Pillow Talk
Rating: T (language)
Summary: Post- Skin Deep; Emma and Henry spend their half hour together, and Emma confesses a dark secret from that half hour to Mary Margaret.
The moment Emma and Henry stepped outside, his arms locked around her waist and hers on his shoulders until she crouched to be eye-level with him for a proper hug. His face turned into the crook of her neck and she closed her eyes, relishing the embrace. "I've missed you so much," He confessed, squeezing her tight.
"I miss you, too, Henry."
In the moment before Emma pulled away, a dozen images flashed through her mind; starting with her car, less than ten feet away. How easy it would be to convince Henry to climb in and buckle up, drive them away — across the border, to a remote slum in Southern Mexico. They'd find suitable housing and she'd take up bounty hunting, teaching her son tricks of the trade. The two of them would work together, taking down crime lords and drug runners all over the country; becoming an unstoppable, anonymous team. And at the end of every day, Emma would be sure to tuck Henry into bed, reading him a bedtime story — a thriller or mystery. Their life wouldn't be a fairy tale, but at least they'd have a happy ending.
Shaking her head of such dangerous, tempting thoughts, Emma pulled away, standing to take Henry's hand. "Come on, kid. We don't have much time."
"I knew she'd let me see you soon! I've been really good! I've been doing whatever she tells me to the first time. I think it's working!" He said with a wide smile as they made their way to Granny's. "Unless she's plotting something with Mr. Gold. Which she probably is. But it's okay. I just wanted to see you."
He gripped her hand tighter as they entered the diner, sliding into the same side of a booth, where Ruby hastily took their order. "Did you get a chance to read what I wrote in your journal last night?" Emma asked, her tone soft as not to draw attention to them.
Henry nodded, his smile growing wider by the second as he cast his eyes on their waitress. "I think you're right. Ruby...Red Riding hood. I don't know why I didn't think of that sooner!"
"Well, you told me once that Red and Snow White were friends. Last night, Mary Margaret and Ruby went out together — with Ashley. You did say that Cinderella and Snow knew each other, right?"
"They were from neighboring kingdoms! They went to each other's weddings. And Prince Charming and Prince Thomas were good friends, too. I know!" Henry gasped, his eyes wide, "We should get David and Sean to hang out! Maybe they'll remember something if they're together!" Ruby brought out a sunday with two spoons, setting it between them. Henry smirked up at her, questioning, "Do you like wolves, Ruby?"
She shifted her weight to her right hip, an eyebrow raised. "I can't say I've ever come across one. I've got a little wolf charm in my car, though. He's good luck." She winked and returned to work, causing Henry to smugly take a spoon and shovel ice cream into his mouth.
"Careful, kid. You're glowing."
He plucked the cherry off the top mound of chocolate sauce, biting it before declaring, "Between the two of us, there's no mystery we can't solve."
Emma wrapped an arm around his shoulder, feeling a surge of affection and the rising of the same feelings of kidnapping her own son. How simple it would be to bolt out of Granny's diner, feigning an emergency from the station, and run Henry to her Beetle, pound the accelerator and driving until she ran out of gas, somewhere in New Hampshire. They'd hop on the first red-eye to California, where she had a few allies in the business of false identification. She'd get them passports and certificates of every kind; then take the quickest flight to Australia. Who'd look for them in the Land Down Under?
"Aren't you going to eat?" Henry asked, waking her from the cryptic daydream she'd fallen into.
"Yeah," She answered, shaky as she poked at the desert with a spoon.
Thankfully, Henry carried their conversation as they finished eating, distracting her from the possibility of even considering taking him again. They laughed and teased one another until they were finished and Emma paid, not ready to test Regina just yet by keeping Henry longer than half an hour.
As they walked back down the street, Emma could sense Henry's demeanor changing. When they reached the station, Emma addressed it. "Hey, don't get down, Henry. We got to spend time together today, and even though it wasn't much..." She knelt in front of him, taking both his hands into hers. "Seeing you for just this short half hour? It's been the best part of my entire week. You're the reason I'm here, kid, and I'm going to enjoy every opportunity I have with you. No matter how long or short."
Henry visibly fought back tears as he mumbled, "I wish I didn't have to go back with her. I just want to stay with you."
Emma swallowed hard at the confession and her eyes once again landed on her vehicle. She stood, bit her lip, and fished her keys out of her coat pocket, fiddling with them for a moment before opening the passenger side. Henry stood next to her, peering inside before meeting her worried eyes. She wouldn't ask him to get in, but if he did...
