Heyy... sorry.. ermmm.. yeah.

Her hair was down, visibly longer than it was in their previous meeting. She was wearing that beautiful white gown. Her feet were bare and her green eyes shimmered. Killian hardly even noticed any of these minor details.

She was here.

He didn't hesitate before he ran towards her and gathered her in his arms, burying his nose in her shoulder as he felt her cling to him in equal passion. He never wanted her to let go, and she didn't seem to intend to do so anyway.

"Swan," His voice was hoarse, weak. "Emma. My love, you came back." He pulled away to look at her, and happiness didn't even begin to describe what he was feeling. It's been months. Months that felt like decades. And she was looking at him with a smile that matched his, with such love in her eyes.

"I love you," She whispered, and her breath was warm on his face. His heart swelled in his chest and he held her face between his palms and kissed her forehead as her hands came to hold his wrists, holding him there as her gaze lowered and turned her head to press a soft kiss to his palm.

"I love you, too, darling." He let out the words in a shaky breath. As soon as they left his mouth he knew no greater truth has ever been said. "So much."

He immediately felt something was wrong in the way she shifted in his embrace. Her grip on his wrists became firmer, and he watched, horrified, as she became bonier by the second. She looked sick. Her cheekbones stuck out, the green of her eyes was dull. Her rib cage was hard and heartbreakingly distinct against his and through her now torn and dirty gown, but the love in her eyes remained. It was a sad, burning love that shattered his heart to a million pieces even before her following words left her mouth.

"Why didn't you come for me, then?"

Guilt washed over him in cold, forceful waves. It increased as she pressed her lips to his slowly, softly, lovingly. Her kiss was warm and pleasent as he remembered it from the night they spent together all this time ago, and it contradicted the fear and the guilt perfectly.

And then she collapsed in his arms. Her eyes closed and she stopped breathing, leaving him alone and terrified. Her entire body went rigid, and then it crumbled into dust, white dust, and a sudden breeze blew it away from him.

Just like Milah.

It was real. The agony was sharp and powerful, her scent still sticking to his cloths. It was real.

-xxx-

It wasn't real.

He shot up to a sitting position, his breath heavy and forehead sweaty. It was a nightmare. A horrible one indeed, but nothing more than a dream.

Why did it feel so real, then?

He had never experienced such a nightmare, with such sensations. He looked around the dark bedroom of the cabin in the woods, in which he was sleeping every night since she disappeared in hope that maybe she'll return.

He didn't come for her. It doesn't matter if the dream was real or not, it could be. Her physical condition could easily be just as bad as it was in his dream, after over two months as the Dark One's prisoner. Her mental condition wasn't even something he wished to think about.

She had told him not to come for her, he thought, Robin said she'll never forgive him if he does.

Deep in his heart he knew that he'll never forgive himself if he doesn't.

He was slowly becoming insane. Failing at trying to stop himself from imagining what must she be going through, dreaming of her almost every night, only to wake up and find her gone. He needed her.

-xxx-

The Dark One practically giggled as he watched the prince's reaction to the little nightmare he had cursed him with. It was fantastic, far better than anything he had dared hoping for. He will come for her. And then he'll die, and her grief will blacken her heart.

The princess has been his prisoner for over two months. She wasn't as beautiful as she was when he found her. She wasn't as healthy, passionate or strong. She was now a fragile creature, thin and weak, with a heart filled with despair and fear beating in her chest. If this went on just a little longer, the dam would break and every last bit of weakness would turn into darkness, the most powerful darkness any land has ever seen. Because it was way harder for despair to turn back into hope than it was for it to turn into hate. He knew it. Relied on it, actually.

He knew the princess was spending her days sleeping. It was wise of her, he had to admit, but it didn't quite explain those new… tricks she was coming up with every now and then. He had no idea how did she manage to figure out a way to incinerate the chandalier and throw it his way. Or casting shadows all over the dining hall. But she didn't do anything to attack him yet. Self defence alone. He could see that her baby's safety was her first priority, freedom only second to it.

It would all be over now.

If he had any luck she would kill that baby of hers herself, once she goes dark.

-xxx-

She wasn't ready when he magically summoned her to the dining hall, not even nearly. She had no strength left in her. The dark circles under her eyes were not even able to testify how tired she really was. But there was no other choice but doing what's necessary to save her baby.

"Hello, princess." He smirked at her, way too satisfied to her liking. Her instincts came to life, immediately sensing something was wrong.

"Hello." She answered carefully, quietly, only making his smirk grow bigger.

"It's a lovely day, isn't it?"

"What have you done?" She asked without a moment of hesitation, cold fear starting to rush through her immediately. What on earth could possibly make him that happy?

"Why, nothing, dearie." He pretended to be insulted by her accusation. "Accept maybe a tiny little thing. I may have… invited a very special guest to watch us duel today. He should be here any second now." His rotten teeth were now fully exposed in a repulsive smile. "Ooh," He giggled as loud knocks on the castle's front door were clearly heard, only moments later. "Right on time."

He waved his hand, and a typical cloud of swirling smoke appeared, then disappeared to reveal-

No.

Tears filled her eyes as she fought not to run towards the prince, that was tied down to a metal chair that probably appeared with him. What has he done?

His blue eyes suddenly focused on her. "-Mma-!" he barely managed to shout, for a thick fabric scraf was blocking his mouth.

"Yes, yes, perfect. I'm glad you're here, dearie. Your lovely presence may motivate our princess to fight me a little harder."

