Royal Romancing

ONCE UPON A TIME-fanfic. Dinner at the Mills' household, and Henry wants his moms to go on a real date together.
(EMMA/REGINA, SWANQUEEN)

This is the third in a small series of short Swanqueen stories with the name "Royal" in it.

Read Royal Romancing

Disclaimer: As in the first story, Regina, Emma, Henry and everyone else in “Once Upon A Time” all belong to a bunch of people, among them probably ABC and Disney if I understand it all correctly. Either way they are not mine, and I’m just borrowing them for a little bit of Swanqueen.


This is the sequel to “Dinner for Royals”, and the third in my little “Royal” series.
As I write this I have watched up to episode 11 of the show, but it shouldn’t matter much since I’m just making things up as I go anyway.
A certain person requested that I’d use origami in a story, and this is what came to me. ;)






Royal Romancing
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by Carola “Ryûchan” Eriksson





A dinner invitation to the Mills residence was a thing unheard of in Storybrooke, and that for some rather simple reasons. Although Regina might be woman capable of utter ruthlessness, she was also very protective of her son and cherished her time with him. So business-related dinners, although they were many in the life of a Mayor, were kept well away from her home. And of course, Regina Mills had no friends to invite home, and sad to say, neither did her son.

It was yet another small but important change brought on by Emma Swan, that one fine Sunday in autumn Regina Mills found herself busily preparing a slightly more elaborate dinner than what she usually would, intended for one additional person. She was also nervous, something which was equally unusual.

While she was not what anyone, least of all herself, would consider a domestic goddess, Regina was a perfectionist in all that she did and abhorred to not be at least utterly competent in what she set out to do, and so if asked she would normally have every confidence in her cooking skills. That she also in secret had found herself enjoying many domestic chores over the years that others might have thought too mundane for the woman that was Storybrooke’s Mayor, especially after Henry came into her life, well... she was a very private woman, and there was something satisfying in the knowledge that those that thought they really knew her, didn’t, or at least not as well as they thought.

There was a peculiar feeling when Regina opened her door to a bashful-looking Emma Swan, a little less dressed up than at their previous outings but still delectable, which hit Regina rather hard. She was really just coming to terms with the attraction she felt where Emma was concerned, after having denied it vehemently for almost as long as the blonde had been in Storybrooke, but this? This was new, this almost melancholy ache that would appear when Emma and Henry both looked at her with smiles on their faces.

To think that Regina had gone so far out of her way to make Emma her enemy from the start, so convinced that Henry’s birth mother would take him away from her... Looking at them now Regina felt that not only should she have realized much sooner the value of Emma as her ally, but also that in some mysterious way Emma was bringing Henry back to her, little by little. That rather than fearing that Henry would love her less, Regina needed to acknowledge that there was a vacant spot in their family in which Emma fitted perfectly.

Family. The very thought brought that curious feeling back, and more strongly than before.

Emma was family. Well, yes, Regina had, almost without realizing it herself, accepted that fact, the fact that Emma was indeed Henry’s other parent. Instead of making her jealous and afraid as it had, now Regina felt a certain measure of relief that there was someone to share the responsibilities with, to trust in, when it came to her precious baby boy. It would do Henry no harm to have two parents, like so many other children in his surroundings.

But that blast of longing spoke of something else, of another, deeper, level of sharing and trusting which Regina wished to have with Emma. Not just regarding Henry, but also regarding Regina herself, her life, her dreams, her burdens.

She was really just now realizing that she wanted to blonde not just for a casual lover, but for something far deeper. A companion in life, a partner, a... wife?

As impossible as it seemed, that thought skittered across Regina’s consciousness and refused to be banished, causing her to blush some as she ushered Emma into the house, which the blonde noticed.

“Wow, Regina...” Emma said almost breathlessly, a peculiar expression on her face. “You look so beautiful.”

At the praise Regina looked away a bit awkwardly, happy with the compliment but still confused with her own responses and their strength. It was at this point that, much to her own chagrin, Regina realized that she had answered the door while still wearing the frilly white apron with the red apple on its front pocket, the one that she often wore when warranted because Henry had helped her pick it out back in happier days. Henry was often what drew out that sentimental side of her, a side most people would swear up and down that Regina Mills did not possess.

