12I don't own OUAT. Don't let me rewatch OUAT or you get a 'what if Henry did not show up when Regina was trying to make him lose faith in Emma' kind of au.
It had all been rather simple. Get the fool to come to her office, make her believe Regina was genuinely apologetic, let her talk (she was bound to say something wrong eventually) and just wait for henry to hear his 'saviour' say something along the lines of 'he is insane' , have Henry's faith in this Emma Swan crushed. There. A simple plan really, one that couldn't go wrong. She just knew the Swan woman was bound to say something wrong and if she defied all the rules logic dictated, Regina would be able to manipulate her into saying something surely. So really, simple and fool proof.
Except for the one thing she had not taken into consideration: Henry recently found rebellious nature.
Emma Swan was still talking and usually, Regina's plan would have gone perfectly. She had actually heard the words 'troubled' and 'crazy' leave the infuriating woman's mouth. She was convinced it would have been enough to make sure Henry never trusted or like his so-called birthmother again, but-
He had apparently decided he didn't need to show up. Oddly enough, the first she felt was a bit of relief (she had, in fact, thought about how crushed Henry would be but had ultimately decided that he was better off feeling crushed – surely, he would get over it- then actually getting attached and then being disappointed as Emma Swan surely failed in all ways possible) but that was quickly replaced by almost equal measures of anger and concern.
So now he favours doing homework to spending time with me She looked at the woman sitting across from her, still prattling on about 'fairy tale illusions, needing him to be okay', and had to temper down on the need to scowl and possibly strangle her.
Regina quickly formulated a new plan. It had not been her intention to ever be friendly with this intruder ( what if she took it as invitation to stay?) but she might be able to use this to her advantage. After all, if she couldn't connect to Henry but – no matter how humiliating and unfair I was- this woman could. Perhaps she could use her.
" I would never call my son insane, miss Swan- " especially not because he is right, but you do not need to know that, bumbling buffoon . " But I am concerned about his recent behaviour"
It was like pulling teeth, but she admitted " I am quite at a loss" . Regina hated admitting weakness, but she just knew this woman would be lured into a false sense of security if Regina showed a 'vulnerable side'.
Like expected, this woman looks a combination of uncomfortable and empathic. " I can only imagine- " no really can't, you have no idea " what it is like. I just- I don't think the therapy is helping"
" Oh, because you are a verified psychiatrist who deals with such cases constantly "She says in a snide tone before she can stop herself. All she want to do is drive this woman out of town. In the old world, she would have probably already ripped her heart out. Playing nice is excruciating.
Hazel eyes darken with anger. " What is your problem, lady- I am just trying- ".
" You have to see this from my side, miss Swan. Henry is going through a difficult time, I am doing everything in my power to aid him and then suddenly a stranger comes to my town and presumes to have some sort of claim, some right to my son".
For a moment, the swan woman seems ready to fight- her eyes ablaze, her jaw tightening, her mouth opening like she is going to yell- but then something makes her deflate.
" I don't think I have any right- I know he is your son" for the first time since they have met, the woman sounds almost meek. Regina is not good at emphasizing – especially not with rude women trying to take away her son- but she is very good at spotting weaknesses, or cracks in someone's armour. So she immediately notes the pain (and is that regret?) and files it away for later.
" Exactly. So you might comprehend, miss Swan, that your presence here certainly complicates things".
" Listen, I might not have raised him or anything, but I have given birth to him. I cannot just walk away now that I have actually met him- now that I know he isn't happy".
"And whose fault do you presume that to be" Regina asks, ready to destroy this woman if she even thinks of being as self-righteous as to blame Regina, when it is her who has driven Henry farther away than ever-
" I don't know. I don't- listen, what made the kid like this? I mean, when did the issues start".
Regina is caught off guard, enough to automatically reply " I suppose when he discovered that he was adopted".
Perhaps miss Swan isn't a complete fool (though she certainly is one, if she thinks coming between Regina and the only person she cares about is a good idea), because she immediately states. "You did not tell him, he found out somehow" It should be a question, but it is not.
Why am I still talking to this person? Because really, Regina is actually starting to feel vulnerable. She doesn't like sharing parts of herself and almost never does. Henry is the only exception- and even he hasn't seen every part of her.
