Emma clenched her fist at her side as the guard opened up the door for her at the top of the stairway. Once upon a time, the tower prison had held the Evil Queen prior to her banishment. Now it held an agent of her curse.

Not wanting Killian to come with her, she hadn't told him about the little visit she was making. He'd have fought her on it just as hard as her parents had. But if Killian could have his role to play then she could have this. She and Hans had been the start of everything that had happened and she wanted to be a part of its ending.

Emma had seen The Southern Isles prince a few times in the two weeks since the Nautica, but neither had spoken directly to the other. When she'd told her parents she believed Hans to be the second part of the curse her mother had tried to keep her on the periphery of the proceedings but Emma had refused to have any of it. In addition to giving her account of events, she had spent days sitting through testimony before her parents' court and had poured herself into helping the dozen or so Southern Islanders who wished to stay in the Enchanted Forest and become citizens. She might allow herself to be convinced that Hans' actions and the ensuing fallout was not her fault, but that did not absolve her of responsibility in the aftermath.

Now, finally, everything was ready and her parents had reluctantly agreed to let her be the one to deliver Hans news of his fate.

It was more generous than he deserved, frankly, and she was faintly worried that Killian had said so little on the decision. Her parents had granted his request to deliver Hans personally but other than that he hadn't said much on the subject. It disquieted her, the prospect of having him gone for so long after he'd just lost his brother, but she knew she had to trust that he'd be okay. Killian had turned down his chance at vengeance; who was she to ask him not to play a part in the justice she'd promised?

"And so the perfect princess graces me with her presence once more," Hans said with a mocking bow. "Tell me, do your parents still support you now that they realize what a catastrophe you've made of everything?"

Do not rise to his bait, she told herself, coming to a stop before the prison bars. Hans had stood from the desk when she came in and she raised her chin to meet his eyes, refusing to show weakness before him.

"My parents have completed their inquiry and you will leave the Enchanted Forest at first light tomorrow. If you ever try to return, you will be arrested and imprisoned immediately."

"Banished from a backwards kingdom. However will I survive my fate?"

"The Nautica will be returned to the Southern Isles," she continued, ignoring him. "But the Jewel of the Realm and the pegasus sail will be kept as restitution for the crimes you have committed. Captain Ardrake will escort the Nautica on its return voyage and deliver to the king a full report of what you did."

Hans' lip twitched and he moved to stand right in front of her, so close she could feel his breath on her face. "I'm curious," he said, reaching through the steel bars to toy with the chain of her swan pendant. "Will this report include the fact that the crown princess is a shape-changing witch who is having an affair with a man below her station?"

Emma flinched and stepped back, her mind whirring with all the possible ways he could have found out about the glamour. "You don't know anything."

"I can't prove anything, but I'm not stupid. You're terrible at hiding it; the both of you constantly making eyes at each other."

"I don't make eyes."

"Yes, you do. And you make magic, too. There is no 'Lady Swan.' I've had lots of time to think on it, and I know that was you I crashed into at the stables. Does it give you a little thrill? Sneaking off like that? Pretending to be one of the common folk? Do you enjoy seeing men fall into infatuation not even knowing who you are?"

Emma glared at him, crossing her arms over her chest and taking a step back towards him. "You know nothing about me. Or Killian. All you saw was someone playing nice because they had to. After everything you've done, I imagine you were doing the exact same thing."

"So you love him and loathe me. How predictable."

She shook her head. "My love for Killian and the disgust I hold for you are completely independent of one another, I assure you. In any case, it doesn't matter. People will hear the truth about you long before you can fill their heads with lies."

"My father will never read that report and your crew will never make it home. I will see to that."

"Did I forget to mention? Captain Ardrake is escorting the Nautica back to the Southern Isles, not you. You will be delivered to your allies in the Western Isles by Captain Jones and be left to make your own way home. By the time you get there, I imagine the Lady Eva will have come and gone."

Hans snarled and threw himself against the bars. "You can't send me with him! He tried to kill me!"

Emma's eyebrows shot up and she smirked. "Did he? Best hope he doesn't try a second time, then. Have a safe journey, Lord Hans."

She turned and left without another word, letting the door clang shut behind her. Hans was the last man she would ever have to play nice with out of fear of what could happen if she rejected him. When Neal had betrayed her she'd been broken and weak, but she also hadn't known what she was up against. Now, she did. Now she was strong. Killian was right — maybe she couldn't break the curse, but she could fight it. It didn't matter what her parents or anyone else said about how powerful the Evil Queen's magic was.

