Chapter 32

Disclaimers: I don't own Once Upon a Time. Also this is a sequel to the original "Thicker than Water" written by La Lisboa.

I'd like to thank Lisboa for betaing and letting me use her story as a starting point.

I'm sorry it took me so long to update. More than two weeks delay is unusual for me. But here's the new chapter, anyway!

This chapter will include a Captain Swan scene. If you like that, I hope you enjoy it. On the other hand, if you're not a CS fan (there are some of you; I'm aware), you are welcome to skip that scene.

A week later, Emma finished her classes at the university and passed all her exams. Her family was so proud of her, they threw her a party. Ruby came as well. Her mother made the ham with blueberry sauce for dinner again, and also baked a cake, with Henry's help. After dinner, they all sang a cheesy song to the tune of "Happy Birthday" before cutting the cake. "Congratulations to you, congratulations to you, congratulations, dear Emma, congratulations to you." There was a part of her that felt like rolling her eyes, but she didn't. After all, from the look on Henry's face, Emma was pretty sure the song was his idea. It would make sense, considering Henry would probably be the only one who knew the "Happy Birthday" song.

Besides, there was a part of her that liked that her family had planned on a party. Emma rarely had parties that were planned solely for her benefit, after all. Her birthday parties as a child were usually celebrated as a "group day" by her social workers, with several other foster kids who had birthdays around hers. And Emma had certainly never had a party to celebrate how well she'd done in school.

Emma remembered the first time she'd received an "A" on a test, in the second grade. She'd bounced home from school, eager to show her foster parents her grade. Of course, they were usually too busy to pay any attention to her, but they would care about this, wouldn't they? Grades were important. That's what everyone in school told her. So Emma put her math test right on the middle of the kitchen table, where her foster dad always ate breakfast. He was sure to notice it there, right? Then maybe he'd finally tell Emma she was a good kid. Or even if he talked to her at all, that would be good enough. Emma waited for two days for her foster dad to say something about her A. She waited for her foster mother to say something. Finally on the third day, she found her test in the garbage. That's when she knew they would never care about her and her grades didn't matter.

By the time she'd finally finished high school, she was in jail. At least her tutors told her she did a good job. But there were no parties there, either. Why would there be? She was in jail!

So despite the fact that a part of Emma thought this "congratulations on passing your classes" party was silly, there was another part of her that couldn't believe she was finally getting recognition for all her hard work. She chuckled when they finished singing and Snow began cutting the cake. "Thanks," she told them, smiling at each one.

"I knew you'd do well in those classes, Emma. You're quite smart," David told her.

Emma shrugged, still not sure how to respond to praise like that. "I guess."

"You like chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, right?" Snow asked as she handed Emma the first piece. "Henry told me you would."

Emma's mouth watered as she looked at the piece of cake. "Definitely."

"I knew it!" Henry exclaimed excitedly. "I knew this was the kind of cake you liked best!"

Emma smiled. "Nothing gets past you, Henry."

"So do we all get a piece, or is it just for Emma?" Ruby asked, trying to sound causal, but staring right at the cake.

"Oh, please, eat some!" Emma encouraged her. "I can't eat this all myself, as delicious as it is. I'd never be able to fit into my uniform!"

They all laughed and took a piece of cake. "Now that I'm done with school, Chief Winslow says he might give me a raise, too. That will help us save money for our trip to Old Orchard Beach," Emma commented.

"That sounds great. I'm looking forward to this trip," David commented as he took a bite of cake.

"Yeah, me too," Emma agreed. She shrugged. She never thought she'd be one to have a family vacation, much less look forward to it, but she was. "I might have to work some different hours now though, since I'm not in school anymore. Will you guys be okay with that?"

Snow nodded. "Of course. It's your job. I do expect you to tell us in advance when you'll be home though," she warned, in a motherly tone.

"Of course," Emma replied.

OOOOOOOOOOOO

Tuesday of the next week, Emma had to go to the Maine State Prison to interview some witnesses for another drug ring the Hampden Police was trying to bust. Chief Winslow believed some of the inmates knew the man they were looking for, and might talk in exchange for a good word to their parole officer. It was a really good thing she was done school. Emma would never have been selected for a job like this if she was still taking classes. And this kind of work was a lot more interesting than handing out parking and speeding tickets all afternoon.

