There was no mistaking at all. The little girl, screaming on top of her lungs was no one else but Emma herself. She didn't change much at all, same round sweet face, beautiful features, perfect mix from both of her parents, mother's chin, mop of curly disheveled blonde hair and blue father's eyes. It was as if same Emma at 28 would have shrunk into tiny little mini version.
Charming gaped. "Emma?" he walked over carefully, Snow stood behind him, still as a statue.
The little girl stopped screaming but looking petrified, she moved back.
"Emma, do you know who we are?" he tried.
There was nothing making sense right now. Just mere hours ago he had kissed his 28 year old daughter goodnight, who was sleeping side by side with his grandson and now there was a tiny girl, instead, with no sign of Henry even existing. There was no logical explanation, all he felt was pain at the little girl being so scared and hurting. This little girl was his Emma after all.
"Oh my gosh Charming, she's bleeding" Snow snapped out of her trance running over to Charming and instead of using his careful approach not to scare the tiny human, she went straight for it, grabbing Emma into her hands and checking her head. The little girl started screaming and wriggling out desperately out of Snow's hold.
"Snow, step back please" Charming begged.
Snow, with her tears filling up her eyes, stepped back, reluctantly, not wanting to let go off Emma. "But…"
"She's in shock, she's scared, we don't know what's happening" Charming tried to explain. Snow's lip quivered feeling hopeless. All she wanted that moment was to stop her child from hurting.
"Hey Emma" Charming leaned down to Emma's height.
Emma ceased her cries again, only a little this time, paying attention when her name was pronounced. "Don't be scared, okay? We love you very much Emma"
Emma stared at him curiously, then at Snow. Snow tried to smile at her encouragingly.
"No" Emma replied. Being her first word she's spoken ever.
"No?" Charming looked at her curiously.
"You are lying." little Emma said matter of fact.
"No, Emma, we would never lie to you." Charming spoke kindly. "Please, trust us?"
"No." Emma's lip quivered, much like Snow's did moments ago, reminding just how much they were alike.
Snow's eyes suddenly grew large as an idea came suddenly in her head, Charming looked at her questioningly, while she ran over to one of the boxes standing in the corner. His eyes grew massively large realising what item she just retrieved.
He gasped, with his eyes welling up with tears, being unable to avoid emotions because no one has told him ever about this still existing in present day.
"Emma" Snow tried carefully coming closer. "Do you know what is it?" she showed the baby blanket to Emma, holding close to her. She realised just right now about the size of this new Emma. She could actually almost wrap her all up in it just how small she was.
"My baby blanket" Emma widened her eyes, staring at it earnestly. Snow could read the little girl, that she desperately wanted to grab the blanket out of her hands and possibly bolt. But since this was now a perfect leverage and maybe a way to connect with her she was holding into it.
"You know, when you were this tiny" Snow indicated with her hands a size of a small baby. "We wrapped you into this blanket, it was the only thing that you always had from us and we just hoped it would keep you warm wherever you go" Snow explained best as she could, with teary eyes, trying not to break down and scare the child more.
Emma scrunched her forehead, thinking hard. She was still not trusting but didn't say anything back.
Snow felt as if she was going to jump out of her skin, she knew Charming had a point they had to earn Emma's trust because she was still processing just as they were, except she probably didn't even know who they were, yet the urgency of Emma's head being full of fresh blood, made her insides turn and she was about to jump into her again, mother instincts full force and tend the wound immediately.
"Emma, we will not going to hurt you, okay?" Charming tried again.
"Everyone says that" Emma replied and with that his heart filling with a shooting pain. Child this small shouldn't say things like that.
"I promise, Emmie" Charming tried. "I could never ever hurt you" he spoke with entire sincerity and pain in his voice.
"Okay." Emma replied looking at him. He smiled widely, taking this as a permission skipping over to his daughter and so did Snow.
Emma rapidly extended her hands, grabbing her blanket as if her life depended on it and hugged it tightly to her body, the sheets coming off, revealing she was only wearing big Emma's pajamas top, clearly losing pants before that because she was so miniature. It was a clear indication, that whatever happened their big Emma was gone and was turned into child again.
