Chapter 45: Neverland
Regina and Emma both emerged from below deck. Everyone was ready to go and was waiting on them.
"So what's the plan?" Regina asked crossing her arms.
"I received a small traveling mirror from Hook so we can keep in contact with Cora and keep an eye on Henry." Gold began. "Those with magic will take one without magic to the main land. Once we get there, we begin our journey to the other side of the island."
"Why can't we just sail to the other side?" David asked.
"Because it looks like a storm is coming soon and we wouldn't want to be caught out at sea in the middle of it." Hook explained.
"I hate storms here." Mandy mumbled.
"How long will it take to get to the other side of the island?" Snow asked.
"If we only rest at nights, than about 3 ½ days." Hook replied.
"But we are bound to run into problems along the way so it may take longer." Mandy added. "This Enchantress probably has some sort of evil henchmen working for her so be alert."
"Henry could be dead by then." Emma yelled.
"Emma, you mustn't think that way." Snow said taking hold of her daughter's shoulders, trying to calm her down. "We will save Henry and we will return home. You have to believe it!" Emma nodded trying her best to put on a brave face.
"Pair up with someone who has magic." Gold instructed the four without magic to do.
Neal grabbed onto Gold, Hook grabbed Regina, Snow went with Mandy and Emma was with David. "I don't know how to do this…" Emma pointed out before everyone left.
"It's fairly simple, Ms. Swan." Gold said. "Imagine the place you want to teleport yourself to, make sure you are holding onto David and it should work."
"What if it doesn't?" David asked a little worried.
"I'll take David too." Mandy said. "And someone else can take Emma."
"We need you to save your energy, so no more magic for you after this." Gold said to Mandy. "Regina will take Emma and I will take David."
Mandy put her hands on her hips. "That's not fair."
"Life's not fair, dearie. Deal with it." Gold said before disappearing with David and his son.
Mandy huffed and grabbed Snow's hand, and disappeared.
"Ready, Swan?" Hook asked.
"Regina, can I do it?" Emma asked. "I wanna practice."
Regina smirked. "If you would like to practice on the pirate, that's perfectly okay with me."
Hook shook his head. "Oh no, love. You have no idea what you're doing, you said so yourself."
"But I need to practice, Hook. Please!" She begged.
"Only if you kiss me." He grinned.
"No way! What are we 12?"
"Will you two make up your mind already, we don't have all day." Regina complained.
"What will it be, Swan?" He asked.
Emma really wanted to practice so she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "K, let's go."
"That's not fair, love. I didn't get to enjoy it." Hook whined.
"Oh well." Emma grabbed his arm and imagined the beach. She disappeared with Hook, she thought she definitely had it but she certainly did not. They ended up in the water a few feet from the shore.
"What's the big idea, Swan?!" Hook shouted as he spat out water.
"I thought of the beach but then I thought of the water…and that's kinda where we ended up." She gave him a shy smile. "Sorry."
He began mumbling swear words under his breath as he and Emma swam their way to join the rest of the group on shore.
"Emma, what were you thinking?" Snow scolded. "You could've gotten hurt."
"I needed to practice." She replied.
"Ms. Swan, I'd appreciate it if you didn't use your magic when you have no idea what you are doing." Gold said firmly. "You could seriously hurt someone."
"You wanted me to in the first place…" She mumbled rolling her eyes.
"Alright, let's go." Neal said to get the group moving.
"Follow me." Hook instructed hoping he would dry off on their journey.
"No, I think I better lead." Mandy said getting in front of him.
"And why is that?" He asked.
"Because you've spent more time on your ship than you have on land and I know this place inside and out." She replied proudly.
"I think we better follow her." David said. The rest of the group agreed much to Hook's dismay. "Fine. Have it your way. Lead the way girl."
Mandy began walking through the woods. Everything looked different to her but she didn't want to tell the group she didn't know exactly where she was. She didn't know if this was the curse's doing or the Enchantresses but things were definitely different.
"Remember to watch the skies as well for our little bird friends who like to come out and play." She reminded them.
They walked in silence for a good twenty minutes before someone spoke up. "So are we not gonna talk to each other the entire way?" Emma asked.
"What did you wanna talk about, love?" Hook asked.
"I don't know, maybe Gold could explain this Enchantress more?" She suggested as she climbed over a log. "Like what makes her so powerful?"
Gold exhaled loudly. "I don't think we should discuss that right now, Miss Swan."
Regina stopped suddenly, causing Hook to bump into her, and turned around. "Why not? What are you hiding Gold?"
