A/N: This is a followup to "The Monster". Neverland arc is ending and I still have so many unanswered questions. I guess it goes back to my Disney days for shipping Wendy and Peter but I wished the writers would have explored that relationship. Oh well. Anyway, kinda upset that we only saw 2 real Peter/Wendy scenes. Really writers, really? I saw that look Wendy had on the boat, so this is my attempt to explore it and elaborate on the returning to her new home. Writers, I'm still waiting for a Peter/Wendy flashback. Enjoy!
Finally. It seemed this day would never come, she didn't think she would ever leave Neverland. Supposively, she was going home.
Wendy sighed deeply. Home? What is home? Her parents were no longer alive. It bothered her not knowing what had become of them. Did they live long lives or did they die of broken hearts? Was Peter right? Peter had once told her that her parents stopped caring, that they stopped searching for the children; they had finally closed the window.
Her heart beamed with joy at the thought of returning to her brothers. But strangely, Wendy couldn't help but feel saddened over leaving Neverland. It wasn't so much Neverland, it was Peter. Peter Pan.
"You're finally free, Wendy." Baelfire reminded the frightened girl. Literally, she had been through hell and back. It felt so surreal when she boarded the Jolly Roger.
"Free?"Wendy stared out puzzingly, "I just don't see that ever happening." Wendy looked over morosely at Baelfire, her long lost brother. "I'm sorry I didn't listen to you before when you warned me about magic."
"I never would have left Neverland if I would have known-"
"Shhh...it's ok. You didn't know. I didn't know either. For so long, I believed that Peter had freed you. I can't even apologize enough for what happened with Henry. I was selfish-"Wendy stared down gripping the siding as tight as she could,noticing that her knuckles were turning white.
"That's not even possible. Wendy, you sacrificed yourself to come find me. Pan was holding your brothers over your head. You've been his prisoner for so long. Hell, I know how Pan is! But Wendy, you don't have to worry about him anymore."
Her inner voice screamed at her to keep her mouth shut. Baelfire wouldn't understand. How could he? Wendy groaned. It didn't make sense. After everything that had happened, Wendy stared blankly at Bae.
"Wendy, what's wrong?"
"For so long, I've dreamed of this. I dreamed of seeing you again. I dreamt of seeing my brothers once more. But for so long, this was home. I don't expect you to understand-"
Baelfire nodded. It was obvious in her voice that Neverland had a damning affect on her. Hell, he kept her in a damn cage like an animal.
Wendy fought back the tears as her voice broke "I hated him for so long. I hated him for what he did to me, what he did to my brothers, you, and Henry. I wanted so bad to believe that he could be saved."
"Wendy-"
"Yet, all I wanted to do was save his life." Wendy broke into sobs. Baelfire pulled Wendy into a hug. She always had a good heart, here he was a thief who had broken into her home for food, and there she was taking him in. It's no wonder that she wanted to save 's just the kind-hearted person she was.
"It's ok. I know" She was the little sister he never had. Truthfully, they were the same age. However, Neverland kept her youth. As a boy who was ready to be drafted into the Ogre wars, Baelfire could hold his own. He could only imagine what Neverland must have been like for her. It bothered him knowing that Peter had a sick, twisted hold over her. Like a possession.
Switching bodies was not his ideal choice, however; Pandora's box was not an option. Poor Henry. He never saw it coming. Peter watched Baelfire and Wendy embrace. Anger boiled, but Peter knew he was living on borrowed time. Eventually, they would figure out that Henry was the one trapped in Pandora's box. Peter stared at Wendy from afar and noticed her brushing a tear away as Neal walked away.
This should be the happiest day of her life, she was finally going to be reunited with her brothers. Isn't this what she wanted? Peter studied her. Wendy was a like a rubiks cube, impossible to figure out. Peter quickly turned away when he noticed Wendy staring his way.
No. He was going to blow this before he even got off this ship. Wendy couldn't help but notice the way Henry was staring at her. It was odd.
"Better than being in a cage isn't it?" Wendy turned to face the fairy. A smile lit up as she faced her friend. Considering only Lost Boys lived in Neverland, it was nice having an ally. A friend. Tinkerbell was the closest thing she had to a friend on that island.
Bae had confessed to Wendy that Peter was now trapped in Pandora's box and that he couldn't hurt any of them ever again. She knew she should feel safe, but it just didn't feel real. "Are we really free?" Wendy repeated.
