Chapter Eighteen: The Stable Boy

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"August said at the exact moment I was born, the person who was the savior before me stopped being the savior," Emma said to Killian. "He also said that someone told him that we would be coming back to the past. That someone, is the new savior and the reason we time traveled is because I will be the savior till the day I die, but this person was needed as the savior." She had been pacing while she spoke until now. "I can't help but wonder who the savior is. Why would this person have to take my place? Am I that in competent in the future?"

"You're thinking about this all wrong, love," Killian told her. "August is from this time, this new savior isn't. For all he knows, this savior is from years into the future when you're a hundred years old. Or maybe this person is the savior because he sent us back to right a wrong."

Emma stared at Killian in disbelief. "You really don't care about this, do you? We are in the past with all our memories from that night on missing, and this new Savior is taking my place, and you don't even care!" She crossed her arms and glared. "Get out of my house, Hook. Now." She pointed to the door.

Killian walked to the door in a daze. Emma had completely blown up over a misunderstanding. Of course he cared! Oh well, perhaps her parents would know what was wrong. Yes, Killian nodded as he walked down the street. He would talk to Snow and David.

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Regina sat in her office fiddling with a ring.

"I've been wearing this months now," she whispered, "and I haven't even noticed."

"Noticed what?" Belle asked, entering the room with a stack of books. Her baby bump was starting to show.

"Shouldn't you not be carrying a large stack of books?" Regina asked dryly.

Belle smiled sheepishly. "Oh, no. I'm only four months along," she said defensively. "I'm still mobile, if a little slower than normal."

"I'm sure Miss Swan can use magic to speed up the pregnancy like with my sister," Regina snapped.

Belle gave a nervous laugh. "Yeah, no thanks. I'll wait the nine months. No reason to rush into it. Besides, it would raise a lot of suspicion." She dropped the books onto the table. "I think I know how we were sent back. I've been doing research on time travel and Rumple has quite the collection of magic books. Anyway, I think it was a ritual similar to Zelena's. Innocence, courage, wisdom, and love. This one was a total opposite. Who ever sent us back used impurity, cowardice, ineptness, and hate. The opposites are what allowed us to merge with our past selves."

Regina raised her eyebrows. "Excellent work, bookworm."

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At the pier, Emma was sitting on a bench, reading through the new book. David walked up to her.

"What you doing?" He asked, sitting down next to her.

Emma flipped a page. "Grasping at straws. Trying to figure out why."

"Hook came by earlier."

Emma glanced up. "Did he?"

"Said you kicked him out for no reason." David looked her in the eye. "Care to share?"

"He wasn't caring at all about the fact that we are stuck in the past without our memories," Emma said crossing her arms.

David looked confused. "But I thought you we glad we were here since Hook's dead in the future."

Emma groaned. "I've really screwed up, haven't I?" She closed the book and stood up. "Where is he now?"

"Granny's," David responded.

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When Emma arrived at Granny's, Killian was sitting in a booth with his back facing her.

"Hey," she said sitting down across from him.

"Swan."

"Look, I'm sorry," Emma whispered. "I totally wasn't thinking. I don't want to go back, Killian. Not to the future that has you dead."

"I'm not dead in the future, Swan," Killian said abruptly. "Didn't your boy tell you? The next few pages of the book revealed something marvelous," he said sarcastically. "I am resurrected by Zeus and returned to the land of the living while you all weep over Robin's death. Isn't it wonderful, Swan?"

Emma was taken aback. "Sorry? You're not dead?"

"Look, don't worry about a new savior, love," Killian said finally. "It will be revealed soon enough from Henry's books."

"It could come sooner," Emma muttered.

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August 15, 2011

Real World

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A man appeared out of the shadows. He wore dark pants and jacket. He cast a glance down the street until his eyes locked onto a man strolling down the street. The first man hurried over.

"August."

The man walking, August, looked up. "How do you know my name?"

The man smiled. "We have much to discuss. Can we talk in your apartment?"

August led the way to his small apartment. "Not much, but no less than what I deserve. So you were going to discuss something with me?"

"Indeed," the man said. "Emma Swan will be arriving in Storybrooke soon. When she does, you will need to find a way to get her this book." The man handed August a book from his bag. "It contains all the stories that the Author has written about Emma Swan, Killian Jones, Henry Mills, Regina Mills, Robin Hood, Snow White, Prince Charming, Belle, and Rumplestiltskin. All of the above with be time traveling from the future and merging with their past self that exists right now. This book shows only what they will know, from Emma Swan's arrival in Storybrooke until the moment they board the boat to the Underworld to search for Hook. They are much further along, but it is only necessary to remember till then."

August was unable to say anything for a while. "Who are you?"

The man grinned. "I am the Savior following Emma, but I am now the former Savior. For now, I suppose my name is Cobra. Or Mongoose. Whichever you prefer. No, definitely Cobra."

