Shaya

Chapter 29 - Don't look back

Henry ran down the stairs, his plaid shirt lifting behind him like a coat. He jumped the last three stairs and rushed in the kitchen, ready to take his mother's scolding for his ruffled, still wet hair. He had a shower, but he didn't want to waste time drying his hair. It was warm outside, anyway. He turned the corner with his mouth open, ready to explain, but the kitchen was empty. He was about to try with the living room when he heard some voices coming from the outside. The boy walked out of home.
" But I can understand. " Emma was saying, staring at his mom, hugged by Rapunzel. His grandparents were kneeled on the ground, Charming hugging Snow White, and Ruby was just standing next to them with a weird expression on her face.
" What's happening?" the boy asked, a terrible feeling about what had happened, and what was about to happen.
" Hey, kid..." Emma called him. The boy turned to look at her. " It's all right don't worry. We just had an argument, but now it's okay. " she said, glaring at Mary Margaret.
Henry let his gaze wander over all of them. Regina reassuringly smiled at him.
" It was just the kind of talk that me and your grandmother usually have, sweetie. Nothing new." she smirked, stifling a laughter. Henry frowned, because she was lying and she wasn't at the same time, and he couldn't understand how it could be possible.
" Are you working today, Miss Blanchard?" Regina asked, interrupting his thoughts.
Mary Margaret weakly nodded.
" Well then, would you mind take Henry with you? The bus has already passed, and you're both almost late. It would be idiotic to go all of us at the school, as you're Henry's grandmother and his teacher. This qualifies you as a proper person to carry him to school, right? Oh, and... seen your actual... state of mind, I'd feel more secure if Mr Nolan could kindly accompany you both? "
Henry watched his grandparents stand up.
" Of course." David gloomily said, his eyes fixed on the ground.
Regina gave a satisfied smile. " Good." she coldly said " I'm sure to leave him in good hands." she added in a threatening tone. Henry glanced at Emma, who pressed her lips in a smile.
" Go take your backpack, kid." she whispered nodding towards the inside of the house, winking thn at him. Henry quickly smiled at her and, giving a last glance to his adoptive mother, ran inside the house.

