Author's note: just a small little fluff piece. Prompt from fictional-redheads on Tumblr. Enjoy!
CS + seeing the future
"Gold, I need to talk to you." Emma Swan slammed the pawnshop's door behind her and went over to Rumplestiltskin, who was polishing one of his many stolen antiques.
He sighed, putting away a valuable necklace. "How may I be of service, Sheriff Swan?"
She had her hands in the back pockets of her pants and was slightly bouncing up and down. "It's about…Killian," she finally answered, after several moments of silence.
Gold looked shocked. "You came to me for help for your boyfriend, who used to be my sworn enemy?" The sarcasm in his voice wasn't lost on her. She glared at him. "You realize I could easily give you something that would kill him?" She flashed her badge, reminding him that casual threats of murder wasn't tolerated in the Land Without Magic.
"It's not exactly for him, so much as about him." Her nervousness was obvious. She didn't want to be talking about this, least of all with the man who took his hand—he may have reattached it, but still—and she was extremely uncomfortable with it.
"Out with it, dearie," he sighed. He walked around the counter and stood next to the sheriff. He gave her a soft smile. "Don't worry, I won't be killing your boyfriend. Tell me what you need, and we'll see what I can do."
"I've been worried about…our future together. I don't want to jeopardize anything with him. I'm scared he might die."
"What gives you that impression?"
She put her face in her hands briefly before continuing to speak. "Everyone I have ever been with has died; Neal,"—Rumple flinched, but otherwise showed no signs of internal hurting—"Graham, Walsh. Even August died on me, in a way. I don't want anything to happen to Killian. I can't…I can't lose him."
"Well, let me reassure you. I spent years trying to kill that damned pirate. The one thing he's good at is surviving."
"That's what he told me. But I need more than that. I need magic."
He sighed. "That's why you came here. You want to see the future."
She looked guilty. "My powers don't exactly allow me psychic visions, and I just—"
"No, no, it's all right." He didn't like his quote unquote 'gift' of vision. It wasn't something Emma could acquire, and even if she did somehow, it would take possibly centuries to teach her to be able to focus it in. Even he didn't have full control over it. "I'll tell you what, dearie. I can't give you an exact vision of your future together. But I can give you this." He walked back behind the counter and produced a small vial filled with glowing blue liquid. "Drink this before bed, and while you're falling asleep, think about you and the pirate. Focus on that. This potion will give you a rough idea of what it will be like."
Emma took the bottle and stared at it. She looked back up and asked, "What's your price?"
"It's on the house. I haven't forgotten that you're my grandson's mother. I don't fancy your boyfriend, but I know he's good for Henry. Besides, no one wants a stressed sheriff. It can make one a bit trigger-happy."
She raised her eyebrows in agreement. She sent her regards to Belle and left the shop.
Later that night, while she nursed her meal and drink in a booth at Granny's, she contemplated actually drinking the potion. Did she really want to risk seeing something bad? She could see his corpse, she could see his grave—or, worse, she could see herself being the cause of his death. Could she handle something like that? Knowing that someday in the future she could be the reason Killian ended up dead?
Speak of the devil, she thought, as Killian walked in. He spotted Emma and ordered a drink before sliding into the seat across from her. The potion vial was still in her pocket, so there was nothing she would have to explain to him. Her heartfelt confession from the other day and their date had only strengthened their relationship.
"Hello, Captain," she greeted, taking a sip of her drink.
He stole a French fry off her plate and popped it into his mouth. "Good evening, love. Why are you dining alone? Where is the boy?"
"Henry is still at Regina's. He's trying to help her get over Robin Hood."
"He's been with her a lot lately. Aren't you worried he might turn into an evil little prince?" He smirked at the look she gave him.
She finished her burger in one big bite before answering his smartass comment. "Henry couldn't be evil if he tried. Besides, Regina really needs the company right now." She swallowed the last of her drink and pulled out her wallet. She paid for her meal and left a couple of crinkly dollars for Ruby under the cup. "You ready to go home?"
Killian hadn't dared intrude on her parents' apartment after their date. He wasn't about to risk losing both his hands if Charming were to see them in there together. The prince may be warming up to him, but he would not be pleased to find them in bed together. Of course, he knew she wasn't inviting him to her bed.
