Emma raised her head with a start, only to have Killian's hand come around, covering her mouth. His voice whispered very, very quietly in her ear.
"I heard it, too. There's a dagger on the shelf above you. Reach for it while I find my cutlass."
She nodded to let him know that she understood, and he moved quickly and silently off the bed, grabbing his cutlass first and then sliding into his pants. He tossed Emma's clothing over to her, then made his way cautiously toward the ladder. He held a finger to his lips, barely visible in the moonlight. Emma nodded, dressing quickly and then moving silently to the other side of the ladder.
The sound came again, softly, as if someone were trying very hard not to make any noise. The steps were coming closer, though, and when a foot appeared, stepping down onto the ladder, Hook reached up, yanking hard and pulling the unknown trespasser down into a heap on the cabin floor.
Emma dropped to one knee, pressing her dagger against the trespasser's throat. Then she did a double-take, flipping the person over.
"Mom!"
Her eyes widened. "Henry? What are you doing here?"
He sat up, throwing his arms around her. "You're here! You're really here!"
Killian stepped slowly toward them, keeping his cutlass raised.
"Careful, Swan..." he said, eyeing Henry.
Emma nodded up at him, holding Henry at arm's length.
"You need to tell me something that only Henry would know about me," she urged.
Henry nodded gravely. "You want to make sure I'm who I say I am. I get it. You like Cinnamon in your hot cocoa. And once, you let me have french fries for breakfast at Granny's because you knew it would make my Mom mad."
Emma smiled widely, wrapping her arms around him again.
"C'mere kid." She held him close, running her hands up and down his arms as if to reassure herself that he was really there. Then she pushed him back again.
"What are you doing here? Regina and I wanted you safe, in Storybrooke."
"I know," he said. "Dad did, too. But I wanted to help."
Emma's face froze, and her eyes shifted helplessly to Killian. He returned her look with a grimace.
"It's good to see you, Henry. But your mother is right - you should have stayed in Storybrooke."
"Have you been on the ship all this time?" Emma asked.
Henry shook his head. "No. I started out hiding in here, but then the witch showed up."
"Zelena was here?" Emma glanced over at Killian again.
"Almost right away after we landed. Dad was getting ready to go and find you, but she came aboard with her monkeys. She was trying to take Pan's shadow - I think she thought she could use it - but it has a spell on it and it wouldn't budge."
"Regina did that," Emma said. "That shadow's not going anywhere."
"I was hiding, but I heard her," Henry continued. "She wants the ship because she's going to use it once she does whatever it is she's doing. She wants to travel the realms and rule them all."
"That sounds like her," Emma said, rolling her eyes.
"She changed Dad into one of those...monkey things," Henry said. "And then they all flew off. I left and hid in the forest for awhile because I thought they were coming back. Then I got hungry and I decided to risk coming back on board to find some food."
Killian sheathed his cutlass. "I'm sure I can find something in the galley for you, Henry." His eyes met Emma's, clearly showing a question.
"Why don't you go do that, Killian," she answered. He held her eyes a moment longer, and she gave him a slight nod.
"Very well," he said quietly. "I'll just leave you two to...catch up."
"Thanks," Emma murmured, watching him go. She took a deep breath, and turned back to Henry, wishing to God she didn't have to have this conversation yet again. How many times could she break his heart?
"Henry? Come and sit down..." she said, guiding him over to the bed.
###
He watched her emerge from the cabin, but she didn't move toward him. Instead, she walked to the bow, looking out toward the sea. The night breeze caught her hair, and she shivered a bit, wrapping her arms around herself. She gave a slight start when his coat settled over her shoulders.
"Thanks," she mumbled, pulling it closer around her. She couldn't help but bury her nose in the lapel. It smelled wonderful - of sea and leather and bay rum and Killian. It still held his warmth, and she remembered only too well the heat of his skin.
"You all right, Swan?"
His hand still rested lightly on her shoulder, but it slid down, then around her, pulling her lightly back against him. She relaxed into him gratefully.
"No," she sighed. "I've had to tell him - yet again - that his father is dead. And each time, I die a little, too."
His lips brushed her temple, and he closed his eyes, holding her tighter.
"I'm sorry, love. There's no easy way to say it. Or hear it. How is he?"
"Sleeping. He was exhausted," Emma replied. "Once he ate, it was all he could do to keep his eyes open."
"You should join him. We still have a few hours before daylight."
She turned to face him. "Will you stay with us?"
"In the cabin?"
She nodded. "I was going to curl up on the floor, since Henry's sprawled across the bed. You're welcome to curl up with me."
He let out a rueful sigh. "Ah, Swan...as much as I'd love to curl myself around you on any surface, it's best if I stay up here and stand watch, particularly since we know the witch has designs on my ship."
"I can put up a protection spell," Emma suggested.
"That's a capital idea," he replied, "But I think it's best for Henry if he doesn't see his mother in another man's arms on the night he learned of his father's death."
Emma gave a sad half-smile. "Yeah, you're probably right. I'm glad he didn't show up two hours earlier."
"So am I. I waited a long time for this night, brief though it may have been." He pushed a lock of her hair behind her ear, and kissed her softly.
"Get some rest, Swan. Henry needs you with him."
She moved out of his arms and walked slowly toward the hatch, then stopped to turn back.
"Killian?"
"Yes?"
"I - " she looked away a moment, then back at him. "Thanks."
"For this evening? I'm happy to oblige you again at your earliest convenience." He gave her a crooked grin and raised a brow.
"For thinking of Henry."
"He's a good lad. I can't even say I'm terribly surprised that he's here," he noted. "His mother certainly wouldn't have stayed back."
"I guess we're both a little reckless," she said wryly.
He stepped in closer to her again. "No, you're courageous. You do things like this because it's in your very nature. People like you do things like this even when it's not the smartest or safest thing because you can't not do them."
"People like me?" She tilted her head to the side. "You're not talking about the whole 'savior' thing again, are you?"
"No." His face became somber, almost angry. "I'm saying you never would have sailed away from a town full of people who were about to die. You most certainly would never have sailed away from someone you cared about."
"Neither did - "
He put a finger to her lips. "Yes, I did. Me. This Killian Jones. I did exactly that. And it may be a curse that brought me to this, but that doesn't change this reality for me."
She touched his face, hearing the tortured undertones in his words. "But you are changing this reality. And so am I. I have faith in that."
He pulled her in and put his forehead down, touching hers. "Then I'll have to keep faith in your faith, because I can't reconcile that this scurvy pirate deserves an ounce of what I'm feeling right now, with you in my arms."
He kissed her, long and lingeringly, and she kissed him back, vowing to find a way to light every dark corner of his heart.