high," Emma whispered, recognizing Regina's tone as the one used when she'd already made a decision, resigned herself to something unpleasant.
"Nevertheless, I will do what must be done," Regina countered softly, heart clenching painfully at the anguish on Emma's face. "Maybe I can temper Cora's destruction from the other side."
"Look, Mama Bear, I get that you are trying to do the right thing, but she's going to try and make you evil again and use all of us as leverage to make that happen. How much do you think you can take before you give into the darkness and become The Evil Queen again?" Ruby pointed out and crossed her arms, protecting herself from the unpleasant thought.
"As much as I can," Regina answered honestly. "I have Emma's goodness inside of me now. Maybe I can hold out long enough for you to defeat her."
"Regina, forgive me if I'm speaking out of turn, but you had Emma's goodness in you yesterday except it was even stronger because Emma carried your heart. Cora… she destroyed you in less than 10 minutes," Snow spoke up, expecting a tongue lashing in return. It never came.
"I have to try," Regina said sadly and sipped her coffee.
"No, Baby, Mary Margaret and Ruby are right. What you're talking about doing will only be a temporary solution that might lead to something even worst. We need a plan," Emma finally recovered from the emotional blow and added her opinion to the mix.
"What if Regina only pretends to give herself up," Snow offered. "Go to her before the three days are up. She won't expect it. Maybe stage a falling out between you and Emma publicly, so if she is listening or watching, which she probably is, she will think she's broken you. You kept her distracted for a while before when you were grieving for Ruby and that's when she knew that you weren't hers. If she thinks that you have come back to her willingly, perhaps you could hold her off longer this time."
Everyone stared at the pixie-haired woman, astonished. Her idea made all sorts of sense. She'd not harm Regina if she were allowing her time to recover from her heartbreak, and if Regina asked for time before wreaking havoc, Cora might just be caught off guard long enough for them to do something about the situation.
"So, how do we beat her?" Emma asked.
"Her heart," Ruby offered, eyes wide as if surprised by her own words. "I vaguely remember her telling Hook that she kept it in a box somewhere in her possessions. If you had her heart, Regina, you could control her. We wouldn't have to kill her unless you wanted to."
"Belle's proclivity to rehabilitation of dark souls has rubbed off, hasn't it?" Regina quipped, protecting her mind and heart from the possibility that her mother might be saved and given the chance to experience love and forgiveness. Maybe she loved her in her heart if not in her actions. If she'd been without a heart for all these years, Regina wasn't surprised she'd become so twisted.
"I don't like it," Emma started and pushed the container of bread from her as the strong scent of blueberry turned her stomach. "But I don't really see a better option."
"Who else are we bringing in on this?" Snow asked, wanting desperately to tell David to have hope.
"No one," Regina, Emma and Ruby all said at once.
"The less who know, the safer more will be," Regina said.
"Plus, it will help sell mine and Regina's break up," Emma said.
"I'm going with you," Ruby broke the chain and turned to Regina, and it was her turn to be stared at in disbelief by the other three.
"Look, we've been leaning on each other for support for months. I'm sure that Cora has noticed by now that I'm basically emotionally retarded at the moment, so use it. You won't have to be alone that way. I can help you remember who you are. Tell her that I've cracked under the strain, that we're sleeping together. I don't care, just tell her something. The town's kind of gullible, so they'll eat up whatever you guys fight about. Fight about me, and take me with you," Ruby pleaded.
"Come on, Regina. She knows I'm loyal to you. She knows that you defied her to save me. She held me prisoner and tortured me for four days, so it will give me a reason to avoid her and not say something stupid. This will work," Ruby insisted more adamantly.
"I'd feel better if you weren't alone, Regina," Emma added quietly, urging her lover to accept Ruby's noble and incredibly brave offer.
Regina stepped forward and leaned into the island and touched Emma's face with her knuckles. She studied those pleading green orbs, feeling herself giving in with each passing second. The thought of being parted from Emma for even a night made her chest ache with an overwhelming loneliness.
"I will do this if you promise me one thing," Regina whispered, voice thick and deep with tears.
"What?" Emma encouraged as Ruby and Mary Margaret and everything faded, leaving only Regina's beautifully haunted eyes shimmering with tears and her soft knuckles against her cheek.
"When all of this is over, I never want to be parted from you for another night. I don't care if it's here or Boston or New York or under the troll bridge. I want to feel you, every night, for the rest of my life. Can you promise me that?" Regina asked hopefully, pleading with her eyes.
"Are you asking me to marry you?" Emma clarified, searching for understanding, eyes filling with tears.
"If that's what you want, Emma. Everything I have is yours, my house, my body…" She swallowed when her emotions stole her voice. "My heart. Everything that I am. I'm not asking for anything more than to feel you every night. That's all I want. Any further commitment will be yours to decide when you're ready. I'll never ask you for anything more than this," she elaborated and tears dripped onto her cheeks. Her eyes were wide and honest and quietly asking, but they needn't have.
"I want the same thing, Regina," Emma quietly confessed as her tears mimicked her lover's. "So yes, Regina Mills, I'll let you feel me every night for the rest of our lives if you make me the same promise."
