This is chapter 26...what? Wow...well dang. Okay so, this chapter is gonna be essentially Trinity oriented. I promise, super promise, that they will get back to Storybrooke next chapter. I'm hella excited for that, but patience is key when it comes to these things.
Anyway, I'm going to be changing the cover and maybe the description for this story sometime soon. You see, it just doesn't really say anything about Auria or others. Maybe I won't change the description that much but the cover...definitely.
I don't think Ellen Page is really how I picture Trinity anymore. Besides I've got something cool up my sleeve. Anyway, Thanks so much for the favorites, follows, and reviews! Each one inspires me to do more, and they make me really happy. I hope you enjoy this chapter!
Also, just because I haven't done this in a while, SUPER DISCLAIMER IF I OWNED OUAT YOU WOULD KNOW.
Trinity's POV ~Past~ (Which one? ...You're smart.)
He sat down in the window seat on the bus, "So, how'd you spot me out in the first place?" The little boy, apparently Henry, asked me with a little sulk in his tone. "I mean I thought I looked pretty normal." He proclaimed and I snorted a bit. He frowned, and immediately I gave him an 'are you kidding me?' look.
"Listen short stack, kids your age don't trot around a town by themselves like it's on their bucket list. I was taking a break and saw you with all of your suspicious glory. I just hope you're giving me the right address 'cause if you aren't..." I turned to glare at him and he put his hands up defensively.
"On my honor." He said mock-seriously and I raised an eyebrow. I was pretty sure this kid hated my guts right then.
"You read much?" He nodded and I chuckled. Figured. "Well anyways, as much as I understand wanting to get away from home, I don't get why you're so calm about this? Most kids you're age would be panicking." I noted and he stuck his tongue out at me.
"Yeah, yeah." He muttered and stuck his hands in his jacket pocket. "If you get bored you can let me go, you know. You're oddly proactive for a random person I don't know." He said as if he was annoyed. Yep, The vocabulary is strong in this one. I rolled my eyes and stuck my hand under my chin sweetly.
"Oh I'm doing this out of the goodness of my heart." I played at the most syrupy voice I could muster. "Not. Well maybe a little, but mostly I'm hoping your mom'll give me a little something for helping out? A job maybe, at least for a week or two."
"Why would she give you a job?" He asked and I smirked.
"You already said she's the mayor right?" I responded and he sulked again, dropping the conversation and staring out the window. "Why'd you leave anyway?" I asked, gentle this time. He doesn't say anything for a while, so I sighed and turned away, but kept glancing at him to make sure he didn't jump out the window or something.
Finally, I'm not even sure if he said it to me or himself, he uttered softly. "50% bored, 50% mom, 20% premature angst." He looked at me and stuck his tongue out again at my confused face. "Always give it 120%." I chuckled a bit, but thought about what he said.
"You know what Henry?" I said softly, but he didn't look over. I'd run away once too, that's what got me into the accident, but for some reason Neil never suggested taking me back. I'm pretty young too, but it's odd how I was never pushed home. Maybe if I had been...then I wouldn't be here not knowing where I'm gonna sleep tonight. "...you've got guts. I'll give you that."
~Present~
I sit at the foot of Henry's bed, on the floor, with my head leaning back onto the mattress and blankets. He's sleeping, and I smile at the fact that he's able to relax. The memory of when I first met him surfaces, and I resist a bitter laugh at how naïve I was then. About the world, about myself, about him.
Naïve. If I wasn't so naïve. I wasn't there for him when he needed me...maybe he wouldn't have gotten tricked by Pan if I'd been able to stop it. I feel like gravity is constantly being turned on and off, all the sure footing that my heart stands on being ripped away with the push of a lab button.
The door to the quarter's open and I see Mr. Gold in the doorway. He gestures for me to come out and I nod and stand up quietly, so Henry won't wake up. Mr. Gold shuts the door when I'm out and I blink in the harsh sunlight, hoping my eyes adjust soon. "Do you need something?" I ask and he nods.
"When we were looking for you, we heard that Pan used magic on you, like a spell. May I check to make sure all of it is gone?" He asks gently and I nod. My insides still feel sore, but I'd assumed I had broken the spell somehow. I guess everyone else had too, when I showed up with Henry's heart. Mr. Gold waves his hand, and his magic washes over me.
