It was a cloudy day in the Enchanted Forest and Emma and her father were getting ready to go for a horse ride and enjoy each other's company. Emma placed a red leather saddle on her brown and white speckled horse, she then situated herself and started to make her way toward their riding path, "Hey dad are you ready?" Charming was excited that Emma was finally comfortable enough to call Snow and him mom and dad. He got on his beautiful and trusted white horse and rode right alongside his daughter, "you bet I am."
The clouds grew darker and thunder rumbled, "Dad do you think we should head back?" The blonde didn't want to admit it but she was scared; she wasn't an experience horse rider and riding in the rain frightened her. Charming could see the fear in his daughters eyes and gently smiled at her, "yeah lets go back home before your mother worries about us."
They started to make their ways back to the castle when lightning flashed through the sky which ended up spooking Emma's horse. Huge drops of rain began to pour and everything became a blur to the blonde as her horse neighed loudly and stood on its hind legs. She did what instinct told her, she held on but the reigns were wet and before her father could even get off of his horse she had fallen to the ground. Her horse ran away into the forest and the only sound could be heard was the cracking of Emma's ribs and the small whimpers.
Charming made his way towards his daughter who had blood running down her face and she was clutching her side in pain. He gently bent down to pick her up but she whimpered loudly, "Please don't hurt me. I won't be bad again." Charming was confused what was his daughter talking about? He would never hurt her but before he could even say anything to her a cloud of white smoke engulfed his daughter and where 28 year old Emma was; there was now 4 year old Emma crying.
Emma didn't know what was happening and she didn't remember anything from her past only small little memories but one thing was for sure, was that the man in front of her really was her daddy and she could trust him. He wasn't going to hurt her like all the other bad men who told her that they were her father. No this one was her daddy and he was going to protect her. Emma tried to get up but her ribs were still very tender and she called out, "Daddy!"
Charming got up and ran to his baby girl. He couldn't believe it she was a little girl and she just called him daddy. He bent down and picked her up but when he did he must have hurt her injured side because she screamed and clung to him so tightly. He gently rubbed small calming circles on her back, "shhhh baby you're okay, Daddy is right here." His daughter finally started to calm down as she started to breathe normally, her little arms wrapped around his neck and he couldn't have been happier. "Let's go home. You mom is really going to be worried now. We need Doc to look at you too."
Charming called for Doc as he made his way into the castle he needed to get Emma looked at; the little girl had fallen asleep and was drooling on her dad's shoulder. Doc came running in, "What is it your majesty? Who is the little girl?"
Charming made his way into what was supposed to be Emma's nursery and placed her on a small child sized bed and turned to Doc with worry on his face. "This is Emma. We were riding horses and then we got stuck in the storm and she fell off and hit her head I heard something crack and then a white cloud formed around her and she became a child." Doc just nodded his head as he was about to make his way to lift up Emma shirt and look at the child's shirt to see if the cracking was her ribs; but the blondes eyes shot open as she began to cry as a memory was playing before her eyes.
"The man who had called himself Emma's foster dad would come in every night to "tuck her in" but in reality he would strip her of her clothes while she slept and the only thing she could hear in the darkness of her room were her cries and his grunts as he tore into her small body. If she fought him she would have many consequences."
Emma scooted her body as far into the headboard as she could and despite the pain in her ribs wrapped herself in a small little ball and began to cry. "I promise I will be good. I won't be bad. I won't tell anyone that you hurt me. Please don't hurt me. I'm sorry." It hit Charming like a ton of bricks, who hurt his daughter? She was remembering memories from her past and if there was one thing he wanted to do for his daughter, was to let her know that she was loved and protected.
He gently pulled his daughter in a tight embrace and began to rock her back and forth, "Shhhh baby. Daddy won't let anyone hurt you. This man he won't hurt you he is our doctor here and I won't ever leave you."
Emma instantly calmed down when she smelt the scent of her daddy on his shirt and she knew she was safe. Her little fists grabbed fistfuls of his shirt as she made it very clear to him that she was not going to let go. Emma's ears perked up when she heart a lady's voice that sounded so familiar was that her mommy?
Snow rushed into the nursery as she heard all kind of commotion coming from the room but what really made her heart pound in her chest were the cries that sounded so much like her baby Emma's cries. "Charming what is going on? Who is that in your arms?" Her voice lowered as she saw wet blonde hair and tears fell from her eyes. "Is that Emma?" Charming just nodded his head as his own tears fell down his face. Emma let go of her daddy and whimpered as she turned and faced the woman.
She tried to get out of her father's arms but her side hurt her so much and she cried because she just wanted to be held by her mommy, "Mommy!"
Snow ran over to her little girl and gently picked her up as the little girl clung to her and little feet wrapped tightly around her waist. Emma cried in the crook of Snows neck as she held on even tighter to her baby but that caused a sharp pain to go through the child's body. "No mommy it hurts." Snow's heart broke as she looked at Charming and it was then that she looked at her daughter that she saw the blood running down her daughters face and heard the whimpers shaking from her baby's lips.