Still, she finds herself admitting " At first, he would not even tell me why he was being so.. distant. The behaviour worsened to the point that I felt it was in Henry's best interest to talk to doctor Hopper. I eventually discovered that the root of the issue was that Henry knew he was adopted" She doesn't admitted that Henry never told her, but that she threatened to 'make sure you have to eat out of bins the rest of your life' if Hopper did not tell her what was going on.
" So you discovered he was mad about the adoption thing- " the adopti- Is this honestly the woman that bore my smart son? " and then what?".
" Miss Swan..".
" I am just trying to figure out what is going on here – what happened that he read that book and immediately decided this town was cursed and everyone was a fairy tale character".
" He has always had a rather active imagination" Regina thinks of four-year-old Henry who loved drawing and would run to her office, shouting ' momma! Look what I made" and how he grinned so widely as he showed her whatever he had thought off this time.
" His shrink said it was his way to communicate".
"Communicate what? That I am evil "Regina snaps.
The nuisance on her couch raises her hands defensively. " Lady, I am not saying that. Although the things you have done to me really don't speak in your favour".
Regina stands. "I think this conversation is over, miss Swan. And if you care for Henry the way you claim you do, then you will leave this town and not complicate matters further". Playing nice with this woman is just impossible. Nearly everything about her infuriates Regina.
Regina is itching to put an end to this conversation so she can get Henry , but this woman really cannot take a hint. She presses into Regina's personal space. " I am not abandoning my kid ".
Regina wants to laugh and say " you already did it once, why should I believe you won't do it again?". Instead , she smiles and leans in. " Miss Swan. You said it yourself" you are not a mother". I have no idea what you are, but I do know that Henry needs stability and discipline and someone responsibilities. He needs the exact opposite of you, he needs his mother".
She can see a flicker of doubt in those hazel eyes, but there is more anger. " He also needs someone who just listens to him instead of immediately puts him into therapy!".
" I can see that my apology was a waste of time and effort. Please let yourself out, I am going to get my son?".
" Get Henry?".
"Yes, miss Swan. I did not intend to spend this much time talking to you , so I am late with making dinner".
She tries to march away from this woman that makes her blood boil and misses the days where she could control people more effectively, but is halted when a hand grabs her bicep. She gives the hand on her arm an incredulous look, then glares at the woman it belongs to.
" Wait. I know that we don't exactly agree, but we both want him to be happy, right".
" Miss Swan, you have wasted quite enough of- ".
" Wouldn't it be better if we worked together? ".
She finally releases her grip on Regina's arm. " I am not planning to stay. I just want to know he is happy and then I will leave".
" You keep changing the story, dear. First it is 'none of your business' and you will drive back to whatever place you crawled out from. Then you will only stay for a week in that shabby inn. And now this".
She presses even closer . " What is it going to be next?".
She pulls back a little. " This is exactly why you are bad for Henry. What if you form a bond with my son and then suddenly decide it is time to leave? ".
"I wouldn't do that to him".
" I do not wish you to stay, miss Swan, I think you are a bad role model for Henry. You encourage him to skip school, enforces his belief that I am evil and stimulates his rebellious behaviour'.
" I am –".
" But Henry wants you here. I have no idea what he sees in you that makes him think – " she normally would hide the pain in her voice, but it seems that such emotions spook miss Swan. " you are fit to be his mother, but he does. He doesn't believe you will leave, that you will break his heart. Or fail in any other way"
" The last thing I want is to hurt him"
" Which is why you should leave before you encourage his notions even more , before he gets too attached to you".
" And you don't think me leaving now will hurt him"
" He will be far more hurt if you would leave after pretending to believe in him".
" Or he might stop believing himself after I have stayed for a while and nothing happens".
Or all my hard work might be destroyed. " You will still be in his life – even though you have no rights whatsoever- and you will make my son pull away even more"
" Or he might actually be grateful. You do realize that anything you've done since I came here only strengthens his belief? If you had not gone after me the way you h-"
" I really am not interested in being lectured, miss Swan, and especially not by the woman that encourages the worst of my son's behaviour".
" I am just saying that actually being friendly to me might change Henry's perspective of you".
That is nothing I haven't though off yet, you idiot. I just wonder whether Henry will ever see me as anything but a villain with his overstepping birthmother here " Or it might just make it easier for you to take him from me".
What Regina is quickly starting to think off as the bane of her existence rolls her eyes. "Whatever. If you are ever done being paranoid, you know where to find me".
