Disclaimer: I don't own OUAT, unfortunately, but Eddy and Adam do an AMAZING job, don't they? :)
A/N: The title is a line from the song 'Anywhere' by Evanescence. I just thought the line fitted perfectly. This is my first fic for OUAT so I would love to know what you think :) Hope you like it!
They had been walking through the forest for hours, trying to put as much distance between themselves and Hook as possible. Emma could feel her whole body screaming at her to stop and rest. She was exhausted. The dull ache of a stitch was attacking her side and the muscles in her legs felt like they would give up at any moment and she would collapse in a heap on the woodland floor. Not to mention the fact that her entire torso was throbbing from being held by a giant. In hindsight, she should have kept Hook detained up there for longer, but she knew that 10 hours should give them enough of a head start. Any longer and she would have felt that she was pushing the boundaries of protection and self-preservation and moving more towards outright cruelty.
Emma could tell that she was not the only one who was exhausted. Aurora seemed to look as if she was in about as much pain as Emma. Mulan was always a few paces ahead, seemingly in a lot better shape than the rest of the group. What surprised the blonde woman most was how well Mary Margaret, or... Snow... seemed to be coping with the trek. Emma liked to pride herself in the fact that she kept in good health and loved going out for a run when she was stressed and needed to clear her head. Mary, on the other hand, spent a lot of her time at work or at home; marking papers, doing housework or volunteering at the hospital. Yet she was the one that seemed to be able to cope with the physical pressures of living here in the forest. She figured it was adrenaline or just her body adjusting faster as a result of all her years spent here previously, doing exactly this.
Snow seemed to notice that Emma and Aurora were struggling to keep up with the other two women and asked Mulan if they could take a break. Reluctantly, the warrior agreed, stating that she was sure there was a river not far from them and that they could rest there for a while and get a drink.
"Thanks for that." Emma whispered to Snow though laboured breaths as the brunette slowed her pace to fall in step with her daughter.
"Not used to this, I'm guessing." She teased. Emma pouted slightly, not wanting her mother to think of her as weak. "It's ok to admit that you're struggling, Emma. No one here's going to judge you for it."
"I'll be ok once I have a little rest." She panted. "How are you so good at this?"
"My body's used to it, I guess. I haven't aged. It also explains how I can still shoot an arrow perfectly after 28 years."
Emma pondered this for a moment. She figured it made sense, but then again she couldn't be sure. She was still trying to wrap her head around the whole Evil Queen/curse thing. What sane person would believe her if she went up to them and told them that fairytales are real and that her parents are Snow White and Prince Charming? No one, that's who.
"The river's just up here." Mulan said over her shoulder. She was slightly annoyed that everyone was behind her but at least they were still in sight. She knew she needed to protect the two princesses and the girl in strange clothes from another world but they were not making it easy for her when they wanted to stop and rest every five minutes. Mulan knew that she shouldn't complain though. She loved the adventure and the fight. It was certainly better than sitting back and doing nothing.
Once they had finished having a drink from the refreshing waters of the river, Snow and Emma found themselves sat against the trunk of a large tree.
"How are you feeling?" Snow asked her daughter after a few moments of silence.
"I'm fine." Emma replied. Snow gave her a look that clearly showed that she didn't believe her. "Just a little tired."
"Did you ever wonder where you got your 'superpower' from?" She smiled. Emma shook her head, trying to keep her expression as neutral as possible. She knew where this was going. Mary Margaret could always see right through her when she was hiding something, and Snow was even better at it. She sighed. "So, are you going to tell me how you're really feeling?"
Emma wrapped her arms tighter around herself.
"I'm just tired. We've been walking for hours and my body is exhausted." She said, hoping that it was enough to satisfy her mother's worry.
Snow noticed her daughter holding her stomach.
"Are you hungry?" She asked.
"No, I'm fine."
"Are you sure? I'm sure Mulan and I can catch something for us to eat."
"It's nothing." Emma said shortly.
"What's nothing?" Snow questioned. Emma felt her cheeks redden slightly and started trying to look anywhere but at the woman in front of her. "Emma?"
The blonde woman hugged her stomach even more, shifting in position and bringing her knees up to her chest.
"Let me see." The brunette said, moving closer to her daughter. "Lift up your top."
