sequel to "Emma in Wonderland"

KILLIAN

Killian didn't even see it coming, which was unusual given he was a pirate still and all and guided by his instincts.

He was acting Sheriff, by his own insistence, with Emma almost eight months pregnant and now officially off duty, by his own over protective demands. She didn't do anything by half measure, and he literally thought she would chase down and tackle an armed bank robber large belly in tow if the situation called for it.

Rather than tempt her with such a situation, and her refusing anything that resembled rest, she spent her days barricaded with Snow planning the final touches of the plan for the portal and the new kingdom. David was supposed to co-Sherriff with him in the interim, but he was surprising unreliable, an unusual trait for him, in part placated by the peace, the blessed peace that had left Storybrooke drama free since Emma's return from Wonderland as well as equally occupied by planning his Kingdom with Snow.

The town, equally excited, were busy debating which side to reside on, some torn by loyalty, others by their new found love of technology. All of them too pre-occupied for any malfeasance.

It was all rather downright boring. Killian did not handle bored well. He saved stray kittens from trees, helped the elderly with minor complaints, reorganized the office and became proficent with all manners of technology. He desperately longed for just the briefest glimpse of danger. So finally, with no trouble to be had, he set out to make his own.

At the first sign of anything odd in ages, the pirate in Killian reacted, pick pocketed an item off of Gold, when Gold had the nerve to shove rudely past him at Grannies.

Gold had been acting weird, off somehow in a way Killian could not quite pinpoint, he was breathy almost, excited. Talking in quiet tones to himself, but under his breath Killian heard the word Bae and bring back. The portal had already a brief test run, and Gold went through in the initial scouting party and Killian suspected whatever he lifted off of the crocodile was what he was really up to volunteering for that task.

When he got back to the Sheriff's office, he pulled the unusual item from his pocket. It looked innocent enough, a gold and emerald and ruby box, like something a man might give his beloved as a gift. But it had an air of magic to it, a glittering almost that told of something more. Without thinking, without any sense of self preservation he downright prided himself for, Killian opened the box and was promptly sucked into it. Images of his love, his wife flashed through his head in panic, memory after memory racing through his brain, grateful like hell, that despite the loss of him, she would still have her family and Henry and the unborn child to keep her back from reverting back to what she was before, 27 and alone in the world. An image of her alone at 27 and his guess what that would look like was then the last image in his head as consciousness gave into darkness.

Of course time portals, like all portals take you where you were thinking of...

EMMA (2010)

It had been another shitty day, Emma thought kicking off her heels and leaning against the door of her apartment. Fuck this life.

As a bounty hunter and former thief Emma had come across her fair share of danger, primary men and primary assholes, not assisted by her own poor taste and choices. Her life was one never ending search, searching, always searching, always alone.

On the rare occasions someone flitted through her life, always hollow and temporary, she would go to them. Her home, her apartment was hers alone. Her sanctuary from the chase. Sometimes it comforted her, sometimes its emptiness served only as a reminder her of the lack in her life. The unfilled cracks in her.

Emma rubbed her hands across her tired eyes, and in the brief moment she closed them for this purpose, a loud thump radiated through her apartment, and she opened them to find a dark haired man suddenly from no where face down across her apartment floor. Unconscious.

What the hell! She thought, her mind wild with sudden panic looking desperately for where he could have come from. No where. He clearly just appeared out of no where. She stored that little tidbit to try to deal with later.

She grabbed her gun, gave a quick search of the apartment and poked at him cautiously with her toe. Satisfied he was good and out, she flipped him ove carefully to look him over.

Damn, he was attractive, she thought appreciately, taking in his dark jeans, leather jacket, gray vest and white linen dress shirt. The scruff on his chin and general appearance screamed bad boy, but with one glaring exception.

Pinned to his chest was a Sheriffs badge, and a quick search divested him of a pair of handcuffs, a gun, a shockingly enough a well loved and worn picture of holy shit, her smiling for the camera, in a pale cream dress she had never seen before let alone worn, holding a single red rose.

What the hell was going on? She thought desperately, staring down at the man, dead to the world on the floor.

She jumped suddenly, as he groaned in his state managing only one word before slipping back under. It was all that it took to send a shock of alarm through her.

"Swan"