The Jolly Swan Surprise.

[itsapirateslife]

Ever since he'd started putting the finishing touches on his boat, Hook had been planning this party. When he realized it would line up perfectly with a certain someone's birthday, the plan was immediately modified.

The food he'd arranged from a local cafe was fairly simple, cut up fruit and vegetables with a variety of different sandwiches and meat pies, as well as some modern snacks like potato chips and the curly fries from the boardwalk. To drink, there was a juice and sodas as well as a fully stocked bar, all courtesy of funds from Hook's new job...not that he'd told anyone he'd gotten a job. It wasn't like there was any piracy to be had in Darrow and he would rather not have to put Emma in the position of having to arrest him.

He'd conspired with Henry, Charming and the others from their realm to make this a surprise for Emma. Some of the food was sitting on the table on deck but must of it was in the galley by the bar. In the center of the table under the deck was a cake made by Henry surrounded by cupcakes (There were some apple tarts, donated by Regina, but that had mysteries disappeared. Overboard. It's what the queen got for trying to clean his boat. It was perfectly clean thank you very much).

Hook had made sure to invite has many of both of their friends as possible and had them all gather on deck at the time Henry was supposed to bring Emma to the docks. There was a drape covering the name on the back of the boat. He was dressed in his pirate best, with his red waist coat and hook polished to a shine as he stood on the dock, two glasses of champagne perched next to him on a post.

[backdated to October 23rd. The boat looks like this yacht though the furnishings inside are much more rustic and only half the cabins have beds, the others are storage. The plumbing and electricity do work, but there are no TVs or anything by way of modern convenience outside of the galley.]

Comments

[infamousdelsin]

Delsin grins and hugs her tightly. "Heyyy," he says happily. "Like I'd miss seeing you on your birthday, of all days." He rubs her back as he leans back a little. "Decent day so far? Do I gotta, y'know. Kick anyone's asses?"

[infamousdelsin]

"Yeah, Delsin, that's me," he says, offering his hand over. He grins at the guy, cheerful and glad for the chance to interact with people important to Emma.

[storybrooke_savior]

"If it helps, I'm not either," Emma replied with a shrug and a wry smile. Parties weren't exactly common in the group homes. Some of them had tried to do a little something for birthdays, Christmases and the like, but it hadn't been much, and it certainly hadn't felt like family.

Her smile warmed. "Thanks," she replied sincerely. "And...thanks for coming. This is...this is nice." She still felt a little odd about it, being in the spotlight at all, but it was a reminder that people loved her, people cared, she had friends and family now. "I guess I should've known Henry wasn't gonna let me get away with ignoring my birthday this year."

[storybrooke_savior]

Emma would never claim to be an expert on good liquor, but she knew what she liked, and there'd been a very nice bottle of Jameson at the bar that she hadn't been able to resist. She'd limited herself to just one glass, but she was enjoying every sip, leaned against the rails of the boat (the boat that Hook had named after her, she was still processing that) gazing out at the sun sparkling off the water.

Her smile was immediate and warm as Hook came up beside her, and she leaned in as he did, kissing him back softly with whiskey-laced lips. "I usually hate surprises," she admitted, keeping her eyes closed for a moment or two, soaking in the pleasant warmth of the moment. "But this was a good one. As far as big dramatic romantic gestures go, I don't think it's toppable."

[gloriouscurse]

"Henry was asking me what we'd be doing long before your birthday. He wanted this to be special. I think he managed to do a good job," Regina smiled softly. They had a good child, a thoughtful child who worked with others to make sure his family felt well loved.

"This ship is no Granny's. But it'll do, I suppose. The Jolly Swan? That's nice and...official sounding," she commented with a bit of an eyebrow arch.

[thiefwithhonor]

Robin felt a modicum safer when Henry had his attention instead of the water. The boy was a bit too excited, which meant he had to keep a close eye on him to make sure he didn't get into trouble.

He smiled, though, when Regina came over, taking the offered drink once she parted from him.

"I should not be surprised he found himself a vessel to call his own here, too. I suppose the call of the sea is strong, even in this strange place," he said. He was glad for Hook, though, truly.

[thiefwithhonor]

Robin had heard of these life vests, but admittedly found them a bit confounding. He made a note to ask if she could perhaps show him how to put it on, because Roland was quick to interrupt. He knew it was a special day for Emma.

"For you!" Roland exclaimed, holding up the picture he drew. Robin had to hide his smile at his son's enthusiasm.

[thiefwithhonor]

Robin bit back a smirk at the suggestion. No, if he was to become anything, it'd had been far more land-based.

"Uh-uh,' he said in response, looking up at Hook. His smile was still wide and excited. "Can it go really far?"

"I think it's a bit too early to be joining any crew," Robin added, though his own grin was good-natured. "It's a good ship, though. Very impressive."

[arrowette]

Cissie didn't really know Emma all that well but when Hook had invited her, he had mentioned that he thought they would get along and she could hardly say no to that. Besides, she was curious to see what Hook had done with the boat she'd help him "liberate".

All things considered, he'd done a fantastic job, she thought as she sipped at a beer. She was going to have to ask him about the "Jolly Swan" thing at some point. She didn't expect him to answer but she was kind of curious about what he'd say.

She knew she ought to mingle but she couldn't tear herself away from the railing. The view of the water was just spectacular.

[likeaplanet]

"Yeah!" Mack shouted happily, nearly careening in some random direction where she's decided the important stuff happens.

"HEY, WHOA," I call out to her, "What did I say about running?"

She skids to a stop, her sister nearly colliding into her back. They both fall into an exaggeratedly slow tiptoe as Mack calls over her shoulder to me, "Don't do it!"

I give Hook smirk and say, "Good luck."

