The tavern smelled of ale and rum, both fresh and sloshing in the mugs of the drunken sailors around her and stale as though every floorboard had soaked in the stuff for centuries. The place was dimly lit, and hearty laughter echoed from every direction. This was the farthest from home that Emma Swan had ever been; that is, since she had found her home.
Everyone knew the story: The lost princess who saved her kingdom and found her parents by breaking a curse that made time stand still. What no one seemed to understand was that Emma was eighteen years old. She had been on her own for her entire life, and though Snow and David tried to hide it, Emma knew that this wasn't how they wanted to be parents. And she felt more like an orphan than ever.
She also knew that she couldn't survive behind those castle walls. She was suffocating. She couldn't tell her parents what her life had been like, because even hinting at her pain brought guilt to their eyes. So, she did what was best for everyone: She ran.
Emma was used to places like this. The sounds and smells that should be foreign to a princess were a comfort. She had spent more nights in these seedy taverns then she cared to admit, and yet, this is where she came with her newly found freedom. She knew that here she could find a ride out of this place.
She walked up to the bar, tossed down two silver coins and ordered a drink. She took a seat on a stool and pulled her long golden hair up and tied it back with a strip of leather. The barmaid placed the rum in front of her, with a sad sort of smile. Emma barely noticed. Looks of pity used to make her flinch, but she was too used to it by now. She didn't exactly fit the usual customer stereotype, but she had been a thief for years and she knew where to find others. It was in a very similar place to this where she had met him, after all.
Emma sipped the rum and looked around, listening in on the bits and pieces of conversation she could make out. She was trying to find a caravan or a ship, anything that could get her out of the kingdom, and it had to be leaving tonight. She had missed the sweet spice and the warmth of the liquid she was draining from her cup. Truth be told, she had missed a lot of things about this life.
The door to the tavern opened wide and a rowdy group of men entered along with a cold ocean breeze. Emma pulled her leather coat tighter to fend off the chill, and ordered another rum for good measure.
"Make that two," a raspy voice said from next to her. The stranger sat down on the stool beside hers. As Emma reached for her coin purse, the stranger placed a warm hand on her arm, "I've got this one, love."
She looked over at the young man sitting next to her. He wore all black, couldn't have been much older than she was, and though he smiled at her, there was deep sadness in his brilliant blue eyes.
"I buy my own drinks," Emma said, and gave him a thin smile.
He eyed her curiously. "You're a tough lass. Accepting a free drink wont change that, darling."
"Nothing in life is free. And what you're selling, I'm not really in the market for. So, thanks, but no thanks."
"And what, exactly, is it that you are in the market for?" the stranger asked, accepting the drinks and paying before Emma had a chance to protest again.
"Why should I tell you?" Emma asked glaring at the drink he'd paid for.
"Well, maybe I could help." he smiled as he caught her glaring at his gift.
"Can you get me out of this kingdom? Tonight?" she asked, her every word dripping with sarcasm.
"Aye, but as you mentioned earlier, nothing in life is free."
"What do you want?" Emma asked, afraid she knew the answer. She'd slept with men to get what she wanted before, but she hadn't since he left her. The stranger was attractive, though. Very attractive. And it had been a while…
"Not very trusting, are we, darling?" He smiled. "All I ask is that you have a drink with me," he said, pushing the rum an inch or so in her direction, "And that you tell me your name."
Emma eyed him carefully. "So, one drink and my name and you can get me on your captain's crew?"
He laughed, and genuine joy reached his eyes for the first time. "You are quite perceptive, aren't you? Aye, I can do that. Seeing as I am the captain."
"Deal," she said, reaching for the rum in front of her. She took a swig, and smiled. "I'm Emma Swan."
"Pleased to make your acquaintance, Ms. Swan. I'm Captain Jones, but you can call me Killian."
"So, Killian, where are we headed?"
"I'll tell you that when you tell me how you knew I was a pirate."
"I didn't," Emma said, taking another sip of the rum. "I knew you were a sailor because you smell like the ocean and there is salt on your coat," she dragged her finger over the black leather leaving a trail as she wiped away the particles of white. "I guessed you were a pirate when you entered, but that you just confirmed."
