Thanks for reading guys. Just under the wire here is the thrilling conclusion

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Time seemed to have sped up, everything happening too fast to process. Returning the Captain's heart, watching the light dawn in his eyes, the sudden cries and flashes of blue jackets in the woods, and Henry's shout jumbled together. It all crystallized in the moment the Captain jumped in front of an arrow, tumbling into her before they crashed together into the ground.

Emma responded on instinct. Her magic surged and knocked the attackers off of their feet. A second burst of magic brought them all back to her library, her mind automatically taking them to where she felt safe.

Henry rushed to the Captain's side the moment they arrived in the castle.

"Killian?" Henry's voice was unnaturally high.

Emma struggled to control her pounding heart and whirling thoughts. She looked down at the wicked arrow sticking out of his right shoulder. With a rush of relief she realized the injury was not fatal. Painful perhaps, but nothing her magic couldn't easily cure. Relief was quickly followed by anger. Anger at her emotional response. Anger at the Captain for making her feel so much. It was just an arrow; there was no need for him to let his heroic impulses take over. She wasn't helpless or downtrodden, she was the Dark One, and she didn't need him saving her. She didn't need anyone.

The Captain attempted to lift his face from the floor but stopped with a groan.

"You can fix it right?" Henry patted his uninjured shoulder and looked at her with pleading eyes.

"He will be fine," she snapped, her voice harsher than she intended. "I will heal him and then you two heroes can go find someone else to save."

With firm hands, she grasped the smooth shaft of the arrow and pulled it loose with a quick jerk.

The Captain cried out as his back muscles spasmed and blood oozed unnaturally from the wound. Emma's eyes widened at the black substance mixing and coagulating with the blood, the bright red with strains of black reminding her of his heart. Her heart picked up speed as she examined the arrowhead. The metal dripped with a black sludge she had taught herself to recognize on sight: dreamshade. It was deadly, rare, found only in Neverland, and the only poison capable of killing her. Jumping in front the arrow hadn't been useless heroics, it had saved her life.

"No. No. No." Her heart refused to acknowledge what her mind was telling her. "Not like this." She wanted him gone; she didn't want him dead.

"What is it?" Henry asked in alarm, his head snapping from the wound, to the arrow, to her.

She flung the arrow across the room with a cry.

The Captain stirred from his position on the floor and pushed himself up. Henry helped him to twist onto his side. The Captain propped himself on his elbow and took a ragged breath.

"It's poison. The arrow was coated in poison." His words were hollow. Emma's eyes flashed to his and she realized he had known the arrow was poisoned when he jumped in front of it, that he was dead the moment it hit him.

"Okay. She will just cure you."

"I can't!"

She stood up and paced away from them, needing distance, needing space. She possessed the most powerful magic in all the realms but she was completely powerless in this moment. Fear clawed at her throat, ripping through her gut and turning her breath ragged. It wasn't supposed to be like this; she wasn't supposed to care if people lived or died. But the jagged pain in her heart was evidence that she did care. She had forgotten how much caring hurt; she wanted to rip out her own heart to stop the agony.

"It's dreamshade, Henry," the Captain explained, ignoring her outburst. "It has no cure unless you are willing to live forever in Neverland."

Henry shook his head. "No. There is a cure! David was poisoned with dreamshade and Mr. Gold gave him a potion. He showed it to me when I was working in the shop. You probably have all the ingredients here. We just need to figure it out." He rose as he spoke, his eyes pleading with her to have hope.

But knowing a cure existed in some other reality did not give her hope; it filled her with frustration. She gritted her teeth. "I don't know how to recreate the cure, Henry. I wouldn't even know where to start." Her hand swept over the room brimming with magical potions and objects. "And even if I did there isn't enough time."

Dreamshade was an insidious poison no matter how it entered the body. It always found its way to the heart and left a fiery path that made death seem a blessing—in that way it was not unlike what the Captain and Henry had already done to her heart. The Captain's pale face and clenched jaw told her that the poison had already begun to sear through his veins.

"No. It must be here." Henry turned and ran to the cabinets of potions and magical artifacts. "In the pawn shop. It was slightly blue and smelled like grass and apples! Do you have anything like that?" He began ransacking her stuff. She watched him knowing there was no cure to be found but not stopping him. She wouldn't stop him as long as there was a chance to save the Captain.

She looked at the man, now lying flat on his back, his eyes closed, his chest rising and falling rapidly. Her whole body ached and her vision blurred. He was dying because of her. He was dying and she hated him for making her feel like she was dying too. He gasped in pain and the twisting in her heart propelled her to his side. She sank to her knees beside him and took his hand. It was warm and sweaty and when another pained expression washed over him, he gripped it hard.

