Regina's steps were long and quick, getting even quicker with each stride that she took. Too long she had waited, she thought, her brain getting clearer and clearer with every passing second, and along with it, her heart had started to respond as well, beating faster and faster. For far too long she had waited to get herself the cure to the curse which had overtaken her, heart and soul. Her entire being actually. After all, her heart couldn't command her while it was still inside her chest, rather, she had to command herself. And command herself she did. Her body played a part in it as well, a rather large part as a matter of fact, though not so large as one may think. The mind took care of that. It always did, turning her fears into her biggest weaknesses. Just like always.

So, she walked. She did it quickly and without worry. She did her very best to keep it level though, as she searched for the pirate in the best and most efficient ways that she could, checking first his ship, and then Granny's, and after that, several other places, until finally she found him in what was most likely the least place she would have expected him the least. Instead of being somewhere that could be considered actually reasonable, he was at her house. As it was, just seeing him there, she was afraid that he had burned it halfway down or something similar trying to go and do something with the appliances of this world.

"What are you doing here" she asked, or rather demanded of him. "I don't recall giving you entry to it at the very least, and as you know full well, I am not one for surprises of any nature."

"I was waiting for you. Do you really expect to get away with leaving me at the hospital, after threatening my life I might add, without me expecting to check up on you? Have you forgotten already, I'm always a gentleman" Killian replied with a grin, holding up the arm that had his hook on it.

Regina snorted at this. A gentleman, honestly? Did he really expect her to believe that? "Sure you are. But, as it just so happens, I need something from you."

Hook raised an eyebrow at this. "What could you possibly need from a pirate that you can not get yourself. I'm pretty sure that giving you your powers back got rid of all services that could require me."

Regina held up her arm with the cuff on it. "I wouldn't be so sure of that, though I'm afraid to say that you aren't going to be removing it for the time being though. Right now it would be better for me to keep it on."

"You still haven't told me what you want from me love. I'm beginning to think that you are just trying to distract me from leaving. Have my good looks gotten to you that fast?"

"Surprisingly, what I want from you is of a similar nature" Regina said, inhaling deeply and scrunching up her nose before exhaling, "I need you to kiss me."

He didn't even bat an eye before leaning down and kissing her right on the lips. She kissed him back, waiting for something, anything, to happen, indicating that the magic had worked and the raven's blood curse on her had been removed. But still, nothing happened. She broke away suddenly, stepping away from his arms, panicked. What if he wasn't her true love like she thought that he was? What if Daniel really was her true love and it would never be taken off from her? Could this really be just an infatuation?

"Why isn't it working" she said out loud without realizing it. "Why is it not working?"

"Why is what not working" Killian asked her tentatively, unsure, the grin on his face slowly fading away.

"The kiss, it was supposed to remove the curse on me... it was supposed to stop the raven's blood from eating my heart the rest of the way" she nearly screamed at him, her voice cracking slightly from trying to hold back the tears that were still trying their very best to come out anyways. Still, she resisted them as best that she could, not willing to let one fall because she knew that then the rest would come falling down swift and hard as well, something that she would avoid if at all possible.

"Curse... you were under a curse" Killian asked her in spite of himself. He knew that it was rude, but he couldn't help himself, if the queen was under a curse then it was probably for the best that he let someone know, right? He wouldn't want to be blamed for her death, would he? Of course, deep down he knew that wasn't the only reason, but he wasn't about to admit it... not even to himself.

"Yes, though I technically still am. Proper speech dear, remember" she replied in an attempt to keep herself together. Just rely on the anger, channel someone else, she told herself, trying to go back to her old techniques of staying together all of those years ago back in the enchanted forest, back from before she had cursed them all, before she did something that though she knew that she should, she couldn't regret. Even with a curse on her heart, a son that didn't love her anymore, and an intense loathing from most of the general population, she was still happier here than she ever was in their old land.

"But, what does it do your majesty" Hook asked again, remembering the title this time. He did suppose that she might as well be a queen still, even if she no longer held it as a title. She carried herself, and spoke, in such a way that he didn't think that she would ever be something not a queen to him.

"Call me Regina, I'm pretty sure you know me well enough for that at this point, we did just kiss after all" Regina told him absentmindedly before trying to explain what was happening with her because of the magic. To someone who hadn't used it for along time, the raven's blood curse would be rather hard to explain, after all. "As for the curse, it was given to me by Pan, while we were in Neverland. It is of a rather powerful nature, and like many curses that affect you in ways such as this one, it has to be taken willingly" she said, taking a breathe and being about to continue when Hook interjected saying,

"Why on earth would you take a curse willingly then?"

