Once Upon a Dream:

Page 89: Neal's Plan:

After the confrontational part of the cave was over, the group walked out of the cave with Neal, who was very much alive. "Thank you," Neal said to the others, hugging his sister. "Oh, don't thank us yet. We still have to save Henry." David said as Dream looked at them, still wiping her eyes.

"Which we will soon." Dream smiled as they all seemed like they were defeated after telling their secrets, except for Neal. "We found your star maps. The real question is, do you know how to get off the island?" Hook asked, looking at Neal since he hated seeing Dream look upset. 

"If we can find Henry, I can get us home," Neal said to the group.

"Then let's go get Tinker Bell and retrieve the boy." Hook said, looking at Dream before starting to walk off. Mary Margaret went to follow, then David, when Neal leaned over to his sister. "Go on; I need to talk to Emma." He said as she nodded, following David.

"You all right?" Emma asked Neal.

"Yeah. I'm fine." Neal smiled at her. 

"About what I said--" She went to say, but he stopped her. 

"Hey, Emma, it's okay." He said, shrugging it off.

"No, it's not. I wish I could change how I feel more than anything, but I can't. I'm sorry." Emma apologized. 

"Don't be. After everything I've put you through, you don't ever have to apologize to me about how you feel." Neal said as Emma looked down. "Hey, I'm glad you told me. I have a secret, too, Emma. I'm never going to stop fighting for you. Never." Neal said, walking the way the others did when Dream watched them. "Eavesdropper," Neal smirked at her, seeing as she listened. 

"That's my job as your baby sister." Dream smiled, making him laugh. "You okay?" Neal asked, talking about her puffy eyes from where she was crying. "Yeah... I'm okay. Let's go get Henry." Dream smiled, walking with Neal.

The group got back to the camp, and they asked Neal how he planned to get them off the island. "Pan's shadow?" Dream asked her older brother. "That's your way off the island?" Emma asked, sitting beside Neal on a log. 

"Unfortunately, it's the only way." Neal sighed, looking at the others.

"Oh. We thought you learnt how to navigate the stars." David said as Dream noticed Hook pacing to the side. "I know how to navigate the stars. But I can't fly." Neal said to the others, shrugging

"I'm guessing that's where the shadow comes in." Dream said as Neal nodded at her.

"That's why we have to capture it."

"Capture it? We've never been within 10 feet of Pan unless he wanted us to be. Sneaking up on him to steal his shadow, that sounds insane." Emma said, realizing how hard this sounded. "Except Pan's shadow is rarely with him. It's an entity unto itself. It can carry out his will from miles away." Hook explained to the group.

"What does that mean for us?" David asked Hook and Neal.

"It means we can get his shadow without having to be anywhere near Pan. As long as we know where to look." Neal explained as Dream looked at him with a raised brow. 

"Do you?" Dream asked him. 

"Yeah, I know where to look." Neal nodded at his little sister. "Okay. You and I are on shadow duty." Emma said to Neal.

"As am I." Hook spoke up. "This trek won't be easy. You could use another veteran of the island." He continued, looking at Neal.

"Thanks, man. And Dream is coming with us." Neal said as Dream nodded, despite not wanting to go with Hook or Emma.

"In the meantime, we'll give Tinker Bell a heads up. See if she can make good on her promise to get us into Pan's camp." David said to them. "Okay. We meet back at Tink's. Then we get Henry and get back to Storybrooke." Emma said as they walked off, splitting up to make sure they had everything ready.

Neal, Hook, Emma, and Dream went back to Neal's cave. "Something tells me we won't find Pan's shadow in here, mate." Hook said, setting the lantern on one of the trunks. "Yeah, we're looking for something else. It's a coconut that's carved in two. One part holds a candle; the other part goes on top..." Neal went to say, but Emma and Dream knew what he was talking about.

"Yeah, your star map," Emma said, interrupting Neal. "We hid it. I'll go grab it." Dream said as Emma followed her.

"I owe you thanks for being so understanding." Hook said once the girls weren't around or in hearing distance. 

"Understanding about what?" Neal asked, looking through the trunks. 

"Dream and me." Hook said, making Neal look at him. "Dream and you?" Neal asked, sounding like a big brother.

"Our dalliance... You don't know, do you?" Hook sighed, looking down. "Well, this is awkward. The two of us shared a kiss. Apologies, I assumed she told you, with you being her brother." Hook sighed, scratching his neck, as he left out the part about hurting her by kissing Emma.

"Honestly, it probably slipped her mind. We're kind of focused on getting Emma's and my son back. Her nephew." Neal said, trying not to sound so defensive. 

"Of course." Hook sighed when the girls returned with the coconut.

"Everything all right?" Emma asked when the two girls noticed the tension. "Couldn't be better." Neal scoffed, looking at his sister. 

"Here it is. Your star map." Dream said, handing him the coconut.

"It's not a star map," Neal said, setting it in his bag. "It's what we're gonna use to trap Pan's shadow." He continued.

"A coconut? Are you daft?" Hook scoffed at him.

"You came to Neverland on a pirate ship through a portal, but you draw the line at a magic coconut?" Neal asked when Dream and Emma exchanged a look, noticing the tension. "Fair enough. What's our next stop on this mission?" Hook asked as Neal put his bag on his shoulder.

"Dark Hollow."

"Really? Why couldn't it be called something like Sunshine Valley?" Emma scoffed while Dream still noticed the tension between Hook and Neal. "Or Rainbow Cove?" Dream suggested, making Emma agree with her. 

"What exactly is it?" Emma asked, making the two guys look away from their bruting stares.

"Just what it sounds like. The darkest spot on the entire island. Any light that makes its way in is snuffed out by the shadows that call it home. Even I managed to avoid it." Hook said, making Dream sigh to herself, trying not to be worried. 

"Well, time to break tradition. Dark Hollow it is." Dream said, making Hook sigh at her.

"That's where we're gonna find Pan's shadow, right?" Emma asked Neal. "Yeah, it's the only way we'll ever get back to Storybrooke," Neal said, walking out when Emma and Dream looked at each other, noticing the tension. 

~season 3, episodes 6 & 7: "Ariel" & "Dark Hollow"~

~1157 words~