A Light Worth Living For

by HollyeLeigh

When Hook first became the Dark One, villagers would show up at all hours to plead their case of woe to him. Tired of inconvenient interruptions, he arranged three days each season when peasants could come to throw themselves on his mercy, though they had to know he possessed no such virtue. It was all about the deal.

6. Chapter 6

Here we are, the final installment! Thank you for going on this journey with me. I have so enjoyed all the reviews and appreciate the comments. I hope you enjoy the conclusion and will check out my other works!

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Chapter Six

The Darkness hummed appreciatively when the welt from his hand raised in a fiery hue off her flesh. Hook's satisfaction, however, came not from having his Swan at his mercy, but from the fact that despite everything - who he was, what he was - she wanted him.

It was a line they had been dancing around since the beginning, the physical attraction, the allure of one another's magic, the seduction simmering just below the surface whenever they were in each other's presence. Neither of them had been willing to cross it, much less acknowledge it, but the Darkness had been growing desperate. Frantically seeking a way to dissuade or derail one or both of them from the path that would lead to its destruction, it had latched on to the very thing Hook feared it would use against them. Miraculously, instead of disgust or anger or fear or offense, Swan's response was that of consent, of desire and an affirmation that she wanted him as much as he wanted her.

And he very much wanted her.

"Oh, the things I'm going to do to you," he murmured darkly, gently caressing the imprint of his palm on her backside, hoping to soothe the sting he knew still lingered there.

"What things?" she exhaled on a pant, anticipation and seductive fear causing her voice to quiver slightly.

"Things you've always been too afraid to beg for." His hand ran up the length of her spine, his fingers threading through her lush tresses before he grabbed a fistful of her hair and yanked her back towards him. Moulding her back to his front, he dragged the tip of his hook up her leg, raising the skirt of her nightgown and robe along with it, the sharp prick leaving a red line of danger in its wake that made her tremble. "Things you never even knew your body craved."

"You forget, I'm not some innocent maiden who is ignorant to the realities of relations between men and women," she replied, arching against him while she reached back to wrap an arm around his neck, her hand finding a purchase of its own within his dark locks. Looking over her shoulder, she tilted her face towards his, her mouth teasing the corner of his as her breath ghosted over his lips. "Need I remind you that I already have such experience, fulfilling my marital duties?"

Letting go of her hair, his hand joined his hook in its efforts to lift her garments up and over her head. "Intimacies between lovers should never be about duty, love. Only desire. Only want and need." With her blessedly bare, he set about to divest himself of his own clothes, grabbing the back of his collar and pulling his shirt over his head while his hook lightly lay against the soft flesh of her belly, keeping her close. "So, tell me, Swan," he purred into her ear, enjoying the way her skin prickled and her body shuddered when the hot vapor of his breath hit the side of her neck. "What do you want? What do you need?"

"I want…" she began, pausing so she could face him, her tongue tentatively swiping over her lips as she gathered her courage to voice her desires. "I want you to touch me," she confessed, taking his hand and bringing it up to cup her breast. "Touch me like you started to that night, and this time… don't stop."

"As you wish," he growled, pulling her back towards the bed then lifting her up slightly so she could straddle his lap as he sat down on the edge, his mouth hungrily seeking out the nipple of her left breast, tugging it between his teeth, while his hand kneaded the right.

Her back bowed, a moan vibrating through her chest as her fingers carded through his hair. Her hips bucked against his and he wished he'd finished undressing, tormented by the desperation to feel her hot, wet center against his cock.

A startled sound squealed from her when he abruptly changed their positions, depositing her on her back against the plush mattress. With a wave of his hand he rendered her immobile, delighting in the way her eyes went wide as she realized she couldn't move.

"Just stay still, darling," he taunted, standing at the foot of the bed so he could remove his leather trousers while taking in his fill of her. His lips and brows twitched in amusement, watching her struggle against the magical bonds he'd cast upon her. Bringing up his hand, he gestured his fingers towards her legs, separating them with his magic until she was spread wide. "Gods, but you're a sight, love," he murmured, stepping forward and skimming both hand and hook over her calves and up her thighs. "See how you glisten for me? All wet and pink and lush and ready for me to taste you."

