Through the Darkness

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.

Summary: After becoming the Dark One, Emma is fighting a lonely battle... but August is there to help her. WoodenSwan because I think that August should be the one who saves Emma from herself.

Just a quick one-shot about how I imagine Emma's dealing with her new situation. Maybe I should have worked on this a little bit longer but I wanted to post it before we would have gone too deep into the new season. That said, for the sake of this story, I'm disregarding the group's detour to Camelot and any story arch that would develop during this season.

August had been avoiding Emma.

He didn't seek her out in weeks and he tried his best to avoide situations where there was a chance of running into her.

He was still weak from his transformation when the news of Emma becoming the Dark One had reached him and, for a while, it gave him a good excuse to stay away from all the good-willing people who tried to help her. But he wasn't idle, either. He read and read, he found every piece of information that was even slightly connected to the Dark One. What little he could find, he shared it with the Charmings but he was careful not to get into direct confrontation with the woman he tried to help.

Fortunately, it seemed that she wasn't too eager to look for him, either.

It was late October when he finally ran into her. It was cold and dark, the drizzling rain making him feel chilled to the bones. But it was nothing new, really. It was as if perpetual cold had settled over him.

He was in search of Emma after realizing just how much a coward he'd been when, practically out of nowhere, she stood in front of him. He almost bumped into her actually, only stopping by inches from her.

When he looked at her for the first time, he was taken aback by what he saw. She's pure evil, he heard the rumors. She's gone mad, the Dark One. And it went on and on...

But as he looked at her ashen face, he saw no sign of evil in her tired eyes and her sharp features didn't tell about anything but self-control. Her posture was tense as he gave her an unsure smile.

"Hi," he tried. It was hard to see through her cold mask but August was sure he saw no hostility in her eyes.

"August," Emma nodded in acknowledgement, her eyes regarding him with cold indifference. August shifted uncomfortably then forced himself to meet her eyes again.

Her eyes.

He hadn't realized what he'd been doing until he caught a conversation between Henry and Hook. Stop it, Kid, Hook stopped the boy's persistent plea for help with a drunken snarl. That thing's not Emma anymore. Take a good look in her eyes and you'll see it. That's the Dark One… and there's no saving the Dark One.

He realized then that he'd been avoiding Emma because he didn't want to see what the pirate saw. But he also realized that he wasn't ready to give up so easily, either. There had to be a way…

But as he held her gaze, he had no idea what the pirate was talking about. Maybe those green eyes were duller than usual, and cold haughtiness took over the fierce determination that used to captivate him, but those were Emma's eyes. If Hook couldn't see the woman he claimed to love in them, he didn't love her at all.

The more he stood there mesmerized by the woman, the easier it became to see the old Emma in her eyes. It was as if her eyes lit up and with their greenness, passion had returned to them, too.

By the time he realized that he wasn't imagining things, Emma's look had really changed, he'd found himself pressed against the nearest wall, Emma pressed firmly against him, pulling on his leather jacket and claiming his lips in a fierce kiss.

Caught by surprise, he froze at first, but Emma's demanding lips quickly coaxed him into action. It was a frenzy of movements after that… lips on lips, on skin… hands wandering. August could swear that he tasted blood when Emma bit him on the lips. He groaned.

He would have lied if he'd said he hadn't imagined this going down – he did imagine it more times than he dared to admit – but when Emma's hands found his belt buckle, something snapped in him.

It wasn't right.

"Emma, stop it," August told her, gently pushing her away.

"What? You don't want it?" She raised a pale eyebrow. "I can make you do it." She sounded cocky but not menacing.

"I don't doubt that as you should never doubt that I want this. I want you. God, how much I want you..." He breathed, allowing himself to press his cheek against her temple for a brief moment. "But not this way... not now."

"Why?" Emma drew back completely, her eyes hardening once again. "Because I'm the Dark One?" She asked and, for a moment, she couldn't hide her hurt and self-contempt.

