"Is this the smartest move, Capt'n?" Smee wheezed. "Ambushing his place of rest?"
Hook groaned. "You really are a thorn in my side, Smee."
"But-"
"Look, we're not dead yet, are we?" Hook snapped, turning around to see Smee slowly clambering up the slope. "The sooner we discover this magical dagger, the sooner you can go back to bothering the deckhands and clearing the vermin from my ship."
Smee nodded, taking a deep breath before latching on to the nearest branch to haul himself up. He didn't like what this search for the girl was doing to the Captain. Ever since he'd spoken to Maurice he's been taking more risks, becoming almost careless with his actions. Smee liked the occasional adrenaline rush from danger. It made him feel alive amongst his fears, free almost, but not like this.
If Hook became even more reckless than he is being now – which Smee thought entirely likely considering where they were headed – he wasn't sure he wanted to be around when Hook's demons finally caught up with him. The man would fight with his life to get what he wanted, sacrificing himself and anyone else who got in his way.
"We're almost here."
Smee stopped short, almost losing his balance as he tried not to bump into Hook's back. He glanced behind him and gulped.
The mountain slope was a lot steeper looking down at it than it had been looking up. From here, he could make out some of the winding path that they made as they climbed up, hacking away at the forest overgrowth as they went. It was lighter up here; there were more breaks in the leafy ceiling, and they could just about see patches of grey clouds up above. As the cold breeze began to get a bit more nippy, Smee breathed into his hands and wished he'd thought to wear something a bit warmer than just a burlap jacket.
Hook took a few more steps forward towards a small clearing, stopping when he reached the edge and half-concealing himself when he crouched amongst the shrubbery. Confused, Smee stared at him for a few moments before joining him. When he did, he realised why Hook hadn't said anything else.
From this angle, he could see a side section of Rumplestiltskin's castle as the trees ahead became sparser. It was everything to be expected of the Dark One's abode, yet still a complete surprise.
They had half expected a dilapidating building covered in moss and vines with long-abandoned gardens. While what they saw wasn't exactly a gleaming white palace fit for a king, it was still overwhelmingly grand with sleek stone slabs and glass-paned windows that reflected light at every angle. The luscious grass was neatly trimmed and edged with blooming flowerbeds for as far as they could see, giving the impression of an eternal summer's day despite the dark clouds looming overhead.
"This can't be right," Smee spluttered. "This can't be it."
Hook stared straight ahead. "We're here."
"It can't be!" Smee protested, standing up and moving towards the clearing to get a better look. "Even if it was, you don't think he'd just leave it here, do you?"
The man had only made a few steps before he felt something on his belt yank him backwards, causing him to topple ungracefully onto the hard ground. He winced as he looked up, finding himself sat next to a very unhappy pirate.
"We have been searching on land for weeks," Hook uttered seethingly, "for a castle on the outskirts of the Enchanted Forest. The bloody witch who told us about the dagger hasn't shown herself since, and do you know how many other leads we had apart from the one from that wretched Maurice?"
Smee cowered and shook his head. "None, sir."
"Excellent, Smee!" Hook laughed and stood up, beginning a slow pace back and forth to the spot where Smee was sat. "And how long have we been searching for this castle ever since, Smee?"
He cringed. "I don't know, sir."
"Take a guess." Hook lifted his arms and gestured around. "How long have we been searching for a castle – or just any place, really – that vaguely fits the description that that weasel of a man gave to us?"
"A few weeks?"
Hook shook his head. "5 weeks and 3 days. It would be exactly 6 weeks today if you counted those days that we wasted trying to find the blasted girl he kept in servitude for however many years."
A sad look flashed across the pirate's face. The girl didn't deserve to be damned to serving the Dark One for the rest of her days - her father was the coward that let her go, only to later beg pirates and thieves for the freedom he took from her. Seeing another father abandon his young was almost too much to handle.
"We find that servant girl and set her free after we find my lass." Hook's voice turned hoarse as he began picking his way through the edge of the clearing. "Pick yourself up, lad; we're going to find a way in."
"But-"
"Did I ask for your opinion, Smee?" He barked.
"I'm sorry, Capt'n," Smee said sheepishly, cheeks ablaze as he scrambled to his feet and stumbled trying to keep up. "I won't question you anymore."
