"The War Council is ready for you, Captain Jones."

Killian Jones' hand stilled from sharpening his cutlass, fingers delicately dancing over its form, checking to see if he had achieved a proper edge before quietly acknowledging the maid's presence.

"Please inform the King that I will be there momentarily." He dismissed the servant with a brisk nod and stood up from his seated position, stretching his neck as he lazily twirled the sword in a figure eight before securing it to the scabbard at his hip. He took a moment to fasten his coat before briskly moving to the exit of the room the Charmings had given him upon their partial renovation of the castle.

Killian admired the building as he walked down the isolated hallways of the Charming Castle, his footsteps reverberating in the stone archways. It had been six months since their departure from the Land Without Magic. Six, painful, long months, where the residents of Storybrooke had made the transition back to residents of the Enchanted Forest. It had been overrun with creatures and nearly inhabitable upon their sudden return. Although only somewhat livable now, the group was doing their best to improve their home on a day-by-day basis.

He still remembered that day clearly. One moment, he was solemnly standing at the town border, watching Swan's yellow vessel recede in the daylight and then, he was experiencing the painful landing as he hit the unmercifully hard ground outside the destroyed palace. He could remember ever stoic Queen Regina's sobs of pain she slowly knelt on the uneven terrain, weeping for Henry, slightly lost from the last-minute pull of her magical reserves. Killian later assumed the rough transition was part of Pan lending his magic to the curse. That buggering little git never did anything the gentle way.

"Good." She told him, eyes shining with tears and unspoken emotion.

It didn't take long for the former citizens of Storybrooke to find their leaders and immediately start questioning them for help. Killian had half a mind to slip through the crowd and walk off in search of the Jolly Roger, but when he saw the broken look upon David's face as he tried to calm down the unruly crowd, he knew he must stay and help his friend navigate this storm.

Months of rebuilding and never-ending royal problem solving had helped stem the worst of his pain at the start, sometimes helping him get lost in small tasks and distracting him from the continuous ache in his heart. Working as the right-hand man of King Charming was all encompassing, but as each day passed on to the next, he did not break his promise to his Swan.

"There's not a day that will go by that I won't think of you..."

Some days, he saw shadows of Emma's fiery determination rise in Snow White as the Queen gracefully solved a problem within the castle walls. Other days, he saw Emma's kindness reflect in David's eyes as the King always tried to find a solution that would benefit all involved. Most days, he remembered her sarcasm and quick-wit, as he would trade good-natured insults with Robin from Sherwood Forest, a man who had become instrumental in the reconstruction of the kingdom

After a while, he simply got used to the perpetual ache in his heart. Nevertheless, as promised, not a day went by without him thinking of her in some way. His Swan.

Killian took a deep breath as he approached the War Room. The guards opened the door as he strode inside. They were losing the fight against the ogres because something magical was stymieing their efforts at every turn. There was a new black magic force, someone either styling themselves the Black Fairy or the true Black Fairy returned, lurking around the edges of their troubles that Queen Regina, the Blue Fairy and Tinkerbell couldn't quite identify—a fact which Killian found disconcerting. He knew that magic caused problems, made normal, simple things so very difficult and always, always had a price.

Rounding the broad table that currently housed the King and Queen's trusted advisors, Killian took his seat directly to the right of the Charming. Although he had heard the various murmurs of people that wondered how Captain Hook of all people had earned the respect and trust to sit at the right hand of the King, but Killian didn't mind too much, he knew that his adventures with David in Neverland were not something to be taken lightly. Besides, helping David was the right thing to do, the "good form" he committed to the day Emma asked him to be a part of something. Otherwise, what would he be doing? Sitting in a cold room, drinking his life away without her.

"Majesties." Killian greeted his King and Queen as he settled down into his chair and nodded hello to the remainder of the War Council. Regina and Robin were seated directly across from Charming and Snow, Belle and Baelfire were next to them representing the fallen Rumplestitskin, and rounding out the remaining spots were the head dwarf guard, Grumpy, Jiminy, Red, Tinkerbell and the Blue Fairy.

