Pilot
Another day, another dollar to make. It sounds rather sad and pathetic, but that's my motivation nowadays. I need to keep making money so I can leave this god forsaken town. Most people only care about themselves in this little place called Storybrooke. Most people don't care about me, and I don't particularly care for most people. However, I do find them interesting. It is truly fascinating watching them interact with one another. People exchange pleasantries everywhere, even if they don't like one another. There are so many stories and secrets to be told. That's what I find most interesting. It's what is in those tales and secrets is what makes me so powerful in my own little way.
I opened my eyes to see my room illuminated with the soft glow of the morning light. It was florally decorated and antiquity looking, but it was simple and had a view of the forest. It was in the only place I could call home, Granny's Bed and Breakfast. It was cozy and private but close to the people I cared about. With Ruby's help, Granny was kind enough to offer me this small room free of charge if I worked in her diner or occasionally as a maid for her B&B in the mornings. I loved and appreciated this room so much, and it was all thanks to them that I even had a somewhat normal life here in Storybrooke.
I lifted my head to see the clock reading 6:23 a.m. I sighed stretching my back out and rubbed my face to awaken my eyes. I would have to be at the diner in approximately half an hour. I sighed softly and then slowly got up out of bed and headed into my small bathroom. I was rather shocked by what I saw in the mirror. I laughed realizing how horrible I looked as I hadn't bothered changing out of my uniform last night…or even taken off my makeup. It was always a late night at the Rabbit Hole.
Along with working with Granny, I also work at the Rabbit Hole as a bartender who will enthusiastically ramp everyone up for karaoke night. It's probably one of my favourite things to do here nowadays. And yeah, even though its hard work, it's fulfilling. I rarely get a full night's sleep, but hey, it has its fair share of perks as well. It's a great place to people watch and hear stories from people who don't know I'm listening. Information is easy to come by there and I'm more than happy to serve those who are unknowingly loud about it.
I had quickly cleaned my face and reapplied my makeup. It was simpler than what I had to do for shifts at the Rabbit Hole, and luckily made me look less tired, so that was a plus. I smiled approving the look as I quickly brushed my hair out and put it into a mess of a bun. Once everything was approved, I quickly changed out of my dark uniform into my other one, which was a bright red and white. I put on my skirt, my blouse and my small apron. It was now 6:45 and it was time for me to head out into the world. I grabbed my purse, put on my shoes and headed out. As I closed the door to my room, I smiled to see Ashely Boyd. She had already started her shift.
I smiled at her, "Hey Ash, how are you and this little one doing?" I smiled touching her big belly. She laughed, "We're doing okay…tired as usual, but hey. Probably not as tired as you."
"Pfft," I smirked. "I'm not carrying a human inside of me. You should really ask Granny for a break. You should go on maternity leave. It's not like there are many people staying here anyway."
"Yeah, but you know I can't do that Piper," she smiled at me sadly with a slow shrug. "Anyways, I'll talk to you later, okay? You don't want to face the wrath of Granny if you're late."
"No, I do not." I laughed softly with her. She chuckled along with me but didn't look happy. That was generally what Ashley was like nowadays, though. Just becoming a woman, but still looked like a scared little girl who was about to become a mother. I could practically see the worry oozing out of her and I couldn't blame her. She was very pregnant and I knew how scared she was. I wanted to help her, but didn't know how. Other than being some sort of sounding board for her, there wasn't much I could do. Ruby and I always let her vent to us, and that was all I could do for her for now, unfortunately. As I was about to walk away I quickly turned back and I touched her arm in comfort. "And hey," I smiled grasping her arm and firmly looking into her eyes. "We're going to figure this out. You know Ruby and I will never leave you astray. We got your back, okay? You're never going to be alone in this. We got you."
She sighed softly and gave me a small smile after a moment of thought. Her eyes were welling, but she didn't want to show it, "Thanks, Piper. You're a good friend."
I shrugged with a small smirk, "Hey, I do my best. Anyways, I better head out. By the way, Ruby and I were planning on meeting up after our shifts. Want to come?"
"You actually got a night off?" she laughed surprised.
