More chapters coming your way! Might not be posting too many this upcoming week as I have to finish up my thesis, hence why I'm trying to share as many as possible right now. SB-chapter and from the point of view of our favourite pirate ;)
If there was one thing Killian Jones longed for it was the freedom of the ocean. That was why he kept to the Storybrooke docks whenever he was not busy searching for, or fighting, the Wicked Witch. However, he also knew perfectly well why he did not just take any of the available ships and sail away from the small town. He was not a man who gave up on a promise and even if this promise had only been to himself he was not going to leave until he saw that the people in this town that he had come to care about were safe, something that applied to one person in particular.
"Captain Hook!"
He did not bother turning; he knew the voice all too well. After all, he had spent a few hundred years in Neverland with this man.
"It's about time, Mr Smee", he instead said as the man in the red cap approached. "You know how much I abhor waiting."
He turned and gave the man a quick glare before walking along the pier.
"What was it that's so urgent?" he asked over his shoulder. Usually he would spend this time alone, but today his trusted sailor had asked to meet him here to discuss some matter or another. Killian hoped it did not involve rats or cheese.
"It's just", Smee begun and hurried after him, "me and the men were talking about how we haven't seen much of you since we all ended up back here."
Killian smiled in mock amusement.
"Is there a point to that rather odd observation?" he asked and stopped, turning to face the stout man. Of course he had not spent time with his men; he had been busy helping Emma and the Charmings with the investigation. Also he much preferred their company to that of his pirate crew; they provided other topics to discuss than what to steal and what to leave. Neal's death had also provided a valuable excuse to stay away, as unwelcome as that event had been.
"What's keeping us from crewing up again?" Smee asked, gazing out at the sea with the same longing that Killian often felt himself. "Hitting the high seas, getting back to pirating..."
"You mean other than being attacked and turned into flying monkeys?" Killian asked, cocking his head slightly. "Have you forgotten; there's no safe passage out of this town. You've already been a rodent, Mr Smee; does life as a simian interest you as well?"
That, of course, was a reference to what had happened to the man in the red cap during the last curse, when he had tried to trick Mr Gold and the man had responded by turning him into a rat. At the moment Killian had been too caught up in his desire for vengeance to care.
"Of course there's a safe passage", Smee now said as they started to walk again. "We could outrun them."
"Not with that torso of yours."
"If we had a fast enough ship", Smee continued, urgency clearly visible in his voice. "The Jolly Roger, for instance. You still haven't told me whether you found her during the time none of us can remember."
Killian felt his mood sour. Of course it would come back to that; the fact that the members of his crew had not been with him when the curse had hit and had all been taken here, minus their memories, while he still held those to himself. Honestly he was not keen on talking about it; his memories of the past year still haunted him as the decisions he had made were not the ones he should have made.
"What happened during that time isn't important", he now said. Smee, however, did not drop the subject.
"You remember. Is our ship okay? What happened to it?"
"My ship", Killian corrected. "All you need to know, Mr Smee, is that the Jolly Roger isn't here. So there'll be no outrunning of anything."
"What if we found another ship?" Smee then asked, pointing at the ones by the pier. "Any of these..."
"Mr Smee", Killian interrupted, "I've tried to let you down easy. Now let me be more direct."
He took a step closer to the man, towering over him. If he had been wearing his hook he would probably have poked it against the man's chest as a threat.
"I have no intention of leaving this town", he continued. Smee blinked in surprise.
"Captain, I agree with you; this place has its bright spots. I have never tried anything quite like frozen yoghurt before. But the Wicked Witch is here and with that sort of danger, what possible reason do you have to stay?"
A familiar feeling crept up Killian's spine and he cast a quick glance over his shoulder. Walking towards them was Emma Swan, her arm around the shoulders of her soon-to-be teenage son, Henry.
"My reasons are my own", he said, his voice sharp and definite as he once again turned to Smee, lowering the tone to a threatening whisper. "Question them again at your peril."
Smee seemed to understand that their conversation was over and gave a quick nod as a farewell before walking away. He nearly bumped into Wolfgang and two of the girls from his group and Killian watched as the young, tanned man gave Smee a deathly glare. Once again he contemplated telling him the truth, but before he could do anything about it Emma approached him from the other side.
"Didn't he use to be a rat?" she asked, referring to Smee.
