Hearts Will Be Glowing ♛ for royalpassport

[unhappilyeverafter]

"What?!"

That had been Regina's knee-jerk response the moment Henry suggested the idea. That he brought his girlfriend round for a festive dinner.. with her father.

That in itself, didn't sound so bad, but Regina knew this would be no straight forward dinner. After all, his girlfriend was Grace, Jefferson's daughter. The daughter of a man who hated her guts and had done so for a long while. It had taken Regina some time to come to terms with the fact Henry had a girlfriend at all, let alone it was Grace; but now it seemed she was about to confront it head on. It had been just fine when kept at a distance, but now they wanted them to sit in the same room, share the same table. 

It was a terrible idea.

Which is why Regina still doesn't quite understand how Henry's convinced her to lay on dinner that's currently dominating every available work surface in her kitchen. She hasn't spoken to Jefferson in years, despite being in the same town. What was left to say, after all that had happened? Apparently, she was about the find out, when she heard the front door open and Henry call her name. They were here.

Wiping her hands down on a towel, Regina quickly checks herself and her outfit in the mirror - old habits - and heads towards the kitchen door. She takes a deep breath before she makes her way into the hall, ready to face what she's undoubtedly sure is going to be the most uncomfortable Christmas dinner she's ever had - and that includes the one after Emma Swan crashed into their lives.

A smile painted on her face, she does her best to look welcoming, even if it's tinged with uncertainty when she sees Jefferson there.

Comments

[royalpassport]

Well, all things considered... Henry's a fine enough young man for Grace. After all, he was the reason Jefferson finally manned up, pulled himself out from his puddle of self-pity to reunite with his daughter. Henry's the reason Jefferson has a family at all. For that, he has something of a soft spot for the boy, despite his complicated and acrimonious history with Henry's mother. With both mothers, come to think of it.

Besides, he makes Grace happy. And the older she gets (a freshman in high school; she's an actual teenager now), the harder it is for Jefferson to be her entire world. And, this being young love, he figures they'll break up long before they ever get any ideas like 'marriage' in their heads, thus sparing him from having to join his family with Regina's.

Look, he may be a better man now, stable (ish) and working a decent job as Storybrooke's resident tailor and dressmaker, but Jefferson's still got some of that conniving opportunism that defined so much of his life. He's supportive and accepting of Grace's love life because he figures it'll bring about the best possible outcome for him and his daughter: one where she doesn't think about commitment until it's with somebody not at all related in any way to the Mills or the Charmings or the Golds or any of them. After all, things between those kids will never get serious enough to warrant him and Regina ever being in the same room...

Famous last words. Here he is now, bearing a bottle of red wine and a bottle of bourbon ('for the eggnog'), forcing a smile on his face as he and Grace are welcomed into Regina's home. The smile lasts for about as long as it takes for Henry and Grace to rush up to the boy's bedroom to-- talk. They're just going to talk. Talk. Oh god, what has he done in allowing this relationship to blossom...

Now that he and Regina are alone, he finds himself at a loss for words. All he can manage is a lame, "So... Dinner smells nice."

[unhappilyeverafter]

She's doing this for Henry. That's what she tells herself as she stands there enduring this most awkward of meetings. She doesn't want to be the one responsible for sabotaging her son's first relationship - as difficult as it has been to accept. His happiness counts for everything in Regina's eyes, and she's long since learnt that she can't control his life in the way her mother once controlled hers. Which is why she's been dealing with it as best she can, trying not to scrutinise it too closely, or worry that he'll inevitably be left with a broken heart when young love doesn't hold out.

But, it seems that day is yet to pass. This day is about something else entirely, and she's willing to bet that both she and Jefferson are as surprised, and as cautious, as each other. But it also seems they're both willing to make the effort for their children, which makes Regina's smile turn into something of relief when he does something other than the moody glare she'd been anticipating for weeks.

"Thank you, it's.. one of my specialties," she tells him, glancing aside just briefly as she hears music come on upstairs, which is universal teenager code for 'do not disturb'. Raising her eyebrows, she looks back to Jefferson, gesturing towards the living room. "Shall we go through?" She's trying her best to be civil, but she's hoping this ice will break soon enough.

[royalpassport]

Jefferson's gaze slides upward, in the direction of the music (and where he presumes to be Henry's room), brow lifting and eyes widening as a dawning realization suddenly hits him full force. His daughter's with a boy. Yes, of course, he knew that already; the two of them had been seeing each other for months now. But it was more of this abstract thing before, something he could imagine as a lot of chaste hand-holding and chatter. But come on. He was Henry's age once. The kid's certainly a better sort of boy than Jefferson ever was, but he really doubts he's interested in just holding hands.

