Author's Note: Hi sorry for the long wait for this chapter. I got stuck with writer's block and was left thinking about the subplots and making sure knowing what I'm doing. I usually try to post at least one chapter per month. So I'm really sorry about that and the other reasons why it took so long was because I was studying for finals coming up and graduating with my A. A. made everything go into a mess. However, I'm also going to note that this month I'll be incredibly busy with two trips, one weekend trip and one towards the middle of the month I'll be gone for almost two weeks as I will be out of state. I'm mentioning to you this now because I may or may not do finish Chapter 10 this month. Anyhow please enjoy Chapter 9: What are Hook's intentions?
Chapter 9: What are Hook's Intentions?
Before Mary Margaret and David set off to find Cora. Mary Margaret opens the door and sees Regina standing there, having just been about to knock, and David answers his wife's question, saying that apparently, it's not very hard.
"We were wrong," Snow says, "And we're so sorry," Regina says she knows but that if Cora's there, then they're all in danger. She requests that they let her see Henry as she can protect him, but Mary Margaret tells her that he's not there. Regina appears confused and David explains that Mr. Gold asked Emma if she would help find his son and that they left town about an hour ago with Henry. The mayor angrily asks why no one told her and Mary Margaret reminds Regina that they didn't know where she was - "And, to be honest, Regina... I don't think Emma has to run anything by you." Regina appears insulted but soon shakes it off, saying that no, she supposes she doesn't. She soon turns and leaves and Mary Margaret closes the door, hanging her head and sarcastically telling her husband that that went well. David points out that, for Regina, it doesn't get much better. "Come on," he says, grabbing Snow's bow and quiver of arrows from the coat rack and handing them to her, "Let's go find Cora." As she applied the quiver and bow to her outfit, she asks where they're going to look, and David admits that he has no idea, but knows who to ask.
David, Mary Margaret, both of whom armed, and Leroy are next seen walking to Hook. He requests that she come closer and fell for herself, but David lightly punches him as a warning and asks him if he'd like to lose the other hand, before wondering where his ship is, saying that Archie told them it's shielded somehow. Hook confirms this, telling the three to follow him and saying that he doesn't know what they expect to find as Cora won't be there. David suggests that maybe she left something behind, telling them where she went, before pushing Hook forward and telling him to continue leading them. Leroy tells the pirate not to try and pull any funny business as he's watching him, and Hook sarcastically tells the dwarf that that should deter him from any mouthy essence. Mary Margaret tells Leroy not to worry as Hook will help them, and the pirate asks what makes her so sure. "Because you're a pirate," Mary Margaret says, "You know which way the wind blows, and right now it is gusting towards us."
Hook leans in seductively and tells Snow that he sees where her daughter got her gumption. Mary Margaret rolls her eyes before Hook again tells them to follow him, before walking onto his invisible pirate ship. Leroy, Mary Margaret and David are next seen stepping through the barrier and onto the wooden decks. The dwarf points out that Hook sailed the ship from their land and asks if he could sail it back. Hook explains that his ship is a marvel made from enchanted wood and that he and she have ridden out many a storm together and seen many strange, glittering shores, but to travel between lands, she must go through a portal. As the four of them spread out across the ship's decks, Leroy remaining close to the pirate, David asks to Hook what he knows of Cora's plans. He tells the prince that Cora isn't the most communicative of lasses and doesn't care about her and how she is putting him into her business but he will tell them this: whatever matter she has in mind, her weapon of choice is "in here", he says whilst tapping a box concealed by a covering. David nods towards Leroy and the tow of them strip the covering to reveal a cage, and inside is the giant that Emma encountered at the top of the beanstalk in the fairytale land that is, except he's sleeping, and human-sized. Mary Margaret stares at him, as does everyone else, and asks who it is.
Hook, David, Mary Margaret, and Leroy are still seen staring at the sleeping giant as the latter realizes that Cora used magic to make him travel-size. Hook states that what she intends to do is important and David points out that Hook probably knows exactly what Cora 'intends to do' and accuses the pirate of holding out on them. Hook suggests that David get his lovely wife to torture it out of him as it should be lovely for them both but David grabs Hook by the throat and pins him up against a ship ornament, suggesting that the two of them have a little fun. Hook tells the prince that he doesn't know what Cora's planning, taking the key to the cage from the pocket and telling them to wake the "bloody giant" and ask him themselves. Mary Margaret sets down her bow and takes the key from Hook, placing it into the cage's lock and placing the padlock on top, before and opening the door. Snow then gently taps Anton on the shoulder, causing him to wake up in shock, and assures him that it's alright as he's safe now. The giant then stands up and Mary Margaret helps him out of the cage, asking him what his name is. He tells her that it's Anton, looking around and wondering where "that witch" is, clearly referring to Cora.
