Hearts Broken

"Not bad, for your first try," Peter commented with a cheeky grin as the tip of Margaret's wooden sword pointed at his throat.

"I'm a fast learner," Margaret replied with the same cheeky smile.

They had spent a while sword fighting, with Peter teaching and Margaret learning. However, there wasn't much to learn after watching Peter and Hook sword fighting. And Margaret was sure she had learned more of Peter's fighting skills from stories somewhere, but she paid little attention to that.

And with everything she learned, Margaret was able to attack Peter, knocking his sword away and pointing her sword at him.

Margaret had won the duel.

"You got lucky," Peter said as Margaret lowered her sword.

Margaret rolled her eyes. "Sure, I did. Face it, Pan! You just don't like the fact that you lost to a girl!"

"I didn't lose! Peter Pan never loses!" he said with confident, his fisted hands on his hips. "I just made it easy for you to win! That's what teachers do!"

Margaret shook her head. "Right." She picked up Peter's sword from the ground and threw it to him, which he caught. "I'm getting tired. Can we go back to Hangman Jr.'s Tree?"

"Sure, let's go." He walked up to Margaret, took her hand in his, and then floated up. But Margaret stopped him by pulling him down.

"Wait, let's not fly this time."

Peter looked shockingly at her. "What? Why?"

"It's nice out here. Why don't we just walk instead?"

"But what if we run into danger?"

Margaret warmly smiled at him and kissed his cheek. "Then you can fly us the rest of the way."

Peter's cheeks reddened for a second, but it disappeared and Peter nodded in agreement. "Alright. Your choice. Let's go have your walk, then."

He headed off into the forest and Margaret followed behind. She suddenly stopped when her eyes caught something in a tree close to the clearing. While Peter continued walking ahead, not looking back once, Margaret walked closer to look clearly at the figure.

There, sitting on a tree limb, was a small doll. Nut just an ordinary doll, but a doll that looked very much like Peter Pan himself.

Her eyes widened in surprise at the sight. She looked around to see if the doll belonged to anyone. But she was alone. Slowly, she reached out and picked up the doll gently in her hands.

As she studied the doll, she felt an overwhelming feeling that, somehow, she knew where this doll came from and who it belongs to. But nothing in her memories could identify the doll and its significance to her. Perhaps it belongs to someone she knows. Perhaps it belongs to one of the Lost Boys. Or maybe it belongs to Peter, since the doll strongly resembled him.

But something was telling her it didn't belong to any of them.

Then, who did it belong to?

Maybe it belongs to someone who made it. But who would have the talent to sew a beautiful doll like this. The talent of sewing usually falls onto the mother-

The mother.

There are no mothers here in Neverland. But Margaret was pretty sure she had a mother that didn't live here in Neverland. She would always sew dolls for her.

Wait, did she?

Margaret tried to think of her mother; trying to remember her. However, to her horror, she could not remember her own mother at all.

As she urgently searched for memories of her mother, she realized that, the more she thought of her old life before Neverland, the more she realized that she has forgotten about them. She doesn't remember her original home, her family, her bedroom, anything! She doesn't even remember what her mother, or any of her family members, look like! All she could get out of her brain was an image of an old woman, and hearing another woman's voice in an argument-

Oh no.

Margaret must have fought with her mother before she left to Neverland. Does her mother even know where she is? Is she heartbroken that Margaret never returned? Margaret felt so terrible to realize that the last time she was with her mother, they had been angry at each other. Margaret never bothered to say goodbye.

She has to get back and set things right.

"Hey, Margaret!" She jumped at the voice behind her, clutching the doll against her chest. She turned around to see Peter flying before her with a happy, oblivious look.

He landed in front of her. "Something wrong?" His eyes caught the doll in her arms. "Or do you just like hugging your doll with that look."

Margaret froze. "My doll?"

"Well, yeah. You did bring it with you," he answered as if it was obvious. But it wasn't obvious to her.

She looked down at this doll and stared at it. So, this was her doll. Why couldn't she remember that? Her thumb gently rubbed the doll's face, forgetting about Peter, until she asked him, "From where?"

"Huh?"

Margaret looked up with pleading eyes. "Where did I live? Before Neverland?"

Peter raised his eyebrow. "You came from London, remember?"

Margaret stared off into space, letting his answer sink in. "No," she whispered to herself. "No, I don't."

Whether Peter heard her or not, he only shrugged as if it was no big deal, and said, "Well, we better get going. Come on, Margaret."

He jumped up in the air and flew off. He looked back and suddenly halted when he saw that Margaret wasn't following him. He flew back to her, looking confused by the minute.

"Um, Margaret, are you okay?" Margaret didn't answer, only clutching her doll tighter to her heart. Her eyes began to get teary as the majority of her memory has been wiped clean.

Peter frowned at her. Worry was making it's way to his face as Margaret remained unchanged. "Are you hurt, or something? Please, say something!"

Still, Margaret was silent.

"Alright," Peter said, finally having enough of Margaret's scary silent. "What's going on with you? What do you want?"

"I want to go home."

Peter stepped back in shock. "What?"

Margaret's teary eyes slowly turned to Peter. "I want to go home."

