Which Way To The Gallery?
1 A Missing Scene from 'Day at the Fair'
"And I'll go find the shooting gallery" Billy Jukes told Smee before he headed off. He could faintly hear the Bosun trying to remember what it was he had wanted to do and shook his head fondly. Billy looked around; the sounds of the fair were all about him. The vendors trying to coax some poor sap into spending their money on a challenge they couldn't win. The smells of the cotton candy, creamed corn, hot pretzels and hot dogs wafted together and made his mouth water, his taste buds begging him to try them all. The colorful banners of the tents advertised what kind of challenging treats lay in store, but Billy was only interested in finding the shooting gallery to knock a few things down and win some prizes. He heard laughter coming from behind him and looked to see a group of people, little older than he, standing together and laughing it up having a good old time. Billy sighed wistfully If only I had friends like that he thought. He shook his head Stop it Billy! That's no way for a pirate to think. You can have more fun on your own, no one telling you what they wanna do. Just you.
"Just me" he said aloud quietly.
He looked back towards the group of kids and found them to be gone. He sighed heavily and made his way through the throng of people passing one stand then another before abruptly stopping. He didn't even know where the shooting gallery was! How was he going to find it? He looked around hoping to see a sign that might point him in the right direction and finding none. He continued to stand there for a moment trying to decide what to do when he noticed a few of the passersby were giving him strange looks. He smiled sheepishly and made his way to the sidelines, out of the way of the crowded walkways. He was now in front of a guessing gallery, one where the victi-um- player would guess a number on a wheel and if the wheel stopped at that number the person won a prize. A simple game; too simple. It would be all too easy for the runner of the wheel to use a magnet to cheat. Billy avoided those games. The vendor, a tall lanky man in a candy striped vest and classic vendor hat, noticed him just then and in a very loud voice shouted,
"Step right up, young man, pick a number and win a prize, step right up here". A few people standing close by overheard and came to take a shot at the game, much to the pleasure of the man running the show, but Billy shook his head 'no' and instead asked for directions.
"Can you tell me which way to the shooting gallery?" he made sure not to add 'matey', or else it would have become even more obvious that he was a pirate; something he wanted to avoid for now.
The man in the striped shirt looked at him, tugged on his beard and nodded,
"Yep, go thatta way and take a left" he said pointing to the left side of the booth "Now get outta here kid yer botherin' me".
"Thanks" Jukes hollered over the din of people trying to get to the wheel booth. He turned and went in the direction shown, whistling a tune he had heard Mullins sing every now and then when the old pirate thought Billy wasn't around. He grinned as he remembered a few of the stories Mullins had told the others when they all thought the young gunner had been asleep. Indeed, they had been stories unfit for a child's ears, but being a young boy he had wanted to know what was so great about those tales Mullins told when he should have been sleeping. The morning after, it had been apparent that the youngest crewmate had been awake for he couldn't stop blushing that whole day. After that, Mullins made sure the boy was fast asleep before starting in on another of those wild yarns.
Billy turned left as he had been directed and came face to face with a wall. Billy looked confused for a moment then turned around angrily and looked back down the way he had come to see the bearded man laughing it up at his expense. Jukes clenched his fists, his face flushed with anger. He could hear a few people snickering, having just noticed what happened. Jukes pictured looking for his shipmates and telling them what had happened, then coming back and, with their help, tearing the booth to shreds. Without taking his eyes off the old wacko he stalked off to do just that when…
*wham* "Oh!" *thud* "Ouch!" *crash*.
Somehow, Billy had ended up on the ground shards of broken bottles littering the area around him and scrolls laying unraveled in the dirt. He wondered what hit him when he heard a soft moan.
"Ohhhh", and looked up to see a startling beauty right before his eyes. Curls of strawberry blond hair cascaded down her slender back and shoulders; her angelic face was creased with worry but was no less stunning, and her eyes were the brightest shade of emerald green Billy had ever seen in his life. It took him a second more of staring before he realized those gorgeous eyes were staring at him.
"Oh, uh, I-I'm sorry miss, I wasn't looking where I was going. Here let me help" he offered her his hand and she gratefully took it, a smile lighting her face and outshining the sun. She looked back down at the ground and her face was again marred by that look of concern. Jukes looked to see what the problem was and again took notice of the bottles and scrolls on the ground. He felt a pang of guilt go through him and attempted at an apology.
