Disclaimer: I don't own the television show, "Once Upon a Time," or any of its characters or venues.
Author's Note: This was a gift for mostlypoptarts on tumblr for 'captain swan secret santa (csss)' and their reaction to my story is on their page:/post/70639280901/more-p-s-my-secret-santa-sent-me-a-fic-in-my
summary: In an AU Storybrooke, a startled Deputy Emma Swan manhandles the tired owner of the Rabbit Hole at the Dark Star Pharmacy.
Out of the Blue by JustWriter
Dimly Emma was aware of the bell over the Dark Star Pharmacy's door ringing as she searched the aisle for her quarry, her favorite shampoo. She'd run out of it about a week ago and had been using Mary Margaret's, but she was tired of taking charity and her hair just didn't smell the same; that was a comfort that she wasn't willing to give up. Giving up on finding her shampoo for the time being, as all of the labeling had a distinct mid-1980's feel to them, she began to pop the tops, smelling each one in search of an intermediary and hoping that the proprietor, a Mr. Tom Clark, wouldn't mind ordering a case of her favorite shampoo.
She suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder and her bounty hunting instincts and self defense classes kicked in. The first thing that she registered was the barely concealed grunt of pain, then a wide-eyed man whom she had in a locked position that would cause his arm to break if he were to make any sudden movements. He had dark circles under blurry, sleepy eyes that were bluer than anything that she'd ever seen; they were filled with bewilderment too. They glided past her to stare at a spot on the floor and his pouty lips let out a sigh of disappointment, murmuring "Bloody hell." Emma glimpsed the direction that he'd been looking and spotted the leaking bottle that she'd been holding a moment ago.
She released him warily and gingerly picked it up, having every intention of apologizing to Mr. Clark and paying for it with a piece of her first paycheck as Storybrooke's deputy sheriff. But blue eyes and a five o'clock shadow that should be illegal once again invaded her space. To be fair though, now he was taking care to approach her from the front.
"As I was saying lass, may I have that? It is the last one and I'd rather like to purchase it."
Bewildered, she consented with an, "Okay." With the scent reaching her nostrils from the floor, she grabbed another bottle in haste and headed to the counter. She spilled her items onto the counter, invading the man's space. "I'll pay for that Clark, and I'd like to order a case of my favorite shampoo so that there are no more mishaps like this.
The look on the face of the man standing beside her was growing from frustration to anger. "That's alright miss…"
"Swan, Emma Swan, and I insist; it's my fault that you're not getting a full bottle in the first place." He seemed surprised and off balance. He glanced at Mr. Clark, who was already ringing up her purchases and he sighed heavily. He bit out a meaningless, "Thank you," and waited in a seething silence.
As she told Tom her specifications on the shampoo that she wanted, Killian's mind wandered back to the moment that he'd first seen her. To his sleepy mind she was a vision in sunlight. Tom had seen him and beckoned him over from the corner of his eye.
After sneezing, Tom said, "You're up early Killian."
He groaned and muttered, "It was a long night. The crowd just didn't want to leave."
"Oh, well I guess that's fortuitOUS," he sneezed, "for you; I see that you've spotted our new deputy. She's quite a looker isn't she?"
"Deputy? What are you on about Tom? I've never seen the lass afore now."
"Right, with those hours of yours that you keep at that bar of yours and the fact that she doesn't take night shifts yet might have something to do with tha-a-ACHOO! She's been in town just over a couple of weeks, only had the job a few days. Why don't you go on and talk to her?"
He threw Tom a glare, who had been trying to set him up with women for what felt like ages now. "Alright. But only because it's the gentlemanly thing to introduce yourself to new townsfolk, and she seems to be holding what I came here for."
He snapped back to attention when he heard Tom asking her, "Do you know Killian?"
"Tom, I'd really appreciate it if you finished tallying so that I can get some sleep. No offense lass, but I've had a long night and I need some rest before getting back to work. You can see perfectly well that I'm falling asleep standing here. The adrenaline after your assault has already left me, I'm afraid."
She smiled and shrugged, but her expression was regretful and mildly hurt. "Well I hope to see you around when you're more awake then."
The corner of his mouth quirked up a little in response and then he retrieved his bottle of shampoo and the door to the 'Dark Star Pharmacy' jingled as he left.
She asks, "So what's he do?"
Tom sneezes and he says as he bags her purchases, "He owns the town bar, the Rabbit Hole. Sometimes he sings and plays the guitar for the customers, mostly sailor shanties."
"He any good?"
Clark grinned and said, "They keep going back each night, don't they?" She laughed.