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INDIANA JONES
xviii. YOUNG AND RESTLESS

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PAST
UNKNOWN

THAT NIGHT WAS A sleepless one for the young Indiana Jones. All the poor teenager could think about was the fact that someone died that night because of her. She felt rather hypocritical about her guilt-filled thoughts, considering she had assassinated dozens and dozens of people in the past. That was one of the big things she was known for, after all. But for some odd reason, Indiana couldn't wrap her head around this kid's death. She didn't even know him, for crying out loud! Indiana was really beginning to wonder if this whole adventure was even worth the trauma.

After her second run-in with the vicious Peter Pan, Indiana was beginning to wonder if she had met her match. Peter Pan, from what she could tell, was ruthless and cold-blooded, clearly not caring about anyone but himself. He was a villain.

Back in the Enchanted Forest, she was a--dare I say--villain, but with good judgement. The biggest thing that Indiana liked was that she didn't do harm onto those without a good reason. But was that golden rule really one she should be following? Indiana shook her head. Even if she didn't follow that rule and killed Frankie herself, she would've felt ten times worse than she did now. Either way, Indiana would've had that boy's blood on her hands.

"Psst."

Indiana snapped her head upward, only to be greeted by the faces of the sleeping Lost Boys. Yes, that was what Peter Pan chose to call his little minions. It was a creative name, but it made absolutely no sense to her. How were they lost? They were right there in the realm Indiana still didn't know the name of. Brushing it off, Indiana looked back down. Her eyes stared at the dirt ground as she attempted to keep herself awake.

She couldn't help but think about Peter's last words. "Let's play," – what did it mean? Of course it made sense that he wanted to play with her, to mess around with the girl who showed up at the wrong place at the wrong time. But what exactly did he have in store for her? Indiana had a feeling that she didn't want to find out, even if there was curiosity that was seeping through her veins. Actually, Indiana wanted to know. She just wanted to know with the guarantee that she would make it out alive.

"Psst."

That time, Indiana was sure she had heard something. She could've bet her life on it and won. Looking in the direction of what sounded like a voice, she noticed two brown and blue eyes staring at her. Indiana almost instantaneously recognized the boy sitting beside her. Her eyes nearly popped out of her head. "Fra—?!"

Placing his hand against her mouth, Frankie made breathing motions. She mocked them for the sake of him taking his dirty hand off of her mouth. "Keep it down, alright?" Frankie told her. When she nodded, he finally took his hand off of her mouth.

"How... How are you alive?" Indiana questioned in surprise. "I-I watched that flipping psychopath rip your heart out right in front of me! You're dead!"

Frankie chuckled at her. "Do you always say things like 'flipping'? It's quite funny," Frankie commented. Indiana narrowed her eyes at him. "You know, to think that someone like you doesn't curse."

"That's funny coming from someone who died a few hours ago," Indiana hissed. She paused for a moment. "Wait... does this realm have Zombies? Is that what you are? Oh my Gods... you're a Zombie, aren't you? Cap is never going to believe this."

Shaking his head, Frankie opened his mouth to respond. However, he was interrupted by a new voice speaking out. "Someone's an early riser," it said. Indiana looked straight ahead from where she was sitting and leaning against a tree. She narrowed her eyes when she realized it was Peter Pan. "Who are you talking to?"

"Are you blind, Peter?" Indiana questioned matter-of-factly. She gestured to where Frankie sat. "I'm talking to—" She looked to the right to see him. She paused when she realized Frankie was no longer sitting beside her. "—no one... apparently."

"Did that fall from the portal give you a concussion?" Peter wondered in amusement after snorting at her. "If you needed a reason to talk to me, you could've come up with something a lot more reasonable than talking to imaginary friends."

Vigorously shaking her head, Indiana stood up and told him, "I haven't had any imaginary friends since the Shadow Man. By the way, you haven't told me how you know him... or how he's real."

Now that she was standing, Indiana suddenly felt intimidated by Peter Pan. She only stood at 5'6" while he was a good few inches taller than her. Even if he wasn't exactly towering over her in comparison, the height difference definitely made her feel like a Dwarf standing next to a Giant.

