Regina was finishing with the last details of the lasagna when she heard Henry opening the front door and coming inside with a very loud Emma. It seemed that the two of them were discussing comics.
"I tell you kid, DC universe is way better." Emma said while coming to the kitchen and smiling brightly at Regina. "They have the baddest super women ever."
Henry came after her and gave Regina a kiss on the cheek. "And I keep telling you that The Avengers and X-Men beat the Justice League by a clear mile. And also that Marvel has Spiderman, Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Captain America and the Fantastic Four." he discussed passionately.
Emma scoffed. "DC has WonderWoman! Who, I will remind you, is the prebuscent fantasy of every teenage boy. And Superman and Batman! And the movies that DC does are way better than Marvel, although I will admit they are redeeming themselves with the Avengers and Captain America."
Regina made a gagging noise which stopped the discussion from continuing. "Although I find the topic you are talking about fascinating." she said sarcastically. "The lasagna has been ready for a while, and unlike you two, I'm starving."
The two of them quickly ran to the table and sat down. Emma grabbed the juice and poured them all some before loading her dish with two gigantic slices of lasagna.
"You know I envy you so much." Regina said to Emma while watching her eat. "You look like that." she pointed at Emma's body. "And eat like that." she motioned for the immense plate of lasagna.
Emma laughed. "Well, since I was a child I always had a very thin contexture. And when I started to do sports that also seemed to help me to maintain weight."
"Lucky you." Regina said while looking at her own, smaller plate. "And to think some of us have to take care of our food choices."
"Well, you can let loose because you look amazing." Emma said softly.
Henry looked at the two blushing women and groaned in fake annoyment. "Ma, you are so lame."
"And you will be grounded if you don't keep quiet." Emma scolded him while blushing harder.
Regina laughed at Emma's sweet clumsiness and gave her a wink. "You know, I also think that DC comics are better." she told the two of them.
Henry objected about allowing her Mom have a say in the topic because of her lack of knowledge about the comic world and Emma mussed that she had every right to have an opinion if she was able to differentiate between the two universes.
"But how can we validate your opinion if you don't sustain it with evidence?!" he said at Regina, who looked at him amused.
"Well, I can give them to you." she addressed the two of them. "You just assumed that I knew nothing of the topic."
Emma laughed. "Well then, why do you think DC is better than Marvel, Miss Sassypants?"
Regina pretended to be hurt by Emma's nickname but still gave her a soft smile. "Because of Batman, of course. He is the best superhero ever because he manages to be a superhero without any powers. He merely uses his own self-strength and very well developed gadgets. Another asset that he has is that he is wealthy and influential in Gotham City while at the same time not drawing unwanted attention to himself. From a strategic point of view, he is in the perfect position for ultimate control." she finished while looking at the shocked faces of Emma and Henry.
"Shit woman, you will kill me." Emma said softly while looking at Regina in wonder. She also likes comics?!, she almost screamed because of the excitement. I think I just found my soulmate.
"Well, you do have a point there." Henry said softly. "But that still doesn't make DC universe better. It just makes Batman a better superhero."
"And Batman belongs to what universe?" Emma refrained from laughing at Henry's logic.
"To DC."
"Which means that DC created him, hence DC would be better." Regina finished for Emma while winking at her in clear conspiracy.
Henry groaned and raised his hands in surrender. "This discussion is pointless because we refuse to be convinced."
Regina looked amusedly at him.
"Which was Mom's point from the beginning." he finished while lowering his head and eating the food. "And by the way, the lasagna is amazing."
Emma nodded in agreement. "I swear this is the best lasagna in the whole world." she said with food on her mouth.
"Miss Swan, please refrain from teaching my son how to talk with his mouth full. It took some time to eliminate that terrible habit." Regina said with sassiness.
"Yes, your sassiness." Emma said while taking her tongue out.
"You are a child Ma." Henry said amused.
"Well, when I really was one I couldn't act like one. I had to worry about things like food, earning enough to make it by or managing to survive in my foster places without being hurt." she answered him softly. "So now that I feel safe I can just act like the child I never got allowed to be."
Henry looked at her sadly and nodded in understanding. "But still, that doesn't excuse you from talking with your mouth full."
Regina smiled warmly and grabbed Emma's hand from under the table and squeezed it tightly in sign of support. Emma smiled at the gesture and refused to let go of it during the rest of their meal. They had a nice discussion about Henry's activities in school and the weird things that Emma saw during her shift at the station. So, when Henry deemed that his time with the adults was over and moved upstairs to read some comics, Regina made her way to the study with Emma following closely behind. The two women were nervous because of the events that had unraveled during the last couple of days. Alas, they were mostly nervous of how the other would react if they acted on their feelings: They really liked and trusted each other, which made them be even more hesitant of ruining what they had right now.
