Author's Note: Some Snowing and some quality Daddy/daughter time ahoy! :)


The great room at Town Hall was a completely transformed space, and Charming took it all in with a smile. His wife and daughter had worked so very hard to put this together but it soon became obvious that they couldn't do it alone. At Emma's suggestion, Snow had approached the owners of various town business to lend their expertise to the festivities.

Every restaurant in town had provided a dish for the buffet and the town florists, party supply stores, and rental places had provided centerpieces, decorations, and tables and chairs. Snow had even hired a crew to put everything together according to the plan she and Emma had come up with, seeing as her roles as mayor, wife, and mother to both an adult her own age and a newborn left no time for putting it all together herself.

Basically, the ball had been a boon for town business, and it all had come together masterfully. The space was beautiful, the music was blaring, the drinks were flowing, and everyone in sight seemed to be having a marvelous time. And with Granny, who informed them that she didn't do balls, babysitting little Neal, Charming and Snow were both free to enjoy the evening knowing their baby boy was in safe hands.

"This is amazing, Gramma," Henry said as he approached his grandparents. He had a glass of punch in his hand but his slight breathlessness and the flush of his cheeks indicated that he'd just come off the dance floor, where a few kids his own age had taken up residence. "Is this what balls were really like?"

"Mostly," Snow allowed. "The music was more along the lines of a string quartet than a sound system and the dances were more synchronized but this is essentially it."

Henry grinned at her. "This is so cool. Much cooler than a school dance."

Charming and Snow shared a grin over the boy's head. No doubt the piles of food pushed this party up the cool ladder a bit.

It must have suddenly struck Snow that they hadn't seen Emma in a while – she and Killian had disappeared together almost as soon as they were through the door, not that Charming was trying to think about that at all – because she asked Henry, "Have you seen your mom?"

"Last I knew, she and Killian were hanging out by the desserts."

Both Charming and Snow hid a smirk at that. Of course their daughter was hovering around by the desserts; a mountain of chocolate and pastries – and even some chocolate pastries – were on display. Charming slipped his arm around his wife's shoulder, which was apparently Henry's cue to leave lest he inadvertently witness any further public displays of affection. "See ya!" he exclaimed as he darted back in the direction of his friends.

This time they allowed their identical smirks to show, both of them clearly thinking, Twelve-year-olds.

Their public display of affection wasn't even embarrassing, including nothing more than Charming giving Snow a quick peck on the cheek and tightening his arm around his shoulders as they surveyed the scene in front of them. "This all came together beautifully," he said, raising his voice slightly to be heard over the beat of the music. "You and Emma did a fantastic job."

"Everyone did a fantastic job," Snow agreed. "We couldn't have done this without everyone contributing."

The fact that she was always willing to give credit where credit was due was just one thing on the long list of things he loved about her. He smiled and pressed another kiss to the side of her head.

And when current song ended and a slow one began, Charming sensed opportunity. The music change had shooed all but the couples off the dance floor. Charming released his grip on his wife's shoulders and stepped in front of her instead. "I beg your pardon, your majesty," he said, bowing slightly, "but may I have this dance?"

A grin spread across her lips as she accepted his outstretched hand. "You may indeed."

Since the DJ played two slow songs in a row, Charming actually ended up having a couple of dances, but that was neither here nor there. When the music changed to a more uptempo song, the revelers reclaimed the dance floor and Snow and Charming headed back to the sidelines. Snow craned her neck as they walked, her eyes darting around the large and crowded space. "Do you see Emma or Hook anywhere?" she asked after a moment.

Charming looked around as well and finally spotted the pirate still standing by the dessert table. "I see Hook," he said, nodding in the pirate's direction.

"But not Emma?"

"No."

A quick glance of shared concern between the two of them was all that was needed. As one, they approached the dessert table where a worried Hook stood staring across the large room at the door. "What's the matter?" Snow asked.

The pirate looked at the two of them, clearly torn. Then he glanced at the door again and sighed. "Emma excused herself to get some air a couple minutes ago," he said, refocusing his attention on them. "Though she swore she was just hot, she seemed upset. I wanted to give her a little bit of time on her own and was just on the point of tracking her down."

"I'll go," Charming said.

Snow smiled at him and Hook nodded. Charming crossed the room, strode across the foyer, and headed outside as swiftly as he could without calling attention to himself.