It was clear she wanted to respond, replies swirling and sparking within her eyes, so he took pity on her and lifted the constraints, but only enough so she could speak.

"T-Taste?" she exclaimed. "Surely you cannot mean to-"

"I most certainly mean to," he assured her, darkly. Dropping to his knees at the end of the bed, he was momentarily distracted from the delicious bounty before him as her shocked tone fully registered. "Do you mean to tell me you've not been pleasured by a man's mouth before?"

Her head twitched, barred from fully moving side to side by the enchantment, and Hook was once again astounded by the idiocy of Neal Cassidy.

Skimming his nose up the inside of her thigh, Hook's eyelids fluttered shut, the scent of her laying thick and heavy on his tongue as he breathed her in. "How could he have resisted such a delicacy," he murmured. "Your deplorable husband's folly knew no bounds."

"Former husband," she corrected, the strained quality of her voice holding a pleading edge. "And I don't wish to discuss him."

"Too right, love," Hook agreed, turning his focus back to the dampened blonde curls and beckoning flesh of her sex. "Too right."

Flattening his tongue, he licked a long stripe through her folds, the taste of her mixed with the guttural sound she made had his already aching cock twitch with need. With his magic keeping her in place, he slid his hand between her legs. Coating his fingers with her essence then wrapping his hand around his hardness, he languidly pumped his cock as his tongue went back to work, lapping up the nectar of her desire and fluttering against the bud that would quickly bring her to the brink of intense pleasure.

Little by little he lessened the hold of his magic, allowing her the ability to respond with her body while also keeping her positioned to his liking. Small cants of her hips, toes curling with precursory shudders of pleasure zipping through her extremities, her hands balling into the covers of their bed, her continued pants and moans, all succeeding in driving him mad with want as he brought her to ecstasy's edge again and again while keeping himself teetering on the same brink.

"Hook," she pleaded. "Hook, please! I can't… I can't take it anymore. Please!"

"Aye, you can, love," he asserted. His voice was soft and velvety, almost crooning as he praised. "I know you've got the strength to endure what I've planned for you." Releasing his cock, he gently brushed his fingers against her sodden and engorged sex, her hips jerking from oversensitivity in response to his touch. "There's another kind of power simmering in your blood, Swan. One more visceral, more primal than magic," Gathering more of her juices, he slipped his fingers further back, circling her taut ring in a teasing manner. "And just like your magic, I intend to awaken it in you in ways you never dreamed possible." Pushing past the natural resistance, he pressed a finger inside, his mouth latching onto her bud once more when her hips lifted off the mattress. His thumb toyed with her entrance, fingers and tongue working in tandem to finally crest those waves of euphoria he'd been building up inside of her.

"Hook!" she cried out, her legs shaking violently against his head. "Killian! I… I… OH!"

Fuck! If he thought the taste of her was something divine before, it paled in comparison to the flavor of her release. Blood rushed in his ears and down to his cock, engorging it further, and his magic sparked in his nerve-endings, ignited by the flare of hers, the sudden burst shattering the enchantment he'd placed upon her.

Reaching down she grasped for him, her limbs heavy from bliss but clear in their intent. He wasted no time crawling onto the bed, following her body as she scooted further up the mattress until they were both settled with him cradled within the expanse of her thighs.

"By the gods, you feel like nothing I've ever encountered before," he groaned, rutting his length through her folds. His magic blanketed them both until he felt as though they'd been cocooned within a veil of seduction and decadence, her magic weaving its own spell of sensations long foreign to him.

Swan's fingertips grazed down the side of his face, forcing his eyes to flick to hers. His heart stuttered within his chest at the sight of her - hair fanned out beneath her, her half-lidded, desire filled eyes shining up at him, her lips indented from the bite of her teeth, the way his name fell from those lips. His name. Killian.

