A/N: Greetings! So, finals week is finally over and it is Christmas break y'all! I'm really excited to have some time to relax and write! I'm glad that I managed to finish this chapter tonight as well. Hope y'all enjoy it!
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Margaret tapped her finger on her chest as she laid in bed during the waning hours of the night. Everyone else was fast asleep in their hammocks, the gentle snores of the Lost Boys affirming her the fact. She even dared to crane her head slightly to see Peter passed out in his own hammock, a rare sight for her to see.
The reason for her state of alertness had to do with her flying lesson. She'd never felt such elation in her life. The breathless ecstasy of flying in the air made her heart pound. The kiss of the wind on her cheeks, her hair flowing behind her. The tingling feeling that spread throughout her body like a ferocious wildfire. Margaret had never felt so alive.
But, well she wasn't entirely being truthful with herself. The flying lesson was part of the reason why, but only part. Vivid images flashed across her vision. Her falling from the sky, Pete racing toward her, his strong grip enveloping her form. Their faces hovering inches apart.
Margaret widened her eyes as she shook her head, trying to dispel those thoughts from her head. Her breathing became shallow as panic shot through her. Why was she so fixated on what happened? From what she could tell Peter felt just as awkwardly as she did. She should just forget about it and move on. Why wouldn't her mind let her?
Margaret sighed, turning over to her side, closing her eyes. After some internal struggle, her body became heavy as she finally fell asleep.
!
"I think that's enough for today," Peter said, sliding his dagger into its sheath on his belt. Margaret nodded as she wiped some of the sweat from her forehead. The humidity was particularly punishing that day, the water practically suffocating Margaret as she worked to inhale through labored breathing. "You're pretty good at fighting for a beginner," Peter complimented.
"Oh, I'm certain you are simply trying to feather my confidence; however, I do appreciate your words nonetheless," Margaret replied with a blush. She put the dagger that Peter gave at the beginning of the lesson into its sheath, which was connected to a thin belt that she slid over her head, bringing it down to rest on her hip.
They had covered a variety of material in their first dagger lesson, and Margaret was confident in a few basic maneuvers. Time would tell whether these skills would prove useful, but it never hurt to be prepared. She hoped she wouldn't find herself in a scenario where she would have those skills required of her.
Peter and Margaret walked into Hangman's Tree, which was deserted as all of the Lost Boys had assumed their lookout posts. Margaret plopped down at the table as Peter chose to sit on the cupboards. He studied Margaret for a minute as she fiddled with her hair a little bit.
"You know, you remind me of Jane."
Margaret froze as her hand remained entangled in her hair, which had been pulled up with a blue ribbon. She dropped her hand, allowing her hair to fall in an attractive cascade that made Peter do a doubletake.
"Oh, how so?" She inquired as she worked with the ribbon once again to prepare to put her hair back up. Margaret attempted to assume an air of amusement, but a deep well of emotional pain and longing had been touched, albeit unintentionally by Peter.
"You both act very grownup, and pretend to be practical," Peter told her as he looked over at her in slight awe of her appearance.
"'Pretend to be practical'? I am practical!" Margaret replied in confused amusement as she chuckled.
"You like to make yourself appear so much more grownup than you actually are. Or, it's more that you pretend to want to be grownup," Peter explained to her.
"I wouldn't go so far as to assume that, Peter. But…" Margaret bit her lip. Maybe in some ways he was right, but she was entirely unprepared to delve into this particular topic of conversation. Unless he wanted a garish answer, she would need to have some more time before she would be able to give a better response. "Ahem, so how is Tinkerbell? I haven't seen her lately," Margaret noted.
"Oh, Tink? She's…well she's angry at me again," Peter replied with a smirk as he uncertainly rubbed the back of his neck.
"What infraction have you committed this time?"
"I have no idea, I'm serious! She's been really angry," Peter told her, a look of bewilderment tinting his face. Margaret scanned him with an amused but skeptical look. This only seemed to further distress Peter. "Hey, have I ever lied to you?"
"I'm not saying you're lying. I'm not saying anything, really," Margaret replied with a shrug. Peter sighed as he leaned against the wall.
"PETER!" A young voice shouted. Peter shot up from the cupboard as Margaret jumped from her seat. The two of them ran outside of the tree as Tootles ran into the clearing, panting from a likely long and perilous run. "The other Lost Boys are in trouble! We need your help!"
Peter nodded sharply before preparing to fly. Margaret caught his arm before he could. "Peter, are you sure about this? What if Captain Hook is trying to lure you into a trap?" She asked him anxiously.
"Margaret, I'll be fine," Peter said in a soothing voice. As much as Margaret attempted to mask it, fear buried into her eyes as she stepped back. Peter watched her for a moment, a strange expression coming over his own eyes. Then, in the blink of an eye, Peter disappeared into the sky. Tootles stuck by Margaret as he ushered her inside the tree. However, her feet remained planted on the ground as she felt her heart pound in worry.
