The Lost Boy's Revenge
Chapter 10
Flashback: A few days after Devin was kicked out of Storybrooke, a social worker found him. He sat miserably in her office, while she looked for a foster home to place him in.
"What's your last name, Devin?" she asked him.
"…Samuels," he said.
The social worker looked puzzled when she typed his name in the computer system. "Devin Samuels is dead. He disappeared back in 1974. He'd be in his 80s." She showed him on the computer screen. "What's your real name?"
"I told you. I am Devin Samuels. It's a common name." he said.
She typed away on her computer for a few more minutes before speaking again. "Devin, I've just found a home for you. We should leave right away since it's a bit of a drive from her in Maine."
"Where is it?" Devin asked.
"New York."
"I did make it to Times Square," Killian said to Nora as they walked away from the loft, in present day Storybrooke. "Huge place. Too many people. But I did meet a coworker of Emma's that told me where she lived."
Nora stopped sobbing for a moment to look up at him. "So I did help you out?"
"Yeah." He said. "And now here we are. In Storybrooke."
Nora walked along quietly for a few steps. "Why are you talking to me? I mean, why aren't you asking me why I ran out of the loft?"
Killian tilted his head. "It's clear you're upset. I've found that it's better to talk about it than to run off and do something foolish."
"You're not gonna want anything to also with me once you know," Nora said.
He nodded and replied, "You helped me once. I'll extend the same curtesy to you."
Nora let it a calm sigh and explained herself to Captain Hook.
After giving her side of the story (leaving out the part about the ingredients for the spell) at the docs, Killian let her stay at the docs for a place to sleep after she asked him.
"I don't want to go back to Granny's yet. I feel they'll ambush me there..." Nora said. She sat at one of the tables at the docs, across from Killian. "Could I stay here?"
Killian looked around the place. "It's a public place. If they don't have a problem with me here, they shouldn't have a problem with you."
"Thanks," Nora said.
"No thanks needed. I'm not doing anything here." He said.
Nora lied down on the bench and used her jacket to cover herself. She looked up at the stars and hoped things would work out.
Flashback: Devin looked down at his bowl of cereal, awfully displeased.
"Look," his foster mom said, "I don't know why you ate at you last home, but here, we have cereal. Eat. Don't eat. We're leaving in 5 minutes."
Devin took a bite and made a grossed out expression.
He was dropped off at his new school alone. Devin looked around the school. Ugh. I haven't been to school in...decades. Never thought I would find myself back here.
He trudged his feet as he walked to his classes. Pre-algebra, Science, English, and PE.
During lunch he bumped into a girl.
"Excuse you," She said.
Devin turned back. "Sorry." He shrugged. He was about to walk off when he looked back at the girl. She was wearing a shirt that said, "Second Star to the Right," with four children flying. "Is that...?"
"Peter Pan," the girl said. "It's my favorite movie." She took a step closer to him. "I'm Nora."
"Devin." He said. "Don't come across my Pan fans these days."
"That's ridiculous," Nora said. "Peter Pan is so popular. There's so many remakes, a Broadway play, a biography, a play based on the biography..."
Devin stared at her. Boy, I've missed a lot since I was in Neverland. "I haven't seen any of those."
"Well luckily you're in New York," Nora said. "It's the perfect place to see the Broadway shows. I go like every weekend. There's so many shows."
Devin smiled at her.
"What?" Nora asked.
"Nothing. You're just... You made my day."
Nora gave a half smile. "Well okay. You're welcome." She walked passed him.
On the car ride home with his foster mom, Devin noticed Nora outside, walking into a familiar apartment. Devin sat up and his eyes widened.
"What's with you?" His foster mom asked.
"Uh, Nothing." He said. "I just know someone who lives in the building."
"Oh. Is it that girl?" She gestured to her.
"Actually it's someone else..." he said. Neal.
Meanwhile, Nora knocked on the door of Neal's apartment. No one answered.
Saturday morning, in present day Storybrooke, Nora woke up from the bench slowly. Killian was still on his bench, sleeping. Nora gathered her jacket and phone and quickly took off.
Realizing she probably looked hungover, Nora tried to stay out of sight of the residents. She quickly walked, head ducked, across town to her room. Along the way, she noticed another man inside the pawnshop. Nora stopped and peeked inside for a moment. It was Will Scarlett! Of course, Nora didn't know that.
Nora's phone buzzed and she ducked under the pawnshop window to check it.
Paige: Henry told me what you did. In case it wasn't obvious, the sleepover is cancelled.
Nora sighed and covered her mouth. I've ruined everything... with everyone...
