AU: Peter Pan
AN: I got up again in the magic of Peter Pan and had to repost this. I edited a bit and hope you enjoy it.
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All Children Grow Up
Except One
"Cinderella flew through the air…far from all things ugly and ordinary. When she landed at the ball she found herself most impertinently surrounded by pirates. There was Alf Mason, so ugly his mother sold him for a bottle of Muscat. Bill Jukes every inch of him tattooed," Wendy narrated, setting the scene for her and her brothers' game of pretend, "And worst of them all, Hook with eyes blue as forget –me-nots, save when he clawed your belly with the iron hook he has…instead of a right hand, at which time…his eyes turns red."
John grabs a nearby wooden sword and stood up. He held his word out menacingly at his sister.
"'Girlie,' said Hook, 'we have come for you ye glass slippers.' "
"Who be you to order me about and call me girlie?" Wendy responded, before using her own sword to fight her brother.
"Take that!" John said, hitting his sister's sword.
"Take that! Take that!" Wendy called out. The pair moved back and forth across the nursery neither one backing down. However they were so distracted by their play fighting they didn't notice the girl and boy watching them from the window. The pair came often to window to hear the stories Wendy and her mother told.
"Commoner!" John, as Hook, insulted his sister.
"Hook came at her." Wendy narrated. John let out a battle cry and ran towards her. Wendy managed to duck in time and her brother ended up ramming his sword into the book case, causing some of the books to fall. Wendy shook the books off her back and stood up from her protective crouch.
"What happened next? What happened next?" Michael asked excitedly.
"The brave Cinderella settled the matter once and for all…with her revolver
"Her revolver?" John exclaimed. At that moment their dog Nana, started barking at the window. She had finally noticed the strange children at their window and was not pleased with them watching her charges. The three of them rushed them to the window to see what had gotten their beloved Nana into a tizzy. Wendy threw open the window to see what was there. The siblings peered over the edge of their balcony, but they didn't see anything not a bird or a leaf. Nor did they see the wild younglings hiding on their roof, watching them.
The cuckoo clock in the hall went off distracting the children from their search of what had bothered Nana.
"Bath time." Wendy said. Michael immediately took off, flinging off his nightgown as he went. He doesn't hate bath time as much as he said he did. Well, he didn't like the bath part, but he did enjoy running around like an Indian and having Nana chase after him.
Michael ran down the long hallway letting out an Indian war cry. Nana rushed him and Michael flew into the air and landed on the back of his trusty Saint Bernard. Nana continued to gallop down the hallway to the bathroom. Suddenly, she stopped short causing Michael to fly off her back into the bathtub.
"Not fair!" Michael complained once he resurfaced. Nana barked and then licked the face of her young charge.
"No. No, I will not forgive you."
Nana was not convinced that she couldn't win him over and continued to lick him.
"Alright, alright I forgive you." He submitted. Nana pulled back and let out a soft bark. She then plopped down by the door while Michael took a bath. About 10 minutes later John came to the doorway.
"Hurry up, Michael, Aunt Millicent's here and mother said she'd play for us tonight." John said.
"Coming," Michael answered, "Nana, can you bring me a towel?"
The canine nursemaid nodded and brought a towel over to him. He quickly readied himself into his clothes so he could head downstairs with his family. Aunt Millicent looked up the moment he walked in.
"Michael, child, come here." She called out to him. Michael rolled his eyes and went over and kissed his mother's aunt on the cheek. Once he pulled away, she straightens his collar. She then released him and he eagerly runs to where his siblings were sitting by the piano.
Mrs. Darling was playing one of the family's favorites as Mr. Darling led them all in song. The siblings all grasped hands as they came in on the chorus singing loudly. John soon pulls his sister up and the pair dance around the room to Aunt Millicent's shock. Michael follows after them trying to keep up with his older siblings. Once they got too loud, Mr. Darling wrapped up his song and stepped in.
"Alright, Alright, less noise." He herded his children back to the settee, "Let's settle down. This is not a farm."
"Bravo, George, Bravo." Aunt Millicent complemented though if it was for George's singing or parenting was unclear.
"Wendy's turn!" John exclaimed.
"Wendy must tell a story." Michael seconded. Wendy got up to stand in the middle of the room as her mother played a dramatic chord.
"Cecco, who carved his name on the governor at Goa." John requested.
