Chapter Twelve- Caterpillar
Emma had been quiet and withdrawn since leaving the hospital two days prior. She had sank back into using just sign when communicating to anybody but the stuffed Ninja Turtle that Roland had gotten her. Despite the Red Turtle's name being Raphael, she had renamed him Spud. Eating wasn't much better either, although she drank water and protein shakes with gusto if Regina or Ruby made them, she refused to chew anything. So it was when Regina had taken Henry out for some alone time and Ruby had gone for a follow up interview that Cora had started watching her granddaughter. It proven to be difficult because the older woman was just learning sign language and it seemed that the little girl was tired of having to sign the same thing over and over in hopes that Cora would get it.
"Emma, can you eat your food for Nona?" Cora asked for the third time, watching Emma eye the mac and cheese warily. Emma didn't look up at her and she staid stock still, so Cora was unsure if she was even heard. The small blonde child looked up at Cora, before she began to sign rapidly.
"Emma I need you to slow down so Nona can understand. Can I hear your sweet little voice? I won't make you eat that pasta if you just speak to me!" Cora said exasperatedly.
"Did Mama leave me?" Emma's voice was still raspy, but it sounded cute on the kid.
"She left you here with me so we can spend some time together." Cora grinned, having gotten Emma to speak.
"She take Henny, cause he her baby." Emma mumbled, violently pushing the plate of Mac and Cheese onto the floor causing Cora to jump.
"EMMA!" She exclaimed, looking down at the broken plate on the floor then back up at the child. Emma signed sorry slowly so that Cora could understand, but from the uninterested look and the child's hard set eyes Cora could tell she didn't mean it.
"When is Gee-Gee and Henny coming back? Or did they go away like my first Momma?" Emma was swinging her feet as Cora cleaned up the mess.
"Gee-Gee? Your Mama and Henry will be home soon, and I don't think they will be pleased with your behavior missy." Cora chastised, watching Emma shrug.
"So much attitude in a three year old." Cora scoffed, and what was said next made her blood go cold.
"I four. Today I four." Emma pouted, looking around the table for something else to throw.
"Today you're four? When was your birthday then Little Miss Thing?" Cora was amused.
"Today!" Emma responded in a duh tone.
" July tenty-eigfff" Emma tried to say twenty-eighth as Cora whipped around to look at the calendar. The tots birthday had been written in pink sparkly marker, but there was over a week that hadn't been X out.
"Emma your birthday isn't for a week." Cora smiled gently.
"No uh, the rain channel say today is the tenty-eigfff" Emma shook her head, before climbing off the chair slowly. Cora frowned, walking over to her Iphone, she brought the screen to life and there it was mocking her. July 28.
"Damn it!" She hissed lowly, turning around she was able to catch Emma scampering out the room. Unlocking her phone she called her daughter, waiting for the brunette to pick up.
"Hello Mother, we are on our way back. How's Emma?" Regina asked, using the Bluetooth in her car to answer the call through her radio.
"She's upset, but she spoke. And she broke a plate." Cora sighed
"She talked, that's great!" She could hear the excitement in Regina's voice, and she hoped that her daughter was just forgetful, and that she didn't do this on purpose.
"She asked me if you left her here but took Henry because he's your baby. She was wondering if you guys were coming back..." Cora didn't tell her the rest because it didn't seem like something to do over the phone.
"I took Henry out because I haven't spent that much time with him in almost two weeks. Look I'm pulling up right now." Regina's snappy tone came through before the call ended. Walking towards the door, she saw that Emma had picked up the toys she was playing with, and now they were all back in their box. Spud was missing, so she assumed Emma had taken him with her upstairs.
"Nona look what I got!" Henry came barreling over to her with all new tee-ball gear, as he excitedly said what he and his mother did all day.
"That's wonderful Henry, why don't you go set it down and I'll give you some dinner?" Cora patted his head as the child ran off.
"Look if your going to lecture me about my parenting style, just stop! I'm trying to break Emma out of her clingy stage, she has to start school soon and it isn't healthy." Regina ran a frustrated hand through her hair.
"I'm not upset that you took Henry out for some one on one time, I'm confused on why it had to be on Emma's birthday." Cora crossed her arms watching Regina blanch.
"Her birthday isn't for another week." Regina denied.
"Today is the 28th my love." Cora shook her head, watching Regina frantically pull out her phone. Looking at the screen for several moments she angrily chucked it to the floor, before cursing herself.