"I'm just as surprised as you are!" I grinned as I started to walk out. "Anyways, I better go before I'm late! I'll see you later Ash."
"Yeah Piper," she waved. "See you tonight!"
After saying goodbye to Ash, I quickly ran out of the building. I realized that I only had about five minutes before my shift started. Luckily Granny's Diner was just across the street. My senses awoke as soon as I opened the door. The cool morning air rushed over me and I was no longer tired. The sun was starting to rise and the incorrect clock tower was starting to glow with a gentle calming light. The town was starting to awaken and that meant lazy and hungry people would soon be lining up at the diner. Instead of making their own breakfast, they were all more than willing to bother Ruby and I over coffee, eggs and bacon. I rolled my eyes and entered the diner.
Ruby chuckled as I entered, "Look what the cat dragged in."
I smirked at her, "Thanks, you're always so kind to me."
"And you're always too modest," she rolled her eyes as she rested her elbows on the counter as she looked at my simple blouse and skirt. "Aren't you a bartender? Don't you know how to make tips?"
"Correct me if I'm wrong," I wiped the counter down. "But isn't it good customer service?"
"Customer service doesn't matter if you're hot!" she struck a dramatic pose against the counter. She was wearing a blouse like me, but it was far too small and it showed off her midriff. She was also wearing a similar skirt, but she had cut it to be short enough to worry about wardrobe malfunctions.
I laughed comparing the difference, "It must be the reason why people keep coming back, because I don't know why Granny would keep you around otherwise."
"Hey!" she pushed me playfully. "I'm not that bad at serving. I just don't want to be here anymore. This place is shit and boring."
"You can say that again," I chuckled as I grabbed the open sign. "But we gotta do what we gotta do. If we save enough we may be able to get out of this place someday. I know that's what I'm doing."
"You're much better at that than I am," she sighed agitated. "It's not fair."
"I also have multiple means of income." I rolled my eyes at her. "And that's through multiple jobs."
"Ugh," she rested her head on the counter. "That's disgusting."
"Yeah, I know," I smirked. "But hey, I love money."
She laughed, "Don't we all?"
"Anyways," I twirled the open sign in my fingers. "Let's open this bad boy up before Granny comes in and gives us shit for not opening on time."
"Smart move," she raised her eyebrows playfully and then turned towards the kitchen window. "You ready for some hungry people, Floyd?"
"Always ready, Miss Ruby." he peeked through with a smile.
"That's what I thought." she winked at him and with that, I opened Granny's Diner and we were now in business.
It was 8'oclock now. An hour flew by and I had already served a heck of a lot of coffee and overheard a lot of interesting material that I could possibly utilize later. Information was key to surviving in this town. I could never have enough of it and it was extremely important to keeping my livelihood afloat. So far, I had learned that Dr. Whale was going to ask the school teacher Mary Margaret out on a date. Why he was interested in her, I wasn't sure. Not that I didn't like Mary Margaret, she had always been very kind to me, but I wondered why a scumbag like Dr. Whale would have such interest in such an innocent lady like her.
Granny was also in a bit of a crabby mood today. Rent was due and she was scrounging up whatever cash she could find. She looked a little desperately at the tip jar every now and then and it hurt my heart a little to see her so stressed.
Billy, one of the town's mechanics had come in to flirt with Ruby. Ruby refused to admit that she liked him, but it was oh so obvious that she did. I could hear him asking her to go to the Rabbit Hole with him tonight, but she refused because of "Girls Night" with Ash and I.
Graham, the town's sheriff, had also come in. Just from looking at him I could tell he had another night time rendezvous with the Madame Mayor. It was obviously supposed to be a secret, but because of my excellent timing, I have simply been in the right place at the right time multiple times. I have seen him jump out of Madame Mayor's estate countless times and I have seen Mayor Mills leave the B&B at various times in either the middle of the night, or the afternoon with Graham soon trailing out as well. Due to my crazy sleep schedule and my late hours at work, I have been able to see this secret relationship for what it is. I have yet to tell anyone about it, though. I'm sure if the Madam Mayor found out, she would quickly bestow the ultimate amount of scorn upon me and my life…and that is something I simply do not desire. Like any, this information is still valuable though and I always keep it in my back pocket if I need it, or if someone gives me enough cash for said info. Although it may not be obvious to the rest of the town…I sure know about their secret relationship...if it is even considered that.
