#cs gift exchange

[cosette141]

The Only One Who Saves Me | OUAT fanfic | CS gift exchange gift (1/3)

MERRY CHRISTMAS @i-will-sing-no-requiem !!!! I was your CS gift exchange santa this year!! :D I very much enjoyed obsessing over Taylor Swift with you haha! :)

Your gift is a 3-parter! 😱😆

This is the main fic I worked on for you! I ran with your prompt of Emma or Killian rescuing the other :)

Summary: (CS movie divergence) Killian gets his dashing rescue, and Emma is no longer the only one who saves her. :)

AO3

Killian ran, hard and fast. He's been out of breath for most of the last mile but he didn't stop.

Emma.

Nearly an hour ago, Emma was taken by Regina's guards.

He could only remember standing in that ballroom, watching them drag her away, every muscle in his body coiled to run after her, to fight them all off even if he had to bloody kill them, to save her, but at the same time, knew that he wouldn't have survived such an attack.

If he was to save Emma, and he would, he needed to be smart.

He needed to do this quietly.

For a moment, Killian had considered trying to find Emma's parents. The prince and princess could certainly help, however risking their lives was out of the question. If one of them died, there wouldn't even be an Emma to save.

That very thought was the only thing that was on Killian's mind.

Her parents were back on track, Snow White had the ring.

But none of that mattered if Killian couldn't save Emma now.

His heart was pounding so hard it hurt and Killian could only remember one time in his life that he's been this scared, and back then, he'd been tied to a mast on his own bloody ship.

But somehow, this felt more terrifying, and that very thought scared him almost more than the fear he wouldn't make it to her in time.

Killian knew Regina's ways; she wouldn't kill Emma tonight. Regina liked to watch the execution of Snow White's supporters every morning after she caught them. Like some sort of twisted breakfast entertainment.

However, even the knowledge that he had until morning to save Emma didn't help the fact that he still had to break into the bloody castle and get to her before he was killed.

He'd done it before, he knew how to get in and to find his way to the dungeons.

But the bloody rule not to mess with the timeline which meant he couldn't kill anyone if he needed to only made his heart beat even faster.

Killian finally stopped when he saw the silhouette of the castle over the hill. He stared at it warily, catching his breath.

"I'm coming, Emma," he whispered to the air.

And he started on his way, clinging to shadows.

I will find you, love.

And he won't stop until he does.

Emma huffed a defeated breath, sinking heavily back to the ground.

The lock was too far; she couldn't reach it.

Emma threw the wire she'd found back to the ground with burning eyes. That was her only chance. In a last ditch effort, Emma shut her eyes, trying to feel the magic inside her.

But it wasn't there, no matter how hard she searched for it.

Rumplestiltskin had already given them that wand to use when they'd successfully completed their mission—in Killian's possession since his ensemble had pockets—but Emma already knew even with it it was useless.

Her magic was still gone.

With an audible groan, she gave up trying to get out of here, dropping her face over her crossed arms.

Something about this felt eerily similar, being here, alone in a jail cell.

"Sorry, sweetheart, your boy took off."

She could still remember the first day she spent in prison.

Alone.

Terrified.

She'd curled herself tight on the cot, arms wrapped around her shins, and she didn't sleep a wink.

She waited.

She waited for someone to come, tell her that it was all a misunderstanding, to let her go.

Waited for Neal to show up, to break her out, to save her.

But he never came.

No one ever came.

Not for eleven months.

Not ever.

Emma didn't even realize she was crying until she felt the dirty sleeves of the dress dampen with hot tears.

Did Hook know she was missing?

He'd been taking out the guards on the balcony; he might not even know she was taken. Or by whom.

But even if he did know she was taken, Emma wasn't going to get her hopes up.

Breaking into Regina's castle to save her? The odds of him succeeding were low at best.

He'd be risking his life even thinking about doing such a thing.

Emma suddenly wondered where he was, what he would do, trapped in the past.

Because the last thing she'd ever believe was that he was going to come back for her.

Save her.

No one ever does.

Emma suddenly heard footsteps.

She lifted her face from her arms, where she was huddled in the far corner of the cell, arms still wrapped around her shins, the facsimile of a hug that felt too shallow and cold to be called such a thing.

The footsteps were running. Fast.

Guards.

Emma's heart pounded.

Was it morning already?

Was she out of time?

As much as she had planned to be strong, to fight them, to save herself, panic was suddenly consuming her.

She was going to be executed.

So when the shadow crossed the walls, getting closer and closer, Emma just curled in on herself tighter, trying to swallow the rising fear.

But—

"Emma!"

Emma's fear halted, traded for shock.

Hook.

It was Hook.

The moment he saw her, he ran to the bars of the cell, eyes on her, his relief at finding her quickly dashed. Concern bloomed. "Emma, love," he whispered.

Emma blinked in shock.

He was here.

He came back for her.

Someone came back for her.

She shot to her feet and rushed to the bars, standing inches from him. Her fingers grasped the bar, wondering if she was dreaming. "Hook?"

"Thank the gods I found you," he breathed, a slight, relieved smile at the victory. His eyes then shifted to the bars, looking for—

"It's at the top," whispered Emma quickly. "The lock. I couldn't reach it."

Hook located it, reaching for the lock and using his hook to pick it. A few precious moments ticked by, and Emma could read every anxiety in his face until the lock clicked open, and the chain fell free.

Hook ripped the door open.

Freedom.

But Emma wasn't half as relieved by the freedom as she was by him.

She didn't even think; she grabbed him in a tight hug, practically clinging to him.

He stumbled a little by the force of it, surprised. She held him tightly, eyes shut, relief rushing through her in waves as she breathed in his scent. Familiarity. Safeness. Home.

She didn't know when she'd started thinking of him as home, but right now, she didn't care.

She felt him hold her back after a hesitation of shock. Just as tightly as she held him. "Are you all right?" he whispered. "Are you hurt?"

"You came," she found herself whispering. Her voice like broken confusion.

A tear fell down her cheek.

His hold on her tightened a little. "Of course I came," he said. He pulled back a little. "You thought I wouldn't?" he asked incredulously, like the idea hurt him. But a noise somewhere nearby like a door opening made both of them freeze and Killian's grip on her tighten even more. "We need to get you out of here. Now," he said quickly, eyes locked with hers, fear in them.

Fear for her.

"Come," he breathed, and without hesitation Emma's hand intertwined with his, and she suddenly felt like she never ever wanted to let go.

Killian led the way, seeming to know his way around, and Emma didn't stop to question it. She was glued to his side as they clung to the shadows, every usual strength within her strangely gone, replaced with the fear of her seventeen year old self, trapped in prison with no way out.

Their run through the castle was like a blur of panic, and Emma heard Killian whisper, "We're nearly there, love." And Emma only then realized she was practically crushing his hand.

But they rounded a corner, and Killian skidded to a stop, just as two guards saw them both.

"Bloody hell," cursed Killian.

"The prisoner!" cried one of the guards, recognizing Emma. "The one who aided Snow White's escape!"

"Get her!" growled the other, both unsheathing swords, and Emma felt paralyzed.

"Get behind me!" exclaimed Killian in a desperate breath, releasing her hand—something that felt like panic itself to her—so he could draw his sword.

Emma listened to him, allowing someone else to take control for the first time in what felt like her life, because hell she knew how to fight with her fists but not against swords and not with flashes of the past blinding her, and she felt her hands grasp the back of Killian's jacket, needing something tethering her to him.

He fought off the first guard, both men caught in a flurry of blades, and suddenly Emma felt a burly arm grab her around the waist and yank her back.

"Emma!"

Emma struggled, managing to land her elbow in the man's gut, making him grunt in enough pain to release his hold. And Emma's hands fisted, her heart pounding as she prepared to fight—

But she didn't need to.

Because suddenly Killian was there, standing firmly in front of her, protecting her, knocking out the man with the hilt of his sword.

Both guards lay unconscious on the ground.

Emma was still shaking.

But Killian's hand suddenly found her face, making her look at him. Such determination shone in his eyes. "I won't let anyone take you. I promise." Emma felt her breath skip, a wave of relief feeling like warm sunlight because, for the first time, she didn't have to protect herself alone. Sheathing his sword, Killian again took her hand, holding her even tighter. "Come," he breathed.

They continued on their way out of the castle, this time making it without trouble. But they didn't stop running until they were well away from it, and could no longer even see the castle in the distance.

And without hesitation, Emma dove into his arms, hers wrapped tightly around his waist, burying her face in his chest.

She was crying and for the first time in her life she didn't care that the tears fell, or that they did in front of someone else.

Because for the first time in her life, someone saved her.

For the first time in her life, she didn't have to do it herself.

She could hear him saying her name, his voice surprised, worried, gentle.

She felt him pull back a little, though his arms never loosened around her.

Killian looked at her, noting the tear tracks on her face, old and new, the dirt and the scratches from the rough handling of her by the guards. It looked like his heart broke in his eyes. "Emma, love," he whispered. "Are you all right?"

But Emma was unable to find her voice, because her mind was still caught on something she couldn't understand.

He came back for her.

He saved her.

Her whole life, the only person who ever saved her was her.

No one else bothered to.

But Killian broke into a castle full of guards that would have killed him in an instant, just to save her.

He risked his life.

For her.

The last person Emma trusted put her in prison.

Killian just rescued her from it.

"Emma…?"

He was still staring at her, even more concerned than before.

"You saved me," she whispered.

"Of course I did," he said, like it was the only reasonable answer.

Like there was no world in which he saw himself not saving her.

Ever since Neverland, hell, long before then, Emma had felt… something for him.

After Neverland, it turned into something even more, something that wasn't just interest, something that was feelings.

And ever since she drank that potion, they had only gotten stronger.

She has spent every waking minute shoving those feelings down, trying to bury them, erase them, because she could not—she could not—stand to trust someone again, for someone to break her like a damn promise.

She had planned to run away to New York, to leave it all—leave him—behind.

But tonight…

He had just risked his life to break into a place that would have killed him if it could have, just for her.

Tonight, he did something no one has ever done.

He saved her.

And Emma was beginning to realize he's done so in more ways than one.

He's handed Emma proof that he will be here for her and will never leave.

And it suddenly gave her an overwhelming need to stay.

Like a broken dam, everything that she felt for him, that she's tried to hold back, rose within her, warming her chest, like a tidal wave she couldn't wait to drown in.

Emma smiled, another tear falling, feeling like so much weight had been lifted from her. Like she suddenly couldn't stand to keep herself from him, to hide the fact that she liked him, she more than liked him, that she—

Emma's hand found his, intertwining with his fingers.

And suddenly, a glowing emitted from his pocket, where her fingers brushed it.

They both looked down, to see the wand.

Lit up with magic.

With a gasp, Emma pulled her hand away, and the glow faded.

Killian smiled.

He took out the wand. "Emma," he breathed.

Tentatively, Emma took it, and in an instant, it lit up again.

"My magic!" she breathed. "It's back," she whispered.

"Perhaps it just needed time," he said softly.

But Emma knew what it needed.

She smiled at him, and the warm feeling that was still in her chest.

The feeling that he and he alone elicited.

"Thank you, Killian," said Emma softly. She kissed his cheek, a little shyly, pink coloring the tip of her nose. Electricity like her own magic seemed to spark as she did.

His brows shot up at the sound of his own name, hearing the heaviness of her gratitude. He stared at her in utter shock.

"Let's go home," she whispered.

His brow quirked, something so hopeful in his eyes. "Home?" he echoed.

She smiled, more and more sure with every second. "Storybrooke." she clarified. "I'm not going anywhere."

She took his hand, and Emma had never seen him look as stunned as he did now.

"Aye," he said softly. "Home." He smiled, the word like music to his ears, like a relief of his own.

And she conjured the portal, the glow reflected in their eyes as they jumped through together.

For she was home long before they reached Storybrooke.

-.-.-.-.

tag list: @kmomof4 @justanother-unluckysoul @klynn-stormz @stahlop @ilovemesomekillianjones @hookmecaptain @tiganasummertree @jadehowlettthewolf @jonesfandomfanatic @anmylica @pirateprincessofpizza @stahlop @snowbellewells @eddisfargo @motherkatereloyshipper @csgiftexchange

[i-will-sing-no-requiem]

@cocohook38 I was your @csgiftexchange gifter!

I went with the cursed!killian prompt and decided to write a season 1 au where killian is one of the curse victims.

It's turning out to be a lot longer than I had initially planned, i think it's going to go through at least the entire season, but here's the first chapter!

