Alice rolled over on her side, her pink silk nightgown settling as she moved. It had been a long day, traveling all the way to her grandmother's house, and now she deserved some rest. Her mother had always told her about the amazing stories her Grandmother Darling would tell, though she always thought they really happened. She explained the room Alice was now sleeping in was where it all began. The nursery, still filled with toys her grandmother had kept since she was a child, had such an exhilarating feel to it, like the paintings on the wall of pirate ships, fairies, and what Wendy explained were 'Lost boys' could come alive at any moment. Of course, being that Alice was seventeen now, she had grown up from fairytales, but she did still appreciate them. Nothing was better than listening to a story about how a young boy saves a girl from being in a ticking crocodile's belly.<br/><br/>A slight gust of wind woke her, she sat up groggily and turned on the lamp on the bedstand. The window was open, the curtains billowing in the cool breeze. Rubbing her eyes, she shuffled over to the window and latched it. She blinked, looking out on the rooftops of London, glowing slightly with the full moon in the sky.<span style="font-style: italic">Wait</span>she thought,<span style="font-style: italic">didn't I lock the window before I went to bed?</span>Still looking out the window, she noticed a reflection in the window move. Startled, she turned around to come face to face with a broad-shouldered man. He grabbed onto her, slinging her over his shoulder. She began to scream, when a hand was clapped over her mouth, its owner, a rather spindly looking man, put a finger to his lips, silencing her.<br/><br/>"She's a lot lighter than I remember" the man holding her commented, opening the picture window again, allowing a gust of wind to catch her dress and lift it up, revealing quite a bit. She turned bright red as she heard the other man say "And she has more appealing undergarments." Alice grabbed for her dress and pulled it down over her behind. She turned her head back, trying to see how they got up on the third floor from the window, when she gasped. A massive, tri-masted ship floated a foot away from the balcony, someone on board threw down a rope ladder, which the man holding Alice started climbing one-handed.<br/><br/>As soon as they reached the railing, the man tossed her over it. She landed with a thud and a gasp, and pushed herself up. Her eyes widened when she saw at least twenty pirates surrounding her, looking at her as if she were treasure.<span style="font-style: italic">What nightmare have I landed in...?</span>"Make way, you landlubbers!" a man near the back of the crowd shouted, causing the men to clear a path for the one Alice could only presume was captain of this vessel.<br/><br/>Dressed in red clothes befitting a nautical leader, a gold handled rapier at his hip, long black ringlets beneath a red, gold-rimmed hat with a large white feather stuck in it, beneath lay two dark beady eyes, a crooked nose, and a thin mustache with a thin beard on his jawline, the captain was quite a sight. Alice took an instant disliking to him. He waltzed up to her, looking her over with a slight smirk on his face, muttering, "She certainly isn't Wendy, but she'll do." Alice stood up, glaring at the man, before making a mad dash towards the edge of the ship only to watch her grandmother's house grow further and further away. She felt her heart sink to the tips of her toes as two of the crew grabbed her arms and brought her back over to Captain Hook.<br/><br/>"What do you want from me?" she said quickly, pulling at the men that held her. The captain took hold of her chin, turning her head this way and that, still looking at her. "Pretty little thing, like Wendy. I'm sure you will be perfect bait." "Bait?!" she cried out. "What do you mean bait?!" The man chuckled, letting go of her chin, and said, "If you are Wendy's daughter or perhaps granddaughter, you've heard the stories from her own lips. Do you know where we are headed?" She shook her head. He leaned in, almost whispering, "We are headed to Neverland, and you are the bait to help me catch Peter Pan." He treated the name like poison, "And if you can't help us, I'm sure we could find another use for you..." He grinned and the crew chuckled with a knowingness that unnerved Alice.<br/><br/>"That's a fairy tale, it's not real. I'm going to wake up from this nightmare and you will be little more than an annoying memory!" she was quick to say, stomping on the foot of one of the pirates that held her. He let out a shout, clutching his foot, allowing her to turn and punch the other pirate in the nose. Alice ran towards the edge of the ship, only to be grabbed by Hook himself. She let out a gasp as he clutched her throat, his dark eyes narrowing on her, "I am a man of my word. You will cooperate, and I won't have to harm you." As he spoke, he held up his other hand, or what Alice expected to be his other hand, but it was a shiny silver hook. She stared at her reflection as he put its point on her cheek, moving it slowly across to make her bleed. It stung slightly, it wasn't terribly painful, but the pain was enough to tell her this wasn't a dream.<br/><br/>He cast her to the ground, she was gasping, eyes wide, as he ordered, "Tie her hands together, we don't need her fighting back." The crew did as ordered, Alice did nothing to stop it. "Now, watch." Hook said, looking out at the vast expanse of space expectantly. A small island, floating in this sea of nothingness, Alice's jaw dropped. "This can't be happening..." she whispered to herself as they landed in the water surrounding the island.<br/><br/>The sun was just rising as the men laid anchor. The captain suddenly grew stiff when the audible noise was heard over the side of the ship.<span style="font-style: italic">Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.</span>"That blasted crocodile..." he growled to himself, then glanced over at Alice with an idea forming in his head, and showing on his face. "A perfect timing, I suppose. It will make Pan hurry." Alice was suddenly shoved over to a plank that hung over the side of the boat, she glanced over its edge to see a pair of eyes staring back at her. She swallowed, looking pale, and glanced back at Captain Hook, "You said you wouldn't hurt me if I cooperated!" she cried out. Hook grinned deviously, "Of course, I am a man of my word. I will not harm you, the crocodile will." "You bastard!" she yelled at him, making his crew smirk at her sudden language. "Alright girl, bring Pan to me!" he said, stomping on the plank which she was at the other end of. The board shook, making her lose her balance. "NO!" she screamed, feeling herself fall back, and plummet towards the open jaws of the crocodile.