Author's note: Sorry sorry sorry for the delay in updating! School has been crazy :(
As always, I don't own OUAT.
The home of David and Katherine Nolan was a modest, two-floor Victorian-style house, located close to the edge of the woods. Apparently David was the outdoorsy type, and spent every other minute he didn't spend at the animal shelter in the forest. Emma digested this tidbit that Ruby had told her while she walked over to the house. The way that Ruby emphasized "every other minute" spoke volumes about David's relationship with his wife, and Emma was still nonplussed about why Katherine hadn't discovered David in the hospital much sooner. He'd been there for what felt like forever, claimed Mary Margaret, and the circumstances that led to his being in a coma were murky and Regina had explicitly told her that looking into it wasn't important, and a "waste of resources." Naturally, Emma felt inclined to investigate, but kept hitting walls. There was no report to be found about his admittance. Dr. Whale claimed he had not been working the day (or night? Who knew?) that David had been brought in. He had suffered a wound to his abdomen, but even in his discharge papers (that Dr. Whale was actually responsible for) did not state the details of that wound.
Emma shook her head, dispelling the thoughts that swirled around in there. It had been several weeks since David's sudden recovery, and since his discharge a week ago, the man had been holed up in his house. Not for much longer though, thought Emma. The Nolans had organized a party for the recovering David, the first step in his integration back into society. She nervously juggled the bottle of wine she carried with her. She wasn't used to these types of social gatherings. She had exactly zero friends in Boston, and it wasn't as if she had a family to dine with on the regular.
As the house appeared in her view, she noticed that several guests were already there, lingering on the front porch chatting with each other. When she got closer, she realized it was Granny and several of the miners, including Leroy. Her pulse quickened. According to Henry, Leroy was Grumpy in the fairy-tale version of their lives. While she agreed that was an apt description of his personality, she hesitated to think of the shorter man as one of Snow White's dwarfs. Then there was the matter of the pick-axe. She had been putting off the discussion with Henry about it, telling him she needed to focus on David's case, which was the truth. However, she failed to mention that she had thrown herself into her work in a desperate attempt to not think about it. Thinking about it made her head it. She could see no possible explanation for it, other than it was a very strange prank.
Granny raised her glass towards Emma as she approached, and she smiled nervously. The town had been coming round to her. Granny had been slipping her an extra bear claw every now and then, Archie, the town shrink, greeted her cordially whenever he was taking Pongo out for a walk, and even surly Leroy sent a curt smile her way on occasion. It was oddly endearing, and Emma was starting to see why small town life was so appealing. After saying her hellos, she made her way indoors.
"Sheriff Swan."
David greeted her as she struggled to remove her jacket with one hand. He stepped in and relieved her off her bottle, and thanked her for the gift. He beckoned her to follow him, and he led her to the kitchen, bypassing several other townsfolk that she had not yet met. He placed the bottle down on the counter top and offered her a drink. He was frazzled, she noted. He kept trying to roll up the sleeves of his plaid shirt even though they were already pushed back to his elbows.
"Are you okay?"
David sighed.
"It's…all a bit much, you know? My memory still isn't…"
He trailed off, but Emma understood. He'd been having memory lapses, and according to the town gossip (i.e. Ruby), he couldn't even recognize his wife when she visited him in the hospital.
She placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Hey. It'll get better."
They smiled at each other, both knowing that Emma had no way of knowing that. David shifted his weight to his other foot.
"Is Mary Margaret coming tonight?"
David's tone was nonchalant, but Emma could tell that he was anxious about her answer.
"She said she was."
David beamed with delight.
"Good! Good. I wanted to thank her for…you know."
She nodded, but she sensed there was more to it than that.
"Emma!"
She turned around to see Henry making a beeline for her. Behind him, she could see Killian slink in, watching her warily.
"Hey kid."
She ruffled his hair affectionately as he grinned up at her and David.
He tugged on her sweater.
"I was wondering if we could talk?"