Shifting his position, he tore his gaze from hers and looked down the length of their bodies, guiding himself into her with a moan rumbling in the back of his throat, unable to escape due to the clench in his jaw. She was perfect. So, bloody fucking perfect, and for now, in this moment at least, she was all his.

There wasn't a pleasure in all the realms that could exceed how it felt to move inside her, what it was like to have her body match his rhythm, the two of them - and their magic - acting as one in their pursuit of rapture. The cut of her nails down his back and the sting of her teeth at his shoulder proved what he'd suspected all along, that she'd been suppressing more than her magic in an effort to please and placate the man who had wanted a meek and docile wife.

There was nothing meek or docile about his Swan, his Emma. She was power and seduction and righteous fury fueled from a core of goodness and justice. She was softness and strength, courage and daring, a force to be reckoned with who didn't even know her own might half the time, still paralyzed by self-doubt and fear in moments where she should be exerting control and demanding her way be heeded.

Well, it was high time she learned just how powerful and wanted and brilliant she was.

"How else can I please you, Emma?" he grunted, slowing his thrusts and using his hook to move wayward pieces of hair from her face. "Tell me what you want, darling."

"I…" she started tentatively, until her eyes met his, a brazenness flickering in their jade depths as she pulled her hand away from where it had been clamped to his ass and raised it up to wave with a flourish as she demanded, "I want to be on top."

Using her magic, she flipped their positions and Hook found himself beneath her, of which he had no complaints. "You want to be in control of the Dark One, do you darling?" he purred, waggling his brows at her. "Well, then. I am yours to command, love."

"Oh, I know you are," she rasped huskily, flicking her wrist once more with a coy smirk. It was now his turn to find himself trapped within the mercy of her magic, rendered immobile and incapable of doing anything else but laying there and letting her have her way with him.

A torture he was more than willing to bear.

Or so he thought, until the sweet torment of her sinking down over his length, her hips swiveling and rolling to accommodate his size, was almost enough for him to break the binds of her magic. Almost. The sight of her glorying in her triumph, taking her pleasure without apology, thoroughly unabashed by her blatant need and desires kept his magic tightly reined and the Darkness blessedly silent.

Giving himself over to the sensation of her writhing above him, setting the pace with sultry, experimental movements while scratching her nails over his chest, Hook felt truly powerless for the first time since he'd become the Dark One. Powerless, but not helpless. Vulnerable, but not weak. There was no shame in his submission, not with his Emma in control. There was a different sort of power that existed in yielding authority to another. With Emma in command of his body and magic, he was free to experience her in ways he wouldn't have expected to.

The way her back arched, her skin glistening from the sheen of her exertions as she rocked back and forth with him buried deep inside her. The way her nipples begged to be touched, piqued and pinked and pressed towards the sky even as her breasts bounced above him. The way her walls gripped and released him, dragging over his length until he was nearly unsheathed only to envelop him once more into the slick slide of warmth, causing his groin to tighten, desperate for a release he would not receive until she chose to grant it.

Just when he didn't think he could take much more, she glanced down at him, flushed and panting and debauched in the most beautiful way, and finally had mercy on him.

A groan roared from his lips when she lifted the binding enchantment, his hand gripping her waist, probably a little too hard, and urging her into a faster pace as his head rolled back further into the mattress.

"A fucking marvel you are, love. Do you know that? Absolutely bloody magnificent."

"So are you," she moaned, her hands braced against his chest, leveraging herself as she bounced and rode him towards release.

The air crackled around them, his magic seeking hers out with a possessive, almost proprietorial zeal he could feel taking root in his soul. Her magic unfurled, like the wings of some mystical creature, expanding beyond its normal boundaries with a prismatic burst and fusing with his. Their powers, newly joined and engaging in their own brand of intimacies, heightened the connection between he and his Swan, overwhelming them with a degree of ecstasy neither of them had ever experienced before.

"Killian," she whimpered, her movements becoming erratic. "Hook, I'm…"

"I know," he replied. "So am I, love."