"Yes, Wendy" Tink smiled as she came closer towards Wendy. "Soon you'll see your brothers. " Tink could still recall the first time she ever met the Darling children, such wonderful children. John with his glasses and little Michael always dragging around a teddy bear. Wendy was a bright girl, who lived for adventure. It was sad that Neverland had hardened Wendy. Tink couldn't help but smile as Wendy's face lit up at the mention of her brothers.
"I have something for you." Wendy said joyfully. "I saved it all this time. I could never use it. But maybe you can." Wendy handed Tinkerbell the vial of Pixie Dust that Peter had once given her. She sadly recalled the importance of the dust in her and Peter's relationship.
Wendy loved flying. Her and Peter were in a great place when he had given her the pixie dust. That was the Peter she was going to choose to remember, not this monster. Peter told her the dust stopped working because she stopped believing. What could you believe in Neverland? If she left Peter, he would find her and drag her back to this hell. Not to mention, he would kill her brothers. So she kept the pixie dust as a reminder that there once was good in Peter Pan.
Tinkerbell curiously gazed at the sparkly dust. It had been ages since she last seen Pixie Dust.
"It's pixie dust. It's the last bit, from the last flower in the treetops. "
Tink was unsure what the girl was getting at so she quickly interuppted to try to understand what she was trying to do "I can't make it work. I got no magic. Not since I lost my wings."
Tinkerbell's grinned sadly. "You'll figure it out." Wendy encouraged. She then placed one hand over Tink's shoulder "I believe in you, Tink." As Wendy said those words "I believe", the pixie dust lit up. Maybe when they arrived in this new place, maybe Tinkerbell could prove herself and earn her wings back. Just hearing those encouraging words gave Tinkerbell strength to start believing in her own self.
After Tinkerbell left Wendy to go talk to Regina, Wendy watched Henry and Felix interact. She had only met Henry briefly, but she knew Felix and he certainly could not be trusted. Instinct was telling her to let it go, she absolutely could not understand why they brought Felix. He clearly didn't want to leave Neverland. Peter always had a way of manipulating the boys, she understood that, because she allowed herself many of times to be manipulated by him. Felix was different though, he saw Peter as his best friend and Felix was Peter's right hand man. Wendy worried that Felix was somehow manipulating Henry, he certainly never opened up to her about his past before Neverland.
She couldn't recall how long she had been staring out into the clouds, she looked around and saw the boys' excitement in leaving Neverland. Everyone was happy and that's how it should have been but she feared what had become of Peter. Pan was unpredictable, very difficult to read. No matter how long she spent in Neverland, she never knew what to make of him.
Henry quietly approached Wendy; Peter felt unsure of himself as he walked towards Wendy. Felix was loyal but Wendy was the only one he ever showed a softer side to. She just always had a way of pulling it out of him. Love was a weakness. He never wanted to punish Wendy when he put her in that cage, it was just part of the game. They wanted to take her away along with everything else from him. There was a reason he kept Wendy and let her brothers go-only he could have Wendy.
Peter had everything he could ever want in Neverland-he was the King and Wendy was his Queen. However, Love was such a silly word. Wendy was the missing piece in this puzzle. Only two people ever believed in him: Wendy and Felix. Yet Wendy stopped believing in him when he sent her brothers away. What was so special about wanting to grow up? Why did she want that so bad?
Recently, he had taken her to his Thinking Tree. She was a fantastic actor. Everything she did after Peter let her brothers go was for them. Peter truly believed that she still believed in him, that she cared for him. It completely threw him for a loop when the tree attacked Wendy.
"This tree only attacks regret. What do you have to regret?"
Wendy scoffed "I regret coming back to Neverland." The tree gripped Wendy even tighter.
"NO there's more." Peter's voice tightened as he watched Wendy struggle.
" I regret ever falling in love with you. I hate what you're doing and I hate what you've become. That's what I regret"
"Well then." Peter would never admit it, but it hurt. He may have taken her brothers away from her and kept her from her family; but she had everything she could want in Neverland. He gave her a home and made the Lost Boys her family. Caring was not a word that would describe Peter Pan but she was a weakness. Peter cut Wendy free from the tree but decided she deserved to be punished: he later ordered Felix to put Wendy into a cage. She was his WendyBird and he couldn't afford to have his little bird fly away from him, especially when Henry's family was roaming the island.
"You looked cold. I thought you could use this." Peter said as he handed her a robe he had found in the Captain's room.
Wendy looked at Henry and flashed him a gentle smile. "This used to be your father's when he lived with us."
"You loved him, didn't you?" Peter was unsure why he was asking. I mean would Henry really ask that? But he had to know why she risked it all for him, why she wanted to save him.
