Chapter 4: In Which 'Snuggly Duckling' Is Misleading
Hook roused from his sleep. Time for him to go on watch. The fire was still strong; thankfully, Emma must have maintained it. It kept the chill in the night air at bay. As he sat up he saw Emma leaning against the fallen tree a couple feet away reading her book. She looked up at him and he saw bags under her eyes.
"Time for bed, Swan."
She covered a yawn with her hand and closed her book.
"What's that," he asked, motioning towards the book in her lap.
"Just a book of some stories," she murmured.
"May I?" Killian asked, scooting over to her right side, extending his arm across his body.
She looked at him curiously.
"Being on watch gets painfully boring."
"Okay. Just be careful," she warned, as she handed over her book.
"Aye. Sweet dreams, love."
Emma gave him a sleepy smile before turning on her side and placing her now unbraided hair on top of her. I guess it's useful for something after all.
Killian turned his attention to his lap and opened her book. On the first page he found an inscription on the title page. 'To Emma, I hope this helps. Love, Graham.'
He couldn't help but wonder who Graham was and glanced at her sleeping form.
He flipped through the book; she doodled on some of the pages… it was cute. Killian recognized a lot of stories from when his brother used to read to him. There was one story that wasn't so much a story as much as it was real, as far as he knew at least; the story of Snow White and Prince Charming. He understood why that story would be in there though, it really was a fairytale. However, that wasn't so true now, since the couple had been mourning their stolen princess.
Killian was able to learn a bit more about Emma through this book. Clearly, she wanted adventure, since she never had any. 'The Ugly Duckling' was one of her favorite tales, next to the one of Snow White and Prince Charming, and she was a good artist. He couldn't help but smile at all the little doodles and notes on the pages.
Killian sat reading for the rest of the night to distract himself, all the while still staying alert. When morning came he heard Emma get up.
"Good morning Swan," Killian greeted as she emerged from her hair.
"Hi," she responded as she rubbed her eyes, adjusting to the light.
"Sleep well?"
"Well enough," Emma said as she started braiding her hair again to get ready to continue their journey.
Killian observed her and shut the book before asking the question he had wanted to ask since they met. "Alright, my curiosity has gotten the best of me. Why don't you cut your hair?"
She stiffened before answering, "What happened to your hand?" She looked up at him, one eyebrow raised, challenging him.
He took in a sharp breath at her counter question, but figured he would have to give a little to get a little. "You know Rumplestiltskin from your storybook, also known as the Dark One? Well, he is real… and he cut it off."
Emma's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "Wait, what!? He's real?" She narrowed her eyes and slightly tilted her head to the side before continuing with her questions. "Are you going after him? Is that why you need the crown..." Her question drifted off, as she began piecing clues together in her mind. Noticing her mind moving rapidly, Killian was unsure how he felt about her knowing such information.
"That's enough sharing for today." How does she keep doing that, getting in my head? Killian looked ahead at the glowing embers of the fire as they sat in silence.
Emma looked at him with sympathetic eyes before responding with, "I can't cut my hair."
He looked at her in disbelief, "What do you mean 'can't'?"
"That's all I got. Sorry." At that, Emma gave him a tight-lipped smile before continuing to braid her hair. Killian could see that she really couldn't go beyond that. Another day perhaps…
The thing was, he didn't want to wait for another day. He really wanted to know. Back in the tower, she did ask why he wanted her hair. Clearly there was more to this story, but he didn't know what.
"Okay, I'm ready."
Killian looked over at Emma to find her standing with her bag already hanging across her body and her hair braided.
"My book?" she reached her hand out in front of her.
"Oh, right. Here you are. Thank you for lending it to me, love."
She took it gently from his hands and placed it back into her bag as Killian rose to his feet. "Are there any other stories in there that are true?" Emma asked timidly as they started walking.
"There's that one about Snow White and Prince Charming as far as I know, and a few others."
He glanced down to her and saw that Emma had a small hopeful smile on her face as this revelation hit her.
"Why did you bring it with you?" Killian inquired.
"Oh, I just… someone gave it to me when I was little and, I don't know, it always gave me… hope."
Killian was taken aback. He wasn't expecting her to share that much. He couldn't help himself and pushed a little more. "Graham?" She looked at him, caught off guard. "The inscription. You two are close?"
He could see Emma wrestling with whether or not to answer. "Were… we were close."
Damn, he left her too?
Killian gave her a sad smile before changing the subject for her benefit. He may have only spent a short amount of time with her, but he couldn't help but feel for her. "You know, mermaids are real too, though not all of them are amicable... most aren't actually."
Emma stared at him, taken aback before her mouth turned up into a smile.
"Neverland's waters were infested with the beasts," he added.
"Neverland?! That place is real… and you've been there?"
"Aye, most definitely not what it's talked up to be."
He could see all the questions forming in her head and the excitement in her eyes.
