Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to any of the wonderful characters in this story.
Notes: In this chapter we will be introduced to more characters of Camelot. For those interested, the suble plot bunnies centered around Camelot's magic come from the BBC program Merlin. It is an epic show and I highly suggest watching it.
Like always, it is always appreciated when you leave a review. Thanks so much my little ladybugs!
This chapter is dedicated to the Reviewer of Choice, CocoFandicoot!
Chapter 3 - Dead Magic
Emma yanked her chin out of the Kings hand, "I told you already." She looked over at Arthur for a moment and then returned her attention to the King, "This is a misunderstanding. We haven't done anything wrong here. We're lost is all. Just trying to find a way home."
The King's mouth tightened into a firm line, almost as if contemplating with himself whether or not he believed the two of them. "And you just happened to stumble upon my Kingdom then?" He stifled a laugh, "And you expect me to believe that you are not involved with the rebellion then?"
Emma huffed, "What rebellion? I don't even know what you are talking about. We aren't from this kingdom."
The King gave an exasperated sigh and turned to the men behind them, "This isn't acceptable Gwaine," he grunted, "All you've brought me are peasants!" The boom of his voice startled Emma, her eyes' flickering towards Hook who was still doubled over on the floor.
"Get rid of them," He waved his hand in their direction, "We already have a group of rebels trying to cause problems in this Kingdom. I won't be condemned by the rest of the people for falsely accusing these two."
The men let go of Emma's arms giving her enough time to drop down again next to Hook and place her arms around his shoulders. She helped him up slowly, all the while keeping an eye out for any sudden movements from the knights.
"Thank you your Majesty." She mumbled, although she sorely missed her gun right about now. Hook turned his chin and offered a pained, yet reassuring smile.
The King snorted back another laugh, "Oh don't thank me, Miss…" He paused, unaware of their names.
"Swan, Emma Swan." She pulled Hook up from the floor, " and this is –"
Hook held up his good hand, stopping her before she said anything else. "Killian Jones." He grunted out a noise and gripped his shoulder, "And we thank you humbly for pardoning us."
He had been heading back towards his throne when Hook thanked him, coming to a halt and slowly looking back at the two, "Don't think that this is a pardon, peasant. This is a warning. If indeed you are working for the rebels you can go back and explain to them that I was a fair and just man, letting you keep your lives this one time. Tell them to stop this futile plan, and maybe when we do discover their identities I will once again be fair in punishment."
He ran his hand over the front of his velvet robes, "But if they continue to seek this pointless justice and mock me, King Uther, in front of my kingdom…" he didn't need to finish his statement. Instead he waved them off, returning to his throne in silence.
Emma took a few tentative steps back, half expecting the knights to attack her and Hook once again. When no one moved, and when it seemed like they truly were free to go, she didn't waste any time retreating from the hall. In fact, even with Hook's weight pressed down on her shoulder she was surprised by how quickly she could move.
"What a jerk," she finally mumbled once they were out of the hall.
Hook chuckled, still holding his side gently, "I thought you said he was an understanding bloke?"
Emma helped him down the front steps of the castle and steered him in the direction of the outside village. By this point of the morning the town was bustling with many people, all who seemed unaware by the sudden arrival of two strangers. She guided him around a corner towards a less populated area, waited to see if they were followed, and then leaned him back against a wall once she had confirmed that they were indeed alone.
"I said Arthur was a pretty fair guy. I didn't know we'd be dealing with his jerk of a father." She took a deep breath and leaned her head back against the wall.
Hook winced again as he moved to look at her, "I didn't fail to notice that you forgot to mention exactly where we came from. " With careful movements he began slipping out of the jacket he had stolen.
Without thinking Emma pushed away from the wall and began helping him remove the heavy material, "Yeah well I didn't imagine King Uther being accommodating to our portal incident." She tugged the sleeve down his arm. "
"Yes, well, treason can make a man cold and hard." Finally freeing himself from the jacket he looked down to his left side. "I've had many traitorous men on my ship, love." He began pulling his shirt out of his trousers, "You'd just about do anything to flush them out. "
"Doesn't mean you have to be a jerk about it." She mumbled, watching him as he pulled the side of his shirt up and surveying the deep purple bruise that had begun to form there.
With his hook holding up the bottom of his shirt he smoothed his fingers over the area and winced again.
"We should get some ice or something for that. Take the swelling down." Emma's eyes roamed over the exposed skin, noticing for the first time that it was much tanner than she imagined.
"Don't exactly think we'll be finding an icebox down at the Inn love." He chuckled and glanced up at her, catching her stare with his own. Emma quickly turned her attention back to the mouth of the alley way.
