Disclaimer: Captain Swan AU with bits of Snowing, Frankenwolf, Rumbelle, Outlaw Queen intermingled. This is inspired by the story's namesake (also known as You Instead). The fic follows the movie somewhat closely; obviously, I've taken liberties with some of it. All the lyrics you read that aren't real songs (i.e. the two songs that are the band's original) are songs from the movie... only because I'm not creative enough to come up with my own lyrics lol. I also wanted to take this opportunity to say that some of the characters portrayed aren't how I interpret the characters on the show; they are just that way to fit in with the story I'm telling. You might see what I mean later. I hope you all enjoy the story! :)

Playlist: You Instead by The Make and the song Emma's band sings whose title I can't remember (both from the movie); Tainted Love by Soft Cell.

Screams pulled Killian's attention to the window of the car, smiling when he saw a young girl with the graphic-tee reading "Skull Rock" convulsing with excitement at their sight. The buggy continued down the row of tents, the second day of the Enchanted Music Festival underway.

Skull Rock was one of the main rock line-ups at the festival, the band going on their third year of major exposure and popularity. The twenty-seven year old, Killian Jones, was the lead singer and guitarist for the bad – and definitely the most popular with both the ladies and the tabloids. The press named him the Captain of the band, a title he particularly wasn't a fan of. Despite who was in the news more or who was in the front of the stage, they were all equal members of the band. And Killian firmly believed that; those men were his best friends, his family. He knew for a fact he wouldn't be anywhere if it weren't for them, and no matter how many times he might let his ego get the better of him, he'd never put himself ahead of his men. Killian was riding alongside Robin Hood, his bass player, when he started picking on his guitar.

Greg, the car driver, started grinning, knowing that his partner Tamara was catching a real break as she continued recording the boys. She was working on a documentary of the festival, and an acoustic mini-performance from Skull Rock would surely make the film a gem.

"He got loved up on the seashore," Killian started, singing in his deep voice with a wide grin on his face. "Kissing with a girl he never met before. Food was sparse but the drink was plenty. Jack was sixteen and Jill had just turned twenty."

The fans around them who could hear started screaming when they passed them by, recognizing the familiar song.

"Lying there on the midnight sand," Robin joined in, his voice reaching a bit higher, but blending well. "He said he'd give her the sky if she held his hand."

"She counted every star in the sky and said – I, I don't want that. I want you instead," Killian went on.

Robin joined, harmonizing. "I, I don't want that. I want you instead."

"If you don't rearraaange us – if you don't rearraaange us – if you don't rearraaange us – if you don't rearrange."

Tamara looked over to Greg as she whispered, "This is good. The office is gonna love this."

"She counted every star in the sky and said – I, I don't want that. I want you instead. I, I don't want that, I want you instead. If you don't rearrange us – if you don't rearrange us – if you don't rearrange, we won't change."

Suddenly, the car began to die, coming to a complete stop. "What's going on?" Tamara asked, her camera getting a bit shaky as she tried to keep it on Killian strumming the guitar.

"I don't know," Greg said, "it just… died." He got out and began looking around the car.

"I told you we needed to charge it!"

Robin, laughing at them getting stuck in the middle of the camp grounds, began to get out of the car, noticing they'd stopped next to a group of people dancing. "Come on, mate," he called through the window to Killian.

Greg and Tamara disappeared to go find a way to charge the car.

With a roll of his eyes, Killian finally got out of the car. It wasn't that he didn't enjoy meeting fans and being around people, he just didn't really want to be attacked by grabby hands and screams. He looked around, pushing his sunglasses back up his nose as his eyes adjusted to the light. He began to look around at the people dancing, Robin clapping along a beat for the others to move to. That's when Killian picked up his guitar and started playing just a simple tune, the people around them cheering as they continued to dance.

"Woooo!" they heard a young brunette woman yell as she began spinning around in the middle of the group. Next to her stood a blonde woman with long curls, laughing and clapping along with the beat. The brunette grabbed the blonde's hands and pulled her to the middle. Killian watched the blonde cover her face, laughing so hard she could barely keep her eyes open as she began to twirl around with her friend. He couldn't help but smile as he watched.

The crowd began applauding when Killian finished playing, lowering the guitar to his side.

"Booooo," the brunette protested, running up to Robin and Killian. "What'd you stop playing for? I was just getting my groove on."

Killian shook his head at her silliness. He finally noticed the bright red streaks that ran through her long dark hair blending in to her loud red and black outfit.

The blonde nudged her friend's side and shook her head, scoffing. "What do you expect, Ruby? They only know two chords. These are two of the guys from that one band – Thick Skull, or whatever."

"My, my," Robin fanned, pretending to be insulted, "why lose your venom on us, milady?"

"Don't mind Emma," Ruby said, putting her arm around the blonde's shoulder. "She's just not a fan of boy bands."

Killian's forehead creased, "Oi lass, we aren't a boy band." When Emma only laughed, he turned back to Robin and scoffed. "Some people just can't appreciate good music."

"Oh please," Emma finally said, rolling her eyes, "the only thing you guys play well is the media. Five hot guys wearing leather and eye liner – tabloids eat it up."

Robin and Killian exchanged a look before Killian turned back to Emma, raising his eye brow, "So, you think we're hot?"

Emma scoffed, shaking her head. Ruby giggled at her friend as she skipped over to the guys and leaned against the hood of the car next to Robin. "I do. And now I can tell all my friends about how I rubbed elbows with the great Robin Hood." Robin laughed in appreciation, enjoying the woman's vivacious personality. "Go on, Emma. You have to touch Killian now. It's the only way anyone will believe me."

Killian and Emma looked toward each other, Killian giving her a suggestive smile. "Yeah, go on, Emma. Touch me," he gave her a wink.

Emma huffed, rolling her eyes again at the obnoxious singer. She took off her red leather jacket and handed it to Ruby. Killian took a moment to take in her form, a bit surprised at the lost article of clothing. And as she stalked up to him, Killian's mind became clouded with the thought that she was actually going to touch him… and where. She smiled at him – then grabbed his guitar.

