A/N: This chapter is quite short so I thought I would update sooner! Hope you enjoy it and thanks again for all the favourites/follows & reviews :)
Emma rolled over in bed with a groan when Adeline knocked at her door to wake her up. Her muscles ached, her head was pounding and her eyes were battling her attempts to open them. She thought she would wake up in a better state considering she had spent the previous night at a ball, but instead she just felt wiped out.
It was the first time she had ever consumed more than a few mouthfuls of rum and now she understood the downside to it. Truthfully she didn't actually have too much alcohol, but she found herself seeking a drink after her heated discussion with Hook, and one drink turning to another until she was grateful the night was finally over.
The princess buried her face in the pillows when she remembered the brunch that was to follow the ball, because clearly one night wasn't enough for her parents to celebrate. She changed robotically into the dress that Adeline had set out for her, wishing she hadn't chosen one with a bodice in her current aching state.
After quickly brushing through her hair and tying it into a loose side braid, she reluctantly made her way downstairs to the dining area. She heard a soft buzz and knew that the guests must have already arrived. Everyone knew that getting an invitation to the brunch after a ball was the greatest sign of respect from the royals, and the event was mostly just the guests trying to one up each other for attention. She truly despised the formalities of royalty.
'Ah, here she is.' She heard her father exclaim from the head of the table where he and her mother sat. She smiled briefly before taking her seat beside them, avoiding eye contact with the rest of the gawking faces further down the table.
She was relieved when everyone started talking among themselves once more, and she busied herself with filling up her plate. She reached over to pick up the jug of orange juice when a warm hand was placed on top of her own.
'Let me get that, lass.' A voice beside her said quietly, and her stomach dropped with dread.
'I can get it myself.' Emma muttered, turning to give the pirate a death glare when he chuckled in response.
'Aye, of course.' Hook whispered, amusement in his eyes and a smirk curling his lips up.
'How the hell did you get an invite?' Emma whispered back furiously, barely holding the jug of orange juice steady enough to pour it into her glass.
'It might interest you to know that some people actually like me, Princess.' He shamelessly reached across her for a cinnamon roll, and she glowered at him again.
'Those are my favourite and you just took the last one.'
Hook froze momentarily before grinning at her and biting into the roll. 'We can always share, love.'
She bit her lip to stop herself laughing at the old man from the previous night staring at them disapprovingly once again.
'Look, can you be serious for one minute please? We need to bring up you-know-who to my parents, but not now with all these nosy people around.' Emma whispered, frowning at those further down the table. Hook hid his smirk behind the cinnamon roll, his eyebrows the only giveaway to his amusement as they wiggled up and down.
'Come back to the castle at 4pm this afternoon. I'm unofficially supposed to introduce my parents to anyone I met at the ball, and seeing as I don't actually want to marry anyone I can use you as a cover up to get my parents off my back, for now.' She sighed, turning around and forced a smile for her unsuspecting parents.
'Princess-' Hook started, but Emma kicked him in the shin, smirking when she heard his pained groan.
'Do not say a word, Killian.' The emphasis she put on his real name (or fake-real name, she wasn't sure) was harsh but it kept him quiet. Judging by his reaction she figured that it was in fact his real name, and if that was the case, he had most likely not been called Killian for as long as he been known as Hook, which was an awfully long time.
She snuck a glance at him and was grateful that he was suddenly incredibly interested in the cinnamon glaze on the roll. His ears and cheeks were a light shade of red as if he had just come in from the cold, and it made her feel strangely sympathetic towards him (a sentiment she swallowed down immediately with a handful of grapes).
'Can I ask you a question, Killian?' She decided to continue using his name when they were in public, but she didn't miss the way the muscles in his face twitched at hearing her say it.
'You just did, lass.' Hook retorted playfully, and she rolled her eyes before he gestured with his good hand for her to continue.
'If you're such a skilled-' She hesitated briefly before continuing, '-sailor, how could you not have accomplished your goal by now?' She saw him clench his jaw and she wondered if he was even going to answer. He took a mouthful of water before turning towards her in his chair.
'It's not that simple. It's like trying to catch a fish with your bare hands. It just slips right out of your grasp as soon as you get close. However, it's a lot easier to catch a fish if you have a net.' Hook raised an eyebrow at her and smirked when she nodded in understanding.
'Besides, it's also a lot easier to succeed if you work as a team.' He added, and Emma snorted in response.
'So you and I are team now?' She asked quietly, her fingers absent mindedly playing with the fringes of the table runner.
'Well I think we make quite a good one, lass, don't you?' His eyes twinkled with mischief and she was glad that her father chimed his glass to get everyone's attention so that she wouldn't have to respond to the pirate's teasing comment.
Her father launched into a particularly boring political speech about the union of all the kingdoms (she cringed when he nodded to Killian in regards to his maritime home that was a complete lie). Hook had the cheek to wink at her, and although the gesture made her roll her eyes, it also gave a small thrill.
She had a secret from her parents, one that was bigger than just simply sneaking out at night; she was sneaking around with a pirate. She was conspiring with a man who had probably pillaged villages and stolen from royal families just like her own, but instead of feeling disgust and guilt, she found that she actually enjoyed it.
Without thinking, she gave Hook a smile, a genuine one, and only realized when she noticed his surprised expression. To her surprise he didn't smirk, or lick his lips suggestively, or wiggle his eyebrows or bite his lip. The corners of his mouth lifted up slightly, a look of wonder in his eyes as he searched hers for an explanation. Emma broke eye contact first, reaching for her glass of juice before looking back at her father. She felt his leg brush against hers under the table as he twisted in his seat, and she was amazed with herself when she didn't flinch away from the contact.
