𝚝𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 ♡ 𝘰𝘶𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘢𝘯

ɴɪɴᴇ | ʜᴀᴘᴘʏ ᴜɴʙɪʀᴛʜᴅᴀʏ

"Well, I can't put it any more clearly, sir, for it isn't clear to me."

—♢♡♧♤—

"You've told me nothing, Peter Pan," Mirana told the boy, surprised at the growing frustration. She was never frustrated.

"I've told you plenty," He disagreed. "I've told you where I'm from, I've told you why I'm here, and I've told you why I won't leave."

"Yes, but . . ." Mirana sighed and shook her head, closing her eyes. "This isn't right."

"I'm from Neverland—you've been there—and I'm here because I've come for you. I won't leave Storybrooke—Neverland isn't the same anymore. There is nowhere else I can take you where we can be together and no one," he took a breath, repeating the words slowly, "no one can keep us apart. Not again."

"Again—? Sir, I've never met you before. How can you—"

"You may not remember, but I know you very well," Peter Pan's voice darkened, and Mirana could see his demeanour changing. He stood up and walked toward Mirana, anger and determination in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, I—"

Mirana's voice broke off as Peter Pan grabbed the arms of her chair, pushing his face toward hers. They weren't even inches apart—just one movement would result in Mirana doing something she hadn't ever done before. Not that she remembered doing, anyway. They stared into each other's eyes, their breathing irregular, with silence filling the room.

"Don't ever say I don't know you," The leader of the Lost Boys whispered, one of his eyebrows quirking up as he spoke. For a moment, as his eyes softened and flicked to her lips, Mirana thought he would kiss her. That was a scary thought, but even more frightening was that Mirana knew she would let him do it. And she might've liked it.

Peter Pan let go of the chair and stood straight, his eyes still fixed on the white-haired girl. "I think this is enough for today. I will send Felix to get you again later. Goodbye, Mirana."

Mirana nodded, but her body refused to get out of the chair, and her heart was still beating a mile a minute. Peter Pan watched her, comparing her expression to a deer in headlights. He raised an eyebrow at her, "That means you should leave."

"I know," Mirana said softly, finally getting her voice to work. She stood up from the chair, trying not to appear shaky, and nodded a goodbye to Neverland's king. She walked to the door, still feeling the boy watch her, and slowly opened it. Felix was already waiting outside the door for her, watching her as she closed the door behind herself.

Almost as soon as they started walking, the door opened again, and Peter Pan poked his head out. "Felix!" he called, causing the two of them to stop. "Come here! I need to talk to you."

Felix started walking back, but as if remembering something, he looked back at Mirana. "She doesn't know where the Saviour's house is."

Peter rolled his eyes and glanced at Mirana. "SLIGHTLY!" he shouted, followed by the pitter-patter of someone's footsteps as they ran.

A boy a little shorter than Felix—but around the same age—arrived and nodded at Peter Pan. He glanced at Mirana, and she saw the curiosity in his bright blue eyes. And the recognition.

"Take her to Emma's house," Peter told the boy. "She doesn't know the way."

"Alright," Slightly said. The boy turned toward Mirana and smiled, "Let's go, Queenie."

As he said the nickname, something started in Mirana. She could feel something breaking through her mind, trying to get to her. She could feel it at the back of her mind—like it was there, but every time she tried to look for it, it would disappear. After a few moments of silence, the Lost Boy repeated, "Queenie?"

And suddenly, a memory broke through.

—♢♡♧♤—

"Boys!" Peter Pan called in a sing-song voice, watching his band of Lost Boys appear, one by one. "I have someone to introduce you to!"

The boys whooped and hollered, cheering and bouncing, as they awaited what they hoped to be a new plaything. Or a new Lost Boy. It was the most fun day whenever a new boy arrived on the island. They'd play many games—it was one of the boys' favourite days.

Mirana waited patiently, out of view of the Lost Boys for now, as Peter Pan excited them for her arrival. She smoothed her frilly dress, picking out stray leaves from her hair. Since she'd been in Neverland, she'd hardly worn the traditional clothes from Underland. Peter Pan had given her a new wardrobe, more suited to life in Neverland. But, he'd wanted to introduce her to the Lost Boys as she was before she left her homeland with Peter.

It was more formal that way. It was more official.

It was also a plus that Peter Pan thought she looked pretty. Though he said so whenever he saw her—maybe it wasn't because of her clothes.

"Are you ready?" Peter shouted—that was Mirana's cue.

The White Queen walked out from behind the trees, smiling shyly at the ragtag group of children and teenagers. She glanced at Peter Pan, whose mouth upturned in a crooked smile. He always looked like he was up to no good when he smiled like that—but Mirana couldn't say she hated it.

"Boys," Peter continued, turning back toward the Lost Boys, who gazed at Mirana with curiosity (the only women they'd seen in Neverland were the mermaids and Wendy Darling). "Boys, this is Mirana of Marmoreal. She is to be your queen."

It took a moment for the words to settle in, but once they had, the Lost Boys started jumping with joy. They hollered and shouted again, and some of them tried to come up to her. Mirana would've let them, but Peter Pan didn't seem keen on them touching her.

"Take a bath before you try to shake her hand—!" Peter shouted at them, pushing away some of the rowdy Lost Boys.

Mirana laughed and covered her mouth to hide the wide smile. Someone tapped her shoulder from behind, and she turned, her eyes widening as she looked to find who it was.

"Hello," a boy said with a wide goofy grin. His brown hair fell into his eyes and curled around his ears, making him look much younger than he probably was. He was tall, though not as tall as Felix (Mirana had never met him, as he wasn't in Neverland at the moment, but Peter Pan talked of him often), and looked much more joyous (Peter Pan had told Mirana that Felix, more often than not, looked grumpy and threatening).

"Happy unbirthday, unless, of course, it is your birthday," Mirana said, doing a slight curtsey.

"Unbirthday?" the boy questioned. His smile widened, and he raised a hand for her to shake, "My name is Slightly. You must be the famed Queen Mirana."

Mirana smiled and shook his hand politely, thankful that Peter hadn't managed to push a newfound friend away from her. "Nice to meet you, Slightly."

"You as well." When his hand retreated, his eyes brightened, and he raised his eyebrows, "May I give you a nickname? We all have one. Let's see: hmm." Slightly put a hand on his chin in thought, his eyes wandering around. When an idea formed in his head, he dropped the hand and smiled (as it seemed he loved to do) at Mirana, "Queenie! I can call you Queenie, right?"

—♢♡♧♤—

Mirana widened her eyes, surprised by the sudden memory. She didn't know how this memory had just appeared—surely she would've remembered it before since it was a part of her memories, right? But then, this memory had to be fake.

But it felt like a real memory. Mirana looked up at Slightly, her mouth falling open.

"I remember."

—♢♡♧♤—

I hope you've enjoyed this week's chapter!

This was a fun chapter to write. I love writing memories.

Au revoir!