────── ★★★ ──────

────── ★★★ ──────

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏𝟎
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐃 𝐓𝐑𝐔𝐓𝐇

────── ★★★ ──────

Everly stood between Killian and Sam with Katherine on the blonde boy's other side the next morning. Her mind raced with all the memories she shared with her best friend as she stood in silence in front of where Neal lay. Her hand unconsciously reached up to grasp the sword charm hanging from her neck while a single tear rolled down her cheek. As she continued to stare at the ground below her feet, Everly found it hard to accept that two of the most important people in her life were gone and never coming back.

The Jones girl's eyes finally left the grass and focused back on the scene before her when they lowered the Cassidy man into the ground. After taking in the moment that will stay burned into her brain for all of eternity, Everly looked up to scan the crowd that surrounded her. Her attention landed on Killian first, who was as still and emotionless as the day Milah was taken from them. She soon glanced over to Emma as she stood next to Henry with tears in her eyes.

Everly's gaze was quickly drawn back to the captain of the Jolly Roger when he stepped forward to grab the shovel before scooping up some dirt and letting it fall into the grave. David and Mary Margaret walked forward to copy his actions before Regina and Belle did the same. As soon as the two women finished having their moment, Sam placed his arm around Everly's shoulder before guiding her towards the shovel with him. His hand took the handle and took his time to let the dirt fall into the hole in front of him before placing the shovel in the blonde girl's grasp.

Everly's grip around the item tightened until her knuckles turned a ghostly white while she stared down into the pit. Memories continued to flood her brain as she said a silent goodbye to the boy who dropped from the sky. More tears streamed down her cheeks as she used the shovel to scoop up dirt from the pile and slowly let it fall into the hole. After taking one last look at the small pile deep in the earth, Everly stuck the shovel back into the dirt pile and made her way over to stand next to Sam.

With the former Saved Boy's arms tightly wrapped around her, Everly watched Emma usher Henry to go. Everyone watched him walk forward with sadness in their eyes and copy their actions. After he stepped back into the crowd, Everly's eyes moved toward Emma as she grabbed the necklace Neal gave her. After staring into nothingness for a silent moment, she hesitantly took the shovel into her hands and let the dirt fall into the pit.

Never again will Everly share a laugh with Neal as they sail around the sea on the Jolly Roger or tell each other stories under the starry sky. Just like how she'd never be able to feel safe in Felix's arms as they watch the clouds roll by in the sky or listen to him talk about everything he and his brother did together before ending up on Neverland.

They both vanished before her very eyes...and she was helpless to stop it.

────── ★★★ ──────

Hours passed since they returned to Granny's and it still felt like Everly's heart wasn't in her chest. While everyone else was down in the diner, the former Lost Girl found herself lying on her staring up at the bare ceiling. She let the silence surround her as her mind continued to race with moments shared with those she lost. From the few Lost Boys who helped her back on Neverland to two of the people she was closest to.

As she thought back to the last time she heard Al speak, the door opened. She listened to the approaching footsteps as she quickly blinked back the constant river of tears flowing down her cheeks. Once she was able to contain her emotions to the best of her abilities, she looked up to see Sam and Katherine staring at her with sadness in their eyes before they sat on the bed next to her.

"I know that this week hasn't been easy, but you can't give up hope," Sam told Everly as another tear rolled down her cheek before he gently took her hand into his, "we're still here for you. We're always here for you."

"You have so many people in your life that want to be there for you," Katherine continued while Everly slowly sat up to face them then a small smile formed on the redhead's face, "and like Sam said, we're here for you."

When she opened her mouth to respond, a small sob passes over Everly's lips instead of words. It wasn't long after that that she was pulled into a hug by the boy who has been by her side since she met him on Neverland. Her arms wrapped around him as tears fell onto his shirt before she felt Katherine join in. The broken feeling inside Everly began to slowly mend but she knew it was going to take a long time before she truly pieced herself together again.

Right as the three of them broke away from each other, shouting from downstairs cut through the stillness. This caused them to exchange a look before they rushed out the door and down the stairs to find out what was going on. When they got into the diner, their eyes landed on the grinning Wicked Witch standing in the middle of the diner. While Everly continued to stare at the woman responsible for Neal's death, David unconsciously placed himself protectively in front of Mary Margaret and the three teens before the Purest Heart caught him placing a hand on his holster out of the corner of her eye.

"Oh! Look who's joined the party," Zelena announced as soon as the woman made eye contact with the girl, "the Purest Heart."

