Disclaimer: I do not own "Once Upon A Time". If I did, I'd sure as heck know who Henry's dad was, and I'm just guessing at the moment.

No flames, please, this is just a oneshot.

His hook gleamed in the lantern light as he made his way toward the cabin where his men had put the prisoner. She's not eatin', Cap'n, they'd whined. Killian sighed in annoyance. Since when had he, a fearsome pirate king, been reduced to babysitting a sorceress' princess captive?

He knew it was to get back at that bloody crocodile, Rumplestiltskin, but still. He wasn't in the mood to spoon feed anyone.

His good hand grasped the door handle and he twisted it, pushing the door open and letting himself into the room, pushing the door closed as he faced his guest.

The Princess Aurora was as beautiful as her nickname – Sleeping Beauty – suggested. Light brown hair cascaded to her shoulders, and the pale violet dress she wore seemed to bring out the blue in her eyes.

She'd jumped when he'd entered the room and was now staring at him. Killian supposed she was trying to look calm, but his practiced eyes could see the slight tremble in her bare shoulders.

"Your Majesty," he said, bowing, his hook pressed against his waist. "Welcome aboard the Jolly Roger. I trust my men were gentle."

She didn't say anything, she just kept staring at him.

"It has been brought to my attention, however, that you have decided against having your evening meal. Too stuffed with roots and berries, I assume?" he asked.

The insult to the rugged lifestyle the resistance held did the trick. She tensed and her eyes narrowed.

"I try not to make a habit of being poisoned by my captors," she said with a sneer.

"Poisoned?" Killian repeated, slightly hurt by her words. "You believe we'd poison you, Majesty?"

"Since when are cutthroats interested in keeping their prisoners full?" she retorted.

"Ah, you wound me, Majesty," he said with a mock groan, dropping into a chair. "Honestly, that hurt."

There was a silence between them, and then he saw her swallow.

"What do you intend to do with me?" she asked, her voice shaking only slightly.

"No theories of your own?" Killian challenged, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair, looking curiously at him.

She swallowed again, harder this time, and looked down.

"Ordinarily I would suspect a ransom," she began. "But, as my parents are dead, my fiance is dead, and my kingdom is in ruins, I have to go with the less…civil option."

The way her eyes flickered up to him and then down, along with the brief flash of fear that he'd spotted, made her meaning crystal clear.

"You must have heard quite the story about me, Majesty, if that's what you think I plan to do," he said, a bit sharply.

He wasn't sure whether he wanted to tell her his thoughts on barbarians like those she was describing, or if he wanted to hunt down whoever had told her such tales and tell them his thoughts before killing them.

She looked startled at his tone and her lips parted so that she could suck in a breath. Killian bit back a curse. He never was very good with children. Not that she was a child, but she was a far cry from the types of women he was used to: the ones who would drink a man under the table and pick up a sword to teach him manners whenever he stepped out of line. This princess that Cora had saddled him with, she was like a sprite or something. She had to be handled with care.

"Sorry about your family," he said, just to break the silence, helping himself to the food. "I've heard your story. Asleep for almost thirty years, and yet you're still a beauty."

She didn't answer and he plunged on ahead. "What was the name of the witch? Maloria? Malefina?" He knew the answer, of course, but he had to say something to coax her out of her frightened shell.

"Maleficent," she whispered.

"Right. Bet she's feeling like an idiot, now that you're awake and all."

A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth, but then it was gone.

"Too bad it wasn't Rumplestiltskin that cursed you," Killian remarked. "I'd have awoken you myself, if it meant that I could beat that crocodile at something."

"The crocodile?" she asked softly.

"His skin is like scales," he explained, slicing into a thick loaf of bread. "He and I have a score to settle."

He offered her some bread and, to his surprise, she accepted a slice. As she did, she glanced down at his hook. "Yeah," he said, lifting the hook up and looking at it. "He's the one who took my hand."

"Why?" she whispered, nibbling at the bread.

"I took his wife," Killian said bluntly. "She was sick of living with him, so she joined my crew and she and I—grew close. So, once he had the power, he took my hand—and he took her life."

Almost from a distance, he heard her gasp.

"I'm sorry," she murmured. "Did you…?"

"Love her?" he finished for her. "I don't know, to be honest. My true love's the sea. Milah was a fine woman, to be sure. I'm just not sure if what we had was love."

Aurora bit her lip, but didn't say anything else.

Killian looked at her.

"You remind me of a friend of hers," he said suddenly. "A mermaid, believe it or not."

"What happened?" the princess asked, reaching for a slice of meat.

Killian smiled at the memory.

"We were in port, and the crew and I'd gone to a local tavern for a few drinks and maybe a game of cards. Well, this rich gent tells us that he's got a prize worth three times the pot, and he bets it. Rule number one of cards: Never bet big unless it's guaranteed you'll win."

"You won?" Aurora asked breathlessly.

He grinned.

"I did. Well, the gent wasn't too happy, but Milah and the crew were at my back and he knew he had to pay up. So he goes to get his prize, taking my first mate with him. Milah and I sent the crew back to the ship and waited for 'em. Then the gent and my sailor came around the corner, and the gent's got this lass with him. Pretty—maybe about your age. She's all pale and skinny and wrapped in an old sailcloth, with twigs in her hair and tears in her eyes. The man shoves her forward and orders her to look at her new master. She does, and I don't think I've ever been so haunted by a pair of eyes since. I asked the man what was so special about a scared girl and he tells me she's a mermaid."

Out of the corner of his eye, Killian saw Aurora take some more food onto her plate and eat it, absorbed in the story.

"Her former master turns her 'round and yanks up the side of her dress. Sure enough, there were scales on her legs. Well, naturally, the lass did her best to get him off of her, and then he did the worst thing imaginable."

"What?" Aurora begged.

"He slapped her. Right then and there, he cursed her and smacked her, hard, across the face. Well, next thing I know, she's been shoved over to me and Milah's killing the man. We may not have been soul mates, but she and I agreed that women and children should be treated with respect. And when she saw the lass get hit, well, the mother in her came out."

"What happened to the girl?"

"Well, she didn't jump away from me or anything, she kinda just stood there and shook like a leaf. Milah handed me the man's cloak and I draped it around her shoulders and did my best to speak gentle to her. She calmed down, but she was still upset. We got her back on board and set sail before anybody could come arrest us for killing the gent. I was the only one Milah would let near the lass, who couldn't speak. She could nod, and we eventually figured out her name: Ariel. Well, she'd been captured and forced to sing for the men, and dragged all over the place, all the while she'd been aiming for a prince who lived near her home. We went to her home and gave her back to her father, and he managed to get her voice back. And she ended up becoming human and marrying the prince, and she lived happily ever after. Their wedding was lovely."

Killian pulled himself from the story to look at his guest.

To his surprise, the princess was asleep, her head lolling forward onto her chest. He smiled and stood up, quietly making his way over to her. It was hard to lift things with only one hand, but he'd learned, and he now picked up the sleeping beauty and carried her over to his bed, laying her down and covering her with the blankets. Then, without any reasoning, he leaned down and kissed her forehead.

In her sleep, the girl smiled.