With his hand still steadying her, he carefully reached between them with his hook and rubbed the cool steel of its crook over the sensitive nub of her apex. Her head fell back as she shattered around him, the quiver of her release rippling over his cock as her cries of pleasure rang in his ears. He continued to piston his hips, rutting frantically so he could join her, but it was the sight of her lifting his hook to her mouth, curling her tongue around the metal coated in her arousal that finally did him in. Utterances deeper than words ripped from his throat as his cock pulsed and filled her, his hips jerking from spasms of pleasure as he emptied himself into her depths.

Thoroughly spent, Swan collapsed atop him, her chest rubbing against his as they both gasped for breath. "That was…"

"An excellent start to the evening," he replied, breathlessly.

"Start?" she scoffed wearily, a smile teasing her lips as she pushed up part way to look down at him. "Aren't you as exhausted as I am?"

"Oh, aye." Guiding her back up, they sat with her straddling his lap once more, arms lazily draped around each other while their hands (well, hand in his case) lightly skimmed the other's cooling skin. "But seeing as I do not sleep," he reminded her. "I'd say we've got all night."

Emma laughed, a carefree and contagious sort of joy erupting from within her that had him grinning proudly. A grin that faltered slightly when her laughter died, a shocked gasp expelling in its place as she caught sight of something. Following her gaze he was equally as stunned to see the flicker of firelight dancing on his desk, the Promethean Flame burning bright and strong from the ember she had somehow awakened.

"But… I… How?" she stammered, and Hook pondered that as well, until he remembered the way her magic had pulsed before fusing with his, the power and confidence that had poured out of her with such untainted purity illuminating the entire room.

"You let go of your fear and self-doubt, love," he told her. "You finally took control of who and what you are - a bloody brilliant sorceress."

"I… I can't believe it," she replied, tears shimmering from her eyes with a smile so bright it was clear they were of joy and not sorrow. "Do you realize what this means!" Throwing her arms around him she muffled excitedly into his shoulder, "You can finally be free of the Darkness."

Hook's arms tightened around her, elation and pride over her accomplishment giving way to foreboding and despair, causing his own smile to slip from his lips as the Darkness viciously chortled, "Yes… about that…"

~/~

The heavy thud of a book slamming shut resonated throughout the room. The scrape of solid wooden legs dragging along the cold stone floor joined the interruption of the quiet that had encompassed the space for many hours now when Emma stood from the desk, a frustrated and despondent sigh falling from her lips. Once again she had tried to wait him out, but to no avail. Her eyes were too weary and her mind could no longer retain the information she'd been attempting to study while she waited for Hook to make his eventual appearance.

Not that she'd actually seen him.

Ever since the night she'd managed to light the Promethean Flame, the night they had finally given in to their desires and obliterated the line of propriety their magic had been scoffing at them for toeing, Hook had once again made himself scarce within the vastness of his castle. He had to be keeping tabs on her somehow though, given he always seemed to know where to find her with a servant-sent note reminding her to eat or informing her he'd be away for a few hours. While technically their deal was at an end - the stipulations having been met when she'd lit the flame - neither had said a word about it. Emma wondered if he was pretending, as she was, that they actually had a number of days left, choosing instead to focus on the initial time frame established rather than the precise goal that had already been achieved.

Of course, if he was as reluctant for her departure as she was to leave, then why was he avoiding her so? Why had he not made any effort to guide her efforts in making Excalibur whole again? Why did he deliberately stay away from her whilst she was awake only to lay with her night after night, holding her as she slept and adjourning again before dawn with nothing more than the phantom feel of his caress and the lingering aura of his magic left behind?

The man was simply maddening.

Well, no matter. Emma was convinced she was close to unlocking the secret behind Excalibur's forging. With luck, she would be able to mend the blade even before the month's end and once done, she could give Hook the thing he seemed to want most of all… freedom.

~/~

You cannot hide from her forever. If you no longer want her help then you should send her away. You've had your fun and taken your pleasure, what else is the woman good for if you no longer wish to pursue the goal you foolishly set for yourself in the first place?

