Jacob runs the length of the dock. The ship in plain sight. He can see his beautiful goddess looking off into the distance. She doesn't seem to notice him yet. Quickly he climbs on to the ship and slowly makes his way to Emma.

He spies the twins and Hugh and makes a motion for them to stay quiet. He makes his way across the platform and just before he reaches her, she turns around.

"Jacob?" she asks, not sure if he's really there.

"You wouldn't believe what I had to do to get here," he starts, but Emma doesn't focus on the words, just on his eyes. His beautiful blue eyes.

Once she's sure that he's really here, she reaches up and tangles her hand in his hair before pulling his lips down to hers. Jacob's arms constrict around her waist as Emma's other hand clutches the fabric that clings to his chest, further proof that he is really there.

They only break apart when they hear another set of footsteps walking toward them. Jake keeps his arms around Emma though and turns them in the direction of their visitor.

"Mr. Portman, I thought you had left?" Miss Peregrine asks, walking up to the couple.

Jake sighs regrettably. "I did, but I was miserable without all of you, and Emma of course." Emma presses a kiss to the edge of his jaw. "I made it home before deciding to come back. I had to travel through a few loops to get here, but I'm thrilled that I made it in time."

Miss Peregrine smiles. "We're thrilled that you have returned. It gives me great joy to see Miss Bloom happy. Carry on."

"Thank you, Miss." Jake says before turning his attention back to Emma who turns in his arms.

"Your hair is longer," Emma says, pushing some of it back. "And you've gained some muscle tone."

Jake grins. "That I have. I was thinking of getting it cut, the hair I mean."

"If you want to, personally I think it gives you a rugged look." Emma says with a smirk. "Gives me more to hold on to."

Jake lets out a soft groan before pulling Emma's chin up and kissing her senseless. They pull apart and intertwine their hands between them.

"We should probably let the others know that I'm here." Jacob suggests, gesturing with his head toward the direction of the cabins.

"Of course," Emma agrees. They walk together into the steering area where Enoch is steering the ship with Olive at his side. Enoch nods at them once, his attention on the sea. Jake is pleasantly surprised by how well they're doing.

"Jake! When did you get back?" Olive asks with a smile.

"Not too long ago. It took a while, but I'm happy to be back."

"We're happy to have you back," Olive says, giving Jacob's arm a squeeze before turning back towards Enoch and laying her head against his shoulder.

Emma and Jacob then make their way to where the other children are gathered and they all rush at him when they see him.

"Does this mean you're staying for good?" Claire asks. Jacob smiles and squats down to see her at eye level.

"Definitely," Jake says with a backward glance at Emma. "If you'll have me."

"Yay!" Claire rejoices throwing her arms around Jacob's neck and hugging him. The rest of the children hug Jacob with equal fervor.

"Have you decided where we will all be sleeping?" Jacob asks.

"We were thinking Emma would take the captain's quarters since she was the one who originally discovered the ship. The rest of us were going to take some of the open beds in the other rooms." Olive answers his question, walking into the room. "I've already dried off the beds to the best of my abilities."

Jacob nods to himself. "Alright then, have you all decided your rooms then?"

"We have," Miss Peregrine answers. "There a few rooms left over for you to choose from."

"Awesome, Emma would you mind joining me?"

"Of course not," Emma answered quickly, taking Jacob's hand and following him into the hallway where they looked at some of the empty rooms.

Jacob eventually decides on a room…which happened to be only a few feet away from Emma's was. Jacob squeezes her hand as they walk into Emma's quarters. Jacob whistles in appreciation.

"This looks like my old space." Jacob says nostalgically.

Emma looks at him curiously.

"I was a captain when I was in the navy," Jacob answers her question.

"Well, Captain." Emma says with a smirk, taking a hold of the lapels of his jacket. "Captain, to captain, how do you like my space?"

Jacob's hands slowly slide down her body, taking a hold of her hips and bringing them closer to his own. "It fits you, dear captain. Your beauty lights up the room."

"Jacob…what a nice thing to say."

"I wouldn't say it if it wasn't true," Jacob whispers in her ear, his teeth grazing her earlobe. She shivers and brings her hands up to wrap around his neck, her fingers tangle in his hair.

