Sorry this is a little late, but I am coming off night shift and adjusting to being a real person again! Hope you guys like it! Since next Wednesday is Christmas Day the next chapter will be delayed to the 26th.
The next morning Emma still felt the effects from her attempt at magic. There was a dull ache present deep in her bones. She definitely shouldn't have done that. Magic always comes at a price. Her anger got the better of her and King Liam was a smug bastard. She wanted to show him that he was wrong about her, that she wasn't the problem in this stupid peace treaty, that he was and continued to be. She sincerely hoped that he finally pulled his head out of his ass.
However, when she opened the door to the study, she only found Killian behind the large grand desk. She insisted Graham stay behind this morning and for once he listened to her, leaving Emma and the prince alone.
"Princess." He bowed his head slightly when he noticed her entrance.
"Where are your brother and Elsa?"
"When they didn't appear this morning, I went by their chambers and heard what appeared to be them fighting. They didn't answer my knocks. They know where they are supposed to be, if they don't show up, I'm not inclined to wait for them, are you?" Killian said cheekily, not thrown by her abrasive nature.
"No. This treaty needs to be finalized today. Where would you like to start?"
"Troop removal seems best," Killian said while looking through the various papers on the desk, "I'm looking for the force dispersal reports."
"Agreed," Emma walked over to Killian, sitting in the chair next to him.
"You look better than when I visited last night."
"Sleep does wonders. I can't do that again," She sighed, relaxing in the chair. Killian stopped his pursuit of the report, his full attention on her.
"No, you can't. No matter how much of an ass my brother is." A smirk present across his face.
"I'm glad you said it first. I rose to the bait and I won't be making that mistake again," she told him unblinking, his blue eyes searching hers.
"Good," he began his search once again and found the report easily, "shall we begin?" Emma nodded.
The day goes much smoother without the King's presence. Killian is more willing to at least compromise, but they both know that any progress made here today could be undone by Liam.
Finally, at lunchtime, Liam and Elsa busted through the study doors, both out of breath and looking rather distressed.
"You started without us?" Liam asked, annoyance clear in his tone.
"You should've sent for us," Elsa said her tone icy. Emma raised an eyebrow at their statements.
"None of your attendants dared to approach the door and my knocks went unanswered," Killian told them, to which Elsa blushes. Liam merely approached the desk.
"Nevermind then, let's see what you've agreed to." Killian handed over his notes and Elsa approached his side, her arms crossed. Emma noted that any warmth that was shared between the two yesterday was gone today.
Liam began negotiating a few points immediately and Emma would like nothing better than to punch him. Instead she must grit her teeth and bare it.
Graham entered the study later and Emma noticed Killian tense up in his presence. Her knight came to her side to urge her to take a break, eat something.
"Emma." He gave her an imploring look; one she has seen many times.
"Is something the matter, Emma?" Elsa inquired kindly.
"No."
"Yes." Emma and Graham respond at the same time. Emma's head snapped to him.
"I was unaware your name was Emma," she challenged him. Emma swore she heard Killian attempt to stifle a laugh.
"Of course not, Princess. However, that does not change the fact that you need a break. You know I'm right."
"You certainly are right. We'll send for some food immediately. Thank you, Sir Graham," Elsa told him. Graham bowed before leaving. Elsa summoned a servant and sent them with instructions for the kitchen. Liam and Killian began a hushed conversation, Emma was content to sit back in her chair with her eyes closed.
"You could have said you needed a break," Elsa scolded her. Emma opened one eye than another.
"I would rather finish this first, but if Graham insists on being annoying than fine."
"Emma, I-" Elsa started then shut her mouth.
"Don't apologize for him. That's not your job and besides I took the bait it was stupid. I won't- it can't happen again." Emma shook her head. Elsa placed a hand over top Emma's.
"What does that mean?"
"Nothing." Emma avoided her friend's gaze. Some things couldn't be said, not now. Not when peace was so fragile, maybe later she could tell Elsa.
"I highly doubt that, but you'll tell me when you're ready," Elsa dropped the subject.
