juliet •peter pan•

SEVENTY-THREE

The ride to Storybrooke wasn't too long. It was longer than the way to Neverland, but that was because they were traveling by ship, not magic bean. At some point, Henry came back up from the quarters, but for the rest of the ride, every time Juliet looked his way, he was looking at her.

Juliet had never been more relieved when they landed in the water at Storybrooke harbor. She was glad to put the whole experience behind her. As they got off the boat, the whole town had gathered and was cheering them on. Juliet chuckled. As everyone reunited, Juliet stood next to Regina.

"I have to admit, there was a minute there, I didn't believe we were all gonna make it out of that place." Emma remarked.

"Well, we did." David exclaimed, and Mary Margaret looked over at Regina.

"And we owe a lot of it to her." She said loudly. "Regina helped save us all." Everyone looked at Regina. Juliet could tell Regina was slightly uncomfortable by all the attention. The attention didn't last long though, and soon everyone went back to their business.

"So what about that shadow?" David asked, looking up at the one black sail containing the shadow.

"Don't worry, it's trapped." Gold assured him. "Just as it was in the candle. And the only person that can free it is safely in here." He looked down at the box in his hand. He then put it back in his pocket.

"We should probably keep that box away from Juliet." Neal joked. "Wouldn't want her letting her boyfriend out." Juliet lightly punched him in the arm.

"I wouldn't do that." She argued. "Not after what he did." But she saw the joking expression on his face and she had to suppress a smile.

All of a sudden, she heard Henry's voice.

"Hey, Mom! Dad!" They all turned to face Henry, who was standing next to Felix. "What about Felix? He's still free!" Felix said something to Henry, which Juliet couldn't hear because he was whispering it. The group walked over to the Lost Boy.

"Henry's right." Regina noted. "We can't just let Felix walk away freely." David nodded.

"Oh, don't worry. We've got plenty of cell space for this guy." David then dragged Felix away, but on their way, Felix caught Juliet's eye. He shot her a look that said he knew something. Juliet was confused by this, but turned her attention back to Henry.

"You're safe now, Henry." Emma reassured the boy, and she, Henry, and Neal walked away.

Their next stop was Gold's to watch him hide the box.

"Once I seal the box in here..." he started. "...no one can break the spell but me." He waved his hand across the floor, which let out a glow.

"And you're not going to do that?" Henry asked. Gold nodded.

"Believe me. I want Pan trapped just as much as you."

"Don't worry, Henry." Emma spoke softly.

"He's not getting out of there." Neal continued.

"We won't let anything happen to you again, I promise." Regina finished the thought. Gold stood up.

"She's right. You needn't worry. As long as I'm alive, that boy will never see the light of day."

They left Gold's shop to give him time alone with Belle and to figure out what to do next. This resulted in a celebration at Granny's. Juliet enjoyed actually being able to eat good food. She chowed down on the burger she had gotten.

"Oh, I missed this." She exclaimed to herself. She heard a chuckle, and turned her head to see Regina.

"Enjoying that burger?" Juliet nodded eagerly.

"What Pan and the Lost Boys called food does not compare to this." She gestured to the burger. "I missed real food." She pushed her plate toward Regina an inch. "French fry?" Regina smiled, shaking her head.

That night, as Juliet was getting ready for bed, she decided to check in on Henry. She hadn't really had time to talk to him since he got his heart back. She walked down the hall and knocked on his bedroom door. After a few seconds, she opened the door to find Henry sitting on his bed. As soon as she opened the door, he looked up at her.

"Hey." Henry seemed to perk up at her appearance. "Just thought I would check in on you, since, you know..." She sighed. "How are you? I know it's been a lot these past couple of days." Henry smiled.

"I'm glad to be home." Juliet chuckled.

"Oh, me too. As much as I liked Neverland the first time around, I missed having my own space and not being in the jungle." Henry nodded.

"Are you okay? I know Pan lied to you." Juliet took a deep breath. She hadn't really allowed herself to think about Pan because she thought she would just break down, and she couldn't do that.

"I... I don't know. I mean, for the longest time I loved him, but then he..." She looked up at the ceiling, blinking back tears. "...he hurt you. And that is unforgivable." She looked back at Henry. "But that doesn't matter anymore, because he's never getting out of that box, so I never have to think about him again." She saw a somber look on Henry's face, which she read as a sympathetic look. Henry sighed.

"Thank you for saving me." Juliet smiled.

"I didn't exactly do much. It was mainly your moms."

"Still." Henry responded. "You got to Neverland before they did. And you stayed with me the whole time." Juliet nodded.

"Of course I did." She chuckled. "All right, well I should let you get some sleep." She turned around to leave the room, but she felt a hand grab her wrist. Juliet turned back and was immediately embraced in a tight hug. She smiled, hugging Henry back. After a moment, Juliet decided it was time to let go of the hug. But it looked like Henry wasn't ready to let go. She quickly pat his shoulders, letting go of the hug. "Goodnight, Henry." Henry nodded.

"Goodnight." Juliet left his room, closing the door, and returning to her room.