My hand shook as my balled fist beats against the door of Peter Pan's room. In my fist is the potion that Rumpelstiltskin provided me with. I was going to save Peter Pan, and I was going to do it without the heart of the truest believer. I don't wait to hear him respond, I simply open the door after a few seconds.
When I open the door I see him, his green eyes focusing on me as he sits on the edge of his bed. I stand in the doorway, my body trembling as I watch him.
"I got the potion." I whisper as a smirk moves to his face. His gaze looks a bit dangerous when I enter his room, closing the door behind me. He'd been waiting for some sort of magic to keep him alive and young. He didn't fail at anything, and this time wasn't any different. He licks his lips as cruel intent moves to his face.
"Oh do you my little Lily?" His voice comes out as a taunt, seeming to dare me to give him the potion. I nod as I force my fist to open, palm up, so I can reveal the potion in my hand. I walk up to him holding the potion out for him to take. He doesn't hesitate in taking it from me, his smirk growing. He takes the top off of the potion and smiles at the vile containing blue liquid. I'd never noticed the color of the potion before, I think I was too caught up in the fact that Rumple actually did this for him. His eyes focus on the liquid, before pressing the vile to his lips. He grins at me. "Bottoms up." He whispers before he drinks the potion.
It only takes him a few seconds to down the entire vial and when he's finished, he looks at me. A look of triumph moves to his face, he doesn't look any different, but I know better than to assume that looking normal means being normal. He carelessly tosses the glass vile to the ground, causing it to shatter across the cold cement floor.
"Thank you Tiger Lily..." He whispers, his voice a bit more dangerous sounding than normal. His whole body language seems to have changed. Suddenly he looked like a predator stalking its prey, I just didn't know that I was the prey. He reaches out to me, pulling my body in against his. "... Thank you so much for helping me."
Now that I was closer to him, I could see the difference the potion made. I hadn't even noticed before how pale he'd been before. After drinking the potion he was a bit tanner, his skin having a healthy glow to it. His hair was more of a vivid brown, and his eyes were a much deeper and darker green than they'd been minutes ago. He moves his hands to my waist, pulling me in a bit closer. He chuckles darkly before pressing his lips to mine.
"You've always been so loyal... My little lost girl..." He growls against my lips, his tone harsher than before. "... I'm proud of you, but there's one thing you forgot..."
When he says this, I feel myself freeze. Suddenly I feel stupid; stupid because Rumple warned me about this happening. About Peter doing something naughty the second he was well enough to. Peter's smirk grows more when he sees the fear in my eyes. The fear that he'd put in them countless times before.
"... You forgot that I'm always one step ahead of the game."
What happens next, happens a bit too fast for me to properly register. The next thing I know, my back is up against a wall, and his body has mine pinned.
"What game?" I whimper in pain, as the wind gets knocked out of me. The impact of my back hitting the wall makes me feel a bit light headed. He takes my momentary hesitance as an invitation to bring our bodies back to the closeness they'd had seconds ago when we stood across the room.
"Neverland became real when I went there, and the only way I could stay there was if I had the heart of the truest believer. But then my son got in the way of me getting what I wanted. He killed me, and when you brought me back, I knew I needed to think of a way to get back at him, but not only him, everyone else in this bloody town.
For the last three days Felix has been planting enchanted objects in the ground. These objects will cause a cloaking spell, created by me. Once this spell is enacted the only magic that will work is mine. They may have taken Neverland from me, but I'm going to take Storybrooke from them."
My eyes widen when he says this, my breath hitches in my throat.
"What are you going to do to these people Peter?"
He doesn't respond at first, just moves his lips to mine. His kiss is dark and passionate; normally I would get distracted in a kiss like that, but not this time. I'd promised that I would keep my son safe, along with the people in this town. Peter couldn't do this.
"I'm going to make them wish they'd never ruined my plans. I'm going to make them wish I'd taken Henry's heart."
My brow furrows as he says this, a look of protest moving to my face. I want to hit him... I want to knock that smug look off of his face. He knew I'd save him, knew that I'd do all of this. He used my love against me. He'd done everything Rumple feared he'd do, and it was all my fault.
"No... Please don't. Peter, these people... They didn't ask for this. You tried to kill a little boy, you tried to kill your great-grandson, and you're punishing them for saving the child they all care for. This is wrong and you're better than this..." I pause as his gaze softens for a moment. I knew that he could be good... I'd seen it. Years ago, before we'd had Rumple, before he was Peter Pan, before I'd become Tiger Lily, he was a good man. And I know that deep down he still is. I had to hold onto that little tiny bit of hope.
