Author's Note: I'm back at grad school, so per usual, I've been busy. :/ Sorry guys, but again, here's another long chapter! Yay long chapters! Also, there is another math problem in it, but again, skip the numbers. Everyone with accounts who reviewed should have gotten messages telling you how wonderful you are- if you haven't, message me so I may spend ages telling you how wonderful you are. Thank you also to the anons for your reviews, and before I answer some of the questions addressed in the anon's reviews, I just want to give a shoutout to Hildebrant for another wonderful chapter title.
So, to the anon's questions:
Sort of spoilers...not really but sort of? I had no other place to answer these questions.
Disclaimer: I haven't watched the earlier seasons of the show in a while, so my grasp of exactly how the show's magic works is a bit hazy (plus every time I think I understand it they sort of use it as a deus ex machina and all the rules go out the window). To answer these questions in order:
1. They don't take Henry out of town because they'd like to keep him somewhere where he can be protected by magic. Yes, magic as far as the Enchanted Forest goes exists only inside Storybrooke, but in my story Peter isn't from the Enchanted Forest (he's not Malcolm), and it's not where he draws his power. This can be seen even in the show canon- Peter's Shadow, which is a part of him, still retains its full powers in London when it originally takes Wendy and Bae to Neverland. As the Shadow is a part of Peter and can use its powers outside Storybrooke, everyone pretty much assumes Peter's powers would also work outside Storybrooke. Even though Peter does state he has no powers anymore except the ability to fly, they don't know how he resurrected himself, and they assume he still would be able to do so outside of Storybrooke. Since the rest of the world isn't magical, that leaves Pan with the upper hand- Henry's only magical defenders are in Storybrooke. So that's why Henry stays in Storybrooke.
2. Again, this goes back to Pan's powers. Since he raised himself from the dead once, everyone figures killing him isn't going to solve the problem- he'll just resurrect himself again (keep in mind they don't know how he did it). As far as burning everyone else, Regina can do that (and would certainly like to), but remember Emma couldn't hurt that Lost Boy in Neverland (I think it was Gavin, actually) because she saw him as a lonely child. The Charmings and Co. see the Lost Ones as children (even though logically they are more than aware the Lost Boys aren't average children), so they'd really rather not have Regina burn them all to death. Finally, Tinkerbell is considered innocent, as is Wendy herself, and since the Lost Boys came back, most are considered innocent-until-proven-guilty. Charmings and Co. don't want to burn innocent people to death.
3. Pan is lying about having no magic except the ability to fly. He mentions that in Chapter 7.
4. Oh my goodness you're right! O_O Sorry guys; this was a complete and utter slip up on my part. The Mayor's Office in the show is in its own building, not in Regina's house. My sincerest apologies. I don't even know why I made that mix up (too many late nights of homework, probably). Unfortunately we're far enough into this story that I'm not going to go back and alter the chapters, but you're 100% right and I'm sorry for the error. So: for this story the Regina has an additional Mayor's Office is in her house.
5. Yes, Neal would hear the flute music.
6. Yes, the thing about the heart is the same.
Hope that helped! Please enjoy the chapter!
~ladykikyo1792
Chapter 18: Somewhere in this dying day as I plan my great escape, I find it hard to concentrate as you maintain control
Neither Wendy nor Peter spoke about the night where he'd held her to stop her nightmares. Both were furious and ashamed, though for different reasons. Wendy was furious that he presumed he could just go into her bed in the first place, that he could hold her like he cared about her when he'd imprisoned her not only on the island, but in her treehouse. She was ashamed that- and this was worse -he'd actually helped. Since then, he hadn't held her in the darkness, and her nightmares had returned. How could he, the physical personification who had been so horrible to her, stop the nightmares?
Peter, for his part, was furious that Wendy thought him incapable of helping her. He was Peter Pan! Of course he could help. He could do anything- and did she truly not realize that she kept having nightmares without him there? Or, if she did realize it, was she really so upset with him as to not want his help? She'd rather scream and cry than accept him? The sheer stupidity of her pride; her refusal of his aid angered him. He was ashamed, though, not only at her refusal, but that her refusal actually bothered him. He'd let a girl, little Wendy Darling, upset him. Embarrass him. Embarrass him! He shouldn't care, and yet he did, and the weakness infuriated him.
When they did talk at all, it was when he brought food to the treehouse. He appeared with her dinner, every night. If the Lost Boys wondered at the absence of their leader each evening before they ate, he never said. Still, Peter sat with her, and all Wendy did was talk about Bae and London. She begged to see him, begged for Peter to free them, begged him to let them both go. She begged to speak to Bae, even if only for a moment, but Peter consistently refused.
Nevertheless, he didn't like to refuse Wendy Darling. He never had enjoyed it, though he did have to do it. So he began wracking his brain for a way to solve the problem- to remove Bae from the equation and gain Wendy's gratitude. And, of course, to keep Neverland safe, for that was always his ultimate aim.
So it was that one night Wendy's dinner appeared without Peter. She was confused by this, but accepted it as him being displeased with her. Peter, meanwhile, had gone to Skull Rock to talk with his Shadow. While it was true the Shadow was a part of him, ripped from his skin, the Shadow was also made up of the spirit of the island. It had helped him create Neverland; it had guided Peter in his protection of the island; the spirit's merger with Peter's own shadow had solidified his position as the Neverland's king. Thus he sometimes consulted the Shadow- alone.