It took her a couple of hours to get to the prison from Hampden, but Emma managed. When she arrived, she showed the person at the desk her list. "I need to speak to these inmates, please."

The woman looked at the list and nodded. "Of course, Officer. I'll let you talk to them in the second visitor's room, down the hall to the right. Go into that room, and I'll have someone bring out the first inmate. A…'Randy Underwood' I see."

Emma nodded confidently. "That's correct." As she walked down the hall, she happened to see a glimpse of someone she'd almost forgot he was here. Hook. Emma wondered if he would be getting out soon. Maybe, if she had a chance, she'd see if she could talk to him as well. See how he was doing. After all, if it wasn't for him, Emma would have probably gone to Mexico and tried to shoot Tamara. She glanced down at her police uniform and shuttered at the thought. Why had she ever thought vengeance was a good idea?

Emma stepped into the visitor's room and sat down. Hook wasn't important right now. Getting these inmates to talk to her; that's what was important. A couple of minutes later, Randy Underwood walked into the room. He was a tall man, who looked to be about twenty years old, with brown hair that went past his ears. He was also, of course, wearing an orange jumpsuit. "Hey lady, what do you want?" he asked gruffly. "Pretending to be a cop, I see," he laughed as he noticed her police uniform.

Emma resisted the urge to slap the man across the face for implying she couldn't do her job just because she was a woman. "Actually," she told him firmly as she stood up and put her hands on her hips and squared her feet. "I am a full officer for the Hampden Police Department. And that should be important to you, Mr. Underwood, because if you answer my questions, I will speak to your parole officer, and you might be able to get out of here early. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, I guess," he agreed, reluctantly. "What is it?" he asked as he sat down. Emma sat down as well, now that she had made things clear to him.

"So, I understand you're here because you robbed the gas station in Hampden last year," Emma began. "You wanted," she checked his file. "$100. And you tried to hold up the cashier with a knife."

Mr. Underwood nodded. "Yeah," he replied casually. He obviously didn't regret what he had done. That meant this meeting was probably not going to go well.

Still, Emma had to ask her questions, anyway. "Now was the reason you wanted that money to obtain drugs?"

Mr. Underwood shook his head. "Lady, that's none of your business. I'm clean now, and that's what matters, isn't it? Now run along and finish your sewing or go back to your tea party," he snapped.

Emma stood up again, reminding herself that hitting a potential witness for a current case wouldn't help her. She put her hands on her hips and squared her shoulders again. "Listen, punk, I don't sew or have 'tea parties.' I am, as I said before, an officer for the Hampden Police Department, and I can eat criminals like you for breakfast if I want. I am, however, trying to give you a break. If you answer my questions, I will talk to your parole officer. I'm happy to hear that you're clean now. But my question was, were you trying to rob that gas station for drug money?"

Mr. Underwood sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Alright lady, what if I was?"

Emma sat back down. "Then I would like to know the name of your supplier."

He grumbled for a minute. "You'll talk to the parole officer?"

"Despite all of the disrespect you've shown me, if you answer this question and give us a lead, yes. I will," Emma replied, trying to stay calm when she really wanted to spit in the punk's face for his comments.

"Okay," he replied finally. "My supplier's name was John Gregor."

Emma wrote the name down; it was one of the men they were pursuing, so it was good news. "Thank you."

The next two conversations with the inmates went about the same. They tried to make fun of Emma for being a woman, and she told them she wouldn't tolerate it. Then one of them reluctantly named the name of his supplier when she dangled talking to his parole officer in front of him. The other one refused to say anything.

Now that Emma had finished doing what she had come here to do, she thought of Hook again. She would like to talk to him, she decided. It might actually be kind of enjoyable, after trying to talk to these punks. She approached the front desk. "Now I would like to talk to…" she paused for a minute. What was his real name? Surely he wouldn't be registered here under "Hook," would he? Emma thought back to their first meeting. What had he said? "Killian Jones. But most people know me by my more colorful moniker. Captain Hook." "Killian Jones," she told the woman at the front desk. "I'd like to talk to Killian Jones." Hopefully he wasn't using an alias here.

The woman at the front desk nodded. "Okay. You can return to the same room that you were in before, and I'll have someone bring him out."

Emma nodded and returned to the room to wait. Within a couple of minutes, Hook appeared again, in his orange jumpsuit. Emma had to try not to laugh at that. Captain Hook in an orange jumpsuit…it was weird. Hook's eyes lit up when he saw her in the room. "Swan!" he exclaimed. "What brings you here? That outfit still looks great on you, by the way." He looked her up and down, just as he had the last time they'd met.

