Chapter XXVI; Innocence of the Stars
Y slowly blinked her eyes. She tried to keep them open, but the bright sunlight made her forcefully close her eyes again. It was much too early to wake up she decided. She could wait until Ven came to wake her up for training. Or maybe they had a day off. That would be wonderful.
Hearing voices Y kept in a groan. She curled into her pillow burying her face in it. The pillow was oddly firm and was carrying a scent that was familiar and pleasant. But it wasn't the normal scent.
"Tinker Bell." An unfamiliar voice said.
"Uh, they ain't movin'." Another voice said. Y was certain that wasn't anyone she knew. Y opened her eyes slowly and moved so she could see. She realized she was in a forest somewhere. Not the Land of Departure. Y frowned as she remembered everything that had led to this. So many things that just seemed to pile on top of each other.
"Let's try kickin' them!" One of the voices suggested. Y jumped back at the sound of that, not eager to be kicked. Her face flushed bright red as she saw what she thought had been her pillow was actually Ven. Luckily he was still asleep though that wouldn't be for long as a little girl only a few inches tall was floating in front of him. The girl pulled back her foot and kicked Ven with enough force for her to spin in the air. Ven jumped back it shock, waking very suddenly.
"Who are you?" A boy asked. Y turned to see two boys dressed as animals. One looked like a fox and the other was dressed as a bear. Ven stood and brushed himself off before offering a hand to Y. Y took it and allowed Ven to help her to her feet.
"Name's Ventus. But everybody just calls me Ven. She's Y." Ven introduced. He grinned over at Y. "Guess when we sat down to rest we must have fallen asleep." He said Y. Y nodded, though she was pretty sure they actually crash landed here.
"But where'd ya come from?" The boy dressed as a bear asked. Ven and Y exchanged a nervous glance. They really weren't supposed to answer that. Protecting the world order was of utmost importance.
"Well, you see..." Ven began trying to come up with a lie on the spot. He was saved the effort by the little girl, that Y suspected was a fairy, tugging on the ears of the fox boy harshly.
"All right, all right, we're goin'!" The fox boy said trying to get the fairy to stop her tugging.
"So long, Ven, Y!" The bear boy said as the group turned away to wander off. They seemed to have some goal, almost like they were looking for something together.
"Hey, where are you guys off to?" Ven asked. They stopped for a moment again to answer Ven's question.
"Tink saw a shootin' star and we're gonna go hunt it down!" The bear boy answered. Y assumed Tink was the fairy that was with them. That was probably why she was so impatient.
"A shooting star?" Ven asked in excitement. "Mind if we come along?" He asked.
"Course not. But ya gotta agree to follow us!" The fox boy said.
"Yeah, it's, uh, right over, that-a-way! By the Indian Camp!" The bear boy said, pointing in a direction. Y glanced in that direction. She didn't know why but this place was very familiar. She swore she knew where it was, but she knew she had never been here before.
"Ready, men? Forward march!" The fox boy said before marching off in the direction the other boy had pointed. The group marched together in a straight line with Tink in front, the fox boy following her with the bear boy behind him. Ven followed close behind with Y bringing up the rear.
They stopped their march in a clearing with a hollow tree at the sound of a roosters crow. The group looked up to see a red-haired boy wearing green flying above them. Y felt her jaw go slack as she watched the boy circle them.
"Peter Pan!" The two boys said in unison. Y looked at them in surprise as the other boy landed. Y looked to the boy in green in amazement. That couldn't really be possible. It had just been a story, hadn't it?
"Who do we have here? Never seen them before." Peter asked looking at Ven and Y in interest.
"I'm Y, and he's Ven." Y introduced. Peter looked at them for a moment before shrugging.
"Well, if you say so." He said. He turned to the two boys that Y realized must have been Lost Boys. "Ten-shun! Now then, men. I don't suppose you'd wanna capture some real pirate treasure?" Peter asked. The boys smiled and bounced on their feet.
"Real pirate treasure?" The bear boy asked in disbelief.