"... I know that the man I fell in love with, back in the days where we were just struggling to get by, back when we lived in London, is still in there somewhere. That man wouldn't kill people all because he felt wronged.
I know you Malcolm. I know you're in there."
His jaw clenches when I say this, his gaze shifting from mine to the floor. He breathes a deep breath, his body still pinned up against mine.
"Amalia..." He whispers, his mouth moving inches from mine. "... You're right, I'm still here..." He presses his lips to mine, aggressively claiming my lips as his. "... And that's exactly why I'm going to do this.
Amalia... people walked all over me for years. And then you died, and when that happened I realized that I never wanted to feel that pain again. Power doesn't make me feel pain... It makes me feel in control, and I like that."
I lock my eyes with his, not knowing how to handle how close he is after hearing him talk like this.
"Don't do this. Please." I beg, even though I knew that begging wouldn't get me far, simply because Peter only finds begging to being part of his 'game'. He sighs.
"It's too late, little flower, it's already begun. Last night when you were down here with me, Felix set up everything. I had it timed so that the second my magic and health was restored, the enchanted objects would start working. The town is mine, Tiger Lily, and there's nothing you can do about it."
He moves from me, his body leaving mine. His eyes shift up and down my body as his cruel smile returns. I knew that look... It was his favorite trick. He gives me a wink before he disappears right before my eyes. He was good at appearing and disappearing at the most inopportune times. I groan in frustration as I move from the wall, I needed to get out of here, and I needed to warn Rumple.
***Peter's POV***
"Felix!" My voice echoes through the forest as my eyes dart around for the my right hand man. It only takes a second for him to show, his silhouette looking like a shadow in the darkness of the trees.
"It worked." He says this like he's surprised, which only amuses me.
"Of course it worked. Why would my plan have failed?" I ask as I take in my surroundings. It had been a while since I'd been in this forest. It was emptier than it used to be, and the trees seemed to be more vivid than I remembered.
"I'm shocked, because you're little flower was mad at you. She's been mad at you since we got here, and she didn't even want to help. She was having serious second thoughts." When he says this I feel a pang of guilt. If she was mad at me then, she'd be furious with me now. I should care, but a big part of me doesn't. I was winning, and I was going to prove to this whole town that they should've thought twice before messing with me.
"She'll get over it." I state simply, as I gesture for Felix to follow behind me. Last time I was in Storybrooke, I'd seen a home that was abandoned in the forest. It was this home that Felix had been staying in over the past few days. I knew I'd be safe here, because no one knew it existed. The house is in the middle of a clearing, with a barricade of trees that surrounding it. I smile when I look at the home; this would be where I'd plan my next move, where my vengeance would begin.
"Did you put the protection spell up around the house?" I ask Felix this as we approach the house. I'd designed a spell that would only allow myself, and certain others, to see the home. These are the only people who can get in. Felix mutters a 'yes' from behind me. "Good. Did you get our guest?" I ask him as we reach the front stairs of the house.
"Yes." He states while he follows me up the old, creaking boards of the stairs. I chuckle to myself, I couldn't wait to see their face, to see the look in their eyes. I open the front door, and hesitate in the doorway. I breathe in the old, musty forest smell the house had to offer. It reminded me of home, of Neverland. For a moment, I miss my home. The place I'd lived for over 300 years, the place where all my dreams came true. A feeling of being homesick flickers throughout my body. I hated not being there... I hated being here, and I hated that it was all because I'd failed in getting Henry's heart... I shake any anger out of my thoughts and decide, instead, that I should walk in my new home. Felix leads me inside, pointing to the dining room to my left. I move to where he's gestured, and smile at the person, bound by rope, sitting in one of the chairs surrounding a table in the center of the room. I hadn't seen this person in a few months, and it was strange to see them dressed in the clothes of this world...
"Ah, my little bird. How nice of you to join us." Wendy Darling's head turns to face me, a glare in her eye.
"What the hell are you doing?" She shouts this to me, her face not holding the amusement on mine. I simply chuckle.
"I'm assembling my favorite Neverland people, and you are all going to help me."
She rolls her eyes. "No one is going to do what you want. You don't have any power here Peter."
I raise my eyebrows when she says this. I take a few steps into the dinning room, causing her body to tense up.
"My dear bird, you are wrong about that. Thanks to Felix, the whole town is surrounded by magic that only I can use. I am in control."
Her eyes widen when I say this, her gaze as fearful as Tiger Lily's had been minutes ago.
"This isn't Neverland Peter... We aren't lost children."
