Ship's Core (CaptainSwan fanfic)

Ten

I didn't wake to the sweet, pleasant smell of the potion that Regina had infected my lungs with. I woke to the smell of rotting meat and rat waste.

I was lying on a cold, hard surface and there were stiff pains rushing up my spine when I moved. I kept my eyes closed, as I was scared of what they might meet. I heard the small, quick footsteps of rats, mice, and God knows what other pests scurrying across the cold floor. My head throbbed in pain, and I slowly reached my hand up to the area where it hurt to find it was wet and warm. Blood. I had obviously hit my head on my way here . . . wherever here was.

I tried to open my eyes, only to find that they were already open. I couldn't see a thing. Had I gone blind?

I slowly sat up.
"Well, look who's awake . . ." I gasped at the familiar smooth yet chilling voice echoing in the darkness. Regina.

Suddenly, with no warning, a torch on the wall set alight, and even if it was only a dim light, I still had to blink, as it was blinding compared to the sheer darkness previously cloaking my vision. I felt relief pour over my body like the water in a spell of rain. I wasn't blind.

The light from the torch highlighted Regina's face , the shadows dancing across her defined cheekbones as the fire moved.

Her smirk reflected all over her face and body stance, her eyes glinting with amusement and her body bent forward in a cocky way. She was sitting on a large boulder, the only thing blocking me from strangling her was the large gate that trapped me in a cell. This was when I realised; I was in the Queen's dungeon.

"What . . . how . . ." I couldn't find the right words to say, let alone the courage to say them.

Regina giggled.
"I kidnapped you, Dear. What, did you think you had been carried away on the back of a unicorn and somehow fell from the sky?" she asked sarcastically.

I scowled at her. The last thing I wanted to do was appear weak, but my head felt like a spear had stabbed it, so I raised my hand to it.

"Oh. Yeah." Regina began with a "whatever" tone lining her voice. "The guard who brought you to your . . . room wasn't as gentle as I had expected. Although, in all fairness . . . I didn't exactly tell him to be careful." she cackled loudly.

I wanted to get up and threaten her, fight her. But the pain in my head was passing weakness all around my body, leaving me unable to move much.

"My . . . father." I slowly murmured.

"Oh, you mean that imbecile you call your King? He's fine. Well, besides the depression, that is, but of course I had nothing to do with that." she smirked before continuing. "Actually no . . . I believe the fault is mainly put on you! You are, after all, the one who left him for that . . . pirate."

I gave her a look that told her exactly what I was thinking.
She cackled.

"You're wondering how I knew? Don't think that you were going unwatched the whole time on that ship. Trust me, I have my ways." This "explanation" wasn't much of an explanation at all, but I could hardly ask for another.

"And let me tell you . . . the way you two looked at each other . . . priceless! It was like watching a starving man staring at a basket of bread, but not being able to eat it. Only, I didn't pity you, of course." her smirk never left her face.

I thought about this. Hook . . . and me? The idea sounded rediculous, yet . . . not as ridiculous as I would have thought.

"Hook and I . . . no . . . we were just . . ." I began, unsure.

"You were what?" Regina asked. "Friends? Allies? No, there was something far more . . . deep brewing between you two. It almost made me sick."

Just as I was about to protest, Regina continued.