Disclosure: Once Upon A Time owned by ABC, Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis. Unfortunately while it may seem like a story out of my head, I did not copyright it.  They did.  So Kelpie and I are left writing FanFiction to correct the story. Hey, someone has to.

Pre Edit Count – 3,728 Words

Song I listened to for this chapter: Please Don’t Leave Me by P!nk.

Previous:

During this time, Emma is taking bites of her food, to help keep her mouth shut. She is used to keeping her own intent and mind, but too much of this felt off to her. Lancelot felt off, like he was lying all the time, even when he was not speaking and Emma is not sure why or how her talent could tell her that.

Snow looks back up to Lancelot and reveals to him, “Just trust me. I may have a way.” She then puts forth her plea, “Let us go.”

Emma turns from her to Lancelot to see his reaction.

Turning over the options, Lancelot decides, “Okay, but on one condition…” He signals Mulan to come over as he divulges, “Take my bravest warrior with you.” As she walks up, Lancelot continues, “Allow Mulan to defend you.”

Right there, Emma’s back went up and she retorts, “We can defend ourselves.”

Snow interrupts her telling Lancelot, “Deal.”

She ignore Emma as she swings her way with a look of protest and continues, “Thank you Lancelot, for always looking out for me.”

Now:

Emma and Snow follow Mulan to a chest sitting on the ground. She pulls on the handles and the chest bursts open showing weapons of every sort. The three of them look down at the bow and arrows, along with the swords and other weapons in the chest.

These are not what Emma is used to using as weapons, and it is something she thinks won’t be so easy to learn while on the run.

Mulan tells them, “Choose wisely. We must be vigilant if we hope to survive the journey.” She watches as Snow and Emma both grab swords and start to strap them on.

“Where’s my gun?” Emma’s words surprise Mulan as she looks her in the eye, telling her frankly, “I want it back.”

Mulan reaches behind her to pull out the object that Emma asks for, and looks at it curiously, almost pulling the trigger, causing Snow to watch her carefully. “Is it magic?”

Emma reaches out her hand and swipes the gun away, “It depends on who is pulling the trigger.” She examines the gun, checking the chamber as Snow grabs the long bow and arrows.

Mulan is watching them, then tells them, “Follow my lead. Step where I step, do exactly as I say and we might survive.”

Emma finishes checking her gun and stows it in her holster as she answers wryly, “Thanks for the pep talk, but I think we’re okay.”

Snow is strapping on her arrows and gives her daughter a look as she mentions, “I just killed a dragon last week.”

Mulan is quick to answer the tone in Emma’s voice, “Have you ever seen an ogre?” She walks forward to Emma as she answers sardonically, “Pretty sure I’ve dated a few.”

Snow is listening to the two posturing as she tests the bow.

Mulan is standing a foot away from Emma, informing her, “Legend has it that when they kill you, the last thing you see is yourself dying in the reflection in their eyes.”

Snow rolls her eyes as she sees what is going on. It is a contest to best each other, and she is not sure what started it, but right now, Emma needs to listen before she gets herself killed. On the other hand, Snow is not wanting Mulan bullying her daughter, who she just jumped through a portal to follow, who she had not seen for 28 years.

Mulan turns around, her cloak swirling around her figure as she tells the two, “Let’s walk. It’ll be dark soon.”

Snow waits for her daughter, and tells her in a softer voice, “Don’t let her rattle you. I won’t let anything happen to us. Stick to the plan.”

Behind them, unseen, Aurora is following them, watching them for the chance for her revenge.

Emma gets agitated as she asks Snow, “What is the plan? You haven’t told me anything. What’s going on?”

Snow looks back at her and tells her, “The Wardrobe.”

Emma is confused as she looks at her friend and asks, “Wardrobe?” Then as the words sink in she asks, “The Wardrobe, like, the Wardrobe that sent little baby me to Maine?”

Snow hmms her answer to her.

Emma is mystified by the thoughts, but she clarifies, “You think it could get us back to Storybrooke?”

Snow looks down as she follows Mulan out of the camp, commenting, “I don’t know. First we have to see if it survived the curse, then we’ll worry about making it work.”

Aurora is still following them on the outside of camp, though neither notice, too involved in their conversation. Tink notices though, and she sighs as she realizes the princess is not giving up her ideas of revenge.

