Alright, here's my first Once Upon a Time fic! Just some family fluff inspired by an Imagine Your OTP prompt about a trip to the beach :) I hope it isn't terrible...I'm still not entirely sure I've got all the characterization down.
Hope you enjoy! Also, sorry for any spelling or grammar errors. It's almost 5 am.
Disclaimer: I don't own Once Upon a Time or the characters. All of that belongs to Adam and Eddy.I just borrow them and take them out to play occasionally.
"Mom, come on! We're going to be late meeting Grandma and Grandpa!" Henry called. The entire Charming clan was supposed to be meeting up at the beach at one. It was only a few minutes til one and the family still had a twenty minute walk to their destination.
"I'll be right there. Your sister is just being a little difficult today."
"Need any help, love?" Killian called back to his wife. He and Emma had been married almost two years, shortly after returning from Neverland.
"Nah, I think we're doing ok. Be there in just a minute." Sure enough, Emma emerged from the nursery a moment later, carrying Kinsley, her and Killian's nine-month old daughter.
"She's still kinda fussy from her nap, but she should be fine by the time we get there." Emma began to settle Kinsley into her stroller, but the child simply did not want to allow that. She would much rather be carried. Killian and Emma exchanged a look, one that suggested they both realized how futile Emma's attempts were. Finally, Emma gave up and tried a new tactic.
"Hey Kinsley, wanna go see Daddy?" she asked. Killian was incredibly good with Kinsley and could almost always calm her down when Emma was unable to do so. The little girl began reaching to her father while Emma handed her over.
"Better, princess?" Killian chuckled as he noticed Kinsley had already quieted.
"Time to go?" Henry asked.
"Looks like it, Kid," Emma told him. She had thrown most of the family's things in the stroller, seeing as it wouldn't likely have an occupant until later in the evening when they were heading home.
"Kins, you're gonna love the beach," Henry smiled at his half-sister. Though he may have been 13 years Kinsley's senior, he absolutely adored her and didn't mind spending time with her. In his eagerness to arrive at the beach and enjoy the sunshine that Storybrooke hadn't seen for most of his life, Henry rushed ahead of Kilian and Emma.
"Kilian, do you think she's old enough for us to be taking her to the beach…I mean, do you think we should wait until next summer?" Emma asked once they had been walking for about five minutes. She had never imagined herself being the over-protective type, but Emma found that she worried about her baby girl more than she ever thought possible. Snow had attributed it to the fact that Emma hadn't gone through this phase of life with Henry; in way, Emma was a first-time parent.
"Of course, lass. We've taken her on the Jolly Roger plenty of times."
"Well, yeah, but that's different. I mean, on the ship, one of us is usually holding her until we're all settled; we can't really do that the entire time we're at the beach. Plus there's open water, which is dangerous enough. In addition, who knows what's in the water in Storybrooke. I'm just scared something's going to happen, that's all," Emma explained.
"Don't worry, Emma. Between the two of us, Henry, and your parents, she'll be in very good hands at all times. You even bought her that little life vest thing." Life jackets were one of the modern conveniences that Killian had only recently wrapped his head around. Emma sighed, knowing that Killian had a point.
"You're right. I know she'll be fine. I just worry, that's all." Emma kissed her pirate, and then kissed her princess on the forehead. They were now arriving at their destination, Snow and Charming in view.
"Hi guys!" Snow eagerly greeted the foursome. "We're camped out over here if you all want to get settled in. I can volunteer to take the little one!" As one might expect, Snow was a completely doting grandmother to both Henry and Kinsley. The baby went with her while the others set up camp. The beach was surprisingly crowded that day. Then again, it wasn't every day that Storybrooke saw weather nice enough for the inhabitants to enjoy its location on the ocean.
"So are you going to try taking Kinsley in the water today?" Snow asked her daughter.
"I don't know. I was planning on it, even got a life jacket to be on the safe side, but now I'm questioning if I want to go there. Killian thinks she'll be fine."
"I'm sure she would be," Snow smiled reassuringly, "but it's totally up to you. Do whatever makes you comfortable." Emma returned the smile then turned her attention to Henry and Charming, who were already in the water splashing around. She was somewhat surprised to see that Killian hadn't joined them, but Emma realized that he was making himself available should today be the day Kinsley tries the water.
"What are you thinking, love? Are we taking our little pirate princess swimming today?"
Emma sat in a thoughtful silence. After some consideration, she smiled at her husband and said "yes". Once Kinsley was all geared up to go, Killian picked her up and he, Kinsley, and Emma headed to the shoreline.
"Ok, not too far in," Emma told him. "and if she starts crying, we're going back."
