Disclaimer:

This is my disclaimer, dear,

I really have to put it here.

I state that nothing here is mine,

'cept for the plot and this rhyme.

J. M. Barrie is the one and only,

Without his stories we'd be lonely.

Thanks for creating Peter Pan

And I hope that here I can,

Write about him and his mates,

So let's open up the gates

And read about our heroes' fates.

Author's Note: This chapter was really hard to write and it took me some time to get it out…I'm sorry you had to wait, but from now on things will run smoothly and I will get out the next chapter as soon as possible.

I got a few really nice reviews and I hope that I get even more for this chapter…I try to make them longer and more interesting and to put loads of action in them…the romance-smut bit will come in the next chapter, or the one after that. We'll see. Keep the reviews coming, I love them. By the way, do you like my disclaimers?

SHOW ME HEAVEN

Chapter 4

The Neverbird

Wendy Darling was standing at the cabin windows, looking outside and watching the sun set. She had been caught by pirates and now she had to find a way to get away from them. Them and Peter. She had thought about jumping out of the window, but she was more likely to be drowned by a mermaid or eaten by the crocodile than ever reaching the shore alive. She had tried to fly, but the pixie dust Jaz had given her had only lasted for the journey to the island, now, even with the happiest thoughts, she wouldn't do anything but slightly hover over the floor. Of course, she did have a dagger to defend herself since Peter had accidentally left his behind in the cabin, however, there were several dozen pirates on board and she would hardly be able to sneak on deck without anybody seeing her. There was no way she could defend herself against a bunch of trained, fully armed men.

Things didn't look too good for her. Wendy knew it and she was running out of time. It was getting darker and darker by the minute and the island wasn't a place where one should go out on his own at night. The strangest beasts and creatures roomed the forest and would kill anything and anyone unfortunate enough to cross their path. She couldn't possibly risk to flee tonight, she would have to wait for the next morning. After all, even pirates would need a good night's sleep sooner or later and she might be able to tiptoe past them, while they would be snoring peacefully in their bunks.

Of course, there was Jaz, but she wouldn't rely on him. Firstly, he probably didn't even know that she was held captive by the pirates and, secondly, he almost certainly wouldn't even remember that she existed at all.

For now, all she could do was sit down and wait. She only hoped that Peter wouldn't come back tonight. After all, Wendy knew a thing or two about pirates, and usually they didn't treat their female prisoners very well. Nor the male ones for that matter, but there were things they could do to her that they wouldn't do to men and the mere thought of it made her shiver.

Peter. If anybody had told her that once she would fear him and wish she had never met him, she would have laughed at them. Peter, her Peter, he was her hero and would never hurt her. But this strange, nearly grown-up person wasn't her Peter anymore. Her Peter wasn't a pirate. Her grip around the dagger tightened so that her knuckles turned white. Quietly, she walked back to her armchair and sat down. The fire crackled happily in it's grate and it's seemed to laugh at her misery.

Wendy jumped as suddenly someone knocked gently at the door. Hurriedly she got up and hiding the dagger behind her back, watched the door with bated breath. Slowly, it creaked open.

In came none other than Smee, carefully balancing a tray with a steaming cup of tea and a plate of food on it.

"Aye, Miss, the Captain ordered me to get you your tea. He was sure you'd be hungry." His eyes twinkled and he smiled at her good-naturedly.

"Oh, thank you. How…thoughtful of him." Wendy said her anxiety clearly audible in her voice.

Throwing another curious glance at her, Smee sat the try down on the desk in the middle of the room and then turned towards her. "Is there anything else, I can get you, Miss? A ship really isn't the place for a young lady and you might want something particular to make yourself comfortable."

"Well, then why don't you ask your Captain to let me go? I have certainly no desire to stay here on my own free will."

Smee just sighed and shook his head. Again he turned and this time, he walked towards the door.