"Aye", Killian responded, keeping his gaze at the trio further away on the pier, along with the disappearing Smee, "in many ways he still is."
He turned and gave Emma one of his usual, carefree smiles. They always came easy around her.
"To what do I owe the pleasure, Swan?"
Emma looked nervous for a moment, sticking her hands in her back pockets before responding.
"I was wondering if you could take care of Henry again?"
Killian raised his eyebrows in a slight hint of surprise, before smiling and stepping closer to her. He was pleased to notice that she did not step away.
"If you want to get close to me", he said, keeping his voice low, "you just need to ask. There's no need to use the lad as an excuse."
"Why am I not surprised you're making this about you?" Emma asked, although she sounded more amused than annoyed, something that was also shown in her slight smile. "I need your help, 'cause Regina needs to train me in magic."
Killian raised his eyebrows again. After the failure at this in Neverland he had never thought the subject would be brought up again.
"We think... together, we might be able to defeat the Wicked Witch", Emma continued.
"That's the first reasonable plan I've heard since this all began", Killian admitted. "Magic is a part of you, Swan. Don't forget; I was there when Cora tried to steal your heart. I saw the power inside of you; it's time you embraced it. It's what makes you the Saviour."
"I'm not embracing anything", Emma quickly responded. "I need to learn magic to defeat Zelena and make sure everyone here is safe. After that, I'm done."
Killian felt his heart sink somewhat, though he could not keep himself from inquiring exactly what she meant.
"Done with what, exactly?"
Emma looked back at Henry, who was sitting on a bench playing with some small technological device that seemed to keep him too busy to overhear their conversation. It was hard to imagine that this was the boy who, a mere year ago, had been captured by Peter Pan and had fought and played with the Wild Boys when he had not believed anyone would come save him, not to mention giving up his heart in order to make sure everyone else would be safe.
"He doesn't belong here, not anymore", Emma said, turning back to Killian. "He belongs in the real world; in New York and the life that he remembers. It was good and it didn't involve vile villains."
"What about the life you remember?" Killian asked and stepped closer once again, his smile having long since dropped. "You can't just pretend like this never happened. Trust me; I spent the last year trying to do just that, return to the person I used to be and it didn't work."
"Why?" Emma asked. "What happened over the last year that you're not telling me?"
"It matters not", he responded. "Just take it from me, just this once; no matter how much you wish you could go back to your old life... you can't."
Emma lowered her gaze, contemplating his words, before glancing back at Henry. This time the boy looked up and Emma managed a smile as she walked over to him.
"Take care, alright?" she said and gave him a quick hug. "Stay with Killian."
"I will, mum", Henry responded and waved at Emma as she left. Just then Wolfgang and the two girls approached them.
"Wolfgang", Killian said, greeting them with a slight nod.
"Morning", Wolfgang responded, before grinning at Henry. "Hey there, Henry! Going out on the water with Killian again?"
"Don't know", Henry responded and looked over at the man in question. Killian contemplated stealing a boat again, but decided that it would be too risky.
"Today we're going to stay on land", he said, managing one of his usual grins. "There's lots to do here as well that you might not know of."
"Henry, I do not believe you have met my friends", Wolfgang said, gesturing to the two girls. "This is Filipi and this is Tessa."
"It's good to meet you", Henry said as he shook hands with the two girls.
"Wolf was just showing us the docks; I haven't been here before", Filipi explained. "Though I think now both me and Tessa would like to head to Granny's for a late breakfast. Care to join us?"
Henry looked at Killian again and he smiled briefly.
"Well, why not?" he said. "Maybe I can show you a few tricks while we're there?"
"What, you're suddenly a magician as well as a sailor?" Wolfgang asked.
"There's more to a man than what meets the eye", Killian responded as they all started to walk down the pier. Wolfgang rolled his eyes.
"I doubt those clothes cover too much", he said, indicating at Killian's regular tight leather trousers and half-unbuttoned vest.
"Well, the ladies certainly seem to like it", the pirate responded and fired off a disarming grin in the direction of Tessa and Filipi. The red-haired Tessa blushed furiously and looked away.
"Don't be ridiculous", Wolfgang huffed. "Indira saw through your charade and told me when we were out tracking the Witch."
"And what did she see, then?" Hook asked. Wolfgang lowered his voice to a whisper.
"That you're madly in love with Emma Swan."
Well, someone had to say it...