Author's Note: Although I've hardly written for OUAT, Captain Swan has been my OTP for years… ever since our two lovers climbed their first beanstalk. I've always been one for angst, so you can bet there will be plenty of it in this particular story… But never fear! I'm a sucker for happy endings, I just sometimes tend to make my readers (and myself!) suffer before we get there. I've rarely dabbled with canon divergence, so please be patient with me as I explore the plot bunny that has been plaguing me for years.

As always, thanks for reading!

XxXx

Chapter One: Another Way.

"There's a side to you that I never knew, never knew…"

"That's why you'll always be an orphan."

Hook smirked at the memory of his own cruelty, relieved to once more be the harsh pirate that had inspired legendary fear across realms. Long gone was the love-sick puppy dog who had followed the so-called Savior through space and time, becoming positively giddy with each smile, each small token of returned affection. He had thought her ultimate gift had been her 'I love yous,' uttered after months of knowing (and enjoying!) his feelings.

He should have realized.

Realized that Emma Swan did not know what love was. Not truly, not outside of her son and parents. Not as a lover and partner. Despite being the product of true love, a savior once filled with the lightest magic, she was stunted. Unable to trust and share, unable to take his hand and leap with him into the good, and unable to make sacrifices and difficult decisions in the bad.

So unlike Milah.

His Milah.

A fresh wave of rage surged through his darkened heart as he thought of his beautiful, lost love, and the two centuries he had spent chasing that bloody crocodile.

"Damn you, Swan," he growled to the ocean, once again furious that he had let her distract him from his mission, his one purpose in his blasted life… avenging Milah. She had tricked him into believing that her sugary light brand of love meant more, went deeper, than the connection he had shared with his brunette beauty.

He glanced down at her name tattooed on his forearm, a centuries-old reminder to remain steadfast in his journey for revenge, no matter the cost.

Henry. Mary Margaret. David.

Regina. Robin. The entire sleepy, cursed town.

That blasted wench, the other dark one…

Emma.

None of them would pull him away from his renewed determination to make Rumpelstiltskin pay for Milah's spilt blood, and to make sure of that, the angry Captain Hook decided they must all be included in on that debt.

A debt the Dark Swan would pay first.

He felt her kindred magic then, as if his thoughts had summoned her to his side, but he refused to turn. Instead, he continued to gaze out at the waves, darkening where ocean met sky. He knew he had Excalibur tucked away, safe from her damn heroics, and was sure she knew the same. He couldn't feel the fight in her like he had earlier in her home, sure his trick of using the boy's likeness had deflated the little hope remaining in her heart. Perhaps it had even felt like one last betrayal. The proverbial nail in the coffin of their love.

Good.

"Silent again, I see," he smiled finally, but his smirk did not touch his angry gaze, "You are a masochist, aren't you, Dark one?" He chuckled darkly, tapping his hook against her leather clad shoulder. "Shouldn't you be huddled with your parents, scheming away in order to defeat me?" He exhaled a hot breath on his hook before rubbing it against his coat as if polishing it, "Or did our last encounter prove that you can't win?"

"They're having dinner," Emma breathed finally, her blonde lashes fluttering against her cheeks as a tear traced down her alabaster skin. "A goodbye at Granny's."

"And you're not there because…" He cocked one eyebrow, feigning interest. Emma remained silent, and Hook rolled his eyes, turning around. "Right. Well, love, once again, you're doing what you do best and-"

"Pushing away the people I love." She finished for him, steadfastly facing the harbor as she repeated the words he had spewed at her earlier.

"Aye. But don't worry, Swan. I no longer carry a interest in watching." He stepped away from her, reveling in the heartbreak that practically radiated from her.

"I will save them," she breathed tearfully, sounding more like Emma than she had since she had become tethered to the dagger. Her broken promise halted him, and he glanced over his shoulder.

"You can't without Excalibur, and she's safe with me," He reminded her before continuing up the dock. "You should have said your goodbyes, Dark One. You'll once again be alone soon enough."

Satisfied that he had fulfilled his threat of hurting her like she had him, he summoned Excalibur to his hand, prepared to fulfill his dark plan.

XxXx

"Mom, Dad! Henry!"

Hook watched as Emma ran past him to embrace her family, ignoring the irritating tug on his heart when she tearfully apologized for her failure. But before that shot of light could bloom into anything more than a flicker, Regina stepped forward as if to plead with him. Brushing her away with a wave of his hand, he glanced towards Nimue, silently begging her to strengthen the darkness in him.

"It's time," she breathed in her cruel, clipped voice, smiling as if to encourage him.

"No," Emma whispered, her eyes panicked, "You are not taking the people I love!"

