SUMMARY: Breakfast at the Earp homestead. A/U

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing of Wynonna Earp

RATING: K

PAIRING: Wynonna/Doc

JUST BREAKFAST:

Officer Nicole Haught could hardly believe where she spent the night for the last three nights. It seemed to be a dream but each morning she woke with a smile at the Earp homestead. She got to sleep beside the beautiful and exceptional brilliant Waverly. It was one of the best nights she'd ever had. Nicole sat up so she could look down at Waverly as she still slept. Oh, what kind of dreams could the younger Earp be having? Was she in them? She got out of bed knowing she wasn't going to be able to go back to sleep, not now that her mind was kicking into gear. Nicole had the notion to make breakfast as a last ditch effort to keep some semblance of normalcy around them. Before leaving the room, she placed a light kiss to Waverly's temple.

In the kitchen, Nicole started the coffee after she cleared off some of the empty liquor bottle that cluttered up the counter. Wynonna. She had never seen a woman drink half as much as Wynonna Earp did. Shaking her head, Nicole moved to the fridge to see what food she had to work with, but there wasn't much beyond eggs and bacon. "Simple it is." She muttered to herself. Taking the food out, she set it on the cleared counter space while she searched for a skillet to cook with.

Waverly fought to stay asleep, but strange sounds brought her into the waking world where she found herself alone in her bed. She sat up and scrubbed her hand over her face to chase away the last lingering tendrils of slumber. Getting out of bed, Waverly headed for the kitchen where relief washed through her seeing Nicole at the stove cooking breakfast. She smiled, thankful that she wasn't the one doing the cooking.

Waverly left Nicole alone for a moment so she could go and check on Wynonna. Since her sister had been taken by the infamous, now dead, Jack the Ripper, she couldn't help but make sure her sister was still here. Carefully Waverly slid open the hanging barn door to see Wynonna curled up under her covers, guarded over by the one and only Doc Holliday, who was just as sound asleep as she was. Waverly, her sisterly concern satisfied returned to the kitchen to watch Nicole. "You didn't have to make breakfast." She said in a voice loud enough that it would only reach Nicole.

Nicole glanced over her shoulder. "I thought it would be nice for you to wake up to the smell." She clicked the burner off, and then took the skillet over to scrape the scrambled eggs onto the platter. "I didn't know if you wanted bacon as well." When Waverly didn't decline, she cracked the package open to put the first three slices in warm skillet. It sizzled as she moved it back to the burner, and then turned the heat on.

Waverly bit her bottom lip crossing the kitchen floor where she wrapped her arms around Nicole from behind. "It really is nice." She replied placing a kiss to Nicole's t-shirt covered shoulder. Waverly smiled when Haught's hand rested over both of hers, squeezing lightly. Normally she would feel compelled to fill the silence with conversation, but with Nicole, the silence was so terrible.

"Where's Wynonna?" Nicole asked as she skewered each piece of bacon in turn to flip them over.

"She's in her bed, sleeping." Waverly answered. Wynonna didn't just sleep, she passed out after a heavy night of drinking just to keep the nightmares at bay. "I hope there's enough for four." She added. When Nicole glanced at her over her shoulder, Waverly added, "Doc is watching over her. He does that most nights when he can't sleep."

"Doc?" Nicole asked. "That's the guy's name who helped me remember more details about…" Meeting him at the hospital that one and only time, Nicole thought the man had an old world charm to him, and a fierce need to protect the Earp sisters.

"Yeah, Doc Holliday." Waverly clarified snuggling closer to her deputy. She and Nicole had had a long talk about what was really happening in Purgatory. One of the topics they'd discussed at lengths was the infamous gun slinger. After her near death experience, it was only fair the officer knew exactly what it was she could potentially be walking into. "Is all this too weird for you?" She asked resting her chin on Nicole's shoulder.

"You and me, not one bit." Nicole chuckled keeping her attention on the food. "What your sister has to do, and that Doc character, I'm still wrapping my brain around that." She took in a deep breath, smelling the bacon, the eggs, and the coffee mingling together. "But I am getting used to it."

WYNONNA's ROOM:

Doc had been awake for the last hour, his eye remained closed, as he breathed in the sweet freedom from his mission of vengeance. The Stone Witch was buried up to her neck in the middle of nowhere surrounded by so much salt she'd turn into a mummy before too much longer. It was sublime to know that she was all alone out there. She could scream and scream and scream, no one would be coming for her. At his side, his arm held Wynonna close to him. The warm weight of her chased away the last bit of anger he had over what happened to him.

Wynonna opened her eyes, her eye lids fluttering unsure if they were going to close again so she could return to sleep or if they were going to stay open. Either way, it didn't matter because she, for once, had gotten good night's sleep without the aid of alcohol. All she needed was Doc's arms around her, his hand running up and down her back soothing her. If she allowed herself, she would get used to him sleeping next to her.

Doc placed a kiss to the top of Wynonna's head the moment he felt her stir from her slumber. "Mornin, darlin." She was relaxed, still half between waking up and going back to sleep. This was the time of morning he liked the most when he shared her bed.

