A/N First of all I want to apologise followers of my other 2 stories, I promise I will continue with them, I just finished my law exams and there was zero inspiration, however this idea kept bugging me for a while, so I started writing it up, so I thought I will share. Please comment if you want me to continue with this story.
As for other 2, I shall be updating them in the next few days, just wanted to get this one out first.
Thank you for bearing with me and again apologies for mistakes!
This story takes place after the Welcome Party at Grannies, when Snow and Emma came back from FTL land. No Archie's fake deaths, nor Gold cashing in favors happened yet.
Snow was the last one to enter the little loft apartment following her entire family in front of her. It was such an overwhelming feeling, suddenly, house so full and everyone talking, laughing, rooms quickly filled with noises, completely changing the atmosphere she had there for a long time. It was curious too, as Mary Margaret she never realised how empty it has been, how lonely she has been, how completely deserted her life was and then Emma entered her life. It suddenly moved, completely unaware of any curse whatsoever, she felt alive and the void she didn't realise she had in her life was filled. Now? She had her husband laughing at some antics Henry was pulling while he was placing leftovers in the fridge, Henry, grinning from ear to ear, following Charming like a puppy dog and Emma, her little baby girl, not so little anymore, was lazily lounging on the coach, flipping through channels. Still dressed, shoes on and Snow smirked. Dwelling those few seconds on her entire family here, together, with no imminent danger coming for a change was something she didn't expect to happen, probably ever. And boy, it was beautiful.
Before she was caught staring and marveling at each family member she slipped her shoes off, placing her coat on the coat rack and hurried over to Emma, who was fighting to keep her eyes open.
"Do you need help?"
Emma blinked her eyes open suddenly awake from the sound of her mother's voice and registering she's been spoken to.
"What?"
"Shoes, Emma"
"Uh" Emma just now realised she was fully dressed as she was at Grannies. "Oops" she wiggled shoes off her feet, then pulling her feet up to her body.
Snow smiled, she could see how tired Emma was. Without a word she picked them up, clearly seeing how Emma was going to fall asleep any minute and fought with herself deciding whether to ask to help her go upstairs or just be very egoistic and have her here for few moments more.
She walked over leaving the shoes and then retrieving a blanket from her bed, deciding she won't bother Emma and have her for few moments more here, until moving her to her own bed.
Snow walked over expecting to find Emma asleep already, but surprisingly Emma was still fighting it, she was laying down on the coach but keeping her interest on some old tv show that was on.
Snow without saying a word draped a blanket over Emma and sat in the corner.
"Thanks" Emma murmured snuggling into the blanket. "I should go upstairs" Emma added.
"You can stay, if you want." Snow said hopefully. "Your father will move you up later, don't worry"
What it seemed the most innocent suggestion and natural, in Snow's point of view, apparently set alarms in Emma's head who quickly snapped her head up looking at Snow with her eyes widened. "Oh no, that's not necessary" Emma said sheepishly. Snow understanding now this was crossing those boundaries she was trying so hard to overcome.
"I'm just…gonna. Go up." Emma yawned getting up. Snow smiled weakly nodding. "Early morning and stuff" Emma tried to explain.
"Okay, Emma, have a good night" Snow touched her hand. Emma smiled back, at least not brushing this off and Snow decided just to conform with those little progresses she was making.
"You too. See you in the morning" Emma replied going up the stairs. Henry was already in the shower, sent by Charming and it was just Snow and Charming left downstairs.
Snow took the blanket she gave for Emma, snuggling into it and without even bothering to change the channel she stared at the tv screen, lost deeply in her thoughts.
"Didn't know you liked I dream of Jeannie" Charming's voice brought her back, hell knows after how long.
"Hmm?"
"Hey" Charming sat down next to Snow. "Everything's okay?"
"Yeah, better than ever" Snow smiled.
"Why do I have a feeling you're over-thinking things?"
"I'm just…" Snow thought for a moment. "Well that's silly. I was just thinking how odd it was, not realising how alone I was here entire time, now having you all here and it's like I have been missing this my entire life and yet I had no idea?"
Charming nodded knowingly. "Curse."
"Yeah. I just sometimes think, how could I forget? I know it's a curse and I know it's silly, but I feel sometimes I should have known or felt like when I saw Emma for the first time here, that she's different, she's my daughter, you know, this sort of connection you should never ever forget!"
"Okay, hold that here, Snow." Charming raised his brows. "That is some serious over-thinking. First of all, like you said, curse made you forget everything, it erased every possible feeling you had as Snow, Mary Margaret was opposite of what you were as Snow, you can't even possibly blame yourself like that. AND, you have been with her ever since the moment she got here, you became best friends, so whatever you didn't remember your heart still did and you were always for her."
