Chapter fifteen

"It's going to be okay, Snow," Charming assured as they were rushed down the hospital hallway. His only reply came in the form of a scream of pain as another contraction racked her body.

The sound of her grandmother in pain seemed to only increase Tamsin's distress as the child, who had been so rudely awoken, wailed almost as loud as Snow.

"What's going on?" Emma asked as she stepped out of Regina's room, beckoned by the sudden increase in sound.

Without hesitation, David handed Tamsin to his daughter which instantly caused the child to marginally calm down, and he explained, "you mother is in labour."

The blonde nodded and watched as a couple of nurses pushed the stretcher into a labour room down the hall and began whispering shushing sounds to calm down Tamsin, which didn't take long to start taking effect.

David took a moment to inspect his daughter closely holding her own daughter, and for an instant he felt like crying. With everything going on, he hadn't quite processed that he was going to have another child, one who would be younger than both of his grandchildren. He felt utterly unprepared for it all.

Emma looked up from Tamsin and instantly recognised the look on his face, she was sure that it was the expression she would have been wearing had she been present at Tamsin's birth, but she also knew that despite the fear, she would now give anything to have actually been there.

"It's okay…dad," she assured.

David took a deep breath and nodded, he leaned forward and hugged her being careful not to disturb Tamsin, who had finally calmed down.

The female blonde accepted the hug and said, "go, I'll be right there."

With that, the saviour turned on her heels and re-entered the hospital room, to find Henry standing next to the door, "is grandma okay?"

Emma smiled fondly at the boy and nodded, "she'll be fine."

The brunette nodded in return and went back over to the plastic chair that he had been occupying since he had arrived in the room.

"Is something wrong, Miss Swan?" Cora asked with a tilted head, "I mean other than the obvious."

"I was thinking about what I saw…" Emma trailed off and considered whether her theory had any merit, but at the same time, even if there was the slightest chance that the Wicked Witch would be going after her new sibling, she wanted to be there to protect him or her.

"If Tamsin is still protected by the love magic that I saw in Regina's memory, then she'll have to find another symbol of innocence…"

"You think she's going to come after your sibling?" Gold asked with a furrowed brow as he thought this through. They had been focused on Regina and had honestly kind of forgotten to think about what Zelena was planning.

Emma nodded, and said, "as soon as Snow gives birth, that witch is probably going to attack."

"Well then, let's go and protect her," Cora replied and was already half way to the door.

The blonde turned to Henry who nodded in encouragement, "I'll look after Tamsin, we'll be fine here."

"Are you sure that this will work?" Snow asked for the tenth time as she watched Cora and Rumple continue to prepare the Dark Curse.

Every so often, she spared glances at her husband, she was sure that he should have been more worried than he appeared to be. He didn't seem the slightest bit bothered by the fact that his heart was about to be sacrificed, but he was rather focused on the fact that his wife and granddaughter would be getting back to Emma.

"Yes, Snow, this will definitely work," Cora replied without looking over her shoulder at the pregnant woman.

Snow looked over at the cot where the unmoving Regina lay, and she couldn't help imagining Charming in the same position. When they got back, Emma would have lost her father and the woman she loved, gaining a daughter who she would have to raise alone. She had to wonder whether it would truly be any better than the life of ignorance that the saviour was living now. But at the same time, she knew that Tamsin growing up as an orphan would be a prospect that would hurt Emma more than the period of grief that she would have to live with.

Charming brought his arm around the woman and pulled her into his side, pressing a kiss lightly to her temple, "we need to give Tamsin her best chance."

"And what about our child?" Snow sniffled.

"He will have you."

"How is it fair that each child only gets one parent?" the woman argued.

"It may not be the way we wanted things to end up, but it is the best option in this terrible situation," he whispered gently, though it didn't do much to reassure her.

"It's time," Cora announced.

Charming brought his wife into a full frontal hug and pulled back to place a kiss on her lips, "I love you, please make sure that Tamsin finds Emma."

The brunette found that she was unable to form words as her True Love began his goodbye speech and instead she just nodded, allowing tears to run down her cheeks.

"Snow," the former Queen of Hearts urged, and Snow sniffled again and stepped away from her husband. After the princess was out of the way, the woman gave the prince a meaningful look, telling him that she appreciated what he was doing for their shared grandchild, and then she sank her hand into his chest.

In the gentlest way that she have ever done so, Cora brought the glowing heart out of his chest and took a moment to admire its purity.

Eventually, she turned and handed the heart to his wife.

Snow took her time to share a silent conversation with Charming, and when she was assured that he already knew everything that she wanted to tell him, she brought the heart over the little dish that Cora had placed the rest of the ingredients in and after much resistance from her hand, the heart turned to dust and the blonde prince fell to the ground.

Snow fell to her knees next to him and cradled his head in her hands, she placed her hand on his chest and the smoke bellowing behind her didn't even register when she felt the distinct lack of heart beat.

"How do I live without him?" she breathed.

Neither Cora nor Gold offered any reply and she continue to speak to herself, "how do I live without my other half?"

The princess blinked a few times as the statement gave her an idea, she had no idea if it was even an option, but the small chance at hope was enough for her in that moment.

Looking up at Cora with tears stained upon her cheeks, she said in a hoarse voice, "we could share a heart."

Henry looked over the edge of the crib that Cora had conjured for Tamsin and he instantly saw how the child was a mix of his two mothers.

She was adorable, but also painfully innocent.

The little girl slept as if everything wasn't going wrong, as if their mother wasn't technically dead, not that anyone had actually spoken those words yet.

With a sad smile, he pushed off the edge of the crib and walked back over to his mother, plopping down onto the chair, and he brought both of his hands over hers.

"I really missed you," he sighed, "I know it makes no sense since I actually had no idea who you was, but I just felt like something was missing. Everything seemed just a little bit off, at least I know why I didn't like Walsh," he laughed half-heartedly.

Henry continued to watch as the machine forced his mother's chest to raise and fall, and tears finally began to roll down his cheeks. Though he would always be the first person to believe that there was another way, that things would always work themselves out, in this moment he felt hopeless.

Regina was objectively dead, and the thought tore him apart, leaving him unable to think of a possible way to save her.

"I should have told you that I love you more than I did," he admitted, "but I guess you know that I do love you, at least I hope you do. I don't know if ma would ever recover and Tamsin…well she doesn't know you yet, but she deserves to. My point is that you have to wake up."

When he was met with silence, he tried to blink away his tears and when he couldn't think of anything else to say, he leaned forward to place a kiss on her forehead.

Instantly, a burst of light shot out from the point where his lips touched her skin, and he knew exactly what had happened.

The curse had been broken, but his mother still didn't wake up.

A/N Hope you guys enjoyed, I would love to hear what you thought XD