Tonari: Thank you, dude :) Well, I decided to update this chapter quickly. You deserved it :) Hope you like ;)
Scorpiongirl92: Thank youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu :D
Bublee90: Hahaha oh you ;) Yes, Cheri has grown stronger and more intelligent. She knows that hoppin' back to Peter will just cause her more pain. She knows she's done horrible things (like cheating on Peter) and that she wouldn't be able to handle it. She's a strong girl, but she handles Peter's return the way any brokenhearted girl would; she cries and she's confused. She's the type of girl to think about it alone and for a long time... But anyways, done ranting ;) thank youu, faithful reviewer ;) And you'll need that Beethoven song for the end of this!
Elektra Mackenzie: It was my fave too, to write :o... Girl, you an me have things in common! Hahaha, but like I said, Cheri has her own ways of dealing with this. You can't expect her to go running back to him after he tried to kill her and all...
Enjoy this one guys :D
Chapter 28: Why
To the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure.- J.K Rowling in Harry Potter
The days went by in a blur of occupations. Things bled into each other, mornings, nights and evenings all seemed to be the same. Small conversations with Peter, avoiding Felix and trying to keep the Lost Boys occupied was all a routine in the end.
And Peter was just as persistent in getting Cheri to talk. But she wasn't even able to look him in the eye very long. His gaze reminded her of the betrayal. His presence hurt, and the more she tried to hide it, the more it showed. She couldn't even accept his hand on hers, for the fire blazing up her arm seemed to carve deeper into her heart. His voice was even worse. The tone, so sweet and melodic, seemed to drip fire into her heart. But he tried and tried, despite the subtle way she leaned away from him, or her protests. He tried to hug her, to kiss her, to embrace her, but every time he was refused. At first, she would yell or bat him away frenetically. But in the end, she would simply shake her head or mutter his name in reproach.
However, despite her hurt, she accepted his presence more and more every day. She tried, really tried, to look at him and smile, but she only saw the word betrayal carved on his forehead. She tried to lean into his touch, or accept his embraces, but her bones would vibrate with guilt and her mouth would taste of copper. Her cold, zinging magic would swipe out, making the boy king recoil.
The cabin became deserted. It's funny how one day something so close to the heart, can become so distant and blurred. How one day, just the simple sight of it can make the heart ache and bleed fire. So many memories haunted that cabin; smells, words, actions, sounds, smiles, laughs. It haunted the brunette's memory every time she tried to climb those steps. It burned her heart every time she fell to the ground in a heap of tears and sobs. All that time, spent happy in soft arms, was now gone, slipped through her fingers like soap. And that time seemed so far away, so out of reach.
Going to the beach was her comfort. It brought a small amount of serenity to her mind and heart. It reminded her of the good time spent with Wendy and Tink. Oh, how she missed Wendy. Often, Cheri would wonder about the girl; where was she? Had she found her brothers? Was she happier than Cheri? She most certainly was. Cheri was the sacrificial lamb in Wendy's search of happiness. Cheri just hoped her sacrifice hadn't gone to waste.
Cheri sat by the waves that crawled up to pat her bare feet. The low evening sun bathed her face, as she hummed behind closed lids. The wind tickled her face, brushing in her dark locks. The sand, that she buried her hands in, felt cool against her skin. Her fingers clawed in the damp sand as her toes curled against the freshness of the water. Outside, everything seemed harmonious. But on the inside, it was but serene.
Opening her eyes, the brunette sighed. She missed so many things. She missed her mother, her home, her brother, and even school. But she knew she couldn't go back to that. Dreamshade had stolen that right from her. So she started missing the good times on Neverland. Well, as good as they could get. When she was innocent to all the dark and evil. When her heart wasn't plagued with guilt and shame. When her words weren't dipped in lies. When Peter kissed her tenderly and his words warmed her heart.
And now, his words hurt and his attempt kisses made tears brim her eyes. All this hurt and pain for the life of an innocent boy. Cheri sometimes wondered if her betrayal was worth it. If she should of just refused Rumple's offer and stayed out of it like Peter had advised her. But she couldn't have just stood there without helping an innocent family. She couldn't have watched Peter destroy the lives of people who deserved to live.