"Oh, geez, I'm really sorry. Oh man I broke everything. Here, let me help". He gathered up the scrolls as best he could and placed them inside the pouch she held open.
"Thank you Mr…?" she enquired.
"Jukes, Billy Jukes. And you are?"
"Miss Sicily. I run the little shop of spells and crafts just over yonder" she pointed to a purple tent trimmed in gold the title 'Spells, Crafts, & Talismans' etched out in silver script writing.
"It's nice to meet you Miss Sicily" Wow, what a great name Jukes thought And her voice sounds like an angels quire; I'll bet she has a beautiful singing voice. Jukes was knocked from his reverie when she cleared her throat and he was embarrassed to find he was still holding the sack with the scrolls. Blushing, he handed it back to her, only now realizing how much taller she was. She must have been at least twenty.
She took the satchel and, still smiling said "It's nice to meet you too, Billy. And please, call me Mary Sue"
Billy blushed deeper at the sudden familiarity the girl—no the young woman, for she was no girl he could see that!—was allowing him. He had just met her. Billy gulped and could only nod in response. He looked down at the ground shyly and saw the shards of glass twinkling in the sun.
"Um, I'm really sorry about the bottles. Here, let me buy you some more" he offered, but she shook her head.
"That's all right, I was getting rid of them anyway. You see when a bottle is used for one type of magic, it can't be used for another or else the residue of the two might mix. I'm sure you're aware of how mixing magics can be dangerous" Billy nodded and, again, she smiled. Billy felt his knees go weak and he felt for something to hold onto, only managing to slip and nearly fall to the ground. Startled, Mary rushed to his side and prompted him towards her tent.
"Come on, we'll get you some water. You're obviously tired if you're fainting like that". She held him up to her side, and it was all Billy could do not to stammer stupidly.
***
The tent was cool and quiet and welcoming with its soft lamplight, soft chairs and clothed table. He could see, though, that the tent was just a front for a small storeroom, separated by another flap, which also held a small kitchen and some cots; more than one. He briefly wondered who else lived here with her.
Perhaps a husband or boyfriend he thought dejectedly. All around the room were shelves stacked with books, scrolls, and bottles containing different colored dusts and potions. Billy could feel himself relax as he sat down in a chair while Mary went to fetch some water. He tensed and sat up when another person threw open the flaps and entered from the outside.
"Hey sis, I'm back!" they shouted and turned up the burner for more light. The new person stopped short when it was apparent that Billy was not who they were looking for. In the new light, Billy could see that this new person was also a female. However, while Mary Sue was dressed impeccably in a pretty pink dress with purple corset and white blouse, this girl was just the opposite. She was clad in a simple green shirt-tunic, light brown slacks and dark boots; her brown hair was kept in a ponytail. In this lamplight he couldn't see the color of her eyes, but they were decidedly angry. Mary sue came back out holding a cup of water
"What?" she asked.
"Who's this?" the new girl asked warily not taking her eyes off of the boy in the chair.
"Oh this? Why, this is Billy Jukes. We kind of ran into each other outside and he nearly fainted" Mary answered handing Billy the water. He gulped it down gratefully.
"Can't imagine why that would happen" the nameless girl muttered eyeing Billy, and her sister's attentions to him, knowingly.
"I brought him in for a cup of water" Mary continued, either not hearing her friend's remark or not caring. "Oh, by the way, Billy, this is my sister Veda" she added indicating the girl who was now leaning against the table. Billy could see the hilt of a knife attached to her belt out of the corner of his eye but made no motion to entice its use. He stood up and jerked back when Veda held out her hand. Billy breathed out and took the proffered hand, lightly shaking it.
"Pleasure to meet you" the girl said blandly, as if she had done this too many times before, her expression only emphasizing this notion.
"Uh, yeah, same here Miss" he managed. Sitting down he couldn't tell how tall she was, but now he could see her amount of height, or rather lack there of. She was no taller than he was, and when he straightened found he was a good inch taller.
"Call me Veda, it's easier" she said, allowing the same familiarity as her sister, though it was probably to avoid confusion. "And, can I have my hand back?"
He realized he was still shaking her hand and quickly let go, clasping both behind his back. Wanting to change the subject, Veda turned to her sister and quickly asked,
"So, what was old Philimach laughing about so hard that we could hear him by the shooting gallery on the other side?"
