Sorry for the wait, everyone! I've been super busy writing. I have so many ideas for how I want to write Avia through the series, I just need to get passed the Pan chapter! I appreciate all of your kinds words and thanks for the continued support! :)
Thirteen Years Ago
The hospital lights begin to flicker inside the hospital room, as eight year old Emma sits on a hospital bed with newborn baby, Avia, lying next to her in a crib. Baby Avia's little hand is wrapped around Emma's small one as she sleeps peacefully. Emma's eyes, however, are averted to the hallway of the hospital room, watching as a couple of cops, a nurse, child psychologist, and a social worker are talking about herself and her sister. They were just brought in a couple of hours ago and immediately nurses and doctors were poking and prodding at herself and Avia. The child psychologist came in and asked her a ton of questions she couldn't answer. Emma wasn't sure where she was or who she was, but she did know that the baby that was wrapped close in her arms was someone she needed to protect. Emma refused to leave baby Avia's side, causing the nurses and doctors to grow frustrated.
"She doesn't remember where she came from." The psychologist says quietly.
"What about her parents?" The social worker asks.
"She doesn't remember anything."
"Physically she is a healthy little girl. There are no signs of physical abuse. The only trauma she seems to have experienced is the trauma of being found in the woods with her newborn sister in her arms." The nurse explains.
"That may possibly have something to do with her amnesia." The psychologist states.
"What about the baby?" One of the cops ask.
"She was born just hours ago. We'll know more once we are able to run more test."
"I don't know how you're going to do that." The other cop glances into the hospital room where Emma is now looking down at her sleeping sister. "She won't leave the baby's side."
"So, overall, it seems we only know that their names are Emma and Avia because of their blankets." The psychologist says sadly as they all look into the room.
One of the cops' scoff. "What disgusting human beings just leaves a little girl and a newborn in the woods with only two baby blankets to keep them warm? It's below 30 out."
"Ones that we will find." The other cop says determinedly. "We will make sure of that. And then we'll make sure they are put behind bars where they belong."
Inside the room, Emma pulls Avia's green baby blanket over the baby, and squeezes her own purple blanket to her chest. She wasn't sure where they belonged, or who they belonged with, but she does know that they belong together, and she was going to make sure no one ever took them away from each other.
Emma rests her head on the edge of the crib just as baby Avia turns towards her, slowly waking up. Her big green eyes look up at her big sister. Emma smiles as Avia's tiny hand reaches up to Emma's cheek. "I will always protect you." Emma whispers. "I promise."
Present…
Emma is aboard the Jolly Roger, along with her parents, Regina, Mr. Gold, and Hook, who is steering the ship through the magical vortex.
Once they land on the calming seas, Emma sees something in the distance. "Is that it?" She asks Hook.
"Aye." Hook confirms. "Neverland."
The ship continues through the waters, making its way towards the island.
On the sandy beach of the island, Avia falls onto the sand, falling out of the magical portal, along with Greg and Tamara. Nick falls out not long after, landing on the other side of Avia.
Nick looks up at Greg and Tamara and quickly stands up. "Come on, Avia!" He grabs his friend and they try to make a run for it.
"No, no, no. I don't think so." Greg grabs them both by their jackets. He smiles at Nick. "You weren't apart of the mission, but I'm sure we can make it work." Avia tries to shove the man away. "You got nowhere to go." Greg informs her as he lets them both go.
Nick immediately latches onto Avia's trembling hand. "We made it." Tamara sighs happily. "Mission accomplished."
"Are you sure about that?" Avia asks furiously. "Because ours parents and my sister are going to come get us."
"You might want to look around, kids." Greg says viciously. "You see any clock towers? You're a long away from Storybrooke."
"It doesn't matter. My family's been to the Enchanted Forest before, and they can get here again."
Nick looks around in confusion, hearing howling in the distance. "Avia, this isn't the Enchanted Forest." The trees and the night sky are much different than what he remembers back home in the Enchanted Forest.
"He's right." Tamara smirks. "We're not in the Enchanted Forest. This is Neverland."
"Neverland?" Avia questions. "As in Peter Pan and Tinkerbell?"
"You're here to destroy Neverland?" Nick asks, bewildered.
"It's the mother lode of magic." Tamara says as Greg begins to dig around in his bag. "Where's the communicator?" She asks him. "We need to signal the Home Office."
Greg hands her a device. "Here you go, T." He stands up, holding an identical cuff to the one he put on Regina's wrist.
Avia backs away. "Wait. That's – "
Nick tries to block him, but Greg pushes him away and grabs Avia, placing the cuff on her wrist. "We can't risk you using your magic."
Avia pulls herself away from Greg. "Why not?" She glares. "You're just going to destroy it anyway."
Nick looks at Tamara. "A Home Office in the jungle?" He asks skeptically. "Who works there?"
Greg narrows his eyes down at the boy. "Who works there is none of your concern. All that matters is that they take care of us."
Nick scoffs. "Do they? Can they tell you how to get back home after you destroy magic?"
"We don't ask questions. We just believe in our cause."
Nick looks back at Tamara, noticing that she is having difficulty with the communicator. "Having trouble?" Tamara looks up at the boy. "We just went through a magical water portal. Do you really think something battery operated is going to work now?"
Greg walks back over to Tamara and grabs the device from her. He opens the back and water and sand fall out, and there's no battery either. Greg and Tamara look at one another. "What the hell?" Tamara questions.
Avia laughs. "It's a good thing you don't ask questions."
Greg throws the device on the ground and walks over to the kids taking them each roughly by the arms. "Walk." He demands.
Avia tries to shove him away. "Get off of me!"
Greg pushes her away and Nick catches her before she can stumble to the ground. "Don't touch her!" Nick shouts.
Greg grabs them both roughly by the arms again, separating the two. "I said, 'walk'!"
Back on the Jolly Roger, Regina is looking overboard when she notices they are slowing down. She turns to Hook who is standing behind the steering wheel.
"Why are you slowing down?" She asks him. "In case you didn't know, my son's life is in danger."
"Oh, I know, my hotheaded queen." Hook smirks. "My plan is to bring us to the far side of the island, link up with the widest part of the river, and then we sail right through. The irony."
"What irony?"
"Oh. I spent more time than I care to remember trying to leave this place to kill Rumplestiltskin. And here I am, sailing right back into its heart with him as my guest of honor. It's not quite the happy ending I was hoping for."
"Greg Mendell said something funny to me." Regina recounts. "He said I'm a villain, and that villains don't get happy endings. You believe that?"
"I hope not. Or we've wasted our lives."
Across the ship, Emma is staring blankly into the open sea, looking pensive, when her parents' approach with a look of concern upon their faces. "Hey." Snow greets their daughter. When she doesn't get a response, she looks apprehensively at her husband before looking back at Emma. "What happened to Neal and Avia, it's not your fault. You can't blame yourself."
"I don't." Emma narrows her eyes bitterly at her parents. "I blame you." Snow furrows her brows in confusion. "All this happened because I listened to you." She explains. "You say good always wins. It doesn't. I may have spent the first eight years of my life in some fairytale land, but I spent the last thirteen years in a world where Avia and I were continuously losing – day after day. I had no memories of where I came from. I had to figure out a way to survive on my own and those experiences are all I have to go on."
"And all we have to go on is ours. So, if you would just let us share our wisdom – "
"I appreciate you trying to be parents." Emma interrupts. "But I'm not that little kid anymore. You're only a few years older than me now. We basically have the same amounts of wisdom." She informs them, her voice breaking with emotion. "And all I want is my sister back. I should have never broken the curse. I should have just taken Avia and – "
"You're right. Then you'd be together. But Avia is our daughter, Emma. I know we've missed you both growing up, and it haunts us every day."
"And that's why we're here now." David adds. "We may have missed thirteen years of both of your lives, but we refuse to miss out on any more. We are gonna get our family back."
Emma, having enough, turns to her parents with a look of aggravation. "How can you two be so infuriatingly optimistic!?"
Snow looks unsure on how to answer, surprised by her daughter's outburst. "It's who we are." David answers.
"Why!? Ever since you got your memories back, ever since you remembered that you're Snow White and Prince Charming, your lives have – well, they've sucked!"
"No." David shakes his head, refusing to believe that. "We found you and Avia."
"And lost her again!" Emma exclaims. "And Neal and countless other people!"
"Emma, the minute I let go of the belief that things will get better is the minute I know they won't." Snow says calmly. "We will find Avia and Nick."
"No, you won't." Mr. Gold says from behind.
"Oh, that's a great use of our time – a wardrobe change." Hook says sarcastically about Gold's outfit he'd wear back in the Enchanted Forest.