Nora's attempt to avoid the diner on her way to the bed and breakfast was a fail. Henry came running out of the diner as she walked along the side of it, by the fence.
"You!" Henry said. "Nora I need to talk to you."
"I need to talk to you too," she said calmly.
He walked up to her. The white picket fence outside the diner separated them. "You lied about everything."
"I know." She said.
"You played me. You used me! All for what? So you and your real boyfriend-"
"-He's not-" she tried to say.
"-could worm your way into our town and brings back a villain!?"
Nora looked at him confused. "What villain?"
"Pan!" He shouted.
The dwarves were all eating outside and eavesdropping on their conversation. Emma stood in the doorway of the diner, watching them.
"What are you talking about!?" Nora shot back. "He's not the villain! He..." she started to piece it together. Hook was nice to her. He forgave her. He understood. Hook can't be the villain. Pan...kidnapped Henry. The Lost boy's-Pan used them.
"He was. He destroyed this town. My family was sent back to the Enchanted Forest. I was sent to New York with my mom with no memories of magic. We never would have been separated if it weren't for Pan." Henry explained. "As for you buddy, Devin, he was kicked out of town because he-"
Nora's face filled with regret. "I didn't know. Henry, you have to understand that he the first person who showed me magic. I believed everything he told me."
"Funny," Henry said. He took a step back. "I thought I was the first person to show you magic." He started to walk away.
"Henry," Nora called. "Henry please." She huffed. "I'm not done talking to you."
He quickly turned back to her. "You betrayed me. You betrayed my friends. My family. I don't want to hear anything else you have to say. I don't want you here. No one does. You should just leave now before my mom finds a reason to arrest you." He walked back into the diner.
Nora avoided eyes contact with anyone as she ran back up to her room in the bed and breakfast. She slammed the door behind her and sobbed, sliding down against the door.
A few seconds later, there was a knock at the door. Nora wiped her eyes and got up. She quickly answered the door. "Oh. It's you."
Granny Lucas stood outside her room. "Yes. I've just been reminded of our rules here. We have a no convicts or fugitives policy."
"So now I'm a fugitive?" Nora asked.
"I'm afraid I have to ask you to leave." She said.
"You do realize this isn't a real town. It's a fairy tale town. You don't have to follow those rules." Nora said, annoyed.
"You May grab your things but I need your key." Granny said.
Nora handed her the key and closed the door.
"I'll be back in 20 minutes," she said through the door.
Nora started to pack her bag, frustrated and sorrowful. She combed her hair and changed her outfit into jeans and a blouse. As she folded her new dress she was reminded of the events of the previous night. That horrible moment when they all turned on her in the loft. Their faces. Henry's face. Nora threw her dress across the room.
Flashback: The next day, Devin found Nora in the cafeteria wearing an Ariel shirt and reading Isle of the Lost. He chuckled and sat down across from her.
After school, Nora went up to Neal's apartment again. No answer. Nora huffed and pulled a paper clip from her backpack. She unfolded it and inserted the paper clip into the key hole. Click.
Nora opened the door and entered his apartment. "Neal?" She peeked around the corner. No one was there. She checked the fridge. The milk was expired. She closed the fridge and said, "Where are you?"
A few weeks later, Nora invited Devin to see a Broadway show with her. They went to see Matilda the Musical and walked to her apartment together. Nora wore a Beauty and Beast tank.
"I would so cool to have powers like Matilda," Nora said.
"Yeah," Devin said. "I notice you like a lot of fantasy shows."
"Fantasy is so much better than reality." Nora said. "Magic would make our lives so much easier and better. And cool."
Devin chuckled.
"Did you like the show?"
"It was very enlightening."
"Oh, we're using big words now, are we?" She teased.
He laughed.
Nora and Devin hung out in the living room of her parent's apartment.
"You sure your parents won't mind?" Devin asked. "Me being here?"
"Yeah. They're not home. They took my little brother to the park." Nora said. She walked into the kitchen.
"Nora?" Devin said.
"Yeah?" Nora asked. She opened pantry and grabbed some snacks.
"There's something I want to tell you." He said. He sat on the couch.
"Okay." She said. She walked over with chips and cookies. "What's up?"
Devin took a deep breath. "Magic is real."
Nora tilted her head. "What do you mean?"
"Magic. You know, flying, casting spells, other worlds. Your favorite characters. Disney characters. They're all real. And some other fairytales-"
"You mean like... you're saying they feel real because of how they impact us-"Nora tried.
"No it's all real. Snow White. Peter Pan. Ariel." He looked at her shirt. "Belle and the beast."
