Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Chapter One
Everyone was screaming. Even when Hook's ship broke out through the other end of the portal with a jolt, the screaming didn't end until after a minute of smooth coasting and the delayed realization that they were all safe. Hook calmly stood on deck and turned the Jolly Roger's wheel a notch or two, straightening her out, and arched a brow at his passengers.
"Are you done? That wasn't the worst portal we've ever been through," he said, patting his ship like a horse. "Though Neverland was never easy."
Emma let go of her death-grip on the rope, but her face still froze in fear...and awe. They weren't sailing on water. They weren't sailing on anything. She didn't dare peek over the edge. All around was a vast sea of open darkness and twinkling stars. They blinked as a way of greeting them to the other side. It was practically silent except for the creaks and knocks from the ship.
"Where the hell are we?" she asked. "Is this Neverland?"
Hook scoffed. "If only, lass. No, there are many dangers in Neverland, not just the sparkle and fairy dust you might believe. Collectively they've set a border around Neverland, making the only way in by means of flying. One can only hope your boy's portal landed closer. We still must aim at the correct star and journey through the night."
"How do you know you're aiming at the right star?" David asked, still holding Mary Margaret with one arm.
"It's the left star and I'm Captain Hook, mate. I know Neverland." Hook smiled proudly. The circumstances that gained him his moniker were tragic and he relived the events in his head every night, but there was never a new moment were he wasn't pleased of the name he made for himself. He was a well-known pirate. He was a captain, king of the seas. "So unless you know how to man the ropes, I suggest you make yourself comfy. Preferably out of my sights and my sanity. We've a long night ahead of us."
Regina is the first to sigh.
"My arms are sore from trying to hold off the fail safe."
Regina looks at Emma, who nods in a way of acknowledging their teamwork, but Emma wasn't feeling as sore as Regina. She was still new to this whole magic thing and she didn't want everyone to know about what she could do or that she was doing it. She didn't want to become Mr. Gold's next apprentice. She saw where that got Regina and Cora.
"Any funny business, Hook," Regina continued, "sailing off course or something stupid, and I will destroy you and take over your precious ship."
Hook merely sneered in reply and watched Regina head down below deck to the sleeping quarters. The crocodile followed her, eying him as he passed by. The Charmings followed suit, but Mary Margaret stopped and looked at her daughter.
"Emma?" She was staring off at the deep space and then snapped back with it when she heard her name. "You must be exhausted after today and you will need to rest up."
"I'm actually really awake," Emma replied, surprised at the truth in her voice. Her brain was telling her to sleep, that it was important to, but she was still buzzed about losing Henry. "I just keep thinking about Henry."
Mary Margaret looked at David and then nodded. She moved forward slightly, wanting to comfort her daughter, but David tugged at her hand. They knew they couldn't be there for her always. They couldn't tuck her in at night and check for monsters under her bed. They missed that phase. It pained them that they missed that and it was still a struggle for Mary Margaret to decide when to be the best friend, the mother, or the mother accepting that her daughter is a responsible adult who could stay awake and had her own anxieties to work out.
Mary Margaret gave Emma warning eyes, quickly glancing at Hook. Emma gave a reassuring smile back to her mother and then shook her head to herself as her parents ducked away. Hook has done some stupid things, but she somehow didn't worry about him. Apparently her parents still did.
Hook glanced at her and she seemed lost in gazing at the foreign universe. It was a perfect opportunity to crack a joke or say something cocky, but he just left her to her thoughts. He kept a steady eye ahead of him, keeping the Jolly Roger on a straight course. There was a pang of excitement in him to hear the waves of the Neverland sea. You never forget your first time, journeying into this strange land of lost boys and mermaids and fairies. He spent far too many years in Neverland, distracted by far too many annoyances from those meddling young boys, was set off course by far too many side adventures. And Peter Pan...if he didn't have to see that shadow of a fool, he would be so lucky. But it was still a beautiful place. It was a home if he ever had one.
He chuckled to himself. What a strange family that was aboard his ship. What a strange fate that everyone was so connected and that it would lead them here. It was even more strange to him that just the thought of Baelfire, whom he almost accepted as a son, convinced him to turn around. Emma convinced him, too. She was right - they understood each other. She was light-years ahead of him in progress, but she saw a chance in him. And so it was strange that the two reasons that turned his boat around, the two of them were in love.
"You changed," Emma said, breaking the silence. It was almost a whisper, like she didn't twang to disturb his thoughts. "Why?"
Hook squared back his shoulders. "Haven't really changed, love. I just I enjoy living better than dying and you lot are far better company."
"Right," Emma replied flatly. She didn't believe him. "But you changed your mind from going off and being alone to coming back and helping us. Now we're on your ship, including your greatest enemy."
"Yes, well," Hook clears his throat, "I've lived for hundreds of years, but I'm still a man in his thirties. Time does not exist in Neverland and even in the Enchanted Forest with Cora time was nothing, but I get out to your Storybrooke where everything is suddenly moving forward. It's an infectious notion."
Emma smelled a bullshit answer, but she didn't press it. "So how do you know Neal?"