His breathing evened out and he opened his eyes. The blue depths that had tried to drown her for weeks finally dragged her under with their intensity. He lifted his free hand and cupped the side of her face. She took a deep breath and let her tears spill out. It didn't matter now if he saw her weakness.

"It's all right," he whispered as his thumb caressed the apple of her cheek and brushed the tears aside.

She jerked away. "No. It's not all right! They were aiming for me, you should have let the arrow hit me!"

He furrowed his brow. "And then you would be the one dying! I couldn't let that happen."

She wanted to hit him. She wanted to kiss him. She just stared at him in shock. He met her eyes and, like a torch flaring to life in a dark dungeon, Emma suddenly understood.

Love, the kind Henry had told her about, wasn't just about declarations and sex; it was choice, it was sacrifice, it was putting someone else's welfare above your own. She had been walking in darkness for so long, but suddenly she could see and the path ahead was clear.

"Henry!" He looked up from her potion cabinet. She pointed across the room to where Jefferson had left the objects. "The far table. Get the quill and ink."

Henry nodded and rushed to the table. She turned back to the Captain who had raised a questioning eyebrow.

"We're going to fix this. You're not going to die."

"So the Dark One is trying her hand at being a Savior?" His face lit up in a teasing smile, sending a burst of light through her heart. How did he do that? She glanced at Henry. When the boy returned everything would change, and she needed to talk to him while she was still herself.

"You should hate me. I was a coward and I ripped out your heart. And I can't even say I am sorry because… because when I held your heart… I…" She stalled, unable to properly describe how much seeing into the depths of his heart and changed her. She lifted her hand and pressed it to his chest; the familiar beat of his heart quickened hers. "I stole it because I was afraid." He covered her hand with his and brought her fingers to his lips.

"You can't steal what already belongs to you." His mouth quirked into a soft smile.

Her breath caught and, despite the circumstances, she smiled back.

"Emma. I love you."

Nobody had ever said those words to her; she had given up hope of ever hearing them. Her chest ached and her stomach twisted, her face flamed. She didn't know how to sort through the assault of emotion. She wanted to give him her heart—it was already his anyway—so he could share in her confusion and decipher it for her. But there was no time to remove her heart and her mouth refused to work, so she spoke with action.

Their lips met with equal parts tenderness and passion, a perfect hybrid of their first and second kisses. The ache in her chest turned into a fire and heat burned through her. Her magic was draining away but she didn't stop—she kissed him harder. The fire built and then erupted in a burst of euphoria, sending a shockwave out from their joined lips. Her dark power was gone but in the next instant a new, bright, white magic began to fill her, and with it came a flood of memories.

She gasped and pulled away. "Killian!"

He gave her his trademark lopsided smirk. "About bloody time, Swan."

She pulled him in again, this time armed with an intimate knowledge of his lips.

The contact was as electric as the first time in Neverland and as familiar as coming home. He tugged on her hair, changing the angle, and she ran her palm over his rough cheek. They breathed in tandem, hot and needy, a well known dance of give and take. Killian groaned and pulled away. Emma blinked rapidly trying to get her bearings.

"What's wrong?"

"Poisoned, love. Remember?" He gritted his teeth. Emma looked around. They were still in the library, she was still dressed in ridiculous black leather pants and a red velvet jacket, and Killian was still dying of dreamshade.

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Henry had just spotted the quill and ink when the unmistakable wave of True Love's Kiss washed over him. He glanced up in glee, expecting to be magically transported home, but nothing changed. His mom and Killian were still kissing, but the magic hadn't broken the curse. With a huff of frustration, he turned back to the table and scooped up the quill and ink. He hurried back to where the two sat, glad they had stopped kissing. Emma turned to him, a familiar light in her eyes, and Henry's heart leapt; he had his mom back.

"Henry!" She scrambled up to meet him and pulled him into a fierce hug. Henry sank into it, burying his face into her shoulder and hiding his tears in the soft velvet. She cradled his head and rubbed a comforting circle on his back. "I'm so sorry, kid."

He hugged her tighter.

When they parted, there were tears in both of their eyes. She took his face in her hands. "You saved me."

Henry grinned. "Technically, you saved yourself." His eyebrows danced as he looked pointedly at Killian.

She rolled her eyes. "Really? You picked up the eyebrow thing?"

Henry shared a knowing grin with Killian.

Emma shook her head. "Whatever. I'm serious. Without your faith and your stories, I never would have believed."

"She's right, lad." Killian spoke up from the floor. "My dashing good looks and kissing prowess were tragically not enough."

Emma chuckled softly and a peace Henry hadn't known since this adventure had started swept through Henry's heart. Then Killian's smile turned into a grimace, Emma kneeled quickly back to his side, and the peace fled.

