A/N: Hi Everyone! I hope you are doing well. Can you believe it? The series finale aired a couple of days ago and I'm still trying to process the fact that it's over. Though the television show may have ended, I hope you will join me in continuing to keep the spirit of OUAT alive by reading all the new adventures about our beloved characters on this fandom. I want to thank everyone who read, responded and/or reviewed my last chapter. You really brightened my day. As always, I welcome any comments, suggestions, or critique that will improve this story and make me a better writer. Well, enough about me. Let's begin—Chapter Sixteen!
Disclaimer: If I owned anything, OUAT would not have come to an end.:(
This chapter is dedicated to my amazing reader, Brokenblackrose89. Thank you for your review! I agree, it is always nice to have a new chapter and I am trying to update more often to make that happen. I hope you enjoy the chapter!
This chapter is also dedicated to Eddy Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you for creating such an amazing show. I wish you both, and all of the cast and crew, the best in your future endeavors!
Chapter 16
Storybrooke: A Couple of Months Ago
Frozen.
It is the only sensation Emma feels. From the moment she closed the door to the Sheriff's vehicle at the ice wall, it settled deep into her bones. Being trapped in Elsa's ice cave for several hours and stuck without power during the citywide outage intensifies the numbness. Even with those situations resolved, the shivers pulsing through her veins forbid her from drifting off to dreamland.
Her eyes open and steal a glance at the clock hanging on the wall.
"Bad dream, love?"
Emma jumps, startled by the voice of her pirate.
"What are you still doing here?" she groans, her eyes half-opened.
"Making sure you're alright."
"It's 3 o'clock in the morning," the Savior whispers, digging into her blankets to search for more warmth.
"Do you want some rum?" Killian asks, as the moonbeams from the window highlight his piercing sapphires and his 'what do I do' face.
The Savior gives the pirate a half-awake glare. Though the frigid air paralyzes her body, her attitude burns like fire.
"Is rum your solution to everything?"
"Never hurts."
Emma quickly guesses that Captain Hook never played nurse in his years in Neverland.
"No, thank you, not in the mood."
"Well, Swan, that's a shame," he whispers, disappointed that she doesn't want to tap into his flask with him. Nevertheless, the sound of the cap dropping on wood planks echoes through the apartment.
"Where is everyone?" Emma asks, barely able to turn her stiff head. The cold makes her brain feel like a bucket full of stones.
"Well, your father is upstairs with Henry, sleeping. Your mother was afraid you might have some side effects from the exposure, so she stayed up until I convinced her to go to sleep about an hour ago."
"And Elsa?"
"The human ice maker?"
Emma's eyes narrow. "Not nice."
Her reaction causes the pirate to chuckle. He loves nothing more than getting under the Sheriff's skin. When she continues to give him a hardened stare, he replies, "She's sharing a bed with your mother, but volunteered to get up if you want to sleep there instead."
"No," Emma responds, peering down at her makeshift accommodations of a few blankets in a chair. "I can stay here. She probably hasn't had much sleep either, since her arrival."
Killian nods before the Savior curls her body into the shape of a cocoon. It isn't long before the night air overtakes her and she begins to violently shake.
"Emma?" the pirate whispers, his laughter gone. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," she chatters, as he rushes to her side. "Just—really—cold."
She smothers herself in blankets, but the crippling cold refuses to relinquish its grip. In this moment, Emma wishes she were back in Florida. Sitting in the sun on the beach sounds like heaven compared to the freezing apartment.
The pirate digs through the mountain of blankets and grips her hand.
"Your fingers are ice," he says.
"I'm—just—cold natured."
Her answer fails to convince the Captain. Worry blossoms on his features as he retreats into the kitchen. Emma hears the sound of the microwave turning. When the pirate returns a couple of minutes later, he holds a hot water bottle in his hand.
"Is that filled with your rum?" Emma says, trying to make a joke.
"Much to my dismay, no," he answers. "It's for you."
As she takes the bottle and presses its warmth onto her chest, Killian pushes the heater closer to Emma, desperate to get her to stop shivering. Warmth begins to flow through her veins. Slowly, but surely, the cold melts off her bones.
The apartment grows silent for the next few minutes. In the dark, the Savior observes the dashing scoundrel. Gazing at the way his sapphires reflect the night, she swears the stars must be made to twinkle in Killian's eyes. She notices his countenance filled with concern, but watches it relax as she ceases to shiver and chatter her teeth. Though he appears to be exhausted, not once do his eyelids close.
