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Author's Note: From now on, I've got a wonderful, excellent beta-reader. Kris not only helps me to get out the chapters on time, but also helps me improve my writing. And you, my dear readers, are the ones who'll profit from that. J Thank you, Kris, for putting up with me.

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SHOW ME HEAVEN

Chapter 7

Hunting

He stood on deck, brooding. Four days had passed since the girl had fled from his ship and although he had sent his men out searching for her, there was no sign of the wench. His hands were clenched into fists, so tightly that the knuckles shown white through the skin. Peter didn't believe one word the girl had said. Not one. And yet, every morning when he got up and looked into the mirror, he thought that he looked different. Older. The changes were only vaguely visible, but they were there. A new wrinkle in the corner of his eye that he hadn't noticed the day before, a slight change in the way he walked and talked, a new memory that he had thought to have forgotten entirely.

He hated her. Once they had found her she would pay for defying him. No one dared to disobey his orders, not his men and certainly not a little girl.

It was time he took matters into his own hands.

"Smee!" he hollered across the deck.

"Aye, Captain?" The older man gasped, searching for air, since he had hurried to his Captain as fast as he could.

"Call all decks on hand, Smee. I want to go hunting."

"How do I get down?" Wendy asked Wiggy, looking at him with stormy blue eyes. Her cheeks were flushed and she was slightly out of breath. They had reached the tree trunk and unless she would start climbing she had nowhere else to go.

"Tickle the tree," was the boy's simple answer.

"Tickle the tree?"

He nodded and his gesture was affirmed by the others who stood behind her in a loose circle, watching her intently. Even Jenko seemed to pay attention for once and it seemed that even Brownie and Fozzy had forgotten to be afraid of her for the moment.

"Nothing else? I only have to tickle the tree?" Wendy repeated.

"Nothing else," Wiggy smirked, " you don't want to back out, do you?"

Wendy just glared at him. Taking a deep breath, she extended her hand and hesitantly started to run her fingertips over the rough bark. At first, she thought that nothing would happen at all. How ridiculous to think one can tickle a tree! But, then, she could feel it. The tree was chuckling. It sent soft vibrations through her fingers and her bare feet as well as through her body. She continued to tickle the tree more vigorously, using both hands now laughing herself. Wendy enjoyed herself immensely as though it had been not been a tree, but one of her brothers instead, whom she would attack mercilessly as revenge after they took her books or hid her homework. Only a few seconds later, she could sense that something sneaked around her waist and took a firm hold of her. A vine raised her in the air, away from the trunk and plunged her down through the thicket of leaves and twigs.

She screamed. She was pushed back down to the ground so fast that she thought she'd never be able to stop in time. However, as soon as the ground came in sight, the vine slowed and let go of her. Wendy fell the last 5 feet and landed flat on her face. Next to her, Wiggy, Nooves, Jenko, Fozzy and Brownie landed in a more graceful manner with soft thuds. Obviously, they were more used to travel by vine than she was.

With a groan, she got to her knees and then stood up. "Well, that's how you get down," Wiggy said laughing.

"Oh, thank you, you could have told me about the vine and that, you know," she said brushing dirt off her tattered skirt.

"I could have, but then it wouldn't have been so much fun to watch you."

Wendy huffed.

"Are you ready then?" Again, the five boys were looking at her expectantly.

"Well," she answered not sure of what to say. Actually, she wasn't as ready as she thought she had been only a few moments ago. Back on the tree, all she could think about was getting down from it somehow and now that she was indeed back down to earth, she realized that she didn't have a plan. She had said she would prove to them that she was very well capable of fighting and hunting, but how on earth was she supposed to do so with only a small knife Wiggy had handed her?

"Do you want to get back up?" Nooves wanted to know, hope in his voice.

"Yeah, get back up the tree, girly," Wiggy drawled.

"No, I don't," Wendy said with a hint of the old determination back in her words. Yet, she didn't like to admit it to herself, but she didn't have a plan. Back up in the tree house, all she had been able to think about was getting down the tree and from there she would make up a plan as she went along. Now that she was indeed back down to earth, she found that she didn't have a plan. She knew that the knife she had gotten from Wiggy was not good enough for hunting, if she really wanted to show the Lost Boys that she could really fight and hunt, she would need a better weapon. She could see it in their eyes that none of them saw her fit to take care of herself and that angered her. After all, she had been taught to fight by the Pan and even though she might not have put her knowledge to action for quite a while, she was still capable of doing so.