"What do I need to do?" Peter asked the dark figure. His Shadow floated impassively before him, glowing eyes meeting his own frustrated green. It waited for Pan's accusation, which came quickly:
"You told me that Wendy was needed here, for balance to be restored." Peter had thought it would be that simple. If Wendy returned to the island, it would return to its former glory. Yet that hadn't happened, and he was frustrated as to why it hadn't worked.
"She is," the Shadow replied. Pan cut it off:
"'None can step foot on Neverland's soil and leave,'" he quoted the Shadow's earlier words to him, "Not permanently. Not for long-"
"Neverland is sustained by a balance," the Shadow explained, "It must always have at least one of whatever enters to continue to survive. When something new enters, the island recognizes it; it marks it; it absorbs part of it." It waited for Peter, the cleverest of boys to ever exist, to grasp its meaning, but the significance eluded him as of yet.
"One of whatever enters?" Peter queried, "What do you mean?" He crossed his arms, eyebrows furrowed.
"You know you are tied to the island," the Shadow stated, "The boy from the Land Without Magic who created it, the first to step on its shores. Wendy-"
"-is the first girl," Peter finished, then protested, "but the Indians-"
"-were present on the island when you created it. They are part of the land, and though they don't wish to leave, even if they did, so long as one remained, Neverland would be sustained."
"But the fairies," Peter raised his eyebrow, "Felix and I killed them all. You said nothing about that!" In his way, he felt a bit betrayed by the Shadow. It should have warned him about this- it should have told him how the island was sustained. Neverland was built out of his dreams, and out of his imagination, but as such it was an amalgam of puzzle pieces. Every time a new piece was added, it couldn't simply disappear. Yet the Shadow had allowed him to hack off an entire group of pieces without even a warning.
"You didn't kill Tinkerbell," the Shadow pointed out, "and she remains." Apparently, that was all it was going to offer in its defense.
"So when Wendy left, because she was the only girl from the Land Without Magic, the island lost whatever it gained from her. But if another girl were to come, then she could leave," Peter hypothesized, trying to ensure he understood the Shadow correctly.
"Yes."
"Then another girl must never come to Neverland," Peter ruled, "I won't have it." Wendy Darling was never to depart from Neverland again, and if the island itself needed at least one girl from the Land Without Magic now, he wouldn't allow another ever to come- for he would not let the Bird even have the possibility of escaping.
The Shadow, had it possessed eyebrows, would have raised one at that comment, "You can decide that as you wish. Nevertheless, what I have told you about Neverland's particular...needs...is true."
"There are other boys here from the Enchanted Forest," Peter said, a slow smile spreading across his face, "But if only one is needed for Neverland- then I can rid myself of Bae."
"Easily," the Shadow confirmed, "Simply send him away."
"But Wendy would never stop trying to escape, even if-" Peter paused, "Unless..." He smirked at the Shadow, finally understanding how he could get everything he wanted.
Tinkerbell sat in the living room, a book perched on her lap. While Wendy was determined to continue on with her schoolwork as if nothing had happened, Tink couldn't bring herself to do it. She only spent her time in school to give herself some measure of safety from Pan. While Tink gave Wendy privacy to do the homework they were assigned, the fairy had decided to read the book supposedly based on their world. She'd been disgusted with how innocent and happy the author had made Neverland seem, how Peter was portrayed as a hero. Now, incredulous, she wasn't even reading it anymore.
She was startled out of her annoyance by the creak of one of the living room doors opening. Felix walked in and smiled at her. For a moment, Tink found her heart starting to beat quickly, happiness flashing through her- if only for an instant. Then her instincts kicked in, and she became wary. Felix was always around now, but he usually stayed outside the house, guarding the perimeter as he stood permanent watch for Pan. He never smiled at her like that- he hadn't for many years, and when he had smiled at her like that, it had been in Neverland. Felix despised her here, of that she was sure, and he would hardly be seeking out her company.
"I think we should talk," Felix said. Without further preamble, he sat next to her on the couch, very close to her. Resisting the old urge to move nearer to him, Tink asked:
"Talk?" This sounded uncomfortably like a conversation about their relationship.
"Yes. Talk," Felix said, "I know Neverland seems like a long time ago-" He subtly reached one of his hands out for hers.
"We were there only a few months ago," Tink said cautiously, taking her hand out of range.
"-our Neverland, I mean," Felix immediately corrected himself. He continued to smile at her, but Tink wasn't convinced. Felix clearly wasn't himself- he wasn't speaking in his normal drawl, and however much she wished to hear him say sweet things to her, it couldn't be real. His loyalty to Pan superseded everything.
"Oh," she answered at last, when she realized he'd been waiting for a response from her.
"But I wanted to talk about when we go back."
"When we go back?" Tink narrowed her eyes at him. She couldn't help but remember their last conversation about the subject matter, when Felix had made it very clear that Pan would never allow her back into Neverland- and that Felix knew she never would be back.
"Yes," the Lost Boy affirmed.
"When we go back?" the fairy emphasized the pronoun to verify she had heard him correctly.
