Disclaimer: Not my world, not my characters. Just my imagination borrowing them for a bit.
"No, it's not possible," Killian said, shaking his head.
Henry was adamant. "I'm telling you, he can do it."
"What does he use as an incendiary device?" he asked skeptically, lifting one eyebrow. There was no way this was considered credible television, he didn't care how little he knew about this world.
Emma was clearly trying to ignore them while washing the breakfast dishes, but she couldn't help the grin that crossed her mouth as they argued. She had introduced Henry to the show a few years ago and he fell in love with the gadgets and ingenuity. The boy was now trying to convince Killian to start watching, seeing as it was pouring outside and their plan to go fishing was scrapped.
"You'll see, just watch." Henry raced over to the TV, queued up season one of MacGyver with the remote, and hit play. Killian looked at Emma. "Go ahead," she said. "I've already seen it. I'll be there soon. He sighed, and followed Henry, settling himself on the couch as the opening scenes flashed across the screen.
"Why doesn't he just fire the musket?" Killian asked over the televised noise of gunfire.
"He doesn't use guns, that's his thing. Just watch!" Henry replied.
Emma joined them on the couch, slipping next to Killian as the tinny title music played. Killian swung an arm across her shoulders, settling back against the cushions. "So he's some kind of secret agent, on a mission to save people from bad guys with guns, but he won't use a gun?" he asked the boy. "What kind of plan is that?"
Henry rolled his eyes from his perch on the recliner. "A good one, when you're talking about Mac," he said impatiently. "Sh!"
They watched in silence for a while, Killian enthralled with the story as it unfolded, though he refused to admit it. This Mac may have chosen not to use the most obviously effective weapons, but he did have some clever ideas. Using chocolate to stop the fluid leaking was genius; he'd have to check later if the terms they used were real scientific ones, but it seemed sound enough to him.
"Don't tell me you know how to build a bomb out of a stick of chewing gum," the woman on the screen said.
Killian quirked an eyebrow. "Really? He can do that?"
Henry wasn't answering him anymore. Emma tapped his chest and smiled. "Sh, you'll miss it."
This was fascinating. The man was actually building such a device using pieces of debris lying around. He leaned forward as the lead character explained briefly what he was doing as the wall exploded in front of them.
What was the term Henry used? Cool.
He found himself getting oddly… nervous as the clock ticked down. Mac was running through the building, then flicking the power on and off, as some sort of code. Absolutely genius.
The episode finished and Henry turned to him. "So? I told you he could do it."
Killian cleared his throat, struggling harder than he should to keep his features as unimpressed as possible. "Ok, you were right. Perhaps we should see what he does next?"
"Haha, I told you!" Henry pumped a fist in the air and skipped to the next episode.
Emma gave Killian a quick peck on the cheek. "I'm gonna go finish the laundry, you guys continue without me." She got up from the couch. He grabbed her hand as she stood. "Need help, love?" She turned and rolled her eyes. "No, not since the epic sheet hole disaster of last week." He blushed, it had been his first time trying to fold the bedclothes with elastics on the corners, it wasn't his fault the hook kept poking tears in the blasted thing. She smirked, and left the room, the sounds of the show once more filling the room.
Killian sat back to watch some more.
He was hooked. Every spare moment, he played another part of this wonderful show. He couldn't get enough. Every episode had new inventions, new uses for everyday things even he took for granted. It was thrilling, how this man's mind worked. He played it on the the tablet while helping in the kitchen, in the mornings after Henry left to school, and at night after supper. Each time the music came on, Emma would groan next to him and make some excuse to leave the room, but he didn't care, not until he finished all seven seasons.
When he wasn't watching it, he was looking for ways to use his new skills around the house. He fixed the wobbly chair in the dining room with a rolled up piece of duct tape, used some toothpaste to fill a hole he'd accidentally punctured in the garage wall, and even managed to re-wire Henry's frayed tablet charger, which took a lot more patience and time with only one hand.
He had just finished the series one afternoon (really? Angus?) while working on his latest project when Emma came home from the station. She froze as she stepped into the kitchen, her face a mask of shock.
"KIllian, what…" she trailed off, just staring.
He sat at the kitchen table, bits and pieces of the toaster covering every available surface of the square piece of furniture, along with a handful of screwdrivers, tape, and spare wires he'd found in the garage. He looked up.
"Emma! You're home!" he grinned, the disassembled heating element in his hand, a length of wire looped around his hook.
"Killian," she started slowly, "what are you doing to the toaster?"
He ducked back to the machine, focusing intently on unscrewing the metal coil from the frame. "Fixing it," he answered distracted. "It wasn't cooking properly, and I figured it might be the-" He stopped, and glanced up at the clock on the wall. He looked back at her. "Wait, were we supposed to have lunch together?"
"Yeah," she answered with a straight face, a smile playing at the edges of her mouth. "You know what, I'm going over to my mom's, I'll let you finish this on your own." She turned and walked out of the room.
"Emma, wait!" he called after her. She peeked her head back in. "Do you by any chance have a gum wrapper?"
"Killian!" she groaned, and walked to the front door.
"No, really!" he yelled again. "It would work perfectly with this bit of metal that won't stay bent!"
He heard the door open. "I really wish I hadn't taught you how to use Netflix!" she called back. "I love you, I'll see you later!"
"Love you too, darling," he said with a smile. He heard her laugh from the doorway.
"Oh, and that toaster better be working when I come back later!" The door closed.
He bent back over the machine parts, hoping he remembered how to put it all together. He picked up the small screwdriver and got to work, humming the theme music to himself as he did.