A/N: Hey all! I'm back with another chapter of this lovely little fic, and it comes bearing sweetness in its purest form with a little humor thrown in for good measure. So basically it's my typical CS fare. Anyway I hope you guys enjoy and thanks so much for reading!

Mixing the last of her necessary ingredients for the rest of the afternoon's menu at Stay A Spell a little over a week later, Emma couldn't help but feel totally invigorated. After a full morning of work, and a busier day at the café than she was often used to, Emma should have been tired or fatigued, but she couldn't seem to muster those feelings. Instead she was riding a lovely kind of high, one that had been ever present since that perfect first date with Killian that had changed everything.

For the first time in her life, Emma Swan truly understood that giddy, happy, 'the world is new' feeling that so many people claimed came with dating the right person. In her past and with her track record, Emma had never known the kind of thrilling anticipation of what would happen next, or the true enjoyment of a man's company. She'd always been hesitant, always been guarded, and had never been satisfied with any of the so-called suitors that life threw her way.

Now, however, things were noticeably different, and Emma was learning a lot about what it meant to be open and what it meant to give things a chance. She had jumped in so to speak, giving more of herself to this blossoming relationship with Killian than she'd given anyone in such a long time and she was happy with the results so far. To this point things were going as close to perfect as she imagined a start of relationship could be, and though the fear that she would screw this up lingered and she still worried about some pitfalls that may come (namely one particularly pesky magical conversation), Emma was in this in a way she'd never allowed herself to be before.

"We appear to have a slight problem on our hands, love," Killian had said this morning after the bus took Henry away to school and he'd crossed their yards from where he was getting the paper to visit her in her garden.

"Oh really?" Emma asked, trying her best to sound at once flirtatious and yet just a tiny bit above his seduction (which she most definitely was not unaffected by). "And what's that?"

"You see, Emma, the more time I spend with you, the more I want to. It's a never ending cycle that I just can't seem to get out of," he'd confessed, his body only inches from her, bringing Killian well within arm's reach and just a touch out of kissing distance. Emma's eyes had dropped to his lips in response thinking about how badly she'd like to change that.

"So maybe we should stop fighting it and just give in," she'd countered, not bothering to see if there were any nosey neighbors on the street as she stepped into his arms and ran her hand along his chest.

"Ah, so there is a we in this then?" Killian asked with a huge grin. "That's extremely comforting, love. A man hates to be caught up in something this grand all alone."

"You're not alone," Emma whispered, and then it had been a mutual movement between them leading up to a much needed kiss that Emma swore she could still taste even now…

"You almost done with that, Ems?" a teasing voice asked, pulling Emma from the rapidly escalating daydream and when she looked up it was unsurprisingly Ruby with a smirk at her lips and humor in her eyes.

"Uh, yeah. I'm good." Too late Emma realized what she'd just walked into with that one, and she swore her eyes were already rolling before Ruby even caught her breath to reply.

"Oh I bet you're better than good. From what I hear you had quite the kiss this morning."

At this point Emma could have feigned surprise, but she didn't feel like bothering, not when Storybrooke was notorious for finding out secrets and when Ruby especially had a means of sniffing out the truth better than almost anyone Emma knew. Besides, Emma had made that decision to ignore their surroundings this morning of her own free will, and in doing so she'd readily run the risk of word getting out.

"Remind me to have a chat with Graham later," Emma said as she drizzled the final bit of the melted chocolate she'd been mixing over the specialty cake she'd crafted for this afternoon.

"Why?" Ruby asked in surprise and though Emma was sorely tempted to smirk, she bit it back, delivering her own well-placed jab with a perfectly straight face.

"Well he's clearly slacking in those husbandly duties you've bragged about for so long if you've got time to collect all this intel on my morning activities."

The words sparked a fire in Ruby's eyes that Emma was very familiar with and the next thing she knew Ruby was throwing her towel at Emma and Emma was sending it flying in the other direction with a flick of her wrist. This was a norm for them to be honest, with one of them launching a pseudo-attack and the other matching it beat for beat through magic or otherwise, but it was all fun and games and it ended with the towel falling to the ground and the two of them laughing.

"So I'm being a little more vigilant than usual as my best friend actually lets someone in? Sue me," Ruby eventually said. "And as for my husband, you know damn well there's been no slacking of any kind."

"Yeah, yeah, I get it," Emma said shaking her head and grabbing the cake as she nodded for Ruby to bring the last of the items they needed out front. "Trust me, if it wasn't clear from you're being actually personable every morning before the first pot of coffee's brewed, your play-by-plays thereafter leave little to the imagination."