Emma shrugged. Hook's attitude didn't bother her so much now, since Neal's death wasn't so fresh. But she still had more important things to worry about than sexual comments. "I had some inmates to talk to, because of my job. My boss was hoping they'd be able to name a drug dealer we're trying to catch."

Hook nodded. "Sounds like you're still doing well for yourself. It's good to hear. I knew you could, as long as you stayed away from vengeance."

Emma could hear the respect in his voice. That was one thing about him. For all the times they'd butted heads in the Enchanted Forest and in Storybrooke, he learned to respect Emma early on. (Of course, it would be hard for a pirate not to respect someone who tied him to a tree and almost let ogres devour him) But after hearing those other inmates not respect her at all because she was a woman, it was kind of nice.

"Yeah," Emma agreed, shrugging. "But I have you to thank for that, you know," she added, smiling at him.

Hook shrugged. "Not really. You are in charge of your own life, Swan. I am glad you took time out of it to let me see you, though." He looked her up and down again. "How about we make some plans to use my ship when I get out of here?"

Emma sighed. Apparently he thought just because she'd decided to see him while she was here; she wanted to date him as well. She hated to admit it, but there was a part of her that had been attracted to him since the day they'd climbed the bean stock together. But what Hook didn't understand was just because there was a part of her that might be a little attracted to him didn't mean she wanted to date him. Emma was really trying to be a better person, for her son's sake. And that meant she couldn't go around dating just any guy that happened to get her a little excited. It was particularly important that she steer clear of dating people in prison while she still only had "temporary custody" of Henry. She shuttered at what the social worker and the judge would think if they'd found out she'd spend some social time with a man with a record. Besides, Emma wasn't sure she was meant to love anyone romantically, now that Neal was dead. He'd been her chance, and she'd lost him. So what was the purpose of dating, if it wouldn't go anywhere?

She didn't tell this to Hook, though. Instead she said, "I don't know. Why don't we worry about that when you get out?"

Hook grinned at her wolfishly. "My time supposed to be up in three weeks. Shall we meet then? I promise, you'll bloody enjoy the ride."

Emma sighed and looked down for a few minutes, wondering how to get out of this one now. Then something occurred to her. Something she'd been meaning to ask him while they had the chance to talk, anyway. "What do you plan on doing when you get out, anyway?"

Hook shrugged. "I've always been a bloody pirate, and that's what I'll always be. What else would you do with a ship like The Jolly Roger?" He sounded excited about this prospect, but she wondered if he might be trying to convince himself that piracy was all he wanted, as much as he wanted to convince her.

Emma shrugged. "Well, it's up to you, but I remember you telling me that you were getting sloppy with piracy before, because you didn't have a reason to live. I thought maybe…you'd like to try something different."

Hook shrugged. "Like what? What else am I going to do with my life? I've been a pirate for over a hundred years, Swan. I don't think there's really anything else for me to do."

Emma gulped. A hundred years was a long time. Sometimes she forgot how old he was, because of all the time he'd spent in Neverland. Could she really help him change? Even Regina hadn't been "the Evil Queen" for that long. Still, he'd made it clear he didn't really enjoy being a villain anymore, during their last conversation.

"I could help you, if you wanted," Emma began. "I have some connections, from my bail bondsperson days, and some people I knew when I was with Neal. I could get you a green card, so you could find an honest job in the United States. Start fresh. Find a purpose. And you could just keep your ship for recreation."

Hook thought about this for several minutes. "Why would you do that for me, Swan?" he asked finally, his voice soft.

Emma shrugged backing away a few feet. He was getting a little too close for her comfort. "Because you helped me see how wrong I was, when I wanted to go after Tamara. I know you told me I made my own choices, and that's true, of course. But Hook…I was on a really dark path back then. And I don't think I would've listened to anyone else, if anyone else tried to tell me 'no.'" Emma hadn't thought much about that until now, but it was true. It was no coincidence she hadn't told anyone else about her plan. She must have known they would have told her it was a stupid idea, and she hadn't wanted to hear it then. But because Hook had experience in vengeance, she'd actually listened to him.

