"Come, Princess, the shelter we seek is not far."

I watched the tussle of light brown hair bob along through the trees just ahead. We had been walking for days with few breaks for rest in between. He assured me it was for the best; that to avoid capture, we must keep moving. Rest would come when we reached out destination.

I sighed heavily, hoping he was right. But, at the same time, knowing if I didn't stop now, I would never make it.

"Please," I called, my steps growing slower as he quickly drew on. His energy, at least, seemed never to cease. "Can't we rest for a minute?"

He turned, his brow knit as he considered. I could almost see the wheels turning in his head as he calculated the risks. He opened his mouth to, I presumed, tell me that we must carry on but he hesitated and, with a slight smile said only, "Of course."

Retracing his steps, he stopped just a short distance from me and dropped in front of a tall oak. "Will five minutes be time enough?" he asked as he began to rummage through the pack he carried, finally pulling out an animal bladder.

He offered the water first to me. After shaking my head, he drank deeply. I, still trying to catch my breath, finally managed an answer to his question. "It should," was all I could muster as I, too, sank to the ground, trying to return my breathing to normal.

It wasn't that, physically, I was no match for our long trek. On the contrary, my daily ride had done nothing but prepare me for exactly this type of journey. But everyone requires rest. Well, almost everyone.

After taking another long drink from the bladder, he offered it again. This time, I accepted. I gulped the cool liquid as though I hadn't tasted it in years. In all reality, it felt as though I hadn't.

How long had it been since I'd had my fill of any drink? How long had it been since I'd eaten a proper meal? Only a matter of days? It felt longer. Much longer.

We sat in silence as the minutes ticked by, passing the water back and forth between us until the bladder had run dry. When, at last, he'd drunk the last drop, he rose and looked on down the road.

"The cabin shouldn't be far. I'm to deposit you there and return to one of the guard towers. You will wait four days and then I will return."

He looked down at me, walking over and extending a hand. "Then I'm to take you to safety. You cannot stay in this kingdom. If you do, you will most certainly die. The queen will see to that."

He was blunt. It pleased me. Most were all too careful to tiptoe around my feelings, hoping unpleasant reports would not shatter my fragile spirit. They didn't know it but I was far stronger than they believed. When most looked at me, they saw only a frail princess. They didn't see the warrior hidden within.

I took his hand, allowing him to pull me from the ground. But as I rose, my foot found a rock, loosely buried within the earth and, as my weight bore down on it, the rock broke free. I slipped then, jolting forward toward the dark earth before me. But the collision never came.

Suddenly, I was upright, his hands firmly on my waist. My eyes moved from the ground to his face, my mouth slightly ajar as the scream that had started to escape died on my lips.

Up close, I noticed the things that I hadn't seen from afar. The natural blonde highlights, hidden within his sandy brown locks. The flecks of brown in his deep blue eyes. The way his brow knit as he concentrated and the curl that fell into his face as he held me.

I thought him handsome, in that moment, but, suddenly, the moment was gone. He withdrew his hands, turning from me as he muttered, "Best we press on, Your Highness. Before we lose the light."

Then he started off into the forest. I stood for a moment, my breath coming faster as I, again, tried to still the sharp beating of my heart.

We reached the cabin a short while later, just as the forest had begun to grow dim. He stopped, holding out a hand as he ordered me to wait. Then he started up to the small porch while I watched. Carefully, cautiously, he pushed the weathered door open and disappeared inside.

While I waited, my eyes scanned the trees. Now in two separate places, we were doing the same thing: checking to be sure we hadn't been followed; assuring we were safe.

The cabin door creaked open and my eyes locked onto it- onto him -as he waved me inside. I quickly closed the distance between us, pulling down the hood that had covered my golden locks whilst I went.

When I'd reached the cabin and entered, its single room danced before me in the light of the fire he'd evidently just lit. The space was mostly bare save for a small table set in the center of the room and, on opposite walls nestled into the corners, two weathered pallets. It was cozy and quaint but nothing like the kind of luxury I'd grown accustomed to over the last years.