"Well maybe I wouldn't have to regale you with stories of my love life if you were a little more talkative about yours," Ruby teased and Emma shook her head even as she chuckled too, knowing that with Ruby there would always be a way to talk about Graham.

Leaving the subject for the moment, Emma and Ruby finally made their way back inside the storefront of the café and to the table that was always 'reserved' on Fridays for Emma and her friends. It was in a perfect location too, enjoying the spoils of the afternoon sunlight through the window without being too central to the rest of the shop. That last part especially was critical for two reasons – one because it meant Emma and Ruby weren't so accessible to other customers and the other staff could usually attend to people without their being disturbed, and also because oftentimes the discussions these dessert dates brought varied in general populous appropriateness. Their talks ranged from the mundane to the magical, and for Emma's peace of mind it was good to at least pretend to shield some of this stuff from the wandering eyes and ears of their neighbors.

"Oh thank God there's cake this week!" Anna said excitedly as she came inside the café and immediately put her scarf and sweater behind her favorite spot. "I swear I told Kristoff last night that if I didn't get some to die for chocolate cake in the next twenty four hours I just might perish."

"And he let you go that long without some?" Ruby asked, actually shocked and mirroring Emma's emotions to the tee.

Typically Anna's husband, bumbling and sometimes awkward as he was, was amazing at one thing – finding things that made Anna happy and getting them for her no matter what it took. Seriously it was a gift, and Emma had to agree that it was shocking that Anna could drop a hint like that and it would go unanswered. But then Emma and Ruby noticed the blush on Anna's cheeks and her growing, sunny smile and they knew they were in for some charming little tale of cuteness and romance.

"He tried, you guys. He really did. You should have seen him with that box last night, staring at the directions like it was actual rocket science."

"Well it might as well be to you guys," Emma joked and Anna acquiesced the point, since both her and Kristoff pretty much lived off of sandwiches and take out.

"Anyway, long story short the cake… wasn't that great."

"But let me guess," Ruby said, "You ate the whole thing."

"Nope," Elsa said as she appeared at the table, already jumping into the conversation having only heard the tale end of what was said. "Anna got through one slice and then called me in a panic. I had to do a summoning spell to get half of it to my house before Kristoff got out of the bathroom, and let me tell you, that is not easy when you can't actually see the cake in question. Facetime does not an accurate focus point make."

"Jeez, you two would have been better off just throwing it out the window or something. I mean a summoning spell? Are you nuts?" Ruby asked, shaking her head like the prospect of doing one of those blind all for something as trivial as cake was beyond her.

"We were pressed for time," Anna claimed though she still looked a little embarrassed. "Plus I played the bushes card when Kristoff tried to make cookies for me on Valentines Day and then the next morning every squirrel in a three mile radius was running around with them. It was so totally obvious."

"Do you think he knows what actually happened?" Emma asked, not because she was worried about Kristoff knowing about magic (for he, like the other husbands in this group, knew everything and was more than accepting), but because she was actually concerned for his ego. After all, Kristoff was a nice guy, and such a sweetheart to one of her dearest friends. Emma didn't like the idea of him being hurt over something that didn't really matter in the long term.

"Let's just say I did a very good job of distracting him right away before he could ask too many questions," Anna said cheerily as Ruby gave her an 'atta girl' and the bell over the doorway jingled, signaling that Mary Margaret and Belle had both arrived, completing their set of friends for this little tradition they shared.

"I swear Friday could not come soon enough this week!" Mary Margaret exclaimed as she grabbed her mug for cocoa from Ruby and slid into her usual seat.

"Rough time at school?" Emma asked, worried both for her friend but also for Henry.

"No, school's great. The kids are all adjusting and my goodness they're so bright this year, especially Henry. I just can't seem to shake this bug. David had it last weekend and now I guess it's my turn to be exhausted for no reason."

"I'm sure it will pass soon," Belle said kindly before imparting the names of a few other neighbors who had apparently had something similar in the past few weeks.

Mary Margaret nodded, choosing to be positive about it before helping herself to some of the cake, but in the back of Emma's mind there was a tiny trickling of questioning. After all, it wasn't really a secret that Mary Margaret and David were anxious to start a family. Maybe this was an early sign that they were on the right path? Emma definitely hoped so because she wanted her friends to get to that future they so badly wanted, but before Emma could put that out there to her friend, the bell above the café door jingled again and all of her friends turned in the direction of the newcomer and grinned, causing Emma to know in her gut before she'd so much as turned that Killian was here. Her heart leapt into her throat and that familiar sense of thrill and expectation came rushing in as she twisted in her chair to see him looking more than a little surprised at the congregation gathered round this afternoon.

