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ravenknockss · 4 months

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CHAPTER FOUR: BRIDGING THE DIVIDE

CHAPTER SUMMARY: Needing a way to send a message to Henry, the adults and Marceline come across Devin and capture him. Meanwhile back at camp, Henry meets a Lost Boy who could very well be his only ally.

SUMMARY: A war of centuries has been raging on Neverland, Lost Girls versus Lost Boys. When they escape the island and the grip of Peter Pan, the two factions must reconcile with each other in a brand new world.

WARNINGS: implied sa, mentions of child death, indoctrinated/conditioned children, brainwashing children.

AUTHOR’S NOTE: cross posted on ao3

Regina walked to Marceline’s quarters and stood in front of the door, preparing to knock.

“Come in, your Majesty,” Marceline’s voice called from the inside. Regina’s brow knit in confusion as she lowered her raised fist to open the door and enter. “Did you need something?”

“No…” Regina said, looking into Marceline’s eyes as the girl sat by the window with a cup of steaming tea. “I was wondering if I could speak with you.”

“Of course,” Marceline smiled softly, gesturing to the empty seat across the table. Regina approached her and sat down, smoothing her blazer. “One cube or two?”

“Pardon?”

“Sugar,” Marceline answered, pushing a small cup toward Regina. “for your tea.”

“Oh no thank you…” Regina smiled as she put the rim to her lips.

“You said you wished to speak with me?”

“Yes,” Regina said, setting the cup down. “You said that when we get Henry you wanted us to take your girls as well as the Lost Boys… what if you came with us?”

Marceline tensed before placing her own cup down with a quiet clatter. “I can’t.”

“Why?”

“When you leave the island, someone will have to stay and fend off Pan to protect the Lost Ones,” Marceline replied, gazing at Regina in solemn determination. “Even if they leave the island, his shadow, his magic can still reach them. I need to stay to keep them from him.”

Regina’s gaze softened. “Why does it need to be you?”

“I’m the only one who’s able to keep him at bay. I was destined to be locked in battle with him for eternity the minute I realized Evelyn was gone. The Lost Ones don’t have to be tied to that same fate.”

“What if we kill him? Now I know that the more… heroic of my compatriots wouldn’t necessarily be in favor of that, but if we can get rid of Pan we can free you too.”

Marceline let out a sigh before rising to her feet and staring out at the moonlit jungle. “Tempting but no. One thing I’ve learned about Pan is that he’ll never relent. He won’t stay dead and when he returns, I’d be bringing more innocents into our conflict. It’s safer for your realms if I stay here.”

Regina stared up at Marceline, heart panging in her chest. No child should have to carry such a heavy weight on their shoulders. “If that’s what you think is right…”

Marceline gave an affirming nod.

“I’ll be going then,” Regina answered.

Rumplestiltskin stood in the library, sifting through tomes and journals, with an expression of mild appreciation for the expansive studies conducted by these girls. Footsteps approached from behind him.

“What’s that?” Regina asked.

Rumplestiltskin turned the book and read the cover: “The Theory of Geographic Magical Thresholds.”

“Sounds enticing.”

“It is, actually,” Rumplestiltskin answered, turning to meet the Queen’s eyes. “It’s a theory about why different realms have different magical climates and rules of operation. It also offers a reason why Neverland is so… imaginative.”

“Well while we’re in this makeshift library,” Regina said. “I need your help finding a solution to our Pan problem.”

Rumplestiltskin chuckled, closing the book and reshelving it. “Killing Peter Pan? You may be good, dearie, but you’re not as good as he.”

“What about us? Together, we could give Pan a run for his money.”

He thought for a moment. “It’s entirely possible, but we can’t afford to fail and… Emma’s magic is shaky at best.”

Rumplestiltskin began to walk past Regina, but she caught his arm. “What about Marceline?”

“Who? The Lost Girl who rebelled against Pan? She may be knowledgeable, but we don’t know how well she does in combat.”

“She’s prepared to fight Pan for the rest of their lives!”

Startled by Regina’s sudden outburst, he replied with uncertainty, “Good for her.”

“We can’t leave her to that,” Regina said forcefully. “If you’ve spoken to her then you know she…”

“Know what? That she picked a fight with one of the most powerful beings I’ve ever come across in my life for a friend? Sounds like that’s her problem.” He pulled his arm out of her grasp as he began to walk away.

“Gold!”

“Why do you care so much, dearie?” Rumplestiltskin scoffed. “We’re here to get Henry, I don’t care about some lost girl with a tragic backstory. Marceline has her own problems and we have ours.”

“Concentrate Henry,” Pan’s voice said as he circled around the boy. “This is Neverland! You can conjure anything you want if you just believe.”

Henry took a deep breath, trying to shake the feeling of the eyes of the Lost Boys.

“Oh please,” one of the Lost Boys scoffed. “He’s not gonna do it. He’s been trying for three minutes!”

Felix’s voice cut through the air, stabbing at the mouthy boy. “Shut it, Devin. Have some faith in the boy.”

The boy sighed through his nose and gripped his spear, leaning back against the tree trunk.

“You can do this, Henry. I believe in you,” Pan said just as a carafe of lemonade appeared in Henry’s hand. As the condensation dripped through Henry’s fingers, he opened his eyes and beamed in awe. “You must have been thirsty.”

“I am,” Henry smiled before holding out his other hand, summoning plastic straws in his hand. “Come on, you guys!”

The other Lost Boys smiled, rushing forward to take a sip. Pan and Felix smiled down at the boys, huddled over the carafe—pushing each other out of the way for a sip to quench their thirst. Devin rolled his eyes and stood, walking over to the boys with a sneer. Grabbing one of the boys by their hood, he pulled him back and took hold of the straw.

“Nice going, wonder boy,” Devin scoffed, wiping his mouth. “But how is this going to help us kill Marceline?”

The other boys quieted down as Pan stared warningly at Devin.

Henry looked at Pan and back at Devin. “What do you mean, kill Marceline?”

“We don’t need to kill Marceline to defeat her,” Pan answered.

“Yeah because she’s going to give up,” Devin snapped. “To get rid of Marceline, we have to kill her. Tear off her head and put it on a stake!”

