Checkmate

6. Arrows and feathers

For a while after Pan's visit, I waited for him to come back, re-lock the door and laugh at me for believing his lies, but he never returned. A few minutes later, I checked the door and turned the handle slowly, expecting it to open to a brick wall blocking my way. Instead, I saw the steps Pan had dragged me up three days before. With a gasp, I slammed the door and returned to my now cold lunch, my eyes flitting from the door to my plate and back.

Once I had completely finished my meal, I re-tied my hair and re-attached my wrist knives back under my sleeves. Once again, I checked the door before getting my hopes up, but I needn't have bothered. There was no sign of Pan or a blocked exit.

"Finally," I whispered, stepping back into the forest and feeling something other than wood under my boots.

Whilst making the short trek to camp, I passed a few of the boys. Some were whittling, some were fighting, some were eating, but all stared as I passed, some with their mouths agape. "You will catch flies!" Came a voice from the camp, sending the boys scurrying. I turned to find Felix, his club stick slung over his shoulder and his face stern. In the distance, I saw Pan on his throne, watching over all, his eyes scanning the clearing for anything against his liking.

I nodded, acknowledging the boy. "Tall one."

"So, he freed you." The boy seemed concerned, but I didn't know for what reason. I simply nodded in response before silently making my way to where I had seen bows and practice arrows a week before. "Those are for the boys." I turned to argue, my mouth open to argue a lecture about gender until the sight made me pause. Wordlessly, Felix held out a bow twice the size of the ones I had been looking at. "Take mine," he muttered. "I was going to make a new one, anyway."

With a slight nod, I took the weapon and bit my lower lip gently. "Arrows?" I asked, my eyes flicking between Felix and behind him, the king on his throne, whose eyes remained fixed on us.

Felix and I both knew he couldn't speak again without raising suspicion, so didn't. Instead, he only tilted his head towards a bucket of crudely made practice arrows. I grabbed a few and tucked them into my belt before turning to thank him, but he had already gone.

Not wanting to fire any arrows too close to camp, I went a little way past the waterfall. After stopping to enjoy the sound of something other than silence, I found the running water to be a welcome break. Eventually, I found a clearing near to the falls so I could still hear the water and targeted the nearest tree. As I fired the first few arrows off, I realised my stance to need a little adjusting after a week out of practice. That, and the arrows in my belt, were a little awkward to grab. Despite the issues, I continued to fire until my belt emptied. I kept the arrows at a height where I could still retrieve them, and separated enough so I didn't damage any by firing one into another.

I retrieved my arrows and knocked another in my bow, ready to fire, when a twig alerted my attention to the right of me. I sent my arrow flying in that direction, expecting to hear the grunt of an animal or the thunk of the arrow in a tree.

A moment later, a smirking figure emerged, holding my arrow, his face as annoying as Pan's. "Careful lost girl," goaded Felix, the boy clearly more confident without Pan around. "You could have taken my eye out."

I shrugged. "It would have been an improvement." His smirk vanished as mine grew, pleased I had struck a nerve. "Can I help you, tall one?" He threw my arrow towards the ground, the dull tip piercing the grass right next to my foot. "Oh, dear Felix, you need to work on your aim. You appear to have missed." I chuckled and bent over to pluck my arrow from the ground, careful to navigate the arrows in my belt.

As I stood upright once more, I found my view blocked by a chest. I looked up and, feeling no fear, I sassed my victim even further. "How's the weather up there?" My giggle was silenced when I felt myself being pushed against a tree, his hands crushing my shoulders, and his fingers curling into my neck.

"Don't test me, lost girl."

"Or what, you going to try to kill me again?" I looked pointedly at his lip, that seemed considerably less red than last time I saw it. "Remember what happened last time?"

Felix growled and pushed forward, slamming his lips into mine with a hunger I had never felt before.

Remembering Pan's warning, I tried to pull my head back, but the tree stopped me. After a second, I felt my eyes close, almost enjoying the feel of his lips on mine. Felix differed from Pan. He smelt like freshly cut grass and mint leaves, like the tea mother used to make. But before either of us could pull away or deepen the kiss, a sharp pain shot through my bottom lip, pulling me out of my thoughts.

My eyes widened in shock as the boy pulled back, my blood on his lips. "Now we are even."

"Felix... you..." Wordlessly, I lifted my hand to my lip, feeling nothing but deep pulsing. After a moment, Felix's eyes flitted to my neck and his smirk quickly vanished. The boy's face dropped in horror, a look that I was sure would have matched mine.

His eyes met mine before I pointedly glanced at the figure on the tree behind him. Felix swallowed hard before adopting a false grin. "I hope you understand this makes us even now, lost girl. I daresay you even enjoyed it a little."

Pan crossed his arms as Felix took a step back from me, his eyes never leaving mine. The boy king's eyes fixed on the back of his second in command as he floated down from the tree to stand behind the boy. "I'll forgive you for your actions this time, Felix. But you're on scout duty for the rest of the week."

"Oh, that I will do willingly." Felix bowed his head slightly before leaving the clearing without looking back once.

Pan's attention flicked from Felix to me, and his gaze darkened. "We had a deal, princess."

"He kissed me! He bit me! I did nothing!"

"Exactly. You did nothing."

"I couldn't move. What did you expect me to do?" I licked my lip, tasting nothing but metal. "I was firing arrows; he came at me."

"I saw."

"And you let him do it? It really hurts!" I moved away from the tree to collect my arrows, returning them to my belt. Suddenly, a sting threw me to the floor, my arrows scattering around me. I cradled my cheek, feeling only burning. Pan grabbed my wrists, throwing my back to the floor, his full weight on top of me.

"You are mine, you know, or am I going to have to remind you?" His eyes flicked to the mark on my neck, his intentions clear. I shook my head frantically, biting my already sore lip, sending more blood onto my tongue.

He got up and stormed off, leaving me with my bruised pride and soon to be bruised cheek. I lay there for a few minutes, watching the clouds float over the trees. I allowed a few tears to fall as I listened to the soft wind and the rushing waterfall.

A thud shocked me into sitting up, ready to fight. But I found only a single arrow shot into the tree next to me, a scrap of paper attached to it. Wordlessly, I retrieved the arrow, looking around for the shooter, but seeing no one. On the paper was a note with scrawled writing, a single word next to the drawing of a feather.

Sorry.

Sensing the note to be from Felix, thanks to the feather he always wore in his hair, I pocketed the note and added the arrow to my belt. The black tipped feathers were a stark contrast to the ones I had back on the ship.

I made my way back to my treehouse as the sun started to set in the sky. As I walked past camp, I took the time to watch the boys dance around the fire to a song I couldn't hear. Strangest to me was how much closer my treehouse felt to camp, as if someone had moved it. From across the fire Pan winked, both my question and answer clear.

I opened the treehouse door and flung it closed behind me. Sighing heavily, I placed the arrow carefully under the pillow before dropping straight onto the unmade bed.

"Bethany bear, a palaver indeed," I muttered to myself as I caressed my locket. Smiling at the words my mother would have told me.