Faith and Trust: Better than Pixie Dust

Chapter 10

For the first week and a half of break, Regina was too distracted by her plans for after Christmas to fully enjoy the traditions she usually participated in with gusto each year.

Emma noticed her lack of enthusiasm on the first day of break while they were making their annual gingerbread house. They had elected to construct a church this year, to commemorate all of the events that had changed their lives that semester. For Regina wasn't the only one who had changed; Emma had too. As Robin had with her, Killian had taken Emma under his wing, helping her navigate the Bible and all the treasures that could be found there.

The two friends were an interesting pair. Unlike Robin and Regina, who always supported each other and rarely quarreled, Killian and Emma were consistently at each other's throats. No matter what the topic, they always found something to disagree on, whether it was the best prank to pull on Halloween or what the group should study next. But at the end of each argument, Regina spotted Emma with Killian's arm around her shoulders, a drink in her hand, talking and laughing like nothing had happened just a few moments before.

"What's gotten into you?" Emma asked. "You're usually the one making sure you do as much as possible when we make our gingerbread house. This year, I have to beg you to do anything. What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong- the exact opposite actually," Regina couldn't keep the grin off her face anymore. "If I'm going to tell you more, you have to promise me you won't tell Robin- or anyone else from ANC, just in case they let something slip."

"I promise," Emma swore, making a cross over her heart to show her sincerity.

"Okay. Alice said her parents don't celebrate Christmas, so she's staying here until two days after Christmas. When she flies home, she wants me to go with her to surprise Robin. They apparently only live a half hour away from each other, so it'll be easy for us to spend time together. She's convinced Robin loves me, and thinks this will get him to admit how he feels. And even if he doesn't immediately, she says she has another plan to convince him to admit it."

Emma burst out laughing, no doubt thinking of the various schemes their friend pulled off over the course of the semester. Emma had been the target of some of those plots- Alice was trying to play matchmaker between her and Killian as well, and many of the pranks she came up with always involved the two of them working together. "Of course she does. Doesn't she always? So, what's the problem?"

"Convincing my mother- what else?" Regina grumbled. "Alice said to tell her it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity- but they're all here for at least another year, so that's not really the case."

"Hm..." Emma mused. "Emphasize the educational aspect of it. Get them to take you to all the sights- you know, Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, all the famous places that are rich in history and educational value. That way, she'll see the lessons you can learn by going. And Alice is coming with you, right? So she won't need to worry about you getting lost in the airport or anything like that."

"True- she's not coming back with me though, so what do I do?"

"Hm..." Emma extracted her phone from her pocket, typing furiously. "Got it! Your mom would have you fly from a major airport, right?"

"Definitely," Regina agreed. "Especially considering the destination- we'd have to fly from a larger airport to get there.

"Okay, perfect! Lots of airports and airlines have people that can sort of be your escort, help you find your gate in the airport. If you do that, your mom won't worry quite as much when you're on your own! Oh, and I definitely wouldn't mention that you're primarily going to try to win Robin's heart."