Peter paused for a moment, then grinned. "Oh, okay, then." He grabbed her hand and pulled her forward. "Let's get back to Hangman Jr-"

"No," Margaret interrupted him, violently ripping her hand from him (which stunned Peter). "I mean I want to go home . . . To my home. To London."

Peter's face burst into shock at this. "What? Why? I thought you hate it there."

"Well, I can't seem to remember me hating London, let alone London itself!" Margaret replied harshly. Peter's eyes flashed with hurt at her tone, his floating body sinking back on the ground. Noticing Peter's reaction, Margaret took a deep breath to calm herself and spoke in a cool voice. "Peter, I can't remember my home, my childhood, or my family. They must be so worried about me." she added to herself in a quiet and regretful voice. Turning to Peter, she said, "I have to go back before I completely forget about them. Please take me back to London."

"No!"

Margaret was taken aback. "No?"

"I mean, just stay a bit longer. We can have some more fun here before you go."

"Peter-"

"We can go swimming, or go hunting for treasure, or explore the-"

"Peter!" Margaret shouted. Peter fell silent. "You do know I'll have to go back sooner or later, right? I can't really stay here forever"

"But-"

"And besides, I can't stay here for another day! Don't you understand? The longer I stay, the more I forget! I need to find Little and get us out of here!"

"But what about growing up," Peter questioned her. "Or you moving someplace far away from London? If you go back, you'll have to face all that grown up stuff!"

"If I had known coming here would make me forget my family and childhood memories, then I should never have come here." Peter's face was shocked with hurt. Margaret groaned, regretting saying that. She rubbed her eyes and begged, "Please, let's just go find Little and get out of here."

Peter didn't move. He was frozen in place for a long time, which was scaring Margaret.

"Peter," she hesitantly spoke.

Finally, Peter spoke in a firm voice. "No."

Margaret was, again, taken aback, but not because of his voice. His eyes were dangerously crossed and a huge frown replaced the smirk she had come to adore.

"Peter, I have to-"

"You can't go back, Margaret! You can't grow up like they did!"

Peter was becoming desperate and shouted out every word he said. This shocked Margaret even more.

"Who-"

"If you go back and grow up, then you can never come back!"

His eyes were pleading her to stay in Neverland forever. But, as much as she would like to, she had to go back to her home.

"I'm sorry, Peter! I really am! But my place isn't here; I don't belong here! It never was my home, no matter how much I wanted to believe that!"

"But you do belong here!" Peter came closer to her, as if trying to make it clear to her. But Margaret backed away from him, feeling conflicted with her decisions the longer she looked at his frantic face. "You're perfect here! You can have so much fun here! We can have as many adventures as we want! You can be a kid forever!"

From the sound of his slightly shaking voice, Margaret had gotten the feeling that Peter wasn't talking about her leaving Neverland or a chance to have fun and stay young forever. It sounded more like he didn't want her to leave him.

And that was what broke her heart. He would be the one she'll miss the most from Neverland.

Margaret turned away, no longer able to look at him anymore. Her eyes were becoming teary.

"It doesn't matter," Margaret replied in a low and final tone. "I'm going home to my family. I had fun here . . . Really, I did . . . But it's time I go home and face whatever I left behind."

Keeping her head down, she raised her hand toward Peter. This time, he backed away from her hand. "I'm going to need some pixie dusts. Once I find Little . . . We are going home."

A long, silent moment stretched on and Margaret had not felt pixie dusts on her hand. She looked up and, again, regretted her action. Peter was staring at her hand with the most depressing look she had ever saw. It was as if he was told that Neverland could no longer make him young forever.

"Peter."

He looked up at her, his eyes glistening with fear and despair. And, all of a sudden, it was all replaced with anger and hurt.

He backed further away from her. "No. I won't let you leave."

Margaret sighed and walked forward. "Peter, please-"

"There is no way I'm giving you pixie dusts."

"You're being ridicules!" Margaret raised her hand in frustration. "Fine, I'll go ask Tinker Bell if she could give me some of hers!" She turned and walked off.

"Then I'll banish her!" Peter shouted at her.

Margaret didn't turn around. "I'm pretty sure she would give me her pixie dust either way, just so to get rid of me!"

"Then I'll order her not to!"

"Before or after you banish her again?"

"You're not leaving me, Margaret!"

Margaret finally stopped and turned to Peter. "Well, you sure are giving me a good reason to leave you!"

Peter froze in shock. Margaret didn't mean to say it, but it had to be done.

Peter closed his eyes and turned away.

After a sad pause, Margaret slowly walked up to Peter and softly asked him, "Why don't you want me to leave, Peter?" She already knew the answer, but she wanted to hear him admit it to her. Maybe he could give her a very good reason to stay. "What's the real reason?"

Peter didn't respond, turning his back to her.

None of them noticed a small trail of pixie dusts flying through the forest. They snuck up behind Margaret and silently entered into her mind. Her eyes glowed and her mind went blank for a moment. Then, her eyes went back to normal and the pixie dusts disappeared, leaving behind one thought that overpowered her mind: hurt Peter Pan.

A wicked grin appeared on her face.

"I just," Peter finally began, with hesitation. " . . . If you go back and . . . Grow up . . . Then you'll forget about being young. You'll forget about what it's like to have fun. You'll forget Neverland and everyone here . . . Including me. I'll just be a silly fairy tale to you.