Graham looked exhausted and had rather messy hair. He sat down at a booth looking rather disgruntled. I smirked at him as I approached, "Mornin' Sheriff."
He looked up at me with a polite but tired smile, "Hello Piper, how's the coffee this morning?"
"About as bitter as me," I winked playfully. "Sound good to you?"
"Ha ha," he smirked. "Can I have some of that bitter coffee?"
"Sure, thing Sheriff," I grabbed the fresh pot from the counter and poured it in front of him as I offered the milk and sugar.
Graham graciously took his coffee, "Thank you, Piper."
"Not a problem, Sir." I smiled softly as I started to walk away. "Yell at me if you need me."
"Sure thing," he chuckled into his coffee.
I walked behind the counter and started yet another pot of coffee. It was moments like this that were peaceful at Granny's. While refilling the coffee pot, nobody could bother me because I was getting what they wanted. They couldn't complain. I turned my head to see Granny in the back. She looked very stressed as she counted money. Luckily the diner made a lot, but she needed rent for both the diner and the B&B. The B&B barely made any money nowadays…Storybrooke wasn't exactly a tourist destination. Not a lot of people passed through so the B&B got little use. Other than myself and the occasional booty call, the B&B was empty. Maintaining and keeping up with the rent for both buildings was a lot, and I could understand Granny's stress. I wanted to go distract her to relax her a bit, but a small voice interrupted my thoughts, "Hey Piper."
I turned to see the Mayor's son behind me. Although I was not a fan of the Mayor, I did like her adopted son Henry. I smiled at him, "Hey, what's up little man?"
"Nothing really," he said with a shrug. "Was just wanting some breakfast before school."
I cocked my eyebrow at how he emphasized school, but I brushed it off for now, "Alright…let's get you some breakfast for school then. What's on the docket for today? We better get your order in now if you want to catch the bus on time."
Henry looked at the clock on the wall and realized it was 8:10. School started at 9 and he had to catch the bus by 8:30, "Oh yeah…well can I look at the menu quickly and then decide."
I eyed him. He sounded very nonchalant about the time. I was also surprised that he was here by himself. Madame Mayor rarely lets him out of her sight. It's surprising that he's alone. Nonetheless, I grabbed a menu and passed it to him, "Just holler at me when you're ready."
"Will do." he nodded as he gladly took the menu. As I served a few more customers, waiting for Henry to order, Ruby nudged me. She gave me a questioning look as she used her head to gesture to Henry, "What's that about?"
"I have no idea," I peered over her shoulder at him. He was still nonchalantly looking at the menu.
Ruby sighed softly, "Well, I don't want to get shit from his mom if he's late for school because he's taking his sweet time to order."
"He's being suspicious too…"
"You're suspicious about literally everything Pipes," she rolled her eyes. "Either way, you should tell him to order now or leave for the bus. We're going to get shit on by his Mom if she thinks we made him late for school."
"Yeah, I know," I nodded. "I'm going to –
"Ladies!" a firm voice called to us interrupting our conversation. We turned to see Granny looking at us with crossed arms. "Coffee. Customers. Now."
"Yes, Granny." We both sighed and started our jobs again.
I walked over to Henry determinedly and leant over the counter to look him in the eye, "Alright kid, look at the time. You either order now or go wait for the bus. Your mom isn't going to appreciate it if you miss the bus because you're having breakfast."
"My mom won't care."
I laughed, "I highly doubt that, Bud. Now you either order now, or we're going to have to kick ya out so you can catch the bus."
He looked at the time and sighed, "Fine…can I take something to go?"
"Sure," I smiled. "What will you have?"
"Toast and bacon please."
"Coming right up, little man."