With that, Cobra disappeared back into the shadows, leaving a scared and confused August.

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Storybrooke, Present Day

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"So why did you snap at Hook?" Snow asked Emma.

Emma threw her arms into the air. "First David, now you? It was just a miss understanding."

"Was it?" Snow asked unconvinced. "Emma, we've been here for nearly six months, right? Please don't get mad at me, but you and Hook do share a house, and-"

"You think I'm pregnant," Emma said flatly. "Thank you for the concern, but I'm not."

"You've been irritable lately," Snow argued. "More than usual anyway. Have you even started-"

"So I'm a little late," Emma snapped.

"Emma," Snow said warningly.

Emma glared and stalked off.

"Regina!" Snow called.

Instantly Regina and Snow had Emma's arms and began dragging her to the hospital.

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"Congratulations, Miss Swan," Dr. Whale said. "You're pregnant. About two months if I'm not mistaken." He turned to face Snow. "That's two women you've brought me already. Who else are you going to drag in?" Chuckling, he left the three women.

Emma stared in horror at the door. "No, no, no, no," she whispered. "I can't be pregnant. I can't be a mother."

"Did you forget about Henry?" Regina asked dryly.

Emma relaxed. "Oh, right." Then she paled. "Oh what am I going to tell Hook?" She asked reverting back to his fairytale name. "Or Henry?"

"Well," Regina said patronizingly, "you could always tell him that you're pregnant. You know, the truth?"

Emma groaned and buried her head in her knees. "We are living a messed up life now."

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"Kathryn is suppose to show up soon," David announced during dinner. "Ruby finds her behind Granny's right?"

Emma jumped. "I totally forgot about Kathryn. You're right, David."

"Miss Swan," Regina said with a pointed look at Killian.

Emma sighed. "No, later, okay?"

"Before next week, thank you."

"Fine. Before week."

Killian looked confused. "Am I missing something?"

Emma flushed, Regina smirked, and Snow muttered something like "DNA."

"Nope," Emma said. "Sorry about earlier, again. I've unkicked you out."

"Good," Henry said in relief. "I promised to play him in a Wii game."

Regina let out a most unlike herself snort. The whole table soon dissolved into laughter.

"How do you expect me to play with this?" Killian asked, holding up his hook.

Henry shrugged. "You challenged me. You have to figure it out while I win. You got yourself into this mess, you can get yourself out."

"Finding Nemo," Emma said. "Points, kid." She held up her hand for a high five which Henry gladly returned.

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Emma and Killian walked behind Henry, hands clasped together. When they got to the house, Emma held Killian back.

"Henry, why don't you get the game set up?" Emma suggested. "We'll be inside in a minute." Henry nodded and dashed inside.

"What is it?"

Emma turned to face Killian. "Regina and Snow dragged me to the doctors today," she said quietly. "So something happened."

Killian's face filled with worry. "What's wrong, love?"

Emma stared at the topmost button of Killian's shirt, unwilling to look him in the eyes and risk seeing disappointment and rejection. "I...I'm..." She drew in a deep breath. "I'm pregnant."

For a moment she couldn't believe she got the words out and she thought maybe she imagined saying them. Then Emma looked up at Killian's face and saw shock.

"What?" Killian asked in disbelief. "How...?"

"Well when two people-," Emma began mischievously.

Killian held up his hand and hook. "Okay, I got it, Swan. You're...you're not pulling my leg?"

Emma shook her head. "No. I'm not. Are you mad?"

"Mad? Swan, why would I be mad?" Killian looked confused.

Emma felt hot tears in her eyes which she furiously held in. "Well, we haven't even gotten married yet, or talked about kids, or-"

"Emma," Killian said seriously. "None of that matters. And I say, married or not, you and I will be the best parents ever. That is...if you want to keep it."

Emma smiled. "Of course I'd keep it. And...I like that. Best parents. Captain Hook and the Savior."

When they went inside, Henry was waiting impatiently.

"What took so long?" He asked.

Emma guided him to the living room and pushed him down onto a couch. "Henry," she began hesitantly, "what took so long was just that I had to tell Killian something really important. Now you get to hear it, okay?"

Henry raised his eyebrows. "Why couldn't you just tell me at the same time?"

"Because I don't know how anyone would react," Emma explained. "So in about, oh, seven months or so, you're going to have a new sibling."

Henry's eyes widened. "A baby! That's so cool!" He froze. "We are going to keep her right?"

Emma laughed. "Yes, we're keeping it. And her? Henry, I don't know what gender this baby will be yet!"

"It's going to be a girl," Henry said seriously. "It's only logical."

"Okay, Mr. Spock," Emma said ruffling Henry's hair. "Live long and prosper."

"Nice," Henry said approvingly. "Star Trek. Points for you."

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Regina was, again, fiddling with the ring Daniel gave her. She held it to her lips and whispered to herself.

