This was written for emmaaswaan on tumblr as part of the CS secret shipmates. It kind of got away from me and ended up much longer and different than I expected...I hope somebody finds some enjoyment from it though.
Emma was amazed when she realized that mornings had come to be her favorite time of the day for she had spent so much of her life having no love of them.
Throughout her childhood at the beginning of each day she would remain in bed with her eyes closed and hope that her parents would find her. Hope that someone would want her. Hope that day would be the day she finally found a home.
But each day would bring disappointment and it became more and more difficult to find hope the next morning. Until the day came where she just stopped believing in the possibility that things could be different. When she realized how foolish she had been and each morning became the start of a day she had to get over until she could be free.
And even when she became an adult and able to do as she pleased, she still retained a bit of resentment for all those mornings she had wasted on wishing.
So it was incredible to her when she found those moments spent at the beginning of the day had become her favorites. The time between the ends of a dream and the start of reality were once again filled with hope. And because of him there was also happiness.
Opening her eyes and having the first thing be his face may have been what inspired the change. It was certainly a pleasant sight to start the day. But she came to understand that waking up with him beside her meant that he was still there. The man she had found a home in was with her and so she no longer woke up feeling lost for as long as she was with him she was right where she wanted to be. And with each day she woke up with him present, she came to love mornings more and more.
The first time Killian and Emma woke up with just the two of them together it had been completely unintentional and there was no comfortable bed involved. They had been assigned to keep watch for any sign of the Wicked Witch or her forces and were successful at keeping each other up for the majority of the night. They passed the time exchanging stories from before they met and later in the evening Killian pointed out star constellations that he had spent countless nights memorizing over the years.
But the pull of sleep was too tempting for the overworked pair and they ultimately succumbed.
Emma was the first to wake. Initially she didn't realize the source of warmth she felt was from contact with his body. Sometime in their sleep she had leaned into his chest and he had wrapped his arms around her.
When she became aware where her comfort was stemming from her eyes shot open and despite the protests of her body, she very carefully extracted herself from his embrace. She worried that he would wake and recognize she had spent the night in his arms. It was a bit silly but she was not prepared to address whatever it was between them.
Ever since New York they had grown closer and closer but nothing had actually happened. She would only admit this to herself but she was still afraid.
It wasn't because she was uncertain that he loved her, his attempt at true love's kiss had ruled that out. She also knew he would never intentionally hurt her; he had fought for her and beside her through thick and thin.
The problem was that if she let him in completely, she could lose him and she knew that would destroy her. She had already had so much heartbreak in her life, but she knew he was different. While she trusted him with her heart there was so much that could go wrong. With all the danger that surrounded their lives…it just was too hard to even imagine. She believed that being the savior meant sacrifice and that the savior wasn't able to have those happy moments. So in order to protect her heart, she had decided she would not give in to her growing feelings.
Once she put a bit of space between them she examined his sleeping form. He looked so serene. In sleep his face looked years younger. Like he escaped all the pain and anger from his long life and had only ever known happiness. Her heart clenched and she had to stifle the overwhelming desire to hug him.
It was hard to disturb that peace, but Emma knew there was much to do so she gently shook his arm.
"Killian." She kept her voice soft to lure him into consciousness. She knew she was robbing him of much needed rest. "It's time to wake up."
He was resistant at first but his eyes fluttered open and adjusted to the bright light as he assessed his surroundings. A devilish smile grew on his face when he saw her. "Good morning, love. It seems we have finally spent the night together."
She scoffed but decided to play his game. "Was it all that you hoped for?"
"Lass, no matter the activity just being with you is all that I could possibly hope for. Although if you have something specific on your mind I wouldn't be opposed to fulfilling the ladies desires." He chuckled at her eye roll and continued, "I'll have you know that I had an excellent dream while I slept, and those are all too rare for me. It must have come from the proximity to you."
With his last statement she felt the need to run. How am I going to keep him out when he says things like that as if they are no big deal?
His expression altered into one of concern, "Swan, what's wrong?"