Emma asks, wondering, “Where is it?”

Snow smiles as she answers Emma, “My place.” She then asks the confused Savior, “You wanna see where you’re from, Emma?” When she sees the shocked look on Emma’s face she tells her, “That’s right. We are going home.” And with that they follow Mulan out of the camp, all three oblivious to their tag-a-long.

Later after they walk most of the day, Emma is trying not to rub her chest. But the pain is drastically reducing, and she is glad of it, since her body aches from the day spent walking at such a fast pace.

They break out of the forest and Mulan looks around as they follow her, mentioning, “This will do. We’ll make camp here for the night.” She is looking back at them, making sure they are paying attention as she continues to tell them, “We just need to find water. And collect some firewood.”

Emma, looking around, notices they are in a clearing and will be visible for anything to see them if they start a fire, asks, “Uh, if we are hiding from ogres, wouldn’t it be better to-oh, I don’t know-not start a fire?”

Snow is quick to correct her, “Ogres are blind.” She looks back at Emma, “They hunt by sound alone.”

Emma lifts an eyebrow, as she sarcastically bites back, “Right. Because that’s just common knowledge, huh?.” She doesn’t miss Snow’s reaction to her comment, but really? They can’t tell her anything?

Mulan looks away, embarrassed for Emma. Snow sighs as she walks up closer to her daughter, quietly telling her, “Look. I know you’re out of your element…”

Emma quickly tells her, “I’m fine”

Snow visibly takes a deep breath and lets it out, replying, “I know, but maybe you should just stay here while we get the wood and water. You know, guard the campsite.”

Emma gives her a scathing look as she asks, “You mean the big, empty clearing?”

Snow visibly gets agitated as she replies, “It’s the safest place. We’ll be right back.” With that Snow nods to Mulan, and they both leave her standing in the clearing by herself with nothing for her to do.

Hook sighs in relief as he feels the pull lessen, and he hopes that she is finally in a place where he can meet her. He hates the secrecy he needs to keep around her, and from what he has learned, it will not endear him to her.

No matter, he will do what he must to win his True Love to his side. He just really needs to prove that he is real to her, he just knows that she is probably questioning it with her past.

He moves quietly, making sure he won’t attract an ogre to their first meeting. That would not give the right impression, would it?

When he walks through to the clearing, he freezes, his eyes locked on the blonde beauty before him. He cannot say a word, the shock of her being here in front of him is enough to render the usually mouthy pirate mute.

When he hears the quiet gasp and watches her turn around, his smile widens. He drops into a small bow, telling her, “Killian Jones at your service, milady.” He purposely used the same words he had met her with in the dream.

Emma just opens her mouth and closes it. She finally admits, “You are real.”

He cannot help the smirk that crosses his face, “Of course I am real. Did you really doubt it? Didn’t you feel the pain in your chest lessen as I made my way to you?”

Emma looks down, not wanting to tell him she didn’t believe in any of it.

He walks closer to her, and when she takes a half a step back from him, he smiles and takes that extra step to her, bringing her into his arms. He can feel her fight it for all of a second, before she takes a breath of air tinged with his scent. And then she relaxes in his arms, just like in the dream.

Not able to help himself, he kisses her head, as he tells her softly, “Emma darling. I have waited more years than you can ever comprehend for just this. To be able to hold you in my arms. The only other thing I want is our first kiss, but that can wait until we are past all this danger.”

Emma sighs, feeling as though a huge weight has been lifted from her. She feels loved, safe and everything she had ever read in a fairy tale. And that realization is one that makes her open her eyes and back away from him, regretting the loss of his warmth.

“I don’t believe this. I gave True Love’s kiss to my son. I woke Graham from the curse. How can you be my True Love after all that?”

He closes the space she had put between them, and cups her face in his one hand, telling her softly, “Our son would be a recipient of True Love’s kiss from either of his parent, and that is us darling. You love him. For that matter, Emma Darling, I love him and I have yet to even see him. There is nothing more pure than the love of a parent for their child. As for this Graham, you are a product of True Love, just as our son is. I do know that you are my True Love. I felt you being born, I have felt the pull to you all your life. I am here because of that same pull. Darling, you might fight this, but I am not lying to you.”

