A/N: Thank you to Julie (cocohook 38 on Tumblr) for being one the biggest LITTOTG cheerleaders, and my inspiration for this one-shot series! Remember: while this chapter may not be explicit, others will be.
Gods Behaving Badly: The Greenhouse
It was her fifth day in the Underworld, and already Emma felt more at ease here than she had been her entire life in Misthaven No overbearing mother to boss her about; no hard-ass uncle telling her to stop making her mother worry all the time. She was finally felt like she was able to be herself without trying to stay true the Goddess of the Spring image. It also helped that Killian made sure that she felt as comfortable as possible, and it was endearing to see him be attentive.
Her emotions had run the gamut the past four days by his side. The shock of the kidnapping; the curiosity of being in this enthralling land and with its ruler; the pain at seeing her abuser once again and the sadistic joy she felt at him getting what was coming to him. But what astonished her most of all were the butterflies that fluttered in her stomach every time she saw Killian now. It could not be controlled; and she wasn't sure if she wanted to control it. It might have been a short time, but she had already developed serious feelings for the misunderstood god.
She walked with him through the vitamin-enriched soil of the greenhouse, gazing in awe of the sheer amount of greenery and flowers that he was able to grow in his magical kingdom. There were many varieties of plant life that she had never laid eyes; her world suddenly filled with new colors and textures. Her eyes were so enthralled that she almost missed out on his enthusiastic descriptions.
"And this one is called Giant's Tears." Emma's eyes turned towards the periwinkle blue blossom that had grown to the size of Pestilence. What an amazing bloom. "These gorgeous blue petals are so humungous, that I could think of no other name when creating them."
Turning suddenly, Emma cried out, "You CREATED these?"
Blushing, Killian admitted while scratching behind his left ear, "Yes, I did. The entirety of the Underworld was forged in my own vision. That included any flowers and plants that I chose."
"Well, you certainly caught my attention…" Emma lifted her right hand and gently touched the petal of the Giant's Tears. Soon after, a clear-colored sap trickled from the stems, down the petals, and dropped by her feet. "That was…unusual."
"That was the tears escaping." Killian had somehow snuck up right behind her as she was touching the flower. She could feel the heat from his body, and the butterflies had taken flight once again. "A lot of the flowers are manifestations of my moods at the time they came to be."
That was one of the depressing confessions she had ever heard. She felt completely heartbroken for him. Turning to face him, she could she the emotions playing over his face at his confession. She was about to lift her hand towards his cheek, when another oddity caught her eye. "What's that?" She pointed towards what seemed to be a rose-tulip hybrid. The coloring was of a deep, oxblood red, and the outer edges of the petals were black.
Turning away from her to see what she was gesturing towards, she saw as his shoulders slumped and a deep sigh escaped his chest. "That…is called the Bleeding Heart."
"It's beautiful."
"It was the first flower I ever created. But I tend to avoid it….it brings up bad memories."
"How could something so stunning be anything but good?"
He walked towards the bush of Bleeding Hearts and brought his rough fingers out to touch the petals. He turned towards her, meeting her gaze his own. "You ready for this?"
Confused but intrigued, she watched as Killian's touch cause the flower to ooze a substance from the filaments within the petals. As she walked closer to him, she audibly gasped: the flower was bleeding. Emma wasn't sure why this affected her so, but she couldn't help but bring her hand up to her mouth to contain her cries.
"I'm sorry; I shouldn't have shown you…"
Waving her hand to silence him, she choked out, "No, don't be sorry. I'm glad you showed me. These flowers are a part of you, and one day, you'll be able to tell me why this was created. That is, only you want to…"
Killian was in front of her once again, and he held out his hand for her to take. "I would very much like for you to know every part of me…in time. Now, I would like to show you my lilies."
