A/N: After a couple reviews wondering why I stopped where I did, I went back and re-read what was posted and- short story: I goofed. I failed to note that I had used the same page breaks in this chapter that I use to indicate a new chapter in the original document, which led to a cut-off towards the end of this one. Sorry about the confusion.

"I don't want to."

Emma shrugged her shoulders, slinging the bag of fishing paraphernalia over the crook of her elbow. "That's too bad, 'cause I don't recall giving you a choice. You said you were staying, so that means you get to go fishing. Actually fishing, not that sit around watching me fish crap you pulled yesterday."

Regina adjusted her stance in response to the accusation. It wasn't like she had forced Emma down to the pond while she stayed behind and caught up on some inane football game or some such. No, she had contributed, in her own way, to the fishing experience; catch and release, as it turned out to be. "Fine, but I fail to see why we have to go with the insipid princess and her sullen bodyguard. Surely, they would be better suited to finding firewood for tonight."

"Belle already volunteered to go with Ruby for the firewood, and Aurora isn't insipid. She's...quirky, for lack of a better word." The blonde directed her gaze away from the myriad of gear Ruby had dumped at her feet and focused on Mulan and the Princess, who stood near their tent. "Besides, out of the four of us, she's the only one who managed to catch and keep her fish yesterday, so unless you want to eat another hotdog for dinner, you'll ease up on her."

For a long, intense minute, the former Queen seemed to consider the possibilities of eating the dubious meat Ruby had dubbed a hotdog, and then she deflated. Surely, the fish from the pond, as small as they were, would be better than the myriad of mechanically separated by-products she had all but been forced to ingest (or remain hungry until morning and risk the marshmallow-laden egg treat). "Position us on the opposite side of the pond, Emma, and I'll keep hold of my tongue around the Princess."

The blonde eyed her girlfriend warily. Really, she hadn't known it was that much trouble for the mayor to act like something other than a bitch around the newest citizens of her precious town. "I'm not walking around the pond to keep you away from Aurora. It's not like you couldn't try to be nice to her. You managed with my mom, didn't you?"

"That's not being nice, dear. I've never managed much more than tolerating your mother."

"It's progress, at least," Emma offered as she shoved a tackle box into her empty backpack. Mentally, she gauged the odds of strapping a bag to Regina's back to lighten her own load. Wasn't worth it, she reminded herself. The headache, that is, which would accompany the bitchiness spewing from Regina's pretty mouth as they hiked down to the pond; wasn't worth it. She could always bribe her to carry the fishing poles, though, and maybe the cooler that contained their lunch. "It should be easier, then, with Aurora. She never did anything to you, did she?"

Regina harrumphed in response, accepting the cooler and fishing poles with little protest, as she looked on with an air of indifference at the comical display Emma offered. The blonde squirmed and struggled under the weight of the many fishing supplies she had crammed into the oversized bag, but it was beyond the mayor to offer assistance that would be rejected. "You're positive you don't want to stay here?"

"And do what? Unless you just wanted to keep ignoring the question- what did Aurora do you?"

"You've always seemed keen on public displays of affection, unless I've managed to misinterpret your desire to sit well within my personal space at the diner."

Emma perked considerably, finding the weight of the pack reduced to nothing as she straightened her shoulders. The possibilities reeled through her mind- Regina, tent, alone- before she cast a wary eye over her lover. Little Miss Uptight, the same who informed their friends that the blonde kicked like a mule to avoid personal questions, wanted to delve into PDA's in the middle of the forest? Not likely. "Yeah? We could go back to the tent, leave Mulan and Aurora to catch dinner, and get down and-"

"Dirty? Quite," Regina finished flatly. "That tent does nothing to keep the dirt from our belongings. If I had known that it was useless at keeping the woods out of the sleeping area, I would have looked at other models."

