Emma walks into the dining room, her mouth watering at the smell of breakfast. Her mother and father are already seated, with Killian standing behind a chair. He'd snuck out of her chambers earlier that morning, departing with a chaste kiss and a wink before climbing the balcony. Unfortunately, she hadn't been able to reflect much on the prior night, a maid having bustled into the room announcing breakfast.

"Good morning, Your Highness," he says, pulling her chair out for her. It's strange to hear him call her anything but Swan, Emma, or the other nicknames.

"Thank you, Killian." She smiles, fluttering her eyelashes as she sits. He takes the seat next to her, digging into his food.

The princess notices her parents staring at the both of them and she holds back a groan.

"So, Killian," her mother starts and Emma shoots her a look. Her mother ignores it, of course. "Where do you hail from?"

"Ah, just a little island that no one's heard of," he says. In reality, the place he was born no longer exists, technically. It's been changed and warped over the three hundred of years of his life.

"Any family?" her father prods.

"My crew is my family," he answers, brushing her hand with his wooden one under the table. His mere touch reminds her of the night before and she feels her body grow warm.

"What made you become a merchant?" her mother asks. Emma scowls and huffs.

"I think that's enough of the questioning," the princess grumbles. Killian just chuckles.

"It's alright, love." Addressing her parents, he says, "Honestly? I wanted to travel the world, see what was out there. I figured being a sailing merchant would be the best way to accomplish that."

"So, you obviously travel a lot," her father comments. "I guess this means you'd never stay in one place."

"Aye." Killian nods. "But I could be persuaded to stay, for the right reasons." His lips twitch and Emma tries not to fidget in her seat. "But I love the sea, and I've spent most my life on or near it."

"Traveling the sea must be lovely," her mother remarks. "Admittedly, it's been a while since I've been on a boat."

"Aye, it is," her lover concedes. "The sun in your face, the wind blowing, the smell of sea salt. It can be quite enchanting." Emma peeks up from her food to see her parents absolutely enthralled by Killian's words. She hides her smile behind her goblet, taking a long sip. "Speaking of, I must check on my ship. I left my crew behind, along with your staff, last night. Her Highness and I thought it would be better to come by ourselves just in case something went wrong or we weren't able to reach the castle until this morning."

"That sounds quite sensible," her father says. "And yes, we were wondering where the rest of our crew was last night. Are they okay?" There's genuine concern in his eyes.

"They all appear healthy and happy as far as I can see," Killian replies.

"Good." Her father looks at her mother, and Emma sees the silent conversation that's going on between them. "If it's okay with you two, Mary-Margaret and I wish to spend some time with Emma. Just the three of us."

"Of course, I completely understand," the pirate answers smoothly.

"Yeah, I missed spending time with you two," Emma says and she genuinely means it. She's really missed her parents during her months away. Missed the two people who understood her most. Though, Killian is quickly joining that league.

"Then it's settled," her mother announces, eyes glittering.

"I will take my leave then," Killian announces rising. "I will return later. Your Majesties, Your Highness." He bows to all of them before shooting Emma a small smile and departing the dining room.

"So, why don't we go into the parlor and chat?" her mother suggest, mischief in her eyes.

Emma wants to groan, but she also feels a tug of happiness within her.

It's good to be home.

"So," her father starts, sitting in his armchair. "You and Killian seems quite comfortable with each other."

"Father!" the princess admonishes, feeling her face heat up, almost slumping against the loveseat.

"Oh come on, Emma, I saw the way you were looking at him this morning and last night." The queen grins.

"I spent two weeks with him on a ship. Of course I'm comfortable around him," she reasons, feeling as if she's repeating the conversation from last night.

Her parents clearly don't believe her, but choose to move on, thankfully.

"Emma," her mother starts. "We, uh, also wanted to talk about Neal with you."

Of course, the blonde was waiting for that.

"I know," she says softly.

"Killian said some things, nothing precise, but he made his own dislike of the prince pretty clear," her father comments. "Admittedly, it's a bit reassuring to know it's not just you and Hook who had a problem with him."

The princess holds back a smirk. Oh, if only her father knew.

"But anyway, what was it that Neal did exactly?" her mother presses.

Taking a breath, Emma dives into her tale, from the time on the royal boat to the time on Hook's vessel. She leaves out nothing, even the attempted assault, making sure her parents understand that none of it was Hook's fault and properly placing the blame where it belongs, Neal.

As she talks, Emma watches as her parents' expressions morph from confusion, to sadness to anger and outrage.

"Oh sweetheart," her mother murmurs. "You've been through quite a lot." The older Nolan moves next to her daughter, pulling her daughter to her.

