Title: Innocent Hearts

Part: 8/?

Author: Roguie et al.

Fandom: Once Upon a Time

Characters: Killian and Emma

Spoilers: None

Rating: T

Summary: Our young Lieutenant and our Crown Princess have escaped the town upon the Jewel, but have suffered losses along the way. Harsh words were spoken, hearts have been broken, two hurting souls have been left alone in the night. Does Killian have the strength to apologize? Does Emma have the heart to forgive? And what of Alfred's navy? Surely they would spot a ship such as the Jewel slowly making her way from port.

Disclaimer: OuaT is not mine. I merely grabbed a hold of the characters, tossed down a magic bean and absconded with them into the night. I'll return them by Sunday... I promise.

A/N: Back to Friday updates for this little Lieutenant Duckling tale. ;) It will probably be every 2nd Friday from here on out, but hey, we're like 20,000 words into this disaster... I can't let them go now. ;)

~~~?~~~

The ship was silent as Emma made her way through the dark corridors. Subconsciously feeling eyes upon her in the night, the moment she made her way on deck she ducked low, staying on her hands and knees as close to the side of the ship as she could remain. There wasn't a single sound on deck, nothing to betray invaders, nothing to betray Killian as she crawled slowly towards the helm. She was forced away from the sides of the ship by boxes of cargo, once neatly stacked now strewn across the deck, opened, pilfered, whatever treasures they'd once held within gone in the night. The Jewel rocked in the gentle swell of the tide, her sails creaking as they caught a small wind, and even one as inexperienced as Emma could tell that very slowly they were drifting away from the docks.

A small burst of relief flowed through her at the movement beneath her body. If nothing else, their drift towards the mouth of the harbour meant Killian had reached the helm without incident, allowing their slow gentle escape into the night. She wanted to call out for him, her heart humming in her chest with a heady mixture of fear and adrenaline, but feared even her lowest whisper would bring the invaders upon them. Instead, her pale flesh grew filthy with dust and blood from sharp, wooden splinters; the castle finery she wore shredded at the skirts from the abuse she'd provided that it had never been stitched to take. Her kingdom had fallen, her parents were either imprisoned or dead, and her love had lost his family while trying to protect her. She feared for her innocence, for his innocence when this finally came to an end. How could they come back to the people they'd been just one sunrise earlier, when the only innocence in jeopardy was her virtue, and she'd fought not to protect it but to thrust it upon the dark haired, blue eyed man who had swept her from her royal palace with a mere picnic on the bluffs?

The princess was so caught up in her thoughts that she missed the movement in the shadows of the strewn cargo. Strong arms wrapped around her from behind, long fingers smothering her scream of terror as they covered her mouth, and before she could even begin to fight back, she was dragged silently into the dark spaces between the tossed cargo containers, a hard body over hers, taking away any chance of escape.

~~~?~~~

Killian didn't know whether to be grateful that the Jewel appeared abandoned by the intruders, or wallow in rage that he'd missed the chance to put into action the murderous need for vengeance that filled his heart.

Liam had been more than a brother to him. Killian had been but a lad when his mother died and his father betrayed him, leaving him to survive an orphan's life, first on the streets and then on the seas. He'd been alone more than two years when Liam found him, cowering in his captain's quarters, the scars from years of whippings hidden only by the blood of his most recent punishment. The fates had been kind and spared him the life of younger, prettier cabin boys, but he'd been worked hard and punished harder for reasons beyond his comprehension.

At first he'd not recognized his brother, grown and in command, and he'd fought the arms dragging him from the mat upon which he slept. At first he eyed his new crew with the suspicion born of conversations had and illicit deeds witnessed but he was punished no longer. Time passed slowly, weeks and months, until finally he learned to accept the life his brother offered, and dared to become a gentleman sailor himself. Liam insisted upon his education, supported him in his goal to join the King's navy, and took him aboard the moment Killian could be officially stationed. Liam spent a lifetime ensuring that while Killian would never forget the life he'd been pulled away from, he'd never fear the life he was heading towards.

Captain and Lieutenant served along side each other, brothers, friends, family, and their crew could argue not. Life aboard the Jewel was better than most, but now? Now Killian had nothing but for some boards and sails and a royal ward with whom he knew not what to do.