And just like that, Emma deflated. With a huff, she started down the trail to the pond, heedless of her partner's intent to follow or remain at the campsite. If she wasn't going to get lucky on the trip, then so be it, but hell if she was going to spend the day sitting in a tent when she could be experiencing the great outdoors. "Mulan, you coming?"

The dark-haired woman nodded in response, collecting her fishing pole and falling into step with the sheriff. "Is Regina not coming then?"

"We had a minor disagreement about the nature of camping," the blonde replied hastily, uncaring that she sounded like a certain brunette mayor. "She thought it would be the equivalent of a weekend in a luxury hotel, and I thought it would be...well, camping."

"You left her behind?" Mulan inquired stiffly. What concern was it to her if the mayor chose to remain at the campsite?

"She'll follow if she really wants to, or, you know, I'll be back before lunch. I sort of forgot that she was holding the cooler when I walked off." Emma glanced back with a pitiful expression at the potato salad and sandwiches sacrificed for the greater good. She didn't bother looking for the displeased expression sure to be gracing Regina's features. "Anyway, weren't you bringing Aurora?"

"She stayed behind to prove that she does not need me. She believes that you find her to be quite taxing."

"We never said taxing," Emma offered. What little comfort that would be when the word choice used to describe the princess was whiny and annoying. Could she blame her? Not really. Being stuck in Cora's bubble of the Enchanted Forest when the curse was cast was bound to do funny things to people, even if said people happened to have taken a nap for twenty-eight years. "You do realize that we just left her with Regina, right? I love that woman to death, but even I'll admit that she has her moments when I just want to-"

Use your words, Emma, not your actions.

Archie's voice had somehow become embedded into her mind, reminding her to choose her words carefully and respect others as she would want them to respect her. But, and damn it all, he didn't have to deal with Regina's fussiness on a daily basis. Although, he also didn't have the distinct pleasure of being with Regina on a daily basis. Six of one; half dozen of the other. "The point is- Regina's not exactly known for playing well with others, and Aurora was left there like a sacrificial lamb."

Regina stared at Emma's form, growing smaller and smaller as the other woman left her behind. What on earth had just happened? They had been having a spat, albeit a very pleasant one, and then suddenly Emma had just up and walked away. Leaving her holding the metaphorical baby, or cooler in this case.

"Were you going down to the pond?" A soft voice from over her right shoulder called, the airy quality giving away its owner.

"Eventually," the mayor replied. "Did your bodyguard leave you behind? I would think she would have learned to take her duties seriously."

"I asked to be left behind," Aurora replied as authoritatively as she could manage when standing mere inches from a very powerful sorceress. "I thought I could spend some time alone before going down to the pond. It's been a long while since I've been alone."

"You spent twenty-eight years sleeping, dear. Wasn't that enough for you?" The cruel barb splintered off her tongue without regard for the princess or her feelings. It was a bad habit the cricket had yet to be able to break during their therapy sessions.

Aurora shook her head. "I wanted to be alone, not be asleep. You've never been under the sleeping curse, have you? It's a terrible thing; to be confronted by your regrets when time seems to have stood still. It's also terribly jarring to suddenly find yourself surrounded by people once you awaken."

Regina made to move off and head down the subtle sloping hill down the pond when the princess's words pulled her back.

"It also gives you the time to analyze every moment of your life and the people in it," the brunette continued. "You've been hurt before, haven't you? That's why you're reluctant to give Emma what she desires."

"What she desires?"

"You've given her the exterior, everything that the world sees; the mayor, the mother, the Evil Queen, but you've withheld something every time she's approached you when you're around the rest of us."

Regina's eyes widened at the accusations spewed from the other woman. "What do you-"

"Know about it? Everything. When I lost Phillip shortly after finding him again, I wanted nothing more than to be cursed again, but then I found Mulan. She took me under her wing and made me believe in love again. She forced me to understand that I did nothing to lead to Phillip's demise and he would want me to find someone new." Aurora paused and cocked her head to the side. "Mulan taught me to accept the love that was there, otherwise I might lose it pining for something long gone."

