Once Upon A Time

The pirate sent for Dagian on a day where the sky was cloudy and the air was thick with moisture. Usually Dagian tried not to go on the ship during the day…she much preferred to do her navigating skills at night since Hook taught her the navigate by the stars and taught her coordinates. He'd also taught her how to distance herself because she'd learned to ignore him and the wondering hand at the small of her back. Pulling away from it would just challenge him and she was usually not in the mood to endure that.

The wind pulled at her hair when she opened the door outside and she saw the men were tying things down. They expected a storm from the looks of it. Another reason to be inside as far as she was concerned.

The captain was alone at the helm when she approached him. The waterproof leather pants that he'd given her still felt strange and stiff as she walked and she knew that he didn't just steal them for her because he wanted her to have better range of movement, "I was told that you wanted to see me."

He looked at her and signaled for his second in command to take the wheel, "There's a sword behind you, pick it up."

She stared at him, "I don't understand…"

"You're going to learn how to fight."

She stared at him, she hoped that she was giving him the best distrustful look that she had, "And why should you do that?"

"Because you are on a pirate ship my dear. Pirate ships get boarded all the time by kingsmen, by other pirates…you should know how to fight."

"Well kingsmen shouldn't be a problem," she smirked. When they neared land or another ship, Hook had her dragged to her small room and locked in. She was biding her time before she could escape for now. From where they were on the charts, she wouldn't survive the swim to land. He was always certain to make sure they were far enough to way when they were sailing. And she supposed that she could lie about where they were and bring the ship closer to land but Killian reviewed the work himself. He hadn't lied when he said he was just giving her something to do.

"Well rival pirates are, love," he said, "And if you want to protect yourself then you'll pick up that sword and learn."

"Aren't you worried that I'll hit you?" Dagian with a shrug, "Obviously it's not a concern of mine but the consequences of what could happen probably wouldn't be very pleasing now would it?"

"Trust me love," he said arrogantly, "You won't hit me."

Dagian hadn't held a sword since before she married Rumpelstiltskin. Her father had taught her a bit but there was quite the difference between a sword meant for pirates and a sword meant for soldiers. So the sword in her hand felt foreign.

She stared at Killian and tried to discern any weakness in his movement but there were none that she could see. He moved like a cat circling its prey. Eager, strategic, muscles coiled and ready for whatever move she had. He moved toward her a step and she moved backwards in reaction. It amused him and they circled each other.

Well she supposed, at least this was her opportunity to get some of her frustration out.

No, she couldn't think about that. She would just get angry and that would open her up to weaknesses.

Dagian spied a blade in his boot…perhaps if she could get ahold of that…

She lunged and tried to land a blow which he blocked easily and maneuvered his blade to force hers out of her hands. It went clattering on the deck and she was without a weapon.

"The buildup took longer than the payoff," he said with faux disappointment, "But fortunately I don't have that problem."

Oh, he was disgusting.

She swung her fist which he caught and flipped her to the ground. She landed with a hard thud that drove the wind out of her but she managed to close her hand on the hilt of the knife as he bent down over her, "I'm not even sure that 'rusty' is even the word for how horrible that was, dear."

Dagian unsheathed the blade and tried to shove it in his throat with the full intent to kill him. Suddenly killing him and taking her chances in the water didn't seem like such a bad idea."

He blocked her wrist right before she planted his own blade in his jugular and forced the hand against the deck. His gaze was dark and angry…did he really think that she didn't want him dead for what he was putting her through?"

"Such a clever love," he taunted ran his fingers down her face. She pulled away, earning another dark glare from him and with a tug he forced her up, "but not near clever or fast enough."

He shoved her against the side of the ship and went to grab the sword he'd let her borrow for this; "Now let's try again, shall we?"

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If Dagian had known that Killian wasn't just bragging when he claimed that he was one of the best swordsman in this world then she wouldn't have bothered with today's exercises.

He had trained her for two hours and then he had finally decided it was enough for the day. Dagian felt bruised and aching in muscles that she didn't know existed.

"Who taught you to fight?" Killian asked her later as she sat on the steps leading up to the helm, "Your father?"

She pressed the washcloth against her forehead where the cut was bleeding, "Why should it matter? He obviously failed to teach me adequately."

"On the contrary, you understood posture, weakness and strategy…but you're fighting is more equipped for soldiers and peasants on the front lands…those that have rules and honor. Not like out here where it's everyone for themselves."

She looked at the crew, they'd certainly got a show today, "Did they teach you that?"

"No, my father did. He taught me how to fight as well, put a sword in my hand almost as soon as I could walk. At least that's what they tell me. I find most people don't remember things at least below the age of two."

"Who's they?" she asked, "The crew? You were a child in this place?"

