Okay! So, I was into OUAT when it first came out but then I got behind episodes and have recently caught up! I'm so glad I did! This show has recently caught my writing motivation, and I hope that you enjoy this story and all of it's AU goodness (hopefully!)
It's set in the Enchanted Forest (as you can probably gather after reading it) it's a Captain Swan (eventual) story, that will have a lot of romance, adventure, and possible angst in very far off future chapters. I have a majority of this story plotted out in the depths of my mind, and probably should've written it all out before I started posting it here, but I find that that can cause long hiatus' because I forget to upload them!
So, onto In This World!
Disclaimer: I do not own OUAT or any of the characters, they all belong to ABC/Disney corporations!
Emma's wrists should've been sore from the chains locked around her wrists. Her arms were so numb from their position she was scared they would never feel again. If that wasn't bad enough, her lips were dried and cracked, and her skin was covered in a layer of sweat and grim. Damn her captor. Damn everything. She should've listened to her mother and stayed inside the carriage. They probably thought she was dead – taken advantage of, tortured and killed. It was worse enough not knowing where she was, but not knowing what even became of her parents was the real torture. Sitting alone in a dank cell room was horrible on her nerves, but she was depending on breaking free eventually.
The cell door clanged as it was opened and a man was dragged in and attached to the wall across from her. His forehead was bleeding into his eye and he was unresponsive to the jeers or hits the guards gave him. One turned towards her and eyed her body up and down, causing her to sneer at him. She spat at him one day, but she learned that she would just be hit if she did that. It was best if she kept her strength for later. She would need it, especially after so long with minimal food and water, just enough to keep her alive, but not enough to give her enough strength and persistence that she could coherently think about an escape plan.
The guard just grinned at her before following his partner out. She was just glad that the man hadn`t done anything more than do his sick eye perusal every time he saw her. She was happy that she looked so disgusting, otherwise he probably would`ve tried something, and she knew that if he did she would break. There was so much she could handle and that, she decided, would be her breaking point.
Hours went by before the man across from her woke up. A groan caused her to jump and then a clang as he tried to pull his arms down. He cursed and yanked roughly at his bindings. Emma didn`t try to stop him, just watched as he tugged and pulled until his wrists were raw and bleeding from the metal edges. When he finally gave up catching his breath, his eyes caught hers. She could barely make out the colour in the poor light, but she knew they were blue. His skin was slightly tan and he had stubble dusting his jaw. From his clothing choice, she knew he must be a pirate.
He licked his lips idly, frowning, "What're you doing here, lass?"
She tugged lightly at her arms, wincing at the pain. "Hanging around," she croaked out, wincing at the sound of her voice. "Typical lady like things," she bit out. He laughed at her attempt at humor. She jutted her chin towards him, deciding that speaking was more painful than anything she had felt so far.
"Someone knocked me over me head," he grumbled, "Taken captive after a bloody wench stole my coin purse."
The corner of Emma's mouth curled up slightly. He stared at her curiously for a moment, "How long have you been here, lass?"
"What is the season?" she asked quietly, but even that was a harsh whisper.
"The snow has fallen."
Her eyes widened, "Again?" she whispered, and she ducked her head, hair falling to obscure her face. A year give or take since she had been captured. Her parents had surely mourned her lost. Her parents surely had moved on and were trying to reclaim their happiness. Maybe even having another child to continue their line. Losing one child and deciding to have another to fill the hole in their life.
It was silent for the longest time. When she finally lifted her head, she saw the sympathy in his eyes. "Killian Jones."
"What?" she grumbled, looking away. She didn't want his sympathy.
"My name, lass," he chuckled, "If we are to spend some time together, thought we could learn each other's names."
She gave him a look and shook her head. He stared at her curiously for a while before nodding, "A name can be a powerful thing, very well, lass. You have the power of knowing my name."
They fell into silence, mostly because she feared she would lose her voice forever if she kept talking in this state. She needed to be able to speak whenever she finally got out of this blasted cell. He was silent, one eye shut, probably bothered by the blood still seeping down his eye, but at a much more sluggish pace this time.
It wasn't long until Emma fell asleep in her position, and not long after that a guard came in. He sneered at the two of them before placing two cups of water on the floor and two bowls of what looked like sludge. "Enjoy yer meal, heathens," he grumbled before walking back out. Killian stared at the food incredulously.
"How in bloody hell are we suppose to eat that-" before he could finish the sentence, he felt his arms slacken so suddenly that the weight of the cuff around his wrist clipped his head and stunned him for a moment. Emma rotated her wrists and let out a quiet moan of relief before standing on unsteady legs and moving towards the center of the room and picking up her share of the food. "Why not just let us loose unless they want in the cell?"
Emma carefully drank her water, revelling in the feeling but knowing better than to gobble down her food and drink. Once she knew her throat was well enough to speak, she spared him a glance, "It makes our arms weaker over time," she explained flexing her arm and giving her poor muscles a disappointed look. She wasn't going to tell him that she generally did arm exercises to keep up at least minimal strength. Including attempting to lift herself off the ground by pulling on the chains. That accounted for most of the bruising and cuts littering her wrists.
"Clever," he muttered, examining the wall as he scooped up his food.
He spent their entire mealtime asking her questions about their jail between mouthfuls. She answered them to the best of her ability; he was the first friendly contact she had in a while. The guards were hostile, uncaring, or very, very interested in her womanly assets. That just wasn't something she was willing to indulge in.
If she and Killian had met under other circumstances, she wouldn't give him the time of day.
