The Untold Past of Pan

The Whole and Total Truth

"Why are you here now?"

The question reverberated inside my head. Voices fought with each other to give an answer, a lie, to cover up the real reason I was there. But I couldn't lie to him. "I'm scared Henry. I could walk away from here if I wanted to, but I'm scared. I upset some of your family members last night. I don't know if I can face them," I answered, sighing as I spoke.

"I know my family," Henry said back, "And they can always forgive people. I mean, my adoptive mother is the Evil Queen, and I love her. I'm sure they'll give you a second chance." I wanted to wish that were true, but I doubted Rumple could forgive me.

"They just don't always understand," Henry continued, "I'm here to help Pan, he needs the heart of the truest believer, and that's me. I'm going to help him save the magic. But my family thinks he's going to hurt me."

Pan had lied to Henry. Henry was choosing to be here, not being held captive. It angered me that Pan had done such a thing. I wasn't going to stand for it. "Henry, Pan was lying to you," I said, as gently as I could.

He gave me a confused look, and I continued, "Pan is an evil demon boy. But he's not immortal. The shadow gave him youth many years ago, but that youth wouldn't last forever, Pan knew that. He wants your heart because with it, he can be immortal. He's going to kill you."

Henry was stunned into silence for a few seconds. Pan must have noticed, because he walked back over to us. "You all right, Henry?" He asked. Henry nodded and smiled, but did not speak. "Well then, I'm going to go check one last thing and we can head back to the main camp Cat," Peter said, this time to me. He kissed me on the forehead before walking away again.

"Wait, I thought you said Pan was evil?" Henry asked, utterly confused at the display of emotion. "He is. He's willing to kill someone to become immortal," I answered. Henry looked at him from across the clearing, "He must have a motive. No one truly evil is capable of love."

I thought about what he said, and remembered something Pan had told me. 'Because I missed you. You want to know why I've taken Henry? Why I need his heart? Because with it, I can be immortal. We can spend eternity together'. Henry was a smart kid.

He must have been able to tell by the look on my face that I had discovered Pan's motive. He looked at me eagerly, waiting for me to fill him in. "Well, I suppose he may have mentioned wanting to spend eternity with me," I said, half laughing at Henry's excitement.

"That's it then! He's driven by love! Hey, you're the goddess of magic, right? Can't you just make him immortal? I can tell you love him too and you want him to be immortal. I think you two would make a great couple, I just don't want to die."

I watched Henry rambling for a bit before stopping him, "Henry, immortality is a powerful branch of magic. I can't just wave my hand and make people immortal. It would take multiple skilled wizards and witches, as well as many magical items to create a spell that powerful."

He looked at me, his eyes glowing, "My moms are both witches! So is my grandpa, he's the Dark One too. I'm sure you guys could do the spell together!"

Henry's determination made me feel something I hadn't felt in a long time: hope. He made me want to believe it could be possible, to make Pan immortal and good. To make him a protagonist in the story we lived in.

"What about the magical items, Henry? How do you suppose we'll get those?" I doubted we could find everything we needed on the island. He thought, "We can make a portal, a small one, reach our hand through and grab what we need!" He said. This kid had the answers to everything.

Pan was making his way back over to us once again. Henry shot up from the log we had been sitting on. "Pan!" He shouted, "Pan, guess what! We're going to make you immortal, without my heart!"

~~~

(3rd person)

The good guys, as they called themselves, had just barely escaped the Lost Boys with their lives. Charming had a nasty scratch across his chest, and Emma thought she had sprained her arm.

Neal had set out early that morning to look for a plant with healing properties, and since he knew his way around the island the best, he went alone. Snow noticed Rumple sitting by himself, looking shell-shocked.

She sat down next to him, "Hey are you alright?" Everyone looked over at them. Rumple shook his head, "She- mother- I can't- We shouldn't have left her- Or should we have?" Snow placed a hand on his shoulder, "What happened back there?" She asked.

He sighed, "That woman was my mother. She abandoned me with my wretched father and never looked back. I've hated her my whole life." Emma spoke up, "So then, why did you save her?"

Meeting her eyes, he growled, "Because as much as I hate her, I hate my father more." Regina scowled, "You mean Pan? Pan's your father?" Rumple nodded. "And I thought my parents were young," Emma joked, earning a few glares. "Not the time? Noted."

Rumple stood up, "Now she's in Pan's hands. She's as good as dead." From his makeshift bed, Charming said, "Maybe not. Maybe Pan kept her alive. We should find out if she is and see if we can save her. After all, she did seem really sorry when you found out she's your mother."

"We're here for Henry, not her," Regina said. Hook looked at her, "Aren't you all supposed to be the heroes? Isn't saving people the thing you do?"

Emma stood up, "It is the kind of thing we do, Regina. You wouldn't want us to abandon you here, would you?" Stubbornly, Regina shook her head. "Then that's our plan. We save Henry, we save Hecate, and we get the hell out of here."

~~~

I had had a long day of helping King Leopold with his endeavors. I was ready to relax the rest of the night with my closest friend. I walked up the stony path that led to the blacksmith's shop. The door was opened before I even reached the top.

In the doorway stood a tall, handsome boy. His light brown hair and perfect skin was sprinkled with ash and soot. His beautiful forest green eyes captured the wide smile plastered across his face.

"You're about 2 minutes late," He said, still smiling. I rolled my eyes, "Oh I'm sorry Malcolm, it's not like I'm a goddess with a job," I said, pure sarcasm lining my words. We laughed together and he led me inside. Above the blacksmith was a quaint little home, where Malcolm lived.

We made our way up the stairs and into Malcolm's living space. There was a small kitchen and a wooden table big enough for two. There was a beautiful oak rocking chair that Malcolm's father had carved next to a matching oak bookcase. Along the back wall was Malcolm's queen sized bed.

I took my usual place on his bed. He always read me his favorite books until I fell asleep. But tonight, he did go straight to the bookshelf. He sat down next to me on the bed.

"I have a gift for you," He said, smiling with excitement. From his pocket he pulled a small box and handed it to me. I glanced at him first, unsure whether I should open it or not. His smile reassured me and filled me with excitement. I lifted the lid and gasped at what was inside.

In the box sat a beautiful brass ring, decorated with intricate little flowers. I tenderly picked it up and put it on. Malcolm smiled, "I know it doesn't have a gem and it's not as nice as I wanted it-"

"It's wonderful!" I breathed, "But, Malcolm, I told you I can't marry you. I'm a goddess, I'm not allowed." He shushed me, "I know. Just think of it as a gift. Friend to friend." He gave me the face I loved, his arched brow and attractive smirk.

That night was the most fun I had had in a while.