It was no surprise to Emma that there was a group of Gryffindors passing through the door to the common room just as they approached, negating the need for any kind of fat lady charming, much to Killian's relief. He followed Emma's lead, since she seemed sure of where she was going. She stopped at the foot of the stairs and gestured up.

"Henry's bed is up there, but he's going to come down here soon, anyway."

"Perhaps we shouldn't wait," Killian said, putting a foot on the stairs.

"No, I really think we should." Emma gave him a loopy smile and walked slowly over to the couch, sitting down in front of the waning fire. Killian sat down gingerly next to her.

"You're sure about this?" He raised a brow.

"Mmmm-hmm," she answered. She turned to look at him with dreamy eyes. "I'm sure about a lot of things. Or Felix is." She blinked slowly and reached up to push his hair off his forehead. "I'm sure about you."

His eyes brightened. "Emma...?" He wanted very much to continue this line of conversation, but Henry showed up just then.

"Mom? Did you get what you needed?"

"Yep. Weasley's came through." She smiled up at Henry.

He sat down next to her opposite from Killian. "Neville told me this morning that someone freed a boggart that was locked in Professor Gold's supply room."

Killian made a face. "Aye. We did."

"There's a spell to get rid of them, you know," Emma said affably. "I just couldn't remember it. Expecto-something-or-other."

Henry shook his head. "No, that's how you conjur a patronus. Expecto Patronum."

"What's a patronus?" Killian asked.

"That's right!" Emma said gaily. "A patronus. You think about a memory that makes you incredibly happy, and it turns into an animal that comes out and chases off dementors." She leaned in toward Killian, trying to look serious. "They're dark and scabby and really, really creepy."

"They try to eat your soul," Henry added.

Killian made a face. "Well, that sounds bloody awful."

Emma patted his arm. "It is."

"But you guys hit a boggart," Henry said. "You have to use the right countercharm. You have to say "Riddikulus."

Emma smacked a hand to her forehead in a very sloppy fashion. "Ah! That's right! I knew you had to laugh at it."

"It wasn't a terribly amusing moment, as I recall," Killian said, rubbing his ear uncomfortably.

"Well, everything's fine now," Emma said, perfectly bubbly and happy.

"I was just on my way to breakfast," Henry said, getting up. "Do you guys want to come along?"

Emma shook her head. "No, I want to sit right here, in front of the fire."

"But the fire's nearly out," said Henry.

Emma smiled. "That's okay. I can fix that." She drew her wand and Killian pulled it out of her grasp.

"Careful, love," he warned. "You're a bit over-exuberant when it comes to flames."

"I can handle it," Henry said, drawing his own wand. He pointed it at the fireplace and said softly, "Incendio!" The fire grew to a crackling blaze.

"That's the word," Emma exclaimed. "I've been trying to remember."

Henry tucked his wand away. "Well, I'm going to go get some breakfast. I'll catch up with you guys later."

"Bye Henry!" Emma called out cheerfully as he walked away. "See you later!"

"Wait - don't we need to talk to him?" Killian asked.

"We just did." Emma smiled up at him.

Killian shook his head, handing back her wand. "Apologies, love, but I don't need to revisit the burning room. I'd like to keep my eyebrows if it's all the same to you."

Emma looked up at him curiously. "And you're not the only one who's been in that room."

Killian shrugged. "Your father wanted to go in my stead, reasoning that he had been there before and could easily get back, but I wouldn't have it."

She smiled. "Of course you wouldn't. And that's fine. That works out really, really well."

Emma stood up, and grabbed a handful of floo powder. Killian put his hand on her arm.

"Swan - what are you doing?"

"Talking to my father. Or my mother. Maybe both. I'll tell them we're ready, and I'll tell them to keep Henry sleeping until we're all done."

"You can't just step through the fire into the burning room. You have no idea if that will work." Killian pointed out.

"Yes it will. It's a magical room. It'll be connected to the floo network in this reality." She gave a delicate shrug, then knelt down. "Don't worry," she said, smiling over her shoulder. "I'm only putting my head through."

"What?" He looked at her liked she'd completely lost her mind, but Emma just continued smiling that vacant, half-loopy smile until he backed up. She tossed in the floo powder, pushed her hair back, and put her face into the flames.

###

David sat straight up in bed with a gasp, clutching at his chest, his face bathed in perspiration. Snow rolled over next to him, reaching out to turn on the bedside lamp.

"David? What is it?" she reached out, touching his face. "You're soaked with sweat," she said, giving him an understanding look. "Were you in the burning room again?"

David sucked in a few deep breaths, wiping the sweat from his forehead. "Yeah," he panted. "I was. And so was Emma."

"What?" She sat straight up in bed. "David, that's impossible!"

"No, no it's not. She found a way. Henry's dreaming and he's in a world of magic that's different from ours. People can talk through fire there. I was in the room, and her head just suddenly appeared. It was crazy - right in the middle of the flaming curtains."

Snow's eyes were wide. "She found a way to talk to you from Henry's dream into yours?"

"Yeah," David gave her a shaky smile. "She did." He swallowed, shaking his head again to clear it. "She and Hook found a potion there that can send Morpheus into a place of dreamless sleep."

"Just like the amulet!"

