Treasure

Chapter 13

A month later on the Jolly Roger... 

Life seemed perfect for Killian. He had a loyal crew and they were much happier than they were a couple of months ago. His own mood had also improved, he found himself smiling and laughing everyday, he almost forgot what it was like to feel pain. The only person to thank for that was the princess and they all knew that. She was a light they all needed. Emms always had a smile and was eager to talk anyone's ear off. The crew especially loved her because she would listen to their tales with no judgment and she took to their lifestyle. She would sword fight with them giving them pointers and sometimes help with some of the chores when Killian wasn't watching. His favorite part was after the crew went to sleep and they would spend hours staring at the stars then she'd curl up to him in bed, as they now shared a bed.

However, in the last week  Emma's mood drastically changed. She was sad and the whole ship knew no matter how hard she tried to hide it. She spent her days staring out into the sea searching for something. She no longer desired to hold out a long conversation with anyone, even Killian. She retired early to bed not wanting to watch the stars or wait for Killian to arrive, and she no longer curled up to him. No one knew why the princess was so sad and distant, but it hurt them to see her like this, especially Killian...

It was a warm morning on the Jolly Roger and everyone was attending to their duties and Emma was in her usual spot, looking out into the distance...

    "Would you like me to bring you your breakfast, princess?" A younger crew member asked Emma.

    "No, thank you, Turner..." Emma responded, not looking away from the sea as the young man walked off with a nod.

    "The captain would like to see you, ma'am..." Mr. Smee said, approaching Emma.

    "Tell him I'll speak to him later." Emma said still looking into the sea, a slight breeze in her hair.

    "He... he said it was important..." Mr. Smee pushed on.

    "Then he can come get me himself." Emma said a little harsher than intended as she finally broke her glance from the sea.

    "Yes ma'am..." Mr. Smee responded, taking that as a hint to leave her be as he saw the irritation in her eyes.

Emma knew she should behave better. She was brought up to always have a smile on her face and to always show kindness. That was an easy task back home where she had little to be upset about, but here it was easier to snap with no one around to correct her. She was sure if her parents were here they would be appalled with her attitude, she was appalled with her attitude... she was acting like a child and she knew it.

    "Alright Swan, enough with this." Killian said, irritation and concern mixed in his voice as he approached her from behind.

    "Sorry captain, I'll be sure to follow your orders next time." Emma responded, irritated with his attitude.

She continued to look out to the sea.

    "What the bloody hell is wrong with you?" Killian asked, trying not to lose his patients with Emma.

Emma finally looked at him, he had anger in his voice but his face showed nothing but concern. She didn't feel like talking to him, her problems always seemed so little to all the problems he and his crew faced.

    "Nothing you need to be concerned with, captain." Emma said, brushing past him to head below deck.

Killian watched her walk away. He thought about letting her cool off, letting himself cool off... but he couldn't let her continue to walk away. There was something upsetting her and he wanted to know, he wanted to fix it. So he followed her below deck and found her in their quarters. She was sitting at the desk they now shared and she was scribbling in her notebook like she did more these days. He watched as she wrote quickly, never once had he looked in her journal but it became more tempting everyday as she became more distant.

He quietly approached where she was sitting and closed her journal, making her face him. Her face was bright red, her eyes a dull green full of frustration. She was at her breaking point and so was he...

    "My love... I'm sorry for what just happened above deck, but you have to talk to me..." Killian said, finally letting the pain take over him.

    "You don't need to worry Killian..." Emma lied in a broken tone, tears were threatening to leave her eyes.

    "Let me help." Killian responded, desperation all in his tone.

    "You can't help this time...besides it's not a huge deal." She said, finally being honest.

    "Obviously it is... did I do something?" Killian responded, desperate for answers.

    "No!" Emma quickly responded, not wanting him to think that way.

    "Did the crew do anything?" Killian asked, hoping she'd open up.

    "No, no one on the Jolly Roger did anything." Emma responded, still debating if she should finally tell Killian her silly problem.

    "You want to go home, don't you?" Killian asked, finally believing he figured it out.

Emma let out a heavy breath as she got up and went into her room. She didn't go into her room much anymore, only to get some clothes. She spent her nights in Killian's bed now, feeling the warmth of his body pressed against hers always calmed her. She sat on her bed and Killian followed behind, taking a seat next to her. She thought about his question. Did she want to go home? Of course she did, but that wasn't what was bothering her...

    "I should have gotten a letter from them by now..." Emma said, more to herself than to Killian.

    "Ah, a letter from your parents?" Killian asked, putting the pieces together.

    "Yeah..." she responded, laying her head on his shoulder.

    "We are out at sea love, it may take a while for the bird to find us." He assured her, placing his arm around her waist.

    "What if they don't forgive me? What if they don't want me to come back?" The princess admitted.

"Well, from the tales you've told me about them, they seem like forgiving people and they love you. Of course they would want you to come back." The captain responded, trying to make her feel better.

"I hope you're right." Emma responded, still upset.

"If you want... I'll bring you home and my crew and I can leave, that way you can go back to the life you deserve..." Killian offered, trying not to let sadness enter his tone.

"What? No! I love my life here, with you and the crew. I just want my parents to accept us... and my choices." Emma said, the truth finally coming out.

"Well if there is one thing you have taught me, it's that life works out when you least expect it to." Killian responded, placing a kiss on her forehead.

"I taught you that?" Emma questioned.

"Aye... when my crew and I boarded your ship we were looking for jewels just so we could buy more rum to drown our sorrows. Instead, we found you and you showed us all what it was like to be happy again. Something we all lost along the way and didn't even know it, that's a dept none of us can repay.  You are the most valuable treasure I've found and I don't intend to let you down..." Killian responded honestly.

"Well you showed me what it was like to be free... something I didn't know I needed, that's a debt I could never repay..." Emma said, looking at him with all her love.

"I could think of one way you could pay." He responded with a smirk.

Emma laughed as she knew what he was referring to. She placed her hand on his stubbled cheek and pulled him in for a kiss. She missed the feeling of his lips pressed against hers, she felt like anything was possible in moments like this. Deep down she knew Killian was right, everything was going to work out the way it was supposed too, all she had to do was be patient and believe that a pirate and a princess could be happy together.