They were misled.

Alisha Mae Halloran, 16. Dreamer. "Down to the earth I fell, with dripping wings-- heavy things won't fly, and the sky might catch on fire and burn the axis of the world; that's why I prefer a sunless sky to the glittering and stinging in my eye."

[steelhandedstingray-blog]

So naive, this child. He’d let her think long and hard about her desicion all she wanted, providing the island let her live. She had lasted this long, apparently, surely she had some sort of skill under her belt that even the pirate didn’t know of. Or she was just that good at keeping quiet. Hard to kill what you couldn’t see. 

Or reach. Which was one of the reasons the brat had been stuck out on that rock of his. If he had the gall to actually go through with it, Hook didn’t know. But he’d not take any chances. It was usually that shadow of his that did his bidding, after all, and there was still a chill that ran down the captain’s spine at the chance that it could still be running free. “Have Pan?” Hook mocked, “I’ve no one but me crew, love.” A blatant lie, but if she wanted to get down to technicalities, Pan was marooned and the lost boys in the Black Castle. “I figure it’s not wise to share my plans with children, nor my thoughts.” The pirate turned to leave her, standing alone in the dark. “Have a pleasant sleep, looks like rain.”

[alisha-mae]

Have a pleasant sleep, looks like rain.

"I will," Alisha called the lie absentmindedly after him as he left, not seeming to mind if he didn't hear. It always looked like rain around here, after all, with the clouds roiling constantly over some point of the island and blocking out the starlight that might have penetrated Neverland's endless night. Not that it was easy to sleep when there was always the possibility of being found by someone, animal or human, who had stumbled upon your hiding spot. Soon, though, when she had joined with the pirates, she would have lanterns and food and a weapon of her own - things hard or impossible to come by on the inhospitable island, which were only welcome perks to her plan - all this assuming, of course, that she could keep her mouth shut and not arose any suspicion. Already she was kicking herself for asking about Pan. I've no one but my crew, love. But of course he was lying - right? Though Alisha knew very little about the secretive operations of the pirates, she knew for certain that they had imprisoned most of the children the others called the Lost Boys. Pan's... elect group. Even if she could only find them, and not their leader, they would be the ones to help her free Pan afterward. 

In the future, however, she would have to make sure to seem thoroughly uninterested in Pan. She would blend into the crew as seamlessly as possible, and toe the mark with whatever Hook told her to do - Hell, it would probably even do well to kiss up to him a little, if she could. If she had blended into the forest, she was sure she could manage it on a boat full of people. Breathe, Alisha. Pretend you have nothing to hide. The girl turned and left opposite the way the captain had gone, dodging off the path and disappearing quickly into the trees.

[alisha-mae]

Alisha pushed through the branches that reached into the space of the barely-there path she was following, hearing the decaying leaves cracking feebly under her feet as she paused, looking around, to push her hair back from her face. She couldn't yet hear the still water of the harbor by the castle, but she could smell the ocean in front of her, guiding her vaguely through the treacherous tangle of woods toward the ship she'd seen from the mountain about an hour before. It had been only four days since she had spoken with Captain Hook in the forest and he had offered her a place on his ship. She hadn’t wanted to wait too long, though and miss her chance to join him-- especially after she had met that fairy, Vidia, on the mountain. And now, strange dark shapes had appeared around the island, as well, blocking out the stars as they flew above the trees with their strange, bright eyes piercing the night. On Neverland, the occasional and distant scream of another person was not completely out of the ordinary, though it never failed to put her on edge. Within the last day, however, she had heard the most horrific cries, twice-- first a girl, far away, and later a man, both screaming with such agony she had no doubt they were dying, and dying terribly. She had no intention of meeting the the thing that had caused those deaths. And if her plan helped her avoid the creatures that were proving themselves so deadly, then it was all the more reason to expedite the process.