"Noodler, with his hands on backwards." Michael said.
"Heavens." Aunt Millicent exclaimed, disturbed at the dark tales.
"Hook!" Michael cried.
"Hook?" Aunt Millicent nervously exclaimed.
"Hook, whose eyes turn red as he guts you." John exclaimed making a slashing motion over Michael's teddy bear's stomach.
"Upon my soul, how children are educated nowadays." Aunt Millicent commented. Mr. Darling laughed nervously at her comment always self-conscious about is family's position and people's opinions.
"I'm afraid I am not learned at all, Aunt." Wendy replied, "But I do know a thing or two about pirates."
Her aunt let another distressed noise.
"My unfulfilled ambition is to write a great novel in three parts about my adventures.
"What adventures?" her aunt asked on the verge of a heart attack.
"I've yet to have them, but they will be perfectly thrilling." Wendy said twirling around. Her mother smiled fondly, but her father's smile was strained. Her aunt raised her hand to stop her.
"But, child, novelists are not highly thought of in good society." Her aunt warned her, "And there is nothing so difficult to marry as a novelist."
"Marry?" Wendy, her brothers, and her father asked in surprise.
"But, Aunt," Mrs. Darling protested, "Wendy is not yet 13."
"Walk toward me, dear, that I may appraise you." Millicent told her grandniece beckoning her forward.
"Go on," Mr. Darling urged. "Walk to your auntie. Stand up straight."
Wendy did as her Aunt and father commanded, covering her nervousness with giggles. Her brother's laughed at her as she walked towards their aunt.
"Stop it!" Mr. Darling hissed.
"Turn around," Her aunt ordered once Wendy was close enough. Wendy spun around slowly, hushing her brothers when she faced them.
"Mmm. Yes." Her aunt said talking Wendy's hands in her own, "Oh, it's quite as I expected. Wendy possesses a woman's chin."
Wendy worryingly touched her chin. She didn't want a woman's chin; she had no desire to grow up.
"Have you not noticed?" her aunt questioned Mr. and Mrs. Darling, "Observer her mouth. There, hidden in the right-hand corner, is that a kiss?"
Mrs. Darling gasped. She didn't want to believe that her little girl was growing up.
"A kiss?" John says.
"Like Mother's kiss." Michael added. Mrs. Darling reached up to touch the right hand corner of her mouth.
"A hidden kiss." Millicent explained.
"But what is it for?" Wendy asked. Her aunt smiled and stood up.
"It is for the greatest adventure of all." She said as she started walking towards her, "They that find it…have slipped in and out of heaven."
"Find what?"
"The one that kiss belongs to."
"My Wendy," Mr. Darling said softly, "a woman."
"Almost a woman." Her aunt said in finality.
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After Aunt Millicent made her announcement about Wendy the children were sent to bed. But once they knew their parents had returned downstairs, the three of them crept downstairs to listen at the parlor door.
"She must spend less time with her brothers…" they overheard their Aunt Millicent tell their parents, "and more time with me."
All three of them gasp.
"She must have her own room. A young lady's room."
"Leave the n-"Michael started to protest loudly, but John quickly covers his mouth.
"George," Millicent continued, "the daughter of a clerk cannot hope to marry as well as that of a manger. You must attend more parties, make small talk with your superiors at the bank. Wit is very fashionable at the moment."
"Wit." George said nervously clasping his wife's hand. He was an introverted person and the idea of talking to his superiors had him practically shaking in his boots. But he could see the wisdom in Millicent's words and promised himself he would try harder, for Wendy, for his family.
They went on to discuss other things and the children snuck back upstairs. The moment the nursery door shut, the brothers stared protesting the potential relocation of their sister.
"You cannot leave the nursery, Wendy." Michael cried, "Who will tell us stories and play games with us?"
"Yes, Wendy, you can't leave." John seconded.
"And I don't want to leave, but it's up to mother and father." Wendy replied. Though inside she was furious at her aunt for intervening. She began herding her littlest brother over to his bed and tucked him with a kiss to his forehead.
"Goodnight, Michael."
"Goodnight, Wendy." He said with a yawn. He then settles into his blankets and closes his eyes. Wendy walks over to John's bed and makes sure he's comfortable. She takes is pirate captain hat off his head and places it on the bed post.
"Goodnight, John."
"Goodnight, Wendy."
