I don't own these characters; Disney/ABC does.
6: Right Steps
Regina and Emma had yet to tell Henry that he had a sibling on the way. They wanted to couple it with the news that they would be moving into a house, the pregnancy being the perfect explanation of why. He was still waiting for the adoption finalization papers to come in, so they did not want to keep hitting him with new things. They had already been overwhelmed, they did not even want to imagine what all of this could do to him. Once they had everything in order, they could sit with him and explain everything, so he would not get frustrated or upset. Or if he did get upset, they could talk him down.
Finding a house, the house really, was not difficult. They went on a realtor website, found a house that they both loved, plenty of rooms and yard space. Regina called to set up an appointment to view the house and everything seemed set to go. Except, the realtor called back an hour later and canceled the appointment without an explanation, not that Regina needed one.
"It would seem my mother has come into play," Regina said, leaning into Emma on the sofa.
Emma frowned a little as she wrapped her strong arms around Regina. "Maybe they just saw your name and got scared. It doesn't have to be your mother actively stopping us."
"That's true." But, it more than likely was Cora, punishing her for not listening, for not obeying, for daring to think she could live her life any way she wanted and not have to suffer consequences for doing such. Cora might not have been able to stop the wedding, but she could stop this, much like she once stopped Regina from purchasing a home until she had to put the condo in someone else's name to avoid being a homeless single mother.
"We can try to make the appointment under my name. I'm not sure how far we'll get once they look at my credit history."
Regina nodded. It was a good idea. "Or worse, kiss your ass because they see who your bio dad is." Emma would hate that and she did not want Emma to have to live with that.
Emma's frown became a deep scowl. "Do you think he would trump your mom? And, gross, by the way, calling him my bio dad. That man is a man and nothing more to me."
Regina kissed Emma's cheek as an apology. "Money talks and he has way more money, but my mother's vengeance is legendary, as we see with me. I'm not sure which would win."
Cora had never really had a showdown with Leopold as far as Regina knew. They seemed to get along when forced to share the same space, but they were both masters of pretending to be decent human beings when enough people were watching and masters of manipulation. Leopold had seemed to entertain the idea of marrying Cora's daughter until Regina had the bad manners to be pregnant with another man's baby. Cora definitely viewed marrying into the White household a step up the Enchanted Forest social ladder, which meant more power for Cora. Power meant happiness for Cora, but Regina could not live like that.
"So, what do we do?" Emma asked, interrupting Regina's train of thought. "I really don't want Leopold involved in this in any way."
"I know." Regina tapped her chin. "There's always the path of having a stand in."
Emma groaned. "We gotta have fake people buy a house for us? That sucks."
"Not really fake people, but just not us. You know that's how I managed to get the condo. We could get someone we trust to do it. Hell, even someone we trust to buy the house and then sign it over to us."
Emma's face scrunched up. "Do we know people who would go through all that trouble?"
Regina pulled back to look at Emma like she was crazy. "You have a sister who would bend over backwards to make your life with me happy."
"She's also nosy as hell and will want to know why we need her to do this. You wanna explain that, so she can then go scream it from the mountain tops?" Emma smirked.
Regina could not argue. "You got me there. If you want, I could ask Maleficent or Kathryn to do it. They enjoy sticking it to my mother whenever they get the chance. Technically, Maleficent owns the condo."
"Anything to keep me from having to deal with someone doing something for me because of my stupid sperm donor. I really don't want to deal with that."
"You're going to have to come to grips that people might do things for you because of that. You can't escape it." The White name had a lot of clout in the Enchanted Forest and if people knew about Emma, they would try to use her as an in for his influence.
Emma glared at her. "The hell I can't. I don't need him or his stupid reputation or title or money to live my life."
Regina cupped her face with both hands, holding her so gently, trying to make this easier for Emma, who never asked for this life. "No, you don't, but he could be a factor in your life. It doesn't give him power over you. It's just something you might have to deal with, so you don't end up upset whenever it comes up. It'll just be healthier for you to accept it than for you to fight it. You can't help who he is or who you are."
