Emma shivers, shoving her hands deeper into her jacket pockets as she carefully dodges potentially dangerous pockets of ice on the frozen roads. She'll be at the country club in a few minutes, though, and then she'll be working out until she's sweating so it's good that she's cold now, she reminds herself as she looks longingly into the neighborhood, where there are families having dinner. She can see fireplaces blazing, but she knows that there'll be one waiting for her when she goes home later. It's at that exact moment that her phone buzzes and she reluctantly pulls her hand out to answer.

"Hey, mom," she says warmly, having seen the caller ID. "What's up?"

"Hi, sweetie, everything's fine," mom replies in her usual cheerful tone. Though Emma often wonders how it is that her mom manages to stay eternally happy, she often feels better just by talking to her mom. "How was your day?"

"Great. I got a B on the Spanish test I was telling you about last night and I got the dates for soccer team tryouts. I'm just on the way to the country club 'cause I really want to start getting fit since it's so soon."

"Wonderful! Speaking of which, I washed the rest of your sports clothes. It's on your bed, folded right now."

Emma lets out a sigh of relief. Almost all her working out clothes had been dirty by that point and she was on her last sweats. Her mom was awesome.

"You're a saint, thanks so much, mom," Emma says evenly. She knows her mom has a hard job; she's the mayor of Storybrooke. Everyone is always calling out for Mary Margaret to resolve issues, but it's expected. And her dad is the sheriff, but even though he's so busy too, he finds time every week to spend time with her. Emma's so grateful for her parents. She smiles, seeing the country club just up ahead.

"Of course, Emma. Listen, honey, Ingrid called about an hour ago. She's coming up for winter break and she's bringing the girls."

"Seriously?" Emma asks, her eyes lighting up. Already, her good day has turned even better. When she was a baby, she'd gotten kidnapped and ended up in the system, while her parents had looked for her without rest. Emma had a terrible time, until she was ten and Ingrid had been her foster mom, the best one she'd ever had. Around the same time, Mary Margaret and David had found her, and although Emma had ultimately decided to live with them, she (and her parents) was very close to Ingrid and her nieces, Anna and Elsa.

"Yes, it seems that Anna wanted a trip up here for her fifteenth birthday, which is in January. They'll be coming next week," mom replies and Emma can hear the smile in her voice.

"Awesome. That's really cool, mom," Emma says eagerly, finally coming to the steps of the country club. She lets herself in and shivers, signing in at the front desk, while balancing her phone between her head and her shoulder.

"I knew you'd be excited. Anyway, I called to ask if you could please find out some information on ice skating over there at the club. I thought it'd be nice if we could get passes for them, since you know how much all of them, especially Elsa, adore ice skating."

"Oh, yeah, totally," Emma says, recalling. "Yeah, I'll as mom. I just want to work out a bit, then I'll ask."

"Great! Don't come home too late; I'm making pasta for dinner."

"My mouth's already watering. See you, mom!"

She hangs up, putting her phone in her locker, as well as her backpack. She then goes to the gym where she does her usual squats, lunges, and the gets on the treadmill. It's very taxing, but she likes exercising and she's quite proud of her biceps, actually. Victor Whale, the annoying snob of an asshole, had critically told her that guys didn't like muscular girls. Emma had rolled her eyes and reminded him that she didn't even like guys. And it was funny, too, because all of sophomore year he'd been hitting on her. Finally, he got the message.

She does her push ups and pull ups, with her long blonde hair tied back into a messy ponytail. By the time an hour and a half are passed, her muscles are aching and she buys a Gatorade at the vending machine and drinks thirstily, the cold burning her throat. But she doesn't care, since it's relief. Wiping her mouth with her sleeve, she throws out the empty bottle and steps into the locker room, deciding that she'll shower at home since she has to walk, and if she showers now, she'll probably die of hypothermia on her way home.

Emma pulls her coat on and checks her phone, texting Ruby back about hanging out tomorrow, and turns to where she knows the ice rink is. There's one outside and one inside, and Emma never quite figured out why, since as far as she knew, not many people went. Frowning, Emma wiped her sweaty forehead and steps into the indoor one, pausing at the entrance. God, it's just as cold as it is outside. Her teeth start chattering once more and she walks further in, looking around.