"Well if it isn't Storybrooke's favorite new resident," Ruby said happily as she leaned back in her seat. "We were wondering when you'd show up for your daily Emma– I mean coffee -fix."

Emma rolled her eyes and got up to move to Killian as her friends tittered amongst themselves in a well-meaning but highly embarrassing way, but as she came closer to Killian and she saw the humor in his eyes, Emma felt much better. That relief was only compounded when he offered her his hand and she took it boldly in front of everyone.

"Apologies, Swan. I didn't realize you had plans this afternoon," Killian said as he looked back to the table and offered a nod and a smile that appeased her snooping besties for the moment before looking back at her. "I didn't mean to cause a scene."

"So what did you mean to do?" Emma asked with a little flirtatiousness to try and cut through his worry and Killian's eyes lit with her challenge as he moved just a tiny bit closer and dropped his words to that low, gravely tone she'd grown almost addicted to over the past few days.

"Well Ruby isn't so far off in her estimations…" Killian said before licking his lips and causing Emma to swallow harshly. God he was like a walking temptation and Emma, who had always prided herself on being so above all that, was falling further into it than any sane person should. "I am in dire need of coffee."

Emma blinked up at him in a bit of a seduction-fueled daze before catching his joke and laughing heartily at his words. It was too funny not to, especially since she knew that he had meant Ruby was right about wanting to see her, but when she looked back at him Killian had gone quiet, looking at her with this new found intensity that hadn't been there a second before. Emma felt caught in that look too, and as she came back from the momentary high of the unbridled laugh her energy shifted back to a desire that only grew when Killian's other hand came up to brush a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"Remember what I said about not making a scene?" Killian asked, his voice even huskier with emotion than it had been and Emma nodded. "You make it very difficult to stick to that path, love."

It was on the tip of Emma's tongue to say that maybe he should wander a little bit, but then one of the counter clerks approached with Killian's usual order and that bubble surrounding the two of them was broken. Emma at first thought the interruption was thanks to Ruby, but then she heard a groan of frustration from her best friend across the café and Emma could just picture her friends getting all bent out of shape that their spying had been cut short. When Emma snuck a glance in that direction she saw she was totally correct in that assumption and confirmed that all of her friends were watching with rapt attention.

"Well I guess that's my sign to get going," Killian said, drawing Emma's attention once more. "Are we still on for dinner the three of us tonight?"

"Absolutely," Emma said, eager for him to know that she was looking forward to spending time with both Killian and her son, and when he beamed at her in that totally endearing way she couldn't resist the opportunity to sneak a quick kiss, audience be damned. "I'll see you later."

"That you will," Killian agreed before waving his goodbyes to her friends and heading out the door as Emma watched him go, enjoying one last moment of warm fuzzies before turning back and facing the music across the café.

"I know we promised not to comment on the change in you, Emma," Elsa said as Emma approached her friends once more. "But I can't help it. You just look so happy, which in turn makes me so happy, and I'm getting all choked up just thinking about it."

"And it's not just you," Ruby tossed in as she flicked her wrist to magically warm up her cup of tea, not giving a damn about if any one in the nearly empty café saw how the cup glowed red for a moment. "The whole town is riding the happy high these days."

"It's almost contagious," Belle agreed and the friends all laughed as Belle immediately realized how strange that had sounded. "You guys know what I meant. I mean that the happier Emma and Killian seem to be, the more joy everyone else is feeling too, and we all know the power of happiness and hope especially in this town."

Emma tried not to give away any indication of how much the words were affecting her, but under the table her hands fidgeted in her lap. Obviously she had expected all eyes to be on her and Killian, but it was still a lot to take in. At least when no one was making comments like this Emma could pretend that the eyes of the whole town weren't upon her and her first real relationship in forever. But with her friends harping on how gleeful they and every nosey neighbor in a five-mile radius was Emma lost out on that fantasy. She had to face facts – she and Killian were people of interest, and until something or someone else came to town to take the heat off, it would likely stay that way.

"It's a wonderful thing to witness," Mary Margaret stated dreamily. "Two people taking those first steps into love when it's so clearly deserved. It's the realest kind of magic."