"I don't care who you claim to be, Emma," he said, raising a hand to caress her pale cheek. "I want you… And you... you just want a quick bang." The fact that she hadn't already made him comply with her desire gave him hope, though. "You're hurt, angry… justifiably so… but I won't let you use me."

"I can get what I want."

"What do you want, Emma?" The question obviously caught her off-guard because all she did was blink. "Find me when you figured that one out," August smiled affectionately. "I'll be here… if it's me whom you really want… not just some rebound."

"I am the Dark One," she retorted, no doubt as a means of intimidation... and refutation. But something in her voice, her stance belied her arrogance which made August want to pull her in his arms.

"Stop hiding behind a moniker, Emma," August gave her a smile instead. "You know where to find me..." And with that he stepped around her then turned to leave, being, no doubt, the first one, who walk out on the Dark One.

She'd always been an enigma. A strong woman forged by loneliness and disillusion. But all the anger and bitterness which he remembered clouding her eyes, now emanated in palpable waves from her whole being.

That night, when Emma first materialized in his room, she was desperate and, though, August knew that she still hadn't really realized the full extent of his offer, he hadn't got the heart to turn her away.

He could wait for her to accept what was in front of her.

He could wait forever.

Her visits became frequent after that night, and it didn't take long for August to realize just how enormous a battle she was fighting.

He understood then that no matter what anybody would come up with to get Emma rid of her darkness, it wasn't up to them.

It was Emma's fight... Emma's alone.

So he did what everybody was claiming to do but so few had actually dared to do – he was there for her in any way she needed him.

He tried to be her voice of consciousness without putting too much pressure on her. He knew that the Charmings meant well but constantly reminding their daughter that she could do better – she could be better – didn't help at all.

So he mostly remained in the background, letting Emma vent her frustration to him, which sometimes meant taking the brunt of her infinite anger. He'd lost count of just how many times he'd been turned into a lower life form in Emma's uncontrollable outbursts. But it didn't really matter how many times he'd be transformed into a spider by Emma because August knew that she'd never crush him.

After all, he was the one whose embrace she sought at night, claiming that she only needed release but always clinging to him just a little bit too tight and staying just a little bit longer, craving the human contact and maybe, he hoped, that unconditional love he was feeling for her.

It wasn't easy.

During the day she was aloof, her eyes clouded with stubborn anger and cold resentment. If words were exchanged, they stabbed him in the heart if not because of their animosity, then because of that endless hopelessness that they hid.

It was easier when they were alone (and she sought his company a lot). Those times she seemed more open. Her words sounded less accusing and with time, her features softened. She was still tense, though, the line of her lips still tight, but she looked more at ease than in the company of others.

And August cherished the nights, the silent moments she would spend in his arms, because those were the times when he felt that Emma was really with him. He would watch her when he thought her to be asleep and noted how her features softened… how she seemed to be at peace.

Other times, when he was at that sweet place between sleep and wakefulness, he could swear that he felt Emma holding his hand, caressing her cheek or just simply placing a soft kiss where she happened to reach him.

But he always awoke alone.

And it was all right.

He would wait.

And he would help her fight along the way, hoping that his silent support and patient love would guide her trough the darkness.

It turned out that his silent support hadn't yielded good enough results for the residents of Storybrooke. And how could it? All they could see was a raging maniac who ran havoc with their lives. They couldn't see the fight Emma was fighting and they were unaware of the scope of destruction she could have left behind, hadn't she kept herself in check.

Storybrooke was in arms against the Dark One and despite the reasoning of the Charmings, Regina and a handful of other people who still believed that there was another way, they were ready to get rid of the Dark One once and for all. What would happen to Emma during the way was only a secondary question… if a question at all. It made August's blood boil to know that those people who ate in the same diner as Rumpelstiltskin or visited his shop, now were so unforgiving towards the woman whom they'd celebrated as the Savior not so long ago.

He'd heard the rumors of the plan to catch her – small tidbits as nobody would trust him anymore – and he tried to warn Emma but she dismissed him in her arrogance. He hoped she'd be right but words soon came that the Dark One had been captured.