She closes her eyes as she feels the warmth that courses through her when he touches her. But her brain kicks in and she tells him, “Killian, I don’t know what you want from me. I have a bit of a problem dealing with magic.”

He grins at her, “Darling, you are magic. And as for what I want? I want it all. But I can wait for you, love. I just needed to see you, to touch you. Can you not feel the warmth that courses through your body at my touch? I have been craving that for years. I have not had the touch of a woman since I lost Milah. First to honor her memory. Then because I was given the hope of you.”

Emma is shaking her head, denying the words. She cannot allow her heart to be out there to be hurt yet again. Once was all she needed to know this wasn’t worth the pain it would inevitably bring.

Killian sighs, feeling the tug of Cora’s spell again. He had told her he was going to scout and see what he can find out about this world now that the enchantment had been lifted. She had games to play and he didn’t care. Now he has a bad feeling that it is his love that she is playing games with. Especially since Snow is here, and Cora has always hated Snow.

So he looks back down to his love, and tells her, “Emma, this is real. There is nothing more real than the two of us. You accepted me in a dream, why not now? Why not when I am standing before you, exposed as only a man who is in love with the woman before him can be? I will get you anything you desire, I will get us home, and reunited with our son, and I will make sure you both are treated as you should be. To this end, I am working with our enemy to keep you safe and try to make sure we get home one way or another. Even if I can only send you, I will find another way to you. Woman, what do you wish me to do to prove myself to you?”

He is standing there, his blue eyes penetrating her very soul as he pleads with her. Emma has the feeling she is the only woman he will do absolutely anything for.

Emma just stares at him, and then she sighs. “Dear lord! Why does everyone insist on treating me like a child?”

Killian takes that crucial step closer to her, and he tells her softly, “Because in the world that you are part of now, you are a child of magic. But I am not treating you as a child. You have survived this long on your own and I have no doubt you can land on your feet no matter what is thrown at you in this new world. Who is treating you like a child, my love?” His eyes are fierce, he will even face Mulan if he finds she is belittling his love.

Emma just chuckles humorlessly before choking on her words, “My…mother.”

He lifts an eyebrow. “Oh… I see.” And there is the problem. Snow White. How did one treat the situation with her and her daughter? He could see the issue. Snow had her one moment, and when the curse was lifted, she is the same age as her daughter. That would be a hard situation.

She sighs as she looks around the empty clearing. “Yeah. She doesn’t quite get that I’m not her little girl anymore. She was my friend before the curse broke-the best friend I’ve ever had-but now…she’s trying to make up for lost time. And I get that. But there’s nothing left to do. I’m an adult. The baby she never got to have isn’t here anymore.”

He reaches out with his one arm, and brings her into him, holding her close. “I am sorry, love. You are right, this is not an easy situation for you. And even worse, you are not in your own environment, where you can stand up to her easier. I suspect that they keep thinking you know about things, since this is technically your home, then when you don’t it slaps them in the face.” He leans away, and looking into her green eyes, he smiles. “However, I think I can somewhat help you with that. Tink has been following you. She is watching over you, and wishes to talk to you. She can help you understand the Enchanted Forest, and make it easier for you to stand on your own.”

At that moment there was a tinkling noise, and then Tink appears. She grins at Emma while Emma just blinks, and subconsciously moves closer to Killian. He tightens his grip on her, and tells her soothingly, “It’s alright, love. It’s just Tink, or Tinkerbelle.”

Emma shakes her head in confusion and can only think to say, “You’re real?”

Tink laughs. “Yep. And you have no idea how hard it has been to keep this one under control. I did what I could to make him live long enough for you to meet him, but he is one determined person to try to keep out of trouble.”

Emma stares at the blonde woman, then she looks back up at Killian. He can see the wheels moving, and waits to see what her interesting brain will come up with. He had hoped to complete all but the kiss part of the bond, but he will give her what she needs to believe. Once she does….

Then she says the words he hadn’t dared to hope for. “I can’t believe it…but I do. I believe.”

He crushes her to him, and he can see the glow around them as more threads of their bond knit together, making them closer to being one. It is all he can do not to give her that kiss, but he wants them to be safer before he does.

