A/N: Well this happened. Seriously I didn't think I would have time to post an update before Sunday. But then the internet decided to go down and I couldn't do any regular work. This chapter is a bit long...hope you don't mind. =)
The night was dark and chilly; the blazing fires doing little to warm the balcony. The sounds of the ball spilled out and filled the air with a gentle hum. Killian looked down at Emma watching the firelight bouncing off her face throwing it into flickering shadow. Since separating from Prince James and Princess Abigail she had barely spoken, her mind clearly preoccupied. Killian had led her from the hot ballroom in hopes that the fresh air would clear her head. He didn't know what she was thinking but he imagined it had something to do with dancing with her father and worry about restoring the timeline. A pessimistic voice whispered "and returning to New York" but Killian tried to push it aside. They stood in silence both keeping their own counsel then Emma let out a sigh.
"I wish I understood how this time travel stuff works. I mean when we return to Storybrooke will we remember what we did here? Will David and Gold remember meeting us?" Killian decided now was the time to tell her of his own shifting memory.
"I remember."
"Remember what?" Emma asked turning from the night to look at him.
"I remember you in my cabin. Looking in my drawer, apologizing, kissing me and…" he trailed off, unwilling to repeat what she said to him and worried about her reaction." and getting hit by myself." Emma's forehead crinkled in confusion.
"You remember? So from the moment we first met you remembered us kiss… I mean meeting me?" Killian tried to correct her but Emma charged ahead "That is why you kept hitting on me! Because you knew! That's why…Wait. If you remember then why did you seem surprised earlier in the carriage?"
"Because I didn't remember then."
"But" she said. Killian held up his hand and she quieted.
"The memory just appeared. When we were greeting King Midas it was suddenly there in my mind. Now I can remember both the night I spent in the tavern and running into you in my cabin. It's very strange."
Emma's eyebrows raised as he explained. Then she shook her head.
"I will never get used to this magic stuff." Killian's face dropped and bitterness crept in.
"Well once we return I guess you won't have too." He hated himself for saying it, for ruining the evening by reminding them of her inevitable departure. But he couldn't help that hope and pessimism were warring within him. He knew that one breathy promise and a shared look on a dance floor did not signal that Emma had changed her mind but he desperately wanted some confirmation that maybe she wasn't as eager to flee to New York as she was before.
"Hmmm" she said a troubled look on her face. It wasn't a denial but it was enough and Killian's hope surged.
"And when I leave what will you do?" she asked and Killian's hope crashed. "Return to swashbuckling adventures on the Jolly Roger?" At the mention of his ship Killian's eyes narrowed and he concentrated on the twinkling lights of the town below.
"No lass. I won't be returning to a life on the high seas." He left the statement vague not wanting to discuss what happened to his ship. He heard Emma's breath catch and turned to see something flashing across her face. Something he was afraid to identify for fear of raising his hope again.
Where will you go?" she asked. Her eyes latched on to his, shinning in the firelight. He breathed in the cold night air unsure what her question meant and dreading giving the wrong answer.
Before he could speak the sound of heavy boots echoed along the ramparts. He looked up, seeing the small guard that was approaching, their swords drawn. Killian had crashed enough balls to know that they had been caught. Midas must have discovered that there was no Prince Charles and Princess Leia.
Killian looked back at Emma. "Times Up. Get to the carriage. I will be right behind you."
"Killian I can help!"
"Not in that dress. You will need a head start. Now go! I got this!" As he finished his sentence he drew his sword and advanced on the approaching guards. He swung out hard knocking the first into the second with the force of his blow. A third attacked and he parried smoothly. The attacker stumbled past him and Killian wished he had his hook to knock him out. The fourth attacker required a bit more effort but soon he to was lying on the ground.
"All that money and Midas can't even afford competent guards." Killian mused aloud as he sheathed his sword and adjusted his clothing. With a slow and measured gait he passed back through the ballroom heading for the exit.