Storybrooke was raging, the Charmings were frantic and everything went downhill so quickly that August had a hard time not panicking himself.

He had to help Emma.

August gasped in shock when he stepped into the room Emma was held in in the basement of the hospital. She was a mess, curled up on the cot in her light green hospital scrubs, her wild white curls hiding her small frame. But what really made his heart ache was the pair of shackles that looked all too big on her slender wrists.

"Emma," he breathed and watched as the woman slowly raised her head. If he'd been shocked before, he was completely horror-struck. Everything the town had whispered about the Dark One, everything he'd failed to recognize in her features, now sit unashamedly on her face.

She gave him an eerie smile that dismayed August.

She'd given up the fight.

"Oh, Emma. What had they done to you?"

"Locked me up," she stated, finding some mad amusement in the fact. "Gave me shackles, too."

"And that's it? You'll just sit and wait for them to do whatever they want?"

"Magic shackles," Emma stood up and walked till the chains, secured in the wall, let her. She stopped then, regarding the objects that kept her prisoner. "Not much I can do. No powers, no escape." And she actually giggled after that. It sent shivers down August's spine.

"That's your excuse for still sitting here?" he asked disbelief evident in his voice. "Magic is not everything Emma. Rumpelstiltskin manipulated a thirty-year-long curse without lifting a finger himself."

Emma's look darkened so quickly at his remark that August hadn't even got the time to register it before she cried out defiantly.

"I'm not Rumpelstiltskin!" Then her shoulders slumped just as quickly. "That bastard was in love with his power… I'm… I'm just so tired," she finally admitted defeated, sounding like her old self.

August was by her side in a moment, cupping her cheeks with his hands. "I know, Princess. I know. But you can't give up. Not now. If you don't want to fight these people, fight the darkness… fight it like you did since it took hold on you. Don't you see it? They will kill you."

"And they should very well do so," she whispered, stepping away from his touch.

"You can't really consider throwing away your life just like that," August looked at her aghast.

"I can… and I am," she stated matter-of-factly. "The man who claimed to love me now detests me, my parents fear me and I can't even see my own son. So tell me, why the hell should I fight?"

"Fight for us, damn it!" At his sudden outburst, Emma looked sincerely stupefied, August noted. "Fight for me," he asked her more gently.

"There is no 'us'," she remarked in a low voice, staring at the floor.

"You sincerely believe that?"

"Yes." It was hardly audible.

"Damn it, Emma," August stepped up to her and grabbed her shoulders. He wanted to shake her just to snap her out of it. "I love you."

"You want me to tell you that I love you, too," she held his angry gaze then. "But I'm not capable of love."

"That's bullshit." August let her go and turned, running a hand through his hair in frustration. He turned back to her. "I know how you care for all these people in this godforsaken town… how you love your parents and friends… how you cherish Henry. And I know that you love me. Your words may deny it but your actions speak different. You just have to believe… you just have to believe in yourself. I know I do."

"You should really turn and leave," Emma warned him. "Leave while you can. Your belief won't do any good. It never does… Look at that pathetic excuse of a man."

Gold.

But Gold had always been a coward – what he wanted was power and not even Belle could change that. Emma was different. What she'd always wanted was to belong and that was exactly what she couldn't get while the darkness had got a hold on her.

"You're stronger than that, Emma," August told her. "You've just told me that you're not him."

"Go. Away," Emma hissed with a menacing look.

"Why? Because you're the Dark One?" he threw her favorite line into her face, not backing off. "That's what you're telling Henry, too, when he tries to talk to you? Are you trying to push him away too? Your parents? Or is it just me?" He actually chuckled facing Emma's murderous look. "I'm not that idiot pirate. You won't scare me off with a dark look. You won't get rid of me so easily."

"You really don't understand," she didn't seem to give in, either. Maybe that was good, August thought. It seemed that the fight had returned to her. "I destroy everything and everybody. I can try my damnest to stop it but it will never be enough. And I don't want to wait until I do something to my friends, my family… Henry… or you. I couldn't deal with it. You're right, August. I love you. And that's why you have to go. Let them end this nightmare. Let them end this darkness."