The most reassuring part of joining the pirates, Alisha supposed, was that she had to do very little to gain their trust. The plan was appealing in its simplicity, which also allowed her an easy way to step back safely if the situation changed, and she had to let the plan go. As long as she proved her loyalty to Hook, she would have no elaborate lies or character to keep up, and all that would be required of her would be to align herself with the goals of the pirates. She would be allowed to hide in plan sight. There was no reason why, given a little time, she would not be trusted to guard the Lost Boys on her own. And this, she hoped for her own sake, would lead her to Pan.

[pigeonfeathers]

[vidiafaerie-blog]

Vidia leveled her with a disbelieving look, her lips pursed and her eyebrows raised. It was the look she’d given to the fairies who came to “welcome” her to Neverland, those first few years. It had usually stunned them into silence and allowed her the rest of the day blissfully away from them. And eventually, they’d stop coming.

She was far too clever to think that this child could be intimidated by a mere look, but she did suspect that it would let her know that Vidia was unimpressed with her excuses. “Help him,” she repeated. “What, would you scrub the deck? All the pirates do these days are drink and search for the Lost, sweetheart. And the boys you think you’re so above are centuries older than you. All of them are experienced killers. Why, when the Lost Boys were taken—” she stopped, shutting her mouth.

I’m looking for a place called the Black Castle. The bloodthirsty pirates have offered me a place. I intend to take it.

Why… she’d almost been duped. Almost. “Oh,” she said, voice soft. A slow smile twitched across her face and she didn’t bother to stop her laugh.

She leaned back, appraising the girl with new eyes. She had no qualms about the pirates, despite the fact that she was certainly a dreamer and, as most dreamers on the island, probably had had a rough experience with pirates in the past. Didn’t dreamers spend their nights prancing around the island with the Boys and the Pan? Or, hadn’t they used to? She was finding it difficult to remember—so many of the Boys were the same, after all, and so were the dreamers. Terrible parents, tragic backstories, dreaming of Neverland to escape the horrors of their realities, blah, blah, blah; all those things that, combined into one big sob story, would make any soft-headed fairy at Pixie Hollow tear up.

But her thoughts had gone astray. The girl, this Alisha, the dreamer-turned-pirate who wanted to get to the Black Castle. Pirates guarded the Black Castle, which in turn, housed the Lost Boys. The Pan’s faithful pets. And if Alisha was like the other dreamers and close to the Lost Boys… well, her assumptions had never been wrong before.

"I might not know anything about you, but I certainly know about your plan, sweet Alisha," she said, her smile widening a fraction. "And I must say, it’s fairly clever. Pan will certainly appreciate it." She almost reassured her that she wouldn’t tell anyone (what did she have to gain, other than Pan’s ire at her inaction when he finally got free?), but common sense prevented it. No need to reassure the girl; let her stew on it and worry about potential capture. A little fear would serve her right, the way she’d talked to Vidia.

She stepped back and nodded to the dirt path stretching behind her, which wound around the mountainside and went straight to Skull Rock. “The Black Castle’s just around the bend. Go on, join your little band of seadogs if you wish. I won’t stop you.”

As she waited for Alisha to hurry on her way, she laughed to herself, watching the girl with a newly interested gaze.

Almost tricked. By a human. And a child, no less!

[alisha-mae]

Alisha’s stony expression didn’t change as Vidia prattled on, the fairy clearly enjoying the sound of her own voice, nor did the girl allow her confidence to waiver as the woman’s eyes unfocused slightly, her lips curling around a small, superior laugh. She couldn’t pretend that she had any idea what the fairy was after, besides affirming her own feeling of superiority, but so far the woman had gained no power over her besides the power of intimidation, and Alisha didn't intend to allow her to exercise her upper hand in the situation. She detested the mindset of bullies, nearly as much as she detested feeling inferior.

I might not know anything about you, but I certainly know about your plan, sweet Alisha.

The effect of the woman's words was apparent immediately, Alisha’s assured expression faltering in unpleasant surprise and her eyebrows twitching upward fearfully as she realized the gravity of Vidia’s words. Had she truly been that transparent? The girl couldn’t stop her face from betraying the fact that she was unnerved, looking the fairy up and down as if that would reveal what had given away her plan. There was a moment in which her shock held her captive, before she opened her mouth to deny Vidia’s assumption. But it was too late to regain her front now. The fairy was completely certain of herself, and Alisha couldn't lie well enough to cover up what was clear-- to scramble for recovery would only be pathetic, and probably achieve very little.

