WILMA WAS NO stranger to happiness and good moments — although she did have experience of darkness too — but she was over the moon as The Jolly Roger landed on the wonderfully missed docks of Storybrooke. Well, technically she was only over the clouds, but that too had been an experience beyond belief, impossible to forget, something she was going to cherish forever. Just like the familiar faces they saw waiting on the ground, their hands coming together in proud applause, tears of joy running on their cheeks and happy smiles twisting their lips upwards.

Wilma wasn't a drama queen, or one to enjoy being in the spotlight very much either, but in that moment, as she realized that the surroundings were safe and familiar, she couldn't help but let the feeling of utter bliss and pride descend onto her — therefore, slightly theatrically, the woman took out her red sunglasses and pushed them before her eyes, and as the people in front of her gained a dark tint on them, she took out her phone, and thank heavens, the internet worked, at last.

"We've returned, my darlings!", she called out dramatically, with We Are The Champions playing from her phone, and the dearly missed, adorable sight of her made people giggle. However, she didn't have much time to bask and revel in the good feeling that her heart was full of at the realization that indeed, she had been missed, when one of the curious Lost Boys pushed past her and knocked her sunglasses off, along with her phone that brutally landed on the ramp leading them off of The Jolly Roger.

Scoffing, Wilma knelt down to pick up her phone, which had already decided to stop playing the legendary Queen song, and then her sunglasses — so embarrassing. But instead of carrying malice against the curious boy rushing past her, she reminded her that the child was a poor orphan, who had spent a long time in Neverland, and that made her smile as she put her sunglasses back on.

"Right", a chuckle caught Wilma's attention, and as the woman stood back up, she found herself staring into David's impossibly perfect, happy eyes. "And I'm the bean", he nudged her teasingly, and smiling, Wilhelmina rolled her eyes in response.

"Shut up, you bean."

Once the people were out of her way, Wilma finally set her foot on the ground, and it felt good. It felt like she was finally home, and it made her smile widely — as did the sight of Belle, whom she had missed terribly, and in an instant, Wilma sprinted over to her. Belle caught her, and the two were left in a happy reunion hug, which made the both of them giggle and smile whilst squeezing each other and pointing out how glad they were to see one another again. It felt nice, to see and hug her again, to meet friends that Wilma had been away from for so long. Really, more now than before, she understood that the bittersweet journey to Neverland was finally over, and despite the flickers of good that she saw in the memories of the island, she was beyond glad it was past them now.

Or so she thought. So everyone thought.

Wilma left Belle when Gold arrived from the ship to reunite with his love, but frankly, she didn't even mind. If anything, she moved away gladly. With a smile on her lips, the woman looked around, basking in the surprisingly warm sunshine and enjoying the sweet family and friend reunions all around her — for a second, her eyes locked with Killian's, and the two smiled at each other happily, leaving her heart racing in her chest. But then, the brunette happened to look around, and her gaze landed on what was definitely a heartbreaking sight — Regina was standing alone, with no one to hug her, thank her for all her help, make her smile and remind her how important she was. And to Wilma, it was just unacceptable.

Taking off her sunglasses, Wilma headed over to Regina, and quietly found a spot next to her, but it didn't take her long to speak up. "For what it's worth... I think you should be proud of yourself. If it wasn't for your strength and willpower, it's quite possible we wouldn't all be standing here", she murmured, trying to stay low-key in case that was what Regina wanted, and luckily, instead of telling the woman to leave her alone, she let a grateful smile tug on her lips as she nodded at Wilma.

Right on cue, Snow then spoke up, praising Regina and telling everyone how a lot of their success was thanks to the queen, who had abandoned the evil within her and acted like a hero, teaming up with them and working together and saving Henry — and it made not only Wilma, but Regina smile.

"See", Wilma whispered, "I told you."

Indeed, it was good to be back. Back in Storybrooke. Back home.

———

"I MISSED YOU so much, oh my god, I'm never going to leave you again!", were Wilma's fond words to a dear friend as they were finally reunited, along with, "I love you, my baby, I forgot how beautiful you were." Naturally, she was talking to her Corvette, her arms trying to reach around the hood and her cheek resting against the red paint, with her heart full of joy and longing that she had tried to ignore, but now that Iron Maiden was right there, she felt like exploding with happiness.

Frankly, she didn't want to leave, but Snow dragged her inside Granny's, where everyone was celebrating the return of their heroes. However, eventually, Wilma gave in, due to David tempting her with some just baked mudcake — how was she supposed to say no to that? And just as expected, it was worth it, the melting heaven making her moan and remember just how much she had missed chocolate during their time in Neverland. Truthfully, there were a lot of things she had missed, and was yet to experience again, but before running to Granny's inn and jumping on the lumpy mattress of her bed, she sat down with Charming and Snow and finally, breathed.

At some point, Gold stopped by to give David the elixir, and after gulping the potion down, the prince immediately felt and looked better. The sight of a properly healed best friend made Wilma grab the man, and place a huge, happy kiss on her soft cheek, a gesture of friendly love at its highest point. Now, he was finally okay, and it seemed that with each passing second, things were only getting better, that with each passing moment, there was one worry less to tease their brains.

"Well, I'm gonna take a hot shower and listen to some music. Love you!", Wilma spoke up then after her second — okay, fourth — piece of Granny's mudcake, which she had added to the menu after Winnie had personally requested it, and after waving at Snow and David, the woman headed out into the fresh air. She loved her friends, but admittedly, she had spent a lot of time with them lately, and sometimes it was too much — sometimes she just needed to quit for a while and enjoy her alone time, a little of peace and quiet.

