My apologies for the delay. I wanted to get this one right.

The anxious women accept that they cannot delay the video chat any longer as the young man's smiling face appears on the screen. Henry had just arrived at the dorm after his last class of the day. "Hi Moms."

"Hi sweetheart."

"Hey kid."

"Where's my baby-sister?"

Talk of Charlie always relaxed them, especially Regina. "She's with your grandparents."

"They're bringing her later when they come over for dinner."

"What are you guys having?"

Food has always been one of the blonde woman's favorite topics. "Your mom's making lasagna."

"Lasagna?" Henry's frustration is apparent. "You're going to eat lasagna, without me?"

Few things made the former Evil Queen sicker than disappointing one of her children. She quickly tries to remedy the situation. "Honey, I promise I'll make lasagna again when you're home."

Mildly unnerved by her fiancée's proposal, Emma checks for clarification. "We're still having turkey, right?"

"Of course we're still having turkey," Regina guarantees, resting a calming hand on her partner's thigh. She directs her attention back to the monitor. "I'll make us a traditional Thanksgiving meal, plus lasagna."

"Thanks, Mom."

"Thanks, Mom," Emma echoes. She knowingly waits for Regina to reciprocate with a kiss.

The older woman does not disappoint. "You're welcome." She wraps an arm around her endearing fiancée. "I'm sure Charlie will appreciate that option too."

"Yeah," Emma agrees. "She hasn't quite grasped the joy of turkey. But she'll gladly devour any potato or pasta you put in front of her."

Henry still can't believe how lucky he is. His mothers are finally together. Away at college, he is surrounded by students in his dorm whose parents are divorced. He imagines that there probably are not many people his age, if any, who get to witness their parents fall in love and marry.

Emitting the most brilliant smile, Regina proclaims, "They'll be more than enough food for you to take some back with you.

"Awesome! I miss your cooking like crazy."

Mom mode is activated. "Are you getting enough to eat?"

He knows he shouldn't, but he finds his mother's continued concern humorous. "I'm fine, Mom. I just miss you."

Satisfied, Regina lays out her plan. "Well, I'm going to cook all of your favorites when you come home—anything you want."

"You're the best!" His sincerity is unmistakable.

The older woman blushes. "I don't know about that. But I do have the best family."

Emma lets her appreciation show and kisses her woman again.

"So, what's up with you guys? Why did you want to talk tonight?"

Both women had been willingly distracted by the topic of food that neither of them anticipated their son's forthcoming.

Rising to the challenge, Emma expertly takes the lead. "Why do we need an excuse to talk to our favorite son?" She forgot that Henry had inherited her wit.

"Nice try, Mom. I'm your only son."

"Well, we…" Regina begins.

"We…" Emma imagines that it would be easier if they shared their news together.

Growing impatient, Henry reveals the first thought to enter his mind. "You're pregnant."

When he sees his mothers' expressions dramatically shift, he knows that he has guessed correctly.

"How did you know?" Henry's blonde mother is the first to convey her surprise, though her happiness overshadows any annoyance at not being able to say the words herself.

Henry checks for confirmation. "Are you really?" When his mothers answer with shy nods the young man cheers, "I knew it!"

Regina is next to articulate her shock. "Seriously, how did you know?"

"Come on, Mom," he teases, "you guys are totally obvious."

Regina fakes superiority. "I am not obvious." She quickly shifts the focus to her unsuspecting partner. "Your mother might be, but…"

"Me?" She pretends to be wounded by the comment.

Regina immediately insists that she was only kidding, though Emma strives to remain impervious to her apology.

The younger woman is afraid that her quick forgiveness might encourage Regina to make more jokes at her expense in the future.

"I know you're not mad at me." Regina does the one thing that Emma cannot resist.

"Ah! Regina!" the young woman squeals, as the area between her underarm and waist is attacked by mischievous fingers.

Now the college student is experiencing a fit of laughter. Never had he enjoyed a conversation with his parents this much. He remembers being tickled by his brunette mother when he was little, but it's a different experience witnessing her do the same to his other mother. "So, when did you guys find out? How far along are you?"

Having calmed, Emma is now resting back in her fiancée's warm embrace. However, she remains on guard against the next advance. "I had my first ultrasound this morning and Dr. Whale figures I'm about five weeks along."

"We're having twins."

"Pretty soon I'm going to have three baby sisters? Moms, this is amazing! What did Grandma say when you told her? Did she flip-out?"

The silence is informing.

"You're the only one we've told."

Regina follows with a more refined explanation. "We wanted you to be the first to know."

"And we're telling your grandparents tonight, after dinner."

"What about Charlie?"

The fact that he is always thinking about the well-being and inclusion of his sister warms his brunette mother's heart.

