observations and wedding planners
If it were under different circumstances, Snow would be absolutely delighted to be back in the Enchanted Forest, to be sure.
But their kingdom is destroyed beyond belief, she's separated from her husband and grandson and there's a murderous witch on the loose, so…yeah.
Snow absolutely can't wait to get back to Storybrooke.
Too bad they had to team up with a pirate of all people, in order to find a way back.
A scowl pulls at Snow's lips at the reminder. As they trudged in the direction of the beanstalk, Emma had insisted on shadowing Hook, to prevent him from trying anything funny. Snow had agreed reluctantly, consenting to walk with Aurora instead.
"So, what's your name then, lass?"
It's the first time Hook has spoken since they began the trek. Snow hears Emma snort in disbelief.
"Small talk, seriously?"
"Well, you can't blame me for wanting to know the name of a beautiful woman such as yourself," Snow's hand tightens around her bow unconsciously as she bristles on her daughter's remark. But when Emma replies, her voice is laced with amusement.
"Bet you say that to all the girls."
"A pirate doesn't kiss and tell, love."
Are they…..flirting? Unease coils tight in Snow's belly and she resists the overprotective urge to spin right around and shoot Hook in the face.
After a beat, Emma speaks again.
"My name is Emma. Emma Swan."
"Swan," Hook draws the name out, and hums in satisfaction. "It suits you, lass."
Emma doesn't reply, but when Snow glances back at them over her shoulder, she catches her hiding a smile.
Oh, no.
You have got to be kidding me.
"We go back together. That is the only way! Do you understand?!"
Emma nods, numbly, and some of the anger and pain flows right out of Snow when she sees the exhaustion in her daughter's face before she hugs her. Snow holds her tight, blinking back tears; her hands trembling.
"I know. I'm sorry."
They part and continue trekking after Mulan and Aurora. As they reach the edge of the clearing, Snow sees that Emma has paused, looking back at the beanstalk; a wistful, almost guilty look on her face.
"Everything alright?"
"Fine," Emma says a little too quickly to be believed and starts walking again. Snow narrows her eyes, hurrying after her.
"What happened back there?" She asks. "Up on the beanstalk, I mean?"
"Nothing," Emma says firmly. "Nothing. I-I couldn't trust him, that's all. So I left him up there. No big deal."
From the veiled regret in her tone, it clearly isn't; but Snow refrains from commenting.
And, as it turns out later, it clearly wasn't nothing.
"The time for making deals is done," Hook says, backing away from the cell. There's none of the previous smugness or arrogance in his voice. He sounds oddly hurt and tired. "Just as I am done, with you."
Snow glimpses Emma's expression and catches her breath sharply. She doesn't think she's ever seen her look quite as remorseful or resigned as she does, now. Emma doesn't call out to Hook again, but simply stands at the bars for a few long moments, the set of her shoulders tense; her knuckles white from their death grip around the metal.
Finally, she turns and her face is neutral, but Snow knows better.
She knows this story well. And she knows how it ends.
Hook may have said he's done with Emma, but Snow can't help but have a sneaking suspicion that those words are a complete and utter lie.
"Alright then, tell us everything!"
Snow can't stop the wide grin that breaks out on her face at the sight of Henry bouncing impatiently in his stool, waiting eagerly for her and Emma to share the details of what happened in the Enchanted Forest. Emma, who's at the stove making them all hot chocolate lets out a little laugh.
Snow shares a smile with David. Their daughter doesn't laugh very often, so Snow treasures every single one she hears.
Emma joins them at the table and sets down the hot chocolates. "Well, for starters," She drawls, slipping into the stool next to Henry and ruffling his hair playfully. "We met Sleeping Beauty and Mulan."
"Awesome!" Henry cries."What were they like?"
Snow laughs. "Well, Aurora was definitely a surprise," The seemingly flighty princess who'd turned out to be true and brave and strong had definitely surprised her. Although she lacked skills on the battlefield, she had a compassionate heart and a strong spirit.
"Aurora, as in Briar Rose's daughter?" David asks, furrowing his brow as he tries to recollect. Snow nods.
"Yeah, the same. Briar Rose defeated Maleficent, if I remember correctly, so Maleficent took revenge by putting Aurora under the sleeping curse."
Emma shakes her head in exasperation. "Maleficent, Sleeping Beauty….seriously, what kind of world do I live in?"
Snow chuckles into her hot chocolate. Emma's general disbelief of all things fairy tale and magical will never cease to amuse her.
"Who else did you meet?" Henry prods.
Snow can't help darting a glance at Emma as she answers. "We also met Captain Hook."
Emma stiffens, and then carefully keeps her eyes on her hot chocolate, studying it like it's the most fascinating thing in the world. Henry's eyes widen.
"Wow, what was that like?"
Might be a question better suited for Emma, Snow thinks, but doesn't say it. David frowns.
