Underneath The Surface
Chapter 33
The Temptation to Change
Author's Note: Please, no hate mail! (You'll understand when you see the end of this short chapter) Bear with me, my dear readers, I have not abandoned this story. There has been a sudden and unexpected upheaval in my life I am still trying to get adjusted to. No worries, it's all good.
After dinner that night, Regina and Callie cleaned the kitchen while Patty went to see Charlie. Emma sat out back and watched the stars appear. She could hear them speaking quietly, but her mind wasn't on their conversation. It was back in Storybrooke, with Henry and her parents. She remembered taking Henry back to Regina, vowing she would only stay at the B&B one night before heading back to Boston. She remembered a time when the last thing she wanted was roots. But here she sat, wishing she could go back to her family without hurting her friends here. She sat in the dark, wondering what her parents would say when she told them about the relationship that had grown up between she and Regina. Emma hoped they would be happy for her, but knowing all their history, she knew it would more than likely degrade into a shouting match full of hurt feelings and accusations.
She heard the patio door slide open and she turned her head to watch Regina settle into the seat beside her.
"You've been pretty quiet tonight." Regina entwined their fingers together.
Emma blew out a sigh. "I meant what I said earlier, you know. I won't leave you, no matter what anyone says."
"Ah. Thinking about what your parents will say when we tell them about us?"
Emma nodded and turned to look at Regina in the glow of the light inside. "I love you. I don't care what they say."
"Yes you will. You searched your whole life for your parents. You wanted acceptance and love." Regina kept her gaze on the yard, but didn't relinquish her hold on Emma's hand. "Look at all of the horrible things I did, still hoping my mother would finally approve of me. It's only natural, or so Archie told me. The question is, what we will do with their reactions, and Henry's, when we tell them?"
"Well, whatever they do won't change how I feel about you." Emma's hold on Regina's hand tightened slightly.
"Even if your parents forbid you from having a relationship with me?"
"The last time I checked, Regina, I was an adult."
"I am keenly aware of that, dear, but your parents do have a tendency to be…" Regina searched for a descriptive term.
"Pains in the ass?" Emma supplied.
Regina chuckled. "Indeed."
"Well, they can get over it. Because I have no intention of ending our relationship because they want to be overbearing royals."
"I was once an overbearing royal, if you recall."
Emma smiled in the dark. "I'm sure you were, but I'll bet you were sexy as hell."
Regina sat straighter and assumed a haughty tone. "Of course. I was the Queen, after all."
Emma chuckled and shook her head.
They had sat quietly for some time before Emma spoke up. "Once we leave here, is there any way we can come back?"
"I suppose there must be a way. Anything is possible." Regina turned to look at Emma.
"I don't see how we can just disappear without seeing through what we started, and then come back like it's all okay."
"I know. On one hand, I wish we could see through the things we've committed to, but that means more time away from home."
"I don't suppose there's such a thing as doppelganger magic?" Emma asked hopefully.
"There is, but it's quite involved and time consuming. There's also no guarantee that our doppelgangers could ensure us a warm welcome when, and if, we returned. When I was still learning under Rumple, I heard of a king from another kingdom who tried to leave a doppelganger to rule while he went off into the countryside. He came back to find his kingdom at war, his court plotting his murder and his wealth gone."
Emma sighed. "So unless we can come up with some reasonable, non-magic explanation why we left as abruptly as we showed up, we're burning our bridges behind us."
"I'm afraid so, dear."
"I hate lying. I've been lied to so many times…"
"Is that where your self-proclaimed super- power comes from?"
"Yeah, I guess so. It's the worst kind of betrayal. I hate thinking that we either have to lie or leave them in the lurch."
"Or we could wait a little longer, and wrap things up here properly."
Emma turned to study Regina. "I thought you wanted to get home?"
To be continued!