"Bloody hell!" he yelled, watching her back up with it. "Be careful with that."

She laughed, "Oh, look at me. I'm holding the great rock god's guitar," she teased, waving the instrument around. "Ahoy mates," she mocked, badly mimicking his accent.

"What the hell am I? A pirate?" Robin and Ruby could only chuckle at their friends. Killian shook his head, then turned to Ruby. "Alright, what's this?" He snatched Emma's jacket out of her hands and held it up. "Oh, and look what I have."

"That's my favorite jacket," Emma protested, "it's lucky."

"Give me back my guitar and you'll get it back," Killian said in a mocking voice, dancing around with the jacket. Emma's eyes narrowed.

He took the jacket and tried to put it on. "Don't!" Emma yelled. "You'll stretch it."

Killian groaned, giving up trying to make it fit. "I guess my muscles are just too big."

Emma laughed at him. "Oh please."

"Are all Americans as rude as you?" Killian complained.

"Like I'm supposed to be impressed with your 'international' band?" Emma scoffed. "Most of you are just English anyway."

Robin's brow furrowed, "What's wrong with English?"

"You have an American, don't you?" Ruby asked. "And then there's that one dude – the one who wears the strange glasses."

Robin chuckled. "Yeah, that's Victor. I think he's German?" he asked Killian, who nodded. "Right, but he sounds English… sometimes."

"Aye, and I'm Irish," Killian said defensively.

Emma smirked, "You sound English to me. But I guess that explains the drinking problem."

Killian frowned. "For someone who hates our band so much, lass, you sure know a lot about us."

"Am I supposed to help it that the press thinks your band is news worthy? I really could care less about what cereal you like to eat in the morning or if you're a boxer or brief guy." Killian smiled mischievously but Emma held up her hand to stop him. "Don't. Now give me back my jacket!"

"Not till you give me back my bloody guitar!"

"Hello, dearies!"

The four turned around to face a strange looking man. His outfit was loud, his hair a mess and his skin almost seemed to glow a bright silver. But it was his eccentric grin that caused them all to step back.

"What is all the yelling about? If musicians can't get along, what hope have we got? This is a music festival," he said, his voice rising as he sang out the last word. "An enchanted one. Can't you all feel the magic that surrounds us? Come on, all of you! Grab each other's hands and form a circle!"

Almost afraid to disobey him, they joined hands, Emma and Killian on both sides of the strange man. He began to hum. Emma peeked open her eyes and looked over at Ruby, who was trying hard not to laugh. Robin had his eyes open, keeping a distrustful eye on the man.

Then he began laughing an impish laugh, loud and boisterous. He lifted Emma and Killian's hands, then joined them together in a clap. After their skin smacked against each other's, the man was gone. Disappeared from sight.

The four gasped and began to look around, but he was nowhere.

"What the hell was that?" Emma asked, looking back to everyone.

Killian shook his head. "I don't know but I –" he lifted up his arm and extra weight was there. He looked down and finally noticed the metal biting into his wrist, a handcuff surrounding it. He followed the chain to the other cuff, wrapped around Emma's wrist. "You've got to be bloody joking me."

Emma had felt him yank up her arm and turned to look, noticing the handcuffs. Her eyes widened. "That creep handcuffed us together!" Robin and Ruby looked to each other, then busted out laughing. Emma's mouth hung open as she looked to her friend. "This isn't funny! I'm chained to this asshat without any way of getting out!"

"You think you've got it bad?" Killian asked. "I'm locked up with you. I'm the one they should feel sorry for, love."

"Don't call me love," she groaned.

"Emma! Ruby!"

The four turned around as two young women began to walk up to them, waving. The one on the right was pale with very short, dark black hair. The other had shoulder length blonde hair, a fairy-like smile rest on her face.

"Hey guys!" Ruby greeted, still laughing. "You'll never believe what just happened to us! First, we met Robin Hood and Killian Jones from Skull Rock," she turned to gesture towards the guys. Robin bowed as an introduction. "Guys, this is Tink Bell," she pointed to the blonde, "and Mary Margaret Blanchard," she pointed to the dark haired one. "But we call her Snow after Snow White because of her dark hair and pale skin. Plus, it's so much easier to say than Mary Margaret."

"Hello, Snow, Tink," Robin nodded to each of them. "Please excuse my friend Killian. He's in a bit of a foul demeanor." Killian rolled his eyes. "Some crazy man came up to us and magically handcuffed my friend and your Emma together."

"What?!" Snow asked, her eyes widened as she searched for Emma's wrist.

Tink giggled, "You know, I've been telling Emma she needs to wear more jewelry. You think I could find a rock star chain bracelet anywhere?"

Ruby and Robin couldn't stop laughing, but Snow was still worried. Though that wasn't exactly uncommon for her. Snow usually dealt with the financial and planning part of the group, so she was always worried about something. It drove Emma crazy when they first met back in college, but she'd learned to live with it and appreciate it. Her OCD had saved Emma and the band more than once. Snow looked between the two. "Why do you have a guitar and why does he have your jacket?" Killian and Emma exchanged a look, then objects. "We have to get you out of those; we perform in four hours!"

Killian and Emma voiced their agreement.

Robin finally calmed as he wiped away a few tears from his eyes. "Well, instead of standing around here, let's go to our tent. The boys will get a crack out of this. You're all welcome to come. Maybe someone over there has some cutters or a lock pick."

They started walking towards the Skull Rock grounds; Killian began walking a little faster, pulling Emma along with him. The others followed behind them.

"Ow!" Emma yelled as the metal bit into her skin. She elbowed him. "Can you be aware you are attached to me, unfortunately? Can you just be nice?"

"Me?! You were the one who attacked me the moment we met. I don't even know your name."

She rolled her eyes. "You do, it's Emma."

"Yeah, Emma what? Who's your band?"

"Emma Swan," she answered. "We're the Fairest."

