I own nothing except my delusions.


Emma moved throught the corridors, her vision blured by the tears that continued to fall. She knew the castle so well from her childhood that she didn't need to think of where she was going, automatically moving. She passed by both guards and servants, paying them no mind as she moved past them, wanting to run.

She wanted to run to the Jolly Roger, to Killian, but she knew that she would never be able to again.

She wished it was all a nightmare, but knew that it wasn't something she could wake up from.

Without realizing it, she threw open the door to her bedchambers, stepping inside her old space, away from everyone else. She shut the door behind her, as if to block out all of the pain and grief she felt.

She realized that the whole way, she didn't touch her pendant as she usually did; instead, she clutched at Killian's ring as though it were a lifeline.

Moving through the dark room, she suddenly felt an intense sense of unease, as though she were not alone. Before she could move to turn, she felt a sharp jab, collapsing as she fell into oblivion.


Sitting in his cage, Killian rested his head back against the wall, letting his emotions run free. He had desired nothing more than to spend his final moments with Emma, but he couldn't bring himself to do it to her. She didn't deserve it, and he knew that everything would be hard enough for her as it was.

Carefully, he fished through the pocket of his vest, finding the ring he had intended to give her. He held it up to the low light, wishing that he'd been able to fufill the promise he'd made to himself, but also grateful that he didn't, that Emma never knew his plan. He didn't want to give her that false hope and the pain that would accompany it. He couldn't marry her just to make her a widow.

He thought that it was symbolic, in a way. He had given her the ring his brother had given him so long ago, when they were headed into a typhoon on Silver's ship, and he himself would carry the ring he had intended to give her when he asked her to become his wife.

He felt a pang in his chest at the future they lost.

Clutching the ring, he brought his hand to his chest, knowing that he could at least keep her close to him in some way as he continued to shed his silent tears.

He prayed that Emma would not be there tomorrow, that she wouldn't be present for his trial and execution that was to occur in the late morning. He didn't want her to live with that. He wanted her to remember him alive, holding her and loving her, not hanging from the hangman's noose.

Yet a more selfish part of him wished that she would be there, so that she would be the last thing he saw before he died.

He wanted her, to hold her one last time.

He closed his eyes, letting his grief wash over him.

He felt something stirring inside of him, something telling him to get to Emma. He'd only felt something similar once before, the dread and anxiety he felt when she was being attacked, but that feeling was nothing compared to the feeling that peirced him, making him want to scream. He felt intense pain in his chest, right over his heart, more painful than anything he had felt before in his long life. He knew that something was wrong, that he had to get to her. And he was locked in a cell, unable to do anything.

He quickly rose, going to the bars of his cell to call for the guards, anyone that could get to her.

"Guards!" he as loud as he could. "Guards! Get to Emma! Something's wrong!"

"Shut up, pirate," responded a gruff voice. Killian recognized it as the dwarf who had punched him.

"Emma is in trouble!" he persisted. "You need to go to her, now. She's in danger."

"Maybe we should check," another, more tentative voice responded.

"No," the first dwarf, Grumpy, Killian thought, replied. "Doc, he's a pirate. Pirates lie. He's doing this to try to escape. Besides, how would he know if something happened to the princess?"

"You're wasting time!" Killian yelled, growing desperate. "Emma is in danger, right now!"

"It can't hurt to check," Doc said.

Grumpy released an unhappy sigh. "Fine, if it will shut him up. I'll go, you and Dopey stay here."

Relieved someone was going, he began to pace anxiously, thinking that feeling like a caged animal was not a far off comparison.

The minutes felt like hours as he waited, growing more and more fearful of what had happened to Emma. He had to be with her, to make sure she was safe.

He wanted to scream.

Finally, he heard rushing footsteps enter the dungeon, judging about four from the noise. He stopped, moving as close to the entrance as his cell would allow him as he looked through the bars, trying to see who had come. He quickly put the ring back into his pocket.

A tall figure took the lead, moving into the light, revealing an older man with pale hair that had once been blond, clear blue eyes, and a confident stance that was currently agitated. He was dressed in regal attire, creating a stark contrast between himself and the dim dungeon. Killian could tell that despite his stance, the man was terrified and worried.

Killian knew that he was face to face with Emma's father.

"Where is she, pirate?" Charming demanded.

Killian felt like all of the air had left his lungs, leaving him light headed.

"Emma's gone?" he asked weakly. "How?"

"You tell me," Charming countered. "How did you know she was gone, exactly? What did you do?"

Not noticing Leo and the Huntsman coming to stand behind Charming, Killian shook his head weakly, his eyes focused on the elder man.

"When you love somebody, you know," he responded, his voice tight.

