Feels Like Home To Me

Chapter 1:

Emma smiled as she headed back home from a long day at the sheriff's station. There had been a buttload of work to do, and her plan about leaving early had been sabotaged thoroughly.

But now she was finally on her way home, and she smiled as she climbed into the yellow bug. She couldn't wait to come home. Going to work seemed trivial when she knew that Regina and Veronica were literally five minutes away.

Emma had no idea how she had managed to actually go to work during the six months Veronica had been in their life. The little girl was a constant source of joy, with her babbling and big smiles. The baby was very close to getting her first tooth, but she wasn't one bit grumpy because of it yet.

The blonde quickly drove the few minutes home to the mansion, and rubbed her hands as she exited the car and padded up the steps to the porch.

Regina was nowhere to be found when Emma came into the hall, but her voice soared down the stairs.

And Emma both silently cursed herself for missing almost an entire day with Veronica, but also kept her mouth shut and listened quietly. Because if Veronica was being tucked in for the night, it could only mean one thing. In a few seconds Regina would be singing her to sleep.

If there was one thing Emma really appreciated, it was listening to Regina singing their daughter to sleep. Regina herself found it embarrassing that Emma liked listening to it, and claimed that her voice sounded terrible. She was mad. Regina had a fantastic voice, and nothing she said would convince Emma otherwise.

The blonde waited for a few seconds, and strained her ears. And then…

"She's got a smile it seems to me
Reminds me of childhood memories
Where everything
Was as fresh as the bright blue sky
Now and then when I see her face
She takes me away to that special place
And if I'd stare too long
I'd probably break down and cry

Oh, oh, oh
Sweet child o' mine
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Sweet love of mine.."

Emma's smile grew wider. "Sweet child o' mine" seemed to be favorite at the moment, but it wasn't just that. Emma still remembered how "Roni" had turned the volume up and jammed along whenever she heard that song. She wouldn't have taken Regina for a Guns 'n Roses kinda girl, but sometimes looks could be deceiving, and Regina had admitted that it wasn't just "Roni" who liked that song.

"She's got eyes of the bluest skies
As if they thought of rain
I hate to look into those eyes
And see an ounce of pain
Her hair reminds me of a warm safe place
Where as a child I'd hide
And pray for the thunder
And the rain
To quietly pass me by

Oh, oh, oh
Sweet child o' mine
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Sweet love of mine

Oh, oh, oh, oh
Sweet child o' mine
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Sweet love of mine.."

The song slipped into nothing, and Emma quickly pulled away from the stairs. Regina probably already knew she was at home, and she knew that Emma listened in whenever she could, but she got so embarrassed if she actually caught Emma listening to her voice.

So Emma went into the living room where she found one of Regina's books still lying spine up on the coffee table. Still reading that true crime novel, it would seem. A bit heavy for Emma's taste, but Regina were totally consumed by it.

Emma was still studying the book when Regina emerged from the nursery. Dressed in a nightgown and a silk bathrobe. Someone had been planning an early night. But honestly, Emma couldn't blame her. Having a six-month-old baby really did something to your energy.

,,Hey," Emma grinned and leaned in to give Regina light kiss.

,,Hey yourself. We missed you at dinner," Regina frowned.

,,I know, there was a ton of work to do, and Lily was sick, so.."

,,Hmm. Your dinner is in the fridge."

,,Thanks."

And it was. Regina had put a tin-foil covered plate in the fridge. All Emma had to do, was reheat it in the oven.

,,Long day?" Regina asked as Emma got her food out of the oven (and cursed about her burned fingers).

,,Yeah, a bit of a long day," Emma nodded. ,,You?"

,,Not really. But you did miss out on Veronica's magnificent shrieking an hour ago."

,,Bummer," Emma grinned. ,,I'm sorry I couldn't be there for that."

,,Me, too." Regina said dead seriously.

,,So," Emma asked between mouthfuls of steaks. ,,Have you come up with a present yet?"

,,Miss Swan, they are your parents," Regina scowled. ,,It's up to you to think of something to give them for their anniversary."

,,How long have they been married anyway?" Emma thought out loud. She couldn't quite get the timelines to fit anymore.

,,Forty years?" Regina said in a tone that more than suggested that she had no idea either.

,,No way," Emma said and shook her head in disbelief. ,,That long, really?"

,,I think so. Forty years of being disgustingly in love and doe eyed. Sickly."

,,Be nice," Emma warned and pointed at Regina with her fork.

Regina rolled her eyes. ,,I'm just saying that it is possible to be in love without running around and being doe eyed all the time."

,,Mm, you're a living proof of that," Emma grinned. Regina was still pretty private and they didn't exactly flaunt their love in town.

,,Is that so? Would you rather have me declare my love for you at any given moment?"

,,Yes please," Emma grinned.

,,Fine. "I will always find you". Or whatever the hell it is your parents say to each other these days," Regina said dramatically and comedically solemnly.

Emma choked a little one her food as she bursted out laughing. ,,I'm totally telling my mom you said that."

,,Don't you dare," Regina warned sternly.

Emma continued to snigger throughout dinner. It always sounded so solemn and fairytale like whenever her parents said it, but when Regina said it, well, it sounded a tiny bit ridiculous to be honest. Or maybe it had sounded ridiculous all along, and Emma had just never considered it.