Just on cue, the boy king appeared in her peripheral. "Hi." As always, the brunette remained silent. Peter sighed, licking his lips and lowering himself on the sand. He stayed silent for a good bit, eyes strained on the lowering sun and just feeling the wind comb through his hair. Cheri remembered the feel of his hair on her fingers, of it curled in her hand and felt like her heart would burst.
"Cheri," he drawled, looking at the sky. The brunette didn't turn to him. "My wife- Rumple's mother- once told me something that I've wanted to tell you for a while. When she said it, I didn't understand. Well, I understood the concept, but I didn't fully understand it, you know. But now, after meeting you and knowing who you are... Let's just say that saying has haunted me for a while." Cheri closed her eyes painfully. He too, just like her, had memories that haunted. She wondered if they hurt him. "She said; a good life is the one laid down for another. I understand that now. What you did for Henry..." He trailed off. He wasn't the type to go back on his word. He'd wanted that heart, and he'd been prepared to do every bloody, dark thing to get it. "You're a good person. Your life is gold, and you have to start realizing that. Shutting yourself out like this, punishing yourself for hurting me is... it's ridiculous."
She turned to him and let just one tear fall from her eyes. She begged him with her gaze. Stop, please, stop. But he went on. "I... I'm not angry with you... anymore. But I went out there, despite what you did, and found another heart. And I know you must think I'm crazy and demoniac, but I made a promise to that boy. I promised that I wouldn't let such a good heart go to waste. Despite that it gave me immortal and eternal life, I promised that I'd live like I was mortal."
"Peter," she murmured, hiding her face in her arms. A sob rocked her body.
"You know more than me that I never, never, break a promise." He stared at her, eyes wide and glassy. He watched her shoulders bob with the rhythm of her sobs. "Cheri, I-" He scooted closer to her, wrapping a wary arm around her. She didn't shake him off. He took the opportunity to squeeze her closer to him. "I can't... I can't." She looked up this time, tears pooling down her cheeks and brimming her eyes. Her look begged. "I can't lose you."
In a brisk movement the brunette sobbed and straddled his lap, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck. She buried her face in the crook of his neck and cried, letting out all the hurt and pain. Grateful for the openness, the boy king wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her even closer. Her scent invaded his senses and he found his eyes burning with tears. It'd been so long since Peter Pan cried.
"Can I be alone, please?" she asked weakly, face still hidden in his neck. Her breathing fanned his skin, the sensation so good it made the boy buzz.
"Of course," he muttered, but didn't loosen his grip around her. Having her this close was rare, and he wouldn't let the opportunity pass.
She wiggled on him, pressing her hands on his shoulders so she could straighten. She sniffed and met his eyes, smiling meekly. The boy king smiled back, gliding his hands up to her cheek, where she closed her eyes and leaned into his hand. "I've missed you," he whispered. The brunette bit her lip, hand stroking Peter's. Her eyes opened and Peter rose a brow.
She could just smile. She couldn't offer sweet words to him, for they'd be contradictory. Yes, she missed him, but at the same time, no. She needed time to figure it all out, to think and rethink. To re-imagine herself and the new world she'd be living in. Time was one of the rare things that she owned. Cheri wouldn't rush things when she had eternity ahead of her. "Peter," she whispered, lowering her gaze.
"Alone, yes, I know," he muttered back in a voice that made guilt crawl up Cheri's throat. She sniffled and rolled off him, curling back to her previous position.
Peter slowly got to his feet. "I'll see you... later," he said hopefully. The girl simply nodded. If there were any traces that she was remotely happy, she wasn't letting it show. Peter strode off, feeling somewhat accomplished.
It was maybe an hour later, Cheri didn't know. Time passed by so fast when your mind was occupied. The sound of crackling, like fire, floated up to her eyes. Void and emptiness. Like wind flowing into a hollow opening. Shivers rolled over her skin, electrifying her senses. Tendrils in her brain sparked, magic in her jostling. As the brunette turned to the sounds, her eyes met the figure, dark and at the same time transparent, that floated a foot or two above the sand.
