A/N: I've had a "Snow and Charming are being exhausting with wedding planning and Emma needs a break so Killian takes them out on the Jolly Roger and they have a secret wedding with just the two of them" headcanon so long and canon gave me the opportunity to write this. Also I've had Killian's vows written for literally a year and wanted to work them into something eventually so here you go.
It has made me better loving you ... it has made me wiser, and easier, and brighter. -Henry James
Emma stood at the bow of the Jolly Roger, breathing in the relaxing scent of the cool, salty air. The wind was pleasant and the temperature surprisingly warm for how close the sun was to the horizon. Most importantly, the only sound was the creaking of the ship and the gentle crash of the waves below her feet. She loved her parents, truly she did, but with their arguing over wedding plans and their stubborn refusals to compromise even a little, she had just needed a break. Killian, being the incredibly intuitive man that he was, had suggested taking the ship out, and she had agreed almost before the question was out of his mouth.
She heard his footsteps on the deck behind her moments before he wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed his nose into the crook of her neck. Her eyes drifted closed, revelling in the peace and security of being in his arms.
"Thank you for this," she murmured. "I know they mean well, but if I have to hear one more argument about where we should get married or what food to have or whatever argument they're having now I might just rip my hair out."
"We wouldn't want that now, would we," Killian chuckled, rubbing his thumb over her hip. "I wonder if they feel like they have to make up for lost time and that's why they're both being so insistent." The way he said it made it sound more like a question than a statement.
"I'm sure that's part of it. I wish it wasn't this difficult though. I don't care where we get married or where we go for dinner afterwards. I just want to be married to you already," she said softly.
Killian was quiet behind her, and Emma could practically hear him thinking. She opened her mouth to ask him what was weighing on him so heavily, but he spoke before she had the chance.
"So let's get married. Right now, just the two of us," he said.
Emma balked a little, and turned to look at him. "What, seriously? Right now?" she asked. She could tell he was almost as surprised as she was by the suggestion, but in an instant he resolved himself and pressed on.
"Why not? Don't try to tell me you didn't love the idea of getting married on the Jolly Roger. I'm a ship's captain, I can marry us. We don't need fancy clothes or witnesses or any of it as long as we have each other," he smiled.
Emma stared back at him, searching for any hint that he was anything other than absolutely serious. He met her eyes unwaveringly, a slow, genuine smile forming at the corners of his mouth and she knew in that moment she had never wanted anything more. She nodded, muttering a soft "okay" before he stepped back and practically skipped across the deck towards the helm.
"Where are you going, I thought we were getting married?" she laughed.
"You don't have your dress and I don't have your wedding ring or that tie your mother wants me to wear, the least we can do is have you walk down the aisle, metaphorical as it may be," he said, gesturing to the empty deck and the noticeable lack of anything resembling an aisle.
Emma rolled her eyes, but walked towards him anyway with an affectionate smile. She was wearing normal clothes and she was sure her makeup could have used a little touching up, but the way he was looking at her caused the rest of the world to melt away and all that mattered was him and her and closing the gap between them.
He took her hand as she reached him and she grasped his hook in her other hand without hesitation. He stared at her, the two of them completely silent and for the moment perfectly content to just be. "I think you're supposed to say something first," she whispered
"I suppose you're right," he laughed before clearing his throat. "Emma Swan. I love you for the same reason a sailor loves the sea. Because he marvels at its beauty while being astounded by the power it holds. But above all, because it's his home. I love you for the same reason he loves coming into port. Because although the sea calms him, port means a chance for peace, a chance to rest, a chance to breathe. Because the true adventure and discovery comes from the stops they make along their journey. And I love you for the same reason he loves the stars. Because even in the blackest night they guide his way. They lead him where he needs to go. Without the stars, he is lost." He paused, taking a steadying breath and reaching up to catch a stray tear that had escaped and fallen down her cheek. "For the first time in three hundred years I can't wait to grow old, and I am still wondering how I got so lucky that I get to do it with you. I promise I'll spend the rest of my life by your side, and that I'll never stop doing whatever it takes to be the man you deserve."
Emma took a single step toward him and leaned in to kiss him, but he dodged her kiss and instead pressed his forehead against hers. "Not yet, love, you have to say something first."
"Because it's so easy to follow that," she said self-consciously, looking at his chest rather than his face.
Killian tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear and tilted her chin up to meet his eyes. "Don't worry about any of that. It's just you and me. Just talk." His hand drifted back down to lace their fingers together, the familiar warmth of his touch steadying her.
"Killian Jones," she started her vows the same way he did and grinned up at him. He gave her an encouraging nod and she felt herself relax."I'm not good with words the way you are so I hope you understand if I skip the part with the emotional speech. I always dreamed of getting a fairy tale happy ending, but for the longest time I doubted whether or not it was ever going to happen. Being with you makes all those doubts just... fade away. You're my best friend, my partner in everything. If we're keeping up with the ship metaphors, you're my safe harbor." Killian laughed, the gentle sound washing over her and she pushed forward. "I'm not sure if I believe in fate or soulmates, but I believe in us. I believe we make our own destiny. I believe our choices make us who we are. I believe our choices led us to each other. And you don't have to keep proving you're the man I deserve, because I choose you. Every day, for the rest of our lives I am going to keep choosing you."
Killian looked as if there were a hundred things he wanted to say but couldn't decide which one to start with. Eventually, he opened his mouth and began to speak.
"I, Killian Jones, take you to be my wife for as long as we both shall live." He said it so quietly Emma almost had to lean in to hear the words. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and leaned in so close their lips were almost touching.
"I, Emma Swan, take you to be my husband for as long as we both shall live," she said just as quietly, breathing the words into the space between them so that only they could hear. This moment belonged to them. Her parents, the town, the whole goddamn world for all she cared, they could have tomorrow. All she could see was Killian looking at her like he couldn't believe she was real, like all he could see was her.
"I think this is the part where I'm supposed to kiss you," he murmured.
"I think that sounds like a great idea," she said and finally, finally pressed her lips to his.
Every kiss they shared always left her breathless, but this one left her even more so. She didn't have a sense that the earth was tilting underneath her. On the contrary, it felt like everything clicked into place. If there was one thing she could know with absolute certainty, it was that she was loved by Killian Jones.
The sun was starting to dip below the horizon and the wind started to bite at her skin but she didn't care. The sky was fading from red and pink to black as Emma Swan kissed the man she loved, her husband, with only the first star that appeared in the sky as their witness.