Chapter Text
Killian Jones - Or Captain Hook as he is more well known - is a man of the sea, he spends his days sailing the high seas and robbing royal carriages on land, for treasure. Him and his men carry out these tasks so simply and so easily, that they are laden in riches and gold. They want for nothing but the steal is always so thrilling, they like to take from the wealthy for their own gain. Their ship -The Jolly Roger- is a beauty beyond compare. She has sailed through storms and portals and never has a mark on her, she is the life of the crew and the real treasure of Captain Hook. The Captain has never been very lucky in love, for he does not have time for it, although he has had many a woman in his time.
One of Captain Hooks's shipmates rushed towards him, with excitement in his eyes, pure and elated excitement.
"Cap'n! Cap'n." Smee called, stopping in front of his Captain.
"What is it, Smee?" Hook asked, with an uninterested tone, as he scanned the seas with his telescope.
"Cap'n, I have heard word that a carriage is passing through the forest, on this very night. It is said to be laden with gold and rubies, more riches than we could ever dream to need. It will be a real hit, Cap'n."
"It sounds like hearsay, Smee. Do you have proof of this?"
"Well... no, Cap'n. But I have heard the tale of the carriage." Smee assured him.
"To which tale do you refer?" Hook asked, crossing his arms, as he leant back against the side of his ship.
"The tale of the phantom carriage. Everyone has heard it over the years. On the night of the fall moon, each month, the carriage passes through the woods on it's journey to the tower in the silent forest. The carriage is said to belong to a witch who has the purest and most wanted treasure on board, she guards it every night, except that one night of the full moon. No one knows why she stops guarding it for that one night, but it is said that only a single guard travels with the carriage. There have been sightings over the years but everyone believed it was a myth, until recently. A man was found dead along that trail on a full moon, he had his hands cut off from trying to steal the treasure. It's dangerous Cap'n but we can do it." Smee explained, getting excited as he spoke.
"So let me get this straight, you want me to go after a myth? For treasure that may not even exist?"
"Well... yes, Cap'n. Come on it'll be an adventure." Smee probed, wearing down Hook's stubbornness.
"Fine, we shall go, Smee. But if it ends up being a waste of time, then I will run you through for wasting my time." Hook decided, grinning devilishly at the thought.
"Okay, you are on." Smee agreed, feeling certain that they would discover the treasure.
Hook pushed himself away from the side of the ship to call out to his men.
"Prepare to set sail, lads! For tonight we hunt for the phantom carriage in the forest. If it turns out to be a dead end, then tonight we shall have Smee's head be our treasure." Hook addressed his men, rallying them to head for land.
"AYE!! AYE!! CAPTAIN!!" Called the men as they set about their tasks to get the ship moving.
"We shall see if your myth is true, Smee." Hook taunted Smee, brushing passed him to take the helm.
Smee cowered away, not wanting to get in the way of his Captain, as he knew what he was capable of. He had seen it many times as they sailed the high seas and he never wanted to be on the receiving end of it. Just then the ship began to sail back towards the shore, where the trail to the forest was.
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The ship anchored at shore within the hour, and soon enough the crew were embarking on their journey into the forest, in search of their treasure. Smee led the crew into the forest, as it was his idea to embark on the journey in the first place, and Hook didn't want to entertain his fantasies.
"Cap'n it should be just over the ridge. The moon is almost at it's peak so the carriage should arrive within the next 20 minutes." Smee instructed, leading the men along the trail.
"What is exactly is your plan, Smee? Just approach them and ask them nicely for their treasure?" Hook asked, smugly.
"No, we'll surprise attack. Half wait on one side and half wait on the other. We'll cut a tree into their path so they'll have to stop and then we will pounce."
"Okay, just remember lad that it is your neck literally on the line." Hook reminded him.
Just then, they reached the path where the ship was going to pass through. The crew worked on hacking the tree down on the path, which took them a few minutes, but eventually it fell with a thud. Then the men went into hiding, waiting to see if the myths were true, hungry for the treasure. Soon enough they heard hooves pounding towards them, as a pure black carriage hurtled towards the tree. It didn't see it until the last minute and then stopped abruptly, causing the horses to whinny, as they stopped. The guard stepped down from the carriage, leaving it unguarded, as the crew ambushed him.
