A few weeks later, after plenty of swimming practice, Vidia ventures off for some time alone. With the help of Ventus, she is beginning to find little ways to recover from losing her wings, and this chapter marks the next step in her healing. Enjoy reading! :)

Chapter Seven: Adapting

The clouds did nothing to improve Vidia's mood. They blocked out the sun, spoiling the ocean scenery lying before her. She crossed her arms and frowned at the sky. "How will the other fast-flyers cope without me? I could blow the clouds away in an instant! It's not that hard." The thought drifted away as she focused on the landscape.

Today was supposed to be a day all to herself. It had been a while since she had had complete solitude.

Ventus was with her, but the hummingbird didn't really count as bothersome company. He was often found near his mistress these days, but was good at keeping himself entertained. He was harnessed and saddled, playing amongst the tall grass happily. Anything bright such as the colorful shells kept him occupied.

Vidia shouldered the empty bag that was with her and marched out fearlessly onto the sand.

This beach was very open. Apart from her and Ventus, not a soul was in sight. It was low tide and the strong smell of kelp hung like a fog. Sandbanks stretched out for quite a ways. Beyond them was the sea going to meet the horizon. Its waves were tiny and calm today, with the cloud cover making the water glisten a silvery-grey. The sounds of the waves soothed Vidia's stressed-out person; the last few weeks had been so full of swimming practice that the barren beach was appreciated.

She kept trudging through the sand towards a rocky area. Since it was low tide, several tide pools had formed. Green algae-covered rocks held them and any small creatures that were now stranded for several hours. These pools were ideal for swimming practice; they were private and some were even deep enough for diving. Here, no one would bother her or get on her nerves. (Except maybe Ventus, who had devised a game where he would steal her shoes and hide them when she wasn't looking.)

Silvermist and the other water talents had been vital in learning how to swim; Vidia had nearly drowned on more than one occasion. As she clambered up onto a slimy seaweed-y rock, she remembered the earliest dive attempt—Sil had had to manipulate the water and lift her out to safety, coughing and sputtering. Day after day this kept happening. Since no other water fairy knew how to swim, Vidia had had to figure it out on her own just by watching the frogs. Eventually she was able to stay afloat without help. Now, she could propel herself forward and backward, and had even graduated to underwater swims. Lately, she had taken to going out and swimming alone without the aid of a water fairy lifeguard. The beach was becoming her favorite spot, for it was not as popular as the tranquil lakes and ponds of Pixie Hollow.

Vidia reached the top of the rocks and balanced on the slippery surface. She laid down the empty knapsack, planning on diving for seashells. Nearby was Ventus, zipping around the tufts of grass excitedly. "Watch these for me, will you?" she called to him, taking off her shoes. "And don't hide them again, you overgrown insect. That game has got to stop!"

Ventus gave a chirp which could have meant anything. He darted back into the grass, chasing dragonflies.

Vidia rolled her eyes. "Crazy bird..." She turned and dove into the tide pool.

Saltwater made her eyes sting, but that was a small price to pay for a small feeling of freedom. It was nothing compared to the adrenaline-filled flying she once did. But the more she practiced, the more she enjoyed it.

She kicked back and forth across the surface. A few sea plants were in the big pool, along with assorted shells and one lonely fish who was now stuck here until the tide came back in. Her ponytail streamed out in a black flame as she moved about. This was a nice change of pace, being away from other fairies. She had desperately been wanting some time to herself. She took a deep breath and flipped forward. Her feet were the last things to go under.

Everything was muffled and peaceful underwater. The plants and seaweed floated about; the lonely fish hid in them as Vidia kicked past. She swam down to the sandy bottom to begin her search. Some of the shells down here were small enough to carry. They would make interesting additions to her feather-strewn home.

Every few minutes she emerged on the rocks with a new finding in hand. The empty bag filled up slowly. On one dive, Vidia made a nice find of a perfectly shaped white shell that would look impressive on her kitchen table. Or maybe she would give it to Silvermist in thanks for not letting her drown during lessons. She stuffed it into the bag with a sense of accomplishment.