"And, when you forget, you'll start acting like someone you're not. Someone who works all the time and does things a child would never think of doing. Someone who's miserable and angry all the time. Where's the fun in that?"

"Please, like being a child is a walk in a park."

Peter turned around. "What?"

Margaret hid her smirk, her fists tightened at her sides. "Being young means you're limited to what's really out there. Being young means you're selfish, cruel, annoying, and above all, conceited! Isn't that why Wendy and Jane wanted to grow up? To avoid becoming a child like that? Like you?"

Peter felt he was stabbed in the back at her words. "What?"

"And they grew up just fine in the adult world! Better than being here in Neverland! So, maybe, I should do the same and grow up! I'll probably be a better person there than here!"

A piece of Peter's heart broke off.

"That way, you'll always be alone here-"

Another piece broke off.

"Where, no one will want to be with you!"

And another.

"And how can you know that being a grown up is terrible? Have you ever tried it? Hmm? Of course not! You know why? Because you're just a child and you'll never understand!"

"Maybe I don't want to understand!" Peter finally shouted at her, hiding the pain inside of him. "I don't care! I'll never grow up like you, Wendy, Jane, or anyone else! I'll always be a boy forever!"

Margaret paused, as if she had been hit by his words, or she was just surprised that Peter spoke up while she was on a roll.

However, she wasn't finished with him.

"What makes you think you haven't grown up?"

Peter's eyebrows crossed. "What are you talking about? Of course I haven't grown up!"

"Just because you haven't grown up on the outside, doesn't mean you haven't grown up in the inside?"

Peter's eyes shot up. There were more ways to grow up?

"Come on, Peter, isn't it obvious? You act more grown up than anyone on this island. You're more of a grown up than Captain Hook!"

Now that was a big insult.

"I am not," Peter protested.

"Really? Well, why don't I list a few 'adult' feelings you have, shall I?" She started listing on her fingers, ignoring Peter's terrified expression. "You're loyal, brave, honorable, fair, revengeful, anxious, and, best of all, you've fallen in love. Now, have I got that right?"

Peter was stepping away from her, staring at her as if she had turned into Captain Hook. He could still hear his words from last night on how he was growing up. Peter had refused to believe Hook, thinking that Hook was only trying to get under his nerves. But, if Margaret, the girl who had become his closest and trustful friend, was saying the same thing to him, then they must be true.

Peter Pan has grown up.

"No," Peter's choked up words fell out, shaking his head in disbelief. His eyes became teary and his heart had just lost all its pieces. "That's not true. You're lying!"

Margaret coldly shrugged. "I'm just being truthful. And, now that you've grown up, didn't you just say earlier that, once you've grown up, you are forbidden from Neverland?"

"No," Peter cried, desperately digging his hands into his red hair. "No, no, no, no!"

Margaret clapped her hands together merrily. "Why, you would be perfect in London! You could even live with me and my grown up family-"

"NEVER!" Peter shouted at her with all of his strength, scaring Margaret. "I'LL NEVER LIVE WITH YOU! I'LL NEVER GO TO LONDON! NEVER, NEVER, NEVER!"

"But where will you go," Margaret asked in a tiny voice. She slowly walked forward, reaching out her hand to him. But Peter shot away from her, glaring at her with the most hateful look she had ever seen.

"GET AWAY FROM ME! IF YOU WANTED TO GO HOME THAT BADLY, THEN GO! GO BACK AND GROW UP! AND NEVER COME BACK AGAIN!"

With that, Peter rocketed up and disappeared into a now dark sky.

The magic pixie dusts inside her mind had vanished during Peter's rant. Now Margaret helplessly looked up to where Peter retreated, tears falling down on her heartbroken face.

"What have I done?"

*PPIII*

At last, Tinker Bell made it to Fort Buccaneer, where it was, to her surprise, completely empty. No pirates in sight. Not even Hook himself. Tink quickly flew through the buildings in the fort, only to find them all empty as well. Even the Captain's cabin was vacant.

Tink scratched her head in puzzlement. Where did everyone go?

Then a thought occurred to her. The Egg. What if they have already discovered the Egg's power? What could they be using it for?

Tink hurriedly zoomed out of the fort and into the sky. She scanned the island of Neverland in search for pirates and their captain. Though Tink became a little uneasy when she saw the sky darkening ominously.

Before she could think any further on the weather, however, her eyes caught something new and different out into the ocean.

Tink gasped. It's The Jolly Roger.

But how could that be? It sunk to the deep sea. Something must have happened.

Tink's eyes widened. The Egg.

She flew toward the ship, entirely convinced that the Egg is on that ship. She must find It and bring It back to Pixie Hallow, before anything else happens.

She suddenly halted, hovering over the shores, to see something very shocking.

The octopus, that had hunted down Captain Hook for some years, was currently attempting to sneak aboard the Jolly Roger. But, from the moment it touched the ship, cannons came from inside the ship and immediately fired upon the octopus. The octopus was able to avoid them. However, to its and Tink's surprise, all the cannon balls flew right back at the octopus as if it was a magnet to the cannon balls. The iron balls were able to harm the octopus, wounding it. Then, another cannon fired chains at the wounded creature. The chains hit the poor octopus, wrapping itself around the animal, bounding it. And then, the chains, as if it has a mind of its own, dragged the octopus all the way to the shores, where the octopus was forced to lay there, unable to move or return back into the ocean.