"Oh here we go," Emma muttered to herself. She'd kind of been on board with the whole emotional analysis thing for a while, but this was her final nudge. The mention of love was where she had to draw the line, especially since she and Killian had only been 'dating' for about a week, and even if it had been one of the best weeks Emma had ever known it didn't matter. Love was too strong a prospect to be dabbling with right now after only a handful of dates. There had to be some limits, and Emma was adamant that this was one of them.

"Alright, alright we get it. We'll stop… for now," Ruby said with a mischievous grin before changing the subject. "In the meantime lets talk details. The full moon this month falls the night of the Harvest Festival. How are we handling this?"

It was a good question to ask, and it was one Emma hadn't been very mindful of in recent days. She'd been so distracted with Killian that she hadn't had time to really think of her magic, at least not in such a proactive way. Her thoughts in that vein had mostly fixated on how to hide her continuing flare-ups of supernatural ability until she was totally sure this thing with Killian was going to last, but this was something the friends all had to take part in and be devoted to in order for it to work.

Every year the friends greeted each new season with a ritual handed down for generations that was designed to keep the town and the people of Storybrooke safe. It was white magic at its finest, and a good amount of fun for the friends where they all got to feel in touch with their powers used for good, but they needed a full moon to cast the protections in the right way, and that was a far more complicated process when the whole town was as riled up as they would be on festival day. Usually the five of them (and Anna) could all head down to the beach or into one of the central fields in town without anyone noticing, but in Storybrooke Harvest Day was a big deal, with parties in different places and neighbors all around and popping up where you least expected them.

"I have an idea about that actually," Belle said quickly, grabbing a heavy book from her bag, which in itself wasn't so strange, but the clearly… uh how could Emma put this nicely… old and witchy manuscript did not belong at a normal friend's lunch. Even if the town was understanding of magic and its existence and no one currently in here would bat an eye, it was dangerous in Emma's opinion and so she flicked her wrist towards the book, masking it with a silent incantation to appear more normalized.

"Good catch," Mary Margaret murmured and Emma let out an affirmative hum before letting Belle continue.

"As I was saying, there's a way to work around it. We just have to find the spot we want a few days before and prep it. We'll make a barrier and cast a spell that diverts people from intruding. It's pretty basic, but you'd be amazed how many incantations I found that didn't care about what happened to people who stumbled upon your sight. One of them actually said 'warning – may cause permanent amnesia or amphibious transformation.' Like who would use that?"

"Someone back in the dark ages when that book was written," Anna said saucily and all the friends laughed as Belle rolled her eyes. "No offense Belle, it's just sometimes I wonder where the heck you find these things."

Emma listened as her smartest friend muttered about online forums and extensive research and in a show of support Emma grabbed Belle's hand and patted it gently. After all they should be appreciative of Belle's investigation. She was getting them out of a jam, and by sacrificing so much of her own time Belle had not only eased a burden of finding answers on all of them, but she'd made the town safer in the process.

"So if we're good on that front, what else do we need?" Emma asked, ticking through the list of things they'd required past years and thinking of her own personal pantry. She knew she had dried blackberries, rose thorns, and dogwood bark. Then she had the requisite candles and some other tokens and so on, but there were still a few holes missing

"I grabbed some more sycamore wood while I was in Boston. I broke like ten laws smuggling it back up here, but that's something at least," Elsa offered, and one by one all of her friends named other things they had. By the end of it all, Emma was pleasantly surprised that they had almost everything in stock and only needed to locate two rarer items.

"So all we need then is stem of water lily and crushed pink scallop shell," Belle said happily. "Mary Margaret, you've got water lilies in the pond in your backyard right?"

"Sure do," their pixie-haired friend replied. "I'll send David on a little excursion. You know he loves being helpful with all of this."

"And you love avoiding diving for pond scum," Elsa tossed back which had all of them laughing save for Emma, who was just a little more focused on that last element that they needed for the spell.

The mention of shells caused an understandable jump to the memory of Emma and Killian's first date and that night on the beach when they'd found the blue scallop. At the time Emma had been so distracted by Killian she hadn't thought much more of it than its being a beautiful addition to an already lovely moment, but then the next morning she'd been confronted with something that made her heart stop painfully in her chest – that same shell that Killian had taken home with him had appeared on her porch railing, only this time nearly almost all of the very noticeable cerulean blue was gone and replaced with an unnatural golden sheen that was clearly the product of her magic.

