Forever Neverland (Peter Pan x James Hook)

Chapter 29

Yearningly, James gazed towards the giant port of London that stretched for nearly 11 miles along the Thames, with hundreds of ships coming, going or docked.

It had been months since he had last been here, and nearly exactly a year since his return from Neverland. He had adapted to a modern world with electricity, a strict legal system and even automobiles; a world so different than the one he had been born into.
The era of piracy was over, and the oceans were filled with merchant vessels that travelled the entire globe. A booming business that James had also decided to invest in, given sailing was all he had ever known anyway. The treasures he had acquired 200 years ago had been far more than enough to provide him with a comfortable life, despite the tremendous inflation that had occurred during his time in Neverland, so he had decided to become what he had always dreamt of: a rich privateer with his own fleet of 4 large merchant ships that were capable of sailing the entire world in his name.

In less than a year, he had won back the life he had been born into and found his place among the wealthy and successful of London's high society. He had bought a large estate in the country, as well as a house near the London Port, where he barely ever stayed because he spent most of his time at sea, trying to escape the very society he had so dearly wanted to be part of for so long.
It had taken him mere months to gain everything he had ever wanted in his youth, and even shorter than that to realize it didn't make him happy. Every time he returned to London, he was flooded with memories of a wild, green-eyed boy who spent his days flying through a magical land.

Under normal circumstances, James never stayed in London for more than a few days before sailing again, but this time he decided to stay a bit longer, because next week was his one-year anniversary of being back on Earth.
An entire year had gone by since he had last held a sword. Since he had last had an adventure. Since he had last felt at home. Since he had last heard Pan's annoying, chipper laugh. Since he had last kissed him.

Though the entire week had been spent in melancholy, no day was worse for James than the 19th of June, 1905. He spent the entire day sauntering around his luxurious home, being miserable and furious at himself for having been so incredibly stupid. He had had it all: eternal life, adventure, magic, the Jolly Roger, the occasional ability to fly, and above all - Peter Pan.
And what had he given it up for? An ordinary, respectable, adult life filled with responsibilities, duties and laws. A life which fulfilled all the dreams of his youth: success, money, and plenty of women who wanted to become his wife thanks to that. He was on his best way to becoming everything he had ever wanted and everything he now hated. Everything was so perfect it suffocated him.

Unable to take it any longer, James left his apartment that night to go for a walk. Over the past year, he had avoided Kensington Gardens like the plague because it only served to torment him, but tonight he decided to go despite the misery it caused him. He avoided it because every time he thought about it, he wondered if Pan might be there, but he knew that wasn't the case and he was unwilling to disappoint himself so direly.

Also tonight, as he jumped over the locked gates of the park, he was unable to stop his heart from hoping, no matter how hard he tried to tell himself he was being foolish.

That was when he suddenly heard it: a familiar, soft whistling tune that unmistakably came from a pan flute. That couldn't be.

James broke into a run, rushing past trees, benches and bushes, following the sound that eventually lead to a large, old oak tree right next to the clearing where the Jolly Roger had dropped him off last year.

Was he imagining it or was it truly Peter Pan sitting high up on a tree branch, playing his trademark instrument. For a few seconds James thought it was his lonely mind playing a trick on him, until Pan stopped playing and swooped down from his tree, pulling out his sword.

"En garde, Captain Hook!"

James was barely able to breath, though he wanted to scream in delight. "I don't have a sword, you moronic imbecile."

Pan laughed delightedly. "Did you lose it?" he teased, replaying the encounter where their entire romantic mess had started.

"Yes," James said softly, feeling as the weight he had been carrying with him for the past year suddenly disappeared, leaving him weightless. Was he capable of flying all of a sudden? Granted, he was still on the ground, but he certainly felt as if he would be capable of it if he wanted.

Pan landed in front of him, putting his sword away and placing his hands on his hips with a skeptical look. "You cut your hair," he observed, shaking his head slightly. "And you shaved recently... Now you do remind me of my father."

James chuckled, shaking his head as well. "I'm not a pirate anymore."

Pan gave him one of those rare, soft smiles. "You will always be a pirate to me, Captain Hook."

The words gave James goosebumps. Pan was right; at heart, James would always be a pirate. He didn't belong in this world; he belonged in a magical land with pirates, mermaids and Indians. And above all, he belonged with Peter Pan.

Peter took another step closer, now standing so close James was enveloped by the magical scent of Neverland that he had missed so dearly. "Are you happy here on Earth, James?"

James answered almost before Peter had finished his question. "No."
There were so many things he had fantasized about saying to the boy if they ever saw each other again, but the only thing he could think of in that moment was a loud 'Woohoo!' as he kicked off the ground, racing towards the sky with Peter laughing somewhere behind him.

"Wait! James!" Peter yelled as he flew after him high into the air.

James had never felt so light and happy in his entire life; suddenly flying was the easiest thing in the world. "I can fly!" he yelled once Peter had caught up with him and they floated in midair, hundreds or feet above the park.

"I know!" Peter laughed happily. "Since when?"

As easy as if he would have never done anything else, James flew closer to Peter and wrapped his arms around him. "Since now," he said softly before pulling him into a passionate kiss that Peter dominated after less than a second.

Though James had always been painfully aware that he missed Pan, until that moment he hadn't realized just how much.

Catching their breath, they finally broke the kiss and Pan gave him a hopeful look. "So... Forever Neverland?"

James nodded with a smirk. "Forever Neverland." 

The End