"Besides," Emma added, "there was a time I was something of a criminal myself, robbing stores to survive. But after I got out of prison…I got a second chance, and I took it. Now I'm in law enforcement. I'm a big believer in second chances, Hook, because people gave one to me. I'd like to do the same for you."

Hook sighed, his eyes darting from one direction to the other for several minutes.

Emma shrugged. "Look, I'll talk to the people I know in the next few weeks. When you get out, your green card should be waiting for you, if you want it. If you decide you'd rather go back to piracy and probably get caught again because you're, as you told me, 'getting sloppy,' that's up to you. I have to go now. I need to get back on the road." With that, Emma left the room.

XXXXXXXXXX

OOOOOOO

David had finally figured out how the calendar in this world translated to the one they had in the Enchanted Forest. And just in time, too, because he'd realized that this weekend was a special day for himself and Snow. The anniversary of their first wedding. Okay, so they'd had several weddings since then, but David still thought their first wedding was pretty special, since it was the first time they celebrated their marriage. He was pretty sure Snow thought so as well.

Since that wedding had really been just for the two of them (except for his mother and Lancelot, that is), David hoped to do something special with just Snow. They could use their wedding anniversary in this world to celebrate as a family. So when they all sat down to dinner that night, he looked for a chance to bring it up.

"I went to the state prison to talk to some witnesses for a case today," Emma commented as they all began eating.

David wasn't sure he liked the sound of that. He knew Emma was a good 'police officer' and a good fighter. He knew that since she fought the way David did, he would be with her when she got into trouble, in a way. But a part of him still didn't like the idea that Emma's job could be so dangerous. The "state prison" was where this world kept criminals, right? "Did you get into any trouble, Emma?" he asked, trying to keep the worry out of his voice. From the way Snow squeezed his hand under the table, she'd noticed it, at least.

Emma laughed. "No, not really. They tried to tell me I had no business being a cop or talking to them, because I was a woman. And I told them, in no uncertain terms, that I had every right to be there, and that I was trying to do them a favor, because I could put in a good word to their parole officer. Two of them talked, eventually." She shrugged.

Snow laughed. "I remember saying things like that to some of the knights back in our world. They'd ask why I was fighting. And then I'd show I could hit a target with an arrow better than they could, sometimes. And I'd remind them that no one else was willing to fight against George and Regina's tyranny. I'm proud you could put men in their place, too, Emma."

David smiled at the memory of Snow putting the old – fashioned knights in their place. Darn it, she was sexy when she did that.

"That sounds so cool, Mom!" Henry agreed. "And Grandma, too! I wish I could've been there."

All of the adults shook their heads at once. David may have accepted Emma had to do dangerous things sometimes, because of her job. And there was a part of him that was very proud of her as well. But Henry in a dangerous situation? Absolutely not! He was still a child, after all. David could still protect Henry, in ways he'd never been able to protect Emma. "I think you should stick to reading about adventures, for now, Henry," Emma told him firmly.

David and Snow nodded as well. "That's probably best."

Henry nodded. "Yeah, okay."

"So is there anything going on this weekend?" David asked, trying to sound causal. He needed to make sure his plans were okay with Emma and Henry as well.

Everyone shrugged. "I don't think so. Why?" Emma asked.

David put his arm around Snow. "Because this weekend is special for your mother and me. I was hoping, if it was okay with everyone, that we could spend the day together, just the two of us."

Emma nodded eagerly. "Sounds good. Really good, actually."

"Oh, Charming, what a great idea!" Snow exclaimed, looking straight at him with love in her eyes. "Where were you planning on taking me?"

David smiled secretively. "Wait and see Snow. Wait and see. I just wanted to make sure you were available all day."

"Of course," Snow replied. "I can't think of anything I'd rather do."

OOOOOOOOO

That Saturday morning he and Snow said goodbye to Emma and Henry and set off. David also discretely packed them lunch, a few snacks, and a couple of other supplies and put them in a knapsack without Snow noticing. Then he put his coat over it. "So are you going to tell me where we're going now?" she asked. "All I know is that we're going to be out all day, and that you told me to wear comfortable clothes. Come on, Charming, you've got to give me more than that!" she giggled and gave him a playful shove.

David chuckled and pushed her back. Then he took her hand as they continued down the street toward the bus stop.

"What's so important about today, anyway?" she asked. "I mean, I love any excuse to spend the day with you, especially considering there's no family crisis or anything. But you said it was a special day for us so…"

David smiled at her, full of love. "I finally figured out how this world's calendar translated to the one in the Enchanted Forest –"

" – Really!" Snow interrupted. "How does it work? I still can't understand it."

