"How can there be invitations to the engagement ball here?" Miranda asked.
"No idea", Filipi answered as she spread out the parchments on the desk next to Toby. He was busy trying to establish a telepathic connection between Clarissa and Wolfgang again, a difficult task since it seemed to have broken for no real reason.
"There aren't fifteen of them", Chris remarked, "so they can't be for us, can they?"
"Who else would they be for?" Tessa asked. "Do you see anyone else here?"
A scratching sound in the invisible speakers caused them all to look up, including Toby.
"This is Light", came Indira's voice from the screen that seemed to show nothing but white noise. "Do you hear me? Guys?"
"We hear you", Toby said, concentrating, "but the connections not that strong. What happened? I haven't been able to keep track of you at all."
"I'm fine", Indira responded. "Well, sort of. I need to get back."
"Er, how?" Tessa asked. Toby concentrated even harder, but only bits and pieces of what Indira said next came through.
"Indira, concentrate!" he ordered. "We're losing you!"
"The door!" Indira managed to get through. "Open the door!"
The others looked at each other in surprise, before Filipi hurriedly ran around the screens and yanked Indira's door, marked with a wheel, open. A gush of wind threw her back and in the next moment Indira tumbled out of the opening. She quickly got up and closed the door, letting out a breath of relief once it was done.
"That was close", she gasped.
"What happened to you?" Miranda asked. Indira grimaced.
"Just because knights wear lots of armour doesn't mean they're easy to outrun", she replied, "but at least now what Gold told me he remembered has actually happened to me as well."
"Wait, you actually met Gold before he was the Dark One?" Chris asked. Indira nodded.
"He was really sweet, you guys. The perfect father. Little Baelfire was really cute as well."
"You'll have to tell us more about that later", Toby said from his position by the screens. "Right now we have a bit of an issue right here."
The others walked back to him to see what he was talking about. He pointed at the two screens following Emma and Hook. Chris inhaled sharply.
"Damn it."
Killian had seated himself behind the large table that he kept in the Captain's quarters. Usually he would have maps spread out on it and, at this time of the day, some lit wax candles, but at the moment he kept the room dark, allowing him to conceal his features. Snow White was not meant to meet him yet; their first meeting had been in the Enchanted Forest after Emma had broken the Curse, almost thirty years from now. It was as important that he stayed hidden as it was for Emma to do the same.
The ladder leading down from the deck to the Captain's quarters squeaked as the cloaked woman climbed down. Once down she turned and eyed his silhouette with suspicion.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"It doesn't matter", Killian replied, pulling off a more posh accent than his usual one to, once again, hide who he really was. "I'm a captain and I can help you."
Snow White sat down on the other chair in the room, placed in the little light that streamed in from the window. She put up a confident face, hiding her fear and uncertainty like a well-trained actress. Killian had to keep himself from smiling; no wonder Emma was so good at this as well.
"She doesn't look that much younger than she is now", Wolfgang remarked.
"The Curse kept them frozen, none of them aged", Killian replied. "I think it's cast about three years from now, maybe even less."
"So", Snow White said and leaned back on the chair, "what do you want?"
"It's not what I want", Killian answered, "it's what I can offer."
Snow tilted her head slightly to the side, a spark of interest appearing in her eyes.
"I hear that you seek passage out of the Enchanted Forest", Killian continued.
"That's true", Snow admitted with a small frown, "but I haven't enough money..."
"I don't give a damn about money", Killian said and leaned back on his chair, "it's a treasure I want. I think you can get it for me..."
He reached for the rolled up parchment he had placed on the table and unrolled it, showing her the drawn image of her own face. He could see her tense, like a deer ready to run; she thought he was going to turn her in.
"Snow White", he said with a smile, "you are a thief, aren't you?"
Snow's eyebrows slowly raised as she looked up from the parchment. She then gave him a cocky smile.
"I am", she said. "Tell me; if I procure this item you want, you'll grant me safe passage on your ship?"
"To any realm you wish", Killian replied. Snow's eyes gleamed with interest and she leaned forward onto the table.
"What do I have to steal?" she eagerly asked. Killian paused briefly before he replied.
"A wedding ring."
Emma did not know how many glasses of rum she had poured for them, but the bottle, which had been almost full at the start of tonight's activities, did not contain even a fourth of that amount as of right now. Hook's past self had downed every glass she had poured him. She had stopped after her fourth glass; all the following ones she had thrown over her shoulder. Her companion never noticed. She, however, noticed that Clarissa's ability to speak with her numbed out due to the alcohol and, as Clarissa could no longer speak to Wolfgang, she feared the alcohol might be a cause of the block as well. Apparently these telepathic links were very fragile.
She topped up their glasses and watched as Hook downed his, while she quickly threw her own over her shoulder and then pretended to have drunk it. Hook was considerably drunk; he was slurry and his eyes were misty and, if he ever rose, she had no doubt that he would stumble over his own feet.