And Emma Swan does something unusual for her, she leaves. Regina opens the door for her, not trusting the woman to leave without slamming her door, and closes it immediately. She feels tempted to take a detour to the kitchen for the headache she has after this, but instead walks upstairs to check on her son.
She pretends she didn't notice him hiding something and quickly grabbing his math book to pull it on his lap. She walks towards him and nearly crumbles at the look he sends her way -so very hostile- but miraculously manages to hide that.
" You still need to eat sweetheart".
" Don't care" he pretends to focus on his math book.
She sits down next to him. "I am sorry I did not come to get you earlier, Henry, but miss Swan was here".
That gets his attention. I would like to rip her throat out. Her son is hostile and almost cold around her, but he immediately perks up at even the name of that damned woman.
"Is she still here?" he asks excitedly, already starting to walk towards the door.
" No, she just left'.
He turns around, glares at her. "what did you do?".
" I am worried about you spending time with her, Henry. What do we even know about her?".
" I know she isn't like you, that she isn't evil".
It is a wonder that Regina can keep her face from showing how much that hurts. " I am your mother Henry, I am just attempting to protect you"
She walks over to him, bends so she is at eye-level. She desperately wants to embrace him but she knows he won't allow it. " We know very little of miss Swan, she might be dangerous".
"You're just saying that because you want her gone".
"No, I am saying that because I am concerned of the woman's influence on you".
" You are not worried about anyone but yourself, that is all you care about" he accuses.
" I care about you, Henry".
"I am not dumb, I know you are lying" is all he says and – how has it come to this. How can my own son believe I don't love him?
"I am not lying. I reckon I care far more than this Swan woman".
" No, you don't. Evil people don't care".
She is already opening her mouth to ground him or – better yet, tell him to never see Emma Swan again- when she hesitates. She doesn't ever listen to people telling her – or warning her, in the sheriff's case- what she should do. But she isn't a fool and she has realized that whatever she has been doing until now, has only caused Henry to pull away more.
Perhaps she needs to change tactics. " I do care a great deal Henry, which is why I won't forbid you to see this .. woman".
That catches him off guard, at least. " You won't?".
" No. But there will be conditions. You will not see her without me present".
" That is unfair!".
"Henry, I have no idea who she is or even where she lives. She could endanger you or take you. If you insist on seeing her, it will be supervised".
She is already steeling her for another fight when he slowly nods. She is not naïve enough to think that it means he will just accept her demands – he is most likely already thinking of ways to work around it- but at least he is not hurling accusations at her.
" If you want to see her, you will talk to me first. I will then make the arrangements with miss Swan. There also will be no more running away or constantly disobeying me. If you run away again, I will assume miss Swan has something to do with it and you will not be allowed to see her anymore'.
He glares at her. " So you still want to keep my mom from me".
"that woman is not your mother, she is an intruder". Before he can protest, she adds " but if she is truly that important to you, I will tolerate her presence. For now".
She almost wants to take it all back, to call Graham and demand he arrests Emma Swan ( and preferably sends her to a prison far away from here) when Henry remains hostile. It is not like she had expected to be hugged in gratitude, but even this seems to not change her son's attitude.
She straightens. " We are going to have dinner. I am withholding the dessert as punishment for your behaviour".
"Can Emma come? ".
" I think it is better if we allow miss Swan some time to cool off"
"So you did say something! I knew it, I knew you would-".
" I said nothing that was not the truth. And I would advise you to actually use the manners I taught you or I might revaluate whether I want that woman spending time with you".
She sighs. " However, miss Swan can come to dinner another time. I will ask her tomorrow. As long as you stop the accusations Henry, they are extremely hurtful and untrue".
He doesn't say anything- probably so that wretched woman will be allowed to visit- but the look in his eyes manages to convey quite clearly what he usually would've used words for. She pretends it doesn't hurt so terribly, then automatically reaches for him and has to pretend even hard that him pulling away from her doesn't hurt even more.
" I will be downstairs, in the kitchen" he used to love helping her in the kitchen, no matter what she made (but especially when she made anything sweet). " Do you want to help, darling?".
He glances at whatever he has hidden for a moment. " I do actually have some things to finish.." there is a moment where she is hopeful, where she thinks allowing miss Swan to spend time with him might benefit her already when he says 'but'.
Then: "I might as well make sure you are not poisoning anything"
" Henry!" .