Emma brings Jacob's lips down to hers and what started as a gentle kiss grows hungrier, more passionate and filled with desire. Jacob slowly backs her up against the wall. Emma uses the leverage to bring her legs up around his waist. Jacob groans against her neck as they catch their breath.

"I love you, Emma." Jacob whispers his eyes locked on hers.

A blush colors Emma's cheeks and tears form in her eyes. "I love you, too, Jacob."

"Hey-hey, what's wrong?" Jacob asks, carrying the two to an arm chair in Emma's room and sitting down, her on his lap.

Emma giggles through her tears and wipes them away. "I'm sorry Jacob, it's just I've been lonely for so long and to hear you say those words…it's better than I could ever dream."

Jacob's eyes fill with compassion and understanding as he presses a kiss to her forehead. "I promise you, Emma Bloom, I will never leave you."

Happy tears slide down Emma's face as she looks into his sincere eyes. "Thank bird," Emma whispers before pressing her lips to his in an even more passionate kiss.

Jacob's hands travel up her back clutching at her waist through the fabric. Emma swipes her tongue across Jacob's lip and he eagerly opens his mouth to hers, their tongues battling.

Knock. Knock.

Jacob groans when Emma pulls back, an apologetic smile on her face. She presses another kiss to his lips before calling out.

"Who is it?"

"It's Miss Peregrine, I'm assuming Mr. Portman is with you?"

"Yes, I'm here," Jacob calls back.

"Good, good, I was hoping you may be able to help us with the navigation?"

"We'll be out in a minute," Jacob answers, lifting Emma up as he sits up and slowly lower her to the floor.

"You know where to find us."

"We have time for this later," Emma promises, a renewed light in her eyes.

"I look forward to it," Jacob grins and then groans.

"What's wrong?" Emma asks, looking him over.

"Nothing's wrong, I promise. I just need to sit down and let my body relax."

Emma's confusion dissipates as she observes the bulge in his pants. She smiles to herself when a light blush colors his cheeks. She reaches out and strokes a hand down his face. "You're cute when you blush, you know."

Jacob smiles back and takes a deep breath. When he's sure he's completely settled he walks with Emma to the helm and takes a look at the map.

"First off, where are you planning on going?" Jacob asks, scanning the map in front of him.

"We were thinking somewhere on the English mainland." Miss Peregrine answers. "It's away from Cairholm but close enough for comfort."

Jacob nods to himself. "We can stay at my house."

All attention shot to him. "You have a house? In England?" Enoch asks in disbelief.

"I accumulated a small fortune throughout my travels and in my brief stint with the navy and was able to buy myself a large mansion. The man who I bought it from was my former superior in the navy. An old bachelor who died not too long ago."

"I'm so sorry, Jacob." Miss Peregrine says.

Jacob shakes his head. "He had cancer. He's out of his suffering."

Miss Peregrine and the children nod.

"Anyway," Jacob says with a smile. "It should be big enough, it's got about 9 bedrooms, four bathrooms, a spacious kitchen and dining room, a gorgeous sun room, a small library, an attic, a basement, and it sits on a 4 acre plot of land. It's a short walk from the ocean, too."

"Jake, that's incredible," Emma says in awe. "Are you sure?"

Jacob looks at her, and takes her hand in his. "You're my family now. I want nothing more than to share what's mine with all of you."

"So, where is this place?" Enoch asks, thumbing the edge of the map.

Jacob points at an area on the map. "I can bring us to it, if you're okay with sharing the wheel Enoch."

Enoch grins and steps away from the wheel, giving Jacob the opportunity to take it. He settles into a calm he recognizes from his days in the navy.

"You can all go about your business." Jacob says without turning. "I'll let you know when we're close."

He hears the shuffling of feet out the door but he feels her presence. "Emma, you're still here aren't you?" He says with a smile.

Emma smiles to herself, and embraces him from behind, resting her head against his back.

"I'd rather stay with you, if you don't mind."

"Nothing would give me greater joy," Jacob murmurs, holding on to one of her hands and bringing it up to his chest.