Emma blanched. She so did not want to talk to Henry right now. She gulped and shot him a tight smile.
"Not right now, Henry. Maybe a bit later?"
His face fell, and she felt terrible. David, picking up on the tension between them, knelt down to look Henry in the eye.
"I heard you had an adventure in the woods recently. Want to tell me all about it?"
It was the right thing to say. Henry loved telling people the story of his little misadventure. He nodded his head vigorously, and grabbed David's hand, leading him out of the room. Emma caught his eye before he left and mouthed a thank you at him.
"Swan."
In her preoccupation with avoiding Henry, she didn't notice that Killian was standing near her elbow.
"Jones."
He offered her a bottle of beer that he held in his hand, and she gratefully accepted it, taking a long swig and sighing with pleasure as the cool liquid hit the back of her throat. She set the bottle down on the counter and realized that Killian was still staring at her.
"Avoiding your biggest fan, are we?"
Was he teasing her? She looked at his eyes. They were crinkled with mirth, and the corners of his lips were curling up to form a hint of a smile. She couldn't tell if the beer was already starting to affect her, but she felt a buzz in her veins, and she couldn't suppress a grin.
"It's one of the pitfalls of being a celebrity."
Was she flirting back? Oh god, she was. She snuck a glance at him and felt a warm wave of satisfaction wash over her. His eyes widened for a second before darkening, and his tongue poked out of his mouth in what Emma would have described as an almost obscene gesture. He leaned in just a bit, but that was enough for Emma to get a whiff of his cologne, a fresh pine-y smell.
"I…err…"
Suddenly that swagger was gone, and he seemed shy and meek. He scratched the back of his ear.
"I wanted to thank you for everything. And…"
He sighed.
"I know we got off on the wrong foot, but I'm really hoping we could overcome that."
He stuck out his hand.
"Friends?"
She shook his hand, ignoring the small twinge of regret when he said the word friend.
He slipped her a shy smile before turning to the fridge. He pulled it opened and retrieved a beer for himself. He wasted no time in popping the cap open and he gestured to her bottle of beer, which she picked up. He clinked it with his.
"Cheers, Swan. This could be the start of a beautiful friendship."
And the teasing was back. She smirked in return.
"You don't know what you're getting yourself into, buddy."
He laughed in response, a lovely deep rumble of a laugh.
She didn't get to spend a lot of time with Killian at the party. Just as he was starting to tell her about his job down as the docks as the harbour master, she saw Mary Margaret enter the room, scan it anxiously and scurry it. She excused herself ("You haven't heard the last of this story, Swan!" he teased as she rushed away, giving her ample time to hide her smile at the implication that they would be talking again in the near future) in order to find her friend. She saw Henry at the foot of the stairs. He jerked his head in the direction of the back door.
"They went that way."
"Thanks, kid."
She headed towards the door, but she wasn't the only one. Katherine, flanked by a suspiciously smug Regina, beat her to it. She flung the door open to reveal David and Mary Margaret standing a little bit too close together. They immediately stepped away from each other, but the damage was already done.
"Get away from him!" shrieked Katherine, and for a moment there, Emma thought she was going to lunge at the petite brunette, who looked horrified.
"She wasn't doing anything!"
David turned on his wife, his eyes blazing. Katherine's mouth dropped open in shock.
"Are you really going to take this hussy's side?!" She hissed at him, her fists clenched at her side.
Emma looked over at Mary Margaret and was heartbroken to see tears filling her friend's eyes. She pushed past Regina to stand between David and Katherine.
"Whoa there. Let's not get carried away."
Katherine looked like she wanted to retort, but Regina placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Let's go back, Katherine. This isn't worth our time." She said, sneering at Mary Margaret. Emma glared at her. Any goodwill she had garnered from the mine incident was now gone.
David reached out towards Mary Margaret, who stepped back and refused to look him in the eye. His hands fell dully to his sides.