Mary Margaret, David, Henry and Ruby disappeared behind the tall edge that enclosed Regina's garden.
Emma gazed at Regina. " Will this ever end?" she tiredly asked, sighing.
The former Mayor glared at her and went inside the house. At Rapunzel polite beckoning Emma followed the brunette. Shaya closed the door behind them, silently walking upstairs then.
" Regina..." the Savior followed the fleeing woman in the kitchen. When she entered it, she was already washing the cups. " Can you at least answer me?"
The brunette bored holes into her with her gaze. " You shouldn't ask it to me, Emma. "
The blonde sighed again, rolling her eyes. " Oh, really? Is it so? She started it, blame her?" she asked in exasperation, putting her hands on her hips.
Regina just shook her head, going on washing her cup as if she wanted to grind it.
" Regina!" Emma called her out opening her arms, her patience just a far memory. The brunette suddenly dropped the cup and turned to look at her, startling the Savior.
" Yes! Yes, exactly, she started it, blame her! Blame her for her lack of faith in you, Emma! Have you understood how idiotic was her reason to be here, this morning? She thought that we were having sex, and she ran here to save you from the evil lesbian queen and her girlfriend! She can't even accept the fact that Shaya actually loves me! She can't understand how someone can love me!" Regina's voice broke, and here dark eyes got wet. Emma felt something pinch her heart. The former Queen glanced down and started washing the cups again.
" Regina..." Emma softly said, crestfallen.
The brunette went on talking without looking at her. " She never knew me, but she should know you, she should trust you. What she did was an insult to you, Emma. "
The Savior frowned. " For this you got that angry?"
Regina glanced at her. " If you're asking if I tried to kill her for this, no. I did it because I can't stand her lies. She keeps depicting me as the evil one. She should take a look at her mirror. Look what she was able to do to you, today..." she added in a lower tone, sadly gazing at her. Regina shut off the water and leaned against the basin, locking gaze with her. Her stare was so full of regret that Emma had to look away.
" I took much from you. " she just said.
The pain that Emma was feeling couldn't be all her own.
" What's done is done." she said in response, barely able to glance at the former Queen. Graham's face was the only thing she could think about in that moment.
" I'm sorry." Regina whispered. Emma locked gaze with her. The brunette was about to weep, but she was holding back her tears.
The Savior forced herself to sneer at the former Queen. " Since when you care about me?"
Regina gave a smirk. " You were the first one to believe me, to... defend me, even though you knew who I was. So, to answer to your question, since that day, Emma. Since the day I realized that you saw me just as Regina, and not as the Evil Queen."
Emma stared at the brunette. " "Evil" is quite a childish way to call someone. " she muttered " Guess it isn't so in Fairy Tale Land."
Regina slightly smirked. " You keep calling it Fairy Tale Land... It's the Enchanted Forest, Emma. It's not a fairy tale place, it's a realm with several kingdoms. Just like... Europe, a few centuries ago. Calling someone "evil" sounds childish to you? Imagine how childish may sound to me to hear you call my motherland, the one from where I ran away, Fairy Tale Land. It was nothing like a fairy tale, I think you got this. Maybe it was it for Cinderella, or for Snow White, until I interrupted her marriage, at least. You went there. Was it so good?"
Emma swallowed. Ogres, a devastated land, weird food. No, she hadn't exactly enjoyed her short stay in the Enchanted Forest. " No, but it can't have always been that way. I mean, I didn't exactly studied Henry's book, but the realm looked beautiful in the images..."
Regina arched an eyebrow. " Oh, you looked only the images, uh?" she mockingly asked. Emma glared at her, making her snort.
" I guess that the lack of rulers, due to the curse, might have caused a bit of... chaos in the Enchanted Forest..." the brunette finally admitted with a sigh.
" Yeah, a bit..." Emma commented, pursuing her lips.
Regina narrowed her eyes, a slight sneer curving her lips. " What's the matter? The people always blames the ruler for their problems, now they saw what not having a ruler means. They wanted my head on a plate? Good, now they'll have to collect their owns, cut off by the same bandits I protected them from. A pretty Princess and her boyfriend can't evidently do much for them. I showed them time ago, but they didn't want to listen. They protected a bandit, well, dear, that a bandit may take their life. "
Emma stared at the burning rage in Regina's eyes. Here we go, she thought, I awakened the beast. Hell.
" Better if we don't touch this argument, Regina. I'm conflicted.
And I wasn't there, I can't judge just by yours or Mary Margaret's opinion. I really don't like my position. "
Regina slightly tilted her head to one side and waved a hand in the air, turning to wash the last cup in the basin. " How diplomatic of you, Miss Swan."
Emma smirked. " Just trying to avoid a fireball."
Regina archly glared at her. " Oh, is it so? You're just stringing me along with your newfound talking abilities only to avoid my inevitable rage towards anyone who tries to defend Snow White?"
The Savior glanced down repressing a laughter. " I should probably deny everything now." she said glancing at the brunette, who contracted her lips to hold back a smile.
" Only if you like to breathe." Regina replied while drying the cups.
Emma suddenly joined her. " Wait." she said grabbing a cup and raising a hand, palm up, inviting the former Mayor to give her the dishcloth.
Regina uselessly tried to hide the surprise. " There's no need..." she began to say, but Emma stopped her snatching the dishcloth from her hand.
" There is, instead! You and Shaya did everything yesterday and today, let me dry four cups at least! Plus, think about this: if Mary Margaret is spying us and sees us washing cups together, she'll have a heart attack. She'd probably see it as the proof that, I don't know, we've secretly got married. You might like the thing." Emma sneered, aware that it was probably the truth.
Regina frowned, pursuing her lips. " And what about the rings?"
" The rings? Well, we don't wear them so to not let her know about us."
" Mh..." Regina seemed to think about it " It could work..."
Emma gave her a glance. " Mine wasn't an advice, Regina."
The brunette smirked at her, handing her a wet cup. " That's a pity! It was a brilliant plan to kill her! You'd have been useful thirty years ago..."
Emma snorted. " Well, in this case, forgive me for not even existing at the time."
" I can't. I have a reputation to defend."
" Oh, right."
" Now I should probably lock you up into my dungeon and leave you there to starve to death."
" Sounds appropriate." Emma nodded " But, if you do it, Mary... sorry, Snow White can never see us acting like newlyweds and my "brilliant plan" won't ever work."
Regina looked at her with an amused and slightly admired face. " You're right. "
" You could always tie her up to your bed and show Snow White how gorgeous your name sounds when cried out in pleasure."
Emma's cheeks reddened at Rapunzel's words. The images that they had summoned weren't amusing nor wanted. The Savior glared at her, repressing a shiver. " You wish!"
" Shaya!" Regina scolded the sneering warrior " Ah, your mercenary-like manners had to be shown sooner or later, isn't it?"
The blonde raised and eyebrow, a half smile furrowing her left cheek. " Really? Do you really want to talk about verbal roughness?"
Emma saw the former Queen blush and struggle not to look away. The Savior frowned, but she couldn't help but smirk. So Regina wasn't that regal when alone with her partner, uh?
" It was an effective plan, however." Regina muttered, glaring at the warrior while handing Emma the last cup.
The Savior grinned at the brunette when she glanced at her. " Why don't we talk about your verbal roughness instead, Your Majesty?" Emma mocked her. Regina slightly blushed again, but kept looking at her.
" I'm afraid that you'll never have the pleasure, dear." she said with a cold smile, gazing then at Rapunzel. " I thought that you liked my name always."
The warrior nodded once, smiling. " I do."
" And what do you know about it being screamed then?"
Shaya's cheek slightly reddened. " Nothing." she said, pursuing then her lips " Yet." she added, sneering.
Emma rolled her eyes, sighing. The situation was becoming embarrassing. It was it since the beginning, actually. She set the dried cup down and sighed again.
" Well, my corruptive, evil, pervert hosts, it's time for me to run away from you and go to save this town from any form of evilness." she announced, making them smile. " So if you'd let me use the bathroom first, I'll be out of here in five minutes."
Regina waved a hand towards the hall. " Run away before I change my mind!" she dramatically said.
Shaya stifled a laughter. " Watch out, Pure of Heart! The abyss of luxury in Regina's bedroom may swallow you! The way to the bathroom is full of perils and temptations..."
Emma forced herself not to laugh. " I'll be careful! " she said passing behind Regina and then before Rapunzel to exit the kitchen. She was out when a though hit her mind. She walked back and sticked out her head, gazing at them. " Please, hold on till I'm out of here. I don't wanna walk into you two doing the do-do on the sofa when I'm going out."
Both of them stifled a laughter. Rapunzel then tried to get serious. " I promise." she said.
Emma significantly stared at Regina, who rolled her eyes. " Promise."
The Savior gratefully smiled at the brunette. " Thanks!" she said before rushing upstairs.