It was a night just like the last four months had been for Emma. She laid in bed staring at the cold, grey, brick ceiling listening to all of the doors in the prison being locked for the night. She looked down to her stomach which was protruding out even further than yesterday. It still startled her when she thought about how all of this came about.

Neal.

That name had such a bad connotation to her now even though it once was something that made her smile. How does she deal with the position that bastard left her in? Penniless, homeless, pregnant, and in prison.

She had a horrible decision she needed to make and she had laid awake every night trying to decide what to do.

She was going to have a son. A son she could not raise on her own. Even when she was out of prison she would have no way to provide for herself and her son. She had no way to pay for child care while she worked whatever measly job she could get with her criminal record.

She had always wanted a family growing up. A place to belong yet she never thought it would come like this. She should have suspected though, her life was cursed to be one bad situation to the next.

But her life didn't matter as much anymore. It was about her son and this was the debate she came to every night since she found out she was pregnant.

There was no way she would try to find Neal for him to raise her son. For that was what he was her son. Not Neal's. She didn't want him to end up like that deadbeat.

There was always the option for adoption and hope that he would end up in a good home. That would be the smart plan for the position she was in but it was a hard choice with her past. She had seen adoptions fail. Children returned to foster care because families had 'real' kids they needed to take care of and couldn't keep the adoptive placeholders. She couldn't help but let these memories of all the homes she went to and was rejected from.

She remembered the story she had learned so long ago of the ugly duckling. Where she had chosen her name swan in a hope that good things would come from being the outcast and unwanted. And here she was wondering if her parents thought the same thing when they left her on the side of the road. Did they think that would be what's best for her?

Now here she was in prison and couldn't help but think of her son going through that life and ending up in the same place. No. He would be better than her and she had to make sure of it. But she had no way to do that. Her son would be born three months before she left prison and she couldn't take care of him during that time. She needed help but Neal was the only person she was close to. She had no friends to help…

And that was the moment that a new thought for the first time in months entered her head. A thought that she had not considered before.

Lily.

The one person that she had felt connected to. The one she had felt at home with. Emma had thought about her often but such a crazy idea had never came up before. She had always regretted the day she turned her back on Lily. It was why when the next chance to runaway came up she took it. She had always thought that her bad luck in life had been worse with Lily but that was only because her a Lily were always leaving each other. When they were together it was like magic…. She knew she had a crush on Lily before which is what had made the lie hurt that much more. She understood later after thinking about it that Lily had been the only person to lie for her. To protect her and not to lie for their own gain. It was different.

Lily was the one that made her feel like home was a possibility and maybe she would be the one to make it happen. Lily could be that chance. With that Emma fell asleep in her dark room with a smile on her face for the first time since entering prison. A small bundle of hope welled inside her. Maybe she could keep her baby and even right some wrongs along the way.

Lily arrived at work that day like it was any other. She was working as a waitress at a small diner in Maine. It had been two years since the sorcerer's apprentice had told her why she ended up like she did. Why she had been alone and getting into trouble. Why there had been trouble when she had been with Emma.

That was a sore spot. She had been so angry when Emma didn't stand by her back then and then on top of that finding out all of Emma's darkness was given to her by Snow White and Prince Charming so Emma would be perfect. It made her angry at the blonde. Even more so than before, but that anger quickly faded.

Emma didn't have that great lucky life that it was supposed to give her either. In fact Emma's life was just as bad as hers and the lack of darkness hadn't made it better. Neither were to blame for the way things ended up. Emma hadn't even been born when those two did what they did.

She was still kicking herself for lying to Emma. She only wanted a friend. Unfortunately the lies cost her exactly that. It didn't take long for her to realize the truth though. The darkness in her called for Emma. She wasn't in danger or trouble more with Emma, but the exact opposite. She had a part of Emma in her and she never felt more content, like she belonged more than when she was with Emma.

That was why when she walked into the dinner today at the age of 18, she had feelings of melancholy knowing that she wouldn't find Storybrooke on her own. She wouldn't be able to reach her mother or Emma until the curse is broken in 10 years. She didn't know if she could make it that long.

She walked through the back door into the kitchen to get started on another shift. She walked to the locker room to get her uniform when her boss stopped her. He was a complete asshole and Lily wouldn't have put up with it if she hadn't wanted to stay in Maine. It made her feel a little closer to her mother.

Her boss started shouting at her which was nothing new but what he was shouting about was. "I am not your personal secretary Starla!" Lily had to change her name after running away and had gone by the name Starla for a little over a year. "If your deadbeat friends want to talk to you have them call you somewhere else."

Now Lily was confused as she had no idea who would be trying to call her. She had changed her name and left everything in the past and had not gotten close to anybody here in Maine. So she let him rant while thinking about this until she heard something that caught her attention.

"Some Prisoner asking me to pay money for so she could talk to you. If you want to talk to your criminal buddies you can call that Swan bitch on your own…."

He didn't get to finish his sentence as Lily was already in front of him with an intensity in her eyes he had not seen before. He backed up until he was against the wall.

"What did you say?" She asked slowly. "Did you say Swan?" She was pale and shaking. Not sure if it was the idea that Emma was looking for her or the fact that this sack of shit was talking of Emma like she was beneath him.