Hook growled at the Darkness, a snarl curling his lip as he stomped his way up to his workshop. The infernal voices had given him little peace over the past several days, the only respite those quiet hours of solitude when he held his Swan in his arms and allowed her magic to comfort him while she slept. The Darkness' barbs and jeers, accusing him of cowardice were proving true. Hook had been unable to work up the courage to face her, to tell her all her efforts had been in vain, that every moment of suffering and anguish he'd put her through so she'd be capable of lighting the flame were now for naught, that he no longer wished to see the sword reforged because he had not been honest with her about what it would mean for him if it were.

Swinging the heavy door to his workshop wide, Hook was stopped short by the sight of Emma. She had her back to the door, the rest of her silhouetted in a brilliant light that nearly blinded him, forcing him to raise his hand and shield his eyes as her magic roared furiously before quieting and plunging the room back into near darkness with only the flicker of a few candles casting a dim glow.

"Swan? What are you…"

His words fell away, cut off by the way she spun around, clearly startled at being caught, the evidence of her transgressions, which was the other reason for his abrupt silence, gripped tightly in her hand.

Excalibur. Whole and gleaming and causing the Darkness to recoil violently as an unnerved hiss fell from Hook's lips.

"What have you done?"

Swan blanched, the smile that had bloomed after her initial surprise suddenly fading as her brows pinched together. "I thought you'd be pleased," she said, taking a small step towards him while maneuvering the sword so it rested atop her outstretched palms. "I thought this was what you wanted?"

Hook stumbled back, slamming the door shut as he fell into it, and stalling her approach with a raised hand, a plea poised on his tongue the Darkness would not allow to cross his lips.

"I don't understand," Swan murmured with a measure of confusion, blessedly stopping a few feet shy of him. "Have I… Have I done something wrong?"

"No," Hook choked out, squeezing his eyes tightly shut and forcing the Darkness into silence as he tried to collect himself and gain control over all of the aspects of his nature. "No, love. You've done nothing wrong," he assured, swiping his tongue over his lips and taking in a deep breath before fixing his gaze upon her and confessing, "It's me. I'm the one who has acted in the wrong."

"What do you mean?" she asked, the sword still laying in her hands in presentation towards him. "How have you acted in the wrong?"

His eyes fell to the blade, his head tilting forward in indication as he fought to even form the name. "Excalibur. It… It can't…"

Swan lowered the sword and took it by the hilt, pointing the blade upward as she inspected it, her eyes scouring every inch in search of some flaw or reason for his behaviour. "Can't what?" Her eyes shifted back to his, widened by a sudden thought. "Can't vanquish the Darkness? Did I mend it incorrectly?"

Shaking his head, Hook's gaze fell to the floor, the truth laying heavily within his chest, nearly suffocating him until he managed to overcome the voices and finally admit, "No, it can, but…" Slowly, he raised his eyes back to hers, regret and contrition sorrowfully pouring from his gaze that had her stepping forward once more in concern. Until his next words stopped her in her tracks. "The only way to vanquish the Darkness with Excalibur, is to use the blade to kill me as well."

Gasping, Emma dropped the sword as though it had burned her, the clatter of metal hitting stone ricocheting off the walls as they both stared at the sword glittering in the candlelight with his name etched prominently along the bottom of the blade.

"Did you know?" Emma whispered forlornly, her eyes snapping up to his. "Did you know all along that you would have to…"

"Aye," he sighed, reaching down to pick up the sword, feeling a bit more secure in having it in his possession, though he knew he'd never been in any danger from his Swan. "I'm afraid I have not been completely forthcoming with you," he admitted, making his way to the work table and placing the sword upon its surface, his hand resting atop the hilt.

