A/N This is my submission for the August Heart Story prompt #hshelloserge, which proposes a rewrite of the S6 E4 episode where N arrives in the Serge rather than his civilian clothes. I hope you enjoy my rewrite.
Elizabeth read Gabe's letter once again and couldn't help but wonder what he needed to talk with her about, especially since he asked her to keep it quiet. That part at least hadn't been hard since Rosemary and Lee were away for the weekend and were due home later this evening.
She had just settled Jack down in his playpen by her desk when she heard hoofbeats and the sound of someone knocking. Crossing over to the door, she opened it and was surprised to see Gabe in uniform standing with another young Mountie who appeared nervous.
"Gabe!" Elizabeth said, moving back and indicating they should come in. "How's Lillian and Grace?"
"Hello, Elizabeth," Gabe said, giving her a firm hug. Elizabeth returned it and motioned for them to join her in the living area. "They are doing well and send their greetings."
Elizabeth looked over at the tall Mountie beside him and found herself drawn to him for some reason. Seeing where Elizabeth was looking, Gabe cleared his throat. "Elizabeth Thornton, may I introduce a friend of mine, Nathan Grant."
"Hello, Constable Grant," Elizabeth said.
"Ma'am." He replied nervously.
"I get the sense that this isn't a social call, Gabe, am I right?"
"You are right, unfortunately. Though I hope you won't find it too distressing."
"Ma'am," Nathan began. "Knowing that this would be hard for you, I asked Gabe to come with me. I have been assigned as the New Constable of Hope Valley."
Elizabeth looked stunned and felt Nathan ease her down to the settee. "I can only imagine how much of a shock it is, and I felt like it was important to meet you in advance to give you the time to process everything before I officially report in a few days."
"It was a recent assignment, so word has not been sent to the town," Gabe explained at her surprised look. "Nathan was with me in Brookfield on another case when he got word. When he told me about it, he asked me to arrange our meeting since I knew Jack and his family..."
"Did you know my husband, too, Constable?" Elizabeth asked, still unsure of what to think.
"I did not have that honor, but from everything I have heard, he was an excellent Mountie."
"Jack was an excellent man."
Before she could say anything else, Jack began reaching for him from his crib. Nathan turned and smiled at her son. "May I?" he asked softly.
Elizabeth nodded and watched as he gently picked him up. Jack immediately stilled and just looked at the young Mountie. She couldn't help but notice that the fascination seemed to be mutual for the moment.
"Elizabeth, I was thinking that I would go ask Bill and Abigail to join us if you are okay with it?" Gabe asked.
"Sure, you'll probably find both of them still at the café right now, Gabe."
"Nathan, I'll get the horses settled as well and get a room sorted for us for the night," Gabe said, turning to Nathan. "Maybe while I'm gone, you can tell Elizabeth about your other situation. I think you'll find she will be very helpful with that."
Before either of them could respond, he was already out the door.
Elizabeth turned to Nathan with a brow raised. "Would you like some tea, Constable Grant?"
"That would be nice, Mrs. Thornton."
Elizabeth turned towards the stove and put the kettle on. "While we wait, would you like to tell me about your other situation?" Elizabeth chuckled as she added, "And how I can be of help to you?"
Nathan put Jack back in his playpen and moved to where Elizabeth stood by the stove. "It's my niece Allie. I have guardianship over her, and she has really been struggling in school and personally."
"Oh?" Why don't we have a seat." Elizabeth said, pulling a chair out at her kitchen table. Nathan joined her, and she could see how nervous he was.
"Before you tell me more, why don't we dispense with the formality? Please call me Elizabeth, and may I call you Nathan?"
"I'd like that, especially since we will be living in the same town and your connection to the Mounties."
"May I ask how long you have had guardianship and why? I'm not trying to be nosy, but knowing her background will give me a better understanding."
"My sister passed away when she was four, so I've had her with me for the past six years. Her father abandoned them a year before though he wasn't really present before that. Since then, it has just been the two of us moving around a lot. Now that she is older, I need to put down roots somewhere so that she has a chance for some stability. Gabe had suggested I look for a town Mountie position."
"I commend you on wanting to do that. It can't be easy to be a single parent raising a young girl while trying to be a Mountie. Children do need stability to thrive but also to gain social skills through interactions with peers. Does she have many friends?"
"Not really. She holds herself back, and I can't help feeling that she has shut down though her teachers say it's a discipline problem. I can't tell you how many times I have had to go to conferences and get you should leave the Mounties, or you should let her be adopted speech."
Elizabeth was horrified, which acted as a balm to Nathan's heart, and hope began to fill him as Gabe's assurance that Elizabeth could be the one to help came to his mind. "I don't know if Gabe told you how it was when I first arrived here, but it was three months after a mine disaster took the lives of 47 men, most of them fathers. Needless to say, the poor children grieved and were similar to what you described with Allie. In fact, I taught in the saloon because the church, where they had previously been taught, burned down. It took a while to reach them, but it was so worth it once I did. I won't know until I work with her for sure, but I suspect that you are right.
Elizabeth could see a look of relief and hope in his eyes and placed a comforting hand over his and gave it a quick squeeze. "It may take a bit of trial and error, but I promise Nathan that I won't give up on her." Then she got up to prepare the tea.
A few minutes later, Gabe returned with both Abigail and Bill. Apparently, he hadn't told them anything, and they were brought up short at the sight of another Mountie sitting at the table with Elizabeth.
