Chapter Eight: Breath of Life
Emma slammed into the water shins first, after quickly bending her legs while in the air. The pain was intense, and she struggled to surface with her numb legs and loose shirt slowing down her arms. Gasping for air and choking slightly on the salty water, the blond glanced around her. Everything was so dark, the moon was on the other side of the island so she only had a small slit of light with which to see.
Bile rose in her throat as she thought about what could possibly be lurking in the black waters she was stranded in, and she decided treading water absently was not going to help. Especially since the waves were trying to smash her against the cliff, a death possibly more drawn out and painful than simply drowning.
Kicking off her boots under the water (and internally wishing she didn't have to), Emma began swim. Eventually this cliff had to end, right? And it wasn't like she really had anywhere else to go. Staying in one position was not going to help, especially since she could hear Skipper's shouts at the cliff's edge.
She didn't need some creepy zombies jumping in the water after her, thanks. Moving as quickly as she could, Emma's already loose trousers began to slip. Deciding she didn't have time or energy to bother keeping them on, she pulled them off. While I'm at it... She also pulled off her shirt, hoping this wasn't a big mistake. It freed up her limbs significantly but it didn't take away from the fact that she was a poor swimmer. She also felt colder, with only her bra and underwear to keep her warm. But now she could move.
Staying near the cliff's edge, Emma moved in the direction she assumed the captive boys had escaped in. Within minutes she became tired, as her limbs grew achy and slow. Last she'd checked the moon had been very low in the sky, hopefully that meant-
She looked to the horizon, her heart warming at the dim glow that was beginning to grow upon it. Soon she would be able to see. Sure, she had absolutely no idea where she was going, but at least now she'd be able to find land.
Flipping onto her back, Emma decided conserving her strength until the sun came up was best. She spread her arms out and lay atop the water, rocking with the waves. It wasn't exactly relaxing, as her back felt horrifically exposed, and she knew that sunrise would also increase Peter Pan's chances of finding her.
Within minutes half the sky had lightened, and Emma was so glad for the time she'd escaped. She couldn't imagine spending the entire night in the dark waters of the Neverland ocean.
Turning over once more, Emma continued to move along the cliff's edge. True to her guess, it slowly began to slope downwards. But her limbs were truly sore, and her pace grew slower and slower until she could hardly move. I can't keep doing this. She thought frantically, knowing she honestly had no solution. Going near the rocks was risky, not only could she cut herself but the waves would slam her against them, which was not worth it.
Something stroked the bottom of her foot, and Emma screamed, feeling a sudden case of deja vu. "No, no, no!" She squealed, adrenaline giving her a burst of energy forwards. As the sky brightened, the water began to clear slightly around her (it was always crystal clear), though the glare from the sky made it hard to see much. But she distinctly saw a dark shape flash beside her, and she thought she was going to be sick.
She was exhausted, there was no way she could keep moving at this pace- nor could she out-swim this creature even at full strength. Stopping, Emma hoped that possibly remaining still would aid her. Suddenly, something from below her gripped her armpits, and thrust her higher above the surface.
A youthful, gorgeous girl popped her face out of the water, and smiled. She held Emma up, and the blond could feel a giant tail slowly tapping against her legs in an effort to keep them up. "Are you tired?" The mermaid asked, her long red hair pooling around her neck and shoulders, swirling like tentacles.
"I- uh, yes." Emma responded slowly, suspicious but slightly grateful for the mermaid propping her up.
The mermaid seemed rather fascinated with her hair, however, than anything else. "Your hair looks so soft- do you use a dinglehopper?"
Emma squinted her eyes in confusion, "A what?" Wait, no- this is not important! She thought, with a frown. "Are you... you're not going to drown me... right?" At this point, bluntness seemed the best course of action, since she really didn't have the energy to beat around the bush.
The mermaid's lips created a perfect 'o' shape and her already wide eyes became wider with surprise. "Oh no- of course not! I'm not... I don't do that." She bit her lip, "I think we need to get you out of here." She suddenly pulled Emma underwater, wrapping her hands around Emma's mouth and nose. Don't exhale. The mermaid's voice echoed in Emma's head, as the blond tried not to die.
The mermaid was looking up at the surface, where a black figure flew past in the air. Just a little longer, I promise. The mermaid sounded frightened, and finally, as Emma was convinced she was about to pass out, pulled her out of the water. Emma gulped at the air, and the mermaid held her for support. "Peter is looking for you. We need to go."
"I don't think I can swim anymore." Emma gasped, and the mermaid's mouth made a delicate frown.
"I know, don't worry." The mermaid pulled on a chain around her neck, and procured a small bottle of a strange green powder. "I..." She blushed, "I stole this from the Sea Witch. I know I shouldn't have but... I thought it might come in handy." She uncorked the tiny bottle, and poured the contents on her palm. The powder remained dry, and she quickly blew it in Emma's face.