Henry’s eyes welled with fear as he stared at Pan who glared venom at Devin.

“Shut your mouth, Devin,” Felix hissed, grabbing the freckled brunette’s collar. “or should I shut it for you?”

“Stand down Felix,” Pan sighed before taking Henry’s shoulders. “Walk with me.”

Henry followed Pan into the treeline, staring back at Devin and the other Boys.

“I’m not going to kill her!” Henry declared once the boys were out of sight.

“Henry, listen to me,” Pan said, sitting down on a rock. “Sometimes heroes have to make sacrifices for the greater good. They have to slay the dragon to protect the kingdom and no one gives the fire-breathing reptile any thought. Marceline is your dragon, Henry.”

“I don’t care!”

Pan sighed and stood up. “I really didn’t want to resort to this.”

“What?”

“Come on.”

Henry stood for a few moments, conflicted as Pan walked deeper into the jungle. He followed hesitantly, ready for danger, but all of that fizzled into melancholy as he stood next to Pan—overlooking a pit of bones.

“What is this place?” Henry inquired, voice trembling.

“This is the place where we take our fallen boys,” Pan said. “Killed by Marceline and her Lost Girls. There’s at least a hundred skeletons.”

“A hundred?” Henry croaked, eyes watering as he stared down at the skulls and bones. “Marceline… she killed everyone here?”

“Down to the last boy,” Pan sighed. “Henry, I’m sorry I had to show you this. I didn’t know how else I’d get you to understand.”

“No,” Henry answered, voice wobbling. “I’m glad you did.”

Pan breathed and pulled Henry into a gentle embrace, cradling the sobbing boy in his arms as he smirked down at the pit—the illusion shifting in the fog.

“We should get back,” Peter sighed, guiding Henry away from the pit. “No one should stay here longer than they have to.”

Devin scowled as he stared down into the blazing bonfire at the center of camp from his favorite tree branch. His leg was propped up on a higher tree branch while he played with a knife in his free hand.

“Got a moment?” Pan’s voice inquired from above him, startling the boy enough to drop the knife.

Devin turned and gulped, nodding. He watched Pan suspiciously as he sat down on the higher branch.

“What is it?”

“When Henry defeats Marceline and saves magic, Marceline will be left alive but that’s only because death would be too kind for her,” Pan said. “When the Lost Girls are gone and she’s alone, Marceline will join us.”

“How is that a solution?” Devin scoffed.

“Tell me Devin… have you ever wanted a pet that you could do anything to? Could play all day long and would never make any mess?”

“Who doesn’t?”

“How would you like that kind of pet, Devin?”

“Where are you going with this?” Devin inquired.

Pan leaned in and whispered. “Marceline will be our pet… and we’ll do whatever we want with her.”

A devious grin broke out across Devin’s lips. “How far can I go?”

“As far as you see fit,” Pan smirked, leaning back. “Make her regret everything she’s done.”

“I think I’m going to hunt,” Devin grinned, jumping down from the tree and snatching the blade from the ground.

“Attaboy.”

Marceline sat in her quarters, drumming her fingers on the windowsill as the door opened behind her.

Emma’s voice spoke first. “You said you wanted to see us?”

“Yes,” Marceline replied, standing and turning around. “We may not be able to get Henry yet, but… perhaps you can get him a message.”

Regina and Rumplestiltskin shared a glance before the Dark One piped up. “And how are you planning on doing that, dearie? Pan will have protections.”

“And I don’t recall seeing a Neverland Post Office,” Emma added.

“Then I guess we’ll make one,” Marceline grinned, walking over to her workbench and plucking a glass vial from the table. “We just need someone that can get in and out of Pan’s camp easily.”

All eyes turned to Tinkerbell. “No!” the fairy protested. “I’m not endangering myself for some flimsy plan!”

“Oh, I wasn’t talking about Tinkerbell,” Marceline added.

“Then who are we getting?” Hook inquired.

“We’re going hunting,” Marceline grinned. “For a Lost Boy.”

A pit formed in the stomachs of David, Hook, and Neal as they exchanged wary glances.

Devin traversed the jungle with his spear at the ready, adrenaline rushing through him as he thought of the witch responsible for the death of his brothers. Ripping past trees, his thoughts overflowed with memories of Rufio, Plank, and countless others. He remembered the fires that consumed their camps, the bones haphazardly buried beneath the topsoil, the entrails strewn across the trees.

He had no idea how fast he was running or how far from camp he had strayed, but now all he could think about was how he was going to punish the evil witch that had dared to stand against Peter Pan and the Lost Boys, who brutally murdered his fellow boys. When he came across a baby boar grazing in the brush, he jumped forward without thinking, prepared to stab the pig in the gut before a force pushed him against a tree. He grunted and groaned, trying to pull away from the rough bark and the vines that slithered around him, but it was no use.

“That was easy,” Regina scoffed as she and two other women approached him.

“What the hell?” Devin exclaimed. “Are you trying to start a war with Pan?”

Emma approached him, seething with rage. “Pan started the war when he kidnapped Henry!”

“And besides,” a voice lilted from higher in the tree. “We’ve all been at war for quite some time.”

Devin tried to crane his neck up, but he couldn’t see far. “Who.. who’s there?”

“Guess,” the voice answered from in front of him.

His head dropped, looking directly ahead of him. A brunette, dressed in a tattered chemise under leather armor, stared at him with chilling hazel eyes.

“You,” he growled, lurching forward to try and break through the vines. “It’s you!”

Emma, Regina, and Snow looked at him warily as he and Marceline stood a couple feet from each other.

“It is,” Marceline answered smoothly. “Who are you, anyway? I could’ve sworn I’ve seen you on the island before, but… your name slipped my mind.”

“I’m not telling you anything, witch!” Devin hissed. “Pan’s coming! He’s training Henry to defeat you.”

Marceline had to suppress a chuckle. “Is that so?”

“Henry?” Emma inquired. “Why Henry?”

“He has the Heart of the Truest Believer!” Devin smirked. “He’s the one who’s going to stop Marceline from stealing Neverland’s magic!”

Regina turned away, chuckling lightly as Marceline let out a small titter. Snow and Emma looked at each other.