"Nooves, would you mind borrowing me your bow and arrows?" she asked the boy and was very grateful when he handed her the requested things without hesitation.

"Thank you."

And with that, she started of into the unknown thicket of the Never Forest.

"Captain, we have been searching for the girl for an eternity. Don't you think we should just let it go? Maybe she is not even on the island anymore and-" But Smee didn't dare finish his speech. One glare from Peter had been enough to shut him up and Smee knew that if he went on rambling his Captain would not hesitate to eliminate him right there and then. Already, he was twirling a dagger dangerously in his hands.

"Let's split up," was Peter's grim order. "Tell the men to search the forest till they reach Flamingo Lagoon. We meet back on board once we've got my prey." He didn't even wait for Smee to confirm his command. Without looking back, he set off South, leaving his men to themselves.

It annoyed Peter to no end that now he even had to leave his ship to find the silly girl. There were only very few things he disliked more than leaving the Jolly Roger and walking through the Never Forest. Twigs kept constantly slapping him in the face and climbing plants seemed to literally sneak themselves around his ankles to make him trip. He cursed inwardly as, once again, he had to use his dagger to cut himself loose from the vice grip of a plant. Oh, he would make her pay for this.

Jaz landed gracefully on the branch leading up to his home, whistling a happy melody. He was always in a good mood, but today he felt especially cheerful and in very high spirits. He burst into the tree house, ready to tell his boys and Wendy about his latest adventure. However, the house was empty. Abruptly, he stopped whistling, his happiness was gone. The house had never been empty for as long as he could remember. There had always been somebody there anxiously waiting for his return. Perhaps, they just wanted to play hide and seek? Jaz called out for the Lost Boys to show themselves, but not one of them would follow his orders.

As far as he could remember, there had been Lost Boys. He might not always remember how many exactly were there or what they were called in particular, but he was sure that he was the leader of a group of wild boys. And what else could a leader expect than that his troops would be waiting for him?

Anger welt up in him. Silently fuming he shot back into the air, ready to find his comrades wherever they might hide from him.

It seemed to her that they had been walking through the forest for ages. So far, there had been no sign of any deer whatsoever. Not a single Indian had crossed their path and no Pirates were roaming through the forest. To be honest, Wendy was quite glad of that. Certainly, she knew she could hunt a bird or maybe a rabbit, but to face a fully grown man was a different matter.

The Lost Boys had been tailing her all the time, Nooves shooting her a worried look now and then and asking her if she wouldn't rather return to the tree house. Nevertheless, Wendy wouldn't give up. She kept creeping through the woods as silently as possible. Making hardly any noise as she passed ferns and flowers and trod on rotten leaves and twigs. Her back ached from crouching down and her feet were wet. Already, she could feel that she was sporting blisters.

Then, just as she was about to give up and to ask the boys to return to their hideout since hunting would not be of any good anymore today, she could see it.

Something was moving behind the bushes right ahead of her. A faint rustle of noises indicated that something was coming towards them.

Instantly, Wendy crouched down and so did the boys. The tension was nearly visible between them. Even Wiggy had gone silent and held his breath.

Slowly, Wendy reached for one of her arrows and the bow. The thing was still coming nearer and she could feel that Wiggy and the others got their weapons ready as well, just in case she missed her target and a wild, furious beast would come storming towards them in a fury, ready to attack anybody coming across its path.

Her hands trembled. This was it. Now or never. Wendy's muscles tensed and then her instincts took over. She held her breath and then everything was over in what was only a matter of seconds. The arrow flew through the air right into the thicket.

A cry.

It had reached its target.

Wendy stood stock still, not daring to move. The Lost Boys, however, broke into screams and cries of joy as they rushed past her to see whatever she had killed. Gradually she started to let out her breath.

As soon as the boys had broken through the bushes, their cries had stopped and they had become eerily silent.

"What's the matter?" Wendy asked and moving through the green thicket, bending twigs and brushing away leaves. Then she saw it.

Wendy Darling's arrow had not hit a wolf or bear or any other kind of beast.

Instead, lying on the ground in front of her, surrounded by the Lost Boys as if they had finally found their way back to their rightful leader, lay Peter, the arrow stuck to the hilt in his left shoulder.