"Charles!" Killian turned at the sound of David's slightly drunk voice.
"James!" he responded trying to look pleased as his eyes caught sight of a guard frantically entering the ballroom and grabbing a page.
David clapped him on the back "I wanted to thank you again for your information. You don't know how important it is that I get my mother's ring back." Killian watched as the page ran off, no doubt to alert more guards, and the remaining guard began to search the guests. Killian tried not to show his anxiety.
"No problem mate." He replied not taking the time to think through his words.
"True love follows that ring." David paused. "And I want true love like you and Emmaerleia." Killian's eyes came to the Prince's face in surprise and he momentarily forgot his precarious situation. He wanted to ask him what he meant by that statement but just then ten guards arrived on the far side of the ballroom and started to search. At the moment they were being discreet but Killian knew that if they found him he would be sleeping in the dungeon. He turned back to David.
"You will find true love. I promise you mate." Then he turned and strode to the entrance hall forcing himself to keep his steps measured. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the carriage waiting, the door ajar and Emma gesturing to him urgently. He ran the last few steps as he heard shouts behind. He bounded into the carriage and shouted "GO!"
The enchanted carriage was fast and the coachman very skilled. They clattered swiftly through the city and entered the forest. Suddenly the night was shattered by explosions. The sky blooming with light as fireworks showered over the castle. Emma craned her neck to look back at the display.
"What's that?" she asked.
"The midnight fireworks." Killian replied. "It's a standard part of royal marriage celebrations."
Just then the carriage rocked oddly and they both braced themselves. A worried look came into Emma's eyes.
"Did you say midnight?" Before Killian could answer the carriage shuttered again. Emma tried to hold on only to discover that the top of the carriage had disappeared and they were exposed to the open air rushing past their faces. Killian watched in wonder as Emma's red ball gown melted away, replaced by a plain beige dress and blue cloak. Instantly Killian knew what was happening. He reached for Emma and shouted "Hold on!" before wrapping her in his arms. He leapt from the open carriage just as the seats disappeared leaving nothing but a frame and churning wheels. A few moment's later nothing would remain of the carriage and driver but a broken pumpkin and a scared field mouse.
Killian angled his body so he took the force of the fall but he couldn't help their momentum and they tumbled, rolling along the road before coming to a stop. Emma was sprawled on top of him her head resting on his shoulder They lay there breathing deep, adrenaline still roaring through their bodies. Behind them fireworks crashed through the night lighting their faces with reds, greens, blues, and whites.
Emma raised her head looking at him with disbelief and surprise as green light flashed over her face. Killian laughed but it turned into a wince as blue light filled the air.
"You didn't mention that the enchantment had a time limit lass." he chided.
"I thought that's how they all worked!" she said clearly seeing the silliness of her assumption. She smiled as they were bathed in red light. Killian waited for Emma to move, to put distance between their bodies. Instead in a flash of white light he caught her biting her lip as her eyes flickered to his lips. Killian's heart sped up blood thundering in his ears. He waited, unwilling to close the gap between them but hoping Emma would. He felt the rapid beat of her heart and it seemed to thrum from the ground. As he lifted his hand to stroke her face he realized the thundering wasn't their hearts. It was a group of rapidly approaching horses.
"Get up!" he cried. His voice snaped her into action and she rolled away from him. "Into the trees." he said as he grabbed her hand and dove into the cover of the forest.
An hour later Emma and Killian were still in the cover of the woods. After narrowly avoiding the riders on the road Killian had insisted they keep to the forest and Emma had agreed. She let Killian lead; taking his word that he knew where he was going. Emma was grateful for the dark and the quiet. It gave her the chance to sort through her raging emotions. Since her realization on the dance floor she hadn't had the opportunity to evaluate the consequences of being in love with KIllian Jones let alone decide what to do about it. Her most important and pressing question was- did he love her?
