Emma had no idea what to do. She wanted Hook back so badly it hurt. She wanted him back not just for his fighting prowess (although that was part of the reason), but because she missed him. She wanted to be able to hug him when she was feeling afraid, and she wanted him to kiss her on the cheek when she needed assurance. Besides that, Henry clearly wanted the pirate back just as much as she did. He had made that exceedingly clear when he once again confronted her about waking Killian. As much as she wanted to tell him that she would (and she did want to, she wanted to so much), she was still too afraid.

It was about a week after they arrived at the cabin that she decided that if she wasn't going to bring the real Killian back then she needed to begin teaching this Killian how to wield a sword. Although she was not an expert by any means, she knew that Killian had been. She had no doubt in her mind that once he really got into it his body would remember what to do.

She finally got the nerve to bring up the lessons one afternoon when they were lounging about idly in the cabin. As soon as the words left her mouth, Killian stared back at her with a look of uncertainty on his face. However, a second later he schooled his features and agreed that it was indeed time for him to learn.

Ten minutes later she and Killian stood facing each other in the middle of a small clearing a little ways from the cabin, each of them with a sword at their hip. Emma was internally debating how she was going to go about teaching him when Killian spoke up.

"You're telling me," he asked tentatively, "that in this other reality, I'm…an expert with such a weapon?"

"You're a regular Jack Sparrow," she replied grinning, amused by the irony of his question.

"Is that good?" he asked, his voice rising with uncertainty.

She bit back a chuckle at his confusion as she stepped towards him. "Here," she said kindly, "let me show you how to use it."

He made a gesture as if to argue, but she ignored it and came to stand directly behind him. Gently, she grabbed his hand with hers, and guided it down to draw his sword from its sheath. She began guiding his arm through the (admittedly limited) moves she knew, speaking to him as she did so.

"They say that once you become an expert," she began, "your subconscious takes over. Back in my world that's what we call muscle memory," she said, returning the sword to its place.

At that, he looked over shoulder and straight into her eyes.

"Tell me more about this reality you want to return to," he pleaded. "Us, for example. I sense that we, ah, we may be close?"

"Very."

At that, his eyebrows shot up and he cocked his head to the side, obviously shocked that he was correct in his assumptions about their relationship. "Really? Well, I'm starting to get jealous of the other me," he said laughing nervously as she stepped away.

Emma was about to make some kind of reply when the sound of a pistol shot made them both jump. "What was that?" Emma asked as Killian pulled his spyglass from his belt and looked through it. A moment later, he lowered it, his eyes filling with fear.

"Blackbeard," he said, his voice trembling. "He found us."

"How?" she asked, her voice rising in pitch.

"I don't know. But that's not what matters right now. I know that they must have set that pistol off by accident, but it's a blessing that they did. You need to get back to Henry and hide. "

"What about you?"

Killian gulped nervously. "I have a plan," he said. "Now go, save your boy."

Emma took off towards the cabin at top speed. Although she agreed with Killian that Henry needed to stay hidden, he was crazy if he thought that she wasn't going to fight. When she arrived at the cabin, she stayed just long enough to ensure that Henry was safely in the closet before she rushed back to the clearing.

When she arrived back, Killian looked at her incredulously. "I thought I told you to stay hidden!" he exclaimed, a hint of anger creeping into his voice.

"I'm not letting you face this alone!" she said firmly, raising her eyebrow in challenge.

He groaned loudly and came to stand directly in front of her. In that moment, Emma was thoroughly reminded of the old Killian, and how he seemed to have no qualms about getting physically close to her. "I told you to hide because even if my plan fails, Blackbeard doesn't know your here," he yelled. "And if he doesn't know you're here, you and Henry can still escape even if I fail. Now get back to the cabin before…"

"Too late!" came a voice from amongst the trees. A moment later, a pirate in a red jacket and large hat, whom Emma could only assume was Blackbeard, stepped into the clearing, flanked by ten other pirates.

"You should have known better than to hide and steal from me, Hook," Blackbeard drawled lazily as he leisurely sauntered towards them. "You couldn't possibly have been stupid enough to think that I wouldn't be able to find you. Although I suppose you were because here we are," he said gesturing around them. "It's of no matter, now, I suppose," Blackbeard continued, chuckling softly. "I have my ship back now as well as a wench to go with it," he said nodding his head towards Emma.

At that, Killian's jaw clenched and he balled his hand into a fist. Although he still looked terrified, — his face was white as a sheet and sweat was beginning to form on his brow — Emma was sure that had Blackbeard been close enough, Killian would have punched him in the face. "Don't call her that!" Killian spat, his voice dripping with venom.

At first Blackbeard looked taken aback by the outburst, but then burst into laughter. "Look at this deckhand, boys," he said, addressing his crew. "He actually thinks that he can order me, his captain, about!" he exclaimed, continuing to laugh. "The time for pretending is done Hook," he said once he regained his composure."Seize them!"

"Wait!" Hook yelled desperately, which caused the pirates to pause their advance. "I propose a duel. I challenge you for possession of the Jolly Roger."

Blackbeard looked at Killian like he couldn't quite believe what he had just heard. "You wish to challenge me to a duel?" he asked, his voice filled with incredulousness.

