"This is madness."

"I thought pirates were fearless."

"Does it say that in your lad's book? Or perhaps in the ridiculous stories your world tells of me and my time in Neverland?"

"No, it's just general knowledge. Pirates sail the seas, pillaging and plundering and generally engaging in duels with…well, everyone. You'd think that something like this would be met without hesitation. Stop being a baby, Captain," she teased, earning her a roll of his eyes.

"I'm simply pointing out that we could be making better use of our time," he said with a pat on her rear that she quickly swatted away, letting a giggle escape her lips. "While Henry is out with the Queen…what did you say he was doing?"

"Trick or treating. On Halloween, kids dress up in costumes and go door to door to get candy," Emma explained, unable to hide the smile on her face at his confusion.

"Doesn't the lad have enough candy? He's always consuming foods I find to be made entirely of sugar. How have his teeth remained intact?"

"Says the pirate whose diet consisted entirely of rum and…oh, rum…for hundreds of years," Emma replied with her own eye roll. "It's about the excitement of the holiday…dressing up and becoming someone else, someone you always dreamed of being but never could…it's actually ironic," she added after a moment, chuckling to herself as Killian tilted his head in curiosity.

"I fail to see the irony in that, Love."

"Well, most of the time, kids in this world dress up as the people who live in this town. Because they represent a world that is only supposed to exist in their imaginations. And we're here, celebrating by letting our own kids, who are a part of that world, dress up as the characters that they pass on the street every day…their teachers, their friends, their family." Sensing a hint of sobriety in her tone, he reached out and took her hand, entwining his fingers with hers.

"Who did you dress as? When you were a little girl?" he asked. Slowly, he'd been learning more about Emma's past…who she was before she came to Storybrooke. Regardless of the pain that she had faced, more than Killian could even begin to imagine, her past was a part of her…a part that Killian longed to know…to understand.

"You'd laugh if I told you," she said, shrugging off his question with a halfhearted smile.

"Have I ever been anything but a gentleman to you, Emma Swan?"

"That's debatable, Captain," she replied as he feigned a look of hurt.

"Why don't you try me and find out?" he challenged as she sighed and took a few steps ahead of him as they continued to walk down the long dirt road.

"Well, I mostly made my own costumes. None of the foster families I had seemed to care too much about buying a costume that I would only wear once. But Halloween was always my favorite holiday because I could be anyone that I wanted…I could get away from all the crap…even if it was just in my imagination," she said, her eyes trained on the ground as Killian sped up to walk next to her again, taking her hand in his. "But there was one year…I was about 8. I remember begging them to let me dress up until they finally gave in, probably just so I wouldn't bug them about it anymore, and I was obsessed with a particular movie at that time, so I just had to be one of the characters." When Killian remained silent, Emma took a deep breath and continued. "I was, sort of…Tinker Bell." She closed her eyes, bracing herself for his reaction as the realization hit him. He didn't laugh…because the mere thought of Emma…his Emma…wanting to escape the life that she had in order to trade lives with anyone caused an ache in his heart. "I had the blonde hair and the dress went with my eyes, so it actually worked out in my favor," Emma continued when Killian still said nothing. "Anyone in there?" she asked, stopping in the middle of the road and turning to meet his eyes, searching his gaze for his reaction.

"I imagine your beauty would have drawn a considerable amount of envy from the real Tinker Bell," he said softly, reaching up to tuck a loose strand of her hair back behind her ear. "And who would you be now, Love? If you could be someone else." Without hesitation, she answered, as if she'd been considering her response for a long time.

"I wouldn't choose to be anyone but myself. I wanted to escape for so long. The life I had…it sucked. And even when Henry showed up and tried to convince me that I was meant for this fairy tale life, something anyone who ever dreamed of happily ever after should jump at the chance to have, I pushed it away because I was afraid. I've never known what it feels like to have a family…to be…happy. Until right now. Every day is a new chapter of this messed up fairy tale that we're all a part of, but I wouldn't want it any other way." He leaned in to kiss her suddenly, his own flood of emotions taking over as she returned the kiss, pressing herself against his chest where they fit perfectly together.

"I love you, Emma Swan. I love you for all that you are…" he trailed off for a moment as they both continued down the path that didn't seem to lead anywhere. "…which is precisely why I'm here with you, entirely unsure of what we're doing out in the middle of nowhere on your favorite holiday when we could certainly be finding creative things to do with candy…and costumes," he added with a wink.

"As intriguing as that idea is, this is one experience that you need to have, if only because I want to see your reaction," she teased, her mouth so close to his that he leaned in to close the distance only to meet her cheek as she turned with a smirk and left him standing as she continued down the road, turning back to face him with a devilish grin that would rival even his most villainous of expressions. "And there will be plenty of time for creative activities later. And the faster we reach our destination…" she trailed off with a wink, holding out her hand as he trotted forward to take it and they started down the road.

"Perhaps I'll like this…Halloween…after all."