Love, Fate And Magic

A/N: Ahoy all! I know it's been about two weeks since my last update, but that is at least the half the time you had to wait for the last one. Anyway, I'm on half term for the week so hopefully I'll get at least two chapters out (Fingers crossed.)

Chapter 8- Deal?

Emma swung back on worth on her desk chair, her eyes unfocused as she tapped her fingers on the desk, lost in thought. Two weeks had crawled by since Graham's sudden and tragic death, but Emma still felt the weight of it like it had been yesterday. In that time, the blonde had been stepping in as sheriff, doing paperwork and fishing the town cats out of trees. Without Graham, the boringness of the small town had seemed to have doubled.

Emma sighed as she let the chair fall back to the ground, an unhealthy groan sounding from the worn out wood. The blonde's eyes drifted across the desk and landed on the sheriff's badge that sat on its surface, a thin layer of dust beginning to form on it. Emma shook her head and stood, stretching out her muscles. There was no use sitting around and doing nothing.

A ringing sounded behind her, and Emma spun around to look at the jangling phone on the desk. Reaching across, the blonde snatched up the phone and half-heartedly greet the person on the other end.

"Hello?"

"Deputy Swan? It's Mr Gold." Emma frowned as the familiar voice filled her ears.

"Mr Gold. What can I do for you?" The blonde asked politely.

"I was wondering if you could head down to my shop. I wish to discuss something with you." He said, and Emma pondered his words.

"Sure, I'll be there soon." Emma replied, it was clear nothing else was going to happen today, so the blonde saw no harm in visiting the older man.

"Excellent." The deputy hung up the phone and grabbed her jacket and keys. Going to see Gold would give Emma a good chance to ask about the few things left behind in the station belonging to Graham.

Xxxxxxxxxx

The trip to the pawn shop was uneventful, and Emma soon found herself pushing open the door to the seemingly empty shop.

"Gold?" Emma called out, coming to a stop in the centre of the shop. "You in here?" The blonde continued through the shop, stepping into the back room to spot Mr Gold hard at work. Emma walked further into the back room but recoiled when an awful smell hit her.

"Whoa! What is that?" She asked, her feature scrunched up in disgust.

"This is lanolin. Used for waterproofing." The older man informed, looking up from his work.

"It smells like livestock."

"Well, it is the reason why sheep's wool repels water." Emma kept her distance from the substance.

"If there was a reason you called the Sheriff's Department, do you want to talk about that quickly, or outside?" Emma asked, watching as he rose from his chair and walked over to her.

"I just wanted to express my condolences, really." He said, stopping in front of Emma. "The Sheriff was a good man." Emma didn't reply.

"You're still wearing the Deputy's badge." The blonde looked down at the badge attached to her belt. "Well, he's been gone two weeks, now. And I believe that after two weeks of acting as Sheriff, the job becomes yours."

"Yeah. I guess. I'm just not in a hurry. So thank you for the kind words." Emma turned to leave not wishing to continue talking about Graham, but turned back when Gold talked again.

"I have his things."

"What?"

"The Sheriff. He rented an apartment that I own. Another reason for my call, really, I wanted to offer you a keepsake." He said, pointing to a box on his counter.

"Ah, actually I wanted to talk to you about that, there are a few things left at the station that I wasn't sure what to do with." Emma gestured vaguely behind her.

"Clearly you don't them? Or any of these?" He opened the lid of the box.

"I don't need them." Emma shrugged.

"As you wish." Gold smiled at her, making the blonde feel uneasy. "I'll give them to Mayor Mills."

Emma faltered at the mention of the brunette. She had neither seen nor heard from Regina since the incident at the graveyard. The blonde had tried all that she could to expel Regina from her mind, but nothing had shifted the thoughts of the older woman. Her attempts to be with Graham had failed horribly, and left nothing but a feeling of loss. However that feeling had quickly been replaced by a strong desire for the mayor. Not just to have her, but to be with her, to talk to her, to hold her. Emma had spent several nights trying to decipher the cause of these feelings for Regina, but had never come to a conclusion.

"I'm not sure about that." Gold raised his eyebrows at Emma.

"Look, I fear that all of his stuff is headed directly for that trash bin." Emma frowned at him.

"Didn't he have anyone else?" she asked hopefully.

"Well…there was a young man who was in his care." Emma's eyes widened slightly at this, Graham had never once mentioned this.

"Who?"

"He works over in the flower shop." Gold gestured to the street outside. "However he hasn't returned to the apartment since the Sheriff passed. I hoped to give him Graham's things but I haven't been able to track him down." Emma nodded along.

"Perhaps I can track him down." She said and reached for Graham's things. "What's his name?"

"Morgan, I believe."

"I'll pass these along to him."

"Excellent." Emma nodded, and grasped the box. She threw a goodbye over her shoulder and left the shop. The blonde couldn't understand why Graham had never mention Morgan to her.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

After dumping Graham's things in her car, Emma headed over to the flower shop across the street. It was a small shop, with colourful flowers lining the walls and windows outside. The blonde quickly made her way outside, and found herself in a sea of colour. It took a moment for her to adjust as she walked through the shop.