"Sure!" The fox boy agreed. Tink kicked both of the boys from behind, her hands on her hips.
"Ow!" Both boys said. Tink ignored them and flew to Peter and began yelling. Or Y thought it was yelling. It just sounded like a ringing bell.
"Tinker Bell, what's gotten into you?" Peter asked.
"Well, we were supposed to go hunt for a shooting star together." Ven explained. Peter glanced at Ven then back to Tink. He frowned and crossed his arms.
"Forget that. Pirate treasure is way more fun. Tink, you're comin' with us!" Peter ordered. Tink only responded by flying off. Peter huffed and looked at Ven and Y. "Well, that's no way to respond to an invitation. C'mon, Ven, Y, you're a better sport than her, right?" Peter asked. Ven frowned and looked after Tink. Y bit her bottom lip in thought.
"I'd love to join you, but first I wanna find the shooting star." Ven decided. Y nodded in agreement. As fun as pirate treasure sounded, she thought finding an actual shooting star would be much more fun. She could barely remember the last time she had seen a shooting star. Had it really only been just before the mark of mastery? It seemed so much longer ago.
"Yeah, I wanna find it too." Y said.
Her and Ven separated from Peter and the Lost Boys following Tink to the Indian camp. Y looked around as they walked. She had always dreamed of this place. She had always begged X to tell her this story. He had been the best to hear stories from. He just had a way getting Y lost in his words.
"I can't believe this is actually Never Land." Y said in awe. She smiled as she remembered her brother's calm voice describing the island as he read from the storybook. She had always imagined it would be this beautiful.
"You know about this place?" Ven asked looking at Y curiously. Y nodded and looked away from the trees to Ven's blue eyes. She felt herself smile for no reason as their eyes met.
"It was my favorite bedtime story. Peter Pan, and the Lost Boys. Wendy, and her brothers. Tinker Bell and all the other fairies. Never growing up." Y explained. She looked away again still smiling.
"Never growing up?" Ven asked. Y nodded.
"On Never Land kids never grow up. They stay kids forever. I wanted that so much when I was younger." Y said wistfully. Watching her eyes Ven thought she was looking somewhere far away.
"And now?" Ven asked quietly. Y's wistful smile fell to a sad frown. Her eyes looked at the ground and Ven swore he saw them glistening with tears.
"I dunno. Just seems kinda hollow." Y admitted. Ven reached out and took her hand without a second thought. Y jumped a little and looked up at Ven. Ven closed his eyes and smiled at her. Y giggled a little bit and found herself smiling yet again.
They found their way to the Indian camp that was oddly empty. Y guessed the Indians were elsewhere on the island at the moment. Y stopped when she saw a strange star-shaped object on the ground. Ven frowned and furrowed his eyebrows together.
"Mickey's Star Shard?" Ven asked. He looked at Y who only shrugged. She hadn't seen Mickey since Radiant Gardens with that little red-haired girl. He had vanished rather suddenly, disappearing into the sky. a sudden laugh made Ven and Y jump and turn back to the camp. Y was surprised to see a pirate in red with black hair and a mustache holding Tink and the Star Shard. The Star Shard was somehow held in the pirates hook.
"A shooting star and a pixie!" The pirate, Y assumed was Captain Hook, laughed.
"Let Tinker Bell go!" Ven demanded as he summoned his keyblade. Y followed his lead, summoning her own keyblade. Hook didn't look all that concerned that they had drawn weapons.
"Two of Peter Pan's brats. Well, tell that cowardly sparrow if he wants his precious Tinker Bell back, he'd best meet me at Mermaid Lagoon." Hook said and ran off quickly. Ven and Y made to follow him but had to stop when a large group of Unversed appeared before them.
"Scram!" Ven ordered in annoyance.
The Unversed, of course, didn't do as they were told. Ven and Y were forced to take out the entire group. After the group was dead Hook was nowhere to be seen. Y groaned in annoyance and ran a hand through her hand.
"And they're gone." Y said.
"Look out below!" A familiar voice called. The two looked up to see Peter above them. He landed in from of them gracefully.
