Chapter 1

Hook sat in his room, trying to concentrate on his book. It was well past midnight and he was exhausted, but he was loath to turn in for the night. For the past two weeks, he'd had vivid nightmares, dreams in which he was defeated time and time again by Pan. And not just defeated, as he was when the brat pulled a prank or escaped, but ultimately defeated, as in death. The dreams were vivid enough that when he woke from them, he still felt the fear and physical pain, as if he'd actually endured it in the waking world. And even after reality fully reasserted itself, he could remember the dream in exquisite detail. It was even more disturbing because Hook had never really dreamed before, or if he had, he'd never remembered his dreams.

So tonight he sat awake, as he had last night and the night before, praying that when he finally did turn to slumber, his rest would be dreamless and calm. He hoped that by exhausting himself to his limits, his mind would be too tired to spin the fantasies that haunted him. He was only a hair's breath from turning to alcohol to help him sleep soundly. He always considered heavy drinking a weakness… how could he be prepared to defend himself if he were intoxicated, and he had no sympathy for the weak-willed fools who turned to the bottle for solace. But he was at the end of his rope, and he was becoming desperate. Please, he prayed, though he knew no deity would grant his request, no dreams. I'll do anything, pay any price, if I can sleep in peace.

He blinked, re-reading the paragraph for the fifth time. He couldn't concentrate on the words, his eyes passing over the letters, seeing without comprehension. His blinks became slower, lasting longer, until at last his eyes no longer opened. His chin dropped upon his chest and he breathed deeply, fast asleep.

The boy laughed manically as he stood over his prey, strutting and making rude gestures. Then he brought his sword up threateningly and smiled sickeningly at the man. "Game over, Codfish! I win!" he crowed in triumph.

Hook knelt on the ground before Peter Pan, staring in horror at the stump on his left arm, then looking down at the severed hand on the ground in front of him. "You took my other hand!" he gasped, his mind reeling from the pain.

"I'll take everything from you, Hook," Pan said mockingly. "I rule Neverland, and you are merely one of my toys… a broken, old toy."

Hook looked up at the boy and flinched when Pan drew back to deliver the death blow. "Peter, please! Don't!"

Pan laughed and blew him a kiss, the swung his sword to take off his opponent's head.

"Stop," came a woman's voice, calm and filled with quiet authority.

Hook stared in confusion at the sword only inches from his neck. Pan was frozen immobile, his face contorted in a rictus of triumph and bloodlust. The man scrambled back, moaning at the pain where his hand had been.

"You poor, poor man," the woman's voice purred. "Let me help you." She stepped into view. She seemed to be human, except that she was extremely pale. Her hair was long and jet black, matching the black pants, cloak and bodice she wore. The black was relieved only by the red trim, matching her blood read lips and eyes. She ignored the statue Pan and knelt before Hook.

Hook stared at her as she took his wounded arm in her hands. "How… what is going on?"

"I'll kiss it and make it better," she said silkily. "Isn't that how the children heal wounds?" She raised the stump to her lips and gently pressed them against the raw flesh and splintered bone. She looked at Hook and smiled as she released her hold, "There now, all better."

Hook looked at his arm, aware that the pain was gone. His hand was restored, healed as if it had never been injured. He looked at his other arm and found the steel hook was gone, replaced by the hand that had been taken from him so long ago. "How?" he repeated in shock.

"You are asleep, James," the woman said softly. "This is but a dream, and that child is but a symbol of your hate and fear. Dreams have no power if you recognize them and seize control. If you let me, I will give you the power to realize when you dream and allow you to direct them to more positive paths. Your nightmares will become your fantasies. Here, you will have ultimate control."

"Who are you?" Hook asked, gathering his composure and standing.

"Morphea," she answered. "I am a dream-keeper. Your dreams are powerful, and I'd like to make them even more powerful."

"Why?"

Morphea laughed, "Because, if you and I enter a pact and I help you, your dreams will make me stronger. You will sleep well, dreaming whatever you wish, and I will gain power from them."

Hook thought for a while, the walked to the frozen boy. "I can do anything? I only want to kill him. I want to make him suffer like he's made me suffer, and I want to extinguish his life."

Morphea nodded and joined him beside the boy. She took the sword from Pan's hand and gave it to Hook. "Especially that. Your strong emotions towards him make the dream even more real. I will give you a taste of what I'm offering. Think of what you'd like to do to him."

Hook didn't have to think long. He nodded and Morphea softly said "Go."

Peter stood on the plank, hands bound behind his back. Below him, in the water, the croc leapt for the morsel above her.

"You can't kill me, Codfish!" Pan yelled defiantly.

Hook grinned evilly and stood on the plank. "Oh but I will," he grated and ran the sword through the brat's gut, all the way to the hilt.

Pan screamed, but Hook merely stared at him, gazing into his eyes as the life faded from them. When Pan was dead, Hook pulled the sword free and let the body topple from the plank, into the waiting jaws of the croc.

The mist roiled and he stood in a grey expanse. Morphea was smiling at him. "How did that feel?"

"Most satisfying," Hook purred, staring at the blood on the sword. "And disappointing. I have so many ways I'd like to kill him, to make him suffer."

"I can give you this every night," the woman said as she approached him. She caressed his face, letting her fingers trail down his chest. "Do you want my gift?"

"Yes," Hook nodded.

Morphea stepped back and held out a necklace. "The pendant opens. Put something of Peter Pan within it, preferably a drop or two of blood. Wear it when you sleep and you will dream of him. You will know it to be a dream, and by knowing you will have absolute control. Satisfy your every whim. But in return for this gift, you must not kill him in the waking world. Once he has died in truth, this gift will disappear. As long as he lives in the real world, he can die in your dreams."

Hook took the locket. Before he could thank her, he jerked awake and caught himself as he began sliding out of the chair. "A dream," he muttered, then realized he was holding something. He opened his fingers and smiled when he saw the locket in his hand. "Oh, Pan, I hope I see you soon. You'll help me sleep at nights… and maybe I'll hold off on killing you for awhile."