A/N: I hadn't intended to write more on this story, but this new part came out of nowhere and since it's now written I'm posting it.


Mary Margaret sighed, biting her lip and trying her best to keep the tears at bay. Everything that could have gone wrong, had gone wrong. She'd spent a couple of days worrying about how to make her date with Ruby extra special. By Wednesday she'd come up with, what she thought, a good idea and she'd planned everything meticulously.

Since Storybrooke was a small town it was hard to keep things private and even though she didn't want to keep her date with Ruby a secret, she still wished for them to have some time alone, just the two of them, without interruptions. A picnic had been the perfect solution. She would take Ruby someplace nice and quiet. Someplace beautiful and romantic. The picnic-basket would hold a variety of delicious treats and she'd decided to splurge on a really good bottle of wine. The weather forecast showed sun Friday to Sunday so she felt confident that this would be the perfect first date - good food, beautiful nature, wonderful weather and Ruby.

She'd instructed her date to wear something comfortable, but not let on what they would do or where they would go. Her plan had been to surprise the other woman, keep her in suspense until they reached their destination. They'd eat, talk, enjoy each other's company and, fondly remembering when she'd asked Ruby out, Mary Margaret wished they'd kiss. Later, as dusk descended, they would be wrapped in warm blankets, drink hot cocoa from her thermos and watch the fireflies put on a magical light show.

Now Friday had arrived and her plans were all down the drain, literally. It was raining. Not a gentle pitter-patter, but a raging monsoon. The clearing in the forest, close to the babbling creek, was completely out of the question. The teacher stood staring at her own front door, wishing for a miracle she knew wouldn't come true. She'd tried calling the diner, one of the waitresses had answered, telling her that Ruby had already left. Another call and she found out that the other woman had her phone turned off, or maybe the battery had gone dead, she didn't know which.

A sharp knock made her jump and she looked with despair at the picnic-basket and checkered blankets on the kitchen table before she slowly unlocked the door. Ruby was standing in front of her, dressed in tight black jeans and a very flattering red top. In her hand was a soaked coat and she smiled sheepishly as she looked at the water dripping from the coat into a puddle on the floor. It was all a little too much for Mary Margaret who couldn't hold back the tears any longer.

"Oh, honey! What's wrong? Has something happened?" Ruby stepped quickly through the doorway, dropping her coat onto the floor and reaching for Mary Margaret, who let herself be hugged tightly by the other woman. The tears continued to fall and a sob escaped her lips. Just when she thought it couldn't get any worse, her date being ruined and she making a complete fool out of herself, the power went out.

The silence of her apartment, the appliances now turned off, and the gloom enveloping them made Mary Margaret cry even harder. Ruby placed a hand on her back, leading the distraught woman towards the sofa. She knelt in front of Mary Margaret, a worried look on her face.

"Honey. Tell me what's wrong. I want to help, to make everything better, but I can't unless you tell me what's made you so upset."

Mary Margaret tried her best to calm down, the soft rubbing of thumbs on the inside of her knees made her feel somewhat grounded and she stopped sobbing.

"I wanted tonight to be perfect. Now... now... now everything is ruined." She bit her lip, holding in another convulsive gasp as tears continued to run down her cheeks.

"Hey, nothing's ruined. We're here, together, aren't we?" Ruby reached up to gently wipe the tears from Mary Margaret's face. The gesture elicited a weak smile from the crying woman.

"That's it, I've missed your beautiful smile. No more tears, ok? Why don't you tell me what you had planned and I'll see what I can do to fix whatever it is you feel is ruined."

Mary Margaret stuttered out her plans. She told Ruby all about the clearing in the forest, the creek, the picnic and the fireflies. By the time she'd gotten to the end of her woes she'd calmed down considerably.

"Is that all?" Ruby's voice wasn't belittling, instead it was soothing and her lips turned up into one of her customary grins. "There's an easy fix for all of this. We can have the picnic here - in your apartment! Just put the blankets on the floor for us to sit on and since the power's out we can light candles and maybe a fire in the fireplace."

So they did. The fire was lit, candles burned all around them, their flames creating just as a romantic setting as the fireflies would have. Mary Margaret's spirit was lifted and she was smiling widely as they sat cross-legged on the floor, eating and drinking, enjoying the sound of the rain against the windows and the rumbling of distant thunder. When the wine bottle was empty, they snuggled, wrapped in blankets, cups of hot cocoa in their hands. Mary Margaret didn't want the night to end and neither did Ruby.

Drinks were soon forgotten as they started to kiss and when night turned into early morning the two of them nestled into the warmth of the blankets, drowsy and happy. Ruby wrapped her arm around Mary Margaret's waist, kissed the back of her neck and pressed her own body as close to the other woman as she could. Soon they were both asleep, neither one noticing when the power was restored or when the rain stopped falling.