Welcome to Neverland, Lil Darling

Diminishing Belief

You sighed as you closed the door to your apartment. It had been such a long and exhausting day at work... Your dog, Nana, bounded up to you, barking happily and wagging her tail. You smiled weakly. "Not tonight, Nana," you told her, gently patting her head, "I don't have the energy for stories."

Nana whined in an almost concerned way. She loved your stories! But lately... you hadn't been telling them... ever... Not even both her and your favorites, the ones about Wally Pan, symbol of youth, defender of Neverland from Captain Home and his pirates, flying hero raised by fairies who never grew up. You also just seemed much more sad recently... She couldn't remember the last time she'd seen you smile big and bright and happy. Were you sick...?

She padded after you as you made your way to the kitchen. You grabbed some dog from the pantry for her and measured some out for her into her bowl before topping it off with some shredded chicken you quickly heated. A special little treat for her. You made yourself a simple sandwich for your dinner. You placed down Nana's bowl and sat down to eat when she started to chow down.

When you got to the second half of your sandwich, you felt something against your leg. You looked down to see a piece of shredded chicken and Nana looking up at you with those big eyes of hers. You grinned softly and petted her head. "Thank you, hun," you said. You grabbed the chicken and held it in front of her mouth, "but this is for you. Go on." She whined before taking the chicken and padding back to her bowl to finish the rest of her food.

When you finished, you grabbed your plate and her bowl and placed them in the sink. Turning on the water and grabbing a sponge, you scrubbed them before rinsing them off and placing them in the dish drain. So repetitive... so mundane... you were stuck in a rut, and it felt like life was slowly but surely slipping away from you.

As you laid down to sleep after changing, Nana joining you in your bed, you glanced out your window. You saw the two stars, the one furthest to the right shining incredibly bright, like always. But to you, it seemed dim. It was a star you had always wished on, a star you had always believed in. The Second Star to the Right, from Wally Pan's stories. Straight on 'til morning and it led you to Neverland. Or so those stories claimed. You had always believed, ever since you were a child. But as the days went on, you found it harder and harder to believe in the fairytales you told. And tonight... you were feeling that belief die.

"Please... bring my belief back..."

With a single tear sliding down your cheek, you closed your eyes and bid the Second Star one last goodnight and farewell, for tonight would be the last night you wished upon that star.

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You awoke with a jolt, startled by Nana's barking. You blinked groggily, groaning. "Nana... what are you doing...?" She kept barking and you exasperatedly flopped your head back down onto your pillow. "Nana, please... I'm trying to sleep... I have work in the morning..."

The second you heard the crash though, you bolted upright. That's something no one hopes to hear, especially in the middle of the night. Nana's barking grew in ferocity and she scrambled off the bed and out the door. "Nana, no!" You panically whispered. You threw off your covers and went after her.

You found her in the adjacent room, whining and pawing at a wall. "Nana, thank goodness..." You ran up to her and knelt down, wrapping your arms around her. Nana barked again and you looked up, only to scream at the sight of a shadow that wasn't yours upon the wall. Your eyes darted around, looking for the source, only to find none. The shadow began to approach you, bobbing its head from side to side, as if analyzing you. You quickly backed away in fear, pulling Nana with you, whimpering. It tried to gesture for you to not be afraid, seemingly upset... but with you, or with itself? Your dog, on the other hand, seemed oddly calm... Maybe even happy...?

Your head snapped to the doorway when you heard a small crash come from just beyond it. "Shadow!" An unfamiliar voice whisper-yelled. The shadow zipped out of the room, a motion that seemed almost akin to... flying...? It came to a stop on the wall just outside the room, gesturing wildly as if to grab something or someone's attention. You heard the voice again. "I've never seen you this riled up before. What's wrong?" The shadow pointed to the room you were in and flew back in, coming to a stop right by your own shadow. You screamed again, falling over. The shadow immediately backed away, but began to circle you. You pulled your legs in and hugged them, hiding your face. Where did Nana go? Who was this? You were scared... So scared...

'Go away, go away, go away, GO AWAY!' You chanted in your head.

"Hey... hey... don't be scared..." The voice from before attempted to soothe you. "I promise my shadow won't hurt you. I bet it just felt you were really sad, since it was acting super wild." The voice spoke simply and clearly, like a child trying to make a point clear, but it kept that gentle tone.

You slowly raised your head and two gasps were simultaneously heard. You had no idea why the man before you had gasped. As for you, it was primarily for two reasons. The first was over the fact he was floating. The second was that, despite never having seen him in person, there was something about that bright yellow skin, leafy green attire, red feathered cap, and blue spiraled pompadour hair that made you feel as though you had known him forever...

The floating man observed you a bit longer, staring intensely at your eyes to the point you almost felt uncomfortable. He then turned to his shadow, pointed ears twitching. "So that's why you were so riled up...?"

The shadow nodded. What?

The man turned back to you, slowly lowering to the floor. He gave you a lopsided smile. "Nice to finally meet you face to face, lil storyteller. The name's Wally. Wally Pan."