Emma's frown cut through her face. "It's not like it's super common knowledge. You know, maybe we should change our names. Then, we don't have to worry about this crap. Plus, Henry pointed out a while ago that if we have a baby, we all need the same last name, anyway. Babies can't pick last names, you know."
Regina chuckled. "He said that, didn't he?"
"Definitely said that and he's not wrong. Once his adoption goes through, I'm sure he'll want us all to have the same last name."
"I'm sure that's true, but it might not help us much with this situation. They use more than your name to identify you, but maybe…" Regina tilted her head. Beyond them getting a house, Emma made a good point. Besides, it bothered her whenever someone called her "Miss Mills" now.
Emma's nostrils flared. "I just suggested something so good for such a dumb reason. Forget about the house. Let's not even act like we're trying to buy a house right now. We should change our names, so we all have the same last name point blank. We're a family, so we should all have the same family name. We need to settle on something for this one. We owe this kid a name." She slid her hand to Regina's stomach.
Regina could not help smiling. "We're the start of our own family line. A new name would be great, but I do want to keep my last name. It's all I have left of my father." While "Miss Mills" did not sound right, she could not just abandon the name for the simple reason, it was all she had left. Her mother took everything else.
Emma nodded. "I understand. We can just hyphenate, right? See how that works. New name, but not really."
"Sounds good. That gives us three things to discuss with Henry, so we should probably do that soon before the list grows out of control." She did not want to overwhelm Henry with change. He was only eight.
"Technically, this last one was his idea. Again, babies can't pick a last name."
Regina smiled. "Was he all right with the idea of a baby when he said that?"
"Yeah, he seemed pretty comfortable with the idea, almost like he expects it. Maybe after hanging out with Nolan, he wants a sibling. We can talk to him at dinner. It shouldn't be too hard since everything flows together. He's a very logical kid, so he'll like that."
"Quite true. I should start dinner. Something to help this go over easier."
"Let's just order pizza and hot wings. You're stressed enough and we can stay on the couch."
Regina did not object. They had a lot happening, so pizza would be a nice treat. Henry all but jumped up and down when the pizza arrived. He cheered over being able to eat it in the living room, too. Regina had to bite her tongue to stop him, but also to stop herself from getting plates and making the meal somewhat civilized. Part of the appeal for both Emma and Henry was eating out of a box and eating with their hands… like heathens.
"How come we're having pizza?" Henry asked before taking a huge bite of his slice.
"To give Mom a cooking break," Emma replied. "She needs it. Lots going on in her life."
"Yeah?" Henry turned to Regina, wiggling in his seat. "Can I help make it better? There's not a lot going on in my life, so I have time and I wanna help. So, can I help?" He smiled at her and that helped right the world more than he would ever know.
Regina smiled back as tension she had been unaware of drained from her body. "I think so. First, Emma and I were talking about us all having the same last name."
He gave an eager nod, which did not lose effect even with the tomato sauce at the side of his mouth. "Yeah, because last names show you're related and a family. I was telling Emma we should get the same last name, so people know we're a family. That's really important. They'll know we're all together. Can we all get the same last name?"
"Yeah, we can change last names, just like we're working on making me your legal mom," Emma answered.
He nodded. "And how's that going? We haven't talked about it." He shoved more pizza in his mouth.
"It's coming along," Regina replied. "We've tried to rush it, but paperwork can take a lot of time. It should be done soon."
Emma grinned. "I'm hoping for it to be a birthday gift to me."
He groaned. "That long? Will a name change take that long?"
"No, it wouldn't. It's not nearly as much paperwork," Regina replied.
He nodded. "So, what would our new last name be? I kinda like Mills." He tapped his chin. "I'm used to it. Plus, I'm named after my abuelo and he was, like, Mom's favorite person, so I really like being Henry Mills."