"Peter, help! Tinker Bell's been pixie-napped!" Ven said. Peter frowned.
"Then I'm too late. Hooks gonna pay for this!" Peter said angrily.
"He said he'd be at Mermaid Lagoon." Y supplied. Peters frown only grew as he crossed his arms.
"Gotta be an ambush. Hmph, that old codfish thinks he's clever." Peter said. He took flight circling the area a few times to gain altitude.
"Hey, we're coming too!" Ven called. Peter looked down at them, hovering where he was for a short moment.
"Well, we have to hurry! Can you keep up?" Peter asked. Y couldn't help but smirk. Ven was practically a speed demon and she herself wasn't so bad.
"No doubt." Y said.
The group of three quickly made their way to Mermaid Lagoon. Reaching the Lagoon they were greeted with cannon fire. Y jumped to the side and coughed as dust enveloped them.
"Cannon fire? Where's it coming from?" Ven asked in confusion. Y looked around and spotted the source. A pirate ship on the water. Fortunately, it seemed the cannons had a very poor aim.
"Ship on the water!" Y said pointing toward the ship as another cannonball was fired. This one was so far off that there was no need to even dodge it. A bright glowing light approached them, soon coming in view as Tinker Bell.
"Tink, it's you! And you're alright?" Peter asked as Tink floated in front of his face. Tink replied with her small bell-like voice that Peter understood. "What? A strange fellah with a funny-lookin' sword has-" Peter began to repeat. He was stopped by the ground shaking from another cannon shot. "Hold on, I gotta stop that cannon!" Peter said.
"We'll go after Hook!" Ven said. Peter nodded.
"Right. Tink, if you would." Peter said. Tink nodded then flew circles around Ven and Y, coating them with a light covering of sparkling dust. Ven looked at his arm in confusion. Y smiled brightly, looking at the sparkles now surrounding her.
"What?" Ven asked in confusion, still looking at his arm trying to figure out what the dust was.
"It's pixie dust. Bet you feel lighter now, don'tcha?" Peter asked. He didn't wait for a reply and flew off toward the ship with Tink. Ven turned to Y.
"What does pixie dust do?" He asked. Y laughed in response.
"It makes you fly." She answered. Without a delay, Y began to hover in the air. Ven jumped back in surprise. Y laughed at his reaction which made Ven smile.
"Whoa!" He said. Y laughed again.
"Come on, all it takes is faith, trust, and a little pixie dust." Y said, smiling as she remembered the words from the story. Ven nodded and soon began to hover himself. He laughed in amazement and looked at Y with a smile.
"Well, let's go." Ven said.
The two flew off to find Hook. Being able to fly made it much easier to find the obnoxious pirate. He was standing on the edge of a stone strip in the water looking to where the cannon fire was hitting.
"At last, that scurvy brat will never trouble me again!" Hook exclaimed.
"I wouldn't be so sure of that, Hook!" Ven said loudly. Hook turned to see Ven. His eyes widened in shock and his mouth fell open. Y couldn't hold back the urge to laugh. Hook had always been a comical villain.
"Swoggle me eyes! No, don't tell me!" Hook cried. He turned to look through a telescope. From the way his face paled Y assumed that he didn't like what he saw. Hook through the telescope down to the ground. "Blast that Peter Pan!" Hook cried. He jumped to the island between the two fling and himself his sword drawn. A sudden ticking sound caused him to tense up and look toward the water. There was a crocodile watching him with hungry eyes. "That sound! No! Not again! S-stay away from me!" Hook yelled. He tried to run away but Ven landed in front of him.
"I don't think so!" Ven said, his keyblade drawn. Y remained in the air her own keyblade drawn.
Fighting Hook turned out to be very easy. Ven handled him on the ground and Y cast magic from above. Eventually, the two pushed him into the water where the crocodile chased him away as he screamed. Y laughed as she watched him run on top of the water toward his ship.
"Ahoy! Look what we brought!" A voice called out. Ven and Y turned to see the two Lost Boys in a rowboat with Peter flying beside them. A chest was in the rowboat with the boys.
