Disclaimer: All characters / settings are the creations of J.M. Barrie and Geraldine McCaughrean. Some dialogue is taken directly from p. 264-265 of Peter Pan in Scarlet by Geraldine McCaughrean. I own nothing.

The Maze of Regrets

Peter slumped onto the sandy bank as he watched Tootles disappear into the distance. Tootles had wanted to stay, and Peter was already regretting making her go; soon he would be alone.

Wendy, Michael and John were the only ones left, now.

"Can we go, too, sis?" asked John, excited at his sudden idea; if the other children's mothers had been waiting in the Maze of Regrets, perhaps his own mother was waiting there too. A sharp thrill filled him at the thought of it, and was visibly echoed in his little brother's face.

Wendy gently shook her head. "There is no one here for us, John. We were never Lost, remember? We flew to Neverland of our own choosing – and home again before Mother could set sail to come looking."

The boys seemed terribly disheartened at this, and none of the three siblings relished the prospect of having to wait for their shadows to grow back.

Peter had not really been listening. He was staring at his toes, ignoring the thoughts that were whizzing around his head, clamouring for attention, a frown of determination fixed on his face.

Within the jungle, James Hook – for he was Hook now – heaved himself from the ground and donned his second-best scarlet frock coat. After some moments of recollection, Hook's mouth twisted into a most sinister of sneers, and he stumbled off towards the beach, propelled onwards by the old hatred that had once filled his heart.

Was it not an amazing stroke of luck, then, that the very object of this hate, his little nemesis, Peter Pan, was there, on that very beach? It was as though the boy was waiting for him, but with his back turned and his guard down.

Hook crouched behind a rocky sand dune, so close to Pan he could almost touch him; and somehow, the child was completely unaware of his presence!

The Captain watched and listened as all the little Lost Boys, one by one, ventured towards the sandstone Maze - a honeycomb of corridors and passageways – and, one by one, were claimed by overjoyed parents;

He watched and listened as the last of them – Tootles – was picked up and whisked away by her proud father;

And he watched and listened as the Darling children discussed their own means of returning home.

Peter stood and looked past the other children, to the Maze just beyond them. He was truly disturbed at being in such close proximity to it, although a good twenty feet away. The idea that there were mothers on his island made him actually shiver with fear; He would not grow up! He did not need a mother, and never would!

Peter shook the worry from his mind, and focused on Wendy. He took a step in her direction, and watched her pretty face turn to his.

His heart stopped as her expression suddenly changed to that of shock and fear. Hook emerged from his hiding place and rammed into the boy with full force, causing them both to land face-down in the sand.

Wendy had let out a scream of warning to Peter, just too late, and he had been caught completely unawares.

Filled with panic, Peter spat the sand from his mouth and hurriedly scrambled forward in a desperate attempt to escape his attacker, but Hook was too fast.

He dragged Peter backwards by the ankle, and clambered on top of him. Peter gasped at the weight of the man, but had no more time to react before Hook flipped him over, onto his back.

Pan's expression of fear at seeing Hook alive caused the Captain to grin; there was nothing he enjoyed more than wiping the smile of the cocky brat's face... it always gave him the greatest sense of triumph and satisfaction.

Peter quickly pulled himself together and started struggling for freedom, but a moment later pain was shooting through his head as the Captain backhanded him, viciously, and roughly dragged him to his feet.

By this time, the other three children were running to Peter's aid, but were halted abruptly as Hook pulled back Pan's head by his hair, and brought the cold iron of his namesake up to rest against the boy's throat.

All four of the children froze, Peter hardly daring to breath, uncomfortably aware of the razor-sharp weapon and Hook's painfully tight grip that was now around his waist.

The Captain's gentle but menacing laughter broke the silence.

"Did you miss me, Peter?" His mocking laughter grew, thrilled at having gotten the upper hand so quickly.

"What's all this talk of mothers, hmmm?" Hook slowly and awkwardly started walking Peter forward, keeping an eye on the other children, in case they tried something foolish.

"I see you found out who really occupies this Maze..." Hook leaned in close to Peter's ear. "I wonder if your mother is here, Pan." Peter's eyes widened, and despite the danger of Hook's hook, he began struggling to get away.