"Hi," Wynonna mumbled turning her face up to look at him. Doc was at peace this morning. A few day ago he had nearly ended his life just to put Clootie in the ground. "I'm glad you let me help you." She said, her hand coming up to rest over his heart.

"You have a way of making it so a man can't refuse." Doc chuckled lightly. Then the sound of movement drew his attention to the half closed door. "What could Waverly be up to at this time of the morning?" He asked in a grumble.

"She's probably making breakfast." Wynonna drew in a deep breath. She could smell coffee and bacon that make her stomach rumble. "And now I'm hungry." Lightly she scoffed pushing back the covers so she could get dressed.

KITCHEN:

Nicole had just finished setting the places at the table when she caught sight of Wynonna and Doc coming towards the small table. "Morning you two." There was this odd sense of ease throughout a house stained with so much death. She didn't know how either Waverly or Wynonna lived under the weight of their last name. Being and Earp was dangerous these days.

"This is the third morning in a row for you, Nicole." Wynonna pointed out jokingly. "Should we have a talk about your intentions towards my sister?"

"Wynonna!" Waverly exclaimed trying to battle back the blush creeping into her cheeks.

Wynonna laughed, "Relax, Waves, I'm only kidding." She went to her sister. "I'm just glad you've moved on from Champ Hardy."

Waverly playfully pushed her sister away, "Whatever…" Automatically she went to the coffee maker so she could pour four cups of coffee. "Nicole made breakfast." She stated, turning around with two mugs in her hand. One of them she handed to the gorgeous red head who was smiling away at her.

"That was awfully kind of you, Ms. Haught." Doc inclined his head and then went to pick up the second set of mugs on the counter, one of which he handed to Wynonna.

Nicole shrugged as she took a sip of her hot coffee. "I felt I should do something." She was trying not to feel as if she had over stepped her bounds.

Wynonna licked her lips at the sight of the bacon. "Let's chow down before it all gets cold." Without waiting for the others, she took a seat, and started to fill her plate.

Waverly followed her sister, asking, "When did you and Doc get in?"

"Late." Wynonna said around a mouthful of bacon. "We did some recon on Bobo." It was bad enough the Revenant overlord bought Shorty's Saloon, but without Clootie dangling a lead over his head, he was free to do things the way he wanted. That made Wynonna even more eager to put him down with Peacemaker.

"The demon has been suspiciously quiet the last few days," Doc added. "We thought to discover why."

"And his trailer park is nearly vacant." Wynonna reminded. "Guess he didn't feel as comfortable out in the open with Clootie gone."

"Good riddance." Doc sniffed. He sat back in his chair nibbling on a strip of bacon.

"What?" Waverly looked at him, her right eyebrow arching. The last time they had any sort of conversation, he was talking about his revenge on Constance Clootie. Had he gotten it? "Did she leave town?"

Wynonna looked at Nicole, knowing they hadn't had the chance to talk, and then turned her attention to Waverly to ask, "How much does she know?" Before she'd been taken by Jack, it was Wynonna's intention to tell Officer Haught all she could about the Revenants, about the Earp curse, and whatever else she could think of.

"I've told her about Wyatt's curse, about the Revenants, and how we're safe at the homestead from them." Waverly answered, her eyes on Nicole. "I've explained about Doc, and a few other things."

"I still don't understand much of this, by the way." Nicole chimed in, her tone light. Then she turned her attention to Doc, watching as he casually ate a piece of toast. "How are you still alive?" From what Waverly had told her, the man sitting at the table with her was well over 130 years old.

"A witch cured me and then sealed me in the bottom of a well." Doc answered without any of his usual venom. Now, when he spoke about it, it was in the past, and that's where it would stay.

"So, there are witches now?" Nicole glanced at Waverly. If her head hadn't exploded by now, the revelation of witches just might light the fuse.

Waverly nodded and then told Wynonna, "I hadn't covered the subject of Constance Clootie yet."

"Oh," Wynonna shrugged. "Doc, you wanna field that answer."

Doc gave Wynonna a look that said he wasn't interested in speaking of his circumstances ever again, and yet, for the Earp girls, he found himself opening his mouth to address the young Office Haught. "I suffered a fatal illness that would have put me in my grave. When I was hanging by a thin mortal rope, I heard tell of a witch who could make me strong again. So, I dragged myself from my sick bed to seek her out. Little did I know, she was using me to get to Wyatt Earp."

Wynonna listened, and as she did so, she had to sit on her free hand to keep from reaching out to him when she could see he'd rather not be touched at the moment. Doc stopped speaking, in favor of picking up his coffee cup to drink from the black liquid of sanity. This left her free to address Waverly's earlier question as to what they did. "The Stone Witch has been put somewhere she can scream and scream and no one will hear her."

"What?" Waverly look from her sister to Doc and then back to Wynonna. "How'd you manage that if Henry's still breathing."

"Thanks." Doc muttered, rolling his eyes.

"You know what I mean." Waverly made a face at him.

"Loopholes are a wonderful thing." Wynonna stated looking at Nicole. "When the Stone Witch gave Henry longevity, what she failed to mention to him was that he was bound to her. So, he dug a hole and I buried her up to her neck in salt."

