This was the highlight of every single day—the highlight of his entire wasted life. Captain Hook reached for the next foothold as he scaled the rocky walls of the tower, his breath coming in short gasps. He had laid off the rum over the past year, but he was still not in the best shape, and climbing up and down a tall tower every single day wasn't an easy feat for a pirate who had let himself go a little over the past decade or so. His quest for revenge against Rumplestiltskin had failed—the Misthaven royals held him prisoner in their most heavily guarded dungeon. They had also vanquished the Evil Queen with whom he had made a deal to get his revenge. Piracy was not very lucrative these days, and many of his crew-members had retired as pirates or jumped ships. However, Killian had mostly stuck to the waters of Misthaven because he had been unable to leave the vicinity of the Crocodile's incarceration for too long—his unfulfilled revenge ever gnawing at the back of his mind.
And then one day two years ago, he had found out about his daughter, and his life had somersaulted into a single new sharp focus. His revenge forgotten, his one goal was to find his daughter and be a father to her. It had taken him months of searching in different ports in distant lands before he heard whispers of a little girl locked in a dark tower by a witch.
The first time he had scaled the length of the Tower, he thought he was going to collapse from the exertion, loose his footing, and die a gruesome death. He'd finally reached the ledge of the open window on top, panting and clutching at the stitch on his side as he peered into the chamber. As his eyes adjusted to the gloom, he spied a canopied bed in the center. Hook stepped into the room, blinking a little to adjust to the darkness. He made his way to the bed and looked at a sleeping figure lying under the covers. His heart skipped a beat—it was a little girl—about eight to ten years of age with dark hair and tiny hands clutching at a doll as she slept. Hook sat down on the bed, careful not to disturb the child and watched, his heart overflowing with intense, confusing emotions.
The girl opened her eyes and blinked sleepily at him, and Hook's breath caught in his throat. She had blue eyes that looked like his, and her features triggered long-forgotten memories of his mother's face. The girl looked puzzled as the mists of sleep fell away from her. Strangely, she did not seem afraid of him. She sat up on her bed and said, "Where is Mother?"
With a pang, Hook realized that the child was probably referring to the Witch who had her trapped.
"I do not know," he answered.
"Who are you?" asked the little girl.
"I—I am your father." The words stumbled out.
The girl watched him curiously from under her dark brown lashes "What is a father?" she asked.
He struggled for a minute thinking how to answer the question. Then he said, "It means we are family, and you are my daughter."
"Mother never told me of you," said the little girl, a little suspiciously. "Why did you never come to see me before?"
Killian felt a pang in his heart. "I am very sorry I did not. But I am here to try and make it up to you, if you will let me."
The girl looked at him for a moment, and nodded. Killian released a breath he did not realize he had been holding, and asked, "What is your name?"
"My name is Alice," said the little girl. Then, with a dazzling smile, she reached out and clutched his hand, and Captain Hook tumbled headfirst in love with his daughter.
That first night, Hook had attempted to carry his daughter down with him, but the minute Alice's hand had reached past the ledge, a powerful force had knocked them backwards into the room. Hook realized that a powerful charm was keeping his daughter confined to the Tower. Since that day, he had come to visit his daughter almost every single evening, cautioning her not to mention a word of his visits to the Witch as she would not allow it if she knew. During the day, he spent the time searching for a way to break the spell holding his daughter trapped, and to defeat the Witch.
Hook was brought back to the present as he reached the top of the Tower and let himself into the room.
"Daddy!" said the voice of little Alice and she launched herself into his arms. Hook grinned happily as he caught her and spun her around. She giggled—she always loved it when he did that. He set her down and pulled out a peach from his satchel. He handed it to Alice as he sat down on the floor to drink some water and catch his breath. Alice settled down on his lap and started happily munching at the fruit. Hook gazed fondly at his daughter and placed a gentle kiss on top of her head. Alice giggled, and Hook felt his heart could burst with happiness and overwhelming love. He was still searching diligently for ways to rescue his little pirate lass, and while he felt disheartened at times, he remained hopeful. How could he lose hope, when the smiling countenance of his daughter was there to chase away all shadows and doubts every time he visited her?
