Hi guys. This is pretty bittersweet, because I know I promised you at least two chapters more of the story, but this is actually going to be the last chapter. I did have two chapters in the works, but no matter what I did, that direction simply didn't work. It was pretty much a situation where I had the ending in mind since the beginning, but the story just evolved in a different way as it wrote. But I preferred this so much more than what I initially planned, so I hope you like it too:).

So, without further adieu, here is the last chapter of this story, and I hope you guys like it. :)

~cosette141

Killian opened his eyes.

He blinked a few times, staring at a ceiling that looked somewhat familiar.

Climbing slowly into wakefulness, yet still exhausted, Killian suddenly realized this was the first time in ages he hadn't woken to some horrible nightmare.

He shut his eyes, reveling in the peace.

Peace.

His eyes snapped back open.

It wasn't just the dreamless sleep that brought this feeling of bliss.

He felt no pain.

None.

He blinked, lifting his arm to inspect his hand, looking for the wound from the cell bar. He paused. His arm didn't hurt to lift. His arm didn't hurt to lift. Waking up even more now, Killian stared in quiet awe at his hand.

There was no burn wound. No blood. Anywhere. He quickly touched his chest, smiling when he felt nothing. The hellhound wounds were gone. The fire from the broken ribs, gone.

All of it.

Every injury.

Gone.

Bloody hell.

The relief felt euphoric.

He'd forgotten what it felt like to be without pain.

He wanted to laugh.

Emma must have healed him.

Emma.

His eyes snapped back open, sudden worry slipping into him as memories came rushing back. Of the River, Emma rescuing him, Hades trapping them in the caves…

And even hazier memories of their escape, of the woodland and the Underworld-version of Storybrooke. Very, very briefly he remembered seeing her parents. Blinking at the room, he recognized Emma's old room in her parents' loft; he was lying on her bed, it seemed. Though… he couldn't remember how he'd gotten here. It felt like some sort of dream, the events blurring together in a painful haze.

Killian turned his head, looking for Emma, needing to know it wasn't some sort of dream.

He didn't have to look far.

Because curled into his left side, her face tucked into his neck and shoulder, was Emma.

Killian smiled, the red-hued daylight softly illuminating her. Emma's eyes were shut, her blond locks splayed over his chest, her arm draped loosely over his waist. He could feel her breathe, could feel her steady heartbeat through their touch.

She was safe.

Smiling, more relief washing through him when there was no longer the painful split in his lip, Killian whispered, "Emma." When she just hummed, snuggling deeper into him, he smiled wider, kissing her hair. "Emma, love," he tried again.

Her eyes fluttered open.

Emma blinked sleepily a few times, her fingers mindlessly playing with the buttons on his vest like she often did when she'd fall asleep in his arms watching what she called the Net Flicks. She blinked again, her eyes slowly finding his face. She smiled softly when she saw his eyes open, looking at her. Then, like she broke through a daze, her eyes widened. "Killian!" she breathed, shock and absolute joy breaking out on her face.

"Hey, beautiful," he whispered just as softly, smile growing.

Tears in her eyes, she smiled back, relief and joy radiating from her. She sat up a little, looking over his face, then down to his chest, and back. Her own smile grew. Breathlessly, she whispered, "How are you feeling?"

He grinned. "Bloody amazing," he said, the words honest in every way.

Emma didn't waste a second.

She threw her arms around his neck, tackling him in a hug so tight he could hardly breathe.

He fell back against the pillow, laughing, because it didn't hurt, he didn't hurt, he finally didn't bloody hurt.

"Thank god," she whispered breathlessly over his shoulder, hugging him even tighter. "I'm so glad." He felt something wet hit his shoulder. "Killian, I'm so glad you're okay."

Killian felt tears in his own eyes, and he ran his hand over her hair. "Not as glad as I am that you are, love," he whispered. And he shut his eyes, the feel of her in his arms making more tears sting his eyes, missing her embrace so bloody much. He hadn't felt her—truly, truly her—in so long, his body having been too broken to handle mere touches without agony. Relief like none other washed through him like blissfully cool water.

After a moment, Emma pulled back. She was still laying on him, tears in her eyes, her smile like sunlight. She looks so beautiful when she smiles. Killian simply watched her, mesmerized, seeing her more clearly than he'd been able to for so long. Emma looked back down at his chest, lifting her fingers to trace his shoulder, where the hellhound wounds used to be. It didn't hurt, and it made him smile. "You look so much better," she whispered.

