She was so tired. She just wanted to sleep. Apparently even that was too much to ask for. Because as much as powerful as the pull of sleep was, Emma was annoyingly awake, albeit barely. She scrunched her face in frustration, her eyes still tightly closed. Somewhere off in the distance an annoying beeping noise sounded. Over and over again on a loop. She couldn't quite put her finger on what the sound was. A bird? A truck backing up? One of Henry's video games? That was probably what it was. She was going to hurl it out the window.

With a garbled sigh, she gathered the strength to pull herself out of her lumpy bed. She opened her eyes and her world tilted sharply around her as she realized she wasn't in her bed. Hell, she wasn't in Storybrooke. She sat up too quickly a wave of nausea hit her. All Emma could see was darkness. Pitch black. The beeping that had woke her continued, persistently. Disorientated, she closed her eyes and tried to gather her thoughts. Every muscle in her body ached and her head throbbed painfully. Slowly, she remembered. The Snow Queen, her doppelgänger, the avalanche… they were buried alive. Her eyes shot open. Her chest felt tight and her vision swam. Her breath came in short gasps as claustrophobia set in. Emma willed herself to calm down, she needed to stay strong for Killian. Her stomach dropped like a stone. Oh my god. Killian, where was Killian?

Frantically, she crawled on her hands in knees in the pitch black, searching for him by feel alone. Tears stung the back of her eyes as her bare hands felt nothing but the icy bite of the cold snow. Flustered, she sat back on her haunches and pulled her pack off her shoulders. She tore it open and heard supplies tumble everywhere. Uncaring, her frozen fingers closed around the flashlight and she clicked it on. Shining it around her, she realized she was in an air pocket, snow and ice packed tightly all around them. Hardly believing their luck, she pressed her hand tentatively against the wall and was met with warm resistance. The telltale glow of her magic shone brightly around her for a moment, before fading back to darkness. Apparently luck had nothing to do with it, she thought. Her magic lessons with Regina had finally paid off and she'd protected them with her magical muscle memory. Go figure.

With the help of the light, Emma quickly saw Killian slumped not far from her, his hand reaching towards her as if he was loath to let her go, even in sleep. His other arm hung at an odd angle from the rest of his body. Emma's stomach dropped as she remembered the sickening sound it had made as it dislocated from his shoulder. She was at his side in an instant, her face tight with worry.

"Killian, wake up," Emma commanded, shaking him roughly. She rolled him onto his back, but he gave her no response. She desperately felt for his pulse under his jaw and let out a shaky breath of relief when she felt it, weak and thready, but there. "Please, don't do this to me." She rested her palm against his face and trailed her thumb over the small scar on his cheek, only just visible under the new bruises and cuts that marred his face. She'd never asked him how he got it, she thought holding back her tears. And now she might never get the chance. Emma sighed and closed her eyes tightly. She couldn't think with that annoying beeping, still ringing loudly around her. It was her watch, Emma realized with a start. Henry's timer was beeping, indicating that it was time to open the portal.

How long had it been ringing? Emma thought, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth. Was it too late? Shooting one last concerned glance at Hook, Emma pulled the hat from the backpack and held it tightly. Concentrating, she focused her magic, trying to draw strength from the hat. She bit back a small smile as she felt it begin to work. The beginnings of a portal opened for a moment, illuminating the space, but then sputtered away before it fully formed. Emma groaned, they would have to wait for the next portal. She vaguely noted that the next window was in a little more than three hours. Emma turned her watch's timer off, the silence suddenly very oppressive. She dropped the hat, now useless to her, well for three hours at least, and dug though the supplies her parents had packed for them, taking an inventory of what was available to them.

As gently as she could, Emma dragged Hook to a sitting position, with his back resting against the wall. She was huffing from the effort required to move his dead weight. She hoped that between the blanket she wrapped around him and the warmth of her magical barrier, his core temperature wouldn't drop any lower than it already was. She unzipped his coat and gingerly pulled the collar of his shirt down to inspect his shoulder. The skin was already black and blue. She gently rubbed her hand over his battered skin, wishing she could take his pain away. She glanced at his face apprehensively. With a sigh, she realized she may as well take advantage of his unconsciousness. Firmly grasping his elbow, she grit her teeth and roughly pushed his shoulder back into the joint.

Killian's cries rang out in the dark enclosed space. His eyes bulged as the pain rocked him back to consciousness. Disorientated, his hand clutched at Emma's still tender throat, the pirate in him not willing to go down without a fight.