Emma has no idea what she’s doing in this town. 

One minute she’s in Boston, blowing out a birthday candle alone, and the next she’s drinking hot cocoa at the smalltown diner-slash-B&B in Storybrooke, Maine, where she’s just finished talking with her son who she gave up for adoption ten years ago about how everyone there was actually secretly a fairytale character under an evil curse. Completely insane. 

As she gets up to pay and leave, someone catches her eye. A man sitting alone at the bar. He is hunched over eating breakfast by himself. She’s not sure what it is, but something about him catches her interest. Maybe it’s the faraway look in his eye that she connects with. And he’s handsome too, with dark hair and piercing blue eyes, but she has a strict policy about men, no dating, no letting your guard down, and absolutely NO falling in love. 

Despite all of that, she somehow finds herself walking up to him.

Telling herself she’s just waiting to pay for her food (even though she could have stood anywhere while waiting for a waitress to be ready for her), and glances over at the stranger one more time. He catches her eye and smiles at her. “Hey.”

“Hi.” she responds.

There’s a pause, and then…

“So. You’re Henry Mills’ mother.” 

Emma’s startled by this, probably more than she should be. She did come into town in the middle of the night with the mayor’s runaway kid, and then get arrested for drunk driving. That’s the kind of thing that would spark rumours, especially in a place like this.

“What would you know about that?”

“It’s a small town,” he acknowledges with a raise of his eyebrows, “people talk.”

He still hasn’t gotten up, or even turned in his stool, but he’s watching her intently as she listens, and he can see the confliction on her face. She can’t get a read on this guy, and it’s making her feel at the same time on edge and jumpy, and intrigued. 

Ultimately, her curiosity wins out, and she asks, “And what exactly are they saying? About me.”

He shrugs a shoulder, “The people of this town will say any number of things. That the boy rode a bus all the way to Boston to find you. That you were just a teenager when you gave him up,” he pauses. Then, “That you’re a conwoman who’s only here to try to steal Henry away.”

“Well,” Emma says cooly, her eyes flashing “you shouldn’t believe everything you hear.”

Finally turning in his seat to face her, they lock eyes as he holds her stare. “Aye love, perhaps I shouldn’t”

Emma feels a shiver run down her spine as he turns to go.

“Wait. I didn’t catch your name.”

He looks back at her. “Killian Jones, at your service.”

He tips his head slightly in a mock bow. 

“And you?”

“What? All these rumours flying and the people don’t even know my name?”

“I guess that information never reached me.”

She smiles slightly and shakes her head. “It’s Emma. Emma Swan.”

“Swan.” He smiles. “Well, I’ll see you around, Swan.”

“Uh… yeah” she says, taken aback by his assumption that he would be seeing her again. 

As he walks away, she feels a strange mix of emotions. She doesn’t know really anything about him. Doesn’t know if she trusts, or even likes him that much. But as she watches him leave, she can’t help but feel like she wants to talk to him again.

[sotangledupinit]

Hi, I'm your CS Gift Exchanger, and I wanted to ask a few questions so I can cater your gift as much to you as possible!!

- What are some of your favorite OUAT characters so I make sure they make an appearance? (Obviously besides Captain Swan and Henry!)

- Are there any characters you don't like so I can make sure to avoid them?

- What are some of you favorite CS scenes so maybe I can somehow include those as well!

Hi fellow exchange participant! 🤗👋 hopefully I can answer your questions and not make your life more difficult lol.

1. I love Will. I feel like he’s a really interesting and fun character, especially when it comes to his interactions with Emma and Killian. Those are very interesting to me. Also, I love the chaos he brings haha. Of course Mary Margaret & David I adore as well, and I’m currently being reminded of how much I love the Frozen gang (because perfect casting is perfect)! Don’t worry if you can’t fit any or not all of these into the gift. It’s totally fine!

2. There’s no real characters that I absolutely can’t read about so go wild! Even though I hate the Victor/Ruby coupling, I like both characters individually (Ruby much more so than Victor lol).

3. Favorite CS scene is a hard one and I’m going to be terrible and say that I cant pick just one? Maybe the s3 finale outside of Granny’s scene? Maybe when he tells Emma he’s yet to see her fail and also when he tells her that when he wins her heart, it won’t be because of trickery. I also like the beanstalk scenes and the coconut scene with the shadows being ripped off. Ahhhh I just love them all but I especially the scenes when they’re just supporting and loving each other and it’s just sweet. I’m sorry that’s not really an answer but I’ll just say ALL.

Thank you ❤️

[captainodonoghue]

Hello, this is santa's elf at your service again 😆. I've been working on manufacturing the perfect toy- nvm *mission abort this intro is to chaotic 😭*

Hello there!! How have you been? What have you been up to this Christmas? I'd love to hear of your wintery adventures- does it happen to snow where you live?

*takes a deep breath in I promise I didn't mean for that to sound like a barrage of questions- I just happen to love the winter season and people's Christmas traditions :)*

Off topic (but not really, but yeah) the captain swan Christmas fics are so good I swear...secret Santa and gift exchange are literally one of my favorite collections...and- *yeah imma stop myself before I start rambling.....and we can't forget new-

Do you happen to have any favorite collections, authors of fanfics? Do you happen to lik

*I think I'll stop now and saw some questions from later*

Chaos aside 😭 I've made some progress on your gift...I don't really know how to describe it apart from killian's "you never forget your first"......I use that qoute way too much *help*

Sidetrack no 2: What's your favorite OUAT qoute?

Addressing this more seriously,I just hope you like it. I really wanna say more but I don't wanna give it away. In terms of completion I'm halfway through the story. Unfortunately, I have already spilled a secret or too, so I shall have to keep my lips sealed.

Oh, look, what's that.....I dropped something? What could it possibly be? *oh well I just noticed that you can't send media in an anonymous ask welp-* what a bummer...I'll defo try to share a bit of the second part when I'm done :)

With that I shall reign in the chaos...Stay safe and happy and I hope you have a great remainder of the week :))

Love your chaotic intro!!

This time of the year is my favourite so I understand your excitement! haha I've been good, little tired because of work. I work at a bakery and things are busier this month. Besides that, I've put up the Christmas trees (I have two, a small one in my room and a normal one in the living room) and decorations since the end of October! Way too early, I know but I couldn't help myself. Last year, I put them up tooooo late because of some problems but now that things are great again, I wanted to fix that! hahaha Where I'm from, it's a tradition to make two type of cookies. One is a honey cookie (melomakarono) that we soak into syrup (as soon as it comes out of the oven) and the other one is a butter cookie with roasted almonds (kourabies). I'm about to make more of them because we already ate the first batch. Sadly, it rarely snows and when it does it lasts like a day or so. It snowed last year and it was the first snow in 5-6 years! :((( In other parts of Greece, it does snow... it's just my island! *grumpy face*

What about you, Elf?? What are your traditions?

I really hope we can keep these events going for as long as possible because those are my favourite as well. Other favourite is all those AU fics because I do love reading my OTP falling in love with each other 4573478976 times in 9549058439058 different ways! haha We have so many great authors, seriously we're blessed! I'm afraid I'll forget someone.

OKAY OKAY, your spoilers/hints only make me even more excited!!! I'm sure I'll love it! Can't wait to read it!!!! It'll be great! Thank you so much for doing this!

My favourite quote has to be Killian's "A man unwilling to fight for what he wants, deserves what he gets." I think about this quote a lot! haha What about you?

Have a great week as well!!

[anmylica]

The City of Lights

A Captain Swan Fanfiction for @jrob64 as part of the CS Gift Exchange 2022.

Surprise! I am your gift exchange writer for this year’s exchange! I hope I nailed your request this year for a modern AU holiday fic! I am going to post this in two parts (because I am incapable of restraint, apparently). Part 2 will be posted on NYE!

Summary: Killian Jones has been waiting for the perfect opportunity to propose to the love of his life, Emma Swan. When he’s presented with the opportunity to whisk her away on a weekend trip to visit the Festival of Lights in Natchitoches, Louisiana, he’s confident that the perfect time will present itself. But even the best laid plans often go awry…

Tagging my usual crew: (want to be added? Let me know!) @xarandomdreamx @kmomof4 @snowbellewells @sotangledupinit @tiganasummertree @zaharadessert

Killian Jones opened the door of his apartment to the sound of his girlfriend, Emma “Swan” Nolan, quoting Steel Magnolias verbatim as the television blared in the background.  Emma was spread out on the couch, trying to cover every square inch of its surface with her body, blankets, and pillows, eating peanut butter straight out of the jar and quoting lines as if she were Shelby Eatenton herself.  He smiled at the sight she presented.

“You’re as bad as Mary Margaret, I hope you realize,” he called to the blonde, causing her to jump, as she didn’t hear the door open.

“You’re home early!” Emma exclaimed, smiling to see him but not moving from her spot on the couch.  “Slow shift?”

“Aye, it was.  I’m technically still on call for the next thirty minutes, but it should stay quiet.”  Killian removed his Boston PD jacket and placed his radio on the counter, making sure to turn the dial on the volume loud enough to hear it should he get called out.

Emma hummed, turning her attention back to the movie for a moment, quoting the lines, “My colors are blush and bashful” with the practiced ease of someone who had seen the movie dozens of times before.

Killian moved to sit on the arm of the couch.  “Would you want the colors of your wedding to be blush and bashful, love?”

Emma’s eyes widened and she made a shocked trilling sound in the back of her throat.  “Woah, woah, woah,” she started, wholeheartedly engaging in the game of cat and mouse they always partook when the subject was brought up.  Though Emma was not opposed to marriage (in fact, she was actually hoping that wedding bells would ring in the very near future), it was a running gag amongst all her friends and family that just the hint of white lace would set her running for the hills.

Killian held his hand up, cutting off her reply, and inserted, “Calm down, Swan, I’m not proposing.”  His eyes were on the screen so he missed the disgusted, let down expression that crossed her face at his words.  “I’m merely curious since this is your favorite movie if you would ever want to use the same color scheme.”

Emma huffed.  “I like blush and bashful well enough, but I wouldn’t want them together,” she replied tersely, a little annoyed with her boyfriend of three years.

Killian had brushed off any mentions of their making their relationship legal, a fact which Emma played off in front of their friends (especially her brother and his wife, Mary Margaret) but Emma secretly loathed.  She had been hinting for weeks and weeks that she was ready, but he either was playing dumb or he truly didn’t pick up on her hints.  She was about ready to admit that maybe she needed to be a little less subtle in her desires, but she wasn’t quite ready to throw in the towel yet.  What she didn’t realize was that Killian was very well-aware of her desires and was merely acting in that manner to make her less suspicious of his intentions.

“Too much pink, eh?”  Killian smirked.

Emma shrugged and said, “Maybe for you.”

The two fell into a companionable silence as they watched the screen for a few more moments.  When a shot of the town the movie was filmed in was shown, Emma said, “I’d love to see where they filmed this.”

Killian frowned.  “Where did they film it?”

“I have no idea,” Emma said as she grabbed her phone.  After a quick search, she announced, “It was filmed in a place called,” and she paused.  “I don’t know how to say this.”

Killian looked at the screen “Natch-uh-toes-es?” 

Emma shrugged and scrolled.  “It’s in Louisiana, apparently.  Just about an hour south of Shreveport on the western side of the state.”

Killian nodded.  “You want to go one day?”

Emma scoffed.  “There’s nothing there except trees and rednecks with jacked-up trucks, I’m sure.”

Killian took the phone from her and scrolled through some of the information.  “It says they have a ‘Festival of Lights’ in December.  It’s actually already started.”  

Emma gave him a side-eyed look.  “That’s just a way to draw tourists in to make money off the unsuspecting people who think there’s more there than there really is.”

Killian nodded in response absentmindedly.  An idea was forming in his mind.  He knew Emma actually would enjoy that trip, as they had done several like it in times past.  She was just trying to downplay how badly she wanted to tour the town so as to cope with the disappointment of not being able to go.  The best thing about her job is she could work from just about anywhere, as she worked in bail bonds, which required research online, and only paid her a check upon the successful delivery of the fugitive she was hunting.  If she wanted to take a few days’ vacation, then she could with no issues.  Killian had some time accumulated with the police force, and it would be nothing more than applying for a few days off.  

He continued to look through the pictures of the festival.  It looked quaint, with the lighted displays glinting off the water of the Cane River and accompanied by horse-drawn carriage rides.  Killian could suddenly feel a hole burning in his pocket, so to speak, at the thought of being able to propose to Emma in that setting.  He had bought the ring ages ago and was simply waiting for a moment when the time felt right.  Perhaps that would be it?  His mind suddenly made up, he handed her back her phone.