He shrugged. "I'll show you later, if you want. But the important part about that was that I figured out today was the anniversary of our first wedding. So I thought we could spend the day in the forest."

Snow shrieked with delight and threw her arms around him. "That's perfect, Charming! We haven't gone into the forest together since…I can't remember the last time we did."

David hugged her back. "Yeah, that's what I thought. Now let's get to the bus stop before it gets too late. I figured we'd ride the bus to Hampden, and then walk to the forest from there. We're in for quite a walk today. Are you ready?"

She nodded. "Of course. It's been a while since I've walked such a long distance, but I can do it to spend the day in the forest with you." She gave his hand a squeeze as they reached the bus station.

XXXXXXXXXX

OOOOOOO

Snow and Charming were dropped off at the bus stop in Hampden. "It's this way to the forest," Charming told her, pointing to the left. "I looked it up on a map." Snow chuckled and squeezed his hand as they walked. Of course he did. He must have gone through a lot of trouble to plan this outing for the two of them.

An hour later, Snow could see the forest come into view. She could barely contain her excitement as she saw the trees and heard the birds in the distance. This was going to be so much fun! "Do you want to stop to rest for a while?" Charming asked as they finally entered the woods. "I brought some snacks, if you'd like."

Snow nodded. "Yeah, let's do that" She'd tried to pretend it didn't bother her, because she was so excited to spend the day in the woods with Charming, but the truth was her feet did hurt. This world had a lot more transportation than the Enchanted Forest did, so she wasn't used to walking these kinds of distances anymore. Snow chose to sit on a big rock and Charming sat on the root of a big tree.

"So what do you want to eat? Crackers? Peanuts? Raisins?" he asked as he opened a knapsack under his coat. Snow knew Charming had been trying to hide it and the snack he'd packed when they left home. But Snow was pretty observant, especially when it came to her husband. Still, she'd pretended she hadn't noticed it, because she knew how important it was to Charming that he was able to surprise her. It wasn't as if Snow knew where he was taking her, anyway. She just knew she was spending the day with Charming and he'd brought food for them.

She thought for a minute. "I'll take the crackers and the peanuts," Snow replied, finally. Crackers were something they ate in the Enchanted Forest occasionally, especially when they were going on a outing, because they stored well. It was nice to eat some of the same foods. Peanuts weren't found in the Enchanted Forest, but Snow had tried them, on Emma's recommendation, and found they were pretty good.

They simply sat and ate for a several minutes, enjoying the forest and each other's company. "Do you want some more crackers?" Charming asked, eventually.

"Sure," Snow replied causally. However, instead of handing them to her, Charming threw a few crackers in Snow's direction. One cracker hit the side of her face. Snow took a bite of that one, then picked up the other crackers off the ground, and threw them back at him, laughing. Being back in the forest was obviously bringing out the more playful part of their relationship.

Charming laughed as well, and threw more peanuts and crackers back at her. Snow quickly found the food off the ground and threw it right back at him. After a few more minutes of their food fight, Snow called a truce by giving him a big kiss. "That was fun, but maybe we should be careful about wasting so much food. We might get hungry again later, after all."

Charming kissed her back. "Yeah, you're right," he replied. Then he put the food that wasn't on the ground away.

"I have an idea, if you want to have some more fun out here, though," she told him slyly.

Charming nodded, eagerly. "Of course. What is it?"

Rather than explain it to him, Snow simply gave him a playful shove and said, "I'm a woman!" Then she took off into the forest.

It didn't surprise Snow that Charming figured out the game she had in mind pretty quickly. About a minute later she heard him shout, "I will find you!" Snow laughed as she ran through the forest. This was going to be so much fun. She couldn't remember the last time they played "adult" hide – and – seek. And playing it in the forest just made it even better.

Snow ran around the forest for a while, climbing trees and hiding in logs. She knew Charming would find and catch her eventually; it was what he did. But the longer she could keep escaping him, the more fun she could have teasing him about it later. Suddenly, she felt something lift her off the ground. Without even thinking, Snow let out a scream that could probably be heard through the entire forest. A net. Of course. They were in the forest again, after all.

Charming reappeared, laughing, just as he had when they first met. "I told you I'd find you," he said to her.