Reluctantly, Emma did as she was told. She heard Snow gasp and looked down to see for herself the damage that the giant had done for the first time. Her torso was badly bruised and she anticipated a couple of broken ribs, but couldn't be certain. She didn't want to check though, the thought alone of touching it was painful.
"What happened?"
"The giant had a bit of a temper." She stated, trying to act nonchalant about it so as not to worry her mother.
"A bit of a temper?" Snow repeated. "Emma, why didn't you say anything?"
"There's nothing anyone could have done about it and, besides, I've had worse." She said, but immediately regretted it when she saw Snow's eyes widen and the look of horror on her face.
"What do you mean you've had worse?" She asked, slowly.
"Nothing." Emma replied. "Forget I said anything."
"I'm your mother! I cannot forget about something like that. If someone's hurt you, I want to know about it. They are going to regret laying a hand on you." Snow said, angrily. Emma flinched slightly at the tone of her voice but Snow didn't seem to notice.
"Just leave it, please. It's in the past. It doesn't matter anymore."
Emma knew what she was doing. She was putting her walls up. Stopping Snow from getting close to her and seeing the real Emma Swan. She didn't want that. She'd just found her mother and couldn't stand it if she left her again. But she didn't want her to know the truth either. Snow wouldn't love her if she knew what a bad child she was. The things she'd done to deserve what her foster parents used to do to her.
She spent 28 years thinking that her parents didn't want her and, although she pretended that she was fine with it, it hurt her all the time: seeing parents with their children in the park or at the shops; seeing her own foster parents favour her other 'siblings' over her; never feeling good enough. Now she finally had a loving mother, she couldn't lose her. Not now.
"Emma, please, talk to me." Snow pleaded.
"There's nothing to say."
"What did you mean when you said you'd had worse?"
"I don't want to talk about this right now. Forget it." She said, standing up. "We need to get going before Hook catches us up."
Snow sighed. She had to agree with Emma, they did need to put as much distance between themselves and Hook as possible, but she couldn't help but worry about her daughter. First and foremost, she was concerned about her health and how much more strain her body could take in light of her recent injuries. She made a conscious effort to walk slower, hoping that Emma would fall in line with her step. After about a minute of trying to keep away from her, Emma found that she had to slow down and began walking alongside her mother.
Secondly, she was worried about what Emma had said to her about having worse injuries. As much as she hoped they were just caused by accidents, she was not as naïve as Mary Margaret was. She knew that something terrible had gone on in her daughters past and that, knowing Emma, it would take a lot of pushing to get her to open up about it. She also knew her daughter well enough to know that the more she did push, the more Emma would close herself off and add another layer to the already almost impenetrable walls around her heart.
Realising that interrogating her daughter may not have been the best way to get answers, Snow decided to approach the subject from a different angle.
"Do you remember what I told you in the nursery? The plans I had for you." She looked to her left to find her daughter's eyes on her, watching her closely. "I wanted to watch you take your first steps. I wanted to hear your first word. I missed out on all that and put your life first."
"You wanted to give me my best chance, I know."
"It was more than that. I wanted you to be happy. I couldn't subject you to Regina's curse. She took away our happy endings but I couldn't let her take away yours. You were so young, just hours old, and so innocent. You didn't need to suffer for my mistakes."
"Your mistakes?"
Now it was Snow's turn to feel uncomfortable. She never forgave herself for what she did to Regina and Daniel and she didn't want Emma to think of her any differently because of it, but she knew she had to tell her. She had to be honest with her if she wanted their newfound relationship as mother and daughter to work. Plus if she opened up, there would be a better chance that Emma would as well.
She took a deep breath and began to tell the story of how Cora ripped out Daniel's heart because of what she told her. It was difficult, but in a way felt good to finally tell someone what happened. She'd never even told Charming.
Emma listened patiently as her mother described the events that happened during her childhood. She'd had no idea what Snow had been through and the guilt that she had carried around with her from such a young age.
Once she had finished her story, the pair remained silent for a few moments, each of them trying to process their own thoughts.
After a while, Emma spoke up.
"I'm sorry, Mare... Snow." She corrected herself. "You do know that wasn't your fault, don't you?"
"Regina is a manipulative bitch. Her mother is just as bad." She stated. "For years I blamed myself for Daniel's death but now I've seen how evil they both can be, I know I wasn't to blame."
"We all have our regrets." Emma said simply, looking away from her mother and back to the path in front of them. Snow reached out and gently squeezed Emma's hand, silently reassuring her and letting her know that she was there for her, when she finally felt that she could open up.