Mary shrugged gracefully, but before she could answer, Billy spoke up
"The shooting gallery? I was looking for it earlier, and I asked this bearded man for directions. Instead he sent me into a high wall" he added bristling at the recent memory.
Mary Sue chuckled daintily while Veda let out a bark of laughter,
"Ha! Yep, that's Philimach. If you don't play his game, or if ya seem to smart to get tricked he'll trick ya any other way he can think of, just to prove yer not as smart as ya seem". Veda's accent was not as clean cut and grammatical as Mary's, Billy noticed, but she seemed pleasant.
"So, you were searching for the shooting gallery?" Mary enquired after him "Well, 'V' here knows the fair ground better than I. I'm sure she could show you to your destination" she said and sat down with a cup of tea she had managed to brew somewhere in between the water and the introductions.
Billy stood there stunned and disappointed. He had sorta hoped that Miss Mary would show him the way. He knew he didn't have a chance at courting her, she being too many years older than he, but still, being in the presence of such a beauty would have made him the envy of the rest of the crew. He looked at Veda and she seemed to be just as surprised and disappointed at this turn of events as he did, if not more.
"I-I, oh, uhhh" she sighed frustrated "Oh, all right. Come on kid" she beckoned to Jukes. He was a little taken aback to be taking orders from a girl but decided this was not the time to be discussing it. He followed her out, giving one last look at Mary before Veda grabbed him by the collar of his vest and yanked him outside.
"Yaaahhh" he cried.
"Come on lover boy, quit ogling, and move it" Veda snapped.
"Jeez, what's got your hair in a knot?" Billy shot back. This made her stop and take a deep breath before turning around to face him. He then noticed that her eyes were the same color as her sister's.
"Look, I'm sorry I snapped but you have no idea how many times I've come back to that tent to see some new guy sitting there while my sister served him some kinda drink. All kinds of guys, too, don't matter whether or not they seem dangerous. Mary doesn't care, she'd serve Hook himself if the opportunity ever arose".
Billy had flinched slightly at the mention of Hook, but stayed silent and nodded in understanding. Afterall, a beautiful woman like that was bound to get the attention of the men folk, and he said as much.
Veda sighed. "Tell me about it" she said, and they continued walking. Billy felt kinda bad. This girl was obviously outshined by her own sister in beauty, poise and grace, not to mention graciousness, but that was only due to circumstances so he didn't hold it against her.
"I take it then that while she gets all the attention, you get all the work?" he ventured carefully. "Sorry, I shouldn't have asked" he added and looked down.
"You're right" she said lightly "You shouldn't". When he looked up he found her countenance had changed. She seemed a bit brighter now, less imposing.
"So, first time on the island? I mean, it'd have to be if you fell for Philimach's joke" she said conversationally.
"Kind of" he answered just as genially. "I've been on the island before, but never in a matter of fun. I've always been too busy working to just enjoy it" he remembered the time they had faked Hook's death and had torn the place apart to further his plans to catch Pan. Suddenly he heard a familiar crow.
"Oh no" they said as one. Billy looked at her.
"You don't like Peter Pan?" he asked.
"What? Oh no, it's not him, it's that damned rooster again. It's always crowing at the wrong hour. Just last week, it crowed in the middle of the night waking up the whole neighborhood" she shook her head "But you're right, I don't like Peter Pan either. He's just so, so…" she was at a loss for words.
"Obnoxious? Selfish? Oblivious?" Jukes aided.
"All of the above" she laughed. "Come on, the shooting galleries this way" and they ran off.
*****
Smee, who had decided to follow Jukes for lack of any other ideas, was perplexed at this turn of events. First the lad goes into that there tent with one lass, a right looker she was too, and next he goes off with another who's obviously a different person. Or was it? Maybe it was his glasses again.
"I'll be bollixed, as if these here spceti-gaggles don't make things confusing enough". He cried wiping them on his shirt. When he put them back on the two kids were now gone.
"Well, Ay'll be flummoxed. They've disappeared". Confused he scratched his head and, deciding it was probably the work of leprechauns, shrugged and headed off elsewhere. He'd ask the boy about it later.
*****
Jukes found he was having a good time. On their way to the shooting gallery, they had stopped at a sideshow, a music room (Jazz, what a great idea!) and a mock sword show. Most of these stops were due to his incessant "What's that?" every time he saw something new. All in all, it was shaping up to be a pretty good outing. Naturally, a few bad turns had popped up, (They had accidentally sneaked into the wrong kind of *a-hem* sideshow) but other than a few snags it was relatively harmless fun. He could tell Veda was having fun too. Every place they went was as if she'd been there for the first time too. He wondered if she ever got to have this kind of free time.