The only one to decide her future would be her.

Killian stood on the docks next to Captain Frances Ardrake as Emma completed her royal inspection of their crews in the pre-dawn light. Behind him, fully repaired and freshly painted with its new name, the Swan's Flight sat ready to begin its next voyage. Like his ship, Killian also sported a new coat of paint — or a new uniform, at least — and the spirit of adventure seemed to be brimming amongst his men. While there were some new faces on the crew, there were also many familiar ones as several of his men, mostly those without families or who had served under Liam before him, had followed his lead when he'd renounced the Southern Isles. They'd given up service to a corrupt monarchy in favour of a new life in the Enchanted Forest. It was a humbling honour to have earned such a gesture of loyalty and Killian had spoken with Emma's parents on their behalf, making sure that they were re-assigned to his ship.

Over two weeks had passed since Liam's death, and while he hadn't planned on leaving Emma again so soon he couldn't simply sit around while strangers carried out his brother's justice. He knew that his princess was worried for him but knew also that it would do him good to be out on the water again. The Enchanted Forest may be his new home, but nothing would compare to the feeling of each wave over wave, the salty scent of the sea filling his nostrils, and the sight of it cresting over the bow.

Emma came to a stop before him, once again seeming to have saved him for last, and he pulled out from behind his back the slim box that he'd been concealing from her. Her eyes went wide and he smirked as she took it and carefully opened the lid.

"Shouldn't I have brought you a parting token, and not the other way around?"

Killian rolled his eyes as he waited for her to open it. "We both know I'm the damsel in this relationship," he said.

She snorted, but her face fell as her eyes landed on the pistol. "I don't…"

"It's just a weapon," he said. The same kind that had killed his brother, he thought, but he pulled it from the box and offered her the grip. "It's power comes from the one who wields it. I know that you enjoyed it back when we were touring the naval academy and so I thought you could have mine."

Emma's eyes flicked from the firearm up to his face. "What about you?"

"I've got Liam's."

She chewed her lip for a moment before deciding, wrapping her hand around the pistol and testing the weight of it briefly before placing it back in the box and handing it off to one of her knights. Emma's hands went to the clasp of her necklace as soon as they were free, pooling the chain delicately in the palm of his hand.

"I don't know if you've had time to visit the swan fountain in the Old Market but if not… perhaps this will be enough to bring you back to me."

He curled his fingers tightly around the necklace and met her eyes. "Always," he vowed. "I will always come back to you."

"I know. I'll be here waiting when you get back."

"Good."

She smiled and pressed a chaste yet lingering kiss to his lips, their foreheads resting together even after they parted. Emma's fingers toyed with the hair at the base of his scalp and he breathed her in, trying to imprint the feel of her to his memory.

"Be safe," she whispered against his lips.

He kissed her again, trailing his thumb down along the shell of her ear and the curve of her neck, tangling his fingers in the hair she'd worn loose just for him. "I will. Be well, my love. I'll see you soon."

Killian forced himself to take a step back from her, signalling to his men to board the ship and following behind them up the gangway as they cast off the lines. Even though he was leaving her, his heart felt lighter than it had in weeks. No longer did he have to hide his feelings for his princess or disguise her identity in his correspondence. In fact, there would be no point in writing any letters to her while he was away as no ship from Futhark would reach the Enchanted Forest before the Swan's Flight.

And once he returned, well, then their future together could truly begin.

a/n: Well, this is it. For this part of the story at least. Some of you may have noticed that I only dealt with the second part of Emma's curse and that there's still that pesky third "love lost" condition that needs to be fulfilled. I'll be honest — writing this fic took a lot out of me. I haven't finished a multi-chapter in over a decade, and I wrote pretty much nothing else in an effort to make sure I got it done. I do have some ideas for a third story in this au, and I would like to write it. I'm going to take a break for a bit though, and I doubt I'll be able to do the fairly regular chapter updates the next time around. I've done it. I've finished a multi-chapter. So the next time I take one on I also want to give myself the freedom to write other stuff as I feel like it. I really enjoy this universe, and I want to thank all of you who have read and enjoyed the story, especially those who left reviews. I'll make another post here when I post the first chapter of the next fic, but until then... keep shipping, my lovelies!