A/N: Charming's fairytale name is James in this story to make things easier later on and it bugs me they never actually gave him one other than David when everyone got different names. But he is still the Charming we all know and love!

Thanks for the reviews! You guys are amazing!

Enjoy.

/

Graham rolled over onto the empty side of the bed, his head hitting the pillow as he pulled the covers up over his naked body. His companion rose up onto her side with an arm propped up to rest her head against as she looked down at him.

He always felt like this afterwards.

A wave of emptiness settled over him as Regina watched with a satisfied smirk like she had just trapped her prey. The covers were tucked under her arms as their breathing returned to normal and all Graham could think about was finding his clothes and making a quick retreat out the door.

He never understood what they were doing, she would call and he would come running but Graham never knew why. There was this pull that filled his stomach with loss and every time he felt it he would turn up at her door and allow her to lead him into her bedroom long after Henry was asleep.

He hated himself for it.

But he could never break it off.

He hated himself for that even more.

Regina's fingers were trailing down his arm and Graham ignored the feeling of wanting to shake her off.

This was wrong.

"I got a call from Dr Whale today," She said, her fingers continuing their path, "You didn't mention Storybrooke's latest celebrity."

They never did this, small talk afterwards. Graham would focus on the ceiling for a while until he felt in control again and would dress in silence before leaving out the backdoor so he didn't wake Henry.

Still, David Nolan was the talk of the town and Graham had already seen tomorrow's copy of the newspaper with his face all over the front page. It was understandable that it peaked Regina's interest as well.

Graham felt guilt when he thought of the amnesiac current occupying his spare room and a bunch of his old clothes until they found him something more suitable. Graham had gotten Regina's call after David had went to bed and had snuck out in the middle of the night.

He couldn't understand why that felt like a betrayal to the man he had known for only a few days.

Yet there was something about him the Graham felt familiar with, a comfortableness he couldn't put his finger on.

He shrugged at Regina's comment, "I figured you already knew, he is the talk of the town after all."

"How does he seem to you?"

That was a bit of an odd question but Graham answered anyway, "He seems alright. Nice bloke, I hired him to come work with me and Emma at the station. Who knows maybe looking out for the citizens of Storybrooke will be his calling."

Regina's fingers froze on his arm as she sat upright in the bed, "You did what?"

Graham frowned, "I gave him a job. I figured the guy could use a hand getting back on his feet and that way Emma doesn't have to work the night shifts."

"You don't even know him."

"No, but he seems like one of the good guys besides it's a trial period thing. You're always saying me and Emma never seem to get any work done, well now we have an extra pair of hands."

Regina looked over at him, placing one hand on his chest, "Graham, I don't think this is a good idea."

"Well, I do." Graham replied before hastily getting out of bed and grabbing his clothes from the pile next to his feet, "And it's my department so I get the final say on employees. You didn't think Emma was a good idea and that paid off. Besides the man just woke up from a coma, keeping an eye on him might be a good idea."

That last statement seemed to appease Regina slightly and her shoulders relaxed, "Let's not fight about this. Come back to bed?"

Graham looked over at her as he pulled his trousers back on and grabbed his shirt, "I should go. I have an early shift tomorrow." He replied dismissively as he grabbed the rest of his stuff and left Regina alone in her room, the light from the standing tracking his shadow as it disappeared down the stairs.

…

It was a considerably brisk morning when James found his way to the Sheriff's station as per Graham's instructions. Fall was fast approaching, leaves covering the edges of the sidewalk in orange tinted clumps. The former Prince had managed to find some items of Graham's that seemed to fit him and he was once again struck by the kindness he had shown to a perfect stranger. James did however make a mental note to find himself clothes of his own at the first chance he got, tugging at the collar of his borrowed grey shirt. Graham had also thrown a leather jacket in his direction last night saying he was welcome to it as Graham himself never wore it. James found wearing leather comforting and familiar after all this time and couldn't help feel a bit more like himself as he slipped the jacket on and shoved his hands into the pockets.

The Sheriff had the morning off but told James that his other deputy would get everything sorted for him and it took everything in James to wait for a reasonable hour to go to the Sheriff station and see his daughter, talk to her. He was glad of the pockets of his jacket as he made his way into the office and caught a flash of blonde hair sitting at her desk because he was sure his hands were shaking.

