𝑳𝑶𝑽𝑬𝑳𝒀 - Rumplestiltskin [2]

fifty seven

57|THE TRUTH

Celeste smiled to herself as she sniffed the single rose still perfectly preserved from when it was first gifted many years ago.

"Oh, Killian." She greeted him as he stepped inside the store. "I'm guessing the dagger is safe."

"Yes." Hook nodded to her, walking closer. "And now that it's hidden, we have one last piece of business. We must swear a Pirate's Oath. We must promise to never talk about what happened today again, to one another or anyone else. It's the only way to assure the dagger stays safe."

He placed her hand on his heart before placing his hand on hers. Celeste furrowed her brows in confusion, becoming uncomfortable at the closeness.

"You have my word." He whispered down to her.

"And you have mine." She replied, her voice dull as she spoke.

"I'm guessing that's a gift from your admirer, Will." Hook stated as he stepped back, gesturing to the rose behind her.

"Like I said, Will is an old friend." Celeste chuckled, glancing at the beautiful rose. "Rumpel gifted it to me on one of my first days at the castle. It's when I realised that maybe he wasn't some kind of monster."

"So, things with you and Will are not serious?" He asked curiously, smiling at her.

"I gave my heart to Rumpel many years ago, I'm not prepared to ever move on." She confirmed for him. "Just like you are a dear friend, so is Will."

"I better leave you then." Hook nodded to her before turning to leave.

"Oh, Killian." Celeste stopped him from leaving. "About Will. I was wondering, what happened between you two?"

"That's a story for another time." He smiled at her over his shoulder before leaving the store.

Celeste watched him leave, eyes widening as she realised that something was off about Hook. She knew Hook, he always comforted her when she was feeling emotional, even before she realised.

~•~

"He's here?" Celeste stammered, her confirmation making her feel weak. Hook caught her, helping her sit down as Emma passed her a cup of water. "I knew this terrible feeling was not the baby kicking."

"The dagger." Emma said seriously, her voice laced with worry. "You need to hand it over so we can stop this fight before it starts."

"The dagger?" She trailed off, glancing at Hook. "I don't have the dagger. Killian does."

"What? Me?" Hook looked around at the small group confused. "Well, I haven't seen that cursed blade since you commanded the Crocodile to leave the first time."

"That bastard." Celeste snapped, standing up and pushing past the group. She stood in the streets, glaring out into empty space. "You fucking coward! Too afraid to face your own pregnant wife! Dagger or not I will always be more powerful than you!" Her voice echoed around the street, her yells startling those inside as she stepped back into the building.

"You gave it to Gold?" Snow confirmed once the raging woman had sat back down, sipping at her tea.

"He's back and so is his power." Emma sighed, realising what had happened.

"Fucking deceiving bastard." Celeste continued to curse the man, grumbling to herself.

"Banishment was too good for that demon." Hook agreed with the pregnant woman. "We should have driven that dagger through his heart when we had the chance."

"Then your name would be written across it." Emma reminded him.

"It's a small price to pay to ensure the Crocodile wouldn't come back again." He argued with her.

"Touch one hair on my husband's head and I will burn your balls straight off your body." Celeste warned him, glaring at him.

"Pregnancy hormones?" Snow asked quietly, glancing down at her old friend.

"They are killing me." She agreed, leaning back in her seat. "One minute I'm angry, next I'm sad."

"I know you're angry, but we defeated him before and we'll do it again." Emma said hopefully before addressing the group. "But the question is, how? We don't even know what he's planning."

"We save August first." Charming suggested.

"Yeah, you do that." Hook nodded to Snow and Charming. "I'll find out the Dark Ones secret."

"How are you gonna do that?"

"The Sea Witch, Ursula." He explained to them. "Remember when I said I had a past with her? Now's the time to use it. By taking a page out of your book, Swan. I'm gonna return her happy ending."

"Can you really do that?"

"Aye." Hook nodded. "Because I'm the one who took it from her in the first place."

"I forgot you used to be a villain."