"So, this is Storybrooke?" Peter Pan says, looking around. "It's a bit small, don't you think, Queen?"
"I didn't create it to impress you," Regina growls. She isn't sure where Nice Pan who talked to John came from, but she hasn't seen him since. Since that moment, all he's done is try to get a rise out of anyone he could find. He'd ticked off Hook, Charming, Emma, Neal, Tinkerbell, and even managed to get Mary Margaret to snap at him. And that was just on the ride back! Regina hates to think what it will be like living in this town with him. Hopefully they'll find a way to reverse the whole heart sharing thing and kill Pan for good. And soon.
"Doesn't look like you were trying to impress anyone," Pan mutters.
"Hey, shut it, kid," Emma snaps. "Just because we can't hurt you doesn't mean you can talk to people like that, acting like you own the place."
Pan raises an eyebrow. "It doesn't?"
He starts to walk away, and Regina calls, "Hey! Where are you going?"
Pan turns around and says, "I'm just going for a little tour. Getting the lay of the land. If any of you care to join me, you're more than welcome." Felix and most of the lost boys walk up to join him. He's about to continue walking, when he pauses once more. "You can come too, Henry." Henry looks from Emma to Regina, who are both obviously opposed to the idea. Pan rolls his eyes. "Come, come, Henry," he says. "You don't need your mothers' permission for everything you do. Besides, you know this town better than any of us. You could be our tour guide. Show us around."
To everyone's shock and dismay, Henry pulls out of Emma and Regina's grip to join Pan.
"Henry!" Regina yells. "Get back here!"
She's about to use magic to pull him back, but Emma grabs her wrist and says quietly, "Don't."
"I'll be fine," Henry assures them, but no one really seems convinced.
"Yes, don't worry," Pan says, batting his eyes innocently. "I'll be sure to get him back before dark." With that, Henry starts walking down the road, pointing things out. Pan follows, smirking.
Regina looks like smoke's about to come pouring out of her ears. "God, that kid…"
"I know," Emma says.
"What the hell, Emma?" Regina whirls around on her. "What were you thinking, letting Henry go off with him? After what he did?"
"He needs to feel free to make his own decisions," Emma says quietly. "We can't just pull him back with magic whenever we feel like it, even if it seems like the right thing to do, or he'll never trust us."
Regina rolls her eyes. "What makes you think you know what's best for Henry? Because you know so much about parenting?"
"I don't know much about parenting," Emma admits, "but I know that if you try to keep him too close, it'll only push him farther away. The same thing happened when I came to Storybrooke. No offense, but I think you need to try a different approach."
Trying not to show how much the words stung, Regina scowls, "And what approach would you suggest, Miss Swan? Just let him run wild, allow him to go off with…him?"
"No," Emma sighs. "But loosen the reins a little, okay? Look, we're both back now, ready to make a fresh start with him. We should get this whole parent thing right."
"Um…"
Emma and Regina turn around and finally realize that they have an audience.
"I'm Henry's parent too?" Neal says, but it comes out more like a question.
"Shut up, Neal," is Emma's only reply, and she turns back to Regina. "In the meantime, how much trouble could he get into?"
At the moment, not much. As Pan had said, the town was fairly small, and there really wasn't much to tour. It isn't long before everyone ends up at Granny's Diner.
Granny raises her eyebrows at the troop of boys walking into her diner. "Who the hell are they?" she asks Henry.
"They're the lost boys," Henry answers, smiling.
Granny rolls her eyes. "Of course they are," she mutters. "And what are they doing here?"
"I'm just giving them a tour around town, introducing them to everybody."
At that moment, Belle walks in the door. She sees Henry first and runs over to him. "Henry!" she cries. "You're okay!" Then she looks up and notices all the boys standing around him. "Um…"
"I believe she'd like an introduction, Henry," Pan says.
"Of course. This is—"
"Peter Pan," Pan says with a smirk, stepping forward. "And you must be Belle."
Belle seems a bit dumbstruck. "But…you're supposed to be…"
"Dead? Yes, well, it didn't seem to work out that way."
"Peter Pan?!" Granny yells, grabbing a broom and running toward him. "I'll smash your face in, you evil little bastard…"
"No!" Henry cries quickly. "You can't."
"Henry, I know you're a nice kid, but last time I checked, he was the bad guy."
"Bad guy or not, you can't hurt him," Henry says evenly.
"And why not?" Granny asks exasperatedly.
"Because he…because I…"
"Because Henry and I share the same heart," Pan steps in. "We're linked. Whatever happens to me, happens to him. So if you were to 'smash my face in', as you so elegantly put, the same would happen to Henry."
Granny lowers the broom slightly. "Is he telling the truth?" she asks Henry.
Henry nods.
"All right then. I guess I can't kill you. But I still want you outta my diner," Granny orders, heading back to the kitchen.
Pan shrugs. "As you wish. You coming, Henry?"
Henry is about to say yes, until he sees the look Belle is giving him. "I'll be there in a minute," he replies. Pan and the Lost Boys exit the diner, leaving Henry with Belle.
