19.

A few dayslater Wendy was rocking back and forth with a small boy in her lap, his face covered in tears.

"Mother," he sobbed holding onto her tightly.

"Don't worry," she said softly, "It was an accident."

"So scary," he trembled, and Wendy felt her own eyes tear up.

"He can't be so scary," Wendy said helplessly.

"Hook," the boy cried, "Hook…"

Peter flew down, and his face filled with confusion, not at the boy, but at Wendy, he always forgot she had grown, but after a moment or two he recognized her. Then back to his duty as Peter Pan, glared at the boy.

"Why are you crying?"

"Hook!" the boy shouted, his face red.

"Hook and his crew found him," Wendy said trying not to let the guilt slip into her voice, her eyes stayed on the floor as she spoke, "They frightened him is all, he's alright."

Peter sniffed, disgusted, "Hook. What did he do to you?"

"Grabbed me! Took my map!" the boy shouted.

"Map?" Peter asked, and then it dawned on him, "The maps! Foolish boy!"

Peter gave a final angry glare and jumped into the sky, just as the other boys came back down.

The small boy's tears tried up and he jumped up, rubbing at his eyes, "They cant see me!" he said quickly, and then began to chat animatedly with the others.

Wendy left, sadness clear in her eyes, and went down to the Neverland floor. As she walked she thought of Hook, how she missed him, needed him, and was suddenly ashamed of him.

"You're upset," a voice said and she spun around to see Hook.

"You should focus more on your ship and less on following me around," she snapped.

Hook gave her a curious look, "You're tense."

"Bloody right I'm tense!" she almost shouted, "I've spent the past few days with wild boys, wondering why I'm even there! Then you frighten a poor child, a little boy! Of course who had to comfort him? His mother! Me! I had to be there for him, listen as he cried about seeing you! And I had to act like I hated you. Now it might be true."

Hook's eyes searched her face, now nearly crying.

"Wendy," he said softly, "You agreed to this."

"I know!" this time she yelled, clenching her fists, "I know."

She started to walk away, but he followed her, "If you want to quit then quit, I'm not keeping you here."

"Yes you are," she mumbled and the gave him a seething look, "I'll go through with this, but don't come back; I can't look at you right now."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he growled.

"I just… I just can't!"

He grabbed her shoulder and pressed her up against the tree, his eyes blood red, "If you were anyone else I would have you flogged!"

"We're not on your ship," she hissed, "Besides, why would you treat me any different? I'm just here to do your bidding, your dirty work."

Hook lifted his hand off her shoulder and looked as if he was about to hit her. She flinched, turning her head away and closing her eyes, and his fist fell to his side.

"I wouldn't hit you," he said in a strangled voice.

She looked up at him beneath her eye lashes, and very slowly he kissed her cheek, but she still saw the scarlet in the corner of his eyes.

"If you want me gone," he took a deep breath, still controlling his anger, "I will leave. I merely came to give you this," he threw a locket at her feet and turned around, "It was my mothers."

She crouched the ground and held her knees to her chest as he walked away. When he was gone she picked up the necklace, and very carefully cradled it in her palm.

The next few days Wendy became closer to Peter, although he always greeted her with confused looks. Hook did not appear again, although his crew members did, but too proud to ask for him she kept stoically silent and hid the necklace under her shirt. She relayed what she knew to the crew, and found they would not be attacking the hideout, it had been done so many times before, and they now waited until the day before the full moon, where they could be rid of Peter and weaken Neverland, and therefore the Indians and Mermaids, who wouldn't have time to find out he was gone, and continue to fight in their weakened state.

The necklace itself was beautiful. White gold, a chain that was as graceful as water. The locket was round, with an intricate pattern of vines carved into the face. On the inside there was a very small, almost unnoticeable letter S in the corner, and Wendy took that to stand for Stroud, Hooks old name. Guilt seemed to drive itself upon her lately, with Peter and the boys, now with Hook. He had only come to give her something she could only imagine meant so much to him, and she had fought with him. Yet she knew somewhere in her words she had been slightly right, but out of pride and stubbornness, she could not ask him to come back.

