The sea air was cool and crisp, almost enjoyable if it weren't for the heavy air of tension laying over everyone aboard. All anyone could think about was Henry and his safety, especially Emma and Regina, the former of which was pacing nervously and the latter griping at Hook for not sailing faster.
"Take the stick out of your arse, love. Unless you've got a magic bean shoved up there too, it's going to take us several days, like it or not." Hook quipped, earning a glowering look from Regina and the hint of a fireball forming at her fingertips. Emma, watching the interaction as she paced, made a face - Regina wasn't sure if it was meant to signal restraint on her part or the captain's, or both. Mary Margaret, who'd been eavesdropping behind a pole, decided to chime in. Charming appeared as if from thin air next to her, looking like he was spawned solely to embark on a heroic quest through the unknown.
"Guys, we can't be fighting if we're going to work together to save Henry. We may not always get along," Mary Margaret said, ignoring Regina's scoff and Emma's eye roll, "but we all have the same goal here, and that will make us stronger."
"She's right," David said as if his remark had any effect on the validity of the statement. Emma looked down at the planks below, exhaustion blurring her vision.
Seeming to sense her tiredness, Rumplestiltskin pointedly planted his cane in the ground in front of him before saying, "We will be useless, however, if we don't rest at night. No point in fretting or squabbling before our arrival. Henry's a strong boy, but if we expect to be of any hindrance to Pan, we need to be at our best."
"Aye," Hook nodded, signaling to the door leading to the cabins below deck. "I, for one, am going to sleep. I'd offer up my cabin, the biggest room and bed, but I need the shortcut to the deck in case I have to change the Roger's course. If anyone wants to bunk with me I'd be more than happy to share," He winked, sliding a sultry glance over to Emma, who wanted to die upon receiving it.
"How many rooms do you have, Killian?" Emma asked brusquely, hoping to sidestep the awkwardness of sharing a bed with anyone, but as she glanced around she couldn't imagine more than a handful of rooms below deck.
"Four, love. Mine, another decently sized - most likely for our Charming couple - and two smaller ones. Pick your poison." His eyebrow raised smarmily in hopes that Emma would see no choice but to bunk with him in the larger room. Ignoring him, Emma and the gang descended to spectate the rooms. The interior was surprisingly nice, decorated with antiques and lit with oil lamps, smelling like cedar and pine. Hook opened a bedroom door and gestured inside.
"The second-biggest quarter," he said proudly, and Mary Margaret and David hesitantly entered. David nodded gruffly in approval after surveying the room and Mary Margaret smiled and said they'll stay there for the night, thanking him and listening as he explained the bathroom situation (making them all gag) and where to find food and water. Snow hugged Emma goodnight, squeezing hard in acknowledgement of their mutual worry for Henry. David followed, and before pulling back whispered to Emma, "please don't stay the night with that…pirate," he side-eyed the man in question, "just come to our room and you can have the bed with your mother if you need to. I can arrange some pillows on the floor for myself."
Emma nodded and gave him a wary smile, not wanting to inconvenience anyone but certainly not wanting to spend the night next to Killian, who would most likely take it as an invitation to make some kind of move on her. She'd hate to have to kill someone while they were on a mission to save a life.
After what feels like a decade, they'd dropped off Rumplestiltskin in a small, creepy-looking room with a miniscule mattress that he chose for whatever reason over the slightly nicer one with a slightly larger bed (between a twin-XL and a full-sized, whatever existed in pirate days), which Regina scoffed at but entered with poise. Emma, standing in the doorframe, felt her heart-rate spike in anxiety at now having to make a decision. Such a seemingly simple decision about where to sleep for the rest of their nights on board made her palms sweat. Regina, about to close the door, noticed Emma's countenance and made a rash decision that she knew she'd regret a second later.
"You can just stay here, Emma." Regina said, the shock on both the blonde's and the eyeliner-wearing man-child faces speaking volumes. "I mean, there's a perfectly acceptable day-bed at the window. Just don't snore or I will kill you and feed you to the sharks."
Emma tried to contain herself from smiling widely at the invitation. She knew her and the mayor weren't mortal enemies anymore, but such a friendship-y gesture took her by pleasant surprise.
"Thanks, Regina," she said, opting for a slight head nod and a small grin. Regina almost rolled her eyes at her own stupidity - why did she just invite the blonde nuisance to spend a night and probably five more in a small enclosure with her? Why did she care if the blonde had to bunk with the gothic weirdo or the incessantly chipper lovebirds? But she couldn't help the feeling that having someone nearby would, perhaps, quell some of the loneliness she felt from missing her son. Their son.