"If I didn't know any better", he said as he set down his glass and leaned towards her, "I'd say you're trying to get me drunk, which is usually my tactic."
"What's wrong, Captain?" Emma purred with a smile. "Can't hold your rum?"
"No, not only can I hold it", Hook said, suddenly sounding a lot less drunk as he bopped her on the nose, "but I can carry it right out the door."
He grabbed the bottle with a grin.
"What do you say we set sail?" he whispered, leaning close to her and she found it very hard to resist pulling him even closer, despite his alcoholic breath. "Come back with me for a nightcap."
He rose, slightly unsteady on his feet but his experience as a sailor allowed him to quickly regain his balance.
"Is he drunk or not?" Clarissa asked.
"I think so", Emma replied. "He's just good at concealing most of it. Look at his eyes."
"Or shall I find someone else?" Hook continued. Emma quickly rose and took his offered arm.
"Show me to your ship, Captain", she said with a smile. He grinned and led her out through the door of the tavern.
"Is Killian finished?" Emma thought as she spotted the Jolly Roger in the distance.
"I don't know; I still can't get to Wolf", Clarissa replied. "Try to stall him."
Emma looked around, then, as Hook downed a mouthful of rum, she pretended to stumble and fall against him. She laughed at her own clumsiness.
"I think I should rest for a moment", she said. Hook quickly threw the bottle away and grabbed her arms, pulling her up from the box she had sat down on.
"Oh, no need", he said with a grin. The next moment she found herself hoisted up into his arms, his right arm going under her knees and his left behind her back.
"I've carried rum barrels heavier than you", Hook continued, still grinning.
"Damn, damn, damn", Emma thought as the pirate carried her towards his ship.
"You tell me, but you have to admit it's kind of romantic", Clarissa replied. Emma was about to reply when a cloaked figure passed them. She only just managed to get a glimpse of the familiar face hidden beneath the hood; Snow White.
"Actually", she said and tried to get out of Hook's grip, "I feel much better."
Hook chuckled, then stepped up onto the landing.
"Behold!" he called. "The Rolly Joger!"
"Yep, definitely drunk", Clarissa admitted.
"Captain?" a surprised voice said. Hook stopped and Emma quickly jumped out of his arms as a short man in a red cap approached them, frowning in confusion.
"How... how did you... I thought you were still below deck... and why does your vest keep changing?"
"Below deck?" Clarissa squealed.
"Shit, shit, shit", Emma thought and spun around towards Hook.
"I seem to remember a nightcap was promised", she said with a smile. "Find one and I'll be waiting."
Hook grinned at her and chuckled as he pointed her in the directions of the ladder leading down to the Captain's quarters. She giggled, hoping it did not convey how stressed she was, and ran off in that direction.
She climbed down the ladder as quickly as she could and nearly ran into Hook, her Hook, as he was about the head up.
"What are you doing here?" she hissed.
"I could ask the same of you; I thought I told you to keep him occupied", Hook hissed back.
"I am."
"By taking him back to my ship?" Hook asked.
"His ship", Emma corrected, then switched to telepathy. "Clarissa?"
No answer and she frowned.
"Clarissa's gone", she hissed.
"Yeah, Wolfgang as well", Hook replied. "What happened?"
"I had some rum, with y-him", Emma admitted. "I think that numbed it out somehow."
"Still doesn't explain why they both disappeared now, or why you're here."
"I tried to stall him as long as I could", Emma replied. "I thought you'd be gone by now. Look, I'll try to keep him above deck so that you..."
The floorboards above deck creaked and Hook quickly ducked into the shadows as his past self made his way down the ladder. Emma quickly put on her most seductive smile and steadied him as he came down. He shot her a flirtatious grin in reply.
"And where might you be going?" he asked, indicating towards the ladder. "I do hope you're not having second thoughts."
"No", Emma said and pulled him closer, "I just got tired of waiting."
His lips landed on hers and she could not help but think what a good kisser he really was, despite being drunk and his movement being quite sloppy. She got lost in the feeling of him pressed against her, of his lips moving against hers, and it was not until she bumped against the table that she looked up again. She laughed nervously and Hook's past self grinned. His present self had sneaked around him and was now standing by the door. Emma had to keep herself from frowning as she saw the dark gaze he gave his past self.
"Apologies", Hook's past self murmured and leaned her back, "but a woman as beautiful as you deserves my full and prompt attention."
Emma smiled up at him, before he was suddenly pulled back. She could then only stand there and gape as she saw her Hook turn his past self around and land an uppercut punch in his face, sending him crashing to the ground. Emma stared at his limp body, before looking up at Hook's present self. He was flexing his fingers and grimacing slightly.
"Are you kidding me?" she exclaimed, hoping no one above deck heard them. "How's that not going to have consequences?"
"He was asking for it", Hook replied, "and like I said; he'll blame the rum. Now let's get out of here."
Hope you enjoyed this set of chapters - hopefully I'll have more up on Thursday :)