Wendy leaves her brother's side and climbs into her own bed. She draws the curtains around her bed and soon drifts off to sleep herself.
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Two figures flew above London hand and hand towards a house in Bloomsbury. The boy made it there before the girl and peered into nursery. The girl flew next to him and looked in as well.
"I thought you said there would be stories, Peter." The girl complained.
"We must have missed them." He told her, "Let's go home."
"No, I did not fly all the way out here for nothing, maybe they have shiny things." The girl said slowly lifting the window.
"Aria!" He whispered yelled.
"Shh…you'll wake them up." She admonished, "You cannot tell me you haven't wanted to go inside before."
She then slipped under the window and landed softly. She immediately began looting through drawers and cabinets for small trinkets or objects that caught her eye. Peter sighed with a roll of his eyes and followed in after. He knew how she was like when she was treasure hunting. She wouldn't give up till every spot had been searched through or she found something amazing.
One of the boys started snoring loudly peaking Aria's interest. He sounded like one of the animals they had on Neverland. She padded softly over to him and looked at him oddly. Peter spotted her standing over the boy and felt a strange feeling in his stomach. He didn't like it and he didn't like Aria so near to another boy.
"Aria." He complained.
"He sounds like a Neverbeast." She replied with a small laugh. Peter chuckled and wondered over to her, taking her hand in his. He peered at the boy as he made another snoring snort. Peter didn't think the boy looked special not like he was. He knew he wouldn't hold Aria's attention for long.
"He's a pirate." Aria said in disgust as she spotted the boy's hat on the bed post. The tone she used made Peter happy to know she had now lost interest. She turns from the boy and goes back to her search. Peter gave the sleeping boy a smug look and went to Aria's side.
"A-ha." She exclaimed quietly, pulling out a hand-held mirror from a drawer. It was silver and had a beautiful French design. Aria admired herself in its reflective surface, playing with her hair. She turned in it her hand for a moment before placing it in her bag.
"Can we go now?" Peter asked. Aria rolled her eyes before nodding at her friend. She grabbed his hand and started leading him to the window. As she wasn't looking where she was going, she tripped over a toy that had escaped the Darling children's tidying up. She started to fall forward, but Peter grabbed her, turning her around to face him as he caught her. He pulled her up not realizing how close she would be. They stared at each other blushingly, until a sound from one of the beds startled them. The pair turned and saw the girl was waking up. When she spotted them she made a loud gasping noise that woke up Nana. The pair, seeing they were caught, raced to the window. Peter pushed Aria through the window ahead of him, and as he made his way to slip out behind her, Nana got a hold of his shadow. Seeing he was caught Aria grabbed his hands and pulled. Somehow the window shut separating Peter from his shadow. The two shot up in the sky the moment they were free.
"Peter, your shadow." Aria said worryingly, when they came to a stop above the Darling house
"We'll have to come back for it tomorrow," he said, "Come on let's go home."
He held out his hand for her to take. She looked at him and then down at the house. She turns back to her friend realizing he's right that and takes his hand. Peter smiles at her and they fly off towards the star that opens the portal to their home.
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Wendy raced to the window where she had seen the boy and girl fly through. If well, she wasn't dreaming, and they really were flying. She looked out but didn't see anything. She ignored the barking Nana who had her eye on Peter's shadow, and raced out into the hall. She dug through the drawer out there for a candle, and lit one before heading outside. But when she got to the courtyard there was no body or a sign that anyone had been there. She looked up to see if the pair were on the roof but all she saw where two shooting star streak across the sky.
Puzzled Wendy returned to her room. She was so sure she had seen a boy in her girl in her room. The pair had looked like wild things. The girl wore a deep blue shimmering skirt that had a tear that went up to her thigh. It was not the skirt of a proper young lady at all. Her top was purple and the only thing keeping it up were two small strings tied around her neck. And even more scandalous was that her shirt showed off her stomach. Wendy did not think the girl very pretty with her tangled red hair and inappropriate clothing. The boy, however, she found quite handsome. Like the girl he had a wild look with his windswept hair and his clothing made of leaves, but there was something about his look that Wendy found fascinating. She drifted off to sleep imaging her instead of the wild girl in the boy's arms, flying off to far off places, and having all those adventures she told her Aunt she would have.
