A Litte More Conversation
Captain Swan. A series of much needed conversations following Neal's death. [Hook & David, Emma & Snow, David & Snow, Hook & Emma]
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David & Snow
"Dinner was fun," Mary Margaret says cheerfully once Emma, Henry and Hook have left the loft. "It's good you invited Hook."
"Well I had to. I doubt he's eaten a decent meal in a while," David explains, a worried expression on his face as he clears dishes and puts them in the sink. "Granny says all he orders any more is coffee. He comes in, drinks a cup, stares out the window and leaves. He's not acting like himself."
"What was he like when you went out last night?" Mary Margaret asks, concerned as well. Over the past few weeks David has been spending more and more time in Hook's company. It may have started out as patrolling, but now it's apparent that they've developed a close friendship. Not unlike Emma's relationship with the pirate. She's noticed how her daughter listens when he speaks, considering his advice each time he offers it.
She follows him to the sink where she starts rinsing off the plates and silverware he deposits. He steps aside and lets her, more than used to how she likes to do things.
"He's was like himself… only quieter. Neal's death really hit him hard." David says as he walks back to the dining table for the remaining dishes. "He thought he was going to get a chance to make up for everything that happened in Neverland."
At the mention of the island, David is reminded of Hook's advice that he speaks with his wife. He shakes his head at the thought. He never thought he'd be accepting marriage advice from a pirate. He opens his mouth, but pauses. With everything that's happened, neither of them has had a real chance to catch up. He now understands Emma's complaint about her life being one long series of never-ending problems. He's starting to feel the same way. So he takes a page out of his own book and looks for a good moment.
He finds it the second he looks over at his wife as she gently scrubs a dish, a content smile on her face. At the sight he is taken back to almost thirty years ago, when he'd come down to the kitchen to find her cleaning up evidence of her daily midnight snack. She'd been pregnant with Emma then. He smiles. She never let anyone in the castle do the dishes when she as around either.
"Maybe we should ask Emma to talk to him," Mary Margaret suggests, her face thoughtful.
David is pulled out of his memory at the mention of their daughter. "Emma?"
"Yes, Emma." Mary Margaret replies, picking up another dish. "No offence David, but I think he'll probably open up to her."
David looks hurt, but his eyes twinkle. "No offence?"
She chuckles at his reaction. "He really cares about her, which means she has a better chance of finding out what's wrong."
Suddenly her expression becomes mischievous. "But don't worry. You're still his best friend."
"Hook's not my best friend…" David protests half-heartedly. At his wife's incredulous look he concedes. "He's my 'mate'.
His wife is less convinced, shaking her head as she smiles at his attempt at Hook's accent. Gazing at him she can't help but bask in this brief moment of married bliss. Its days like this that make everything worth it.
"Hold on," David says, his tone teasing. "When did you become such a big fan of Hook's?"
Mary Margaret matches his expression, a teasing glint in her eyes. "When he became your 'mate'."
It vanishes a second later, her expression becoming more serious and her tone matter of fact. "And when he found Emma and brought her home to us."
Mary Margaret frowns, thinking of the second period of their daughter's life that they missed out on. The tone of the room grows more somber. Mary Margaret finishes rinsing the dish in her hand and places it on the drying rack.
"You know, Emma and I talked today," she says, trying to bring their conversation back to a happy note.
"You did?" David looks at her expectantly, eager to hear about the conversation. Lately he hasn't been able to get enough time with their daughter.
Drying her hands Mary Margaret walks over and takes a seat at the dining table. She turns and smiles at him. "It was good. I haven't spoken to her that way in a really long time. It was like we were friends again."
"You were always friends," David points out.
"No… Not like this," Mary Margaret says, shaking her head. "It's different. When we got our memories back I tried to be her mother. But that's not what she needed. Not then."
"You did the best you could," David argues. "We both did."
"I know," Mary Margaret says contemplatively. "But I should have done what you did – just been her friend."