"I'm gonna get Avia and Nick."
Emma looks confused. "We agreed to do this together." Regina informs him.
"Actually, we made no such agreement." Gold tells her.
"Why are you doing this?" Emma asks.
"Because I wanna succeed."
"What makes you think I'm gonna fail?" Emma asks, offended.
"Well, how could you not? You don't believe in your parents or in magic or even yourself."
"I slayed a dragon. I think I believe."
"Only what was shown to you." Gold points out. "When have you ever taken a real leap of faith? You know, the kind where there's absolutely no proof? I've known you some time, Miss. Swan. And sadly, despite everything you've been through, you're still just that – " Gold grimaces. " – bail bondsperson. Looking for evidence. Well, dearie, that's not gonna work in Neverland."
"I'll do whatever it takes."
"Well, you just need someone to tell you what that is. Sorry, dearie. Our foe is too fearsome for hand-holding. Neverland is a place where imagination runs wild. And sadly, yours doesn't." Gold starts to spin his cane. As they all watch the cane fall to the floor of the deck, Gold disappears.
They all look around at one another looking slightly intimidated.
Back on the island, Nick and Avia are sitting together on a rock as Tamara and Greg set up a camp.
"You shouldn't have followed me." Avia whispers.
"I wasn't going to leave you alone with these people." Nick tells her. "They're insane. They electrocuted my mom." He scowls. "Who knows what they are going to try to do to you?"
Avia sighs, looking down at the cuff on her wrist. "I don't know. But it can't be good if they think they have to put this thing on my wrist." Avia rolls her eyes. "I don't even know how to do magic. It just sort of happens."
"Maybe that's what they're afraid of."
"So, what do you know about Neverland?" Avia asks curiously.
Nick shrugs. "I know what you know, from the stories we've heard. Peter Pan. Tinkerbell. Lost Boys. But something tells me that this is nothing like the stories we've read."
Greg lights a match and starts a fire in a pit. "We making s'mores?" Avia asks sarcastically, receiving a cold glare from the man.
"Building a signal." He clarifies. "Help me gather some dry leaves. We need to let the Home Office know that we're here."
"And what if that's not enough?" Tamara asks with her arms crossed, and her face filled with doubt. "What if the communicator wasn't an accident?"
"Don't let the kid get in your head." Suddenly, a rustling sound comes from behind and they turn around to see a boy walk out, and then a few others. Avia and Nick quickly stand, looking around in fear. "Who are you?" Greg asks.
"We're the Home Office." The boy, Felix, tells him. "Welcome to Neverland."
"The 'Home Office' is a bunch of teenagers?" Tamara asks in disbelief.
"They're not teenagers." Nick says, realizing exactly who these boys are.
"They're the Lost boys." Avia adds.
"Look at that." Felix says, impressed.
"Why do the Lost Boys want to destroy magic?" Nick asks.
"Who said we wanna destroy magic?"
Avia and Nick glance at Greg and Tamara. "That was our mission." Greg tells him.
"So you were told." Greg's eyes widen. "Yes. Now the girl. Hand her over."
Tamara steps in front of the kids. "Not until you tell us the plan – for magic, for getting home."
Felix smirks. "You're not getting home." He sneers.
"Then you're not getting the girl." Greg affirms.
Felix chuckles. "Of course we are."
Suddenly, a strange sound is heard from above, and they all look up just as a shadow flies down and rips Greg's own shadow from his body, causing him to scream out in agony. Tamara watches in shock as her boyfriend falls to the ground, dead.
"Run!" Avia yells. She and Nick make a run for it into the woods as Tamara follows.
"Get the girl." Felix orders the other Lost Boys.
They all separate into the woods except for Felix. He aims his arrow and shoots Tamara square in the back before she makes it any further.
In the woods, Nick and Avia are running for their lives.
"Where are we going?!" Avia shouts.
"I don't know!" Nick yells. "Just keeping running!" Avia looks behind her to see if any of the boys are following when she trips and falls to the ground. "Avia!" Nick runs back to his friend, attempting to help Avia up when two hands reach out and pull them both into a bush.
Avia and Nick back up as far as they can into a tree when they see the hooded boy that pulled them away. "Who are you?" Avia exclaims, breathlessly.
"Pan and his forces are in tune with every grain of sand on the island." The boy says, ignoring Avia's question. "We must be careful."
"Are you a lost boy?" Nick asks.
"I was. But I escaped. And now they're after me, too."
"Why? What happened?" Avia asks, confused.
"No time for questions. We must keep moving. Come on." The boy grabs them both and they run away.
Back on the ship, inside the hole, Emma is doing pull-ups on a pole. She stops once Hook walks in.
"Oh. Don't stop on my account." Hook says.
Emma glares at the pirate. "Wouldn't think of it." She says with an attitude before starting up again.
"What are you doing?"
"Getting ready for a fight."
"Well, I've never known you to need to get ready for a fight. I thought it was a natural state." Emma stops, exhaling heavily. "Don't let Rumplestiltskin get you down, love."
Emma jumps down, facing Hook. "What do you want?"
"To give you something." He shows Emma a key before walking to a cabinet. "You know, Baelfire and I once spent a lot of time together." He says, surprising her. She wasn't aware that they knew each other, but then again, it explains how Neal knew how to steer a ship.
"He was always 'Neal' to me."
"Yeah. Right." Hook walks back over to her, showing her a sword. "This was his."
Emma takes it from him. "I didn't realize you were sentimental."
"I'm not. I just thought you could use it where we're going. You know, to fight." He then hands Emma a small cup before he uncorks his flask, pouring some rum into his and her cup. "To Neal."
"To Neal." They clink their cup and take the shot.
Enchanted Forest / Present...
Little do they know, though, that Neal is in fact alive, but in another land – the Enchanted Forest. He is lying down on the same open coffin that Princess Aurora laid while she was under the sleeping curse.
When Neal regains consciousness, he exhales heavily, looking around until his eyes stop on Mulan. "Who are you?" She asks, intrigued.
"Neal." He answers, perplexed.
Princess Aurora and Prince Phillip walk in. "Is he well?" Aurora asks.
"Well enough to be questioned." Mulan tells her.
Aurora pours him a glass of water. "Here." She hands the glass to Neal once he sits up. "Drink. You must be thirsty."
Neal takes a few sips before looking around in confusion. "Where am I?"
"You're in our kingdom."
"Where's your kingdom?"
"The Enchanted Forest." Phillip answers.
"I'm back." Neal whispers in realization only to receive curious looks from the others.
"Back?" Aurora questions. "You mean you're from here?"
"He's lying. Look at his clothes. He's from the same world Emma and Snow are from." Mulan points out.
"Emma?" Neal asks. "Emma Swan? You know her?"
"How do you know her?"
"She's – she's – " Neal falls back, distressed. " – I don't know. But she's in danger. I have to get back to her." He slowly sits up, stressing the bullet wound in his chest. "I have to help her!"
Aurora and Phillip quickly come to his aid and help him sit up. "You were gravely injured when we found you." Phillip informs him. "You need to rest. Were you hit by some kind of arrow?"
".45 caliber arrow." Neal says sarcastically. "Look, I need your help. I need to know that Emma is all right."
Neverland…
On the Jolly Roger, Emma and Hook are sitting across from one another inside the hole below deck.
"How long was he with you?" Emma asks about Neal.
"Long enough for me to know that I miss him, too." Hook admits.
The ship suddenly rocks roughly against the sea, startling Emma. "What was that?"
Up above, David and Snow are struggling to steer the ship as they sail through the stormy waters.
Regina runs up. "What the hell are you two doing!?"
"Trying to keep it steady!" Snow shouts.
Hook runs up, helping the two. "Prepare for attack!"
"Be more specific." Regina stresses.
"If you've got a weapon, then grab it!"
Emma runs up on deck. "What's out there? A shark!? A whale!?"
Snow and David run up next to their daughter, who is looking over the ship into the dark waters. "A kraken?" David asks.
"Worse." Hook tells him. A screeching sound comes from under the waters and they look surprised to find mermaids circling around. "Mermaids."
"Mermaids!?" Emma screams.
"Yes, and they're quite unpleasant."
"You think?" Regina replies derisively.
"I'll try and outrun them." Hook says as he continues to struggle with the steering wheel.
"How many of them are there!?" Emma asks as the mermaids' fins hit the sides of the ship.
"I will not be capsized by fish!" David says bemused. He heads to the cannon and loads it with gunpowder and chains.
"Emma!" Snow shouts for her daughter to follow her.
"What are you doing?!" Emma asks.
"Fishing." They grab the fishing net and throw it overboard just as David fires a blast into the sea. Snow sees that they caught one of the mermaids. "We caught one!"
