They walked along the sandy edges of the cove, the Jolly Roger getting smaller the further away they ventured.
'I know they want to keep their home safe but does it really have to be so bloody hard to find?' Killian mumbled as he wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand. Despite the earlier fog trap surrounding the cove, the skies had been clear all day, and now the sun was beating down on them, the heat only made worse by their heavy clothing and the lack of shade.
'You're cute when you're all hot and frustrated.' Emma said so nonchalantly he had at first mistaken her compliment for sarcasm. She looked over to see his confused expression and she laughed. 'You cannot tell me a great flirt like you has never heard a compliment before.' She deadpanned, smiling when she saw him scratch his ear.
'Never from you, lass. Are you sure the heat isn't getting to you?' He asked, sounding genuinely concerned.
'I spent two years in Tallahassee, the heat doesn't bother me. So believe it or not, the compliment was genuine.' She gave him a reassuring smile even as her feet dug uncomfortably into the tough sand as they continued walking.
'Well I don't know where Tallahassee is, but I believe you. Tell me love, can I expect more compliments from you now that we're... you know.' His face was already red from the heat but she knew there was a blush underneath. She had to admit she found this situation amusing. He had been wiggling his eyebrow, wagging his tongue and suggestively speaking from the start, but after everything they had been through together he was only just now stuttering about their relationship.
'In a relationship? Yes. Well, I'm feeling good right now; we're close to getting home and I'm feeling positive about going back.' He returned her smile before squinting up at the rocks.
'I certainly do not want to diminish your positivity, Swan, but we can't get back until we find this bloody cave these fairies live in, and I didn't realize it would be so difficult.' He stopped to shield his eyes from the sun as he looked on; searching for some indication of the place they were looking for.
'Well then we're in luck because I'm pretty sure that's it right there.' Emma said as she pointed towards the rocks a little ahead of them.
'I don't see anything.' Killian replied with a frown.
'Really? Because the flickering rainbow coloured lights that are coming from the cave over there is a pretty good indication to me.'
Killian scanned the rocks in front of them but he couldn't see any flashy rainbow lights, except for the dots of colour across his eyes as they adapted to the bright sun.
'You don't see it do you?' She asked curiously.
'No, but perhaps it's because you have light magic. Another way to protect themselves I suppose. We should go look.' Killian smiled encouragingly at her, and she was once again surprised by his faith in her. They battled the sand once more until it began to thin out as they reached the rocks. Emma could feel the rough, bumpy surface through her thin shoes but the flatter surface gave her calf muscles a little rest. The dancing light was brighter now and she knew she was right.
'What are we going to say?' Emma asked, suddenly realizing she had no idea what the next step was.
'The truth.' Killian replied with a shrug.
'And what might that be exactly?' A voice said from behind them, and they simultaneously spun around to see who spoke. A fairy floated in the air behind them, her attire bright red and glittery.
'Hi.' Emma said nervously, and continued when the fairy gave her a less than impressed look. 'Well, we're actually from the future, a little over 30 years from now, and we need to get back. The Dark One was unable to help us reopen the portal, and we can't stay here. We've already had to fix a few problems we caused with the timeline. We just want to go home.' She finished, hoping to stir up any sympathy inside the fairy. She scowled but looked thoughtful.
'Your dilemma definitely needs resolving; it is important that everything happen as it should, and not because you intervened, accidentally or otherwise. However, I am weary of the fact that you are even here. This place is neither common knowledge nor easy to get to; how did you do it?' Perhaps she was simply being defensive of her home but Emma thought that she wasn't as pleasant as the Blue fairy.
'I heard about it in a tavern many years ago. As a pirate you hear plenty of stories, some true, some just lies. A few people have even said they would attempt to find it, but I've never known anyone to be successful, so I wasn't even sure if it was possible.' Killian said calmly, but Emma frowned. 'Wait, you suggested we come here but you didn't even know if it was real? What if it hadn't been and we spent a week searching for nothing?' Emma crossed her arms over her chest and looked at him expectantly, but the fairy sighed impatiently.
'You can discuss that later. What I want to know is how you passed the protection spells.' Emma was sure of it now; she definitely preferred Blue.
'That was Emma's doing. She guided the ship through the fog, and then she saw the light from inside the cave that led us here.' Killian gave her a look of awe (she also thought he looked a little sheepish now that she knew he was acting on a hunch) and the fairy noticed.
'You can only see the light if you have light magic, but I can't sense any energy from you. How is that possible?' Emma frowned again. It seemed she knew less than they did at this point, which was worrying.
'Well, I did have magic, but someone used a curse to take it away and I don't know how to get it back. I'm the product of True Love and I was born with pure magic, but I just don't have the ability right now, or maybe ever again.' Saying those words out loud made Emma realize that she actually wanted her powers back.
'I see. Well that's certainly a plausible explanation, but unfortunately even fairies do not have to ability to simply conjure up a portal. You are the only one who can make it work, and the only way you can do that is to get your powers back. You say your magic was taken with a curse? What kind of curse was it, how was it enacted? Perhaps doing the opposite can help.' Emma looked at Killian then, seeing the guilt all over his face.
'It's was through me. I was manipulated into swearing on the name of the woman I loved, and once I said her name, the Witch cursed my lips, so that the next time we kissed her magic would be taken. The Witch then forced a situation where I drowned, and Emma revived me with her lips, only for her magic to disappear.' Emma had never heard the story of how it had all happened, and even though she knew Killian had left some details out, her heart clenched at the pain she saw in his eyes.
The fairy's laughter brought both of them out of their intense thoughts. 'What's so funny?' Killian asked a little too harshly.
'Isn't it obvious? Emma's magic was taken by a tainted kiss; it needs to be brought back with a pure one: True Love's Kiss.' The fairy smiled for the first time since they had met her, but Emma and Killian were both still glaring at her.
'Um, well we've kissed since then, several times, and nothing has happened.' Emma replied, avoiding Killian's eyes. The fairy chuckled again and Killian shifted impatiently.
'The world would be a far more peaceful place if every kiss shared between true loves had an impact, but it's not because they don't. My guess as to why it hasn't happened for you two yet is because you're thinking too much. I sense this relationship is a recent change, and in that case, stop thinking about how it's going to work, what it means, what the future holds for you etcetera. Stop thinking and feel. That is my advice. Now there's nothing more awkward than people watching you kiss, so I'm going to leave the two of you alone. Once you're magic returns, you need only think of your desire to return home and the portal should appear.'
'And if it doesn't?' Emma asked quietly.
'I don't think that will be the case, but if it is, return and I will get Blue; she tends to have more tricks up her sleeve than the rest of us.' Emma momentarily smirked at the hint of resentment in her voice, but her smirk disappeared when the Red fairy flew away into the cave, leaving her alone with Killian.
Their hope of opening the portal rested on their ability to share True Love's Kiss, something Emma had always thought was rather ridiculous and fictional until that moment she broke the first curse with Henry. She wondered why she hadn't thought of it before, considering True Love's Kiss woke both her parents up from their sleeping curses, broke the first curse and brought back everyone's memories after the second.
After everything she had seen, believing that kissing someone could break curses was not the most difficult thing to get her head around. It was however difficult to get her head around the fact that her and Killian were apparently True Love. Was it even possible, to have more than one True Love? Perhaps it was when the bonds were different, but even if she could have more than one True Love, did she love Killian?
