Neverland

Chapter 17

Hey! I'm not dead! Yay! Sorry this update took me so long. I've been crazy busy with rehearsals and homework. I go to a private school, so the work load is INSANE!! And I'm in a show, so I've been having rehearsals from six to nine almost every night. ugh it's rough, but I love it! anyways here ya' go guys! hope you like it! :) -Kat <33

I followed Peter cautiously into the woods. I wasn’t quite sure how this was going to work, but I was pretty certain that I didn’t want to take a bath out in the open. Despite the days I’d been here, I hadn’t quite gotten used to the lack of facilities. One never quite appreciates the blessing of indoor plumbing until it’s gone.

Up and up we climbed for what seemed like hours, though in reality it was probably only thirty to forty minutes. Sweat matted the hair at the nape of my neck to my sweaty skin in an itchy and uncomfortable mess, and I knew my pale face had to be beat red. It wasn’t really the physical exertion I was unused to, but the heat and humidity were going to take me a long time to get accustomed to.

I had long abandoned my mug on a rock, figuring I could just wish for it back later. The use of my hands didn’t really help me, however, on the hike.

“Peter,” I said as the ground began to level out, “Don’t you normally go downhill to find water?”

He pondered this for a moment.

“You know,” he said, “I suppose you’re right. Maybe we should just head back down…”

With a sharp intake of breath, I shot him the dirtiest look I could fathom, and

he laughed out loud.

"Well, you are right," he said grinning, "If we were just looking for water, we would travel downhill, but we're not just looking for water, we're looking for the source." He turned around and walked further into the woods. I sighed and stood up.

"Well, are you coming?"

I rolled my eyes at his impatience, and laughed when he raised an eyebrow.

"Let's go, Pan!" I said skipping towards him, "If I'm going to walk this far for a bath it'd better be good."

"Here we are." He said stepping into a clearing.

I was taken aback.

There in the center of the cleaning was a beautiful sparkling pool of crystal clear water. The morning sunlight danced across the gently waving surface of the water, and the air, smelling fresh and crisp, was filled with the gentle sound of the small waterfall splashing into the pool.

"Oh my god, Peter. It's absolutely amazing." I said in awe. "It's.. It's like something out of a fairytale."

"There's a sort of cave in the rock near the waterfall," he said pointing, "you can't miss it. It's the best way to assure your privacy."

"Ok, cool... Well.. Um, bye?" I looked at Peter expectantly, waving my hands in a shooing motion. Laughing, he hopped off into the woods, and left me to myself.

Glancing around I cautiously began to undress, dousing my clothing in the cool, clean water, and leaving it out on the rock to dry.

Quickly, I swam over to the waterfall, and, sure enough, there was the cave.

The light from outside didn't follow me into the stone enclosure, and I had to squint against the sudden darkness.

I sat there for a moment realizing that I didn't actually have anything to bathe with.

Neverland.

Right.

I closed my eyes, picturing bottles of shampoo and conditioner and soap.