"I'm sorry about this." He said, in an utterly defeated tone. He glanced up at Emma, and she nodded in response, knowing that he wanted to take care of her.
He strode past her into the house, calling his wife's name.
Emma touched Mary Margaret's shoulder.
"I think we should head home."
Mary Margaret let out a shaky breath and nodded. Emma clasped her shoulder tightly, and led her back through the house. As they entered, Emma realized that all eyes were on them. She could hear Katherine and David yell at each other upstairs, and even though she could not tell what they were arguing about, she was sure it had to do with Mary Margaret. She squeezed Mary Margaret's shoulder, and steered her through the crowd, who parted like the Red Sea in front of them. Just as they reached the door, Henry appeared at her side, looking concerned.
"Is everything okay?"
Emma turned to face him.
"No kiddo. But things will be okay."
He shot a glance at Mary Margaret, who refused to make eye contact. He turned to look at her, concern still reflected in his eyes.
"Okay. If you say so."
Just then, Killian pushed through the crowd.
He looked like he wanted to say something, but his eyes fell onto the silently weeping Mary Margaret and he stopped in his tracks. His eyes darted back and forth between Emma and Mary Margaret, and then he reached out to Henry.
"Come now, lad. Let these ladies be."
He shot Emma a sad smile and lifted his hand to give her a short wave of goodbye, which Emma returned. He turned and led Henry back into the crowd, leaving Emma to take the distraught Mary Margaret home.
As soon as they got back to the loft, Mary Margaret threw herself onto the bed and started to sob. Emma sat down gingerly next to her, and placed a comforting hand on her back.
"You didn't do anything, Mary Margaret. Don't beat yourself up about it."
Mary Margaret rolled over slightly, turning her tear-stained face to look at Emma.
"But I wanted to, Emma. When I'm near him, I can't help myself. We were talking about his work at the animal shelter…and it just felt…I thought he felt…I thought he was going to kiss me." and with that, she threw herself back into her pillow.
Emma rose slowly, making her way to the kitchen. Pulling out two pints of the ice cream she had picked up from the ice cream parlour next to Granny's, she made her way back to Mary Margaret. She offered it to the woman, who offered her a weak smile, and pushed herself up.
"Thanks." She whispered as she took one carton and the spoon that Emma was holding out.
They settled themselves on her bed and spent the night wallowing with ice cream. Emma found herself dispensing relationship advice and almost laughed at the situation she found herself in. She was hardly the person to give advice. She didn't have a single relationship that was messed up in some way. In fact, most of her relationships were one night stands, just a way to scratch an itch. None of those men seemed to be type of man she'd want to be in a relationship with. Her only real relationship was with Neal, and that did not end well for her. Still, she found herself comforting Mary Margaret and telling her that she would eventually find happiness. They agreed that Mary Margaret should keep a low profile, and avoid David as much as she could. They fell into an exhausted, ice cream covered heap as the soft light of dawn filtered through the window.
Over the next two weeks, Mary Margaret divided up her time between work and the apartment, and even tried to forget about David Nolan by going on a disastrous date with Dr. Victor Whale. (Ah, so that's his first name! thought Emma while Mary Margaret recounted the tale to her.) After that, she swore off men for the foreseeable future, and told Emma that she planned to spend more time at the school, arranging her files and planning her lessons, just so that she could spend less time out in public. She was right to do so. Emma could hear the not-so-subtle whispers around town, from the diner to the pharmacy where she picked up some decongestants from a pharmacist whose name tag was just a smiley face.
She fumed as she headed over to Granny's to pick up her lunch. This would be why some people despised small town life. This was probably the most exciting thing to happen in a while, and nothing had even happened! As she was paying for her grilled cheese and onion rings, Ruby placed a paper bag next to hers, and Emma looked at her quizzically.
"It's for Mary Margaret." She whispered.
Emma hid a smile. It was nice to know that someone was on Mary Margaret's side. She thanked her and headed to the station to finish up on her paperwork. Just as she was filing away the last of her reports, Regina sauntered into her office. Emma let out an angry sigh. Was this going to become a habit?