"That's right. We have to keep Henry asleep until we get her out and Hook gets Morpheus to drink that potion."

"And how is he going to manage that?" Snow asked warily.

David shook his head. "I don't know, but Emma seemed awfully sure of him. She says we need to get Morpheus there and the rest is taken care of."

Snow looked skeptical. "Something tells me it's not going to be that easy."

"Maybe not," David said, reaching for his clothes. "But it's the only chance we're going to get."

###

Emma pulled her head back in from the fire, dusting a stray bit of ash off the collar of her robes. She took Killian's hand and he helped her to her feet.

"Well?" he asked. "Did it work?"

"Uh-huh." She smiled at him vacantly. "No problem. He's going to keep Henry under until Morpheus is taken care of."

"And what about their end of the deal?"

"Under control." Emma spread her hands out. "Nothing for us to do but...go for a walk."

Killian raised a brow. "A walk."

"That's right. We should go for a walk." She looped her arm through Killian's leading him to the door. "But first, you need to chat with Myrtle."

"Who's Myrtle?"

"She's a ghost. She's a bit of a flirt."

"And you want me to flirt back, I take it."

"Yes. And you should do that eye thing when you talk to her."

He raised his brows. "Eye thing?"

"You know, give her a sultry look from under those ridiculous lashes. Make it smoulder."

"Oh, I can smoulder."

"Yes, you can," she agreed, pulling him along.

"And then what?" Killian asked.

She stopped at the doorway and gave him a grin and a shrug. "We wait."

###

"Okay," David said, looking over at Regina and Gold. "Are we clear on what we're doing, here?"

Regina dusted her hands together. "I'm ready when you are."

"And Henry's going to stay asleep?" David asked.

"He'll sustain a deep level of dream sleep," Gold reassured. "But he'll waken naturally by daylight. I don't dare put him under a stronger enchantment - it could have dire repercussions on his dreams."

"Let's hope that gives Hook the time he needs to do what has to be done," Regina said.

"Were you followed?" Gold asked.

Regina shrugged. "I don't know. I parked a block away and came in around back. I even covered up the cat cage so no one would see it."

"I think we're safe in assuming he could be on his way," David said.

"Which means we've no time to lose," Gold interjected. "We need to get Miss Swan out of the sphere quickly. Once we trigger it, Morpheus will definitely be alerted. He could be here in moments."

Regina nodded. "Let's do this." She looked over at David. "Dim the lights."

David flipped a couple of switches, and the lights went out, leaving only the dim illumination of the Emergency Exit signs casting a glow. Regina slowly passed her hand from left to right, across the room. Nothing happened, so she turned, doing it again.

"Maybe we should split up," David suggested. "Gold can do the back area where the pets are kept and you can keep going out here."

Regina made another pass with her hand, and stopped mid-motion. "No need," she said. "We've got something." She tilted her chin over toward the wall on the far side of the lobby, where one of the wall sconces was suddenly glowing with an unearthly light.

Gold walked over, digging a pair of leather riding gloves out of his pocket and sliding them onto his hands. He looked at the sconce carefully, reaching out and running his gloved fingers over the circular wooden knob at the bottom of the ornate lamp. He gave it a twist, dislodging it from the wall. He unscrewed the light socket, and the whole thing came apart in his hand, the orb rolling away from the rest of the fixture.

"Now then," he said quietly as he passed his hand over the orb. "Let's get Miss Swan out of there, shall we?"

###

"So where are we going, exactly?" Killian asked, as they strolled leisurely across the grounds.

Emma smiled. "For a walk."

"Yes, we've established that." A smile tugged at his lips. She was bloody adorable like this. "Did you have a particular destination in mind?"

"Around."

"Ah. Around." He gestured off toward one side of the courtyard. "We could sit under that tree over there. It casts quite a bit of shade."

"Not a good idea to sit under a Whomping Willow," she said. "We'll just keep walking."

"For how long?"

"Until it's time." She leaned her head on his shoulder, and they continued walking toward the Black Lake, where they stood at the shoreline. Emma pointed a hand out across it.

"In one of the movies, a pirate ship brought kids from another school for a tournament, and it popped up right out of the middle of the lake."

"You don't say."

She nodded. "There are even mermaids in there, but they don't look like our mermaids." She laughed. "I guess you could call them the ugly side of the family tree."

"Careful love, they'll hear you."

She smiled up at him. "Better them than the giant squid."

"This place grows more enticing by the moment," he quipped. Emma moved in closer, wrapping her arms around him and laying her face against his shoulder. She nuzzled his neck with her nose.

"Are you cold?" he asked, wrapping his arms around her.

"No. Just done."

He pulled back a little so he could look at her. "Done?"

"Mmm-hmm," she answered, smiling up at him. "It's time."

Killian's eyes widened. "Now? Are you saying the time is now?"

She considered that a moment. "Yes. It's definitely now. And you need to talk to Neville."

"I do?"

"Yes. He's the one you need to talk to." She got up on her tiptoes, and kissed him lightly. "Goodbye, Killian."

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her in. "Emma..." he wasn't entirely sure what to say, he only knew that he wanted her to hear it. Even if it only remained a dream to her.

"Emma, I - "

He let out a breath, and she was gone.