"That's it." Hook nodded towards the faint outline of a tower. "That's where she is."

"The blonde from the bar, Capt'n?" Smee asked hopefully, squinting his eyes to try and get a better look.

"Keep up, my lad," said Hook. "It's where they keep the girl who'll help me find mine."

"You're looking for a lot of girls."

Hook laughed. "More than you'll ever meet, Smee."

Despite the brisk winds that tousled Hook's hair, the seas were much calmer since their departure from the village harbour. There was visibly rushed repair work on the mast and sails, but the ship had survived the worst of the storm. If anything, it seemed to have helped strip away some of the barnacles plastered onto the belly of the ship.

Hook veered the wheel slightly to stay on course, almost wincing when the udders bitterly protested under the Jolly Roger's newly deteriorated conditions. Despite the jittery movements sending momentary waves of dread over Hook at the amount of repairs that were needed, a ghost of a smile slipped onto his face.

Progress. It wasn't much, but he finally had a solid direction.

"Are you sure that's the place, Capt'n?"

The pirate turned to see Smee now holding a small brass telescope to his eye, mouth agape as he peered through it. He couldn't help but laugh heartily at him as he contorted his face in attempts to get a better look; the man even stood up on his tiptoes at one point. Sometimes his idiocies could be endearing.

"What makes you think we're not?" Hook asked curiously, deciding to give him the benefit of the doubt. Despite his appearance, Smee had made himself a somewhat valuable asset of the crew. When he spoke up, it was often with good reason. Though that didn't mean Hook wouldn't take the opportunity to poke fun at him. "Tell me what knowledge you have acquired of locating women with that small rod of yours."

Smee's face reddened as he handed the telescope to Hook. "The place looks deserted. No guards, no carriages, no anything."

When Hook looked through, he reluctantly realised that Smee had a point. His view of the tower was a little shaky and distant, though it seemed as though the place was pretty empty. He could imagine the place being heavily guarded if a queen was residing there. Just as he was about to relay these thoughts back to Smee, he heard a heart-sinking tearing sound from behind him.

Hook scowled. "I don't even want to look."

"You'd better not," Smee mumbled, unable to look away from mast. The young lad from the crow's nest was clinging onto a ripped sail as he tried to clamber onto the nearest rungs of the wooden post. One of the men had already started climbing up to help him, whilst others stood looking bewildered. "I think it's getting sorted, Capt'n. He didn't fall the whole way down."

"Tell Watson-"

"I think his name is Wilkes."

"Whatever the daft urchin's name is," Hook growled, "tell him he's only got until I turn around to fix whatever bloody mess he's made on my ship. I suspect you understand what I mean when I say that I don't want any more delays to our journey."

"There's no-one here."

"You're a brilliant observer, Smee." Hook sighed. "Let's check inside before making any rash comments."

Hook beckoned two of his men, holding a finger up to his lips before resting his hand on the hilt of his sword. Aside from the distant crashes of waves, the place was pretty quiet. Usually it wouldn't bother him, but the stillness in the air unsettled him. Even in the most desolate buildings, Hook found that he was never usually more than a few feet away from bugs or vermin.

After scanning the area once more, Hook nudged the door open with his boot.

Dust particles floated in the light that filtered in through the doorway. There were a few metal sconces dotted around the room, all holding burnt out torches. To his left, there was a stone spiral staircase leading up into darkness, scattered with bit of straw and hay. If it wasn't for Smee's heavy breathing from behind him, Hook may have felt slightly wary about heading up there. As he braced himself against the inner wall and began side-stepping up the narrow passageway, Hook considered his various escape routes, some involving Smee as cannon fodder.

"Whatever you're looking for, it's not here."

As soon as Hook had heard the feminine voice, he spun around and glided back down the stairwell to face its owner, rapier aimed towards her chest. To his surprise, her chest was barely dressed in scarlet silk and lace. Judging by how the fabric clung to her every curve, uncommon for the usual folk he dealt with, Hook came to the quick assumption that she was going to be a challenge for him. If it weren't for a visibly absent Smee and his two men he hovering a few feet above the ground, wide-eyed and clutching their throats, he may have almost found the situation enjoyable.

"My eyes are up here, lover boy," said the woman in a dry tone. For an instant, there was a glint in her eyes. "Are you sure it was only your hand that the Dark One took?"

Hook clenched his jaw and brought the tip of the sword to her neck. "Don't test me."

At that, the woman scowled and made a wide, sweeping gesture with her hand towards the pirate. Before he had a chance to react, Hook was thinly veiled in a pale blue glow. He tried to strike at her slowly retreating form, but his whole body was left immobile. It was a struggle just to blink. His face was frozen in a permanent glare as she laughed and began circling him like a caged animal. Despite his racing heart and overwhelming desire to cut her smug expression from her face, he was left helpless to her whims.

"I hope that teaches you not to challenge a Queen." She plucked Hook's sword from his hands and examined the edge of the blade. "You can refer to me as Your Majesty. Or, if you decide to play nice so that I won't end your pitiful existence right now, you can call me Regina; your choice."