"On the contrary, I don't owe you any answers. You lost Round 1 of our game," Peter told her. He began to walk. When Indiana didn't follow immediately, he stopped. "Aren't you coming? I'd love to continue our chat over a lovely walk in the forest."

Indiana didn't realize that he had an English accent like her until she noticed his word choice of the adjective 'lovely.' Nodding, the girl followed after him like a duckling following its mother.

As they walked, Indiana continued the conversation by saying, "Did you say Round 1? Does that mean you'll be bothering me even more?" Indiana asked, attempting to get along with the boy that would most likely haunt her nightmares. A thought popped into her head as she finished her question. "Wait--does that mean I'll get more chances to get... answers from you?"

Peter chuckled at the girl's sudden excitement. "You're a smart girl. I'll praise you for that," he complimented her.

"Did you actually just compliment me?" Indiana asked with raised eyebrows. "Sorry, but it's just really weird to see you smile or hear you say anything remotely nice after you just crushed that boy's bloody heart... literally."

"Understandable," Peter told her with a shrug. "I didn't choose to walk with you because I wanted to enjoy the nature. I wanted to get some answers from you."

Indiana stopped walking. "Really? Then... how about a game?" Indiana proposed. "An answer for an answer."

Peter, who had also stopped walking when the girl did, merely narrowed his eyes at her. A dark aura surrounded his body once again, causing Indiana to remember that this boy was psychotic and most definitely not normal like other boys.

"You know, Indiana, I don't think you're in the position to be making deals with me of all people," Peter told her as her vision began to blur. He smirked at her. "Sweet dreams, darling."

With that, Indiana passed out from sleep deprivation.

➖➖➖

PRESENT
STORYBROOKE

Anna James was utterly restless.

She wasn't sure what exactly it was, but every time she closed her eyes, she found herself becoming more and more awake. It was completely contradicting what she was trying to do, which was sleep. Each time Anna forced her eyes shut, all she could think about instead of falling asleep was the charming boy that was Frankie.

She got butterflies in her stomach every time her brain lead her thoughts to him. It was like even her own brain had it out for her, which made a lot more sense in Anna's head. Nonetheless, after a few hours, Anna found herself walking downstairs to grab a glass of milk. She hoped that downing it would help her fall asleep quicker.

However, once she was in the kitchen and happily drinking the white beverage, she heard a loud sigh come from the entrance of the room she was in. Anna looked over to see Regina Mills in her pajamas and her hand over her heart. "Oh, it's just you," Regina told her.

Wiping her mouth, Anna gave the tired-looking woman a small smile. "Did I wake you? I'm so sorry. I tried to be stealthy and quiet, but you know me," Anna attempted to joke, even though 2 in the morning clearly wasn't the best time for joking around. It was time for sleep, "stealth and Anna James just don't mix well."

The black-haired woman shook her head while leaning against the wall. "Oh, no that's fine. I've been kind of on edge ever since Henry started sneaking around," Regina explained. "I really don't know what's gotten into him. But what I'm more interested in is finding out what's keeping you up. I thought sleep was your favorite part of the day."

This was true, considering Anna was usually up for hours at a time at night just working on school-related things. It really did take up her life. Whenever Anna actually did get to sleep, it was like God was coming down from the heavens and blessing her personally. "It's um... kind of silly," Anna admitted. "It's... uh... a boy."

Regina raised her eyebrows. This was the first time Regina had ever heard of anything like this. "Oh? What's his name?" Regina wondered while walking toward her.

Anna pressed her lips together. The two were never close. It was as though the fates were forcing Regina and the girl to ever truly be friends. In fact, if it weren't for her job as Henry's Nanny, Anna was sure that she and Regina would've never become acquainted with each other.

"Frankie," she hesitantly said. "He's... so cute and kind and-and caring and... he's just... I don't even know how to describe him. All I know is that I get butterflies just thinking about him. It's been keeping me up all night."

Regina gave her a side-smile. "He seems like a nice boy. It's clear that you really like him," Regina started. "I don't have any advice for you, except to follow your heart. If you really like him, then go for it."

Though the advice was cheesy and unoriginal, the thought was what counted. This was the furthest and deepest conversation Anna and Regina had ever shared that wasn't related to Henry somehow.

Anna couldn't help but smile.