She smiles up at him, her eyes filled with love and pride. "David, you're a great father."
He feels a twinge of guilt as he looks at her face.
"I don't always feel like one," he admits.
Mary Margaret is concerned. "Why not?"
"I'm not sure if I can be there for our second child," he elaborates. "Sure I'm good with Emma now, but what about when she was a baby? I wasn't there for any of that. What if I mess up? What if it hates me?"
Mary Margaret smiles at his last concern. She reaches out and grabs his hand, giving him an understanding look. "Well then it's a good thing you're not alone isn't it?"
He rubs his thumb along her hand before smiling up at her, hope renewed in his eyes. "No, I'm not."
Mary Margaret suddenly gasps. Her hand flies out of his and goes to her stomach. David is filled with concern.
"Mary Margaret! What's wrong?"
His wife just laughs with delight, beaming up at him. "It kicked! The baby kicked!"
David's concern melts away. He reaches out and places his hand over her pregnant belly. However the baby doesn't kick. He looks up at Mary Margaret, concerned by this.
"Just give it a moment. It'll kick," she tells him. At his unsure expression, she says, "It did the same thing with Emma. It didn't kick for her either."
Seeing his expression she adds, "At first. Apparently Henry was the same way."
He perks up at the mention of his grandson. "Really?"
He's surprised. He didn't realize just how little he really knows of his daughter' life before she came to Storybrooke. "She's never mentioned that."
"She almost got married and she never mentioned that," Mary Margaret points out.
David frowns at the thought of Emma's husband. He doesn't know if there will ever be a scenario where he approves of the man she will marry. Instead, he brings up the one man in her life he is quite fond of. "Did she tell you anything else about when she was pregnant with Henry?"
"No. But I think it's because of Neal," Mary Margaret says, recalling Emma's admission earlier that morning. "He was her first love and he really hurt her. You don't get over that so easily. Though I think she's beginning to."
They both fall silent. Mary Margaret lost in thoughts of how a pirate is helping their adult daughter slowly regain everything she's lost, David thinking of the frightened, pregnant teenager she must have been.
A few moments later he breaks the silence. "Did you talk about the baby?"
At Mary Margaret's questioning look he goes on. "Did she tell you how she feels about it? Is she upset because she thinks we moved on?"
She shakes her head in response. "No… She said she can't be upset because she doesn't know what it feels like to have us as parents."
David's brow furrows at her words. "So she doesn't feel replaced?"
"No," Mary Margaret answers, shaking her head again. However she tilts her head to the side as she asks him a question, her tone gentle. "Is that how you feel? Like we replaced her?"
"I don't know…" David says in reply, shaking his head. "It's just… when we were in Neverland, she admitted to feeling like an orphan. Then in the cave you said she wasn't enough and talked about wanting to have a second baby."
Seeing Mary Margaret about to interrupt, David quickly continues. "And now she comes back and we're having another child. I think it might have hurt her feelings."
When he looks back at his wife he sees that she has tears in her eyes.
"Mary Margaret I'm not blaming you, or saying I don't want this other baby, because I do," He says, in a firm reassuring voice. "I'm just upset we never got to spend any time with her. She never got to feel like she's enough enough for us – because she is. She's our daughter."
He feels a wave of relief sweep through him as he lets go of the secret he's been carrying since they got back. Since he saw Emma's face when she realized Mary Margaret was nine months pregnant. Looking over at his wife he sees that she's been crying. He frowns, upset that he made his pregnant wife cry. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean-"
She cuts him off. "No you're right. I was so eager to feel like a mother, I… I wasn't there for our daughter when she really needed me."
She begins to cry, tears streaming down her face. Seeing how sad she is, David gets down on his knees in front of her, taking both her hands in his. Mary Margaret looks up at him, confused.
"Look. It doesn't matter if we weren't there for her then. What matters is being there for her now." David tells her reassuringly.