"Don't worry, love, she'll be ok. I don't think a pirate's daughter can be adverse to the ocea." Killian took Kinsley to a spot where the water was only an inch or two deep and the tide was low. In this moment, Killian was grateful that after he had been accepted into the crazy family tree that was the Charming family, he'd been granted two functioning hands. Had he still had the hook, he wouldn't have trusted himself to hold his daughter during her first trip to the ocean.
He then sat down in the sand and Emma followed suit. At this point, the water was grazing Kinsley's feet.
"So, princess, what do you think?" Killian asked her. While the little girl wasn't able to form coherent sentences just yet, her laughter and the jumble of nonsense words were telling enough. She'd taken to the water just as Killian had predicted. Kinsley enjoyed splashing around for a few minutes more before she was handed off to Emma.
"Hey guys, how does she like the water?" Snow came up behind Killian and Emma.
"Well, judging by that smile, I 'd say she's loving it," Emma told her mother.
"Mind if I join you?" Snow asked as she plopped down next to Emma.
"Of course not. Kins, go see your grandma." It was obvious that Snow had wanted to hold her granddaughter, but she didn't want to barge in and ruin the family moment. The group sat for a few more minutes, enjoying the peaceful afternoon. It was times like these that Emma couldn't believe how lucky she'd gotten. So things hadn't been anywhere near great in the beginning; she was now married to the man that everyone called her true love, had two wonderful children, and had finally been reunited with her parents after all these years. Life was good. Before she could get too reflective, Killian's voice interrupted her thoughts.
"Ladies, I think we'd best be heading back to the shore. It appears the tide is rising," he told them. He called out the warning to Henry and Charming as well, who were farther out in the ocean.
"That was fun while it lasted," Emma smiled. She only wished that they could have had a little more time. She had been enjoying herself and Kinsley very clearly had as well.
"What did I tell ya, lass? She took the water like a natural pirate," Killian pointed out.
"Yeah, yeah, you were right," the blonde quipped in response.
"So now what?" Henry asked. He had been having a great time with his grandfather and was disappointed the fun had to end.
"Hmm…are you to old for sand castles?" Snow proposed.
"A little bit, but that's still kind of fun," the teenager said in return. "I'm sure Kinsley would love to see one though." Of course Henry would be thinking about what the baby might enjoy. That's the sort of brother that he was.
"Come on Kins, Grandpa and I will show you how the pros do it." Henry and Charming staked out a spot and got down to business. Kinsley was constantly trying to walk over to the castle and help out, but she wasn't getting anywhere fast on the sandy terrain. That, and Emma wasn't going to let the baby venture very far from her. Kinsley started to fuss. All she wanted was to be with her brother and help out.
"Hey, don't cry, sweetie. We're just gonna watch Henry today, but maybe you can help them next time?" Emma cooed. Kinsley calmed down, but only slightly.
"I've got an idea. What if we built our own castle?" Killian suggested. "Your mama and your grandma can help." Kinsley was being allowed to participate in "big girl" activities, so that was good enough for her. As it turned out, no one else had quite the architectural skills of Henry and Charming. Therefore, they ended up with something resembling and anthill, but it was good enough. Of course, Emma took pictures of it on her phone. She also decided to snap a few of her son and her father.
"Mom, do you need to take pictures of everything?" Henry jokingly complained.
"As a matter of fact, I do," she smirked back at him. "You know I don't have any pictures of my childhood and I want you guys to have tons."
"Fair enough." Henry and Charming completed the structure a little while later. Emma had to admit, it was very impressive. By this time it was already nearing five o'clock.
"Should we get ready to head out soon?" Snow asked.
"Probably a good idea. I think this one is getting tired," Killian spoke up. He was holding a very sleepy Kinsley. Everyone rounded up all their things and threw their street clothes on over their bathing suits before leaving, and then they were on their way.
"I don't know if you guys have any dinner plans, but Snow and I were thinking it might be fun if all of us went to Granny's tonight. I don't think either of us is in the mood for any cooking after the long day," Charming offered once they were a few blocks from the beach.
"That would be fun," Emma agreed. "However, I think we should probably stop home first. Kinsley's starting to wake up and you all know how fussy she gets."
"Do you want to let us know when she's all ready to go out and then we can all meet at the restaurant?" Snow suggested. After coming home from Neverland, Emma had found her own place down the street from Snow and Charming. Living with her parents had worked well enough the first couple of years she'd been in Storybrooke, but she was engaged to Killian shortly after the returned from their journey to rescue Henry. Things would have been a little awkward if they had continued their original living situation.
