This chapter is a What If? concept. It's based in 4x08 and 4x09, "Smash the Mirror." What if Killian found Emma before she got to the Sorcerer's mansion?

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Don't

Killian's heart nearly jumped out of his chest when he saw the yellow bug off the road. As he ran up to the driver's side, his fears were confirmed: Emma laid unconscious against the window.

Slowly, he opened the door, catching her and pushing her back against the seat. After checking to make sure she was breathing, he reached past her and unbuckled her seat belt. He slid his arms underneath her and pulled her into his arms. Stepping back onto the grass, he set her down gently.

Panic gripped him as he checked her pulse. It was slower than it should have been. He was debating whether or not to call an ambulance when her eyelids lifted.

"Hey," he whispered, leaning over her.

Her eyes widened and she pushed herself up.

"Calm down, love. It's just me."

Her breaths turned ragged as she glanced around. "What happened? Why am I on the ground?" Her gaze landed on him. "What are you doing here?"

"Shh, love. Take it easy." He caressed her face. "How are you feeling?"

Emma frowned, touching the side of her head tenderly. "I'm fine."

He moved over to her head to see the side of it. A small circle of skin was dropping into a purple color.

She put her hand on his shoulder and pushed lightly. "What are you doing here? I was on my way to—" Her eyes blew wide and she jumped to her feet. "I gotta go. Gold—"

Killian wrapped his hand around her arm. "You can't go, Emma. I came to stop you."

She yanked her arm away, her hands sparking dangerously. She held them to her chest and stepped back. "I don't want to hurt you, Killian. I already hurt Henry. Getting rid of my magic is the only way to prevent that."

He took a step forward, but stopped when Emma moved farther away. "Emma, listen to me. The Crocodile is using you. He's planning on trapping you in some magical hat. He has no interest in helping you, but I do." He held his hand out. "Come home with me. We can figure this out together."

Emma shook her head, turning her body slightly to the side. "Why would he do that? He turned over a new leaf. You said so yourself."

He swallowed. Now was not the time to admit his sins. He had to save her first. "I was wrong. He never changed." Killian shook his hand, emphasizing his earlier proposition. "Why would I lie about this?"

She squeezed her eyes closed. "Gold wants to help me. He cares about Henry, too. He doesn't want him to get hurt."

"But he doesn't care about you. He will do whatever it takes to increase his power."

Emma glanced nervously at his hand. She had no reason not to trust Killian, but if he was wrong, her only chance to get rid of her magic was gone. She couldn't be near him if she was out of control.

She moved farther back. "You need to leave. My magic is too unstable."

"Elsa said that running will only make things worse."

"Elsa's magic isn't mine," she whispered. "I hurt Henry. I can't hurt you, too." She took another step back. "Please leave."

Her broken voice cut through Killian like a knife. She was frightened—terrified. How was he supposed to fix that?

He moved forward.

"Stop." Emma took several steps back, the distance between them growing. "Killian, I can't control it. This is the only way."

"It's not," he insisted. "He isn't helping you. Trust me."

She tilted her head curiously. "What makes you think he wants to hurt me?"

He stared at her for a moment. He thought that confessing his sins now was the opposite of what would help, but perhaps it was the very thing that would save her. "I made a mistake. He blackmailed me into helping him. He knew I would do whatever it took to be with you." He recited his earlier words, knowing there was no better way to phrase them.

"What—?"

"It doesn't matter right now. All that matters is that you trust me." He knew that he might have already broken the trust he cherished so much, but he had to hope she would still listen to him. "I can't let you do this." He walked forward, not stopping when Emma moved back.

"Killian, no. Stop," she begged. "I don't want to hurt you."

He halted only a few feet from her. "Emma, your magic is a part of you. Your family loves every part of you. I love every part of you."

Her eyes snapped up to his. Had he…? No, he hadn't said it exactly, and that relieved her. She was nowhere near ready for that.

Killian kept talking, not wanting her to run. "We aren't afraid of you, Emma. We don't want you to change anything about yourself."

Emma knew he was speaking for everyone, but she knew he really was talking about himself. He wasn't scared of her. He thought she was perfect the way she was. It almost felt like too much. She had known Neal's stance on magic. Despite knowing he loved her, she'd been afraid that he wouldn't accept her magic. But with Killian, she'd never had a doubt. He accepted every part of her. He didn't care if she had magic. He had never blinked an eye at it. He'd always encouraged her to use it. He wanted her to love herself—her whole self.

"Please, Emma. Trust me."

Emma jumped. She hadn't realized how close he had gotten. He was only a foot away. When she stepped back, he stepped forward. His eyes were full of trust. She wanted to repay that trust, but if he got hurt—

Again, he reached his hand out, wearing an encouraging smile.

For a moment, she stared at the hand. Then, she looked at hers. Her magic had died down, but it still flickered. If she took his hand—

"Trust yourself," he whispered.

She turned her head up, meeting his eyes. There was no doubt in them.

Without moving her eyes, she placed her hand in his. When he didn't fly back or collapse to the ground, her body relaxed.

"See?" There was no relief in his eyes. He hadn't had a single doubt. "I told you."

Tears escaped her eyes. "Thank you."

He took a small step forward. "I just reminded you of how amazing you are."

Cautiously, she placed her hands on his chest and stood on her toes, pressing her lips to his gently.

"Thank you," she repeated when she fell back onto her feet a moment later.

