I've not made a chapter that starts out in Kyla's point of view. Her voice and thoughts keep playing in my head.
Kyla shifted in her sleep, nuzzling a little deeper into Pan's shoulder. They had spent the day in the library researching everything they could think of. Pan's reputation followed him even there. She could feel their gazes as she scoured even the ancient of texts.
Upon returning to their room, Pan had bathed and retired for the evening. Though he was typically a jerk, he had his tender moments. Most of them came at times when they were in the presence of others. As an Amazon, she wasn't supposed to react. As a woman, she couldn't help but do so.
Pan didn't sleep unless she was beside him. Time passed differently in the home realm. What was a day in this world could easily be two years in theirs. While he had been gone four years in this time, he had been with her for more than twenty in theirs. It was what made aging so difficult for their young ones. When they were two, they physically looked as an infant. It was very difficult to adjust.
That first night they had been together had been interesting. Pan had still been angry that they'd been bound together and he'd wanted nothing to do with her. Kyla had gone to sleep without a second thought. Pan's only choices had been to sleep on the floor or share her bed. The hearth had been put out so he was going to get cold.
When she had lain down, Pan had been standing by the doorway. When she'd woken up, he had been beside her with his back to her. He had gotten cold and had wrapped up in her skins. He had been in a ball when she had woken up. At that moment he looked like an innocent child and not the ruthless Boy King who had ruled Neverland.
From that night on, he had shared her bed. Extra furs had been piled on to show their prestige in the tribe. Kyla was the youngest and favorite sister of Scion, the tribe's leader. She was able to do pretty much whatever. Any bonded male to her would instantly be raised in status.
Everyone had known of Pan's history. That was part of the bond. History became present and people had to live with it. Scion had worried that Kyla would be dragged down due to her bonded's brutal past. But Kyla had taken life by the horns and had made Pan listen. Especially after they had figured out they couldn't be apart.
Life hadn't been simple. Pan was a trickster, a bad boy. Naughty was the best way to explain him. He did what he wanted and apologized to no one. It's what made them fight all the time. Kyla would much rather plot in silence than retaliate immediately. Pan was the opposite. He would react first and think later, and it caused a lot of trouble.
They had fought a lot in the early days. Kyla hadn't threatened him in the very beginning but as the days had gone on, she had gotten frustrated with him. She had pinned him against a beam one night and had told him that being a hateful ass wasn't winning him any points with her people.
His eyes had been fiery, hot and molten almost like she had turned him on. She had pushed away from him and gone across the home to tidy up the dishes and clean the hearth. Her anger was so palpable it could burn the tent down.
After that evening, he'd shown a different side of himself. He'd been protective of her. He was skilled in magic but fighting hand to hand was not his forte. So much for the famed Lost Boy. But he managed to keep her back safe. He had even enchanted her blade to shrink when she wasn't using it.
Years passed like a dream. They became one and the same. Kyla's respect in the tribe had risen because she had complete control over the once famed Boy King. He spent his days keeping an eye on her and only stepped in when she couldn't win. She was quiet and he spoke his mind. No matter what mission they went on, they always came back. Maybe with a few bumps and bruises but they always came back.
One night one of the other women in the tribe had announced her pregnancy. They had called for a massive celebration. A woman having a child was a rare and grand occasion, one that called for a lot of food and booze. Everyone was invited and everyone got drunk.
Pan and Kyla were no exception. Pan had played his flute and Kyla had danced around the fire with her sisters. Revelry and joy had been the night's festivities.
Those had flowed over into the rest of the night. They had stumbled back to the tent, blitzed beyond belief. Kyla had tripped over the doorway but Pan caught her before she fell face first. He scooped her up and carried her into the tent. He unceremoniously dumped her on the bed. She jumped up and grabbed him by the collar.
He had stared down at her, their height different very obvious when they were standing side by side. She had punched his chest a good two, three times before he'd grabbed her wrists and held them against him. He had looked down at her, but his eyes were different. There was something new in them.
He had kissed her right then, his mouth working over hers gently. He'd picked her up and carried her to the bed. She still wasn't sure what had overcome them or how many times they had met body to body. But she had awoken the next day feeing satisfied and sore.
