Alright, this is the last time I'm addressing the trolls: I did not mean for Emma's sarcasm to be a bad thing, it's one of the things I love about her and Charming. But whatever, you are going to think what you want and if you don't like it, don't read. Clearly, this story isn't your cup of tea and that's alright. Use your time to read stuff you do enjoy. On an unrelated note, I know this may come up with how Snowing reacts to the people that caused them being separated from Emma. Since this is an AU, the revelation of what they did in 4B didn't happen in this.

I'd like to take the time to give a shout out to HerBlondeToy, for standing up for me with these trolls. Also, she has amazing stories, especially her Law and Order/OUAT crossover story, Law and Order: Once Upon A Time. Check it out!

Chapter Eight: Betrayal

"I told Geppetto to tell you." Those were the first words to escape Blue's mouth. Snow and Charming's eyebrows arched. They had a feeling she was going to try to shift the responsibility, but this just seemed a bit fast. They could see Geppetto hang his head, clearly feeling ashamed.

"You could've told us yourself," Charming replied, Snow was too stunned to speak. "Instead of going to him, you should've came to us."

"I'm the head of the fairies, I had to make sure…"

"I'm sorry but we were about to be cursed. There was nothing any of us could do but wait for it to hit us," he interrupted. "What did you have to be sure of? That you all had your wands tucked away?"

"Everything I've ever done, was for the greater good," Blue protested.

"You told us the wardrobe took one," Snow continued for her husband. "You lied to us."

"Geppetto said he wouldn't build the wardrobe unless Pinocchio was guaranteed a spot," the fairy tried to protest.

"She is telling the truth," Geppetto said, looking up. "I didn't know what the curse would do to him, if it would turn him to wood. I had her lie to you."

"But in the end, you knew that I had to be the one to go with her," Snow said, looking at Blue. "You knew what he would do, didn't you?"

"I'm not a mind reader, all I could do was give him my advice," Blue told her, her voice on the line of her usual cheeriness/condescending nature and frustration. She was trying to recover herself, she didn't want anyone to see her for outside what she let them. "I told him to let you know that it took two. If I had told you the truth in the first place, he wouldn't have built it and then Emma would've been cursed too."

"I could've gone with her," Snow could feel the tears gather in her eyes. She glanced over at her daughter, who wasn't paying attention to the conversation, she was having her own with August. "I could've raised her, been there for her."

"I am so sorry," Geppetto spoke up. "I was just trying to do what was best for my son."

Snow stared at him. She wanted to understand, so badly. He had given up his child, his one chance to be a father, to protect his son. She had given up Emma to protect her, but she didn't need to. She could feel Charming's go around her and while she didn't pull away, she didn't move into his embrace either.

"I understand doing what is right for your child," she said, quietly. "I had to do what was best for mine, but in the end, it wasn't. What was best was for her to have one of us and she didn't. She had your son. They were lucky to be adopted, what if they had just been alone forever? A little boy can't take care of a baby."

"You had every right to do what you wanted with your own child, but not at the expense of ours," Charming added.

Geppetto nodded, he didn't know what to say in response. His choice had been a rash one, he hadn't thought it through. In the beginning, when he agreed to build the wardrobe, he had thought at least Pinocchio would have Snow, a mother. In the final moments, all he could hope for was his safety. He hadn't thought about the princess, about what kind of pressure he was putting on his son.

"So," Blue interrupted everyone's thoughts. "What are you going to do about this now?"

"We can't punish the two of you, it'd be no use. Not to mention," Charming sighed. "No matter how badly the two of you betrayed us, you weren't the ones to create the curse in the first place. That's what we have to focus on right now."

"Just know we're keeping a close eye on you both," Snow told them. "We trusted you both and you broke that, deeply."

Blue seemed to care less, but Geppetto clearly felt guilty. Snow was starting to feel bad for the man, wondering if they were being too harsh. At the same time, she had to think about her own family.

"We'll need your help, Blue," she said. "With finding a way to get back home."

"As I told you, this is a land without magic. It's not as if I can conjure up a portal."