Hook laughed. "You don't ease into the big ones, do you? I've got another big one you can ease-"
"Save it." Emma's voice was hard but noticeably exhausted. She was tired, but too stubborn to sleep.
"He fell into Neverland one day as a young chap, I saved him, he didn't want to join my crew," Hook exclaimed as if it were nothing. "What happened to him afterward never concerned me."
Emma leaned against the side of the ship. "I'm still a little shady about the middle part, too."
With all the time Neal had spent with Henry and in Storybrooke and even their ship ride back from New York, not once was she able to completely sit down with Neal and get a full explanation. She had Henry's book, but every time she opened it she just wanted to learn about her parents and their epic, iconic love story. A love story it turns out was so much bigger than what was in the Disney movie. A story so much more badass.
"Ah, so he's your one true love then? And you didn't even know his true identity."
"First love," Emma replied quickly. "Last love? I don't know. We were kids and I wouldn't have believed him anyway."
"It must be so bizarre living in a world unaware of other worlds. I grew up sailing everywhere with my father." Hook shook his head, suddenly uncomfortable talking about his past with anyone. The last time he did that was with Bae. "How did he die?"
"Tamara shot him in the side and he fell through a portal."
Hook raised an eyebrow. "That's it?"
"Were you expecting a dragon?"
Hook laughed shortly. "Not in the least. It's just, in my short experience in your world, guns don't always kill and portals don't always mean lost forever."
Emma fell silent. Hook shot Belle, but Gold used magic to heal her. But Neal was shot on the side of his stomach. He could bleed to death, but at least it didn't seem to be near any vital organs. If he landed somewhere with magic or some magical world of doctors, he could be found and saved. It was a long shot based on hope.
But she didn't have time to look for him, if he was alive out there somewhere. She could ask Gold to search for him on his magical tracking device-type globe thing, but he could think she was crazy. He was ready to just accept defeat for letting Neal come back, be ignored, and then die. It was unlike him. He's the Dark One. Emma couldn't believe he didn't think of it to begin with.
"Perhaps Baelfire never wanted to be reunited with his father, but Tamara just became worst fiancé of the year, a true heartbreak, indeed. You never wish to be bound in marriage with someone unless you love her with every inch of your heart - trust me, I know," Hook continued, interrupting Emma's thoughts. "Especially as someone who has never wished to be bound to anything. So that's got to be a wretched heartbreak. But just because there's a few he may not wish to see ever again, I'm sure he would want to see you and your lad safe."
"Are you offering to help find Neal, too?" Emma asks and she can see the ends of his lips curl up. She takes a step closer to the wheel, walking around to see Hook's face clearer in the starlight. "You're full of surprises today, Hook. You really have changed."
"I hope not too much," Hook replies with a laugh. "I may be a proper bastard, but I'm a handsome bastard who believes in true love."
She smiles at him, briefly, before returning to a frown. She can't help but stare at this handsome bastard as the words "true love" try to settle in her. True love was what her parents have. True love is what was in Henry's storybook. True love was what gave her magic. But the way Emma grew up, in reality, true love was hardly real and it only happened for the luckiest people. And it almost never happens once or on the first try. Emma was a girl of two worlds; one she knew and shaped her cynicism, and the one she didn't know at all where love was magic. And it had taken her a long time for her to believe in magic.
Hook yawned.
"Are you going to stand there and stare at me, Miss Swan, or will you take the wheel for a moment so I may rest?"
Emma looked at him incredulously. Now Hook was really surprising her. "You want me to handle your ship?"
"It sounds dirtier when you say it," Hook replied, leaning towards her with a half smile. She replied with the same "are you serious" look when he told her that he was always a gentleman. He always was, though. "No doubt you've commandeered a vessel before. I assure you it's not hard. Would you fancy a hat if it gave you confidence?"
Before she could say anything, he swung around towards a wooden bench and opened the seat like a chest. In it revealed a paddle and ropes, a life-preserver, and a ridiculous red feathered hat that curled up at the sides. He spun again and placed it on Emma's head and then leaned into her, a dark and serious expression on his face.
"I must warn you of the dangers before us. The starry sky will eventually end and the pink hues of the morning will clear, but landing on the sea is a bumpy maneuver and there within lies monsters as vicious and welcoming as the three-headed guard dog at the doors of Hades. Mermaids will tempt you in and drown you in the depths of their lagoons. Fairies will lure you into the gift of flying and then take it from you as you reach the highest heights. And shadows will force you into doing its bidding and then fill your heart with the saddest of memories or the things you most long for at night, you wont be able to sleep until you die. So, Acting Captain Swan, I must ask you, are you prepared for the infamous Neverland?"
The hat flopped on her head and she felt silly, but she also felt...right. She felt terrified and anxious, but she felt right. For once her smile matched Hook's and she took a deep breath.
"I'm ready."
Author's Note: I'm not used to writing fanfic, but this summer hiatus is killing me and I need this show back in my life. So I needed something else to pass the time. I hope you all are surviving the summer hiatus, too! And thank you for reading! Chapter Two should be up shortly.