Pandora's Box

Chapter 11

Neverland

"I think I'm going to puke," Melody moaned as she continued to dangle over the shoulder of Peter Pan. She wasn't sure how long they had been flying, all she knew is that she was getting sick.

Her stomach rolled around and Melody concentrated the best that she could to avoid throwing up her insides.

From what she could see, the clouds that surrounded them diminished away and the sky was dark. Melody quickly shut her eyes and gulped.

"Let me go, you skinny flying freak!" She screeched and wiggled around in his arms. Peter Pan peered down to the ocean below them and smirked.

"As you wish, pirate."

With a sudden jolt, Pan tossed Melody over his shoulders and dropped her away into the dangerous waters of Neverland.

Melody screamed as she fell but her yells were silenced once she hit the waters.

The cold nipped at her skin and for a moment, the pirate thought she would die from the cold. She fought against the currents as she resurfaced, breaking the horizon with a loud gasp.

She sputtered out the water she had consumed and searched the skies. He was nowhere to be seen.

Melody wanted to strangle Pan.

"I didn't mean drop me into the water, you bastard!" She screamed into nothing.

As much as she wanted to continue yelling, Melody knew she had to start swimming. After all, the waters we're mermaid infested.

She tried to push herself more to reach the island, but a wave had other plans, and crashed down on top of her, sending Melody into pain-filled flips. When she resurfaced, Melody coughed out the water she had swallowed and crawled onto a rock. She sprawled her body out as she continued to throw up salty water.

Melody took a moment to ease her breathing again before she jumped back into the water.

She considered herself very lucky for not running into a single mermaid.

Once she reached the sand of the island, her body was so tired, she struggled to even stand. Her clothes weighed her down and she suddenly fell to the ground in pain. Her body hit the retrieving waters. Her skin was pruned, pale, and numb from the ice-cold sea. Melody crawled out of the ocean and laid down flat, facing the sky. More water escaped her lips and she gagged over the water.

"Bloody hell," the pirate muttered. Her entire body was out of energy. All she wanted to do was eat and sleep. Her drowsiness was winning against her need to stay awake. As tired as she was, she knew sleeping on an island as dangerous as Neverland was not an option.

She lost hope as her eyes closed against her will and she let out a soft sigh.

She only had a moment of peace before she heard a snicker above her.

The voice was deep and somewhat soothing, but Melody recognized it within seconds. It was so different from Peter's voice. Either way, Melody hated both.

Despite it all, Melody couldn't resist when she felt Felix the lost boy lift her off the sand and begin to carry her off into the jungles of the island. She was too tired to fight back. All she could do was stay still and allow herself to be captured once again by Neverland's ruler.

"Welcome back to Neverland, Melody."

~

"You're not real. You're dead," Rumple hissed. The dark one gripped a spear tighter. Melody stood defensively next to her father and eyed Neal carefully. Her sword ready to swing if Rumple missed.

"What? Of course, I'm real. What the hell's going on?!" Neal yelled, clearly confused about everything happening. Rumple sneered at him.

"You're nothing but a vision," Mr. Gold hissed as he continued to near Baelfire. Neal's eyes widened when he saw Rumple's spear.

"No, hey. Listen to me. It's me. I was shot. Okay? But I survived. See? I'm alive," he breathed heavily as the dark one cornered Neal into a tree. Melody wanted to interfere, but she knew better than to get in the way of Rumple when he had that gleam in his eyes.

"Shut up! My son is dead!" He screeched, "You're just here to remind me of my failure!"

"That's not why I'm here, please put the spear down," Neal pleaded.

"You're here to question my resolve. But you won't succeed! I will sacrifice my life for Henry. And nothing will stand in my way!"

"Please, papa."

That was all it took for Rumple to drop the spear. He recognized those words and nobody else could compare in his mind.

"Baelfire... I thought I lost you forever."

Melody looked away from the tender reunion of son and father to give them some privacy. She then frowned when she remembered she basically abandoned her dad on a boat on one of the most dangerous islands ever known. She wondered if he was okay.

But then she remembered he was with the savior.

Instead of paying attention to Rumple and Bae, she kicked one of the unconscious lost boys and began to search their bodies.

"Melody."

Melody glanced up to see Neal smiling at her. She stood up straight and he hugged her.

"Neal, glad to see you're alive," she said before they let each other go. Neal smiled in appreciation.

"How is it possible?" Rumple questioned again. Neal sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

"It's kind of a long story. Let's just say that the debt Robin Hood owes you has been paid. Now, where is Emma?"

Rumpelstiltskin and Melody both shrugged.

"I left her and the rest of them aboard Hook's ship. As noble as their intentions may be, they don't have the stomach to do what needs to be done. Unlike Mel and I here, we are ready to do what is absolutely necessary," the dark one said. Neal scoffed before gesturing to the lost ones.

"Like what you did to these boys? They're not dead, are they?" Neal asked and Rumple shook his head.

"Not yet. Although I keep telling your father killing them wouldn't be the worst idea," the pirate said as she kicked one of the boys.

"No, no, let's leave it that way, okay? I'll do what needs to be done, but killing lost boys? We don't have to do that," Neal responded. Melody scoffed and shook her head. She knew Bae was always about being a better person than those who didn't have the heart to kill. But on Neverland, a goody two attitude like that wouldn't get you far. That's why Mr. Gold liked Melody. She was ready to slice the head off of anyone who stood in her way and wouldn't hesitate.

"So I take it you two have a plan?"

Rumpelstiltskin sighed.

"Pan's too powerful. You can only beat him if you're willing to die, which I am," he responded. Neal didn't say anything back to him and instead looked at Melody.

"And you?"

"Believe it or not, I do have a heart and your son is a dear friend of mine. Besides, Dad asked me to be here, and so here I am," Melody said, tightening her grip on her sword. Neal nodded before glancing back at the Dark One.

"What if I told you there was another way?"

*unedited*