#also elsa getting flustered? sign me IN

[justlookatthosesausages]

‘Emergence’ - an interactive fanfic

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CHAPTER 5

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It was a sunny day in Arendelle, and Anna was delighted to enjoy it after her morning duties. She especially liked those casual walks outside along Mattias. However, he made her shake her head with another moment of modesty, which was becoming common. She often had to remind him of his importance. Now he was doubting about his status of General.

“But... Such a title...”

Anna bent the head to her counsellor. 

“You know, I didn’t make you General just because you saved my life when I destroyed the dam.”

Mattias lifted an eyebrow, both amused and curious. 

“Even if...” Added Anna, waving her hand, “That was great, and all... No, that’s also because you deserve the highest rank.”

The man bowed his head at the compliment.

“I prefer to call myself your counsellor for the rest of my days and to never have to use my military title, Your Majesty. Because the term ‘General’ could imply a possible context of conflict.” 

Anna smiled, the light of the bright sun accentuating her freckles as they both stepped on the cobblestones.

“Nice to see we’re on the same page about pacifism.” Beamed the Queen. 

As they continued to walk, her smile vanished when she noticed how many guards were tagging along. She had two soldiers walking in front of her, and two behind. It felt a bit oppressive, even for her who didn’t mind it when people stood this close. 

Especially for what she had planned to do in the following minutes. 

She cleared her throat, trying to assemble as much regal attitude as she could. Elsa used to be better at this than her, and she blamed her natural aura. Nevertheless, on her side, Anna had this sturdy character that often allowed her to get what she wanted from the staff, the politicians, and... The Arendelle guards. 

“I would like to continue on my own, please.”

The soldiers stopped right in their tracks. The four of them looked at her with concern. One of the two guards standing in front of Anna was a woman, and when she turned around, she frowned. 

“Is everything alright, Your Majesty?”

“Yes, yes, of course. I just...” Anna took a strong breath in. “I’d like to enter the jail alone.”

The guards now understood why she had been walking to Arendelle’s prison. She meant to enter. Mattias had a little theory about why, but preferred not to intervene. The soldiers, however, exchanged some glances. 

“Are you certain?”

“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be okay.” Assured Anna. 

They seemed convinced, and bowed to their monarch, before leaving the two. The redhead noticed that Mattias followed her, and lifted a soft hand. “Can you wait for me here? It won’t be long.”

Her counsellor looked at her maliciously. “What are you planning to do? Do you have a visit to make? The man from the other day, perhaps?”

“I won’t punch him, I promise.” Smiled Anna. 

He stared at her, then took a calm breath. “Alright. Then go.”

Anna entered the building, and explained to each pair of guards she met on the way that she had to be alone. She only asked to be given directions on where the prisoner was, and said she would give a sign to the nearest guard in case she needed them. It left a lot of confusion to everyone, but nobody was dumb enough to contradict Queen Anna of Arendelle. 

Calmly, she walked to the designated cell, and looked through the bars. The keeper opened the cell for her, then left. When there only was silence floating in the air, along the smell of humidity and the background sound of water drops, the man looked at her.

“We need to talk.” Announced Anna. 

He was about to say something.

“I'm not here to scold you.” Promised the redhead. “I just don’t like it when I leave people in bad terms, and I felt like I needed to talk to you.”

“You look miserable.” Blurted the man, defensively. He figured out that the best way to cope with the surprise to see her visit him and the fact to face her this close again would be with an insult. Anna indeed had dark circles under her eyes.

“Because I stood awake all night thinking about it. I couldn’t sleep.” Smiled Anna.  

Despite his attack, Anna was not offended in any way. She knew he acted meanly to feel better. And she was wise enough to know that it was never the solution. 

“I hope I’m not intruding.” She said politely as she took the stool of the cell to sit on, while the man stayed on the hanging bed. 

He was so surprised by her presence that he didn’t reply, but she didn’t mind. There was a silence. 

“You came alone.” Noted the man. 

His voice was calm, stunned. He couldn’t believe that she was taking that risk. He probably could end her life right there and then, but she seemed unafraid of it. 

“Yes, indeed.” Smiled Anna. 

Now he stared at her with a dropped jaw turned into a wince. She was genuinely smiling? It wasn’t just polite, she seemed happy to be there. And it was obvious she had prepared her speech. Anna took a breathe in as she started.

“I know why you're scared. Because you don’t put trust in me. To be fair, I don’t always put trust in me either.” 

Her tone surprised the man.

“It’s going to sound odd, but... I was technically chosen by the Spirits. They all agreed that Arendelle deserves to stand with me. It’s as honorary as scary for a decision, and you have the right to still be processing it. It took me a while as well.”

The man wondered if she was serious. Judging by her expressions, she was. Was the Queen confessing to him? Privately? In a jail cell?? 

“Why did you come to see me? Why are you talking to me?” He asked, and voluntarily added a grunting tone mid-sentence when he thought he could intimidate her more that way. 

Once again, it had no effect on Anna, and she even smiled more at his reaction. 

“I want you to know that, despite the fact I now took Elsa’s role, she didn’t leave. Her heart is here. She’s always here. Even when she’s not visiting.”

She almost sounded maternal by the way she reassured him, and his eyes suddenly stung. 

Why did his eye sting?? Was it the truth of her words? The relief he felt in his guts? Why did those simple statements make his soul lift a bit? 

Anna looked at him and kept going.

“You know, if Elsa hadn’t come in time to stop the tidal wave that day, all our homes would have been crushed away. Yours, just like mine. We all owe her something. And look at the ice coating and decorations on the castle. Wouldn’t she have melted them if she didn’t care about Arendelle anymore?”

The man looked by the window of his cell, as if he could see the roofs from there, but it was more of a thinking gesture than anything else. Anna saw how his eyes had turned a bit sparkly with the light passing by the opening. 

“Trust me when I say. She cares. She always does. I’m the one who has to tell her to not worry about the kingdom sometimes.” 

He was speechless, his breathing slower and attentive now. The redhead bent forward.

“And if she knew you, she would ask how you’re doing from time to time.”

He stared at her. There was a long silence, and Anna respected it, understanding that she had to put her chatty personality aside. The man struggled a bit at first, but finally opened his mouth. 

“I’m...”

He retracted, regretting it. She encouraged him with a smile. 

“I’m sorry.” He exhaled, and he bit his lip after he let that truth out. 

Anna fidgeted with her dress on the stool. “It’s okay.”

“I’ve been a brute, I know it. And... Please pardon my behavior. I was drunk, and I can get very aggressive verbally...”

“Were you drunk when we saw each other on the harbor?” Asked Anna. 

He couldn’t tell if she was concerned or reproaching. 

“I, uh...”

The prisoner looked embarrassed, so she dismissed the question with a gentle move of the hand. 

“It doesn’t matter.” 

He sat up more straight on the bed. “This is all my fault, however. And I want to apologize.”

“I accept it”, smiled Anna. Her genuine smile was back, and he felt like he was facing an actual sun. 

“I thought I was right about what I said about Lady Elsa. And you. But I was wrong. I’ll try to be objective from now on.” Promised the man. 

“As long as you’re not being judgmental, I guess it’s fine.” Winked Anna. 

There was a silence, and she figured that they had told each other everything. She was about to leave the cell, so he stood up by respect, then he cleared his throat softly. 

“Though I have to say, objectively, there is one difference that is both good and bad between you two.” 

Anna turned around with a smile, frowning her eyebrows with amusement. “Which one?”

“You’re better at delegating than her.”

The redhead stared at him as he smiled, and there was a silence as she thought about all that it meant, then she giggled.

“Yes, it’s true. She really outdid everything and insisted on doing all by herself, uh?” 

It was a fact known by everyone in Arendelle, not just the staff of the castle. He nodded, and she turned to exit. She closed the iron door, and gave a sign to the guard at the end of the corridor to come lock it. 

“You know... Everyday, I’m trying my best.” Declared Anna as a last sentence, still smiling to the man. “We all do. That’s how life is. All one has to do, is to do the next right thing.” 

The Arendelle soldier came next to her, bowed to his Queen and locked the prisoner in again. She gave the two a nod, and walked along the corridor. 

“...Do the next right thing...” Murmured the man. “...Interesting.” He added, smiling. 

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Elsa was focused in her drawings as she traced the new lines of the map along Honeymaren. 

“Hey, can you, uh...”

The Sami gave her the pencil sharpener before she even asked. Elsa lifted her head when she saw that she had put the right object in her outstretched hand. 

“...Thank you?”

“You’re welcome.” Smiled Honeymaren. 

She had something in her smile that Elsa couldn’t quite put the finger on, and she decided to stop staring at it before getting too distracted. They had started to draw the map three hours ago, and she still got the feeling that they hadn’t traced much of it. 

Elsa checked her notes and Honeymaren’s that they had wrote in their travel journals during their exploration, and helped herself with her own doodles that she had made when they stared at the horizon. 

The Fifth Spirit applied the map indications from her notes to the giant paper displayed on the table in the center of the tent, scribbling on the map with the same rhythm and focused silence than Honeymaren standing in front of her on the other side of the table. When Elsa turned the next page of her journal, she was surprised to see a sketch that looked nothing like a border trace or a landscape, and squinted to it as she tried to remember what it was. She took the journal and lifted it at the rays of light passing by the roof to see it clearer, and suddenly widened her eyes when she recognized it. 

“What is it?” Frowned Honeymaren. 

“Nothing.” Urged to say the blonde, blushing, and she flipped the pages to hide it. 

“Come on, what is it?” Asked the Northuldra, amused. “Did you write too fast and you can’t read your own handwriting?”

Elsa was glad she had just made up a perfect excuse. “Yes. Exactly.”

“It happens to me all the time.” Giggled Honeymaren. 

She then lifted her head, interrupting herself in her drawing of the map, and interrupting Elsa too, for the latter was unable to focus every time the brunette talked. “It’s strange. You have such a clean handwriting, and you’re used to write in pretty much every position, how come you can’t understand what you wrote?”

“I don’t know”, fainted to shrug Elsa. “Here I just can’t understand what I wrote. That’s all.”

Her field of view got obstructed by Honeymaren’s palm, and she missed a heartbeat. 

“Let me see. Maybe I can decipher it.” 

Elsa blushed. “No, it’s not important. Truly. Nevermind.”

Honeymaren frowned. “Don’t tell me that we went hiking for days for nothing. Your notes are important. You often have an interesting point of view. You have a sharp eye, and sometimes see things I do not see.”

‘See things you do not see...’ Thought Elsa, gulping, as she stared at Honeymaren. 

“Elsa?”

“Uh?”

“Why are you gripping your journal like that?”

The Fifth Spirit only noticed then what she was doing. She had clenched her hand on the pages, to make sure that the brunette wouldn’t take it. And it was a good thing that she was in full control of her magic now, because otherwise, with such a grasp, the whole diary would be covered with ice.

“I’m not going to snatch it out of your hands, don’t worry. If you don’t want me to read it, it’s okay.” 

Elsa stared at her in silence, her throat tight. “Let’s... Let’s just draw the map.”

Honeymaren smiled softly. “Got it.”

They resumed to their work, and a few minutes later, Elsa took the opportunity of a moment when the Northuldra was focusing on coloring the shadow of a mountain, to look again at her journal. She flipped the pages back to the sketch, and clenched her other fist as she saw the drawing again. 

A few days before, when Honeymaren was taking a nap as they were exploring the West plains, she had absentmindedly doodled the patterns of her coat in her journal. What she didn’t remember, however, is that she had actually drawn her entirely. 

Elsa nervously passed a hand in her hair, and added a layer of ice on her locks without noticing it. 

She went back to the map, but wasn’t really able to focus on it after that. When, one hour later, Honeymaren called it a day and said they could continue another time, she actually felt relieved. And when the woman leaved the tent, Elsa following behind, the blonde couldn’t help but think that she actually got the back patterns of her outfit accurately. 

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“Oh! Oh! And could you bring one of those snow me’s?”

“Snowgies”, corrected Elsa with a chuckle. “And maybe. One day, I could show them to you.”

“Yaaay!” Jolted the Sami kids in one voice, jumping around. One of them even jumped really high, and Elsa got worried for a second, until she understood that Gale actually was playing with them. 

Like any children, they switched their attention easily, and were all focused on Gale now, asking them to make them fly next. They were all so small and light that they could make them float all at the same time, and they all took off the ground with a concert of giggles. It was no big effort from Gale to do so, and Elsa remembered that the spirit was able to create tornadoes in an instant, so this was not more complex that her creating an ice sculpture. Or to sneeze snowgies. 

She joined the kids in the general giggle, then suddenly Gale stopped. The Sami children retrieved the ground, and Elsa frowned as she saw the Spirit briskly leaving the forest to the South. 

“What happened?” Worried a child. 

“I don’t know. But it’s not your fault”, she said with a soft voice, seeing how disappointed they all were.

She had felt the emotion of the Spirit before they left; it was curiosity, like they had just heard something in the distance and wanted to investigate. Elsa was naturally curious as well - must be a Spirit thing - and she followed the path that Gale had taken. 

Suddenly, she saw them come back at high speed, and she barely had the time to widen her eyes, before they swooped her up in the air. 

“WOAW!” Exclaimed the blonde, blinking at the sudden force. 

She analysed the way the Wind Spirit was making her twirl in the air, and she knew that familiar embrace. They were excited for Elsa. And that meant only one thing...

“Anna is here?” 

Gale put her back on the ground and chimed with a happy twirl, confirming it. Elsa smiled and beamed in glee. She ran in the forest to the elemental stones, and giggled with a joyful tone as she and Gale hurried along her. They moved fast in the woods, trees whistling in Elsa’s ears when she passed in front of them. She arrived to the stones, and run past them. 

In the distance, she could see a reindeer with three passengers arriving at full speed, and Elsa was glad as always that Gale could bring her news from so far. Every time, she knew when Anna would come before she even arrived to the stones. 

With a gasping laugh, Elsa ran to them, and she could see Anna jumping down and running along. 

“That’s just useless”, told her Kristoff as she did. “We’re faster with Sven!” 

“I doubt that she cares”, chuckled Olaf.

Indeed, the redhead didn’t care. That was Elsa’s and hers tradition: to tackle each other into a hug. Even if Sven arrived first. Screw logic. 

Seconds later, they arrived to each other’s level, and Elsa slowed down a bit before Anna jumped into her arms. They twirled around with bursts of laughter, delighted to hug each other again. 

“Surpriiiise!” Giggled Anna. 

Elsa held her close, her hand passing on Anna’s long hair. “You said you were busy in your last letter. You little stinker.”

“That’s the whole point of a surprise.” Laughed Anna. 

“I know. This is a great idea.” Smiled Elsa, parting from the hug to look at her little sister. 

She brought her hands to Anna’s cheeks, her gaze dancing from one eye to another. 

“No new black eye. I suppose that things are doing better?” 

Anna nudged her on the arm as the blonde cackled with laughter. “You dork.”

After Elsa hugged Kristoff and Olaf, they walked together to the camp, despite Kristoff’s suggestions to go on Sven because he was riding right next to them and it was ridiculous. Finally, they arrived to the Northuldra, who greeted their surprise visit with hurrahs. 

“I’m so happy that you’re here.” Said Elsa with the same touched smile as always. 

“And I didn’t come empty-handed!” Smiled Anna, beaming.

She rushed to get her backpack attached to Sven’s back, and took a paper bag out. Elsa instantly recognized the crest on it, and her soul filled with joy, both at the memory and what was coming.

“Chocolates! From-”

“Your favorite shop in Arendelle, yep.”

Elsa hurried to take the bag. She couldn’t believe her eyes. And her taste buds. She was almost drooling in advance.

“This is not just any chocolates, though. I bought some that we can melt in a pot so we can have some hot chocolate tonight around the camp fire.” Winked Anna.

The blonde gasped in glee. “You’re the best sister.”

“I’m your only sister.” Giggled Anna.

“That still makes you the best.”

Anna hugged Elsa briefly, both laughing.

Ryder stepped to Kristoff. “And I have good news for you. We made carrot cake!”

Kristoff’s eyes lit up like a child who was offered a giant gift. “Really?”

“I knew you were going to like it.” Winked the Northuldra. “Come on, you should hurry before Sven eats it all.”

After Anna took the paper bag, the reindeer had rushed to the other animals, and could smell the tasty smell of carrot cake any second.

The sun started to set as time passed. While the sisters caught up on their separated life news, Olaf had joined the kids, delighted to see how fast some of them had grown up. Getting more and more mature himself, he naturally found topics of discussion with them. Elsa however lifted a worried eyebrow when he started to talk about death, but Anna indicated her that it was no big deal. The blonde blinked when Anna continued her story.

“Wait, you went to jail?? What happened?!” 

Anna snorted. “No, I didn’t. I mean, I did, but...”

Her sister stared at her. “You’re not making any sense right now, and I’m concerned.”

“Elsa, I didn’t get arrested. Do you hear yourself?” Laughed Anna. 

The blonde sighed. “Sorry. I’m just very tired this week, and I become easily tensed.”

Anna paused in her gestures as she was gathering wood for the camp fire, and looked down. “I am as well. I have troubles finding sleep at night.”

“You? Have troubles sleeping?” Smiled Elsa, humor stepping above worry.

“Kristoff says that it doesn’t prevent me from snoring loudly when I finally drift off.”

They giggled, and Elsa helped her out with the wood. “What is getting on your mind? Queen duties?”

“Yes and no. That’s why I wanted to visit that guy in the jail. I felt like I had to, you know?”

The Fifth Spirit nodded. “How did it go?”

Anna smiled, and told her the whole thing. She carefully put every detail, and Elsa listened to her carefully. When she was done, the elder stared at her with amazement. 

“You really have the power to change people, you know that?”

“Is this my type of magic?” Joked Anna. 

“No, I’m serious. You really see what’s best in people, and always manage to switch their point of view for the better.”

The redhead looked at Elsa, taking in the compliment. 

“I’m the first example.” Noted the blonde. “And also Kristoff. And so many other persons.”

A smile appeared at the corner of Anna’s lips, and she looked down at the stack of wood. 

“Truly.” Added Elsa, seeing how she doubted a bit. “Arendelle is lucky to have you as a leader. You enhance life in so many ways.”

The Queen’s teal blue eyes glistened with touched tears. “Thank you.” 

As she turned to Elsa, something behind her caught her attention, and she barely had the time to squeak of surprise before Bruni appeared out of nowhere and jumped on her. Thanks to her reflexes, she received him right in time in her open palms. 

“Hey you! It’s been a while.”

The salamander chirped, curling in her hands. 

“He missed you too.” Said Elsa, smiling. 

Anna started to pet him, passing her fingers on his back, and he licked his eyes. He looked at both sisters, with an interrogative gaze. 

“We’re about to make some hot chocolate. But I doubt that you’ll like it.” Informed Elsa. “No, you prefer some ice snacks, don’t you, little guy?”

At the word ‘ice snacks’, it acted like a trigger, and the salamander turned to Elsa with excited steps and an open mouth. Anna chuckled as Elsa shook her head and lifted her left hand to pepper some snowflakes on him, and he ate each one of them. 

“Can we ask for a service in return?” Said Anna. “Could you light a fire?”

The salamander finished crunching on the snowflakes and jumped out of her hands with his paws out, then bounced on the ground. He spat a joyful amount of fire in the wood logs, and the camp fire was made. 

He then heard Olaf burst of laughter in the distance, and chirped before running to him, excited to see he had come too. 

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The sisters had sat on the ground, enjoying the mat of grass in the evening. Anna assembled the utensils she took from the camp, and put the pot on the fire, taking care of the chocolate bits and putting them in. In a soft and comfy silence, Anna turned the spoon in the pot, and Elsa watched her do so, lulled by her moves. 

They were isolated from the rest of the camp, and she enjoyed that little bubble of calm with her younger. The delicious smell of the chocolate getting heated was making them both hum around the fire. With the dancing purple-pink light of the flames, Anna’s red hair looked like soft lava in the night. Elsa turned to her, and looked at her for a moment, before taking a deep emotional breath. 

“Anna... I realized that you didn’t tell me anything about Honeymaren.”

The redhead turned to her, detaching her eyes from the melting chocolate to frown in confusion. 

“What? We talked for hours about it after coffee when you came.”

“No, what I mean is that you didn’t say anything about... Me... Feeling... Attracted to a woman.” 

“Oh. Oh. Oh, Elsa...” 

Each one of those ‘oh’s had a different sound. The first one was reactive, the second one understanding, and the last one sweet in affection.

Anna put the lid back on the pot to take her elder’s hand in hers.

“Elsa, you’re my sister and you mean the world to me. Of course I won’t judge you. It just came naturally to me.”

“That I liked girls?” 

Anna had to restrain herself not to giggle.

“No, that you needed support. And a confidant. And some advice. You can tell me anything. And I’ll always listen.” 

There was a silence, as Elsa smiled deeply. 

“It’s true, you’re always such a good listener and you’re so nice...”

“It’s not just kindness.” Insisted Anna. “I genuinely support you. You don’t have to feel any excluded because of who you love, Elsa. Your choices make you you. And I wouldn’t want you any different. It’s my role to accept y--”

Elsa suddenly had jumped from her spot and tackled Anna in a warm embrace. The redhead was surprised by the gesture, almost fell back, and stopped talking. Usually, when Elsa wanted to hug, she only came forward with open arms. It always was Anna who would then launch herself in the hugs, even if Elsa often initiated them. The Queen closed her eyes and passed a hand along Elsa’s back. 

“We made a promise. To never shut each other’s out.” Murmured Anna on her shoulder. 

Elsa sighed with a teary smile. “Yes, we did. I’ll try all I can to respect that promise.”

“It’s alright if there are days where you can’t.” Assured Anna. 

Elsa parted from the hug to look at her little sister with sad eyes. “I’m trying my best, I swear. It’s just... Bad habits are hard to break.”

Anna understood that she was referring to the 13 years of isolation. Elsa still had issues about including her sister in for some situations. “Of course.” 

She remembered how Elsa had hidden the fact she heard a voice calling her, or sent her away with Olaf when she had decided to go cross the Dark Sea alone. 

The Fifth Spirit started to fidget with the paper wrapping that was around the chocolate. The redhead gave her a side look. She knew what that meant. 

“Over-thinking again, uh?” 

“I can’t help it.” Muttered Elsa, looking down. 

