Regina sucked in a deep breath and due to her previous crying, she also sniffled loudly while she stood in front of the bathroom mirror. She swiped under her eyes and then patted at the wet spots she missed with a small portion of toilet paper. She tried to avoid looking anywhere else but at herself when she looked in the mirror and she'd been successful for the last minute or two. But she still felt the blonde's presence the entire time and it didn't help when Emma shifted where she sat on the edge of the tub behind her.

Regina's eyes flicked to the younger woman, her expression unamused, and she tossed the damp toilet paper into the tiny trash can under the sink.

"Stare any harder and you won't need magic to burn a hole through the back of my head," she flatly said.

"Sorry. I, uh… Are you gonna be okay?"

"See a woman cry once and suddenly she needs her hand held every time she moves," she retorted.

"That's not what I'm doing," Emma stated.

"Then what are you doing?"

"Giving you space without leaving you alone to do…whatever it is you might do if you're by yourself."

"You make it sound like I'll hurt myself."

"Maybe. You've been suicidal a few times before and it didn't seem like such a hard choice for you."

Regina scoffed and rolled her eyes before she turned to face Emma and leaned back against the sink.

"Those times were different," she insisted, her voice like gravel.

Emma shrugged and said, "Not to me. Which is why I'm gonna be here for you every step of the way."

"Whether I like it or not?"

"You got it." Emma finally stood up. The blonde sighed as she took a step toward her and Regina looked the younger woman up and down.

"You ready to go back out there," Emma asked.

She took a deep breath and stared at Emma for a moment before she nodded. A second later, the two of them went to the door. Emma opened it and let her walk back into the room. Immediately, she noticed Lily.

The other woman looked much more comfortable on the bed she occupied than Regina remembered from before she'd slipped into the bathroom. It didn't really both her, but she seemed to be more aware and more caring that a third party was a witness to what had and what could happen during the trip. She was vulnerable and she didn't even like how much of her break down Emma had seen, and the two of them were supposed to be friends. Lily was a complete stranger to her.

"Think you can manage not to kick in your sleep," Emma asked as she moved past her and moved toward the bed Lily seemed to have claimed for herself.

"When have you ever known me to kick," Lily asked and moved over to free up a side of the bed.

"It wasn't much of a kick, but I do remember a time when your foot was wedged between my legs."

"You never said anything," Lily grinned. "Must have felt too good for you to complain."

Regina moved over to the vacated bed and looked up in time to catch Emma roll her eyes as she fluffed a pillow and pulled back the covers.

"It really wasn't," Emma insisted. "It was awkward and I was being nice. I woke up first and didn't see the point in bringing it up."

Regina started to tug on the sheets of her bed and adjusted the position of the two pillows, her thoughts focused on the same thing her eyes were: Emma. She watched the blonde bicker with Maleficent's daughter and it looked nice. It looked familiar to both of them even though they hadn't seen each other in a while and Regina kind of missed being that way with Emma. The bickering was only so much fun, but the ease of it and the comfort it gave her to do something she was used to was certainly something she craved after her awful night.

"If you two aren't going to behave maybe you shouldn't share a bed," Regina explained with an arched brow.

"Behave how," Emma asked and Regina noticed the blonde's lips twitch into a faint and brief smirk.

"You'll either argue all night or get up to...other things while I'm trying to sleep. I don't need that and I won't tolerate taking care of two children while we're here. I have Henry for that."

"Then what are you suggesting," Lily asked. "Because there's no way I'm sleeping with you."

Regina scrunched up her nose with disgust and replied, "The feeling's mutual. I'm too close to your mother to cuddle up with her offspring."

Lily snorted as she burst into laughter. "Like you aren't 'close' with Emma's mom?"

"That is not the same," she quickly and firmly stated.

"Oh, really? How is it not?"

"I've never had sex with her mother," she motioned toward Emma and evilly grinned at Lily as the girl went completely pale and slack-jawed in an instant.

"I knew you two had a thing," Emma exclaimed and pointed a finger at her. A moment later she didn't look so happy to know that bit of information.

"Never tell me," Lily demanded before she settled in under the covers, seemingly almost ready for bed.

"So, uh, sleeping arrangements," Emma brought them all back to the previous line of conversation. "Are you suggesting that I share with you?"

Regina tried not to audibly gulp. After the way Emma had held her in the bathroom, it was sufficiently awkward for her to ask the blonde to spend the night by her side. It wasn't all that strange and friends did that sort of thing plenty of times, but it wasn't something she and Emma did. They'd never been closer than they had been over the course of their rushed trip. They might have fallen asleep together on or near the couch once or twice back in Storybrooke, but they'd been sitting up and exhausted themselves to the point where it just happened. It wasn't planned. The most they'd touched was a head placed on the other's shoulder and that was it.

She cleared her throat and hid behind a mask of agitation and inconvenience before she finally answered the blonde's question. "I figure it's better than the alternative."

"What, me sleeping with Lily?"

