MAJOR APOLOGIES TO ALL. LIFE KIND OF GOT IN THE WAY; MY NEW JOB HAS TURNED OUT TO BE EXTRA DEMANDING, AND ALL SPARE TIMES I'VE HAD HAVE BEEN DEDICATED TO A TRANSLATION I'M GETTING PAID TO DO FREELANCE, AND SINCE I HAVE A DEADLINE, WELL…
BUT ANYWAY, I SEE THIS STORY KEEPS GAINING FOLLOWERS AND I COULDN'T BE MORE GRATEFUL. IT HAS BEEN QUITE A TRIP WITH "LILLY", HER MOM AND DAD AND THE MAAAAASSIVE JONES FAMILY THAT SOMEHOW SEEMED TO JUST FEEL NATURAL. THOSE TWO HAVE SUCH POTENTIAL TO BE PARENTS OF A HUGE HOUSEHOLD, AND I'D GIVE THEM EVEN MORE KIDS IF I DIDN'T THINK IT WOULD BE A LIIIITLE TOO RIDICULOUS AND MARY SUE-ISH BY NOW. NEVERTHELESS, AS ALWAYS, A BIG THANK YOU TO ALL FOR FOLLOWING THIS STORY.
ALAS… THIS WILL BE ONE OF THE LAST CHAPTERS, SO I'M MAKING IT EXTRA FEELY, FLUFFY, SMUFFY AND JUST LOADED WITH GOODNESS… SHORT BUT SWEET CHAPTER TO SEE HOW THE JONESES LIVE A REGULAR LIFE, WITH THEIR FAMILY DYNAMICS AND EMMA AND KILLIAN'S THEIR RELATIONSHIP AS A COUPLE . AND THERE WILL BE ONE MORE CHAPTER AND AN EPILOGUE (OR 2) TO TIE THINGS UP NEATLY; I JUST NEED TO SEE THE PREMIERE FIRST TO SEE HOW I END THIS.
THERE IS ONLY SO MUCH ONE CAN DO TO NARRATE THE IMPORTANCE AND GROWTH OF A THREE-YEAR-OLD LITTLE WITCH WITH A SPECIAL MISSION, LOL. AND WHILE IT'S BEEN A GREAT RIDE, ALL GOOD THINGS MUST COME TO AN END. BUT DO NOT FRET! WE HAVE A GLORIOUS 4B COMING UP AND I'M SURE YOU'LL ALL KEEP YOUR MINDS BUSY WITH THAT!
PLEASE BE SURE TO CHECK OUT SOME OF MY OTHER STORIES. AND LOVE TO ALL! EPILOGUE COMING SOON, I PROMISE. HEAPS OF THANK-YOUS AND LOVE YOU'S TO ALL THOSE WHO FOLLOWED, FAVD AND REVIEWED, FRIENDLY AND OTHERWISE. I WOULD ESPECIALLY LIKE TO THANK THE FOLLOWING FOR THEIR UNBELIEVABLE LOYALTY TO THIS STORY:
"Is it still hurting?" Emma winced as she raised Killian's shirt.
Rumplestiltskin had been able to heal Killian, although with not the same efficiency as the official healer that was little Lilly Jones. He bore a scar where Blackbeard had stabbed him and still ached when he tried to either sit up or turn sharply.
"Aye…" He hissed as Emma gingerly touched the scar. "Though it's not the worst pain I've had, I can tell you that." He raised a grin to his wife as she pulled his shirt back down. "I'll survive, love."
"Because… you are a survivor?"
He smirked arrogantly. "Bit over three hundred years old, love. Must prove a point, eh?"
Emma nodded and sighed silently, her eyes wandering low. "I almost lost you again. You AND Lilly."
"And as always, you handled it beautifully." He smiled, caressing the side of her head with a worshiping look emanating from his blue eyes, . "My wife the savior and my daughter the healer… Bloody hell, am I a blessed man or are my stars just favoring all those born under my sign?"
Emma scrunched her nose playfully. "Your… sign? You have signs in the… other place?"
The pirate sat up with a pained sneer. "Darling, I'm a sailor. I live by the bloody stars, what do you think? Aye, we have star signs."
"And… what sign might you be?"