A thin wail erupted from the nursery. Veronica was awake.

Emma pushed her plate away and jumped to her feet.

,,I can take her," Regina offered, already half-way out of her own chair.

,,No, I got her," Emma quickly said and jogged upstairs and into the nursery.

Veronica was less than satisfied, and she flapped her hands at the sight of Emma.

,,Hi there, little bird. Are you a bit unhappy?" Emma said softly and lifted her daughter out of the crib and cradled her in her arms.

,,What can mommy do to make it better, hmm?" Emma kissed Veronica's forehead and the baby immediately cooed. So much for being in a bad mood.

,,You just wanted a bit of attention, didn't you, darling?" Emma said and brushed a baby curl out of Veronica's face. Her hair was turning into a lovely dark chestnut shade, and her eyes were much more green than blue. A perfect little mixture of Regina and Emma.

,,So beautiful," Emma murmured. She told Veronica that half a dozen times a day, and she would keep on doing it for the rest of her life.

,,See, you just needed your mom for a bit, Roni," Emma grinned.

,,Don't call her Roni!" Regina barked from downstairs, and Emma laughed. She had only heard Regina refer to Veronica as "Roni" a million times herself, so this was honestly a bit comical.

It took a while to soothe Veronica, and Emma ended up spending a good hour in the nursery. Not that the baby was fussy or crying much, she simply just didn't feel like going back to sleep.

So Emma sat with her in the old rocking chair for a good while, and she imagined how Regina had sat here with Henry when he was Veronica's age.

It was amazing, really. After Veronica had entered their life, Regina had been so happy. It was like the baby was the last, missing piece for her. The one that made her life complete.

And of course, Emma was happy too. So happy. Everything was going great.

And yet.. There was one tiny little detail. Nothing major.

Except..

She wanted to marry Regina.

She had realized that shockingly early on, and Emma knew that it was flaming madness to be that sure, that early on, but she couldn't help it. The thought of making it official, making everybody knows that they were ridiculously in love, so appealed to her.

Emma was, well, not a hundredth percent, but at least ninety-nine-point eight percent sure that Regina would say yes, so that wasn't the problem.

The problem was that she had no idea how to propose to Regina. Emma so wanted the moment to be perfect. Magical in every way. She wanted to do it the right way. Say the right words at the right time. And in a way, that showed Regina how much she loved her. Emma knew very little of Regina's first marriage, the brunette wasn't a fan of talking much about it, but she had told Emma that Cora had accepted the proposal on her behalf, and that still left Emma with a foul taste in her mouth. She didn't give two shits about "rules" and "policy" in the Enchanted Forest, it was fucking creepy that an old man had proposed to an eighteen-year-old Regina.

A soft "bahh" sound caught her attention, and she realized that Veronica had fallen asleep in her arms. Emma smiled as she gently laid the baby down in her crib once more. And this time, Veronica didn't protest in the slightest.

Emma tucked the little girl in and dropped a light goodnight kiss on her forehead, and then she quietly slipped out of the nursery.

Padding downstairs again, she found the kitchen and living room bathed in darkness. Regina had obviously chosen an early night.

Oh well. Staying up was no fun when Regina wasn't here. Emma spun around on her heel and headed upstairs again. It would probably be good for her to go to bed early for once.

The blonde quickly brushed her teeth and recovered her pajamas from the hamper basket. She could sleep in this one more night, she decided as she discarded of her clothes and slipped into the pajama instead.

Emma headed into the bedroom where she, to her surprise, found Regina sitting in the bed, very much awake.

,,Come here," Regina said softly and extended her hand out towards Emma.

Now there's an invitation I can't refuse. Emma took Regina's hand and let her pull her over to the bed.

Regina flashed Emma one of those damned, seductive "weak in the knees" smiles as she easily pushed the blonde down on the bed.

,,Wha-what are you doing?" Emma asked slightly surprised at this change of mood.

,,Expressing my love towards you," Regina said plainly and opened one of the buttons in the blonde's pajama shirt before looking up at Emma. ,,Unless you don't want to…?"

,,No, I do," Emma said, and then clarified a bit: ,,I just thought you wanted to have an early night."

,,I am having an early night, Em-ma," Regina drawled and popped another button open.

Oh. Ohh! That kind of early night. Now I get it. Please continue.

,,Can I… proceed?" Regina asked and read Emma's mind completely.

,,Yes. Please."

,,So polite," Regina chuckled as she made quick work of the rest of the buttons.

,,Shut up," Emma growled and kissed the brunette almost aggressively. Regina wasn't the only one who had moves.

And Regina didn't seem to mind Emma's eagerness one bit. And she certainly didn't need any time to catch her breath. She returned the kiss just as eagerly, and when Emma trailed her lips down her throat, it didn't take long before the brunette's nails ended up boring into the soft flesh on Emma's back.

,,I'm hurting you," she muttered and instantly flattened her hands against Emma's back.

,,No you're not," Emma said firmly. ,,When will you realize that I happen to like when you do that?"

Regina mumbled something about marking her, and Emma wasn't too dissatisfied with that remark.

You can mark me any time you want.

To Be Continued?