PLEASE NOTE:
In this story, Peter had Rumple AFTER he had already been given eternal youth. It makes things less weird.
/
Laughter could be heard emitting from the small, wooden lodge as the boy drew closer to it. The wooden sign hanging above the front door read in bright gold, curvy letters, "Land of Oz." The boy simply stared at the sign for a moment before squaring his shoulders and carefully pressing the door open.
Inside, the building was dark and filled with smoke. Only the light from the windows and some candles illuminated the spacious room. There were tables and chairs scattered about the golden floor with a wooden stage at the far end and a bar set up to the left. Men and women were seated about the place, laughing and talking with drinks and cigars in hand. Nobody seemed to pay any mind to the young man that stepped through the doorway except for the waitresses.
A girl with blonde, bouncy, curly hair wearing a very risque, lace-up, pink dress that barely covered her butt or chest looked over at the boy in surprise, almost dropping the tray of drinks in her hands. She immediately set the tray down at an empty table and walked over to him, her white heels clicking on the golden floor and her thin arms swaying at her sides.
"Hello," she greeted, her voice sweet as honey and her bright blue eyes gazing up into his. Her face was porcelain, her cheeks rose and her lips pale pink. She smiled like she would have done absolutely anything for this newcomer.
"Can I get you anything? A drink? A room?" She asked, one of her eyebrows rising suggestively.
The boy took a deep breath.
"I think he's here for me," a voice suddenly stated from behind the blonde.
The two looked over to see another girl with long, orange-red hair tied with red ribbons into two braids casually walking over to them. The girl was wearing another provocative dress, this one blue plaid with white tulle peeking out beneath it around her thighs. Her stockings were also white but her four inch heels were a luscious red.
She stared the boy straight in the eyes as she stood before him, slightly taller. The tiny smirk on her face was filled with questions but also a sense of knowing. Of course he would come back when he realized there was no one left.
The blonde girl frowned at the red-head.
"You always get the best ones," she whined softly.
The taller girl smiled in amusement at her.
"You need to finish delivering those drinks to table eight, Goldilocks," the red-head responded, gently patting the girl on her shoulder.
Goldilocks ran her eyes over the boy's body once more before finally turning and sauntering away. The red-head looked back over at the boy, her smirk widening ever so slightly at the haggard look to his face.
"Follow me," she said simply, motioning with her hand and then heading towards the back of the room. She pushed open a wooden door next to the stage and entered a long hallway with doors on either side.
As the two made their way down to the very end, the girl cast a glance over her shoulder at the boy. She hadn't seen him for many years and he looked quite the worse for wear. Despite him still having a youthful appearance, his face was sunken in like he wasn't eating well and his normally bright, mischievous, blue eyes were dull and tired. He walked with a bit of a hunch as well, she noted, like it was painful for him to even be standing.
The girl stopped at the end of the hallway and waved her hand over the wall. A golden doorknob suddenly appeared. The boy merely watched as the girl turned and pushed the new door open.
The room was so tiny that the two purple satin couches took up almost the entire space. There was a small wooden table between them with three candles flickering on top of it, bathing the room in a warm glow.
The girl casually stepped inside and seated herself on the couch closest to the door. The boy walked in a bit slower, turning to shut the door behind him, before setting down himself at the other end of the same couch.
The two just sat there in silence for several minutes. The boy stared at the table in front of him unseeing, his gaze distant and weary. The red-head propped her elbow up on the back of the couch, her cheek resting in her hand, and crossed one leg over the other as she stared openly at the boy.
"It's been a long time, Peter," the girl finally spoke, her voice casual as her eyes observed his every movement.
The boy breathed in deeply, his chest shuddering a little with the action. He swallowed as he continued to stare at the table, his back hunched over with his elbows resting on his knees.
They sat there in silence for another minute before the red-head sighed and looked down at her lap in disappointment. She hadn't seen Peter in so many years. She knew the only reason he had even come to her now was because his entire world had fallen apart and he had literally nobody else to turn to. The girl had told him that night all those years ago that he was always welcome to come back anytime he needed a little pick-me-up. That was before she had dropped a child on his front steps and vanished without a trace though.
"How's the boy?" She finally asked, her green eyes uncaring to hide the sorrow that welled up in her heart as she stared at him again. "I know you didn't keep him for long. Is he at least still alive?"
"What do you care?" Peter asked, his voice hoarse but still managing to carry a scathing tone to it.
The girl smiled a little.
"Now, there's that fire I remember," she commented with a bit of pride and relief. At least she wasn't talking to a complete corpse.
Peter turned his head to finally meet the girl's gaze. His eyes were just so tired but they still carried a hint of scorn in them.
"He was well the last time I saw him. I think he's getting married soon to some young book girl," he said.
The red-head scoffed and shook her head a little, the smirk on her face was amused but disbelieving.
"Marriage, huh?" She asked with another shake of her head. "Hard to believe he's our son. I mean, look at us. We're not exactly happily ever after people."
Peter turned his head back around to stare at the table again, his gaze dark and distant.
The girl studied him for a few more moments, tugging at one of her braids absentmindedly, a nervous habit of hers. She dropped her gaze to the couch cushion between them.
"How's the other boy? The one you couldn't stop thinking about even on that night you were with me," she asked, keeping her eyes down. She pretended not to notice the way Peter's body went rigid, the way his entire demeanor seemed to change.
He cleared his throat.
"He's dead," he replied simply, his voice cracking only a little.
