Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or quotes or once upon a time. But the people who do own all these sure do a fantastic job!

I apologize in advance for any possible mistakes, I was feeling really sleepy when I wrote this eeeee. ALSO warning? Lotsa swanqueen, in fact this is a purely swanqueen chapter. Happy reading :)

Chapter 4

From her bug, Emma watches the Mayor's mansion. She's been parked there for a good 10 minutes, just staring at her new home and her family inside. Her eyes widen at her own thought and she can't help smiling to herself, as she exits the car to enter the mansion.

The blonde settles down the box she's carrying, full of her stuff from Snow's apartment, as she registers the Mayor's presence. Turning with a happy smile planted on her face she notices Regina's contrasting horrified one.

"Miss Swan, what is that?" Regina tries to sound strict like the Mayor she is, but her voice betrays her, wavering.

Emma looks down at the box and speaks slowly, feeling a bit confused, "it's a box..."

"So you really are more than overstaying your visit, I thought with Snow White everything could be made up with rainbow kisses and unicorn stickers?" Emma fights back a laugh, realizing she'd made a fool of herself, believing that Regina meant it when she said she could stay. The happy mood suddenly vanished and Emma reached for the door and opened it. She picked up her box and was about to make her way out when Regina realized what was happening.

"Wait, Emma-" Regina walks towards her quickly and grabs her arm, "don't go, I just thought that you'd change your mind and realize that you were staying with the Evil Queen and-"

"Regina. If you don't want me here I can find somewhere else to stay," Emma noticed the glistening in Regina's eyes. They begged her to stay. Emma finally understood what was happening, the strong woman before her was afraid. Regina had started opening up to Emma and of course she'd have her doubts, after all the betrayal and disappointment the Mayor had suffered, she was bound to have doubts. In fact she was more than entitled to them.

Emma pouted at Regina whilst she thought about all this, realizing how alone the brunette had been all this time. She noticed their closeness, and the way Regina stared at her lips, the way her eyes also looked at Regina's lips. There was a brief magnetic pull between them that almost brought them together, but the sound of glass smashing against Regina's pristine kitchen tiles bought them back to realization. The blonde felt the Mayor inhale deeply and turn, making her way towards the kitchen.

"Henry are you alright in there," She heard Regina's words as she reached their son, who looked petrified at having broken a glass from his mother's expensive glass set.

"I'm so sorry I didn't mean to," he bent down to pick up the pieces and Regina stopped him, afraid he'd cut himself. "It's okay, I'll do that."

"Hey what happened," Emma came into the kitchen and hugged Henry, who was clearly more upset about breaking the glass than Regina seemed to be. The blonde noticed how level headed Regina was and forgiving that Henry had broken something of value. The Mayor was a good mother, she always wanted what was best for Henry, and Emma couldn't understand how this woman had ever been any kind of evil. Although she'd known an Evil Regina at some point, she just couldn't quite pinpoint when she ceased to exist, at least in Emma's mind.

The blonde had possibly just had the best dinner she had ever had, and she realized she was smooching off Regina. So as they'd finished dinner, Emma decided to clean up and the Mayor seemed to simply watch, clearly amused. Once Henry had gone upstairs to get started on his homework, Regina went into the kitchen to check on the blonde.

"I didn't pin you for housewife," Regina leaned against the counter next to Emma, who was doing the dishes, "you know, although I do appreciate your handicraft, we have a dishwasher for that."

Emma looked at her with an annoyed look, "I'm smooching off you," she fumbled with the water temperature, "and I hope you'll give me a tour of the house soon to prevent from further embarrassing myself."

The Mayor watched the Sheriff smile shyly down at the sink filled with water, and felt the urge to press herself against Emma and hug her from behind. She frowned and shook the thought, feeling the heated tension growing in the air, or was that just her?

The way Emma Swan turned and looked at her, her eyes wide and her lips forming that shy smile, melted the part of Regina's heart she forgot she had. The part that knew how to love. She cleared her throat, after understanding that it was definitely not just her, and that now she was willingly living with the woman she'd hated less than a year ago and all she wanted was to be... Affectionate? with the mother of her child.