"Aren't you going to even try to sleep?"
"I'm alright, love," he tells her.
"Look—I'm fine," Emma assures the swashbuckler. "You should get some sleep. You don't have to worry about me."
"It's my job, Swan," he replies, catching her by surprise. "I watch you, always so focused on making sure everyone else is alright. But I also see how you forget to take care of yourself. You need someone to look out for you."
Emma finds Killian's affections for her evident, but she doesn't know how to respond. She cannot remember enduring such inner torment, not even with Walsh or Graham. In those relationships, she studied her partners and she knew every side of them. Her tactics don't work with Killian. Emma finds him to be a loose cannon, flirting and drunk one moment, and concerned about her feelings the next. Not knowing all of the pirate's secrets terrifies her.
"Well, I can't sleep," she declares, looking out the window into the empty streets of Storybrooke. Turning back to her awake companion, she asks, "Got any ideas?"
"What do you mean?"
"I'm saying, we can't go banging on Granny's door at 3 o'clock in the morning. So, what should we do?"
"We could drink rum."
"Killian."
"Well then, we could count coins," he suggests.
"Don't you mean count sheep?"
"No, you count coins," the pirate insists. "Coins, passing ships, buried treasure—is none of this ringing a bell?"
"Nope," Emma answers, stretching against the walls of Mary Margaret's quilts. "Look, pirate, I don't know what they do in your realm, but in this land, we call 'counting coins' counting sheep."
Killian contrives more ideas in his thoughts before he proposes, "How about a lullaby? I hear that Mary Margaret loves waking you up with her renditions of "Mary Had A Little Lamb" and "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star"."
"It's for the baby," Emma defends her mother. "He gets fussy."
"And smelly," the Captain adds, earning another one of Emma's scowls.
Only the sounds of David's relentless snoring echo through the apartment. Though she knows Killian's idea of a lullaby is a joke, it causes Emma to recall a memory she buried in her heart from long ago.
"It's been years since I've heard one of those meant for me," she tells the pirate.
When he motions for an explanation, she indulges him. "When I was five years-old, I stayed with this one foster family, the Morrisons, for three months. They were a middle-aged couple with a teenage daughter, and I loved that family more than my little heart realized. Nowadays, my memories of them are fuzzy, because I was so young. But sometimes, I still hear Mrs. Cindy's pretty singing voice. When she tucked me in bed at night, she always softly sang to me all the nursery lullabies she could remember until I fell asleep."
"Did you ever sing with her?" Killian asks.
"Oh, nice try, buddy," Emma replies, discerning the depth of his question. "I don't sing. A million years would pass by before you would ever hear my voice. It's terrible."
"Oh come on, Swan. I doubt that."
"Yeah, you're still not getting me to sing."
They both share smiles before Killian takes her back into her past. "What happened to them? The Morrisons?"
Recalling her broken childhood, Emma sighs. "They moved. He got a job in Tennessee and they couldn't take me with them. I'll—I'll never forget the day they dropped me off at my new foster home. I screamed and cried for thirty straight minutes, begging them to take me with them. But—" Emma stops, chuckling to keep her walls from crumbling. "They pulled out of that driveway without me. That was—one of the saddest days of my life. But I soon figured out it wouldn't be the last time people I loved left me behind."
"Hey," Killian interrupts. "I don't intend to leave you behind, even if this—whatever is going on between us, doesn't work out."
"I know," she confesses, realizing it is a belief her heart held long before their time travel adventure.
With the warmth from the water bottle and her rising temperature spreading through the sheets, Emma's arms finally emerge from her cave of fabric. Turning to Killian, she questions, "What about you? Is Captain Hook a lullaby lover?"
"Um, no." he grins. "But, there was this one song that my father used to sing to me when I got nightmares."
"Do you remember it? I mean, you were a child like—300 years ago."
"Aye, love," he confirms. "But like my dashingly handsome good looks, my mind remains young."
"You are so full of yourself," Emma jokingly remarks, astounded at the pirate's level of confidence.
"It's called, "Leave her Johnny", an old sailor song. It's about a sailor leaving his home, his ship, after a long journey. I loved listening to the song, not because my father sang it well, but because—he would always change the word "Johnny" to "Killy"."
"Your name."
"Aye," the pirate replies. "Just before he abandoned me on the high seas with Liam, he told me that he changed it because he loved the way hearing my name would make me smile."