"I know." Snow's eyes filled with tears, touched by Charming's words. "Still there are some sort of things I wish I had never told her, or spoken to her this way, or just been even more for her. It's just like…she was right here, all the time and I had no clue!"
"Yet you still loved her and she loved you back, right? Now what should I say? I wasn't even close to her. Heck, she probably even hated me. "
Snow rubbed Charming's cheek, comforting him with her warmth. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have even brought that up. I just wish like somehow, we could get back that time, every moment missing without her or not knowing it's her. But it's impossible."
"Well, we have rest of our lives ahead for that, right?" Charming smiled.
Snow nodded.
"And we're gonna smother her with love whether she wants it or not."
"And tuck her in, kiss her goodnight, spoil her rotten…" Snow grinned beginning to imagine every little thing they will have to share together.
"And teach her to ride a horse and whatever skill she wants to learn, cheer her every time she does anything good or bad, pretty much kill everyone who even tries to hurt her…" Charming continued, grinning himself.
"Oh, dress her up in a ball dress" Snow mused grinning. Charming chuckled at that.
"I'd say good luck with that, but knowing you, probably that's gonna happen sooner than I think"
Snow nodded proudly. "Oh and we're totally gonna make her weep in embarrassment. Whether is smushing her with hugs and kisses in front of everyone or taking out most embarrassing cute stories from parents vault. Yep!" Snow giggled.
Charming kissed Snow's nose. "Better now?"
"Yeah" Snow smiled in response. "A lot" she leaned placing her head on his shoulder. "Wish it all would happen like now, though, we already waited long enough."
"And we can wait a little bit longer, fact is, it will happen." Charming said, full of faith like always.
Snow closed her eyes, feeling tired just as much as Emma earlier. "I'm starting tomorrow" she smiled with her idea.
"What?" Charming looked at her amused.
"Tucking her in."
"I would try talking you out of it, but I know it's probably useless."
"Yep" Snow yawned. She had her mind set and this was it.
Charming wrapped the blanket over his wife, who was soundly asleep as he held her and let himself marvel for few moments over everything that has been happening. His nightmares were still keeping him awake, although it was going away slightly, he knew he was still going to stay up as much as he could. He watched Snow sleep for few moments, feeling so full and content he realised he knew exactly how she was feeling earlier. It was still strange how this curse stuff worked and how he had missed on things he didn't realise he was missing. Grateful it was over now, grateful they managed to be happy in the end.
It was as if whiplash when he was fighting with newborn Emma in his hand, when he should have had a right just to stay there, for few moments, grasping the fact that he became a dad, he had a little tiny human being, part of himself and part of love of his live in there and it was so precious, more precious than life itself. But no, he never had that moment, he never had the moment to kiss Emma's head and say how beautiful she was, how he'd guard her with his life, which he did. And just how, he was happy, because that happiness he allowed to feel himself for those 5 minutes they had with newborn Emma, was ripped away right from him that moment.
He remembered that moment when Snow suddenly decided to send Emma way, regardless that she was born early and how he couldn't even begin to imagine, just receiving this miracle in his hands, to be taken away. It seemed unjust, unfair and beyond any understanding. He thought Snow was out of her mind even suggesting to separate from baby Emma for a second and then it was up to the biggest sacrifice ever. Which lead them to now. This moment. Sit and digest everything that has happened, how as if they suddenly were awake from deep slumber, no longer tiny Emma here, but same baby girl bringing entire family back together. Heck, sure, he felt a tingle of sadness and sorrow just to think how he never had a chance to make Emma the happiest little princess in all realms, spoil rotten as she deserved and making sure she was happy. But now they had that chance, all of them. And it filled him with immense joy so he decided just to focus on that, because he knew from now on they could only be happy. They have everything for it – they have each other. They found each other.
He kissed Snow's head, carefully, as if she were like a porcelain doll, lifting her up in his arms, he carried her to their bedroom, which he's done so many times now and mastered it perfectly. Snow snuggled into the pillow and continued sleeping, undisturbed.
Charming listened for a moment, realising the entire apartment was silent, gathering up the courage, he sneakily walked up the stairs, making no sounds whatsoever. Carefully, he opened Emma and Henry's room's doors, hearing only small Henry's snores, he braved in, walking over to the bed were both, Emma and Henry were sleeping. Henry's arms draped all over bed, one over Emma's head and nearly throwing Emma out of the bed, who was so out of this world that didn't even care, her arm outside bed and soon, most likely, her entire body too if she didn't move.