Immediately Emma's mind had started racing and her hands shook as she'd looked from the railing back across the yard to Killian's house. Thanks to the earliness of the hour he wasn't anywhere to be seen, but then she picked up the note and his words were somehow both sweet and sensual and there was no indication in his letter or later actions that he was the least bit concerned with the color change. If anything actually Killian had been more open in his affections and his want to pursue a future with her, and Emma, scared as she still remained that somehow the whole magic thing coming to light before she was ready, found herself falling into that same state of mind where she wanted all the chances she could find to spend more time with the charming, kind, and problematically attractive man next door.

"Emma?" Belle's voice said, cutting through Emma's mini daydream that she'd just slipped into, and as she shook away her musings Emma noticed all of her friends had their eyes on her. Great, she was totally and completely busted, again.

"I'm sorry Belle, what did you say?"

"I asked if you'd mind getting the shells. You and Henry had plans to go to the beach this weekend, right? He mentioned it yesterday when he came into the shop."

"Yeah that's no problem," Emma answered and thankfully her friends accepted her answer after a short pause, moving on to the rest of what they'd need to do to prepare for the next weekend's activities. And though it was difficult, Emma worked diligently to keep focused too, knowing that it was best not to tempt fate and keep daydreaming about a certain hunky neighbor when she would get a chance to see him again in just a matter of hours.

…..

"Do you think Granny's will be busy tonight?" Henry asked as he, Emma, and Killian walked together down the main street of Storybrooke just as the sun was beginning to go down. "I hope not, I really want to show Killian our spot."

Henry's words were touching, and if Killian hadn't already felt fully accepted by the lad before this he would now. It was just so clear in every way that Henry was happy about all of this, and though it was still a tricky situation, what with Killian never wishing to overstep his bounds with Emma's child, he was truly pleased at Henry's acceptance of him and its easy nature. Things would be very different if he and Henry did not get along, but as it was, Henry was easily one of the biggest champions of things working out between Emma and Killian. Yet even that required a delicate balance, because the last thing Killian wanted was Emma to feel pressured to pursue things with him just because it would make Henry happy. Emma would do anything to bring her son joy, but what Killian needed was for Emma herself to choose this and to choose him, not because people expected it but because it was what her heart desired.

"I think if we all played our part in 'Operation Grilled Cheese' we should be golden," Emma replied, reminding Killian of how they'd all agreed not to broadcast their dinner plans this evening to prevent more people at the town's small diner trying to spy on their interactions than would already be present.

"I didn't tell anyone!" Henry offered eagerly. "Did you guys?"

"And ruin my chance to see the spot? Not a chance, mate," Killian said, pulling a laugh from Henry as they made it finally to Granny's and he peered inside. Instantly glee filled Henry's face and he was in motion, racing up the walkway to the old establishment with barely any words of explanation.

"The booth's free! I'll go grab it before anyone else does," he announced before slipping inside and out of view, leaving Emma and Killian alone for the first time all evening.

"You sure you're ready for this?" Emma asked with a shy smile as they stalled for a moment in front of Granny's. "This isn't just dinner with me and Henry you know…"

"Aye, love. It might as well be dinner with the whole bloody town," he countered and Emma exhaled, glad that he understood as she nodded. "Truth is though I'm more than ready. I've no wish to hide this thing between us from anyone. Do you?"

"No," Emma admitted, stepping forward to take his hand in hers and filling him with hope that this would all work out as she did. "No I don't."

A moment passed between them and Killian debated what to do next. His heart said to pull Emma in and kiss that soft smile of hers until they both forgot where or who they were, but his head said to play it cool and walk into Granny's without giving the town any more fodder. It was a hard choice to make given how different the immediate payoff would be, but in the end Killian stuck with the well reasoned plan, knowing that if it would protect Emma and Henry from even a tiny bit more speculation in the long run it would be worth it to wait for another moment with Emma when they were actually alone.

"Then I think it's about time we get inside, love. After all, Henry's liable to burst from all the anticipation."

Killian looked on then as Emma peered through the window and no doubt saw Henry watching them. Killian hadn't been looking in that direction for some time, but he could just sense that as observant and constantly vigilant as Henry was he'd be keeping tabs on his mother and him, and Killian knew from Emma's reaction that he had been right in that assumption. A soft blush came to her cheeks but she didn't pull her hand back, instead she glanced back at him with another smile and some encouraging words before pulling him inside to this long awaited dinner.

