Hiraeth: Return to Neverland #1 (a darlinghook fanfic)

8 | blue

Captain Hook was furious. All he had asked his men to do was scout out the island for the new arrival and see if whoever it was, was a threat. Now they were back and had been outsmarted, by who?

"We don't know who it was, cap'n," Bill said. "He came up behind me with a knife and made me drop my weapons."

"And where were you while this happened?" Hook turned to Morris.

"I was in the bushes. I thought I heard something."

"So, who was it when you turned around? A large, muscular man with a sharp dagger that you had no chance against?"

Bill suddenly found the deck at his feet fascinating. "I dunno. He ran off quick. Wasn't very tall, but he sounded much older when he talked."

"He outsmarted you by disguising his voice." Hook was dangerously calm. "Lord help us all if Pan lowers his voice. Although, if it was a boy, he's probably on his way to him now."

Morris shook his head. "Was going the wrong way for that. Wrong side of the island. Probably is hiding out near Blindman's Bluff."

"Get out of my sight, both of you!" Hook snarled, and the two pirates quickly obeyed.

He leaned back in his chair, tapping his armrest absentmindedly with his hook. So, there was a boy on the island, but he was not with Pan, and from the sound of it, he seemed older. But even if he wasn't with Pan, he was a threat, and now he had weapons.

Those fools!

It took Wendy a while before she found the type of wood she was looking for. The trees by Blindman's Bluff were tropical and unfamiliar to her, so she had had to go to the forest by Cannibal Cove. It wasn't as far as she had thought.

With her newly acquired sword and pistol strapped to her belt, she sat at the base of a willow tree, making herself a bow and some arrows. She had thought of using the pistol to hunt, but she had no way to get new ammunition and on an island so small, it was bound to be heard by everyone.

A rustle in the bushes. Wendy jumped up, holding her sword in her right hand, her left hovering near the pistol.

"Who is it?" she said, hiding the fear in her voice.

There was no movement in the bushes.

"Come out slowly," she ordered. She heard the soft snapping of branches as a small gray wolf came into sight.

"Blue!" she exclaimed, dropping her sword and rushing forward. The wolf's tail wagged as he bounded toward her. Wendy embraced him, kissing the top of his furry head. "I knew I'd find you," she said. "Or you'd find me." Blue howled joyfully in response.

It was a sweet reunion, but it had to be cut short. Wendy was in pirate territory, the Jolly Roger anchored just off the coast. They might have heard them, so she quickly picked up her things and strapped her sword to her belt again.

The woman and wolf slipped back into the trees, heading back to Blindman's Bluff.

But where have Tiger Lily and her two braves, Machk and Kitchi been this whole time? Although only Hook had seen them all afternoon, they had seen everything else. They could be almost completely silent if they wanted to be. Tiger Lily had seen Wendy, and even though Wendy had worried that she had changed too much to be recognized, she knew who she was immediately. She did not forget as quickly as Peter did.

They had watched Wendy fool the pirates and Tiger Lily could not help but think that they might have an ally in Wendy. After all, the enemy of one's enemy is often one's friend.

After finding where Wendy was living, they returned to their camp as silently as they had come.

Peter Pan flew over Mermaid Lagoon. The mermaids lounged on the rocks, combing their hair and singing lazily in the sun.

"Hello, Peter!" one mermaid called.

It was late afternoon, so Marooner's Rock was in full view. Peter landed on it softly and the mermaids slipped into the water, swimming toward him.

"Hello, mermaids," he said, cheerfully.

"Have you come to play our bubble game with us again?" asked another mermaid, combing her long black hair.

Though they seemed a little foolish and acted like airheads, even Peter knew better. They were mysterious creatures that always seemed to know what was going on and should not be trifled with.

"No," he said. "I want to know who's new on the island."

"New on the island?" a red-headed mermaid mused, and the mermaids looked at each other. A few smiled knowingly. "Oh!" she exclaimed, as though remembering something. "Yes, there is someone new."

"It's very strange," said a mermaid quietly.

The others all chimed in.

"Strange indeed."

"Travelled here with pixie dust."

"And yet is not a child."

"Very strange."

"A grown-up?" Peter asked. "Who flew here?"

The mermaids nodded.

"Who is the grown-up with? The pirates? The Piccaninny tribe?"

"No one right now... although," she paused, as though hearing something. "Well, that is curious."

"What is?" said Peter, growing irritated.

They giggled. "That is not for you to know, Peter Pan." With that, they all slipped back into the water.

"Hey!" Peter cried, but they didn't listen to him. He frowned, it was time for some island scouting. He had to know whose side this grown-up was on.

Said grown-up had just successfully shot two birds with her bow. Feeling extremely proud of herself, Wendy waited for Blue to fetch them. It had only taken her about twenty shots. Oh, well, she would have lots of time to practise.

As she hunted, she had formulated a plan on how she was going to spend her time on the island. It was Neverland, so she couldn't just live in her little house, hunting and eating birds. She needed adventure, that was part of the reason she was here.

So, she was going to defeat the pirates and take over the Jolly Roger.

It was a very ambitious goal, to say the least, but she wasn't exactly going to storm the Jolly Roger on her own, she had a plan. She would accumulate some weapons, stealing from the pirates, and work on her swordplay.

Her first thing to do was to remove their leader from the picture. So, once she felt she was ready, she would sneak aboard the ship and kill Captain Hook. The pirates wouldn't have a leader, or at least, not one like him. Then, she would pick them off one by one.

It was still quite ambitious, but this is Neverland and anything is possible.

Wendy cooked up one of her birds on a fire a fair distance away from her house so that she wouldn't alert everyone about where her hideaway was. The other bird was Blue's, who deserved it after finding both birds in the thick underbrush.

It was getting dark and Wendy stood up and stomped out the fire. With Blue following close behind, she made her way back to her little house. Tomorrow she would scout out the island.