"One?" Regina frowns, unimpressed. "There are dozens of them." David fires another blasts into the sea while Snow and Emma pull the fishing net up into the ship. "Enough of this." Regina conjures a fireball in her hand and throws it into the sea. Then another, and then another, finally scaring the mermaids away. "There. They're gone."
Once the fishing net is in the ship, they drop the mermaid on the floor of the deck and she begins to flap like a fish, looking frightened.
In the woods, Avia, Nick, and the boy are still running. The boy looks behind him and sees that they've lost the Lost Boys.
They stop, panting, out of breath. "I think we lost them." The boy says. He looks curiously at the two. "You're new. Did the shadow take you, too?"
"No. She was kidnapped by some people who work for Pan." Nick tells him. "I just followed. I couldn't leave her alone."
"Still not sure why, though. It's not like I'm a boy." Avia says.
"If he sent for you, he wants you." The boy tells her. "And if Pan wants you, he will get you."
"Well, we won't let him." Nick says firmly. "I followed them for a reason. I'm not going to let anyone hurt her."
Avia smiles gratefully at her friend before turning back to the boy. "Why does Pan want you?"
The boy sighs as he shows them a necklace he is wearing. "Pixie dust. I stole it from him because I thought I could use it to fly away and go home. But it doesn't work. It's useless."
"Don't worry. Our family's coming to rescue us, and you could come with us." Nick assures him.
"You really think you're the first boy to believe that his family's actually coming for them?"
"My family's different." Avia says. "We always find each other."
"You better hope they don't, our else Pan will rip their shadows into oblivion."
"Is there a place where we can hide from the Lost Boys?" Nick asks.
The boys sighs. "There's a place they can't track us. The Echo Caves. But it's far."
They hear rustling in the distance. "Then what are we waiting for? Lead the way." The boy starts to run off. "Come on." Nick turns to Avia, who is looking rather suspiciously at the boy ahead. "What's wrong? We have to go before they catch us."
"I don't know." Avia frowns. "Are you sure we can trust him? I'm not getting a good feeling about this, Nick."
Nick sighs. "We don't have a choice. We have nowhere else to go and right now he's our only option. If the Lost Boys find us they'll kill us like they did Greg and Tamara."
The boy turns around. "Are you coming?"
Nick looks at Avia, who appears frightened, but she reluctantly follows, knowing Nick is right. They are in the middle of nowhere and right now their only chance of survival is this boy, who obviously knows this place better than them.
Meanwhile, Rumple is walking through the woods of Neverland, searching for Avia and Nick. He makes his way to the clearing where Greg and Tamara had set up camp before they were attacked. He finds Tamara crawling on the ground with the arrow still lodged in her back, trying to stay alive.
Rumple steps in front of her and she looks up at him, gasping for air. "So, where are they? Avia and Nicholas." Tamara tries to speak, but the pain from the wound is too unbearable, she can't form any words. "Now, now." Rumple kneels down in front of the girl. "I can help you speak." He waves his hand over her back, and the arrow and her wound magically disappears. He stands back up, waiting for her reply.
She sits up, looking gratefully up at the imp. "Thank you."
"Where's Avia and Nicholas?" Rumple repeats. Tamara looks away. "They killed them?"
"I don't think so. They started to run into the jungle. I tried to follow, but then – " She shivers. "Pan wants the girl. He's behind all this." She explains. "Look, Mr. Gold, I didn't know who I was working for. I'm sorry about Neal. I'm so sorry."
Rumple kneels down again in front of her. "I know. You were merely a pawn."
"Can you forgive me?"
Rumple smiles. "No." He lunges his hand into her chest as she gasps through the pain, watching as Rumple takes out her heart, and crushes it right in front of her. Tamara falls back onto the ground, dead. Rumple shakes off his fingers and proceeds to walk away.
Back on the ship, the mermaid is still flailing around on the net as the group looks down on her.
"Get that thing off my ship!" Hook demands.
"No." Regina says simply. "Now we have a hostage."
"I hate to say it, but I'm with Hook." David tells them. "Those things just tried to kill us."
"And perhaps we should find out why."
"How? By torturing her?" Snow asks, disgruntledly.
"Well, if need be. Sure."
The mermaid then grabs a shell and begins to blow a deafening sound into it, sending up a signal. "What the hell is that?" Emma grimaces.
"A warning." The mermaid tells her just as thunder claps in the sky. "Let me go or die."
The Enchanted Forest / Present...
Neal had explained to the others about his father, the Dark One, and needing to get to his father's castle in hopes of retrieving something that will help him return or send a message to Emma.
So, he and Mulan proceed together on their journey to Rumplestiltskin's castle. "Can I ask you a question?" Mulan asks. "You say that you're fighting for Emma. But she never mentioned you when she was here. Why is that?"
"Because I broke her heart." Neal confesses, guiltily. "I let her go so that she could break the curse and fulfill hers and her sister's destiny. And when it was broken, I could've gone after her. I could've told her I loved her." He sighs. "But I was afraid she would never forgive me, so I wound up taking the easy way out, which is not trying."
"Your belief in love wasn't strong enough to overcome your fear of rejection."
"Greatest regret of my life, not one I wish upon anyone."
Neverland…
Avia, Nick, and the boy are running through the woods as the Lost Boys continue to chase after them. Avia then trips again, but with the help of Nick, she jumps back up and they continue to follow the boy.
"We're almost to the caves." The boy tells them.
Suddenly an arrow cuts them off, shooting right passed them and into a tree. "We can't." Avia shakes her head, panting out of breath. "We can't go to the caves. They know."
"We need to go another direction." Nick tells the boy.
"What is this?" David asks the mermaid as he rips the shell from her hand. "What did you do!?"
"Let me go." She begs seductively.
"Not until you tell us!" Regina exclaims. "Or we make you tell us."
"Threatening her isn't the way to motivate her." Snow says furiously.
"Well, I'm all out of fish food." Regina says, snidely.
"It doesn't matter if you get her to talk." Hook says from behind his steering wheel. "You can't trust her. Mermaids are liars."
"Of course they are." Emma rolls her eyes.
"Maybe they're just scared of Pan." Snow assumes. "If we let her go, maybe they'll be on our side."
"Or maybe she and her friends will come right back to kill us." Regina argues.
"Oh, I don't need my friends to kill you." The mermaid tells her. "You'll kill yourselves." Emma scowls in confusion. "Now let me go!" She demands as lightening rips loudly through the sky, startling them.
"What the hell!?" David yells.
"It's a storm." Hook states. "She called it." He points to the mermaid. "Don't let her go! She'll swim off and leave us all to die. At least with her we've got leverage."
As the storm continues to quicken, David grabs his sword and points it at the mermaid's neck. "Stop the storm. Then we let you go." The mermaid smiles, shaking her head. David grits his teeth and jumps behind the mermaid, putting her into a headlock.
Regina laughs. "That's more like it, Charming. Filet the bitch."
As David proceeds to choke the mermaid, he glances up at his wife and daughter, who are looking horrified by his behavior. "No." David lets the mermaid go. "We're not barbarians."
The storm continues to rage on, rattling the ship. "What we're going to be is dead!" Regina shouts.
"Hold on!" Hook warns. "I'm gonna turn her around. I've outrun many a storm."
"Make it stop or die." Regina threatens the mermaid.
"We are not killers!" Snow yells.
"Yes, you are." The mermaid rejects. "And you've brought this death upon yourselves."
"This is why we should free her!"
"That feel-good nonsense, Snow, might play in the Enchanted Forest, but this is Neverland." Regina retorts.
The storm grows more intense, causing them all to stumble. "Keep your grip, Pirate!" David shouts.
"It wasn't me, mate!" Hook tells him. "It was the ship!" He leaves his steering wheel and looks over the deck. "We're taking on water!"
"Now may I resume killing her?" Regina pleads.
"No!" Snow and David shout in unison. "You kill her, and her kind have a personal vendetta against us." Snow states.
"Look, the Queen is right." Hook tells them.
Emma, who had been keeping quiet through this whole ordeal, begins to look around, realizing that their arguing is getting them nowhere – just farther away from a solution. "Stop! That's enough! We need to think this through!"
Regina narrows her eyes down at the mermaid. "I already have." She says, bemused. Regina waves her hand and transforms the mermaid into a wooden statue. "There. That should stop the storm."
All eyes widen at the sight of the mermaid. "Regina!" Emma looks up to witness a giant wave coming their way. "What did you do!?" They all hang on for their lives as the waters fall down upon them. "What have you done!?"