“I know.” Said Anna, putting a hand on her shoulder. “But you really need to chill about Honeymaren. Hey, look, I made a pun! Anyway...”

Elsa snorted at her joke, and let out a giggle. 

“Your mood change really fast.” Laughed Anna. 

“Not as fast as Gale’s”, noted the blonde, and in her sentence, one could perceive how many times she had to cope with the Spirit’s swings. Each spirit was stubborn as hell, but Gale changed their feeling as fast and often as a weather vane turned in a day. Ironically. 

The Queen laughed. “I think that a cup a hot chocolate will do great for both of us nervous minds.” 

She then remembered that she had left the lid on. “Oh my goodness!!” 

Anna rushed to take it off and resume to her stirring. She hissed and shook her hand as she burned herself a bit in the process. 

Elsa rolled her eyes. “You should have waited for me to soothe the fire.” 

“I’m fine. It’s just a burn.” Assured Anna, still looking at the pot, waving her hand at her to dismiss her worry. 

The elder caught her hand while she moved it in front of her face, and delicately infused some cold on her skin. 

“Ahhh, that’s actually neat... Thanks.” 

While Elsa checked her burned fingers, some steps approached, and Kristoff joined them around the camp fire. 

“Mind me joining in?” Smiled the man. 

“Of course not.” Chimed Elsa. “Let’s make it a family time.”

“I’m not sure we’ll have enough hot chocolate if we split it in three”, remarked Anna as she was still focused on stirring the spoon in the pot. 

“I’ll just drink in your mug then.” Joked Kristoff as he sat next to Elsa. 

The redhead gave him a look. “Dare to do that and I cancel our marriage.” 

Kristoff and Elsa laughed loudly. 

“I’m serious. Nothing gets in my way when there’s chocolate at stake.”

“We know.”

She eventually was able to split it in three big servings, more than enough - Elsa crafted herself an ice mug because Anna only had picked two at the Northuldra village, and the younger was impressed to see once again how resistant her ice was - and they all sat down together. 

Under the stars, they talked and laughed for a long time, filling the woods with their vibrant voices. 

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Sweet and soft but also serious and reflexive... A balanced chapter! :D Thank you so much for your positive feedback on the previous chaps, I’m so happy!

What happens next? This is an interactive fanfic! You get to choose. What do you want to see next? What could be the plot of the next chapter? I listen to you! Give suggestions in your reblogs, fellas! 

(NB: If you like my style, you can check out Untangling the Frozen Knots, my 140K words fanfic novel!)

[soldierswar]

Crush (Pt II)

Bucky X Reader: Fluff, comedic angst

Warnings: Very light smut. Nothing else but cuteness.

Thanks to @elfmama and @veganfangirl5 for responding for a part II.

Plot: Part II of the fic Crush  (Click on the word, it’s a link ;)

You have a massive crush on Bucky while out on assignment and feelings get real.

                                                       ...

“Y/N, are you alright?” asked Bucky as he grabbed a slice sitting on the same couch as you. You made sure that you were sitting as far away as possible from him. Apparently, and unfortunately subtlety went out the window the second you were in any form of  visual distance from him. You didn’t even realize until then that you were pressing yourself to the far corner of the couch with your arms wrapped around your knees and rocking yourself in a cartoonish daze. “Did any of those men do anything to you? Did one of them traumatize you?” Oh, there was a man traumatizing you. But it wasn’t one of the ones he was thinking. “Not at all, you know I can handle myself just fine,” you answered sternly. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. But you’ve been acting…Different?” You responded with a pathetic ‘pshhh’. “Please.” “You might think so. But we’ve never worked together this closely before; so how would you know if I’m acting strange or not?” He shrugged, and turned his attention back to the tv. Your cheeks were so hot, you were in sudden need for freezing cold glass of  water…Frankly you were wondering if you needed to shove some of that ice down your underwe— ‘Stop it, Y/N!’ said a voice inside your head. Well, it was less a ‘said’ and more of eardrum-splitting scream. 

“Hey, you want water?” You asked nonchalantly. At least you were pretty sure that you did. “Sure,” he replied. As you made your way back to the couch, you handed him the glass from behind the couch. And of course…Clumsy, flustered you had to come back. As you handed it, his warm hand brushed against yours. Rather, it was more like it rested on top of your fingers. You couldn’t deny the electric feeling that coursed throughout your entire body within a split second. The second that it happened, you managed to drop your glass of water straight onto your right foot. “Fuck!” You yelled. That was a heavy glass. “Y/N, are you sure that you’re alright?” “I’m FINE, gosh!” you snapped. You realized that you might have sounded mean. “Sorry, I didn’t mean for it to come out that way.” You could tell that he was trying to hold down a chuckle. You bent down to pick up the glass that wasn’t broken thanks to your foot breaking the fall. But the rug was wet. ‘Oh well,’ you thought, resolving to at least just pick up the ice. Before you knew it, he was right in front of you helping you pick it up. How did he get in front of you so fast? Oh right. Winter Soldier. He was fast. He was stealthy. When you picked your head up, his face was right in front of yours. You really hoped that the stunned expression you were feeling looking into his bright, mesmerizing eyes was just in your head. You found yourself attempting to channel your inner Elsa with the mantra, ‘Conceal, don’t feel, don’t let it show.’ You desperately hoped that it was working. Before getting up to get back to the kitchen, he gave you the most charming of smiles. How the fuck was it possible for a human to be able to carry a smile like that? There was no way that this was a super soldier thing. That was just him. How? Before you had time to really process that, he swept you up and sat you down on the couch. ‘Breathe, Y/N, breathe.’ He sat not too far from you, grabbed your foot and set a cloth full of ice on it. “Thanks,” you exhaled when you realized that a bruise was in fact starting to form. You moved your foot away from his grasp, pulling it close to your body once again keeping the ice on your foot. “Thanks,” you whispered. “Now, Y/N,” Bucky said. “Are you going to tell me what’s really going on?” You engaged in a stare-down. He was trying to figure out what was going on behind those eyes of yours, and you were trying to convince him that everything was just fine. You realized that you were no longer convincing when you felt your right eye start twitching. Damn it. He pulled himself closer to you and lightly used the tips of his fingers to hold your chin. Gulp. But…Now you were the one to notice something suspicious. You saw…what was it? Hints of nervousness on his end? No. It couldn’t be. His hand lingered on your chin with no signs of letting go. And then… And then… He pulled his face closer to yours, and kissed you softly. You could tell that he was cautious, just in case he misread things and you wanted nothing to do with him like that, or in general. But oh God you did. You were able to fully admit to yourself, and to him that you were all for it. All for him. You pulled yourself closer and kissed him deeper. He rested his hand on your cheek, and softly brushed his thumb along your cheekbone. You wrapped your hands around the back of his neck and softly brushed your fingers along the lower part of his hairline. You could tell that he also had an electric feeling going through him. When you both pulled away to catch your breaths, he looked like he was drunk. Drunk off of you. And you had the same feeling. “Hey,” he said breathily, carrying that irresistible smile. “Hey,” you replied, suppressing a girlish giggle. “You caught me didn’t you?” “Oh, I caught you on day one of this assignment,” he chuckled. You gasped dramatically, channeling a caricature of woman from the 1940’s from a movie. “Mr. Barnes,” you replied gasping dramatically one more time while fanning yourself with an invisible fan. “Whatever do you mean?” He responded by kissing you once again, and dipping you backwards since you were acting old-fashioned. “Okay,” you said narrowing your eyes, still being held backwards. “Maybe I have like…a crush on you.” He smiled, pulling you back up. “Doll,” he chuckled. Doll. You liked that. Oh, why did he have to be so charming? “Do you know how long I’ve been noticing you?” You shook your head. This was not happening. This could not be real. This specimen of a human being found you…desirable? You were speechless, but this time you didn’t feel the need to mask it. You noticed that for the first time in the days you were in the hotel together that your shoulders were actually relaxed. You scooted closer to him, turning back to the tv, held his hand and laid your head on him. He then brought your hand to his lips and kissed it tenderly. For the rest of the evening, you did nothing but enjoy each-others company. Nothing more, nothing less. You were content.

Epilogue: Those last few nights in Paris were pure bliss. You had actually accomplished your mission a couple of days earlier than anticipated. Everyone involved in the undercover crime ring were arrested and faced many years, (if not the rest of their lives) in prison. But, since you guys still had the hotel for a few more days, you decided to spend them out and about in Paris. (The fucking capitol of love.) You both agreed that you weren’t quite ready to have sex yet; but regardless, you had a wonderful, blissful time getting to know each-other better. No first few dates could have ever been more perfect than they were. But…When you got back to the compound? It was on. You guys were hot, and heavy. You could barely get your hands off of each other. But, you didn’t quite want to let anybody know about it yet. At least not for a couple of weeks. Besides, for the past week since you had gotten back, it was kind of fun sneaking around playing risk when you made out in dark corners knowing that somebody could catch you at any moment, but hoping they wouldn’t. In one of those moments, you were in a corner in an empty hallway. He was pushing himself against you as you were being pushed against a wall. You were basically somewhere between a rock and … a hard place. (Pun intended). You both knew that within the next few moments you were going to be rushing to one of your rooms to put out (or should you say feed) the inferno that burned between the two of you. He started slipping his hand down your pants atop your underwear. Oh gosh. “I fucking knew it,” said a familiar voice that belonged to none other than Natasha. “I could have gone my whole life without seeing that.” Sam. Bucky swiftly pulled his hand out of your pants, and you both stared at the two of them like deer in headlights. “Umm…” you croaked. “Umm?” asked Natasha. You turned to Bucky, and you both simultaneously shrugged, silently agreeing that the cat was out of the bag. But at least it wasn’t the end of the world. “Well…” You started. “Guess that’s our que to go,” Bucky said finishing your sentence. “Use protection!” yelled Natasha as you both scurried off. Best crush ever.

Thanks for reading, guys. I love you all. 

Also, if you want me to tag out in future fics, just shoot me a dm. 

[ahtohallan-calling]

chapter 23 of don’t read the last page is here!

masterpost

[kristanna / m / multichap / modern au with actress!anna and vetstudent!kristoff]

“Now, ah...is that Chinese food on the back of your car?”

“Uh-huh. Double order of egg rolls.”

“Oh, fuck yes,” she groaned, wriggling in his arms until he set her down with a chuckle. “This is why I’m marrying you.”

“Really? I thought it was because it means a lifetime supply of sweatshirts to steal.”

“Oh, I forgot about that,” she said, already rummaging through the bags and cracking open a container of dumplings. “Also how sexy you look in your reading glasses.”

“Can’t believe you’re so hung up on me being a sexy grandpa when I’m not even officially a dad yet.”

a/n: so yes hiatus is over! but this will probably have an erratic update schedule like everything else i do these days, sorryyyyyy

chapter 23: midsummer

“Kris! Kris, thank god you’re finally here!”

He nearly dropped the plastic bags in fright at the sound of Anna’s shout through the open front door. “What’s wrong?” he called, feeling his heart already beginning to pound; there were so many things that could go wrong, things that kept him up half the night, and he’d known this was all too good to be true and--

But then she got close enough he could see she was smiling, and he did drop the bags then-- carefully, though, and not a moment too soon, because she launched herself at him, flinging her arms around his neck as he caught her and hoisted her up so she could wrap her legs around his waist. He couldn’t hold her as close as he used to even a few weeks ago. He’d started to wonder if she was slender enough that she’d ever show at all, and then one day he’d come in to join her in the shower and done a double-take at the sight of her standing there with her hand on the now unmistakable swell of her belly and examining herself in the mirror.

“Kris,” she said breathlessly, bringing him back to the present moment. “Guess what?”

“What, baby?” he asked, knowing he was wearing his dopiest smile as he looked up at her.

“I felt him moving around in there! I thought like-- TMI, sorry-- I thought maybe it was a fart but it kept happening, and I googled it and then I called the doctor’s office and they laughed and were like ‘yeah, Anna, that’s the baby’ and-- and-- and it’s him, Kris! He’s in there!”

“Well-- well, I would hope he’s still in there,” he managed to say, too dazed for a more coherent response. 

Anna giggled. “So you admit it? That he’s a he?”

“What?” 

Her eyes softened when she realized how stunned he still was. “It’s pretty exciting, huh?”

He hadn’t realized his eyes were welling up with tears until she said that. He managed a nod, and she pressed a kiss to his forehead. “And we’re almost halfway there,” she said softly. “Halfway to meeting him.”

“Or her,” Kristoff managed to whisper. 

She laughed and leaned down to kiss him on the lips then, her fingers tightening their hold on his shoulders when he brushed the tip of his tongue just barely over hers. She had just begun to deepen the kiss further when she jerked back. 

“It happened again!”

Kristoff’s eyebrows flew up. “Like, right now?”

“Uh-huh! It feels all wiggly in there!”

He swallowed hard. “Do you, uh, do you think…”

He trailed off, feeling suddenly embarrassed, but she seemed to understand all the same, giving him another soft smile as she brushed his hair back out of his eyes. “I don’t think you can feel it this early. But soon, though. And we can try anyway if you want.”

He kissed her again, softer this time. “I love you. And the baby.”

She winked at him. “We love you too. Now, ah...is that Chinese food on the back of your car?”

“Uh-huh. Double order of egg rolls.”

“Oh, fuck yes,” she groaned, wriggling in his arms until he set her down with a chuckle. “This is why I’m marrying you.”

“Really? I thought it was because it means a lifetime supply of sweatshirts to steal.”

“Oh, I forgot about that,” she said, already rummaging through the bags and cracking open a container of dumplings. “Also how sexy you look in your reading glasses.”

“Can’t believe you’re so hung up on me being a sexy grandpa when I’m not even officially a dad yet.”

She shrugged and popped a dumpling into her mouth. “Official enough for me, Pops,” she said around a mouthful of food. “Want some?”

“Nah. Those are all for you.”

She swallowed and let out a dreamy sigh. “Fuck, I really love you.”

---

“You’re sure this is all you want to do for your birthday?” Kristoff asked from behind the wheel as he turned to her.

“Uh-huh.”

“Even though it’s not until tomorrow, so if you want to, you can have two birthdays? I’m serious, I know tomorrow’s Monday and I’ve got work, but I can still get Sven and your sister and--”

“I’m serious,” she insisted. “Even if it wasn’t for the whole still-hiding-out thing, I’d just want to spend today with you somewhere we both love.”

His cheeks colored slightly at that as he looked away from her and started to drive again. “But you like parties. Or going places. Or--”

“Kristoff, baby, I can’t drink right now, I can’t ride anything good at Disneyland, my old cute clothes don’t fit anymore, and I don’t want to do any of that these days, anyway. All I want to do is eat and sleep and, uh…”

Now she was the one blushing. 

“And what?” he pressed, glancing back at her with a teasing glint in his eye.

“Remember what we did the first time we went to this beach?”

“Played in the rain?”

“No…”

“Splashed in the water even though I told you it was storming?”

“Kris!”

He laughed and reached over to set his hand on her knee, giving it an affectionate squeeze and leaving it there, the way that still made her heart flutter after a year and an engagement and a house and a baby. “Yes, I remember. And if you’re really up for it…”

“You have no idea,” she muttered under her breath, and when she glanced up again his cheeks were even redder than before.

---

Anna’s car was parked in front of the house when he got home, but there was no sign of her once he stepped inside. She was in the kitchen more often than not these days, or napping in the living room otherwise, but when he didn’t even see her in the bathroom turning side to side and examining her reflection, Kristoff began to get worried. “Anna?” he called.

“Out back,” she shouted, and he went to the window and saw her lying on her back on a blanket in the backyard. 

Relieved, he joined her on the blanket, sitting beside her and letting his legs sprawl out. She shifted to rest her head on his lap, giving him a small smile. “How was your day?” she asked.

“Good. Lots of cute kittens. And I took a million pictures for you.”

“Did you cuddle them?”

He chuckled and brushed a stray lock of hair off her forehead. “Yes. All afternoon. And Ryder made sure there’s pictures of that, too.”

Her smile grew just a little. “Good.”

“What about you?”

The smile faded. “It was, uh...I mean, I’ve had worse days.”

Kristoff frowned as he continued stroking her hair. “It was just reshoots, right? Did they not go well?”

“No, no, they were fine. Well, costuming was kind of flustered with how much bigger I managed to get in three weeks, but we made it work.”

He moved his hand to rest on the curve of her stomach, moving gently back and forth in hopes of a response, but he felt nothing. Anna must have seen the disappointment in his face, because she turned and pressed a kiss to the side of his knee. “He’s moving in there right now, I promise. He knows it’s you.”

For a moment, the sudden swell of love in his chest distracted him, and then he saw the droop of her expression once more and frowned. “So what happened, baby?”

She sighed, closing her eyes. “I got papped when I left the set with Adam. There was a whole mob of them, must have known we were doing reshoots there. And Lena texted and said some are already on TMZ, and that Hans already tweeted something else weird and subtweety, and just...I thought it would die down. But it’s not really.”

He nudged her shoulder. “Will you sit up for me?”

“Why?”

“So I can hold you better.”

She let out a resigned huff and complied, though once his arms were around her she nestled close to him, pressing her face against his neck close enough that he could tell she was beginning to smile again.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly, dropping a kiss on the top of her head. “That it’s happening, and that I can’t do anything to help except this.”

“This is good,” she replied, giving him a kiss in return against his collarbone. “This is all that matters, anyway.”

---

Sven was nearly beside himself with excitement when he flung open the door. “Did it work this time? Could they see it?”

“Jesus!” Anna yelped, a hand flying instinctively to her stomach. “I thought this was just for the Fourth of July, not a surprise party.”

“Do I need to revoke your key privileges?” Kristoff asked drily.

“You say that now, but when you see the ribs I’ve got waiting for you guys out back--”

“Oh, hell yes,” Anna cheered, pushing past him to go see.

“Well?” Sven asked Kristoff expectantly, tapping his foot. “Did you find out or not?”

“Maybe we did, maybe we didn’t.”

“Okay, you definitely did. Because last time when it didn’t work, you were all mopey about it, but I know that smirk, Bjorgman. So it’s official now, right? I’m getting a godson?”

“No,” called Elsa as she came up behind them with a fruit tray in hand, closely followed by Honey and Ryder. “But I’m getting a niece.”

“Okay, okay, this is a cookout, not a gender reveal party,” Kristoff insisted as he finally managed to squeeze past them all and step into the kitchen. “So maybe we won’t even tell you guys today. Anyone else want a beer?”

“I do,” Anna called cheerfully, the back door slapping shut behind her. “But I’ll settle for tomato juice.”

Ryder gagged. “You’re drinking that without it being mixed with vodka?”

“Yeah. It’s disgusting, isn’t it?” she said, reaching past Kristoff to grab the bottle. “But apparently I’m craving this, and chocolate milk still makes me puke.”

“Shit,” he said with a low whistle. “You’re really taking one for the team, huh? Eating all this gross shit just so we get a cute kid to have around.”

“Just to clarify,” Kristoff said drily as he passed around cans of beer, “that’s not the reason we’re having a baby.”

“Nope,” Anna agreed. “But I’m sure he appreciates you saying that. He’s gonna be spoiled, huh?”

The room was suddenly completely silent apart from the sound of Anna gulping down her glass of tomato juice. When she had finished, she swiped the back of her hand across her mouth and frowned. “What? Is it seriously that gross?”

“I-- did you-- is it-- we were-- oh, shit!” Sven stammered out, for once in his life unable to come up with something clever to say. 

Anna gasped, her hand flying to cover her mouth, while Kristoff laughed and pulled his wallet out of his back pocket. “Well, uh, we were going to announce it in a more, uh, intentional way, but…” 

He pulled a sonogram picture out of the wallet and laid it on the counter. Immediately everyone crowded around for a closer look. “It’s a boy. And yes, Anna was right, and no, Elsa, I don’t have the cash on me right now, so I guess I do have to do the ice bucket thing.”

“It’s a boy?” Elsa squeaked, tears already rolling down her cheeks as she flung herself into Anna’s waiting arms. 

“Yeah,” Anna laughed, holding her sister as close as she could. “About time we had one in our family, huh?”

“I know I said I wanted it to be a girl,” Elsa said, pulling back enough to swipe at her eyes. “But I changed my mind, because-- because oh my god, a little boy, Anna!”

“I know!” 

“And he’s yours. My little sister is having a baby.”

“I promise this is her first beer of the night,” Honey said teasingly, though her eyes were tender as she watched Elsa step back with a watery smile.

“Oh, shit!” Sven said, raising his own. “Let’s like, toast to this. Cheers, everybody, to it being a boy and me and Anna being right and the rest of you--”

“Cheers!” the rest of them called in unison, cutting him off. 

Anna laughed and picked up the sonogram as they all drank. “Not naming names, but I think somebody around here owes me money, too,” she said, turning to the fridge. “Which I need, apparently, to buy some new magnets so I can hang this-- oh, shit!”

She’d chosen the worst magnet to remove from the collage of snapshots they had on the fridge, because most of them came cascading down to the floor. Kristoff bent quickly to scoop them up, but when Anna set a hand on his shoulder, he paused, looking up at her.

“Kris,” she asked, her voice low as she pointed at a polaroid on the floor. “What’s that one?”

He held it up to her. “You and me, when you wore that silver dress...what party was that? Why do I remember that--”

His eyes widened as they landed on the orange date printed in the corner. “Oh, shit.”

“I’m not seeing things, right?” Anna breathed. “Like, it actually says January 1st, and it’s definitely you and me, and-- and anyone who saw that would know that, right?”

“Is, uh, is everything okay?” Ryder asked, peering over at them. “Like, if those are special pictures, I promise none of us are look--”

“Oh, shit!” Sven said yet again, and Anna burst into laughter as she glanced up at him, even as tears started cascading down her cheeks. “So if you put that on Instagram or something--”

“It’s over,” she managed to say at last, flinging her arms around Kristoff’s waist when he stood again. “All the bullshit. Things can-- things can go back to normal.”

[the--sad--hatter]

Frozen Heart (3)

FANDOM - MARVEL MCU, DEADPOOL & X-MEN

WARNINGS - ALL OF THEM, SMUT, VIOLENCE ANGST

DESCRIPTION -  

When Nick Fury finally catches the Ex-Shield Agent knowns Black Ice, The Thief with a Frozen Heart he puts her where she belongs. With The Avengers.

You’re not happy about that decision but you’re the only one who’s kicking up a fuss.

