Henry had fallen asleep before the toys even made it to Sid's house and the mayor's eyes were fighting to stay open as well, she stopped the movie while stretching her limbs and rolling her neck. Regina pulled her phone out from where it had gotten buried in the blankets, checking the time to find out how late it was and to see if she'd gotten a text from Emma yet only to see nothing but the lock screen of herself and Henry looking back at her. She slid it back into the pocket of her pants before moving to wake up her son and get him up to bed.
"Do you think Emma will have a movie marathon with us when she comes to visit?" He asked with a yawn, slowly padding up the stairs with his mother in tow, he was still half asleep and she was eager to get him into bed so he could get some restful sleep. Even in his delirious state he was still working on plans for Emma's trip and she smiled as she pulled the blankets back to have her son all but fall into the bed.
"I don't see why she wouldn't, Henry," She answered softly, tucking the blankets around him and kissing the top of his head "But for right now you need to get some rest so you won't be a zombie in the morning. Thankfully it's Saturday so you won't have to shuffle off to school in half a coma. Good night. I love you." Regina brushed back his hair and started for the door when she heard a mumbled "I love you too," from her son.
She shut the door as quietly as possible so she wouldn't disturb and stretched again, she was still wearing her clothes from work and a bath was calling her name despite the late hour. The black haired woman started to run water when her phone chimed from her back pocket. It startled her, she hadn't been expecting it to make any noise so late but she pulled it out to see Emma's name on the screen.
'Sorry I'm so late getting back to you. I got here safe so no worries. I'm sure you and Henry are long gone to bed but I wanted to say good night to you since I already told Henry good night. So good night Mayor Mills.'
Regina smiled and set the phone on the counter before adding bath salts to the water, going to grab a nightgown from her closet and returning to turn off the faucet and find yet another message from Emma. It was nice that she was making up for responding so late.
'Don't forget that you'll be seeing me at some point tomorrow. Gotta have a Skype call right? Just let me know when you'll be free and I'll be there. Okay, good night for real this time. I've gotta get some sleep after a busy day. I'll talk to you tomorrow Regina. xx Knight Swan of the Realm of Boston.'
She couldn't help but chuckle as she got undressed and pulled her hair into the most pathetic ponytail possible for her barely shoulder length locks, sliding into the water with a satisfied sigh before leaning her head back. Knowing herself, and Henry, they'd want to Skype with Emma from morning until night but she figured she would let the blonde sleep in just like she was doing for her son.
Regina soaked for a little while, barely lifting her head from it's position, but then realized she risked succumbing to sleep in the hot water so she hurried to wash up and get into her bed. Once she was dry, had lotion on, and was laying in her bed she figured she should respond at least.
'Get some sleep, Miss Swan, we do want to see you and will need you alert when we can. I'll let you know a good time for us to have a video call when I wake up and clean up the aftermath of the movie marathon, I'm too tired to do it tonight. Good night, Emma, and sweet dreams to the knight of Boston's realm.'
Beaming at the text message Emma stretched out on her surprisingly comfortable hotel bed, pulling the monogrammed blanket closer with a content sigh as she thought about the fact that Storybrooke was an hour from where she was. Regina and Henry were only so many miles from her. Ruby had been checking in almost every hour but had finally gone to sleep and now she had instructions to call her the minute she saw the sign for Storybrooke. Her plan was to call Ruby, stop by the flower shop, and then make her way to Mifflin Street where the mayoral mansion resided.
It was making it hard to fall asleep, her excitement keeping her wide awake despite her body demanding sleep. How was she supposed to sleep when she couldn't stop grinning? She gave up for the moment, grabbing her phone again to read through her messages with Henry, her clever operation partner. His last text had said that Regina was all smiles for the opening scene of Toy Story and he doubted it was Disney making her so happy. Emma figured it might have something to do with the two of them discussing sleeping arrangements when she visited, she had been a little shocked when Regina offered up her bed in favor of the couch. Her heart had sputtered and skipped a few beats at the thought of mocha arms around her body, black locks mixing with blonde, intertwining her fingers with Regina's.
Dropping the phone after setting an alarm she buried her face in the soft white blanket with her name stitched into it and willed herself to get some sleep. It came easier when she again imagined a certain Mayor wrapped around her while saying her name in the adorable sleepy voice that she had.
The blonde Bostonian for once in her life managed to rise before her alarm clock, turning it off and getting to work on packing back up. She'd taken a shower the previous night and had to gather up her toiletries as well as clothes. It was taking far too long for her liking to get the hotel room in a decent enough condition, she was insistent on leaving as little as possible for people to have to deal with. After about fifteen more minutes it was finally good enough and the last thing she had to grab was her blanket, folding it and setting it in the bag as she slid on her leather jacket then started out the door.