"Still, there has to be some way. We can't be stuck here, we already were for 16 years."

"I'll see what myself and the other fairies can do," Blue replied with a curt smile before walking out of the building.

And then there were three. They turned so they could all look at Emma and August. The two were clearly in their own little world. The young man said something with a smirk, making the teen giggle and throw a cheese cube at his face. The parents couldn't help but smile a little. In less than 24 hours of seeing the pair, they knew they weren't going to be easy to separate.

"August is welcome around Emma anytime," Snow said, gently. "Clearly, he's taken good care of her."

"He's a good boy," Geppetto replied. He cleared his throat before walking away from them. August looked up from Emma, studying his father's face. He wasn't sure if he felt nessecarily bad for him when it came to how upset the king and queen were, but he knew the guilt had clearly been riding him. "We should get going."

"Right." August gave Emma a hug and she tightened it for a moment, resting her head on his shoulder. "I'll see you soon."

"Of course," she mumbled.

"Be good, alright?"

"No promises."

August laughed and left with his father just as Snow and Charming walked back over. Emma shifted a little uncomfortably. She and her brother had decided not to listen in on the conversation, figuring it was best. However, from the look on Geppetto's face, she was almost positive it hadn't been a good one.

"So, they're free?" Emma finally asked after a few beats of silence.

"There's not much we can do," Charming replied, softly. "At the end of the day, yes, they betrayed us, but it's not as if they set the curse."

"Right." It wasn't that she wanted them locked up, at least not Geppetto. He seemed sorry. Blue didn't seem to understand what she had done, but August said that she was the head of the fairies where they were from. She had to get it, at least to some degree. "So…what now?"

"Now, I guess we just try to move on," Snow told her with a small smile. "We finally have each other again."

"Yeah…we do."

"Are you…I mean…how do you feel about all of this?"

Emma looked up at them, their expectant faces. She wasn't sure what they wanted to hear, but she had a feeling what she was about to say, wasn't it.

"You know…my whole life, I felt like something was off. Not missing, just off. Come to find out, the family I had, had been lying to me for 16 years. Everyone knew a part of me that I didn't for all that time."

Charming bit his lip, he understood that. He had similar feelings when his mother had finally come clean to him about James. So many people knew the truth about them, except them. He didn't resent his parents for that choice, he saw what it did to them both. His father had become a drunk and his mother would always live with the guilt of separating her children. Even so, it's hard to realize that everyone knows a secret about you, that you don't.

"And then I find out that the people that brought me into this world…they put me in a magical wardrobe, alone."

"We did that, to give you your best chance," Snow tried to explain, a small smile going on her face.

"I know. I saw the nursery…I saw what you wanted for us, for me. But here's the thing…I had parents. They weren't perfect and right now I am really pissed at them for what they did," Emma drew a deep breath, letting it come out slowly. "However, at the end of the day, they still raised me. And I don't…I don't know…I mean, you two seem very nice, I just don't…"

"You don't know us," Snow whispered.

Emma nodded, sheepishly. She felt horrible for this. She wanted to lie, say she could instantly accept them as parents. Do anything, just so she could make all of it easier on them. They really did seem like nice people, they didn't deserve any of it. But at the end of the day, she couldn't change how she felt. She looked at them and she didn't see her parents, she just saw two strangers that she happened to look like.

"I want to get to know you guys, I do. It's why I agreed to go with you, but you have to understand that I only found out about you a few days ago. I'm not ready…I can't…I can't look at you like parents yet. I need that to be okay, I need you both to just understand. Or else none of this is going to work."

Snow and Charming looked at one another. What could they say? They finally had their daughter back in their lives, they wanted to be a family. Yet, she didn't look at them as her parents. They weren't sure what they thought would happen after all that time apart. They didn't have much time to think about it between Snow's choice and Charming bringing her to the wardrobe, it all happened so quickly. Of course, all they wanted was to just be her mom and dad, to give her advice, to be there for her.

