CHAPTER 24

Emma had every intention of meeting up with her girls at the diner. But first she needed to see Archie.

She knew the cricket's schedule well. She had spent years rounding up Pongo, turning to him for advice about Henry, and just as a friend in general. Or so she thought.

She was still angry that so many people she considered friends had kept all knowledge of her girls from her. She just wanted to look them in the face and get a straight answer from each and every one of them as to why.

Right on time as usual, Archie and Pongo were entering his office and opening up for the day.

"Hello Emma. What brings you here this morning?" Archie asked innocently.

Emma rubbed Pongo's head, gathering her thoughts and trying to tamp down her anger to get through this conversation. "Archie. You and I need to talk," Emma crossed her arms and gave him a no nonsense look.

Archie took in her body language. "Well, come along inside. My first appointment isn't for 45 minutes. So I have a little free time if you don't mind me multi-tasking and getting things ready." He held the door open for her, "Would you like a cup of tea?"

"I'm good," Emma held up her hand and wrinkled her nose. She studied Archie as he moved about performing his morning routines. Since subtlety was not something Emma seemed to have, as usual she jumped right in. "How long have you known about my kids and why did you keep them from me?"

Archie looked over at Emma and comically stopped what he was doing as if he had been flash frozen. "I – I,"

"Just answer the question!" Emma shouted. She had begun pacing back and forth and had her arms crossed to hold herself in control. Even though she wanted nothing more than to curl up and cry, she needed answers first.

"I've always known about them. I was there the day they were born," Archie admitted.

Now Emma was just pissed. "You? YOU were there when my kids were born but you felt it was okay not to bother to let me know?! I thought we were friends Archie. We've been through so much over the years. I thought - ," Emma wiped angry tears off of her face with the palm of her hands. "How could you," she whispered her hurt evident in every part of her face and body.

Archie bowed his head and handed Emma a box of Kleenex while he gathered his thoughts. He sighed before continuing, "Emma I am your friend. But Regina asked all of us to swear not to discuss anything that was going on with her."

Emma pointed to her chest to emphasize her next words, "They're my children. MINE. I should've known. I should've had a choice. I wasn't even there when they were born but you were. How do you think that makes me feel?! And you all just lied to my face every day. And you stand there and call yourself my friend?! Were you spying on us?! Did you tell her what we talked about?! I told you so many things in confidence. I thought I could trust you with everything," Emma was screaming so loud she knew she'd be hoarse later.

Archie looked hurt, "Of course you can trust me with anything. You know that. I would never tell anything you've shared with me in confidence to anyone without your permission. And Regina deserved the same respect just as all of my patients do."

"Look Emma," Archie walked toward her. When she moved back, he stopped. Archie looked out the window and then back at Emma, "I'll be right back. Please excuse me." He pushed the Kleenex to her once again as he walked out the door.

Emma blew her nose and tried to compose herself. She looked at the door repeatedly wanting to walk away but needing to unburden herself on Archie. She also wanted him to feel some of the pain he was causing her to feel.

Archie returned to the room with none of his lighthearted vigor. His expression was so solemn it reminded Emma of a pall bearer.

"Emma, I'm going to ask you for something," Emma looked at him with curiosity. "I need you to listen with an open mind. I needed a few minutes to make a couple of phone calls. The first was to my next two appointments. I have rescheduled both of them so I am open for the next couple of hours before I go and start my rounds for the day. I also phoned Regina. As I've told you I would never betray anyone's confidence. It was imperative that I get her permission for what is about to happen. She has agreed that I am given liberty to answer any and all that you need to speak about."

Archie looked at her with sympathy brimming from his every pore. "I'm going to ask you to come and sit over here. I have something to show you."

Emma sat in a chair that Archie had slid over next to his desk. He held a flash drive in his hand. "I apologize for the graphic nature of this video. There is no way to prepare for it. I wasn't prepared for it." He placed the flash drive into the port. He glanced at Emma again before proceeding to playback the video.

It was a video of Regina's kitchen. She heard Ruby giving the day, time, announcing witnesses, and narrating the entire thing.

Her hand flew to her mouth as she took in what she was seeing. Regina lay on the floor of the kitchen with burns and blood covering her and coming out of her mouth, nose, and even her ears. It was really hard to tell the difference in any of it. Her clothes looked like they were burned into her skin. If the seared flesh could be called skin.

She looked at Archie with a shattered expression. She watched and heard Regina take wet, gasping breaths that were so far apart her heart stopped as she waited for the next one to come and go. She listened to Ruby narrate that she had found her in this condition.

A bright light that seemed to come from within her body lit up the entire kitchen. She heard and watched as Ruby moved around capturing the walls, floor, and close-ups of everything.

When it was over, Archie sat next to her quietly not saying a word. He put his hand on top of hers and just allowed the two of them to sit there while Emma processed what she had seen.

It took a while for her brain to work again. When it did she began trembling violently and was almost in hysterics.

Her son had done that. Her son had tried to kill Regina. She knew on some level that that had been true but she never expected to see it up close and personal like that.

She cursed herself for her naiveté. And the fact that she hadn't wanted to see the truth. Henry had made it perfectly clear that he had actually tried to take Regina's life and believed that he had succeeded.

"I – I – I didn't – didn't- know," she got out between sobs.

Archie was alarmed, "Emma you have to take deep breaths. Put your head down between your knees. Slow and calm. That's it. Slow and calm."

Emma shot up and leaned over the wastebasket. She emptied the contents of her stomach and continued to hyperventilate. Archie gave her some Kleenex and a paper bag but her brain just couldn't figure out how to work. Thankfully she passed out.