“Thank you.” Regina murmured, a bit less primly than she might have as the embarrassment of being seen this way by the blonde was a bit too much to bear for her sensitivities. A closer look at Emma however revealed that the other woman kept looking at her with such a helplessly smitten expression that it made Regina feel better. A confident little smirk returned to her lips. “You look... charming, yourself. Do come in.”

With a little start it seemed that Emma remembered that she came bearing gifts, and she thrust both arms out in front of her. “Here. I didn’t know quite what to get, but I hope this is okay.” There was that disarming smile again, the one that Regina had always felt affected her a little too much.

Gracefully Regina accepted the wine bottle thrust at her and gave it a cursory glance while preparing to take what else was offered her, but instead did a double take. She could not prevent the smile that shaped her lips as she looked back up at Emma. “Apple wine?” She asked softly, not quite able to hide that she was, in fact, charmed by the gesture.

Emma grinned back. “I know squat about wine, really, but at the store they said it was a very good sweet dessert wine, whatever that means. Hopefully it won’t be too bad?”

“It is perfect.” Regina reassured her and meant it. “We are having apple pie for dessert, this will go very well together.”

The other woman did her happy bouncing thing. “Does that mean that I’ll get to eat your famous apples? Awesome.”

“Oh?” Regina could not help herself, one eyebrow arched while her gaze became slightly lidded. “I was unaware that you had such an interest in my...” Dark eyes bore into Emma who made a small noise in the back of her throat. “apples, miss Swan.” Her voice dropped lower in pitch. “And I was under the impression that you had already had a... taste?”

Emma was spared from having to reply to that by the arrival of their son, the happy boy barrelling into his blonde parent and completely unaware of the atmosphere between his mothers. Emma hugged him back and Regina smiled indulgently at them both, pleased now to see not only Henry but also Emma so happy.

“Hey kid, I’ve got something for you.” Emma ruffled Henry’s hair with one hand before handing over a largish blue cloth bag with the other. The boy beamed up at both of his mothers before eagerly pulling at the cord holding the bag together.

“And this is for you.” Again Emma seemed a bit shy as she handed over a small red bag to the surprised Regina. “Its not much, but, well...”

“Games!” Henry squealed happily and pulled out two boxes to show to Regina. “Emma got me two board games! And look, this is the one the kids at school are playing.” Emma reminded herself to thank Mary Margaret later for that little insight. “Can we play? Will you play with me?”

The boy’s eyes were bright and hopeful, including them both in his request. In an affectionate gesture that had once been common for them but that Regina had only very recently, with Emma’s help, become able to indulge in again, she reached out to smooth his messy hair back down. “If Emma is willing, perhaps we could play some after dinner?”

“Sure kiddo,” Emma promised cheerfully before Henry had managed to ask. “I’d love to play a game or two with you and your mom.”

With happy enthusiasm the boy clutched his new games to him with one arm and yanked Emma along after him with the other, chattering away about all the things he had heard about the games now in his possession.

“Dinner first, Henry.” Regina called after them, reminding her son as it sounded like he was about to drag Emma away to start one of the games right away. Emma’s laughter could be heard at his antics, and it made Regina feel warm inside to listen to them both.

Regina herself lingered for a moment in the hallway though, gingerly hefting the small red bag in one hand, looking thoughtful. The small box of Lady Godiva chocolates it contained, besides being Regina’s favourite, carried a few questions and possibilities that she uncharacteristically needed a moment to bask in.

Was Emma even aware that the chocolates inside this particular little golden box would all be shaped like hearts?

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Dinner had been an unequivocal success, Emma had praised Regina’s cooking, and by the time dessert was brought in, the blonde had all but swooned. To Regina’s great joy Henry had only hesitated for the briefest of moments before digging into his slice of pie with gusto, rediscovering how much he loved his mother’s apple pie after so long.

In a moment that was almost bittersweet to both adults in its simple domesticity, they had all cleared the table together, after which Emma had made Regina sit down and watch as she and Henry took care of the dishes. Before too long they had wound up in the livingroom with Henry’s new games, and been captivated with round after round of playing them until it had gotten quite late.

Regina sent Henry to put his things away and wash up for the night, granting herself a short while alone with Emma before their son would come back and Emma would say goodbye. She only wished that she had a clearer grasp on what she was going to say.