"You wouldn't be sleeping," Lily smugly, confidently, said with her eyes closed and her lips curled into a wide smirk. "I'd rock the Savior's world."

"You get as horny as your mother when something pretty walks by," Regina cut in and watched instantly as Lily's eyes opened and her smirk disappeared.

Lily glared at her while Emma laughed. As soon as Lily closed her eyes again and then turned on her side so her back was to both her and Emma—who had walked over toward Regina not too long ago—the blonde's laughter faded and realization dawned on the woman's features.

"Wait, did you just call me pretty," Emma asked her.

"Clearly your old friend is attracted to you so I guess there's at least someone other than your putrid pirate that agrees with that assessment."

A look of hurt passed over Emma's features for a fleeting moment, but the younger woman just as quickly seemed to get over it.

"Okay, which side of the bed do you want," Emma asked as she started toward the side closest to the nightstand that separated the two beds.

"I think you've already sorted that out," she said and gestured at the bed because they were each on their own sides of the bed.

"Oh, I just...assumed because you were over there messing with the sheets and stuff."

"You assumed correctly. Besides, even if I didn't like this side of the bed I'd like to keep my distance from her," she pointed at Lily.

"You know I'm still awake and can hear you, right," Lily grumbled.

Emma shook her head and turned off the bedside lamp. She pulled back the covers and sat down on the edge of the bed before she removed her boots.

"I hope you plan to keep your pants on," she said as she sat down on her side of the bed and peeled off her jacket before she tossed her shoes aside.

Emma crinkled her brow and asked, "Why wouldn't I?"

"The first morning you spent in Storybrooke you answered your door in a tank top and a pair of underwear."

"Oh, yeah, well, I didn't want my jeans to crease while I slept and I didn't have a change of clothes with me. Kind of like now."

"I will buy you an entirely new outfit tomorrow if you keep all of your clothes on," she tried to bargain with the blonde.

Emma lightly laughed and asked, "Do I make you nervous?"

"Don't be ridiculous," she huffed and then eased onto her back.

Emma released a loud and heavy sigh before she wriggled around and made herself comfortable under the sheets.

"Goodnight, Regina."

Regina groaned. "Goodnight, Miss Swan."

Emma felt calmer and more relaxed, more peaceful than she had in a long time. She felt warmth on her face as well as where it radiated around her beneath the sheets. Her hand was pressed against something soft and smooth and her head was cushioned by something soft and comforting. She wasn't yet awake or aware of anything but how good she felt. That feeling alone made her hate even the idea of getting up or opening her eyes, but her mind and body were fully rested so she started to wake up naturally.

She blinked a few times as she slowly started to open her eyes, her vision still blurry from sleep. It took a moment before she was able to see clearly and the first thing she saw was the hotel room window, the curtains partially open as they allowed a moderate amount of sunlight to streak into the room. Then she realized there was something settled at the bottom of her line of sight. A chest that steadily rose and fell and her head moved in time with it.

She lifted her head and turned to see Regina, eyes closed and unbothered by their position and Emma's recent movements. The brunette looked so serene in her sleep, at least that morning she did, and Emma wanted to smile. She almost did, but it was odd to think that Regina was partially rolled onto her side—though still mostly on her back—with an arm slipped beneath Emma's neck and shoulders. Her fingers twitched and curled and suddenly, her nails raked over warm, bare skin.

Regina contentedly hummed in response to the contact and Emma's breath hitched. Somehow during sleep, her hand had slipped under Regina's dress. Her knuckles brushed against the hem of it, but her hand was placed almost possessively over one of the brunette's thighs. Prior to waking up, her head had been on Regina's chest between her shoulder and a perfectly soft, round breast. One hand was on Regina's thigh while the other was tucked between both of their bodies and pressed against the side of one of the other woman's breasts. They were too close. Emma's hands didn't belong anywhere on Regina. She had to move, had to get out of bed and away from the brunette before anyone else woke up and caught them like that.

"You do more than care about her," she heard a groggy voice say from behind her. "You love her."

Emma tensed a little at the words and while she wanted to deny them, she really didn't want to have that conversation. She didn't want to have it with Lily and she didn't want to say a damn thing about Regina, good or bad, especially when the brunette could easily overhear if she started to stir and most likely would try not to let on that she was awake.

"I never thought I'd see the day," Lily laughed a little, her voice still deep and rough as she still worked on fully waking up herself. "You used to look at me like that a couple of times, y'know."

"Yeah, I remember," she quietly said. "I was young and you were the first friend I ever had. You were my only friend."

"Until the Evil Queen came along."

"She's not evil," she defended the sleeping woman.

"Maybe not anymore. But once upon a time..." Lily trailed off and didn't bother to finish that thought. "Is that why you wouldn't talk about her last night?"

She didn't answer. Instead, she stupidly remained in place on the bed with her body almost wrapped around Regina's.

"I hope you punch that guy at least once," Lily said after a moment. "For her."

