Heart to heart

Juju asked for a oneshot of Snow and Emma having a heart to heart conversation. I've set it as though Emma broke the curse as a teenager.

Guest who asked for Emma getting shot protecting baby Neal, I'm afraid that's already been covered :)

Snow was worried about her daughter. Both she and Charming had thought when the curse broke that would be it. They'd all be able to skip off merrily into the sunset happily ever after. Unfortunately that wasn't the way things turned out. Emma had become distant from them. When Snow was just her Foster mother Mary Margaret and Charming was just Mary Margaret's boyfriend. But now Emma had a new question on her mind- if these were her real parents- why did they give her away? Emma had believed for weeks now about the curse, but now that she knew it was reality things were different. Different scenarios circled her head. Surely there was a way for them to have kept her? Snow had suspected that's what was bothering her. She decided it was time for her and her daughter to have a little chat. She carried up a couple of hot cocoas (with cinnamon of course) to Emma's room where she was sitting quietly on her bed. That's all Emma seemed to do these days, and it was going far beyond a moody teen stage.

"Emma, I've got hot chocolate. Can I come in?" Snow asked. Both her hands were taken with the drinks so she couldn't knock.

"Yeah." Emma replied quietly. Snow carefully nudged the door open with her foot and smiled at her girl.

"Just how we like it." Snow added, carefully handing Emma her mug.

"Thanks." Emma murmured.

"No problem." Snow said, sitting on the edge of Emma's bed. They sat in silence for a few minutes. The only sounds to be heard the soft blowing to cool the drink and little contented sips. "So," Snow said eventually. "You've been pretty quiet since the curse broke huh?" Snow prompted Emma. The teen shrugged, staring at the mug. "It's alright, you know. It's alright to wonder why we put you through that wardrobe." Emma looked up, shocked. How did she know?

"How-"

"It was only a matter of time." Snow said with a soft smile. She reached out and moved some strands of hair from Emma's face. "Honestly Emma, if there had been any way for your father and I to have kept you and be certain that you would be safe we would have. But it wasn't possible. If we had kept you Regina would have killed you as soon as she saw you. All she saw was the one thing that could keep her from what she thought was her happy ending. She didn't see what your father and I saw: the most precious little girl ever born. We had to do everything we could to keep you safe, even if it meant giving you up. Trust me, sweetheart, it was the hardest thing we've ever had to do. Neither of us wanted to do it, but there was no other option. Do you understand?" Emma nodded slowly, tears building up in her eyes. Snow reached up and wiped them away with her thumb.

"I wish you could have kept me." Emma croaked. "My life sucked up until I was placed with you. It makes me wonder what would have happened if I had always been with you and dad. It would have been a lot better." Snow put her mug down and pulled Emma over, kissing her head.

"I know honey, I know. I know we can't take away all that hurt, but I can promise it'll all be good from now on. Your father and I will make sure of it." Emma nodded into her mother's chest. It wasn't an easy situation for any of them. So many what ifs and could have beens. Soon they would learn not to look back, but forward.