She knew the physical attraction was still present, she had no doubt that if they hadn't been interrupted on the road he would have gladly kissed her. She was less certain of their emotional connection. When she hadn't wanted his affection it had seemed like a steady and sure thing; an onslaught to constantly be pushed back and cut down. Now she worried that she had pushed him too far, cut him too deep. She thought about the events of the night and tried to identify signs that his love was still there. Everything was confusing and the swell of her own emotions made it difficult to think straight. Lost in thought she stumbled into him. He turned and placed a hand on her shoulder to steady her.
"Snow White's stump should be pretty close. I think we should sleep in this clearing. Then when the sun rises we can find a place to observe the meeting." his breath felt warm on her face after the chill of the night.
"Sounds good." Emma replied trying to keep her voice steady as traitorous thoughts crept into her mind.
Killian led her to a large fallen log at the edge of the clearing. As she sat the half moon came out from behind the clouds and cast everything in a silver glow. Emma looked up at the sky bright with stars that city lights would have obliterated. As she stared she felt a strange sense of unease that she couldn't pinpoint.
"They are different." Killian said a few steps away. Emma was startled to realize he was right. These were not her stars. "The stars are different in every land although a few stay the same. It can be very disconcerting but you get used to it."
Emma thought about his earlier reassurances about crossing realms.
"Have you been to a lot of different realms?" she asked. Killian's teeth flashed in the moonlight as he smiled.
"Oh aye. I have been to my fair share. Though none as strange as your Storybrooke." he said wiggling an eyebrow as he made his way to the log and sat down. Emma could tell he intended it as a joke but she was also sure that he was being honest. She had never paused to consider how strange Storybrooke and New York must have been for the daring Captain Hook. She thought again of the powerful man she had seen at the docks that morning and realized anew what he had given up when he decided to come find her. She looked at him and he looked at the stars. She had so many questions she wanted to ask him. Things she had taken for granted before like how he knew where she was and how he got to New York in the first place.
"Ah see there." he lifted his hand. "That star there, that is the way to Neverland." Emma followed his hand and lifted hers in return trying to identify the same star.
"That one?" she asked. He moved closer, his head next to hers so he could identify where she was pointing.
"No the second one on the right." he said and adjusted her arm his warm fingers pulling her wrist. Emma struggled to breath normally. Killian didn't notice; he was engrossed in his subject. With his hand still wrapped around her wrist he swung her arm up and to the left.
"That there is the wishing star." Emma concentrated on the bright blue star. "It has many different names and different legends but it is the same in every realm I have visited, except Neverland and your realm."
"Why isn't it there?" she asked.
"Because of magic. Your realm doesn't have any magic so no wishes can be granted. Neverland has so much magic that no one ever needs to make a wish." as he spoke he dropped his eyes from the sky and faced her. His breath tingled hot on her skin and she shivered involuntarily. Killian's brow creased and he grabbed Emma's hands.
"You are freezing." he said.
"No I'm fine." she protested.
"I'll go get some firewood." he said standing quickly. "I won't be long." he promised and disappeared into the woods.
Emma sighed. Her mind, temporarily distracted by Hook's astronomy lesson, turned back to her stormy thoughts. Her doubts, questions, and fears chased themselves around her head as she pulled her cloak tighter. Looking back at the sky she focused on the blue star and at that moment she wanted so badly to believe that wishes could be granted. Her heart ached with the need to have just one wish come true. The blue star flickered and suddenly Emma heard a soft high voice next to her ear. "I hear your wish."
Emma jumped back in surprise her hand rising defensively to her face and swatting. She connected with something solid yet soft and heard a high-pitched yell of indignation. Then a bright blue light drifted into her view, just out of her arms reach, and Emma realized it was a small person, a small person with wings.
"Geez!" Don't sneak up on me like that!"
"Sneak? You wished for me!" the fairy, Emma could think of no other name for it, countered.
"Wished for?" Emma looked up at the sky and the blue star and down at the glowing fairy realization slowly dawning on her. "Sorry. I…I didn't think it would actually work."