They managed to get through all of the points of the treaty relatively smoothly. Emma didn't give up more than she had to, something her parents will be proud of. Liam poured all, but Elsa, a drink.
"To peace." Liam raised his glass, Killian and Emma followed suit. Emma took a healthy gulp from her glass, rum was not her favorite, but after today she would've drunk just about anything.
"To celebrate we'll all have dinner together, in the west dining room it has the most beautiful view of the sunset," Elsa cheered. They all nodded in agreement before leaving to freshen up before dinner.
Emma arrived in the dining room to find it empty except for Killian once again.
"Really we have to stop meeting like this." Killian turned around at the sound of her voice, holding a note in his hand.
"Quite right, Your Highness." Uncomfortable silence filled the room, Emma fiddled with her hands.
"What do you have there?" Emma gestures to the note.
"Elsa is sad to inform us we shall be on our own for dinner tonight. She feels fatigued and Liam won't leave her side for concern of the babe apparently." He shook his head. Emma looked at the table and noticed it's only set for two. Elsa set them up on purpose. Emma walked to the simple table with the decanter full of wine and poured them both a glass.
"Apparently being with child is the perfect excuse to not attend dinners. I'll have to remember that," she handed a glass to Killian, who gladly accepted it, "she's a little transparent." Killian smiled before sipping the wine, glad she caught on.
"Subtle would not be her strong suit, however there are worse traits." Emma nodded, unsure where that left the two of them for the night.
"We might as well enjoy the dinner laid out for us tonight. It'd be a shame for it to go to waste," he suggested. She agreed, it would be a waste. Killian pulled out a chair for her. Emma raised an eyebrow at this.
"You do know that there is no need to woo me, our courtship is a formality at best," she sighed as she sat down, he pushed her chair in.
"Love, I'm simply being the good gentleman my mother raised me to be," his husky, low voice suggested something else entirely.
"A gentleman?" He moved to the other side of the table, taking his body heat with him leaving a chill in the air. It was the closest they've ever been. Emma thought she'd be revolted, but she didn't mind the proximity.
"Yes, surely they have those in your kingdom," he jested. Emma scoffed.
"Of course, we do." Emma sipped the wine to shut her mouth. Every report of him had painted him as a rake, a fierce captain who took lives without thought, he took no prisoners. Captain Jones destroyed ships. He often joined his men for drinks in seaside villages and women went home with him. The last word used to describe him was a gentleman. It was the sole reason she was shocked her parents had agreed to have her marry this man.
"Despite this unnecessary ruse, it does provide us the opportunity to get to know one another," Killian said in between bites of their first course.
"What else do you need to know?" Killian tilted his head.
"Emma, we are to be married in a short couple of months. There are a great number of things I will need to know about you to make this believable," Killian said, surprised. Emma blinked; unsure he has ever addressed her by her given name. It caught her off guard.
"Killian, no one will be surprised that this a political marriage. We won't need to know every detail about one another."
"Will it truly be so bad to be married to me?" He asked her and she swore her head spun at this question. They are enemies until the treaty is signed. She will not jeopardize that, but she would like scream at him. Has she entered a different realm? Did he actually want to marry her?
"No, but you must admit this match was not your first choice or even a choice at all until recently," she said softly, once she found her voice again. It was finally his turn to look flustered.
"I'll admit it was not, but it was the best choice for both of our people."
"Of course, it was. The point I was attempting to make was is this what you wanted? Would you rather marry someone who was…" she trailed off.
"Who was what?" He asked her rather irritated at this point.
"Who was in love with you." Emma blushed and shook her head at the look on his face. Emma forgot how rare her parent's situation is, how few royals actually had love marriages.
"Perhaps it's a silly notion to most royalty, or perhaps my parents gave me the wrong impression of what life would be like."
"Your parent's marriage is a love match?" Was all Killian was able to ask her. He had about a million thoughts and questions running through his mind, but that was the only coherent one.