Emma took it absentmindedly, her attention already back on the movie.  Killian got up and moved to grab his radio even though his shift would end in just a few minutes.  He picked it up and carried it with him to the bedroom, where he closed the door and took out his phone to call his shift captain to arrange the vacation time. 

Once he had the necessary arrangements made, he called David (who, besides being Emma’s brother, was his partner with the Boston PD) and asked him to help him look at hotels, flights, and other necessities.  He also filled David in on his plan for proposing to his sister, a fact of which David was already aware. Within about forty minutes, Killian had plane tickets, a hotel room reserved, a rental car lined up, and was quickly looking up information on the Festival of Lights itself to plan out an itinerary.

He answered Emma when she called out to him wanting to know what he wanted for dinner, and then made his way to the shower to get rid of the dirt and grime that he often felt after a day spent upholding law and order.  A satisfied smirk on his face, he began whistling as he turned on the water.

This was going to be a Christmas surprise that Emma would never forget.

After his shower, he discreetly printed the plane tickets, hotel confirmation, rental agreement for the car they would need, and placed all the documents in a Manila folder.  Peeking into the living room, he saw that Emma was now sobbing in tears at the scene on the screen of Shelby’s funeral.  He smiled at her show of emotion.  Emma “Swan” Nolan may wear a layer of red leather as armor, but he knew she was a closet romantic and the sweetest soul he knew.  The only person he knew that could even hold a candle to her purity was Mary Margaret, David’s wife and Emma’s sister-in-law, and even she wasn’t on Emma’s level in some ways.

Killian watched Emma watch the screen, appreciating this quiet moment that he never thought he’d get to have.  After so many things had nearly torn them apart, from vengeful exes to their own stubbornness in admitting their feelings and then their sometimes dangerous jobs, he had never thought they would get here, but he now had everything he ever wanted.

Lost in his reverie, he didn’t notice when the movie ended and Emma stood up and sauntered over to him, a seductive smile on her face, though tear tracks stained her cheeks.  He thought there was no better sight than Emma in sweats and no makeup coming towards him with that look in her eyes.  

“Hey, Lieutenant, what’s a girl gotta do to get some company?” She wrapped her arms around him and he reciprocated the gesture, smiling as he did so.  “What’s that you’ve got?” She nodded towards the folder.

He lifted it and handed it to her.  “See for yourself.”

Emma took the folder and opened it, wondering what was in it.  She studied the print-outs for a moment, her brow furrowed, before she realized what she was looking at.  “Is this-” she started.

“A trip, fully booked and paid for, for us to go to this Natchitoches place to see where they filmed your second favorite movie in the whole wide world,” he finished for her.  “Aye, love.  It’s part of my Christmas gift to you.”

Emma’s eyes widened at what he said.  “You really booked this for us?”

Killian nodded.  “Just this evening.  You can’t fool me, Swan, I know you’d love to make that trip.  You’re always on about how beautiful the place looks on the screen.”

Emma smiled at him.  “Do I want to make that trip?”

Killian smirked.  “Well, you’re something of an open book.”

They both laughed and embraced for a long moment.  FInally pulling apart, but not completely, Emma gave him a sly smile and a pointed look.

“I believe I should show my gratitude, don’t you think, Lieutenant?”

Killian tapped his lips and returned her sly smile.  “Perhaps gratitude is in order now.”

Emma rose up and kissed him fiercely, grabbing his shirt to tug her closer.  Dropping the folder, he picked her up to carry her into the bedroom.  Everything else could wait.  He had his Swan to ravish, first.

Several days later, Emma was desperately trying to pack her carry-on suitcase for their trip.  Nothing seemed to be exactly right, though she didn’t know much about the Southern states’ climate having grown up only in the northern states.  She had desperately called Mary Margaret over to help, and her sister-in-law had promptly arrived thirty minutes later bearing two hot chocolates in hand, ready to help Emma solve her latest crisis.

“What do you even wear in Louisiana in December?!” Emma shouted in frustration, tugging at her hair as she scanned the contents of her side of the closet.  Their plane was set to leave from Logan International in the morning, and she was now only half packed. She had the essentials in her suitcase, like comfortable pajamas and her toiletries, but the actual outfits to wear during the day were still yet to be picked.  It was the beginning of winter, and Boston had snow on the ground already, but Louisiana wasn’t a winter state. Did they even get snow? What was their average temperature this time of year? Did she need a swimsuit? Did they go swimming in December? Emma let her head thump against the frame of the closet door in frustration.

“Clothes might be the best option,” David replied, coming in to get Killian’s suitcase to help load it in Killian’s truck so they wouldn’t be lugging heavy bags around in the morning in a rush. 

Emma rolled her eyes. “Nah, I think I’ll just wear my tattoo and a smile,” she snarled back at her brother. David grinned and grabbed the packed suitcase, walking out without replying.

Mary Margaret breezed in behind him after a bathroom break, replying as she did so, “Louisiana is usually around mid to low 70s or high 60s during the day at this time of year, and anywhere in the high forties or low 50s at night.  They would be warmer or colder, but it usually won’t be by much. Jeans, sweaters, some lighter shirts, a jacket and maybe a hat and gloves and boots, should be all you’ll need for the temperatures.”

Emma looked at her best friend in disbelief, leaning her head against the closet door frame. “Seriously? When did you become an expert in climates of states you’ve never been to?”

Mary Margaret handed Emma her phone with a weather app pulled up that showed a graphic of the same information she just told Emma. “Since I Googled it.”

Emma smiled in response, rolling her eyes as she turned back to her closet. She settled on pulling out her favorite pair of jeans, a pair of leggings, and a skirt that she liked to wear for dates with Killian sometimes. She threw them haphazardly in her suitcase, which caused Mary Margaret to tut in exasperation at her sister-in-law’s messy habits as she grabbed the items to fold them properly.

“Do you want tights to go with this skirt,” Mary Margaret asked as Emma dug for her favorite white Aran knit sweater. 

“Yes, can you grab me a pair of black ones?” 

Mary Margaret moved to grab the item Emma would need, and when she turned back to place the item in the suitcase, she saw Emma holding a black leather dress with a thoughtful look on her face.

“New dress?” Mary Margaret asked, noticing the tags still on it.

“Yeah,” Emma replied, a little breathlessly. “I bought it as a surprise for Killian for a special celebration.”

The brunette smiled excitedly. “Do you think he’s going to propose on this trip?”

Emma shook her head slightly. “I don’t think he even realizes that’s what I want.”

“Then you should tell him! And pack that dress just in case! If nothing else, you can wear it to tell him you’re ready to take the next step.”

Emma winced a bit. “What if he doesn’t feel the same?” she whispered softly, fearful of the possibility that the answer was that Killian didn’t feel the same as she did.

“Emma!” Mary Margaret chided gently. “Of course he feels the same! He told David that he was ‘in this for the long haul.’ His exact words. A proposal is probably going to happen sooner than you think!”

Emma sighed. “I hope so. I never thought I would find what we have together. I don’t want to lose it.”

Mary Margaret hugged her close and Emma held on tightly to her sister-in-law. “You won’t. And you should bring that dress and a pair of red heels with you on your trip.”

Emma smiled and turned to place the dress in the suitcase. “I think I will.”

Feeling much more centered, Emma quickly grabbed the rest of her items and finished packing. She rolled her bag out to the living room and passed it off to David. Killian was just coming back inside from where he had walked downstairs with David to load up his luggage.

“All set, love?” He asked, taking her in his arms. 

Emma nodded contentedly. “All set,” she sighed happily. She held onto him as tight as she could. She couldn’t wait for their next adventure together.

The roar of the planes taking off the next day could be heard in the background as Killian argued with the woman behind the counter at the car rental inside Dallas Fort-Worth International about the rental he had reserved. Emma stood a little ways down the concourse from him watching the planes arrive and depart through one of the windows, though she could still hear his frustration. It seemed that his information and reservation had been lost.

The plane ride from Boston to Dallas had been uneventful. Emma loved quick plane rides that didn’t involve any hassle. She just wanted to get where she needed to be. Having Killian be there to handle any problems they encountered was a blessing to her.

“Well, Swan, it seems we finally have a vehicle. The woman said the drive was a little under four hours if we hit traffic right.”  Killian had moved behind her while she was ruminating on her thoughts. She turned and smiled.

“Lead the way.”

They walked out of the airport and to the location of the car. Once they located it, they loaded their luggage and began to make the next part of their journey. Killian sang along to the radio as Emma stared at the scenery. Everything looked very different from home, though it did grow monotonous after a while.  After a couple of hours, they arrived in Shreveport and stopped for a quick lunch before continuing south on Interstate 49 to Natchitoches. They arrived at the Natchitoches exit around three in the afternoon.  Emma looked at the hotels and fast food joints that surrounded Highway 6 and turned to Killian.

“Is our hotel here?”

He grinned in reply.  “I thought we would stay at a more ‘on location’ site and booked us at the Saint Denis Hotel.  It’s right along Front Street.”

Emma nodded in understanding and kept watch out of the window.  As they came into the outskirts of the city, she noticed a university of some sort to the right.  

“Is that Northwestern State University?” She asked.  

Killian nodded.  “I think so.  We have tickets to a show their performing arts center is performing tomorrow night.”

Emma raised her eyebrows in mock disbelief.  “Getting fancy on me, aren’t you?”

Killian laughed.  “It’s called the Christmas Gala.  We’re going to dinner before and then the show starts at 9. I hope you brought something appropriate to wear.”  Killian shot her a sly look and licked his lips.  Emma laughed in delight, grateful now that she had listened to Mary Margaret’s advice about packing her black leather dress.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” She teased back.  Killian grinned wider but didn’t say anything, instead turning his attention back to the road.  They drove past the college, eventually turning left onto Jefferson Street.

Up until that point, there had been Christmas lights draped along light poles and various other points, but the moment they turned onto Jefferson, the lights started.  As they drove, the road felt as if they were entering a tunnel of multicolored lights.  Light strands zigzagged above them, and there were light-drawn figures on every telephone pole.  As they drove, they could see some of the scenes that Natchitoches was famous for this time of year. It looked amazing, and it wasn’t even dusk yet.

After trawling through bumper to bumper traffic and getting turned around for a moment or two, they finally arrived.  The hotel lobby was decorated in a modern Provencal style that Emma had seen once before during a brief trip to New Orleans during Marci Gras with Killian a couple of years before.  Although not as ornate as other places Emma had seen, it still had a homey feel to the place.  Check-in was much less of a hassle than getting their rental car was, too, Emma noticed.  Once they made it into their room, which was decorated in a similar style, they set their luggage down and Emma flopped onto the bed.  Killian sat on the edge, watching her in amusement.

“Tired, love?” He asked.  It had been a long day of travel, after all.

Emma closed her eyes and nodded.  “A little.”

“What do you think so far?” 

“Emma opened her eyes and looked at him.  “Well, you’re sitting too prim for me but at least you're on the bed.”  Emma shrugged slightly, holding back a teasing grin.

Killian rolled his eyes.  “I meant about the town, Swan.”

“I know what you meant,” Emma laughed before continuing, “honestly, it’s all a bit cheesy, but I can see why it’s a popular lights destination for this area.  I’ve had fun so far.”

“I’m glad,” Killian replied and bent down to place a soft kiss on her lips, which she happily returned.  After several moments, he pulled away and stood.  “If you’ll get freshened up, we’ll go walk downtown and scope out the place.  I’ve heard they have a lot of great food here.”

Emma smiled and got up and walked to the bathroom.  “I’ll be right out,” she said, cocking her hips to the side sassily.

He laughed and returned, “I’ll be waiting.”

Once he was. certain she was ensconced in the shower, the door firmly closed behind her, he let out a shaky breath and put his hand in his pocket.  Clasping it in his hand, he pulled out a black velvet box and opened it.  The engagement ring was nestled safely inside, the huge center stone glistening in the light coming from the bedside lamps.  

Killian wasn’t sure when exactly he was going to propose, but he hoped that tomorrow night might provide the most romantic scene.  Surely there would be an opportunity sometime between dinner, the concert, and hopefully a nice stroll along the river taking in the lights.  Maybe they would luck out and get to do a carriage ride on one of the horse-drawn carriages he had spotted as they arrived.  All he knew was that he couldn't wait any longer.  He had had the ring for several months now, but something always stopped him from asking her.  

