A/N: New fanfiction! Recently did a Once Upon a Time rewatch/bingewatch and an idea popped into my head that I wanted to explore. I think stories where Hook has a daughter are really interesting and there aren't enough out there, so here we are. I also really enjoyed Peter Pan as a villain, and he's got a romantic past with my OC, but he won't actually be here for a while. Well okay, he's in dreams/flashbacks so that's a straight up lie. This fic starts around 1x20, "The Stranger." Some info for you guys: Tessa Jones (Maya Gillies under the curse—don't ask where the name came from because even I have no idea) is 16. She's inherited her dad's got an accent (just an fyi for if I—lies, for when I—end up throwing a "mate" or "bloody hell" in there, or something equally as Hook-like – I mean, we do learn to speak from our parents, so…). Obviously OUAT does not belong to me, nor do any of the characters. Just Tessa/Maya. Also, if anyone spots a slight reference to something (let me know if you do!), that also does not belong to me.
"Maya!" Henry called as he ran into Granny's diner.
The girl in question turned when he called her name. She finished placing the customer's food on the table and walked over to him.
"Hey, kid. Hot chocolate with cinnamon while you wait for Emma?" she asked.
"Of course. But I was actually hoping you'd join us this morning. It's an Operation Cobra emergency and I think we could really use your help on this one."
"If you haven't noticed, we're in the middle of a morning rush," she said, gesturing to the busy diner around them.
"Please," Henry pleaded. "Someone added a whole new story to the book. We could use your crafty pirate skills for finding whoever did it."
She sighed deeply, holding her tray in one hand, rubbing her brow with the other. "For the last time, Henry, you know I don't believe in that stuff. I'm sorry."
"You know, weren't you the one telling me to go along with it just a few weeks ago?" Emma said from behind the two, startling them. "Just because you're in the one in the storybook now doesn't mean you get to switch places with me," she joked.
"Emma!" Henry said, excited to share the news with his mother. "Did you hear? When the book was missing, whoever took it added to it."
"Of course they did. So who's it about?" Emma inquired.
"It's Pinocchio. But here's the thing, it's not finished. The only way to know how his story ends is to find whoever took the book."
"Well that will be pretty hard to do, seeing as no one besides the two of you knew where the book even was," Maya interjected.
"Hmm. As I recall, you knew where it was too," he reminded her.
"Hey! You just tell me these things, I never asked to know. Besides, I don't even believe in this magical fairy tale stuff, so why would I bother writing a fake story?" She shook her head. "Look, the point is, if you wanna catch this guy, you have to set a trap. No one would go through all that trouble for an unfinished story. Unless there's something bigger going on here, I'm sure he'll want a chance to finish his work."
Emma looked at her for a few moments. "Well maybe that's just it. Maybe there is something bigger going on. Maybe his story isn't finished yet."
Maya looked at the clock on the wall of the diner. "Doesn't Regina get back from a council meeting soon?"
The sheriff went wide-eyed. "I almost forgot. Come on, kid. I've got to get you home before your mom gets back."
"Bye Maya!" Henry shouted as they walked to the door. "Be ready to help with Operation Cobra later tonight!"
"Yeah, yeah," she said to his retreating form.
Mother and son hurried out of the diner, leaving Maya to her work. A half hour passed without any notable occurrences, until the bell above the door chimed and a group of her classmates from school walked in. Head mean girl, her three best friends, and two of their boyfriends sat at a corner booth. They sneered at her as she walked over to them.
"Oh look," said the ring leader. "It's the orphan diner girl. Granny still putting you to work for rent money?" Her friends all snickered at that.
Tall, thin, and blonde, Penny Zelle was the most popular girl at Storybrooke High, and the most vicious. There was a reason people tried to stay on her good side. Unfortunately for someone in Maya's position, that was nearly impossible. Ever since they met, Penny believed that Maya was beneath her and therefore unworthy of her time and kindness.
