A/N: Ooh more followers for this story I see. That makes me so happy. :D Thanks so much to LyrisaLove and lilyaudet for reviewing, you guys are the best.

Hook had taken a moment to isolate himself from the group, hoping this time he wouldn't be interrupted by any... people. He found that taking some distance from the emotional rollercoaster they all seemed to be on and having a fine drink was good for the soul.

Soon, with the alcohol taking effect, his mind started to wander. He knew the reason why he had gone back to this godforsaken land and yet, at times he truly didn't. Neverland was a place one shouldn't want to visit willingly. Unless you're a lost kid with nowhere else to go, nothing left to lose.

The reason had been Emma and her son; he couldn't bear leaving yet another innocent boy behind to fend for himself against Pan like he had Baelfire. However, with each passing day that reason became a little less significant, because now here he was, facing his worst mistakes and his deepest fears on an island that cost him his brother.

It puzzled him how the non-magical realm could have had this place pegged so utterly wrong. He'd heard the gist of the tale from Emma. Peter Pan, a happy little fellow who could fly and had jolly adventures with mermaids and fairies. The boy who was forever antagonized by the ruthless Captain Hook. More like the other way around, he scoffed to himself while taking another swig of rum. He wondered briefly how this writer even knew of Neverland and its inhabitants.

Just as he was getting a good buzz going, he heard leaves rustling. His stomach dropped and he groaned inwardly. He really didn't want to deal with Pan and his mind games right now. However, the person who emerged from the trees was certainly anyone but an obnoxious boy with an attitude problem. It was Tinkerbell. He quirked an eyebrow when he laid eyes on her.

"You were expecting someone else?" she gave him a cheeky smile. "Mind if I join you?"

Hook extended his arm to indicate she could take a seat beside him. He never minded the fairy's company. She was pretty much the only person in all the realms whose presence he could tolerate at the most inconvenient of times. She had this curious ability of seeing right through him and his wall of charm he often hid behind. Not many understood that it was merely a front. He had never been able to fool her though.

Tinkerbell looked at him for a while, her eyes fell on the bottle in his hand. "What's on your mind?"

"Just wondering what the bloody hell I was thinking coming back here," he answered with a great big sigh.

"Ah and here I thought you came all this way to see little old me."

He grinned at her, "Of course not my dear, I came to see Pan. I just missed that sunny disposition of his so much."

"Well I'm sure he feels the same," Tinkerbell chuckled and took the flask from his hand to help herself to the strong liquor Hook had introduced her to many years ago. They sat in silence for a short while until Snow came to fetch them.

As he walked a pace behind Tinkerbell, Hook pondered whether or not he'd make it out alive this time. He had learned that escaping Neverland is nothing short of a miracle. Still he went back. Once you have the opportunity to leave Neverland, it's wise to never return. Little did he know, two other individuals on the island had come to the exact same conclusion.

Why? Why on earth had she insisted on trying out her new set of legs? Why did she not jump back into the water the second her task was completed? Why hadn't she run when she had the chance?

All these questions ran through Ariel's mind as she was being dragged to the boys' campsite. Her fin scraped the ground painfully through the net they were carrying her in. She tried to grip the net with her hands to alleviate some of the stress on her lower body, but her arms became tired quickly and it didn't lessen her pain much.

Finally they came to a halt. The boys dropped the net and Ariel hit the dirt hard. She rolled on her back and stared at the sky above her. She drowned out any noise in her immediate surroundings. When she shut out the boys' talking she heard something on the wind. It vaguely resembled a girl. A girl who was screaming. Ariel narrowed her eyes in concentration. Was she imagining it, or was it really there? Before she could determine which answer it was, she felt hands tugging on the net. She focused her view on the boys; they had knives. She saw that the knives were cutting the ropes instead of her and felt some sense of relief even though she couldn't go anywhere on land with her fin. Bound or free, it mattered very little.

Hands were once more around her arms. This time dragging her towards a tree that had ropes tied around it. The ends of it were fastened to her wrists, while her fin got to rest in a small and shallow pool of water just to the side of the large tree, not nearly enough to cover her whole fin, but maybe half. It wasn't much, but she did feel more comfortable. The water eased her dried scales somewhat. She twisted her lower body just to cover the top of her fin with some water as well. With a sigh of relief she rolled back into a sitting position.

