Title: Look After You
Chapter Ninety-Five: Curiosity Killed the Cat
Author: snarkysweetness
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Emma, Henry, August, Paige, Mary Margaret, Regina, & Gold; Emma/August
Summary: While waiting for Mary Margaret's arraignment to begin, Emma pays Henry a visit. At Mary Margaret's arraignment, Gold takes notice of August for the first time.
Warnings: Mild angst.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Author's Notes: Emma Swan is my precious, sunshine princess and it kills me how this show never gave her proper treatment. But it's okay, that's what fanfic is for. Also, I won't say in which chapter, but the next round of updates will have the long-awaited consummation.

After performing a quick search of the basement and finding nothing, Emma left the mansion in the care of her deputies, instructing them to call her if they found anything suspicious. She knew in her gut they wouldn't find anything and having them search might raise questions she wasn't prepared to answer, but she had to know beyond a shadow of a doubt. After her ordeal, thoughts of what poor Kathryn could have endured wouldn't leave her mind and she suspected it would haunt her for the rest of her life unless they found the truth. And with Regina behind this, they may never know.

Emma knew she couldn't go back to the station, not until after the arraignment began. A court bailiff would be there to pick up Mary Margaret and she'd employed a deputy she trusted to be on duty right at eight. She drove to the center of town and parked her bug outside of her building before walking down the main street, needing to keep herself busy. She wasn't ready to be at home, not yet, not alone, and without having her office to retreat too she soon found herself in front of the school.

A smile sigh escaped her lips as she realized the kid was her go-to. Giving him up was the big mistake of her life. She spotted him on his bench and she smiled. "Hey Henry, guess what? I found Mary Margaret."

"How is she?"

"She's okay. Well…other than being on trial for murder, she's fine."

She stopped speaking as a group of children walked past. "Hi, Henry," a familiar girl said. Henry gave her a smile and a small wave as Emma realized the girl was Jefferson's daughter-or rather, the girl he believed was his daughter.

"Who is that?"

"Her name is Paige. She goes to school with me."

Emma furrowed her brows. "Henry, do you have your storybook with you? Can I see it?"

"Yeah," he said as he pulled it out. "Why?"

Emma took the book and flipped through its pages. "I'm just curious about something," she muttered before finding a story about the Mad Hatter. She stared down at the picture and a chill moved through her. The image looked hauntingly like Jefferson, but…

This was crazy.

"What? What is it?"

"Nothing," she lied, still staring down at the pages. If she looked through this, how many similarities would she find to the people she knew?

"Emma? Emma?" Henry's voice sounded in her ear as she waged an inner battle with herself. This was insane. She was just exhausted and mentally scarred. She wasn't thinking straight. In the distance the school bell began to ring.

"I have to go," Henry said, taking her arm, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"Right. Can I hold onto this, kiddo?"

"Sure," he replied with a shrug. Emma smiled and ruffled his hair before watching him descend into the school. She felt his absence in her chest and she closed her eyes, needing a moment to recover from the past twenty-four hours.

When she was sure she'd fall asleep if she spent another moment on the bench, she stood and walked towards the station, needing the exercise to keep herself awake. She skipped the diner and the coffee shop, deciding to settle for the crap coffee that Graham loved that was still stocked in the station. She'd never had the heart to change their brand, it was just another piece of him she wanted to keep around, like that jacket of his and his damn shoelace that she kept wrapped around her wrist when she missed him.

Henry was the love of her life, she knew that now, and August…well, maybe he was her soul mate, but Graham had been a great love in her life and she'd come to accept he would always be there, tucked away in a small corner of her heart and the beautiful thing about August was that it didn't bother him.

"What are you doing here?"

Emma jumped, not having seen anyone in the hallway when she'd stormed into the station. August pushed away from the dimly lit wall he'd been leaning against and she scowled. "Don't do that to me, not after…"

His face fell for a moment before he took her hand. "You should be at home, resting."

"August, you know as well as I do that isn't going to happen. I can't be home, not after what happened. I need to work even harder-"

"Emma, this is insane, you're not helping anyone if you're exhausting-"

"I hate to interrupt your lover's quarrel, Miss Swan, but you're blocking the entrance."

Emma refrained from punching Regina in the face and simply turned to glower in her direction.

"Can I help you?"

"Miss Blanchard's arraignment was pushed up a half an hour and I'm just here to make sure she is transported properly."

Emma rolled her eyes. "I assure you, Madam Mayor, she will safely make it the hundred yards to the courthouse."

"Well, she will now."

August and Emma followed Regina into the office and Emma took joy in the look of shock on Regina's face. So, she had put the key in Mary Margaret's cell. Emma didn't know how she'd pulled it off, but the look of almost blind rage in her eyes was all the proof she needed.

"Do I even want to know what that look is for?" August whispered as he pressed his lips against her ear.

Emma smirked and shook her head. "Later."

The arraignment was quick and dirty. Unsurprisingly Mary Margaret was charged with murder. Emma hated watching her go through this, the last thing she wanted was to be here, witnessing Regina's glee and Mary Margaret's suffering, but she had to be here for this. She couldn't sit back in her office, pretending to be looking for evidence that didn't exist. She either had to catch a miracle break or she and Gold would have to work out a way to put enough reasonable doubt into the jury's minds to get Mary Margaret off.

August kept hold of her hand throughout the arraignment and it took every ounce of willpower for her not to lean on his shoulder and take comfort from him. There would be time for that later. Right now, she was the Sheriff and she had a goddamn job to do.

She glanced over to find him watching Gold and she could see the wheels turning in that gorgeous head of his. "What is it," she asked.

"Nothing," he whispered and it was the first time he'd ever lied to her. Emma opened her mouth to respond but the sight of the looks Gold sent their way silenced her.

"I'm not the only one creeped out by him, am I?"

August pressed a kiss to her forehead and squeezed her hand. "No, you're not." And this time, he spoke the truth.

"Miss Blanchard, tell me, who is that man with the Sheriff?"

She'd just been charged with murder and her lawyer wanted to interrogate her about Emma's love life? Seriously? Mary Margaret did her best to maintain her dignity while being placed in cuffs to be transported to the cell that was now her home.

"That's August, he's Emma's…" Did Emma want people to know they were dating? And even if she did…Mary Margaret studied Gold and not for the first time that day felt completely uncomfortable. "Friend. He's her friend," she replied as August leaned down and pressed a kiss to Emma's forehead.

"Friend indeed," he muttered as August glanced up and the two made eye contact. A chill ran over her and not for the first time that day she looked forward to returning to her cell.