《Artemis || OUAT》91. Dark Waters
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Regina and Robin walked up to the farmhouse in the middle of nowhere as she called out, "I know you're in there... Your Majesty. Come out... We need to have a little chat."
The Evil Queen smirked and appeared behind the two, "Or what? You'll huff, and you'll puff, and you'll blow the house down?" She chuckled and faced her, "You call this an entrance, Regina? Well, I suppose I was the one with all the flair."
Zelena stepped down the front steps of the house and approached then, "To what do we owe the honor?"
"So, it's true," Robin replied, "You really are harboring the Evil Queen out here."
"She's my sister, and she cares about me." Zelena remarked, "I'm willing to bet you two are not here to see how I'm getting on."
"You're right. I have a message." Regina commented, "Your little masquerade as the Cricket therapist didn't work... because airing Emma's dirty laundry only made us stronger-"
Both Astrid and David peeked out the curtains inside of the home and shared a look before glancing over at Snow, nodding some.
Snow quickly moved over to the crib and opened the small cage above it that held Jiminy Cricket, "We're right behind you. Go."
Jiminy flew out of the cage and then out of the house just as the three of them heard baby Robin Petra coo up at them.
They were also here to retrieve her for Robin as Astrid carefully picked up her adopted little sister, supporting the back of her head.
"Hey, beautiful," Astrid murmured softly towards the baby until both the Evil Queen and Zelena appeared a few feet from them.
"Stay away from her-" Zelena started.
"She's not just your daughter." David pointed out, "We're not going to hurt her-- and we were here for Archie."
"Now the real fun can begin," The Evil Queen remarked and made a fireball appear in her hand.
Regina appeared in front of them with Robin right beside her; Astrid handed the baby over to the said thief who coddled her instantly.
Astrid then stepped in front of the five of them protectively, "Try it. See what happens."
Regina smirked at the blonde next to her just as the Evil Queen extinguished her fireball.
"Nothing you do will ever tear this family apart," Snow spoke up from behind her daughter.
"Oh, is that so?" The Evil Queen sneered, "Because exposing Emma's secret was just the beginning."
Regina remarked, "Bring it, Queenie." She then made her, Robin holding his baby, Astrid, Snow, and David disappear in a cloud of purple smoke.
***
"Zep, Henry, what are you doing?" Hook inquired as he found the two boys on the docks near a paddle boat.
Henry straightened up and faced the pirate, "What my mom asked you to do." He held up the golden shears, "Getting rid of these."
"Let me explain." Hook sighed.
"You don't have to. I get it." Henry muttered as the said pirate replied, "No, you don't. I kept them to protect Emma."
"Even though Aunt Emma didn't want you to?" The five year old spoke up, holding his bow in one hand, his quiver of arrows strung around his back.
Hook glanced away and back at them, "Boys, listens to me-"
"No! You don't get to make decisions for me, and you certainly don't get to make decisions for my mom." Henry cut him off, not noticing Hook looking at something behind them in the ocean.
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"Henry, stop!" The pirate began while grabbing his arm to pull him back as Henry let out, "Let go of me!"
"This isn't about the bloody shears right now!" Hook commented as the three of them looked at the ocean to find something huge coming close to them.
"Bloody hell," Zephyr murmured before looking up at Hook and asking, "Gramps, what is that?"
"Run!" Hook told them as the three started to until two sailors with spears in their hands stopped them from leaving.
"Turn around, mate." One of the sailors spoke up, "Captain wants to see you."
They soon boarded the submarine as Hook began, "Listen to me, let the lads go. They've got nothing to do with this!"
The two sailors smirked and exited out of the room while closing the metal door shut behind them.
"What the hell is going on?" Henry questioned the said pirate next to them while Zephyr gripped his bow in his small hands.
"What does it look like?" Hook answered with another question as the three of them looked around.
"Are we-?" Zephyr began.
"Underwater?" Hook finished for him, "Aye. Welcome to the Nautilus." He pressed a button to make a metal door open to reveal a glass window, which showed them underwater.
Zephyr widened his eyes in awe and looked up at his cousin who had the same astonished look on his face.
***
Snow and Astrid raced inside of the emergency room to find David walking behind a body behind wheeled on a gurney.
"We got here as soon as we could." Snow spoke up, the two stopping on both sides of David.
He sighed, "I was on patrol out by the mines. It's just been one crisis after another ever since that dirigible hit. I found him in the woods."
"Who is he?" Astrid wondered aloud, unconsciously moving her hands against the hilts of her swords strapped on her hips.
"He looks like another refugee from the Land of Untold Stories," David answered, "Serious injuries, heavy bleeding... another few hours, he would've been gone."
"Must have been out there for days," Snow commented, "Did anyone recognize him?"
"No, we're asking around but... I don't think he was ever at Granny's." David replied, moving his hands over his hips, "You know what? I'm gonna head back to the station, see if anyone reported him missing."
"Yeah, I'll stay here and go heal this man-" Astrid spoke up with a confident nod.
"I'll stay here too." Snow added first to her daughter and then towards her husband, "I'll let you know how it goes."
