Emma

The night before she is supposed to drive Henry back up to Storybrooke, she is restless and antsy. She feels even worse than last time, so it doesn't surprise her when she finds herself suddenly turning to Henry and proposing to leave late at night instead of waiting for the morning.

Henry had said nothing as he grabbed his bags, but he'd stared at her with narrowed eyes while she rambled and reminisced on the first time they did a late-night drive to Storybrooke. Back when he'd found her.

God, that seemed like such a long time ago.

Hours later, when he is snoring next to her, and they are halfway through the drive, she remembers another late-night drive to Storybrooke when someone else had been in the passenger seat. Henry had been awake when they'd left New York for Storybrooke, so she and Killian had remained mostly silent to avoid blowing up their cover story. Henry had fallen asleep halfway through, though, just like now, and they'd been able to talk the rest of the drive in hushed tones.

They'd mostly strategized and theorized on what could have happened to her parents and Storybrooke. But she'd also tried to pry some information from him regarding his year in the Enchanted Forest. Even then, hours after getting her memories of him back, she sensed something different about him. There was a certain melancholic air to his words and posture that she'd never seen. Or maybe she'd never dared pay enough attention to notice. Back then, she didn't know how to deal with everything Killian Jones awakened in her with just one look.

Months later, she still doesn't think she has figured it out.

The sun is just starting to rise when Emma crosses the town line, and this time she feels a deep sense of contentment rise up in her. She slows down as she reaches the loft but then decides to keep driving. Her parents are probably sleeping, and she has no idea how to explain why and how she'd arrived in Storybrooke so early. She hadn't even warned them in her rush to leave New York.

That seemed more like future Emma's problem, though.

Granny's isn't open yet, and she's not sure she can deal with Leroy right now (besides, what if she runs into Hook?), so she keeps driving until she reaches the docks. She parks the bug and steps out, leaving Henry asleep in the car.

Her eyes seek the Jolly Roger in the marina without even thinking about it. It's not there, which is something she already knew, even if the reason for her absence remains a mystery months later.

She knows very little these days, which is starting to seriously piss her off.

She's seated on a bench watching the sun rise as she contemplates what to tell her parents about her arrival when she hears feet scuffle behind her.

"Swan?"

No.

Oh gods, no!

Not him.

Emma whirls around and is greeted by the sight of a gloriously sweaty Killian Jones.

"Hook!"

Something flashes on his face at his moniker, but it is gone before she can decipher what it means. Her mind is still reeling from his sudden arrival when she registers his appearance and does a double take.

He's wearing modern clothes.

She has never seen him without his customary leather and eyeliner, and she couldn't help but think that he looks much more like Killian Jones than Captain Hook at that moment as he sports a black Henley and grey sweatpants with black sneakers. The hook was still there, though, sharp and gleaming in the sunrise, paired with a cutlass strapped to his back. And though she knows the pirate captain is still lurking under the surface, he seems more relaxed to her.

There is something different beyond the clothes, but she can't quite put her finger on what it is.

Emma knows she's staring, but she can't help it. She hasn't seen him in months.

And he looks too damn good in those clothes.

She knows she can't keep staring without saying anything, but nothing seems to come to mind.

He looks around, his eye sliding over the bug and Henry still sleeping in it, and frowns at her. He moves to remove his earbuds, and it is then that she notices he is listening to music. That, along with the sweating and the outfit would usually tell her someone was on a morning run, but her brain seems to find it absurd that that's what he was doing. She vaguely wonders what music pirates listen to before he interrupts her thoughts.

"Swan, what are you doing? You shouldn't be here," he said, looking around worriedly.

If it had been anyone else, she would have paused before responding and wondered what they meant. But it is him, and he already caught her off guard, leaving her feeling unsteady, so she immediately goes on the defensive, which she can easily make look like the offensive.

"What is that supposed to mean? And who are you to question me? Have you commandeered the town in my absence?" sneered Emma.

He looks taken back for a moment but then scowls, the insinuation in her tone clear to him. She'd always been good at getting under his skin and making him lose that careful composure he showed everyone else. And it shouldn't feel this good, not when she knows this might not be the best way to reunite with him after months of zero contact, but Emma doesn't care.

He doesn't rise to her bait, though. Instead, he closes his eyes for a heartbeat and sighs deeply while he steps back from her. She hates seeing him put more distance between them; it seems she's too used to him always using any opportunity he can get to invade her personal space.