Elsa had told him many, many stories about Emma. He suspected she was trying to humanize Emma for him, to make their enemy be a person in his mind, someone who he could see as a companion one day. The stories had painted a picture in his mind, but meeting her and seeing her in person made the stories pale in comparison. She was raw and passionate, not tame like many of the princesses he had met before.
"Yes, even more than that they are true love," when confusion filled his eyes she continued on, "it's a rare form of magic that can break spells and curses."
"I was never encouraged to want such things. Focus was on honor, duty, and family. Never love. Our parents loved us, but were cold to one another. Elsa and Liam were similar at first. She'd barely even look at him. I'm not entirely sure what changed, but over time they softened to one another. It wasn't until last year I realized that what they had was love. I never entertained the thought of love."
"I had wondered when I arrived if she loved him. All these years I had wondered how she was treated, how her life had changed. I was surprised to find her happy." Both of them had given up on eating the rest of their dinner.
"What did you think we were like? Barbarians? Abusers?" Killian asked her, his offense clear in his tone.
"What was I supposed to think? That you were my white knight ready to rescue me from the tower? Our kingdoms have been at war for most of our lives. Aside from meeting you once when I was young, I knew next to nothing about you besides the fact that you have lead forces against my people, that you have burned crops, killed my men." She snapped, not being able to remain civil. She really tried to keep it together, but what had he expected? That she would fall into his arms with one smirk and a witty comment from him.
"Don't act like we are the only ones guilty of that here. I never had it confirmed, but I know you were the one the men called the golden swan. You killed your fair share of my men," he raised his voice, his jaw twitched.
"I never claimed innocence, but I won't lie to you either. I know my duty as you do. We have to end this war, just don't expect me to be over the moon that I have to marry in order to do that," Emma stood at that, unable to sit there a moment longer. She stormed out of the dining room without so much of a glance back to him. He was right she fought with her men in many battles before she lost her magic. It was the only way her parents would let her go. They called her the golden swan to ensure the enemy wouldn't know Misthaven's heir was there. She had loved every minute of being able to fight alongside her people. She longed for the days when she could do that. Now she was stuck in negotiations and diplomacy.
Emma stomped up the stairs to her room, making sure to slam the door behind her. Of course, she didn't want to marry him, why was he upset by that fact? Does he want to marry her? What the hell is going on in this hellish castle?
It took Emma an hour or two of pacing to work off all her anger. Really, she wanted to hit something, but it was too late to spar. That would have to wait until morning. She calmed down enough to fall asleep thankfully.
In the morning Emma pounded on Graham's and August's door, the sun barely poking over the horizon. She wasn't wasting time today. She was dressed in a white tunic, a navy vest, black leather pants, and her own sword strapped to her belt. She needed to hit something, needed to get this frustration out. Emma let her anger get the best of her last night and it could jeopardize everything here, including her own life.
Graham answered the door fully dressed; August asleep on the bed from night guard duty. Her knight eyed her outfit.
"Need a sparring partner?" he asked her.
"Please." Emma places a hand on the hilt of her sword. Graham smirked.
"Be out in a moment, Princess." He shut the door firmly. Emma waited a few moments out in the hall. Graham opened the door again with his sword strapped to his waist as well.
"Come on, they have a fairly decent courtyard where some of the guards practice," he said, leading the way. Since it was the early hours of the morning no one is up to bother them or wait on them. They were blissfully alone. Much to her dismay Graham still made Emma warm up. She desperately wanted to hit something out the gate.
When they finally began it was a slow dance at first Graham trying to draw Emma out and she wasn't falling for it. He rolled his eyes, "Is that how it's going to be this morning?" She nodded and he advanced immediately. She was ready for his speed and intensity, she craved it. She wanted this spar to be tough, wanted her muscles to ache later. Anything to distract her mind. Graham didn't fail her on that front.
"Are you going to talk about whatever happened last night?" he asked her between blows. It surprises her and she almost loses focus.
"There is nothing to talk about," she shrugged before advancing. He skillfully deflected her attack.
