A Mother's Touch
'Send for Mother.' Felix had ordered in a hushed urgent whisper.
The lost boys wasted no time. They raced through the jungle, jumping over the fallen trees and bursting through the large leaves that blocked their path. The rain pounded down on them, making it difficult to see but they continued moving fast through the wilderness.
Her cage was swinging dangerously in the air.
The boys struggled to fight the gale wind as they undid the rope and held on tightly as they lowered her down.
The cage did not land gently on the ground but no one cared about the safety of Mother, as long as she was able to get back to house.
The youngest of the boys rushed over to open the cage door and allow her out.
Mother was not much older than the boys that stood in the small clearing. She wore only a thin white night gown and her unkept hair was loose and hung by her shoulders. Wendy Darling had been in Neverland for over a hundred years and she'd been in her cage for most of it.
No one spoke, they all knew what was happening and what Mother had to do.
She ran with them. Her bare feet stinging as they hit sharp twigs and jagged stones. The rain dampened the ground making the ground muddy and less painful to run on but she'd still have cuts and would suffer later for it. Still, she ran.
The sky lit up as a bolt of lightening struck through the air and a clap of thunder followed it. The children picked up the pace. The boys surrounded the young girl, guiding her back towards the little house.
The small house offered the privacy that the Lost boys hideout did not. Felix was stood outside the front door, his arms folded and his hood up, hiding his face. The boys melted back into the jungle now that Mother had been delivered. Felix merely moved to the side, allowing her to pass.
Wendy Darling entered what was once her house. The small room was elegantly draped in lace curtains, hiding the bark walls. The single white framed bed took up most of the space. There wasn't much light but there didn't need to be, she knew he was there. The rain could be heard pelting down on the roof.
He whimpered in the dark.
She moved quietly into the room. He cried out as if he was in pain.
'Shhhhhh.' Wendy went to him and perched on the edge of the bed. 'It's ok Peter.' She ran her fingers through his hair, soothing him.
'It's ok, its just a dream.' Wendy whispered. The boy let out another whimper. There was another clap of thunder. The loud noise woke him, making him shoot up.
'Wendy?' His voice sounded desperate. His eyes were wide with fright.
'I'm here.' Wendy told him. Peter scooted over to make room for her. He laid back down on his side and waited for her. Neither of them cared that she was soaked through or that her night gown clung to her, hiding nothing. Her hair was plastered to her face and her feet were throbbing from the pain caused by the jungle floor. Sliding under the warm covers Wendy lead on her side to face him.
The rain eased off outside, the noise no longer deafening inside the little house.
Gently as if not to scare him, Wendy's fingers moved slowly to his face and stroked his cheek. It was wet as she had expected. As she wiped his tear away, he made no effort to stop her or try hide the evidence from her.
Peter sniffed. He closed his eyes and then frowned and scrunched up his face before re-opening his eyes. Wendy knew he must had recalled something because fresh tears were now running down his face and he choked down a sob. The rain hardened again and a flash of lightening lit up the room for a brief couple of seconds.
Sitting up Wendy opened her arms, no words were needed. Without hesitation Peter shuffled over and curled himself around her. Wendy put her arms round him and moved one of her hands up and down his back while he broke down.
Wendy did not know what tormented Pan in his sleep, but it tore down his walls and left a young vulnerable boy in its wake.
Peter's cries got louder. Wendy tightened her hold of him. His head was buried in her chest and Wendy kissed his hair and rested her chin on the top of his head. This was the Peter that pulled at her heart strings. This poor tortured soul that clung to her as if she was his lifeline.
Wendy rocked him gently and hummed a song that her mother used to sing to her and her brothers when they were ill or upset. She believed it was always that song that ultimately calmed Peter into a deep sleep. It was so long ago when she'd last heard that song that she could barely remember the words, but she would never forget the tune.
The rain once again lessened and eventually she couldn't hear it anymore. Peter had stopped crying and his breathing levelled out. Wendy carried on humming, the song now more for her than for him.
In the beginning, Pan's nightmares could cause catastrophic weather changes throughout Neverland, endangering all that lived there. He could never be found, and everyone had no choice but to take cover and try to survive until it past. That was until the Wendy Bird came.
The house had been hers at the time. The rain had woken her from her sleep. The storm was raging outside and it was frightening by herself, but she couldn't leave.
The eye of the storm is when Peter appeared in her room. She was never sure if he had been fully aware of his decision to come to her. He just stood there. His head bowed down and his hands by his sides, curled into tight fists. She saw the drops of water fall from his face and land on the floor. It could have been from the rain but she knew it wasn't. Wendy had acted on impulse because in that moment she didn't see him as the feared ruler of Neverland but a distraught boy who needed comfort and so, she went to him.
He resisted her touch at first, tensing when she gingerly touched his arm. She had to duck down slightly so that she could peer up at his face and meet his eyes, since he was focusing so hard on staring at the ground.
Wendy sucked in a sharp breath. He looked broken.
'Peter.' She said reaching up to cup his face in her hands. It was his turn to take a sharp breath, no one had uttered his first name in years. In fact it had been Wendy to use it last, after realising what he was.
'I'm a monster.' He whispered. He was shaking uncontrollably.
Wendy didn't know how to answer him. Instead she leant forward and bravely kissed his cheeks, kissing away his tears.
Peter closed his eyes and let her. As Wendy kept kissing his face, she could feel him begin to relax. Her hands slowly left the sides of his head and reached now for his hands. She intertwined their fingers. Peter's eyes burst open in panic as she began to move away from him. With a firm grip of his hands she slowly lead him towards her bed.
'You had a bad dream?' She asked, although it was more of a statement than a question. Peter simply nodded his head like a small child. Wendy climbed into bed and pulled him in with her. She brought the covers over them and lead down. It was too small a bed to share without being tangled together, so Wendy lead on her side while Peter was on his back. She rested her head on his chest and draped her arm over him.
'You can sleep.' She told him. 'You don't have to face your dreams alone now.'
Peter just nodded again. Wendy could hear his heart beating wildly against his rib cage. She didn't realise at the time that it was not the lingering nightmare that caused his heart to beat so fast but because of her.
After that, he would always appear in her house and when she was banished to her cage, he would choose to sleep there, when he had to. Pan didn't sleep until he had no choice and sleep had threatened to take him where he stood.
Felix being forever loyal to Pan had discovered the power Wendy held over Neverland's dangerous weather patterns long ago, and for the safety of everyone he made sure to reunite them whenever the storms came.
So here she was, cradling the most feared boy in all the lands while he slept. Once the storm had passed and the sun had begun to rise there was a light knock on the door. Wendy carefully untangled herself from him. Pulling at the covers, she tucked him in and gently pushed back his hair so that she could kiss his forehead.
He mumbled her name and then rolled onto his back. Wendy smiled for the briefest moment before turning away and made her way to the door. Opening it she walked through only to glance back at him before closing the door behind her.
Felix would always escort her back to her cage, neither of the them speaking. She'd always return before he woke, in fear of what he would do to the boys for setting her free. She would often wonder if when he was awake and in such a state if he knew she was really there and not just part of his dreams.
If he knew that she came to him, he never spoke of it and no one dared mention it.
And so it was the unspoken agreement between the Neverlanders, and Wendy became one Neverland's most precious secrets. One that was to be protected at all cost, potentially even from Pan himself.
Author's Notes.
Just a random one shot I felt like writing! Nothing to do with either story I'm currently working on (please check them out if you haven't already) I really hope you liked this mini story, please review and let me know what you think. X