Lagoon ( Peter Pan x OC ) - OUAT fan faction

Chapter 3

Warnings: small mentions of murder
Word count: 1623

Pan.

He should not have let himself enjoy that as much as he had. Aurora was the enemy. Well not exactly an enemy, but certainly not an ally. He had no idea who she was, or what she was capable of. It made him reel at the possibilities.
Pan shook himself of thoughts of Aurora as he walked back into camp. The entire place was teeming with boys, like worker bees in a hive. Tents were set up around the perimeter of the clearing to allow plenty of space for movement. And movement there was. Two of the older boys were sword fighting on the left near the tents, rather clumsily one might add - Darron's parry was awful. Partly to put him out of his misery, Pan hollered:
"Okay boys! Come over by the fire. I've got some news."

Every lost boy in Pan's camp had obediently made their way over to the fire circle. It was late afternoon, so no fire had been lit yet, but logs were laid out around the fire, gathered around like they themselves were having a meeting, and the boys scattered themselves among them to see Pan best they could. Standing in front of him were lads of all ages and ilks. Their ages ranged from eighteen - the same age that Peter himself looked - and Finn, who made up the smallest age bracket at only five. They all answered to Peter, and the power made him smile maliciously.
"I know you've all been hankering for a fight," he finally said. The boys cheered, even little Finn joined in. "We've had some boys, spot a fucking pirate ship, just off the east side of the island.".
The boys looked around at each other, grinning with glee at the thought of a Pirate massacre. "They seemed to have anchored themselves in an alcove a little off that side of the island. You'll have to wait a little longer for action I'm afraid boys," there was a chorus of dismay which met this command, although Peter knew that no one would dare disobey.
"Devin, Felix, for the next two days I want you to scout out that area, try and figure out how many crew members Killian has brought back with him." The two boys nodded at Pan's order.
"The rest of you, back to your duties, and be on guard." The boys dispersed around him and Peter walked briskly towards his tent on the perimeter. This was a fiend attempt to escape Felix, whom he could already feel was following him. The tent plunged both boys into an artificial darkness, and Pan stopped. He did not turn to look at Felix, but simply let him speak. There was an uneasy silence.
"So?" Felix burst out impatiently.
"'So' what Felix? I've give your orders have I not?"
"Did you find the girl!" He blurted.
Pan finally turned to face this boy that he considered his friend. He'd never seen Felix act so restless.
"I did Felix, and what occurred is none of your concern. Neverland is my island, and Aurora belongs to me. Is that understood Felix?" He waited for his response.
"Of course Pan." He replied, subdued
"I'm sorry to be so harsh on you, I just don't understand why you would be so invested in this." Felix seemed to be taking a moment, considering what he was going to say in response.
"I'm just concerned Pan. You didn't know of her existence, and now she is straying so far into the island that she may have stumbled upon our camp? The mermaids have never been a threat but they have not any loyalty to you Pan that could match the support of I, and the other lost boys of course." Felix seemed genuinely distressed by the mere thought of this, so Pan decided to give him some comfort.
"Don't worry yourself Felix" Pan smirked to himself at the next though he had "she doesn't seem like much of a threat, and if she is, be confident that I will deal with her in my own way.".
There was an awkward silencing filling the tent, a moment between the two boys, before Peter dismissed Felix and he dutifully left Peter's tent.
Sitting down on the edge of the bed, Pan picked up a piece of paper from his messy desk. This was when he had a recollection. Throwing down the piece of paper on his bed, he riffled through his draws. He pulled out the document moments later in triumph. It was a map. he had found it on a shipwreck, or what was left of it, a very long time ago. He recalled the night very vaguely, but he had found the wreck when he first arrived on Neverland, and an age had passed since then, a new era begun. Despite the foggy memory, he could remember the feeling of hope, the idea that other's may already be with him on island. This hope had soon been crushed, and that was a feeling Pan would never forget.
The map itself was ancient, but what interested him at this very moment,  was the inscription on the map, next to Mermaid Lagoon. Peter had translated it for himself on the opposite side of the map:
'Human beings fascinate these creatures, I would not be surprised if many a man had be lured to the depths of this lagoon by stolen kisses in the night. Do not trust their mystical beauty.'

The following evening

Aurora.

Aurora felt as though adrenaline was still streaming through her blood from her encounter with Pan. It was like lava had made its way into her veins and was now raging a path through her body, from one place to the next. Progress was slow, but every time it found a new place to nestle, it burnt with the fire of a thousand suns.
As much as she wanted this feeling to keep finding new cracks to trickle into, it was far from desired. The young girl feared that once she'd gotten a taste for the Devil himself, well she would not be able to stop herself.
The other Mermaids had begun to notice something was different. She was quieter, as if she had retreated into her own mind. Aurora realised that she was reliving the same small slice of thrill she'd managed to claw from this good-forsaken island over and over again in her mind. Craving more like the mermaid's craved her berries.
Propelled water suddenly crashed against her smooth skin, and the cold chilled her warm body.
"What's wrong with you?" One of the slightly younger mermaids called from the water below, "You've been thinking behind your eyes for the past 2 days." She continued.
Aurora smiled and simply made some excuse that she was tired.
"Well come have a swim then, it'll cheer you right up!" this fully brought Aurora out of her thoughts. She didn't know this Mermaid, at all. In fact, she'd never even spoken to her, and now she was inviting her for a swim all of a sudden? No. Something about that made her uneasy.
The sun was slowly setting behind the rocks on the far side of the pool, so Aurora swiftly decided on her excuse:
"I'm actually really quite sleepy, I don't think a swim would help, perhaps I'll just find a quiet spot on the shore line and go to sleep." The mermaid in front of her looked disappointed,
"Oh alright then. I'll see you tomorrow Aurora!" 
"Uh yeah I'll see you." She replied, trying to keep her uneasy nerves away from her voice. The lagoon in the dark never had looked quite as idillic as it did during the day, and as the almost-mermaid walked towards a group of rocks she usually slept in, she felt as sense of something more in this place she'd always called her home. It didn't feel like home anymore.

2 hours later

"Fauna cannot find out. She never cared for the thing, but she's flesh and blood so she may still try and save her." Calliope murmured to the three other mer-folk in front of her.
Darkness in its full glory had enveloped the Lagoon, and these particular mermaids were perched behind some rocks on the furthest side of the pool.
"How do you intend to do it Calliope?" The second whispered into the darkness.
"I've collected these alternative berries, they're called Dream-shade and - "
"And you're absolutely sure that Aurora doesn't know they exist?" The third interrupted.
"No of course she doesn't, how would she? Her mother barely says a word to the poor creature. It's a miracle she hasn't pricked herself on any on those little trips into the forest. ". The two others sniggered slightly at the memory of the sheer amount of trips Aurora had been forced to make.
"Now we've gotten incredibly lucky getting our hands on these, as Dream-shade only grows its berries once every season, and you know how the seasons work on Neverland," the group shared a nod "they don't." Calliope completed. "So we only have one shot at this. Once Aurora hands me the berries she will collect tomorrow - to hand out amongst the shoal - before i hand back her share I'll exchange them for these Dream-shade berries and she'll be dead with in a day."
Smiles in the dark from her other two companions confirmed that they shared her aspirations. The poor thing was a malfunctioning mermaid, and had to be disposed of, even in such a crude fashion such as this. It was a necessary evil if Calliope was to preserve the perfect Mermaid gene for generations to come.