Stalking up irregular planks of wood, Tink holds her head up high and strives to remain inconspicuous. It is irregular for her to visit Pan's camp, but not unheard of. During her time here she has grown close to several of the younger boys on the island; never before having imagined she'd enjoy the company of children, but whilst here she has had no other option, as she occasionally grows weary of her own company. One of the boys she had gotten on especially well with is no longer here- is no longer alive as she has so recently found out- but there had been a time when she would stop by to visit Baelfire and a couple of his friends.
A shame...
"Tinkerbell?"
A voice greets her from above, and she looks up to spy a young face peeking out at her from beneath the branches that act as banisters to one of the higher levels of the treehouse.
"Davey."
She smiles, increasing her pace until she meets him on the warped landing of the fifth storey. They look down simultaneously over the vast drop that acts as the centre of Pan's treehouse, and she feels a strange sensation of fate whispering in her ear, before she turns back to the young boy with a shiver.
"What are you doing here?"
Davey asks curiously; having missed the blonde as she has stopped visiting them for a while now. He is one of the newer boys here, and had been one of those swiftly disillusioned by Pan's promise of happiness on the island. Like almost all of the recruits brought over from that other land, he had suffered a complicated upbringing, but unlike a lot of the others, his bond with his mother had been strong. An abusive, alcoholic stepfather had lent him the needy glow on which Pan's Shadow had fed, but his love for his mother had been gut-wrenching when stolen from her by the Boy King. For this reason, along with his young age, when he had first encountered the fairy- an elder female- he'd latched on to her and trusted her completely. At first, Tink had found this rather irksome, but over the past couple of years, she has softened to the boy a little and allowed him the luxury to seek comfort in her form and likeness to his mother.
"I'm looking for someone."
She confides; eyes darting around the place and hating the fact that she is all too aware that nothing in the camp is as it seems. She trusts Davey well enough to expose that she's looking for Henry, not Felix, as well as why she might be doing so, but the old boughs of the treehouse are gnarled and twisted and provide too many corners of darkness in which the Shadow might hide.
"Who is it?"
The boy asks curiously, and she dodges the question by asking one of her own.
"Do you know where the others are? Pan and Felix?"
"I saw them leave down the coast trail with some of the older boys. They're setting traps to catch some witches."
Davey grins, and Tinkerbell swallows as she studies the childish excitement glittering in his eyes. Lowering herself down onto one knee so that she's nose to nose with him, she whispers sternly
"They're not witches, not the sort Pan's telling you all, anyway. One of them was a friend of mine a long time ago, the other is... She means no harm. They're Henry's mothers, Davey, they truly are. They don't deserve to get hurt just for trying to get their son back."
"But Pan said-"
"-Pan lied."
She hisses, glancing over her shoulder uncomfortably, before looking back into the creasing face of the young boy so close to her she can smell the the berries on his breath. Davey shakes his head unhappily, and laces an arm around the fairy's shoulders so that he can whisper into her ear.
"But... He's going to kill them."
He confides with a nervous hitch to his breath, and Tink shakes her head as she assures softly
"They're strong, and they know they need to be careful. I know some of the others believe they're coming to cause you all trouble, but you know you can trust me; you know I wouldn't lie to you, right? It's too dangerous for you to try and convince the others, but you have to promise me you won't try to do anything to harm those women, Davey. Just keep your head down, okay?"
"I promise. It's the older boys that are going to catch them, anyway. Pan's chosen two groups; Felix gets one and he gets the other. They want to split them up. We're to stay here until they've been caught and aren't dangerous anymore... Then we get to watch what happens. Until then, we're not to say anything to the new boy. He mustn't know. He has to remain happy."
Eyes widening as she pulls back, Tink studies pale features and worried eyes intently before asking quietly
"Henry doesn't know Pan's looking for his mothers?"
"Henry isn't allowed to know they're on the island."
Davey confides, confirming the others' fear, and Tinkerbell nods her understanding as she asks curiously
"Who's been left to watch over Henry, anyway?"
"Tobias."
The boy explains with a wrinkle of his nose. Tobias is an older boy in Pan's inner circle, and the fairy has heard him to be cruelly fond of spurring the younger boys into fighting with sticks. She remembers how some of the children had done the same back in the Enchanted Forest as a means of fun to pass the time, but here on the island without adult supervision or a stern word when things get out of hand, it is a practice used more often as way to settle the ever precarious question of hierarchy, rather than anything resembling a game.
"Just Tobias?"
"I think so."
Davey nods, and Tinkerbell smiles as she pushes herself back up. She sees no use in asking after the Shadow, as the beast's whereabouts are never known by any but Peter himself. She would guess that Pan has sent the Shadow out to search for the others; either Regina and Emma or the small group of boys that have disbanded themselves from the camp. If she's right, she might just be able to reach Henry safely, and so she points to the levels above them and asks
"Where are they? Henry and Tobias?"
"They've been staying up at the top, in the games room."
"Okay, thanks. Wait here, ok?"
The fairy smiles, and Davey nods as he watches her turn to make her way further up the stairs. A gust of wind sweeps through the old tree's boughs, and his hair flickers around his face as the wood creaks as though warning them of things to come.
