[A/N]: Thank you guys so much for the nice reviews! You guys are amazing, it blows me away! I'm still in shock at how much of a response this is getting, thank you! I'm so sorry this chapter took so long to get out, I had two essays to write, plus I have to study for finals. I hope you guys enjoy, nonetheless! ~ Sam

Chapter Four

Clash

\ˈklash\ - noun/verb: to meet and come into violent conflict.

Metal clashed with metal and the piercing sound of blades colliding filled the air.

Killian wasn't expecting the princess' attack to carry s much force. The swords slid against each other, just inches away from his face. For a brief second, he and Emma met one another's gaze and he could see the burning determination in her eyes as she smirked and pulled away. He had just barely collected himself when he saw the blonde standing opposite to him, already standing in her defensive stance once more. Gods, she's quick, he thought. Gripping his swords tighter at his side, he then went in for the next move.

Cling, clash, clang!

Right, left, right, he studied her techniques and movements, making mental notes of the small things that could possibly throw the fight. He swung his blade towards her in a sideways motion, causing her to duck, then try and sweep him from underneath. Killian bounced away and brought his sword up just in time to counter her other attack that was about to come down on his chest. She favors her right hand and side, after every block, she counters, she uses the blunt side of her weapons to block, then evades the blow…

The fight went on for a good long time and during that time the crowd watched with quiet anticipation. The princess used her swiftness to her advantage, whilst Killian made use of his stronger strikes. However, no matter how hard either of them tried, no one got even a nick on the other. She would know exactly when his attacks were coming and he could tell when she was ready to counter. They were both evenly matched, but neither one of them was willing to admit that or give up.

Thus, the fight went on.

Killian could feel his limbs starting to ache and burn, each forced movement caused pushed more stress on his tired muscles. His movements were slower and his stance was sloppy, however, so were the princess', he noticed. Like him, a fine sheet of sweat had formed on her skin, making her face glisten slightly. Her neat, perfect bun came out of its tie, causing her golden locks to fall on her shoulders and over her face.

That's when he saw his chance.

Waiting until her hair was covering her eyes, even if it was just for a millisecond, he still charged. Not wanting to actually harm her, he put a decent amount of his strength into the swing of his sword, but he was only met with the familiar sound of metal crunching and screeching against one another. He clenched his teeth, shoving her blade back and stumbling backwards until he was a safe distance away from the woman.

The two of them were both panting, gasping for breath, but he could still hear his opponent laugh humorlessly, "Now you're using my hair against me? What a dirty trick, Lieutenant." She leaned on one of her blades while the other was rested on her shoulder.

He shot her a glare, but even though the smirk on her face made him want to toss her overboard, he couldn't deny that she was an exceptional duelist. "I'm sorry, your highness, I wasn't aware. Please, forgive me," he replied, his words heavy with sarcasm. "Yet, here I was thinking you've never fought with dual swords. Are we lying now, princess?"

The blonde scoffed, "My words were true; I have never fought with two blades. However, there's one thing you should know about me." Then next moments happened so quickly, he wasn't even sure what had happened until he blinked. Once. Twice. The princess had zipped up to him with such speed; he didn't even see her disarm him of one of his weapons. "I am very good a adapting," Emma finished smugly.

Killian shook himself out of his daze and took her moment of overconfidence to do the same to her. Now both of them had but one sword, their spares had been flicked away to the side. "Is this what you wanted?" He asked with a small chuckle. He set himself in position, one foot in front of the other, slightly crouched, ready for one last clash.

"Exactly," She answered. "I started on your terms, let's finish on mine." Then, she moved into her own stance, one that almost mimicked his own.

"Very well."

Then, they danced one last time, moving fluidly, each one countering the other's attacks. One would parry, one would swing. One would attack, the other would evade. The sound of one blade bouncing off the opposing seemed endless. There was just no use. He and Emma countered each other perfectly. However, their final moves had finally come.

