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INDIANA JONES
lviii. DARLING LIAR

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PRESENT
NEVERLAND

AS TINKER BELL LED the group throughout the island of children, Indiana Jones found herself coming to a sudden halt when they spotted Rumplestiltskin and Regina Mills emerging from the bushes a few feet in front of them. They each stood in a line with their weapons aimed at them, for they had thought they were Peter and the Lost Boys. They quickly lowered their firearms once they knew whom it was that was making their way toward them.

"Well, if this is your version of a rescue party, we got here just in time," Regina commented, slightly gesturing toward Rumplestiltskin who stood behind her. Snow White wondered what the two of them were doing. "Same as you, except we actually have a chance. Pandora's Box." She motioned to the box in Rumplestiltskin's hands. "It could trap Pan for eternity simply by opening the lid."

Indiana Jones's entire body stiffened at the sight of the box. Her whole life had been flipped upside down for the second time because of Pandora's Box. Funny how quickly times had changed.

"You didn't tell me my father was with her," Baelfire stated with a lowered voice.

"I didn't know," Emma whispered.

"Wait, the Dark One is your father?" Tinker Bell asked in surprise.

"Yeah," Neal confirmed. "And he's not getting anywhere near Henry. There's a prophecy that says Henry will be his undoing. He didn't come here to protect Henry. He came here to kill him."

Everyone turned to stare at Rumplestiltskin, completely startled and flabbergasted. "That's why you didn't want to find Neal before you got Henry back?" Regina questioned. "Because you knew he'd spill your secret."

"Everything I did was to protect Henry, to rescue him from Pan," Rumplestiltskin defended through gritted teeth.

"It all makes sense," Emma realized, looking at him with furrowed eyebrows. "You left before we even made shore."

Snow nocked an arrow into her bow. "You wanted to get to Henry first..." the princess trailed off angrily.

"To be on his own," David continued as he withdrew his sword.

"So no one could stop you..." Indiana muttered, holding her whip with a tight grip.

"So you can kill him," Regina finished for them.

"It's not gonna happen," Emma spat. "Not unless you go through all of us first."

"You're making a mistake," Rumplestiltskin stated in attempt to defend himself. Everyone stayed still. "I don't care if the boy is destined to be my undoing. I won't hurt him."

"Bullshit," Indiana snapped.

"Because that sounds just like you," Regina sarcastically agreed. She glared at him.

"Without me, you will fail," Rumplestiltskin continued, pretending as if the woman hadn't butted in. "I'm the most powerful amongst us. If I could give you my dagger, I would. But I can't."

"But you can give me Pandora's Box," Baelfire mentioned. "I don't have to trust you if I could stop you." Rumplestiltskin fell silent before ultimately giving up the box. "Look at me... you so much as lift a finger to perform magic, you're gonna spend an eternity in this box."

With that, the group left. Before Indiana could push past Rumplestiltskin, the elder stopped her. "Look, you may think you know who you're up against and who you're in love with, but you don't," Rumplestiltskin said.

Indiana stared at him emotionlessly. "Then tell me. You two supposedly have some history together. What really happened between you two?"

"Peter Pan destroyed my brother."

➖➖➖

From the perimeter of the Lost Boys camp, Tinker Bell stood alongside Indiana. They stared into the camp through the leaves, listening as they spoke indistinctly. Neal was on Pan patrol, meaning that since he had Pandora's Box, he would be the one to trap him in the object if necessary.

"Can I at least use magic on these boys?" Rumplestiltskin wondered as they stared at them.

"No," Neal and Indiana immediately answered.

"You remember the spell?" Rumplestiltskin wondered, looking at Regina.

Regina rolled her eyes before waving her hand. The Lost Boys fell unconscious. The only reason Indiana allowed them to use magic on them was to make them fall unconscious, but that was it.

They walked into the camp from different sides of the camp, eventually meeting in the center. The only thing was: Peter was nowhere to be seen. They looked around in search of Henry, calling his name. They had absolutely no clue where he was. He was nowhere to be seen. A small voice calling for help made Baelfire turn and walk toward the voice, for he had recognized it. It belonged to a girl.

He ran toward it. "Wendy?" Neal called out.

"Do I know you?" the girl asked, staring at him in confusion. Neal reminded her that he was Baelfire. She gasped. Emma asked if they knew each other. Neal ran forward. Neal grabbed a nearby rock and began to beat the cage until it came open. Wendy jumped out and hugged Neal. "I thought I'd never see you again!"