" It is your thing, isn't it? ". He almost seems regretful for a moment, but she has to blink furiously and the next second he just looks angry.
" You cannot keep talking to me this way, Henry".
"Or what? You will rip my heart out? ".
She bends down again, reaches for his hand "Henry, surely you cannot believe that I would ever hurt you"
He moves his hand out of the way, glares at her. " Yes, I do".
" well, you are wrong. I would never hurt you. And for that comment-".
He surges forward. "No! You just promised I would be allowed to see her".
" I am not going to reward you for being awful to me Henry. You can stay here or you can come into the kitchen to control whether I have 'poisoned' anything. But you will stay in your room after dinner- I will call Archie- and actually do homework. If you can behave , I could invite miss Swan to dinner on Monday".
" I am sorry okay- I just " she almost breaks, easily would have if he had hugged her and called her 'mom' again. But he does neither of his things and she suspects his apology is just so he can see that woman.
" There are consequences to our actions, Henry. And you need to learn that, I am afraid".
She is almost getting used to his glares, but the way his eyes are wet hurt. He stares at her for a moment, then angrily wipes at his eyes and runs out of the room. " No running, Henry! You could get hurt".
She calls doctor Hopper- who stutters and is awfully meek as always- then goes towards the kitchen, where Henry is leaning against the counter.
It would almost be like old times, working on dinner together. Except, Henry would have been bouncing with questions and excitement – all 'what is that, what do you put in this, where did you learn this'- while there is an icy wall of silence right now. She would have held his hand to show him how to stir something, now he won't even allow her near him.
The icy silence continues during dinner, but he cleans the table without her having to ask for it. He doesn't thank her though or even allow her to finish the question she was asking, just shrugging and going upstairs. She hears the door slam.
And then she is alone,
Again.
Henry is still sullen and angry, but he is no longer accusing her of everything from making him eat poisonous food ( it is celery dear) to ripping out the hearts of random townspeople, nor is he calling her evil. In fact, he is talking very little to her- apart from saying things like 'where are my shoes' or talking about that woman.
Regina is furious about how he has only known Emma Swan for days – and she has done little but destroyed town property and been a general thorn in Regina's side- and she has already been granted Henry's adoration and near-worship. While Regina has given him everything the past ten years and now has to be happy when he even says 'thank you'.
It is terribly unfair and it makes her loathe the sight of blonde hair, red leather and the safety hazard that is her car. The woman lingers in her town and everyone immediately seems to like her- even though she is rude and steps all over boundaries and is a criminal-, as evidenced by the updates she get from Sydney. That is also how she knows miss Swan is using her roommate to keep updated on what is going on with Henry. Apart from that, she does not insinuate herself in Regina's life.
It is two days later when the blonde decides to bother her again. She is at Granny's , reading the newspaper and waiting for her lunch to be brought to her table. Seconds after the door opens, she can hear the chair across from her being shoved backwards.
She slowly lowers the newspaper, then glares at the woman that has the audacity to sit down across from her without permission. " Miss Swan, is there any reason you are forcing your presence on me?".
" How is he?".
" If you are referring to Henry, I am certain your neophyte secret agent has already told you everything you have no right to know".
" MM says she cannot ask too much, because that would be inappropriate. She keeps talking about the teacher-student relationship and boundaries".
Regina is annoyed that Snow has actually managed to do something semi-right. " It is wholly inappropriate to interrogate my son, yes".
" So how is he?".
" Well, he is finally not running away anymore- likely because there no longer is a teenage delinquent around to encourage him".
"Lady, I am seriously getting sick of your ins- how do you even know this shit?".
" Could you perhaps talk without using an abundance of swear words? ".
"How do you know?".
Regina sips her coffee, enjoying watching the woman's fury rise. She finally puts the cup down. " I am the mayor. I take my town's security very seriously- ".
" So what, you send people to spy on me? That is abuse of power".
Regina laughs. "I am not doing anything illegal , miss Swan. And if I were, you still have no leg to stand on. You chose a closed adoption, so you have no legal rights to Henry. And yet you still come here and stalk a young boy whose mental state is already fragile".
" I did not stalk Henry- " miss Swan rolls her eyes. "it was more like he was stalking me , honestly. But really I am not here to fight with you".
"A bit of friendly advice dear, people generally try to not bother and annoy people if they do not wish to fight with them".