Killian tried not to look like he'd just been punched in the face. "Well then," he nodded with a fake smile, "let me know if you need anything. If it gets too cramped in there…"
"We'll come throw you overboard and take your cabin. Goodnight." Regina snarked, cutting him off, and closed the door on him. Emma stifled a laugh.
Emma meandered over to the aforementioned daybed near the window. It was small and rickety, and smelled like mothballs, but she figured it was better than nothing. It creaked incessantly when she settled herself down into it and she cringed as Regina's eyes darted over in annoyance. Emma saw a cloud of purple smoke engulf Regina and she was suddenly wearing a fluffy white nightgown that matched the pirate aesthetic of the room.
"Where did you even get that?" Emma said, staring a little too long at the V-line that revealed a lot of Regina's cleavage.
"It was in one of the drawers." She said matter-of-factly, and scowled at the puffy white shoulders of the dress. "I wasn't about to try to sleep in a pantsuit. Do you want one?"
Emma shook her head and declined, instead opting to pull off her jacket and shirt, leaving her in her white tank top, and removed her pants under the blanket. She figured she'd discretely pull off her bra under the covers, not wanting to give Regina any reason to kick her out before they'd gone to sleep. Regina watched in fascination at the way Emma's toned arms moved and exposed more of her flesh, shaking her head slightly when she realized she was staring and looking back down at her hands.
Without warning, Regina magically turned off the lights in the room and shifted in her bed towards the wall and away from Emma. Emma rolled her eyes, trying to settle into the horribly cramped and uncomfortable daybed. The creaking was ungodly and it physically shook if she did so much as move her foot or if the boat rocked more than usual. She tensed her muscles and tried to remain as still as possible, but her arm started falling asleep and she had to roll onto her other side. The bed creaked louder than it had all night and she accidentally kicked a seashell, cringing as it clattered to the floor.
"Oh for heaven's sake Emma…just come get on the bed and go to sleep."
Emma's anxiety at being kicked out swiftly changed course to anxiety at being invited to share a very small bed with none other than Regina Mills. Out of fear of the offer being rescinded, Emma swiftly and quietly crawled under the covers and laid facing away from the other woman, breathing heavily.
"Goodnight, Miss Swan." Regina sighed, internally displeased at herself for sending such an absurd invitation, yet simultaneously wondering what it would be like if Emma shifted just a little bit closer to her while they were asleep. She wasn't sure why she wasn't repulsed by the idea, instead even feeling a bit - giddy? She thought. Nonsense.
Neither woman moved a muscle for a while, afraid of encroaching on the other's space. It grew cold, however, and not wanting to get up to find her jacket nor wanting to wear the leather in bed, Emma curled up a bit and drew the covers further over her. The action slightly pulled the covers off of Regina's side, but instead of snapping and banishing Emma to the plank, Regina found herself simply sliding over a bit towards the center. Remembering how small the bed was, Regina tried carefully not to touch Emma but pulled the edge of the covers back over herself for warmth.
A few minutes later, Emma had flipped over and was now facing Regina. Regina could feel Emma's breath slightly on the back of her neck, shocked at how close they were and at how her own breath hitched at the sensation. Regina had a strange, unwelcome image of running her hands through blonde tresses enter her mind before quickly shutting it down.
Emma didn't realize how close she'd gotten to Regina until her knees knocked against the mayor's back. She held her breath and uncurled herself so she was in a straight line, waiting for the brunette to incinerate her at the contact. However, Regina didn't respond, so she figured she'd gotten lucky and the other woman had already fallen asleep. She exhaled shakily.
Regina was not asleep. Her eyes widened against the wall and then slammed back shut when she felt the contact. Her first instinct was to snap at the blonde or push her out of the bed, but for some reason she found herself biting her tongue. She didn't hate the way they'd brushed up against each other for a split second. It was unnaturally cold in the room thanks to an evident lack of a central heating system aboard. She admonished herself for her negligence - When did I go soft? The Evil Queen would have turned Emma Swan into a roach by now.
Emma shivered as she lay wide awake, arms tight at her sides and awkwardly stretched out thin when all she wanted to do was curl up and pull the covers over her head. She wished she had accepted one of the nightgowns in all its frilly ridiculousness - at least the sleeves were long and it would have covered her legs.
