So I recently finished Season 3 and had this idea that while Killian is thinking of Emma each day that she is thinking of him too. She obviously doesn't have her actual memories, but my thought was that she has these moments where something feels meaningful to her and she doesn't know why. Each chapter will be about one of these moments. They all take place in between 3x11 and 3x12.

The first 3 chapters are more subtle in their shipping. Things get overt in chapter 4 if you want to skip to there.

I apologize for all of the angst in this first one. It takes place just after they leave Storybrooke so Emma and Henry are upset even if they don't realize why.

As the yellow Bug pulls further and further away from Storybrooke's former location, Emma can't help but feel uneasy. This nagging thought that she has forgotten something keeps cropping up. She runs through all of the important things that she might've left behind in Maine.

The most important thing, Henry, is staring pensively out the window. He had been quiet for the past couple minutes, which is a little weird. Usually they don't have to listen to the radio because Henry fills the car with his observations of their surroundings. Emma chalks it up to him being nervous about the move. It would makes sense. Emma has a new job in New York; Henry will be changing schools when the semester starts up.

Emma's thought process makes a slight jerk. Maybe it was Henry's paperwork she had forgotten.

"Hey kid, can you check the glove box for your school transcripts and stuff?"

Henry slowly does what she asked. He pulls a thick envelope out of the glove compartment. It is crisp and neat like it's never been touched before. To be fair Regina fabricated them less than an hour beforehand. Henry rifles through the papers.

"Immunization records, grades, birth certificate. Everything looks okay, Mom."

Emma nods absently. She tries to think of other things. Henry checks her purse for her wallet, credit cards, and cell phone before moving on to take inventory of the contents of the backseat.

"Mom, seriously, what are you doing?" he asks after rummaging through his backpack for their phone chargers for the third time.

"I don't know. I just feel like we forgot something."

Henry shakes his head. "You get like this every time we move. Just relax. We haven't messed up any of the other times."

Emma has a hazy recollection of places they lived together. Her job keeps her moving, which Henry isn't always fond of. All of their past residences blur together some. Emma isn't sure she could name where they lived before Boston.

"You're right. Maybe I just need some sugar. It looks like there's a diner at the next exit. I could use a hot chocolate."

"Okay, but only if I get one too. Oh and a slice of pie."

Emma raised an eyebrow. "Pie?"

"Apple. I really, really want a slice of apple."

Emma smiles fondly at her son.

"How about we share one?"

Henry shrugs. He is getting pie. It doesn't really matter how he gets it.

Minutes later the pair pulls into the parking lot of Flo's Diner. It is surprisingly packed for the time of day, but they found a seat. The diner looks like every diner Emma has ever loved. It has lots of chrome and booths covered in shiny plastic that squeaks. Photos of local landmarks hang on the wall. The hostess leaves a stack of crayons so Henry can doodle on his placemat.

He sets to work immediately, barely looking up to order his hot chocolate and pie. Emma studies him as he begins with a brown crayon. He soon switches to a green one.

"So did you like Maine?" Emma asks, trying to engage her son.

Henry's face grew serious. "A lot. I think maybe I'll move there when I'm older."

Emma grabs a blue crayon and start slightly drawing on her placemat.

"Interesting. Why?"

Henry finally meets his mother's eye.

"It's the kind of place you stay put in," he states matter-of-factly.

Emma's heart lurches at that statement. It seems like an underhanded attack at her parenting at first. It takes her a heartbeat to realize it was really just Henry making an observation, but that only took out some of the sting.

They both go back to coloring until the waitress brings their hot chocolate and pie. She even remembers to bring a shaker of cinnamon like Emma had asked for.

Henry takes a giant forkful of pie and shoves it into his mouth. He frowns as he chews it.

"Not good, kid?"

Henry tilts his head, searching for the right words.

"It doesn't taste right. Not in a 'the apples are spoiled' kind of way, but it isn't as good as I wanted it to be."

Emma digs into the pie. She moves from side to side as she chews, testing out what Henry said.

"What's the verdict?"

"It tastes like apple pie." Emma pulls the plate closer to her. "If you don't want it, I don't mind eating it all myself."

Henry stabs his fork into the slice to stop her.

"Whoa who said I didn't want the pie. I didn't say that."

He puts an obnoxiously large bite into his mouth to illustrate his point. His cheeks are rounded slightly with the large amount of pie, but Emma can still make out his triumphant smile. They soon finish the dessert.

Henry takes a test sip and deems his hot chocolate cool enough to start drinking. He takes several long gulps in a row. When he puts down the mug a mustache made of whipped cream remains on his upper lip.

Emma laughs as he cleans himself up. She feels her heart swell with how much she loves her son. He is the one person who had never left her. Sure, he is a minor, but Emma felt certain he would want to be with her even if he didn't have to be.

That love makes her more aware of the dull ache in her chest. Is it that she is running out of years with Henry? Or maybe she just wants him to have more of a life. He has so much love to give, which is shocking considering how little Emma knew on that subject. She doesn't know how she was capable of loving him so greatly when she had no experience in the matter. When the doctor handed him to her, she had known she was done for though. He had become her world, but he deserved more of a world than just Emma. He deserved a place to stay put in.

Guilt.

That's what this emotion had to be. It fills Emma so completely yet makes her feel so hollow at the same time. She has never ached like this before. It feels like a vital part of her has been ripped viciously from her.

"You okay?"

Henry breaks her from her reverie. His now empty cup sits there, making Emma aware that she has hardly touched hers.

"Fine." Emma tries to smile, but Henry's answering look tells her how fake she looks.

"You sure? You're holding your shirt really weirdly."

Emma looks down. The heel of her hand is digging into her sternum. Her fingers are clutching the fabric of her turtleneck. She quickly readjusts herself and reaches across the table to swipe Henry's drawing.

"So what'd you draw?"

Emma flips the drawing around and feels her face fall slightly at the picture. It is of an apple tree. It is the world's easiest metaphor for staying put. Henry wants roots.

"Apple tree. It's seemed easier to draw than an apple pie. What about you?"

Emma's drawing isn't great either, but it wasn't hard to tell what it was. If Henry's picture was about staying put, Emma's is about going far away.

"Cool ship, Mom."

The bottom is white, ending just above the jagged blue line that were supposed to represent water. The top of the boat is almost striped in yellow, blue, and red. It hasa large mast and sails. The ache in Emma's chest intensifies as she studies the picture.

"Are you sure you're okay with moving?," she blurts.

Emma looks up from the picture slowly, gauging his response to her question. Henry starts to answer twice, but stops to reconsider his words.

"Moving is always really hard, but I know it's going to turn out alright because I'm with you."

The relief Emma feels at his words is overwhelming. She knows he isn't lying.

"Get over here."

Henry moves to Emma's side of the table. She crushes him to her side. He's right. They'll be fine as long as they're together. She makes a promise to herself that she's going to try to put down some roots for Henry. She'll make actual friends and even try dating. His belief in her dampens some of the pain she's feeling.

"Are you gonna finish your hot chocolate?" Henry asks hopefully.

Emma eyes him. "Any more sugar and you'll be up all night."

"You say that like it's a bad thing."

If you made it all the way to end, thank you! Henry's fascination with apples is because he misses Regina. The ship is supposed to be the Jolly Roger. I hope I made that evident. The next one should be a lot lighter.

Feel free to favorite, follow, review or just keep reading. Just seeing traffic stats makes me happy. If you notice any errors, let me know. I only proofread it twice because I was so excited to post.

Edited 6/12 because I forgot she mentioned that they were moving from Boston. Whoops.