Maggie wasn't sure what had awoken her but, when her eyes snapped
open, she realized she could no longer feel the breeze upon her face. Had
the window been shut? All she could see was darkness; she rolled over onto
her side.
The floor creaked. "David!" Maggie hissed in to the darkness, squinting against it and trying to pin down her brother with her eyes. "Why are you out of bed?"
There was a moan from across the room, completely in a different direction of the creak, in the direction of David's bed. "Uhnn, I am in bed." he muttered, rolling over. "Go sleep now."
The girl flipped over onto her back and looked up where she knew the ceiling was, concentrating on slowing her breathing. She wished desperately for the nightlight that she had seen in a drugstore the other day; the darkness, the real side of the Neverland, was beginning to scare her now. Swordfights and attacking braves danced across her mind and they seemed all too real and threatening at night. She closed her eyes and drew a large breath, letting it out slowly.
From across the room, cloaked by the darkness, a boy stood, regarding her with a curious expression. These were the children his father had sent him to find? For one thing, they lived in an apartment that had been nearly impossible to find, tucked away behind the other houses as it was. For another, these children seemed content enough where they were. But why did they not have nightlights twinkling on and off? Were they not afraid of the dark? The boy's face darkened slightly in doubt. It was common knowledge that children who were not afraid of the dark were not near as imaginative as those that were, and those children most certainly would not be able to reach the Neverland. But these children. they seemed much too young to be so secure in dark places; perhaps their nightlights had just gotten tired of winking across the room at them and had gone out. Confident again, the boy advanced towards the girl's bed, the one that had spoken out in fright.
Maggie was trying hard to go back to sleep; she had been having a wonderful dream filled with mermaids and flying circles around a lagoon that was full of mystery and delight, and she dearly wished to return to it. There was another creak, this one softer but closer to her bed. She opened her eyes with a start and moved to cry out; she was looking into the eyes of somebody else!
A hand clapped over her mouth. "Shh," a voice whispered in her ear. "My name is Percy Pan." He let go of her and backed away to the foot of her bed; she sat up and could hardly see him now.
"Percy Pan?" she whispered in response, rubbing her eyes and wishing she could study him better. "I have not heard of you; I have heard of one called Peter Pan, though," she added, almost wistfully, as though somewhere in her heart hoping that this strange boy might be him. She did not think it at all odd that he had climbed through the window and was now alighting upon her bed; in fact, it seemed rather funny to her, that a boy would find his way into this room in the middle of the night, in time to steal away her fears. "But Peter would not come here," she said grudgingly, when the boy only stared at her and did not make a reply. "He would not be able to find us here, we aren't even located on the street and we have no sure address, simply the box down the street that Mother visits when she picks up the bills. And we are isolated from all the other children, the children who must also know such wonderful stories as Mother about Peter and his great adventures, and who must also have been to such a magical place as the Neverland."
"Peter Pan, not able to find someone that believes in him?" Percy let out a carefree chuckle that revealed his youth even more; only children were able to laugh like that, without any worry from the world pressing down upon them and smothering their happiness. "Dear girl, what gives you that idea? Pan can find anybody he likes, and so can I! I found you, didn't I?" And he seemed quite pleased with himself about it, too.
She shrugged. "So why are you here, then?"
"I'm Peter Pan's son and we-"
"What?" she asked, certain that her ears had deceived her.
He stopped, then began again impatiently, "I'm Peter Pan's son, and we-"
"No, no, I heard you. I don't believe it! Peter Pan has a son?"
Percy huffed impatiently and disappeared. Well, he did not really disappear, but he was gone in a moment from the dark spot that Maggie had been watching, and she could not follow his path without the aid of a nightlight. "Yes, Peter has a son; you knew he left Neverland; of course you did. And he married Wendy, my mother, and they had my sister Mary, and then me. But Mary is grown up now, and she cannot find the way to Neverland." He was speaking from directly above her, and when she flipped onto her back, she could see his dark shadow floating above her.
Filled with excitement, Maggie whispered, "And are we going to go to Neverland? Oh, can we please, Percy? I would dearly love to see it!"