Killian scoffed, "The Fairest? What are you, a bunch of fairy tale princesses?"

She rolled her eyes. "And what are you? A bunch of Neverland lost boys?"

Killian rose his brow, "Oh believe me darling, I'm no boy."

Emma scoffed. "Right. Or maybe I should call you the Captain?" He rolled his eyes. "What, you don't like being called the Captain? You could be considered a real pirate with that title - especially with the eye liner, earring, leather, and facial hair. Seriously, do you ever shave?"

"Do you ever shut up?" he groaned, scratching the stubble of hairs around his jaw.

They walked for a little longer, both in silence. Until Emma started smirking. "Grumpy ole Captain Hook, savvy?"

Before Killian was able to spin around and explode with frustration, they made it to their tent. The large canopy was set up with tables of food, chairs, and couches. Inside, everyone had on headsets and held clip boards but the three men standing and sitting around the couches. They were the rest of Skull Rock.

"Finally," one of the blonde guys said when the gang walked in. When he noticed the four women, his brow creased. "What'd you do, bring us some groupies?"

"Please," Snow said with a scoff, folding her arms.

The guy looked to Snow, then held out his hand, "David Nolan – and you are?"

She reached out and shook his hand. "Mary Margaret. But I go by Snow." David's brow creased as he looked her over. "What?"

He shook his head, "Nothing, I'm sorry. It's just – you don't look like you belong here."

Snow looked to Emma, then back to David. She cleared her throat, trying not to be insulted. "Thank you?"

"I don't mean – you just," he started to stumble over his words. "You look like a school teacher, is all." Snow looked down at her clothing choice: a pair of jeans, a button up, and a sweater. "Not that it looks bad, you look great. You're beautiful – I mean, you're very pretty and I'm sure you're a nice person. I'm sorry."

Snow chuckled, "Well, aren't you a real Prince Charming."

"I'm Tink!" Tink announced, as bubbly as ever. When Emma, Snow, and Ruby were starting the band, the only thing they needed to complete it was a drummer. After a good month of searching, the girls were growing so frustrated with their lack of response that they almost gave up. When Tink walked into their dorm room, it was like everything fell into place. And not just with their music. Her bright and positive personality touched all of them; she taught them how to be more optimistic. Tink turned to the other girls. "This is Ruby and Emma."

By now the other two men stood up. A strange man with more eye liner on than Killian began smiling at the women. "Welcome, ladies. Feel free to stay as long as you'd like. I'm Victor Whale." This was the man Ruby meant when she asked Robin about the guy with the weird glasses. She was referring to the rose-colored glasses he wore when he performed, his signature look. No one was really sure where the look came from, but they didn't question it. In a way, they just sort of fit him. He took Ruby's hand in his and brought it to his mouth, kissing it. "I love your hair." Ruby blushed.

"And I'm Will Scarlet," the last man welcomed, "though no one asked."

Robin walked up behind them, a huge grin on his face. "Wait till you hear this, men. Some nutter handcuffed Killian."

"Aye," Killian confirmed, "to some random broad."

"Emma," Emma corrected. "I have a name."

Killian rolled his eyes.

Victor and Will began laughing, David simply shook his head. As the oldest member of the group, David was usually the most responsible. He tried his best to keep them out of trouble, but that didn't always work out. Especially when Killian or Robin talked him into drinking with them. Not much in the media was known about his private life – something he preferred. His bandmates weren't exactly the same way.

Will was the closest, though it wasn't exactly from lack of trying. He just didn't really care whether or not the public knew. He'd gotten good at scaring the interviewers away thanks to his sarcastic nature and blunt demeanor. But he kept the band honest, calling out certain members when they were getting a little too full of themselves, something that they all needed from time to time. Especially Killian and Victor. Since he'd joined the band, he hadn't dated anyone and he usually wasn't interested in most of the groupies or other women who tried to throw themselves at the band members. And because of that, he gained a reputation among the press as being heartless.

"This is definitely the funniest thing I've seen all week," Victor said between breaths. "Apart from the chicken lady, but she was ill. You can't laugh."

"What's going on?"

They all turned to face a very professional looking woman. It was strange for her to be dressed in a business suit, especially for this festival. She was a few years older than the band members, and she had a stern look. She was tapping her heel, waiting for someone to answer.

Killian sighed. "We have a situation, Ms. Mills." He held up his arm, Emma's arm rising with it. "We don't have the key."

Her eyes widened, "How the –" then she shook her head. "Of course. Only you would do something stupid enough like this, Mr. Jones. Well, you or Mr. Scarlet."

"Oi!" Will said, insulted.

Regina approached Emma, "Your name?"

"Emma Swan," Emma answered immediately, completely intimidated by the woman. "This is my band, the Fairest."

Regina sized her up slightly, and Emma almost made a comment – until Regina smiled. She looked between Emma and Killian. "Hold on, you two. I'll make some calls and try to find out who's been handcuffing people. There's gotta be someone at this damn festival with bolt cutters." She turned to the girls. "Ladies, please enjoy some of the refreshments. Don't get my boys in trouble, and don't let them get you in any." And then she left the tent.

"Manager?" Snow asked. David nodded. "She's kind of intense."

"Will calls her the Evil Queen," he said with a chuckle. "But only because she's the hardest on him; he pisses off the press the most. Regina's a great manager, though. She takes care of us."

Emma groaned, "Well hopefully she can take care of this."

"You're telling me," Killian scoffed.

Snow nodded, "Yeah, especially before we go on. Otherwise we'll have a disaster."

David smiled at her, "Have faith."

Gradually, they all moved to the couches – each of them sipping on the complimentary beer.

"So what kind of music do you girls play?" Victor asked, sitting next to Will and Ruby.

Snow and Tink sat together on another couch, David and Robin on a third, while Killian and Emma on a very uncomfortable smaller couch.

"Rock," Tink answered. "We write most of our songs, but we end up playing some covers from older rock bands. That way our audience can sing along."