But not this time.  When they flew back to Boston in three days’ time, they would be engaged.  He knew Emma wanted it just as badly as he did, and there wasn’t anything he wouldn't do to help her have one of the best Christmas seasons of her life.  He just hoped he didn’t chicken out once he found the right moment.

An hour later, they were strolling along Front Street taking in the sights. The lights were on, but the sun hadn’t yet set, and Killian knew they would be better once it was dark. The streets were busy, as the area drew in a lot of tourism and the college kids were still in class and would likely continue to be until around the 15th. Emma, in true Emma fashion, found a street vendor who was selling hot chocolate, and they bought a couple of to-go cups and sipped on them as they walked. 

They passed a lot of shops, one of which was the Kaffie-Frederick General Mercantile Store, which was a blast from the past that was apparently founded in 1838. They learned from a local working the cash register that the name of the town wasn’t pronounced how it looked. 

“It’s pronounced ‘Nack-a-tish,” the friendly-faced woman laughed, seemingly not surprised by their lack of ability at pronouncing the name. “It was the name of a local Native American tribe. You’d actually be surprised how many people come here unable to pronounce it.  And don’t even try to ask Siri anything about it.  She doesn’t understand the word at all!”

Killian and Emma shared a glance of amazement at just how wrong they had gotten the name, quickly wrapping up their purchases.  After they deposited their purchases in their room, it was late enough for them to grab dinner at one of the restaurants on Front Street, a place called Mama’s that was adjoined to another place called Papa’s.  Dinner passed quickly with both enjoying the live music playing and being together in a place where they had no worries.  Killian kept sneaking glances at her when she was watching the band, struck by how happy and relaxed she looked.  

Perhaps this was the moment?  Should he get down on one knee now?  Though he hadn’t planned on asking for her hand tonight, it seemed as if this time could be the time.  His hand drifted to the pocket of his leather jacket and gripped the black box residing in it.  Emma laughed at something the lead singer said (what it was, Killian couldn’t have said, because nothing existed but Emma and this moment), and he pulled the box out.

“Emma?” He called, a little louder than normal so as to be heard over the din.

She turned and looked at him, smiling brightly.  “Yeah, babe?”

He broke off for a moment as she looked at him expectantly.  The words he wanted to say, of adoration and forever and will you be mine, got stuck in his throat.  He cleared it, and grabbed her hand.  “I love you,” he stated a little flatly, let down by his inability to say what he wanted.  

Emma chuckled softly.  “I love you, too,” she replied.  “Are you okay?  You looked almost nervous just now.”

“I’m fine, love.” He looked down at the table for a moment, caressing her hand with his thumb, before he looked up and caught her eyes again.  “We’ve been together for a while, haven’t we?  Shared many adventures together?” He asked, trying to buy some time to get his thoughts together.

Emma tilted her head a bit in confusion.  “Aye,” she responded, teasing.  “Why do you bring it up?  You’re not breaking up with me are you?”  Her face fell at the unpleasant thought, and Killian’s heart skipped a beat at her words.

“Of course not!  I would never- I want you by my side always!”

Emma’s face relaxed from relief.  “Oh, good.  That’s good because I feel the same way.”

“I can’t believe you would think I’d take you all this way to break up with you,” Killian responded, momentarily derailed from the romantic speech he didn’t have planned to ask the question he knew that both of them wanted yet fully paralyzed him with fear at articulating to her.

Emma laughed and shrugged.  “Stranger things have happened to me before.”

“Indeed, they have,” Killian responded, not continuing as the waitress came over to see if they needed anything else.  Once they had settled the bill with her, they had silently agreed that it was a good time to head back to their room.  Killian lamented that the moment had passed, but he also couldn’t help but feel some relief.  If he couldn’t get out the question without botching it up, then he shouldn’t ask it until he could do so without making her question if he’s about to end their relationship.

After they had been walking for a moment or two, Emma said, “So why did you bring up how long we’ve been together?”

Killian looked out at the scene before them, of the glimmer of the lights on the Cane River and the romantic atmosphere of the quaint college town.  “I was just thinking about how much we’ve seen and done,” he finally responded before looking at her.  “There’s no one else I’d rather go through life with.”

Emma smiled and stopped them from walking any further.  She leaned up and gave him a long, slow, soft kiss, one that Killian gladly returned.  Their mouths moved in the perfect sync that came from years of devotion and adoration.  Killian drew her further into his embrace, wrapping his arms around her as she moved one hand to clench in his hair and the other to cup the back of his neck.  Neither carried the kiss much further, aware as they were of being in the middle of a public sidewalk with many other people around them for the festivities, but the heat that always seemed to simmer between them was stoked to a higher flame.

As they both pulled away from the kiss, Killian rested his forehead against hers.  He looked into her eyes, asking a silent question, one that Emma responded to with a similar look.  They both turned and quickly finished the trek back to their hotel room.  Once inside, they gave into the passion and love that consumed them in the dance of lovers as old as time itself.  After they lay sated and entwined, Killian briefly thought of asking her then, but when he turned his head to broach the subject, he saw that Emma lay peacefully asleep.  Smiling, he tugged her closer and gave into the exhaustion that ebbed at his consciousness.  There was always tomorrow, after all.

[cosette141]

Thank you @cocohook38 for bringing it up, and @kazoosandfannypacks for putting in the time to make this list for everyone!! And thank you @csgiftexchange for reiterating that it's not a requirement :) those who aren't comfy with that much social interaction should definitely only do what's best for them, and that goes for both my Santas this year as well! I love hearing from you but please only do whatever you are comfortable with!! You both have been so incredibly lovely and I'm so lucky to have both of you!!!!

I love this idea and will definitely be using some of these question ideas!!

I hope everyone who sees this is enjoying their holiday season so far! ❤️

I saw this post going around about how there's not a lot of interaction for @cssecretsanta2020 and also @csgiftexchange [hope it's okay that I tagged you guys] between the gifters and their people. I know there's quite a few people who probably feel the same way, so I've decided to make a Captain Swan Christmas Ask Game. Obviously, anyone can participate, reblog, and send asks, but it also might be helpful for those of us who aren't quite sure what questions to ask our giftees.

GIftees, if you want a little more interaction from your secret santa/gift exchanger, (or just other users in general!) feel free to reblog!

Givers, if your giftee has reblogged this, you know have a few ideas for some questions to ask them (and don't forget to reblog it yourself so your giver can hit you up with some asks)

Without any further overexplanation from kazzy: Captain Swan Christmas Ask Game

How long have you been a Once Upon a Time Fan?

Around what point in the series did you start shipping Captain Swan?

Favorite Captain Swan scene?

What are some non-Captain Swan ships you ship?

What are you most looking forward to this Christmas?

How are you doing on your giftexchange/secretsanta gift?

Do you have a favorite holiday tradition?

Favorite Christmas/holiday treat?

Favorite hot drink?

On a scale of 1-10, how much do you decorate/prepare for Christmas?

Got most of your holiday shopping done?

Do you feel like you have a set Christmas aesthetic?

What's a favorite holiday memory of yours?

Favorite Christmas movie?

Favorite Christmas song?

Favorite Christmas TV special episode?

What does Christmas mean to you?

Do you have any Captain Swan Christmas headcanons?

Favorite Captain Swan headcanons in general?

Have you ever participated in this kind of event before?

Favorite kind of Christmas cookie?

A few of your favorite CaptainSwan fic recommendations (either ones you wrote or ones you've read.)

What's Christmas morning like for you?

Do you do any of the holiday cooking/baking?

Do you have any favorite christmas outfits or accessories?

Do you own any OUaT merch?

What's your biggest Christmas wish this year?

What are some of your favorite platonic relationships Killian and Emma have?

What are some of your non-ouat OTPs?

What's your opinion on X [character, story arc, holiday thing, ext.]

Merry Christmas, loves!

[aratedfreyjablog]

So, an opinion on the email sent by PB in response to the collected concerns/questions that were sent (which can be read in part 1 (here) and part 2 (here).

The 3 main points that I found hopeful and had a positive view on were:

Ability to obtain 500+ (emphasis on "+") Solomon Seals PER MONTH for f2p <- This one was a big concern that many, including myself, had as it felt extremely paywalled when trying to obtain a character many would want only to realize they can't even participate during the chance-up period because they have to pay. To be able to obtain 500+ Solomon Seals without charge (as mentioned in the twt) is equivalent to getting a free 10-pull. Based on PB's response, it looks like the Seals for f2p players would be obtainable from grinding + login gifts which I personally perceive as grinding directly for keys. Though there are complaints already from hearing "more grinding" or "just 500 Solomon Seals", I think it's better compared to having to spend currency just to obtain another currency when the currency for solely spending in the shop can be used solely for resources

Consideration of exchanging characters to obtain L-grade characters <- Whoever brought this up as a point of discussion was smart. Since many of us are pulling multiple characters of various S, A+, A, and B characters, it would be nice to be able to exchange them for L-grades not just for pancakes with their tea leaves

To be able to choose the character we want after reaching 220 limited-gacha/pity <- I don't think this needs to be explained why I or anyone else are happy about this.

I still feel bitter about the Nightmare pass as it seems like PB is not going to reconsider more wiggle-room or opportunities for f2p to gain the rewards offered including Christmas Gabriel. For myself, personally, if the company had not introduced the concept of the Nightmare pass as a Christmas event, I wouldn't be as bitter. But, for many gaming companies, Christmas events are treated as more carrot over the stick (i.e., more rewards being evenly distributed and accessible towards all f2p and p2w players). And that wasn't the case with the Nightmare pass at all. Not going to lie though, the response PB had sent hurt my heart when reading about the working conditions the employees are going through to provide content to the players through the game. Only 2 breaks per month for the employees? CS managing ALL of the emails AND social media? That's insane. Small companies are SMALL companies, meaning there are a small amount of employees. I can only imagine the sheer stress these people have to not only produce content and developing the game but also sifting through and responding and addressing all of the issues. In addition, they acknowledge the flaws that have led towards the negative impact of the game and apologized multiple times in the email. Mind everyone, the email, itself, was 8 pages long. I don't know about everyone else, but if that's not considered as showing sincerity and honesty than... I don't know what is at this point. I can't imagine them making things up and say it as a reply in an email when knowing the LU/DKDK had such a small number of players which would make sense to have 50 players be p2w players... The story and lore is engaging and the battles are fun though sometimes it can get a bit tiring when being forced to play just to grind for resources rather than playing for fun. That as well as the other bugs that still needs to be addressed. However, it's not to the point to garner such negativity where complaints should be sent with a mix of entitlement and bigotry. And not just towards PB but also towards players who are simply expressing their enjoyment of the game. But, let's all look forward to the content that will be dropping in January including Chapter 5 and perhaps even a new L-grade character feat. the king of Paradise Lost!

[cosette141]

Good | OUAT fanfic | CS gift exchange gift (2/3)

MERRY CHRISTMAS @i-will-sing-no-requiem !!!

Here is your second gift! A little fic I started for you that I didn't end up going with, but it turned into like a little missing scene :)

Summary: (missing scene/tag to "New York City Serenade") A conversation between Emma and Killian about her broken heart. And maybe the hope that it will mend, sooner rather than later. 

AO3

It was the night they'd come back to Storybrooke from New York City, and he found her in Granny's dining room, nursing a drink long after the employees had gone home. He himself had come to look for a drink for himself to erase the desire to be near her.

Yet, he didn't think anything was strong enough to keep him away.

"Emma?" he asked, brows lifting in surprise. "I thought you'd be with your family," he said, ignoring the pang in his chest, the wish to be included in it.

"Henry doesn't have his memories," said Emma dully, turning the glass in her fingers, staring into it. "We're staying here until he gets them back. He's asleep."

The dining room was empty, and it felt like he'd rather die than leave her alone in it. "Care for some company?" he asked gently.

She seemed to hear the gentleness of the question, and also seemed to ponder it before saying, "Sure."

Killian sat beside her, trying to ignore what felt like electricity being so close to her. He watched her for a moment, but she didn't say anything. Until:

"Oh for two, I guess."

Her words were weighted by something tired and sad, and Killian turned his head, seeing with shock that her eyes were slightly red, like she'd been crying.

But before he could inquire, she clarified, "First Neal, then Walsh. The two biggest liars I've ever known, and my superpower didn't catch a damn one."

The boyfriend that turned into a flying monstrosity.

For the first time, Killian pushed aside the envy at the idea of Emma with another man while he'd been madly in love with her for the entire past year.