The pair continued on in silence, picking up the pace slightly in an attempt to keep up with Mulan and Aurora.
After a few more minutes of walking, Snow heard Emma gasp in pain. Looking over, she saw her daughter clutching her torso again, tears threatening to fall from her eyes.
"Emma, stop." Snow commands, knowing her daughter well enough to know that she would never admit defeat against her injuries unless she was forced to. She definitely had her mother's strong will.
"I'm fine." She replied.
"So you've told me. I just think you should take a little rest."
"We need to keep going." Emma said, pushing through the pain to keep walking. Snow grabbed her arm to stop her.
"No, we need to look after your injuries."
"But Hook..."
"Doesn't matter. Your health is more important to me right now. That is my priority, and it should be yours too."
Emma pulled her arm out of her mother's grasp. Sighing in defeat, she stopped and rested against a nearby tree. Snow called out to the women in front of her, asking them to stop for a moment. She knew Mulan wouldn't be happy about them having to stop again but at this point in time she couldn't care less. Her daughter needed her help and she would be damned if she didn't try her best to make her feel better.
After a few minutes of Snow fussing about her injuries, Emma was finally able to convince her that there was nothing she could do for her but let her rest. The sun was already setting so the four women agreed to set up camp for the night and continue their journey when there was more light. Mulan and Snow went off to find food, leaving Emma and Aurora to look after the campsite.
Aurora fell asleep almost as soon as the other two women had left, living up to her nickname of 'Sleeping Beauty', Emma figured. This gave the blonde woman plenty of time to think before her mother and the warrior got back.
It didn't take long before Emma had drifted off to sleep as well, but her slumber was nowhere near as peaceful and restful as she had hoped.
Emma was in her room doing homework when she heard the front door slam. The eight year old jumped slightly in her chair at the noise but thought nothing of it as she went back to answering the maths questions on the sheet in front of her.
She could hear her foster parents arguing downstairs. They were yelling about money. They were always yelling about money. She was old enough to understand that they only kept her around for the monthly check. They weren't the sort of parents who would take her on nice trips to the zoo or to theme parks. In fact, they hardly acknowledged her existence half of the time, with the exception of mealtimes and when she had done something wrong.
She heard the front door slam again and got up to look out the window and see which one of her foster parents had left. Alison, her foster mother, was getting in to her car. She slammed the door shut again; Emma was starting to see a pattern there, and drove off down the street. The young girl knew that she was off to the pub to get drunk, which she also knew would lead to more arguments. She'd only lived with this family for 3 months but knew how their arguments went. It was becoming so predictable, which is why she was terrified of what was about to happen next.
Once his wife had left, Eric, her foster dad, stormed up the stairs and straight in to Emma's room.
"What are you doing?" He asked her gently.
"Homework." The young girl replied quietly.
Eric walked up behind Emma and placed a strong hand on her shoulder. Emma's whole body stiffened in fear at his touch. She sat up straighter, keeping her eyes on the worksheet on her desk because she was too scared to look at her foster dad.
"This looks boring. Come and sit with me." He said, leading her to her bed.
Emma did as she was told, too scared to do anything else.
"Do you know why your mother and I were arguing?"
Emma shook her head. Eavesdropping was bad. She'd learnt that the hard way.
"How would you feel about having a new brother or sister?"
The young girl shrugged. She preferred her own company, so being the only child in the house didn't bother her. Plus, she didn't want other kids to have to deal with Eric on a bad day. No one deserved that.
"I think it would be nice for you to have a friend around here."
"You don't let me have friends round though." She stated.
Emma wasn't quite sure what she did but whatever it was, she was obviously wrong. Eric stood up and slapped the young girl across the face. The force was enough to send her small frame flying across the bed, causing her to bang her head against the wall behind her. A small whimper escaped her mouth involuntarily. Emma hated to be seen as weak and she knew Eric didn't like it when she cried. She had to force herself to remain strong.
The older man left the room and went to the kitchen to get himself a drink of whiskey.
Emma slowly brought her hand up to her cheek and touched the tender area. She flinched slightly at the unpleasant sensation and looked down to see blood on her hand. Great, she thought. She knew she wouldn't be able to go to school the next day. Her foster parents were very careful like that. They would call her in sick so as not to get her taken away, and with her the money that they got for 'looking after her'.
