killian-whump reblogged
Once Upon a Time S05E08 ↳ RFW's Favorite OUAT Whump Moments
killian-whump reblogged
Hook’sCovenAdventures- Only One 10/16
Sum’: Once again trouble fall upon the peaceful coven, spreading its darkness on each Hook. Only this time only one will remain and with the help of the Savior, will decide the fate of the rest of their secret family…
Also on AO3
Prev on tbl: ch1/ch2/ch3/ch4/ch5/ch6/ch7/ch8/ch9/ch10
Note: so, is Killian truly gone?Will the rest of the Joneses Package live? Only 6 chapter left to know!
——————————–
Two things Killian Jones had always praised himself for were his good looks and the fact that he was a survivor.
And perhaps it was just this fact being true once more, or perhaps they’d just been blessed by a miracle, but either way, the dome where Killian was imprisoned started to crack, and several minutes later, it crumbled to dust.
Though, the pile of dust remained still.
Okay! I’m caught up now!!! :D
killian-whump reblogged
Hook’sCovenAdventures- Only One 4/16
Sum’: Once again trouble fall upon the peaceful coven, spreading its darkness on each Hook. Only this time only one will remain and with the help of the Savior, will decide the fate of the rest of their secret family…
Also on AO3
Prev on tbl: ch1/ch2/ch3/ch4
———————————————
Everything is pitch black. And cold. A cold that paralyses him, filling his bones with deadly ice. He can’t move and yet he knows, he feels his body being wracked by shivers. How he’s still in one piece after all this time is still surprising to him. Killian is alone and it kills him, even with as much as his ears enjoy the silence. He’s alone and lost inside his mind with no way out.
HEEEEEEEEEEHEHEHEHEHE The sneeze XD
I know who that is! XD
killian-whump reblogged
Hook’sCovenAdventures- Only One 3/16
Sum’: Once again trouble fall upon the peaceful coven, spreading its darkness on each Hook. Only this time only one will remain and with the help of the Savior, will decide the fate of the rest of their secret family…
Also on AO3
Prev on tbl: ch1/ch2/ch3
Note: not much to say except thank you so much for all your comments and I really hope you enjoy the story! Now there’s just bref mention of blood at the end and well poor Killy isn’t out of the wood yet even if medics are here. On that I’ll see you Sunday for the rest! :D
———————————————
Finally the medics were waiting outside in the forest for direction, giving David not much choice other than to leave Emma inside in order to bring them back to the cave.
Awww... Poor Killian(s) T_T
Also: Killian sucking his thumb, adorable and disturbing all at once XD
killian-whump reblogged
(sorry for the quality, blame my scanner)
killian-whump reblogged
Sucking Face part seven - that Storage 24 CS AU
Final part of this story, yay! There I are mentions of terrible things in the ER. Quick reminder: Storage 24 AU, Killian is Mark, the man without a face, and Emma is the alien who made him that way. It's a comedy.
-------------------
Somehow, they make it to the hospital without incident. Well, one incident, when someone took a potshot at the group. Emma took care of that problem.
David actually managed not to pass out.
As expected, the Emergency Room is packed with people in far worse shape than Killian. "That must hurt," Killian commented when they passed someone who'd been literally ripped in half.
Emma ignored the chaos and went straight up to the nurse at reception. "Where is Frankenstein? His commander is here."
The nurse, who was pale with wide, hollow eyes, thrust a clipboard at her. "I just need you to fill this out," she said, her voice empty.
Emma knocked it aside. The nurse blinked. "Where is Frankenstein? He needs to fix my mate."
The nurse was staring at the fallen clipboard, clearly unable to process what was happening. "If you would just fill out these forms..." she tried again weakly.
Emma transformed, and the ER quickly descended into chaos. Emma threw back her head and made a high shrieking sound. Killian tried to cover his ears, then screamed when he realized his hand was missing.
The ER cleared, except for a few people who were too injured to move.
"At least now it's a shorter wait," Regina said.
"What is that racket?" a voice demanded irritably. A doctor with very blond hair had come out, a scowl on his face. And then he saw Emma and froze. "Oh, Commander," he said meekly. "I wasn't expecting you yet."
David blinked. "Wait. You...?"