"It's me," Emma croaked. "Killian, it's Emma."

"Gods, Emma," He said, releasing his hold on her instantly. He dropped his arm around her and pulled her onto his lap. Emma went willingly, burrowing her head into his good shoulder. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry," He whispered against her hair.

"It's okay, I'm okay," She said quickly, wrapping her arms around his waist and pulling herself closer, as gently as she could. She felt him wince slightly, but he pulled her more tightly against him as he kissed her temple, his lips lingering. Emma felt his chest rising and falling roughly. She sighed heavily. "God, I thought I lost you. Again. Don't you ever scare me like that, ever again," She said harshly. She pulled away slightly and looked him in the eye. "Do you understand me?"

Killian laughed heartily, and rested his forehead against hers. "Aye, Swan. I promise."

"I'm being serious," Emma said as she moved her hands to rest on either side of his Adam's apple. She brushed her lips against his cheek and closed her eyes, trying to maintain her composure. "I can't lose you."

She felt him start to speak, when suddenly his body wracked with a violent cough. Emma pulled away, but quickly returned to his side with a bottle of water. As his cough subsided, he wiped his hand against the snow. Emma felt her stomach turn to ice when she saw the white snow turned dark with his blood. Saying nothing, she opened the bottle and motioned for him to take the water. He nodded his thanks and tipped the bottle to his lips. He drank quickly, clearly parched. Suddenly, he stopped drinking and winced.

"Sorry love," He said offering the bottle back to Emma. "I don't remember the last time I had a sip, but that's no excuse for my bad form. I've had more than my share."

"Have as much as you want. We have lots," Emma said as she pulled two more bottles out triumphantly. Clearly relieved, he drained the rest of the water and rested his head against the barrier, his breathing laboured. "Do you want more?" Emma said, offering him another bottle. She shifted awkwardly beside him. After everything they'd been through, she wasn't sure where her nervous energy was coming from. She wanted to reach out and touch him, but thoughts of their last encounter, their stupid, stupid fight, flashed to her mind and she felt unsure of herself. She felt a blush creeping onto her cheeks and felt relieved the feeble beam from the flashlight was too weak to illuminate the space.

"No, love, I'm fine," He said with a small smile. He wiggled his brows suggestively. "Although I wouldn't turn down a spot of rum…" Against her will, Emma felt a smile creeping back onto her lips. She averted her eyes and dug through the backpack again, eager to have something to distract her.

"Tough luck pirate," She said. "Left the rum in Storybrooke."

"Emma," Killian said, reaching for her. The movement caused him to grimace slightly, but didn't deter him. His gloved hand gently cupped her chin and tipped her eyes back up to meet his. He eyed her reverently. Any trace of his playful banter, gone from his face. Emma felt her heart constrict slightly as she felt a barrage of emotions assault her.

"I never thought I would see you again," He said, his voice raspy. "The real you," he amended. When he saw the hurt dart cross her face, he explained quickly, "We didn't exactly part on the best of terms, love." Emma felt her blush deepen. Clearly her heated, stupid, words were still fresh in his mind as well.

"Killian, I will always come for you. There's nothing you could say or do to change that," Emma said. She furrowed her brows. "Is there anything I could do that would make you ever not come after me?"

"No," He said without a moment's hesitation. His impossibly blue eyes bore into her, overflowing with emotion and Emma swallowed thickly. The hair on the back of Emma's neck stood up. It was like the room, the space between them, was charged with electricity. Wordlessly, he reached for her wrist and pulled her back against his chest. Emma breathed a sigh of relief as she nestled against him. His arms snaked tightly around her. She closed her eyes and placed a soft kiss along the hollow of his neck. For the first time in forever, despite their impossible circumstances, she felt safe.

"You can't sleep," She commanded, nuzzling her cold nose along his throat. "It's too cold."

"Aye, Swan," He said dutifully, although Emma swore she could hear the smirk in his voice. "How long do you expect we'll be holed up here before the cavalry arrives?"

Emma slid one of her frigid hands into his oversized mitten and laced her fingers through his. He looked at her questioningly, but said nothing. As always, he seemed to sense what she needed from him. Soundlessly, he squeezed her hand and allowed her time to gather her thoughts. After a moment, Emma took a deep breath and let the words tumble from her lips. As concisely as she could, she filled Killian in on everything, almost everything, that he missed. Throughout her story, Emma's eyes remained firmly fixed on her other hand as it played with the snaps on Hook's jacket. She hoped that for once, he wouldn't read her. That her careful omissions would go unnoticed.

