I'M ON A CHARMING FAMILY FLUFF KICK RIGHT NOW, SO… YEAH. BUT REALLY, CAN THERE EVER BE TOO MUCH CHARMING FAMILY FLUFF? THIS TAKES PLACE AFTER "THE QUEEN OF HEARTS", LIKE AFTER EVERYONE LEAVES GRANNY'S.

DON'T OWN IT. ADAM HOROWITZ AND EDDY KITSIS CREATED ONCE UPON A TIME AND ABC AIRS IT. I AM NOW DISCLAIMED.

Snow and James stare at their sleeping daughter, because that's not creepy at all. It's well past two in the morning, and they should probably be asleep, but they don't care. Snow's mouth quirks up in a smile every time a little snore erupts from Emma.

"She snores like you." The brunette whispers to her husband.

"You snore, too, Darling." James says.

"Not as loud as you."

"You have a point." He admits, draping an arm around her shoulders. Emma moves around and for a moment, Snow and James fear they have woken her up. But their daughter makes a small, content sound and settles back down. "She looks so peaceful."

"Much different than her usual cyclone self." Snow agrees.

"Hurricane Emma." James chuckles quietly, then eyes the futon his daughter has taken over. "I really wish she'd have let me sleep on the couch. I get her not wanting Henry to, but…"

"It's what a parent does. They put their child first." She says. "We had a nice conversation about that back home."

"So you two are… getting along?" He chooses his words carefully.

"There were a few bumps but yes, we are."

"Wow. I thought, I mean, don't take this the wrong way, but I thought either you two would come back best friends or not talking." He says.

"I'd say we're somewhere in the middle. She's… hard to get to know. And stubborn. So that made it worse. And she thinks she's invincible. That made for more than a few heart attacks on my part."

"I bet." He chuckles again, then turns serious. "Is she okay?" Snow takes a few moments to answer.

"Being away from Henry… it was hard on her. And being out of her element like that didn't help matters. Charming, she almost got eaten by an ogre, climbed a beanstalk with Captain Hook, faced a giant, battled an undead army, and almost got her heart ripped out by Cora. Once the joy of seeing Henry okay wears off, I think it's all going to hit her, and hit her hard. Truthfully, I'm worried."

"I'm not." James kisses the top of his wife's head. "I don't know nearly as much about her as you do, and I'm still waiting to have my moment with her, by the way. But I do know that her life hasn't been a cakewalk, yet she came out of it all being the way she is. This amazing person. She's a survivor, Snow. She's strong." He sighs, contemplating whether or not he should continue. "I don't think I've told you this yet, and I'm not even sure you want to hear it."

"Is it bad?" The brunette questions, looking to meet her husband's eyes but having to luck due to the darkness.

"Not bad, and I guess kind of sweet." He sighs again, wishing he could explain it better.

"Bittersweet." Snow supplies.

"Yeah."

"I'll hear anything about my daughter." She says.

"Okay." James nods and takes a deep breath. "When I was carrying her to the wardrobe she didn't cry, not once, even with the yells of Regina's knights and the swords clanking."

"She trusts you, you know." Snow whispers, still mindful of their sleeping daughter.

"Yeah, right." He quietly scoffs.

"She trusted you, then, Charming, as a baby. To not let her get hurt. She knew you'd protect her. Emma's still… Emma. She's still our baby girl, even if she's not a baby anymore. She still has that basic trust in you. She fights it and she hides it, because she's been hurt so many times because she's trusted the wrong people. She wants to trust you, James. And she will. Just give it time." She explains, resting her head on his shoulder. James stays silent for a few moments before responding,

"We did this to her." He says solemnly, swallowing a lump in his throat. "It's our fault that she's felt as though she had to close herself off."

"No, James, don't go there." Snow warns. "We made peace with what happened. And what was the alternative? Regina would have killed her, James. We both know that. As painful as this is right now, if we hadn't sent her away, we wouldn't be with her now." She briefly wonders when she became the optimist in their relationship.

"You're right." He says. "But it doesn't mean I don't wish I could take away all her pain."

"No, it doesn't." Snow agrees. "But things are going to get better. We have our child now, and she's healthy, and that is more than any parent has the right to ask for."

"C'mon." James says, one of his hands grabbing her smaller one, "let's go to bed." For the first time since the curse broke, the entire Charming Family slept peacefully.

THANKS FOR READING! IF YOU GUYS HAVE A MOMENT AND WANT TO, PLEASE VOTE IN THE POLL I MADE. IT'S OUAT RELATED.