For as long as they could remember, Peter Pan was always infatuated with the Darling girls. So it came as no surprise to Jane, when she found the bed of Amelia bare and glittery with pixie dust on the eve of her twelfth birthday.

That's where our story starts.

Well, sort of.

You see, Amelia's adventures on Neverland were very similar to those of Wendy and Jane. So there's no real reason for me to tell you it over. The only difference was the fact that she never quite fell for Peter the way her mother and grandmother did and vice versa. Perhaps it was the fact that her hair wasn't the same shade as Wendy's or her eyes weren't the same pretty blue of Jane's.

Or even more outlandish, perhaps it could've been that she was more intrigued by Captain James Hook than anything else on the mystical isle.

Whatever the reason, Amelia found herself all too soon back in the familiar soft sheets of her own bed. Exhausted by the weird and wonderful trip, she laid her head and closed her eyes, falling fast asleep just as her mother waved good-bye to Peter Pan and, of course, Tinkerbelle.

She dreamt of that trip nearly every night. Mostly just bright blurry images she could never quite remember. However, there were a few memories that shone through the cloudy haze of growing up. One was of that boyish smile Peter gave her, the one that was true but never quite reached his eyes. And the other, the most prominent, was of when she was being forced to walk the plank on the Jolly Roger and Hook called to stop Smee from forcing her off the edge. Unfortunately, Smee had already pushed her off.

"You blithering fool!" Captain Hook called as he pulled off his coat. Less than a moment later, Hook dived into the water and rescued Amelia from the octopus.

Of all people Hook was the one to save her! The reason stumped her every time she tried to think of one. Never in any of the stories that she had ever heard did Captain James Hook show so much pity for anyone.

Peter did come back to listen to the stories. But as Amelia and her kid brother, Garret, grew up, the stories slowly started to stop. They never really stopped of course; they were just few and far between. And soon Peter realized that Amelia was soon to be a… a… a grown-up and that her need for childish things was gone.

She was fifteen when Peter came to visit only to find the nursery window, as well as Amelia's, locked.

Saddened, Peter Pan flew back to Neverland.

Amelia hardly noticed that he never came back. And so she became an adult with many adult things to attend to.

And what an adult she made. She grew tall and lithe. Her dirty blonde hair lengthened; her lips and bust fuller. The only thing that didn't change in the thirteen years since Peter had last visited was the childish light that remained untouched in her dancing blue eyes.

None of this went unnoticed by Hook, who seemed to always find his way into the shadows that spied over Amelia. When asked why he did so, Hook would reply "To figure out when the best time to use her against Pan, you blathering fool!" But if he was honest, that wasn't the reason at all. The truth was Hook wasn't quite sure why he was drawn to her, or why he saved her from the octopus. Perhaps the reason was to find a reason.

At least that's what Hook told himself.

It wasn't until he watched as she prepared for a dinner with her fiancé's boss did he realize why he was he never stopped watching.

It was late when Amelia finally made it home. Exaggeratedly exhausted, she fell on her bed face first and fell asleep immediately.

The creaking of her window opening at nearly three a.m. did not wake her. Nor did the freezing winter breeze wake her. Interestingly enough it was the soothing movement of a ship rocking back and forth that woke her. Amelia jerked herself awake and found that she sat in a horribly familiar place.

"Hook," she groaned.

Swiftly getting out of the soft bed, she realized two things. One; she was still in her evening gown and large fur coat from the party. And two; the forget-me-not blue eyes of James Hook stared at her from across his quarters.

"Captain James Hook, what a pleasure."

He smiled devilishly. "Indeed it is."

"I certainly hope that you do not plan to use me to get your revenge on Peter Pan. Such a childish thing, don't you think?" Amelia spoke defensively.

Hook shook his head in dismay. "Mia," he said his voice soft, "getting my revenge on Pan isn't my only goal in life. Eventually, I'd like to settle down-"

Amelia scoffed. "You, settling down? As in getting married and having children?" She snorted, "Why do I find this so funny? You're however old and live on a pirate ship docked in a child's dreamland." She shook her head. "I just can't fathom why a swashbuckling pirate captain like you would want to settle down."

