With one pin between his teeth and the other in his good hand Hook spent a good 10 minutes working on the Swan girl's new fortress. It was impressive work and before long he realized that unless he wanted to cause damage he was going to need another plan. She hadn't shown up to Granny's this morning, nor had she taken the bait and broken into his cabin again. So he had thought perhaps she needed a bit more of a challenge to get her competitive fire going again.

If there was anything he's learned in all his years of not-quite-honest work it was that there is always another way in. This was going to be fun.

A good theft always requires two pieces. The distraction and the lift. This one was going to need a separate layer of distraction since he would need time afterwards.

So he constructed a makeshift fuse with a thin piece of wood which he tossed into a trash can. With an ember barely glowing on one side it would take a few minutes before the thing caught... It would be more smoke than flame, of course, but that was the whole point.

He waited outside the Sheriff station for a few minutes, any minute now Swan would come out. Right on schedule she emerged turning to lock the door behind her. Utilizing her distraction he drew close and she ran right into him as she turned. As she struggled to untangle herself he pulled her close with his hooked arm, distracting her for just long enough that he could slip his good hand into her jacket pocket where he always saw her drop her keys.

"Does this mean you yield, lass?"

She answered bitingly that she was done playing games, sufficiently flustered that she failed to notice as he slipped the keys deftly into his pocket.

He kept his arm right around her as he responded teasingly that he agreed with the sentiment. Now just to distract her until his little diversion occurred.

Suddenly a bloom of smoke filled the street and someone called out fire.

Perfect.

As Swan practiced her heroic entrance he slipped back down the street breaking into a run. He was about to turn towards her apartment when a thought occurred to him. So she thought this was a game, did she. On impulse he diverted towards the harbor. Maybe it was time to be done with the games after all. Reaching his cabin he pulled out a small chest. Inside was everything. All the sentimentality that no one was supposed to know he felt. Milah's portrait, Bae's sheath, relics from his military career and so on...And now her. Emma's notes, her son's knots. He didn't have time to think, he had to get back before Emma escaped from his distraction. Putting the trunk under one arm he headed back to Emma's apartment. She still wasn't back fortunately, and he slipped the key into the lock with a smile.

His last note was gone from the door to her bedroom. Where did she put them? Opening the door he put the box on her desk and bent down to write his note. As he did so he noticed a desk door slightly ajar. It was probably bad form, but he couldn't help himself. He pulled the door open a crack to peek inside.

He grinned. His notes, she hadn't thrown them out after all.

As he shut the door behind him he resisted the impulse to look over the precious items in that chest once more before leaving. For all he knew she would burn the bloody thing in a fit of temper. He momentarily second guessed himself, but suddenly a loud crash came from the direction of the front door. Apparently he had company.

He opened the door just as Swan turned, probably in search of her keys. He caught up and pressed the key into her hand.

"Good night, love."

"You pick pocketed my keys?"" She asked, eyes fiery.

"Pirate, darling. And that's a bloody good lock."

"I should lock you up."

"You've done it before, what's stopping you now?"

"Enough, Hook. Just stop pretending." He had finally decided to drop all pretense and show his cards... so that caught his attention and he almost laughed.

"In what way do you think I'm deceiving you?"

She laughed, but it sounded cold and hard. "Look, I'm grateful for what you did for us... For Henry. But I can't keep up this little flirtation. I know you're bored and stuck here and messing with me is fun... But I'm done."

If anyone was playing a game it wasn't him. And here she was accusing him of messing with her because he was bored? He clenched his hands in irritation, because that's what I do when I'm bored. Vacation in Neverland and make myself a fool for a woman who can't decide what she wants. Well she is going to get clarity. Once she opens that box she won't be able to hide from it anymore.

"You're right, Swan... and I hope you can stand what you have asked for." He had to get away. His heart clenched in turmoil and he made for the dock once more. He had shown her every card, left his very heart out for her to do with as she would.

He had just made a very big mistake.

Moving with out thinking he pulled up the anchor. He needed to get away, to think, needed to calm his mind which was frantically yelling at him to go back, get his heart and hide it away in the dark again before she could crush it. The water always calmed him so he released the sails and began to put some distance between himself and the woman who was about to destroy him.

The town grew farther away until it was just a spec on the horizon. He let himself drift now, the sound of the water and the familiar rocking of the vessel calming his mind. Hours passed, he lost track of them until finally the stars began to make their appearance. Gathering himself up again he glanced up to get his heading, and headed back towards Storybrooke. He was not eager to return. Out here he was in limbo. She hadn't killed him yet...or if she had he didn't know it yet. Once he returned he would have to face reality again.

Would she have opened it yet.

Of course. She couldn't resist a challenge like that.

As he drew into the harbor he looked out over the familiar landscape. He didn't see any more smoke...so perhaps she had decided against burning everything that held value to him.

Finally letting loose the anchor, he saw a figure on the dock in the darkness... Sleeping on a bench?

He moved onto the dock silently and approached the figure. Now that he had a better view he saw vibrant golden hair.

Swan.

What are you doing here, darling.

For a moment he had visions of her dumping his chest into the harbor, but he pushed them aside. She was asleep, and certainly not dressed for the weather so he removed his coat and dropped it onto her shoulders.

She started awake, eyes wide. As she finally focused on him she launched herself forward the coat falling uselessly to the ground behind her. Hook took a step back, suspecting he was about to get a black eye but instead she barreled directly into him wrapping her arms around him and holding tight.

"What's wrong, darling," He asked suddenly concerned. "Where's Henry, is there something-"

"You left," she muttered, her voice still slightly groggy with sleep. Then suddenly she pulled back and shoved him away. "What the hell, Hook, You too? Am I really so hard to be around that -"

"Well yes, in point of fact, you can be rather difficult to be around," he teased but he cringed at her vulnerable expression. "But as I've told you I am rather fond of challenges."

She scoffed again. "Right, a challenge, a game. As always. And when it's over you leave just like everyone else."

"You know that's not true, love," he chastised gently.

"Really, and how was I supposed to know that?"

He looked at her appraisingly for a moment. "I left my very heart with you. You have in your possession my reminders of everything I have ever cared about. It's the best insurance that I will always come back that I could possibly offer. Do I dare hope that you haven't thrown it into the sea?"

"No, I... I'm in there...and Henry..."

"It's never been a game, love."

She took the tiniest step forward as a smile crossed her face. "Does that mean you yield, pirate?"

He laughed and made a small bow "Aye, lass." Then he closed the distance between them, pulling her back into his embrace, "but only because I never intended to keep you out."

Leave me a review if you can! For more Hook and Emma check out my other stories:

My newest: Letters to Home. Letters during that 1 year. Day 0. (s/10180233/1/Letters-to-Home)

Slip Knot - pre-curse. How did Hook make the decision to back off even after promising to win Emma's heart? ( s/10058676/1/Slip-Knot)

Thanks for reading, and a particular thank you to those that have been reviewing, I really appreciate it!