Season 1 Episode 1

"Come on hun, we have to get going or mom's going to be late for her first day of work." She pokes the little girls nose making her scrunch up her face adorably. "And you'll be late for your first day of school. Kindergartens a big day."

The little girl giggles and then pauses, looking a little nervous. "I thought uncle Derek was coming with us. He promised a treat."

Margo lowers herself to the little girls height by getting onto her knees and comfortingly places her hands onto her shoulders. "Don't be nervous, my love. All the other kids at school are going to love you. You're going to make so many friends and have so much fun."

"You didn't answer my question, mommy." The little girl slightly pouts.

Margo chuckles and gently caresses her cheek. "Nothing gets past you does it?" When the little girl only waits for her to continue she sighs with a soft smile. "You know your uncle Derek... He wouldn't miss this day for the world. I bet he was on his way here but-"

"But he had to save someone's life!" The little girl gasps with wide eyes full of excitement. "Because uncle Derek's a super hero!"

Margo's smile widens at the pure admiration in the little girls eyes. She sure loved her uncle Derek. "Yes, I'm sure of it."

Aurora taps her chin looking like she was in deep thought. "Hmm, fine. But he has to give me a treat later."

"I will make sure of it." Margo chuckles, she stands to her feet and holds her hand out for the little girl to take, once she does Margo nods her head toward the door. "Now let's get going. School awaits."

And as both of them walk out of the door, Margo glances at the picture frame of four adults and a newborn baby. Three males looking absolutely stoked with their mouths wide open as if they had been shouting and a very tired but happy woman smiling down at her new born baby. All four adults looking nothing but excited for the future. "Wish me luck." Margo whispers as she closes the door.

•

Margo tries to take everything in as she clips her name badge to her lab coat. She had toured Seattle Grace Hospital to get a lay of the land a week or so prior but it now felt so surreal.

"Margo!"

Turning around, a smile slowly grows on her face. "Derek." She shakes her head. "A certain four year old is now expecting double the treats the next time she sees you."

"I'm so sorry." He shakes his head. "It-its a long story."

"No worries." She assures placing a gentle hand on his arm as he catches his breath from running over toward her. "According to Aurora it's fine because you were on your way when you needed to stop and save a life."

"And according to you?" He questions hesitantly.

"I know you didn't have a shift and you weren't on call last night so I expect some answers at some point." She slyly inputs.

He huffs, slumping in defeat. "Nothing ever gets past you, does it?"

"Even a brain tumor the size of Texas wouldn't be enough to stop you from seeing her off on her first day of school. Plus, where do you think your niece got her smarts from?" She jokes.

"Yeah, yeah." He waves her off before his face becomes a little more serious. "How are you adjusting?"

Margo's smile dims just slightly, but Derek notices. He always notices. She bites her lip trying it to push down the feelings threatening to arise. "I- I'm good."

Derek's eyes fall to the floor for a second before meeting her soft guarded eyes once again. "He would be so proud of you, you know?"

"I need to get to rounds." She gives him a bright yet forced smile. "I'm sure there's a nurse or resident looking for me somewhere to update me on my new work load."

"Margo-" Derek sighs in resignation when she swiftly kisses his cheek and begins walking away. "Dinner tonight?" He shouts.

"Aurora would expect nothing less!" She responds with out turning around. He softly smiles at her retreating figure.

•

Margo had been prepped by a very nice nurse named Tyler for the better part of the morning before she spent her early afternoon introducing herself to all of the patients she would be taking over for. She was now standing at the nurses station quickly skimming over the charts of a patient just brought in today. Katie Bryce.

Margo lifts her head as she hears a throat being cleared. The source of the noise seems to come from a shorter woman with a dead pan expression. "Hi, can I help you?" She kindly questions.

"Miranda Bailey, ma'am. Third year resident. I am going to assume you're the new attending, female Dr. Shepherd." The woman states.

"I am." Margo nods before scrunching her nose. "Female doctor Shepherd?"

"Well, there are two of you." Miranda says as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"Right, that's going to get confusing." She shakes her head. "You can call me Margo."

Miranda eyes the woman up and down unsure of how she felt about the woman as of now. "Margo, have you been informed of your new case? Katie Bryce?"

Margo flips the chart in her hands so that Miranda can see it. "I just received the charts a few minutes ago actually."

"My intern, Meredith Grey, has been assigned to the case. Feel free to page her for anything you need." Miranda bluntly states before walking away with out any warning.

Margo watches her leave with a confused expression. "Okay..." Taking a look at the room number on the top of her papers she takes a deep breath. "You got this."

As she gets closer to the room she's just close enough to catch sigh of Derek and multiple nurses running into the room. Her eyes widen and she sprints into the room right behind him.

"What the hell happened?" Derek curses at the intern she guessed was Meredith Grey.

"She had a seizure, and-" the intern begins but Derek barely lets her get a word in, Margo felt sympathy for the girl as she remembers this is also the interns first day. "A seizure?"

"Her heart stopped." Meredith finished.

