Author: lol. Sorry it took so long. the site would not allow me to submit another chapter (grr.) but I got it up now, so enjoy!. You guys are so supportive, thanks for all the great reviews. Sorry again for the wait!. Hope you like it!. Please read and review!.
Peter and his men had been walking along the charted path for some time now. All of them were very tired and the mixture of snow and rain swirling around them did nothing to improve their vision. Some of them may have even have begun to loose hope, but the thought of their island once more being safe, made them press on.
Peter felt his body weakening with the cold with every step he took now, his eyes narrowed to the path in hopes of helping with seeing where he was going, all his limbs felt so numb with the cold, and he could see his own breath in puffs. But he swallowed his fear and kept his mind on one goal, defeating this thing once and for all.
Although, he couldn't help but wonder how Wendy and Danny were doing, along with the rest of the tribe, not to mention the unborn baby. He hoped that the Indians weren't putting pressure on Wendy like when before they had Danny. That's all Wendy and the baby needed. But he also hoped he could actually still be there for the birth. The way that this mission was going, it would take a lot longer than planned.
"Your majesty!" his thoughts were suddenly broken by one of his men. "We must take a break, I'm not sure we can last much longer in this weather!" he announced. Peter thought for a moment. They had been walking for what seemed like many hours now. Peter looked to the sky with narrowed eyes, and could barely see the glow of the sun through all the gray colored clouds. It seemed to be setting, almost reaching the horizon of the ocean. It would set in just a few hours.
Peter lightly bit on his chilled lip. If they stopped now, they might be able to rest, and keep up their strengths to continue in the morning. However, if they did stop to rest, the men might be so frozen that they might not make it through the night. "We'll be needing shelter!" Peter announced to the rest of the group. "I remember seeing a cave just back there, your majesty!" one of the men announced, pointing a little ways back down the path.
"Alright, follow Raven Claw and head towards the cave!" Peter announced to them, all their rosy faces curled up in delight and all carefully made their way down the path. Peter followed after a moment, staring at the path that still lay before them. "Maybe tomorrow we'll finish this" he whispered to the wind. " But I promise, we will defeat you and regain our island" Peter hissed, before hurrying towards the cave as the wind suddenly intensified.
Once inside the cave, the men began a fire with the wood they'd gathered before entering the cave. Most of them huddled around the fire, their frostbitten hands outstretched to the warmth, but still they shivered uncontrollably. Others began to set themselves for a bit of a rest at the back of the cave, while the rest and Peter huddled around the map of Neverland once more trying to figure out their next move.
"It seems like the storms are intensifying as we get closer" said one of the men. "But the good news is that we're almost there!" he concluded. The other men smiled happily, glad that their troubles may be over. "But we'll still have to regroup, this thing may be powerful!" said Peter. The others nodded.
"Your Majesty!" a call from one of the troops suddenly caught their attention. 'There's something coming towards us, sire!" Hawk Eye had called out, as Peter and some other men crowded around the mouth of the cave. They watched with amazement, as a glowing light seemed to appear out of the snow. "Do you think it's the storm maker?" asked one of the men.
All kept silent as they kept their gazes to the advancing light, slowly making it's way towards them. Peter kept one hand curled around the sword that rested at his side. "Prepare for any attack" he announced, his blade unsheathing and ready to strike. The cave echoed as the men did the same, and an uneasy silence filled the air, as the glow came closer.
A tinkling sound came to their ears, and inside the glow their seemed to be tiny speaks. As the thing got closer, the men were happy and surprised to see a tiny army of fairies flying hurriedly towards them. "Your majesty!" one of them called, and hurriedly flew up to greet the young king.
"We've been seeking your men since we've noticed the storm intensified. If you stay out here, you will not last much longer!" the little fairy squeaked hurriedly. Peter's brow furrowed in sadness, he knew she was right. He turned towards the back of the cave where he knew some of his men were still hidden in the darkness.
Though, now it was very hard to tell if they were still breathing, the cold might have now slowed down their heart rates completely. "Come to our forest, the trees are so thick and close that its like a shield against the terrible weather" the fairy suddenly announced, breaking Peter from his thoughts. All the men's faces broke out into joyous smiles at the thought of finally getting out of the cold.
"Stay together, and follow the fairies!" Peter ordered as he watched the men excitedly gather all their things together, some even making torches from stay logs and the fire.
