Chapter 7 — Third Day

"Emma, sweetheart, wake up," Emma could hear someone calling her name and shaking her.

"Uhm," Emma tried to make sense of the world around her.

"Emma could you wake up please? James needs to eat and you're still holding onto me," Mary Margaret said softly. "And you need to get up, sweetheart. It's seven."

"Urgh," Emma tried to say something unintelligible while Mary Margaret ran her hands on Emma's hair. "Five minutes—"

"Come on, honey. Or I'll squeeze you with hugs and kisses," Mary Margaret threatened.

"Kayy… I'm up…" Emma still slurred from her sleepiness but the soft cry from James awoke her pretty good.

"Morning Emma," David chirped in while walking inside holding James in his arms.

"David, coffee." Emma tried to ask.

"On the table if you could get up," David said as he handed James over to Mary Margaret.

"Kay." Emma rubbed her eyes and got out of bed and reached for her coffee. "Gonna spend the day with Henry. Have fun with James, guys." Emma said her goodbye after she gulped her morning beverages.

"Have a good day, kid," David said as he smiled brightly.

"Hmmph." Emma harrumphed. The only response she could muster through her addled brain.

She drove to the loft to take shower, ate some cereal, and made a mental note to do a grocery shopping before the day ended.

By her count, she still has 5 more days to maybe find her True Love, or to find a cure that doesn't involve kisses or love. But for now, she wants to spend the day with Henry. If she's really going to fall asleep (or basically dead), she wants to remember Henry. Her son.

Picking up her phone, she dialled the uptight brunette with a plan to ask (as politely and unthreatening as possible) if she could spend the day with Henry.

"Hey Regina."

"Good morning to you too, Emma."

"Hey I was wondering, may I spend this day with Henry? Or do you have any plan with him?"

"Yes, you may. You are his mother too."

"Yeah but I figured I should ask you first."

"He's already finished his breakfast if you want to pick him up."

"I will, thank you Regina."

"Very well. I will see you later, Emma."

"Bye."

Well that went well. Phew. Mirror. Okay, decent. One more business to take care of.

"Hey Rubes."

"Emma, what's up?"

"Rubes I totally forgot but I think Zelena will die of hunger if I didn't delegate my job properly. I need to take a holiday Rubes, will you take over me? Just until David got back."

"I'll discuss it with Granny and I'll ask Tink for help, you okay Emma?"

"Yeah, never better actually. I'll be back at work next Monday, kay?"

"No problems Em. Have fun."

"Yeah, you too."

Done. Hope today won't be a sad day.

Emma drove to the mansion to pick Henry up. The first stop Emma made was to the cemetery. They haven't been here since Henry regained his memory, and Emma just… needed to make sure that he knows his father died a hero.

"Hey kid, I'm sorry to bring this up but you didn't remember Neal when we buried him," Emma smiled sadly as they walked towards Neal's grave.

"Yeah. I am trying to understand Ma, it's okay." Henry said as he stepped into Emma's side and put his arm around her waist. "So in the end he died a hero, yeah?"

"Yes. He was trying to save us from Zelena, and it's sad to say but… we didn't have any choice Henry. It was either Neal or Rumple, and Neal asked me to do it. He chose to save our life Henry. Do you understand that?"

"I do, Ma. It's… hard, but I do. Because we're what we choose, right?" Henry put the rose they bought on top of Neal's tombstone.

"Yeah kid. And sometimes, it is hard to choose to do the right thing, but eventually, that's what makes us human. We made mistakes, and we learnt from them. I'm still learning. It doesn't mean you stop learning once you grew up," Emma squeezed Henry's shoulder lightly.

"I'll miss him Ma." Henry smiled sadly.

"I will too."

"It's hard, isn't it?"

"What's hard?"

"Being a hero. To always choose to do the right thing." Henry looked up at Emma.

"I won't lie to you Henry, it is hard. We've lost so much. But… as you always have said, good will always win."

"Mum's working hard everyday to proof that." Henry mumbled.

"Yes, she is." Emma smiled sadly. "She's a hero Henry."

"You both are." Henry stated simply. "And my dad's too." He gestured at the grave.

"When do you become such a smart kid?"

"Haha. Since forever," Henry stuck out his tongue and laughed.

"Yeah, you're lucky you have such a great Mum, and by that I meant Regina." Emma laughed too.

"I love you too Ma, don't be jealous," Henry teased.

"Me? Jealous? Never," Emma gasped mockingly.

"Gahh, such a terrible actor you are." Henry said in his best Yoda impersonation.