Learning to swim had healed a small hole.

Treading water, she noticed the sky was still cloudy. What were the other fast-flyers doing? Were they just being lazy today? She couldn't very well help blow the clouds away; a great deal of wing-power was needed to push clouds. She kept on swimming, not wanting to imagine the other fast-flyers at work high up in the sky.

When the bag was full of seashells, Vidia squeezed salt water out of her ponytail and hopped around on the rock to dry off. Her usual clothes had been swamped for a different version: it was a little more revealing, exposing her legs and more neck and shoulders, but was more suitable for swimming. She shouldered the bag and went to go get her shoes.

They were missing.

"Oh, please. Now is not the time." She scowled up at her hummingbird. He blinked at her mischievously. "Where are they?"

Ventus chirped from his perch on the driftwood. The trinkets on his harness glittered despite the cloud-cover.

"Fine. I've got plenty more pairs at home." She slid off the slimy rocks and approached the driftwood. "The first time was fun, now it's just annoying!"

The bird hung his head, disappointed that his mistress wasn't up for the game. As she attached the bag onto the back of the saddle, he got a wonderful idea. His head jerked up so quickly that Vidia flinched. "What is it, now?"

Ventus suddenly rocketed away through the grass. His green wings beat so fast they became invisible.

"Hey! Don't leave me stranded!"

The hummingbird reappeared briefly over the bushels of grass. The chirps and calls he made were playful and he popped up and down, in and out of sight while Vidia stared in exasperation. "I'm not chasing you, Ventus. I don't need games right now! Just give me a lift home. It'll take days to walk back to the tree!"

The bird flew a little higher and spiraled up in circles.

"Ugh. Get over here!" Vidia leapt from the driftwood. The wild grass cast striped shadows over her as she marched beneath it. Further in, the sandy ground became hard earth and was far easier to walk on. She picked up the pace, searching for any flash of green and red.

A lightning bolt buzzed across the path, the beat of its wings going in and out of earshot. As Vidia followed, the sound came up behind her, and Ventus playfully knocked her to her knees. She turned to scold, but he was gone again. She caught herself smiling. "Good grief, what is wrong with you today?" She ran off after him.

Beyond the wild grass was a fairy-made path leading back to Pixie Hollow. The trees were very tall here, rising up around an open grassy field. It was into these trees where Ventus kept flying. He went all the way up into the canopy of one, before diving down to weave among the roots of another. He rushed in spirals around a trunk at one point—one of the last flying stunts Vidia had done before the hawk attack…No! It wouldn't do to think about that!

The bird disappeared for a moment. Randomly, out of nowhere, he knocked Vidia to her knees again. He was begging her to cheer up!

This time, Vidia gave in and chuckled.

The hummingbird flew down across the path with Vidia running in pursuit. He was fast; she pumped her arms to keep up and moved faster. The hard earth was not a problem. Even in bare feet, it was manageable. She jumped over any obstructing twigs, ignoring the stubbed toe one gave her. The wind seemed to grow in strength; she ran faster as Ventus egged her on. The wild bird was too erratic to predict. Every move he made was wild and energetic.

As Vidia ran, she began to realize just how strong her legs had become. Sprinting through the field didn't make them ache at all now. As the chase game went on, her legs didn't even tire. She was off into the grass, for Ventus had veered towards a far-off tree and seemed to be waiting up in its branches.

Vidia screeched to a halt to catch her breath. Her chest heaved up and down, but there was no stitch in her side.

From the branch, Ventus pulled something out of the leaves; something small and violet-colored…

"Hey! Bring those down here!" So that's where her shoes went…he must have flown fast, for the tree was quite far from the rocky tide pools.

Vidia broke into a mad sprint. Now to see just how far her legs could take her…all was going well. With the shade of the grass flickering over her, she kept going. The muscles were working splendidly! Her arms pumped harder, building up more speed. Her breath became rhythmic and steady. Air whistled in each ear and pulled her hair back in a waving stream.

Another smile crept up in its own subtle way.

