AUTHORS NOTE: So I was thinking guys that we call the brown eyes a genetic mutation and leave it at that, because I personally like the way the characters are written and I think the brown eyes make Neal different than all his siblings, and I was planning to make that important once the curse hits. This chapter was almost physically painful to write, as I'm sure you'll understand once you read, but it had to be done. As always, thank you for your input, and thanks for reading!

The Thirteenth Year

Emma awoke as the sun rose, the light shining through her curtains hitting her straight in the face. Her arms stretched above her head and she groaned, mentally preparing herself to start her day. She looked to her right, her neck cracking, and repeated the movement, this time to the left. As she was completing her ritual, something odd caught her eye on her bed stand, for it hadn't been there the night before. Emma rubbed the sleep from her eyes, and reached for the mysterious object. Her nimble fingers found it, and she brought it close to her face, examining it closely. It was an envelope, with the words To My Princess, written across the front in careful calligraphy. Emma's brow furrowed with confusion. Only one person called her his princess. She opened the letter.

My dearest princess,

It is with great sorrow and great joy that I am writing you this letter. You see, goodbyes have never been my strong suit. I am filled with sorrow because I simply could not do this in person, though I wish I could. But I am simply not strong enough. I could never bear to see you crying, and to know that I would be the source of that pain, would have crushed me, and I would have lost my resolve. I don't even know for sure that you would've cried, but I like to think you would have. Emma, I have joined my brother in the Navy, and for that I am happy. You see, Liam is the youngest captain in your kingdom's royal navy. He's a fantastic sailor, and he's everything I aspire to be. The sea calls to him, as it does to me, and I cannot fight it. I will work my way up through the ranks, and I hope to be Liam's lieutenant. You, my beautiful princess, will hear stories of the brave Jones brothers, fighting off pirates, and protecting the kingdom, protecting you. But you needn't worry for me lass, because I was once given a token by a fair, young princess, and as I'm sure you've heard, those are incredibly lucky. I'm truly sorry I didn't tell you Emma, but I couldn't. I do hope you forgive me. Next time you see me, it will be at a ball in my and my brother's honor, I promise you that. Save me a dance lass, for I'll be the one in red.

Yours always,

Killian Jones

A tear slipped down Emma's cheek as she read the letter. Her best friend, the only thing keeping her sane, the only thing keeping her from breaking under the weight of being a princess, had gone away. She grabbed the letter, and stormed down to the dining hall, only to find her parents eating breakfast as if Emma's anchor hadn't left her behind.

"You knew!" she yelled, tears streaming down her cheeks, grasping the letter tightly. "You knew he was going to leave me and you didn't bother to tell me!" Her vision blurred from the tears, so she could no longer see the faces of her concerned parents. She sat down on the floor, and laid her head in her hands, sobbing. Her mother wrapped her arms around the girl, rocking her back and forth, as her father sat down next to them.

"Shh shh Emma," Snow White crooned. "It's okay, it's okay." Emma refused to be comforted, she only cried harder. Snow looked to her husband for help, and David sighed.

"Emma, he didn't want to make it any harder than it had to be," David said gently, stroking his daughter's back. Emma looked up from her hands, her eyes darkening, her tear streaked face twisting in anger.

"He didn't want to make it harder?" she yelled. "Well a fantastic job he did with that!" A gale force wind started blowing inside the room, whipping the royal's hair around, knocking dishes off the table. Guards moved forward, shield's raised to protect the family, as well as themselves.

"He could've said something!" Emma yelled again, as the wind grew stronger. "I had a right to know! HE PROMISED!" she shouted. The wind's power grew steadily, picking up debris, and throwing it around the room. Emma stood, raising her hands, and summoning as much power as she could control, she twisted the elements, creating a full blown tornado inside of the dining hall.

"Emma STOP!" Snow yelled, grasping her daughter's ankle, and her husband's hand simultaneously. Emma didn't reply, and the tornado just spun faster. Suddenly, the winds' strength dropped significantly. Emma looked around, her eyes finding her younger brother's standing in the door way. Neal's brow was creased in concentration, and Leo just looked scared. Emma let out another surge of power, counteracting whatever Neal was doing. She glanced at her brothers again. Sheer determination was written all over Neal's face, and that must've been the only thing keeping him and Leo from being blown away by the wind. Neal reached out and took Leo's hand. The fear melted away from the younger boy's face, replaced by a look mirroring the one his older brother look. He walked forward, towards his sister, the wind seeming to avoid the boy, like it was scared of him. Leo walked through the wall of guards, past his parents, and reached Emma. He took her hand, and she looked down at the small boy. She looked down at him, and his eyes poured into hers. All the anger left her, leaving only the sadness, and she fell to her knees, and she cried, and cried, and cried.

The Fourteenth Year

"She hasn't been the same since he left David," Snow said. "She's miserable, and she hasn't asked to go on any hunting trips, or tried to ditch any sessions of court, or even ripped a dress!"

"I know," David responded quietly.

