Neverland falling, p.19
Neverland Falling, page 19
Wendy tried to keep her face neutral, but a mischievous little smile slipped out anyhow. A surge of peace collided with a tidal wave of happiness such as she had never felt before, and before she’d stopped to consider what she was doing, she heard herself saying, “You know, I could kiss you right now.”
His green eyes widened.
She’d only meant a kiss on the cheek. She knew immediately, though, as he leaned closer, that she would happily take more. But just before their lips met, he took a step back, shaking his head slightly.
“I’m sorry.” He put his hands on his head and turned to face the other direction. His voice sounded strange. “We just can’t.”
Wendy tried not to let the sting of rejection show on her face as they both seemed to be searching for something to say.
“Too grown up?” she managed to squeak out, hoping he wouldn’t see the shine and shame she knew was gathering in the corner of her eyes.
He turned back to her, and the shadow of a smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. “Too grown up.”
Wendy put her hand in the little pocket she’d sewn into the corner of her nightdress, the one usually reserved for her little sewing bag. Desperate to salvage the moment she’d ruined, she grasped the first thing she felt and held it up for him to see.
“What about this kind of kiss?”
Peter laughed softly at the sight of the thimble. “That’ll do.” Then he held his hand in the air, palm up, and Wendy watched in awe as bits and pieces of the world around them flew into his palm and began to braid themselves together. A moment later, he held out a necklace. It was made of leather. At the center of the necklace, the leather held a golden loop, from which hung a green stone that reflected the moonlight like a piece of the rainbow.
Without a word, he lifted the necklace over her head and let it fall, the stone resting just below the hollow of her neck. Then he held his hand out, and the smile he gave her as she took it made her feel warmer than any kiss could have.
At least, that’s what she told herself. A real kiss still would have been nice, too.
Still, that warmth stayed with her as they returned to the treehouse and silently parted ways, and she lay down once again in her little rose bed and closed her eyes to sleep. And as far as she could remember, she’d never fallen asleep so happy.
Chapter 25
Shadows
The next morning was one of pandemonium and nearly violent joy on the part of the lost boys, joy that afforded Peter very little sleep after another late night out. Excepting Nibs, John and Slightly, the boys, even little Michael, tried to best one another in almost everything. They all wanted to be the very best for Wendy.
It started with breakfast. Everyone did his best to make the tastiest dish he could imagine, which meant that before Wendy even woke up and made her way to the treehouse, there were more sweets than any king had ever laid eyes on. Knowing that Wendy preferred food one might find in a garden, Peter sent the boys out to the fruit trees in desperation, simply to keep them from destroying the treehouse in their excitement. Of course, this meant that by the time she joined them, they’d brought with them more bowls of fruit than an entire army could have consumed.
“Wendy, look at this bowl of apples I picked! Aren’t they prettier than Top’s?”
“Wendy, I got more peaches than Pop got apples.”
“Look at my pet quokka!”
“All right, you mongrels,” Peter called, ruffling their hair. “Go sit down so we can eat. And Curly, get the quokka outside. What have I told you about bringing animals in at breakfast?”
Wendy laughed, and if she was shocked when Curly shoved the wild animal six inches from her face, she didn’t show it. “Good morning, boys. Let’s all sit to eat, shall we?”
Eventually, the boys were herded over to the empty dirt space in the middle of the room, where they usually sat to eat. In their absence, Peter had replaced the endless bowls of sweets with slightly more respectable breakfast foods, such as soft rolls, ham, and eggs, in addition to the boys’ contributions of fruit. After a quick round of grace, everyone dove in.
Peter stayed quiet during the meal, soaking in the movement and laughter and the sight of Wendy smiling at his boys. Even Wendy’s grumpy dog, Nana, seemed happy, seated between her mistress and little Slightly. It was perfection, really. Maybe Jay had been right after all, and this was what the boys had needed all along. He had, to be sure.
“Peter!”
Peter looked up to see Curly standing up with a piece of fruit raised above his head.
