Twelve years ago, December 24.

It was Christmas and, for the Nolan family, Christmas always meant having all the friends and family in the big house. The Lucas, the Jones, the Arendelle... Everyone was there, except for the Swans who were supposedly on their way. The kids, all around the same age, were playing in David's playroom. The adults were all gathered in the living room with a cup of tea, listening to Granny's good old story. That woman had so much history to tell each year everyone could have swear she was at least hundred years old, which she probably was. From time to time, you could hear the house-elf telling the children not to touch this or that. You could felt that it was Christmas with the ambience in the room.

When the phone start ringing, Ruth Nolan knew something was wrong. She could feel it. First, no one ever called on this phone and, second, she always tell everyone only to call it if it was an emergency. "Hello?"

"Ruth?" The voice was shaking so much that Ruth couldn't even recognize who it was. "It's Maleficent. Something terrible happened. The Swans..." Her voice broke before she could even finish her sentence.

"What? What happened?"

"They got attacked. They're dead. I have Emma with me. The poor girl... When I got here it was too late, the place was an absolute mess," Maleficent managed to say still in a total state of panic.

"Oh god, this can't be happening." The tears were forming in her eyes. The Swans, her close friends, were dead. "Okay, please try to breathe. You can come here if you want, don't stay alone with Emma and your daughter. I'll tell everyone."

"Thank you Ruth."

Today, September 1.

"DAVID!" Emma yelled from her bedroom. In the kitchen, Ruth couldn't help but laughed at the scene she had lived so many times in the last few years. Her son had this habit to try everything he could to tease Emma. Over all those years Emma Swan had lived with the Nolan after her parents got killed, David and Emma had became really close. David, having a year older, saw Emma like his little sister and was very protective of her, which she didn't really appreciate. She was seventeen now and hated that he was always in the way. She just wanted a little peace and liberty for her last year in Hogwarts. And that was apparently too much to ask. She just hope that, once she would be at school, it wouldn't be this way anymore. After all, for the first time, she would be away without David that had finish school last year.

"Good morning mother. Isn't it a beautiful day today?" David said, sitting at the table with his mother with the biggest smile on his face.

"What have you done this time?"

"Me? Oh, barely nothing."

"David! What the fresh hell is this? Ruby just told me that you threaten Killian? We aren't even dating! What is wrong with you?" Emma exclaimed as she enter the room in a furious rage, dragging her brother by force into the living room. She felt like what they were about to talk about wasn't something she wanted her mother to hear.

"Well, I thought you did after what Mary Margaret told me from last week party at Ruby's," David said with a little smile.

"That traitor!" Emma exclaimed more to herself than otherwise.

"Oh, don't blame her. You know she is the worst at keeping secret." David said to justify Mary Margaret action.

"Still, that doesn't change the fact that I am not dating Killian. It was a onetime thing."

"Oh, please. I don't want details!"

"Oh, really, you're sure? Because you seem to be very interested in my private life for someone who doesn't want details."

"I'm not interested in your private life!" David declared. "I just don't want you to be hurt by some stupid Slytherin arse like Killian Jones."

"What?" Emma scoffed. "Weren't you two like best friends not like three years ago?"

"That was before he became an asshole just so you know."

"Oh, yeah, sure. You just don't know him," Emma said, defending her friend.

"Just so you know, I know him better than you do sis'. Do I have to remind you that I saw this guy trying to shag my little sister while she was almost black out drunk?"

"SHUT UP!" Emma yelled. Now that was enough. First, he intruded her private life and now he came back on this story. She took her wand from her pocket, ready to hex him.

"What? You wouldn't want mother to overhear what you do when Gryffindor wins Quidditch game?" He too now got his wand out. He didn't planned on hurting her, just defending himself.

"No, David!" she hissed. "If you would listen to me for once, you'll finally understand that this is not how it happened!"

"Enough kids!" Ruth shouted entering in the room. "I don't want any of you to get hurt or you to be mad at each other until Christmas."

"Sorry mother," they both said.

"Now, Emma go dress yourself and make sure you packed everything. And David, you stay here and eat your breakfast. I don't want you to disturb your sister while she's getting ready for her last year in Hogwarts."

ϟ ϟ ϟ

The Nolan family had just arrived at the platform 9¾ when they heard someone yelled from the crowd. "EMMA!"

"ELSA!" The two blondes ran into each other's arms. Elsa Arendelle had been Emma's best friend since they were only kids. They had later happily end up in the same house on their first year and since had been totally inseparable. People often mistake them for sisters. "Oh my God! You have to tell me everything about your summer! How was New York?" Each year, the Arendelles, which meant Elsa, her parents and her little sister Anna, visited big places in the world. Last year, they had gone to Tokyo and this year it was the Big Apple.

"Oh no, my dear. Don't you dare even think for a second that, because I wasn't here all summer, I don't know what happened at Ruby's between you and Killian," Elsa said with a knowing smile, wiggling her eyebrows.