"Shadow," she muttered. It nodded, something like a chortle emanating from it. "Why are you here?"
"Because you failed," it growled, the sound sizzling in the air like water hitting the hot stove. Cheri stiffened. No, don't tell me Henry is...
"What are you talking about?" she asked warily, getting to her feet slowly. A cold wind brushed by. A warning, from her. Shadow didn't faze, but glided closer ghostly.
"You failed the mission you were born for," it snarled, voice like liquid fire. Cheri's jaw clenched, hands balling into fists ready to fight.
"What are you saying?" The girl looked at the shadow from under her brows, shoulders squared and feet planted firmly in the sand.
"That you failed!" it yelled, the sound resonating around them. Cheri's warning wind turned to harsh gusts.
"Who are you to tell me what I failed!?" she yelled back. "I saved Henry! Prevented Pan from getting a heart as best as I could. Not my fault I drank magical waters and couldn't follow him recently!"
"No!" Shadow screamed, the sound sounding much like a horrified screeching. "You failed! You didn't kill Pan!"
Cheri huffed. She herself didn't know where that amount of confidence came from. Maybe she was tired of crying and being afraid. Maybe she was tired of running. "That wasn't the plan," she grumbled back. Her face hardened. "The plan was to undo Pan. Doesn't mean I had to kill him."
Silence. Shadow hovered over the sand, yellow glowing eyes boring onto Cheri. It would be easier to decode Shadow if he had a face. Cheri felt at the same time vulnerable and fearless. "Pan was to die," it finally snarled. "That was the prophesy."
"Why do you want Pan dead?" Cheri challenged, stepping closer.
Yes, wheel this against him.
Cheri's game was beginning to form. A mind game. Inspired by Pan.
"That's beyond the point!" Shadow defended. "Pan was to die. The prophet said so!" Cheri laughed, finding it so weird that she was able to perform such a sound. It had been a long time. But with her recent openness to Pan and his confession, she felt remotely better.
"You want Pan dead," Cheri pointed out. "Why? He created you. You're his."
"Oh, child," it almost cooed back. Cheri frowned. "You know so little."
No, don't let him turn this on you!
"I'm not Pan's shadow," it admitted. Cheri repressed a gasp.
"But-"
"Pan's shadow is just another entity haunting this place," Shadow explained, his tone cruel and dark. "I'm my own self. I was here before him. I'm the rightful owner of Neverland. Peter Pan," he spat, "is nothing but an amateur."
"But..." the words collided in her head. So many questions. "But where is his shadow then?"
If Shadow had eyes, he would roll them. "Somewhere, I don't know," it shrugged. Cheri started piecing it together.
"You want Pan dead because he took your place?" she asked, somewhat ridiculed.
"I made him young," Shadow spat. "I'm the one who permitted he have immortality and eternal youth. Until he broke the hourglass curse, he had a deadline. He would have been dead by now. If it wasn't for your failure."
Cheri stopped breathing. "You've wanted him dead for a long time," she said, more to herself than to Shadow.
"He's out of place!" it exclaimed. Cheri frowned, put out of line.
Wait a minute.
"His presence makes this island sick!" Shadow went on ranting. "He's an unbalance. A rotten fruit among ripe ones!"
That's where he was wrong. All this time spent on Neverland and Cheri hadn't seen Pan be at odds with the island. Never. Pan was what made it alive, made it young. He was in tuned with it. He knew more about the island than he knew about himself. Not once was Pan a rotten fruit among ripe ones. He was the king, he was the ruler. He belonged. He made the balance.
Shadow was so wrong.
"You're wrong," Cheri announced. Shadow recoiled, offended. "You don't want Pan dead because he's 'out of place'," she said. "You want him dead because he's come to overpower you on the island. Because he's stronger than you, has a stronger pull and hold on the island than you." She looked up straight into his yellow eyes daringly. "Because he's come to own the island. Because he's taken it away from you so effortlessly, without even lifting a finger. It practically offered itself to him. And you were left with nothing."
She should of remained silent.
Peter knew something was wrong the moment a cold wind brushed against the base of his neck. He should of turned around immediately, but he was too dumbstruck. His girl had finally come around. Finally! The feeling was too overpowering to notice anything out of place around him.