Everyone stopped to listen to what Gold had to say. "Because I need all of you focused, not worrying more about Henry."
"What do you think we're all here for?" Snow shouted. "Henry!"
Gold pushed passed everyone, taking the lead. "Well now is not the time."
They were about to argue with him when a piercing screech echoed through the forest. They instantly dropped to the ground, except for Mandy and Hook who knew what it was.
"What the hell was that?" David asked as he helped Snow up.
Mandy and Hook instantly looked at each other. "Harpies!"
Mandy pulled Emma up quickly. "We need to move. NOW!" She took off running in the opposite direction of the screeches. Everyone followed her as best they could.
She was dodging trees, jumping over logs as she looked for something familiar that told her she was going in the right direction. She stopped when she saw what she was looking for. It was a hole dug into the ground, just big enough for kids. She was hoping they would all fit. She turned around to tell the group but no one was behind her. She rolled her eyes, "Come on, give me a break!" She ran back the way she just came, looking for the group. She heard screaming from the humans and screeching from the harpies.
She saw Regina and Gold fighting them off with their magic. The birds were attacking from the sky and from the ground. They weren't too affected by the magic and stood right back up. Mandy ran to join Gold and her mother in the fight. "Why isn't this working?" Regina asked in frustration as she threw a fireball towards a bird in the sky.
"Because they're immune to magic." Mandy tried explaining. "You have to kill them normally, like with a knife or something."
"Would a gun work?" Emma asked.
"Yes, do you have one?" She asked.
Emma nodded. "So do I." David added. "I always carry it with me since I took over as sheriff."
"Well do something, sheriff!" Regina yelled.
Emma and David pulled out their guns and began shooting the harpies down one by one. They didn't see the one come up behind them. The harpy grabbed Snow's shirt with its claws and began flying away with her. She began screaming and David quickly shot the bird down, careful not to hit his wife. She hit the ground with a thud. Neal and Hook went to help Snow as David and Emma kept shooting.
"Well, I think that's the last one." Emma said breathlessly as she lowered her gun.
"Good, cuz I'm out of ammo." David said chucking his gun to the side.
"Some retreated, but they'll be back now that they know we're here." Mandy informed them.
"Snow is hurt." Neal yelled from her side.
David rushed over to her. "What's wrong?"
"It's her ankle." Neal said. "No, I'll be fine, really." Snow said pushing David back. She tried to stand and put pressure on it but she fell back down.
"Clearly, you're not." Regina said to the younger woman. "Let me heal you."
"No." Snow said firmly. "No magic."
"We shouldn't be out in the open like this." Hook pointed out. "They could come back at any time."
Snow stood up, David tried to assist her but she pushed him away. "I can walk. Let's go."
Mandy eyed her cautiously as did the rest of the group but she proved that she could walk, even if she was limping.
"Do we know where we are?" Gold asked Mandy who was in the lead once again.
Mandy exhaled loudly. "Yes, Gold, I know where we are." She had a clue of where she was leading the group but wasn't too certain.
"I thought you trusted her, Crocodile?" Hook asked. "Did you lose your faith in her?"
"Well it does seem to be taking a while." Gold said.
"Sorry if it's not quick enough for you Gold." Mandy hissed. "I could've made it there by now if I didn't have all of you slowing me down."
"Well then why don't you go and get Henry and we'll wait here." Gold replied.
Mandy was perfectly okay with that. "Fine. Stay here."
Regina grabbed her arm just before she took off. "No way. You're staying here." She turned to face Gold. "Don't even joke about that."
Mandy pulled her arm from Regina's grasp and turned around to continue leading. "You never let me do anything. You're always treating me like a little kid." She said only loud enough for Regina and Emma to hear.
Emma put her hand on Regina's shoulder, bringing her out of her thoughts. "I know you want to protect her from everything, but you have to let her grow up."
"Considering we're in Neverland, a place where you don't age, that's going to be a little hard." She replied.
"You get my point…" Emma said before stepping in front of Regina to follow Mandy.
Regina indeed got her point. She knew Mandy had to grow up and make her own mistakes but she just wanted to hold onto her little girl for a little longer. But she saw how mature she was being when she took the lead and basically told everyone about this world.
They walked for a few more hours, having small side conversations here and there but it mostly remained silent. Mandy told them to whisper because yelling only brought them to the harpies attention. It started to grow dark and some people in the group started complaining that they needed to rest.
"We need to find a cave of some sorts for the night." Hook told them. "So the manticore won't find us."