Emma finally emerges from her fortress and saunters across the freezing floor to situate herself next to Killian on the couch. When he motions for her to lay on his chest, Emma detects the aroma of rum on his lips. As she hears the delicate sound of his heart beating, Killian recalls one of the few golden moments of his childhood.
"I thought I heard the Old Man say
Leave her, Johnny, leave her
Tomorrow you will get your pay
And it's time for us to leave her.
Oh, the wind was foul and the sea ran high
Leave her, Johnny, leave her
She shipped it green and none went by
And it's time for us to leave her.
Leave her, Johnny, leave her
Oh, leave her, Johnny, leave her!
For the voyage is long and the winds don't blow
And it's time for us to leave her."
His soothing voice reverberates through the loft like ripples of magic. The lullaby eases the tension and fear for Emma's health that lingers in his heart. When he gingerly turns his head, he finds his soft and leisurely song takes the Savior into oblivion. Though disappointed that his drinking companion deserts him, he cannot hide the smile that paints his features. Careful not to disturb her newly discovered rest, he plants a soft kiss in the fields of blonde in Emma's hair.
When she doesn't stir, Killian decides it is the perfect time to confess. On the softness of his breath, Killian whispers to the Savior his secret.
"I love you, Emma Swan."
As Emma's horse trots through the gates of King Arthur's castle, her heart aches. She remembers that night, thinking about how, although the pirate thought his secret fell on deaf ears, she never told him that she heard every word. How she misses him, longing to let him get under her skin and ask her if she wants a swig of his rum just one more time.
Nightmares of him being tortured by the darkness plague her soul. The tatters of her clothing that she hides under a thick cloak remind her that darkness is their reality. Someone wants her dead and for Killian to suffer. The darkness stole her pirate and now strives to separate her from him forever. It is the greatest enemy the Savior faces. The fate of all the realms rests on her shoulders, and if she cannot find a way to stop it, Emma knows that the light will disappear forever.
"Hey," Lily whispers, noticing the war that the Savior fights in her mind. "Chin up. It's going to be okay."
Emma nods to reassure her friend, though she knows she does it more for herself. As they dismount their horses and make their way inside the majestic fortress of stone, she solidifies her features to play the part, like she always did to catch a criminal. As she walks across the stone and marble floors and through royal crests, banners, and flags, there is no fear or worry noticeable in the Savior's expression. Only her jagged heartbeat reveals her true feelings.
"Announcing Sir Kay and his guests!"
The palace guards open the doors to the throne room. The room filled with life and opulent drapes and middlemist petals is no more. The air smells fowl and a shadow rests upon the throne of the King. The knots in Emma's stomach coil around her to strangle her.
King Arthur watches their entrance from his throne. His stern posture and narrow hawk-like observation sends a chill down the Savior's spine. She doesn't have to be up close to detect that Camelot's king seems very upset.
"Your highness," Sir Kay greets, bowing.
"Enough with the flattery, knight," King Arthur responds, his tone gruff and not as friendly as the night prior.
"My apologies, your Majesty."
"Tell me, what provokes my guests of honor and two of my most trusted knights to abandon a night of celebration to venture out into the woods during a storm?"
The knight stays quiet for a moment to gather his thoughts. Emma thinks about how she could cut the tension in the air between the brothers with a knife.
"I—I heard reports of the Dark One being nearby. As a safety precaution, I left the Queen's ball to investigate."
"And you jeopardized the lives of two women?"
As Kay attempts to contrive an answer, Lily interrupts him. "Your Majesty, I apologize for speaking out of line. But you must know, I overheard Kay's intentions and along with Emma, I offered to help."
"Help?" he questions, his eyes blinking with surprise. The King leans forward to listen. "Tell me, why?"
"We've—we've had experience with Dark Ones," she explains. "The last Dark One lived in our land for 30 years."
"Really?" Arthur inquires, intrigued by the new information. "Rumplestiltskin?"
"You know him?"
"Indeed," the King replies. "I crossed paths with him once, when my stepfather took me with him to Misthaven years ago. Tell me, where is Rumplestiltskin now?"
"Unconscious," Emma answers. "The darkness became too strong for him to handle. He is no longer the Dark One. When the darkness left him, it traveled back to the realm of its origin, Camelot, to consume the soul of another. A local, perhaps."
"I see," the King nods, contemplating their answers carefully. "And did you succeed? Did you find him?"