Opening the door to the games room, Tink takes a step back as Tobias pulls out a crudely fashioned spear. Raising her hands placatingly, she looks from the slightly overweight surly teen to the boy sat regarding her with open curiosity next to a dartboard carved into the wall.
"Tink."
Tobias greets gruffly, and she forces a smile and pads into the room with her hands slipped into her pockets; the shard of obsidian containing the women's secrets clutched in her fist.
"Tinkerbell?"
Henry asks with surprise alighting his face, and she shoots him a guarded expresision as it still seems odd to her that strangers know who she is. The young brunet ignores her wariness and offers her a bright smile, and she assesses that apart from being a little on the dirty side, the kid looks healthy and unharmed.
"Yes."
She nods, along with Tobias, who places down his spear but remains openly hostile.
"What are you doing here? Who said you could come up here?"
"No one... But, no one said not to come up here either."
She explains while frowning in a parody of confusion, and she crosses over to stand beside Henry under the cover of inspecting the handmade darts that pepper the bark behind him.
"Well, I'm telling you now... Pan's out trying to find something, and until he comes back, we're on high alert."
"Oh, right, yeah, Sean said."
"Sean said what?"
"That you were looking for those two women. That-"
"-Hush! How do you?-"
"-Which women?"
Henry interrupts immediately, and Tink opens her mouth before closing it again swiftly as Tobias grabs his spear and brandishes it at her in a bid for her silence. Miming fear, she stumbles backwards, and falls purposefully onto her knees in a show of avoiding the spear's point.
"Ouch."
"Hey!"
Henry scolds angrily as he glares at his new friend, before pushing himself up and leaning over the fallen blonde.
"Are you alright?"
He asks worriedly, extending a hand to help her back onto her feet. She takes it gratefully, although there is another expression that glitters behind the small smile she offers him, and he recognises it easily as he has seen it on the face of each of his mothers. It is a shadowed look of warning- of secrets- and as his small hand closes over Tinkerbell's, he feels something cold and hard press into his palm.
"You need to leave."
Tobias interrupts irritably, and Tink nods as she pulls away- eyes locked with Henry's for just a moment longer- before she stands back and mutters angrily
"Calm down. I was only looking for Felix, what the hell is your problem? I knew Pan was out searching for the adults that have come to the island, but-"
"-Leave!"
The boy yells at her, and when Henry opens his mouth to ask more questions, a meaty hand comes to rest on his forearm.
"Stay here! Shut up!"
"But-"
"-Boys!"
Tobias yells, and Tink steps back as the sound of footsteps crescendos down the hall. A moment later, two of Pan's larger followers step into the room and reach for her, and she pulls away irritably and barks at them
"Get away. I can leave of my own accord. I don't know what your problem is, but I want nothing to do with it."
She wants to say something else- to play into her oblivious role and call the women she's mentioned by name- but she knows that to do so, even under the guise of knowing no better, is a fool's errand. Instead, she moves towards the door with a glower at the brutes stood on either side, before turning to Tobias and warning silkily
"You should be careful; waving that spear around. Someone might get hurt... Who knows what bloodshed might reveal."
"What?"
The boy frowns, and she shakes her head with a sigh that suggests she considers him an idiot, before catching Henry's eye and trapping him momentarily with her gaze. She watches him slip his hand surreptitiously into his pocket- his young brow furrowed in confusion- and then turns for the door; leaving before she can be made to do so.
Pulling back as a pale hand presses gently against her shoulder, Regina looks down into sharp features as she catches her breath.
"What is it?"
She asks softly; their kiss still hot on her lips.
"We should probably get going..."
Emma replies apologetically, and any irritation the brunette feels is soothed by her amusement at the definite flicker of regret in the younger woman's eyes.
"I suppose you're right."
Regina nods, pushing herself to her feet with a small breath of exertion as the last of the dizziness caused by her use of magic to bring the two of them accross the gorge finally dissipates. She still feels a little weak, but she imagines that this too will subside in a little while. Looking down at Emma who remains reclined against the rocks, she holds out her hand amiably and pulls the blonde to her feet.
"It's just intoxicating when you discover a good thing."
She muses quietly, and pale cheeks flare with a pink blush, but the Sheriff's voice is dry and even when she speaks.
"I agree... I guess it's kind of just how things go by now that we're dealt a shitty situation to take away from something pleasant happening to either of us.
She laughs wearily without much humour, and dark eyes glitter as Regina offers a tight smile
"Well, up until now, you and I have worked mostly against each other, or at least on opposite ends of the board... Perhaps things will change in our favour once we're done here. I have a feeling things will go a lot more smoothly now we're together."
"... Together?"
"On the same side."
Regina explains hastily, but she matches Emma's tentative stare with her own and swallows as the blonde wets her lips shyly.
"Right."
The Sheriff breathes finally, lowering her gaze, and the brunette nips at her own lip, before cutting through the- not wholly unpleasant- tension.
"Come on, we should get moving... Quit stalling."
She fusses bossily, and Emma's eyes flash angrily before she snorts with laughter and falls into step beside the Mayor.
"I'm not the one that needed a little rest..."
She taunts- pleased to brush off some of the weight of their shared moment- and Regina sighs as she presses a finger gently to the wound lining the younger woman's cheek in silent retribution.
"Hypocrite."
"That's-"
"-Hush... Did you hear that?"