Emma hadn't noticed him yet, her feet kicked up on her desk and she relaxed back in her chair. There were two take-out cups to one side of her desk and paperwork on the other, more of which was open on her lap.

James squared his shoulders and stepped further into the room, "Morning." He said in a light tone which caused Emma to turn at the sound of his voice.

"David, hey." She responded, moving her legs off her desk and sitting up straighter as he came to stand at the edge of her desk. "Graham tells me you're joining us."

He nodded with a smile, "I know it's a bit weird considering I don't remember who I was but Graham seems to think I could have a knack for police work."

"Well we can always use an extra pair of hands around the place," Emma replied, "I mean Storybrooke isn't the crime capital of Maine or anything but we do often get called out to silly disputes and drunken fights. Graham ends up down at Sultan's at least twice a week to sort out some kind of bar brawl."

"Sultan's?"

"It's a bar downtown," She explained with a wave of her hand, "Rough area, not many residents venture out that way and the ones that do are normally the ones that gain our attention. My roommate works there and I honestly don't know how she can stand it."

That caught James off guard. Emma's roommate. According to Henry her roommate was…

Snow.

James had to know more, "Roommate?"

"Mary." Emma nodded, "She's a little brash and a lot cynical but when you get to know her she is great. She took me in after being cell mates for an hour so I'm not sure she's the best judge of character though."

James frowned slightly at the statement but decided to tread carefully, this was the most he had found out about Snow since he woke up, "You were in jail?"

Emma snorted at the question, "Well Graham's lock up and we got that squared away pretty quickly once Regina cooled down." The deputy reached over and moved a few files out of her way until she found what she was looking for. She presented it to him with one hand and a raised eyebrow. His badge. "This is for you, welcome abroad I guess."

James smiled and reached out to take it from her, his fingers grazing her outstretched palm as he did so. The sense of longing and protectiveness hit him like a freight train and judging from the little gasp Emma gave she felt something when their hands touch as well.

She dropped hers as soon as he grabbed the badge, recoiling like she was in physical pain.

"Do you want to regain your memories?" Emma asked bluntly and James paused at the sudden question, "I mean for a guy who doesn't know what he is leaving behind you don't seem that bothered by not remembering."

James tilted his head to the side and proceeded with cautious, "I don't feel like David Nolan and I have no idea what type of person he was or what life he had. I know I don't want it though, that's why I'm not fighting to remember. It doesn't feel like my life."

Emma seemed momentarily stunned by his answer, "I believe that."

"You sound surprised?" James questioned.

Emma shook her head, "I have this thing, and I can tell when someone is lying to me. You weren't lying. It kind of threw me."

"Do people lie to you often?" There was something about her statement that didn't sit well with him.

His daughter smirked but it didn't meet her eyes, "Not successfully."

"I won't lie to you, Emma. I can promise you that." The words were out of his mouth before he fully registered them. He just wanted to take the sadness out of her eyes but seeing her taken back expression he quickly amended his statement, "I mean if we are going to be partners then we have to have each other's back, right?"

Emma recovered quickly, "Well, let's see how you do this week." She pulled out one of the take-away coffees and handed it to him, "That's for you, we have a busy day ahead of us." She said as he took it from her, noticing how she was careful not to touch him again.

"You keep yourself pretty guarded, don't you?" James knew that was over the line but he couldn't help himself. He wanted to know what had happened that resulted in the woman in front of him; strong and fierce and closed off. He wanted to know if she suffered and then run through anyone who ever caused it.

It was an irrational thought, he knew.

It was also a fatherly one.

Emma shrugged, "It's the best way to be when you grow up like I did. The best way to protect yourself is not to let anyone get too near."

"That sounds like an honest answer."

Emma nodded, "You were honest with me, and I figured you deserved the same." She replied as she took a sip of her coffee.

"You know closing yourself off must get tiring, not to mention lonely." James mused.

"Maybe Archie's line of work is more your calling?" Emma jested but James understood the meaning behind it. They were done with this conversation. He smiled easily not wanting to push her but happy enough with the little information he managed to glean from her.

