The air was cool on Wendy's legs as they flew, but her torso, pressed against Petyr, was warm. Petyr flew them past Hangman's tree and towards the center of Neverland–its majestic mountain. They flew higher and higher, straight up the mountain peak. The peak was steep–sheer cliffs of tan rock. Then, Wendy noticed a large jutting point coming off of the side of the mountain. Petyr brought them over the edge and landed on a grassy plateau with a single tree. He set her down gently and her feet sunk into the plush green lawn. He then settled himself on the grass, feet stretched out in front of him, leaning back on his elbows. Wendy allowed her legs to fold under her and tugged at the ends of the shirt to try and cover as much of her bare skin as possible. She stared out and gazed at the view before her. The sun was beginning to set, sending out a fusion of pinks, golds, and greens dancing over the ocean. The earth was bathed in warm yellow light. Wendy glanced at Petyr; he was staring off into the distance.
"Why did you bring me here?" she asked.
He didn't return her look, "You asked me to take you someplace else."
"No...I mean why did you bring me to Neverland? Why didn't you just leave me in England?"
He sat up slowly, dangling his arms over his knees and staring at his hands. Wendy waited. He didn't respond for a long while, and she was beginning to open her mouth to ask again when he took a deep breath, "I was looking for someone..." Wendy waited some more. "I thought it was you." He finally looked at her. His face remained emotionless, but his eyes swirled with something inscrutable.
"And is it?" Wendy was slightly concerned that she was not trying to disprove that she was the one he was looking for.
He frowned and looked back out over the expanse, "I don't know..."
Her heart did not flutter a little, "Can I ask you another question?"
He gave a clipped nod.
"What are you? How is all of this," she waved her hands out in front of her, "possible?"
He laughed, "I think that is two questions." Wendy raised an eyebrow and he chuckled again. "Fine. What am I? I'm a human if that is what you mean. I came to Neverland...a long time ago."
"But if you are a human, how can you fly? No one in England or the world I know can do that."
"It was something I learned here."
"Did someone teach you?" He clenched his jaw, she could hear his teeth grinding in his mouth, "Very well, you don't need to answer that." Relief settled the tension in his shoulders.
"How old are you?" she asked next.
"How old are you?" He parroted.
Wendy gave a mock pout, "You never ask a lady how old she is. But if you insist, I just turned eighteen."
Petyr nodded, "I was eighteen when I first arrived in Neverland."
When he first arrived..."What do you mean?"
He bit his lips, struggling to find the right words. Wendy's eyes zoomed in on his lips and she struggled to look away. "I came to Neverland a long time ago...before you were born. I don't remember how or why. I do remember that I was eighteen, but I've never aged since."
Wendy was realizing that nothing here was as it seemed. "How is that possible?"
Petyr tensed again, "She–Neverland is a strange place..."
It was a non-answer, but she decided not to press him, "And the lost boys? Have they always been here too? Do they...age?"
"They are newer...John has been here the longest. Ten years. He was seventeen when he arrived in Neverland, and he has been seventeen for the last ten years."
Wendy watched the last bit of sunlight disappear into the ocean. It still glowed with a pale orange light that faded quickly into the blue and indigo of night. "Did you bring them here too?"
"I brought Basil and Pip. John, Tomas, and Toby found their own way here."
A horrifying thought struck Wendy, "You took them from their families!"
With narrow eyes, Petyr glared at her, "Families? They had no one. Nothing. I saved them."
Her hand reached out to touch his arm gently, "I'm sorry...I...I immediately thought the worse. It's just...you took me from my family."
Petyr studied her hand on his arm, she couldn't tell if he wanted her to remove it or leave it. She chose to remove it. "That is why I have to go back. There is someone in England who needs me."
"I can't...won't bring you back." Petyr shook his head.
"Can't or won't...which is it?"
Petyr stood abruptly and face her, arms out, voice rising with each word. "Why do you care? The answer won't change anything."
Wendy got to her feet, chin up, "Yes it will...If you can't bring me back, fine, then I'll find someone else who can. But, if you won't bring me back and you are trying to keep me here, then I'd..." she stopped. She wasn't sure what she would do and spitting out something without thinking...she didn't want him to call her bluff.
"What? What would you do?" He sneered at her.
Her fist clenched, "I'd hate you," the words left her mouth before she could snatch them back.
He leaned down towards her, nose almost touching hers, "Good," he whispered menacingly, "You should."
Her anger melted away, for all his aggressive intimidation, she had seen a brief flash of hurt flicker across his face. "Petyr...please...I am all Michael has." She turned from him and sunk to her knees, letting the tears flow freely. She didn't care that she appeared weak, she was tired and simply wanted to get back to her brother.
After a few moments, a hand touched her shoulder. Then he settled back down next to her. "I...I understand."
"Do you?" she wiped away the tears from her cheeks, sniffling.
"I think so...I think I would be upset if I was separated from the boys."
"Think?" he was so–complicated. One minute ice cold, the next, warm and empathetic. She couldn't keep up with the changes.
His voice was weary. "I don't know what else to tell you, Wendy."
"Tell me how to get home. Tell me why you brought me here." She knew she was begging, and she should have felt embarrassed, but at this point, she didn't care.
Wendy expected silence again, or anger, instead he sighed in defeat, "I didn't want to bring you...but I was told I would have to make a choice. I could let you fall, or take you with me."
"You could have left me."
"No, I couldn't." The finality in his answer made her believe there was more to everything that was happening, something he either couldn't or didn't want to tell her, but it was important...not just to her but to him as well.
Wendy shivered as the air took on the chill of night. Petyr shifted so that he was closer, his body radiated heat. Involuntarily she leaned into him, her body hungry for warmth and comfort. He didn't move away or tense up, and she hesitantly laid her head on his bare shoulder. He allowed it. Wendy felt exhaustion begin to wrap around her, getting tangled in her heavy lids and limbs.
Her mind strayed back to the lost boys. "Did you bring the boys here because they were like me?" the words were long and drawn out as a yawn nearly swallowed them up and she gave in to the fatigue, letting her eyes close.
As she slipped into sleep, she dreamed his arm wrapped around her shoulders, and lips brushed against the top of her head as he murmured, "There is no one like you, Wendy."
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