"Of course I did. I have two younger brothers, of course now, there probably older, but-" That girl always had a way of getting off track " I mean, Bae was like the older brother I never had. He warned me about Neverland and magic. I didn't see it until he sacrificed himself for my brothers. It was hard moving on knowing that he didn't have a family and that he was all alone."
"But he left Neverland and you behind." Peter was trying to strike a nerve. Wendy was always so damn trusting. Yeah, that's all he needed was Baelfire the saint and Peter once more the villain.
"He didn't know and how could he? Anyway, I'd rather not talk about it. We're all fine, that's all that matters. I'm so sorry, Henry. I never should have lied to you."
"It's ok. You only lied to protect your brothers." Wendy nodded. "I guess it don't matter now anyway."
"I'm just glad you're ok."
"Yeah me too. " Peter as Henry stared nervously at the ground. " So you seem upset, what's wrong?"
"You're just like your father, always worried about others." Peter fought the urge to roll his eyes at the comparison. What a joke! Wendy took in a deep breath "I'm fine."
"If you're so fine, why are your eyes stained red?" She gulped, completely caught off guard.
"It's Peter-well, it's just I..."
"What about him?" Peter unintentionally rushed her, completely exasperated in her ways of trying to skip over the subject. It was her most annoying habit.
"I miss him." Wendy sounded defeated.
"You miss him?" Peter was speechless. He thought she hated him. Of course, Wendy knows there are some things you just don't tell him.
"I know I shouldn't but I do. And I wish I didn't feel that way. But for more years then I can ever even imagine, he was my family. I can't expect people to understand, because they didn't see Peter like I did. I'm so sorry after what he did to you the last thing you need is someone trying to convince you that Peter wasn't completely evil-"
Silly girl. She refused to see the bad in people.
"Really? He wasn't completely evil?" Peter questioned with sarcasm that he hoped Wendy wouldn't catch on.
"I know, I'm sorry."
"No, I want to know. Might help me figure things out."
"I had feelings for Peter, but those feelings died when he sent my brothers away. I stopped believing in Peter. It just took me awhile to figure that out. Peter is selfish. He only cares about himself."
Peter tried his best not to appear fazed by her words, but it saddened him to know that she never saw what she meant to him. It was why he sent her back in the first place. When she begged to come back to Neverland (apparently to save Baelfire), he decided she may come in handy. But kept her because her heart was so pure and she held the heart of the truest believer; however, the Shadow insisted that her belief would eventually falter and her heart would not hold out. Peter just couldn't let her go and the annoying crying at night was getting on his nerves; she could be the mother her Lost Boys needed.
"Well he can't hurt us anymore." Peter responded.
Wendy glanced over to see Felix eating his food, his smirk still annoyed her. She knew she should leave it alone, but it wasn't in her nature to let things go.
"I just don't understand why they brought him. He clearly wanted to stay in Neverland. They should have just left him. "
"You always did hate him." Wendy was so lost in her thoughts that she failed to catch his slip-up. "I mean he just seemed annoyed when Peter brought you back to camp." Peter spoke swiftly.
"Yeah it's strange. Peter had this pipe and he said it was enchanted that only those who felt lost and unloved could hear it. Well Felix never could hear the music."
"Did you?"
"At times. When you're in Neverland, eventually it pulls it out of you. I mean I heard even you heard the music at one time. "
"Why do you think Felix never heard it?"
"Back in camp a little bit ago, Felix was distraught that we all betrayed Pan. It wasn't like that, but he sees it that way. Felix said that Pan was the only family he needed. I actually believe that he thought all this was real. I mean I'm certain he believed Peter really did love all of us and that we all were family and Neverland was home. That place was not home. It was a prison."
"Did you ever enjoy your time in Neverland?"
"Yes, there were times. Flying was always exhilarating. Mermaids were awful. One almost drowned me and Peter thought it was funny." Peter did his best to hide his laughter. " We did have fun on that island, but that's gone now. He made his choice." Wendy crossed her arms in anger.
"I bet you hated Pan."
"Actually I didnt and that's why this hurts so bad. He kept me away from my family, he kept me prisoner. But in the end, I just wanted to save him. I wanted to pull him out of this quest. Staying young was more important to him than any of us. Some things can't be saved Henry, no matter how much we want it to."
"You wanted to save him?" Henry questioned.
"Of course. Neverland is meant to be a place you can only find in your dreams. You dream it, but you're not meant to stay. Peter broke the rules and that's why he had to find this heart. I hate what happened to him, but he became ruthless and that's not the Peter I want to remember. But as far as I know, Peter is incapable of real feelings unless it's about himself."