The Enchanted Forest / Present
Neal and Mulan walk inside the very unkempt palace that belongs to Rumplestiltskin, looking as if it hadn't been occupied since the curse.
"It appears abandoned." Mulan states.
Neal rushes to a goblet on a pedestal, putting his finger inside, and licking the liquid. "No. Someone's here." He and Mulan begin examining the room when Neal is scared by an arrow that comes flying in front of him, hitting the wall. "Whoa!"
"The first was a warning, Milady." The hooded man tells them. Mulan unsheathes her sword. "Chivalry and all that."
"Who are you?" Mulan asks, pointing her sword at the man.
Keeping his arrow aimed at the warrior, the man jumps down from the window ledge. "The name's Robin." He answers.
Neal steps up next to Mulan, stunned. "No way. Robin Hood."
"I'd bow but this quiver's rather tight. Now, what are you doing trespassing in my castle?"
"This castle belongs to the Dark One." Mulan informs him. "It is you who trespasses."
Robin Hood scowls, confused. "He hasn't been seen since the Queen's curse. If he ever shows up, I'll be happy to vacate."
"No, no need." Neal assures him. "In fact you can have it. I just need to look around for a bit."
"And who would you be to grant such title?" Robin asks.
"In this land, I'm known as Baelfire. I'm his son."
Robin lets down his bow and arrow, looking quizzically at Neal. "My apologies. Go ahead."
"You don't want to see I.D.?"
"Who would claim to be that who wasn't?" Robin chuckles.
"Yeah." Neal agrees. "Good point."
"Your father would not stand for imposters. He had quite a temper."
"You knew my father?"
"We crossed paths once, yes."
"Most crossings with my father don't end well." Neal recollects.
"It was touch and go. He spared my life. I owe him a debt."
"Well, I'm happy to collect. I'm looking for something he left here. A magical item." Neal begins to search the room.
"Well, I'm very sorry to disappoint, but I arrived shortly after the curse. The place was cleaned out." Robin claims. "Nothing of any value remains."
"Well, thieves and looters would only take what they could see." Neal comments before he stops at the sight of his father's cane that lays on the floor.
"What's magical of a knotted old cane?" Mulan wonders as Neal picks it up. "It probably belonged to one of the looters."
"No, it belonged to him. See these markings?" He asks, giving the two a closer look at the cane. "He was keeping track of me growing." He then proceeds to swirl the cane around, repeatedly, in the air, when suddenly a painting on the wall glows purple and a magical door appears.
"I've handled that walking stick a dozen times." Robin says, perplexed. "It never released a cloaking spell before."
"My father enchanted objects so that what might be a useless piece of wood in the hands of a looter would become magical in his."
"Or in the hands of his only son." Mulan adds.
"He called it blood magic. Might not always seem like it, but family was important to dear old dad."
"So, what's in there?" Robin asks, interested.
Neal walks towards the door. "Let's find out."
Neverland…
Back on the ship, Emma and Hook are trying to control the steering wheel through the storm that is growing stronger than ever.
"I thought you said you could outrun a storm!" Emma reminds the pirate.
"This isn't a storm!" Hook bellows. "It's a bloody damnation!"
Snow turns to Regina, outraged. "Why would you do this!?"
"You're going to blame me?" Regina asks, livid.
"You turned the mermaid into wood!"
"I did something about it, which is more than what you can say!"
"Undo your spell!" Snow order. "Bring back the mermaid!"
"And what, you'll win her over with your rainbow kisses and unicorn stickers!?"
"Considering that your plan failed, at least we could try!"
"You're such a naïve Princess!"
"And you are such a – " Snow tries to respond with a comeback, but instead, she throws a punch right into Regina's face.
The storm hits a peak and rages loudly in the sky. Regina steadies herself and scoffs at the Princess. "Is that your best?"
"Not even close!" Snow shouts as lightening strikes one of the ship's ropes. "I am so tired of you ruining my life!"
"I ruined your life?" Regina asks, angrily.
"Hey!" David shouts just as Regina sends her fist into Snow's face, and another lighting strikes close to the ship.
Hook stops David as he tries to make it to his wife. "Hey, let the slags go." Hook tells him. "I need you at the mast."
"Don't call my wife a slag!" David elbows the pirate in the gut, before turning around and punching him in the face. Hook retaliates, punching David back, and leaving Emma at the wheel.
"Stop it!" Emma shouts. The storm grows more and more intense as the two groups continue to go at each other. Emma watches, horrified, as lightening splits the cloudy skies. "It's not the mermaid." Emma realizes. "It's us! If you don't stop fighting, we're all gonna die!" But the two groups ignore Emma and continue to go at it. "Don't you see we're causing the storm!?" Frustrated, Emma abandons the wheel and jumps on the edge of the ship. "Hey!" She shouts for their attention, but the two pairs continue to fight as the storm rages on. "Stop! You need to listen to me!" Emma takes a deep breath figuring out the only way to stop all of this mayhem.
David turns around just in time to see his daughter dive into the rough waters. "Emma!"
"Emma!" Snow screams.
They all run to the edge of the ship, looking overboard to try and locate Emma. Unfortunately, a sheave is dislodged from the ropes of the ship, where the lightening struck, and falls into the sea, hitting Emma in the head and knocking her unconscious.
In the jungle, the boy, Nick, and Avia are still running through the woods until they reach a cliff, stopping them in their tracks.
"They're over here!" They hear one of the Lost Boys shout out in the distance.
"What do we do?" Nick panics. "Is there any other way to the Echo Caves?"
Avia is panting heavily, as she falls to the ground. "I can't – " She shakes her head. "I can't go anymore."
Nick looks confused. "Seriously? You're the best runner I know."
"It's not that." Avia tells him as she looks down at the cuff Greg placed on her wrist. "I think this is slowing me down. I'm feeling weak. I can't go anymore."
"Can you do something?" Nick asks the boy. "Can you take off the cuff?"
The boy shakes his head, dismayed. "No. I'm sorry." He looks behind them, hearing the Lost Boys. He looks back over the edge of the cliff. "I think we're done for." He grabs the necklace around his neck. "I'll give them the pixie dust. Maybe they'll let us live."
"You wanna give up?"
"We don't have a choice. Your friend is going to die – we're going to die if we don't." Nick looks down at Avia who was growing weary. "This is the end."
"No." Nick grabs the boy's necklace and snaps it off his neck. "It's our way out."
"What are you doing?"
"Come on" Nick helps Avia up and backs them away from the edge of the cliff.
"What are you doing?" Avia asks, confused.
"Getting a running start. Do you think you can muster up a little more energy?" He asks her.
"For what?" The boy asks.
"Everyone knows pixie dust is for flying." Nick clarifies.
"Don't you remember? The dust doesn't work."
Avia's eyes widen when she realizes why. She shares a knowing look with Nick. "That's because you have to believe."
"I definitely do not believe." The boy spats.
"That's okay." Nick grabs Avia's hand before opening the vial containing the pixie dust. "Because we do." He grabs the boy's arm and the three of them make a run for it, jumping over the edge. The pixie dust comes out of the vial and turns into green magic, surrounding them, enabling them to fly.
Back on the ship, the group is still looking over the edge, searching for the Savior in the rough waters.
"Emma!" Snow desperately shouts for her daughter. But Emma is submerged in the waters, unconscious.
"Idiot!" Regina calls out, irate.
"Regina, get her up here!" Snow begs the Queen.
"I can't! Not in this storm. I can't even see her." David climbs up on the edge. "I'll just bring up water and half her leg."
"Wait!" Hook shouts at the Prince before he jumps over.
"She'll drown!" David tells him.
"And so will you! Let me help." Hooks grabs some rope, handing it to Snow. "Here, tie him." Snow, with the help of David, place the rope around his waist before he dives into the open seas in search for his daughter, while the others hold onto the other end of the rope. Under water, David searches frantically for Emma before spotting her floating lifelessly not too far from him. He quickly swims towards her and grabs her before swimming back up to the surface. "He has her! Pull!" They are pulled up high enough for David to grab onto the edge of the ship with his daughter tucked safely under his arm. Snow helps an unconscious Emma back onto the ship, laying her down on her lap as they all look down at her, concerned.
"Emma?" David calls softly for his daughter to wake.
Snow looks a bit hopeless as she feels her daughter's cold cheek. Emma then regains consciousness and spits out the sea water. They all look on relieved to see her breathing again as Emma looks past her parents and into the now calming skies. She looks at her mother. "I told you."
Rumple walks into an opening of the woods, sitting himself on top of a rock.
"Come out and say hello, dearie." He calls out.
Soon rustling is heard in the bushes and Felix appears. "Hello, Rumplestiltskin." The Dark One makes a sarcastic gesture as Felix walks closer to him. "Pan welcomes you to the island. He wanted me to tell you he is excited to see you again."