Regina wasn't faring much better despite her fluffy nightgown. She contemplated summoning one of the blankets in the corner of the room, but had remembered their moth-eaten countenance that she'd witnessed earlier and scrunched her nose up in disapproval. No wonder that damn pirate wears fifty pounds of leather every day. Her mind wandered to the pirate, then to his comical yet grotesque crush on Emma, then to imagining his point of view. Emma was cocky, brash, and immature, she thought. But she was also attractive, immensely strong, funny, and too witty for her own good. And attractive. She wondered if those blonde tresses were keeping her warm, and then again came the fleeting image of running her fingers through them, followed by burying herself into the warmth of the blonde's torso. She flushed a bright red, grateful she was hidden from the blonde's view.
Trying extremely hard not to flip over towards the blonde, Regina started to fidget as her muscles tensed. She could no longer lay still and she stretched her legs out slowly, not wanting to alert the blonde to her consciousness, but froze as she realized she'd brushed her foot against the blonde's lower leg. She was warm.
What the fuck? Emma thought as she felt an extremely cold foot brush up against her leg. She stifled a laugh as she realized Regina was just stretching in her sleep. Emma didn't make any effort to move away, though, thinking that if the brunette's skin was that cold to the touch she must be freezing. Emma gave some of the covers to Regina, shifting them over so that she'd be warmer. The act, though, left her colder than before and she silently lamented that she probably wasn't going to sleep at all that night.
Regina's face flushed even deeper when she realized Emma had given her more of the blankets. She was overcome with a foreign emotion, baffled by the selflessness of the other woman, let alone towards herself. Miss Swan was a Charming, sure, but the act was so endearing that she couldn't help but want to return the gesture.
Screw it, Regina thought as she turned over and opened her eyes, face-to-face with the blonde.
"Are you cold?" Regina said, and Emma just met her stare and nodded fervently.
"What I'm about to say, you promise to never speak of this again?" Regina mumbled, already regretting her decision. Emma's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
"Uh, okay?"
"I…I used to hold Henry sometimes when he was little and couldn't sleep, especially when it was cold in the winters. Do you…do you want to try that?" Regina's bashfulness was adorable, Emma thought, as the words registered in her mind. Did Regina Mills just extend an invitation to cuddle with her?
Emma was too cold, tired, and desperate to make a joke and ruin the moment. She was taken aback by the intense vulnerability and found herself saying "Yeah, okay," softly, raising her eyebrows and smiling slightly to reassure Regina that she was safe to open up to. Regina was on the cusp of rolling her eyes but fought back the urge. Her heart secretly lurched at the acceptance of her offer, and she had planned on simply scooping Emma up like she had with Henry in the past, but awkwardly stayed still and nervously looked down at her hands. The moonlight was just bright enough to illuminate their features, and Emma noticed the hesitance, deciding to take matters into her own hands, so to speak.
"Come here, lay your head under mine," Emma said, opening her arms for the other woman to reluctantly crawl into. Rigid at first, Regina couldn't help but slowly relax into the embrace over time as she realized how soft and warm Emma was. Her head buried in the blonde's chest, she greedily pulled the other woman in closer and closer. Realizing Emma was only in her underwear as her own leg settled in between the blonde's, Regina flushed yet again. The contact warmed her up, as her own nightgown had hiked up a bit and now their bare legs were entangled. Both women practically clung to each other like a lifeline, immensely enjoying the feel of being so impossibly close. It was more intimate than either of them were used to, even with past lovers.
Emma smiled as she felt Regina's hands pull at her back while she snuggled herself in closer. It was fucking adorable. Emma didn't think she'd ever been so comfortable, and sinfully wondered how much warmer they'd be if it were skin-to-skin contact, like in the movies. The thought sent heat to her core.
Both women soon drifted off, sleeping more deeply than either thought possible. Soon enough sunlight was filtering into the room and a knock at the door with the gruff words "breakfast" sounding from a tired Captain Hook sent them jumping apart. Neither made eye contact with the other as Regina magicked both of their clothes back on, giving herself a tastefully light face of makeup to compliment it and magically blown-out hair. Emma couldn't help but stare for a moment at that point, then realized her own hair felt clean and fluffy, and her breath was now minty-fresh. Before she could thank Regina for the gesture, the woman had opened the door and strode off to the kitchen, leaving Emma standing dumbly. Well, fuck, Emma thought. That happened.
Let me know what you think. Will continue if people enjoy it. Comments are appreciated!