Natasha and Clint are happy to have you back in their lives, Sam Wilson is a big fan, Tony Stark just wants you to keep your hands off his stuff and Steve finds out that not only do you have a connection but you were there for him when nobody else was.

Bucky Barnes is one of the few people who doesn’t have a connection with you but he’d really really like one.

** Everything in Italics is being signed, not said out loud.**

Chapter Three - Comrades in Ice 

Bucky did end up on the roof, figuring the cool, fresh air would help him calm down. He couldn’t understand why he was getting so flustered around you, he barely knew you. Yes, you were beautiful, more beautiful than anyone he’d ever seen. You carried yourself with quiet confidence, meek and powerful at the same time. Your eyes held so much mischief and history and when you laughed, god when you laughed his heart would flutter in his chest wildly.

He was infatuated. Completely, ridiculously infatuated.

He needed to stop being such a moronic idiot and figure out a way to woo you. If wooing was still a thing. Whatever it was called these days, he was going to do it. He was going to dig out the old charm and show you he was more than a blundering idiot.

Tomorrow was a new day and it would be the day he started his quest for your affections.

When you slipped into the kitchen the next morning, stretching your arms above your head as you yawned, you resisted the urge to run for your life. Clint was cooking.

He glanced up at you and your rumpled appearance and tired eyes.

“I’ll put coffee on.” He gestured at you and turned around without waiting for a response.

Your jaw clenched automatically as Stark sauntered into the kitchen.

"Elsa, Anna. Morning." He greeted in fake cheeriness.

"Good morning Sven." You nodded to him with a smirk.

Sam swung his bedroom door open and padded out into the open plan kitchen living area to see what the clattering and banging was. He stopped dead in the middle of the room with an almost comical look of confusion on his face.

“What are you doing?” He asked.

Clint looked up from the pan he was currently manning, coffee pot at his mouth as he slurped from it.

“M’cooking.” He muttered, passing the coffee pot to you.

You practically drained the pot, unable to help herself. You passed the empty pot back to Clint and looked around the room sheepishly.

“I needed that.” You said, shrugging your shoulders,

Sam rolled his eyes and shook his head in exasperation as Tony glared daggers at you.

"Two things, that's your coffee pot now because ew, germs. And since when do you cook?" He asked Clint.

A memory brought the ghost of a smile to your face. You had been 14 at the time and both you and Tasha had been highly entertained by the chaos and string of curse words coming out of Clint's mouth as he hopped around the kitchen, his arm on fire.

He had never been domestic, bless him. But he had tried and that was what mattered. He was still trying now even though you were all grown up.

You'd never be anything less than his baby sister in his eyes though.

He stayed silent, choosing to focus instead on pushing the bacon around the pan. The sounds of it sizzling were the only sounds in the kitchen as Sam sighed heavily and started setting the table.

"I'm not hungry." Tony announced.

“More for us then.” You muttered.

“I’m starving.” Sam said enthusiastically, a little too enthusiastically if the withering look Tony shot at him was any indication.

“Morning.” Steve said as he came in, frowning at Clint but choosing wisely not to comment.

“Morning Cap.” You said, brightening up at his appearance.

He had clearly been up for a while and looked like he’d just come back from a run. Your heart pitter patted a bit as Bucky came in the room behind him and before you could look away fixed you with a heartwarming, panty dropping grin.

“Morning doll.” He said, internally jumping up and down for joy at having got the words out.

“Mirnong... I mean morning,” You said, blushing and tripping over the words for god knows what reason.

“Eat your breakfast, I’ll get you more coffee.” Clint sniggered at you.

As soon as the two super soldiers sat down he started.

“What was that? Which one of them are you crushing on?”

“Neither, shut up.” you hurried to sign back, the blush spreading down your neck.

Clint slid a cup of coffee to you with a look that said he clearly didn’t believe you and he chewed around the smirk breaking out on his face. Maybe you wouldn’t take the news headed your way too badly. Who was he kidding, you were going to throw a fit when you found out.

“So, Ice. I’ll be doing your physical evaluation today. Is in a couple hours ok?” Steve asked you.

You frowned and looked between him and Clint before very very calmly putting your fork down and standing up.

“Where is she?” You asked Clint in a calm, controlled tone.

“No idea.” He sniggered.

“Hmm, well then. I’ll just go and find her.” You said with a saccharine sweet smile.

Tasha had tortured you for nothing, straight after you woke up from a mini coma and you were furious as you stormed out of the kitchen and went searching for her, deep down knowing you wouldn’t find the tricky Russian fox.

Eventually, you had to abandon the fruitless search and headed towards the gym for the real evaluation, praying Steve would be kinder than Tasha.

“Hey, you going to the gym?” Someone asked and you turned your head to see Bucky Barnes stalking towards you.

Ignoring the stupid butterflies in your stomach you nodded.

He reached out, flicking your ID badge and chortled.

“Level One Clearance huh? Poor you.” He smirked at you.

You frowned and looked at the badge, you hadn’t actually paid any attention to what it said when Stark had flung it at your face about twenty minutes ago and told you that you needed to keep it on you.

“That bad?” You asked.

“Level One means you’re not even cleared to get a pencil from supplies without a higher level agent signing off on it.” He told you.

“Fantastic. What level are you?” You groaned.

“Six. I’m an Avenger doll, only Cap and Stark have higher clearance.” He told you smugly.

“Well, I’ll come to find you if I need a pencil then, seeing as you’ve taken me under your metaphorical wing.” You said laughing.  

Bucky preened, silently congratulating himself for this smooth conversation.

“You can come to me for anything you like, I’d be happy to lend you a helping hand.” He said lowly, laying on the charm.

You started to smile back at him and forced yourself to stop. For someone who didn’t want to be here, you were making an awful lot of friends. You never made friends in the army, in fact you could count the number of friends you had on two fingers and one of those was your brother.

You’d known these people for five minutes, why were you letting your defenses slip down around them?

Your shoulders tensed up and he read the change in your body language and thought he had offended or annoyed you.

“I should get going, won’t make a good impression if I’m late.” You said shortly and jogged away.

He’d come on too strong and he was regretting it. He must have seemed like any other creep trying his luck with you and you had bolted. He sighed and realized he’d have to rethink his approach.

You practically ran into the gym and Steve turned around to look at you curiously.

“Everything ok?” He asked you, frowning.

“What? Yeah, why wouldn’t it be?” You asked, putting your hands on your hips and trying to act like you weren’t winded.

“Are you sure you were a spy? You’re a terrible liar.” He said, smirking at you and waiting patiently for you to tell the truth.

“I was worried you’d reprimand me if I was late. And I didn’t really do espionage, I was more on the breaking and entering side of things.” You admitted.

“I’m not Nat, and I watched the footage of her evaluation of you. I was impressed. She’s right about you needed to train more, you clearly have a lot of untapped potential but your marksmanship was really impressive. I haven’t seen anyone that good since Bucky.” He complimented you.

“Oh. Does that mean I can go?” You asked hopefully.

“Nope.” He replied, tossing a pair of boxing gloves at you.

“We’re going to work on your stamina.” He explained.

You resisted the urge to wiggle your eyebrows at him and tried to put the gloves on. He watched you struggle for a minute and when you started trying to use your teeth he barked out a laugh and came over to help.

“We should also talk about your um... ice issues.” He said.

“You mean that little issue where I keep trying to turn people into human popsicles?” You asked.

“Yeah, that one. Been there and done that so I don’t really want to go through it again.” He joked.

“Are my powers an issue for you?” You asked nervously.

“Unless you plan on freezing me for another seven decades then no.” He answered as you got into a hitting stance and started tapping the bag.

“I can’t get my powers under control. I’m really out of practice.” You admitted as he kicked your back leg into the correct stance.

“You left an ice replica of an Iron Suit and Nat showed me the photos. It was perfect. How do you go from being able to achieve that level of detail to not being able to use your powers at all?”He asked. 

You paused your hits and grabbed the swinging bag while you thought about how to answer. You didn’t see Bucky at the door, you thought it was just you and Steve.

“There was a mission in Moscow. Shield never sent me on Missions with Tasha and Clint usually. But this time they did, they sent me and Elijah to back them up.”

“Elijah, he was your...”

“Fiancée.”You confirmed. 

Bucky nearly bit his own tongue at the mention of a fiancée. He shouldn’t be eavesdropping but he couldn’t walk in and interrupt you now and he was too rooted to the spot to walk away.

“What happened?” Steve asked.

“Bad intel. They were more prepared than we’d been led to believe and they were waiting for us. The leader, the guy we were after wanted to make me suffer. He locked me in a room with Tasha, Clint, and Elijah. They were chained up but I wasn’t and there was a gun on the floor with one bullet. He told me I had to kill one of them or he would kill us all.”

You heard Steve’s sharp intake of breath as he put the pieces together.

“You didn’t have a choice.” He stated.

“Actually I did, I had a choice between the three people I loved most in the world. And I killed the man I was supposed to marry. Natasha never quite forgave me for not killing her. She thought it should have been her.”

“Why, why did you choose him?” He asked softly.

“I couldn’t make the choice as a sister or a fiancée. So I made it as a Shield agent. I killed the lowest level agent, the one we could afford to lose.” You said coldly.

Steve was shaken as he silently regarded you.

“Shield arrived to rescue us, too late. They took the mark in, they were going to lock him up.  I lost control, completely. I tried to kill him, and I did. But I couldn’t switch it off, I had to let it out and kill everyone there or blast it skyward.. Do you know what happens if you shoot ice into the sky, rapidly cooling the atmosphere?”

“No.” Steve admitted with a frown, he was betting it wasn’t good.

“Superstorm. I would have killed thousands of people if it wasn’t for Agent Hill. She shot me. When I woke up I told Fury to tell everyone I was dead and I disappeared. I made the hard choice for Shield, made it without hesitating. But I couldn’t live with it. I loved him, I was going to marry him and spend the rest of my life with him and instead I shot him in the head.” You said, punching the bag as hard as you could.

“I can’t imagine having to make that kind of choice.” Steve admitted.

You were expecting a different reaction, deep down that’s why you’d told him. He was Captain America, a paragon of justness and righteousness. He should have been disgusted by you but all you saw in his eyes was sympathy. You couldn’t look at him anymore and turned your back, taking your self-loathing out on the bag.

“That’s why you’re out of practice? You don’t want to use it after what happened?”

“I locked my abilities away and with them my heart. I decided I didn’t want to use them ever again and I know that this kind of life means I can’t ever love someone again.”

“I used to want love and a family but when I went into the ice all those notions went with me. I guess both our hearts are frozen. They have to be.” Steve said.

You huffed out a sad, unamused laugh.

“Comrades in ice?” You asked and he chuckled and fist bumped your proffered boxing glove.

You had no idea Bucky Barnes had heard the whole thing and was walking away, his own heart far from frozen but instead heavy. He knew his silly little crush could never come to anything. No wonder you’d been so spooked by his flirting.

But what he’d heard hadn’t changed his admiration for you, it just added a desire to see you happier.

He’d have to be your friend. You needed a friend and this way he could be a part of your life and get over his infatuation.

Steve left the gym before you, letting you finish up your stretches when Stark came wandering in, whistling casually. You rolled your eyes and ignored him, walking over to the large doors and frowned when they wouldn’t open. You pushed them again and they didn’t budge. You whirled round to face Tony who was smirking at you.

“Why are the doors locked?” You demanded.

“Because I’m not finished with you yet. You don’t get out of this room unless I say so and until you tell me who you really are and why you’re here, you aren’t getting out.” Tony threatened.

A whimper ripped out of your throat and your eyes began darting around the room, looking for an escape.

Tony could see the sweat beading across your brow from where he stood, could see the tremors running through your body. You were scared, he realized with a start of surprise.

You had one of the worst cases of Claustrophobia he’d ever seen since they were standing in a huge room with floor to ceiling windows and he could tell from your body language that you were on the brink of having a massive freak out. He could practically smell the fear on you.

“Let me out.” You demanded, your voice hard and angry.

He met your eyes and noted the sheer desperation and fear in them.

He had no idea you would react like this to being locked in a room, he just wanted to confront you. He genuinely felt guilty and was about to open his mouth and order Friday to let you out when he felt a physical change in the air.  

The temperature in the room dropped several degrees and a noise behind him had him turning around to watch the windows as frost crawled across the floor, creeping up the windows and branching out across them before they shattered, dropping shards of glass bigger than a person onto the floor with an ear-splitting crash.

Barely five minutes later Tony picked up your ID badge, the one you’d dropped by the shattered windows before you ran across the broken glass. Clearly you had realized it could be used to locate you and ditched it before you ditched the compound.

Glass crunched underfoot as Natasha approached, Clint a few paces behind. The two of them regarded the damage with exasperation.

“Could have told you locking my sister up wasn’t going to go well for you Stark, might have saved you a few thousand dollars.” Clint remarked.

“Alright, I didn’t know it was an issue. I didn’t mean to spook her.” Tony admitted with a heavy sigh.

“She’s had claustrophobia since she was a kid, she still has nightmares about it. Something you might have known if you talked to her instead of accusing her of being a spy for Fury. I did know about it, do you know how? Because she is who she says she is, she’s Clint’s sister and as far as I’m concerned, mine as well.” Natasha snapped.

“Doesn’t matter right now, we need to find her. She’s unstable. Any idea where she might have run off to?” Tony asked wearily.

Clint and Natasha exchanged a knowing glance.

You didn't turn around as you felt your brother approach and sit in the barstool next to you.

“We need to talk about what happened with Braxton and with Fury taking me in.”You admitted.

“You think?”

“I knew who he was. Someone gave me a lead to hunt down the rest of the organization responsible for Elijah’s death.”

Clint ground his teeth together at your admittance.

“I couldn’t let it go Clint, I just couldn't.”

“Cut the Bullshit Ice.” He interrupted.

You flinched in surprise at his anger and he took advantage of your silence.

"You fucked up by going after Braxton, two years off the grid, getting close to him and ignoring everyone. Me. And for what? To lose control and end up being forced to join the Avengers?"

“I don’t need your help with my abilities.” You said before he could go down that route.

“Here we go..” He sighed.

“I know how they work, I know how to control them. I’m just a little out of practice.”You insisted.

“You killed a lot of people. I know you like to act tough but that isn’t something you’re ok with, what you did wasn’t a blip because you’re out of practice. Despite your warm and cuddly exterior, you’re a good person and you don’t want to be slaughtering people. You can handle it in the moment but you can't live with yourself afterwards.”

“What do you think I’ve been doing for the past four years? You really think I’ve been serving in the US Army and not killed anybody? There’s so much blood on my hands that it’ll never wash off, those bastards I froze in the desert are barely a dent in my kill count.”

He knew that you weren’t an innocent, but to hear you say it so casually was a different thing. You had become more like him in the time you’d been gone and that wasn’t what he had wanted for you.

“You’ve killed, to protect people. You’ve done bad things for good reasons so don’t you dare judge me for doing the same thing.” You told him.

“Why the hell didn’t you tell me and Tasha what you were doing?” He demanded.

“I was trying to protect you.”

“Haven’t you learned your lesson about protecting me?”

“I don’t care that you’re still mad about that, I know you’ll never forgive me for it but you’re hurt feelings ain’t my main concern. I was trying to keep you alive.” You said and threw back your drink and slammed the glass down angrily.

You shook your head.

“I don’t want to relive the same old argument, what’s done is done and neither of us can change it.”

“Don’t I know it.” He said.

“I don’t need to you teach me how to use my abilities, I can figure it out on my own. I do need your help though.” You told him.

He paused, waiting for you to continue.

“We thought The Scorpion was a weapons dealer and human trafficker. We were wrong. The Scorpion was dealing in human weapons, he’s trafficking mutants. And Braxton wasn't The Scorpion, The Scorpion doesn't exist. It's a front, a cover. The whole thing goes deeper than any of us realized,” You revealed.

“Why not tell Fury?” He asked.

“Because he can’t be trusted. Braxton had information he shouldn’t have, he knew what I was. He knows about the school. He has double agents everywhere… I can't tell anyone without putting them in danger.”

“So who’s behind it? Who has you so spooked?”

“I overheard Braxton using on the phone before he drugged me. He said a name.”

“What was the name?”

“Magneto.”

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

And here we are my loves. I hope this was worth the wait, personally I struggled with this chapter but I'm really hoping the effort I put in paid off.

@shirukitsune @thelostallycat @jsmith509@buckitybarnes @aw-shit-nuggets @pleasefollowmeuwu @nerdy-bookworm-1998@boxofteenageideas @jaynnanadrews @psychoredpanda@marbleowl @l0kisbitch @brownlee-22 @fluffeh-kitty @mywinterwolf @poppunkassbitch @angieptt @muggleborngirl @markusstraya @tarastudiesalot @pinkisokay @buckitybarnes @firefly-in-darkness @chipilerendi @psychoredpanda @littledeadrottinghood @boxofteenageideas @pleasefollowmeuwu @aw-shit-nuggets @brownlee-22

[lightsburnbrite]

The Devil is in the Details: Part 1

After plugging the address in to her GPS, Karina drove off towards the center of the self proclaimed modern art district, just past the Kunstareal.

You have arrived at your destination.

With a frown, Karina drove on in hopes of finding a parking spot. She switched the map app on her phone to walking directions and soon found her way to the empty storefront. Finding the door locked, Karina stepped off to the side and chose to examine the chipped portions of her manicure. Soon she wouldn’t be able to resist picking at the missing sections of polish until she had peeled the entire nail clean.

“Miss Müller!”

Looking up, Karina saw a middle aged woman in a camel colored suit hurrying towards her and extending her hand.

“Sorry I’m late, traffic was terrible!” After shaking Karina’s hand, the woman then took the same hand and smoothed out her ivory blouse. “Fredericka Schmidt. It’s so nice to meet you in person, Ekaterina.”

Karina immediately formed the impression that the woman was a little scattered and in over her head. Even though she was late, she shouldn’t have acknowledged it or apologized. That would have given her the upper hand. Instead, Karina now held that position as the one being inconvenienced. At least, that was what Marwin had always told her. Giving her head an almost imperceivable shake as if to get the thought to leave, she smiled. “Karina will be fine, thank you.”

“Wonderful.” Schmidt pulled out a ring of color coded keys and flipped through them until she came to a bright green one. “Now, most of the commercial spaces on this street are either occupied by stores or we have a handful of artists that use them as their own personal galleries.”

Once the door was unlocked, they stepped into the bright and completely open space. “I’m interested in setting up a gallery of sorts,” Karina walked around the perimeter before turning her attention back to the real estate agent. “I inherited a large collection and while I’ve donated a lot, there were several pieces that I don’t want to part with so I figured that would be my best option. I have a few of my favorite pieces in my house but my husband isn’t a huge fan of having the entire place filled.”

“You have the Strohmann estate!” Schmidt’s eyes widened when she realized who she was dealing with. “I have larger properties-”

Karina gave her head a little shake. “No, this size is fine. I only have a handful that I want as permanent installations. Aside from that I plan to feature emerging artists that might otherwise not have a platform.”

“Yes, of course. How noble.”

Right then, Karina had to fight back the urge to roll her eyes. She never made it a habit of tying herself to Marwin Strohmann but her name was now well known in the artistic and philanthropic circles as the inheritor of his estate. It didn’t help her desire for anonymity when Focus published an article profiling the ten wealthiest “under 30’s” in the region. Karina had refused an interview and wouldn’t provide a headshot so the magazine must have searched for a useable picture elsewhere. The photograph that ran with the profile showed she and Leon both dressed in all black with sunglasses on, Karina with her arm looped around Leon’s, attending the memorial service for Marwin. If she was looking for a silver lining to it all, they made a very attractive couple.

“I’d like to sign the lease today if possible.” Karina turned back towards Fredericka Schmidt and punctuated her statement with a smile.

As part of her ongoing therapy, she worked with a body language coach. The initial idea was to help her feel more in control of her own surroundings but Karina was also aware that it just helped her become more assertive in general. The only difference was now that she didn’t care if people called her a bitch.

“Yes, yes, of course!” That request seemed to have flustered Schmidt somewhat but Karina just waited patiently as all of the paperwork was gathered.

When she got back into her car, Karina made a few taps on the in dash monitor and waited for the phone to ring. She wasn’t sure he’d pick up but she figured leaving a message would be fine also. After a few more rings, it clicked over.

“Hey Mausi!”

It always made Karina’s heart flutter when he called her that.

“Hi Leon.” She smiled and waited to see if he was feeling chatty or if she’d get to go first. When there was a slight pause, she continued. “I got it.”

“You rented the space? Shit, that’s great!”

“Yeah,” She laughed, feeling excited herself. “I looked around inside and it’s perfect so I signed a year’s lease right then.”

“I’m so proud of you, Maus.”

Karina could hear some commotion in the background then finally a voice she recognized yelled out.

Who’s on the phone?

She laughed when she heard Leon answer back: Angela Merkel!

“Hey, babe, I miss you like crazy but we’re out on a boat and the reception bad. Can I call you back tonight? Like right before bed when I’m by myself?”

She smirked now, knowing exactly what he had in mind and knowing that she could use that as well. “Yeah, of course. I love you, sir. And tell my brother I said hello.”

“I love you too, Maus.”

With a sigh and a smile, Karina switched the audio over to music and began the drive back to their place.

When Leon strode back out of the cabin, the guys started to tease him.

“Was that the wife checking in on you?” Lucca called out over from the other side.

Leon cocked his head to the side and smiled. “That was the wife giving me some good news about a project she’s been working on. Your sister says hello, by the way.” He had turned towards Marius at the end who just rolled his eyes, much in the same way his sister did.

“How did you manage to sneak away for a whole week?” Marius made a little jab at Karina’s expense.

Leon just shrugged now. He easily could have taken the credit for taking a guys only holiday, but he never missed an opportunity to point out how understanding and, at the root of it, reasonable Karina really was. “I told Karina what was planned, when I’d be leaving and when I’d be back.”

When that got some incredulity from the rest of the crew he laughed. “Plus she hates Mallorca and I’m taking her to the Maldives for our honeymoon over the winter break.”

Even though Karina had been a sore spot between Leon and Marius initially, Marius did give eventually but there was an unspoken understanding that Leon wouldn’t necessarily rub it in that he had married his best friend’s little sister. Every now and then, however, Marius would check in to make sure things were ok with Karina.

“Is she still seeing her therapist? The good one?” Marius dug through the cooler and found one of the ciders that Leon liked after getting a beer for himself.

