Regina worked diligently in the kitchen to the soundtrack of Emma and Henry's laughter floating in from the other room—when they weren't sneaking in to see how close she was to being finished. Henry's favorite. The house smelled like birthdays (because she always made his favorite, even for her own), and final grades (because they were always good), and those special days when she just wanted to make him happy. She liked the idea of adding this celebration to the list. Of his being back. Of their being together as a family.

Really, she had wanted to make dinner because the rote steps kept her sane. She knew the laughing was from Emma trying to lighten everyone's spirits, doing her part to keep Regina from having to think about any of it quite yet, especially since they could only truly put off the conversations they needed to have while Henry was there. Even if everything seemed like a part of the distant past, it hadn't been more than a few hours since she had had Emma's heart in her chest, since her mother had died—not more than a few days since she had been stuck once more in her horrible past.

Cooking didn't require her attention to any of those facts, just to adding salt after the water boiled, to greasing the pan before adding the mix, to setting both ovens. Just repetition and precision and ease from years of perfecting her work. She had always found it soothing.

Dinner itself went with remarkable ease, Emma reveling in the surprise that was Regina's juicy hamburgers and onion potatoes and artichokes followed by homemade flourless chocolate cake à la mode. She definitely understood Henry's enthusiasm now. Lasagna was one thing, but apparently Regina could go all out with the best of them. The brunette had even let it slip that she had been quite taken with the sandwich when they had first arrived in this world, eating them far too often. Apparently the Mayor had initially indulged in all sorts of junk food when she realized that there was no one in Storybrooke to restrict her from it or judge her for it, at least at home. Emma couldn't help but grin at the idea that the Evil Queen's rebellion came in the form of trying to make the perfect chocolate cake and eating all of the failures.

Their only stumbling block had been when Henry's curiosity got the better of him and he asked what the battle had been like, earning him a glare from Emma but a much more persuasive empty look from his mom—like her soul had retreated into itself. Mostly he talked about how the Charmings were kind of boring being so nice all the time, though he did like learning to be a prince, and now that everything was back to normal, did he still have to go to school?

He was doing his best to chatter, aware of the underlying tension, even if he didn't know all of the reasons for it. Not to mention the tension of his own—how he had treated his mom…but the bad things she had done; how he was living with Emma… But his moms clearly loved him. And Emma had said that Regina had saved her, and if his mom had saved the Savior, then she couldn't be so evil, and being at home, even for these past few hours, had been really nice, and his things were here…so as they cleared the table, Emma groaning over her contentedly full stomach, Henry decided to ask.

"Moms? Do you think maybe I could move back here?"

It was kind of the opposite of what he had been expecting when Emma looked thrilled and Regina was once again on the verge of tears. She didn't dare accept lest Emma disagreed and they fell back into their old ways.

"Of course you can, kid!" Emma wrapped an arm around Henry's shoulder knocking Regina out of her fretful contemplation and into full on relief. "Tomorrow. We'll get everything settled back."

Henry was glad for Emma's reaction, but he hesitated. He didn't want things to go back to how they had been before, even if his moms were acting differently. "I'll still get to see Emma though, right?"

This time, Regina spoke up, quick to dispel any of the blonde's worries.

"Of course, Henry," she affirmed as she moved towards the pair. "Of course you will. We're going to work something out."

As pleased as Henry was that things were working themselves out, he couldn't help but be grateful for the sound of the doorbell, interrupting his mothers' tense, meaningful stare.

He ran to the door, leaving them behind to find Snow and Charming having come to take him and Emma home.

"Hey, kiddo," David said as he ruffled Henry's hair, trying to limit his visible apprehension as he watched Emma come into the hall with Regina right behind her. "You ready to go home?"

While he had addressed the question to both Emma and Henry, David already knew Emma's answer.

"Thanks for coming to get him, guys. We'll be by in the morning to pick him up."

Emma knew to cut off the impending protest from Mary Margaret with a hug followed by a pointed stare.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Mom. I love you."

It was clear. Emma was staying put, and nobody was gonna ask any questions about it. She'd see her parents tomorrow. She hadn't even had a second thought about inviting herself to stay with Regina, but she turned briefly only to find clear relief in those tumultuous brown eyes.

"Okay. Tomorrow then." Charming pulled his daughter into a bear hug. It wasn't necessarily their style, but he needed her to see how he would be there for her—and that he was truly happy she had found happiness, no matter who it was with.

"I love you, Emma," he whispered into her ear. "See you tomorrow."

Sometimes, the shepherd turned prince could really get it right. For all of his protectiveness, Emma knew he would let her be, even with the Evil Queen, because now, he understood.

They shared a smile before their attention was drawn to Henry throwing his arms around Regina.

"Bye, Mom. I love you."

Regina had been a few steps back from this family scene, once again threatened by the Charmings' presence, by their claim over Henry, and now, over Emma. Despite her flair for the dramatic, she did tend to lurk awkwardly on the outside, resigned to being good and being rejected, even accepting that despite their progress, Henry might just bounce out the door, forgetting he had ever changed his mind about her. But when he specifically made an effort to say goodbye… Regina couldn't take this kind of happiness. She wasn't built for it. She wasn't prepared. She even caught a look of sympathy from Snow over Henry's head and it didn't bother her in the least. Everything she once cared about, everything that had driven her, all the anger and the sorrow, all of it seemed so pointless. She was tired of all of her old revenges, and reveling in her son's embrace, infused with a new understanding. She knew the culprit—Emma's heart.

"I love you, too, Henry." She let herself squeeze him just a little tighter. "So much."

"Goodnight, my little prince."

A/N: Sorry it's so short...I wanted to keep our ladies' emotional revelations self-contained, now that they're finally going to talk. I'll try to get it up as soon as possible to make up for it!