Disclaimer : I do not own any part of Once Upon a Time.

Prompt from OfficialNinja: Regina is principle of Henry's school. During school hours Emma is arrested for the watches she didn't steal, thanks to Neal, who runs away. Mary Margret takes Henry to Regina when Emma doesn't show to pick him up. Gina finds out she's been arrested. Later she somehow becomes foster parent for Emma until she gets out the next year. During that time they visit her in prison so Henry can see Emma. They fall in love in those moments. No magic AU.

Paint the World

- By MegannRosemary

Chapter 1

It was her favourite time of day.

Emma sat cross-legged in the T-W section of Children's Fiction, painstakingly taping the bindings with clear tape and re-shelving the aged paperbacks as well as the thicker covered pictures books that usually needed twice the tape.

Belle would come to volunteer at the circulation desk and she was free to take care of her books, for they were her books. All fifteen thousand three hundred and seventy one were hers, painstakingly restored ten years ago from under piles of dust, then catalogued and organized. They were her babies, and she loved to take the time with them.

Of course, a mother shouldn't play favourites, but she certainly did. The three hundred and twelve large rare book collection she housed here were her favourite children, she couldn't deny it. She loved the musky scent, the thick leather of the covers, the pages worn smooth and thin between her fingers from countless readers. Their weight in her hand was more than just the physical weight of the book, it was the weight of the memories the pages had seen in all the years it had been on this earth. Her most prized finds were locked behind glass, kept to the right temperature and moisture levels to preserve them, while others were on display for in-house reading.

Running the library was her job and she enjoyed it immensely, but rare books was her passion, her calling. She loved to hunt down the titles of rare and wonderful books to add to her collection, to barter for the right price and to bring them home.

She was good at it too.

When Neal left her in that trashy motel at seventeen, pregnant and alone, she never guessed that this would become her calling. She'd driven around the States until she was too pregnant to drive anymore and that's when she found herself in Storybrooke. After Henry had been born, she would find herself picking the lock and hiding in the library just to get away from it all. She started cleaning and by the time someone found out it was too late, they had no option but to offer her a job. With no education to speak of it was more than she could hope for, and so eighteen year old Emma Swan ran the library. She got her GED, took a few online courses and found herself in the business of searching for old books.

It was unexpected. It was perfect.

She was so lost in thoughts that she didn't even notice the men surrounding her until one of them gabbed her wrist as she was reaching once again for her tape.

She yelped.

He yanked it behind her back and tugged her to her feet, securing both hands behind her with handcuffs. That's when she saw half a dozen uniformed officers surrounding her and the low bookcases.

"Emma Swan you are under arrest..."

Her mind went numb, her vision blurred, muffled sounds met her ears but she couldn't make anything out. Her safe was open, why was it open? They better not steal the 1889 first edition The Wrong Box, it had taken her weeks to track that down.

She was in the back of the police car now, driving out of the city. "Henry" She managed to call out.

"Is that your partner? Where is he?"

She didn't say another word for the rest of the trip.

Later, alone in a stuffy room with a faceless, nameless, detective, she tried again, "Henry?"

"Is that your partner?"

She shook her head.

"Look lady, we got you for the watches already. It will make it a lot easier on us and you if you give up your partner; where is he?

She shook her head again, trying to clear it. "He's my son."

"Your son is your partner."

His face was still a blur, featureless from her shock.

"Henry is my son, he's all alone. I need to talk to him tell him where I am." Her voice cracked with unshed tears. She hadn't felt this helpless in a long time, and never as horrible as she felt now. Unable to help herself was one thing, but unable to take care of her Henry, that was the worst curse imaginable.

"Well, I need you to tell me where your partner is."

"I don't have a partner."

Was this a dream? She tugged on the handcuffs, hoping the pain would wake her up.

"Bullshit. Try again."

"Can I ask what I did?" This had to be a dream, nothing made sense.

"A hundred thousand dollars of stolen gold watches were found in your safe, tell me you had nothing to do with that." His words were less muffled now, coming across as dull razor blades over her skin.

Colour left her face and she shook, teetered perilously out of her chair, "I let him, I didn't know but I let him."

"Who?" Razor blade man slammed his hands on the table.

"Neal, Neal Cassidy showed up last week. Father to my son, he said he wanted to get to know his boy." Nausea rolled in her stomach, threatened to sill up and out. "He asked to keep something in my safe and I didn't see the harm. He took off last night and I don't know where he went... "

"If you're lying you'll be in a worse position for harbouring a known fugitive."

"I'm not."

"You better hope so."

"My son, please," She pleaded, swallowing past the bile that rose in her throat.

"You'll have to wait until morning."

She was unceremoniously dumped into a cell, not much bigger than the ones in Storybrooke's station.

She felt anxiety welling up, threatening to force the air out of her lungs and the fight out of her heart. With what fight she had left, she directed her thoughts to her son. For Henry, she needed to stay afloat. She began to catalogue all three hundred and twelve of her favourite children; title, author, year, price, an identifying feature, until her exhaustion brought her fitful sleep.

"Henry, you're still here." It was a inane statement as much as a question. Mary Margaret smoothed her full floral skirt and looked around in the rapidly falling darkness for a yellow Volkswagen.