With a nod of appreciation, Leon took a sip and then nodded again. “Yeah. She’s actually been able to cut down to twice a month now and, um, she’s doing really well. I’ve got my Maus back.”

“Good.” Marius nodded as well. “That’s good.”

Once Karina made it home, she immediately went to the spare room that she had set up as a work space and stood in front of her design board. “I’ll need to take pictures of the layout. Then I can figure out where I want everything to go and what area will be open for other artists.”

She turned to look at Elsa, her Bernese Mountain Dog, who seemed entirely disinterested.

“Of course,” She scratched Elsa behind her ear, “There’s an office so I’ll need to get you another bed to keep there. Sound good?”

That at least elicited a groan in response.

“I know.” Karina at down on the floor next to Elsa and wrapped her arms around the dog. “I miss him too. He said he’ll be home soon so maybe we can both stop moping around then.”

Karina could’t decide if she felt like cooking or if she even wanted some sort of takeout. After walking out on the terrace, she realized that the temperature had settled down to something a lot more comfortable. Grabbing Elsa’s leash, Karina looked to see what vendors were at the market today. Sometimes she could find a whole meal there and right now, that seemed like a better idea than anything else.

After dinner, Karina sat down and worked on compiling the history of the various pieces of art that she was donating to the museum. Occasionally, she’d glance at her phone but when she began nodding off at the table, Karina decided it was time to call it a night. She kept her phone next to her as she washed her face and brushed her teeth but it remained silent. Finally, she put a movie on and got into bed.

When Karina woke up, the first thing she did was to check her phone but there were only a few updates from various apps, no missed calls. Flopping back down, she rolled over on her side and stroke Elsa’s head. Elsa had made herself at home on Leon’s side of the bed whenever he was away.

“I know I’m being ridiculous,” She gently smoothed out Elsa’s ear now, “but he said he’d call.”

Karina frowned as she stared up at the ceiling but Elsa’s paw on her forearm brought her mind back. “Ok,” she sat up and yawned. “Ok, I’m getting up.”

The hardest part of her day had become figuring out what to wear to work. There was a professional dress code she needed to adhere to, the weather outside had been stifling hot recently yet the museum was always frigid, and there were some days where she was in the archives moving things around. Fortunately today, Karina knew she’d only be working at her desk so a simple shirt dress would suffice.

Coffee in hand, Karina made her way to the shared space where her desk was, greeting her coworkers along the way.

“Oh, Karina?”

She turned to see her boss, Nena, walking towards her carrying a leather folio. “Yes?”

“I was hoping you could help me out and train Daniel and Sara on conducting tours today.” Nena’s voice had a touch of pleading to it. “Julia has been working with them but she needed to call out sick today. Do you have time?”

Karina smiled and nodded. “Sure. Let me just put my stuff away and I’ll meet you out front.”

Daniel and Sara were two college students who were interning, much like she had at one point, so she felt a sort of obligation to help them out. They had never been introduced but Karina figured couldn’t have been any more than a year or two older than them which usually went over better than if she needed to tell someone older than her what to do.

“Daniel, Sara,” Nena turned to Karina once she had walked back to the main entrance. “This is Karina Müller, she’s one of our curators and actually wrote the script that you’ve been working from. She’ll be helping you out today.”

After spending a few hours with the two of them, Karina didn’t mind Daniel, but Sara had a little bit of snark to her that just rubbed Karina the wrong way. Still, Karina was grateful when their training portion of the day was finished and she could go back to cataloging the newest collection that had arrived.

She stopped around lunch time and went for a walk before returning to the break room. Sitting at the table with her salad, Karina still had her ear buds in when she realized someone was in the room with her.

“Hmm?” Karina had registered that it was Daniel who was speaking to her but she didn’t actually hear his question.

Daniel let out a little laugh. “I just said thank you for this morning. That’s one of the more useful training sessions I’ve had”

With a nod, Karina offered a polite smile. “Oh, thanks. I’m glad it was helpful.”

“It’s easy to tell this is something you’re really passionate about.” His smile broadened. “Listen, a few of us are going to catch a movie after work. Want to tag along?”

“Thanks for the offer but…” Karina then thought about what her evening would look like otherwise - taking work home and then moping around waiting to see if Leon would call. “Let me think about it, ok?”

Daniel offered a very satisfied grin in response. “Sure.”

[shireness-says]

The Hazards of Hot Neighbors and Stubborn Roommates

Summary:  Elsa Arendelle is instantly attracted to her new neighbor. But the whole thing is complicated by her roommate's own love life. A Frozen Jewel companion piece to The Perils of Firemen and the Food Network. ~4.3K. Also on AO3.

A/N: For @kmomof4, who accidentally gave me this idea when she asked for more of The Perils of Firemen and the Food Network. Hope this lives up to the hype! 

Special thanks to @awkwardnessandbaseball, my delightful beta. You’re the best.

Somehow, this turned into the most suggestive thing I’ve ever written? I don’t know. Whoops. Still no smut, but rated M. 

Tagging: @aerica13, @branlovesouat, @searchingwardrobes. If anyone wants to be tagged on future stuff, shoot me a message, and I’ll start a list.

Without further ado, enjoy!

Elsa meets the dreamboat on a Tuesday evening.

(She can already hear that voice in her head that sounds an awful lot like Anna snorting ungracefully at her use of the phrase, but she stands by it.)

It’s been a long day, and she’s still loaded down with files for her to work her way through tonight. It’s research for this big case she’s working on; entirely boring, entirely necessary. Her current plan for surviving the ordeal is lots and lots of wine. Which is probably the most adult thought she’s ever had in her life.

Stepping into the elevator, she’s so ready to just hit that 4 button and go home, when she suddenly hears a commotion by the entrance. Well, maybe commotion is too strong a word. No one is being attacked, or trying to force their way into the building, or any number of other reasonable situations to use the word ‘commotion’ (God, she’s probably read too many legal briefs if this is where her mind goes). This particular commotion is one man trying to wriggle his way through the lobby doors with a stack of boxes, and all the noise that accompanies such an action.

Elsa won’t lie - she’s tired, her feet are killing her, and she’d really like to press the door close button. But she may need to have the door held for her one day, and anyway, it’s probably not the best way to start her interactions with this new neighbor. So she holds the door open button, and waits for the guy to scootch his way into the elevator.

“Thanks,” he says in a deep, accented voice, readjusting the load in his arms. “I wasn’t looking forward to holding these any longer than necessary. Five, please.”

Peering his head around as she presses the button, Elsa finally gets a good look at his face. And Lord, is she glad she does. He’s a gorgeous specimen of man - broad-shouldered and strong, with sandy curls and blue eyes she could swear were twinkling, like some kind of fairy tale prince. And his arms… Elsa is sure she’s being less than polite and gawking, but the way he’s supporting his stack of boxes perfectly displays his biceps beneath his short sleeves. Emma may tease her for having a thing for lumberjacks and mountain men, but to Elsa, there’s just something about a man who looks like he works with his hands, who has the calluses and muscles to prove it. And this man, the new tenant, is a prime example.

He offers her a sly smile - and God, even a bit smug, it’s a great smile, one that really suits his face - and Elsa frantically searches for words, flustered at having been caught staring. “Moving in?”

(Smooth. Real smooth.)

He offers her a warmer smile all the same, much to Elsa’s relief. “Aye, 5E, my brother and I just signed the lease. I’m Liam, by the way - I’d offer you a hand to shake, but…” he trails off, smile turning cheeky.

“Elsa, 4E. I suppose you’ll be our upstairs neighbor then?”

“Seems so. We’ll keep it down, I promise.”

Elsa chuckles, taking a final moment to imprint his features as the elevator doors slide open. “Well, it was very nice to meet you, Liam in 5E. I’ll see you around?” Her voice, traitor that it is, takes a turn for the hopeful at the end of her sentence, and she only hopes she doesn’t look a complete fool.

Liam doesn’t seem put off by it if she does, at least, offering a final smile before the door closes. “Aye, you will.”

(And then the door closes, and Elsa’s left to collect the rest of her scattered composure.)

------

Emma, of course, is already plopped on the couch when when Elsa slips in the front door, and immediately notices her distraction.

“What’s up with you?” Emma all but demands.

Elsa just waves her off, toeing off her suede heels in the entryway and trying her best not to make eye contact. “Don’t worry about it. Anything up with you?”

Emma, thankfully, is good enough to ignore whatever is up with her roommate, shrugging casually and digging into the microwave meal in her hands. Looks like ravioli tonight. “Nothing much. Trying to track down where this latest douchebag might turn up. Think someone’s moving in upstairs, there’s been a lot of scraping and whatnot up there.”

Elsa’s distracted flipping through the mail, which is her only excuse for why the next words slip out. “Yeah, I met one of them in the lobby. Nice guy.”

Emma’s head jerks back to attention in Elsa’s direction, a devious grin on her face that Elsa is sure Emma would resent if the tables were turned. “Oh? Is that why you seem so distracted?”

Elsa can feel seemingly all the bloody in her head rush directly to her cheeks, eliminating any chance of denying the truth of Emma’s question. Her roommate knows it too, smiling smugly before continuing her interrogation.

“It is, isn’t it? Oh, I’m going to have to meet the guy who can rattle stoic Elsa Arendelle. He’s got to be cute to get you this shaken up, right?”

Cue another rush of blood to her face. Damn her Norwegian genes, she must look like a blonde tomato at this point.

“C’mon,” Emma wheedles, apparently committed to breaking out her best Ruby Lucas impression this evening. “Don’t leave me in suspense.”

With a deep breath, Elsa finally confesses. It’s apparently the only way to please her roommate. For a woman who really hates people asking about her own love life, Emma seemingly has no qualms about meddling with Elsa’s. “Yes, he’s cute, alright? Really cute. He’s got fantastic arms and the bluest eyes. Happy?”

“Very,” Emma announces smugly, before digging back into her dinner. That’s the thing with Emma Swan - if she’s gotten the information she wants, she doesn’t see the need to ask any further. Bless her for that, in this case. Elsa isn’t in much of a mood to elaborate further.

“Good. In that case, I wanted to talk to you about maybe upgrading our cable service…”

------

It’s almost a month before Elsa sees him again - a month that she does not spend looking for him every time she enters the building, no, not at all.

When they do finally run into one another, it’s at the worst possible moment, of course, when Elsa’s on her hands and knees in the lobby trying to gather up the files she dropped. She’s muttering curses to herself, just trying to gather everything up - at least it hasn’t rained, this could be a lot worse if the floor was wet - when suddenly, there’s another hand trying to gather everything up with her. A large hand. A male hand. A large, male hand, connected to the arm of Liam in 5E.

“We’ve got to stop meeting like this,” he teases, blue eyes twinkling. Elsa couldn’t agree more. She’d like a lot of meetings, preferably not in this lobby, and not in her work clothes, and maybe with some mood music and generally without anyone being in danger of dropping things. Except maybe their pants. In a manner of speaking.

“Oh, don’t I know it,” she manages to stutter out, fully aware that her face has become a bright red beacon. Really, damn her Norwegian pastiness.

It does, however, get him to chuckle - a deep, rich thing that sets her insides all a-flutter as they work together to pick up the last of the pages, the occasional brush of fingers only encouraging the butterflies in her stomach.

“Thanks,” she says as the both straighten up, the stack of papers returned to their folder. She’ll worry about the proper order later.

“Not a problem, lass,” he replies, “it was my pleasure. It’s not everyday I get to play the gallant knight. Coming back from work late, I take it? Unless these are your leisure clothes.”

Elsa had been deeply uncomfortable in her tight dress and heels most of the day, but honestly had all but forgotten her discomfort in the time since Liam had entered her line of sight. Glancing down again, she’s pleased to note that she’s at least no horribly wrinkled. “Oh! Yeah, I stayed later than I should dealing with some paperwork. I do have less formal clothes, I promise.”

“I suppose I’ll have to see those sometime.”

Oh my God, is he flirting with her? He’s totally flirting with her. She thinks. Elsa isn’t really all that great at this whole thing, but she’s, like, 85% sure that his words combined with the roguish smile means he’s flirting with her. Which means he might like her too? Maybe? Wow, that’s new and different.

But it’s a good different, a great one in fact, so she gathers up all her courage to say something marginally flirty back:

“Well, I’ll have to make sure of it.”

------

It’s always the evenings. Without fail, if she’s going to see Liam from 5E, it’s when she’s coming home from work in the evening.

She learns he’s a firefighter the day he walks into the elevator with her, tired and smelling of smoke. He must read the concern in her face because he waves her off with an exhausted smile before she can ask why he smells like something burning.

(“Occupational hazard, I’m afraid. We work down at the local fire station, my brother and I - I’m the captain, actually. Sometimes that means I have to be on call, or sleep at the station, and sometimes it means I come home smelling like something’s still on fire. I’ve rather gotten used to it, I’m afraid.” His tone is almost apologetic, which really concerns Elsa.

“Oh, it’s no problem! Just… a little confusing to smell when I didn’t know the rest of the story.”)

He learns about her sister in London when she’s pacing the lobby, trying to finish the call rather than lose cell signal in the elevator.

(“I’m sure she could have found a perfectly lovely job with a stateside auction house or art dealer, but Anna’s always wanted to spread her wings and see the world. And I do have to admit, the stuff she’s dealing with in London is a lot more impressive than a lot of what is dealt with on this side of the Atlantic.)

Every night they see each other, it’s harder to talk for only a short snippet of time (regardless of how slow the building’s elevator is), and eventually, Liam starts walking her to her door. It’s a little ridiculous - for Pete’s sake, she’s already in the building, there’s not a safety issue or something - but they both ignore it in favor of spending just a little more time in one another’s company.

She’s actually just left Liam walking back to the elevator when she walks in her and Emma’s apartment to discover the younger Jones also inside, and Emma herself somewhat flustered by his presence. Which is probably valid, considering it turns out he climbed in through the window in response to Emma’s poor attempts at cooking. But Emma can hold her own, and Elsa can tell this is more than just disconcertion born of the unexpected situation. No - her roommate, prone to one-night stands and an impressive avoidance of feelings, likes Killian, finds him attractive, and doesn’t know what to do with it. Elsa gently tries to prod her to talk about the encounter, but Emma is stubborn, and changes the subject to avoid the matter.

They’ll work on that.

------

It’s been over two months of this emotional standstill - waiting for the other at the elevator and long, drawn-out talks and pretending that there’s no underlying attraction - when Elsa decides she’s sick of it. She gets enough of that just watching Emma with Killian. Elsa likes Liam, a lot, and she’s practically positive he feels the same. So one evening, as he’s talking about God only knows what (something his brother did, probably - Killian always seems to provide conversation fodder with his antics), she grabs Liam by the front of his damnably tight t-shirt and forcibly hauls him close enough to plant her lips on his.

There’s a short, muffled grunt of surprise, but Liam more than willingly joins in, kissing her with an insistance that Elsa relishes. Liam may be just her type, but Elsa’s always gone for nice boys, sweet boys, boys who kiss slowly and deliberately and delicately like she’s some fragile flower or precious gift. Liam may be that nice boy - nice man - too, a man with a charming smile who listens to her like every word from her mouth is fascinating and holds elevator doors so she doesn’t have to worry about rushing, but his kiss is a far cry from that: passionate and deep and determined in a way she might almost label aggressive if she wasn’t enjoying herself so damn much.

Somehow, he’s backed her into the wall beside her door, hands on her hips and crowding somehow even closer into her space. Their lips break apart for a minute to catch a breath, but he’s far from idle, mouthing along her jawbone in a way that makes Elsa’s head tip back in appreciation, barely stifling a moan. Almost against her conscious thought, her leg in its tailored pant is rising to hitch around his own thigh and create more space for him to occupy. As his hips willingly fill that space, flush with her own, their mouths reconnect and Elsa finds herself rocking forward, and forward, and forward…

It’s only a vague awareness of her surroundings that suddenly reminds Elsa that they’re still in the fourth floor hallway, grinding on one another like a pair of horny teenagers. And she is an adult. They both are. They can’t keep doing this, no matter how much she wants to…

And in a sudden epiphany, Elsa remembers:

Emma has that stakeout tonight, and won’t be home.

After that, it only takes a moment to push Liam away (to no small protest, she’s pleased to note, pained groans and chasing lips and all) and frantically dig the keys out of her briefcase to get the damn door open. When the final bolt clicks, Elsa turns to dramatically (and hopefully seductively) lean against the door, one arm still grasping the doorknob behind her back. She never does things like this; she may as well revel in the moment while it’s here.

“I’ve got the place to myself tonight…” she says, voice barely more than a hoarse whisper. Jesus, he really did a number on her with that kiss, didn’t he?

Liam’s eyebrow quirks; whether in amusement or interest, she can’t tell, but honestly, either will work for her purposes as long as it gets him inside and onto a flat surface. Any flat surface. She’s not picky. “Is that an invitation, lass?”

“If you want it to be.”

There’s no verbal response, but Liam steps back into her space to fuse their mouths once more, reaching to clasp the doorknob along with her and finally open the door.

And really, that’s enough of an answer, in and of itself.

------

They’re lying in bed in the aftermath, sweat pooling, breaths still uneven, hearts thumping frantically, when Elsa decides to just go ahead and address the elephant in the room. Turning her head to face Liam, he looks remarkably content; sprawled in her bed naked, one of his fantastic arms tossed over his eyes and brow. She could get used to such a sight, but she’s got to make sure that that’s something he wants too. Going into this, Elsa had been confident they were on the same page, but she’s always been a girl who looks before she leaps, and diving right in without discussing things first, like they’ve done now, makes her nervous.

“So…” she begins, eliciting a muffled hum from the man beside her. “Is this something we’re going to do again, or…”

Liam snorts, his whole body heaving with the effort. “I’m going to need a little time to recuperate, lass.”

“Oh my God,” she mutters. “Not like that, smartass.” Even if her wording really did leave that response wide open.

“I know.” There’s a pause. “I suppose… well, I know this meant something to me. I’ve fancied you for quite a while, lass, it just took you practically mauling me in the hallway to do anything about it. I know we’ve done this all in a bit of a round-about fashion, but would you like to get dinner sometime?”

Even laying naked in bed, after all the activities such a thing suggests, Elsa feels a sudden wave of shyness at his earnest entreaty. Resisting the urge to curl back in on herself, she rolls over to snuggle into his side instead, revelling in the feeling of his warm arm coming to encircle her waist. Meeting his eyes, she smiles. “Yeah. I’d like that.”

It surprises her when Liam exhales a sudden sigh, seemingly in relief. At her questioning hum, he elaborates. “It seems ridiculous now, but you wouldn’t believe how nervous I was to ask you out.”

It’s Elsa’s turn to offer her own snort, before tightening her own arm more securely across his torso. “Well, I was the one doing the mauling. That should have made it fairly obvious I’d accept.”

The smile that overtakes his face at those words is breathtaking, in it’s own small and quiet way. “I’m glad to hear it,” he murmurs, forehead coming to rest against her own as his arm snakes tighter around her bare waist.

“Good.”

And then they’re kissing again. The franticness of earlier has ebbed, the passion of new discovery subsiding into something more languid and sensuous. Neither of them are ready for another round (though God, does she want one later), but it’s an enjoyable occupation, and a fitting seal to their brief discussion.

It’s with a small reluctance that Elsa pulls away some minutes later, but there’s always the reassurance that they can pick up again. There’s an issue that needs addressing, though, and she’d rather deal with it now when they’re both happy and basking in that new relationship glow (okay, the post-sex glow too).

“I’ve got a favor to ask.”

“Anything, lass,” he murmurs, still nosing behind her ear to drop small, delicate kisses.

“Ok, I know this is going to sound stupid, but there really is a good reason, and I promise I don’t mean forever, just for the time being, so really -”

“You’re rambling, darling. It’s quite a cute nervous habit, really.”

“- I don’t want to tell Emma yet.”

That warrants a hard pause.

“I know that it’s probably really stupid, but she’s so damn stubborn and she’ll probably view us getting together as some weird prelude to a set-up she’ll resist on principle. I know she has a thing for your brother, and I think that will resolve itself within a couple weeks, just… Please?”

“You do realize if we don’t tell Emma, I can’t tell Killian either, right? They’re thick as thieves and he’s absolute shit at keeping secrets.”

“Please?”

Liam huffs and sighs, but finally nods in agreement. “Alright. But let’s hope they resolve this soon; I don’t relish the idea of keeping this to ourselves for too long.”

“Agreed.” Because really, Emma needs to get her ass in gear, before it gets truly ridiculous. “But in the meantime…” Armed with a new confidence in their budding relationship, Elsa straddles his still-naked hips, letting the sheets slip from her bare shoulders in a sensuous display.

Liam grins slowly, eyebrow quirking as he seems to catch where her mind has gone. “Aye?”

“In the meantime… Let’s see what I can do to make it up to you.”

------

It’s a wonderful new world, dating Liam Jones. It’s all the beautiful companionship of their previous friendship, but with the added bonus of amazing kissing and some really great sex. Liam seems to revel in taking her on proper dates, and they spend every chance they have together - in and out of bed.

The one drawback is the continuing Emma/Killian situation. They’re both so damn stubborn, and Elsa has long since learned that any attempts to engage Emma in a conversation about the man the the latter doesn’t start herself is absolutely fruitless. It would have been annoying, before, when Elsa was just trying to help her roommate come to terms with her own feelings; now, with the reveal of a relationship waiting on that acceptance, it’s downright infuriating.

“I wish they’d just do it !” she practically growls from the Joneses’ couch one evening, Liam and herself curled up pretending to watch Dial M for Murder on her favorite classic movie channel while Killian is on call at the fire station and Emma has a stakeout. The movie-watching endeavor was never destined to be successful; even without Elsa’s frustration with the non-existent progress in her friend’s relationship, they’d likely just be making out on the couch anyways, Liam making an admirable attempt to do just that only a few minutes ago by placing a series of increasingly insistent kisses along her jaw and neckline.

“I hate to be speaking in support of their lollygagging in any way, but we both knew they’d both need to get their in their own time, especially Emma,” he replies, ever her voice of reason. “I will say, I fully expected them to cave by now.”

“That’s exactly it!” she exclaims, throwing her hands up and nearly whacking Liam in the head in the process (he’ll live). “What the hell is taking them so long? Hurry it up already!”

