To whom it belongs
Chapter 7
"Hook!" Mary Margaret exclaimed, panic in her voice. "What's wrong? Where's Emma?"
She stood up and ran over to him, David following after her. Surely if Hook had left Emma's side then there must have been some sort of danger.
"Don't worry, love," Hook said calmly. "I just wanted to give Emma some space to breathe. These last few days have been tough on her. On all of you for that matter."
Charming and Snow stared at him as he reached into his pocket. They could sense there was more to the story. Whenever they saw Hook without Emma, his eyes were so sad. Now they were wide and his face was smug. Charming eyed Hook suspiciously.
"Rum?" Hook said, inclining the flask towards them. "Well perhaps none for the mother to be but maybe the prince would care for something to calm the nerves?"
"How do you always have rum?" David asked, taking the flask in his hands. He took a sip and felt the warm liquid travel down his throat.
"Never go anywhere without rum, Prince. That's pirate rule number one."
A twig cracked.
"Talking about rum again, Hook? With the way you look at that drink, people are sure to talk."
Hook turned around to see Emma returning from her patrol. He was happy to see that her spirits had risen. He allowed himself to believe that he was the reason for it.
"Let people talk. Rum is one of the best things to have been made. I don't know what I would do without it. I would surely be lost."
He raised an eyebrow. They both knew he wasn't talking about alcohol.
Emma approached the dying fire. She sat down next to it, trying to warm up before the flames were gone forever.
"Well the coast is clear," Emma said to the group. "If the Wicked Witch knows we're here then she's not doing anything about it."
"Which wouldn't bode well for us." David noted. "Should we make our move now?"
"Regina said that Robin would shoot a flaming arrow when it was time to move in. I thought for sure that by the time I came back there would have been some sign of them. Have you seen anything?"
Mary Margaret looked in the direction of the cabin and shook her head. That wasn't good. After hours of waiting for a sign and getting none, it could only mean something had happened to Regina and Robin.
The group went silent. The seconds passed at an excruciatingly slow pace. They all were thinking the same thing. Could something have really happened to them? It was a dangerous idea after all. Regina wasn't even sure what she was looking for. When she had come to Emma with the idea, she knew it was flawed but they had no other plans. They had to do something.
Emma wondered if she would regret going along with it. Hook was right. She just wanted to get all this over with. She didn't want to have to worry about fairy tales, villains and being the Saviour. All Emma wanted was her old life back—the one she was given by Regina. At least Henry would be happy and that would be enough for her. Or would it?
She glanced over at Hook or Killian rather. His moniker didn't seem to suit him anymore. He was no longer the pirate he used to be and she knew that. However, admitting that he was a better man would only lead to her admitting that he was someone she could be with. Killian knew he was all these things. He would be there for her always even if she decided to return to New York.
He shifted his weight to his other foot. He was surprised at himself for thinking about going with Emma if she chose to return to the city. He would miss the sea, that much was certain, but he would miss her more.
"Emma, look!" Mary Margaret's voice broke through the silence. She was pointing towards the cabin.
A single flaming arrow cut across the sky.