"I'm devilishly handsome again?" he asked with a quirk of his brow.

Emma giggled a little, the sound like giddy relief, and it sounded like music. "You never weren't," she said, brushing her thumb over the side of his face that she had so carefully avoided touching for risk of hurting him. Killian shut his eyes at the feeling. When he opened them, her eyes had a touch of sadness in them. "It was so hard seeing you like that," she whispered, meeting his eyes. "What he did to you… what you went through…"

Memories flashed.

Pain.

Horrible, unbearable pain.

Killian felt a muscle twitch in his jaw, and he nearly had to shut his eyes at the vividness of the memories.

More tears slipped down Emma's cheeks. "You were in so much pain," she whispered. "Killian… I've never heard you sound like that before. I've never heard anyone sound like that before," her breath hitched, and Killian shut his eyes.

If he had looked and sounded as terrible as he had felt... He opened his eyes, seeing a haunted look in hers.

He wished more than anything she hadn't seen him like that.

"Love," he whispered, face falling because Emma never cried, and he couldn't stand to see it. "I'm all right now," he repeated, softer. He sat up a little, still surprised when pain didn't come. He reached for her face, brushing her hair behind her ear. "I'm all right because of you, Emma. I wouldn't even exist right now without you, love. You got us out of there. You saved me," he said softly.

"Only after you had already been…" Her brows crinkled together miserably, another tear falling. "Killian, your back," she whispered brokenly.

Killian stiffened.

He shut his eyes.

Bloody hell.

He hadn't wanted her to see that.

"You said I healed the worst of it in the caves," whispered Emma, voice hitching.

Not sure if his response would help or hurt, he said through a tight throat, "You did."

A broken sound escaped her. She took his hand. "Killian," she choked out, her tortured eyes meeting his. "You have to know that I never would have…" She shut her eyes. "I never would have done what I… what I did to you if I knew you were going to suffer," she whispered brokenly. "I'm so sorry."

"Emma," said Killian. Hesitating, he said, "What… happened… to me here," he said unevenly, making Emma's breath hitch. "It isn't your fault, love. Hades didn't hurt me because of anything you did. That…" He nearly shivered at the memory of it. "What I suffered… it was a fate that was waiting for me long before I met you, Emma." Taking a breath, he said, "I used to be a villain." He sighed, his voice taking a resigned sort of tone. "I had to pay for it at some point, love," he whispered, with a smile that held no warmth. He tilted her chin gently, making her focus her eyes on him. "I would have endured that punishment whether you saved my life or not, Emma."

Emma looked at him, a horribly broken look in her eyes, like his response only made her feel worse.

Killian pulled her gently to his chest. She hugged him tightly, like she was making up for all the time she couldn't. Killian's eyes burned, remembering the pain, the agony, so vividly, so terribly. But he wasn't the only one suffering in those caves. Nearly every one of her touches had caused him more pain, and he couldn't imagine how it made her feel. He hated that she had to see him that way.

They held each other, and Killian ran his hand over her hair.

He missed this, missed holding her.

Missed her.

Tears stung his own eyes.

It was her quiet words mumbled into his shoulder that halted his relief in its tracks.

"Do you hate me?"

Killian's eyes shot wide, her small, shaky question stealing his breath. Her fingers ghosted his neck, where the Excalibur wound had been. "Hate you?" he echoed with disbelief, pulling back to see her tortured eyes, unable to meet his. "Emma," he breathed. "How could I ever—"

"How couldn't you?" she whispered. "Killian," she whispered, "I know what you said in the caves, but… I was so selfish. I needed you, I couldn't lose you, and all I thought about was… me," she said, her voice colored with self-loathing, something Killian recognized all too well. "I should have listened to you." Her eyes shut, a tear slipping through her lashes. "Because of what I did, I…" Her breath hitched. "If I had just listened to you, you never would have suffered that curse, and I never would have had to..." Her fingers ghosted his ribs, and Killian shut his eyes at the stark memory of the sword slicing through his body. "I'm so sorry, Killian," she whispered.