But they don’t hurry it up, and they don’t cave. There’s just a constant dancing around one another, and a seeming increase in Emma avoiding her. It’s infuriating.

It finally comes to a head when Liam picks her up for dinner one night (well, as much as that term is applicable; he’s literally just walking down some stairs, not driving halfway across town to collect her), a gloom casting his usually calm and handsome face.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Elsa asks, concerned. It’s wildly out of character for him to show up acting like this, and she almost worries about what that means for them. He adores you, she’s careful to remind herself. You’re not the problem.

Despite plans to find a little place to eat near the water, Liam comes in and crashes on the couch, already aware that Emma’s not home. “Apparently, Emma kissed Killian last night. And then ran out of there like the hounds of hell themselves were on her heels.”

“Shit,” Elsa somehow manages to say, sinking onto the couch herself. “She hasn’t said anything about it to me.”

“What are we supposed to do?” he all but demands. “Do we now have to go on pretending forever? Do we assume they’ll still eventually figure this shit out and get together? Or are we at lost cause stage? I have to be honest, I’m rather pissed at your roommate - Killian’s devastated, moping around the apartment like the world itself is ending.”

“I don’t know,” she mutters absentmindedly, still trying to process all the new information. Shit, what are they supposed to do, in light of this new development? “I guess we wait and see? Give it a week, see if the situation will resolve itself?”

“A week,” Liam repeats with finality. “But after that, I don’t care. It’s been long enough, we’ve been keeping this quiet for seven weeks. 2 months even is more than enough.”

“Okay, a week.” They really should get going - both are dressed and ready to walk out the door, but they sit there just a minute longer, trying to process their resolution and the events that led to it.

“Shit.”

------

“I kissed him,” Emma blurts out, and Elsa does her best to look surprised. She’s known for almost three damn days now; it’s hard to really muster up a look of true shock, but Emma’s flustered emotional state thankfully means she doesn’t pick up on her faking.

Honestly, Elsa is holding back a laugh the entire time. Emma’s been avoiding any relationship with Killian because she thought Elsa liked him? True, she did say the upstairs neighbor was cute, but there are two of them - even if Emma has never met Liam. That’s the only excuse Elsa can come up with - Emma has never met Liam, has never seen what he looks like, has never observed Elsa and Liam together. Otherwise she thinks it’d be so damn obvious which Jones she had meant was cute, that it’s almost laughable.

She only lets the laughter loose again when Emma rushes back out of the apartment, and that’s how Liam finds her a few minutes later - still shaking on the couch with subsiding laughter and wiping tears from her eyes because of it.

“I take it things went well with Emma, considering she’s about to jump my brother and you’re laughing your arse off down here?” he asks amusedly. Oh, how Elsa loves how he says ‘arse’ - it’s enough to send her into another fit of giggles.

Liam is increasingly confused as her laughter deepens, one eyebrow creeping higher and higher as he grins in that way he does when he doesn’t quite get the joke. “Really, lass, I must insist,” he finally interrupts. “What in the world is so funny?”

Honestly, she has to take a moment to catch her breath, holding a finger in the air in a waiting motion, trying to collect herself enough to speak. Finally, she bursts out - much the way Emma did, not half an hour earlier:

“She hasn’t been making any moves because she thought I was into your brother!”

The joke explained, Liam breaks into his own guffaw as his smile turns genuine, collapsing onto the couch beside her and pulling her slender body into his side. “Well, darling, is there anything I need to worry about?”

And who’s to blame her, if she sets about proving exactly how much he doesn’t need to worry?

[seriouslyhooked]

Scoring Your Love (Part 9/?)

Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, Part Five, Part Six,Part Seven, Part Eight. Story also on FF here and AO3 here. Banner by the wonderful @timetravelandfairytales

Modern AU where Killian is a world famous soccer star who has hit rock bottom and been sentenced to the place where ‘football’ legends go to die – America. While here he crosses paths with Emma, an up and coming musician and film scorer who challenges everything he thought he knew and makes him want more than the game he’s always loved. Will be filled with fluff for days, and eventually rated M.

A/N: Hello all! I am back again with another chapter, this time from Emma’s POV again. We are jumping ahead a few weeks, and surprise – we are still firmly in a land of fluff. This will be the case for a few chapters yet (though there’s some more to the story I have envisioned that will at one point pop up). That being said, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter as it provides some CS cuteness and Emma and her friends as well.

LA was synonymous with many things, stardom, fame, and money just to name a few. But a defining word that both locals and visitors used when describing this place was sunshine. All year round this was a city where people could count on the sun. The weather was supposed to be sublime at any time of year… but sometimes, every so often, rain came to the city, and when it did people collectively lost their shit.

“So you’re seriously telling me that the rain is reason enough to close all these shops?” Killian asked as he and Emma walked down the street under the large umbrella he’d come prepared with for their date today. They had just passed the third place in half a block that had a ‘closed early’ sign in the window and the count was bound to get higher as they made their way to her apartment.

Emma had to laugh at the face of confusion and of complete disbelief that Killian was sporting. Clearly he did not understand the LA mentality, and she couldn’t exactly blame him. London was known for its rain and the gray. To Killian this weather must feel like nothing, but to residents of always sunny California, multiple inches of rain in one day was far from normal. In fact, it had set some people into full-blown panic, causing early school closures and a mass migration of people from their work to their homes. Most people she knew didn’t even own rain boots, but after a handful of road trips with her friends, Emma had acquired a pair and a raincoat to match, helping her enjoy the precipitation rather than distress over it.

“Well we don’t exactly get snow days…” Emma hedged, trying to give her fellow citizens some benefit of the doubt, even if she knew they were all totally blowing this out of proportion. “Besides most people are just trying to get home at a decent hour. You thought rush hour traffic was bad on a good day? Imagine it when you throw a whole day’s worth of rain into the mix. ”

“Good God, I don’t think I can bear to,” Killian mumbled and Emma laughed, leaning closer into him as she did and knowing before she looked back up at him again that his grin had returned. They’d developed a habit as of late; Killian said something funny and charming that made her laugh, and that only made his already constantly good humor burn brighter. It was a seemingly never ending cycle, a really good one that always meant their dates or their calls ended well, with Emma feeling hopeful and happy and wishing she didn’t have to say goodbye.

“You know you could always stay over… wait it out with me until tomorrow,” Emma offered as they got to the front of her apartment building, knowing already that as much as she meant it Killian would still decline the invitation.

“I could, Swan, but we both know what a night at your place would lead to.”

Killian uttered the words as he closed the umbrella to hold the door for her. He was always the gentleman, but the feel of his hand as it slid over her lower back was hardly chaste or polite. It made Emma want things, things she knew Killian wanted just as badly even as he denied both of them. Three weeks – three freaking weeks of dates and talking and getting a little more wrapped up in each other every day, but still he was holding firm to the thought that they should wait until the time was right. Emma knew arguing the point was a losing battle, but she couldn’t help poking all the same.

“That really hot sex you keep promising?” She asked, feigning ignorance of the influence her words would have as the elevator doors opened and they entered together. “Because I have to be honest, I wouldn’t mind giving in at all.”

“Bloody hell, Emma,” he cursed as he pulled her to him, her chest coming flush against his as her hands landed on him to brace herself.

Being so close to him now Emma saw in his eyes just how much hunger was brimming under the surface. All afternoon he’d reined himself in, never closing himself off but holding firm to control over any baser urges. In this moment though Killian was so close to giving in, closer than he’d come any day before, and Emma wished he would just do it. Three weeks was an awful long time to wait with an attraction like this in the mix. Hell, they’d passed the third date mark what felt like ages ago, but at the same time it was kind of thrilling to have a man who cared so much about them making it that he advocated for taking things slower. Despite Emma’s want for more, she gained a little more assurance of Killian’s intentions every time they did this dance. Little did Killian realize, however, she didn’t need any more assurance. She was already certain of him, he just had to realize that.

“There’s never been a woman more tempting than you,” Killian said as his hand cupped her cheek, his gaze glancing from her eyes across her features before landing at her mouth. “You just might kill me one of these days.”

“Or you could just give in,” Emma said before pressing a quick kiss to his lips, one that she knew he would have liked to take further if the doors of the elevator hadn’t opened to her floor. Instead she led him by the hand to her place. “I know you think I only want you for your body, but I promise I’ll still be here in the morning.”

“Well you would be, love, it’s your apartment,” Killian joked and Emma rolled her eyes and shook her head, trying to pretend she didn’t love the banter. Then he got serious, taking her in his arms again and waiting for her to meet his gaze. “Besides, my waiting has nothing to do with trust. I know the goodness in your heart, Swan. I know you’re a woman of your word.”

“But…?” Emma asked, curious as to what still held him back.

“But when I finally have you in bed, Emma, I want you to be sure. I want you on the exact same page as me. The one that says this thing between us isn’t ending, at least not any time soon.”

Emma couldn’t be entirely sure, since she wasn’t a mind reader, but it felt like those last few words weren’t the exact ones that Killian had wanted to say. Maybe she was projecting, but it felt like he didn’t want her to imagine this ending period, and if that was the case he still didn’t have much to fear. As crazy as it was, and as foreign as falling so deeply into a relationship was to Emma, she was in this too. She knew the way they fit together, the way it was easy and how even the complicated messy parts still seemed right. She knew that she had given more of herself already to Killian than she had to so many men in her past, and that even without the sex she felt more intimately connected to him than most people did with anyone. It didn’t matter that he was this big soccer star or that their lives were both crazy busy – they’d been finding a way to each other for weeks now, always carving out the time to truly give this all they could. But, Emma didn’t know what words he wanted exactly or what she could do to prove to him that she was in this. So far her plans hadn’t ever worked. They’d all led to moments like this, moments that were sweet and sincere but not all that she wanted.

Frustrated with her own lack of ability to sort this out, Emma did the only thing that felt right. She pulled him in for another kiss before her doorway, melting into it as she always did and luxuriating in the heat and passion that flared bright between them. Killian Jones was a hell of a kisser, but more than that he had this way of holding her and giving off this warmth and this sense of protection. They were in the middle of her freaking hallway, in plain view of any of her neighbors, but they might as well have been in a world all their own. Emma was lost in this and in him, reveling in the lines of his hard body as she moved against him. She took an indescribable amount of pleasure from the groan/growl that came from Killian before his lips set on hers again, and she swore she was getting through to him too, expressing what she couldn’t in words until an unfortunate interruption came barging in.

“Emma, we know you’re out here!” The door opened but Emma and Killian processed it just a second too slowly to not be caught. They broke apart, but still stayed close, flustered, but together all the same. “What’s taking so long- oh, crap! I’m sorry! So sorry!”

The door slammed back in Emma and Killian’s faces, but the commentary this evening had come from an unexpected source. It would be one thing if it were Ruby who had interrupted. Emma could totally see that happening (since it had come close to occurring before), but the culprit of this interruption was her friend Elsa, someone who never would have dreamed of such an infringement. It was a break in politeness Elsa could never forgive, and Emma knew her friend was probably on the other side of the door blushing like crazy and mentally berating herself. Then another voice sounded through the door.

“I told you not to rush her, Els,” Ruby said, sounding pleased as freaking punch that Elsa hadn’t listened.

“You didn’t say she had a date tonight!” Elsa whisper-shrieked, losing some of her composure. “You should have told me! Not cool, Ruby.”

“But real talk, what were they doing?” Ruby asked, ignoring that last part.

“Kissing!” another voice that was definitely Mary Margaret said with the gleeful giggle that only ever came when her friend had wine. “Definitely kissing.”

“Do you think? I thought Killian was taking it slow,” Belle mused and Emma squeaked out a sharp sound of embarrassment because Killian had definitely heard that.

“Slow doesn’t mean the man is dead, Belle. It’s not an Austen novel. There are more than stolen glances and heart eyes between those two.”

Emma groaned aloud now. Jesus, it was a certifiable party in there and now everyone was discussing her love life in full volume. She would die of mortification if she could, but then she met Killian’s eyes and saw the grin he had going and somehow that instinct to hide and to cower faded away. He wasn’t looking at her like she was the crazy girl with even crazier friends. No, Killian Jones was looking at her like she was the best thing he had ever seen, and Emma was powerless to feel anything less than thrilled. Then his fingertips came to brush a piece of hair that had fallen from her ponytail back behind her ear and she shivered at the contact.

“I guess in your imagining of this there’s also a little more privacy when things finally happen, right?” Emma asked, now very very glad she hadn’t convinced Killian to come in. He chuckled at that.

“Aye, love. It seems you’ve got a full house, but I’m certain you didn’t realize you would when you offered.”

“Definitely not,” Emma agreed, her hand running down her chest as she sighed. “Well I guess that’s it then.”

“Hardly,” Killian replied before bringing her in again and dazzling her all over with another heated kiss. It was tantalizing and dizzying, a kiss designed to entice her and remind her of something she never forgot – that she wanted Killian, and she wanted him bad. But it was also too short, too brief for Emma to come even close to satisfied, and it took everything not to moan at the loss when he pulled back, his eyes having gone darker as they held hers spellbound. “This is far from over, Emma. I’ll convince you of that soon enough, but you can be sure that when I do we’ll have two critical things – distance from the rest of the world, and time.”

“Time?” Emma asked, still distracted from the kiss.

“Time,” Killian responded.

That one word sparking about a dozen fantasies of what she and Killian could do with all of that desirable time. Unfortunately noises from inside intruded again, and with one last goodbye and a promise that he’d call her tomorrow when the team had landed in Denver for their next game she headed inside to face the rabble-rousing crowd currently camped out in her living room.

The chatter going on once Emma closed the door behind her gave the appearance that her friends were engaged in some kind of conversation, but Emma didn’t need to hear the particulars to know that it was staged at this point. She and Killian had no doubt been the hot topic since Elsa’s opening the door, so walking in to hear Mary Margaret discussing a new cupcake recipe she’d tried this week sounded a little less than organic.

“I must have missed the memo on girl’s night this week,” Emma said calmly, sizing all of her friends up and seeing the ranging senses of shame or regret. There was Elsa, who looked just as stricken as she did before, followed closely by Belle who gave a definite ‘I’m sorry’ vibe through her expression. Mary Margaret looked slightly torn, clearly chomping at the bit to ask questions but also wanting to be respectful, but Ruby – always predictable Ruby – went right in for the kill.

“I called an emergency meeting, Emma. A situation like yours requires immediate back up.”

“Excuse me?” Emma asked, halting mid-step. “My situation? What does that even mean?”

“It means that you have a sinfully sexy soccer star traipsing all over this city with you, calling you when he’s away, sending you things just because they make you smile, basically killing it as boy friend material and you’re still hesitating.”

Emma scoffed at the idea. She was hesitating? Wow clearly her friends were off the mark with this one. They thought that she was the one who was taking things slowly, but they couldn’t be more wrong. Emma didn’t know how to feel about that. On the one hand she was glad that Ruby hadn’t been eavesdropping through the door during these goodbye moments (something Emma would not have put past her), but on the other hand it was kind of rude to have her friends plotting an intervention for a problem she didn’t have.

“Did it ever occur to you that hosting an intervention might complicate matters if I were hesitating and decided to finally give in?” Emma asked and Ruby tilted her head considering.

“Nope, but was he coming in tonight?” Ruby asked and Emma sighed and shrugged off her jacket before shaking her head no. “See! Hesitating.”

“Oh I don’t think she’s hesitating,” Elsa said before covering her mouth, as if she were shocked by the fact that she’d commented. “Sorry, Emma.”

“It’s fine,” Emma sighed, the feeling she had of agitation a moment ago slipping away. “And for the record Elsa’s right. I’m not.”

“So why the molasses pace?” Belle asked, surprising Emma with the bluntness of it. Belle wasn’t exactly known for jumping into bed with people. She didn’t do casual hook ups, so her thought that three weeks was a long wait was striking to Emma. Then Belle explained the inconsistency. “Sorry, Ruby’s words.”

Of course they were, and though they were hyperbolic Emma smiled despite herself. She was a person who valued her privacy and who didn’t love to be confronted about things she saw as personal, but the reality was that her friends were more than friends. They were her sisters, her family, and the best part of family was sticking together and knowing that through whatever came you could count on them.

“I’m assuming everything I say never leaves this room…” Emma said, to which all of her friends swore agreement. With their word delivered, Emma finally sat down on the couch between Mary Margaret and Elsa. “We’re taking it slow because Killian wants us to. It matters to him that we do this right.” Belle and Mary Margaret sighed dreamily at the confession.

“What could be more right than good sex? Nay, epic sex even,” Ruby asked. At this Mary Margaret interjected.

“Maybe love? I bet he’s a big romantic isn’t he, Emma?” Emma nodded at her friend’s question.

“He is. I didn’t expect it, but he’s thoughtful and present and interested, and I know that everything he does he does because he cares. It’s just…”

“You want more,” all of her friends said at once, causing them all to chuckle as Emma agreed.

“I want more.”

“And what did he say when you told him that?” Belle asked quizzically. “What were his exact words?”

Emma didn’t even need time to think on them, she just reiterated the words that were engraved in the memory of this evening. Unsurprisingly her friends all swooned a bit at his phrasing, and a mention or two of that damn accent was thrown around, but there was no deflection allowed on Emma’s part. Her friends wanted to know how she truly felt and she had no choice but to be honest.

“I’m falling for him, you guys. It’s fast, and it’s terrifying, but I can’t seem to help it,” Emma mused, her heart skipping a beat as she confessed these feelings aloud for the first time.

“Falling?” Ruby said with a laugh. “Honey you already fell. You’re not even trying to hide that, and neither is Killian.”

“Maybe,” Emma said, which by her standards might as well have been a shout from the rooftops that she was in love with Killian. “But I don’t have the words for that yet. If that’s what he needs for me to be ready… Let’s just say I have to find another way. At least for now.”

Her friends all volleyed around ideas of ways that Emma could say or do something to take that next step with Killian without throwing around that four letter ‘L’ word that had no business appearing so early in a relationship. But it was Elsa in the end who gave the wisest counsel and who got through to Emma in the way she truly needed.

“I think we all might be over thinking this. It’s not about looking to others, Emma. It’s about looking to yourself. How have you always expressed yourself? Where in your life can your emotions really live?”

“Music,” Emma whispered with a smile, one that Elsa immediately matched. No doubt her friend understood better than the others what it meant to find answers in music. It was a totally personal and undeniable experience to create that way, and it was also Emma at her most vulnerable, sharing a part of her heart and her thoughts with someone else.

“That’s genius! A love song! Emma you can do the melody, Belle can write the lyrics – I’ll do lead vocals of course. Mary Margaret how do you feel about tambourine?” Emma gaped at Ruby’s words, thinking she was serious but then her friend broke and laughed aloud. “Kidding! I’m totally kidding. This is all you, Ems, as it should be.”

“Definitely,” Mary Margaret agreed. “And from now on we promise no more interfering.” Emma blinked at that, trying not to laugh right in her friend’s face, but the giggle escaped all the same when Mary Margaret clarified. “Actually, scratch that. We need attainable goals… Hmm, let’s see. How about we promise no more interfering this year?”

“Eh, maybe this month?” Belle offered with her own laugh, tossing a pointed look at Ruby before Elsa chimed in.

“I give it a week max.”

“Oh hush. We will carry on as we always have. And do you know why?” Ruby asked rhetorically. “Because everything we do we do out of love and Emma knows that. Don’t you, Emma?”

“Yup. But just remember, what goes around comes around. And since some of you have intrigues of your own popping up,” she said looking to Ruby and Mary Margaret specifically. “You might want to keep that in mind.”

To that the friends all agreed, moving from Emma’s love life to other topics and enjoying a lovely evening together. And as she enjoyed the rest of the night with her very best friends, Emma found herself smiling about how good things were right now and how great they would be when she put this new plan into motion. Tomorrow she’d start crafting her way to show Killian their truth, and she knew in her heart this was the perfect way to show him she was ready. Soon enough she’d have what she wanted, and the best part about it was she’d do it her way and stay true to herself in the process.

Post-Note: So as I said this is a fluffy installment with both CS cuteness and also humorous friend time. I know I know, to some of you I am a tease and this has been described by a number of you as ‘torturous’ and ‘highly unfair’ but I’ll just go ahead and spoil for you guys - we get to the smut next chapter. To those of you have been hounding me about slow burn on this, I hope you’ll finally be appeased, but in the meantime I hope this was a good addition to the story for you all. Let me know what you thought and have a great rest of your weekend!

[junker-town]

Tom Brady’s game is finally declining (for now)

Photo by Elsa/Getty Images

Brady’s play has slipped in his age 42 season, but there’s room for a comeback.

The Patriots’ offense had a major opportunity to thrive against the Eagles’ diminished cornerback corps in Week 11. Philadelphia had allowed 300+ passing yards in four of its first six games, a stretch that only ended thanks to a midseason QB lineup that included non-stars like Josh Allen and Mitchell Trubisky.

That matchup shined with the promise of a throwback Tom Brady performance, especially with 2019 first-round pick N’Keal Harry making his NFL debut. Instead, the six-time Super Bowl winner sputtered. He needed 47 passes to throw for just 216 yards and threw one fewer touchdown pass than wide receiver Julian Edelman. Any toss more than 15 yards downfield was a lost cause:

This wasn’t particularly surprising. Through 10 weeks of his age 42 season, Brady is on pace to throw the fewest touchdowns he ever has in a full 16-game campaign (22) while averaging his lowest yards-per-pass (6.8) number since George W. Bush was president. It’s possible Sunday’s low-impact performance was a sign the Eagles’ secondary has tightened up after a rough start, but it may be time to consider Brady is headed for a statistical downturn as he nears his mid-40s.

Brady is throwing shorter passes (and not especially well)

Brady was clearly unhappy with that performance. After he was asked if his team’s sudden lack of offensive firepower was fixable with more reps, the two-time MVP was dejected, but optimistic.

“Yeah. I think that’s right, practice and execution,” he told reporters after the game.

“[The Patriots offense is] up and down, what it looks like to me. Probably do everything better.”

For Brady, that means shedding the long list of checkdowns and dump-off passes on which he’s grown dependent and replacing them with longer throws. His past Patriots offenses have thrived behind an intermediate-range passing game that’s flustered linebackers and safeties downfield.

Those throws haven’t been as devastating this fall. The 42-year-old has been forced to throw the ball more often in 2019 thanks to an ineffective running game that’s averaged only 3.3 yards per carry. These extra passes aren’t going very far.

