Author's notes: Like I said, this is a response to a challenge on a site called Sink Into Your Eyes, which is a Harry/Ginny fanfiction site. If any of you are interested, it is siye dot co dot uk. With the obvious three letters preceding it.
Anyway, some of the terms of the challenge were that Ginny had to fall asleep in the Room of Requirement, Ginny and Harry had to be Wendy and Peter respectively, Snape had to play Hook and Tinkerbell herself, Lost Boys had to fight pirates, children had to be in danger, and good had to win over evil. There were also bonus points available for including certain phrases. Apart from that, writers pretty much had free reign with the plot and content.
Because I wanted to write this, I haven't been able to work on The Resistance since I got back, but I'm aiming to get it done before school starts on Wednesday, which isn't too far off. (Unfortunately!)
Saving Neverland
Part 1: Of Ancient Runes and Dancing Girls
When she was little, Ginny's dad had encouraged her to read Muggle children's stories as well as wizard ones. "There are more stories out there than just Beadle," he would say. The Muggle stories were called 'fairytales'. Ginny never liked the tales of delicate, helpless princesses with long golden hair who needed charming princes to rescue them. Having six brothers had ensured that Ginny grew up somewhat tougher than other girls, and so she didn't have much time for damsels in distress.
'Peter Pan' had been more to her taste. The heroine of the story, Wendy, flew off to have adventures with her brothers, meeting Indians and mermaids and fighting pirates. Because of this, it had been one of her favourite stories.
Ginny didn't know why she was thinking of this, on her way to the familiar seventh-floor corridor and its tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy for some peace and quiet. Her mind had been prone to wandering lately, what with all the OWL revision she'd been doing. More often than not, it wandered towards Harry and the time they'd been spending together, so Ginny knew she needed some time to keep her mind firmly on track. Too bad the Room of Requirement couldn't do that for her; what it could do was provide her with a good environment for revising. She'd tried the common room and the dormitory, but her friends all seemed intent on disturbing her, and quiet as the library was, Ginny didn't think she could stand Madam Pince breathing down her neck any longer.
Reaching the apparently blank stretch of wall, Ginny walked back and forth past it three times, thinking intently of what she needed. A place that's nice and quiet, and comfortable too… preferably with some good books that will help me…
A white door with a silver handle appeared, and Ginny pushed it open to find a room rather like the common room, with a merrily crackling fire, an armchair and footstool, a table for writing on, and bookshelf lined with books. Brilliant! A grin spread upon her face and she went inside, shutting the door behind her. Depositing her Transfiguration notes on the table, she went over to the bookcase. All her school textbooks were there, as well as a few others she hadn't heard of before. Great, maybe these will give me an advantage in my exams. Wait a minute… Ginny had encountered a title that didn't seem to belong with the rest. 'Peter Pan'? Serves me right for thinking of it…
She slid a Transfiguration book out from the shelf and leafed through it, wondering if the five exceptions to Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration Hermione had mentioned would come up in the exam. What were they? Food… water? No, you could use 'Aguamenti' for that…
After about ten pages Ginny was bored enough to drop off to sleep. She roused herself with difficulty, realising that she was still kneeling in front of the bookshelf. I need a break, she thought firmly. Her hand reached out almost of its own accord and took Peter Pan from the shelf. Just a few pages…She sank gratefully into the armchair and began perusing the familiar first page. It wasn't long, however, before her eyes closed and she fell into a deep sleep…
She was standing in front of a window, looking out at the starry night sky. It was the window of an old-fashioned nursery, with bars on it to prevent wayward children climbing out, and she'd just finished telling her two younger brothers a bedtime story. Ginny's eyes easily found the second star to the right. She spent many nights gazing at that star.
"Do you think he'll come tonight, Wendy?" asked the younger of her two brothers, Michael. He was talking about Peter Pan; that was who the story had been about, Ginny remembered. She turned to smile at Michael, the only one of the three children who didn't have flaming red hair and freckles. Instead, he had pale skin and mousey hair, which he never seemed to mind.
"He might if you go to sleep, Michael." Ginny set an example by climbing into her own bed. Michael dutifully closed his eyes, and Ginny did the same.
Some time later – or maybe it was no time later – Ginny opened her eyes. There was a strange light to the room, and Ginny's eyes went straight to the night-light, which was always left burning. Tonight, however, it wasn't. Ginny had little time to dwell on this, though, as she suddenly identified the source of the glow: a tiny woman with hair of pure gold, a green dress and delicate gossamer wings was hovering a foot away from her face.