"What's wrong?" Henry asked as he knelt beside her. She bit her lip and, after a ragged breath, it was Killian who answered.

"Well, lad. True Love's Kiss works quite well on curses of all kinds, but unfortunately being poisoned is not the same as being cursed." Killian coughed and collapsed to the ground, letting out a soft groan as his back hit the hardwood floor.

Henry turned to Emma. "I don't understand. The kiss worked. Why are we still here?"

Emma tore her eyes away from Killian. "It's not a curse. This reality or realm or whatever you want to call it, was created with Author magic and the only way to undo it is to use the same magic."

Henry looked down at the quill and ink that he still grasped in his hand. "Is that what these are for?"

She nodded. "Yeah. Your stories really got to me and I started doing research trying to figure out if what you said was magically possible. I sent Jefferson…" she paused and her face turned red as her eyes darted to Killian. "Uh…Jefferson got them for me."

Killian stirred on the floor. "Speaking of that Jefferson."

Emma turned even redder. "Not now, pirate. We're trying to save your life."

Killian only hummed in response.

Henry held out the quill and ink. "Okay. Do it. Write a happy ending."

Emma shook her head. "I can't. Nobody that is born with magic can wield Author magic. It's one of the protections, to keep stuff like this," she gestured to the world around them, "from happening."

Emma pushed the quill and ink back toward him and Henry pinched his eyebrows in confusion.

"I can't, but you can."

His jaw dropped and he stared down at the quill, glinting in the sunlight streaming through the high windows. Emma jumped to her feet and grabbed a small leather bound book from a nearby shelf. She returned to him and gently took the ink pot from his hand, setting it on the ground and flipping open the silver top. She placed the book beside the ink and opened it to the first page. Henry looked down at the empty, cream-colored page and his mind went blank.

"What… uh… What do I write?" He looked at Killian lying on the ground and his stomach twisted with panic. It was fine being the one to help and encourage the heroes, but now it was up to him to do the actual saving.

Emma smiled and patted his shoulder encouragingly. "Just write how the story should end."

He stared down at the blank page; his mind buzzed with possible words and scenarios. He tried to wrangle them, to find just the right order that would create the world he wanted to return to, but fear gripped him and he couldn't shake the feeling that he would ruin everything. His mind flashed to Neverland and Skull Rock. The last time he had tried to be a hero he had almost died and made Pan immortal. He looked at his mom's expectant face and dropped the quill.

"I can't."

She reached for him, but Killian spoke first.

"Henry." He pushed up to his elbows with a grunt. "A few weeks ago, a strange boy fell onto my ship with an amazing story that I couldn't help but believe. Do you know why?"

Henry looked at him and knew he was in for one of the patented Killian Jones hope speeches. During their time together Killian had delivered many of them. Henry knew the man before him was now more pirate than naval Captain, but he only saw his friend—the man who laughed and believed his crazy story in the Captain's Cabin, who taught him sword fighting, and lifted his spirits when he needed it most. Henry's throat tightened. Killian would die if he couldn't get him back to Storybrooke and dreamshade cure in Gold's shop. He met Killian's earnest blue eyes and blinked back tears.

Henry shook his head. "No. Why?"

"Because you believed it and because you are a born storyteller. Through your words I experienced the reality of the Savior, of Storybrooke, of Captain Hook. You have a talent with words and you know how this story should end. You can do this."

Their gazes locked and Killian's confidence poured into Henry. Henry gave him a nod and turned back to the page. He picked up the quill and a rush of warmth flowed up and through him; he knew exactly what he would write.

Taking a deep breath, he dipped the quill into the ink and began.

Once upon a time...

-/-/-

The return to Storybrooke took its citizens by surprise. They had all been living their lives in the Author's story with no inkling that it was all an inverted version of their true stories, and the restoration to what passed for normal had led to the inevitable celebration at Granny's. Everyone was there drinking, eating, and thanking Henry. Most people were excited to laugh and share their bizarre second—or third—lives. For them, the experience mimicked a dream, the memories hazy, indistinct and not quite real. However, Emma, Killian and Henry's memories were sharp, clear, and very real.

Henry remembered because he was the new Author—Emma wasn't freaking out about that at all—and Emma and Killian remembered because their memories had returned before the rewrite.

Emma wished that she was like everyone else and could find the experience just an amusing party story. Instead, she struggled to avoid thinking about being the Dark One and all that it had entailed.

She nestled next to Killian in a corner booth, watching everyone while also trying to avoid them. Killian slouched against the wall, his arm pulling her into his side. She leaned into him and he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. His breath danced over her skin, sending a chill to her spine as he placed a feather light kiss on her temple. She sighed. Her heart was heavy and her thoughts black, but he brought light and eased the weight.