He chuckled and licked his lips in thought (And Emma felt a tingle run down her back; it had been QUITE a while since she had felt that tongue on her actual skin. The man was a tease and didn't even know it!"), and he narrowed his eyes. "Let me see… I believe I was born under the star of the lion." He nodded. "Aye, the Lion. Because Liam celebrated his own nativity jubilee a month earlier, with the star of the crab, and Milah's own natality came during the month of the maiden which, I do state, she was not at all, but my own was smack dab in the middle… Aye, the lion."
Emma laughed aloud. "You're a Leo!"
"Is that what you call it here?"
"Yeah."
He side-grinned.- "You look pleased with yourself…"
"Well…" She side-shrugged. "I'm no seer like Henry and I haven't the first clue how to read the palm of your hand, but we do have enough magazines and newspapers in this realm that constantly publish the fortune of our stars…" She chuckled. "You're a Leo… might explain your overly-bulging ego."
"Oi! I resent that!"
"Come on!" she laughed. "You do have a pretty high opinion of yourself, Killian." She side-shrugged and curled up next to him, burying her face into his chest. "Not that I… really disagree. You are kind of hot."
That brought a legitimate laugh from her husband. God, how she'd missed his laughter!
"Be fair, Swan. I'm sure this star sign has more to it than just an overgrown selfdom."
"It does…"
"And here you said you were not knowledgeable of these things…"
She sighed. "Working to learn magic with Regina covers a lot of bases. Including a little bit of astrology. Not to mention that repeatedly running away from foster homes gave me the chance to read enough newspapers… which I would later use to sleep." She looked up at him. "Like I said, I'm no fortune teller, but I know a thing or two." She sat up slightly, leaning on an elbow as she adoringly caressed his forehead, hairline and nose with her right index finger. "Leos are cocky, powerful leaders that love to be the center of attention, strong-tempered and tend to flake a little when they're not capturing everyone's eyes. Not to mention they don't forget a damn thing… nor do they easily forgive…"
"Aye, that does sound a bit like yours truly…"
"And they're also generous, clever, persistent, cunning, loyal, honest, passionate, stubborn and dedicated. There's not a thing a Leo wouldn't share with those he cares for. And when they love…" She smiled at him. "They do it wholeheartedly."
He smiled fully. "That would definitely be me then, love."
"And… kind of fiery in the alcove…"
He laughed again. "That's my name! Complete deal maker, Swan."
"There's that ego again!"
"You did say I am one of the sign, or did I hear wrongly?"
"You are a stereotypical example."
"And you, Emma? Under which stellar constellation do you dwell?"
She huffed. "I'm a Libra."
He raised an eyebrow. "Which one would that be, darling?"
"The weighing scale?"
"Oh aye… that one is right under the constellation Cygnus."
"Cygnus?"
He smirked adoringly. "The Swan."
"Shut up!"
"I swear it! There is no such thing as 'coincidence', Emma, you're as fated as they come. Beautifully so."
"I thought you had no clue about these things!"
"Like I told you, love, stars are my life. So go on… what is a Libra like?"
Emma chuckled and rolled her eyes at the intent behind his wording of Libra. "Libra can never make up his or her mind..."
"Oh, hohoho, that's for certain!" He exclaimed, laughing and wide-eyed.
"Will you let me finish or are you going to start saying yes and no to everything I say, as per your natural sassy nature?"
"Bad form, love, apologies… continue."
She shook her head and settled back down against his chest. "We can be quite detached, insecure and might dwell a little too much in the past."
"YEP! That's you, Emma."
"BE QUIET!"
"Ok, all right, carry on then."
"Have a very hard time trusting someone. Takes a while to establish bonds of trust. But once we do…" She bit her lower lip and kissed the side of his lips. "There's no stopping."
"Oh…" He smiled and closed his eyes softly. "Do carry on…"
She kissed the side of his face, one little corner at a time. "We're good planners…"
"That's debatable…"
"Shhh! And we do have quite a balanced sense of fair play and justice…"
"Now THAT I agree with, savior…"" He whispered, his breath ragged as she reached his earlobe with soft kisses. "How do Libras fair in the bedchamber though, Swan? I mean, for mere scientific purposes…"
"Scientific, my ass…" She giggled into his skin, her hand slowly, slowly reaching down from his chest under the hem of his sweat pants.
"Well! Since we're now on the topic of arses…"
"You are so unrefined at times…"
"Are you quite sure it's refinement you seek at this time, my love, or are you looking for something a tad more… lush?" He gave her left butt cheek a quick, hard grab, making her gasp softly as he too kissed the corner of her lips. "Sensuous… luscious… perhaps even trepidously carnal?"
