I Trusted You (Peter Pan)

Chapter 6

A/N: Two words: Echo cave

Felix observed Pan as he peered through the telescope. The smug expression on his face indicated that everything was going according to plan. The Storybrooke residents were scurrying along the trail laid out for them like mice. Pan pulled the telescope away, letting it hang in his grip at his side.

"Look at them go." Pan sneered. "So determined to find their missing friend." The boy exhaled heavily, gaze still fixed to the faint figures in the distance.

"Has Andie reached them?" Felix drawled, presuming the girl was on his mind.

"Not yet. Shouldn't be long now though. She left in... quite the hurry." His eyes flashed mischievously. Pan had, very briefly, filled Felix in on their recent exchanges. The Lost Boy knew, whatever Andie had done, it had affected Pan more than she knew.

"Can I ask, how did you know something was amiss?"

Peter grinned slyly. "She didn't react when I told her Baelfire was alive. She had already seen him. Yet something was whirring about in that head of hers, something that made his existence become insignificant."

Pan's need for precautions was understandable. "How long do you think she'll take to retrieve it?" He asked slowly.

"I expect she'll remain with them until they've found Baelfire. I doubt our dear Captain will let her leave before then." Pan smirked.

"In that case, what should we do with Baelfire?" Felix nodded his head in the direction of the cage.

"It's time to move him. Take him to the echo cave." Pan answered. He inhaled sharply, a dark look in his eyes. "The game is about to get interesting."

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Navigating her way through the crowded streets, Cassandra was overwhelmed by the deafening noise. Metal carriages sped along solid rivers of black and swarms of people rushed in all directions.

The sun had been clambering from its bed when Peter's shadow had dropped her off in the bustling city. Pulling her hand from her pocket, she had opened up the crumpled scrap of paper. Scribbled in Felix's handwriting, was an address.

At the time, Cassandra had dismissed the difficulty of finding the location. Unfortunately, her navigation skills seemed void in this land. After only an hour, her dismissal was swiftly revoked. Cassandra was squeezing through the mass of pedestrians- fed up with being shoved and bouncing off people, reverberating through the crowds. Figuring that attacking those who squashed her would not help her blend in, she settled for pushing them out the way as she clawed a path through the horde.

As time passed, her determined searching began to feel like aimless wandering and eventually, she accepted defeat. She collapsed onto a bench, completely drained. The day was drawing to a close: the sun, her only companion throughout the day, had given up and decided to abandon her. It had moved behind the building towering over her, leaving her in shadow. Never in her life had she seen constructions so tall. They made even the tallest of trees back in Neverland, look like mice.

The mere thought of her home filled her with longing.

She wished she could go back. This city was far too different: there was too much noise, too many people, everything was so busy; it felt like nobody stopped to breathe. But Neverland. It was peaceful enough that it was neither overwhelming nor mind nulling. The perfect balance.

Rubbing her face, she sighed. There was no point getting emotional now, she needed to get on with what she came here to do. She spotted someone wobbling down the street and hollered at them as they passed. The man turned towards her as she leapt up from her seat. It was the puffy red eyes she noticed first, and then, only as she stopped in front of them, did she realise they were drunk. The man was looking at her expectantly and she figured it was worth a shot- she didn't have much to lose. She showed them the address and their eyes lit up. Relief filled her at the thought of finally finding where she was supposed to be. They gave the directions and Cassandra grimaced as their breath assaulted her nose. The man spewed gibberish about following the rainbow and turning right at the unicorn. He smiled and walked off, swaying as he went. Cassandra remained still, a blank look on her face.