Will snickered, "You're a girl rock band? What, like the Spice Girls?"

"Dude, they were pop," David corrected.

Killian chuckled, "But if you had to be the Spice Girls, which would you be?"

They all laughed, looking to each other, seeing who the first to answer would be.

Victor raised his cup, "Definitely Posh Spice. I could rock that itty bitty dress and those heels."

"Tink would totally be Baby Spice," Emma said with a giggle.

Will tilted his drink to Victor, "I don't know about you all, but that Ginger Spice lass was a babe. I think I could match Vic's black dress with that union flag one. See who has the better bod?"

"You're on. Killian, what about you?" Victor asked, patting his shoulder.

Emma scoffed, "Scary Spice, for sure."

The group burst in laughs, even Killian couldn't help his smile.

Ruby jumped in her seat, "Oh, I would definitely be Scary Spice. She was fierce," Ruby clawed the air dramatically. "What about you, David?"

He started to think, "Mm, Sporty."

"Let's see your high kick," Snow teased. "I think I'd be Baby Spice as well."

Robin rose his brow, "I think I would go with Ginger Spice like Will. She had a sense of sophisticated-ness about her."

"And you think that's you, mate?" Will teased. Robin threw a pillow at him.

"Emma?" Ruby asked. "Come on."

Emma shrugged. "No idea. I think Jones should pick mine, since I picked his."

The group ooo'd in unison. Killian sized up Emma. "Definitely Posh. She always seemed like she had some stick up her arse." Emma smacked his arm, but the group only laughed. She huffed, then stood up. Killian spilled the beer in his hand at the sudden jerk. "Where the bloody hell are you going?"

"To get these damn cuffs off," Emma said. "Your manager is taking too long."

"Ohhh, come back Emma!" Ruby called. "Don't be such a spoil sport!"

She rolled her eyes as they left the tent. Emma turned to Killian who looked amused. "Don't tell me you're starting to enjoy being handcuffed to me, Jones."

"Don't flatter yourself, Swan. I want to get loose just as badly as you do."

"Alright then. Let's find out how."

They searched through the chaos of the festival. There were four main stages – two small, two medium, and the large main stage. Each of the stages were named after something fairytale or mythology-like, to keep up with the Enchanted theme. The main arena was deemed The Castle. The festival also had rides including a farris wheel and other carnival like attractions with booths set up for different drinks and food. There was a main building, near the professional's camp tents that had bathrooms and showers. Between all the stuff were thousands of tents both brought and rented by the guests and smaller performers.

In their search, they found a security guy named Graham who was willing to help them. The only thing he could find was a wood chisel and a hammer. Unfortunately, it didn't work. He apologized and promised to try to find something else and get back to them.

So they looked for someone who could pick a lock. Five people tried – five people failed.

They ended back near the Skull Rock tent after finding a screw driver. Killian was attempting to take it apart to no avail.

"It's too big," Killian groaned, "I can't get it in."

Emma rose an eye brow, "Not normally a problem you have, huh Jones?"

"Killian?"

He spun around and Emma saw a leggy brunette standing in front of them.

She crossed her arms. "Don't tell me this isn't what it looks like."

"What does it look like?" Killian asked.

Emma groaned, recognizing the jealous tone of a girlfriend when she heard it. Oh no.

"Like you're handcuffed to some girl," the woman answered, sizing up Emma.

Killian walked towards her, dragging Emma with him. "Some bloody psycho handcuffed us together while we were looking for magic - I don't know." The woman didn't look amused. "Look, Milah, I didn't try to get stuck with her."

"Hi, I'm Emma," Emma introduced, "I'm the her." Emma recognized who she was after Killian said her name. Milah was a famous model from London, her relationship with the rock star put them at one of the hottest celebrity couples in the tabloids. Especially since they always seemed to be on and off – the kind of drama the press loved.

Milah looked between them, then grabbed him by the vest and started to pull. "You're coming with me, mister."

Killian dragged behind her, pulling Emma along. "Ow! Baby, wait."

She spun around, more frustrated that Emma was still there. "Hello again," Emma said sarcastically.

"Ok, get these off right now."

"We're trying."

"Well, where's the key?"

Emma rolled her eyes, "If we had a key, do you really think we would still be cuffed together?"

Milah narrowed her eyes. "Who is this?" she asked Killian.

"Em-ma," the blonde repeated, frustrated that she kept getting ignored.

He groaned, "She's a total stranger. She is incredibly awful. She –"

"She is standing right here, you jackass!" Emma yelled.

Milah began to walk away. Killian called after her, "Milah, wait! Where are you gonna be?"

She stopped, "The Make are about to play at the Castle. Call me when you're single." And with that, she left.

"Nice girl," Emma said sarcastically, rubbing her wrist from all the pulling around. "She's that pissed at you because of this?"

Killian groaned before taking a deep breath. "No, she's been mad at me for a while now. Being on tour does that. She just won't talk to me. It's so," he sighed, "bloody infuriating, that's what it is." He turned to look at Emma. "You got a mate, Swan? The security bloke earlier took a shine to you, d'you notice?"

Emma smirked, "I've got a lot of mates. No boyfriend though."

"That's surprising – what with your lovable nature and all." Emma smacked him in the stomach. "Oft- I was kidding! Mostly."

"Emma?"

Killian felt Emma tense up beside him. She turned around to look at the man standing across the way, her mouth dropping. "Speaking of a devil," Emma whispered, still staring at the man. "Neal?"

Neal began to walk over to them. Killian leaned down toward Emma, "Who is it, Swan?"

"An ex – just an ex."

Killian looked at Emma closely. You okay? he asked with an expression.

She nodded, answering his message.

"Emma!" Neal greeted, pulling her in for a hug – an awkward hug when Killian was dragged next to her. Neal looked down between them, noticing the cuffs. "Uh – what's this?"

Killian smirked, "Her idea. Way to spice up the bedroom life, if y'know what I mean," he winked.