Emma slowly started to smile and was thankful that Regina and Lily couldn't see it. She closed her eyes and completely forgot about wanting to remove herself from an awkward situation of Regina waking up to find them pressed together. She couldn't resist staying so, so close as she started to melt into the brunette all over again with a sigh and a slowly fading smile.

With her eyes closed and her body more relaxed as she remained close to Regina, Emma easily started to drift back to sleep. She was on the precipice of full unconsciousness when she felt Regina shift forward, toward her, and caused her hand to slide further up the other woman's thigh. Her fingers brushed over the top of the warm thigh to the back of it and a little higher up beneath Regina's dress. She was only faintly aware of the change, too relaxed to even care that the position was a little compromising.

Her nose was nuzzled in the crook of Regina's neck by the time the brunette had readjusted herself and she felt a nose, and quite possibly a mouth, lightly pressed to the top of her head. It wasn't until she heard a continuous knock on the hotel room door that she started to stir yet again. She was still out of it and definitely nowhere near prepared to answer, or even think about answering, the door. Fortunately, it seemed Lily was fine to handle it for her.

But it was her misfortune that morning when Lily opened the door and a gruff male voice Emma didn't immediately recognize in her sleepy haze started talking. Lily exchanged a few words with him, enough that the conversation lasted long enough for Emma to realize just who was at the door.

"Regina?"

Robin's voice was loud at that point and it almost sounded angry and heartbroken from what Emma could tell with her back still to the door and to the man who'd sounded much closer to them inside the room.

If Regina had been completely out of it before then she certainly was waking up to the sound of his voice and Emma moved with her as they both started to get up. Emma looked over her shoulder and saw Robin standing in the small space that existed between Lily's bed and theirs—closer to the foot of the beds than the head of it, which Emma was actually grateful for. Her eyes widened when she watched his gaze focus on the slightly questionable movement under the sheets between their bodies.

As Regina moved so did Emma's hand, which made it seem like things were happening just out of sight that weren't happening at all. Robin's eyes were tired and sad and he suddenly looked very ragged in Emma's opinion. She didn't care that he seemed so hurt to think things were happening between her and Regina. He'd chosen Zelena. Regina didn't need to, and shouldn't, wait around for him to decide he'd rather be with her. He missed his chance. What she did care about was that it seemed like Regina was hurt and vulnerable and easy to bed because of that.

"Robin," Regina groggily asked as she finally sat up and Emma's hand softly thumped on the mattress, no longer on the other woman's body at all. "What are you doing here? Is everything all right?"

"You- What- When did this- How," was all he could manage to ask.

Emma lifted her hand and made sure it was visible to both Robin and Regina before she then ran it through her hair. She sighed and gulped, not really nervous but definitely uncomfortable.

"What," Regina asked with a shake of her head. "I don't understand. What are you asking about?"

"You. And her," Robin replied as his eyes went from Regina to her.

"Wh- There is no me and her," Regina answered.

"Then why are you sharing a bed?"

"Uh, if you can share a bed with the woman that paraded around as your wife long enough to conceive I'm pretty sure Regina and I can sleep on the same mattress without being asked these stupid questions. It's none of your business," Emma crankily told him off.

Robin immediately looked to Regina for support and Emma rolled her eyes. He was such a child. Emma would never understand what Regina had ever and might still have seen in him.

"Emma," Regina gently warned.

She blew out a heavy sigh and glared at Robin for a moment before Lily tried to cut through the tension.

"I think I'm gonna grab some breakfast. Do you want anything," Lily asked as she looked at both her and Regina.

"A bagel and some coffee," Emma said. "I don't care how you order the coffee as long as it's not bitter."

Lily nodded and looked at Regina expectantly.

"Just a criossant with whatever jelly they might have. And I'll have a coffee too, but I don't mind bitter."

"Got it. I'll be back soon," Lily said and then left her alone with Robin and Regina.

As soon as the door closed behind Lily, Regina threw off the covers and got out of bed. She walked around to where Robin stood, sympathy and a little confusion in her expressive gaze directed at the man that deserved absolutely no answers.

"Is there a reason you came here so early," Regina carefully asked and then looked around the room. "Where's Roland?"

"At the apartment."

"With that crazy witch," Emma quickly asked, a little more angered by Robin's additional stupid actions.

"I've left him with her plenty of times before and she's never hurt him."

"Yeah, you left him with her when you thought she was Marian," Emma argued and shot out of bed before she swiftly got in his face. "When she was playing nice, playing house, so you could get her pregnant! All bets are now, wouldn't you think?"

"Not if she expects me to stay with her," Robin answered.

"I thought you made that pretty clear last night," Emma spoke in a low, menacing tone that made Robin's eyes flicker with a hint of surprise and fear.

"Emma, back off," Regina said and grabbed her arm.

Regina pulled her a little roughly so that she took a couple of steps away from Robin. Emma gritted her teeth and tried not to take her anger out on Regina. It was Robin that pissed her off and Regina had been through enough in the last forty-eight hours. She didn't need Emma lashing out at her for someone else's behavior.