Emma was in a hurry to deal with the last hour of her trip and, after checking when the Game of Thorns opened in Storybrooke for the day, it worked out that she'd be there after Mr. French was in. She got into her trusty Beatle and sent Ruby a text, knowing her friend liked to hibernate after howling at the moon until late- their code for when Ruby was going out looking for dates.
Her thumb hesitated over Regina's messages but she flipped over to the GPS instead, the mayor deserved to get as much rest as she wanted and she already knew that they'd be in contact soon enough. Turning on her music she drove away from the hotel with the biggest smile on her face, her window down while her hand danced in the breeze as the minutes ticked off her arrival time with every passing mile.
Emma had to keep herself preoccupied by singing along with everything that came on, it helped her nerves and to drown out the little voice in her head that was still concerned about ruining things once she was physically in front of the Mills. Maybe both of them wouldn't be thrilled with the actual result of the Swansky persona brought to life? It would be terrifying to lose two people she cared so much for. Regina was incredible and Henry was almost her clone, an amazing little man, and she didn't want to mess things up like she'd done in the past with the very few people she had cared for. Her ever present abandonment issues were starting to bubble up but she shook them off when a green sign came into view.
"Entering Storybrooke." She read out loud, pulling over right in front of it to get out of her car and take a photo of the sign. Emma wanted it just for herself but she also sent it to Ruby for confirmation of her arrival before reaching up to put her hand on it, as if it would just disappear when she made contact taking Regina and Henry with it. She held her breath as her fingertips hovered over the metal before pushing forward and touching it. The sign remained, still welcoming her into this new area of Maine, and she couldn't help but laugh at her own foolishness. It wasn't a fairytale world that would just cloak itself or something.
Jumping back into her car she drove through the lush greenery that hid Storybrooke from view, that was why they never got visitors! It was a hidden gem. The town was already alert for a Saturday she could see people walking on the sidewalks as she pulled past. A red headed man carrying an umbrella and holding a leash to a Dalmatian nodded at a woman with pixie length brown hair who smiled in return, a blonde guy was escorting a surly looking short gentleman with a beard who was stumbling a bit, an older woman was pulling a sign out in front of the diner that announced they were open.
Blue green eyes landed on a familiar looking name of one of the shops- Game of Thorns- with a man unloading flowers from a delivery van that bore the same logo on it. When Emma came to a stop it felt like the people she'd taken notice of did too, shutting her door she turned to see the pixie haired woman tilting her head and eyeing her, the blonde guy with his angry companion had stopped and they both looked confused, the older woman was standing with one hand on her hip and the other pushing her glasses up as if she couldn't see clearly, and the red headed man with the umbrella had come to a halt near her with the Dalmatian eyeing her too.
"Ooookay," She mumbled softly to herself before moving over to the flower shop and opening the door "Hello Mr. French?" She called, not seeing him after he'd gone into the store with the last armful of flowers. She decided to look around at what he had on display while she waited, there were roses in every color including familiar lavender ones that had her pause with a smile. Emma couldn't help but lean in and inhale their fragrance and even though the whole store was abundant in smells they stood out. She reached out to touch the soft petals but was jolted back by the sound of something crashing to the floor.
Looking over to the source she was met with the shocked face of the man who'd dropped a vase on the floor, Moe French- it had to be. "I'm sorry! I just didn't expect anyone to be here let alone… Someone new." He hurried to apologize before cleaning up what remained of a crystal vase, sweeping the shards into a dustpan but still glancing at her every few seconds, like she wasn't real.
"Hey, no worries. I bet you don't get a lot of customers on a Saturday morning. Even though the whole town looks like it's out there. I've actually ordered these from you before," Emma gestured to the roses near her "Do you need some help, Mr. French?" It looked like he was struggling to pay attention to either cleaning or her, the same way the rest of the town seemed glued to her when she'd walked in. Maybe they didn't get visitors in Storybrooke but she was starting to feel like she had a beanstalk growing out of her head with all of the attention.
He still hadn't answered her and she had to clear her throat, turning to look through the rest of the options if he wasn't going to speak to her. "I'm sorry. We just haven't had anyone new in Storybrooke since… well, as long as I can remember to be honest," The shop owner finally spoke up "You said you've ordered the roses before? I've only had one delivery for those in the past few weeks or so. Someone called and got them for Mayor Mills and I was shocked, no one ever sends the evil queen flowers."