He jumped up and offered, "I'd be happy to walk my lady home to safety."
She smiled at his chivalry. "Why, thank you, Captain. You're such a gentleman." She pulled her jacket on and walked out of Granny's, Killian right behind her.
"I only wish to please my Swan. I am a man of honor, you know."
She smiled. That she did know. He had proven that many times over. Their date last night had proven how much of a gentleman he truly was. Pulling her chair out for her, offering to order drinks, walking her home, giving her a goodnight kiss—even him getting angry at wine getting spilled on her dress made her happy. Not having him angry, but that he cared enough to be mad.
As they walked, he switched over to her left side and slid his fingers into hers. She didn't know why he'd gotten rid of his hand again, but she didn't care. Hand or hook, he was still the man she cared about. And that's why she had to drink Gold's potion.
He gave her a sweet goodnight kiss at the door and didn't push any further. It left a ridiculously wide smile on her face. Even though she wanted to be with him intimately, it wasn't the right time. Not yet. Hopefully when the time came for emotional preparedness, she would have her own place. Henry had been searching before, but he was pretty sidetracked these days trying to cheer Regina up. And whatever this job was with Gold was—she still wasn't sure what prompted that.
She took a shower before bed—morning showers were never her thing—and pulled on panties and a t-shirt to sleep in. She sat in her bed, leaning back against her pillows, and held up the vial.
Now or never. She downed the contents and placed the now-empty bottle on the nightstand. Apparently there was some form of sleeping agent in it, because only a few moments later she was out like a light.
"This is your fault, Killian." Emma shifted around uncomfortably, wishing she could go out and drive off in her car. Her bulging belly wasn't about to allow that, however. Eight, nearly nine, months pregnant left her entire family in worry over something happening to her and the baby.
Killian threw a loving smile over his shoulder from the kitchen. He was reaching for the Reese's Puffs. "You say that every time you're in pain, love." He poured the balls of peanut butter and chocolate into a mixing bowl and added the milk. He'd tried to convince Emma that popcorn would be better for a movie, but she had demanded a large bowl of chocolaty cereal. He grabbed a spoon and began walking back to Emma.
When he reached her and handed her the bowl, she continued, "Well the pain is your fault. This is your child, pirate." She sneered pirate and angrily took a bite of her cereal. Damn charming looks, she thought. Damn accent and chest hair and body and facial scruff… Now her thoughts were morphing from disgruntlement to something much more racy.
"Our child," he corrected. He grabbed the TV remote and went to the built-in Netflix. He'd come a long way in the past couple of years, although he still refused to understand the banking system. "You trust other people to care for your gold, and you pay them with the gold they're supposed to watch? This world is weird." "As I recall, Swan, you were the one begging me."
"Please," she scoffed. "I don't beg." But the fact of the fact was, it usually was her who initiated sex. He was too damn irresistible for his own good. The fact that they went at like bunnies made it hard to determine which time they'd conceived.
He laughed. "Whatever makes you feel better, darling."
He handed the remote to Emma and let her choose the movie. If he tried to pick, she usually ended up hating everything, which he usually just chalked up to the pregnancy hormones. Who knew that women could get so testy? You suggest Pirates of the Caribbean instead of Orange is the New Black one time, and you never get to live it down.
She finally decided on Cupcake Wars. Seeing all the cool designs people could make fascinated her, but always made her crave cupcakes or another baked good. Killian knew he'd have to run an errand soon.
Not even a few minutes into the competition, Emma turned to Killian and said, "I want cupcakes." He sighed but smiled.
"I'll be right back with those," he answered, jumping up and pulling on his leather jacket. She gripped his hand as he tried to pass her. She informed, "Hold on. I'm coming with you."
She began to stand up, using him for support. He helped her, but protesting the entire time. "Emma, you shouldn't be on your feet. Please sit back down. It won't take long to run to Granny's."
She put on her slip-on shoes while she spoke. "Killian, I'm pregnant, not an invalid. My mom moved around a lot and Prince Neal turned out just fine. Light exercise is good. You just worry too much."
He tried to argue the issue again, but she silenced him with a kiss. He gave up. She was too stubborn and she wasn't wrong. He picked up her coat for her and held it up as she tucked her arms into it. He kept his hand at the small of her back as she waddled out of the apartment and down the stairs.