"Yes. You know Pan wants to go back. You know he wants to take Wendy. You know he wants to get the Heart of the Truest Believer," Felix asserted, gray eyes staring into her own with an earnestness that didn't become him.
Increasingly suspicious, Tink said, "You seem to be assuming I know an awful lot of things." Chills prickled up her spine, the hair standing up on the back of her neck.
"Well," Felix shrugged, "That's because you do. You knew how to beat Pan in Neverland. You betrayed him to the others." He stared at her, as if daring her to say otherwise.
"So did other people," Tink retorted. Warily, she started to stand up, "What's the point of this, Felix? What do you want? What does Pan want?" The only reason Felix would be acting so out of character was if Pan had told him to- but what could Pan possibly gain by playing with her heart, and in such an obvious way? It seemed rather juvenile for Pan, and besides, he wasn't even around to observe it. There had to be something else.
"The Heart of the Truest Believer," Felix supplied, "He wants you to help him get it." The answer sounded rehearsed, almost too much so.
"He knows perfectly well I won't be helping him do anything," Tink said. A scouting mission? Really? Was Pan so desperate as to seek out her help? She doubted it; he didn't need her. He'd only truly needed her before Neverland, and in the very early days of its existence. So what was this?
"Well, do you know what he wants to do with it?" Felix cocked his head and smiled at her, baiting her to ask.
"I only know what he used to want. What he seems to have already attained. Immortality. Now," Tink declared, thoroughly unnerved, "I can tell you what I want- and it's you out of my house."
"Do you know what I want?" Felix said, standing up beside her. He leaned in close, far too close. His eyes flickered down to her lips, and she forced herself not to shiver. She refused to meet his gaze, and pushed him away.
"I don't care," she lied, "I don't care what you want, and I don't care what Pan wants. I'm not helping you, and I'm not helping him. I don't care. Get out."
Felix's smile dropped, but he didn't say anything more. Instead he walked out of the house, Tink staring after him as he slammed the front door.
"I don't care," she repeated, as if by saying it to herself she could somehow make it so.
"Interesting," Regina murmured, taking Felix's heart away from her lips. Mary Margaret had mentioned the strange tension between Felix and Tinkerbell to her in passing- she'd noticed in school -and the former Evil Queen had wondered what history lay there. A romantic one, apparently. Briefly, she'd considered that maybe Tinkerbell was on Pan's side, helping her old lover and old friend to get Henry's heart. Tinkerbell, however, seemed to want nothing to do with Pan, or Felix. Perhaps she was as afraid of them as anyone else.
It didn't matter, though. While Regina was glad to see that the fairy still remained on the side of Storybrooke, she intended to use the connection between the fairy and the Lost Boy to her advantage. After all, Felix's heart had started to beat harder when he'd seen her, and when he'd been close enough to kiss her, it was pulsing with such strength it had almost fallen out of her hands. Maybe Tink had no lingering affection for him, but Felix had at least something lingering for her.
Yes, Regina thought to herself with satisfaction, I can definitely use that.
Wendy stared at her math homework despondently. While she'd been able to make some progress in her other subjects- she'd finally been able to put Peter out of her mind for at least a few minutes -math had remained elusive. She ran a hand through her hair, then laid her pencil down, letting out a sigh of frustration.
"Having trouble, Bird?"
Here we go again, Wendy thought. Out loud, she said:
"You're making it worse, Peter."
"I can make it better," he assured her. Ever the self-confident boy she'd known in Neverland, he walked towards her desk. He leaned over he back of her chair, scanning the problems in front of him. Acutely aware of his nearness, Wendy forced herself not to fidget. She reached for the pencil again, this time gripping it tightly in her fingers, if only to have something to focus on other than him.
He read the problem to himself, his voice whisper-soft, "A car and train set out at 3 p.m. from the same point, going in the same direction- what's a car?" Peter turned to her, so close his lips almost brushed her ear.
Wendy flinched, "They're like horseless carriages. You've seen them, Peter. They're all over town; I know you know what they are."
Ignoring her jab, Peter returned his attention to the problem, "The average speed of the car is 40 miles slower than three times the speed of the train. In two hours, the car is 30 miles ahead of the train. What's the speed of the car?"
Casually, he took her pencil from her clenched fingers and drew a chart in his scratchy writing:
d r t
car d + 30 3r-40 2
train d r 2
d + 30 = 2(3r-40)
d+ 30 = 6r-80
d = 2r
2r + 30 = 6r -80
110 = 4r
r = 27.5
"27.5 miles per hour," Peter concluded, rather pleased with himself.
"27.5 miles per hour," Wendy repeated, incredibly annoyed with herself. She knew how to do the problem. She'd understood it in class- all her notes said it. If only Peter hadn't been so distracting-
"See?" Peter picked up her hand in his, "You weren't substituting 2r for d. That's where you got confused." He made as if to guide her into writing the problem, but she shook him off.
"What?" Peter asked, "Wendy, I was helping you-" His green eyes flashed with annoyance.
"Peter, you don't help people, especially me, without wanting something. What do you want?" Wendy demanded. She knew how this worked. She knew how he worked. Nothing was ever for free; nothing was ever given without an ulterior motive.
Pan shrugged, "I was helping you without asking for anything in return, though I wouldn't object if you would come to Regina's mansion this evening."