He doubts Grace is interested in just holding hands, either. And here he is, with Regina, while the kids have some alone time that both of their parents are better off not thinking about. This is way too awkward. He half-wishes Emma and her pirate were here, too, to act as some sort of buffer. Then again, that'd probably add another extra layer of discomfort to this whole affair.

Swallowing, he forces his gaze back to Regina, more than a little nervous panic behind his tight smile. "Yeah. All right." He holds up one of the bottles as they head into the living room. "We could open up a bottle while they... talk."

He takes a moment to look over Regina. She'd always been a beautiful woman, even at her worst, and tonight's no exception. For his part, he still looks about the same as ever-- a little too overdressed for every occasion, but since officially turning 30 shortly after the curse (near as he can tell; his age is always hard to gauge, thanks to his time in Wonderland), he's given up the garish rings and eyeliner he'd been in the habit of wearing. And he looks like he actually sleeps and gets outside these days, so there's a certain wholeness to him now that had been missing for decades.

[unhappilyeverafter]

Opening a bottle sounds like a good idea right now, and Regina nods her agreement, going to take it from him. She’s not much of a drinker as a rule, but she doesn’t think she’s going to get through this gathering without at least one glass. Leading him through to the living room, she pops out just briefly to uncork and pour the wine, returning with a glass each.

Reaching him, she hands the glass over, glancing up at him for a moment. There’s something distinctly familiar about this part, which is both reassuring and not so at the same time. They’ve come a long way from those days, in many respects. They’re different now, both of them, and she notices the changes in Jefferson too. Not just in the way he looks, but also in his demeanour. Being back with Grace has clearly done wonders for him, and it’s no surprise. Regina attributes much of her comeback from evil to having Henry in her life.

Gaze dropping, she goes to perch on the edge of the couch, as ever a composed and controlled figure. Many things have changed, but some things have remained the same too, such as Regina’s penchant for luxury - the house is just as beautiful as it ever was - as well as her outfit. They both share a flair for the extreme, even if they have toned it down, but there’s no mistaking the effort of her appearance. A fitted dress in one of her favourite shades - a deep rich purple - does wonders for her figure. It’s hard to tell if the effort is special, as it’s a rare occasion to see her looking anything but flawless, but perhaps she’s been a little more conscious of her appearance than normal. Because tonight, making a good impression matters, literally. Jefferson’s only seen from afar the changes she’s been through, and for the sake of Henry, the time has come once and for all to convince him of that.

“I can’t say I expected us to be doing this anytime soon.” Ever, perhaps was the more appropriate word, but Henry and Grace was a development they could no longer ignore.

She laughs slightly, looking down at her glass before back at him. “It seems like only yesterday he was telling me he’d met a girl. It took a little longer for him to admit it was your daughter.”

[royalpassport]

He accepts the glass with a nod of thanks, the familiarity of this not lost on him, either. The first time he saw Regina after that fateful con, wine had been involved, too. Back then, they were both so young and frivolous, Jefferson about four years older than Grace is now. And... all right, maybe Jefferson was the only frivolous one in the equation. Regina had to grow up and mature much earlier than he did. To be honest, he didn't think he ever would become a man who gave a damn about responsibility or any of that, not until he and Priscilla learned of Grace's impending arrival. And then his daughter turned his life up on its head in the best possible way.

"It was certainly the... last thing I ever expected," he agrees, voice a little stiff, though he's trying to sound personable. Jefferson relaxes a little more, though, when Regina laughs. It's so different when it isn't laced with malice, reminds him of the young woman he once knew.

"Was he afraid to tell you?" Jefferson smiles now, much more genuinely than before, and lets out an amused little chuckle. "Grace tried to dance around it as long as she could. There were a lot of dinners at Granny's that I wasn't invited to. 'Homework,' she said."

[unhappilyeverafter]

"Not, afraid, no," Regina replies, rather quickly at that. Henry hasn't been afraid of her for a long time, and she has no desire to make him feel that way about her ever again. "He just.. didn't know how I would take it. You and I.. we haven't exactly been the best of friends since we arrived in Storybrooke." That's an understatement, intentionally so. She's not trying to drag up the past.