"Tinkerbell!" breathed Ginny, sitting up. As if blown away by her breath, Tinkerbell flew backwards and hovered by the shoulder of a figure standing at the foot of Ginny's bed. Ginny caught her breath; it was a boy, barely a year older than her, with messy black hair and round glasses. He was wearing robes of a deep forest green that brought out the vivid emerald of his eyes… and on his forehead… Ginny knew before she looked that there would be a lightning-shaped scar there, right in the middle. Yes! The legacy of an epic battle with the infamous and greasy-haired villain Captain Hook. Ginny was so preoccupied with this that she almost didn't notice the large, glittering sword tucked into an extra belt around his waist and half-hidden by his robes. It paled in comparison to the fact that he was here, in the nursery.
"Peter Pan!" Ginny exclaimed. Her exclamation woke her brothers; John sat up, his hair dishevelled, and goggled at the sight of the legendary hero of Ginny's stories standing in the nursery, and Michael reached excitedly for the camera he always kept on his bedside table. "Wow, Peter Pan!" he cried, snapping off a photograph. Peter blinked at him, embarrassed, and ran a hand through his hair, making it messier than ever. Ginny found she liked it very much like that. "Er, thanks, Michael." It seemed the picture-taking had thrown him a little, and Ginny wished her brothers could have remained asleep, so she could have had some time to talk to Peter alone. Still, she knew what he had come for. "I've got your shadow," she told him, and Peter turned to her just as Michael took another picture.
"You have?"
"Yeah." From under the bed, Ginny drew what looked like a cloak, or blanket, of some silvery material. "Don't you remember? You were outside our window, listening to a story, when our nanny, Crookshanks, grabbed onto your shadow and tore it off." She handed him the shadow.
"That cat is your nanny?" Peter glanced warily at the ginger cat that lay curled up next to his feet.
"Yeah. He makes our beds and everything." Peter nodded and swung the silvery-grey shadow around his shoulders like a cloak. There was a pause, and Peter stared at his feet, oblivious to Michael's camera clicking and flashing. "Er… so I was wondering… do you want to come to Neverland with me?" He raised his head to look her in the eyes, and Ginny suddenly found her heart beating faster, captivated by his emerald gaze. "It'd be an adventure – just like one of your stories. I sort of need your help with something, too."
He needs my help? "I'd love to," Ginny said, beaming and climbing out of bed. She wanted just to fly away with Peter, and for it to be just the two of them, but she couldn't leave her brothers alone. "Can John and Michael come too?"
Peter looked doubtfully at John, who was still staring, and Michael, who had lowered his camera and was glancing eagerly from one to the other. "All right," he conceded.
"Yeah!" Michael jumped out of bed, clutching his most precious possession: his camera. John said "Blimey!" and reached for his most precious possession, a bright orange Chudley Cannons hat. Ginny's hands felt rather empty; she didn't have a treasured possession she could grab on to. She jumped as a hand took hold of hers, and she turned to see Peter smiling at her. "You ready to fly?"
Ginny nodded, her heart lifting as she realised there was nothing – and no one – she'd rather be holding on to. Together they walked to the window, and Ginny climbed onto the sill, ready to fly away. The bars were no longer there; it was just the open outdoors in front of her, waiting for her.
"Hold on," said Peter from behind her. "You need fairy dust to fly." Ginny found herself covered in a shower of golden dust. Peter smiled and Ginny felt her stomach do a flip. "Fairy dust suits you."
Before Ginny could form a reply, he had climbed up next to her and suddenly they were flying, soaring above London with John and Michael behind them. Ginny looked down to see the city laid out below, and all around them the sky was speckled with stars, until suddenly a blinding light obscured everything from view. Then the light cleared, and Ginny looked down to see Neverland beneath them. It was just as she had imagined – there was a group of tepees where the Indians made camp, there was the mermaids' lagoon, and just offshore – Ginny experienced a thrill of fear and excitement at the sight – she could see the sinister-looking Jolly Roger.
"Come on, this way," said Peter, pointing towards a tree with thick, twisted branches and a vast trunk. He took hold of Ginny's arm and guided her down, alighting directly in front of the tree. Michael and John followed, landing with graceless thumps behind them. As if it sensed their presence, the tree began to swing its branches threateningly, and Ginny and her brothers backed away. Tinkerbell, however, darted forward, flying easily around and between the branches, and suddenly the tree froze.
"Come on," said Peter again, who seemed to think nothing of the whole thing. "Let's go meet the Lost Boys." He took Ginny's hand, sending tingles all the way up her arm, and suddenly they were inside a sort of wooden room that Ginny realised was the inside of the tree. Apparently it was hollow.
