Chapter 16

"I'm not…trying to be your mom. I am your mom. There's not an off switch for that. Let's just…let's go get the dress for now, okay?" Emma didn't look angry…just hurt, but it was clear the woman did not want to talk to her anymore. That was a first…it was always the other way around.

It felt like a rejection, however small, to Mia and she worried she had crossed a line and pushed Emma too far. Her eyes stung with tears. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean it like that," she cried.

"I know," Emma said stiffly.

"I know you think I'm trying to hurt you, but I'm not…I promise I'm not," Mia said a little desperately. "I don't know how to deal with all this."

"I know it's a lot for you to deal with," Emma said after a moment.

Mia lowered her gaze. "I know I'm not dealing with all of it the way you want me to. I don't want to be mad at you, but I just…I can't help the way I feel."

"Right now the only thing I want you to do is get a dress to wear to your dad's funeral. Let's just take it one step at a time, okay?"

"Okay," Mia said weakly.

They walked the rest of the way to Modern Fashions in uncomfortable silence. In fact, Emma didn't say anything else to her until they were in the juniors section of the clothing shop, and that was only to ask her opinion on a black dress.

"How about this?"

Mia looked at the dress on the hanger Emma was holding up out in front of her. It was just a plain black dress, no lace or bows or anything too…frilly. "Yeah, it's…fine."

Emma eyed Mia's feet. "You need shoes, too," she said carefully.

Mia studied her tattered sneakers for a second. "Just…not heels. They hurt my feet."

Emma held the hanger out in front of her, looking at the dress. "You can wear boots with this."

Mia wandered over to the small shoe section and picked up a black suede ankle boot that was on display. She looked back over her shoulder at Emma uncertainly. "Are these okay? I've never…been to a funeral before."

"They're fine," Emma said with a forced smile. "Try them on and make sure they're comfortable. We'll be standing for awhile."

The salesperson rang up the dress and shoes. Mia watched from just behind Emma as the total appeared on the credit card reader. Damn, Mia hadn't realized how much it would be. Emma had just spent almost $150 on her - and that was only for one outfit. Mia wondered how much Emma had spent on all the other new clothes she bought her. She felt guilty that her birth mother was spending this much money on her, even after she told her she didn't have to keep trying to be her mom.

"Thank you," Mia whispered.

It turned out three people sharing one bathroom in a room at the bed and breakfast when they all had to leave at the same time did not work. Mia was taking forever in the bathroom, and Henry still needed to take a shower. If they stayed in Storybrooke, Emma would need to find someplace with at least two bathrooms.

"What is she doing in there?" Henry asked with frustration in his voice.

Emma stared at the closed bathroom door. "I don't know, kid."

"We're going to be late," Henry said.

"I know. Just…give me a minute." Emma knocked tentatively on the bathroom door. "Mia? You almost done?"

Mia opened the door. The girl was already dressed and was straightening her hair with a brush and the blow dryer instead of an actual flat iron - a slow process with as much hair as she had.

"Henry needs to take a shower. Maybe you can do that out here? I can help you."

Mia gave her a strange look. "I don't need help. I'm almost thirteen, not three." But she unplugged the blow dryer and gathered it and her brush and then followed Emma out.

"All yours," Emma called to Henry. He hurried into the bathroom and locked the door behind him. She heard the water turn on in the shower.

Mia was banging around the room, trying to find an outlet by the mirror over the chest of drawers. There wasn't one. The only outlets were by the desk and the beds.

"I know three of us and one bathroom is cramped," Emma started carefully. "And I know you don't need help. But it'll be a lot easier logistically if I help."

"Okay, fine." Mia looked at her uncertainly, seemingly unsure what Emma wanted her to do.

Emma plugged her own flat iron in and switched it on. She sat down on Mia's bed and patted the bedspread in front of her in silent invitation. Mia sat stiffly where she had indicated with her back facing Emma, staying almost unnaturally still.

Emma gently brushed the girl's hair out. It was the same exact color as Henry's hair, but she had a lot more of it and it fell in soft waves like Emma's blonde hair. Her daughter seemed to relax a little as Emma ran the brush through her hair, leaning her head back and sighing softly.