Emma looked from Robin to Regina and noted the pleading look in brown eyes, eyes that Robin couldn't see as the brunette kept her back to him for the moment. The woman's point was quickly and easily communicated and while Emma wasn't happy about it, she respected Regina's decision to be left alone with Robin. Obviously Robin wasn't going to say anything he had intended to when he'd decided to visit their room when Emma was busy grilling him about and judging him for the previous night.

"I'm gonna take a shower," she grumbled before she walked around Regina and grudgingly made herself scarce.

For a moment, Emma considered just sitting in the bathroom while she tried to overhear the conversation beyond the closed bathroom door. She heard muffled voices, both Regina's and Robin's, from her place just behind the door. Her hand still rested on it from when she'd pushed it shut and she wasn't in the mood for a shower when all she really wanted to do was punch Robin in the face as Lily had suggested.

Of course, it had been a long trip and eventually she'd need a shower. There were two other people she was sharing that bathroom with until they checked out and went back to Storybrooke and she already said she'd shower so it seemed pointless to sit in there and wait for Robin to leave. The timing was as good as it was going to get and if she didn't turn on the water soon, one or both of the people on the other side of the door would start to wonder what she was doing, if she was listening.

Mind made up, Emma peeled off her shirt and unclasped her bra. Both fell to the floor in seconds just before she tugged her jeans and panties down her legs. She then pulled back the curtain and turned the shower on. She stood and waited outside of the shower entirely naked while she occasionally checked the water temperature to make sure it was warm enough to stand under. A short time passed before she was satisfied and then stepped into the shower. She turned her back to the shower head and stepped backward until water soaked her hair and streamed down her face, her eyes closed as she felt the warm water cover her body.

She pushed her wet hair out of her face and tipped her head back to feel more water rush out of the shower head and onto her face. She didn't bother with soap or shampoo yet. She just stood under the relaxing, warm water as it eased her physical tension. She stepped away from the water a moment later just to give herself a little room to breathe and she hesitated for a few seconds before she bent over and finally grabbed the shampoo the hotel supplied.

She began to lather her darkened blonde locks and gently massaged her scalp a little as she did. She felt herself decompress before she stepped back under the spray of water and started to rinse out her hair. Soon she moved on to running the hotel soap over her slick skin from her hips up to her breasts and down again. Just as she finished gliding the soap around her legs, she set the soap down and suddenly, the curtain was yanked wide open.

Emma jumped and instinctively crossed her arms over her chest, unsure as to who had interrupted her shower, even though her bare ass was what was on display. Her back was to the door and the person that was suddenly in the bathroom with her, which she quickly realized was her fault because she forgot to lock the door during her earlier indecision of whether or not to shower.

"What the hell," she shouted over the running water as she felt someone step into the shower behind her. "Occupied!"

"Shut up," she heard a very familiar voice—distinctively not Robin—curtly demand.

"Seriously? Did you learn this from your ex-girlfriend or did she learn this from you? Because now both of you have walked in on me in the shower within the past few days."

Emma started to look over her shoulder so she could see the other woman, but she was quickly stopped at Regina's insistence again.

"Don't turn around. Just step aside for a second."

"Regina—" Emma started to say and attempted to turn more fully that time before she was cut off.

"Don't turn around! Close your eyes if it helps."

Regina gently guided Emma almost flat against the wall as she stepped underneath the water. The brunette hastily went about a typical shower routine, as far as Emma could tell with her breasts pushed against the cool tiled wall and her eyes only able to catch flashes of Regina's face, hair, and back as she moved from the middle of the shower to the corners where Emma had left the soap and shampoo.

"Is Robin still here," Emma finally thought to ask after a few minutes.

"Yes. He's on the phone with my sister," Regina answered. "Everyone needs to get ready quickly. As soon as Lily comes back with the food, we're going back to Storybrooke."

"Why the rush?"

"Mal just called me. Apparently, Gold used the last thief left in town to steal back Belle's heart. I just lost my leverage and I'm sure he's more than pissed now that he's finally back in control. He can do much worse than try to use Zelena against me."

"So...you're in here with me because...?"

"I told you we need to be quick."

"You could have just not taken a shower until we got back," she argued.

"Not an option," Regina insisted and finally moved out from under the shower head. "Rinse off and get out."

"Uh, what if I still need to wash my hair?"

"Do you?"

"No."

"Rinse off and get out," Regina more sternly commanded, frustrated and unamused.

"Can I turn around yet?"

She thought she heard Regina sigh, but it was hard to tell with the shower on. She didn't have time to think about what she thought she heard, however, because in an instant she was forcefully turned around and pushed against the wall again. Her shoulder blades bumped into the tile and for a moment she was breathless. Regina was naked and standing right in front of her. Regina had been the one to turn her around and allow her a chance to stare at uncovered assets that Emma was definitely tempted to check out, but she disciplined herself to keep her eyes on Regina's face. It was not an easy task.

