Smoke rings floated steadily out over the hidden lake in the woods of the small annoying little town. She'd stumbled upon the little abode only to find that the people after her couldn't in fact find it. So she knew something about this town wasn't right... hell Storybrooke wasn't even on any maps.

The place was so small and off the map that there was nobody to help her indulge little drug habit. So of course she kept a marijuana plant growing on the windowsill of the apartment she shared with MM, the judgey teacher. Which was of course ironic as she was having an affair with a married man, but that was her own deal. She tried not to judge; she knew anything she said was simply hypocritical. She'd stolen wives and girlfriends, and mothers. So no she didn't say anything other than 'be careful,' and more realistic things like, 'he's not going to leave his wife.'

The Mayor, Regina Mills, hated her and wanted her out of her town. To which she replied for the Mayor to relax; that she didn't want whatever weird things that went into the sudden appearance of a town in Maine to end. She was of course obscure in why she wished to stay in a hidden town and why she wished said town to remain hidden.

The Mayors kid, Henry Mills was a different matter. He was a little shit that bothered her about being some prophesized savior of all the fairy tale characters. Because of course everyone in town was from the Enchanted forest and under a curse to forget who and what they were.

In all honesty it wasn't the craziest thing she'd ever heard, but she refused to indulge him. She'd come to an agreement with the Mayor that they wouldn't talk about these things. An agreement which was basically to stay out of the others business. So in return for refuge she didn't press the fact the woman was likely the evil queen of fairy tales, though with a more realistic twist. She doubted the woman really gave two shits about the fairest of them all bull crap Disney tries to sell. Not that it mattered to the kid who was driving her nuts.

She'd been working as a deputy, basically under the premise that as a successful criminal she knew exactly what to look for. The Mayor didn't care about her record as long as she was of course not going around causing trouble.

The smallness of this town was driving her mad though. She hadn't been laid since arriving, not for lack of interest, rather that she couldn't just find, fuck, forget as was her motto courtesy of the L word. It was the problem with small towns. There was no one night stands where the opposing party was never, ever seen again. No they would be seen eventually even with very careful avoidance techniques, especially with her current job.

Briefly she thought about having fantastic violent earth shattering sex with the Mayor, but then she found out Graham had some weird sex toy thing going on with the woman. She didn't do 'love' triangles or threesomes when a man was involved, so she stayed away from that regardless of the fact Regina would be more than happy for it to be attachment free. The idea of being just one of her little sex slaves just didn't sit well with her.

Ruby though, the young waitress from Granny's was someone she could see herself with. Well maybe a quick fuck in the back room of the diner, but then she'd have to avoid the place.

Still none of these were why she was laying beside the lake in the middle of the night smoking her second joint. No, her current problem was the pain vibrating through her bones, her blood, her very being. Staring up at the full moon that was just begging for her to change. It had taken her years to gain the self-control to not change during the full moon. Even more to change at will which she hadn't done since arriving in this sleepy little town.

It got worse, the pain, the longer she went without changing. Hence the joints. Fantastic pain medication, or distraction.

The snapping of a twig surprised her. She rolled to her feet gun pointed at... "Ruby?" the waitress stopped at the sight of the gun. "Sorry," she hastily put the weapon away. "Smoke?" she questioned.

"Deputy," the leggy brunette smirked. "Where did you even find pot in this town? If it's from that crazy Jefferson bloke I don't want any. He laces his with weird hallucinogens." She tilted her head curiously, "and you're not a very good law enforcement agent."

She chuckled, "I was a criminal long before I got this job." She already started rolling another for them as she lost the other which was almost finished anyway. "It's my own. I brought a plant with me, pineapple express, and yes I got the plant because of the movie, two days after I saw it. The girls been with me ever since."

Ruby sat down beside her accepting the expertly rolled joint and lighter, "what are you doing out here? Besides smoking?"

She shrugged, "same as you I expect," she said recalling the kid's adamant belief that the waitress was in fact red riding hood who unlike the Disney version was in fact the werewolf of the story. When the waitress arched an eyebrow at her she smirked. "Full moon, I get a little... antsy for a few days."

"Oh, how did you know?"

"Mayor's kid thinks you're a werewolf," she shrugged.

"What so you're one too?"

"Maybe I am," she laughed, "it would make me a lot more interesting, but you know also a 'mindless' beast that likes to eat people. Honestly no animal likes to eat people, we don't have enough meat for it to be worth it."

Ruby chuckled, "what kind of werewolf does he think I am? Like underworld style or like... ugh twilight."

"Neither, but I guess closer to twilight. I think you just turn into a normal sized, normal looking wolf. Nothing especially scarring about that."

"Ugh that sucks. Underworld werewolves are scary and awesome."

She lay back down staring up at the moon, "yeah, but they're ugly. I can't picture you ugly an any form." Oh shit, did she, yeah she did. At least it was somewhat smooth, she thought.

Ruby took the comment in stride and lay down beside her blowing smoke rings, "what do you think I'd look like?"

She thought about it for a moment, "it's hard to imagine you without any red, but I think you'd probably have thick dark brown fur and shining yellow eyes. Maybe you'd manage a red streak in there somewhere. You'd be beautiful..." she swallowed, "not that you're not now... as a human... person... woman... uh, shutting up now."

Ruby laughed for a moment, "it's kind of adorable when you ramble, especially when's it's because of me."

"Adorable?" she made a face, "no way. I'm not adorable."

"Yeah, I'm sorry, but you are."

She crossed her arms, "nope. I'm a hardened criminal. I went to jail, I'm terrifying." She nodded to herself still pouting.

"Uh huh," Ruby laughed. "if you say so."

They were silent for a while then. Both just watching the moon as if they'd notice it moving or will it to disappear. Eventually though her gaze drifted over to Ruby. Her long legs encased in skin-tight red jeans. The rest of her covered in a tight white shirt. It was then that she noticed the girl was cold.

Silently she picked up her tossed aside red leather and draped it over the girl, woman. Her eyes locked with grayish green eyes.

It was too tempting, the tension, too delicious to resist. Maybe she'd regret it, maybe she wouldn't. Maybe the kid was right and she wasn't alone in her curse, blessing, superpower, depending on one's perspective. So maybe closing the distance was a good idea.

Ruby's eyes slipped closed as she leaned in, pink tongue darting out to wet suddenly dry lips. Good decision or bad she connected her pink lips to red. There wasn't the clichéd fairy tale songbirds, no fireworks behind their eyes. Nothing but something unique to themselves. Neither gentle nor rough, all teeth and tongue. No it wasn't some earth shattering kiss, but it was theirs.

So neither stopped because neither wanted to. It wasn't until air became necessary that they broke apart only to blink rapidly until their eyes focused back on each other.

She didn't want to take it further, well she did, but she felt the sudden need to maybe do things right this time, to not fuck her and then never go into the diner again. And not just because she needed to eat and Granny's was the only place to do so in town, though she won't lie and say that wasn't a factor.

No, Ruby, she deserved something better than the three f's. Sure the girl dressed like a slut, but that didn't make her one. So instead of fucking her senseless on the forest floor she rolled over to continue staring at the moon. This time though she rested her head not on the hard ground, but in the crook of the taller girls arm.

Then there was Ruby; Ruby who grinned like a teenager who received her first kiss, because she too was thinking along the same lines. She wanted to do things right, maybe go on a date like a normal person. She wanted to know what the scars were from that she so often glimpsed on the Deputy's body, the flashes of tattoos hidden by long sleeves. So she just smiled and ran her hand gently through blonde locks.