Author’s Note: WARNING: Tears may happen for this chapter. Here is chapter 5. Hope you enjoy it. A lot of this story has dialog from the show. I don’t own those words and they belong to the people who wrote them. I don’t own OUAT.

Temptation Falling
By: giddyfan

Chapter 5

Sitting with Snow and Charming I am watching Emma have a magic lesson with Regina.

“This is a bad idea,” Charming states.

“She has it in her. She should learn to use it. We just have to trust her,” Snow exclaims.

“Yeah, it’s not Emma I don’t trust,” Charming comments.

“We need to talk,” Killian whispers behind us.

“Pan paid me a visit. He, uh…he told me that Neal is alive, that he’s on this very island,” Killian informs us.

“Emma saw him. He was shot. He fell through a portal. No one could survive that,” Snow declares.

“Well, he did, and now he’s here. He said he took him from this very camp while we were off in his cave,” Killian discloses.

“According to Pan, if he’s telling the truth. And, uh, why would he tell you? What does he hope to gain?” Charming questions.

“Who knows why he does anything? He has his reasons, but it’s a sure bet they’re not good ones,” Killian responds.

“He’s telling the truth. Tracks…and a scuffle. Someone was here while we were gone. We have to tell her,” Snow observes a broken branch and tracks.

“No, no, no. She already lost Neal once. And if this is a game, we can’t put her through losing him again,” Charming disagrees.

“If I can get a word in,” I interrupt.

“While I was at Pan’s camp I heard voices. One of the voices referred to himself as Neal,” I convey.

“See Neal is alive,” Snow supports me.

“Either way, telling her is what Pan wants, which is why we shouldn’t do it,” Killian replies.

“You want to find him without letting her know?” I wonder.

“Why hurt her unnecessarily?” Charming reasons.

“I’ve never lied to her before,” Snow worries.

“You’re not lying. You’re just keeping a secret until confirmation,” Charming twists.

“Secrets always seem to keep us from the people we really care about,” Snow delivers.

“And sometimes secrets protect the people we love,” Charming claims. We start packing to go out.

“If we’re gonna hide this, we need a good cover story,” Snow points out.

“Done. That’s not a problem,” Killian mutters.

“Where you guys going?” Emma asks. Killian and Charming say two different things at the same time. “Guys, what’s going on?” Emma inquires.

“Neal’s alive,” Snow blurts out.

“Neal is…alive?” Emma says shocked.

“Maybe. Sorry. She deserved to know,” Snow apologizes.

“This is a waste of time. He’s toying with us,” Regina protests.

“I don’t think so. Look. More scuffling. Someone was definitely resisting,” Snow finds more tracks.

“How do we know that means Neal?” Emma questions.

“I heard voices while I was at Pan’s camp. One of them called themselves Neal,” I repeat my information. Emma’s face gains a little more hope.

“Are you really going to fall for this?” Regina asks. When she sees Emma is believing us Regina gets angrier.

“Fine. You wanna follow the Evil Munchkin’s dirt road? Be my guest,” Regina starts to walk away.

“Wait. Where are you going?” Emma inquires.

“To save our son,” Regina answers.

“We need to stick together,” Emma states.

“No, we don’t. You may be prepared to risk Henry’s life over some heartbroken fool’s errand, but I’m not. I’m tired of waiting around,” Regina remarks and walks away.

“What if she’s right? Pan could be lying,” Emma doubts.

“Just because it seems too good to be true doesn’t mean it is. Don’t give up. You owe it to Henry to find out if his father’s still alive, and you owe it to yourself,” Snow tells Emma. Snow leads the way following the tracks. As we are following the path towards where Baelfire is, Killian and I take up the rear.

“What happened?” I ask him.

“What do you mean?” Killian wonders.

“I know something happened between you and Emma,” I clarify. Killian doesn’t say anything. “If you don’t want to tell your little sis that’s okay. But I will find out eventually,” I tell him. Killian smirks.

“The tracks lead directly into that cave. This must be where Pan is keeping Neal,” Snow stops in front of the cave entrance.

“If the cave is some sort of prison, why aren’t there any guards posted to stop us?” Charming questions.

“Because this prison doesn’t require guards. Echo cave,” Killian informs.

“You know it?” Snow inquires.

“All too well. I lost half my crew inside those rock walls. The only way to rescue someone from inside is to reveal a secret,” Killian explains.

“A secret? That’s all?” Snow wonders.

“Your darkest secret. The echo cave derives its name from an old saying…‘the deeper the lie, the more truth in its echo.’ The cave demands that you reveal a truth about yourself. A secret you would never admit to anyone. Pan would never let me go in there when I was here last,” I reveal.

“This is ridiculous,” Emma expresses.

“Don’t kill the messengers, luv,” Killian teases.

“Even if we spill our guts, how do we know Neal’s still alive in there?” Emma points out.

