A/N: The title is inspired by this: Snow core: a sample of snow, either just the freshly fallen snow or the combined old and new snow on the ground, obtained by pushing a cylinder down through the snow layer and extracting it.

I thought Snow and Hook would be able to bond over having their hearts ripped out post 4x11. So here it is. Thanks for reading!

Killian sat at the counter of the island in David and Mary Margaret's kitchen nursing a cup of coffee while awaiting Emma as she finished getting ready for work. She'd asked him to meet her at the loft, on this, the second, full, Crocodile-free day in Storybrooke, and he was doing his best to stay out of the way of the bustle that was the morning at the Nolan home.

David was in the bedroom getting himself and the young prince dressed, while Killian sat sipping the dark, bitter, brew that was better than what Emma usually acquired from Granny's diner. Mary Margaret submerged her tea bag into her own cup again and again before lifting the steaming mug to her mouth and sat down beside him.

"So...Killian," Mary Margaret started, glancing at Killian over the edge of her cup. "How are you feeling this morning?...Now that you've got your heart back," she clarified.

The question was more leading than he was comfortable with; Killian wasn't ready to discuss the finer points of his feelings at the moment. He gave a curt nod and answered, "Well, thank you."

Mary Margaret scoffed, the sound muffled as she took a sip of her tea. "You are lucky then. I was sore for a day or two after getting mine back. Both times."

Killian frowned and swirled the cup lightly before placing it on the counter and looking at her with astonishment. "Both times?" he asked, unaware that she'd been without it more than once.

Mary Margaret raised her perfectly arched eyebrows and nodded. "Regina. I asked her to do it, though. Both times," she repeated.

"Why on earth would you request such a painful thing once, let alone twice?" Killian could not imagine wanting someone to pull his heart from his chest, now having had more than one pair of hands rooting around in there.

Smiling sadly, Mary Margaret looked right into Killian's eyes as she said, "I didn't think I deserved to keep it after what I'd done to Cora."

Killian understood far too well the enormous weight of wrongdoing as he considered the old man he'd been coerced into helping the Crocodile suck into that blasted hat. As much as he hated having Gold in command of his heart, part of him believed he deserved having it removed as well. Even without it, the remorse he felt over cursing the fairies to the same fate as the old man was difficult to bear.

Snow looked at the floor as she continued explaining. "The anguish over killing her was far more painful than having my heart ripped from me. Luckily, I suppose, Regina thought I should suffer with it for my crime and put it back, which came in handy for the second time I asked her to do it."

"To cast the curse...to get back to Emma," Killian guessed.

"An ironic twist, don't you think?" Mary Margaret laughed. "As it turned out, though, I wasn't willing to pay the price after all."

The two of them looked through the bedroom doorway where David was making faces and talking to the baby in a silly voice to make the lad coo. He was the picture of health and happy as a man could be. Killian could see the tears welling in Mary Margaret's eyes as she finished recounting what was surely a moment she didn't care to dwell upon.

"That was quite the gamble," Killian noted. He was impressed, yet again, with the princess's boldness and quick thinking in a dire situation.

She turned to Killian and grinned. "I had faith it would work. True love does that. You'll see," she said, taking another sip of her tea and glancing at him with mischief in her eyes.

Killian looked anywhere but back at Mary Margaret, wishing Emma would make haste. He picked up his coffee and hid behind the mug for a moment to gather himself as Emma's mother chuckled to herself.

"I'll ask again: so, Killian, how are you feeling today?"

Setting down the now tepid coffee, he nodded, "As you said, a bit sore." He unconsciously brought his hand to his chest and sat up straighter. "Although, sadly, not unfamiliar. While this was the first time having the thing removed fully, it's hardly the first time someone's tried to take it from me," he admitted.

Mary Margaret looked impressed. "Do tell."

Seeing as how Mary Margaret didn't hold back from telling Killian of her own terrible brushes with heartlessness, he figured it was only fair to reciprocate.

