Twisted every way/ what answer can I give?

The affair continued for another month in total secret, from his crew and her family. It was as good as they could wish it, given their unsavoury circumstance; but never once did they mention her engagement, and that pleased her. Until one night Emma started to think about her future.

She had left the tavern just before midnight as usual and arrived at the castle with time to spare, so she took the time to comb and speak to her loyal companion.

"I don't know how it happened, Gypsy," Emma whispered thoughtfully to the horse, "I just kind of… fell in love with him."

The horse obediently stood still for her master, letting her stoke her back gently.

"I know, it sounds stupid, I'm only eighteen, well seventeen. I don't know what love is," Emma said chiding herself, "Though, I imagine it to be as beautiful as us."

"I can't believe I fell in love with the pirate," She murmured, "I'm engaged and this affair is not right."

Gypsy bobbed her head up and down, her mane lightly brushed against Emma's cheek.

"I know," Emma said softly, "I'm such a fool. I should have never left the castle. I should have been content with my royal life of which commoners can only dream of," She spat out the words as though they were spoiled eggs,"People waiting upon my every need at every moment, doing everything for me. I can't live own life."

The horse was quiet and nibbled on the hay at her feet while Emma put the brush away and closed Gypsy's gate.

"Good night. I shall see you tomorrow," Emma said as she walked out from the stables and toward the castle. She decided to not use the secret passage and enter from the front, her parents should both be asleep as it is possibly well past midnight.

She pushed open the grand doors and made her way down the main hall, letting her gaze drift from painting to painting, but all she could think about was what Killian would be doing at the moment (even though she knew well, that it was wrong to do so).

The hall felt endless as she walked and walked trying to distract herself from her problem.

"Emma, sweetheart, is that you?" A voice called from her right. She turned to see one of the doors open, more precisely, her father's office was open.

"Yes father. It is me," She replied, stepping towards the office and gently pushed the open wider. Her father's desk was facing the door and there were two lounge chairs in front of the fireplace. Her father was sitting in one of the chairs while a stranger was sitting in the other.

"Emma, what a lovely surprise," Her father said getting up and pulling his daughter into a hug, "Come, I want to introduce you to someone of great importance."

"Oh," Emma said, barely audible as her father led her over to the chairs.

"Emma, meet Lord Nikolaus," He said motioning to the fat man trying to rise from his chair, "Lord Nikolaus, my daughter, Emma."

"Ah, King David, your daughter is much more beautiful than imagined," the lord said, but Emma just smiled in response, "Princess Emma this is truly a pleasure."

The fat man then turned to her father, "We shall resume this in the morning, I've grown quite tired and can no longer stay awake."

With that, he gave David a strange look and left, making his way into the hall while David took his seat in his lounge chair.

"Sit with me," He said, beckoning her to sit in the adjacent chair, "I haven't had spare time to spend with my most treasured young lady and I plan to make the most of it."

"Thank you daddy," She smiled widely, taking a seat next to him. She may not spend so much time with her father but she loved him nonetheless and favored him over her mother.

"So, how have you been?" He asked her.

"I've been well, and you?" But her father just shook his head.

"No talk about me, let's talk about you," he said a little too eagerly, making Emma immediately wary, "Anything interesting happen to you of late? Meet any new people?"

"Nothing interesting has happened, why?" She asked, strangely uncomfortable with this line of questioning.

"Sweetheart, you can't possibly think you could hide it from me can you?" He said with a raised brow.

Emma felt like a child caught stealing cookies.

"I-I haven't the slightest idea of what you are talking about," She replied cautiously, biting the inside of her cheek.

"Sweetheart, I know you too well," He said, dropping the act of sweetness, "I know you've been sneaking out to the tavern at the most ungodly hours."

Emma wanted to get upset, for many reason, one being that she was not able to fool her parents and the other being that she wished he had expressed this knowledge earlier. She sat there in bitter silence with furrowed brows.

"No need to get flustered over it, I'm your father and you're the princess," He said as if she was suppose to know what he was speaking of, "I need to keep you safe."

"But how did you-"

"You've been followed since the first night," David said keeping a cool face, "At first I was going to confront you about interacting with pirates but as it turns out you caught the attention of a wanted miscreant."

"Father?" Emma said nervously.

"I wanted tell you to keep away, but your mother convinced me to let him grow fonder of you so that you may help us lure him and we may collect on his head, which happens to be just enough to fund us until your wedding," He said the words rather ashamed, "I was against it, I didn't want to go through with it, but everyone including the dwarves were urging me to go ahead with that plan."

"What would I have to do?" Emma asked cautiously, not liking the conversation in the least.

"I- we need you to lure Killian Jones-"

"It's Captain Killian Jones" Emma corrected involuntarily.

"Captain Killian Jonesto the forest, so that Lord Nikolaus' men can capture him without causing a ruckus within the town."

She studied her father, noting every change in every feature of his face. He seemed as though he had gone to hell and back; the ogre wars were taking a great deal from him, emotionally and mentally. Everyone could tell.

"Will you do it?" He asked her tentatively. She loved her father and she could never deny him, but this was asking much of her, of course he didn't know that his daughter had fallen in love with the said pirate. She loved her father more than anything in this realm and the next; but now?

Now she had to choose between her father, who will always be at her side, and a pirate, who is a flight risk because of his perilous occupation.

"Y-yes father," She said rising from the chair, "but I have one question: what did Captain Jones do?"

"He is guilty of many things one of them high treason," David said firmly, "You needn't know the details darling. The rouse will take place the night after your birthday ball, the night after tomorrow."

"Uh-understood father," She stuttered as she walked away from him and into the hall of the castle. She ambled down the corridors towards her room, dreading each step because each one was closer to tomorrow. Each one closer to the day she had to betray her love.

After what seemed as hours of wandering the halls she finally got to her room. She changed into her nightgown and gently laid out on her bed, pulling the covers up to her chin but wrapped her arms around her stomach as though she were sick.

And she was. Sick with herself.

She felt her cheeks grow cold as a breeze brushed against her and she lifted a finger to gingerly touch her cheek and no surprise: she was crying.

She didn't hold it back. She fell apart in her bed. Cried for her soul. Cried for her heart. Cried for her love and father. Cried for how cruel this world is. She didn't want all this responsibility, didn't want the power to break someone's heart. She didn't want the future of the kingdom resting on her shoulders. It was too much and everything she was trying to avoid.

She cried until she could cry no more and her sobs became soft whimpers and her eyes slowly closed though a tear occasionally slipped out. She was dreading the new day.

Tomorrow would be the first night she wouldn't spend with Killian.