A/N: Hello all! I'm back on schedule, though not for long (more on that next week). To the lovely person who asked about when we'll see Snow and Charming again, there'll be a flashback chapter next week starring our lovely King and Queen, so keep an eye out for that! Cheers.

Chapter 7

KILLIAN INSISTED ON driving through the city at a startling speed, so Emma spent her first few minutes in a carriage clutching at the walls and Henry. The pup had taken a liking to sticking his head out the window, and at every bump and pothole Emma thought he'd fall right out. The first time it happened Grumpy made a strangled noise that sounded suspiciously like a laugh, but he quickly got himself under control.

By the time they cleared the city and Killian slowed the horses, Emma's hands were cramped and her entire rear end bruised. Seeing her discomfort, Grumpy pounded on the roof of the carriage.

"Hey, Killian! Can we stop for a bit? Stretch our legs?"

"Aye, we've just entered the forest. I'll find a spot to water the horses."

Emma smiled gratefully at the dwarf, who winked. "Enjoying your first carriage ride, Your Highness?"

"Oh, it's absolutely splendid." She replied in honeyed tones, spreading a hand over her heart dramatically. "I just love bouncing around inside a wooden crate on wheels."

They stopped at a small stream, and Emma inspected her crate with a critical eye. It was good quality woodwork, nothing too fancy but still way above what she'd thought they could afford. Although, given Killian's blasé attitude towards her knives, she shouldn't be surprised.

"Up to your standards, Princess?" Killian's voice came from close to her ear, and Emma held back a sigh. How could such a big man be so silent? "I am told it has a ride like resting on goose-down pillows."

"Then the man you stole it from lied." She commented casually, watching him out of the corner of her eye. He froze, then spread his lips in a lazy grin. "Serves him right, in my opinion. The ride is terrible."

"And the fact that we're travelling in pilfered property doesn't offend your royal sensibilities?" Killian stepped forward to flick a piece of mud off the carriage door, then faced Emma. She met his eyes defiantly, more than willing to remind him that she had teeth.

"I still don't believe I'm any more royal than you are, Jones. Enough with this 'Princess' crap."

"Well, you objected to 'love', Swan. What's a man to do?" Killian's expression could only be described as rakish, and Emma rolled her eyes. "Besides, I firmly believe that you are the Princess, so calling you as such is self-preservation."

"How so?" Emma asked, curious despite herself.

"Can you imagine how Queen Regina would react if someone dropped her title?" He tutted and shook his head. "Nasty business, that. She'd have her dogs on the poor soul in seconds, if she didn't magic them first."

"Is your opinion on all royalty so low, or specifically reserved for the Evil Queen?" Emma asked, now cautious. After all, if he thought she was a Princess, then Killian was including her in his disdain.

Killian stepped forwards, invading her personal space. He swiped her hand from where it rested on her hip and drew it to his lips. "Merely for the ones who deserve it. And I'd be more than happy for you to prove to me that you don't."

Emma pulled her hand back, bringing Killian's with it, and squeezed. He let out a hiss of pain as his fingers were crushed together. "Who says I want your high opinion, thief?" She ground out, loosening her grip enough for him to yank away. He rubbed his sore fingers, glaring at her.

"I prefer pirate, love. Bloody hell, you've a grip like iron."

Emma sighed and turned away. "Men are such babies."

Neither of them noticed Grumpy, sitting with the supplies, take a notebook out of his pocket and mark a tally in a table with two names across the top. "Point Emma." He mumbled.

THEY ENDED UP spending the night next to the river, as the horses were exhausted from their morning gallop. Grumpy proved his skills at fishing to the princess, standing in the river and snatching one of the slippery buggers right out of the water. Emma whooped and cheered, and Killian rolled his eyes at the dwarf's red cheeks.

Emma insisted on starting the fire, and sat with it while Grumpy cooked their fish. The flames reflected in her eyes, making them dance and shine, and Killian had to force his gaze elsewhere. His fingers still smarted from their last confrontation, and he didn't think she'd appreciate the attention. Instead, he strung up the hammocks between a line of trees, far enough from the river to remain dry.

Dinner was a quiet affair, all of them hungry enough to eat without comment. Emma ate quickly, faster even than Grumpy, reminding Killian of the few times his meals had been taken by bigger boys on the streets, before he'd met the dwarf. Emma ate like she wasn't used to keeping her food.

"So, what's the deal with this Princess you think I am?" Emma broke the silence first, once her meal was gone. "How come no one knows where she is?"

"You haven't heard the story?" Killian asked, puzzled. Surely everyone had heard by now.

"My… previous residence was a bit isolated from the rest of the world, and the Director didn't encourage gossip. She thought it distracted us from the real work, like filling her pockets." She didn't look at them as she spoke, poking the fire with a stick. She was trembling, but Killian thought that the cold had little to do with it.

"Killian's the better story-teller." Grumpy muttered to the girl, who turned challenging eyes up to him. Killian met them, leaning back against a tree, thought over where he should begin. He knew most of that family's history, thanks to Grumpy's lose tongue and his own small part in it.

"Once upon a time," he started, and grinned at Emma when she rolled her eyes. "Oh, come now, Swan, it's a classic. Once upon a time there was a girl on a runaway horse, saved by a kind young woman. The girl's father was a King, and he rewarded the woman by offering her his hand in marriage. The young woman tried to refuse, for she was in love with a stable boy, but her mother accepted on her behalf. The girl, overjoyed that her saviour would become her new mother, was heartbroken when she found the woman with her lover one day. When everything was explained to her, however, the girl said she would try to help her saviour to be with her love, and keep what she knew a secret. She failed, in that respect, accidentally revealing all to the woman's mother, who killed the stable boy so that her daughter might be queen. That girl was Snow White, and the woman was…"

"Regina." Emma finished. Killian blinked at the interruption, reading surprise on Emma's face. Perhaps she does know some of the story, after all.

"Aye. Now hush, and let me finish."