Split head
A guest asked for a oneshot of…a read and see story.
Guest: But the way Henry found out the truth was through the storybook, how could he do that if he couldn't read? The pictures wouldn't give enough detail.
luvcharming: chapter name and number for a sequel request.
Snow sighed slightly when she heard the obvious sound of the baby gate upstairs being rattled. She knew Emma was struggling with this slight hiccup, but she could at least verbalise if she wanted her mom to open the gate so she could come downstairs. She was the size of a five year old, not five months. She was just being silly. Snow then got up to go to the hall and tell Emma so herself when she heard it. First a thump. Followed by another thump. Then a quick succession of thumps that ended in an ear splitting scream. Snow felt her stomach drop as she ran out into the hall to find Emma lying at the foot of the stairs, and through her blonde waves Snow could already see the crimson blood oozing out of Emma's head. Snow's own head started to feel fuzzy. Her child clearly had a serious head wound. She shook herself. She had to focus.
"Emma, what happened?" Snow asked as she bent down and scooped Emma up. She was still screaming and tears were pouring out her eyes. Snow was extremely concerned. Emma might be the size of a five year old right now, but she still had her adult mind. For Emma to be screaming and wailing like this, Snow knew something serious was wrong.
"I-I-tried to climb!" Emma told her mom between her sobs. From that one statement Snow was able to piece together what had happened. Her stubborn daughter was fed up of waiting for someone to open the baby gate for her. She decided that she was getting herself down the stairs by hook or by crook and had taken matters into her own hands by deciding to try and climb over the baby gate. Unfortunately Emma wasn't big or strong enough as she was right now to perform such a task and ended up losing her grip and had fallen right down the stairs.
Snow knew she had a lot to do and she had to act fast.
"Ok princess. It's ok. We're going to sort this." Snow promised her daughter as she sat her down on the kitchen counter. Still supporting Emma with one hand, she pulled out two tea towels from the drawer. She placed one directly over the open wound and used the other to wrap around Emma's head to try and staunch the flow since Snow was on her own with the kids as Charming was on duty. She then grabbed her cell and called Granny's, arranging for Granny to come out to the car and take Neal since Snow wouldn't be able to leave Emma in the car alone. Then, purely from the adrenalin rush she was experiencing, Snow managed to carry both kids out to the car. She got Neal into his car seat no problem, but Emma was more tricky. She had a vice like grip on Snow and was refusing to let go.
"Emma, it's ok." Snow assured her. "We're going to drop Neal off with Granny and then I'll take you to the hospital where they'll sort your head…"
"NO!" Emma screamed, still sobbing. "No hospital! No leave!" Snow understood. Emma had been in hospital a few times throughout her childhood. Most of the time, it led to a change in home. Emma was worried Snow and Charming were about to abandon her. Snow framed her daughter's face.
"Listen to me, Emma." Snow said calmly. "I am not leaving you at that hospital alone. Not for one single second. We need to go, baby. They're going to make it all better. Trust me, I promise you're going to be ok." Emma was still sobbing, but it was more gentle now. She nodded, accepting that she could trust her mom.
Snow then got into the driver's seat and set off for Granny's. On the way, she called Charming.
"Snow?" He asked. He could hear Emma's gentle sobs in the background. "Everything ok?"
"Not really." Snow admitted. "We're on our way to drop Neal off at Granny's, then I need to take Emma to the hospital. She fell down the stairs and has split her head open." Snow explained to him.
"What?" Charming asked, horrified. "Is she ok?"
"She will be once the doctor's seen her. Can you meet us there?"
"Of course. See you soon." Charming then hung up.
Snow quickly stopped at Granny's so Neal could be picked up. She then zoomed straight to the hospital to have Emma seen to. She picked Emma up and set her on her hip. Her sobs had quietened even more to frightened sniffles. It didn't help Snow's own fear that Emma wasn't complaining about being carried. Ever since the change, she had made it clear that she hated it. Now, she was clinging to Snow for dear life.
Charming was waiting for Snow and Emma in the reception. He had let them know Emma would be arriving and had filled out the necessary paperwork. Seeing her dad and being in the hospital made Emma start screaming again.
"Oh princess, it's alright." Charming tried to console his daughter as he rubbed her back. "The doctor's going to make you all better…"
"Emma Swan?" The doctor called. Snow and Charming got up. "If you'd like to follow me." Emma was clinging to Snow like a baby koala. Snow kissed the side of her head.
"Mama's got you." She whispered. "I'm not letting go. You're alright."
Snow, Charming and Emma were escorted into a small room where Snow was able to explain to the doctor what had happened. She felt so guilty. She completely blamed herself for not going out as soon as she heard the gate rattling. Charming could sense his wife's emotion so laced his fingers with hers in a sign of solidarity. This was an accident. He wouldn't let Snow blame herself.
"Ok dokie. Let me just take a look at this nasty cut then…" The doctor moved forward to look at Emma's head, but she buried herself right against Snow's chest. It hurt Snow dearly, but she pulled Emma forward.
"Remember what I told you?" She said gently to Emma. "We're not leaving. You don't have to get up. Just let the doctor see your head and he'll make it all better." Snow took Emma's tiny hands. "I'm right here, and I'm going nowhere."
By the time they had collected Neal, Emma had crashed out in the car, exhausted from the trauma of the day. Snow gently carried her into the house with Charming carrying Neal and laid her down on their bed. The thought of Emma being upstairs unsupervised make Snow feel sick. Charming could see the worry flooding his wife's face as she looked down at Emma, her eyes wet.
"Snow." He said quietly. "This was an accident. You can't blame yourself…"
"Can't I?" Snow sniffled. "If I had just gone as soon as I heard that gate rattling. I should have been watching her, Charming. She's so tiny right now. So fragile…she could have died if she'd hit her head just a little harder. I'm a terrible mother…"
"Hey." Charming interrupted her terrible train of thought. He came and sat on the edge of their bed beside her, with Emma peacefully snoozing away beside them. "We can't live our lives on 'what ifs' Snow. Today, something bad happened. We learn from it, and we move on. Emma's ok. You did an amazing job keeping calm and getting her to hospital. You kept her feeling safe when she felt like her whole world was falling apart. You're the farthest thing from a terrible mother, Snow. You're an amazing mother, to both our kids." Charming looked to where Emma was lying peacefully on the bed. "Come on." He said, gently pulling Snow up with him. He knew if he let her, Snow would sit there all night, worried Emma would hurt her head. "We'll be back later when it's time for bed. You need to relax now too. It's been a hellish day." Snow murmured in agreement. She looked back towards Emma guiltily. "Come on." Charming encouraged her. "You can rest now, just like she is. Reluctantly, Snow allowed Charming to lead her away. He knew that was what was best for Snow right now. For he also knew that she would not sleep tonight, at least not properly, as she watched over their wounded little soldier. Just like he would be doing.