Once I got Henry's meal, I sent him on his way to school. As I watched him leave though, I saw that he sneakily decided to go the opposite way of his bus stop. I cocked my eyebrow confused. I looked at the time, the school bus would be arriving in five minutes. "What the hell are you doing, kid?" I was about to follow him when a huge crash interrupted my thoughts. The whole restaurant was silent from shock.
"SHIT!" Ruby yelled from the kitchen. I tried to suppress a laugh as Granny just shook her head. She took a deep breath and calmly walked into the kitchen to most likely scold her grandchild.
I returned to my previous thoughts and remembered Henry. I quickly ran outside and tried to locate him, but unfortunately, he was nowhere in sight. I sighed as I turned to the bus stop to make sure that he wasn't there. He was nowhere to be seen and the bus had finally rolled up to the place he was supposed to be. The bus was there, but Henry was not. I stamped my foot as I looked around and shook my head annoyed that I had gotten played by a little kid, "Henry, you little shit."
I quickly walked back inside and walked up to the Sheriff who was enjoying his coffee. He smirked at me, "Why the long face Pipes? Is the bitterness consuming you?"
I rolled my eyes, "I'm sorry to interrupt your coffee, but unfortunately I have some information for the Sheriff…"
"Free of charge?" he cocked his eyebrow. "That's so unlike you Piper. Normally I have to con you into giving me info."
"Yeah well, I'm feeling generous because it could get me into some crap if I don't give it to you so, come here," I picked his arm up and had him follow me to the bathroom area. Being in the information business, I made sure that both were empty were empty before I started talking. Discretion is a rather important thing for me. After I was finished checking, I turned to him.
Graham chuckled at my suspicion, "Are we alone now?"
"Yeah. Now, we need to stop wasting time. You know how the Mayor's son was just in here?"
"Yeah…" he cocked his eyebrow. "Why?"
"The little bastard was being suspicious and then just lied to my face. He said he was going to catch the bus to school and then he completely veered in the opposite direction. I saw the bus pull up and he didn't get on it. He completely disappeared and I don't know where he went."
He sighed annoyed, "I'm sure it's nothing to be worried about. Every little boy ditches school every once in a while –"
"Um!" I interrupted him. "I'm not going to get into shit with his mother because you don't feel like doing your job and looking for him."
"You didn't let me finish, Piper," he said agitatedly. "Relax. I am telling you that I am going to go look for him, but you need to relax. Regina won't even know a thing about it."
"Can I have that in writing?" I squinted at him. One of the last people I wanted on my case was the Madame Mayor. She was ruthless and wasn't afraid to hurt people in emotional manners. She could ruin me if I'm not careful.
Graham rolled his eyes, "I won't even bring it back to you. Now nothing is wrong, but I'll go and find him to put you at ease."
"That little shit is up to something," I sighed quickly as he started to walk out. "He was being suspicious earlier."
"Have any proof of that?"
"Other than a gut feeling, no…but just go look for him. Thank you for doing that. Coffee is on me."
He rolled his eyes and took a couple dollars out of his pocket, "Wouldn't want to lose a dollar. I know you well enough to know you hate paying for customers' food."
I chuckled at his niceties. He was certainly right on that, "Thanks, Sheriff."
"No problem. Now I'll let you know when I find him."
I sighed annoyed as my shift ended. This was shit. The first night I have off in weeks and I have to spend it worrying about the Madame Mayor's little twerp. There was still no word from him. Graham had given me updates here and there, but nothing new was said. I had tried to listen for news of him around the diner, but there was literally nothing about Henry. As school ended and Henry still hadn't shown up. Graham finally gave in to my constant text message nagging and told the Mayor about her son's disappearance. He told me that he did not tell her that I was the one who had given him the tip, which I had appreciated. If I can be, I'd definitely rather be off the Mayor's radar as much as possible.
Ruby bumped me playfully with her hip, "Thank god that shit is over with. Come on, let's go to your place, get ready and meet up with Ash."
I smirked at her, but then sighed, "Unfortunately I don't know if I am able to even consider going out tonight."
"Oh my god, Piper," she sighed. "Are you still worrying about Henry? I'm sure he's fine. All kids rebel. Hell, I'm still rebelling and I'm twenty-two. Take a chill-pill. It's not like you to be worrying like this. Especially over the Mayor's kid. Like Graham said, it's going to be fine. That's why the whole town isn't in a craze right now. Graham knows everything's fine. Henry's around here somewhere."