She feels and then sees a glow around them. She feels closer to the man holding her tight to him, and she has vague flashes in her head of things that she can only guess to be his long life. She sags against him, not able to make sense of what is happening.

Killian holds her to him, and glances up at Tink with a question in his eyes.

She smiles at him, then lays a hand on her person, telling her, “Yes, those are his memories, and I will help you go through them at a later date. He has been getting yours, but Killian has long learned how to take that information and sort it all out. Just know that I am glad you will accept our help. I have watched and your mother is confused to say the least. She wants her little girl back, and to have you standing in front of her with none of her dreams realized-well that is a shock. And she is not dealing with it well.”

Emma takes a deep breath and lets it out, closing her eyes as she takes in this odd feeling of safety. Not even with Neal did she ever feel this good just being held in his arms.

Killian lays his head on hers, and just holds her close to him. There is plenty of time to head back, but for right now, they need to just enjoy this time.

After the two of them had spent time just relaxing, Tink is the one who tells them, “I hate to break up this time between the two of you, since who knows when you will be able to do this again, but I sense Mulan, Snow and Aurora coming back this way.”

This gets Emma attention, “Aurora? She isn’t with us.”

Tink nods slowly, “She hates the two of you since she really believes that you are the reason that her Prince is dead. She is hunting Snow especially.”

Killian’s arms tighten around Emma and he asks Tink, “You want me to leave her when her life or her mother’s is in danger? Tink!?!”

She smiles, “Killian, you know you guys only need the Kiss to finish the Bond. But what you have is enough to have the magic working for the two of you. Trust in it Killian. I can understand Emma not doing so, but you?”

He gives her a flat look as he holds Emma. Then he sighs. “Unfortunately, love, she is right. If I don’t start heading back, Cora is going to come looking to see what I’m doing. She is a very untrusting woman, and I don’t want her attention brought to you. She already is looking because you are with Snow.” He turns and cups her face in his hand, brushing his thumb over her cheek.

She looks up at him, still confused about what is going on.

He sighs, murmuring, “How much I wish I could kiss you, my love. But when we next meet, if we are around others, are you ready? To make others think that we are nothing more than a dashing pirate who is a ladies man and my next target is you.”

She cannot help the snort. “A dashing pirate who’s next victim is me?”

He grins as he looks into her face, “You’ll do, love. You will do. Now, what do you have to defend yourself with?”

He backs up a step, and when she waves her hand towards the sword, he frowns. “Do you know how to use it, Emma darling?”

She rolls her eyes, “I just killed a dragon with it, so I’d say so.”

He nods, thinking before he asks, “Is that it?”

She sighs then brings out her gun, which he frowns at. “Methinks that better be a last resort, love.”

When she tells him exasperatedly, “It’s easier to use than a sword! Plus, I’m a really good shot.”

He chuckles, “I don’t doubt it, love. But this is the Enchanted Forest, and things such as that have a way of bringing unwanted attention to you. Plus, do you have additional ammunition for it?”

She narrows her eyes in thought. “No.” She pauses before rolling her eyes and promising, “I won’t use it unless I have to. Happy?”

He smiles, and kisses her on the forehead, “That’s my girl.” He sighs. “This has to be harder than anything I’ve done, love. Leaving you, knowing you could be in danger. But you will be careful?” He lifts an eyebrow, as his hand slides down to hold her by her neck.

Emma swallows as those incredible blue eyes are trained on her face. She nods, and smiles at him when he looks deeper in her eyes. “I’m all alone in a clearing with my mother and Mulan in range, with my very own personal fairy. I think I can be safe with that.”

Redirecting his mind from all the ways he can imagine her getting into trouble, and he nods. “Soon, darling. Soon this will be over and we will be together.” With that he hugs her close, then turns and walks away-no matter how much his instincts are screaming for him to stay, to protect her. He will not make the mistakes her mother is making.

No, he wants a woman to stand beside him, not a damsel in distress. And Emma is no fainting princess, nope. He grins, No, she is made to be his other half, and he has no doubt she would stand beside him on his ship, or anywhere.

Yes, Emma Swan is one who he will enjoy being at his side for the rest of eternity.

 Final count: 3,798 words.

Fairfarren~Wendy & Kelpie