Brady’s averaged 37.5 attempts per game when you separate out clock stopping spikes and throw-aways. That’s up from 34.0 last year, but the number of passes he’s thrown 11+ yards downfield has remained roughly the same — 10.8 passes in 2018 vs. 10.9 this fall.

Of Brady’s 37.5 attempts per game, nearly seven of those, on average, are caught behind the line of scrimmage. Another 20(ish) travel only 1 to 10 yards downfield. After averaging 8.8 air yards per throw in his 2017 MVP campaign, that number is down two full yards to 6.8 in 2019.

He’s completed 74.4 percent of his short-range passes. When you look at the roughly 11 attempts per game that fly 11+ yards in the air, that efficiency drops to 52.3 percent.

While his deep ball rate has spiked on 4.5 attempts per game (more than he threw in 2018 but fewer than in 2017’s MVP campaign), his intermediate passing game — the 11-20 yard routes once dominated by Rob Gronkowski — has dropped significantly. As a result, Brady’s thrown more screen passes than ever. Sometimes he hasn’t even done that well:

Tom's still got it pic.twitter.com/XsTp6FS7F4

— Christian D'Andrea (@TrainIsland) November 4, 2019

There’s also been a nagging feeling Brady hasn’t been completely in sync with his wideouts, especially when it comes to long routes. Sunday’s performance in Philadelphia saw him either hang passes just long enough for the Eagles’ embattled corners to catch up and make a play or overthrow targets he may have thought were a step faster than they actually were. The most common victims of the latter were Mohamed Sanu, who’d tweaked his ankle earlier in the game, and a soon-to-be 39-year-old Ben Watson.

Per Sports Info Solutions, Brady’s on-target pass rate has fallen from 72.3 to 66.7 in a season where he’s throwing more short passes than ever. The Patriot offense has suffered as a result.

After averaging 5.9, 6.0, and 5.9 yards per play the previous three seasons, this year’s squad clocks in at 5.1 — 24th best in the NFL. Second-year tailback Sony Michel has slumped badly, averaging just 3.3 yards per carry (down from 4.5 as a rookie) and necessitating some of the additional short-range throws Brady’s had to dial up.

There can be some debate as to whether Brady’s sudden decline has affected his runners or if their inability to counterpunch against opposing defenses has limited the New England passing game. The most likely explanation is that neither side is playing up to expectations. And there are some plausible reasons behind that.

This can all get better before the end of the season (and probably will, because it’s the Patriots)

Brady’s been forced to deal with plenty of turnover in his lineup. The offensive line was thrown into patch mode when David Andrews (blood clots) and Isaiah Wynn (toe injury) both landed on injured reserve early. Wynn was activated Tuesday and will be eligible to play in Week 12 against the Cowboys. That’s a boon for a team that’s been forced to protect Brady’s blindside with September free agent signee Marshall Newhouse.

This is what Tom Brady has been dealing with all season at Left Tackle. Marshall Newhouse.pic.twitter.com/Aahr385iR2

— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) November 17, 2019

His receiving corps has also gone through flux. Josh Gordon was released, Antonio Brown failed to work out, and 2019 first-round pick Harry didn’t make his debut until Week 11 thanks to injury.

That’s forced Brady to spread the ball up and down the roster. He’s completed passes to 17 different Patriots, which is already a personal best for the veteran QB. Getting his top rookie Harry in the lineup is found money, and Brady’s budding relationship with Sanu — acquired before the trade deadline for a second-round pick — should boost the team’s intermediate and long-range passing game.

The tight end rotation is still a mess. Watson leads that group with 124 yards, which is a number Gronk eclipsed in 11 different games in his career with the Pats. He’s got seven catches in his last two games, however, so he might be building a stable connection with the quarterback who welcomed him to the league in 2004.

Brady’s start to 2019 left room for improvement, and the team’s November additions should give him the tools to get there. While he’s been off target more often than in most years, he’s still shown the tools to dial up a throwback GOAT performance when needed.

Tom Brady couldn't hit James White on a screen pass from 7 yards away on his first throw of the game but 30 yards downfield on a perfect back shoulder throw? no problem pic.twitter.com/ebi9caHI4T

— Christian D'Andrea (@TrainIsland) November 4, 2019

And even if he can’t, he’s still got the league’s top defense — in both yards and points allowed this fall — at the ready. That group gave up 10 points and 147 yards to the Eagles in their first three drives in Week 11, then clamped shut to limit Philadelphia to zero points and 108 yards over its final 10 drives.

So yeah, Tom Brady is worse in 2019 than he’s been in a long time. But he’s still Tom Brady. He’s still playing with Bill Belichick. Buy into his demise at your own risk.

[emma-swan]

love, emma [4/5]

summary: boy/girl friendships can be quite complicated sometimes—especially when said boy’s in love with said girl and and the whole world seems to know about it but her. a modern day young captain swan au, loosely based off love, rosie.

note: i honestly have no words. none at all. it’s been a year and a half, almost, since i last updated this. i don’t even know what to say about the muse, but i will say that the last chapter’s already planned! so just a bit more to go. a million and one special thanks go out to @ive-always-been-a-pirate who has been my constant cheerleader when it comes to this. this one’s for you, honestly. happy christmas, valetine’s day, and birthday. ten years later, right @optomisticgirl? without further ado, enjoy! feel free to reblog and add tags or comments, as i’ll read them all, both here and on the other websites!

jump back: [one] | [two] | [three]

also on: [ao3] | [ff.net]

As the post-Christmas/pre-New Year’s Eve snowfall begins to pick up with the wind, covering the bottom edges of the window of the hospital room, a red-headed nurse continues her morning rounds.

Checking the numbers on the machine, she writes them down with frown. The numbers read the same as they have for the last couple of days, with no sign of change.

"It'd be nice to see your eyes one of these days." She walks over to the other side of his bed to look over the other machines.

"Oh, I should introduce myself!” She points to the name tag on her scrubs. “Ariel," she says softly. "That's my name. We should be on first name basis considering you're the first patient I see when I make my way around this place."

They switched the rotations two days before Christmas and while many nurses usually weren’t a fan of the comatose patients, Ariel didn’t mind.

Sure, the constant beeping of the machines, the whirring and hisses from the ventilator are enough to drive anyone mad on a day to day basis but if the loved ones of the patients can put up with it when they visit, so can she.

She’s in the midst of scribbling down a few notes, some for the doctor, some for herself, when the door flies open. In walks a woman, flustered at the sight of her.

“Hi,” she says, extending her hand out to the visitor. “Ariel. Mr. Jones’s new nurse.”

“You can call him Liam,” the woman says, giving Ariel’s hand a quick shake. “He’d prefer it.”

Ariel nods, jotting that down for herself. She can see the hesitancy in her stance clear as day. Quickly excusing herself, she drops her charts down and bids Liam and the woman a farewell.

The way the woman quickly reaches for Liam’s hand and sits down on the edge of the bed isn’t lost to her at all.

-

Henry finds out first.

He doesn't know how but he finds this out after his visit to Liam, three days after receiving the letter, when he spots the young boy yelling at his mother while she stands there, near tears. He was certain he was careful to hide the letter from Emma. He should have known that hiding it from Emma didn’t mean he’d be able to hide it from Henry.

(In hindsight, he should have carried that letter with him, even if it felt like the heaviest weight imaginable.)

“You wanted to push grandma away before and now you want to push Killian away!”

“Hey!” Killian interjects, shutting the door behind him. He approaches them, stopping just a few paces away from Henry. “Now, you know that's no way to speak to your mother, lad.”

“So you want to leave us? Leave me?”

He doesn't know what's more heartbreaking: Henry looking up at him with those big expressive eyes, about to cry, or Emma standing behind him, hand covering her mouth as she silently cries.

(Both. They both break his heart, because a stupid, impulsive decision and its consequences are tearing his family apart.)

“Of course not, Henry.” He crouches down, level with him, placing his hands on his arms. “But sometimes we have to do things we don't want to do. This is one of them.”

Henry rips his arms away from his hold with a furrow of his brows and a shake of his head before running up the stairs. He doesn't flinch until he hears the sound of a door slamming upstairs.

“Emma,” he begins to say, standing up.

She holds a hand up and shakes her head.

“Don't. I can't. Not right now,” she says. “I need some air. Just...watch him. It's the least you can do before you go.”

She grabs her coat from the hook and heads out, slamming the front door on her way out.

(He deserves that. Scratch that. He deserves everything and more coming his way.)

-

Ariel throws her hair over her shoulder, scribbling down a few numbers on some lines, a few notes below.

Nothing changes. Nothing has changed since she's been assigned to Liam Jones. They’ll probably think she's lost her mind for talking to a comatose patient, but sometimes she swears he can hear her.

She has to remind herself they’re called Christmas miracles and not New Year’s Eve miracles.

“Your brother stopped by today,” she says, adjusting the book left behind yesterday. “I didn't mean to eavesdrop but he said something about a long departure. Vacation maybe?”

She flips the book open to the front cover, seeing the shaky letters of a child spelling out ‘PROPERTY OF HENRY SWAN’. That answers yesterday’s question.

“You also had another visitor today. She and your brother bumped into each other in the hall,” she continues, holding the chart against her chest. “Does your brother know you're involved with her?”

She swears she hears a brief switch in his heart rhythm, but by the time she makes her way around to check for fluctuations, it's gone. The history shows nothing, either.

“I'll be back tomorrow. You'd better have an interesting story to share, too,” Ariel says. She reaches down and gives his arm a squeeze before walking out of the room and onto the next one.

-

The days pass much too quickly for their liking. With each new morning after Christmas, they’re reminded of the fewer ones they have left together before his departure. She hasn’t banished him off to the couch yet, both having agreed to act at least somewhat normal for Henry’s sake. After all, they wanted him as unaffected by this as possible.

(She doesn’t see how that’s likely considering he found the letter, but that’s neither here nor there right now.)

They fall asleep with enough room for Henry between them and awake with just the same. It isn’t until the morning of New Year’s Eve when she wakes up in his arms, limbs tangled together, and doesn’t make an effort to move.

“You’re awake,” he says, chest rumbling against her cheek as he speaks.

“So are you.”

His hand snakes its way into her hair, fingers giving a gentle tug as he tilts her head up to his. Her fingers at his back tighten on his shirt, breath caught in her throat as his lips near hers. She only blinks, eyes glancing down to his lips then back up at his own, before he kisses her.

She stills, ready to protest about morning breath and other things, but when he pulls away and looks down at her, it all seems so trivial in the grand scheme of things. So she tugs him forward again, hand at the nape of his neck as she crashes her lips onto his.

He nudges her onto her back, tongue moving against hers in a way that has her feeling like this is more than just a few days of pent up frustrations—like this might be goodbye. Her head’s still spinning when he sits up, reaching behind him to tug his shirt off.

“The door,” Emma says, trying to catch her breath.

Killian shakes his head. “It’s fine. Everyone’s still asleep.”

He swallows her protests with his mouth, lips on hers once more. His fingers only reach underneath her shirt, skim along her ribs, before their door’s thrown open. They jump apart, Emma holding the blanket up to her chest as Killian hides underneath.

“Uh, what are you guys doing?” Henry asks as he stands by the door.

“We were…” Killian begins to say.

Emma quickly adds an, “About to make coffee.”

Henry raises an eyebrow that’s so clearly Killian, making Emma’s heart race then and there 

“Well, don’t bother,” the boy says, hand still on the doorknob. “Grandma’s making some downstairs. She sent me to get you two for breakfast.”

“We’ll be right down, lad.”

He offers them another weird look before heading out and shutting the door behind him 

So much for everyone being asleep, Emma thinks as she glances over at Killian. He hesitates for a moment before relaxing into the mattress. There’s a smile on his face for a split second before it slowly fades.

It only takes a moment for the smile on her face to fade too, as the morning, the day, and his impending departure all seem to dawn on her, too.

It’s no better when they arrive downstairs. Ingrid quickly sends them both off on errands, last minute things that need to be bought or picked up before the new year arrives. While the time out of the house, together, would have lifted their moods, the air remains thick with the realization that they may not have this come next year.

(Henry opting to stay home brings back the pain once more.)

-

Potlucks held at a diner don’t make so much sense, except when it’s the only place big enough to house everyone Ruby and Granny have invited. It’s not the first time Emma, Henry, Ingrid and Elsa spend at the diner, ringing in the new year.

It is the first time, in quite a long time, that they’re not joined by the elder Jones brother but by the younger.

He figured the normalcy of the last few days would have carried through until tonight. He figures, after his second glass of rum by the counter, that he shouldn’t have assumed such things. The moment Emma stepped through those diner doors, she had gravitated toward Graham and Ruby.

If it weren’t for David keeping him company, he would have done something to stop the twitch in his jaw.

He tries not to look over at her all night, truly plans on allowing her to continue avoiding him until the sun comes up, but he cracks when the countdown to midnight starts. He sees the way she slips away from the crowds as couples gather together, readying for the midnight kiss 

Ten.

He picks up his glass.

Nine.

He knocks back whatever’s left, eyes never leaving hers.

Eight.

Oh God, that shouldn’t still burn.

Seven.

He places the glass back down.

Six.

He gets up from his stool.

Five. 

They make eye contact.

Four.

He walks over to her.

Three.

He licks his lips.

Two.

He grabs onto her waist.

One.

He kisses her.

Happy New Year!

Everything else falls away the minute their lips touch. The letter, the anger, the avoidance all seem like things of the past as he pulls her closer to him. Her hands come up, both resting on his chest. He expects her to push her away, to break their little bubble, but she does the opposite.

She grabs onto the jacket he had slipped on a while ago, when he had thought about just leaving before midnight came, and pulls him closer to deepen the kiss. He’s pretty sure he moans at the feeling of her tongue finding his but he can’t seem to care when she’s still here in front of him and they still have some time left. 

Except, even that time’s cut short. Someone coughs, loudly, and has them jumping away from each other like they’ve been burned. Emma doesn’t wait for everyone’s reactions or from word from Killian or anything. She simply pulls away from him and heads to the back, away from the whispers that begin in the wake of their actions.

He, once again, ends up alone.

-

Emma and Killian stand outside Liam’s door as Henry sits inside, storybook open in his lap. While she didn't wish to be here today—it's the day before Killian leaves and ever since the New Year’s Eve midnight kiss, she's been avoiding him like the first time he left—Killian insisted on letting an overly eager Henry tag along.

Neither one of them thought that would mean getting kicked out of the room because Henry has “important things to discuss” with his comatose uncle. His voice carries out the still opened door, talks of fairytale characters and true love and happy endings making her chest ache.

She won't get any of that, because her real world happy ending and true love happen stands before her, ready to leave in twenty-four hours, unsure of when he’ll return.

“I think that makes you Captain Hook’s brother,” Henry’s voice carries, followed by the sound of pages being flipped. “Except he’s dead and you're just asleep. So maybe you aren't.”

Emma crosses her arms and leans against the wall on one side of the door. She glances over at Killian, position mimicking her own, and can't help but shake her head at the small grin appearing on his face. Ever since Henry had taken to storytelling and this book, he's always compared them to characters in it. Emma always told him otherwise; a story without Henry in it was not one with her happy ending.

Killian? Well, Killian probably enjoyed being compared to Captain Hook, of all people. All she got was the lost Swan Princess.

“I asked my mom once if maybe we were cursed, like the people in this book,” Henry says softly. “She said no, because she has me and Da—Killian. And cursed people aren't happy like she is.”

She casts her eyes down to the floor, feeling the blush start to creep up her cheeks at that. She remembers exactly when she said that: when she felt like her family was finally complete.

“Was happy, I guess. Because now he’s leaving us. Me.”

She doesn't register Killian’s presence until she opens her eyes and looks down at the boots against her own, toe to toe. His hands are warm as they cup her face, tilting his head up to hers. She sees the tear slip from his eye and knows this is killing him just as much as it’s killing them.

“Please don't leave me, too,” Henry says.

She grips his henley tight, afraid of what her hands might do if she lets go in that moment. He doesn't seem to be, because milliseconds later he presses his forehead against hers, noses brushing. If she inches forward she knows they’ll kiss and it won't be like last time because the anger’s morphed into hurt and she’ll take what she can get at this point.

Their lips only brush against one another’s before Henry’s frantically shouting for both of them, causing them to jump apart. Killian grips her hand and tugs her into the room with him, stopping still at the sight before him.

“Killian! What are you—” she begins to say but falls silent when the sight catches up with her too.

There, before them, stands a shocked Henry, held in place. That thing keeping him in place?

Liam’s hand on his arm.

“Everything okay in here?” Ariel asks, appearing behind them by the door. She takes one look at the stunned family before she looks over at the man in the hospital bed and her eyes widen.

“Oh.”

(Except that last voice doesn't belong to Ariel at all.)

-

If you were to tell Killian this morning that—on his last day in town—he’d be mediating his comatose brother’s love life, he’d laugh at you. Yet, here he sits, inside his brother’s hospital room, talking to Tink of all people.

(It’s a shame that of all nicknames she’s had over the years, this one stuck most of all.)

She’s explained it, twice, and still Killian doesn’t understand. He doesn’t understand why she feels obligated to visit so often; what the phone call—just before his accident—between the two of them means; how Elsa’s been making her own regular visits here, too, and the two have yet to bump into one another, nevermind Elsa never mentioning being on the outs with his brother.

Emma only shifts in her seat, watching the conversation unfold. She had offered to step out of the room, but one quick look from Killian and she knew he couldn’t be left alone. Not with this. After all, Tink’s been her friend since she first walked into town and Killian’s known her for what seems like forever.

Maybe that’s why neither of them can quite process the story of Elsa and Tink and the comatose man there before them 

“So you’re dating my brother?” Killian asks for the third time this afternoon 

“No!” Tink quickly says. She opens her mouth to speak then shuts it, shaking her head. She takes a moment to compose herself, to find the right words, before she crosses her arms over her chest. “It’s complicated. Just...not the kind you think.”

Ariel could only keep Henry away for so long, it seems. Before Killian can ask another question, the two of them return from their trip to the cafeteria downstairs. He carries a small covered cup with him, and with the way he happily drinks it she’s certain it’s the hot chocolate he had been craving since this morning.

“Are we leaving yet?” he asks, making his way over to Emma.

“Right now,” Killian says, answering for her. He doesn’t wait for Tink to say anything, doesn’t say anything to Ariel either as he gathers Henry’s book and leads the boy out of the hospital room.

Emma only offers the two of them an apologetic look before she follows them out and down the hall. His silent demeanor continues as they step into the elevator so she opts for silently standing there, giving him his space; a quick glimpse at him and she’d be able to spot the clenched jaw, the emotions that swirl inside of him because of everything.

Him leaving. 

(His doing.)

The uncertainty of them going forward.

(His fault.)

Liam still in a coma.

(While not directly his fault, he’ll still take that blame on, too.)

He holds Henry a bit closer as they ride the elevator down; the young boy, for the most part, silently sips his hot chocolate as he leans against Killian. He finds comfort in knowing he hasn’t pulled away from him.

-

For one split moment, he forgets about it all. He forgets that he’s leaving in the morning, that he’s well on his way to splitting up his family, and that there’s nothing he can do to stop this.

As he steps back into their room, teeth brushed and face washed, he spots Emma curled up in bed. He wonders, briefly, if he should take the couch tonight, but her outstretched hand immediately answers that question.

“Thought you were asleep,” he says, settling into bed next to her.

She shakes her head before she rests her head against his chest. “Can’t sleep.”

It’s not long before their legs are tangled together, Killian’s arms wrapped around her as her head finds the crook of his neck. His heart’s racing, he can hear it, but she doesn’t seem to mind.

A small voice jolts them both from their peace. Emma lifts her head up just as Killian does, both of them spotting Henry by the door. He moves first, shifting the blanket out of the way as she waves him over.

He settles between them, resting his head against Killian’s chest as he grabs Emma’s arm and wraps it around him.

“Love, I—” he begins to say, but she just shakes her head.

“Don’t,” she tells him. “Let’s just enjoy this. Please.”

“Okay.”

He drops a kiss atop Henry’s head before sleep claims them all.

-

Saying he leaves like a thief in the night would be too kind, too poetic, too peaceful.

He leaves like a tornado leaving a path of destruction in its wake.

He spends the morning before his flight shoving articles of clothing haphazardly into his bag—though it’s not like he needs many.

Whatever happiness they experienced last night was fleeting at best. Henry ran off to his room the moment he awoke and hasn't uttered a word since he asked Ingrid for more cinnamon on his cocoa.

Killian doesn't need the reminder of his own kid not wanting to spend time with him to know he's messed up—badly.

The car ride to the airport’s spent in silence, Killian having said his goodbyes to Ingrid at the house before she left for the ice cream shop, leaving him with the two people he never expected to disappoint showing their complete, well, disappointment in him all the way there.

He expects her to just drop him off and drive away, knowing it’s what he’d deserve after all of this anyway. Still, Emma Swan proves just how much better she is than him. She parks and tells Henry to watch his step as he gets out, both of them planning on walking him inside.

Henry reaches for his hand the minute he hops out of the car, eyes unable to lift themselves from the ground. He almost breaks down then and there at the thought of leaving them and the realization that he doesn't deserve two kind people as them.

“You have your boarding pass?” Emma asks, stopping by the start of the security line.

Killian nods, waving his phone. “In here.”

“Passport?”

He nods, patting at the duffel bag on his side as Henry’s hand tightens around his own.

“So I guess this is it.”

(Little does he know those words will come to refer to more than just his departure.)

Before he can think about the line he’s to join soon, before the thoughts of his stupidity, his impulsivity come racing back into his mind, Emma grabs his jacket and pulls him to her. She presses one final kiss against his lips before pulling away to rest her forehead against his.

“Come back to me,” she whispers. He drops a kiss against her forehead, blinking back the tears that won’t seem to go away. 

The small tug on his hand brings him back to the airport, seeming to thrust him back into the fact that he’s leaving now. Crouching down, he drops a kiss against Henry’s cheek before enveloping the boy in his arms.

“Be good for your mum, you hear me?” he whispers, smiling once he feels Henry nod against his shoulder. “I’ll write and call as often as I can.”

“You promise?” Henry asks, pulling away. Killian nods, pressing another kiss against his forehead before he stands up.

Emma wipes her eyes, pointing to the security line. “Go. Before you miss your flight.”

He nods, leaning over to drop one last kiss against her lips. He watches as Henry slips over to her side, grabbing onto her hand so tightly his knuckles turn white.

