Dealing with loss
A guest asked for a oneshot of Snow and Charming comforting Emma after Ingrid's death. LyssLovesShules33 also asked for a oneshot of Emma telling her parents about Ingrid almost adopting her so this is for both of you!
Snow pulled back from her hug with her daughter and smiled at her proudly. Her daughter had once again saved everyone in this town. Her smile faded when she saw the sadness in her daughter's eyes.
"Emma, what's wrong?" She asked. When Charming heard what Snow was saying he turned his attention to his wife and daughter.
"Ingrid." Emma croaked. "She's dead. She killed herself to stop the curse. But she gave me my memories back before she died."
"Oh?" Charming asked, coming right over. "Can you remember what happened?" Emma nodded, taking a deep shuddering breath.
"Yeah…she nearly adopted me."
"What?" Both her parents questioned.
"I was about thirteen. Clearly she'd been looking for me. Even when she was going to adopt me she said she would be the best big sister she could be. Not mother. She knew about my powers. She pulled me in front of a car and wanted me to stop it. Obviously I didn't know what she was on about and jumped out the road. I ran away after that."
"She put you in front of a car?!" Snow shouted, horrified. That crazy lady didn't only try and steal her daughter from her and try and make everyone in this town kill themselves, but she tried to have her daughter flattened?!
"Well yeah but she just misjudged where I was at." Emma said, keen to move on. "I didn't see her again until I arrived here. I saw her in the ice cream shop but she took away all my memories of her with some magic from her own land. That's when I lost them all…she gave me the good times back too. She really cared, you know? She was the first person since you and the Swans who truly cared about me. She made me feel special…and now she's dead and I couldn't save her." Without warning Emma burst into tears. This was new for Snow and Charming, Emma wasn't normally one for showing her emotions.
"Hey, it's ok." Charming said softly, pulling Emma into his arms. "Emma, this isn't your fault. You couldn't have saved her and broke the curse. And she killed herself, remember? You didn't kill her. She made the decision for herself. She'll always be with you in your memories. You have all the good times now. We can go home and you can tell us all the good things she did. We can celebrate the good times, for now we can forget the bad." Emma nodded, leaning into his chest. She felt her mother's hand start to run through her hair soothingly. She had lost someone she loved, but at least she wasn't alone. And yes, Snow and Charming were grateful that the Ice Queen was no longer around to have her crazy obsession over their daughter. But at the same time they were grateful she had been there for Emma when their daughter needed someone. And it helped Snow's jealously of Ingrid having such precious time with her daughter that she never wanted to be her mother. That role was always hers as the role of her father was always Charming's. They would always be there for her.