Author's Note: Perhaps I should re-define a few things. Well, it's been brought to my attention that this story gives off the impression that it's based on the book. This person didn't exactly say that but they said enough. It's not based on the book. There we go. No more confusion. J Also, a comment has been made on how I've written that Ellie is spoiled and is used to getting her way and blah but she seems to "never get her way, and she seems to take it relatively easily" and "at this point in the story she's certainly not used to that." Well, I do remember mentioning that Ellie "displayed her haughty and rebellious nature." I also inferred that under certain circumstances, she wasn't aloud to act "haughty" or "rebellious" anymore. And, because of the way she treats Peter when she first meets him, it should be understood that she's not exactly a picnic. I really don't want to sound nasty, but all that I've said is how I've viewed it. I didn't think I needed to explain anything word for word to get my point across.
But, on a lighter note, I've been told that Ellie is not, I repeat not a Mary Sue and is likeable without having to be one. I'm glad. At least I've done something right.
And with this, I leave you to enjoy the story.
Only In Your Wildest Neverdreams
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Chapter Six
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"It's mine!"
"Mine!"
"Mine!"
"Stop it!" commanded Inks. He tore the doll from the two little girls' grasps and watched as one little girl's bottom lip began to quiver. "Look, Badge," he said to the younger girl, "if you're going to cry, then you won't have it." He looked at the other girl to show that his words applied to her also.
"She started it," mumbled the older girl.
"Oh, come on, Dodge. Do you really want to be playing with dolls anyways? I mean, there are much better things to do."
"Like what?" Her big green eyes watched him doubtfully while a pout played on her lips.
"Like…like helping Ta-Ta with her sewing."
Dodge's eyes lit up. "Yeah!" she ran off in search of the older girl.
Inks wanted to smile. He knew that would get her. He gave Ta-Ta a silent apology, knowing that Dodge would most likely be a bother to her. Kneeling in front of the younger girl, he said, "Here you go, Badge," and handed her the doll. Its button eye was hanging merely by a few strings and some of the stuffing could be seen, but she hugged it nonetheless.
"Thanks, Inks," she said, kissing him on the cheek and scurrying off. He rubbed his cheek with his palm and looked at it, smiling. Then, pocketing the kiss, he sighed inwardly and was thankful that the problem was solved.
It seemed like these little spats between the younger Lost Children only occurred when Peter left him in charge. He remembered when Peter had first brought the doll back from the Other World, saying that he had stolen it, and of course, it had been fought over. But the Children were good for Peter. It was not until he was gone that they began to act up. They loved Peter.
Oh, of course they liked Inks just fine, but there was something about the way they felt about Peter…Inks couldn't put his finger on it. He couldn't really characterize his exact feelings for Peter himself. But if he thought this way, then surely he was not the only one who did.
Perhaps he was. Inks was one of the oldest of the Lost Children; he was Peter's "right hand man." They had a long history together and he was not exactly sure how long he had know Peter for, for Neverland made it easy to forget. Of course, there were bits and pieces along the way that he did remember, but not the entire puzzle.
He could not even exactly remember how he had gotten his name; Inky, or Inks as everyone called him, was named by Tinkerbell—or was it Peter himself? He could not remember. But, the most logical thing that he could come up with was that when he had been found, there had been ink nearby. Otherwise, where else would a name such as "Inky" come from?
Then, there was that familiar feeling. The feeling that he felt whenever Peter was about to come home. Oh, he had learned to name this feeling because of the countless times that Peter had left him in charge when he wanted to be alone for a few days or went on his adventures around the island and such.
There it was, the jangling of bells—Tinkerbell. Over time, he had learned to understand Tinkerbell, as did the rest of the Lost Children. Now, she sounded excite. Almost…ecstatic. Yes, she definitely did sound ecstatic; he could tell just by her sound. Had he really been on the island long enough to be able to do that?
Opening the small door that led to the underground vertically, she flew down, saying in a singsong voice, "Peter wants you above ground," before going her own separate way.