Peter and some of the men helped check on the ones in the back of the cave. All of them were thankfully still alive, but as expected, their heart rates and bodies had slowed down increasingly.
"We shall carry them over with fair dust" one of the fairies advised Peter. "They are much to weak to walk all that way. They shall recover once we get there" she advised, and with a final nod from Peter, a shower of dust suddenly fell upon the weak men, and one by one, they began to rise into the air, and float out of the cave. "Will you be alright your highness?" one of the fairies asked, as she stayed with Peter, walking out of the cave with him.
Peter gave a sigh, obviously he was troubled about something. However, after a moment, he just shook it off and smiled towards the fairies that stayed beside him. "Yes, just wanting to get to safety" he said reassuringly, flipping up the hood of his fur coat and heading out into the storm once more.
Once more, the men made their way through the forest, their tired feet literally swept the ground, tiredly kicking up snow and dirt that the wind would instantly pick up. Finally, another glow was seen into the distance, the man at the very front of the group called out with a smile. "The fairy's grove!. We've found it!" he yelled out in excitement.
Peter and the rest of the fairies watched with slight amusement as the once tired out men now hurriedly ran towards the grove in triumph. "They'll need a good rest if we're heading out tomorrow" said Peter, he meant it for himself. One of the fairies beside him smiled knowingly. "You as well your majesty!" she announced. "You need to keep up your strength if you wish to hold you energy for battle" said the fairy.
Again, Peter gave a slight sigh as he lowered his gaze to the ground. "But something troubles you?" she suddenly questioned him. Peter turned to her once more and gave a cocky half smile from his more youthful days. "Its about my family" he confessed.
The fairy gave a nod. "Have no fear, your Wendy is doing just fine in her pregnancy, and the baby will come out healthy" said the fairy.
Peter gave a smile, his heart feeling a little less weighted then it did, but still he had his doubts. Peter tried to begin again but the fairy had suddenly interrupted him once more.
"You need your rest, Highness" she began. "Or you shall never be able to save our home" she said gently. Suddenly, Peter found himself entering the grove of the fairies, a place where he had not been for many years.
As he entered, memories of long ago suddenly flooded back to him, his mind seemed to suddenly clear as he entered further. Sudden memories of Peter's first arrival here as a babe came to him, and he smiled at the first memories of the gentle fairies that resided here. He also remembered the first flying lesson and the first games he played, the many friends he soon befriended as he grew.
A sad smile suddenly pursed his lips as he came upon the place the fairy king and queen had resided on their many year rein, their tiny thrones made out of the wood of the tree before him. They had been so gentle and kind to him, but tearing away his gaze, it fell upon another stirring sight. The fairy tree. That exact same tree that he and Wendy had danced before those many years ago.
That was the night, the first stirrings of love filled the air and brought the two together in that one magical night. But Wendy also had her doubts that now had brought them to the present, their marriage and the birth of their son, and now new baby. Peter's lips now curled in a smile, realizing that Wendy had been right, and there was more than just "growing up".
He found he couldn't live without his family, his Wendy and Danny waiting patiently for his return from the dreadful mission. All along it had been the mere thought of them that drove him to come this far, but doubt once more settled into his heart. Could he truly do this?. Or was his days as the "Hero of Neverland" truly over.
Maybe the fairies were right to warn him that falling in love would change him forever.
They had warned him many times when he first brought the Wendy girl, as well as after, when he continued to visit her, that is until he never came back one morning. Maybe it was all worthless. "Peter, it was us who was wrong" a voice suddenly came from behind him.
Peter suddenly spun around the see one of the High Fairies floating behind him. Her expression was that of sadness as she came beside him. "Yes, it is true that falling for the Wendy would change you, and at first it began to frighten us" she began. "When you didn't return from London that one morning, we thought you'd abandoned us for her" said the fairy.
"It wasn't until the fairies of Kensington Gardens assured us that you had lost your memory and stayed to win back your Wendy from a London man that the queen finally realized true love" said the fairy. "Also when you were made King, we were worried for the changes that came to the island, but seeing Danny being born, it changed the island for the better" the fairy smiled. "The same with your unborn now!. All the fairies are so proud that our queen is with child once more" said the fairy.
"So, you realize you were wrong for judging Wendy so quickly?" asked Peter. "Honestly, we didn't know the power she would have over the island, but as you use the mere thought of your family to get through troubled times, we regret for what we have done" said the fairy. "We see that we are once again in those dire times" the fairy began once more.
