This chapter is kind of long...just enough to keep you all busy and wondering while I'm away at Thanksgiving break but don't worry! I'll be back on Friday with hopefully a new addition to the story.
Thank you so much for the reviews I've received on the last chapter and the advice from Lisa1972 that if I'm going to "fight to the death" to write with that at the forefront of my mind. Yay for ensuing angst, drama, mystery and the thrill of adventure.
Also I'm excited that I've reached the over 200 followers mark. Thank you! I never would have imagined that ever happening but you all made that possible. Thanks :)
Disclaimer: I don't own a thing...unfortunately.
David pushed at the Lost One who came at him back toward Mary-Margaret who quickly stabbed the boy in the back with her arrow before drawing it out of his flesh and setting her bow. He grabbed the boy back and pulled him forward, hitting him square across the jaw not bothering to drop the boy gently to the ground and instead let him fall.
"We've got the numbers falling!" Mary-Margaret called to him and he glanced around to see she was right. They were down to at least thirty three now and that little fact inspired a bit more hope in him despite the beginning stages of exhaustion he was beginning to feel.
His gaze flickered down a couple of paces where he saw Hook's stance slacked while the pirate stared off somewhere toward the far off tree line and David felt something akin to dread spread in his gut. He followed Hook's line of sight and felt his heart nearly stop when he saw Emma's blonde hair disappear into the jungle tree line's foliage.
"Emma!"
"David, watch out!"
Hearing Mary-Margaret's clipped cry, David turned with his sword drawn to see a Lost One standing right behind him, his spear already digging into his chest while a twisted grin spread across his features but before David could make a move the boy let out a grunt, his eyes widening into surprise before slowly dimming and David caught a glimpse of blood beginning to line his mouth. Ariel crouched on the rock behind him, her hair wild and her eyes intense as the boy fell slowly to the ground at David's feet, a dark look covering her face as she jumped down to retrieve her knife from the boy's back.
"You've got to be paying more attention. I can't save your ass all the time," she smirked but all he did was nod as he turned back toward Hook who was now pulling a boy close to his chest, his hands bracing the boys head before a sickening crack broke through the air punctuated by the Lost One lifelessly dropping to the ground in a heavy heave.
"David! Emma," Hook called, his voice betraying that he was out of breath. "I need Tinker Bell and Rumpelstiltskin. We need to follow her while you finish here."
David didn't ask questions, fully trusting what it was Hook had to say. Considering that the numbers had dwindled rather drastically in the last twenty minutes, he was confident that him, Neal, Liam, Regina, and Mary-Margaret could spare three of their own and handle the rest.
"Tink!"
He watched the delicate looking pixie acknowledge him with a small nod that was barely discernible as she stunned the Lost One she had hurled her body at from behind with a fist of magic, her emerald eyes shocking David as they seemed to burn red.
She looked up at him then, her full attention focused his direction and he realized that it wasn't just a trick of the light. The pixie woman was glowing in an orange red hue and despite her often pleasant demeanor, David felt something akin to a chill run down his back.
"Hook needs you! And get Rumpelstiltskin!"
At the mention of Hook's name a worried look fell over Tink's face and the terrifying light about her shifted more toward the cool side before she disappeared from his view in the blink of an eye.
"Where's Emma?" Mary-Margaret said from beside him, loosing another arrow and he turned just in time to see that she made good on her shot.
"Chasing Pan I think. Hook's going after her with Rumpelstiltskin and Tinker Bell while we finish here."
A look of worry shifted over her face before she broke away from him and jumped to the boulder below where Hook was swinging his sword with expert precision at another Lost One. David turned from her toward two boys he saw jumping toward him and surrendered his concern over Emma to the air between him and his attackers. He knew that of anyone in their company, Hook was the one who cared just as much for her safety as him and Snow, if not as much then more if that was even possible.
"Hook."
Hook turned at the sound of his name, kicking the unconscious boy at his feet over the ledge of the rock he stood on, only to see Mary-Margaret doing the same thing. The sight was somewhat shocking, nothing he would have expected from the petite woman but then again he reminded himself she was the princess who had been on the run from the law for many years before taking back her kingdom. At least, that's what the stories said.
"Milady."
"You're going after Emma?" she asked, getting straight to the point.
"Aye, as soon as Tink and the Crocodile get their arses down here."
Mary-Margaret studied him for a quick second, her green eyes unnerving him because like Emma, they seemed to read too much about him.
"Just make sure she's safe, okay? I would…if anything happened."
She finished, her chin lifting and a grim look covering her features but he didn't say anything to the broken sentence because he knew what she meant. If anything happened to Emma he'd be in dire straits as well.
"You called," Rumpelstiltskin's voice broke from up beside them just then and they both looked up to see him and Tink standing on the edge of a boulder, their stances set as if awaiting battle.
"Emma is currently chasing Pan and considering you're the one whose death breaks the curse and Tink needs to restore Henry's memories, you're both coming with me. Questions?"