Mary Margaret was staring. "Victor? You... you're..."
"An alien? Yup." He turned to David and Mary Margaret. "Hey, Mary Margaret, I didn't think I'd ever see you again."
"What's going on here?" Regina demanded. "Who are you?"
"This is Dr Whale. The man Mary Margaret dated when we were separated." David glowered.
"He's an alien," Killian added helpfully, because they seemed to be missing the obvious.
"That's right," Dr Whale/Frankenstein/alien said. "Don't worry; it was only a brief fling."
"You slept with an alien," David said, horrified.
"I didn't know," Mary Margaret whispered.
"Was he...was he better than me?"
"I'm in a soap opera," Killian said. "I'd like to change the channel now."
The doctor approached Killian, looking exasperated. "This isn't what I meant when I told you about 'sucking face,' Commander."
"I was too enthusiastic," Emma said. "Fix him."
The doctor nodded. "Bring him back this way," he said to Robin.
The others opted to stay behind; Mary Margaret was offering her skills as a paramedic, and David wanted to get to the station and help try to bring some order to the city.
Whale found a gurney, and they set Killian atop it. He must have blacked out for a bit, because when he opened his eye again, he was in a hospital room, and the bandages had been removed from his head.
Whale was frowning as he spoke to someone to Killian's left. He turned to see Emma.
"... not a total loss," Whale was saying. "There will be scarring, and the eye's a loss, but I should be able to put him back together."
Excellent, Killian thought.
"Good. And I'll need you to make some improvements," Emma said, holding out her pink bunny bag.
"Not a problem, Commander," Whale agreed.
Improvements? What? "Wha?" Killian tried.
"Oh, he's awake. Don't worry, Jones, this won't hurt a bit." Whale winked. "Care to help me wheel him to an operating room?" he asked Emma.
Killian whimpered as they wheeled him away.
You’re really going to leave us there, wondering what “improvements” Alien Emma is going to make to her new mate???
killian-whump reblogged
Here Lies Killian Jones - Snippet from my CS Sleepy Hollow AU
Summary: By all accounts, Killian Jones ought to be dead. He’d met his demise on the field of battle outside the sleepy little town of Storybrooke, facing off against the Dark One who was working as a mercenary for the Red Coats. He’d felt the Dark One’s blade slice through him, the demon who had once been a man Killian had been guilty of cruelty against. He’d succumbed to his injury, but not before inflicting his own with the dagger he’d pulled from the Dark One’s belt at the last moment; the two collapsing to the blood soaked ground together as darkness overtook them. By all accounts, Killian Jones was dead. Dead and buried. So, why had he just awoken, and where the bloody hell was he?
A/N: HAPPY BIRTHDAY @killian-whump!!!! I remember you saying buried alive was one of your top 5 favorite whump tropes, so I knew I had to write this in your honor. It completes my eleventh fic in the whumpetition and ticks of another @badthingshappenbingo square.
This is a snippet from my CS Sleepy Hollow AU. This fic was going to be part of the 2019 cssns, but life happened. I still plan to write the full fic. Whether i save it for next’s event or post it before is anyone’s guess. For now, enjoy some Killian digging himself out of his own grave.
Rated: T / ~1750 words / Much thanks to @kmomof4 for giving this the once over for me! / All the love to @artistic-writer for the incredible manip of freshly unearthed Killian!
Here Lies Killian Jones
Killian’s eyes flew open and a gasp filled his lungs. A dank, earthy note hit the back of his throat, forcing a cough to expel from his lungs. He saw nothing but utter darkness and wondered if something might be covering his eyes. Reaching up to check, his hand hit a hard surface right above where he lay. Rough, brittle wood brushed against his palm and bits of debris fell in the wake of his inspection.
Where the devil was he?
A far off voice echoed in his ears. His name. Someone was saying his name. The compulsion to find this person overwhelmed him and he began to press against the barricade above him once more. With elbows bent out to his sides to try and leverage that which covered him, Killian met the edges of the structure and cold dread seeped into his chest. Raising his knees, they too hit the confines of his prison, and when he stretched his legs back out, only for his feet to find the same resistance, the awful truth came over him.
A coffin. He was lying in a coffin.
