We've got lots of Charming family feels in this one!

Chapter Seventeen: Stay With Me

Snow and Charming watched August walk out the door, feeling totally confused. He had been just as worried as Emma as they had been, why would he leave? The two headed up the stairs to find Emma sitting there, pain written on her face. Snow walked over to the bed, sitting next to her and placing a hand on her arm.

"Emma, what's wrong, sweetie?"

"August's a jerk," she whispered. "That's what's wrong."

Snow raised an eyebrow. "Honey, what did he do?"

"He's keeping things from me, again!"

Charming remembered what August had told him about Zelena, not that he had ever expanded on it. He understood that whatever it was, it was probably best for Emma not to know in the moment. In that moment, though, his daughter was upset and he had to comfort her. He sat on the other side of her.

"Zelena said something about our dad, the truth," Emma continued. "August won't tell me what it is."

"Maybe it's hard for him to talk about," Charming offered.

Emma looked up at him. "But it's not just about him! It's about me too!"

Snow rubbed her daughter's back. "Shhh…don't get all worked up, it's not worth it."

Emma wanted to give some snappy answer as she always did, but she couldn't. She was still mad at August, but she couldn't deny that Snow was helping. Her mother was soothing. She let out a long sigh and leant back into her. Snow wrapped her arms around her and kissed her temple. Charming reached out and took hold of her hand, surprised when Emma squeezed it.

"You two will make up," he told her.

"I'm not talking to him until he tells me the truth," Emma insisted.

Charming frowned a little. "He is your brother."

"I just can't be around him right now. I don't want to be."

Charming went to say more, but Snow caught his eye. She was torn on the subject. On the one hand, she saw August's side. Whatever he went through, that was up to him to share. On the other, of course she was upset that her daughter was so angry. They weren't August's parents, they were Emma's and it was up to them to comfort her.

"How's your stomach feeling?" Snow asked.

Emma shrugged a bit, biting her lip. "I dunno."

"Think it's up for some hot chocolate?"

That was sort of a silly question, there wasn't a time that Emma wasn't up for hot chocolate. She quickly nodded and Snow smiled.

"Alright. You did just nearly lose your heart, so you have to stay here, but I'll go get it for you." She kissed her temple.

"Can I please go downstairs? I really need to get my mind off all of this," Emma pleaded. "Maybe another movie?"

Snow sighed, looking into her big green eyes. Why did her daughter have to be so adorable? "Alright, alright. We can watch another one, you go down and help your father pick it out."

Emma nodded, a hint of a smile going across her face. She followed Charming down the stairs to look through the VHS tapes. He selected one with the name "Robin Hood" scrawled out across the front. Snow watched the two figure out the player on their own, feeling proud of them. They were definitely adjusting to this world's technology better than she had expected. Emma sat down on the couch beside her father. It didn't take long for Snow to walk back over, sitting on the other side. The three watched the movie, sipping their hot chocolates. Emma was still thinking about what happened, but she was definitely calming down.

About halfway through the movie, Emma settled her drink onto the coffee table. She didn't feel like she had been awake that long, but so much had gone on. Her eyes felt heavy, but sitting up wasn't comfortable. She leant to the side, not realizing at first that she was basically laying on Charming's chest. When she did, she panicked for a minute, unsure how either were supposed to feel about that. To her surprise, he just wrapped his arms around her. She let her eyes close and she drifted off to sleep.

Snow looked over at them, ready to comment about the film when she saw them. Her hand went over her mouth to protect an "aw" from coming out. Her eyes met Charming's and he gave her a look that contained all the love in the world.

Maybe this wasn't how they always pictured things, but it was pretty darn good. Emma felt comfortable enough to cuddle up with both of them, to fall asleep on him. Snow moved closer to them and after putting a quilt around all of them, she wrapped an arm around Charming and by extension, Emma too. She rested her head on her daughter's. She could feel Charming's lips brushing her temple.

"Yeah," she whispered to herself. "This is nice."

When the movie ended, the three of them just stayed like that, her parents not wanting to wake her. They lost track of time just looking down at her. She really was the perfect blend of them both, from her blonde curls to her mother's chin. Even her personality seemed to be a mixture of the two of them. A sudden snore escaped her lips, causing Snow to laugh a little.

"Now that, she gets from you," she teased, softly.

Charming chuckled. "The way she crinkles her nose in her sleep is all you. That, plus hogging the blankets." Emma had somehow, in her sleep, managed to take quilt off all of them.