"That's it," her father says, rising from the chair and pacing. "We'll make an official announcement that the engagement is off."

"But what about your deal with King Gold?" Then something occurs to her. "What was the deal you made anyway?"

"It doesn't matter." Emma shoots her father a look. He sighs. "In exchange for funding the kingdom, we agreed to have you marry Neal."

"Is Misthaven in trouble?" Why didn't her parents tell her this?

"Not at the moment, but things are uncertain, Emma," her mother says. "The mines have been unsteady as of late and trade income isn't what it used to be."

"Have you thought about branching out to other kingdoms? Ones that we haven't had contact with?"

Her father looks a bit embarrassed. "We have, but they have little faith in our ruling."

"Why?" the princess demands. Her parents exchange glances and understanding dawns on the younger royal. "Is this seriously about the way you two met? You've been ruling for years, surely people can see you're both more than capable?"

"Emma, other rulers just aren't fond of the fact that I used to be a Shepard."

"And that I used to be a bandit. Something about a higher potential of theft," her mother grumbles.

"Then, let me go," the princess insists. "In fact, Killian can take me." She's sure he knows most of the kingdoms and whatever ones he doesn't they'll learn together.

"You just came home, sweetheart." The queen sighs. "Looks, it's not urgent-"

"It is!" The blonde shakes her head. "Gold is dangerous, extremely so. He knows black magic, a lot of it." She shudders. "He won't hesitate to kill any of us when we refuse him. He already tried to kill Hook and I." She tells them what happened when Gold found them two weeks ago, seeing their faces pale.

"Okay, fine, you have a point." Her father wipes his hand down his face. "But you need to take it up with Killian first. I'd rather him getting involved be his choice."

The princess nods. "Of course. I'll discuss it with him when he returns."

The trio chats for a while about other things, her parents catching her up on the goings on in the castle since she's been gone. Apparently, everyone in the castle had feared for her safety and a gloom had settled within the walls as they awaited news of her welfare. The princess smiles, her heart touched by the compassion and loyalty of the staff.

"None of the staff on the boat left," she says. "Except for Captain Eric, but I wanted him to go because of Ariel."

"Did Hook let him leave?" Her father raises his eyebrows.

"Yes, said he didn't want a man to miss the birth of his first child."

"Well that's…interesting," her mother comments. "And the rest?"

"Didn't want to leave me alone," the blonde answers. During one of their nights together, Hook had informed her that he told her crew that they could leave when they dropped anchor at Port Linden. However, every member had elected to stay, saying they were loyal to Emma and didn't want to leave her. "Hook offered to let them off, but all of them said no."

"Well, it looks like some recognition is in order, then," her father says. "I will speak with them once they return."

In that moment, the door to the parlor opens and August steps in.

"We apologize for the intrusion, Your Majesties, but we wanted to announce that the crew had returned."

The queen rises. "That's perfectly fine, August. Is everyone else out there?" The man nods. "Bring them in, please."

The crew files into the room, all looking well rested.

"First, David and I wish to thank you all for remaining loyal to us and to Emma during this harrowing time," her mother begins. "Second, we will see that you're rightly rewarded for your bravery and loyalty. If there is anything specific that you wish for, please do not hesitate to tell either of us."

There's a chorus of "Thank you, Your Majesty" before the king chimes in.

"Also, if any of you are able to inform of us of where you believe Captain Hook was headed, that would be greatly appreciated."

The staff nods, however, non of the members claim to know where Hook was headed.

"That's fine, but if any of you remember anything, please let us know."

The crew murmurs "yes, Your Majesty" before departing, with the exception of August.

"Mr. Jones said he wished to visit the library so I showed him where to go," August says, shooting a look to the princess.

"I see," she comments. Turning to her parents, she asks, "I think it's best if I go talk to Killian now about my idea. Do you mind?"

"Not at all, dear. We'll see you later," her mother says, answering for her father who looks as if he's about to object.

Emma curtsies to her parents before running off to the library.

Finally, some alone time with Hook!

The princess enters the library to find Hook tracing the spines of some of the books with his fingers. The sight of his fingers has her flashing to the night before, what he did with them to her and she feels her cheeks grow warm.

"I can feel your thoughts from here, love," he says amusement and an undercurrent of lust in his tone. He turns around, and the desire for her is written all over his face, his eyes dark, jaw clenched.

He strides over to her and scoops her into his arms, making her release a squeal of surprise until he silences her with a passionate kiss.

"I've wanted to do that all day," he murmurs. "Miss me?"

"Maybe…" she teases.