Her boss was stunned for a second so she asked again. "Did you mean Emma Swan?!" She said grabbing his shirt roughly.

He only nodded in response not used to being on the receiving end of the verbal onslaught.

"What did she say?" She asked forcefully.

"j….just that she was at Arizona State Penitentiary and that it was urgent she see you. And something about an apology." She dropped him and stormed out of the building.

Emma was in the bathroom again emptying the contents of her stomach. She had the worst morning sickness imaginable, or so it seemed. It's not like she knew what normal morning sickness was like to compare it to.

It had taken her two weeks to track down where Lily was. Which was impressive since she only had prison resources and Lily didn't want to be found.

Then there was the phone call with the rude man who she wasn't sure would even pass the message along. It had been five days since that call and the hope that she had originally was fading with each passing minute she didn't hear anything from Lily. She couldn't help but wonder if Lily was still mad.

"Swan!" shouted a guard that was coming around the corner. She tilter her head up from the toilet bowl to look toward him to acknowledge his prescience. "You have a visitor."

Lily didn't know what to expect. She had gone straight to Arizona as fast as she could. She wanted to Emma to understand what happened. She wanted to tell her about her parents. All these thoughts rushed through her head as she was led to the visiting room to wait at a table for Emma.

All of these thoughts froze the moment she saw Emma. She was breath taking and had tears in her eyes. And pregnant. Very pregnant. Lily felt like killing someone. She didn't know how but she knew someone had hurt Emma badly.

Emma approached the table nervously fidgeting as she sat. Lily looked so beautiful. She was wearing tight jeans and a band tee shirt that she didn't recognize.

Emma sat down gingerly as she was 6 months pregnant.

They both sat in silence for a minute neither of them knowing what to say.

Suddenly they both spoke at the same time. "I'm sorry." The both smiled shyly at each other in understanding. They both had made mistakes and wanted to start over. Neither had been able to smile like this or feel like this since they had parted ways two years ago.

"So what happened to you?" Lily asked bluntly. She had never expected to see Emma in prison or pregnant.

Emma sighed and placed her hands on her stomach and looked down. "I ran away with the wrong person." She said simply.

Lily smiled a little at the subtle admission that Emma had wished she had been the one she wanted to run away with. Being with Emma made her feel whole again. "Explain the whole story Swan." She knew Emma was good at evasion and wanted to avoid this.

Emma gave in. If Lily was going to help then she deserved to know everything. And so she did. Everything about Neal, the betrayal, and the pregnancy.

"And now the reason I contacted you in the first place." Emma said nervously. She was on the verge of tears for what she was about to do.

She took a deep breath. "I am not going to tell Neal about the baby." Lily nodded with this already understanding and knowing where this is going. "I don't want to give him up for adoption. After everything the two of us have gone through, my son deserves more than I had. And I can't raise him myself. He will be born before I leave prison and I have nothing to take care of him." She took a deep breath. "Will you adopt my son? Will you raise him as your own and take care of him? Please." She was crying after saying the words.

Lily sat there stunned. She gathered her wits about her and stood up and pulled Emma into her arms. "I won't take your son from you Emma. But I will watch him until you can yourself." Lily kissed the top of Emma's head in hope. Maybe everything would be different. She didn't have to wait the next ten years alone. "I will help you but, before you commit to this I need to tell you everything first." Emma looked up confused and worried. "You may think I am crazy but you will still be able to tell if I am lying. If you still trust me after that, then we will do this together." Emma gave Lily a watery smile. The guard arrived and told them the time was up. Lily got up and leaned down and kissed Emma on the lips. It was warm and felt like a new beginning.

When the pulled back they both smiled softly and Lily left the prison. After what just happened she was worried Emma wouldn't believe her, she was worried that this could destroy what she had just got back. She hoped this wasn't a dream and was about to wake up. But the one thing that never went through her head was to lie. She would never lie to Emma again.

She pulled out the classifieds and looked for a job. She would be sticking around Arizona for a while.

Emma let out a huge breath of relief. While she was worried about what Lily wanted to tell her she was excited for a future she could see. Family was finally an option and she had Lily to thank for that. She didn't care if Lily was crazy as long as they were together.

Across the country in a small pawnshop in Maine sat a confused man. He had just sent an email to the mayor about his failure to get her a kid when the adoption fell through. His plans to get the Savior to come to Storybrooke were falling through. At least he had 10 years to figure it out.

In the Mayoral mansion Regina was exhausted. She was unable to adopt a child that she had wanted. She was tired of the repetitive nature of the life here in Storybrooke. Paper work and meetings she had to suffer through while watching her enemies who were blissfully ignorant. The curse wasn't for them as they just lived normal lives with no pain while she suffered. This curse was supposed to lead to her happy ending. She wished it would just end.

At that moment a clock struck and chimed across the small town. Both residents shocked at what had happened.

Regina smiled a little. It was time to shake things up. Maybe an old friend could help make things a bit more interesting.

AN: I know I have other stories to work on but this story intrigued me. I thought it was weird how many stories are out there about Swan Queen but so few with Emma and Lily when they seem like a closer match.

I will update when I can and make no promises it will be quick. Thank you for reading and leave any comments or ideas.