Regina moved closer and their noses nearly touched with the lack of space left between them. Chocolate colored eyes looked a little darker and displayed more than what looked like desire in their intense gaze. Regina's eyes flicked from Emma's gaze to her pink lips and she slowly and subtly cocked her head to the side for just a moment.

The air was electrically charged around them and Emma swore that magic was in the air even though magic didn't, couldn't, exist outside of Storybrooke. But maybe it could, because it certainly felt possible in that moment.

Emma's breath hitched and she wondered when—not if—Regina would kiss her. A hand slid up her stomach from her hip to just below her right breast while Regina's other hand pressed against the tile next to the blonde's body. She felt her muscles reflexively ripple under Regina's touch and she leaned closer to the other woman's lips just a little bit more.

Regina's eyes returned to Emma's before she said, "Thank you."

The spell was broken. Emma's brow furrowed as she stared at Regina with confusion. "For what?"

"Last night," Regina answered.

Emma stared at her, saw slicked back dark hair and no makeup. Regina looked as raw as the emotions in her eyes and Emma melted on the spot.

"Um, you're welcome?"

"You sound unsure about that."

"It's just- You're not going to, like, reward me for caring about you. Are you? Is that what this is?"

Regina pulled her head back, but kept her hands in place before she replied, "Are you looking for a reward?"

"No," Emma honestly answered. "You don't owe me for being there for you. I'll always be here, whenever you need me. I'll never expect anything in return."

The corners of Regina's mouth curled into a quick and barely there smile before the brunette closed the remaining distance between them. Emma's breath caught in her throat just as she felt Regina's lips touch hers. The kiss was chaste even though Regina lingered for a long moment. Slowly, as Regina ended the kiss, fingers danced their way up her stomach before a palm flattened against her just above her navel and under her breast.

That was when her own eyes were drawn to Regina's hand and she lost all self-control to avoid staring at Regina's body. She couldn't even remember to breathe, unable to look away—not that she wanted to. Regina Mills stood naked in front of her, wet from the shower with a hand deliciously close to her breast.

"Maybe you won't expect it, but that doesn't mean I won't show you my gratitude," Regina purred before her fingers closed in on her nipple and gave a gentle and arousing squeeze.

"Regina…" she trailed off as she looked over Regina's body in its entirety before she finally met her gaze again.

Regina's free hand trailed down her arm. It was gentle and barely there. It gave Emma goosebumps and left a tingling sensation behind every inch traveled by the brunette's fingers. She slid her arms around Regina and held the woman close.

There was a moan. She wasn't sure who it came from. She was only aware of the vibration against her skin and her mouth, the feeling stronger than the sound of it as the shower continued to run. Suddenly, she lightly bit Regina's bottom lip and the woman moved her hand from Emma's stomach to her hair in response.

Faintly, beyond the water and the curtains and the blood pounding in her ears at the thrill of kissing Regina, there was loud knocking on the bathroom door.

"Regina! Regina?"

Robin. His voice boomed past the closed door and the sound of the shower. It took both women out of the moment in an instant.

They pulled apart and Regna looked almost devastated as she stared at Emma.

It was then that it hit Emma. She had kissed Regina. She had kissed Regina less than a day after the woman had cried on her shoulder and confessed a few things Emma was sure Regina wouldn't have shared with her under any other circumstances. She had kissed Henry's other mother. Whatever happened between them would affect him. Oh, she'd messed up big time.

Before Emma could say or do anything, like apologize or try to talk about it with the brunette, Regina jumped out of the shower and rushed around until she was dried off and fully clothed. She finished rinsing off as Regina put on the last of her clothes and scrambled for the door.

Emma felt worse than before about the kiss, but mostly because she felt rejected. Regina had panicked when she pulled away, panicked as soon as Robin had her attention. She knew Regina wouldn't go back to Robin because the guy made it clear who he would stick by, but it still stung. It stung that Regina had fled like she couldn't get away from Emma fast enough.

As soon as she was soap-free, Emma turned off the water and dried off. She was much slower to redress than Regina and wasn't at all in a hurry to walk out of the bathroom to whatever scene awaited her. It was with reluctance that she opened the door and made her way back to reality and it was then that she started to worry, What if Regina actually did still want to try and fix things with Robin?

Emma drove back to town with Lily while Regina drove the black SUV they rented for Robin, Roland, and Zelena. Emma was sure the trip was awkward for Regina, but she was also just as sure that being in the Bug with her after their kiss would have been more if not equally tense. Maybe being with Robin and Zelena was the lesser of two evils. Or maybe it was just because Regina was the only one out of the three of them that knew how to drive a car. That was definitely the case and probably the only reason Regina had subjected herself to whatever torment awaited her with the long drive back to Storybrooke with the others.

While Regina's reaction still hurt her, Emma was determined to talk to the brunette about their shower as soon as things were a little more under control back home. She needed to know why it had happened and she also needed to make it very clear that Regina was the one who'd intruded on her shower time. She was the one that initiated the nakedness that was probably a huge reason behind how the kiss even happened. The more Emma thought about it, the quicker she then realized she'd felt rejected for kissing Regina when in reality Regina had been the one to make the first move. That sounded petty in her head as much as she knew it would sound petty out loud too, but she was certain that Regina had started it all.