Charming gave him a calculating look, one that Killian didn't understand. It almost looked like it shifted to something that was a hint of understanding, but it was reluctant.

"She was taken from her room," Charming told him darkly, suspicious. He withdrew a dagger, holding it up for Killian to see. "This was left behind, but there is no evidence of a fight."

Killian examined the dagger, feeling his heart plummet and his blood turn to ice. The dagger was simple, unremarkable except for the intertwined BB at the hilt.

"No," he said, his voice barely a whisper as realization crashed over him. She was supposed to be safe. The vendetta was supposed to end. He felt his legs nearly give out. "No, no, no."

"Who took her, pirate?" Charming demanded him. "Tell me!"

"Blackbeard," Killian answered. He saw Leo's scared look, knowing that the prince understood exactly what happened. "He took her to hurt me."

"And now my daughter is gone," Charming said angerly. "Again."

He moved to turn away, to leave Killian alone.

Killian couldn't let them leave him locked up. He had to find Emma, to save her. He couldn't let her pay for his actions. She didn't deserve any of it. He had to make sure she was safe.

"Please, let me find her," he asked, desperation leaking into his voice.

Charming looked back at him.

"Why should I?" Charming asked. "You're supposed to be tried come the morning, and dealt with. And I need to find my daughter."

"Just let me make sure she's safe," Killian begged. In his life, Killian never begged for anything except for when his brother had almost died. Even when he was a young boy enslaved to a cruel master, even when he was beaten and bloodied, even when he was humiliated, he never begged. But he was desperate. "I don't give a damn what happens to me. Hang me. Kill me. Do what ever you want to me. But please, let me make sure Emma is safe."

Charming studied him, deciding. He glanced back at Leo, who nodded to him, encouraging, while Killian waited with bated breath.

Finally, after what felt to Killian like an eternity, Charming nodded. His voice was threatening as he stared at Killian. "Alright, Hook. I'll allow this. You help us find her, under my command, and that's it. Your trial will be held after."

Killian nodded gratefully. "Thank you. That's all I ask."

The king turned, retrieving the key to the cell from one of the dwarves and unlocking the door.

"Your Majesty, do you really think this is a good idea?" Grumpy asked.

"If he tries anything, we'll take care of him," Charming said, looking at Killian threateningly. "At the very least, we can use him for a distraction."

Killian didn't even care about the thought that he could possibly be used as cannon fodder.

"Come on," Charming said. "We need to go speak with the council. We need to make a plan." He looked back at Killian. "You will give us all the information you know."

He nodded towards the Huntsman, prompting him to grab Killian's arm to escort him to their destination.

Killian saw Leo flash him an apologetic but worried look as they turned to leave, leaving the dungeons to go to the impromptu meeting. He felt the dwarves eyes, particularly Grumpy's, watching him.


As the guards let them back into the council's chamber, Killian was not disappointed in his expectation to be received unfavorably. Just as he suspected, the men and women around the table looked at him in shock, before they began their protests.

"What the hell is Hook doing out of his cell?" he heard the familiar voice of Regina question.

He looked at the woman in question, noticing the changes in her that had occurred the past three decades since he'd seen her. Her hair, once a deep black, had faded to a lighter gray, and her face held more lines than he remembered. She was still dressed in her black dresses, but the figure was softer, unlike what she wore in her reign as the Evil Queen. Her dark eyes, though not as heavily decorated as they once we're, still held the fire he remembered.

Beside her stood a tall man, his hair a lighter gray than hers, with collected blue eyes. His beard was trimmed short, giving him a slightly wilder look, less defined than the other royals that surrounded him. His attire was of the same quality, but much simpler, consisting of a white shirt, vest, trousers, and boots. Killian could easily tell the man was a fighter, and knew from Emma's stories that he was looking at Robin Hood.

"He's come to give us information on whoever took Emma," Charming announced over the uproar, making everyone fall silent. "And he's to assist us in finding her."

"David, do you think that's wise?" a woman asked, her voice cautious.

Turning his gaze to the woman, Killian saw a woman who although she looked fragile, she held strength, much like Emma. He could see Emma in the woman's fine features, especially the brilliant green eyes the woman had passed onto her children. Though her black hair had faded, he knew she was without a doubt Snow White.

Looking around, he could identify every person in the room, giving him some comfort in knowing who he would have to deal with. He was however surprised to see Belle there with her son, recognizing the woman whom he had once planned to kill when she wouldn't help him getting revenge on the Crocodile. She was older, her once red-brown hair faded to gray, but she still had the same sparkling blue eyes.

"Not completely, but he has information, and it's a lead," Charming told his wife, sounding weary. He turned his eyes on Killian, his expression becoming sharp. "Come forth, and tell us what you know of Blackbeard."