Snow smiled, stroking her daughter's cheek. She seemed so much younger when she was asleep, almost like she wasn't 16 at all. "I know 16 years wasn't ideal, but it is better than 28."

"I know what you mean," Charming murmured. "I just want to be whatever she needs."

"We can," Snow replied, confidently. "I know we're still figuring all this out, but we will. We can make this work, whatever it is that she decides she wants."

Charming smiled at her. "You're right, we can."

Snow bent down and kissed Emma's forehead, causing her to frown. "She's a little warm."

Charming copied his wife's action. "You're right, she is."

"Maybe we should move her back up to her bed. She's had quite a lot happen these past couple of days, I don't want her coming down with anything."

Snow reluctantly pulled her arms away from her daughter and watched Charming stand up, holding her in his arms. It was so natural for him, almost like it had been 16 years ago. He carried her up the stairs carefully, as if he was still carrying that sam,e tiny baby. Though to him, that's what she'd always be. Snow trailed behind, pulling back the covers so he could lay her down. She tucked her in before going downstairs to get some fever reducing medicine.

"Snow," she could hear Emma's tired voice calling down for her. She raced back up the stairs and found Emma half-awake.

"I'm right here," she said, softly, moving closer to her.

"You guys moved me," a small pout fell across the princess' lips.

Charming smiled, pushing hair out of her face. "You just have a slight fever, you need to rest."

"Here," Snow held the tiny medicine cup to her lips. "Drink this."

Emma took it down with no protest, though she did make a face. "Yuck."

Snow smiled, stroking her cheek once again. "It'll help you feel better. You've had quite a day."

"I'll go fetch her some water," Charming announced, heading for the stairs. Snow went to follow to get Emma some more toast when Emma grabbed her wrist.

"Please don't go," she pleaded, her eyes wide. In that moment, just as when she was asleep, she seemed like a little girl. A little girl that just wanted her mommy.

Snow sat next to her and stroked her hair. "Okay, I'll stay with you," she promised. "I won't go anywhere."

"Charming," Emma called out before he could walk down the stairs. He turned around, raising an eyebrow. "Come back soon?"

Charming nodded with a smile. "Of course, princess. I'll be right back."

"Get her some dry toast, please?" Snow asked of her husband. "She should eat again."

"Anything," Charming promised, the smile that gave him his name remaining.

Charming not only got the toast, but got some things for Snow to eat as well. He knew she'd forget to eat while fussing over Emma. They were probably overreacting to a minor fever, one that was bound to pass by morning, but they would take any opportunity to parent her. He carried the makeshift meal and drinks upstairs, distributing them. Emma sat up in bed, sandwiched between her parents. She looked from each of them, feeling better by just having them there.

As it turned out, Charming was right. Emma's fever passed as soon as it came. Of course her parents wanted her well, but they loved every second that they got to care for her and if Emma was being honest, as much as she hated fussing, it was nice. The two really cared about her, she knew that.

A part of her wanted to feel guilty about that, but on the other hand, she had kept her other parents in mind this whole time. She loved them and she still wasn't sure how she felt about their choice to lie, but she was trying to understand it. They weren't terrible people. They had just made a choice, the only one they knew how. Odette and Derek would always be her parents too. That didn't mean that she couldn't get closer to Snow and Charming, either. All she could do was hope that Odette and Derek would understand, wherever they were.

Emma wasn't sure if she was ready to call Snow and Charming "Mom and Dad" yet. She had thought about it in her fever state. In that moment, she had just wanted them so badly. She occasionally got those fevers when she used magic too much and that's what she had been doing lately. They never lasted long but when they came, she felt like crap and she just wanted those she loved. She had wanted her parents and they were there for her. They didn't seem to mind that she was calling them by their names, but she knew they would love to be "Mom and Dad" to her. She hoped she could work up to it, eventually.

She hadn't spoken to August since he walked out of the loft and she wasn't sure when she would. It had been a few days and she missed him, she just didn't have the headspace for secrets. So, she pushed him out of her head once again as she and Snow headed down Main Street. The latter had been in meetings all day to deal with the town, so Emma had spent some time with her father and Graham at the station. Now the two girls were headed to Granny's for something to eat.

As they rounded the corner, they spotted a young girl trying to staple something to one of the flyers she had under her arm to a telephone pole. A sudden gust of wind came barreling through, knocking the paper from under her.