"And it was sublime to hear her beg for mercy." Doc replayed her pleas over and over. Last night he'd been able to sleep and dream in peace. The first few days it hadn't sunk in that Clootie was gone, that she was somewhere she couldn't do anymore damage, but by the third night his dreams were sweet.

"What's salt gonna do?" Nicole asked trying as best as she could to follow what they were talking about. All of it still made no sense to her, but she was trying.

"Salt makes a witch powerless." Waverly answered. "As long as she's contained, she's pretty much harmless." With her gone, Doc was finally free from thoughts of revenge, thoughts that would drive his actions and make him act rashly. Waverly was actually relieved to know Doc was still with them.

"Oh, ok." Nicole shook her head. "So, you buried a woman alive in salt?" She looked at Wynonna pointedly. Her response was only to shrug one shoulder.

"She's not a woman." Doc growled. "That thing is responsible for my years of incarceration and for the attack on young Waverly. Don't pity that creature one bit." He warned.

"I don't think I should be hearing anymore of this." Nicole held up her hands. "I'm an officer of the law."

"Yeah, so…?" Wynonna asked. "I'm a deputy too." Granted, she only had a badge because Dolls blackmailed her into wearing one. If she didn't join his team, he was going to frame her for the murder of Keirsten; the poor woman murdered by the revenant Malcom Rameker.

"This is a very strange world you live in." Nicole said pushing her plate away. Her appetite was gone.

"Amen sister." Wynonna scoffed. "You'll get semi-used to all the craziness. And if you don't, there's always drinking."

Nicole had wanted the truth from Waverly, and that's what she had gotten. Still, it was hard to hear all of them speaking about it as if they were talking about the weather. "Excuse me." She pushed away from the table to leave the room for a moment. Nicole put on her winter coat and a pair of slippers to stand out on the porch to breathe in some of the cold wind whipping through Purgatory this morning.

Back at the table Waverly watched Nicole leave. She was going to give her a few seconds before chasing after her. After all, this was a lot for someone to take in a matter of days. Enough time had lapsed with Waverly getting up as well. Shrugging into her own coat and shoes, she stepped outside. Nicole looked at her, her cheeks and nose red from the bite of the winter wind. "I know this is hard."

"It's not that." Nicole sighed. "I just don't understand how you take all this in stride. You three were talking about a woman being buried up to her neck like it was the latest weather forecast." In the last few days, Nicole had listened intently to everything Waverly had told her, had even asked question so that she might come to terms with all of it better. So far, her mind raced, returning her to that morning a man had stepped out in front of her cruiser and she nearly died.

"I grew up in the crazy." Waverly responded closing the distance between her and Nicole. She wrapped her arms around the red head that had shaken up her world and her heart. "Constance Clootie, the Stone Witch, she's half of the reason my family is cursed. Wyatt Earp killed her sons, so now Wynonna has to kill and we have to suffer losses until the curse is over." She rested her chin on Nicole's shoulder, her eyes fixed on the mail box Doc had put up for them. Of course, Wynonna wasn't the only one with blood on her hands. She had taken a life as well. "I know it may seem like we roll with the punches, but living with this isn't any easier than it was when we were kids."

Nicole didn't say anything. She freed her arms from Waverly's hold so she could pull her in tighter. There was so much she still wouldn't understand about the Earp family, but all she needed to know was that Waverly wanted to tell her the truth. For now, that was enough for her. The understanding would come later when Nicole's mind would be ready to accept it.

Back inside, Doc marveled at Wynonna as she stood leaning against the entryway watching the front door with avid curiosity. "Wynonna, stop watching the door." He drawled lifting the coffee mug to his lips. She shot him a look over her shoulder, glared at him, and then went back to watching the front room. Getting up, abandoning the coffee, Doc went to her, slipping his arms around her waist.

Automatically, Wynonna leaned back against him. "I can't help it." She muttered. "Seeing Waverly take a leap like that…."

"You wanna protect her as much as you can." Doc finished. "But, darlin, you can't protect her from her own heart."

Wynonna scoffed lightly knocking the side of her head against his cheek. "Then I can't really protect her from anything." She muttered hugging Doc closer.

"Love, your second day in Purgatory, you saved Waverly from meetin her Maker." Doc pointed out, and then mentally kicked himself for saying it.

"What….?" Wynonna pulled out of his arms, turning to look at him. She remembered that day. Carl was about to shoot her, when he got shot in the face. She just thought it had been Dolls. "It was you. You shot Carl in the face. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't want that hangin over us." Doc ran his hand through his tousled hair. "When, or if, you sought me out, I didn't want that to be the reason you came to me." He clarified.

Wynonna lifted her hand to cup his cheek, her thumb rubbing back and forth over the stubble. "Just when I think I have you figured out…"

"I say something that surprises you?" Doc asked, closing the distance between them again. These last few months, his partnership with Wynonna, it made him feel alive again; more so than his quest for vengeance had.

"Yeah, you do." Wynonna nodded drawing him in for a kiss. Doc smirked moments before his lips covered hers in one of his scintillating kisses that had insides quivering. All in all, this was not a wasted morning, or a wasted breakfast.

THE END