"Does every villain know about you? Or is it just the ones who like green?" Sam whispered to Everly, causing her to simply shrug in response as the Witch turned away from the trio to face an expressionless Regina sitting at the counter.

"Now that my cover's been blown," the redheaded woman said as she walked forward to stand in front of the Evil Queen, "I can finally pay a visit to my little sister."

"Who are you talking about?"

"Why you, of course, Regina!" Zelena exclaimed, causing murmurs to break through the silence while everyone stared at the Queen in bewilderment.

"I'm an only child."

"Cora lied to you, Regina. I'm your sister," the Witch continued as a fresh wave of confidence appeared over her features while she stood tall in front of the Evil Queen, "half, if you want to get technical."

"Why should I believe anything you say?" Regina retaliated while everyone remained silent as they watched the women's exchange.

"Oh, well, you shouldn't. It's a lot to swallow. Which is why I brought a gift to help."

"I don't want a gift from you," the brunette chuckled after a mocking smirk appeared on her face.

"Oh, but you shall have it. You see, my gift to you is this sad, sad day. Use is to dig into our past, Regina. You need to learn the truth and you must believe it," the blue-eyed woman replied before taking a few steps forward until she was inches away from Regina's face, "and then meet me on Main Street tonight. Say, sundown."

"And then what?" the woman in purple asked as the smile on her face slowly grew.

"Then I'll destroy you."

"This isn't the Wild West," Regina hissed while getting closer to the Wicked Witch's face.

"No, dear, it's the Wicked West," Zelena smirked before turning to address everyone who had been watching their encounter unfold, "and I want everyone to be there to see the Evil Queen lose."

"I don't lose."

"Neither do I."

The two witches shared a few more inaudible words before Zelena let out a maniacal laugh and exited the diner. As soon as the door slammed shut behind her, everyone's attention turned back towards Regina.

"Everly," David called out to his daughter, drawing her attention away from the Evil Queen to meet his worried gaze, "take Sam and Katherine and go with Robin back to his camp. I have a feeling we're all gonna need all the training we can get."

After getting their things from upstairs, Everly, Sam, and Katherine went back down to the diner and met up with Robin. The three of them then followed him out of the diner and towards the woods that surround the town.

As soon as they reached the clearing just outside the Merry Men's camp sight, Sam and Katherine quickly started training for whatever they had to face in the future while Everly stood to the side and watched them. Just as Katherine landed another arrow in the center of the target, the Jones girl's attention was drawn towards Robin walking towards her.

"Why aren't you training?" the leader of the Merry Men asked after taking his place next to the former Lost Girl.

"I'm not really in the mood for any of this," Everly responded with an unfamiliar coldness in her voice then she let a long sigh pass over her lips in an attempt to calm her nerves.

"I understand what you're going through, Everly. I've lost many good people in my life as well and I grieve for them every single day," he told her, causing Everly to glance up at him before she turned her attention back to Sam as he attacked a tree, "but I also know I need to push through and live my life. It's what they would have wanted. I know Neal would want you happy."

"I lost someone else, too. They both meant everything to me," Everly whispered just loud enough for the Hood man to hear while she blinked away the tears threatening to escape, "how were you able to push past the pain?"

"I will never forget my wife, just like you will never forget Neal and your lost loved ones, but I needed to be strong for my son," he answered before gesturing towards the two training in the clearing, "and you need to be strong for them. They need you a lot more than you realize."

────── ★★★ ──────

Two years have passed since Felix helped Everly escape Pan and his Lost Boys. Even though they pursued her every day, the Jones girl somehow managed to evade them. This should have made her the happiest person on the island, yet it only made her wonder why Pan didn't use his magic to get her back.

During her most recent escape from two of the Lost Boys, Everly climbed up one of the trees until they gave up and went back to camp. She didn't move an inch until their footsteps vanished completely. A small smile appeared on the girl's face as she was about to climb down, only for her to stop in her tracks when she spotted Pan's second-in-command staring up at her.

The two of them kept their eyes locked for a long moment before he grabbed the lowest branch. Everly stayed as still as a statue as she watched him climb up until he perched himself next to her. They sat side by side with the sounds of the forest to fill the silence before Everly finally built up enough courage to speak to the boy.

"Why did you help me?" she asked, causing the blonde boy to cast his gaze away from the passing clouds to look at the girl next to him.