Regina tried to break the silence first. "Whisky or cider?"
"Whisky." Emma answered. If I want to say what has been on my mind since I came back through that portal I need to have liquid courage.
Regina nodded and poured the two of them glasses, immediately sitting next to Emma on the couch and giving her the drink. "So..." she started with hesitation. "What happened after I left Granny's?"
Emma smiled softly and grabbed Regina's hand. "It's over."
Regina smiled brightly at her. "It is?"
"Yes." Emma answered softly while finishing her drink. "I couldn't be with him anymore."
"And why is that?" she asked, a little afraid of what that answer might be.
"I can't be with him because there is another person that is making me feel things."
"Things?" Regina asked half-amused, half-frustrated. Damn that woman and her ability to ramble during important moments.
"Feelings. Very strong and good feelings." Emma smiled in remembrance of Regina's kiss. "And now, every time I think about her, her being with someone else..." she closed her eyes and gulped loudly. "It just makes me sick because I only want to be with her and her to be with me."
"Well, this woman is very lucky to have gained your affection." Regina smiled warmly.
"I think I'm the lucky one because this woman is so beautiful and complex that any person would just die to be with her."
"Well, take it from someone that knows what they are talking about, that woman only wants to be with you." she said softly while finishing her own drink.
"Really?" Emma asked hopefully, which made Regina smile and start to approach her.
"Really." she whispered while closing the space between them and kissing Emma straight on the lips.
When Emma felt Regina's lips on her own she saw a white light shine on the two of them. The air became warm and the smell of forest and apples impregnated the room. Emma moaned when Regina's kiss became a little bolder and she felt the woman biting her lower lip softly. Without wanting to waste any more time she grabbed Regina's hips and pushed her towards her in a clear attempt to get them closer together.
She was bewitched by Emma, Regina realized as soon as her lips landed on the ones of the blonde woman, because the moment she felt them touch she saw white and felt the air become stronger. She knew what this meant, and as soon as her heart stopped beating so loudly and Emma's lips stopped tasting and feeling so good, she would think about the ramifications of this event. But, right now she was just going to kiss Emma and enjoy it.
The two women were so desperate to keep the contact between them that they neared the point of blackness when they separated from each other. The only sounds that could be heard were their labored breathing and after recovering their breath they raised their gaze and looked at each other. When their eyes met they saw contempt, happiness, and possibly love in them. It was now too late for both, and the feelings that had started with some truths and magic lessons blossomed to become what they now knew was True Love. It was true because Emma knew that she would never feel this connected and this in love with someone else for the rest of her life. The Evil Queen had managed to steal her heart in the end and she felt happy that it belonged to Regina. Regina, on the other hand, realized the irony that the final battle between good and evil was not the physical one that Henry had expected when he brought Emma to Storybrooke, but the slow development of a friendship and now relationship with the Savior. She beat me and for the first time I'm happy to say that I lost, she mused to herself. I'm happy to say that I lost because I was weaker, but by being weaker I also fell in love and it feels wonderful.
"Regina." Emma whispered reverently.
"Emma." Regina whispered back in full adoration.
Both looked at each other and smiled before crashing their lips again in total bliss.
"I have been wanting to do this..." Emma said between kisses.
"Since you cut down my apple tree with that chainsaw." Regina finished while peppering Emma's face with sloppy kisses.
Emma laughed at the sweet gesture and nuzzled her face with Regina's. "I can't believe this is happening. I can't believe you want to be with me"
"And why is that so hard to believe?"
"Because I am me and you are you." Emma said as if that explained it all.
"Precisely Emma. I want to be with you because of who you are. Because I know you, inside and out. I know I am not an easy person, and that many will never forgive my past sins, but I promise you that what I feel right now, for you, is real and true."
Emma felt tears come to her eyes and she launched herself at Regina and gave her a strong hug. "Oh Regina! I am not doubting you at all. I am doubting myself and what I could have done to make you like me."
"You forgave me. You gave me a second chance. You gave me Henry. And you gave me your friendship." Regina said softly. "All you have done is give. Now I want to give you something back."
"I don't want anything Gina as long as I have your affection."
"Oh my sweet Emma you already have that and more!" Regina said in complete adoration. "But I want to make you a promise." she said solemnly while grabbing Emma's hand and pulling it towards her heart. "I promise you that I will never intentionally hurt you and that I will always be there for you, either as a friend or more than that."
Emma cried and felt the love that started to develop for Regina grow even further. It seemed that Regina truly knew her because the things that she promised were the things that she craved the most: loyalty and companionship no matter the circumstances. For Emma, those things were key because of her upbringing as an orphan and of how people entered and left her life in a rush. She knew that her time in the foster system made her become strong and guarded, and for someone to break those defenses meant that in return they got all of Emma. For Emma that only happened with Neal (who ended up disappointing her), Henry (who was the love of her life no matter what) and now Regina. No one more, no one less.