"There you guys are!" Henry said eagerly, waving them over to the table with that ever present smile of his firmly in place. "And look, Granny even brought menus, though I don't know why. It's not like we need them."

"Not all of us can be locals at this point, lad. I'm still growing accustomed to the offerings. Trying to find where I fit."

"Fair enough," Henry said, flipping his own menu open as if he'd bear the cross of using one just to give Killian some moral support. "Just don't try and fit with the lasagna."

"Not the best choice?" Killian asked jovially and Henry shook his head before shooting a look at Emma and laying the dirty truth out there for consideration.

"Mom once said she wouldn't wish it on her worst enemy." Well if that wasn't a glowing reason to avoid the Italian here, Killian didn't know what could be.

"I know your Mum's obviously rather taken with the grilled cheese, but what about you lad? Any suggestions."

"The burgers aren't bad," Henry mused. "But I usually get the turkey club. You just gotta make sure that Granny gives you fries when they're piping hot. That can make or break a dinner."

"The things I learn in your company, Henry. I'm truly in your debt."

"I know," Henry said with a wry grin as he sat up straighter and puffed out his chest a bit. "And I'm waiting to cash in when the time is right."

"Smart, lad. Let me guess, that's another lesson you've picked up from Ruby," Killian offered and Henry shook his head.

"Nope, Elsa," Henry said and Killian was surprised to hear that about the woman he'd only known as sweet and uncalculating. He was so taken aback in fact that he looked to Emma for a secondary opinion.

"Shocking I know, but Elsa's a huge fan of the world poker tournament. Why, I have no idea, but everything with her can come back to a poker metaphor. It's amazing."

"And here I was thinking my brother was the only one who watched those things," Killian admitted, thinking back to the memories he had of Liam on leave where his TV was taken over for days at a time to watch those horribly unentertaining competitions with semi-professional gamblers. Killian had always thought it a quirk unique solely to Liam, but hearing that Elsa was somehow intertwined with that world as well made him happy. Who knew? Perhaps there'd be a meeting of their poker-intrigued minds one day if Liam ever got around to visiting like he promised he would.

"You mean Liam?" Henry asked, all of a sudden very excited again.

Killian had noticed this was a theme with Henry. All it had taken was learning that Liam was a sailor and a military man and Henry was hooked, wanting to know everything Killian would tell him. It had been fun to regale the lad with stories about Liam too, for Killian was more than happy to brag about his elder brother's many accomplishments. But Killian would confess to being surprised by some of the queries, like whether Liam had a wife or how he'd feel about moving to Maine. Honestly, what kind of ten year old had that kind of criteria on the brain? Apparently one with as many meddling 'aunts' as Henry.

"The one and only," Killian said as Henry grinned.

"Cool! I can't wait to meet him!" Henry said, and though Killian was filled with a rush of encouragement at Henry's already planning to keep Killian in his life at least long enough to meet his brother, he noticed Emma stiffen slightly and he offered her a smile and a reassuring nod.

"He's pretty excited to meet you too, lad. In fact he told me so last night," Killian said and Henry looked pleased as punch as Emma tilted her head with a curious look dancing across her green eyes.

"I didn't realize you'd gotten the chance to hear from him," Emma said, no longer worried about the implications of the familial introduction, but now clearly fixated on what that meant for Killian. After all his brother was abroad and in the thick of harms way. Often weeks went by without Killian having contact with Liam, but now at least for a little while he knew his brother was safe and well. "You didn't say anything."

"Aye, I know love. Things seemed to keep getting in the way…" Killian said, his mind wandering back to their shared kisses this morning and their interlude at Stay a Spell this afternoon. From the light that came to Emma's green eyes he had to assume her thoughts had wandered that way as well. "But Liam managed to tell me that his current mission is close to being completed, and then I got to tell him a little about my new home."

"What did you tell him?" Henry asked truly desirous to know and so Killian was honest as Granny took their order and their food was all eventually brought out. He told Henry about how he'd given Liam a glowing review of the town over all, about how he found it to be a place that was both peaceful and invigorating, and about how the people here were good, but none of them compared to two of his new neighbors in particular.

"I think he's talking about us, Mom," Henry joked as he chowed down on those french fries he'd been so complimentary of and Emma chuckled along with Henry, creating a scene for Killian that he wanted to remember always. The two of them happy and unaffected even by the constant stares that had been pointed their way since walking in… well in Killian's eyes it was a truly magical sight.

"Seems like it, kid," Emma agreed as she made quick work of her own grilled cheese.