"Seeing you in that cage just didn't feel right. You didn't deserve it," he explained as the small smile on his face grew while he studied the confused look on hers. Silence surrounded them once again before the smile on his face slowly fell and was replaced by a more serious look, making Everly's confusion amplify.

"No matter how many times Pan comes after you, never surrender to his darkness. You need to fight back...I need you to fight back and stay strong. I need you to stay alive."

────── ★★★ ──────

After coming back around from the memory of her first meeting she had with Felix after escaping Pan, a small smile formed on Everly's face. Her eyes stayed glued to Sam and Katherine for another moment before she looked up to meet Robin's eyes.

"Thank you," she told the leader of the Merry Men, only for him to raise a confused eyebrow at her before she continued speaking, "thank you for reminding me that I need to be strong for those I have and those I've lost."

"You're pretty smart for a seventeen-year-old," the brunette man said as a large smile appeared on his face after letting out a chuckle.

"Technically, I'm thirty-two."

Everly let out a small laugh at the sight of the confusion returning to the archer's face. Before he could say another word, she took her bow off her back and headed towards one of the targets.

The Jones girl just stared at the tree for a long moment then loaded an arrow onto her bow and aimed it at the circle. A quiet breath passed over her lips as her fingers slipped from the string. Her eyes followed the arrow as it soared through the air before landing in the bullseye.

"Not bad for a bunch of kids," Robin teased as he leaned against a tree with his arms crossed over his chest.

Sam and Katherine shouted in protest at the leader of the Merry Men's remark while Everly rolled her eyes at the man. The only response they received from Robin was another smile then he walked back to his camp.

"Do you think we're ready to help take down that witch?" Katherine asked as she hopped up and down between the Jones siblings before doing a superhero pose, "I feel like I could take down a grizzly bear!"

"You're a little too small for that," Sam mocked the redhead while gently nudging her, only for the Scott girl to stick her tongue out in response before the three of them shared a laugh.

"Now that we finished equipment training," Everly said as she took her quiver off her back and placed it next to her bow a tree before turning to face Sam and Katherine once again, "how about some hand-to-hand?"

"How do we do that?" Katherine questioned with curiosity in her eyes before it slowly faded as she quirked a confused eyebrow Everly's way, "why would we do that?"

"I'm pretty sure we don't need to teach her that," Sam told Everly with a hint of worry in his voice.

────── ★★★ ──────

"How about we see how well the girl is at fighting?" Pan asked the group of Lost Boys that surrounded him before cheers erupted from his followers in response.

"Really?" Everly said as she got to her feet and crossed her arms over her chest, "everyone is a lot bigger and stronger than I am."

The only reply she got from the green-eyed boy was a sinister smirk before he gestured to one of the boys behind her. Everly's eyes quickly followed his gaze to find Felix standing up from his place on a log before he made his way into the center of the circle. After staring at Pan's favorite Lost Boy for a long moment, the Jones girl was pushed into the circle and a dagger was placed in her hand.

Not even a minute passed before Everly was pinned to the ground with a dagger at her neck. Felix stared down at her with no emotion in his eyes as she tried to hide the rising fear within her. Just as Everly thought the dagger in his hand was about to break skin, the Thorne boy pulled it away while keeping his gray eyes pinned on her.

"Fighting back could save your life," he whispered in her ear before getting off of her and making his way back to his log.

────── ★★★ ──────

"Fighting back could save your life," Everly quoted the saying that was playing on repeat in her head, "you need to be good at hand-to-hand in case it comes to it."

After receiving a nod from the redheaded girl, the Purest Heart grabbed Sam's wrist and dragged him into the clearing. The two of them simply circled each other for a moment as Everly prepared herself to show the fighting techniques Felix used to teach the young Lost Boys.

"Never show weakness," the Jones repeated the Lost Boy's words as she and Sam continued to circle one another, "always make your opponent believe you're stronger."

"How are you supposed to make them believe you're stronger?" Katherine questioned before a small smile appeared on Everly's face while Sam sent her a confused look.

"By being smarter," the blonde girl stated just before she easily pinned her brother to the ground.

After sharing a laugh with the blonde boy, Everly got to her feet and helped Sam to his. The two of them brushed the dirt off our clothes before realizing how dark it had become. The sound of footsteps approaching soon filled the air before the three of them quickly turned their attention in the direction to see Robin.

"It's time for the battle."

"I'm tired of dealing with all these psychos who think they're wicked," Sam muttered to himself before they quickly grabbed their things and headed into town.

────── ★★★ ──────

────── ★★★ ──────