"And I promise to believe in your goodness no matter what. I know you Regina, and you feel things deeply. You feel so much and are so strong that Zelena stole your heart because it is the most resilient one I have ever seen. To be on the other end of your affections is so wonderful, and every time you do something it lights up and brightness up my day."
Now Regina was the one crying, because just like she knew what to say to Emma, it seemed that Emma also knew what to say to her. Emma had just gave her trust and love. For Regina, whose life was dominated by power and people that only seemed to like her because of her power, to be truly loved was something unique and that she had only felt when she was 17. It had taken her almost 50 years, but now she found a person that only knew her as Regina and still cared for her deeply (and seemed to even love her). She knew how hard it was for Emma to trust others, so the fact that she trusted her meant that Emma had faith in her. The Savior had done the possible, Regina smiled while looking at Emma again and kissing her chastely on the lips, she had saved the Evil Queen from herself.
When Henry came back downstairs after finishing his comic he went to the living room to see if his moms were there. When he noticed that the room was empty he started to look around the house quietly. I wonder where they are? he mused to himself before going to the study and opening the door quietly. What he saw there was his Mom hugging his Ma, which would have not been suspicious enough if the expression on his Ma's face were any other than adoration. He was really close to barging in, but when he saw the two of them look at each other deeply and then kiss he just froze on the spot. Was he in shock? Completely. Was it a bad shock? No it wasn't. In fact, he mocked Emma so much because he knew that she had developed a crush on her mom. What he didn't know was that the feelings were deeper and that his Mom reciprocated them, based on what he was seeing right now. Was he a little scared? Yes he was. These new feelings that his moms were having for each other were great, but at the same time he was worried about what would happen if things didn't work out. He knew that they would do nothing that would hurt him or stop him from seeing them (they had come too far for that to happen again). But, at the same time, he saw them develop a great friendship and camaraderie, one that would be painful to see it end. But what if it becomes better? he also wondered. I would be able to be with my two moms and have what he had today all the time.
This made him reach a decision, and unlike his old self that got involved and tried to take matters into his own hands, he decided to just let things roll. He felt that if he encouraged his moms into trying to realize what they felt for each other on their own time the results would be better. This made him remember that his moms had just gotten out of a relationship, which meant that they could not take too long to reach a decision (because knowing his mothers they would over-think everything). But, what he could, and was really going to do was kill (figuratively of course) anyone that tried to mess with his moms and mess what they had (this was a warning for Robin and Hook mostly). He smiled at the idea of them being a family someday, especially after seeing the way that his Mom was looking at his Ma. He knew that look very well: That was the look that his Mom had with him, the one of clear adoration and devotion. And his Ma, well, his Ma had been acting like a lovefool since they got back from Neverland. Smiling again he closed the door and decided to go to the arcade to meet with some friends, you know so he could give them some needed space to do things that he did not want to imagine them doing: Just because he agreed with them being together that didn't mean that he wanted to actually see them be all dovey goey with each other. Writing a short note in which he explained his whereabouts, he made his way to the front door, opening it without care. The moment he did, he almost fell to the floor when he noticed that there was a package on the stairs of the porch. Carefully, and without touching the package, he looked for a nametag or any kind of documentation that could confirm who sent it. When he saw none, and knowing better than to open or touch the box(his Mom had warned him about enchanted boxes) he decided to go back inside and ruin the teenage makeout session that his moms were probably having.
"Moms!" he screamed while keeping the door open, hoping to see if anyone approached or was waiting for them to open the box.
He knew that his mothers were coming the moment he heard a loud noise coming from the studio, almost as if someone had fallen, and then the sound of running footsteps and heels making their way towards the front door.
"Henry!" Regina screamed from the kitchen while looking around.
"Front door!" Emma screamed back to warn Regina.
Regina dashed for the door and clearly relaxed when she saw Henry, without any sort of injury, standing behind a box on the floor.
"Why did you scream kid?" Emma complained while breathing loudly. "You scared the hell out of us."
"Sorry." Henry said apologetically. "But when I was leaving for the arcade I opened the door and saw this box on our porch."
"You did not touch it, right?" Regina said while looking at Henry again.
He denied it and Regina smiled proudly at him.
"Good job on warning us and not touching it Henry." she complimented his son. "I can sense something on the box."
"Magic?" Emma asked.
"Not necessarily." she mused mostly to herself. "But there is something not right inside of it. Give me some space so I can open it with magic." she warned. "And Emma, put a protective spell around Henry and yourself just in case."
Emma nodded and immediately got into action, feeling her magic wrap Henry and herself under it. When Regina felt Emma's light magic covering the two most important people of her life she used her magic to open the box. When nothing came out of it or reacted to her revealing spell, she approached it slowly, careful at not setting any trap or counterspell into action. Still, when she finally saw what was inside she gulped a big scream and nodded for Emma to come.
