hunnyfresh - Letters from War

Emma was real, here , and despite their unusual start, for some reason, Emma continued to see Regina in the best light despite being on the receiving end on a Mayor Mills altercation. Regina could count on one hand the number of people with whom she had ever opened herself up to, and she was pleased to add the blonde to the count. Frankly, she was a little nervous about the idea of meeting Emma. What if she was too aggressive? Too strict? - which reminded Regina too much of her mother. Or what if Emma was simply nothing like the letters she had written?

For once, Regina was glad that she had been proven wrong.

Emma was the young soldier looking for her place in the world. She was every bit the wanderer as her messages indicated, and though her excitement for Henry was obvious in her words, seeing Henry in Emma's lap and tickled mercilessly by the blonde was relieving that their connection was true, and it was more than a little endearing seeing smiles plastered on both Henry and Emma's faces.

A knock pulled her from her reveries, and already her annoyance returned to its former levels at the interruption. "What is it?" She snapped at the intruder, brushing her hair out of her face to glare.

She was met with an amused smirk by the object of her thoughts as Emma leaned against the doorway with a take out bag in her grasp. "They warned me about your temper," Emma said by way of greeting.

"One day in town and you're already fully integrated into Storybrooke's rumour mill. Let me guess, you were formerly inducted by Miss Lucas," Regina quipped.

"If you mean Ruby then yes, though I haven't quite received my official membership card and complimentary shirt," Emma responded just as quickly. She cast her eyes toward the bag and held it up. "I know you're busy all day, but I wanted to bring you lunch for letting me stay."

Regina smiled and stood from her desk to accept the blonde's offer. "Thank you. How are you enjoying the town?"

"You were right when you said it was small," Emma admitted, following Regina back to her desk where she took a seat opposite the brunette. "I take it the diner is where the cool kids hang out."

"I frequent it only ever so often, so that mustn't be the location," Regina said casually, opening the bag to find a chicken salad club inside.

Emma's mouth opened in an exaggerated mock. "Did you just make a joke? My intel told me you personally extracted your funny bone from your body."

Regina pressed a finger to her lips holding Emma to the secret before motioning to her lunch. "How did you know?"

"I remember you mentioning it."

They shared a small smile, but before Regina could take a bite, another knock sounded at her door to find her timid secretary and one of the executives she was scheduled to meet with for the afternoon.

"Duty calls?" Emma guessed, standing from her seat and making her exit.

With a silent glare to the people at her door, Regina sent them away before turning to Emma, her expression softening as she shrugged apologetically. "I'll see you at home."

Storybrooke was a small town through and through. Its resistance to integrate into modern society was evident by the inexistent fast food chains and superstores. The fact that the entire town could be walked through on a clear day reflected just how small and close everything truly was. But it was the gossip that secured Storybrooke and its residents its place as an official small town.

The blonde haired stranger that had unexpectedly drove into town a week prior had been the talk of the town. Sure, Storybrooke had its fair share of newcomers wandering through Main Street in an effort to refuel both their vehicles and their stomachs before making their way up the coast, but no one had ever stayed longer than a day or two before. What was more unnerving was that nobody had ever come to Storybrooke for the sole purpose of visiting Regina Mills.

That lone reason was why Emma Swan had been a topic of conversation for the week she had been in town. Citizens had spoken to the new arrival finding her just as normal as they, if not just a tad private, and Ruby had even attested that the blonde was evidently in a good mind set and was not blackmailed into Regina's presence. In fact, Regina had taken the rest of the week off from work and had pulled Henry from daycare, confirmed by the pre-school teacher, Ms. Tina Bell. Many residents swore they saw the trio out and about, taking walks around some of Storybrooke's bigger landmarks like the old chapel that had withstood a nasty rainstorm that brought down the surrounding trees around it, and according to the Sheriff himself, the Mills family and their guest had even gone on a nature hike up to Firefly Hill that overlooked the town.

But the news that spread like wildfire was when Regina, Henry, and Emma had returned from their hike, their uptight and stoic Mayor in fashionable boots and jeans no less, to have cherry pie at the diner. The kicker, as witnessed by numerous members of the community, was that Emma had made Regina laugh.

It was a sound the citizens of Storybrooke had never heard before in Regina's adult years. She shared quiet giggles and smiles with her son, but her privacy and her moments with Henry were sacred and shared with no one. Seeing the Mayor so carefree was something that needed to be seen to be believed, which was why the few lucky residents who had been invited to Henry's birthday, whether they were parents of the children with whom he went to daycare with or like the Lucases who were catering the event, were ecstatic to see the spectacle up close and personal that Saturday afternoon.

"Are those carrots and broccoli?" Emma asked coming into the kitchen once the living room had been sufficiently decorated with castle pin ups and stickers of princesses, knights, and dragons. "They're three."

"And they all have teeth that will rot should they overwhelm themselves with too many sweets. They all will receive their cookie once they get to the decorating station," Regina reasoned as she neatly arranged the assortment of veggies and dip on a platter before fixing the arrangements of apples, grapes, and strawberries on a different one.

"Woah there, one cookie. Don't go overboard with the junk," Emma teased, moving over to the drawer where she had bought a bag full of aluminium foil rolls.

"Are you planning on using the oven?" Regina asked, eyeing the tin foil and already moving to clear away the stove.

"It's for the little prince."

As if on cue, Henry darted into the kitchen, excited for his party. Emma and Regina had a tough time putting him to bed the night before, and both had been disturbed in the middle of the night when Henry had escaped from his room to see if it was time for his party yet. Emma had helped him make a cardboard sword and shield the night before while Regina was cooking dinner, and Emma had been on the unfortunate receiving end of being poked and prodded into waking up at two in the morning. The dining room table still had stubborn traces of glitter to show for their arts and crafts session. Regina had made a mental note to cover her tables with newspapers where the children would be designing their crowns and cookies.

"Are they here yet?" Henry jumped up and down, the sword he made hung through his belt loop swinging carelessly at his hip. "Are they here yet? Are they here yet?"

Emma laughed and caught Regina's eye, muttering, "I bet road trips are fun."

"You have no idea," Regina answered eyeing the hyperactive boy before kneeling down to his level and brushing her fingers through his already mussed hair. "They'll be here soon, dear."

"Come on, kid." Emma crouched down beside Regina and extended a roll of tin foil. "Let's make you a knight."

Regina was a perfectionist, anyone could attest to that. But after three years of planning the best birthday parties she could for her son, the stress and anxiety of any and everything going wrong always took hold of her in some form or another. First it was the clown incident at Henry's first birthday, then it was the food allergy at his second - but honestly, what child is allergic to guava? This year, however, the stress had yet to come, and Regina was waiting anxiously for it to make its presence known.