After spending a considerable amount of time either hacking their way through the outskirts of the forest surrounding the castle, or peering through a small telescope in order to find a suitable opening, Hook and Smee eventually made a dash towards the right corner at the back of the castle, going down the steps that would conceal them from being out in plain sight. Down the steps on their right was a basement door with two small windows either side, both left slightly ajar. To their left was a pile of rotten vegetables and various peelings, assumingly to use in the gardens at some point.
The room was mostly dark when Hook peered in through the window, though could just about make out that they were likely to be in the kitchen of the servants' quarters. There were basic wooden furnishings scattered around, though the countertops were flush with fresh herbs and vegetables; there was enough in there to feed an entire army, let alone one lonely man.
Hook stepped back and drew out his map, beginning to make rough markings of where the castle was and which was the best way to enter it from.
"Get the door for me, will you?" Hook mumbled, frowning as he twisted the map around.
Smee nodded and quickly tried the handle. After twisting it a few times, he turned back to Hook. "It's locked."
"You think a magic fairy would have it unlocked for us as soon as we came here?" Hook sighed and flashed him a quick glare at him before returning to his work. "Try the window."
Smee eyed the window on the right of the door cautiously and prodded it slightly with his hand. When it swung inwards slightly, Smee frowned and moved closer. He leaned over the window and poked his head in, squinting as he tried to look around for some sort of key or another opening. Finding none, he eventually settled on jumping and stretching as he tried to knock the door off the latch from the inside.
"What the bloody hell are you doing?" Hook hissed, not taking his eyes from the map.
Smee blushed as he turned around. "I can't get in."
"What do you mean, you can't get in?"
"Captain," Smee mumbled and squirmed under his glare, "I can't get in."
Hook frowned and glanced up. He saw a round-bodied Smee next to a small, rectangular window and was promptly reminded of a wooden toy when children try to jam the circle through the square hole. Sighing, he rolled up his map and put away his ink and quill.
Without a word, he pushed Smee aside and opened the window shutters completely, resting his hands on the ledge as he judged what would be the best way to get in. There was a wash basin just beneath the window, so he would either need to step onto it or jump over it in order to pass with ease. However, that was quickly ruled out of the question after a few failed attempts to hitch his lef up and enter gracefully.
"Bloody hell," Hook groaned and looked at Smee. "Crouch down in front of the window."
He complied obligingly, and Hook took a wobbly step onto the man's back. After a few more grunts and groans, he finally submitted and did what he didn't want to do; launch himself in head-first.
Hook secured his hands on the bottom corners of the window and propelled himself forwards with all the force he could muster whilst standing on a wobbly surface. He didn't quite manage to do it with all of the strength he needed, so he scraped his back along the wooden edge the basin was propped upon, banging his head against the floor as he landed heavily on his shoulders.
Hook let out a loud groan through gritted teeth.
"Capt'n?" Smee cried. "Capt'n! Are you alright?"
In a frantic haze, he grabbed onto the door handle for leverage and shoved all of his weight against it. Just as he opened his mouth to call out to his companion again, his face paled as the door swung open and went crashing to the ground.
Smee landed next to Hook, just inches away from crushing the man entirely with heavy fall. The pirate winced as he looked at him in horror and confusion, watching the man roll over on to his back and cradle his left arm.
"What the bloody hell happened?" Hook exclaimed.
Smee let out a long moan. "I opened the door."
After a few minutes of grunting and checking if they hadn't made any permanent damage, the duo quietly navigated their way through the basement until they found the stairs to the ground floor. Hook cautiously took lead, keeping close to the walls and peering around every corner once he was sure that he couldn't hear a noise coming from the next room. Once they were on the main floor, the searching began.
The place was filled with grand furnishings, delicate trinkets and strange objects. About half of the rooms they first searched were in darkness, the curtains completely drawn over and blocking any trickle of light from the afternoon sun, causing the pair to bump into each other every now and then. The other half of the rooms they visited were brightly lit and offered a warm welcoming, as if the building was actually a home of a warm and loving family. Most of the lit rooms were accompanied by large fireplaces and velvet sofas with a few books scattered around. Hook picked a couple up, but he found that most were either fictitious or in a language he didn't understand.
Eventually they reached a dining room that was considerably smaller than some of the others they came across. Sunlight filtered in through the northern windows, creating a pattern of crosshatched shadows across the room. The cabinets here were filled with seemingly random objects in comparison to either the sets of swords or silver cutlery in the other rooms, indicating to the two men that this was a room worth being thorough in.