Calm down, a voice in her head commanded her quietly. She didn’t fool herself into believing that she could steer Vidia away from the truth she had already figured out, but if the woman wanted her to beg for secrecy, she at least wouldn’t allow her that as well. Alisha worked for a moment to regain her composure, pushing her shoulders back as her features hardened again, into the same unaffected mask that had served her so well. She hated admitting defeat to someone so imperial, but she’d already been found out— the least she could do for herself was to give this woman as little as possible. She’d be damned if she allowed her to humiliate her-- or ruin her work.

She won't tell, the voice whispered into her ear again, its tone reassuring this time. She doesn't have anything to gain by it. The fairies are loyal to Pan-- all except Zarina. Still, Alisha couldn't silence the voices of doubt that nearly drowned out the scant reassurances. Vidia could tell, easily, if the whim ever seized her fancy. Goodness knew the woman probably wouldn't need much of an excuse besides her own self-satisfaction. Alisha should never have given her the option.

The girl took a deep breath, closing her eyes in a brief grimace that tightened her jaw.

"I’m not going to be anyone’s servant again." She said quietly, an old anger hiding in her tone. "If they need help hunting the Lost Boys, that’s what I’ll do.” She raised her eyebrows at the fairy, the uncertainty hiding behind her eyes marring the effect of the look, but the steely determination of her voice undeniably real. She hesitated for a moment, then turned and strode down the path the woman had left open for her, refusing to allow herself look back. The sudden urgency in her steps, however, told Vidia all she could possibly need to know.

[fuckyeahgemmadoyletrilogy-blog]

[travelermachk-blog]

Even though it barely showed, Machk paid great attention to the young woman’s words : the Lost Boys. The Lost Ones, those that the voices kept whispering about – by now, Machk felt as though he knew enough of them to get a general picture of what they were like. Kings of the island, perhaps – fallen kings ? Failed princes ? Decaying warriors ? Who were those eternal children whose name seemed to strike fear into innocent hearts ? But no, there was something else at play here – Neverland was a land of ice, frozen in time. Unchanging, eternal and yet, everything here seemed to reflect a shift, something shattering in the very fabric of the realm.

Whatever the status quo had been before, it wasn’t the same anymore. Machk was sure of that.

“I’m not a lost boy”, Machk said simply. “I am lost, perhaps, but I do not prey on the weak or the unguarded. I am… new, to this land”.

He chose his words carefully. Machk was a man of a few words in general, and even more when cautiousness was a necessity. The girl in the tree didn’t seem like she posed a danger to him, but appearances could be quite deceitful. He couldn’t know for sure – not unless he was willing to peer straight into her soul.

But his day had been draining enough already – instead, he would rely on his instinct. The one that told him to stay on guard, but to not be wary of the young girl.

“I will not hurt you”, he added after a moment, his gaze searching the girl’s eyes in the dark. “We can share this tree for the night. All I want is a bit of rest, safe from the forest’s various dangers”. 

[alisha-mae]

Had the situation been different, Alisha probably would not have hesitated to put this person, however trustworthy he seemed, far behind her, more than willing to force her tired limbs to keep moving until she had found a spot, in isolation, to sleep without worry. However, the girl could hear the sound of other feet near to their own tree, still distant in the woods but already too close for her comfort when settling in for the night. She knew that they were around the territory of that awful fairy, someone Alisha had no intention of meeting again, and the patrolling grounds of the pirates that sat in the harbor not too far away. Her eyes searched the path below them for a solution, dark brows contracting as she considered her options. Stay in the tree and possibly be in danger from someone she had met, or go out again and possibly be in danger from someone she hadn’t met. As usual, the options presented in Neverland failed to offer an appealing solution. Admittedly, however, she was a little curious about this man, who looked too old to be trapped on an island full of kids, too soft-spoken to be one of the pirate’s lot.