He seemed to realize this for, after closing the door behind me, he looked around almost apologetically. "I know it's not as grand as what you're used to but it should be safe."

I merely nodded as, slowly, I moved toward the table. I dropped onto one of the hard, wooden benches while still taking in the room that surrounded us; the singular room that would serve as my home for the next week. It would be a lonely, solitary existence. One that I was not looking forward to.

As I thought of this, a small sigh escaped me. His eyes quickly darted in my direction and then away again as he busied himself in front of the hearth. He'd apparently lit only enough of a fire to last until I was safely inside. For now, he began to throw extra logs into the flames and at such a rate as though he were trying to create a large enough roar it would last all the time I was to spend alone with it.

The gesture was enough to bring a smile to my face. And almost as though sensing this, he turned.

It caught me off guard, the way the firelight captured his features. I could feel the breath catch in my throat. It was a feeling unlike any I'd ever experienced before. I'd met many a man at the kingdom's balls but never one like this. Never one I'd desired this much before.

The blush crept onto my cheeks and I quickly averted my eyes. But a moment later, almost of their own will, they had locked onto him again. Though, this time, it was he who turned away. His attentions returned to the fire and, when he'd finished with it, he rose and joined me at the table.

"I best be off, Your Highness, before the darkness has overtaken the forest. I'll need to find shelter before the light has gone. Unless there's anything else you require before I go?"

I gazed into his eyes noticing, for the first time, the pain there. He didn't want to go. And, all at once, I realized that I didn't want him to go.

"Stay," I whispered before I could stop myself. Then, realizing my error, I added, "I- I mean-" But the damage had already been done. He smiled warmly, almost amused by my impertinence. It was, after all, a remark greatly out of place for a woman of my rank.

"The forest is a dangerous place in the dark," I added quietly, hoping to at least attempt to correct my error. "You wouldn't want to be caught out there in the dark. Not when there's a hot meal and a warm bed for you here. And you can leave at first light, if you wish."

He stared at me for a long moment, almost as though trying to decide just what to make of me. Then, slowly, he nodded.

I hardly dared to believe he'd been that easily persuaded. But I suppose it wasn't all that shocking. It had been a good suggestion.

We prepared dinner together. He'd killed a rabbit earlier in our journey and he now skinned and cleaned it. He cooked it while I sliced the loaf of bread we'd brought along. From his flask, I poured mead into two goblets and then, we dined.

It was nothing like the meals I'd grown accustomed to in the palace but, as we ate, I found I didn't mind. It was pleasant and, I suspected, not the worst meal I would see before this journey was through.

As we ate, we talked. He asked about my life in the palace and I obliged with stories of how I filled my days. He seemed to enjoy them but I could see the sadness fill his eyes. He kept his distance. I knew the reason: I was a princess. He was only a huntsman.

"I knew your mother," he said abruptly, long after we'd finished our meal.

I cocked my head slightly, a bewildered smile creeping onto my face. "Yes. You lived in her palace. I would've assumed-" But he cut me off.

"No," he said quickly, not quite meeting my gaze. He spoke slowly, as though it took great effort to form the words. "I knew her before she married. During her stepmother's time."

I paused then, not quite grasping his meaning. Regina's time had begun anew. She'd regained her crown. It was the reason we had run. So long as she held power, we would never be safe.

But he seemed to be speaking of something else entirely. I inched my arm toward him, tentatively grasping his hand across the table. "What do you mean?"

As my fingers met his, it seemed to awaken him. His eyes dropped to our hands, now entwined, then snapped onto my face.

"Once, long ago, when your mother was really still just a child, the queen put a price on her head. She sent me into the woods with your mother, demanding that I kill her. But- but I couldn't. She was too kind; too good. I couldn't kill such a creature. Not for one so evil. So I killed a deer instead and took the heart to the queen while your mother escaped into the forest."

I nodded, having heard most of this story before. My parents had never tired of telling about how they'd come to find one another. My mother, especially, was fond of the dwarves. She never ran short on stories of her stay with them.

