A/N. Okay, so I just saw that if everything goes according to the previous years, then the Season 5 premier will come out on September 27. September 27! That's 131 days from now! That's almost four and a half months! :( :( :(

Disclaimer: If I owned OUAT then I would know everything that will happen and I wouldn't have to wait FREAKING 131 DAYS for the season 5 premiere :(


Chapter 8


KILLIAN POV


Killian was upset. His Swan was somewhere out there, most likely being forced to work for some bloody magician. If that man did anything to hurt Emma, he swore that he would kill him.

"Killian," said Henry urgently, snapping him out of his thought. "We've found a way to find my Mom."

"What's that, lad?" he asked, staring at Henry in shock, not believing what he was hearing. They had spent fruitless hours searching for a lead and Henry had nearly fallen asleep. The poor boy hadn't gotten a wink of slumber since they had come several hours ago. Come to think of it, none of them had gotten any sleep. But couldn't rest now, not when Emma was out there somewhere.

"My mom—Regina—she found someone who thinks he knows where Mordred is."

"Well then," he said, clapping the lad on the back, "what are we waiting for? Where is this man?"

"Woman," corrected Henry. "Mom has her waiting for us in her house. Come on!"

He followed the boy, wasting no time. After Regina had woken him up and Henry had wished the book out of thin air, they had decided to question the villagers of Mordred's whereabouts. They hadn't found anything—up until now. The townsfolk were pleasantly oblivious, not knowing much about their former king except for the fact that he was a rather ruthless ruler and didn't tolerate a toe out of line. Apparently he had put a poor bloke to death for simply insulting one of his guards.

Henry led Killian to a small cottage near the edge of the town. David, Mary-Margaret, Robin, and Regina were there already. They were huddled in the middle of the room, whispering to one another. A small woman was sitting in a rickety, wooden chair behind them, her face nervous.

Killian couldn't help but notice the woman's frame hanging off her body and her dull eyes. The house wasn't much better for wear. There were holes in the floor, placed at random throughout the wooden ground and cobwebs were gathered in the corners. He felt a twinge of sympathy for the poor woman who now looked frightened out of mind at the four adults situated in front of her.

As he neared, he saw that the woman was cradling a small baby in her arms. The baby looked as if it was near death, a sickly pale yellow colour. "Regina," he started quietly, "look at her, she's starving,"

Regina met his, her gaze sympathetic. "I know, but we need answers first. Now that Mordred's gone, things here will undoubtedly get better." His mind was still not at ease, and the former Evil Queen seemed to notice. "Don't worry," she reassured him, "I've sent some men to the castle to see if they can find food or at least something to help these people. I'm sure Mordred kept a healthy stash of loot in his castle."

He nodded and turned back to the woman, along with Regina. "So you think you know where Mordred is?" Snow asked her softly.

The woman—Regina had notified him that her name was Eva—nodded, some of her fear gone. "Y-yes," she muttered, "but he would kill me if I told anyone. He would kill my baby!" She was halfway to hysterics now.

"It's okay," soothed the brunette. Killian could see where the stories of Snow White's kindness came from. Right now, she was just what the frightened woman needed. "I have a little baby boy too, you know," continued Snow.

"Y-you do?" stuttered Eva in surprise.

"Yes, but he's not with me right now, as much as I want to be with him. I'm here looking for my daughter and if you tell me where you think Mordred is, then I can find her! I can go back to my little boy and we can be a family again."

Snow's eyes were filled with such determination, such love that Killian felt a newfound respect for her. The woman would do anything to find her daughter. It was the Charming family rule after all—they would always find each other. And if they found Emma—when they found Emma, maybe he would be part of their family too.

Eva was smiling slightly now, comforted by Snow. "O-ok," she said quietly, "I'll tell you where Mordred is."

Killian leaned closer, determined to catch every single word so he could find Emma. If Mordred had harmed her...

"It-it was a few months ago," began the skinny woman. "I was nine months pregnant and grieving—my husband had just been killed by Mordred. You see, my husband didn't agree with his rule and decided to speak out and..." Sobs suddenly wracked the woman's body and she clutched the baby to her chest even tighter.

Killian saw Regina shoot a sympathetic glance at the woman, sadness in her eyes. "Then what happened?" urged David softly.

