Wendy stared at the tree roots above her as the remnants of her dreams lingered in her subconscious. At first she had dreamed of old buildings and skyscrapers rising from the forest floor. She had climbed them with Peter, and the memory of him brought a tentative smile to her face. But the second part of her dream was far more perplexing. She imagined she had been dancing with the pirates on their ship, but then the air became cold and the pirates turned into a man and two boys. They had tried to embrace her, but every time they came close the ship jolted and sent them spinning out of reach. Wendy tried to figure out what it all meant. She felt that she should have recognized their faces, but the dream was already fading and she was anxious to find out what fun adventures might be in store for the day.
The Imagination Tower had been spectacular, and she couldn't wait to get back in there. She also wanted to try flying again, hoping she would eventually be able to fly up to the cavern. And the more time she spent with Peter, the more her reservations concerning him melted away. When she was with him she felt something verging on elation. She couldn't imagine why she had ever distrusted him. They had so much fun together, and wasn't it all about having fun?
Wendy jumped up from the soft white rug and pulled back the blanket partition. She was pleased to see that Peter had been waiting for her outside of her makeshift room, but he didn't return her smile. His expression looked pained.
"Wendy, I need to apologize," he began.
"For what?" Wendy asked lightly, wondering if this were a game.
Peter exhaled. "I'm sorry that I forced you to come here with me. I should have been more respectful."
Wendy narrowed her eyes. He had employed a few questionable methods to get her here, but otherwise, there was no way he could have convinced her to come to this amazing world.
"That's okay," she responded. "I'm actually glad you did."
"You are?" Peter asked, his face brightening. "Even though I took you away from your mother? I'm sorry that I made her fall, by the way."
Wendy suppressed a giggle. "What's a mother?"
Peter raised his eyebrows, but before he could respond, there was a commotion at one of the entrances to the tree house.
"Look what I found outside my door!" Slightly sang, pushing a small boy into the room. "It's a new one!"
Wendy stepped forward to study the boy. He was so young, he couldn't be any more than six years old. His round face was framed with red, curly hair and he had an innocence to his expression that made Wendy's heart leap with emotion. He glanced around in confusion, clutching a new shadow in one hand and a flask of medicine in the other.
"Where am I?" He said quietly.
Everyone looked to Peter, but he deferred to Curly. "Curly's at the top of the leaderboard," he remarked. "He gets to welcome him."
Curly nervously cleared his throat and put his hand on the young boy's shoulder. "You're in Neverland," he explained. "We'll find a place for you to sleep and get you outfitted with equipment from the supply depot so you can join in the games."
"Games?" The boy's face lit up. "I like games." Growing in confidence, he pointed at a gadget on Nibs' belt. "What's that?"
"It's a fear finder," Nibs replied. "It can detect when someone is afraid."
"Wow!"
"What's your name?"
The boy opened his mouth, then closed it.
"He looks like a Finny," Slightly commented.
"No, I'd say a Felix," one of the twins called out.
"How about Tootles?" Peter offered.
The little boy smiled. "Yeah, I think that's it."
"Good," Curly said, looking relieved. "Alright, Tootles, let's get you some new clothes."
While the lost boys were busy filling Tootles in on all the fun he was going to have, Wendy felt something brush against her leg. She looked down and gasped. A white wolf cub was peering up at her. She bent down to inspect and pet him. One pass of her hand over his back told her that he was a machine, but he was covered in beautiful, shining fur and his large eyes were somehow kind and full of understanding. She knew immediately that this creature was made from her Essentia. Peter was right. She just felt that it was hers. The animal ducked its head and scampered playfully through one of the doors out of the treehouse. Without looking back, Wendy followed him.
The wolf ran ahead, leaping over streams and nimbly making its way through rocky passages. Every few minutes it would look back, as if to make sure Wendy was following. Finally the wolf cub came to a huge tree, and when Wendy saw it, she almost cried. It was black and gnarled, with only a few leaves clinging to its outermost branches. The trunk had a gaping hole in it, large enough for someone to fit inside. Everything about the tree spoke of pain, from the way its roots wrapped around each other in absurd ways to the ashy color of the frail bark. But Wendy knew that this tree was also hers. When she gazed at it, she felt the anguish mirrored somewhere deep in her heart.
She wanted to run away, to forget it was there, but something drew her in. She crept through the opening in the trunk, discovering that the tree was almost completely hollow. She pressed her hands to the wood, feeling the coarse grain beneath her fingers.
She heard voices. She should have been afraid, but instead she felt a longing, a desire to hear them more clearly. She closed her eyes and the voices grew stronger, calling out in laughter, and then fear, and finally despair.
Wendy, come play a game with us!
Tell me a story, Wendy.
Wendy, where are you?
I love you, Wendy.
Wendy, help us!
She cried out and opened her eyes. The voices were filling her head and tears were streaming down her cheeks. As she struggled to steady her breathing, the voices quieted, until she heard only one, the voice of a young boy.
Wendy, it wasn't your fault.
She pushed herself away from the dark walls. She staggered out of the tree, and into something far more frightening.
"Hello, Wendy lady."
Two pirates stood smiling hungrily at her. She screamed, but they held a substance to her nose and she collapsed on the ground.
*****
The pirate ship was loud and raucous. She had been treated kindly after she arrived on the ship. Knocking her out and lugging her through the forest was pretty barbaric, but afterwards they had been fairly respectful. Captain Hook had graciously welcomed her on the ship and instructed the others not to touch her. They had been polite and kept their distance, but Wendy was still apprehensive. Apparently, this was all part of a game.
"Let's have a song from our prisoner!" They called.
"I'd rather not," she answered.
"Alright, then. How about a dance?"
"No."
"A story?"
"I can't think of any."
"What about a joke?"
"I'm not in the mood to laugh."
The pirates frowned at her and scratched their beards.
"This game isn't very fun," several of them complained.
"It will be when those lost boys show up," Captain Hook assured them. "Now get back to updating those canons!" He yelled. "I want to be fully functional when they get here!" He strutted over to Wendy and offered her his arm. "If you'll please join me, Miss, I'd like to have a private conference with you in the cabin."
Wendy shivered, but stood up and headed down the narrow stairway, ignoring Hook's arm. She had the feeling that if she resisted he would carry her down there, and she didn't want to give him that pleasure. He followed her into the cabin and motioned for her to sit on a large sofa. He closed the door and Wendy was about to protest until he turned and she saw the expression on his face.
Gone was the bravado, the proud demeanor that had clung to this man only seconds before. Now his shoulders slumped and he looked defeated. He looked at Wendy with fearful eyes.
"Please Miss, I beg you, you must leave this place," he implored, his eyes darting around the cabin. "If she finds out you are here, she will kill you."
Wendy was beginning to wonder if this man was insane.
"What are you talking about?"
"The Crocodile!" He hissed. "Nobody is supposed to be here if she doesn't bring them." He sat down next to her on the sofa. "Nobody is supposed to be able to get in or out of Neverland, but Peter..." he pushed his long black hair out of his face, "Peter has always been a liability. I might not be able to save him, but I can save you."
Suddenly the door opened and Smee appeared. Captain Hook jumped up, once again assuming his sanguine and hostile disposition.
"Captain, the receivers are on the fritz again," he reported, giving Wendy a toothy smile.
"That's because they're operated by a bunch of imbeciles!" Hook growled. "Excuse me, Miss Wendy," he said, crossing to the door, "it seems we have technical difficulties. I'll have to leave you down here, for the sake of the game." He gave her one last desperate look, and then locked the door behind him, leaving Wendy to sort through her confusion alone.