But why the huntsman would choose to share this now, I couldn't say. Luckily, I needn't ask. He continued without prompting.

"The queen saw through my plot. She- she-"

Here he hesitated, his eyes leaving me once more. I squeezed his hand, my other hand moving to rest on his cheek, forcing him to meet my gaze. "She what?" I asked gently.

"She took my heart," he finished, tonelessly.

The words sent a shiver down my spine. His other hand moved to his cheek, covering the hand I held there. He gently pulled it toward his mouth and lightly kissed my palm. He held our hands there for a long moment, neither of us moving.

When he spoke again, it was quietly. "I haven't felt anything for a long time, Princess. Not pain or sorrow or even," he paused, his eyes locking onto mine, "love."

I was utterly frozen, my eyes wide as he spoke. What could this mean? Without a heart, could he ever love? I knew little of stolen hearts. My knowledge came only from stories. Up until the Queen's return, my parents had had a peaceful reign. Stolen hearts were rare in their kingdom.

But from what I knew, once stolen, the heartless were dangerous. The heart controls the man and whoever possesses the heart has the power of that control. I pulled my hands from his grasp, the weight of his words finally settling. She could be controlling him right now. This could all be a trap.

"She doesn't know I'm here," he said softly, his eyes sad as he continued. "She knew little of the kingdom after she was banished from it. And I wasn't her chief concern. She controlled me only during her first reign. Since her return, I have been forgotten."

"How do I know those are your words?" I questioned as I rose, backing away from him slowly.

"I can't offer you any proof, Princess," he said slowly. "I can only hope that you will trust me. No one knows of my loss; no one but you. You are the only one I've trusted with this secret. And I hope you will trust me in return."

I stopped suddenly, staring at him long and hard. I wanted to believe him. After all, what use would the queen have in telling me of his misfortune? If she were truly in control, wouldn't it be to her advantage to keep me in the dark? If no one knew she possessed his heart, she could have a spy in our world.

But he'd told me. Meaning he was the one in control.

I opened my mouth but closed it a moment later, at a complete loss for words. Until, finally, the three little words for which I'd searched presented themselves. "I believe you."

The change was immediate. His face lit up as he smiled with relief. I couldn't say just what had possessed him to share this information but it had taken everything he had to tell me. And now that he had, it seemed a great weight had been lifted from him.

He rose, closing the space between us. When he was standing before me, he reached out, gently taking one of my hands in his. "I told you only so you would know what a monumental feat it is when I tell you this: I love you, Your Highness."

My eyes widened at his words and as he grinned down at me, I began to back away. "But you don't even know me," I whispered. "We have traveled this forest for a matter of days. That is hardly time enough to fall in love."

His smile was suddenly sad as he stepped back from me, pulling his hand from mine. "No," he answered quietly. "I suppose not. But the time spent watching you in the kingdom from afar has been time enough. Though it seems I have been nothing short of invisible."

My eyes scanned his face, searching for some hint of untruth. But his words appeared to be genuine. It was territory with which I was entirely unfamiliar. In the whole of my twenty years, I had never once been on the receiving end of such a declaration of love.

And while everything in me screamed to leave this be, I knew I could not. Deep down, I knew that all he said he felt for me, I reciprocated. I had felt it too, these last days in the woods. I had felt my heart begin to ache for him; to ache at the thought of our parting. I knew that I could not allow him to go. But, yet, I couldn't allow myself to share with him my own feelings.

I looked away, sighing quietly. "I don't even know what to call you," I whispered, my eyes trained on the wall.

He laughed, quietly, and I could see his grin in my mind's eye. "Graham," I heard him answer. "My name is Graham."

I met his gaze then and found him staring at me curiously as though trying to decide what to make of my question. His eyes, reflected in the firelight, were almost sad and I wished then more than ever that I had the courage to say what I already knew in my heart.

Instead I said only, "You may call me Emma. I've always found 'Your Highness' far too formal." I held his gaze for a moment longer then, finally, turned. "We should sleep. Dawn will come soon and you should rest for your journey."