" Are you trying to pick a fight with me? Because you really are not following your own advice".
Regina reminds herself that it is not good for her mayoral image to punch the woman across from her. " Miss Swan, you were the one who sat down uninvited ".
"Fine, you have got a point. Just tell me whether Henry is okay and I will leave".
Regina sighs. " Miss Swan- " she is just about to list every single reason that she is not going to be blackmailed, especially not by someone who cannot even choose proper clothes for themselves when Ruby arrives with her lunch.
She stares at the both of them , then smiles brightly at the bane of Regina's existence. " Em! Hey, how are ya doing?".
" Hey Ruby, I am fine. Just talking to the mayor for a bit".
" Yeah, I can see that" Ruby looks both shocked and amused.
She puts the kale salad in front of Regina. " There ya go, madam Mayor. Can I get you anything else? " .
Regina smiles, almost genuinely. " Thank you, dear. And no, I do not need anything else".
She gives Regina a big smile before focusing on the annoyance across from Regina. " Is there anything you want, Ems?".
"Actually miss Lucas, that is not necessary. Miss Swan was just leaving".
" Actually I wasn't" She turns to Ruby, smiling as she rattles off an order. " A grilled cheese, fries, a donut and hot chocolate with cinnamon".
Ruby glances uncertainly at Regina. " Ehm- ".
Regina is already opening her mouth, ready to rebuke the blonde nuisance and teach her about manners when she remembers her son's constant questions – when is Emma coming, can I see her tomorrow- and reasons she needs to talk with her anyways. " Oh never mind, just let her stay" . She rolls her eyes. " she is probably going to ignore my wishes regardless of how clear I am about not wanting her here. Might as well save time".
Ruby stares for a moment, a very long moment. If Regina actually cared about her, she would probably check for a pulse. She finally shakes herself like a dog and gives that same easy smile. " Sure thing, ladies. It is coming up".
Then she leans towards E- miss Swan and whispers something that makes the woman laugh. Regina is even more annoyed when she realizes Emma Swan's laugh is rather pleasant. If I still had magic, I could make her laugh sound like a dying hyena. She smirks at the image, which is when Ruby slowly pulls back and saunters away.
" Is there any reason you are smirking like that?".
Regina regrettably lets go of the rather pleasant images – all the ways magic could have been used to humiliate this woman- and focus on miss Swan again. "I couldn't help but note the familiarity between you and miss Lucas. You seem to have you gotten.. close during your stay at her grandmother's inn".
The swan woman gives a tiny smile. To other people than Regina, it might be a bit terrifying. " What are you insinuating here?".
" Surely you are not stupid enough that you have to ask".
Swan leans back, crossing her arms. Regina has to hide a smirk – hit a nerve, didn't I? . " Why would you assume that?".
Regina slowly rakes her eyes over the woman's body. She has to admit- her body is one of the few likable qualities Emma Swan has to offer. She returns her eyes to hazel ones. " You do have a certain air about you".
" A certain- that's bullshit. And I am not in this town to do anything like that".
" I just noticed , dear, no need to get defensive".
" I just want to know m- Henry is okay".
" He is fine".
The woman scoffs. " You are lying. Try again".
Regina arches an eyebrow. " I assure you that I am not lying".
" Still lying. You are starting to make me rethink my decision to keep my distance, madam mayor".
" I can still have you arrested , miss Swan"
"You won't".
" I have warned you already not to underestimate me".
" I am not. I just know you already would have if you planned to".
The awful woman leans in a little. " Do you know what I think? I think that you do love your kid. I think you are just awful at social interactions. But maybe you finally understand that Henry will only get pissed at you if you drive me away, so you are hoping he will change his behaviour if you kind of ignore my existence instead of seeing it as an insult to you".
" And once again, you are pretending to be a certified psychologist" Regina herself is surprised that her voice is less venomous than it should be.
" I am not. It is just pretty important for a bailbondperson to understand people. If you know what drives them , how they think, it gets easier to catch them".
Despite herself, Regina is a little interested. This woman is nothing. She is worse than nothing, with her atrocious manners and meddling personality. She also the first person in ages to actually dare to disagree with Regina, which she should find annoying and infuriating and wrong ( and yes she does, but she finds it also refreshing and thrilling). " You did mention that your job consists of finding people" Regina remembers
" It does. Why do you have such a distasteful look at the idea"
Just thinking of a couple of idiots and their 'I will always find you' catchphrase. " I was remembering something unpleasant. So you chase after people that ran away?"