"It must be great to work in a place like this" he said, hoping to find an answer to his real question.
"It can be," she said solemnly breaking the festive mood. Jukes could have kicked him-self. She was having fun, why'd he have to go and ruin it? "But, mostly it's a lot of work to keep the tent going. This being Neverland, people don't need to come to our tent as often as you'd think. There are plenty of other places where the prices are lower. I think the only thing we've got going for us is Mary's looks".
"Sorry I asked" he said apologetically.
"Don't worry about it" she said, waving it off with her hand "Come on, yer galleries this way"
"You said that two hours ago" he chided happily.
"Yeah, well, this time I mean it" she called back to him, already ahead of him.
"Hey, wait for me!" he called to her and ran to catch up, laughing like a child.
****
Finally, after many more hours and many more stops and distractions, Billy and Veda had managed to find the shooting gallery. Billy looked about him- self, gazing in awe at the numerous booths that offered fun imitations of his favorite pastime.
"Veda!" someone called out from behind them. The younger Sicily sister turned to see a man dressed in blue candy stripes, obviously a member of the fair, running towards her as if chased by demons.
"Terack, what is it? What's wrong?" she asked seeing his state of disarray. Terack came up gasping for breath and grasped her shoulders
"It's, it's Dria, she's had the baby. It's a boy. Come see" he told her happily.
"The baby! It wasn't due for a month! Is she all right? Are they both alright?" she asked concernedly.
He nodded heavily, still out of breath.
"They're both fine. She wants you and Mary there to see him. Come, hurry" he continued, pulling on her arm.
"I'm coming I'm coming, one moment" she looked back at Billy.
"Sorry Jukes, I have to go now. I think you'll be all right now though" She said indicating the gallery, a note of mirth in her voice.
He smiled "Aye, I think I can find my way from here. Thanks Veda"
"All right then" she said waving "I'll see you later, bye" she called back, and this time he didn't follow.
Jukes turned to look at the booths that surrounded him and sighed. For some reason they just weren't as fun looking as they were before. He shrugged and waved it off as being tired. He heard a vendor calling from one of the booths in a high pitched voice, though a bit softer than the one from this morning; as if it came from a child. He turned to where the voice was coming from and judging from the size of the man, the voice could have been coming from a child. The man called out again.
"Roll 'em, roll 'em, roll 'em. Take yer pot-shots at the pirates" he said indicating a flank of cutout pirate ships moving via fanbelt.
Billy walked up to this one, "What do I win if I knock 'em all down, chief?" he asked placing the money on the booth's counter.
"Ah, this is Neverland. You win whatever is your heart's desire, baby" the short man answered. As Billy lit up the tiny cannons and aimed them for the moving mock ships he thought about his idea for a prize. Another day like this would be all the prize I could ask for he thought.
It's too bad that Tink and Micheal had to ruin this great day with their pranks.
*****
"We're with ya sir" Billy piped in his very high pitched voice as he and the rest of the crew followed the Captain back to the Jolly Roger.
That sneaky pixie Tinkerbelle had returned their sizes but not their voices. It was gonna be a long night. And to top it all off no more shore leave. Ever! How was he ever going to have another day like this if he couldn't get off the ship for a day of fun? His throat was dry, and he thought about the cup of water Mary Sue had been kind enough to give him. He sighed wistfully at the memory of the longhaired beauty from this morning. Smee noticed his young companion's sudden change in mood and remembered the events of this morning.
"Billy boy, tell me somethin'. Where exactly did you go this mornin' with that girl?"
Billy's eyes widened and he stopped short nearly falling. First of all, Smee's voice was back to normal. Probably the residual magic in the air he thought quickly. Second, due to Smee's question the others had stopped and gathered around him, grinning, to hear his answer.
"Oh, um, well, ya see. You were following me?" he tried to change the subject.
"Don't change the subject me young bucko" Starkey chided gleefully "What's this about you and a girl?" The others goaded him, each of them grinning at their young shipmate's discomfort. Billy flinched. He was right, this was gonna be a long night.
"Well" he started, figuring they would get it out of him one way or another "It all started this morning when I went to look for the shooting gallery…"
The End.