"He better be." I sighed agitatedly. We left the diner to some part-timers and headed towards the B&B. The closer I got to home, the better I felt, but there was still a nagging worry over my shoulder. I don't know why I was so worried, but I felt responsible in some manner. I didn't want to be responsible for that kid and now it feels like if I don't find him…this will all come back to me. I know Graham said it wouldn't, but for some reason, paranoia was getting the better of me.
It was starting to get dark now. There was still no word of Henry. Anxiety was building up in me and I hated it. I hated feeling responsible over something that didn't even matter to me in the long scheme of things. I mean, I liked the kid, but I didn't know him. I was more scared than anything that the Madame Mayor would find out that I had tipped Graham off and she might think it was my fault that her son disappeared.
It had started raining so Ash, Ruby and I decided to just hang out in my room instead of going out. We caught Ash up on the daily drama and the Henry situation. I asked her if she happened to know anything, but unfortunately, she didn't. I was getting more and more frustrated by the situation and Ruby could see it, "Pipes," she sighed. "Relax. It's going to be fine. Graham said it wouldn't come back to you."
"Yeah well, as I am one of them…I know that the Madame Mayor has eyes and ears everywhere. If they are as good as me at brokering information to her, they will be as stealthy about it as I am. I really don't want to get on her bad side. Not only will she probably kill me, but she pays me good money for information about petty things. I'd rather not lose her business…and I guess dying wouldn't be good either…"
Ash rolled her eyes as she held her stomach, "He'll turn up."
"I know…" I sighed annoyed. "I just hate feeling like this."
"Like what?" Ruby laughed. "Worried? You do that all the time?"
"No," I sighed as I laid down on the bed with my face in my hands. "Responsible."
Ruby and Ash had left. It was late now. Graham hadn't given me anything for the past few hours and I assumed that just meant he was done for the night. The anxiety just kept biting at my mind. It was infuriating to feel this way. Out of frustration with myself, I decided to take a walk. I didn't care that it was raining. I needed to clear my head…and maybe even try to look for Henry myself.
I put on my jacket, lifted my hood up over my head and headed out. I had no idea what time it was, but I couldn't care less. There was no way I could stay in my room any longer until I had some sort of answers. I walked into the chilly wet air and walked down Main street for a few moments. It started to thunder all the sudden which made me worry even more over the stupid kid, "God damn it, Henry…where are you?"
The thunder slowed after a couple of minutes which eased my nerves. No one was out right now…obviously, it's storming, so I couldn't get any information off of people. The more I thought about it, the more it seemed like a stupid idea to be out here looking for the kid right now, but I really don't care. It's not like I'm going to be finding any better info in my room. I continued in the rain. I was across from the gas station when surprising me completely, a yellow bug skidded to a dead stop in the streets.
I yelped embarrassingly at the surprise squeal of the tires and hid in the next alleyway out of both habit and fear. I rolled my eyes at my ridiculous actions and then peeked out behind the wall to get a closer look at the bug. A woman with blonde hair stepped out of the vehicle and slammed the door whilst looking incredibly annoyed. I did not recognize her, which made her particularly interesting in my book. I knew pretty much everyone in this town even if they didn't know who I was. I knew their names, likes and dislikes…her, she was a blank canvas and I knew absolutely nothing about her.
"Look," I heard her shout annoyed as I heard someone step out from the other side of the car. "It's been a long night, and it's almost…" I stopped listening to her as I gasped in surprise. Henry exited from the other side of the car. I felt my eyes open in shock and all the sudden anger overtook me, "What the fuck is this about?" I growled to myself. I was glad to know he was safe, but now because my ass was safe, I was slightly angry by how Henry made me worry like this all day. I was more than happy to eavesdrop on their conversation guilt free for once. I couldn't wait to hear the explanation for this.