There was a burning sensation under her ears, and Emma felt that she was suffocating. The mermaid ditched the glass bottle, and pulled Emma underwater. Breathe. Terrified of inhaling water, Emma shook her head. Do it! You have gills now!
The mermaid touched the skin under Emma's ears, where the blond realized she was right. Slowly, she breathed in. Water flowed into her lungs seamlessly, causing her eyes to widen with surprise. The mermaid, whose red hair fanned out around her head like a lion's mane, smiled. Why are you doing this? Emma thought, wondering if her thoughts were also telepathic.
I like humans. I've always wanted to be human. These words set off something in Emma's mind, a familiarity... but she couldn't quite place it.
What's your name?
Ariel, what's yours?
Emma.
Ariel took her hand, and pulled her in the direction the shadow had disappeared to. I'm going to take you to Tiger Lily. She'll keep you safe.
Emma tried to stop her, No! I was with Killian- uh, he was keeping me safe. And to be perfectly honest, she sort of trusted him. Especially now that she knew why he was trying to keep her away from Skipper and Peter Pan.
The mermaid frowned, I'm taking you to Tiger Lily. She quickly swum around Emma and gripped her with both arms under her armpits, wrapping her arms near Emma's sternum. Without warning she bolted off, with water rushing around her and into her face, her human passenger wondered how a mermaid could adapt to moving in this manner. Despite the speed and seemingly distracting act of moving, Ariel managed to keep the conversation going. While I think Killian means well, he only has his own interests at heart.
What do you mean? Emma asked, secretly believing what Ariel said was true. He did have an agenda, but it was largely unclear what that agenda was. Ariel slowed down, and Emma looked down below them at the reef that stretched several feet below them. A shark lazily moved below them, sending a chill down the blond's spine, but clearly that was not what was bothering Ariel as her body seemed to be tilting them upwards as she came to a stop. Ariel... there's a shark.
Harmless. The redhead responded off-handily, and Emma tried not to scoff. A shark harmless? Though, as it moved slowly through the reef below them, Emma's anxiety ebbed. Something isn't right. Stay here.
Stay here- what do you- Ariel detached from Emma and quickly swam to the surface, leaving Emma to float uneasily above the reef, staring down at the quickly retreating shark. She felt hopelessly vulnerable, in the middle of the ocean in her underwear. It was a miracle she hadn't lost any of her clothing, given how quickly Ariel swam.
Ariel was returning from the surface, and her delicate features were creased with concern. There's a storm coming. There are some canoes heading back to the Mohican's home, they seem to have some of Peter's boys with them... but none I recognize as Lost Boys.
I helped them escape- Peter had them captive! Emma thought her eyes wide, Who are the Mohicans- will they hurt them? Dread spread through her heart, but Ariel shook her head.
No, that's the name of Tiger Lily's tribe. They've been harboring any of Peter's captives for a long time.
How long has this been going on?
Ariel resumed her traveling position with Emma, and within minutes dark, pod-like shadows appeared on the top of the increasingly grey surface. Years, maybe. I miss old Peter, he used to be such a happy sea-cucumber. Emma wanted to ask what happened to him, but the water began to get choppy. They weren't close enough to the surface to really feel it, but as the canoes above them began to struggle, Ariel slowed down to keep pace with them.
Are they going to be ok? Emma asked, pointing to the canoes above them, trying to move through the growing waves.
Ariel didn't answer, but Emma could feel her arms tense. After several minutes, they drifted closer to the surface, and the waves were certainly strong enough where they were. There was some muffled shouting from above, and someone fell into the water. Within moments someone else had jumped in to rescue them and seemed to have succeeded, which is why Emma assumed Ariel hadn't moved.
However, a huge wave crashed down, quickly separating the canoe from the rescuer, who was plunged underwater. Before Emma even knew what was going on, Ariel was at their side, leaving Emma struggling in the growing current. Granted, Emma could breathe underwater, thus she was hardly at any kind of disadvantage. Attempting to go down deeper (where the water was calmer), she moved in the direction the canoes seemed to be going in.
She wished she was a stronger swimmer, then maybe she could be of some help. But she was struggling to move as it was and she knew she would be a hinderance if she were to go up above the surface. Nevertheless, she kept an eye on the surface, incase anyone else fell in.
Suddenly, the ground began to rise towards her, as the water got shallower and shallower. While exciting since that meant land was near, it also meant that she was more at the mercy of the waves. A surge of water, pulling her backwards and up, immediately brought Emma to the surface in one of the largest waves she'd ever seen. The wave crested and slammed her downwards and she rolled in the crashing water, thankful she could breathe underwater.
