Peter and Wendy

By: June Goddess

Chapter One - The Kiss

Wendy sighed happily as she finished making the noontime meal for herself and Peter. She set the table quickly, and made her way to the 'door' of their little house. Peter said it was 'hers,' but she thought of it as 'theirs' instead.

It was positively beautiful outside! Sunlight dappled the forest floor through the canopy above, and the quiet murmuring of the inhabitants of the forest filled the air with a lulling music. And Peter Pan was in the center of it all.

Wendy's brow furrowed as she contemplated the boy who lay on the ground, staring through the trees. He had been strangely silent and introspective during this visit. It was as though he were puzzling over something of great importance in his mind. Well, whatever it was could wait. It was time to eat, and Peter needed some nourishment.

"Oh, Peter!" Wendy called. The boy turned around, an inquisitive look on his face.

"Yeah, Wendy? What is it?" Peter shouted back.

"It's time for lunch," she called back in a sing-song voice.

"Oh." For a moment he was nonplussed. His eyes were silently serious, making him seem out of place. Such an expression did not belong on a boy whose time was spent laughing in the face of danger-filled daring adventures. In the next instant, though, it was as if a cloud lifted itself, and Peter was smiling gaily as he bounded over to her side.

She sighed in exasperation. "Oh, Peter," she mumbled.

"Oh, Peter," Wendy sighed in her sleep.

"Oh, Peter," a boy mimicked, bringing Wendy out of her slumber.

The young woman's eyes blinked half-open in confusion. Her brow furrowed as recognition slowly came back. Remembering the voice that had awoken her, she bolted upright and looked to either side of her.

"Michael!" she growled.

Michael, used to his eldest sibling's grumpiness in the mornings, just smiled cheekily. "'Mornin' Wendy!" he chirped. Unlike his sister, he had been up and about since before the sun. All of a sudden, he grinned slyly. "What were ya dreamin' about?" He paused. "Peter?"

"Oh!" Wendy was definitely awake now. She grabbed for the pillow behind her.

Michael, sensing her next move, made for the door. The pillow made contact just as the door shut, muffling the boy's teasing laughter.

Alone again, Wendy sighed deeply and shut her eyes. With her arms beneath her head, she lay back and stared at the ceiling, without seeing it. Her dream replayed itself in her mind like a favorite record, and tears welled up in her eyes. She missed Peter quite desperately. She hadn't seen him in four years.

Four years! she thought a bit angrily, her tears drying up instantly. What could be keeping him away? Had he-? No. He couldn't. It was unthinkable. Right? After all, Peter couldn't have forgotten her. He just couldn't have!

With another deep sigh, she chased away thoughts of him and climbed out of bed. She went to her bedroom door and knelt down to sweep up the pillow she had thrown. She tossed it onto her bed as she made her way to her bureau, which stood across the room from her bed.

She quickly donned a skirt and blouse set that was her favorite. The long skirt was navy blue and the long-sleeved blouse a pale ice-blue. She then fastened a sapphire broach to the top of her high-necked blouse. Thinking quickly, she rummaged in a little box of ribbons. Pulling out one that matched her blouse, she loosely tied her hair into a bow at the nape of her neck.

After grabbing a shawl, she made her way to the dining room. She ate some fruit while speaking to her mother, who seemed in good spirits. When she asked on impulse to go on a solitary walk in the park, however, Mrs. Darling adamantly refused.

She worried that someone would try to kidnap Wendy, or hurt her in some fashion. After assuring her mother that taking a walk by herself was safer than her mother assumed, she made her way out the door. If anyone even so much as attempted to harm her though, she promised she would let loose a scream so ghastly it would bring every man on police duty. Feeling somewhat hesitantly convinced, Mrs. Darling allowed the excursion. And so Wendy left, promising to be back for lunch.

The day was perfect for strolling in the beautiful Kensington Gardens. Soon it would be too chilly to go about without some covering. The Gardens were really eye-pleasing. There were lovely roses and violets and forget-me-nots. Such beauty surrounded Wendy.

Even so, she didn't care. She was thinking of Peter Pan. She often thought of Peter. To this day, she still recalled every nuance of his ageless boy's features. Then his triumphant crow would ring in her ears, or she would see his wide, happy smile in her mind's eye, and all her doubts would wash away.

Wendy was so involved in her thoughts she bumped into someone on the path. A startled "Oh!" escaped her lips, while a slight grunt was issued from the young man with whom she had collided.

"My apologies, sir!" she cried, in hopes that she had not offended him. There was no need to worry, though. The young man was already a good ten feet down the path. "Sir!" she called, vaguely annoyed.

The man cast a half-glance back at her. "Don't worry!" he called back. "You're forgiven!"

Wendy watched with a dazed expression as he hurried along the path and turned the corner. Indignation quickly chased away her dazed look. "Well, I never!" she muttered. How rude! The incident was partially his fault, after all. He should have also apologized, she thought angrily.

The anger was slow to drain out of her, but drain away it did. She spotted a bench ou of the corner of her eye and made her way to it, putting the rude man quite out of her mind. She had been walking quite a bit, and her fast-changing emotions had left her a bit tired. After sitting down, she looked at her surroundings.

Her curiosity was piqued when something glinted in the grass next to a large tree. Naturally, she decided to investigate. Kneeling down, she took a closer look at the small object. A sharp gasp exploded from her lungs. The object in the grass was familiar. Very familiar.

It was the thimble she had given Peter when they had first met.

It was their first 'kiss.'