In fact, I didn't abandon this story. I apologize for the delay. ~JS


Wendy didn't dare utter a complaint or wince in pain when the boys trotted next to her torturous chariot. She kept her smile plastered in place, the same one she used during intermission at the opera house.

"We're here!" Peter slowed to a stop and lowered the travois handles from either side of his waist to the ground. Tink dashed away. The trio of lads whooped and peeled off their shirts.

"What are you doing?" Wendy turned her face from the children as they got to work on their pants, her cheeks burning. They'd be naked in about fifteen seconds.

Peter chuckled as he sat down near her head. He lifted his chin towards the shrieks and laughter. "Jump in, boys. Make sure you scrub behind your ears, or Mother will do it later." He wiggled his auburn eyebrows. "And you don't want her to do that!"

She propped herself onto her elbows, careful not to turn to the direction of the splashing boys. One of their giggles sounded like Michael and Wendy couldn't stop herself from looking, to see if her youngest brother had somehow made it to Neverland.

"I'm sorry your brothers could not come this time."

Peter's words caused tears to prick her eyes. She watched the boys paddle in the lake, alternating between scrubbing, splashing and trying to drown each other—just like her brothers did at the stream outside of Aunt Millicent's country house.

"I will miss them most of all." She already wanted Michael to streak by, his feathered headpiece askew, chased by John, his eye patch in place and finger curled into a hook.

"Maybe you'll see them again."

Wendy turned back to Peter. He stared at her and she found she did not want to look away.

A smile crept up his lips. "Am I hypnotizing you?"

"I do believe you are."

"Mother!"

Wendy jerked her head towards the pool. Little Boo ran towards her, dripping water along the leaves from his naked body.

"Mother, I am clean now." He dropped his knees into the dirt beside her. Boo's tangled hair stuck to his face. He pulled his ears forward. "Even behind my ears."

"Very well," she managed to sputter. Behind her, Peter snickered and she batted at him with her hand. "Did you bring clean clothes to change into?"

Boo's tiny eyebrows pulled down. He looked to Peter and then back to Wendy. "I have my towel."

She pressed her hand to her mouth to keep from bursting into laughter. "Wrap that around your waist. Peter will help you. Then you can wait for your brothers and go back for clothes."

Peter called the others from the water. They reluctantly dragged their equally bare bodies out and wrapped themselves in something that resembled more a blanket than a towel. Tinkerbell skipped across the surface like a stone, landing on Peter's shoulder.

"Off you go." Peter motioned for the boys to head back to the lair. "And bring back some of Mother's clothes too. She will need a bath."

Wendy pushed herself up so fast that she yelped in pain. "No!" The thought of their little hands digging through her unmentionables was horrifying.

Squish sauntered to her side. "It's warm enough today. You can walk back naked. We do it all the time, Mother." He scratched his bare belly without a care.

Her entire face felt like it was on fire. "Thank you, but no. I do not walk anywhere naked." She was eternally grateful she couldn't see Peter's expression, nor he hers.

"Why not? It's great fun." Bean swung a stick as a sword and connected with Squish's arm.

"Bean, do not hit your brother." Wendy struggled to come up with an answer that the boys understood and did not make her more embarrassed than she already was. "Mothers do not walk around naked. Perhaps Lost Boys did before, but now that you have a mother, you must wear towels when you get out of your bath." She couldn't believe she was calling a lake a bath. It was probably freezing cold and didn't even have walls.

"You can bring Mother a blanket and a towel for her hair, boys."

They scampered away, a miniature pack of wild things. When their sounds faded into the jungle canopy, Peter moved to offer Wendy his hand.

"That means it's your turn for a bath."

"No thank you." She'd rather fall into a volcano or have Hook walk around the corner than undress in front of Peter.

"Aw, Wendy. I'm not going to look. I'll sit right over here, with my back against the tree." He stalked over to the enormous tree in question and patted a patch of moss at its base. "See? That way in case somebody comes and attacks you, I'll be ready."

"Now, who would attack me, Peter?"

He motioned for her hand again. "I don't think Tiger Lily is too fond of you."

"But she would never attack me, would she?" Wendy placed her hand into his.

"Maybe." Peter tugged Wendy to her feet and nearly into his chest. "She's got an awfully big temper. Once, she set my shirt on fire for making fun of her necklace."