"Why?" Wendy demanded.
Peter grinned, "The Boys miss you. And there are new ones. I was hoping you could tell them stories."
"Stories about what?"
"Me, of course," he smirked at her, as if wondering how she thought stories could possibly be about anything else.
"Which ones? The one where you slaughtered an entire crew of pirates? Or the one where you murdered Lost Boys for wanting to go home? Or the one where you imprisoned me and held me hostage so my brothers would work for you? Or maybe I should tell them how you wanted to kill Henry- how you tried, and how you failed," Wendy taunted him. As Peter stiffened, growing angrier and angrier with her condemnations, she continued:
"I know what you're doing, Peter. I know you're trying to get new Lost Boys."
"I'm not trying to do anything-" Peter insisted. He never tried things- he did things.
"Oh God, Peter Pan, don't lie to me," Wendy laughed, almost hysterically, "Not about something so obvious. I don't want any part of it. I'm not helping you, and I won't tell them you're something you're not. I found out the hard way exactly what you are." Her blue eyes stared into his green, cold and hard.
"And what's that?" Peter asked, meeting her gaze with a stormy one of his own.
"A monster."
A few days after speaking with his Shadow, Peter appeared in Wendy's treehouse. She opened her mouth to beg once again for Bae's release, but he held up a hand to silence her. Then he approached her bed, extending his hand to her:
"There's someplace special I'd like to show you."
Wendy narrowed her eyes at him, "Am I free?" Peter merely smiled at her. Wendy forced her blood not to boil. He was taking her outside of her treehouse. She didn't know where, and she didn't know for how long, but it seemed like forever since she'd had even a farce of freedom. Though she hated having him escort her, who knew if she would get this chance again?
Who knew if she'd ever get another opportunity to run for it? If she humored Pan, at least for a while appeared compliant, maybe she could find Bae and leave.
Or so she hoped.
Swallowing her pride, Wendy took his hand and followed him out the door. The Neverland night was cold, though at least it wasn't pouring rain. As before, Peter gathered her in his arms before taking off- he apparently didn't trust her with pixie dust, and she felt a grim satisfaction at that. As she lay in his arms, she looked over his shoulder, searching for one of the fires that would mark the Lost Boys camp for the night. There was a single pillar of smoke at one end of the island, and desperate to remember its location, Wendy turned her eyes upward to find a constellation to mark the spot. Hopefully Peter wouldn't change the constellations' positions again in an effort to throw her off, though she supposed he would probably just put up her looking around due to her first taste of freedom after being cooped up for so long.
At last, Peter landed. Wendy looked below and couldn't help the shriek that sprang from her throat. Beneath her, waves crashed onto sharp grey rocks. If she angled her face just so, she could see that the shape of the massive structure she was standing on was that of a skull. She leaned forward, surreptitiously, but Pan immediately grabbed her and pulled her back. She turned around, finding herself pressed against his chest, their noses almost touching.
"Don't look down," he warned her, "If you fall and hit those rocks, you'll die. Come with me." He took her hand again, then started to lead her up a flight of stairs. She tore her gaze away from the raging sea and followed. At the top of the stairs, they reached a stone chamber where a giant hourglass glittered. Massive gold pieces of sand, each glinting in the light, shimmered. Slowly, a grain of sand dropped, and Peter said:
"Another day in Neverland, over."
Despite herself, Wendy inquired, "Where are we, Peter?" She raked her gaze all over the chamber, taking in the rough-hewn walls, and yet crystalline hourglass that seemed so out of place in it.
"This is Skull Rock. It keeps track of time in the island."
"But time is frozen here," Wendy stated. That was the magic of Neverland- you never grew up. Time stood still; adventures could go on eternally.
"Not quite," Peter explained, "Time runs differently here, but it still goes on. This keeps track of it." He gestured to the hourglass.
Wendy couldn't help but be intrigued, "What do you mean?"
Peter led her towards the great hourglass, then placed her hand on it, "One day in your world is one year in Neverland."
Wendy ran her fingers down the warm surface, then pointed out, "It's your world too." She was curious whether or not he would admit to being the boy from Eton, or whether he would simply ignore her again. Apparently, he was feeling generous, for he said:
"It hasn't been my world for a very long time," Peter paused, and at her puzzled look, entreated, "Think of what I just told you, Wendy."
"You went missing from Eton two years ago-" the girl began.
A small smile played about his lips, "Two years on Earth; in the Land Without Magic. But for every day that passes there, a year passes here."
At that, Wendy froze. Her hand fell from the glass, and her mouth dropped open as she did a calculation in her head, "But that means you- you're- you're over seven hundred years old!"
Peter's face was impassive as he said, "Not quite. I'm older than that."
"That's impossible," Wendy said, and repeated herself, "It's just impossible-" How could he be over 700? He was so young- but if he lived that long, she wondered, what had the centuries done to him? To his personality? If he was that old, he wasn't the boy from Eton anymore. He was something else, something unnatural. Like Hook had warned her, he looked like a boy, but he was a demon.
"Nothing is impossible in Neverland," Peter asserted, "Unless you're slain or mortally injured, you can live forever. You and I both will." He cast a sidelong glance at her.
Wendy murmured, again watching the hourglass, "I don't wish to. I want to be normal." She couldn't bear to end up like him- some otherworldly caricature of the person she used to be.