Memories of a duel flashed within his mind’s eye. Metal clanging against metal as he and the man he’d once known as Rumple Von Stiltskin fought on the battlefield. Though, it had become clear rather quickly that his foe was no longer a mere man.
“You once fooled me into thinking I’d met the Dark One on the road over the toll bridge,” Rumple sneered. “You humiliated me that night. Left me exposed in front of the woman I desired and stole her away from me.” He pushed off Killian, freeing himself from the blade he’d become impaled on and cast a simpering smirk upon his opponent. “I bet you never imagined I’d actually find him. Find him, and become him.”
The rest of their bout played out in Killian’s head, until the moment of his demise pierced his consciousness. The Dark One had run him through. Killian fumbled over the buttons of his coat, feeling for the wound and trying to determine whether he ought to be relieved or alarmed at finding none.
He remembered the sharp pain then the numbness that had quickly followed. The glint of a dagger in the Dark One’s belt and the rush of blood over his hand after embedding it in the demon’s gut. He remembered collapsing to the ground and seeing a swirl of darkness envelop him. Had it been death?
No. It couldn’t have been, for he was alive. He could feel the panicked rasps burning his lungs, could smell the petrichor of recent rainfall and the pine that made up his coffin. His pulse raced, heart hammering in his chest which was clothed by the heavy wool of his uniform. He could move his limbs, could cry out for help, and feel the sting of fresh terror pooling in his eyes. He was most assuredly alive, but for how much longer?
Ohhhh, it’s wonderful!!!!!!!!! I love it!!! What a lovely story, and yes, it’s one of my favoritest tropes ever!!!!!! :D And you did such a great job!!!
Thank you so much, my dear!!! *smooches and hugs* I am honored!!! <3
And thanks to @artistic-writer, too, for that lovely manip of long-haired, dirty-and-battered Killian... YUM! :D
#killian jones#au#fanfic#author: hollyethecurious#manips#artist: artistic writer#buried alive#confusion#alarm#escape#standing in the middle of the road like an idiot#a killian trope for the ages#bested by rumplestiltskin#bested by the modern world#also#gotta give a shout out to#rumple von stiltskin#birthday!#thank you#<3
killian-whump reblogged
In Need of More than One Escape (3/?)
Summary: Killian Jones wakes up from a year-long coma into a world shaken by a plague that caused billions of casualties and turned the survivors into one of three types: Alphas, sexual predators, Betas, human beings as they were, and Omegas, sexual prey.
In his total misfortune, Killian has turned into an Omega and upon waking up he gets immediately sold as a sexual slave to Eloise Gardener, a sadistic Alpha who takes special interest in him.
But he’s soon to learn that even when he escapes the physical prison she keeps him in, his mind is still trapped…
~ Word count for Ch. 3: ~2.8k Read from the beginning: AO3 link ~
Note: I would like to remind you that I’m taking many liberties with the “laws” of omegaverse fanfiction.
Warning: For anyone who isn’t here exactly for this, this chapter contains graphic descriptions of nonconsensual sexual activity. Also make sure you’ve read the warnings from the first chapter, and are okay with them before continuing onto this chapter.
~
He couldn’t move away.
With his hand cuffed to the bedpost, his arm stretched uncomfortably as Eloise pushed him further towards the center of the bed.
And his stupid cock was still pulsating with need.
“What the hell?” he said, surprised at how breathy his voice sounded.
“You can’t resist me, my Omega. Not now,” Eloise said and leaned over him, her curls and braids falling over her shoulders and brushing against his bare chest… where he could feel a soft shiver start and spread down to his crotch.
He tried to speak, only an incomprehensible mutter leaving his mouth instead. He closed his eyes and focused on his voice. Eloise’s hair seemed to be too distracting…
“Let me go,” he finally managed to say.
Eloise simply laughed.
As he had his eyes closed, he wasn’t prepared when she sat atop him, enclosing him in her warmth. His eyes snapped open as a deep groan left his mouth.
“Yes…” Eloise said. “That’s it. You like it, don’t you?”
Yes.
“N-no, no,” he forced his mouth to say.
She started moving, letting him reach deeper inside her. God, she was so wet, and so soft, and so-
No. He needed to get his senses back.
“Let me go!” he shouted and moved his free arm in an effort to hit her.