It's like my broker prayers were answered. Dr. Hopper, our town psychiatrist all the sudden walked down the street with his excitable Dalmatian Pongo and advanced up towards them. I can assume that he doesn't know about Henry's disappearance today considering Graham didn't tell anyone but the Mayor about her son's disappearance and I only told Ash and Ruby.
"Henry!" he shouted concerned as he looked between him and this unfamiliar woman. "What're you doing here? Is everything alright?"
"I'm fine, Archie." the little shit spoke quickly to cover his tracks. I'm interested in this explanation that I'm sure Dr. Hopper is going to ask about.
"Who is this?" Archie looked at the blonde woman who looked like she just wanted to get out of here. Just the question I wanted to know…thank you, Doc Hop.
She spoke calmly, but with confidence, "Just someone who is trying to give him a ride home."
"Oh," Henry spoke up quickly. "She's my mom Archie."
My mouth dropped. What the hell? I was flabbergasted but exhilarated by this knowledge, "This is just too good." I laughed to myself. Henry literally left town to find his birth mother…research that probably took him weeks to work out. That little shit. I shook my head rather impressed by his antics. Even though he almost gave me an aneurysm with all this unnecessary worry, I appreciate his gusto. The kid had moxy to come up with a scheme like this and to even go through with it…that takes some backbone…especially when his adopted mother is the Madame Mayor. He's a smart little shit. To be honest, I was so impressed, I couldn't even really be mad at him anymore.
I was so impressed by Henry that I had missed their conversation. I was slightly pissed off that I had drifted off, but that's when the Doc left. I listened in again and I could hear Henry telling the woman about his theory on how everyone in this town is a storybook character. To be honest, I thought it was a creative fantasy that the kid had made up. He still couldn't determine who I'd be in his make-believe world, but I was okay with that. I'd rather not be compared to some do-gooder or evil fairy-tale character. He told me about it because I was more than willing to listen to him. I found his ideas on life fascinating…plus the mayor pays me to keep tabs on her son.
Generally, there's nothing to report…these stories are just funny little things the boy makes up. Plus, I'm sure that the Mayor never stops hearing about them. I'm sure she listens about how he thinks Mary Margaret is Snow White, how Ruby is Red Riding Hood, and how Doc Hop is Jiminy Cricket. I find it amusing as hell. I love hearing about his stories and he is more than willing to tell anyone who will listen…that's why I'm sure his mother knows about them. She listens, so I'm sure she knows.
I beamed, so happy I heard about this tonight. It was so worth coming out in the rain and thunder to hear about this. I watched them get back in the bug. She was going to take Henry home. If I could follow them, I would, but unfortunately, I would have to run, and that would not be discreet. I chuckled to myself, "I think you've done enough snooping for tonight, Piper."
With another grumble of thunder, I headed back home. Henry was safe and I had some new information about him and his birth mother. That was a good night in my books. As I always say, you can never have too much information…the more the merrier. Knowledge is all the power in the world.
I had slept easily that night and actually smiled walking into Granny's that morning. Ruby chuckled at me, "Did you get some action last night? You're looking merrier than usual."
I laughed, "Oh no…but holy hell do I have something crazy to tell you."
"What?" she grinned. Ruby and Ash were the only ones I didn't charge for info…I mean it feels wrong to mix this kind of work into your personal life. I just always make sure they promise not to say anything.
"You know the drill?" I cocked my eyebrow at her.
She put her hand over her heart mockingly, "I cross my heart, pledge all that I have to you and stick my finger in my eye if I betray your trust oh saintly Piper."
I rolled my eyes with a laugh at her antics, "Okay," I smiled as I approached her and spoke quietly. "Henry freaking skipped town and found his birth mother last night. That's why he was gone all day. He literally went to Boston to find her and conned her into bringing him to Storybrooke. That smart little shit. I gotta hand it to him. I was so pissed off at him, but I'm incredibly impressed now."
Ruby's eyes widened in shock, "Holy shit. Who knows?!"
"Doc Hop knows, so I'm sure many people will know soon enough…plus its Wednesday today! My regulars are going to be asking me about the undisclosed "news" this week, sooooooo many people will know by the end of the day."
She laughed, "You're such a shit disturber, Piper."
