Hello again! So this is actually a fic I wrote last year, but didn't get round to uploading so you'll be able to tell the writing style is slightly different. It's only a few chapters long but it needs editing, so I think I'll be posting once or twice a week (first chapter will be up tomorrow though!). Having said that, reviews/follows/favourites make me happy, so I might cave and post more frequently if you guys are nice!

Disclaimer: Nope, I still don't own OUAT or any of its characters. *sigh*

Prologue

Emma watched from her bedroom window as Killian left. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears as she knew this would probably be the last time she would ever see him.

Emma was 15 when she first met Killian. She had just moved to New York after her family had been forced to flee another home after another attack. Ever since her grandmother, queen of a small country called Sierna, had refused to cave into demands of abdication from a jealous count, bounty hunters had been hired to kill the royal family. In order to protect the throne, her father had been left with no choice but to leave the country, taking seven year old Emma, her mother and her younger brother Henry with him. However, the price on their heads meant those after them were relentless, and as a result Emma would have to move home every couple of years or so.

Due to this, Emma had never had any real friends. She felt like an outsider wherever she went, no one willing to let the new girl join their already formed cliques. It also didn't help that she had adopted a timid facade in order to blend into the crowd; the less attention she received, the lower the chances of her family being discovered. As a result, however, she was often bullied and picked upon, but she took it all silently. She knew she had no other choice; her life and that of her family's literally depended on it.

It was no different when she had started school in New York. The jocks had immediately started to pick on her, pushing her around and calling her names. Despite this, she remembered her first day fondly, as it was the day that Killian had walked into her life.

Emma saw the mob of football players coming her way as she walked down the corridor to her locker. They were dressed in their football kit, walking with a swagger that would have you think their fathers owned the school. She could tell they must be about a year or so older than her, all at least a few inches taller and quite well built, but she didn't have any time to dwell on any of that as she could immediately tell they were up to no good.

Here we go again, she thought, keeping her head down in the hope that just maybe they might ignore her. She met an abrupt stop, however, as one of them pushed another straight into her, causing her to drop her books.

"Watch where you're going, sweetheart," the one who had pushed his friend taunted, earning a laugh from the group.

Emma internally fumed, crouching down to gather her books. Keep laughing buddy. I could take you out with one blow if I wanted to. She had been taught many forms of self-defence in case she was ever attacked by a bounty hunter, and right now she was itching to use some of those skills on the group of self-righteous idiots standing in front of her.

"Oi! New girl!" the same guy shouted. "I'm talking to you! You don't walk into our team captain and not apologise!"

Emma stood up with her books and feigned her best frightened look. "I- I'm sorry," she stuttered, turning to face the captain.

She was about to continue her apology, but her breath caught the moment her eyed landed on his face. Dark brown hair, a perfect amount of scruff covering a chiselled jaw and the deepest blue eyes she'd ever seen looked back at her.

"It's no big deal," he replied with a genuine smile, the accent accompanying his smooth voice causing Emma's stomach to flip a little.

Damn it, Emma, she chided herself. This guy's a good for nothing jock. Stop getting distracted.

"Oh yes it is," another one of the team members cut in, knocking her books out of her hands again. "She needs to learn how things work around here." She heard the group laugh once more and walk away as she bent down once more to retrieve her books.

See! Good for nothing jock! She took one last look at the retreating group and set off to put her stuff in her locker before heading home. As she was leaving the school gate, though, she was caught by surprise.

"Hey, sorry about earlier," she heard familiar voice say, causing her to spin around. Just as she'd expected, it was the football captain.

"What?" she asked, not quite believing what she heard.

"I said sorry," he repeated. "About earlier today - the way the guys treated you."

Emma scoffed, her anger rising. She hated people like this. "Sorry? If you were really sorry you would have stopped them, captain!" she spat. She knew it probably wasn't a good idea to raise her voice, but this day had been one bad moment after another and she could no longer hold it back.

