You guys are seriously the best. Thank you all so much, you're the sweetest readers ever :) I'm so sorry for the wait! I have so much school work at the moment I'm finding it difficult to keep up with this story. The same goes for my other story Catching up so if any of you guys follow that I really am sorry. I'll try to update it soon but I can't make any promises, I think I'm going to have to take a break from both stories for a few weeks - consider me on hiatus!
I couldn't leave you guys without revealing the new baby's name though, that would just be cruel! A huge thank you to everyone who suggested names, they were all awesome :D I have a feeling a few of you won't like the name I've chosen, but I'll explain my reasoning at the end of the chapter.
Okay, here goes:
Mary Margaret smiled as she watched Emma place a loving kiss on her daughter's head. The baby girl had just been cleaned and she lay snugly in her mother's arms.
"She's gorgeous, Emma."
"Yeah," Emma said in wonder, letting the infant wrap her tiny hand around a finger.
"I'm proud of you, honey. You did so well." Mary Margaret said, and she watched as Emma blinked away tears.
Her heart ached at the sight, what had Emma been through that a simple "I'm proud of you" could make her cry? It was as if no one had ever told her that before. Mary Margaret felt as though the breath had been knocked out of her when she was struck by the sudden realisation that maybe no one had. Emma had let slip that she was raised in foster care and hadn't had the best childhood, but surely nobody would be able to treat a little girl with such indifference they couldn't say they were proud of her once in a while?
Her attention snapped back to Emma when she said, "I couldn't have done it without you. You saw me - I tried to bolt. If it weren't for you this baby would probably have been born on the side of the road." They were silent for a moment before Emma asked a question that made Mary Margaret's heart almost beat out of her chest.
"Would you like to hold her?"
"Oh, I don't know Emma," Mary Margaret responded anxiously, "I might drop her!"
Emma snorted. "Are you kidding? If there's anyone I'd trust not to drop my kid, it's you." And without another word she shifted the baby carefully into Mary Margaret's arms.
Mary Margaret gasped at the feeling of the baby's weight in her arms. She gazed down at the little girl, and let a tear roll down her cheek as the baby yawned. "She's perfect," she said to Emma, "Have you thought of a name?"
"Yeah… I like Rosemary. Rosie for short."
"It's lovely. Beautiful. Just like her."
"I guess it fits then," Emma laughed. Mary Margaret smiled warmly and handed the baby gently back to Emma.
"Do you want me to go get Henry?"
Emma nodded gratefully. "Please, that would be great."
Mary Margaret glanced back at the two of them before she left and marvelled at how her family had just quadrupled in size in the space of a few days.
x
Emma watched Mary Margaret go and looked down at her baby in amusement. "Do you think she'll ever catch on that you're named after her? I don't think it's clicked yet." The baby wriggled and Emma gave her another kiss. "It'll be our secret for now, then."
Emma heard small footsteps running down the corridor and braced herself for Henry to come barrelling through the room.
"Mama!" Henry ran up to her and Mary Margaret sat near the door. Emma instantly felt guilty, he was probably terrified the whole time she had been in labour.
"Hey kid! There's someone here I want you to meet." She watched as Henry leaned forward curiously to see the baby, "Henry, this is your little sister Rosie."
Henry let out a breath. "She's kind of… crinkly."
Emma laughed. "Yeah, she is at the moment."
Henry was silent for a minute before he looked up at Emma. "Do we get to keep her?"
Emma was surprised, although she probably should have expected it, after all she hadn't really said much about the baby to him as she was expecting to have to give it up.
"Yep, she's ours Henry. The three of us are going to be staying with Mary Margaret for a while, okay?"
Henry beamed at her. "Okay!"
"And I'm going to need your help," Emma continued, "You're a big brother now, so you always have to look out for Rosie."
Henry nodded solemnly and Emma knew he meant it.
"Thanks kid. There's something else I wanted to ask you. Rosie still needs a middle name, do you want to choose one?"
Henry's face once again split into a grin. He thought for a moment. "How about… Wendy?"
"Sounds nice. Why Wendy though?" Emma asked curiously.
"Like in the story daddy used to read to me. Maybe he can read it to both of us when he finds us."
Emma felt her heart plummet into her stomach at the thought of Neal. What made it ten times worse was Henry's obvious belief that they would all be together again.
"Oh, kid I, um, I don't think he's, I mean," Emma took a deep breath to steady herself. "Sweetie, your dad's not coming to Storybrooke. I know he loves you Henry, he loves you so much, but he doesn't want to be near me. And that's not your fault, alright? That's his loss. He doesn't get to see you, and that's your dad's problem not yours or Rosie's. He chose this."
To her disappointment Henry just shook his head. "He does want to find us, I know it! He just doesn't know where to look. He's coming back for us mama!"
Emma, giving in, gave a watery smile, unable to break his heart. "Sure he is, kid. Sure he is."
x
"Ms Swan, I would like to keep your baby in overnight."