Charming clapped his reformed pirate friend warmly on the back before beginning. "We have to act on the threat posed by the Black Fairy."

"Agreed." Regina's voice rang out. "Her magic is strong, maybe even stronger than the Dark One's. He would be the person I would turn to in this imminent threat. Belle, Neal have you had any luck locating what might have become of him?"

"It's Baelfire again," he quietly corrected Regina. "To honor my Papa's sacrifice."

Two months ago, thanks to Belle's tireless research, she was able to determine from the ancient text of an old magician's book she found while helping to restore the library, that there was a slight chance that Rumple might not have died on that fateful day six months ago. She surmised there was a tiny possibility that Rumple used the latent magical abilities in his shadow to send himself to a magical purgatory instead of death, despite the magical cuff completely cutting off his powers. The combination of the shadow and his Dark One dagger might have given him enough to fight off death...

The very specifics of which the Crocodile might have managed to escape death made Killian itch for his flask it was so bloody complicated. Belle had admitted herself that it was a long shot, but the council felt it was an avenue worth looking into. Having Rumplestitskin on their side could easily turn the tides against the Black Fairy.

"Not yet, but I'm close." Belle replied with her finger still tucked in the pages of a massive tome on the table as the meeting began.

Regina nodded thoughtfully. "Close is good, but I fear it might be too late."

"I concur with Regina. After the last round of attacks, I have sent my own scouts deep into the territory. My men and I have finally located a troubling situation near the far eastern borders." Robin interjected as he rose to address the Council. "I would say that the Black Fairy is gathering unnatural resources to cast a curse due to magical residue in her territories. In addition, there is a marked increase of Ogres." He paused, considering all his information. "She's tripled the number of guards in the Eastern Region as well. It's troubling."

Killian dragged a tired hand across his cheek. Buggering magic, he cursed inwardly, before he asked, "Pray tell, what convinces you of this, mate?"

"Sacrifices."

Red raised an eyebrow as she leaned forward. "Human? Animal?"

Robin turned, uneasy to describe the horrors he had witnessed firsthand. "Some horribly disfigured humans. Some type of fanged winged creature. All mutilated." He sighed.

Regina stepped in, "I believe she is strengthening the ogres as well, in an attempt to distract us while she continues to work on perfecting the curse." She examined her perfectly manicured nails as she looked at the Council. "That's what I would do."

Charming slammed a hand on the table, blue eyes flashing in anger. "I will not have another curse effect the people of the realm again! We are just starting to right our kingdom! We have already sacrificed so much." Killian could see the loss of Emma reflected in his words.

"Do we know what this curse could be?" Snow White finally spoke up quietly, having been lost in thought at the beginning of the conversation.

Robin and Regina shared a long look, so in sync already and having that ability to support each other that Killian felt the acute pain of losing Emma roar through his thoughts like the sea, almost causing him to miss their reply. "It appears that she is trying to cast the curse that would return us to Storybrooke." Regina told the room, the pain of this statement evident in her face. "And, in this instance, it would leave us without our memories. We would be returned to lives pre-fabricated by the Black Fairy Queen. We would never remember who we were, since the Savior doesn't remember us either and she would win. There would be no hope."

The room erupted into complete chaos. Charming and Grumpy sprung to their feet with a shout of not again. The Blue Fairy and Tinkerbell seemed to be in the midst of a severe disagreement and kept looking at Killian when they thought he wasn't looking. Snow stood up, upset, looking down at her pregnant belly, her face full of pain. Red sped over to convince her friend to sit back down and try to relax. Robin and Regina both were busy defending their position to Belle and Baelfire, who seemed reluctant to believe that a curse like that could not be recreated without the Dark One's planning.

Killian could only think of golden curls and a wry smile, happily living a life with her son. He knew how his Swan would handle the madness. He rapped his hook down hard on the wooden table and shouted, "OY!"