Tink was horrified. The Jolly Roger had never done that before. This ship must be more powerful than before, possibly because of the powers of the Egg.

Tink quickly flew to the octopus and tried to free it, but the chains were too strong for a tiny person like her. The octopus looked up at her with distressing and hopeless eyes. Tink could feel her heart grow very heavy at the sight and tried harder, but it was no use. The octopus was doomed.

"I'm so sorry," Tink told it with teary eyes, feeling incredibly horrible the longer she stared at its face, knowing she couldn't help it. And knowing that she would have to leave it in a helpless state while she goes after the Egg.

But how can she get to the Egg? She looked back at the Jolly Roger, now afraid of the ship. The Egg would obviously be there, but it would be heavily guarded. What would happen to her if she attempt to approach the ship? Would the ship attack her as well? Would the ship be able to destroy her?

Tink scanned the ship, desperate to find one area that wasn't guarded. She spotted the back of the ship; the window of the Captain's cabin. It didn't look like it was heavily guarded, but what if it was?

Tink had no choice. She has to check it out. She has to find the Egg before anything else gets worse.

She jumped out of her thoughts when she suddenly realized that the light of the sun had disappeared. She turned to the sky to see darker clouds covering the sky, hiding the bright and optimistic sun under dark and depressing clouds. Tink had never seen that before here in Neverland. Something must be very wrong.

She would have to find out later; she has to focus on the Egg first.

Giving the octopus one last apologetic look, Tink jumped up and silently flew to the back of the ship to the windows of Hook's cabin, unable to look back at the octopus.

When she arrived, she quickly hid herself away from view, fearing to be spotted by whoever was inside. With her back against the frame, she slowly turned her head to the glass of the window and spotted Hook and Mr. Smee inside the cabin.

And, in Hook's hand, was Mother Dove's Egg.

Tink beamed. There it was. Now all she needed to do is grab It and go.

She was filled with the feeling of overconfidence; she was sure she can complete this mission without any help.

She realized they were talking and Tink wondered what they were talking about. She scanned the window and spotted a crack at the corner of the window. She moved her ear to the crack to see of she could hear anything through the crack.

And, surprisingly, she could hear every word through the crack.

"But how do you know if it worked, Cap'n," Smee asked Hook.

"Oh, I'll know when it works, Smee. Just you wait," Hook responded with confidence and Tink could clearly hear the evil grin in his voice.

"Perhaps you should have wished for Pan to appear on this ship, Cap'n. Maybe wish for him to appear in the brig."

Tink froze. Wish? The Egg grants wishes? To the humans? How cliché is that? All she knows is that now, in Hook's hand, he can use the Egg to wish for anything. He must have wished for this ship to come back from the watery grave. But what were they talking about now? Did it have something to do with Peter? In Hook's every conversations, it always has something to do with Peter. Tink pressed her hears against the crack, making sure she doesn't scratch her ear against the crack. She hoped that nothing bad had happened to her Peter.

"No, no, Mr. Smee. This is more fun," Hook replied. "To see Pan so heartbroken and helpless; not a joking, childish manner to be found on that boy's face. To have him on my feet with no escape. To have him begging for mercy! Oh yes, Mr. Smee! This will be much more fun!"

Tink covered her mouth to hide her horrified gasp. Terror shot her heart like a cannon.

"Peter," she whispered.

"Ah," she suddenly heard Hook sigh as if relaxing from a long day's work. "It is done. My wish has just come true."

Tink's heart broke into two. Oh no. No!

"Are you sure, Cap'n?"

"Yes, Mr. Smee. I've never been surer in my life. Now, we must go and fetch what's left of him." Hook chuckled cruelly.

Tink's back hit against the frame as she shook her head in disbelief. Thoughts zoomed all over her head with words like, no. It can't be. Not Peter. Peter's fine. Nothing could hurt him. Hook's lying! His wish didn't come true! It couldn't have! No!

Her eyes closed shut, trying to clear her mind from an image that popped in her head from her thoughts: a broken looking Peter Pan. Her eyes tightened, attempting to prevent tears from forming.

She leaned back closer to the crack, wishing with all of her heart that there was no truth in any of their words.

"Oh, uh, I don't think that would be a good idea, Cap'n," Smee piped.

Hook paused. "Why not? Give me one good reason why not, Mr. Smee?"

"Well, judging by the weather outside, it looks like a storm is approaching rather quickly, Cap'n. If we leave now, we might get caught in the rain."

Hook paused again and Tink looked up in the sky to see that Smee was right. Now the entire sky was covered with dark grey clouds, preparing for a storm. She could feel the chills of the wind and could hear the low rumble of thunder. That's strange, Tink thought. There hasn't been any storms like that here in Neverland. Except the time Mother Dove's Egg cracked. Something terrible must have happened here in Neverland. And then Tink knew exactly what had happened.

Peter.

"You're right, Mr. Smee," Hook finally said. He must have looked at the window. Tink attempted to hide herself away from viewpoint, while, at the same time, listen through the crack. "Well then, we'll have to wait until the storm pass. Then, as soon as it stopped raining, we'll head for shores and hunt down Peter Pan. Mr. Smee, go and tell the others the plan."