And when he disappears into the crowd of people, they do too.

-

Months pass before they hear from him.

 He calls, briefly wishing Henry a happy birthday despite the actual date being a week or so away. He’ll be stationed somewhere far away, he tells them, but promises to send Henry a birthday card when the day arrives.

The day arrives but the card doesn’t; neither does a phone call.

At least, not one from him.

The frantic yet happy voice from the hospital letting them know that Liam’s regained the ability to breathe on his own again provides them with a bit of good news.

-

“Kid, get your feet off the bed,” Emma scolds, returning back to the hospital room with a jello cup and a small cupcake, courtesy of Ariel over at the nurses’ station. She drops both on the table above Liam’s bed, sliding it over to Henry.

Henry groans, shifting his feet off the edge of Liam’s bed before he turns his attention back to the book in his lap. 

Sure, spending the day visiting your not-as-comatose-not-quite-brother-in-law wasn’t the ideal way to pass the time on your day off, but if your kid asks to spend the day with his third favorite person the day after his birthday, who is she to deny him that request?

She knows it won’t make up for the fact that they spent the day hovering over her cell phone, waiting for a call from Killian that never came, but she hopes it’ll help. From the way he’s deflected any and all talk about him, she doesn’t think it will.

“If you’re not going to eat your cupcake, I’ll gladly take it off your hands,” she says, reaching for it once more. Henry simply narrows his eyes up at her, causing her to hold her hands up in surrender before she takes the vacant seat on the opposite side of Liam’s bed.

The man has a bit of color to him, now that he can breathe without the ventilator, but the fact that he hasn’t woken up yet worries them a bit. Sure, the doctors say that’s all normal and to be expected, but that hasn’t stopped them all from worrying that day won’t come.

Emma reaches for the remote atop the table, flipping through the channels until something catches her eye.

“Hey, look,” she says, pointing to the screen. “That looks like one of the boats Killian told us about, doesn’t it?”

“It’s not a boat, mom,” Henry says, looking up from his book. “It’s a—”

“Ship.”

Her eyes widen at the foreign voice, hoarse and raspy and evident of the lack of use in so long.

“It’s a ship.”

Henry slams his book shut, all but falling out of the chair as he steps closer to the bed, closer to the man stirring awake.

“Ariel!” Emma calls out, thumb frantically pressing the red button next to his bed. “Ariel, get in here!”

As the redhead enters the room, she stops, hand flying over her mouth in shock. Emma follows her gaze, not to the man on the bed but to the television screen where a new ship graces their screens and a familiar face scroll appears.

She freezes, eyes scanning the headline just above the red BREAKING NEWS bulletin.

EXPLOSION ON USS ROGERS DURING HOSTAGE SITUATION. CAPT. NEMO AND LT. K. JONES CONFIRMED STILL ON BOARD. 

to be continued...

tagging a few friends: @ive-always-been-a-pirate, @optomisticgirl, @lesliesbknope, @swankkat, @captainswanouat, @captainstudmuffin, @hookedoncaptswan, @hook-come-back-to-me, @swanemma, @sherifffjones, @shady-swan-jones, @timeless-love-story, @spartanguard, @swanemma and i don’t know who else to tag, and if i’ve forgotten to tag you i apologize but let me know for the next update and i will definitely tag you!

[kristannafever]

In The City of Angels - Chapter 17

Rated: M (Swearing, Smut sometimes, this one is always gonna be M)

Woah I had a way this was going to go in my head and it took a 180.  I honestly didn’t see this coming, even to myself, so this ended up being very fluffy....

Chapter Index

The last two weeks of shooting the movie had been brutal.  Kristoff was on set anywhere between 12 to 14 hours a day, and when he came home to Anna, he was too tired to do much else besides fall asleep on the couch.  He knew that she was working hard too, moving all her things in and decorating their house.  She had brought the livelihood of herself into his home, and he loved it.  Every day he came home to a new change, and it was wonderful to watch.  She had taken the stark masculinity that his home was, and turned it into the wonderfully vibrant and sunny home that was now theirs.

She was very patient with him, despite not getting to see him very much, and the fact that he was too beat up from the work schedule to do much of anything else besides eat and sleep when he was at home.  He had made love to Anna only twice in the entire two weeks, too tired most nights even if it was all that was on his mind.

They had filed restraining orders against Sunny and Hans.  Duke’s security team still patrolled their houses, but they had not heard or seen anything from either of them, which they were both greatly relieved for.  Kristoff hoped beyond all hope, that they would be left alone, and they would never have to see them again.

After the shorter last day of shooting was done, and the crew had all hugged and thanked each other, Kristoff drove home with a smile that was impossible to remove from his face.  He was glad that they had finished on time as he was dreading to have to spend any more time away from Anna.  He was also insanely grateful that he hadn’t yet signed on to do any other projects.  He wanted to take some time off, and be with his love.

When he got home he let his body fall onto the couch.  Anna was on him with a smile on her face.  “You done?”  She said.

He nodded.  “Yes, Thank God.  Now all I have is the wrap party on Friday and I can pretty much wipe my hands of this movie... well except for the press tour, and my God those suck.”

“Where’s your party?”  Anna asked, nuzzling his neck with her lips.

“Oh one of those places downtown I think.  I don’t remember,”  He laughed, realizing he didn't even care.

“Is it a couples thing?”  She asked, puling her head up and looking down into his eyes.

“Uh, yeah, of course.  Everyone always brings their significant others.  Do you, want to go with me?”  He asked gently, not wanting to push her.

She nodded  “I’ve been missing you so much I just want to spend time with you.”

“There will most definitely be papzz there.  Are you, uh, okay with that?”

She smiled, but Kristoff thought that maybe it was strained.  “I will be.  I decided I don’t care anymore.”

He laughed.  He couldn't help it.  “Oh, there is so much I’ve come to not care about since I met you.”

“Yes, I know.”  She said laughing with him.  “You know, I think when Elsa gets settled here, and we get to spend some quality time with her in our lives for a while, I might have a half a mind to move into the mountains with you.”  She put her lips on his and he couldn’t help but smile against her mouth.  It was music to his ears that she wanted to move away with him, where they could build a life in the forest in quiet isolation.  He knew that they had both made enough money that they would never have to work again, but he also knew that they would somehow find a new way to channel their creativity.  He knew that Anna would continue to write, and he thought that maybe he could take up making furniture, or something with his hands.  Perhaps he could take up building bikes?  Maybe they could find some way to combine their other loves into something that they could both show to the world.  He had no idea what they would do, but he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that they would be happy.

He imagined them having kids, maybe two or three, all running around with wanton abandon.  He wondered what they would look like.  He hoped they would both look like him and Anna, sharing both their traits, like those kids you often see that you can just tell, were made from their parents.

He imagined being snowed in with his family in the winter, when the white stuff would be piled high against their house.  He thought about how great it would be to tell stories by the fire, and read when the kids went to sleep, steeling kisses and making love when they were alone in their bed, hoping not to be disturbed.

He thought about how they might have a garden, and plant things together as a family in the spring, each picking their favorite vegetable and flower.  They could go out and tend it together, making the work light, and the rewards great.

He thought about all the times him and Anna could go riding together on the gorgeous mountain passes in the summer, and how when they returned home, they could sit by a campfire with their kids, roasting marshmallows for s’mores and telling ghost stories.  As the summer drew to a close, they would harvest their little garden and enjoy the bounty in a big feast, where they would invite friends and family to share.

He imagined going on Fall walks with their little family, picking up interesting and beautiful colored leaves to make crafts with.  They could spend their days in the beauty of autumn and return to warm stews and hot chocolate before bed.  He could see Anna constantly staring at the wonderful way the trees changed color in the fall, looking at him with the beauty reflected in her endlessly blue eyes.

“What are you thinking about?”  Anna asked.

Kristoff realized that he had zoned out with his exhaustion.  Anna was still laying on him, looking at him expectantly.  “Just day dreaming of our future.”  He said with a smile.

“Oh yeah?”  She asked.  “How many kids do we have?”

“Two or three.”  He said.

“Two.  A boy and a girl.”  Anna told him.  “Where do we live?”

“In the mountains.”  He said.  “In complete and utter isolation.”

She laughed.  “Surrounded by trees?  Maybe we will have a couple cats and dogs?  Maybe there will be a goldfish in the house somewhere?  And we will be forever chasing our kids around and picking up after them?”

He nodded.  “It sounds like a perfect life.”

She smiled at him so warmly that his heart ached.  “It does, and it will be.”

*****

He sat on the bed watching he in the bathroom mirror as she put makeup on.  It was truly something mesmerising to watch a woman apply mascara and lipstick.  It was somehow sensual.  Her eyes in the mirror flicked to his.  “You like the view?”  She waggled her backside slightly.

He smiled seductively and shook his head.  “You are trouble.” 

She gave him a wicked smile in return.  The doorbell rang before he could say anything about what he was thinking of doing with her.  “Car is here.”  He said instead.

She turned and looked at him, smoothing the front of her black dress.  The same one she had worn when they went dancing with Elsa. His breath still caught at the sight of her.  She oozed sex appeal, and he could feel himself getting flustered at the sight of her.

“Ready?”  She said.  All he could do was nod.

The ride in the car was quiet, and Kristoff could tell by the way Anna was sitting that she was nervous.  He held his hand out to her and she grabbed it, sqeezing gently.  She smiled at him, but he could see the apprehension within her.

When the car pulled up to the restaurant, Kristoff saw her eyes widen at the crowd of people that were gathered at the entrance with camrea’s in hand.  She looked at him and he was sad to see panic flash across her eyes.  He was used to the bombardment of camera flashes, but he remembered how disorienting it was the first time he had ever walked a red carpet.  He worried about Anna.  He knew how much she valued her anonymity.  He could see the headlines in his mind;

Kris Bjorgman, Action Star, seen with mysterious red-head

Who is she?  Kris Bjorgman steps out with a new woman on his arm.

How long will it last?  Bjorgman seeks love once again.

He groaned inwardly at the thought.  “If you don’t want to do this, you can take the car home.  Anna, I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”

She shook her head.  “I want to be with you Kristoff.  Just... don’t let go of me, okay?”

“I promise.”  He said, knowing that she was scared.  She nodded that she was ready, so he opened the door and the furor of flashes began.  He held his hand out for Anna and she grabbed it tightly as he helped her from the car.  She had a strained smile plastered on her face, but she still looked absolutely beautiful.  She wrapped her arm tightly around his offered elbow, and they walked towards the entrance.  Kristoff kept his eyes focused on the door, not wanting to meet the lens of any camera.  He could feel Anna’s grip on his arm tighten and he glanced at her to see she was staring at the ground, seeking solace from the barrage of pulsing light.  He put his free hand on hers and she relaxed a little beside him.

They made it to the door despite the disorientation, and Anna exhaled quickly with relief that they were out of the melee.  Kristoff softly pushed her into a corner before they entered the main part of the restaurant.  He hugged her tightly. “Are you okay?”  He whispered into her ear.

“Yes.”  She breathed.  “I don’t know how anyone could ever get used to that.”  She pushed back to look at him.  “It’s absolutely terrifying.”

He nodded sadly.  “I know.”

Her eyes were searching his, and he wondered what she was thinking about.  She opened her mouth to say something, but he could tell that she changed her mind.  She smiled.  “Shall we?”

He nodded and grabbed her hand with his elbow once more, and lead her into the restaurant.  It was crowded with people he recognized.  The entire place had been booked exclusively for them, of course, and people walked and mulled about on the dizzying array of lounge tables and soft couches.  Waiters in crisp white coats walked around balancing trays of food and champagne.  Women laughed and men chortled all around them, all dressed in designer clothes and wearing expensive jewelry.  He rolled his eyes and turned towards Anna, but the look on her face caught him by surprise.

“I feel under-dressed.”  He barely heard her. 

He stopped and pulled her shoulders to look at him, never letting his gaze leave her eyes.  “You are gorgeous Anna.”

“I, I didn’t even think to wear jewelry, or have my hair and make-up done...” 

“Anna, none of that matters.  Why would that matter?”

“But everyone is so-”

“Fake!”  Kristoff interrupted her a little too loudly, drawing glances from those nearby.  He looked around and grabbed her lightly by the shoulder and steered her towards the hall that lead to the bathrooms and the kitchen.  “Anna, everyone here is wearing a mask.  You have to understand that.  This is why I hate this part of my life right now.  It took me way too long to realize that no one in this business is as they seem.”

“But-”

“But nothing!  You are genuine.  You are not fake.  I am not fake.  People know that about me, and they will learn that about you.  Please don’t feel like you have to stack up to these people.  They mean nothing.”

She searched his eyes a moment before she sighed and shook her head.  “You’re right, I know, I’m sorry.  I don’t know what the hell came over me.”

He hugged her tightly to him and talked into her hair.  “If you want to leave right now I will go with you and that will not bother me one little bit.”

“No, I’m fine.”  She spoke into his chest, nuzzling herself against him a moment before she pulled back.  “I need a drink.”

He chuckled.  “You and me both.”

*****

Anna had calmed considerably after she had met many of his co-stars and the director and producer.  They were all very warm and friendly, something Kristoff could tell that she was not expecting from the way her grip on his hand tensed then relaxed upon meeting every new person. 

He was glad when her smile had become more genuine, rather than nervous.  She was also starting to talk more, after remaining mostly quiet for the first hour.  He wondered how much the alcohol was helping her.

They were talking to the junior producer when Anna quietly excused herself to go to the bathroom.  Kristoff could not help but watch her walk away, her lithe body moving delightfully beneath the fabric of her dress.  He turned back to continue the conversation but Mike was giving him a look.

“Ah, young love.”  He mused.

Kristoff felt himself blush.  Mike clapped a hand onto his shoulder.  “She is gorgous my friend.”

Kristoff mumbled a thanks as Mike walked away with his wife to talk to someone else.  He went to the bar to get him and Anna another drink, standing in line behind a couple who were stealing kisses. 

Kristoff couldn't help but to think of Anna’s lips on his, and his face broke out into a smile.

*****

Anna and Kristoff’s giggles filled the empty house as the stumbled in, drunk and happy.

“That was actually really fun.”  Anna slurred.

Kristoff nodded as he wobbled on his feet.  “It was, wasn’t it?”  He staggered over to her and gabbed her up into his arms.   “I think the only reason I had so much fun was because you were there.”  He said before he buried his head into her neck, giving her large sloppy kisses.

Anna giggled again.  “Oh Kristoff.”

“I love you Anna.  So much.”  Kristoff’s lips moved against her skin.

“I love you too.”  She breathed.  “Make love to me.”

Kristoff moved his lips to hers in answer and took her to the couch, too hungry to make the trip all the way up to the bedroom.

*****

Kristoff woke with a pounding headache.  He groaned loudly, feeling Anna shuffle at his side.  She was so close and warm against his body, that he didn’t want to move, but he desperately needed a pain-killer.  He moved to get up, completely forgetting that they had fallen asleep on the couch, and he toppled onto his stomach on the floor, gasping in surprise.

He moaned into the hardwood, and simply laid there, waiting until his head stopped hammered enough that he felt he could get up without falling right back down.

“You okay?”  He head Anna above him.

He nodded against the floor, not trusting himself to talk.  He still felt drunk.

“I think I’m still drunk.”  Anna said, echoing his thoughts that he could not help but let out a short laugh.

Kristoff sat up very slowly, and leaned his back against the front of the couch.  “I feel like shit.”  He groaned.

Anna slid her hands onto his shoulders and started massaging his tense neck muscles.  It felt exquisite and helped ease the pressure in his head.  “Me too.”  She said.

He leaned his head back into her lap, looking up into her eyes.  “I have a plan.” She looked at him expectably, though bloodshot eyes that he was sure mirrored his own.  “Lets get something for our headaches, get dressed in some comfy clothes, and then go find the biggest, greasiest breakfast we can.”

She grinned at him.  “Now that, is a plan.”

[seriouslyhooked]

Some Call It Magic (A CS AU) Part 17/17

When Killian Jones moves to Storybrooke he instantly senses something strange about this little town in Maine but he’s willing to overlook all the bizarre signs for one reason: the single Mum living next door to him. There’s only one problem. Killian is nearly positive she’s a witch, a brewing potions and casting spells witch. But when true love is involved, does a little thing like magical powers really matter? Story rated M.

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9,Part 10,Part 11, Part 12, Part 13, Part 14, Part 15, Part 16. Also On FF Here.

A/N: Hey everyone! So I am back with the last official chapter of Some Call It Magic (though I do have an eventual epilogue crafted in my head already, so not to worry, the fluff is not completely over it will just take some time to get here). It picks up a few months after the last chapter and includes some of my favorite elements of CS happy endings that I have written many times before. I am sure some of you have guesses of what those might be, but nevertheless I hope that you all enjoy and thank you so much for reading!

Since landing here in Storybrooke all those years ago, Emma had grown accustomed to the seasons. The summers were warm but breezy, though a serious heat wave or two did show up once or twice. The autumn, her favorite time of year, was pure magic, but often over too soon thanks to their northern region’s propensity for the cold. And the winters… well they usually seemed to drag on forever. There were no mild March days, heck, there were usually still snow storms in April, but the long slog of winter had come and gone just as quickly as all the other seasons of late, and suddenly spring was here with the flowers and the sunlight and the renewed hope that life and vibrancy and joy were back within the natural world once more.

Of course Emma hadn’t lost any of that sense of warmth during her winter months, instead finding a comfort and a solace that she cherished more and more with every passing day. Things were good – no, things were fantastic – and they were only on their way to getting better. In a little over a month the day she and Killian had been waiting for what felt like forever for would be here. Their wedding was drawing closer and closer, and on the summer solstice (chosen specifically because Henry insisted it would bring good luck) Emma would be walking down an aisle dressed in white and saying ‘I do’ to the only man the world over who could ever entice her into such a life. She was ready for it too, more ready than she’d ever been for anything, and it was hard to find the patience for that next step, though the happiness that she and her kid and Killian had already found was the surest cure to her wishing for more. Things were damn near perfect in the Jones/Swan household and Emma truly appreciated just how lucky she was to have any of this at all.

“If you keep daydreaming like that I’m making you put a dollar in the jar.”

Ruby’s teasing voice cut in from across the kitchen and Emma grinned as she looked up from the cookie dough she’d been absentmindedly tossing together, not bothering to argue that she had been distracted. It was just so easy for her mind to wander towards how good things were, and if that meant Emma had to fork up a few extra bucks a day and put them in a jar that Ruby had designed so that they could raise the funds for them and all their friends to go on a trip next year, then so be it. As far as Emma could tell it was a win-win: she got to linger in the happiness that was her life and invest in a vacation for all their friends that had been years in the making.

“Didn’t I hear you on the phone earlier?” Emma asked with a knowing smirk. “You know technically the rules include stolen conversations with your husband as being jar worthy too.”

“Fair enough. We’ll call this one a draw,” Ruby acquiesced and Emma only laughed, glad for the humor of it all and the genuinely joyous fact that Emma wasn’t the only one with a happily ever after to keep her occupied. All of her friends had found loves to hold and keep forever and that was a special thing indeed. “That being said your time is up, Ems, and Mary Margaret is adamant that we get our asses out there. Also apparently if we fail to bring chocolate cake there will be hell to pay.”

“What else is new?” Emma joked as she grabbed the treat for their weekly lunch and followed Ruby out into the café. Little did she know that this gathering was about to reveal quite a few new things all at once.

“Wait, so Will is moving here? Just like that?” Ruby asked, playing up her shock when Emma knew she was anything but. Everyone had seen how swiftly the connection had formed between Killian’s friend and Belle over the Christmas holiday and in the months following. It was just a matter of time before one of them relocated, and since Belle had always loved this town and her friends and family here, Emma had never imagined that she would be the one to leave.

“Yeah, just like that,” Belle said with a cheerful smile. “Can you believe it?”

The friends all agreed that they could and offered their congratulations to Belle. Emma was actually even more excited if it was possible, not just because Belle had found her special someone, but because this meant that the last piece of Killian’s old life that he really valued would be coming back into place. Having Will in Storybrooke would no doubt be a comfort to him, and now that she thought about it, Emma doubted there was any way Killian hadn’t already known his friend’s intention. She made a mental note to ask him about that later, but then Elsa had some news of her own to share which distracted Emma from the personal musings.

“I’m going to ask Liam to marry me,” Elsa blurted out before anyone else could fill the silence, and at the proclamation and all the friends’ jaw’s dropped. They were each of them stunned into silence, a rare state for most of them, and it was obvious to Elsa that she’d truly surprised them all with her intentions. “What? I love him guys, you know that.”

“We do, Elsa, and he loves you too,” Emma said, finding her words first and trying to soothe the anxiety that their collective shock had sparked for Elsa. “We’re just surprised. Are you sure you want to be the one to ask? If Liam is anything like his brother – which we both know he is – then he’ll have it all planned. It’ll be perfect.” The other friends nodded their agreement but Elsa just sighed.

“I know, I just… I don’t know. I don’t want to wait anymore. All this talk of Emma’s wedding has just made it more and more clear to me that I want that too. So why wait? Anything could happen, so why waste time when we know it’s right?”

“You’re right, Elsa,” Belle agreed, taking her hand in a supportive gesture. “If this is what your heart is telling you to do then you should do it.”

Everyone else agreed with the assessment but there was one noticeable silence in the group and it came from a source usually filled with commentary, especially when it came to Elsa’s love life: Anna was currently sitting there fidgeting in her chair and avoiding the eyes of everyone, but most noticeably Elsa, and if that wasn’t a dead give away that something was afoot Emma didn’t know what was.

“Anna?” Elsa asked and Anna let out a flustered sigh before the walls she’d had up came crashing down and her words came flooding out.

“Oh God I swore I wouldn’t say anything, because Liam wants things to be a surprise, but if you ask him then it will mess things up and you really don’t want to mess this up, Elsa. He told me his idea and it’s like the story Mom and Dad used to tell us about Dad’s proposal only somehow sweeter. Trust me, sis, just a little more patience. If you can wait – oh sheesh, well I guess I’m giving it all away anyway. He’s proposing tonight. There I said it.”

All of the reactions of the friends ranged at that point, with Mary Margaret falling victim to those happy tears she was famous for and Ruby laughing boisterously as she claimed that she ‘knew’ there as no way that Liam wouldn’t be the one to ask. Meanwhile Elsa looked like she was walking on air, her smile was so wide and then she was standing up, probably on her way to go look for Liam when Emma pulled her back down.

