Everyone is unique
A guest asked for a oneshot of a deaf Emma being raised by Regina in Storybrooke.
"How was school?" Regina signed to her six year old. Regina had no way of knowing this was the very child she had set out to kill- she had simply adopted Emma at a month old with no knowledge of her true heritage. As far as Regina was concerned- Emma was her daughter. Nothing would ever change that. When it had been discovered that Emma was profoundly deaf that changed nothing- Regina still loved her.
Emma shrugged in reply. "What's that supposed to mean? Come on, give me a proper answer."
"The other kids laugh at me." Emma sighed, looking at the floor. "They think because I can't hear them that I can't see them, but I can. I don't have any friends. The only reason I like going to school is Miss Blanchard. She's really great and I love her. She makes me feel special." Regina tried to hide it, but she was jealous of the bond Emma had with her first grade teacher. True, Regina loved Emma, and Emma loved Regina, but there seemed to be a connection between Emma and her teacher that Regina feared she and her daughter would never have. "That and visiting the hospital. There's a man there who's always asleep. I like him, he doesn't know that I'm different. I feel good when I sit with him- like I'm meant to." Regina bent down in front of the little girl.
"You are not different." She signed. "Everyone is unique- including you. The things that make us different from everyone else are not bad things unless we let them be. Just because you can't hear like the other children does not mean you can't have friends. Show them how wonderful you are- like I see." Regina finished, placing her hand on Emma's cheek. Whenever she looked at her daughter, she saw a wonderful, amazing little girl. She wished everyone did.