A few minutes later, Eric came back upstairs and went straight back into Emma's room. The blonde girl looked away as he entered, fearing what would happen if he saw the tears in her eyes.
When he didn't come any closer to her, Emma plucked up the courage to look up at him. What she saw both confused and scared her. Her foster dad had taken off his jeans and left them on her bedroom floor and was climbing onto her bed. He put his hand on her thigh and moved the fabric of her dress up to around her stomach.
"Don't tell your mother about this, Emma. She won't like you." He said to her, his voice eerily calm. Emma was terrified. He had never done this before and she had no idea what was happening. Nothing could have prepared her for the pain she felt next. Tears started to form again in her eyes and she knew that she would be helpless to stop him. There was nothing she could do but turn her head away from him and pretend that it wasn't happening.
The young girl didn't move until he had left the room. He picked up his jeans and went downstairs as if nothing had happened, but not before promising that if she ever told anyone what had happened he would kill her.
Emma woke up, sweating and terrified, to her mother holding her. Snow whispered soothing words in an attempt to calm the young woman down.
When she saw that her daughter was upset, she sent Mulan and Aurora to tend to the meat that they were cooking, leaving her alone with Emma. She knew that the blonde woman would be embarrassed enough about having a nightmare and wanted her to feel comfortable enough to talk about it if she wanted to.
Snow did nothing but hold her daughter, stroking her hair, until she was finally able to calm down. Emma's breathing slowly began to even out and her thoughts started to become clearer and more rational. She knew, realistically, that it was just a nightmare. Eric couldn't hurt her any more. She was older, stronger, and wiser. She knew what he did was wrong and hated him for it but she had moved on. Or, at least, she thought she had.
Turning round to face her mother, Emma whispered a quiet apology.
"I'm sorry."
"You have nothing to be sorry for. It was a nightmare, Emma. It's not something you can control. You're safe now, that's what matters."
"You shouldn't have had to see me like that. I'm not a child anymore."
"But you are still my daughter and I'm still your mother. It's my job to look after you. It's the least I could do after not being able to be there for you for the past 28 years." Snow said. "Do you want to talk about it?"
Snow felt Emma tense in her arms slightly. The young woman who was always so strong and independent looked almost the complete opposite at the thought of having to tell someone her darkest secret, one that she'd never told anyone for the past 20 years.
Somehow, Emma managed to put on a mask and shake her head, telling Snow that she was fine and that it was just a bad dream. Snow wasn't blind though, she could tell that her daughter was struggling to keep herself together and felt helpless to stop whatever was upsetting her.
The conversation was dropped when Aurora announced that their food was ready. Snow, Mulan and Aurora spent their time talking about what had happened in the Enchanted Forest since Snow was last there. It was the first time she'd had a chance to ask. It pained her heart to know how much their land suffered, especially after the hope of a happily ever after when she and Charming married. Snow shared stories of the residents of Storybrooke, where she learned that Aurora had been friends with Kathryn briefly during their childhoods. Emma, however, sat in silence. As much as she tried not to think about her nightmare and the flood of bad memories that it brought with it to her conscious mind, she couldn't push the terrible thoughts and feelings away.
After dinner, Snow insisted on checking Emma's injuries. She'd put a lot of strain on her body and Snow wanted to make sure that it hadn't caused any greater damage.
Emma tried to protest but her attempts were futile. She figured eventually that it would be easier to indulge her mother now than have her constantly worrying about her until she could prove that she wasn't getting any worse.
Snow was relieved to see that her daughter's injuries had not got worse as a result of walking through the forest all day, but she still insisted that they rested. Besides, they needed their energy if they were to make as much progress tomorrow as they had today.
Once the other two women had finished eating, Emma volunteered herself to take the first watch. She'd already been asleep and, if she was honest, was scared that she would have another nightmare.
Although she'd never admit it, Emma was somewhat happy that Snow decided to stay awake with her.
"Emma, you didn't need to volunteer yourself for this." Snow said, once the other two women were asleep. "You're hurt. You need your rest."
"I'm not that tired now. I guess all I needed was a nap." Emma lied. Snow could tell that she wasn't giving her the real reason but was scared that if she pushed her any further Emma would close up and she would get nowhere.
To her surprise, Emma stood up and walked over to sit next to her mother. There was something about being so close to the woman that she found comforting. She'd tried not to do it, feeling that it was childish, but after her nightmare all she wanted to do was be close to Snow, where she felt safe.