The young boy sat on the steps just outside the doors, shrugging his shoulders in response, "Yeah, my Ma never showed up."

"Have you tried calling her?"

He held up his simple cell phone, designated for emergencies like these. The screen was blank. Dead. "I called her a bunch of times."

"Let's go use the phone in the office, " She guided him back into the dimly lit school, "Can you think of where she might be?"

"She's not at home or at the library and she's not picking up her cell phone."

The secretary had already gone home so the pike-haired brunette stepped behind the desk to try all three numbers again. "Henry, I'm sorry..." She shook her head when not one of the calls picked up.

"It's ok." He shrugged again, "I guess she's been weird ever since my dad came back to town."

"Do you know his number?"

"Yeah!" He brightened considerably and rattled it off.

Large doe-eyes looked up from the phone just moments later, "I'm sorry, but the line has been disconnected."

Two fat tears ran down his face, "He's totally gone then." He sniffled loudly and angrily wiped away any traces of tears. "Hey do you think I could sleep here tonight? There are bean bag chairs in the kindergarten room. That would be so awesome!"

"I'm afraid not." She paused as if bracing herself and knocked on the door behind her, where the words Principal Mills were engraved on the silver nameplate adorning the dark wood.

"What do you want?" She snapped at Mary Margret from bright red lips. Her eyes immediately softened when she saw Henry, "Oh hello, dear."

His teacher spoke timidly, her voice barely audible over the low music that came from inside the principal's office. "Henry's mother didn't manage to come pick him up today, do you think he could stay with you, just for this evening?"

"Have you tried calling?" She didn't bother to hide her less-than-impressed tone.

"Yes, all his mother's numbers as well as his father."

"Hmmm well," The regal woman glanced at the young student dubiously.

"It's just with the baby and all I'm afraid we have no room." Maura Margret admitted, lifting her hands in apology.

"Oh yes, poor little me with a mansion all to myself, I have more than enough room," She countered acerbically.

"I just know how much you..."

She snapped, "You have no right to act like you know me, not anymore."

"Really..." Henry sniffled again, the excitement leaving him, "It's ok, I can sleep in the kindergarten room if no one wants me."

Regina's mask melted away and she replied with a tight smile, "Oh dear, I'm sorry. I would be delighted to have you stay with me."

"No you don't, you're just saying that because I'm sad, you're mad at Mrs. Blanchard and my Mom is missing."

The dark brunette admittedly didn't have an answer to that statement, "Well then, why don't you come stay with me because neither one of us have a choice."

"Ok."

She gathered her purse and coat before locking up behind her.

"Well good day Mary Margaret," She nodded curtly, "Come along Henry."

The short drive back to the mansion on Mifflin street was quiet, nothing but the hum of the car mother and the click from the blinkers. They paused in the front hall, Regina urging him to take off his shoes and hang his school blazer in the closet.

"Why don't you start on your homework while I make us something to eat?"

"What about my Mom?"

"Oh...yes, of course." Her voice shook, rattled from the disruption in her routine. "I... I'll call the Sherriff Station, they should know something."

"Cool, thanks." He trailed after her to the kitchen, marching up to the fridge, "Got any juice?"

She hummed.

"Never mind, found some." He lifted the jug to his mouth and drank directly from it, before promptly beginning his math problems.

She tried reaching the station several times over the course of the evening, before she put the lasagna in the oven, before and after they ate, in the midst of cleaning up, but the line was always busy.

"Henry there's a guest room across from the bathroom upstairs, why don't you brush your teeth and get yourself ready for bed. I'll try the station again."

He hopped off the stool and ran off through the house like he belonged there.

"No running on the stairs," She called automatically after him, before immediately wishing she could take the words back. It wasn't her place.

It was her home, but no not her place. Not today, not like this.

After five tries she made it through, and soft Irish accent mumbled through the phone. "Mills if this isn't important, then please we're in the middle of something."

"I have Henry...Swan in my care, his mother Emma Swan is missing.

"Oh, hold on just a moment." Muffled voices in the background. "Regina, Emma was arrested this afternoon."

"What?"

"She was in the possession of stolen property."

"Oh my." She licked her lips, biding her time, "Where is she now?"

"They took her up to Bangor, we're here trying to locate her partner Neal Cassidy."

"And what about her son?"

"Look were kinda busy right now, as long as he's with you then I'm sure its fine."

"But..." She thought about the boy, trying so hard to be brave but he was still a child who needed his mother.

"We'll know more eventually ok."

Click. The line went dead.

"Bye."

Tomorrow, tomorrow she would and whip them into shape. it may be a small town but there must be some standards, especially when a child was left to fend for himself.

Henry.

She hurried upstairs to check on her charge, only to finding him sitting up against the pillows, sound asleep.

She tucked him in and turned out the light, pausing naturally to press a kiss to his forehead.

In that peaceful moment under pale blue night, she wished to hear laughter filling her house, to have toys scattered about, a fridge full of leftovers and lovers arms to hold her every night. She remembered her once upon a time hopes and dreams.

A/N: This prompt took me by surprise and a half - I read it and all of a sudden I have this full story mapped out in my head. Depending on how much people are interested in a longer, more in depth story, or a couple of chapters that fast-forward to a resolution. I'd love to hear what you all think :) Thanks for reading and thanks officialninja for the prompt!