"You want it straight, right?" Emma checked as she picked up the flat iron, waiting for Mia to nod before starting with one of the strands of hair that framed the girl's face.

It was a little awkward for Emma to straighten someone else's hair…she was used to straightening her own hair, and she had to come at straightening Mia's hair from a different angle with the flat iron. However awkward it was at first, it was something Emma had missed out on doing when Mia was a little girl, and it hit her that this was the first time Mia had allowed her to do anything like this - anything mothers generally did.

Emma set the flat iron down on the nightstand when she was finished and gently smoothed the last strand of hair back. "There. You're all set."

"Thanks." Mia turned to give her a small smile.

Emma returned the smile.

"Mom?"

Emma looked over to see Henry standing at the foot of the bed, wearing the suit Regina brought over for him and holding his tie awkwardly in front of him. Oh, hair she could do, but ties…well, Neal never wore a tie when they were together, Henry didn't have one single tie in his closet back in New York, and Walsh didn't exactly need help with his. Regina would be so much better at this, but Emma would try.

Mia disappeared into the bathroom again. Emma wondered what she could possibly be doing in there now. She shook her head slightly and went over to stand in front of her son, taking the tie from him. She draped it over his shoulders like a scarf and then fumbled around until she had a loose knot right under his neck. She tightened the knot and straightened the tie.

"You look good, kid," Emma said, giving his shoulder a gentle squeeze.

"Do I look like him…my dad?" Henry asked.

"You do. You look a little like both of us. He had brown hair. It was a bit darker than yours, but not much. Besides, I think yours is getting darker as you get older. And you also have his nose."

Henry turned to study his reflection in the mirror over the chest of drawers, adjusting the tie a little. "Does Mia look like him, too, then?"

"The hair…yes," Emma said. "She looks more like you than anyone else to me though."

"She looks like me? So I'm the oldest?"

"By, like, ten minutes." Emma thought about it for a second. "Actually, it was twelve."

"Cool. That means she has to listen to me," Henry said smugly.

Emma let out a short laugh. "Good luck with that, kid. She doesn't even listen to me right now."

"Yes, she does. She's wearing a dress, isn't she?"

Emma blinked…he was right – Mia was wearing a dress despite flat-out refusing to do so at first.

Mia didn't know how long Neal's funeral lasted, but it felt like it was never going to end.

It was cold and windy. The bitter cold air cut right through her. Mia was glad she had agreed to wear the black leather jacket Emma suggested she wear as they left the room at Granny's. It was Emma's jacket and it was big on her. It went down all the way to mid-thigh and made her feel even shorter than she was – and she knew she wasn't tall. But it was warmer than her thin bomber jacket would have been, and even with that she was still shivering. She wondered why she had to wear a dress when Emma wasn't even wearing a dress. Pants would have been warmer. She shifted uncomfortably, crossing her arms in front of her stomach and trying to keep warm. The boots had been comfortable enough for the two minutes she had them on in the store, but now they were hurting her feet. She could feel blisters forming on her heels.

Everyone was staring at her. Well, not just at her…at her, Henry and Emma. They all seemed to know she was Neal's daughter somehow. She hadn't told anyone about her newfound parents and wondered if Emma had told everyone or if they were just assuming the way Zelena had assumed she was Emma's daughter. It was weird for her to have everyone treat her like she was the grieving daughter when she still didn't feel like anyone's daughter.

Mia didn't cry, and she was a little worried that she wasn't reacting the right way and everyone would think she was awful…that Emma would think she was awful – or more awful than she already thought she was after what she had said to her earlier. She glanced over at Henry and was relieved to see that he wasn't crying either. Other people were crying though, and it made Mia a little uncomfortable. She didn't know what she was supposed to be doing. She just stood there, feeling awkward.

They finally lowered the coffin into the grave and people started filing up one at a time to shovel fresh soil onto the coffin. Mia was a little surprised when she felt Emma's hand on her shoulder, giving her a soft push toward the grave. She approached it tentatively and stared at the smooth wood of the casket. It was so strange to know her dad was in there…it was strange to even think of herself as having a dad. The man she met yesterday didn't even look that sick, and now he was dead.