"Take it easy, lass."
They walked on through the forest heading towards the Snuggly Duckling for lunch all the while talking about the tales in Emma's book. They laughed a lot and through it all, Killian forgot how this started as a way to get his loot back. It felt natural talking to Emma like this. Frankly, that frightened him, just the slightest bit. He chose not to dwell on it.
Emma cocked her head to the side, "Are you enjoying yourself, captain?" She asked timidly, while trying to come off as teasing.
Killian looked at her with a small smile and a raised brow. He was, and he saw no reason to lie to her. "Surprisingly so, I'm afraid… I'm winning you over, I can feel it."
"What's makes you think that?"
"You, being all concerned whether or not I am enjoying myself," he mused with a wink.
"I am not concerned," she said indignantly.
"You keep telling yourself that, lass."
She rolled her eyes as she let out a breath. "Where are we going, anyways?"
"To see those bloody lanterns."
Emma only gave him a look and Killian chuckled to himself before really answering. "We are headed to the Snuggly Duckling. I think you will like it."
"The Snuggly Duckling? Really?" She looked at him as if he had two heads.
"The name is misleading, don't get your hopes up. I know how you love that ugly duckling tale."
"I never should have let you borrow that book." Emma sighed as she turned her head to look in front of her as they walked through the thick forest.
"No, I enjoyed it, truly." He protested to show her just how much it meant to him that she let him read it.
"I didn't know pirates liked fairytales."
"I'm not an ordinary pirate," Killian remarked, with a tilt of his head.
"I'd say so; aren't you supposed to have a ship?"
"I do, it's just in a state of disrepair. Not to worry, though. It will be fixed soon enough."
"Ah, so that's what the crown is for."
"Yes, you are keeping me from my beloved," he uttered with false bitterness.
"Sorry..." Emma murmured as she played nervously with the strap of her bag.
"It's alright… so long as you enlighten me as to why the lanterns are so important to you." He wanted to see if his luck in getting information out of Emma continued.
She took a deep breath before saying, "It's just been a dream of mine… for, well, forever."
"That's it?"
"Yeah?" Emma looked at him, unsure, self-conscious, waiting for him to finish.
All right, interesting.
He wouldn't push it anymore, for now. He just added that to his mental list on what he knew about Emma, AKA Swan.
"Well, I am happy I am to be of service to a beautiful young maiden," he said with a cheeky tone, as well as a cheeky smile.
Emma gave him a small smile, but it looked like she was worried. It was like he could see her walls going back up, and he wasn't sure why.
Rumplestilskin appeared back in his tower. This was good. The last two things he needed for his quest of ultimate power in the same place. Rumple was infuriated when that princess went missing. According to prophecy, Snow White and Prince Charming were to give birth to the most powerful source of light magic born from their true love at the price of Snow White's life. However, they defied this prophecy with the intervening of the magic flower. That flower's magic lived on within the princess blocking her light magic.
"Let's make a deal. I need you to get rid of the pirate, and I need Emma back in her tower!" Regina bellowed as soon as she appeared in his chamber moments later. She swiftly walked towards him in her form-fitting red velvet dress.
As much as he would have enjoyed disposing of the pirate (who was quite a thorn in his side], he needed his help getting Emma right where he needed her. Perhaps if he succeeded in showing her life outside that tower, she would come to the conclusion, that her hair was not everything, and maybe, just maybe, she'd cut it. After that, he had other uses for the one-handed pirate in mind.
"A deal requires two interested parties, dearie. Too bad you have nothing I want."
"Not even the magic of the flower?"
"Why would I want that? It's as close as you can get to fairy magic without actually being fairy magic."
Regina couldn't help but stare at him in confused anger.
"Run a long, dearie."
Emma hated that Hook kept catching her off guard. She wanted to keep a safe distance from him, but she still wanted to learn a bit about him. Of course, she knew that she would have to let him in here and there, but she just didn't plan on that being part of the deal. She didn't plan on caring about this man and his story, either. Whatever this was between them, it was weird. She was happy that they got along after everything, but she couldn't trust him. How could she? And yet, she couldn't help it. She had to keep reminding herself that this was a dangerous path to go down.
She knew now that Hook needed the crown to repair his ship. But there was also something else about him; something familiar and yet incredibly frustrating. He was using the same tactic as her, keeping her walls up to keep him from getting her whole story. How fitting.
Hook cleared his throat, "The Ugly Duckling should be right up this road."
"What did you mean by 'it's not what I would expect'?"
"Oh, you'll see'" Hook said as his eyes widened and he raised his eyebrows. "Ah, there it is!"
In front of them was a tavern built around a giant tree… or was it a tavern being over taken by a giant tree? Either way, Emma was kind of impressed; it looked like something out of her book. It was also the first building she'd seen besides her tower.