Eleven heads swiveled in his direction, quieting down and looking at him expectantly. "We are now aware of this menace." He started slowly, as Charming and Grumpy retook their seats. "So, what can we do to stop it? I think sitting here fighting amongst ourselves is a waste."

"Nothi-" Regina started to reply.

"We have an idea." Tinkerbell interrupted, her eyes shining with hope. "We need the Savior. We need Emma. She can break the curse again."

Killian's jaw clenched tightly at the actual mention of her name, his eyes meeting the pixie's as she continued on. "If Emma and Henry remember us, we have a back-up plan. Even if the Black Fairy is able to follow through with the curse, the Savior can still save us."

Snow shook her head sadly, "We gave her her happy ending. How can we go back and interfere now?"

"My Queen, she may be our only hope." The Blue Fairy reminded softly, her blue wings wavering slightly behind her. "We have come so far, and to lose it all, all over again?"

"However, we do not possess a portal. How could we send anyone even if we decided to go forward with this plan?" Charming pointed out quietly.

Killian most definitely did not like the long look that Tinkerbell and the Blue Fairy exchanged with each other before glancing over to him yet again. "We might have one other solution," Tinkerbell started carefully.

"It's never been tried before," Blue added hesitantly.

"A time portal." Regina breathed in anger, rising to her feet, her long black gown spreading out behind her. "Are you two completely insane? Travel between realms via a time portal is a fool's journey at best. Completely dangerous! People have become lost in the past, forever wandering because they were not strong enough in their convictions to get to the proper time!"

Again, Tinkerbell caught Killian's eye. He drummed his fingers on the table thoughtfully, taking in the faces of the Council before closing his eyes at the memory of Emma standing before him, her eyes brimmed with tears, but the small smile on her face remaining. "Good," she whispered.

"I volunteer." Baelfire stood up unexpectedly, dragging one hand through his wavy hair. "They're my family. I can find them."

Upon hearing his words, Killian closed his eyes for another brief, yet torturous second, remembering how the path of being a better man could be so painful. He opened his eyes to look at a no longer young-looking Bae and then Tinkerbell, who looked adamantly opposed to this part of the idea.

"I mean, it might be a little difficult to convince Emma to follow me after the jail thing..." he continued to himself.

Charming raised a hand and looked pointedly at Baelfire, "Wait, wait, wait. What jail thing?"

Killian narrowed his eyes at Bae, thinking back to Emma and her guarded feelings and whispered confession, long ago at the top of a beanstalk. Maybe I was in love once. "Yes, Baelfire. Enlighten us, if you may please."

Baelfire sighed and dropped into his chair. "When Emma and I were younger, we were thieves and we were planning on starting a life together. She had just gotten out of the foster system and I had stolen these watches a few months earlier. Selling those watches would have gotten enough money to set us up wherever we wanted, but I couldn't sell them. My face was seen all over their cameras. I was scared of getting caught if I went to retrieve them from their hiding place. Emma volunteered to get them for me, for us." Baelfire dragged a weary hand across his eyes before continuing. "She was able to get the watches out of the train station. It was all going to be so easy from there."

"Go on, Baelfire. What happened next?" Jiminy prompted him to continue.

Upset, he looked at the group before him, seeing impassive faces wanting him to get to the point. "She didn't know that I had run into August, Pinocchio, whatever..." he corrected himself, "and he told me that he knew I was Baelfire. He told me that we had to set Emma up, that I couldn't be with her. I had to leave her - for her destiny! It wasn't my choice!"

Charming jumped to his feet, his hands clenched into fists. "You sent my daughter to prison?!"

Killian quickly leapt to his feet as well, his good hand holding his King back. "Easy there, Dave; don't run him through. Yet." He murmured.

Jiminy stood up as well, hands raised, trying to peacefully diffuse the situation. "Now, now. Let's hear him out."

"You did this because Pinocchio told you to?" Grumpy asked Baelfire incredulously. "He's never been the most noble of people, and he's really just a puppet!"

