A/N: Well here you go! My take on preteen Emma. It's honestly a bit more fun than even I expected, especially finding a balance between the qualities that are undeniably Emma and the qualities that came from surviving the childhood she did.

While I move the curse along, if you guys have any requests about scenes you want to see, definitely leave it in a review and I will incorporate it if it's possible to without compromising any of the plotlines (which it usually is!). Other than that, enjoy! Also, my daily THANKS!

5 Years Later

"I can babysit Neal by myself," Emma declared to her parents, sitting at the island in the kitchen with her textbook and notebook. "I'm responsible!"

"You are very responsible," Snow reasoned. "But you are still only 12. Besides, Belle is going to hang out with you more than babysit you. That way you don't have to worry about Neal." Snow looked over to the living room floor, where David, in dress pants and a button up shirt, was building block towers with their 5 year old son.

"Going on a date night is gross anyway," Emma said, flipping the page in her textbook.

"Can I get that in writing so you don't change your mind for a long, long time?" David said, getting up to walk over to the island. He kissed the top of Emma's head, causing Emma to let out a groan.

"Dad, stop. You're being embarrassing again."

The doorbell rang, but before anyone could get it, the door opened slightly. "Just me," Belle said walking in. Emma tried to hide her face lighting up when she saw her, but she couldn't. She had always felt close to Belle. After Lily, Belle had been like a second mother to her. No, more like the cool older sister that didn't embarrass her in public and make her do the dishes like her actual mom did.

"Belle!" Emma said happily, and Belle walked over and put one arm around Emma for a half-hug.

"How are you love?" Belle said smiling, tapping Emma's nose to say hi. Emma smiled and returned the one armed hug.

"Good. Just doing homework."

"If we did that," David whispered into Snow's ear, "she would be yelling at us for being embarrassing."

Snow giggled and almost joked back about the price of parenthood, but she stopped herself. Not everyone gets that price. They were the lucky ones.

"Well, we're going to head off. They've both already eaten and Neal is already bathed. Everything should be all set, but you know both our numbers if you need us."

"Everything will be more than fine," Belle insisted. "Go, enjoy yourselves."

"Alright," Snow nodded. "Bye pal. Be good for Auntie Belle, okay?" Neal nodded, giving both his parents a hug before they left. "By Em. Don't stay up too late," Snow said and Emma rolled her eyes.

"I won't, obviously."

"Love you."

"Mom!"

"What?"

"Ugh! Why do you always have to say it front of everyone?"

"That I love you?" Snow said in disbelief. "I do!"

"Love you too. BYE!" Emma was practically pushing them out of the door. Before they left, David held out his fist for a bump. Emma smirked and hit it back lightly. It was their secret way of saying I love you, without actually having to say it. Emma was grateful for it, because she didn't think she could stand her dad constantly telling her he loves her and calling her his princess in public. She didn't think he could, either.

"Everything okay?" Belle laughed as Emma returned to her spot at the island.

"Yeah. I just feel like I have no freedom with them, like ever."

"It's because they love you, that they look out for you."

"I know," Emma sighed. "I know that. I just... it's nothing." Emma shook her head, staring at the empty page in her notebook. She was trying to think of what to write, but her mind was blank. She couldn't focus on the history material.

"Working hard there?" Belle joked, peering over to the blank paper and Emma's frozen hand. Emma narrowed her eyes.

"I'm thinking."

"Well while you think, did you want to watch a movie with me and Neal?"

Emma looked at the empty couch and thought about it, but declined. "No thanks, I think I'm just going to head upstairs and try to read."

"Come down if you want, okay?" Belle offered, and Emma nodded.

When she got upstairs, she picked the brown book up from under her bed. She had put it there weeks ago, telling herself she'd look at it, but she kept forgetting. Tonight, for some reason, it crossed her mind, and it seemed like a good enough time to see what it was all about.

"What's wrong?" Daniel asked, sitting next to her with a backpack bigger than him.

"Do you ever feel weird? Like you don't belong here?"

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know... forget it," Emma shook off the feeling and looked around the courtyard where she ate lunch. It was all the same people. The same exact people since she could remember. She wanted to ask her parents about it, but she didn't want to seem crazy. Of course people were aging. Daniel was aging, she was aging, her baby brother was aging. Were her parents? She couldn't really tell. They seemed to look older to her, but all parents look old.

