As they trudged up the hill, he could hear her heavy panting behind him. "Right, we're stopping here" he said, halting at a small clearing.
"What?! No we're not, we need to get that sexton you were telling me about, we need to get it and save Henry!"
"No we don't lass, you need to take a rest, or we will never see Henry again." He could see that familiar defiant look in her eye, it was one he recognised from a lifetime ago, when Milah was still alive. "Bloody hell lass, do you want to see your son again or not?"
"What kind of question is that, Hook? Of course I want to see him again! That's my most heartfelt desire! But Pan made sure that wouldn't happen again didn't he?" She slumped down against the nearest tree. She hung her head low and it looked to Killian that she might be crying. "I miss him Killian, I have to save him. I, I can't let him become one of them, I can't let him be an orphan". Killian's face softened as he realised what she was going through, the heartbreak and the sorrow she felt, took a few steps towards her, knelt, and picked her up.
"What are you doing?!" She looked at him, bewildered. "Put me down!"
"Look love, climbing this hill is bringing your heart rate up, and spreading the poison faster. Let me carry you, and you'll last longer." He looked her in the eye, before starting the ascent once more.
Emma felt conflicted, but she was too tired to care that his arms were tucked under her knees and back, holding her close to him. She was too tired to care that her arm was draped around his neck, and that her head was resting just above his heart, and that with every step he took, she could hear it pounding.
Killian was too distressed to notice these things, though at another time he'd have found some witty remark to make about a threshold and a wedding night. Concern gripped him, as Emma's arm started to hang looser around his neck, and her weight started to feel all to close like that of a dead weight. "Swan?" he whispered, laying her gently on the ground before him. She was almost asleep but she managed to give a quiet groan of acknowledgement.
"We're here, I'm going to get the sexton, stay put, okay?"
"Mmhmm."
"Emma, I need you to promise me you won't go anywhere. Say it."
"Hook, I'm too sick, and too tired to go anywhere without a wheelchair and 5 cups of coffee." She opened her eyes and saw him glaring at her. "Fine. If it'll make you happy, I promise not to go anywhere. Though I do not make any promises about still being alive when you get back" and she closed her eyes to get some rest. As he turned to leave he heard her drowsy voice behind him. "Hook, don't let him.. don't let him become an orphan, okay? Tell Regina.. Tell Henry.. I love him"she mumbled before succumbing to sleep.
Hook turned away from her and walked around the corner, where the sound of a rushing waterfall could be heard. "And so the adventure begins" he said to himself. He tied up his shirt and pulled some cloth over his face. To get to the waterfall he'd have to cut through a wall of dreamshade first, a prospect he had not been looking forward to. It was dangerous and hard work, but he got through eventually, drank the last of his water in the canteen and filled it up again.
Emma woke up to Killian's soft touch. He was stroking her hair and, what was that, cooing? "What is it Jones? Do you have the sexton? Are we there yet?"
"No lass, I don't have the sexton." Emma sat up quickly, and immediately regretted it as her head started spinning.
"What do you mean you don't have the sexton? You said you were going to get it? Did Pan get it first?"
"No lass, I," he looked away from her, unable to say the words and look her in the eyes at the same time. "I lied to you"
"You what?!" Her sharp tone roused his own anger, and he brought his eyes to hers once more. The betrayal he saw there hurt him to the core. "So there isn't a way to get off the island afterall? You brought me up here on a fool's errand? And now I'm going to die here, with only you for company?" He winced as she said it, but his retort sounded more like that of a desperate man than a hurt man.
"Emma, you don't have to die here!"
"But there's no antidote for dreamshade, and in case you've forgotten, I've been poisoned with it!" She wasn't sure if she wanted to laugh or cry bitterly, the situation was so unfair. She came here to rescue her son, and yet here she was, laying on the ground almost dead because some lost boy got a lucky shot in.
"I didn't lie to you about that, there's no cure for dreamshade, but the water on this island is magical and it cures any ailment." She sat back up again, this time careful to not do it so fast "but as with all magic, it comes with a price."
"I don't care, I'll take it."
He smiled, "you haven't even heard the cost yet Swan."
"I don't care, anything to save my son from becoming one of them"
"Lass, you may save your son, but if you drink this water, you'll never leave this island again." He could see that she still didn't care. "You'll die if you leave, Swan. Is that a price you're willing to pay?" He said it softly, watching her face carefully for any sign of fear or indecision.
"Yes. If I can have this and then save my son.. I'll do it." And so he handed her the canteen, watched as she savoured every last drop of that water, watched the life return to her cheeks, and knew that her life was now tied to the island.