Update: After my muse couldn't get the story out of her head, she realized doing just a one shot would not be so great and was thinking of how the story should go.

Killian weighed the idea in his head. The Golden Swan. He had heard many varied tales of the Golden Swan. A thousand years ago, a princess with the beauty and grace of a swan was cursed and made into a statue of pure gold. A thousand years ago, a swan that was a cursed princess was turned into a statue made of pure gold. A thousand years ago, a swan was cursed and made into a statue of pure gold.

Whatever the story was, there was treasure to be found.

He stared at Milah who had proposed the idea of going after the Golden Swan. They had been together for several years, sailing the oceans and seas together. Going after treasure. Sometimes they found treasure, well, stolen it was more likely the case, sometimes they found nothing. Milah loved being a pirate and the freedom she would never have had, had she stayed at home.

Ever since Killian took her willingly away from a boring, desolate life, away from a cowardly husband and young son, she constantly sought adventure. She had heard the story of the Golden Swan from a traveler at a tavern. The traveler told her the story of a giant that kept the Golden Swan in his castle in the sky. It was a story that he had come across, but this story had a stamp of authenticity surrounding it. Milah began to quickly read stories and accounts of the Golden Swan. She followed up every lead and every tale until she managed to calculate the whereabouts of the golden statue.

She laid out her findings to Killian to persuade him to seek the treasure with her.

"You believe this Golden Swan really exists?" Killian asked with a thoughtful expression.

"I do," Milah said confidently.

"Even if we don't get our hands on the mythical Golden Swan, we can still make a profit," Killian considered. "This giant has other treasures stashed away in his castle. Let's do it."

Milah held up a glass of rum to toast the occasion. "To the Golden Swan!"

Killian lifted his glass to clink it with Milah's, "To the Golden Swan!"

Under the coat of darkness, they crept closer to the castle where the giant kept his treasure. The castle was on top of a hill where a fog would always settle due to a mountain range and rainy weather that plagued the area, thus leading to the description of a castle in the sky. They stumbled over a garden and hid behind some bean bushes. Killian could tell that the giant prudently tended his beans. He observed how the climbing vines wound themselves around a carefully constructed trellis. They walked without caring how they crushed the plants under their boots.

Silently, Killian and Milah crept through an open window and soundlessly, they found the hall where the giant slept on a big chair at the end of a very large trestle table. The giant was actually a very tall man that was almost nine feet high. Upon closer inspection, they observed his prominent jaw and thickening of his facial features. He continued to snore loudly as they sneaked past him towards what they could see was his treasure. Mounds and mounds of gold coins, necklaces of pearls and precious stones, plates and cups made of the finest metals and finally, what looked like a statue of a human. It was covered with a cloth. When Killian looked underneath the cloth he could see a woman's boot made of gold.

His eyes gleamed and Milah's smile was victorious. Both Killian and Milah lifted the statue up. The gold made the statue less heavy than they expected. They slowly carried the statue past the giant, praying that he wouldn't wake up. When they got to the door, Killian opened it carefully until they heard a creaking sound of the hinges. They heard the giant's snores break and they both froze when they heard his long yawn.

He was awake.

Finally, they heard the giant roar.

"How dare you take what belongs to me!" the giant bellowed.

Killian and Milah ran for it. After they both got through the door with the statue, one of Killian's crew shut the door behind them and another two crew members rolled a giant rock in front of it to bar the door so the giant wouldn't follow.

They all took off at a break neck speed towards an open horse drawn wagon where they dumped the statue and boarded it quickly. They took off racing down the road, the driver urging the horse to a full gallop while the giant burst through the window, broken glass flying everywhere, and gave them chase. As soon as they got a comfortable distance away, they watched the giant slow his steps to a halt.

They all laughed and let out whoops of glee as they had successfully stolen the treasure. They arrived at the docks and Killian screamed directions to his men that were loading the golden statue onto his ship, the Jolly Roger. They lowered the statue into the hold with ropes and pulleys. Once it was secure, they cast off.

By the time, they sailed a goodly distance away, Killian felt it was a good time for the reveal. Only Killian and Milah were in the hold when they decided to uncover the statue. Milah untied the ropes and pulled the cloth off with a flourish to see a golden statue of a beautiful woman who seemed frozen in time.

The first thing Killian noticed was her hands were outstretched as if she was trying to stop something terrible from happening. One foot was in front of the other as if she was trying to move forward quickly. Her face revealed a combination of shock, sorrow, apprehension and distress. She was beautiful, nonetheless. It took Killian's breath away.

"Killian, can you believe it?" Milah was awestruck at how much gold there was. "We are going to be wealthy beyond our wildest dreams!"

Killian was still staring at the haunting, tragic beauty of the statue. It was almost lifelike. The artist that created this must have been truly talented.

"Remember when we landed on that island with an abandoned blacksmith shack? We should take the statue there with all the equipment and melt it down ourselves," Milah eyes filled with eager voracity. "So we can make our own coins and trade them. What do you think?"

Melt it down?

This shook Killian out of his trance. He thought about it for a moment. Everything in his heart screamed at him to not melt down the statue, but his head said something else.

"That sounds like a good plan," Killian was uncertain of his words. "Don't tell the crew what we came back with. Their avarice might lead to a mutiny."