They both laughed, but Regina nodded. "I loved my father with all my heart and I wanted to pour all of that love into you. But, we would actually just add to that," Regina said. "So, we'd all be Swan-Mills or Mills-Swan."
He nodded. "I like Swan-Mills. It's like you combined." He smashed his hands together, careful of his pizza. "Which is good because you're combined. That's what married is, right? You're combined and you're together and we're all a family."
Emma grinned. "We are combined, together, and a family and that's good. We can all be Swan-Mills."
Henry nodded, but there was a little wrinkle in his forehead. He finished his slice of pizza and grabbed a cinnamon stick. Emma arched an eyebrow at Regina, who shook her head and ate a wing. There was something there with Henry, churning in his mind. They just had to give him time to gather his thoughts.
"This is a lot of stuff for us to be a real family," he finally said as he grabbed another slice. Emma being introduced into his life had somehow amplified his appetite. He liked to try to eat like her, not knowing her hunger was born from a lifetime of rarely having enough food.
Regina put her hand on his knee. "We have always been a real family. This is just extra stuff to keep people from being confused and we don't have to waste time explaining."
He frowned. "Yeah, it was annoying to keep telling people Emma's my mom and have to tell why. It's always a long story. Now, it won't be long because she adopted me and we have the same last name. So, we're together." It was really important for him for them to be together, apparently.
Regina took a breath. "And our names will all match with your new brother or sister, who will also be with us eventually."
His face actually lit up. "Yeah, which is good. When I get a brother or sister, they'll have the same last name, so we don't have to pick for them. Cuz, I mean, what if we pick wrong?"
Emma laughed. "Well, now, none of us have a choice. I think your brother or sister will be happy with it."
Henry nodded. "Yeah, but I don't have a brother or sister yet."
"You will in a few months, kid. Mom went to the doctor and we found out she's growing a baby right now," Emma said.
Henry frowned as he took in the new information. Emma glanced at Regina as the silence stretched on. Yes, he was getting his thoughts together, but his pinched expression was not encouraging. Regina took a deep breath.
"How do you feel about that, Henry? You'll be a big brother," Regina said.
"But, why?" A wrinkle appeared between his eyebrows. "We're doing good by just us, so why have a baby now? Couldn't you wait until I was totally adopted and we had our names changed and everything was in order?" Henry looked between them. He even put his pizza down. He needed the right answers here.
"Well, we want a big family and we know you'd make a really good big brother," Emma said.
He narrowed his gaze on her. "How do you know that?"
"Honestly?" Emma smiled. "Because sometimes you act like my big brother. I know I'm way older than you, but you know so much more than I do with a lot of stuff and you always walk me through things nicely. You never make me feel stupid, even when I ask you a dumb question."
He shook his head and leaned into her. "You're not stupid."
Emma chuckled. "Thanks, kid, but sometimes watching you work, I feel that way and I mean that in a good way. You just know so much stuff and you're always happy to tell me or share something with me. We didn't really plan to have a baby now, but baby's there now. And, you know what, that baby will be lucky to have you, just like your cousin's lucky to have you."
Henry nodded, but still frowned. There was something more there and that was fine. They had hit him with a lot. Regina dared to dig a little deeper.
"Something happened when you spent the week with your cousin?" Regina asked.
"It's just…" He glanced away and squirmed in his seat. "Babies need a lot of attention…"
Regina nodded. "Children in general need a lot of attention. Henry, we'll still be there for you, even with the baby. We just need to incorporate the baby into some of the things we do."
"What about when it cries? What if I need help and the baby's crying? And the baby's crying so loud and won't stop and I need you," he pressed.
"Henry, did something happen?" Regina asked. She was not too worried, but Snow and David might have accidentally made Henry feel excluded while he was with them as they tried to soothe Nolan. As first time parents, she could see them panicking if he would not stop crying.