"You are more than this, Emma. You are so much more than this infinite anger and fear. You are not your powers… or a name which who knows who came up with. You are Emma Swan and nothing can take that away. Certainly not a dagger."

"It's not just a dagger," Emma cried desperately. "That voice…" She shut her eyes, pressing her knuckles against her temples. "It won't let me alone."

"Look at me, Emma." August stepped up to her, grabbing her hands. "You don't need that voice. You don't have to listen to it."

"It's so damn difficult," she wince in a pained voice, her eyes still shut.

"I know, Princess, I know. But you can fight it." He so desperatedly wanted to help her fight it. He just didn't have any idea how. His words didn't seem enough and his deeds were ignored. What had been left for him then? "Here," he came up with an idea at once. "Listen to my heart." He pressed her hands against his chest. "Look at me, Emma. Here's my heart… it's yours to guide you. Let it guide you," he pleaded, terrified of losing her.

And Emma slowly opened her eyes and looked into his eyes, really looked, and suddenly it was as if time had stopped and everything around them had disappeared. It was just the two of them, listening to the beating of his heart. He could see the fight behind her eyes and he could only hope that she could see the trust and belief in his… that she could see his love. That she would believe...

He stood and watched as the clouds slowly lifted up from her eyes, and tightened his hold on her hands when fierce determination sharpened her features.

For long moments it was dark around them… so dark.

But suddenly it was glowing so hard he had to close his eyes. He gathered Emma then into his arms and pressed her face against his chest where her hands had rested before.

He knew then that it was over. Emma had fought and won. She had found her way through the darkness.

"What the hell was that?" Emma asked stunned when they pulled apart after the longest time, and August couldn't do anything but let out a relieved laugh because, for the first time in months, she sounded genuinely Emma. "These shackles are supposed to suppress my powers."

"Your dark powers," August pointed out, Emma looking at him wide-eyed. He gathered her hands into his, then looked at her. "Try it!" he told her, looking down at the shackles. It seemed that he'd been waiting for long minutes before the shackles finally popped open.

When she looked up at him again, her green eyes were alight with wonder and joy and she all but flew into his arms.

"Thank you. Thank you!" Emma murmured repeatedly into his neck, clinging to him with everything she'd got.

"It was all you, Princess," he told her with a proud grin, holding onto her.

"I couldn't have done it without you… your faith in me." She loosened her grip to look up at him.

"What can I say?" He gave her a self-conscious smile. "I'm a believer."

"And I love you for that," Emma told him and her confession made August stop. Emma must have felt that, too, because she went on. "I love you. I meant that earlier. I hope you know that. I… I'm amazed by you," she smiled, cupping his cheek with a hand. Her eyes were shining with wonder and that love she'd just confessed to. "And I'm so grateful that I have you in my life. And I'm sorry for everything I put you through. I didn't want to pull you into this but when we met after I… you know… I knew that I needed you. If anybody could help me, it was you. A true friend."

"Friend?" August asked more disbelieving than taken aback by the label.

"Yes," Emma laughed at his expression. "At first," she added casting down her eyes coyly for a moment before looking back up at August. "But as it turned out, those old feelings hadn't disappeared with you."

"Old feelings, huh?" August pulled Emma closer to him, and reveled in the fact that she went willingly. "I'm certainly glad that I wasn't alone with those feelings." He leant down to place a kiss on her forehead.

"And just for the record," she looked at him again. "If anybody plans on taking you away from me again, they have to answer to the Da… to me. And darkness or no darkness, it won't be pretty."

"I'm here, Emma. No matter what, I'm here with you," he reassured her, pulling her into a hug.

After all, he might have guided her through the darkness but walking in the light wouldn't be easy, either… not with everything that had transpired in the last few months. But he'd be there with her every step of the road.

The End

Thank for reading. And as always, sorry for the mistakes.