"What are thinking of?" She looked beside her. Pan pulled her closer. "You always get that look when you're thinking hard."
"I'm remembering our life," she replied.
He hummed in his sleep. "Which part?"
"Currently? I'm at the part where we made Mirran."
He chuckled sleepily. "That was a good night. Plus a few others that followed."
She sighed at the one part he remembered. "You remember the stuff that was fun for you."
Pan sighed and opened his green eyes. She stared up at him. "I never wanted to be a father. I gave my son up so I could be young again. Here I am, young again but with a child. It's not what I wanted. I'm still not sure how to be a father. But I can't run. If I do, we die. So I'm forced to watch a child grow up."
Kyla piled away from him and slid from the bed. The warmth quickly left her as the air hit her skin.
Pan sighed once again, heavier this time because his words had upset her. He sat up, bare skin prickling with the temperature change. He watched her curl up in the chair across from the bed, bare legs to her chest as she wrapped her arms around them. The strongest warrior torn apart by a few misplaced words.
"What do you want me to say, Kyla? That I miss the child? She is an Amazon. You have raised her by your tribe's standards. I have just watched," he said.
"I know. It still hurts," she muttered.
"Kyla," He ran his hand through his mussed hair, "you knew who I was. You knew my past."
She lifted her head, and for the first time he felt afraid. "Your past has no bearing on this circumstance. You are not in Neverland. You don't have Lost Boys to protect you. We've met each other body for body and you still don't see it."
"See what? That all magic comes with a price? Is this child my price to pay?"
"Mirran loves you."
Pan's lip raised in a scowl. "So did Rumple. Yet I didn't want him."
"Are you choosing yourself over this little girl? Again? Are you abandoning your child again?" The question hung between them. He was made to wait when he opened his mouth. "Think carefully on your answer. You know what my tribe does to people who abandon their children."
"Are you threatening me?" Her gaze was stone. "You will end your life just to make sure I don't abandon this child?"
"My sisters will take her in. She will be raised well. And she will never have to wonder if she is loved."
"Your sisters caused this!" Her eyes widened. "Are you too blind to see it? One of your sisters - if not all of them - are the reason our child has gone missing. Your blind faith in them has led them to steal the girl you cherish."
"Why?! Why would they do this?"
"You're the strongest of them, something no one can deny. You disarmed Prince Charming without a second thought. But most importantly you have more power than they ever could."
"What?!"
"You have me! Father of the Dark One, great-grandfather is the One True Believer and the Boy King. I have the magic of Neverland coursing though my veins even if I can't tap into it at all times. Your sisters are jealous. They want to have your power and prestige to themselves. Their naughty souls weren't half as bad as I am, and you have a child by me. Why can't you see it?"
He got up and passed over to her. Taking her face in his hand, he coaxed her to look up at him. "My dear, you were raised by them even after you were adopted by Hades. You do his bidding when he needs it. You're his favorite. Your sisters know that. Maybe not Scion because she has her own power, but the other four do. Any one of them would do this. I may not have wanted children so I could stay young, but I would never allow you to go unhappy. We will find your child and we will go home."
He pressed his forehead to hers. Hearing her gasp, he lowered his head until he pressed his lips to hers. Whether he liked it or not, she and their child needed him. Not because his life was bound to hers, but because she had given him a home and safety when no one else would. She allowed him to be his naughty self within reason. And he had given her what many women only dreamed of. He had given her a child.
He drew her up, mouth never leaving hers. For a fierce woman, she was extremely sensual. He swung her up into his arms and carried her to the bed. Collapsing, he faced her, raining light kisses to her mouth and eyes. It took a moment after he withdrew, but her eyes fluttered open slowly.
"You can't find anyone on no sleep. I'll protect you like I always have. Now sleep. You'll need your strength to find Mirran."
Kyla swallowed hard. Pan knew her indecisiveness. Her child was on the line. He knew she would die protecting her. But she had to find her first.
Once again, he claimed her mouth as his. It wasn't to do anything dashing, but he used it to calm her. She followed his lead, and soon her body relaxed into his.
He drew out one last kiss before he ticked her head into his neck. Soon her breathing evened out and her hand went limp against his chest. He was going to have to find her child or she was going to rip two worlds apart.