But she grabbed it with both her hands, squeezing on it almost painfully. “Stay down, Omega,” she said.
He groaned. “No!” He wiggled around, trying to free his arms and find a way to throw her off of him. But he froze when Eloise leaned over and started licking his stump. He was looking at her in near shock as she kissed and licked and sucked at the scarred flesh, as if it was her plaything or who knows what.
~
killian-whump reblogged
In Need of More than One Escape (1/?)
Summary: Killian Jones wakes up from a year-long coma into a world shaken by a plague that caused billions of casualties and turned the survivors into one of three types: Alphas, sexual predators, Betas, human beings as they were, and Omegas, sexual prey.
In his total misfortune, Killian has turned into an Omega and upon waking up he gets immediately sold as a sexual slave to Eloise Gardener, a sadistic Alpha who takes special interest in him.
But he’s soon to learn that even when he escapes the physical prison she keeps him in, his mind is still trapped…
Word count for Ch. 1: ~4.5k
~
Important Notes:
- This fic will include: rape and graphic depictions of it, violence, human trafficking elements, forced alpha/omega bonding, forced pregnancy, mpreg, and in general a lot of messed-up stuff. Make sure you’re okay with all these mentioned before you continue reading, and if there’s something specific that may bother you but is not in this list, don’t hesitate to ask me.
- I haven’t read a lot of fics in Omega Verse. I looked up some “rules”, and since I’m taking a lot of elements from it, I’m tagging it as Omega Verse, but all in all I’m making my own world here.
- There won’t be any animalistic elements other than Omegas experiencing heat, which here basically translates to an intense desire to be with their Alpha.
- For the most part there will also be no mention of body changes, but because Mpreg will play an important role here, I’m considering having a male Omega (guess who lol)… go through one certain change. However, it will only be relevant and detailed in one chapter I have planned, which can be skipped and I’ll warn you beforehand.
- In general I’m more interested in exploring stuff like rape elements, forced bonding/claiming and forced mpreg, and how all that affects our hapless pirate (who is not a pirate here since it’s a Modern AU, but anyhow). I hope that gives you an idea for how the story will be like.
- Again, for any further questions, even ones regarding tagging, don’t hesitate to drop an ask.
- Giving my full thanks to this fic, as it was the first one I read in Omega Verse and it inspired me to create and eventually start writing this one.
~
Cold.
Blinding white light seeping through his closed eyelids.
Scent of… of human waste and disinfectant.
A hospital?
A door opening.
Two male voices above him.
“That’s him?”
“Mm-hm.”
“He’s missing a hand.”
“Well, only that.”
“You sure he’s an Omega?”
“Yup. Tested and certified.”
Papers rustling.
“Mm. He’s handsome, but he won’t be easy to sell with such a defect.”
“Shhh. Be careful with your words,” said in a whisper. “He can probably hear you by now.”
“So what’s the story?”
“He’s been in a coma since May 12th 2018. GSW to the head.”
“He was shot in the head? And he survived? What about brain damage?”
“Well, he was in a coma. But tests show he’ll make a full recovery.”
“Since May, 12th, you said? 2018? So, he doesn’t know about the outbreak?”
“Nope. Unless he had some hearing during the first days, you know, with how much people talked about it. Even the nurses taking care of him. But we had no indication of it.”
Killian finally managed to open his eyes. Two men were standing above him, looking at each other. One seemed like a nurse, the other was dressed in black.
“That’ll be quite a surprise for him. And he should wake up soon?”
“Brain activity has been- oh! Speak of the devil!”
The nurse turned to him, noticing that he was looking at them. He fished a penlight from a pocket and examined Killian’s eyes. “Follow my finger,” he said, and Killian did as he was told, still confused and disoriented. The nurse then straightened up, nodding to the other man.
The man in black leaned over him, looking all over his face.
“His beard is freshly trimmed,” the man said.
“Of course. We gotta make ‘em look good, right?”
With a gloved hand, the man in black grabbed Killian’s face and moved it right and left, looking around.
Killian realized he couldn’t move yet… not that he had full comprehension of what exactly was happening.