He sniffled. "It's just, sometimes… Nolan cried a lot. He was getting teeth, they said. But…" He shook his head. "It's silly." Okay, spending time with his aunt and uncle had not been the total grand adventure they all made it out to be, but that was fine. They were new parents and they still made Henry feel at home.
"It's not," Regina said. "It's never silly if it bothers you. We're always going to be there for you, Henry. Always."
Emma put an arm around Henry and pulled him close. "That's why there's two of us, kid." Emma pointed at herself and then Regina. "There are two of us to divide our attention between you and the baby."
"And what if you have another baby? You said you didn't plan this one. What happens when you plan another one or if you don't plan another one? How do you plan a baby, anyway?"
Emma winced and looked at Regina. Okay, not the conversation they needed to have right now. Regina tried to keep things focused. "Henry, we're always going to have time for you. You didn't worry about time when Emma moved in. You knew I'd still have time for you."
He nodded slowly. "I never thought you wouldn't, even though I got that you liked being around Emma. I guess because Emma's an adult, I didn't think about it."
"And because Emma's your friend, too, so you know she's going to make time with you. This baby will also be your friend. You'll be spending time with your sibling just like you spend time with us. We're all sharing each other and dividing our attention with each other," Regina replied.
He gave another nod. "I guess."
"I really think you'll make an awesome big brother, kid. You're kinda awesome in general," Emma said.
Henry ducked his head, a blush coloring his cheeks. "Am I really like that with you?" he asked, his voice shy.
"Yup. I really appreciate it. I love the energy you get when you're explaining stuff to me. I love when you get excited and it makes me want to get involved in whatever you're talking about. You introduce me to some cool stuff, too. I mean, I've seen so many great movies because of you and read so many books. I didn't even read before you! I didn't know how cool reading was. Also, you've helped me in life," Emma replied.
"I helped you?" He pointed to himself and then to Emma.
"Oh, yeah." Emma hugged him closer. "You helped me get close to my sister. I never really knew how to start a relationship with her and then you showed me these movie nights. That's how I started getting close to Snow. Your movie night idea. We watched our favorite movies and ate our favorite foods and learned about each other that way." Emma smiled.
"You never told me that," Henry's voice was low.
"I didn't think you needed to hear it, but yeah. You've been really big in my life since the time I met you and I'm honored you're my kid in every way you possibly can be and I'm honored you'll be a big brother to any other kids I'm able to have with your mom. I'm honored to be in your family and to be able to build a family with you."
Henry jumped up and hugged Emma properly, arms around her neck and hands planted on her back. And showing Emma was very much a mother, she accepted even though he had pizza on his hands. She had sauce on her shirt by the time he pulled away, could probably feel it through the fabric, but she grinned just as much as he did.
"As a family with the same last name and you being my official mother, you always have to be here, right? Just like Mom?" Henry asked.
Emma gave him another squeeze. "I always plan to be here, just like Mom. I love you and I love her. No other place I'd rather be."
"Same." He settled back into his seat.
"Then, it's settled," Emma said with another smile.
"So, when are you gonna have the baby?" Henry asked before shoving more pizza in his mouth, more than he could handle. He picked up some of Emma's worse habits, but that was fine.
"About seven months," Regina answered.
"And we're hoping to move to a bigger place before your mom gets too big with the baby to help us move. We were hoping for a house," Emma added.
Henry gasped. "So, we'll have a yard and we can get a dog!"
Regina groaned. "I told you to stop saying that or he would hear you." She was not about to get stuck with a dog.
Emma shrugged and grinned. "Guess we gotta get a dog now."
"I'm going to force you both to take care of the dog if you dare show up with one," Regina said.
Emma just smiled more and Henry had questions, thankfully not about the dog. "I'd still have my own room if we got a house, right?"
"Of course. We're looking for more space, not less. We should get your mom a home office, too." Emma winked.
"Yeah! So, we can stay in the living room when she has to work!" Henry cheered. At least he was sold on all of these things. Unfortunately, none of that was a way for them to move forward on the house.
