Again In Neverland

Chapter 51: Finishing the mural

QUICK A/N: listen to song above as you read this! It adds to the effect ;)

"Painting is just another way of keeping a diary." -Pablo Picasso

Racing by on a dark green bicycle, a boy clad in a heavy coat and top hat raised a hand in the air and tossed a thick newspaper at the tall door of a beautiful home. The sound echoed throughout the halls of the home, catching the attention of a young woman sitting at the kitchen counter with a warm cuppa in her hands.

"I've got it!" Lilith announced, racing towards the front door.

As she opened it, a gust of cold, winter air greeted her. She wrapped her fuzzy robe tighter around herself and bent down, picking up the newspaper with her free hand. Closing the door behind her, she glanced down at the newspaper, it's headline making her chuckle.

"FOUR LOCAL MISSING CHILDREN FINALLY FOUND AFTER TWO YEARS," The headline read.

"We weren't 'missing'," Lilith laughed as she walked back into the kitchen, "We were having adventures."
"These humans have no concept of that, do they?" The little fairy on Lilith's shoulder said, "You tell them you chose to leave, and they assume you were taken."
"That's the way the world works, I guess." Lilith sighed, sitting at the bar stool and reading the rest of the article.
"This world, anyway."
"Yes," Lilith replied, "This world."

"What's that, darling?" Margaret, Lilith's mother, asked as she walked up behind Lilith and put an arm around her.
"Oh, you know," Lilith said, holding up the paper, "The whole town is apparently interested in knowing where we've been."
"Lilith, dear," Matthew, her father, added, "You have been gone for two whole years."
Lilith shook her head, taking a sip of her cuppa, "It didn't feel like two years. It was only a matter of a month, maybe two."

It had been twenty-four hours since Lilith had returned to Ireland. Yesterday morning, after her and the Darling siblings found their way out of the forest, they had gone back to their homes and the chaos had ensued.

Lilith's mother opened the door and fainted. Her father had come rushing to the door to see what the commotion was about, and he couldn't find the words to speak for nearly ten minutes. They thought they were seeing a ghost. After two long years, their precious daughter had returned to them. Matthew pulled Lilith into his arms and burst into tears. A full grown man, crying at the sight of his daughter. Margaret stood up, with the assistance of the door frame, and also threw herself on Lilith.

Lilith didn't quite understand why they were so emotional, seeing that she had only been gone for a little while, but she let them fondle over her. They rushed her inside, wrapped her in a dry blanket, and sat her by the fireplace. Matthew had brought her a fresh cuppa and Margaret quickly heated up a bowl of chicken noodle soup, her favorite. Lilith had to admit, she did miss her cuppas. Margaret grabbed a warm wash cloth and began wiping the grit from Lilith's face, while Matthew inspected her thoroughly for any signs of harm.

Lilith had to force her parents off of her, insisting that she was perfectly alright, except for being a little chilled. Matthew immediately got her another blanket and wrapped it around her shoulders.

"Thank you." Lilith said, her body beginning to warm up.

Her parents stared at her in disbelief. Matthew pushed his glasses onto his head and rubbed his hands over his eyes, as if he feared this was only another one of his dreams. You see, both of Lilith's parents had dreamed of Lilith's return so many times, they could not discern whether or not this was a dream as well.

Lilith awkwardly held the cuppa in her hands, staring back at them and then to the floor. She didn't know what to say. What could she say?

"Lilith," Her mother said, tears in her eyes, "Where in this world have you been?"