Emma takes the lead. "We think it would be best to wait until I'm a little further along before we inform your sister."

The older woman gives herself permission to be vulnerable in front of the two most important people in her world. "If your mother miscarried, I don't want to think about how we'd begin to explain something like that to a toddler."

Henry looks to his blonde mother. His confusion is evident. "Why would you miscarry?"

"That's always a possibility, kid; especially within the first trimester."

Ever ready to console her children, Regina tries to instill confidence. "Don't worry, honey." Her manner is soothing. "Your mother's going to be fine and so are your sisters."

"The important thing is that, whatever happens, we're a family and we'll get through this together." Her ability to remain unemotional surprises her. Maybe the weight of the situation will hit her later, Emma projects. She should remain close to Regina—just in case.

"We love you very much," the older woman adds.

"I love you guys too."

"Try not to worry, sweetie."

Even now, his mother's voice has the power to chase away all of his fears. He hopes that will never change. "Okay. I just wish I was home right now."

Regina's eyes take on a familiar sparkle. "I wish you were here so I could hug you."

Unwillingly, the confident young man's own eyes reflect that same shine. "I miss you, Mom."

Her lower lip begins to quiver. "I miss you too."

Noticing this, Emma immediately begins rubbing soft circles on her beloved's lower back; still keeping the focus on their son. "You'll be home soon, Henry." She keeps her tone even. "Until then, think about the feast that your mom is going to cook."

His features brighten. "Yeah, I can't wait."

Recovering slightly, Regina checks one last time, "Are you sure you're alright?"

"I'm alright. I should probably let you guys go if you're expecting Grandma and Grandpa for dinner."

"We can stay on longer if you need to talk," Emma offers.

"I'm okay. I actually need to get back to my homework."

The normalized conversation encourages the older woman. "Do you have a lot?"

"Not too much. But I'm going out later with some friends."

"Well, don't stay out too late." The Mom tone is back.

"It's okay. I don't have class until ten tomorrow." He wasn't expecting his reaction when his brunette mother arches a familiar eyebrow. "I won't, Mom."

The mothers exchange amused smiles.

Satisfied that she got through to her son, Regina takes a chance. "Will you call me when you get home so I know you're safe?"

He was not about to object, but, thankfully for Henry, and unexpectedly to Regina, his blonde mother comes to his aid. "He'll be fine, Regina. The kid's got to have a little fun."

The casualness of Emma's attitude leaves the queen without a comeback. She sees no reason to argue with the blonde beauty.

"You don't need to worry about me," Henry adds.

Regina sticks to what she has always known to be true. "I'm your mother. There will never come a time when I stop worrying about you."

This is why she fell in love with Regina in the first place, Emma reflects. She has never met another person with a deeper capacity to love, despite the older woman's best efforts to stifle it by becoming the Evil Queen. "Have a good night, kid."

"Thanks, Mom."

"Goodnight, sweetheart. I love you."

"I love you too, Mom."

"Love you, Henry."

"Love you, Mom."

"We'll talk to you again before you come home," Regina hints.

"Okay," Henry laughs.

"Please be safe," she reminds.

"I will. Bye, Mom."

Now that their conversation had officially concluded, Emma uses this opportunity to comfort her soon-to-be wife. "He'll be fine. Your raised a good kid."

Regina breaks the tender hug to wipe her eyes. "I hate this, Emma. I hate that he's so far away."

"He'll be home soon."

"You're right." The older woman sniffs. "I shouldn't wallow."

Regina's determination is one of her most endearing qualities. "You're his mother. You have every right to wallow." Armed with the knowledge that she knows how to make her partner laugh, Emma proceeds to do exactly that. "I just can't let you wallow alone, so I'm trying to cheer you up."

Regina welcomes her own lighthearted reaction. "You do cheer me up." She meets the younger woman's eyes. "I don't even want to think about how I'd get through this without you."

"You'll never have to." The enamored women exchange a meaningful kiss. "Do I need to call my mother and ask her to bring Charlie over early?"

Regina thinks for a moment before deciding against her instinct. "They should be here in less than two hours…"

Emma uses her superpower to see through that tough façade. "Can you make it that long?"

Regina sheepishly shakes her head. "I need my baby."

Without hesitation, Emma retrieves her abandon phone from the dining room table. "On it."

The expectant mothers chose to delay disclosing their news until impressionable ears were no longer present. It had proved quite a challenge for Emma, especially, to contain her excitement. Even Mary Margaret took notice of the fact that her daughter had barely eaten.

Regina understood the reason for her partner's loss of appetite. Therefore, she didn't view Emma's failure to take seconds as a comment on her cooking. Her lasagna was flawless.

The young woman admired her incredibly cool fiancée's ability to remain stoic. If Regina was anxious, she couldn't tell. Truth be told, the tightly wound brunette had slowly begun to unravel during the course of dinner.