I make my way to the chair that's closest to her, pulling it out for me to sit in. Felix had managed to make the home look decent. The furniture nowhere near as dusty as it would've been had we not planned this out.
"Yes you are, and I'm going to use that to my advantage. This is my chance to show everyone in Storybrooke who they messed with, and I'm going to make them wish they didn't."
Her jaw clenches. "Why are you telling me all of this? Why don't you tell Tiger Lily?"
I shrug my shoulders. "If I tell her all of this, she'll beg for me to stop, and I hate it when she pouts. I can't say no to my lovely little flower."
It's true, I've never been good at telling her no. The second she looks upset, I feel a part of me break. Wendy seems to think I'm joking, her gaze seems to only harden.
"That girl loves you; loves you more than anything. She went through a lot of trouble to save you, and this is how you thank her? By threatening her family? Your family."
Sometimes I hated Wendy Darling, and the fact that I'd been so open with her. She knew too much, and sometimes it was a bad thing. She always made me question what I was doing, and if it was right.
"She'll be joining us soon, little bird. My two favorite lost girls will help me with what needs to be done." She looks at me like I'm insane, and perhaps to her I am. After all I'd locked her in a cage for years...
"Why would we want to help you?"
I shrug my shoulders. "You won't have much of a choice in the matter. My magic can get you to do whatever I want you to, and you will."
A whole new level of fear moves through her pretty little face. Horror flooding her features.
"This is a whole new level of madness, even for you Peter."
I grin. "It's not madness my darling. It's a game."
Hours pass... I don't know exactly how many, all I knew was that I didn't know where Peter had gone. I told Rumple everything and he was surprisingly calm about all of it, but given that he'd expected it, I should've as well. He walks with me as we trudge through the woods. Peter would come here, if there was any place he'd go to think, it'd be here.
"I'm sorry." I state for the hundredth time today. We'd been walking for what felt like ages, and I knew it was all because of me. Rumple just shrugs his shoulders.
"I know what it feels like to have hope in him, and have him crush it. It's what he does."
I stop dead in my tracks, feeling frustration move through me. "I should've just listened to you. Guh, I'm just so stupid. I was blind, and I know that he does terrible things, but for some reason I thought he'd changed."
Rumple stops a few feet from me, turning slowly for face me. "He is different with you. I've seen it. He would've never let anyone else get away with the things you did to him back in Neverland. He does care for you, but us.. Now that's a different story. No one else here, he cares for. He's just doing this because I killed him. He wants to get back at me."
I shake my head in protest as I walk across the foliage of the forest, until I am closer to him. "He's so used to being in power, and that power got to him. When you killed him, it was the first time that he didn't win. It was the first time he had to come to terms with the fact that Peter Pan can fail. He's doing this to prove to you that you winning was a one time thing. He wants to prove that he's still the most feared person in all the realms.
He's making an example of you, and of this town."
Rumple looks at me, taking in my words. He looks like he wants to respond, but when he goes to, someone else speaks for him.
"Couldn't have explained it better myself..." Peter states this from behind us, his voice carrying through the woods. I turn to face him, my movements quick and rushed. He had a smugness about him that he hadn't had before. "... My little flower knows me better than I know myself. This is why I love you."
I roll my eyes as his gaze shifts from me to Rumple. He gives his son an amused look before Rumple speaks.
"You come here just to hear the sound of your own voice? Or was there an actual reason for your appearance?" Peter nods.
"There is a reason I'm here. I came to pick my little flower up. I need her with me."
I fold my arms across my chest, glaring in his direction.
"She's not going anywhere with you." I've never heard Rumple speak in such a tone. Every word sounding like venom when it passed his lips. Peter chuckles darkly as he lifts his right hand. He rubs his pointer finger against his thumb, causing a loud snap to sound through our awkward, tension filled silence. It's when he snaps that I am no longer standing next to Rumple. I am now standing next to Peter, his left hand around my right arm. He pulls me in against him, and when I try to pull away, I find that I can't.
"No games Papa." Rumple shouts as he takes a few steps forward. Peter glances over at me, clearly not caring that our son is making his way over to us. He smirks down at me before sighing in boredom.
"But it's you're favorite game..." He lifts his right hand up, moving his fingers together as he'd done only moments ago. He was going to make us disappear before Rumple got to us... I try to break away once more, but I still can't move from his grasp. Peter holds his ground saying one final sentence before the world around me turns into shadow...
"...Follow the lady."
*** This is my final chapter of this story, but I promise that I'll write a sequel, that is if you want it :)