"Okay," David kissed his wife on the lips before kissing his daughter's top of her head and walked away from them.
"Alright,"Astrid smirked, "Wish me luck."
"You got this, A." Snow grinned and noticed Belle waiting in the waiting room and walked over to her.
Astrid smiled some, chuckled, and headed inside of the OR where the unknown injured man was at.
***
Hook closed the doors again as Henry questioned, "Why did they grab us?"
"I'm afraid I have a history with the captain of this vessel." Hook began.
Zephyr smirked up at him, "I'm actually not even surprised."
Hook sighed yet ruffled his grandson's curly hair, seeing such a resemblance between him and Astrid.
Henry stated in annoyance, "None of this would've happened if you just did what my mom asked."
"Sorry, lad, I couldn't give up the one thing that could save her." Hook replied.
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"When were you gonna use them on her?" Henry continued to question the man, "Were you even gonna ask before you did?"
"I don't know!" Hook admitted with a sigh.
"Being the Savior is who she is. It's what brought us together." Henry continued.
"I wasn't trying to take that away from you, Henry." Hook started and stepped back over to the said teenager.
"Why do you even care?" Henry replied, aggravated and frustrated, "You're not even part of this family."
A flicker of hurt showed in Hook's eyes as he let out, "Henry..."
Zephyr had been silently watching the two of them and finally spoke up, "Yes, he is. He's my mom's family, and he's mine, too... My grandpa was only doing what he thought was best for Aunt Emma. We can't blame him for that."
"It doesn't matter," Henry sighed, adding, "We're just gonna end up fish food on the ocean floor soon, anyway."
"We've gotten out of tough scrapes than this." Hook reminded him, "Remember the walking prisoner gag?"
"Wookie!" Henry corrected him, "Wookie prisoner gag!"
"Wookie? What's a Wookie?" Hook started in confusion, "It doesn't make any sense."
"It's from... Nevermind. And that doesn't count." Henry replied before sitting down on the couch behind him, "Alternate universe."
"Well, I'll just have to come up with a plan of my own." Hook remarked, "Trust me, lads, this captain is one fellow you two don't want to meet."
***
Zephyr was going through the different stuff in the drawers next to the couch that Henry was sitting on as Hook stood on the other side of the room.
"I killed my father," Hook suddenly spoke up, making both Henry and Zephyr ask, "What?"
"You asked me why I care about keeping your family together. It's because I once had the chance of having my own." Hook admitted.
"With your dad? I know, you told us." Henry replied.
"There's a part of the story I didn't share, Henry," Hook said, moving over to them and sat on the other end of the couch, "When I killed my father... I didn't just destroy his life. He had a son."
"So you had another brother?" Henry inquired, folding his hands in front of him as he glanced over at the pirate next to him.
Hook nodded, "Aye. He named him Liam, after my older brother. That was just too much for me." He guiltily glanced away briefly, "I killed my father and I left an innocent boy an orphan."
"You're trying to make up for what you did to Liam, with me?" Henry started.
"I can't ruin another family, Henry." The said one handed pirate murmured.
Simultaneously, both Henry and Zephyr assured, "You're not going to."
Hook sighed, "I already have. We're trapped in this iron tin when I can't even pick that lock."
Zephyr smirked, "You can't, but maybe we can." He nodded, pulling out the gold shears, "My dad told me the first rule of kidnapping... they never search the kid."
Henry shared a look with Hook and watched the five year old use the magical shears on the lock as the door opened.
"Way to go, kid," Hook said, impressed with him.
They entered another room and put on scuba suits, moving over to pool area.
Zephyr's suit was bulky and big on him but it protected him.
"We're going through there?" Henry questioned in slight shock or disbelief.
"Aye, it's the only way off." Hook replied and now removing an oxygen tank off the wall, "Hurry, we don't have much time before the captain realizes that we've escaped."
He helped for the tank on Henry's back as the said teenager inquired, "What'd you do to him? Why is Nemo so angry?"
"We don't have time to explain. We have to get off this ship, now," Hook commented.
"Where's your suit?" Zephyr questioned his grandpa who answered, "I'm not suiting up. There's only two helmets, and you two need it."
"Wait. Then how are you going to get out of here?" Henry also questioned.
Hook sighed, "I'm not."
"No... No!" Both Zephyr and Henry started, shaking their heads.
"Henry, you were right. What you and your mother have is special. You don't want to lose that." Hook replied.
"You knew there was only enough helmets for us, didn't you?" Zephyr began, his eyes watery.
"Only two of us is gonna get back to Emma and Astrid," Hook replied, "It's gonna be you and Henry."
The pirate placed their helmets over their heads and pushed them in the water just as a familiar voice spoke up, "I was hoping you'd stay."
"Liam." Hook let out.
Liam Jr. withdrew his knife, "Hello, brother. I've been waiting a long time for this."
***
Liam shoved Hook into another room, "You've taken everything from me. First, my father, then Nemo."
"That was a long time ago, mate," Hook replied, "Why come for me now?"