She felt his body tense beneath her when she mentioned Gold and his hat. His arm tightened protectively around her waist as he it dawned on him that the cursed object was here with them. However, he never interrupted her. Instead he stroked his thumb over her slowly warming hand and let her words wash over them. They sat in silence, their bodies intertwined when she finished. After a couple minutes, Killian cleared his throat, breaking the silence.

"Swan," He said, his voice faint. She strained her ears to hear his words. "About that tape, and the hat—"

"I don't care," She said. "I just, I missed you Killian. I didn't know it was possible to miss anyone as much as I missed you. And," She hesitated slightly, the intensity of her emotions making her throat tighten. She was so bad at this. She finally looked into his eyes, drawing strength from him. "And I don't want to miss you anymore." She moved to brush her lips against his, but he tilted his head out of her grasp. Her eyes searched his, confused.

"Gods, I'm sorry for all the pain I've caused you, love," He said roughly after contemplating her for a moment. "With this bloody hat and with Tinkerbelle and—"

Emma covered his lips with her fingers, silencing him. "Don't apologize for that," Emma said quietly. Emma felt tears brimming behind her eyes and she blinked to keep them at bay. "That was me, being an idiot. Everything was going so well, I was just looking for a reason to run. I know you'd never, I, I'm so sorry—"

Emma's apology died on his lips as he pulled her into a bruising kiss. She moaned against his mouth and pulled her hand free of his to drag it through his hair. The air was filled with the sounds of their breathless pants. Hungrily, they clawed at each other, their icy prison quickly becoming not so cold at all. Suddenly, Killian pulled away. He was never the one to pull away, Emma thought. He twisted away from her and coughed loudly into his sleeve. Emma rested her forehead against his shoulder and gently rubbed the back of his neck. She eyed him carefully as his cough subsided.

Killian wheezed as he drew breath. Some of the old cuts on his face had reopened, presumably during their tumble from the castle. With every stealthily glance she took, Emma grew more and more concerned. She was worried Hook wouldn't survive the wait until the next portal if she didn't do something. But she'd never used her magic to heal someone before. What if she did more harm than good?

"What is it Swan," Killian said, his breath hot against her ear. "I can feel you thinking." He smiled at her, acting as if everything was right as rain. Emma frowned as she took in the pain etched behind his eyes. She could see through his practiced mask of nonchalance. Resting her palm against his cheek she leaned towards him and kissed him softly. She felt him smile against her lips as he returned her affections. Lightly nipping at her lips.

"Trust me?" She asked as she pulled away breathlessly, resting her forehead against his. Her hands slid around his neck and toyed with the hair at the nape of his neck.

"Always," He said immediately, kissing her cheek.

Emma shifted slightly, so her legs were straddling him. She held her weight above him and took a shallow breath. Leaving their foreheads pressed together, she closed her eyes and tried to act like she knew what she was doing. A quiet voice whispered in her mind that she should conserve her magic for the portal, but she pushed it down. She couldn't leave him like this. Every ragged breath he took pained her. If she could take away his hurt, then she would goddammit. More quickly then she had anticipated, a burst of magic shot out from her. She heard him gasp in surprise and he clutched her waist more tightly in response.

"Swan," He said, laughing after a moment. The sound music to her ears. "You're a bloody marvel." She smiled and pulled herself closer to him, vaguely wondering how she would know when the magic was complete. When he wasn't hurting. Suddenly, he pushed her away roughly. The force of his movement broke her concentration and her magic stilled as suddenly as it had stared.

"Emma," He whispered, his face twisted into a horrified expression. "What have you done?" Emma wasn't sure why he was complaining. His injuries, while still present, looked much better. His cuts had healed to scabs and the dark bruising had faded to a pale yellow.

"What?" She asked, slightly annoyed. She started to move back towards him and grimaced. She brought her hand to her side, clutching tightly. Her own chest felt tight and each breath she drew was accompanied by a burst of pain.

"Swan," He admonished. He pulled his mitten off with his teeth and tipped her face towards him. His hand shook slightly as his fingers lightly trailed over her face, a mirror to the injuries that had painted his face only minutes ago. His features were tight with barely controlled anger. Emma grit her teeth as another jolt of pain crashed over her. He pulled his arm back abruptly, fearing he was the cause. "Undo this, Swan. Now," He said quietly.