Because this was Emma, someone who trusted people less than he did, especially when it came to love, and she'd been played.

Twice.

Bloody hell.

How could he have been so selfish?

"Catching liars is the only thing I'm good at," whispered Emma, like either she'd hit a breaking point or the alcohol was loosening her walls a little. She shut her eyes, rubbing them. "God, I'm so stupid."

"You are the furthest thing, Emma," said Killian seriously, wanting badly to touch her, console her somehow, but he kept himself from doing so. "I've said it before and meant it every time, love. You're bloody brilliant."

"No," she said, dismissing the compliment without a second thought, like she didn't even have the ability to process words of praise.

Something that hurt him to his very core.

"No," she repeated, glaring a little into the drink left in her glass. "Stupid that I even thought someone could—anybody would want—"

She didn't finish the sentence, but Killian heard the end of it in painful clarity.

Me.

"Emma." said Killian, voice almost edging on desperate, because the thought of her believing something so untrue made him feel sick. This time, he couldn't help himself, settling his hand tentatively over hers on the counter, making her eyes snap to it, like she was just as distrustful of a kind gesture. Unable to believe it could simply be for comfort and comfort alone.

"You are not stupid for believing that someone had wanted you this past year, because someone has." And trying to breathe past the sudden fear in his own chest, he managed— "I have."

She looked at him for the first time tonight, like that wasn't something she'd even considered.

"Emma," he said, slowly, because he needed her to hear his words. "I was… I was a bloody mess this past year. Thinking I'd never see you again…" He swallowed past the dark, lonely nights thinking just that. "When I got the message to save you…" He smiled at the relief at reading it. "I did everything I could to find you. If only… to see you again."

Finally, it seemed like she was hearing his words, and for the first time since taking the memory potion, she seemed to realize just what lengths he'd gone.

For her.

There was something in her eyes, something that erased the sadness that was there.

Something like hope.

She smiled a little, something that was like the shadow of her normal one, though he's only rarely seen even that. "Thanks," she said softly. "I think I forgot that part." And with a little shyness, "It's been… nice to see you again too."

'Nice' didn't quite seem to define the look in her eyes, but he let her have her secrets.

A… feeling filled the air between them, and they both seemed to feel it at the same time, the lingering… chemistry.

Emma stood, fairly quick, saying, "I guess I should, um, get to sleep."

As much as Killian wanted to stay here with her, he understood.

Emma was afraid enough of love, and that was before her heart had been freshly broken.

He'll give her as much time as she needs.

"Aye," he agreed, both of them walking toward the rooms.

They stopped outside his door, and Emma paused before heading to hers, saying, "So... you're... staying? In Storybrooke?"

There was so much hope in those words that it seemed she was trying to actively prevent.

The question was attempted to be casual but was anything but.

Her heart was shattered, broken.

As much as it pained him to see, it was a hope of his own.

If it can be broken, that means it still works.

For he knew that, all too well.

"Aye," he said, just as heavily, just as hopeful. "I am."

Emma's eyes lingered on his, those walls so cracked, that hope shining through, like sunlight through leaves.

And she smiled, the expression as beautiful as she was. "Good."

She disappeared with that whisper, slipping into her room, and Killian remained frozen where he was.

Good.

He smiled.

-.-.-

tag list: @csgiftexchange @kmomof4 @justanother-unluckysoul @klynn-stormz @stahlop @ilovemesomekillianjones @hookmecaptain @tiganasummertree @jadehowlettthewolf @jonesfandomfanatic @anmylica @pirateprincessofpizza @stahlop @snowbellewells @eddisfargo @motherkatereloyshipper 

[i-will-sing-no-requiem]

It's me! Hi! I'm your (CS gift exchange) Santa, it's me! 🥰🥰

I'm not sure if the tags on your gifts worked so let me know if you didn't get notifs for them!!

Hope you're having a merry Christmas!!

Hi!

Yeah the tags worked, I just haven't had the chance to really look at them since I haven't been online much today.

I'm super excited to see what you wrote though! (I read what they're about) and I'll look at them tomorrow (it's really late where I live)

I hope you had a great Christmas!!💖

[kmp78]

"@carmelnardi - Dotawhatever has less than 8000 followers on IG. She ain´t getting any kind of PR deals as an influencer. 👎And no one knows who Mek is, and even GTGT is a total nobody despite her 3 mentions in the Daily Mail."

Have to disagree with you,K. The days when huge followers equaled PR deals and free gifts from companies are over. Any kind of free PR/advertisement any company is getting is more than welcome. Social media managers/content creators are expensive. I have a friend in PR a very well-known cosmetic company sent out cartier bracelets & hermes bag as payment to IG modelitas. The majority of the recipients didn't have 100k followers or thousands of comments on their posts. Big influencers are much harder to work with. Their presence on IG is the fundament of their income. They're picky about which brands to work with and more strategic and concerned about their image than a couple of years ago. The days when influencers advertised a different product a day as long as they got freebies or cash are long gone. Most famous influencers have managers or an agency behind them, even the ones who work as MUA, hairstylists or fashion stylists and are basically self-employed entrepreneurs. So a model agency like Marilyn asking for freebies/upgrades for 4 of their models (one conveniently linked to JL) in return for some IG content is not out of the norm. CS is proof of this. She has no pull on customers whatsoever. The engagement on her posts stems from eches and Mars fans. Still she's getting freebies and deals from well-known brands. Quantity over quality. The more people advertise your product the better.

There's no way A RITZ-LEVEL HOTEL is buying PR from the likes of these absolute NOBODIES. 😂

Plus that content they posted would not meet the criteria of a paid freebie accommodation in any way, shape or form. 👎

Remember when #Shantana was moving house and like the pampered little hausfrau that CS is, they couldn't handle the move like normal people do but instead moved into a god damn penthouse for a few days while underlings did all the work?

Yeah. THAT was a freebie accommodation in exchange for IG PR.

As sad as it all was, but anyway. 👇

That's how you plug a product you were paid to plug.

Not with the sad little clippies GTGT and the rag taggers posted. 🙄

[kmomof4]

Oh, wowwwww!!!!

   The Evil Queen uses Aladdin to make Emma’s secret wish that she wasn’t the Savior a reality but like most wishes things aren’t the way imagined.    Princess Emma, since she was born, has lived a carefree and peaceful life. She dreams, though, of adventures beyond the castle. When her parents ask her why she would ever want to leave her perfect life, she insists that there is something missing and she won’t stop until she finds it. (Part ¼) (Killian’s poster)

                                     Merry Christmas, @totheendoftheworldortime !! As soon as I read Canon AU and Captain Duckling, a 6x10 AU came to my mind! As I said in my message, the main thing (the video) will be posted the week after the New Year’s Day (my pc chose the right time to broke down, as always). Today I’ll post these teasers to maybe get you a little bit excited for what’s to come. I really home you’ll like them!!! @csgiftexchange

[kazoosandfannypacks]

"Last Chance" by kazoosandfannypacks

Pairing: Captain Swan Rating: General Word Count: 1K Summary: Killian had been hoping to tell Emma about his feelings for her at some point this Christmas break, as their friends visited with her brother. As the holiday came and went, Killian feared he may have missed his chance. Fortunately for him, one last Christmas decoration has yet to be put away- and it may be just what they need to break the ice. Tags: au, fluff, captain swan, one shot, modern au, christmas, snowing, first kiss, oneshot, college au Author's notes: This one's based on a prompt that @everything-person sent to the discord a while back! It was probably jsut after Christmas when it was sent, and I wrote it not long after that, but it sat in my drafts for a while. After a poll revealed y'all wouldn't mind a Christmas fic in May, I've decided today would be an awesome day to post it. I hope you guys enjoy it! Shoutout to @booksteaandtoomuchtv for betaing! Taglist:@zahara@kmomof4@jonesfandomfanatic@booksteaandtoomuchtv@jrob64@tiganasummertree@anmylica@teamhook@undercaffinatednightmare@gingerchangeling@lonelyspectator@caught-in-the-filter  @ultraluckycatnd  @cs-rylie @silver-the-phoenix @pawshapedheart  [if you’d like to be added to or removed from this list, hmu in my dms or askbox!] Also on Ao3!

 Killian smiled at Emma across the room as she took down the decorations on the tree, just like he'd smiled at her when she'd helped put them up, and like he'd smiled at her when they'd helped her sister-in-law make cutout cookies, and when they'd all gone caroling and got hot chocolate afterwards, and when they exchanged gifts on Christmas morning, and when they all sat down for a Christmas dinner- and really, like he'd been smiling at her since the day he met her at a campus-wide fall festival- one that he'd almost decided not to attend; one that she'd've skipped out on if her friends hadn't dragged her along.

 But how fortunate was he that he'd gone, and that he'd somehow fallen in with her friend group there, and how readily they invited him to join them at various activities afterwards. Already they'd celebrated a few birthdays together, set up a trunk for trunk-or-treat, gone on a few hikes- and now they'd even celebrated Christmas together.

 It really was kind of Emma's brother to invite him and some of their other friends to stay over the week for Christmas. It was nice to get away from the dorms for a bit to celebrate a small town Christmas.

 It also would've been the perfect opportunity for Killian to tell Emma how he felt about her. Christmas magic in the air, blanket of snow across the town, the lights, the excitement, the merriment, the wonder- but as Killian helped her brother, David, take down the last string of Christmas lights, he realized he'd probably missed his chance at a Christmas miracle. Tomorrow they'd head back to school, back to classes and teachers and homework- back to normal.

 And, unfortunately for Killian, his normal life only involved liking Emma from a distance.

 "And it looks like another family- and friends- Christmas is officially in the books." David said, wrapping up the last string of lights.

 "Thanks for having us," Killian said.

 "Our pleasure," David said, "the more the merrier."

 "Allow me," Killian said, taking the string of lights from David, "you've already done more than enough for us."

 "Alright."

 A bright green tote labeled "XMAS LIGHTS" sat just between this room and the living room- where Emma had been taking the last of the decorations off the tree. Killian wondered if he could steal another glance at Emma without anyone noticing, but his glance revealed she was coming that way, with a string of lights of her own to put away.

 "Here," Killian said, walking past the tote to take the string of lights from her.

 "I can get it," she said, holding out the string of lights at arms length away from him.

 "It's really no trouble at all," Killian said. He stood in the doorway between her and the box of lights, and when she tried to walk past him, he sidestepped into her path. She tried again, and he blocked her again, and again, and the same result.

 She sighed as she handed him the bundle of lights. "You really are taking the fun out of this."

 "Am I?" Killian asked with a smug smile.

 Mary Margaret interrupted their conversation to yell something past them both, to David.

 "Oh, David! We still need to take the mistletoe down too!"

 Killian knew which doorway the mistletoe hung in almost too well- he'd seen David catch his wife standing there a few too many times- and it happened to be the very same doorway that Killian and Emma were now standing under.

 "No," Emma said, "I already…."

 She looked up at the ceiling almost confused, like she hadn't expected the mistletoe to be right where it had been for the last two weeks, so much so Killian almost didn't expect it to be there either. But Killian looked up too, and sure enough, there was the mistletoe, right above himself and Emma Swan.

 "This is almost too good to be true," Killian thought. Fate had given him one last chance at a Christmas miracle.

 "I thought I took that down," Emma said.

 Killian swallowed the lump in his throat- it was now or never.

 "Swan?"

 "Yeah?"

 "We're under the mistletoe," he said, trying not to chicken out as her eyes met his, "and there's this tradition…."

 "Do Christmas traditions still count after New Year's?" Emma asked.

 "I sure hope so." Killian thought.

 "The last chance of the season," he said, "may I?"

 Emma smiled and nodded, and Killian's heart skipped a beat as she said, "Yeah."

 He closed his eyes and leaned forward, meeting her lips with his for the most perfect moment of his life. Her lips touching his was like a meteor shower, or a firework- beautiful, entrancing, dangerous- and done and over with way too soon. He pulled away, smiling, wishing he could've made that moment last longer, but not wanting to push her further than she was willing to go.

 He thought his heart was beating so loud she could probably hear it, but realized instead that the sound was their friends clapping. He didn't turn to look at them though- in that moment, all he wanted to see was Emma.

 "Is that the best you got?" Emma asked.

 "What?" Killian asked.

 "It's like you said," Emma said, taking from his hands the bundles of lights that had gotten them into this beautiful mess in the first place. She threw them aside, probably landing them somewhere near the tote they belonged in.

 "What?"

