Treasure

Chapter 20

A couple of days later...

Emma was below deck in her and Killian's cabin. They would enter Misthaven waters any second now and she was more nervous than she has ever been in her entire life. She was searching her closet for something to wear. Everything she had seemed to be revealing for her parent's liking. Only now had she thought about how all her decisions would affect her. What would her parents think if they knew she shared a bed with Killian, sure they never did anything but make out in it, but even that was over the line for her parents liking. What would they think knowing she occasionally drank rum and played cards? What would they think about the story of the stable boy? Would they care that she didn't bathe everyday? She knew they wouldn't disown her, but they did expect her to carry herself like a proper princess and she hasn't done that in months.

    "Smee just informed me that we'll be in Misthaven shortly, my love." Killian said entering the cabin.

    "Okay..." Emma said in a low tone.

    "Swan? What's wrong?" Killian asked, catching onto her sadness.

    "I'm not sure what to wear..." She said, still looking through her clothes.

    "Well, I think what you're wearing is perfect." He teased, referring to his large black shirt she wore every night.

    "Killian!" Emma said, half laughing half frustrated.

    "I'm kidding love. I'm sure whatever you wear they'll just make you take it off the second you get there." Killian responded, knowing her clothes weren't the best.

    "I suppose..." The princess responded, taking out a simple yellow dress with long sleeves.

It wasn't the nicest dress she had, but it was the most modest. She decided to braid her hair up since there wasn't much she could do with it. 

    "You're happy to be home, right?" Killian questioned as Emma did her hair.

    "Of course! I just didn't think it would be so soon." Emma responded.

    "We could always take off, just the two of us." Killian smiled, teasing her.

    "Don't tempt me." She responded with a smile, finishing up her hair.

    "You should be informed that the crew has decided to take a bath... they're actually excited." Killian stated, changing the topic.

"Ah, finally decided to share the tub I see. Must have been hard for you considering how much you like to take baths." Emma teased.

    "Well you always smell nice, so I figured I better smell nice!" He said defensively.

    "Alright alright, now leave so I can change." She said.

    "I'll see you above deck." He said as he left their room.

After Emma finished putting her dress on she looked around the cabin to see if there was anything she needed to bring, or could bring. She definitely couldn't bring her revealing clothes, she already had toiletry items in the castle, she was already wearing all her jewelry. The only thing she thought she could bring was her journal that was now full of her and Killian's adventures. She decided not to bring it in case it got into the wrong hands, if her parents were going to find out about her and Killian it had to be through her and not her journal. It was at that moment she realized she had little material items, not that it bothered her.

Emma made her way above deck, the sky was foggy but she could clearly make out her kingdom in the distance. She saw her castle, standing tall. It was the biggest building in the kingdom, surrounded by water, a bridge was the only entrance or exit. She swore she could see her balcony, it had the perfect view of the sea. The only thing she disliked about her home is how distant it seemed from the rest of the kingdom, it may have not been a far distance but it was definitely a journey in itself to enter the rest of the kingdom. Her people didn't mind, it's been like that for as long as anyone could remember. She knew the bridge was designed as a safety precaution, if anyone was going to come to harm them, chances are they wouldn't make it. The bridge was always lined with guards and the castle sat on sharp rocks from the sea.

She searched the busy deck for Killian, but couldn't find him. Everyone was quickly cleaning up the ship, not that there was much to clean. The ship was always spotless.

    "James! Have you seen the captain?" Emma asked a passing crew member.

    "I think he went below deck to change ma'am. He's instructed we all put on our best outfits." He said before returning to his task.

    "Hm, he really does want to impress them." Emma said to herself.

    "Heard you were looking for me, love." Killian said, approaching her.

He was in his best outfit. He had a gray jacket and white blouse tucked into his leather pants, the only piece of clothing that didn't change. He looked as if he was in the navy again, not even resembling a pirate.

    "Well don't you clean up nice." Emma teased him.

    "First impressions are everything, and I'm not gonna let my reputation hold me back." He responded, slightly turning red at Emma's comment.

    "You look handsome." she responded, taking his hand.

    "Aye, thank you. The crew will look better too, hopefully." He responded, nervously.

    "Hey, it'll be okay. We'll do this like we do everything." She continued on.

    "Together." He responded,  finishing the sentence.

They looked at each other for the longest time, taking in each other's beauty. Out of no wear the princess grabbed the captain's face pulling him in for a long kiss. He didn't object. Any moment now they would be off the ship and who knew what would become of their relationship, how often they could see each other, let alone steal some kisses. Once they parted from the kiss Emma held him tight, closing her eyes, taking in his scent of the sea. For once he didn't have a hint of rum on him. It was almost discomforting to her. Rum was a part of him and for him to not have that sent almost seemed wrong. She appreciated everything he was doing for her, but perhaps he was changing too much. She wanted her parents to like him for him, not this character he was putting on. However, for today she would let it slide. He was right, first impressions were everything. She was sure her mother would be more understanding and open minded about their relationship. Her father was a different story. To him, not even the most perfect prince was right for his daughter, let alone a pirate with the horrendous reputation Killian had. That would be their biggest obstacle.

    "Prepare the anchor!" A crew member shouted.

It was time to dock.

    "Ready love?" Killian asked, her eyes still closed.

    "Yes." She said, opening her eyes to see her castle.

The princess had finally returned home.