Reply To: Emma + Baelfire = Swanfire

[Slurpeez]

And then Emma’s voice popped in my head. “I never stopped loving him.” Even before Manhattan, she felt that way. Before Henry finding her. Before SB. She never stopped loving him. That part wasn’t erased. Though the pain, through the confusion, through the not understanding. She never stopped loving him. As confusing as it was for her, she never stopped loving him. There was no Manhattan or SSTR, but there was also no Beanstalk, no confusing NL, and no CS Kiss. There was only Tallahassee. That’s the only thing that is left in her head. Here and Now. So while she’s lost some bittersweet good SF memories, she’s also lost ALL of the confusing CS ones. Tallahassee remains.

A thousand times YES! Emma at her very core always has and probably always will love Neal. Even though it’s true that a person can learn to love again, as Robin Hood and Regina would seem to demonstrate, Emma is in a unique position on this show. Not only doesn’t she remember Hook, but even when Emma was in her right mind, she’d never stopped loving Neal! The man Emma truly loves (Eddy Kitsis’ words) lives and loves her, too.

If you’re fans of Downton Abbey, as I am, then you may have spotted an interesting, though unintentional, parallel between Matthew/Mary/Lavinia and Emma/Neal/Hook/Tamara. In this case, Mary/Matthew and Emma/Neal are meant-to-be while Hook/Tamara/Lavinia are the obstacles to their being together. I’ll black-it out here in case you haven’t seen that show but want to in the future. The first time Matthew proposed to Mary, she hesitated too long and he took it back just as WWI broke out. Mary immediately regretted her hesitation and realized she was deeply in love with Matthew, but it seemed too late, because Matthew returned from the war engaged to another woman, Lavinia. He was set to marry her, but then through a series of twists and turns, he ended kissing Mary while still engaged to Lavinia, who witnessed the kiss. She wasn’t resentful, just heartbroken, as realized that she could never really compete with Matthew’s first love, Mary. Lavinia died of the Spanish Flu, but also in part because of a broken heart. Matthew rejected the notion of being happy with Mary, saying they were “doomed” or “cursed” not to be happy. Yet, later, Matthew came to his senses as he realized that Lavinia wouldn’t have wanted him to remain unhappy. So, for a second time, Matthew proposed to Mary, who accepts. This time, : “I would never be happy with anyone else as long as you walk the earth.”