~
I FINALLY got around to reading this, and I can’t wait to read more! :D
killian-whump reblogged
Vocivore, Ltd. (41 of 46)
Also on FFN and AO3 (ListerofTardis)
Tagging @ouatwinterwhump, @killian-whump, @sancocnutclub, @killianjonesownsmyheart1, @courtorderedcake, @facesiousbutton82 <3
***THE MOST WONDERFUL, HEARTBREAKING, and BEAUTIFULLY WHUMPY COVER ART BY @cocohook38 HERE and HERE!!!!!!!!!*************
***LETHAL Chapter 19 art in all of its BLOODSTAINED GLORY!!!!************
**POOR STABBED KILLIAN falling into the sheriff station! Ch. 7 & 23 art!!**
****KILLIAN AND HIS MASTER IN THE GORGEOUS CATHEDRAL!!!!!!!!!!!! CHAPTER 1 ART THAT KILLS ME EVERY TIME I SEE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*********
*CH 34 ART! A DEFEATED KILLIAN, HEAD BOWED BEFORE HIS MASTER!!*
***CH 36 ART! DETECTIVE JONES BOWS BEFORE HIS NEW MASTER!!!!!!***
***AAAAHHHH!!! THANK YOU MY WONDERFUL COCONUT FRIEND!!!!!!***
________________________________________________________________
Present (Saturday)…
In the presence of his Master, Killian lay inert.
There was no escape. Not ever.
No immunity, not in the end. He had resisted as long as he could. But now, he no longer had any control over his body. He could do nothing but lie helpless, paralyzed and at the mercy of the creature endlessly circling. Tapping that eerie cadence around and around, stopping only to prod at him, squeeze and pinch and crush. His ankle. His hand. His ribs.
Killian could not even scream anymore. Sometimes he felt on the verge of knowing why. The tentacle snaking down his throat did not truly hurt, though on occasion it inspired such panic that he would rather be dead than endure its presence any longer. Then the moment would pass, he would lose concentration and forget the invader, and try to beg an instant’s peace, and wonder why even the smallest hint of his pathetic pleas would not come forth.
YOU CAN NEVER BE FREE OF ME. I SHALL HAVE YOU FOR ALL ETERNITY.
Yes, Master.
AHHHHHHHHH <3 bless
killian-whump reblogged
Vocivore, Ltd. (39 of 45?)
Also on FFN and AO3 (ListerofTardis)
Tagging @ouatwinterwhump, @killian-whump, @sancocnutclub, @killianjonesownsmyheart1, @courtorderedcake, @facesiousbutton82 <3
***THE MOST WONDERFUL, HEARTBREAKING, and BEAUTIFULLY WHUMPY COVER ART BY @cocohook38 HERE and HERE!!!!!!!!!*************
***LETHAL Chapter 19 art in all of its BLOODSTAINED GLORY!!!!************
**POOR STABBED KILLIAN falling into the sheriff station! Ch. 7 & 23 art!!**
****KILLIAN AND HIS MASTER IN THE GORGEOUS CATHEDRAL!!!!!!!!!!!! CHAPTER 1 ART THAT KILLS ME EVERY TIME I SEE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*********
*CH 34 ART! A DEFEATED KILLIAN, HEAD BOWED BEFORE HIS MASTER!!*
***CH 36 ART! DETECTIVE JONES BOWS BEFORE HIS NEW MASTER!!!!!!***
***AAAAHHHH!!! THANK YOU MY WONDERFUL COCONUT FRIEND!!!!!!***
(what the heck happened to the horizontal line, tumblr??)
Present (Friday, continued)…
The first siren was the most beautiful sound Jones had heard in a very long time. His sense of time had been growing increasingly fuzzy, but his estimate would have leaned toward a wait of at least an hour. Likely a gross exaggeration, but with Killian in such dire straits, and the attention-seeking behavior of his own dizzying pain, every moment had stretched to an interminable age.
HAHAHAHAAHHAHAAHHA OMG
The callback to Stretcher Hook in S7... I CAN’T
killian-whump reblogged
That’s true love. Emma, you chose me.
I found this in my drafts just now...
A little vignette, because I’m reading this book that is giving me ~urges~ to rewrite the S6 finale with Killian in the asylum with Emma...
Emma watched the dark-haired man from her seat at the next table over. He was alone, as was she, both of them having opted not to pair up with other inmates patients and to stick to their own company.