"You were supposed to be monitoring her." Derek angrily accuses.

"Derek." Margo steps up to try and calm the man but it was no use.

"I checked on her and she-" Again the intern tries to explain herself as Margo checks over the medication administered.

"I got it. Just go." Derek snaps. "Someone give me her chart, please?"

As Meredith walks out of the room with a frustrated expression adorning her face Margo shakes her head at Derek. "That was harsh. She couldn't have predicted this."

"She should have been-" Derek starts to defend himself but pauses at the look on her face. The same look a scolding parent gives their child. "Too harsh. Got it."

Margo nods her head letting him know she would be back in just a minute and slightly rushes out of the room to try and catch up with the intern. "Dr. Grey!"

Meredith pauses mid stride and despite the urge to keep going she didn't want another attending to hate her just yet. She tensely turns around. "Look... I have been watching her for over half of the day and there was no indication-"

"That she was going to have another seizure?" Margo finished with a motherly smile. "I know. I also know you responded to the situation quickly and efficiently. I just came to tell you that you did a good job."

"Uh-um." Meredith stumbles over her words in shock. "Thank you?"

Margo chuckles at the interns surprise and holds her hand out. "Margo Shepherd."

"Shepherd?" The girls eyes nearly bulge out of her head.

Margo nods, watching the interns wide eyes become even wider as it travels from her ring finger back to her face. "I just recently started here and I have a feeling we'll be seeing a lot of each other. Figured we should at least be aquatinted."

"Right." Meredith nods, as if in a daze. Before she can even blink, Margo is in front of her feeling her forehead with the back of her palm. "Are you okay, Dr. Grey?"

Meredith slightly stumbles back. "No-uh yeah. I have to go."

Margo watches the girl stumble down the hall only glancing back at her once before practically sprinting down the hall. She shakes her head as she walks back into the room. Looking toward Derek she laughs good heartedly. "Weird girl."

Derek's eyes widen and he glues his eyes back to his paper. "Yup."

•

After informing the parents of the incident Derek and Margo as the girls primary doctors and Meredith as the girls assigned intern stand around the patient discussing her prior diagnosis.

"You said it was a seizure disorder. Now you're saying it isn't?" The father argues, Margo feels for the parents. She couldn't imagine what they must feel like not being able to help their daughter.

"I'm saying that I don't know." Derek admits.

"Well, what do you think it could be?" The mother questions.

"I don't know." Derek once again responds.

"Wait one damn minute. We came here because this hospital is supposed to be the best in Washington. That's my kid in there. My kid. And you have the audacity to stand here and tell me I don't know?" The father yells, pointing a finger a few inches away from Derek's face. Margo takes a step closer to both men feeling the need to deescalate the situation herself.

"No, I want someone else. A doctor who knows what they're doing. You get me someone else. Someone better than you." The father demands.

Taking another step in front of Derek, Margo's eyes are full of sympathy and understanding. "Mr. Bryce... Please trust that we have the best doctors on the case and that we are going to exhaust every resource possible to figure out what is happening to Katie. I, myself am a mother and I will fight for your daughter just as hard as I would mine."

Both parents look hesitant but a lot more calm than a few seconds prior. "One more day. One more day and we move her." The father says looking back at his wife for assurance. She nods and Margo softly smiles at the two. "That's all we ask."

Derek smiles at woman. Little did the two know that Meredith Greys complexion had become ten shades whiter after she heard the doctor talk about her daughter.

•

"Well good morning. I'm going to do something pretty rare for a surgeon, I'm going to ask interns for help. I've got this kid, Katie Bryce. Right now, she's a mystery. She doesn't respond to her meds. Labs are clean, scans are pure, but she's having seizures. Grand mal seizures with no visible cause. She's a ticking clock. She's going to die, if I don't make a diagnosis. Which is where you come in. I can't do it alone. I need your extra minds, extra eyes, I need you to play detective, I need you to find out why Katie is having seizures. I know you're tired, you're busy, you've got more work than you could possibly handle. I understand. So, I'm going to give you an incentive. Whoever finds the answer rides with me. Katie needs surgery. You get to do what no interns get to do. Scrub in to assist on an advanced procedure. Dr Bailey's going to hand you Katie's chart. The clock is ticking fast, people. If we're going to save Katie's life, we have to do it soon." Derek finishes his speech before gesturing to Margo knowing she'd want to say some words as well.

"Good morning!" She smiles at the room packed with interns, noticing Meredith in the crowd. Meredith ducks her head down as they make eye contact and Margo raises a brow but doesn't want to cause a scene. "I am also Dr. Shepherd but you may just call me Margo to forego any confusion. I am a primary doctor on Katie's case and as many of you may not know due to how recent I've joined your team, I am the new head of peds and co head of cardio along with Dr. Burke. Dr. Shepherd and I will be working very closely on the case to ensure Katie is getting the best possible care and I am here for you all if you have any questions."

Lots of eyes widen in confusion. The head of two different departments was unheard of. A certain black haired Asians eyes sparkle with interest as the word cardio echos in her brain.

