A friend.
Emma's words have caught her off guards, and she watches her exit the vault, surprise filling her heart.
A friend.
She has never had a friend. She was a lonely child. Kathryn was… a fake, magic-built relationship. Mal was fire and revenge and angry, forbidden love. Tinkerbell has tried.
But Emma… she's something new. She adds friend to the list of things Emma is – Henry's mother, her ally, her magic back-up, her sometimes-pain-in-the-ass… her friend.
She scoffs a smile, because the easiness of that word makes her shiver. She has never had anything easily.
Well, she could try.