Double Trouble 14
A/N: Thanks lovely readers for supporting this story :). I'm so grateful for the response to last chapter! I held it back for a while because the fight scene wasn't originally that intense and then I dithered about cutting it back again. As for Henry's involvement in what's going on... maybe, maybe not ;). Who knows what that kid is up to.
Chapter 14 'Work experience'
At the Sheriff's station the next day, Em swung on the swivel chair so fast she nearly launched herself out of it.
"What do you and Emma do all day?! Is this town so boring that there's not even any crime?" complained Em.
David didn't look up from the forms he was preparing for Emma to sign. "Crime doubled when you turned up."
Since Regina had gone home the night before after their knockdown-drag-out fight, Emma and her parents had to figure out other arrangements for the teens during the day. They'd decided that Em would go to work with Emma and David (all the better to keep her out of trouble) and Ri would go to school with Mary Margaret under the guise of being a teacher's aide.
Em wasn't thrilled but when she saw that Ri was, she didn't argue.
Emma had a few meetings at Town Hall and a few call-outs to attend to so she left Em with David, hoping that he'd learned his lesson by now about keeping an eye on the teen.
"Storybrooke is a safe town, a place for families - or at least, it was," admitted David, looking up from his paperwork.
Em put a finger to her chin. "Mm yeah, kinda makes you wonder doesn't it. Regina's sooo evil that she created this horrible little town for you all to live in?"
David smiled at her cynicism. "It's not safe any more. Part of that is Regina's own doing."
"Whatever."
Em got up to go lock herself in the corner cell and hang on the bars from inside. But that only amused her for about three-and-a-half seconds.
"Seriously? Is something going to happen or are we just gonna sit in this office all day? Don't you cops ever go out and cap some punks or something... No? How about rescuing cats out of trees then. Finding lost dogs... anything? I oughta go and raise some hell myself just so we have something to do. I'M BORED!"
"Em!" David remonstrated her sharply.
"Yes, Dad?" snarked Em.
David started at the title. Emma had never once called him that, even in jest, and he wasn't sure how it felt to hear it from either of them. Sometimes it was hard to reconcile the image of the tiny baby he'd placed in a wardrobe with the teenage version of his daughter or even the grownup one. Emma was a strong woman, more independent and aloof than most- he'd missed the small window of her life when she'd needed a Daddy.
"Enough," sighed David. "I was going to wait until Emma gets back but I think I'll take you with me now."
Em appeared outside of the locked cell somehow, even though David still had the keys in his pocket. David grabbed his jacket and slung it around his shoulders and then tossed Em's at her.
"Where are we going?" asked Em suspiciously.
David shrugged, fixing his collar. "To cap some punks."
"I want a gun-" started Em.
David laughed loudly. "No."
"- fine. Then I want a badge," said Em, pouting adorably.
"I'm the Deputy. I wear the badge."
"You mean this badge?" Em said innocently, pointing to the gold star suddenly pinned to her own jacket.
David reached for his belt where his badge no longer resided. "But how- ?"
Em gave him a thousand-watt grin.
His surprise turned to amusement and he nodded with an impressed smile. 'That's my girl'. "Okay. You can wear the badge, Deputy Swan. Let's go."
"Wherever we're going... this better not be lame," warned Em.
David pulled the police cruiser up to the curb near a church and Em sighed in disappointment.
"I'm not going in there," said Em stubbornly.
"We're not going in there."
"Where then?"
"Next door," said David, without elaborating further.
The building next door turned out to be pretty run-down and in desperate need of a bit of maintenance or more likely, funds to do so. There was a smattering of graffiti on the side of the bricks and bits of trash lying randomly around on the ill-kept lawn. But inside was a different story.
"Woah," said Em, when she and David entered. "What is this place?"
"Emma." David shrugged and that was all the explanation he gave.
Though the expansive room was mostly empty it was obviously intended as a hangout for children and teenagers. There was a tired-looking pool table near the back of the room and a TV with a games system chained to the table where it sat, there were assorted couches most of which had seen better days, and in the corner there were a few baskets of battered toys and a small bookcase.
David went over to the bookcase with the crate he'd brought with him and started adding books to the shelves.
"Emma did this?" guessed Em, looking around carefully.
"Emma's like you, Em. She thought there wasn't much crime in town and she had some time to take on a project close to her heart. So she organised the 'KidSpace' here so that disadvantaged teens and children could have a safe place to get together and hang out."
"It looks just like -" Em broke off quietly.
David went on as if he didn't notice. "I'm not sure how she managed it but she got an anonymous donor, it was enough to rent this place and get the games system. Most of the rest of the stuff came from Goodwill but we're accepting whatever people want to give."