-8-8-8-8-
Emma did not think getting married and starting a family would involve so much paperwork. Thank goodness Regina knew a lawyer to help them navigate all of this, but it seemed like so much and it was about to be so much more. Name changes and then there would be a mortgage. But, then after that, there would be a birth certificate. Hell, before that, there would be report cards and permission slips. She even got to sign one of Henry's tests earlier. Of course the kid got 100.
"You're looking too happy to be doing any work on that computer," Graham said as he stepped out of his office.
Emma chuckled. "Why is it always me? Do you know what Mulan does when you're not looking?"
"Mulan does work," Mulan said from behind her computer where she was definitely not working, unless the entire town of Storybrooke played Final Fantasy with her and she could track crime through it.
Emma snorted. "Okay. Mulan does work, but I do, too. I'm not always slacking off. Everybody always acts like I'm the weak link around here."
Graham rolled his eyes. "No one thinks that. We just think you're the one most likely to have drama going on right now because you just got married. Lots of housekeeping things to do."
"Lots more than I expected. You ever been married?" Emma asked.
"Nope. Lone wolf, through and through." Graham grinned, folding his arms across his chest.
Emma snorted. "Yeah, I didn't think I'd ever be married either and yet here I am, so you watch yourself. You meet The One at the weirdest times."
Mulan nodded. "I think I get what you mean there. I met Marian because her son ran me down on his bike when I was in Mist Haven, helping Shang move in of all things."
"The kid ran you down on his bike?" Emma could hardly believe that.
"She was teaching him how to ride. Anyway, I'm just saying you're right."
"So, you admit that Marian is The One, even though you've only been together a few months?" Emma arched an eyebrow.
Mulan scowled. "You're an asshole."
Emma laughed. "That's what she said."
"That's not even how you do it," Mulan groused.
"That's also what she said," Emma replied with a smirk. "Man, I wish Ruby worked here. She'd laugh at my jokes."
"Is that what those are supposed to be? Why are you doing this? Do you need help with something?" Mulan asked.
"What do you both think of this house for me and Regina if we decide to have more kids?" Emma pointed to her screen. Both Graham and Mulan came over to see what she was chatting about. This was the house she and Regina agreed on and their tour got canceled. It was nice to see the house was still on the market.
"Oh, nice. That works for both of you and a growing family. It's closer to here than where you live right now, right?" Graham asked.
Emma nodded. "Better school for Henry, too. Although, I think Regina wants to send him to private school if we move. We'll have to see. Might not be able to afford that unless I get a raise." She wiggled her eyebrows at Graham.
He snorted. "Nice try. I've been trying to get a raise myself since I got this job."
Emma chuckled and then turned her attention to Mulan. "What do you think, Mulan?" She respected Mulan's opinion more than Graham. Mulan was just so damn sensible.
"Isn't this out of your price range?" Mulan pointed out.
"We're going to work that out. Just tell me what you think," Emma replied.
"It's pretty big for a family of three, but if you're planning on more and you're planning to stay in Storybrooke, I think this is great," Mulan said.
Emma nodded. "Plan to raise a beautiful family here."
Mulan smiled. "Good to know. Maybe one day we'll have kids who play together."
Emma's body jumped. "I'd like that." She really would. She would love to raise kids in a stable household with good friends around and just all the domestic things she had only seen on television. So, for that to happen, they needed to get this house. As soon as possible actually.
-8-8-8-8-
The name change was relatively painless. Emma was now Emma Swan-Mills and she hated how giddy she was over it. It was like getting married to Regina all over again. It was so nice, she decided to cook on her day off. Regina was going to kill her when she saw the kitchen. I should be good. I mean, technically this is a celebration and my birthday's coming up, so she can't kill me… until my birthday passes anyway.
"Probably should've stuck to pasta," Emma muttered. She was good with pasta, but she wanted to try other things. She wanted to be as good to Regina as Regina was to her in all aspects of life, so she needed to learn to make Regina's favorites. Who knew seafood was so hard, though? Shrimp had no business being so small, yet so complicated.