"Why?" she asked, moving to stand alongside him, her focus solely on him and not the sword she had to have spent an immeasurable amount of power forging together from its broken pieces - a feat he did not wish to dismiss, but he knew she would wave aside any praise he might offer, too preoccupied with discovering his reasons for keeping such a detail secret. "Why didn't you tell me? And why on earth would you have me light the flame if you never intended to-"

"But I did intend to," he countered, releasing his hold of the blade and carding his fingers through his hair as he released a heavy breath. "I thought… I thought I had made my peace with death," he told her, taking her hand in his and running his thumb along the backs of her knuckles. "I've been so tired for so long. Tired of this world. Tired of being alone. Tired of watching those around me live their lives, grow old, and finally know the rest that comes with death. I envied them that, but was unwilling to see anyone else damned with the Darkness, so I… I sought a way to rid the world of us both. The Dark One and the Darkness. But…" His gaze turned back to the blade, and his heart ached with another truth he'd been keeping, even from himself. "Now that you've made that possible, Swan, I… I find myself unwilling to let go, to embrace the peace for which I've longed, because I finally have something worth living for."

"You do?" Emma replied in a still, small voice. Hope and uncertainty quivered through her tone as she asked, "What is it?"

His gaze captured hers once more and her chest hitched from the breath caught in her throat. He moved his hand up to cup her face, his thumb caressing the apple of her cheek as a melancholy smile softly lifted his lips.

"Don't you know, Emma?" he breathed, resting his forehead against hers. "It's you."

Lightly, his lips brushed hers. A single tear slipped between them, the saltiness mixing with the bitterness of the moment as Hook broke off the kiss, knowing he needed to confess the rest of it, lest she think this was a moment for celebration and not sorrow.

"But that's not all," he murmured, refusing to pull back though he knew he should put some distance between them. "Even if I were willing to end my life now, I cannot self inflict that level of harm, therefore I-"

"No," Swan snapped, pulling away and shaking her head vehemently. "No, I won't-"

"I'm no longer asking you to, love."

"And I won't let anyone else, either," she asserted, a hard emphatic edge grating against her tone. "Though I imagine there are any number of your subjects who would line up for the opportunity to run you through, I absolutely forbid-"

"Actually, not just anyone can handle Excalibur," he cut in. "Only a true hero, a saviour, if you will, can wield the blade, and even then…"

"What?"

Sighing, he said, "There is a cost." Swiping his hand down his face he flippantly dismissed that particular fact, stating, "But it matters not, seeing as I have no intentions of letting you pay it."

"So, what do you intend to do?"

Snapping his gaze back to hers he was overcome by what he saw swirling in those green depths. "I know what I want, but… it isn't possible."

"What isn't possible?" she asked softly, taking his hand and squeezing it encouragingly. "Tell me."

"I…" He wasn't sure he'd be able to get the words out, to hear them spoken aloud as though they could actually manifest a reality different from the one he knew he was trapped in. "I want you to stay. Stay and be the light to my darkness. I want you to wake up every morning in my arms, sated and content from pleasures we exchanged the night before. I want you to work beside me, to rule as my equal, and be mine as I wish to be yours."

Her breath stuttered, her eyes glistening with unfallen tears as a smile swept across her face. "What if I want that as well?"

Hook's Adam's apple bobbed painfully, his eyes slipping shut momentarily from the anguish radiating through his chest. "Then we are both doomed to suffer disappointment, I'm afraid."

"Why?" The word was indignant, almost angry sounding, her eyes sparking in defiance. "Because you're the Dark One? Because you think it matters to me that you carry the Darkness within you? Well, I have news for you… it doesn't. I don't care that you're the Dark One. I refuse to let the Darkness keep us from a happiness I know we can have with one another."

"And if that were the only thing standing in our way, I would fight back the Darkness every day in order to be with you," Hook declared, gripping her hand tighter, unwilling to let her go though he knew he'd have to sooner rather than later.