I take in a sudden breath when suddenly the sore feeling inside me is reduced. As if I'd been caught in a broken net, the magic he used released me from it. "Thanks." I say and he nods. "Oh uhm...also." I start before he turns to leave. "I drank the water on Neverland from Dead Man's Peak, and I think it caused me to remember everything. I don't want to forget is the thing so.." The poor little vial. Just because the water's effect had been slow working, it was shattered into bits against the wall.
Mr. Gold sighs, but agrees anyway. "You seem to be doing well with your memories, all things considered." He says and I raise an eyebrow. He casts the spell and I shrug, smirking only slightly. It's not like I've had much freetime to reminisce. Being under the spell, it was almost like background noise in a full out, death metal concert.
"Fake it 'till you make it." I wink and he chuckles softly. After considering going back inside, I turn and spot the lost boys by the edge of the ship. Pazi, Rufio, Auria, and the twins are sitting together a distance away from the other lost boys. I smile, seeing Rufio sleeping on Auria's shoulder.
I walk over to them and pass by each lost boy on my way to them. Hair stands up on the back of my neck as I can almost feel it when they each look up at me passing by them, no doubt reminding them of Pan. I turn to my band when I reach them, and bend down to my knees. "Hey, is everyone doing okay?" I ask with a small smile, whispering so I don't wake Rufio.
"Rufio's showing affection, I think he might be sick." Al whispers not so softly to me and Rufio responds by smacking him in the arm. "Ouch."
"Say it again, I dare you." Rufio mumbles and I catch Auria's happy expression. We share a quiet laugh, silently agreeing at how cute Rufio is when he relaxes. Auria stands up, telling us that she's going to go help with passing out food. Rufio watches her go, frowning a bit, but closing his eyes once she's gone.
"I'm tired, we haven't run that long in ages." Ollie says and Al nods in agreement.
"Geeze, not even Pan pushed us that much." Al responds and I muss up both of their hairs simultaneously.
"I'm going to have to make up for that later, huh?" I ask and they nod. I turn my gaze to Pazi, who's been uncharacteristically quiet. "Pazi...how are you doing?" I press lightly and he looks at me with a frown. Even when's he's upset, he normally says what's wrong loud and clear, he's not the type to keep many things to himself.
"I ain't the only one who's worried about leaving, am I?" He asks and I tilt my head, giving him a questioning look. "I mean, we've been Lost boys for so long...and now we're just leaving. It feels strange." The others' attitudes fall a bit and Rufio open's his eyes.
I take a deep breath, knowing that I have to say something for them. I shift into a sitting position and press my lips together as I think about it. "It's definitely a change, huh? For me, I think..." I trail off, my mind wondering to things I don't want to think about. With a small jolt I come back to my senses. "Well I've adjusted so much that I'm fine, but you have all been on Neverland for so long that this must be difficult."
I push back a few locks of Pazi's curly hair. "I don't think my family is waiting for me." He says and I feel a pang in my chest for him. "Not after so much time, right? I can't...I hardly remember what my mom looked like." His eyes glisten and when I open my arms up he immediately jumps into a hug.
Al and Ollie join in, and even though Rufio was never much for group hugs he still takes my hand when I offer it. "I have a secret to tell you four." I say with a smile, and they all seem to perk up a bit. "It's a special secret, because sharing it with as many people as possible is better than keeping it to yourself."
"So then it's not a secret?" Ollie says causing Al to tug on a bit of his brother's hair.
"Nah, do you know it yet?"
"No."
"Then it's a secret from you."
Pazi and Rufio shush them and I raise an eyebrow at them slyly. "Your family is always out there waiting for you, but who they are is sometimes a mystery. All you have to do to find them is keep an open mind, and take hands with someone who reaches out to you. Got it? The secret is that anyone can be family, but only a special few in the world will be ours. Those most important to you are already yours." I finish and see Pazi's face brighten.
Auria comes back with some bowls of soup and bread, and Al, Ollie, and Rufio move to get some while Pazi stays by me for a second. "So my family is waiting, I just have to find where they are?" He concludes and I give him an approving look.
"You've always been a smart boy." I whisper in his ear and stand up again. "I'll be over there if you need me." Pazi nods as I point to the other side of the ship. I walk over and see Hook leaning against a mast. I scratch the back of my head before releasing a sigh upon realizing I should apologize. "Hey..." It feels awkward when I reach him, but he gives a small wave.
"How can I help?" He asks with a small grin and I look around, not meeting his eyes.
"I'm sorry about earlier-" He holds up a hand to stop me.