Nathan stood up and quickly introduced himself and told them why he was there. "Nathan Grant. You were the one who led the recovery efforts at Fort Clay and recovered Jack's body." Bill said.
"I did, sir."
"It's Sheriff. Sheriff Bill Avery."
"I commend your consideration of Elizabeth's and the town's feelings, Constable Grant. I'm Mayor Abigail Stanton. Let me be among the first to welcome you officially to Hope Valley. Don't mind Bill, he is suspicious of everyone at first. Stand down, Bill."
"Thank you, Ma'am. I completely understand Sheriff Avery's position." Nathan assured Abigail. "I look forward to working with you, Sheriff."
"We will see about that," Bill muttered with a smirk. Nathan read the challenge in the older man's eyes and silently accepted it with a smirk of his own. It was the Mountie way, and this time was no different.
"When are you supposed to start Constable?" Abigail asked.
"First, please call me Nathan. My official report date is in two days. Normally I would have come a few days before in civilian clothes to get a feel for the town, but under the circumstances, I felt it would be better to be straightforward with you to help ease the transition." Nathan replied. "I want to assure all of you that it is not my intention to replace Jack but to assist Sheriff Avery in continuing to protect the town. No one can replace a Mountie like Jack Thornton."
Little did Nathan realize, but he just won over every person in that room, including the sheriff though Bill would never take it easy on him.
"Abigail, he has his niece to watch out for. Can we put him in the Anderson's old rowhouse?" Elizabeth asked. "As far as I know, it is still vacant, right?"
"That is correct," Abigail said. "Please call me Abigail, Nathan. We do have a rowhouse that is on the opposite end of this one. It is exactly the same and should fit your needs. If required, we can also help with furniture if needed, although if I remember, there are a few pieces that were left behind which should suit until your own gets here, so there would be no need to stay in the saloon."
"That would be great. I do have some furniture, but it has been in storage since my niece and I have been staying in a boardinghouse. I would love to be able to have a real home for her that isn't in the city. I know that she will love Hope Valley.
"Well then, unless you are wanting to stay hidden, why don't we head to the café for a nice lunch and let the town know that they have a new Mountie in town? That way, you and Gabe can collect your things and settle in your new home." Elizabeth said with a smile as she picked her son up.
Nathan looked at Gabe and raised his brow in silent question. Gabe just smiled and shrugged his shoulders, and said, "It's up to you."
"I think it sounds like a good plan because it will allow me to arrange for our furniture to arrive and for Allie to come sooner," Nathan replied.
The walk into town drew the attention of many, just as Elizabeth and Abigail knew it would. Before Nathan could even be nervous, Elizabeth was greeted by two older women similar to Abigail's age.
"Florence! Molly! I want to introduce you to our new Mountie, Constable Nathan Grant."
"New Mountie?" Florence asked after she and Molly greeted Gabe.
"Yes, he arrived a bit early out of concern for us since he will be posted here now." The two ladies smiled at him.
"Welcome to Hope Valley, Constable Grant," Florence said.
"Ma'am," Nathan replied with the customary hat tip—and a charming, crooked grin.
"Nathan, may I introduce you to Florence Blakely and Molly Sullivan," Elizabeth said. "We are on our way to the café, and then we are going to help in getting him settled into the empty rowhouse."
"Oh, well, we will let you be on your way," Molly said with a smile.
"We will be having a little reception for him tonight at the café," Abigail said, looking at them. Could you please spread the word?"
"You can count on us, Abigail," Florence said with a nod just before they practically ran off towards the Mercantile.
Elizabeth laughed as she and Abigail watched them go before turning and heading toward the café.
"What's so funny," Nathan asked.
"If you ever want to know something or get the word out to everyone, those two are the way to do it. In the next hour, everyone will know about you." Bill chuckled. "Elizabeth and Abigail walking you into town and introducing you to them and your concern guarantee that you won't have an issue gaining the trust and being accepted by the town."
Nathan looked over to Gabe for confirmation.
"Bill's right," Gabe said. "Elizabeth's showing her support of you goes a long way since she is Jack's widow, and they know that your being here doesn't cause her pain. The town operates like a big family and is a very protective one at that."
After lunch, Abigail gave him the key to his new home with the promise that it had been recently cleaned and arranged with Ned for him to have an account. He and Gabe walked home with Elizabeth and a sleeping Jack stopping off when he reached his rowhouse. Gabe continued on with Elizabeth to give him a few moments alone. He had a feeling that Gabe also wanted to check in with her himself.
He couldn't believe how wonderful the town was and knew that Allie would be excited about the rowhouse as he examined the rooms upstairs. He was relieved that there were three bedrooms because maybe his mom could join them occasionally for a visit as well. He was grateful as well when Elizabeth assured him that she would look after Allie whenever he had to go on Mountie business if needed, mentioning that it was her part in supporting a fellow Mountie and what Jack would have wanted.
A short time later, Gabe knocked on the door and assured him that Elizabeth was doing okay and was grateful for his consideration of pre-warning her, making it easier to accept.
A quick conversation later that night from the Mountie office would see Allie arriving in Hope Valley 3 days later.
As predicted, the town easily accepted him as one of their own and did the same with Allie. Thanks to Elizabeth helping her settle in, there were only a few problems initially, but the two of them found that Hope Valley gave them a feeling of what coming home felt like, and there was no other place they wanted to be. THE END
A/AN As with other one-shots or prompts, this one may be explored more in-depth at a later time after other stories have come to completion, but for now, it will not be added to.