The girl turned her eyes back onto Peter, just staring at him for a moment.
"I'm sorry to hear that," she murmured quietly, her voice sincere. "I know how much you loved him. What happened, if I may ask?"
The girl saw pain flash across Peter's face before he managed to turn his head away. The way he shuddered briefly and sucked in a quiet, shaky breath told the red-head everything she needed to know. She didn't know how or why or the details involved but she knew somehow, someway, this was all Peter's fault. And wasn't it always? He was the cause of everyone's pain including his own. He never realized his mistakes until years after the fact and, by then, it was much too late.
She stared at Peter for a minute longer before glancing away and clearing her throat. She took a deep breath and looked back over at him with a perfectly placed, disinterested mask.
"He came in here, you know," she began conversationally. Peter's head immediately came back around to look at her with furrowed brows, confused and surprised.
"It was a few days after you had come by," the girl continued, keeping her gaze steady with his. "I knew he was yours from the way you had described him. Tall, gorgeous blonde, the strong and silent type, a bit awkward on his feet, not the brightest candle in the room but a decent fellow. It was pretty obvious." Peter swallowed, pain briefly flashing through his eyes.
"He said that he wanted to see the person that had managed to capture Peter Pan's heart. I told him that there was no need for him to have come all the way out here just for that. All he had to do was simply look in a mirror. He seemed confused by my remark, so I told him plainly that people don't come to places like this looking for true love. They come to forget about them. Or, at least, try to. I don't think he ever fully understood what I meant. He left shortly after that and I didn't see him again."
The girl sighed, her eyes flickering over Peter's hunched form.
"I guess it doesn't really matter now," she offered.
Peter was staring at the couch across from them, his expression had turned hard and thoughtful but his brows were crinkled with pain.
"Did he ever know how you felt?" The girl asked, her heart beginning to ache at the tragedy of it all.
Peter sucked in a sharp breath, swallowing again.
"I don't know," he choked out, his voice cracking more.
The girl just stared at Peter's profile, watching him fighting back the tears she knew would inevitably well over. It was horrible, really. She had only known Peter that one day all those years ago but she couldn't imagine anyone deserving something like this. No matter how terrible a person he had been in the past, he clearly had learned his lesson now and that should account for something.
The girl suddenly stood, smoothing down the bottom of her dress a bit before stepping over to the boy. Peter didn't even seem to notice her as she stood in front of him. She pulled a notepad out of her pocket along with a thin piece of charcoal and began scribbling something down. Once she had finished, she tore off the single sheet and placed the pad and the charcoal back into her pocket. She bent down and pushed the piece of paper into Peter's hand, straightening back up and waiting for his reaction.
It took the boy a moment to even register that the girl had put something in his hand. He looked down at the curvy hand writing briefly before turning his gaze up to her with a quizzical eyebrow raised. There were directions written on the paper but Peter couldn't understand where exactly the would lead. The girl just gazed down at him.
"I know someone that can help you," she began, taking a breath before continuing. "His name is Oz and he's the most powerful being in all the realms. He will grant one wish to anyone that is able to find his castle. I found him many years ago by accident and asked for eternal youth for both me and my girls here. We love our jobs and it's all that's ever mattered to us. He granted my request, clearly, and I know he'll grant yours as well. Bringing back a human life would be a very small feat in his eyes."
Peter just sat there and stared up at the girl. All kinds of emotions were running through his eyes but his expression remained neutral.
"What if he refuses?" He asked finally, his chest constricting.
The girl smiled a little and took his hands into hers.
"If you show him exactly what you've shown me, how much that boy means to you, he won't be able to refuse. Once he sees what a desperate state you're in without him, he'll grant your request. Oz has a weakness for true love," she replied with a humorous smirk.
Peter looked down at his hands in hers with the paper tucked in-between. He suddenly got to his feet and stepped forward, throwing his arms around the girl's shoulders.
"Oh," the girl breathed out in surprise at the sudden action, swaying backwards a little at the boy's weight.
She hesitated momentarily before finally wrapping her arms around the boy's chest and patting him soothingly on the back. A soft smile formed on her lips as she felt his body shutter with quiet cries.
She wasn't sure how long they stayed like that. Several minutes at least. Long enough for Peter to stop shaking and pull back, wiping at his red eyes. The girl smiled at him gently, their eyes almost level with each other.
"I'll have to charge you for that hug," she said with amusement.
Peter scoffed and rolled his eyes before smiling a little back. Now, THAT was the Peter she remembered.
The girl suddenly reached up and softly slapped the boy on the cheek, giving him a scolding expression. Peter's eyes widened in surprise before his brows furrowed in confusion.
"Don't do this again," the girl said firmly, holding a finger up at the boy. "Oz can only grant each person one wish. If you lose the boy again because of your stupidity, that's it. You won't be getting him back a third time. Don't screw this up."
Peter's lips quirked upwards into a tiny smirk and he shook his head briefly.
"I won't let go of him again," the boy vowed, his blue eyes suddenly flashing with a determined fire. "He's mine. Forever."
"Then make sure he knows that," the girl responded, her gaze still serious. "As soon as you see him, tell him exactly how you feel for him. Leave absolutely no room for doubts. It can't end like this again."
Peter nodded once and then gave the girl the first sincere smile she had ever seen cross his face.
"Thank you," he said, gazing into her bright green eyes.
She smiled softly back at him.
"You're welcome. Now, go get your happily ever after."