"So, are we going to be your first guests?" Emma asks after an hour of silence.

Jacob chuckles to himself and shakes his head. "There was a woman there for a while."

Jacob hears her sharp intake of breath and turns around to see some tears and fury in her eyes. "What?"

Emma looks at him incredulously. "What do you mean, what? You just told me you had a woman at your residence."

"She was my housekeeper." Jacob explains with a grin. He lifts his hand to caress her face with the back of his hand. "You're cute when you're jealous."

Emma shakes her head but a hint of a smile forms on her lips. "That wasn't funny."

Jake stifles another chuckle and takes Emma into his arms. "Believe me, love, you're the only one in my heart."

A smile formed on Emma's lips as she looked up at him with love in her eyes. She pulled his head down to hers and kissed him lightly. Desire overwhelmed them, though, and caused Emma's arms to make their way around Jacob's neck as Jacob's arms tightened around Emma's waist.

They broke away only for air and pressed their foreheads to each other. Emma sighs and presses a hand against Jake's shoulder.

"I should probably let you get back to captaining the ship. How much long do you estimate it will be?"

"Not too long," Jake answers, glancing at the map. "We should be there by tomorrow morning."

"I can stay with you," Emma says, watching as he handles the wheel.

"It's going to be a long night, Emma. Besides, Enoch says he will take over around midnight."

"Well it's about 7 o'clock now, I'll stay with you."

Jake shakes his head, knowing there's no arguing with her. Not that he'd want to. The hours passed quickly. The pair discussed the new house, Jake's days in the navy, his return home and his parents' reactions, among others. Soon enough Enoch cleared his throat announcing his presence.

Jacob released the wheel and briefed Enoch on their progress and told him he'd be back to take over the ship in a few hours.

Emma and Jacob walked through the sleeping hallway and glanced in on Miss Peregrine who was fast asleep. They walked straight to Emma's quarters where Jake took a seat on the edge of the bed, and stretched his arms out with a yawn. Emma sat beside him and gently rested her head against his shoulder.

"Are you sure you don't want to get more sleep?" Emma asks.

Jacob shakes his head and gently stretches himself out on the bed, above the covers. "It'll be better if I take back over early, so I can get us where we need to be."

Emma lays beside him, resting her head against his chest. His arm wraps around her waist and she sighs contentedly, being in the arms of the man she loves. Soon enough, the pair fall asleep in each other's arms.

When Enoch comes to the door, Jacob is already awake and delicately removes himself from the bed without waking Emma.

"How much longer do you think it will be?" Enoch asks as they walk back towards the helm.

"About two hours," Jacob estimates. "When we leave, we'll have to get everything prepared on the lifeboats so we can make it to the mainland."

"Of course," Enoch nods. "I'm assuming you're going to have Emma submerge the ship?"

"If she's okay with it. I'd rather we didn't attract too much attention and submerging the ship will be the best idea, I think."

Enoch nods his agreement and silently walks back to his room.

Jacob scans the waters as he watches the sun rise later on. He can see land in the distance and knows it won't be too much longer now. He anchors the ship about a mile off the mainland and makes his way outside where everyone is gathered.

"Alright, everyone get on a lifeboat with whatever belongings you need." Miss Peregrine begins. "Mr. Portman and Miss Bloom will be submerging the ship but will be rejoining us shortly after. Correct?"
Jacob and Emma nod, prepared.

"Good," Miss Peregrine says and watches as the children board the lifeboats and then assumes bird form watching as Emma and Jake lower them into the water. She keeps watch as the children row a safe distance away from the ship before watching as Emma removes the air that was keeping the ship afloat and part of her is worried as she watches the ship slowly begin to sink, but she knows that Emma and Jake will be fine.

When they get under water, Emma provides Jake with an air bubble to keep him able to breathe and swims with him to the surface.

"Are you okay?" Jacob asks Emma as they resurface.

Emma nods and points them in the direction of the lifeboats which they carefully board.

"You see the land up ahead?" Jacob asks pointing at the landmass. The children nod.

"That is where my house is. The house itself is a bit inland, so you won't see it until we are closer."

