Chapter 1: Impact

Sitting on the bench, Killian's arm wrapped around her waist, Emma Swan was staring at the lake, smiling. So many things had changed in the last few days. So many things had happened the day before; the day before was the day when her parents, Snow-White and Prince Charming, had announced the name of her brother at Granny's, the day when she had travelled back in time with Killian Jones, the day when she had learned he had traded his ship for her, he traded what had always been his home so she could find hers. And that's what he had accomplished; he had brought her home – breaking down her walls in the meantime. For the first time in a long time, love wasn't pain; she was overwhelmed by a feeling of complete happiness.

"What are you thinking about, love?" Hook asked, his voice filled with tenderness.

"I thought I was like an open book?" Emma looked away from the lake to face him, beaming.

"Oh Swan…" He breathed, brushing her cheek with the back of his hand, to finally place his fingers under her chin. They stared at each other. He then leaned in, until his lips met hers. His hand still under her chin while she placed her arms around his neck, closing their eyes, they kissed softly. As their lips parted, Emma opened her eyes, catching her breath, her forehead against his. Killian was slightly biting his bottom lip, his eyes were still closed. When he opened them, he smiled at her before their lips met again.

When their lips finally parted, Emma pressed her head against his chest, breathing steadily, while he wrapped his arms tightly around her. Everything was so good. The last day had been perfect for everyone; everyone except for one person. Emma sighed. "I feel bad for Regina." Killian took a deep breath and passed his fingers through her hair.

"Emma, love, you can't carry the weight of the world on your shoulders. You can't blame yourself for all the misery that happens."

"But this is my fault, Killian. She was finally happy, and I just destroyed her happiness by bringing this woman back from the past." She moved back so she could look into his eyes. "You told me it could have unforeseen consequences, I should have listened to you."

Hook chuckled at her last words and brushed aside a strand of hair that hung down her face. "You know, I don't think listening to me has ever been one of your habits. And you thought saving her was the right thing to do, that's who you are, Swan. You couldn't let her die."

"I know. But I really think I should go and check on her." She paused to stare at him, gauging his reaction. He apparently had nothing against the idea. "We can meet later at Granny's?" Not bothering for a reply, she slightly kissed his lips, stood on her feet and brushed his shoulder as she moved away, licking her lips and thinking she'd rather stay with him. It was cold without the warmth of his arms. She shook her head, trying to think about something else, to think about Regina, the woman she was about to see. That was really hard; all of her thoughts were directed to him. She had barely managed to think about anything else since their journey in the past. Actually, he had become the main object of her thoughts when Zelena drowned him and gave her the choice between saving him or saving her magic. And she had felt like there was no choice to be done; she couldn't have let him die, even if saving him meant losing her magic, which was the only way to defeat Zelena. At first thinking she had given up her magic because it was the right thing to do, she had finally realised that she truly cared about him and that all this time, she had just tried to conceal, not to feel, not letting anyone – including herself – know about the way she had grown attached to him, about how he had finally managed to win her heart.

Emma stopped; she was already there. Taking a deep breath, she slowly moved past the Mayor's car, walked across the garden, towards the front door. She swallowed with difficulty; Regina was surely broken, and Emma was certainly the last person she wanted to see. But she had to see her. Slowly, she raised her hand, and held it clenched for a second, a few centimetres away from the door, before finally knocking.

"Regina? I know you're here!" She waited, seconds feeling lengthy. Finally, she heard the metallic sound of the bolt being unlocked. Regina was suddenly standing in the door frame.

"What are you doing here?" Her voice was cold, clearly indicating Emma wasn't welcome here. Behind her strong appearance though, Emma could see the broken-hearted woman.

"Regina, listen, I'm sorry."

"Please spare me that, I don't want to hear it. I don't want to hear anything you could say."

"Just let me come in!"

Regina contemptuously stared at her, her jaws clenched.

"What don't you understand in 'I don't want to hear anything you could say'?" She was speaking slowly, obviously trying to stay calm and fighting against anger. Emma had already seen her upset, but never to this point.

"Regina, you have to keep faith, there is always hope." This was too much, the Mayor couldn't conceal it anymore. She moved forward, forcing Emma to step backwards.

"And now you just sound like your mother! Stay away from me, Swan! Get out of here, go back to your pirate! Why are you even here, what were you thinking about? Just leave me alone, it's better for the both of us, I could hurt you, leave before it's too late!" Regina was out of control. Emma was staring, listening to the words shouted at her, still moving backward as Regina kept moving, leading her out of the garden, and onto the road. Suddenly, the expression on Regina's face changed into an expression of fear, Emma heard a loud noise of tyres squeaking on the tarmac, barely had time to catch a glimpse of the car coming too fast, and felt a violent pain on her side, her feet lifting up from the floor.

"Emma!" Regina's voice sounded distant. Everything went black.