A/N-Here I go again. Another multi chapter fic inspired by all the spoilers floating about on Tumblr. Also, I really just wanted to write a little something with Dark!Emma and Dark!Hook together.

Summary: With the reappearance of Gold and the new threat of the Queens of Darkness, Emma uses her magic to ensure her pirate's heart can't be taken again...Well, at least that was the plan. Now, Emma and Killian are magically linked and when the QOD curse Emma with darkness, will their shared bond be enough to bring her back. Or will it doom them both? A CS AU for Season 4B.

Rating: T

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

CHAPTER 1

Killian looked down at the object in his hands as if he was in a dream. Could it really have been this easy? After centuries of never-ending searching, of practically selling his soul for the slimmest scrap of information, she had just handed it over?

The dagger glinted in the light of the small table lamp next to his bed. Its seductively curved shape masked a wickedly sharp edge. He hefted it in his palm, tilting it back and forth to watch how the shadows caught along the name engraved on its surface. Rumplestiltskin.

Without warning, Killian felt the rising bile in his stomach. With a violent lurch, he threw the cursed blade across the room, landing it on top of his bed. He had always thought that having the dagger in his hand would make him feel powerful, complete, satisfied. But the reality was that, now, it made him feel nothing but revulsion. He needed to get rid of it. But first, he had a job to do.

He sat down on the bed, noticeably avoiding the dagger's proximity, and rubbed his aching head. He reviewed the early morning meeting he had attended yesterday with Emma, Belle, and Regina. They had discussed that the fairies needed to be released from the hat, and Killian had reluctantly divulged his role in helping Gold in that act. Afterwards, he could barely look Emma in the eye. His guilt over his actions, which had largely been pushed down in the wake of relief he had felt at having his heart returned, rose up once more to consume him.

So it was quite a shock when Belle had called him that afternoon and asked to meet up with him and Emma that night at a secluded spot just outside the forest border. It was raining when they arrived, an early spring storm that was so prevalent along Maine's coast. Belle met them at the car, her small frame dwarfed by the oversized umbrella she carried. She handed Killian a shovel and without explanation, told Killian to follow her. Emma shrugged in confusion as he got out of the car, but said she would be happy to wait for them where it was warm and dry. He smiled a little at that, but the guilt he was still carrying kept it from feeling genuine.

"What's all this, then?" Killian asked, having to shout to be heard over the pounding rain. He didn't bother trying to protect himself from the storm, having spent far too many long years riding out one typhoon after another on his ship. The rain was cold, running down his jacket and soaking his shirt, but he barely noticed it.

Belle didn't reply, only continued to walk through the forest, her tall boots squelching in the mud. Finally, she spun round, and pointed to a spot bordered by three rocks set apart in a triangle. "Dig," she command, her voice strangely authoritative.

Killian took one glance back at the car where Emma sat and heaved a sigh. He shook his hair back to keep the rain out of his eyes and began to dig. The head lights from the car were the only source of illumination in the forest, and everything quickly got lost in the darkness. How long he shoveled, he didn't know, but just before he decided that this whole thing was beginning to be bloody pointless, the shovel jarred his jarred in his hand with a ringing metallic clink.

Belle crouched down, pointing into the hole. "Can you see it?"

Killian joined her, Belle holding the umbrella over the two of them. He reached in, feeling around in the wet dirt until his hand brushed against something solid, smooth, and freezing cold. "What's this, lass?" He asked, cautiously feeling along the objects edge.

"Rumple's dagger," Belle said with a solemn finality. "I hid it out here after I banished him. You need it to unleash the fairies, right? That's what you said earlier, anyway."

Killian nearly recoiled his hand when he realized what he was touching. Maybe it was the rain and mud, but the object felt particularly slimy to him. Still, he knew Belle was right, they would need the dagger to open the hat.

"Aye," he acknowledged, wrapping his fist around the handle and pulling it out.

Beside him, Belle let out a low sigh and stood up, straightening her dress. He handed the blade over to her as quickly as he could, wondering at his own actions the whole time.

Bracing the umbrella under her arm, she turned the dagger over in her hand, almost lovingly tracing her finger along the engraved name. Killian watched in fascination as her chest heaved a couple times before settling. She tilted her head up at him, and he could see her eye shining like glass. "Here," she said, holding the object out to him, handle first. "Take it, Captain. Go fix this mess Rumple caused."

