Chapter 3.
Regina woke up the next morning early, not wanting another incident where she looked less than her best around the blonde. She smiled as she thought of seeing the sheriff in her gold silk pyjamas with her morning toussled hair in the kitchen in an hour or so. She wouldn't admit it to anyone but the blonde was the only person in her life other than her son who she cared for and who seemed to feel the same about her. And ever since the blonde came down her driveway with her son in tow she made that empty feeling disappear even if at the time she thought it was because she had someone who finally challenged her.
She shivered as she pushed off her duvet and made her way to the bathroom. She was still half asleep that she didn't hear that the shower was already on.
Emma woke up to sound of high pitch screams and sprang from her bed following the sound. She found Regina shaking in the hall her eyes filled with terror as her hand covered her mouth to keep in another scream.
"Regina! What's wrong?" Emma got her answer when her parents emerged from the bathroom in bathrobes a few seconds later looking both guilty and embarrassed.
"That was not what it looked like." Snow tried.
Emma's eyes widened looking at her parents. "Ew...I don't want to know." The blonde paced behind Regina feeling disgust erupt in her body.
"It's not like that she was just uh, I was helping your mother with her uh..." David stammered as he tried to come up with a believable excuse but his mind was drawing a blank.
"Hair!" Snow added pointing up at him. "He was helping with my hair..."
"Really because it looked like you were taking it in the -" Regina was interrupted abruptly by Emma's hand clamped over her mouth.
"No! I don't want to hear it."
Snow covered her face in her hands feeling completely mortified. David looked down shifting awkwardly.
"W-w-we thought everyone was asleep." Snow explained as tears started to fill her eyes. Emma still had her hand over Regina's mouth looked at her mother over the brunette's shoulder.
"What if Henry had walked in? Just...leave..."
"Sorry, uh we should get dressed." David muttered before dragged his wife back to their room.
"Ah! Did you just lick my hand?" The blonde pulled her hand away from the mayor's lips.
"You still had it on my mouth." Regina reasoned. "Ugh I can't unsee that! I think I am gonna be sick." She retched and shuddered as the image came into her head again. "I can't have them here."
Emma shook her head. "Please you can't kick them out. They have nowhere to go. Please." She moved in front of Regina pouting for added affect.
Regina looked at the big green eyes hating how they broke down her anger at Snow as easily as they did. Her eyes flickered down to look at how adorable the blonde looked in her silk golden pyjamas. She relented and let out a sigh. "Fine but they are scrubbing that bathroom clean." She went to a closet and took out a little carry case filled with cleaning supplies before knocking loudly on Snow and David's room. "If you two want to stay here, I want that bathroom spotless in the next two hours." She stormed off to her room.
Emma did the same returning to her own bedroom, ready to go back to sleep when she checked her phone.
[Still gonna help me? Free breakfast in it for you?-Ruby]
#
She barely stepped foot in the diner when Ruby grabbed her hand pulling her into a booth. "Took your time."
"It's my day off and it is...ten to eight." Emma rubbed the corners of her eyes.
"I am actually surprised you were up? Is your new bed too lumpy Goldilocks." Ruby teased.
"No, little Red...I was woken up by Regina screaming." Emma rubbed the side of her tiring eyes.
"Does she have nightmares or something?"
"She will now...She uh walked in on my parents doing something."
Ruby burst into laughter at the idea of Regina walking in on her friends. She almost doubled over when she looked at Emma's disgusted face. After several minutes of practically howling with laughter she managed to get out a sentence. "Oh my god. What happened?"
Emma fiddled with her braclet as she answered."She screamed and basically forcing them to scrub her bathroom clean or they are out on the streets."
Ruby laughed louder and longer until Granny shot her a look from behind the counter. "I guess Belle's gift spiced things up."
"What? She gave Mary Margaret a book."
"She gave her 50 shades of Grey." Ruby told her as her grandmother came over with hot drinks for them.
"What?!" Emma all but yelled. Granny shot her a look and she covered her mouth in disgust waiting for the woman to walk away before she spoke again. "Why would Belle of all people give that book to my mother?!"
"I told her to." Ruby shrugged as she added sugar to her Sheriff kicked her sharply under the table. "Owh!"
"Why would you do that!"
"Belle wanted to get her a new book and we can't leave town remember. Tamara had it in her room in a Barnes and Noble bag." Emma swatted her arm.
"You gave my mother a second hand erotic novel that belonged to the woman who kidnapped my son. What is wrong with you? And corrupting Belle."
"She thought it was a book on painting." The waitress rolled her eyes. "Can we get to why I called you here."
Emma huffed in annoyance at not getting to let her anger out. "Fine."
"I need a good gift for Tinkerbell and like I said I can't leave the town...but you can."
"So you want me to be the messenger?"
"Yes like I use to do. You just have to drive out and pick it up and then come back and give it to me."
"Okay what am I getting?"
#
"Hey Emma do you wanna watch The Grinch with me later." Henry asked as he climbed onto a stool in the kitchen taking a banana from the fridge.
"Sorry kid, I can't today. I have a small job out of town."
"You do?" Regina asked coming into the kitchen to make herself and Henry lunch.
"Yeah, I told Ruby I would pick up something out of town; in Boston." She looked over at the brunette seeing a small amount of disappointment take over her body but it disappered a second later. "Do you two wanna come along?"
"Really?" Regina asked raising an eyebrow surprised at the invitation.