1 A Missing Scene from 'Day at the Fair'
"And I'll go find the shooting gallery" Billy Jukes told Smee before he headed off. He could faintly hear the Bosun trying to remember what it was he had wanted to do and shook his head fondly. Billy looked around; the sounds of the fair were all about him. The vendors trying to coax some poor sap into spending their money on a challenge they couldn't win. The smells of the cotton candy, creamed corn, hot pretzels and hot dogs wafted together and made his mouth water, his taste buds begging him to try them all. The colorful banners of the tents advertised what kind of challenging treats lay in store, but Billy was only interested in finding the shooting gallery to knock a few things down and win some prizes. He heard laughter coming from behind him and looked to see a group of people, little older than he, standing together and laughing it up having a good old time. Billy sighed wistfully If only I had friends like that he thought. He shook his head Stop it Billy! That's no way for a pirate to think. You can have more fun on your own, no one telling you what they wanna do. Just you.
"Just me" he said aloud quietly.
He looked back towards the group of kids and found them to be gone. He sighed heavily and made his way through the throng of people passing one stand then another before abruptly stopping. He didn't even know where the shooting gallery was! How was he going to find it? He looked around hoping to see a sign that might point him in the right direction and finding none. He continued to stand there for a moment trying to decide what to do when he noticed a few of the passersby were giving him strange looks. He smiled sheepishly and made his way to the sidelines, out of the way of the crowded walkways. He was now in front of a guessing gallery, one where the victi-um- player would guess a number on a wheel and if the wheel stopped at that number the person won a prize. A simple game; too simple. It would be all too easy for the runner of the wheel to use a magnet to cheat. Billy avoided those games. The vendor, a tall lanky man in a candy striped vest and classic vendor hat, noticed him just then and in a very loud voice shouted,
"Step right up, young man, pick a number and win a prize, step right up here". A few people standing close by overheard and came to take a shot at the game, much to the pleasure of the man running the show, but Billy shook his head 'no' and instead asked for directions.
"Can you tell me which way to the shooting gallery?" he made sure not to add 'matey', or else it would have become even more obvious that he was a pirate; something he wanted to avoid for now.
The man in the striped shirt looked at him, tugged on his beard and nodded,
"Yep, go thatta way and take a left" he said pointing to the left side of the booth "Now get outta here kid yer botherin' me".
"Thanks" Jukes hollered over the din of people trying to get to the wheel booth. He turned and went in the direction shown, whistling a tune he had heard Mullins sing every now and then when the old pirate thought Billy wasn't around. He grinned as he remembered a few of the stories Mullins had told the others when they all thought the young gunner had been asleep. Indeed, they had been stories unfit for a child's ears, but being a young boy he had wanted to know what was so great about those tales Mullins told when he should have been sleeping. The morning after, it had been apparent that the youngest crewmate had been awake for he couldn't stop blushing that whole day. After that, Mullins made sure the boy was fast asleep before starting in on another of those wild yarns.
Billy turned left as he had been directed and came face to face with a wall. Billy looked confused for a moment then turned around angrily and looked back down the way he had come to see the bearded man laughing it up at his expense. Jukes clenched his fists, his face flushed with anger. He could hear a few people snickering, having just noticed what happened. Jukes pictured looking for his shipmates and telling them what had happened, then coming back and, with their help, tearing the booth to shreds. Without taking his eyes off the old wacko he stalked off to do just that when…
*wham* "Oh!" *thud* "Ouch!" *crash*.
Somehow, Billy had ended up on the ground shards of broken bottles littering the area around him and scrolls laying unraveled in the dirt. He wondered what hit him when he heard a soft moan.
"Ohhhh", and looked up to see a startling beauty right before his eyes. Curls of strawberry blond hair cascaded down her slender back and shoulders; her angelic face was creased with worry but was no less stunning, and her eyes were the brightest shade of emerald green Billy had ever seen in his life. It took him a second more of staring before he realized those gorgeous eyes were staring at him.
"Oh, uh, I-I'm sorry miss, I wasn't looking where I was going. Here let me help" he offered her his hand and she gratefully took it, a smile lighting her face and outshining the sun. She looked back down at the ground and her face was again marred by that look of concern. Jukes looked to see what the problem was and again took notice of the bottles and scrolls on the ground. He felt a pang of guilt go through him and attempted at an apology.
