She feels as though her body is being stretched beyond recognition as the swirling force of the time portal draws her further into its gaping maw. She clings desperately to Killian's hand, and he reciprocates this while attempting to keep both of them in the present by digging his hook into the compacted soil of the barn floor.
"Hook!" Emma yells. She can feel her fingers slipping through his as the vortex below her becomes stronger with every rotation.
"Hang on, love! I've got you!" Killian's brows are furrowed with the effort of trying to pull Emma away from the time portal, but he too can feel the force of the spell pulling Emma from his grasp.
Emma loses her grip on Killian and feels herself falling at what feels like an incredible speed while the desperation and horror on Killian's face plays out as if in slow motion.
"Emma!" yells Killian. He cannot let his Swan go alone. He will never leave her. Without a second thought, Killian unearths his hook from the barn floor and tumbles into the vortex after Emma.
Killian awakens to the smell of pine needles. Opening his eyes, he finds himself sprawled on a forest floor, the dampness of the fallen leaves and pine needles soaking through his scarlet vest.
Emma.
Hauling himself upright, he hurls around, bright blue eyes searching for his love. A low moan draws Killian's attention to the base of an enormous redwood tree. In a crumpled heap of brown leather and denim is his Swan. Her mane of golden hair flares out around her face like a halo in amongst the undergrowth of the forest.
"Swan! Are you alright, love? Please, look at me!" Killian searches her face and body, checking for any injuries. Luminous, frightened, green eyes gaze up at the pirate crouched over her.
"Killian. Where… Where are we?"
"I'm not sure. It appears to be the Enchanted Forest."
"Oh, great," Emma grumbles as she attempts to sit up, rubbing her head. Killian immediately moves forward and places his good hand behind her back and his left under her arm to help her up.
Emma glances around. She sees nothing but tall trees, and a canopy of leaves so green that everything in sight is bathed in an eerie emerald light. She looks up at Killian for reassurance.
"So… We're back then. Back in time? In the Enchanted Forest?"
"It would appear so, love," Killian replies, his eyes searching the forest around them.
A faint thudding begins to pulse through the ground below their feet, and the shouts of someone begin to grow louder.
"Quickly!" says Killian, as he grabs Emma's hand and drags her behind a particularly dense bush.
Emma, surprised and afraid, huddles on the ground next to the pirate, her eyes wide with fear. A few seconds pass and the thudding becomes louder and louder until a lavish, onyx, carriage drawn by four jet-black beasts storms past their hiding place in a flurry of leaves and dust.
Emma slowly stands and stares at the dust swirling in the wake of the carriage.
"What… Who was that?" she asks Killian.
"That would be the Evil Queen's carriage," Killian sighs, getting to his feet.
Realization dawns on Emma, and she stares at the pirate captain at her side. Her eyes scan his face for any sign of mockery or humour, but find none. They really are back in the Enchanted Forest.
Emma thinks of Henry, and her life in New York. She groans inwardly. This was not what she meant when she told Hook earlier that day that she wanted to go home. But this was happening and it was hardly the time to feel nostalgic for something that she had convinced herself for so long that she would never find.
Turning to Killian, Emma sighs and places her hands on her hips.
"Okay, well there is no point in staying here and hiding in bushes all day. We need to find a way to get back to Storybrooke."
Killian raises one of his ridiculous eyebrows at her and gives her a lopsided grin.
"As you wish, my lady."
Emma tries to hide her smirk from the stupid pirate with his stupid eyebrows. She looks down at her feet to hide the flush of colour that his cheeky grin has brought to her cheeks.
"Right," she says. "Let's go and find Gold and see if he can help us."
"Do you think it wise to seek help from that crocodile?" Killian asks as his face darkens at the thought of the imp.
"He's the only chance we have. If that was Regina's carriage that just drove past, it means that we must be in a time where she was evil. Mary-Margaret and David won't be of much help to us either, unless one of them has some magical power that we didn't know about. Rumplestiltskin is the only one in this land that is powerful enough to help us get back to the present. We can only hope that he has already met Belle and that she can maybe convince him to help us."
Killian nods. "Alright then, lass. To the Dark One's castle it is."