"You, Wendy Darling," Peter chuckled darkly, "were never normal, and you never will be." He sounded almost fond of her, and since she knew that to be categorically untrue, it snapped Wendy out of her daze.
"Why are you showing me this, Peter?" Wendy asked, "What's the purpose?"
"Because I want you to understand how Neverland works," Peter replied, "This place runs on dreams and imagination, but because of that, it claims new parts of dreams and they fuel it. The reason Neverland was thrown out of balance when you left was because you were something new. When something new arrives, it frees something old to leave, but if nothing replaces it, the island is thrown out of balance," he looked at her pensively, seeing if she believed his lie.
"So you're saying that I was new to the island," Wendy bit her lip, "and it grew used to my presence, but then I left, and nothing came to replace me- until Bae."
Pan nodded, waiting for her to put the pieces together.
"So we couldn't leave together," she said at last, praying he would deny it.
"Not unless I took two others to replace you both," Peter answered, shattering her hopes.
Wendy looked at him in abject horror. She wouldn't condemn any boys to life here- not as it was now. Neverland was no longer the safe haven it had been. She wouldn't let Peter snatch boys to bring them here to what she now realized was an eternal prison.
"But if Bae replaced me," Wendy paused, considering the prospect, "and I'm here- now that I've returned- could he leave? Could he go?"
"If you stayed," Peter said, and after a moment, explained, "That's why I told you you'd never go to London together. In the balance of the island, his life equals your life, and your life equals his. One of you can leave if the other stays. But you can't both leave, or the island will die. I won't let that happen, Wendy- I will protect Neverland. Either one of you can leave, or both of you can stay. There's no other way to maintain the island's balance."
Wendy stood, staring at the hourglass for a long time. Then she sucked in a breath and faced Peter:
"Bae despises magic. He hates it. It broke up his family. He needs a family, so badly. He deserves one," she hung her head for an instant, then gazed at Peter, her eyes meeting his with a fierceness that surprised him, "It has to be me. Let Bae go. I'll stay- just- you must promise me that you will do some things, Peter."
Pan raised an eyebrow. He hadn't been expecting her to bargain, but he hadn't been expecting her to acquiesce so quickly, either. No matter the case, he supposed he could at least listen. He nodded, indicating that she should name her requests.
"Make sure Bae makes it back safely to our world. Make sure that he finds a family. As for my family...please don't let anything hurt my brothers. Ever," Wendy swallowed the lump in her throat, and blinked back a few tears.
Peter didn't say anything for a long moment, staring at the tears in her eyes. Then he said, "Consider it done."
About twenty minutes after Tink had kicked Felix out, she heard an angry Pan stomping down the stairs. He was muttering all sorts of curses under his breath, along with occasional outbursts of "Wendy," "girl," and strangely, "r." While it seemed odd to her that he'd taken the stairs- she was so used to him flying -if he truly was angry with Wendy (not an outlandish possibility), she could definitely see him using the stairs to emphasize his pique. After all, he couldn't use any of the techniques he had Neverland. It would void his contract.
As he made his way down the stairs, Tink mentally warred with herself:
Should I tell him? What if I'm wrong? What if Felix really does want to go back to Neverland with me? If I tell Pan, it would destroy any possibility of that...though Felix thinks I'm the one who left him...
But what if I'm right? she bit her lip, What if I'm right and something is terribly wrong with Felix? Could I ever forgive myself if I knew he was hurt and I let it go by?
She knew the answer: of course not.
Swallowing her pride, Tink interrupted Peter's thoughts, "Pan, I need to ask you something-"
Pan stopped, surprised. He smirked at her, "Ask me? What do you possibly think I could give you? Would give you? I already spared your life. That's more than I do for most people."
Tink flinched at his cavalier attitude, "This isn't about me. It's about Felix-"
"-don't," Pan silenced her. His smirk had disappeared, and his eyes were filled with anger- this time at her.
"I'm not asking for that," she said quickly, trying to assuage his anger, "I promise, I'm not. I just- it's just I think something is wrong with him. And I want you to...I want you to know. And look into it." She struggled to find the appropriate words.
"Look into it?" Peter mocked her, "Do I look like the sheriff to you?" He laughed at the comparison.
"Pan, listen," Tink insisted, forcing down her own rage, "He just came in to talk to me. He started asking me about us going back to Neverland, and if I knew what your plan was-"
"So he taunted you," Pan dismissed her words, "You know you're not welcome back, and I'd be a fool to allow you into my confidence again." Peter Pan was many things, but forgiving was not one of them. And despite what the stories of this world said about him, he never, ever, forgot.
"Peter," Tink dared to use his given name- something that she had once done so easily, but was now a dangerous wager on her part, "Felix asked me if I knew what he wanted. He tried to," she almost choked as she admitted, "-he tried to kiss me. You and I both know he wouldn't do that." Her heart constricted at the very words, and she blinked back tears, but it didn't take away the truth. Felix would never choose her over Pan. It simply wasn't in his makeup, especially with what he thought she'd done.
For an instant, Tink thought she saw a flash of sympathy in Peter's eyes, but it passed so quickly she knew it hadn't happened.
