Again In Neverland

Chapter 22: Unexpected

"No one is so brave that he is not disturbed by something unexpected." -Julius Caesar

PETER'S POV:

Not too far of a hike later, we had reached our destination. I could tell it was the right place even though I had never been there because the air felt different. It was denser, and it smelt of death.

Lilith moved closer to me as we began moving into the new area, and I felt her press herself against me. She was frightened, and rightly so.

There were bones scattered all over the dense mess of vines and trees that had deep claw marks in them. An unsettled fog covered everywhere in front of us, and the occasional wisp of a breeze (or at least I hoped it was just a breeze) caused the mist to swirl and move in ghostly directions. It was eerily quiet. The birds had stopped singing and bees stopped buzzing. The only audible noise was a loud, slow breathing that echoed from a deeper part of the forest. As if those things weren't enough to make any brave Lost Boy run away, there was also a green slim running up and down some of the tree trunks. It was slopped on there as if on accident and hung down in loose, gooey globs. The trees themselves were a shade darker, and covered in a weed that made them look withered and dying.

I stepped on something that produced a loud cracking sound, and when I looked down I saw that I had crushed a skull.

I slowly moved my foot away and caught Lilith staring into the fog, face as hard as stone.

"We could turn back, if you'd like." I recommended, "We could just tell everyone that we couldn't find it, and we were lucky to escape with our lives."

She shook her head, arm still latched onto mine, "No. I have to do this. I won't leave Jonathan to die."

Why are girl's so stubborn! If they just listened to what was good for them, they'd be a heck of a lot easier to be around.

A growl ahead of us made my snap forward. I'm not going to lie, I was scared. More like petrified.

Pirates? No problem.

Indians? I got it.

Girls? Maybe slightly more of an issue, but I can still handle them.

The Isilo? I'd have run away miles ago if it hadn't been for Lilith's persistence on finding the Neverleaf.

I quietly removed my sword and held it out in front of me.

"Do everything I do and stay as quiet as possible," I whispered, "Maybe by some stroke of luck we can get to the Neverleaf and back without being noticed. Keep your head low, and weapon drawn. Follow behind me."

I bent my back and kept my head up, trying to stay as close to the ground as possible. I heard Lilith pull out her sword and saw her copy what I did.

We crept through the scary looking trees, our eyes peeled for any sign of danger. I knew the Neverleaf had to be pretty deep in this mess of forest, so we kept tiptoeing along.

My back began to ache from being strained, but I wouldn't dare stand up straight and risk exposing myself. I have no idea what the Isilo looks like, and staying  completely hidden is my best bet at surviving this.

I realized that even if I wanted to fly, I couldn't. The air was too thick, too dense. Just breathing was hard work. I imagine flying would be like someone holding your feet down as you tried to get away.

Stopping every few seconds to listen to the ever-growing sound of something breathing, and slow our heart rates from nerves. Or, at least slow mine. It was pumping so fiercely I was positive Lilith heard it too. The fog that surrounded us made our journey slow-going, and it didn't help that the ground itself was made of a composition of dead plants and mush. We had to be cautious of every move we made. One step out of line. Just one twig snapped too loudly,and it could all be over for us