“Okay,” She said finally, a resigned sigh mixed into her agreement. “I’m going to move up now.” She was still perched a few feet below the tree’s foliage line, not low enough to be truly visible from the ground, but too exposed for sleeping, and she closed the difference between them with a few moments of climbing. Choices here were simply trading one danger for another, she supposed. “Thank you.” She said breathlessly as she settled in, giving him a small nod of gratitude despite the careful eye she kept on his movements. They sat almost even in the branches now, the wide trunk standing between them like a rough bark fence.

Whatever he did or didn’t try to do, by the morning it would all lead back into the strange routine of the island: the constant motion, the solitude, and the blind fumbling for information. For Alisha, there was a steadying reassurance in that fact. She pushed her hair from her face and glanced at the ground again, relieved as the sound of feet seemed to veer off to the west of them. “Really, thank you.” She told him gratefully, hesitating for moment as if she wanted to say more. She supposed she owed this man a sign of trust in return. “I'm Alisha.”

[iamnotexotic]

Chrishell Stubbs in “Marilyn Minter After Hours” for Ponytail Magazine, exuding an elegant innocence. 

[jacenyra]

Last words from A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

[fracturedlaughter]

The tone in her Alisha’s voice was oddly respectful, and the way it came so naturally from her lips also tugged curiously at Zarina. But that wasn’t too important right now. As they parted, the fairy crouched down slightly, scanning the darkened forest (of which her eyes, unlike humans, were very accustomed to now). She took each and every step with caution, careful to keep as quiet as she possibly could. Even more careful than before when she was stalking Alisha, because hell if the dreamer heard her, then surely a Lost Boy would. 

Suggestions, hm. “Keep low, keep quiet. Get them by surprise, and if you can, from the back.” It was reckless considering the dreamer had no weapons on her, but it would have to do. Anyway Zarina was close, and armed, so together they should stand some kind of a threat against a single Lost Boy.

[alisha-mae]

Alisha hesitated, then nodded. Zarina hadn't really told her anything she couldn't have guessed, but she was thankful that the woman would be close by, should she find a Lost boy somewhere in the trees. She had spent most of her time avoiding running into unknown people on the island, and she still wasn't sure exactly what kind of threat they may posed compared to her, even with, hopefully, the element of surprise on her side.

Alisha gave Zarina another nod before turning away, stepping off of the path and into the forest. As always, the woods were still, and silence descended quickly on her ears again as Zarina's light footsteps were swallowed by the trees.

[vidiafaerie-blog]

"What a relief. I’ll sleep easier at night knowing you’re safe, dear Alisha." The sweetness in her voice made her want to roll her eyes—but to Alisha, Vidia was still one of the friendly fairies, always looking out for the less fortunate. Vidia came to a stop in front of Alisha and propped her chin on her knuckles, staring at her in silence. She was a scrap of a girl, not impressive at all—Vidia doubted she could even skin a rabbit, much less kill a person.

What would a man like Hook want with her? Furthermore, what did she have to offer the pirates? Eyes narrowing in thought, Vidia tilted her head slightly, still examining the girl.

"Hook has enough men in his crew, and one woman to top it off. I don’t think he’d accept a child like you, not unless he found some value in you. Don’t take it personally, dear, I’m just looking out for you. What on earth could you have to offer the pirates?”

[alisha-mae]

"I talked to Hook. He seemed to think that I could help him." Alisha tried not to let any uncertainty slip into her tone, though the things that Vidia were saying had crept into her own mind on several occasions, entirely of their own accord. She had already mulled over the man's motivations in her own time, unable to make any kind of plot out of his proposition, despite her suspicions. He had admired her boldness, offered her safety, and it was his apparent indifference toward her decision that had made her think he didn't have a personal stake in the offer. It was a job, something she had been allowed to choose for herself-- and of course he was looking for crew. He had a better reason for speaking to her than this fairy probably did.