"You would think after all these years," she continued, "Granny would think of you as family and put a roof over your head because she loves you, not so she won't have to pay you. I guess no one will ever love you, diner girl. Your parents didn't, Granny doesn't, why would anyone else?"
Maya heard stuff like this all the time. It wasn't supposed to get to her. But after hearing about her supposed fairy tale father from Henry, how much he cared for her, it hurt to be reminded that none of it was real. That it would never be real.
She saw Ruby walking over and decided that the woman could handle the last few customers in the diner by herself. She swiftly brushed past Ruby, quietly mumbling something about using her break early, and out the door. She didn't get very far before she had to duck into an alley and sank down against a building. She was holding her knees to her chest trying to keep from crying, when she saw a shadow from beside her.
"Now, now, Ms. Gillies. Don't waste a single thought on that girl or her friends."
Mr. Gold. Of course. He was the last person Maya wanted to see when she was in such a vulnerable state. He took advantage of everyone's weaknesses, and she didn't want him to see hers. She decided to just ignore him. He would go away eventually. But two minutes later, he was still there. She slowly turned her head and glanced up at him through her eyelashes.
"You heard all that?" she asked.
"Everyone in the diner could. She certainly wasn't quiet about it." He was silent for a few more moments. "And here I always thought you had too much of your father in you to let someone so inconsequential have this much of an effect on you."
This shocked her. "You knew my father? That's impossible. I live with Granny because I don't have a father."
"But that doesn't mean he never existed, now does it? Basic biology, dearie." It was silent for a few seconds while he contemplated what he was going to say next. "Yes, I knew him. Never particularly liked him. Hated him, in fact. But he was never one to shy away from a fight with those who insulted him, insulted his honor. He was the type of man to stand up for himself. I had always thought you were just like him, but I guess I was mistaken. I never took you for a coward."
As soon as he finished that sentence, Maya jumped up so she was almost at eye-level with him. "Now wait just one bloody minute," she said as she glared at him. "After all these years you finally admit that you knew my father, and now instead of telling me more about him, things I've wanted to know my entire life, you're insulting me? Piss off. I get it enough from girls like Penny. I don't need it from you too."
He started to grin, which unnerved Maya a bit. He looked almost…proud?
"Looks like you have your father's spirit after all. I hope the next time your classmates treat you poorly you remember who you are."
It was a full minute until she spoke. "Do you think that… maybe you could… tell me more about him? Please? I never imagined there was someone in Storybrooke who actually knew him."
There was a long pause before he responded. He was looking for a polite way to tell her there was no way in hell he would tell her anything positive about his arch-nemesis.
"I don't think that's such a good idea. Perhaps another time." When she looked at the ground, dejected, he decided to continue. "All in good time, Maya. I give you my word, this isn't the last you'll hear about him. And you know I never break my word."
At that, Gold left the alley and started towards his shop. Maya looked at her watch. She'd used up just about half of her break. She used the last ten minutes to get her emotions back in check. Walking back to the diner, she took several deep breaths to prepare herself to walk back into the lion's den. Luckily, when she opened the door, Maya saw that Penny and her friends were already gone.
She wanted to finish her shift in peace, but of course peace just wasn't in the cards for her that day. No sooner had she gotten back into the swing of things than Ruby strode towards her and started fussing over her.
"Are you okay? Granny and I do love you, you know that don't you? That girl is a terrible excuse for a person, and she's so wrong about you. Granny was wondering where you were, so obviously I explained what happened and she marched right over to her little group, told them off for behaving like that and that they should be ashamed of themselves, then kicked 'em out and told them they weren't allowed back for a week."
Maya felt a sudden rush of guilt. "She shouldn't have done that. Business is business. Anyways, it's not like it's anything new to me."
Ruby huffed. "Yeah, well it's new to us. We had no idea you were dealing with something like that. Next time that girl and her lackeys bother you, you better tell me."
"Ruby—" she was cut off by the irate waitress.