"It's a pirate's treasure chest!" The fox boy called out happily. They reached shore and heaved the chest onto the shore. Ven and Y joined the boys around the chest looking at it excitedly.
"Treasure!" Ven said excitedly. Peter nodded and opened the chest. Y tilted her head to the side in confusion. The chest was empty. No treasure at all.
"Huh? How come it's empty?" Peter asked looking at the two Lost Boys. They laughed nervously.
"Uh, sorry, but we losted all the treasures." The bear boy explained. Y sighed and shrugged it off. Not like it would have mattered that much anyway.
"Oh, well... that's too bad." Ven said. He was clearly disappointed but he didn't want to say it. Peter just shrugged it off like Y did.
"Aw, who needs it? It was prob'ly just full of dumb old jewels or doubloons or somethin' anyways." Peter said.
"We could just put what we treasure in there instead- if ya wanna?" The fox boy suggested. Y smiled at the suggestion. That was much better than jewels that could mean anything.
"Yeah, that's perfect! Instead of fillin' it up with jewels and gold and stuff, we'll put in what's truly special to us. The real riches!" Peter said happily. It didn't take long for the chest to be filled with wooden swords and all other sorts of toys. Ven and Y stood off to the side watching with a smile.
"What are you puttin' in, Ven, Y?" Peter asked. Ven and Y exchanged a look.
"I dunno..." Ven said in thought.
"Uhhh." Y said. They both began checking their pockets for something they had. Y had left most of her belongings back at the land of departure. She hadn't really had time to pack a bag before taking off.
"How 'bout this?" Ven suggested. Y looked up to see him holding the old wooden keyblade Terra had given him when he was first learning.
"You've had that with you the whole time?" Y asked softly. Ven nodded in reply looking at the wooden keyblade fondly.
"Hm, what is it?" Peter asked looking at it with interest.
"It's just something that one of my best friends gave me." Ven answered simply.
"So it's like a keepsake, huh? You sure you wanna part with somethin' that special?" Peter asked. Ven nodded without a second thought, which surprised Y.
"Yup. I don't need it if I've got Terra, Aqua, and Y. Our best memories are still ahead." Ven said determinedly. Y smiled at his optimism. He was right. They still had plenty of time. Ven set the keyblade in the chest and backed away still smiling.
"What are you going to put in then, Y?" Peter asked turning to Y. Y blinked in surprise and began searching her pockets.
"Uh, I don't know. Um," Y searched through her pouches and pockets quickly. Her hand brushed against something soft and she stopped. She slowly grabbed hold of the soft object and pulled it out. It was the cat-like plush her brother had given her what felt like centuries ago. "This is all I really have." She said softly.
"It important?" Peter asked. Y nodded.
"Only thing left of my brother. But that's ok." She smiled and put the plush in the chest beside Ven's keyblade. "He's always in my heart." She said softly.
"All right, then. Next time ya visit, we'll have an even bigger chest waitin'. Enough for all those treasures and lots more." Peter said. Ven laughed.
"Ok. It's a deal." He agreed. Tink flew past struggling to hold the Star Shard. "Oh wait, Tink. I'm pretty sure that belongs to a friend of mine. Do you think maybe I could hang onto it?" Ven asked. Tink shook her head and made to fly off.
"Now Tink!" Peter snapped. Tink rolled her eyes and gave Ven the Star Shard.
"Thank you." Ven said. The Star Shard suddenly began to glow, and in a flash of light Ven was gone.
"He's gone!" The fox boy said.
"Look! The light!" The bear boy said, pointing up at the sky. They watched a streak of light zigzag through the air just as Mickey had. Y let out a heavy sigh.
"Oh no." She said.
"Don't worry. No matter where the light takes him. Ven'll always have friends waitin' to meet him." Peter said. Y smiled and nodded. Ven was great at making friends. He would be fine wherever he landed.
"Yeah you're right." Y agreed.
"You want to stay with us for a while?" Peter offered. Y smiled and laughed.
"Yeah, I guess I can do that." She agreed.