"Where do you come off, talking like that? GOD!"
"It's just the way I'm made, sweetheart."
She grinned and propped herself on his chest, looking straight into his eyes. She retrieved her wandering hand back up and she placed both hands on his cheeks. "I've missed you so much, Killian…"
Within his darkened gaze, she was able to see the deep, blue depths of devoted love for her as he ran a finger up and down her spine. "Darling Swan… So have I."
She leaned down and kissed him deeply. As the fire grew, so did the kiss, intensifying as their tongues cavorted with one another. She moaned softly into his lips as she felt him harden and it thrilled her (every time) to learn this was her doing, that she was wanted, desired… loved. So, so thoroughly loved.
"Can you handle this?" She whispered into his mouth, her eyes closed. "I mean, you're in pain and…"
"You, my dear Emma, like our daughter, have a magical healing touch…" He whispered back. "I can quite well handle it."
She pulled away a bit and smiled, looking into his eyes. "Why the hell do I love you so much?"
"Let's see…" He leaned into the pillow, smiling back. "Aside from the fact that I am all the things you previously described…"
"You cocky son of a bitch…" She giggled.
"That too. Face it, woman. You like it." He kissed her again before looking into her eyes again. "And I love you too, Emma. Now, as far as I know… your stellar sign and mine are both… fire?"
She laughed softly as she felt him unbutton her jeans. "That's right, Captain…"
"So, how would you feel about… setting this bed ablaze?"
"I'm cool with that… Henry is at Regina's this weekend… Heather?"
"Your mother's… Took her shopping for girl's things, clothes and makeup, I gather."
"She wears make up now?"
"She is a young lady, Emma, what did you expect?"
She kicked off her boots and bit her lip as he tugged down her jeans with both hands. "So it's just us, Lilly and the twins?"
"They are all mercifully slumbering, in one piece, health fully restored on out little girl, boys duly fed…"
"And no villains to fend off…"
"For now…"
"Yeah…"
"Aye…"
"So?" She stood up, kicked off the jeans and removed the blouse, standing before his amazed gaze with nothing but her panties on.
"So beautiful… Gods… this never gets old."
"Neither do you, old man." She joked as she licked her upper lip.
Blasted temptress…
He laughed. "Quite a lie Swan…" He freed himself of his pants and socks, lying gloriously nude before her as he held out his hand. "Come…"
She laid down beside him and instantly, he was over her, covering her with kisses, soft and hard in different places. "I love you…." He whispered between each kiss.
"I love you, Killian…"She whispered back, all ragged breaths and shuddering beneath his body and touch, one hand on his back and the other on the nape of his neck.
Claiming her once again like many times before had become a true art form. He knew her pace, her every moan, her cues and quivers. She knew what each breath, each moan and each softly whispered "Oh, Swan…" meant. He knew the exact moment to stop touching her to enter her body with his own; she knew his rhythm and thoroughly enjoyed his delighted gasps when she tightened herself, her welcoming hips thrust upwards for him. He loved the sound of her whimpers in his ear, louder each time, sometimes random moaning and other times his name, like a sacred, whispered prayer from her lips. She loved the way he smiled every time she came, his adoration visible through the blueness of his eyes and his words, "That's it love… good… gods, yes… Oh, Emma…". He loved her soft moan as she held his head to her chest, his lips parted on her neck as he emptied himself with a disgruntled moan and shiver, thrusting harder as then softer and then going limp, on top and inside of her, his back and her forehead glistening with sweat.
Still trying to catch his breath, he propped up and looked at her face. "That… that was…"
She smiled and touched his cheeks, flushed and still insanely beautiful and quite literally glowing. "Welcome home, Killian."
A couple of hours later, they both lay in bed, limbs tangled, bodies sated and, as always, he had the rotten luck and blasted good form to sleep on "the wet spot".
He didn't care.
Emma was snoring softly, but Killian was awake. He slid slowly from her grasp and while she didn't wake, her soft whimper let on that even in deep sleep she sensed her pirate move. He grinned and kissed her head softly. "Love you…" He whispered as he stood and reached for his bathrobe on the side.
Seemed the exertions of the past couple of hours had taken a small toll; he ached around the stab wound scar and the surrounding tissue, but had no regrets. He would never, ever tire of making love to his Emma.
