8.
The next day Hook woke up with his head pounding. Yet he was oddly comfortable, and the warmth surrounded him. He groaned, content, he hadn't felt so relaxed since he slept on the couch.
He suddenly became rigid. Couch. Couch. Why wasn't he on the couch?
Suddenly light fled into the room and a fake bright voice greeted him out of his sleep.
"Good morning Captain!"
"Damn you!" he growled, throwing the covers over his head, "Shut the curtains!"
"Not feeling too well Captain?" she asked sweetly, "That's too bad."
He finally sat up, his eyes rimmed red, "Close the curtains!"
She gave him a crooked smile and shut the curtains in a way that made him feel like he hadn't actually won the argument.
"Better Captain?"
He growled, "What am I doing in bed?"
"Sleeping," she answered simply.
"Where did you sleep?"
"Couch," she said waving her hand dismissing the idea, "Do you want me to help you dress again, or shall I call in Smee?"
He paused for a moment before giving her a strange look, "The door is locked."
A sudden smile flashed across her face and then disappeared as quickly as it could, but not quick enough. Hook checked himself and realized the key was missing.
"I didn't leave the ship," she said defensively as his eyes look at her in anger.
Before Hook could reply, Smee was strolling in humming a happy tune, "Good morning Miss Wendy, good morning Captain."
"Smee, please tell your dear Captain I have done nothing wrong with his precious key."
Smee looked uncomfortable but nodded, "Honestly Captain, she did nothing wrong with the key."
"The key is not yours to have!" Hook shouted.
"And I am not yours to take! I have parents! I had a… a…" her face went blank and then filled with worry, "I had something! Smee what did I have back home?"
He shrugged and gave her a worried look.
Her eyebrows met in uncertainty, "I can't remember at the moment…"
Hook's eyes widened, and an evil smile slowly tugged at the corners of his mouth. Neverland was finally working its magic on Wendy's memory. Eventually life on the ship is all she will ever know. He is all she will ever know. The thought of that cheered him up immeasurably and with a laugh that hurt his head, he stepped out of bed.
"Smee, help me with my things! Miss Darling, you may take a walk outside on deck, prepare yourself for a sword fight you'll never forget."
Wendy's eyes widened as Hook's sword blade came crashing down upon hers and knocking it out of her hands.
"Pick it up!" he barked.
He continued to beat her sword from her hand, he eyes becoming more and more focused, but his mind kept repeating her words.
"I can't do this. I wont, not ever again."
The words seemed to repeat themselves faster and faster in his head. Over and over her words were like bells, the louder they cried the harder he slammed his sword into hers. He relished the shock expression on her face, the quick moment of humiliation that she had been beat so quickly. His face became hotter, and hers seemed to become confused. He wasn't teaching her any longer, just using her sword for target practice. Killing a man over those words hadn't seemed like enough. He wanted her hurt too, and even if this was all he could bring himself to do, then it was enough.
It hit the deck with a loud clang and Wendy's face was clearly fed up.
"What is wrong with you?" she demanded in a low hiss.
He gave her a cold look, "Nothing is wrong with me Miss Darling. This is how the world is. No mercy. If it were a real fight you would be dead by now."
"I assume it would be you that killed me."
He shook his head, "I would not kill you Miss Darling. Pan however would."
"When did Peter come into this?" she asked.
"Peter Pan is nothing more than a spoiled child, hell bent on making people like me miserable for no other reason than that I exist."
He hadn't been prepared to bring the boy into this, but with the anger that still floated inside of him, it was a natural reaction. When angry, blame Pan. When everything goes wrong, blame Pan. When Wendy Darling shrinks away from you, he thought, try to blame Pan. Starkey was dead, and Pan was next. Pan would indeed be next.
Wendy's eyes became round, not with fright, but with mixed emotions he would try to figure out for hours after.
"I think we're done for the day Miss Darling," he said swiftly and walked away, "I have no further use of you at the moment."
It felt to Wendy that Hook had actually hit her in the chest with his sword when he said those last few words.
Wendy sat down on the chair in Hook's cabin that night reading alone. Her nightgown scrunched up at her pale feet, her hair covering her newly freckled face. Behind the curtain of sun bleached hair were her eyes that weren't taking in the words at all. She stared blankly at the page and wondered when the captain would enter.
She didn't have to wait long because soon ha came in with two new bottles of whisky in his hand.
"You're drunk again," she stated flatly when she looked up.
"On the contrary," he said without a hint of intoxication, "I am not drunk. I will be. But at the moment I am very sober."
He sat down at his desk and motioned for her to come over.
"What do you want?" she asked cautiously sitting next to him.
"I believe I hurt your feelings today Miss Darling."
Her eyes narrowed, "You could never do such a thing Hook. My feelings are too strong for you."
"I believe I am able to touch your feelings," he said giving himself a satisfied grin, "Unless you are so much a pirate that you no longer have them?"
Her cold stare just made him grin.
"Alright then Miss Darling," he held up the bottle, "Take a drink."
"Of alcohol?"
"Of whisky."
"No!" she said heatedly, "I will not drop down to your level!"
He rolled his eyes, "Drink the damn thing, I don't have time for your old English habits. We are no longer in London Miss Darling, and nobody here is going to judge you."
"I judge myself, I have a conscience."
"This will help to get rid of that. Nasty thing really, nobody needs it," She watched him with a glint of suspicion in her eyes, "Fine then," he shrugged, "If you're too scared…"
With a quick swipe of her hand, the bottle was off the counter and an inch from her mouth. She hesitated a moment, her eyes staring at the bottle as if it were a snake. She exhaled deeply and closing her eyes, took a short sip of the bottle. She choked loudly, her eyes watering in the effort to keep it down.