"Just one," Rumpelstiltskin started as he jumped down beside him with shocking agility considering his age. "Can I see your hook?"
Mary-Margaret snapped her attention from the older man to Hook, seeing that he had set his jaw rather tightly and his eyes had narrowed.
"Why the hell would I do that?" he finally ground out bitterly and Mary-Margaret nearly wanted to scream. Couldn't they do this some other time when her daughter wasn't chasing a psychotic teenage boy alone into the jungle?
"I know it's your mistrust and dark hate for me that we're all depending on to break the curse but right now, it's misplaced. I only wish to aid you in my death."
Hook glanced at him for a second before shifting his gaze to Mary-Margaret who only raised her eye brows as if telling him to get on with it. Finally, he let out a sigh and slowly extended the steel hook toward the man he hated most who in return gave him an unsettling smile.
"Nice to see you can be agreeable," was all he said as he took the steel moniker in one hand and laid his other palm flat over it.
Hook watched as dark black and purple suddenly flickered from the older man's palm, an ominous feeling flowing through his veins as the dark magic engulfed his metal appendage in a thin layer of dark electricity. His arm felt like ice and the air around him felt thin before suddenly becoming thick enough to choke on.
Then suddenly it was clear like nothing had happened and the man shifted away from him, a satisfied smile crossing his features which to Hook was somewhat odd considering he'd just assisted securing his own death. The noise around him became more clear and he was aware of Mary-Margaret and Tink fighting three of the Lost Ones who had come at them during their most vulnerable time.
"There. Now you can rip out my heart with a bit more ease before crushing it," Rumpelstiltskin explained the enchantment in those simple words before his eyes took on a hard glint. "Ironic isn't it? That the way I die is at the hand, or lack thereof, the man who is avenging his love's death who died the same death I doled out. Life can be…humorous."
Hook failed to see the humor, more the irony, but didn't comment on it, instead turning his attention to the women who now stood freely beyond them, the three boys down for the count. Mary-Margaret held her arm close to her chest, blood painting her fingers as scarlet bloomed through the fabric of her shirt.
"Don't worry about me," she said, hiding the wince in her eyes. "I have the remedy Tiger Lily gave us still. Just go help my daughter…and Hook," she paused capturing his attention with a hard glint in her eye. "Save just enough of the little bastard for me to kick around."
He gave her one of his trademark smirks before giving a slight nod and started backing away from her, holding her gaze until she turned away and jumped to a boulder en route to David. Leaving the others behind to finish the battle, Hook turned and took off for the jungle with the Crocodile and Tinker Bell chasing after him, his thoughts turning toward Emma as he ran through the foliage.
She had to be alright, she had to be okay. The idea of ill fate befalling her made him furrow his brow and he clenched at the darkness that was all too familiar to him as it burst inside his chest. Mary-Margaret's request echoed in his ears but he wasn't sure if he'd be able to honor it. If anything happened to Emma, the little demon was going to be ripped apart from every fiber of his being and thrown to the wind as ash.
Henry woke up breathing hard for air as if he'd been choking, his lungs feeling tight as if they were about to implode. Sweat lay chill on his body in a sheen layer while drenching his hair and coursing down his face in droplets and he closed his eyes as tried to get his breathing back to even, thankful that he was finally able to break out of the dream that had haunted him while he slept.
When he finally felt calm he opened his eyes only to see that everything was in a blur before shutting them closed again. He winced as pain pulsed in his temples, an effect of the beginning stages of a headache and he brought his hands up to his face as if to keep his brains contained.
He drew in a deep breath as he thought of the dream that had come again and again, repeating itself over and over until he had every detail memorized, from the ocean shimmering as it danced in the sunlight to every crease that lined the face of the woman who called to him. He squeezed his eyes shut even harder as he thought of her, his emotions wreaking havoc inside of him as he battled the familiarity of everything about her but couldn't figure out what she meant to him.
All he knew was that in his dream she stared at him for a moment in disbelief before her face cracked into a smile, her face so immensely happy as he she started toward him with joy livening her every step before the moment when she'd realized his uncertainty at her presence had made her face stiffen and her steps falter. The worst part was he didn't know why but the broken look on her face and the fact that she wasn't continuing toward him sent a strong feeling of disappointment and sadness through him. Like he knew who she was somewhere in the faint recesses of his heart and the rest of him knew it but his mind hadn't figured it out yet.
Why couldn't he remember her?
Just like the other adults who Pan had captured, she knew his name, at least in his dream, but it was the way she called him "kid" that sparked a memory inside of him. She'd been in a red dress, her blonde hair curled staring at him with shock as he pushed past her down a hallway, ignoring her protests as she continued to call him "kid". After that the faint memory was broken and fractured, taken back into the fog that reigned in his mind. It was disturbing to say the least.
There was a dark feeling suddenly and he looked up for the first time and blinked his eyes at his surroundings. The blur tainting his vision had lifted and he could see perfectly now but what he saw sent chill bumps over his arms and travelled down his back in a shudder.