Hook, sat on a nearby rock, watching the tussle of swords and limbs as the crew fought the guard. He seemed to be a lot stronger than he looked and he was easily able to overpower the men. Hook however had had enough of the tussle, he wanted to see whether the myth of the treasure was true. So whilst his men kept the guard occupied, Hook walked over and ran him through from behind. The man gurgled, reaching for the sword in his back, but to no avail, he fell to the floor in a pool of blood. Hook's men clambered to their feet, covered in cuts and blood, they moved stand beside their Captain.
"If you want something done, do it yourself." Hook sighed in annoyance, glaring at Smee, who backed off.
Hook made his way around to the back of the carriage, ready to see what the treasure was, he wanted rubies and gold. His crew watched on intently as he grabbed hold of the curtain that was covering the carriage, waiting for him to get first look. He pulled the curtain off with a swift movement and the treasure on board was not what he expected at al, it made both him and his crew gasp in shock. There curled up against the bars was a woman. She was dressed in grey rags and her hair was a dirty golden mess on her head, she looked ill and almost dead. Who could she be? Hook thought. He reached out to touch her cheeks through the bars, and her eyes flung open, as she jumped away from his touch.
"Woah woah woah, I'm not here to hurt you, love. What is your name?" Hook asked calmly, holding his hands up to show her he meant no harm.
The girl gazed at him in shock and confusion, not understanding what was happening around her. Who was this man? Did he want to hurt her?
"E-Emma Swan..." She muttered, still unsure whether she can trust this man.
"Okay, Emma Swan. What are you doing in there?"
"I was held prisoner in a tower for many years. I was on my way to be put on trial for theft, but I didn't do what I am accused of. The witch made it up and now I'm being hunted. I can't stay here, I need to leave, otherwise they will come for me" She pleaded, recoiling at the thought of being captured again.
"You are welcome to come back aboard the Jolly Roger, we can get you some accommodation, and you'll be safe there." Hook offered, shocking even himself at his tenderness with this woman, but she intrigued him.
"What is a Jolly Roger?"
"It's my ship, Ma'am. Captain Hook at your service." Hook bowed, keeping his soft persona about him.
"Okay, just please get me out of here."
With a swift movement, Hook managed to break the lock with his sword, causing the door to swing open. Emma stumbled out, unable to steady her legs as she walked, and luckily Hook caught her in his arms.
"Oooh... got you, love. Let's get you to my ship. Lads let's get moving, before the witch comes after us." Hook instructed his men, as they made their way back to the ship, and safety.
"Thank you, Captain." Emma whispered, glad to finally be away from that cage and her tower.
"You are welcome." Hook smiled reassuringly down at her in his arms.
They reached the ship within 20 minutes and the crew were soon getting the ship to set sail back onto the sea. Every stride the ship made away from the land, was a breath that Emma could let go, because she was reaching safety from the land.
Hook carried her below deck, before he set her down on her feet. She swayed a little, but he steadied her, smiling soothingly.
"You are welcome to stay down here in the Captain's quarters and rest. There is a place to wash next door for you to use, I will keep my men away whilst you do, feel free to use that. There may also be some old dresses in the trunk over there, have a look and see what you like. Just rest and I'll bring you some food later." Hook pointed in the direction of the different rooms, making sure Emma felt at home.
"Thank you." Emma smiled again and Hook nodded.
He made his way back up to deck where he was greeted by Smee and his men.
"You're are lucky, you get to keep your head, Smee." Hook said, brushing passed him.
"Thank you Cap'n. But we didn't find the treasure..." Smee said, cautiously stepping back.
"No we didn't. But we have something more worthy. She must be worth something to that witch, we could get a good price." Hook said, in a scheming manner, wiggling his brow.
"Right, Cap'n. Good idea."
"I know. Now let's come up with a plan." Hook suggested, turning to his crew.