With an absent wave, Regina removed the spell. Hook staggered backwards as he tried to keep his balance and put some distance between them. Though he wasn't planning on fleeing, especially when his pride and favourite weapon were at stake, Hook could safely bet that this was one of the first times he had ever felt threatened in the presence of a woman, by a woman. It was commonplace for him to be fighting over them, rather than with them.

"Taking a vow of silence, are we?" Regina smirked. "Curious. I didn't pin you for a coward, but you're not exactly pulling off 'silent and deadly', either."

"What do you want, witch?"

"I want to know what you think you're doing here," said Regina, stabbing the sword into the earth and leaning on it. "We're in the middle of nowhere, and your ship just so happened to be headed towards the place where I kept one of my most valuable assets."

"Let them go." Hook quickly glanced over at his men, their faces veiled in sweat. At the very least, they could warn the rest of the ship of the Evil Queen's presence. After Smee's disappearing act, he wasn't fond on relying on the oversized vermin to form a rescue party. When Hook turned back to Regina, he tilted his head down and looked up at her, letting a sly grin slip onto his face. "A sign of good faith, you know?"

Regina narrowed her eyes and released them, though didn't allow her gaze to leave the pirate's. Hook heard a couple of heavy thumps and gasping before the two figures darted out of the room, kicking up a trail of dust behind them. Hook oddly became more at ease as their footsteps quietened, daring to move forward a few steps.

"That's close enough," Regina barked. They were only separated by a few feet. "Tell me what I want to hear."

"I'm looking for a woman," Hook explained, ignoring the burst of laughter. "She was the finest creature I had ever had the grace to lay my eyes upon. She spoke of her dreams and new lands, far beyond a sailor's wildest dreams. The foundations of my mind had been cracked and flooded with a sense of purpose and desire by a single conversation. Then- then he took her from me."

"Who?"

Hook's countenance darkened as he turned to stare out of the open doorway, trying to contain the fire that raged every time he his thoughts were brought to him. "The crocodile."

"Rumplestiltskin?" Regina laughed, partly shocked, partly amused. "What business would he have with you? If the rumours are true-" she glanced at his hook "-then he's already had his fair share of revenge."

"Does the Dark One ever need an excuse to wreck more havoc for his own amusement?" He spat. "Besides, he holds me responsible for what happened to Milah; he's levelling the playing field."

"What makes you think she didn't just leave?" Regina raised an eyebrow. "Did you ever consider that she was just not interested?"

Hook opened his mouth to respond, but quickly shut it again. He hadn't thought of that, but he hadn't felt the need to even consider it. There was a glimmer in her eyes, a way that she gravitated towards him and offered every remark as a promise assuring him that the feeling was mutual. To him, the bond they formed was stronger with such words left unspoken. He was willing to bet his life on it.

Hook figured that even if he was wrong, he didn't have much to lose.

"She didn't just leave," he said finally. "I know it."

"Typical," Regina grumbled, rolling her eyes. "That still doesn't explain why you're here."

"I heard that his servant girl was being held here." Ignoring her cautioning glare, Hook sidled closer. He was close enough to snatch back his weapon, if he dared. "She might know of one of his weaknesses, make it easier for me to carve out his heart with my hook."

If there was anything the pirate wasn't expecting, it was for Regina to burst out with a sharp laugh. Her manner shifted as she closed the gap between them, leaving a few inches between their faces. As she smirked at him, Hook noticed just how dark her eyes were.

"You think you can kill him with a bent piece of metal?" Regina chided. "You need something much stronger to kill him, my dear."

Hook grimaced. "What do I need?"

"The dagger bearing his true name," Regina murmured, pulling Hook's sword out of the earth and sliding it back into its holster. Hook clenched his jaw and remained motionless, though his heartbeat quickened. After a moment, she sighed and took a few steps back, distancing herself. "Good luck with finding the damn thing; even my best tracking spells can't hunt it down."

"You must help me find it," he beseeched her, abandoning his composed facade. "There must be something you haven't tried. I'll do anything."

"Anything?" She mused, eying Hook's demeanour.

As much as he hated giving his word, he was ensnared by her. He was desperate.

"Anything."

"Then perhaps we can do business." Regina smirked. "I'll be in touch."

Before Hook had a chance to respond, the woman was consumed by swirling clouds of navy and purple, leaving behind a cold pocket of air in her stead. Despite his mind screaming at him not to trust the witch within an inch of his life, he felt a thrill of excitement wash though him, down to his very core. The danger of the hunt was always more fun than the kill.

He hadn't gotten to the girl in time, but he had possibly gotten the next best thing; an ally. She seemed to be a powerful witch with large influence in her Kingdom, which he may find useful if he found himself in a tough scrape within her land. Most importantly, Hook thought, she had knowledge about how to kill his crocodile. With her potential aid and the magical dagger, he could already almost taste the overwhelming victory of destroying the Dark One and releasing his hold on the blonde maiden.

Just as he was about to head back towards his ship, energized with a new sense of direction, a small, stout figure shadowed the light at the doorway.

"Capt'n?"

Hook sighed and closed his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Go back to the ship."

Smee tightly clutched his red talisman, sweat beading at his temple. "But, sir-"

"Now, Smee," he snarled, causing the man to flinch. "I haven't forgotten how quickly you scarpered when a little trouble showed up. I'll deal with you later."

"Okay, sir."