"H-here let me show you," they both noted the stutter in Regina's voice and Emma's mind screamed at her, because a simple look had Regina stuttering. The brunette took the rest of the dirty dishes and put them inside the machine.

"Was I not doing a good enough job?" Emma faked offense.

"There are better things you could be doing," the two women froze at the brunette's response and the air intensified.
"Cider?" Regina suddenly offered and the blonde agreed, thankful for a cold drink.

Emma went into the living room and Regina soon followed with two glasses and a bottle of apple cider. The blonde noticed it wasn't the supermarket kind, it had no label and seemed to be homemade, she remembered the apple tree and smiled.

"Did you make that yourself?" Regina looked at her surprised, "yeah how did you know?"

And Emma laughed, of course she made it herself, and smiled at the woman. "I just guessed, I know how crazy you are about apples, besides that one time with the tree-" Emma stopped talking as she noticed the frown that settled on Regina's face.

"I'm sorry about what I did to your tree..."

Regina's answer astonished Emma completely, "It's okay, the branches are growing back, I was just remembering how attractive you looked."

Clearly the brunette had spoke without thinking, and there was a moment of silence between them but Emma laughed it off.

"Really? The woman who was threatening to take away your son comes to destroy your favorite tree and all you think about is that?"

Regina glared at Emma as she poured her a glass.

As soon as Emma took the glass to her mouth all she could taste was Regina, and she quickly realized that this could be a problem, "I hope the alcohol content on this isn't too high..." she half muttered to herself, but the brunette heard it.

"I'm afraid it is quite high, why?" Emma looked into her glass and quietly replied, "no reason..."

After 2 bottles of Regina's "quite high" alcohol content cider, and both women were giddy and laughing, talking like they were good friends from years back- except these two friends were getting rather intimate regarding topics and actions. The more they drank the more personal the questions got. They weren't drunk, just brave. Emma had definitely had much more than Regina, and Regina had never known her cider was that good.

"You're an attractive, strong, independent woman- why haven't you got anyone in your life?" Emma seized her up and smiled a great big smile. She knew the flush on her cheeks was a sign that the cider was doing it's job and she wondered what else Regina had learnt to do in the 28 years of boredom she'd had to herself.

Regina's smile was unlike any smile she'd worn in years, she felt truly happy, and it wasn't just the cider's effects. She had to admit, Emma Swan was the perfect company, and she was interested in all the right things and asked the appropriate answers to receive a response which entertained them both. Their chemistry was undeniable.

"It's not that easy to find your true love, considering I live in a town I made up with creatures who hate me," Emma snorted with laughter and put an arm around the brunette's shoulder and pulled her close, kissing the side of her head. Regina couldn't help but blush at the action as she looked up at Emma, who looked at her with pure affection. The Mayor remembered the cider's influence and felt like Emma was under another of her curses, which made her quickly put up her walls. She stood and reminded Emma they had to work tomorrow, taking the bottles and glasses into the kitchen.

By the time she'd turned off all the lights, the blonde was already upstairs, and Regina too went up. She noticed Emma standing by her bedroom door waiting for her.

"I'm glad we got to hang out Madame Mayor," Emma stood against the door frame with a goofy smile on her face, and Regina scoffed, but she was smiling the same smile back at Emma.

"Good night Savior" the two women hugged unconsciously and as they pulled away they both looked at each other with shy smiles.

"Have sweet dreams, Regina." Regina gulped as the look Emma gave before entering her room, warmed her up.

Before entering her own room, she checked on Henry, who'd fallen asleep reading the book he'd been assigned. She smiled at her son and kissed the top of his head, tucking him in and turning of the light before heading out. Just before she closed the door she heard his whisper to her.

"Goodnight Mom, I love you"

Regina couldn't be happier.

Regina turned restlessly in her bed. This was the second time she'd woken because of an inappropriate dream with Emma Swan. She couldn't take it anymore- it was driving her crazy- the thought that the blonde was just a few steps away. The brunette tried to shake the image of her body and the way it moved and her eyes, Emma's eyes that looked at her with so much love. She used the pillow next to hers to bury her head and let out a slight yelp.