"That sounds like a plan. I'd venture to guess we'll be ready in about and hour, maybe an hour and half? I wouldn't mind showering beforehand as well."
"Call us when you can. See you in a bit!" Charming called as he and Snow approached their own home.
They weren't able to meet Emma's parents until about two hours after returning home from the beach. Kinsley had woken up right when they walked through the door and needed quite a bit of calming down. Emma had taken her for a while, telling Killian to go and shower, she'd take care of everything. However, when he was set to go, Kinsley was still bawling.
"Please take her," Emma went to her husband the minute he surfaced from their bathroom.
"Not going well?" he asked as he took Kinsley in his arms.
"Not at all. She'll calm down with you; she always does. Watch her while I shower?"
"Of course, Swan." Emma found it funny that Killian still called her Swan on occasion, despite the fact she had taken his last name. It had become something of a term of endearment between them. While she got her shower ready, she could hear Killian cooing to Kinsley out in their bedroom. She never got over how good he was with her. This was not something she would have expected of the pirate when she first met him three years ago. Emma was showered and dressed in about fifteen minutes and she could tell that in those few minutes, Kinsley had stopped crying.
"Ready to go?" Killian asked.
"Yep. Henry ready?"
"Oh yes, he's waiting in the living room. I'm pretty sure he's talking to Grace." Emma rolled her eyes. It seemed like Henry never stopped talking to Grace these days. Then again, that was an issue for another day.
A few minutes later, the whole group was at Granny's, settling down to a meal that everyone was looking forward to. The main course passed uneventfully, everyone enjoying each other's company.
"Do you think we can get dessert tonight?" Henry asked when their meal concluded.
"You have room?" Emma asked. Then again, she shouldn't be surprised. Henry was now 14 after all.
"Uh, yeah!" he laughed.
"I have to agree with Henry, I could go for a little dessert too," Charming agreed. Killian seconded that, and suddenly all three men were hovering over the dessert menu.
"I think we could get a Kitchen Sink and eat most of it," Henry proposed. The Kitchen Sink was one of the sundaes that Granny's offered, though they hardly ever sold. It was an enormous sundae with every topping imaginable, multiple scoops of ice cream and it was advised that no one try to eat it by themselves.
"Well, if Snow and Emma have some, I think we should be just fine," Charming estimated. "What do you say ladies?"
"You know I'll have to sneak some," Snow smiled.
"Emma?" Killian looked to his wife.
"Well… fine," Emma let out a playful sigh. "I'll find room. We know this baby really likes ice cream – crap." They hadn't meant to tell anyone about that just yet.
"What baby?" Henry asked, though he was sure he'd figured everything out a couple of weeks ago.
"Ok, we didn't want to tell anyone just yet, but I'm pregnant again!" Of course, Henry and her parents were ecstatic at the news that another Jones child would be joining the family soon.
"How far along are you?" Snow asked. Emma prepared herself for what would be a load of questions from her mother.
"Only about two and a half months, almost three. We were planning to wait until I got through the first trimester to tell anyone, but I'm honestly surprised none of you have figured it out yet, especially after going to the beach. I'm already showing a little."
"Oh, I figured it out already," Henry proudly declared.
"Of course you did, kid," Emma smiled as she ruffled his hair.
"Do you know if it's a boy or a girl?" Snow asked, wondering if they'd used the pendulum that she had given Emma.
"We haven't checked yet, but we're not entirely sure that we're going to. It might be fun for it to be a surprise this time." Emma answered a couple more of her mother's questions before the ice cream arrived at the table.
"I say this calls for a celebratory treat," Charming declared. "Congratulations, you two. We're really looking forward to our third grandbaby." At that moment, a majority of the conversation ceased. Even with five people, there was still over a quarter of the ice cream left at the end of the night. At least the could say they tried. The family stuck around a bit longer, leaving the restaurant around 8 so that Kinsley could go to bed. Everyone said their goodbyes and Emma and Killian were congratulated a few more times by the doting grandparents.
If anyone had told Emma four years ago that she'd be in this position right now, she would have found that laughable. Never had she imagined herself having a day like this, doing something with an actual family and having tons of fun. Sometimes she expected to pinch herself and wake up in her apartment in Boston. Somehow, her life was turning out as close to perfect as she could hope.
Alright, there it is! I wasn't planning to throw the pregnancy in there when I originally drafted this, but my cousin and his wife told my family they're expecting this weeken, so I was like, that sort of surprise should be incorporated into the story somehow! Anyway, I really hope you guys enjoyed it! Reviews are amazing - constructive criticism is as awesome as kind words, just don't be a jerk :)
~Burton's Disney Princess~