~Chptr~9~

Had she not been in the state of emotional torment as she was, her heart would have been racing a mile a minute. That aside, her heart was still racing. the minute she felt him there her heart rate rose steadily. She felt so safe in his arms she had almost not wanted to move, but to talk to him she needed to see his face.

It was an entirely different feel, being with Hook, then it was with Pan. Her heart did a little dance inside her chest at the thought of her encounter with him. She had been keen on her mission from the beginning but from the minute she had seen him, she felt a little part of herself fall for him. She felt some sort of the same feeling after seeing hook for the first time but she had grown into liking him more. she felt so conflicted. Her sudden liking of pan was the only thing that had kept her from not killing him the moment they met. Already she didn't know how to proceed. She kissed the man she was supposed to kill and she fell in love with the man she will leave. Tears stained her eyes. what was she going to do? He would kill her mother if she didn't kill pan!

Her ability to use power let her tap into any power and use it against the person or for her own advantage. In reality she had never used it very much until the man had come and offered to teach her and then send her here. This was how she would be able to kill pan. And she knew she would have to kill him, so in the process of guarding her heart from Pan she let her heart become open to Hook and she was afraid she wouldn't be able to let go of him. It was after that when she had meant to kill him on Arrow Head Point. But something about the way he had been sitting, waiting for her, stayed her hand. He had surprised her greatly by springing the kiss on her. She was so startled, it made her high on the emotion as it shot through her system. In her indiscretion and high, she pulled him back and kissed him. Almost immediately she regretted it. she pulled back despite the amazing electricity it sent through her. In that moment she knew that she couldn't possibly kill him. She knew that her mom would die, without her because the man would never bring her back. She flew the scene wishing that she could take it back, but she knew that was impossible.

What made it worse was that she also loved Hook. And being in his arms was one of the most amazing places she had ever been. He was strong and kind, and he genuinely cared for her. It was torture, knowing that she felt something for both of them.

It was even harder knowing what was coming, or rather who was coming. And knowing she may not live long enough to tell either of them how she really felt.

~~~~~

Hook was so stunned by her sudden reveal that he just stared at her. In his mind, his thoughts raced. Who was the man who set her up? Why had she not killed him sooner? She had had so many chances. . .

"You know he is impossible to kill?" Hook asked, "I think this 'man' set you up because I have tried, and you can't kill Pan." She just looked away and after a pause she nodded. He stiffened ever so slightly, she was hiding something.

"Yea, 'I' can't. . ." She said, there was a strange tone to her voice but he couldn't place it. Suddenly her composure was broken once again and her voice cracked at the end of her sentence.

"I don't understand, why are you sad?" Hook asked, entirely unsure that he understood everything. She looked back up at him and her eyes were full of tears.

"Because. . .I told him," she said and then fresh tears poured down her face, unguarded. He watched the river of tears flow down her face. He moved closer to her and put a hand on her neck. He reached up and wiped some of her tears away.

"Hey, hey, what happened?" he said gently. Her eyes where unblinking, the tears continued to fall.

"He," her voice was hardly recognizable from her tears, "killed her." the pain and horror on her face made him want to take all the pain away. She gasped for air while she cried, "he killed her right in front of me," she whispered He took her face between his hands.

"Wait, you mean the man, who? The man who sent you here? He killed your. . ." He couldn't say mother, not to her big, bright, blue eyes. She blinked her eyes once saying yes. The tears seemed to flow even more rapidly, after that. "Zemira. . ." He said pulling her into a hug. He felt the wet tears trailing down his back as she cried over his shoulder. "I am so sorry." Her crying turned into deep sobs that he had found her in.

He ran his hand up and down her back on the fabric of his trench coat. All he wanted was to stop her tears and take the pain away. After she had calmed down a little he pulled her away from himself and looked into her eyes.

"You can stay here, you can make a life here," he didn't add what he said in his mind: "with me." She looked at him and then shut her eyes, the light from the window illuminating the watery trails on her face.

"I want that," she said, his heart picked up speed, "but it's not over." He frowned in confusion.

"What do you mean?"

"He's coming,"

"Who is?"

"The man who sent me, he's going to make me kill Pan," she said, he was so confused, she couldn't kill him, no one could. . .could they?

"But who could 'make' you do that?" Hook asked.

"It doesn't matter because if I don't kill Pan he will kill me," She said shaking.

"Zemira I won't let him," Hook said seriously, "I won't let him touch you." She looked up at him with. . .was that love?

"Oh Captain. . ." She said cupping his face, "Promise me you won't." Hook recoiled, was she telling him not to save her?

"Why the Bloody not?!" Hook asked. she only smiled sadly at him.

"If he sees you, you will die too," She said, "I can't watch another death."

"You think I am so weak I can be so easy to overcome?" Hook asked offended.

"No," she hit his chest trying to get him to pay attention, "you can't kill him!"

"Who could I possibly not kill?" he asked. She looked out the window above him.

"Rumpelstiltskin,"

~~~~~

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