A/N: Hey everyone. I'm on time this week, so enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own ABC, Once Upon a Time or any of it's characters. Just Aria and Amaya.
When I got up the next morning, Killian was fast asleep, snoring softly. I guess he was more exhausted than I was yesterday. Yet the delicious feeling of pain in my nether regions reminded me of how much energy he really had last night.
"Shower," I whispered to myself as I was reminded how precious my alone time was in the morning. After showering and sneaking downstairs, I got started on my small week of planning, and prepared breakfast for my family.
Family. I thought to myself, looking down at my stomach.
"I haven't really had any form of birth control for years. Hadn't needed it," I said softly to myself as I thought about what this could mean for our future. Thinking about magic and if it could detect pregnancy, I texted Regina and got a firm, "Don't do anything stupid until I get there."
"Great," I laughed to myself. If Regina could help me figure this out painlessly, then I could relax either way. As I finished cooking the bacon, I heard Killian walking down the stairs talking quietly to Amaya.
"Hey pumpkin," I said as she reached for me.
"Why the long face?" I asked as I reached into the fridge for the milk.
"I had a bad dream." She said, lower lip quivering.
"She crawled in beside me and we cuddled for a few minutes before we smelt breakfast," Killian smiled, kissing her cheek softly and then my own lips.
"You're a good Dad," I smiled as he poured her morning glass of milk.
"Well, what do we know about bad dreams?" I asked her, putting her in her booster seat.
"Bad dreams are what help us face our fears." She said, repeating back what I always said to her.
"Bad dreams, bad dreams, go away. Good dreams, good dreams here to stay." I said over her head as I waved my hands, sprinkling magic over her.
"Thank you Momma," She beamed as Killian set her glass of milk in front of her.
"And what do you say to Killian?" I smiled as I went to get her breakfast.
"Thank you Daddy!" She said sweetly. I paused and looked at Killian, seeing his face break into a giant grin.
"You are welcome little Princess," He said, kissing the top of her head.
"Ovaries, melting," I whispered to myself with a chuckle.
"Knock knock," I heard Regina say and I looked at the clock.
"Well, I guess Henry's at school already. You're just in time for breakfast." I said as Killian grabbed our plates and cutlery for the morning.
"I ate. I just wanted to speak to you before I went to work. Privately," she said and Killian took over the cooking for me.
"I'll finish love," He said, kissing my cheek.
"Okay. Let's go downstairs then." I said, nervous for what she had to say.
"So I have a spell and a potion." She said, and I saw her reach into her pocket.
"Where'd you-"
"My time as the Evil Queen, I collected things, much like Gold did. I collected Light magical items though."
"So how does this work. I take the potion? Do a little jig and we say a few words?"
"What are you most comfortable with?"
"Uh, spell." I said, and she nodded.
Waving her hands over my stomach, I felt a warmth enveloping me and Regina said, "Now, you focus on your body and what it tells you."
"I feel warm. It's comforting. Wait, I can hear murmurs around me." I said, confused.
"That would be the baby's feelings you feel as your own," She smiled. I gasped as I put a hand on my stomach, as my connection to my baby faded, and a new one grew.
"Really?" I smiled widely.
"Really." She said, looking sad.
"Regina, can you have children?" I asked, remembering the look in her eyes. I had seen it on many women.
"I gave myself an Infertility potion when my mother tried to set me up with Sheriff George. I thought she was trying to control the throne through an heir, so I solved the problem. Now, I suffer the consequences." She said and I shook my head.
"The Well. Have you not thought about the water?" I said softly and she furrowed her brow in confusion.
"I hadn't."
"It's fed from Lake Nostos. It healed my mother after King George tried to make her infertile."
"And I thought I was heartless back then." She smirked and I rubbed her shoulder.
"Is there someone you grew to like in the Enchanted Forest, while you were away?"
"The man with the lion tattoo. Robin," She said, eyes softening.
"Go drink from the Well. Go find him today. He remembers you, I'm sure of it," I said as I led her upstairs.
"I will. Thank you Aria," She said, hugging me as we reached the foyer.
"No, thank you." I smiled, and pressed a finger to my lips to signal it was a secret.
"I keep them well." She laughed, and waved goodbye to Killian and Amaya. As I closed the door behind her, I beamed down at my stomach.
"I will protect you," I whispered.
Dancing around as I cleaned the house, Killian sat with Amaya, coloring and reading Henry's book. It was around two in the afternoon when the whole family, plus Regina, Robin and his little boy Roland, joined us in the living room, all discussing ways to rid ourselves of Zelena. I suggested Amaya and Roland could play downstairs where all the toys were, and Robin agreed. They shouldn't be hearing this.
"She wants to go back in time, but we can't let her." Henry said, as we all agreed to let things play out. She was exposed now, and was bound to slip up.
"She needs four things for this to work. My heart, someone's courage, a baby to represent innocence, and Gold's brain."
"What are we assuming that it will be your heart and Gold's brain?" Robin said, confused.