"No," Kay replies. "The storm impeded our efforts. After Emma fell from exhaustion and near frostbite, I took them to the cottage until it passed."
"And what about Sir Percival?"
"What about him?" his brother asks, confusion decorating his countenance. "Did he not return last night?"
"No," Arthur answers, rising from his slouch. "He did not."
"Has he alerted a patrol or scout?"
"No, and I am growing more worried."
Lily feels her pulse growing rapidly. She silently prays that her escort is alright, for she knows a darker force than the thunderstorm lurked in the woods last night.
As silence fills the castle, the King turns his attention to his guests and asks them the one question that Emma dreads.
"Where is Lord Neal?"
"He went with us," Lily lies.
"Then where is he now?"
"Still at the cottage," she responds. "He woke up last night and insisted we all stay together, but didn't feel well this morning. Apparently, the rain and chill got the best of him."
"I see. Well, you'll understand my shock to find more visitors from your land this morning."
"Are they alright?" Emma inquires.
"They are fine," the King tells her. "When we found them just outside the castle grounds, the first thing they asked us was if we had seen you. Corren, my personal guard, here, will take you to them."
"Thank you, your Majesty," Lily curtsies, with Emma following suit.
As the King dismisses the maidens to follow Corren, Emma feels his observing eye stalking her every move. He watches for her to let her guard down or to misstep. The sensation makes the Savior's toes curl.
When the visitors from The Land Without Magic exit the throne room, they leave Sir Kay to face his royal brother alone.
"I apologize for my behavior last night, your Majesty."
"Kay, what were you thinking?! The Dark One is dangerous! You not only did not tell me where you were going, but you put yourself and our guests in danger. He's already killed too many subjects and burned several villages. Though the storm helped to remedy some of the damage, there are still fires burning and threatening the outer kingdom."
"We'll put them out," the knight assures his King.
"Not if he keeps creating more of them."
"More?" the knight gasps, taken aback.
"Yes," the King solemnly responds. "I've heard reports of new fires near two villages just this morning.
"What would you have me do?"
"We need to keep the Dark One contained. I need you and your men to set up patrols outside the nearby villages. The kingdom is officially under lockdown. Evacuate those threatened by the fires or near the Dark One's last known location. I want our best men with our best weaponry going after this—lunatic."
"We can't stop him, Arthur," his brother reminds him. "Without his dagger, there is no way to prevent him from unleashing his wrath on Camelot."
"Then find it!" the King snaps. "I will not lose one more person to this darkness!"
Arthur retreats to his throne and attempts to calm himself down.
"What about Sir Percival?" Kay inquires.
"I have scouts searching the woods. Alert me at once if you find him."
"Of course, your Highness."
As Sir Kay stands in salute to his King, the royal ruminates on his greeting with his guests.
"Kay, something seems funny."
"Sir?"
"There's something about this—darkness. I can't put my finger on it, but something is going on. I think Lady Emma and Lady Lily might be involved."
"Do you want me to ask them?"
"No, no," the King tells him. "I don't want them to be alarmed." His fingers tap against the mighty oak as he sinks into the chair. Finally, the King looks at his brother. "Give me a few minutes to think. When you come back, I'll have orders for you then."
"Yes, your Highness. Whatever you command, it shall be done."
"Thank you," the King obliges. When he gestures for the knight to leave, he says "Kay."
"Yes, Arthur?" he responds.
"Our father arrived at the castle this morning."
Dismay fills the knight's features. Somberly, he peers at his king. "Did he want to see me?"
"He didn't say," the royal answers.
"Then that would be a no," Kay sighs. Walking towards the door, he angrily calls out, "Tell him that I give him my best wishes!"
To see the bridge of the relationship between his father and brother crumble makes the anger in Arthur's heart turn into sadness. How he wishes Excalibur could've brought them together and not torn them apart. At this moment, however, his family's problem is the least of his troubles.
When the doors swing open, The Savior's emeralds spy some familiar faces.
"Emma!" her mother calls, racing to her daughter and enveloping her in her arms.
"Mom," she says, closing her eyes and inhaling her warmth.
"Are you okay?" the princess whispers.
"Yeah, we're okay."
As Emma embraces Mary Margaret, she overhears another mother and daughter reunite.
"Lily!" Maleficent shouts, smiling as she holds her child once again.
"What happened?" Mary Margaret asks, inspecting her daughter and finding her dress is nearly rags.
"Nothing," Emma lies. Guessing that her sudden disappearance from Storybrooke causes enough worry for the princess, she decides not to reveal her two brushes with death the night prior.