Killian growls, kissing her again, backing her into one of the book cases.

"I've been thinking about last night and this morning all day," he murmurs, his lips gliding against her throat. "I apologize for my bad form and not staying much longer after you woke." Despite the lust in his voice, she can hear the sincerity underneath.

She lets out a moan as the pirate nips at her collarbone. "It-it's okay. We did-didn't want to be discovered."

His hand glides to her waist, his hips pressing against her, the evidence of his desire prevalent. "Swan, do you want to know what it is I want to do in this moment?"

"W-what?" her voice shakes as he places a knee between her legs.

"I want to take you right here, right now."

"Someone will hear us," she protests without much conviction.

"Perhaps that's what I want," he teases. "Perhaps I want people to know what I can do to you. That I can leave the princess a quivering mess with my fingers alone."

She groans as her fingers go to the buttons of his shirt, her mind in a lustful haze. She can see his pirate side is emerging a little and she won't deny that it arouses her.

"Tell me, Swan, if I were to lift up your skirt right now, would I find you wet for me?" His hand goes to the bottom of her dress.

"Yes," she breathes, attempting to clench her thighs together, unsuccessful due to her lover's knee.

He chuckles, his hand trailing up her thigh, so close to where she wants him.

Unfortunately, the sound of someone on the other side of the door has her jumping and pulling her dress down, her cheeks flaming.

"Afraid of getting caught, love?" he teases, wrapping his arm around her waist, placing a kiss on her head. It amazes her how quickly her pirate can go from lustful and passionate to gentle and tender at a moment's notice. "Alas, maybe another time." He grins as she huffs, rolling her eyes.

"I, uh, needed to talk to you about something, actually," she starts, trying to shake the fog from her mind. She ignores the smirk on Killian's lips. They sit on the couch in front of the fireplace, Hook wrapping her arm around her shoulders and pulling her close to him. She continues, "I might need to go on a journey…"

"Oh, where to?"

She relays the conversation with her parents, seeing the concern cross his face.

"Do you think it would be good idea to travel with me, love?" Killian inquires. "After all, it sounds like these kingdoms don't trust your parents and I doubt having associations with pirates would endear rulers to you." He kisses her knuckles. "Despite how charming you are, of course."

She snorts. She'd thought about that, but then an idea came to her. "But, it could also be viewed as an astute trading idea. After all, pirates can get illegal things, things that other kingdoms might want. It could work. Unless you're not okay with helping my parents." She glances at him uncertainly.

He plays with the ends of her hair. "I have no problem with it, Swan. I do have a reputation that I'd like to maintain." He gazes at her, touching her cheek. "When do you want to tell your parents about us, or I guess more importantly, me?"

She thinks, worrying her lip. "Maybe a couple of more days? Until they know you a bit better."

"But they won't really know me, will they?" he points out. She ducks her head in embarrassment, not wanting to voice her fears. "Swan, look at me." She peeks up at him, sighing. "You won't lose me, I promise. It's going to take a lot more than a threat of being thrown into the dungeon to separate me from you."

She raises an eyebrow. "What about death?"

He kisses her nose. "Not even that, love." Then he raises an eyebrow. "So, when are we telling your parents?"

"Tomorrow," the princess declares. "Once they see that everyone is okay."

"Should I wear my hook?" he asks.

She shrugs. "You probably should, since they'll have to get used to you wearing it instead of the hand." She decides against using "your" since the hook is more a part of him than the wooden appendage.

"Alright, then, tomorrow it is." He leans his forehead against hers, smiling. "I know you probably hate it, but I love seeing you as a royal in your home. It shows a different side of you I don't usually see."

"You just like the way the corset pushes my breasts up," she grumbles.

"That too," he concedes, mischief in his eyes. "But seriously, Swan, I enjoy seeing you relaxed at home with the ones you love."

"What about you?" she asks. "Would you be happy here?" She fears he'd grow bored and leave to go adventures.

"I'd be happy wherever you are, Emma." She squints. "I meant what I said at breakfast, I would stay."

"But what about pirating and sailing?"

"I don't think that's completely out of the question, the sailing part, that is." He entwines his hand with hers. "But, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

"Which might be tomorrow, depending on how it goes."

"Aye, it could be."

She sighs, sitting up, glancing around the room. "For now, however, let me give you a tour of the library. We have some great books on sailing and geography." At that, his eyes light up and he grins, standing and taking her hand in his as she leads him around the vast room full of tomes. His reaction makes her heart melt, but also ache. It would be wrong to keep Killian from sailing the seas as he desires.

She just hopes that she can go with him.