Killian swallowed hard, his own heart pounding away like a drum. But he held his hand out anyway. As he accepted the charge, that same sickening feeling came over him and it was all he could do to tuck the dagger away into his belt. The last thing he wanted was to keep touching it.

"I-" he stammered, unsure exactly what to say. How could he possibly explain what that dagger represented to him? What her actions meant? How many fruitless years of his life he had wasted questing after the damned thing? And now, all it was to him was a reminder of each and every one of his shortcomings. So he chose instead to nod, letting her know he would do his best.

When he returned to the car, Emma had the heat blasting, clearly dying to know what had occurred between he and Belle. If she suspected what he had dug up, she didn't say, but when Killian pulled out the dagger from his belt and sat it across his lap without a word, she didn't look surprised. As if reading his troubled thoughts, she took hold of his arm, just above his brace, and squeezed with a firm reassuring pressure.

Suddenly, Killian felt the tightness in his chest release. As he caught Emma's eye, he could see the apology and understanding in her look, and it was as if the guilt that had been feeding on him had been eradicated. He offered her a tight smile, and quipped, "Well, it's quite a bit lighter than I'd expected it to be." It didn't quite sound as carefree as he had wanted it to be, but his voice didn't waver, and for that he was thankful.

She smiled back sympathetically, wordlessly acknowledging his need to come to terms with this in his own way. "Yeah, not as shiny as I pictured it, either. I would have expected something a lot flashier for Gold. Maybe a diamond encrusted handle or something," she replied lightly.

And like that, all the tension between them faded away. It was what they did best, easing the pain in each other's lives seamlessly and effortlessly. Once again, they were simply Killian and Emma, all thoughts of missing hearts, daggers, and hats pushed aside. Killian leant over, pecking her softly on the cheek. "Well now, Swan. Looks like I'm going to need someone to help me out of my attire. It can be quite difficult to remove leather when it's wet." He waggled his brow in a move he knew she secretly adored.

She rolled her eyes, but continued to smile at him, putting her car in gear and driving them back to his hotel room.

That night, when they came together as they had for the last several nights, it was driven by a need to erase the past, to start over, if only temporarily. And for a few blissful hours, all their shared guilt and shared grief over the past was forgotten in their tight embrace.

….

As it turned out, once they had the dagger, releasing the fairies had been a simple enough task. Emma waved the dagger over the hat, willed her magic to find those trapped inside, and simply pulled. In a flash of red light, wind, and intense heat, the hat spewed forth a great volcano of thick, choking smoke. As Regina, Belle, Killian, and Emma watched, the smoke surrounded them briefly, before petering out, dissipating into the atmosphere, leaving only an innocuous looking felt object lying on the ground.

"Is that it?" She asked skeptically, looking to Regina.

Regina raised a brow and shrugged. "I guess, if trying to recreate Pompey was what you were going for," she scoffed. "Well, I don't see the fairies anywhere, Miss Swan."

Behind her Killian growled, but he knew to keep silent and let her fight her own battles with the former Queen. "Maybe it just takes a while," Emma replied, bending down and picking the hat up from the ground. She turned it over in her hands, and Killian had a flash of panic as she peered down into it. "Seems like a regular old hat now. It had to have worked."

"It did," came a voice directly behind the group. Everyone wheeled around at once. Blue was standing on the road with her sister fairies by her side. She was smiling at Emma, but otherwise looked as cool and unruffled as ever. "You freed us."

Emma beamed proudly and Killian couldn't help the little tug his heart made. However, just then he caught Blue's eyes accidently and couldn't mistake the anger he saw there. Blue's expression soured. "What's he doing here?" She pointed to Killian, looking to Emma for answers. "He's the one who put us in there."

Emma crossed her arms and replied, "He didn't. Gold had his heart and commanded him to. It's not his fault." Belle paled a little at her side, but didn't interrupt.

Blue glared back, but seemed mollified by that answer. It still didn't stop her and her sisters from giving him dirty looks, however.

Emma coughed, trying to ease the tension and asked, "Are you all okay? Do you have your magic back?"

Blue nodded and the others did as well. "It would appear so. How long have we been gone?"

"About a month, give or take," Regina supplied frostily.

"And the Snow Queen?" An unknown fairy from the group asked.

With an awkward shuffle, Emma dropped her eyes and said sadly, "Gone. She destroyed the curse herself. She's dead."