The pair move out onto the forest track that Regina's carriage stirred up. After a ways, the trees begin to thin and the foliage above becomes less dense and allows glittering cylinders of sunlight to filter through the leaves. At the edge of the forest, Emma and Killian came to a crossroads and a small trading stall. The plump old woman seated behind the stall's counter looks up from her knitting. The crinkles around her eyes all but vanish as her eyes become as round as saucers when she catches sight of Emma. Emma stops and stares back at the woman in confusion.
"Ahem," coughs Killian, scratching his ear. "We should keep moving, love."
Emma shakes her head. She doesn't understand why this old woman is staring at her as though she had just sprouted a third eye, but decides that since she has her attention, she might as well ask where they are and where they can find Gold's castle. Emma stalks up to the stall as the woman shrinks back into the shade of the awning above her.
Glancing down at the wide-eyed woman, Emma steels her face.
"Hi. I was wondering if you could tell me where I am?"
Baffled but without much thought, the old woman replies, "Northern Woods," and continues to stare up at Emma.
"Great. Thanks," says Emma. "Could you help us? We're looking for- "
"Oh no!" says the woman. Suddenly her wide eyes become dark and hard and her stare becomes a glare that travels up and down Emma's body.
"No, no," says the woman. "Not at my stall! You run along now! I don't need your kind loitering around my business. Shoo!"
Emma frowns in confusion and gives the woman a questioning look before she feels Killian's hand under her elbow, tugging her away from the trading shop.
"What the hell was that about," Emma asks as she trots to keep up with Killian, who is still leading her by the arm.
"Uh… Well, you see… She thought… She… You…"
Killian stops and turns to face Emma. After a moment's pause, he simply says, "Your clothes."
"What?"
"Your clothes, love. That woman… Well. She thought you were…" Killian looks down and when he lifts his head to meet Emma's expectant gaze, he shoots her a cheeky grin and says, "She thought you were a Lady of the Night, love."
"Wait… What?" Emma looks at Killian incredulously. A Lady of the freaking Night? She looks down and takes in her black leather boots, tight blue denim jeans, and brown leather jacket. She had no idea why the woman thought she was that. Her outfit seemed perfectly normal to her.
Killian watches her puzzle over the old woman's reaction and chuckles.
"Love, your clothes might seem fine to you, but here in this time anyway, the eccentricity of them marks you as an undesirable. Not that those tight jeans ever made you undesirable to me," he adds as he sways closer to Emma, smiling and biting his bottom lip. "But, I do think that for the sake of lying low, we ought to get you out of those clothes…" He raises an eyebrow at her. "… And into something a little less anachronistic."
"Mmm, okay…" Emma replies as her body responds to the proximity of his and begins to sway towards him. It is only when she manages to tear her eyes away from those ocean blue eyes, and full lips, and stupid, stupid eyebrows that she manages to check herself and take a step back. "Fine, let's get going then."
"Hook, where the hell are we going? I thought you said we were going to find a town where I could get a change of clothes," Emma pants as she scrambles after Killian up yet another overgrown slope.
The forest had eventually thinned out to reveal a series of rolling, plant-covered dunes. The smell of sea salt had filled Emma's nostrils as Killian led her over the dunes and away from the forest.
"Aye," says the pirate, reaching behind him to pull Emma up the side of the dune with him. "There is a port town not far from here. I figured we would be able to find you something more appropriate to wear as well as gather some resources for our journey to the Dark One's castle… Ah."
Killian stops at the top of the sand dune and smiles. He turns around to help Emma to his side.
"There we are, love."
Emma grips onto Killian's shoulder to steady herself on the soft sand and lifts her head. Beyond the small beach before them, is a small but busy stretch of buildings, carts, horses and cobblestones. The town meanders its way down to the sea, where a busy harbour boasts a variety of ships, all different in architectural design, size, and shape. Emma looks out over the harbour and one ship catches her eye. But no, it can't be. Is that-?
"The Jolly Roger," breathes Killian.
"Now, lass, just follow me and act as though you own this ship," Killian instructs Emma, who nods. "Right then. My cabin is just below the aft deck. We should be able to find everything we need in there. Food, supplies, clothes…"
Killian looks down at Emma and into her emerald eyes. God, he loves this woman. She is so beautiful and strong. He does not want to think of what his life might have been like if he had never met her. Emma gazes back up into Killian's eyes and nods in affirmation of what they need to do.
With his black leather coat swinging out behind him as he goes, Killian stalks up the gangplank onto the Jolly and crosses her foredeck. Emma follows and watches as her pirate marches straight-backed and purposefully across his ship. Like the captain she knows he is.