"Your Highness, need I remind you that half of your gene is descended from this," Emma gestured to her whole body.

"You do know I'm more like my Mum, right?" Henry asked with his serious tone.

Emma sighed exaggeratedly. "Yeah I do. You're definitely Regina's. I'm just the baby mama."

"Ew Ma."

They bantered and laughed together while walking towards the bug.

"Hey kid, what about… lunch at my favourite restaurant in Boston? What do you say?"

"Now?"

"Yeah, duh." Emma rolled her eyes.

"Impulsive road trip, Ma?"

"One last time."

"One last time." Henry laughed.

Henry and Emma got back to Storybrooke after the sun has set. They talked about almost everything, and how they could fit their schedule, now that they have a new family member (Little James), and Mary Margaret and David, and Regina to think about. The sudden transition is still kind of a shock for both of them, but they said it aloud "I wouldn't trade it for any other thing in this whole wide world," and they meant it.

Sure, Storybrooke needs more therapists because of the daily event that could be happening at such random time. But this small town is their home. This is where their family is. If someone tells Emma that 'Enchanted Forest is our home', Emma will hit that person in the head and say two words: 'indoor plumbing'. Well, two things, really, indoor plumbing and internet.

The simple act of hanging out with her son was kinda perfect for Emma. So after a very sweet dinner (ice cream at Granny's and a lot of 'don't tell your mum' threats), Emma drove Henry to the mansion. She pulled up and waited until Henry was out of sight and was on her way to the hospital when the peacefulness started to consume her again.

Hell no. Well, hell.

She couldn't help it. She was falling asleep, and fast. The last thing she remembered was her tightened knuckles on her wheel before she lost consciousness.

Shit. Zelena didn't tell me about this.

"Of course she didn't tell you. She's wicked, remember?" Other Emma appeared. They were back again to Emma's dream state. The one where Main Street is totally deserted.

Emma huffed. "Sure, this is just exactly what I need. I can't even control when I want to sleep."

"Didn't you realise it already? You already had no control over it these past two days."

"Whoa. That actually makes sense."

"Of course it is. You are actually a lot smarter than you give yourself credit for."

"Yeah, that too." Emma grinned widely.

"You could make this easier, Emma." Other Emma morphed into Doppelganger Regina.

"How? I couldn't just tell everyone to come kiss me once I fell into oblivion." Emma deadpanned.

"Not everyone."

"You want me to tell you?" Emma's eyes widened.

"It couldn't hurt." Doppelganger Regina smirked.

"It might. Hurt me."

"What have you got to lose?"

"Yeah. You're right. But then I don't want her to try to maybe like me just because she feel obligated to."

"Do you love her Emma?" Mary Margaret said.

Great, my mother.

Emma smiled sadly. "I think I do. I think I have loved her for a long time now."

"Why didn't you tell her?"

"I don't know. You know her Mum. She's… a private person. She doesn't love easily, and there's this gossip at the diner about her being with Robin Hood, the greatest vigilante of all time?" Emma waved her hands everywhere. "I just… don't want to ruin it for her. I just want her to be happy."

"I want you to be happy Emma." Mary Margaret smiled, mirroring Emma's smile.

"It's okay Mum. It's not like I've got time anyway." Emma smiled sadly, and looked deeply at the figure that looked so much like Mary Margaret. "We do look alike, don't we?"

"Of course we are honey, but you, you got your father's hair," Mary Margaret brushed her hands on Emma, like she did this morning. "And his courage. I'm glad you got my eyes though."

"Will he be okay? Once he knows I'm curse? Once he knows I'm this millennium Sleeping Beauty with no Prince Charming to come to the rescue?"

"He will be upset, like I would be. We've let you go twice Emma. It's not natural for us to keep letting you go. It hurt us, and it hurt you."

"Yeah. But this time, it's for good. You don't have to worry about me anymore."

"Emma, we're your parents. We will always worry about you. That's what we do."

They smiled at each other sadly. Emma grabbed Doppelganger Mum's hand.

"When I fell asleep for good, will you be there?" Emma asked, feeling so small to have asked such a childish and insecure question.

"I don't think so honey, Aurora was tortured in a fire chamber, remember? I think this is part of Zelena's spell."

"Of course. I did know that." Emma mumbled to her own subconscious. "This is dangerous."

"Yeah, so wake up." Other Emma appeared again and commanded her.

"Okay okay I will, calm your horse." Emma grimaced.

"Concentrate."

"Shut up."