She shook her head quickly. "It should have been me," Emma said, feeling no regret. She meet his stormy eyes fiercely. Never mind she had no idea how to reverse the spell. "I have the cold heart. I always have. The Queen should have taken me instead—"

He stood up quickly, unable to listen to another word, and walked to the opposite side of the small air pocket. He needed space from Emma, more space than this bloody ice bubble could give him. Gods, he wanted to shake her. Shake some bloody sense into her. Restlessly, he paced back and forth along the far wall, his jaw tightly clenched. He felt Emma's eyes on him, but he refused to acknowledge her. With each step he took, his anger intensified. His lungs felt clear, his muscles loose. He was acutely aware that every ounce of pain he'd struggled with before had been transferred to Emma. He ran his hand over his face.

Emma watched him carefully. His terse steps were punctuated with furious curses from under his breath. His back was to her, so she couldn't really hear what he was saying, but she did make out bloody, stubborn, maddening and princess. Shakily, she rose to her feet and walked towards him. Each step she took was painful. She wondered how Killian had been able to function, knowing she hadn't even fully absorbed all of his injuries. She rested her hand on his arm gingerly and he stopped pacing.

"What else?" Killian asked tersely without meeting her eye.

"What—"

"Before, when you told me this bloody plan of yours, you left something out," He turned and the intensity behind his gaze knocked the air out of her. She took a staggered step back, but he gently grabbed her wrist and kept her close. "What?"

Damn it, She thought. "Killian," She said hesitantly. "There's nothing—"

"Come now Swan," He said. "Don't lie to me, you owe me that courtesy at least."

"Only one of us can go through the portal," Emma blurted. Killian's hand tightened around her wrist, but he said nothing. Outwardly, it appeared he hadn't even heard her, but Emma saw the turmoil he felt reflected in his eyes. So that's all it took to finally render the pirate speechless, Emma thought grimly. Finally, he pulled her tentatively back into his arms. Emma blinked away her tears and rested her head against the crook of his neck.

"Emma," He said softly. "Why did you come?"

"To save you," She said, tightening her hold on him. She inhaled his scent greedily. She hadn't wanted him to know, she knew he would try and talk her out of staying. But she wouldn't have it. Her decision was made.

"So I'm to go through the portal and leave you to your demise? And your lad, your parents?" He asked. His voice hardened. "What of them?"

"They didn't know," Emma said with a sniffle. She recounted Regina's warning about the power of the hat, her words muffled against his shoulder. "I just, I couldn't let you, I wouldn't let you go," Thinking of her family and the fact that this was likely the last time Hook would hold her in his arms, the pain, physically and emotionally, became too much. Emma choked back a sob as the tears she'd been holding back streamed down her face. She pulled herself closer to Hook, trying to hide her face. He rocked her gently.

"No," Hook said simply.

"Killian, this isn't a something you can just will away—"

"If anyone can, it's us," He said simply. "I've yet to see you fail Swan. Regina has no idea what you're capable of, how extraordinary you are. I believe, with every fibre of my being that you can sustain this bloody portal with your magic, love. The question is, do you believe in yourself?"

"Magic always comes with a price," Emma said. "This is the price of the portal. I'll pay it, I'll pay it for you—"

"No," He said again, pulling away from her. He found her eyes and Emma saw that his features had softened. His anger had lessened. "Because I won't let you go either, Swan. It's that simple."

"Killian—"

"Stop, Emma, I won't lose you. Not again. That cursed year we were apart, it, it wrecked me losing you. I won't do it again," Emma felt her heart melt when she saw the sincerity of his words. She gently cupped his cheek, his scruff rubbing on her palm. "We either go through together, or not at all."

"Okay," She said with more confidence than she felt. "We'll go back to Storybrooke, together, in," She glanced at her watch, groaning inwardly. "Two hours and thirty-four minutes."

"Aye," Killian said, pulling her back tightly against him. He seemed only a little surprised that he had won the argument so quickly. "Now that that's settled, any suggestions on how to pass the time, Swan?"

"For starters," Emma said, gently trailing her thumb over the small scar on his cheek. "Tell me where this came from..."

Sorry again for the delay. Christmas preparations and work have not left me a lot of spare time! However, the good news is that I know exactly what is going to happen with the next couple chapters, so you shouldn't have to wait so long for updates! Exciting things are on the horizon.

Also, how upsetting is it that we're in a winter hiatus until MARCH (I didn't realize it was so long until tonight)?

If you like what you read please review, your kind words always warm my heart :)