" Well, yeah essentially. I put forward part of the money people need to be freed before their trail. If they run away, I chase after them to get my money back"
" That sounds dangerous".
" I haven't gotten hurt very often, but it sometimes happens yes" Regina quickly takes a bite from her salad to give her hands something to do when the woman smiles at her – a smile she would call Cha , she would call absolutely nothing. Apart from obnoxious, possibly.
"There was this one women who was tiny with a sweet smile . So I expected it to be really easy " she grins. If Regina believe the woman able of this, she would think it to be in a self-deprecating way. " Man, was I wrong. Turned out she had a black belt, so as soon as I tried to take her with me, I found myself with my ass on the ground and a foot in my stomach".
" So you actually have a habit of underestimating people".
" Well, I learned not to assume things after that. That thing to say about tiny people being terrifying? It is kind of true. That woman had the nastiest expression I've ever seen, really".
Regina cannot hold back a small chuckle at the expression of slight terror that is on Swan's face as she remembers the encounter.
" I am not surprised that you find other people's pain amusing " Swan says, but she does not sound angry or judgemental. She sounds more like they're old friends who are just teasing each other.
" I am sure it was only beneficial to have your ego damaged a little".
" Maybe. It definitely taught me to watch out for tiny women ".
" Have you often been beaten by women like that, then?".
" You are just eating this up, aren't you? I can almost feel your sadistic enjoyment".
" I am just making the best of a bad situation".
" It isn't that bad, we are actually being pleasant. Anyways, I have told you an embarrassing story, now it is your turn".
Regina arches an eyebrow. " I did not ask for that story, miss Swan. Why should I offer one in return?".
" Because I might have more stories like that and I just know you really want to hear them".
" I do not".
" Another lie. You lie a lot, don't you?".
Regina scowls. "I am not lying. I have no hidden desire to hear about your life, miss Swan".
" Lie. So what do you want to know? "
" I would like to know who Henry's father is" Regina normally tries to think before speaking. This time she just asks the question she has had ever since the woman was in front of her house. She feels a weird sensation in her stomach as the woman in front of her turns hostile again suddenly.
" He was an asshole. Next question".
" Are you certain he doesn't know or do I have to worry about another person stealing my son from me?".
"Believe me, he won't want anything to do with Henry" the swan woman has given Regina excellent ammunition to hurt her; she looks furious in way only helpless and desperately hurt people do. Her laugh isn't like before, it is almost ugly. " Too much fucking responsibility".
She would probably only need a couple of well-chosen words to make miss Swan stomp out of the dinner in furious , painful embarrassment. Instead, Regina opens her mouth and says in an almost hesitant voice " I used to ride horses. This one time I was attempting to saddle my horse when it pushed back, I stumbled and- I fell into the manure".
Why did I just tell her that. That is private. Worse, it is one of the memories that have Daniel in it: he had been the one to insist that she needed to know how to do certain things herself. (after all, when we are married, we won't have servants for everything either. We will have to do things without help). And memories with Daniel in it are more than private, they are sacred.
She wants to tear apart this odd woman, that just waltzes into her town, wins her son's affection and makes Regina do things like offering private information. Then she actually looks up, scolding words on her tongue and she finds that desire a lot less strong.
Emma Swan is smiling at her, not laughing at her, but smiling almost gratefully. Regina wants to bristle at that smile. Wants to slap it off her face.
" You were a horse girl? ".
" I suppose. I did enjoy riding ".
A mouth corner twitches. " Apart from the moments that you fell into shit".
She tries, really she does, but for some reason her muscles don't listen so she answers that smile. " Apart from unfortunate accidents, yes".
The moment is shattered by Ruby's cheerful voice and the sound the plates make as they are placed on the table. " Hey Em, sorry that it took some time , we- " she stops her babbling as she finally realizes that both women were leaning forward a little and smiling at each other.
Her eyes sparkle mischievously. "Am I interrupting something?".
Regina bristles. " Absolutely not".
E- miss Swan doesn't even react to Ruby's suggestive tone. " Thank you, Ruby" she grins. "My stomach is really grateful".
Ruby laughs. " I am sure". She throws miss Swan one of her usual looks. " I am honestly surprised that you look like that when you shovel greasy food into your mouth like you are trying to set a world record".
