While Regina went to check on Killian, Robin, Will, Leroy, and Smee all left to inform the Merry Men, the Dwarves, and the Jolly's crew about the plans for the day. Ruby left as well to let Granny know what was going on.

In the loft, David took Anna and Kristoff aside to talk more about Anna's encounter with Rumpelstiltskin while Henry tried to convince her grandmother that he could go with Robin's group since he's helped his grandfather do inventory before.

Emma knew her son would normally have come to her but he didn't because he knew how on edge she already was. She sat back down on the sofa. She couldn't believe how much has changed overnight. Yesterday afternoon she was celebrating another win, celebrating another day she gets to live with the people she loved, and now someone she cared very deeply for could die any second.

Was it her? Was she cursed to lose every man she even came close to falling in love with? Was this the price she had to pay for having the 'Savior's Magic'?

"Emma."

She jumped when she felt Elsa's cold hand on her arm.

"Sorry." Elsa apologized, "I often forget how cold my hands get when I'm stressed or overwhelmed."

"It's fine. Did you need anything?"

"I actually wanted to ask you the same thing."

Old instincts told Emma to deny, deflect, and hide behind her walls again because she can't show any sign of weakness. But living in Storybrooke with her family and friends helped her to slowly let go of those old instincts and to have the courage to let herself be vulnerable at times.

"I just –" She breathed, "I just need him to be okay and for this to be over."

Elsa reached out and held her hand in hers.

"And he will be." She promised but Emma didn't say anything. All night her parents, Henry, and even Regina have been telling her this and she was getting tired of it. How could they promise her something like that when they've never truly defeated either Gold or Rumpelstiltskin?

Elsa could see this in her friend's face and recited something from her childhood.

"A pirate captain, bold and true,

With heart afire and dreams in view.

He sails the seas, relentless and free,

In search of treasure, his destiny.

Through crashing waves and stormy gales,

His spirit strong, his will prevails.

No foe can break his sharp hook's might,

For what he craves, he'll claim by right."

"What is that?" Emma asked.

"It's one of the few poems from my library that I memorized. When you're stuck in a room your entire childhood, there isn't really much else to do."

Emma had no idea how to respond to that. She wasn't even sure there was a right response. Thankfully, before she could make a fool of herself, Elsa continued.

"Anyway, that poem was about Hook. People loved to write about him you know." Elsa replied, "Poems, songs, scary stories, the medium varied but no matter what they wrote about him, there was one thing that was constant. It was that Captain Hook was the most relentless pirate to ever set sail and he always got what he wanted."

"If you're trying to tell me he's a villain…" Emma started but her friend interrupted her.

"No! That's not what I meant." Elsa soothed, "I'm trying to tell you that Captain Hook was one of the most ruthless and determined men to ever live. Storms, the navy, pirates, not even the Dark One could stop him. He's a survivor and a fighter especially when he was after some great treasure. And Emma…"

Gently, she turned Emma to face her so that her friend could see the sincerity in her eyes.

"I think we all agree that you are now the treasure that Captain Hook desires and nothing will stop him from making it back to you. He just needs a little extra help this time."

Emma was baffled by Elsa's optimism. She's only known the other woman a few short weeks but the few stories Elsa has shared with her let her know that the blonde's childhood wasn't easy either. Both of them grew up in less-than-optimal circumstances and yet Elsa was still able to see the good in the world and continue to hope for a better life while Emma used every hardship in her life to fortify the walls around her heart. Emma wished she could have Elsa's optimism. She wished it was that easy for her to hope that Killian would be okay. But no matter how many people told her to have hope, it just never got any easier for her. Past experiences and the people she's met have taught her that hope only ever led to disappointment.

Try something new darling, it's called trust.

Then she thought of the one man who never gave up on her. Who stuck by her through every craziness that came with being the Savior. Who has travelled across time and realms just to get to her without even knowing for certain that she would choose him. She thought of him choosing to suffer curses and torture just to keep her safe.

She thought of him and wondered if it was time she let down her walls.

Before Emma could even think about replying, Regina came back to the room.

"We have a problem." She announced.

"What is it?" Asked Emma, "Is it Hook? Is he awake?"

Regina shook her head, "No, Emma he's not." She paused, "Remember when I told you what Hook did was supposed to be impossible?"

Emma nodded and Regina continued. "When I checked on Hook's condition, I found out exactly how much damage he did to his body." She paused, "It was bad. His body was torn between Gold's order and Hook's own desire not to hurt you. It tore him apart and…"

"And what?!" Emma demanded.

Regina took a deep breath, "In layman's terms Hook was tortured. Mostly psychological but the intensity of it all put his body under enormous trauma. If I hooked him up to a hospital monitor, I'm pretty sure it'll show that he just suffered one hell of a heart attack. His brain also showed intense stress levels almost as if it was being set on fire or receiving repetitive aneurysms. That's why he was in so much pain and why blood came out of his nose. If I hadn't put him to sleep when I did, I'm not sure he would've even survived ten minutes of that."

Whatever hope had been ignited inside Emma while the plan was being made fizzled out like a candle in the rain with every word Regina said.

"Okay. If it's just a heart attack you can heal him, right?"

But Regina said nothing.

"Right?!" Emma demanded.

"I can't! I'm sorry Emma but this is not a real heart attack. It's a consequence of his missing heart and until the heart is returned to him, it would be impossible to heal him. Putting him under magical sleep helped slow down the progression of his symptoms but once he wakes up it'll go up again."

'He's dying' remained unsaid but Emma knew that's what it was.

"How come you didn't see this before?" Her father shouted, "You checked him last night!"

"I did check him!" Regina screamed, "And when I did, I sensed pain. Pain is normal for situations like this. I assumed that like all the other victims before him, his pain would fade as he slept."

"Then how come it hasn't?!" David fired back.

"I don't know." Regina hesitated, "Though my guess is that Gold put in another safety feature in case he fought back."

"What can we do Regina?" Snow asked, her arms around her daughter.

"We find his heart as soon as possible." She said, "Soon being by the end of the day because I don't want to risk putting Hook under a sleeping spell again while his body is in this state. And if he wakes up before his heart is returned, I'm afraid the strain will be too much for him and he'll die even with his heart intact."

The more that Emma heard about the pain Killian willingly suffered just to avoid hurting her, the louder his screams of pain echoed in her memory.

"If a sleeping spell is too strong, can we just call Whale and put him in a medically induced coma?" Asked David.

"No." Regina said, "It has to be a magical sleep otherwise Gold can just use his heart to wake him up. A sleeping potion would be ideal, however, I'm fresh out. I don't exactly have time to be brewing these days."

A sleeping curse. This was Emma's first thought when Regina said that Hook had to be placed under magical sleep. It was the only way to keep him safe from Gold. But if they gave it to him, only his True Love could wake him up. What if she kissed him and nothing happened? What if they got his heart back only for him to be trapped in eternal sleep for the rest of his life?

But what if...what if he woke up? Was Emma prepared for that?

AN: So our dear Pirate Captain isn't completely out of the woods yet and the only way to save him is a sleeping curse?