"Oh no!" She cried out, a pout falling across her lips.

Snow and Emma raced over, gathering up as many of the flyers as they could for her before any cars came by. The girl's pout disappeared and she smiled up at them. Emma realized she couldn't have been older than 10 or 11.

"Thank you so much," she said, taking them back into her hands.

"It's no problem," Snow replied. Her eyes went to the flyer that she had managed to hang up. It was a copy of a realistic looking sketch of a man. At the top it read: Have you seen my papa? Underneath was contact information. "Are you looking for your father?"

The girl nodded. "We got separated before the curse, he went missing. I was living with a new family during it, I forgot all about him. Now that it's broke, though, I want to find him. I know he has to be here somewhere!"

Emma could see the excitement in her eyes and felt a pang hit her heart. She could understand how she felt. From the minute she found out that Snow and Charming existed, she wanted to find them. "We'll help you in any way we can."

"Really?" The girl's eyes sparkled. "Why would you want to help me?"

"Well…I'm the savior," Emma replied with a small smile. "It's my job to help people."

"Thank you so much! My name's Grace, by the way."

"It's very nice to meet you, Grace. I'm Emma, this is Snow."

Snow watched Emma and Grace discuss the younger one's father, a man named Jefferson. She couldn't help but feel a sudden sense of pride for her daughter. She had been so willing to help this young girl out and she didn't even know her very well. Her daughter was a true princess, a good leader.

She was one proud mother, that was for sure.

Charming strolled through the park, glancing around at everything as he did. He was officially off duty and it was time to head home to his family. Even so, he just wanted to take a shortcut, it was such a lovely day. Storybrooke wasn't anything like the Enchanted Forest. He definitely missed it, but a part of him wondered if it was really right to return to it. Here, they were safe. Yes, they had Zelena lurking about and he wasn't sure how much he really trusted Regina, but the former could be handled and the latter hadn't been bothering them.

His thoughts were interrupted when he suddenly found a dog jumping up on him, licking his face. He blinked a few times before realizing it was a Dalmatian. A smile spread across his face and he scratched him behind the ears. He had a dog a long time ago, Wilby, he had loved the little mutt so much. He didn't know who this big guy belonged to, but he figured he'd keep him company until the owner showed up.

"Pongo, down!" A voice commanded. Charming looked up to see August walking over, a leash in his hands. "Come on, down boy." The dog jumped off and trotted over to the other man, cocking his head as if to say What, I didn't do anything wrong. August just partially smiled and hooked the leash to him. "Sorry about that."

"It's perfectly fine, I grew up on a farm, animals don't scare me," Charming replied. "I didn't know you had a dog."

August shook his head. "Not mine, Jiminy's. He's been so slammed with cases since the curse broke, so he asked me to take him for a walk."

"That makes sense, I'm sure this has been a huge adjustment for everyone." Charming tilted his head a little. "Think maybe you should talk to him?"

August didn't respond to that, he just pulled a treat out of his pocket to get Pongo to settle down. When he did meet the prince's eye, he looked a little pained. "How's Emma?"

"She's good."

"Still mad at me?" Charming nodded, which made August sigh. "Of course, I don't blame her. I'd be mad at me too."

He settled onto the bench, Pongo laying down by his feet. Charming walked over to him, sitting on the other side.

"Let me guess," August said, leaning back. "You think I should tell her."

"I don't even know what it is," Charming replied, honestly. "I think if I did, it'd make it easier for me to give you advice."

August bit his lip. He had been keeping it to himself for so long, it was tempting to just blurt it all out. He didn't want to do that to Charming though. It was bad enough that he knew. His hand went to his sleeve, rubbing it a bit. The clothes in this realm were taking some getting used to, though they were a lot comfier than in the Enchanted Forest. He didn't realize that by doing what he had been, that the sleeve rode up, revealing a thin green ribbon around his wrist.

"Was that Tinkerbell's?" Charming asked.

August's head snapped up. "How do you know about her?"

"Emma told her about us, sort of. She said that she just went missing after your parents' passed away." Charming saw a flash of guilt fill his eyes. "Did Derek do something to her before he died?"

August swallowed. "He always hated me," he whispered.

"What was that?"

"He always hated me," August's voice rose, though just enough for his friend to hear. "He didn't want children, at least I don't think. He wanted someone to take over, someone that would be as much of a tyrant as he was. I wasn't that, he figured that much out early on. I think he thought Emma could be that."