"It's what I do." I bowed playfully.
Breakfast was booming this morning. Lots of people were in and out today and because it was Wednesday. It was generally on this day that I had "clients" stop by and ask me for the scoop on what was going on around town off the record. I would tell the interesting dirty little secrets and rumours that were floating around town. I made sure that it was mostly innocent. If they were paying me big dollars though, I might go into more serious stuff. I would also answer questions about certain someones if they asked. With a charge, I grinned telling them the info. I know it's not the cleanest form of work, and people could get hurt if I'm not careful but hey…the people who know about me and my side business enjoy it and the best part, I make a living off it. That's the main thing. I need the money to skip town and most people know that is my ultimate goal.
The Sheriff came through the door as I was finishing talking to good old Marco about the latest gossip. After I had finished telling him the news, he discreetly handed me an envelope and nodded at me in thanks. I winked at him, "And as always, you didn't hear it from me."
"I would never, dear." he laughed in good nature and got up to leave.
Graham approached me with raised eyebrows, "Did I just see what I think I just saw?"
I straightened my back and acted nonchalantly, "Depends on what you think you just saw, Sheriff."
Graham rolled his eyes, "I thought you didn't do that at the diner, Piper."
"I have no idea what you're talking about," I laughed playfully.
Graham sighed as he eyed me suspiciously, "Knowing you…I'm assuming you know that Henry got back last night."
"Oh, indeed I do." I smiled at him excitedly.
"Ugh…" Graham sighed agitatedly. "From the look on your face, I'm assuming you know more about the situation than the Mayor would like you to know."
I smiled sneakily at him from behind the counter and gave him an exaggerated nod, "Ooooh yeah I definitely do."
Graham sighed as he cocked his eyebrow with a moment of contemplation. Then a shocked look consumed his expression, "You're not selling that information, are you?!"
"Moi?!" I laughed playfully at his correct accusation. "I would never do such a thing. Who do you think I am, Sheriff?"
"Shit," he sighed as he sat down at the counter in defeat, knowing I wouldn't just admit to him that easily. "Why do you have to make my job so much harder?"
"Not saying that I do make your job harder…but if I did tryto make it harder, I would say that it's my favourite past time."
He looked up at me with an agitated but amused expression on his face, "You're unbelievable. You love to watch me suffer…"
"Nah," I grinned pouring him a cup of coffee. "I just like making you squirm."
"Thanks," he smirked referring to my comment. "You're always such a pleasure. So, what do you know about the mystery woman?"
I winked at him playfully, "Gonna have to pay me for that, Sheriff."
He gave me a look of disbelief and I playfully stuck my tongue out at him just so he knew I was teasing, "I know that blonde woman is his birth mother. Henry went to go find her in Boston and that's why he skipped class yesterday. He's a smart little shit."
"Do you know her name?"
"Who? The blonde?" I cocked my eyebrow thinking about it. "No actually…I didn't catch that."
"I know it."
"I'm sure you do…" I chuckled playfully. "Considering you're the Sheriff and you were investigating his disappearance, I'm sure you would have interviewed her."
"Want to know it?" he cocked his eyebrow playfully. "And some more info I have on her?"
I squinted my eyes at him suspiciously, "Um sure?"
He playfully smirked as he put the coffee to his lips, "Gotta pay me for it."
"Oh?" I scoffed with a laugh. "How rude, you excite me with information and then totally withdraw."
He rolled his eyes, "Her name is Emma Swan. She was going to leave last night, but then got caught driving under the influence. She ran over the historic "Welcome to Storybrooke" sign. She's in a jail cell right now with Leroy the grump."
I was surprised and impressed by this information he was giving me. It was unlike him to actually feed me information for my "bad habit" as he would call it. I smirked at him playfully, "Wow Sheriff, it's like you're feeding the beast. What would Madame Mayor say if I knew this information?"
He shrugged nonchalantly, "She'd probably be happy you'd be spreading that around so they think she's a horrible person."
I nodded thinking about that and smiled at him, "Interesting information Sheriff. I shall keep it on the down low to the best of my capabilities."
"You give me a tip, I give you one," he sighed as he took another sip of his coffee.
