Emma in the middle- part 13

I'd rather live in books asked for a oneshot of a further instalment to the "Emma in the middle" series (last chapter 2610) where, after everything the family has been through, they throw Emma a great birthday party and she gets perfect gifts from her parents.

neongenesisevang and guest: Sorry, first come, first served.

Pirate-Swan-Jones: What would you like to happen in the sequel?

So, May Muses will be coming to an end in just under one week :(. So, if you still have some requests that you want in that you might not get in after the month ends (part 4s, various subject matters, old sequels) best get them in now!

Emma had really grown not to expect much on her birthday. A party if she was lucky, kind if not very thoughtful gifts. She knew she was still luckier than most, so she never complained. Even if it hurt seeing her brother and sister having all their wishes granted. All of that changed on Emma's sixteenth birthday.

She went through to breakfast that morning to find, unexpectedly, a pile of gifts waiting for her. She smiled politely. She highly doubted any of them would be something she would actually enjoy.

"Happy birthday baby." Came a voice from behind her. Emma turned around, blinking in surprise. She rarely had company at breakfast. She was an early riser. She liked to be alone and just get it out the way so she didn't have to deal with anyone. When she was very little, her parents were of course there as she opened her gifts. As she got a little older and other things sometimes took priority, Eleanor always made sure she was at the palace early so Emma wasn't alone. But then she died, and Emma was expecting to be alone this year.

"We wanted to make sure we were here." Snow explained. Emma smiled, she appreciated the gesture. Although now she had to properly pretend to like her gifts. Or at least that's what she had been expecting, right until she opened the first gift from her parents and a brand new crossbow appeared in her lap. Emma looked at it in awe. It was beautiful, just the perfect size for her.

"I saw in your last tournament round that your old one was looking a little past its best." Charming explained. "We had Geppetto carve you a new one."

"This is…perfect." Emma said, holding it in front of her. "I can't thank you both enough."

"There's nothing to thank us for." Snow said, coming over and kissing her daughter's temple. "We're just glad you like it."

"I love it!" Emma exclaimed. Snow laughed lightly. She picked up a slightly larger, but softer, package and handed it to Emma.

"Open this one next." Snow instructed her. Emma did as she was asked. Her excitement faded somewhat.

"Oh." She said, pretending to be just as pleased. "This is…beautiful." She said, holding up the dress, a well-rehearsed smile on her lips. "Thank you."

"It's for tonight." Charming explained, seeing Emma's lack of interest. Emma's expression immediately changed to one of intrigue.

"What's happening tonight?"

"Your party, silly." Snow said, squeezing her daughter's hand. "Everybody's coming. We thought we'd surprise you." And Emma was surprised. She wasn't expecting a full on party, especially since she heard nothing. "It's your sweet sixteenth, Emma, of course we're giving you a ball." Snow told her. Emma nodded, a little dumbfounded. This was all much more than she had hoped for. Gifts she really appreciated. A party thrown just for her. In that moment Emma realised something, she should have said something years ago. It was obvious that her parents loved her equally alongside Marali and Neal. She guessed it was just had balancing being royals alongside having three kids. She pulled both her parents into a hug. This was shaping out to be the best birthday ever.