She's never quite been to this part of the club, since she's not someone who's particularly fond of the ice. Or more precisely, the cold. But she has to admit, there's something entrancing about the smoothness of the while floor and the dim lighting. It seems almost deserted, except for a sole person, gliding across the ice effortlessly. Emma, interested ,steps closer and watches as a girl with dark hair jumps and does one of those spinny-things that she sees Olympic athletes do on TV, and lands on one foot perfectly.

Emma thinks she would have clapped her she not been carrying her backpack ad her phone. A smile comes to her lips and she sees the girl glide into a graceful stop, then lean against the railing. She seems to be taking a few deep breaths, before she begins skating again, doing another perfect spin-thing which leaves Emma awed. She's about to walk closer when she hears a cool voice.

"May I help you?"

Emma whirls around, eyes wide, her heart hammering in her chest. She sees Cora Mills, who's the owner of the country club. For some reason, she and Mary Margaret don't get along, but it's the one thing her mom won't talk about, denying it. Emma feels self-conscious. Cora has one of the most esteemed reputations, and also everyone is scared of her, Emma included. Uncomfortably, Emma bites her lip.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"Interrupt a private practice?"

Cora's eyes are narrowed and cold. Emma purses her lips. Maybe she should just go. She can tal to the secretary at the front desk. Or she can even call tomorrow and inquire. Mom will understand.

"Sorry. I, uh, was just leav-"

"No, dear, it's alright. What did you need?"

God, the woman didn't let anyone finish a sentence. Emma shoulders her backpack and awkwardly thinks of how to word it. She knows that Cora knows who she is, and it's kind of embarrassing.

"My friends from New York are coming," Emma slowly begins, trying to phrase it carefully. "And they're into ice-skating ad stuff, so I was just wondering the hours and stuff."

Ugh. She'd said stuff too much and she probably sounds like she's rambling. She looks up to see Cora's lips curling into what looks like a smirk.

"The outdoors rink is open daily from eight to eight. This one, though, is for private lessons."

"Right. Thanks," Emma mumbled, her face slowly turning a shade of red. The sentence was quite pointed towards her. She's just about to leave when she hears someone coming up behind her. She turns and sees the girl who'd been ice-skating, and immediately, something clicks in Emma's head. That girl... she knows she's seen that girl before somewhere.

"Regina? Go practice, dear," Cora says, obvious displeasure on her face. She's frowning and her cold eyes are bored on the girl- Regina's- eyes. Emma narrows her eyes, trying to figure out who the girl is. Where has she seen that braid…? But Cora continues. "I hope Emma here hasn't interrupted you," she adds with a little chuckle, but it's far from playful or genuine. She keeps her eyes on Regina's face, seeing those chocolate eyes widen.

"Oh, no, Mother. Of course she didn't. I just… it's almost eight and I have homework…"

That's when it clicks. Emma's eyes widen as she realizes that this Regina is the Regina in her AP English class, the quiet one who sits in the very back and never says a word, always working by herself when there's a partner assignment. Emma, who is rather well-know among the school, never bothered to talk to her and she suddenly feels embarrassed all over again. Regina gives a very slight, shy smile and Emma awkwardly returns it.

Truth be told, Emma had never even thought about Regina long enough to form an opinion about her, except that she was the quiet, smart girl. Regina looks down quickly, a slight blush feeling her cheeks an Emma frowns. She's seriously shy.

"Half an hour more, darling. Then we'll go."

Regina gives a quick nod and gives Emma another shy, tentative smile before slipping back onto the rink, pushing off with ease. She's wearing white leggings and a snug, pale blue sweater, and Emma wonders how she's not freezing her butt off. She watches for a moment, when Cora clears her throat.

"Well, if that's all. Give my regards to your mother, Emma."

"I will," Emma mumbles, recognizing this as a cue to leave. She turns out, and walks, but her mind is still in the ice rink, with Regina.

I know there's a lot of high school AUs out there but I couldn't resist! Most questions will be answered in the first few chapters. Please read and review! xx