Killian was beginning to regret his decision the moment he pulled his car into the parking lot at Elstree Studios. He hadn't told any of his family or friends about what he'd done just yet. He knew that if he did, he'd never live it down. He kept telling himself that there was nothing for him to worry about. If he didn't think the show was right for him, there was still some wiggle room in his contract that would allow him to back out, and nobody would ever know about it. Yet, Killian couldn't seem to motivate himself to leave his vehicle.

Until he spotted her.

He wasn't sure why he was so surprised to see her there. Of course they'd want to introduce the celebrity contestants to the professionals that had signed on for the series. It made sense to pair them up as early as possible so that their training could begin sooner rather than later. But for some reason, Killian had been sure that he wouldn't see her that day.

The sound of tyres screeching against the tarmac behind his car had her stopping suddenly and turning in his direction. Even though he was partially hidden by the tinted windows of his car, Killian was certain that her eyes met and held his for a moment. But just as suddenly as she'd stopped, she started moving again, making her way into the building.

Killian took a moment to look himself over in the mirror and gather his composure before he finally opened his car door and stepped out of the vehicle. His agent hadn't mentioned anything about needing to bring documentation with him that day, but Killian had been to Elstree Studios many times in his life, so he knew he'd need photographic ID to get past security. After double-checking his pockets for his wallet and phone, he locked the car and headed into the building.

Checking in had been easier than he thought it would be. The production team was expecting him, and Killian was given clear instructions on where he needed to be and how to get there.

The elevator was packed when he stepped onto it. He took a quick look around the small metal carriage but he didn't recognise anyone else onboard. That wasn't entirely surprising, though. The other contestants were hardly ever considered A-list celebrities.

Although he would never admit to it, after those few episodes Mary-Margret had made them watch, Killian had done some research of his own. He'd started by Googling the show to find out everything he could about the past line up of contestants they'd had, the judging panel, the type of commitment that would be required of him, and what he should expect.

Then he'd Googled Emma Swan.

Killian had spent hours combing official websites to find everything from Emma's professional history to her time spent on the show, all the way back to where and when she had been born.

And then he'd made the mistake of putting her name into a YouTube search.

Killian didn't even want to think about how much time he'd lost watching her performance videos. He'd started by just watching the parts of the shows she'd been involved with. He could tell that she had a lot of talent, but the show seemed to love pairing her with some of the worst male contestants they'd ever had. It was obvious that if she'd been given one of the younger athletes or actors, she could have won the trophy every single year. But so far, she'd never made it past the fifth week of the competition.

When he'd exhausted all of Emma's performances he'd gone on to watch clips of her interviews and training diaries for the show. Emma had seemed like a tough but fair instructor. She clearly cared for her profession, however, she also understood that the celebrities she had been paired with were complete novices that needed to be eased in gently. All of her routines seemed tailored to her partner's athletic abilities instead of opting for moves that were flashy but far too complicated for them to conquer.

She was exactly the kind of partner that Killian was hoping the show would pair him with.

"Killian, thanks for joining us," Arthur greeted, extending a hand for him to shake. "You've been a hard guy to nail down these last few years."

"Uh, yeah," he chuckled awkwardly. "We've been pretty busy so I didn't want to commit to something that I would probably end up backing out of."

"Well, we're glad to finally have you on board. I'm not gonna lie, you'll be a huge sell for the show this year - and we need it! Let's get you into the office and then you can meet your fellow contestants."

"No pressure then," Killian mumbled to himself, as he was shown into a large conference room where there were already fourteen other people waiting on his arrival.

He spent the next twenty minutes introducing himself to news presenters, musicians, sports stars, and even a few politicians. Most of the people in the room already knew who he was, thanks to the popularity of his music, but he couldn't say the same for them. The only person he recognised was one of his fellow musicians, Aurora. However, the two of them had never met in person before.

The producers gave the contestants enough time to mingle and completely demolish the boxes of doughnuts that had been left out for them, before they entered the room once more, encouraging everyone to take a seat around the conference table.

Killian spent the next two hours being bored silly by all of the details and requirements the producers covered. He tried to take notes about it all but by the thirty-minute mark, he'd pulled out his phone and started playing games under the table. He figured that whatever they were saying would also be put into writing and handed to him before he left that day. So he could get away with reading it a little later, when he had a couple of bottles of beer to help him get through it all.

He only perked up when Arthur finally announced, "Before we let you go and make your final decision on these contracts, we wanted to take a moment to introduce you to this year's professionals."

Killian's jaw almost hit the floor when Emma Swan was the first person to push open the door to the conference room. She looked stunningly beautiful in a pair of black shorts, a white blouse, and towering black heels.

Emma's look here is based on Jen's look for a meeting in Beverley Hills on the 10th April, 2014.

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