Peter lowered his gaze. "I know you have the whole Island's safety riding on your shoulders Peter, but if you do not do this for Neverland…" she said, suddenly stopping to think her next move. "Could you do it for Wendy, and Danny?" said the fairy. Peter could feel the tears beginning to pool at his eyes. He missed his family so much, always wondering if they were holding up alright in these sever storms.
The fairy knew this. Peter suddenly felt a light weight drop onto his right shoulder, the fairy had landed there. "We understand how much pressure this is for you. And you've done all you can for Neverland, as best you can!" she reassured. "We will understand if you do this for your family" she began quietly. "You've done enough for us, and we appreciate it" she said.
Peter suddenly felt a warm press on his cheek, a smile came to his lips. "Your forgiven, you were only doing what you thought was right" said Peter. "Thank you" the fairy whispered into his ear before flying off to take care of business. Peter watched her fly off into the distance before giving one last sigh. He settled into his reserved sleeping quarters the fairies had for him. He slept peacefully that night, he felt like he could do anything.
The storm intensified even more that night, as darkness fell upon the winter wasteland, the wind creating a shield of snow and rain so you hardly knew where you were going.
That night, the Indians all kept curled up around the tent where they still held, Wendy and Danny also curled up in their little corner. Danny slept in the blanket tucked at Wendy's side, her arms protectively wrapped around her son, trying to reserve their combined heat.
Wendy didn't care. She curled herself further into her own fur blanket as the cool night air blew past them. While Peter was gone, the Indians suddenly made it their own duty to protect the family, and to help Wendy with her pregnancy. However, they acted just like before Danny was born, and fussed over every little thing.
It had been quite busy and tiring since the men left, and Wendy was glad for the release from it all that sleep brought. Although she missed her husband terribly through the night,
His warm arms wrapping around her to help her converse the heat she hadn't passed on to Danny. As much as the Indians granted her their reassurance for the return of the men, Wendy couldn't help but feel a bit doubtful herself.
Of course, being the queen of Neverland, she couldn't have such thoughts. She'd reassure either her son or even an doubtful native woman with a smile and encouraging words, but that did nothing to settle her own heart. A sudden whistle woke the queen as an unusual huge gust of wind rushed it's way into the flap of the tent.
Wendy's eyes shot open, and she raised herself onto an elbow to see what had happened. Seeing that it was only the open flap, Wendy gave a satisfied sigh and carefully got up, not to awaken her son, and made her way towards the door. Realizing how cold it was in the tent, Wendy gave a shiver and wrapped her arms more tightly around herself as she made her way to the door. After making sure the rope was secure, she stood up, blowing into her cupped hands before once again returning to where her son lay sleeping.
Wendy settled once more into the bed, slipping her arm once more around Danny, smiling to herself as the boy once more snuggled in closer to her in his undisturbed sleep. Wendy pulled the fur blanket up closer around them but she found that sleep had abandoned her for now, and she lay awake listening to the wind still howling violently outside.
She gave a sad sigh as the flying flap revealed that the blinding snow had made it impossible to see just outside, and she wondered where the group of men where now. She hoped they were safe, somewhere a lot better and warmer than the women where there. "Please be safe, Peter" she whispered as another gust of wind made its way into the tent.
"…and please come back soon. I can't do this without you!" she whispered into the darkness.
Slowly she laid her head once more onto the pillow and gathered the blanket and Danny closer to her. She gave one yawn, her eyes closing slowly, never taking her eyes away from the flap. "I love you…." She whispered and with that, she fell once more into a fitful sleep.
It was well past dawn, almost heading to mid day as the group of men ventured on into the forest. The weather had let up only a little bit, instead of snow, there was rain that poured unstop on top of them. However, they were grateful for the change for they worked so tiredly through the forest, the rain falling upon them seemed to refresh them.
The fairies agreed to come along with them for guidance through the rest of their journey to find the threat, and they also offered their assistance for trouble along the way. The any of the men got too tired to carry on, the fairies would give them so fairy dust to float them along so they could rest. The fairies also knew the passages through the forest like the back of their wings and were much better than a map.
The men kept on their track, until suddenly the rain had stopped and thunder suddenly crackled through the sky above them, and hard sleet then came raining upon them, the men suddenly ducking into some trees for cover. However, they continued on, protecting themselves as best they could from the sleet. Their tired feet hardly carrying them past some fallen trees or mud puddles.