"Wait, as in the Captain Hook, the most fearsome pirate to have ever lived and the terror of the seven seas?"
Emma snorts. "'Terror of the seven seas'? Seriously?"
David shrugs. "He's a two hundred year old pirate, he's bound to have a bit of a…..colorful reputation."
"Two hundred-" Emma splutters. "But he looked-" She cuts herself off, going crimson. Thankfully, David and Henry don't seem to have noticed, and Snow pretends to have not heard.
Later, when Emma is walking Henry to school and David is at the Sheriff's station, Snow pulls out her largest scrapbook and a bundle of fashion magazines.
She might not be too happy about it, but if her daughter's going to marry a pirate (sometime in the hopefully far away future) she can at least do it right.
"Here, thought you might need this."
Snow accepts the canteen of water Emma hands her gratefully and takes a long, refreshing drink from it. Neverland is a hot, humid place and Snow feels parched from their altercation with the Lost Boys before.
Emma sits down next to her, absently fiddling with the boot laces around her wrist. "They're sure taking a long time," She remarks. "Hook and David, I mean."
"Hook said they they'd have to travel quite a bit to find this sextant," Snow frowns a little. David had been acting strangely before, and the way he'd said goodbye, well, it sounded like an actual goodbye. Or is she reading too much into it?
"Still, they should be back by now."
"Are you worried?" Snow turns to face her. "Do you think that Hook might've…..might've done something."
"No," Emma answers instantly and Snow frowns.
"You sound awfully sure of that."
"If Hook wanted to betray us, he could've by now," Emma points out. "And let's be honest, he's helped us out quite a bit since we've gotten here; we wouldn't have gotten this far without him. Why would he betray us now, after all of that?"
"True," Snow admits thoughtfully. Emma glances at her, eyes narrowed.
"What?"
"Hmm?"
"You're holding something back."
"Nothing at all," Snow says innocently. "It's just…you seem awfully eager to defend him."
Emma flushes and she quickly looks down at the ground, her ears turning red. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Whatever you say." Snow sighs a little.
My daughter is going to marry a pirate, she thinks wryly, and wonders if David suspects it, too.
For the sake of Hook's safety, she hopes he doesn't.
"Mary Margaret, can we please talk?"
Snow flinches at the sound of David's voice and she turns away stubbornly, wrapping her arms around herself. "No," She hisses out, a wave of fear and anguish sweeping through her. David sighs.
"I'm sorry."
"You should be," Snow snaps.
"I know, I know, I shouldn't have hidden it from you."
"Yes, you shouldn't have," Snow finally turns to face him, then, her blood boiling in anger. "But you did. You were dying and you hid it from me. That's not okay, David," Her voice breaks on his name. "How could you ever think it could be?"
David sits down next to her, then, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. Snow leans into him, silent tears coursing down her cheeks as a sob wracks through her body.
"We'll get through this," He murmurs into her hair. "We'll figure this out, somehow."
Snow nods, trying to gather herself together. Glancing around the camp, she frowns.
"Emma's not here."
"Hook isn't, either," David replies and his voice is surprisingly devoid of anger. Snow glances up at him.
"What, are you giving up the over protective father act?"
David doesn't smile. "She looked unhappy," He says, instead. "Emma, when we came out of the Echo Caves-she was crying, although she'd just been reunited with Neal."
Snow's brow furrows. Wedding planner or no wedding planner, she'd still felt that Emma getting back together with the father of her child sounded like a far happier (and safer) happy ending than one with a pirate. And she'd been all too happy to reunite Emma and Neal, but…
"They weren't happy tears," Snow states and David nods.
"She still hasn't told us everything about her past with Neal. Maybe whatever happened between them was too terrible to move on from."
"Or maybe she's just overwhelmed?" Snow suggests but David shakes his head.
"I think it's a lot more complicated than that," He says quietly. "And if Neal's going to be making Emma cry all the time, then I sure as hell don't want him anywhere near her."
"And Hook?" Snow asks cautiously, and thinks of the wedding planner.
David opens his mouth to reply, but then Emma walks into camp, Hook behind her.
Emma's eyes are red and puffy from crying earlier, but she's smiling.
At Hook.
And he's smiling at her, too, absolute adoration in his face.
"Well?" Snow prods, absently wondering if it might come to blows and also wondering; if Hook and David were engaged in a duel, who'd win?
David lets out a heavy, exaggerated sigh. "Well, as long as she's happy…." But Snow can tell that he's smiling.
Snow smiles, too.
That's all that matters in the end, really.
(And the wedding planner. Her daughter's going to have the best damn wedding in the history of weddings, if she has anything to say about it.)
"You've been planning this for how long, exactly?" Emma looks down at the gigantic planner, a bewildered smile on her face as she thumbs through the pages.
An impish grin tugs at Snow's lips as she thinks of a vengeful pirate, tied to a tree; and a jaded princess who threatened him at knifepoint.
"Well, it was definitely after the first curse."