"Merlin!" Emma cursed, not really wanting to go back on this subject, even though with her best friend it would be really different. "Does everyone knows? First, David and now, you."

"There is not the question. Are you two finally together?" Elsa asked with anticipation.

"No," Emma said with a touch of sadness in her voice. "Rumor has it that he is back with Lily."

"Oh girl, I'm so sorry. You've had feelings for him for so long, I thought that this time was the one. You would deserve to be happy," Elsa said looking really sad for her best friend. "Do you want me to kick his ass? Because you know I can easily make him pay for that."

"No, it's fine." With the look that her best friend shoot her, Emma knew that Elsa didn't believe her. "No, really Elsa, it's fine. I can promise you that."

"If you say so," Elsa surrendered. "I'll go say goodbye to my family. See you in the train?"

"Yeah! Same place as always." With that, Emma turned around to face her family. Ruth was talking with Mary Margaret's parents while David was holding his girlfriend as close as he physically could. It was almost too cute to interrupt. Almost. "Hey David!" Emma said loud enough to make them both jump. David backed away from Mary Margaret and looked at Emma.

"Come here and give me a hug little sis'," David said, opening his arms for her. "Promise me you won't do too many mistakes," he whispered in her ear.

"You know me, I can't promise that," she laughed as she backed away. "Merlin! It's going to be weird not having you around this year."

"Ah. I'm sure you won't miss having me on your back all the time," David joked.

"Yeah, I'm not going to miss it a bit, but still I will miss my brother."

"Oh, come on, we won't get all emotional on this Em'," David said with a little laugh to hide the fact that he too was going to miss her while she would be alone at home. He wouldn't want his reputation of tough guy to be ruined. "I'll see at Christmas sis'."

ϟ ϟ ϟ

Getting into the train was always something a bit tricky when you were in the last ones to entered as the train was leaving King's Cross. Everyone was rushing to find a compartment still available. The first years were both excited and terrified and running like crazy in the train. Still, it was one of the things Killian Jones was going to miss the most about going to Hogwarts. He loved seeing the crowd of young and naive wizards being all excited about all this liberty they now had away from home. He loved the feeling that, for once in his life, he wasn't alone.

Walking through the alley, Killian saw in front of him the beautiful blonde he hadn't saw since that one night at his friend's party the week before. He didn't had the courage to write her after that night. Seeing her there was very different. He walked faster, only thinking about reaching her. "Swan," he said when he finally got to her side. She was about to enter the cabin she was going to share with her best friends before she turned around to face him.

"Hey Killian," she greeted him with that smile of hers that he swear could have light up the whole world. Of all the girl in the world, Emma Swan was without a doubt the only one that could make his heart race this way, the only one that could make him smile this way, the only one with whom he could really feel happiness. But he knew he could never be with her. He wasn't someone it would be good to date.

"So, you're ready for seventh year?" Killian asked.

"Yeah, well, it's finally last year. If it weren't for the N.E.W.T.s and everything, I would be much more ready," Emma said with a little laugh. He approved with a smile and the fell into a silence. It wasn't a weird and awkward silence. It was comfortable and sweet. "So, I heard David talked to you."

"Yeah. Well, talking isn't really what I would have called this," Killian chuckled remembering his little chat with David.

"Dear lord," she sighed. "I'm so sorry about that. He really can act like some stupid arse sometimes. I'm really embarrassed right now."

"Don't be. He just wanted to protect you from me," he said, his voice low. She looked at him like a third eye had appeared on his face.

"No one needs to protect me. I can protect myself," Emma exclaimed, clearly insulted.

"I know that Swan. That's not what I meant."

"And what did you-" the blonde start before being interrupted by another Slytherin, Regina Mills.

"Hey Killian! I found a place with Tink and Will if you want to come," Regina said smiling.

"I heard you're Head Girl, Regina?" Emma asked the girl. "Congrats!"

"Thank you. I always thought I never would have had a chance as Head Girl," she said, looking really proud of herself. "And here I am. Anyway, I'm going to go to that compartment. You coming Jones?"

"Sure. I'll see you at Hogwarts Swan," he said as he follow his friends through the train alley.

"So, you and Emma? Well, again?" Regina asked him once they arrived the compartment where their friends were sitting.

"No. I told you, it will never happen. She deserve way better than me."

"Your brain should deliver the message to the rest of your body, you know," Regina scoffed.

"Oh Killian, how many times do we have to tell you. You are worth so much more that you think you are. I know you may feel lonely most of the time, but you are not. If I may, I'll speak for all of us, your friends. We love you. And Merlin knows Emma does too. You deserve love. So, please, do us all a favor. Either stop talking about that or make a move," said the small blonde sitting by the window. This voice of reason was Tink - of her full name Fae Tinker. Even if she was smaller than some Second Years, everyone knew that the blonde could be very scary sometimes. In the compartment, Tink was the only non-Slytherin student. The Ravenclaw had more friends in other house than her own, especially the Slytherin.

"Whatever you say Tink," Killian said as he seated beside his best friend Will Scarlett.