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Nicole hunched over her desk, diligently filling out paperwork. Trying to complete forms in such a way as to plausibly reflect the evidence without revealing supernatural origins was a tedious (but, as Dolls kept reminding her) critical task. Or so she kept telling herself.
There was a loud rap on the doorway. “Haught.”
She looked up to see Dolls in the entrance. Speak of the devil. “Yep?”
Dolls straightened and placed his hands behind his back. “We’re going to need your assistance in transport.”
“Transport?” Nicole asked incredulously.
“Specifically transporting one lead researcher home who is currently asleep in the Black Badge office.”
At that, Nicole couldn’t quite suppress a grin. Dolls just rolled his eyes. “Come on.” He turned briskly and headed down the hall, Nicole hurrying to catch up.
Sure enough, there was Waverly, head pillowed in her arms on a table covered in research files. Nicole couldn’t help leaning against the doorway to take in the sight. Waverly was fast asleep, hair slightly mussed and covering her face in the most endearing way…
“Hey, Officer Heart Eyes.”
Nicole turned to Wynonna, who was casually propped against the wall, donut in hand. At that, Nicole raised an eyebrow. “Donuts? At midnight?”
Wynonna just waved her off with her free hand. “Don’t complain. You’ll get one when you return from your transport mission,” she emphasized with air quotations, looking pointedly at Dolls.
“This is the Black Badge division. A place for official, professional investigation. Not nap-time.” He turned to Nicole. “Please drop Waverly off at the homestead and come right back here. We need to go over some potential problems that we believe might develop in the next few days. Problems that the local authorities may misinterpret.” He drew out the last word for emphasis, tilting his head slightly.
Nicole shook her head. “Seriously, there’s no need to be so cryptic. I know what you mean.” She glanced over at Waverly and a soft smile filled her face. “But I will gladly accept the… critical transport mission.”
She walked over to Waverly’s sleeping form and paused. She just looked so darn peaceful… With a sigh she wrapped one arm around Waverly’s shoulders and the other behind her knees, picking her up bridal style and turning towards the door.
Wynonna rolled her eyes. “Seriously? What are you, some heroine from a cheap romance novel?”
Nicole’s brows furrowed slightly, but immediately softened when Waverly stirred in her arms. Squinting, Waverly took in the sight of Nicole right above her. She smiled, burrowing into Nicole’s neck. “My unicorn…”
Wynonna paused and looked from Waverly to Nicole. “What did she say?”
Nicole’s face flushed. “Absolutely nothing.” She hurriedly proceeded out the door, Dolls following behind her, stoic as ever.
“Whatever you say,” Wynonna called after her. “But absolutely no funny business! I expect you right back here in half an hour unicorn.”
Nicole groaned internally. She could feel her cheeks turning beet red. Why oh why did Waverly have to use that pet name... Waverly stirred again and nuzzled against her. Nicole glanced down at her and smiled. Whatever. This was totally worth any amount of teasing that Wynonna could dish out.
As they approached Nicole’s cruiser Dolls opened the door so she could gently deposit Waverly in the passenger seat. “Thanks Dolls.”
“No problem Haught.” He turned back to the station. “Good luck.”
Nicole swung open her own door. “Don’t worry. The package will be delivered safely, entirely intact.”
She could almost sense Dolls’ eye roll. Grinning, Nicole climbed into the cruiser and started the engine.
“Mmm not a package…” Waverly murmured from beside her, eyes still closed.
Nicole swore she almost melted from the cuteness. She looked down at her softly as she pulled out of the station lot. “You’re whatever you want to be Wave. Whatever you want to be…”
//
The ride to the homestead was relaxing. Almost cathartic really. Waverly was peacefully snuggled up against the window, back to her slumber. The roads were empty, leaving them in the kind of solitude that was more comforting than lonely. It was a clear night, with stars practically gleaming overhead. Nicole almost didn’t care that she had the night shift.
As such, she reluctantly pulled up to the homestead, turning towards Waverly once more to gaze upon the adorable bliss. Nicole sighed. It seemed a shame to disturb her. But, orders were orders.
Quietly, she exited the car and walked over to Waverly’s side, opening the door and carefully extracting her from the car. She began to head towards the front porch, moving as softly as possible.
“Nicole?”
“Hmm?” She looked down in surprise to see Waverly’s eyes meeting her own.
“I’m awake now. I can walk.”
Nicole paused for a moment. “Do you want to?”
At that, Waverly glanced down sheepishly. “Not really, no.”
Nicole grinned. “Well then, I’ll just take you inside.” Waverly smiled and tucked back against Nicole’s shoulder. With long strides Nicole brought the two of them to the front door. She stopped, eyes darting from the door to her hands. “Wave… I don’t think I really thought this through. I don’t… have a key.”
Waverly smiled. “Go ahead and put me down. I’ve got it from here.” Reluctantly, Nicole complied.
Waverly fished out her keys and unlocked the door. She turned back to Nicole. “Thanks for bringing me back here. You can tell Dolls the package says you did an A+ job.” She gave Nicole a quick kiss on the cheek. Nicole blushed, dimples showing. “Well… you know he recruited the best delivery service in Purgatory.”
Waverly giggled, watching as Nicole stepped back into her cruiser. “And don’t let Wynonna eat all the donuts!”
“Don’t worry, I won’t!”
Nicole grinned and began to pull out, glancing at her rearview mirror to see Waverly Earp waving and smiling at her from the front porch. Nicole sighed and brought her eyes back to the road. Yes, she could really get used to that sight.