"No," Pan confirmed, "he wouldn't." A bit of pride had sneaked into his tone, but he crossed his arms and paced before her. He seemed both pensive and pleased.
"So you agree with me that something's wrong with him," Tink hazarded, almost pleading with Pan say yes. She knew if nothing else that Peter was the most powerful being she'd ever encountered, and in his way, he cared for the Lost Boys. If anyone could save Felix, if anyone would save Felix, it would be him.
"Oh, I know what's wrong with him," Peter said breezily, ceasing his pacing to glance over his shoulder at her.
"You do?" Tink said in astonishment, then with a bit of dread, "Please tell me you didn't cause it."
Pan raised an eyebrow at her, "Of course I know. I'm Peter Pan. And no, I didn't cause it. Regina did."
"Regina?" Tink repeated, utterly confused. What did she have to gain from all this?
"Oh yes," Peter replied, "I was wondering how long it would take her to do this. She was getting awfully slow-" he murmured the second part to himself, almost in disapproval. He'd thought her a more worthy foe than that.
"Peter," Tink said through gritted teeth, determined to get him to answer her, "What did she do?"
Pan looked at her with distaste. Normally he would have punished her for her insolence. Aside from the fact that he couldn't, due to his bargain with the Evil Queen and the Savior, and aside from the fact that Tink currently had the protection of the house, he knew she was only acting so out of sorts out of concern for Felix. He swallowed, and decided he would let it go- this once.
"She took his heart, of course," Pan smirked, "and now I'm going to get it back."
The day after Wendy and Peter had made their bargain, Peter had ended whatever spell kept Wendy locked in her treehouse. She was now free to roam the island as she wished, though as she was unfamiliar with it now, she stuck nearer to the Lost Boys. Now, much to her displeasure, their camp had moved nearby the Mermaids' Lagoon. While most of the Boys pitched their tents on the shore (Peter had decided to speak with the mermaids, and he was almost halfway in the lagoon. He, it seemed, was the only one the mermaids wouldn't try to drown), Wendy was determined to learn more about what had happened in Neverland. She sidled close to the one Lost Boy who had hinted at the truth to her.
"Rufio," Wendy asked, "Please tell me. Please tell me. If I'm to spend the rest of my life here..." she trailed off, "I need to know what happened when I was gone."
"Wendy," Rufio said evenly,"Do you know how long you've been gone?" He leaned against the pole he'd erected to hold up his tent, keeping his eyes fixed on the lagoon. He was watching for Peter's return- Wendy shuddered as she realized Rufio was nervous Pan would overhear them.
"Well," Wendy answered uncertainly, recalling her conversation with Bae, "I was only gone one night in London-"
"You were here for a year."
Wendy flinched. She'd been hoping Peter had lied to her about the time difference- he had lied to her during her first visit, after all, telling her time stood still in Neverland. However, Rufio had just confirmed Pan's words, meaning that she'd spent a year of her life in Neverland. A whole year of her life, turned into a single night. An entire year hat Peter had stolen, an entire year that she had missed, that she hadn't even noticed passing by. She had been so caught up in adventures- and in her heart, her stupid heart -that she'd never realized days were flashing by. She'd changed so much, and in London it had been reduced to just a dream.
"So?" Wendy asked at last, trying to ignore the horrible truth of it.
"Wendy, how long were you gone in your world?" the Lost Boy inquired.
"Three months," she replied. At Rufio's accusing look, she immediately grew defensive, "I thought Pan would let Bae go- I thought he wanted one of my brothers- I thought-" the excuses sounded feeble to her own ears. Shaking her head, she let the words die in her mouth.
"It's been almost a hundred years since you left, Wendy," Rufio reminded her.
"No!" she gasped, "It can't have been-" Although Peter had explained the way time worked in Neverland to her, she had a hard time believing it, even now.
Rufio nodded, "It's true." After a moment, he grabbed her hand, leading her into his tent. Apparently, he didn't want anyone to overhear what he was saying, even the Lost Boys.
"When you left, things began to happen here that never had before. The plants started to wither. Animals started to die. The seas grew choppy, and the mermaids came closer than they ever had before. They took quite a few new Lost Boys before Pan told them off-" he stopped, seeing Wendy's ashen face, "Pan knew something was wrong with the island. We knew something was wrong with the island, but we didn't know what exactly, and though none of us dared say it, neither did he. The island began to die, the Indians began to starve, and Peter held out as long as he could. He changed the environment. Used his imagination to reinvent things. But none of it worked," Rufio swallowed, no longer meeting Wendy's eyes, "I think it drove him a bit mad."
Wendy shivered at the prospect of a mad Peter Pan. Neverland has been his kingdom before. The land obeyed his every whim. What would an all-powerful being due if he truly was mad? And for Rufio to say such a thing about his leader...things had to have been very bad.
"One day, I told him that I thought it might have been you," Rufio looked almost ashamed, "The island was never the same after you left. I've never seen Peter so enraged- he drew his dagger on me; he would have killed me. I think the only reason he didn't was because he knew, deep down, that I was right. He'd come to the same conclusion, but he didn't want to acknowledge it. Still, you know Pan- he'd never admit such a weakness. He'd never admit that he couldn't take care of the island on his own," the Lost Boy's voice grew bitter as he continued his story, "He whipped me that night, in front of all the Lost Boys. Felix replaced me as his second, mostly because of his unending belief in Pan," Rufio snorted with disdain, "but Wendy, even though I knew it was you that had caused the change in the island, I still wouldn't have condemned you to come back. Not with the way things are now."