But they had to accept reality. Their daughter wasn't that same baby they had put through the wardrobe. She was 16 years old and she had been raised by two amazing people that clearly loved and cared for her, she had two older siblings that did all they could to protect her. In time, maybe she would see them as her parents, like they already saw her as their daughter. It would take time for them to adjust to the fact that she was near grown. Together, they would have to work on all of it.

"It won't be easy," Charming said. "However, we're willing to try to take things slow."

"That's all I ask," Emma replied, a small smile going across her lips.

"At the same time," Snow finally spoke up. "You are going to be staying with us and you are 16. Even if you don't see as your parents, we are going to look out for your well-being. I know that won't be easy for you, but we can't just let you do whatever."

Emma slowly nodded. She suppose she saw her point. "Okay."

"It won't be anything extreme, just we need to know that you're safe. We can't have anything happening to you."

"I understand."

Snow smiled a bit herself. "Good."

They cleaned up the town hall before stopping at Granny's to drop off the dishes. Snow spent the rest of the day showing the two of them around Storybrooke. It was a fairly small town, with most of the action on Main Street. Since they weren't sure how long they were going to be stuck there, they weren't going to have Emma go to school, and since Snow was taking over leading the town, she wasn't going to be returning to teaching. Graham had been looking for a deputy and they knew that Charming would be best for the job. After that, it would just be a matter of what would happen with Emma while they worked. If she was being honest, she'd be okay with hanging out at the library. Belle, who had been found in the mental institution, had gotten the keys and was working on opening it again. Of course, Rumple was there helping her, the two happy to finally be reunited. Snow and Charming were very hesitant to be around him, but the curse had given everyone a second chance. He didn't have magic, there wasn't much he could do and they weren't going to be afraid to go places simply because he was there. Though, while Snow and Charming were looking over the books, the former Dark One made his way over to the teenager.

"Reunited?"

"Huh? Oh, yes, I suppose."

"Excellent," Rumple grinned. "You do remember our deal, don't you?"

"Our deal?" Emma racked her brain and then it hit her. When he had discovered she and August in town, he had said she would owe him a favor for bringing her to Snow and Charming. "Right, I owe you a favor of some sort. What do you want?"

"Nothing now, I just wanted to remind you, so it stays fresh in you. I don't want you to forget suddenly. No one breaks a deal with me."

Emma shuddered a bit by his tone. It had definitely changed since the day before.

"I don't plan on it," she said, folding her arms. "Though, I wish you would tell me what the favor is."

"Don't worry about it. Just remember that you owe me, I certainly won't forget."

With that, he walked back over to continue to help Belle with something. Charming walked over to Emma, sensing how tense she was.

"Are you alright?"

Emma looked up into his eyes and bit down on her lip. She didn't want to worry them, they didn't seem to really trust this guy to begin with. On the one hand, without him, it may have been hard to find them to break the curse. On the other, she wasn't sure what sort of favor he was going to cash in. There was only so much she could offer him. Even so, it was her debt, her problem. She didn't need them freaking out over it.

"Totally fine. I'm just ready to go whenever you are."

Charming wasn't so sure if he believed her, but before he could say anything else, Snow appeared, asking if they were ready to go to their next stop. Emma agreed without any hesitation.

The next week seemed to pass by in a blur. The town was hesitant to carry on their lives in Storybrooke, but they didn't have much of a choice. Emma saw August every single day, hanging out with him as much as she possibly could. Charming and Snow were dying for more one on one time with her, but knew that was going to take some time. She didn't feel entirely comfortable around them, at least not yet. They were learning small things about her, like she absolutely hated vegetables while cheese was probably her favorite thing on earth. They just didn't know how long it would be before they could actually be a real family.

They had left Regina locked up the entire time, not bothering to visit her. Graham was making sure that she couldn't leave and that she was being properly taken care of, even if she was prisoner, she still had rights. Not to mention, she would be of no use to them if she wasn't healthy. They had plans to talk to her, finally, to try to understand just why she would do such a thing and to see if she knew of a way to get them back home.