Ariel had been so preoccupied with the water that she hadn't noticed someone staring at her. So when she finally took some time to look around her, she gasped in surprise when she saw a tall blond boy observing her. It was the same boy who had stood next to Peter at the beach. The one who hadn't backed away from her. His stare was so icy, a chill ran over her arms and down her back. Fearing he might take it as an invitation to speak to her or to come closer to her she stopped staring back at him. Instead she focused her gaze on a group of younger kids who were standing just a few feet away.

Felix continued to stare her down. If one had been able to see inside his mind, they would be emotionally scarred for life. Various scenarios of the redhead's end formed in his head. He snapped out of it when he felt someone tap him on the shoulder. Pan needed to see him. It regarded that other intruder, who he hated almost as much as the mermaid. He hoped that whatever Pan needed him for wouldn't take up all his time. The fish tied to the tree was not rid of him. Not by a long shot. He moved from his spot towards the place where the girl was kept in a cage.

What he walked in on made him smile. A mess of white laced fabric and blond curls was lying motionlessly on the hard soil. Right next to Pan's feet, who was staring down disdainfully at the little heap of girl.

"Felix, please, see to it that this," his eyes still on Wendy, "gets back to where it belongs. Then meet me back at camp. Our little mermaid is going to give us some answers."

Taking his anger out on Wendy had lifted his spirits a great deal. Peter smiled to himself as he recalled the image of her looking up at him with those big brown eyes of hers, eyes he had soon given another color entirely, begging for her life. Stupid girl, of course he'd let her live, what fun would it be if he killed her? Then he'd have to find himself a new toy to play with. Although, he might already have one waiting for him. He didn't even have to go through much trouble to acquire it, it just swam right into his net.

His eyes lit up as soon as he saw her. She looked positively uncomfortable, not to mention slightly weary. He wondered what exactly this girl had brought back for his useless son from that sleepy old cursed town. Had she already delivered it? Or had he hindered the exchange just in time? He couldn't wait to find out so he stalked towards her.

He had learned from 'spending time' with Wendy, that girls were easily influenced by charm. He'd used it on more than one occasion with her if had wanted something done quickly. But this was no ordinary girl, this was a mermaid. They were different. They were cold-blooded harpies without hearts. An alternative approach would have to suffice here. One he was all too eager to try.

Ariel, who had been left all by herself, tied up for quite a few hours, noticed out of the corner of her eye, someone approaching her. It was the leader of these boys. Peter Pan. Having had nothing but time to think about all that had occurred since this morning, she remembered seeing him before. Always from a distance though. As much as she liked humans and wanted to be near them and be like them, she had had a bad feeling about this particular human being from the moment she laid eyes on him. His darkness was what had kept her at bay.

After the Queen had taken her voice, she moved away to the farthest realm she could find. None of the other mermaids had wanted anything to do with her anymore; falling in love with humans, saving them, losing her most precious gift as a mermaid. They had all turned their backs on her. Ariel had never felt more alone. When she got to this land, the fairies who resided here had told her about Peter Pan and how he dealt with people who stood in his way. During her time in Neverland she had continually managed to avoid him. Until today.

Peter came to a standstill right beside her. He lowered himself to her level and studied her for a brief moment before speaking. She had been quite tenacious about resisting cooperation so far. Let's see how long she could keep that up. "You know, I will make you talk," he paused to let his words sink in. "So why not make it easy on yourself and start by giving me your name," he demanded, intent on getting to the core of things without further delay.

She didn't answer. Whether she was too tired or too stubborn to do so, he couldn't tell.

"Are you going to be difficult? Because I have a lot more questions for you and well... the more you stay silent, the more I'm going to have to hurt you. So please, do yourself a favour," he shot her a look, "your name."

She looked down where his eyes couldn't reach hers. "It's Ariel."

"Very good. Now you are going to tell me all about your little mission to Storybrooke and maybe I'll let you live."

Her heart skipped a beat at hearing him speak so casually about her existence. She had gone without her voice for so long, she thought it wouldn't be all that challenging to stay quiet now, however, it proved to be more difficult than she had anticipated.

"Last chance Ariel."

She was on the verge of speaking, yet upon seeing the tall boy who had been staring at her from the start entering the camp, she froze. Pan looked over his shoulder to see what had her so frightened. Noticing that it was Felix, a wolfish grin formed on his lips. So she feared him did she? This was too perfect.

"Alright then, I guess we'll have to do this the hard way," he said, standing up abruptly.

"Felix..."

The boy's face lit up. This was his favorite part. He retrieved a small dagger that fit perfectly into his hand. Felix seemed to be admiring the weapon, before his eyes travelled over to where Ariel was.

Trapped.

Completely at his mercy.