Hook's Daughter

Alone in the World

The funeral was two days later. I had not left my apartment. I could barely eat, could barely move. I kept my door bolted, could not stand anyone's pity. I did not want that, I did not need that.
When Emma knocked to tell me the time for the funeral, I tried to say okay, tried to make any sound, but I couldn't. Two days of silence and crying had made my voice raw. I don't think Emma expected an answer, and she must have walked away silently. Two o'clock.
I watched the clock at 1:59, still sitting on my cold kitchen floor. The time changed to 2 o'clock, and I did not move. By 2:45, I knew the funeral would be over, and I finally stood up from my floor. My throat caught, but I did not have any more tears to cry. I was dry, I felt completely dry without Neal. How could someone who loved so strongly, cared so deeply, fought so hard, just be gone?
I heard the light talk of the Charmings going back into their apartment, and I got dressed and went outside my apartment. It felt so weird walking down Main Street, shops open and Granny's filled with customers. I barely saw Neal before he died, and now he was gone, and I felt so empty. Neal and Charli, my best friends, both lost. When I got beside the water front, I stopped and stared out at the water. Somehow I always come here to think. The only part of the town that is never injured seems to be the water front. It looks so pretty with the greenish water and boats in the port. None of the boats as grand as the Jolly Roger of course, but still, it was a nice scene.
I would not have found my place in this world so easily without Neal. He showed me around his town, and taught me things about this world. I remember we both told each other we would never believe where we were from, and we were from the same place. He said he had a good friend that was a captain, and it was my dad. All those Wednesdays of getting coffee together and talking, and we never once made a connection to each other. All those years of him being my best friend and we never realized what was right in front of us. I didn't realize what was right in front of me, the best thing that could have happened to me when I came to this world. And I did not appreciate it, until now, and it is gone...he is gone. That's when something made a splashing noise and I saw someone in the water, looking like they were drowning. I ran down the beach and something was washed up ashore.
"Are you alright?" I ask, seeing it is, in fact, a person.
The girl looked up, "Yes, I just got here. I'm looking for someone." She studies my face carefully. "I'm Ariel."
"Ashton," I say. "You're a mermaid?"
Ariel nods. "You used to be on Neverland," she says.
I nod.
"Come into town," I say, and hold my hand out for her to grab. I help her up. "Who are you looking for?" I ask Ariel.
"My prince, Eric."

When we get to Main Street, Mary Margaret and David immediately rush up.
"Ariel!" Mary Margaret exclaims. "We thought you had been turned into a flying monkey."
"A monkey?" Ariel asks. "No, I'm a girl that turns into a fish."
"Yeah, we-we know," Davis says. "What happened to you?"
"I've been under the sea, searching," Ariel replies. "I've traveled to every known realm looking for Prince Eric."
"So he's missing?" asks David. "For how long?"
"After Pan failed," Ariel begins. "I woke up here, like everybody else. I-I couldn't find him. I didn't understand what happened until I overheard everybody saying that we had all gone to the Enchanted Forest and been there for a year without knowing it."
"So you still don't know what happened to him?" David sighs.
"That's why I came back here," Ariel says sadly. "I thought maybe I'd overlooked something, that he'd be here, but...obviously you haven't seen him."
"We're sorry," Mary Margaret tells her. "We've been trying to piece together what happened. All we know is that we're up against Regina's sister, the Wicked Witch."
"Do you think that she might be responsible for Prince Eric's disappearance?" Ariel asks.
"Without our memories, it's impossible to know everything," Mary Margaret says, and then pauses. "Ashton, you have your memories. Did you hear or see anything during that year that could help Ariel?"
Ariel looks at me hopefully.
"No," I say. "I'm sorry. Ask Hook, he went to more places than me, maybe he saw you."
"We can ask him right now," Mary Margaret tells Ariel. "He's at Granny's with Henry."

When we get to Granny's, Hook is seated in a booth with Henry, playing some kind of card game it looks like. Hook stands up and walks over when he sees David, Mary Margaret, Ariel, and myself.
"Uh, Hook, this is a friend of ours-Ariel," David says. "She's looking for someone who didn't return to Storybrooke with the rest of us."
"He's from a maritime kingdom," Ariel says. "And he loved to sail. Perhaps...you came across him on the high seas? His name's Prince Eric."
"Sorry lass," Hook says. "I wish I could help, but I've never heard of him."
Ariel sighs and looks down at the ground.
"Come on," David says. "Think hard, Hook. Are you sure you can't remember anything that can be useful?"
"My apologies, mate, but if I'd run across a prince during my adventure, I think I'd remember it," Hook said with a hostile tone.
"I just," Ariel says. "I don't understand. How could he vanish without a trace?"
"That's it," Mary Margaret says excitedly. "Maybe he didn't."
"What do you mean?" David asks.
"When the curse brought us back here, it brought our things too," Mary Margaret explains. "Gold's shop is filled with them."
"And if we find something of Eric's," David finishes. "We can use a locator spell to track him."
"Let's go," Ariel says, happily.
"Sounds like a plan," Hook says, clearly trying to get rid of us. "Best of luck with that."
"Oh, wait, no," Mary Margaret stops Hook. "You should come with us. You might remember something that we won't-or can't. You'd be far more helpful than us."
"Well, someone has to keep an eye on the boy," Hook motions to Henry still sitting in the booth.
"Mary Margaret and I can take over," says David.
"Could we...talk for a moment," Hook asks David and they go off to the side.
Hook comes back, David and Mary Margaret stay with Henry, and Ariel, Hook, and I head to Gold's shop.

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