Disclaimer: Nope, not my characters.


Emma groaned when the wailing child woke her. Why did babies always have to be so loud?

Killian stirred next to her, sitting up in bed. He never complained about his little princess, Emma thought bitterly. She pushed that thought away. She knew it was stupid to be angry at him, or Calie. He was a good father, and she should be happy for him. Then why did she always feel like the child had come between them?

Killian came back, carrying his daughter and a freshly warmed bottle of milk. The girl had grown a lot in the past four months. If she had wanted to believe that there had been a mistake and that she wasn't his in the beginning, by now there could be no doubt whatsoever.

Her hair was undeniably black, and while you could argue that her baby blue eyes might change color when she grew older, Emma highly doubted that. Sometimes she even felt like the four-months-old had the same facial expression as her father.

"I took her sailing last week", Killian told her, for what seemed like the hundredth time. By now he had almost perfected the art of manhandling a child one-handedly. "She loved it; I could see it in her eyes. It's in her blood, after all."

Emma forced herself to smile. "I bet she would make a great pirate one day."

Killian seemed shocked and covered the baby's ears.

"Don't put ideas in her head, Swan!" he whispered with playfully sparkling eyes. To Calie, he said:

"You're gonna be a ship captain one day, aren't you, my little love? But remember to always stay on the right side of the law, or you'll get in big trouble. Daddy knows!"

Emma felt the need to throw up, and then she felt guilty again. Her pirate was clearly happy with his daughter. Milah's daughter, a voice in her head said, and as much as she wanted to push it away, she couldn't. He had even named her after her mother, Calypso Milah.

"I think I'm gonna go shower while you're busy", she said instead. It was already eight o'clock in the morning, after all. Time to get up. Part of her wanted him to tell her that he would join her when he was done feeding the child, like in old times. But, of course, he was completely captured by his daughter and only nodded, not even looking at her as she left for the bathroom. And again, she swallowed her bitterness, trying to wash it off in the shower.

Killian pulled the door open and entered the diner. Granny's had just opened, and yet it was already filled with people. He gave Robin a friendly nod and winked at Henry. Regina ignored him in cold affection. He ordered two grilled cheese, and while Ruby went to prepare them, Granny smiled at him and asked about 'the little one'.

Only a few months ago she had shot him a reproachful glare every time he set foot into her establishment. Another good thing Calie had brought to his life. Even Emma's parents saw him in a new light since he was a father. They somehow seemed to like him more, and the prince didn't look like they wanted to tear his throat out every time he saw him at Emma's place in the morning, which happened more and more frequently.

Maybe they should move in together, he wondered. Emma had recently gotten her own place, and Henry adored Calie. The four of them could be a real family.

His heart beat faster at that thought. He'd never thought he could have that. Even to find love again after Milah was something he had never seen coming, but a child… or was it even two? Sometimes it felt that way with Henry. He wondered if the lad thought of him as a father. Neal was dead, after all, and he hadn't known him for long.

"Killian!" Belle called. She greeted him with an awkward sideway hug, baby Rose peacefully sleeping in her arms.

"I did a little more research on the le Fay family", she told him straight away. "Well, it was really just a little before Rose woke for her feeding. I'll get right back to it after breakfast", she promised him.

"Don't", Killian said, smiling at the baby. She was only a few weeks younger than Calie, and he really hoped they would grow up to be friends. "I think we should stop all the researching."

"Don't you want to know where your daughter came from?" Belle asked with a frown, gently rocking her baby.

"All I want to know is that she's healthy and happy. I don't want to spend every day worrying about her. It's been four months and nothing happened. For once I want to believe that there is no crisis waiting for us."

"But what about Milah?" Belle asked confused. "What if we find her?"

"Milah is dead", he said firmly. "I've accepted that long ago. And I'm done following loose threads. I would rather spend my time with Calie and Emma."

"Fine", Belle smiled. "I'll tell Rumple."

In that moment Ruby returned with the food. Killian paid and waved goodbye to his friends. He felt good. Finally letting go of all his worries about Calie's origins had lifted a heavy weight from his chest.

...

"You want to go back?" Emma almost dropped her phone when she realized what her mother was saying. "To the Enchanted Forest?"

She was pacing back and forth in her bedroom, her free arm hugging her body.