However, once he strayed into more personal territories, she locked up her responses faster than a respectable family locking their valuables when they knew a pirate was near. Thankfully, on her part, there was a sharp tug on their bindings. Emma got up and moved back to her old position, he stared at her curiously, but she said nothing. A moment later, the chains were yanked on hard enough that Killian fell backwards and was dragged back to his side of the room.
"Bloody hell!" he quipped after he got over the shock, "Couldn't have warned me, lass?"
"Some things are easier to learn the hard way," she shrugged her shoulder and offered him a grin. Instead of a smirk, which had donned his face from the get go was replaced with a smile in return.
"Aye, lass, that they are."
-ღ-
"How long do you think we've been in here?" Killian asked a few weeks later, his arms were beginning to feel a lot like how the woman's across from him looked. He was use to his left arm being sore and weak for a portion of his life, but it felt awful that both of them were like this. He wouldn't let anyone know he was feeling like that however, he had too much pride. The woman's eyes opened and she stared at him for a moment.
"Don't care to count anymore," she murmured quietly, eyes flickering briefly towards a set of markings on the back wall. He could vaguely make out a great deal of scratches, marking the days passed. Or at least the times she had gotten meals. He had assumed that was how she was counting days, because it was how he was.
"Care to tell me your name, lass?" he asked, once more. He had tried at least every other day. Providing her with a bit of insight into his life as a pirate to see if she could open up and tell him her name. So far, it had been fruitless, but those who knew him knew he loved a challenge. The lass just shook her head, and his mouth created a firm line. "Then I will just have to come up with something to call you."
"Oh, this should be good," she bit at him, a bit sarcastically, "It can't be any worse than being called lass for three weeks straight."
"I could be calling you love, love," he winked at her, before quirking his eyebrow at her rolling eyes, "I'll think up a name soon, just have to find one that suits your lovely personality."
Emma studied him for a moment before rolling her eyes again. "Fine, my name is-"
The door opened and one of the guards strolled in, "Thought there was an agreement," the guard grinned at her, "No one we place in this cell gets your name." She glared at him darkly, not saying anything. His eyes narrowed, "Now you aren't speaking? Well, guess what, girl, you're getting an upgrade."
The look on his face made her blood run cold, but instead of cowering back. She spat in his direction and she felt the sharp pain of his leathered hand smacking against her cheek. Her head snapped to the side and she felt blood well up in her mouth. She spat on the ground, seeing it darkened by the blood. Her eyes narrowed.
"Oi!" Killian snapped, "That's not how you treat a lady!"
The guard ignored him and unlocked Emma's chains. Her arms fell and she felt a rush of blood pulse through them, almost painfully. She winced but wasn't able to feel relieved by being able to actually feel her finger tips again when the guard grabbed her by her arm and hoisted her to her feet.
"Don't worry, you'll like my chambers," the guard grinned at her.
A sudden change washed over Emma, surprising the guard. With her arms free, she grabbed the dagger on his belt, and with her, other arm grabbed the neck of his armor. He threw his arms out to shield himself but she already plunged the dagger at his neck. He fell down, the keys falling from his grip. Emma would've regretted it if she didn't have the feeling that she wasn't the first female prisoner that he had tormented. Now she would be the last. She grabbed the keys and looked at her new cellmate. He had a look of surprise that was suddenly replaced with hope as he stared at the keys.
Her eyes closed and she knew she was going to regret this but...she grasped the keys tighter and did what she knew was the right thing for her.
She shoved the keys into the lock and unlocked his binds. She didn't wait for him to stand up before she was out the door. The dagger was still secure in her hands and she looked up and down the halls.
Killian stood behind her, "That was bad form," he informed the corpse, before bending down and rummaging through the man's pockets. Once he had decided nothing was valuable enough to keep, except a large coin purse, he headed out after the girl.
"Do you remember anything coming in?" she questioned him, eyes still looking up and down the corridors.
He followed her gaze before pointing to a wooden door, "That's where a bloke took my bloody things."
"First stop," Emma murmured, slipping down the hall moving quietly. Killian was surprised, she was a fiery lass who seemed exactly what to do in this situation. She would make a good pirate, he decided. She ducked under the portion of the door that had a grate to see inside as he slipped up to the other side. They looked at each other and he stepped in front of the door and kicking it in.
The two guards in the room looked up, surprised. Anger quickly replaced their features, followed by confusion and then amusement. He had no weapons. They headed out, but just after the first, one lunged for Killian. Emma caught the other one in the side of the temple with the pommel of the dagger. The man fell like a sack of flour just as Killian bashed the others head against the rock wall.
They shared another look before entering the room. Emma routed through the chests until she found what she was looking for. A blade that Killian noted looked way too expensive for a lass to be carrying around. As he collected his things, Emma dragged one of the unconscious guards back into the room and stripped him.
"If you want to strip a man, lass, you need only ask," he winked at her as he picked something out of the chest. She tossed him a very unamused look before tugging on the armour over her rags. She attached the sword belt and sheathed the sword. Killian had to admit, she looked almost regal in the way she stood and in the armour.
"Are you done?" she asked impatiently. He raised the hook, locking it into place on his left arm. She studied him with a thoughtful expression. "Captain Hook."
"So, you've heard of me?" he grinned but she was already heading to the door.
"Yes, you've raided many ships," she looked at him, "Probably bedded more women, and drank more beer than any man should in his life time."
"Jealous, love?"
Emma opened the door and stepped out, "Only of your adventures."