"Then what-"

"I'm immortal, Swan," he reminded her, pressing his forehead to hers and waiting a few beats of his heart before continuing, allowing that reminder to sink in. "And while I know the years spent with you would be the happiest of my miserable life, I can't bear the thought of having to watch you grow old and die. Perhaps it is selfish of me, and I'd sooner rip out my own heart than wish to be apart from you, but…"

He couldn't do it. Couldn't say the words. Couldn't let her think he truly wished for her to go, but what other choice was there? Even if she could look past his darkness - natural and otherwise - he would still end up losing her in the end.

"I don't want to lose you," he whispered. "I don't want to say goodbye, but…"

Once again, his words fell away. He'd looked down to meet her eyes, only to find hers trained straight ahead. Fixated on the spot his heart resided within his chest, her fingers lightly skimmed over his skin and her lip was gripped between her teeth as she contemplated something that had pulled her attention from his words.

"Your heart," she murmured, her eyes flicking up to his, filled with inspiration. "Your heart!"

"Aye," Hook drawled. "You said that already."

"Magic comes from the heart," she said. "And the source of your magic came from the Grail of Immortality Excalibur was forged from, so it stands to reason that your immortality also lies within your heart."

Hook's brow scrunched and he shook his head. "I still don't understand-"

"Don't you see?" she exclaimed. "If we were to share your heart then I would become immortal as well!"

Hook balked and stepped back. "Share my… you can't be serious! To do so might also corrupt you with the Darkness!"

"Perhaps," she replied, undeterred by his reaction. "But if we split my heart as well, and share halves of it, then my magic might be enough to counterbalance..." Her eyes widened and fell to the sword still lying prone on the table next to them. "Balance! Don't you see? That was why Excalibur was forged in the first place. Why Merlin had to use it in order to stop Nimue. But we don't need the sword in order to restore the balance. Our hearts will establish the balance; one half yours, and one half mine. Equal parts Darkness and light."

"No," Hook exhaled, still shaking his head vehemently. "I can't let you do that. Why on earth would you want to? What possible reason could there be for you to-"

Emma took his face into her hands, her eyes soft with a slightly exasperated expression resting upon her features as she declared, "Don't you know? I love you, you big dark idiot."

A disbelieving huff, tinged with amusement and awe, whooshed from his lungs. "What?"

Her smile grew, her fingers dividing their comfort between caressing his face and running through his hair. "I love you," she stated again. "And I don't want to lose you either, so please, Killian. We have to try."

Responding as it typically did whenever she evoked his given name, Hook's entire body shuddered, and his magic refused to stay dormant and compliant any longer. The prospect of being joined with hers was too great a temptation, too great a desire to keep it reined within the recesses of his being, and its petition to heed Swan's suggestion was swiftly followed by his humanity and even the Darkness itself - though reluctantly.

Another huff fell from his lips. "The irony."

"What irony?"

Threading his fingers through her hair, Hook softly imparted, "The cost of using Excalibur to end my life, and thus vanquishing the Darkness, was that it would have tainted your magic and darkened your heart." Fixing her with his gaze, he questioned, "Are you certain that is a price you are willing to pay?"

"There is no price I would be unwilling to pay in order to stay by your side. Forever."

Hook gasped at the feel of her hand plunging into his chest, the sudden pull of his heart being ripped from his chest, even though she did her best to be gentle, leaving him momentarily breathless.

"Sorry," she apologized, sheepishly. "I thought the less expected and quicker it was then the less painful it might be. Are you okay?"

"Fan-bloody-tastic," he wheezed, giving her lop-sided smile and he gingerly rubbed his chest.

Squaring off her shoulders, Swan adjusted her posture. "Okay, then. Do me next."

His brow quirked and a salacious smirk lifted the corner of his lips.

"You know what I mean," she admonished with a light chuckle, rolling her eyes.

Hook reached out towards her chest, then hesitated. "It occurs to me," he began, noting the tremor of nerves coursing through her and wishing to alleviate some of her trepidations, "that the last time I attempted this I found myself flat on my back having been thrown violently by your magic."

Grabbing his hand, Emma placed it over her heart and said, "That's because last time you were trying to take it." The look she gave him was all the proof he'd ever need of her sincerity. "This time… I'm giving it to you."

