"In here!" Emma screamed as she made an abrupt turn off of Main St. and into Granny's Diner.

The group followed her in with Hook slamming the door behind them all and locking it.

"I don't think that's going to help," David said somberly.

"We can make that decision when we know what's out there," Hook replied. "We just need to wait for Regina."

A silence fell over the group at Granny's as everyone tried to process what was going on - no one more than Emma. She had been home for less than twenty-four hours. She had found a way to get Hook home to Storybrooke, to bring his brother back with them, to leave Gold behind in the Underworld. Everything had finally worked their way. So what the hell was the purple smoke that has slowly started to roll out from the forest and into the streets of Storybrooke?

Emma's yellow car came to a screeching halt in front of the diner, and Regina quickly climbed out of the driver's side, hurrying towards the door that Robin unlocked for her.

"Were you able to find out anything?" he asked her.

"It's bad," Regina replied. "It's a curse from Gold. I think it was planted in the forest before we left for the Underworld, and when we came back without him…" Her voice trailed off as everyone put the pieces together. They came back without him, and he was going to punish them for it.

"So what does it do?" Emma asked.

"It will erase our memories."

"Again?" Mary Margaret said incredulously. "How many times can I have my memory erased?"

"Wait, you've had your memories erased before?" Liam asked.

Regina just rolled her eyes and took a deep breath. "The good news is that it's a curse similar to the dark curse that I created to bring all of us here."

"How the bloody hell is that good news?" Hook said bitterly.

"I know how it works," Regina explained. "We're going to stay in Storybrooke and our lives will be cursed. But if this curse is based on the one I created, I think I may be able to fix that. Or we may be able to fix it, Emma."

All eyes turned to Emma, who looked around to see her family and friends staring back at her. Her parents. Her son. The man she loved and his brother. They just got back, they finally got Liam to Storybrooke, and now all of it was crumbling around her.

Emma turned to stare at Regina. "What do I have to do?"

"Magic," she said with a small smile.

"What if it doesn't work?"

Regina's smile disappeared. "I think everything gets reset, but I'm not sure exactly how."

"You think?" Emma asked angrily. "You're not sure? You don't know where this new timeline would start or who will be here?"

"Everyone here will be here. I just don't know where in our timeline we'll all be."

Emma rubbed her face with her hand in frustration. All this work she had put into her life with her family and friends and Hook. And all of it could be gone. Again. This was ridiculous.

"Emma?"

She turned to see her pirate standing next to her, his hook around her forearm as he pulled himself closer to her.

"Do you remember what you said to me in this diner?" he quietly asked her.

She gave him a weak smile. "I've said many things to you in this diner."

"I was a villain, alone and unwanted, and you said to me, 'You can join us and be a part of something, or you can be alone.' I chose to be a part of something because of you."

"And look where it led you," she said bitterly. "You're about to get to have your memory erased. Again."

He pulled himself closer as he looked down on her with those blue eyes that always melted her heart. "It led me to you, and I will always choose you."

She couldn't help but loop her arms around his neck and pull him closer. Whenever things would go wrong, whenever she felt adrift, Hook was the one who would pull her back and anchor her. He believed in her even when she didn't believe in herself. Hell, he meant so much to her that she risked going to the Underworld to bring him back, and to get the brother she knew he loved so deeply.

Emma pulled away and turned her head, too afraid to look him in the eyes. That's when she noticed one of Granny's notepads for orders on the counter, a pen lying on top of it. She quickly grabbed it and started scribbling on the paper.

"I belong in Storybrooke/

My parents are Mary Margaret and David/

Henry is my son/

Kiss him, break curse"

She ripped the page off the pad and stuffed it in the pocket of her red leather coat. Then she started writing on another sheet.

"I love Killian Jones"

She tore that from the top half of the page, stuffed it into the same pocket as the other note, and then quickly wrote something on the second half of the paper. Dropping the pen, she walked over to Hook and yanked open his motorcycle jacket, stuffing the paper in the inside pocket of the coat.

"What is this?" he asked her.

"For later."

She stood on her toes and gave him a quick passionate kiss, telling him everything she couldn't put into words. Then she turned and said goodbye to her parents and friends.

"You can do this, mom," Henry said as he hugged her tight.

"Emma and I will always protect you, Henry," Regina said from beside them.

"I know."

He gave his other mother a kiss and stepped away from them.

"You ready?" Regina asked.

"Let's go."

The women stepped out in the street, leaving the group behind in the diner. The town was deserted, Main St. was empty, and a purple cloud from the forest slowly rolled towards them.

"What's taking so long?" Emma asked. "I thought curses went faster than this."

Regina smiled bitterly. "This is what Rumplestiltskin does. Why make it quick and easy when you can torture your prey?"

"Wonderful," she replied. "So what do I have to do?"

"Just think positive thoughts."

"Seriously?" Emma said sarcastically.

"Good magic can neutralize the cloud, Emma. That's all we need. Think about the people you love and we can beat this."

Emma turned to see the face of everyone in Granny's staring out at them - everyone except for Hook. He was staring down at a piece of paper in his hands that she immediately recognized as the paper she had scrawled her note on before giving it to him. She watched him carefully fold it up and put it back in his pocket before looking up at her, a smile on his face as he stared out at her.

"The people I love?" Emma said. "I can do that."

She turned to see the cloud getting closer, the air around them crackling, the wind starting to pick up.

"Just aim your magic towards the cloud!"

Regina held her hands up and let loose a stream of magic towards the purple smoke only feet away from them. Emma followed her lead, he hands reaching up as she channeled the power in her body towards the cloud. But her magic didn't seem to be powerful enough.

"It's not working, Regina!" she yelled as the mist started to lick at her heels.

"Keep trying!" Regina screamed back. "Remember your family and stay positive!"

Emma did as she was told, pouring all her energy into her magic. But the cloud didn't stop. It began to envelope her, pull at her arms and legs, drain her of her magic. She tried desperately to stay focused, desperately to put every bit of strength she had into stopping the curse. If she could just hold on a little longer.

And then she forgot it all.