At long last, they were finally back in Storybrooke. Snow, David, Henry, Regina, Robin, Emma and Hook, along with Rumpelstiltskin and Belle had returned from the Underworld! Since the town still existed, they were still technically under a curse, but no one was complaining.

The group of adventurers emerged from the portal in a rush, stumbling gratefully onto the main street of the magical town. It was early afternoon, but fog still drifted across the edge of town along the shoreline. The blue-gray sky was a welcome relief from the harsh red of the Underworld. Emma clutched Hook's hand tightly and the Charmings were barely restraining themselves from running across town to hold their baby son. Regina had an arm around Henry, Robin close behind. Rumpelstiltskin had disappeared as soon as they were through the portal, and no one had suggested looking for him. Yet.

They agreed to meet up for dinner at Granny's in a few hours, after taking care of their personal errands, and the group split up, heading for town in twos and threes.

Except for the two ex-Dark Ones.

After hugging Henry and her parents, Emma grabbed Killian again and they meandered down towards the shore a little ways until a bench appeared and they sat down. A minute passed, then two. They sat quietly, listening to the waves and the wind and the seagulls calling to each other. Emma had to make a conscious effort not to squeeze Killian's hand painfully, and after another moment stretched out her fingers within his grasp. Smiling, he looked briefly down at their joined hands and then back at her face.

"Emma," he began hesitantly, breaking their silence. "Do you mind if we make a stop before going back into town?"

"Sure. I'm still dealing with visions of the messed up "Underbrooke" version of town, so more time out here," Emma gestured at the harbor laid out before them, "can only help clear my head."

Hook nodded in agreement, standing and pulling her with him. "I've always found the water to be soothing, even in a working port." They ambled along the boardwalk, hand in hand, and Hook told her about his favorite ports of call. At first he tried to avoid mentioning Liam or Milah, but he's describing the junks with their hand-woven orange sails and it just comes out.

"...so there I was, standing in front of this man's boat covered in this fish sauce, and Milah says-" he stopped short, a pang of fresh pain shooting through him.

Emma halted next to him, and placed a hand on his cheek, the other on the brace of his hook. "It's okay," she said softly, "we don't have to talk about this right now."

Killian leaned into her hand briefly, but then pulled it down and clutches it in his own. He tucked his arm around hers, pulling her against him in an old-fashioned promenade, and continued walking. He continues his story as well. "No, I want to... it hurts, like losing her all over again, but at least this time I can share her with you." He glanced down at the Savior, a small sad smile on his lips. "I wish the circumstances had been different, but I'm glad you spoke with her."

Emma's lips quirked. "You should have seen her face when we tried to explain how Baelfire/Neal and you and I all fit together."

Hook grimaced briefly. "Considering half the time I fail to understand how we came to be here, I can only imagine her response." They were nearly in sight of the Harbor Master's office now, and the pirate subconsciously picked up his walking pace. "It must have been nearly as perplexed as the time I explained tacking into the wind. She soon picked up sailing, though, like a lass who was born to it."

Spying the Jolly Roger's mast poking up from her bay at the dock, Emma realized where they were going, and smiled up at her pirate as he continued to describe Milah's first days on board. Of course he wanted to go home to a familiar place after the trials he'd endured. Listening to him talk about the woman he'd loved, and pursued sworn vengeance for over the course of 300 years, she was surprised to find she wasn't jealous. It helped, of course, that she knew Killian was deeply in love with her. It also helped that she'd met Milah, and had come to admire her strength of will in even the short time they'd known each other.

"...hit him with the block! After that, he listened when an order was given." Killian finished, and waited for Emma's reaction.

"Sounds like you guys had some crazy adventures," she offered.

A fond smile crossed Killian's features. "Aye." He looked at Emma with a mischievous smile, "Although we never fell through a portal and traveled back in time, while managing to both disrupt and then fix the time-line."

Emma chuckled. "I'm pretty sure we're the ONLY people who can say that, even with my crazy storybook family." The turned a corner around a warehouse and paused for a moment as the Jolly Roger came into full view. "She's beautiful, Hook." And you traded her for the chance to give me a message, even when I didn't remember you! Emma added to herself, her heart swelling with love for the man beside her.

"That she is." A feeling of contentment swept through Hook as he took in the sight of the tall ship, flags flapping lazily in the slight breeze. He squeezed Emma's hand. "Not only is she just as good looking as her captain, but she's fast too. Good thing, as she's saved my hide from more than just Evil curses. Villager with spears, for example, who don't take kindly to certain individuals unmooring their junks just before the swell of the fishing season."