"Oh, yeah." Rumple smirks. "I'm sure he is."
"He wanted me to let you know you're welcome in Neverland, for as long as you wish to stay…with one caveat."
"There's always something with him." Rumple points out, not surprised.
"If you're here for the girl, well, that makes you Pan's enemy." Felix explains.
Rumple grits his teeth. "Then nothing's changed." He glares.
"If you go against him, you will not survive."
Rumple chuckles. "Well, the question isn't, will I survive?" He stands up, walking over to Felix. "Because we both know I won't. No, no. The real question is – " He grabs Felix roughly by his chest. " – how many of you I take with me?"
Felix looks down at the imp, unintimidated. "So, is that your answer?"
"That's my answer."
"Well, then, I suppose that means I'll see you again, in less friendly circumstances."
"Count on it." Rumple lets the boy go and starts to walk away. "One last thing." Felix calls out. Rumple looks back, annoyed. "There's something he wanted you to have." Felix tosses a straw doll at the ground of Rumple's feet. Rumple crouches down, picking it up with look of sadness in his eyes, immediately recognizing it. Felix kneels down in front of him. "Isn't it funny, the things we haven't thought about in years still have the ability to make us cry?" He chuckles as Rumple cries softly, admiring the doll in his hands. Felix stands back up, amused. "See you around, Dark One."
Felix walks away, leaving Rumple sobbing on the ground, clutching the doll to his chest.
Enchanted Forest / Present...
Neal opens the door that was covered in a cloaking spell as Mulan and Robin Hood look on from behind. Neal starts to look around until he spots an orb.
"I spent my entire life running from magic." He tells the others. "Now it's the only thing that can help me." Neal covers the orb with his hands but is confused when nothing happens. "It's not working." He grabs the orb in frustration, and places it on a pedestal. "Why isn't it working?"
"Don't think of a place." Mulan tells him. "Think of her, of Emma. And more than that – how you feel about her."
Neal considers this and places his hands back over the orb, and immediately magic kicks in. A purple cloud appears inside, and a clear image starts to form. "No." He gasps when he sees where Emma is. "It can't be."
"What's wrong?" Robin asks. "Isn't she there?"
"Yes, but that's not Storybrooke." He looks up, shocked. "Emma's in Neverland."
Neverland…
The crew makes their way off the rowboat and onto the island where Avia and Nick arrived earlier with their captors.
"We don't have to do it this way." Regina informs them. "I can fix the Jolly Roger. My magic is powerful enough. We can execute the pirate's plan."
"Sneak attack?" Emma assumes. "Let's not be naïve. Save your magic. We'll need it later, because Pan already knows we're here. It's time we stop running. Gold was right. This land is run on belief. All of us have been too busy being at each other's throats to be believers." Emma looks down, ashamed. "I was as wrong as anyone else. It's time for all of us to believe – not in magic, but in each other."
"You wanna be friends?" Regina questions, perplexed. "After everything that's happened between all of us?"
"I don't want or expect that. I know there's a lot of history – " She says, glancing at her parents. " – and a lot of hate."
"Actually, I quite fancy you from time to time, when you're not yelling at me." Hook grins.
Emma rolls her eyes, ignoring him. "We don't need to be friends. What we need to know is the only way to get Avia and Nick back is cooperation."
"With her?" David points to Regina and Hook. "With him? No, Emma, we have to do this the right way."
"No, we don't. We just need to succeed. And the way we do that is by just being who we are – a hero, a villain, a pirate. It doesn't matter which, because we're gonna need all those skills, whether we can stomach them or not."
"And what's your skill, 'Savior'?" Regina asks.
Emma turns to her. "I'm a sister. A sister who promised Avia the second we were found in those woods that I would always protect her." Snow looks at her daughter with pride and love in her eyes because that was exactly what she had asked Emma to do before they were sent away into the wardrobe. And Snow and David never doubted that their Emma wouldn't succeed in doing so. "And now I'm also your leader." Emma adds. "So, either help me get my sister and your son back or get out of the way." Emma turns around, unsheathing her sword, as her parents follow her proudly into the woods.
Regina glances at the pirate who shrugs, amused, as he follows them. Regina rolls her eyes, displeased, but follows the group anyway.
Meanwhile, overhead in the sky, the boy, Nick, and Avia are still flying, surrounded by a magical green light. The boy points down to the Echo Caves and the three of them start to land, flying through the trees, before dropping on land.
Avia sighs, relieved. "That was so much better than running."
Nick laughs. "See?" He says to the boy. "If you believe, anything is possible."
"You couldn't be more right, Nick." The boy says.
Avia and Nick look at one another, surprised. They turn back to the boy who is holding a stern face as he looks down at the two. "How'd you know my name?" Nick asks.
"We never told you." Avia glares.
"You're right, Avia." The boy smirks. Avia's eyes widen as she and Nick step back. "Let's make it a game, a puzzle to solve."
"You lied to us!" Nick exclaims. "You are a Lost Boy. You work for Pan."
The boy smirks, smugly. "No." Avia shakes her head. "I knew something wasn't right. Nick, he doesn't work for Pan. He is Pan."
Pan grins evilly at Avia. "And that is why you're going to do just fine here."
"Wait. You told Greg and Tamara that magic was bad, that you'd help them destroy it." Nick recounts. "Why?"
"Because I needed their help. And it is so much easier to get people to hate something than to believe."
Avia glares furiously at Pan. "What do you want from me? Why did you have them bring me here?"
"For quite some time, I've sought something extremely important, something more elusive than the greatest of all mysteries." Pan explains. "You, Avia, are the most powerful product of true love."
"No." Avia scowls. "My sister is the Savior. She broke the curse. She's the one with magic."
Pan chuckles. "So she is. But you, Avia, hold the key to all the realms. There's so much you don't know about the blood that runs through your veins. You have the power to do and be whatever and whoever you please. You possess the powers of dark and light."
"So, what, you wanna take that from me?" Avia holds up the cuff on her wrist. "Is that why you had them place this on me? So, I wouldn't use my magic to get away?"
Pan chuckles. "Oh, you won't be using your magic." Avia narrows her eyes, confused. "Because you don't know how." Avia looks away, knowing that's true. "See, there's a reason your sister and your parents haven't told you about the powers you possess. They're afraid of you."
Avia scoffs. "My family's not afraid of me."
"Perhaps." Pan shrugs. "But then again, you know better than anyone that adults lie." Avia and Nick share a look. "Oh, and Nick." Pan chuckles. "Just imagine how pleased I was to find out you came along for the ride."
"And why's that?" Nick glares.
"Because not only is there room for our first honorary Lost Girl, but there's also a place for another Lost Boy."
Nick shakes his head, refusing. "We'll never stay."
"Funny." Pan grins. "Because as long as you're here, you're mine." He unsheathes his dagger and raises it up in the air. "Come on, boys!" Nick and Avia look around as the Lost Boys start to come out of the woods, surrounding them. Nick and Avia move in closer to one another, back to back, as the Lost Boys and Pan make a circle around them. "Let's play."
Still in his Dark One attire, Rumple conjures up a fire ball in his hand and throws it at some logs and rocks, ensuing a campfire in the middle of the woods. He then stands in front of a large boulder, looking sharply at his shadow the fire helps image. He waves his hand and then flicks his wrist, causing his shadow to freeze. Rumple pulls out his dagger and begins to cut around his feet, separating himself from his shadow.
Rumple then flips the dagger in his hand - the handle facing his shadow. "You know what to do. Hide it where no one can find it, not even me."
Rumplestiltskin's shadow takes the dagger and flies away with it.
On another side of the jungle, David is walking ahead of everyone, cutting a path for them to walk through with his sword as he holds a lantern out with his other hand.
"The ridge is just a few hundred paces up ahead." Hook informs them.
"You really think we're gonna be able to see Pan's hideout?" Emma asks.
"From there, we should be able to see everything, including where he's keeping your sister and your son." He says to Emma and Regina.
"You know, I could have just poofed us up here in an instant." Regina says, peeved.
"Where? Have you any idea what's up here or anywhere? There are dangers all about. Only I can guide us past them."
"He's right." Emma agrees. "Hook's lived here before. If he says hiking up is the best way, then we listen."
"Here." Snow hands her daughter their canteen. "You need to stay hydrated."
"Thanks, Mary Margaret." Emma takes the canteen and silently cringes when she realizes what she called her mother.
"So, we're back to Mary Margaret?" Snow ponders. "You know, for eight years you called me 'Mom,' and twice after the curse. I knew it would be hard for Avia, but never you."