"It's not as long as you think." The younger Jones remarked, "We made it to Mysterious Island. We could've had a chance at life!"
He shoved the pirate back who inquired, "Then what happened?"
"Hyde!" Liam revealed, "He took him, which means Nemo died the moment he got here!"
He went to swing a punch towards Hook who dodged it and began, "All right, Hyde... the Mysterious Island. It's the Land of the Untold Stories."
Liam shoved him back again, "So, what's that to you?"
"Don't you get it?" Hook replied, "Nemo's here, Liam. He's here in Storybrooke. And I've got a gut feeling that my daughter will find him and heal him because that's exactly who she is!"
"Maybe, maybe not, but he's dead because of you!" Liam Jr. argued and shoved him against the wall and held him there.
"I'm not gonna hurt you, brother," Hook simply said.
Liam punched him as the said pirate fell to the floor; He moved over him and held a knife at his neck.
"Don't!" Henry spoke up while Zephyr now aimed his bow and an arrow at the young Jones brother, "Please stop. Please."
Hook took that distraction to knock Liam out and stood back up before sitting on the couch.
"Are you okay, Gramps?" Zephyr spoke up while lowering his bow.
Hook sighed, "I thought I told you two to leave."
"And if we listened, you'd be dead." Zephyr sassily remarked.
Hook glanced over at the two of them and smiled in slight amusement, "I'm glad you didn't. What made you two come back?"
"You said you couldn't ruin one more family." Henry spoke up, "Neither could we."
Hook stood up and looked at his love's son, "Are you saying that you think of me as part-"
Henry smiled, "Don't push it."
Hook picked up the golden shears, "You know why I need those shears, right?"
"You love her, too." Henry then understood his intentions and knew they were good.
"Aye." Hook replied, "And if you don't want me to use them, then I won't. But that doesn't mean that something bad has to happen. Those visions won't come true. I can promise you that. We will find another way to save her."
"Yeah." Henry nodded, "But where do we start?"
***
The three of them stood over the pool area again in front of a chest as Henry and Zephyr was both out of their scuba suits.
"First, we make sure we won't be tempted to take the easy way out again." Hook spoke up and placed the shears inside of the chest and locked it.
Both Henry and Hook picked the chest up and dumped it inside of the water as it sank to the bottom of the sea.
Zephyr nodded proudly at that.
***
Hook sat next to a hospital bed where his little brother laid at as Liam finally woke up, "Where am I? Some kind of brig?"
"No, mate. It's a hospital." Hook replied, "You got quite a nasty bump on your head, there."
"I'm surprised that's all you gave me." Liam remarked.
"I told you, I'm not that pirate anymore," Hook commented, "I have something to live for now."
"Those boys, Henry, Zephyr." Liam murmured, "And even that daughter that you had mentioned."
"Aye." Hook nodded, "You hesitated when you saw them. Why?"
"I realized if I kill you in front of them... I'd just leave two more boys growing up with a heart full of hate." Liam admitted, "I just wish Nemo could see that we finally made peace."
"Well, maybe you can," They suddenly heard Astrid speak up at the door with a tanned, bald man standing next to her.
"They found him this morning, and Astrid healed him like I said she would." Hook added and now moved over to his adopted daughter.
"It's kinda what I do," Astrid shrugged.
"Nemo," Liam murmured and reached out as the said man cupped his hand in his, also letting out, "Liam."
Before Hook walked out, he glanced at Astrid who smiled and stepped over to Liam Jr. and healed him of his concussion and the bruises on him.
"Thank you," Liam gratefully told her.
Astrid nodded and walked out of the room next to the pirate as the two entered the waiting room to find Henry, Zephyr, and Emma.
"How's Liam?" Henry asked first as Zephyr also asked, "Is he okay?"
"Aye, lads, he is now," Hook assured.
Emma spoke up, "I feel like I'm still missing a huge part of the story here. Your kid brother has a submarine, and he... kidnapped you? What were you guys even doing at the docks in the first place?"
"Do you want to tell her or should I?" Henry began.
"It's all right. I've got this one, mate." Hook commented.
Henry smiled, "See you at home." He then left out of the hospital.
Astrid moved her hands over her son's shoulders and watched her sister and Hook.
"Okay, so... what's going on?" Emma began.
"Everything that happened today was my fault." Hook replied, "Henry and Zep was just trying to help me right a wrong."
"What kind of wrong?" Emma warily asked.
"When you asked me to dispose of those shears... I didn't. I couldn't lose the one thing that might help save you." Hook admitted, "Even if that meant you hated me, but luckily... your boys made me see the error of my ways. And before you say anything, they're at the bottom of the ocean, where they can tell no tales."
"It's okay. I get it." Emma softly assured.
"You do?" Hook began in surprise.
"I would've done the exact same thing." Emma commented as the two of them hugged.
Astrid smiled, "Aww, you two are adorable. Well, Zep and I will be home. See you two later."
Both Emma and Hook chuckled at that and watched Astrid leave out of the hospital with Zephyr by her side, holding her hand.
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