Weakness

Chapter 8 The Heart of Neverland

"I'm going to kill, you!"

"Disgrace!" The man dawned in black yelled as he back handed the little redheaded girl at his feet.
"You tried to runaway!" He continued irately.
"Please, Father, I didn't mean..." the little girls please were interrupted by another slap to the face causing her to whimper in pain.
"You are no daughter of mine!" He yelled picking her up by the collar of her shirt.
"Please, Father." She begged, "I can do better."
"No your not getting it." He yelled throwing her back to the ground at his feet. He squatted down to her level and grabbed her by the forearm, "I'm not your father. I found you abandoned on the side of the road left to die." He yelled pulling her closer to him, "I saved you and raised you. You should be thanking me and instead I'm given such disrespect as to run away."
"Please, Father, I was not trying to..." he slapped her again her cheek already forming a bruise.
"You owe me your life." He spat at her. She bowed her head in submission making a cruel smile play on his face. "Good." He replied gently stroking her now bruised cheek, "Back to training." He snapped his fingers and two guards walked in. "Escape training. Lock her in the crate." He demanded.
"No!" She yelled struggling against them, "Please, no! Anything else, Please!" She cried out, "Father! Father, please, NO!" Her cries were unheaded as the guards got closer to the dreaded cage it was no larger then a dogs crate. Anytime she was Locked in She wasn't aloud any food or water and until she escaped the guards could do whatever they liked as long as they could do it through the bars. The locking system was changed everytime and on top of that the girl had an irrational fear of confined spaces. "No!" She yelled begging anyone to help her, "No, no, no, NO!!!" But the guards didn't stop they never stopped...
"Ace! Acelin! Wake up. It's just a dream wake up!" She heard a familiar voice pull her out of the memory that still haunts her nightmares. Without thinking she grabbed his wrist and arm and flipped him over onto the bed straddling his waste, with her elbow placed on his windpipe. She looked into the forest green eyes of Peter Pan and let out a sigh of relief.
"If you wanted to be on top, all you had to do was ask." He relayed cockily wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. She rolled her eyes and got off of his waste laying back down in her position she was in a moment ago. She wiped the tear stains off her cheeks. Pan was about to get up to return to his place on the floor when his pillow hit him in the face. He looked at it then at the person who had thrown it, Ace.
"Stay." She whispered softly it may have meant to be a command, but it came out as more of a plea. Ace scolded her self for seeming weak in front of the boy. The boy smiled slightly, but made sure to hide it from the girl as he settled down next to her drapping an arm around her waste immediately she pulled back, "this means nothing." She stated harshly, "I just don't want to be alone." She finished in a whisper. Pan nodded and turned over so his back faced her.
"Goodnight, Acelin." He stated softly.
"Goodnight, Peter." She replied making Peter smile at her use of his first name. He was slowly earning the trust of their very first lost girl. Why he cared so much he wasn't sure, but he knew he did. He cared and he didn't care why.

The next morning Ace woke with an arm rapped around her waist and snuggled into a chest. She jumped away only to be pulled closer by Pan who wasn't quite awake yet, "I wouldn't mind waking up like this every morning." He whispered into her ear making her pull his arm off her with surprising force. She got up and rolled her eyes at the boy on the bed.
"I told you last night that it meant nothing and you were supposed to stay on your side." She huffed crossing her arms over her chest.
"It wasn't my fault." He defended, "you cuddled me."
She rolled her eyes in response, "sure I did." Pan gave her a face as he pulled the blankets off and stood up only then did Ace realize he was shirtless.
"Umm..." she stated looking at his torso, "when did you take your shirt off?"
"I didn't think you payed enough attention to me to notice." He responded coyly, "guess your more interested then I thought." He smirked only to receive a slap on the arm that would probably leave a bruise.
"Oh don't flatter yourself." She responded rolling her eyes at him and scoffed. He chuckled as he put on his shirt.
"So what are these tests?" She questioned him putting on her boots and the gear she removed before going to bed.
"Oh there aren't any." He replied lacing up his boots, "the test was last night weather or not you could here the pipe. You could so congratulations your a lost Girl." He gave her a cheeky smile making her raise an eyebrow.
"That's it?" She questioned, "I can here the music so I'm in?"
He just looked at her curiously, "Well what did you expect? I'd make you fight my best warrior then throw a parade in your honor?" He questioned sassily making her slap his arm.
"No!" She snapped.
"Good because now that your an official lost Girl we're going to celebrate today." He announced standing to his feet.
"What do you mean celebrate?" She questioned him cautiously.
"We're going to spend the day at the heart of Neverland then when we get back have a proper bomb fire without you running off." He eleborated smirking.
"Okay What is the heart of Neverland?" She questioned him raising an eyebrow, but his smirk only grew.
"You'll see."