"If you didn't believe I wouldn't be here." the fairy responded crossly before floating closer. It was only then that Emma recognized the fairy as the uptight Mother Superior from Storybrooke. She gasped trying to gather her thoughts.
"You aren't from this land. You travel from another time. But you believe and so I hear your wish." the fairy said.
"My wish?"
"You wish to belong, to find your home." the fairy stated calmly.
"Can you grant my wish?" Emma asked. She tried hard not to think about how ludicrous the situation was and focused on believing in the fairy's power.
"You don't need me to grant your wish. You have the power to return to your home, you always have."
"Wait. What? I don't have magic. I lost it." Emma protested.
"You have great magic within you. You have lost nothing."
Emma blinked in response a wild hope beating in her breast. Suddenly she felt a thrum in her blood and a swooping sensation in her stomach. Her magic hummed to life inside her. It felt different than in Storybrooke. Stronger and brighter, easier to access. She resisted the urge to start a fire or make something float. She turned to the fairy in astonishment.
"How did you?"
"I did nothing. You only had to believe." Emma nodded as if the explanation made sense, even though she was still very confused. She took a deep breath, trying to calm her emotions and her magic, which she suddenly realized were almost the same thing.
"Ok. So I have magic. Now how do I cast the spell to get home?"
The fairy laughed condescendingly. "That is not the right question."
Emma bit back an angry retort. "Fine. What is the right question?"
"Where do you belong?" she asked.
Emma felt a flash of anger. "I. Don't. Know! That's why I made a wish! I don't know where I belong!"
The fairy only shook her head sadly in response. "You know where you belong. You are just afraid to admit it. Once you do; your wish will be granted."
"But.." Emma tried to argue but the Blue Fairy had disappeared, leaving her alone and confused in the moonlit clearing. Emma thought about the encounter and couldn't help feeling frustrated.
"Well that was completely unhelpful." Emma muttered into the night.
"What was unhelpful?" Killian asked as he emerged from the woods to her right. She jumped and then relaxed.
"Nothing." she said not wanting to talk, just yet, about her wish. Killian shrugged, giving her space. He dropped the firewood on the ground in front of the log and wordlessly set about preparing a fire. As she watched him he looked up at her. Their eyes connected and he gave her a wide grin over the stacked wood. Emma smiled back and felt a peace settle over her that soothed her nerves and calmed her mind. At the same time she felt a surge in her magic. The wood Killian was leaning over burst into flames and he jumped back with a yelp.
Emma couldn't help the laugh that bubbled out of her. Killian looked with shocked eyes from Emma to the fire.
"Your magic?" he whispered. She nodded. "You are bloody brilliant." admiration and pride shone in his eyes and Emma let herself acknowledge what she saw. Her heart clenched with hope at the evidence of his affection.
"How?" he asked.
"I just had to believe." she replied with a shrug of her shoulders. Killian's smile grew even wider and Emma wondered why her believing in her magic made him so happy.
"I knew you would get there." he said grin still in place. He walked around the fire and sat on the ground, his back against the log. Two feet of chilly night air between them. They both stared into the fire, each lost to their own thoughts.
Killian broke the silence. "It's a shame we can't get Granny's To Go out here." Emma giggled remembering how happy and proud she had been to move that hot chocolate.
"Boom." she said mockingly and Killian laughed. They fell back into silence. Emma looked at the fire her mind turning over the Blue Fairy's question: "Where do you belong?". Killian turned to her.
"What was that lass?"
Emma only paused briefly before repeating the question "Where do you belong?"
Killian opened his mouth and then seemed to think better of it. His mouth closed and he stared back into the fire. Emma watched the muscle on his jaw clench and unclench.
"Is it on the Jolly Roger?" she prompted thinking of his sad, longing, look when they had left the ship. Killian let out a deep sigh, still looking into the fire.
"I used to belong on the Jolly Roger. It was my ship for over three hundred years. It was my home."