"Hello, Miss Wendy," said a voice, and suddenly it seemed the tree-room was filled with boys, swinging down from above or rising excitedly from chairs to come and greet her.
"Splendid to finally meet you," said the first boy to the fore, holding out his hand. Ginny shook it, trying not to laugh. "We've all heard so much about you and your stories."
"Out of the way, Curly," said a red-haired boy, giving him a small push. Curly looked a little annoyed.
"Yeah, no hogging the lady," added an identical boy, who had to be his twin. They each took one of Ginny's hands, crossing their arms over in the process, and shook them with mock pompousness. "We're the Twins," they told her in unison.
"What, don't you have names?" Ginny asked with surprise.
"Nah, can't be bothered to name them," said a dark-haired boy from behind them who had, for some reason, a Muggle football under one arm. "Nibbs is the name. Nice to meet you."
Ginny shook his hand and looked at the twins. "Well, I will give you names," she said. "You can be Fred and George." She wasn't sure why, but those names seemed to fit.
The remaining two Lost Boys, one with sandy hair and the other with a round face, introduced themselves as Slightly and Tootles. "Have you come to help us, Wendy?" asked Tootles.
"I think so," replied Ginny. "But what am I helping you with?"
"Saving Neverland, of course," said one of the twins – whether it was Fred or George, Ginny already wasn't sure. She could see why no one bothered to name them.
"It's unusual for our esteemed leader to ask for anyone's help, though," added the other twin. "Usually he likes to play the hero."
"I don't-" began Peter, pink in the face, but the first twin (Fred, Ginny decided) cut him off.
"Methinks he has succumbed to the charms of a lady at last." Fred winked at Peter.
"About time too!" added George. Peter put one hand to his forehead. "Look, I only went to get her because Shining Otter said to," he protested.
"So he says," Fred said in an undertone to Ginny. She ignored him and asked Peter, "Who's Shining Otter?"
"One of the Indians," he replied, running his hand through his hair again and going to sit down in a large chair. "She's been trying to figure out a way to restore the magic to Neverland, by deciphering the ancient runes that were carved by the Indians' ancestors. We haven't heard from her for a while, though. We think the pirates might have got her – they've been capturing loads of Indians lately, trying to stop us getting the translation."
"How long is it since she told us that last bit?" asked Nibbs. "A week?"
"About that," said Peter. Fred added to Ginny, "It took him that long to decide whether or not he wanted to 'put you in danger' by bringing you here."
Peter sighed resignedly, obviously used to this teasing. "The pirates are getting more and more dangerous. Their spells aren't failing any more – I think they've found one of those artefacts Shining Otter mentioned."
"Well, neither are ours," Slightly reminded him. Just then, what looked like a silver lightning bolt streaked down from above them and materialised into the form of a young girl. However, when she spoke, it was with the voice of a man.
"The Great Chief Indian requests an audience with Peter Pan and Wendy Darling," she said, and then dispersed like smoke.
"Let's go, Wendy," said Peter, rising to take Ginny's hand again. Ginny was just about getting used to the sensation she felt every time he did that; she didn't miss the smirks on Fred and George's faces when they saw it.
In the next instant, Peter and Ginny were in the air, coming in to land in front of the biggest tepee in the Indian encampment. Peter led the way inside, and they were greeted by a girl who seemed to appear almost out of nowhere. She had long, dirty blonde hair held away from her face by a colourfully patterned headband, wide eyes that seemed to blink less than was normal, and what looked like bright blue radishes dangling from her ears.
"How nice to see you," she greeted them, and then closed her eyes and began revolving on the spot, waving her arms above her head. Ginny stared, suppressing a fit of the giggles. "What's she doing?" he asked Peter, who also looked like he was struggling not to laugh.
"She is performing a Wrackspurt Dance, in order to cleanse the air and ensure that our minds stay clear," said a voice from behind the dancing girl. A man with long silver hair and an equally long beard came forward to greet them. He was dressed in multicoloured robes and an equally colourful hat, and had twinkling blue eyes that seemed to be X-raying Ginny as he looked at her. "Welcome. I see you have met my daughter Tigerlily."
The dancing girl gave one last twirl and then opened her eyes, smiling in their direction although her eyes seemed to be gazing at something further off.
"Please come and sit down," continued the chief. Once they were all sitting cross-legged on a woven mat, he said, "Shining Otter has been captured by the pirates."
Peter nodded. "I thought as much. We'll have to rescue her."
"That might be a good idea," agreed the chief. "Not long before she was taken, she had worked out a new and integral part of the runes which she said was the key to restoring the magic to Neverland. I believe her capture to be no coincidence. The pirates will do anything to prevent the magic being restored."