Her hands went up into her hair, pulling at a few strands before finally letting out a muffled cry. "Couldn't we have fallen into a portal that took us to Hogwarts or something?"
Hook quirked his brow, "Hogwarts?"
Emma shook her hand out in front of her, scrunching her nose and mumbling a 'forget it' before resting her hands on her hips.
During hard circumstances Emma had always thrived and succeeded. Pressure made her think harder, no, it made her think better. She excelled in these tight situations. Even when she had spent that short time in lock up she had managed to survive. Where other people seemed to fail Emma seemed to rise from the flames. Now all she could do was toss around ideas that seemed to lead to absolutely nowhere. Having Hook around wasn't much help either. Just like she had become distracted with Neal in the past, Hooks presence was beginning to get under her skin. Oh she could deny it to herself all she wanted, but deep down she knew he was getting to her.
Or maybe it was all just in her head? She had heard his declaration at the cave back in Neverland and wanted to kill him for it. Emma could sense his feelings for her even before he declared them; simple looks and gestures gave well enough away. She had rejected every half assed attempt he made to make a move on her, subtle or not. There had been more important things to worry about. But then Neal was there and other emotions came rushing back to her. All the stone she had built up around her heart crumbled just a bit, and even though she had hoped Neal was dead his presence reminded her what it was liked to be loved.
She hated that. It made her feel weak.
Emotions could do that to you. They made you weak and blurred the mind from things that were truly important…like finding Henry.
He was the only person in her life that had never abandoned her or lost hope in her. He was the only person that she could ever love unconditionally.
The sudden thought of her son had her reevaluating their situation; waking her up from the fog that Hook had managed to envelope her in. This wasn't the time to think of frivolous thoughts.
"We need to find another way out of here." She stated simply.
Hook snorted, "Is that your epic plan, Swan? I'm injured and even I could come up with a better plan than that." He began tucking his shirt back into his trousers, pushing away from the wall and coming to settle himself in front of her.
"If you think you can do better than let's have it." She challenged, folding her arms across her chest.
Hook leaned his face forward, wholly aware of how close his mouth was to hers. "Oh I can always do much better, love. Would you like to see?" A glimmer shone in his eyes.
Emma lifted her hands and placed them on his chest, trying her best to create some space in between the two of them. "Knock it off." But she didn't bother pushing him back, she merely kept her hands pressed against his firm chest, relishing in the fact that he was so warm against her cold fingertips.
"You know that I can't."
She dropped her gaze so that she was focused on her boots, "It's never going to happen, Hook."
"Never is an awfully strong word." He breathed out, hints of rum still lingering on his tongue.
She could sense his face moving closer to hers; her heartbeat hammering wildly in her chest. This was wrong. Henry was still out there waiting to be recused and here she was pinned against a wall with Killian "Hook" Jones. She put some pressure against his chest, ready to stop him before his mouth reached hers.
"Are you two alright?"
A voice from the end of the alley caused both of them to jump in place, and Emma used the much needed excuse to slip out from beneath his arm and create some distance between them. She felt out of breath and warm, like she had just ran a short marathon. When had it gotten so hot outside? She was suddenly thankful for the dress she was wearing.
"Um, yeah, we're alright." She gave the girl a once over, "just looking for somewhere to get something to eat." She glanced back at Hook.
His features were stoic, his jaw clenching before coming up to her side and addressing the woman. He reached out, took her hand, and gently kissed the back of it. The young woman blushed the slightest and Emma felt her chest tighten.
"Well," the woman stammered out, "I was up early this morning and happened to see you both come in with some of the Knights." She wrung her fingers together, obviously nervous "I quite thought that it was the last I'd have seen you, but…" she gestured out to them, "I saw you both leave the palace gates earlier." She swallowed, "I noticed you looked injured." Her brown eyes gazed up at Killian's.
He smiled, his hand reaching out to stop hers from shaking, "You are quite observant…and also quite lovely." He chuckled, "I'd love a glimpse of your buried treasure."
Emma rolled her eyes and resisted the urge to punch him right in the bruised spot on his side. He had just practically thrown himself at her and now he was throwing himself at someone else.
"Oh come on" She groaned, "Look we don't have time for you and your pirate's booty."
He leaned into her ear, "I dare say someone might be a bit jealous."
She batted him away.
"Oh no no no!" The girl waved her hands wildly in front of her, "I'm not here for anything of that sort." She blushed "I just know what it's like to deal with the King and I was going to offer you some food and a bed if you'd like." She pointed behind her, "If you'd like to join me I'd be happy to have you stay at my home. It isn't much, but I would like to help." She smiled, although Emma noticed her eyes lingered on Hook's much longer than necessary.