Wendy smiled sadly, "I don't think either of us have a choice," she paused, her pretty pink lips pursed, "At least Bae's safe."
Rufio eyed her, "Yeah. He left earlier today. I don't know where he went."
"He went home," Wendy said, tears sparkling in her eyes, "He went home. And he'll be with my brothers and my parents, and he'll have a family..." she trailed off, "He's home now."
Later that night, Wendy had decided to go to Granny's Diner. Aside from the fact that the last place she was planning on going was to Regina's mansion, there was also the problem that cooking here was harder than it had been in Neverland, where she'd had imagination and magic to aid her. Despite her best attempts, her dishes weren't the best in this world, and she wanted to get something edible. She'd asked Tink to come along, but the fairy had declined, claiming she was sick. Wendy knew she was lying, but didn't press the issue. Instead, she'd simply shrugged on her jacket and walked out the door. Felix, of course, melted out of the shadows to follow her. She didn't acknowledge his presence.
When she reached the diner, she opened the door and sighed. She hung her jacket on the hook beside her booth, then slid onto the cushions, opening the worn plastic menu to peruse the dishes that were still strange to her. Felix took a seat at the bar.
"What are you doing out of your nest?" a familiar voice asked her, "I thought you weren't planning on going anywhere tonight, as you refused my invitation."
Wendy sighed. She'd known this was a risk of coming here, but she'd hoped Peter was off skulking in Regina's mansion with the Lost Boys. It seemed he wouldn't let her eat her dinner in peace- but then again, he never had.
"What does it look like I'm doing, Peter?" she said sarcastically, "I'm getting something to eat."
Peter chuckled, "You're still mad at me." He seemed infinitely amused at the prospect. He, apparently, had forgotten his own ire with her.
"Is it that obvious?" Wendy retorted, flipping her a page on her menu.
Unperturbed by her disdain, Peter merely slid into the seat across from her.
"What are you doing?" Wendy asked.
He raised an eyebrow at her and replied, "I'm getting something to eat."
Wendy said, "No. What were you doing before I came in?" While it was true that being around her was seemingly one of his favorite pastimes, he hadn't known she was going to be here- he'd planned on being in Regina's -well, now his -mansion. That meant he'd been at Granny's on his own, up to his own devices. Knowing Peter, they couldn't possibly be good devices.
Peter shrugged, "I told you, Wendy. I wanted something to eat." His words were innocent enough, but his smile wasn't, and surreptitiously, his gaze flicked across the diner. Wendy turned to follow his gaze. Sitting in a booth in the corner, a well-worn book in front of him, was Henry Mills. He had a cup of hot cocoa in front of him, which he was occasionally sipping from, but otherwise, he was totally absorbed in the story.
"Henry? You can't hurt him. And he'll never give you his heart," Wendy asserted. Peter might still be determined to take Henry's heart, but Henry had to believe in him and offer it freely. Wendy was certain that Peter was the absolute last person Henry believed in right now.
Peter shrugged, "I don't need to hurt him. And you of all people know that it's better to not speak of what won't ever happen." He grinned at her.
"So what were you planning on doing? Strolling up to his table and asking to be friends?" Wendy scoffed, "You've more or less taken over Storybrooke. Do you really think no one notices you're here?" Even though her words were incredulous enough, she looked around and realized that most people, incredibly, were ignoring his presence.
Again, Peter smiled, "People like to ignore the more frightening things of the world. Besides, I haven't done anything. Well, aside from the Twins. But I haven't hurt anyone else. I obeyed my part of the agreement, so they obey theirs. People think I'm placated. The common people don't really worry anymore."
"And Emma and the Evil Queen?"
"They worry. But what can they do?" Peter pointed out, "they agreed to the game."
"Am I interrupting something?" their verbal sparring was stalled by Ruby. She stood in front of them, pen poised above her pad:
"Is this date night, then?"
"No!" Wendy said immediately, while Peter answered, "Yes." Wendy kicked him under the table, but he barely flinched.
Ruby raised an eyebrow, "Normally we don't serve serial killers."
"I've mended my ways," Pan assured her.
"Have you?" Ruby's tone was light enough, but her eyes were dark. Peter met her gaze with equal darkness:
"Yes. This place is hardly Neverland." He managed to sound so disdainful and uncaring that Wendy almost believed him. At Ruby's puzzled, but satisfied look, Wendy wondered how many people knew about particulars of the agreement at all. Had the Charmings truly succeeded in keeping what was truly at stake quiet from most of the townsfolk? Even from Ruby, who would serve as a great protector for Henry?
"What can I get you?" Ruby asked, tapping her pen on the paper.
"A grilled cheese," Wendy blurted the first thing that came into her head. Ruby's eyes moved to Peter for his order, but the boy's eyes went to Felix, still seated at the bar:
"Felix! Any suggestions?"
Obediently, the Lost Boy gave his leader a small smile, slid off his stool, and approached the booth. He looked over the menu, gray eyes scanning each item meticulously for something that he knew would satisfy Pan.
