Neverland

Chapter 21

Hey, guys. I'm sorry this is taking me so long >.< I just haven't had time to write, but I have some other news that I'll put at the end of the chapter. Anyways, enjoy! (btw the guy on the side is Aaron)

Aaron and I sat in silence for a while before I looked back at him. “So what’s your story?” I asked eventually. “How did you start working for Sloane?”

He shrugged, “I don’t really know how I ended tangled up in all this mess, honestly. I’m kind of a floater, I guess. I work odd jobs to support myself. Sloane offered me food and a place to sleep. I don’t know what she’s planning, exactly, but she hasn’t asked me to do anything too terrible yet. She mostly leaves those things up to Bentley and Greyson. I keep telling myself that if she asked me to do anything like that I’d hit the road, but I’ll admit I don’t really know where I’d go. For one thing we’re on a ship so I literally don’t know how I’d get back to the mainland, much less my time period.

“What about your family?” I asked, “What happened to them?”

My tone was gentle. I knew I may be treading on thin ice here, but Aaron just smiled sadly and said,

“My parents died in a fire when I was eight. I was placed in an orphanage, but my sister was seventeen, so she was too old. The thing is, very few people come to orphanages looking for ten year old boys, so needless to say I was never adopted. Maybe one day I would’ve. But I’m not really sure. About three years later I was taken from the orphanage. They told me my sister had paid for me to be taken on as an apprentice to the local tailor. I stayed there for about four years before the money stopped coming in. Without it I couldn’t pay rent, and my master kicked me out and began the search for a new, paying apprentice.”

I expected his voice to be bitter and angry, but it wasn’t. It was as if he were telling the story of something that had happened to another person.

He went on with his story.

“They wanted me to go back to the orphanage, but I couldn’t imagine going back there after I’d finally gotten out, so I ran. I worked odd jobs for a while, mucking out stalls and things like that. You, know, the stuff no one wants to do?”

I nodded, and he went on.

“Anyways I started sleeping on the streets and in random inns when I could afford it, but the Sloane found me, and well, here I am.”

He shrugged.

I was about to ask him just why someone like Sloane would pick some random kid off of the street, when, speak of the devil, she burst in, the door swinging wide open. She stalked towards me with her unnaturally silent footsteps, and hoisted me to my feet.

“I think it’s time we played a little game, Kate,” she smirked, “I seem to recall you quite enjoying those back on Neverland.”

I followed her silently down the hall, and was beginning to wonder just how big this ship was when she pulled me into a small room, and locked the door behind us.

“Now,” she said with a wicked grin, “Let’s begin.”

Peter’s POV

I walked back towards the charred camp and barked orders at the boys around me, “Find a new place to set up camp, and someone send out a hunting patrol. Our store was burned along with the tents, so we’ll need to re-stock. Someone else, take a head-count and see if we lost anyone. Felix! To my side, now!”

Suddenly my second in command was there next to me.

“Kate’s missing,” I said to him.

“So?” he shrugged.