"And are you not concerned?" Snow cried. David looked up at her, though he wasn't really seeing her.

"Snow, I need to tell you something," he mumbled, quiet enough that Snow could barely hear him. She turned to him, her eyes widening, a frown forming on her face.

"Oh this better be good Charming!" she spat. David cringed at the nickname that his wife only used when she was either incredibly mad at him, or about to take him to bed. He was pretty sure that, in this case, the former applied. He sighed deeply.

"Remember how we found Liam and Killian?" he asked cautiously.

"Yeah," she replied. "We followed a silver butterfly, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"I've seen that very same butterfly around Emma since she was three years old. It's been there whenever she's been in trouble, or from what I've been told by Liam, it's also been around Killian whenever he's been in trouble. It's been protecting both of them and some way, somehow, it brought them together, and now they're apart again, and I have a gut feeling that something terrible is going to happen." David said quickly, gasping for air as he finished.

"Oh my god," Snow breathed. "David we have to call off Emma's betrothal. They belong together. They need each other!"

"We can't," he said sternly. "Not until they realize it themselves. It has to come naturally."

"And what if it doesn't?" She asked.

"It has to." He said solemnly.

Somewhere at Sea

That night, just like all nights he was away from her, he fell into a restless sleep. He always dreamed of her, but this time, it was different. She was older, as was he, and they both were dressed in clothing from a different land. He wore a silver chest plate with scales made of bronze on the front, over a light tunic. On his feet, he wore leather sandals, and metal plates covered his shins. He carried a heavy sword, and wore a strange helmet on his head. He was scared, but not for himself. He was scared for her. He wasn't sure why, but he ran, not knowing where he was going. He ran, not for his life, but for hers. She finally came into view, wearing a long white dress, tied over one shoulder. She was kneeling on the ground, staring at a masked man, with no fear.

"Stop!" he yelled, but it was no use. The attacker raised his sword, and Emma met his deep blue eyes, with her emerald green ones. They communicated thoughts and feelings too deep for both of them to understand. He kept running, but didn't seem to get any closer. He watched as the man swung the sword, and she closed her eyes.

KEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKE

Killian awoke screaming, sweat running down his face, breathing heavily. Liam ran down the stairs, to find his brother with his head in his hands.

"Oh Killian," he whispered, grabbing his brother's hand. "You have to calm down. She's not here to help you Killian, it's only me. You have to bear with me brother." Killian's breathing didn't slow. Liam pressed his brother's hand to his chest, so he could feel his heartbeat.

"Feel that Killian? That's what your heart should feel like. Come on, try to make yours match mine." Liam whispered. Killian didn't respond. "Please Killian." Killian closed his eyes, and took a deep, but shaky breath.

"That's it Killian," Liam said soothingly. Killian's breathing gradually slowed. "What happened?" Killian shuddered.

"I couldn't save her. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't do it." Killian whispered.

"It was just a dream Killian, it's okay," Liam sighed, holding his brother's head in his lap until he fell back to sleep.

KEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKEKE

Emma shot up in bed, breathing heavily, muffling a scream. It was just a dream, she thought, trying to calm herself down. It was a dream that had seemed very real. She had been in a strange land, wearing strange clothes, fighting an unwinnable battle. She had died, and Killian had watched it happened. Oh my god Killian! In a sudden burst of power, she found herself on the deck of the Jewel of the Realm, facing a very appalled Captain Liam Jones.

"Emma?" he gasped.

"Been a long time Liam," she said nonchalantly. "Is Killian okay?" Liam raised his eyebrows in a way that immediately made Emma wish she was talking to Killian instead.

"He's a little wound up. He had an anxiety attack," Liam responded.

"He hasn't had one of those in ten year Liam! What happened?" Emma exclaimed. Liam looked at her closely.

"He had a bad dream," Liam said quietly. Emma's face fell.

"About what?" she asked timidly. Liam glanced at her again, this time holding her gaze.

"I asked him about it. All he said was that he couldn't save her, no matter how hard he tried." Liam sighed. "I'm assuming he was referring to you." Emma took a deep breath.

"Why are you here Emma?" Liam asked

"I think we shared a dream Liam," Emma started. "It was weird, but I just—I just had this feeling that he was really there. And it all felt so real Liam! After what happened, I knew I'd have to check on him."

"Well he's below deck, but he's asleep, because he's off duty. Try not to wake him or any of the crew up okay?" Liam instructed. Emma nodded and proceeded below deck, letting her instincts lead her to Killian's cabin. She opened the door slowly, and walked up to the sleeping man in the bunk. He didn't look peaceful, like people should while they're sleeping, he looked troubled.

"Oh Killian," she whispered, stroking his face. He relaxed instantly, almost smiling in his sleep. Emma smirked at that, and went back on deck to talk to Liam.

"I think he'll be okay," Emma said.

"Did you talk to him?" Liam asked.

"He was asleep," Emma replied quickly.

"You could stay, his shift is in an hour or so," Liam added hopefully. But when he turned around, she was already gone.