Second Star to the Right

Chapter Fifteen: Brothers

"Wendy: Adventures! In which good triumphs over evil!

Hook:They all end in a kiss.

Wendy: [gasp]

Hook: A kiss. He does feel! He feels about you."

~Peter Pan, 2003

Chapter Fifteen: Brothers

Wendy was trapped, but even worse, she couldn't move. There was no getting out of this one. Wendy tried to move a finger, a toe, anything, but nothing moved except her head.

A Lost Boy moved towards her. He gripped a knife in his left hand and was ready to attack. He was shoved to the ground by Slight, who seemed to come out from no where. 

"She's mine." He said, as he bent down and ripped the knife out of the Lost Boy's hand. Slight walked up to Wendy and placed his knife against her throat. "Any last words, Darling? This is my moment to shine, so make them memorable." He smiled. Wendy spat in his face, and nailed him in the eye. Slight wiped it off with his hand and grimaced. "You b-"

Slight was stopped mid sentence by Felix, who pushed him to the ground. Slight looked taken aback, and Felix glared at him. Felix turned to face the rest of the Lost Boys. "Pan wants her alive. So we'll keep her that way. Understood?" He growled. The Lost Boys nodded in agreement silently. Felix tied Wendy up with the help of some Lost Boys and they carried her back to camp.

Slight remained on the ground, still glaring menacingly as the boys walked  past. The Lost Boy Slight had knocked over casually kicked dirt towards him, and smugly walked away. After a few moments, Slight brushed himself off and followed the rest back to camp. 

*********

Wendy was chained to a wall in a cave when she was able to move again. The Lost Boys had voted to put her there, where she couldn't easily escape, but wouldn't bother the Lost Boys while they had fun. 

Wendy yanked at the chains, trying to free herself. Wendy paused when she heard someone enter. Wendy squinted in the dark in an attempt to see who it was. Suddenly, a ball of fire appeared and lit up the small cave. Wendy's eyes took a minute to adjust to what she was seeing. 

Pan stood a few feet away from her, holding a fire ball in his hand. He blew on the fire, and the fire flew around the cave, lighting various torches on the wall. 

"Leave me alone," Wendy said. "Please, I just want to go home." She begged. Wendy fought back tears. She also fought back the urge to punch Pan in the face, but she was chained to the wall and he had magic. It would be an unfair fight. 

"I'm setting you free." Pan said, and waved his hand through the air. Wendy's chains detached themselves from her and clanged to the ground in a pile around her feet. 

"I don't trust you." Wendy said, not moving from her spot.

"Wendy Darling," Pan began, "I may not be the most well behaved boy on the island, but I always keep my promises." He walked toward Wendy, but Wendy backed away. 

"Stay away from me." She ordered, and held her hand out as if to stop him. 

"Let me ask you something." Pan said, and stopped approaching her. "Do you love me?" Wendy lowered her hand and stood up straight.

"What?" She asked. 

"Do you love me?" Pan asked again.

"I-" Wendy began, but wasn't sure how she would end the sentence. Pan stared at Wendy for a minute, waiting for her to answer. He finally realized that he would never get the answer to that question from Wendy, but had she asked that question, he would have known his answer. 

Pan stepped close to Wendy, and before she knew it his lips were on hers. There, in the cave, where no one could see them, Peter Pan kissed Wendy Darling. 

*********

Felix watched the Lost Boys dance around a fire. They were celebrating. The heart of the truest believer was theirs for the taking. They would live forever young.

"Felix." A sinister voice said behind him, and Felix annoyingly turned around. 

"What, Shadow?" He asked. The shadow held out a piece of small, rolled parchment. It was tied with a string, and looked ancient. Felix grabbed the parchment and tore off the string. He unrolled it, and stared at the drawing before him. It was of a young boy. Felix was puzzled. 

"Looks like you were right about our guest." The shadow said as it hovered in front of Felix. 

"Who is this?" Felix asked. 

"The owner of the heart of the truest believer." The shadow answered.

"It's not Wendy." He said.

"It's not Wendy." The shadow confirmed. 

"I have to find Pan." Felix said, then ran off to find him.

*********

Wendy for a minute kissed Pan back, then realized what she was doing. She couldn't love him; he didn't love her. Wendy pushed Pan away from her. Pan stumbled backward a few steps, obviously taken aback. Wendy stepped forward and slapped Pan across the face. 

Pan held his cheek where she had hit him, and looked honestly hurt. Wendy for a second believed he was crushed by her actions, then she remembered all the lies that he had told her. Pan removed his hand, and looked at the blood on his fingers. She had cut him with her nails. 

"I hate you." She said. Pan looked into her eyes, not saying a word. For the first time, Wendy didn't see a demon or an angel. She saw a Lost Boy, who had just had his heart broken by someone that he loved. 

They stood there for what felt like a lifetime, just staring at each other.  Pan let the words sink in. She hated him. She hated him. She hated him. She hated him. He didn't hate her. 

Felix ran into the cave, yelling for Pan. Pan didn't move until Felix yanked his arm to turn him around. 

"It's not...her." He said, out of breath. Felix shoved the parchment into Pan's hand. Pan unrolled it and looked at the picture. "He is the holder of the heart of the truest believer." 

"But, the center of magic near her house a few weeks ago..." Pan said, unable to believe that he had been so wrong. 

"It could have been one of her brothers." Felix offered. Pan couldn't think straight. Wendy hated him, and now she wasn't even the owner of the heart that he needed. 

"Brothers." Pan whispered. His mind was swirling. His head throbbed. Wendy's words screamed at him, and the picture of the boy burned in his mind. His face stung where Wendy had hit him minutes ago. Pan placed his hands on his head. He yelled to get the pain to stop. 

"PAN!" Felix screamed. "What has gotten in to you?" Pan stopped yelling, and turned to Wendy. He knew what he had to do. He turned to Wendy.

"I always get what I want, Wendy Darling." He said angrily. "And I most certainly do NOT want YOU." Pan practically yelled. Pan turned away from Wendy and yelled for the shadow. The shadow flew through the cave's entrance. 

"Take her home, and bring me a brother." Pan ordered. Pan refused to look at Wendy. "NOW!" He ordered the shadow, and the shadow listened. Wendy screamed something at him, but her previous words circled his head to the point where he couldn't hear anything else. 

"Pan," Felix began, but Pan put his finger out. The voice stopped. 

"Now, now Felix boy." Pan interrupted. "I don't need you to tell me what to do, so I don't want to hear any mediocre ideas. The game just got a bit more interesting, Felix." Felix smiled. Pan was back. "So let's play."