Blue's eyes went wide with disbelief and she turned to silently confer with her sisters. "That is great news. I take it, then, that the town has returned to normal."

"As normal as it ever is," Regina mumbled. Emma chuckled a little at that, and Killian felt himself relax slightly as well.

"I suppose there is much yet to be discussed, but for now, my sisters and I need to rest. The return of our magic has left us feeling a bit out of sorts. It's really good to be out of that hat," Blue sighed. Without warning, she and the others vanished from the street.

"Well," Emma said grumpily, "so much for that, ladies. I guess we'll see you around."

Killian slipped his arm around her waist and whispered in her ear. "Good job, Swan. Don't let a few prudish fairies ruffle you, love, you were as amazing as always. What say we celebrate your victory at Granny's? I'll even treat you to that cocoa drink you are so fond of, although, I'm feeling a need of something a bit stronger meself." He rocked his hips into her as he pulled her close to him. "After, I'll let you try to beat me at a game of darts, if you wish." He pushed a strand of her long hair back behind her ear and smirked.

Emma sidled into him and gave him a shark-like smile. "You're on, pirate. Although, as I recall, last time we played, I did beat you."

He chuckled into her ear, "Perhaps, but if you recall what happened after our game, I would say I came out the clear winner, darling."

…

Spending all this time with Killian, seeing that dagger in his hands, remembering the strange weight of his heart in her own, did nothing for Emma's nerves. For the past several weeks, she had repeatedly fought off nightmares of Killian having his heart taken and crushed by some unnamed entity. Sometimes it was Gold, sometimes Cora or Pan. Once, it a particularly disturbing and vivid dream, it had been her that had ripped it out and crushed it.

After that one, she had rushed to the bathroom of her parent's loft in the middle of the night, a full-on panic attack taking over. That was something that hadn't happened to her in years. It wasn't until hours later that the pressure in her chest subsided. With shaky limbs, she picked herself up off the bathroom floor and returned to her bed, where she tried desperately to pretend like nothing had happened. Thankfully, Henry was at Regina's that night, and with Neal's erratic sleep schedule, her parent's slept like the dead, so no one noticed that she never got a wink of rest.

Thinking back, she realized the nightmares had started the night she put back his heart. They kept occurring every night immediately following, but their growing closeness, his warm embraces, and taking that next step in their relationship seemed to keep the nightmares at bay. However, recent events were proving the hellish dreams were far from over.

Of course, she kept it all to herself. Why burden him with her panicked dreams? And it wasn't like she couldn't handle a few pesky nightmares. After all, she had been doing it all her life. So what if she took a little bit longer to let go of his hand or to break out from his kisses. It wasn't as if he was going to mind.

So she kept dealing with it like she always did: pretending it wasn't bothering her, pushing down the fear and fighting back. After all, everybody knew that nightmares weren't reality.

It wasn't until the day Leroy burst into the station, shouting "He's here!" over and over, that she decides maybe she couldn't really keeping running anymore.

David looked up from his paperwork, a knot in his brow and a frown on his lips. "What's going on, Leroy? Who's here?"

Leroy grumbled, but stood resolute. "Oh, no one except the Dark One himself! No doubt he's back for a little revenge on the people that kicked him out."

Emma stood up violently from her seat, nearly knocking over her coffee in the process. "Gold's back? How? I thought he couldn't cross the town line."

Leroy shook his head and crossed his arms. "That's the other problem. Me and Doc were checking the border like we do most days, and this time, something seemed different. So, Doc reaches out to test it, but the magic just wasn't there. I'm telling you, sister, it's gone. The border is down."

Emma rolled her eyes skeptically. "But what does that have to do with Gold? Just because the magic's gone, doesn't mean Gold has returned."

Shaking his head, Leroy growled. "It does when Sleepy spots him walking down an alleyway near the docks."

Emma's gathering hope fell, and her heart leapt in her throat. "Sleepy saw him? He's back?"

"Yep, sister, and my money is on he's up to no good."

Belle. Henry. Killian. Who knows who he might have his sights on now?

David sensed her hesitation and clapped a reassuring hand on his daughters arm. "Don't worry, Emma. I'm sure we'll find him. Who knows? Maybe spending some time without his magic has made him realize what he did to Belle was wrong."

"You sound like Mary Margaret," Emma scolded. "I know Gold. If he's back, it's not to apologize for his actions. He's here to get his 'happy ending'."

