OOC: When I started writing this I meant for it to be a oneshot, and then it really started to develop so I might continue it. Please please please read and review. Every review I get makes my day. I claim to be no one special, just me, myself, and a creepy fangirl XD Anywho, enjoy this, there may be more to come!

Snow. It fell softly in clumps of white mass, gathering in silvery mounds of the edges of window panes. Each flake struck the pane, silhouetting for a moment a unique and beautiful crystalline pattern before either melting away or being joined by members of its kin. Snow had such a strange and fascinating beauty. How could something so cold, so frigid be so beautiful? To Mary Margaret, the answer was simple. The greatest beauty was found in the most unlikely places. It is when beauty is least expected that it is found in most abundance. Snow was like that; despised by many for its cold and signs of true winter, but it was also beautiful. Mary Margaret had always loved snow, as long as she could remember. It truly was a thing of beauty. Each flake, unique and it's own, almost expressing an individual character. And the word itself had its own mysterious beauty. Four letters that conveyed such emotion. Mary Margaret simply felt uplifted when the white snow fell around her.

"Snow," she said softly to herself, unsure of why the word struck such a chord to her. She lifted one pale finger to caress the pane and feel the cold of the snow through the thick window glass. Such beauty. Such elegance. As Mary Margaret ran her hand delicately over the glass, her vision blurred.

She wasn't in her cold and empty kitchen anymore, no she stood in a small forest glade with delicate snow falling around her. Another world. She felt her lips curl into a soft smile, as she stretched a trembling hand out to catch a snowflake. "Isn't it beautiful James?" she heard herself say, turning to face the man standing next to her. It was David. But unlike the confused, amnesiatic David she knew. He was adorned in royal garb, a confident and loving smile plastered across his face as he took her hand. "Yes," he smiled, "beautiful white snow for the beautiful Snow White." He raised a gloved hand and brushed back a strand of her suddenly and bizarrely long hair. "I love you."

Mary Margaret returned to her kitchen with a start. She blinked her eyes several times, confirming that this was indeed reality. What was that that had just happened? A dream? A hallucination? Mary Margaret would normally pass it off as overtiredness, or just seeing things, but it struck chords with her. It reminded her of what Graham had said to her, and what Henry had been saying about the darn book for the longest time. And David….her mind wandered back to that night at the toll bridge. Instinctively, she felt her hand creep up to gently touch the ends of her short pixie cut. She'd had short hair as long as she could remember….however long that was. What Graham had said about his flashes….it was right. That did feel like a memory though. But not a memory she remembered.

"I'm…I'm just seeing things," she shook her head as if that could clear all the confusion from her mind. What is it that Dumbledore had said in the Harry Potter books? 'Do not dwell on dreams…' She was just overworked, mourning Graham, and tired. Another adjective crept into her mind.

"Lonely," she said softly, and looked around the empty apartment as if someone might overhear. Who was she kidding….there was and would be no one there. Christmas alone…again.

The sound of a key jiggling in the lock aroused Mary Margaret from her thoughts. Emma walked in, bearing arms full of grocery bags. "Hey," Emma greeted, "sorry I wasn't back sooner, there was a big line at the store and this woman in front of me would not shut up about the freaking mayonnaise being on sale and-"She paused for a moment and Mary Margaret felt the other woman give her a full body scan. "Is everything ok? You look, off."

Mary Margaret forced out a smile, shoving her confusion to the back burner for now. "I'm-I'm fine. Just admiring the snow. So beautiful!" She glanced briefly at the window again, then quickly turned back, remembering how the forest glade had looked with the snow gently falling.

"If you say so," Emma replied, shrugging off her red leather coat and hanging it on the hook by the door. "Speaking of snow, do you have any major plans for Christmas? It's only like 4 days away now. I mean, are you going to see family or something, because if I'm in the way in any way, let me know and I'll be out of here faster than you can say happy holidays."

