A/N: I have no idea how to add text or send replies to guest reviews, so to the person who's asked whether this was a CS or Gremma story: it's CS. Check all my other stuff and my follows and you'll see I could never go any other way. You're a Gremma fan so this isn't gonna be the story for you. I'm sorry.
"Swan? SWAN?" At this point, Killian's forgotten all about his bickering with their captor and is focused solely on Emma's state.
"Hey, lady, would you please stop pretending to be catatonic and explain what's going on? Because Captain bloody Hook, as expected, is all empty threats and not much help!"
"Oh bugger off, you sodding git, can't you see this isn't pretending?" If Emma were conscious of her surroundings right now she would be smiling at how offended Killian is on her behalf but never even flinched when he was the subject of Graham's harsh words. Also at the way he softly strokes her cheek to bring her back to reality instead of just shaking her. "Please, love, what's going on?"
"Oh, that is just great", says the man down on the ground. "You kidnap a woman, traumatizes her and now you wanna act like a gentleman?"
"Well excuse me, but I'm not the one who has her up in the air inside a net trap, now am I? And gods, no, I haven't kidnapped her! We're together!" He sighs at his choice of words. If only.
"Maybe not her, but that unconscious woman draped over your shoulder sure screams 'kidnapped' to me!"
"Wha...I...Um..." It's Killian's stuttering that suddenly snaps Emma back to business and prompts her to cut in.
"Gra...uh...Huntsman."
Now both men are looking at her in confusion, and the one on the ground instinctively takes a step back even though Emma's still trapped above him.
"You know who I am?"
"Yes. You don't know me, not yet. My name is Emma Swan, and I am Snow White's daughter."
She knows she shouldn't have said this, that it's going to change too much, but she isn't under Rumplestiltskin's glamour spell anymore so he would recognize her later anyway. Maybe as soon as the moment she got locked up when she first arrived in Storybrooke, what with the way things happened between them. The way things were still going to happen. She doesn't even know anymore.
"Oh, riiiight", he responds in a sarcastic tone. "That girl who's barely in her twenties. That Snow White! Okay then, let me just cut this net and let you go!"
"I'm serious! I know this is hard to swallow, but we're from the future. A really powerful dark witch conjured a spell that opened a time portal, we accidentally went through it and we're just trying to get back home. I swear."
"Let's say I believe your preposterous tale. You said 'a powerful dark witch' - the Queen?"
"Her sister, actually." Boy, that still sounds weird.
"She doesn't have any siblings", he says sternly.
"Long story. So, um, we really weren't trying to get in your way, I was actually attempting to recreate the portal so we can get the hell out of here. So, you know, if you would just let us out so we can go, that'd be great."
"Well I know that other woman is not from the future." So it was him helping them in the dungeons. Dammit. "How do I know you and the pirate are not working for the Queen and just recapturing escapees? Including me?"
"Because I was the one in the cell next to her." When his eyes widen, she shakes her head. "Glamour spell. Thank you for the wire by the way." She notices how his expression softens as he sees the sincerity in her gratitude. "Uh, listen, I've already told you way more than I should have so please let us go before we change anything else and ruin our timeline for good!"
He raises his bow and points an arrow to the rope that's holding his captives up, but before he shoots he stops. "Wait a second...how do we meet?"
Boy, she wasn't expecting this. "Oh! We...uh...don't! My mother's just told me a lot about you!"
"Nice try, Emma" - there's that sarcastic tone again - "if that's really your name. You said I didn't know you yet."
"Yeah, well...she really likes to draw, my mom. She's very talented, so it feels like we know each other." She knows she's not making much sense and her weak smile isn't helping her case, but it seems enough for him to stop pressing her and next thing she knows she's falling to the ground with a thump. Before the Huntsman (thisis not Graham, she has to remind herself) cuts them free, however, he takes the wand from her hand, as well as Killian's sword. At their protest, he simply says "Just so you don't get any ideas. You're all coming with me now."
He leads them to a hut about an hour into the forest. The woman still hasn't regained her consciousness and Emma checks on her a few times to make sure she's breathing. Killian hasn't said anything since she'd started talking to this huntsman fellow, seemingly deep in thought.
As soon as they arrive at their destination, the man binds their captives by their arms and wrists around a thick wooden pillar that occupies most of what's supposed to be a living room. He then binds each of their three pairs of legs together as well. Emma's eyes follow as he boils some sort of soup on a cauldron and feeds her and Killian each a bowl - not before having one himself in front of them to prove it's safe. With the other woman still unconscious, he declares he'll just feed her when she wakes up and disappears through a door frame, certainly to get some sleep.