Mary Margaret tells him that she's gone, and Anton asks what she did, taking one look at himself and realizing that she made him small. David turns Anton around and says that they should get him out of there, but Anton takes one look at David's face and says, "You..." "Me?" David asks. "You!" Anton exclaims, punching David in the face and causing him to be flipped over the ship's platform and land on some packages. Leroy attempts to wrestle the giant but is thrown down the stairs by him. Anton then approaches David who grabs his gun, but the giant kicks it from out of his hand before an arrow is seen flying past his face, hitting the rim of the ship behind him. Anton turns to the source of the arrow to see Mary Margaret, aiming her loaded bow at him. "Step away from my husband," she requests, and Anton exclaims that they may have him outnumbered but that this isn't over, looking and David and saying that he hasn't forgotten what he did and that he'll pay for his evil, before the giant runs off of the ship, exclaiming, "I promise! You'll pay!" Mary Margaret lowers her bow in confusion and David begins to stand up, also confused by the giant's words.
Captain Hook is by the docks and places a Queen of Hearts playing a card down on the ground, which is clearly a summoning call for Cora, but no one seems to appear even though it was her idea that if he wants to see here, she isn't there. He then turns to see Regina, who asks him if he was expecting her mother, "the one you were supposed to kill". Hook says that he didn't want to deprive her of a happy reunion, and Regina tells him that it's his lucky day as she and she have made amends, and Hook wonders if she's there to thank him. Regina states that Cora wants to know if the Charming's' found the ship, and Hook tells Regina to relay that Cora can ask him herself. The mayor tells Hook that Cora decided it wouldn't be prudent for her to be out and about and the pirate states that it's his lucky day, telling Regina to tell her mother that they found the ship. Regina wonders if he got Cora's things off it, but Hook tells her that he's been tied up in bed (and not in a good way). "She needs her things," Regina tells him, and Hook says that he bets she does, before telling Regina the "good news" that a giant got loose from "the hole". Regina seems amused by the notion that Hook lost a giant, but he argues that it was a shrunken one, and Regina wonders how that is good news. "Well, because," Hook starts, "When he got free, he took one look at the prince and became extremely murderous." Regina takes a moment to contemplate this, before stating, "A giant in town who wants to kill the prince... This is just the distraction we need." Hook agrees, telling her that it is however as he thought about it again, he decides that what he had just done wasn't good form and to gain his love's heart to love him again, he must get to her parents. He curses silently as he goes to his ship and enjoys his flask once more before finding the parents.
By Storybrooke lake in the town forest, Anton is seen sitting beside it on a log as footsteps are heard approaching, belonging to Regina. He sees her and immediately stands up, telling her to get away from him, but she professes that she's there to help him. He says that she's human, who he hates, and warns her not to come any closer when she takes a few further steps, or else he'll kill her. Regina merely laughs at this, saying that she hears he's in town because he wants to kill someone and she can help as she has no love for the prince either, and if Anton wants to destroy the town to get to him, then she's happy to do her part. She takes a white, blue-tipped bar from beneath the fur covering she's carrying and tells Anton that it will make it bigger, handing it to him and return him to his former glory. Anton looks at Regina before taking the mushroom from her. He looks from it to her and she nods, encouraging him to eat it, which he does. As soon as he takes a bite, we are shown the giant's vision as blue smoke surrounds him and he looks at Regina, who becomes further away as he grows larger. The mayor cackles, looking up at him, and tells him to get to work as the two of them both know that the mushroom won't last forever. He is heard loudly and powerfully stomping away, causing rumbles in the earth as he does so.
In the streets of Storybrooke, Mary Margaret is seen cautiously emerging from behind a fence, David not far behind, to see Anton, now giant thanks to Regina's mushroom, terrorizing the town. He tells the citizens to run, lifting someone's car and throwing it towards Snow and Charming, causing them to duck as it crashes down on the ground just inches from them. Anton continues to stomp through the streets and David and Mary Margaret run after him, encountering scared villagers who David tells to get to the town hall and bring anyone they find on the way, and somebody get Leroy. As they slow down, Mary Margaret comments that she guesses they found their giant, saying that she didn't think he would be so... "Giant?" David asks, and Mary Margaret tells him that it was her mistake. David asks her if she's ever stopped one before and she answers negatively, causing him to say, "Well, here's to new firsts," and run towards Anton. The prince tells the giant to wait, saying that he doesn't have to do this, but Anton states that he does as David destroyed everything in his life and now, he's going to know what that feels like.
David explains to Anton that the man who hurt him was his twin brother, James, who he was separated at birth from, causing him to be raised by a ruthless king. As David says this, Leroy is seen running towards the royal couple and joining Mary Margaret. "You're not James?" Anton asks, and David answers negatively, causing Anton to ask where James is. David explains that he paid the ultimate price for his arrogance - he's dead, and there is nothing more Anton can do to him. Mary Margaret runs closer to David and exclaims that they're on Anton's side and they're good. "We're here because of you! You know our daughter, Emma, you gave her the magic compass!" Mary Margaret reminds him, Anton remembers Emma and requests to talk to her, as if she says they're okay, then he'll stop. Mary Margaret pauses, having to say to Anton that Emma's "kind of out of town", but that when she gets back, she knows she'll really want to talk to him. Anton denotes this as very convenient, saying that everyone he's looking for isn't around - "All you humans do is lie, and cheat, and kill, and I'm sick of it!" Anton begins running towards the Charming's and Leroy as the three of them run away in fear.
Mary Margaret, David, and Leroy are still seen running through the streets of Storybrooke, being chased by the giant Anton, and Leroy wants to get something straight, bringing up Charming's twin brother, whose name is James. Charming confirms this and Leroy becomes confused as his name is James, but Charming reveals that it's not. As Anton gets stuck behind an electrical wire, Leroy asks if his name is Charming, but Mary Margaret says that's a nickname she gave him, and Leroy asks what the hell is his name is as they turn a corner and Anton frees himself from the wires. "David," the prince replies, and Leroy seems surprised to hear it's his cursed name. David says that it's his real name and Leroy says, "David, James and Charming," asking if David is a middle name or something, but Charming says that it's his real name. "You know what? I'm gonna call you whatever I damn well please!" the dwarf exclaims as the three of them continue to run towards the docks. Mary Margaret asks her husband what the plan is, and David says that they need to lead the giant away somewhere he can't hurt anyone, but Snow points out that if they keep heading in the direction they're going in, they're going to hit the town line. David tells them he has a "new plan" and stops running, turning around to see Anton duck under an electrical wire and approach them.
As David steps towards the giant, Mary Margaret asks what he's doing, and he replies that he's "giving him what he wants". David suggests to Anton that the two of them make a deal, but the giant replies that he doesn't make deals with humans. The prince requests to be heard out, saying that he'll sacrifice himself to Anton if Anton will spare the lives of everyone in Storybrooke. Snow approaches her husband and tells him that he can't do this, but he tells his wife that if he doesn't, then the whole town will suffer, and he can't allow that. "Well, what do you say?!" he asks Anton, and the giant replies, "Deal," before running over to the Charming's and taking a dramatic leap, however, Mary Margaret pushes herself and David out of the way and when Anton lands, a large hole is left in the ground. As Charming, Snow, and Grumpy get to their feet, Anton is seen inside the hole with the top half of his body poking out, before blue smoke is seen appearing all around him as the effects of the mushroom ware off, causing him to shrink within the hole. Mary Margaret asks where he went, but David tells her that he's not sure, and he, Snow and Leroy approach the hole in the concrete. Inside, they see Anton, hanging from a sewer pipe he's clutching, dangerously close to falling to his death.
David steps out of his van as Leroy runs over to the hole with rope. The prince tells the dwarf that that better hold, and Leroy nods, assuring him that it will. Granny steps in, taking hold of the end of the rope and attaching it to the back of David's van, and as Mary Margaret, the dwarfs and some other townspeople grab on to the rope, Charming approaches the hole's edge. Leroy and Mary Margaret do the same, having walked the rope over there, before throwing it down near where the hanging Anton is. The dwarfs grip the rope tightly, and before David does what he's about to do, Mary Margaret kisses him passionately, telling him that most people would let that giant die after what he's done. "You wouldn't," he tells her, before wrapping the rope around his waist and gripping his hands firmly around it, telling Anton that he's coming down. Anton remains silent as David begins lowering himself down, scaling down the side of the hole as the townspeople continue to keep the rope stable.
Soon enough, David makes it down to where Anton is and extends his arm, telling the giant to take his hand. Anton, still gripping the pipe, exclaims, "No!" and David questions this. Anton explains that he doesn't want to go back up there and that he should just let go. David exclaims that he'll die, but Anton says that maybe death hurts less than life. The Prince shakes his head, saying that if Anton really wanted to die, he would have let go already, before again instructing him to take his hand. Anton makes a large contemplation before eventually gripping Charming's hand with his own, and the townspeople watch in hope as those working the rope begin to pull the two of them out of the hole. Soon enough, Anton's hand grips the edge of the hole and he's pulled to safety before the same is done for David. Mary Margaret hugs her husband before the two of them approach Anton, acknowledging that they saved his life. "That's what we do," Snow tells him, happily, and Anton thanks them. "You're welcome," Leroy says before David says that not everyone's the same, as whatever James did to him, that's not them. Anton begins to think back, telling David, "You have no idea..."
From a little way afar, Killian Jones watches the whole scene of the giant vs the Charming's with their friend that's a dwarf. After his drink he quickly found the giant and the heroes, when he did, he decided to hang out in a back way knowing how the parents and citizens will react to him as if he were changing sides. Due to the very uniqueness of the Circumstance that Hook is in with memories coming in different parts when he goes to sleep, he walks and jogs following the trail that the giant is taking. As he keeps watching how his wife's parents are doing with the situation. Though at one point he thought to get out of the back way to try and help with the giant before the mess the giant did when he was shrunken and was literally holding on to his life. It seems that as close as it seems to try and settle things down, the heroes took care of the situation as fast and calmly. Then when they saved Anton, everybody disperses away, and as they disperse to their own business, Hook goes back to his ship.
A couple of hours later in Storybrooke, after the giant incident, Snow has been thinking from her thoughts that were in her mind that she pushed away from what has had happened in the Enchanted Forest. About an hour or two David has got word that Hook was also on the prowess of the giant however he was cleverly hidden. Even though he didn't get in with the giant and rather saw the whole scene that was told by a citizen, David decided to talk about this with his wife. She is confused by this and doesn't know what Hook would want with a giant. It's a great question then they remember that he has no intentions with Cora, which means he probably most likely doesn't have any intentions with Anton, however, why was he also on the trail of the giant. Where did his intentions lie?
Now here is Mary Margaret and David at the docks trying to find the ship, knowing that it's invisible. When they found the ship, because of the oddities of what is happening on the ship, they found and remembered where the plank was, as they got on the ship and a couple of meters away await Captain Hook also known as Killian Jones, as he just entered the deck.
When he saw them, he was surprised that they were here uninvited, however, he will forget about that because they don't know they're all related. So, he relents. "Hello, your majesties what are you doing on my ship?" he says.
"We need to talk," David says.
"What about?" Killian asks.
"Several things actually, like why were you on the trail from the giant incident earlier and what is go on about you and Emma." Mary Margaret says.
"First what are your intentions with the giant? Why were you on the trail towards the giant?" David confidently says.
"I don't have any intentions to do with the giant," Killian says.
"If you didn't have any intentions with Anton, then why were you on the trail towards him?" Mary Margaret asks immediately.
"Making sure everything was alright your majesty. There's no harm in that, is it not?" Hook says thinking he can't let anything out that would trigger anything that would lead to Emma. Like earlier, he decided to be in the back because no can know where his true loyalties lie. This is what he needed to do, for the unique circumstance he's in and not show his true side until his and Emma's curse breaks until they can remember; there's not much to do.
What the pirate has said was a shocking statement made from him and as that rolls in Mary Margaret's and David's minds. Even more so for David as he keeps thinking, he found the reason why. Why he brings up his protective side towards his only daughter. "You were doing this for Emma."
Killian Jones didn't say anything. By doing that the silent truth came out and yet he was trying what he did wrong, how he led to them to that statement. He looked back to what he said, and he believed that he was positively sure he made no remark about Emma.
Mary Margaret gasps in shock and seeing the pirate's reaction is what it all takes to learn the truth, that he cares about Emma. She watches as her husband and the pirate, how everything in the air becomes tense that everything was escalating fast. She doesn't know what to do about it however deep down there is something more about Captain Hook and Emma. She doesn't know what it is however she knows this is not the time to talk about it.
"Let me tell you, Pirate," David starts to exclaim, "You are not going to get her, she is not a prize to be won."
"I know that she is not a prize to be won, your majesty." Hook spats out then he takes a breath of air of the sea and then said in his full confidence. "I will tell you this however, I promise that I will win her heart and it won't be because of trickery, it would be because she wants me. If that is all you've come here for, then you can leave the ship."
David and Mary Margaret then leaves the ship. David in full astonishment of what he said anger him however Mary Margaret was amused between the conversation between her husband and Captain Hook. When she heard Hook talking that he will get Emma without trickery astounds her, to how he said that with full of confidence and with certainty. At this moment as she walks along with her husband back to their apartment, she knows that she wants to talk to Hook alone soon.
As the day pasts and Emma along with her son Henry and Mr. Gold are sitting down on an airplane about to take off to New York City. She wonders how the day has gone by in Storybrooke, hoping nothing happened and yet she is wondering what will happen when they arrive there. Whatever happens in New York City is not going to be good for her, as she feels something bad is going to happen there.