The decks of the Jolly are empty, save for Smee, who slouches against the mast, sleeping and mumbling drunkenly.
Down in Killian's cabin, Emma keeps watch while Killian goes through his cupboards and stuffs various items into an old brown satchel. A sudden creek and the sound of footsteps at the top of the stairs makes Emma gasp and Killian whirls around, grabs Emma around the waist, and smoothly settles the two of them into a cramped sitting position inside one of his cupboards.
The two exchange glances and peer through the thin slats in the cupboard door.
The footsteps become louder and a pair of familiar black leather boots comes into view. Emma has to bite her lip to keep from gasping as she recognises the figure as the same man on whose lap she is sitting. She turns around and looks up at Killian, her eyes wild with surprise. Killian just shakes his head and turns his attention back to his past self.
They watch as the past version of Captain Hook rummages around in a chest near his bed. He takes a few things out but continues to look for something. He pauses. His head drops and he sighs a small sigh before placing a thin golden chain on the table next to the chest. He goes back to sifting through the chest.
Emma feels Killian tense up beneath her. She looks up at him to find his face hard but his eyes filled with such sorrow that Emma reaches for his hand and squeezes it tightly until his eyes meet hers. The necklace must have been Milah's.
The sadness and hurt in Killian's eyes breaks Emma's heart a little. She knows her pirate. She knows he is stubborn, brave, loyal, and downright cheeky, but she has always tried to avoid seeing this side of Killian. It scares her. But right now, seeing her strong, handsome pirate in such pain, Emma casts her fears aside and holds him closer to her.
But when Killian moves forward to accept her embrace, he knocks an old rum lid off of the shelf behind him and it clatters to the cupboard floor.
Past Hook whirls around and heads straight for the cupboard. He flings the door open but before he can reach in to yank Emma out, he catches sight of future self and freezes.
Emma's Killian straightens up and steps in front of Emma.
"What the bloody hell is this?" asks Past Hook, his face aghast.
"Sorry, mate," says Emma's Killian, and he arches back, springs forward, and delivers a punch to his former self that is so hard that it knocks the pirate unconscious.
Killian turns around to check that Emma is alright.
"What the hell just happened?" asks Emma as she stares down at the unconscious pirate.
"I couldn't let him see us. It might tamper with the future and I can't risk anything happening that might change it," replies Killian.
"Fair enough," says Emma. "Now, let's get the stuff and get the hell out of here."
Killian nods, turns around and starts to throw more things into his satchel. He hesitates when he reaches the table next to the chest. He picks up the necklace and loops his fingers through the chain, brows furrowed. "This was hers," he says.
"I know."
Emma moves closer to Killian and places her hand on his arm. "I'm so sorry, Killian."
Killian sighs. "It's alright, love. Even here, it's in the past." He sets aside the necklace and looks at her with his piercing blue eyes. "Besides, she would have wanted me to move on. Find happiness again. And I have."
He holds Emma's gaze, and she can feel all the love and passion that this pirate feels for her washing over her, straight out of his heart and into hers. Emma thinks how just a few days ago, she almost lost him. She thought he had drowned and that he had left her.
Killian, come back to me.
That's what she had whispered, willing him to wake up. When he did, she felt such relief and joy that she knew, and could not doubt it, that she loved him too.
Emma moves forward and presses her hands on Killian's chest. She looks up into the azure of his eyes and she knows that she has found happiness too. Even if she couldn't admit it out loud. But then, she had always been more expressive through her body language than through her words.
Wrapping her arms around his neck, and reaching up on tiptoes, Emma closes her eyes and presses her lips against his. His mouth is warm and soft, and his lips mould around hers to match the pressure of her kisses. He draws her closer with his hooked arm and holds her jaw with his right hand, caressing her cheek with his thumb, before tangling his hand in her hair. They breathe each other in, hands trailing over the other's body leaving a tingling trail of fiery warmth with every new touch.
When they part to catch their breath, foreheads pressed together, Emma murmurs.
"Killian…"
The words swirl before her vision but she cannot find the right words to tell him just how much she loves him and how she has found her own happiness in him. She looks up at her pirate, trying to put the words together but Killian just smiles, his eyes crinkling at the corners as he does.
He leans forward and kisses Emma on the forehead.
"It's alright, love. I know."