She checked the time. She probably had an hour left to do this. Regina had taken Henry to the library just because they were that type of mother and son. Emma kind of loved that about them. She had gone to events with them hosted by the library, so she got the appeal.
By the time she heard Regina and Henry at the door, Emma had managed to tame the meal. Still, she felt like she had run a marathon and wished she had a chance to shower before they stepped inside. They turned to the kitchen immediately and she could only hope that was a good thing.
"You cooked?" Regina arched an eyebrow. "You do realize you don't have to make your own birthday meal, right?"
Emma shrugged. "I tried. Not for my birthday, but just to do something nice. I wanted to make something you like for once." She walked over to them and kissed Regina. Then, she turned her attention to Henry and hugged him. "How was the library, kid?"
"I got a book about planets to help me with my science project!" He held up his bounty, a Storybrooke library tote bag that looked pretty full, so definitely more than one book.
Emma nodded. "We're gonna read that together, right?"
"If you want. We can start after dinner," he replied.
She smiled. "Sounds good. I made garlic shrimp and broccoli."
Regina's eyebrow went up again. "Did you now?"
Emma set the table while Regina and Henry settled in. They sat down to a family dinner and Emma could not help grinning. All she needed to see was Regina enjoy the food and it would be impossible to live with her. It took everything in her not to stand up and cheer on the first bite. But, Regina had to be able to tell she was ready to burst.
Regina sighed. "Yes, Emma, it's delicious. Feel free to pat yourself on the back."
Emma chuckled and stomped her feet. "Oh, believe me, I will, but only after I tell you that Emma Swan-Mills made an appointment to tour our house."
"You've been busy today."
"The only thing is, no matter what, we don't have enough to put down, even with the first time home buyer's thing. I was thinking maybe we should ask Snow to loan us the money." She could stomach that, as long as Snow let her pay her back as best she could.
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah. We're getting closer to you showing anyway, go we can at least tell her we're planning to grow our family as soon as possible and that's why we want the house. It's not a lie."
Regina nodded. "You really are in a good mood."
"I am very ready to put down roots. I want everything with you and Henry." Emma smiled at Henry and he grinned back at her.
"So do we," Regina said.
"And now we'll make it happen. Come Hell or high water. We're in this together and together we're unstoppable."
Regina smiled. "I truly do feel that way with you."
Emma nodded. "Then, let's live life the way we want, on our terms." She reached over and grabbed Regina's hand. Regina gave her fingers a squeeze.
"So, are we moving yet?" Henry asked.
They laughed. "No, Henry. We have to see the house first to make sure it's as good as it looks in the pictures," Regina said.
Henry nodded. "I can come?"
Emma nodded. "I set the appointment for Saturday. We can all go and enjoy it. Or so I hope."
"It'll be cool." Henry's face lit up.
Emma hoped it would be cool. She hoped things would go their way. She never wanted to see Regina's face when she thought her mother could interrupt their lives. Emma would do everything in her power to make sure Regina was able to just live her life. They all deserved that chance.
-8-8-8-8-
Regina wanted to do something big for Emma's birthday, especially considering everything Emma did recently with the surprise dinner and house and such. But, they did not have the money for that. Besides, they were going to have to deal with Snow's birthday in a few weeks and Emma was not the type to do two huge events in the same season, unless they were barbecues. Instead, she settled for something simple. Emma liked simple. Ruby was happy to watch Henry, but Henry had to be negotiated with. He did not think it was fair he could not go to Emma's birthday dinner and he had a point, except he had been the one to make Emma breakfast in bed and he sort of forgot Regina existed for the morning.
"It's Emma's birthday, Mom," Henry scoffed, dismissing her yet again.
"I know and as Emma's wife, I am legally required to take her to a private dinner," Regina replied.