"We'll go now," said Peter, standing up.
"Tigerlily will come with you," stated the chief. Peter looked surprised, but agreed. "Okay."
Less than a minute later, Ginny found herself standing on the deck of the Jolly Roger. A fierce battle was raging all around them, with Peter, her brothers and the Lost Boys each duelling with a pirate. Ginny had no time to wonder how she got there, because she herself was fighting a girl with a face like a pug. The girl sent a spell at her, which Ginny blocked with a Shield Charm, and then said, "Locomor Mortis!" The girl fell to the deck, her legs locked together, and Ginny used the opportunity to escape the battle and go looking for Shining Otter. She saw that John had managed to Stun his opponent, a huge boy who was covered in tattoos. He ran over to join her, and together they found a locked door which seemed promising. Ginny used the Alohomora charm to unlock the door, and they went inside.
"Lumos," muttered John, and the light cast by his wand fell on a girl with bushy brown hair and a headband similar to Tigerlily's. She was bound and gagged; Ginny tore the gag off and asked her, "Are you Shining Otter?"
"Yes," replied the girl. John used a rather clumsy Severing charm to cut through her bonds, tearing her robes a little in the process. Shining Otter gave him a disdainful look, getting to her feet and drawing her wand from inside her robes. Before she could say anything, however, they heard footsteps approaching the door.
Shining Otter quickly rapped her wand on Ginny and John's heads, and as Ginny looked down at herself, she realised she had been Disillusioned.
"Now! Make it look like you weren't here," Shining Otter commanded.
"How're we supposed to-" began John.
"I'll let you tie me up," Shining Otter interrupted. "Quick, before they get here."
John managed to re-tie what was left of the ropes around Shining Otter's wrists and arms, and then he pulled Ginny into a dark corner. The door opened, and a boy with white-blond hair and a nasty, pointed face poked his head in. He was wearing a large and ugly locket around his neck. Ginny recognised him as being the pirate Peter had been duelling. What had happened to Peter?
"Good, you're still here," he drawled. "For a minute I thought someone had got it into their heads to free you." He drew a wand and pointed it at Shining Otter. "Now I'll make sure you don't repeat that translation to anyone."
"Oi! Don't you touch her!" burst out John. The boy's head whipped round. "Who's there?"
"Rictusempra!" shouted John, and the boy doubled up, hit by the tickling curse. He pointed his wand at himself and managed to choke out, "Finite Incantatem." Then he straightened up, only to be hit by Ginny's Bat Bogey hex. His face covered in flapping, greenish-yellow bats, the boy stumbled, but managed to grab hold of a trap door in the floor that Ginny hadn't noticed. He opened it, and a huge, scaly head reared up – a Basilisk – fear coursed through Ginny, rooting her to the spot – the door burst open, but blackness had claimed Ginny, and she knew no more.
Ginny's eyes flew open and she gasped for breath, her forehead beaded with sweat. She looked wildly around for the Basilisk. Where had it gone? Horrible memories of Ginny's first year came back to her, of the huge snake lying dead in Slytherin's chamber, but the comforting glow of the Room of Requirement reassured her, and her heartbeat gradually slowed. She felt so, so tired… she closed her eyes again, and was asleep in seconds.
This time when Ginny opened her eyes, she found herself lying on a large bed inside the hollow tree. Her brothers were seated on chairs next to her. Michael noticed she was awake first.
"Wendy! Wendy's awake!" he cried, and John jerked out of a doze. "Oh, hey, Wendy, we were wondering when you'd come round," he said conversationally.
"What happened?" asked Ginny.
"You fainted," John told her. "That bastard Smee had a Basilisk hidden below… fortunately we all managed to close our eyes… Peter managed to hack its head off somehow with that sword of his. He was furious. He's not in great shape, either, after what Smee did to him."
"Can I see him?" Ginny asked, worried.
"Yeah, he's refusing to lie down or anything. Shining Otter's been chasing him with a bottle of Dittany, but he's more concerned about how you are."
Right on cue, Peter ran into the room, followed by Shining Otter, who was indeed holding a bottle of something. Her brothers seemed to have vanished. Ginny gasped as she saw that Peter's robes were slashed in several places and generally bloodstained, with a large, bleeding cut on his face.
"They'll heal much faster if you'll just let me-" Shining Otter was saying, but Peter ignored her, noticing that Ginny was awake. "Wendy!"
Shining Otter looked over. "Oh, hello. Thanks for rescuing me," she said with a smile. "Here, maybe you'll do a better job persuading him." She handed the bottle of Dittany to Ginny and left the room.
