This isn't quite fic but it's close enough. I received the following message and this chapter was my response.


And YOU KNOW they're gonna be cruel and have the last scene be right after the Emma/Hook TLK. The curse breaks, the shimmer running through the town, and Emma and Hook gaze at each other with wonder and love... AND THEN BAM! Freaking Hades (who's made a pact with Pan/WW in the Underworld to come back and KILL THEM ALL) appears in the heavens and all CS can do is hold each other in fear as the SCREEN TURNS BLACK...

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Scene opens with Emma, stepping into Hook's hospital room and shutting the door behind her, leaning back up against it. She's just spoken to Regina, and she knows there is only one way to break this curse - this curse he willingly went under, to protect her.

She walks over to the bed, and looks down at him. He's lying on top of the blankets, fully dressed - there's nothing medically wrong with him after all, nothing anyone can do… except maybe Emma. And she's battling with all her fears - what if this doesn't work, he tried it so if it fails it will be because of her, she'll lose him forever and it will be all her own fault… what if it does work, then everyone's going to know what it means, he'll know and so will she, even after everything if this works it's going to up the stakes so high that she will be completely shattered if she ever loses him –

-but isn't she shattering already? The fact that it's even occurred to her to try means she has to do it. It's only been a few hours and already she can't handle it, she can't even care about the consequences, she can't let him stay like this. She needs him back, so she sits down on the side of the bed, presses her lips together hard, eyes burning like she's about cry (she's trying not to cry).

She reaches out and cups his cheek.

"I love you," she says, voice wobbling, then takes a deep, deep breath… and kisses him.

She can feel when it works, the magic shooting out of her, out of them, and pulls back just in time to watch as he gives a little gasp, his eyes popping open and meeting hers. She feels so unsteady, so ridiculously happy and relieved and blinks hard, her smile trembling upon her lips.

"Emma," Hook breathes, and she can see the exact moment he realizes what this means. His face lights up, his grin just takes over, in the most awed, lovestruck voice he says, "you saved me."

"Does that surprise you?" she laughs and then suddenly he's sitting up, wrapping his arms around her, pulling her close and just hugging her tight without a word and she hugs back, choking a little deep in her throat, squeezes her fingers deep into his leather coat and just breathes him in, he's okay, he's all right, she saved him, she saved him with True Love's Kiss, they are in love and safe and he's here and it's all okay, some of the tears escape but she doesn't care, she's in love, she doesn't ever want to let go.

Something crashes loudly outside the door. They both jerk back, just in time to hear the screaming, the cries for help. And Emma wants to be angry, but somehow she isn't even surprised - the Savior never catches a break, after all.

She jumps to her feet; Hook follows, reaching for his sword, stepping after her without any hesitation (and even that sends a warm flush through her, because no matter what happens he's always standing at her side, nothing's going to drive him away - for the first time ever she finds herself truly believing: Hook is her True Love and no matter what happens True Love always conquers in the end). When she meets his eyes as she puts her hand on the door, other hand hovering over her holster, she can tell he's thinking the same thing.

She flings the door open and they step out together into the waiting room. There's a wild energy in the air, a powerful wind carrying the heavy feel of the darkest of magic. Pandora's box is sitting on the floor in the middle of the room, and there's a dark swirling spreading out from it, like a magic bean but black, and it's swirling wider and wider, opening up like a pit, the wind is screaming, the room is shaking, and something is climbing out of the hole.

It's a man, handsome and dignified in a long dark suit, and something about him sucks the very air out of the room. He brushes himself off casually, as the portal snaps shut beneath his feet, and he picks up the box before straightening slowly, ignoring the other nurses and patients still panicking and trying to run away.

His eyes meet Emma's, and he smiles, tossing the box up and down in his hand. "It feels so good to finally be free. Time to wrap up all that… unfinished business."

SCREEN GOES BLACK. ENJOY SIX MONTHS OF WAITING.