"If this fails, I'll try that next." He promised, "So, what's first?"

Emma seemed relieved that he let the conversation go and relaxed her shoulders a little, "Have you ever fired a gun before?"

…

Desperate times called for desperate measures and that was indeed where Regina was at now. The thinly veiled harmony that keep her curse steady was starting to crumble and Regna hated to admit she was at a loss as to how to fix it.

Graham's small but obvious defiance was one of many things that shouldn't be happening and Regina knew she couldn't let it continue. First Henry had defied her and brought Emma to Storybrooke which shouldn't have been allowed to happen. People simply didn't come here, they never stumbled across the town even by accident; Regina made sure of it. Yet here she was, Emma Swan, settling herself into Regina's happily after ever and compromising it.

Henry was pulling away from her, she could feel it and that had to be Emma's doing. Her son had never skipped school or talked about the curse so animatedly before she arrived.

Then there was the little problem of Prince Charming being awake and while Regina was confident she could handle a brief annoyance such as an amnesiac David Nolan and keep Snow in her carefully crafted place it still didn't change the fact that he shouldn't be awake in the first place.

Things we escalating and Regina couldn't allow that.

Especially not after Graham's revelation last night that he had in fact hired David Nolan to work with him. Regina wasn't happy about that one bit.

She pushed her way inside Mr Gold's shop with a steely determination, the bell chiming above her head. He was trapped under this curse like the rest of them but Regina wondered how deep that actually went. He gave her the curse after all and she wasn't naïve enough to think he didn't have a plan up his sleeve when he knew she would cast it. That was of little consequence to her now though, he would let her have this world and as long as they stayed out of each other's way Regina could see no harm in letting Gold think he had the upper hand.

The man himself appeared at that moment, striding through the curtain that led to the backroom with a coy smile, cane ever present in his hand.

"Madam Mayor." His mouth pulled up into a smile, "To what do I owe this pleasure?"

Regina's eyes narrowed, "I need advice, Gold and I think you're just the man to give it to me."

"Me?" The Pawnbroker asked incredulously, "I think you missed the sign above my door. I deal in antiques not people. Perhaps Dr Hopper would be more suited to your requirements."

The mayor stepped up to the counter, squaring off against her former mentor, "Things are changing, Gold. Ever since Miss Swan came to town and I don't like change. Now, Graham tells me David Nolan will be working with him at the station. He was quite adamant in fact." She had to be careful here, not sure how much Gold knew and not wanting to bring Rumpelstiltskin any closer to the surface than he already was.

Gold remained stoic, "Perhaps your problem isn't with Mr Nolan at all. You hardly know that man, correct?" He was challenging her, "Perhaps your grievances lie in the knowledge our beloved Sheriff has been more charmed by David Nolan than he ever was with you?"

Regina paused for a moment. There were several things in that statement leaping out at her, first of which was the use of the word 'charmed' in regards to the former Prince.

"My relationship with the Sheriff…"

"Is fairly redundant, wouldn't you agree?" Gold pressed, "After all anyone with eyes at Granny's can tell our Sheriff is rather taken by Henry's birth mother."

"Henry is my son." Regina stated vehemently.

Gold nodded, "For now. But I'd wager it won't be long before she wants to claim him as her own. Then you really will have a problem, won't you Madam Mayor?"

Regina's rage was boiling and if she had her magic she knew a fireball would have been thrown at the wall by now.

"It seems to me that neither Graham nor Mr Nolan is the really problem here," Gold continued, "Your problems seem to all trace back to one person. Emma Swan."

Regina could see the teasing look of his eyes that reminded her more of Rumpelstiltskin more than of Mr Gold. But he did have a point, perhaps patience wasn't the right way to go about keeping her happy ending.

Removing Emma Swan from the picture might be though.

And she knew the perfect Huntsman for the job.

…

Sultan's was heaving but that was nothing new for a Friday night and to make matters worse Mary was hungover and single handedly managing the bar while Alfie was out back changing a barrel. Jason was probably still in his office, never coming out to tend the bar unless a fight broke out. It was a rowdy night for the customers and the shouts and hollering were doing nothing for Mary's head but she plastered a fake smile on her face and continued pouring drinks because that was what she always did and being hungover on shift while annoying wasn't anything new to her.