"You were the light to his darkness." Henry said softly. She was the light. Wendy gave him an uneasy feeling and it scared him, it scared him to death. Abandonment was something he was used to, and eventually Wendy too would leave him. Regardless of their past, Wendy was the light to his darkness as he was the dark to her light. That was why he never could let her leave Neverland. Peter needed Henry's heart, but he needed Wendy's light. She balanced him.
Wendy looked at Peter with a stone cold expression. "Oh my God! You're not Henry, are you?"
Henry smirked. "We can't have the others figuring it out, can we?"
"Peter, NO! Where is Henry? What have you done with him?"Wendy voice screeched. Peter was hesitant that at any moment someone was going to come over. That girl needed a muzzle, she never knew when to keep her mouth shut.
"I didn't do anything with him. Wendy!" Wendy shook her head furiously, she was infuriated. " They were going to trap me in Pandora's box. I couldn't let that happen. It just happened. We switched"
"What is WRONG with you?! You'll never change, will you?" Peter frowned.
"I'm just pure evil and incapable of any kind of feelings, right? I'm selfish and only care about myself, remember?"
"I'm trying Peter! I've reached out to you over and over again. And you fail to see that I cared for you. I still do! God, I'm still trying to reach out to you even after you tried to kill Henry and you still only care about yourself."
"I can change, Wendy. Maybe this new land-"
"What are you going to pretend to be Henry for the rest of your life? They'll figure it out and then what are you going to do? Kill them? Are you going to kill me? Because there is NO way I'm letting you off this boat pretending to be Henry. "
"You really think so low of me to think I would kill you? I'm happy that you get to see your brothers again. But I can't let them win!"
"God! I feel sorry for you! You're going to live a life alone and you have no one to blame but yourself." Peter could feel the anger beginning the rise up inside him.
"I can change, Wendy. For you, I can change."
"I've lived with you for what 200 years or more? I don't believe you. Because you've never given me a reason to believe. Look at yourself now, Peter." Wendy voiced quietly.
"Stop while you're ahead." Peter grounded his teeth together. "You know nothing about me and my feelings." As Peter got closer, Wendy could feel his breath and anger radiating from him.
Peter groaned. That girl never knew when to shut up. She was going to destroy everything.
"I know enough. I was always just a pawn in your game. I don't know why Felix never saw through you, but the boys and myself did. She was right, you know. You never cared for us, we were just an attempt to fill the void in your lonely soul."
"You never know when to stop, do you? You don't understand, Wendy. You've always failed to see the big picture."
"You're right, Peter. I don't understand!" Wendy yelled. She never understood why he let her brothers go but kept her. She didn't understand why he felt so threatened by her friendship with Tinkerbell. The fairy no longer had her wings, it wasn't like she really could escape. Peter always got a weird sense of jealousy when he watched Wendy with the other boys. The only thing Wendy never understood was him. "What is the big picture?"
Wendy watched Peter nervously. He was the villian in this story, he tried to kill Henry and now he was possessing his body. "It's YOU! It always has been. When I was slowly dying back there, you were what gave me strength and then here you are! They're trying to take you from me, they already turned you against me."
"You're doing that! Not them! You know what I'm afraid of Peter? I'm afraid of you."
"I've never harmed you, Wendy. You know that. I've given you a home, I tried to give you a family."
"Yeah, and you sent the ones that actually were family away. I'm giving up, Peter. You let me go, once. Now, I'm letting you go." Wendy ran her fingers through her hair, she hated this. It was an endless game that she was tired of playing. She loved Peter Pan, but he loved his youth more. Eventually, you have to cut your losses. It was quite sad. Every now and then when Wendy was with him there were moments when he was kind and an actual decent person. Peter Pan was evil and a terrible person and people who are like that can't change.
"I care about you, Wendy. I always have."
"You have a sick way of showing it." Wendy watched Peter uncomfortablly cross his arms, of course it was actually Henry. It wasn't Peter she was looking at, it was Henry. "Why do you care? If you cared so much, why lock me in a cage? Why send my brothers away? You knew very well how to use my brothers against me. Why not send me away to do your dirty work? Help me understand, Please." Looking around, everything was blurred. She was always afraid of standing up to Peter. She'd seen him angry before, but this was different; this time he wasn't arguing back. He was actually listening. Maybe he was afraid of getting caught, or maybe he finally realized that this was one game he was going to lose.
Peter's eyes burned. If she only knew the effect she had on him. He brushed up closer towards her "Because I couldn't lose you!" he yelled.