However, what she hadn't noticed was the disappearance of the canoes and Ariel. Had they landed? If so, where was the mermaid? Panic began to spread in Emma's heart, as she glanced about the dim, churning waters. Ariel? Her telepathic voice seemed faint against the chaos above the surface. Ariel! Moving in the direction of the shallower water, the surge of the waves caused Emma to slam against the ground, scraping up her knees and thighs.
Terrified as thin plumes of blood came off her cuts, Emma swatted at the water, hoping to dissipate the smell. The idea of sharks coming after her was not something she wanted to entertain. The water pushed her further and further away from where she last recalled seeing the canoes (granted, she honestly had no idea where that was), she knew she had to surface soon to see.
But see what? It wasn't like she was an expert on Neverland's geography! This entire time she'd been in Neverland, Emma had constantly been at the mercy of something other than herself. She was always lost and confused, and each time she tried to fix her problem, she ended up in a situation far worse than what she started with.
Fearing she would fall into a pit of despair and sink to the bottom of the sea, her heart leapt when she saw a black shadow on the surface. It was fatter and more round than the canoes, sort of like a rowboat. Taking her chances against the bucking water, Emma kicked and pulled at the water as fast as she could. Her breath came out as a large raspy gasp, and she felt a sharp pain where her gills were... or had been. Damn. She thought, knowing going back in the water was no longer an option.
The row boat was several feet away, and Emma tried to get to it as quickly as she could, especially as she was being sucked back into an oncoming wave. As she swam the fastest front crawl of her life, Emma caught a glimpse of the person attempting to row the boat. Dark, shoulder length hair plastered to their neck; strong arms; a distinctively male torso- was that Killian? No, she was seeing things. Approaching the side of the boat just as a wave tried to rip her from it, Emma reached her hand over the edge and gripped onto something in the boat. A (distinctively male) scream of surprise followed, as she pulled herself over the edge and inside.
She honestly didn't care who was piloting it, she needed to get out of the water. "Emma?" Blue eyes stared at her in shock, through stands of wet dark hair. Killian sat there, oars in the boat at his sides, with a bucket on his lap.
"Killian!" Emma could not have been more relieved. If it was one of the Lost Boys she would have started crying, she couldn't fight off a zombie. But as he dropped the bucket he was using (clearly to get rid of the water pooling in the hull) and moved over to give her a bone-crushing hug, she realized she might start crying all the same.
He pulled back slightly and looked her up and down, and raised an eyebrow, "Where are your clothes?"
If a giant wave hadn't nearly capsized the boat at that exact moment, Emma might have blushed. "Is that important right now?" She practically screeched over the gale of the wind.
He let go of her and grabbed the bucket as he moved back to his seat. "I'm not complaining, of course but-" He began to say with a shrug, but yet another wave silenced him.
As they tried to stabilize the boat, "How about asking me normal questions?" Emma couldn't believe his line of thought in the middle of a giant storm. "Like how did I appear out of the ocean? Where have I been? Or maybe I could ask you-"
"-Emma! Let's just get to shore. You can yell at me... when we are safely on land." He said, rapidly dumping water over the side. "Turn around, go as far forward as possible."
"To the tip of the boat?" Emma asked, turning and moving slowly towards the bucking bow.
"There is... a symbol. On the side, do you see it?" Emma looked around frantically, and stopped once she found a strange eight-pronged rune, with each prong greatly resembling a pitchfork. "Use your magic to make it work!"
Her green eyes widened, "I don't have magic!" She insisted, knowing that was technically false. She couldn't deny what happened in her encounter with Peter Pan.
Killian looked at her with exasperation, "Just do it!"
Emma slammed her hand against the rune, but nothing happened. Please work! She thought, as a huge wave began to build behind them. We need to get out of this storm. We will die! Trying to rationalize with an engraved rune was clearly not working, and she looked back at Killian who had gotten out his oars and was desperately trying to get them away form this mammoth wave. Her only thought at that moment was to save him, despite not knowing what he was even doing out here in the first place.
The boat lurched forwards suddenly, well against the current. Emma looked down at her hand, which seemed to be glued to the rune. Glowing in magenta on the back of her hand was the rune itself, and it seemed to be turning in a jerking, circular motion. Too fascinated to even be alarmed, Emma watched as it turned to the left and the boat did as well. "What is this thing?" She called out over the wind.
Killian, who had pulled his oars in, sat on the other end of the boat staring at her hand with a slight frown. "Vigvisir. Some kind of compass."
"Where did you learn about it?"
He hesitated, "It was already on the boat." The boat made another sharp turn, cutting Emma off from examining his expression. Within minutes they cut across the water, almost at the speed of a motorboat, jumping across the waves. It was fun (as evidenced by Killian's exclamations of glee) but mildly terrifying. The boat slammed against the sandy beach, knocking Emma out of the boat and Killian into the hull.
