Moving in

CS Genre: 6a canon divergence

Emma looked at her reflection in the mirror the next morning. She looked happier than she'd looked in years. Maybe ever.

This morning, she'd woken in the warm, comforting embrace of Killian's arms, her head pillowed against his chest, the reassuring thump of his heartbeat in her ear. She'd looked up to see his blue eyes on her, a soft smile on his face.

"Good morning, love," he'd said, voice gravelly with sleep. "How was your night?"

She pushed herself up, and gave him a quick kiss. "Perfect. How about yours?"

He pulled her down for another kiss, and she reveled in the feel, the taste of him. "I can't imagine anything better," he said, gently cupping her face and hooking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Even the most brilliant of sunrises couldn't compare to your beauty."

Emma laughed. "Killian my hair is a tangled disaster, I probably have pillow creases on my face, and I know I have dark circles under my eyes. Beautiful I am not first thing in the morning."

He gave her a mock frown. "Swan, are you calling me a liar? I cannot accept such an affront to my character."

She laughed, reaching up to play with the strand of dark hair that insisted on falling into his eyes. "Yeah? Just what are you going to do about it, pirate?"

In a swift move, he flipped them so that she was on her back and he hovered above her, hand and stump braced next to her head. "Oh I have some ideas, that I suspect we'll both find quite enjoyable."

And had she ever. He was a fantastic lover, gentle and tender and so thorough. He seemed to anticipate her every desire before she even fully realized she wanted it. They'd emerged from their passion filled haze only long enough to move to the shower.

After all, why waste water on two separate showers when one would suffice?

When they'd finished the shower, Emma had shooed Killian back to the bedroom, insisting he get dressed before they get carried away and round two blended right into round three. He'd pouted adorably, bemoaning how cruel she was, and she'd laughed, playfully shoving him toward the bathroom door.

"Henry's stopping by this morning to pick up his geometry book before school, and if he walked in on some of the activities we've been up to this morning, we'd never hear the end of how traumatized he is for life."

Killian had grinned, walked back to her, kissed her hard and deep and passionately. "Just a preview for tonight when the lad is once again safe from the psychological scarring our insatiable need for each other might cause."

And with a wink, he'd disappeared back into the bedroom, leaving her contemplating the need for another shower. This one much colder.

Emma had finally dressed and then finished her hair and makeup. This was…this was all she'd ever wanted or hoped for. Is this what her parents' lives were like every day? Living with your true love was far better than she'd even imagined it could be.

Giving her hair one last toss, she turned off the light and then made her way downstairs, grinning at the sounds of her two true loves talking as Killian puttered around in the kitchen.

"And then Mr. Smee, acting as decoy, led away an entire battalion of the king's guards, leaving the shipment of gold bars free for the taking," Killian said, his hook holding the skillet steady, while he stirred the cooking eggs with a spatula. "I was rather proud of that operation. Not a single man injured, either on my crew or among the king's men."

Henry laughed. "I bet the soldiers' pride was wounded, though. Five pirates managed to defeat a whole battalion."

Killian laughed with him. "Aye, that they were. We had to make ourselves scarce for a time after that incident. We were perhaps the most wanted fugitives in all the kingdom because of that venture."

Emma quietly slipped into the kitchen and poured herself a steaming mug of coffee, nearly moaning at the strong, hot flavor. It had taken Killian some time to learn the proper proportion of water to coffee grounds required for these modern "coffee preparing devices" as he'd called her coffee pot, but ever since he'd figured it out, he made some of the best coffee Emma'd ever tasted.

The guys hadn't noticed her yet, and she took the time to lean against the kitchen table, just enjoying the camaraderie between two of her favorite people on the planet.

"So you didn't always, you know, hurt and kill people on your missions?" Henry asked.

Killian's back was to her, but she could tell from the sudden hunching of his shoulders, the subtle dropping of his head that if she could see his face, she'd see shame written across it.

"I was not a man to look up to in those days, lad. In my rage and hatred I did many a thing I regret with everything in me. I injured and killed more men than I can count, but I attempted to always hold on to a sliver of the good form my brother instilled in me. I avoided unnecessary bloodshed whenever I could."

Henry was quiet for a moment, and then he laid a hand against Killian's shoulder. "I know you did bad stuff, but you're different now. You changed. And just so you know, I'm glad mom has you, and I'm glad you live here with us."

"I…I hope to be worthy of your faith in me, lad."

Emma decided it was time to make her presence known. After giving Henry a quick, side hug, she stepped up behind Killian, wrapped an arm around him and kissed his cheek. "I have no doubt whatsoever you'll do just that, babe."

Killian turned in her embrace and kissed her properly—which quickly morphed into not-so-properly.

From behind them, Emma heard Henry groan. "Teen in the room guys!"

Emma pulled back and sent her son a smile. "Sorry kid. We'll try not to scar you for life."

The three of them worked together to finish getting breakfast on the table, and then had eaten among pleasant, mundane conversation about plans for the day.

It was so normal. So routine. Emma could get used to starting every day for the rest of her life like this.

For a moment, her heart ached remembering the prophecy, remembering that according to the oracle her days were severely numbered, remembering the vision of the man in the hood running her through with a sword.

But after a moment, she shook off her melancholy thoughts. Now that she'd found happiness, she'd fight like hell to keep it, oracle or no oracle. They'd made it through worse situations before; they'd find a way around this one as well.

And until then, she had a good moment, and she was damn well going to enjoy it.

Notes:

-Okay, so I lied in the last notes section. This one contained no more angst than the last one, just teeth-rotting fluff. What can I say? The muse wants what it wants and who am I to deny it?

-Up next: A rerun of sorts (aka it was written for Tumblr several months ago) set during the Neverland arc. Warning: the rating will be bumped up for this chapter alone. While it doesn't contain full-on smut, it gets about as close to it as possible.