"Aye aye, Cap'n," Smee said cheerfully and the next thing Tink heard was the sound of the door opening and closing, leaving behind silence.

Tink's heart was beating faster at the knowledge that something horrible had happened to Peter. She tried, with all her heart, to disbelieve that Peter Pan can be broken. Not her Peter. But Hook sounded very convinced and confident that his evil wish had been granted and, somewhere in Neverland, Peter Pan has indeed been broken.

She has to see for herself. She has to find him. If what Hook said is true, then Tink must help Peter. Help the love of her life, and bring him back to normal before Hook finds him.

Ignoring a distant thunder, and completely forgetting her mission to retrieve the Egg, Tinker Bell flew off and headed straight into the forest of Neverland.

She urgently zoomed across the forest, zipping over logs and rocks and under branches, paying no attention to a few lightning and even louder thunders. She remembered exactly where she last saw Peter and she also remembered that Margaret was with him. If that witch did anything to Peter, Tink will certainly kill her on the spot, knowing full well that she would be breaking her promise to Peter on sparing her, possibly ending their friendship for good.

But if that will help Peter get better, then Tink was willing to risk it.

All of a sudden, something hit her on the back and she crash landed on the slightly muddy ground. She struggled to get up, turning her head to her back to see what had hit her.

She gasped in shock. Her back and wings were completely wet.

Her eyes then caught giant drops of water falling down from the sky. It was raining.

Raining!

This was not good. Not for the fairies.

Water was a weakness to the fairies, mostly to their wings. Whenever it got wet, the wings would get soggy and pull them down. That's why water fairies are very careful around water. Tink had seen rain before and was sure to avoid it. She had been foolish enough to dive into the ocean to help Peter rescue Jane. If it wasn't for Peter saving her life, Tink was sure she would have drowned.

Tink tried to get up, but another drop of rain hit her, pushing her back to the ground. Before she attempted to get up, another drop hit her. And another, and another, and another. It wasn't long before she was completely covered in rain and mud.

It was that moment when she felt defeated and weak. Her tiny body and wings have been overwhelmed by rain and mud. She could no longer move her body and her wings felt numb from the wetness. There was no way she could escape. No way she can make it to Peter. No way to save him from the horrors Hook unleashed on him.

"No," Tink whispered weakly. "I can't give up. I have to find him."

With all her strength, she pushed her wet and dirty body off the ground. Large raindrops continued to hit her, attempting to push her down, but Tink would have none of that. She kept herself up and struggled to walk.

However, she didn't get really far. Not only did the raindrops attacked her, but the wind was pushing her to wrong directions, the ground was turning muddier by the second, and Tink had a very hard time walking over the mud. Worst of all, her wings were still wet and dirty, preventing her from flying. Now it was just dragging there behind her.

It wasn't after her fifth fall on the ground that Tink realized that she had run out of time to save Peter from whatever evils Hook had wished up.

She had failed Peter. And she might as well failed Pixie Hollow.

Why hadn't she just focused on capturing the Egg and not get distracted on finding Peter. Now everyone she cared about is doomed. All because of her.

Her teary eyes caught a few mushrooms beside a tree and she immediately made her way to them. Soaked in water and mud, losing strength and feeling numb at the same time, she desperately crawled to the mushrooms as hard as she could. She was getting closer and closer, almost burying herself amongst the mud.

She cried in relief when she finally made it to the mushrooms, where the ground under the mushrooms was dry and safe. She crawled to one of the mushrooms' stem and wrapped her drenched and filthy body around it. Behind her, she could hear the storm, raindrops coming down faster. There was no sign that the storm was going to end anytime soon.

She looked down on her back and saw her poor wings moist and grimy. She tried flapping her wings, but they were so weak and covered that they couldn't even move a little.

And then, at that moment, Tinker Bell broke into tears. Tears of hopelessness and failure. She could no longer fly and fulfill her mission. Now Mother Dove will never get better and the Egg will be abused by Hook, unless another fairy could finish the job for her. What's worse, she was too late to help Peter and was now forced to leave him alone with the torture Hook had brought onto him. Whatever it was.

"I'm so sorry, Peter," she whispered in a cracked voice.

Feeling her heart break into little pieces, she buried her wet face against the mushroom stem and sobbed, feeling more alone than ever.

*PPIII*

Peter Pan could no longer fly anymore, not because of the storm. He stopped flying before it even started raining.

Peter's head was so consumed with what happened with Margaret that he didn't see where he was going. Or paid attention to where he was flying.

The more he thought about the conversation, the more it hurt him. And the more pain he felt, the more closer he was to the ground.

It wasn't long before he crashed landed on the ground. Thankfully, he was far away from Marg . . . Mar . . . he couldn't even think of her name without his heart breaking again.

So he just lay there, very still, hearing all those words she said to him over and over and over again.

How could she say that to him. Just because he refused to take her home. Where they really true? Or did she say that just to make him angry.

Well, it worked. He was angry. In fact he was furious at her. But, at the same time, he felt betrayed by her.

Not only that, but he was forced to think back at his entire life. Has he really grown up without actually growing up? Is that even possible? Well, if she thought so, then it must be.

His nightmare had come true and he didn't even know it.

