Chapter 3

Not a Dream

Peter Pan was asleep, surrounded by the snores of the lost boys and the soft jingle of Tink's snoring as she lay buried under a pile of fresh leaves. Bear furs were piled high on Peter as he lay in the warmth of the hideout with one annoying ray of sun leaking through a crack and hitting him in the eye. Groaning he cracked an eye to glare at the intruding light and made to roll over when something made him jerk awake. Sitting up in a flash he sent smaller furs flying as he looked around wide eyed. A startled jingle rang out as Tink was awakened and tried to find her way out from under the bear hide. Peter rubbed his eyes and listened hard, but when he heard nothing he made to grab the suffocating fur then return to sleep when the same sound reached him again. At once he snatched his hat, sword, and flew out and up into the sky. Peter's eyes searched the surrounding area, looking for anything that could tell him he wasn't making this up. Even as he looked desperately he was certain he had heard someone yelling his name. Twice Peter had heard it so he couldn't be imagining it. He hadn't even been dreaming about Wendy, or Jane, and that was normally when he would wake with a jolt thinking he heard someone calling him. Tink was up with him now, livid and waving her arms about, reprimanding him for awakening her in such a manner.

"Tink," Peter groaned, his eyes never leaving the ground and trees. "I heard someone yelling my name for help."

Peter neither saw the way Tink's shoulders fell nor the sad look in her eyes as she gazed at her old friend. Sighing she moved closer to him and asked if he was sure that he had truly heard someone.

"This isn't like the other times, Tink." He replied looking at her for the first time and it made her sadder to see the desperate look in his eyes. "I really did hear someone, and they need my help."

Tinker Bell still didn't believe her friend but instead of arguing him on it she thought it better to go along with it, so that he could see for himself that he was imagining things. Flying around his head the stopped in front of him and suggested they go see the mermaids to ask if they knew anything. Peter, still trusting his gut, nodded and together they flew off to mermaid lagoon. As they drew closer to the lagoon Tink had to roll her eyes at their last minute sprucing. Fixing their hair, tails, and shells as their beloved Peter came to visit them. The sirens barely spared Tinker Bell a glance as the focused all their smiles and attentions on Peter, but their attitudes quickly changed at Peter's stern determined behavior.

It wasn't like him not to smile and to be so serious so they listened attentively while he explained when he heard and asked if they knew about any happenings this morning. A couple of the mermaids rolled their eyes and dove back into the water, one going back to her perch under the waterfall, but two others exchanged meaningful looks as they listened. When Peter was done talking the blond mermaid bit her lip then leaned forward and spoke, "We might know about something that happened this morning." She looked back to her red headed companion as if asking permission to continue, but Peter couldn't wait. He took her hand in his, focusing all of her attentions on him, and urged her to continue with a smile.

"A small boat with a handful of pirates came ashore at daybreak." She added, "They woke the two of us up with their boasting about catching a straggling lost boy. I stayed still so they wouldn't know I was near and awake." She took a moment to catch her breath before continuing. "One stayed with the boat and the others went into the jungle for a while. We heard shouting and screaming then when they returned they had a small girl with them."

"A girl?" Peter interrupted. "You're sure it was a girl?"

The mermaid roller her eyes and shook her head, "The stupid pirates kept calling her 'lad' but it was definitely a girl."

"Well of course they did," said the red head interrupting with a disgusted look on her face, "You saw the way she was dressed, wearing pants and that shirt, not to mention the state of her hair."

"Anyways," snapped the blond shooting her friend a glare, "They threw her into the boat and set off back to the ship still boasting that they would soon know the way to your hide out. That's all I know." She finished watching Peter closely for his reaction.

Peter was quiet and thoughtful for a moment; Tink could see a plan quickly forming in his head as he continued to kneel holding the girl's hand tightly in his own. After a minute of thinking he smiled again to the blond and thanked her with a kiss on the cheek then flew off.

Tink hurried after him, throwing the flustered mermaids a look as the other whined that they wanted a kiss too. When she caught up with Peter she apologized for doubting him earlier, but he just shook his head.

"It's no big deal Tink, I understand why you didn't believe me, but you're with me now right?" He asked and looked at her as they flew. She smiled and nodded at him. "Alright, well let's go get the boys. We have a ship to invade and a captain to humiliate again." He said and together they set off to the hide out to rally the Lost Boys. Oh what a night they had in store for them.