The captain froze momentarily, clearly not expecting her lash out like that. Just as she was about to follow up with another witty comment, he spoke. "Look, love, I only came to apologise for their behaviour. What they did wasn't right, but if you don't want my apology then I'll be off!"

He started to walk away, but Emma wasn't finished yet. "Don't call me love!" she warned. "And if you didn't agree with what they did, you should have said so in front of them, not when they're not around like a coward!"

"Don't call me a coward, love," he gritted out, narrowing his eyes dangerously, which Emma, of course, ignored.

"And I said don't call me love, coward," she retaliated. "Besides, that's exactly what you are if you can't stand up to your posse!"

His eyebrows shot up in disbelief, his face still a mask of anger. "And you're so much better, aren't you? Being so bold in front of me but being too afraid to say anything then!"

"Don't think you know me!" she shouted, defensively.

"And don't think you know me!" he shouted back. The two had somehow inched closer together while they were arguing, now standing almost nose to nose. They glared defiantly at each other for a few long seconds, before Emma turned on her heel and started stomping off.

She felt her arm being pulled back moments later and shrugged away, knowing it was the captain. "What do you want?!" she glared at him.

He sighed. "I truly am sorry," he said, his voice much calmer than before. "You're right, I should have said something then and I'm sorry." He then held out his hand and flashed her a brilliant smile before continuing. "By the way, the name's Killian Jones."

Emma searched his eyes for a moment, and when she was satisfied that he was being completely genuine, she took a calming breath. "That's okay I guess," she relented, an uninvited smile pulling at her lips as she shook his outstretched hand. "I'm Emma. Emma Swan."

Emma could no longer hold back the tears as she remembered how they had talked all the way to her house after Killian had offered to walk her home, and how quickly they had fallen in love with each other. She had tried so hard to keep him out, knowing from experience that letting people in usually led to pain, but the idiot had persisted. In a matter of weeks he had earned her trust and taken down her walls, and neither of them could have been happier.

They had dated for three years, and their love for each other had outshone everything else, making them completely inseparable. Killian had even gone to NYU in order for them to stay together. Now, though, they were being pulled apart by circumstances beyond their control.

Just last month news had come that the count threatening the royal family of Sierna had been captured. At first Emma was ecstatic, as it meant her family was no longer in danger. She knew her parents and brother would be returning to Sierna and that her grandmother may even step down and allow her father to take the throne. What she hadn't expected was that she would have to go with them.

When she found out, she was crushed. Even though Henry would be be the future monarch, the people wanted their princess back to help rebuild the country. The uncertainty of the last eleven years had heavily affected trade with neighbouring nations, resulting in insecurity and an increase in poverty, and now Emma was needed to help return her country to its former glory. But as much as Emma wanted to help, it broke her heart.

She could no longer go to NYU with Killian. No longer spend her next four years with her beloved boyfriend, studying at the same college. No longer live out their dreams of getting married someday and settling down with a family of their own. The only way there would even be a remote chance of a happy ending with Killian was if he moved to Sierna with her, but that would mean he would have to give up his future as Sierna's universities were severely lacking. There wasn't a chance in hell she was going to let him do that.

She had contemplated just breaking up with him, but then decided he deserved better than that. She had consulted her parents about telling Killian the truth, and when they agreed Emma told him everything.

He accepted what she had to do, even though she could see it written on his face how much it was killing him to let her go, and they came to a mutual a agreement that a long distance relationship just wouldn't work. She did want Killian to see her real home at least once though, so he had come with them to Sierna and stayed for a week, leading them to where they currently stood; Killian walking away from the palace while Emma looked on, never to see each other again.

I know, It's sad. But they're reunion will be in the next chapter so yay!

Also, I'm English, so football = soccer.(I'm sorry, I'm a huge footie fan and it was physically hurting me to use soccer. I apologise for any confusion.)