“Why are you laughing?” Emma asked. “Is this true?”

“It’s false to the point that it’s funny,” Regina scoffed. “Look around you, Emma! Magic is dripping from the leaves! You can’t just steal magic from a place that supposedly has an infinite amount!”

“You’re lying!” Devin protested.

“She really isn’t,” Marceline answered.

“It doesn’t matter,” Emma sighed, approaching Devin with kind eyes. “Tell us where Henry is.”

“Why should I?”

“When we leave this island, we can take you and the rest of the Lost Boys with us. You can have a home!”

“Adults really are stupid.”

“Excuse me?”

“Why do you think we’re here?” Devin snapped. “We’re here because we don’t want to go home! Our homes were where we learned that we were alone. Pan gave us a place where we could be together.”

“Really?” Marceline smirked, staring into Devin’s blazing blue eyes. “What happened to Slightly?”

Devin lurched forward with glassy eyes. “You and your girls slaughtered him! Strung him up against the Hanging Tree!”

“I wish we could take the credit, but my girls had nothing to do with Slightly’s untimely demise.”

“Likely fucking story!” he roared, struggling against his binds.

“You remember what happened before Slightly,” Marceline said, stepping closer to him. “How there was a lull in the camp. All the boys were tired and weary from running and hiding. No new boys had shown up in decades…”

“What are you saying?”

“What would be the best way to rekindle those dying flames of vengeance?” Devin stayed still, glaring up at her. “Slightly was always the one who questioned Pan… why not kill two birds with one stone?”

“Then I guess Slightly should’ve known better,” Devin answered.

Snow stared at Devin, tears welling in her eyes. They weren’t tears of sorrow or pity, but rather of fear. He stared at her, a subdued grin playing on his face.

“Emma…” Snow mumbled as she walked into the treeline. “Emma, I can’t.”

“Mary-Margaret, wha—?” Emma said, following after her.

Regina rolled her eyes as she stared at the boy.

Emma stopped at the edge of the treeline, pulling Snow back.

“Emma… I,” Snow sighed.

“Hey… Mary-Margaret, what is it?”

“His eyes,” Snow breathed, sniffling slightly. “He didn’t even care that Pan killed his friend!”

“Yeah,” Emma mumbled. “It seems like they’re more loyal to Pan than we thought.”

“I…”

“What?”

Snow looked up at Emma. “I don’t think he’s even a boy anymore.”

“I don’t think any of them are,” Emma answered forlornly, looking back at Devin who stared directly at her with murder in his eyes. “Even the girls.”

“I’m starting to think Neal and David were right.”

“What are you saying?”

“I don’t think we should bring them back with us,” Snow breathed. “They’re too far gone.”

“How do you know that?”

“Look at him, Emma!” Snow urged. “Even if Pan’s gone… his influence on them won’t be.”

“Then we help them!” Emma protested. “How do you know what’s too far gone? Who are you to tell me that they’re past hope!”

Regina walked up next to them. “I think Snow’s right.”

“What?”

“Listen, I’ve been trying to act more… heroic lately, but I don’t think they would be good for Storybrooke,” Regina sighed.

“What?”

“Pan has been manipulating them for… we don’t even know how long,” Regina reasoned. “They’ve been conditioned… heavily.”

“Then we uncondition them!” Emma snapped.

“Listen, Emma. I get that this is a sensitive subject for you but… Snow’s right,” Regina answered. “they don’t know how to be regular boys and girls anymore.”

Henry sat in the camp, staring at the bonfire dancing in the middle of haphazardly made tents and forts. His mind swam with thoughts of his mothers, his father, his grandparents. A pit grew in his stomach as his heart began to waver.

“You’re Henry, right?” a boy’s voice said from above him.

He turned his head as the boy sat down. Henry surveyed him. This boy was much different from the others. His hair was messy, but still clean, as were his clothes. Everything he wore fit better than on any of the other Lost Boys and there was a certain sparkle in his eyes.

“Yeah, that’s me,” Henry answered.

“I’m Morgan,” the boy greeted with a welcoming smile. “I’m here to help you make your Lost Boy vestments.”

“Oh… thank you,” Henry replied, mildly surprised at Morgan’s articulate and polite behavior. “Uhm… why?”

“Well… if you’re going to defeat the wicked witch of the woods with the power of imagination, you’ll at least need to look the part,” Morgan smiled, pulling out some brown fabric. Henry knit his brow. Something in him sensed that Morgan didn’t exactly believe Pan either. “Have you had any previous sewing experience?”

“Uh no,” Henry answered, scooting closer to Morgan. “Hey, could you tell me more about the witch?”

Morgan tensed before brushing it off with another bright smile. “Didn’t Pan already tell you everything?”

“Well yeah but… if I have to defeat her, then I need to know things about her.”

Morgan pushed fabric in front of Henry with a needle and thread. “Here, this is a backstitch. It takes longer, but your clothes will thank you in the long run… also gives you something to do… why don’t you try it?”

Henry picked up the needle and followed Morgan’s first stitch. “So what do I do?”

“Make a straight stitch and then double back.”

“Right.” Henry stared down at the fabric and slowly put the needle through the fabric, pulling it through.

“And then put it through the first hole you made.” Following the instructions, Henry continued in the same manner, making a shaky line across the length of the cloak. “You got it!”

“Thanks,” Henry answered, offering a brief smile.

“You’re a fast learner.”

“I guess.” He paused and turned toward Morgan. “So… who exactly is Marceline?”

Morgan took a breath, leaning further down as his eyes periodically scanned the camp.

“Marceline is…” Morgan replied lowly. “She’s a Seidr worker.”

“What’s that?”

“Magic from the Land without Magic,” Morgan answered. “It’s old, ancient magic from when the world was still young and the gods governed the earth.”

“So you’re saying that the myths from, like, the Greeks are true?”

Morgan gave a lopsided smile. “We’ll never know, but… the story of Marceline and Pan is the closest thing to a myth I know is true.”

“So… seidr,” Henry mused. “Is that why Pan wants me to defeat her?”

“No no… it’s much more complicated than that.”

“How complicated?”

