Author's Note: You guys are still the best! Have some cotton candy, because I can never seem to resist it. (And yes, this is, as they say, the calm before. *grins*)


Conversation flowed as the little family finished up their lunch. Somehow talk had turned to the sweets and treats of their childhoods, and Emma was in the middle of a story about the time she and another girl in one of her group homes had utterly failed at baking brownies. From what Killian gathered, she'd been in one of rare decent homes at the time and the woman in charge had been amused by rather than angry with the result of their little baking exercise. "The top was perfectly cooked," Emma insisted. "The bottom, not so much. When we went to cut them up, we cut into a pool of brownie batter."

David managed to cover his chuckle with a cough but Snow and Henry were openly laughing. Killian grinned at his Swan, trying to imagine her as a lass younger than Henry attempting her first baking session without adult supervision. "I gather you didn't end up with a freshly baked dessert that night," Snow said once she'd caught her breath.

"It may not have been baked correctly but we totally served it anyway," Emma said, a cheeky grin on her lips. "Because you know what little kids love more than brownies?"

"Brownie batter," Henry replied.

"Damn straight. We each grabbed a spoon and dug in."

The prince and princess exchanged a tender smile, both of them clearly thrilled that their daughter had decided to share this little moment from her childhood with them. Killian himself relished hearing about the good moments from her past; he could only imagine how much her parents adored it.

"Now I want some brownie batter," Henry said, making everyone laugh.

"Maybe later, kid," Emma replied, smiling.

Once it became clear that everyone's stomachs were full of sandwiches and cookies, Emma stood up to clear the table. Henry stood as well, once again pulling off his shirt so he could head back into the water. "I don't think you should go quite yet, Henry," the princess said hesitantly. "You should wait an hour or so before heading back into the water."

The lad somewhat impatiently rolled his eyes. "That's just an old wives' tale, Gramma. I'm not going to get a cramp and drown. I just want to cool off; it's hot up here."

"I'll watch him," David murmured to his wife.

Snow sent a questioning glance at Emma, who shrugged. It wasn't as if the lad and the prince were going to do any kind of competitive swimming or engage in any rough play. They both simply wanted to cool off by dunking their heads.

"All right, you can go," Snow relented, much to Henry's delight and David's amusement, "but I want you both back up on this deck at the slightest sign of discomfort."

"Thanks, Gramma!" And with that, Henry was off, dashing across the deck and scrambling down the ladder. The prince followed at his heels but before he could even strip off his shirt, the lad had leaped into the water. "Water's still warm, Grampa!"

Emma raised her eyebrows in surprise. Clearly she hadn't expected the effects of her magic to last quite this long.

Killian and Emma cleared the rest of the table, tucking the uneaten food back in the cooler and gathering their used plates and utensils for disposal in a plastic bag the princess had packed in the beach tote. At Emma's insistence, Snow carried a still sleeping Neal back to the sitting area so she could get him out of the sun and keep an eye on her husband and grandson in the water.

After Killian helped Emma carry the cooler back down into the galley, they returned on deck and reclaimed their seats on the bench across from the princess. Before sitting, Emma stepped up to her mother and said, "I want baby time."

A warm smile played across Snow's lips as she gently transferred baby Neal into his big sister's arms. The young lad squirmed only the tiniest bit, his little thumb finding his mouth.

Talk about heart-melting.

With her baby brother cradled in her arms, Emma tucked herself against Killian's side. He smiled at her as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "You all right, love?" he asked, his fingers already tracing soft lines up and down her arm.

"Better than all right." She smiled up at him, her eyes shining with love and warmth. "Have I thanked you yet for doing this for us?"

Not in words, she hadn't. In every other way, though, she had. Her gratitude was evident in her easy smiles and the way she cuddled up to him and relaxed against him. It was in her magic water fight with her lad and in her teasing of her father. It was in the looks she shared with her mother and the adoring way she gazed down at her baby brother. It was in everything she'd done from the time he'd made the suggestion. "Aye, love," he said softly, "you have."

They fell into a comfortable silence. Emma's focus was split between her sleeping baby brother, her pirate, and her son and father in the water. The princess also divided her attention, taking in the sight of her daughter lovingly cradling little Neal while also keeping a watchful on her swimming family members. Killian, though, kept his attention solely on Emma.