Emma shrugs and swallows two mouthfuls of grilled cheese. Regina watches in sick fascination. I am going to have to teach her table manners before I actually invite her to dinner. " I work out a lot. And I have a fast metabolism, so.. ".
"Well, enjoy your food" she leans forward again – for god's sake- and mutters something. This time, she is shoved playfully and admonished " It is not like that at all, that is crazy. Now let me eat in peace before someone hears you".
Regina narrows her eyes in suspicion because miss Swan glances her way as she says 'someone'. As soon as Ruby has sauntered away - throwing a far too suggestive 'enjoy your … food, madam mayor' her way – she turns her focus on the woman gobbling food.
" Did miss Lucas say anything interesting".
" No, she just likes saying stupid stuff. She likes watching people's reactions".
Regina grimaces. " Chew, then swallow, then talk. Honestly, your table manners are worse than my ten-year-old, rebellious son's".
" Maybe you shouldn't ask me stuff while I am eating".
"Fine" Regina pointedly picks up what little is left of her salad. She watches the swan woman- who holds a slight resemblance to some sort of animal, perhaps a wolf, as she sinks her teeth into the grilled cheese and almost immediately swallows. Soon, the grilled cheese is gone and her attention is now on her fries.
After she has eaten about half of them, she nudges the plate towards the middle of the table. "Take some".
" I prefer to stay healthy, thank you ".
" How bad can a couple of fries be?".
" Depends on the salt , oil and such that is used to prepare them".
" Yeah whatever. Come on, I could feel you stare on them".
" That was because you eat like you are a starving animal, dear".
She stares with incredulity at the fry that is wriggled in front of her. " You totally want this".
" I do not".
" Lie. Are you going to pretend like you will immediately get a heart attack or gain ten pounds or are you going to actually eat something that does not taste like cardboard?".
Regina sighs. For what must be the fifth time, she questions her own sanity as she accepts the fry.
Somehow, this escalates until it is Regina sharing a plate with the swan woman and actually arguing who deserves the last fry- I have had fewer than you. Yeah, but I ordered them- until Regina naturally wins and gets to eat the last one.
She is still enjoying her victory when she glances at the clock and realizes she should already have been working again. She cannot remember if she has ever taken a too long lunch break in all the time she has been mayor.
"Did I just piss you off again?" miss Swan sounds both amused and exasperated somehow when Regina throws some money on the table and stands.
" I was on my lunch break, dear".
" Ah got it" she smiles before frowning. " I still don't know how Henry is doing though. You were mostly insulting me and not really offering any information".
Regina grabs her coat and tugs it on. " Ask him yourself. You are invited for dinner tonight" She gives Emma a quick once-over. " I expect you to wear better clothing and have better manners then".
She grabs a napkin, then wipes at Emma's face that has crumbles and cheese . She only really notes what she is doing ( Henry spent most of his time flinging food or at least managing to get everywhere apart from his mouth) when Emma stares at her with this 'what the Hell' look. She quickly drops her hand and clears her throat.
" 7 O'clock, miss Swan. Don't be late".
And she rushes out of the door before miss Swan can actually gather her wits (or whatever semblance of it).
The weeks pass quickly and each one has Regina in different states of emotional turmoil. She can see little signs of her curse unravelling – people suddenly talking about events they should've forgotten or looks thrown at her that are filled with less intimidation and more loathing- which leaves her furious and -although she would never admit it- frightened. During the moments that Henry is still angry and rejecting her, she thinks about burying her hand in miss Swan's pretty hair and throwing her in a cell herself. When Henry actually is encouraged by Emma to " treat Regina like a human being and not some cartoon villain" she feels more inclined to squeeze her shoulder or smile at her ( or that one time, when she had had a little bit too much cider, lick and kiss the cider off her lips) As Graham spends most of his time at doctor Hopper's couch – most think he has lost his mind, but Regina knows. It is only when he snaps and attacks her (and is punched by a furious Emma for it) that she feels a little safer. He is locked up- and Emma Swan somehow is appointed Sheriff ( Henry beams and Regina can feel her lips turn up despite herself) , town life changes in ways she thought she would never be okay with.