Normally, Killian would have tried to charm everyone in the room, but he couldn't, not when Emma was in danger. Not when it felt like his heart had painfully been ripped from his chest.

"Blackbeard has a vendetta against me," Killian told them, stepping forward to stand at the table. The Huntsman shadowed him. "He's my half brother, and wants revenge against me for killing our father."

Everyone except Leo and Regina stared at him with expressions that ranged from shock to disgust to anger, whereas Leo looked sympathetic and Regina expectant, both knowing the story.

He didn't care for the judgement he was receiving for his deeds, only that Emma was paying for them.

He swallowed thickly before continuing. "Every time we had seen Blackbeard or his men, Emma was always with me. It was during our last encounter with him that we discovered who he was. Emma refused to leave me, and soon after, we found Leo in a shipwreck. He told us that the ship that had attacked them was the Concorde. We don't know how they got ahead of us. But that dagger," he gestured towards the one David had placed on the table, "is his. I recognize the insignia as his, even before everything started."

"So now we have to look for another pirate ship," a man, Pinocchio, he recognized, said in a frusterated tone.

"The guards said that there were no strange ships at the docks or in the bay," one of the dwarves, Doc, stated hesitantly. "Could they have come from the land?"

"No," Robin disagreed. "This forest would be too hard for them to navigate, especially with a hostage. And it would be harder for them to get past the guards to get there. At the docks, they would be able to get lost in the crowd."

"Red?" Charming asked, looking at the wolfish woman in a beautiful red cloak. "Could you pick anything up?"

She shook her head sadly. "No. Emma was definately in her room, but I couldn't make out any foreign scents aside from his." She gestured towards Killian. "She most likely had his scent on her. But there was nothing unusual."

"And neither Robin or I could find anything to show their was a fight," Snow added. "There was only the dagger laying on the floor."

"It's a message," Killian said, trying to keep his voice steady. "To me. It's to let me know that he's taken her."

Nothing felt right to him. Even if Blackbeard or his men had managed to get past the guards, there was no way Emma was taken without a fight. The lack of clues as to what happened except the dagger made him uneasy.

"Regardless, we need to go after them," Charming told them all, his voice demanding.

"We'll send out a fleet to search the areas," Snow added, beginning her orders. "They should be able to find something of where they're going."

Killian felt a shot of anger as they spoke, knowing that just looking for the ship in the area would make them lose precious time. He slammed his fist in the table, drawing all attention to himself. His voice barely contained his anger. "That's not good enough!"

"Well then what do you suggest, Hook?" Regina asked scathingly.

"Track them," Killian said. "With magic. Track Blackbeard's ship. We can't just sit around and wait for one of your bloody ships to find something while they're traveling farther away every minute we're sitting here."

"Maybe I'd you hadn't showed her to this pirate, he wouldn't have her," Pinocchio said in a biting tone. "Maybe then she would be safe."

"She was always safe with me," Killian bit back. "She was only put in danger when she was separated from me."

He knew he struck a nerve when Pinocchio quickly stood up, looking as though he wanted to attack him. He noticed that the others were angry at his insinuation, some to a lesser degree, all except Leo, who gave him a small agreeing nod confirming what he said.

"Don't act like you're the only person who cares about the Princess," Pinocchio said in a low voice.

"Yet you're the one wanting to sit and make plans that won't get us any closer to finding Emma," Killian responded, his voice just as low.

"Hook is right," Robin said, defusing the situation. "We can't wait around and see what happens. This man is dangerous. And from what Hook and even Leo told us, he will show no mercy towards Emma."

"I don't know the magic that would let us track the ship," Regina responded, her tone defeated. "Not without something from it."

"What about the Blue Fairy?" the cricket, Jiminy, inquired.

"I don't think that the fairies can do that," Snow said, considering sadly. "I've never heard of the fairies performing that magic exactly."

"Tinkerbell used Pixie Dust to lead me to Robin," Regina said. "But I don't thing that will work. Not for this."

Killian resisted flinching back, feeling insulted. He felt another sharp stab in his chest.

"It doesn't matter," the man beside Robin, Roland, Killian knew, added. "Pixie Dust is too rare. I think that they can only get it from Neverland, anyway."

"Then what are we supposed to do?" Grumpy asked, irritated.

Killian knew the answer, and was dreaded to suggest it, but was willing to do it for the chance to find Emma.

"The Dark One," Killian said, the statement leaving a bitter taste in his mouth. "We make a deal with the Dark One."


Teaser: "It's not a sacrific," Killian responded. "For her, it's not." He hesitated for a moment. "I must ask a favor."

"What is it?" Leo asked, ready to give him what he asked.

Review?