"Oh, we haven't decided yet", Mary Margaret told her. "David and I were just thinking about it. I know the last time we said it you weren't happy about it, but I thought you might have changed your mind…"

"Why would I have changed my mind?" Emma's voice sounded harsher than she intended. When she passed the window, she peeked outside to see if Killian was coming back with breakfast. Of course he wasn't. He had just left.

She sighed, finally slowing down her steps.

"Look, I know that place means a lot to you, it's just… our lives here are good! For once we don't have to fight weird villains that were somehow a lot funnier when they were cartoon characters in a Disney movie. You guys have Neal, I just got a house… can't we just leave it like that?"

There was a small pause, and she could hear her parents whispering to each other in the background. She rolled her eyes and glanced at the crib. Calie was thankfully sound asleep. She hoped she would stay that way until Killian returned. She didn't want to have to pick her up. It was easier if she kept her distance. That way she didn't have to admit that Captain Hook and his true love had made a fucking adorable baby. Feeling guilty again, she bit her lip.

The phone cracked. "Emma?" she heard her father say.

"Still here."

"Look, we're not saying we want to go back today, or even this month, it's just… I know our lives here aren't bad, but this isn't who we are. We don't belong here. It just feels wrong to be here when we have a kingdom in the Enchanted Forest that probably needs our help. And you… you are part of that world, too, Emma. You were born a princess…"

"But I never was a princess", Emma interrupted him. "I never got a chance to do any of that, and I can't imagine doing it now. I am just figuring out my life here! And you guys never seemed to mind being sheriff, or teaching."

"We don't, it's just… this is not where we belong. Something is missing, you know? Look, we won't force you to go back. If you really don't want to, we will stay. Family is more important. We just wanted to see what you thought about it. It's just an idea. We don't even have a portal."

Emma sat down on her bed, closing her eyes. This wasn't fair. She could understand that her parents wanted to go back to the place they considered their home, but why did that have to be now? She had just found her own home. Or something like that.

"I'll think about it, ok?"

"Yes. As I said, if you don't want to, we won't go."

Emma nodded, even though her father couldn't see it. "Sounds good."

"Anyway, how is our granddaughter?" David asked, his voice casual, as if their conversation before hadn't happened. Emma couldn't hold back the silent gasp that left her lips. Granddaughter?

"She's… fine", she managed to say. "Look, Killian's gonna come back with breakfast any moment now, I should probably set the table…"

She finished her conversation with her parents and got up from the bed, starting to pace again.

"You're not their granddaughter", she said to the sleeping child. "That's not how it's supposed to be!"

She sighed and braced herself on the window sill. Had it really come to this? Was she competing with an infant for Killian's attention?

"What a harsh thing to say to a babe", she suddenly heard an unfamiliar voice behind her. She spun around.

There, at the crib, stood a woman she had never seen before. She was taller than her, and she wore a deep purple dress that was so obviously not from this world that Emma had to bite back a groan.

"Who are you?" she asked through gritted teeth. "How did you get here?" Her long, blonde hair screened her face from Emma, but she was sure she heard her chuckle.

"You are such a beauty, aren't you, annwyl?"

Only now Emma realized she was talking to Calie. She was holding Calie in her arms.

"Let her go!" she demanded, taking a step towards her. The woman turned her face to her.

"Careful", she smiled, although her dark eyes remained cold. "We wouldn't want to wake the little princess, would we now?"

"Put her back in the crib", Emma said darkly. "I don't care who you are, but I am pretty pissed right now and you don't want to get on my bad side."

"Or what?" The woman snorted. "You'll strike me with that adorable light magic of yours? Please. You are no match for me. Besides, don't you want her gone anyway? I am doing you a favor."

Emma bit her tongue. Her being jealous of Calie was one thing, but she couldn't let this woman hurt her. It wasn't right. None of this was her fault. She was just a child.

She closed her hand to a fist and opened it again, her magic shining brightly.

"Don't test me. Put her down now!"

The woman impatiently clicked her tongue.

"Don't say I didn't warn you."

Emma barely saw her move her fingers as she was already flying backwards. She hissed in pain when she hit the wall, sliding down to the ground. Before she could get up again, the woman threw something at her. Instinctively she caught it in her hand. It was an apple.