They made their way farther into the woods until the sleet suddenly stopped like the rain had before. Smiles were about to break through the mens' faces, when suddenly snow had begun to pour onto them, along with the wind began to howl once more. The men once more ducked into some trees for cover. "We must be getting close!" one of the fairies suddenly shouted over the wind.
"It changes the weather so frequently, it must know where here. It must be trying to fend us off, not let us find the source to stop it" the fairy continued. Peter looked to the path ahead of them, and through the snow he could see a what looked like a field, not to far away from them. It also looked like the snow was being projected from the field so that would be the safest bet that that's where the source was.
"It must be just ahead of us, let's venture on, we're almost there!" he called, motioning for the men to follow as Peter began to once more tromp his way through the meters of snow that now littered the path. Peter must have been right, for as they continued, the weather intensified even more, and the men could now see the source of it coming from what Peter saw was a field.
Finally, the group broke through the shrubbery that covered the area and suddenly everything was calm. All that surrounded the group now was darkness, yet they noticed with one glance around the place, that it was indeed a field that they had come into. However, they could not see any more than a few feet ahead of them, even with the fairies' glow.
"What's happened?" one of the men whispered through the darkness, yet it remained calm and nothing, not even a leaf was disturbed. "Come out!" Peter ordered through the darkness, yet only his own echo called him back. But the men waited and watched for any other movement that might come through the darkness.
They waited and waited, yet nothing seemed to stir, the men thinking it was all but nothing, until a rushing wind suddenly blasted them from the front. The men tried to block themselves, and hold on to any loose weaponry that might get blown away, but it was no use. Some of the men lost their grip on the ground and was send flying back into the shrubbery or knocked unconscious by flying into a nearby tree.
Only Peter and very few remained where they stood, looking around furiously for their companions or looking down worriedly at the unconscious ones. Peter turned back to the darkness. "Who are you?" he ordered, but again it was only his echoes that followed. "Why have you come to torture us?" Peter tried again, but still no answer. It was seeming hopeless for the remaining crew, for they could not see or hear the opposing enemy.
"I remember now!" one of the fairies suddenly spoke up. "This very field is where the spirits of good and evil remain when the persons have passed on" said the fairy. "If they are born or bound here, their spirits must remain here, by either the thing that bound them, or they cannot leave!" continued the fairy. "So it is an evil spirit that has taken over our island?" asked one of the men.
"There must be an unequal balance between the pure and evil spirits that reside here, so the evil spirits must have combined with the good, and some how the thought of revenge must be fueling them to create havoc over Neverland!" said the fairy. "That is their way of getting even with binding them or keeping them here" continued the fairy.
"Well then how do we stop it?. Let it have it's revenge?" asked Peter, keeping a keen eye on the darkness before them, just incase something attacked. "You must free the spirits, something is binding them all here" said another fairy. "But you must also regain a balance between the pure spirits and the evil spirits, that will also re balance the island and we shall be also set free" said the fairy.
A sudden hissing came to their ears and the group turned their attention to the darkness once more. They all watched as a sudden light began to grow from the darkness, getting bigger by the moment. Peter suddenly unsheathe his sword from its holder and prepared for the worst he'd expected, the rest of the group doing the same. "Prepare yourselves, anything could happen" said Peter and he continued to watch the growing light.
The light grew and grew, until it filled the whole field, and Peter and his men had to shield their eyes with their hands until suddenly, a loud popping sound filled the field and all was once more sent into darkness for about a second, when another huge rush of wind came from the center of the darkness, causing Peter and his men to once more hold on to their grips on the ground.
Peter then, could have sworn he heard some kind of voice over the rushing wind, and maybe even some times a giggle. Confused, he looked up and was surprised to see many floating spirits above them, some he remembered from past joyous days, and some he remembered from past battles.
"It's the spirits of Neverland!" cried one of the men, fear projecting from his very voice. Another shrieking giggle was sent into the sky by one of the more evil spirits. "We've been here for too long, power growing ever stronger, fueled by our hate and anger" said one of the spirits. "…and now that we are finally free, it is your turn to get our revenge!" another one shrieked, pointing a transparent, bony finger towards the group below them.
Another shriek was sent to the sky as more spirits crowded into one, and suddenly came hurdling towards Peter and his men.