After what Killian guessed to be about twenty minutes, Henry and David both swam back to the boat and hoisted themselves out of the water. As they scrambled up the ladder, Killian noted that Henry's lower lip was quivering in a shiver, leading him to assume that Emma's warming magic had finally worn off. "You two all right?" Emma asked, concern knotting her brow.

"Yes," David replied, stifling a shiver of his own. "I will say, though, that your magic is amazing. The water is positively frigid without it."

The frown on Emma's lips refused to budge. "I can warm the water for you guys again, if you want."

"No, Mom, you don't have to," Henry assured her. "I just wanted to cool off, and believe me, I'm plenty cool now."

That got her to smile. "Okay, if you're sure."

"Yep." As if to prove how sure he was, the lad grabbed his towel from where he'd left it drying and wrapped himself up in it.

"I'll be right back," David said, excusing himself to get a towel of his own.

Now that everyone was out of the water for a while, both the princess and Emma allowed themselves to relax. Snow opened her book again while Emma snuggled impossibly closer to Killian.

David returned a moment later and eased down beside his wife with a teasing grin. "Charming, you're wet and cold!" Snow exclaimed, stifling a giggle. Beyond that, she didn't tell him to move, so he stayed.

Once Henry felt as if he'd dried enough, he set the towel back out in the sun, grabbed his phone, and plopped down next to Killian. He glanced over the lad's shoulder and was surprised to find him playing some kind of word game. He watched with fascination, trying to figure out the object of the game.

Henry must have realized he was being watched and why because he smiled up at Killian. "You're supposed to find different words using these six letters."

Emma leaned forward to see her son past Killian. "You're playing Text Twist?"

"It's a Text Twist knock-off, but basically, yeah."

"Do you know this game, love?" Killian asked.

"Yeah. I'm decent at it."

"'Decent?'" Henry asked in disbelief. "She's being modest. She's awesome at it."

A light blush colored Emma's cheeks, which Killian found remarkably endearing. "You'll have to show me someday when your hands are less full, Swan."

As if he was aware he was being vaguely discussed, the baby started to fuss in Emma's arms. David stood and took him from his daughter. "That's his needs-to-be-changed squirming," he explained, then excused himself to tend to the little lad.

Without a baby in her arms, Emma allowed herself to relax fully, resting her head on Killian's shoulder and closing her eyes. Killian continued to trace soft lines up and down her arm with his fingers while he watched Henry play the word game. After watching a couple of rounds, he was even able to help the lad find some words.

David returned with a now wide-awake little Neal and sat down beside Snow, who looked up from her book at their arrival and gave them both a loving smile.

Killian hadn't realized just how long they'd been sitting in the comforting silence with the boat rocking gently in the waves until he felt Emma's muscles twitch. An amused smile tugged at his lips as he realized the relaxation, her full stomach, and the rocking had finally worked their magic: she was falling asleep leaning against him.

The princess must have realized it, too, because she interrupted the silence with a gentle, "Emma."

When she didn't move, Killian helped Snow out by rubbing his palm over Emma's arm to bring her around a little. She flinched and her eyes snapped open. "What?"

Snow and Killian both shared a wince. They hadn't meant to startle her. Still, all Snow said was, "Why don't you go lie down in the cabin for a little while?"

"Don't want to," Emma mumbled, her eyes sliding closed again.

Snow frowned. "Then at least put some more sunscreen on. You're falling asleep."

"No m'not."

That got everyone to smile. That, and the fact that despite her denial, she was snoring lightly in under a minute.

It was apparent, however, that despite the princess's amusement, she was concerned that her daughter was going to wake with a sunburn. In response, Henry set his phone down, pushed himself to his feet, and grabbed Emma's towel from the sun-warmed deck. "It's dry now," he murmured to Snow as he handed it to her. "If she uses it like a blanket, she won't get a sunburn."

"Wonderful idea, Henry," Snow replied, then stood to vaguely tuck in her little girl.

After she draped the towel over Emma, she exchanged an amused smile with Killian. "I can try to lie her down."

"No," Killian whispered in response. "Somehow she's comfortable like this and I'd rather not disturb her."

Snow's smile turned tender as she nodded and reclaimed her seat. She once again opened her book, Henry resumed his word game, and a resigned David took all of it in with a gentle smile.

Killian looked down at Emma with a smile of his own. His Swan may have been using him as a pillow but truthfully, there was nowhere else he would rather be.