Somewhere off the coast of Arendelle, thirteen years ago

"Come on, Love!" Killian sang as he jumped backwards, much lighter on his feet than Emma would have guessed he was capable of. "Surely you can do better than that."

Emma huffed out a breath and raised the cutlass once again. Her tired muscles screamed in protest, but she ignored them, too proud to give up. She stalked right up to him and tried again, this time with a jab to his left side which he'd left unguarded. He was far too quick for her though, catching the end of her cutlass with his hook, and throwing it across the deck. Before she had the chance to react, his own blade was pressed to her chest.

"This is useless," she sighed as he withdrew his weapon. "I'll never actually beat you." Emma always thought that it was sort of backwards for her parents, the legendary Snow White and Prince Charming, to deny her lessons in swordsmanship and archery, the very things that had kept their kingdom safe for so long. No, instead of training with her father or a few of the castle guards, she spent her time reading very large, very boring books, or practicing proper etiquette.

And as such, she had absolutely no chance of beating Captain Hook in a sword fight.

"And that, my dear," he began as he bent down to retrieve her weapon, (he'd had it engraved with a small swan near the hilt, to which she replied by stealing his to be engraved with his initials) "is exactly why you won't." He studied the finely crafted blade in his hand for a moment before swiping the air a few times. "Confidence is key. You must be sure and strong in your movements." He stepped behind her and placed the cutlass in her hand, guiding her arm through a few basic moves. "Don't question yourself. Whatever you choose to do, follow through with it."

Killian helped her sheath the cutlass before Emma turned to face him, a small frown on her lips. "Oh, is that all?"

She could tell that he was biting back a laugh, and it left her feeling angry and inadequate. "Well," he said, leading her a few paces to the right, the exact spot where he had jumped away from her blade. "It also helps to pay a bit more attention to your surroundings." She quirked a brow at that, not quite sure what he meant. His only response was to step quite deliberately onto a specific board, and watch the end of it shoot up into the air.

How had she not remembered that? More often than not, she and the crew took turns tripping over that one lose board, cursing their stubbed toes or twisted ankles before moving on to finish whatever they were doing. At one point she remembered telling Killian, in the heat of anger, that it was the bane of her existence.

"You were hoping I'd hit you with the loose board?" She asked incredulously. They were only practicing after all. She didn't want to hurt him.

"I was hoping you'd see that fighting isn't all about the weapons you use or the power of your attack. Sometimes, it's just about paying attention."

Storybrooke, present day

Emma took in the sight before her, the Evil Queen, with her sharp angry eyes and fingertips glowing with deadly magic. She stood in front of Henry, as if she didn't even want Emma laying eyes on him. The message was clear, and seeing as Emma didn't have an arsenal of magic up her sleeve, she backed off, choosing to save this fight for another day.

Maybe, she thought, remembering a conversation with her pirate, maybe she wouldn't need magic at all. Maybe she just needed a plan, something better than showing up on her doorstep with some angry words. She left the house with a promise that this was not over, that it wouldn't be until she had her son back.

Emma had planned to heed Henry's advice and head over to Granny's bed and breakfast. After all, not only did she need a place to stay, but she also wanted to see if she could find her aunt Red. She'd always been a gossip, informing Emma about the goings on in the kingdom every time her mother had been out of earshot. If, by some stroke of luck, this trait had carried over with the curse, Red might prove to be very useful.

Of course, the key word there was planned. She didn't actually get that far, stopping her magic yellow box beside a sign that read Storybrooke Harbor. It wasn't the sign, or even the harbor itself that gave her pause, as she knew from Henry's map that Storybrooke sat on the coast. No, it was what sat bobbing in the harbor that had her heart pounding in her chest. The Jolly Roger.

She could not get to her fast enough.

The moment she set foot on the gangplank, an overwhelming feeling of peace and comfort surrounded her. She was home, well and truly home. That was the beauty of living on a ship: you never have to leave it behind, and so, you were always home. Her hair whipped around her face in the midday breeze and her hands shook as she explored the deck. Nothing seemed different, save her emptiness.

The ship was utterly deserted, and that made Emma's stomach twist uncomfortably. A grand ship like this one was not meant to be so still, so quiet. Where was her crew? And the most important question in Emma's mind: Where was her captain?

