↬Chapter Forty Four-A Conversation Long Overdue↬

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I only own Jade/Camilla and my ideas.

It hadn't been long since Neal had arrived in Storybrooke, and despite everything of which has happened since his arrival, the pair had still made time where the could at least speak to each other. After all, they really needed to catch up with each other.

Neal had arranged for them to meet at Granny's Diner, knowing that Tamara would be out on a run, plus he had told her that he was meeting Camilla.

Neal had wanted the pair to talk to each other after he had found out that Camilla had a curse placed on her. Okay, they had one brief conversation with each other, but it ended not the way of which he wanted it to. He wanted to know more about what had happened to her in both Neverland and the Enchanted Forest. And he was sure that she would want to at least know what had happened to him after the last time they saw each other back in Neverland.

Camilla was the first one out of the two to arrive at the Diner - considering that everyone was worried about what had happened with August - who had recently been turned back into a little boy. Though she would have to admit, it was a struggle to actually get out the door with David, Emma and Mary Margaret all talking down her ear about how it's not safe to go out; she had easily made them shut up when Camilla had grabbed her daggers - which had been on a table.

So, there she sat, waiting for Neal to show up. In her hands she had held onto a mug of hot chocolate, her eyes seemed fixed on the table of which she sat. Her mind had gone everywhere, she couldn't focus properly - she was tired but even if she did go to sleep, she'd be haunted by her own mind which would cause her nightmares. Her mind had gone to Peter in hopes that he was okay with whatever he was doing, she had hoped that her Lost boys were doing okay as well. She missed them every single day in hopes that in whatever form she's in - that she'd be able to see them again.

There was one thing of which Camilla missed for sure, which was Peter's hugs. He had always given the best hugs and seemed to be able to tell when something was wrong, he didn't need the bracelet to know, he just knew. She missed him so much that it pissed her off. She hated the fact that she missed him because it had annoyed her that any time she thought about him, no matter how many times she tried her best to not think about him, Peter had always came crawling back into her mind.

"Jade, hey." Neal's voice had broke her out of her thoughts. Camilla had looked up towards the man who slid into the booth and sat opposite her.

Camilla had smiled slightly, "Hey."

Ruby had came towards their table and had taken their order, which was just two hot chocolate - one with cinnamon and one without. It hadn't taken Ruby long to bring them their drinks before leaving them again, no matter how much Ruby wanted to stay and chat she could easily tell that the Stiltskin siblings needed to talk alone.

Neal had broke the silence between the two as he said, "I wanted to say sorry for the last time we spoke, I know that what I said was probably out of line-"

Camilla had then cut him off, "-Neal, there's nothing to apologise for, I should be the one to say sorry, after all I was still pissed off at Emma for telling you about the curse, even after we changed the subject to why I turned out the way I did."

Neal didn't say anything, he looked towards the table and had let out a small sigh. The pair had fallen back into silence for a brief moment, they wanted to say everything of which had happened in their life but they couldn't form any kind of sentence in order to say. There was so much of which they wanted to say but even speaking seemed difficult, they knew - just by their last conversation in the Diner - just how much they had changed.

It was Camilla this time who broke the silence, "How'd you get off Neverland? I doubt Peter would have allowed it."

Neal shrugged slightly, "I - uh - had help. Well, I kind of studied the stars before I attempted to escape. I managed to capture his shadow and shoved it into a sail. I might've stolen one of the boats which looked like a smaller ship but had sails and a wheel - it kind of looked like Hook's ship but a lot smaller. That's how I managed to get back to this realm. It took me years to try and find a way to go back. Though what had motivated me more was when I heard that you was taken from the island by someone - I'm not sure who till you told me it was our father."

Camilla somewhat smiled at the tale of which Neal had told. "Damn, remind me to never underestimate you. That was smart - going for the shadow in the sail was smart. Why the fuck didn't I think of that?"

At the question, Neal had tilted his head slightly, "What do you mean?"

"I tried multiple times to get back to you when I first got to Neverland. It annoyed me that you was alone with our dad that I wanted to somehow get back to you, but I could never find a way. As much as I tried, the more angry I had gotten and more worried, I feared that our father would have done the same thing he did to me but do it to you." Camilla explained, "But it looks like he did it a somewhat similar way. Sorry."

Neal had given her a small look, he had tried to stop a smile forming on his lips at the thought that she did try her best to get back to him - even if it meant coming back home to Rumplestiltskin. It made him smile how much she actually cared and how willing she was to throw herself back into a toxic household just so that she could see him.

Neal shook his head slightly, "You know, afterwards, I begged for dad to bring you back, but he refused saying that the portal which you went through was the last bean of which he could find and that there was no other way to cross realms without some sort of portal."