"I got this for you," Daniel said, pulling a brown book out his bag. "I got it from my mom's place of secrets. I went down there a long time ago and saw it, so I snuck back a few months ago to get it. I've been reading it... and I think you should too."

"A book of fairy tales? Why?"

"I don't know," Daniel admitted. "They just seem important."

Emma looked down at the book marked Once Upon A Time. It was nice of him to want to make her feel better. He was her only friend, and she didn't want him to think she was ungrateful. He was the only person Emma could remember growing up with, besides Neal.

"Thank you," Emma said sincerely. "I'll read it."

"Are you busy after school?" Daniel asked, changing the subject. Emma shook her head, smiling at whatever mischief they would get into.

Opening the dusty brown cover, safely in her bedroom, she read the first page. It was about Snow White and Prince Charming. The first few sentences enthralled her, being much different from the movie she had known growing up. She smiled when she read about Snow White defending herself with a rock, thinking it reminded her of something her parents would do if her dad ever tested her mom. Snow White's story stopped in the middle, where the Evil Queen interrupts their wedding. She wondered if pages had been ripped out and was surprised at how severely disappointed she was at not knowing the ending. The next story began with Little Red Riding Hood.

"I didn't know they were friends..." Emma whispered to herself when Snow White came in Red's story. Emma continued reading and absorbing every word on the pages until she was interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Hey, how you doing?" Belle asked. "I just put Neal to bed."

"Good. Just reading," Emma said, the giant book sprawled open on her bed. When she looked up to talk, she realized how heavy her eyes were. How long had it been?

"What's that book?" Belle said, tilting her head and walking towards the bed.

"It's all about fairy tales," Emma explained. "Except different. They're not like the movies at all."

Belle's eyes widened at the page Emma was on, which was about herself and Rumplestiltskin. Belle, though it came back to her only in flashes with Emma, pretty much had all her memory filled in spending the last five years talking to Snow and David and Rumple.

"Where did you get this?"

"A friend," Emma tried to say nonchalantly.

"Daniel gave this to you? Where did he get it?"

"I have other friends!" Emma defended, then caved. "He said he got it from his mom."

"She gave it to him?"

"Kind of..."

"He stole it?"

"It's not a big deal, Belle! Don't tell!"

"Emma!" Belle said, waving her hands up to show her disapproval.

"He just thought it would make me feel better. He was trying to help. Please don't get him in trouble."

"I'm not going to tell," Belle said, sighing. "But you are."

"What? No I'm not!"

"Yes. You are. You're going to tell your parents you have the book and show them. Do you understand? If you don't, I'm going to."

"But why?"

Belle thought about their story, the part where Snow goes through a wardrobe with the white blanket that's stitched with the name Emma. The same blanket laying on Emma's bed. She wondered how she'd react to seeing that before her parents had the chance to talk to her.

"Because Emma. Those are the conditions. Do you accept?"

"Fine."

"Okay," Belle breathed. "No more reading for tonight, though," Belle said, closing the book and putting it on the top shelf of Emma's dresser. As soon as she left, Emma got up and hid it in her top drawer. She told Belle she'd tell, but not when. Not until she finished the stories. If her parents were going to make her return it, she wanted to know what happened.

Emma stared at the doorway, perplexed at Belle's reaction. She stared at the door for awhile, imagining different ways Snow White and Prince Charming's story ends. She wondered if the Evil Queen died, or if they just locked her up. I mean, they had to have won, hadn't they? Snow White and Prince Charming were good, and the Evil Queen was, well, evil. Good always won. That had been a truth in her life ever since she could remember.

Finally, she got tired of thinking and curled into her bed, waiting for the sound of her parents return and their voices thanking Belle. She knew it was silly, because she was 12 and all, but it was hard for her to sleep before she knew they were home safely.

"Emmy?"

"Neal?" Emma asked, squinting her eyes in the darkness to see a figure standing in her door. "What are you doing?"

"I had a bad dream, and Mommy and Daddy aren't home yet."

Emma sighed, knowing this was true. They weren't home, she would have heard them. Her eyes were adjusting now, and she could see his footie pajamas and something hanging from his arm, probably one of his stuffed animals. "So what do you want, Neal?"

"Can I stay with you? Until they get home? Please Emmy."