Though she tries to keep a straight face, Emma sees Mary Margaret doubting her answer. It is then that the Savior notices not everyone is present in the room.
"Wait, where are Henry and David?"
"Well," her mother replies. "We ran into a little bit of—a situation."
"More like a trainwreck," Regina chimes in. "A really big one."
When Emma looks over Regina's shoulder, she finds the Wicked Witch of the West slumped in a chair, pouting.
Before Emma asks, Mary Margaret answers, "Henry and David are fine. Thanks to Zelena, we all just got here a little earlier than we anticipated, but we're alright. Regina, Robin, Maleficent, and myself are here, and we're going to help you find—"
"Neal," her daughter interrupts, keeping her secret. "Don't worry about him. Neal, Henry's father, is fine. He's—just resting at Sir Kay's cottage."
When the Savior meets her mother's face, she finds a puzzled look. Pulling her in for another hug, Emma whispers, "Play along. I'll explain everything to you later."
Mary Margaret seems to understand because she flashes a bright smile for all of the guards to see. When an awkward silence fills the room, the lead guard decides to act.
"We'll give you a moment to gather yourselves. The Queen requests your presence at a midday banquet. I am told to inform you that more comfortable attire is available for you in your bedchambers. There will be servants waiting for you outside the door to show you to your rooms when you are ready."
"Thank you," Emma nods.
When the guards close the door, everyone's eyes land on the Savior, looking for an explanation.
"Where is Hook?" Regina asks.
"We don't know."
"What?!"
"Look, it hasn't been smooth sailing since we got here," the Savior tells her. "We think someone is holding him captive."
"Who?"
"His master," Lily answers, chiming in.
Immediately, Robin's alarms go up. "Wait—are you telling us that you don't have the Dark One's dagger?"
"Yes," Emma admits.
"You lost it?!"
"More like someone took it," Lily responds.
Disappointment sprouts all across Mary Margaret's face. Nevertheless, her optimism remains.
"Alright, not to worry. We can do this. We'll find Merlin, figure out who has the dagger, then rescue Hook and get back to Storybrooke. If we can handle Gold, this shouldn't be that hard. We don't have a lot of time, so let's get started."
Without waiting for anyone to protest the Enchanted Forest's princess heads out the doors to find Hook only to be met by Sir Kay.
"Woah, forgive me, milady," he says. "I did not see you."
"No, I am sorry," Snow White replies.
"You seem to be off in a hurry," the knight notices.
"We need to speak to Merlin," Regina calmly proclaims to avoid the soldier's suspicion.
"Well, we would all like to speak to Merlin, but unfortunately, that is impossible."
"And why is that?" the mayor of Storybrooke asks, hiding the fact that she already knows the answer.
"Because Camelot's most powerful sorcerer remains trapped inside of a magical tree. Our King continues to search for a way to free him, a quest that began many year ago."
"Well, perhaps, we can help," Maleficent suggests. "We come from a land of magic and may be able to find something that could be overlooked."
"But we would like to see the tree for ourselves," Snow White responds. "To see what we are dealing with."
"Well, as much as I would love to honor your request, I cannot allow such a journey at this time."
"And why not?" Regina questions.
"Well, as some of you, if not all of you, are aware, we are in the middle of a crisis. The Dark One is preying on the innocents of Camelot and no one is safe."
"What are you saying?" Lily asks. When Emma's eyes stare into the knight's, the Savior already knows Sir Kay's answer.
"The castle is on lockdown. No one goes in or out, King's orders."
A/N: Uh oh! Looks like our Storybrooke gang is stuck in King Arthur's castle. Or are they? Well, Chapter Sixteen is complete! Credit for Killian's song goes to "Leave Her Johnny" by Sean Dagher. As always, I would appreciate any comments, suggestions, or critique. Also, don't forget to favorite and/or follow this story if you haven't already! In case anyone was wondering, I'm keeping Killian off the radar for the next chapter (like the last two). This is for a reason, which you will see in the upcoming CaptainSwan chapter. If all goes well, it will be published as Chapter Eighteen (it is already written). In the mean time, I am on vacation this next week, but will try to update soon after I get back. Thank you for your loyalty and understanding with my crazy update schedule. Rest assured, I truly plan to finish this story. In the mean time, below is a quote from the CaptainSwan chapter to wet your appetite.
"Gold."
Until next time!
C.M. Singer:)