"Oh my." She smelled sweat and moss near his collarbone. "I didn't bring my soap." Her eyes shifted to the traces of dirt in the creases on his neck. It took a great deal of concentration to resist the urge to swipe her thumb against the grime.

"It's, ah, across the pond, in a little, um, satchel. So, um, you'll have to, uh, swim to it." His Adam's apple bobbed up, then down. "Sorry. It's always been over there." Peter's voice dropped and his tongue darted out to wet his lips.

Wendy found it hard to focus on anything but those lovely lips. "I should just…will you help me over there, please?"

Peter swept her up, his strong arms under her knees and across her back. He stepped to the edge of the water and lowered her feet to the ground again.

"I'll, uh, be right over there." Clearing his throat and looking down at their feet, he took a step toward the tree. "But I won't look or anything."

She giggled at his boyish admission. "Thank you." It was more genuine, more chivalrous than anything Fitzsimmons had ever attempted.

He disappeared behind the massive tree. Wendy looked around, certain someone was watching. She looked at her dress and inspected her nails. Surely, a bath could wait until she could find a more private location. There were too many shadows the Indian princess could lurk until Wendy was in a state of undress.

"Tinkerbell?"

Peter jumped from his guard post, hand on the knife at his hip. "What's wrong? Did you see anything?" His fairy twinkled and flitted at his shoulder.

"No, no, it's just…" Wendy wanted to have a proper bath with proper walls. "Can Tinkerbell just check around? Ever since you said something about Tiger Lily, I can't help but think the shadows are watching me."

In a flash, Tink glittered through the thick leaves and returned.

"All clear." Peter's hand remained on the hilt.

Wendy was out of excuses. She really did need a bath and to change into something clean.

"Okay, then." She blew a measured breath to try and calm down. "Off you go. Tink, you can stay if you'd like."

The fairy vigorously shook her head and ducked behind the tree with Peter.

With little regard to the pain shooting up her leg, Wendy shucked her dress and petticoat and waded into the water in her undergarments as quickly as she could limp.

"You okay?" Peter called from behind the tree.

"Yes, thank you." She dropped to her knees to the sandy bank to hide her body at the sound of his voice, She groaned from the pain. Wendy rolled to sit in the water to get off of her offended ankle.

"Wendy?"

She looked up and Peter had not only come out from behind the tree, but had his bare feet in the water.

"Go away!" Wendy propelled her reclining body into deeper water on her arms, like a backwards crab.

"Are you okay?"

"Yes! Please, Peter, turn around." The tepid water lapped at her collarbone before she stopped.

He took another step into the water.

"Peter, stop. Please." Her voice wavered. She could barely contain her humiliation as he stared at her uncovered shoulders.

He seemed to shake himself from the trance and nodded to the other bank. "The soap is over there. I'm just going to go sit back down."

Wendy watched until he resumed his post, with an exaggerated sigh. She pushed into the deeper water, eyes glued to Peter's tree.

When her feet dangled far beneath, she dropped underneath the water to wet her hair. She floated just below the surface, eyes open and ears immune to sound. Her hair floated all around like brown seaweed. Sunlight and greenery waved in blurred lines in the water above. Wendy stayed under until her lungs burned. She emerged, sputtering until she caught her breath.

Wiping the back of her hand against her eyes to clear the extra water, she shrieked and nearly sank again when a certain red-head bobbed several feet away.

"You're not drowned!" He was panting, eyes wide.

"Certainly not!"

"I thought you had drowned."

"I have not and now you must leave." Unlike herself, she could see Peter still had on his tunic.

His face screwed into a pout. "You're no fun."

"Not when I am indecent." She had a knack for blurting out words to Peter before she thought them through.

Peter's eyes dropped from her face and down her neck to the water line.

"Out." She didn't even dare raise her paddling arm, so she nodded back in the direction he had come.

He snorted and turned in the water, took a couple of strokes and then turned back.

"It's big enough for both of us, you know." In his eyes, though his features were older, he was a boy again. His words were without malice or intent.

Wendy sighed. She nearly caved—until a trickle of water dripped from the stubble on his chin and broke her daze.

"It isn't big enough today, Peter."

He took smooth strokes in the opposite direction. She forced herself to turn around in the water when she realized her jaw had gone slack as he climbed from the water. She enjoyed the view entirely too much.