"Let him go." Emma tried to growl, but failed miserably as her facade of bravado was slowly falling apart.

"But why should I?" Asked Rumpelstiltskin. "He happens to be an old foe of mine. Me wanting him to suffer is perfectly natural, not to mention that it might as well could have had nothing to do with you."

Emma's eyes jumped from the imp to the prince frantically. She knew she could count the seconds she had before her captor would get impatient on both hands. She couldn't let him die. He was the father of her unborn child, the only man she had ever loved since Graham. But she couldn't put her baby at risk. It may have been the hardest choice she's ever had to make.

"I'm waiting, dearie. We wouldn't want anything to happen to your child, now would we?"

Emma could see Killian's eyes narrowing with hate and disgust in the corner of her eye. She had to make a move. She had no other choice.

In a brief moment she disappeared, then reappeared next to the prince. She held on to him as tightly as she could before enveloping them both in the familiar cloud of her white, foggy smoke.

As the smoke cleared, Rumpelstiltskin was alone in the hall.

"Oh, dearie." He sighed, a dangerous expression spreading across his features. "Dearie, dearie. What a mistake."

-xxx-

They reappeared in the cabin in the woods.

As he was struggling to get that damned piece of fabric out of his mouth, she was pacing around the room, her breathing sharp and tears streaming down her cheeks, hands pressed to her stomach and eyes glued to her hands. "Please, please," she mumbled, "please work. Please."

He finally got free and quickly got to her, stopping her movment.

"Get out of my way." She cried, pressing her hands harder to where she could feel her baby was.

"No." He said clearly. "I'm not letting you face this alone, Emma."

"I told you not to come!" She managed to blurt out, eyes shootind sparks of rage. "You promised me!"

"Fine. Then tell me one thing, and I'll apologize with all my heart, and beg you to forgive me for coming. Tell me that if I woulndn't have come, you would have gotten yourself free at some point. That you would have come back to me."

Emma thought about her duels with rumpelstiltskin, how she barely survived to keep her baby safe and sound. "I can't tell you that." She whispered.

"Then I regret nothing."

"But you should!" She yelled, surprising him. "You should! Why do think I didn't just poof myself out of there earlier? He threatened my baby! He threatened you! And now he's going to come after us, and it's all your fault! I was so stupid, and now he'll come for my baby. My baby…" And she burst out crying, falling to the floor, helpless, hopeless. He seemed shocked, but not a moment passed before he dived after her, wrapping his hands around her.

"I will protect you, Emma." He vowed. "Both of you."

"How?" She wept, rubbing her eyes. "He has magic."

"So do you, apparantly, love." He chuckled sadly. "You can stop him. I know you can. I believe in you, Emma." He gulped. "I love you."

She looked up at him, swollen eyes meeting his. "I love you, too."

He's wondered about whether or not she'd say it back if he'd tell her he loved her, and how would it feel to hear it. It didn't match his expectations. It felt natural, simple, easy. He gathered her in his arms and kissed her lips softly, once. Only when she sighed he realized that his eyes were closed and he opened them just in time to see hers fluttering open. "Once this baby is born, Emma," he started, hesitating and insecure of his following words. "I'd very much like to raise it as my own. I want to give you everything." He paused for a short while. "Both of you."

Emma was gazing deep into his eyes. He could see the inner struggle reflecting in hers. "It is yours." She finally said, simply.

His eyes widened wildly, brain refusing to comprehend. "What?"

"My baby." She said, her still tearing eyes serious. "Our baby."

"Is this.." He couldn't get an entire sentence out of his mouth. "Can I.. This is.."

"Yes." She whispered.

His hand twitched, as if he was holding himself back from touching her. "May I.. May I.."

She took his hand is hers and laid it on her growing stomach. He sighed in an emotion close to relief, and then a sudden burst of light shone around them.

Emma could feel her stomach warming up, then cooling down. She knew she's made it.

"What happened?" Killian inquired, eyes still wide with shock.

"It's safe." Emma smiled through her tears. "I cast a protection spell over it."

'I knew you could do it' was not strong enough to describe his sentiments. He just gathered her in his arms again, kissed her head, and stroked her stomach gently.

They were happy. She could feel happiness radiating from him, and the gentle smile that was now stretching her lips was uncontrollable. She placed her hand on his chest.

"Oi!" He called at the sharp sting he felt. "Lass, what did-"

"Now it can't be ripped out." She explained quietly. He was horrified to see what has the dark one done to the sharp, confident woman he knew. She was now weak and fragile, too quiet.

"Thank you, my love."

She just smiled against his shoulder.

"You need to sleep. Let's get you to bed." He murmured and took her in his arms, shocked at how light and bony she became. She buried her face in his neck and sighed, letting him carry her.

He thought his heart would burst out of his chest when she refused to let him go when he put her down. He crawled under the blanket with her and held her tight, happy to hear her breath evening. Finally he fell asleep, and never noticed the dark, shimmering eyes that were watching them from the other side of the room, full of promise of vengeance.

Rumpelstiltskin got closer to them in silent steps, arm stretched forward, magic burning in his veins.

But then he sensed the shield.

That stupid, powerful girl.

"I may not be able to take your baby now," he sang to himself. "But she will be out of you some day. And then, she's mine. You broke our deal, princess. There is a price to pay."

Hi.. I'm really sorry I was gone for so long. And, in addition, I can't promise to post regularly. I will bring this story to closure, I promise. I just can't tell when.