"Yes, most of the men were a crew under my father. When he died, the crew voted me in as the captain and here I am. He spent most of my childhood trying to turn me into a smaller version of him so whatever issues you have with the man I am, you can thank him for."

"You didn't have to be that man," she told him.

"It's different for us out here," he told her, "Out there you can run to the neighbors and associate yourself with other people if your family is…different but here there's no one to run to when your father shatters your eardrum because you failed a basic drill when practicing to swordfight. Only the strong survive out here."

"That's horrible," she told him.

"It's how my father showed he loved me," Killian said and took a sip from the flask he held, "Just as your father showed you how to fight and survive because he loved you. Except your father believed love was to raise you in a healthy happy home and lay out expectations of…what? Marriage and childbearing with the occasional fight in case the looters came? My father taught me how to be a leader. He taught me how to be better than everyone else because that's how we survive. And the sooner you learn that, the sooner you'll adapt out here."

Dagian looked at him, 'You remind me of a man I knew back in my husband's village. Handsome man, the women loved him. He believes in taking and manipulating his way into getting what he wants as well. When the recruiters came he got a…position among their ranks. One day…when I was very pregnant he grabbed me and my son was born very early."

"So that's why you hate me," he said, "It's nothing I've done, I remind you of a man that manhandled you once."

"No, I hate you because I think you're a psychopath who thinks his pretty face is going to get him everything including my tolerance and forgiveness for your part in me not seeing my husband," she told him honestly, "However when you act like an actual human being like you're doing now then I could certainly learn to tolerate my stay a little better."

It was starting to rain, so she grabbed the coat that she'd shed earlier and slipped into it.

She looked forward to sleeping well tonight.

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Present Day

Lily slept contently on Dagian's chest while she and Rumpelstiltskin had dinner together. Dagian had to sit at a bit of angle so that she could just hold Lily with one arm. The chair dug in her back, but she didn't mind. It was just so…relaxing to have her daughter home with her now.

She imagined her thoughts would be a bit different in the middle of the night when it was time to feed Lily.

"Is she well?" Rumpelstiltskin asked.

"Yes," Dagian replied and rubbed her daughter's back, "Just tired."

"Well it's a big day for her, I'm sure all the changes are overwhelming."

"I had to practically fight her hand to hand to get her to fall asleep," Dagian said and watched his gaze soften as he stared at his daughter.

"We'll find her brother."

"How are we going to do that if we can't leave and Emma is off in our home?"

"She'll return," he said confidant, "I imagine her destiny isn't to die over there or remain forever trapped. Ms. Swan has a…very interesting way of beating the odds."

Dagian smiled gently back at him and then looked to the door when the doorbell rang.

Rumpelstiltskin frowned, "I see that you're hatter friend decided to finally show up."

Dagian ignored the barb and stood to open it. Jefferson saw her through the glass and visibly brightened when he opened the door and saw that she was carrying Lily, "Is that her?"

"Yes."

He bent over to look at her face and his face lit up with a sort of indescribably joy as the girl opened her eyes and stared at him, "Hi Lily."

Lily was unimpressed.

Rumpelstiltskin appeared beside Dagian and shot Jefferson all kinds of dirty looks as he and his ex-wife stood side by side.

"I really do have to be going," Rumpelstiltskin told her

Dagian looked at him, "I don't understand, I thought you were spending the evening with us-."

"I have some things to attend to," he told her, "My services have been requested more now that magic is back."

"I see," Dagian said and watched as he shot another look at Jefferson but covered it up with a smile and kissed her on the cheek.

"I shall be back later tonight when you don't have company over," he kissed Lily's face as well, "I imagine you two have a lot to discuss…and I would just be bored."

With a parting threatening glare to Jefferson, he walked down the stairs.

Jefferson nudged her with his elbow, "He knows we're not dating, right? I only ask because I worry about waking up one night to find him standing over me with his cane or a knife."

"I told him," she shrugged, "He doesn't believe me."

"Wonderful," he muttered.

Dagian gave him a teasing smile, "If I were you, I'd start rigging my house with traps."

"I'm sure he's stubborn to survive anything I could set up," Jefferson said, "Well let's have dinner. I have to pick up Grace from her other family at seven."

Dagian gave him a pitying look. Ever since he'd returned there'd been disputes and fighting between he and Grace's false family and it had been settled with the agreement that she spend two days a week with them as a trial run to see if it would work. Jefferson said they were going to try to ask for more but he was going to refuse. He understood their attachment since they'd spent 28 years with her but that was still his daughter.

"I'm going to have to warm some of it up, you were late."

He shrugged, "Car's still not working right."

"Well I suppose that's bound to happen when wraiths overturn them."