They'd drive out of Storybrooke and straight to Boston. Regina wouldn't think Emma would be dumb enough to go there first, since that's where she last lived, but that's just what would throw her off the trail. They'd wait twelve hours before boarding a train, which would be the least likely mode of transportation Emma would consider; in the Mayor's eyes anyway. They'd ride for an entire day, getting off at the first station after the clock would strike midnight. They'd sleep in a dingy motel, with Henry curled up against Emma's side. In the morning, they'd decide together what they wanted their first adventure to be.
This fast-planned decision was cut short by Henry tugging on Emma's sleeve, shaking his head and hissing, "I can't leave Storybrooke."
Emma was about to reply, but was startled by Regina exiting the station with her usual scowl, which twisted into something horrible as she took note of Henry standing next to Emma's open passenger door. "What are you doing?"
Emma put on a smile and blinked away tears as she looked down at her son, who gave her a desperate expression. "Just telling Henry to look in the center counsel." Her eyes darted to it, then to Henry. "Go on, kid. There's something in there for you."
Tentatively, Henry crawled over, reaching for a wrapped item, which Emma had intended on giving him the next time she saw him. "For me?" Henry asked as he sat in the seat, his legs facing outwards as Emma nodded and he unwrapped it. A smile graced his face as he opened it, washing away the brief moment of fear that Regina knew what Emma wanted to do. "New fairy tales!"
"I know it's not the same version as the ones in your book, but it hasn't turned up yet, and I figured at least you'd have something to read. I'm still looking for it, kid," She said harshly, her eyes locked on the Mayor who rolled her own.
"Thanks, Emma!" Henry hugged her tightly, and Emma hugged back just as hard, bending to his level so he could whisper in her ear, "It's not the right time to go."
She patted his back, letting him know she understood, and Regina quickly whisked him away, without so much as a goodbye to the sheriff.
When they were out of view, Emma slammed her door shut and stormed into the station, knocking over a chair in anger and frustration as she entered her office, throwing herself into her chair and letting out a yell as she grabbed at her hair and stared hard at her desk.
"Somebody's angry." Gold drawled from his cell, causing Emma's neck to snap upwards — in her rage, she'd forgotten she had a prisoner.
"I am not talking to you, Gold," Emma hissed, standing preparation to close her office door, but the clever salesman shook his head, laughing as he moved to the bars.
"A half hour with your son is hardly enough, Ms. Swan. Even I can see that the mayor enjoys dangling him in front of you, teasing with opportunities she never wants you to have. Why don't you do something about it?"
Emma opened and closed her mouth in search of an argument as she shuffled closer to the criminal. "What exactly can I do? That won't put me in a cell right next to you?"
Gold snickered. "Oh, dearie. You're not worried about going to jail. You can't tell me you don't already have several well-thought-out plans on ways to get Henry out of this town?" She didn't respond and Gold knew the answer. "I'm on your side, Sheriff. If you ever need and sort of...assistance...in such a plan...well, I'd be happy to offer my services."
When Emma arrived home, Mary Margaret was in bed with a light on, but her curtains drawn — a sign she wasn't in the mood for chatting. Emma kicked her boots off and hung up her coat, wringing her hands together as she tried to decide if interrupting to share her predicament would be appropriate. Hoping the teacher would come out on her own, the blonde began rumpling through the kitchen, creating a strange combination of food for dinner.
Not bothering to wash her dishes, Emma slumped up the stairs, where she found Henry's journal and a pile of laundry neatly folded on her bed. She didn't have the heart to read his entry, and instead wrote a quick note about being glad she saw him, completely ignoring the part where she tried to steal him out of the country. After changing into sleepwear, Emma made her way back to the living room, where she tucked Henry's journal into Mary Margaret's bag. Walking past the closed curtains one more time, Emma sighed and entered the bathroom to brush her teeth before attempting to sleep.
As she exited the wash area, she found her roommate's curtains suddenly open and Mary Margaret sitting on the edge of her bed, her arms crossed — but not in an unfriendly gesture. "Emma," She called softly as the sheriff padded across the hardwood floor.
Emma crossed her own arms, but in a defensive way as she sat next to Mary Margaret, not wanting to have the conversation — but knowing her own sanity required her to tell somebody what she'd thought about doing that afternoon.
"I—I think it's a good thing that I don't see Henry for awhile," She started, eyes glued to the wall.
Mary Margaret tilted her head. "Now, don't give into that evil woman—"
"She let me see him today," Emma interrupted. "For a half hour, while she talked to Gold. I took him to Granny's for ice cream...and we talked about all kinds of things, and he was so happy. Before she took him home, he gave me a huge hug and I gave him the book we got last weekend."