"Anyway, you don't know anything about me." Alisha's body was stiff, her jaw set against the gentle touch of the woman's hand on her chin, and she made her tone cold to match her physical unresponsiveness. She could be just as capable a fighter as any of the other kids on this island, she was fairly certain. "Some of his crew is much younger than me, even if they are boys."

[oncealostboy-blog]

None of us are alone.

Kind words, really, for one that seemed so wary of him. But maybe the words had a different meaning – it was true, yes, that Neverland was hardly deserted. There was company to be found here, and boys, fairies or mermaids were never far – wild animals crept in the jungle, always ready to pounce.

No, Baelfire wasn’t alone – but loneliness ? That was a different matter, and ever since he had left the mock family of the Lost Boys, Bae had been on his own, Fending for himself, as he had intended to do after planning to leave the Jolly Roger behind.

But Alisha’s stance seemed to soften towards him, as though she had realized that, in his company, she had very little to fear. Baelfire wasn’t looking for enemies – he was simply trying to survive long enough to find a way off the island. Back to London, if he could – or back to a life where he would free himself from the shackles of his past.

Alisha’s question reminded him of it promptly.

The question left a little ache beneath the boy’s ribs, but he had gotten so used to it that he ignored it easily. He ran a hand through his messy curls, a small, rueful smile on his lips and said, thinly veiled sadness in his eyes :

“It’s a long story”.

Three worlds, by now, Baelfire had gone through. The first one had been his home (his true home) – the second one could have been the world he built a new one in.

And then, there was this one – Neverland. A land that crept into his veins and poisoned him, suffocated him from the inside – the land he seemed doomed to remain in for a time he couldn’t determine.

Where was he from ? His village, and then London, and then the pirate ship – homes that were never quite homes unlike the first one – a long story indeed.

He opted for the short version.

“Another world”, he said. “Like most of those who are here now. It’s a long story”, he added with a small shrug.

“What about you ?” 

[alisha-mae]

"It’s a long story," On an impulse, Alisha echoed his own words, smiling gently at her joke. It gave her a moment to consider her real answer before elaborating, the girl trying to imagine what he would be able to understand from a world, should he not have come from the same plane as her, that he had never seen. "It was worse than this place, I think, in… different ways." She admitted. She could remember perfectly the suffocating feeling of her enslavement there, and the hopelessness that had pervaded the lives of everyone around her. In Neverland, if she didn’t feel safe, she at least felt free. She had a chance to decide her own future. She half-smiled again, an expression that fell off her face with unfortunate swiftness. She couldn’t tell him any of this, of course. “My world didn’t have magic.”

Of all the things that had evaded her understanding since she had found herself marooned in Neverland, magic was the topic that both intrigued and baffled Alisha. She could see on the boy’s face that he too had sadness surrounding his past— she had met a few, of the people on this island, who had longed to find their home again. He didn’t have the same wishful expression that they had worn, nor, thank goodness, did he seem to be in any danger of crying. She could recognize the tone of his voice, though, having heard it in her own words in moments of weakness. Perhaps he felt the same way about the island, or perhaps he wanted to leave, but could he know anything about the magic of this place? Did other worlds have it, as well?

Alisha watched Baelfire intently in the island’s perpetually dusky light, her brows contracting curiously at the changing expressions under his mop of dark curls. It was one of the things that people had found so off-putting about her on the plantation, but she had never been aware of her expressions enough to regulate herself, and here, at least, people didn’t seem to mind. Perhaps because people in Neverland were so much harder to read. Or better liars.