Neal let her go, staring at her in confusion. "What are you—What are you doing here?" Neal demanded softly. Wendy told him that she came back to save him. "You did that for me?"

"Well, I couldn't bare for you to be without a family, not after you told us that your mother and father were both dead," Wendy sadly explained.

"You told her I was dead?" Rumplestiltskin queried. They moved their heads to see the man.

"It was easier than telling the truth—my own father abandoned me," Neal stated.

After getting Wendy situated in the camp, Snow offered her a blanket. The girl thanked her, wrapping it around her body. "Hey, Wendy, since you've been here, have you seen my son? His name's Henry," Neal wondered. Wendy, surprised, asked if he had a son. "Yeah. Pan needs his heart."

"Has he said anything about the Heart of the Truest Believer?" Snow White asked.

Wendy shook her head. "No. I'm sorry," she apologized. "He never mentioned anything about a heart."

"BS," Indiana declared as Rumplestiltskin accused, "She's lying. I've carried enough lies in my life to recognize their burden. She knows where Henry is."

"You don't understand," Wendy began to explain. A mortified Snow White asked if she was helping Pan. "He's keeping John and Michael alive, only if I do as he says."

"Trust me. Whatever he's promised, he will go back on his word," Rumplestiltskin mentioned.

"And why should I trust a man who abandoned his own son?" Wendy wondered in disgust.

"Because your brothers did. They trusted a woman named Belle," Regina began to explain. "They helped her get this box so we can defeat Pan."

"They're okay?" Wendy asked, hopeful.

"For now, and only if we succeed," Rumplestiltskin answered the girl who was much older than she appeared to be.

"Wendy," Indiana called. She walked over and kneeled beside the girl. "We will save John and Michael, I promise you that. And when I promise something, I don't go back on it. But right now, I really need your help. Please."

Indiana wasn't sure what it was, but she felt different. Maybe it was because Neverland always made her go just little softer than usual, or maybe it was because she just had a mental breakdown not too long ago. Whatever it was, Indiana kind of liked it.

"Pan told Henry that... he needs his heart to save magic," Wendy started. "But that's a lie. He needs it to save himself." Indiana softly asked what she meant, despite already knowing. "Pan's dying. He needs the Heart of the Truest Believer to absorb all the magic in Neverland. And once he does... he will be immortal, all powerful."

"And what happens to Henry?" Indiana asked, not knowing that much.

"Well, it's a trade," Wendy continued. "When Pan lives, Henry will die."

"How do we stop Pan?" David demanded.

"Pan took Henry to Skull Rock," Wendy answered. Indiana nodded, remembering the location of it. "But you haven't got much time."

"Then we stay behind. Someone needs to be here to guard the Lost Boys when they wake up," David decided.

"You don't need to stay behind," Emma pointed out.

"David's right," Snow White realized. "You get him home, tell him we love him."

"Tell him yourself when you get back from Deadman's Peak. Gold can cure you back in Storybrooke. We just need to bring some of the water with us," Emma explained.

Snow walked forward and hugged her daughter tightly. "And you—you didn't give up," Snow proudly said. She turned her head to face Rumplestiltskin. "Thank you."

"Well, apparently, that's the only thanks I need these days," the Dark One bitterly replied.

"Tink and I will take care of things here," Killian offered. "Meet you back at the Jolly Roger when you find Henry." He turned to Indiana. "Be careful."

Indiana smiled at him. "Always am."

Snow White nodded and turned back to her daughter. "Promise me if your father and I don't make it back, you get him home," Snow whispered to her daughter.

"We're all going back home," Emma said, refusing to promise such a thing. "Together."

For the first time in a very long time, Emma felt nothing (aside from nervous) but hopeful.

➖➖➖

The imperturbable water that fenced the island of Neverland prudently swayed the wooden rowboat that housed Indiana Jones, the Evil Queen, the Savior, the Dark One, and his son. Staring down at the ocean beneath her, Indiana thought about how her friends suggested for her to not travel with them to Skull Rock to confront Peter Pan. At first, she believed that they only had her best interests in mind. Now that she thought about it, Indiana realized that they were most likely fearful of the idea that her feelings would cloud her judgment. After all, they wanted to trap her boyfriend of many decades in a little box for the rest of eternity.