At the mention of food Emma's stomach grumbled. She couldn't recall the last time she had actually eaten a meal, let alone the last time she had slept in a real bed. But she was skeptical.
"How can we trust you?" She asked, taking in the frail girl in front of them.
She didn't seem like she was trying to cause trouble. A good gust of wind would likely knock the girl to the ground, but they had been fooled by innocent looking people before.
"After dealing with the King I don't expect you to trust me, he doesn't often make outsiders feel welcome." She wrung her hands together again, "But I assure you my intentions are good natured."
"A spot of food could help us think better, love." Hook added.
Emma mulled it over a second longer and then finally nodded in agreement, "We'd appreciate it."
"Oh good," The girl clapped her hands together, "I'm Guinevere by the way," she ushered for them to follow her out of the alleyway. "Most people just call me Gwen."
"Pleasure to make your acquaintance," Hook bowed the slightest, "I'm Killian Jones and this is Emma Swan."
Gwen gave a short curtsey before guiding them through the streets, pointing out a few different locations as they maneuvered through the morning crowds. It was just like she had imagined from the story books, only far more desolate than she would have liked to admit.
"Doesn't the King give you enough to take care of yourselves?" She questioned, taking note of a small child begging for food in the streets.
Gwen rummaged through the pockets of her coat and pulled out a piece of bread. The child practically tackled her for it, but she merely giggled and continued through the streets, Hook and Emma on her heels.
"The King has given us enough to survive, yes, but he rules with an iron fist. We're given just enough and that is all. He believes that if we have too much we won't need a King." She scowled, "He's taken much of our freedom away because of it."
"Is that why he's so concerned about the rebels?" Emma asked which caused Gwen to pause in her tracks.
Ignoring the comment Gwen pointed to the door in front of her, "This is my home. Please, come inside."
She pushed open the door and allowed Hook and Emma to follow.
Inside it was easy to tell that Gwen didn't have much to call her own. The center of the room held a small table and a few chairs. To the right was an iron pot over a small stove that had flickered out of flame hours before they had arrived. Further back there was a curtain, which Emma assumed led to the bedroom.
"It's going to take me some time to get the stew ready. If you'd like you are more than welcome to use the bed in the back. Get some rest. I'm sure you are tired."
Emma watched her as she pulled the pot off the fire and placed it on the table.
Hook, on the other hand, had already moved through the curtained area and Emma, reluctantly joined him in silence.
"Oh you have got to be kidding me." She mumbled, taking in the small bed in the center of the room.
The smirk on Hook's face made her stomach turn in knots.
"Would you like the right or left side?" He joked, slowly pulling off his jacket again and tossing it on a chair in the corner.
Emma felt her mouth drop open, close, and then hang open again. No, there was no way she was going to sleep next to this man.
"Relax Emma," his tone softened, "I'm not really all that tired."
"You've had a harder morning than I have." She retorted, suddenly feeling guilty that he was giving up the comforts of a bed simply for her. "You take the bed. I'll go see if Gwen needs any help."
Hook crossed the floor and came to stand in front of her, placing his hand on her shoulder, "Emma, please, if anything I'm more hungry than tired." He smiled a bit sadly, "You get some sleep now." And before she could protest he kissed the top of her forehead.
He released her shoulder and Emma chuckled, "Such a gentleman."
Hook chortled, "I'm always a gentleman, love. When are you going to see that?"
He waited there a moment, almost as if waiting for her to say something in reply. Instead she turned her back on him and crawled along the stiff mattress. She laid her head down on the lumpy pillow, listening to him stand there behind her. She curled herself into a tight ball, pressing her eyelids shut and waiting for him to leave her.
She was asleep before she could even think about any of the day's bizarre turnings.
It was the smell of stew that woke her from her slumber. Emma stirred in the bed, and almost fell out of the bed when she realized she wasn't home in Storybrooke. It took her a moment to remember exactly where she was at all. Hook had been right, the rest was much needed. Even though she was disorientated she felt far more alert with a little relaxation under her. The smells coming from the other room were enough to pull her from the warmth of the blankets and she stepped out from the back room where Hook and Gwen were in mid conversation.
Hook was on his feet before she even made it to the table, "Did you sleep well?" He asked, looking her over in a way that had her insides twisting again.
Damn him for that.
She dragged her hand across the back of her neck, "As well as can be expected." She gave Gwen a smile, "Thanks for letting us stay here."
Gwen slid a bowl of stew in front of Emma along with a hearty piece of bread. "Well eat up. We've both had our fill."
"Thank you." The steam from the bowl warmed her face and quietly she ate while Hook and Gwen continued to make small talk.
"Most of the time the people just keep to themselves to avoid any trouble."