"You're scared of going back to sleep, aren't you?" Snow asked, cautiously. Emma swallowed her pride and nodded. She hated being seen as weak but she knew that whatever answer she gave would tell Snow the truth. She'd already made up her mind about it and she was right, what was the point in hiding it? "It's ok to be scared, you know."
Emma looked away, not wanting to face her mother.
"Being scared is a weakness." She whispered. "That's what my foster dad used to tell me."
"Emma, you're allowed to be scared. It doesn't make you weak. What makes you weak is giving in to that fear which, I know for a fact, you don't do. You will carry on until you literally can't go any further, despite any fears you have. That is as far from weakness as you can get." Snow said, putting her hand gently on Emma's cheek and turning her head so that she was facing her again. That was when she registered what Emma said. Why did her foster dad try to convince her that being scared is a weakness? "Emma..." She said, slowly. "What did you have to be scared of?"
The blonde woman closed her eyes, not wanting to see the look of concern on her mother's face. Inwardly, she cursed at herself for being so stupid and at Snow for being so damn observant.
"Let's just say he wasn't the nicest of the foster parents I had." She stated, opening her eyes to see the worried face of her mother staring at her.
"Can you tell me what happened?" Snow asked, dreading her daughter's response.
Emma shook her head.
"Can't we do this some other time? Maybe, never?" She suggested. She knew it would be pushing her luck but she couldn't face talking about it right now.
Snow sighed. She had hoped that her daughter would tell her something; give her some indication of what happened. Without it, her mind instantly started imagining the worst possible scenarios that could have happened, each one more obscure and terrible than the last. She hated herself for putting Emma in a position where she was caused so much pain. Snow would have given anything to go with her daughter and protect her from that.
"Emma, I know this is hard but you need to talk about this. You won't sleep because you're afraid of having another nightmare. Believe me; I know what I'm talking about. These nightmares won't go away until you face up to them."
"I just... I can't. I'm sorry."
"Why not?"
"Because he said... he said if I told someone he would kill me. I know realistically he can't, we're in a completely different world, for heaven's sake, but when someone tells that to an eight year old it doesn't go away. It sticks with you, it's an irrational fear and I know that but..."
"But you can't help but worry that he was telling the truth." Snow finished. "Do you know how many times people threaten to kill you if you go against the Queen?" She asked. Emma shook her head. "Too many for me to count. I'm still alive, aren't I? My point is that people almost never mean those words. They say them because people believe them and are too scared to call their bluff for fear of ending up dead."
"What if he is one of those few people that actually meant it?"
"Then either me or your father would kill him before he even got anywhere near you." Snow smirked. Emma chuckled slightly, unaware of how serious her mother was being. "There is nothing I wouldn't do for you, Emma. I love you."
Emma looked away again at those words. No one had ever said them to her before and meant it. They had only ever been said to get something from her or to earn her trust, before ripping out her vulnerable heart and leaving her. She couldn't let that happen with Snow. She didn't want her to leave just like everyone else did who had ever said that they loved her.
"Don't say it, please. Don't say those words if you don't mean them."
"Of course I mean them, Emma. I'm your mother. I've loved you from the moment I found out I was pregnant and I've never stopped loving you since then."
"But you don't know me. I'm not who you think I am."
"You're my daughter. You're Henry's mother. You're guarded and impulsive but you will fiercely protect those you care about and never give up on them." Snow said, knowing that she could continue the list with everything she'd learnt about her daughter in the year that she'd known her. She knew, however, that she was starting to make Emma feel uncomfortable so she stopped there, with a slightly more light-hearted comment. "And you're the one person in town who shares my love for cinnamon with my hot chocolate." She smiled.
"Everyone who has ever said they loved me has left me and every time I've ended up getting hurt because of it." Emma admitted.
"I'm never going to leave you." Snow said. Emma search for a sign that she was lying, because at least then she would be prepared for when she did leave, but found nothing. Snow was telling the truth and Emma didn't know how to deal with that. "Both Regina and her mother believe that love is weakness." She continued. "But that's because they think it holds you back. If there's one thing we both know for sure it's that love is the furthest thing from weakness. Love is what is motivating us to get home, to not give up until we see Henry and David again. That same feeling is what is motivating me to protect you. Without it we wouldn't have got this far. You wouldn't have been able to break the curse and save us all. Without true love I would still be stuck under that sleeping curse. Love is strength, Emma, and I love you."