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At the school the following morning, when Wendy should have been working on her embroidery, Wendy found herself sketching the image of the boy she saw the night before. The picture was of her sitting in her bed and she drew the boy with wings flying around her room. As she was touching up the wings, a ruler slams down on the paper. She looks up in fright and spots the head mistress standing over her with a disapproving scowl. The head mistress took the notebook from Wendy.
"We will discuss your disobedience after school, Ms. Darling." The woman said sternly.
"Yes, Miss Fulsom." Wendy said softly. The headmistress pursed her lips and continued to walk between the aisles. This time however she kept a closer eye on Wendy as she made her rounds. The rest of the day seemed to drag on for Wendy. She felt like she was on her way to the gallows. She sat in her seat as all the other girls packed their satchels and left the room. Once the last girl had vacated the room, Miss Fulsom called Wendy to the front. Wendy walked with her head down to face her judge. The headmistresses open Wendy's notebook and pointed to the sketch Wendy had drawn.
"If this is you in your bed, what is this?" She asked sternly. Wendy hesitated for a moment, before answering.
"A boy."
Miss Fulsom's eyes bulged out of her head, and she quickly shut the book. She told Wendy to return to her seat while she wrote a letter to her father. Wendy nodded and returned to her seat. Miss Fulsom wrote a short note requesting Mr. Darling's presence at his earliest convenience to discuss Wendy's distracted behavior and unseemly drawings. She gave the letter to a redheaded delivery boy who gave Wendy a cruel smile. He may not have known contents of the letter but he delivered enough notes for Miss Fulsom to know she was in trouble. Wendy looked sadly at her desk, she knew that this letter would cause her father to be disappointed in her and ruin any hope she had of convincing him that she should stay in the nursery a little longer.
Wendy walked home with her brothers and Nana as once condemned, her guilt was evident to everyone who passed her by. And then…fate. She saw the delivery boy from earlier on his bike.
"The letter." She exclaimed. She then tore after him, "Wait, stop!"
"Wendy, wait." Michael called after her.
"Come back." John yelled, before following after Michael and Nana who had started after her. Wendy followed the boy all the way to the bank, calling after him to stop as she went. The boy didn't hear her and walked into the bank. Seconds later Wendy burst through the door, running at full speed.
"Father!" she called out, "I can explain."
The mail boy turned and saw her chasing after him and began running to Mr. Darling holding out the letter to him.
"No!" Wendy yelled. At that moment Nana had run in as well, but the wet tile caused her to slide across the floor taking out both Wendy and the boy. The three of them slid right into Mr. Darling and his superiors knocking them all down. Papers flew everywhere, and John and Michael arrived just in time to see the mess. Mr. Darling couldn't have been angrier or more humiliated.
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"I have been humiliated," Mr. Darling ranted to his family that evening, as he pulled Nana to the back courtyard. His family followed after him protesting his cruel treatment of Nana.
"No," he insisted, "I must become a man that children fear and adult respect, or we shall all end up in the street!"
"George, not so loud." Mrs. Darling said trying to calm her husband.
"The neighbors will hear." Aunt Millicent warned.
"Let them hear." He said defiantly, pointe at Nana "Let the whole world know! This is not a nurse! This is a dog."
Nana whined and looked up at him with sad eyes. But Mr. Darling was too angry to feel remorse as he ripped off Nana's nurse bonnet. His whole family gasps and even Aunt Millicent, who always said a dog was not a nurse, looked appalled.
"Tomorrow you begin your instruction…" Mr. Darling said turning to his daughter, "with Aunt Millicent. It's time for you to grow up!"
Aunt Millicent put what was supposed to be a comforting hand on Wendy's shoulder, but Wendy just felt like it was her doom. Mr. Darling ushered his family back inside, leaving poor Nana out in the snow. Mrs. Darling led the children upstairs to get ready for bed and then slipped off to her room to get dressed for Mr. Darling's work party. Once she was ready she headed to the children's room to say goodnight to them. She brought along a long match so she could light the nightlights for her children.
"Mother?" Michael asked his mother as she was checking the window, "Can anything harm us after the night-lights are lit?"
"No, precious," she answers him; "They are the eyes a mother leaves behind to guard her children."
She then walked over to Wendy's bed and pulled the sheer curtains around her bed. Wendy propped herself up,
"Mother, must you go to the party?" Wendy asked.
"Please, mother." Michael said getting out of bed.
