"I made a list!"
It was the morning of Christmas Eve and the breakfast rush had nearly dissipated at Granny's, the various townspeople of Storybrooke bustling off to finish their last minute holiday errands. Emma sat in her usual booth, the bottom of half of her face hidden behind a mug of cinnamon-dusted hot cocoa. The blonde choked on the next gulp as she heard Killian's voice exclaim across the diner, taken aback by the excitement and eagerness in his tone. Her eyes followed him suspiciously as he hurried towards her, setting down her mug carefully.
"A list?" She moved her gaze to the roll of parchment in his fist before flickering back to his borderline giddy expression, "What kind of list?"
He gave her a crooked grin; "Let me get that for you, love."
Killian leaned down towards her face and she froze, expecting him to meet her lips but was surprised as he kissed the remnants of whip cream from the tip of her nose instead.
"Mmm, cinnamon." He licked his lips as he sat in the seat across from her, setting the parchment between them. "List, right. Now, do you remember a few weeks ago when you told me that you never really had any Christmas traditions?"
"Since I moved around group homes as a kid that sort of stuff was pretty impossible, yea, what's your point?"
The pirate's grin grew wider, "Well darling, I have done you the honor of compiling a list of all the best Christmas traditions that we're going to do together. Today."
His finger tapped on the rolled out parchment and Emma picked it up, giving it a once over before she raised her eyebrows at the brunette.
"You want to do all of these things, today?"
"Every last one of them," He nodded.
"Wait," She looked back at the parchment, a smile finally creeping onto her lips. "Where did you even find half of these things?"
"Oh, that was easy. I went to the library and asked Belle to help me find books on the subject and wrote down the ones I thought you might enjoy most."
"Killian, 'pick out and decorate a Christmas tree'? It's already Christmas Eve I doubt there's much left to choose from. 'Build a gingerbread house'? 'Bake cookies to leave out for Santa'… 'Hide the Christmas pickle'... What the hell is a Christmas pickle?"
"I have no bloody idea. You apparently hide a pickle in the tree and whoever finds it first gets a prize. It doesn't matter Swan, we're doing these all today and you're going to have some traditions in your life."
Killian rose from his seat, holding out a leather-gloved hand to Emma with her favorite crooked smile. She couldn't help but give him a smile in return. She wished she could show him how truly excited she was for such a thoughtful gesture, but found it to be difficult since she had spent so many years guarding that part of her heart. Emma took his hand and squeezed it before interlocking their fingers, allowing him to lead her out of the diner apprehensive, but hopeful.
"Now, the first stop is the tree lot to find us the best Christmas tree to take home and decorate."
"Well I hope you're willing to compromise on what you'd consider to be the 'best' since it is the day before Christmas…"
"Swan don't be a such a…what did Belle call it? Ah, a Scrooge."
Emma barked out a laugh at Killian's sudden usage of her world's cultural references, leaning into his side to brace herself against his arm.
"Remind me to thank Belle for adding that to your vocabulary."
Killian's gaze swept over the flush in Emma's cheeks and the tendrils of gold that fell into her sight as she laughed; despite how cold it was outside, he suddenly didn't seem to mind. The pirate brought them to a halt in front of sad-looking tree lot scattered with broken twigs and needleless spruce and evergreens.
Emma patted his arm, "Killian, it was a sweet th—"
"Not so fast darling." He offered her a wink and nodded his head towards the side of the house at the back of the tree lot. Suspicion crept back onto her features, but she followed him anyway. As they rounded the corner of the home, Emma was greeted by a rather plump blue spruce, boxes of ornaments glinting up at her from its base.
"Killian—"
"Now, this is the only time today that I will agree that we don't have enough time to chop this lovely tree down, haul it back to your apartment and decorate it. It's also bloody hard to swing an axe with one good hand."
She laughed and shook her head, "You are full of surprises, Mr. Jones."
Emma bent down and plucked a red bauble from a box, delicately hanging it on a middle branch while Killian followed suit, the two of them slowly showering the tree with colorful Christmas glass. A light snow began to fall, but neither one of them seemed to notice, too focused on completing each other's choice of ornament placement. As they stepped back to admire their work, Killian looked down to memorize Emma's content expression. With fresh snowflakes in her hair, lips slightly reddened from the cold air, the pirate resisted the urge to grab her face and kiss her senseless, until suddenly she was meeting his gaze with a furrowed brow.
"What about the Christmas pickle?"
His smile turned smug, "You have to find it to win the prize."
"You mean you already hid it!?" She shoved him playfully before pushing around the branches of the tree, peering inside for any sign of green that wasn't part of the spruce.