“Cut it, Peter!” Curly called.
Peter rolled his eyes. “Not at the table.”
Curly pouted. “But you did it last time.”
“Did what?” Wendy asked.
Peter rolled his eyes and pulled his machete from his belt. He held it up and had the satisfaction of Wendy’s eyes widening.
It truly was an elegant weapon. The handle was covered with the multi-colored hues of mother-of-pearl. Several small gemstones of various colors dotted the handle as well, and the blade itself, about fourteen inches long, was silver with an edging of gold.
“Did you make this, too?” she asked.
“No.” He put the weapon back in its scabbard. “It was my father’s. My family wasn’t wealthy, but at some point, one of my ancestors had been a swordsmith. Somehow, this managed to get passed down for several generations without getting lost before making it to me.” His smile lessened slightly. “It’s the only thing I have from him.”
He might have studied it longer, had he not felt Wendy’s curious gaze upon him.
“So, boys,” he said before she could dampen the morning with any more questions about his pathetic past, “what are we going to do today?”
“Oh, I know!” Toodles shouted, his mouth half-stuffed with a roll, “let’s take her to the snakepit!”
For the first time that morning, Wendy’s smile faltered. “Snakepit?”
Peter rolled his eyes. “The boys like to race snakes, so I made a pit where we keep them, and the boys can race them to their hearts’ content without the blasted things getting all over Neverland.”
“They’re not poisonous, are they?” she asked, her eyes flicking to Michael.
“No, just garter snakes and such.” He looked back at Toodles. “But we’re not taking her there on her first day.”
“Yeah, Toodles,” Curly sneered, “don’t you know anything about girls?”
Toodles stuck his tongue out, and Peter decided to intervene before their disagreement turned into a brawl that would inevitably make its way through the bowls of food. It wouldn’t be the first time breakfast had ended in such a way.
“We’re going to the cavern slides,” he announced. This brought a cheer from the boys.
“Are those the ones we flew by last night?” Wendy asked. “In that smaller cavern?”
“The one halfway up the mountain? Yes, that's them.” He looked down at Nana. “Not even you can find fault with this fun.”
Wendy laughed as Nana gave him a dismissive look, her nose high in the air. “You underestimate her.”
As soon as they had finished with breakfast, everyone flew over to the rocks. Wendy and the boys were faster this time as they followed everyone else, and even Nana looked less like a boulder in Wendy’s arms.
“Will she learn to fly here?” Wendy asked as they followed the boys over to the southeastern side of the mountain.
“Not like us.” Peter shook his head. “I decided not to allow animals to fly after the crocodile somehow ended up in front of the treehouse a few weeks after Neverland was born.”
Wendy let out a surprised laugh. “I suppose that would pose problems.” She glanced over at little Slightly, who Peter held by the hand. “He seems to be quite good at it.”
“To a somewhat frightening level, yes.” Peter pulled the little boy in and tickled him. Slightly laughed and laughed. “He’s the youngest Lost Boy I’ve ever found, but he makes up for it by keeping me on my toes more than any of the others.”
“John,” she called out. “Take Nana, will you?” John did as she asked, and Wendy cut in front of Peter, her nightdress brushing his legs as she did, causing him a small start from her sudden proximity. She didn’t seem to notice, though, for she’d already reached out and taken the little boy in her arms. “I’m going to keep you near me today,” she said, nuzzling his soft cheeks.
“I found him wandering around in a ravine just a few months ago.” Peter lowered his voice so the older boys wouldn’t hear. “His family’s wagon had turned, not far from your house, actually. He was the only survivor. And since there was no way to find if he had any other family, I just took him back with me.”
Wendy looked back down at the little boy and hugged him tighter.
“No!” he squirmed and pushed away from her grasp.
“I’ll be keeping a close eye on you then,” she said, her voice quivering and her eyes rimmed red.