Em was quiet and without complaint for the few hours that she and David spent tidying up and cleaning the place. They re-stocked the first-aid kit with supplies, filled the mini-fridge with bottles of water and protein bars, and added to the piles of information pamphlets and cards with helpline numbers listed on them.
"She didn't forget me," Em said to herself.
David called from the door. "Em! You coming? I thought we'd grab lunch and go to the school."
Em grinned happily and ran after him. "We're going to see Ri? Awesome!"
"Um, Mar?" David looked out the classroom window where there was a whole lot of squealing and laughter going on. "Is that Ri outside? Why have the children tied her to a tree with a skipping rope?"
"She was reading them some fairytales and did such a good job of 'the Evil Queen voice' that they wanted to re-enact some of the scenes outside."
Em shot Mary Margaret a glare of accusation. "And you let them. Knowing how she feels about finding out about all of that."
Mary Margaret softened her manner. "She was ok with it. It was her idea. Besides, by the end of the story I'm pretty sure most of the kids were in love with her and rooting for Evil anyway."
The schoolteacher went back to grading quizzes at her desk just as the shrill school bell rang, signalling time for lunch.
David checked out the window and chuckled, seeing that the kids had left Ri tied up before they ran away. "I'll go rescue her."
Emma dropped the Granny's takeaway bags on the teacher's desk at the front of the room and handed Mary Margaret's lunchbag over to her.
"I got you this too," Em said, eyes downcast, handing out another smaller white paper bag.
Mary Margaret hid her surprise at finding a cookie inside. "Oh, Em. I love it."
"You love it," repeated Em, listening carefully.
"Yes, of course. Thankyou."
Em sat on one of the student's desks and pulled a cheeseburger out of her lunch bag.
"I'm starving!" she groaned and took her first bite gratefully.
"What did Emma and David have you do at work this morning?" asked Mary Margaret, taking out her own salad wrap.
Em shrugged. "Stuff."
"You must've done something," teased Mary Margaret gently.
"Yep." Em chewed and shoved a handful of fries into her mouth.
Goodness, getting answers from a teenager is like pulling teeth! thought Mary Margaret. She didn't have this much trouble talking to Emma the first time they'd met. In fact, adult Emma had taken to her so quickly that she'd tried to cover it up. Her roommate had told her much later that she'd kicked herself as soon as she'd rejected Mary Margaret's room offer the first time and that she hadn't liked living with anyone before.
"I see you've been awarded a gold star."
Em rolled her eyes. "Yup, I'm officially one of the hypocrite cops now."
"It suits you."
"What, hypocrisy?" scoffed Em, slurping her milkshake.
"No. Emma's badge." Mary Margaret smiled, remembering how proud and pleased she had been that Emma had taken the job and decided to stay in town.
"It's the Deputy's badge, not Emma's."
"It used to be hers. Emma was Deputy here before she was promoted to Sheriff."
Em scoffed again. "What'd she do. Kill him for his badge or somethin'? Ha, sounds like something I would do."
Mary Margaret felt a wave of grief, reminded of the circumstances that resulted in Emma's promotion. Em was clearly joking and though it was far from the truth the former Sheriff had died in office, leaving behind nothing but sorrow for those who had known the gentle man.
"So. You're totally against Emma being with Regina huh," said Em.
Em's tone was conversational but Mary Margaret suddenly felt like she should be hearing a loud warning siren going off. She hadn't explicitly said anything like that in Em's earshot but her teenager daughter had obviously picked up on much more than she let on and Ri must have told her everything she'd found out about the curse too.
"What makes you think that."
Em slurped her milkshake again. "You hate Regina."
"I've known her a long time. I don't hate her," said Mary Margaret softly.
"You don't want me to be with Ri either."
"Em, that's different, that's-"
"Whatever." Em jumped up and scrunched up her lunchbag. She tossed the crumpled paper towards the bin - missed - and headed for the door.
The chair scraped loudly when Mary Margaret stood and called after her. "Em, don't go! Let me explain."
"Why'd you lie?" Em stopped in the doorway and glared over her shoulder.
"I didn't-"
"About the cookie."
Mary Margaret closed her eyes and berated herself in her mind. She'd told a 'harmless' lie and it had come back to bite her - badly. She should've known better, she knew about Em's superpower and how much resentment the teen was already harbouring against her. She'd miserably failed the test without even knowing she was being examined.
"Em. It's only because I don't like pistachios. I said I loved it because I love the fact that you thought to give it to me. I didn't want to hurt you -"
"Yeah well, that's the thing isn't it? You hurt people without intending to."