"What can I do for you, Madam Mayor?"
Emma hoped that it didn't sound as sarcastic as she thought it did.
"I have to file a missing persons report." She informed her, her face lined with worry.
Emma raised an eyebrow.
"Oh? Whomever for?"
"My friend, Katherine."
Emma stared at her in shock.
"What?"
Regina let out a sigh and sat down in the chair next to Emma's desk.
"Katherine told me that she and David had another big fight. That she was planning on leaving him. That was two days ago. I called yesterday to talk to her, but she isn't picking up. I called David, but he hasn't seen her since they fought and she stormed out of the house."
Emma stared at her, wondering if she was telling the truth, and then immediately felt guilty for doubting her story. She reached for her phone.
"I'll call David in. See if she said anything to him. Are there any places that she might have gone to?"
Regina shook her head.
"If anything, she would have come to see me."
Emma pondered that bit of information, and nodded curtly.
"Right then. I'll speak to David and I'll put a search team together."
Regina stood up and Emma could swear that she saw a smirk break out for a second, but before she could confirm it, Regina composed herself.
"I'll keep trying to reach her too. Hopefully we can find her soon."
Emma spent the next several hours patrolling the roads, looking for signs of disturbance. She had gotten confirmation from the pharmacist that Katherine had dropped by two days ago late at night to pick up a pregnancy test (Emma groaned at the insinuation) and had Granny verify that Katherine had not checked in under an alias. She had even called Killian.
"To what do I owe the pleasure, Swan?"
She could almost hear the grin in his voice.
"Official police business, Jones. Katherine Nolan is missing. Did she happen to come by the docks?"
She heard him shift around, as if he was moving to sit up in his seat.
"I'm sorry to hear that, Swan. I haven't seen Mrs Nolan in a while. Not since…" he trailed off.
"Right. Thanks anyway."
"My pleasure, Swan. I'll inform the boys to keep an eye out for her. Maybe get them to search the vessels that are docked here."
Her heart swelled with joy, and she was glad that he was not there to see her smile.
"Thanks, Killian. That would really help."
"Anything for you, Emma."
The sincerity in his voice almost made her hang up in an effort to stop blushing.
She had also managed to wrangle Ruby into helping her. Much to her surprise, Ruby informed her that she was a good tracker, and was familiar with the forest that bordered the town. Emma had almost blurted out that she didn't like the person who enjoyed the outdoors, but recognized that keeping her mouth shut would enable her to retain her helper.
Just as she rounded the bend where the town limit sign was (and where she had her accident), she noticed a truck pulled off to the side of the road. She quickly pulled over and radioed Ruby informing her of the event. She ran over to the truck and looked in. It looked like the truck that David owned. She remembered seeing it in his driveway when she turned up for the party, and she had seen him driving around town in it. She then realized that the door to the driver's side was wide open. There seemed to be some splashes of blood on the seat. Not enough to warrant suspicion of foul play, but enough to concern Emma about Katherine's well-being. She was probably injured somewhere in the woods, thought Emma grimly. She wondered why David didn't tell her his truck was missing. Did he know about his wife's flight? What was he hiding?
Suddenly her walkie-talkie crackled to life.
"Yeah, Ruby?"
"Emma, I've…found something. And it's not good."
Fear gripped Emma.
"What is it?"
"A human heart."
Emma paced the floor of her office. What the hell kind of town was this? A human heart, placed in an ornate box, left out by the river? Who the hell does that? She tried to calm herself down. Maybe it wasn't a human heart? Dr. Whale assured that he would have the results of a series of tests he was going to run as soon as possible. In the meantime, she had grilled David about the disappearance of his wife (and truck). He had finally revealed that after their fight, she had informed him that she was going to take a drive to calm down.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner?!" demanded Emma angrily.
David let out a defeated sigh.
"I didn't think you'd believe me. Plus, I know how convenient that sounds."