Emma shrugs. "Well, that was back when – "
"We were about to die." Snow nods, understanding.
"And, you have to remember, I didn't know who I really was or who you were for thirteen years. I forgot I had parents, so – "
"It's something you just got used to. I get it. But, you know, if you start – "
"We should keep going." Emma interrupts. The last thing she wanted was to discuss why it was now so hard to call her mother 'Mom.' Sure, it was easy sometimes when she was talking to Avia about them. But after everything went down with Tamara, and her mother not believing her, Emma was having a little trouble trusting her. Which meant she was having trouble getting close enough to call her 'Mom' again. And, right now, she couldn't focus on her parents. She had to focus on rescuing her sister because, right now, that's all that matters.
Snow obviously saddened by this wanted to say more, but knowing her daughter, she knew that would be a bad idea and only cause an argument. So, she continues to follow her daughter, reminding herself that once they rescue the kids, she was definitely returning back to this subject. She could see there was obviously something more bothering Emma and Snow was determined to break down her daughter's walls and get it out of her.
As the group continues on through the woods, David is still chopping through the plants. He raises his sword to chop down a thorn bush, but Hook grabs his arm, stopping him, before he can do so. "No." David glares at the pirate, trying to free his arm from his grip to try and chop the bush, but Hook's grip tightens. "No!"
"I can handle a couple of thorns." David says, annoyed.
"That's Dreamshade." Hook clarifies as he looks at the liquid dripping down from the thorns. "It's not the thorns you have to worry about. It's the poison they inject you with. The plant is the source of the toxins I used on the Dark One.
"The poison that almost killed Gold?" Emma asks.
"Indeed. I used a concentrated dose. In its natural form, death would be much slower and far more painful. I suggest we go this way."
Being stubborn as he is, David points to the clear opening near the Dreamshade plant. "We'll go this way." David walks on with Regina and Snow following.
"Your father's a distrustful fellow." Hook says to Emma as she walks up.
"He's just not used to working with the bad guys." Emma tells him.
"I can assure you, on this island, I am not the bad guy."
"Yeah, well, Pan's not supposed to be one either."
"What possibly gave you that idea?" He wonders as he starts to follow Emma.
"Every story I ever heard as a child."
"Well, they got it all wrong. Pan is the most treacherous villain I've ever faced. Tell me something, love. In these stories what was I like?" He grins. "Other than a villain. Handsome, I gather."
Emma smirks. "If waxed moustaches and perms are your thing." She says as she continues walking.
"I take it by your tone, perms are bad?" Hook frowns.
"Up here!" David calls out. Emma and Hook walk up to Snow, David, and Regina who are standing on a cliff edge, looking out over all of Neverland. "We made it."
"Pan's lair should be just right – "
"Where?" Regina frowns, interrupting the pirate. "All I see is jungle."
"Aye. The dark jungle." Hook takes out his telescope and looks through it. "It's grown so much since I last stepped foot in Neverland."
Regina sighs. "So, this nature hike was for nothing."
"Hook may have led us stray, but at least we're in a good position to start combing the jungle." David says.
"Not exactly." Hook disappoints. "The dark jungle's the last place you wanna set foot. We'll have to go around it. In order to do that, we're gonna need our strength. I suggest we make camp."
"You wanna sleep while my son is out there suffering?" Regina asks, irate.
"If we want to live long enough to save them, yes." Hook tells her, walking away.
"Avia must be terrified." Snow says as they look out into the jungle.
David grabs his wife's hand. "We just need to hope that she and Nick are together. They'll protect one another." He turns around with Regina and follows Hook, leaving Snow with Emma.
"Are you okay?" She asks her daughter.
"Regina's right. Avia and Nick are out there somewhere." Emma says, worried.
"And Hook is right." Emma looks up at her mother. "We have to survive if we're going to get them."
"I know." Emma reluctantly agrees. "I just hope we're not too late."
"After everything your father and I have been through, there's one thing we've learned." Snow smiles. "It is never too late."
Late in the night, Regina is sleeping on a camp bed on the jungle ground as Snow and David sleep a few feet away from her. But, Emma, however, wasn't sleeping too restfully. She is tossing and turning, as the sounds of children crying are heard in the distance.
Emma awakens with a start and removes her blanket, quickly taking Neal's sword from out of the sheath and standing to her feet. She looks at her parents who are sleeping soundly. "Guys, wake up!" Emma whispers, but the two remain sleeping. Emma starts to walk into the woods, looking around for the crying children that she can still hear. It starts to get louder the farther she walks away from the campsite.
"You hear that, too?" Emma gasps and turns around, aiming her sword at Peter Pan, who is nonchalantly leaning against a tree, unphased by Emma's threatening sword. "You're Emma, right?" He asks. "I wonder why they can't hear the crying."
"Who are you?" Emma scowls.
"Oh, did I forget to introduce myself? I'm Peter. Peter Pan."
Emma immediately runs at the boy and pins him up against the tree with her sword at his throat. "Where's Avia?"
"You've got fire." He says, amused. "I like fire."
"Where's my sister?" Emma repeats sternly.
"Avia's still alive, if that's what you're worried about. So is her little friend."
"Why the hell did you take them?"
"She's a very special little girl, Emma."
"I know. That doesn't answer my question. What do you want with her?"
"I came here to see who I was up against – 'The Savior.' Your sister speaks so highly of you." Pan sighs. "Gotta say, I'm not disappointed."
"What do you say now?" Emma asks, suspiciously. "You're gonna tell me how I'm never gonna see my sister again?"
"No. I'm going to help you find her." Pan says, surprising Emma. "I'll give you a map." Emma takes a step back, allowing the boy to retrieve a piece of parchment from his pocket. "A map that will lead you straight to your sister."
"If this is some kind of trap – "
Pan chuckles. "I may not be the most well-behaved boy on the island, but I always keep my promises. The path to finding Avia and Nick is on this parchment."
Emma lowers her sword. "Why are you giving it to me?" She wonders.
"See, it's not about finding Avia. It's about how you find her. And, Emma, you are the only one who can." In the distance the cries continue. Pan smirks. "Can you hear her?"
Emma snatches the map from Pan's hand and opens it. She glares at the boy. "It's blank."
"You'll only be able to read that map when you stop denying who you really are."
Emma looks back down at the blank map as the cries get louder. A small cry from a girl grabs her attention and she looks back up only to find herself standing alone. Pan disappeared, leaving her confused.
Back at the campsite, Emma is sitting across from the map she has placed on a rock, contemplating.
"He so likes his games." Hook sneers.
"What game?" Regina questions. "There's nothing there."
"If he said there's a map on this parchment, then there is."
"Great. So, if I just stop denying who I really am, whatever that means, then we'll be able to read this thing." Emma says, skeptically.
"But how do we know Pan won't use it to lead us straight into a trap?" Regina asks.
"Because he doesn't need to." Hook stresses. "This whole island's his bloody trap."
Snow and David walk into the campsite. "There's no sign of him anywhere." David tells them.
"Any luck with the map?" Snow asks her daughter.
"Don't hold your breath." Regina says, annoyed.
Emma grimaces. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Don't you see what he's doing? Every second we spend talking about this is another second we're not looking for my son!"
"You got a better idea?"
"Magic." Regina says simply. Emma rolls her eyes, shaking her head. "If there's a lock on there, I'll find a way around it."
Regina reaches for the map, but Emma slams her hand down on top of it. "Pan said it had to be me."
"I'd listen to Emma, love." Hook says to Regina. "Breaking Pan's rules would be unwise."
"Sadly, I agree with the Pirate." David says.
"I'm winning you over." Hook teases. "I can feel it."
"And your magic doesn't exactly have a gentle touch, Regina." Snow informs her. "My daughter is already in danger. I refuse to let you put her in anymore."
"Use magic on the map, it could blow up in all our faces." David adds.
"Well, that's a risk I'm willing to take." Regina says, smugly.
Emma stands up with the map. "Well, I'm not. If I'm the one who's supposed to figure out this thing, I need to do what Pan said."
"Great." Regina says, doubtfully.
"She'll get there." Snow assures her stepmother. Emma looks down, discouraged. "Hey." Snow says softly, stepping up to her daughter. "Don't give up. He's playing a game. You can win."
Rumplestiltskin is sitting on a rock in front of the campfire he produced with magic, twirling the straw doll in his hands, when he hears rustling in the bushes.
