A/N: This is a little story I thought up while on Holiday. Hope you enjoy! Also, I love reviews ;)
A special Thanks to my Beta, McEvoyer...she's rocks!
Disclaimer: I own nothing, Once Upon a Time and its characters were created by Eddie Kitsis and Adam Horowitz and are owned by ABC.
The guilt she felt was crushing. Any happiness she experienced was short lived and replaced with an aching feeling of sadness. The ability to focus on her life in Storybrooke was wearing thin and in its place came the burning desire to find what she had lost - her daughter.
Emma had more happen to her in one year than most experience in a lifetime. She was reunited with her son, became the sheriff of a small town in Maine, broke an evil queen's curse and found out her parents were fairytale characters. Not to mention the time she spent in the Enchanted Forest getting chased by Ogres, fending off zombies and almost having her heart ripped out by none other than the Queen of Hearts herself! In one year, Emma had been given everything she ever wanted, except that blonde hair, green eyed little girl.
break -
"No, no please don't take her!" Emma shouted as she tossed and turned in her sleep, "I need more time, please!"
Emma sat straight up in her bed, drenched in sweat and trying desperately to catch her breath. This particular nightmare had been coming more frequently since returning home from the Enchanted Forest and every time it left her feeling worse than before.
Snow ran into Emma's room and went straight to the bed, immediately embracing her daughter like a mother would do to a young child. "Emma, sweetheart, what's wrong?"
Emma was still half asleep as she answered in a panicked voice, startling Snow, "She's all alone! I need to find her!"
Hearing the fear in Emma's voice, she softly asked, "Who do you need to find?"
Emma's voice cracked a little as she exclaimed, "I have to find my daughter!"
Snow's mind was racing and she knew she needed more information, "Emma, what are you talking about?"
Emma, realizing she was no longer asleep and feeling the tender embrace of her mother, began to sit up and as she did she turned her head and their eyes met. She knew she was no longer able to run from her nightmares; she had no choice but to face her fears and tell her mother.
"Henry has a twin sister."
Emma instantly felt a bit of weight lift off her shoulders as she finally was able to say the words aloud and to her mother, the one person she trusted more than anyone else in the world.
Snow was completely taken off guard; she had to ask to make sure she heard correctly, "Henry's a twin?"
Emma felt her heart break a little as she heard the words spoken back to her. The pain came like a wave and tears began to stream down her face.
Seeing Emma's tears, Snow knew she had heard right. She was beside herself with joy that her daughter finally trusted her enough to tell her something so personal, but she could also see that her daughter's heart was broken, which made Snow's heart ache as she saw the pain in Emma's eyes. Emma quickly looked down to the floor.
Snow was afraid to ask too many questions; she had to be cautious because she knew Emma would shut down if pushed too far. She decided to take things slowly and began by lifting Emma's chin up, allowing their eyes to meet once again. She had a million questions but decided they could wait. She simply decided to speak from her heart. "We will find her, I promise."
A small glimmer started to grow brighter inside Emma, for the first time in a long time, she had hope. As she looked at her mother, she knew without a shadow of a doubt that everything would be okay. She was still amazed at how Snow could comfort her in a way no one else had ever been able to do - if you didn't count Mary Margaret. Emma could feel the connection between them growing stronger and while it still scared her, the feeling also made her heart sing knowing she wasn't alone anymore; she had a mother, someone who loved her unconditionally and was in for the long haul. In that moment Emma knew she wanted to give her mother what no other person could give her, she was ready to let one of her walls crumble and as terrifying as it was, it was also exciting. Emma finally felt ready to go all in and become Snow's daughter.
Snow could see she had said the right thing. Emma began to relax in her arms and a bit of sparkle had returned to those beautiful, green eyes. She slowly rubbed her daughter's back and gently laid her back down on the soft bed, tucking her in with the duvet. As she went down to kiss Emma goodnight, she froze as she heard her daughter utter the four most cherished words she had longed to hear, "I love you, mom."
Snow felt like she could melt. She thought her heart was about to burst as she kissed Emma on the forehead and softly replied, "I love you too, Emma." Her daughter's eyes slowly closed and in that moment the tears began to fall. Snow was over the moon, completely and utterly happy because she had made a breakthrough with Emma. However, the realization soon set in and she knew the road ahead would not be an easy one. She quietly tiptoed out of the room, down the stairs and as she walked back to her bed, a revelation popped into her head and she slowly and quietly said it aloud, allowing the words to sink into her mind, "I have a granddaughter." A small smile appeared on her face as she gently got back into to bed, hoping not to wake Charming. As her eyes began to shut, her thoughts were filled with the promise she made to Emma and how big an impact this was going to have on all their lives, but she was also excited by the idea of meeting her granddaughter.