In a universe where everyone is born with numbers on their wrists counting down to when they'll meet their soulmate, send me 00:00:00 for my muses reaction to their numbers hitting zero when they meet yours.
She was a Princess. She was royalty. It made sense that she would end up like this. On top of being a Princess, she was the heir of the White Kingdom. Whatever ransom a princess may have only seemed to increase because of the kingdom she would one day rule. Emma knew that this was bound to happen one day, and she admitted it was her fault for letting her guard down. The Evil Queen was no longer a threat to their people, which made them feel as if all was good and they were all safe from any real danger. After all, she was once their greatest threat.
A pained hiss escaped her when the men pushed her down on her knees, hands bound behind her back. Even as she struggled against her captors, it all seemed to be in vain. At least they were not laughing or sneering her way, making them just a sliver more respectable than what she expected out of pirates. Had she not been focused on fighting against them, she would have been more aware of the faint ticking in the air, which seemed to be swallowed by the crashing waves against the vessel.
When a man stepped up, who she assumed to be the Captain, she watched him rise to deck with a sense of power she would have admired had he been anyone else. Jaw tightening, the Princess swore angrily, dropping any proper pretenses as she managed to knock one of the men aside. But she was just as quickly restrained and held down. The strike across her face barely silenced her, but it had slowed her down.
Finally, when the man stopped before her, eyes of defiance lifted to meet his. Just as lips parted to speak, she became more aware of the ticking, echoed by another pair. Eyes widened in shock, mouth left agape when a loud beep sounded. "No," she gasped out, appalled. Silence followed save for the howling wind around them, meeting equally shock eyes -- the eyes of her supposed soul mate.
"You've got to be kidding me."