Emma took a breath and said the one thing that she'd wanted to tell Snow for a while but never felt able to until now.
"I love you too, mom."
Snow's face broke into the biggest smile that she had ever seen. She did nothing to stop the tears from flowing freely down her face as she hugged Emma, trying to be careful of her injuries. Emma stiffened slightly in surprise before relaxing into Snow's arms.
The two women didn't know how long they stayed in that position, lost in their own thoughts. They had finally found each other and, for the first time since the curse broke, it felt real. They were together again and nothing could tear them apart. It was the strength of their bond that was finally able to start breaking down the walls around Emma's heart; letting in the one person who she was now certain would never hurt her.
She didn't know why, but she found herself suddenly wanting to open up to Snow. Finally, she was able to face what had happened. She knew it wouldn't be easy to talk about, nor would it be easy for Snow to hear, but she felt she owed her mother an explanation now that they had finally reached this new stage in their relationship.
"It wasn't a nightmare." She started. Snow looked up, straight into her daughter's eyes. "It was a memory. A memory of something that happened when I was a child."
Emma could clearly see the concern on her mother's face, making her doubt what she was about to do. She wasn't sure she was ready for her reaction, but she'd started now and she knew if she didn't keep going she'd never say anything.
As Emma retold the story of her nightmare she watched as Snow's face went from concern to fear to anger. She had to give her credit though; she let Emma tell the story without interruption. It felt good to finally be able to get it off her chest. What worried the blonde woman was how long her mother stayed quiet after she had finished.
"Are you ok?" She asked Snow, when she'd been silent for more than a couple of minutes. She was starting to get nervous about her response. Had she done the wrong thing by telling her? Was she angry at Emma for being so stupid? Was she going to disown her? Tell her she was disgusting and pathetic and that she deserved everything that happened to her?
To her surprise, Snow's eyes softened when she saw the panic on her daughter's face.
"It wasn't your fault, Emma. You know that, right?" She asked cautiously.
Guiltily, Emma looked away.
That was all it took for Snow's anger to resurface.
"That bastard!" She yelled. "How dare he do that to you? And worse, make you think it was your fault!" The tone of her voice made Emma flinch slightly. An angry Snow White was definitely not someone she wanted to be on the bad side of. "Please tell me you got out of that house after that." She said, through gritted teeth.
Emma shook her head.
"Did he..." She started, but couldn't finish the sentence.
"I stayed there for another eight months." Emma said, hoping that it was enough of a response.
"How many times?" She asked. Emma didn't answer. "Emma. How. Many. Times?"
"I don't know." She answered honestly.
"How dare he hurt my baby! I'm going to kill him!"
"Snow..."
"What?" She snapped. This time Snow didn't miss the look of fear that flashed across Emma's face as she visibly flinched away at the tone of her voice. "Oh my God, Emma I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."
"It's ok. You didn't" Emma replied. The two women sat in silence for a while before Snow spoke up.
"I'm so sorry you had to go through that alone, Emma. If I had the choice I would have gone through the wardrobe with you in a heartbeat."
"Then why didn't you?" Emma snapped, shocking Snow with her sudden change in behaviour.
"What do you mean?"
"The wardrobe took two! You sent me through with some kid who had no idea how to look after a newborn baby."
"The wardrobe took two?" Snow asked.
"You didn't know?"
"Do you really think I would have passed up on the opportunity to go with you? To protect you? To let you grow up with a mother instead of on your own?"
"You really didn't know. You wanted to come with me?" Emma questioned, more as clarification now as she knew the answer.
"Of course I did. I have always wanted to be a mother to you. I would never have stayed if I'd have known I could go with you. I love you, Emma. I know you are finding that hard to believe still but I really do love you, with all my heart."
Emma smiled slightly as she tried to stifle a yawn.
"You need to get some sleep. It's been an exhausting day, physically and emotionally." Snow said.
"I can't..." She started to protest before her mother cut her off.
"Yes you can. I'll stay with you. I won't let anything bad happen to you and will still be here when you wake up. Then tomorrow we can find a way to get back home to Henry and your father." Snow smiled at the thought of seeing David again and finally being able to have a proper family with her husband, her daughter and her grandson. She noticed Emma's breathing had evened out and the young woman had fallen asleep in her arms.
"I love you." She whispered, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead. "I will always love you."