Her sobs subsided enough for her to continue speaking. "I was at his grave, a little ways from here. It began raining hard and I n-noticed a cave nearby. I had to keep well—for the baby—so I sought shelter in the cave." Killian noticed the woman's eyes were suddenly alight with fear. Evidently, Snow observed this as well, for she laid a comforting hand on her shoulder, silently urging her to continue.

"I heard n-noises coming from d-deep within the cave. I kn-know I shouldn't have in my condition, but I was curious, so I walked deeper into the tunnel." She shuddered slightly, gently rocking her child back and forth. "In there, I saw Mordred, our very own king, performing some sort of witchcraft on a dead body. And when I came closer I realized it-it was my husband's." Another small sob escaped her and Mary Margaret squeezed her shoulder.

"It-it was terrible! I ran away as quickly as I could—I knew if he caught me there, he would kill me. Ever s-since then, I've seen Mordred sneaking out of the palace. He's been going to the cave—I-I know it!"

"So you think he's at the cave," murmured Regina, deep in thought.

Eva nodded, filled with a new vigour. "I'm sure of it!" she exclaimed. "It's where he always went and where he would go if there was a threat to his position. He's a dirty coward at heart," she snarled.

"Can you give us directions to the cave?" asked Killian immediately. The woman had said it wasn't too far from here. That was good. It meant he would find Emma soon.

The woman nodded, speaking with Regina about how to reach the place she had described in her tale. Once she had finished with the directions, Eva spoke up again, looking straight at him. "I suggest you sleep the night before going after this Emma."

"That's out of the question!" he snarled. He wouldn't waste a moment sleeping when he could be searching for Emma.

"You're not going to be much use when you're dead on your feet, are you?" asked the woman dryly, staring especially at Henry, whose seemed tired but was adamantly keeping himself awake.

"She's right," muttered Regina. "We've been here for nearly two days and haven't gotten a wink of sleep. We need to be at full strength if we're going to confront Mordred."

"I am at full strength!" insisted Killian. "The faster we get moving, the faster we find Emma!"

"And we won't be moving very fast if we don't sleep," Regina shot back. She kept casting glances at Henry, who looked as if he were about to topple over any moment.

"You're welcome to sleep here," offered their new acquaintance, "I haven't got an extra bedroom, but you can sleep on the floor. You can leave at daybreak tomorrow morning."

"But that's hours from now!" he argued. "Who knows what he might've done with Emma by then? The man is bloody mad!"

Mary Margaret laid a hand on Killian's shoulder. "Emma will be fine," she whispered. "She's a tough girl. We have to help her, though, Hook, and we won't be any help if we don't get proper rest." Killian cast a disbelieving glance at the pixie-haired brunette. Now the whole bloody family was siding against him!

"But Emma..." he whispered softly, at a loss for words.

"Will be fine," confirmed David. "We'll find her Hook, I promise. We'll leave right at sunrise. Besides," he said, glancing down at Killian's stomach. "You need rest. Your wound hasn't fully healed yet and you won't be much help to us if you fall over and die."

"Way to put it bluntly, mate," he grunted.

As if on cue, he felt a sharp pain in his lower stomach region and sighed. He knew the others were right, but that didn't make it any less difficult. Sleeping was like they were putting Emma on hold. And he didn't want to put Emma on hold for anything.

"Sleep or I'll force you to," snapped Regina quite suddenly.

No. He couldn't sleep. Emma was out there. He needed to find her. The world was becoming blurry and Killian staggered, gripping the woman's chair for support. He heard a sigh and a snap of fingers and everything went black.


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Killian eyes fluttered open and he instantly scrambled to his feet. Where was he...? This wasn't the woman's house. This was someplace else. Maybe he was dreaming? Killian turned around and evaluated his surroundings. He appeared to be in a dungeon of some sort. Cells lined the walls and faintly burning torches lit a narrow path. He tried grabbing one of the wall sconces, but his hand simply passed right through it. It was like he was a ghost of some sort—from the old pirate tales of the Flying Dutchman and Davy Jones.

He moved through the twisted passageways searching for something. He didn't know what he was searching for, but he knew it was important. He wouldn't be here if it wasn't important.