"Should we take her to Whale?" Snow panicked carefully looking at her head.
"No, Snow, she's going to get terrified again, just get some wound dressing at the moment"
"Okay" Snow nodded dashing out of the room.
"Does it hurt?" Charming touched Emma's head carefully. Emma nodded slowly.
"Okay, mommy's going to put some medicine on here, so it heals and you won't feel a thing soon, okay?" He noticed how Emma's shirt was full of blood stains and it was starting to make him panic just as much as Snow was earlier, he's seen so many wounds through his life but there was something different about seeing his little girl injured. That was the most unnerving thing in this planet. And he was starting to re-think the suggestion they wait to go to Whale.
"Here" Snow came in carrying all the first aid she could find, going straight over to Emma and starting to disinfect the wound, cleaning it up. Emma sobbed again starting to cry in pain. "Shh, it's going to be okay" Snow rubbed her back, trying to be gentle as possible, hating to cause any pain whatsoever, which was unavoidable. Charming wiped Emma's tears as Snow was finishing off putting the cream on and then bandage.
"At least she's not bleeding, should we lay her down?" Snow asked helplessly.
"I think, we can't let her fall asleep, in case of concussion" Charming replied. "And I think, we really now need to do something" he sighed. "We need to ask Gold"
"No" Snow groaned.
"I know, but we don't really have a better choice, we can't really go to Regina's and he's only other person who has magic right now, because Blue is still not capable of much"
"And he could possibly be involved in making Emma this way" Snow added.
"Could be, or not. We still need an explanation and it's our best bet right now and pretty much only way."
They looked at each other for a moment, then at Emma who was just clutching her baby blanket not speaking.
"I'll go" Charming volunteered. "Stay with Emma and if something call me or Whale." He mentally blanked out anything that could possibly cause that name or the fact that he was saying to call him or Whale to his wife.
"Will do" Snow nodded rubbing Emma's back. "Charming?"
"Yeah?"
"On your way, can you buy her few dresses?" Snow smiled sheepishly.
"Dresses?" Charming raised an eyebrow, amused expression on his face.
"Okay don't look at me like that! She's tiny, she has no fitting clothes and well, I may never get that opportunity you know" she murmured last part guilty.
Charming chuckled. "Okay, I will. Anything else? A tutu?"
"Okay, lets not take it this far." Snow gave him a look. "Yet" she added finally.
"She might be tiny, but may I remind you this is still Emma" Charming laughed.
"Shut it, gooo" Snow nagged him. He waved at her, giving up on what he was going to say and ran as fast as he could.
Snow White looked back down at her daughter, sighing.
"Are you hungry?" she offered.
Emma shook her head.
"How about…some hot chocolate with cinnamon and whipped cream on top? Loadddds of whipped cream?" she tried again.
Emma looked at her, as if she was trying to see whether Snow was lying or not, to which Snow caressed her cheek.
"And whatever else you'd like?"
"What did I do?" Emma asked fearfully.
Snow looked at her confused. "What you mean what did you do?"
"Why are you being nice to me?" Emma asked not trusting.
Now that hurt. "Emma, I love you, more than anything in this entire world. You're my entire life. There's nothing ever I wouldn't do for you" Snow responded honestly, trying to keep her tears in. "I will never ever hurt you"
Emma looked down at her feet.
"When I believe that bad things happen" she said truthfully.
Snow kneeled down so she was her daughters height. "What bad things?"
"Like when Ryan threw me down the stairs"
Snow stared at Emma, loss at words. Trying to keep her anger at bay and not to react too emotionally. "Who is Ryan?" she leveled her voice calmly.
"Dad" Emma replied. "Well, another dad, because the first dad and first mom left me, so I got new dad and new mom but they are not nice" Emma explained.
"That's how you hurt your head?"
"I was a bad girl" Emma murmured ashamed.
"Emma" Snow cupped Emma's little face in her hands making her look up to her. "Listen to me, baby, never ever, anyone will ever hurt you again. No one will, I promise you. Nothing you ever do, ever, deserve you to be punished this way. Okay? If anyone ever will try to hurt you they will have to go through me first, I will not let anything happen to you" Snow said firmly.