“Convoluted. It’s fucking… fucked.”

Henry’s eyes widened. “Don’t say that!”

“Say what? Fuck?”

“Yeah! You shouldn’t say that!”

“Have you ever actually sworn in your life?”

“No.”

“It might do you some good, especially now that you’re here.”

“Anyways… Marceline?”

“Yeah… so there were some bridges built, things were said, things were done, and then the bridges erupted in flames and burned to ash with no hope of being rebuilt.”

“Vague much?”

“I can’t say much,” Morgan answered. “I’m not exactly in great standing here…”

“What do you mean?”

“I was close with Marceline before the split… they’re all pretty suspicious of me as it is.”

Henry let out a breath and looked around the camp, spotting Felix weaving some rope by the fire.

“Nevermind… I’ll ask Felix.”

“Bad idea.”

“Why?”

Morgan looked up at him. “Felix is Pan’s second-in-command. He’s also been here longer than any of us. He’s seen more combat than anyone else on the island—except maybe Pan. I’ve seen him push boys up against trees and beat them half to death because he had a bad day.”

“Well, it won’t be a very good idea on his part to beat up the one who has the Heart of the Truest Believer,” Henry answered as he walked to Felix, ignoring Morgan’s further warnings.

Sitting down next to the tall boy, Henry stared up at him expectantly.

“What do you want, boy?” Felix drawled.

“What exactly happened between the Lost Boys and Marceline? What makes you think that she’s stealing magic?”

Felix whipped his head to face Henry before sending a glare to Morgan.

“Why do you want to know?” Felix hissed. “Didn’t your mother tell you to not ask so many questions?”

“Actually, she encouraged me to,” Henry answered coldly. “It’s called critical thinking, I wouldn’t expect you to know it.”

Rage simmered in Felix’s eyes before Pan appeared behind him and spoke.

“Stand down Felix, let’s tell him.”

Henry looked up into Felix’s eyes, baffled as the rage in the larger boy’s blue eyes dissipated into a gaze that Henry couldn’t place.

Pan sat down next to Henry, straddling the log next to the fire, staring into it. “Marceline came to me in a dream. Her friend was dying at sea and she couldn’t find a cure. We came up with a deal. I’d heal her friend so long as she stayed with me in Neverland and searched the threads of fate to find you.

“In any case, she hid from me for a while, having found the secret of Neverland’s healing spring. When I found her, she was with her two friends, Katherine and Evelyn—the previously sick one. They had built a cottage behind the Echo Cave. Katherine prepared the meals, Evelyn tidied up, and Marceline went out to hunt and study the land.

“I invited myself over and indulged in a home cooked meal, reminding them of our deal. After that, they joined the Lost Boys, but Marceline was always skeptical of me.”—Pan grinned at the memory.—“She was a sponge of knowledge. Always wanted to know more, learn more and share it with the world.”—He reached over Henry and nudged Felix.—“You remember her rant about physics and how flying shouldn’t have been possible…”

Felix snorted slightly. “And then she tried to make a micro-magnifiying glass to analyze it and see if pixie dust had gravity altering properties.”

Henry’s eyebrows furrowed. “A microscope?”

“Sure whatever.”

Pan continued. “In any case, time went on and boys became more common on the island. Eventually she warmed up to us and we fell in love. I helped her understand magic and her own powers. She helped me understand the island. After we… connected for the first time, the shadow started bringing girls to the island.

“All good things come to an end. She began to grow… discontent with the way the Lost Girls were being treated by the boys. I don’t really understand why. They were never in any danger, they just had to clean up the camp but I digress… they were angry, she was angry, and she got a bit too resistant…”—Pan gave a sad, lopsided smile.—“…even for me.”

Henry looked into the fire. “So… what happened?”

“She and her girls became more mean-spirited toward the rest of the boys and when I told her to stop…”

“What?”

“We got into a fight. A big one.”

Felix piped up, an uncharacteristic amount of awe apparent in his voice. “A battle that uprooted thousands-year-old trees, shook mountains, and cracked the earth.”

Pan sighed. “Yeah… that big. Amid the fighting, her friend Evelyn tried to intervene, get us to come to a reasonable solution. I don’t know whose spell hit her, but before we knew it, she was on the ground—cold and limp.

“Marceline blamed me for it and took her girls away, building four outposts on the island. In the tragedy, something else happened…”—Pan leaned in.—“In her grief, her anger, her madness, she triggered something I never thought possible. She willed the island to grant her its power. She… chained Neverland, the birthplace of dreams, to her for her own selfish needs.

“That’s why we need you Henry! My magic is strong, but not nearly strong enough to beat Marceline. Your magic… the magic of belief, imagination, innocence, it will save Neverland and all the realms.”

Pan stared into Henry’s eyes with a desperate glimmer as Henry stared into the fire, jaw clenching and unclenching as he processed the information.

“Henry?” Pan asked. “Is something wrong?”

Henry seethed. “Yeah, with her. She’s going down.”

#lost boys #peter pan ouat #regina mills #snow white and prince charming ouat #emma swan #16+ mdni #ouat neverland #peter pan #dead dove do not eat #captain hook ouat #neverland ouat #tw emotional manipulation #tw child death #tw implied sa

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ravenknockss · 5 months

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CHAPTER THREE: HAUNTING PAST

CHAPTER SUMMARY: Baelfire and Rumplestiltskin rejoin the others as the adults grapple with information of Marceline’s past.

WARNINGS: implied cannibalism, child abuse, child soldiers, dehumanization, graphic depictions of violence, mentions of gore, misogyny, implied underage teenage sex, implied sa, religious trauma

AUTHOR’S NOTE: cross posted on ao3, MDNI 16+

The shadow’s cold grip released itself, sending Neal plummeting through the humid night air and into the twisted canopy of rough branches and damp leaves. He grunted and groaned, haphazardly trying to shield himself from the blow of the trees, before he fell to the ground with a loud thud. Letting out a pained grumble, Neal stood up. Despite his predicament, a wave of nostalgia pushed through him. He was actually here, on Neverland, after so many years away. Neal let out a sharp breath, steeling his resolve. If he wanted to reconnect with his family, with Henry… he’d have to go through Peter Pan first.