When did he grow up was another question. Was it when he brought her here? Or when Jane was here? Or Wendy? Or even before them? He didn't know.

He was suddenly drawn out of his thoughts by the feeling of raindrops on his back. He looked up to see a dark sky with raindrops falling down from the clouds. He could tell a storm had come and he knew he needed shelter, though he wished the raindrops would just bury him into the ground.

He could fly back to Hangman Jr.'s Tree, but he didn't feel up to flying. So, instead, he slowly got up and walked through the dark forest, looking for anything to hide under.

He finally found a small cave and just in the nick of time. The storm had gotten worse. Paying no attention to the storm, he slowly made his way inside the cave and just lay there.

He still didn't know why she would say all that to him. Did he hurt her and she retaliated? Was that it? He really wished he knew; he didn't understand girls at all.

What he didn't understand was another comment of hers, which was telling him that he had fallen in love. Fallen in love? With who? Her? There's no way he could love her after all that. And, besides, she wanted to go home. So, once she returns home, then Peter will never see her again.

Peter wasn't sure if he really wanted that to happened, but, right now, he didn't care.

He closed his eyes, letting the storm outside calm him to sleep.

*PPIII*

The Lost Boys huddled together under Peter's bed as the storm continued from outside. They jumped when they heard thunder. A shaking Tootles pulled Little closer to him.

They had been hiding in their underground hideout for a long while. They had felt a drop of rain during their game of hunting with the Indian boys. Their hunting game completely stopped when more rain came down. The Indian boys looked up into the sky and, with terror on their faces, they fled, leaving the confused Lost Boys behind. They too looked up at the sky to see dark clouds covering the entire sky. Little was already running off, barking to alert the boys to do the same, and they fearfully followed her.

They made it to Hangman Jr.'s Tree just as the storm started and they urgently crawled inside. They had expected their leader and Margaret to meet them there, but, as the storm stretched on, none of them came.

Worry stabbed them in their stomachs. They felt that something must be wrong and decided to go find them . . . But they immediately changed their minds when the sounds of loud thunder scared them so much, they hid under Peter's bed.

What worried them the most was the state of the storm. Every once in a while, Neverland gets their rain showers, but there never was a storm like this. And never this long.

Sick with worry for Margaret, Little jumped out of Tootles' arms and ran to the door, determined to find her friend.

"Hey, where's Little going?" Slightly asked.

Figuring out the answer, Tootles popped out from under the bed and ran after the puppy, grabbing her just in time.

Little desperately tried to escape Tootles' grasp, barking as if begging for him to let her go. When she finally got herself out, Tootles jump forward to catch her, but missed.

"She's going outside!" Cubby exclaimed.

"Quick, grab her!" Slightly ordered.

All at once, the Lost Boys hurriedly chased after Little, who made it outside into the pouring rain.

Little stopped under the heavy sheet of rain and looked everywhere in anguish. She howled into the dark sky, calling out for her lost friend. Perhaps Margaret would hear her call and come for her, so Little can be with her dearest friend. She knew something must be wrong with Margaret; she always knows when something is wrong with Margaret. But now, Little is far away from Margaret and Little had no idea where she is.

She howled again, but this time, she was cut short by the Lost Boys, who finally caught up with her. Together, they carried the squirming puppy back inside, closing the door tight shut so Little cannot escape.

"Quick, someone get a rope!" Slightly cried out, holding Little against his chest as strong as he can. Cubby, Nibs, and the Twins scurried around their hideout, looking for a rope, while Tootles stared at Little with very worried eyes.

"We got it!" the Twins called out as they rush back with a rope. "Now what?"

"Tie one end around the bed and tie the other on Little's collar," Slightly commanded. Tootles gasped and shook his head at Slightly. His pleading was ignored as the Twins did as Slightly said.

"Sorry, Tootles," Slightly said. "But it's dangerous out there. We need to keep Little here until Peter and Margaret get back."

"What if they don't come back," Cubby asked.

Slightly didn't answer because that was when Little jumped out of his arms and raced toward the door. However, Little was pulled back by a rope tied to her collar. She tried pulling out of the rope's grasp again and again, but she was stuck. She howled in despair, gritting her teeth against the rope in an attempt to release herself.

The Lost Boys were miserably still as the thunder boomed repeatedly. They watched Little losing hope as she fails on releasing herself from the leash.

Feeling that she has failed her friend, Little falls to the ground and howled, only this time, it was small and weak, as if her voice portrayed her broken heart. Small tears where falling out of her beady eyes as she lay her head on the ground. Tootles quietly pulled Little to him and held her, as the other Lost Boys crawled onto Peter's bed. Other than the sound of thunder from outside, the inside was silent with hopelessness and misery, with an occasional cracked howl from the small puppy.

*PPIII*

Margaret hadn't felt this horrible since . . . Well, she couldn't really remember.

She had tried to run after him and apologize for everything she had said to him. But he was already gone and she had no idea where he had gone to. She guess maybe back at Hangman Jr.'s Tree, but, before she had decided to move, it had started raining.

If it had rained a day or two ago, Margaret would have immediately run for cover. But, right now, Margaret wanted nothing more than for the cold rain to freeze her to death, or at least numb the pain inside of her.