"You said family is forever, but you were only my dad for a day. It sucks that I just found you and I already lost you. I wish I had more time with you…Dad," Mia whispered.

Mia knew she wouldn't have called Neal that to his face, not this soon…maybe not ever. He sure hadn't earned the title, but somehow it felt right at that moment.

Mia copied what she'd seen all of the other people do before her with the shovel and the soil. Henry took the shovel from her when she was done and she stepped back into her previous spot next to Emma. She felt the woman's hand on her shoulder again for a moment before Emma stepped forward to take her turn up at the grave.

Everyone went back to Granny's after the funeral. Mia wanted to be alone, away from all of the people she didn't know and that didn't know her. She wanted to slip away, but Emma guided her and Henry into a booth before being pulled away herself.

"He's our dad, and he's dead. We should feel something…shouldn't we?"

Mia was startled when her twin said what she'd been thinking. It made her remember that her brother had two moms, but he never had Neal… She shrugged. "Sometimes it's easier not to feel anything."

Henry studied her for a moment. "You don't have to be scared to feel something for me and our mom, you know?"

"I'm not…scared," Mia said indignantly.

"It's okay to be happy," Henry continued like he hadn't even heard her. "I already know you like us, and we like you."

Mia shifted her gaze to Emma uncertainly. The woman was throwing darts at a dartboard with a deep scowl on her face. "Yeah? I don't know how much Emma likes me right now."

"Of course she does. She's your mom," Henry said simply.

"I told her she didn't have to keep trying to be my mom…that we could go back to how things were last week." Mia watched Henry carefully to gauge his reaction.

Henry looked horrified. Damn it, she had really screwed up this time, hadn't she?

"It was stupid, and I didn't mean it," Mia added hastily. "You should have seen the look on her face…" Her voice trailed off. "How did you forgive her? You know, for giving us away?"

"She did it to give us our best chance," Henry said earnestly.

Mia scoffed. "Maybe you had your best chance, but foster care wasn't mine."

"Your foster parents…they weren't good, were they?" Henry asked hesitantly.

"My last foster father was one of Emma's cases," Mia reminded him, hoping that would be enough to answer his question.

"He skipped bail? What was he arrested for?"

"Beating the crap out of his wife," Mia said flatly.

Henry looked scandalized…Mia wondered if he was really that naïve. "Did he…did he hit you?"

"No, he didn't hit me," Mia said after a moment. She had no intention of telling Henry what Trey actually did. She got up from the booth, sending a clear signal that the conversation was over and this particular topic was off limits.

Henry turned to her. "Where are you going?"

"Bathroom," Mia lied.

Mia headed to the back hallway, but walked right past the bathroom and out the back. She bumped into someone in the alleyway. She looked up, hoping it wasn't one of Emma's friends…it was Zelena.

Zelena looked a little surprised to her. "No babysitter today?"

"Nope."

"Emma has no idea you left," Zelena said with a small, amused smile.

"No," Mia said with a sigh, fully expecting the woman to take her back.

"Don't worry, it will be our little secret," Zelena said, winking at her.

Mia eyed her warily. "I thought you were Mary Margaret's friend. You're not going to tell her?"

"I'm not her friend. I was her midwife, but I'm not anymore."

"Oh." Mia didn't know what else to say to that.

"My condolences. It is your father's wake you're leaving?"

Mia shifted uncomfortably. "It's fine. I…didn't really know him."

"I never knew my father either," Zelena offered quietly after a moment. "Or my mother for that matter."

"Yeah, well, I've only known my mom for, like, a week. And I've only known she's my mom since yesterday. She wasn't even going to tell me until after she finishes whatever case she's working on."

"I think you'll find there are a great many things your new mother isn't telling you," Zelena said carefully.

Mia stiffened. "Like what?"

Before Zelena could respond, the back door to Granny's burst open. It startled Mia when the door slammed into the wall with a loud bang. She almost jumped.

"Mia." Mia recognized the voice as Emma's and thought she heard relief in her voice. She rolled her eyes...she had barely left Granny's and she was only gone for maybe five minutes.

Mia reluctantly turned to the woman. But Emma didn't look relieved…she looked almost…afraid. "What?"