Just as he prepared to traverse the jungle, a familiar drawl from behind him spoke, “Welcome home, Baelfire.”

Neal turned, meeting the eyes of Pan’s second, Felix. Neal let out a breath through his nose, watching as Felix straightened himself from the tree trunk he leaned on and sauntered over to him with his usual swagger.

“Felix,” Neal sighed. “What’s all this about?”

Felix held up a length of rope, staring down at Neal with his cold steel gaze. “Let’s not make this messy, Baelfire.”

“Oh that’s too bad… I do like messes…” Another voice rasped from behind them. Neal and Felix froze. Turning, Neal locked eyes with a small girl who couldn’t be older than fourteen, bones sewn together as makeshift armor. She looked over at Felix, charcoal eyes sparkling wickedly behind a few loose strands of her fiery red hair. “Been a while, Felix…”

The hooded Lost Boy pulled his club off of his shoulder, surveying her cautiously and readying himself for attack. Neal gulped, watching as the girl stepped toward them, eyeing Felix as if he were prey.

“Annabel,” Neal murmured, body tense as he watched the bones move on her form, mind wandering as to who those bones belonged to.

As if flipping a switch, Annabel turned to the older man and beamed happily. “Bae! You’re back!”

“I’m not here for you,” Neal snapped. “I’m here for my son.”

“Oh that boy that got dropped here a few days ago?” Annabel scoffed. “Yeah, Pan’s toys got to him first…”

“You’re not getting the boy,” Felix snapped, stepping toward Annabel and pushing her into the tree trunk with his club. “Neither of you. The Heart of the Truest Believer… belongs to Pan.”

“Oh my god!” Annabel groaned ostentatiously. “Again with all of this truest believer bullcrap.”

“What’s it to you?” Neal asked.

“All this time spent on this stupid war over some scroll that Marceline drew up for Pan centuries ago?” she scoffed. “You’d think that little green chucklefuck would have gotten bored by now…”

Felix pushed his club further into her ribcage.

“What did you say?” Neal murmured. “Marceline told Pan about my son?”

“That kid’s your kid?”

“Yeah!”

“Shit.”

“You’re kidding me,” Neal seethed, pushing past Felix and grabbing Annabel by the collar. “You’re saying I trusted her? And she’s the reason Pan’s been after my son!”

“Uh… what? No! No. What I meant to say was—“

“Shut up! Don’t lie to me. Don’t you fucking lie to me!” Neal roared, furious tears building in his eyes. “I trusted you girls…”

“You knew us as well,” Annabel chuckled impishly before lunging forward and sinking her teeth into Neal’s arm. He screamed, releasing his grip and stumbling back. She stepped forward, blood smeared on her lips as he cradled his bleeding arm in his hand. “If only you’d remember I bite… Now, that’s going to get very infected if you don’t treat it soon. Thankfully I know just who to go to! And you can work out your issues with her when you stop bleeding. C’mon, Baelfire! It’ll be just like the old days and Kathy’s cooking has only gotten better.”

Felix stepped in front of her, his club keeping her at arm’s length. “Like hell I’m letting either of you go. Now… hand over Baelfire and Pan’ll get you situated in a lovely cage fit for the beast you are.”

Annabel let out a chuckle. “Who says you were going to let me have Bae? No, Scarlet…”—Felix rolled his eyes at the nickname.—“We’ll take him.”

“We?”

Just as Neal realized she did not come alone, a small girl jumped down from a well-hidden tree branch behind Felix and knocked him out with one blow to the head. With Felix down for the count, Neal gaped at the girl in shock. She was young. Too young to be on the island and in Pan’s grasp, but definitely too young to take out a gargantuan seventeen year old boy with years of combat experience, even if the boy was distracted.

“Good job!” Annabel beamed.

“Thanks!” the girl grinned back. “Just like you taught me!”

Neal stared down at the girl. “How old are you?”

“I dunno,” she shrugged. “Seven, maybe?”

Staring at Annabel who nodded in confused agreement, Neal asked, “So you’re turning seven year olds into child soldiers now?”

“This island is literally filled with children!” Annabel scoffed. “We’re all child soldiers here.”

“Where the hell are you taking me?”

“The Echo Cave Outpost.”

“I thought your crew operated in Pirate’s Cove.”

“Bimonthly meeting with Marceline. Strictly business.”

“I’m not going anywhere near that place.”

“Not yet,” Annabel sighed. “We’re making a little pit stop on the way.”

“Where?”

“Rumplestiltskin’s camp.”

Baelfire sat in the mess hall, surrounded by the crystalline statues under the Mermaid Lagoon. After spending months running from the Lost Boys, hiding out in a cave, he enjoyed having a place to return to. As he stared down at his lobster stew, he smiled and took a bite. A home, that’s what he missed.

“Bae!” a cheerful voice called. He looked up to see one of the new girls waving him down. He nodded, picking up his bowl of stew and walking over to her table.

Sitting down, Baelfire noticed a few familiar faces at the table. Imani, head of escape research, happily ate her stew while pouring over neatly drawn charts. Esther, the head guard and high siren of Neverland, who had always surveyed him with suspicion and made him feel small under her piercing gaze, sat next to the dark-skinned scholar with the same accusatory glare. Marceline, the leader of the Lost Girls and former Queen of Neverland, the one who had welcomed him and sheltered him in the Echo Cave Outpost, sat across from him and took a break from her books.

“Hello Baelfire,” she smiled kindly. “How are the clothes? I hope we had some in your size.”

“Oh no, these are perfect!” he answered sheepishly. “Better than the ones I got when I was with the Lost Boys…”

“Speaking of which,” Esther began, nodding over to the new girl. “That’s Annabel, my new apprentice.”

“You have apprenticeships here?”

Annabel piped up happily next to him, pushing her wild red hair out of her face, “Yuh-huh! Esther saw me escaping from the Lost Boys and offered to train me.”

“How did you get away? Those boys know the island backwards and forwards!”

“I grew up in a butcher shop,” Annabel giggled. “And I know human anatomy backwards and forwards.”

Baelfire froze, staring at the young girl apprehensively, “I… I don’t follow.”