Slipping his hand inside her ribcage, he delicately took her heart in his hand and eased it back out. The radiance of the organ shone from his palm, the vibrancy of such purity juxtaposed with the blackened mass held in hers.

"Hey," she soothed softly, closing the gap between them and holding his heart up to him. "Look closer." She took great care in separating his heart into two halves. The twinge he felt in his hollow chest was most unpleasant, but it was soon forgotten when he spied the swirl of vivid red at the very center of each half. "The core of who you are isn't dark," she said. "You might always be the Dark One, but this proves that at the very center of all that makes you who you are, you are still a man with a good heart."

Swallowing past the emotion such a revelation had brought up within him, Killian separated her heart into two then flicked his gaze to hers. With no words uttered between them, only the deep love that shone from their eyes and vibrated through their magic, they exchanged halves, fused their new hearts together, and returned them to each other's chest. Simultaneous gasps fell from both their lips and Hook wrapped Emma in his arms, bracing for the change that was about to come over them.

Now housed and anchored within the same heart, their magic knit together and bonded with a concussive force that expelled out in all directions. Bright beams of intense white light kaleidoscoped with spectrums of glittering black and grey, shaking the room around them with deep rumbles that had them holding fast to one another until the metamorphosis was complete and everything was still and silent once more.

Drawing in a shaky breath, Hook looked down at Emma, jarred by the new, wondrous sensations sweeping through him and worried about the trade-off, knowing his Swan's experience might not be as favorable.

"Swan? Are you-"

A new illumination emanated from the worktable, causing them both to avert their eyes until the glow subsided. Left in its wake was a fresh etching upon Excalibur's blade. Scripted next to his own name was a new one: Emma Swan.

"It worked," Emma awed. Her smile stretched across her face, but faltered in response to the dejected expression he could not keep from his face. "I'm not sorry," she told him. "And I don't want you to be either. I chose this, remember? I chose you, and I don't regret it."

"A few centuries of enduring the Darkness might have you changing your mind, love."

A coy smile slipped over her lips and Hook began to notice the subtle changes in her. No… not changes. Not really. More of an awakened conviction and ownership of the strength that had always been there.

"Haven't you noticed?" she murmured, the sultry tone she applied causing his brow (and other things) to twitch upwards. When he tilted his head to one side, still unsure of her meaning, she threaded her fingers through his hair and tsked, "Have you been so concerned for my wellbeing that you failed to notice the shift in your magic?"

"I doubt many within proximity of the castle could have failed to notice the way our powers fused together."

She hummed, a husky sound vibrating through her throat and sending a jolt of desire straight to his groin. "It is the result of that fusion to which I am referring."

With furrowed brows, Hook tapped into his powers and found, to his amazement…

"No more constraints," Emma declared in an air of triumph. "It seems the combined force of our power was no match for the Darkness, and our magic has it comfortably restrained within the confines of our own natural darkness."

"You did it, Swan." Hook barked out a laugh and wrapped his arms around her, lifting her off her feet and into a spin as jubilance danced freely in his spirit. "You freed me!"

"We freed each other," she muffled into his neck, her smile brushing against his skin as he set her back onto her feet. "I've never felt so sure of myself. So in command. Like I could take on anything." Her eyes sparkled with this newfound confidence and an unrestrained breath flowed easily from her chest. "I'm not afraid anymore, and I have you to thank."

"No, love," he countered. "This was who you were always meant to be, but…" Pressing his tongue to the back of his teeth, he lowered his brows and pierced her with a smoldering stare. "Should you wish to really put these new revelations to the test, I'd be only too happy for you to take me on… in our bed. I am, after all, yours to command."

Emma ran her hands up his chest, her lip tauntingly pulled between her teeth as she pressed up onto her toes. "And now that I am also a Dark One and do not require sleep," she said, her breath ghosting over his lips. "We really do have all night."

"Actually," Hook murmured back with a slight growl. "Given we're both immortal now, I would say we have all of eternity, my love."

The End