“I had a wonderful time today, Regina.” Emma turned to her as soon as Henry was out of sight, and spoke with warmth and quiet happiness in her voice. “Thank you for inviting me.”

Regina answered her smile with a relaxed one of her own. “I’m glad you came.” She was sidetracked for a moment as her eyes caressed the view before her, for the moment not even bothering to pretend she was not ogling Emma Swan and quite liking what she saw. “I think I simply must get you a few more of my shirts.” She mused out loud, mentally going over a variety of dark, rich colours which would look stunning on Emma, especially in smooth, high quality fabrics.

Emma blushed and coughed a bit, looking somewhat unsure of herself. “Regina? What...”

Oh talking was overrated anyway.

She crossed the space between them almost before that small niggling of frustration had registered, not only ignoring any semblance of personal space but coming so close that their bodies were all but touching already. Emma was so warm.

The blonde gasped quietly and shuddered, as Regina reached up to cup Emma’s face in her hands. She did not speak but let her eyes convey her intentions, caressing Emma’s slightly parted lips with a gaze more heated than even Regina herself realized, before finally becoming lost in green.

There was so much emotion swirling in those eyes, and Regina couldn’t identify it all. The fear that flashed by she knew however, and for a moment she felt it herself, the fear that Emma would back away and reject the silent offer. Reject Regina.

But then Emma’s arms came up around her and their lips met, so soft, so sweet, so innocently genuine a kiss that it hurt, somewhere deep within. Some forgotten part which had been sealed off for so very long ached with longing. And all for Emma Swan.

It would not have been them if the kiss had not quickly taken on heat and passion, Emma’s arms gaining strength and pulling them tightly together, while Regina’s hands moved to bury themselves in blonde waves. Someone gasped, but Regina could no longer tell whether it was Emma or herself. It did not matter. She just... needed...

Of course this was where Henry would come in, running along happily with his hair still wet and his face shining, and too fast for either of them to cover up what they had been doing. Like a pair of teenagers caught in the act they slipped apart, but not that far, not so far that they did not still have a loose hold on one another.

They didn’t get the chance to move apart further. The little boy dashed forward and hugged both his mothers hard, turning the bewildered and awkward moment into a three-way hug.

Although they shared a look of confusion, Emma and Regina were quick to put their arms around their son to hug him back. If the force of his little charge had made them grip one another a bit more firmly it was surely only for balance, or perhaps Henry might believe so anyway.

“You guys are the best! I love you both.” He beamed up at his mothers, both of whom hurried to mumble their love in return, despite becoming quite teary at the declaration. “I’ve had lots of fun today, and at the restaurant, and at the movies.” He looked from one to the other, clearly building up to something important. “Can we please have more family days? Please? We don’t have to go anywhere, we can just eat and play games and stuff like we did today.”

“Cause if we can, if you promise we can and you promise to be nice to one another, it is okay if I stay with Miss Blanchard while you guys go on a dates once in a while.” His expression changed and he looked stern for a moment. “But only with each other! Nobody else! Anybody else is not okay.”

The two stunned and bewildered adults stared at one another while the child waited impatiently for a response, any response, from either of them. Finally it was Regina who wrestled herself back in control enough to speak to her son.

“Well, Henry...” She began slowly, but with a certain twitch at the corner of her lips which did not escape Emma’s notice. “it is really up to Emma, but if she is willing she is quite welcome to join us for dinner and other days like this when she has the time.” Regina looked into Emma’s eyes. “It would be... lovely.”

“But we must remember that Emma has a very important job, Henry, one that sometimes requires very long days and leaves little time to spend here. We cannot be selfish and demand that she should be here if she needs to be elsewhere, understood?” Regina searched her son’s eyes for acceptance, he was a smart boy though and would undoubtedly understand that if Emma could not always come visit them as promised, it would not be a rejection. She was, if entirely honest, perhaps not quite so certain of her own ability in that regard, whether it pertained to Henry or to Regina herself.

The boy nodded solemnly. “Being the Sheriff is an important job, important to all the people of Storybrooke. Just like being the Mayor.”

“That’s right, kiddo.” Emma smiled, not entirely able to cover up how moved she was by both mother and son. “But for when I’m not at work I’d love to spend time with you and your mom, as much as you guys can stand having me around.”