As they get closer Jacob notes their looks of awe as they take in the house and the surrounding property. There are lot of trees toward the east end of the property, with a wide lawn outside the backdoor.

"This looks beautiful," Horace says in appreciation. "Tell me, Jacob, have your clothes improved since we last saw you?"

"Horace," Olive admonishes.

"No, no it's alright." Jacob says with an easy smile as they get closer to the shore. "It's improved some, but it wasn't my primary priority."

Horace nods to himself and starts to stand as the boats bank on the shoreline.

"Alright, Mr. Portman," lead the way, Miss Peregrine says with a flourish of her hand.

"After you, Emma." Jacob says lifting her from the boat, and taking her hand as he leads them to his house.

They all look around as they get closer to the house. Jacob takes out a key ring and opens the back door and walks in, but out of the way so the others can come in.

"Alright, this is the back door and this area that we're walking into is, for all intents and purposes, a laundry room." Jacob walks a bit farther, and points out the large living room area where a small piano sits and one of his guitars is up against the wall. He shows them the kitchen, all of the bathrooms, all of the bedrooms, the basement which has its own living room type feel and a stocked bar. There are five levels to the house, with the fifth being the attic and the first being the basement.

Miss Peregrine shook her head at the bar but didn't say anything. The attic was empty for the most part. Jake showed them where he kept extra blankets and linens and where the utilities were in case there was a need to know where they were.

"Alright, Mr. Portman, this should do quite nicely. I do insist that you take the master bedroom. I'll have the rest of us go choose our own rooms."

As the rest of them climbed the stairs to find their own rooms, Emma was the only one that remained.

"Are you coming, Miss Bloom?" Miss Peregrine asks.

Emma looks up. "I'll just take whatever's left."

Jake perks up at that. "If it's quite alright, Miss Peregrine, would you mind if Emma stayed with me?"

Emma glances at him with a smile and took his hand in hers.

Miss Peregrine contemplates that for a moment before nodding and climbing the stairs to find her new room.

"You want to share a room with me?" Emma asks. "It probably won't be comfortable what with me being strapped down and all."

Jake grins and takes her in his arms, her back to his front and whispers against her neck. "I can hold you,"

A blush colors Emma's features as she considers that.

"That reminds me," Jake says with renewed excitement.

Emma looks at him in confusion.

"I have a gift for you," Jake says with a grin, pulling her with him as he climbed the stairs quickly to his second floor master bedroom. She watches as he quickly walks toward the armoire and pulls out a large, black satin box. He walks back toward her and presents it to her.

She takes it in her hands and opens it. "A locket?"

"Read it." Jake prompts her.

Emma pulls the golden locket out of its satin and reads the inscription.

I love you forever, Emma.

-Jake

She looks up with tears forming in her eyes. "I love you, too, Jake."

Jake grins and motions for her to turn around, placing the locket around her neck.

She feels a bit of weight as the locket settles around her.

"It's made out of a special kind of metal, heavier then lead that lies beneath the gold exterior. This way you don't have to wear your shoes anymore."

Testing the theory, Emma leans down and unbuckles her shoes and steps out of them…without floating away.

"Jake, it's a miracle," Emma says with a grin as she revels the feel of the soft carpeting beneath her feet. "Thank you."

"Thank you," Jake murmurs. "I love to see you smile"

Emma's smile grows wider at that as she squeals and wraps her arms around Jacob tightly. Jacob chuckles and wraps his arms around her waist, pressing a kiss to her hair.

After what seems like an eternity, they pull apart and walk down to the living room area where the others have gathered.

"This place seems rather well kept up," Horace observes as he leans his head back against the cushions of the larger sofa in the room.

Jake nods. "It should be, I wanted to make sure it'd be ready if we came here."

"So what's the plan?" Enoch asks. "Are we creating a loop or not?"

"We will not be creating a loop, at least not if we can help it," Miss Peregrine responds. "I want you all to be able to enjoy your lives. If safety becomes an issue, we will create a loop."

The children nod in understanding.

"Alright, well, go about your business children. We'll get everything sorted out soon enough." Miss Peregrine says and watches as the children dash out of the house with smiles and laughter.