Emma's eyes widened as she turned to Killian, "What?! No, that's not what this is. Someone thought it would be funny –"

"Hold on," Neal said, pointing to Killian. "Aren't you Killian Jones, from Skull Rock?" Killian nodded. "Hi, big fan. It's nice to meet you," he reached out his hand.

Killian gave a rehearsed smile, then shook it. "Nice to meet you."

Neal turned back to Emma and grinned. "Wow, it's been so long. What – one, two –"

"Four," Emma corrected, "four years."

"Yeah, four years. Look, I've – I've missed you. We should catch up. You look fantastic – really, really great." Neal continued to look her over. Killian rolled his eyes, getting a bit restless.

Emma was a little hesitant, but began to smile and breathe easier. "Um, what are you doing here? You hate these kind of festivals."

"I don't – I don't hate them," Neal said with a shrug, pushing his hands in his pockets.

Killian nudged Emma's arm, "Swan, we should be getting back to the group."

"Right," Emma agreed. She turned back to Neal, who was practically pleading with her with his eyes. "Uh, we're going to be performing at six on the Mermaid Lagoon stage."

Neal grinned, "I'll be there."

Emma nodded, still a bit shocked. Killian nudged her again and they started to walk away. "Nice meeting you, mate."

They started to walk back toward his tent; Emma was quiet as they did.

Killian peered down at her. He cleared his throat, "So, ex boyfriend. Let me guess, he was the one who ended it?"

"I'm not doing this, Jones," Emma said, looking up at him. "You trying to bond with me."

"Just making conversation, love."

They continued to walk in silence until Emma looked back up at him. "How'd you know?"

He shrugged. "The way he greeted you. No one tells someone who dumped them that they miss them. You didn't say it to him."

"I was just… shocked, that's all," she said. "It didn't end well between us."

"Because of your music?"

Emma's head shot up to his, amazed that he'd guessed correct. "And other stuff, but yeah. Of course it's just my luck that I'd run into him – here of all places. A hundred-thousand people -" she stopped walking and began to smile, grabbing his arm to stop him too. "I think I just figured out a way to ask for help. Come on."

They began to run to the nearest stage, Killian breathing out brilliant after Emma explained what they were going to do. They were able to weave past security, catching the stage as they prepared for another performance. When they ran up to the microphone, the crowd began to cheer.

Emma started to speak, "Hello everybody! I'm really sorry to barge in on you like this, but we are in a bit of a jam," she held up their arms to show off the cuffs. "Oh, look! It's Killian Jones from Skull Rock!"

The crowd went crazy as Killian took the mic. "We got hitched together by some crazy bloke backstage. I'd love to return his beautiful cuffs if anyone has any bolt cutters." Security finally noticed and approached them, then they began to escort them off the stage.

The crowd cheered again while Emma waved to them. "Bolt cutters!" she yelled while the large men pushed her away. "Ow! Get off me," she said to the security people as they rather forcefully manhandled them.

"All right, all right," Killian struggled to push them away. "Listen, we're sorry, uh," he quickly read the name tag, "Anton! Beautiful name, simply lovely," the large man shook his head and continued to push them along. "Ow! Easy guys! We're leaving."

They ran off the stage together and made their way back to the tent together. They couldn't help laughing at their failed attempt, Killian teasing the way she smiled like a loon when she waved goodbye to the crowd.

Robin was the first to notice them. He grinned and rose his hand, "Killian! Did you and gorgeous finally break free?"

"Nope," he answered, holding up their arms.

"You think I'm gorgeous?" she smirked, mimicking him from earlier.

Killian rolled his eyes, but chuckled. "We crashed a stage and tried to get some help, but we just ended up pissing off some giant security men. It was Swan's idea."

"Hey," she said, still laughing, "you called it brilliant, remember?"

He nodded, "Because it was! How else are you supposed to reach everyone here?"

Snow was sitting with David; Emma noticed that they were acting a bit cozier together than before she left. Ruby had her legs across Victor's lap as she laid on the couch. Will was sitting with Tink and Robin as they all listened to Emma and Killian tell their story.

"Oi," Killian said with a laugh when he noticed, then he brushed against Emma's arm, "they look like old mates." She shook her head, laughing at their friends.

Victor rose his hand to get their attention, "What about the internet? Facebook?"

"Twitter's so much cooler," Ruby pointed out, giving him a teasing nudge with her knee.

Snow pulled out her phone, clicking through her Twitter app until she found Emma's profile. "You have about 50,000 followers, Emma. I bet you could reach quite a lot of people who are here."

"Bloody hell," Will said, astonished. He turned to his bandmates, "Have you lot got that many?"

Robin laughed, shaking his head. "Will, you need to get with the times, brother, and get yourself on Twitter. We all have about a million. Except Killian. What is it now, ole chap? Two million?"

Killian shrugged, "Who knows. You think I follow that? I don't even know why I have so many, I hardly post."

"They bide their time," Victor answered, raising his brow suggestively. "Waiting for you to post a shot of that pretty face of yours. Doesn't matter if you've got nothing interesting to say."

Ruby nodded, "It's true."

Emma and Killian exchanged looks. "Can't hurt to try," Emma said with a sigh. "Who knows, maybe crazy magic guy follows you and he'll come back with the key."

Ruby got excited, jumping up from her seat and skipping over to them. Killian laughed, noticing Victor's disappointing look at the loss of her legs.

She asked for Killian's phone and loaded the camera. "Alright now, hold up your hands and show your handcuffs. Good, this lighting is great! Now, smile!"

Neither of them smiled – what they did was much better. Emma made a frightened face, peering her eyes to Killian like she was both scared of him and a little disgusted. Killian frowned dramatically, widening his eyes like a puppy dog.

Everyone cracked up.

Ruby, who at first pouted because they didn't listen, smiled when she viewed the picture. "Ha! It's perfect!"

Killian took back his phone and loaded it to his Twitter, asking for Emma's URL so he could tag her in it. Emma was a bit surprised, realizing that him doing so would probably increase her profile's traffic, and ultimately her band's. Even if he hadn't had that in mind when he did so, she still thought it was nice of him. Though, there was no way she'd ever say so beyond the small smile that rest on her lips.