Killian twisted and the princess turned, the two of them were in unison until the very end. They faced one another, both extending their swords out in front of them so that the tip of one blade would almost brush against the other's throat. He could hear the blood rushing through his veins, creating a loud roaring sound in his ears. All other noises were blocked out and he felt his heart beat pulse with incredible speed as he took in small gasps of air.

However, at the same time, he could see Emma was fairing just the same as he was. Her hair was unkempt; the bangs that framed her face were now plastered to the sides of her cheeks, damp with sweat. With her mouth slightly agape and the quick rises and falls of her chest, he could tell that she was just as worn out as he was. Though, whatever exhaustion she had did not appear in her expression.

Both he and the princess lowered their weapons slowly and he could plainly see the large smirk that Emma was wearing. The crew around them erupted into loud cheers and claps, as if thanking them for a riveting performance of some sort. Killian sheathed his sword as Emma came striding up to him, doing the same.

The blonde put a hand to her ear, "What's that? Fighting a woman would be too easy?" She mocked him playfully.

"You didn't win," he snapped back.

"Neither did you," she folded her arms looking quite proud of herself.

With a huff, he retorted, "That fight was a sham."

"Perhaps in my case it was. However, I fought fair, unlike someone," she rolled her eyes and then looked back to him with a pointed glance.

The king and queen came down from the quarter deck with his brother following close behind. They all walked up to the pair with wide grins on their faces. Liam gave him a couple slaps on the back, "What did I tell you, brother?" He gestured to the princess. "She's not one to be trifled with."

"Yeah, she'd make one hell of a sailor," he muttered back sarcastically.

The queen beamed at her daughter and spoke playfully, "Perhaps we should send you off with the navy. It's not like you actually go to your etiquette lessons with Johanna anymore." The queen's husband opened his mouth, about to object, but she stopped him. "Relax, Charming, I was only joking."

The king cleared his throat before giving his daughter praise. "Well done, Emma. Perhaps you would want to duel the Captain, also?"

Emma shook her head, patting her sword, "Thank you, but I think I'm going to take a break. Can we spare anything to eat? I'm famished." Killian felt his own stomach growl at her words. This was one time where he had to agree with the Princess. It was almost noon and he still hadn't had a bite to eat.

"Nonsense, princess," Liam chuckled heartily. "You act as if we are already doomed. There is plenty of preserved food down below; we are just going to have to rationalize it a tad more. It's a good thing we keep it down there, too. The storm would have dumped our supplies in the sea. Come, I think the crew is hungry as well." Killian moved behind his brother and from the corner of his eye he could see Emma send him a look. A smirk was spread across her lips as she followed right beside her parents.

Then, he did something strange. He turned his head towards her, catching her off guard. He wasn't sure what he looked like, but he could feel it. Something within him caused him to wear an expression of respect when he glanced at the princess. The look of surprise was the last thing he saw on her face before he forced his head to whip around, quickly catching up to keep in step with his brother.

Yet, he didn't notice that Emma had given him the same respectful look right after his back was turned.

The rest of the day was now gone, and the sun was setting, slipping below the horizon where it would rise once more. Darkness was quickly leaking into the sky as the pale outline of the moon sat in the orange sky. Dinner was being served and the sound of chattering and laughter was present on the ship once again, repeating the night before. Killian felt slightly guilty for continuing to lead the men into such ominous waters without their knowledge, but there was nothing he could do.

The crew and guards went along their merry way aboard the ship unbeknown to them of the potential dangers that lurked in the waters below them. All they knew was that they were in the Black Sea; they knew nothing of the terrible rumors of the location. Liam claimed that there was no reason to frighten the men or give them more hopeless news. Even if they did inform the crew of the horrible legends of the waters, it would only rile them up.

Killian sighed heavily as he was handed a small serving of meat along with a tiny roll of bread. He carried himself over to sit near a large group and settled himself on one of the wooden crates to eat his food. Before he even took the first bite out of his dried meat, the sound of her laughter hit his ears. Turning slowly, he scanned the group next to him only to find that the princess was among the crew, sitting with a smile glued onto her face.