His fingers brushing away her tears made her open her eyes, cautiously meeting his. Tears in his own eyes, he swallowed, looking at her just as cautiously when he said, "Emma… if it had been you dying…" He hesitated. "I'm afraid I would have done anything I could to save you. Whether… whether I had your blessing or not," he added, even quieter, his words making her meet his eyes. "I've lost a love before, and… losing her was the most painful thing I'd ever experienced." Milah's fate was still fresh, and he swallowed the emotions as best he could. Brushing away another of Emma's tears, he breathed, "But losing you, Emma? I… I wouldn't be able to bloody handle it." He'd already imagined it, what he would have done in her position, if it had been her dying rather than him.

He'd have gone bloody mad at the thought of losing her.

He watched Milah die before his eyes, powerless to stop it. Even Liam. They'd both died in his arms.

To think of having to watch another person he loved die before him, to watch Emma, no less—

He halted the thought, incapable of going there.

Killian truly didn't know if he could let Emma die the way he asked her to let him.

Emma touched his cheek, tracing his jaw with her fingers, like she was trying to memorize him. "After you…" Emma trailed off, but Killian had no trouble hearing the unsaid words. "You were gone, Killian," she whispered, her breath hitching. Killian closed his eyes, hating the pain in her voice. "You were gone. I had to… to b-bury you," her voice broke, and a chill raced down his spine. "Killian, I couldn't h-handle it."

"Please. You couldn't handle it."

"Perhaps it's you who couldn't handle it."

Killian shut his eyes.

Bloody hell, they'd both been right, even all that time ago.

"You were dead, Killian," whispered Emma, her fingers stilling over his hollow chest. "You are dead," she breathed, her words as quiet as his chest.

Killian's eyes burned.

Emma let out a shaky breath, brushing away her own tears. Taking a breath to steady herself, she met his gaze.

There was something horribly vulnerable, yet determined, in her eyes, like she was trying to strengthen armor that had already weakened too much to protect her. She hesitated, then took his hand, seeming to force herself to speak. "Killian," she whispered. She shut her eyes, like the words on her tongue terrified her. "I want to save you," she whispered, opening her eyes. "I want to bring you back to life. I want to bring you home," her voice hitched a little. He could feel her hand shake in his. She shut her eyes, her voice quieter than a whisper. "But I won't save you if you don't want me to."

Killian's brows shifted, opening his mouth to speak but she continued before he could.

"I didn't listen to you then," she said. She blinked, trying to clear her tears before they could fall, like she was trying to hold onto every ounce of strength she had. "But I… I promise to listen to you now. Whatever you want… I promise I'll listen." She let out a shallow breath, and Killian didn't think he'd ever seen her look so scared. "Killian…. Do you want me to save your life?" she breathed.

Killian blinked.

For a moment, he was taken so aback by the question he was speechless.

Emma saw his hesitation. She shut her eyes, waiting, like she couldn't handle seeing the answer in his eyes.

Then…

Killian gently took her face, and he kissed her.

Emma's eyes shot open with surprise, looking at him with a sort of desperate hopefulness that would have broken his heart if he still had one.

He leaned his forehead against hers, smiling a little, whispering, "Emma, there's nothing that I want more than to live a life with you." His own eyes shut, and he took his own hesitation. "Emma, I love you." Tears stung his eyes. "None of the injuries I sustained hurt more than the thought that I… that I would never see you again." And he flashed back to every moment, lying broken on the floor of his cell, unable to remember the details of her face. Terrified for the day he wouldn't be able to remember her at all. "Emma, all I want is you." He smiled a little, but it held a touch of sadness. He opened his eyes, seeing her eyes a blazing green. "But…" he whispered. "Do you really think, after everything I've done, that I… deserve saving?"

His words made her face crease like they physically pained her. She touched his face, whispering, "Do you think that any of us would be here if we didn't think that?" When he just stared at her, unsure how to even process her words, she said softly, "We've all made mistakes, Killian. Me, my parents, all of us." When he still couldn't find his voice, she said quietly, "No one's perfect, Killian. You deserve a happy ending, too."

Killian held her gaze, unable to hide the confusion and disbelief in his eyes.

Unable to understand how they didn't hate him.

Because he did.

Emma's fingers on his cheek made him look at her.

"Do you want me to save you?" she asked again, voice wavering, her eyes bright with raw hope and fear.

He held her gaze.

And he felt guilt and contempt with himself almost as consuming as the need for revenge against the Crocodile had once felt.

But seeing her here, feeling her, being with her…

Bloody hell, he wanted to be selfish.