Percy sighed deeply. "That's just it, Maggie; we can't go there. The Neverland. it's lost."
The floor creaked. "David!" Maggie hissed in to the darkness, squinting against it and trying to pin down her brother with her eyes. "Why are you out of bed?"
There was a moan from across the room, completely in a different direction of the creak, in the direction of David's bed. "Uhnn, I am in bed." he muttered, rolling over. "Go sleep now."
The girl flipped over onto her back and looked up where she knew the ceiling was, concentrating on slowing her breathing. She wished desperately for the nightlight that she had seen in a drugstore the other day; the darkness, the real side of the Neverland, was beginning to scare her now. Swordfights and attacking braves danced across her mind and they seemed all too real and threatening at night. She closed her eyes and drew a large breath, letting it out slowly.
From across the room, cloaked by the darkness, a boy stood, regarding her with a curious expression. These were the children his father had sent him to find? For one thing, they lived in an apartment that had been nearly impossible to find, tucked away behind the other houses as it was. For another, these children seemed content enough where they were. But why did they not have nightlights twinkling on and off? Were they not afraid of the dark? The boy's face darkened slightly in doubt. It was common knowledge that children who were not afraid of the dark were not near as imaginative as those that were, and those children most certainly would not be able to reach the Neverland. But these children. they seemed much too young to be so secure in dark places; perhaps their nightlights had just gotten tired of winking across the room at them and had gone out. Confident again, the boy advanced towards the girl's bed, the one that had spoken out in fright.
Maggie was trying hard to go back to sleep; she had been having a wonderful dream filled with mermaids and flying circles around a lagoon that was full of mystery and delight, and she dearly wished to return to it. There was another creak, this one softer but closer to her bed. She opened her eyes with a start and moved to cry out; she was looking into the eyes of somebody else!
A hand clapped over her mouth. "Shh," a voice whispered in her ear. "My name is Percy Pan." He let go of her and backed away to the foot of her bed; she sat up and could hardly see him now.
"Percy Pan?" she whispered in response, rubbing her eyes and wishing she could study him better. "I have not heard of you; I have heard of one called Peter Pan, though," she added, almost wistfully, as though somewhere in her heart hoping that this strange boy might be him. She did not think it at all odd that he had climbed through the window and was now alighting upon her bed; in fact, it seemed rather funny to her, that a boy would find his way into this room in the middle of the night, in time to steal away her fears. "But Peter would not come here," she said grudgingly, when the boy only stared at her and did not make a reply. "He would not be able to find us here, we aren't even located on the street and we have no sure address, simply the box down the street that Mother visits when she picks up the bills. And we are isolated from all the other children, the children who must also know such wonderful stories as Mother about Peter and his great adventures, and who must also have been to such a magical place as the Neverland."
"Peter Pan, not able to find someone that believes in him?" Percy let out a carefree chuckle that revealed his youth even more; only children were able to laugh like that, without any worry from the world pressing down upon them and smothering their happiness. "Dear girl, what gives you that idea? Pan can find anybody he likes, and so can I! I found you, didn't I?" And he seemed quite pleased with himself about it, too.
She shrugged. "So why are you here, then?"
"I'm Peter Pan's son and we-"
"What?" she asked, certain that her ears had deceived her.
He stopped, then began again impatiently, "I'm Peter Pan's son, and we-"
"No, no, I heard you. I don't believe it! Peter Pan has a son?"
Percy huffed impatiently and disappeared. Well, he did not really disappear, but he was gone in a moment from the dark spot that Maggie had been watching, and she could not follow his path without the aid of a nightlight. "Yes, Peter has a son; you knew he left Neverland; of course you did. And he married Wendy, my mother, and they had my sister Mary, and then me. But Mary is grown up now, and she cannot find the way to Neverland." He was speaking from directly above her, and when she flipped onto her back, she could see his dark shadow floating above her.
Filled with excitement, Maggie whispered, "And are we going to go to Neverland? Oh, can we please, Percy? I would dearly love to see it!"
Percy sighed deeply. "That's just it, Maggie; we can't go there. The Neverland. it's lost."