Neverland

Chapter 8

I sat next to Peter at breakfast, but we didn’t really talk much. I didn’t feel like he wanted to tell anyone about us yet. What were we anyways? I guess I’d just have to wait and see.

“You seem to be in a better mood,” commented Felix, sitting down on Peter’s other side. “Boys,” said Peter, “I feel like things are looking up for us. We’re going to have a lot of fun soon. I can feel it.

I guess Peter was right.

The next morning the sky was dark and ominous. Peter walked out of his tent with a grin on his face. “Some one’s on the island.” He said, “Someone that shouldn’t be here.” “Well, what are you going to do?” I asked, confused at why he seemed so excited. He looked at me with a wild look, “We’re going to play.”

“Alright boys!” called Peter, “It’s show time!” he walked around the camp throwing open the tents. Lost Boys stumbled drowsily out of their tents, rubbing sleep from their eyes. Peter didn’t stop shouting until they were all clustered in the center of the camp.

“Good morning boys!” he said, “Looks like I was right!” He walked along the outside of the circle. “We’ve got some unauthorized visitors to this island.” The boys jerked awake, whispering to each other in excitement, the same way normal children would when someone said “New toys!”

“You know what this means! Play time.” Peter took back on the darkness I’d seen before, and I’ll admit it was intimidating, but I was interested. What was it that could get these boys so excited?

“Get them running, boys. We’re doing this a bit differently this time.”

The boys took off, whooping, into the woods, and Pan turned to me. “Alright Kate, you up for a game?” he asked. “Sure,” I was a little uneasy. Knowing Peter this would probably involve trickery, and terrifying the newcomers, but I was willing to give it a shot. He grinned, “How’s your acting?”

Peter’s POV

“How’s your acting?” I asked her, and suddenly she burst into tears. I had no idea what was going on, “I-I’m sorry?” I didn’t know what to do, she just kept crying. “Was it something I said? I- I don’t…” I stammered, trying to comfort her. “No…” she sniffed. Immediately, she straightened up, her face slightly amused. If her eyes weren’t red and wet, I would have thought I’d imagined it. “I guess you could say I’ve had a little experience.” Oh, she was good. I nodded in approval, “Alright, but save your tears for later,” I said, “The fun is just beginning.”

Everything was planned out perfectly. Of course, I didn’t tell Kate the whole plan. Good actress or not, I always like my reactions to be genuine. The only person who even knew the full plan was Felix, and I knew he’d never tell a soul. I sat in a tree as I watched Kate struggle through the woods. Back in her pajamas, she looked utterly pitiful. Her hair was tossed with sticks and leaves, and her face was muddied. She played a very convincing escapee, if you asked me. Finally I saw the trespassers. They looked to be about eighteen or nineteen, and there were two boys and one girl. They were all much taller than Kate, and they were headed in her direction, though they hadn’t spotted her yet. I could hear Kate sniffling, and I pushed down the urge to fly down and comfort her. It was all an act, and I needed to pay attention. “Is someone there?” called Kate, “Please, someone help me!” she cried through the trees. The three others glanced at each other before hurrying towards the sound of Kate’s voice. “There!” one of them called as they spotted her. Kate tried to back up, but her shirt caught on a tree branch. That part was on accident; I could tell. “Please don’t take me back there!” Kate sounded terrified, and I could see her shaking from here, as she struggled to back up. “We’re not going to hurt you!” called one of the boys… men. “We’ll help you, just let us get over there.” They had reached her and the girl was holding her trying to calm her down, but Kate was inconsolable, “Please! Don’t let them take me back! You can’t let them take me back! I don’t want to go back in the cage! By now she was sobbing, and I had to admire her work. They were completely fooled.

I followed them silently as they ducked into a small, hidden cave. Of course, I already knew it was there. I knew every inch of the island. Listening from outside, I could hear Kate working her magic.

“Who did this to you?” asked the girl.

“P-Peter,” she stuttered, “Peter Pan.”

The room was silent, and I knew it was my cue.

“Kate!” I called, running into the cave breathing hard, “Kate!”

No here’s the thing. I didn’t tell Kate about this part of the game, so how she reacted would decide just which way this game was going.

Without even missing a beat, Kate’s face lit up, “Jack!” she cried, pushing through the two young men that had stepped in between us with swords drawn. She rushed into my arms, and I held her tight. Even if this was just a game, it felt good to hold her in my arms again. What was I thinking? Focus, Pan I told myself. As she rested her head against my chest, I barely heard her whisper to me, “Where are we going with this?” I thought for a second, “We're together, and we were separated escaping.” She pulled back and smiled up at me through tears. God she was good at this. “I thought I’d never see you again! When I thought I’d lost you I-I…” she faded out again, her voice failing as tears welled in her eyes. “Shh,” I whispered, “It’s all right, we’re together now, nothing’s going to separate us again.” I kissed the top of her head and breathed in deeply. “Who are you?” asked the girl, warily. “Oh, sorry,” I laughed breathily. It came out choked, and only added to my façade. “I’m Jack, Jack Morgan.” It was the first thing I could think of.  “Kate and I ended up here by mistake a long time ago, and we’ve been trying to escape ever since, but, well, it hasn’t been easy.” The two men sheathed their swords.

“If you don’t mind me asking,” I continued, why are you here?” The three sat down, and I followed suit, Kate huddled up under my arm, and I gave her a light squeeze, as if to assure her that we were going to be ok.

“Well,” said the shorter of the two men, “We’re travelers, and we’re collectors. We jump around places and collect the things they’re famous for.” “Like what?” this time I didn’t have to pretend. I wanted to know what they were capable of. “Well, we’ve got quite a collection now, but just things like roses from the queen of heart’s garden, a golden egg from some giant’s castle, a magic carpet, and, my personal favorite, the sword Excalibur,” he sat back looking smug, as I put on my best ‘impressed face’. “So what are you doing in Neverland?” I asked, feigning curiosity. I already knew what they were after. There was only one thing really.

Fairy dust.

“I mean,” I went on, “If you’re crazy enough to willingly come to Neverland to get it, it must be pretty valuable.” “Well, originally we were just here for fairy dust, but since we got here we keep hearing this name, see, and we figured, we’d probably be the most accomplished crooks if we could get a shot at it.” “What name?”

“Peter Pan.”

I laughed out loud, “Whatever you want with Pan, you’re not going to get it, I’ll tell you that.” “Oh, we’re not asking for it,” said the other man, “You see, we don’t want just anything from him. We want his head.” I shook my head. The very head they were talking about. “You can’t even get off the island without him letting you go, and you think you can kill him? Good luck!” The girl frowned, “What do you mean we can’t get out without him letting us?” “No one leaves this island without his permission,” I explained, “Surely you knew that before you came here.” They exchanged glances before bursting out in laughter. “I think we can handle a child.” I shrugged, “Suit yourself, but Pan’s clever. You’ll need a plan before you face him. It’d be suicide to go at it without one.” “See, that’s the thing,” said the girl. She seemed to do most of the talking for this group. “We keep hearing these things about Pan, but we haven’t seen him yet. You’d think if he were really all that he’d know we were here by now.” I shook my head, “trust me, he knows you’re here. You can be sure he’s been watching you for a while. I mean, you’ve probably already met him. You can never tell with him. He really does love his games.” In my arms Kate whimpered in fear. “Kate, it’s ok,” I whispered to her, “He’s not coming for us now. We’re going to be ok”