She briefly scanned the bar, noticing a large cluster of people down the bottom end waiting for her attention. Mary handed the change over to her last customer before making her way to the other side to serve the loud bunch that she was pretty sure would give a football team a run for their money.

The dim light of the bar helped to cover the dark circles under her eyes from pulling so many late shifts and the smell of stale booze made her stomach churn as she pulled Leroy is usual pint with a forced smile.

"Thanks, Sister." He nodded as he handed over the cash, "Hand us a packet of those chips as well?"

Mary turned, grabbing the packet he was pointing towards when she noticed Jason lurking in the corridor out back. She frowned slightly as he began rustling around where they kept their coats, he looked shifty with his shoulders hunched over as the rustling continued, his hand moving Alfie's jacket to the side a little.

"Oi, Lady!" Leroy's voice brought back her attention, "Am I getting those anytime tonight?"

Mary smiled sheepishly before turning back to the bar and handing the chips over to Leroy. He grumbled a thank you and collected his change and disappeared back to his seat.

Alfie came back half way through the mad rush and helped her with the last of it, his shirt a little damp at the bottom from changing the barrel. Mary's mind was still on Jason though and on trying to figure out what he was doing.

"Hey, did you see Jason back there?" She asked Alfie as he finished serving his last customer.

He frowned, "I thought he was in his office like he normally is when we are doing all the hard work."

Mary didn't reply.

Something was definitely wrong here.

Graham showed up an hour later and the bar fell silent at the Sheriff's entrance. He nodded friendly to the patriots as he made his way over to the bar. Mary could tell something was wrong by his demeanour, the Sheriff's lips pressed together in a thin line with his brow furrowed.

He came up to her, placing his hands on the bar, "Mary, nice night." He smiled but even through her headache Mary frowned.

"Graham, what are you doing here? We didn't call you?"

Graham shook his head, "Might I speak with you alone?"

"Why?" Mary asked, Graham's cryptic statement wasn't helping her, "What's wrong?"

"I got a call from an anonymous tip tonight." Graham sighed, one hand rubbing his forehead like he was still trying to make sense of it, "Someone saw you place a large wad of money into your bag. They had reason to believe it was from the till."

Mary's jaw dropped, "I didn't. I've been at the bar all night."

"I know but I have to check it out." Graham explained, "Especially considering you have form for stealing. I'm going to need to check your bag, Mary."

The bartender nodded mutely, too stunned to speak as she led Graham over to where her bag and coat where hanging up. Graham placed a hand on her arm in the hopes of offering a small amount of comfort as he took her bag and opened it.

"I didn't take anything, Graham. I work here, I'm not dumb enough." Mary said as Graham rooted around inside her bag. He looked up at her, eyes filled with regret as he pulled out a significant wad of cash held together by an elastic band.

"I didn't… That's not…"

Graham placed her bag on the floor and grabbed his cuffs from his belt, "I have to arrest you, Mary. You know that. I'll take you to the station and ask you some questions. We will get to the bottom of it, I swear."

Graham could see the change in the woman instantly, the hard exterior she presented to the world was firmly in place as she locked her jaw and looked him squarely in the eyes. Graham didn't have a choice as he cuffed one wrist and turned her round so her back was facing him to secure the other.

"Nothing bad will happen. It's just a misunderstanding, okay? I believe you, Mary." Graham said softly hoping she understood that he was simply following procedure. She had never stolen to benefit herself before, and never anything quite so substantial and Graham only hoped he could get to the bottom of this before Emma skinned him alive for arresting her roommate and Mary closed up any more than she already had.

Mary didn't fight as Graham led her out to the police car and put her in the back, a crowd already gathering outside the bar at this latest piece of town gossip.

Instead her eyes were focused on one person. Jason.

She didn't know why but she knew this was something to do with him.

/

So what do you think? Thoughts? Let me know!

Please review? They mean so much to me and keep me writing! Thanks!

Next chapter includes: Snowing meeting! And a nice Graham/Emma moment for you all