Okayy guys and gals, my first fan fic :)

Not gonna reveal if there's gonna be any romance in or not, this just came to my head. I think I'll continue with such a big idea though (you're welcomee my dearss :'D )

okayy i dont want to keep you waiting much longer soo *drumroll*

ta da! have a read, and maybe a review if you have the timee? i'd appreciate it ^_^


Prologue

"Daddy!" The little four-year-old Ruby squealed, her short, stubby fingers stretched out as she reached for her father. Daddy had finally come to see her. After going out to sea, leaving a pregnant Mummy behind, he's back.

"There's my girl!" Daddy exclaimed, scooping up his girl in his arms for the first time. She clung to him tightly, almost as if she were a Kuala bear. It felt just like she had always imagined it; that warm fuzzy feeling that imitated that of Mummy's hugs perfectly, the prickly feel of his stubble that Mummy used to moan to herself about, the salty smell of the ocean and his breath, lined with a hint of rum despite his sober appearance. All of it. This was the Daddy she had seen in her dreams, the Daddy her Mummy used to tell her about.

The Daddy who had come to take her with him, deciding that, although female, she will take over her father's place when he either retires or dies. At the time, this all seemed like babble to Ruby. All she cared about at that moment was the fact that her Daddy was here with her.

Getting tired, she shifted her position slightly in his arms, hoping to get comfy enough to nap a little. As she did so, something cold brushed her bare side where something had caught her t-shirt. She tugged the material, trying to break it free and see what this strange thing was. Harder and harder she pulled until she heard a rip and her t-shirt had been torn.

What was behind the torn material, in the place of a right hand, was a strange, shiny, round hook...

Chapterr One

"Man the riggings! All hands on deck! Avast, ye scurvy dogs!" I yelled, trying to master my perfect Captain's holler. I turned to my audience, Smee. "How was it?" I asked. I REALLY wanted Dad to hear it. He'll be so proud, he'll promote me to crew watch manager right on the spot! All I currently was to them was a skivvy, doing any spare little jobs they had. Occasionally, when I was with Dad, he'd let me command his crew for a few minutes, to test my capabilities and my promise in this trade.

" 'Twas remarkable, Miss!" He exclaimed whilst mopping the deck. "Cap'n will be proud to call ye his crew."

"Aww, thanks for that, Smee." I patted his shoulder gently, stopping to think for a moment. "I really need to stop this affection business, don't I?"

"Aye, but don't ye trouble yerself with it fer now, ye just need to focus on yer daily duties at this stage." He reassured me softly. Out of all the crew (except Dad, of course), Smee was my favourite. No matter what way I looked at it, the ship was no place for a young girl to grow up. Huge, drunk men, sailor's language, constant fist fights, all of it contained and controlled with the shrill bellow from one man: the Captain.

Despite all the downfalls and the harsh reality that was life in the crew, at the end of the day (when sober), we're all family. We get along (when sober) and look after each other (when sober). And I, a small, frail young lass (who happens to be their only heir to the Hook dynasty), am untouchable. Be it drunk or not, they will harm not even a single hair on my head. I am perfectly safe and well-protected here.

Also, when I say small, frail young lass, I meant what I was when I first joined up to the crew at age four. But, of course, my only job then was shuffling playing cards and cleaning out mugs. Since then, I have been trained in swordsmanship, hand-to-hand combat, perfected the aim and use of our canons and my smart mouth can bring any man to their knees! (Okay, maybe not, but at least let me think that last one's true okay?).

And today, my fourteenth birthday, I'll have my first involvement in the crew's land-missions. This was going to be my first taste of solid ground in ten years. I had Smee cut my hair for me earlier that morning (instead of my usual knife skills performed by yours truly). Long hair was not something any crew member would have wanted, except for the Captain, of course – who doesn't need to cut his hair as he doesn't do any of the dirty work, he controls it. Also, the reason behind the haircuts, which have been against my father's wishes, was to mask my femininity to those on land. As a girl, I appear weaker, and would get attacked or maybe even ambushed by the cursed Pan and his Lost Boys.