"What'd you say?" Tink asked.

Snow looked down at her phone and began to read the tweet out loud. "Made a bet I couldn't stay locked to swangirl for an hr w/o wanting to pull my hair out. I lost. Someone help us out of these things…NOW!"

Emma smacked Killian's arm playfully while the group continued to laugh.

Robin started typing on his phone, acting sneaky. Snow, who was still looking through Twitter, laughed, then looked up at Robin.

"What?" David asked, looking over Snow's shoulder.

She began to read aloud again. "RT killianjones swangirl Gorgeous bracelet you've got Kil, I say keep her. She makes a great accessory AND smells good. You've had worse mate."

Robin pointed to Tink, "Oh, don't worry, lass. I wrote another tweet giving you full credit for calling it a bracelet." Tink beamed, pointing back at him.

Killian took a deep breath, something only Emma noticed. He reached up with his free hand and started scratching the back of his head. "Wonderful, Milah will love that," he said under his breath. Emma sympathized with him.

"The picture's already got a hundred retweets and five hundred favorites," Snow reported in awe.

"Good lord," Will said with a shake of his head.

"Well, hopefully someone will be able to help us out now," Killian commented. He rose his left hand, pulling Emma's with it, and looked at his watch. "Um, didn't you ladies say you had to perform at 6?"

Emma's eyes widened as she pulled his attached hand across her and read his watch. "We have thirty minutes to get to the stage!" she yelled to the girls.

"Shit!" Ruby yelled, pulling up her phone to check for the time, as if she didn't believe them. "Damn, I wanted to change before we perform. We can make it to the stage in like, ten minutes. Come on girls!"

The ladies started grabbing all their stuff. Emma looked down at herself, realizing Ruby was right. They had no time to change. She was wearing a basic light, white t-shirt with a black tank top underneath. She had on cut-off jean shorts and black converse shoes. She'd had an awesome outfit picked out, too, with jeans and her favorite pair of boots. Snow was trying to make Ruby feel better, saying that this was a music festival and no one really paid much attention to the outfits anyway. And besides, what they all had on was fine. It made Emma feel slightly better.

Robin, David, Victor, and Will started getting up as well. Snow looked over her shoulder to David. "What are you doing?"

"We're going with you," he answered plainly, a sweet smile on his face. "We wanna see the show."

"Aye, and we wouldn't miss a performance that featured one of our mates," Robin added with a smirk as they all began to walk towards the Mermaid Lagoon stage.

Emma's head shot over to Killian, almost forgetting he was following next to her. It was almost like she was getting used to brushing against his arm every minute. "Shit," she groaned. "What are we gonna do about him?"

"Keep him under a blanket?" Tink offered with a giggle. "I don't think anyone would notice."

Killian laughed, "If you think there's a chance I'm staying under a blanket, Lady Bell, you'll be massively disappointed."

"Which stage are you ladies on, anyhow?" Victor asked.

"Mermaid Lagoon."

Killian groaned. Emma looked over at him, her brow furrowing. "What's wrong with that?"

"It's just one of the smaller ones, isn't it?"

"Actually, it's one of the medium ones," Emma replied sharply. "Not all of us are world famous, y'know. You guys had to start somewhere – didn't you ever play on smaller stages?"

Killian shrugged. "A long time ago. I doubt I could ever go back."

Emma rolled her eyes, scoffing. "You're so full of yourself. What, if you don't sell out a stadium sized arena it's not worth your time of day? It's not about the size or being able to reach out to everyone. It's about the music and sharing that passion and excitement to those who really feel it too. Looking out into the crowd and seeing everyone so into the music, even if they don't know the words, is just…"

"Magic?" Killian asked, totally engulfed in what she was saying.

She looked up at him and breathed out a laugh, "Yeah, magic. I guess you don't have to worry about that anymore, do you? Everyone knows your songs. The girls are just worried about everything going well. If we don't give a good performance we won't be invited back."

"Come on!" Ruby called behind her to Emma and Killian, who'd fallen behind.

He grinned as he called back, "It's exhausting dragging along this ole ball and chain." Emma playfully smacked his arm. "Ow! You're gonna bruise my arm with all that wacking!"

"This is exhilarating," Will yelled out as they started to power walk even faster. "Last time we got to watch a show side stage was when we last saw the Cats perform."

"The Cats?" Tink's brow creased.

"The Cheshire Cats," David answered. "Will's old band."

"I wasn't in the band," Will corrected. "I was just filling in for Cyrus because Alice begged me. You lot just happened to stroll in to the club we were playing in and saw me. Robin's an old mate of mine from the academy."

"Are they here?" Victor asked; Will nodded. "Awesome – we need to find them later! I haven't seen them in ages; Jefferson owes me a few shots."

They approached the stage, showing their passes to get past the security guards. Their equipment was already on stage thanks to Tink's younger step brother, Peter. The nineteen year old convinced the girls to let him join them to the festival if he volunteered to be their roadie. At the moment, Emma was thankful for his services and almost forgot about how much the guy irritated her to no end.

The guys called out good luck from the side of the stage as the girls got into place. Emma was on the right of the stage with her keyboard, Tink was to her left back a ways on the drums, Snow was up some to her left, and then Ruby positioned slightly behind her with her bright red guitar. Though, Ruby hardly ever stood in place during a show.

They pulled up a chair next to the keyboard for Killian to sit on. Emma looked down at herself, a little upset that she looked so plain. She scanned her eyes over to Killian, who was wearing a blue v-neck and black vest, looking a bit bored. The pale blue shirt matched his eyes - not that Emma noticed.

She nudged him, "Give me your vest." He lowered his sun glasses and peered up at her, raising a questionable brow. She decided to ignore the urge to call him a tool for wearing sunglasses when the sun was already starting to set. "Please? I need something – I look too plain."