Then without looking back, I took refuge in my corner, curling up and facing the wall as my silent tears guided me to dreamland.

At dawn I awoke as his hand grasped my shoulder. He smiled as he left me and I spent the next week feeling more alone than I had ever been before.

I passed my nights with imaginary conversations. I pictured him there with me. I played and replayed each scenario, trying to decide the best way to tell him. For by the end of the week, I had decided that I did, indeed, love him.

And when he returned, I confessed my love. He was relieved, to say the least and because of my shared feelings, he joined me in hiding. It was only with him that I made it through the next years. It was the only way I was able to survive my life on the run.

It was with him that I planned to build a life when, finally, I would be able to return to my kingdom. Except that day and that life never came.

I jolted awake, the smell of the sea and the continuous rock of the ship greeting me immediately. I rubbed my eyes, trying my best to get my bearings in the dim light. It was day. I knew that by the stream of light coming from between the cracks.

Beyond that, I didn't know anything. But, suddenly, it all came flooding back. Dinner the night before. My meal with the captain. The dress I still wore.

But yet, before that, things were still hazy. I still could not remember just how I'd come to be on this boat or even why.

And Graham? What of him. The dream was still fresh in my mind. I could still see his face; smiling at me, kissing my lips, laughing. I reached into the darkness as though, somehow, I could touch him. But, of course, my fingers found only empty air.

"What happened to you?" I whispered into the dark. And then I did what I hadn't in so long. I imagined him there with me. I talked to him. He comforted me. His memory would keep me strong until I saw him again.

I was lost in this fantasy when the door at the top of the stairs creaked open. It silenced me immediately and I shrunk to the back of my prison. A moment later, the captain appeared at the bottom of the steps.

Almost immediately, I was on guard.

His grin was smug when he stopped just beyond the bars, the lantern clutched in his hand as he regarded me. "Princess," he said with a slight nod. "I trust you slept well."

I only glared in response. He shrugged and looked away, his hand readjusting on the lantern's handle before his blue eyes locked back onto me.

"Not that I care one way or the other. If I cared, you wouldn't be sleeping down here." He grinned for a moment, clearly asserting his power.

"What do you want?" I hissed.

He raised a brow, leaning in. "I have something to show you, Princess. Something in which I'm sure you will be most interested."

I rolled my eyes, remembering all too well the places his little "surprises" lead. My heart still stung from the night before; from the news of my father. But I pushed away the thought as the tears threatened to spill again.

"Come now, lass. I can assure you this will be well worth your time."

And this time, without waiting for an answer, he unlocked my cell. As he pulled the door to him, he gestured toward the stairs. Tentatively, I went.

When we reached the deck, the crew was all a twitter, running to and fro as they manned the ship. But as I watched, I realized this wasn't normal. They all seemed... anxious.

The captain moved round me, having set the lantern next to the door. Behind his back, he grasped his hook in his hand as he strolled across the deck, evidently unaffected by whatever had caused the stir amongst the crew.

He turned back, an eyebrow rising as he tilted his head, gesturing that I follow. I, doubtfully, obliged. I followed to edge of the deck, watching him carefully as he leaned on the rail.

We were joined almost immediately by the man in the red hat, Mr. Smee. "Captain?" the portly crewman questioned, pushing his glasses up his nose.

The captain didn't look up. Instead he continued to gaze across the sea as he commanded, "Mr. Smee. A report."

"She gains."

The captain grinned, almost delighted as he looked first from Smee to me. As he stared at me, he addressed the crewman once more. "Mr. Smee. Please explain to our esteemed guest what you mean."

Smee hesitated, evidently thinking it a trick question. Finally he sputtered, "Why, her!" and pointed in the direction in which the captain had just been gazing.

I followed his finger and, for the first time, noticed the ship in the distance. And all at once it clicked into place: Why the captain had wanted me to see this. What it could possibly mean. That this ship was gaining.

And then, before I could stop myself, I whispered the one name I had held so dear. The one person I thought I would never see again. The man who would, it seemed, now be my salvation.

"Graham."