Henry narrowed his gaze. "That sounds made up. I'm gonna call Aunt Kathryn the second you leave to ask her if that's true."
"I promise you that she will confirm." She would text Kathryn to make sure she confirmed it. "Look, after dinner, we can all cut the cake together and I'll share a surprise with you."
His eyes went wide. "A surprise with me?"
"Yes. You'll love it."
Henry was nothing short of giddy and he actually kept texting her while she was out with Emma. She actually had to negotiate with him over taking her own wife out. They had to do something as a family tomorrow or there would be no living with Henry. Emma snickered as they sat in Tony's, Storybrooke's only pasta restaurant, and Emma's favorite "fancy" place to eat. Regina even ordered Emma's favorite wine, even though she could not drink.
"I feel bad drinking when you can't," Emma said.
"I insist you drink. I would love to toast your birthday with you." Regina held up her glass of water.
Emma smiled. "This is an awesome birthday. I was scared you were going to do something crazy."
"Oh, I was, but the house plans changed things."
"So… what were you going to do?" Emma grinned and leaned in close.
Regina smirked. "You'll find out next year, provided we have the money for it. And, if we don't, I'm holding onto this idea until we do have the money."
Emma chuckled. "Fine by me." She sipped her wine and hummed. "Damn, that's good."
"Drink to your heart's content, for tonight anyway. Tomorrow, you are dry with me again."
Emma laughed, but she had decided to forsake everything Regina was not allowed while pregnant. Mostly, to avoid tempting and teasing Regina. Regina appreciated the show of support.
The dinner went smoothly and then there was the pleasant surprise of Emma's friends and family being at the condo to sing Happy Birthday. Ruby snapped a good picture of Emma's surprised face when she stepped through the door and saw everyone. And she cried when Snow hugged her. This was all Regina wanted for Emma and more.
"Oh, my god, Regina, did you make this cake?" Emma asked as she moved next to the dining room table, which held the strawberry shortcake, Emma's favorite.
Regina rolled her eyes. "Of course I did. Granny was kind enough to let me use her kitchen." Granny took a bow.
Emma gasped. "That's where you disappeared to at twelve and then came back with that teddy bear, acting like that's what you had to get!"
"Wow, I actually put money on you figuring that one out," Ashley said before passing Ruby a few bills.
"I told you the giant bear would throw her off," Ruby replied as she put the money in her pocket.
There were laughs. The birthday song was sung. Emma pretended to have Nolan blow out the candles on her cake. He almost jumped out of her arms when everyone cheered and she passed him back to David. The cake was cut and everyone enjoyed it. Emma opened presents and then everyone was gone. Emma collapsed on the couch and Henry fell right next to her.
"This was a great day," Emma sighed.
Regina smiled. "Oh, it gets better."
Emma chuckled and covered Henry's eyes. "Not in front of the kid!"
Regina laughed in spite of herself. "Oh, hush." She pulled an envelope down from the bookshelf. "It's this." She sat on the opposite side of Emma and handed over the thin package. "Open it."
"Mail? Mail is the last gift?" Emma arched an eyebrow, but opened the thing anyway. She pulled out the papers inside. "Is this my taxes? You did my taxes for me?"
Regina groaned. "Just look, don't comment. Henry, you look as well." She watched their faces as they quietly read to themselves and their eyes went wide as the realization dawned on them.
"This means Ma is officially my mom now?" Henry asked with a gasp.
"In every way she possibly can be," Regina replied.
Emma grabbed them both into a hug as tears streamed down her face. "This is the best birthday ever. I'm here with my real family. Got to celebrate it with my whole family. I love you both so much." Then, she glanced at Regina's stomach. "Oh, I love you, too, not-here-yet-kid."
They laughed and stayed locked in the embrace for a long moment. Sure, things were happening fast, but they felt right, even with Cora lurking in the back of Regina's mind. No matter what Cora could not spoil this.
-8-8-8-8-
Next time: a celebration goes very wrong.