Killian, she believed his name was. He rarely put in an appearance in the commons room, let alone in the dining hall, so his presence had caught Emma’s eye. What he was in for, she didn’t know. Undoubtedly, it was some manner of psychosis, like everyone else - though he looked sane enough to her.
But she knew better than most that looks could be deceiving. She, herself, looked sane... but if her history was anything to go by, she wasn’t. Or, rather, she hadn’t been. She was better now, or so she believed, but Mayor Fiona didn’t seem to believe she was well enough to be out of this place.
Killian seemed to be having an intense staring contest with his dinner, glaring at the slices of bologna he’d peeled out of his sandwich as if they’d personally offended him somehow.
Maybe they had, Emma mused to herself. It wouldn’t be the first time she’d met someone who thought their food was talking to them.
If the bologna had offended him, it seemed his macaroni and cheese was more interested in confounding him. He finally ate one noodle of it, then resumed his staring contest - this time with his brow furrowed thoughtfully.
On a whim, Emma picked up her tray and moved over to his table. “I think you’re safe with the mac and cheese,” she teased. “It’s the Mystery Meat on Thursdays that you really need to watch out for.”
Killian blinked and looked up at her in surprise, having been so engrossed in staring at his meal that he apparently hadn’t even noticed her coming over to sit with him.
“Emma Swan,” Emma said, offering him her hand to shake. Since he had a death grip on his fork with his right hand, she’d offered her left.
He stared at it, and for a moment, Emma wondered if he was going to stab her hand with his fork. Instead, he cleared his throat. “Killian Jones,” he said, not taking her hand.
She waited a moment more, not wanting to be rude and remove her hand if he was just a bit slow. After an awkward moment, she finally pulled it back. “I guess you’re not the hand-shaking type,” she dead-panned.
“Are you mocking me?”
The question caught Emma off-guard, both for its unexpectedness and the naked sincerity on Killian’s face as he asked it. “No,” she said. “I’m not mocking you. Why would you think I was?”
He shrugged, turning his eyes down to stare at his dinner tray once more. “You wouldn’t be the first.” He stabbed some more noodles with his fork and shoved them in his mouth. As he chewed, he brought his left arm up from under the table and laid it beside his tray.
Oh. He didn’t have a left hand to shake hers with. No wonder he’d thought she was mocking him. “I didn’t know,” she said.
“Hmm.” He returned his left arm to its spot in his lap, kept under the table and away from prying eyes.
“How did you lose it?” Emma regretted the words as soon as they popped out of her mouth, fearing that this would definitely shut Killian down the rest of the way and prevent any kind of friendship from ever developing between them. And, for some reason, that thought made her incredibly uneasy.
Fortunately, he didn’t seem perturbed by the question at all. “Crocodile ate it,” he said blithely.
“Seriously?”
Killian shrugged. “I don’t know anymore, to tell you the truth. Maybe I lost it in the Ogre Wars.”
“The Ogre Wars?” Emma asked, lifting an eyebrow. “That’s not a thing.” At least, it wasn’t a thing that anyone else should know about. It was a thing in the book of fairytales she and Henry had once believed in, but... “Are you mocking me now?” she demanded.
“I wouldn’t dream of it, love.”
“Then how do you know about the Ogre Wars? Did Fiona put you up to this? To test me or something?”
He blinked, looking genuinely confused now. “Who is Fiona?”
“The Mayor.”
He huffed in slight offense. “As if someone so important would even deign to visit a worthless old sea dog like myself.”
“Then why did you mention the Ogre Wars?” Emma demanded.
“I honestly don’t know, love.”
Emma was surprised to realize that she didn’t discern a lie in his statement. She’d never admit it to anyone out loud, for fear they’d think she was even madder than they already thought she was, but she had a spotless record for spotting lies in other people’s statements. And Killian Jones was undoubtedly speaking the truth when he told her he didn’t know why he’d said what he’d said.
“I rarely know what I’m saying anymore.” He sighed. “I’m mad, you see. Mad as a hatter. Crazy as a loon. That’s what they tell me, so it must be true.”
“What’s your diagnosis?”
He laughed, but there was no humor in it. “Diagnosis? Oh, love. They don’t need anything as fancy as that to condemn a man to hell. It appears that being an inconvenience is sufficient enough to earn one such honors.”