She was quiet for a few moments, where Mary Margaret filled in, "And it's too painful to be around him not knowing when you'll see him next? Believe me, I get that, but—"
"No, no..." Emma took a shaky breath. "I tried to run away with him. Three times throughout the half hour I had with him, I thought about different ways to get him the hell out of Storybrooke."
Mary Margaret opened her mouth to speak, but Emma shook her head. "I know it might be normal to think that way, but it doesn't make it okay. The third time that I thought about it...We had just gotten back to the station. He said something about not wanting to go back with Regina. I...I opened my passenger door, and he stood next to me...and we just looked at each other for a minute...and we were both trying not to cry and then he went all 'curse' on me and said he couldn't leave Storybrooke, and before I had time to tell him that he could, Regina came out and...It was all over."
"Oh, Emma..." Mary Margaret sighed. "I don't...I don't know what to say. That's...obviously not good. You know full well that would be kidnapping, no matter if you're his birth mother and he wanted to go with you."
"I know," Emma replied, holding in a sob. "I know. I...It was all so perfect in that one moment. We'd be in route to San Francisco right now. If it weren't for the damn curse, we'd be—"
The teacher cleared her throat, placing a heavy hand on Emma's leg. "Really, Emma? No, if it weren't for the curse, you'd be in jail right now. Do you really think you could get away with it? Regina—"
"I know I could get away with it!" The blonde suddenly yelled, standing and pacing, her rationale having gone from a mild justification of her thoughts to wishing she'd gone through with them. "This is my territory. Running away is my thing. I know what to do, where to go, how to hide! You don't think I'd double my caution if I had Henry with me? We'd get fake identification and go to Mexico and we'd find a nice place to live in a crowded city and I'd teach him how to hunt people down and we'd take down criminals and—"
"Emma!" Mary Margaret raised her voice in a way her roommate had never heard, causing her to stop rambling and eyes to widen as she caught her breath and let the other woman guide her back to sitting on the bed. "Do you hear yourself? You sound like a madwoman, and I'm not saying that to be funny. What you're saying is genuinely concerning. You...you can't think like that."
"I can't help it!" She cried, her own volume increasing dramatically as she tried to stand again, but found herself pinned by Mary Margaret's strong hold on her arms. "If he hadn't been concerned about the curse bullshit, we'd be gone and—"
The teacher interrupted again, her eyes fixed and dark. "No, no thank God for the curse! Because if Henry had gone with you...can you imagine?"
Emma's eyes were wild as she tried to convey her point; with however much sense it failed to make. "Yes! That's what I'm saying! Regina isn't the only one capable of providing him with what he needs. I'll find him a house, maybe not as fancy as hers, but I'll keep him safe! And not only will I be able to take care of him physically, but he'll be happy with me. You know he will! And once we're out of Storybrooke, I'm sure the whole curse thing will blow over, and he'll be mentally stable and—"
Mary Margaret shook her head and stood in front of Emma, keeping her grip on the blonde's arms. "You're talking in the future tense as if it's actually going to happen, Emma. I think you're worked up and hysterical right now...and you're not thinking clearly. I think you'll be in a much better place if you sleep and...Well, you're right about one thing, though. It might be best if you don't see Henry for awhile."
Emma tore out of the hold her roommate had on her and stormed out of the room, pulling on her boots and coat before leaving the apartment. Mary Margaret took a few deep breaths, trying to figure out how she could have better handled the situation. After few minutes of evaluation, a dark thought circled the brunette's mind and she gasped before tugging on her own shoes and coat, grabbing her car keys, praying Emma hadn't gotten far.
Noting the yellow Bug wasn't in the driveway, Mary Margaret swore and looked both ways down the street for any sign of her roommate, biting her lip nervously when there wasn't one. Peeling out of the driveway in her beat-up jeep, the teacher made her way to the place of her first concern.
She didn't want to do this — but it was the best way to guarantee Emma hadn't done anything completely irrational. After pulling up next to the Mayor's elaborate home, she quickly climbed out of her vehicle and half-ran to the door, pounding enthusiastically, trying to conjure a reasonable explanation for her presence.
To her relief, Henry answered the door, a confused smile on his face. "Miss Blanchard? What are you doing here?"
Her heart-rate declined as she looked around the hallway for any sign of Regina before pulling the boy into a quick hug, whispering, "Just making sure you're still here." She released him and gave him a serious expression which he seemed to understand. "We'll talk about it tomorrow, alright? I've...I've got to find your mother."