David looked mildly offended, but sighed. "You're probably right. Still, don't worry. We'll keep everyone safe."

Keeping everyone safe. Everyone like Killian. The memory of the nightmares returned sharper than ever. There had to be some way to get rid of this fear, it was nearly crippling her. Sure she trusted him, trusted him far more than she was willing to admit. But that didn't mean he couldn't be hurt. Or used. Or kil-.

She shook off that last thought. She needed a concrete way to protect him, to ease her mind about his heart. Then, the nightmares would stop and she could focus on doing what she needed to do to protect this town once again.

What she needed was magic. She needed to see Regina.

"Dad, why don't you go with Leroy and Doc and check out the border, I'll go get Regina and meet you there."

David nodded, and grabbed the keys for his truck, sweeping by Leroy in the process. When they were gone, Emma donned her jacket and grabbed her own keys, her mind racing with visions of a certain pirate.

…..

"You want to do what?" Regina declared, pulling the last tray of brownies out of the oven and setting them on the counter. She arched a brow and removed the pot holders from her hands.

"I want to see if there's a way to keep a heart from being taken," she repeated, hovering her hand above a plate of already cut brownies and wondering if Regina would notice the absence if she was to sneak one. Screw it, she decided and picked up a warm chocolate square and shoved it in her mouth. Damn, Regina could bake! She looked at Regina like a defiant child caught with its hand in the cookie jar, daring her to call her out on the theft.

Regina rolled her eyes at Emma's challenge, but didn't comment. "Henry's heart is already protected, so I'm not entirely sure why you are asking about this, Miss Swan."

Emma fought off a blush and looked down, but it was enough to give her away.

Regina sighed and shook her head, "This is about your pirate, isn't it. Are you really that concerned that someone is interested in stealing away his heart, again? It's not like they need to steal it. All you'd have to do is offer him enough of an incentive and he'll do whatever is asked. After all, he is a pirate."

Emma quickly went from playful to furious. "We think Gold is back, and I'd rather not take the chance of him trying to use Killian to get to me. Or Henry. You know Gold sent him to kidnap Henry during the shattered-sight curse, right? What makes you think he wouldn't try it again?"

Clenching her jaw, Regina relented. "Fine. Look, I don't even know why you are asking me. You're powerful enough, you know how magic works. Really, it's not that complicated of a spell. Like all magic, it's about intent. You just think about what you want, what you really, really want." She raised an eyebrow, no doubt privy to the rumors of her and Killian's developing relationship.

"I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want…" Emma quipped without thinking, brushing off Regina's look of confusion. "Never mind. Look, that's not the only reason I came over. We need you to help us figure out what happened at the town line."

For the first time, Regina stopped her baking and turned around. "What do you mean?" There was an edge of desperation in her voice that softened away Emma's anger.

"The dwarves said the curse is gone. They think people can come back across the line."

Regina went silent, and Emma knew exactly what, or rather, who, she must be thinking about. A moment later, Regina reached over and turned off the stove. "I'll get my coat."

…..

When they arrived, David and Leroy were already searching around the town line for any sign of who or what could have caused the change in magic. Emma and Regina exchanged a look, and approached the red line with determination.

Throwing out a hand, Emma pushed against what she thought would be a magical membrane, only to find no resistance whatsoever.

"I think the magic is really gone. We're wide open." Emma commented.

Regina stared at the long stretch of road with sad gaze. "I suppose we had better fix that, or else we could have another Greg Mendell situation on our hands."

Emma sighed, turning towards the plainly hurting woman. "Regina—"

"Don't, Emma. Just don't. If he wanted to come back, he have found a way. Isn't that right?" She spat in a barely contained whisper.

Emma fought the rising heat of her guilt. Killian had crossed realms to find her, but Robin, Regina's true love, had completely left her. Was it just that Killian was that much more dedicated, or was it that their relationship was something more special than she was willing to admit?

"Maybe," Emma offered.

With a measured look, Emma raised her hands and closed her eyes. She could feel Regina do the same. Willing her magic to spread out and seal up the town from danger, she felt it leave her body in a gush of wind, wrap itself up and over the town like a bubble, and harden into a shell.

Now all she had to do was the same thing for her pirate.

….

"Killian, I have a favor to ask you," Emma said coyly, running her hand down his arm so that she could interlace their fingers. He tilted his head up and smiled, blue eyes still hazy from their earlier lovemaking.