"I merely meant that it is unsafe here at the docks, specifically at such an early hour. But you are more than capable of taking care of yourself, of course, so I will be on my way. My apologies for the intrusion, lass," he says with a forced smile.

His words pike her curiosity, and even though she could note the sarcasm in his voice, she considers the fact that even though he was seemingly out for a run, he was still heavily armed.

Something was going on.

David and Mary Margaret have definitely been lying to her. Or, well, more like omitting and stretching the truth.

Before he can leave, she jumps at the opportunity to get more information (and maybe to keep him here a bit longer) since her parents are being so uncooperative.

"What exactly is going on? The docks used to be pretty safe last I checked. Is there something else I need to know about?"

She cringes internally at how demanding she sounds, but she's losing her patience and he has the same cagey look in his eyes that her parents get whenever she asks if a new crisis is happening in town.

She's the Saviour, for fucks sake; she needed to know these things.

Killian regards her carefully, and for a moment, she thinks he will say something to her beyond these stilted and informal words they've been exchanging. He hasn't flirted with her or thrown an innuendo and a smirk her way.

Not once.

(She hated how much that bothered her)

"I don't think I should be the one to inform you of anything. It would be better if you asked your parents, lass," replied Killian diplomatically.

(God, why was he so annoying)

Just as she is about to say something (anything) again to rile him up, a phone rings, and it takes her a couple of seconds to process that it is his.

Killian Jones, the modern pirate, was something she needed to get used to. She was sure he was the same fearsome pirate he'd always been, but the clothes and the lack of eyeliner gave him a softer look. He looked much younger and more approachable, as it were, which made things worse for Emma.

She already found him too approachable as it was.

He glances down at the phone and frowns but quickly schools his face as he looks up at her with a forced smile.

"I'm afraid I must take this call. Have a good day, Swan. Please give Henry my regards."

He's gone before she can even answer him, and as she watches his retreating back (and maybe lower than that), she gets the niggling feeling that something has shifted between them.

She's not exactly sure what that means either.

It doesn't take long for her to find out what Killian's call was probably about. An hour later, just as she is about to knock on her parents' front door, she is almost bowled over by a flustered David, who is clearly in a rush.

"Emma! What - I thought you weren't arriving until noon."

"Yeah, sorry, had a bit of a head start."

She wills herself not to blush at David's scrutinizing gaze and hopes he lets it go.

He does not.

"A head start? What, at two in the morning?" questioned David.

"Yeah, well, it is a long story. And I imagine you don't have time for it, considering the rush you seem to be in. Where are you off to?"

"I'm heading to the station. But you can head inside and have breakfast with your mother. She'll be happy to know she gets to spend more time with you," said David as he angled himself towards the stairs and pushed Emma toward the loft.

"Wait, I thought you were off today? Henry has been talking about his sword fighting lessons all week."

David slowly turns to look at her and barely manages to hide his grimace.

"There is a situation I need to handle at the station, but I will be back soon. You can tell Henry we will have those lessons after lunch."

"Henry's asleep in the car, actually. Why don't you help me carry him up to the couch, and I'll go with you to the station. It's pretty early, and I don't think he'll wake up anytime soon."

With that said, she barrels down the stairs without giving David a chance to say something or try to weasel himself out of this.

It's time she figured at least some things out.

When she and David arrive, it is clear they're one of the last few as they enter the station to find it full of people.

Regina, Robin, and Belle are having a discussion in a corner while some of the men she recognizes as Robin's Merry Men are poring over a map of the coast of Storybrooke with the dwarves. She spies some of David's new deputies in the breakroom and smiles at Ruby as she finds a seat next to her while David heads to stand at the front.

"Alright, what is the status report on the situation? Your message was pretty vague, Robin."

David goes straight to business, but she doesn't miss the uneasy glance he sends her way. He'd alternated between a sullen silence and weak attempts to keep her away on their ride to the station, so she knew he was anything but happy to have her listening in.

Robin turns to answer her father, but not before throwing her a questioning glance and looking for David's approving nod to start talking.