She really needed to stop thinking about it so much. It had happened and she needed to move on, or at least not dwell on the whys and the how until she confronted Regina about it. Because all Emma could do until they talked was speculate and speculation wasn't an answer. Speculation was a bunch of theories and guesses and most of it probably wasn't anywhere near a correct assumption.

Emma broke out of her thoughts and glanced over at Lily who had been extremely quiet. When she realized her old friend wasn't in the greatest mood and actually looked a little nervous, it gave her a nice distraction. Just what she needed.

"Hey. You okay?"

Lily crossed her arms and made herself small in the passenger's seat as she avoided eye contact. She looked out through the windshield at the road ahead for a short while before she turned her head to look out through her own window, the emotion in her eyes no longer visible in her new position.

"I'll be fine."

"What is it," Emma asked.

"Nothing."

"It's not nothing. Come on. We're...on the way to being friends again, right? You can talk to me."

"It's... I don't want to talk about it."

"You can't just hide from your feelings."

"I'm not hiding. I'm just not sharing."

"You've been doing a lot of that lately. Isn't it time to let someone in on whatever's going on in your head?"

Lily humorlessly laughed. "No one should know what's going on in there."

"Uh, hello. Who do you think you're talking to? I've got a lot of problems, too. And you'd understand about half of them. Maybe more."

"Then why don't you share?"

"I'll show you mine if you show me yours," she offered.

"I don't think your girlfriend would like that."

Emma heavily sighed and said, "She's not my girlfriend and I told you—"

"Yeah, yeah. You won't talk about her. You see how that works? You don't want to talk, we don't talk. So why is it that you can't leave me alone when I say I don't want to talk?"

"Because the thing with Regina is...it's complicated. And your thing is—"

"Complicated," Lily replied before Emma even finished her sentence. "You have no idea what I'm thinking so you don't know how complicated it is."

"More complicated than my thing?"

"I still don't really know your thing since all you do is shut down when I mention her, but I imagine it's about the same level. It's just...a different kind of complicated."

Emma nodded and didn't say anything for a few minutes. Lily wasn't much of a conversationalist so she didn't say anything either and silence soon surrounded them. When it was too quiet for Emma and her thoughts started to return to Regina and her well-sculpted and gorgeously olive skin, she decided a new line of questioning might keep her occupied, especially if it got her somewhere with Lily.

"So, are you excited to finally meet your mom?"

Lily didn't respond. Emma waited for a while, but the woman never spoke up or even cleared her throat like she was trying to think of a good enough answer to at least appease Emma and still kind of dodge the subject.

"I can't say I know her well enough to make it a little easier for you to know even a little bit about what you're getting into with her, but she's pretty. She's blonde and has these piercing blue eyes. And she turns into a dragon."

"I know that part," Lily grumbled.

"Right. The wall with all the secrets of Storybrooke and my family tree on it," Emma replied. "Well, she seems to like both guys and girls because she gave birth to you and she's been with Regina."

"Don't remind me," Lily groaned and Emma laughed before she grimaced as it dawned on her that while it might have been a hot image, it was also a sad one because Emma knew without a doubt that she really liked Regina and didn't want to imagine her with anyone else.

"Got it," Emma said and continued. "Anyway, she seems open minded. It's the kind of thing you and I dreamed of, remember?"

"Yeah," Lily quietly said, a little withdrawn.

Emma decided to leave it at that and hoped things didn't get too intense between Maleficent and Lily when they returned. At least not as long as they had an audience.

When neither one of them had anything more to say, or just refused to say anything else, Emma took out her phone and opened up her music. She set it to shuffle and set it down between her and Lily while the first song, a random selection while she focused more on driving, played through the small speaker. She let it play through the limited music library she kept on it, which left them with a few hours of ambient sounds and nothing else to entertain them as they continued on toward Storybrooke.

She took a deep, slightly gasped, breath as she drove over the town line. She felt her body tingle and blood boil with the return of her magic. She had access to it again and it felt fantastic. She'd been gone for only a day and a half and yet, she'd missed her magic. It was a part of her, even though she hadn't known or felt it for many, many years, she had gotten used to it the more she practiced and she realized how much she hated being without it. It was like a limb, only maybe it was more like her heart or soul. It was significant and she found herself desperately lacking without it.

It was a relief to have her magic back, but that was far from how she felt about being on the other side of the town line again. It was just something she had to deal with and she'd need to take Regina's earlier advice to "get over it" because there was nowhere else to go. She didn't really want to be anywhere else either. She just didn't want to have to deal with everything that happened just because she was related to a bunch of people that everyone else thought were only stories. The one good thing about being back was Henry. She would get to see him again. He always found a way to brighten her day even just the tiniest bit in all the chaos. He was just so damn adamant and hopeful and sometimes it went a little too far and pushed Emma to her limit, but most of the time it was still cute. He was still so young and innocent. If he wasn't usually being kidnapped, playing the role of the little prince in distress, he'd probably be gallant white knight. One day, she thought. He'd grow into a title like that.