Emma grunted, hating the nickname that only her little brother got away with calling her. "Fine, come on," Emma caved, moving to the side of her bed and patting the spot next to her for her annoying baby brother to join.

"Do you think they'll be home soon?"

"The sooner you fall asleep, the sooner they'll be home," Emma pointed out. She closed her eyes, hoping Neal would follow.

Emma woke up to the feeling of metal in her mouth. She tried to gather saliva to swallow, but it was like there was none. Reflexively, she coughed. As soon as she heard the sound, she knew it wasn't a good cough. She looked out the window, seeing light was approaching. She was thankful, she didn't think she could manage to fall asleep again. Grudgingly, she trailed down to the kitchen to get a glass of water.

The darkness wasn't welcoming, and before the kitchen, her original plan, she found herself walking to her parents room.

"Mom? Mooooom." Emma stood quietly by her parents bed, feeling embarrassed that she was waking her mom up on a Saturday morning, especially because she went out the night before.

"Emma?" Snow said it as if she was surprised Emma was actually standing there and she didn't dream it. "What's wrong sweetie?"

"I don't feel good," Emma whined, and as if she needed proof, she felt a cough bubbling up in her throat. It was thick and raspy.

"Oh no, that sounds terrible. Let's get you some medicine and a hot shower," Snow pushed the blankets off her and put her arm around Emma while leading her to the kitchen.

"Sorry for waking you," Emma gruffed.

"Don't worry about that," Snow hushed, pulling out a bottle of antihistamines. She put her hand on Emma's forehead before handing her the water and pills. "You don't feel too warm."

"My throat hurts," Emma explained. "It feels like there's a rock in it."

"Take this," Snow instructed. "I'm going to start the hot water so you can sit in the steam. It will clear your head right up."

Emma nodded, picking up the glass of water to take a sip before gulping the pills down. She walked slowly to the bathroom, feeling like her head weighed about two tons more than her body could hold.

"Try taking a shower to relax. When you're done stay in here with the water running so the steam can clear you out. I'm going to set up the couch for you, just call my name if you need help with anything, okay?"

Emma nodded, already peeling off her sweaty pajamas when Snow closed the door. Setting up the couch meant a sick day. Since she was little, she knew staying on the couch meant being doted on. If it was just a headache or stomachache, it was 'why don't you lay down in bed for a little and see how you feel?' but laying on the couch, that was the real deal.

When Snow walked back out of the bathroom, David was already walking back and forth between the living room and kitchen rubbing Neal's back to soothe him.

"Don't tell me..."

"I forgot to mention," David said innocently, "Neal got a notice from school yesterday that a bug was going around in his kindergarten class."

"Emma got it too. She's in the bathroom now taking a hot shower."

"Probably from cuddling last night," David said, smirking a little at the memory of seeing Neal curled up in Emma's bed when they got home last night.

Snow couldn't help but return the smirk, thinking of Neal convincing their preteen daughter to let him stay with her. Although Emma was stoic at best the past few months with her emotions, she clearly had a soft spot for her brother.

"That was pretty impressive, buddy," Snow mused, rubbing Neal's back. He seemed too out of it to notice. "I'm going to get some fresh clothes for Emma," Snow left with a kiss for David and Neal, and a whisper to Neal that it will be okay and he'll feel better soon.

Snow walked into Emma's room, realizing she was definitely going to make Emma get serious about cleaning it when she felt better. She picked out a t-shirt from her pajama drawer and sweatpants for the comfort level. She opened the top drawer for fresh undergarments, but barely could get it open. Was it broken? No, it was stuck. She opened it as much as she could and realized a giant book was stopping the drawer from sliding open. She reached in to push the book down to get the drawer open. When it opened, she picked up the book, staring at it the cover. Once Upon A Time. She opened it quickly, reading the first page and knowing instantly. How did Emma have this? And why did it seem like she was trying to hide it? Could she... know? No, surely not. She had been sure Emma had magic years ago, and proof was every day they had with Neal, but it seemed as Emma got older she tried her best not to acknowledge it, chalking it up to coincidences every time. She had become different after the death of Lily, as if she knew something wasn't normal with the town she lived in, but wanted to pretend it wasn't. Snow made the decision to ask Emma about it, but not until she felt better. She got the benefit of the doubt when she was sick. She picked up Emma's clothes, including the training bra they had shopped for together much to Emma's embarrassment, and headed downstairs. Both of her babies needed her today.