"Okay. Now that the kiddos are out of the room, Regina and I have something—"

"You're pregnant." She had been holding that in the entire day. The only way Mary Margaret's smile could have been more intense is if it had been applied with florescent paint.

Emma visibly breathes a sigh of relief as her parents cheer their congratulations.

The queen is not amused by the Charmings' enthusiasm. "Did everyone know except me?"

Uh-oh, Emma thinks. She remembers that accusatory tone. This is a side of Regina that she hasn't seen for a while. Fortunately, she has years of experience dealing with the queen's unreasonableness. "You're the first person I told," she insists with unwavering confidence.

That got through to her. Regina begins to soften. "But I didn't have a clue that's what you were going to tell me."

Thankfully, Emma's father comes to his daughter's aid. If only he had foreseen what he was getting himself into. "Well, we knew you were trying. So, when you mentioned that you had something to tell us we just assumed that's what it was."

Regina doesn't even try to spare her soon-to-be-father-in-law's feelings and vents her frustration with regard to his idiocy. "But I'm the one who was actively trying to impregnate your daughter."

"There are some things a father doesn't need to hear." He falls sullen.

The eloquent blonde woman is determined to remain unaffected. She inhales a deep breath before speaking. "Baby, how could you have known?"

There's the queen's weakness. Hearing the younger woman call her "baby" will always cancel out any negative feelings within the tormented woman. Her voice is even. "I'm their mother, I should have seen it."

Emma is well aware of the power she holds over her queen and uses it in this situation. She lightly grasps the older woman's bicep while wrapping her free arm around her fiancée. As she does this, she senses the older woman's embarrassment because of her outburst. Approaching the topic gently, Emma strives to set the record straight. "They live inside me and I didn't even know. When I took the home pregnancy test it was wishful thinking. I didn't expect it to come up positive." For a moment, the two women forget where they are until only silence fills their ears, which is never a good sign when in the company of others. "Guys?"

The matching expressions on the Charmings' faces are indicative of the fact that Emma had said too much.

Regina has not picked up on this yet. "Are you alright?"

"Are you," David begins. "Emma, are you having more than one?"

The suddenly coquettish blonde nods. "It's twins." When her mother's mouth remains agape, Emma is suddenly concerned. "Mom…?"

Mary Margaret finds her voice. "Thank you." She rushes to embrace her daughter, welcoming the flow of tears. "Thank you. Thank you," she blubbers before turning her attention to the brunette woman, who remains seated. She holds her former nemesis' face against her chest as she continues to wail. "Oh, Regina."

Regina's panic is noticeable. "You're welcome?"

Accepting that his wife has got the emotional display covered, David rests back in his chair and states his approval. "It runs in the family."

But Snow White is not done. She regards Emma's deceivingly flat belly. "Oh, my babies. My baby…" The proud mother hugs her beautiful daughter again.

Recognizing that it's time to relieve his daughter and future daughter-in-law, David intervenes. He coaxes Mary Margaret back to her seat, holding her hand in a show of support. Regina can see where her Charming gets it and smiles fondly in appreciation.

When she feels Regina's palm rest on top of her hand, Emma is filled with the strength to shed light on the reality of the situation. Their fingers intertwine. "Guys, I'm glad you're excited. But, Regina and I have decided that we don't want to make it public knowledge until I'm at the end of my first trimester."

Knowing that his wife is still too emotional to respond, David speaks for both of them. "Of course. We completely understand."

Having recovered enough to form a coherent sentence, Mary Margaret chimes in. "How far along are you?"

Emma feels her fiancée lightly squeeze her hand in support. "I'm only five weeks."

This silence reveals a different atmosphere.

"Wow." The response was involuntary, but necessary in David's opinion.

"Yeah," Emma agrees, mirroring her father's reaction. "We realize this is asking a lot, but…" She trails off.

"If Emma does miscarry, we need to be able to deal with that privately." Now that her emotions aren't going berserk, Regina can once again be the rock that Emma needs. "And we haven't told Charlie yet."

"We want to wait as long as we can because she's going to get very attached to the babies. We're already attached to them." She comfortably nuzzles into Regina's side.

"We did tell Henry though."

David beams at his daughter and Regina. He is incredibly grateful for the love between the two of them and is determined to protect them for the rest of his life. "We only want to help make this easier for the two of you."

"Thanks, Dad."

"Thank you, David."

Mary Margaret follows her husband's lead. She is equally dedicated to protecting her daughter and her daughter's family. "If there's anything you need, we're just a phone call away."

Emma lifts her head from its comfy position. "We're okay. But, we could definitely use your help after they're born."

"I will be there, for whatever you need."

