From Your Tower ➛ OUAT

Chapter 28

Chapter 28

The girl slowly circled around Henry, sizing him up more or less. He felt uncomfortable under her gaze, but didn't say anything.

"I never got to see you this close. Sorry for being so rude."

He was confused for a second, turning his head to watch her as she moves around him. "You've been following me?"

She nods, finally stopping in front of him. "I've been protecting you from this jerk."

Henry pauses, still trying to make her words into something that makes sense. "No offense... But, uh, why? Why are you here?"

"Well, for starters, this used to be my home." She explains. "The way it was before, not the darkness that covers it now."

"What do you mean?"

She smiles softly. "All in due time. For starters, I believe we should get to introductions." The girl holds out her pale hand to Henry. "I'm Rapunzel. Welcome to Neverland."

❧

"The whole story is kind of confusing, actually." Ariel says softly. "I don't think I'm exactly entitled to say it."

"Then who will?" Regina scoffs.

"Me." From the shadows, two people come out. Emma had to blink a few times before she could actually believe what was in front of her.

"Henry." She whispers, quickly running to him and giving him a hug.

"Mom..." He whispers back, happy to finally be with someone he feels completely safe around. "Mom, this is Rapunzel."

She pulls back from Henry to look at the girl who came in next to him. "Thank you for saving my son. I owe you one."

"Yeah, you do." She smiles, looking at the corner of her eye to Regina as she hugs Henry. "And if I could, I'd like to explain everything right now."

"Then do it." David urges.

Rapunzel watched over these people, watched as they watched and waited. It has been hundreds of years since she has actually allowed herself to be shown to someone. But she knew if she doesn't, she will never fulfill the destiny of Neverland.

"To understand a lot of this, you need to understand that Pan, that guy who stole your son... That's not actually Peter Pan. His name is Malcolm."

"Who?" Emma asks.

The girl smiles slightly to acknowledge her, but doesn't answer. "I came here in the 1600s. The real Peter- he was someone that was so different, so unexplainable. He was the one who brought me here."

"This is all wonderful, really, but shouldn't we be wondering when Pan is coming for us? Henry is gone from him, he's going to notice soon enough." Regina says, irritated.

"We won't have to worry about him for a little while." Rapunzel smiles mysteriously. "Anyway. I later found out he's a lot different then I thought him. His emotions affected the entire Neverland, he was good while the island was good. But when he was bad... the island was this."

She paused, allowing anyone who would have questions to ask them. No one did though, so she started out once again.

"He was a shadow. Pan literally became the shadow of Neverland. And once he started to realize what he was, he knew he couldn't control the land without a real body.

"Pan placed dreams of Neverland into the mind of Malcolm as a child. Dreams of him flying, of him being king. What he didn't expect, is for him to be a total coward. He didn't do anything about it. So once the man had a son, he placed a doll to a place where the son would see it.

"Once he got a little older, he fulfilled his destiny by coming to Neverland. But, unfortunately for Pan, he brought his father along too."

"And his father?" Mary Margaret asks. "That's Malcolm, right?"

"Right. Once Malcolm had gotten there, Pan found out that more then anything- the man wanted to be young. Which meant, he would do anything to get it. And that's what Pan needed. Someone who would do anything to get what he wanted."

They all stared at her, a million thoughts running through their minds. What if she is lying, what if she is working with Pan?

"He turned Malcolm into a young teenager. But when he turned him into the teenager, Pan was shocked to see it was an exact replica of himself. What he didn't know was..." She seemed to debate internally whether to say it or not. "That's his son. Malcolm is."

Time seemed to stop. Nothing seemed right anymore, nothing made sense. Emma felt her head spin around, so confused on every little aspect of her damned story.

"Okay, let me try to understand this." Emma says. "Peter Pan, the real Peter Pan, had a child. That child, was Malcolm, who came to take his identity as Pan and steal my son?"

Rapunzel laughs quietly. "When you say it like that it makes me sound insane. But yeah, Pan doesn't know that Malcolm is his son though. He's the shadow of Neverland... and Malcolm doesn't want him to be."

"Oh god," Regina grumbles, leaning up against a tree.

"He needs Henry's heart, as the truest believer, to be able to keep him young forever. When being young forever, he will completely exile Pan from the island, from being alive."

"There's another complicated family member for ya, kid." Emma couldn't help herself from whispering to him.

Rapunzel gulps, preparing herself for the next words. "Considering I saved Henry twice, and brought you to him, I need your help. To save Neverland."

"No." Regina snaps. "We got Henry and we're leaving. Right away." She pulls on Henry to get them to leave, but he stays in spot. "Henry!"

"We should listen to what she has to say."

"I just want to put on the table that Malcolm will never stop. Trying to get Henry, I mean. He's extremely manipulative and he will do anything. Pan made sure of that one."

"We'll take care of him. Henry, come on." Regina snaps.

"Stop." Henry hissed back.

Rapunzel watched as the fight went on, the other three people joining in as well. She didn't know what to say, didn't know how to get them to help her. The girl looked desperately over to Tinkerbell and Ariel, as they stared back sadly.

"He's my son."

That stopped them all from talking, they all looked over to her.

"Malcolm is my son. Peter Pan used to be my... Well, I don't know."

There was not one of them that had a less than a confused and shocked face. She understood that, it was confusing for her too. She didn't understand anything that happened after she had jumped into the rocks. Nothing made any sense.

"And the boy? The son that Malcolm had? You all know him well."

"Who?" David asks warily.

Rapunzel looked over the five people. They all were watching her, sizing her up, waiting for her answer. She needed their help. Though knowing that she was extremely powerful, adding Ariel and Tinkerbell to the mix and the fact that she can control the lost boys, she needed them.

So she told them what they wanted to know.

"It's Rumpelstiltskin."