Rose Red

The Shadow

Rose's POV

I stood in front of my open window, closed my eyes, and whispered "I believe" into the cool night air.

I waited with my eyes closed for a moment or two, then opened them to nothing.

After about a minute, I was ready to call for Neil and ask him why it wasn't working when a shadow flew right by the open window.

I stuck my head out the window.

"Hey!" I called after it.

The Shadow stopped in midair and turned to look at me, a confused look on its face.

"Yeah, I called," I said as it just stared at me. "Get over here!"

The Shadow snapped to its senses and came to the window. I stepped back to give it room. It entered my apartment and gave me an annoyed look.

"What?" I asked, looking over my appearance to try to find what put it off. "I could be just as aggravated, seeing as how you passed me up! I was hoping for Peter Pan himself but I get a ticked off Shadow. This is your job anyway, sunshine. Try to be happy about it."

If the Shadow could, it probably would have stuck its tongue out at me and left, but it just resumed the annoyed position and stalked to the window. When it began to float out, it gave a motion for me to follow.

"What are you doing?" I asked it. It turned around to look that I hadn't followed. It gave me a very exasperated look. It gestured towards its whole levitating body. I rolled my eyes. "What do you expect me to do?"

The Shadow came back to the window and tossed me a small pouch. I opened the pouch to see a pile of shimmering fairy dust.

"Pixie dust?" I asked for confirmation. The Shadow nodded.

I opened the bag all the way and spilled its contents over my head.

"Okay," I started. "What now? Think of the happiest thing?"

It gave me a teasing look to show its fake amusement at my well-played Disney reference.

"Well I'm going to think happy thoughts anyway, because you are depressing me with your cynical teenage attitude."

I began to rise off of the floor, and followed the Shadow out the window.

I gazed at the gorgeous New York City lights as we flew where the skyscrapers and stars met.

I spotted the second star to the right, which I assumed was our destination.

I was quite anxious to meet Peter Pan and his Neverland.

But I had to remember my purpose for being there: to advance my magic. I had to be worthy of teaching Emma, and after my time in the Land Without Magic, I knew that I would be a little rusty. Even if I couldn't be with my family, Neverland was my last chance of saving them without having to pay the price.

My price.

The impossible payment for the Memory Curse. I would never be able to fulfil Rumplestiltskin's wishes on the matter, but as long as I was with people I loved, he wouldn't spare them until he received his favor.

Emma was in prison anyway, I couldn't reach her even if I was ready. She was eighteen now, and would be hard to persuade, but I was convinced that it could be done.

I snapped out of my thinking when the Shadow and I passed through a sort of portal that was the actual star, and when we reached the other side, we were in Neverland.

It was a jungle island, with each aspect from the story clearly defined. There was a vast forest that occupied most of the island, which was where Peter Pan and the Lost Boys lived, a Mermaid Lagoon, Cannibal Cove, Marooner's Rock, Skull Rock, Echo Caves, and Great Big Little Panther's territory. However, there were new places on the island that I did not find familiar.

As the Shadow guided me closer to the island, I spotted a thin cloud of smoke hanging above a small section of the forest. I figured that it must be where the Lost Boy's camp was, although I remembered them living in Hangman's Tree in the original story.

Instead of leading me in the direction of the smoke, the Shadow took me to what I estimated was about the center of the island. When we landed, I was in front of a massive, very old looking tree.

The Shadow gestured for me to stay put and I nodded in confirmation.

It disappeared behind the tree, and I waited for a few moments before I saw it fly away.

"Hello," a British accent said from behind me.

I turned around and saw a boy. He looked like he was in his late teens or early twenties, around the same age as me. He had brown hair that was messily swept to one side, and green-brown eyes. He was quite attractive.

I couldn't make out many more details due to the darkness of the island at night and because he had strategically concealed himself in shadow.

"You must be Peter Pan," I stated, resuming a strong stance and posture to show my confidence in this meeting.

"And you are?" He asked, smirking and raising an eyebrow.

My eyes wandered over his face, taking in every detail. He was clearly trying to play 'cool' with his smirk and smug tone, but I could see in his eyes that he was deeply concerned about something.

I almost began to feel sorry for him when I reminded myself that I was dealing with someone who was skilled in deceiving others via magic.

"My name is Rose Red," I answered. It felt nice to hear my real name roll off of my tongue.

"Welcome to Neverland, Rose," he greeted.