"Yes mother. You don't have to go. Father can go by himself."
"Please, mother." Michael pleaded.
"By himself?" their mother asked, "Your father is a brave man. But he's going to need the special kiss to face his colleagues tonight."
"Father? Brave?" Wendy asked in disbelief. John shook his head in agreement; he didn't find his father as hero like the ones in Wendy's stories.
"There are many different kinds of brave. There's the bravery of thinking of other before oneself. Now your father has never brandished a sword nor fired a pistol, thank heavens. But he's made many sacrifices for his family…and put away many dreams."
"Where did he put them?" Michael asked.
"He put them in a drawer," she answered. "And sometimes, late at night, we take them out and admire them. But it gets harder and harder to close the drawer. He does. And that is why he is brave."
Wendy nodded even though she did not completely understand what her mother was saying. But if mother said it was a brave thing to do it must be true. Mrs. Darling tucked the boys back into bed and pressed kisses on their foreheads. She then returned to Wendy and sat on the edge of her bed.
"Don't worry my love; your father will not be angry forever. And growing up isn't all that bad you'll see." Her mother told her. She then kissed her forehead and walked to the door.
"Goodnight, my loves." She said.
"Goodnight, Mother." The three said in unison. Mary smiled and closed the door. Once the door was closed the children settled under the blankets all three were soon fast asleep.
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Peter hid behind a cloud as he watched the Darling house. He needed to get his shadow back, and with the dog outside tonight he should be safe. Aria had wanted to come with him, but Peter didn't want to risk her be near the other boy again, even if he wasn't as special as he was. Once the parents had left for the evening Peter nodded to Tinkerbell, his fairy, and she flew over to the house. She flew to the window and after some careful maneuvering was able to unlock the window. Then with all her might she lift the window, opening it enough for Peter to get through. She ducked under the pane and zipped through the room looking for Peter's shadow. She couldn't understand why he didn't just bring Aria instead, she was the best at treasure hunts. But then again Tinkerbell didn't understand boys in general.
She dipped under the beds, looting through the stuff below to see if Peter's shadow was there. Not seeing him she flew to the wardrobe, she flung the doors open and checked all the pockets. Once again her search was a bust and she went over to the book shelf to check the top shelf. She knocked every book down, but still no shadow. The noise she had created from knocking down the books woke one of children and Tinkerbell hid behind the nightlight to disguise her glow. The girl seems to look right at her, but she didn't seem to really notice her and she dropped back on her pillow.
Once the girl had fallen back asleep, Tink zipped out of the room into the hall. She spotted a dresser and peered into the key hole of the top drawer. She looked around until she spotted the shadow in the corner of the drawer. She sensed that Peter had arrived and flew back into the nursery to tell him the good news. She told him in her bell like language that she had found his shadow. He smiled and flew after her out of the room. She landed on the dresser and pointed eagerly at the drawer beneath her. She was so excited she started squealing. Peter made a cut it out sign with his arms.
"Shh!" he hissed. Tink closed her mouth and tried to contain him. She then held one finger.
"One," he said, and she held up another, "two, three!"
Peter pulls up the drawer releasing the shadow.
"Aha!" Peter exclaimed. The shadow shoots up along the wall to the ceiling and Peter dives for his shadows leg.
"Come here you." He says as he holds on tight. The two struggle and in the chaos, Tinkerbell gets shoved and closed in the drawer. Peter's shadow pulls Peter along the hallway still trying to flee the boy he belonged to. He manages to shake himself loose of Peter only to come face to face with Aunt Millicent who had come upstairs to see what the noise was.
Aunt Millicent looked startled at the wild looking shadow. She touches her hair to see if it's as crazy as her shadows. It didn't feel that way to her, so she looked into the mirror to her left. Her hair looked perfectly normal. When she turns back to look at her shadow, it now looked normal. She moved her right hand to see if the shadow would mimic her like it was supposed to. It was and to test it for sure she quickly deviated from her wave and grabbed the nearby post. The shadow mimicked her movements perfectly, satisfied that all was well she climbed the last few steps and walked down the hall to the children's room.
