He is standing next to the helm, finally being able to relax, after their rough escape from Neverland. The shadow, enraged by the death of the boy it cherised, made his best effort to stop them.
In the end, it was Emma and Regina that saved them all. They combined their magic and the shadow vanished, with a gutural scream, that made the sea and the land tremble.
Henry is a lucky lad to have such loving, protecting mothers. Even if they are scary as hell.
Everyone has retired to rest. Charming and Snow, to one side of the crew rooms and the Cocodrile and his son, to the other. The Cocodrile status is delicate, and his sruvival may depend of arriving to StoryBrooke as soon as possible. He is not in a hurry to save the damn imp, but well, he owns it to Balfire, he supposes. Tinkerbell, is standing next to him, keeping him company, since if she has any person she may consider a friend, besides Baelfire, is Hook.
His thoughts go back to Emma. She was exhausted, green eyes dull and hands shaking. Magic drains so much energy. He offered his rooms to Emma and Henry, but Regina ends there too when the boy asked her to join them. He can picture Henry sleeping in the middle, and yes, Henry is indeed a very lucky lad.
He closes his eyes, and chases those thoughts away. The feelings he had for Emma when this adventure start, have just growth bigger as his respect and admiration for the blond multiplied itself in his chest.
Not even Milah made him feel this way. And the Gods know, how much he had loved her.
Milah was his moon.
Emma is his sun.
And hell, isn`t it messy? Because, well, there is Baelfire.
He is about to sit, when he feels it. He closes his eyes, nausea overcoming him, and he staggers.
And there, even if it is already miles away, whoever is giving him this vision, shows him Neverland. And Neverland is being destroyed, it`s volcano exploding, lava running down the hill and the sea devouring it.
He knows this vision is real, and that is not good. He remembers a tale. A children`s tale.
"And they imprisioned her in a far away island, in the care of a heartless shadow. And there she will remain, until the end of times"
And suddenly Neverland is no more. There is nothing but sea and darkness.
Emptiness.
Realization hits him and almost feels like a physical blow. Neverland. They imprisioned her in Neverland.
And this is a warning.
"Are you ok?" Tinkerbell, asks, voice lace with concern.
He is not ok. He can feel cold pulsing trough his veins and there is this whisper on his head, that is almost like a song. The vision only lasted a second and it was enough. He touches the warm wood of his ship and gets himself centered.
"Did you feel it?" he asks, because he needs confirmation.
"Feel what?" Tink´s hands search for his face and pulls his chin up. "You look pale. And you are a little bit warm. And what is wrong with…"
And Killian closes his eyes and takes a deep breathe. Like mother taught him once.
"…Eyes.." Tink finishes and Killian opens them again and Tink looks at him suspiciously. Blue ocean eyes stare back at her and he finds his smile, his filtracious smirk that work as good as any metal armor you can purchase at the Enchanted Forest.
"I am fine. I am a bit tired, sunshine" he gives a dramatic sigh. "I need my beauty sleep as much as you, my fair fairy"
"Well then you should probably sleep, Hook. You look awful"
" I will take your advice as soon we land. After all, even if the Jolly Roger is truly the best ship in all the realms, I don´t dare to leave it unattended while…well flying"
Tinker Bell smiles with the pride the Captain always talks about his ship. It is amusing and charming.
"Well, make sure do, after we arrive. Do you mind if I take my own advice, and retire for the night?"
"Of course not. I really appreciate the company Tink. And thanks for helping us"
She starts walking towards the crew rooms and glances back to the still smirking captain.
"Killian, you asked me if I felt something? What did you feel?"
The cold is almost gone and the whisper has fade like a faraway echo. The vision lingers at the corner of his eye, the violent destruction of the hell he once called home.
If she did not feel it, then he is almost sure what this is about. Oceanid magic. Rare. Powerful. And technically non existant.
"Oh, I was wondering if you can feel how steady the ship is. The Jolly is truly a wonder" he casually comments, tasting the lie in his mouth.
Tinkerbell is about to retort, but then a yawn interrupts her and decides to let it rest. Still eyeing him suspiciously, she takes her leave with a small goodnight.
Eventually everyone falls asleep and he is left alone with his thoughts.
The whisper grows into a roar the next couple of hours. He lands the ship when they cross the line between worlds. It is smooth and he sets course, trusting the Jolly to remember her way.
He allows himself to sit down, head resting against the helm. Closes his eyes, and hopes silence will come now that they are in the land without magic.
When morning arrives and Storybrooke is clear in the distance, it is the only thing he can hear and the roaring turn into a rare melody. A melody he is familiar with.
He has heard it all his life. He is a pirate and before that he was a sailor…and before that…
It is the Song of the Sea, that music that reveals itself, to all those who are meant to be men or women of the sea.
The sea is calling him home. The cold he felt, is now a pleasent coccon of warmth and soothing. He knows what it means and he is too terrified to think of the consequences of that. He falls asleep, the comforting feeling soothing the terror of the vision he experienced.
A couple of hours later, Emma gently shakes him.
"Hey Hook…wake up…we are home"
"Home?" and he opens his eyes to find his swan, smiling brightly at him.
"Yes, home. Thanks to you."
He smiles in return. This one is sincere. The pulse and the warmth diminished, but is
still there.
But he knows what he has to do. Protect her. Protect them.
He stands next to her and smiles at her.
"Home. Good. That is good"