Of course you did, Snow said to herself. She was just about to respond when they heard a strange voice shout, "What are you doing to that woman!" A man ran up to them, obviously upset. He had dark hair and glasses and wore a red jacket. "Get her down right now!" he demanded to Charming. "How dare you tie someone up like that against their will!"

Snow and Charming looked at each other for a minute, trying to figure out how to respond to this man. He was only trying to help Snow, after all. He just didn't know she didn't really need it. The man punched Charming right in the jaw. Charming tried to pretend it didn't affect him, but Snow could tell it stung a little. "Stop!" she told the man. "Stop hurting him! Look, I appreciate you trying to help, but this man is my husband."

The man in the red jacket looked from Charming to Snow for a couple of minutes. "But I heard your scream. He's holding you against your will! Is this a domestic violence case?"

Snow sighed. "He's not holding me against my will. We were just…playing. It's something we like to do sometimes. I screamed because he surprised me when he caught me like this, but it wasn't unwelcome, trust me."

Charming nodded, rubbing his jaw again. "I was just getting ready to get her down, actually." He took out a knife (much smaller than his sword, but suitable for this purpose), and climbed a tree so he could reach her with the smaller device.

The man in the red jacket looked from Snow to Charming for another minute. "Ooookay. I think I'll just leave now, then." He left them pretty quickly after that.

Snow landed on the ground again after Charming released her from the net and he climbed back down from the tree. "Sorry about that. If I would've known my scream would have caused such attention, maybe I would have done something different."

Charming laughed at that. "I don't know. I think I surprised you so much, screaming was the only thing you were capable of doing." He grinned smugly at her.

Snow shook her head, not wanting to admit that. "No, I could've kept quiet if I wanted to. Come on, if we're in the forest, you catching me in a net is kind of natural!" She chuckled. Then she looked at his jaw. "Hey, are you okay? He gave you quite a punch."

Charming shrugged. "It's not that bad. It's just a cut. Actually it's pretty fitting, considering I already caught you in a net. It's almost in the same place the last one was."

Snow looked at his chin again. He was right. The man had hit him in the exact place she'd hit him when they'd first met. "I guess you're right." She kissed his cut, sucking up some of the blood.

Charming looked at her with his eyes all smoky. "I still like yours better though. No one hits like you do." With that, he gave her another deep kiss. And then several little kisses. And another deep kiss.

Snow looked around the forest. They seemed to be alone. "Do you think we're really alone this time?"

Charming nodded as he looked around as well. "I think so. Try to keep quiet this time, though okay?"

Snow laughed. "I'll try." They found a mossy patch a few feet away from where they'd been standing and laid down on the soft Earth. How long had it been since they'd made love in the forest? They discard their clothes slowly, taking time to kiss and explore. Then Charming put their coats over them, so they wouldn't get to chilly, and they made love slowly.

After they recovered, they eventually redressed and ate some more food (without throwing it). Then Snow talked to the birds, asking where they'd been over the winter. They also found a blackberry bush which had berries for them to munch on. It was a wonderful day.

OOOOOOOOOO

That evening after dinner, Snow couldn't deny her feet were killing her. She tried to be discrete about it, since she didn't want to make Charming feel guilty for taking her on a perfect outing, as far as she was concerned. So she rubbed her feet when she thought he wasn't looking.

Unfortunately Snow should have known nothing that concerned her got past her husband. "Your feet are hurting you from all the walking we did today, aren't they?" he asked her.

"They're not that bad. I mean, I'll be okay," Snow tried to protest, still afraid of worrying him and making her feel guilty.

Charming shook his head. "Come here. Put your feet in my lap."

Snow shook her head. "I bet your feet are sore, too even though you'd never admit it. Let's go into the bedroom and we can both stretch out."

Charming nodded. So they both sat on either side of their bed, with their feet in the other's lap. And they each got a pretty nice foot massage.

XXXXXXXXXXX

OOOOOOO

Red was disappointed that she hadn't seen Justin in a few weeks. The weather was nice, for the most part, so almost every day she either walked or took one of the dogs to the park. But Justin or Champ weren't on the sidewalk or at the park at all when she was there. She still enjoyed strolling around the block with the dogs, and playing with them at the park when she got a chance. But Red had been hoping to talk to Justin again. She would like to hear more about how he lived his life even though he couldn't see.