“Oh, I think you will find that we can stomach your presence in rather large quantities, dear.” Regina murmured, amusement colouring her tone although her statement was true. “Wouldn’t you agree, Henry?”

“Yes!” The happy outburst and eager little bounce made Emma laugh and Regina smile while thinking to herself that she now knew just where her son had gotten that particular trait. Then Henry stepped back a little, turning their three-way hug into a looser embrace and focusing his attention on Emma.

“So, Emma...” There was a great deal of expectation in his voice. “...when are you going to take mom out on a date?”

Regina could not help the snort of laughter that exploded from her, however briefly, and when Emma turned impossibly wide and desperate eyes on her she was met with a slightly wicked smile. “Why Emma dear...” Regina purred, not quite fluttering her lashes at the other woman but certainly giving her a magnetic look from under dark lashes. “...when are you going to take me out on a date?”

Emma spluttered and stammered, and only Regina’s suddenly quite strong grip around her back kept the fiercely blushing woman from backing away from mother and son. Eventually she settled down and, after an intense scrutiny of what she could still see of her shoes, met Regina’s eyes.

“Um,” Emma smiled a bit shyly at Regina. “I’d like to get the clothes I still have in Boston first, but unless things go crazy for the day I’m out of town, how about the day after that? Wednesday?”

More than just a little relieved that Emma’s reaction did not mean that she did not want to go on a date with her, and more than willing to rearrange not only her own but the entire town’s schedule if it should turn out to be interfering, Regina smiled and nodded. “Wednesday would be fine.”

“Yes!” Henry approved. “And I’ll bring clothes and my pyjamas to Miss Blanchard’s. Think Miss Blanchard will play one of the board games with me?”

That pulled Regina up short. “Miss Blanchard?” She blinked and frowned. It was true, if she was going to go on a date with Emma she would need a babysitter for Henry, and yet the only other person she truly trusted with her son was Emma. “Oh Henry, I don’t know...” She began reluctantly, as much as she truly wanted some alone time with Emma, it would not be at the expense of her son’s safety.

“It doesn’t have to be Mary Margaret.” Emma interjected calmly, committed now to taking Regina on that date. “If there’s someone you’d prefer, someone you’d trust more, we can talk them into staying here with Henry. Like Doctor Hopper, maybe? You trust him with Henry’s welfare, don’t you?”

Regina barely kept herself from grimacing, she might be desperate enough to have Henry in counselling with Hopper, but she certainly did not trust the man as far as she could throw him. Henry was less successful in hiding his grimace, although he liked Doctor Hopper well enough and trusted him with his secrets, he was looking forward to a fun night and less inadvertent therapy and talking about how he felt about things.

“Who do you usually have babysitting Henry?” The words that he was not a baby and did not need a babysitter were almost visible on Henry’s lips, but wisely he kept from speaking them out loud. Both women smiled at him for that. “Mary Margaret would do it though, if we asked. And you do trust her to look out for Henry every weekday during school.”

Henry nodded eagerly, he really liked his teacher and wouldn’t mind at all spending the night at her place. She would probably play a game or two with him, and Miss Blanchard usually had cookies and cocoa when he was there to see Emma, so it would be nice. And also, she was Snow White.

“We’ll see.” Regina reluctantly agreed, thinking she had a few days to try to come up with a better plan for Henry, or failing that at least get used to the idea. And perhaps have a little chat with a certain teacher regarding the health and proper care of her precious son. “Now Henry, say goodnight to Emma before you go to bed.”

Another round of hugs followed as the boy did as told before disappearing into his room. Regina and Emma silently walked towards the front door, well aware that even though they couldn’t see him, Henry was sure to be pressing his ear to his door to make sure nothing interfered with his matchmaking plans.

By the time they reached the door Emma and Regina were sharing warm smiles over the adorableness of their little boy, but soon they looked a little too deeply into each others eyes and the mood changed.

Exactly which one of them pulled the other close and initiated the kiss is something neither could say, only that in no time at all Regina found herself pushed up against the wall in the hallway with a very warm, very eager Emma wrapped all over her. For something which was so new to them and to their interactions with one another, they were surprisingly good at this, deep, languid, soul-moving kisses that drove them both just a little bit crazy.