"I doubt you'll find it, love, I hid it very w—"
"Found it!" Her head and arms had disappeared into the girth of the tree, reaching towards a back branch. "Oh God, this a real pickle, Killian! Gross, how long has this been in here?!"
She shimmied herself out of the branches, tossing a now mushed pickle onto the snow.
"Why do you think I thought the game was so strange? Who would honestly hide food inside a tree for children to find?"
Emma took off her gloves and shoved them into the back of her jeans, giving up on removing the pickle residue from them. She blew warm air onto her palms, "So then, what's my prize?"
"Another cup of hot cocoa at Granny's, since that is our next stop." He pulled her hands to his lips and kissed the back of each, the warmth of his breath spreading goose bumps across her flesh.
The pair hurried back to Granny's since the snowfall increased, the temperature dropping further. The bell jingled as the door closed behind them and Emma made her way back to her usual booth, but found it was cluttered with the various materials that would eventually assemble a gingerbread house.
"You have accomplices helping you in your shenanigans." Emma turned on him accusingly.
Killian raised his hand and hook in mock surrender, "Guilty as charged, love. Now, we've got a candy house to build."
As they sat down, a waitress brought over two mugs of hot cocoa, the whip cream dusted with Emma's signature cinnamon. It became clear that when it came to assembling edible houses, they were not a good pair, as their activity dissolved into playful banter, an overuse of frosting, and an exploding bag of gumdrops that scattered all over the table and floor. Emma lost count of the mugs of hot cocoa that were refilled, and before she knew it, the light outside the diner's windows had faded and they were the only ones left in the restaurant. They settled into a comfortable silence until Killian cleared his throat and smiled at the blonde softly.
"Come on Swan, I'll walk you home. You've got one more tradition on the list to finish."
She slid out of the booth, taking his offered hand once more, "But what about the cookies for Santa?" She mocked his earlier excited tone.
"To hell with Santa's cookies." The pirate huffed, tugging her out into the cold as the sounds of her laughter trailed behind him. The two walked down Main St. huddled against each other, Killian's arm around her shoulders tightly.
Emma's new apartment wasn't too far from the home she used to share with her parents, but it provided enough distance and privacy to keep herself sane during her moments alone…or when Killian came over. She could feel her heart beat faster as they walked up the steps to her front door, fingers fumbling for the keys in her jacket pocket.
"I don't think you'll be able to come in for too long, Henry is—"
"At grandma and grandpa's home." The brunette finished the sentence for her, smiling up at Emma's surprised expression from two steps down. He nodded at her front door, "Come now, Swan, there's one more tradition I promised you."
Emma turned back towards the door, turning the key until it clicked and pushing it open. Instead of finding a dark apartment, she was greeted by the hundreds of twinkling lights on a Christmas tree, presents strewn over the skirt below it. The fireplace crackled, and above it on the mantle were photo frames filled with pictures of Henry, her parents; even one of herself holding her new baby brother. She felt that familiar prick in the corner of her eyes as Killian came up behind her, helping the jacket down from her shoulders.
"Killian, when…how did you?"
He tossed the jacket over the arm of a nearby chair, "Well, I know you haven't lived in here long, but I figured I'd help you start to make this more of a home."
The blonde sniffled, a little embarrassed that his surprise had overwhelmed her this much. She slowly turned to face him, shrugging her shoulders with a shaky smile, "I would have gotten around to it, eventually."
Killian closed the distance between them, sliding his fingertips along her cheek as he cupped the side of her face.
"I know you would have, love," He smiled softly, "I just wanted to be a part of it. Now," His thumb wiped away a newly formed tear, "If you look up you'll find my last tradition."
The blonde's gaze followed his and her face lit up as she laughed, not completely surprised to find mistletoe hanging above them. Her hands clutched the lapels of his leather jacket, pulling him as close to her as possible.
"Oh Killian," Emma smiled, "You don't need some silly Christmas plant for permission to kiss me."
"Is that so? Well I'm happy to hear that since I'm done messing about with festive plants and pickles and edible hou—"
Emma leaned up and kissed him into silence, his fingers slipping back into her loose blonde curls. As Killian began to pull away, Emma's teeth tugged at his lower lip, eliciting a groan from the pirate. Her arms slipped around his neck, lips sliding along the stubble of his jaw.
"Merry Christmas, Killian." The blonde whispered against his skin.
"Oh, it will be."
And before Emma could resist, Killian dipped down and wrapped his arm around her waist, heaving her over his shoulder and carrying her towards the back bedroom. She couldn't hold back her laughter, playfully smacking his back in an attempt to get him to put her down; but it was useless.
"I didn't see this on the tradition list, Killian!" Emma's squeal was met with his laughter as the bedroom door closed.
"Well it bloody well should be!"