"If you should decide you want her back after all… this will help you find me."

"Wait!" she shouted, but the stranger had already disappeared into thin air.

...

When he returned to Emma's house, Killian immediately knew something was wrong. Emma was sitting on her bed, her eyes red and swollen. She heard him and turned to look at him.

"Killian", she said, tears streaming down her face. Only now he noticed the red apple in her hand.

"What happened?" he asked. His eyes scanned the room. "Where's Calie?"

"She's gone", she whispered, barely audible. "I'm so sorry, Killian, I tried to stop her…"

Killian felt like all the air was pressed from his chest.

"Gone?" he repeated, not grasping the meaning of the word, the bags with the food sliding from his fingers. "What do you mean, gone? Stop who?"

Emma was shaking with sobs. "Suddenly there was a woman. I've never seen her before. She took her and… and disappeared…"

He felt anger rise in his chest. Who dared take his child from him?

Unable to hold back, he snarled: "And you let that happen?"

Emma's eyes widened. "No, I-I tried to stop her, but she had magic!"

"So do you!" Killian snapped. He walked to the crib, looked out the window, under the bed, not really expecting to find her, but needing to do something. He knew that he was being unfair to Emma, but he couldn't contain his anger, his desperation.

"She was more powerful than me!" Emma seemed to be getting angry, too. "Do you really blame me for this?"

"Maybe I should!" Killian yelled, finally looking at her. "Do you think I don't see how you look at her? Aren't you glad she's gone?"

"What do you want to hear?" Emma screamed back. "Yes, it sucks that you spend more time with her than with me, that you barely seem to care about me at all, and that she's the child of the woman you loved more than you will ever love me! And of course I sometimes wish we would've never found her! But how can you ever think that I would harm your child?"

Only now he saw the blood trickling down the back of her neck.

"Swan…", he started, reaching out to examine the wound, knowing that he had gone too far, but she just wiped away her tears and stormed out, slamming the door shut.

...

"A red apple! That's my signature!" Regina snarled as she eyed the object on the table. "When we find this witch she and I are gonna have a little talk. No one steals my methods!" Looking at Killian, she quickly added: "And your child, of course."

They had all gathered in the loft to discuss their next step. A location spell on one of Calie's pacifiers had proven useless, which meant that she was no longer in this world. Or dead. Killian swallowed.

"Don't worry, your majesty, I doubt she tried to steal your methods", Gold said, taking the apple in his hand. "This is not just any apple. Tell us more, Miss Swan. This woman… did she have magic?"

"Yeah. I tried to fight her, but she was stronger than me."

She subconsciously touched the back of her head where she had probably hurt herself when she landed.

"Then she just disappeared. With the baby."

With these words she looked at Killian, and he felt a twinge of guilt about his former accusations. How could he ever suspect her?

He had been going crazy with worry for his child, he still was, but he knew that was only an explanation, not an excuse.

Gold nodded, holding the apple against the light and then taking a healthy bite.

"Are you insane?" Regina shouted, trying to stop him. "It could be poisoned!"

"It's not", Gold replied, spitting it into his hand. "That would be your signature. I thought we had already agreed that this was not a copy."

To everyone else, he said:

"Disgustingly sweet, and perfectly red, combined with an unmistakable aroma. The woman who gave it to you had magic more powerful than you, Miss Swan. That tells me one thing. She came from Avalon. And most likely returned there."

"Why would you assume that?" Regina asked.

"Because she gave Emma a hint with the apple!" Snow said as realization dawned on her.

"Avalon is known for its apples, that's how it got the name", Belle explained.

"She obviously lied!" Regina shot them a how-can-you-be-so-naïve-look. "Who would kidnap a child and tell their parents where to find them?"

"It could be a trap", Emma said.

"Oh, it most definitely is", Gold said matter-of-factly.

"It doesn't matter." Killian stared at the apple, the images from his dream appearing in his mind. "I'm going to get her, and if anyone stands in my way I'll kill them."

"Of course, just like you killed me", Gold snarled. "When did you promise to do that? Two hundred years ago? And yet I am still here."

Killian clenched his jaw, but before he could reply, David interrupted them:

"Let's focus on the problem on our hands rather than on past vendettas. What can you tell us about Avalon?"