With a slight curl of his lips, he looked away, taking a large chomp out of his roll while listening to the crew speak. "That actually happened, princess?" A voice he recognized, Joel, had asked eagerly with a tone of awe.

"Yes, it did. My father was turned to stone and the only way he became free of the beast's spell was when my mother used Medusa's reflection against herself. She brought up a shield, held it up to Medusa's face and her own reflection caused her to become rock solid. The enchantment must have reversed itself then, because my father was then flesh again," Emma finished proudly. Her little story gained some breathless 'ooh's from her audience. In his peripheral view, he watched as the blonde leaned back as the others began conversing loudly once more.

One sailor said, "I know a tale that one man was telling at a tavern once." Killian found himself rolling his eyes. Taverns. He hated those places. They were just filled with hoards of drunken people and most of them meant trouble. Bringing a piece of meat to his mouth, he then snapped off a piece, chewing it slowly as his crewmate continued.

"There was a legend of this dark wizard," he started.

"You mean the Dark One?" One man inquired.

The sailor reciting the story snorted, "I haven't a clue. Now, hush... There was a hideous man who lived for ages, watching as life flew by. He witnessed people steal, kill, and murder, but the one thing he saw the most, was marriages. The man would see lovers together, have children, a family, and then slowly fade, as they eventually died. One day, the man couldn't take it anymore. He wanted to love someone the same way he saw others love.

"The wizard waited and waited, until he saw the perfect woman. One that had beautiful curves and pretty, brown curls. So, he followed her every day, waiting for his chance to speak to her. Until one day, he couldn't wait any longer. He caught her and ripped her heart out."

Emma stood abruptly and he could see a dark look settle on her face. Her eyes no longer shone with joy and laughter, but instead a cloud of pain had replaced it. Everyone in the group was quiet as she pushed passed some men and climbed up the stairs to the quarter deck, hidden from sight. Killian sighed and stood from his seat.

The sailor spoke up, "What did I do?"

"You can't about that in front of people when they're trying to eat, especially not ladies," another one replied.

The conversations of the men grew fainter as he climbed the small stairs up to the top deck, where he saw Emma staring out towards the sea, using her arms to prop herself up on the ledge of the ship. Killian hesitated. Why did he even run after her? She obviously wanted to be alone. He was about to make his way back down the stairs when he heard her speak, "Did he say how the story ended?"

Her voice stopped him in his tracks. There was no backing out now. Turning slowly on his heel, he shook his head, joining her at the edge of the Jewel, but he kept his distance. He looked at her and almost gasped in awe. The light glow of the moon was just enough to make her golden hair shine like strands of silk. The breeze blew her locks behind her, flying gracefully in the ocean winds. Clearing his throat quietly, he then spoke. "No… I didn't hear it, but I believe he stopped after your negative review of it. They seem to think you were sickened by the tale," he glanced at her, but she was completely focused on the waves ahead of her.

He heard her sigh lightly, "What is it with you men? First you don't think I can fight, then you think me weak at the stomach all because of some silly legend."

Killian blurted out, "If it's so silly, why does it frighten you so much?" There was a long, pregnant pause. The princess's head seemed to dip lower and her head was faced away from him slightly. "This is one of the first times that I've seen you truly fearful. What is it that is scaring you?"

Her eyes caught his and then he saw it again. The pure fear and sadness that shrouded her hazel irises. Emma opened her mouth, almost as if she was actually going to answer him, but she thought against it because she then slipped passed him with a small nod while saying, "Good night to you, Lieutenant."

She left him standing alone as she retreated to her cabin for the night. He wasn't sure why he was so curious to know this. He hated this woman; didn't he? Why was he suddenly so intrigued by her? Why was he asking these questions? He didn't truly care, did he? Something was different, he could feel it. What's changing? He wondered, troubled by his own thoughts.

Lowering his head, he scolded himself. Who are you to ask her those questions? It's no wonder she fled. Killian tossed the rest of his roll out into the sea frustrated with himself. He then followed in suit of the princess and headed to his quarters early.

And he was completely unaware of the hand that had reached up from the depths of the dark, murky waters and took his abandoned morsel.