"And you're not going to leave me?" Emma asked hopeful. "Like my first mom and dad?"
This was full irony and Snow's heart filled with despair. It could have very well been them, her and Charming. They supposingly left her, although she knew Emma was referring to those people she mentioned earlier, but Snow couldn't help but feel a heartache, the only and first parents Emma had to have were her and Charming.
"Never" Snow smiled trying to assure the girl.
Emma looked at her considering to believe or not, which reminded of big Emma using her lie detector skills. "Okay" Emma agreed in the end.
"Now, how about that hot chocolate?"
Emma nodded enthusiastically and Snow, pausing a second, thinking against it, but eventually just wrapping her hands and picking up Emma. It was a tiny Emma after all and she only marveled about the fact that she gets to do everything she was not able to with her big Emma.
Which reminded her.
She placed Emma on the chair, lightly kissing her head, so she doesn't move the bandage. "How old are you Emma?"
Emma looked at her fingers, doing two and two from each hand making it 4 in total.
"My God, you're SO tiny and SO smart" Snow grinned, feeling so proud she squeezed hugging Emma who was turning red now.
"Okay hot chocolate!" she reminded herself letting go off Emma.
"Back" Charming closed the door, observing the view in front, both Emma and Snow finishing off their mugs with previously full of hot chocolate he guessed by Emma's nose with whipped cream left over's.
"Had to leave it to you to bribe her with hot chocolate" Charming smiled.
"Well, it worked" Snow grinned in response. "Did you talk to him?" she walked over to him, so Emma wouldn't hear their conversation, now knowing how smart her 4 year old was.
"Yeah, I did." Charming's expression changed into a troubled one. "He needs to check her"
"What do you mean?" Snow looked at him worried.
"Well, he said it is most likely magic and according to him, not his job, which I don't really trust anyway. But to be able to find out how much of the magic was involved and whether it's permanent, he has to check her"
"Permanent?" Snow panicked.
Charming nodded.
"Is she going to stay at 4, forever?"
Charming shrugged. "I think we need to take her to him"
"Wh-what about Henry?" Snow asked, filled with fear.
"Well, he's not in school, so most likely, he doesn't exist, because Emma went back in time"
Snow's eyes filled with fresh tears, Charming pulling her in a hug, both comforting each other.
"We wanted so badly another chance with her I feel like it's karma getting back at us, because this is wrong, as much as I want to have all these years with little Emma, but it shouldn't be this way, not at this cost"
"All magic comes with a price" Charming replied helplessly. "But you know what?"
Snow looked him in his eyes, waiting.
"We have her here, with us and no one's taking that away from us, whatever it is, however old she is, it's just the fact that we won't lose her is the most important thing ever"
Snow nodded, trying to smile. "You're right." She looked back at their little girl who was with her entire hand inside cup, fishing for more chocolate. "She's so smart, Charming, she speaks so well and she's only four."
Charming grinned. "Are you surprised? She's our daughter" he explained it proudly.
Snow grinned. "Who's proud now?" she stepped up on tiptoes and kissed him. "Oh" she remembered placing another kiss. "Did you get her clothes?"
"Uh. Yeah. I'm not really expert at his" Charming rubbed his head nervously. He turned around picking up a dozen of bags.
"Did you buy entire shop or something?" Snow teased, biting her lip just how adorable this spoiling their kid business was, it just started and he wasn't even aware.
"I told you I'm not an expert! I just picked anything, I worried you won't like"
"I'm sure, there'll be something" Snow peaked into one bag, taking few dresses out. Charming noticed just with how much wonder she was staring at them. "Does it make me really awful I'm terribly enjoying this?" Snow admitted.
"Not at all, I'll get camera ready when you're done" Charming added.
Snow nodded enthusiastically. "I'm going to get her dressed so we can go" She turned to Emma. "Emma, sweetie, com here, we need to get dressed and we'll go somewhere, then you can have some ice cream?"
Emma stared at her, not saying anything, yet still not moving from her place.