The shadow saw her back was turned and started to creep away, but Peter who had flown up to the ceiling to avoid Millicent's attention grabbed the hair of his shadow and pulled him up. He flew silently over Aunt Millicent with the shadow in tow, and slipped into the nursery undetected. Peter kept a firm grasp on the shadow and threw him against the end board of one of the beds. He grabbed a block from the floor and held the shadows foot against his and began hitting his foot and the shadow hoping to merged them back together by force. After several tries he realized it wasn't working, and the shadow mocked him for it. He threw the block at his shadow, but he dodged at of the way. He made a mocking gesture at Peter. Frustrated Peter began to cry. Maybe he should have brought Aria; she would know what do or at least would know how to make him feel better. He buried his face in his arms and continued to cry.
"Boy, why are your crying?" A girl's voice asked. It startles him and he flies up and hits the ceiling.
"You can fly!" the girl says excitedly. Peter takes a real good look at her this time. She's the girl who tells the stories. He floats down to the ground and gives her a small bow. The girl quickly gets off her bed and curtsies.
"What is your name?" she asks curiously.
"What is your name?" Peter counters.
"Wendy Moira Angela Darling." She answered proudly. Peter couldn't help to think it was a strange name, and long. Aria was the only other girl he knew and she didn't have along name. The girl began walking towards him and Peter began backing up.
"Peter…Pan."
"Where do you live?"
Peter turned to look at the window and pointed to the star that led home.
"Second to the right and straight on till morning." He told the strange girl. He turns back to the girl, not releasing how close she had gotten. He jumps back.
"They put that on the letters?" she asked still coming closer.
"Don't get any letters." Peter answered, backing up more.
"But your mother gets letters."
"Don't have a mother." He says his back now against the open window.
"No wonder you were crying."
"I wasn't crying about mothers." Peter said indignantly. What use did he have for mothers? Mothers wanted you to grow up. He stormed past her to his shadow, "I was crying because I can't get the shadow to stick. And I wasn't crying."
Peter sat on the floor trying to tie his shadow to his ankle. Wendy took pity on the struggling boy, and knelt down on the round next to him.
"I could sew it on for you." She told him. Peter nodded. Wendy quickly ran out to the hall to open the drawer to get a needle and thread. She completely missed the fairy that was still in there. And with how quickly Wendy opened and closed the drawer, Tinkerbell ended up being squished by a jar of buttons.
Wendy returned to the room and illuminated the room so she could see to sew, she held up the needle and both Peter and the shadow grabbed on to each other.
"This may hurt a little." She warned. The boys held tighter on to each other. She held the shadow against Peter's foot and began sowing. Peter let out some pained noises as she did her job. She finished one foot and then moved on to the second one which Peter didn't think was as bad as the first. Once she finished she asked to borrow his knife, and hesitantly Peter gave it to her. She sliced through the excess thread and knotted the string.
"Thank-you," She said handing him his knife. Peter stood up and saw his shadow was attached to him again, but still flimsy and not quite back to normal. He walked around to see if the shadow would follow him but it was still resistant. But Peter continued on and used the bed post of John and Michael's beds to swing himself and fling the shadow on the wall. The shadow stuck to fall and Peter made a series of crazy movements to see if he had fixed it. When he saw the shadow was back to normal, he jumped and spun around with his hands on his fist.
"Oh, the cleverness of me!" Peter exclaimed.
"Of course, I did nothing." Wendy responded a little miffed.
"Aw, you did a little." Peter responded.
"A little?" Wendy questioned. She got up and walked to her bed and got in, "Goodnight."
Wendy turned over and pulled the covers over her head. Peter now realized he had angered the strange girl. Aria always stormed off and went to her room when he made her mad too. He walked over to her bed, and leaned against the bed post.
"Wendy?" he called, she didn't respond, "One girl is worth 20 boys."
"You really think so?" Wendy asked.
"I live with boys," he said happy that she was responding, "the Lost Boys. They are well named."
"Who are they?" Wendy asked flinging off her covers and sits up.
"Children who fall out of their prams when the nurse is not looking." He says pushing off the bed post. "If they are not claimed in seven days they are sent to Neverland."
"Are there girls too?"
"Just one. Aria, but she was born on Neverland. She says that girls are much too clever to fall out of their prams."
"Aria? Is she the girl that was with you the other night?"
"Yes, she's my best friend. We came to listen to the stories. You tell the best stories."
"Why thank-you. Peter?"
"Yes?"
"I would like to thank you properly for the compliment."
"Alright. How?"