"Smee, do you…has Peter always been the Captain of this ship?" The question came out of the blue and as soon as it was out, Wendy clamped her hand over her mouth, astonished that she had actually asked him.

"Why, of course Miss. He's been the Captain of the Jolly Roger for as long as I can remember." He answered with a frown.

"And…have you ever seen me before? Do I look familiar?"

At this, he seemed to study her face intently for a few seconds, and Wendy hoped instantly that the old pirate might remember her, but after a while, he shook his head. Judging by his looks, he obviously thought Wendy had gone crazy.

"No, Miss, I've never seen you before." That said, he hurried out of the cabin and firmly closed the door behind him.

Miserably, Wendy went over to the desk. Peter had been right, she was indeed hungry and the bread just looked too good to be left behind. It was then that Wendy heard another soft knocking noise. Her eyes flew to the door, anxious to see who would come in now and some tiny part of her was still hoping it would be Peter telling her that he had only been joking and that, of course, he did remember her.

But the noise didn't come from the door. Instead, it seemed to come from the windows.

Curiously, Wendy put her half-finished slice of bread back on the plate and walked towards the windowpanes. The windows were barred, but she could open them easily. Outside, there was nothing but darkness. Slowly, her eyes adjusted to the dim moonlight. She could still hear the faint tapping noise and looking down, she could see a gigantic bird's nest, gently knocking against the ship's hull as the waves carried it towards it again and again.

Wendy had never seen as big a nest before in her life. It floated on the water quite steadily and seemed to be rather solid. Surely, it would be big enough to carry a human, Wendy thought. At least, it would be worth a try. She didn't have much time to think it over, or else an unfortunate current might literally take away her only chance to flee from the vessel. Clutching her dagger as tightly as before in her left hand, she climbed through the window and jumped. The thought of getting away from the pirates helped her soften and coordinate the fall and with only a little thud, she landed directly in the centre of the bird's nest. It kept floating steadily and using the dagger she pushed off from the ship. Luckily, it took only little paddling to get her into a nice current which would both carry her away from the Jolly Roger and towards the shore.

Now, I don't know if you have ever heard of Neverbirds before, but they are the most amazing birds one can imagine. They are huge, colourful fellows and every zoo would be delighted to get hold of one of them as they would be sure to attract hundreds of thousands of visitors. However, they are not only wonderful creatures to look at, they are also awfully over-protective parents. I'm not sure how it happened that one Neverbird's nest landed in the middle of the ocean instead of being build in the crown of the highest Nevertree found on the island, but fortunately for Wendy, it did and slowly, but surely her make-shift boat carried her towards the beach.

It wasn't until she heard the hoarse screech of the bird that Wendy noticed she had been watched ever since she had entered her float. The rightful owner of the nest was soaring right above her head. Wendy shrieked and protectively pointed the dagger at the animal flying in the nightly sky.

"Get – Out – Of – My – Home," the Neverbird screeched and darted at her. I'm sorry to say that it actually gave Wendy a warning, but human beings aren't very clever when it comes to talking to birds and even if Wendy had understood the order, she had nowhere to go. So, all she did was cowering low into the nest, making herself as flat as possible while at the same time trying to keep the bird in check with her weapon.

"Get – Out – Of – My – Home," the Neverbird repeated even more threateningly and this time it swooped down on Wendy and simply ripped the sword out of her hands. Wendy screamed with panic. Then, before she had the chance to see what was going on, the Neverbird dived straight at her, clawed its talons in her dress and heaved her out of the nest.

With a loud splash, Wendy was dropped into the cold water.

Naturally, the screams and shrieks on the water hadn't gone unnoticed by the pirates.

"Smee, what is going on?" Peter asked imperiously, his voice booming across the sea.

"Ah, it's just one of the Neverbirds again, Captain. Nothing to worry about."

And indeed, there was nothing to worry about. The Neverbird had once again occupied its nest and was quietly floating towards the shore. The surface of the water resembled a smooth black blanket and there was no proof of the incident that had happened only instants before.