"Anything, my love."

Her face flushed hot, and she decided she had best barrel through this. "I want to do a spell on you to protect your heart from being taken again."

He blinked a few times, processing her words. When at last it settled in, she could see the blue in his eyes dim slightly. "Swan, I told you not to worry about me."

"I know you are a survivor, Killian." She replied tensely, squeezing his hand between their half-naked bodies. The heat coming from him was like a furnace, and she nudged herself in even closer as they lay on his bed. "And this isn't because I don't trust you to take care of yourself or not make the same mistakes. I just don't trust anyone else to not try and hurt you." She left off the need to say Gold's name, but she knew that he was thinking the same thing she was.

"Swan—" he started, scratching at his ear with his hook, he seemed to struggle internally with himself, before letting out a long breath. "Very well, love. If it eases your mind, you may do whatever you like with my heart. You have been its keeper for a while now, anyway."

It was always the stuff he said like that that made her so fiercely determined to protect him in the first place. Stupid mushy pirate.

She slipped her hand out of his and laid it across his bare torso, feeling that spot, between his firm chest muscles, where it was bony and rigid. She could feel her magic rise up to the surface, tingling and electrifying her fingertips as they sought out his heart just beneath the bone. He sucked in a sharp breath, like he could feel the effect as well.

Scrunching her face up and sticking her tongue between her teeth, she thought about what Regina had said. It was all about intent. She needed to keep him safe, to protect this beautiful thing residing within him from all harm. The warmth of her magic spread out, illuminating them in a faint glow, and she could feel it working. She could feel his heart anchoring itself to his body…

…Until it all went wrong.

She had made a mistake. Instead of focusing on controlling her magic, she looked up, straight into his eyes. She saw the pure, unfiltered love emanating from his soul, reverberating back into her, like he was anchoring himself to her. And she forgot about her intent to protect just his heart. She wanted more than that. She wanted to protect hers as well. Not from him, from the pain of losing him. From losing this. This closeness, this connection she shared with him that she had never shared with another soul. Because losing him wouldn't just hurt her, it would destroy her. She knew she could never survive it. Somehow he had wormed his way so thoroughly into her heart, she couldn't bare to let him go.

And not only that, she was tired of fighting whatever this was between them. She was tired of being scared. It was too late to be scared, she knew that now. She just wanted to be so sure of whatever this was, whatever they were becoming, so that she could stop questioning it so damn much. She wanted to believe that she was the person he saw when he looked at her like she was the most amazing thing he had ever laid eyes on.

Suddenly, there was a spark of pain in her chest, a tightness in her own ribs. Her breath and his tumbled together, her magic flickering wildly, a strong pulsing beat flooding from where they were connected. His eyes turned from the grey of morning to the blue of twilight and he tilted his head fractionally towards her. Licking his lips, his gaze darted to her mouth, and she guessed his intentions a second before he attacked.

His kiss was molten fire. Coupled with her still thrumming magic, it made her feel awash in flame and fire. All throughout her body, tiny sparks ignited causing her to tremble with sensation. A moan of delight ripped from her throat and his answered growl sent her soaring. He delved farther into her mouth, licking and sucking her lips, tracing down her jaw, nibbling at her neck. With her free hand, she carded through the hair on his neck, directing him right where she needed him, while feathering his ear with her panting breath.

"Gods, Emma," he whispered haltingly, like he couldn't form the words without pain. "What are you doing to me?" He sounded thoroughly wrecked and they hadn't done anything but kiss.

She bit playfully at his ear and pushed his head down towards her breasts. "I don't know, but I don't want it to stop." She sounded breathy and high-pitched and completely wild.

Looking down, she saw her fingers twitch and the light spreading around them grew until his whole chest was wrapped in a hazy, white glow. She could barely make out Killian's face buried in the twin light coming out of her own chest.

What was going on? Why did it feel like her heart was about to burst out of her and exploded into a million pieces? Why did her soul feel like it had met its match? And why was he so damn good at that? Killian chuckled and continued his assault on her tender breasts.

It didn't take long for her to forget her questions and get lost in the sensations Killian was eliciting in her as he suckled and rubbed against her. What little clothes they had on were quickly discarded, and in a frenzied rush, he dove into her, completing the dance of they had started so long ago.

And when they climaxed together, Emma could have sworn the earth literally moved.

...

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