"You look fine, Swan," he said, looking over her. For a moment, Emma almost blushed at his compliment. "You think anyone is gonna overlook that bright hair of yours?" Emma whined and began to pout, praising pleases as she bounced up and down. Killian groaned, laughing at her childish dance. "Fiiiiine, but as long as you keep bouncing like that for me," he gave her a wink. She playfully smacked him again, then began to help him unbutton his vest.

Killian pulled his arm out of the right side, then slid it down his left arm. He helped Emma pull it up her own right arm and then slide her left arm through the left side. It was larger on her, of course, but she expected that. To her surprise, the inside of the vest was a shiny-satiny-paisley material. She kept it hanging open, and the result was quite lovely. She posed in front of Killian, silently asking for his input.

He stared at her, then cleared his throat as he reached up to scratch the back of his neck. "It looks great. You should wear my clothes more often."

"Don't get your hopes up," she snickered, giving him an appreciative smile.

Finally, the lights lowered on the stage and the crowd began to cheer. Tink started tapping on the cymbals in a fast beat, cueing Ruby at the guitar. When the instrument wailed, the crowd went wild. Killian watched as Emma began to tap on her keys, her body bouncing to the beat. Snow started singing, obviously one of their more popular songs because the crowd began to sing with her.

As much as Killian had dread having to be on this stage, he was actually realizing it wasn't that bad. There wasn't a gap between the stage and the crowd like there was at some of the major concert halls. The crowd was right there under you – he could hear their screams and them singing. Hell, he could even see them. Which was something he usually had trouble with when the huge spot lights would hit.

The song ended, the crowd applauding loud enough to pull Killian's attention back to the girls.

Snow reapproached the microphone, "How y'all doin' tonight?!" Applauds. "Awesome! For those of you who don't know, we are The Fairest and we want to thank you all for joining us. You might have noticed a little change to our usual line up," she said with a laugh, raising her hand and gesturing toward Emma. The blonde raised up her handcuffed arm and the crowd laughed. "Emma developed a nasty growth on her right hand. But we won't let that stop us, will we ladies?"

Emma started up the next song, leading them in. She leaned up to the microphone and started singing. "Shame on you for taking me down a peg or twoooo. Taken the blame for a fairytale of forbidden fruuuuit." Killian looked up and started watching her, quite taken back at how well she could sing. "Describe me a position, but I don't wanna play. Realize I should be pretty and have nothing to say. I will not stay put and obey."

Something came over Killian, recognizing the familiar tune of the song. Out of instinct and a tiny bit of mischief, he reached up and tapped on one of the higher note keys twice. Giving the song an added duh-duh.

Emma's head shot down. "Hey," she said away from the mic. Killian gave her an innocent look, but continued to play the added notes of duh-duh-dun-uh. Emma turned back to the mic, "The Fairest covers all manner of sins. The jilted brides that blush on clue, that's just something a girl like me wouldn't do. I will not waaaait for yooooooou."

"Sooometiiiimes I feel I've got to," Killian sang into the mic with her. Emma backed up slightly, wondering what the hell he was doing and thinking of all the ways she was gonna kill him later – when the crowd started to cheer. Duh-duh, he played, "Run away – I've got to" duh-duh "get away from the pain you drive into the heart of me."

Emma began to harmonize with him, adding in the appropriate oooh's as she and Killian both played the keys.

"The love we share, seems to go nowhere," Killian went on, "And I've lost my light, for I toss and turn I can't sleep at night."

They both began to sing in the mic, Killian's deep voice blending perfectly with Emma's high one. "Once I ran to you," they could hear the crowd singing along, "now I run from you. This tainted love you've given. I gave you all a boy could give you. Take my tears and that's not nearly ALL!"

"Tainted love," Killian sang deeply, Emma harmonized, then went back to singing her own song, the combination working magic on the crowd.

"Sometimes I feel I've got to –"

"The Fairest covers all manner of sins –"

"Get away, I've got to –"

"Sugar and filth isn't all that I have been –"

"The pain you drive into the heart of me –"

"The jilted brides that blush on cue –"

"Seems to go nowhere, and I've lost my light –"

"I will not wait for you –"

"Can't sleep at night –"

By now they were both dancing and bouncing to the song, Emma joining Killian for the chorus again. "Once I ran to you, now I run from you. This tainted love you've given, I gave you all a boy could give you. Take my tears and that's not nearly ALL!"

The girls ended the song and the crowd screamed louder than ever. Killian held up Emma's hand, holding it and then dramatically bowed down to her. Emma could only laugh; she couldn't believe how fast her heart was racing. She hadn't felt that inspired during a show in ages. And as much as she hated to admit it, she had fun.

They could hear the rest of Skull Rock cheering and whistling from the side. Robin was clapping so loud he almost missed his phone vibrating. He answered the call, moving backstage so he could hear the person on the other line better.

"Hello?" he yelled into the phone.

"Mr. Hood, where are you boys?" Regina asked in a harsh tone.

Robin chuckled. "We're at the Mermaid Lagoon stadium watching the girls perform. They're really spectacular."

"I figured you all might have gone over there. Is Mr. Jones on stage?"

"Of course, they couldn't find a way to unlock, so he had to go with them. I should have called you beforehand, it'll probably go viral soon. People will think Kil has gone off on some side project," Robin said with a chuckle.

Regina sighed on the other side of the line, but he could tell she was smiling. "Well, hold tight. I finally tracked down the guy known for handcuffing people at these things. The key should be on its way to you now, so don't move. Her name is Belle. You boys have fun, but don't do anything too stupid. You have a gig tomorrow, remember that Mr. Hood."

"You know, you can call me Robin. And not just when we're alone together," he said a little softer into the phone, a secret smile pulling at the corner of his lips.

He could almost feel her blush through the line. "See you tomorrow… Robin."

He chuckled, hanging up the phone, biting his lip.

"Robin?"

He turned to his left and came face to face with a short brunette woman.