"Wait a sec, go back. What happened when Milah saw the junk? Why were you covered in fish sauce?" Emma leaned into his arm as they continued down the pier.

"When I say fish 'sauce' I may be hyperbolizing slightly. It was rather more like fish entrails..." Hook continued his tale with relish, as Emma groaned and made the appropriate grossed-out response. By the time they reached the gangway to the ship, they were both flushed with laughter.

Emma led the way on board, and after a brief tour of the deck to make certain everything was in its proper place (and allowing her Captain to stroke the woodwork and reacquaint himself with the ship's lines on a personal level), they went below decks to the salon.

"It may seem a bit odd, but I'd like to write down what I experienced in the Underworld." Killian explained, as he pulled out a journal from a drawer full of charts and diagrams. He looked hesitantly at Emma, unsure if she would laugh or dismiss his idea.

She only nodded. "Sure, makes sense to me. Maybe Henry can give you some pointers."

He rolled his eyes. "I'm going to leave the magic up to your family, if it's all the same to you." He grabbed an inkwell and pen from a cupboard and sat down at a table. "Speaking of which, if you need to go and check in with them, I'll be here for a little while and you needn't stay to watch me write."

"I 'needn't'," Emma agreed, "but I'm damn well not letting you out of my sight, pirate." She leaned over to kiss his cheek and wandered over to the covered bench that ran the length of the room. "You may not have needed sleep, what with being dead and all, but I'm going to grab a quick cat nap before the next catastrophe."

"Don't even joke about that, Swan!" Killian retorted fiercely, looking up from his log book.

"I'm sorry, Killian, you know I was only joking. I guess my attempt at black humor fell flat."

He grimaced. "I know, love. My sense of humor may just be taking longer to come back to life than the rest of me."

"Some food should help, too. After we're done here, lets go set things right at the house, and then we'll see about meeting the rest of the group at the diner." Emma set her phone timer for 20 minutes, and curled up on the bench, resting her head on her arms so she could watch Killian write for a few moments before closing her eyes. "If I miss my alarm, wake me." She muttered.

"Of course, love."

"I mean it, Killian, don't let me sleep longer just because you're worried about me."

"Wouldn't dream of it, love."

"You're lying."

"And you're still talking, not sleeping."

There was a pause, with the only sound of pen on thick paper and quiet breathing interrupting the sound of waves against the hull and wind through the rigging.

"I love you, Killian."

"I love you too, Emma."

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Thirty minutes later, Emma woke up on her own to find Killian napping over his log book. She woke him up, and together they gathered a few things to take over to the new house. Never having much in the way of personal possessions due to the tight quarters on a ship, and given his new Storybrooke wardrobe is mostly at Granny's, Killian's seabag was mostly full of books and a few mementos of Liam and Milah.

As they left the cabin, Emma looked over at the captain's bunk. "You know, that doesn't look that small. To hear you sailors talk about it, I always imagined a coffin-sized space."

"Trust me, love," Killian leered, "when you're in a bed with me, there's little enough space extra."

"I'm still not convinced." Emma glanced at the bunk and then back at Hook with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "I guess we'll have to put that theory to the test one of these days."

His blue eyes darkening, Killian held her gaze for a long moment before replying, "Aye, that we will." Emma shivered despite herself. It had been too long since they'd been able to flirt properly, and she was looking forward to bringing out the playful side of her pirate again, free from the taint of Darkness.

By the time they reached the two-story blue house that was to be their new home, they were running later than planned, and only had time to drop off Killian's bag and change clothes before it was time for their early dinner and debrief. The problem of what to do with Rumple hung over everyone's heads, but first, food.

All during dinner, Henry stuck close to Regina. He hugged his grandparents, shook hands with the dwarves, and waved at Violet, but mostly kept an eye on his mother. He knew the events of the Underworld had been hard on her. Henry stayed with Regina that night, and although he wouldn't admit it to either of his mothers, he really enjoyed the sensation of being safe in his childhood bedroom again. He may be growing up, but after the chaos of the Underworld, familiarity meant a lot. And Hook would agree.

Author's Note: This was written before 5x21 Last Rites, so it's canon divergent. In this story, splitting Emma's heart did work, and the Hades and Zelena drama haven't gone down yet.

Stay tuned for Captain Swan cuddling in Chapter 2!