Rumple stands to his feet and approaches the bushes. "Who's there?" The rustling then starts from behind him, causing him to jump slightly at the sound, turning around. "Show yourself." He demands. Suddenly, when his back is turned slightly, from the corner of his eye he sees someone grab his straw doll, running away. "That doesn't belong to you, dearie." Rumple runs after the person, assuming it's a Lost Boy. He grabs them from behind and turns them around, removing their hood, only to reveal his true love, Belle. "Belle." Rumple says in disbelief. "I don't understand. How did you get here?"
"I thought you didn't dress like that anymore." Belle furrows her brows down at Rumple's attire. "I thought that was your past."
"Well, this is now my future. Becoming this again – the Dark One – that's the only way I'll save Avia and Nicholas."
Belle brushes her hand down the side of Rumple's face. "But you haven't completely become him, have you? There's still hope." She whispers.
Rumple slowly bends down to kiss Belle when he suddenly pulls away. "No. You're not really here, are you?"
"No, of course not." Belle chuckles. "I'm still in Storybrooke, right where you left me."
"Are you okay? Did the protection spell work?"
"It did. We're all fine. Storybrooke's safe. We all are."
Rumple grabs Belle around her neck, gritting his teeth. "How do I know these aren't just lies meant to lead me astray? How do I know Pan didn't conjure up a vision of you?"
"He didn't. You did."
Rumple pulls away, confused. "What?"
"The question is 'why'."
Back at the campsite, Emma is holding the blank map out in front of her as she sits crossed leg on a rock with her parents sitting across from her.
"My name is Emma Swan." She says, matter-of-factly, hoping to get the map to understand she isn't denying herself.
"I'd wager the solution to Pan's riddle is a bit more complicated than that." Hook says as he walks by.
"Don't hold anything back." Snow tells her.
Emma takes a deep breath, exhaling, as she continues to spout off facts. "I'm Avia's sister. I used to live in Boston, and I was a bailbondsperson. I'm now the Sheriff of Storybrooke."
"That election was a sham." Regina glares from behind Hook, as she leans stubbornly on a tree. "Are we really doing this?"
"Don't you think maybe you're leaving some things out?" Snow asks.
Emma hesitates for a moment. "I'm the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming, which apparently makes me a product of true love." She says, glancing up at her parents. "I was born in the Enchanted Forest where I lived for eight years until I was sent through a portal, in a tree, with my newborn sister, so that I could break a curse."
"And you were able to break the curse because – " David encourages as he stands to his feet. – you're the – "
Emma narrows her eyes up at her father. "Come on." Snow smiles as she stands next to her husband. "You don't need to be embarrassed to say it."
"Say what?" Hook asks.
"The 'S' word." Regina tells him.
Emma straightens herself up as she stares down at the blank map, hesitating once more. "I'm the Savior." Everyone looks on with anticipation, but when it seems nothing is going to happen, they all sigh, disappointed – the parchment remains blank. "I don't get it. I said I'm the Savior. There's nothing I've denied more than that."
"No, it's okay." Snow assures her. "We'll figure it out."
"No, you won't." Regina walks over and snatches the map from Emma's hands. "But I can. I'm beginning to think there isn't a map on here. That doesn't mean it can't lead us to Avia and Nicholas."
"I thought we decided that using magic was a bad idea." David reminds her.
"For once I agree with the Prince." Hook says, earning an awkward stare from David. "Well, I told you we're getting along."
Regina waves her hand over the map, enchanting the parchment. "What the hell are you doing?" Emma asks.
"A locator spell." Regina tells her. "This parchment belonged to Pan. It'll lead us to him."
The map begins to hover in the air and floats forward, off of Regina's hand. They watch as the map flies into the jungle. "So, it appears we will be venturing into the dark jungle after all." Hook comments.
"You mean the place you told us never to set foot?" Emma asks.
"That's the one."
"Well, Emma, you said you wanted to be the leader." Regina reminds the Savior. Emma stares longingly into the dark jungle. "Lead." And without hesitation, Emma begins to follow the map.
Meanwhile, Belle is leading Rumple through the jungle, arriving at a cliff, overlooking the river.
"So, do you know why you brought me to the island?" Belle asks him.
"I thought you were gonna show me the answer."
"No, only you know that."
Rumple sighs. "I've already told you."
"No, you haven't."
"I have no idea." He admits.
"Yes, you do." Belle argues.
"No."
"You're holding back."
"I'm not."
"You are."
"Belle." Rumple says, frustrated.
"What is it you're not saying?" Belle wonders curiously.
"I'm a coward." Rumple admits, helplessly. "I'm just like my father."
"You feel better now, don't you? You know why I'm here."
Rumple reaches out and grabs her hand. "You always saw the good in me."
Belle chuckles. "I still do. And as much as you deny it, I think you see it, too. So, why am I here?" She asks once more. "What are you wrestling with?"
"Pan offered me a deal. I let him keep Avia, and he allows me to live. The girl needn't be my undoing."
"And you're afraid you'll make a selfish choice."
"I generally do."
"You abandoned your son Baelfire and regretted it your whole life. You don't need to do the same to Avia." Belle shows him his straw doll. "Letting go of the past – it's the first step."
With shaky hands, Rumple grabs the doll from Belle. "You know, this was the last thing my father gave me."
"And what happened to him?"
"He left me."
"If you don't want to repeat the mistakes he made, you need to let go." Belle says firmly. She runs her hand down Rumple's arm before she backs away, letting go completely. Rumple watches as Belle walks off into the jungle, leaving him alone with the straw doll in his hand.
Contemplating everything Belle had said, he walks to the edge of the cliff and decides to drop the doll down into the river – letting go.
The enchanted parchment continues to fly as the group follows it further into the jungle.
"Ready to thank me?" Regina asks complacently.
"Actually, yeah." Emma admits.
"If you'd let me do it sooner, maybe we'd have found them by now." She then holds up her hand, using her magic to halt the map. "Wait. He's here." She says, cautiously. "Pan. I can feel his smugness.
David steps in front of them, drawing his sword. "Shall we? While we still have the element of surprise on our side?" He begins to walk forward as Regina follows.
"Careful." Hook says. "He may look like a boy, but he's a bloody demon."
Snow steps up to the side of her daughter as they watch the others. Snow looks at Emma, seeing the fear in her eyes. "Hey. We can do this. You can do this." Emma simply nods, yet she is unconvinced.
David followed by Emma followed by Hook followed by Regina followed by Snow continue to walk further into the dark jungle where the map has led them.
"No one's here." Snow tells them, defeated. "Maybe your spell was wrong, Regina."
"Yes. Blame me again." Regina glares back at the Princess.
They walk down into camp area. "Guys, hold on." Emma says, spotting a boy that looked like Nick from behind. "Is that – Nick!" Emma runs towards the boy, but before she gets close enough, the boy turns around, revealing himself as Pan.
"Hi, Emma." Pan smiles.
"Where the hell is Nick?" Emma asks, noticing that Pan is wearing the same clothes Nick had left in.
"You broke the rules." Pan scoffs. "That's not fair. Bad form. I expect more from you, Captain."
"Aye, and you'll get it." Hook tells him.
"Bring me my son!" Regina demands.
"Sorry. Can't." Pan shrugs. "Don't you know? Cheaters never win." A group of Lost Boys come out, surrounding the group, each holding maces, swords, torches, bows and arrows, and several other deadly weapons. Pan watches with a small smile as the group prepares to fight.
"Watch out for their arrows." Hook tells them. David raises his sword as Snow draws an arrow from her quiver. Regina raises her hands, ready to use magic. "They're laced with Dreamshade."
The Lost Boys fire multiple rounds of arrows at the group as one by one they shield them away. They each disperse in different directions to each fight their own. David sees a Lost Boy on the side, shooting an arrow towards Snow, whose attention is elsewhere. "Snow!" David shouts as he rams himself into her and knocks her away from the path of the arrow, causing himself to get scratched by it instead.
"David!" Snow exclaims.
David looks down at his torn clothes and gives his wife a smile. "I'm good. Behind you!" Snow quickly turns around and shoots an arrow towards a boy, pinning his hood to a tree.
A group of armed Lost Boys run towards Regina with their weapons, but she raises her hand to them, forming a blue energy ball and throws it at them, making them fall over backwards, stunned.
Then, close by, Felix and Hook are going at it. "It's been a while, Captain." Felix comments when his blade hits Hook's hook.
"Not long enough." Hook tells him, displeased. Felix swipes his blade back and the two of them begin to clash their blades once more. "You remember what I did to Rufio?" He grins, earning an angry growl from the boy. "Well, it's a far worse fate for you."
Emma runs up on a Lost Boy and brings her knee into his gut, knocking him down. As a couple more boys run at her, Emma easily knocks them away and continues her run up a hill until another Lost Boy tackles her to the ground. As they tumble down the hill, Emma manages to climb on top the boy, threatening him with Baelfire's sword. "Where's Avia!? Where is she!?" She screams into the boy's face. The boy stays silent giving Emma time to really look into the boy's lost eyes. She sighs, disgusted with herself, and stands up.