"It's not up for debate. We might not share blood, but you're still my sister. You got that?" It was said sternly, more of a statement than a question.
Regardless, it made her feel embarrassingly warm and fuzzy. "Got it."
From there on out, the rest of her shift went smoothly. It was something to do, and it took her mind off thoughts of her father and what Gold knew of him. She would have to get to the bottom of it. There was no way she could go on living her life as usual, knowing that he not only knew the identity of her father, but also seemed to have a connected past. She went straight to bed after work for a long nap.
Meanwhile, in the Enchanted Forest
Hook put down the magic mirror in shock. It had been so long since Cora allowed him to check on Tessa, and when he did, what he saw was like a punch to the gut. In all his time watching her, he had never seen her interact with others her age. And not only did he have to see her tormented for something that wasn't even her fault, but he had to witness his mortal enemy comfort his daughter, while he was trapped worlds away from her. She didn't even know who he was. The worst part was that he had no one to blame for their long separation but himself. He was stupid to put revenge before his own flesh and blood. He first lost her to Neverland for three years, and then another twenty-eight to the horrid curse cast by his companion's daughter.
Speak of the devil, and she doth appear. Cora strolled over to him and yanked the mirror out of his hands. "I think that's enough for today. You just needed the proper motivation to get us to the land without magic. You can see her again once you've made progress."
"Yeah, you say that, but it's been months since you've last let me see her, and I've made loads of bloody progress in that time."
Cora stared him down for an uncomfortable minute. "I'd watch your tone, pirate, or you won't be seeing her again, I'll make sure of it. Even after we get to the land without magic. Now, get back to work, dear."
And with that, she left just as quickly as she appeared. Hook gave a heavy sigh before looking off into the distance. "I will get back to you, Tess. That I promise you."
Back in Storybrooke
She woke up to a kiss on the back of her neck, an arm wrapped around her middle.
"What's on the agenda for today, love?" he whispered, tickling her back.
She smiled and laughed. "Hmm. You mean besides trying not to disgust Felix with our displays of affection?"
There was a grunt of affirmation.
"Well, I need to convince the mermaids to back off and stop trying to lure me to my father. Along with the usual lost boy shenanigans. We should start training the new boy. Ollie, I think he said his name was. He's still quite young. He needs to learn the ins and out of the island as soon as possible. Wouldn't want him being drowned in the lagoon or injured by a boar while hunting. I'll also have to find the time to mess with Felix. He insulted my archery skills the other day, you know." She continued to ramble on about whatever she could for another minute, hoping to distract his attention from the mention of her father. They did not share the same views on that matter.
He sighed. "Tessa, you really should at least speak to him. As much as I dislike your father, I dislike his brooding and pouting when he journeys to the island even less."
"You know as well as I do that the second I agree to that, he'll trap me on the Jolly Roger and I'll never see you again. He can be quite clever when he wants to be, and he's had years to think up new ways to avoid you."
"Maybe so, but you're already my lost girl," he countered, kissing her shoulder. "There's no distance he could remove you," another kiss, "no place he could hide you," and another, "that could truly take you from me."
Even after their years spent together, he still had the ability to make her heart flutter. She turned around. The second she was facing him, his lips met hers. She had found an even better way to distract him, and to her delight they were unable to hold an actual conversation for hours.
Maya jolted upright in her bed, sweating. It was just a dream. Just a dream. But it felt so real. The girl was definitely her. She knew her own voice quite well, after all. There was no way it could be a memory. Her dream-self sounded around the same age as she was now. Just a dream, she kept telling herself. Then why did it feel like déjà vu?
She shook it off. There were other things to worry about. Like who the hell that boy was. They were clearly in a relationship, but his name was never mentioned. A bigger concern of hers at the moment was why the boy was calling her Tessa. That was who Henry thought she was in his storybook.
