Disclaimer: I do not own Once Upon a Time

AN: A big thank you to GranddaughterOfCaskettAndTivia for all of her help with this. Everyone please keep her and her family in your prayers or shoot happy thoughts their way, whatever you believe! All the good feelings are headed your way, girl! ~ XOXO MAF

Chapter Twenty-Four

"Emma!" Killian shouted, his eyes scanning the murky water for her. She should've surfaced already. Shedding his heavy leather coat, Killian moved to the side of the ship to jump in after her.

"Can't one of you find her?" Jasmine snapped at Genie and Elsa.

Shaking her head, Elsa peered into the water. "No, the water's too dark. I can't see anything. I'd more than likely just bring up fish."

"Neither can I," Genie confirmed.

"Wait!" Lancelot cried out, noting that Killian was about to dive into the water in search of Emma. If he did, the former knight was sure they'd both drown.

Turning on the heel of his boot, Killian glowered. "She'll bloody drown if we wait," he snapped.

"Then we'll lose you both." Grabbing a rope, Lancelot looped it in a circle and handed it to Killian to tie around his waist. Tethering himself to the ship, Killian made a clean dive into the murky waters. It took him a moment to locate Emma and he swore his heart stopped beating. She was unconscious underwater. Grabbing onto her, he kicked his way up to the surface.

"There!" Elsa cried out. With a wave of her hand she had Killian and Emma on the deck of the Jolly. Killian sputtered and moved to hover over Emma. She was utterly still and her lips were turning a light shade of blue.

"Bloody hell, love, what were you thinking?" He murmured.

"Is she dead?" Jasmine asked, clinging to Aladdin.

Tilting her head back, Killian intended to try to resuscitate her. He didn't need to, though, the moment his lips brushed over her, a white light surrounded them and Emma's eyes fluttered open. Coughing, she moved to sit up and Killian immediately helped her. "Thank the gods," he murmured, pressing his forehead against the crown of her head and breathing her in.

Emma's eyes landed on his when he pulled back and she sighed. "Killian?" She asked softly.

Leaning down, Killian scooped her up. "Aye, let's get you down below and warmed up. Smee, take us to the eastern port. And I want an inspection of the ship to know what damage was done," he ordered sharply.

"Aye, aye, Captain," Smee agreed before turning bark orders out at the rest of the crew.

When Emma was seated on the bunk in their cabin, still shivering, Killian dropped to his knees to tug off her boots. "That was stupid, love. You nearly put me six feet under with that stunt."

Shrugging out of her vest, Emma nodded. "I know, but it was us. We were causing the storm. Our fighting made it worse. I had to stop it."

"Next time try something a little less dramatic," he requested as he helped her stand to maneuver her out of her trousers. He wrapped her in a blanket once she was nude. "I'm going to fetch you some fresh clothes." A knock on the door sounded and one of the men appeared with a cup of hot tea and murmuring that they would be approaching land in just fifteen minutes.

"That's good," she whispered as she took a sip. Reaching out, she exchanged her tea for her clothes and began to redress. "I'm sorry, Killian, it's just Henry is alone and –"

Cupping her face in his hands, he nodded. "I know, love. And we're going to get him. Don't worry. We'll find him and bring him home. Then we'll take back your kingdom," he told her. "And we'll do it together."

Tugging on his wrists, Emma brought his head down to hers. She sighed into the kiss, chasing his lips when he pulled back. "Thank you for saving me."

Nudging his nose with hers, he murmured. "Always, love. I'll always find you." At her smile, he quirked a brow. "What?"

"My parents used to say that to each other." She pressed a kiss to his chest. "You need to change, Killian. I can't have you catching your death of a cold either. Henry needs both of us." She looked up at him. "He needs his family. His mother and his father."

Pulling back, Killian ripped his vest off and his shirt over his head. "Family," he murmured. "I thought I'd lost that with Liam. And a son." He shook his head absently as he changed. Reaching out, his thumb stroked over the dimple in her chin lightly. "You've given me so much, Emma, I hope you know I will love you for all of my days."

"And I you, Killian. Now get dressed. We should be pulling up shortly."

OUAT

Henry looked between his grandfather and the boy who was not too much older than him. "Did you just call him 'Papa'?" He asked his grandfather

Rumple glared at the young boy. "This is where you came when you abandoned me?"

"Is he your father?" Henry demanded. "How is that possible, he's just a boy. Who are you?"

Rumple waved Henry away, strapping him to a tree in the process. "Not now, Henry," he growled as he turned on the boy in front of him. "I should've known you would be here. This is where you take them, isn't it? Where you tried to take my Bae."

"Yes, yes it is. And I have a new name now, it's not 'Papa,' it's Peter. Peter Pan."

Henry's eyes grew wide. "You're Peter Pan? How are you related to him?"

Peter ambled towards Henry. "Ah, hello, Henry. I'm your great-grandfather." He bowed slightly. "I'm also the leader of the Lost Boys here on the island." He grinned wickedly over at his son. "Welcome to Neverland, Rumple."

Before anyone could react, Peter pulled a box out of his pocket and pointed it in Rumple's direction. The next moment the Dark One was sucked into the box and the ropes fell from Henry's body. "What did you do to him?" Henry screeched.

"Calm down, Henry. No need to get melodramatic." Peter rolled his eyes. "I'd like to officially welcome you to Neverland and to join the Lost Boys here on the island."

