NEVERLAND

So they had arrived.

Emma Swan, her Charming parents, an evil imp with control issues, an Evil Queen and a pirate captain who enjoyed a masochistic hobby of finding increasingly creative ways to get tied up (and subsequently bloodied in some unique way, shape or form) had reached Neverland.

But was this really Neverland?

Emma had never imagined it would be such a bleak-looking place: stormy seas, dark clouds, and, from what she could see, a jungle which definitely did NOT have friendly, cuddly, fuzzy bunnies just waiting to greet them. If anything, those bunnies would probably end up eating them, from what she could tell. She looked at Captain Hook off to her right.

"Are you sure this is Neverland?" she asked him.

"It most certainly is, Miss Swan," interjected Mr. Gold smoothly as he tromped toward the front of the ship. "Isn't it, Captain?" The last word definitely had a scornful, challenging tone to it.

"Aye." Hook said shortly, not taking his eyes away from the island in front of him. He seemed to be watching out for something, judging by his tense posture. Or maybe that was just because of Rumpelstiltskin's presence…

"But it's so…"

"Miserable? Gloomy? Dreary? As if your very existence is being replaced with the most wretched, desolate thoughts of mankind?" the sorcerer offered. "Well, that seems a rather cheery description of it."

"What's that sound?" Snow White whispered warily as she furtively glanced around herself and tried to place the location of it.

"Ah yes, that lovely harmony," Mr. Gold continued, "That would be the boys."

Emma tilted her head to see if she could hear what her mother had heard. As she strained to hear, she definitely noticed…something. It sounded sort of like…a persistent wail? "The…boys?" she asked.

"The boys the Shadow brings to Neverland," Hook replied out of the blue. The blonde woman's head turned toward him, surprised he'd spoken, seeing as Rumpelstiltskin had been the one to explain things so far.

"Why…why are they crying?" Snow asked, tears in her own eyes as she looked at the island.

"They miss their parents," the pirate answered simply.

"Well, then, can't they go back?" Charming asked, looking perturbed by the sounds which were getting increasingly louder as they neared the island.

"No," Hook and Rumpelstiltskin said in unison. They glared at each other.

"Why?" Regina spoke up, wrapping her arms around herself as she eyed the land mass ahead of them.

The two men familiar with the realm continued to stare each other down for a few seconds longer before Hook turned his attention back to steering the ship with a growl.

The older man gave a triumphant grin, then turned to the rest of the people on board. "He won't let them leave," he told them.

"He?" commented the prince.

"The Shadow. An entity even darker than I," Rumpelstiltskin told the group ominously. The others exchanged skeptical looks. Darker than the Dark One?

Seeing the skepticism, he addressed it. "Yes, darker than the Dark One," he reiterated. The Charmings shifted nervously while Regina seemed to straighten up as if she planned to challenge the Shadow herself. Emma still wasn't sure that she believed what Mr. Gold had said, but kept silent. She supposed she'd find out soon enough.

Suddenly, Emma noticed that the ship seemed to have stopped moving.

"Hook…why are we stopping here?" she asked the pirate as he stepped away from the wheel. "Shouldn't we keep going?"

Hook spared a glance at the island and then swept his gaze over the assembled group. "I would not recommend going any nearer the island," he told them, "I have no doubt that the Shadow knows we are here. He doesn't tolerate interference. However, we have a better chance of avoiding his displeasure if we keep our distance." His eyes returned to the island and the serious expression he'd had since the journey began seemed to get even more hardened.

"I wouldn't discount the possibility that we'll be receiving some guests during our stay here," he commented lowly.

"Guests? Like who?" Charming demanded.

"For the time being, I think it would be best you not know," Rumpelstiltskin interrupted smoothly before the pirate could, then turned and clumped toward the stairs which led to their sleeping quarters. Snow and Charming looked at each other uneasily and followed, holding hands as they descended and whispering between themselves.

Hook, Regina, and Emma remained on deck. The blonde woman rubbed her arms through her coat as the wails in the distance became clearer, now that no one was speaking. Regina's pinched expression hinted that she was just as affected by the cries as Emma, but was trying hard not to show it.

"So Henry is somewhere on that island," Emma commented in a voice she hoped sounded confident, but she knew wasn't. She swore in her head when she realized just how shaken her voice was.

"Aye," Hook said, not looking at either of the women.

"How long will it take to find him?" Regina demanded.

The pirate gave her an irritated sidelong glance. "The sooner, the better," he answered with a tight jaw as he went around them and headed toward his own quarters. "I would recommend that the two of you retire for the evening," he called over his shoulder as he descended the staircase.

Regina and Emma watched him as he left. The former queen looked as if she wanted to throw a fireball at his back. "He didn't even answer my question," she practically growled.

"He probably doesn't know the answer," Emma replied. Instead of being angry at him, though, she was more inclined toward concern. Had they made the right decision in trusting him? What if he just decided to leave them on the island and go off on his own to do who knew what?

Regina seemed to read her mind. "Can we really trust him?"

Emma mulled over what had happened recently, especially in the past 24 hours. Hook showing up at her apartment and offering his help, his cooperation with her father (yeah, he'd stolen the bean, but he hadn't stabbed Charming in the back in the process), his surprise at finding out Henry's paternity, the fact that he'd stolen the bean, then had changed his mind and returned it to them, this time offering his ship as well as his own services. And then, of course, there was his agreement to a stalemate with Rumpelstiltskin.

"I…don't know," she murmured slowly. "I know he said that he valued his life more than the chance to destroy Mr. Gold once and for all, but…what changed his mind? When did he change it?"

Distracted by her thoughts, Emma didn't notice Regina's eyes uncomfortably darting in the direction Hook had gone. "Who knows. It's not as if it's important, anyway," the dark-haired woman said flippantly, "The real question is, was he telling the truth when he said it? What was that oh-so-special superpower of yours telling you?"

Emma glared at the insinuation. "It didn't really have time to pick up on anything. I think we were in a bit of a rush, what with the entire town nearly being destroyed and needing saving since the beans were destroyed."

Regina's lips thinned, but she didn't comment. "Good night, Miss Swan," she told her authoritatively, whirling on her heels and clicking toward the steps.

Emma could tell this was going to be such a wonderful trip. She let out a huff and her mind automatically turned to Henry, as it always did when she didn't have something else to think about. And thinking about Henry in turn made her think about Neal. Blinking back sudden tears, she looked at the island.

"I'll save our son, Neal. I swear it," she whispered fiercely.