They smiled together, the vein in Regina's forehead throbbing with emotion. They moved in an unspoken agreement and met at the end of the island, coming together bodily. Lips crashed painfully, teeth clanking in their need to be joined. Regina's hands moved to their new favorite spot in Emma's hair, and Emma pressed them together in a suffocating embrace with her strong arms around Regina's waist and upper back.
Tears fell from Snow's eyes despite her disapproval of Emma's choice and prayed that Henry never had to complete a family tree for school. Her opinion mattered nothing, not when True Love got involved, and she realized in this moment that that's exactly what Emma and Regina felt for each other. She was the savior and had defeated The Evil Queen, but as Emma did everything, she'd done it in her own way and to hell with what everyone else thought.
Ruby's eyes, also shimmering with tears, met Snow's. She reached for her former best friend's hand and squeezed it tightly. It wasn't quite forgiveness, but they both needed to feel a connection in the highly emotional moment. Snow studied her eyes, finding happiness and something darker like anguish, and covered their joined hands with her other one.
"Uhh, why is everyone crying?" Henry asked from the door of the kitchen, now changed into his normal flannel shirt and jeans, hair wet from the removal of the gel.
"Aunt Ruby, is this one of those 'girl things' you keep telling me about?" He asked, slightly mortified.
The women laughed and wiped their tears in unison. It was the perfect ending to the moment, and they all smiled at the boy, knowing just how lucky he was to be so incredibly loved when none of them had really known it growing up. Emma held Regina's waist as the slightly shorter woman pressed her forehead into her jaw and clasped her hands around her hips.
"Yeah, Kiddo. It's a girl thing," Ruby answered and held out her free hand to him, beckoning him into a sideways hug. He obliged her, still slightly freaked out.
"Go hug your moms. We should get going," Ruby ordered softly, and he obeyed.
The two women bent together and accepted their son into them as one unit and kissed his wet head on each side before letting him go.
"Listen to Granny, and don't go anywhere without Ruby, okay, Kid," Emma instructed, and Regina beamed at her lover's developing parenting skills.
"We love you," Regina added with a glance to Emma, letting her know she'd missed something, and smoothed their son's wet messy mop.
"I love you guys, too. I'll be good, I promise," Henry said. Regina clenched her jaw at the phrase and reminded herself that it hadn't meant the same thing as when she said it to her mother.
"Ruby, we'll be by during the lunch rush," she added pointedly, meeting the wolf's eyes in silent confirmation of their plan.
"See ya then," Ruby confirmed and slung her arm around Henry's shoulders as they exited together, Henry immediately chattering up at her about helping Granny in the kitchen. Ruby smiled down at him, and then they disappeared into the foyer.
Emma's grip tightened as she sensed the emotions building in Regina once more. She desperately wanted to tell their son the truth but held her tongue as she watched them leave. The thought of making him hate her again hurt more than the thought of being parted from Emma.
"He'll understand when it's over, Regina." Two sets of eyes snapped to the forgotten Snow White when she offered words of comfort and wisdom from one mother to another. Snow stood without waiting for a response.
"I'll get as many people to the diner as possible. Don't worry, I won't say anything to David. Just be careful he doesn't shoot you with that ridiculous pistol he keeps in his shoulder holster from the time he gets up until he goes to bed," Snow bit out, clearly irritated with her husband's new weapon.
She cleared her throat and clasped her hands in front of her. If pushed only a little, she might have burst into tears and confessed how much she and her husband had been fighting since returning to Storybrooke. Their trip to The Enchanted Forest had been like a second honeymoon, full of adventures and passion and lots and lots of sex under the stars. Since Regina's failed execution, however, they'd disagreed every step of the way about everything, from what to have for breakfast to whether they should try to accept Emma and Regina as a couple.
She'd given Emma up once and swore she'd never do it again. David confessed to her during a particularly heated argument that he'd willingly followed her into the portal, and she'd slapped him. He held it against her, even though he said he'd forgiven her. She wouldn't have followed him, not at the risk of never seeing her daughter again, and even though she told him that she'd forgiven him for that decision, she didn't. She knew he'd never leave her nor her him, but it still hurt deeply to lose his constant support and loving arms, no matter how briefly. She was alone, and now knew how Regina had felt all those years as her step-mother. It was a torture no one should have endured.
"Emma, your room at the apartment is just how you left it. You and Henry will need a place to stay tonight. Or if you're uncomfortable, a room at Granny's perhaps," Snow gave her a way out of the offer. She'd clearly thought about this plan all night while everyone else slept peacefully or watched television or made love until almost dawn.
"I think Henry will do best surrounded by people who love him," Emma said after a long moment of staring at her mother. Regina smiled at her lover. She'd wanted her to stay with Mary Margaret and David but allowed the decision to be made without her influence.
Snow nodded and then left without saying anything else. The new silence was harsh, and Emma pulled Regina more tightly against her. Regina's lips captured hers commandingly, and green eyes widened in shock, instantly recognizing the need in the other woman. It was the first time she'd initiated or asked for physical comfort in the form of sex. Emma eagerly obliged her need, though she still recovered and ached from their marathon last night. It wasn't the physical release that Regina needed but the connection and reassurance of their deeper bond.
They stumbled through the foyer and recklessly braved the stairs without breaking the kiss. Finally, the bedroom door closed behind them, and Emma immediately surrendered her body to Regina's need to feel her. It was a deep emotional promise to return to her, and Emma prayed Regina was strong enough to keep that promise.