Hook squeezed him tighter, and pushed forward more decisively, rather enjoying Pan's screams of protest as he realised what the Captain was doing.

"No! ... Get off of me! ... Don't!" Peter managed to break free of Hook's grip, giving himself a nasty cut in the process, but Hook latched onto Peter's arm and stopped his attempts at running away.

Hook saw the other children advance, so he spun around and took proper hold of Peter once again. Pan hissed, kicked, bit and scratched in a frantic bid to escape, and Hook had real trouble keeping hold of the little beast. Nevertheless, slowly but surely, Hook dragged Pan backwards, towards the Maze of Witches.

Both came to a stop, about ten feet from the nearest sandstone wall, Hook turning Peter again to face it, looking up at the quite breathtaking structure. The Captain cleared his throat.

Peter's pleas became whispers, begging that Hook's plan would fail, rather than actually asking the Captain himself for mercy. He held tightly to the man's encircling arm, and blinked back a few stray tears.

"Is there anyone here..." Hook began, in a bellowing voice, "... looking for a Peter?" Both man and boy's eyes darted about, seeking any response to the Captain's words. It seemed as though minutes had past, as Peter held his breath.

Hook's eyes narrowed as he continued to scan the maze wall; but his amusement was turning into frustration, and he was losing patience. Returning his good hand to Pan's hair, Hook pulled back with all his might, Peter's hands flying up, a scream escaping him. More tears were trickling down his cheeks now, as the Captain leaned in again, close to the boy's ear.

"It looks like your prayers have been answered." Hook said this quite calmly, with no trace of malice, but this made Peter's fear increase rather than deplete; it was known that Captain Hook was most dangerous when calm.

As Peter felt himself being dragged away, he began fighting again. Wendy and her brothers looked on anxiously, unsure of how to help. They trotted awkwardly after the pair, as Hook wrestled Peter along the beach.

"Captain... Please!" Hook ignored the girl's attempts to distract him, and carried on.

"Wait!" This call did bring the Captain to a stop, as the voice that made it did not belong to Wendy or her brothers. Hook turned, and saw that the children had done the same, and were looking back towards the maze.

Standing just outside an opening in the sandstone wall was a woman. She was not very old – no more than thirty, Hook thought – and she stood very proudly, but with an expression of pure anxiety on her face. She was breathing heavily from dashing through the many passages, and her eyes were bloodshot, as if she had been crying for years.

"Please... Wait."

Hook turned his whole body to face her, bringing Peter around to face her as well. Hook felt the boy pushing back against him, trying to create more distance between himself and the woman. She was staring at him intently, searching his eyes and studying his features. Her own eyes flickered, as if in recognition, and the shadow of a smile glimmered around her lips.

"Peter?" The smile finally broke across her face, but she forced it back, desperately waiting for the child to respond.

Peter just stared at the woman in shock. The hair on the back of his neck had prickled at the sound of her voice, and the slight inkling of recognition that he felt caused his stomach to churn.

Swiftly shaking his head, Peter tried to step back, only to be reminded that he was still in Hook's grasp. "Let go of me!" He briefly recommenced his struggles to brake free, but Hook merely shook him, and then tightened his grip.

The woman took several worried steps towards them, then paused, seeing her proximity was causing the child more distress.

"Peter? Don't you remember me?" Her voice, again, caused Peter's mind to tingle, and he couldn't help pausing in his efforts to escape. Scowling deeply, Peter appraised her for several moments.

"No." He finally proclaimed. "I've never seen you before in all my life." Hook snorted with laughter. He could tell how uncomfortable Pan was, and began to wonder if the boy might actually have recognised the woman.

"It was a very long time ago..." The young woman approached carefully, and gently knelt down a few feet before the boy. "Such a very long time ago." She slowly reached out a hand to Peter's face, but withdrew it when he recoiled. She covered her hurt with another sad smile, then stood.

Captain Hook had been watching their exchange intently and now locked eyes with the woman, who might have born Peter Pan into the world. This was an odd thought, but it intrigued him.

"My Lady." He bowed his head politely, and she lowered her gaze in return.

"You asked if anyone was looking for a Peter."

"I did."