When she came to, she was lying on the sofa in Archie's office. He sat beside her and gave her a shy, grateful smile.

"Welcome back," he greeted her.

Emma sat up slowly. Archie reached over to help her, "Easy. Easy. You just had a panic attack and passed out. But you're okay now."

Emma stared at him like he was an alien. She was never going to be okay again.

"Why did you keep this from me?"

Archie sighed, "Emma- Regina didn't want anyone to know. She swore us all to secrecy."

Emma's mind still was running around trying to process. "Why?"

Archie was surprised. "I think to protect Henry. I mean – you saw what he did," Archie shrugged.

"I pretty much took the situation pretty close to the way you took it," Archie pushed his glasses up on his nose. "I'm embarrassed to say it wasn't my finest hour."

Emma's face crumbled as the tears started again, "He's my son," she whispered.

Archie held her hand sympathetically but she tossed it away from her. "I could've helped. I could've done something. Oh my God, he's a monster."

Archie shook his head at her. "He's a person who's battling a mental illness. And sometimes they do things when they're in a certain state. That even they don't believe they're capable of when they're being treated successfully. And Henry will need to continue his treatment probably for the rest of his life. That's just a reality that you all are going to need to deal with. It won't ever go away. But it can be treated and get better."

Emma just continued to blink at him. When she could control the shaking in her limbs, she stood and walked to the door.

"Emma? Emma!" Archie called.

"I can't stay here," Emma answered without stopping.

She had no idea that she had subconsciously repeated the same words that Regina had just before she left town.

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Emma walked back home. She didn't trust herself behind the wheel and she could use the exercise.

She walked into the house. Henry was sitting in his customary spot in front of the television set. He and Emma barely spared one another a glance.

Emma walked into her bedroom and lay down fully clothed. Soon it was fade to black.

*****A/N: Sorry I know you all must be getting sick of these. But a few people have commented about my feelings for Emma. Well, here goes (btw we're talking about Emma from canon here not my story):

I think Emma suffers from the same things that all the Charmings suffer from. Henry included. They are selfish, self-absorbed, judgmental, preachy, self-righteous, arrogant, conceited, smug, in love with their own legends and myths about themselves, ignorant, oblivious to reality, self-entitled, self-grandizing, lame, and has a chip on her shoulder for decisions that she's made in her life.

Like I said before she has done zero to impress me as a person, mother or savior. I am still waiting to see what she exactly saved. She did nothing but break a curse that she had already been predestined to do. Rumple made that decision for her and Regina before Regina was ever even born. She really did and continues to do nothing. She has never really sacrificed herself or her body as Regina has and she sure as hell isn't selfless. I don't believe her to be worthy of any of the accolades placed onto her. Sure her backstory is interesting and sad but so what? So are a lot of people's. She doesn't impress me at all.

*Huge breath* Now with that being said, my number one reason for not liking her is what she has done as a mother. As someone who's raised other people's children I can tell you it's not an easy thing to be taken on by people lightly. It takes a certain person to be able to do it.

Emma gave Henry up. Period. There is no more to that. I get her circumstances were bad but she could've gone with an open adoption. She could've put him in foster care WITHOUT giving up her parental rights and come and gotten him later when she was in a better place. She still would've been able to visit and be in his life the entire time. She CHOSE not to. She chose to give him up and walk away from him in hopes that he'd have a better chance. That's all good and well but then she manipulated and bullied her way into getting her way when she had no right (legally or morally) to do so. That sickens me. And I feel it's unforgivable.

Emma understood once she got to town that Henry was actually from a great home, with a good mother, and was loved even though Henry as a child couldn't see or understand that at the time. Instead of working with Regina and working to make her see that she was no threat and that all she wanted was a relationship w her child she did the opposite. She worked with an immature a-hole of a child to go behind his mother's back, encourage him to lie, spy, talk to and about her cruelly because it all made her feel better about her. She should've cared about making things better for her child and worked w him and Regina to mediate some type of relationship. She didn't. Once more choices she made that are despicable.

The thing about taking in someone else's child is that eventually that child is going to get an itch and turn to people who've raised them their entire life and say I want to meet my real parents. It's just a fact of reality. It takes a huge person to be able to handle that. It's why people stay away from adoption and fostering and would rather abuse their bodies in hopes of taking chances that are slim to nil rather than do it.

I believe EVERY ounce of responsibility is placed on the bio parents to step back and allow the adoptive parents to lead. As a bio parent, you have no more rights and you do NOT EVER get to call the shots or tell an adoptive parent how things are going to be or what you think or feel. If they make it clear that you need to back off then you need to do that regardless of how you feel about it personally or how much it hurts you emotionally. I get her situation had changed now but that is no excuse. I can feel for her having the same itch as her child would have to be in their lives but that doesn't mean it's right.

Emma used Henry eating something that she and even Henry understood was meant for her to manipulate and bully Regina out of her way and rip him out of her home. She knew damned well that Regina was and is not and never has been a threat to Henry. She also knew how much Regina loved him and would give for him. Regina has made countless sacrifices for Henry with her body and life, Emma not so much. She was angry and worried. STILL no one's problem but hers. She bullied her way into taking him from her anyway and that I can't forgive. It sickens and disgusts me and any kind feeling I ever could've had for her was def doused with that.

Her stepping in and demanding rights that she doesn't have was/is manipulative, conniving, disgusting, and morally reprehensible. Then again, it is the Charming way. Create massive damage for someone else to pay and cover up your culpability with feigned innocence of they did it out of the goodness inside of them. Like mother, like daughter, like son. Once more she doesn't impress me at all.