He looked after her, curious as to what she was happy about, and then shrugged. Inks then climbed up the rope ladder and stuck his head above ground, looking around for Peter. He saw him a little ways a way, pacing, and then climbed out of the hole.
"Peter?" said Inks when he reached him. He looked down at the younger looking boy. It was true; Peter did indeed look younger than he and was even a bit shorter than him.
"Inky," he started. Inks's brow creased. Peter never called him Inky—only when he was upset, or in a hurry, or something of the sort. "Inky," he repeated. "Listen. I don't have much time. We don't have much time. You know why I went to the Other World—"
"No," Inks interrupted. "You never told me."
"Oh. Right…well, there is—was—is this girl, Ellie Rose. I was bringing her back with me to Neverland but…you must have seen how excited Tinkerbell was, right? Well…" he trailed off, placing his chin between his index finger and thumb.
Inks waited a moment, because he could see that Peter was thinking, before saying, "Well…"
"I've lost her."
Ellie was terrified. She was hungry, cold, and terrified. She looked around, hearing something. It sounded like a squeak. There it was! A mouse. She despised mice and let out a scream, flattening herself against the wall.
"'Ey! Girl, shut it!" shouted the man outside her cell.
She watched it crawl back into the crack that it had come from. Ellie chuckled to herself a bit. She was such a baby. She sunk down until she was sitting with her knees to her chest and felt hay underneath her.
Her cell was covered with hay. There was no light except through the bars on the wooden door's small square window. Her cell. What a strange phrase. She never would have thought that any of this would happen to her. Not in her wildest dreams.
Everything was just fine. Or so she thought. Why hadn't she just taken Peter's hand? There had been a fierce wind just as they had arrived to Neverland and he instructed her to take his hand. But of course, stubborn Ellie thought that she could handle herself.
It turned out that she couldn't. She did remember loosing sight of Peter but she could not quite remember what happened after that, only waking up in the woods. The Forest of Fog. That's where the boy had told her they were when she asked—demanded—to know. What an odd name for a forest. Well, the entire situation was odd.
The boy, along with an older man who had picked her up and would not set her down, had turned out to be pirates. Just her luck. Yes, this mouse-infested place was much better than living with her aunt. She rolled her eyes.
But that was the reason she was scared, not the reason that she was terrified. She had not met Hook yet and that was what she was terrified of. Ellie remembered him from the dream that she had. That's all she wanted from him: a memory. She did not want to meet him in person.
She coughed slightly. Her cold was coming back. She had been periodically coughing ever since she had gotten onto the ship. It was awful.
And where the hell was Peter? Wasn't it about time for him to come and save her? He had saved Wendy plenty of times. She was sure that she had read that somewhere. So wasn't it her turn to be saved?
The wooden door opened and in entered one of her kidnappers. It was the younger one.
He looked at her, amused. "Why do you look so afraid?"
Ellie just glared at him.
"Do you have a name, little one?"
"Little one?" Ellie repeated, annoyed.
"Well, mine is Oliver."
"Does it look like I care?"
"I never asked if you did. But, I'm the nicest there is. Once you get out there—"
"I'm not scared of anyone," said Ellie, standing up to face him. She almost backed down once she realized the drastic height difference. She saw Oliver smirk and gritted her teeth. It seemed that every time she answered him, he would smirk. She hated it.
He was handsome; she would give him that. He had hair the color of coals and bright blue eyes. In fact, they were staring at her right now with such forcefulness, that she almost backed down again.
Oliver looked down at the girl. She was scared; he could see it in her eyes. She was brave too, for she had not given into his gaze that he had used on others.
"I'm getting out of here."
Oliver said, "Oh, really now? And going where?"
Ellie almost did not say what she wanted to say; he had made her feel rather foolish. "Peter Pan is coming to save me," she said quietly.
The boy gave a small laugh. She did not sound so sure. "And when he does, I'll make sure to tell him that you said that right before he dies."
Ellie shuddered as he said those last words. She saw the hatred in his far away look.