Thankfully, the sadness of Slightly’s origins couldn’t last long, due to the overwhelming enthusiasm of the boys. In no time at all, all the boys, even Nibs and John, were laughing as they slid down the inside of the mountain in the little stream of water that flowed unceasingly from an unknown source.
“It’s quite dark, Wendy said, peering inside as Michael sat down at the top in the mouth of the cavern. “How do they get back up?”
“It’s not that dark inside,” Peter said. “Remember the way the ocean waves glowed blue yesterday? The cave is lined with that same algae that glows in the night, so there are lights to guide them all the way down.”
“But how do they get back up?” Wendy asked, still staring into the darkness.
“Look over here,” Peter said, and he led her to a small opening that was nearly hidden by a tree about ten feet away. Sure enough, just a few seconds later, the happy shrieks of Top and Pop warned Peter and Wendy of their coming, and a few seconds after that, the twins zoomed out of the cave and tumbled onto the soft mossy ground, as if the mountain itself had spat them out.
“I created another water slide to pull them back up once they reach the pool at the bottom,” Peter explained as the boys shook themselves off and ran to wait in line for another turn. “Except the water goes up instead of down, and it moves swiftly enough to carry them with it.”
“How?” Wendy asked.
Peter laughed. “Considering that this entire mountain was little more than a desolate sandbar when the star and I made it into this,” he held his arms out, “building a water slide that goes up wasn’t really that hard.”
Wendy shook her head, but her smile remained. She and Peter sat back and watched the boys for a while. Sometimes, Peter would close his eyes to drink in the sound of the rushing water and the cacophony of the boys and the twittering of wildlife around them. But not for too long. He didn’t want to miss the sight of the beautiful girl sitting beside him, her eyes and face aglow. The shadows of the trees waving lazily above them played with the colors in her hair, mixing glistening gold with a near brown, depending on the light. Her blue eyes matched the sky, and even though she wore a simple nightdress, it fit her more beautifully than the gowns worn by royalty that Peter had seen from afar. But perhaps it was her smile that made her so lovely, the vivacity in her eyes and the easy way she moved, as though the world were hers but she had no wish to prove so.
“What about Jay?” Wendy asked, drawing a line in the dirt with one of her fingers. “Will we be seeing him soon?”
The memory of Jay, which Peter had repressed enough to focus on Wendy, came back and threatened to darken his mood considerably. With effort, he kept the smile on his face. “No, he’s not supposed to be here, and he knows it. I told him he could prepare what supplies he needed for the voyage back, then he’d best be on his way.” Also unbidden came the memory of Jay running his finger down Wendy’s arm to show her the dust, and a strange, tight feeling filled Peter’s chest. It also gave him an idea.
“You know,” he said softly as Slightly began to nod off in Wendy’s arms, “I want to show you something.”
“Oh?” Wendy seemed to only be half-listening as she pressed her cheek against the little boy’s hair and closed her eyes.
“It’s something I’ve never shown anyone else.”
At this, her eyes opened, and if he hadn’t known her to be above jealousy, he could have sworn they looked a little triumphant. “Really?” she asked.
He nodded. “But not here. Let’s go just over this ridge.”
Wendy glanced uneasily back at the boys.
“John and Nibs will take care of them just fine.” Peter nodded at Slightly. “And you can bring him if you want since he’s asleep.”
Wendy seemed to think about this for a moment before getting to her feet. She followed him over the ridge, and they landed on a little rock outcropping. Wendy gently laid the little boy on a patch of moss and watched him for a moment before turning to Peter.
“All right,” she said, putting her hands on her hips. “What did you want to show me?”
“So,” Peter said, unable to help the smile that rose to his lips. “Do you remember that first night we saw each other when I stopped the drunk man from approaching you?”
Wendy nodded. “I couldn’t quite understand what you did. It was as if your shadow…” She let her words die. “What exactly did you do?”
Peter held her gaze as he put his arm out. Then he slowly, so slowly, let the familiar sensation ripple down from his shoulder to his fingertips. Wendy gasped as his shadow stepped away from him.
