The Second Star to the Right

The Girl Who Was Found

Wendy was sure that once the ship landed in a remotely deserted part of Neverland, that this wasn't a normal day with Hook. Mr. Smee ran over to untie her and he guided her waist, much to her disgust, over to a tent that had been set up.

If she didn't know any better, she would try to reason that she was no longer in Neverland. Neverland was always happy, no matter what side of the island you were on. This side of Neverland... Made her feel so uneasy. The trees were rustling when there wasn't a breeze. It was far too dark to see anything without the light of the fire illuminating their surroundings. A few howls could be heard nearby.

When has there been wild animals on this island? Other than the crocodile of course. The only animals had been killed long ago by The Lost Boys so they could fetch the fur skins that they proudly wore. This memory made her skin tingle slightly. How wonderful Neverland used to be. It almost seemed like yesterday that Peter had escorted her to Pixie Hollow for a dance under the stars. . .

Wendy's thoughts were quickly interrupted once she was shoved in the tent they were standing at. Mr. Smee stayed outside next to the fire, but Hook lowered his head and came in. There was an awfully little amount of space left once Hook came in and this slightly terrified her.

"Well now. . .Wendy Darling..." He lowered himself and sat next to her, crossing his legs with ease and unsheathing his sword, tossing it to the side. The tip of his hook raised and pressed against her neck lightly. "Tell me everything you know about Peter."

"That's an awful lot..." She replied, sneering at him.

He waved his hand to dismiss her. "I don't want to hear his silly stories. No... I want to hear what you truly know about him and Neverland."

She shook her head carefully, so the tip of the hook wouldn't slide right through her. "I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about and even if I did I wouldn't tell you."

Hook groaned and stood up, leaving her free for a few moments. "You see... Even I didn't know... It was only until you left, and Peter Pan became miserable, that the truth had been revealed to me."

She opened her mouth to speak but he shushed her and pulled a small map from his red coat pocket. Leaning down, Hook unfolded the map and presented it to her in her lap. "Do you see this mountain?"

Wendy nodded, but she knew that there weren't any mountains like that in Neverland. The picture depicted it as snowy and there was no snow here. "This mountain," he continued "has been here for as long as Peter has. The magic in the mountain is what keeps him here. The magic in Peter is what keeps the mountain, and Neverland alive."

"This is all absolute poppycock." She interrupted, snarling up at him. He was getting far too close for her to find comfort in such a small tent.

"Ah yes. 'Poppycock' as the kids say. Well I'm afraid it isn't. Peter's magic is deteriorating my dear. The fairies are all dying." Swiftly, he guided his hand out of the tent and waited for a moment, then brought it back in. Only this time, his hand had a small blue fairy on it. She was quite beautiful, with long blonde hair that was put up into two tiny pigtails. Blue freckles kissed all around her small cheeks, and she donned a long blue ball gown. This was definitely a fairy, but she did look very exhausted.

"I don't understand..." Wendy muttered out, staring at the poor little fairy in awe.

"They need a new leader that will keep Neverland and the inhabitants of the island alive, my dear. They need someone who will fearlessly rid the world of Peter Pan and take his magic."

"Peter is a wonderful leader of Neverland..." Wendy protested angrily. Where exactly was this story leading to?

His hook clipped the map from her lap and he stood up straight from his kneeling position. "He lost his 'wonder' once you left my dear."