She came here for him, she wanted to save him, and damn it he wanted more than anything to let her.

He didn't want to care that he didn't deserve it.

He wanted it.

He wanted to go home.

"Yes," he breathed, holding her gaze just as intensely, wanting her to use that superpower of hers to know he was being purely, completely truthful. "Yes, Emma." His lips twitched. "I want to go with you, love."

But Emma squeezed his hand, her eyes still just as fearful as they desperately searched his for any spec of doubt. "Are you sure?" she whispered.

He smiled. "Aye, love." He kissed her hair, whispering, "Save me."

And for the second time that day, she crushed him in a hug that made him lose his breath. He hugged her back, kissing her head. "I love you, Emma."

"I love you, Killian," she whispered into him.

"Thank you for coming for me, love," he whispered into her hair.

She pulled back, smiling a smile that fell just short of reaching her eyes. "I just wish I knew what it would take to make you believe you deserved it," she whispered.

Killian met her gaze, not wanting to voice that he didn't think there was such a universe where he could. But he knew one thing.

He wanted to.

Bloody hell, did he want to.

Footsteps creaking on the stairs made both him and Emma look up to see Emma's mother appear. When she saw them, her face lit up. "Emma! Killian! You're both awake!" She smiled, rushing over to pull Emma into her arms, hugging her tightly. "Emma," she whispered. "Thank god you slept."

"I'm fine, Mom," mumbled Emma over her mother's shoulder.

David came up the stairs next, smiling at his two girls.

When Snow pulled back, she looked at Killian. She looked him over a little, making him feel slightly uncomfortable under the scrutiny. "Killian," she said softly, looking back at his face. "You're looking so much better."

Killian smiled a little. "Aye, feeling it too," he said quietly. Reaching his hand to rub the back of his neck with unease, he looked from Emma's mother to her father, remembering with discomfort the last time he'd seen them at the lake. "I'd…" His throat closed a little, and he winced, trying again. "I'd like to apologi—"

He was cut off by a sudden hug, his eyes shooting open.

Snow embraced him, smiling over his shoulder. "Killian, we're just so glad you're all right." She pulled back, smiling a little at the bewildered expression on his face.

"You saved us, Hook," said David, crossing his arms as he leaned against the wall with a smile. "It's our turn to save you."

Killian felt absolute shock render him speechless, barely catching Emma's little "See?" expression on her face.

He felt Emma's hand slip in his as Emma's parents started explaining their current plan to get home—something about Regina and Robin searching for the Crocodile and something else a little more concerning about splitting hearts—but Killian felt half lost in the shock of it all, still absolutely stunned that he managed to get any of their forgiveness. That he—Captain Hook—had not only managed to gain friends and a family, but a family that cared about him enough to go to Hell to save him.

He would never—probably could never—understand it.

But he was more bloody grateful for them than he's ever been for anything.

Emma's fingers squeezed his own, and he looked at her, seeing her eyes on him, a smile on her lips.

He couldn't help but return it.

a/n: :)

Thank you all for reading and a huge thank you to those who reviewed! You guys honestly made my day every time, so thank you so much ;) This story was so fun to write. I'm sad that it's over, even when it ended up being way longer than I ever thought it would be haha. I hope you guys liked the ending and how it wrapped things up; it took a long time to figure out where to leave the two of them emotionally. ;)

I always planned to end this story around the time that Liam would show up, so I tried to gear the ending, what with killian's lingering guilt, up to that. I do still feel like playing with Liam and Killian's reunion, so I think I still might do a fairly short (though I thought this story was gonna be short so idk about that prediction lol) sequel story on the reunion of the brothers that I think will be better as a standalone than continuing it in this story. I will play with this idea next and if it works out, I'll post it soon!

I have a TON of other Once story ideas, so I'll be sticking around this fandom for quite a while. (I've just discovered Once Upon a Time a few months ago actually haha, so I'm late to the party). I have a few oneshot ideas I'm going to get to work on, and a ton of Captain Swan multichaptered fic ideas, one of which is a little rewriting of how Killian finds Emma in NYC, making it a bit more difficult for him to get her to remember. (I sure do like making life harder for Killian, don't I?). So I hope to have those written and posted very very soon! ;)

Thanks again for reading and coming along for the ride. I'll see you guys around the fandom very soon! :)

~cosette141