Emma, who had been standing out of reach Henry, saw Regina's blank and worried expression, which in turn made her realize that something was not right. As soon as she got the ok from the brunette to approach, she stood next to her and lowered her gaze to see the contexts in the box. What she saw there immediately made her feel bile rising from her throat. Unable to control her gagging reflex, she ran straight to the bathroom to empty her stomach contents because what they had just seen was a human heart. This was definitely something that she didn't want anyone to see, especially Henry. Regina, thinking the same thing as Emma, pushed Henry out of the house and gave him some cash.
"Go to the arcade and have fun with your friends." she said seriously. "But please call us every half an hour with updates."
Henry nodded. "Is everything alright?"
"Nothing your mom and I can't handle kid." Emma finally answered while barely managing to smile at him.
He smiled in recognition and quickly left the house. When he was gone Emma deflated and went straight for Regina's arms. As soon as she felt Regina engulf her in a strong hug she felt like breathing again. She had never been a person that reacted badly to disgusting things, but even she had a limit when it came to gore. To see a heart, notice the lack of the word 'magical' before it, during the middle of the afternoon on Mifflin Street was something that not even the strongest stomach could handle.
"That is a heart." Emma said softly. "Notice that I didn't mention magical before it."
"I noticed." Regina whispered back. "And you are right. It is not a magical heart."
"So most probably the owner of that heart is dead already."
Regina nodded. "But did you also notice the cleanliness of the heart?"
"I wasn't the best student during my high school years." Emma said embarrassed.
"And you do not have to be in order to see what I am talking about." Regina smiled and pointed at the edges of the heart. "You see here, no ligatures or connecting lines."
Emma nodded in understanding. "So the heart was taken out magically?"
Regina nodded. "Yes."
"But then why didn't it become a magical heart? I thought that when using magic to take out a heart made it became a magical heart."
"That is what is supposed to happen." Regina said concerned. "Which brings us to our next problem."
"Our next problem? I didn't even know we had one." Emma said and noticed her girlfriend's, wait, girlfriend's eye-roll. "Apart from the fact that we have a heart on our front porch."
"Our front porch?" Regina was unable to stop herself from teasing the blonde.
"Well, I mean your front porch, because you know I don't live here, not yet at least. That is, if you would ever want me to live her, but I'm not pressuring you to hurry or anything like that." Emma rambled non-stop.
Regina laughed loudly and gave her girlfriend, yes, her girlfriend, a soft kiss on the lips. "After all we have shared, after realizing we are bound my True Love, you worry about such a triviality?" she smiled widely. "I cannot imagine you being somewhere else."
"Thank God." Emma breathed, completely relieved. "Because it would have been totally awkward and embarrassing if you had said no."
"I would never say no, my darling." Emma smiled at the endearment word. "But I believe we have more pressing matters at the moment, such as that heart." Regina pointed the box.
Emma shrugged. "Gives me the creeps to think that someone is powerful enough to perform a new kind of magic."
"New? No Emma, on the contrary, this type of magic is one of the oldest ones in the magic world." Regina said seriously. "To see this kind of heart worries me. It worries me." Regina kept on going before Emma could interrupt her with another question. "Because this magic is darker than the one that Rumple taught me."
"Magic darker than the one of the Dark One?" she asked in shock.
"Older magic, purer magic than the one we practice."
"I still don't understand."
"The magic that I have been teaching you comes from the ancient elves. It is a mixture of emotion and essence, and by essence I mean a person's capability to perform magic. Certain people have certain aptitudes that makes them able to perform magic on different levels."
"Like you and me?" Emma asked.
"No. You and I both are humans with unpolluted magic. We are capable, with easiness, to use our emotions to create magic. The result, light or dark magic, come from our choices during our lifetime and how we have used our magic. My mother, she couldn't create magic by herself, so what she did instead was use a spell book to absorb magic. Unlike us, who have magic in ourselves naturally, my mom absorbed magic from magical elements. Rumple, before becoming the Dark One, was a normal human being without magic, that is, until he used the dagger. And Henry." she added in amusement. "Henry has another type of magic and one of the oldest ones. He has the magic of the truest believer, which automatically enables his heart to perform magic on things. This means that he can't perform the magic, because he doesn't know how, but if someone, like Pan tried to do, stole his heart, then they would be able to use its magic.
"That makes complete sense." Emma nodded.
"But the kind of magic responsible for this." Regina pointed at the heart. "Is so old that it has been deemed extinct for millennia."
"So basically we have a person in Storybrooke that is older and far more dangerous than the Dark One?" Emma asked in fear.
"Yes Emma, that is exactly what I said." Regina whispered in clear fear.