 "'Last chance of the season-'" she said, "might as well make it a good one."

 She placed her hands on his neck, stood up on tiptoes so her lips were parallel with his, then whispered, "May I?"

 Killian couldn't get out much more than a nod and a breath that sounded almost like a "yeah," not even seeing this moment coming in his wildest daydreams- Emma Swan asking to kiss him.

 She slid her hands down to his collar and pulled him closer, drawing his lips down into hers in a kiss that blew the last one out of the water.

 He placed his hands on her waist, trying to experience everything he could in this moment- his lips exploring hers, her body in his hands, the lingering taste of gingerbread in her breath, a subtle pine smell, her warmth- holding her closer than he'd ever dared dream she'd let him. He was so lost in the moment he didn't even hear their friends cheering around him as he wrapped one of his hands further around her side, resting her neck in his other, pulling her into a dip and holding her as tightly as he could, pulling her even closer as he kissed her.

 For the past three months he'd been watching her from a distance, wishing he could tell her how much she meant to him, wishing he could even just take her hand, ask her to get coffee, hold her at a dance, walk her back to her dorm and kiss her goodnight. And now that he had her in his arms and had her lips on his, he had three months of catching up to do, and one kiss to do it in. Every moment spent pining from a distance equalled another ounce of passion and love he needed to communicate in this kiss.

 But as all good things have to, this kiss came to an end. Emma pulled away, her hands still on his neck, her eyes still sparkling in reflection of his, her breath still lingering on his lips. They both breathed heavily, still lost in their own little world a moment longer, until he gently stood her upright again.

 "Wow," he whispered, hoping his voice wouldn't be drowned out by the cheering of her friends around them. "Swan, that was…."

 "I know," Emma whispered, a look in her eyes that said it still wasn't nearly enough.

 But she shook her head and blinked back to reality, and he as well noticed the crowd of spectators around them. Then he looked back down to Emma, her cheeks flushed with the most perfect shade of red he'd seen that whole Christmas season.

 She smiled as she let go of him, albeit a bit awkwardly, and he watched her walk away from him, not taking his eyes off her until she'd walked out the back door and disappeared from view. The rest of the group, apparently, had decided the show was over and got back to whatever they'd been doing before Killian's life changed forever like that.

Killian ran his fingers through his hair and took a deep breath, leaning against the doorway to brace himself and his thoughts. He'd just kissed Emma Swan. He'd practically made out with her- and if he could do that, what was stopping him from finding a moment with her later, telling her how he felt, asking her if she wanted him to be something more to her.

 He smiled as he took down that fateful mistletoe plant, now filled with hope that maybe things wouldn't be so normal when they got back to school- or maybe normal would be something even better now.

 Maybe he hadn't missed his chance with Emma after all.

[whimsicallyenchantedrose]

Christmas Reruns 2023--Day 1: A Christmas Miracle (1/3)

Merry Christmas if you celebrate it and happy holidays if you don’t!  One of the things I love about Christmas is watching reruns of all the old classic Christmas movies–Christmas is a big time for nostalgia.  A few years ago, I decided to incorporate that tradition into my fandom life and post my CS holiday reruns.  So here you go!  Enough holiday (mostly) fluff to get you to New Year’s Day. (With a new story posting on Christmas Day.)

Rating: G

Word Count: 1868

Other chapters: 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32

Note:  This story was originally written in 2013, at the very end of the Neverland arc.  It fits within my “A Wish Your Heart Makes” universe, so when there’s talk about “the second curse” or Camelot, it’s referring to that, not canon events.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A Christmas Miracle–Ch. 1

“No offense, Mary Margaret,” Emma said skeptically, “but that sounds like a terrible idea.” She walked quickly beside her mother, her head down and her gloved hands in her pockets. It was cold!

“Oh come on, Emma,” Mary Margaret coaxed, “It’ll be fun! And it’s Christmas; families should be together.”

“Yeah,” Emma answered with a sidelong glance, “normal families should be together, but what we have…well we should be the poster family for ‘dysfunctional’.”

They continued walking through Storybrook’s main street. Emma looked up into the sky. It looked like snow. Great, just what she needed!

“Now Emma,” Mary Margaret said, “you know that’s not really true. Look how well we’ve all worked together lately. First Neverland and then the new curse. I think we’re all starting to meld together.”

Emma sighed. “Let me get this straight. You want to have a party on Christmas Eve with the whole family…me, you and David, Henry, Neal, Regina, Gold and Belle?”

“Yeah!” Mary Margaret said looking eagerly into her daughter’s face. “I’ve thought it all out! We’ll rent out Granny’s. We can decorate a tree and have a white elephant gift exchange and sing carols and just…you know…follow all the Christmas traditions!”

“There better be a lot of eggnog at that party,” Emma muttered, “because we’re gonna need it.”

The two women turned the corner and headed toward Granny’s. Emma sighed again. It had been a week since they had broken the Camelot curse and everyone had come home to Storybrook. A festive atmosphere pervaded the whole town. Christmas was only a few days away, and it seemed Storybrook’s residents planned to celebrate with a vengeance this year. They had put up the largest Christmas tree Emma had ever seen in the town square. Everyone had contributed their own unique ornaments, and Regina and Mr. Gold had used their magic to deck the upper branches, too high for anyone to reach…even with a ladder.

Emma should be happier, she knew she should, but she couldn’t help the feeling of dread that covered her like a blanket. She kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. She didn’t trust the calm and the peace. Between the original curse, she and her mother being transported to the Enchanted Forest, Henry being taken to Neverland, and the new curse…well, it seemed that every time they had a chance to take a breath something else terrible happened.

“What on earth is that all about?” Mary Margaret asked laughing as she pointed a gloved finger toward Granny’s. Emma peered in the direction her mother was pointing and couldn’t help the laugh that burst forth from her. There stood Grumpy dressed in a Christmas elf costume, complete with hat and pointy boots. He sang “Jingle bells” at the top of his lungs while somehow simultaneously scowling with all his might.

“Grumpy,” Mary Margaret said through her laughter, “what are you doing? I’ve never known you to be overflowing with Christmas spirit.”

“Let me tell you sister,” Grumpy said frowning in their direction, “if Happy ever offers to make a bet with you. Run. As fast as you can. In the opposite direction.”

Emma laughed as she opened the door to Granny’s and gestured Mary Margaret in. Mary Margaret headed to their favorite booth and Emma followed. She glanced quickly through the diner as she slid into her place opposite her mother. She refused to admit, even to herself, that she was looking for him, but she couldn’t deny the wave of disappointment she felt when she found the diner completely lacking a certain leather-clad pirate. They had worked so closely together over the past few weeks, first in New York, then in the Enchanted Forest, and finally in Camelot. He had become such a normal part of her life that it felt weird if a day went by when she didn’t see him. Surely that was the cause of her disappointment at not seeing him; surely there was nothing more.

But the fact was, she had wondered those last few days in Camelot whether…something…was starting to develop between them. He had been so, she didn’t know, devoted to her. Sometimes she would look up and see him gazing at her…and his gaze was as tender as a caress.

He had as much as told her he loved her in Echo Cave on Neverland, but then they’d gotten back to Storybrook, and he’d been so distant. It was almost like he was pushing Neal on her. She just didn’t get it. How was she supposed to figure him out? If she couldn’t even figure him out, how the hell was she supposed to figure out how she felt about him?

“So,” Emma said, idly picking up a menu from the rack near the window, “is David meeting us here?”

“Yeah,” Mary Margaret said glancing at her own menu, “He said he’s running a little late, but he should be here soon.”

The radio blared “Santa Baby” as several more people rushed into the diner, each clearly in a hurry to get out of the cold winter wind.

“Emma,” Mary Margaret said hesitantly, “you don’t really mind, do you? I mean about the family Christmas party.”

Emma dropped her eyes. “No, I guess not,” she answered, “Just don’t get your hopes up, ok? You get this group of people together, there’s bound to be fireworks.”

“Well,” Mary Margaret said with a smile, “that’ll just be more decoration for Christmas!”

“You are such an eternal optimist!” Emma said shaking her head. She couldn’t stop the small smile that draped her lips.

“Eternal optimist,” David said as he slid into the booth next to Mary Margaret and gave her a quick kiss, “you must be talking about my wife.”

“The very one,” Emma said unwrapping the straw Ruby had just brought with her iced tea.

“Henry not coming today?” David asked after giving Emma a hug.

“Nope,” Emma answered, “he’s with Neal today.”

Her parents exchanged a quick concerned glance.

“How’s everything going,” David asked, “you know, between you and Neal?”

Emma looked down. She supposed she might as well tell them. They’d been subtly…and not so subtly pushing her toward Neal for the past week. Why did they insist she be with him?

“There is nothing between me and Neal,” she said looking straight into her father’s eyes. “We had a talk the day after we all got back. I’m sure there’s a part of me that will always love him, but I’ve moved on. We’re both different people now. We had our moment, and now it’s gone.”

“Are you sure, honey?” Mary Margaret asked, reaching over and taking Emma’s hand. Emma smiled at her mother. After a lifetime of being on her own, it was nice to have someone care about her…worry about her happiness.

“Yeah, mom,” Emma said. The joy on Mary Margaret’s face at her use of that one little word was well worth it. “I’m sure. I’ve seen true love. I see how you and Dad are together, and, well, that’s not how it was with me and Neal.”

“But..” her mom tried again. Why was she so insistent?

“Mom,” Emma cut in, “If we’re going to have a Christmas party the day after tomorrow, we better start planning.”

Mary Margaret looked up at her for another moment and then slowly nodded. They talked and laughed throughout their meal. It was wonderful to just have a nice normal dinner with her parents. No curses, no lost boys, now evil shadows, no life-or-death catastrophes, no imminent danger.

“So then Archie slipped on the icy sidewalk,” David said, “he managed to stay upright, but he dropped his grocery bag, and it spilled all over the road. Before he had a chance to pick anything up Pongo shot past him, grabbed his deli meat and had a nice little feast!”

“Hm,” Emma said sipping the last of her iced tea, “I guess I better get on city management to put down some salt on the sidewalks.”

“Yeah,” David said glancing out the window, “looks like it’s starting to snow.”

“Ugh!” Emma groaned following the direction her father was looking. “I hate snow.”

“Oh, come now love,” came a silky voice from her right. Emma’s heart skipped a beat at the sound of his voice, “surely not.”

Emma looked up into Hook’s blue eyes and smiled in spite of herself. She scooted to her left and patted the seat next to her. He smiled and took the seat she indicated.

“Yep,” she answered him, “detest it. Snow means traffic accidents, icy sidewalks, and general headaches for the sheriff’s department.”

Hook turned toward her and smiled. His hook brushed her hand, and a jolt of electricity shot from the spot throughout her whole body. What was wrong with her? “No, love,” he said, “snow means snowmen and sleigh rides and snowball fights.”

“I don’t have time for any of that,” Emma said, looking up at the handsome pirate.

“Perhaps you should make time,” he said. Was it just her imagination or had he put a little emphasis on that last word?

David cleared his throat, and Emma started. Had she really just been looking deeply into Hook’s eyes? In front of her parents? What was wrong with her? She needed to get a grip!

“Hook,” David said with a nod in the pirate’s direction.

“Charming,” Hook answered with an identical nod of the head.

“At any rate,” Hook said to the table at large picking up the conversation where it had left off, “with Christmas only a few days off, it is only right we should get some snow.”

Emma glanced up at him and saw a small wistful expression on his face. Did he have anyone to spend Christmas with or would he have to spend a lonely day by himself? The thought hurt her somehow.

“Speaking of Christmas,” Emma said before she could think better of it, “we’re having a little family celebration the day after tomorrow. Would you like to come?”

Now where had that come from? Wasn’t the party going to be awkward enough as it was without adding Hook to the mix? Did she really want him there? Yes, said the small, honest voice in her head. The fact was, it seemed he belonged with them. With me the voice insisted. She gave her head a tiny shake as if to clear it. What was wrong with her?

He smiled down at her, but shook his head. “I don’t wish to impose on a family celebration.”

“Oh come on,” Emma cajoled smiling up at him, “after all you’ve done for us, both in getting Henry back and in helping to break the new curse, you practically are family”

“We really would be happy to have you,” Mary Margaret said, reaching out to pat Hook’s arm.

His smile grew. “I wouldn’t miss it for all the rum in the Caribbean.”

NEXT CHAPTER-->

[flossinspector]

— character info sheet.