Toward the back, Emma spotted a man, crouched over a couple of flower pots, planting various seeds in them.

"Excuse me?" she called to him, making the man jump and stand upright.

"Oh, hello." He greeted, thrusting out a muddy hand which Emma took lightly and shook. "What can I do for you?"

"I'm looking for Morgan?" The deputy asked, peering around the shop.

"Morgan? Why?" He frowned at her, but Emma smiled reassuringly.

"It's nothing bad, I just want to talk to him." He nodded, looking relived.

"Oh, well he's doesn't work today." Emma frowned, placing her hands on her hips.

"Ah."

"But, he usually likes to hang out near the toll bridge, at a place called the flower patch." Said the man with a smile.

"Great, I'll go check that out Mr…?" Emma said nodding to him.

"Moe French." He smiled, filling in the blank for the blonde.

"It's nice to meet you and thank you." The blonde turned on her heel and left promptly, the toll bridge wasn't too far away.

Emma arrived at the toll bridge about ten minutes later, the ground crunching under her boots as she walked up a hill. It was moments like these that Emma wished she knew the wilderness of the town a lot better. Her eyes scanned the trees, hoping to spot something that resembled a "flower patch". When she reached the top of the small hill, the blonde spotted a clearing up ahead through a gap in the trees. Emma made her way towards the trees and clambered through them, cursing when a branch wacked her in the face. The deputy emerged ungracefully into the clearing, and gasped when founded herself surrounded by hundreds of dandelions. Her eyes roamed over the sea of yellow that seemed to almost glow in the sunlight. Emma felt her mind twitch at the sight of the flowers, as if it was trying to remember something. The blonde thought back to the old, dried up dandelion that had been in her satchel.

"What are you doing here?" Emma jumped at the voice, and spun around trying to locate its owner.

"Err, I'm looking for someone." She said hesitantly, still unsure where the speaker was. There was the sound of twigs snapping before a young man jumped down from one of the trees. He looked to be in his late teens, no older than twenty at most. His shoulder length black hair was pulled back in a short pony tail. He had deep caramel skin that peeked out from under his shirt. His jeans were ripped and dirty, as if he spent most of his time climbing trees.

"By someone, you mean me?" He questioned, looking at her untrustingly.

"Are you Morgan?" He regarded her for a moment before nodding.

"Are you here to talk about Graham?" He fixed his gaze on the flowers at his feet, scrutinizing each one.

"We don't have to if you don't want to..." Emma watched him, waiting to see if he was going to say anything. When Morgan didn't the blonde decided to try and continue talking. "I have some things of his, and was wondering if you want them?"

"No, I don't need any more reminders." Emma's eyes softened as she slowly approached the younger man.

"Do you have somewhere to go?" She asked gently.

"Moe offered me a room to stay in." Morgan said, bending down to pull out some dead flowers. "He's a good guy, it's kind of him to offer." Emma knelt to be at Morgan's height, his brown eyes flickered up to look at her.

"Were you and Graham close?" The darker haired man shrugged.

"Yeah, he took me in a while back." Morgan smiled, plucking a dandelion and turning it over, brushing his finger over the petals. "Don't be offended that he never told you about me."

"Oh I-"

"-Graham was private guy, liked to keep his work life and home life as separate as possible." Morgan said, cutting across Emma. "Guess that's what made him and Regina so shocking to you?"

"I would have liked some warning." The deputy admitted making Morgan chuckle.

"Hmm, must have been a real kick in the nuts for you?" He asked looking at her with an amused expression.

"Excuse me?" Emma spluttered making Morgan let out a bark of a laugh.

"Graham was also observant." He grinned at her. "He could see you had the hots for the Mayor a mile away." Emma scowled at the younger man for a moment before huffing.

"Is it that obvious?" she whined, pulling out flowers.

"Only if you're looking to see it." He replied, putting one of the flowers behind his ear and straightening up. "Are you going to become the new sheriff?"

"I…don't know." Emma said honestly, standing up to be level with Morgan, who nodded at her.

"Well when you do take up the job, if you ever want a deputy…" he said sheepishly, smiling at her.

"I'll be sure to give you a call." Emma watched as his lit up.

"Really? Graham always talked about policing so I'm no amateur." The blonde smiled at his enthusiasm.

"Flower boy isn't your ambition in life then?" Morgan shook his slightly.

"I like flowers, but only to look at really." He shoved his hands into his jeans. "Dandelions are my favourite."

"I can see that." The blonde chuckled out, making Morgan grin as well. Emma's smile faded when she caught sight of her watch and realised how long she had been away from the station. "Damn I gotta get back to the station."

"Can I come to?" Morgan blurted out suddenly. "I know you only just met me but…" Emma smiled at him and nodded.

"Of course, I get a little lonely all by myself now anyway."