After she finished eating the fruit, Alice got up and washed her hand, then dragged out her favorite chess set out of a hidden floorboard under the bed. Hook had brought her this set soon after he'd found her, and his little girl had immediately taken to the game. It soon turned into a regular ritual with them. In the beginning, Killian had let her win often. But as she learned and grew better at it, he had made his side of the play harder and harder. Indeed, they had been quite evenly matched in recent games. Killian felt a glow of pride as he realized that soon Alice would be winning all their matches.
The witch burst through the door—the door rocketing back from the force. Hook immediately placed himself protectively in front of his daughter.
"I was wondering who was sneaking into the Tower. You may have been clever enough to induce the brat to lie to me, pirate, but she talks in her sleep sometimes." She let out a little laugh and looked at the pirate mockingly. "I underestimated you. You aren't just a useless pirate, after all."
"Let her go," said Hook, slowly edging toward his scabbard by the window while still trying to stay between his daughter and the Witch.
"That's likely," sneered the witch and rushed toward them, dragging Alice towards her with one hand.
Hook tried to hold Alice back without hurting her.
"Mother!" cried Alice. "I want to be with Daddy!"
"Shut up, you ungrateful brat!" screamed the Witch. "I am not your mother."
Killian saw shocked tears starting down his daughter's eyes, and it broke his heart. He tried a different tack.
"Please let her go. She is my daughter. Why are you keeping her in this Tower?"
"I had a score to settle with her mother. She died before I could get to her. Her daughter is going to pay for her mistake."
"Then, take me instead. Let her go, please—she is just a child."
The witch laughed. "Her mother wanted nothing with you. And neither do I. Keeping you as my prisoner is not going to satisfy my revenge."
And so saying, she suddenly pulled out a wand from under her sleeve and flicked it at him. A jet of red sparks streamed out and hit him squarely in his chest. Hook stumbled and fell, a terrible pain rending his chest. His grip on Alice slackened and the Witch grabbed her into her arms.
"What have you done to me, Witch?" said Killian hoarsely. He could hear Alice crying out for him in the background. He hazily saw that she was clutching at a chess piece—a white knight—tightly in her hand though she did not seem aware of it.
"It's a warning. I've placed a Curse on you—the only way to break it is with True Love's kiss, which we both know will never happen to you. As for your daughter—if you so much as dare to look for her again, I will kill her, and that's a promise."
The last thing Killian saw through the pain was his daughter's anguished face before the Witch vanished with a flash along with his daughter. He had no memory of how he made it back down the Tower and to the Jolly Roger in the aftermath, nor why he was holding a rook from his daughter's chess set in his hand.
After that, Hook let himself go completely. He could feel the curse on his heart draining his strength and hope a little more each day. Who would ever fall in love with a semi-dissolute pirate, and as for him finding True Love… He was too terrified to go looking for his daughter again in case the Witch made good on her threats and killed Alice. And so, he had once again lost someone he loved, unable to save her, just like he had not been able to save his bother or his Milah. He considered drowning himself—and not just in rum—many a time after that, but the memory of a little girl's anguished eyes always stopped him.
Captain Hook slowly sank himself into drink and depression until one day, years later, when he encountered the kidnapped Princess of Misthaven, and somehow, hope was reborn in his worn-out heart. As he traveled Realms in search of a cure for his malady, he heard tell of the legend of a savior and her pirate, who had crossed realms to find each other, and whose True Love had defied even Death and Hades. Perhaps he could find a way to tap into their love, and one day, maybe, he would get the savior's help to rescue his daughter…
A/N: I'm not sure if they're going to Rapunzel or Alice, so I went with Alice for the chess-theme.