The mayor didn't know what had come over her lately. She had been acting very decidedly not-Regina. She liked to blame it on her now-perpetual exhaustion, but that wasn't a very good excuse, especially considering the fact that there was a very specific reason for her tiredness, and she foolishly did nothing to fight against it either.

She thought she had been acting irrational before, setting alarms to remind her to go to the hospital to see the blonde she loathed so much, but the flowers... Even that surprised her. She clipped them from her own bushes on a whim.

At first, Regina planned to just stick with the roses alone, but the small sunflower caught her eye. It caused her to stumble upon a rather startling truth: seeing Emma was the only bright spot in her day. It became the moment she anticipated every moment of every hour. The rest of her life was tiresome, boring and full of scathing looks from everyone in the town.

Her life got interesting when that infuriating woman rolled into town after decades of monotony. Yes, she fought against it tooth and nail, but it made her feel alive. It made her heart race with fiery anger, and she loved the way she could triumph over the blonde even in the simplest of verbal battles.

Now that Emma was under the Sleeping Curse, Regina found the woman to be the only person in town who demanded nothing of her. She didn't lodge irritating, pointless complaints. She didn't shoot the mayor withering looks of dislike. She didn't even pressure Regina into talking about her day, and she found that surprisingly therapeutic.

It was more than just the escape from her monotonous life that she found herself suddenly addicted to; it was the strange things that happened when she was close to the Savior that pulled her in. Regina loved the way that Emma's heart jumped at her touch, and her own mirrored that response. She reveled in the heat that seemed to pool only in the blonde's lips, and the brunette particularly enjoyed the way the sheriff's fingers fluttered against her own.

Something was poking her hard in the brain. She groaned, trying to block it out, but the incessant disturbance was getting louder. She grumbled again, pulling the sheets up around her shoulders. Beep beep beep...Beep beep beep! She flung her arm out, slapping the top of the clock and missing the snooze button. She cursed, fumbled, and pressed the damned thing.

Was it 2 already? It felt like she had only just climbed into bed a few minutes ago. The temptation to snuggle further into her giant, warm, soft comforter and actually sleeping through the night made a strong case in her mind. But as her first thought of Emma swam through her foggy brain, she became terribly aware of how empty her bed was.

It was too quiet, and her restless brain buzzed into life. She cursed at her inability to switch off. Conceding her defeat, she threw the covers off of her, the chilly air pressing in on her thin satin nightgown. Shivering, she set about readying herself, throwing on some slacks and a plain button-down shirt. She only tamed her hair, not bothering with makeup, considering the state of her company.

The air outside was even chillier. Why the Curse put them in Maine, she had no idea, but the misty breath swirling from her lips constantly reminded her of the cold sting beginning to touch her cheeks. She was used to walking to the hospital, trying to shake her weariness, but the brunette wished that she had taken her car that night.

She used to pause outside of the building, trying to rationalize her ridiculous behavior, but the mayor had done this trip so many times that there was no hesitancy. She was cold and wanted to see her little spot of sunshine. Did she just think that? Too chilly to bother kicking herself for that bit of foolishness, she strode on into the warmer confines of the hospital.

The brunette had also abandoned her pause outside of Emma's room. She let herself in without thinking, moving to stand close to the bed. She wanted to grab the Savior's hand immediately, but she herself was still shaking off the night chill, and it was her job to warm Emma's hands. So she stood, drinking in the almost peaceful look of the other woman. She found herself feeling slightly envious, but quickly shook off the notion that the blonde was in a better place than she.

Once Regina felt properly warmed, she set down the purse dangling off of her arm and sank into the chair. She reached out, lifting the motionless hand between her own, wincing at the cold that still blanketed the blonde like Death in waiting.

She heard the familiar increase in tempo from the machine nearby, and her heart did its own little flutter at the way those cold fingers feebly grasped at her own. A tiny smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. She rubbed her palms in large, slow circles, restoring circulation to Emma's digits. Once their temperature matched her own, she felt their mingled heat pulling all of her stress from her. The mayor sighed contentedly.

She looked at the Savior's vacant face, feeling oddly too far away from it. She stood, leaning low over the still body. If there was one thing she missed about Emma, it was her eyes. Her emerald pools always sparkled with mischief, or flashed dangerously at Regina's latest threat. They betrayed the blonde's emotions at every turn, and it made her so easy for the mayor to read.