Emma had to agree with him on that point, and she let him go, but warned that she would call him back if she had any more questions.
Just then, Dr. Whale entered, with Regina on his heels.
"I'm afraid this is a human heart, Miss Swan. And I'm afraid it matches the DNA of Katherine Nolan."
Emma's heart fell. This was the worst possible news imaginable. She looked over at Regina, who looked devastated. She took back the empty box that Dr. Whale held out, and placed it on her desk along with the copy of the report he had provided. She sighed.
"Thank you, Doctor."
Just then, Mary Margaret walked through the doors. Emma had forgotten that she had agreed to meet her at the station. Before Emma could say anything, Mary Margaret pointed at the box on her desk.
"Hey! My jewellery box! Where did you get that?"
Cold dread filled Emma's body as she stared at Mary Margaret in shock. Dr. Whale spun around to stare at her in horror as well. Regina was quiet for a minute before she broke out into a snarl.
"That box," she seethed, "contained the heart of my best friend. What do you know about that?"
Mary Margaret looked stunned.
"I didn't know it was even missing! I don't know-"
"ARREST HER!"
Emma jolted.
"Easy there, Regina. We don't have any proof that-"
"We DO have proof. That box is proof enough. Do your job, or I will find someone who can!"
Emma winced. As much as she hated to admit it, Mary Margaret looked very guilty at the moment. He heart, if possible, plummeted further. She reached around her belt for her handcuffs, but then decided against them.
"I'm really sorry, Mary Margaret. I have to do this."
Mary Margaret nodded, but was clearly in shock. Emma led her gently towards the small holding cell in the room. As she locked the door, she could see the reality of the situation settle in on Mary Margaret's face.
"Don't worry." She whispered. "This is all a big misunderstanding. We'll resolve this tomorrow. I promise." Mary Margaret nodded slowly, blinking back tears.
"I'm sorry." Emma whispered once more, as she shepherded Whale and Regina out of the room. She locked up the office, throwing one more fleeting glance at Mary Margaret, who had decided to lie down on the bunk and cry silently. As she turned to leave, she caught sight of the look of triumph on Regina's face. This time she was sure of what she saw, and she was even more determined to prove Mary Margaret's innocence.
When she pulled up to the loft, she realized she had a small problem. With everything that had happened, she had forgotten that Mary Margaret was the only person with the keys to her apartment. Emma groaned and banged her head against the steering wheel of her bug in frustration. She couldn't go back and get them. What would she even say if she went back for them? Oh hi, Mary Margaret! Just came back for the keys to your apartment, so that I, the person who arrested you, could get a good night's sleep! Thank you so much! Yeah, right.
A knock on her window startled her. She looked up to see the concerned blue eyes of Killian Jones looking down at her. She quickly pushed the door open and got out. He moved back to accommodate her, the edge of his navy pea coat grazing her arm as he moved. In doing so, he jostled the large paper bag in his arms.
"I came by when I heard the news. Is Mary Margaret okay?"
Emma cursed out loud. How the hell did the news spread this fast? As if he could read her mind, Killian answered her question.
"Whale told me. We're friends. ish."
She nodded dumbly.
"She's okay. She's also innocent."
Killian nodded in agreement.
"I think so too."
Emma's head shot up to look at him. There he went again, being so completely serious and saying exactly what she wanted to hear.
"Thanks. It means a lot."
He smiled at her, and then turned to look at the building in front of them.
"She's in custody at the moment, yeah?"
"Yeah."
He tilted his head in confusion (a move that Emma had to begrudgingly agree was adorable).
"And you're staying in her apartment at the moment, right?"
He said it without any judgement, but Emma still felt terrible about it. She grimaced.
"Well, actually I can't get in, so it's not as bad as it seems." She explained lamely.
He frowned.
"Where do you plan on sleeping tonight, if that is the case?"
Emma jerked her head towards her car.
Killian seemed affronted by her suggestion.