He couldn't shake the feeling that the sweet tension they'd been building up between them had been shattered with his careless words, a thought that caused him to raise a hand to his chest, rubbing idly at the sudden ache in his heart. He'd been harsh and unforgiving to an innocent girl that had done nothing but try and comfort him. The entire situation made him ill at heart, but he had no choice other than to lock down his emotions until they were well and truly free of the doomed kingdom. One thing was certain in this new life they were about to embark upon: losing themselves in each other would get them dead. Until they were free, he had to stay strong, stay separated, stay neutral at the very least.

Nothing aboard the Jewel gave way to the identity of the magic wielder that had arrived with the invading navy. On one hand, the princess could very well be correct and her step grandmother could be behind the attacks, but Killian had heard no whispers of an uprising from the Evil Queen. The attack could be something more heinous. If King Alfred had procured the dark one's dagger, it was very possible there was a less personal agenda involved. Land ownership and monetary gain. Men had gone to war with less power behind them for a less fulfilling reward.

With a sigh, Killian adjusted the sails to catch the faint wind of the night, allowing the Jewel to drift slowly away from the dock, rocking silently in the waters as she drifted to where the King's fleet had earlier burned. If they managed to drift out to the mouth of the harbour, he would raise proper sail and once he had the winds behind him, no ship would dream of catching the Jewel. If they were spotted before hand... He shook his head. If they were spotted before hand, they would have no choice but to use the bean to ensure their escape. He'd promised the King and Queen no harm would come to their daughter, and he'd see that promise through.

A small voice insisted he'd promised to cradle her heart gently as well, and yet he'd done nothing but batter and bruise the delicate muscle since they'd stepped aboard his ship. Killian flinched visibly as he recalled his words to her in great detail. At the very least he owed the lass an apology, but it would have to wait until they were safe at sea, perhaps even until after he laid his brother to a proper rest. For now, perhaps ruffling the princess's feathers would do him better than leaving her innocent of the situation in which they've found themselves.

His attention was pulled from the sails by a small movement on deck. With a whispered curse he slid his dagger from its sheath and slowly made his way towards the shape moving amongst the ruins of his cargo. His next curse was silent as he grew close enough to recognize the small form trying to stay hidden in the shadows.

Bloody reckless wench, he cursed to himself, moving ever forwards, closer and closer until she was just within his reach. His hands shot out, one around her waist, pulling her to him closely, the other across her mouth to stop the scream of shock and terror from alerting their enemies to their presence. He pulled her back amongst the cargo and held her beneath him until she stopped struggling, finally able to lower his lips to her ear.

"I've got you, Princess," he whispered, his voice just loud enough to be heard over the soft waves slapping against the wooden walls of his ship. "I'm going to release you now, stay down and stay quiet."

Carefully, he removed his fingers from her lips, taking just a single moment to gently trail the pad of his thumb across her throat, the rapid beat of her heart pulsing against his flesh. She shifted beneath him, her hips arching up towards him as a quiet whimper passed her lips, her own fingers darting up to wrap around his wrist, holding his touch to her skin.

"You left me," she whispered, green eyes shining with tears she refused to let fall.

"Pray tell, Emma, what would you have me do? You were safe enough where you were, and by the gods you should have stayed there. What would you have done if it were not me aboard this deck?" His ice blue eyes bore into hers, panic and sorrow bleeding through and battling with the harshness he wished he could retain.

"I wasn't going to leave you to fight alone, Killian," she whispered back, equally as determined. "If there had been trouble, I could have helped."

"And yet you find yourself beneath me with no hope of escape, Princess. How would that have been a help if it were someone other than me that spied you slinking across deck? Would you have my heart torn from my chest more so than it's been already? Would you crush what's left of my will to fight on by surrendering to men who would do Gods know what to your sweet innocence? How can I save you if you're so bloody determined to walk into hellfire without a glance back?"

She whimpered again, her soft little body trembling beneath his, forcing Killian to curse beneath his breath as he lowered his face to her neck, breathing her in as they lay there, the ship rocking in the low waves as she made her way slowly through the harbour. "I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice small and uncertain. "You shouldn't have to protect me, you should be free to do as you wish. I'm sorry you're bound to my safety by your word."

"Emma, love, I'm bound to you by far more than my word, you silly little bit," he groaned out, the want to hold onto his anger, his harshness, his bitterness at not fighting with his brother desperate, and yet fading with each passing moment she trembled in his arms. "You gave me your word you'd do as you were told," he tried one last time to hold her at bay, pushing upon her promises she'd made.

"You gave me your word that you wouldn't leave me and yet, here we are," she whispered back.