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

Emma plopped herself back down into her office chair, and watched as Morgan followed suit, gingerly sitting in the other chair across the room. The blonde couldn't help but immediately like the younger man. He was so easy to talk to, and seemed so familiar. She couldn't help but grin at the dandelion still perched behind his ear. It was odd, it seemed like she had seen that before.

Emma stood from her chair and moved to the end of the desk, staring down at the sheriff's badge that sat there still.

"It's been two weeks, it's yours." She heard Morgan say, and Emma lightly ran her fingers over it.

"Yeah, I guess it is." She went to pick it up, but dropped it back in place when another voice sounded behind her.

"That's not yours." Emma turned to glare at Regina, who was waltzing into the room, a smirk on her face.

"What?" The blonde snapped, ignoring the butterflies that were throwing themselves at the walls of her stomach.

"Not yet at least…" Regina couldn't to walk towards Emma, who tensed when she invaded her personal space.

"I don't understand." The deputy frowned at the woman, who continued to smirk at her.

"It's up to the Mayor to appoint a new Sheriff." Regina began, reaching over and picking up the badge. "Which won't be you."

"Oh?" Rage boiled in Emma's veins as she held her ground. She noticed Morgan shift out of the corner of her eye and willed him not to say anything and let her deal with this.

"Unless…" Regina stepped even closer to Emma, an evil grin on her lips. "You are willing to make a deal?" The blonde frowned, unsure of what Regina had in mind. She looked over to Morgan, who was glaring at Regina.

"Let's talk about this somewhere else." Emma suggested and began walking over to the office. She turned to see Regina stalking behind her, a predatory look on her face. "Morgan could you do me a favour?"

"Sure." His tone was unfriendly as he continued to watch Regina, who had sat down in the office chair, looking very at home.

"Can you go grab me a grilled cheese from Granny's while I deal with the Mayor, please?" He tilted his head at her, as if to ask something. "I'll be fine." She reassured and he nodded and grabbed his jacket.

"I won't be long." He said and disappeared off towards the entrance of the station. Emma huffed and closed the door, turning back to look at Regina, who was watching her.

"You've made a new friend I see." Emma nodded, crossing her arms.

"He was a friend of Graham, and could become my new deputy." The blonde said bluntly, eyeing the older woman who smirked at her again.

"That is if you become the new sheriff." Regina pointed out. "Which brings me to why I am here."

"You wish to make a deal?" Regina hummed in agreement and stood from the chair to be level with Emma. "What is it?"

"Things keep going a bit downhill with us Emma, so I plan to try and fix it." The blonde raised her eyebrows while Regina continued to talk. "Now I don't ask for much, just a little cooperation really."

"In what?"

"Have dinner with me." It was Emma's turn to smirk at the older woman.

"You're joking right?" She asked, but Regina shook her head and walked around the desk towards Emma.

"I know that you want me Emma, it's easy to see." The blonde's smile faded as Regina continued to advance on her making Emma instinctively back away. "I know you tried to convince yourself you didn't by going after Graham, but that didn't really work out did it." The deputy's back collided with the door, pinning her between it and Regina.

"You don't know what you're talking about."

"I think you'll find I do dear." Emma stared into chocolate orbs that seemed to bore right into her soul. "But don't worry, the feelings mutual."

"So what? I have dinner with you and you make me Sheriff?" Regina nodded and Emma scoffed making the older woman frown.

"You don't think I'm serious?" The mayor looked genuinely hurt and the blonde softened slightly.

"Why do you want this so much?" Emma asked her voice quiet.

"Because I want you." Regina said simply. "So…do we have a deal?"

"Can I have time to think about it?" The mayor got even closer to Emma, their lips only a few centimetres away.

"What are you so afraid of?" The brunette asked gently.

"Letting myself fall again." Emma said bluntly.

"Come by my office this afternoon and give me your answer then?" The blonde nodded and Regina backed away. "We can do this in baby steps Miss Swan. Nothing has to go any faster than this until you're comfortable with it. I'm a patient woman, I can wait."

"I guess I'll see you this afternoon then." Regina smiled a toothy smile at Emma.

"Excellent." She spun on her heel and grabbed her purse from the desk. "I see you later." With that, the mayor opened the office door and disappeared, leaving Emma to lean against the wall for support as she calmed her racing mind.

Was this a good idea? Sure becoming Sheriff would be good, but dinner with Regina? What doors would that open and was Emma ready for it? She had loved once before and that hadn't ended well. The blonde covered her face with her hands and took a deep breath in. It was only dinner, maybe it wouldn't be so bad?

The sound of movement brought Emma back from the depth her mind and Morgan appeared in the office, a paper bag in his hand.

"Did I miss anything good?"

A/N: Sooooooooo Morgan? Dandelions? Anyone picked up on who this guy is? I hope so since he's gunna be hanging around for a while. Anyway dinner with Regina, how will that end? What will Emma decide to do? So many questions! As always please review and tell me what you think! I know updates have been slow but like a said I'm on half term at the moment so I hope to get a few out before I go back to college. Till next time Kids.