Indiana always thought that Skull Rock was a very ugly piece of land, especially in comparison to the rest of Neverland. It was constantly lit with torches, no matter the weather. The torches would guide one into a small corridor with a ramp, which would take you to the upper portion of the small island. From there, you could look out of the Skull's eyes.

Observing as Rumplestiltskin hopped out of the rowboat, Indiana pondered to herself for a moment. She thought about what he told her about his brother. She wondered just what exactly Peter Pan had done to the person the Dark One seemed to care so deeply for.

The sand underneath their feet mixed with gravel and dirt, squishing beneath their weight. Indiana didn't mind, though. However, she couldn't really say the same about Regina, who had been going about this whole adventure in high heels. That was one of the few things modern day women could do that Indiana could never.

Together, they all followed along the footprints that were imbedded in the sand after coming to the conclusion that they came from Henry's shoes. Emma Swan led the way. When she began to walk into the corridor by the entrance, she was suddenly pushed back by a strong force of magic. Emma did a flip as she nearly flew right back into the boat.

"Pan cast a protection spell," Rumplestiltskin realized, a subtle hint of happiness laced in his tone.

While Baelfire helped Emma up, Regina stared down the invisible wall. "There has to be a way to break it," she mumbled before creating a ball of fire within her palms. She shot it at the barrier, but it reflected off of it like a bouncy ball. Indiana instantly dropped to the floor, fearful of getting burnt.

"Here's a fantastic idea," Indiana began, standing up once more while dusting herself off, "try not to kill us! I'd rather not become roasted Indiana on a stick before I turn 18."

"Aren't you well over a century?" Regina snapped back. Indiana pointed her eyes at her, folding her arms over her chest as she huffed.

"Try all you want, but Pan's magic is too powerful," Rumplestiltskin declared as he walked toward the barrier. "At least, for you."

With that being said, Rumplestiltskin stepped forward, walking straight through the barrier. Everyone stared at the Dark One in surprise. "How did you do that?" Emma demanded, startled.

"The spell is designed to keep anyone who casts a shadow from entering," Rumplestiltskin answered nonchalantly.

"And you don't have one," realized Baelfire. "You were telling the truth about ripping your shadow off."

Indiana instantaneously raised her eyebrows. "Wait a second—you ripped your shadow off of your body?" Indiana repeated. "That's so metal."

"Exactly. And Pan knows it. That's why he cast the spell he did," Rumplestiltskin continued. "This isn't about keeping you out. It's about drawing me in. He knows I won't give up the chance to finish what I came here to do."

"You really did come here to save Henry," his son sheepishly remarked.

Not taking any time to think about his response, Rumplestiltskin then said, "I gave you my trust with that box. Now, I need you to give it back."

Neal looked down at Pandora's Box before hesitantly extending his arm out to hand it over. However, Indiana seemed to snatch it right out of his hand. "Wait," Indiana stated. She looked down at the box in her hands—the box that gave her so many good and bad memories. "Just... don't hurt him too much... Please." Then, Indiana cleared her throat. "Uh, I mean, because I'm obviously not worried about him or something."

Rumplestiltskin smirked at her before taking the box. "Well, a simple good luck would've sufficed," the Dark One responded. With that being said, the nervous man turned around and left to confront Peter Pan.

Indiana observed as the Evil Queen proceeded to pace around. "So what are we supposed to do now?" she wondered.

"What about the spell my father used to tear off his shadow?" Neal suggested.

"You think if I knew how to do that, I wouldn't have done it already?" Regina snapped.

Indiana sighed, walking forward and staring at the invisible barrier that Rumplestiltskin had stepped through. Now that she was closer to it, she could see the faint glow of the magic radiating off of the wall. "Invisible wall, huh..." she trailed off. Humming to herself, the brunette turned around. "Hey, what if—"

Indiana's statement was interrupted as she attempted to lean against the invisible barrier. Keyword: attempting. Indiana had suddenly fallen directly through, landing flat on her ass. Everyone gawked at her in surprise.

"The hell? Do you not have a Shadow either?" Neal questioned. Indiana rubbed her bottom while slowly rising.

"I don't... I think..." she trailed off, surprised and confused at the same time. She looked down, seeing her shadow perfectly on the ground. "I have no idea what happened."

Regina pondered to herself for a moment before groaning with disgust. "Of course," she realized. "True love allowed you to pass through."

"Indiana," Emma began while walking forward. "Get my son back."

Still rather shook, Indiana nodded quickly and turned on her heel, wondering how this eventful trip would end out in the end.