"What are you going to do, kill me?" An arrogant pirate sneered, not bothering to wipe the bloody cut on the corner of his mouth that was inflicted seconds ago by a knight of King James Charming.
The king remained stoic, his expression a complete reflection of his queen's. The kind, loving expressions Queen Snow White had been known for were completely gone, her face now a fragile mask covering up years of pent-up anger. The look, though demanding respect, looked strange on her soft face; it reminded some people of a little girl wearing heavy make up. Snow stood dignified, with her hands clasped loosely in front of her. It was a habitual pose, one she'd acquired long ago when she was just a little girl. Now she wore her pitch black hair short like a man; it got that way when the dark curse took over and she liked it like that ever since. It never got in her way; a valuable asset when hunting, riding, or even just general queenly duties.
With a nod at her husband, he knew what to say, like always. King James seemed like he was born with the natural ability to lead, though he'd only been a poor shepherd boy until he'd been forced into the life of a prince. His buzz-cut, dirty blonde hair dusted his hair handsomely, earning him his name, Charming. A long velvet cape clasped to his shoulder pads cascaded to the floor, similar to the train of a bride's dress. Standing tall and solemn, King James surveyed his loyal subjects.
"After everything you've done to our daughter, do you really think we'd let you off scot-free?" King James asked in reply to the pirate everyone knew as Captain Hook. Killian Jones, his real name, hadn't been spoken for years. The fair king's voice, still hard and menacing, boomed again through the execution arena. "But we're not going to kill you."
His audience expected that answer from King James and Queen Snow. They were known - and loved - widely for their fairness and ability to not let their anger cloud their judgement. Unlike the Evil Queen, revenge was not an option for them. Their kingdom, a myriad of dwarves, fairies, people, and talking beasts, watched them intently from their varied places in the huge crowd that had gathered to see Captain Hook's public hearing. Whispers bounced off the looming castle walls and people shoved their way to the front. The king and queen addressed them from their position high on a ledge, far above the clamor of their subjects but still close enough to be heard.
Hook held out his arms, a gesture clearly saying a sarcastic "Come on!" The chains that attached his wrists to the gallows rattled, restricting his arm movement. The corner of his lips curled up in a smirk. "Come on, mate, you know I would never mean to hurt Miss Swan. And you owe me your life; you know I saved you from the dreamshade back in Neverland."
"Yeah," agreed the king, "so I'm going to let you keep yours."
"Oh, really?" Hook retorted, looking too bemused for a man in these bleak circumstances.
The queen, Snow White, spoke for the first time in the public assembly. "You're going to live out the rest of your life in the castle dungeon so you can't hurt anyone in my kingdom ever again."
The crowd cheered and roared, several rotten vegetables flying through the air on their way to splatter on Hook. All of them plopped down as though repelled by him, landing a safe distance from Captain Hook's smug face.