"Look around, Smee," Hook murmured. "See if you can find anything of value to us."
Smee nodded and began picking his way through the nearest drawers as Hook made his way over to one of the larger cabinets. The first item he picked up was a grey marbled egg, which looked to be for show more so than anything else. There was another book propped up on a stand, but he couldn't understand any of the writings in it. There were some pictures of plants and pictures depicting people crying, and Hook could only imagine it was one of those cursed spell books. He shivered uncomfortably and replaced it to its original position, choosing to rifle through some of the other items.
Smee sighed as he shut the last drawer, finding nothing of significance to help their plight. He turned around to check on Hook's progress, and he pulled a half-grin as he saw the man with a gleaming sword in his hand making various stabbing and swishing motions. Just as he was about to go on to the next set of drawers, a silver object atop of a wooden podium caught his eye. As Smee moved closer, he realised that it was a heavy looking gauntlet. Both confused and intrigued by the display piece, he picked it up and began examining it.
It was a lot lighter than he had expected it to be, but it looked sturdy enough to provide a decent amount of protection in battle. There were no exceptional qualities about its external appearance – it looked very similar to the ones on the armour stands dotted around the castle – so Smee was even more curious as to why this one had been singled out. Just as he had slipped it on his hand to see how it fitted, Hook appeared from behind him.
"Playing the knight in shining armour?" Hook joked, taking Smee's gloved hand in his and looking at it. "What's so special about this piece, then?"
"I-I don't know," Smee stammered, waggling his fingers a little. "It's the only one that's not with a complete set."
They were both quiet for a moment as they frowned at it. Smee was about to take it off after a few anti-climactic moments when he suddenly felt a warm, pulsing sensation in his right hand. He gasped, instinctively holding his arm further away from his body.
"What is it?" Hook asked, furrowing his brow.
Smee just shook his head with his mouth agape as he looked at it. The odd sensation went away as quickly as it game, but he now felt as if his hand was magnetised and pulling him towards something. He spun around to face the door, finding the pulling feeling a little less strong when he faced that direction.
"It's like it's trying to lead me somewhere," Smee said, his eyes wide. After a moment, he pulled it off his hand and passed it to Hook. As soon as he did so, the pulling feeling stopped. "You try it."
Hook was a little wary, but he gently slipped on the gauntlet onto his right hand; a perfect fit.
Hook waited and showed the same surprised face as Smee when he felt the pulsing sensation come and go, eventually leading on to the pulling. Hook took a 90 degree left turn and faced the sparsely decorated corner of the room, almost opposite to where they were first standing. He frowned and looked down at it, twisting his hand to get a better look at different angles.
"The thing is enchanted." Hook's voice was quieter and more hesitant. "It looks like it points the user in a direction they need to go in."
"But what does it do?" asked Smee.
"I'm not sure," Hook admitted, "but I know who we can ask to find out."
Hook flexed his fingers in the gauntlet a couple more times before slowly sliding it off and attaching it to a loop on his belt. "Let's go."
Rumple frowned as he watched the two men exit out of the main hall, constantly scanning their surroundings for any signs of movement. It had been fun spelling the door shut to watch the pirate scramble through the window, only lifting the spell moments after he tumbled onto floor. The frustrated look he gave the other bumbling fool as he simply twisted the handle to open the door elicited a giddy laugh that almost gave away his position.
If only they had looked up.
He'd been expecting Hook to pay him a visit ever since he heard some villagers talk of a group of pirates terrorizing local taverns in search of his castle. He had sitting on top of his roof every day since, just waiting. When he saw them climbing the hill, he set his plan into action.
Merlin's gauntlet was almost useless to him at this point; no matter how much he wanted it to lead him to Baelfire or Belle, it would always point him back in the direction of his dagger. Knowing this, he placed it upon the podium knowing that one of them would be foolish enough to think that he would leave something of value or importance out in the open. Discovering Hook's weakness and distracting him from his search of the dagger was almost too good an opportunity to pass.
He knew that Regina was conspiring against him – he'd had that suspicion for a while now. It was better for her believe she her ally was a useful one than finding a stronger one.
Rumple hopped down from the ceiling rafters and landed with a soft thud next to the empty podium. He opened the small compartment underneath it and took out a small object, cradling it in his hands for a few moments before delicately positioning it on the stand. He ran his finger over the chip wistfully before he began humming and going back to spinning the wheel.