However, the moment the cold wind bashed against him, he knew something was off. He turned abruptly and frowned. His ears strained for any noise, but only came up with the whistling of the wind. He felt it. Since he was in tuned with the island, he felt the error.
He stepped towards the beach, pushing aside foliage as the crystalline waters came visible through the canopy of leaves. He heard something buzz behind the trees, felt it in his bones too. Although the light of day had slowly dissipated, there was still remnants of sun on the horizon. Shadows all around him bled into one another, casting on the sand and ground.
With a frown, he slowly pushed aside the last jungle leaf that blocked his view of the beach.
Shadow floated inches away from Cheri, the emptiness of it's being almost camouflaging into the air. At first, Peter was confused. Why would Shadow talk to Cheri? Then, as Peter felt the erroneous buzz in his bones, his eyes fell upon Shadow's outstretched hand.
Was that a...
Before Cheri knew what was going on, Shadow had shoved his gooey body in front of her. He was cold and felt like soap dripping down a wet body. Or like snakes gliding over skin. Maybe more like mud showering over you. A growl ripped through the air, echoing loudly in her ears. Something icy plunged into her chest. Pain? No, wait, it had fingers. It clawed around her rib cage, groping with it's frigid hands.
Cheri's mouth fell open, a squeal of pain squeezing through her throat. A frown knitted her brows as she felt the wind being knocked out of her. Shadow's yellow, ghostly eyes seemed to squint as the cold hand in her chest moved, stirring organs inside her.
As Cheri looked down, she saw Shadows hand dug inches deep in her chest.
Fear exploded through her like a tidal wave of cold water falling over her. Her heart drummed dramatically against her breast bone, beating against the cold hand that slowly wrapped around it.
No!
Pain and fear mixed in her chest, burning like liquid fire. The girl's eyes didn't disconnect from Shadow's hand as it slowly emerged from her body, holding a red, throbbing heart. Her frantic eyes followed his hand, where he held the reddest heart he'd ever seen inches from his face. His yellow eyes widened, as Cheri felt tears roll down her cheeks. "Red," it said, the sound like a whisper. "The bravest heart. Almost as pure as Snow White's."
"W-what?" the girl stuttered, feeling oozy and out of place. Her heart was outside of her fucking body! She felt nauseated, like she'd been spun in circles all day.
"I guess I'll have to take matters into my own hands, then," it said, shrugging smugly.
Was that a heart?
"No!" Peter dashed through the sand, some of it flying behind his heels. Fear ripped through his body like it had never done before. It sizzled in his blood as he had only eyes for the reddest heart he'd ever seen in the hands of the darkest soul he'd ever met. Darker than his.
His own heart beat erratically against his rib cage. His vision shrunk to a terrifying tunnel. His hearing was only the beating of her heart. His breathing stopped. Time slowed.
Why? Why did this have to happen just as things were about to get better?
His feet weren't fast enough. His screams were in vain. Her eyes were too glassy.
Why? Why did such a brave heart have to been smashed to ashes?
Despite the tears and the magic he propelled, he wasn't fast enough. Despite the fireball he killed Shadow with, he wasn't fast enough. A squeal ripped through the air after Shadow's death. A thud echoed on the shore banks as her body fell to the sand.
Why? Why had they come all this way, for such a brutal end?
His yell rang through the whole of Neverland. The heart of Neverland itself heard it. The yell bounced off everything, creating waves of misery. Dark clouds thundered overhead as rain drizzled in sizzling hot drops.
Peter fell to his knees beside her body, hot tears streaming down his cheeks. "No, no, no," he moaned, hands trembling over her still form. His body was trembling all over. He couldn't believe it. He wouldn't believe it.
Why? Why did she have to die?
Dun dun dunnnnnnnnnnn... I told you Bublee90; you'd need that Beethoven song for this...
So yeah. Be mad, scream at me in the review box. But don't you go worryin' now. A next chapter will be posted soon :D Be patient, things always end well... most of the time anyway ;)
Song for this chapter: Ordinary Love by U2
See ya next onee ;) hopefully. If u still love me...