A certain thought passed through her head. No, that would be crazy. She was dreaming about being a lost girl called Tessa because of the storybook. It was not the other way around. No way was there a storybook because she was, in fact, a girl named Tessa who was swept up in a curse.
She wished it were true, and wish with all her heart she did. If it were, that would mean her father was still alive. She might be refusing to speak to him, but he wasn't dead and she would be able to see him all she wanted whenever the damn evil curse was broken. However, that would also mean that she was the daughter of the dreaded pirate Captain Hook, and she wasn't sure if she was ready for that yet.
A scoff. It's not like I'll ever actually have to deal with that. No way Henry's crazy theories are right. A knock at her bedroom door broke her out of her thoughts.
"Maya," it seemed Ruby had finished her shift at the diner. "You've got a visitor. Hurry up and get downstairs before the kid burns a hole in our rug."
There was only one kid that would want to see her. To tell him about her dream or not? She hurried down the stairs to see Henry pacing the length of the living room. When he finally saw her, he pounced over to her a practically dragged her to the door.
"Emma is going on some secret mission with August, and my mom has meetings for the rest of the day. She said you could watch me. That gives us plenty of time to discuss Operation Cobra."
Maya barely had time to wave to a smirking Ruby as she was pulled out the door. They ended up at Henry's castle. The second they sat down, he started talking.
"I got in a fight with my mom." At her curious look, he continued. "She told me she was transferring me out of Mary Margaret's class. I told her I know she framed Mary Margaret, accused her of being the Evil Queen again. I could tell she didn't want to let me leave, but it's not like she can do anything about it. She's the mayor, she can't exactly ditch her responsibilities just because she's having problems with her kid."
She felt bad. She had never seen him so downtrodden. Maya decided that the only surefire way to cheer him up was to feed into his cursed storybook characters fantasy. Looked like she was going to tell him about her dream, whether she wanted to or not.
After a long silence, she finally spoke. "Hey," she nudged his foot with her own. "I had a pretty interesting dream this afternoon. Kinda weird."
"Oh yeah?" He was trying to feign disinterest, but she knew him better than anyone. One mention of something strange and he was hooked.
"Mmm hmm. It was me, but it wasn't. I was talking to someone, and he kept calling me Tessa. That's who you think I am in the Enchanted Forest, right?" A nod. "Well, he mentioned my dad. Said that I should talk to him. I got the gist that it was my decision not to see my father. I guess with you whispering in my ear all the time about being Captain Hook's daughter, and then after what happened with Gold this morning… I don't know. I just have this weird feeling that I can't explain."
Henry turned to get a better look at her face, surprise gracing his own features. "Whoa whoa whoa. What happened with Mr. Gold?"
She shrugged. "Not anything bad. Gold just got to talking about my father. He claimed that he knew him, but then when I asked him to tell me anything he could, he shut down. He said he'd tell me some day, but I know that's grown up for 'not on your life.'"
"I can tell you what you want to know about your dad."
Maya sighed. "Henry—"
"No! That was no ordinary dream. That's your memory coming back! You'll see when Emma breaks the curse. And then I'll help you find him. Emma just has to believe, and then everything will be better. I promise."
She didn't exactly believe him, he was spouting nonsense after all. But she wasn't in the mood to argue with him. They spent the rest of their time discussing menial things, school, new town gossip, the like, until they were standing outside his front door.
"I mean it, you know," Henry told her earnestly. "You'll see him again. You just have to believe it."
She rolled her eyes and ruffled his hair. "Yeah kid. Whatever you say." She could see that he was open to open his mouth and protest, but she cut him off. "You better get in there before Regina finds some reason to come out and yell at me. Night, kid. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Goodnight Maya." He hugged her and disappeared into the house.
When she got back, Granny was already in her room for the night and Ruby was already out for the night, as usual. She was glad to be able to rely on routine for once that day. It helped to balance out the rest of the craziness. The second she was in her pajamas she collapsed into bed, hopeful to have a dreamless sleep.