She was also concerned what would happen to Mr. Jenison. She was told the trial was up and he should be getting a verdict soon. Ms. Adams told her she would call when it had been decided, but she hadn't heard anything yet. What if he wasn't punished for what he did? From what she understood, criminals in this world weren't always punished. Red sighed as she walked the beagle she was taking care of today. Too bad she wasn't still a werewolf. If this world's court system decided not to punish him, Red could simply "take care of him" the wolf way.

As she turned the corner, Red thought she saw a white lab in the distance. Could it be Charmp? Or was it another dog that just looked like him? "Come on, Beanie," she said to the beagle. "Let's go see who that is." With that she began walking pretty fast to catch up to the other dog. Yes, it was definitely Champ. There weren't any other dogs that had a leash attached at the waist. And that meant the person walking him was Justin.

Red slowed down as she got closer. She didn't want to hurt Champ or Justin by running into them (literally), because she was moving so fast. And since Justin was blind, she needed to be especially careful around him. "Hello," she said loudly to Justin, making sure he would hear her. "It's Ruby."

"Hello," Justin replied, uncertainly. "What is it?"

Red paused for a minute, taken aback by his "frosty" attitude. She had been hoping Justin would be just eager to talk to her again as she was to talk to him. "I…was just hoping to talk to you again. I really enjoyed talking to you the last time."

Justin nodded as he began walking again. "I see," he replied, uncertainly again.

Red walked after him, not so easily dissuaded. "Is there going to be a day and time you'll be at the park again?" She asked loudly again. "We could plan to meet at the same time?" Then she thought about that for a second. "Or do you have a problem with telling time? You know, because of your eyes." Red could have kicked herself for assuming he could tell time. Of course that would be a problem for him. Clocks were all visual, after all. Just then, Beanie made a noise, and she leaned down and petted his head.

As she tried to find a solution to this problem (because she still wanted to spend some time talking to him) Justin snapped, "It's now quarter after three. See, I'm fully capable of taking care of myself, no matter what others think." With that, he walked away again.

Red's mouth dropped open in shock. How did he do that? Every time he talked to her, Red became more and more interested in knowing about his life. But how could she convince him to meet her again, considering she'd obviously offended him somehow? She sighed and called out, "I'm sorry I offended you, but I'd still like to talk to you again. I'll be at the park with one of the dogs tomorrow at 3:00, if you want to come." It was the best she could do.

OOOOOOOOO

Red did go to the park with Beanie the next day, after asking her boss first. Beanie was an older dog, so while he still liked walks, he wasn't as interested in running as much as some of the other dogs were. Still, it was nice to watch Beanie enjoy the different smells of the park. Red tried to be content with simply watching him. Justin probably wouldn't come today, after all. But Red couldn't stop looking up every time she heard someone new walk into the park. Justin was such an interesting person. It had been fun talking to him before.

"Well, at least you enjoy my company, Beanie," she told the dog after realizing the new person wasn't Justin. "What are you sniffing? What's under that bush?" She got down on the ground (it was a good thing she knew to wear clothes she didn't mind getting dirty to this job). Then she crawled under the bush with the dog. He was in the process of sniffing the ground under it. She sniffed the air herself. Her sense of smell was nowhere near as good as it was if she were in wolf form, but it was stronger than an ordinary human's. It was kind of fun. "I think it's some kind of squirrel, don't you?" Beanie didn't answer, of course, but he looked at Red like he agreed with her.

When she and Beanie finally lost interest in the bush, they crawled out. To Red's complete surprise, Justin there after all, sitting on the same bench they'd sat in about a month ago. Champ was nearby, sniffing away as well. Red walked right over to him, with a big smile on her face. "Hello Justin," she told him loudly, to make sure he knew she was there. "I didn't think you'd come."

Justin sighed. "I wasn't sure if I was going to, either. And please stop talking to me like that. I don't need you to talk to me so loudly just because I can't see. My hearing is fine. Better than yours, actually."

Red doubted his hearing was actually better than hers, but she knew what he meant. It was as good as a normal human's. "Okay. I'll try to remember that. But seriously, I can tell I offended you the last time we talked. So why did you come, back?" She was really glad to see him again, after all, but she couldn't figure out what made him come.

Justin shrugged. "I remember how much I liked listening to you run with the dog last time, so I thought it would be fun again. You brought a different dog this time, but that's okay. You and the dog under the bush was pretty good, too."