(repost, don’t reblog)

name: Toothiana

name meaning: Based off the magical memories in children's teeth, which caused her parents to meet.

alias/es: Tooth Fairy, and Tooth or Toothie by friends

ethnicity: [redacted]

one picture you like best of your chara:

name: Toothiana

name meaning: Based off the magical memories in children's teeth, which caused her parents to meet.

alias/es: Tooth Fairy, and Toothie by friends

ethnicity: [redacted]

one picture you like best of your chara:

two h/cs you never told anyone: hm...

1. I might have mentioned this before, but I can't remember for sure? I guess trigger warning? Anyway, Tooth understandably had a terrible time mentally when her parents first passed away. (warranted, obviously) There was definitely some self harm in that period of time. Pulling out handfuls of feathers, and she honestly got this close to trying to cut off her wings. If they weren't crucial to her survival, she probably would have. But she couldn't let herself die after so many people gave their lives to keep her alive.

2. Again, I don't know if I've actually said this in a post, but anyway! At first, Tooth didn't realize that she stopped aging. She can't even specify when exactly it was. Just one day, she realized all the children she grew up alongside were the grown ups. They were taking over positions their parents used to hold, having children of their own, getting age lines. And she... wasn't. Her reflection hadn't changed. After that generation is around the time she started spreading the scope of her gifts in exchange for teeth thing further, as well as pulling back of the personal relationship aspect of it. She didn't want to watch others pass her by as closely anymore.

three things your character likes doing in their free time: 

Painting. Any murals around her palace featuring herself were made by her own hand. It's a good way for her to process her feelings.

Practicing with weapons of various kinds, yoga type body training, sparring when she can find a suitable partner. Basically physical activity is a part of her regular routine whenever she can fit it in.

Visiting the Winged Elephant. Her oldest friend, closest confidant, and greatest kept secret. Honestly she wouldn't have made it this far without him.

seven people your character likes / loves: If you go off canon it's easy to list. I mean, the guardians are the obvious ones. So Jack, Bunny, Sandy, North, MiM. (in the books add on Ombric, Katherine, Nightlight.) The Elephant, her Fairies. She has a lot of people. And the list only grows when it comes to connections made on this blog.

two things your character regrets:

Secluding herself for so long. She knows it was bad for her to be alone for so long, especially in hindsight.

Letting the Monkey King live.

two one phobia your character has:

Cleithrophobia. which is similar to Claustrophobia, but more specific. It's about being locked away or caged, not necessarily the size of the space.

She definitely fears losing the people she loves. She's still grappling with her survivors guilt, and honestly being alone again in that way would destroy her

tagged by: @hamadacare

tagging: literally anyone who wants to share some headcanons

[sotangledupinit]

a little bundle of icing - My CS Gift Exchange Fic

Prompt: Giftee's Wants: Established relationship, cs family fluff, cs parents, modern au with established relationship. NO: character death, angst

SUMMARY: She thought the hardest part would be hiding the gifts from the (mostly) reformed pirate. In actuality, the hardest part has been wrapping them. For some reason, every chance she’s gotten has been foiled by one thing or another.// or Emma tells Killian she's pregnant.

RATING: G for General Audiences

WORD COUNT: 4,575 words

TAGS: Captain Swan, Christmas, Holiday fluff, Pregnancy

AO3

AUTHOR’S NOTE: this was fun to work with and try, as i haven't done much established relationship writing. hope everyone enjoys this!

hi @middlemistcs13​ ! i picked your prompt for the gift exchange! as you already know (and read), this fic has been up on AO3 for a few days but here’s the tumblr post to accompany it! yay! for anyone who hasn’t read this yet - i hope you enjoy!

***

“And this Santa Claus… your world doesn’t consider him to be flagrant?”

The answering huff of a laugh from Henry is loud, even from the other end of the table. “Dude. Of course not. He leaves presents for you to reward a year of being a good person.”

“But aren’t you required to cook for him as well?”

Emma’s eyes drift to the end of the table where Henry and Killian stand side by side, each holding a piping bag of icing, one red and one green. Sprinkles litter the table and powdered sugar is dusted across Killian’s leather vest, not that he cares much. Their sleeves are rolled up to their elbows and a mixing spoon is still taped to his brace (a brilliant idea that he and her son supposedly had; the mess they have yet to clean up says otherwise).

She tries hard to suppress her grin at the image but she knows she’s failing miserably so she ducks her head and kneads the dough beneath her knuckles, listening along.

“Well, not really,” Henry says. Emma feels his eyes on her for a moment but she pretends not to notice. “It’s more like a donation or a gift.”

“Ah ha!” Killian cheers, mixing spoon gesturing wildly as he points a finger at Henry. Some of the red icing drips from the bag under the pressure and lands with a plop! on the counter between the naked gingerbread people and sugar cookies. “So it’s not from the goodness of his heart!”

At her quick glance up, she catches Killian’s eye and he winks at her. Her kid can be too easy to rile up sometimes, something Killian likes to do to get back at Henry’s quips about his struggles with modern technology. She doesn’t always understand their relationship, the way they can rile each other up one moment and immediately slide into the caring, supportive step-father/son dynamic the next – but she’s grateful nonetheless to have them be so close.

Henry rolls his eyes. “Yes, it is. He’s basically our world’s Robin Hood.”

“Didn’t this world already have a Robin Hood?”

“Oh my god.” Henry groans and then calls out to Emma, a gallop of green icing landing on the face of a gingerbread man. “Mom, you need to divorce your husband.”

“No, you need to start decorating those gingerbread cookies instead of the table.” She thinks she succeeds in keeping the amusement out of her voice but Killian’s quiet snickering tells her otherwise. “And you,” she continues, aiming her glare at the husband in question, “have to clean up. I’m not letting you two leave without cleaning up first.”

“Are you positive you can’t to come with us, love?”

There’s nothing more that Emma would love to do than pick out a tree with Henry and Killian for their first Christmas in their house when there’s nothing going on. No foes, evils witches, or snow monsters appearing out of nowhere to ruin any holiday plans. Storybrooke has been blissfully peaceful for the most part for the last two years following the Final Battle.

Emma still knocks on wood when those thoughts cross her mind. Best not to jinx it.

Still, as much as she wishes she could join the boys on their tree hunt, she can’t as she has far more pressing matters to attend to. Those being trying to wrap Killian’s Christmas gifts without him finding out what they are first. She thought the hardest part would be hiding the gifts from the (mostly) reformed pirate. In actuality, the hardest part has been wrapping them. For some reason, every chance she’s gotten has been foiled by one thing or another.

Her first attempt was when Killian was going out for a day excursion on the Jolly Roger with Smee. She waited until she was absolutely sure the ship left the docks to pull out her gifts only for her sheriff’s beeper to go off. By the time she handled the situation and returned home, the Jolly had returned to shore and it was only a matter of time before Killian came back.

There were a few more close calls at home after that – enough to make her consider wrapping his gifts at the station. By the time she actually attempted it, David had barged through the front doors at such a speed that Emma’s surprised she managed to hide the gifts in time. Despite what most of the town believes about her mother, there’s no worse gossiper or meddler in town than her father. The only thing possibly worse than Killian discovering his gifts early is finding out about them from someone else.

After that, she assumed her luck had almost completely abandoned her. Christmas is coming up quickly and she can’t bear to give him his gifts without wrapping them. Last year he took so much pleasure in showing Henry how easily he could rip through the wrapping with his hook. She can’t take the idea of preventing the look of glee on both of their faces appearing again.

Plus, she wants to be able to watch Killian unwrap one of the most life-changing gifts ever, see the different emotions play on his face as the realization sinks in.

“I’d love to but I really can’t,” she answers honestly. “I have to handle security at the school’s Christmas fair today and we can’t keep putting off the tree. At this rate, we’d be getting it in January.”

“We’ll pick out a good one, Mom, don’t worry,” Henry consoles. He winks at her once Killian isn’t looking and his comforting smile only grows bigger.

It’s her own fault, really. One of her earlier attempts to wrap Killian’s gifts only resulted in Henry coming home from school to see them laid out on her bedroom floor when he went looking for her. The surprise that crossed his face quickly turned into pure joy and Emma unsuccessfully willed herself not to cry.

No bribing was needed to make Henry keep the gifts a secret. He knows how special this is for her.

For the second time in her life, Emma’s pregnant. For the first time, it’s with someone she loves – her True Love at that – and she has no fear of what the future might hold for her and their baby. She’s excited.

All she needs now is just ten minutes of peace with a guarantee of No Killian so she can actually keep it a secret until Christmas.

Killian and Henry are able to appropriately decorate the gingerbread and sugar cookies after a few elbow nudges are exchanged while she puts the last batch of cookies in the oven, though there are some close calls that Emma has to shut down the moment her eyes catch what one of them is trying to do. She does not want to deal with her father’s sputtering and mother’s giggles at the sight of any cookie decorated in any way less than a G rating.

By the time they’re leaving and Killian is warming up the bug, Henry pulls Emma aside under the guise of finding his missing shoe.

“You’re not really missing your shoe, are you? Because otherwise you’re going barefoot, kid.”

Henry rolls his eyes. “Chill, it’s in my backpack.” He hooks a thumb to gesture at the bag on his shoulders and Emma nods. “Grandpa’s already at the school and says he hopes you ‘feel better’. I’m planning to take my sweet time inspecting every tree with Killian. I’m gonna feed him a bunch of fake facts so that he gets really invested too. Should buy you like two hours.”

Emma worries her lip, shoving her hands in her back pockets so she doesn’t play with her ring, a sure sign that she’s hiding something if Killian sees her. “What if Killian’s researched about Christmas trees though? He may be a pirate but he’s also a nerd.”

Henry exudes a confidence that she doesn’t have, given her track record this season. “Trust me, I know how to rile him up.” She rolls her eyes goodheartedly at that. As much as Killian loved to tease and rile Henry up, her kid loved to do the same just as much. She worried at first that it meant the two didn’t like each other and couldn’t get along, but her worries were quickly tossed away when she saw the two sitting at her kitchen table as Killian spoke to Henry in low whispers, helping him with an issue in his friend group.

He treated Henry like an equal, let him know that everything he said, saw, and felt held value. A trust existed between them that Emma didn’t breach – not that she wanted to. She respected that as much as she wants to be able to do everything for her kid, sometimes he needs to seek out someone else and she’s thrilled that most times he chooses Killian. Ribbing on each other is just another way to show that affection.

Emma bids her goodbyes to the two. Henry’s hug leaves her feeling the warmth one only gets from being a parent, and Killian’s goodbye kiss sends tingles down to her toes. That tingling is the exact feeling that got her into this situation and if she hadn’t been already, the look he gives her as he shuts the door behind him would’ve done it.

She waits for them to make it to the tree farm, according to Henry’s location and update texts, checking in with David who’s covering her shift at the school’s Christmas fair. It is then and only then that she feels comfortable enough to wrap the gifts.

Hauling them out of the closet in no time at all, she makes quick work of wrapping them. Despite the assurances that no one would be bothering her, especially her husband, she still chances a glance over her shoulder every few moments, just to be sure. She’s come this far and she’ll be damned if letting her guard down ruins the surprise.

Wrapping goes seamlessly and Emma triple checks that she has gathered and wrapped all the gifts before she places them in the closet under the stairs with the others. One more thing she can cross off her list.

*

When Emma wakes up the morning of Christmas, it’s to soft humming against her neck, a Christmas song that’s been on the radio more often than not this last week. She’s just thankful it’s one of Kelly Clarkson’s songs and not Wham!’s Last Christmas.

“Merry Christmas, love,” Killian whispers to her neck before placing a light kiss there. He wraps his arm tighter around her middle, pulling her back flush against his front, and she feels her stomach erupt in butterflies. He doesn’t know it yet but his hand rests right where their kid is growing and she works hard to refrain her glee for the time being.

Instead, she focuses on the trail of kisses he places down her jaw until he leans over her side to plant one on her mouth. She hums contently into the kiss, turning onto her back so she can wrap her arms around his neck. “Merry Christmas indeed.”

They share a smile before he leans back in for a short kiss.

“How long do you suppose we have before the lad comes stomping down the stairs for his gifts?”

Emma considers his question, furrowing her eyebrows when she realizes she forgot to charge her phone overnight and it’s dead. “What time is it?”

“Nearly eight.”

She laughs and shakes her head. “It’s a matter of seconds then, not minutes.”

“Think we can distract him with his PlayStation?”

“Wait – PlayStation? Not ‘Playing box’? Not ‘Stationary play’?” He crinkles his nose at her poor imitation of his accent and shakes his head.