Despite her tears Mary Margaret smiles, surprising her husband when she laughs out loud. "Emma said the same thing earlier."
She takes her hand out of his and runs it through his hair before bringing it back to cup his cheek. "She's so much like you sometimes."
David shakes his head, relieved. "Good. Because I was beginning to get worried…"
Then, in perfect deadpan, "She looks nothing like me."
Mary Margaret smacks his arm, shaking her head at his comment. Then she stops, looking thoughtful. "You know, she does have Whale's eyes…"
David mock-glares at her before bursting into a grin, his eyes filled with love. He leans forward and gives her a quick kiss. "I'm glad we're giving her a baby brother or sister. Even if we are thirty years too late."
It's her turn to grin at him. He continues, "You're an amazing mother. This baby's going to love you."
This time she kisses him in response. He smiles back when she pulls away. Each kiss always feels like their first, his heart always skipping a beat when she opens her eyes afterward. All he wants is the same for his daughter.
Mary Margaret gasps, and this time David puts his hands on her stomach instantly. He is rewarded with a strong kick.
"Looks like someone agrees with me," he jokes, smiling up at her.
Snow smiles at him, but her eyes have a sad look in them.
"What's the matter?" he asks.
"It won't feel like family without her," Mary Margaret confesses. "I'm always going to worry about her – even if she's off in New York."
"I know…" He says, and he really feels that way too. When Emma had told him about her plan to return back there after dealing with this curse it had taken everything within his power to not argue otherwise. Instead he'd calmly accepted her decision. How could he have told her that the reason he didn't want her returning to a life that made her happy is because he'd been considering signing them up for dance lessons in case she should ever have to attend a ball.
It hurts even more when he thinks about the fact that he'll also be losing his grandson, whom he hasn't gotten to spend much time with. Every time he sees Henry, David's mind instantly flashes to the wooden swords that are lying in their closet, waiting to be used. So instead he settles for patting him on the shoulder or shaking his hand.
"I know…" he repeats, smiling sadly. "But that just means we have to make the most of the good moments, when we have her here now."
Mary Margaret nods, thinking of her daughter and grandson. Long before she'd known she was his grandmother Henry had been her favourite student, his imagination breathing life into everything he worked on – it was no surprise he had the heart of the truest believer. She'd been extremely concerned when he'd begun feeling hopeless, and then thrilled to see it renewed when he returned to town with Emma. She smiles sadly at the thought of him returning back to New York. Since getting her memory back she's barely gotten the chance to really get to know him. Given the past year and his new set of memories, she now knows less about him than she does about Emma. And once this curse is broken, she'll be saying goodbye to him again.
"I'm not ready to lose her again," she says looking into her husband's eyes. "But at least this time it's her choice."
David leans forward and kisses her. Yes. It would hurt to say goodbye to their daughter again. But at least this time they'd know where to find her.
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A/N: Sorry for the late update. Work was crazy last week (and a little crazy this week too). In any case, this was a tough chapter for me to write. I've never actually written anything strictly 'Snowing' before and I was trying to capture them more of how they were in the flashbacks in season one, where they were more prone to teasing one another, etc. I miss that aspect of their relationship, after all that is part of what drew them to one another. But it is sweet to see them now, taking walks on the beach or building a crib. I just wish they retained that part of themselves too. I had them focus on Emma for most of the conversation because I don't think they'll be able to be the best parents to their second child until they've processed what happened with their first. I think we saw a bit of Charming going through that in 'The Tower' and hopefully the show will actually have them talk about it.
I also wanted to thank everyone who sent me messages after the first two chapters. I'm SO glad you guys liked them – especially the Emma & Snow one. That was insanely fun/nerve-wracking to write and I'm glad it went over well. Hopefully this will be just as good.
As always though, if you have any thoughts, comments, questions or concerns, please share them with me! I'm looking to get better. If you liked this and want to read my other stuff, it's on tumblr, and AO3. Thanks for reading!