Camilla had smiled at the thought that the he had tried to convince their dad to get her back. The pair of them had tried to find a way of which they could see each other and it honestly made her smile.

"When I first arrived in Neverland, did you know that it was me who was on Hook's ship?" Neal asked.

Camilla had shook her head, "Honestly, no. All that I knew was that you were with the Darlings and then the next thing I knew was that the shadow had dropped a boy into the ocean by mistake. Pan had sent Felix, me and a few Lost Boys, and there was just something of which told me to stay and hide."

"And then you got caught." Neal finished. "How the hell did you manage to become the mother of Neverland?"

"You." Camilla responded, "I saw that all the boys seemed to be somewhat younger than what I was and I guess the protectiveness had came out. I didn't want them to get hurt in anyway. What I liked to think of it as, is that it's because where I always had to look after you and the fact that if I didn't protect you, then Rumplestiltskin would hurt me. I suppose, in a way, you helped me become the mother of that island. The Lost Boys ended up seeing me as their mother, considering that I basically took on that roll for them."

Neal had smiled, "Please don't tell me they started to call you mom."

Camilla had let out a small laugh, "Some did, others just called me Jade." Camilla had then changed the subject, "How did you and Emma meet? If you don't mind me asking."

Neal slightly tensed up as he responded with, "Oh, uh, you see, when I got back from Neverland, I ended up thieving from places in order to survive, I had been in the foster system till I officially turned eighteen and from then I had been stealing to survive. I met Emma when she stole that yellow bug she drives around in town, it was mine and I don't think Emma knew that I was in there till I made my appearance known to her."

"Nice." Camilla spoke. "I suppose both Stiltskin's turned into thieves."

"Yeah, I guess." Neal said.

They had stayed at Granny's Diner for a few more moments before they had decided to go for a walk where Camilla would try and show Neal as much of Storybrooke as possible. Well, more of the town than what he has seen already.

The two had walked down the street at a steady pace, neither of them spoke a word to each other, leaving them both in a comfortable silence.

It was when they had turned a corner that Neal asked, "What happened after you got forced to come back, exactly?"

Camilla had stiffened slightly, though she had already admitted to the man about what she had done, there was still a part of her which didn't want him to know what she had done. She had slightly feared that maybe he would see her as their father in the way of which both murdered.

"Well, I basically turned into a murderer. I killed because I thought that it was fun, it was a way for me to show what I felt by taking other people's life. Killing people was a way of me to fill that hole in my chest from being ripped away from both you and Neverland. Within the first few months of me even being in the Enchanted Forest, I had managed to get the nickname Shadow, which in a way reminded me of the island which became my home. When I met Snow, she was afraid of me because of the name I had gotten for myself, it wasn't until she got to know me that she realised what kind of person I actually was.

"That's what it was like every time I met any of the people Snow and David are friends with. Then I betrayed them all, Regina had struck a deal with me that if I went with her and she wouldn't hurt me or Snow and David, and I took it because I was so scared that I would die. I didn't want to die so I went and joined Regina. I did regret joining her side, but I knew that I had to stay alive. Call me selfish for thinking about myself but I wanted the chance that I might see either Peter or you again.

"And I suppose my choices lead to the somewhat right way, I mean - of course what I had done is bad, actually more than bad, terrible - but I suppose if I went against Regina, she would have killed me on the spot." Camilla explained. "All that I've done is for my survival, I never cares as to what people had thought of me - and I still don't, but that's just life, you've gotta move on."

Neal seemed to nod as she spoke, if he had to be honest, he was glad that she had finally managed to tell him this. Though, there was just that small part of him which hated the fact that she had killed innocent people. There was one thing of which Neal was mainly shocked about the fact that she had betrayed the people of which seemed so close with since he had arrived in this town.

"Life has never been kind to you from since we were younger right up until the curse hit, the one thing I'm concerned about the most is if your okay." Neal had told.

Camilla had looked at him, "I'm fine-"

"-No, Jade, you're not." Neal said, cutting her off, "I can see it in your eyes that you're not. I can tell that you have been through so much shit just by what you've told me and the fact that this Stone curse has caused you enough pain as it is. All that I want to ask is, will you be able to rest when this is all over?"

"I don't know." Camilla responded. "Eventually I might be able to, I just hope that I make peace with myself and everyone around me first."

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Oooooh look at this, two updates in the same week. what the fuck is wrong with me? I don't know - no one knows. this is honestly shocking for me to do this. and I hope that you like this.

Can I just point out how the events in this chapter would have taken place somewhere between the events of the chapter Lacey and The Evil Queen, but I thought that it would be best to shove this chapter at the end of the events of season 2 so then I could mention the entire thing of Neal being in Neverland and shit.

Hope that you liked this chapter! Please vote, comment and give feedback!
Happy reading :)