They both quickly recovered, and pulled the boat out as far onto the shore as they could from the raging waters. "Come on." Killian said, pulling off his soaked shirt and pulling it over Emma's head, "You're going to want this." Given its loose nature, the grey shirt came down just above her knees. Trying not to stare at her newly shirtless companion, Emma stifled a gasp as he grabbed her hand and proceeded to pull her into the woods.
The quickly found themselves on an incredibly well-trod path, which didn't even require shoes in the slightest. He then diverged off the path and under a huge tree, as the rain began to increase in ferocity and lightning flashed across the sky. "We shouldn't be outside." Emma said, as a loud clap of thunder echoed through the forest.
"We'll be fine." Killian said, pulling her with him under the low hanging branches. It was surprisingly dry, and for that, Emma couldn't complain. They stopped, the occasional rumble of thunder and roar of rain was nearly overwhelming. He turned to her, and the blond was taken aback by the seriousness of his expression. "What happened to you?" He glanced down at her cut up legs and winced. Pushing her hair back from her face he examined her visage, to the point where Emma felt like she was dealing with a preening monkey.
"Cut it out!" She said, pulling herself away. "I'm fine."
"Your legs-"
"Are fine." She looked at him, touched by his concern but also distinctly irritated by his decision that now was a good time to discuss. As they stood under a tree in the middle of the biggest storm Emma had ever encountered. "Peter Pan's shadow thing got me. Where were you?"
For the first time in their arguably short acquaintance, a slow and steady blush spread across his face and down to his neck. "Something knocked me out." Given his reaction, she was assuming he might have been in a rather compromised... situation. Squinting with mixed repulsion and disbelief, Emma found she really had nothing to respond with. "My turn: what did he do to you?"
Emma sighed, "Nothing. I woke up in a room, there were some fairies that I rescued. Then I met Peter Pan who- can I just say- is not what Peter Pan is supposed to be like!"
Killian scoffed, "Not really sure what you were expecting."
"The boy who never grew up! Playful, happy Peter Pan! Not this creepy, dark version that exists here." He opened his mouth to say something, but Emma cut him off. "My turn: what the hell were you doing out in the sea?"
"Coming to get you," He started, but thought better of it. "If I had known you'd rescue yourself I wouldn't have bothered." He paused as Emma made a face at him, "Please explain to me how and why you appeared out of the ocean alive and practically naked."
"It's a long story." Emma said, spotting two rocks near the foot of the tree. She motioned for him to sit, and over the thunder and rain, explained to him every single detail of what had happened. "And I'm not naked, stop being so dramatic. It's practically like I'm wearing a bathing suit." She concluded, hoping she'd answered everything he'd asked. However, she'd left out the one detail of Ariel's comment on Killian's motives. She wasn't sure how to approach it.
He didn't react after this, and merely sat there, clearly mulling over what she'd told him. Though, during her story, he did get rather fidgety around the mention of Davy Jones, and she could have sworn she'd heard him mutter 'impatient bastard' under his breath when she described the Jolly Roger's attack. "Who is Davy Jones?" She asked, as a retreating rumble of thunder went off overhead.
Killian bit his lower lip and looked out past Emma, "I'm sure you've noticed we have the same last name."
"Is he your father?" Emma asked slowly, a slight pang in her heart at the mention of having one.
He shook his head, "No, well... sort of, depends on your definition of father." He waved his hands about, "It's complicated. Now isn't the time for it." He looked directly behind Emma, something she noticed he'd been doing a lot these past few minutes. "You can come out now." He muttered, standing up and pushing his wet hair back.
A beautiful young woman stepped out of the branches (Emma wondered how she hadn't noticed her), with the same cheekbones and gorgeous dark eyes as the sketches in Milah's cabin. "Killian." She addressed him with utter disdain.
"Tiger Lily." He said, making a face at her.
She rolled her eyes and turned to Emma, a piercing look that took all of the blond's resolve not to turn away. "The Savior." A small twitch of a smile appeared on Tiger Lily's face, she hooked her arm around Emma's. "Come. Let's get you some food and blankets." Pulling Emma along with her, Tiger Lily looked backwards. "You can stay here." She said to Killian with a smirk, and proceeded to steer Emma out of the tree's low branches and onto the path they'd previously been on.
"Funny." Emma heard Killian mutter sarcastically, as he followed them.
I struggled so hard with this chapter. Ahhhhhh. *cries* But I really wanted Ariel in, and she will be back next chapter.
Also, I am aware that the traditional name of the tribe in the Peter Pan stories is not the Mohicans, but I had issues with the original name (a few google searches and you can probably figure out why). The 2003 movie called the tribe Mohicans, and I liked that. But more on that in chapters to come (don't want to bore you with my history major rants).
Killian is back. Ariel was introduced. A long conversation between Emma and Killian. Dramatic storm chapter. I feel like I covered a lot of ground.
