Treasure

Chapter 21

None of them realized that August made the crowd slowly die off, giving them some privacy.

"Are you hurt?" Snow asked, composing herself.

"No, mom... I'm wonderful." She responded, releasing her father.

"We were so worried." Charming stated.

"I know... I'm sorry. Everything just happened so fast and I know I should've come home sooner but-" Emma started to ramble.

"But that's a conversation for later..." Her father finished.

"We are just so glad to have you back." Snow continued on.

"I want to hear all about the date!" Snow insisted, grabbing Emma's hand like a teenage girl.

"Oh mother it was wonderful! Killian somehow managed to get chicken, in the middle of the ocean! And he set up a romantic dinner in his cabin. There were candles and everything!" Emma beamed with excitement.

"Certainly not as nice as a meal here though..." The king said under his breath.

"David!" Snow looked at him angrily, using his real name.

"What, he is a pirate. How nice could it have really been?" He responded grumpily.

"Nevermind him, he's just being immature. Tell me more!" Snow insisted.

"Well... once we finished eating we went on the deck and watched the stars for hours. We talked about anything and everything. We do... we did that every night, watch the stars and talk. Mother... he's not a bad man. The tales are twisted." Emma explained.

"Emma, he could be lying, he is a pirate." David said, crossing his arms, not liking the story his daughter was telling him.

"David, Emma just came home. You could show a bit more excitement." Snow responded, getting irritated by her husband's attitude.

"Was there a kiss?" Snow asked before David could say anything back.

"Yes! It was amazing and so romantic." Emma said, blushing.

"He kissed you?" Prince Charming asked in a yell.

"Well no... I kissed him..." The princess responded, taken back by her father's voice.

"You what?" He asked, slightly mad.

"Charming would you stop. You seem to forget that you were nothing more than a shepherd when I met you, so why are you making a big deal out of this?" The queen questioned her husband.

"Because he's a pirate, the worst one too!" He responded in a louder voice than intended.

"And Emma said not everything we heard is true!" His wife shouted back.

    "And you believe him?" He said, raising his voice.

Emma stood there unsure of what to do. Many of the villagers were looking their way, acting as if they didn't notice. Her father was never one to be so hostile towards her and she had never witnessed her parent's fight, especially over something as silly as her going on a date. She hoped Killian and the rest of the crew could not hear this argument as they continued to raise their voices at one another.

    "Stop! He's going to hear you!" Emma interrupted her parents.

    "And why would he care!" David responded, accidentally yelling at his daughter.

    "He has worked very hard to try and impress you so you would like him, but you're not even gonna give him a chance!" Emma shouted back, tears forming in her eyes from her father's outburst.

    "Em... I'm sorry... I just thought that once you came home-" Her father started.

    "What? I'd just forget him?" she asked, upset.

    "Why don't we all just take a minute to calm down. Emma is right, he deserves a chance. If Emma thinks he's worth it then we have to trust her." Snow said, being the voice of reason.

The princess may not be as close to her mother as she is with her father, but one thing Snow was good at was calming them down. She always took both sides into consideration then determined the best output based on both sides. That is what made her a great queen and what Emma admired most about her mother. No matter the situation, she always had the best solutions. In that moment Emma regretted not opening up to her mother as much as she did to her father. Snow didn't know how to keep a secret like her father, but she was still the best person to go to for advice and right now her father wasn't as supportive as she hoped he would be.

"Thank you, mom." Emma said, releasing a heavy breath.

"Where is he anyway?" Snow asked calmly.

"On the ship, Killian wanted me to have a moment alone with you two before I introduced him." Emma responded, making her way back to the Jolly Roger.

"Oh, now he decides to be a gentleman..." Charming said under his voice, still upset.

"He's always a gentleman, daddy." Emma responded, grabbing her father's arm and laying her head on his shoulder.

They made their way up the dock and were now on the Jolly Roger. Many of the crew stared at them, all standing in their best outfits, freshly groomed. They all stared at the princess unsure of what to do or how to react. She ignored them, looking for her pirate. Then she spotted him, in the middle of the crowd. He looked terrified. She chuckled to herself, this was the same man who terrorized kingdoms and got anything he wanted by just looking at someone. Yet he was nervous to meet her parents. She released her father's arm and walked over to Killian. She placed her hand on his cheek reassuring him everything was fine. He leaned into her hand, closing his eyes and nodded. Emma grabbed one of his hands and made her way over to her parents.

"Mom, Dad... this is Killian Jones."

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