(A/N: From here on through however many chapters I decide to write, or can come up with, past events will be covered. Most will be from Harry's perspective (as it stands now) with some from Evie's perspective and a few from Ben's. Eventually it will culminate in the present time with Ben and the Core Four making their final trip to the Isle. But that's a ways from now. That being said...Enjoy.)

Chapter One: A Birthday Party to Remember

No ominous clouds or pending rain could prevent the most elaborate, whimsical (if evil can be whimsical), and wickedly wonderful birthday party from taking place. Nor could such meteorological events prevent one six-and-a-half-year-old boy from staying home from said birthday party. It was not the party itself that had him in a state of disinclination, but the fact that it was a party for a girl. And girls were super gross. His two sisters, which by age he was sandwiched between, were more than happy to go. They were well-aware of who was hosting the birthday party and what that entailed for them. He was also aware, but unlike his sisters, he didn't give a seadog's dungbie. His younger sister danced, like the weirdo girl that she was, along in front of them as they walked from Hook's Inlet to the bazaar, while his older sister traipsed along just behind. Due to his refusal to move in a forward motion at all, his father was forced to carry him, much like one would carry books, scowling and with arms folded across his chest, stiff as a board, for the entirety of their short journey.

He was still stiff as a board and scowling when the family arrived at the party. The central bazaar was buzzing louder than usual. Streamers, balloons, and the spookiest of decorations adorned the marketplace. Pumpkins and other gourds carved with the most sinister of expressions sat atop carts, posts, walls, and tables, while even more lined pathways. A highly decorated, and rather lengthy, table sat just in view of the bedroom belonging to a purple-haired girl. The room was situated within Bargain Castle, the home of the most evil and most feared villain of all, Maleficent. And the little girl peering out over the balcony was her six-year-old daughter, Mal.

The boy glanced up, scoffing, then quickly turned his attention to what lay before him and all the other little urchins of the Isle the Lost. All manner of soured sweets adorned the table. The two-story, wormy, sour apple cake set at the opposite end from where he was. But it wasn't the sweets or the cake the had his attention. It was whom the birthday party was for that piqued his interest. At the far end of the table, near the cake, seated on a makeshift throne was a wee, bonnie lass, with hair as blue as the ocean and eyes like its darkest depths. He felt his heart flutter off to her. Of course, being six-and-a-half, and the fact the girls were super gross, he had no clue what the feeling he was, well, feeling was; other than it could possibly have been the beginnings of a burp. He waited for a moment. Nope, not a burp. It was definitely something else.

As he tipped his tricorn to her, which made her smile at him, his attention, as was every other child's, was drawn to the voice of the Evil Queen announcing the time for them to 'dig in' to their soured sweets and baddie bags; but not before singing "Rotten Birthday to You" to the little, blue-haired princess, whom he learned was called Evie, first. After the song was sung and the cake was served and so forth, all the little villains-in-training tore into their baddie bags. The dilapidated containers, which reflected the condition of the island's buildings, revealed an assortment of evil sidekicks – from cackling, baby hyenas, no quieter than Shenzi, Bonzai and Ed; to little, squawking parrots from Iago's flock; and tiny moray eels, much like Flotsam and Jetsam, swimming around in pairs in fishbowls. He chose a tiny, pouncing and rather adorable black kitten from Lucifer's latest litter. His older sister had chosen the eels, and his younger sister, not surprisingly, picked one of that obnoxious parrot's offspring. He grumbled at her, and then promptly returned his attention to his blue-haired princess.

Wait. Did he just think of her as his princess?

He shook his head and shoulders, which reverberated to the tiny, black kitten – effectively shaking it – that was safely tucked in his shirt with its little kitten head and forepaws sticking out. He looked back at Evie, noticing she had also chosen a kitten. Probably a girl kitten. He had picked a boy kitten, so… Why not? It made perfect sense is six-and-a-half-year-old mind.

"Looks like someone has a girlfriend," his older sister teased, noticing him staring at Evie.

"Awa' wi ye," he retorted, shoving her.

She laughed in reply, walking away.

He returned his attention to the birthday girl once again, smiling when they, for the first time, locked eyes. She smiled at him as he continued to smile at her until he finally realized what was going on (thanks to Gil for reminding him that girls were super gross). He then frowned. So did she. And then he stuck his tongue out at her. When her mother wasn't looking, she reciprocated.

Had he been paying any attention at all after reminding his friend that girls were super gross, Gil, the youngest son of Gaston, would have recognized the blossoming love between his friend and the little, blue-haired girl sitting at the opposite end of the table. But something far more entertaining and interesting than love, and especially girls, had caught his eye.

Through the rising merriment, for the entertainment of the little miscreants, Capt. Hook braved the snapping jaws of Tick-Tock, the crocodile that had a taste for his flesh, by sticking his head into the reptile's mouth. Gil began shaking his friend to get his attention, nearly shaking the poor little kitten out of his new master's shirt. The boy turned around, scowling, to see his father's latest antics. Sometimes he wondered if his hand wasn't the only thing the man had lost. Of course, Gil thought it was great. (Much better than watching his older twin brother show off.) Even though he grimaced at Gil for distracting him, he did agree.

As he opened his mouth to speak, a loud, booming voice echoed throughout the bazaar. "This celebration is over!"

The boy cast his eyes upward to the balcony of the looming castle. Maleficent had finally made her appearance. Many of the children hid behind their parents.

"Now go, shoo, scatter like the little vermin you are," she continued. "And you, Evil Queen and your daughter!"

He growled while Maleficent cawed on about his princess's banishment and the little, purple haired urchin of hers glared down at them with her little, wicked smile (at least, that's what he surmised. He couldn't actually see her face that well). He stood halfway behind his father, holding onto the man's belt, scowling up at the two fairies in the castle; the tiny, black kitten in his shirt hissed at them for good measure.

Pathetic, he thought. All of them, including his own father, afraid of someone who had no more power than any of them. He wasn't afraid of her or her little brat. Not him, not Harry James Hook. His new kitten hissed and then meowed as if agreeing with his thoughts.

Thunder crackled through the sky as the clouds above them exploded with rain. Everyone dispersed as quickly as possible. Stuffing the kitten down into his shirt to keep him from getting wet, Harry looked back to see his princess running in the opposite direction of him. Then suddenly, something other than the rain hit him. The Castle Across the Way, Evie's home, wasn't that far from his. Well, sort of. It was all relative. Or so his father said.

Harry grinned maniacally. According to Maleficent, Evie and her mother no longer existed, and no one was to go near the castle. He scoffed at the idea. That dragon (no, he did not call her a dragon because at one time she could turn into one) couldn't stop him from seeing his princess if he wanted to. Harry Hook was born among pirates; a true sneaky lot. And he was no exception. He would find a way to see his princess, no matter how long it took. He had plenty of time to devise a plan. There was no need to hurry.

Because right now, girls were still super gross.

A/N: In the first book it states that Evie chose one of Iago's little squawkers, but I decided to go with them both choosing kittens. (A pirate picking a parrot is a bit too cliche. And also a bit of a tongue-twister. Although CJ does chose a parrot.)

I almost killed my brain trying to figure out where everything on the Isle is relative to everything else on the Isle. What I could find didn't help much. So I'm going to go with my own interpretation (or whatever). It shouldn't be that far off, but it's also not all that important to the story. I'm just a nerd. So anyway, the next chapter will take place four years after this one, which I state in the chapter itself, so I don't know why I'm telling you here.

A big, huge thank you to my reviewers, followers, and...favoriters?

Be lovely to each other.