"Go back inside." Mia didn't like Emma's commanding tone. She was used to the woman telling her what to do at this point, but she had been making suggestions and at least pretending to give her options up until now. This was clearly not a suggestion.

Mia didn't move, wanting to hear what else Emma wasn't telling her - and wanting to hear it from Zelena since Zelena hadn't lied to her yet, at least not that she knew of. "I will in a couple minutes. I just need some air."

Emma stepped in front on her. "Mia! Go back inside! Now!" The woman yelled over her shoulder.

Mia stood her ground. "I said I would in a couple minutes."

"Perhaps I should paint a bulls eye on the wicked witch's back," Hook mused after Emma's dart hit dead center on the target.

"She'll get more than a dart when I find her," Emma told him.

"I know you're hurting, Swan, but there are better ways to grieve Baelfire's death than letting anger overcome you."

Emma glanced at him. "Let me guess – rum?"

Hook held his flask up, offering her a drink.

Emma turned back to the dartboard. "I'll stick with anger…at least until I've dealt with Zelena."

"Take it from me – vengeance isn't the thing that's going to make you feel better."

"It'll make this town safer." Emma looked over at the booth she left Henry and Mia in. Wait, where the hell was Mia? Without looking back at Hook, she went over to the booth. "Henry, where's Mia?"

Henry hesitated. "She went to the bathroom."

Emma studied him, unsure if he was telling the truth…he'd hesitated a second too long. "Really?"

"She said she was going to the bathroom, but…I think she just didn't want to talk to me anymore."

"I'm sure that's not true, kid." Emma nudged him. "You're probably her favorite person in this town right now. Stay here with Killian, okay? I'm gonna go see if your sister's in the bathroom."

Emma wasn't surprised to find the bathroom empty. She saw a small movement outside through the little window in door leading to the alleyway at the end of the hallway and moved that direction. She burst out the door, hoping Mia would be there…she was. "Mia."

At first all Emma saw was her daughter. She felt a wave of relief that the girl wasn't running away – or if she was, at least she hadn't gotten very far. She saw a flash of red out of the corner of her eye and noticed Zelena standing less than a foot away from her daughter with a predatory smile that she really wanted to wipe off the redhead's face. Her relief died down and pure unadulterated fear washed over her. She hadn't been this afraid since the moment she found Henry in Neverland when he was about to give Peter Pan his heart. Now another one of her kids was within arm's reach of an evil villain. This kind of thing didn't happen in New York.

"What?" Mia almost sounded annoyed. Well, that was okay…Emma was a little annoyed with her, too.

"Go back inside."

Mia didn't make a move toward her. "I will in a couple minutes. I just need some air."

Did Mia think she was asking? She wasn't. Emma shook her head in disbelief and moved to stand in front of her daughter, physically putting herself in between the little girl and the wicked witch. Once Mia was safely behind her, she glanced over her shoulder at her. "Mia! Go back inside! Now!"

Mia still didn't move. "I said I would in a couple minutes."

Emma let out a frustrated sigh. She turned so that her back was not quite to Zelena, but she was angled slightly toward Mia and pushed her toward the doorway. "I wasn't asking. Go inside right now."

Emma hadn't pushed her hard, but it had been just enough force to propel the girl toward the door. Mia turned right back around in the doorway though. "What's the matter with you? I wasn't doing anything! We were just talking!"

Hook appeared in the doorway behind Mia, looking for her probably. "Swan. Good you found her…them."

Emma almost sighed in relief. "Killian, take Mia inside."

"Lass." Hook put a hand on Mia's shoulder, but she shrugged it off and stalked past him. Oh, well…at least she was back in the diner and away from Zelena.

Emma whipped around so she was fully facing Zelena. "Stay away from my daughter."

Zelena smiled, looking very much like the cat that ate the canary. "Oh, I'll stay away from her, but she might not stay away from me."

"She will."

"Yes, she seems very…obedient," Zelena said mockingly. "Don't worry, I don't want to kill your daughter. In fact, I'm not going to kill anyone. Not right now, anyway. I'm just paying a friendly visit to my little sister."

What the hell? "Mia's not your sister. I think I would know."

Zelena laughed. "No, not Mia. Regina."