According to Dad, the last girl they encountered, Wanda or something – I can't remember, was snatched from her home and forced to be their sick idea of a "mother". Dad tried to let her become one of us, but she refused, and after Pan had "rescued" her, she disappeared from the face of Neverland. Rumour has it that Pan had thrown her into the Mainlands, never to return.

"Ruby, dear," Dad called from his cabin, "I have a little something for you. I think you'll find it rather... useful for today."

Excited with the possibilities of what my present could be, I strolled into his quarters, trying to suppress my hyperactive energy and look as calm as possible. Not surprisingly, Dad's quarters were the biggest – and best, may I add – on the Jolly Rodger, with lavish Persian rugs and fine silk curtains, he was in the lap of luxury. However, he never paid much attention to the interior design and spent most of his time sat at his desk.

He was sitting (yet again) at his desk when I arrived. In front of him was a long rectangular black box and next to it, a shorter, wider black box. As I sat down, he pressed a small, square, red box into my hand.

"Open that one first." He ordered me, a soft look of affection in his clear silver eyes. I gripped the box and eased the lid from the base to find a shiny black compass. Strange thing was, it didn't point north, it pointed towards... Dad?

"It's the earring, dear," he chuckled, referring to the small stud at the top of his right ear, "the mixture of metals and weak magnets make the compass always point to me, just in case you ever got separated from your group. I won't have that blasted Pan finding you before your own father. Now open the next one." He shoved the longer parcel into my lap enthusiastically.

A sword. And not too bad of a one, either. It was lightweight but sturdy and had a small ruby gem in the round handle. I loved it. Standing up and rushing around the other side of the desk, I gave Dad a massive hug, despite my intolerance for mushy affection. He laughed (although he tried to cover it with a cough), ruffling my short auburn hair.

"You haven't seen your next one." He said darkly. "I saved the best till last."

After demolishing the box with excitement, I cradled my new pistol in my hands, my mouth gaping wide. Was he expecting me to kill anytime soon? Some sort of initiation?

"This is merely self-defence; I want you prepared for the worst at all times for today. Bill Dukes thinks he has a lead on Pan's hideout. For once, this has come from a reliable source from the island, so I want you to choose your platoon and, to prove yourself and to show off your decade of training by infiltrating the hideout then informing us of the location with a flare. Smee will supply you with the flare gun. Don't let me down, dear." He winked and set me off for some food with the crew before selecting my group.

Today, as a treat, I was given an extra portion of bread and a chunk of cheese, as well as the usual cabbage slop. For once, when I had finished, my belly was full to bursting point, and I loved it.

Choosing a crew wasn't too easy. I needed to take on board their skills, loyalty to the captain and I had to estimate how long each could put up with me and my orders. I ended up with a team of me, Jimmy, Bill, Scouz and Smee (because I couldn't do a mission without him). Bill is incredibly loyal to both the captain and me, and he's an excellent fighter who is both protective and tactful. Jimmy and I have always gotten along, he also taught me everything I know (with the exception of the occasional training from Dad). Scouz is rather quiet, but he puts up with all of his crewmates' crap and still gets the job done, so he's pretty valuable, too.

We all got our weapons ready and geared up (I wore all of my new equipment attached on a new leather strap that went around my hips and up diagonally across my front and around my shoulder – and I didn't leave my old reliable dagger behind, it was tucked into my belt). I had the most weapons out of the group, which made me feel a little pampered and embarrassed, but Captain's orders are final.

"LAND HO!" I cried from my gut, turning to Smee for approval. He replied my hopeful glance with a small lone applause. I secretly high-fived myself in my imagination before taking an ore.

Once the ship had pulled up near the beach, my team hopped into a boat with me, rowing our way to the island. Land.

The boat made a strange sound once it had touched the sandy floor. It was like a smooth dragging sound with lots of little knocks in the background. It was strange, but new and interesting to me. We then completely stopped, the boat unable to move any further. We weren't completely on land yet, so I proposed I push the rest of the crew and the boat to land. To which they all laughed at me and explained that the boat is wedged in and won't move any further forward. They told me that with a good push, we'll get it back out to sea, so we didn't have to worry. With this, my face glowed red with embarrassment and frustration with myself for not knowing.


Okayy sorry about this chapter, i has more fun coming along vair soon m'dears

till then ;)