"A vendetta. She hates what Regina got instead of her, and she loved Gold. She wasn't happy he chose to find Neal over her." Emma said, as Neal squeezed her hand.
"Why don't we pretend Mom's gone into labor early? She gets a random baby, that we go save of course, and that's when we'll nab her." I said, as I hummed around the kitchen, making snacks. Purdy was content to lounge by the fireplace with her bone.
"It could work." Regina said as Belle got out her book.
"She'd have to draw this symbol, exactly." Belle said, showing us.
"Like a compass," I said. Killian had shown me his small collection on his ship and I noticed the familiar design.
"So, either's she's bat shit crazy, or this is actually gonna work if we don't stop her." Emma said, not looking convinced yet.
"Why don't we put this aside for now? Killian and I were talking last night, and we decided we didn't want to wait for all of this to be over with before we get married." I said as everyone stared at us confused.
"What are you saying?" My Dad said, eyes narrowed.
"We want to get married, this weekend. On Killian's ship," I added and Killian spat out his drink at my request.
"Ah, the ship is still in the Enchanted forest love," He said when he recovered. His tone wasn't convincing me so I said, "Alright, here. I've always liked the idea of a woodland wedding. It might even feel like the Enchanted Forest."
"I love it. Who's going to officiate?" My mother said, clearly enjoying getting a hand in planning my wedding.
"We wanted to ask Archie. But we want to keep it just family and really really close friends. We don't need the whole town there." I said and Regina laughed, "No dwarves Snow."
"Oh, okay," She said sadly, before smiling, "We get to at least walk you down."
"Is it traditional for both parents to walk their daughter down the aisle?" Emma asked hesitantly.
"No, but I am not missing this." Snow said, an exuberant smile on her face.
"Well, I have a dress I wanted to wear-" I started but Regina was shaking her head and making a cut it out motion with her hands. I looked at my mother to see tears in her eyes.
"We don't get to help you pick it out?" She asked, a tear falling down her cheeks. I sighed and said, "We don't really have time for fairy godmothers to make me a wedding gown."
"No, but we do have magic," Regina said, wiggling her fingers.
"Magic comes at a price. I can't just snap my fingers and have a perfect gown," I said as the men slowly got up at Killian's motion. I ignored them as I said, "I can't in good conscience, use magic when I have a perfectly good dress."
"At least let us see it." My mother said and Emma was quietly chuckling in the corner as Neal left the room with the guys.
"Fine, but everyone has to come upstairs." I said, getting up.
"You guys can have the living room again."
"Actually we were going to go back to that Farm house and see if there are anymore clues on Zelena." My Dad said, and Killian kissed me softly before saying, "We'll be back in time for dinner love."
"Love you," I smiled as he left, and walked up the stairs to find my mother, step-grandmother and sister waiting for me, by sitting on my bed.
"Well, go on."
"Ugh, fine." I said, walking into my closet and closing the door. I carefully zipped up the back and straightened the skirt, opening the door and walking out into my bedroom.
"So?" I asked, doing a slow turn.
"Aria," Emma said, wide eyed.
"It is too much?" I asked, moving the skirt a bit.
"You just had this in your closet?" Regina asked, confused.
"Well, yes. Adam and I were going to renew our vows, and I found this dress on sale. And a few months later, I had no reason to wear it. But I couldn't return it, so it was going to be for Amaya when she was old enough."
"It's beautiful sweetheart." My mom said, wiping her tears away.
"Mom, no crying please." I smiled, kneeling in front of her.
"I just never thought I'd get to experience all of this." She said as Emma passed her a tissue box.
"Well, you do. Twice," I said, winking at Emma.
"Jumping. The. Gun," She said, playfully glaring at me, and my mother lost it all over again.
"Please stop," Regina said, awkwardly patting my mother's back. We all chuckled at that, as Amaya ran in the room with Roland.
"Momma, you look pretty!" She said, climbing on Emma's lap as Roland climbed onto Regina's.
"Killian and I are getting married. He's going to be your Daddy, for real." I said as she squealed in delight.
"And you get to be the flower girl," I said as she tore from the room, bringing me back one of her good dresses.
"Can I wear this one?" She asked. It was a light purple with white flowers stuck on to the bottom of the skirt.
"You may Pumpkin," I said, picking her up and she cheered, making us all laugh.
We were guarded as we protected the yard from Zelena, as I didn't feel like having her crash my wedding. We didn't want to trust anyone with our plans until she had been dealt with. The boys had nothing more in the way of clues, and came back sullen. I whipped up tacos for everyone, realizing we still didn't have an exact plan for Zelena.
"Can we trap her?" I asked Blue. We had asked her over to come help us with our planning and she agreed.
"I will have to figure out a spell she can't detect but if we get the Dwarves to create Fairy Dust, we can make it work." She said, a look of thinking coming over her face.
"No, this has to be kept in this circle. Grumpy is the biggest gossip in town." My mother said, rubbing her belly.