"Nothing's wrong. We just better get going." She attempted to add a casual air to her words and remove any feelings that could betray her.
"Something is distressing you. Open book, remember? Was it something I said?"
She let out a soft sigh thinking about how his ability to read her was not working to her advantage in this matter. "It's too early for this conversation. Plus, we have a lot of important things to do."
His eyebrows drew together and he scooted toward her closing any distance between them. He brought her hand into his. "You can speak to me about anything."
"I know. I just can't right now." Her voice hitched in her attempt to keep it neutral.
"I understand and I will wait until you are ready. But Emma, I need you to know that I will always be here for you. In whatever capacity you want. If I am fortunate enough for you to want me, for you to allow me into your heart, I will never leave. What we have is special and every second with you is worth fighting for."
Damn pirate and his pretty declarations. He let her take in his words before he got to his feet and extended his hand to her. "I believe we require some breakfast before we get on with our duties. Shall we?" He helped her to her feet. "Hopefully nothing got past us as we slumbered or we may not have a place to eat and that would be a shame."
She smiled glad that he had turned her thoughts to pancakes as they headed towards Granny's with nothing more said on the other matter.
In time Emma changed her mind and decided it was worth the risk. After she broke a curse placed on Killian with true love's kiss she came to realize that being the savior does not mean she doesn't get a life. True love made her the savior so it was not suppose to be absent from her own life.
And with her parent's example of loving under constant threat of being torn apart she found that it would be better to have even a short time with him where she loved and accepted love than keep him at arm's length. For love is strength and his would never truly leave her.
As their relationship grew into one where they shared a home and a bed, it became tradition that whoever was up first would gently wake the other. This way they would have time to spend with each other before the responsibilities of the day took charge. With days as unpredictable and occasionally perilous as they had, it was important to take advantage of this time that could be solely theirs.
On one particular day Emma was awoken by kisses randomly placed about her face that were so light at first she was unsure what was going on as she could only feel the slight tingling after effect. By the time Killian reached the corner of her mouth she broke into a smile and turned her head to meet his lips fully. What a good start to the day.
Once they broke from the kiss she opened her eyes to see that Killian was bursting in nervous energy. His head fell down to rest on his pillow and he rolled on his side so that he was facing her. Emma adjusted herself as well in order to mirror his position expecting that he had something to tell her. She could see his eyes were full of anticipation.
After a few moments of silence she realized she was going to have to initiate the conversation since he was too preoccupied with whatever was on his mind. "Hi."
"Good morning, love." While he spoke his hand reached up to scratch his ear. It was a nervous tick of his and she thought it was absolutely adorable. It amused her having a dashing pirate who was usually full of confidence and charm transform into a nervous teenager because of her and only her.
She bit back the urge to tease him and leaned her head in close until their foreheads were almost touching. She whispered, "What exactly is going on, Jones?"
He brought his voice down to a whisper as well, giving a conspiring tone to their conversation. "I have to ask you a question."
"Well, I promise I won't bite."
"Right." He took a deep breath and his voice returned to normal albeit a bit faster than usual. "Emma, you brought meaning to my life and have made me a better person. I could not have imagined a happy ending until you found it in your heart to love me. I love you more than anything in any world. Would you do me the great honor of becoming my wife?"
Emma's mouth opened slightly. She definitely wasn't expecting a proposal this early in the morning.
Killian registered her face and his immediately dropped. "I shouldn't have done it like this. I had a whole romantic thing planned, but I selfishly couldn't wait anymore. You deserve more than this I know…"
She brought her index finger to his lips and they immediately stilled. "It was absolutely perfect." She beamed at him. "I wouldn't have wanted it any other way."
Tension left his whole body and a grin formed beneath her finger. "Good."
She waited for him to say something more but instead he continued to contentedly look at her. "Don't you want to know my answer?" She couldn't help but think that only her ridiculous pirate could get so caught up in worrying about if the proposal was good to her that he neglected to focus on the essential thing.
All he could do was nod in response.