The latter didn't come true though, as it was definitely not quiet when she showered. The hot water felt good on her aching body — she wasn't fit enough to survive trekking around and about with a little of pain afterwards, and even though she loved the way her muscles relaxed and the warmth rained down onto her soft skin, she ended up holding the shower head to her mouth and singing along Pour Some Sugar On Me as music blasted from her phone in the other room. To be honest, she was glad most of the people were still at Granny's or catching up elsewhere, but for sure, Granny would have kicked her out if she had been there to hear the woman's absurd rock party, consisting mostly of the hottest 80s hits.

Once the woman had spent enough time lip-syncing and using all the hot water, Wilma tiptoed out of the shower, and proceeded to dry her hair and find some clothes to wear for the rest of the day. She was wearing only half of her outfit, when Metallica's The Four Horsemen erupted from the speakers and there was a knock on the door — however, she was presentable enough for her to see who was yearning for her attention and presence. And frankly, she wasn't disappointed.

"Killian", she breathed out once she yanked open the door and came face to face with the smirking pirate, leaning casually against the doorway, and taking in the sight of Wilma, who had just jumped out of the shower — her hair still damp and resting on one shoulder, her skin wet here and there, and her face clear of make-up, and therefore, visible with all its flaws and imperfections. Yet to him, she seemed all the more perfect like that. "What are you doing here?", she finally continued, a smile landing on her lips, whereas Killian's faded away at the sight of her. It was obvious that he had come knocking with the utmost confidence at hand, but now, he was at the mercy of her incredible beauty, but it encouraged him to do with what he had come there for, anyway.

"I've come to do what I should have done a long time ago", was his simple answer, and although Wilma was confused, she had no time to ask any questions, when Killian had already strode in and wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her close as their lips crashed together. Eyes widening, Wilma was definitely surprised, and her heart almost failed at the quite breathtaking gesture, but she didn't let the shock break the kiss. Instead, she ran her fingers through his tousled dark hair, and leaned closer, their bodies meeting, and as they did, he began to stumble forward. The tune of the Metallica song was perfect background noise as Killian led Wilma to the bed, where she eventually collapsed, her back meeting the mattress. He followed right behind, landing atop her — not too painfully, though, but she quite enjoyed the feeling of his body against hers like that, and the taste of his rum-flavored, plump lips.

She feared she was going to faint. The world around her was spinning, and nothing really made sense, no, nothing except that Killian was utterly perfect and so was the moment, even if it kind of felt like she was floating in the air, on her way to cloud nine whilst euphoria started to get a grip on her.

"Good thing you weren't all dressed, love", Killian breathed huskily against her lips, a low chuckle rising from his throat as he rested his forehead against Wilma's, and after the woman had repeated the fond sound, their lips met again in a rush of desire and love that kept on fueling their every movement.

They didn't get very far though, Wilma had barely yanked his leather jacket off of his shoulders — which alone was enough to make her heart run faster against the millions of thoughts in her spinning head — when something suddenly flashed before her eyes. The bliss she was feeling became replaced with fear, and instead of seeing stars or Killian's long eyelashes and piercing blue eyes, Wilma found herself staring at flashing images of green smoke, her loved ones crying, pure destruction, and in the middle of it all, Peter Pan.

Gasping, Wilma pulled away, her eyes flying wide open and her swollen, pink lips parting as she stared at Killian with horror settling onto her features, and in an instant, the man shot her a thoroughly worried look.

"Everything okay, Wilma? Did I do something?", he asked in concern, an apologetic look finding a home in his beautiful eyes as he looked at Wilma and the terrified look on her face. She was already about to answer, but she had no time, when a sharp scream suddenly reached their ears from outside, and instinctively, the pirate climbed off of her. Still trying to catch her breath, Wilma sat up, still dizzy and confused and scared, and as she tried to collect herself, Killian rushed to the window to see what was going on, to no avail.

"We should go see what's going on. Please, Wilhelmina, are you alright?", Killian asked once more, offering his hand for her, and gulping thickly, she nodded — although she was not alright, but someone else was clearly in danger, and therefore, she could share her own issues later. Taking his hand, Wilma got up from the bed, and after turning off the music, the two of them rushed outside hand in hand to see who was in danger and why.

Right outside of Granny's, Wilma and Killian came across Tinker Bell, and Emma and Charming. The three of them eyed Hook and Wilhelmina suspiciously, and especially David seemed upset — clearly, he could put the pieces together and figure out why Wilma's hair was a mess, why her lips were so swollen, why they were so out of breath and still trying to adjust to the sudden change in mood. However, he didn't say anything, and neither did Wilma, although she could see the fire behind his eyes, the frustration he directed at Killian, who merely avoided the prince's judging glare.

Suddenly, from behind the corner, Mother Superior emerged with fear evident on her features, but before any of them could do anything to help her or take her to safety, something terrifying appeared from behind her — Pan's shadow. Gasping, Wilma stumbled backwards — she had just seen Pan in whatever freaky vision had interrupted her makeout session with Killian, and frankly, she couldn't help but grow profoundly upset and scared. Not worried, just wonderfully, incredibly scared. Much to their horror, the Shadow caught up with Mother Superior and knocked her out, and before anyone could do anything to help the fairy, her shadow had been ripped from her body, leaving her lifeless on the ground. With another gasp, Wilma looked away, hiding her face against Killian's chest, and automatically, the man wrapped an arm around her to hold her.

Just when Wilma had thought that the Shadow was the worst thing, Killian explained that there was only one person it took orders from — Peter Pan himself.

And in that moment, things were no longer so blissful and euphoric, even with the feeling of Killian's lips still lingering on Wilma's. But in her mind, was twirling the mess of images she had witnessed, and with each second, she was growing more and more terrified of what was going to happen.

For good reason, too.

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fave: wilma & killian making out to metallica (◠‿◠✿)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO HAYLEY ATWELL. BABE.