But you have no family to go to either, Mary Margaret thought, but didn't comment. She'd noticed that Emma got touchy about her solitary lifestyle. "I actually don't have anybody to go visit," she said softly and turned around the rearrange the curtains on the window, trying to look busy.

"Nobody?" Emma asked.

"No, not really," Mary Margaret sighed.

"So all these years you've spent the holidays all alone?"

Mary Margaret didn't answer. She had spent the holidays alone, as long as she could remember. She had tried to reassure herself that she enjoyed the solitude, that it was peaceful, and a good time to get in touch with herself. But every year, she set up the little tree in the corner, made hot cocoa with cinnamon, and spent Christmas with only herself for company. Even this year, she had hoped that Dr. Whale might be that one person to at least keep her company over the holidays. But that had ended as quickly as it had started. She just couldn't get David out of that back corner of her mind. And any guy she was with deserved her full devotion. Dr. Whale had been a clean break, but that meant she once again descended into loneliness.

"If it's not too intrusive for me to ask," Emma continued, sitting on a stool at the counter across from her, "but where is your family anyways? Obviously not in Storybrooke."

Mary Margaret furrowed her brows and bit her lip. It took several moments before she replied. "I-I can't remember." It was odd, she searched through her mind, and nowhere was there any idea of a family. Just white noise, as if something was veiled.

Emma looked at her for a moment, and Mary Margaret was sure that the other woman was debating a nice way to say crazy. "What do you mean, you can't remember?" Emma hesitated at each word, as if she were unsure that she was even saying it.

"I mean," Mary Margaret looked up at the rafters, "I don't know. I don't remember anything….it's odd isn't it?" She giggled slightly, but it wasn't genuine. She racked her brain for something, anything that resembled a family or relations. There was just a big empty spot, like memories were once there but had been stolen.

"Hell yeah it's odd," Emma said, her face serious, "I heard Graham talking like this before….well. I thought he was just crazy. But everyone in this town is…." Mary Margaret figured Emma would say crazy, or off, or weird. "Different. I mean look at Henry's book, right? Don't tell me you're starting to think that you're Snow White now are you?" Emma laughed slightly at the sheer absurdity of it.

"No," Mary Margaret said softly, her face solemn as she remembered the vision in the snow. "No, I'm just horrible with memories. That's all. It's nothing more than that. "But even she didn't believe her own words, so the moment she spoke them she knew that Emma wouldn't either.

"I mean you don't really?" Emma raised her eyes questioningly, "Yeah there's a lot of weird stuff that happens here. Yes Graham made best friends with a wolf. Yes, something happened between you and David. Yes Regina's heart is blacker than ink. That doesn't mean that you're all fictional characters. I'm all for Henry being allowed to keep his fantasies, I think they're good for him, but first with Graham, and now you….whatever things you're seeing or remembering, they can't be real. I know that. And I know that you know that."

Mary Margaret felt Emma's gaze pierce her like a dagger. She hadn't for a minute actually thought she was anyone else…it was just some odd coincidences. That's all. Right. She tried to reassure herself, but the feel of David's warm hand on hers continued to creep into her mind. That moment had felt so right! So natural. More real than anything she had ever felt. And it scared her.

"So," Emma continued, taking Mary Margaret's silence as one of agreement, "that matter's done with now. Let's move on. Christmas!"

"Right," Mary Margaret sighed, "Christmas."

"I'll tell you that you won't be spending Christmas alone this year. I'm here, and I'm sure Henry will stop by. Maybe even Dr. Whale will come back into the picture," Emma winked not-so-subtly, but Mary Margaret was in no mood to return it. Her head was a maelstrom of emotions, confusion, and thoughts. Maybe tomorrow she would stop by Archie's office….see if he might be able to help make sense of the mess.

"You're right," Mary Margaret said, "and thank you. It will be a good holiday, I'm sure of it." Her voice was distant and lacked enthusiasm though, and it looked like Emma picked up on that, but the other woman didn't say anything.

"You'll make sense of it all," Emma said after a moment's silence, "eventually."

Mary Margaret deeply hoped so.