Snow walks up, having seen this. "Emma, are you alright?"
With a shaky breath, Emma looks up at her mother then back down at the boy. Before she can respond, Pan whistles, and all of his Lost Boys run back into the jungle. "Remember what I told you." Pan tells Emma. "That map will show you where Avia and Nick are only when you stop denying who you really are. But don't worry, Avia's already coming to terms with who she is."
"What is that supposed to mean?" Snow asks quietly, confused.
Pan gives her cold smile. "I'll make sure to send Avia and Nick your regards." He then turns away, following the Lost Boys further into the jungle as the others watch on.
Back on the campsite, David is setting up the bed when Snow walks up, looking closely at her husband's wound.
"You sure you don't want me to take a look at that?" She asks him, worried.
David smirks, turning around. "I was lucky. My jacket wasn't. Don't worry about it." He leads Snow towards the middle of the camp where Emma is leaning against a tree, looking back down at the map. "I think we have bigger issues."
Emma looks up at her parents once they approach. "Don't let him shake your confidence." Snow says to her daughter about Pan. "We've all had moments where we felt we couldn't prevail."
"She's right." David agrees.
Emma, however, was not in the mood to hear their optimism. "Guys, not now. Please." She begs as she walks away.
"Emma, wait." David tries to follow his daughter, but Snow squeezes his hand tightly, pulling him back. He looks at his wife and could see that she needed to follow their daughter instead.
Snow walks over to Emma and sits down beside her on the log. "Please talk to me."
"There's nothing to talk about." Emma says stubbornly. "We had our chance and we lost – I lost."
"Then you have to keep fighting."
"You heard what Hook said. Pan is a demon."
"And you are a – "
"What?" Emma interrupts. "A Savior? Because if that were true, this map would've shown us the way already." She says, frustrated.
Snow ponders for a moment when a thought enters her mind. "Maybe who you think you are isn't who you really are." She says.
"What do you mean?"
"Sometimes we think we know ourselves, but we need a push to show us the reality. That boy with the knife – you stopped fighting him. Why?"
"Cause he was just a boy." Emma answers.
"No. There was something else." Snow says, unconvinced. "I saw it in your eyes. Why did you stop?"
Staring straight ahead, Emma thinks back to that moment. "Because I looked at his face, I saw me." She admits.
Snow nods. "Go on." She encourages.
"That look in his eyes, the despair. I had it back when I was in the foster system. Just a lost little girl whose only purpose was to protect her baby sister. A little girl who cried herself to sleep at night because – " Emma's voice breaks as a few tears fall from her sad eyes. " – she wanted her parents so bad. And could never understand why they'd give them up."
"And then you found us." Snow says as her own tears fall as she stares at her daughter. "It was too late."
"But it's not too late for Avia. She can still have a life with you. She can still have parents."
"Pan said that Avia is coming to terms with who she really is." Snow remembers. "What do you suppose he meant by that?"
Emma sighs with a slight shrug. "I don't know. On this island I don't feel like a hero or a savior. I just feel like what I've always been… an orphan."
"And I bet that's how Avia is feeling as well." Snow states sadly as she continues to look at her distraught daughter. She then looks down at the map. "Emma."
"What?" Emma asks, not bothering to look at her, as her tears continue to fall.
"Look." Snow whispers.
Emma looks down at the map that is now forming and lets out a gasp. "What happened?"
"You accepted who you are." Snow says unhappily.
Emma lets out a heavy sigh as she furrows her brows, looking up at mother. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay. It's the truth. You and Avia were orphans. It's my job to change that."
Emma gives her mother a small smile before looking back down at the map.
Emma hurriedly approaches the rest of the group. "The map is working. We know where Avia and Nick are."
"Where?" Regina asks as they all gather around.
Hook looks at the map. "We're here at the southern tip of the isle, in the middle of the dark jungle, and Pan's camp lies due north."
"That's where he's keeping them." Emma says.
"What are we waiting for?" Regina asks impatiently.
"Well, the terrain's not easy." Hook informs the Queen. "There will undoubtedly be some nasty impediments along the way."
"We should prepare." David tells them. "We only made it out of our last encounter because Pan let us. We need a new plan."
"Agreed." Emma says. "It's time we stop playing his game and he starts playing ours."
"And if I disagree?" Regina asks with a deep scowl.
"Go ahead, but I think you know our best chance is together."
"You better be right." Regina walks off and Snow and David follow, leaving Hook and Emma alone.
"Excellent show of patience, love." Hook commends as he hands Emma back the map before takes his flask from out his pocket. "And that's what defeats a nasty little boy."
"Is rum your solution to everything?" Emma asks, amused.
"It certainly doesn't hurt." He says, taking a swig from the flask before offering it to Emma who rolls her eyes but accepts it anyway, taking a sip. "So, just how did you unlock the map?"
Emma shrugs. "I did what Pan asked."
"And just who are you, Swan?"
"Wouldn't you like to know?" Emma smirks, tauntingly.
"Perhaps I would." He says in all seriousness, surprising Emma.
Elsewhere in the jungle, Rumple is wandering around, resuming his search for the kids. He stops suddenly, hearing a rustling in the bushes. He looks around, cautiously, not seeing anything, before deciding to move on, but not without checking his surroundings with a suspicious look upon his face as the rustling continues.
Shockingly, the straw doll that his father gave to him, and in which he just threw into the river, falls from the sky, landing right at his feet. Rumple picks it up, inspecting it. He then drops it back to the ground and conjures up a fireball, throwing the flames at the doll. Rumple continues to walk forward, moving the plants aside for a clear path. He jumps back, startled, when he sees the straw doll that he just set on fire, sitting on top of a log as if it's been untouched.
Seeing that this was probably going to be a constant battle, Rumple instead picks up the straw doll and places it into his pocket before he continues on his journey.
On the campsite, Emma is picking berries when a whisper that sounds like her sister's voice startles her.
"Emma." The whispered voice cries out.
Emma jumps from where she is standing and turns around, only to find Pan looking back at her. "Don't eat the blue ones." He tells her. Emma rolls her eyes, turning back around to pick more berries. Pan smirks, walking forward. "Congratulations. You did it…orphan. You don't mind if I call you a Lost Girl, do you? Avia seems to take a liking to the name."
Emma drops her basket of berries and shoves the boy against the tree just like she had done earlier that day. "Don't call her that." She says, fuming.
Pan grins. "She hasn't forgiven your parents for abandoning her either." Emma looks away, peeved. "Or you."
Emma looks back at the boy, harshly. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"By the time you get to her, she'll never want to leave this island."
"We'll see." Emma picks up her basket and starts to walk away. "And as for you, Emma, when we're finished, you won't just feel like an orphan. You'll be one." Emma continues to walk away as if Pan's last statement doesn't affect her.
Meanwhile, Snow is sitting on a log, tracing her fingers down Avia's embroidered name on her blanket. It seemed Avia had a habit of packing her blanket inside her bag before leaving the house, unbeknownst to Snow. But she was grateful that this time was no different. It seemed to bring the mother comfort.
David walks up, sitting down beside his wife. "We are going to find her." He says, softly. "This family always finds each other."
Snow smiles slightly. "No. I know. I'm just thinking about what happened with Emma before the map appeared." David furrows his brows, confused. "Um. She finally admitted who she is – or who she feels like she is – an orphan." David sighs, disappointed. "Pan said that Avia is finally coming to terms with who she is as well. Our daughters still feel like orphans, David. And who knows what Pan is telling Avia right now. She probably has no idea we are even here, so she is losing all hope, causing her to reform back to who she was before she found us. We don't know if she is with Nick. We don't know if she is all alone. We don't know if she is safe. Pan could be telling us only what he thinks we want to hear."
"We are going to find her, Snow." David repeats firmly. "And it's our job as their parents to make sure they never feel like orphans again. It may take days, months, or even years, but we are going to prove to them every single day, as long as we are alive, that they have us no matter what. We aren't going anywhere, and neither are they."
Snow smiles sadly as she looks back down at the blanket. David leans down, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead.
David wanders through some tree, out of sight of the others, looking back to make sure no one is watching before he quickly unzips and removes his jacket. He then looks at the tear in his shirt, where the poisoned arrow scraped it, and sees that it's more than just a scratch. There's a large, bloody cut to his side. The wound has already turned black, spreading the poison through his veins.
David groans from the pain, as worry fills his face, knowing he's been poisoned with Dreamshade and doesn't have long left to live.