Neverland (snowbaz)

Cannon Balls and Clouds

Baz wasn't really sure what to expect of Neverland, but when it comes into view, his breath is knocked right out of him. It's a gorgeous island with mountains and waterfalls and lagoons. There's a rainbow running across the skyline because, he supposes, why shouldn't there be a fucking rainbow in paradise? 

Simon stops him on a cloud, giving him a moment to let it all sink in. Including the whole standing on a fucking cloud bit, too, because that is certainly a strange sensation. 

"I can't believe you get to live here," Baz says, breathless.

Simon grins at him again and puts his hands on his hips. "I know, right?"

Simon starts pointing out the different important places that they can see from up so high. He shows Baz where the mermaid lagoon is, where the native tribe live, where the fairies (who aren't Penelope) live and where he lives. Baz takes out his mobile to snap a picture of it and he can feel Simon's eyes on him and the device but he doesn't say anything about it. Baz feels a bit bad for asking him when he was born because that was obviously a sore subject, though Baz can't imagine why, so he decides not to press him. If Simon wants to know how phones work, Baz is more than happy to explain.

He's about to ask Simon to get a picture of him when something rips through the cloud next to them with a terrifying whoosh. Baz gasps and sees a hole torn straight through the cloud.

"What the fuck was that?"

Simon grits his teeth and points down below where there seems to be a massive pirate ship anchored in the harbor. "That's the Humdrum's ship."

Simon's getting his blade out while Baz tries to figure that out. 

"Wait, he's a pirate?"

Simon looks at him like he's an extra special idiot. "Yeah, didn't you know that?"

Baz rolls his eyes. "Yeah, well, I thought it might've been added in for the drama of it. I didn't know that pirates were a real thing! You've been fighting an adult who's launching cannon balls at you? You're seventeen!"

"And?"

Baz wants to shake him and make him understand how fucking weird that is. "And you're seventeen! You're a child. And he's a grown-up with scary weapons."

Simon shrugs and flashes him a grin. "Wanna go on an adventure?"

A minute later, Baz realizes that he does not want to go on this particular adventure. Simon weaves him through the sky as cannon balls keep coming up to try and intercept them. He's cool about it, but Baz is freaking the fuck out. In his head he always thought the adventures were more along the lines of finding buried treasure or something. It made sense for stories because having a seventeen year old kid fighting and repeatedly beating an old pirate sounds awesome, but he didn't really think that would be the reality of the situation. And Simon doesn't seem to care much about it. In fact, given the smile on his face, he looks like he's enjoying it. Baz wishes that he could enjoy it, too, but he can't because he's still to focused on the fact that there is a middle-aged man shooting fucking painful balls at a kid. 

He's a little too wrapped up in his thoughts of this to notice a tree branch coming right for him as Simon takes him down towards the ground, so Baz ends up losing his concentration and hurdling towards a collection of very sharp looking rocks on the ground below. He screams and closes his eyes, bracing for impact, when he feels the falling stop. He peeks an eye open and sees that Simon has caught him right in the nick of time, holding Baz in his arms like Baz is his bride.

Simon lands on the rocks and sets Baz down on the ground. His heart is beating wildly in his chest.

"T––thanks," Baz says.