Margaret allowed Tootles to grab her arm and tow her inside, where he made her sit on her bed before running outside. Margaret ran to peek outside of the window hole in the tree to watch him disappear into the brush. She nervously wrought her hands together as she fretted over what to do. What could she do?
"Use your brain, don't be daft Margaret!" She chided. Her extreme inexperience with her dagger made it highly unwise to pursue the pirates. More than likely she would find herself dead. But she couldn't just stay here and wait for them to get back, either. She scanned the tree frantically and caught sight of a familiar pouch sitting on one of the ledges in the tree. Margaret sprang across the room to grab hold of it. She opened it slightly to see pixie dust glowing in it.
Margaret cast a glance toward the door. Could she dare to do it? She was also incredibly inexperienced at flying, but she wondered if she could distract the pirates. That could buy the Lost Boys and Peter some time.
However, wouldn't it be just as foolish as trying to rush into battle wielding her dagger? Her conflict stirred within her as the anxious seconds ticked by. Adrenaline rushed through her veins as a resolve rose within her. With a nod of finality, she snatched the pouch and sprinted out of the tree while pouring some of the dust onto her palm. She dropped the pouch on the floor as she exited the tree and tossed the dust onto her face as she gave herself a running start. She concentrated on her memory of the stories and before she knew it, she was rocketing through the air. Margaret took a moment to circle above the tree line that covered the clearing and began to follow the desperate shouts that she heard in the distance.
Her heart began to beat in her ears as she neared the location of the skirmish. The frantic calls of the Lost Boys rang clear as they echoed in the air. With a shaky exhale Margaret plunged through the trees and into the heart of the jungle as she sped past the overgrown vegetation.
The first person that Margaret saw was Tootles, who worked on supplying rocks and other materials to the older Lost Boys. Flashes of a familiar green figure alerted Margaret to Peter's presence with the others as they fought against a small band of rugged pirates, no doubt under the command of Captain Hook. Margaret hid behind one of the trees as she remained floating in the air, making certain to concentrate on keeping herself flying. She peered from the side to gather a reading of the situation.
There were about 15 pirates swarming the scene as far as she could tell. No doubt if they had any ounce of sense reinforcements would be coming soon. And while for a brief second she questioned why the Lost Boys weren't running back home, she realized they wanted to avoid leading them to the hideout. They needed to find a way to get away without a trace.
"AHHH!" A loud screech echoed. Margaret looked on in horror as Peter fell to the ground as he shouted in pain. Slightly grabbed Peter and dragged him behind the rest of the Lost Boys as they all shouted his name. A chill ran down Margaret's back. She couldn't wait, she needed to act now. Without another moment of hesitation Margaret pushed herself from the tree and rocketed behind the pirates, landing on the ground.
"HEY!" She shouted, grabbing the attention of everyone. The pirates all turned around to look at Margaret as the Lost Boys looked over in confusion.
"MARGARET!" Tootles screamed. The Lost Boys all began to shout at her, but Margaret couldn't make out what they were saying. The pirates caught on to the identity of the individual they were looking at.
"IT'S THE GIRL! GET HER!" The leader of the band shouted. Margaret turned around and began to sprint for her life into the depths of the jungle. She glanced behind to see the entire band of pirates chasing after her. Her expression paled as she realized that they were going to reach her soon. She wanted to fly away, but the stress of the situation before made her unable to recall any happy thoughts. Margaret was glued to the ground.
This was not good.
Margaret panted as she ran aimlessly through Neverland, the shouts of the pirates never far behind her. Her legs quickly turned to weights as she realized the extent of her lack of athleticism.
Margaret tripped over the root of a tree. She faceplanted, a small layer of dirt covering her face as she scrambled to get up. The sound of footsteps arrived near her as she flipped over and began to crawl away frantically from the pirate that was about to attempt to get her. He gave her an awful grin as he approached her before grabbing hold of her ankle. Margaret allowed herself to give the pirate and instinctual kick in the face, knocking over the pirate and freeing her from his grasp. She jumped up from the ground and resumed her run, trying to make up for the precious time she lost.
Along with the fatigue that settled in her legs, her threatened to give up on her. Her labored breathing drew away the energy she was using to continue sprinting across Neverland. She was running out of time. In desperation she tried think of happy thoughts, but once again she failed.
The loud sound of rushing water became evident as Margaret continued to run. She was nearing the waterfall. The pirates drew closer to her as she spotted a few of them running after her from a few trees away. With what little energy she had left, she pushed even harder toward the waterfall.
"THERE SHE IS! DON'T LET HER OUT OF YOUR SIGHT!" One of the pirates screamed in command. Margaret felt her heart beat in her like the pounding drums of death. She became in tune with her breathing as she ran, losing all sense of the other audible stimuli around her. She looked ahead, and saw the opening where the jungle ended abruptly by the cliff.
The pirates closed in around her as they flanked her on each side. Margaret, despite the screaming pain in her lungs and legs, didn't falter in her frantic pace. Margaret burst past the final gap of vegetation. She reached the edge of the cliff.
She jumped.