"How the hell could I be so stupid?" Regina ran a hand through her hair, as her eyes burned with tears.
"I'm sure it was an honest mistake. The week that wasn't marked down was spent in the hospital, Regina." Cora went to comfort her daughter.
"Her first birthday with me and I managed to forget it!" Regina could feel herself being overwhelmed as Cora hugged her.
"Nona!" Henry whined from behind her.
"Yes dear?" Cora turned her head to look her him.
"Emma bit me!" He exclaimed, showing her his forearm that had four tiny teeth impressions.
"That girl! She has been pushing her luck all day." Cora frowned, as Regina broke away to compose herself.
"Emma get your little tush out here right now!" Cora walked deeper into the living room, already seeing a pouting Emma.
"In this house we do not bite young lady. You are going to have a timeout!" Cora scooped up the squirming four year old before making her face the corner. Emma stood there for all of three seconds before she took off running towards the door. However just like the first night she was here she still couldn't reach the knob.
"Emmalyn!" Cora scolded as she went to grab the girl who started screeching. Her little arms and legs flailing in a full blown tantrum.
"Mother just walk away, she'll calm down in a few moments." Regina frowned as she looked at her daughter's red face but she still ushered her own mother out of the room.
"She might be tired, she refused to nap." Cora sighed, sinking into a chair.
"Maybe." Regina replied uncertain, as she listened to Emma screaming her head off. This went on for ten minutes until the screaming and the crying stopped, as Regina and Cora went to check on the tot.
Emma had curled herself into a ball underneath the hallway table. Sucking her thumb intently with dried tear tracks on her face, she was sound asleep. Regina went to scoop up the girl, who was practically dead weight, as Cora went to answer the sudden knocking at the door. A frantic Ruby burst in, out of breath.
"I'm so sorry! I totally forgot what today was! I didn't even realize it until I went to post a status on Facebook!" Ruby looked so apologetic.
"I forgot also. It seems we all did. Emma only reminded mother about it under an hour ago." Regina shook her head sadly.
"What happened?" Ruby walked closer to Regina, placing her hand on the woman's waist without thinking about it.
"We came home and for some reason she bit Henry. Mother put her in timeout and cue the melt down." Regina responded
"What are we going to do?" Ruby looked down at Emma sadly, pushing back princess curls that had come out of her ponytail.
"I don't know. I mean its too late to do anything today. I had planned a simple family picnic with a cake and what not but now it doesn't seem like enough. I mean my goodness, I take Henry out and leave her here with my mother!- No offense" Regina turned to Cora before continuing
"And you go to a work interview all on her birthday. Speaking of, how'd it go?" Regina gestured for Ruby to follow her up the stairs so she could lay Emma down.
"I got the job today was just letting me know when I start or whatever." Ruby answered, opening up the door to Emma's room.
"You never told me where you were interviewing." Regina said softly, opening up the drawers to Emma's dresser and grabbing a sleeper from it.
"You are looking at Storybrooke's newest Deputy." Ruby scratched the back of her head, watching Regina absorb the news.
"That's quite a leap from social worker." Regina swallowed harshly, trying not to think about Ruby in uniform.
"Look I've been meaning to ask you something...No on second though now isn't really a good time." Ruby muttered shaking her head. Regina had tucked Emma in, and was pulling the covers up. Just like every time Regina tucked her in, Emma immediately kicked the covers off even in sleep.
"Whatever it is, just say it!" Regina hissed lowly.
"Well...I was wondering, you know maybe if you weren't busy or anything, that you know, maybe we could, go out sometime? Dinner or a movie?" Ruby rambled, her cheeks paying homage to her name sake .
"Why Miss. Lucas are you asking me on a date?" Regina quirked and eyebrow while crossing her arms over her chest
"I mean...yeah. Yes I am." Ruby tried to reign in some self confidence
"Only two days after you broke up with your ex. Do you take me for a rebound?" Regina questioned, watching Ruby stammer for a response.
"What?! No, of course not! We both know I have had feelings for you for a while now!" Ruby caught herself getting angry as she pointed her finger at Regina.
"You have never told me anything about your feelings except your desire to NOT play family with me and my children" Regina's jaw clenched when she remembered that slight detail.
