Title: After Midnight
Summary: In her mind, she called him "Prince Charming." And she was Cinderella after the ball. Spoilers for "Ink." Emma/Peter
Notes: My first posted "Heroes" fic! Loved this episode for its Peter/Emma scenes. Reviews are welcome and appreciated. Thanks!
She had made it back to her apartment. Petting her cat to relax her nerves, Emma breathed deeply. She felt frightened and exhilarated at the same time. Less than half an hour ago, she had been at Central Park, playing a cello, making a beautiful symphony of colors. Her playing must have sounded good too because when she was finished, she realized people had gathered to hear her play. Among the crowd of onlookers had been a face she recognized. It was the paramedic from the hospital. She remembered the printed name and signature he had written down on the request form he had filled out when he had come in to see her that day.
Peter Petrelli.
Before today, she hadn't known his name. She had seen him around the hospital, though. He was usually going out to start a shift just when she was coming into work, and just getting off another shift when she was leaving for the day. In her mind, she had dubbed him "Prince Charming" because he was boyishly handsome.
And now tonight, Prince Charming had been standing a few feet away from her, watching her play the cello. And when she had seen him, he had smiled at her. It was not a reaction she had been expecting. When people discovered she was deaf, their reaction was usually an insensitive one, like she had told her doctor. Other times, they looked at her with pity, or even once in a while, their faces would go blank, as if she had suddenly become invisible.
Peter had been different. She knew he had discovered her secret when he had glossed over her inability to give him an answer to his question about what band she was listening to on her unconnected headphones. Yet, his smile in the park had been a kind one, untainted by pity or sympathy for her. It made her feel even more awkward, and she couldn't deny the urge to run away that welled up inside her.
She had run from the park, not daring to look back, and gotten a taxi back to her apartment. She was glad to be home now, but she dreaded having to get up in the morning and go to work. She dreaded having to see Peter again.
She shook her head, telling herself she was being silly. What were the chances of him seeing her again? She barely saw him at the hospital. Today was the first time he had ever come into the records room where she worked. It would be easy to avoid him, she reasoned.
Feeling better about her situation, Emma got ready for bed. As she slid under the covers and prepared to go to sleep, she thought of the story of Cinderella, and how the fairy godmother's magic had ended at midnight, bringing the girl back to her reality. Emma's magic had ended the moment her last cello note had faded away into the darkness. She of all people knew life wasn't a fairy tale. Her own Prince Charming wouldn't pursue her like Cinderella's had. Why would he?
In his own apartment, Peter Petrelli was sitting up in bed, thinking of what he had just seen less than an hour ago. The file clerk from the hospital had played the cello beautifully. When he had first recognized her, he had wondered how she could play with her disability. He had then remembered Beethoven, who was able to compose even when he was almost completely deaf. As he had continued watching the woman, he realized something else about her playing. She was looking somewhere else, not at the strings, but at something beyond them. Then, as she finished her song, he had seen her lift her eyes upward, looking to the sky, as if seeing the music itself float to the heavens.
The crowd of onlookers who had gathered around her began applauding. Peter didn't join in, knowing there was no point. The blonde woman seemed to come back to herself and realize she had an audience for the first time. As her gaze moved over the crowd and landed on him, Peter had smiled briefly.
He had intended it to be friendly, but it seemed to have the opposite effect, as the woman got up, put the cello aside, handed the bow to a man in the crowd, and ran off. Peter had started after her, but soon stopped, seeing her get into a waiting taxi. Then, he had decided to go home, figuring he could see her tomorrow and try making some headway with her then. After all, they both worked in the same hospital, and after his close call with the lawsuit from William Hooper, he was thinking it might be time to reduce the number of shifts he pulled.
As Peter lay back in bed, something continued to nag at his memory. It was the way the mystery woman had run from the park after seeing him. It had reminded him of something, but he couldn't recall what.
Outside his windows, he heard the tinkling sound of glass breaking against the pavement.
Glass. A glass slipper.
Peter smiled, realizing now that the woman had reminded him of Cinderella. If that made him her prince, well, he was just grateful he wouldn't have to search an entire kingdom to find her tomorrow.