The roots of the tree were reached faster than she expected. She slid to a stop, conjuring up a cloud of dust and dirt. For fun, she created a little extra wind to raise it high into the sky, but a full cyclone was formed instead. She had been putting gin extra practice with cyclones, so she worked with it, making it balloon to such a size that the entire tree could have been surrounded! It was enormous! Perhaps it also had something to do with the fact that she felt happier then she had been in a long while.

"Yes! The biggest cyclone yet! Take that, fast-flyers with wings!" She punched the air excitedly after the cloud died down.

Now, how to get her shoes?

"Of course you would ignore me. What fun is there in letting me have it easy?" she yelled up at Ventus. He refused to budge from his new perch. "Fine. I'll get up there myself."

Feeling her muscles during the run had given her a little boost of confidence. Surely they could help with scaling a tree?

So she began. The bark was knobby enough to get a good grip. She pulled up along the roots with ease—more challenge was made when it came to the trunk. A vertical climb like this was very different from the naturally crooked trunk of the sour plum tree…Vidia took a deep breath and did her best. She had to find the best grips, just in case she got too tired. She always kept three contact points, moving one arm or leg at a time. There was a section in the tree where she was forced to climb at a funny angle; she was actually tilted with her back facing the ground below. More work was requested of her arms here. When the dangerous section was past, the strength in her limbs could truly be felt. Beads of sweat were forming now; she paused while hanging on for dear life.

"…Almost there…" she panted.

The last leg of the climb was agonizing. Ventus' branch began up and to the right. Not many close-together grips were in this part of the tree. At one point, she used her legs to push off from a tiny ledge of bark to reach a knot. Her body left the trunk completely when she did this. Breezes up here were a bit more vigorous and threatened to blow her off course. But she made it.

On the branch, Vidia collapsed from exertion. Ventus chirped and buzzed around in congratulations. "Oh, thank you, sweetheart. Now how about you try it?" she wiped some sweat out of her eye and stood. "Now give me my shoes!"

From this viewpoint, the beach could be seen, with the sea spread out beyond. She could see just how far she had run through the field. The great distance impressed her. It must've been a hundred feet, at least. And she had only stopped once, even facing a tough tree climb at the end.

She stared down at the grass, still breathing hard. Perhaps all the walking and swimming was good for something…she felt stronger and tougher then she had ever been.

She slipped her shoes on and balanced further out on the branch: it rose upward to offer a better view. A violet breeze picked up in the sky without warning. Vidia recognized it as the fast-flyers' work, finally working on the cloud-cover. Any clouds blocking the sun promptly blew away to let in some light for Pixie Hollow. Sunshine lit up the beach, the sparkling sea, the field, and even her face as she admired the view. In the distance was a flock of birds being herded by a team of animal fairies. Golden pixie dust drifted off everyone's wings, lightly settling on the trees. One stubborn bird in particular was putting up a struggle. The talents were dragged every which way in the air. It wasn't a fun experience for them, but to Vidia, the sight was laughable.

A good, hearty laugh finally escaped her. For once, she felt no resentment towards the flying fairies. She thought of Lord Milori…he was perfectly happy without the power of flight…

Vidia got comfortable, sitting on the edge of the branch. A light breeze rustled her long hair soothingly as she let out her ponytail. She forgot about the scars showing, for her mind was busy thinking of the accomplishments instead. Something had been taken away from her, and now she had at least found a few ways to adapt. These new skills needed some polishing, though. There were still a few kinks in her arms from the climb, but the running had been exhilarating! Maybe next time, she could go farther.

Ventus flitted closer to have his head rubbed, glad to see his mistress with a smile instead of a scowl.

"This wasn't such a bad morning, you know." VIdia spoke quietly, lest anyone hear her soft side coming out. What was that Bobble had said a few weeks ago? It's not the end of Neverland…

Her eyes became full of a strange determination. "Maybe I can do this…"

Thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews. Makes me so happy every time I read one! Vidia's tale is beginning to take a happier turn. Next time will be a double-update, where Vidia finds more ways to adapt, finally accepts what has happened to her, and then the big finale chapter. It all ends on a wonderful note and I promise you won't be disappointed! :)