"She's right here, Miss Blanchard. And she doesn't appreciate you insinuating that someone else might be."
Mary Margaret swallowed hard, nodding. "Right. Sorry...Um...I have to go. I'll see you tomorrow, Henry," She said awkwardly, turning to walk briskly to her car, praying the mayor wouldn't follow.
Unfortunately the taller woman wouldn't give up so easily, and she cornered the teacher into the passenger's side door, where Mary Margaret pressed her lips together and waited for a verbal berating about her irresponsibility and inability to do anything right.
"I don't know what is going on with you and your roommate, but you have my word that if anything should happen to my son in the next twenty-four hours, I will be holding you accountable for conspiring against him. Do you understand?"
Mary Margaret gave a quick nod before walking around her car, tearing off down the street with a heavy sigh, unsure if she should continue her search or let Emma come home on her own.
She drove around Storybrooke for the better part of an hour — checking the police station, Granny's diner, even Graham's burial site, and driving up and down streets before she was prepared to give up. Just as she was about to head home, Mary Margaret made one last search attempt.
Parking a distance away, Mary Margaret walked briskly to the shore near the site of Henry's former castle, where as she suspected, Emma was sitting on a large rock, the wind blowing her curls.
Making sure the blonde felt her presence before startling her, Mary Margaret took a seat next to her, pulling her hands into her lap, wishing she'd brought gloves. "Emma, it's freezing. How've you been sitting here for an hour?"
The sheriff was unresponsive as she stared over the water, where the tide was splashing against the rocky shore, not too far from their bodies. They were quiet for a few minutes, Mary Margaret not wanting to push her roommate's buttons. Finally feeling the need to speak, the teacher apologized. "I'm sorry I spoke so harshly to you earlier. That was uncalled for; you're not one of my kids, you're an adult and—"
"I deserved it," Emma mumbled, looking down at her criss-crossed legs, playing with her fingertips. "How did you find me out here, anyway?"
Mary Margaret shrugged. "I know you, I guess. You can't hide form me," She teased lightly, nudging Emma's arm with her elbow.
"It'd take hours or days for the police to find me when I'd run away, when I was a kid. And...since I've gotten older, I thought I got better at hiding. But maybe I just never had anyone who cared enough to find me."
Mary Margaret shook her head. "Well, you've got someone who cares now. Someone who will always find you. I'm sure it's made you uncomfortable to tear down your walls far enough to let me in on that level, but...I think it's good for you. Everyone needs somebody who'd go through hell and high water to ensure they are alright."
Emma finally looked tearily at her roommate, looking utterly exhausted. Making a mature decision, she stated, "I'm sorry. I was acting crazy. I'm not going to try and take Henry. Not tonight, and not ever. Not unless a court gives me custody."
Mary Margaret pulled one of Emma's cold hands into her own. "Promise?"
The blonde smiled weakly, squeezing them together. "Promise."
The teacher stood up, a little wobbly on the rock before finding her balance, reaching her hand down to Emma, who accepted it and followed her to the jeep, where Emma got into the passenger seat. Mary Margaret raised a brow. "Your car wasn't in the driveway...I thought you drove?"
The blonde shrugged. "It's at the station...I ran — I was angry. You can get anywhere when you're mad."
They drove in near-silence, just the sound of Emma rubbing her hands together broke the still of the ten-minute drive. When were back in the apartment and out of winter wear, Mary Margaret guided her friend to her bedroom, warming up mugs for coco in the microwave, not wanting to stay up much longer than necessary to make it with precision.
Emma accepted a cup with a nod, drinking greedily to warm herself up while Mary Margaret suggested, "How about one chapter of our story and then bed, hm?"
The sheriff whined, "But we're almost to the end of the first book! Can we finish it?"
Mary Margaret shot her a look, smirking as Emma mock-pouted. "Okay. But when you're tired in the morning, don't blame me."
Emma scooted to the head of the bed, placing her empty mug on a dresser before resting her head against a stack of pillows and pulling her roommate's blankets over her still-chilled body. Mary Margaret settled in next to her, clearing her throat before beginning, "Chapter fifteen..." Hardly three pages in, she glanced to her right, shaking her head with a smile before closing the book at the sight of Emma already sound asleep, nestled in a mound of blankets. Deciding it wasn't worth waking her up to move after the night they'd had, Mary Margaret placed their novel on the nightstand and took one last look at Emma, brushing hair out of her face before turning out the light.
Have we had enough motherly Mary Margaret? NEVER.