Except she didn't want him to embrace some title. She wanted him to be himself, free of any labels. She knew too well what being labeled did to a person, did to her. And Regina too. The Savior. The Evil Queen. None of it really meant anything. It wasn't who they were. It was the way they acted and what they did, but underneath the names they were just Emma and Regina. But not Emma and Regina, she had to remind herself. They weren't anything more than friends and with the way Regina bolted after their kiss, she wasn't even sure she could call them that anymore.

All her anxiety and doubts were momentarily forgotten when she drove down Main Street and saw a small group gathered on the sidewalk. She recognized all four of the people waiting outside of the library and she was weighed down with the understanding that she was officially back. She didn't even have time to go to the apartment or make herself a second cup of coffee or just to sit still for a moment before her parents were expectantly standing next to Maleficent and Hook as the two cars approached.

Emma pulled up to the curb and parked. She cut off her engine and was thankful that Lily wasn't in a rush either. She wanted a few seconds to herself to just breathe and keep her anger to a minimum. If she let herself, her magic would flare up in response to her rising rage level at the sight of Snow and David alone. She still couldn't get over what they'd done, to her and to Lily and all the lies that followed. She wasn't ready to forgive them and she really just wanted space from them, which was difficult because she lived with them.

She took a calming breath and slowly released it as she turned to Lily.

"Ready," she asked.

Lily looked at the people outside and then looked over at her for a moment before she answered, "Not as ready as I wish I was."

"You and me both," she said with a smile.

They both got out of the car at the same time and Lily stiffly stood by the car for a moment. Emma walked around the back of the car and looked at Regina for a moment as she helped Roland out of the SUV before she came up to Lily's side and wrapped an arm around her. She guided her old friend toward Maleficent and smiled at the blonde as she walked with Lily.

"Maleficent, meet Lily," she introduced them and patted Lily's arm a couple of times then gave it a gentle squeeze before she let go. She took a step back and finally turned to look at her parents and Hook. She hadn't fully acknowledged them except from inside the car and once she was face to face with all of them, she really didn't have the heart to greet them all after her trip. She wasn't even gone that long. She shouldn't have missed them anyway and they shouldn't have missed her either. It wasn't like anything was going to happen to her.

Hook stepped up and wrapped his arms around her. She smiled as they hugged, but it was a little forced. Like being the Savior, she felt like she was playing a part. All the time she spent with Regina felt natural and as normal as her non-normal life could get. She'd felt it before she went to New York and it seemed nothing had changed in the short time she had spent away from Storybrooke. Even after the kiss.

"Glad you made it back," Hook said.

"Mhmm," she hummed her agreement, but couldn't manage any more than that.

She hugged him back with less force, her arms a little limp against his back. Her hands pressed against his leather jacket, but only enough for him to feel their presence. It wasn't like it had been when her hands roamed Regina's body a few hours prior. She didn't cling to him for dear life. She didn't even hold him like he meant anything to her. She even kept space between their lower halves.

With Regina, she'd felt breasts and legs and pelvic bones touch. On top of that, it was the first time they'd kissed and Emma was more than okay with them flush against each other. She suspected that even if they hadn't been in the shower, hadn't been naked, they still would have—or at least she would have, unsure about what Regina would have done—eliminated the same kind of space between them they had that morning. Her hands fell back to her sides and it took Hook a moment before he let go and moved back. She still wasn't glad to be back, she was just glad the hug was over.

When Snow stepped up to hug her, a big smile on her face like all the other times they'd greeted each other after an absence, Emma frowned and pulled away before the other woman could touch her. David flashed her a sad smile and seemed to nod in understanding. He didn't bother to move or reach out to her, even before she looked at him to see what he would do. He was rooted in place almost like he knew she wouldn't be as warm with them as they wanted to be with her.

She cleared her throat and looked away, but that only meant that she looked at Regina instead. The brunette looked worse than she had before she ran out of the bathroom. She didn't look as shocked, but she definitely looked unhappy. She was also convinced that Regina's mood had nothing to do with whatever she might have endured on the car ride back. Robin looked a little tense and Zelena didn't seem as smug, but she wasn't completely unsatisfied either and Roland was just a boy. He seemed content. Maybe a little confused and not exactly bubbling with joy and smiles, but he wasn't upset.

Emma looked over and watched Maleficent and Lily have a tearful union, mother and daughter finally in the same place at the same time. Lily, although she couldn't see for herself, most likely wasn't crying, but she could tell that Maleficent was. The blue-eyed woman smiled and tightly hugged Lily as tears slid down her face. Her eyes were watery when she actually bothered to open them and Emma saw a softer side to Maleficent that she could see Regina falling for in a past life.

"Up," she heard a small voice say and Emma directed her attention to Roland as he tugged on Robin's pants and stared up at the man.