It had gotten chilly in the time they'd been inside and he stifled a shiver as his eyes searched for his baby girl. He found her in a second, seated on a bench along the front walkway. As he approached, he heard her soft sniffles and his heart sank in his chest. "Emma?" he asked softly.

She jumped, her sniffles ceasing instantly. "Yeah," she said, her voice straining as though she were trying desperately to not sound like she'd been crying. "I'm–"

He took a seat next to her, finally able to see that her eyes were rimmed in red and faint tear stains marred her cheeks. "Hey, kiddo, what's the matter? Is it Hook? Do you need me to deck him?"

That got his baby girl to smile, which had been his intention. "No, it's not Hook. It's fine–"

She stopped short when he reached out to dry her cheeks with his thumbs. "This isn't fine. What happened?"

"Nothing, it just hit me … I should have had this, shouldn't I?"

"Yes, kiddo," he said softly. "This just hit you all of a sudden?"

"No," she admitted. "A young girl about Henry's age bumped into me at the dessert table. We both apologized to each other but when she apologized to me, she called me 'your highness.' It sounded so strange to hear someone I don't know call me that but people would have been calling me 'your highness' my whole life, wouldn't they?"

Charming nodded, barely resisting the urge to gather his baby girl in his arms and hold her until her tears stopped. "They would have, Emma. You would have been their princess, too."

"I guess it was just all so abstract before. Even when Killian and I went to the ball in the past, I was undercover. It felt no different than any other time I'd gone undercover to catch a bail jumper. I was just playing whatever role I needed to in order to get the job done. I was playing a princess then but now ..."

"Now you realize you are one," Charming softly finished for her.

Emma nodded, the brimming tears in her eyes threatening to spill over. "I … I didn't grow up anything like a princess and it's just … oh, I don't even know."

A vise grip tightened around Charming's heart. What should have been for his baby girl was such a stark contrast to what actually was. Her life should have been filled with togetherness and love and light and hope but instead she'd grown up alone with indifference and bleakness and despair. No wonder she was having trouble with it.

"You always were and will always be a princess, Emma," he said, brushing one of her curled tendrils behind her ear. "And yes, you would have had all of this if you'd grown up with us: balls and fancy dresses and jewels in your hair and people calling you 'your highness.' But you want to know something? I don't need to see you dressed up like this to know how very proud I am of the princess you grew up to be."

She blinked at him. "What?" she breathed.

"Emma, this world … this world was cruel to you. I am more sorry than you will ever know for that and the way you grew up is not at all what we wanted for you. But despite all the challenges you faced, you grew up into the wonderful, amazing, spectacular woman sitting in front of me, and you did it all on your own. You raised yourself, kiddo, and you did a damn fine job. I am so proud that you're my daughter, I am so proud of you, and I get prouder every time I look at you."

That, apparently, was Emma's breaking point because her tears finally did spill over. Charming shifted closer to her and wrapped her in a tight hug. She hugged him back, squeezing tightly, and he reached his palm up to brace the back of her head, holding her even closer. "You've always been a princess, Emma, a tough, strong princess who travels in a yellow car instead of a carriage and stands up for herself, those she loves, and what she believes in. I'm so sorry that it's taken you so long to find people who treat you as such."

"Thank you," Emma whispered into his ear.

For a long beat, father and daughter remained in the embrace. Then a strong wind blew through the courtyard, making Emma shiver as she pulled away. She sniffled sheepishly and dabbed at her eyes. "Please tell me I don't look like a raccoon," she groaned as she searched her fingers for signs of running mascara and desperately tried to force the conversation back to joking – and therefore comfortable – ground.

"You don't look like a raccoon," Charming assured her, once again drying her tears with his thumbs. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah," she said, nodding emphatically. Still, it was a moment before she gathered herself enough to stand. "We should get back. I'm cold, and Mom and Killian are probably freaking the hell out right now."

Charming smiled at her as he stood and draped his suit jacket over her shoulders. "Agreed but can I ask you one favor?"

"Sure," she shrugged.

"Will you allow me at least one dance tonight? This is, after all, your first ball with us."

A touched smile lit Emma's face before she caught herself and smirked instead. And Charming's heart, so broken a moment ago by his daughter's tears, now mended itself and flew right out of his chest when she said, "If you thought you were going to get out of this without dancing with me, you've got another think coming."