"Lose me? What?" she muttered softly. Wendy quickly found a seat because she felt if she didn't she would collapse from shock. It may have been Henry's body, but Wendy could swear she could look into his eyes and she saw Peter.
Peter was puzzled. How could he even begin to explain to her the feelings he didn't even fully understand himself? He just knew the moment she landed in Neverland, the game was up in the air and that she was the gamechanger. She was so good and so pure that it scared him to the core.
"Would you stop looking at me like that? This isn't easy. " Looking up into his eyes, she wondered if Peter could be saved. "I kept you Wendy, because I fell in love with you" he whispered.
Wendy breathed in deeply. As if this wasn't bizarre enoough, this changed everything. Wendy watched Baelfire and Emma glance towards her and her heart broke for them. Her mouth was dry and she couldn't speak, not that she would have known how to respond anyway. How do you even respond to that kind of confession?
"You're lying. You have to be."
"I'm not, Wendy. I stuck you in that cage because I was upset with what you said. I wanted Baelfire and the others to find you. I guess I was just hoping you'd choose me. That you would have stayed with me in Neverland."
"You knew that would never happen when you had my brothers locked away."
"I would have found a way for them to return to Neverland. I can understand why you don't believe me, but at least you'll finally see your brothers again."
"You're really letting me go?"
"It's what you always wanted."
Peter fought the urge to tuck the stray hair out of her eye. "Peter-"
"A kiss always means something, right? I know you hate me and I'm sorry for that. I'm sorry that I couldn't change for you."
"There's still hope, Peter. There's always hope." Wendy felt a tear slip down her cheek despite all her efforts to hold it back. Once again, he left her speechless. "I fought my feelings for you for so long."
"Don't cry." Peter soothed as he swiped the teardrop away. "You're finally free."
"What's going to happen now?"
"We're going to Storybrooke. I'll have Henry freed and I'll go back to Neverland. "
"But you'll die?" Wendy couldn't control the panic in her voice.
Peter smiled "Don't you know, Dying is an awfully big adventure." She returned the smiled, maybe she was a naive girl; but her Peter was still in there. "You're my weakness, Wendy. That's why you scared me. Nobody else has ever made me feel that way." He wanted so bad to lean in and kiss her one last time, but he was in Henry's body and only his lips could touch Wendy's. Her kiss only belonged to him.
"Can't we find a way around all this-"
"They would never let it happen. I'm in Henry's body, Wendy. You really think they'll just let me roam around the town? They'll kill me the first chance they get."
"You can't die. I forbid it."
"I promise you I'll have Henry freed but there is no happy ending for me, Wendy. Go and be happy. I miss that smile of yours."
"So I guess this is goodbye?" Wendy spoke sadly.
Peter chuckled " No. It's not goodbye. Never-" Peter put his finger to her lips "Never say goodbye because saying goodbye means going away and going away means forgetting."
When Peter and Henry switched bodies, Peter's powers went with Henry as well. Peter knew Wendy and he knew that there was no denying that she would run and tell. He couldn't let that happen. Regardless of how the game was going to go now, he wanted to hold on to how Wendy felt. But she had to stay in the dark.
"Don't forget me, Wendy." Peter waved his hand wiping away the conversation they just had.
"Henry, thank you for the robe. You should probably rest, you've been through quite a bit."Wendy rubbed her temples. It felt like she was having an important conversation with Henry. " I must have zoned out, what were we talking about again?"
"Don't worry about it. I just said, I bet you can't wait to see your brothers again."
"Absolutely. It feels like it's been a lifetime."
"You deserve happiness, Wendy. I'm happy for you." Peter said sincerely.
'Thank you Henry."
When they finally landed in Storybrooke, everyone gathered around him but yet all he could focus on was the girl he loved embracing her brothers. Wendy had finally found her happiness. There was that smile that he remembered.
Now, back to the game...
Thanks for reading! Ok so I know Peter would never give himself up. I mean he did for Felix, but I just had to see some Darling Pan action. I hate how Neverland arc is ending and I still know nothing really of Neverland. How did Peter let the Darling Children go? What happened between Peter and Tinkerbell? What was Hook and Pan's relationship (I know his brother died, but all that time in Neverland-what went down ? How did he let Hook go? )What kind of relationship did Wendy and Peter have? They fought so hard to get Neverland rights for the show, and yet they never really explored it. I'm disappointed. So this probably sucks, but it was something i had in my little head. Comment let me know what your thoughts are...I would even love to hear your Neverland theories. I feel I need some light on this Neverland darkness.