"Were you going down the pond?" Regina repeated the Princess's original question, desiring nothing more than an escape from the uncomfortable revelations the previously shy woman had touched upon.

Emma cursed herself for leaving the cooler in Regina's hands when she stalked away from the impending argument. It would have ended two ways- one of which would have been pleasant, and the other would have involved screaming, probably from her. And she was trying, dammit, to make Regina want her to stay; to not reject her like every single one of her foster parents had, but there were some days when a screaming match was called for.

Earlier today had probably been one of those days. Except she had walked away, again, to avoid confrontation. Even worse, she had left the beers snuck out of Mary Margaret's fridge in the cooler, which was back at the campsite with Regina.

Yeah, she probably should have put up some fight against the cold, manipulative mayor her girlfriend turned into when they were around others, if only for the sake of her lunch.

"Were you planning on catching fish that way, dear?"

The fishing rod nearly dropped into the pond, saved only by quick reflexes. "Thought you were staying at the campsite today," Emma returned sullenly, driving her focus back to the fishing at hand. It was only when she started to reel the line back in that she realized she had tossed it out without a hook or bait- some kind of fisherwoman she was.

"And I thought we were going fishing together until you walked off and left me with Aurora."

The blonde shrugged mirthlessly and offered, just as flatly, "You annoyed me. You've gone from joking around to ordering me around like I'm your servant or something this weekend, so I chose to walk away."

Regina plunked herself down into the dirt next to her partner without concern for the amount of dirt that would be caking her jeans later. With a soft chuckle, she tucked her arm around the younger woman's waist and drew her in closer. "You ran away, Emma, just like I've been doing. When you said that Aurora was quirky, I failed to understand that you meant she was insightful. We had a pleasant chat on the way down here and she managed to clue me into a couple of my own faults, as well as yours, that I had been more than willing to ignore."

"You and Aurora...you actually managed to talk without killing her or insulting her?"

"You make it sound as though I'm incapable of being polite, dear."

"Not incapable of it," Emma corrected, "but you usually choose not to."

The mayor nodded slowly, bumping her shoulder against Emma's as she contemplated her own behavior. Emma might have walked away, but she had given her the reason to do so, and in the process she had allowed herself to withdraw into bad habits. "Isn't that what you're here for? To keep me on the right path. As my savior, I would think you would take a keen interest into my behavior towards others."

"Your savior, huh?"

"Provided you stop walking away or excusing my own poor behavior," Regina said as she dropped a kiss into the golden hair atop Emma's head. "I don't want you to feel that you have to walk away instead of confronting me about how you feel, sweetheart. Whatever you do, whatever you say, you will always be my other, better half, and I need you to keep me from falling apart and taking the entire town with me."

"Well, then, as your savior," Emma began cheekily and with an impish smile reminiscent of their son. "I have to say that you need to curb the bitchiness and learn to help out. For starters, you're going to help me catch tonight's dinner and then-"

"I had other plans for this afternoon," the brunette interjected. She rose from her seated position and hovered over the sheriff for a brief moment, then the mayor turned and did something quite unexpected-

Emma stared, confused by the turn of events and the presence of a familiar dark blue t-shirt atop her head. "Naked plans?"

"Have you never been skinny dipping before?" Regina inquired as she appraised the drop-off into the pond a couple feet away. It was far enough from the fishing area to avoid stray hooks but close enough to observe the happenings on shore should Emma fail to follow her in. "There was a pond, much like this one, on the estate where I grew up. Some of my best memories as a child were from there, and later as a teenager I explored its depths with Daniel on occasion."

Her jeans were shucked off in good time, mere seconds before Regina stepped into the water on delicate feet, shivering lightly as her body adjusted to the temperature of the water.

As she carelessly flung the fishing pole aside and stripped down as best she could given the sight of a wet, nearly naked Regina in the water, Emma's last coherent thought before she darted into the pond was, "Maybe it wasn't a screaming kind of day."