Emma had to blink a few times at the second name he had used to describe Regina, turning on her heel to look at him with a frown and crossing her arms over her chest. Her jaw set in place as she fought herself on saying something she'd regret. "Any reason you talk about your city official like that? It can be considered slander just so you're aware." It was the nicest way she could let Mr. French know to be careful about his next choice of words.
She watched him swallow hard, his face going a little pale. "It's the nickname almost everyone in town has given her. If you actually lived here, if you really knew her-" "I do know her and well enough that I can tell you she's no more an evil queen then you are the father of some princess. I just want to buy some flowers now and I'll be on my way. Do you have apple blossoms?" She lost her ability to play nice when he was all but insulting someone she cared about.
It turned out that he didn't but she didn't want to look through the selection, opting for thirteen red roses that were almost the same shade as Regina's signature lipstick. Emma paid without an additional word to the man and then headed outside, almost colliding with someone on the sidewalk. She protected the flowers from being crushed before turning to the person she had bummed into, a man with a cane who was now looking at her with narrowed eyes. There was something about him that didn't sit right with her or the way he was looking at her.
"Sorry, dearie, I am Mr. Gold but I don't believe I know you," He spoke with an accent and leaned heavily on the cane, observing the way she was holding the flowers close "And I… know everyone." He added, his eyes flashing with something Emma couldn't place as she moved over to the passenger door to put the bouquet somewhere safe. Once the roses were out of her hands she crossed her arms over her chest again, for a town that didn't have a lot of visitors the first interactions weren't too welcoming.
"I guess you don't know everyone then. I'm Emma Swan, just visiting a friend. Sorry for bumping into you but I need to get going-" "Emma. What a lovely name." He interrupted and it somehow amped up the bizarre vibe she was getting from him, he said her name like he already knew it… somehow. She swallowed and nodded, moving around to the driver's side to get in before he could say anything else but, as she did pull away, he stood there watching her until she was out of sight with a grin that reminded her of a crocodile.
The mayor was jolted awake, springing up in panic when something was jumping on her bed. Her vision was still blurred from sleep but she was finally able to focus on her son bouncing in a seated position next to her like it was Christmas morning or something. Regina let out a groan and fell back against the pillows, draping an arm over her eyes as she tried to will herself back to sleep and not face the harsh reality of life crashing into her. She tried to reclaim the dream she'd been enjoying, there was a beautiful blonde in glasses playing games with her son in it before she stole her away for a glass of apple cider which quickly was abandoned for kissing in her office.
"Mom! We've gotta get up and have breakfast already. How is it I'm more awake then you are?" Henry asked before rolling off the bed to grab her robe to toss over her and then hurried down the stairs, pulling her further away from the dream of Emma. She groaned again as she dragged herself slowly out of the bed, putting her robe on, and following in her son's footsteps only to stop halfway down the stairs as she smelled coffee. It was a rare treat for her son to make her a cup and she couldn't help but smile.
"I love that you are bribing me out of sleep by brewing me coffee, my little prince, it seems you've inherited some of your mother's tricks to get what you want," Regina stretched her arms above her head, hearing a satisfying pop, as she rounded the corner into the kitchen to find him standing in front of the coffee machine "So what do you want, Mr. Mills? What's on the menu for breakfast? Anything at all you'd like?" She walked over to kiss the top of his head and take over on coffee duty, pouring herself a mug full of the liquid and sprinkling in a miniscule amount of sugar before taking a long drink.
Henry was all smiles, he'd woken up to a text from Emma that she was in Storybrooke, and he knew she would be there any minute. He just had to stall his mother long enough for his blonde friend to get there "Maybe we can go to Granny's for breakfast? You're always making me something and it's the weekend so you deserve to relax too." He suggested.
Regina opened her mouth to respond when a knock on the door cut her off, making her blink and look at Henry in confusion "Are you expecting someone, my little prince?" He shrugged but started to the front door with her one step behind him. It was Saturday and she was already running through the possibilities- could something be going on in town that required her attention as the Mayor? Maybe Pongo got loose again and David was checking door to door? Was Leroy still drunk from the night before and trying to remember where he lived? Mary Margaret collecting for a bird sanctuary or something equally as nauseating?
All those thoughts flew out of her mind when Henry opened the door wide and she saw who was standing there. It felt like the world had gone into slow motion as she took in the visitor. Boots, skinny jeans that looked painted on, a white tank top with a red leather jacket over it, blonde curls flowing over her shoulders, pale hands one of which was holding red roses, pink lips, blue green eyes behind glasses. "Emma?" The question barely a whisper, she had to still be dreaming.
"Hi."