"I haven't seen any cliffs or rocks big enough for a cave." David said.
"There isn't any around here and won't be for miles." Mandy said as she sat down and leaned against a tree.
"So are we just gonna sleep out in the open?" Emma asked placing her hands on her hips.
Snow sighed as she sat down to rest her foot. "What choice have we?"
They all knew they were spending the night right there. David and Emma began pulling out the blankets they had packed from Hook's ship and gave everyone one. Mandy volunteered to take the first night shift. Regina didn't want her to but she was trying to 'let her grow up' and she didn't want to give Mandy another reason to be mad at her. Mandy made everyone a tiny necklace that lit up in the dark so they could see each other.
"Give me the mirror, Gold." Regina demanded. "I want to check on Henry."
"You realize you can't spend too much time watching him through this mirror." He told her and the rest of the group. "The Enchantress will catch on."
Regina held out her hand impatiently. "Just give it to me, Gold."
"Here you are, dearie." He said reaching into his pocket and placing it in the palm of her hand.
Henry was sitting in a cell, deep within a cave. He was covered in dirt and looked like he's been thrown around a bit. His head was leaning against the cave wall with his eyes shut when he heard a door creak open and footsteps slowly approaching. His head shot up and opened his eyes quickly to see who it was.
"You look frightened, boy." A male voice said from the shadows.
"Who…who are you?" Henry asked trying not to tremble.
"Who I am is not important." He replied stepping closer to his cell. "You are."
"Me?" Henry asked surprised and confused. "What are you talking about?"
"The prophecy. Surely you've heard of it." The male voice said. Henry shook his head.
He smiled wickedly. "You're the key to unlocking a very big part in the Enchantresses master plan."
Henry stood up, clearly interested in hearing more. "What plan?"
"I don't want to spoil all the fun." The male said with a chuckle. "I'll let the Enchantress explain it to you. That's why I came here after all, to bring you to her."
Henry backed up until he hit the wall. He couldn't go back anymore, couldn't go anywhere unless it was with this person. As the cloaked figure stepped into the light, Henry could see his features a little better. He noticed that he couldn't be that much older than himself; he guessed this boy was about 16 or 17. The boy unlocked the cell, pulled Henry out and led him towards the door.
"What's your name?" Henry asked. He didn't want to think about the Enchantress and her plan at the moment. He was too interested in this older boy.
He looked down at Henry. "Why should I tell you?"
"What's the harm?" Henry shot back.
The boy thought it over for a minute as he kept walking with Henry through the tunnels. "Rom."
"Rom?" Henry repeated to double check he heard right.
"It's short for Romulus."
"How old are you and why are you working for this Enchantress?" Henry asked wanting to know more about this kid.
The older boy looked flustered by Henry's questioning. "I shouldn't be talking to you." He pushed Henry forward to walk a little faster and to shut him up. Henry got the hint and remained silent the rest of the way.
He led him into a huge room, a room no one would expect to be in a cave. Henry thought it had to be like a hidden fortress of some kind. "I've brought the boy. What shall I do with him?"
"Leave him." Tamara said. "She wants to speak with him." Rom nodded and left, leaving a tied up Henry with Greg and Tamara.
"Do you know why you are here, Henry?" Greg asked walking closer to him.
"Cuz you two brought me here…" He answered smartly.
"But do you know why?" Tamara asked now beginning to circle Henry as well.
"Something to do with magic?" Henry guessed.
"That's part of it, but so are you." Greg replied. "You and someone else."
"Who?" Henry asked.
"What the hell do you two think you are doing?" A shrill voice screamed from the opposite side of the room.
"We were just getting him ready for you." Greg answered. Henry could see Greg was scared of this person, this Enchantress, and he had every reason to be scared as well.
"Did I say to talk to him?" She asked storming over in a tight dark blue floor length dress.
"We thought it would be a good idea to scare him a bit." Tamara added.
The Enchantress sighed in frustration. "Do not talk to this boy unless I say otherwise." They nodded. "The birds have informed me that there are intruders on the island. I want them found and killed."
"Did they say who they were?" Greg asked.
"They are here for the boy, but they will not succeed in their quest." The Enchantress said firmly. "See to it they are killed."
"No, you can't kill them!" Henry shouted and seemed to be a little aggressive causing Tamara and Greg to hold him back. "They will win! Good always wins!"
The Enchantress walked over to Henry and lifted his chin. "We shall see about that…"
Henry pulled his chin away. "No! They will defeat you. All of you! My moms are going to be pissed when they get here and you all better watch out!"