"Why are you with him?" Belle asks frantically the moment they're alone. "What's going on? And if you're going to ask me if I've seen the others, I have, but no one would tell me anything! Not even Rumple!"
"I guess they don't want to talk about it," Henry says.
"Talk about what? That's the problem—I have no idea what's going on! How are you and Pan sharing a heart?"
Henry had never really interacted with Belle much, but at this moment he feels bad for her. It's obvious that she's frustrated, and while he kind of understands why his family didn't want to tell her what happened, he also thinks it's kind of unfair that they left it to him. He takes a breath. "Pan kissed me. When he did, part of his heart went back into me, and now we're linked. That's all I know."
Belle's eyes grow wide, and her jaw drops a bit. Henry tries not to notice.
"Way to dull it down, Henry." Belle and Henry both start and turn around to see Pan, leaning against the door, arms crossed. "You didn't even tell her the bit where your heroic grandfather tried to kill me."
"How long have you been there?" Henry asks crossly.
Pan ignores him, instead sauntering over to Belle. "It would be a lot more fun if you pretended this never happened," he says, "and asked everyone else again. It's hilarious to watch them all squirm."
Belle searches for something to say, but can't seem to find anything. Eventually she just says, "I'll see you around, Henry." Then she leaves.
"Well, she's not very fun," Pan mutters after her. "Anywhere else to go on this tour of Storybrooke?" he asks as they walk outside to where the Lost Boys are waiting for them.
"Not really," Henry answers. "Except…well, I guess I could show you guys my house."
Pan smiles. "That sounds lovely. Boys!" he calls, getting everyone's attention. "Henry has graciously agreed to let us into his house. I trust you'll all be courteous guests?"
As all the Lost Boys nod, Henry feels a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. These boys have been living on an island with no rules for who knows how long. Hopefully they won't do too much damage, he thinks as they walk to his house.
"Oh my god!" Regina screams the second she enters her house. There are Lost Boys everywhere she turns, swinging off the staircase, throwing anything they can find, using her furniture as leaping pads. What are they doing here?!
She sees the answer sitting on a couch, carrying on a normal conversation with her son, seemingly oblivious to the destruction around him. She storms over to him. "What are you doing in my house?" she yells.
Pan stops speaking to smirk at her. "Henry invited us."
"Henry?" she turns to her son, ignoring the evidence and hoping it's not true.
Henry ducks his head a little. "There was nowhere else to go, so…"
"So you let these hooligans into our home?"
Henry gives a small shrug. "It seemed like a good idea at the time."
"And I can just imagine who put the idea in your head." Regina turns to Pan, venom dripping from her words as she says, "I don't want you around my son. Ever. Now take your boys and get out."
"Mom!" Henry protests, but Pan gets up.
"As you wish, Your Majesty," he says, giving a mocking bow. "Come on, boys! We know when we're not wanted."
"But where are we going to sleep?" One of the younger ones asks. "It's getting late."
"Don't worry, we'll find someplace," Pan tells him, shooting a look at Regina.
"Well, I don't need to sleep!" One of the others cries indignantly.
Pan laughs. "Then you won't. Felix and I never sleep, isn't that right, Felix? You can stay up with us."
Soon, nearly all the Lost Boys are saying how they're going to stay up, too, and Pan is chuckling. "Looks like we're pulling an all-nighter."
Pan watches as all of the boys exit the house, and Henry begins to cross over to him. Regina grabs his arm, but Henry yanks it away, growling, "At least let me say goodbye."
Regina looks on helplessly as Henry walks over to Pan. They exchange a few words, and then Pan leans down a little and whispers something into Henry's ear. He pulls away, and Henry nods. Then Pan leaves, flicking his wrist to shut the door loudly behind him.
"What did he say to you?" Regina asks.
"Nothing."
Regina is about to question him further when Emma opens the door. "Did I just see—oh, wow." Emma's eyes bulge when she sees the destruction the boys had caused. "What happened here?"
"Henry decided to invite Pan and his friends over for a playdate," Regina answers sarcastically. "You see the result."
"Um…" Emma rocks back and forth on her feet awkwardly. "Do you need any help cleaning up?"
"Oh, that's no problem," Regina says, waving her hand and setting everything back in its proper place.
"Oh." Emma stops rocking.
"If that was so easy to do, why did you get so mad at everyone for being here?" Henry asks indignantly.
"It's not everyone. It's Pan."
"He didn't even do anything!"
"Henry, this isn't about the house. I don't want you around him. He's a very bad person. You don't know what he's capable of."
"I've gotta go with your mom on this one," Emma says. "He's a bad dude. Just…steer clear of him, okay?"
"Why should I? Because he's done bad things?" Henry yells. "By that logic, I should steer clear of both of you, and pretty much everyone else in Storybrooke."
"Henry, this is different," Regina starts to say.
"No, it's not! He's done nothing worse than you have!"
Regina flinches, but doesn't back down. "He tried to kill you!"
"I'm not dead, Mom! And the only reason I can say that is because he saved me. I know he's done bad things, but he can change. I know it! I have the heart of the truest believer, and I believe in him!"