“Well I didn’t have a knife to… butcher them up so I just took a few chunks out,” Annabel shrugged, giving an emphatic bite on the piece of lobster in her mouth.

“You… ate them?”

“Only a little bit of them…” Annabel sighed, putting her hand in her chin and balancing the spoon in between her finger and the table. “I mean, I did try to warn them. Then they said that I was all bark, no bite… I really showed them, huh!”

Baelfire stared at her, frozen, as she devolved into a fit of maniacal giggles.

“So… Marceline?” Baelfire inquired in a squeaky voice.

“Yes?” answered Marceline.

“Do you choose who gets to be here or…”

“Oh of course! All girls—or boys in need of shelter from Pan—are welcome.”

“Huh,” he squeaked before turning back to his stew, unable to stomach the sight of the lobster floating on the surface.

Annabel leaned toward him. Baelfire swiftly recoiled, face screwed into an expression of confusion and terror as she sniffed softly.

“Patchouli! That’s it!” she beamed loudly, making him jump out of his skin. “Hey, you gonna eat that stew? It’s gonna get cold.”

“Uh… I guess I’m done…”

“Okay!” she smiled, snatching it from under him and hastily digging the pieces of meat out. He stared at her, stomach going queasy as she bit into the lobster noisily. “Oh! Sorry, it’s just been a few weeks since I’ve eaten…”

“That’s fine,” he answered quietly. “Uh… that butcher shop you grew up in, what kind of meat did they carry?”

“Human.”

“Human?” he shrieked. “You mean that you grew up in a slaughterhouse?”

Annabel turned to him and stared at him blankly for a bit before shrugging nonchalantly, “I guess so.”

“Why were you hanging around the prelude to a cannibal cookout?”

“I was the example for the others in the cages,” Annabel answered. “Y’know, starved, whipped, beaten, and stuff… to make sure they didn’t get too many ideas in there.”

“Oh my god… Annabel, I’m so sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?” Annabel shrugged. “And besides, I have a really strong jaw and super sharp teeth because of it! So… what are you in for?”

“Sorry?”

“Why are you here? I mean you had to have come to Neverland because you felt unloved or lost or something.”

“My father abandoned me.”

“Oh jeez, that sucks. Who’s your dad?”

“Rumplestiltskin. The Dark One.”

Standing in front of the fire, Rumplestiltskin surveyed the flames, getting lost in the dancing heat. The ferns behind him shook in a faint rustle, too big to be an animal.

“Come out, dearie,” he said with his usual lilt.

“Hello again Papa,” Neal’s voice answered.

As quick as lightning, Rumplstiltskin turned, finding his son standing in front of him. “Bae! What are you doing here? You’re dead! This must be one of Pan’s tricks!”

“It’s not a trick, I promise!” Neal answered, hands raised in surrender.

“How are you alive? You were shot!”

“I survived. Oh and Robin Hood’s debt to you has been paid.”

“You were back in our land?”

“Yeah,” Neal breathed. “When I was falling through the portal, I started to get a bit sentimental.”

“To be expected of course,” Annabel’s voice grinned from behind them. “After all, when you’re about to die your life flashes before your eyes.”

“Who are you?” Rumplestiltskin snarled.

“I’m Annabel, leader of the Pirate’s Cove Outpost, Lost Girl, and a lieutenant to Marceline—Queen of Neverland,” she answered, giving a bow. “You must be Bae’s father, Rumplestiltskin! I’m a big fan of your work!”

“What?” Rumplestiltskin and Neal asked in unison.

“Oh not the ‘ruining people’s lives’ thing, but I mean the business model you’ve built and not to mention the incredible schemes!” Annabel gushed. “It’s masterful!”

“Don’t think you can win me over with flattery, girl.”

“Oh I don’t need to win you over,” Annabel giggled as Neal blew poppy seeds at the Dark One, watching him fall to the ground with a thud and a light snore. “Well, that’s our errand done! Help me lug him to Echo Cave Outpost?”

Neal paused, but nodded begrudgingly, slinging his father over his shoulder. “My son, Henry, he’s been taken by Pan and you say that he has the Heart of the Truest Believer that Marceline told Pan about centuries ago. Do I have that about right?”

“Uh… yeah, sounds good to me.”

“And so why the hell would you ever think I’d just go with you to the main Outpost!” Neal snapped, preparing to run off into the jungle. Just as he was about to, the younger girl brandished a knife up at him with a sinister grin. “What the hell do you think you’re doing, kid?”

“I may not be able to reach your throat, but I can definitely make sure that Henry’s the last kid ya have,” she grinned.

Annabel chortled under her breath as Neal stared down at the girl, shocked at the fact a seven-year-old threatened to chop his balls off. Staring into her eyes, he recognized the same bloodlusty glint in her eye that had made its home in Annabel’s.

“Fair enough,” he answered, stopping in his tracks.

“Great stuff! Now, tonight’s pierogi night! You two do not want to miss that!” Annabel rambled. “It’s gonna be a feast because of the meeting!”

“Well, I am hungry. As long as I’m not eating people pierogi…”

“Don’t be silly! We wouldn’t eat people, only Lost Boys!”

“What?” Neal yelped.

“I’m just kidding!” Annabel giggled. “Their meat’s too tough anyways.”

Emma sat on the wall of the Echo Cave Outpost, looking over the thick layer of Dreamshade below. The more she stared at the sinister briars, the more she noticed about them. It was blooming. Dark pink flowers grew along the vine with deep green stemen and blood red pollinators sticking out of it. She wondered if the pollen from the deadliest poison in the realms was also capable of killing.

A happy voice rang out below. “We’re ba~ack!”

Wondering who, exactly, was back, Emma turned and craned her neck over the edge of the wall. What she saw nearly made her fall. It was Neal and a young, red-haired girl carrying a limp-bodied Rumplestiltskin into the compound with an even younger girl next to them.

“Neal!” Emma cried. “Neal! You’re alive!”

Upon hearing Emma’s voice, Neal dropped his father and ran up to meet her. “Emma! Emma!”

When they met in front of the stairwell, Emma and Neal locked lips tearfully. “I never thought I’d see you again! I thought you were dead!”

