Killian Jones always survived. It was a small thing he took pride in. He had survived his fights with the Crocodile, he had survived his time in the Navy, he had survived Peter Pan, Cora, Peter Pan again, the Wicked Witch, a Snow Queen, a trilogy of evil witches, he had even survived the underworld itself. This was why it slightly frustrated him that it was something this small that did him in. On his own ship, to make matters worse. Such a small, ridiculous thing. During repairs, one of the ropes he was trying to repair had snapped, which caused him to fall down to his death. After surviving so many storms, it had been in Storybrooke's harbour that was his end.
Death was different than he thought. Now that the underworld was dismantled, Killian's ghost had no place to go. So Killian stayed, in Storybrooke.
He had attempted, so often, so often, to contact his wife and daughter. But everything he tried to touch, his hand went through. Every word he said, they could not hear. So for him, there was nothing left but just to follow them, follow them as they grew older. Follow them as they slowly forgot.
/ / /
Emma smiled wistfully as she waved her daughter goodbye. The girl had her father's hair, her mother's eyes, and her family's endless positivity. And now, today, was her first day of school. Emma quietly wiped away a tear as she thought of the man that could not be there to see this happen. He would have probably said something witty, he would have tried to cheer her up. He would have tried to be strong, but he would have wiped away a tear when he thought she did not look. But instead, Killian was not there. Killian had not heard the first word, not seen the first steps. Cleo had grown up without a father. Emma grimaced. It seemed to be a trend in her family, growing up without a father. Henry had, just like Emma, her dad, Neal, his dad… And now Cleo continued the tradition. Emma managed a smile as she waved the bus goodbye before it turned the corner. "I miss you, Killian." It had only been five years.
/ / /
"Henry, are you sure?" Emma looked at the young man in front of her, worried. "The Enchanted forest is dangerous! And we don't know anything about these alternative universes. What if I am there? What if you are there? Won't that, like, change history? And how would you get back home?"
"I'm sure mom. We've discussed this. I know what I'm doing."
Emma sighed. "I know kid. It's been a long time since that day you knocked on my apartment door." Henry smiled.
"I'm not a little kid anymore."
"You were always so much more than a little kid."
"I'm going to miss you, mom."
"I'll miss you too, kid."
It had been six years.
/ / /
"I thought I could find you here." Snow quietly approached her daughter. "It's seven years today, right?" Emma nodded.
"I- Every year I think 'it's just another day, get over it.' But it's not, isn't it?"
"'Just another day'? No. It's not."
"I just wished he was still here. I wished he could have been there with me, to say goodbye to Henry. To take care of Cleo. To be on Sherrif duty. To fetch me coffee from Granny's. It's stupid, it's the little things I miss most." Snow nodded, hugged her daughter close to her.
"That's not stupid. I miss him too."
/ / /
It was way past bedtime and they were sitting on the roof of her yellow bug. "You see those two bright stars?"
"There?"
"No, more to the left." It took a while for Cleo to find them, but after a couple of seconds, she nodded.
"That is part of the Swan constellation."
"Like your name!"
"Yes," Emma smiled fondly. "And those there, they form the Carina, the keel of a ship." Her daughter next to her shivered. "Shall we go inside?"
"No, I have a blanket. Tell me again about daddy? How he taught you of the stars?" Emma took a breath and began.
It had been eight years.
/ / /
Emma looked at her calendar in shock. She had been so busy, she'd forgotten. How could she have forgotten? She turned to face the flowers on her desk. It was so typically Snow to think of these moments. It was nine years today. Nine years. And she had forgotten.
She hadn't forgotten Killian, of course. She hadn't forgotten him. As a reflex, she touched her wedding ring. He hadn't forgotten him, but she had forgotten the date. A single tear rolled down her cheek, followed by many others. "Emma!" She heard her father call happily when he entered. Then, he saw her. "Oh, Emma." They stood together, her face buried in his shoulder, his hand on her head.
It had been nine years.
/ / /
The room was silent, aside from the quiet sounds Emma made as she cut the tomatoes into dice. "Mom?"
"Yes, Cloe?"
"Why don't you ever go on dates?" Emma stopped mid-motion. "I know you still miss dad and all, but Andrea's dad passed away as well and her mom is dating." Emma turned around to face her daughter.
"Would you like that, a father?" Cloe looked up at her.
"I'm not saying you aren't a great mother but-" she sighed. "I don't remember dad. I was just born when he died. It's been ten years mom, you deserve a happy ending, just like everyone here."
Emma turned and continued cutting. It had been ten years, but saviours didn't get happy endings.
/ / /
"MOM! THERE IS SOMEONE HERE FOR YOU!" Cloe called from downstairs.
"WHO IS IT?" Emma called back, quickly checking her look in the mirror before walking towards the door.
"HE SAYS HIS NAME IS HENRY?" Emma froze, then ran downstairs.
"HENRY! YOU'RE HOME!" Wrapped in a forceful hug, mother and son almost toppled over. "It's been so long! Where have you been, who is that?" The last question more said to a woman accompanying him than at Henry himself.
"Mom, meet Ella. We're engaged."
It had been eleven years, and her son was home.
/ / /
For Killian, it seemed like he was watching life on fast forward. He saw his daughter grow up faster than he could climb up to the Crow's Nest on the Jolly Roger, and the wrinkles on his wife's face appeared quicker than he could say her name. He did not have time to forget, but everyone else did. First his daughter, who did not know him at all. Then the dwarfs, who had not particularly liked him. After that, Granny, Regina, even Snow White and David. Henry was too busy building his own life to remember. And last of all, Emma. The brightness of their memories faded, Killian could see it. They never stopped loving him, they never forgot him fully, but in their everyday life, he faded. And slowly, Killian's ghost faded as well.
/ / /
Regina had joined him first. She had aged gracefully, stayed beautiful and feisty through the years. But in the end, her long, long life had caught up with her, as it did with everyone. Then, it was Zelena. Snow was third, and a few weeks later David. The two had lived their lives fully, grown old together, raised their child. They had passed peacefully in their sleep. After that, it was Belle's turn. She joined them for a small while, and then went and searched for her husband. When they found each other, they moved on, but Regina, Snow, David and Killian stayed. They watched Emma, they watched Henry and Cloe and their little ones. And they waited.
It had been fifty years.
/ / /
With a struggle, Emma heaved herself in bed. Her bones ached, her hair had lost all of its colour and her skin was wrinkly and almost see-through. She had grown old, very old. She had lost, lost so many people. But she knew they could not all live forever. "Better to have lived happily with you, than live forever in sadness", her mother had said when Emma had apologised for their ageing. And they had lived, they all had lived. Well, not all. Emma softly touched the wedding ring she still wore. Her memories had faded, but she never forgot. How could she forget the person she trusted fully for the first time? Emma smiled as she turned off the light with one swift flick of her hand. All the magic in the world could not stop her from dying, nor did she want it too. She had lived her life fully, and enough. It was now to Henry, to Cloe, to Lucy to live their stories. For Emma, this was the final page.
/ / /
It had been sixty years, sixty long years. But now, a family appeared in the Beyond. Their story was finished, for all of them. A King and his Queen, a Princess and her Pirate, a Beast and his Beauty, the two Witches, sisters forever. Together, they had written, seen and lived many stories. But now, their story was closed, and together they could finally, forever, live happily ever after.