The three villains enjoyed a laugh together at Henry's expense. "I don't think so little boy." She said through an evil laugh that sent shivers up Henry's spine. "Chain him."
They chained him to a wooden post in the middle of the room. She commanded Greg and Tamara to get another bird army ready for the next day so they left, leaving Henry alone with the Enchantress.
The Enchantress poured herself a glass of wine. "So tell me Henry" She took a seat across from him watching him struggle against the chains. "How will your mothers defeat me?"
"With their magic! They're gonna kick your ass!" He yelled.
The Enchantress gave him a slight grin. "Interesting. Anything else you'd like to share about your brave little army coming to your rescue?"
He shot her the same grin back. "No. You'll just have to wait and see what you're up against."
The gang watched Henry's encounter with the older boy, Greg, Tamara and finally the Enchantress herself. They didn't see too much because Gold snatched the mirror away. Regina and Emma weren't too happy with him but he could care less if they were happy or not.
They all scrunched together as night began to fall. It was becoming cold, just like Mandy said it would. Regina was stuck between Snow and Hook, much to her dismay. Everyone soon drifted off to sleep as exhaustion took over. Mandy sat in a tree, with a blanket wrapped around her, across from the group so she could keep a better eye on the surrounding area.
The stillness of the forest made her mind wander. She thought about how she and Peter used to take midnight flights over the island, looking up at the stars as they flew. It sadden her that she would never get to do that again, at least not with him. She was pulled out of her thoughts by a whisper of her name.
She looked down to see David who motioned for her to come down. She climbed down from the tree as quietly as she could not to wake anyone up. "What is it, David?"
"You look exhausted and you're shivering." David pointed out. "Why don't you rest and let me take a turn."
"No, I'm fine." Mandy said waving him off. "You don't know what to look for anyway."
"Miranda, I understand you want to help out as much as you can but you won't be any use to us if you wear yourself out." David said as he gripped her shoulders. "Do us all a favor and rest."
Mandy nodded. She told David what to be looking for before she walked over to the group. Regina saw Mandy looking for a spot between someone. She tried making room for her but Mandy chose Emma instead of her. A small tear escaped her eye. She seemed to have lost yet another child to Emma Swan.
Mandy lay down next to Emma, trying to get warm. Emma greatly accepted and repositioned her body to welcome Mandy. She wrapped her arms around the teenager as Mandy snuggled closer to her, almost instantly falling asleep.
Emma remained awake though. She thought about Henry and how he was probably all alone, freezing in that cave. She just wanted her child back. She hugged Mandy tighter as if that was going to make up for the loss she felt.
An hour later, David heard something in the distance. He quickly woke the group and they were now on high alert.
"It found us." Mandy whispered.
"What are we going to do?" Neal asked worriedly.
"Is it also immune to magic?" Emma asked quickly. Mandy only nodded.
"We need to move!" Gold informed.
Mandy didn't say anything before she took off running. She took the necklace out of her shirt so everyone could follow her blue light. The other's followed her example, as a rainbow of colors began to emerge. They heard a loud roar coming from behind them.
"It's gonna get us!" Neal screamed.
"Just keep going! We are almost there." Mandy yelled back.
They kept running as fast as they could as the roars grew louder as the manticore was getting closer and closer to them. Mandy finally reached the place she had been wanting to be since they first got to the beach. She opened a hatch that led underground.
"In here!" She yelled pointing to the hole in the tree. Emma didn't think twice before she slid down. Neal and Gold quickly followed.
"You want me to go down there?" Regina asked disgusted
"Just go!" Mandy yelled as she pushed her down the hole. Regina went down screaming the entire way.
"Come on!" She yelled to David who was carrying Snow because she couldn't run.
David sent Snow down the hole when a huge roar and growl came from behind them. They turned around to see the manticore staring directly at them. Mandy quickly pushed David down the hole and shut the hatch.
She needed to get the manticore away from their hiding spot. She took off through the woods, with the beast hot on her trail. She quickly climbed a tree, putting the light around her neck back inside her shirt so it would be harder to find her. She found the flower she was looking for and rubbed it all over her body, disguising her odor so the beast couldn't smell her. She remained as still as could be as she heard the manticore's heavy breathing just inches away from her. She held her breath as the beast sniffed around her. It grew tired of searching for the girl and ran back through the woods in search of new prey.
I was having some trouble writing this chapter making sure it was good enough…let me know what you think, I'm still a little iffy.