"It is ruled by the Lady of the Lake", Gold explained. "When I last visited Camelot, that was Nimue, a member of the 'le Fay' family."

"The elves?" Emma asked, remembering their conversation four months ago.

Gold nodded.

"However I can't tell you what Nimue would want with your child."

Killian paused for a moment, a horrible thought crossing his mind.

"The woman who took Calie, what did she look like?" he asked, turning to Emma. Please don't let it be her.

Emma frowned. "Uh. Long, blond hair, freaky dress…"

His heart sank to his stomach.

"Dark eyes?"

"I don't know. Maybe? Yeah, I think so. Do you know her?"

Killian nodded darkly and turned back to Gold.

"Her name is Morgause", he said. "Morgause le Fay."

"Morgause le Fay? How can you be so sure?" Gold asked.

"I saw Avalon in a dream. A woman warned me about her."

He really didn't want to go into detail about this. So she had found him, after all. How was she not dead, after all these years?

"You saw Avalon in a dream?" Belle asked, rocking baby Rose in her arms.

Gold looked up, interested.

"Who was this woman that warned you?"

"I didn't recognize her, but she seemed to know me."

"Only the Lady of the Lake could have sent you a dream from Avalon. Morgause is Nimue's eldest daughter, and if it wasn't her, that means Nimue still reigns."

Regina raised an eyebrow.

"So you know Morgause, Nimue came to you in a dream… what is your business with them?"

"It doesn't matter."

"If we're going to fight this elf bitch to save your daughter, we need to know!" she snarled.

Killian sighed.

"Let's just say that I don't recall meeting Nimue before, and that Morgause and I are not exactly fond of one another. How do I get to Avalon?"

"Oh, you can't get to Avalon just like that!" Gold said like it was general knowledge. "You have to go to Camelot first."

Killian clenched his fist, annoyed by the Dark One's vague answers. "And how do I bloody get to Camelot?" he asked, raising his voice. "It's not like we have any magic beans left!"

"We'll find a way", David assured him.

"We, mate? You're coming with me?"

"Of course I am! You should know us long enough to know we always have each other's backs!"

Killian couldn't help but feel touched by David's comment. He hadn't realized he was part of the 'we' now.

"We'll all help you", Henry promised.

"Kid, I think you should stay here. This Morgause is dangerous."

Emma gave him an apologetic smile.

"Stop calling me kid! I'm thirteen, and Calie is basically my sister! And my aunt! I'm going."

"Henry, you're staying."

Regina gave him her don't-argue-with-me look. Henry kept quiet, but the expression on his face made it clear that for him, the discussion was not over.

"Well I'm definitely going", Robin said, looking at Killian.

"I will help you find your daughter."

The corner of his mouth quirked upwards. "Thanks, mate."

"How touching", Gold snarled. "Maybe we could focus on finding a portal now, or no one will help anyone find their child."

"Great, any suggestions?" Emma asked.

"Not so fast. I need to prepare first. And if you don't mind, Miss Swan, I would like to see the room where it happened."

Emma shrugged. "Sure. If you think you can find something."

"Wait, can I see the apple?" Killian asked before they could leave. Maybe there was something in his dream that he had forgotten?

Gold handed it to him and Killian grasped it. It was burning hot. He hissed in pain and dropped it immediately. It fell to the floor. The fruit glowing and radiating a heat that soon filled the loft.

"What the hell…" Emma started, her voice trailing off as she looked at what was happening right in front of her.

The light spread, turning into a whirling mass of colors. It was windy, and noisy.

"Is that…" Snow started, looking at David.

"Looks like a portal", he agreed.

It grew bigger, sucking in the table and one of the chairs.

"Everybody step back!" Regina shouted over the rising noise.

"Neal!" Snow screamed, rushing past Killian and reaching for her son, who had started crying.

The portal reached them, and all she could do was hold on to the crib while it sucked them in.

"Neal! Snow!" David shouted, jumping in right after them.

Emma watched her parents disappear, her eyes wide.

"Well, I guess that settles that", she said, but before she could follow them, Regina grabbed her arm.

"Are you out of your mind? We don't even know where it leads!"

"Avalon", Killian said, realization dawning on him. "The apple. It was a portal. It leads to Calie."

Without taking another look at them, he stepped forward.