"Try that again with feeling," he smirked. The bastard was enjoying pushing her buttons. He advanced and tried to back her into a corner. She had to dodge the blow he delivered.
"Talking won't solve shit and you know it," she spat then wiped sweat off her forehead.
"It might." She shook her head and charged forward, pushing everything she had into her sword. If she wanted to fucking talk about it, she would've gone to Elsa.
"I have nothing to say," she said through gritted teeth. Graham dropped the subject and let her get out her frustrations. When she disarmed him, claps filled the courtyard and Emma's head spun to find Elsa, Anna, Liam and Killian watching them. Emma bowed. Killian's demeanor was polite and controlled, but she could still see lingering anger beneath his surface. Last night affected him as much as it had affected her.
"Your skills have improved greatly," Elsa complimented her.
"I've had my fair amount of practice," Emma shrugged. She returned her sword to its place on her belt.
"I'm sure you did as the golden swan," Killian bit out and the group fell silent. Graham appeared at her side immediately.
"The golden swan was made up to improve morale," Emma brushed off the comment. None of this mattered now, it was something made up to protect her. Why would he not let this go?
"You aren't denying you fought though," Killian continued to push.
"Killian," Liam snapped. Killian ignored him.
"No, I'm not denying that, but why the hell is this golden swan business so important to you?" Emma became more irritated by this conversation.
"Because we all played a part in this war, none of us are innocent," Killian fumed. Emma nodded to Graham's sword and he shook his head before handing it over. Emma handed the sword over to Killian handle first.
"Words aren't going to settle this, let's go." Killian's hand wrapped around the hilt of the sword.
"Fine." Elsa threw her hands in air; Liam crossed his arms.
"This is a bad idea," Anna sighed.
"I'll agree to that," Liam scoffed.
"Don't you lot have something important with the treaty to do today?" Graham asked the group. Liam shook his head.
"No, we finalized everything yesterday. Now, copies of the treaty are being drafted for signature," the king informed him.
"Ah come on what's a little swordplay between fiancée's," Emma chuckled. They circled each other slowly, unsure of who will make the first move. However, Emma's patience grew thin and she lunged at him. It felt good to be out under the sun, sweat dripping off of her. He was much better than she expected him to be. She welcomed the challenge, sparring with Graham was always good, but they knew each other's moves. Killian was new, his fighting style different it required real effort to land a blow on him. It was just the type of challenge she needed. As they went on however, Killian got more desperate, sloppier. Emma figured his anger and frustration was pushing him to try and win, she waited him out took her time waiting for him to slip up. Eventually he did, and she didn't miss her chance. Emma noticed his footwork faulted and she swept his feet out from under him and disarmed him. Killian grunted when he landed on the grass. Emma knelt next to him, "To make this work, to have peace, to get married, we have to leave the past behind. If it gives you any peace, I was the golden swan, it was the only way my parents would let me be on the battlefield. You are right, none of us are innocent here. This won't be easy, but I'm willing to at least try if you are." Her eyes searched his. There was a sort of defiance and anger still present, but he nodded defeated. It was all she needed. Emma stood up and extended her arm to him. He accepted it and stood with her help. Emma dropped his arm and excused herself to get cleaned up and ready for the day.
"My, my that was certainly revealing," Elsa smiled.
"What on earth do you mean?" Liam asked her, confused about what his wife saw that he couldn't.
"She likes him more than she lets on. If she truly hated him the Emma, I know would've left him on his backside." A mischievous glint in her eye and Liam just sighed and turned to Anna.
"She's right." Liam shook his head, unsure of how this alliance would turn out, if it would hold.
The sparring had cleared Emma's head. For her people she would have to marry Killian. That was a fact, nothing could change that. While he had done a great many terrible things, so had she. He was right they all played a part in the narrative. To keep the peace, to save her people she would marry and at the very least try to not hate him. Last night couldn't happen again, she flew off the handle and almost put the treaty at risk. That could not happen again. Peace was needed throughout the realm. If this is what Emma had to do than so be it.