"Take it easy, Snow" Charming rubbed her shoulder. "I'll go grab a sandwich until you're ready"
Snow nodded, kissing him then going over to Emma. It was all so completely different right now. Instead of trying to tiptoe around Emma, over-thinking her next steps not to scare her daughter away or retreat from the progress they were making, she was able to do all these things and at that moment, it felt fantastic. Snow knew and felt guilty even thinking about it, but truthfully it did feel like a new chance. She could pick her baby up, she could cuddle her as much as she wanted to. Emma could trust her blindly and well, most of all, she needed to be taken care of, because she was merely a 4 year old child.
Snow wrapped her hands around tiny Emma, picking her up with ease. She felt like if she could get away with carrying Emma and not letting go off her arms she would probably do it all the time.
"So, daddy bought you few beautiful dresses, we're going to try that on, okay?" Snow smirked, waiting for Emma to comment anything and when the little girl didn't respond anything to that as if it was the most natural thing she grinned even wider. Well, of course little Emma had no problem with that.
She put Emma to stand up on top of her bed, next to the scattered clothing items she found in the first bag, taking off the dirty pajama top and throwing it into the bin, taking one of Emma's legs, while Emma held onto Snow's shoulder for support, she pulled the tights up, it was still a chilly winter outside. She went for a thicker material long sleeved red dress, asking Emma to hold her sleeve whilst she was putting a black cardigan. Snow didn't even have time to dwell on how weird it was, dressing a child for the first time in her life and it felt like she knew exactly what to do.
"My beautiful gorgeous little princess" Snow smiled all proud how Emma turned out with the choice of clothes.
"It's hot" Emma whined pulling the cardigan sleeve off, not having any of this.
"No no no, it's cold outside, as soon as we're back you're taking this off"
"I don't want it" Emma insisted continuing to pull it off.
"You're not getting cold!" Snow protested pulling it back. She picked Emma from the bed so she wouldn't have chance to keep pulling it off.
"I wanna pee" Emma announced.
"Oh, okay" Snow blinked. Her mind went through scanning for any information that she possibly could have on 4 year olds, coming up with nothing, she just carried Emma to the bathroom.
"Alone" Emma added.
Okay, so, there's one thing she was going to learn today.
"I'll be right here." Snow assured Emma, leaving her alone and closing bathroom's door.
"What's up here?" Charming stood in a doorway with his half empty coffee mug.
"Nothing, Emma wanted to pee"
Charming chuckled. "Why are you leaning on the bathroom door? I'm sure she's at least old enough to do that." Okay, maybe there was a thing or 2 that Charming knew more about 4 year olds.
"What if she needs my help?"
"I think we established our daughter has very capable lungs to call for it" Charming replied amused.
"You're laughing at me, aren't you" Snow crossed her hands on her chest.
"I'm not, I think you just need to give little Emma a bit of space."
"She's 4!" Snow argued.
"Yeah and she's still Emma"
"Okay." Snow huffed. "But this is the first time she's not in my sight and call me insane or whatever you want and since we don't know still anything about her condition for sure, I just…don't want her out of my sight."
"Not insane, just very overbearing mommy" Charming walked over pulling her into his embrace. "It's all going to be fine."
Snow nodded, letting him make her relax in his arms.
"Speaking of which" Charming hated to be the one paranoid. "Emma, are you okay in there?" he knocked on the door.
There was no answer.
Snow pulled out of his arms, now getting concerned too. "Emma, baby?"
Still no answer. They exchanged looks.
"I'm coming in" Snow warned, waiting few seconds more and then opening the door as the silence remained.
"Emma?" Snow looked around bathroom.
"Where's Emma?" Charming scanned the bathroom frantically. There was not a sight of a small child ever being in there.
Okay I'm sorry for leaving it here, I couldn't help myself, but in all fairness at least it's a very long chapter which I almost split into 2.
I hope it gives a slight insight into what had happened to Emma, as you all have been wondering and well, it will be more explained in detail later on.
Thank you SO much who have reviewed it and gave me a reason to continue, I admit seeing so many followers and no reviews I was discouraged and felt like I should delete this, but thank you for honestly saying whether you liked it or not. Those of you who just follow or favorite this, it doesn't cost you much to leave at least one word to review, you know? And it means a world to me and makes me continue this sooner! So, please? :)