Without taking the time to explore the rest of the ship, she made her way down to the captain's quarters, desperate for answers the deck was not providing. She wasn't sure what shocked her more: that the cabin was just as empty as the rest of the ship, or that the room looked so ordinary, so lived in, that she could imagine Killian lying on the bed. The fact that he was not there made the Jolly feel like a ghost ship.

The bed was made neatly, just the way that Killian liked it. The bookshelf was straight an orderly. There was a book, some paper, and an ink well open on the ornate wooden desk. Behind them, sat a few rolled up maps, perfectly drawn by a steady professional hand, Killian's, to be precise. His long leather duster hung over the back of the chair, the way he left it most nights.

"Killian?" she called with a shaky voice. She was being stupid, and she knew it. Even if he were here, which he obviously wasn't, according to Henry, his name wasn't even Killian anymore. That thought, the thought of him not being himself, not being her husband, sent a shiver rolling down her spine, and she fled from the ship without waiting for a reply.

After her failure to do anything useful on board the ship, Emma made quick work of driving to Grannies. She needed answers, and she needed them now.

The diner was almost empty when she arrived, for which she was glad. She couldn't afford to let anything she did or said get back to the queen. Red was waiting just inside the restaurant, at a little podium covered in menus. She smiled at Emma, her blood red lips stretching wide.

"Hi! Would you like a table?" Yes, just as bubbly as always.

Emma nodded and allowed Red to lead her to a table near the back of the dining area.

"You're new around here, aren't you?" Red asked, allowing Emma to slide into a booth.

For a second, Emma just sat there, pondering the best way to respond. After a moment, she settled on, "Yeah, just exploring the place a bit. I think I might choose to stay for a while."

"Well, I'm sure you'll like it," Red replied, handing her the menu. "This place sure has a lot of charm. The name's Ruby, by the way. I'll leave you to look over the menu." Emma was about to let her go, for the sake of trying to work through just what had happened today, when she realized that this was her chance.

"Hey, wait," she said, catching Ruby's attention. She had a feeling that all of these name changes were going to get confusing. "Speaking of town charm," Emma began, not quite sure of how to broach her question. "What can you tell me about that ship-the really old looking one in the harbor?"

Ruby gave her a look, as if she was surprised by the question. "Oh, that old thing? I don't-I don't know. It's just always sort of, been there, you know?"

Henry was right about the memory loss then. No one but she and the queen seemed to know what was going on. "Well," she began, nearly holding her breath. "Do you know who owns it? Just out of curiosity. I'm really into sailing."

Ruby thought for a moment. "Huh. I don't know. You might want to ask Mr. Gold. I've seen him on board a couple of times. He owns the pawn shop right down the street. I've got to warn you though, he's pretty scary."

She left after that, to let Emma read the menu, but the only thing she could think about was this Mr. Gold. If she let herself hope, a lot, then perhaps Mr. Gold was really Killian. If she was being rational though, nothing was ever that simple. He was probably just a member of the crew. Still, curiosity got the better of her, and she used her talking device to send a message to Henry. After telling him that she knew some things, like how to drive thanks to her cursed memories, but that she'd missed many of the details, Henry wasted no time showing her everything else he could think of. At the moment, she was infinitely grateful for this little device.

Who's Mr. Gold? She questioned, hoping that he was able to reply before she lost her mind.

A few minutes later, after Ruby had returned to take her order, and she'd randomly chosen and grilled cheese sandwich with a side of onion rings (whatever those were) Henry replied.

He's Rumplestiltskin. He helped my mom cast the curse. You might want to stay away from him. Also, I'm pretty sure that he remembers too.

It took all of Emma's restraint to sit still and eat her food, when every fiber of her being wanted to march down the street and confront Killian's crocodile. She'd waited a long time for the chance. After hearing the story, Emma had wanted nothing more than to hunt down the monster, to cut off his hand, or maybe his head.

When she was finished eating, and had paid for her meal with money she wasn't sure how she'd acquired, she left the diner in a hurry. Forget about paying attention, and using your brain more than your sword. This was too important.

She was so wrapped up in her thoughts, that she hadn't even gotten to the street corner before running into a stranger.

"Whoa, Love," came a familiar voice. A hand, a very familiar hand, wrapped around her arm in an attempt to steady her. When she looked up, she was met with deep blue eyes she'd been half convinced she'd never see again. "What's got you in such a hurry?"

A/N- Sorry for the long wait, but hopefully Killian's appearance makes up for it. I have a poll pertaining to the ending of this story on my profile. If you have the time, please do cast your votes.

-S.