David silently chuckled, wishing he had a camera because that was the utterly most adorable view he's ever seen and for a moment they even looked like kids, both of them. With his sneaky skill so mastered, Charming moved Henry a little so he wasn't hogging entire bed, moving his arm from Emma's head. Then he took another brave step, moving Emma entirely into the bed, so her hand wasn't falling out either. Happy, she didn't even stir, apparently deep slumber running in their very sleeping cursed family, he took another risk, remembering Snow's promise of tucking her in tomorrow. Well, if she was going to do that, he would go ahead and place a kiss on Emma's head.
"Sleep tight my beautiful princess" he whispered, brushing her curls away from her forehead with his thumb. "Papa loves you so much."
Emma didn't even move. Feeling happy and content, Charming watched her for a few moments, just enjoying having this chance now to be close to her and take it all in, as soon as she moved, turning to the other side, he decided not to cheat the luck anymore and promptly walked out of the room, hoping not to make things worse, in case she wakes up and gets freaked out. Still, the happiness he was feeling was so enormous it seemed to burst out of his chest.
He walked over, getting into bed with Snow, who instinctively moved to him in the place she always sleeps, over his chest.
"You didn't tuck her in, did you" she surprised him, speaking sleepily with her eyes closed.
Charming couldn't help but laugh. "No, I leave it to you tomorrow, I checked the waters, you'll be able to do it without a problem, little miss, sleeps like a log"
"Tell me about it." Snow yawned. "One time we thought we heard an ogre, Mulan and Aurora panicking, while Emma wouldn't even move. I thought I will have to carry her but Mulan came up with brilliant idea to splash water over her"
Charming gasped now laughing harder. "Let me guess…it didn't help"
"Well lets say our little baby girl has a colourful vocabulary which I still have to work on, but nope, she turned over and continued."
"That's my girl" Charming grinned.
"Yeah, but, try picking her up and the girl jerks up and is awake as ever. I guess, good thing at least something works?" Snow sighed.
"She's your size, Snow, I'm sure she just didn't want you to get injured" Charming kissed her head.
"Right." Snow murmured, too tired to dwell on that now. "Goodnight, Charming"
"Goodnight, my love"
That night Charming had no nightmares at all, for the first time ever. One of the rarest and strangest nights ever. The only thing ever awakening was Snow's kisses in the morning.
"Good morning" David heard as soon as he opened eyes, with his beautiful wife in front of him, kissing him as she was laying on top of him.
"You didn't have any nightmares" Snow smiled as he kissed her back.
"It appears so." He realised how light it was in entire apartment. "What time is it?"
Snow glanced at the clock on the wall. "11! Wow. I can't believe we've slept for so long" she rested her head over his chest.
"Neither can I." Charming looked groggily around him. "Has Emma left?"
"I didn't hear! She must have, but strange she wouldn't wake us up"
"Yeah, I was meant to help her today" Charming remembered. "Maybe she's asleep too?"
"Doubtfully, Henry had to be at school few hours ago." Snow moved out of the bed. "How about I'm gonna check if they left and maybe then we could…" Snow smiled wickedly.
Charming grinned in response.
"Well, that's an excellent idea, wife" he stretched in the bed all happy while Snow giggled putting her robe on. And just then, that moment, there was a piercing loud cry that reverberated entire apartment. It was more of a scream but at the same time a desperate wail that completely shook Charming and Snow in shock. Both staring at each other with their eyes wide in panic. It came from upstairs but it sounded nothing like either Henry or Emma, still, this was the scariest sound ever that even made Snow tremble in fair. It was followed by really loud cries and neither Snow or Charming waited a second more, both running together upstairs and bursting into Emma's room.
It appeared to be completely empty, bed messily left just as if Henry and Emma slept like before. No sight of either of them, until Charming spotted a small bundle, wrapped in sheets from the bed , just next to it, source of the wails. Snow's eyes following his and both stared in shock, not being able to move a muscle. There was a head peeking out of the sheets, few blonde curls hanging out of the blanket and entire face filled with tears. A small little girl, no older than 5 years was screaming on top of her lungs, visually, upset with a raw cut over her head that had blood coming out.
Charming opened his mouth no sound coming out until he felt Snow's hand in his, she was so cold and shivering he wondered if his body responded the same.
"E..Emma?" Snow gasped finally. The little girl ceasing her cries and finally meeting her scared blue eyes with theirs.
"Oh my God" Charming gasped. "Emma."