"Of course I will." She felt giddy at the idea of uniting officially with the love of her life a feeling he must have shared for his arms immediately encircled her. He pulled her close to his body and brought her into a deep kiss. She felt electricity from where their lips met travel down throughout her body. It was astounding to her that she still was so affected by his kiss.
When they came out of the kiss he turned to get something from the nightstand and brought back a diamond ring. It was beautiful. It wasn't flashy, but had a simple elegance that matched with exactly what she would have chosen. He slipped it on to her finger and they both stared at it with stupid grins on their faces. They were getting married.
"Perhaps we should go tell your family. I had asked for their blessing so they will be expecting news."
"Oh they can wait. I'm sure they already knew what my answer would be anyway. And you know they are your family too." That made his smile grow even more than she thought possible. Her next sentence was cut up by her need to give her future husband small kisses. "Plus" kiss on his neck, "I think" kiss on his jaw line, "we need" kiss on his lips "to celebrate."
She got no objection from him as he extended her last kiss into a passionate one. They remained in their blanket paradise until later in the day when they recognized that they should probably make an appearance to share the happy news.
Not long after they married they received the joyful news of an addition to their family.
Emma was overwhelmed at the prospect of being pregnant again although this time her experience was completely different. Instead of dealing with her growing belly and the effects of pregnancy all alone in a cell, she had a doting husband who wanted her to never leave the comfort of their bed. She enjoyed having the man she loved be with her through it all and seeing how he took the process.
Killian had been greatly impacted with the knowledge of his impending fatherhood. He was nervous and excited and in love with the idea of raising a baby. While he had grown into a father figure for Henry and thought of him as his family, the prospect of handling an infant made it a bit more intimidating. Emma found that he channeled any anxiety into making sure she was completely taken care of.
When Emma was only a few days away from her due date she found herself sleeping much more frequently. It annoyed her that she was restricted to the bed when she was usually so active, but her large belly had taken control.
One morning she woke to the deep voice of Killian singing softly. She wondered why he was singing so early in the morning so she opened her eyelids a crack to investigate. She took in the sight and was intrigued but kept her eyes mostly closed in order to not let him see she was awake. She wanted to continue observing him undisturbed.
He was lying on the bed with his head near her belly and his melodious voice sang a touching song of how his love for her would be as great as the ocean. By the time he finished her sight had blurred from her eyes welling up. She was so emotional because of the hormones.
Or because there was a man in her life who was absolutely devoted to her and their family. She could see the adoration in his eyes as he whispered to the baby all of his plans for the future.
"She likes your voice. She's moving in response to it." Emma smiled as he lighted up in excitement from the information. He placed his hand gently on her belly and looked in wonder at the baby he could not see.
"I can't wait to meet her, love."
Emma shifted in attempt to find a more comfortable position but as soon as she did Killian went in to worry mode. After checking to see how she was feeling and helping her adjust the pillows, he left the room for a short while and brought back breakfast he had made her. She would have been irritated at all the constant attention, but she saw he was so happy to do things for her that she couldn't help but feel pleased too.
She attempted to get up as she wanted to go out and do things to avoid boredom, but he coaxed her to stay and she knew he was right. "Darling, what can I get you that would make you more comfortable? I could run to the store if there is something you are craving."
"To think this is the same rascal pirate I first met now at my beck and call."
"Well that man did not have a family to take care of and now he does."
"You know there is one thing I would like to have with me in bed."
He jumped up and began to go to the bedroom door. "Anything at all."
"You. Killian, just stay with me. If I have to be a beached whale then I want you by my side." He turned right back around and stretched out beside her. He planted a soft kiss on her cheek and took her hand. "Aye. I can do that."
They spent the time planning for the future and having Killian read out loud to her and their unborn child.
She loved the memories she now had of mornings. From the special one-of-a-kind days to the average days that followed routine, she always found happiness. She now woke up with excitement for what the day could hold. He had helped her wipe clean the painful childhood memories by giving so many good ones for her to hold on to. Mornings had transformed from disappointments into giving her hope, happiness, and home.
For each morning brought another day with him.