"Aye," Killian replied, looking Blackbeard square in the eye.

Blackbeard stood there for a moment, clearly mulling Killian's proposition over. A second later he began to speak. "Alright, we will duel. If you win, the Jolly is yours, and you have my word that my crew and I will not harm you or your wench. But if you lose, and you will lose, I will enjoy gifting you with a slow and painful death; you'll be example to anyone else who is foolish enough to think that they can steal from me.

"How do we know you'll keep your word?" Emma said, speaking up for the first time since Blackbeard had stepped into the clearing. "What's to keep you from just taking the ship when Killian beats you?"

"The Jolly Roger is made from Enchanted Wood," Blackbeard said, regarding her with a mix of interest and contempt. "And like all magic it comes with a price. If this deckhand can indeed beat me in a duel, I, as well as anyone who recognizes me as their captain will be unable to sail the ship. Fortunately for me, there is not a man in this realm who is a better swordsman than me, least of all this one-handed coward," he said, pointing at Killian. "Now," he said, his voice becoming louder and more angry, "shall we quit wasting time and begin?"

"Killian, you don't have to do this," Emma said, grabbing him by the shoulder. "I can fight him, I…"

"No," he said emphatically. "You have your boy. If I fail, you and he can still get away." And with that, he drew his sword and strode towards Blackbeard.

The two pirates stood in the middle of the clearing, surrounded by Emma and Blackbeard's crew. "Last chance to back out, Hook," Blackbeard said. "Maybe if you surrender now I'll change my mind and give you a quick death."

Although Killian still looked utterly terrified at what he was about to attempt, he looked Blackbeard straight in the eye, and uttered a single word: "Never!"

With that, Blackbeard lunged forward, his sword glinting in the sunlight as it slashed through the air. Killian barely managed to block it as a terrified huff escaped from his lips and his face contorted in fear. Blackbeard smirked at Hook's evident lack of confidence and lunged forward again. Once again, Killian parried the blow, this time with slightly more finesse.

The pirates continued their fight, and soon the sound of clanging metal replaced the silence of the forest. The swords flashed through the air, their speed increasing with every thrust and jab. As they continued to fight, Emma began to notice that Killian was gaining more and more confidence. It didn't take long for the cowardly deckhand to be replaced with Captain Hook, swordsman extraordinaire. It appeared that Killian's muscle memory was indeed taking over.

Emma was not the only one to notice Hook's improvement. With every move that Hook blocked, Blackbeard seemed to get more and more frustrated, and more and more distressed. Eventually, the look of easy confidence on his face was replaced with one of confusion and panic.

As time wore on, Emma could clearly see that Blackbeard was becoming fatigued, and that his technique was becoming sloppy. Killian, on the other hand, only seemed to be getting stronger. Eventually, he was able to maneuver his sword so that Blackbeard's weapon was knocked from his wrist. Killian then raised his leg, and kicked Blackbeard to the ground. He kicked his opponent's sword away, before pointing his own straight at Blackbeard's throat.

"It appears that I have won," Killian said, the surprise evident in his voice. However, it was quickly replaced with more venom than Emma had ever heard him use in this reality. "The Jolly Roger is now mine. Take your crew and get out of my sight." Blackbeard stared up at Killian, his face filled with unadulterated hatred. As he got to his feet, Emma was afraid that perhaps he might go back on his word and order his crew to attack and kill them. However, the former captain of the Jolly Roger simply turned on his heel and walked back in the direction from which he had come, gesturing for his crew to follow suit.

As soon as Blackbeard disappeared from view, Emma realized that she was panting heavily. She hadn't seen Killian speak like that in forever, not since he had stabbed Gold in New York. But as he turned to face her, his eyes became void of all anger. Instead, they held a look of determination…and something else to which she couldn't quite give a name.

Then, dropping his sword, he strode toward her, his gait full of purpose. He came to stand right in front of her. After a second's hesitation he brought his right hand to her cheek, cupping it gently, before lunging forward and kissing her passionately.

A second later a pulse of light emanated out from where they were standing. Killian pulled back and stared at her for a moment, recognition flooding into his eyes. "Swan," he sighed, his voice full of relief and full of…love.

"Emma," he continued breathlessly, "that kiss, does it mean…?"

"Shhh," she said, covering his lips with two of her fingers. "We'll talk about it later."

A look of confusion passed over his face, immediately followed by one of understanding. "Aye, love," he said resting his forehead against hers. "Of course."

A huge wave of affection for the man before her washed over her. He knew she loved him, but he also knew that she need the time to say it. Overcome with emotion, she pulled him toward her, and his lips met hers once again.

They were interrupted only a few moments later by Henry's indignant voice. "Okay, you guys can stop now! I'm happy for you and all, but there's only so much a kid can stand to see."

Although he put on a disgruntled facade, Emma could tell that Henry was just as happy to have Killian back as she was. Her suspicion was confirmed when, immediately after hugging her, Henry turned around to embrace Killian. The pirate looked taken aback, but reciprocated enthusiastically. The scene before her warmed her heart, and she couldn't help but smile.

She finally had her pirate back. Now it was time to get everyone else back.