"I am... but this may not be him." Hook gave her a puzzled expression, and she looked down at her feet before continuing. "I... lost him when he was very young. This boy is much older, so I cannot be sure." Hook considered her for a moment, but the waver in her voice, and the way she looked at Peter, seemed to him to reveal her true belief.

Keeping a firm hold, Hook crouched down to Peter's level. The boy was stubbornly looking straight ahead, past the woman, refusing to look at either her or Hook.

"Well, Peter?" asked James, giving him another, gentler shake. "What do you think?" He was struggling to keep the glee from his face, and he was sure it was plainly noticeable in his voice. "Is this your long-lost mummy?"

Hook suddenly fell back, clutching his nose after Peter elbowed him in the face with the force of all his anger. Not wasting a second, Pan turned and leapt over the cursing Pirate Captain, and started running towards the trees.

"Run!" Wendy, John and Michael did not need to be told twice, and began running as fast as they could.

"Peter!" He did not know why, but something in that desperate cry stopped Pan in his tracks. Turning, he saw Hook still on the ground, nursing a bloody nose, and the woman, staring at him with pleading eyes.

Turning back to the trees to make sure his friends were safe and out of sight, he grudgingly walked back to where she waited. He kept a frown fixed to his face as he approached her, but she returned it with a warm smile. He noticed fresh tears running silently down her face, and was dismayed to feel his heart lurch with worry; He had never met this woman before, so he shouldn't care if she cried or not. She was not his mother!

Strangely, he did not feel the urge to run as she knelt before him, once again. Nor did he resist as she gently enveloped him in a hug. In fact, he even found himself resting his head on her comforting shoulder, and deeply breathing in her scent; it smelt so familiar.

"Peter, my love... I've been waiting for you." He stepped back from her, but allowed her to keep hold of his hands. "I could take you home... look after you?" Now he gave her a sad smile, and shook his head. Laughing briefly, she covered her mouth with one hand and looked away. Then, wiping the tears from her eyes, she stood again.

By this time, Captain Hook had recovered his wits, and focused on the woman and the boy, who unexpectedly still remained. Heaving himself to his feet, Hook eyed the two as the woman wrapped her arms around Peter's neck, and both returned the Captain's gaze.

"Well?" the Pirate exclaimed. "Is he yours or not?" She felt Peter grow tense under her touch, and she gasped back the pain in her aching heart.

"No."

"What?" Hook's eyes had darkened at her reply.

"No, he's not." She smiled down at the boy in her arms, and he grinned back.

"He's... not... yours?" The Captain looked on in disbelief, as the woman leant towards Peter's ear.

"I'll be waiting." She whispered softly, before planting a kiss on the child's cheek. Peter turned to watch her as she walked back to the opening in the sandstone. A tremendous sense of guilt filled him then, and he wanted to call out to her that it was no good; she should go home... but somehow he knew, that no matter what he said, she'd always be there, waiting.

The woman turned her head, to look at him one final time, and he smiled at her apologetically before she slipped out of sight.

A moment of silence past as Peter continued to stare at the place the woman had been. But then the silence was broken by a faint sound, gradually growing louder.

"Peter! PETER!"

Peter suddenly realised it was Wendy, returning from the jungle in search of him. He looked towards the trees and saw her running towards him across the sand. Then he remembered Hook. He swung around in anticipation, but was surprised to find the Captain sitting, once again, on the ground, covered in blood and glaring at him.

"Are... Are you alright?" Peter couldn't understand why Hook wasn't trying to gut him.

"Who was that, Pan?" He asked as if he already knew the answer, and glowered at the boy before him.

"Peter!" Wendy had stopped some distance away, and was waving her arms and jumping up and down, in an effort to get Peter's attention.

The boy looked back at his enemy, and leaned in dangerously close, fixing Hook's eyes with his own. Grinning slightly, Pan feigned ignorance; "Why, Captain... I have no idea!"

A growl of pure rage quickly started to build in the Captain's throat, and Peter narrowly missed the deadly hook as it hurtled towards him through the air. Laughing delightedly, Pan raced away towards the jungle, meeting Wendy as he went. And Captain Hook was left to yell and curse and rage at his latest failed attempt to defeat Peter Pan.

The End