"So…." Henry continued a little thereafter with slow deliberation, giving some indication that he was about to try and pry some information from the two of them. "Are you two, like, going steady?"

The query to Killian was immediately humorous, but it was made all the more comical when Emma began choking on the sip of her water she'd just taken. Immediately she looked like a deer caught in headlights but Killian just took her other hand in his under the table and smiled, directing his attentions to Henry to try and buy her some time.

"Going steady?" Killian asked almost mockingly. "Now where on earth did you hear that one, lad? I know for a fact that's not what the kids are calling it these days."

He didn't actually know that to be true, but Killian had to believe that given the state of the world, ten year olds weren't asking people if they were together in this kind of way. There had to be some new slang or colloquialism, and this particular turn of phrase signaled that the question might be a plant from some nosey (but undeniably well-meaning) second party.

"Mary Margaret," Henry admitted and Killian chuckled as Emma huffed under her breath about how if they were basing this on her friend's standards there'd be letterman jackets and promise rings involved. Nevertheless Emma managed to find a way to answer the question in a way that was simultaneously vague and yet somehow informative.

"I thought we talked about this already, kid," Emma said, shooting Killian an apologetic look. She had mentioned to him a few days ago that Henry was apprised of this blossoming thing between them, but that Emma hadn't exactly put any labels on it other than that they were seeing each other.

"We did, but that was like three whole days ago." Killian had to laugh again at that sentiment, but in his heart of hearts he wasn't looking at this very differently. Three days might not be enough for some people, but Killian had needed less than that to know that what he'd found with Emma he wanted to last. This wasn't some casual link they were building between them, at least not in Killian's eyes.

"Three days isn't exactly a lifetime, Henry," Emma countered, some of her humor returning after the initial shock of his question.

"But you really like each other, right?" Henry asked, this time aiming the question at Killian directly, and in the face of that earnest need to know Killian couldn't deny Henry.

"Aye, lad, we do," Killian agreed before glancing at Emma who responded in kind.

"So what's the hold up? Shouldn't you just be boyfriend and girlfriend by now?" Henry asked, not in a malicious way but in one that made it seem like he really didn't understand. Looking into his eyes, Killian saw that it was honest confusion that had Henry asking and not some agenda he was trying to keep guarded.

"What do all of your books on sailing say is the most important thing to keep in mind, lad?" Killian asked, seemingly changing the topic but knowing this would be his surest way to let Henry understand.

"That the winds have to be right and the sea should be easy," Henry said as if he'd memorized the cardinal rule for ideal conditions.

"Exactly. So think of this in those terms. It might not be ideal to wait for what you want, Henry, but only when the timing's right can things truly be as they're meant to."

Those words, true as they might be, felt a little heavier than Killian might have liked for dinner, and in the moment when he turned his attention from Henry to Emma he was a little worried about what her response would be, but he shouldn't have been. For when their gazes met those eyes of hers said a thousand words she didn't have the chance to say right now, ones of both gratitude and agreement and something deeper that Killian wanted so badly to understand but didn't have the chance now to analyze.

"I get that," Henry said after a moment's pause, drawing Emma and Killian's attention back to him again. "It's just a little weird calling you my Mom's 'special friend.'"

"Oh that's… well it's bloody dreadful isn't it?" Killian asked, begging excuse for his language as Henry and Emma both laughed again at his assessment.

"That's what I said!" Henry agreed. "So what should I do, Mom?"

This was a moment of truth now, for Killian didn't think he could bail Emma out of another inquiry, yet despite her earlier hesitations, Emma offered nothing but a warm smile and some actually sound advice.

"What you always do when the plan's still in motion, kid…" Emma prompted and then both she and Henry filled in at once.

"Tell them 'it's classified.'"

With that the interrogation of sorts about what was going on between Emma and Killian finally died down, and the rest of the evening at Granny's and at the ice cream shop thereafter went exactly how Killian envisioned, which was to say without a hitch. This was easy, strange as that was given Killian's lack of experience with kids or dating with feelings that were this big, but it was and at night's end when they'd arrived back at Emma and Henry's it was hard yet again to say goodbye, just as it was every night when the time came for him to retreat back across the yard and to leave them here in their perfect little home.

"So we're still going sailing tomorrow right?" Henry asked as they got to the door and Killian grinned at the reminder that in a few hours they'd all be reunited for a day spent together.

"Aye Captain, if the weather holds there'll be no stopping us."

"Cool! Mom and I have to stop at the beach to get some pink scallop shells though. Can you help?"