“So it did happen,” she whispered. Then she looked at Peter again. “That’s how you got into the nursery, too!”
“I’ve realized that as long as I don’t stay submerged in water too long, the stardust stays on my skin for several days, even while I’m out in the Old World,” Peter said as his shadow went over and looked at the sleeping child. “It allows me to do things like travel and leave my shadow here. Mostly for the boys’ sake, of course. I’d never leave it to do anything too important on its own.”
Wendy gave a nearly strangled laugh. “But how in the world did such an idea ever even occur to you?”
“I was out one day with one of the new Lost Boys when Tink arrived to tell me that the others were terrorizing the fae camp.” Peter turned his shadow to shake hands with Wendy. She allowed it to take her hand but acted somewhat as though she was touching a toad.
“And I realized,” he continued, “that it would be incredibly useful if there were two of me.”
“But...does it have its own mind?” Wendy asked as the shadow grabbed an apple off a nearby tree and began to eat it.
Peter waved at his shadow, and it tossed him the apple. Then he took out his machete and cut the fruit into several pieces. “I learned the hard way that if I don’t have complete control over it, the shadow can wreak havoc of disastrous levels.”
Wendy pulled a little bag from her pocket, out of which she produced a needle and thread. She sat beside Slightly and began to sew up a ripped seam at the bottom of her dress. The thoughtful frown never left her face, though.
“Would you like some fabric?” Peter asked, hoping he hadn’t just given her more than she was ready for. “I can make some up for you if you don’t want to wear your nightdress all the time. It’s how the fae get their leather.”
“Yes, thank you, I would. Now about the shadow.” She put the needle down. “How do you get it under control then?”
“I realized early on that I had to know exactly what I needed it to do. There couldn’t be any question or underlying desire I hadn’t conquered. Or things got dangerous fast.”
“Such as?”
Peter finished his apple and made the core disappear. “If I was unhappy with someone, I needed to fix the relationship before I could use my shadow around them. For instance, one time, Tink pulled a prank on me that went just a little too far.”
Wendy snorted. “That’s a shock.”
“Let me finish,” Peter laughed. “I talked with her about it and told her she was never to tease anyone that way again. She apologized, and all should have been well.”
“But it wasn’t?”
Peter shook his head. “As Tink walked away, she gave me this… this little look back, as if she still thought the whole thing was a game.”
Wendy seemed to have forgotten the ripped seam completely and was watching him with rapt attention. “What happened then?”
“I wanted to use my shadow that night to help me catch a rabbit for the boys as a pet. But when I sent him around the ridge to help chase the thing out of its hole, I sat there for ten minutes before realizing the blasted thing had left me completely.”
Wendy’s mouth had fallen open. “But where did he—”
“Back to Tink’s house.” Peter was laughing again. “And by the time I got there, he’d smeared the entire room with fruit. You should have seen it. Pulp dripped from the walls, the bed, even the windows.”
“That sounds...inventive,” Wendy said, though Peter could tell from the way the corner of her mouth flicked up and down that she was trying not to laugh. “But not dangerous.”
“That wasn’t the worst of them. Only the first. Needless to say, a few chaotic situations later, and I realized that if I wanted to control him, I had to control me first.”
Wendy got up and picked an apple for herself. Instead of biting into it, though, she sat again and looked down at her own shadow.
“Do you want to try?” Peter asked, for some reason, feeling rather shy. It was a strange thing to ask, suggesting one might wish to separate from one’s shadow. But to his relief, she sat up straighter, and she was suddenly aglow. “How?”
Peter had her stand, secretly reveling in the excuse to touch her once again, positioning her shoulders so that she was facing him. “This is part of the reason I’ve never tried teaching. It’s difficult.”
“You said it’s dangerous, too.”
Peter nodded. “It is. Shadows seek after what we want. They listen only if you have your desires under complete control. Your wants must be fully submissive to your determinations. If you aren’t fully in control of your own desires, you shouldn’t even try separating from your shadow because it will take advantage of you at every turn.”
