A.N: Hellooo! Apologies for the time it's taken to get this little chapter up, life has been getting in the way a bit this week. Still, only one more week until new Once so we can all have a good old smile at that :) As I say every time, each review makes my heart lift a little so thank you to one and all. Many thanks for reading and sending you all lots of strength to get through until next Sunday.

'Henry and I are having some hot chocolate, do you want-'
Mary Margaret stopped mid-sentence when she realised her daughter was asleep. She couldn't help the overwhelming combination of pride and love that began in her heart and rippled through her body. When it reached her face, a soft smile spread across it and she let out a contented sigh.

In the orange glow of the late evening sun through pale curtains, Emma's hair was spread around her head like a golden halo and she looked more peaceful than she had done since the false alarm. Mary Margaret carefully considered how this was Emma at her most vulnerable. No matter what her age, she was a child when asleep. The brunette crept over and perched on the edge of the footstool Emma had been using to soothe her swollen ankles. She prayed that Emma would not stir and then stared unashamedly, drinking in every inch of her daughter. She suspected every parent felt this way about their child, but God hers was beautiful.

Mary Margaret's attention was stolen for a moment as tiny flecks of dust danced in a chink of sunlight that had pierced its way through a gap in the curtains. She studied their movements vacantly until suddenly, a soft moan came from the couch. Without even thinking, her eyes darted towards the sleeping blonde whose calm face was no more. Every muscle was now tensed, her eyebrows almost joined in the centre and Emma's chest heaved with uneven, laboured breaths. Mary Margaret watched with concern for a minute or so, unsure whether she should pull her daughter from this painful slumber or let her ride it out. Her decision was made for her when, as quickly as it had begun, the blonde's face relaxed, her breathing evened out and she turned her head slowly to fall deeper into sleep.

Later that night, when Henry and Mary Margaret were clearing the table after dinner, David ushered his daughter into her living room to sit down. She felt like she was a fragile object he was scared to break.
'Dad, really, I'm fine!' she protested, rolling her eyes. He was having none of it.
'Yes, you're fine now and I'd like to keep it that way,' he replied with a cheeky glint in his eye. 'Besides, there's something I want to talk to you about.'
Emma sighed dramatically.
'Look, if it's about Henry not wanting to go on the field trip I've already spoken to him and I'm not going to force it. Poor kid's been through-'
'It's not about Henry.'
'Oh.'
'I actually wanted to talk about you.'
Emma frowned deeply but let her father continue.
'Your mother told me you were having a nightmare this afternoon.'
Busted. A flush of pink rose up her face as she desperately tried to think of a way to brush it off as nothing.
'I... uh... yeah,' she finally admitted. 'I didn't know she knew about that.'
A sympathetic smile twitched across his features and he gave her shoulder an encouraging squeeze.
'So, do you want to talk about it?'
'Not really but I feel like you're going to make me anyway.'
'Emma, I can't make you do anything, you know that,' he said with a wry smile, 'but I would love for you to share this with me.'
The saviour sighed defeatedly and prepared to speak.
'Okay, well ever since Neverland I've had these dreams about things that happened there. At first they were all about Neal and Henry but they've been changing over the past couple of months.'
'And what happened in them?' David asked.
'Sometimes I was reliving Neal's... uh... the moment when Neal...'
'Died?'
She nodded.
'And then I kept having one where we couldn't save Henry. Where Pan won and we lost Henry too.'
'But Henry is safe and Pan is gone.'
'I know. I guess my brain just keeps going back to those moments.'
Her voice was trembling with emotion but David pressed on.
'You said they've been changing?'
Once again, Emma nodded her reply.
'The one today was about the baby. I've had it before, too. It's one where I go into labour but when we get to the hospital, Dr Whale tells me the baby has died. Something to do with her life being tied to Neal's.'
She shrugged a little, trying to make it seem unimportant.
'But you know she's fine, Emma. You've been to see Whale and she's perfectly healthy.'
'Sure, for now, but what if I get to the hospital and something happens. What if my dreams aren't just dreams? What if I'm seeing the future? We all know my magic has been a little screwed up since I've been pregnant.'
Her arms were waving frantically around as she finally externalised the thoughts that had been saturating her brain for months.
'It can't be,' David replied, looking deep into her eyes to comfort the unrest within. 'It can't be the future because Henry is here and he's fine. Pan didn't win.'
Emma nodded her head as a silent tear meandered down her left cheek and David was struggling to see through the mist that clouded his bright blue eyes.
'And if you think I'm going to let anything happen to this baby of yours, you don't know me as well as I thought you did.'
They both shared a watery smile.
'Thanks, dad,' Emma murmured as David pulled her into his chest and held her there. It was as though his arms were transferring every ounce of strength Emma needed. He planted a kiss on the top of her head and, at that moment, realised his wife was leaning against the door frame, watching. For how long, he couldn't be sure but as their eyes met he was confident of one thing: the family that had been torn asunder was, at long last, being glued back together.