Hook scratched his beard, "And the King is ok with his people living in fear?"
Emma scooped more stew into her mouth, eyes moving between Gwen and Hook while they spoke.
Gwen sighed, "The people here used to love the King, he used to be a loyal and honest man before his wife passed away."
Emma put down her spoon and broke off a piece of bread, "What? So he lost it when his wife died?"
"The King loved her very much. He wasn't the same after she died." She flicked at a crumb at the edge of the table.
Hook leaned back in his chair, "That's the cruel thing about love," He looked out the small window at the front of the house, "It can rip your soul in half when it's taken from you." He was up from the chair instantly, his heavy boots pounding against the floor as he headed back to the bed area. "If you ladies excuse me I'll be retiring for a spell."
"He has lost someone too, hasn't he?" Gwen asked, her elbows now leaning on the table.
Emma chewed her piece of bread in thought, "Yeah, we all have." Even if she hadn't lost Henry for good it felt like he had been ripped away from her every second she wasted.
"For the people here in Camelot King Uther went into a terrible rage. He began taxing people for outlandish things; forcing people to joust to the death for entertainment…it's why most people keep to themselves now."
Emma couldn't help but notice the twitch in Gwen's lip.
Emma's curiosity got the best of her, "How did she die?"
Rising from the table Gwen shuffled over to the fire and threw on another chunk of wood, "It's a long story really, and I'm not sure of all the details, but from all the tales I've been told she was poisoned. This was twelve years ago mind you, and I was merely a child myself so I don't remember much." She poked at the fire until the embers burned red, "It was said that King Uther was so distraught over the illness of his wife that he resorted to the Druids that lived out in the forest. These were very old and very magical people. It was said that they would have the power to cure the Queen, but," she shrugged, "the Queen didn't survive the magic and that's when King Uther utterly lost it."
Emma hadn't realized she was holding her breath until Gwen stopped speaking, "There's magic here?" She whispered, unsure if her voice was even loud enough for Gwen to hear.
Gwen cleared Emma's empty bowl from the table and placed it in a bucket beside the fire, "There used to be magic here. This kingdom used to be full of magic when I was younger."
Emma pushed up from the table her voice raising a touch "And what about now? Is there any magi-"
Gwen had rushed forward and clamped her hand over Emma's mouth, "You can't speak of it now." She hissed in her ear, "Are you trying to get us killed?"
Emma's hands reached up and yanked Gwen's from her mouth, "What are you talking about? What's going to get us killed?"
There was a beat of a moment before Gwen let go of Emma. Even though it was mid-day the house was still very dark, and when Gwen went to the window and closed the curtains the room seemed to grow even darker. She stood at the window, fingers gripping the curtain as she peeked out from the drawn back corner.
Emma took a step forward, "Look I didn't mean to say anything…"
"Shhh," Gwen hissed, looked out the window again and then finally turned back to Emma. "If you aren't careful with your words your likely to get your head chopped. We cannot speak so boldly of magic here…it isn't safe."
Emma furrowed her brow, "What do you mean it isn't safe?"
"After the Queen died the King was so enraged by those with magic that he banned them from the Kingdom, and those he caught…he executed."
"What? How could he even know if it was magic that killed her?"
"Shhh! Please!" Gwen waved her hand frantically in front of Emma's face, "It didn't matter if it was accurate or not. All the King knew was that his wife had been poisoned and after using magic she was dead in less than a day. He didn't even get to say goodbye to her. It drove him mad."
She had every intention running in and waking Hook up from his rest. Without magic how the hell were they supposed to find their way home?
"So what happened to everyone who had magic here?" Her face twisted up with hope.
"Well those who fled outside of the Kingdom I assume are long away from here," she paused, "and those who didn't get away…if the King suspected they were using magic he executed them in cold blood." Her voice hitched, "He didn't even bother to listen to them…men, women …he even killed children who possessed magical qualities." Her eyes brimmed with tears.
For Emma it was like a slap to the face. She was so close to finding a way home only to have to squashed once again.
Emma's voice wavered, "So there is no magic left here in Camelot? Nothing? Nothing at all?"
Gwen tucked her dark hair behind her ears, sniffed back a few of her tears and shook her head, "Magic has been cleansed from Camelot for over ten years now, Emma. " Emma fell back into the wooden chair, "Here in Camelot…magic is dead."
Note: Hope you enjoyed that installment! Congrats again to the Reviewer of Choice, CocoFandicoot!
Story Contest: Once again for all of those who review this chapter one person will be chosen two days before the next chapter update. You will be given an important chapter spoiler, and believe me the next chapter is going to be quite entertaining. So leave a review and some love and good luck!