AN: Posted here from tumblr. It's my first time writing for Once, so let me know how it went. Will be canon-balled in 3x05, but what is fanfic for, if not to let our imaginations run wild?
Title comes from the song of the same name by Rodney Atkins. There is no actual gun cleaning in this story, but if you've heard the song, you probably have some idea of what's coming. Enjoy!
Cleaning This Gun
Charming doesn't like the way Hook looks at his daughter.
He likes, even less, the way Emma looks at Hook.
There is something that sparks between them. It's a tangible force that not even Charming can ignore, and God knows he would love to. Hook saved his life, and for that he is grateful, but Charming is and always will be protective. He knows, intellectually, that Emma is more than capable of saving herself, but intellect so rarely comes into play with emotions and while Charming is beginning to think he might be willing to trust Hook with his life, he doesn't think he'll ever be able to trust the pirate, or any other man, with his daughter's heart. Not when it's been broken so many times already.
There is a part, a very large part, of Charming that wants to hunt the pirate down and beat him to a pulp. Because when Emma appears through the trees, her hair mussed and her lips red, Charming has no illusions about where she was and what she was doing. He recognizes the look in her eyes – half dazed and soft. It's the same look Snow gets after one of their kisses, and seeing it on Emma's face is like a punch to the gut.
When Hook returns to camp several minutes later, he carries an armful of wood, acting for all the world as if he hadn't been hiding away in the forest mauling Charming's baby girl.
Charming appreciates the pirate helping him, he really does, but he thought that holding a sword to the other man's neck and demanding that he stay away from Charming's daughter really would have gotten the hands-off message across. Charming isn't sure if he's underestimated the pirate's intelligence or his resolve, that the other man would still lay a hand on Emma after that little chat.
"David, are you alright?" Snow asks, laying a hand on his arm, and Charming's attention snaps to his wife. She is looking at him appraisingly, almost as if worried that maybe the flower hadn't worked, that the poison is still in his veins, and Charming feels a pang of guilt. Hook had been right; he shouldn't have kept his infection from his wife and daughter. But he hadn't wanted them to worry, not when Emma was already so frantic about Henry. Not when, at the time, he had believed there was no hope. Then Hook had brought up the flower, and David still hadn't wanted to mention it, in case it turned out to be a dead end. Bad enough to get his own hopes up, but it would have devastated Snow to find out about the infection and a possible cure all in one go, only to have her hopes dashed if they hadn't been successful.
"I'm fine, Snow. I'm just contemplating… things," Charming replied, shooting another glance at Hook. He was adding wood to the fire, pretending that he wasn't watching Emma like a hawk. For her part, Emma was completely ignoring the pirate, unless she thought his attention was elsewhere. Then she was shooting furtive little glances at him, her brow furrowed as if she were looking at a particularly difficult puzzle.
Charming didn't like that. Puzzles were interesting, puzzles were intriguing. He didn't want Emma to be interested and intrigued by Hook.
"Things, huh?" Snow responded dryly, glancing between her husband and the pirate. "Because you seem to be glaring at Hook, even though you said he saved your life. Is there something else I should know?"
Charming looks away from the pirate and into his wife's eyes. He wants to tell that, yes, there is something else she should know. That they shouldn't trust Hook. But he can't say those things, because he's pretty sure they can trust Hook, and the only other thing he could possibly mention to her is that Hook nearly died getting Charming that flower… and that he's pretty sure the pirate and Emma were kissing in the forest, so of course he can't be trusted.
Only that's a pretty bad reason for not trusting someone. Emma, as she likes to point out, is a grown woman, the same age as Charming and Snow, in fact. She's had enough experience out of life that Charming really wouldn't even be able to accuse the pirate of taking advantage of her. If Hook did kiss Emma, then he put that that dreamy look in her eyes and returned to camp without a single bruise, which means Emma was a willing participant.
That doesn't stop it from rankling.
But Charming is Charming, and any issues he has with whatever is brewing between Hook and Emma are his, and he can't try to turn his wife against the pirate because of them, especially not with what Hook had done for him.
"There's nothing else you should know," Charming replied. "Just that he surprised me today. In a good way."
And for all that he may not want Hook kissing his daughter, Charming has to admit to himself that the words are true.
It's two days of furtive glares and short answers before Hook manages to corner Charming away from the rest of the group to find out what the hell his problem is.
"I'll admit we had a rocky start, but I thought I was beginning to grow on you after our little detour together," Hook says, tramping through the bush next to Charming.