“Of course I’ve learned the names by now, Swan.” He ignores her interjection of ‘Jones’ though it does earn her a smile. “I’ve known them for quite some time. But Henry doesn’t know that and I quite enjoy annoying him with that bit.”

She laughs and runs her fingers through his hair, tugging lightly on the silky soft strands as her reprimand. However, his reaction shows it is anything but. “I don’t know which of you is worse. Honestly.”

The two of them lean in with the full intent to enjoy as much of a lazy morning in bed as possible on the holiday but their lips don’t even meet before it’s interrupted.

“Merry Christmas!” Henry yells as he comes down the stairs. His feet stomp on each step and Emma grins at the way Killian cringes. He pauses on the landing outside their door and shouts before hurrying down the steps with stomping feet again. “You’ve got five minutes before I force you out so get dressed!”

“Like a bloody ogre,” Killian mutters as he rolls off of her. Despite his grumbling, the smile he gives her as he helps her out of bed and pulls her close is soft. The walls between them disappeared long ago and neither of them are afraid of the openness that exists in their relationship. It’s another first for Emma, being able to be so unapologetically herself and so vulnerable with her emotions when before Killian, she’d always been waiting for the other shoe to drop. Never before him did she allow such a complete offering of herself to another person. With him, it doesn’t feel so scary.

It's also why she’s so excited to have this baby. Being with Killian makes anything they face not seem so bad.

The thought of what lies beneath their tree brings a giddiness to her movements that even her husband notices.

“What’s gotten into you this morning?” he asks as he puts on his brace. He sends her a wicked grin that has her toes curling as he attaches the hook – the same one he shined the night before so he could show it off to Henry in all its unwrapping glory.

“I’m just… really happy.”

“Aye,” he says once he comes close to her again, one hand on her waist and his lips descending upon hers. “So am I.”

Their moment is broken by Henry banging on their door, warning that they better come down that instant or he’s opening everyone’s presents. The notion gets a laugh out of her, knowing that despite his threats, her kid wouldn’t follow through with this one. Maybe.

Nervousness doesn’t come to her until it’s time to hand her gifts over to Killian. He sits in a pile of wrapping paper on the couch, the ‘Best Dad in the Universe’ mug Henry got for him sitting on the coffee table. Henry had been sheepish as he handed over the gift, calling Killian ‘Dad’ on occasion now and then, nowhere near a regular occurrence. Still, the sentiment behind the gift, and the true feelings it relayed, left both her son and husband emotional. They exchanged quiet words that left them both teary-eyed and Killian had wrapped it up by showing Emma the mug as if she hadn’t helped Henry design it online. He then sat it on the coffee table so gently like a prized trophy and couldn’t stop looking at it.

If he reacted this way to Henry’s gifts, she can’t imagine the emotion that’ll come with hers.

The two of them have led hard lives, obstacles in their paths trying to prevent them from wanting to push for the light at the end of the tunnel. But they both did, whether out of sheer stubbornness or resilience, she’s not sure, and it held it them together until they found each other. Then suddenly they weren’t navigating the ups and downs of life alone and everything became a bit more bearable day by day.

Fatherhood is something that always came natural to Killian, she could see, and something that he wanted. His pirating ways took him to many lands and realms but he’d gotten to the point where he wanted to settle down and have a family. To live a life of peace he was never granted beforehand. Villains didn’t get happy endings though so he assumed it was out of the cards for him.

Henry accepted him, made him part of their family, and looked to him as a father. The remaining Lost Boys sought out his comforting presence, a familiar figure, despite their tangled pasts or because of it, when they were feeling particularly lonely or destructive, and he provided a guiding hand back. Hell, even baby Neal latched onto him almost as quickly as he did her parents.

There was a contentedness to Killian when he stepped into the role of father-figure that she never saw before. It shined brightest with Henry but she always saw the longing look in his eyes when Henry left for a weekend at Regina’s or when they saw Sean and Ashley with their baby at Granny’s.

Her mother once said, “Happy endings always start with hope.” Their life together was the start. This is the continuation of it.

“Ready for my gifts?” Emma asks. She discretely wipes her sweaty palms on her thighs and takes the gifts from Henry’s outstretched hands. He gives her a reassuring smile and she can only manage a quick, tight but grateful grin in return.

“Thanks, love.”

Killian lifts his hook to open the smallest of the boxes when Emma shoots her hand out to grab his wrist, a loud ‘No’ leaving her lips before she even realizes what she’s done.

Concern fills Killian’s gaze as he leans closer. His eyes rove over her person, searching, cataloging, trying to get any hint of what’s happening. “Emma, what’s gotten into you?”

“Actually…” she starts with a sardonic laugh, tilting her head.

“Ew, gross, Mom,” Henry crimes in, face wrinkled in disgust.

She clears her throat while rolling her eyes and instead taps the biggest of the three boxes. “Open this first.”

“O-kay…” Killian eyes her as he gently, slowly, unwraps the biggest box. Instead it lies a photo album titled Daddy & Me. “It’s blank?” he asks.

“Yeah, it’s for you to fill it with photos.”

“Ah.” Killian turns to Henry. “I suppose we should start filling this up, aye?”

A quick moment of panic flashes across Henry’s face as he looks to Emma for guidance, both of them floundering. “Uh, yeah!” he says in a hurry. “I can help you fill it up.” He then gives Emma a pointed look, Killian none the wiser.

“Open your second one,” Emma encourages. Killian takes another hard look at the album, the content in his gaze soothing any nerves that remained from Emma’s anticipation.

Earlier, Henry laughed smugly as Killian ripped through about thirty layers of wrapping paper to finally uncover the mug. Henry encouraged him to really dig into it, something that flashes Emma’s mind back to the beanstalk and made her laugh. Killian had taken the message to heart.

Now, he uses the hook to lift the edges of the wrapping paper and gently unravels it. Beneath the paper is a box and Killian gives her a watery grin once he sees what’s inside.

His very first Christmas ornament – or at least the first that’s meant specifically for him – lays inside. It features a large brown bear holding a baby bear wearing a diaper. Beneath the figures is a banner that reads, ‘Papa Bear, Est. 2022”.

Emma expects the questioning glance he sends her way and the subtle, confused one he gives to Henry. However, he receives no answers and Emma finally taps the small box. “Now you can open it.”

She bites her lip and her and Henry share a reassuring nod as Killian opens the last gift. Sitting inside the small box, cleaned off and surrounded in tissue paper is a positive pregnancy test.

Killian picks it up with a cautionary gentleness that she hasn’t seen before. His mouth drops open as he stares it down and he mouths the word ‘Pregnant’ over and over again as his eyes get misty. “Is – is this real?” he asks, voice full of emotion. Emma nods, blinking back her own tears.

“Yeah, Killian, it’s real.”

“Gods, love.” Suddenly, Emma is pulled out of her chair and swept off her feet as Killian tugs her into a tight embrace. He kisses every inch of skin he can find, pulling back every few kisses to catch her lips before he embraces her again. His arms are bound around her tightly, the squeeze between them only getting tighter as Killian urges Henry to join their hug. “You’re going to be a big brother, lad. The best there is,” he whispers and Emma nearly lets out the croaking sob stuck in her throat.

As much as it is a monumental moment for Killian, he still includes Henry and still makes sure that he’s wanted around. The notion makes her heart burst. Once again, she’s aware that she never needed any official True Love test to give her confirmation that Killian is it for her. The way he acts proves it more than enough. It doesn’t make her any less emotional, especially as Killian whispers, as giddy as she’d been that morning, “We’re having a baby!”

“Yes, we are!” she whispers back excitedly.

The trio embrace for a few more moments before Henry’s phone rings and lets him know that it’s Regina reaching out. He congrats the two of them, tells them what wonderful parents they already are, and then bounds out of the room.

“Wow,” Killian says with the long release of a deep breath. “You’re pregnant.”

“I am,” she teases.

Killian’s wide grin matches her own and even though he leans in to kiss her, they aren’t able to do much as their smiles keep breaking through.

It’s not until Killian places a hand on her stomach that her breath catches and realization sinks in. They’re really doing this. They’re having a baby. She can’t explain it but she thinks she’s having a girl. Even Killian’s seemingly decided so as well, babbling on about their daughter despite the fact that they won’t officially find out until Emma’s next appointment in two weeks.

They will have a baby. Together.

They’re going to bring someone into this world that’s half him and half her and it’ll be their responsibility to not screw them up.

With Henry it was easier. He was already ten by the time he connected with both of them, respect and manners already instilled in him. All they had to do was encourage them to flourish. But with a baby, they’ll be starting from scratch. In all honesty, neither of them know much of what to do aside from the basics to keep a baby alive, but she figures they’ll approach it like they do everything else: together.

“You know, little one,” Killian starts as he leans down towards her stomach. “Your grandma is a very wise woman and she once told me that happy endings always start with hope.” He swallows, glancing up at Emma for a moment as his voice gets even quieter. “I’m excited to meet you, Hope.”

*

4 years later…

*

“No, no, no, love, not like that.”

Emma looks up from drying dishes and fixes her gaze on the other end of the table. Killian and Henry are bent over it, heads close together. Between them, Hope kneels on a chair and squeezes an icing bag with so much force that fat glops of red icing plop onto the cookies, nearly covering an entire group of gingerbread men. She watches the way Killian keeps the rounded curve of his hook, sharp tip pointed away, pressed against the center of Hope’s back to keep her steady, attempting to guide her in how to decorate the cookie while she just wants to mix colors together.

One of Henry’s hands holds a gingerbread man in place for her, fingers turning red from the icing that’s slipped over the side, and he’s quick to grab the green icing bag before Hope’s grubby little fingers can grab it. “Oh no you don’t, munchkin.”

“I’m not a munchkin!” Hope pouts. Her glare is fierce as she turns her attention to Henry, cookies completely forgotten as she stands from her kneeling position.

“Oh really?” he eggs her on, fighting to keep the grin off his face. “How come you’re on a chair and I’m still taller than you then? Munchkin.”

“Stinky nose!”

“Short stack.”

“Hairy back!”

A whistle breaks through their teasing before Emma can step in and all eyes go to Killian. He leaves his hook pressed against Hope’s back even as he straightens and stands tall. “Enough of this nonsense from me crew!” Hope stares at him with wide eyes and a dropped jaw, joy filtering its way into her features.

An aspiring pirate captain herself, the three-year-old takes great glee in seeing her father step into his, admittedly watered down, pirate persona. She turns towards Killian, bouncing where she stands in the chair. Her hands attempt to come together in claps but only succeed in dropping more icing all over her hands and Henry’s.

Killian plucks the icing bag from Hope and places it aside. “Now,” he starts, voice an octave lower. “This mess needs to be cleaned otherwise I’ll let Santa know to toss yer presents overboard! Aye?”

“Noooo!” Hope shouts. “He can’t do that!”

“He knows Santa,” Henry says. He nods to Killian as he catches the wet washcloth Emma tosses to him and begins to wipe his icing covered fingers. “He can totally make it happen.”

“Aye,” Emma adds, grinning wide at the way Killian’s nose crinkles. She holds a second wet washcloth in her hands and comes over to Hope, gently wiping her hands clean. “But perhaps me and Papa can clean up the kitchen while you help Henry put some tinsel on the tree instead. It’d be a big help.”

“Aye, aye, captain!” Hope tugs at her hands, pouting when Emma won’t let them free yet. However, once she’s able to, she turns and jumps on Henry’s back, already urging him towards the living room.

“You know,” Killian says, “you’ve just granted her permission to make a mess even worse than this one.”

Emma grins, “Are you saying you weren’t also desperate for five minutes to ourselves?”

Killian hums, giving her a grin that she knows so well. His arms come around her waist while hers wrap around his neck and their lips meet in a soft kiss. When he tries to pull away, Emma keeps him locked with her and the heat between them rises. So lost in the progressing passion of their kisses, she doesn’t even realize Killian’s lifted her onto the table until Henry voices his disgust.

“Gross, guys,” he says. “We eat there.” He shakes his head, shuddering at catching them mid-make out, and reaches for the extra bag of tinsel on the counter. He holds it up and points at it before he leaves. “For scarring me, I am not cleaning this up.”

A snort comes out of Emma before she can stop it and she closes her eyes, content as Killian presses a soft kiss to her cheek. His hand drifts down to rest against her stomach and she feels the butterflies of excitement start up again. Only two more weeks before they can share their big secret.

“This will be a fun Christmas, love.”