Smee and Killian moved the small lifeboat, which was more of a canoe than anything, to the captain's chambers where the distraught mermaid would be safe from the rest of the crew. She hadn't stopped crying since he had plucked her from the water, and Killian's patience was wearing thin.

Smee had returned to the helm and Killian sat at a small, map-covered desk, trying to ignore the sniffles and sobs from across the room. When one whimper finally broke his temper, he stabbed the tip of his hook into the desk. In her little wooden prison, a silence abruptly fell over Ariel.

"Stop your crying, little fish," Killian grumbled lowly. "You shouldn't have swam so close if you hadn't wanted to see what was waiting above the surface."

"I just wanted to see the ship," Ariel sniffed. "You didn't have to tangle me up."

Killian's whole body tensed, and he turned around in his chair to look at her. Seeing the cruel glint in his eye, she sank as far below the water as the cramped space would allow.

"You wanted to see the ship, aye?" He asked, standing and approaching the tub. When she nodded, he slipped the blunt end of his hook under her chin, pulling her back up from under the water. "Well, love, you're seeing it. Enough of your crying."

With a fire in her eyes that rivaled the flame of her hair, Ariel reached up and pushed his hook away from her face.

"You wanted to catch a mermaid, aye?" she spat, crossing her arms over her bare chest, only hidden by the mass of hair she had tumbling down her torso. "Well, you caught one. Now you have to deal with a mermaid's temperament."

"We'll see about that, love," he said, almost threateningly as he stalked out of his quarters. Outside, the sun was creeping up over the endless expanse of sea. He let out the breath he felt as though he had been holding since he saw her caught in his net. How could the girl that had been starring in his dreams appear now, swimming around his ship? What could his dreams possibly mean?

And why did she have to be so damned stubborn and devastatingly beautiful? He had to maintain his authority over everyone aboard his ship, even the mermaid held captive in his cabin, and she made it simultaneously difficult and easy to be harsh with her. Her beauty and sadness made it hard for him to be angry, but as soon as she opened her mouth and began talking back to him, he knew his dominance would be even more important.

As the sun rose in the East, setting the sea and the sky on fire, his crew began to rouse from their drunken sleep, just as they did every morning. As they began filing out onto the deck, assuming their daily duties, Smee disappeared to his cabin for his own slumber. That left Killian completely alone, though he was surrounded by pirates who loyally followed and respected him. None of them knew the boon he was hiding behind the heavy oak door of his quarters, and none of them understood the burden he was carrying as he simply went about his day.

He took his place at the helm, holding the wheel steady as the waves woke up and shook the ship in greeting. His mind wasn't on the course he was charting, though – he knew his destination by heart. Instead, a little mermaid was swimming serenely around his thoughts and scenes from his nightmares kept his eyes wide open.

-x-

Feedback is greatly appreciated. :) Next chapter will be longer, promise.