"Devin what are you doing?" Nora said.
"I'm telling you the truth."
"Magic is it real. I mean there's a magic of live theater but that's figurative. And some magicians really make me wonder but-"
"I can prove it." Devin said. He unzipped his backpack and took out a snow globe.
"You has a glass snow globe in your backpack?" Nora said.
"Shh." He said. He shook it and had Nora hold it. "Look. Really look. Have an open mind."
"Okay?" Nora said. She watched as the empty snow globe changed to dragon flying around the globe. "Woah."
"What did you see?" He said.
"A dragon just showed up. Is it an illusion?" Nora said.
"It's different for each person, who can see it. For me, I see Neverland." Devin said. "It's magic Nora."
She looked at him doubtfully. "I wish it was. We aren't fortunate enough to live in a world with magic."
"But we do. It's just all concealed in a small town in Maine."
Nora giggled, "What?"
"It's a long story."
Nora nodded, "I don't mind."
Devin would spend over an hour sharing the story of Storybrooke, the people, and Neverland.
"And one of these characters is much closer than you think." Devin said. "The son of Rumplestiltskin lives in this apartment building. Or he did, before moving to Storybrooke. He goes by Neal in this world."
"Neal!?" Nora said. "Neal Cassidy?"
"Uh huh," he said.
"No way." Nora said. "Wait, he moved!?"
"It's a complicated story." Devin said.
"I think you'll find I'm able to keep up." Nora said.
"Oh I've noticed," Devin said. She smiled back at him and he suddenly leaned forward to kiss her. She kissed him back.
In the present, Nora finished packing, including the two ingredients she had already gathered. She began her walk to the town's bus station when she passed by Grace's house. She knew it was her house since Grace was in the window. Nora and Grace made eye contact. A few seconds later, Grace left the window. Nora started to walked passed the house when Grace came running out.
"Paige-I mean Grace," Nora said. "Look I'm really not in the mood for another lecture. I got enough of that from Henry. And I already got your text about the sleepover."
"Would you be quiet for a moment so I can speak?" Grace asked. "I wanted to ask you something."
Nora shuffled her feet. "Okay."
"Why did you do it? Why did you lie to us?" Grace asked.
Nora took a moment. "It's a really long story. But I'm starting to think I've been listening to the wrong person."
"Was it all fake?" Grace asked. "Was any of it real? You hanging out with us?"
"The plan was never about making friends," Nora said. "I didn't have to audition for the play or study with you guys. But I wanted to."
Grace nodded, "Okay." She didn't sound convinced.
Nora looked at Grace. "You don't believe me?"
"I don't know what to believe," Grace said. "I thought you were the coolest person. The perfect stranger to Storybrooke. Turns out you were no better than Greg and Tamara." Grace backed up and went into her house/mansion.
Flashback: The next time Nora and Devin hung out in private, he brought photos of Storybrooke residents with their true names written on them. More information was on the back of the card.
"This is Neal's father?" Nora said, holding up a photo.
"I know. Not much a resemblance." Devin said.
"And this is Neal's son. I didn't even know he had a son." Nora said.
"Henry Mills." Devin said, annoyed.
"You don't like him?"
"Everyone thinks he's so special. He's not."
"Well okay then," Nora said. She scanned the photos. "Cinderella. Snow White. Even red riding hood... Robin Hood," she giggled. "The seven dwarves... it's crazy. But in a good way."
Devin just smiled at her.
"Sometimes I wonder what goes on in that head of yours," Nora said. She sat up. "You've told me all about your magical times spent in Neverland and these people who threw you out of town - people who kidnapped you, taking you away from Neverland..."
"All true," Devin said. "I never wanted to leave Neverland. They were going to kill Pan. They turned Tinkerbell against him. Everyone took Hook's side. Everyone wanted to protect that Henry kid."
"I want to know more about your life before Neverland." Nora said.
"Why? It's boring. It's not magical."
"I don't care." Nora said. She took his hand. "I want to know. I want to know all parts of your story."
"Oooh," Noah said, standing in the doorway. "You have a boy in your room."
"Yeah, you," Devin said, sternly. He pulled away from Nora. "Get out of here!"
"Devin," Nora said to him. "Don't talk to my brother like that."
Devin rolled his eyes gathered his photos. "Fine. I'll just leave."
"Devin wait," Nora said. "Just calm down and apol-"
"Bye." He said abruptly and quickly left the apartment.
"I don't like him," Noah said.
Nora sighed, alone in her room, with no magic.
Nora sat at the Storybrooke bus stop with her suitcase. About five mutes later, Pete came by.
"Hey Nora," he said.