"Don't sip it girl, take a swig, enjoy the piracy of it all!"
"I don't think I enjoy this part," she wheezed.
Hook laughed loudly, "I do, however. Try again Miss Darling."
She took another longer sip, and the coughing was more violent.
"It goes away," he said laughing harder and taking his own from the extra bottle, "Come now Miss Darling, show me what you're made of."
The anger he had felt early had melted upon seeing her face in hysterical pain. Too see her properly drunk almost made up for her words. He might be able to get a drunken explanation out of her.
"Go on Miss Darling, I've seen the lost boys drink better than you."
"If you haven't noticed Captain, I am not a boy," she said, but her words came out slightly thicker than usual, and Hook grinned. She was easily drunk.
"I have noticed you are indeed not a boy," Hook said with a new note in his voice Wendy thought was a little to close, "The whole crew I might add has noticed you are not a boy."
"Might make the situation a bit awkward," she nodded.
Hook nodded, not sure if he understood what she meant, "Go on Miss Darling, drink up."
Eventually Wendy's head lay in her arms on the desk and a painful groan escaped her lips, "I'm so…stupid. I shouldn't have…drunken that…drink…drinker… ate…"
"How are you feeling Miss Darling?"
"Like you won," she said miserably.
The corner of his mouth twitched. Even drunk she still had a slight amount of insight.
"Indeed. Is there anything you wish to say to me Miss Darling?"
Her hand reached for his own bottle, missing a few times before weakly grabbing onto the top.
"You don't really need more," he said reaching out to take it.
"Don't tell me what I do and do not need," she mumbled, "I'll be the judge of that."
He pulled the bottle from her gasp and moved it behind him.
"I do have something to say actually," she said trying to sit up straight, "You aggravate me James," she nodded in self satisfaction.
"James now is it?" he asked amused, "Well then Wendy how is it that I aggravate you?"
"You," she said waving a hand over at him and then putting her head back in the crook of her arm, "The whole part of you. The dancing and the kissing and the fighting" she hiccupped and her whole body bounced, "I can't handle your mood changes."
He looked at her curiously for a second before realizing he had an actual plan in this, "What of Pan?"
"Peter? He should be here by now," she yawned, "If I was telling the story he would have taken me home. But he is a bit unreliable isn't he? Very actually," she hiccupped again and Hook stifled a laugh, "I don't really know what to thinkg of him any more," she lifted her head, a lard mark on her forehead where her arm had been was forming, "I want to like Peter. You make it difficult."
"Really?"
"I know what you're doing!" she cried and then grabbed her head, "Turning me against him. Leave me alone. Don't touch me. Don't look at me. Don't think about me. Forget me."
He leaned back in his chair, "I wish I could," he whispered to himself.
She suddenly became quiet and Hook shook her to make sure she hadn't died.
"Don't touch me," she whispered, "Don't look at you. Don't touch you. Don't think about you. Forget you."
"Why would you want to do that?" he asked softly.
She gazed up at him for a brief second before lying back down on the desk to fall asleep, "I dunno."
He shook his head. He knew how far along he was with his plot now. But he didn't know how far along with Wendy, if anything he was more confused than before. But it doesn't matter! He thought, Wendy's feelings had nothing to do with why she was here. She was here to kidnap Pan! She was here to learn from him, to become a pirate. She was not here to entice him.
It's what she was doing though.
"Miss Darling," he said gently, "Would you like to go to sleep now?"
She nodded, looked at him with large eyes and then hiccupped.
He smiled kindly at her and helped her stand.
"You are a cruel man," she sighed.
"What have I done to you now?"
He helped her lay down in bed, vaguely remembering when she did the same for him. It was what gave him the idea, poor Wendy in her kindness had just provided a plan for the Captain in finding out his progress with the plan. For that he felt a feeling he was hardly ever associated with- guilt.
She nestled her head into the pillow, and closed her eyes when he started to pet her hair.
"Nothing you intended I hope," she yawned and within minutes fell asleep.
When Wendy woke up it was to the sunlight bursting forth into her eyes. She nearly hissed and covered her face in the covers.
"Not pleasant is it Miss Darling?" Hook said with amusement.
"No," she whined, "What did you do to me?"
"First an agreement that next time I wake up with a hang over you will not let in the sun."
"Just close the bloody curtains!" she said with venom that didn't belong to her.
He laughed, "The bloody curtains? Honestly, the language of a lady. Now promise that you will never let the sun shine upon my weakened senses when I am in your state."
"Fine!" she relented and the curtains snapped shut.
He sat down next to her and patted her head, "Good girl. Now, how are you feeling?"
"What did you do to me?" she asked weakly, the covers still over her head.
"Nothing except what was needed," he said airily, though his eyes held the guilt in their corners.
She sat up groggily, "Must I always wake up disoriented in your bed?"
He gave a wicked grin, "I prefer it that way. We seem to have a history in this bed."
She ignored the comment, "Why did you trick me?"
"Reverse psychology is every stubborn girl's fall, you were easily tricked. Think of it as another lesson. Work on controlling yourself."
He stood up quickly, "As Captain, no matter what happens I still perform my duties. I expect you to be ready to use your sword in an hour."
"Half hour," she said with her teeth clenched, "I'll be there in half an hour. Unless you aren't prepared?"
He looked at her disheveled hair and determined eyes, his own stubborn eyes meeting hers, "Half hour then," he said coolly and left.
Thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews!! They make my day. I know a lot of hangovers in this chapter, I was so surprised by the quality of the reviews, I'm nervous about the story now! I hope you enjoyed this chapter even if it was a bit long, at least from what I usually come out with.