"I was getting there" she replied, silencing him with a glare. "I took it because it was either that or death. This way Henry wouldn't even know that I had left, rather than him thinking that it was his fault that I had died. You recall waking up back at the Jolly Roger rather suddenly back when you had thought you were still in battle with the lost boys? Well, that was my doing. I sent you all back to the ship, and I was about too send myself back as well, when I ran out of magical energy. I fainted, and as the spell wasn't quite completed yet, you all fainted as well. Really, I saved everyone's life if you think about it."

"Yes, your... Regina, but what does the curse that you placed upon yourself do?

"Your Regina, I think I like that" Regina said with a smirk. "Now then, the curses effects... it, quite simply, is a curse that eats away my emotions and my feelings, replacing them instead with magical energy, dark magical energy. It does much more than that however. While it is still eating away at your heart, you feel a lot of pain, and they are amplified. When you are sad, you are ten times sadder, when you are angry you feel it ten times more intensely... and if you are happy you feel that much happier. I can't imagine someone who is happy taking the raven's blood though. You need to know just what it is that you are doing before you take it otherwise it won't work. There's more though. The emotions that you feel the least of, they are the first one's that go. For me... they were love... and happiness."

"So you cursed yourself horribly in order to save us?"

"Correct. I knew that it was a matter of time anyways before I would succumb to the evil queen, and if I could save everybody before that happened then I could know that I had done something worthwhile before it happened."

"You know, Regina, i'm starting to think that I like the queen better."

"And what is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, I may not have known her for very long, but she seemed to be a lot less willing to sacrifice her heart and her soul, or to become a martyr. You didn't have too do that you know."

"But I did. How could I die knowing that there was a way too save my son that I didn't use?"

"Still though, you could still end up destroying him if you succumb to the evil queen because you had the strangest desire to become a martyr" he practically shouted at her. She was very nearly touched. It seemed as if he did care about her, or Henry at the very least.

"No I couldn't. The Raven's Blood curse is a magical one. It's effects weaken, well besides the pain but I have lived with that for a very long time and am well used too it by now, and so, it will not give me the desire for vengeance quite so strong any longer. I just have to keep the cuff on, and loathe as I am to be without my magic, I am willing to do it if it means that my son is safe."

"And what about you Regina, will you be safe without your magic? You did just attack Snow White after all, I can't imagine anyone not coming after your head soon enough."

"Be that as it may be, I will be perfectly fine. My dear stepdaughter could never bear to kill me, and if she were to find out about the curse she'd probably go out of her way to try and make me happy. The people on the side of good have a horrible tendency towards hypocrisy you know."

"But what about the others? Can you protect yourself against them?"

Regina didn't answer.

"Thought so. Well, I see no way to avoid this then."

"Avoid what" she asked him, very nearly worried about it.

"Stay here of course I will not let you be killed by an angry mob because of me."

"Like you could stop them" she scoffed. Did he really think that one man could stop an entire town with bloodlust? He didn't have that sort of rage at the present moment, and one person with bloodlust was enough to slaughter entire villages. She shuddered to think of what would happen to them when the town caught up with them, unless, of course, she could dissuade him from helping her. It shouldn't be too hard, after all, she usually had the other problem.

"You'd be surprised what I can do. At the very least I should last long enough for you to be able to make a run for it."

"Nonsense" she practically shouted. "I refuse to let you get yourself killed because of me."

"But you just told me earlier. You saved my life and it ended up with you getting horribly cursed. Hate to say it your majesty, but I believe that means that I owe you a life debt now."

"One that I refuse to let you pay!"

"Fine then, would you prefer I tell Snow what happened to make you snap at her like that then?"

"I really hate you" she told him before walking into the other room.

Killian smiled. True love or not, how much he loved her (Though of course, he would never admit to loving the queen) was more than what was possibly legal. Now all that he had to do was convince her of that fact.

This was going to be fun.

Don't worry everyone! This is still going to be a Hooked Queen story, which is proof that I do not own OUAT as they are firm in their captain-swan-ness. It tis okay though, we have fanfics enough to keep ourselves afloat, for now at least! You will just have to find out for yourselves soon enough exactly why true loves kiss isn't helping Regina...

In other news, this was my fastest update time yet, which means that I should get lots of reviews as a reward, right ;) Well, not if you don't want too, but I honestly don't have a whole lot plotted yet as far as next chapter is concerned so ideas are much appreciated there! Or ego strokes if you think that I deserve them...