"With a…kiss." Wendy said scooting closer to the foot of the bed. Not knowing what a kiss was Peter held out his hand.
"Don't you know what a kiss is?"
"I shall know when you give me one."
Wendy smiled at him and gifted him with the thimble from her finger. Peter looked at it. It hadn't known what he should have been expecting, but a kiss didn't seem all that great.
"I suppose I'm to give you one now." Peter said.
"If you like." Wendy said closing her eyes, and placing her cheek closer to Peter. Peter looked down at himself. He really didn't have much to give her, but he picked an acorn of his outfit and held it out to her. But Wendy still had her eyes closed. Peter cleared his throat and her eyes flung open. She strangely at the gift, almost disappointed by the object. But she took it anyway.
"Thank-you." She said and moved to get off the bed. She walked over to her dresser and opened her jewelry box.
"How old are you, Peter?"
"Quite young." He answered.
"Don't you know?"
"I ran away. One night, I heard my mother and father talking of what I was to be when I became a man. So I ran away to Kensington Gardens and I met Tink." He told her as he poked a jack-in-a-box, with his knife. It popped open startling him
"Tink?"
"Tinker Bell." He said sheathing his knife. "She's my fairy."
"But there's no such thing as-"Wendy started to say but Peter flew across the room to silence her.
"Don't say that." He told her seriously. "Every time somebody says that, a fairy somewhere falls down dead. And I shall never find her if she's dead, and Aria will be really mad if I lost Tink."
"You don't mean to tell me there's a fairy in this room," Wendy said excitedly.
"She likes the stories too. Aria likes the one about the mermaid who fell in love with a prince. But I like the one about the prince who couldn't find the lady who wore glass slippers."
"Cinderella." Wendy said, once again ignoring his comments about Aria, "Peter, he found her and they—and they…lived happily ever after."
"I knew it." Peter said. Well Aria knew it; she said that's how all good stories end.
"Peter. I should like to give you…a…thimble." Wendy said.
"What's that?" Peter asked. Wendy didn't answer, she just puckered her lips and leaned closer. Now Tinkerbell had been watching the exchange while she was trying to escape the drawer. She didn't like the girl being so close to Peter, it didn't seem right that he'd be that close to any girl but Aria. Aria and she were very close and she wanted to stop this for her. So filled with righteous anger she manages to give the drawer a hard shove and free herself. She took off straight for the girl and pulled her back by her hair before she could Peter a thimble.
"Tink!" Peter yelled when he noticed Wendy being pulled away. Though apart of him was relieved he was uncomfortable by how close Wendy had gotten to him.
Tink dragged Wendy over to her bed and began to bang her head against the bed post. Peter flew over trying to stop her but Tink tugged Wendy again. She pulled her over to the other bed post and went to bang her head again, but Peter grabbed her and threw her on the pillow. Tink quickly got back up and started saying something angrily to Peter in her bell-like language.
"She's not very polite." Peter said apologetically. Tink was getting very graphic with what she would do if Wendy if she tried that again. She also warned Peter she was going to tell Aria about what the girl tried to do too, which made Peter very worried for some reason.
"She's says if you try to give me a thimble again," Peter translated, "she'll kill you."
"Oh," Wendy breathed, "And I had supposed fairies to be charming."
Tinkerbell didn't like that and flew into Wendy's face to blow a raspberry at her. Tink told Peter to come on and flew to the window. Peter raced after her.
"Peter, don't go." She called after him.
"I have to tell the others about Cinderella." He told her.
"But I know lots of stories, stories I could tell the boys."
"Come with me." Peter asked. Tink protested the invitation by tugging harshly on Peter's ear. She didn't like this girl and didn't want her near her home.
"I-I cannot fly." Wendy said.
"I'll teach you. I'll teach you to ride the wind's back." Peter told her holding out his hand, "And away we go."
Wendy backed away from him and went over to her brother's beds.
"Could John and Michael come too?" Wendy asked. Peter looked at the two boys. He wouldn't mind the littlest one coming, Aria had paid him no mind, but he was hesitant about bringing the older boy. She thought his snore was funny. He narrowed his eyes for a moment and thought. If the older boy did come he could show Aria once and for all he was the better boy. Peter doubted the boy was much of a swordsman or could crow. Peter then looked at Wendy and smiled. Wendy bounced with joy and proceeded to wake up her brothers.