"Oh, geez, I'm really sorry. Oh man I broke everything. Here, let me help". He gathered up the scrolls as best he could and placed them inside the pouch she held open.
"Thank you Mr…?" she enquired.
"Jukes, Billy Jukes. And you are?"
"Miss Sicily. I run the little shop of spells and crafts just over yonder" she pointed to a purple tent trimmed in gold the title 'Spells, Crafts, & Talismans' etched out in silver script writing.
"It's nice to meet you Miss Sicily" Wow, what a great name Jukes thought And her voice sounds like an angels quire; I'll bet she has a beautiful singing voice. Jukes was knocked from his reverie when she cleared her throat and he was embarrassed to find he was still holding the sack with the scrolls. Blushing, he handed it back to her, only now realizing how much taller she was. She must have been at least twenty.
She took the satchel and, still smiling said "It's nice to meet you too, Billy. And please, call me Mary Sue"
Billy blushed deeper at the sudden familiarity the girl—no the young woman, for she was no girl he could see that!—was allowing him. He had just met her. Billy gulped and could only nod in response. He looked down at the ground shyly and saw the shards of glass twinkling in the sun.
"Um, I'm really sorry about the bottles. Here, let me buy you some more" he offered, but she shook her head.
"That's all right, I was getting rid of them anyway. You see when a bottle is used for one type of magic, it can't be used for another or else the residue of the two might mix. I'm sure you're aware of how mixing magics can be dangerous" Billy nodded and, again, she smiled. Billy felt his knees go weak and he felt for something to hold onto, only managing to slip and nearly fall to the ground. Startled, Mary rushed to his side and prompted him towards her tent.
"Come on, we'll get you some water. You're obviously tired if you're fainting like that". She held him up to her side, and it was all Billy could do not to stammer stupidly.
***
The tent was cool and quiet and welcoming with its soft lamplight, soft chairs and clothed table. He could see, though, that the tent was just a front for a small storeroom, separated by another flap, which also held a small kitchen and some cots; more than one. He briefly wondered who else lived here with her.
Perhaps a husband or boyfriend he thought dejectedly. All around the room were shelves stacked with books, scrolls, and bottles containing different colored dusts and potions. Billy could feel himself relax as he sat down in a chair while Mary went to fetch some water. He tensed and sat up when another person threw open the flaps and entered from the outside.
"Hey sis, I'm back!" they shouted and turned up the burner for more light. The new person stopped short when it was apparent that Billy was not who they were looking for. In the new light, Billy could see that this new person was also a female. However, while Mary Sue was dressed impeccably in a pretty pink dress with purple corset and white blouse, this girl was just the opposite. She was clad in a simple green shirt-tunic, light brown slacks and dark boots; her brown hair was kept in a ponytail. In this lamplight he couldn't see the color of her eyes, but they were decidedly angry. Mary sue came back out holding a cup of water
"What?" she asked.
"Who's this?" the new girl asked warily not taking her eyes off of the boy in the chair.
"Oh this? Why, this is Billy Jukes. We kind of ran into each other outside and he nearly fainted" Mary answered handing Billy the water. He gulped it down gratefully.
"Can't imagine why that would happen" the nameless girl muttered eyeing Billy, and her sister's attentions to him, knowingly.
"I brought him in for a cup of water" Mary continued, either not hearing her friend's remark or not caring. "Oh, by the way, Billy, this is my sister Veda" she added indicating the girl who was now leaning against the table. Billy could see the hilt of a knife attached to her belt out of the corner of his eye but made no motion to entice its use. He stood up and jerked back when Veda held out her hand. Billy breathed out and took the proffered hand, lightly shaking it.
"Pleasure to meet you" the girl said blandly, as if she had done this too many times before, her expression only emphasizing this notion.
"Uh, yeah, same here Miss" he managed. Sitting down he couldn't tell how tall she was, but now he could see her amount of height, or rather lack there of. She was no taller than he was, and when he straightened found he was a good inch taller.
"Call me Veda, it's easier" she said, allowing the same familiarity as her sister, though it was probably to avoid confusion. "And, can I have my hand back?"
He realized he was still shaking her hand and quickly let go, clasping both behind his back. Wanting to change the subject, Veda turned to her sister and quickly asked,
"So, what was old Philimach laughing about so hard that we could hear him by the shooting gallery on the other side?"