"Don't even bother, I pushed too much. I reckon it was a dumb idea from the start to ask you anything about him. Much less whether he breathes or not." Hook says and I stiffen again, but push it out of mind as quickly as it came. After a stiff nod my mouth opens to ask if there's anything more to help with, yet someone else beats me.
"You're probably just lucky you didn't burst into flames." Crimson appears beside me and Hook falls off his mast, crashing into Emma who was probably coming over to talk too. I turn and stare at Crimson and look back and forth from her and the two scrambling adults with just my eyes, while making a bunch of 'ah' and 'oh' noises. "Well I guess this counts in a figurative way but.."
"Crim!" I whisper to her and make a cutting motion across my neck. "You can't...they don't...it's not..." Maybe I panic a bit because when Hook and Emma get back up they look like they're in fighting mode. "Ah, wait! She's friendly!" Emma stops mid sword stance and Hook doesn't release the big breath he took in to call for the others.
We stand there for a few seconds, Crim laughing like she just crashed a slumber party and the girls pulled out an Ouija board. "Trin...?" Emma says and I make a few motions with my hands. Breathe in...and out. Crim keeps laughing even when Hook and Emma relax, then a bigger crowd starts to grow.
"It's alright...she's my friend. She's like...actually I'm not really quite sure what she is." I ramble nervously and David and Mary Margret walk over with awed, but not freaked out, faces. I suppose they're used to things like this? Regina doesn't make any emotion except furrow her eyebrows before shrugging and walking away.
"I too was confused when I first saw her, but she is not hostile." Auria calls casually from across the ship. Neal just waves to Crim and she happily waves back. It takes a minute but I explain to them that she came with Myrtle and Luna when I was little. I also talk about the magic she's been teaching me, and make a small flame in my hand.
It's weird, 'cause for the longest time I had wished that there would be something about me to discuss. Some magical factor, about how I would be in the book somewhere with everyone else. Now, all the attention makes me very nervous.
We decide to discuss it later, and Mary Margret takes the opportunity to steal a hug before everyone drifts away again. Eventually everyone's gone except Emma, who smiles and puts an arm around me. "You get a friendly ghost, I get Regina. Not fair." she whispers to me and I laugh for a few seconds, turning to say something to Crim, but she's gone.
"She does that sometimes." I say and Emma removes her arm, but then puts both hands on my shoulders and looks me in the eyes.
"How are you really doing?" She asks, her words causing my chest to burn. I can't lie to her...but...what can I say? I want to run away, I want to say it's fine and keep going.
It's not. I'm not okay. My world is a broken hourglass, the sand spilling everywhere. Thousands of different colors of sand mix, and sorting them is taking all my strength.
"I just...I want to talk to you about it." I tell her. "Not here, though. I need a little time to pick up the pieces." She nods and thinks for a second as she lets go of my shoulder. Her expression changes as she dons a smirk.
"Just one question...how old are you?" She asks and I laugh.
"Living on Neverland doesn't really count as growing up...aside from that there's several other things. Physically I'm almost seventeen. Mentally...like I said Neverland doesn't really count...but counting that is almost twenty-seven. For a while I was..." I pause, thinking about the lab coats, the ice, the pokes and prods. "a popsicle, really." I laugh it off, but Emma eyes widen.
"What does that mean?" She asks and I shake a finger.
"Nuh-uh ma'am, only one question." I tease and she rolls her eyes. After finding a spot on the upper deck I sit down and pull my knees up to my chest. "Honestly, I'm not entirely sure." I answer quietly and she nods. Then, she whips out a pair of scissors from her back pocket.
"If you want, we can get a temporary fix...you know until we can get you to a professional." She says and I nod, moving over so she can bend down and cut away. After she finishes, I feel around at it and we laugh about how awkward the cuts are. "Like I said, temporary."
She sits next to me, and we talk about random things that have absolutely nothing to do with Neverland. Eventually we stop talking, and I feel my eyelids grow heavy. All of the exhaustion from the events of the past few days hits me. I slump down a bit, and Emma moves so that I'm resting against her.
Someone walks up, but Emma shushes them. Before long, I'm sleeping a dreamless sleep.
Heya! Well, it feels like a shorter chapter, but based on the word count it's about average. Maybe it's just 'cause it's all in Trinity's POV. You gotta tell me, what'd you think of the interactions of Emma and Trinity? Ah, writing those parts makes me so happy! When Emma first came to town, lemme tell you that Trinity thought she was the best thing since sliced bread. We'll address that later. Anyway, thanks so much for reading and have a good day!