“Not so fast, girl. This isn’t the kind of thing you want to rush. Let me send Killian a text. He’ll know every detail I’m sure, and we can maybe tell him to get a move on without totally giving away that you’re in the know now.”

“Thank you Emma,” Elsa said gratefully as Emma smiled and sent the text, hoping Killian would give her good news to give Elsa.

“Wow, so this is kind of a big day? Anyone else got any other announcements. Now’s your time,” Anna joked and at the same time Mary Margaret and Ruby began speaking, then they laughed and both told the other they should go first. In the end it was Mary Margaret who shared her news first.

“I’m pregnant,” she whispered, looking happier than she’d ever been and all of the friends burst with their excitement. For over a year she and David had been trying, and there were a few times when Emma had thought perhaps the stars were aligning and Mary Margaret was getting her wish, but to hear that she was really getting it now meant so much to every friend there. For Ruby, however, there was a different kind of reaction as she gawked for a moment before sharing her own news, which was that she too was expecting. One baby was one thing, but two new additions on the way left all of the friends completely floored and then all freaking out at once.

“Holy crap, seriously?!” Belle asked as her hands clapped together. “That’s amazing!”  

“It really is,” Elsa agreed with just as much happiness as she’d shown at her own incoming proposal. “But you guys being pregnant at the same time? I mean, what are the odds?”

“Well I’m thinking they were better than normal since I made it my New Year’s wish at the ceremony,” Ruby admitted, reminding them all of the protective spell they’d placed on the town and the people they loved as the new year rang in. 

All of them had participated in the new year ritual as they always did, but their usual goal of protecting the town and its citizens then ended with each of them offering one silent wish of their own as well. Now, all these months later, it turned out some of those dreams were coming true. In fact, it turned out that Mary Margaret had made the same wish, Elsa had wished to marry Liam, Anna had wished to see her sister as happy in love as she was with Kristoff, and Belle had wished for a way forward with Will. The coincidence was too much, but then everyone looked to Emma expectantly wondering what she wished for.

“So, what was it Emma?” Ruby prodded and Emma shrugged.

“I just wished that we’d all be happy and healthy and safe. I feel like I already have so much, I didn’t really think to ask for anything more.”

As she said the words though, Emma remembered one small part of her wish that had seemed almost trivial at the time. In the little fantasy that had played out in her head, the one where she and Killian were together with Henry as a family, it hadn’t been her house that they were living in. It was the big yellow Victorian not too far from the center of town that had long been a favorite of hers. Maybe it was silly, but she’d always pictured that as the setting for a perfect kind of living. She’d never been able to justify trying to live there if it was just her and Henry, and the owners had never given any indication that they were looking to sell, but now that Killian was a part of this family too and there was a chance that someday their family might grow, Emma couldn’t help but picture it and want to know if maybe the magic of the new year had blessed her over too.

Standing suddenly, Emma offered an apologetic look to her friends and said she’d be back after she went to check on something, and as they looked after her Emma moved through the door of Stay a Spell and headed off towards the house in question. It wasn’t a long walk by any means, but Emma felt this charge of energy coursing through her and she didn’t know if it was hope or anticipation that was getting the best of her, but she knew in her heart she had to come here. Maybe if she spoke to the current owners and just mentioned that she’d be willing to buy if ever they were looking to sell it would ease this sudden want in her, but as she turned the corner and her eyes fell on the house, the initial calm that it inspired was crushed by the sight of a big and bold SOLD sign out front.

“I’m too late,” Emma whispered and her stomach sank as the hope she’d just been feeling faded away.

Standing in front of this place that had long been a cornerstone of her secret dreams for a future life, Emma couldn’t help the twinge of sadness that came. She shook it away as best she could, knowing that it would never matter where they were, as long as she and Henry and Killian were together that would be the perfect home. Still, if ever there were a place to spend forever, to share a life, to raise a family… well this was the fantasy, and it had been for Emma for years now. Giving that up, even if it had never really been hers to begin with, was harder than she expected. All she could hope at this point was that the new owners would treat this place with the love and care that it deserved. Emma hoped this house held the happiness she’d always pictured here, and then she accepted the fact that next time, if a dream like this presented itself, she’d have to strike faster or risk losing out once more.

As that idea of letting this home go began to settle, however, Emma watched the front door of the house open up and two people exited onto the expansive front porch. To say they were the last two people she would have ever expected was an understatement, and then a prickling feeling of almost-awareness moved through her. Killian and Henry weren’t here by coincidence. Something was up with those two, and where they’d teamed up in the past, Emma had only ever found the most beautiful, thoughtful, and glorious results.

“Oh shoot,” Henry said a second later as he descended the front steps of the house and made his way to Emma’s side, but even as he said it, her kid shook his head and smiled like he wasn’t really shocked to see her at all.

“Henry?” Killian asked, after having locked the door behind him, but when he turned and saw Emma, Emma knew in her heart what was coming. “Emma! What’s brought you out this way, love?”

“It’s kind of a long story. We were all at the café and then I just ended up here…”

“Should have known we’d never keep the secret long,” Killian said with a chuckle before coming down and taking Emma’s hand in his. “Henry and I had other plans on how to tell you, Swan, but it seems that plan must change.”

“I still don’t understand,” Emma said, even though she followed enough to realize that this house she’d always loved was about to be theirs.

“Operation Our Home is a go, Mom. Killian and I agreed we needed a new place for all of us to build our new memories together, and we figured the best way to get you on board was to pick a house you couldn’t say no to.”

Emma worked hard to keep the happy tears at bay, but her throat was tight with emotion at the lovely sentiment. And they were absolutely right. She would never say no to this place because it was one that she loved so much. She just couldn’t get over these constant grand gestures. Yet even as she thought that Emma knew they would be a constant. Loving a man like Killian who was thoughtful and kind meant that she’d always feel this way. He was a man with his heart set on one thing, making her and her son happy and building a life with them, and as such Emma knew she was in for years and years of similarly spectacular moments.

“So what do you think, my love?” Killian asked as he pulled Emma into his arms, kissing her temple softly. “Can you picture forever here with us?”

“Yes,” she whispered before looking from the house back to Killian and then down to Henry. “Forever with you two is all I could ever need.”

So with that affirmation from Emma, the three of them all headed back into the house to take a look at the new home that was now theirs. As expected, it was gorgeous and filled with possibility, and over the next few weeks the three of them all crafted a plan for the beautiful future that would be had here for now and always. They added their little touches and unique imprints to make their new home all that it could be, and the best part of all was that Emma knew this house was destined to change and grow in the years to come. For this would be a house for a lifetime, a home for a family, and a place where she’d know the peace love and magic that she’d always wanted her whole life long.

…………….

Holding his wife as the swayed upon the dance floor the night of their wedding, Killian could safely say that he’d never known a joy quite like this.

True, he’d been saying that since the very first moment that he had met his precious Swan, but today had been different even by their incredibly high standards. For today, the two of them had stood before their friends, their family, and practically all the town and vowed to love each other now and always. They’d promised each other a partnership and passion the likes of which so few people would ever experience, and Killian knew in his heart that there was more to this than luck. This was, as Henry liked to say, fated from the start. He was meant to find Emma and love her always, and now he would finally have his chance.

As the music played around them, Killian hummed the tune, much to the amusement of his wife, but the soundtrack of his evening wasn’t the funny irony of Frank Sinatra singing about love and witchcraft. It was a loop of the vows they’d exchanged just a few hours before. All he could see was Emma in that transcendent moment when she became his and he became irrevocably hers. Dressed in the ivory lace gown she still wore currently, her golden hair pinned back but with loose tendrils in the front, and her eyes filled with happy tears that made those jade pools he was constantly lost in shine even brighter, Emma was an angel made real. She had been a true vision in the moment they were wed and remained so all evening long, making Killian keenly aware that he was the single most fortunate man the world over.

“Killian, for so long I was scared to even dream of letting someone into this life I’ve made for Henry and me. My past had taught me that love like this wasn’t in the cards for me, and so I shied away for it for a long long time. But thankfully my heart knew better – heck my kid knew better – and because of that faith and a little bit of magic, here we are.”

Those words had caused a stir amongst their audience, who had hardly been contained as the ceremony went on. Not that Killian was surprised. Between the noisy but thrilled tears of half of Emma’s friends and the commentary streams from Ruby, Henry, Liam, and the others it hadn’t been the solemn, sanctified wedding of tradition. But it had been perfect all the same, and Emma had let out a giggle at their antics that Killian still felt deep in his soul as she continued.

“Since meeting you, I’ve felt a change within me and I’ve sensed a shift in this life I always swore to protect. I thought before I had more than any one person could ever need, but I was so wrong. You’ve shown me the light that love brings in, and that magic can be more than I ever thought possible. Together I know we will build a life truly worth living, a life filled with love and laughter and today I get the realest blessing of calling you my husband. I couldn’t be happier for that, because it means I get to walk this path and start this journey with you, the man I love, the man who makes my dreams come true. I’ll love you forever, Killian Jones. Forever and then a little more.”

In the face of her sweetest words and promise of love Killian had been choked up himself, but despite what tradition might dictate, he was unable to simply dive into his own prepared words. Instead he’d pulled his almost wife and better half close for a kiss that wasn’t supposed to take place just yet. The hoots and hollers of their friends reminded them of that, but as he’d broken away and told Emma that she was everything to him, he knew the woman who held his whole heart so gently in her hand didn’t care about tradition. The happiness in her eyes was testament enough that they were in this together and making their own way, no matter what others might think or feel.

“Emma, from the moment we met there has never been a single second where I wasn’t sure that you would change my world. In an instant you anchored a restless a soul that had been wandering too long. I was lost out in the world, but the greatest cruelty was I didn’t even see how much I was missing until I was led here, to the home I so desperately needed.”

“See! He gets it,” Henry had whispered to Liam loud enough for everyone to hear and another laugh was shared throughout the space.

“Aye, lad I do,” Killian responded, turning back and nodding at Henry before looking back again to Emma and proceeding on.

“At first I thought the town itself held something special, something different. But you were the change I needed, Swan. You were the love I’d never hoped to find and through all you are and all you’ve given me you have made it impossible not to love you. In truth, I can’t express just how deep that love goes, for words cannot contain all that I feel. Just know that with every passing moment my love for you grows, and every day I thank God for all we have because you were willing to take a chance, and because fate intervened and showed me the way to the only life I could ever want.  What we have here is more than magic, Emma. It’s something meant to be, and I swear to you that I will cherish you and our family for this day and all my days forever more.”

With those sacred vows now out between them, Killian hadn’t feel any less charged with emotion, and that was only made more real and tangible when Emma too broke form and pulled him in for a kiss before their officient could give them both permission. It was perfect though, every single detail of it, and the party that followed with all the well wishers in their life was beautiful too. It was an evening under the stars, lit up by lanterns and twinkling lights in the same glen on the property of their new home where Killian had proposed at Christmas. Here now wildflowers blossomed, some from the summer season itself, but others magically crafted by Emma and her friends. Fireflies too flashed in the wooded area just beyond, and the subtle sound of waves upon the shore sounded from the beach not too far away.

This was, by every kind of measurement, a runaway success, a wedding to remember, but the only thing that gnawed at Killian was that in all of the festivities Emma and Killian hadn’t had the chance to really be alone. It had been more than twenty-four hours, in fact, since he and Emma had spent the night before their wedding apart, and though he was assuaged on some level by holding her in his arms as they swayed across the dance floor, his heart yearned for the chance to steal Emma away and show her just how much he loved her.

“How much trouble do you think we’ll get in if we make a run for it now?” Emma asked, her voice trickling into Killian’s thoughts and so closely resembling his own line of thinking that he had to grin as he pulled back to look into her eyes, his hand cupping her jaw as his thumb traced gently at the corner of her mouth.

“I’ve been assessing that very question for some time, my love.”

“And have you found any answers?” Emma asked, pulling him in closer by the dress shirt he was wearing so he was only a whisper away. “Because I’d really like to start my wedding night with my husband right about now.”

“Say no more, Swan,” Killian replied before surprising her and lifting her into his arms to carry across the dance floor and from the reception. The cheers that went out at the action were of a raucous if well-meant variety and after a brief check in with Henry, who was staying the night with Liam and Elsa, Killian brought his wife up the pathway from the meadow where they’d just held their reception and to the new home that they’d found together and crafted into a place perfect for them.

Tonight would be the first time that they’d spend in this house despite their owning it for about a month now. They could have moved in sooner, but Emma had made mention one night as they lay in bed together in her old house of how romantic it would be to have their wedding night be the first one spent in the place they’d be building their lives from here on out. Killian had decided in that moment that that was exactly what they’d do. He had no desire to deny his bride in any way, not when his surest form of pleasure was seeing Emma satisfied, but before he could take her upstairs and make love to her the whole night through, there was one last thing he needed from the woman he loved – and he felt his hands begin to shake after he’d carried Emma through the threshold and put her down in their home.

“There’s just one thing left, Emma, and I know it’s a little out of the ordinary in terms of a wedding present, but I was hoping I might ask for mine specifically.”

Emma looked a little puzzled at his words, and then looked surprised when he pulled out a file of papers from a drawer there in the living room, but upon reading what they said, tears filled her eyes and a small smile graced her lips before her hand flew up to cover them. She scanned the lines, trying to be sure of what she was reading, before looking back at Killian with so much love it almost hurt to see it and not sweep her upstairs right now.

“Today you’ve already given me the world, Emma. Becoming my wife, joining our families, it means everything to me, and I never want to pressure you or Henry, but just as my love for you sprang from our first encounter, so too did my love for your son.”

“Our son,” Emma said happily. “Killian this is – God it almost feels like too much, but it’s not, it’s perfect. I know Henry would love to have you as his Dad officially, and nothing would mean more to him than to be a Jones too.”

“You really think so?” Killian asked, hopeful that Henry would be amiable to the idea but never wanting to take the boy’s approval of him for granted.

“I know so,” Emma said with a firm sense of assurance that couldn’t be denied. Then she put the papers back on the side table next to them and pulled Killian in close once more. “And I also know that I can’t wait another second to be with you, Killian. So please don’t make me wait.”

“Never,” Killian promised before they made their way upstairs and to the master suite all laid out and arranged for this evening and the life they’d share here.

Part of Killian felt like the familiar dance of stripping off the layers between them moved too quickly even as it seemed to take an age to reveal his wife to his hungry gaze. With deft fingers Emma had removed all the garments that kept her from him, but when it came to be his turn Killian tried to take it slower. He wanted to commit every element of this to memory, from the way Emma’s wedding gown slipped off her a little more when each button was undone, to the reveal of the barest scraps of white lace underneath that left him even more crazed for her. Every second that past was another moment to hold close forever, but perhaps none struck his heart as surely as when Emma flashed him a knowing grin as her hair hung loose around her shoulders. She had never looked more poised and confident and sure of herself and of him, and that was all he’d ever wanted since meeting this remarkable woman all those months ago.

“Much as I love the way you’re looking at me, I can only take so much waiting tonight,” Emma said, moving back into the bed and bidding him to follow like a moth drawn to a flame. “I need to know that this is real. I need you to show me.”

“Nothing’s ever been more real than this, Emma, and I’ll spend the rest of our lives and then some proving that to you.

Killian punctuated each of those words with kisses against her skin, first at her lips then down her jaw, trailing a teasing path that didn’t exactly hurry, but built momentum towards what his wife ultimately needed. Emma thought hard and fast was the answer, but with a whole life ahead of them Killian had no intention of speeding up the clock. He’d savor every moment, taste every part of her, and sate every need his Swan could possibly conceive of, and then he’d do it again and again before the sun was up. That was his duty as her husband, and Killian would never back down from his honor and his right to lay the world at Emma’s feet.  

With the aim of satisfying both of them in mind, Killian found the balance between sweet and torturous tension that would soon lead to release. He let his hands roam across the expanse of her soft skin, tracing underneath the flimsy bra that she still had on her and feeling her intake of breath. Moments like this were intoxicating, stronger than any high he’d ever felt. Some might say it was like being caught up in a spell that she had cast months ago, but Killian had never felt freer or more alive than when he had Emma in his arms like this. Feeling her writhe beneath him as he stripped her of the garment that stood between them and brought his mouth to her breasts, Killian held back the moan at the back of his throat that came from Emma’s earnest pleas. Hearing his name tumble past her lips over and over mixed with words of her love and her need were almost too much to bear, and when he knew he had her frenzy building higher and higher his hand trailed down, slipping past the lace between her thighs and sinking home to her waiting sex, finding Emma already at the very edge of climax.

“Killian.”

His name this time was barely more than a whimper, caught up in the feeling as she was and Killian looked up to find her eyes closed as she chased the feeling of bliss that would come when he let her fall apart. Perhaps a stronger man would have waited, would have prolonged that state for the sake of more payoff down the line, but Killian couldn’t. Instead he swirled his thumb against her clit with just the right amount of pressure to have her clinging to him as she broke apart in his arms, reveling in how freely Emma gave herself and how undeniable her trust was that he would never steer her wrong.

Seeing Emma in such a state only fueled the need within Killian further. He was aching for his own release, but unable to comprehend it just yet. If this was going to last and he was going to get his fill of his beautiful wife he needed to be patient and draw this out. He did this by slowing back down to a languid speed, kissing his way down Emma’s body and leaving the faintest of marks as he went, much to Emma’s pleasure. Sated as she’d seemed a few moments before, it didn’t take long for Killian to rile her back up again, and by the time he was positioned between her thighs ready to take her with his mouth her eyes had filled with that same glint of need and her skin flushed pink with heat and desire. Then he ripped off the last remaining piece of lace keeping Emma from him and she swallowed harshly, fighting to find words because even in their most intimate moments her wit couldn’t be contained.

“And to think I thought you’d like those…”

“Like isn’t the word I’d use, love, but they were in my way and you know I don’t stand for anything that keeps us apart.”

With those words spoken between them and the responding look in Emma’s eyes that said she felt the same way, Killian descended towards her slick flesh and Emma caved to the sensations in an instant. Time had taught Killian exactly what his Swan desired and every flick and suck and lick was purposefully meant to stoke the flames she felt within. It was all done in the hopes of watching her shatter again, and by God he did, but before he could send her tipping over for a third time she pulled him back with her hands in his hair and shook her head, trying to silently say what she needed before she found her words.

“I need you with me this time, Killian. Please.”

That one word rendered him powerless to resist Emma’s wishes, not that he’d ever want to. He was at the edge as it was, but when he’d slipped home and filled her in one solid thrust that state of mind-numbing lust shocked his system once again. She was so damn tight it cast out all other thoughts from his consciousness. They fit together like they were made to be one and every time they made love was more powerful than the last, but tonight was different. Tonight they were man and wife and the comfort and peace that came from that was matched only by the adoration Killian always carried for Emma and the endless love he felt for the woman who had transformed his whole world.

Eventually, despite his plans to make this last as long as could be, they came together, crashing into ecstasy side by side and panting for breath as they did, but they both knew it was just a short reprieve. They’d be like this all evening, wrapped up together, neither of them letting go when all they wanted was this closeness. If they slept at all it would be a miracle, but who needed sleep when they could have a love like this instead?

“So… is this the part where the guy and the girl live happily ever after?” Emma asked, her cheek resting on Killian’s shoulder as her fingers traced a delicate design along his chest. Killian smiled, pressing a kiss to the crown of her head before replying.

“Aye, love. That’s typically how these stories go. At least that’s what they tell me.”

“According to Henry our story has a few more characters on the way,” Emma said thoughtfully and Killian felt his heart skip a beat at the mention of more children. He hadn’t wanted to say anything or push Emma to go faster than she was willing, but by bringing it up he had to believe she was more ready for that step than he’d originally anticipated and God knew he was just as willing to start that journey together.

“Well it is our destiny it seems. And if we’ve such a destiny ahead of us then perhaps we better get a move on,” Killian murmured as his fingers trailed up Emma’s stomach lightly, bringing out goose bumps as he did.

“We actually might already be there,” Emma whispered and Killian’s eyes flew up to hers, searching for an answer. “I haven’t taken a test or anything, but I’m a few days late and last night I had the strangest dream…”

“A dream, eh?” Killian asked, biting back a smile since dreams seemed to have a very powerful implication in this family.

“Yeah. It was eerily similar to some I’ve only ever had once before.”

“And when was that, love?” Killian asked, though he already knew in some way where Emma was going with this.

“When I was pregnant with Henry. Before all of this I might have thought it was just a coincidence but now…”

Would wonders never cease? Killian couldn’t imagine how one day could bring all of this joy into an already happy life, but here he was feeling like the universe just kept on giving. A wedding, a wife, a son, and possibly another child on the way… Could there be anything to describe this other than that he lived a charmed life?

“But now,” Killian said as he took Emma’s hand in his and kissed it lightly. “Now we know not to question your magic, my love.”

“Or the magic we make together,” Emma said with a laugh and Killian couldn’t stop himself from laughing too as Emma clarified her statement. “Okay I’ll admit that was cheesy, but I figure we get a pass because it’s true love right?”

“Aye, love, the truest love that love can be.”

And the beautiful thing was that it was a pure and unyielding kind of love, the likes of which are ripe for magic and joy and every good thing. Years would come and years would go, and in the life that Emma and Killian built together, their love, and the magic it inspired, always seemed to follow. Good things came, and trials came too, but in the end it was a happy union that the two of them shared together, and thanks to the strength of their love and the unbreakable bond they’d created by saying yes to their hearts’ desires, that magic would never die and never waiver, instead extending to their children and their children’s children for generations and generations to come.

Post-Note: It is always so bittersweet to come to the end of a story, especially ones like this one where not only was it a joy to write, but it clearly was a new favorite for a lot of my lovely readers. So I just want to thank each and every one of you who reached out about this story in any capacity. Whether it was reviews, comments, messages, or what have you, you guys fed the muse even through the driest spells of my PhD program and for that I am so grateful. As I said before, there will undoubtedly be an epilogue (or a couple epilogues) to come for this story, because how could I ever not show a better glimpse into the happy ending a few years down the line? But I just don’t know when that will be at this point. It might have to wait until my next school break but it will come. Anyway thanks again, I really hope you all have enjoyed and be on the lookout because I have plans for a new AU coming out in the new year and many more oneshots to boot. Thanks again, and happy New Year!