“Wow...” Emma breathed after they parted just enough to breathe. “Why did we never do this before?” The blonde’s voice and face revealed both amazement and longing.

Regina did not answer verbally, merely smirked a little and leaned in to nibble lightly at Emma’s lips. A groan and another kiss or two was her reward for her efforts, before the two of them finally, reluctantly, drew apart.

“Why Sheriff Swan,” Regina purred and arched a brow. “I do believe your hand is on my posterior.”

Emma chuckled a little and patted the area in question. “Why Mayor Mills, I do believe you’re right.” As she let Regina go and stepped back she drew one hand along until she grasped Regina’s. In a playful gesture Emma then bowed low and drew that hand to her lips to place a tender kiss on Regina’s knuckles.

She didn’t see the darkening of Regina’s eyes in reaction, but she definitely could not miss when Regina surged forward, grabbed Emma by the front of her shirt, and pushed her up against the door for such an intense and heated kiss that it made Emma’s mind go completely blank.

When a flushed and slightly out of breath Regina finally let go and opened the door for her, Emma was wobbly and more than just a little stunned. With a little gentle encouragement the blonde managed to stagger outside and took several unsteady steps, completely unaware of her surroundings, until a quiet chuckle brought some of her awareness back. She turned around to see Regina leaning in the doorway and watching her with such a fond expression it squeezed at her heart a little.

“Goodnight Regina.” Emma called in a wistful and hushed voice, wishing she could just stay.

“Goodnight dear.” That one word, so common in her interactions with Regina from the start, sounded so different now. Emma found she liked it.

Another few steps, more or less taken backwards now, and then Emma’s mind caught up with her a bit better. “Regina? Will you call me tomorrow?”

The dark-haired woman smiled wider and leaned her head against the doorframe. “Of course. Tomorrow then, Emma.”

The woman in question nodded happily and staggered on towards where she had parked her car, still enough in a daze to need a few tries before she managed to unlock the door much less get herself into the driver’s seat. Regina looked on with affectionate amusement until the little yellow car finally made its way down the street before doing her nightly rounds of making sure everything was properly locked and the lights were all turned off.

Some time later Regina Mills, the illustrious Mayor of Storybrooke, could be found asleep while propped up in her silken sheets, an old romance novel carelessly tossed beside her on the bed and a small, gold-coloured box still carefully clutched to her chest.

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Monday morning found the Mayor curiously reluctant to focus on her job. Regina had settled in with her paperwork as usual, but found herself drifting every so often to thoughts of the last couple of days and a certain sheriff. In between signing forms and taking early phone calls, she found herself in something of a daze, and what was worse, her secretary noticed.

The woman had not breathed a word that did not pertain to work, and yet Regina was seriously considering putting the fear of god into her all the same... just as soon as the strangely distracting and pleasant mood had passed. She didn’t quite get the chance as in between signing one pile of papers and the next, Regina’s secretary disappeared and reappeared at her door, looking as if she was already fearing for her life.

In her arms she carried a rather large bouquet.

“Erm, Madam Mayor? This came for you.” The woman stammered somewhat nervously, flinching as Regina dropped the pen in her hand in surprise. “They came by special delivery.”

Regina never even noticed that the pen rolled away from her.

The skittish secretary placed the bouquet in Regina’s arms and mumbled something indistinct which could be taken in whatever way her impressive and occasionally quite scary employer wished, and fled the room as quickly as she could without outright running. Regina paid her no attention, gingerly handling the white-wrapped flowers as if they would shatter from too careless treatment.

There was no card, but unless the flowers turned into an armful of snakes upon opening the wrapping there was really only one person in Storybrooke that could have sent them. Well, actually, Regina did occasionally receive floral arrangements from various members of city council or local businesses that wished to ingratiate themselves, however this... was different. It felt different, personal.

The paper came away to reveal an arrangement of deep red roses with a smattering of baby’s breath. Something inside ached with a number of unfamiliar or long forgotten emotions and made Regina simply gaze at the flowers, gently touching their petals, for a long moment before she finally roused herself enough to locate a vase.

She placed them on her desk, something that would otherwise have been unheard of, where she could continue to look at them at her leisure. It amused her to note that there were neither a dozen red roses nor half a dozen, but exactly ten of them. How very Emma.