It seemed a slightly strange but not undesirable request in Killian's eyes, but he noticed the way that Emma stiffened up at the mention of the shells. He wasn't sure if it was because of their last interaction with them (which they still had not spoken of since he knew she wasn't ready) or for some other reason, but Killian's sole intention in this moment became to relieve some of that worry that had fallen over her features.

"I'd be honored to, lad. It's an interesting treasure you're after to be sure, but I'm in."

"Awesome! Okay, I'm gonna go inside so you two can have your mushy moment. Goodnight Killian."

"Night Henry," Killian called back as he laughed at the fire in Emma's son and watched Henry head inside, leaving Killian and Emma with a window he'd be lying if he said he wasn't waiting for.

"All things considered I'd say this night was a success, Swan," Killian said as he stepped closer to Emma and she did the same, cutting some of the distance between them considerably as she smiled up at him.

"Looks that way, yeah," Emma quipped, but then something flashed across her gorgeous face and Killian didn't want to ignore it. Whatever that thought had been he had to know because he felt in his gut it was important.

"What is it, Emma?" he asked, his voice dipping lower as his hand came to hold her hip and the other came to take the hand he'd been holding off and on all evening.

"Nothing. It's just the way you are with Henry, in the diner and now here… you're really good at this, Killian. At all of it."

Emma's words of praise hit him right in the chest, giving him a confidence Killian didn't want to simply take for granted. All of this with Emma, the growing bond, the feeling of connection, it was something to be earned not expected, and so it meant all the more to him to have Emma say things like this. Her assessment was truly the only that mattered and if in her eyes he was succeeding and doing things right than that was all Killian could hope for.

"To be frank, love, I'm going on instinct. This – what we're doing – I don't have anything to compare it to. It's in a league all it's own, and I wasn't expecting to find so much when I found this place. All I know is that since we have this chance, I want to do things right, and that includes doing my best for Henry too."

The look on Emma's face when he said those words was something Killian wanted to commit to memory forever. With her eyes casting light from the lamp above amongst the flecks of green and blue and her lips curved up into a smile that was at once beautiful and seductive and also impossibly sweet, she was heaven itself. In truth it was overwhelming. His words really hadn't even given the feelings that Emma evoked in him or their newness in his world justice, but clearly they'd been enough because the next thing he knew Emma was pulling him down for a kiss that made all the patience of this evening more than worth it.

For a blissful moment in time everything else faded away between them, leaving nothing but that same spark of light and intrigue and want between them, and yet, even if Killian would have liked to linger there for hours with Emma, it wasn't to be, at least not tonight. For tonight Henry was here (as he should be) and all Killian and Emma could have was one fleeting 'mushy' moment to tide them over until their next opportunity came. That didn't mean, however, that Killian wasn't tempted to give into his desires when he pulled back from the kiss and saw Emma looking flushed and more than eager to repeat that transcendent performance.

"I guess this is the part where we call it an end to the evening and I tell you I can hardly wait until morning."

Emma smiled at that, running her hand across his chest before pressing one final soft kiss against his lips and stepping back. That left Killian to take the hint and head for his own front door, but before he could get very far, Emma called out to him again, helping to ease the ache in his heart that had settled in with the official ending of the night.

"Killian?" He turned back not sure what to expect but feeling completely overwhelmed at what she laid before him. "I'm really glad you found us. Or well, you know, Storybrooke I mean."

That last bit was an afterthought clearly, and Killian could tell that Emma had meant what she said at first. She'd given a lot away with that slip, but damn if it didn't feel good to hear it because he felt the same way. Nothing had ever come close to this sensation of being right where he was meant to be, and Killian knew the credit for that had to go to Emma and her boy who both inspired new ideas of what life might bring if he was lucky enough to get it.

"So am I, Emma."

And with that final vow, Emma headed back inside, wishing him a goodnight and leaving Killian with the sense that things were progressing exactly as they should be and that where they were headed was a place so much better than he could ever imagine.

Post-Note: So first and foremost I want to thank all you guys for the love and the support so far with this story. Seeing your feedback has been awesome and I am glad so many of you are enjoying this new little journey with me. As for the future of this fic I have quite a few more chapters planned out and over the course of the next few installments we are getting some critical things including that talk I hinted at before between Killian and David, the harvest festival/full moon ritual, the earning of the story's M rating, and the eventual magical reveal so to speak. Anyway thank you all so much for reading and I hope you have a great rest of your day!