[radnorsgrin-deactivated20170303]

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The Hanging Tree - The Hunger Games

(fan arrangment by adrisaurus)

(cover art by ~La-Chapeliere-Folle)

[averytunes]

Visit Original Link

Pan’s Labyrinth - Pan’s Labyrinth Lullaby

[very-hobbit-deactivated20201106]

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Oh, misty eye of the mountain below Keep careful watch of my brothers’ souls And should the sky be filled with fire and smoke Keep watching over Durin’s son If this is to end in fire Then we shall all burn together Watch the flames climb high into the night Calling out father, stand by and we will Watch the flames burn auburn on the mountain side And if we should die tonight Then we should all die together Raise a glass of wine for the last time Calling out father, prepare as we will Watch the flames burn auburn on the mountain side Desolation comes upon the sky

Now I see fire, inside the mountain I see fire, burning the trees And I see fire, hollowing souls I see fire, blood in the breeze And I hope that you’ll remember me Oh, should my people fall Then surely I’ll do the same Confined in mountain halls We got too close to the flame Calling out father hold fast and we will Watch the flames burn auburn on the mountain side Desolation comes upon the sky Now I see fire, inside the mountain I see fire, burning the trees I see fire, hollowing souls I see fire, blood in the breeze And I hope that you’ll remember me And if the night is burning I will cover my eyes For if the dark returns then My brothers will die And as the sky’s falling down It crashed into this lonely town And with that shadow upon the ground I hear my people screaming out Now I see fire, inside the mountain I see fire, burning the trees I see fire, hollowing souls I see fire, blood in the breeze I see fire, oh you know I saw a city burning (fire) I see fire, feel the heat upon my skin (fire) And I see fire (fire) And I see fire burn auburn on the mountain side

[vidiafaerie-blog]

"There, that wasn’t so hard, was it?" Vidia’s smile never wavered as she spoke, despite the patronizing tone the stupid child used. "You’ll find that I give you much and more when you give me something to work with, Alisha. I am familiar with the Black Castle, yes."

She turned her back on the girl and walked back to her plum tree, leaning against a low leaning branch and turning to face her. Her smile was sweeter, more honeyed. “In fact, sweetie, this path leads straight to it.”

Her eyes widened, as if she was remembering something. She pushed off the branch and stalked toward the girl, pacing in a circle around her. “And, as it happens, I’m the one who controls this pass. Why’s a child like you so interested in a dangerous place full of bloodthirsty pirates who’d slit your throat in a heartbeat? I would hate for such a fate to befall you.”

She stopped in front of the girl, itching to wipe that girl’s smirk (she hated smirks, when they were on foreign faces) off with her nails. But such base violence wasn’t befitting for her, and intelligence was the weapon of the sophisticated.

"You should know that not answering me will certainly upset me.” She smiled, wishing her teeth were as sharp as some Dark fairies’. “And we both know how much you would hate that, hm?”

[alisha-mae]

"Seeing you upset? No, I ain’t so sure I would hate that." What would upset her would probably come soon after that, though—most notably, possibly loosing a chunk of her face to the fairy’s nails. It was that thought that kept another smirk from curling around her lips, her deadpan expression hopefully allowing her to dance just outside the woman’s danger zone. Truthfully, she took no enjoyment from that small bit of power gained over Vidia, anyway. Her stomach was too twisted to enjoy the pettiness of the exchange. She was growing tired of the pointless conversation, wondering what the woman’s aim was in squabbling with her, and fearing the fight that might come after it finished. “The bloodthirsty pirates… have offered me a place. ” Her eyes darted toward the pass again, shuffling her feet a little on the leaves. Small signs that she was uncomfortable again. She paused. “I intend to take it.” That much was true, at least, although her intentions were hardly to become a loyal crew member. She smiled slightly. “So you don’t have to worry about any... fates. Befalling me.”

[fracturedlaughter]

She did know it was an island, right? Zarina thought of questioning it, then just shrugged at Alisha’s remark. Of course, there were many ways to get to Neverland, like to fly or travel by sea, but now the island had a barrier around it, one that didn’t let people in or out. But for truly how long could the dreamer have been here? The only children on the island that actually stayed, before the eternal darkness set in, were the Lost Boys. However the fairy brushed it off.

Zarina chuckled at her reply, the laughter in her tone. She figured the dreamer had no idea of just how tough the Lost Boys could be, but she didn’t say anything of it. Instead the pirate focused on Alsha’s suggestion that came next “Suppose your right.” She wondered momentarily if the dreamer was trying to trick her somehow, her mind brimming through the possibilities before shoving the thought out of her head. “You go left and I go right, and shout when you find one, sound good?”