"Thanks Mom." She had managed to remain unemotional until now. Just as she feels the all-too-familiar sting of tears, her mother had to exacerbate the situation.

"I wasn't there for you…and I should have been. But I'm here now. I'd do anything to help you." She knew that she had made a mistake when she observes her daughter's complexion change and her features contort.

Regina silently pleads with her reluctant friend, who is now crouched in front of them.

Emma falls into her mother's waiting arms and begins sobbing violently.

Noticing that Regina has become paralyzed, David gestures for her to join him in the living room. "We're just going to check on the kids."

After being separated from her beloved child for the majority of Emma's life, Snow White is content to rock her daughter for as long as the young woman needs. "I'm here, honey." When she feels her baby begin to relax, she carefully eases her daughter off her shoulder and proceeds to brush matted hair away from blue eyes. Her smile never wavers. "You must've needed that cry."

Emma laughs at her own silliness and accepts the offered tissues from her mother. "I'm just so happy."

The brunette woman's heart swells with joy. "I see that."

"I have the life that I always wanted." She is almost fully recovered. "I never thought I'd find you and Dad and now I have you both, and my own family."

"And your family is growing."

"Yeah." Instinctively her hand finds its place, resting upon her abdomen.

"It's okay to be happy, Emma. You've worked so hard to have this life. You deserve to enjoy it."

Later that night, after the Charmings had returned home and Emma and Regina had tucked their daughter in bed with a story, the two women found themselves once again preoccupied with thoughts of their unborn children.

They should have known better than to start thinking of names before retiring. Even so, they continue to discuss options as they begin removing decorative pillows from the bed they share.

"Henry was easy. I knew I wanted to name him after my father."

"And after your first love," the younger woman adds. When Regina is struck dumb, Emma elaborates on her comment to set the older woman's mind at ease. "It's okay. I don't feel threatened by Daniel. That was long before I was born." They turn down the comforter in one synchronized movement. "And Daniel loved you too."

The soul-mates comfortably settle in each other's arms after climbing under the covers.

"One thing's for sure," Emma continues, "I want all of our children to have the same last name." She links a hand with Regina's. "I think they should have your name." She clarifies, "…so they can be like their brother."

Regina isn't sure how she feels about Emma desiring not to share her maiden name with their children. "What about Charlie?"

If she had been looking into Regina's eyes, Emma would have been able to pin-point what prompted this question. "Charlie's still stuck on learning her first name, let alone her full name."

"I just realized"—the older woman nervously gulps—"I never even asked you. Does she have a middle name?"

The young woman is suddenly shy. "Um," she stalls, "yeah." She would've found out sooner or later. "It's Regina."

Upon detecting her name, the older woman sits up to make sure she'd heard correctly.

Avoiding eye contact, Emma completes her confession. "Her name's Charlotte Regina." She adds, "Swan." "I'm not even sure if the names go together." She pauses before continuing. "I just didn't think I'd ever see you again"—she slowly lifts her gaze—"except every single day, when I look at that baby."

Without wasting another minute, Regina fervently presses their lips together, wrapping her arms snugly around the exquisite woman beneath her. Emma wants nothing more than to give in to her responding body and let the older woman take her right then and there, but she's afraid if she doesn't say this now she may lose her nerve. When her lips are released she makes the heart-felt admission. "Regina…" She catches her breath. "If it's alright with you, I'd like to take your name too."

She knows she should be flattered, but she wouldn't want Emma to feel obligated to give up part of her self once they marry. "I thought…"

"Swan was part of my identity. But it doesn't mean anything." She is reliving the pain of being discarded at such a young age by the family who gave her the surname Swan. "I've been searching for my family my whole life and I've finally found where I belong. I found my home. I found you, Regina. So, would it be okay…?"

The older woman fights back the tears clouding her vision. She can only manage a whisper. "I would be honored if you'd take my name, Emma."

Evidently, this had been weighing heavily on the younger woman for a while. She smiles in contentment, relishing the prospect of her new name. "Mrs. Mills. I like the sound of that. Swan could become my middle name."

Regina welcomes the tantalizing sensation of the most eloquent name passing her lips. "Em-ma Swan Mills."

The sound of Regina articulating her name sends a shiver up the younger woman's spine.

"That has a nice ring to it," Regina concedes. She gazes at the love-of-her-life in adoration, as a few tears escape her.

As she gently wipes away her beloved's tears with the pads of her thumbs, Emma decides to lighten the mood of the conversation by bringing up the inevitable. "Now we just have to figure out what to name the kids." She welcomes the familiar tingles spreading throughout her body brought on by Regina's hungry smile. Before her lips are captured again, she resigns to this simple fact. "Now that should be the easy part." They have plenty of time to generate names for their babies. With complete abandon she gives herself to the mother of her children, her best-friend.