"There was an attack early this morning. A fisherman seems to have been taken, not at the central docks but at a smaller one much further north near the cliffs. I'm told it is a place known by few fishermen, and the water there can be quite treacherous, according to Killian. I haven't inspected the scene but was told it was definitely an attack by those who did, though,"

As Emma whirls to give her father some choice words (so much for Storybrooke having a moment of peace), she hears hurried footsteps and looks to the door where she finds Hook and Tinkerbell arriving. It is no less a shock seeing him than it was this morning and she is once again left feeling unsteady at his sudden arrival. He's changed clothes since and his wet hair indicates he probably took a shower after his run-in with her. His signature leather is back in the form of a modern leather jacket worn over a navy sweater and black jeans. Vaguely, she wonders who has been giving Captain Hook fashion advice and why they have chosen to make him look like a fucking model.

"What are you doing here?" demands Emma before they could even finish entering the room and she internally flinches at her tone. It was either that or asking him who the hell was dressing him.

Though her question is thrown more at Hook than at Tink, the latter still flinches at her tone and turns to look between Killian and Emma expectantly with wide eyes.

Before he can even answer her with what she is sure will be some glib, sarcastic quote, she charges further into her rebuke.

"This seems like an official investigation, and I don't think citizens should get involved," states Emma with all the confidence she could muster. At the same time, she tries to ignore others the statement would also cover, like Ruby, Tink, and the dwarves.

And well, technically, herself too.

(Never mind the fact that she'd constantly included him last time when fighting Zelena)

Hook clenches his jaw at her jab and turns stormy blue eyes on her. It was the first time he looked her in the eyes in months. He had avoided her gaze the whole time this morning at the docks, and she had seen very little of him before she had left Storybrooke.

He had always been fire to her ice, his blue eyes reminding her of warm beach days, but now he was so cold with her that all she could picture was stormy grey waves drowning her. She'd riled him up though, hit those buttons she was quite adept at finding, and she could glimpse that usual Killian Jones heat and attitude she had missed.

"As far as I know, Swan, David is the sheriff here, and he called for my assistance. Besides, as far as I remember, you are an inhabitant of New York, not Storybrooke. I would imagine you have even fewer reasons to be here."

It was a low blow, and she knows that he knows that.

Knows that it would bother her to be reminded that she was just a visitor now, not part of the action anymore after she had left. Emma wasn't used to this from him, this petty cruelty and narrowed eyes nary a smirk or wink to be seen. With a pang, she remembered that cell in the Enchanted Forest after she had betrayed him.

That was the only time she had seen him like this.

Regina interrupts them before she can snipe something back though, and while he and Tink relay what they and the other deputies found at the scene, she can't help but glower at him in the hopes that he will meet her eyes once again.

(He never does)

An hour later, Emma sits at a desk in the corner, watching everyone organize themselves to follow David's orders. Most people have left already, and Emma scrutinizes who of those still here she can question for more information. They had been pretty vague before when discussing the attack. Though she suspected it was less about keeping her in the dark and more about them not knowing what was going on, which she found reassuring.

(For her insecurities, not for the situation)

David had locked himself and Hook in his office for a private chat, and she was fighting the annoyance (and hurt) that she hadn't been included. Once upon a time, she had needed to act as a buffer between the two of them. Now she was left standing on the sidelines, trying to read their lips through the glass to figure out what was being said.

It seemed like a heated conversation, with much gesturing, even if that was not how it had started. They don't seem angry with each other though, more with the situation if anything. David had an exasperated but worried look that she recognized easily, and Hook seemed flustered and annoyed.

It would have been easier if they'd been fighting each other, then, she could have barged in under the pretense of keeping them apart and stayed to find out what exactly was being said.

"They're fighting over Killian's security detail. Or more like his lack of one."

Emma startles and looks at Tinkerbell, who's sneaked up on her and is leaning on the desk across from her with a knowing look. She's grateful to Tink for offering up that information, but she can't help the spike of annoyance that Tinkerbell knows more about what is going on, especially when it comes to her own father and her -

Nothing. He is her nothing.

Before she can question why he would need or want a security detail, though, Hook storms out of the office and rolls his eyes as one of the Merry Men stands to leave with him while David smirks from where he is leaning on his office door.

He doesn't spare her a glance as he leaves and mumbles a goodbye to the room.

Tink flashes her an apologetic smile and whispers something to David as she bids her goodbyes and yells at Hook to wait for her.

Emma hates the thought that he might share what is bothering him with Tink.

Or even worse, that he might let her comfort him.

That thought fuels her irritation as she rounds on David, who suddenly looks nervous.

"I think it's time you and Mom stop lying to me and start explaining what the hell is going on."