Charming shook his head. "That doesn't sound like her."

"Because it's not, but she would do anything he wanted. I told him early on I would protect her and he didn't like that," August frowned. "He was never really a father to me. He belittled me any chance he got. We fought a lot which lead to…" He shook it off, trying not to remember some of the awful things that had happened. "Anyway, I always sort of rebelled. I became a knight for my mother, but that was about the extent of it. I refused to let him find me a wife when the time came. I didn't want to marry for anything but love."

Charming smiled a little, he could definitely relate to that.

"One day Emma met Tink in the woods. She was a former fairy, she lost her wings for a really stupid reason and had been exiled to Neverland for a bit. She used a coconut to get to our land. We both helped her out, bringing her clothes, food, things our parents wouldn't notice were missing and over time…" He bit her lip. "Over time I fell in love with her."

"Did you tell Odette and Derek then?"

August shook his head. "I knew they wouldn't understand, they couldn't. Their marriage was arranged, they did all but arrange one for Alise…there is no way they'd approve. I didn't care though. Outside Emma, she was the one person who got me. She was just…" He trailed off, glancing back down at the ribbon. "We couldn't properly get engaged without my parents getting suspicious, so I gave her my pocket watch and she gave me this." He held up his wrist.

Charming nodded. He saw the light in August's eye, it was the same one he had seen in Snow when talking about him. The look of true love. However, he had a sinking feeling in him that the story had a less than happy ending. "What'd he do August?"

August shut his eyes, fidgeting a bit. He tried so hard to block it out, not that he ever really could. It haunted his dreams, it haunted his every move. He hadn't been able to protect her and now, she was gone.

"Down, now!" A guard yelled up the ladder. A moment later, August's face could be seen. He drew his sword and carefully climbed down, Tinkerbell following. The two held hands when they saw Derek's face.

"Dad," August began, trying to stay calm.

Derek's eyes fixated on him. "Did you think you could get away with this? That I wouldn't notice you kept going missing? I was willing to let it go, it's your life and you're free to screw it up the way you want," he told him. "But then I got wind of your plan."

"Your highness, allow me to explain," Tink tried to defend him.. Derek held up a hand.

"Did I say you could speak?"

"Don't talk to her like that!" August argued. "It's not her fault! We were just going to tell Mom it was time. We weren't going to tell Emma!"

"I'm afraid I can't trust that. If your mother says no, this girl knows far too much." He turned to some of his men. "Take her away."

"Wait," August tightened his grip on her hand, but it was no use. A guard grabbed tight hold of her arm, yanking on it. "Stop! You're hurting her!"

"August!" Tink called out as they managed to pull her away, keeping her trapped in their arms. Tears were spilling down her cheeks, as she fought against the men. August went to run after her, but guards grabbed him and held him back.

"I'm going to find you!" August yelled to her, crying himself as he struggled against their grip. These weren't his knights, they were his father's personal men, they were far stronger. "They can't keep us apart! I love you!"

"I love you too," Tink choked out, being dragged deeper into the woods.

August's eyes blinked open when he felt Charming's hand touch his arm. He looked up at him and saw the look of sorrow in his eye. August blinked his tears away and bit his lip.

"There it is," he whispered.

Charming nodded, rubbing his arm. "You…you really don't know what he did with her?"

August shook his head. "After he died, I searched every dungeon, prison and asylum that I could find. She wasn't in any of them. He covered his tracks well, very well."

"August…I am so sorry."

"That's Derek for you," he whispered.

"He took away your true love, from what Emma described, one of the few friends she had…"

Charming felt anger boiling inside of him. What kind of father would do that to their child?

"Emma idolizes him. I know she's mad that he lied to her, but this is bigger."

"She has a right to know?"

"And what if she doesn't believe me?" August asked, daring to meet his eyes again. "Because that'll hurt a hell of a lot worse than what he ever did."

"She'll believe you," Charming assured him. "It's going to hurt, but you were able to tell me. It's time she knows."

August let out a deep breath. Maybe Charming was right.

This Wooden Charming BROTP came out of nowhere but I love it and I have no regrets, haha. Anyway, August's full secret is out, the question is if he'll follow Charming's advice? As always, tell me what you want to see. We've got a big storm coming up in this story, but still a couple of chapters to get there. Until next time, friends. =)