Mary shrugged gracefully, but before she could answer, Billy spoke up
"The shooting gallery? I was looking for it earlier, and I asked this bearded man for directions. Instead he sent me into a high wall" he added bristling at the recent memory.
Mary Sue chuckled daintily while Veda let out a bark of laughter,
"Ha! Yep, that's Philimach. If you don't play his game, or if ya seem to smart to get tricked he'll trick ya any other way he can think of, just to prove yer not as smart as ya seem". Veda's accent was not as clean cut and grammatical as Mary's, Billy noticed, but she seemed pleasant.
"So, you were searching for the shooting gallery?" Mary enquired after him "Well, 'V' here knows the fair ground better than I. I'm sure she could show you to your destination" she said and sat down with a cup of tea she had managed to brew somewhere in between the water and the introductions.
Billy stood there stunned and disappointed. He had sorta hoped that Miss Mary would show him the way. He knew he didn't have a chance at courting her, she being too many years older than he, but still, being in the presence of such a beauty would have made him the envy of the rest of the crew. He looked at Veda and she seemed to be just as surprised and disappointed at this turn of events as he did, if not more.
"I-I, oh, uhhh" she sighed frustrated "Oh, all right. Come on kid" she beckoned to Jukes. He was a little taken aback to be taking orders from a girl but decided this was not the time to be discussing it. He followed her out, giving one last look at Mary before Veda grabbed him by the collar of his vest and yanked him outside.
"Yaaahhh" he cried.
"Come on lover boy, quit ogling, and move it" Veda snapped.
"Jeez, what's got your hair in a knot?" Billy shot back. This made her stop and take a deep breath before turning around to face him. He then noticed that her eyes were the same color as her sister's.
"Look, I'm sorry I snapped but you have no idea how many times I've come back to that tent to see some new guy sitting there while my sister served him some kinda drink. All kinds of guys, too, don't matter whether or not they seem dangerous. Mary doesn't care, she'd serve Hook himself if the opportunity ever arose".
Billy had flinched slightly at the mention of Hook, but stayed silent and nodded in understanding. Afterall, a beautiful woman like that was bound to get the attention of the men folk, and he said as much.
Veda sighed. "Tell me about it" she said, and they continued walking. Billy felt kinda bad. This girl was obviously outshined by her own sister in beauty, poise and grace, not to mention graciousness, but that was only due to circumstances so he didn't hold it against her.
"I take it then that while she gets all the attention, you get all the work?" he ventured carefully. "Sorry, I shouldn't have asked" he added and looked down.
"You're right" she said lightly "You shouldn't". When he looked up he found her countenance had changed. She seemed a bit brighter now, less imposing.
"So, first time on the island? I mean, it'd have to be if you fell for Philimach's joke" she said conversationally.
"Kind of" he answered just as genially. "I've been on the island before, but never in a matter of fun. I've always been too busy working to just enjoy it" he remembered the time they had faked Hook's death and had torn the place apart to further his plans to catch Pan. Suddenly he heard a familiar crow.
"Oh no" they said as one. Billy looked at her.
"You don't like Peter Pan?" he asked.
"What? Oh no, it's not him, it's that damned rooster again. It's always crowing at the wrong hour. Just last week, it crowed in the middle of the night waking up the whole neighborhood" she shook her head "But you're right, I don't like Peter Pan either. He's just so, so…" she was at a loss for words.
"Obnoxious? Selfish? Oblivious?" Jukes aided.
"All of the above" she laughed. "Come on, the shooting galleries this way" and they ran off.
*****
Smee, who had decided to follow Jukes for lack of any other ideas, was perplexed at this turn of events. First the lad goes into that there tent with one lass, a right looker she was too, and next he goes off with another who's obviously a different person. Or was it? Maybe it was his glasses again.
"I'll be bollixed, as if these here spceti-gaggles don't make things confusing enough". He cried wiping them on his shirt. When he put them back on the two kids were now gone.
"Well, Ay'll be flummoxed. They've disappeared". Confused he scratched his head and, deciding it was probably the work of leprechauns, shrugged and headed off elsewhere. He'd ask the boy about it later.
*****
Jukes found he was having a good time. On their way to the shooting gallery, they had stopped at a sideshow, a music room (Jazz, what a great idea!) and a mock sword show. Most of these stops were due to his incessant "What's that?" every time he saw something new. All in all, it was shaping up to be a pretty good outing. Naturally, a few bad turns had popped up, (They had accidentally sneaked into the wrong kind of *a-hem* sideshow) but other than a few snags it was relatively harmless fun. He could tell Veda was having fun too. Every place they went was as if she'd been there for the first time too. He wondered if she ever got to have this kind of free time.