Emma woke up that morning before them, her brain still not used to waking up in the strange loft. She climbed out of bed and got ready for the day, dressing in a plaid shirt and jeans. Snow and Charming were still asleep and she needed to get out of there. The only time she didn't seem to be around them was when she got to see August and even then, they didn't seem that far away. A part of her wanted to open up to them, she just wasn't sure if she could yet.

Carefully opening up the door, sliding the key Snow had given her into her pocket, she made her way down the steps and onto the street. It was still relatively quiet, only a few people were already up and about. The air was brisk and smelt of fresh dew. Folding her arms over her chest for warmth, she thought of Alise. She would have for sure gotten the letter by now. She wondered how she felt, if she was trying to get to them. When she returned, would she be in trouble? Would Alise let her go with Snow and Charming to live in Misthaven?

Is that even what she wanted?

The town, the people, it seemed so strange. She had never met many people like them. Growing up, she didn't spend much time associating with those who weren't royal. She didn't feel as if they were below her, she just wasn't used to it, to them having such bold opinions on things. Yet, many also seemed kind. Ruby always made sure to have her hot chocolate ready, Jiminy offered her sessions to talk her feelings over. She had declined the latter, but it was just the fact that she knew none of them and they cared. It had dawned on her that without the curse, she probably would've gotten to know all of them very well.

Her childhood would've been the same, while also being different. Snow and Charming clearly cared a lot about their citizens, they wanted them to be happy. The dwarves seemed to be very protective of Snow, as was Granny. Emma wished she understood why. She kept meaning to ask, but didn't know if it was too personal. She wanted to know more about their families. All she knew was that Snow's parents had passed away, she knew nothing of Charming's. That day, they were going to visit the Evil Queen while she spent some time with August. Emma started to wonder if maybe they could get to know each other a little better over some hot chocolate.

When she had gone far enough, she turned around to head back. More people were up by that point and she waved to those she recognized. Sneezy still thought he was his cursed self, so they were trying to convince him of the truth, but it wasn't easy. She couldn't help but notice someone she hadn't seen before, a stranger. She was walking quickly, her red hair pulled back, big dark glasses over her face. Emma studied her, but couldn't keep up with her pace. That was odd. No new people could enter Storybrooke, herself and August had seemed to be the exception. Knowing there wasn't much more she could do about it, she headed back to the loft. The moment she did, she was cornered by Snow.

"Whoa there…"

"Where have you been?!"

"Oh, I just went to take a walk."

"We woke up and you were gone. We thought…well…" Snow bit her lip, realizing how silly she sounded. No one in the town had magic. Even so, waking up to find her daughter missing had been terrifying. "You can't just do that!"

"What? Go for a walk by myself?" Emma scoffed. "It's not a big deal."

"I didn't know where you were. I thought that someone had taken you."

"No one took me, I was fine." Emma rolled her eyes.

"We told you, we have to make sure your safe."

"And I was! I can't believe you're flipping out like this, you're not my…" Emma caught herself and Snow took a step back. Both knew they were going a little too far. Charming walked forward, putting a hand on Snow's shoulder.

"We would prefer if you didn't leave the loft without one of us. However, if you do for whatever reason, could you at least leave a note?"

Emma quickly nodded. "Yeah, sure."

"Thank you."

The three of them stood there for a few moments in silence, collecting themselves. Charming was the first one to speak again.

"Well, why don't we have some breakfast? August is coming around to collect you soon."

"Sounds good to me."

Emma headed into the kitchen, leaving the two of them behind. Snow ran a hand over her face. Her daughter hadn't finished the sentence, but it was still a jab to her heart. She knew Emma didn't look at her as a mother…it still stung. Charming put an arm around her.

"I know it's hard," he whispered. "But there's not much we can do right now. If we're too hard on her, we'll push her away. She could end up wanting to move in with Geppetto and August. We don't want that do we?"

Snow sighed, wiping a few tears from her eyes. "Of course not."

"We'll work on it, together. Maybe we can set down some more concrete rules after we talk to Regina today…if you're sure you're still up for it."