Nimue's response was instant as she stopped the woman in her tracks, her taunts lost on Hook as he watched Emma struggle. He couldn't breathe himself as he watched her gasp for air, the darkness in his heart warring with the warmth and light that had once belonged to the Savior. The darkness was winning, as it had for days, but for the fist time since Zelena had returned his memories, he allowed himself to humor the light lingering in his soul.

Emma's rare but dazzling smile, a precious gift that usually had to be well-earned. The beautifully silly moments they were able to find amidst their all too serious existence. Dinners at Granny's and coffee laced mornings in her yellow driving contraption.

The 'I love yous' in Camelot. The stolen kisses during rare private moments in the apartment she had shared with her parents, brother, and son. The slow, steady burning that had turned into a full-flamed need for her.

His dark heart ached when Emma's terrified green eyes met his, pleading with him to see her.

"That's enough," he ordered before he could process his decision, the war in his soul tormenting him. He sensed Nimue's shock as his hand twitched, hesitating only a moment before raising Excalibur.

As if sensing her opportunity, Nimue raised her other hand toward Hook.

"Dark One, your revenge is so close," she simpered, tilting her head slightly as she kept Emma at bay. "I can feel that you're conflicted, that the light is poisoning you. You're wondering if you still truly love her."

Hook took a shuddering breath as the light urged him to raise Excalibur; he could sacrifice himself, save them all. But the all-consuming dark pushed it back each time, reminding him what he wanted, what he needed. He nodded once, bringing a chilling smile to Nimue's face. She released Emma then, causing the dark savior to fall back.

"There's another way, you know."

Hook stiffened, and Nimue nodded, aware that she had his attention.

"Yes… you can get what you want, complete this mission, but wash your hands-hand- of the deed itself." She took a calculated step towards the sword-wielding pirate, tapping his hook. "You see, each Dark one can undo one deed from any one of his or her predecessors."

"Killian, don't listen-" he waved his hand towards Emma, shutting her up as he nodded for Nimue to continue.

"What do I have to do?" He asked as he dropped Excalibur to his feet, ignoring the gasps that came from the marked group behind him.

"Just think it into existence, Captain," she whispered, her dark eyes glowing as Killian Jones closed his eyes.

The ancient entity smiled; she had won.

XxXx

A sleeping Killian groaned as he sensed the sunrise, shattering the peaceful bliss of the early morning. He didn't want to open his eyes yet, dreading the moment each morning when he had to admit it was time to wake up and pull himself out of bed. He had to chuckle at himself. Time away from the sea had made him soft… there was something to be said of that whole 'sleeping in' thing that seemed to be so popular in Storybrooke.

"Nothing worse than the bloody sun slapping you awake, eh love?" Hook grumbled as he stretched his limbs, sore in that delicious manner that could only mean he had spent the night ravishing the woman he loved. When there was no answer, he pushed his hand across the bed to find her, completely intent on pulling her naked form close in order to pleasure her once more before she had to return to the crowded apartment.

"Swan?" he frowned when he realized his bed was empty, "Emma?" he reluctantly blinked one eye open, then the other, bolting upright when he registered the rocking motion of his quiet cabin- the Jolly Roger was at sea.

"Bloody hell," he swore as he pushed back the blankets in order to swing his legs over the side of his bed, reaching with his hook to pull his discarded pants from the cabin floor. He balked when the fingers of his left hand curled around the material, and he dropped his pants as if they were on fire. He tilted his head as he flexed his fingers in front of his face, blinking when he realized the limb lacked that foreign curse that had plagued him when Gold had returned it to him before. It felt natural, fresh… his.

"What dark magic is this?" he breathed, leaping out of bed and grabbing his clothes. It wasn't until his pants were halfway up his bare legs that he realized they were not jeans as he had become accustomed to wearing in his new world, but supple leather, well-worn and soft to the touch. He glanced around the cabin, the rest of his clothes scattered over his desk and floor: old boots, jewelry, a heavy, leather coat.

"Emma," he whispered as he slumped on his bed, realizing that there must have been another disaster, another curse. Where were they? He ignored the nagging feeing that there was much more he should be remembering, a sense of despair and dread settling in his stomach. Desperate to find his love, he buckled his belt before rushing bare-chested and bootless to his cabin door, only for it to swing open before he could reach it. He held his hand up to block the blinding sun that filled his quarters, dropping it when he heard a cherished laugh surround him, loud and crystalline rather than muted by hundreds of years' worth of separation.

"Milah?" he murmured, his desperation melting away into wonder.

XxXx

End Note: I know, I know! Don't hate me! I promise, this is a Captain Swan Fic all the way! 😊 All magic comes with a price… and angst is that price!

Reviews are love!