"It must be great to work in a place like this" he said, hoping to find an answer to his real question.
"It can be," she said solemnly breaking the festive mood. Jukes could have kicked him-self. She was having fun, why'd he have to go and ruin it? "But, mostly it's a lot of work to keep the tent going. This being Neverland, people don't need to come to our tent as often as you'd think. There are plenty of other places where the prices are lower. I think the only thing we've got going for us is Mary's looks".
"Sorry I asked" he said apologetically.
"Don't worry about it" she said, waving it off with her hand "Come on, yer galleries this way"
"You said that two hours ago" he chided happily.
"Yeah, well, this time I mean it" she called back to him, already ahead of him.
"Hey, wait for me!" he called to her and ran to catch up, laughing like a child.
****
Finally, after many more hours and many more stops and distractions, Billy and Veda had managed to find the shooting gallery. Billy looked about him- self, gazing in awe at the numerous booths that offered fun imitations of his favorite pastime.
"Veda!" someone called out from behind them. The younger Sicily sister turned to see a man dressed in blue candy stripes, obviously a member of the fair, running towards her as if chased by demons.
"Terack, what is it? What's wrong?" she asked seeing his state of disarray. Terack came up gasping for breath and grasped her shoulders
"It's, it's Dria, she's had the baby. It's a boy. Come see" he told her happily.
"The baby! It wasn't due for a month! Is she all right? Are they both alright?" she asked concernedly.
He nodded heavily, still out of breath.
"They're both fine. She wants you and Mary there to see him. Come, hurry" he continued, pulling on her arm.
"I'm coming I'm coming, one moment" she looked back at Billy.
"Sorry Jukes, I have to go now. I think you'll be all right now though" She said indicating the gallery, a note of mirth in her voice.
He smiled "Aye, I think I can find my way from here. Thanks Veda"
"All right then" she said waving "I'll see you later, bye" she called back, and this time he didn't follow.
Jukes turned to look at the booths that surrounded him and sighed. For some reason they just weren't as fun looking as they were before. He shrugged and waved it off as being tired. He heard a vendor calling from one of the booths in a high pitched voice, though a bit softer than the one from this morning; as if it came from a child. He turned to where the voice was coming from and judging from the size of the man, the voice could have been coming from a child. The man called out again.
"Roll 'em, roll 'em, roll 'em. Take yer pot-shots at the pirates" he said indicating a flank of cutout pirate ships moving via fanbelt.
Billy walked up to this one, "What do I win if I knock 'em all down, chief?" he asked placing the money on the booth's counter.
"Ah, this is Neverland. You win whatever is your heart's desire, baby" the short man answered. As Billy lit up the tiny cannons and aimed them for the moving mock ships he thought about his idea for a prize. Another day like this would be all the prize I could ask for he thought.
It's too bad that Tink and Micheal had to ruin this great day with their pranks.
*****
"We're with ya sir" Billy piped in his very high pitched voice as he and the rest of the crew followed the Captain back to the Jolly Roger.
That sneaky pixie Tinkerbelle had returned their sizes but not their voices. It was gonna be a long night. And to top it all off no more shore leave. Ever! How was he ever going to have another day like this if he couldn't get off the ship for a day of fun? His throat was dry, and he thought about the cup of water Mary Sue had been kind enough to give him. He sighed wistfully at the memory of the longhaired beauty from this morning. Smee noticed his young companion's sudden change in mood and remembered the events of this morning.
"Billy boy, tell me somethin'. Where exactly did you go this mornin' with that girl?"
Billy's eyes widened and he stopped short nearly falling. First of all, Smee's voice was back to normal. Probably the residual magic in the air he thought quickly. Second, due to Smee's question the others had stopped and gathered around him, grinning, to hear his answer.
"Oh, um, well, ya see. You were following me?" he tried to change the subject.
"Don't change the subject me young bucko" Starkey chided gleefully "What's this about you and a girl?" The others goaded him, each of them grinning at their young shipmate's discomfort. Billy flinched. He was right, this was gonna be a long night.
"Well" he started, figuring they would get it out of him one way or another "It all started this morning when I went to look for the shooting gallery…"
The End.