"Was? It isn't anymore?" she asked quietly. He didn't answer and Emma boldly slipped from the log and settled herself on the ground next to him. "Killian what aren't you telling me?"
Killian took a deep breath and pushed it out in a woosh that caused sparks to fly from the fire.
"The Jolly Roger is gone. It was my price. My price for finding you in New York was my ship." A day ago this information might have drawn frustration and recriminations from Emma. She would have felt that Killian was using his sacrifice to force her into feeling something for him. But now, after she had admitted the surprising truth of her own feelings, it only made her feel loved and sad. She wanted to tell him that he shouldn't have sacrificed his ship, that she wasn't worthy of that or of him. She wanted to apologize for the way she had been treating him, to somehow make him understand that she valued him, needed him, appreciated him.
"Killian." she began. But he cut her off.
"I don't need your pity. I made my choice." he turned to her, his eyes bright with a fire of their own "And I don't regret it." Emma felt a thrill down her spine at the way his accentuated "t's" seemed to hold anger, sadness, and hope all at once. Emma stared into his eyes and she felt the warm glowing ball, that had been steadily growing all night, fill her body. She suddenly knew the answer to the question and she realized the fairy was right; she had been afraid to admit it. Her face broke into a smile so wide she thought it would split her open.
"KIllian, ask me where I belong." Killian raised his eyebrows, unable to fathom her smile, unsure where the conversation would lead. He knew it was pointless to argue with her so he shook his head. "As you wish. Where do you belong?" he asked with an air of defeat
Emma took a deep breath before she answered.
"I have always been a lost girl. I have searched my whole life for somewhere to belong. For a while I belonged in Storybrooke and then in New York with Henry."
"Aye love so you have said." He turned his face away and toward the fire.
"But I was talking to David and well I realized something." Killian turned back, his blue eyes ablaze with hope. "I know now that I could never find a place to belong because I don't belong in any place. I belong with someone." Emma heard his sharp breath and realized she had to make her meaning very clear. "Killian, it's you. I belong with you."
Utter amazement descended on his face. Then was quickly replaced by the widest, brightest smile Emma had ever seen. And she didn't need him to say anything, she knew he felt the same way.
Emma felt made of light, every atom of her being bursting as his hand came to her face and pulled her to him. Their lips met and Emma felt light and warmth spilling out and around them. She had experienced a True Loves Kiss before with Henry and had even been on the receiving end of the resulting shockwave a few times but this was different. There was a blinding white light, heat crackling in the air, and her blood rushed to her head as wind whipped around them. She felt Killian pulling back in surprise and she buried her hands in his hair keeping their lips connected and deepening the kiss. As their passion built she forgot about everything around them and focused only on Killian, on her home.
Suddenly the log supporting them slipped away and they went sprawling on to cold, concrete. They broke apart, gasping for breath. Emma became aware of a street light flickering above them and concrete beneath them. She turned from Killian to take in their surroundings. They were back in Storybrooke, lying in front of Granny's Diner.
"Granny's To Go?" Killian asked with a smile.
"Boom!" Emma replied. Killian started to laugh, a low rumble from deep in his soul bubbling out in waves. Emma joined him, her high peels complimenting his baritone. She knew that she was home. She had finally found the place where she belonged.
And that is how Regina and Robin found them 3 minutes later. Dressed in their fairytale clothes, lying on the sidewalk, holding each other and laughing.
The End.
So did you laugh? Cry? Sigh? Squee (okay I am not even sure what that word means...but everyone seems to use it these days)? All of the above? Hope so! Let me know what struck you most because it is always hard to tell how your jokes or romantic scenes are received when you are just tapping it into your computer! Oh and did you catch the Wizard of Oz parallel? Blue Fairy=Glinda.
Again thanks for the follows and favorites. I am sure I will be writing more about these two during the hiatus and it is lovely to think that somebody will actually read it! =)
Now is it Sunday(or Monday for the non-North Americans) yet?