Sometimes she isn't – especially not when Emma confides in her when 'Mary Margaret' suddenly starts getting 'wacko dreams about hitting men with rocks' – and sometimes she is- Emma and she somehow forge a friendship after a lot of bickering and near-escalations and accusations. Even Henry changes- she pretends she doesn't notice his talks with Emma, that she doesn't know he still believes- because even if his belief seems strong, he treats her different now ( the first time he called her mom again, in this offhand way like it wasn't what she would have killed for all over again, she dropped a plate and nearly burst into tears).
Sometimes, she has to fight her impulses. She still has Graham's heart in her vault, still has Sydney following her around ( sometimes. Mostly, he is too terrified of Emma to really stalk her the way he did before) and other people in town that she could use to make sure her curse is protected. In the beginning, she sometimes does- telling Sydney to print an article " on that woman's delusions, perhaps write she has spent time in the psych ward " or holding Graham's heart to make him forget for a little while before the memories return in dreams- but then Emma somehow becomes this person that matters somehow and Henry has moments that he just absentmindedly calls her mom or smiles at her.
Or she confides into Emma that " I have hurt people for a long time and now I don't know how to stop" which leads to Emma telling her she has "done some fucked-up shit Regina and I managed to turn my life around". And that somehow makes it easier ( she still runs to her vault and searches for ways to keep the curse intact, convinced she will lose them both, knowing there are no ways – that perhaps not even Rumplestiltskin knows a way)
She doesn't know when exactly it happens. Emma might have been there for six months , maybe a little less time, maybe a little more. It is a cold night (the weather, just another sign of her curse breaking) and she has invited Emma – in her own way, which basically consists of "I will not be accused of second degree murder simply because you are idiotic enough to go outside in this weather- to stay. She expects there to be ridiculous stories and perhaps a little too much drinking and gentle barbs.
She does not expect her fucking world to be lifted up and crashed, ruined, destroyed.
They have actually shared stories from their pasts before- even painful ones, like details from Emma's time in foster care or what growing up with Cora Mills as a mother was like. They have learned to open up -without Regina getting furious ( she has never dealt well with remembering pain) or Emma running away- and tell each other things they would not soon tell anyone else.
This night – it goes further than that. Regina doesn't know how it happens, but suddenly there is a teary-eyed Emma Swan that sounds so furious( almost dark. And pained) as she admits " I get the kid, really. It used to be all I thought about. Why did they give me up? I thought it was just me. I thought I wasn't good enough. I kept being sent back, so that had to be it. And eventually, I didn't care anymore. They dumped me at the side of a road like I was fucking trash".
(Regina almost grabs Emma and tells her, actually has to bite her lip not to tell her about that night and how Emma's father almost died in order to get her away from a curse. How there were tears on both their faces and Snow had never looked so defeated and miserable before)
Later, when Emma has fallen asleep and might not even remember, it all Regina can think about. She tosses and turns and finally falls asleep only to have nightmares that have all to do with Emma. Until this moment, she could pretend that she had not doubted anything as Emma felt torn apart about Graham (she had actually become friends with him) or Henry was almost sick with worry as Mary Margaret had to stop teaching for a few weeks because of the dreams.
I cannot hurt them like this anymore. It is too painful .
So that has her creeping towards her son's room in the early hours of the morning, leaning against the door as she watches him for a moment, gently closed it behind her and sits down on the bed.
" Henry " she hardly notes her voice trembling. Perhaps Henry does: he wakes easier than usually.
" M-mom? Wha- whas wrong? " he mumbles sleepily and even now, she is so very glad he still calls her 'mom'. She tries to not dwell on the fact it might be the last time.
He rubs his eyes, then gasps and points at her eyes. "You are crying, why are you- ".
" Henry- " a sob catches in her throat and she needs several moments to collect herself.
" Mom, what is going on? Do I need to get Emma?".
She grabs his arm as he starts to stand. " No, this is something between you and me".
He moves back on the back after a short hesitation. " Okay".
She takes a shuddering breath. " I just- I cannot continue like this anymore. I have to- even if it destroys me, I have to be truthful before it is already happening and you won't believe me if I told you I didn't know how".
" Okay.. mom is this about- " he doesn't speak the words, but she knows.
She manages a tearful laugh. " Yes my smart, smart boy. It is about the curse".
She forces herself to look at him as she takes one shuddering breath and tells him. " It is real. Everything in that wretched book of yours is".
She presses her hand to her stomach, though it helps little. "I am the queen".