Dark trees twisted their branches every which way, creating a sky of dark while the moss around him skirted the floor in ebony black. Darker masses moved around him, dancing in the shadows of the trees and he felt his heart plummet even further into his stomach as he realized that some of the dark forms around him were shaped as people.
"Ah, there you are! I've been looking all over for you."
Henry jumped at the voice that broke the quiet and snapped his neck in the direction it had come from, doing so in a manner that was so rigid it was surprising his head didn't pop off.
Pan stepped into view then but instead of relief Henry felt something akin to dread prick at his intuition and he wondered at it considering the boy did nothing more than smile at him.
"Where am I?" he finally asked, his voice sounding hollow and distant even to his own ears.
"Shadow Cove. We were attacked and you wandered a ways off…must have fallen under a spell of some sort by that witch."
"What?"
"It's a long story that I would love to tell you but currently you sit in a place that isn't known to be the safest so if you please," was all Pan explained as he extended his hand toward Henry as a means to bring him to his feet.
Henry stared at it for a moment, not sure if he trusted Peter. Sure, his face looked earnest and somewhat honest but there was something about him that was not quite right.
"Are you alright, Henry? You seem as if you are ill."
"I'm fine…I just don't remember anything of an attack or running through here. All I remember is sleeping. I don't know how I got here."
"Like I said. That witch's spell."
"What witch?"
"The dark haired woman I had hidden in our camp," Pan finally answered slowly, standing back to his full height as a troubled expression flickered across his face. "I didn't want to worry you Henry, I really didn't but I guess now is the time for you to know."
"Know what?"
Pan paced away from him, clasping his hands behind his back while his brows knit together in raw concern, his vulnerability so rare that it took Henry by surprise. Finally Pan stopped moving and slowly turned his body once again toward Henry, his eyes staring into his face rather intently.
"The adults that I found are not the only ones who have come to the island. There are more and they're here for one purpose and one purpose alone and that is to steal magic."
Henry studied him for a long moment before disbelief came out in the form of a laugh from his lips causing Pan's expression to slip off of his face and be replaced with open confusion.
"You think that a bunch of adults would bother themselves with stealing magic? Please…tell me why they would do that," Henry finally gained control, raising his brows at Pan like he was crazy.
"Because magic is power," Pan answered all too quickly, his dark eyes flickering and his words causing Henry to pause. "Magic is what you are. Magic is where you come from," Pan continued, his gaze never leaving Henry's face. "You've the heart of the Truest Believer and that…that is the greatest magic of all."
Henry studied Pan's open expression as he let his claims on him being the Truest Believer echo through the clearing that now felt cold and stifling. It was his words "magic is power", however, that caught his notice. He had heard that phrase before…felt as if he had believed it at some time or more accurately knew someone who did. His face drew more sober, leaving complete mirth behind as he looked up at Pan, a thought coming to mind.
"So what you're saying is the adults that you have captured and the others that you know about are here to steal magic, for their own power," he clarified and Pan nodded, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. "And if what you say is true about my heart being the greatest magic of all what with me supposedly being the Truest Believer then does that mean…does that mean they're coming after me?"
Pan studied him for a moment before nodding slowly in the affirmative, a look of sorrow crossing his face as if confirming his suspicions pained him the most terrible way.
"Yes, Henry. I'm afraid so but I swear to you, on my life I will do whatever it takes to make sure you stay safe even if it means I must sacrifice myself for the cause," Pan assured him, his eyes narrowing with the seriousness of his tone.
His face remained completely serious as Henry observed him for a moment and at just the right time, as if to seal the deal Pan extended his hand toward Henry once again as a means to help him to his feet. Henry shifted his gaze from his face to his hand, not sure what to think as everything Peter had said made sense and sounded-right. It just didn't feel right.
He decided to put his feelings aside for now, however, and finally let out a sigh before slipping his hand into Pan's grasp, allowing the leader of the Lost Ones to pull him up. Pan smiled as he swiftly hauled him to his feet, clapping Henry on the back when he was sure his feet were steady.
"Thank you for believing me Henry," he grinned and in spite of the little shred of his remaining doubt, Henry returned the smile before following Peter as the boy retraced his steps back out of the clearing.
"Now, I may have a plan to save you and your magic from these cursed people but it does require something of a sacrifice," Pan continued when he was sure Henry was following, hiding the wicked grin that crossed his features.
"What kind of sacrifice?" Henry asked, trying his best to remain nonchalant.
"The kind of sacrifice between that of friends," Peter replied, masking his face in a concerned expression before glancing at the boy from over his shoulder. Henry cocked his head at him with a raised brow in question but Pan only smiled before continuing to walk along the trail he had taken.
If the sacrifice of life was all it took to save magic, Pan reasoned with a sinister grin, then so be it.
And that is it till we meet again!
I hope I left it on a good note for those of you who are reading. I already have in mind how the next chapter is looking but if you have any suggestions, leave a review. I love hearing from you.
Happy Thanksgiving ya'll!