The smirk that was half-formed upon her lips transformed into a softer, gentler expression.

Such a charming gesture, and one that deserved reciprocation. It made Regina feel better about her little... whim... this morning, although it also called for something more, something with a bit more... flair.

The piles of paperwork were ignored as Regina, with sparkling eyes and a smile playing at her lips, reached over her desk with a rather specific item in mind.

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Emma tossed her leather jacket across the room while dropping herself into the chair at her desk, already feeling a bit tired. Storybrooke was a fairly peaceful town all considered, there were a few troublemakers, sure, but they weren’t many and usually more or less well behaved, so being a Sheriff wasn’t that bad of a job. Of course that generally meant that the real evil was simply too cunning and too manipulative to leave anything that might get him caught, in Emma’s opinion, but Emma liked to look at the bright side.

After a weekend or holiday of any sort though, there was the dreaded paperwork to handle, plus to be Sheriff in this town meant to be at the beck and call of not only the Mayor, which to be honest Emma no longer minded, but everyone that had any sort of matter large or small with which they did not want to deal themselves. Frankly most of what Emma did in the average workday, apart from spending time either with Regina or at Granny’s, amounted to things that in another town would never be brought to police attention.

Not that Emma minded being called out when Mary Margaret needed help to remove a bird’s nest from the chimney at the school, or when Granny needed someone to chop a few logs or when Pongo had chased someone’s cat up a tree. Even dealing with the town drunks were an amiable thing, in particular Leroy whom she tended to round up on a weekly basis.

But while some days where idle enough to drive her crazy, busy days were really busy. Emma, being only one person, occasionally got tired when lunchtime came around and she just wanted to get the chance to scrounge up a meal from one of the fast-food places available, and maybe some peace and quiet in which to eat it.

This day Emma did not relish the fact that she was already tired and still had to make her food run, but she figured a little breather at her desk and then she would drag her sorry behind over to Granny’s to see what Ruby had to offer.

There were bags on her desk. Two of them, plain brown, and neither had been there when Emma left the station earlier that morning.

Emma eyed the bags with weary caution, only just keeping herself from grabbing for that gun that came with her glamorous new job. In this town, you just never knew, and maybe she had been too hasty in thinking that most of the Storybrooke troublemakers were harmless. She poked at one of the bags, and waited.

Nothing.

No hissing, no explosions, nothing. Emboldened, Emma opened the larger bag.

A warm and appetizing scent spread from the opened bag and made Emma’s stomach make itself heard, loudly. Too surprised, and frankly hungry, Emma forgot to be careful and tore open the bag in her hand. A plastic food container, still warm, a bread roll, and a set of eating utensils wrapped in a paper napkin. The container couldn’t quite keep the scent of the food in, and Emma’s stomach rumbled some more.

Smiling delightedly at the find, it did briefly occur to Emma that she should probably be suspicious of this gift, but to be honest she had a pretty good hunch who the thoughtful individual that decided to feed the starving Sheriff might be. She peeked into the second bag.

A large coffee, still warm enough, a note, and one rather particular blood red apple.

Emma felt something sting at her eyes. She tried to blink it away as she set out the container, the bread and the coffee in front of her, ready to dig in, and picked up the note. It was simple and short, written in Regina’s unmistakable elegant cursive writing.

That appalling and greasy take-out food is unhealthy for you dear, you really should endeavour to eat better once in a while.

It was not signed, but it didn’t need to be. Emma grinned and carefully lay the little note aside, before tucking into her surprise lunch with enthusiasm. She would later blame the fact that her second introduction to Regina Mill’s culinary skills was in no way any less impressive than the first one for the fact that it took until the food and drink was gone, the container all but licked clean, for Emma to find the last little surprise Regina had left her.

She picked up the apple to put it aside while clearing the remains of the paper bags off the desk when she spotted it. Behind the bags a tiny paper object had been hidden, an origami figure in crisp white.

Carefully, reverently Emma picked it up, fighting a lump in her throat as she studied it. In the back of her mind she pictured Regina’s elegant fingers folding the creases, not at all surprised that the other woman had the knowledge and skill to do such a thing. She angled it carefully in awe, trying to see it from all directions.

The small paper figure was a swan.