A hint of red seeped into his eyes and he slammed his hook into his desk, causing Amelia to smirk with arrogance.

"If it humors you, I am in fact only thirty-two. But I have been stuck on this forsaken island for only god knows how long," he growled.

She chuckled. "Very well then. Is that why you've taken me prisoner yet again? To 'settle down' with you, as you said?"

He arched an eye brow. "And if it is?"

She shrugged. "Hmm, interesting question."

The captain stood and walked in front of his desk. He leaned on it, his ankles and arms crossed. "You do not seem as revolted by the idea as I thought you would."

"So it is true? That's why I'm here?"

He shrugged. "If you wish it."

"Must be some Neverland thing, right? 'If you wish it'. Actually, Hook, I am not as revolted as I thought I would be either. But with seeing you outside my window as a child and even just the other night, I suppose I've gotten used to your presence." An instant of silence passed and Amelia shook her head at her thoughts. "My mother always told me I could find the good in anyone," she uttered slowly as she stepped towards him. "Perhaps, that is why I feel safe when I'm with you. It's because I've found the good in you. She also says I have an uncanny way of attracting the wrong men to me. Take my fiancé Charles for instance, he stole my innocence and wants me for nothing other than my money and I suppose to sleep with me."

"And how do you know I don't want the same," Hook asked intrigued.

Amelia giggled and whispered her next line in his ear, "Because you saved me from that retched octopus."

"Ah, yes."

"Diving in after me and everything. How daring of you. It must have been a spectacle to see; a fearsome pirate who loathes children jumping in to save a silly little twelve-year-old girl. Preposterous, really."

A look of angst passed over his face and she knew she hit the nail on the head. She smirked as she walked over to the full length mirror. She looked over her appearance and grimaced. Her dress was a bit ruffled, not that she cared much in the first place. It was frilly and pink! Amelia absolutely hated the color pink. She only wore it because of Charles's insistence.

Her hair, on the other hand, was her pride and joy. She loved how silky the wavy dirty blonde locks were. At the moment it was extremely disheveled. It was longer than how she normally had it but she had to grow it out for a part in a musical she auditioned for. A part she won because of her hair. A part that would've heightened her popularity in the acting world, and eventually would have gotten her a spotlight on Broadway.

She looked over at the captain and batted her eyes. "You wouldn't by chance have a hairbrush on you, would you? It's taken me long enough to get my hair this nice. I'd be devastated if anything happened to it."

His face stayed emotionless, even as he brought the brush to her and ran it through her hair. Their eyes met in the mirror and a light pink colored both their cheeks. The room was quiet, save for the rhythmic brushing and small commotion heard from out on the deck.

"Thank-you," she said softly as he leaned over to put the brush on a nearby table.

He met her eyes in the mirror and smiled tenderly. "No problem." He moved to block her view of herself. "But I liked when it was shorter, cut just below your chin," he told her taking one of the curls and fingering it. "Long enough to still be considered a woman's hairstyle, but short enough for your ringlets to take full effect."

Hook's hand moved from her hair to lightly pinch her chin between his thumb and forefinger. "Beauty beyond comparison," he mumbled.

Half a moment passed as they stared into each other's eyes. Hook's moved to look longingly at her voluptuous lips.

"Well, I'll give you a week to decide." He dropped his hand and walked back to his desk to receive his jacket from his chair.

Amelia chewed on her nail and tried to hide the disappointment on her face as he walked out of the ornamental room.

"Please do feel free to return to the bed if you feel the need."

She plastered on a counterfeit smile and nodded in assent. "Of course."

"Smee!" Hook crooned as he opened the doors.

Amelia chuckled to herself.

Just like that, Hook went from the hospitable gentleman to the quick-to-anger pirate.

She glanced over to the bed, thinking she may crawl back in bed and try to catch a few extra winks, but ultimately changed her mind and made her way to the deck. She opened the door just in time to see Peter Pan swoop down to slice Hook with the thin blade in his hand.

"JAMES!"