"Regina..." Ruby started
"No, you need to listen to me! I'm not single, I have a son and a daughter that come with me like a package deal. I don't have time to play these games with you you are so young. I don't think this is what you want!" Regina exclaimed but stopped when Emma whimpered in her sleep. Ruby grabbed her by the arm and lead her out the room.
"I'm not trying to play games with you. Is it so hard to believe that I have genuine feelings for you?" Ruby's voice was raising.
"Lower your voice!" Regina hissed but it was already to late. Their argument had woken up the toddler, whose bottom lip was quivering as she tried not to cry.
"Emma baby, go back to sleep." Regina said softly from the door. The toddler actually listened, turning over towards the wall. Regina almost smiled until she heard the first sob rip from Emma's mouth as the child cried.
"Oh Emma." Regina frowned as she went to comfort her child. Scooping Emma up, she was surprised at how tight the child clung to her. A wet face burrowed into her neck as , Ruby rubbed Emma's back.
"Baby you want to tell me what's wrong?" Ruby pulled Emma back to speak with her.
"Just want Mama." Emma signed back, sobs reduced to hiccuping.
"Did you have a bad dream?" Regina signed to her daughter with one hand. She could feel Emma nod slightly as Ruby handed her the hearing aids from off the night stand. She quickly slipped them in so that Emma could hear their voices
"About what?" Ruby furrowed her eyebrows.
"Mama leaved me." Emma mumbled with a husky voice.
"Emma I didn't leave you." Regina denied
"Yes huh. We didn't have a party cause I was a bad girl." Emma frowned, crossing her arms.
"Emma you aren't a bad girl." Regina shook her head.
"Then why we don't have a party? It was gonna be green." Emma looked up at her with sad eyes.
"Emma there was a lot of things going on recently. You just came home, we thought that it would be best to wait a little while to have a party." Ruby saved Regina, as she watched the older woman fluster.
"We have a party later?" Emma scrunched up her nose.
"Yes Moon Baby. There will be cake, balloons and a whole lot of green. We can invite some of your friends from school too." Ruby continued
"It's not school. Only kids who don't hear go there." Emma shook her head.
"Lovebug, sometimes people who can't hear or see go to different schools than other kids." Ruby informed her. Emma really wasn't in school, it was more of like a daycare center for deaf and hard of hearing toddlers. It helped build up their social skills while surrounding them with kids like themselves. However it was also connected to the Pre-K , and the K-12 school for children who finished with the daycare.
"I don't go wif Henny?" Emma yawned
"No my love, you are going to go to school with all the kids from your class." Regina answered.
"Mama kiss." Emma blinked up at her sleepy, before puckering up her lips. Regina obliged, before standing up with the now four year old in her arms.
"Tell Ruby goodnight." Regina cooed before setting her down in her bed.
"Night RooRoo." Emma's eyes fluttered closed as Regina and Ruby walked out of the room.
"Ruby..." Regina turned to stand in front of the frowning brunette.
"I wasn't playing games with you. I really do like you. I love spending time with you, Henry and Emma. Hell I even enjoy Robin's company on occasion now. I like playing catch with Henry, or reading with Emma. When I think of what I want in a family, it's here." Ruby shook her head before looking off to the side.
"Be that as it may, how do I know your feelings aren't going to change in the future. You are so young you have so much to do and see-" Regina was cut off.
"Fuck Regina I'm about to be twenty-five! Your only three years older then me!" Ruby objected. Before Regina could open her mouth to protest, Ruby advanced on her and crashed her lips into plump red painted ones. Regina immediately melted into the kiss, wrapping an arm around a thin waist, she pulled the younger girl into her deeper.
"Mama kissing Ruby, Nona!" Henry exclaimed, watching the woman break away quickly.
"So I see. Henry go lay down and I'll be in there to read to you." Cora smirked at her daughter after her grandson ran off.
"Mother I-" Regina blushed as she stammered for a response.
"Just friends hmm?" Cora raised an eyebrow before walking in after Henry.
"Well that was embarrassing." Ruby mumbled.
"It wouldn't have happened had you not just kissed me out of the blue!" Regina huffed, crossing her arms and pouting.
"So can I take you out, or do I have to try harder?" Ruby turned to her with an arched eyebrow.
"You can, but you have to find a babysitter for the kids." Regina caved.
AN: I mean if there is anything you guys want to see in this story just let me know because I really didn't envision an end to it. So yeah open to ideas, you can PM me or review them or whatever.