"Well then," Wendy murmured, "I'll let you two catch up while you make a decision." Then she slipped past a startled Ruby and hurried to the booth where Henry sat by himself.
"Hello," she said demurely. Henry looked up at her and smiled:
"Hi Wendy! Sit down!"
Wendy did, forcing herself not to look back at Peter- who she was sure was staring at her. She could feel his gaze on her back. Luckily, Henry didn't seem to notice. He grinned at her in perfect innocence. It was almost as though he didn't recall their time in Neverland at all- then again, she supposed, Henry hadn't quite known the extent of Wendy's role. He thought she was just Pan's prisoner, and later, part of the reason he'd made it home.
Her gut twisted- had she made a different choice, one single choice, Henry would have been dead. And he had no clue.
Still, Wendy reminded herself she made the choice she did for a reason. Henry was a good person- a good boy who didn't deserve to die, never mind be lied to and think he was sacrificing his life for a noble reason.
"How are you doing?" Henry asked cheerfully. He pushed his mug towards her, "Do you like hot cocoa?"
Wendy smiled, "I've been better. But Henry- I've been meaning to ask you," she bit her lip, "At night- do you hear music?" She was curious at the extent of Peter's reach, and if what Felix had said was true.
Henry's own smile faded, and he nodded, "Do you?"
"Yes."
They sat in silence for a moment, considering this. Idly, Wendy pondered if he had revealed this to anyone. It seemed like something Emma and Regina would want to know, but judging from Henry's face, he didn't want to worry the two women any more than they already were.
"You know, my mom says she they got Pan to back off, but I don't believe her," Henry confessed, "If he backed off, why would I still hear the music?"
"Felix once told me that everyone who stepped on Neverland's shores hears the music, forever," Wendy answered.
Henry frowned, forehead furrowed, "But we didn't hear it. Not 'til he came to town. I think he's up to something."
If you only knew, Wendy thought darkly.
"I think you're right," she admitted aloud, "but I don't know what to do about it."
"I've got a plan," Henry whispered, "but I don't think my moms will like it."
Intrigued, Wendy asked, "What is it?"
Henry looked back and forth, as if to be sure they wouldn't be overheard, "You can't tell anyone. I don't even know if I want to tell both my moms..." he trailed off, then said, "but I feel like I can trust you with Operation Raptor. You helped save me in the first place."
She smiled weakly, still slightly guilty about the choice she'd almost made, but, she reminded herself, she hadn't made it in the end. Henry was alive, and asking for her input. So it was that Wendy took Henry's hand in hers. She would never tell Pan what Henry revealed to her- she'd fooled Pan once, and she was sure she could do it again.
"So tell me," Wendy said, "What's Operation Raptor?"
Henry bit his lip, then whispered, "Pan can't take my heart if I don't have it, right?"
Wendy gasped, "What do you mean?"
The boy continued, "I want my mom to take out my heart and put it in her vault. I know she has a spell to make sure no one can get in but her. Actually, she should take out her heart too. That way Pan can't get our hearts, and he can't make my mom let him in without our hearts. He'd have no way to control us."
"He could threaten to kill you," Wendy noted. Peter never had been averse to death- his reentry into Storybrooke made that very clear.
Henry shrugged, "My mom would still never let him in. Plus, he needs me alive for the heart to stay alive."
Wendy paused to contemplate his plan in greater detail. It was crazy- absolutely crazy -but it was also crazy enough that it could stop Pan. Pan couldn't force Henry to give him the heart if Henry didn't have his heart at all. And he couldn't make Regina do so either. If no one had access to the vault but Regina...
"Henry," Wendy said, "That just might work."
Author's Note:
I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Please let me know what you think. :)
Also, just to recap a few things in case they weren't clear:
Time in Neverland: One year in Neverland equals one day in our world (at this point in the story).
How Neverland is Actually Sustained: Neverland needs at least one of whatever enters it to be stable/functioning well. So, if a boy comes from the Land Without Magic (our world), then it always needs at least one boy from the Land Without Magic to be stable. If a boy comes from the Enchanted Forest, the it always needs at least one boy from the Land Without Magic to be stable (there is more than one Lost Boy from the Enchanted Forest on the island at this point in the story, which is why Bae can leave). Essentially, if someone new comes from ANY world, it needs at least one of that someone from that world to be sustained. So when Wendy, the first girl from the Land Without Magic, left Neverland, there were no other girls from the Land Without Magic to replace her, and Neverland deteriorated and was thrown out of balance.
How Peter Lied to Wendy About How the Island is Actually Sustained: Peter twists the above to make Wendy believe that when something new comes to the island, that something new cannot leave until an additional something new replaces it. In other words, when Wendy came to the island, she was new, and the island could not survive when she left because no one had come to replace her. So she thinks that the only way Bae could leave (who was "something new" after her, and thus her replacement) is if she in turn comes back, "replacing" him. Wendy, at the time Peter tells her this, is so determined to get Bae to freedom that she doesn't really consider how the explanation Peter gives her has a major hole in it- if Bae replaced her, then the island shouldn't have deteriorated. She's just kind and wants to help Bae, so in the moment she vows to stay in his place. Later, she can't break the vow, so she's stuck on the island.
Thank you again for all your support!
~ladykikyo1792