Red nodded, trying to process all of that information. "You knew I was running with the dog last time just by what you heard?"

Justin nodded. "Yes. I could hear you laughing and the dog barking. And the way your feet were moving together with the dog's."

Red nodded again. The more she learned about this man, the more she wanted to know. "And how did you know I have a different dog this time? And that we were under the bush?" She didn't bother to hide how much she admired him at this point.

Justin smiled. "Because this dog smells and sounds different than the last one. And I knew you were under the bush because I could hear clothes rustling under there. I could also hear the sound of your voice, when you talked to your dog. Why do you have a different dog this time, anyway? Do you own two dogs?"

Red shook her head. "No. Neither of the dogs I've been with are actually mine. I work at dog kennel, so I take care of a lot of different dogs."

Justin nodded. "You must be good at it. I've never noticed anyone interact with dogs as well as you do."

Red nodded. "That's what they tell me," she replied proudly. She thought for a minute and remembered something else she'd wanted to ask him. "Can you tell me how you knew what the time was before? I

don't understand that at all."

Justin sighed. "I suppose you wouldn't." He lifted his jacket up to reveal a small clock attached to his wrist.

Red scrunched up her face, still confused. "Okay, I understand you can take that everywhere you go, but I still don't understand how it helps you tell time if you can't see."

Justin picked up her hand and put it onto the clock. "You notice how the numbers on it are raised? So I can tell time by feeling it instead of seeing it."

Red nodded. She did. Clever. Something that would've never been available to people who couldn't see in the Enchanted Forest. Despite all the problems this world had, it had some real advantages, too. "That's really interesting," she told him out loud.

Justin nodded. "It's a nice thing to have, especially if I want to stay independent."

Red looked at the time again. "Speaking of time, I have to bring this one," she pointed to Beanie, "back to the kennel. But maybe…we could meet here at the same time, about once a week?"

Justin shrugged. "As long as you don't go out of your way to give me 'special treatment', that's fine. I like to listen to you with your dogs. But don't talk extra loudly, or try to tell me where things are or anything. Like I showed you, I can figure it out."

Red nodded. "Yes, I guess you did," she commented, allowing him to hear her admiration in her voice. "Come on, Beanie," she told the dog as she tugged on his leash to show him they needed to leave.

I don't actually know if they make watches like the one Justin has for blind people. But it makes sense to me that they would, because people like Justin want to lead independent lives, and that should include being able to tell time on their own. So for the sake of the story, those kind of watches exist.

So was that enough romance for you? Which couple did you like reading about the best? Or did you prefer the small "Charming Family" sections?

Personally, Snowing will always be my OTP for this show, so I like writing and reading about them the best. But I like writing about CS way more than I thought I would, especially for someone who was anti – Captain Swan for a long time. And I'm enjoying the "Rustin" scenes, too. I hope some of you are enjoying that relationship. I know a lot of people don't like OC romances. And if you don't, like it, there are plenty of other parts of the story for you to enjoy. But I do think Red/Ruby's character is a good one to build an OC romance, especially in a story which exists outside of Storybrooke.

Thank you very much for those who have followed and favorited this story. And a special thank you to those who have given reviews! You guys are the best. I'd love some more reviews from this chapter, whether it's praise or criticism, go ahead and tell me what you think! (If you are not a CS fan, however, please don't tell me you don't like this chapter simply based on that.)

Here are some responses to the last chapter.

Misscam: Really love to see your name here. Yeah, I understand those kind of trials are hard on victims. I tried my best to do it justice. Glad you liked the Emma/Snow scene, and David and Henry. David has a harder time seeing Regina as a good person than the rest of them do. In this story, part of that is because he doesn't have memories of her being "good." But I think most of it (in this story and in canon) is because from David's experience, Regina usually focuses her anger on Snow and killing her. David has always found it harder to forgive people who attack his friends and loved ones than people who attacked him. But, as I said in this story in this chapter and chapter one, he also knows what it's like to lose a mother. And he does understand what it's like to lose and miss a mother. So he feels connected to Henry through that, in a way.

BanditCharming: I don't like "Regina was justified in the things she did," but I do like Regina redeemed. And Lisboa made it clear in the original "Thicker than Water" that Regina did redeem herself before she died. And Henry has made it clear that he will always love Regina on the show. So I think in a story where she's dead, he'll always miss her and honor her as the mother he had for ten years, even though he's happy with his new family.