"Stubborn woman, I would have come back!"

"Yes, by morning's light to relieve me of my innocence if I recall," her words were harsh, bearing the scar on her heart he'd managed to leave in the wake of his tidal wave of grief.

"Emma," he groaned softly into her skin, "My words were harsh, born from a place of grief I hope you'll never have to understand, but I stand by them. We have no more time for childish dalliances, no room for anything beyond what we have. We have to survive if we have any hope of finding your parents when this is all behind us, and believe me, love, we're not yet free of Alfred's men. They could come for us at any time."

"Then we could die at any time." It wasn't so much a question as it was a statement, her fingers drifting to his chin to lift his face to meet her gaze. The sweet, innocent, sea green eyes had hardened in the time it took for him to draw a single breath. Suddenly, beneath him lay the royal Emma was born to be, her blood on fire, her ire engaged, every drop of determination bred into her soul pouring out of her and chasing away the scared little girl he'd pulled free of a burning castle, a burning life.

"Aye, lass, but hopefully not tonight."

She nodded slowly, taking a deep calming breath before moving forward and capturing Killian's lips with her own, her fingers moving into his hair, holding him to her as she drank from him, breathing her strength and will to live into his body as she teased his bottom lip with her warm tongue. When they parted only a mere moment later, his heavy breath warmed her cheeks as she raised her head to press against him, forehead to forehead, never breaking his soul wrenching gaze.

"Not tonight and never alone."

Killian's body shuddered as he leaned into her, holding her, his sudden, hot tears burning a path against his cheeks and her own, his will to stay strong against her shattering with her one, single gesture of love. "I'm sorry," he whispered simply, his broken gaze speaking the words he couldn't yet voice.

"I know," she murmured back, her fingers softly stroking the back of his neck, waiting for the moment to pass, waiting for him to find his strength once more.

He tore his gaze from hers only when they heard the shouts from shore, their eyes dragged to the flames lighting the sky as a sudden fleet of burning arrows poured down into the water surrounding them, missing the ship by mere feet. He heard the archer's call to readjust, and sighed against her lips.

"Lady luck is not on our side tonight, Princess," he murmured into her hair, taking a final deep breath before pulling away and climbing to his knees.

"Will we make the mouth of the harbour before they're upon us?"

"Alas, no," he shook his head, watching as several ships came about with full sails, bearing down upon their position.

"What'll we do?"

He gave her credit for not panicking, instead, her calm, sad eyes met his once more, looking for instruction rather than meaningless comforts. He reached into his pocket and grabbed hold of the little satchel her mother had bestowed upon him. In seconds the bean was in the palm of one hand while he reached for her fingers with the other.

"Where would you most like to be away from here, love?" he asked gently, pulling her up and into his arms as they peered out over the railings at the approaching fleet.

"Somewhere we never have to worry, we never have to be sad, we never have to be sick or hungry, and we never, never have to be chased by men such as those." She leaned into his chest, resting her head upon his shoulder, her body sagging with not defeat but quiet acceptance that this would be the last time she'd see the kingdom she loved so dearly.

"Sounds like quite the place you've imagined for us, Princess," he murmured into her hair, placing the bean in her hand and gesturing towards the side of the ship. "Perhaps such a place exists, love, you've only to toss the bean in the sea and we'll soon find out."

Emma gave Killian a quick smile, and without letting go of his hand, pitched the bean off the side of the ship, falling back only when the great funnel of swirling water opened beneath them. The Jewel stuttered in the suddenly violent waves, tipping back and forth before her bow pulled starboard, beginning to circle the gaping maw that sucked them in against all measure of wind and tide. There was no hope for Killian to reach the helm, so instead he wrapped his arms around Emma, pressing her securely to the railing of his ship, shielding her with his body held tight to every inch of hers as slowly they began their decent into whatever fate may wait at the bottom of the vortex created by a magic bean and a princess's wayward wish.

"Don't let go," she cried out against the unnatural storm that threatened to pull her from his arms.

"Never," he called back, holding her to him with every ounce of strength he could bleed from his exhausted limbs.

As they fell through the sudden gash in reality, charging with uncontrolled speed into the unknown, not an inch separated their bodies. He'd not break another promise to her that night.

~~~TBC~~~

Remember, much like magic, all muses come with a price. This particular muse's price is that little review box down below. Please don't make her chase you for payment, it seems like such a bloody awful waste of her time, doesn't it?