"Aye. The Dark One had tried once before, long ago, to take my heart in retaliation for leaving with his wife, but Milah intervened." He paused, thinking about that day and her bravery. Where he ultimately recognized the unpredictable darkness in the demon, Milah had still only seen the cowardly man she'd come to loathe. He looked no different to her. It was that underestimation that cost her life. "He took hers instead," he said, leaving it at that.

Killian took a deep breath, putting aside the regret he felt over Milah and his helplessness at failing to protect her.

"And then there was Cora," he continued, almost brightly in spite of the topic. "She had a good grip on it, but decided I was more useful to her alive...and in full control of my many charms. She offered me the chance to kill the Crocodile in exchange for helping her get back to Regina. Making that deal was far less messy, I suppose. We had a moderately successful partnership for a while. At least until we came here to Storybrooke," he explained.

Mary Margaret pursed her lips and nodded. "Ah, Cora. She tried to take mine, too. Emma stopped her."

"Aye, I remember," Killian said.

"You remember?" Mary Margaret asked, the confusion apparent on her face. "I thought you were unconscious?"

Killian shrugged, causing Mary Margaret to laugh. "You tricky man!"

"Pirate," he reminded her. "I may not have been pleased with Emma abandoning me on the beanstalk, but you all proved resourceful and persistent, so giving you a head start cost me nothing at the time. I knew I still had the means to get to Storybrooke without the compass even if Cora didn't. I was just waiting to see who came out on top."

Shaking her head, Mary Margaret stood and gathered up her's and Killian's mugs and brought them over to the sink. "Well, I'm just glad none of us are heartless anymore," she declared as both Emma and David, with her brother, made their way into the kitchen area from their respective rooms.

"Heartless?" they both asked simultaneously looking at Killian and Mary Margaret in turn. Killian couldn't help but smile at the similarities between father and daughter.

"Killian and I were just comparing notes on what it felt like having your heart ripped out of your chest," Mary Margaret said as if it were a conversation everyone in Storybrooke had at one time or another. Knowing this town and its former mayor, it may have well been true.

David nodded knowingly. "It sucks. Rather not do it again," he said, passing the baby to his wife. "Not that I was planning on coming back from it the first time," he commented, looking into Snow's eyes. She raised her hand to cup his cheek and placed a brief kiss on his lips.

Killian glanced away feeling like he'd intruded upon them and looked at Emma instead. She stood before him in contemplation—eyebrows pinched, and head tilted in a manner he always found rather endearing—as she tried to make heads or tails of their realm's magical norms.

She patted his shoulder, finally. "If it's any consolation, it feels strange putting one back in, too. I'm still trying to figure out how it's even a thing. It's just...weird," she concluded, shaking her head. "If we are done with this week's meeting of heartless anonymous, it's time for me to get to the station."

"Aye, and I'm to meet with Belle today and start our research into the origins of that hat. But first, you promised you'd introduce me to...what did you call them?...bear paws?"

"Bear claws. Claws. And yes! Buy me one, and I will hand over my heart to you myself," she said with a look of bliss he wasn't sure he'd ever seen before on her face. Something he'd need to remedy sooner rather than later if he could manage it.

"I think it's too late for that, darling," Killian teased with a wink. Emma blushed a deep pink, her eyes darting between her parents who were doing a rather poor job at pretending they didn't hear anything if their snickering and eye-rolling were any indication.

Giving her family a stiff wave, Emma bid them farewell. "Mom, Dad, little bro, have a good day!" she said in a rush as she pushed Killian toward the door. She murmured behind him, "You're lucky I put yours back at all. Let's go, smartass."

He waved to her parents—who were looking as amused as he felt as well—before he was completely through the doorway. Looking over his shoulder at the still flushed Emma as she shut the door behind them, he said, "It's yours to do whatever you wish, love. I'm just keeping it here for your convenience."

Emma pulled him into a kiss filled with urgency and need. "I think I'll pay for that bear claw today," she said, smiling into his lips. He was almost certain that look of bliss she had wasn't just for the bear claw after all.