"Good working with you Sheriff." I tapped his shoulder in thanks. "Call me if you need anything else."
"Always a pleasure Piper." he shook his head with a laugh.
As soon my work at Granny's was done, it was now time to get ready for work at the Rabbit Hole. Ruby followed me to my place and kept me company as I got ready. We were now in my room and I was putting on more dramatic makeup on for my bartending job. Ruby smirked, "So how much did you make today?"
"In tips?"
"No Piper," she rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean."
"Haven't counted it yet," I said seriously as I concentrated as I put on fake lashes. "It's all in envelopes in my purse at the moment. I'll count it tonight when I get home."
"Boo." Ruby sighed as she watched me put on my makeup in the bathroom mirror. She sighed, "I wish I worked at the Rabbit Hole instead of Granny's."
I laughed, "No you don't."
"Why not?!"
"There are so many scumbags at that bar. I know it's fun when you don't have to work there. It's fun to go there on a girls' night out and have drinks…but being on the other side of that bar sucks when there are shitty people making eyes at you."
"They only make eyes at you because you're pretty Piper," she said playfully. "Plus, I don't mind that. I like it when eyes are on me. Sounds like my kind of work."
"Why not apply then, you weirdo?" I chuckled. "I work there because I have to. You have the ability to choose where you want to work."
"Yeah," she shrugged. "I don't think Granny would be able to do this without me, though."
"Even with all your fighting?" I cocked my eyebrow at her.
"Yeah," she shrugged. "But anyways, I should probably get ready."
"Uh for what?" I looked at her surprised.
"I decided I'm coming to visit you tonight and tease a few guys. Sound good?"
"To each their own, Ruby," I smirked. "I'll be happy to have the company though."
"Good," she smirked as she gave me a quick squeeze. "See you tonight then."
"Will do," I smiled. She left the room and shut the door on her way out.
Once I was done with my look I emptied my purse of the envelopes and put them in my locked bedside drawer. I closed said drawer and then hid the key in my purse so I could head out to work my second job of the day.
The night went decently fast. Not a lot of new information was out at the moment. The town was mostly abuzz with news about the recent visitor, Emma Swan. I could hear everyone talking about how she was the Mayor's son's birth mother and how she was a drunk who had destroyed their historic sign. I never said she was a drunk, but unfortunately, fact can turn to fiction in the blink of an eye. That's why information is power. When it is used in a tactful way, it can basically destroy a person's life if you're not careful. Luckily, I have yet to do that and I don't plan on it unless I'm paid an enormous amount.
I sighed softly as I poured another drink for Leroy. For such a grumpy man, he was always happiest when he was drunk, and that was saying something. I could see Ruby flirting with Billy in the corner of the bar. I smirked knowing that she liked him, "Go get him, girl."
It had been a busy day in Storybrooke today. I know that Emma has been released from her cell now and according to Ruby, she is actually staying in Storybrooke for a week. Apparently, she'll be staying at the B&B which is awesome because it should help Granny a lot with the rent. Not only that, but it'll be interesting to get to know her. See what makes her tick see what lies behind the name Emma Swan. I'm sure this isn't going to make Madame Mayor happy, but hey…that's always good in my books.
I sighed happily once the bar closed and my shift was over. Ruby scurried over to me and offered me her arm to link up together, "Let's head home!"
"Gladly," I laughed happily as I linked my arm with hers. We walked out of the bar with a lot of drunkards stumbling their way home. I asked for details about Billy but she insisted that we wait until were out of the public's eye to say anything. I felt impatient but understood why she wanted to wait.
I smiled seeing clear dark sky after last night's rain. It was lovely to see the moon lighting up the streets. We were silent for a moment but that's when Ruby looked up, "That's fucking weird."
"What?" I looked at what she was staring at. It was the broken clock tower. The reason it was so odd was because it seemed to have magically fixed itself. Unlike before my shift, it no longer read 8:15, but 2:45. I laughed in surprise, "I guess things are finally starting to change around here…"
Ruby chuckled with me as we walked up to the B&B, "Wouldn't it be great if that were true?"
