juliet •peter pan•

SIXTY-SEVEN

Later that night, Juliet watched the lost boys crowd around two climbing a rope. Henry was sitting on a log, not really interacting with the other boys. Until one came over and poked him with a spear. Henry turned around.

"Ow!" The boy with the spear scoffed.

"So you're the kid Pan has been looking for all this time?" He backed Henry further into the middle of the camp.

"Ask him." Henry responded. The boy swung at Henry with his spear. "Stop it." Henry protested. At this point, enough of a crowd had gathered.

"If you can't take this, how are you gonna handle what Pan has in store for you?" Juliet tilted her head. She was a little confused on what the boy meant. Henry looked down at the stick next to him. He then picked it up. The boy chuckled, then charged at Henry with a blow that Henry deflected. They sparred for a minute before Pan spoke up.

"Not bad." He was leaning against a tree. "But wouldn't it be more fun, if you had real swords?" Henry looked nervous.

"I've never used a real sword." Pan smiled.

"This is Neverland and you have the heart of the truest believer. You can use whatever you want." He stood behind Henry, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You just need to believe, Henry. Close your eyes and believe you're holding a real sword." Henry closed his eyes, and sure enough, his wooden stick turned into a metal sword. Juliet tensed. She had a feeling that this was not going to end well.

With a rush of confidence, Henry charged at the boy. The boy only had a wooden stick, so Henry could easily overpower him. Encouraged by Pan and the rest of the lost boys, he kept going until he cut a scratch on the boy's face. Immediately he stepped back.

"I'm sorry. It was an accident." He looked around, only to see Pan's smiling face.

"Henry. Don't you know the best thing about being a Lost Boy?" He gave Henry back the sword. "You never have to apologize." He raised Henry's arm up holding the sword. The Lost Boys cheered. Juliet got up, sighing, and walked out of the camp.

She needed to clear her head. What she saw in there, that was not Henry. She was so lost in thought that she almost didn't hear the rustling behind her. She sharply turned around to see Peter walking over to her. 

"You okay? You left in a hurry." Juliet sighed, putting a hand on her forehead. 

"Yeah, it's just a lot, adjusting here after such a long time. I almost forgot how energized everyone here is." Peter chuckled. "And Henry, I..." She tried to find the right words. "I've never seen him like that." Peter extended his arms, putting his hands on her shoulders. 

"Just give it time, you'll get used to it quickly." He smiled. "And I wouldn't worry about Henry. He's adjusting to being here. Just like you are." Juliet looked at him. She knew he was right. Henry was finding his way in Neverland. "But if you're really concerned, you should talk to him." Juliet nodded. 

"Yeah, I just needed some time to think." Peter took his hands off her shoulders. 

"Now I have to go take care of some matters, but I will be back soon." He quickly kissed her before walking back to camp to round up some Lost Boys. Juliet put her hands on her hips, taking a deep breath. 

When she got back to camp, she saw Henry drawing something on the ground with his sword. She sat down next to him. 

"Hey, can I talk to you for a second?" Henry looked up at her, a little worried about what she was about to say. 

"Is this about the sword and me scratching that guy's cheek?" Juliet sighed. 

"Kind of." Henry tensed up, and Juliet noticed his expression. "Don't worry, I'm not upset with you. I know that the Lost Boys can be a lot, and this is not the first time I've seen this happen. I was just... surprised. I didn't know you had that in you." Henry looked at the ground. "Look, I'm not good at this. Regina's always been the one talking to you about this stuff, but I just want you to know that you're not the only one from Storybrooke. I'm here if you ever need to talk." Henry smiled. 

"Thanks Juliet." Juliet chuckled. Then, out of the corner of her eye she saw a stick poking Henry. He turned around and saw the kid from earlier. He immediately stood up. "I don't want to fight again, okay?" Juliet noticed the lack of expression on the kid's face. The kid put his stick back in its holster. 

"I didn't come to fight. I came to deliver a message." He said in a monotone voice. He looked around before pushing Henry a few steps back out of earshot from the rest of the camp. "Your family is here?" Juliet tilted her head. She guessed that if Gold was here, there was a good chance the rest of them were, but it was still a shock. Henry looked even more surprised. 

"What?" He asked in disbelief. 

"They're on the island trying to find you." The kid explained, and Juliet figured that it wasn't the kid talking, but Regina. Henry still looked unsure. 

"You're making this up. Because I cut your cheek. You're trying to get back at me." The kid shook his head. 

"I'm not making it up." He handed Henry an object. "Look." As Juliet got a closer look, she realized it was a mirror. On the other side were Snow, Emma, and Regina. 

"Henry are you okay?" Regina asked. 

"Henry can you hear me?" Emma asked. Henry's eyes widened. 

"Mom?" 

"I'm here too, Henry." Snow chimed in. Juliet smiled. Henry looked up at the kid. 

"No. This is a trick." 

"No. No. It's not a trick." Emma responded. "Henry, I promise you this is real. Kid, it's Operation Cobra Rescue. It's us." 

"You're here?" Henry asked. Emma smiled.

"Yes, we're coming to get you." Juliet heard a rustle and looked over to see Peter on his way back to camp. Henry seemed to notice too. 

"There's someone coming. It's Pan. I gotta go." Henry basically threw down the mirror and it broke hitting a rock. He looked at Juliet, hopeful. "They're here."