"Now, just be careful," Hook warned her. "I know you can take care of yourself, but if at any time you want to leave, let me know." He opened the door to the tavern, "After you."
Emma couldn't help but shake her head with a smile that she couldn't suppress.
As she entered the tavern, she immediately stiffened up and her hand reflexively reached for her dagger. Big, scary men sat throughout the dimly life tavern. These were the types of men that she was warned about – the ones that killed, stole, and would be after her hair. Suddenly she felt Hook's hand on the small of her back.
"Relax, Swan. Pretty sure you could take anyone of these buffoons," she heard Hook whisper into her ear. At that she was taken aback. Did he really believe that? Her eyes snapped to his. She could see he was telling the truth, and had an encouraging smile on his face. "If you don't like it we can leave, but I need to speak with someone first, and the fare here is quite good. Come on."
He motioned in front of them with his hook and led them through the tavern, his hand never leaving her back. Emma noticed a lot of the people turning to look at them as they walked past. They headed for the end of the bar, where not many seats were taken.
"Ah, Mr. Smee!" Hook bellowed, as they approached the man sitting by himself at the bar. He dropped his hand from her back.
"Ca-Capt'n?! What are you doing here?" Mr. Smee stammered as he looked at Hook, as if his eyes were going to pop out of his head.
"Afraid I've found me-self in a bit of trouble, and this one," he said, motioning to Emma, "has me for the next couple of days."
Emma was confused by the exchanged, but listened intently.
"What? What about the Jolly Roger?"
"A couple more days won't hurt." He turned to Emma at that. "Swan, let's sit and order us some food. Excuse me for a moment; I need to talk to my first mate." Emma nodded and took a seat next to the one he sat down in. He turned toward Mr. Smee and she couldn't help but feel awkward until she ordered their food, picking randomly off the board that listed the meals behind the bar.
Mr. Smee leaned in closer to the captain whispering, "Do you want me to take the crown and bring it to them?"
"Not possible I'm afraid," Hook said quietly, Emma had to strain to hear their conversation.
"What? Why?" Mr. Smee asked in a harsh whisper.
"It's not on my person, but I'll have it back in a couple of days. Just a deal I have to do my part in, then we'll be free to sail again. In the mean time, I need you to do more digging."
"On Rumplest-"
"Don't say his name!"
Emma heard Hook hiss at Mr. Smee and she couldn't help but jump a little. This was not the same man who she had been traveling with; this was a ruthless pirate captain.
"You know what needs to be done," he stated with the command of a captain. It hit Emma like a ton of bricks. He was after Rumplestiltskin, and was going to kill him. She could either stop him, or let him go through with the murder. However, if her book of stories held true as Hook had mentioned, then this Rumplestiltskin may deserve this fate. But who was she to judge? Sure, he took Hook's hand, but something didn't sit right with her. He must have had a reason for doing so. There had to be more to the story.
Emma was startled by her own thoughts, and missed the rest of the conversation. As she entered reality once more, a large man came over to her.
"What's a lady like you doing here?"
Emma turned her head sharply and leaned away from him, her back almost brushing Hook's. She gave him a warning look before he continued.
"I've never seen hair like yours before," he proclaimed as he started to reach for he hair, she leaned back, bumping into Hook's back, who jumped at the contact. He whirled around and took in the scene before him. Emma felt his hand on her shoulder.
"Oi, get lost, you big git!" Hook gritted out as he motioned away from them with his hook. The man looked at him with fear in his eyes before apologizing and leaving.
"Emma, are you alright?" Hook asked, with his hand still on her shoulder and his hook under her chin lifting up her face. But she flinched away immediately, getting defensive.
"I'm fine, I could have handled him myself," she responded curtly.
"Sorry, next time it looks like you're in a bit of trouble, I'll be sure to look the other way," Hook spat in confused anger.
Emma flinched once again at is words and his face fell, anger melting away. He brought his hand to his face.
"I'm sorry. I-" Hook began in a defeated sigh, before he was cut off by a man running into the tavern.
"Soldiers from the kingdom are coming!" The man raved.
With that the majority of patrons got up and started scrambling for an exit. Emma's stomach dropped; what a mess. Of course this would happen at the worst time.
"Come on, I know of another exit," Hook muttered dejectedly as he motioned for her to follow him. Why was he still helping?
Emma got up quickly and followed him behind the other end of the bar. She watched as he opened up a hatch in the floor with a yellow duck on it. She sent Hook an uncertain and questioning glance.
"It's fine, just follow my lead..." And with that he slid down the hatch.
Emma followed after a beat worrying that she screwed everything up.
Regina watched the pirate captain talk to his first mate through her mirror. She didn't need the twisted imp's help; Regina could do this herself… and the key would be that short fat man.
A/N: Thanks for all the follows and reviews! I am writing chapter 6 now, but I want to post at least once a week. So its hoarding chapters time in case I get really busy at the end of the school year. I hope you enjoyed!