•

Derek hands Margo a coffee as the two walk toward the elevator. "Hey you know that intern that you reamed earlier? Meredith Grey?"

Derek freezes for a moment but quickly collects himself. "What about her?"

"I think she's afraid of me." Margo expresses with a perplexed expression. She turns toward the man. "I'm not... scary right?"

Derek sputters out a laugh. "Of course not Angel. You're the kindest person I've ever met."

And now it's Margo's turn to slightly freeze up. Derek's face drops. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to call you that."

"No." She shakes her head with a small smile. "No, please it's okay. It's been two years."

"Three in a few months." Derek quietly whispers as he hits the elevator button waiting for it to come down.

Margo shakes the sad thoughts from her head. "Anyway, I swear Grey is avoiding me. She ducked when I looked at her earlier and I swear when I spoke to her for the first time she practically ran away from me."

Derek's expression becomes thoughtful. Before he can comment on it what sounds like a heard of elephants come running toward them. He slightly steps in front of Margo as she peeks her head over his shoulder curiously.

"Oh, oh, Dr. Shepherd! Just one moment, um, uh, Katie competes in beauty pageants -" The Asian intern starts but she's interrupted. "I know that, but we have to save her life anyway."

She shakes her head. "Okay, she has no headaches, no neck pain, her CT's clean, there's no medical proof of an aneurysm but what if she has an aneurysm anyway?"

Derek shakes his head and Margo thinks a little harder on it. But she lets it go ultimately trusting Derek's opinion because she's not the neurosurgeon. "There are no indicators."

"Ah, but she twisted her ankle, a few weeks ago when she was practising for the pageant."

"Look, I appreciate you're trying to help, but -" Derek denies, pausing when Meredith speaks. "She fell. When she twisted her ankle, she fell."

"It was no big deal, not even a bump on the head, you know she got right back up, iced her ankle and everything was fine, it was a fall so minor her doctor didn't even think to mention it when I was taking her history, but she did fall." Cristina tries to explain again.

"Well, you know the chances that a minor fall could burst an aneurysm, one in a million! Literally." Derek exclaims, unsure why he's still having this conversation.

The elevator door is finally allowed to close. Meredith and Cristina sigh and turn away.

"Derek." Margo urges. Like she had said before, she trusted his medical opinion. But sometimes the man could be a little closed minded and she promised these parents she would fight for their daughter.

The elevator dings and Derek steps out with Margo sporting a proud smile. "Let's go." Derek orders.

"Where?" The two girls question.

"To find out if Katie's one in a million." Margo beams.

•

They all stand inside of a room examining the scans. "I'll be damned." Derek whispers. "It's minor, but it's there. It's a cerebachnoid haemorrhage. She's bleeding into her brain."

They all walk out of the room to the nurses desk. "She could've gone her entire life without it ever being a problem. One tap in the right spot and explode. Now I have to fix it. You two did great work. Love to stay and kiss your asses, but I gotta tell Katie's parents she's having surgery. Katie Bryce's chart, please."

"Oh, and Dr Sheppard, you said that you'd pick someone to scrub in if we helped." Cristina eagerly reminds the man.

Derek briefly glances at the two but his eyes linger on Meredith. "Oh, yes, right. Um, I'm sorry I can't take you both, it's going to be a full house. Meredith, I'll see you in OR."

Margo narrows her eyes at the man in confusion. This whole time Cristina had been the one pushing the most, she had been the one conversing while Meredith stood back trying to make herself invisible. He should've picked Cristina.

As he walks away Margo debates on following him but decides against it. She turns towards the two shocked interns. "Very nice job ladies. Both of you."

•

Later on the brunette stands in the gallery as Derek is about to start Katie's surgery knowing she needed to head back home to her daughter but also wanting to be there for him.

He looks up to Margo and smiles. "All right everybody, it's a beautiful night to save lives, let's have some fun."

Margo's breath hitches and tears well in her eyes. Flashes of a man eerily similar to Derek take his place.

"It's a beautiful day to save lives ladies and gentleman, let's get to it."

Margo holds a hand to her chest as the man fades away and Derek once again takes his place.

It was like he was right there with them.

'Thank you' She mouths.

He nods in response knowing he had a mask covering his mouth and she wouldn't be able to see him respond anyway.

•

"Im so tired, momma." Aurora yawns as they enter the house.

"The sitter said you guys had a ton of fun after school today, Hun. You must be exhausted, why don't we head right up for bed?" She quietly suggests.

The little girl simply nods her head holding her hands up, letting her mother know she was done walking for the day. Margo lightly giggles at her daughters antics and gently picks her up. After getting the girl changed into her pajamas she lays her down on the bed and tucks her in.

Within minutes the little girl is down for the count and Margo brushes the hair out of her face glancing at the photo frame of a man holding a one year old Aurora. She kisses the girls forehead. "Goodnight Babygirl, we love you." She whispers, gently closing the door behind her with a heavy heart.

A/N: Leave a comment with your thoughts on the chapter/ Book