How could she have said that to Peter? She never meant to say it. But it was like someone else had entered into her mind and forced her to say all the those hurtful things that that someone was dying to say to Peter.

And now that her mind was clear, she knew that, after that conversation, Peter Pan would never want to be her friend again.

Her tears mixed in with the rain as she slowly walked to who knows where, ignoring the storm and everything around her. She was lost in misery and guilt for hurting Peter, the last thing she wanted to do. And, if she didn't care about him that much, she knew she had lost her chance of ever going back home. Which means she is stuck here forever and is doomed to forget everything from London.

All hope is lost all because of her.

Not even her doll, which was residing in her robe pocket, could comfort her. She couldn't even touch the doll that started the entire argument with him.

She stopped suddenly when her foot stepped into water. Margaret looked down and saw her reflection on the water. Despite all the ripples over its surface, she could see she looked horrible.

She looked up and realized that she had come to the lake that she and Peter danced two nights ago.

It seemed so long ago, though. Back when they were carefree and happy. Now, both are broken, just like the lake before her. It was no longer smooth like before; it became dangerously unsettled thanks to the stormy rain.

Staring at the violent lake, she remembered her dance with Peter and the feelings she had felt for him. But then, Peter's face turned hateful, shouting words at her to leave and never come back.

Margaret broke into sobbing at that thought. She fell down on her knees, which was touching the shore of the lake, and covered her wet face with her hands.

She'll never forgive herself for hurting Peter Pan.

*PPIII*

"I wish it would stop raining," Hook wished upon the Egg. As if commanded, the Egg glowed and pixie dusts flew out of the Egg and into the rainy clouds. They covered the clouds with their glow and, as the glow dimmed, the raining ceased. However, there was still dark clouds covering the sky, but not a drop of rain fell.

Wish I would have thought of that hours ago, Hook thought to himself.

Hook then made another wish. "I wish I knew where Peter Pan was."

The Egg glowed again and pixie dusts rose up from the Egg and surround Hook's head. His eyes glowed as the pixie dusts gave him the knowledge he wanted.

He could see it now. He could see where Peter Pan was and where he was going. He could even see his secret hideout . . . Which looked like the same hideout Peter Pan had before Hook planted a bomb to blow it up many years ago. Why did the boy build it again? In the same place as his old hideout. How could Hook have missed that?

The boy must be more stupid than I thought. Or I must be stupid than I thought.

As soon as he got what he wanted, the pixie dusts disappeared and the Egg's glow vanished.

Carefully, he placed the Egg inside his small, treasure chest on his desk that sat against the wall. He closed down the lid, locked it shut with a key, and placed the key in his pocket, patting his pocket to double check that the key is still there.

He marched outside like a proud and confident pirate captain he was. All the pirates were standing before him, waiting for Hook's orders, with Mr. Smee right in front (cheerfully saluting his captain).

"Gents!" Hook announced. "This is the day that will be longed remembered! This is the day where we will be free from the bonds of this blasted island! Today, we capture Peter Pan and destroy him once and for all!"

All the pirates (even Mr. Smee) cheered loudly.

"Quick, mates, let us not lose any more time! Get those rowboats ready! We're heading back to Neverland!"

*PPIII*

Little suddenly caught a familiar smell and joyfully started barking, surprising the Lost Boys out of their sleep. In fact, it shocked them out of their sleep so much that one of them bumped the other off the bed.

Little suddenly started smiling as she ran to the door, only to be pulled back by the rope leash.

"Hey, what's up with Little," Nibs asked.

"Hey, guys, you hear that?" Cubby unexpectedly asked. They stick out their ears to hear something.

Slightly shook his head. "I don't hear anything."

It took them a moment to realize that the silence meant that the storm has finally passed. With a grin in their faces, they jumped up and cheered.

While they were cheering, Tootles happily released Little from the rope leash and Little instantly makes it to the door.

She made it just in time for the door to open and, when the door revealed the visitor, Little's smile suddenly disappeared.

"Hey look!" Twin 1 shouted.

"It's Peter!" Twin 2 shouted.

The Lost Boys cheered again and ran to Peter to greet him, only to halt right in front of him, all their smiles washed away.

It was Peter Pan, all right, but this wasn't the Peter Pan they knew. There was no joy and happiness to be seen on the youthful boy. Only pain and misery can be seen. His clothes were still wet from the storm and his skin was pale. Despite being young, his eyes looked old and worn up, with dark bags under his eyes and sunken cheeks. This can't be their fearless leader, though he looks like one. The twinkle that made Peter Pan who he was is gone and this Peter Pan has only become the shell of the formal energetic boy.

This look scared the Lost Boys more than his earlier appearance back at Indian Village when Margaret was being healed.

Peter slowly raised his eyes at the Lost Boys, who stared at him in complete shock, and then slowly walked to his bed. The Lost Boys' eyes followed Peter as he stopped at one side of his bed and fell on top of it. The Lost Boys didn't know what to do or what they were seeing.

Little observed the poor boy as she slowly made her way to him. She hopped onto the bed and sat close to him. His head was buried in his arms and his body was very still, as if he had dropped dead on the bed. Little curiously went closer, releasing a soft moan as if to get his attention.

The Lost Boys tiptoed close to the bed, right behind Peter. They glanced at each other, unsure of what to do.