Granny's wasn't very far. Maybe two blocks max. The two decided to walk it. "I better get used to moving around again," Emma joked. "Otherwise I'll never lose all this baby fat. It took me forever to lose Henry's."
They arrived at Granny's in no time. Killian went to give their usual cupcake order—chocolate cakes, chocolate frosting, and sprinkles—while Emma had spotted her parents and went to sit at their booth. She uneasily slid in and groaned.
"Are you okay?" Her parents asked simultaneously. Snow reached across the table and put her hand on Emma's belly. "How's our grandbaby doing?"
Emma pouted and stole a French fry from Charming's plate. "She's doing just fine, Mom. Except, you know, when she just kicks at me for fun. That's not the greatest."
"I know. You did a lot of that yourself." She sat back.
"Well this is my formal apology on baby Emma's behalf." Killian appeared with the cupcakes and a mug of hot chocolate with cinnamon. He placed the two in front of Emma.
"Once I saw your parents, I figured you'd want to talk to them for a bit." He started to sit before she stopped him.
"Thanks. I'll be right back. I have to pee. Damn bladder." She awkwardly moved and shuffled to the bathroom. Killian took her place, sliding into the wall, and smiled at Snow and Charming. He said, "How's Prince Neal?" It was weird for him not to be with them.
Charming answered, "Neal is great. We got Cinderella to watch him for a bit. Alexandra and Neal get along pretty well and she needs the money. We needed an afternoon off."
Snow looked hilariously indignant. "You needed it off?"
He quickly backtracked. "Snow needed some time away. Motherhood is tiring. Just you wait until Nina arrives. An angry new mother is ten times worse than an expecting one."
Emma came back just then, and Killian scooted over to make room. The four chatted for a long time before Snow and Charming had to get back to relieve Cinderella. As they left, Emma began to put her coat back on, and Killian used the opportunity to speak to David privately.
"What is it?" he asked.
Killian nervously whispered, "I need your help with something, mate."
"Whatever you need." The two had grown close over the past couple years.
He scratched his ear, his signature nervous tick. "Your permission." David rolled his hands another one another, telling him to further explain what he meant. "I want your blessing to marry Emma."
Emma sat up in bed, the dream/vision seared into her head. She was going to have Killian's kid? Possibly marry him? Her future self, while uncomfortable, was completely content. She felt how happy future Emma was with her life, and how excited she was to have that life with Killian. Current Emma didn't know how to feel about anything.
She got dressed as quickly as she could, and went back to Gold's shop. Henry was there, dusting off some objects.
"Hi, Mom!" he greeted cheerfully, walking over and giving her a hug.
She gave him a smile. "Hey, kid. Could you give me a moment with Mr. Gold?"
He glanced between his mom and Gold before nodding. "Sure. I'll go get some breakfast." He left the shop.
Emma went up to Gold. He looked at her expectantly. "I take it the potion worked, dearie?"
"Damn right it did. But you told me I would get a rough idea. The vision I got was pretty clear."
His eyebrows knitted together. "It should've only given you a quick bearing of things, such as your feelings and your loved one's safety. Just vague impressions; it doesn't give full visions."
"Well it did. I saw my life. I lived it. How the hell did that happen?"
He was quiet for a moment. She grew agitated. "Your magic must have contributed. Strengthened it, somehow. Whatever you saw…it's your future. You can always try to change it. But most of the future is set."
Now it was her turn to be quiet. She was still conflicted. But she knew she was going to be happy. Isn't that what she wanted? Happiness? For the Savior to finally get her quiet moments and happy ending?
Emma thanked him and practically ran to Granny's. She found Killian playing darts again, just like he was when she'd asked him out. "Killian!" she called out. He turned just as she reached him.
"What's wrong, lo—" He was cut off. She'd grabbed him by the jacket and pulled him to her lips, kissing him with fervor. It was just like their first kiss in Neverland.
They separated a few moments later, both breathing heavy. Emma looked at him through hooded eyes. He asked, "What was that for? Not that I'm complaining, mind you."
She gave him a small smile, happiness creeping onto her face. "I will never lose you, Killian Jones. You're mine." She kissed him again, putting a hand to her belly, and let herself be swept away by him.