She brought her hand up to cup the pale cheek, trying to bleed some her warmth into it. Her dark eyes fell to silent, unparted lips, desiring to steal some of their heat that she knew was roiling beneath the delicate flesh. She skated her thumb across them, hearing Emma's heart begin to gallop inside her chest.

Regina was about to reach for some lip balm in her purse, noticing how chapped Emma's were from neglect, when a distinct sound from the darkened corner of the room reached her ears. It could only have been the sound of a gasp.

Regina's temper and fear rose like a dragon, banishing any of the relaxation she had found moments ago. She wheeled around, eyes blazing, to seek out the owner of the gasp. She saw a dark figure lurking on the floor, clearly seeking an escape that wasn't there.

Too angry for words, the Queen charged over to the fool spying on her, grabbed the person by the front of their shirt and hoisted them up off of the floor. Her eyes found the panicked ones of none other than Ruby Lucas. The urge to rip the bitch's heart out gripped her so ferociously, that Regina forcefully threw the girl into the wall.

"Do you have a death wish?" Her voice was like frozen acid, lashing out at the foolish girl.

"M-Mayor Mills! I uh..."

"Explain yourself. Immediately." Her voice remained calm, an effect she knew to be far more unnerving than screams and shouts.

"R-Roses... Dr Whale said... You were tired... I just followed..." The girl was making no sense

"What the hell are you talking about, girl?"

Ruby's eyes darted around, and she looked to be on the verge of collapsing. That made Regina happy. "Henry told me what Dr Whale said. He told him Emma had increased brain activity late at night. Someone left roses in the vase that's for Henry's use only, and you smelled like roses!" Curse that bloody wolf, and how the hell did those extra-sharp senses of hers transfer to this world? "You were tired. I put some pieces together, and followed the trail. Mayor Mills, I am so sorry!"

"Does Henry know?"

"What?"

"Henry, does he know I've been coming here." There was no point in pretending now. The cat had leapt from the bag, and all Regina could do was try to fix the new problem in front of her.

"Not that I know of. He's still looking for Emma's True Love or something. He thinks that's who left the flowers. No offense, but you don't leap to his mind as his birth mother's True Love. Oh my god, I'm so sorry," she added after the look that the older woman shot her.

"Is this going to be a problem?"

"What?"

"Clean your ears, you twit. Is this going to be a problem? Do I have to be worried about you and your loose lips?"

Ruby had regained enough of her footing to look offended at the insult flung her way, but told the woman towering over her that she wouldn't be an issue.

"Good. You will speak of this to no one. Not your grandmother. Not your patrons. And especially not my son." Regina stepped aside to allow the asinine girl to flee, as she so desperately wanted to. Once the sound of the door clicking shut crashed through the room, the mayor wrapped her arms around her middle, almost doubling over from shock.

That did not just happen. Of all people to catch her in Emma's room, touching those lips, it had to be moronic waitress that couldn't keep her mouth - or legs - shut. She was officially screwed. Taking deep, raspy breaths, Regina slowly regained her composure.

She did just scare the wits out of that stupid wolf. If she was lucky, Ruby would actually keep her mouth shut. She was actually kind of fortunate that the girl was so easily intimidated by her rank and overall presence. If it had been Gold lurking in the shadows... Regina shuddered at the thought. She would just have to lay low for a little while.

She was about to leave when something stopped her. She turned to the motionless woman in the bed behind her. Her feet carried her to Emma's side, once again stopping to drink in the eerily-serene Savior before her. Without thinking, Regina's hand came out to stroke down the other woman's cold cheek. Something in her chest clenched at the sound of Emma's elevated heart rate that she was going to miss so much.

"I have to stay away for a few days. I'm sorry that I won't be there to warm your hands. I am...sorry, Emma. For everything. I just wanted to keep my son. I want to be better for him, but I guess it's my job to let him down." There was a long pause. "I will come back to you. I won't leave you, not like your parents. Not this time."

What surprised the brunette more than that speech already did was when she bent over, placing a gentle kiss to the blonde's forehead. The monitor's beeping went suddenly erratic before settling into its usual tempo. "Goodnight...Emma." she whispered tenderly into her ear.