"There's a boy here who is to teach us to fly" Wendy exclaimed once they had woken up. John looked at the strange boy in his room. Peter just smiled.
"You offend reason, sir." John said to him.
"Mmm-hmm." Michael seconded. Peter's smiles dropped and he lifted himself up in the air, and then came back and landed on the end post of John's bed. John quickly got out of bed and looked up at Peter.
"I should like to offend it with you." John said.
"You just think happy thought and they lift you in the air." Peter said demonstrating what he meant and then flipping in the air settling Indian style on the ceiling. "It's easy."
"I've got it! I've got it!" John exclaimed running back over to his bed. He climbed up next to his pillow to get running start. "Swords, daggers, Napoleon."
John ran across his bed and jumped off the end. He was air born for only few seconds before he crashed on the ground, right into Wendy's dollhouse. Tinkerbell began to laugh at him, which reminded Peter of a missing ingredient in his instruction for flying. He grabbed TInk and shook her over John. The boy began to rise into the air. Michael got excited and clutched his Teddy tighter as he got on his bed.
"Wendy! Wendy! Watch me!" he exclaimed, "Puddings, mud pies, ice cream, never to take a bath again."
Michael ran off his bed and jumped this time Peter sprinkled dust on him before he fell. Both John and Michael began doing flips in the air. Wendy looked on happily at her brother.
"Your turn," Peter said giving her a handful of dust.
"Sleigh bells, Christmas, snow, mermaids." Wendy said before sprinkling the dust over her head. She lifted up into the air laughingly as she joined her brothers.
"Come away. Come away to Neverland." Peter said standing in the window.
"Oh. What about Mother?" Wendy asked, beginning to descend.
"Father?" John asked.
"Nana?" said Michael.
"There are mermaids." Peter said.
"Mermaids?" Wendy exclaimed rising back in the air.
"Indians."
"Indians." Michael and John said excitedly.
"Pirates."
"Pirates!" Both boys exclaimed. That was enough to convince John and with a cry of joy he flied past Peter out the window.
"John, wait for me!" Michael calls after him as he tumbles out the window. Peter turns expectantly at Wendy, she joins him at the window and Peter flies out the window. When he notices she isn't following he turns back. Wendy is looking in at her bedroom, hesitant about leaving. Peter tapped her shoulder and she turned to look at him.
"Come with me where you'll never have to worry about grown-up things again." Peter said holding out his hand. Peter couldn't fathom why she needed more convincing, who wants to grow up.
"Never is an awfully long time." She said sounding very grown up. Peter just smiled at her, that's what he was counting on. Wendy smiled back and flew to him. He indicated with his head for her to follow and shot up in the sky. They caught up with the other two, and flew over London. At one point Peter dove down to the streets below, whipping pass Mr. Darling's boss.
"Hello, old chap." He greets.
"Good evening." Wendy says politely. John flies by and snatched the man's hat.
"Thank-you," he says as he puts it on his head. The four of them lift off towards the sky flying high about the clouds. Peter leads them higher and higher towards the stars. At some point her turned to the Darling boy next to him.
"Who are you?" Peter asks.
"I'm John." The boy says in a confused tone.
"John." Peter repeated like he was trying to get used to it. But really he was trying to see if it sounded cooler than Peter. It didn't. "Take hold of this."
Peter then shakes his foot in front of John's face. Tinkerbell motions towards it like it's a prize. John gives Peter and his foot a weird look but takes ahold of it with one hand, "Both hands."
John makes an even stranger face but does what he's told.
"Pass it on." Peter yells to him as he takes lead.
"Michael, take hold of my ankle." John tells his little brother. Michael does it without question.
"Wendy, take hold of my ankle." Michael tells his sister. She grabs on tightly.
"And whatever happens, "Peter yells to the group, "don't…let…go!"
And with that, it feels like a vortex is sucking them as they head full speed at a star. They fly into it and a portal opens up for them in to a new land. It's dark at first, but a sun slowly begins to rise in the distance. The image of an island emerges from the darkness.
"Neverland." Wendy whispers reverently.
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This seems like a good stopping point. Not a lot of Aria in this part, but she will appear more in the next segment. Wendy of course won't like her, but then again neither will Aria. Peter/Aria will be more low-key as they are about 12/13ish and feelings are new. Hope you enjoyed this chapter let me know what you guys think.
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