Henry was already shaking his head to decline the offer. "No, I'm sorry, but I can't stay here. I need to get back to my family. I'm sure my mom is looking for me and Killian will kill anyone who tries to hurt me. How do I get back to the Enchanted Forest?"

Laughing, Peter let Henry ramble. "There's no way off this island, Henry. Now, come along, it's time to go to camp to meet the rest of the Lost Boys." When it looked like Henry was going to protest, Peter whistled and the world went black.

OUAT

The group stood quietly on the shores of Neverland. "It's as eerie as I remember it," Smee murmured.

"Aye," Collins agreed. "I've the map of the island that George gave us." He spread it out on a tall boulder on the beach. "Where would you all like to begin?"

"The first course of action is to determine where a good place to make camp is," Aladdin determined.

Emma's eyes moved away from the map and she nudged Killian and Lancelot, motioning towards another area of the beach. The three of them trekked over, peering down at the sand. "Doesn't that look like a scuffle?" Emma asked.

"Aye, love, it does," Killian agreed. "With more than two people."

"Those footprints there are too big to be Henry's," Emma pointed out.

"And too small to be the Dark One's," Lancelot finished. "We have another visitor on the island."

"One who has discovered Rumple and Henry," Emma surmised. She twisted a finger through a still-damp curl. "Do you think Rumple hurt whoever it is?"

"You're assuming, love, that they weren't met by an enemy of some sort," Killian reminded her. "I may not have spent much time on the island, but I can tell you from experience there are many dangers."

"What's going on over here?" The group turned at Elsa's voice and Lancelot quickly filled her in on their assumptions regarding the scuffle of footprints in front of them.

"Captain," Smee nodded towards the sky, "it's going to be night fall soon. We really should find high ground and make camp. We need to study this map more thoroughly and split it up into a grid before we can search for Henry."

"Good point, Smee." Killian nodded. "Let's find a good campsite for the night. Then we can make a plan. We'll leave a dawn to find Henry." He glanced down at Emma. "Are you alright with that, love?"

Emma sighed. "I'd love to go search for him now, but you're right, in the dark we're more likely to wind up dead than successful," she relented.

"It'll be alright, love," Killian assured her softly. "We'll find our lad. Now, let's head north and see if we can find this clearing." He motioned to a section on the map that should provide good shelter for the night.

OUAT

It took nearly two hours to reach the spot Killian had chosen on the map, but when they did reach it, he'd been right. It was the perfect place to make camp for the night. As they prepared the camp, putting together makeshift cots, Killian curled his arm around Emma's waist. "Talk to me, love."

Turning in his arms, Emma wound herself around his sturdy frame. "I just wish we could somehow let Henry know that we are here and we're going to find him and take him home."

Cupping her cheek in his hand, Killian leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to her lips. "We'll find him love. I promise. I promised to protect and cherish you both. I won't go back on my word."

Resting her head on his chest so she could listen to the steady thump of his heart she murmured, "I know, Killian. I know."

OUAT

Peter Pan and his right hand man, Felix, stared at the sleeping group. He grinned and nodded towards Emma. "Look at her, she can't sleep."

Felix let out a low chuckle. "She hears us."

"A little lost orphan girl," Peter taunted. "I do believe it's time to wake her to start the game." He turned to Felix. "Make sure Henry stays at the camp and be prepared to move if we have to."

With a salute, Felix left Peter alone watching over the camp, an excited grin in place.

OUAT

Emma groaned as she shifted in Killian's arms. She couldn't sleep on this island. All she could hear were the tears of children. She pressed her hands over her ears and dug her head into Killian's chest. Almost as if he sensed her distress even in sleep, he tightened his grip on her.

Usually the mere presence of Killian soothed Emma's frayed nerves, but not now. Now all she could picture was Henry crying out for them. With a resigned sigh, she carefully untangled herself from her pirate and stood up, crossing the camp quietly, so as not to wake any of the her sleeping friends. When the camp was out of sight, she found a boulder to sit on. "Well, you look all out of sorts."

Emma nearly fell off the boulder at the lilting voice behind her. When she turned, she found a boy leaning against a tree. "Oh, you gave me a fright," she admitted, her hand pressed over her heart. "Are you lost?" She asked softly.

He grinned at her. "I suppose you could say that. Allow me to introduce myself, I'm Peter. Peter Pan." He bowed. "It's so wonderful to have you on my island, Princess Emma."

Emma stood, her eyes narrowed. "How do you know who I am?"

He grinned and took a step forward. Instinctively, Emma raised her hands. "You're Henry's mother. I have to say, he's quite the spirited boy, unfortunately, though, you've abandoned him."

"I did not abandon him. I'm here to find him. He's coming home with me," she stated with determination.

The boy in front of her seemed to contemplate this for a moment. "I'll make a deal with you," he bargained. "I do so love games, if you can find Henry, you can have him back." He pulled a piece of parchment out of the satchel on his side. "This map will lead you to Henry."

With shaking hands, Emma accepted the parchment. Carefully she unrolled it. Scowling, she snapped, "It's blank."

Shaking his hand, Peter was nearly giddy with excitement. "That's the game. Only you can make the map appear." He spun around. "Good luck, Princess Emma."

OUAT

XOXO

MAF