Her hair was clean, her sheets were warm, and physics equations from the final exam were dancing behind her eyelids in the most comforting way. That sort of serenity is just set up to be interrupted, of course.

AN: My first CS fic! I'm very excited about this. Bear with me, the first chapter is very cheesy and mostly exposition (also it's a little short for me). I promise it will get better. Thanks for reading & I love this fandom already!

It was the flashlight. Someone was pointing a flashlight in her face.

"Emma..." a voice crooned.

"It's bedtime," she mumbled as she buried her face in her pillow.

"Come on, Emma. You know why I'm here." The speaker tore the sheets off her body, sticking the flashlight in her face.

With her face still in the pillow, Emma replied "I've already made myself clear. I don't want this."

The speaker pulled the pillow out from under her head. "Emma, you have no choice."

Emma groaned and finally opened her eyes to stare down her adversary. She sat up to make level eye contact as she used her feet to find her flip flops under her bed. She stood up and glared until the speaker, revealed to be Abigail, took a step back.

Emma crossed her arms over her oversized tee-shirt clad chest, and waited for the senior in the room to make the first move.

Abigail sighed. "You'll love it, you just don't know it yet." She started to walk to the door but Emma stayed put. "Come on, Emma. Give it a chance."

Emma followed her out of the room and down the hall. Because she was a junior, she lived on the bottom floor of her dorm. They walked right out the front door and onto one of the yards, skipping any paths just to get to their destination quicker. They made their way around the English building and Emma finally saw where they would be going. Even though it was well past 11, there were lights on in the boathouse, casting a yellow glimmer on the lake behind it.

When they got to the door, Abigail knocked four slow times. It swung open with Greta, another senior, standing in the doorway. Much to Emma's discomfort, she squealed. "Yay! We're all here now!" She hugged Abigail and got out of the way to let them in. The boathouse was illuminated with candles and flashlights, causing the canoes and sail boat hulls hanging from the ceiling to cast dramatic shadows. The school's pontoon boat was getting it's yearly fix up, so the normally crowded boat house felt empty with so much water in between everything.

"Now that everyone's arrived, we can begin!" Greta clapped her hands together with excitement. She had the four underclassmen sit on the dock with their feet dangling over the water.

Emma took off her flip flops and put them beside her so they wouldn't fall in. A gust of cool Connecticut June wind blew through the boat house, making the hairs rise on her arms as she felt Abigail stand behind her. The other seniors were standing behind their respective juniors as well.

"Welcome, ladies to the Bateman leadership initiation ceremony." Greta was trying to make herself sound serious, but her excitement was coming through a little too much.

Emma rolled her eyes at the dramatics of it all.

"We are gathered here today to bring forth a new class of leaders at Miss Bateman's Preparatory Academy. Leaders that will guide our lady warriors in one of our most ancient traditions: the territory wars."

Emma rolled her eyes again. 'Ancient' was definitely a hyperbole. The school was only about 100 years old.

"Congratulations, ladies. You have been chosen to lead your halls in the fight against the boys of Chesterfield. Juniors, you may stand. Turn to the lady who came before you."

Emma put her shoes back on and turned to face Abigail. She held out an unlit candle for Emma to take.

"From Addy Hall, Belle Leon." The flame from her now lit candle illuminated her face. "From Delamont, Ruby Williams." The candle just exaggerated her her pointed features. "From March, Ella Preuss." Emma held her breath as Abigail started to light her candle. "And from York, your captain, Emma Swan."

"What?!" She was very close to dropping her lit candle in the wooden boathouse.

"Congratulations, Emma."

"I really am fine with just being a leader." She tried to put as much kindness and urgency in her voice as possible. She saw Ruby roll her eyes from across the dock.

"Emma, we voted unanimously. It's an honor." The excitement had left Greta's voice.

"One that I don't want." Emma snuffed out her candle and placed it on the table by the door. "One that I really really don't want."

"Emma, you're the only one who can really stand up to Jones," Abigail spoke from behind her.

"Little Jones is their leader this year?"

Greta and Abigail nodded.

"Well, now I really don't want to do it." She put her hand on the door handle to leave.

"Fine." Greta took a step. "Ruby will do it."

"Would you really do that to the school?" Being dragged out of bed to be enlisted in a job you don't want calls for some sass.

"Hey!"

Greta ignored her, picking up a red spiral notebook from the table. "There are the current borders, lists of all property with their pro's and con's, battle plans... You name it, it's in this book. It's yours if you want it. Please want it, Emma. You're the school's best hope."

Emma grabbed the book and opened the door. Mostly just to get away, she told them what they wanted to hear. "Fine, I'll do it. Good night, ladies."

She left the boat house feeling worse than when she had gotten there. The territory wars were just a stupid excuse to interact with the boys of Chesterfield. Not to mention they usually caused a few broken limbs among the freshman who didn't know that these wars weren't above boobie traps. She huffed at having to work with Ruby and timid Ella for an entire year. Also, leading the entire school.

On the bright side, Belle was one of her closest friends.

But add another point to the 'con' column, Killian Jones was one of the worst humans ever. Cocky and pervy, maybe she'd have fun taking territory away from him. So maybe he was both a pro and a con. Well, he's a con, beating him is a pro.

All of these thoughts were swimming in her head as she climbed back into bed. No longer comforted by simply being done with exams, Emma was now very stressed. She tried to conjure up dancing physics equations, but all she could see was Ruby's smirk, a freshman with a broken arm, and Killian Jones.