"What happened to you?" Ginny asked. Peter shrugged, not really seeming to care.
"I got hit by a Sectumsempra curse; it was nothing really."
"Nothing?" said Ginny, astonished, but Peter carried on, "How are you, anyway?"
"Absolutely fine," Ginny assured him. "Much better than you, by the looks of things."
Peter disregarded this. "I can't believe that idiot Smee had a Basilisk," he said; Ginny wasn't sure whether he was talking to her or to himself. "And now he's got the locket-"
"Peter-"
"-which I suppose explains how they were able to make their spells work… if I could just get it away from him…" He was pacing back and forth now, seeming to have forgotten that she was even there. "Peter!" said Ginny more forcefully. "Come here, I need to put this on you-"
"Of course we need the locket anyway, to get the magic back-"
"Peter Pan!" Ginny was practically shouting now. Peter stopped pacing and looked at her, dragging one hand through his hair. "What?"
Ginny sighed in exasperation. "Come here, I need to put this on you," she repeated. Peter shook his head.
"Don't worry about that, I'm fine. I need to get the locket off Smee." He turned, preparing to leave.
"You are not going anywhere by yourself and in that condition," said Ginny sharply. She sounded like his mother, but it didn't matter; someone had to get through to him. She could see what Fred and George had meant about him always playing the hero.
Peter ignored her and left the room. Ginny gritted her teeth and jumped out of bed, running after him. He had taken to the air and was about to exit the treehouse when Ginny reached up and grabbed the bottom of his robes.
"Don't you dare fly away from me!" He looked down at her, taken aback. "Wendy, you should be in bed."
Ginny would have thrown up her hands if she hadn't been holding onto his robes. "I told you already, I'm absolutely fine." He didn't look as though he believed her, and Ginny used that as her leverage. "I'll get back into bed if you promise not to fly off."
Reluctantly, he landed on the ground and Ginny let go of his robes. She strode back into the makeshift sick room and got back into bed, folding her arms and waiting for Peter to follow her. He appeared in the doorway, looking shamefaced, and Ginny regretted having been so harsh. It was sweet that he cared more for her wellbeing than his own, but it wouldn't hurt him to listen to other people once in a while.
She softened her expression and tone of voice. "Please come here and sit down."
He crossed the room and sat down in one of the chairs by the bed, allowing Ginny to pour drops of the brown Essence of Dittany onto his wounds, which looked even worse up close. Soon they all appeared newly healed, although his robes were still covered in blood. Ginny was considering using 'Scourgify' to clean them, when Shining Otter came in. "Ah, you managed it," she said with a knowing smile. "I thought you'd have better luck than I would."
Peter and Ginny both flushed identical shades of pink, which only made Shining Otter's smile grow. To change the subject, Ginny asked her, "What's this locket that Peter keeps mentioning? Is it something to do with the ancient runes you've been translating?"
"Ah, yes, it is," Shining Otter confirmed. She came over and sat down in a chair. "What I've discovered from translating the runes is this." Ginny had a feeling that a long explanation was about to follow, and sure enough, Shining Otter began in a remarkably teacher-like voice,
"The key to the magic of Neverland lies in four artefacts. As long as they are together, the magic survives. If they are separated, however, the magic begins to drain out and that is what is currently happening." She pointed to the sword that Peter wore. "Your sword is one of them."
"Smee's locket is another," Peter added in, which explained his sudden obsession with it.
Shining Otter nodded. "The objects by themselves contain enough magic to sustain spells within a certain radius, but unless the four objects are reunited, the magic will continue to drain out of Neverland until it is gone for good." A grim silence followed her pronouncement.
"So we know where two of the artefacts are," said Peter, breaking it. "What about the others?"
"One of them doesn't seem to translate directly from the runes," said Shining Otter, frowning. "It's some sort of headgear… The other is a cup of some description. It would be a good idea to ask other inhabitants of the island if they've seen the objects. Who knows where the pirates might have hidden them?"
"The pirates did this?" Ginny asked. She shuddered to think of the pirates seeking out Neverland's most precious and powerful magical items and scattering them to the winds. "But they could be anywhere – at the bottom of the ocean, for example."
Shining Otter nodded. "That's why the first thing I propose we do is ask the mermaids. They have contact with sea creatures, after all."
"Let's just hope they didn't feed it to the Giant Squid," said Peter. At Ginny's look of horror he added hastily, "I'm joking. Really. This'll be a piece of cake, trust me."
Author's Notes: (OMG MY FIRST LINE-BREAKS! xD I always wondered how they did that!)Any guesses as to the identity of Shining Otter, and the various Lost Boys? It should be quite easy to guess who most of them are.