Regina waits a moment before saying in a low voice, "I'm sorry, Henry, but I still think you should stay away from him."
"It's not the end of the world, kid," Emma tries to comfort him, but Henry's already running up the stairs, tears in his eyes.
"What a mess," Regina mutters, sitting down on the couch and putting her head in her hands.
"That's for sure," Emma says, hesitating a moment before sitting next to her.
"You don't suppose that Pan…I don't know, cast some kind of curse on Henry? Has him under some kind of spell that's making him act like this?"
"If love is a curse, then yes," Emma sighs. Regina looks at her in horror. "Okay, Regina, I know the idea freaks you out, but you have to face facts. The whole kiss thing wasn't a mistake. You know what it means."
"I don't care," Regina growls stubbornly. "I still don't want that demon around our son."
"And I understand why," Emma says.
"Do you, Miss Swan? Because you didn't raise him. I did. You don't know what it's like to have only one person to care about, and then have him almost taken away from you once, only to start losing him again. First it was you, now it's…him."
"You're right. I don't have any idea how you feel," Emma says exasperatedly, standing up. "But I'm his mother, too, you know. Whether you like it or not."
"I know. I'm…sorry." Emma is a bit taken aback. Regina apologizing? Pan must have really gotten under her skin. "Could you…talk to Henry? Maybe you would have more luck with him than I did."
Emma smiles a little. "Yeah, sure." She walks up the stairs to see her son.
When she opens the door, she can tell that Henry just sat down on his bed, as he seems overly posed with this book open on his lap, obviously not being read. He looks up and smiles at her. "Hey kid," she greets him, sitting down on the bed. "Whatcha up to?"
"Nothing," he replies a little too innocently.
"You sure?"
"Of course." He gives her a cheeky grin, and she smiles despite herself.
"Okay, listen, Henry, about Pan…"
Henry's face darkens and he looks away.
"Hey." He looks at her again. "I know your mom and I might have seemed a bit harsh, but we just want what's best for you."
"How would you know what's best for me?" Henry snaps.
"Look, kid, I'm not going to pretend to know what's going on in your head. But I do know you have a thing for happy endings. Let me just tell you: Pan isn't yours. He tried to kill you, for God's sake!"
"Everyone can change," Henry mutters.
"Not everyone wants to."
"So that means we shouldn't give them a chance?"
Emma gets up from the bed. "Kid, I'm not telling you what to do. That's Regina's job. But I stand by what I said. I don't think he's what's best for you."
Henry is silent. Emma sighs.
"Could you at least...think about it?" Emma finally pleads, seeing she's not really getting anywhere.
"Okay. I'll think about it."
Knowing that's the best she's going to get, Emma leaves and closes the door, leaving Henry to "think about it".
"How'd it go?" Regina asks when Emma reaches the bottom of the stairs.
"About as well as I expected," Emma says. "He's one stubborn kid."
"Tell me about it."
A moment of silence, then Emma says, "Well, I'd better be going. Uh...see you around?"
Regina just nods, and Emma heads back to her shared apartment.
When she gets there, she is bombarded with questions. "Did you find out what was happening? Why were the Lost Boys coming out of Regina's house? Was Henry there? Is he okay?" Mary Margaret finally stops talking enough to wait for Emma to answer her questions.
"Henry invited them over. They trashed the place. Regina kicked them out. Me and her tried to convince Henry to stay away from Pan, but it didn't go over so well."
"Why? Henry should know how evil Pan is. I don't understand."
"I've been trying to figure it out myself." Emma sits down. "This is what I've got so far: Henry's the truest believer, right? It's, like, his job to believe in things. And people. So here's this boy, who's 100% evil, worse than Regina. And Henry thinks it's his job to get Pan to be good. To…I don't know, fix him."
"And that's it?"
"Well…no. I also think there's the whole kiss thing. Like, Henry spends so much time trying to find everyone's happy endings, and now he thinks Pan is his. And honestly…feelings. Henry feels something for Pan, and Pan obviously feels something for Henry, or else he wouldn't have kissed him, and the kiss wouldn't have worked."
Throughout Emma's whole speech, Mary Margaret's eyes had gotten watery, and now tears spill free. "I don't want that demon to be Henry's true love," she whispers.
"I know."
As the night grows older, everyone tries to forget about Pan and his Lost Boys roaming free, and eventually they all drift off to sleep. All except one.
Henry is wide awake and sitting on his bed, staring at the clock. 11:57. Only three minutes to go.
Henry replays Pan's whispered words over and over, the shiver going through his spine as real as when Pan first said them. "Be at your window at midnight if you want to join the fun."
And when the clock finally hits midnight, that's exactly where he is. And there's Pan, waiting below. He raises his hand, and the window opens. Henry feels an odd sensation as he's lifted from his room and lowered onto the ground. He lands a bit unsteadily, stumbling slightly but managing to right himself. Pan puts a steadying hand on his shoulder.
"All right there, Henry?" Pan asks, genuinely concerned.
Henry nods, and Pan grins. "Good. Now…let's play."