"More than ever."

They joined Emma in the kitchen and ate a quiet breakfast together. At 8:30 on the dot, August was knocking on the door. Emma quickly grabbed her bag and left with him. It was hard on Snow and Charming, one of them had been with her at all times since they were reunited. After the little blow up before breakfast, however, they knew it was for the best.

"You okay?" August asked as they walked down the sidewalk.

"I kind of blew up at Snow," Emma mumbled, shoving her hands into her pockets.

"Why?"

"I woke up this morning and just needed some space, so I took a walk. When I got back, they were freaking out because they didn't know where I was."

August gave her a look. "You left without leaving a note or anything? Seriously, Emma? What if something bad happened to you?"

Emma rolled her eyes. "You sound like her now."

"Well, she's right. You can't take off like that."

"Normally you would've been there to stop me," she mumbled.

August paused, looking down at her. He let out a sigh and wrapped his arm around her, kissing her head. "I know things are different now. But I am still here. And if I find out that you're doing stupid crap like that, I'll stand outside your loft, waiting to drag you back every time."

Emma smiled a little. "Promise?"

August grinned. "Promise."

Meanwhile, Snow and Charming got ready and headed down to the station where Regina was being held. Graham bowed at their arrival before heading out to give them some privacy. There, behind the bars, was Regina. She wasn't in one of her usual evil dresses, instead a dressy pantsuit. Snow had fake memories of her constantly wearing those throughout the years. She looked up and gave them a sly smile.

"The Charmings. I was wondering when you two were going to show up."

"We've been busy," Charming replied. "Trying to clean up your mess."

"My mess," Regina laughed, bitterly. "I did all I could to keep this town from going to hell for the past 16 years."

"You tore lives apart, tore our family apart."

"You have it back now, don't you? So tell me, since this land has no magic…why am I locked up?"

"This is all your fault," Snow replied, finding her voice hidden beneath the anger. "You set the curse. I thought before, that you could be good, I gave you a chance to be free and you stole 16 years from me! You stole my daughter!"

"Now, now, now, I didn't make you put her in that wardrobe. You chose to do that. The fact that Emma grew up with other parents is no one's fault but your own."

Snow stepped closer. "How do you…how do you know about Emma's other family?"

"Oh," Regina gave her typical evil grin. "You see, you think I'm the one you need to worry about? No."

"So, who? Rumpelstiltskin?"

"No, he won't cause any of you harm, he's got a mission of his own and it doesn't involve you."

"Then who…"

Suddenly, the ground began to shake as a light went over the room. Charming grabbed hold of his wife to keep her steady, putting his hand on a desk. Even Regina had to hold her balance up on one of the bars.

"What did you do?!" Snow shouted at her step-mother over the noise.

"It's not me!" Regina yelled back.

Finally, the earthquake ceased and the light vanished. Charming inspected his wife, while she did the same with him. Suddenly, they could hear the door to the jail cell opening and Regina was walking out of it.

"How…" Charming went to grab hold of the gun Graham had shown him to use.

"Don't bother. This land is no longer without magic."

"I repeat: what did you do?!" Snow exclaimed.

"And I repeat: it wasn't me. As I said, it's not me you have to worry about. You think there's just one evil apple in my crazy family tree?"

"Cora?" Snow guessed.

"No. My mother isn't anywhere in this town. But I wasn't her only child…I have a sister."

"What? I knew your family. There was only just you!"

"She wasn't raised with me. I only just found out about her myself." Regina gave them another sly smile. "As I said, I'm not the threat. And if you're smart, you won't try to lock me up again. You're going to want my help." With a flick of her wrist, she disappeared in a cloud of red smoke.

Charming and Snow exchanged a worried glance. They thought Regina was bad…could her sister really be worse?

There we have it! As always, I want to hear what you guys want to happen in this story. Hope to have the next part up soon! Until next time, friends. =) For updates on all my stories and such, make sure you follow me on my Tumblrs: just-an-outlaw and justanoutlawfanfiction.