"I'm sorry I lied to you but I-"
Em cut off her weak justifications. "I've always been able to spot a liar and ya know what I've learned? After the first lie... don't trust what comes after that. You even lied about lying."
"Em, please-" Mary Margaret begged.
When Em walked out, Mary Margaret let her face fall into her hands.
She tried to tell herself that Em would come around eventually - since when did teenage girls get on with their mothers? Mary Margaret reminded herself that her relationship with Emma was far less fractured these days … but she couldn't help but despair that her daughter would never truly forgive her. The former Snow White had no experience of mothers, neither having one nor being one. The last thing she'd ever wanted was for her daughter to grow up without a mother as well. The worst part was that it had been her choice. She was a mother yet she'd missed out on being one.
Ri was still tied to the tree with her hands bound behind her, but the children were gone. Her face lit up hopefully when she saw David approaching.
"Hi, David! Is Em with you?"
David smiled. "She sure is."
"Is she having a good day? I know she wasn't very happy this morning about going to work with you. I mean, not that it was because of you! She wasn't happy about us being separated and she's still not sure how she feels about Emma being Sheriff. She doesn't think she's good enough, but I know she is. Was she ok?"
David nodded, smiling at her rambling. "She did very well."
"Could you please untie me so that I can go see her?" said Ri politely.
"Actually, I thought I'd leave you here."
"Ok," said Ri good-naturedly. "Can you get Em to come here then?"
David chuckled at her naivete but he felt a bit mean. He hadn't really thought she would fall for it. Regina certainly wouldn't have fallen for it - or tolerated such an indignity. Sometimes the two of them were so different it was funny... and then he remembered what young Regina must've been through that caused that innocence to be stripped from her.
"Of course I'm gonna untie you, Ri. It was just a joke."
"Oh! The children said they'd be back to untie me but I suppose they forgot."
"Ugh! What have they done here?" groused David, pulling at the ends of the skipping rope dangling from a huge knot.
He started trying to sort out the tangle of skipping rope holding Ri captive - or ropes as it appeared. They were tied in some complicated system of knots around her wrists. Rather tightly too. David frowned, wondering why the girl hadn't complained. He could feel that her hands were going cold and it alarmed him.
"Ri, honey, are your hands ok? This is tied really tight."
"They're just children, they didn't mean it. They said my hands were where my magic resides."
David growled in frustration, pulling at the tangles again. This would be much quicker if he had a-
"Ri, I'm just gonna run and get a knife. Can you - I was going to say 'hold tight' - but will you be alright for a second?"
Ri nodded. "I'll wait here."
David took off for the school building at a sprint and while she waited, Ri tried to wiggle her fingers to get some feeling back into them. It was starting to feel very uncomfortable and she winced.
"You should get used to it," said a woman's voice, from behind her.
Once the woman moved to stand in her line of sight, Ri could see that it was the same lady who she had seen in the park after her date with Em.
"I'm sorry?"
"You should get used to being held captive," said The Blue Fairy. "This and worse is what awaits you as punishment for your many crimes against the realm, Your Majesty."
"I have no title," said Ri quietly. "Please address me as 'Regina'. I am also called Ri by those who know me."
"Those who should know better than to want to know you."
"I've read much about justice. Is it fair to blame me for what I haven't done yet," asked Ri, lowering her eyes.
"You are Regina, are you not? Is it fair that her war against the kingdom resulted in the deaths of hundreds of people including children? Many of them would not be as old as the ones in this playground ... but they will never play again. You took their lives."
"Ch-children?"
The Blue Fairy left as quickly as she'd come, satisfied that the seed she'd planted had taken root.
Even though it only took David a few minutes to run inside to the janitor's closet and procure a knife, by the time he got back to Ri he saw that her pallor was ashen.
"Ri! Stay still so I don't cut you." David cut through the ropes quickly freeing her hands.
"I'm okay," the teen said weakly, once she was released.
David threw down the knife and rubbed her hands between his own until he felt the heat return.
"Maybe you shouldn't have saved them," murmured Ri.
David sighed and put a hand to her shoulder. "Come on, let's go and see Em."
"Yes, please. I'd love to see her."
They were heading back across the playground towards the school building when David felt the buzz on his hip and grabbed his phone. The display read "1 new message" and when he opened it he saw a green bubble saying:
STORYBROOKE IS SHRINKING!
David was confused by the nonsensical text message. What the hell did that mean?
"Is that your magic mirror talking to you, David?" asked Ri curiously.
"Yes, sort of," chuckled David, then frowned at the screen again. "Never mind, I think it's just Leroy drunk-dialing me again. Let's go."