"Fair enough. Well a deal is a deal, we are going wherever you want."
"It doesn't matter, just not here." Emma took a sizable swig, trying to drown the guilt she felt for leaving like this. But it was best for everyone.
"What are you running from, love?"
"My past, much like you are." He looked surprised to say the least. "You're kind of an open book, no offense."
"None taken. I am running from my past. I am, however, curious what gave it away?"
"You're new at this. Piracy, Captaincy, you aren't comfortable in the role. When you say what you are, it sounds like a lie to you. My guess, you lost your captain and are trying to fill his shoes but you feel you are letting him down. How am I doing?"
Killian just blinked. "How did you…?"
"I told you, open book. I have a thing with lies, always have." She said, draining the last of her drink.
"He was my brother, and he died. He trusted our cause blindly, and our king, but the king lied. It happened about a month ago. He was all that I had left. I turned to piracy because it was my best course of action. But, you are right. None of it fits."
"I'm sorry. I… lost someone too. About a year ago." Emma wasn't planning on Killian pouring his heart out. She wasn't good at opening up, but it seemed right somehow. "He didn't die, he abandoned me. Took off, and let me go to jail for his crime."
"And you're running from him?"
"Not exactly. I…I'm running from who I am."
"And just who are you, Swan?"
"An orphan, who found her parents but it was too late." Why she was telling him this, she wasn't sure. Maybe it was the alcohol, or the sincerity in those blue eyes, or the guilt she was still feeling, knowing that Snow and David would be heartbroken when they found her missing. But she wanted someone to know, wanted him to know who she was and what she was going through.
"It's never too late to be a family, Emma. Take it from someone who is truly alone. You don't want this." He looked sad, but he smiled at her. "I am a man of my word, so the choice is yours. I will take you on my ship. But Emma, you deserve to have your happy ending."
Emma looked at him, evaluating his words. The tavern was loud and full of people and yet it felt like she and Killian were the only people there. No one saw her, and understood her the way he did, and she saw herself in him.
"I'm afraid to go back," She admitted, tears hiding behind her eyes.
"You're parents will understand, love."
"No, that's not what I'm afraid of." She shook her head, trying to choke back her tears and her realization, her walls crumbling at the young pirate's feet. She was falling for him, and more than that, she wanted to be there for him, the way he was for her. He would leave and be all alone. And she would have no way of finding him. She wasn't ready to lose the first person to make her feel like she mattered, like she was worthy. She wasn't ready to say goodbye.
Her emotions were so sudden, and so unexpected. Emma Swan was calculated, rational, always had an escape route. She wanted him to be her escape, and she wanted to stay with her family. She wanted freedom and she wanted home. The choice was hers, but she couldn't make it. So she did the one thing she could think of in her emotional and inebriated state.
She kissed him.
She grabbed the lapels of his leather trench and crashed her lips against his, so hard they would both be bruised in the morning. The kiss only lasted moments, but it was like lightning flowing through their veins. When she pulled away, there were tears falling freely down her cheeks.
"Please don't cry, lass," he said softly, his thumb wiping away the tears ad he cupped her face in his hands.
"I'm just so confused. I never thought I'd want this with anyone again, and now I do but I have to choose between you and my family. Either way, I lose. I shouldn't have kissed you, and I shouldn't be burdening you like this, but I needed you to know what I was feeling for you, even if I can't tell you and-"
But he cut her off, gently pressing his lips to hers. "So long as you want me, I'll stay."
"It won't matter. If I go home, we will never see each other again." Emma thought of the walls and the guards that awaited her.
"Surely the Savior has more hope than that," he said with a smirk.
"What did you just call me?"
"Emma, love, did you think your parents didn't know? They know how much you sought adventure and how hard the transition would be. They wanted me to let you make your own choices, but to keep you safe either way. I'm sorry I didn't tell you I was working for them sooner, but I had no idea we'd be such kindred spirits, or that we'd feel this way. Lass, your parents love you. They understand who you are. And your status won't hinder me for a bloody second."
She was in shock. He'd known, the entire time. And so had her parents.
"So Emma, like I said, we are going wherever you want to go."
Maybe the choice wouldn't be so difficult after all.