Once back in Storybrooke, they had easily cured Killian's poisoning and healed his arrow wound. He had recovered quickly and now he acted as if it had never happened. Just another scar to add to the map of his body, another brush with death he had survived. Emma couldn't set it all aside so easily, but she was grateful he was safe.

She had sensed his eyes on her all night as she sidestepped questions about her alternate self and forced laughter at other people's stories. Before long, she had sought refuge in Killian's arms and she was grateful he hadn't asked the questions burning in his gaze. He had just held her tight against his chest and given her the space to think. She reached out and laid her hand over his heart, feeling the reassuring thump beneath his skin and remembering the hours she spent holding it.

His hand wrapped around hers and he laced their fingers together. He rubbed a gentle circle over her thumb.

"You aren't responsible for the things you did there," he whispered.

She closed her eyes, not really surprised he knew her thoughts. "So I shouldn't feel bad for almost killing my son, torturing and cursing people, taking your heart, sleeping with Jefferson..."

Killian stiffened slightly at the last item but didn't take the bait. "No, you shouldn't. That wasn't really you, love. That was a fiction the Author created."

She snorted. "That's easy for you to say. You were a dashing hero off on a quest to rescue the damsel and bring back the happy endings."

"Aye, that was the fantasy. However, the reality is that I am a pirate who has hundreds of years of villainy in his past."

She heard his bitterness and twisted in her seat so she could face him.

"Hey. The only difference between you and Captain Jones are your memories and your taste in clothing."

Killian ducked his head and rolled his eyes, brushing off her comment. "So you like me in uniform?" He winked.

She did enjoy the way the jacket brought out the blue of his eyes but that was beside the point.

She slapped his arm lightly. "Really?"

"It's alright, Swan. I was quite hoping to see you in your Dark One attire again." He raised an eyebrow and licked his lip invitingly.

She scoffed. "I am serious, Killian. You are a hero. In both stories."

He heaved a sigh. "As are you. Even as the Dark One you saved us. You believed in Henry. You figured out the spell. You acquired the quill and ink. Even with all that darkness you still broke the curse."

He smiled and she saw his pride mixed with joy. They hadn't talked about the implications of the kiss. She still had a hard time believing that even in an alternate reality, even as the Dark One, she had somehow managed to fall in the love with him. And perhaps even more amazingly, he had fallen in love with her too.

Acting on impulse, she pulled him into a searing kiss, her tongue saying "I love you" without words.

"Ugh." Henry grumbled as he slid into the booth. They broke apart, grinning at his disgust.

"Henry, it is bad form to interrupt," Killian scolded with a smile.

Henry smirked back. "Well, Captain, I'm pretty sure it's bad form to make out in the middle of Granny's."

"Make out?" Killian raised a quizzical eyebrow at Emma. "Is that what we were doing?"

Emma laughed with Henry and her anxiety leached away. She planted a quick kiss on Killian's jaw before turning her attention to her son. He had spent the night collecting stories and seemed eager to share.

"So, lad. What did you discover?" Killian leaned forward conspiratorially.

Henry looked both ways before speaking and Emma had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. Her two boys had grown close while on Operation Swan and their shared looks and inside jokes were becoming a regular occurrence.

"Well I talked to Leroy and Clark, and they both swear that not only was he dressed all in black, but he didn't shave and he wore a lot of eyeliner."

Killian's smile stretched wide as he laughed and smacked the table in glee.

"Wait. Who are we talking about?" Emma asked looking between them with a grin.

"It's Operation Raccoon, Mom." Henry waggled an eyebrow.

"I'll tell you about it later, Swan." Killian offered with an identical waggle.

She rolled her eyes; they really were thick as thieves. Emma hated what she had done and who she was as the Dark One, but it had brought the two most important people in her life closer together and for that she was grateful.

She laid her head on Killian's shoulder as they continued to whisper about their latest scheme. She gathered it was some kind of blackmail plot against her father, but didn't understand much else. She turned her head into the soft spot on Killian's neck and breathed him in. Her heart swelled at the familiar scent.

She didn't live in a castle anymore and she didn't plan on trading her jeans for black gowns with plunging necklines, but the Dark One would always be a part of her. The thought scared her but she found comfort in Killian's solid warmth, her son's laughter, and the buzz of the citizens of Storybrooke. Because of them she would never have to face that darkness alone. She had her parents, she had Henry, and she had Killian to help keep her in the light.

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A/N: A big shout out to onceuponsomechaos who spent a lot of sweat and tears getting this up to snuff. The finale and hiatus are upon us. Hope you all enjoy the episode!