"Why?" Emma was instantly alert. She had been waiting to be released for over an hour. Rosie was being checked in another room, Henry was curled up in Mary Margaret's lap; fast asleep. Mary Margaret shifted Henry slightly so that she could gave Emma's hand a reassuring squeeze.
"She's experiencing some minor breathing difficulties, it's not uncommon among newborns, I wouldn't worry. We're going to take fantastic care of her. If you like we can set up a cot for you so you can be near Rosie tonight."
Emma nodded mutely.
"She'll be fine Emma." Mary Margaret said with a smile. "I'll take Henry home and we'll meet you here tomorrow morning."
"What about your job?" Emma asked.
Mary Margaret winked at her. "Don't worry, they owe me a few sick days. I'll just take a few days off."
Emma sighed guiltily. "Sorry. You shouldn't have to do that," she started to say, but Mary Margaret cut her off with a look.
"It's fine. Really."
Emma relaxed a fraction. She knew she didn't have to worry about Henry at least, Mary Margaret would take care of him, but the thought of Rosie having to be kept overnight had Emma almost sick with fear.
"We'll be back in the morning," Mary Margaret promised. "Call me if you need something."
x
Emma had gone for a coffee when she saw them. It was her third that morning and even though the hospital's coffee was probably the worst she had ever tasted it seemed as though she'd developed an addiction.
She knew Mary Margaret and Henry were coming over but it still surprised her when she found them staring into a room two floors above where she and Rosie were staying.
"Hey," she said, coming up behind them. Mary Margaret was clearly startled, she turned quickly, her hand jumping to her throat.
"Emma! We were just coming to see you!"
"I can see that." Emma said, raising an eyebrow. Henry beamed at her and ran over for a hug. She carried him closer to see into the small room they were staring at. She could see a blond haired man hooked up to machines and wires laying in the bed.
"Who's that guy?"
"I don't know," Mary Margaret replied, the tone in her voice making Emma dubious. It seemed as though she was trying to remember something that was just beyond her. Emma studied her face as she watched the man, head cocked to the side. They stood like that a moment longer before Mary Margaret shook her head and glanced at Emma. "John Doe."
"Oh," was Emma's only reply. Henry wriggled in her arms and Mary Margaret seemed to snap back to life.
"Let's go see how our favourite little girl is this morning," she smiled at Henry, who nodded and beamed back at her.
They walked over to the stairs together and Mary Margaret asked how Emma had slept. She just shrugged, unwilling to admit she had not been able to sleep at all, but Mary Margaret watched her with concern, clearly able to interpret the meaning behind the indifferent gesture. Emma was caught off guard – normally she wasn't so easy to read, but this woman seemed to understand everything about her. She chalked up the apparent understanding between them to the stress of having a baby, after all Mary Margaret barely knew her. It would be crazy for anyone to instinctively know another person so well under normal circumstances. Emma convinced herself there was no way such a bond would be formed so quickly if she was her regular self.
When they reached Rosie's room Emma's heart leapt to her throat as she saw the doctor moving towards them. Mary Margaret placed her hand on Emma's arm reassuringly, but looked as though she was having an anxiety attack.
Before either of them could say anything the doctor gave them a wide smile and Emma let out the breath she'd unconsciously been holding.
"Well Ms Swan," the doctor said cheerfully, "It looks like Rosie's ready to go home."
Alright then! My explanation of Rosemary Wendy Swan. First thing - I know the name doesn't flow very well but I loved the idea of having Wendy as part of her name (thanks Meresger and guest!) because of the connection to Neal, even if Emma doesn't realise how deep a connection it is just yet.
A few of you said she should be called Snow and while I loved the idea of the baby being named after her I just could not imagine Emma giving her daughter a name as fairytale-esque as Snow, so I settled for half naming her after her mother (which is where the Mary in Rosemary fits in).
I know a lot of you suggested naming her Ruth or Eva but I thought it would be more powerful if she was named after Emma's mother.
HarryLovesGinny09 - I LOVE THE NAME ANNABELLE! I really wish I could have chosen that but my arguments for Rosemary won out in the end.
The "Mary" part is pretty self-explanatory, and I chose Rose/Rosie for a number of reasons. For starters the superficial - roses symbolise beauty.
But I see roses as rather bittersweet, lovely and beautiful yes, but they also have some wicked thorns. For Emma she has this beautiful baby girl and new family and that's wonderful, but she also has to look at Rosie and Henry and see Neal. She has to see the man that she loves in her children everyday, and is going to be reminded of the fact that he abandoned them (in her eyes). And that's going to be so bittersweet for her.
Another thing is that Rosemary is a sweet herb, and is very fragrant - it smells just like how I imagine the Enchanted forest would
Okay guys, as always let me know what you're thinking. I cannot stress how much your reviews mean to me. I hope the majority of you aren't too disappointed in Rosie's name! I'll update in a few weeks.