After a moment of silence, he spoke. "Well, thank you, little girl, for making me laugh."
"I'm not a little girl," said Ellie, angry. When she saw Oliver smirk again, it took all her willpower to keep from elbowing him in the gut.
Wait. She did want to get out of here, didn't she? And the door was open…Before Oliver knew what happened, he was hunched over, clutching his stomach. Ellie gave his bottom a smart kick. "And I'm not a little girl!" she proclaimed before running out the door. She did not bother to remember how to get on deck; she just ran.
"'Ey, git back 'ere!" Ellie heard from behind her. Damn. She had forgotten that there was a pirate near her cell. Luckily, he was on the heavy side and could not catch up to her.
Looking from side to side, Ellie only saw other cell doors. Finally, she saw a set of stairs ahead that led to the main deck. Quickly, she ran up the wooden steps, only stumbling once. Her luck ran out when she reached the main deck.
She blindly ran on deck. At first, she went unnoticed but after a few moments, she attracted attention.
"Ain't that the girl the that Mason and the boy brought back from island duty?" Ellie heard while she was thinking of what to do. Everyone turned to look.
"Yeah, that's 'er."
"What's she doin' up 'ere?"
The pirates began to close in on her. Oh shit, thought Ellie as she turned around, nervously eyeing her predators.
"That's right, boys. Grab'r."
Ellie turned to look at where the voice had come from. It was Oliver; she had not even noticed him come on deck. But, what was that? Why did he sound different now? When he had been speaking to her, he had spoken with a polished British accent, but now—
"Take'r below," commanded Oliver.
"Why not 'ave a lit'l fun wit'r first?" suggested a grinning pirate with a yellow smile. He began to unbuckle his belt. Ellie backed away, disgusted.
Oliver's eyes flashed with angry. He walked across the deck, boots sounding noisily with each step, and did not stop until he was in front of Ellie. Then, he drew his pistol and shot the grinning pirate between the eyes.
Ellie's eyes widened as she peered from around Oliver.
"Throw 'im in the water," he growled silently.
"'Ey, boy, that's not for you to deci—"
The sound of Oliver shooting his pistol into the air cut off the speaking pirate. He watched silently as a few men began to pick up the body and throw him overboard, not bothering with the blood.
Oliver felt no remorse. How dare he suggest such a thing to do to a lady? "Are you alright?" he asked Ellie so that only she could hear, turning around and placing his hands on her shoulders.
She only nodded. It was the only thing she could think of doing. She was afraid to move and was still in shock from what she had just seen. How could be so swift to kill like that? With such ease?
"Good," murmured Oliver. "Take'r below," he called to the other men. All eyes were on him as he marched off.
The jingle jangle of little bells seemed to fill the air but appeared to be heard only by Ellie. Or perhaps only she noticed it because she was praying for her rescuer to come. Well, it was close enough to whom she was praying for and it would have to do.
It was Tinkerbell.
"Tinkerbell!" called Ellie, waving her hands. The fairy flew closer and closer. Oliver must have also heard her approaching, for he was by Ellie's side in an instant, sword drawn.
"Go ahead and try it, pixie devil!" he challenged, feeling the angry rush through his veins. Peter Pan's fairy would not take this girl. Especially not Peter Pan's fairy. Of course, if it were any other fairy, he would not be so quick to anger.
"Tinkerbell!" Ellie pleaded. She felt arms encircling her and did not even look to see whom it was. She was determined to be rescued. "Help me, Tinkerbell!" she called, reaching towards the sky. It was as if she reached high enough, she would instantly slip out of her capturer's arms and fly away.
But then the unthinkable happened. Tinkerbell circled around the ship and flew away. Just like that. And Ellie was not sure, but she thought that she could see a smile on the fairy's face.
Isn't Tinkerbell evil? Oh and please have a look at my stories, The Clandestine Book of Eye (Harry Potter) and Tonight, Tonight: A Vampyre Story (an original). It'd be much appreciated. Also, Catalina by Alison224. Thanks.
December 11, 2002
Copyright, theMuse