“I know, I know,” Neal answered. “But hey, I’m here now, and we can all find Henry together.”

“We will! Oh! I need to introduce you to Marceline!” Emma smiled.

Neal’s eyes darkened at the sound of her name. “No need. I’m familiar.”

Annabel gagged and nodded at her young apprentice to pick up the other end of the middle-aged man dressed in black leather. Just as she took his feet, Rumplestiltskin stirred quietly before frantically kicking the girls off of him and snatching Annabel’s throat.

“Where am I? Where’s Bae?” Rumplestiltskin snarled.

“Welcome to the Echo Cave Outpost!” Annabel smiled, easily escaping his grip. “As for Baelfire, he ran after some blonde lady.”

“Emma’s here?”

The voice of Regina answered from behind him. “We all are.”

Rumplestiltskin turned and glared at Regina. “What are you doing here? Why aren’t we getting Henry?”

“It’s a work in progress,” Regina sighed. “But here is better than out there. We’re protected from Pan’s magic here.”

“Are we? Or are we caught in another one of his traps?” Rumplestiltskin snapped before walking off. “Stay here and enjoy your vacation, Your Majesty. But I’m getting Henry.”

He approached the main gate and tried to open it, jiggling the handle before realizing that it was locked. Growling, he lifted his hands to the wood and began to mutter an incantation under his breath. Regina watched amusedly as the door glowed green and launched Rumplestiltskin to the other side of the compound.

“Yeah, I forgot to mention,” Annabel sighed, appearing at the groaning man’s side. “Ya can’t leave.”

“Well then, if I can’t leave then I’ll kill you all and break out,” Rumplestiltskin growled lowly.

“Be my guest, but you won’t get out,” Annabel said before gesturing to the doors. “Those wooden doors, they’re constructed of the wood of pixie dust trees. These stone walls? Hewn from the walls of the Echo Caverns, now called the Echo Cave. You have no hope of leaving unless Marceline wants you to.”

“Well then, take me to this Marceline,” Rumplestiltskin snapped.

“I dunno,” Regina said. “You might like her…”

“She’s trapped me in her pixie fortress! What’s there to like?”

“Her magical prowess… knowledge, potential,” Regina answered. “She’s our best bet at getting Henry back. She’s been fending off Pan for centuries! Just meet her.”

As Marceline stood in her room, looking out onto the jungle canopy below, the door burst open. Turning expectantly, Baelfire—aged quite a bit—storming over to her, with the rest of the adults following close behind.

“What the hell kind of game do you think you’re playing?” he roared.

“Hello, Baelfire. It’s been quite some time,” Marceline answered before quietly adding, “Though that time has not been kind…”

“You gave Pan the scroll that led him to Henry?” Neal spat.

“What? Neal! How could she have known that?” Snow scoffed. “She’s been isolated on this island for so long and Henry just got here a few days ago!”

“Not entirely true,” Tink’s voice piped from the corner. “Marceline can do something that others can’t. Bae?”

“Marceline here… she can see the future,” Neal chuckled mirthlessly.

“That’s impossible,” Rumplestiltskin answered, surveying the bubbling substances on the workbench. “Time stands still in Neverland.”

“Not true,” Neal replied. “According to Marceline, Neverland is separated from other timelines, which makes the future hard to read. Hard enough that you can’t see the future, but Marceline can. She told Pan about Henry.”

“What?” Emma asked.

“You…” Regina seethed.

“I did,” Marceline answered softly. “But before any of you try to kill me, at least allow me to explain… everything.”

“Knock yourself out,” Neal scoffed. “It won’t change a damn thing.”

“My father left me to be raised by a nunnery because he was frequently on expeditions. I was born a curious child and the nuns weren’t exactly open to me questioning their faith. They beat and abused me until I did it myself. I would have breakdowns, panic attacks, and psychotic episodes frequently. Eventually, they sent me out to work in a textile mill when I was old enough. The pay was crap and the work was grueling, not to mention I saw threads that weren’t there. The day I turned eight, I had one of the worst attacks of my life and damaged a year’s profits worth of equipment.

“They sent me to a hospital—Danvers State Hospital, to be exact—for treatment. I didn’t get what I needed, only got worse. Eventually the hospital got crowded and I had two roommates, Katherine Morozov and Evelyn Torrer. Katherine’s quiet and Evelyn was…”—Marceline smiled fondly.—“a kind of person I’d never seen before. Even though she was being electrocuted, isolated, put in a straightjacket like a beast, she never once lost hope. But then lobotomies were invented. Kat and I got the same electroshock, isolation, binding, but Evelyn had it much worse than all of us because she didn’t show any change. As a result, she was one of the first ones on the list and I had seen what those lobotomies did to other patients so I planned our escape. Evelyn’s appointment was moved up and we barely got her out in time. She was all drugged up and they were getting ready to cut into her skull. But we got out.

“Fortune was on our side because I recognized my father’s ship in the port and… blackmailed him into letting us join the crew. Those years were the best of my life, traveling the world and learning about different animals and cultures… and then Evelyn got malaria. I don’t know what time you come from, but back then, there was no cure. I searched and searched but I didn’t find anything.

“In my dreams, back at the hospital and while Evelyn had malaria, I would find myself here in Neverland. The strings of light I had seen all my life led to a great sheet of golden silk. When I touched them, I could see the future. Then I met a boy named Peter Pan. He was curious about my ability, claimed he wanted to teach me how to control it but said I’d have to come to the island in person to learn. I told him about Evelyn and how I had to stay. Apparently Evelyn also visited Neverland in her dreams because he knew exactly who I was talking about. He offered to heal her with the magic of Neverland and so Katherine, Evelyn, and I were taken by the shadow that very same night.

“It was strange because in all of those dreams, I should have felt young and free but I had never felt more caged. The way Pan talked reminded me of the nuns when I was younger, but I ignored it for Evelyn’s health. We were on the island for about a year. Built a cottage, documented the behaviors of the animals and the growing seasons of local crops, trading with the Axengliro Tribe, making friends with the mermaids. Then Pan came to collect on his promise. He healed Evelyn for good and taught me how to better control my ability.