She smiled when he reacted to the name. "Hi, my name is Belle Gold. Your manager got ahold of me and said that your friends were handcuffed. I am so sorry about this, my husband can get a little carried away at these kind of festivals –"

"Your husband?" Robin asked, remembering how strange the man looked. The small woman before him was positively beautiful and spoke so sweetly. Talk about your modern Beauty and the Beast. It was a twist he most definitely was not prepared for.

She smiled brightly, "Yes. He's been doing it for years at these festivals. It's a nasty habit, meddling in other's lives. I've been trying to get him to stop."

"Why does he do it?" Robin asked.

"My husband thinks he has this special power; this divine ability to read people's energy and predict the future. Specifically with people he believes to be true love. So he intervenes where he sees fit. He says that his work brings people together in ways they never expected… even those who he didn't physically touch. I don't know if it's true," she said with a small chuckle. "Personally, I think the music just reaches into his hopeless romantic heart and he gets carried away. Look, I'm so sorry for everything and all the trouble this may have caused you. Here," she pulled out the key and handed it to him. "This will unlock them."

Robin smiled, looking back at the stage and thinking about how the handcuffs had actually been the best thing to happen to them at the festival so far – and for some of the members, the best thing to happen to them in years. Especially when he remembered the way David and Victor looked at Snow and Ruby. He took the key and shook the woman's hand. "Please, don't feel bad. It's actually been… well, it's been an interesting surprise. Have a lovely day, Mrs. Gold. And thank you."

He gripped the key and stuffed it in his pocket, then returned to the show.

A few songs later, and the crowd was shouting for an encore. As tribute, the girls invited Killian and the other men to join them for the last song, putting their own spin on 'Come Together' by the Beatles. The result was astounding, causing the audience to roar louder than Emma had ever heard. Her cheeks were burning but she just could not stop smiling.

"You ladies were bloody brilliant!" Will shouted as they exited the stage.

Emma nudged Killian's arm, "You know, Jones, when you pulled your little stunt… I wanted to kill you. And I mean medieval torture dungeon kind of killing." Killian snickered. "But I have to admit, you were great."

"You weren't so bad yourself, love," Killian replied, nudging her arm back.

"Killian."

He looked over his shoulder and found Milah standing near the stage exit, having waited on them. The gang stopped with him, turning to face her. She had her arms folded, obviously unhappy still.

"Milah," he greeted, forcing a smile. It wasn't that he was unhappy about seeing his girlfriend. He wasn't – he just immediately felt guilt plunge toward his heart. Why, he wasn't sure. But he reasoned it was because he hadn't thought about her since he saw her last.

She walked up to him and held up her phone. "Have you seen what you've started online? The hashtag #taintedcuffloveEMF is trending. The video of you two performing together has gone viral. There's pictures everywhere of you two practically making out on that microphone -"

Victor, who was carrying Ruby on his back, scrunched his nose, "Not very clever, is it? The hashtag, that is. I would have gone with #handcuffedlove or something like that."

"That's not much clever-er," Ruby replied with a giggle.

Milah wasn't amused. She looked between Killian and Emma, her eyes lingering on Killian's vest still hanging around Emma's body. "How do you think this makes me look, Killian?"

"Baby, you know how the media is," Killian groaned. "It'll blow over after the weekend, you just wait."

"No, this won't just blow over. I can't… I can't do this anymore."

Killian's brow dropped as he took a few steps closer, reaching out to her, "Milah –"

She rejected his hand, holding up her own to stop him. "Come on, Killian. You know we've been just blowing things over for far too long now. It can't go on."

Emma started to feel really uncomfortable; she wished she could join the others who were standing farther back. But instead she just stood beside Killian, trying her hardest not to pay attention to the fact that he was getting dumped right here in front of everyone.

He exhaled deeply, running his hand through his hair in an exasperated motion. "And whose fault do you think that is, Milah? You are the one who keeps blowing everything off – our fights, our disagreements, our happiness – you've been blowing us off."

"You're right," she replied, her anger subsiding. She dropped her head as her voice softened. "When we started, it was all fun and adventure and glamour. I fell head over heels the moment I met you. But now… it's gone. All that passion, the romance –"

"The magic," he finished with a solemn sigh.

Milah nodded sadly. "I love you, Killian. I do. But I just… it's over. I'm sorry, truly."

Killian had gone quiet, unable to look up at her. It was only when he nodded that she turned around to leave. Emma felt awful, unsure of what she should do or how she could comfort him. She went with what felt natural, reaching over and putting her hand on his shoulder. He looked down at it, taking a deep breath. To her surprise, he reached up with his free hand and put it on top of hers, wrapping it around and giving her a sincere squeeze. It was a small gesture – but it spoke volumes.

He finally looked over to her when he let go and she put her hand down. She tilted her head, asking with her eyes if he were okay.

Not really, his gaze replied.

They walked up to the rest of the group. David was the first to approached Killian, throwing his arm over his shoulder. "You alright man?"

"Aye," Killian answered. He shrugged, shaking his head. "It was bound to happen eventually, I suppose. There was just – there was no…" he glanced to Emma, then back to David, "connection. I'll be alright, mate – like always."

David pat his shoulder, then looked to Emma. He gave her a smile, an unspoken gratitude for being there to support his friend.

"You could go after her," Snow offered, "beg her to give you a second chance."

Killian scoffed, "I don't chase women, or beg for that matter. I'll tell you what though, I need a drink. Shall we go find one?"

The group cheered, then made their way toward some of the booths. As they walked, Robin moved next to Killian, keeping in pace with him. He nudged his arm, subtly getting him to look down. He pulled out the key from his pocked, then gestured to the handcuffs. Killian looked between the keys and the cuffs, then back to Robin. It was wrong, he knew it. But he was afraid that without the cuffs, Emma would run away. It was bound to happen, but he wasn't ready. Not just yet.

So he decided to make a selfish call as he pat his friend on the shoulder and shook his head. "Not yet, mate." Robin only smiled, understanding. He shoved the key back in his pocket.