"What, in your car? Absolutely not!"
"It's not so bad."
He paused, her words no doubt sinking in. He looked sadly at her and his hand moved out to touch her, but he stopped at the last minute.
"I insist that you stay with me, Emma."
"I couldn't possibly-"
"You can and you will. I have a perfectly good guest room going a begging. Plus, I'm sure Henry would love to have you."
She smiled at his earnestness and the kindness of his offer.
"Thank you, Killian."
They pulled up to his house a few minutes later, and Killian indicated where she could park. ("Didn't get a house with a driveway. Don't have a car." "Seriously?" "I prefer boats to cars, Swan.") He let her in, and Emma was confronted by a sense of familiarity that surprised her. She felt comfortable in the house, and it was probably due to the childish drawings framed on the wall, the pile of clothes on the couch, the muddle of boots by the door, both adult and kid. She grinned. Of course Killian would have a nautical theme going on. Everything seemed to be shades of blue and white, and the throw cushions on the sofa had anchors embroidered on them. He took her coat from her, and sighed at the clothes on the sofa.
"Sorry for the mess," he told Emma. "I keep telling Henry not to leave his things on the sofa, but he never seems to listen."
There was the sound of footsteps in the room above them, and then Emma saw an excitable Henry barrel down the stairs.
"Dad! You're home, what's for dinn-Emma?!"
Henry looked as if Christmas had come early.
Killian smiled, his previous anger with his son forgotten.
"She be staying with us for a bit, lad. And it's the usual from Granny's for dinner."
Henry clapped his hand in glee.
"Awesome!"
Killian laughed and handed him the paper bag.
"Why don't you go set the table while I show Emma her room?"
Henry needed no further instruction, and zoomed off in the direction of what Emma assumed was the kitchen. Or dining room. It must be nice to have a specific room for eating in, she thought wistfully, thinking of her small apartment in Boston.
"That enthusiasm was for you, not dinner."
His voice was low near her ear, and she almost jumped. She turned to face him.
He raised an eyebrow at her.
"You seemed worried about Henry."
She shook her head.
"No, just thinking about…home."
"And what exactly is home for you, Swan?"
She blinked and thought about it for a second.
"I'm not sure anymore." She answered honestly.
Killian studied her carefully, but said nothing, choosing instead to lead her up the stairs. He showed her where the bathroom was, where all the bedrooms were, and opened the door the guest room. A four poster queen-sized bed dominated the room, its sheets adorned with stripes and little anchors. There was a closet and a small desk off to the side, as well as a bedside table. They were all painted a creamy white, a nice contrast to the navy of the sheets.
"Really digging the theme you have going on here, Jones."
He grinned and waggled his eyebrows at her.
"I have you know all the ladies love it."
She snorted with laughter, and he smiled at her.
"Thanks again, Jones. I needed that. It's been…a tough couple of days."
His hand rose to rub her back, and Emma groaned in appreciation. She could feel him smile behind her.
"I can tell you need a good night's sleep, Swan. You've got a lot of work ahead of you."
With that, he left the room. Emma wandered in and lay down on the bed. Killian returned a few moments later with a towel and some clothes.
"I don't really have anything for you to wear other than this old t-shirt of mine."
Emma lifted herself off the bed and rose to take the items from him. Her fingers brushed his as she did so, and they tingled for a few moments afterwards, and murmured words of thanks. He didn't reply, but rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet with a grin on his face.
"Well, I'll leave you to it, Swan. I'll tell the lad you were tired, but be warned, he'll get you at breakfast."
She stifled a laughed and then a yawn. Killian reached out and stroked her cheek gently.
"Sweet dreams, Swan."
As she lay in bed that night, her dreams were plagued with visions of an incarnated Mary Margaret. She tossed and turned about it, but the nightmare soon gave way to the memory of Killian Jones caressing her face, an act that now seemed more intimate than she initially thought. Still, it soothed her, and she drifted off, her cheek burning from the thought of his touch.