"It was a minimum security facility," Baelfire offered weakly, hoping that someone would come to his defense, but he only had angry faces glare at him. "I know I screwed up! Okay? Pinocchio said... He assured me that she would be fine!"

Traitor! The blood pounded furiously in Killian's ears. No wonder why his Swan was so guarded all the time after this betrayal. Now, Charming had to hold him back as he felt the darker thoughts of Hook cross his mind. "Perchance, I shall get this straight, mate," he spat venomously at the other man across the table. "A bloody puppet insisted that she would be okay? How in seven blazes would he be capable of ensuring this? How old was Swan when this occurred?"

"Seventeen." Baelfire flinched at the sound of a hook being driven, point down into the table at his response. "Hey! Hey! I was scared too! I was just a kid. I thought it would all work out and then I could meet her again later."

Killian gritted his teeth as he slowly worked his hook free, debating if he should slice off a few appendages to even the score. "A man unwilling to fight for what he wants, deserves what he gets." He made a motion to move towards Baelfire, with Charming only weakly holding him back, as both men considered the glorious feeling of their fists smashing the face of the despondent man.

Regina interrupted, "Gentlemen, as much as I appreciate you all clamoring over Emma Swan's honor, we know this story. She gives birth to Henry nine months later. We need to..."

For all the yelling, the room went deathly silent at Regina's words. Every head turned to the majestic Queen in shock, and then moved back to Baelfire, who held his hands up in surrender. "I didn't know about Henry. It was still shitty. I KNOW! But, if you send me back, I can convince her..."

Suddenly, the hiss of steel being drawn rang out as Charming's sword was held to Baelfire's neck by the steady hand of Snow White. She stood there, furiously regal, one hand clenched around the hilt of her husband's sword, the other gently resting against the swell of her stomach as she quietly spoke. "You sold out my seventeen year-old daughter. You left her abandoned in prison. You allowed her to give birth in prison. Tell me, if it was so shitty and you knew you were wrong, were you there when she was released from prison?"

"No." Baelfire breathed, keeping deathly still, his eyes wild and fearful.

Snow's arm began to tremble slightly, Killian did not know whether from the exertion of holding the sword with one hand or from the restraint from not slicing the man's tender throat. He didn't know if he himself could have held back after hearing that confession.

"Snow." Quickly, Charming was next to his wife, his hand supporting hers, while everyone watched the silent struggle of their Queen. "Honey. Give me the sword. Emma knew he wasn't worthy of her." He whispered in her ear, but from his close proximity, Killian could still hear his words. Charming was able to carefully pull the sword away from Baelfire's throat, anger still present in his own eyes, while Snow eased herself gently back down in her chair with Red's assistance.

"I have a suggestion." Tinkerbell spoke up nervously. "I think the Captain should go."

Killian felt the weight of all the eyes of the table swing upon him. He settled back down in his chair and looked back at the fairy as she ticked the reasons off on her small, dainty fingers as she looked around at the War Council. "The reasons are plentiful. We know from his time on Neverland, that he can spend long periods of time focused on a single goal. He is able to blend in and work bad situations to his advantage. He has experience with the feeling of temporal displacement or 'being out of time' from being in Neverland. He can lie, most convincingly, to most anyone." Tinkerbell took one final deep breath before meeting Killian's eyes. "And finally, he loves her."

Killian let his eyes flicker closed for a moment, feeling the memory of Emma's lips on his. Just a one-time thing.

"Do you?" Charming's question broke the silence as Killian's eyes opened. Emma's father. His best mate.

"Aye, mate. That I do," he said, turning and looking directly at his friend. "I would do anything for your daughter."

The King appraised him for a long moment. "Then make your preparations, Captain. You will attempt the time portal tomorrow." He stood, helped Snow to her feet and shot a dark look of contempt at Baelfire, before he continued, "We will reconvene here at noon to aid in Captain Jones' send off. Will you be ready?" He asked the fairies.

Tinkerbell nodded.

Regina looked around the room before addressing the pirate directly. "I still hold reservations about this entire plan, but, if there's anyone that could pull it off, it's you, Hook."