"I think he was worried it would upset me, more than anything." Her smile softens, because that's much more like her son, to think of other people before himself, to care how his actions affected others. "But he wasn't so upfront at first. I think there was some sneaking around involved." She rolls her eyes as though mildly annoyed, but she can't blame him for it. Her possible reaction would've made him wary, and sometimes, the sneaking around was the fun part.

[royalpassport]

"That's putting it mildly," he remarks, a bit under his breath. He isn't trying to stir up old anger anymore than she is, but it just slips out without thinking. Sure, Jefferson doubts they'll ever be on truly friendly terms again-- would either of them even want it?-- but... for the sake of the children, they can be civil. That seems like a realistic goal. So he offers a quick, apologetic smile at his own slip.

"So they both did their share of sneaking. I suppose it would've been silly to expect anything else, considering..." His lips quirk. "...their parents." After all, he made a career out of sneaking around. Most of his affairs (and they were pretty much all affairs, until his wife) were handled that way, too. And he knows much the same could be said about Regina. With the stable boy, and with... ah. Well. Jefferson, himself. Not that he could blame her, considering that loveless marriage of hers.

[unhappilyeverafter]

For Regina, repairing relationships has become all she known. Everyone here remembers the terrible things she did as the Evil Queen, each with their own personal story as to how she'd found a way to ruin their lives. It's been a long time, but she has, slowly, regained the trust of Storybrooke, and even found friendships in the people she once vowed to kill. Not everyone is so amenable, but civility is enough.

With Jefferson, however, they've been through so much, gone from one end of the spectrum to the other, that she has no idea where they'll ultimately stand.

She takes no offence at his words, but she does pull a face at the thought of Henry and Grace being anything like them. "Let's hope that's where the similarities end," she says. She knows already that Henry has become a far better person than she ever was, never tempted by anger or darkness. He's developed a habit for sarcastic comebacks, but if that's the worst he'll come out with, then she feels she's succeeded as a parent.

[royalpassport]

Jefferson huffs out a breath, as if the possibility that Grace could be as bad as he once was is beyond what he even wants to consider. Thankfully, she always had more sense than Jefferson or even her mother did. Maybe it was the neighbors' influence. (Easier to think about now that he and Grace have each other again. Their old neighbors, 'Paige's' parents, are still very much involved in her lifee-- in both of their lives, as if Jefferson's gained new, extended family after the curse's end. Strangely, he appreciates it.)

"I'm sure it is. Though Grace does have my flair for fashion," he adds, a note of amusement in his voice.

It's easier to maintain this precarious civility if they stick to safer subjects like the kids, it seems.

[unhappilyeverafter]

Regina knows their children can't be the topic of conversation forever, but for now, she'll take the safest of their common ground. At least their children signify the changes they've gone through, and it's good to be reminded of that right now, and not how they would've once sat together very much like this, with a glass of wine in hand, their conversations altogether different.

It's safer to smile and laugh and agree, to keep up this pretense, if it is one. She's not sure yet. She figures they've got the rest of the evening to find out.

"Yes, I did notice," she replies, for she has always admired Jefferson's eclectic fashion sense - it was one of their mutual appreciations. "Thankfully I've not seen Henry reach for anything quite so dramatic." Somehow she doesn't think velvet and jewels are quite to his taste.

[royalpassport]

"I could always give him some pointers." It's definitely not a serious suggestion. For the truest believer, the boy's rather down to earth in many capacities, at least by Jefferson's observations. It's a wonder he'd never been a terrible brat, even before Emma's arrival, considering his mother's status as the most powerful woman in town.

Jefferson takes a drink, letting some silence stretch for a potentially awkward length of time. The subject of their children hasn't been exhausted yet, but there's only so long they can linger on it.

"So, ah... Are the... Swans and the Charmings having their own dinner tonight?"

Now that he's no longer a shut-in, Jefferson's not so on top of their business these days. They've so much drama going on at all times, it seems, that he'd rather keep all of that far away from his life.

[unhappilyeverafter]

Regina chuckles softly, but too lapses into the silence, distracting herself with another drink of wine. While she's searching for something else to say, Jefferson gets there first, and she looks up, making a sound of agreement as she swallows.

"Mm, yes, I think so. They'll be over for Christmas though." They would've been over tonight if Regina had had her way - namely for moral support. But Henry had felt it would be too overwhelming for Jefferson. She can see his point; he would've been enormously outnumbered.

"What about you? What are you and Grace doing for Christmas .. ?" Not that that's an invitation - which she doesn't add, but there is an awkward tail-off that leaves her staring at him uncertainly. She decides that's a perfect time to grab the bottle of wine and refill her glass.