When the man doesn't come back for a while, Killian decides it's safe to break his silence, as their companion certainly isn't going to be listening in on them. He has questions of his own.
"Swan...how do you know this man? You never said. Did you meet him when you were in the Enchanted Forest last time? When you and I first met?"
"No. He was sent to Storybrooke by Regina's curse."
"Oh I get why you wouldn't wanna get into that subject then! But why have I never met him? It's a small enough town! Unless he's an odd loner who lives isolated in the woods. It fits, actually."
"He wasn't. He was the sheriff."
Oh. Oh. "Well, what happened?"
Oh god, Killian, stop, just stop! Thankfully for her, this is the moment the woman chooses to wake up. With no time to think, Emma uses the fact that she's still slow and groggy to try to get closer to her and touch her cheek with her forehead. She concentrates on her magic for a second and the woman falls into deep sleep.
"Bloody hell, Swan, if you could just do that why didn't you knock the man out? Is there anything you are not telling me?"
Lots, she thinks bitterly, but there's actually one thing she remembers that startles her. She somehow finds it in her to make all the rope around them disappear and sneaks into his quarters. She finds the wand and the sword and points Killian's weapon at the sleeping man's neck.
"I know Regina has your heart, Huntsman", she whispers, just loud enough so he wakes up, "so give me one good reason not to think she's sent you to spy on us or I'll slit your throat right now." She knows she'd never be able to actually harm him, but hell, she needs to at least seem menacing.
"Because if that were the case, Miss Swan", he says calmly, rising from the bed at once, "you'd already be dead."
He actually has a point, so she lowers the blade.
"And if I'd been stupid enough to attempt an escape leaving my heart in her possession, I would have been killed long before you three ever got to where my trap was."
"Wait...you have your heart?" Her incredulity stems from the fact that this little episode was definitely not in the book. She supposes it couldn't contain every single second of everyone's lives, but wouldn't it be an important story to be there? Gosh, have they really changed that much already? Is their future still in danger?
"Right here inside my chest. Feel it" he says, placing the back of her hand, which is still holding the sword, over it.
Yup, something's beating in there. She closes her eyes and shakes her head in relief, not even noticing the way he's looking at her. "Yeah, well, sorry about this, but at least now we both know we aren't double-crossing each other."
"True. You're very brave and clever and clearly good with weapons. What are you doing with that pirate?"
"I'm actually in the process of figuring that out", she says with a fond smile. "What I can tell you at this second is that he's come to be the best friend I've ever had."
"I see. I see."
"Well anyway, we seem to have sorted everything out, so that's good. Except..." Her relief turns into concern again. "Look, I'm going to have to try to make you forget everything that's just happened, but as far as I know we would need a potion for that, so it will probably not work. We need to go before you learn anything else that might jeopardize the future."
He takes a few steps closer to her and she can see Killian sneaking inside the room from his hiding spot. "And why would I want to forget you?"
She rolls her eyes because men. All of them.
Obviously that's the last drop for Killian. "Because you're not even supposed to know about her, mate. Now shall we, Swan? I never really liked this damn realm in the first place."
"Fine by me. Did you check the book? Is it okay for us to go?"
"Yes, everything seems to be right on track still. Where's the wand?"
She tosses him his sword and reaches in her back pocket for it. "Right here! Where's our friend?"
"Right...", he starts as he crouches down to grab her, "...here!"
"Okay then!" She raises the wand and closes her eyes in concentration. The portal opens within seconds and Killian is the first to go through, their mysterious companion hunched over his shoulder.
Emma takes one last look at Graham - no, no, the Huntsman. "Goodbye. Thank you for all the help, honestly, and sorry for all the trouble we've caused. Now listen", she starts, turning her once again genuine gratitude into a serious expression, "I will try my best to get you not to remember any of this, but if it doesn't work... Just please don't do anything with what you've seen or what we've told you. You have to believe me that it's important for the future of us all."
"But I don't want to forget!"
"You have to. Look at me, and help me."
She captures his eyes with hers and concentrates all of her energy on making everything that happened over the past few hours leave his mind. He frowns and she immediately turns her face away from him and goes, feeling satisfied with herself because to her it means he's just seeing some random blonde woman jump through a portal.