Killian glanced in the various cells but they all seemed to be empty, cobwebs hanging in the corners as if they hadn't been habited for a very long time. Here and there he spotted skeletons, still chained to the walls, as if they would try to escape if they weren't restrained. He shuddered. They had been here so long they had rotted and died.

As Killian ambled through the dark corridors he heard a sound—a whimpering to be precise. It was coming from one of the cells. "Hello?" he asked softly. "Is anyone there?" He knew he couldn't touch anything here—his hand passed through everything as if he were a spirit—but perhaps he could speak.

"Hook!" called a soft voice. "Killian!"

He recognized that voice. He could recognize it anywhere. Emma! His Swan was here! He rushed towards the source, frantic to find her. "Emma!" he shouted. "Emma?"

"Quiet!" hissed her voice again. "He'll hear you!"

This time he was able to pinpoint the location of the voice. It was coming from a few cells down. He ran towards it, passing straight through the bars of the cell, his eyes coming to rest upon his love.

God, she looked terrible. Bags hung under her eyes and her face was pale and haunted. Her eyes were red and bloodshot as if she hadn't slept for a very long time. She was tied and chained to the wall of the dungeon and he noticed with anger that her wrists were red and raw. He could see her ribs! He would kill Mordred the next time he saw him.

"Emma?" he asked softly. "Emma?"

She lifted her head and a grin broke out on her face. "Killian!" she exclaimed. Her tone quietened significantly as she continued to speak. "I knew it would work!"

"Knew what would work, love?" he murmured, desperately trying to touch her but to no avail. His hand passed right through her features and he shuddered. He wanted to hold her so bad. He wanted to comfort her, to soothe her.

"My magic," she hissed excitedly, "I wished for you to come here. Not really come here, of course, but for an apparition of you to travel here in the dream world!"

"Are you sleeping too?" he asked curiously. He was thoroughly confused—how could that even work? It seemed like one of those new world 'technologies' Emma had introduced him to—like the talking phone.

Emma shook her head woefully. "I-I can't," she muttered, her voice breaking slightly. "But you're here, well, sort of here, and that's all that matters."

Killian felt anger boil up inside of him, enveloping his entire being. How dare that man imprison his love? He would pay for his atrocities. "I need to go back!" he exclaimed suddenly, filled with a new vigour. "I need to wake up the others so we can come here and break you out!"

Emma's eyes widened and her face showed some kind of emotion he could place—fear maybe? But why would she be scared? They were going to come and save her!

"No, no you can't," she hissed hastily. "You can't come here."

"And why not, Swan?" he asked angrily. "You can't stop us. We will—I will get you out of here."

She shook her head again; her faded blonde hair swinging to and fro. "No! Killian, I can't hurt you again! You might have died!" The panic showing in her eyes was all too noticeable.

"It was an accident, love," he soothed. He couldn't let her believe that any of it was her fault. "We are coming for you, no matter what."

"No, you are not!" she hissed, her eyes black with anger. He could feel the power radiating off of her. "The only reason I called you here in the first place was so that you could tell the rest of them to stop looking for me! Mordred has the dagger, Killian! He won't hesitate to control me—make me hurt one of you! You'll see. You'll hate me!"

Her face was a swirl of panic and fear and anger and Killian wanted more than anything to stop her from thinking like that. She couldn't believe that hurting any of them was her fault. He knew it was the darkness inside of her that was making her behave this way.

"For the last time, Swan!" he shouted. "I don't care if you hurt me! I don't care if he's controlling you! I am coming for you, no matter what, you understand?" he hissed. "Your family loves you! They do not hate you! And you know what? You're bloody daft if you think we feel anything toward you but love! You have to stop pushing us away, Emma! Let us help you! Because, trust me, none of us will stop until you are with us again and none of us will ever, ever hate you!"

Killian finished, breathing hard, and not taking his eyes off the woman in front of him. Emma seemed to be shocked, eyes wide and mouth hanging open slightly. The woman needed to understand she was important. They wouldn't let her live her days alone, in pain.

"I have to say," smirked a voice, "that was a rather inspiring speech."

Killian whipped around to see none other than the man he most wanted to suffer smiling wickedly down at them. Mordred.


Ok, so this chapter is a little longer than usual but I hope you liked it :P

Some CS moments in there... next chapter you'll see some of Emma's POV

Reviews make me happy! Don't you want me to be happy...?