“Because this is what Pan wants. He wants us to rescue him,” Killian conveys.

“Why?” Charming asks.

“So that we reveal our secrets. He believes once we do, our secrets will destroy us,” Killian answers. We walk inside and come out onto a ledge. Across a great gap is a platform with a cage on top. There is someone inside the cage.

They look out and the person yell, “Emma!”

Emma takes a step back and whispers, “Neal.”

“It must be a hundred feet across,” Snow states.

“Even if we fashioned some sort of rope, there’s nothing to attach it to. No way to swing over,” Charming voices.

“So what do we do?” Emma wonders.

“I told you what needs to be done. Consider this the moment of truth, literally. Now…who wants to kick things off?” Killian turns to face the group.

“So, what? Someone tells their secret and they sprout wings?” Emma questions.

“I don’t know the particulars, only what I’ve been told,” Killian responds.

“Well, how do you know it’ll work?” Charming asks.

“There’s only one way to find out, I suppose,” Killian mutters.

“No, Killian. Me first,” I stop him. I take a deep breath. “When I was at Pan’s camp, when I should have been doing everything I could to get Henry out of there. I wasn’t,” I start Tears are flowing from my eyes crying as I reveal myself. “Because my secret history with Pan, with Peter is that we were lovers. I fell back, back into temptation. I let my emotions and my past cloud my judgement. I’m sorry,” I finish. Killian pulls me in for a hug and I cling to him still crying. Suddenly the ground shakes almost knocking us down. We look and see rocks form part of a bridge on Baelfire’s side.

“It’s okay Audrey. We have all been weak when it comes to certain people,” Emma forgives me.

“Thank you,” I thank her and step out of Killian’s embrace.

“Mary Margaret…,” Charming starts.

“No. Me next,” Snow interrupts Charming.

“Ever since the curse broke, since we found each other, since we found Emma and all that happiness, there is something I haven’t wanted to admit,” Snow starts. She looks over at Emma for what she says next.

“Our daughter is a beautiful, smart, amazing woman whom I love very much, and of whom I could not be more proud,” Snow continues. Snow looks back at Charming, “But she’s all grown up. And as much as I wanna pretend I’m okay with that I’m not. We missed it, David.” She glances at Emma, “What we have with her is unique, but it’s not what I wanted.” “We were cheated out of everything…her first step, her first word, her first smile. We missed it all,” Snow says.

“What are you saying?” Charming asks.

“When we get off this island and get back to Storybrooke, I want another go at it. I wanna have another baby,” Snow admits. The ground shakes again and more of the bridge appears.

“Nothing in this world would make me happier, and I know with all my heart that you would make an amazing mother. But it can never happen…at least not with me,” Charming responds.

“What do you mean?” Snow inquires?

“When Hook and I went to search for the sextant, he was really taking me to find a cure,” Charming admits.

“A cure for what?” Snow questions.

“Dreamshade,” Charming reveals.

“The lost boys, the arrow…you pushed me out of the way…,” Snow remembers.

“I wasn’t fast enough. I was hit,” Charming finishes.

“Hook was able to find a cure, but it comes at a price. I can’t leave Neverland,” Charming finally gets to the end. More rumbling rocks form on the bridge. There is still space between the bridge and us.

“Crap. We still can’t even jump,” I complain.

“Audrey it’s okay. You don’t need to protect me,” Killian reassures me. I nod and everyone faces him.

“I kissed Emma,” Killian confesses.

“You did what?” Charming protests.

“David now is not the time,” Snow whispers.

“I already told Mary Margret so technically it’s not a secret. But it was just a kiss. How’s that your darkest secret?” Emma wonders.

“My secret is I never thought I was capable of letting go of my first love, of my Milah. When I met Audrey she made me human again. However I never believed that I could find someone else like my first love…until I met you,” Killian lays bare. The ground shakes and the rest of the bridge forms. Emma unsheathes her sword and walks over there. We watch as she talks to Baelfire and attempts to get him out with her sword. We can’t hear what she admits to Baelfire but it works and the bars of the cage melt away. They hug and then come back over the bridge. As we exit Baelfire thanks us.

“Well, don’t thank us yet. We still have to save Henry,” I reply.

“We found your star map, so the question is, do you know how to get off this island?” Killian asks.

“If we can find Henry, I can get us home,” Baelfire confirms.

“Well, let’s go get Tinker Bell and retrieve Henry,” Charming declares. Snow and Charming take the lead to head back to the camp. Killian and I start following but I notice that he has stopped and is spying on Emma and Neal. I go and stand next to him. As we listen I see Killian’s facade crack. My heart breaks to see my brother’s heart hurt.

Author’s Note 2: Please read and review. Even if you have reviewed previous chapters or it is a bad review please let me know how I am doing. Reviews make me post faster.

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