“An inconvenience?” Emma questioned. “To who?”
Killian closed his eyes for a moment and sighed. “I don’t even know, love. I believe... I used to know, but where there was once knowledge, an answer to your question, perhaps... there’s now nothing. Emptiness. A black hole that grows blacker by the hour.”
Emma smirked. “That’s a bit melodramatic, don’t you think?”
“Perhaps. You’re probably right, Swan. Perhaps I am as mad as they say.”
A pair of nurses approached then, flanked by two burly orderlies. “Mr. Jones!” one of the nurses said sternly. “We’ve been looking for you everywhere. How did you get out of your room?”
“Centuries of practice,” Killian said simply.
The nurse shook her head, ignoring his words completely. “And what are you doing here, of all places? You already had dinner in your room.”
“I didn’t come for the food.” He frowned. “I came for... I wanted...” His frown grew as he tried to fill in the blanks of his own sentence. “There was something... missing... I need to find it. It’s important.”
“Well, whatever it is, you’ll have to look for it later, Mr. Jones.” The nurse nodded to the two orderlies, who each grabbed Killian by an arm and hauled him to his feet. “You’re late for your treatment now.”
Killian’s entire face paled. “No,” he said weakly.
“Come now,” the other nurse said, stepping forward as he spoke. “You need your treatments to help you think clearly.”
“No, no, no, no,” Killian said, shaking his head desperately. “They steal my thoughts. They take everything away and make it all black. I have to... There’s something I need to do. I have to... It’s important!”
Emma found herself getting to her feet. For all she knew, Killian Jones was a raving madman, one who clearly needed more help than she could even hope to understand. And yet... She didn’t like this. She didn’t like seeing him this way - scared and confused, desperately looking for help that wasn’t going to come. When one of the orderlies brought out a stun gun, she finally broke her silence. “Hey,” she said firmly. “He was calm just a second ago. There’s no need to hurt him. Just let him settle down.”
Killian’s eyes snapped to Emma’s and widened. “Emma,” he said breathlessly. “Emma, we need to go. We need to get out of here, before the blackness takes you, too. Please. You need to go! Find Henry. Take him with you. Get somewhere safe. Emma, please!”
“That’s enough of that,” the male nurse said, taking the stun gun from the orderly.
“You have to break the cur- AUGH!” The jolt of electricity from the stun gun obliterated the end of Killian’s plea, but Emma had heard enough. Killian slumped between the two orderlies, boneless and whimpering now, as they dragged him from the room for his ‘treatment’.
The male nurse left with Killian and the orderlies, but the female one stuck around. “I’m sorry you had to witness that, Miss Swan,” she said ruefully. “He’s a very troubled man, Mr. Jones.”
“What’s wrong with him?” Emma asked. She wasn’t even sure she needed an answer to that question, but she was curious what the nurse would say.
“What isn’t?” She smiled sympathetically, as if her non-answer should be enough to ease Emma’s mind. “Don’t worry about him. He’ll be feeling better as soon as he gets his treatment.”
“And what treatment is that?”
“You know I can’t discuss another patient’s treatment with you, Emma. Now finish eating. Your dinner hour’s almost up.” With that, the nurse headed out of the dining hall, following the same path the other staff members had gone with Killian in tow.
Emma slowly sat and looked down at her uneaten meal. Her appetite was gone. She wouldn’t be able to swallow a bite after what she’d just witnessed. She didn’t even understand why it had bothered her so profoundly... she just knew that it had.
“Electroshock.”
Emma looked up at the old man who had spoken from the next table over.
“That one’s always going into the electroshock room. First few times I saw him, he was screaming about curses and swans and black fairies. Now he just screams. They’ll keep at it until they’ve fried the madness out of his brain... along with whatever else is in there. Poor bastard.” The old man smiled sadly. “You’d be best off forgetting about him, dear. You’ll likely never see him again - and if you do, I doubt he’ll remember you at all.”
If the man’s words were intended to make her feel better, they utterly failed. Instead, they filled Emma with a profound sadness.
She didn’t know why, but being forgotten by Killian Jones suddenly felt like the worst possible thing that could ever happen to her.