"Goodbye, Daniel," she murmurs as she walked down the road through the cemetery until she found the grave she was looking for.

It was a simple grave with only the name Daniel carved into the stone. Regina looked around for anyone watching before using magic to open a hole in the ground to bury the ring in, and conjuring a single flower. She placed the flower on the ground over the ring, then walked away.

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"So what do we do about Kathryn?" Belle asked worriedly. The group was meeting at Emma and Killian's house for lunch the next day.

"Wait," Emma said. "She's suppose to appear any day now."

"Miss Swan," Regina said glancing between Emma and Killian.

Emma sighed and supported her face with her hands, elbows resting on the table. "I know, Regina."

"Is that what you were talking about last night?" Killian asked, amused.

"How does he know?" David demanding, gesturing at Killian. "How do you two know?" He asked Snow and Regina. "Why don't I know?"

Snow bit her lip to stop from laughing. "I'm sure Emma will tell you, David."

Emma slammed her hands down on the table. "I can't make it stop! Ever since that vision they've been shaking like mad at random times."

Killian laid her arm over the hands, preventing them from shaking. "Deep breaths, love. It means nothing for you yet. This is all in the future."

"Well, how do we know that this isn't going to lead me to my death?" Emma fired back. "What if this, this destiny or whatever is exactly why we're here? To fulfill the vision."

"We could always go back to Boston," Henry suggested. "After the curse is broken. Hook and mom could drive me between."

Emma chuckled. "You're sweet, kid, but Boston is miles away. Besides, Regina is hardly able to leave without forgetting herself."

Killian looked unconvinced. "The boy might be onto something, Swan. The further you are from Storybrooke, the further you are from that vision. I don't mind driving him back and forth is it keeps you alive."

"That's pointless," Regina snapped. "Emma could be hit by a bus or a car everyday, but does that mean she should stay inside? The dwarves could kill themselves with those pick axes everyday, but does that stop them? No! Besides, leaving might be the cause of this."

"But I am in Storybrooke in the vision," Emma said. "If leaving is safer for everyone," she trailed off.

"Miss Swan, leaving then coming back to find that we've been taken over by this hooded figure might be exactly what leads up to your vision!" Regina said irritably.

"On a scale from one to Snow," Emma began, "how much am I irritating you?"

"Oh trust me, Sheriff Swan," Regina said as she walked off, "you add a whole new level for yourself."

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"Confused still, Emma?" August asked at Granny's. "You know, when I get struck by a block, I usually reread what I've done, rather than plow ahead blindly. Sometimes, I find there'll be a little nugget of inspiration left behind."

Emma sighed. "Start over, yeah, you told me before. My perspective changes."

August nodded. "Exactly. When you started this investigation into why you're here, what was it about?"

"How to keep things the same," Emma responded. "Now it's what we should change and how." She thought for a moment. "We kept things the same because we thought we'd go back. But somethings were changing now have no effect on other things. Ruby still quit Granny's, but came back. Kathryn still disappeared. The fifty thousand dollars still went missing."

"Consistency constraints," August murmured. "Some things are just meant to happen, Emma. Like your vision. The only thing that keeps you far from it is leaving Storybrooke and that's something we both know you don't want to do."

Emma nodded. "I won't leave my family behind until I have to."

"That's admirable," August said quietly.

Suddenly, a scream came from behind the diner. Emma's eyes widened and she jumped up to go investigate. August followed behind her.

Ruby ran towards them. She was very clearly freaking out.

Ruby stopped in front of Emma. "She… She… She's in the alley."

"Who? What happened?" August asked. "Hey, you alright?"

Emma went around to the parking lot knowing what she'd find. Kathryn's body was lying on the ground.

"Kathryn!" Emma called.

Kathryn sat up shakily. "Emma?"

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A/N: Rough ending. I wasn't really sure where to go with this. Yeah, Sidney's probably responsible, but they don't have any evidence to accuse anyone like was used against Mary Margaret originally.

I can confirm exactly what August said. There are consistency constraints and, yes, Emma is only safe from that vision when she isn't in Storybrooke. I think that's going to be part of my season two plot. So is Neal. Neal will arrive in season two and I already have an idea of how this plays out.

So Emma is also pregnant. What will that mean for our heroes? Oooh! Baby names! For a girl, I like Tallahassee, and for a boy, I like Liam. I dunno. Any other suggestions?

Belle will have her baby or be very close to having it by the time the curse is broken. Emma is about two months behind Belle, so very soon after that is when Emma will have her baby.

Chapter Nineteen: The Return; Kathryn, August struggles, pregnancy progressions (Belle: 5-6 months; Emma: 3-4 months), August issues, Cobra, the future, and Robin (maybe).

Yes, next chapter will give us a look at the future. Remember, the old timeline is canon up until the end of season six. You know, assuming Gideon Gold (*snort*) doesn't kill Emma.