"As for you, Mr. Portman, I'd just like to thank you again."

"Really, no thanks necessary," Jake responds easily.

Miss Peregrine shakes her head. "I was talking about Emma. I've never seen her quite so happy, so thank you for making her happy, it gives me great joy."

Jake smiles down at Emma whose blush lightly colors her features. He squeezes her hand and smiles at Miss Peregrine. "It's my pleasure."

Miss Peregrine gives them one last grin before walking out the door and assuming bird form.

"So," Jake begins, looking down at Emma as they make their way to the large couch near the window. "How do you like the house?"

"It's absolutely beautiful, Jake." Emma says with an easy smile, reaching up to push some hair out of his face.

"We will need to make a food run, though. I'm afraid I hadn't had the time to do it as I didn't want anything to spoil and I was in far too much a hurry."

"That's fine. You can show me the town," Emma perks up.

"We can take my car."

Emma chuckles. "You have a car?"

"It came with the house," Jacob responds as they make their way to the garage where Jacob quickly pulls up the door.

"Where are you going?" Enoch asks, leaning against the open doorframe.

"We're going to go get food and supplies. Would you mind letting Miss Peregrine know?"

Enoch nods and walks away while Jake helps Emma into the car. Minutes later, they are on the road, dirt flying up outside the windows. When they reach the town, Emma looks around in wonder.

Jake parks the car outside the grocery store and helps Emma back out of the car as they make their way into the grocery store. When they walk in, though, they are met with an unexpected surprise.

"Mr. Portman, you're back!" A young woman exclaims as she runs toward him. Another woman looks up as well and makes her way towards him. The first woman gives him a quick embrace before Jake pulls back. The second woman hangs back before hugging Jake as well.

Emma acts on instinct and rests her head against Jake's shoulder. Jake chuckles softly to himself. Emma had a possessive side, it seemed.

"Yes, Miss Jones, I am. I trust you are well?"

Miss Jones nods and glances at Emma. "Elizabeth Jones, I was Mr. Portman's housekeeper for a brief time before he left."

Emma smiles forcedly and shook her outstretched hand before turning her attention to the other woman.

"Mary, how have you been?" Jacob asks, wrapping his arm around Emma's waist and squeezing lightly.

"I've been good. Gareth just got back and he's thrilled to see what a lovely home you've made of the manor. He and I just found the loveliest manor in London."

"That's wonderful," Jacob says. "I hate to cut this short, but my girl and I just came into town to pick up a few things before we head back out."

The two women nod and make their way to the next store.

When they were in a more private area of the store, Jacob turns his attention more completely towards Emma.

"I'm assuming Gareth was your superior in the navy?" Emma asks.

Jacob shakes his head. This wasn't the question he'd been expecting. "Gareth was my other superior. It was Matthew Bates, my primary superior who gave me the house. Gareth and Mary are like a second set of parents to me."

Emma smiles. "You're quite charismatic, Jake. I'm not surprised."

Jacob's grin grows wider and leans down to kiss her softly. "Thank you, love. I hope now you can more clearly see that I only have eyes for you."

Emma grins, and kisses him again before indicating that they should get their shopping done quickly and return to the manor.

About an hour later, the two arrive back at the manor where Millard and Hugh are playing a rousing game of soccer with makeshift nets, where Bronwyn and Claire act as goalies. Fiona is growing flowers outside the house and Miss Peregrine is acting as the referee for the gaming children.

"You're back!" Olive exclaims with a smile. "We were beginning to worry you had gotten lost."

Enoch clears his throat.

"Okay, I was getting worried," Olive admits with a sheepish smile.

"Not to worry," Emma reassures them. "We just ran into a few of Jake's acquaintances."

"How do you know they aren't wights?" Miss Peregrine asks, worry evident in her voice.

"They're definitely not wights. I thoroughly vetted Miss Jones before I had her take care of the house and Mary is a good friend of mine,"

"Is that so," Enoch says with a mischievous grin.

"Yes, she's the wife of my former superior," Jake answers, with a hard edge as he glowers at Enoch, not liking what he was implying.