Slowly, relief washed over him. She had trusted him. He truly hadn't had a doubt that she would hurt him. He'd only been worried she wouldn't trust him. If she hadn't trusted him because of his confession, he would have hated himself. If she had gotten trapped because she hadn't trusted him, he didn't know what he would do. Thankfully, he wouldn't have to face either situation.

"We should get you home," he said, grinning. "I have a feeling there's a lot of worried people at the loft."

She huffed out a laugh. "You're probably right." She smiled up at him again before moving back to the car. "How did you get all the way out here anyway?"

Killian opened the passenger side door. "I ran."

She raised her eyebrows. "That's a long way."

"I had something keeping me going."

She flushed and ducked into the car.

Killian grinned and climbed in, shutting the door behind him as Emma started the car up again.

"I should call Gold and let him know I'm not going to show up." She backed up, turning the car around and heading home.

"I'll do it," Killian said right away. "He'll be even more determined to capture you now."

"I can take him. My magic is under control now." She sent him a smile before looking back at the road. "Thanks to you."

"You almost gave me a heart attack, love. What happened to drive you off the road?" he questioned.

Her eyebrows drew together. "I thought I saw the Snow Queen, but I guess not. It was weird."

Killian's hand clenched. The Snow Queen was causing much trouble in the small town. He didn't know what he would do if Emma's car had been in worse shape, if she had been in worse shape.

When they pulled up to the apartment complex, Emma pulled her keys out of the ignition and leaned back against her seat. She took a deep breath.

"Everything all right, Swan?"

She nodded. "Yeah, I'm just…I'm a little nervous." She lifted her hands up and stared at her palms.

"Hey." He grabbed one of her hands, drawing her eyes to his. "You have nothing to worry about. Just trust yourself. Everyone in there does."

She gulped. "Okay."

A reassuring smile appeared on his lips. "Why don't we head in?"

When they reached the door, Emma hesitated.

"What is it?" Killian asked. He held her hand tight, hoping that it reassured her that she had nothing to worry about.

"Should I knock?"

Killian chuckled softly. "You live here, love."

She shook her head, placing her hand on her forehead. "You're right. Sorry. That was stupid."

"Don't apologise."

Emma looked up at him for a moment, soaking in his faith in her. Hopefully her family had that same belief. Turning the handle on the door, she pushed and pulled Killian into the apartment.

Elsa was the first person Emma saw. She jumped up from her seat on the table and ran forward. "Emma!"

Emma laughed nervously as Elsa threw her arms around her. "Hi."

Two pairs of feet pounded down the stairs. Two others ran into the kitchen from her parents' room.

"Mom!"

Elsa moved just in time for Emma to see Henry launch forward. She stumbled back at the force of his hug. "Hey, kid."

"You're back," he breathed, leaning back to see her. His smile was blinding.

Emma touched his neck where he'd cut it earlier. "Are you okay?"

He nodded vigorously. "Yeah, of course! Are you okay? Do you still have your magic?"

"Yeah, I do."

"What changed your mind?" David asked.

Emma glanced up at her father. Her parents stood a few feet back, both looking eager to make sure their daughter was all right. Emma moved past Henry and wrapped them in a hug.

"Killian did," she said when she pulled away. "He found me."

A look of surprise crossed David's face as he looked at the pirate, who lingered awkwardly by the door. After a moment, he gave him a small nod.

Snow's reaction was drastically different. She rushed over to Killian and yanked him into a hug.

"Oh," he grunted, shocked.

"Thank you, Killian," she whispered.

Killian's heart swelled. Emma was the only one who called him by his name. Hearing someone else use it, especially when that someone was Emma's mother, filled him with joy. "It was my pleasure."

Snow stepped back and gave him a small smile before turning back to her daughter.

Emma watched at him with a soft expression. It nearly made his heart burst.

Suddenly, Killian's view of Emma was blocked by Henry jumping up and down in front of him.

"Hello, lad," he greeted.

"You saved her!" he said enthusiastically.

Killian shook his head. "No, she saved herself. She only needed someone to remind her she was capable of that."

"Still, thanks!"

He chuckled. "Of course, lad. Anytime."

"This is your fault, pirate," the Crocodile spat, thrusting his hand forward.

Killian, who had just entered the pawn shop to tell the Dark One the good news, flew back against the door. "You can't win, Crocodile. Face it."

Gold stormed forward, coming to a stop inches away from Killian. "I will win. My plan was just set back. But I still need something from you."

Killian glared at the man in front of him. "Over my dead body."

"That can be arranged." His hand shot forward, breaking through the pirate's chest as he yanked out his heart.

Killian gasped, his whole body seizing in pain before sagging forward.

"You're my puppet, now," Gold sneered. "You will do as I say."

Killian pushed himself back up. "No." Pained coursed through him as Gold squeezed his heart. His breaths came in short bursts.

"I have your heart now. Every deed I ask you to do will be done." He released his grip on the heart, letting it sit in his palm.

Killian knew he wouldn't be able to fight the control the Crocodile had over him. His mind filled with images of Emma. If he had to hurt her….

"Now run along to your lover and pretend everything is okay," Gold growled, a wicked grin on his face.

The demand surged through him. His body already started to obey, opening the door and dragging him out of the shop. With Gold controlling him, Killian didn't want to be near anyone he loved, but what choice did he have? He only hoped Gold would have enough compassion for his grandson to not make Killian hurt any of them.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter!