.

Chapter II:
Uncharted

"Aye Mason, come take a look at this!"

"What is it, Jukes?"

"It's...a girl..." The pirate stated as he walked up to the woman and bent down beside her. He placed a couple of fingers to the side of her neck and felt faint pulses press against them, "And she's alive!"

"Quick! Let's bring her back to the ship! The Captain will want to see this."

"Cap'n?" a short, rounded fellow called out as he shuffled his way into the Captain's quarters.

The Captain was sitting in front of his harpsichord fiddling with the keys. Without looking up at his first mate, he responded to him with annoyance already in his voice.

"What is it, Smee?" the Captain asked plainly, raising his brows at the man.

Smee cleared his throat before answering, "There's...someone out here you should see, Cap'n."

The man's playing came to a pause as his brows furrowed in curiosity. He turned his head to Smee as he brought a hand up to his face and began to toy with the ends of his mustache.

"Is it Pan?" he speculated.

The first mate shook his head no.

Agitated, the Captain got up from his spot while rolling his eyes. Who could be so important that he was to be disturbed? He grabbed his coat from the back of the chair and slipped it on as he followed Smee out to the ship's deck. As he exited the cabin, he saw the sight of his crew crowding around in a circle.

"Mr. Smee, what is the meaning of this?" he questioned as he approached them.

And then he saw what they were all gawking at.

Lying on the Jolly Roger's floor was a girl.

His eyes couldn't help but also linger on her, taking in every detail.

For starters, she was soaking wet. Her frame was petite, and she had long, golden-honey locks that covered her face with messy curls. Her skin appeared to have been a little tanned with coral-coloured lips and she had little specks of freckles along her cheeks as if she spent the majority of her days under the sun. The dress she was wearing was navy blue and sleeveless with a Sabrina neckline and a pearl necklace peeked out from the top. The skirt extended to her knees and her feet bore simple black flats.

The longer he stared at her, the more Hook found her entrancing.

The Captain shook his head and scrunched his face in revulsion, "What is this?"

"It's a girl," a mate chimed in excitedly.

"Actually, it's a woman," another corrected.

"A beautiful woman," Mason added.

He shot a glare at the men in front of him. It was meant to be a rhetorical question.

"I meant, why is she on my ship?" he shot back.

"W-Well Cap'n," Smee began, twisting his red cap nervously in his hands, "the crew found her on the beach when they went to replenish inventory."

A simple 'ah' escaped past his lips as he continued to stare at the young blonde in front of him. He clicked his tongue, unsure of what to think.

"Do you think Pan brought her here? Do you think it is Wendy?" Bill Jukes asked, looking over at his captain.

"Perhaps to be their mother?" Noodler added excitedly, "Oh! Can she be our mother?"

The Captain didn't break his eyes away and furrowed his brows in thought. She seemed too old to be an acquaintance of Peter Pan's, but it was still a possibility, nevertheless. At first glance, he too thought it was an all-grown-up Wendy, but the age didn't seem to match up to what she would be now, especially since he had mistaken her 12-year-old daughter, Jane, for her child-self some odd months ago. It was when he learned just how much faster time went by in the 'Mainland' (as they referred it) than it did in Neverland. Besides, the girl's hair colour was the biggest giveaway that it wasn't Wendy, nor even her daughter.

Either way, if this girl was an acquaintance of Peter Pan's, he then now had leverage over the boy, no matter who she is.

He gave his crew a shrug of indifference, and before he could answer, soft groans of stirring came from the sleeping girl.

Emily's eyes fluttered open and she let out a grunt as her head pounded in her ears. She wearily propped herself up onto an elbow, and a sudden ache pulsed in her chest. Alarmed, she flipped to her side and began to cough up any remaining fluid that occupied her lungs.

"Mr. Smee, go get some water," the Captain ordered as he crouched down to her height. He raised a hand to hold her locks out of her face.

As Emily tried to steady her breathing, Smee rushed over with a canteen and gave it to the Captain. Hook watched waiting for a moment where he could assist her in taking a sip. Once she had finally stopped coughing, he held the bottle to her lips. The water slid down with ease and cooled the burning sensation she felt in her throat.

"Thank you," she whispered hoarsely as she turned to look at her rescuer.

It was then she was able to get a clear image of him.

She could see that the Captain was averagely built with long curly black hair and icy blue eyes. His face had a hooked nose and a black mustache that curled ever so slightly at the ends. His chin sported a little beard, and he was clothed in a red coat with gold lining and cuffs, with a small gold hoop earring in his left ear. He seemed quite well-groomed and looked like he took great pride in it.

She raised an eyebrow at his…strange attire.

What's...with the get-up? she wondered.

When her eyes shifted back into focus, she realized he had a cunning smirk on his face. Her cheeks raised to a scarlet as he must have noticed her eyes fixated on him for too long.

Hook stood up from his spot and held his hand out to assist her up. She cleared her throat as she took hold of it, and in the swift movement of being pulled up, Emily's eye caught glimpse of a shine on his right side; she could see that instead of a hand, the man had an iron hook. She let out a hushed gasp and quickly moved her gaze up to his.

"My name is Captain James Hook of the Jolly Roger," he began to explain to her, "My crew found you passed out on the shores of Neverland."

Emily furrowed her brows at his words.

Neverland...? Isn't that the island from Mama's stories? …Wait, did he say, 'the Jolly Roger'?

Emily's eyes darted around her surroundings and she could feel her chest tighten at her sudden realization.

"You're...pirates..." she murmured.

A nauseating feeling crept within her stomach as she swallowed hard. Her mind spun with questions as she felt her body become warm and little beads of sweat began to form along her forehead. Hook watched as her expression became blank and her face drained of all colours.

His eyes widened as he reached an arm out, ready to catch her if needed, "Are you all right, Miss?"

Immediately, the blonde shoved past Hook to the edge of the ship where she began to vomit whatever contents she had in her stomach, which…wasn't much of anything.

"Oh dear," Smee stated, rushing to the girl's side. He lifted a hand and patted her back gently to soothe her, "There, there, Miss."

She flinched under his touch.

As she went to move away from him, she suddenly felt the floor warp beneath her feet and her vision beginning to cloud. She closed her eyes to calm the world around her as she felt the trickles of sweat trail down the side of her face.

"Miss?"

Everything started to sound as if it was far away – like an echo trying to reach her – and then, she heard nothing and everything was black.

When Emily finally awoke, she had found herself wrapped up in silky white sheets. A soft groan passed her lips as she propped herself up on an elbow and scanned her eyes around the area.

The room was dark but cozy. It was covered in brown wood with red and gold accents complimenting the room. There were tall, coloured stained glass windows that wrapped around the back with a wooden desk nestled in the center of it with a short but long bookcase behind it. On the other far side stood a brown and gold large harpsichord with a tanned globe beside it. A sewing machine was placed in the far corner with a wardrobe, and the room was lit up with candles and lanterns placed everywhere. A fireplace was aligned perfectly across from the bed and a crimson loveseat with gold accents sat in front of it. The fire was made and going, filling the room with warmth.

What happened…?

Emily sat upright and looked to her left to see a tray of food sitting on a bedside table. It contained a glass of water, a handful of grapes, and a bread roll. While it looked appealing, she lacked any type of appetite.

There was a knock at the door and a pause before it opened.

Emily looked over to see the pirate from earlier; she recognized him to be Mr. Smee.

"Oh, it's good to see you're awake, Miss!" he said enthusiastically, walking in. "The Cap'n sent me to check up on you!" He made his way over to her and placed the back of his hand on her forehead, "No more fever, I see!" he grinned.

She sat startled at how nonchalant he was but still found it somewhat comforting. For a pirate, she could sense from Mr. Smee that he seemed sweet in nature, trustworthy, and easygoing.

He dropped his hand and walked over to the corner with the sewing machine and pulled a large metal tub from underneath the table. He then went over to the wardrobe and took out a towel and an article of clothing from inside.

"Um, I'm very sorry, but I'm very confused..." Emily's voice trembled as she spoke, "Where am I?"

Smee continued to get collect items from around the room.

"I know yer not feeling too well, Miss," he stated, "But let me draw you a bath and get ye' more situated first, m'kay? The Cap'n will answer any questions ye' have after."

She nodded quietly in response as she watched him place the items by the tub. She wouldn't pass the opportunity to wash the sand out of her hair and to get out of these damp clothes, anyway.

"No need to be scared, Miss," Smee assured her with a smile. "You're safe here."

Smee closed the door behind him and made his way over to the Captain who was sitting at his desk on the forecastle deck, making markings on a worn map of Neverland while taking long drags on his cigars placed in a gold contraption meant to hold two at a time.

"She's awake and just getting cleaned up, Cap'n!" Smee informed, "She'll be done shortly."

Hook gave a nod in acknowledgment and glanced up at his mate. "Perfect Smee, thank you–"

He noticed a piece of clothing on his arm that made the Captain furrow his brows.

"Is…is that her…dress?" Hook asked.

Smee looked down at the dirty garb and nodded. "Oh yes, it is, Cap'n! I told her I would clean and repair it for her. She's in the bath now."

Hook stared at his first mate for a second. When he made no other comment, the Captain then cleared his throat and looked back down at the map as his cheeks flushed a bit. He knew Smee was too naive and oblivious for his own good to get what he was asking.

"Just, uh…get me when she is ready." He finally said.

Emily felt refreshed after the bath. She stared at her reflection and smiled bashfully at the oversized housecoat Smee picked out for her. She did her best to tie it as tightly as she could around her body, but the one sleeve kept slipping slightly off her shoulder. She found it quite elegant, however, as it was a deep burgundy colour that extended all the way to the floor. It had gold threading that created a diamond pattern along the cuffs and collar, and a gold rope to tie around the waist. She attempted to tame her long blonde curls by combing her fingers through it and then tossed it in a high loose bun with a few strands falling down around her face.

She walked over to the window and let out a small sigh as she fiddled with the pearl that hung around her neck. She felt exhausted, confused, terrified, and to top it all off, her body ached.

She dropped her hand when she heard a knock at the door and turned around, "Come in!"

The door opened cautiously, and the Captain stepped in.

"Good evening, my Dear," he began, "I trust you are–"

His voice halted to a stop when he saw that she was in his housecoat. While he knew Smee took her dress to fix, he didn't really think about what else she would have been wearing. His brow twitched as a part of him was baffled that she was even wearing his clothes in the first place, while the other part of him wondered how she could still look so sophisticated. He blamed it on the fact that it was because she was a beautiful woman.

Emily blushed when she realized his eyes lingered on her and looked down at her feet. "Um...the man with the glasses and beard pulled this out for me..."

Hook let out a small cough and nodded as he moved towards her.

"That's quite alright," he said as he stood in front of her, "How are you feeling?"

"Better now," she smiled wearily, "Thank you for your hospitality, Captain."

He gave her a satisfied smile. He was pleased by her – what he would refer to as – 'good form'. He also gave credit to the fact that he found her to be very soft-spoken; an aspect he found to be very charming about her.

A proper lady.

"Wonderful," he said, "Now, I still have yet to learn your name, Miss...?"

"Oh!" she gasped. She pressed her lips together, taking a moment almost as if she had forgotten, and then spoke, "I am Emily."

Emily… he sang to himself.

Hook took hold of her hand and placed a gentle kiss on top of it.

"Welcome aboard the Jolly Roger, Miss Emily," he greeted, his eyes meeting hers. "Please, take a seat."

He let go of her hand and gestured towards the sofa. Emily nodded and walked past him to sit down. As he followed behind her, he caught sight of the untouched food and frowned. Was it not up to her standards?

"May I get you anything?" he asked, looking at her, "Any tea? Water?"

Emily shook her head, "I'm alright, thank you… You are Captain Hook, correct?" she questioned, looking up at him. She vaguely remembered some bits before she fainted on deck.

He nodded. "Yes. Now, tell me, Miss Emily… Do you remember how you ended up on the beach?"

He sat down eagerly waiting for her response. He was oh-so ready to catch the words 'boy' or 'Peter Pan' slip from her mouth.

The blonde paused at his question and looked away, pondering. He observed as expressions of confusion, pain, and loss crossed her face all at once. She reached for her necklace and twirled it with her fingers.

"I... I'm not really sure... It all happened rather quickly," she began. She started to look more perplexed. "There was a storm...I was suddenly underwater and then...the beach."

The Captain's face fell at her response.

Another dead end, he thought. I'll have to find another way to get to Pan.

However, while he was disappointed that he couldn't use her against Pan, he oddly found himself feeling more relieved about that fact...why? He wondered if maybe it was because the ship hadn't had a woman on board in...years.

He hesitated before he spoke delicately. "It sounds like you have been shipwrecked, my Dear," he suggested pessimistically.

Emily frowned at his words and looked at him with glassy eyes; her face made him regret his words immediately. As he went to open his mouth to correct himself, she spoke first.

"May we speak outside, Captain?" Emily requested, turning her attention to the fire. She was beginning to feel nauseated again. "I-I think I need some air..."

He watched her quietly and nodded. "Of course, my Dear."

As they made their way to the quarter-deck, Emily took place by the railing and glanced at the horizon.

Her thoughts ran with Hook's suggestion. Was she shipwrecked? Did her father and everyone else survive as well? Are they out searching for her right now? Or did she just fall overboard? ...Or did she drown? Or that this was all just a weird dream? She could barely make sense of anything. For one, pirates died out back around the early 1800s, so the Captain and his crew couldn't be actual living pirates...could they? Plus, the only time she ever heard of Neverland was from her mother's stories.

She was wondering if maybe this was just one bad dream, and she would wake up soon. Or, perhaps, she had just gone stark-raving-mad.

"Miss Emily?"

Emily's thoughts scattered and she looked up to see that the Captain was trying to get her attention.

"I'm sorry, Captain... My thoughts had run away with me," she admitted, looking away coyly.

Hook watched as her hand found its way to her necklace again.

"Anything in particular?" he inquired as he leaned his back against the banister.

She shook her head quietly and then smiled reassuringly at him. She took hold of the collar of the housecoat and held it tightly closed around her neck, tucking her hand underneath her chin. The two stood in a comfortable silence as they watched the sun disappear behind the sea, and the stars began to peek out with the moon.

The sound of a splash caught their attention.

Down below, a collection of fishtails flapped along the ocean's surface. Emily's eyes widened in amazement at the unusually large size, only to then see a few heads pop up from the water. She let out a gasp.

"Goodness! Are those..." Emily couldn't even finish her sentence.

"Mermaids." The Captain confirmed, looking at her.

Emily stood there with her mouth agape.

I must be mad... she concluded.

On the other hand, they were always her favourite in stories as a child. Having to see not just one, but a few in real-life was something she never thought would, or even could, happen.

Maybe she was dead.

Emily's eyes locked onto a specific mermaid below. From what she could gather in the moon's light, the siren had long pastel turquoise hair and porcelain fair skin. Her eyes glowed a golden yellow, and parts of her body were covered in dark blue-green scales. Her tail flicked behind her as she gave Emily a mischievous smirk.

In her moment of observing, the familiar hum began to echo in her mind.

Suddenly, an arm wrapped around her waist and jerked her backward. Emily gasped in shock and turned her head up to see a nervously tensed Captain.

She had been so captivated by the mermaid, that she failed to notice she was practically hanging off over the banister.

"I know they are beautiful, my Dear, but they are deadly." Hook warned gently. "They will try to drown you."

Emily nodded slowly in understanding and then waited when he hadn't let go of her. The Captain raised an eyebrow in confusion at her face and then mentally scowled at himself when he realized he hadn't dropped his hand from her. He let her go and she turned her attention back to the sea creatures in time to see them disappear underneath the water. Once they were gone for good, the gentle hum then vanished from her mind.

She curled her lips timidly and looked up at Hook with exhaustion written on her face.

"I apologize for my...absent-mindedness, Captain." Emily frowned, placing a hand on her cheek in a fret. "I'm afraid I am not myself today."

He gave her a half-smile.

"Come along then, perhaps it is time for you to retire for the evening." Hook suggested as he escorted her back to his cabin.

Once he made sure Emily was comfortable, Hook bid her goodnight and spent the rest of his evening back at his desk on deck.

Smee arrived with a tray of assorted food and a bottle of rum for him. He set it down on the table and watched the Captain grumbled to himself about how much he loathed Peter Pan.

When he couldn't take his obsession anymore, he piped up a different topic, "Y'know, the crew is very excited to have a woman on board, Cap'n! They can't wait to have a party to welcome her!"

Hook's eye began to twitch as he slowly looked up from his writing. He raised a hand to his mustache and twirled the end of it with his hook, "And what makes you guys think that I would allow the girl to stay on my ship?" He challenged, clicking his tongue. He didn't like it when his crew would make assumptions and decisions, especially since he was the captain.

Smee frowned, "W-Well, Cap'n... I think having a woman on board would be very good for the crew, y'know? A beautiful woman always makes a man try harder to be better." He enlightened, "Besides, she is a lady, Cap'n! It's a man's duty to provide for them."

The Captain sat scratching his chin at his friend's traditional values. He clicked his tongue and nodded in agreement. While Hook was a pirate, he was still a gentleman, first and foremost.

"But anyway, Cap'n... What do you think of her?" Smee teased, raising both eyebrows suggestively over his glasses at him.

Hook immediately sent a glare at him, unimpressed by what he was hinting at.

"Don't be ridiculous, Smee!" he barked, "I am much too busy plotting my revenge on Pan to be bothered with a girl!"

"A woman," Smee snickered and turned away, giving a shrug, "But, t'was just a thought, Cap'n."

He watched as his first mate hurried away. The Captain scowled under his breath as he furiously scribbled out possible potentials where Peter Pan's hideout could be.

"Blithering idiot…" he grumbled quietly to himself.

But after a moment, he dropped his quill and let out a heavy sigh.

Even if he did take a moment to think about her; in the end, he knew he was just this old pirate with a black heart, and she was just simply beautiful.