"We need to assume she's after 3 out of 4 items. We should just let her have them. Make her think she's winning." Neal suggested as Henry read his book quietly in the corner.
"She needs someone's courage," I said, "How do we give her that, without being obvious about it?"
"Night Root," Regina said, looking at Robin. He smiled, "I do happen to have some. I wanted to use it when Roland was younger, but Marian never let me."
"It's perfect that you saved it though, because Night Root cause you to face your deepest fears. When we do that, our true courage comes out." She explained.
"So who will it be?" I said, as we all looked around. My father raised his hand and said, "I've dealt with it before. It should be me."
"Rapunzel," My mother said, as if cluing in.
"She took it and now I know what to do." He smiled at her. She looked unconvinced, but let it go regardless.
"Now, as for Regina's heart," I said, as she patter her collarbone, "All protected. But I want to give her a look alike."
"Give it to Robin for safekeeping and Zelena will take that bait," Emma said, as she focused on a cup of cocoa in front of her. In a second it was gone and in front of Henry.
"Cool! Instant hot chocolate. Literally!" He said taking a sip.
"Why don't you slow down there? The only thing that can defeat Zelena is Light magic and we don't want you burning yourself out."
"We'll have Blue and the other fairies there, as well as your own magic. She's not going to know what hit her," Emma smiled.
"I'm going to avoid using magic for awhile." I said softly, "If I can help it."
"Why?" Everyone asked at once. I floundered for a bit, trying to come up with a legitimate excuse when Regina said, "It's better not to use magic for frivolous things. It can backfire."
"And I like it, but not to the point where I'll be using it for everything. I feel accomplished when I do things the old fashioned way," I said, internally wincing at Killian's look. He didn't look convinced, but I was waiting until our wedding night to tell him my good news.
"So, baby, fake heart, David's courage, and we need to assume she already has Gold's brain."
"Okay, we start canvasing the area, figure out where exactly she's planning to make her move with this whole, time travel thing," Emma said, not finding the right words.
"Okay, food's ready," I smiled as I finished setting the table.
The conversation turned to happier topics, such as the party we would be throwing for my parents once our sibling was born. Regina wanted to host, as she had the biggest house, and we discussed food choices while Killian and Robin talked about going hunting.
Everyone left, one by one, and Killian showed each out like a good host. He apologized to my father for not asking permission for my hand, and I overheard my father saying, "She's a grown woman, and she made the right decision."
"Thank you," Killian said, shaking his hand. I smiled to myself, continuing to wash the dishes as Amaya played with Purdy, chasing her around the house.
"Amaya, leave the dog alone," I sighed.
"Yes Momma," she giggled as Purdy let her hang all over her. I heard the door close and went to reach for a wine glass, but stopped myself.
"No wine tonight, love?" He asked, and I was startled that he had seen my hesitation.
"No, I'm thinking about cutting back," I smiled softly, looking at Amaya. He smiled and nodded, saying, "I'll put her to bed tonight."
"Thank you," I said, reaching up for a kiss. He was soft in his response, leaning into it. As he pulled back, I saw the look in his eyes and winked.
"Alright little Princess, it's bedtime."
"Nooo!" She giggled, running away from Killian's reaching arms.
"Yes," He play growled, picking her up and making growling sounds into her neck. I laughed, kissing her goodnight before he took her squealing form upstairs. Sighing, I finished off the dishes and saw Purdy needed more food. Grabbing that and setting down fresh water, she huffed from her spot in front of the fireplace.
"What's your problem?" I said, sitting down on the couch. I tried rubbing my feet, to ease the pain in my heels from standing all day, but it was no use. Purdy hopped up onto the couch and laid her head in my lap.
"I know that look," I said, petting her ears softly, "You miss him."
"What about the Station? Do you miss them?" I asked, and she huffed again.
"This is our home now, girl. The guys wouldn't have let you come home with me if they thought someone else could work with you. Adam and you had a special bond, and they couldn't replicate that with any of the other fireman if they tried. It was better for you to retire," I said, wiping my eyes.
"Now, we go on." I said, looking into her sad brown eyes.
"Not alone," Killian said softly.
"No," I smiled at him, "Not alone."
"I seem to remember she felt at home on my ship." He said sitting down beside me and petting her head softly.
"Well, I would ask you to take her out, and get her mind off of things, but your ship is in the Enchanted Forest. Didn't feel like explaining that to the New York Harbor?"
He smiled and said, "I wasn't aware of the beans you left me. I had nothing of value to trade for one, except the Jolly Roger."
"You traded your ship for me?" I said, tears in my eyes.
"Aye. I would trade 1000 ships for the chance to see you and the little Princess," He said softly. I smiled, getting up gently and letting Purdy rest. I went to lock the doors and make sure the magical barrier was still holding.
"I'll meet you upstairs Captain," I said, giving him my bedroom eyes. He smirked softly, petting Purdy quickly and moving to follow me up the stairs.
That night, I showed him how much that meant to me, using my words and my body as an instrument for him to play as he liked.