“Evelyn saw him as a friend, but there was something lurking underneath that kept him at arm’s length to me. The first generation of Lost Boys were already there, helping Pan. Eventually, Evelyn got to know them and they quickly looked to her as a sister. Katherine and I were more… mother figures. As time went on, Peter broke down my defenses and—“

Emma stared at her. “And what?”

“We fell in love,” Marceline grimaced. “He made me… his queen or whatever the fuck he wanted from me. As it turns out, he wanted to find the owner of the Heart of the Truest Believer. He told me what it meant and I realized… I realized that Evelyn had one of those hearts, but I wasn’t going to let him take my lo—my friend, so I searched through the unwoven threads of fate and I found another—Henry Mills. I drew Pan a picture of his face and thought it would satiate him for the time and he’d forget about it like it was just another game.

“Once I became the… Queen of Neverland, the shadow started to bring more girls over to the island. There were so many girls that they actually outnumbered the boys. Despite our advantage in numbers we were treated much… differently than the Boys. They would go off on their adventures and have fun, leaving us to clean up the mess. Though their time away gave me ample chances to educate the girls in combat, linguistics, science, art, mathematics… we created languages and learned the language of the Axengliro Tribe.

“However, the Boys would view us as… objects to be used. Mother, counselor, maid, whore… As time went on, I snapped and I kept on snapping. That was when Peter realized that I couldn’t be controlled as easily as he thought, the fire in me that he loved so much was growing too fast and too hot for him to handle. He tried to quell my spirit by killing Evelyn, the only person I… I ever truly loved, that I would burn the world for. He tried to blame me for her death, saying that I could have avoided it.

“It would have worked had it not have been for the vivid voices of those nuns in the back of my mind and it clicked. He was never my friend. The Boys were petty, cruel, and useless. Peter Pan and the Lost Boys ceased being human to me the minute Evelyn’s heart turned to dust. But something else happened in that moment…”

“Yeah,” Neal interjected. “Pan told me back when I was a Lost Boy. You connected with the island and awoke the magic potential inside you.”

“Ah! So he doesn’t just lie,” Marceline grinned. “That’s exactly what happened. And now that my everything was gone and the one who took it from me is still alive, I rallied the girls and some of the Lost Boys who were close to Evelyn. I created the Outposts, I forged alliances with every other force on the island, I made weapons and poison that have taken the lives of countless Lost Boys.”

“That’s putting it mildly,” Neal scoffed, eyes tearing. “You killed those Boys brutally. I remember seeing entrails falling from the trees in Pan’s campsite. You mangled and mutilated them beyond recognition. Don’t pretend you’re innocent in all this!”

“I’m not,” Marceline shrugged. “I just want Pan gone, I want him to suffer and grow old like he was always afraid of. You’re going to take Henry back home with you and the Lost Boys when Pan’s defeated. My only request that you take my girls and give them a better life. I doubt that you’d want me in Storybrooke after everything you’ve heard. I’m quite prepared for spending the rest of my days here or being tortured in hell.”

“That so?” Neal scoffed. “We’ll see.”

“I don’t regret as much as a hero would,” Marceline said evenly. “But I’m not a hero. Villainous would be putting my… life choices mildly. And I know for certain that if Evelyn was here to see what I’ve done to those Boys, she’d loathe me and be disgusted by me but I don’t care. She isn’t here. I do what I have to in order to send a message to Pan and the Lost Boys and look out for my girls. I may be a lot of things, but I like to pride myself on selflessness.”

“Selflessness?” Rumplestiltskin scoffed. “What makes you say that?”

“One thing that I’ve noticed from looking at the lives of those consumed by magic and power is that they are addicted to it,” Marceline answered. “They always choose power over those they love. I refuse to fall victim to the addiction, I haven’t. Whatever may pass, I will always choose my girls over myself and my magic. If it means giving them a better life, then I will gladly give my own. In other terms, Katherine has cooked up some scrumptious pierogies so get them while they’re hot.”

Regina sat down at the table with the others, nibbling on her pierogi, as they debated what to do with Marceline.

“We can’t let her come back with us!” David urged. “She’s cruel! She’s… well, she’s evil!”

“So was I,” Regina snapped. “And besides, I’ve seen the potential in her. And I know you have too, Gold.”

Rumplestiltskin nodded. “Magical in every way, she’s a prodigy. Her knowledge and eagerness to learn could come in useful against other foes we may come across in Storybrooke.”

“And isn’t it your whole shtick as heroes to give people second chances?” Regina remarked, glaring at David.

Snow sighed, “I agree with Regina. Marceline is damaged, misled, and definitely on the wrong path, but it’s not like she’s pure evil! Besides, she didn’t have to admit to Neal’s accusations but she did. She was honest and open and I think that’s something to consider about her character.”

Neal groaned. “She’s just like Pan! She plays games! She manipulates people, their fates! In Storybrooke she could kill everyone’s happy endings!”

“Neal’s right,” David answered. “It’s too risky.”

Emma straightened up. “I agree with Mary-Margaret. She’s just broken. She’s not evil.”

“How do you know that?”

“Her eyes. They were genuine,” Emma sighed. “And also, I had a fascination with true crime and paranormal stuff when I was younger. I don’t remember a lot but, Danvers State Hospital? That’s in our realm. She’s from the Land Without Magic and… that hospital was horrific. They called it the birthplace of lobotomies. The living conditions were terrible, it got so overcrowded… It’s no wonder that they escaped and went off to Neverland.”

“Yes,” Regina added. “And I know what it’s like to go in a spiral after losing someone I love. If she does come back with us, then I can take her in. Hopefully our familiar experiences will be enough to build a connection…”

“See? More of a hero every day,” Emma smiled. She turned to Hook and Tink. “Any thoughts you two?”

“We were here on the island in the middle of it all,” Hook grimaced. “We’ve seen the worst and experienced the best… whatever you decide we’ll go with.”

Tinkerbell nodded.

“Alright then,” Emma said. “By my count, Mary-Margaret, Regina, Gold, and I are in favor of bringing her back. David and Neal are against that.”

“Sounds like you’re outvoted, boys,” Regina sneered. “Now, I’m going to go talk to Marceline.”