Milah realized the truth in those words. There were a few crewmen they really trusted but the rest might revolt if they learned the treasure was as great as it was. Fewer people to split the gold meant more gold per share. They needed to be careful.

"I'll tell them that it is gold plated and we are going to carefully melt that off and sell it to a gold trader," Milah added.

"Sounds like a plan," Killian willed himself to keep his eyes away from the statue. "Set a course for that island."

Milah nodded and climbed up the ladder to the upper deck to shout the orders.

Killian was left alone with the statue. He was finally free to study it openly. His pulse started to quicken as he devoured the sight of the statue. For some reason and he couldn't fathom why, he was utterly enthralled by it. Was it the sight of so much gold that beguiled him? Or was it the form? The curve of the cheek? The contour of the lips? The abundance of hair in waves down her back? The mesmerizing expression of her eyes?

He had no idea why it had absorbed his attention. He was never an art lover.

He finally tore his gaze away and resolved to climb up the ladder to tend to other matters, making sure to lock the door behind him.

Days later, Killian was getting increasingly irritated with Milah. She spoke of nothing but the gold statue and how much they could get for it once they melted it down. He snapped at her a few times which got Milah screaming back at him.

"What is wrong with you?" Milah yelled.

Killian just turned on his heel and left her open-mouthed.

The thought of melting down that beautiful statue repulsed him. But how was he to explain this to Milah?

Every night he would wait until Milah was asleep. Then he crept down into the hold to longingly stare at the statue. The details entranced him. She wore a long vest that was belted making her waist look so narrow. Underneath was a simple tunic. The decorative buttons on her clothes were in the shape of buttercups which was a rather curious choice. Her breeches seemed to pour over her shapely hips and buttocks which led down to her legs that were long and lean. Her boots completed her ensemble.

Each night he would make up stories in his head as to why she was in that alarming pose. Why the expression on her face seemed so desolate and upset? Did someone just try to kill someone she loved? Was she trying to stop some mishap? He would sometimes shake himself out of his contemplation and laugh at how silly he was being. It was just a statue, right?

One night he realized how close they were to their destination where the Golden Swan statue would be melted down. He waited again for Milah to fall asleep when he crept down to the where the Golden Swan was to eagerly devour the sight of it.

His mind again would wander until he had a vision of how this beautiful statue would look as a real woman. He pictured golden hair, green eyes and glowing skin. He could see her smile and feel the warmth of her body. It was as if he had a memory of another lifetime where he was standing next to this living, breathing woman. His body humming with excitement, his heart bursting with adoration. It just seemed so real.

For the first time since she was revealed to him, he reached out to touch her cheek and run a finger over her lips. He couldn't help himself. He laughed at his urge to kiss her lips. He was getting ridiculous, but as much as he chastised himself for desiring a statue, the urge was still there.

Why not give in? just this once.

He leaned in and kissed the statue.

He heard a gasp as he turned around to see Milah watching him through the slight opening of the latch door.

Then he turned back to the statue as he began to see it sparkle. A light shone from within. There was a few times that he witnessed real magic occurring so there was no mistaking it when he realized it was happening now. From head to toe the golden statue magically transformed into a real woman. The woman he had pictured in his mind was now standing in front of him.

Her breath let out in a whoosh and she collapsed into his embrace.

He thought she was dead but then heard her faint breathing. The woman was alive but unconscious in his arms.

He heard Milah let out a shriek, "No!"

She quickly climbed down the ladder.

"How could you? All that gold! Gone!" Milah screamed.

The implications suddenly hit them both. He kissed her and broke the curse.

He let the woman slowly lay down on the floor, cradling her head as she went. He turned to Milah to calm her down, but she had such a look of disgust at him.

"I can't believe you," Milah kept whispering over and over. She felt as if he had cheated on her, but with a statue? The thought of it was just unfathomable. Now the statue is a real woman? What would that mean to them?

He tried to find the words to explain himself but he just couldn't. All he could say was her name, "Milah," over and over again.

With just a look of frustration, she turned to climb up the ladder. Her only thought was getting her hands on a bottle of rum stashed in the room they shared and consuming it until she was numb.

Killian watched her leave. When he turned back to the woman, the Golden Swan, he heard her stirring. When she came to awareness, she looked shocked and aggrieved.

"Is he dead?" she asked when she was finally cognizant of his presence.

"Who?" Kilian asked in a calm voice.

"My love, " she said in a small voice that held a tiny tendril of hope.

Most likely he was dead if the stories were true. She was a golden statue for a thousand years. Her love would have died long ago.

"Yes," he breathed his response.

Her body was wracked with sobs and grief. It was as if it happened recently, whatever the havoc and chaos befell her. All he could do was comfort her until her emotions were spent.

Once her crying slowed down to an ebb, she looked up at him and asked, "Where am I?"

"You're on a pirate ship. I'm the Captain," Killian told her. "You were turned into a gold statue. Do you remember?"

"I remember being hit by magic and after that, nothing," Emma spoke through her tears and sorrow.

"It's been over a thousand years."

Emma's eyes were wide with disbelief. Everyone she knew and cared about was gone.

"What's your name?"

"It's Emma. Emma Swan."


* I do know that a solid gold statue would be impossible to be carried by two people but it's gold from the mines of the Enchanted Forest so it's much lighter. ;)