[alisha-mae]

"Yes, miss." Alisha agreed automatically, the formality perhaps a token of her old life, pulled from her mouth without her even noticing the shift. And that much, she was sure she could manage. It was just the rest that she wasn't... quite so sure about. She hadn't wanted to reveal any weaknesses to this woman, but as their paths diverged, both of them taking a few stealthy strides forward in their respective directions, she wavered slightly. She had spent so long hiding on this island, always fearing becoming the quarry of some wild inhabitant, that she had never been the hunter before. A hunter without a weapon, too, how clever. She wasn't any stranger to skin-on-skin fighting, but she'd seen some of the weapons the Lost Boys carried on their shoulders and tucked into their belts, their tips glistening with something sinister and dark, no doubt deadly, or at least very painful. Something she wished to avoid.

"You wouldn't have any... suggestions, would you?"

[oncealostboy-blog]

Alisha. 

Baelfire hadn’t learned much from his father - or rather, he was unwilling to consciously recall any lessons that the might might have taught him. While Rumplestiltskin had been a good father for most of Bae’s short life, his darker turn in the boy’s more recent past had left a deep, scarring imprint. However, there were a few sayings, a few sentences his father used to say that Baelfire remembered : one of them spoke of the power of a name. Baelfire’s father used to say that names were important, meaningful - that a few syllables held many secrets about what was in a person’s heart. 

Baelfire wasn’t skilled enough to decipher such things : but he kept the name in mind, appreciating its sonority. It was a pretty name, filled with mystery. As Baelfire had suspected, Alisha seemed to have been in Neverland before - like Cheney, and some other Dreamers. However, there was a difference between wandering here in a dream and finding yourself trapped here for good. Bae couldn’t imagine the shock of finding out a land you thought was a fragment of your imagination turned out to be quite real, and a nightmare at that. 

At the question, Baelfire hesitated - what was he ? In Neverland, there weren’t that many possible answers. People, here, fit into groups - Lost Boys, pirates, fairies… Baelfire belonged to none, but the Lost Boy stamp clung to him in every second that the music of the pipes still carried towards him - but as far as he was concerned, he was a prisoner like the rest of them. A lost soul trapped into a land he hadn’t wanted to ome to in the first plate - desperate to break free, and get back home (and if he had one no longer, he’d make one). 

"I’m… I’m just me", he said with a shrug, realizing how inadequate that answer probably sounded. "I was a Lost Boy - but I left, and now I’m … here. I’m alone". 

[alisha-mae]

"None of us are alone." Alisha spoke with a small smile and a tone of the utmost assurance, the pronouncement sounding neither good nor bad as it came from her lips. It was simply true. The strange quality of this island, the horrible tease that mostly worsened and occasionally improved the strange purgatory of existence here, was that one was not alone all of the time. Every week or so, you would probably encounter another human stumbling around the island like you were, a familiar face or a stranger who would remind you of your total lack of companionship. It wasn’t the lack of people that drove people mad here. It was the ruling inability to trust anyone other than yourself. Friendly words were simply hard to come by when everyone kept a knife hidden behind their back during conversation.

Perhaps asking after his loyalties hadn’t been the best way to go. Everything was so tangled and confused on this island it was sometimes hard to sort out your own thoughts in the mess, much less where you stood in any complicated social order. If she was going to have her first semblance of a pleasant conversation in however many weeks, she wouldn’t waste it pondering the hopeless squabbling of the factions in Neverland.

it was times like these that Alisha longed for a calm, normal day, and a nice conversation. She could even understand, fleetingly but clear, the longing of some other children to find their way home. Perhaps he was one of the lucky children who had something to hope to return to. She simply wouldn’t know.

Pursing her lips as she studied the boy— with a slightly softened version of her normally penetrating stare— she posed her next question with careful benignity, aware that it might be a question as unwelcome for him as it would be for her, and attempting to be gentle.

“Where did you come from, Baelfire?”