I had this idea pop into my head, probably brought on by the Killian angst coming our way. So, here's a little bit of angsty fluff. Is that a thing

"Swan, can we swing by my quarters before heading in? The little prince left his mark on my shoulder it seems, and I would like to change my shirt."

Emma couldn't help but smile at the memory of seeing fearsome Captain Hook burping her little brother over his shoulder when she came down the stairs at the loft this afternoon. She had stopped in her tracks and just watched him slowly soothing and cooing, turning in slow circles in the kitchen under Snow's watchful, and somewhat wistful, eye. She met her mom's gaze from the stairs and they had shared a quiet moment, Snow looking pointedly at Killian and back to her, not even attempting to hide a hopeful smile. Emma had darted her eyes away from her mother as her cheeks had begun to blush, her mind overrun with images of tiny bright blue eyes, unruly black hair and chubby fingers grasping curved steel.

"Love?"

She smiled up at Killian, realizing he was still waiting for her response at the side entrance of Granny's.

"Sorry, of course. We can't let Killian Jones be seen in public in such disarray. You have a reputation to uphold." She quirked her eyebrow at him and squeezed his arm as he laughed, his long strides now leading her up the back stairs to his room.

"You know me too well, Swan." She felt his lips graze her hair lightly before he withdrew his arm from her grasp, unlocking his door and stepping to the side to usher her in. Crossing the threshold she realized that this was the first time she had actually been in here. She's become intimately acquainted with the wall outside of his room on more than one occasion, but his infuriatingly gentlemanly ways always stopped him from leading them to the privacy of his room. Silently wishing Belle and Will weren't waiting for them in the diner, she pushed away the rising desire to help him remove that shirt and not find another one until tomorrow morning.

"Be ready in two shakes, love." She watched as he stripped off his jacket and moved to unbutton the ridiculous number of buttons on his vest. Knowing she needed to distract herself from the show unfolding in front of her, she turned to his dresser, stepping closer to examine the various keepsakes he had on display. She recognized the telescope, having seen him use it on the Jolly and in Neverland, but not since their return from the past. She felt a pang of guilt, knowing that was because of her. Beside the telescope was a small piece of leather she hadn't seen before, her fingers reaching out to run along the embossed letters, wondering if it belonged to him or Liam. Her heart told her it was the latter, seeing as how well cared for it was. She made a mental note to ask him about it another time, desperate to get to know him better, continuing her journey of scaling his 300 year old walls.

Her gaze fell on a small metal tray with nothing in it but a gold ring, one she immediately recognized from their first date, the red ruby catching the light from the lamp on the edge of the dresser. It was small; obviously a woman's ring and she wondered if perhaps it belonged to Milah.

"It was my mother's."

His quiet voice from behind her startled her, his arms moving to wrap around her waist as his chin rested on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snoop. I'm just curious to know you, all of you."

His arms tightened at that confession and she wound her fingers through his hand on her waist.

"I believe it was her engagement ring, but that is just conjecture. She wore it on the traditional finger, so I always assumed it was from my father. One evening as I sat by her bed she took it off and pressed it into my palm. I was still a wee lad, but I knew that she wasn't long for the world and she was giving me something to remember her by. She didn't say anything, just held my hand with the ring inside it until she fell asleep that night."

Emma's heart was breaking for him as he spoke, willing herself not to cry for him, but to be his strength as he had been for her so many times before. She could feel his heart beating fast behind her and the ragged timbre of his breathing as he pressed closer to her.

"You wore it on our first date."

She felt his breath on her neck as he exhaled, could feel his smile form as his dimple pressed into her chin.

"Aye. When I was getting ready that night I felt as though I was finally finding my way back to the man I could have been, someone my mother would have been proud of. It felt right to wear it on my newly restored hand."

His arms loosened and he began to step back. "If I would have known how wrong I was, I never…"

She refused to let go of his fingers, stilling him in his tracks so he couldn't retreat from her. She turned, keeping his hand firm in her grasp as she took in his defeated stance, his head turned away from her and his mother's ring.

"Killian, please look at me." His eyes were cloudy when he complied, sadness and regret clear on his face as his centuries old self-loathing reared its ugly head once again. She stepped forward, reaching her thumb up to gently rub at his temple, attempting to ease the tension with her touch.

"I'm going to continue to say this to you in hopes that one day you will believe me. That hand was cursed and if I ever see Gold again I will force him to admit that to you. If that day never comes, you'll just have to learn to agree with me and move on."

She let go of his hand so she could wrap her arm around his waist, waiting until he did the same before she continued. "You're a good man, Killian. I'm lucky to have you by my side and I know your mother would be proud of the man you have become."

His body fell into hers at that, arms tightening around her as he pressed his face into her neck. She held him there, slightly rocking as her fingers wound into his hair, his lips finding her shoulder in a gentle caress. After a long moment, he lifted his head slowly, turning so he could capture her lips with his own, shreds of sadness escaping with each gentle caress and breath shared between them. Her hands cupped his cheeks as she tipped on her toes to kiss his forehead, causing a small laugh to escape his lips. When she looked back down he was smiling a small smile and she knew she had won this battle, but the war within him was far from over.

"Do you like rubies, Swan?"

Her eyes widened briefly before she could find the words to reply, wondering if she was catching the true meaning of his question. In that moment, she realized that she hoped she was right and that one day that ring would find a home on her hand, placed there by her soft-hearted pirate.

She returned his smile with one of her own, reaching for his hand again to lace their fingers together. "Red just happens to be my signature color."