A/N: I love the simplicity and impact of sentence-fics, so here are 31 of them in honor of Emma Swan's 31st birthday (October 22nd). All beginning with E!
Disclaimer: I own nothing but my words.
Exit
The highway hum is loud enough to drown out many sounds, but not the lonely wails of a child who cries without knowing why.
Effulgent
Later, much later, she wonders if it was the golden hair that drew them in—families who wanted the perfect child, and didn't want her when they found out she wasn't.
Explain
She goes through as many maybes as foster homes, as many reasons as she can think of why two people could have left a child on the side the road, but none of them ever add up to because they loved you.
Enough
When all is said in done, she supposes that Neal probably did love her—in his own way, the way of loving that leaves (it's not enough for her).
Errant
She hates them with the cool sort of professionalism that comes from fighting the same ugliness, over and over again—cheating husbands, sly tricksters, embezzlers, slowly chipping away at her faith in humanity.
Extinguish
Funny, how blowing out a candle on a solitary cupcake ignited a spark of hope that said, "I'm your son."
Elite
Surely, Henry's mother isn't the witch he says—but the contempt in her eyes is all too familiar, and something in Emma's stomach turns.
Elected
Becoming the Sheriff seems like the first real step to permanence, and the fact that Regina fights it harder than ever only convinces her further that staying is the only option.
Effective
Mary Margaret has a way of looking that makes Emma feel guilty, and then annoyed—after all, isn't that look the sole right and privilege of moms?
Elusive
She trusts Mr. Gold less than she trusts Regina, even though it's his very unpredictability that makes him so invaluable.
Esoteric
She can't explain this town, or anyone in it—only that they seem to share knowledge without knowing.
Elucidation
Fairytales are just that until her son is dying—and then she really does care about the happy endings—
Epic
She fights dragons and wraiths and ogres now, but the most terrifying thing about all of it is how damn alive she feels when she does it.
Entice
"I was hoping it'd be you," the pirate purrs, and she rolls her eyes to distract him from the fact that she's blushing.
Evade
Cora's hand pierces her chest, and she's certain that it's over—barely has time to hear Mary Margaret's scream—and then it is over, but not at all in the way anyone of them expected.
Escape
He nearly outruns her, and she almost wishes he had—she didn't really want to find Neal (and not like this).
Emotion
It's not about her feelings, this distrust of Tamara—she can tell when someone is lying, even if nobody still believes her (and Neal never did).
Eclipse
Regret, frustration, fear, uncertainty, grief—all are surpassed by urgency, by urgency: Find Henry.
Exhaustion
The air in Neverland is heavy like a secret, dragging at her heels, and she hates it.
Epitome
It was just a joke, until it wasn't—until their lips met and she found that his hunger and passion and yearning were only matched by hers (but it's still a one-time thing).
Eternal
To sail three hundred years on a broken heart is a testament to love indeed, and if she's being truthful, sometimes it frightens her, being loved by someone like that.
Evaluate
She doesn't have time for this, but if she lets herself, she thinks of Neal in the past and Hook…she doesn't know, yet, what she thinks of Hook.
End
The price of defeating Pan is something none of them can bear, and the fact that she won't remember any of it is worst of all.
Emblems
She keeps the necklace and the shoelace and the red leather jacket, not because she remembers them (they have no meaning in this perfect, quiet life) but because she doesn't.
Engagement
The diamond on the plate looks cold and hard, surrounded by the curl of chocolate, but Walsh's eyes are so very sincere…and for a moment she had almost let herself believe.
Envelop
The memories hit her hard, a blow to the stomach, and she reels under the very force of the truth.
Elevate
Magic is felt, rather than thought—it's a tingling in her veins, a hum in her fingertips, a flare of danger and fire and fierce love in her heart.
Elegance
She can't believe that she said "Princess Leia," like the idiot she is, but as they dance his eyes are so awestruck when he looks at her that she pretends it's just a fantasy, falling in love with…Prince Charles.
Epitaph
"Beloved Son" is what Neal's gravestone reads, and try as she might, she can't think of what else she would put there (what they had was never quite enough for words).
Embrace
His arms are there to hold her if she ever wants them—she isn't sure quite what she wants, but she doesn't think of him as just a pirate anymore, somehow.
Evolution
Her family is all around her now, so much so that she doesn't know what to do with them half the time…but she's certain, too, that she wouldn't know at all what to do without them.