He paced out and walked to the nursery where Declan and Colin slept. He approached the large shared crib and grinned as he reached into the crib to caress one little head of curly hair and one little cheek, and one podgy hand and a podgy foot.
"My wee lads…" He nodded with a smile.
His mind went back to that evening when, after taking a very needed shower in Emma's New York apartment, he first made his approach to a very young Lilly in her bassinette. He recalled the sudden change in his life as he touched her soft cheek, and recalled how his eyes were instantly flooded when she responded with a whimper and a grin, as if she were acknowledging him as her father.
That moment had marked him for life… in the best way.
He now leaned on the edge of the crib, arms folded and his chin rested on top of his hand, and sighed as he simply watched the boys sleep.
After a few minutes, he stood straight up, kissed his fingers and placed them on the heads of the boys.
His boys.
They had grown at least a couple of inches and now looked healthy, happy and plump, like all babies should. And he was both delighted and sorry to have missed the precious days where that sprout had taken place.
Was it even possible to feel more love within the confines of one's heart?
With a soft sigh, he softly paced out of the room, trying not to make the floorboards creak.
And the pirate stomped his boots on the deck, imposing his authority on the fearful crew below…
He gently walked to his daughter's room and found her lying in her little bed, face down and covers kicked all the way to her heels. He laughed quietly. "Like mother like daughter…" He quietly stepped in and felt his toes touch her stuffed toy. "A crocodile… Seriously, Emma, your belligerent sense of humor bewilders me at times…" He sighed and sat on the edge of the girl's bed. He raised her little arm and placed the crocodile beneath her childlike embrace. Lilly immediately moaned and grinned, tugging the croc hard against her chest.
He smiled at that simple motion.
Killian reached for the blanket and pulled it up, covering her up to her neck. After caressing the curls out of her face, he placed a soft kiss on her temple. "My darling little princess…"
"Pidate…" She replied in her sleep.
Killian had to stifle a laugh as he grazed her little plump cheek with the back of his fingers. "My bad, cupcake…" He stood up and sighed yet again. Grinning as he once again paced out of the room. He returned to his own alcove and found Swan (like his daughter) had kicked off the sheets in his absence and had curled up into a fetal position to fend the chill.
He sat on the small armchair facing her side of the bed and simply stared at her for a few minutes, like he had done his sons. Truth was Declan and Colin looked very little like either he or Emma, and truly resembled his brother, as his father had claimed. Nonetheless, he found that they did have Emma's cheekbones, and they sported dimples from his own gene pool. He bit his lower lip and wondered what Emma might have looked like when she was Lilly's age.
He had to make a mental note to get in touch with Mrs. Bailey and ask for photographs of his Swan's infancy.
It wasn't until Emma shivered a little (she was still delightfully naked) that he stood and walked around the bed, disrobed and crawled back on the mattress, wrapping himself around her and pulling the quilt over both their bodies. He sighed into her hair and kissed the back of her head and her body responded instantly by nuzzling up to his.
Yeah… There was not one ounce of evil lefty in him now.
Not when he had all this.
And in that note, he finally drifted to sleep, the sound of the ocean coming from outside the window mingling with Emma's deep breaths and the pulse of his own heart in his ears.
After three hundred plus years, he was finally, completely home.
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Whenever there was no need to fight off some evil foe, Lilly Jones seemed as normal and natural a little girl as anyone could think of. So much, in fact, that only her father's stern ship captain's voice seemed to steer her course back to normal when she threw a tantrum in the fashion that only Lilly Jones could handle.
And she especially seemed to like acting up when it was time to leave the park… more so, the swing set.
Emma had little to no patience when she got that way; so all it took was a loud "OI!" from Killian to get her to stop. She'd be mad for sure, and she would refuse to look at him for hours after that, but in the end, he was still her "pirate daddy" and all would be well by dinner time.
Rumple sat on the bench by the pirate's side. Killian was on bench duty with the stroller and the babies while Emma pushed Lilly on the swing set, a smile shining on her face.
For the first time since the day they had actually met, Killian met Gold with a smile.
And it wasn't a sassy smug grin this time. The man had saved him.
And he was a man of honor.
"Crocodile..." He nodded courteously.
"Pirate…" Gold huffed as he sat down, also staring at Mrs. Jones and little Lilly. "Quite the household you made for yourself, Captain."
"Aye…"
Gold peeked into the stroller and was unable to contain a grin as he looked at the twins. "How do you even cope?"
