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Walking Away

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The last person he is expecting when he opens his door is Emma Swan. And yet, there she is, in the flesh, grasping him by the elbow and pulling him out of his room and towards hers.

"Whoa lass, what seems to be the problem?"

She whips her head around, her index finger from her free hand on her lips in the universal shushing symbol.

He frowns, but quietens and follows the saviour to her room. They stand in the doorway and Emma points into the room where Henry can be seen sitting on the couch by the window and talking into a small device most of the people in this town seem to have.

Killian tries to figure out what's going on, he really does, but in the end he has to lean in close to Emma's ear and whisper, "I don't understand what you're showing me."

A smile crosses Emma's face, "That little box in Henry's hand, it allows you to talk to people in distant lands. Or in our case, New York." She looks up at Killian, something sparkling in her eyes that reminds him somewhat of how he'd felt in the time he'd had Bae staying on board his ship. It's a look of pride. "He's talking to a girl."

The pirate moves in closer then, straining to hear the conversation, "Who is she? Do we approve?"

Emma slaps at his arm playfully, "Calm down, you've spent one day with him. I'm not sure your approval is what he's going to be after."

He looks affronted, but she knows that he's just playing along, "We had a splendid day, Swan. Don't be surprised if he comes to me for advice on how to woo his fair maiden."

They're quiet for a moment, watching Henry from the doorway. It doesn't escape Emma that their positioning makes them look like proud parents. But, for now, she lets it slide, choosing to not overanalyse her feelings.

"He looks happy, doesn't he?" she eventually says, seeing a smile cross her son's face as he explains all the 'cool stuff' he's been doing over the past few days.

Killian's voice is tight when he replies, "Aye."

She knows this can't be easy for him, "You see why we have to return to New York, don't you?"

He sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger, and answers in the clipped syllable again, "Aye." He waits, then, "But I wish you wouldn't. I wish you would be honest with the boy. After all, it was a parent's betrayal that lead to the boy's father's demise in the end, was it not?"

She sucks in a breath, her head turning from her son to the pirate, ready to slap him for making such a bold accusation, comparing her betrayal of Henry to Rumplestiltkin's of Neal. But the defeated look in his eye stops her. He's already accepted that they're leaving, his words are mere warnings that he's allowing her to choose to heed or not. And it saddens her to realise that he's the only person in her life that she has the ability to walk away from before he would ever walk away from her.

Instead of a slap, she raises her hand up to cup his cheek, biting back the sudden onslaught of tears wanting to break free of her. "I'm sorry," she whispers, because she knows how much she has the ability to hurt him, knows that she's more than likely going to use that ability. She doesn't want to, but the sound of her son's laugh is too precious to harm and she'll do anything to protect him.

Killian turns his head, kissing Emma's palm as it rests against his face and she almost breaks, her resistance wavering at his tenderness. "Until tomorrow then, lass."

She nods, holding her breath, "For now."

He steps away with sadness in his eyes, allowing her to close the door behind him as he listens to one last moment of happiness in the ring of Henry's laughter.

With her son distracted and the pirate out of the room, Emma allows herself an instance of weakness, sliding down the door and curling in on herself as she lets the tears flow. And she knows, even though Killian's the one walking away right now, she's the one hurting him.

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