The last thing Charming wants is to deal with the pirate. Not when he's all too cognizant of the increased awareness between Hook and Emma. He has been watching Hook watch Emma, watching Emma try to ignore Hook by putting even more single-minded focus into finding Henry. But even with that, every now and then he sees her catch herself watching the pirate with something approaching longing in her eyes. The moments are always brief, and she pulls herself quickly back to their task, but just the fact that those looks exist puts Charming on edge.
But the pirate isn't letting Charming ignore him, so Charming will acknowledge the elephant that only he seems to be aware of.
"I told you to stay away from Emma," he says, his teeth gritted.
"You did," Hook responds, his voice as cold as the blue ice his eyes have become.
"Then tell me, Hook, why didn't you listen?" Charming halts in his walk so he can face the pirate full on. Hook halts and meets Charming's eyes slowly, his gaze boring into Charming's, as if trying to determine exactly what the prince is referring to. "Snow gets the same look in her eyes after she's been kissed. I've seen it, often. Imagine my surprise when I saw Emma wearing it… and who else was missing from the group but you?"
"Bloody hell," Hook mutters, running his hand through his hair. "I really had hoped to put off having this conversation with you, particularly since the lass herself is avoiding me as much as possible."
"And what conversation might that be?" Charming asked, his voice dangerously calm.
Under other circumstances, it might have been amusing to see the usually blasé Captain Hook look so incredibly uncomfortable and out of his league, but in that moment Hook's discomfort just made Charming want to punch him even more. It was out of character, and that meant that whatever conversation Hook was referring to was important. Important enough to send Hook out of his depth.
"What. Conversation. Hook?" Charming repeated, his hands fisting.
"I'm in love with your daughter, prince," Hook said, the words coming out in a rush.
Hook had just a moment to prepare himself before Charming's fist came in contact with his face.
"Right then," Hook muttered, letting out a hiss as he touched the skin beneath his nose and brought his fingers way, covered in blood. "Not sure I deserved that, but I'm sure you believe otherwise."
"What makes you think you deserve her?" Charming demanded. "She's a princess and you're… not what I imagined for my daughter."
"I'm not," Hook snarled back, pulling out a handkerchief to clean the blood from his nose. "Deserving, I mean. But not because she's a princess. The lass would probably punch the man that called her that, and she's worth so much more. Your lass is strong, Charming. And brave, loyal. She loves that boy of hers with a fierceness you don't often see. She's a multitude of things that I'm not, but that doesn't change the fact that she kissed me and it was like I had come home for the first time in three hundred years."
The words, she kissed me, set Charming aback for a moment. Because they insinuate that Emma was the one who kissed him. Then the rest of his sentence computes, and Charming lets out a curse and stalks away from the pirate. He halts after about fifteen feet and rounds back on the pirate, opening his mouth to tear him a new one, only nothing comes out.
Because Hook's words were everything a man could want for his daughter's mate. Even worse, Charming could tell the pirate was being completely honest.
"And Emma?" Charming asks at last. "How does she feel about… whatever this is?"
"A question for both of us to wonder about. She's not exactly acknowledging my existence much these days. If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say I make her uncomfortable." Hook's expression is troubled, but Charming closes his eyes and curses again.
He knows that Emma's been ignoring Hook of course. Charming has been watching her ignore the pirate. In a way, it's worse than if Emma had decided to just go with whatever was between her and Hook. The fear, the ignoring, that meant Emma felt something, and didn't Charming know how uneasy Emma was with caring about someone, anyone? How long had it taken her to allow herself to care for Henry? Even now, she kept the walls up against Charming and Snow.
If she was guarding herself against Hook, that meant she felt something. And that meant that Charming had to step back and let whatever happen, happen. Because if Emma felt something? Then he couldn't stand in the way of that. Not when he hadn't been there for the past twenty-eight years to protect her from all the horrible things she had gone through. If Hook could help her feel like less of a Lost Girl, then how could Charming stand in the way of that?
"I won't stop you," Charming said after a long period of staring Hook down. "If you're what she wants, then I won't stand in the way of it. But hurt her, even once, Hook, and I'll make you regret the past three hundred years of your life. Am I clear?"
"As crystal, prince," Hook replied.
"Great. Then let's catch up to the others."
Charming began to walk again, and Hook caught up, falling into step with him.
"You know, mate, you can admit it," the pirate said with a cheeky grin. "That I'm growing on you."
"I'm not your mate," Charming replied automatically, but he had to turn his head away from Hook to hide his grin. He had to admit, the pirate had spine.
He would need it, when Snow finally realized what was going on under her nose.
AN: And there it is. I love the Captain Charming/Davey Jones BroTP, so I had to add a little of that in there. Please let me know what you think, and if this fandom wants to hear more from me or if I should just fade back into my TVD fanfic now.