Killian drew a deep sigh. "One does… when it comes to his own kin. Especially the children. There's nothing I'd not do for them."
Rumple sighed. "Alas, then you were able to do that which I was not…" He shook his head. "My son…"
"Your son died a hero, mate." Killian looked at him.
"He needn't have died at all, Captain." Rumple sighed, hands on his cane as he looked at Lilly and Emma. "I was so wrong for so many years…"
"As was I."
Rumple sighed deep. Both men remained silent as they looked at the children happily playing in the park.
"Why did she leave me, captain?"
"Hmm?" Killian rolled his eyes to him, wide open and brows raised. "Come again?"
"Milah." Rumple turned calmly to him. "What did you have that I was not able to offer? Aside from your looks…"
Killian gulped and sighed hard, staring at his now former foe. "Freedom." He mustered. "She wanted to see the world and I was able to provide that." He shook his head and looked at his sleeping boys. "Alas, I now understand why you were so angered… I could never find the heart to leave Emma or my children." He reached in and used the baby blanket to clean off a little bit of baby drool from a sleeping Colin.
"I was angered, yes." He nodded. "But nonetheless, my anger was with her. And yet I took it out on you."
Killian shrugged. "I was easier to pin the blame on, I suppose, not to mention I did not make it any easier on you." He shook his head. "I am not excusing myself, but I was young… arrogant, reckless… Piracy had done me a world of good, or so I thought. I had all the gold I could want, my own vessel and crew… and the love of a woman. I felt like I owned the world. Mind you, my dear Crocodile…" He looked at Gold. "You should have fought for her."
"You would have killed me."
Killian raised both eyebrows. "Would you not die for those you love?"
Rumple heaved. "Yes, captain. But not when a boy has already been deprived of his mother."
Killian closed his eyes and looked down. "Bloody hell…"
"I was willing to be humiliated and tread upon, Mr. Jones, as long as my son would have a father to come home to. Even becoming the dark one was a way to keep my boy away from the ogre wars. I stopped the war, single-handedly."
"That you did."
"That should account for something…"
"Well, you saved thousands of lives, and yet… you still went on to claim the tally and destroyed countless others." He shook his head. "Not judging you, mate. I don't have a clean bill either. I've stolen, plundered, pillaged, killed and hurt many people too."
"Seems to me, Captain, that you and I are much more alike than we think."
"Aye, it would appear so."
Gold smiled. "If Belle ever forgives me completely…"
"She will."
"Well, when she does, I'll be sure to restart my family again. Do things right this time round."
Killian studied the man sitting next to him and was both stunned and delighted to find there was not one ounce of hatred left in his heart for him. He chuckled softly. "You will not regret it, mate."
Gold grinned at the captain and flourished his hand, producing two soft toys and a large china doll. "Here. For your little ones. I take it the other two have a far different taste in gewgaws, given their age."
"Well, one of them is your grandson, you ought to know his tastes, although I am inclined to believe, his preferences have shifted from material to a more… human approach. Of the female sort."
"The hatter's girl."
Killian nodded with a smile. "We hardly see the boy these days."
"He's already fifteen, Captain, I'd be worried if you did." He chuckled. "And you also fathered my boy for a while there. I have never thanked you… for looking after him for so long. If he hadn't found you, he would have died long before I ever found him."
Killian nodded. "He was a good lad."
"Anyway…" Gold stood up. "Best be going now."
Killian followed him with his eyes. "Good day to you crocodile."
"Same to you… pirate…"
He began to walk away and a sudden thought came over Killian. He stood suddenly. "Rumplestiltskin!"
Mr. Gold turned around and raised his brows. "Yes?"
Killian paced to him. "Thank you."
"For what?"
Killian sighed deeply and shook his head with a shrug. "Well, if you hadn't done all the things you had, been relentless and murderous and evil and… well, all that, I would not have wanted to chase you into immortality to rip out your heart. It is because of you that I am alive today, enjoying all this. An unintentional yet wonderful collateral effect of my loathing of you. " He looked at the floor. "And Lilly would not be here today and… she would not have… healed your own heart the way she did." Once again, Killian Jones reached out to shake the hand of Rumplestiltskin. "I truly am grateful to you."
Gold frowned and nodded as he shook the pirate's hand. "Likewise, captian."
Having said that, God turned around and walked away, hand on his cane.
"NOOOO NONO NO NOOO!"