Regina looked at Robin and watched him lift Roland onto his hip with a smile. She smiled at Roland first and then at Robin, but Emma could tell it was forced. When she looked at Robin as well she noted that he seemed less sure of how genuine Regina's expression actually was. Robin wasn't much of a soulmate in Emma's opinion. He clearly didn't know her very well despite all the time they'd spent together. And after having been…intimate as well. Emma cringed at the thought.

"R'gina," Roland beamed at the brunette before he extended an arm and leaned toward her.

Regina's eyes went back to Roland and even if she didn't have any consent from Robin to do so, she lifted Roland up and held him against her hip.

Roland smiled at her and leaned in. He pressed his forehead to her temple and wrapped his tiny arms around her neck. He squirmed in her arms for a moment and Regina lifted him a little higher. When he seemed comfortable, he moved a hand from the back of Regina's neck to the tips of her silky smooth hair. He twirled it around his little fingers and released it before he grabbed at it again. He was at least five years old as far as Emma could tell, but his fascination with Regina's hair resembled a much younger child's desire to play with whatever dangling or loose thing in their grasp. It was odd, but cute. Emma enjoyed the display, but it also made her a little uncomfortable to know the woman had a bond with Roland. It meant that she'd probably have more involvement with Robin for the kid's sake and Emma didn't like the thought of that for several reasons.

Henry finally made himself known and pushed past her parents with a big smile and a lot of relief on his face. He ran into her and she breathed out her happiness to see him again as she held him tightly in a hug similar to how Maleficent hugged Lily. For a moment, everything seemed fine again.

"You did it," he said into her shirt before he pulled back to look at her, his smile still wide across his face.

"Well, I didn't do it alone," she said and the two of them looked at Regina whose hands were still full with Roland, but Henry slammed into her for a hug anyway.

Regina freed an arm from between her and Henry and wrapped it around him as she continued to hold Roland. Emma saw her struggle to hug him fully, but their embrace—one armed or more—was better than no hug at all. She was happy just to have him close again.

"I missed you," Regina said.

"It was only for a night."

"It was a long night."

At that, Regina looked up and locked eyes with her. She felt the tension between them rise, but more than that she felt eyes on them. More than one pair.

She looked over and saw both Zelena and Robin staring at them.

Much later, after everyone had been reunited outside of the library, Regina slapped the magic-restraining cuff on Zelena and set her up with a room at Granny's above the diner. What she really wanted to do was leave the woman to rot in the psych ward in the hospital basement, but the child she carried inside her didn't deserve to grow and be nurtured in captivity before birth. If she was religious, she would pray for that baby. He or she would have a loving father, but Zelena had conceived the child under false pretenses and only to spite her little sister.

She opened the room door for Zelena and shoved her in, just enough to be rough with the redhead yet not enough to hurt the baby. She heard Zelena laugh before the other woman turned around just barely inside the room, a smile that looked more like a grin on her face as Zelena looked at her.

"Show me how you really feel," Zelena almost purred, her tone filled with a certain cadence. She sounded so smug, like she'd won the fight, and maybe she had. She'd won Robin, but it was clear that Robin didn't love her. He probably couldn't after what she'd done to him, and to his wife. Plus, they still had to break the news to Roland about his mother. It wasn't fair. It wasn't anywhere near what Regina would have done even as the Evil Queen.

Her sister truly was wicked.

"Make no mistake, I'm showing you kindness I wouldn't if you weren't with child. But let me also make one thing perfectly clear: I will not hesitate to throw you into the mental ward if you dare try to hurt, trick, or plot against anyone in this town," she growled at Zelena.

Zelena scoffed and laughed in her face.

"Have I not done enough damage, Sis? I would have thought by now you'd have given up the fight. Tell me, is there more you have to lose?"

"It's of no concern to you. It never was, never should have been. Stay away from me and stay away from my family. Oh, and if you make things even worse and more complicated for Roland or Robin, I will end you."

Zelena's smirk was wiped clean off her face the instant the threat reached her ears.

"You would really do that? Not just to me, but to an innocent child? Your soulmate's child?"

"Test me and we'll find out," she sneered.

"All because you're mad that I now have what you've always wanted," Zelena shook her head. "A child."

"No," Regina replied with a small smirk of her own. "I already have a child. Henry. No, what I'm mad about is you trying to hurt me and using other people to do it. If you have a problem with me, you take it out on me. Go near the people I care about again and I promise what I do to you will make you wish I'd killed you."

With a cold, sharp Evil Queen glare, Regina kept her eyes set on Zelena even as she turned away from the door. She maintained the glare over her shoulder for a moment and then swiftly made her exit down the hall.

Note: Two steps forward, one step back with Emma and Regina. Thanks for all the comments/reviews, favorites, and follows so far. Keep it up! :)

Also, in case there are some of you that aren't aware but are interested, there's going to be a Sea Devil Week and it's coming up. Go to the seadevil-week blog on Tumblr for more information and if you want to suggest a theme, do it quickly. The last day for that is tomorrow. Theme voting starts on July 10.