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[She allows it -- something that says a lot about how far they've come, grudging tolerance becoming something else entirely thanks to months in Wonderland together as well as their time back home. Hook might not remember his previous visit, but he doesn't need to. He's not the one who's mind needed changing.]

Yeah, I'm -- fine.

[Said in a way that implies she is distinctly not fine.]

It's not news you ever want to have to give anyone. Not to mention I didn't exactly tell him so much as he figured it out.

[He runs his knuckles along her arm, still holding her close. He doesn't believe she's fine. No one could be fine after that.]

You could have lied. Took courage, being honest about it.

[She leans against him, and while there's no affectionate outreach of her own, it still speaks volumes.]

I don't think I could have. Wouldn't have been right. It wasn't the way I wanted to tell him, but he deserved to know.

[A pause.]

He was asking me about you.

About me? [Their relationship isn't exactly a secret, but it's also new. Still in those stages where half the time he's expecting Emma to try and run away or call everything off. Not that he'd ever let it be that simple. But telling Neal...

Well. He's not sure they're even at the place there's much to tell, yet.]

What'd you say?

[He's right, it's very new. New enough that they haven't even put a name to it yet, not officially. It just is.]

I didn't get a chance to say much. He was trying to figure out why you and I were--

[She cuts herself off. Fill in the blanks, Killian. You know, together.]

Why he wasn't in the picture. He saw what we wrote in the notebook. [Of course, everyone had. It wasn't terribly incriminating, it wasn't even embarrassing, but Neal knew what it meant.] That's how we got into everything else.

...we didn't write anything bad. [He'd wanted her to come back. Neal had too. There's nothing wrong with that.] And he's been broken up with you for a decade! Didn't he take himself out of the picture? Long before he died.

No, you're right, we didn't.

[Even someone like her who treats any kind of affection like it might be a contagious disease sometimes has to admit to that.]

Just enough to make it obvious that there's-- you know. [She still can't say it, and she feels a pang of guilt as she makes a dismissive gesture between the two of them.] Something here. And he did, but it's complicated. He's Henry's father. History makes it hard to see things in black and white.

[She closes her hand over his wrist before he can let that worry him.]

I'm in this, though.

[She didn't choose him just because Neal was gone.]

[That gets an actual, genuine smile out of him. He leans in and presses a soft kiss to her lips. It's a quick one, light and tender and just enough to remind her he's here. He pulls back, but he stays close, smiling at her.]

Makes two of us, then.

[And as bad as he feels about Neal, he can't feel bad about his feelings for Emma, about what they have. He thought he'd never have another shot at a happy ending. He can't give it up now.]

[She's not good at this. She's never been great at the whole romance thing, never had more than a couple of real shots at it if she was being honest with herself, but she's beginning to think it might be possible for her to learn.

She'd loved Neal with all her heart. She always would, that was something she could admit to herself now-- but a second chance to make certain things right with him didn't change the fact that the moment she went home, he would be gone. Killian wouldn't, and he'd put in a lot of time and effort to try and prove to her that he was worth taking a chance on.

She leans in after the kiss breaks and chases after another, pressing her lips against his, the first time she's allowed herself to initiate anything since he got here. Guilt and a desire to treat the situation delicately had dictated she do otherwise.]

Glad we're on the same page.

Edited 2014-10-29 18:56 (UTC)

[He smiles at her, letting himself get lost in the closeness for a moment. After all this time he's spent chasing her, sometimes it's hard to believe he actually has her, that she's right here, in his arms, and with him.

He touches her cheek lightly with his knuckle, pressing another soft kiss to her mouth. He can't help himself. He doesn't want to stop kissing her, ever.]

I can talk to him. We've a long history together. Perhaps I can set his mind at ease.

[He has her as much as anyone ever has, at least. Give her time and she'll warm up -- but even she can't ignore that whether or not it was a conscious decision, she made her choice awhile ago. He'd vanished from Wonderland immediately after -- but as complicated as things are, there are no words for how glad she is that he's back. None that she can voice, but he's always been good at reading her.

She takes just half a step back after the kiss breaks, the subject at hand making her feel just a little less inclined to be affectionate. It was delicate for all involved.]

I'm not sure Neal will be in love with the idea, but you can give it a shot.

[She presses her lips together, grimacing.]

I don't think he's feeling friendly towards either one of us right now.

Maybe not. But I don't wish to lose him again. [If Neal makes him choose, he's choosing Emma. There's no question of that. He can't abandon her just because Neal's jealous. But he doesn't want that to be the case. He wants to have his friend and his love. Neal had gotten engaged to someone else. Shouldn't that be enough for him to move on?

He hesitates.]

I don't have to go right now...

Maybe he'll come around.

[She doesn't sound totally convinced, but she's not going to try and talk him out of doing what he feels he needs to, either -- just like he wouldn't be able to talk her out of trying to make things right with Neal on her own time. It's something they both need to do for their own separate reasons, but in both cases, it's going to take some time. It's not something that can be rushed, but persistence -- that might pay off.

She pauses, raising an eyebrow.]

Are you asking if you can stay?

[He hasn't really spent much time in her room, up until now -- something that's just starting to sink in.]

[He nods his head, stepping in closer. He touches her face softly, caressing her skin with his fingertips.]

I know things are complicated. With Neal here, with... everything. But yeah, I am.

[If she needs an out, he'll let her have one, but he'd rather stay. He'll always stay with her.]

[Not that long ago, she would have taken the out. Would have taken any opportunity to keep this from progressing, but while it's still new for him, it isn't for her. The last time they'd taken a step forward, he'd vanished the next day.

She exhales slowly, offering him a careful smile.]

I think you should. I have conditions, though.

[She briefly closes her fingers over his hand against her face, an unusually soft display for her, but everything has been so damn difficult lately that she thinks she's allowed.]

Don't disappear on me afterwards.

[He leans his forehead against hers, holding her close. Don't disappear on her? Like he'd go anywhere if he had any power at all to stop it.]

Never, love. I'll happily hold you all night if it'll help assure you.

[It's not something he has control over. She knows that. It hadn't been his fault the last time, either -- but it still helps, a little bit, to hear it.]

Then I think we're square.

[She smiles again before leaning in to kiss him. Deal sealed.]

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