"Uh, Peter," Slightly finally spoke in a soft, unsure voice. "What's wrong?"

"Yeah," Cubby said. "What's wrong?"

"Are you sick," Nibs asked.

Peter did not answer any of their questions, or even show that he heard them. The Lost Boys fell back into silence, no longer able to speak the longer they look at Peter's depressing condition. All they did was gather around Peter's bed and send a worry glance amongst themselves, waiting for Peter to say something, or even move.

Little seemed to understand what Peter was feeling, for her face turned to pity for the boy. She gently rubbed her nose against his arm, whimpering to him. When he didn't respond, Little went closer and softly licked his arm. She then lay down next to his arms and rubbed her head against his.

Eventually, Peter's head slowly rose and his half-closed and lifeless eyes stared at Little. She stared back at him with her compassionate and comforting eyes. His eyes softened. He released a broken sigh and slowly raised his hand to pet Little's head.

The Lost Boys were speechless as Peter sat up on his bed and brought Little close to his chest. She rubbed comfortably against his chest as he petted her repeatedly.

There is a very long silence before Peter Pan finally spoke.

"Margaret wants to go back to London."

It was small and broken, nothing like the Lost Boys have heard before. But they did hear him and were, again, shocked. This day was becoming lousier and lousier by the minute.

All the Lost Boys (well, except Tootles) busted out questions at Peter like, "What? What do you mean? Why? Doesn't she like it here? Is she okay? Are you okay?" Stuff like that. And, as before, Peter ignored the boys and their many questions, staring off into space and distractedly petting Little.

Finally, when the Lost Boys ran out of questions to blurt out, they fell silent and another long, quiet moment passed.

"She would have gone back anyway," Peter softly spoke as if speaking to himself, forgetting the Lost Boys' presence. "It was meant to be. They all go back. They were happier there. They could never stay here. I should have known . . ."

Little let out another whimper, licking Peter's chin. Peter looked down at the puppy and a tiny, weak crooked smile appeared on his face.

"Wait," Nibs piped suddenly. "Does that mean Little has to go back too?"

Peter lost his smile at the question. He stared at Little and Little gave him an apologetic smile, her answer to him.

Peter slowly nodded and the Lost Boys groaned in sorrow. Tootles' eyes became teary as he crawled onto the bed and up to Little. Shaking his head, he buried his face into Little's body. Little's whimper went louder as she comforted Tootles. Peter watched this exchange without a word. He really didn't want to break them apart, but it was bound to happen.

He turned to the other Lost Boys as Tootles held Little tightly. "Is Marg-. . . Is she here?"

The Lost Boys exchanged glances before they shook their heads.

"No, we haven't seen her," Slightly said.

"Not since last night," Cubby added.

Peter sighed. He's going to have to face her someday, if she still wants to go back to London. "All right. I guess we better go find her-"

All of a sudden, a thunderous sound of a bang was heard outside, shaking the underground hideout. Everyone jumped and, before they could think of what just happened, the shaking ceiling and the walls collapsed on them.

Then, when the shaking finally stopped, the noise of screaming pirates arrived. The Lost Boys' heads popped out just in time to see pirates jumping in from the outside, raising their weapons high in the air. The Lost Boys tried to get out of the wreckages and fight back, but they weren't quick enough. One by one, they were captured and trapped in individual, tied bags.

Little dug her way out and, when she saw Tootles being put inside a bag, Little growled and charged after the pirate holding Tootles. Angrily, she bit the pirate's leg. The pirate yelled in pain and attempted to kick the puppy off of him. After five kicks, Little lost her grip and flew out until she landed in a pile of wreckage. Before she could act again, a bag was put over her by another pirate and tied it tightly, ignoring the furious barking of Little inside.

When Peter finally made it out of the wreckage, he was shocked to see his men and Little getting captured by pirates. Angry, he pulled out his dagger and jumped up to fly after them . . . Only to fall back down. Stunned, he tried again, but he fell back down again. What's happened? Why couldn't he fly?

Unexpectedly, he was harshly pushed down to the ground by a few pirates, his dagger flying out of reach. He struggled to escaped, but it was useless as they tied his hands and feet as tight as they can, making him flinch in pain from the constricted ropes.

A shadow was cast over him and the pirates turned silent; only the cries of the Lost Boys and Little to be heard. Peter, feeling that he knows who it was, slowly looked up to see Captain Hook, standing over him with a triumphant smile on his wicked face.

"Look here, mates," Hook announced. "After all these years, we've finally captured Peter Pan and his Lost Brats!"

The pirates cheered. Peter only gave Hook a cold stare.

Hook leaned down at Peter. "My, you don't look so good, Pan. And you seem to have lost your flying ability."

Peter spat at Hook, but he missed his target. Hook was, however, angered and, to retaliate, he stomped his foot on Peter's face. Peter kept his mouth shut, but a small whimper of pain escaped his mouth.

"You better watch what you do to me, Pan," Hook warned Peter. "Or else I might make another wishes of mine come true."

Hook took his foot off of Peter's face and ordered to the pirates, "Take them all to the Jolly Roger! And make sure the prisoners don't escape!"

Before Peter could ask what Jolly Roger, a small bag was put over his head, feeling it being tied around his neck. The next thing he knew, he felt himself being carried to who knows where these pirates were taking them.