"Hey?" She said.
"Yesterday you mentioned helping me say goodbye to Eliot. Are you still up for that?" Pete asked.
"Yes..." She said.
"What's wrong?" Pete asked.
"Didn't you hear?" She asked.
"That you knew the whole time? Yeah." Pete said. "But I still need your help."
Nora stood up. "Why me? Why not Henry or Gretel it the others?"
"Because you were the first to believe me. The first to get me to talk about it. And you weren't afraid of Eliot." Pete said.
Nora couldn't hide her smile as they walked side by side into the forest. She left her suitcase at the bus stop.
Nora and Pete found Eliot near the cave from before. Pete approaches him and touched his head. "What a mess you've made Eliot." Pete said. "This town isn't made for magical creatures. They have magic here to banish and hurt you. In this world, dragons are common. You need to go to a place where you will be a once in a lifetime sight."
Eliot nudged Pete and whined.
"Eliot, you can't stay here. The people here mean to hurt you. You need to find someone else who needs you." Pete continued.
Eliot whined more.
"I don't need you anymore," Pete said. "You've done all you can for me here. You need to find another child to help." Pete said.
A tear fell down Eliot's face and made a puddle on the floor.
Nora covered her mouth. She stepped forward. "Eliot."
He looked at her.
"I'm glad I met you," Nora said.
Pete took Nora's hand. "I'm glad I met you too Eliot. I will miss you. But it's time for us to move on."
Eliot bowed his head to them before turning around and flying off. Pete and Nora followed him all the way to the town line. Eliot soared through the town line, still visible from the outside.
"He's okay?" Nora said. "But that's a land without magic."
"No," Pete said. "There is magic, just very scarce. He'll be okay." He loosed over to Nora. "Thank you for your help."
"No problem." She said. "I'm glad I could do some good here."
Flashback: Devin reluctantly walked up to Nora during lunch. Right as placed his tray on the table, Nora spoke. "You sure you want to sit there?"
"I shouldn't have been mean to your little brother." Devin started.
Nora glanced at him and back to her book.
He sat down and began his story. "My mom died when I was 5. Even since, my dad... Lost his mind. He drank. He hit. He left."
Nora put her book down. "I'm so sorry. That's awful."
"Yeah. That's why I don't talk about it. Life before Neverland was awful."
"And how's your life after Neverland?" Nora asked.
Devin shook his head, but smiled. "After one beating, I ran out the front door as fast and as far as I could. I ran to a park. That's when Pan's shadow appeared. And he took me to Neverland."
Nora reached across the table and held his hand. "Thank you for telling me."
After lunch, they walked out of the cafeteria holding hands.
That night, Devin had a dream about Neverland. He was at the camp with the other lost boy's playing around. Suddenly Pan was in front of him.
"Bad news. Henry's family is here. And they have magic." Pan said.
"Yeah, but we can take them down." Devin said.
"They have the power to make you do something against your will. Tell them anything they want to know." Pan pulled a small round mirror from his pocket that was cracked. "Even give a message to Henry."
Devin backed up. "Hey, I have no control over that."
"I know. But it shows how powerful they are. And I want to know that if they somehow win, it's not over for us." Pan said.
"What did you have in mind?" Devin asked.
Pan quickly pricked Devin's stomach with a stick.
"Ouch!" Devin said. He looked at what poked him. It was a thumb tack with a black substance on it. "What that dreamshade!?"
"Yes," Pan said. "Slow acting. Will take over a year to be fatal. Plenty of time to resurrect me, should I ever die."
"What the Hell Pan!?" Devin said.
"Oh don't worry," Pan said. "The poison won't actually effect you...unless I die."
Devin gasped and woke up in his foster home. He turned on the lamp in his room and lifted up his shirt. There was a black dot on his stomach with black lines about an inch long coming from it. The curse has been ignited.
Nora returns to the bus stop that afternoon in Storybrooke. She dialed her home phone number. No one answered so she left a voicemail. "Hey guys. Hey Noah. Uh, I have some good news. I'm coming home a day early-"
"Oh really?" Said Devin's voice.
Nora's face sank.
"Our mission isn't done. We don't have all the ingredients. You have not cast the spell. You are not done in Storybrooke." Devin said.
"They know the truth. I failed." Nora said.
"Not necessarily." Devin said. "I need you to get those ingredients, cast the spell, and bring back Pan by tomorrow. Time is running out! I need you to do this. It's a matter of life and death!"
Dread filled her face. "Devin where is my family?" Nora asked.
"They're tied up. They won't be harmed so long as you carry out our plan." Devin said.