[wanttobeahero]

He'd wanted her to have some space when she looked through all the pictures, knowing there was a chance it might make her emotional. But he couldn't stay away forever, and when she snagged him, he went easily into the seat, leaning against her and hugging her.

"Well, I sort of learned from you." He was teasing her with a smirk, leaning his head on her shoulder. "I wanted to make sure you had a good birthday. And so did a lot of other people."

[storybrooke_savior]

Emma bent down quickly to kiss the top of Neal's head. "It's okay dad, you don't have to make up for something that wasn't your fault." She took a bite from the cupcake, made a face as frosting dotted the end of her nose. "And if you bake like I do, it's definitely okay, I'll pass. I'm awful. Ask Henry about the time I tried to make chocolate chip cookies for his school bake sale. It was a disaster." She might've been trying to change the subject, shift it somewhere a little more lighthearted. It had been a nice party so far, no sense in getting sad about the past.

[princehonorable]

"I do, though, even if only to satisfy my own internal guilt, I do," he admits, thinking of those nightmares he'd experienced back in the year they'd forgotten (temporarily) and how hard he'd tried to get away from them. "I'm not great," he admits. "Your mother's better," he says, missing her all the more for it. "Sometimes, I think how lucky I am to know that you carry on some parts of me, even if I couldn't raise you the way I wanted."

[wanttobeahero]

Whatever his mom might try to tell him now, there was no way she could deny that something was going on between them. Hook named his ship after her, and he understood how important that was. He wasn't going to talk to her about it today, though, he wanted her to just be happy. And, well, at least Hook was treating her right, as far as he could tell.

"Second in command? Does that mean I can steer the ship sometimes?" he smiled.

[wanttobeahero]

In the same way that his moms wanted to meet his friends, Henry likes knowing some of the people both of his moms are friends with. Not really to check up on them the way a parent would for their child, but just because...well, he always got along with adults pretty well, and he knows his mom would have cool friends.

Henry sees a face he doesn't recognize, and since he's a friendly kid, he comes over, smiling. "It's pretty cool." And it's named after his mom, which is all...interesting. "You know my mom?" He asks only because he knows Hook was inviting some people that didn't know his mom too well yet, but are friends of his.

[gloriouscurse]

"I have a feeling he's always been resourceful," Regina agreed as she watched Roland and Henry together, smiling softly.

"Roland seems to like it, at least. What is it about boys and men and big ships?" she teased lightly, knowing that Robin preferred the woods instead of the open water.

[infamousdelsin]

Delsin looks over and down at the kid. "Shit, you're Henry?" he asks, and immediately offers his hand. "Man, your mom never stops talking about you. I'm Delsin." He wants to say that he considers Emma to be a sister, but maybe that's weird to say to her son.

[thiefwithhonor]

"You should have seen how much he was rushing me this morning, he was so excited. I fear the pirate may steal him into his crew when I'm not watching," he joked, trying to bite back a smile. He liked his son having these sort of experiences, even though he certainly felt better suited with his feet firmly on solid ground.

[wanttobeahero]

He looks almost...proud as he nods. Proud to be her son. And he really is, which is something he doesn't think about that much - he is only thirteen, after all - but on her birthday, it gives him some food for thought.

Hearing that his mom talks about him all the time, though, Henry smiles, shaking the man's hand. "Nice to meet you. She talks about me a lot? Only good stuff, right?" He's just...teasing, mostly.

[storybrooke_savior]

"Thanks, Delsin." Technically yesterday had been her birthday, but details. "I think everyone's asses are safe," Emma laughed. "It's been a really...really good day."

Still smiling, possibly more than she had since she'd arrived, Emma looped her arm through Delsin's and tugged him with her across the deck. "Come on, get some food, drink, be merry. Apparently it's a party."

[storybrooke_savior]

Emma smiled, touched to hear Henry had been thinking of her. They really couldn't have asked for a better kid. "He made me breakfast," she added with a soft laugh. "The pancakes were a little...stiff, and the coffee needed a lot of cream and sugar, but it was so sweet."

She started to remark upon the sad shape the boat had apparently been in when Hook...acquired it, that he'd put a lot of work into it, that she'd helped out on occasion and had seen for herself how drastically different it was compared to now--but the comment threw her off. Because she had all kinds of feelings about the damn name herself that were hard to sort through. "What's that supposed to mean?" she asked, genuinely asking, not accusing or angry.

[storybrooke_savior]

The surprised delight on Emma's face was completely genuine. She'd been Roland's age herself recently, with the same coordination and attention span; she knew how much effort and care went into those crayon drawings.

"Roland this is wonderful," she praised, holding the sheaf of paper to her chest with one hand and open her free arm for a hug. "I love it, thank you!"

[gloriouscurse]

Laughing softly, Regina pushed hair out of her face, wishing she'd thought to put her hair in a ponytail.

"Luckily, Hook won't have to assume baby-sitting duties of anyone any time soon, or you might have a small hellion on your hands who refuses to listen." She was mostly kidding, though she really couldn't attest to the pirate's ability with children. She knew Henry spent time with him, but they hadn't talked much about it, and it wasn't something Regina had even decided she was wholly comfortable with.

"I'm glad you and Roland both here. It makes getting used to family events a little easier. Just promise me that on my birthday we won't be anywhere near water."

[gloriouscurse]

"I do think he likes spoiling us," Regina noted. At Emma's question though, one of Regina's eyebrows shot up.

"You do know that ship names are typically very significant, don't you? Named after loves and mothers. And since I'm assuming he isn't looking for a mother, well." She gave a little shrug. "I think it's safe to say he's fond of you at the very least."

[infamousdelsin]

"Oh man, the best," Delsin assures. And although his tone is teasing, he's also telling the truth. Emma has never said anything negative about Henry in the time he's known her. "She actually got me pretty amped to meet you!"