Innocence (OUAT/Peter Pan)

Chapter 11: The Dark One

PETER PAN'S POV

Peter Pan was lounging in the tree branches in the middle of where the boys hunted most frequently. He was quiet so they could find animals, but he could still hear their voices due to his heightened senses. They were only murmurs, so they were pretty far. He smirked as he crossed his arms behind his head, lying back and enjoying being on his island with his brothers playing. Despite what many thought, he really did care about them, and always paid attention to them. He heard a faint whoop that sounded like Michael. The boy was on the younger spectrum of the group and was still clumsy with a bow and arrow, but it sounded like he'd gotten something. Peter nodded in congratulations, even though the boy couldn't see.

            He wondered how the little princess was doing. She'd been hunting and playing with the boys daily now. He liked that, it was good to see that she could adapt and was just as strong—if not stronger, even without her magic—as they were. He was proud of her. He'd never even thought of taking a girl, so when the Shadow brought her he had been angry and confused. But his Shadow never failed him, and she had been increasingly interesting. She still was, there was a lot she didn't mention, he could tell. But all the boys had their pasts, and they were all unpleasant, so he didn't push. He was proud of his boys too, for taking her in so well. Of course, they'd been just as confused and curious as he was at first, they just expressed it more openly. Once he and Felix had demonstrated that she was with them, however, the brothers had let her be their first sister. Even now, as she started going into the forest with them, they kept to tamer games like touch-tag and hide-and-seek to let her get comfortable.

            He heard three pairs of footsteps run in an unusual direction, off the hunting paths but closer to where he was. One of the footsteps was lighter and had a faint swish trailing behind it. Not to mention the magical aura around them was so strong he could feel it from where he was. His princess, of course. The princess. Then two of the footsteps stopped, but hers kept going farther away. He furrowed his eyebrows, but she was adventurous and much stronger than she realized, so she had probably just outrun them. She could handle herself, anyway; Felix had mentioned multiple times how impressed he was while training her. Peter tried not to worry about her and redirected his focus to the other boys.

            He closed his eyes and hummed a random tune to himself, one with no rhythm but it was still lulling. Drowsily, he focused on Felix, who walked with longer, stealthier strides than the others. Felix also had more magic than the other boys, so Peter could easily track him using his aura. He loved Felix, he was the closest of his brothers, and was completely loyal to him. He always had been. Felix had been the first boy he brought, and the two had become inseparable. This history and proved loyalty let Peter trust Felix and make him his second-in-command. Lately, he'd enjoyed hearing Felix talk about the princess as much as he did, although the occasional twinges in his chest were getting on his nerves. Felix was sauntering through the forest, keeping a general eye on the boys.

            Peter thought back to auras, particularly his, Felix's, and the princess', since they were the strongest. All the boys had some magic, but their auras were faint and the magic was only enough for things like campfires or card tricks. He'd tried to explain auras to her, but they were difficult. He could just sort of feel them, like feeling a finger or toe. They were just there, extensions of him.

            Peter heard his footsteps stop, and sat up. Felix usually slowed to a stop, not suddenly stumble to one. He had heard another pair of footsteps scamper up to Felix's and heard a faint 'oof', so one of the boys must have crashed into him. Peter expected them to just move on, but they didn't and the sounds got louder. He could hear Felix half-yelling at the boy; Peter swung his legs and sat on the edge of his branch. Felix didn't yell at boys for running into him, they were brothers not self-absorbed kings. He would have to have a word with him...