Killian rolled his eyes; he knew that whiny screech all too well. He turned swiftly and stood beside the pram as he glared at the screaming toddler. She was being pulled away by a now visibly angered Emma Swan, kicking and throwing punches as the blonde mother tried to avoid her face from making contact with her little knuckles.
"OIII!" Came the holler. "Lilly Jones! You stop that screaming RIGHT NOW and do as your mother tells you!"
Emma approached holding her, but she would not stop crying. Killian huffed hard as Emma placed her down on the floor. "Come on, Lilly, you had enough! We need to go home for dinner."
"I DON'T WANT DINNER, I WANNA PLAAAAAYYYY!" She stomped her feet on the floor and smacked her open little hands on the bench. "I HATE YOUUUU! I WANNA GO BAAAACK! I DON'T WANNA GOOOO! DADDYYYY!"
Killian and Emma exchanged a look. "I swear that if I was like this, I can't blame Ingrid for giving me back." Emma huffed, running a hand through her hair.
"I got this, Swan." He winked and crouched down on the floor. "Oi, you!" He held a finger to Lilly's face. "You listen here, miss: You are NOT to kick things around like dirt, nor are you to ever talk to your mother or I that way again, are we clear? Now BELT UP!" He scolded her. "Or so help me, there will be no cartoons and no pony rides for you ALL week. Are we clear, Lilly?"
Emma chuckled, seeing that furious glare, that VERY familiar glare, in her daughter's eyes.
"She really is a pirate..." Emma chuckled.
"Aye, Daddy." Lilly finally replied with an extremely discontent frown.
"Good! Now…" He sighed. "Mr. Gold came here and gave you a present. Should you be good for the next hour, then you shall have it. If not, I will keep it until you are. You understand?"
That softened her gaze and she only nodded in silence.
As they walked (Emma pushing the stroller and Killian holding a now extremely asleep Lilly in his arms) they chatted.
"Will Henry be doing us the honor today?" He smiled.
"Yeah, he said he'd be back by three with you-know-who… oh, and Heather's also bringing a couple of friends from school for a project." She pressed her lips tight. "Full house today."
He huffed. "Your mother will go ballistic; I know she wanted to cook dine with us today, but a houseful of children might be too much even for Snow White."
"Naa, I called her in the morning. Let's just stop by Granny's and get some takeout. Besides, Heather's a bit older. They'll all probably just lock themselves in her room, paint their toenails and rant and rave about Outlander and their OTP…"
"OTP?"
"One True Pairing?" Emma giggled. "She had to explain that to me last night, I swear to god…" She shook her head. "Jamie and Claire have invaded her brain."
"There's quite a bit of nudity in that show, Swan, I'm not even sure the girl shod be watching…"
"Come on, old timer, get with it!" Emma giggled. "We watch it with her! Besides, it's not like she's watching an adult film, chillax there, Jones!"
"I just don't want her getting any ideas until she's… I don't know, forty."
That brought a sincere laughter from Emma. "Jealous daddy?"
He chuckled and shrugged. "I just don't want my daughters to come into harm…"
"Yet you have no qualms about Henry and Paige…"
"She's not MY daughter, let the Hatter worry about her."
Emma turned her face to her pirate and kissed his cheek. "Get used to it. Girls in this family tend to be a little less… traditional."
He smiled at her. "Aye, I should know, I married one."
They paced a little and Emma shrugged curiously, staring at her sons. "Just… what did… Gold give Lilly?"
Killian smirked. "Take a look at the tray under the pram, love."
Emma looked beneath and saw the two stuffed toy bears and the China doll. She stood straight. "Magic free?"
"I would say so."
"Wait, what?" She smiled a surprised smile at her husband. "Is this you… trusting Rumplestiltskin? Who the hell are you?"
Killian licked his lips. "Let's just say, the Crocodile and I have reached a consensus. We both learned a lot, as a matter of fact. It was rather enlightening. So aye, Swan, I've reason enough to trust the bloke." He looked at Lilly and then back at Emma. "Call it 'the angel's touch.'"
Emma rolled her eyes happily. "She's going to break that doll in less than a minute, you know…"
"She will."
"She's a pirate."
"Indeed."
They exchanged a gentle kiss and entered the diner, talking about the possibility of perhaps letting Henry take over the yellow bug (Because, you know, "give the lad a chance to impress the young lady, Swan!), and for them to actually purchase a van to move the family around.
