Hooked [Complete]

73. Neverland

Author's Note: All right, one last look at the God's Paradise before we finally deal with Sean and Dru.

Song: Lost Boy by Ruth B. This is a beautiful song, but it doesn't really capture the joy of Cernunnos' family. More like Dru and Sean's hope for what they can find in the Divine.

Dru and Sean followed Cernunnos and the others, but Dru soon realized "not far" is a relative term to gods. It seemed like they had been walking for an hour at least.

The older children had raced ahead at once and were out sight now.

"Go canny, aye?" Cernunnos had warned them as they pulled ahead, and Ceryn had nodded, pulling her bow from her back. Dru smiled. She supposed even in Heaven, Cernunnos was always on the hunt.

Cerridwen walked a measured pace, nursing Faerie as they went. Cernunnos and Sean walked a few paces behind, chatting easily, until Sean realized Dru was lagging farther behind. After slowing for her to catch up twice, Sean took her hand so they could keep pace. When she slowed even further, he stopped and put her arms around her.

"All right?" he searched her face.

"Yeah. I guess I spend too much time behind a desk, these days," she murmured.

"Carrie, is it much farther? I think Dru's spell depleted her too much for a long hike." He let a very tightly controlled stream of Greenspark energy transfer to her, and she felt a little more energized.

Dru blinked. Sean was right. She wasn't out of shape, she was magically exhausted. She had forgotten, how intuitive he was, when it came to her magic, and how much control he actually had over his. Enough control to measure out the Greenspark. She appreciated his control in this moment. She hated it in bed though. In bed, it was such a strain on him to hold back . He could do it—he had learned that much control from Cerridwen, from the torture that Mercury had put him through, from working death magic on Trivia--but it was an all-or-nothing situation when it came to their love-making. To hold back the Greenspark, he had to ward the Sexwitch, too, much like Maeve had done to him as a child, and sex became nothing more than...an emotionless exercise for him.

Cerridwen turned around, effortlessly swinging Faerie to her other hip. The little green girl was blinking and rubbing her silver owl eyes. "Dru's not the only one that needs to rest. We'll be there in a few steps," Cerridwen said. "Just keep walking."

Sean and Dru gave each other a puzzled look. The forest stretched endlessly before them; there was no homestead in sight. But they kept walking as Cerridwen asked. Cerridwen bounced the baby on her hip and kissed her temple. "Sweet girl," she cooed. "Ready for snuggles?"

Faerie made a sound of agreement and the forest rippled in front of them like a vertical pool of water. The gods never broke their step as they waded into it. Sean took Dru's hand and they crossed into the fuzzy reality. It was just like stepping through a fairy door—no change in awareness at all. They were simply somewhere else in the forest.

"What just happened?" Sean asked.

"Who needs a fairy door when you have a Faerie baby?" Cerridwen winked. "She brought us home."

"Ow, wow," Dru said looking up, at a tremendous tree that was their home. At the base of the tree were several small sheds, a clearing for campfires, and some camp furniture that Cernunnos had built or manifested, but the tree housed a number of platforms and small rooms on all different levels, connected by winding stairs. Even from the ground they could see the platforms and shelters were fully furnished with rough but well made furniture—desks, rope beds, tables, chests.

Dru and Sean smiled up at it, exchanging a glance. It reminded them both of the Swiss Family Robinson treehouse in Disneyworld. They had visited the famous amusement park and roamed that attraction together—back when they were still students at Sabit. It was a good memory, one of their simplest and happiest times together.