"Well you two are the only ones who can leave Storybrooke without losing memories." Emma stated as she took out bread and butter making herself a snack for the drive.
'And I want you two to come with me, it can be a little family get together. Family...'
"Not true! Neal and Hook can too." Henry pointed out shaking her from her thoughts, she rolled her eyes. The last thing she wanted was to spend anymore time with those men when she could avoid it.
'She could take Neal and they could go and all be a happy fucking family like Snow wants them to be.'
"Well I don't want to go with them. We can hit up a boston bakeries and book shops for you two nerds, what do you say?" She added salami to her sandwich and waited for the reply."
"Please mom can we?" Henry turned to his mother with puppy dog eyes to which Emma mimicked making the mayor break into a smile.
"I suppose it would be nice. I like pastrami on my sandwiches." She took it out of the fridge and passed it to Emma.
"Oh can I have tuna?" Henry asked getting the tins down from the cabinet.
"Sure, add them to the side." She told him as she buttered more bread. "Henry why don't you get us some drinks for the road."
"Where does Ruby need you to go any way?" Regina asked as she picked at the pastrami slice in front of her, popping it into her mouth.
"You will love this, the Disney store."
#
"I spy with my little eye something beginning with a C." Henry called out.
"A car." Emma guessed as they edged nearer to Boston city. They had been driving for over an hour and so far it had been nothing but pleasant. They had played several car games and Emma listened attentivly as Henry told her about the year that Regina almost burnt the turkey with Regina correcting parts about her alleged swearing at the bird.
"Caribou." Regina guessed as she took in the surroundings outside the car noticing some wild life in a far field.
"What the hell is Caribou?" Emma asked completely confused.
"It's like a moose." Henry informed her in a slightly condescending voice.
"What the...who guesses Caribou?" The Sheriff asked laughing.
"She guessed right." Henry said with a wide smile. Regina sniggered at the dumbstruck look on the Sheriff's face. Henry took a sip of his juice pouch and patted Regina's shoulder lightly."Mom, it's your turn."
"I spy with my little eye something beginning with A and S." Regina said smirking.
"ANGRY SWAN!" Henry yelled getting a laugh from his adoptive mother. Regina gave him a thumbs up and he leaned forward to pat Emma's shoulder as she got redder.
"You two are mean." Emma pouted making them laugh even louder.
#
"MOM! Look!" Henry yelled throughout the store and came back to his two mothers holding an evil queen doll in his hand. "Look mom!"
Regina threw the doll an evil look causing Emma to take it into her hands to examine it. "Disney aged you and the eyes are green? No lip scar either. Poor representation. You should sue." Henry giggled while Regina frowned.
"They also said that I was after your mother because she was prettier." She scoffed and looked around. Emma pushed Henry "Go watch her while I get the necklace for Ruby."
Emma was getting the Tinkerbell necklace wrapped when she heard a loud voice from the back of the store that sounded awfully familiar. "Are you kidding me?!" She took the wrapped box of the cashier before taking off towards the voice. "What's wrong?"
"My character has 3 toys and she has this whole section?" Regina gestured to the shelves around her filled with Snow White collectable. The blonde bit her lip as she held in her laughter. "Remind me never to take you to Disneyland."
Regina pushed down a Snow White plush toy and let out a small sigh. "That felt kinda good." She pushed down another one smiling as she did.
"Kid, we need to get outta here before your mom gets kicked out for breaking all the stuff in this section." Emma warned. "People are staring we should go." The mayor looked around realising she was a grown woman hitting a; though she didn't want to admit it, beloved character. She fixed her jacket and looked up at Emma and her son. "So where to next?"
#
"These are the best donuts!" Henry hummed as he took another bite of his boston cream with his mother. He looked around at the foodcourt. Emma had wandered off 15 minutes earlier, he assumed for a bathroom break before heading home but she was taking too long. "Where did Emma go?"
"She is gone to the bathroom I believe." The mayor lied looking over her shoulder to see if the blonde had returned from getting two books for Henry from Santa. "Look here she is."
"You guys ready to head home?" She asked bending down beside Regina so she didn't tower over them as they sat finishing the last of the donuts from the box. She rested a hand gently on Regina's thigh to steady herself. The small action made Regina's heart thump half a beat faster.
"Can we get another box of donuts?" Henry pleaded.
"Ask your mom." Emma told him patting Regina's thigh lightly not knowing the effect the small gesture was having on the other woman.
"If we get another box you are to leave them until we get home. You already had a pizza." She reasoned not wanting to spend the car ride home with him with stomach pains. She handed him some money and let him pay for them so he could pick them out.
Emma took his seat as they waited. "I had fun today."
"Oddly I did too."
"We should do this again sometime." She said as casually as she could but hoped the mayor would pick up on the hint.
"We should."
Emma beamed a smile her way and shifted her chair a little closer. "Okay so don't get mad but I may have stolen something in one of the stores."
"You did what? With Henry here? What if you got caught? How could you be so reckless?"
"I know but look." She opened her bag to show a Snow White doll inside.
"You stole a doll of your mother?" Regina raised an eyebrow not seeing what would make Emma do such a thing.
"For you."
"I don't want that."
"No look whenever my mother says something that makes you wanna snap her head off...You can...with this doll." She smirked as the corners of Regina's lips curved upwards.
"You are really strange."
"Says the woman immortalized in the villian section of the Disney store."
#
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