Hook of course, would not go back, mainly for the same reasons as Wendy's but of course he now felt insecure. They had never talked about what they were to each other, and he was content that way, but giving her the locket meant something. It required commitment, and although they had silently passed that line long ago, giving her that locket meant that she knew that she was special to him. He didn't know what possessed him to do such a foolish thing, and then fling it to the ground! He was sure that she hated him and probably left the thing where it was. She could have traded sides and be laughing with Pan now at how ridiculous he was.

He told himself they had been through too much; she would never do such a thing. But he still wondered. As a pirate captain, he would always be paranoid.

Smee had become tired of the Captains worse than usual behavior. In fact he had never seen Hook so angry since he had come back from the crocodile's jaws, on a rampage to kill every thing in his way. Now he smelled of whisky, his moods flared, and his men began to look over their shoulders.

"Captain," Smee said meekly, "Perhaps I could speak to the Miss Wendy for ye sir."

Hook shot daggers at Smee with his eyes, but said nothing.

"Sometimes she talks to me," he said faltering a little, but then remembering the Captains moods, stood up straight, and in his roughest Irish voice said, "Begging your pardon sir, but I think its high time things began to pull themselves together. Don't you think that your plan to steal Peter will work when you won't even speak to the main character in your play. Let me talk to the girl, if you two wont swallow your pride, I'll fix this meself."

Hook nearly gaped at him as Smee's chest swelled, but instead began to walk towards him slowly.

Smee, realizing what he'd done, began to shrink, and with muffled fear in his eyes, he lost his energy.

"You think you can fix this when I cannot?" Hook growled.

"You could… if you tried…"

He drew out his hook, and began to stroke it, "I do believe the girl hates me," Hook said almost offhandedly, "If I cannot fix that, you most certainly cannot, however, if you would like to try," Hook waved his hands towards the island and sneered, "Be my guest."

When Smee, who did not have the same sense of direction and eerie stalker like senses, finally found Wendy he was panting, which made it seem more like Wendy found him.

"Mr Smee," she smiled brightly, "How nice to see you."

He nodded and leaned against a tree signaling her to wait; he had walked up a very steep hill to get to her.

"Are you…?"

"I'm perfectly fine," he wheezed, "Just out of shape. Been walking this whole island looking for you Miss Wendy."

"Did no one help you?"

"Came on me own personal errand," he said getting up.

"Oh?"

Smee suddenly became nervous; Wendy could be just as terrifying as Hook if she had to be.

With a deep breath, he began.

"Miss, I am tired of waiting for you and the Captain to make amends. You both are acting like children, and you may still wish to be a child but you cannot go on acting like one."

"I don't want to be a child," she interrupted, "I left Neverland, remember? I knew I would grow up, I never asked to come back!"

"But here you are," Smee said softly, giving her a sad looking, "Acting just the same as you did when you were a small girl. The Captain has waited so long for a happy life, and the moment you stepped on the ship he got it, and now you're refusing it to him once again. He knows what you're doing is hard for you, but you have to understand it's even harder for him. Neither one of you should blame the other, because this fight is equally to blame on both of you. You both can't seem to see the other's side, but neither of you will even bother to try."

Wendy stood dumbstruck; Smee had never made any indication that he possessed this kind of knowledge.

"If he wants to talk to me then he can come right over and do so himself," she said trying her best to sound haughty, but Smee had made her feel ashamed.

Smee turned around and left, still wheezing. When he climbed back onto the ship, Hook unceremoniously greeted him.

"Where have you been?"

"Talking to Miss Wendy sir…"

"You were to do so on your own time, not mine," Hook snapped.

"Sorry sir."

"There are no sorries among a pirate ship Smee, only pleads of mercy."

Smee felt his hope draining, but added, "She would like to see you sir."

Hook's eyes drained of the small amount of maroon, and he snapped his head to the island.

"The full moon is in a few days…" he mused, "I should probably go over the last few details with her…"

"That's all she's here for," Smee said giving him a knowing look, "Right Captain?"

Hook glared at him, the blood colored eyes returning, "Aye Mr Smee."

I was able to rush this chapter, sorry for lack of editing, I might try to get one more in, but I'm in such a hurry with packing and all this nonsense! If you don't hear from me for awhile I promise I'll have a few chapters finished for you by the time I get back. Hopefully I'll be in wifi range so I may update on the road! Thank you all so much for reading and reviewing, I couldn't do it without you!