Chapter 13
If there was a way to pause a singular moment and remain there for as long as possible, Maggie would have done it right then and there.
Near the bottom of the treehouse, a living room held Maggie, Peter Pan, the Lost Boys, and Sunny.
A fireplace was carved into the wall, with a comforting warmth radiating out of it.
The orange glow cast a wave of colors through the room, all that reminded Maggie of a sun crashing into a quiet horizon.
Orange and red and yellow splashed across the floor in streaks, their shadows stretched high on the walls.
A plethora of plush pillows had been layered along the floor, most of them taken by Sunny as he snoozed deeply.
The feline stretched a paw high above his head as he yawned and got more comfortable over the pillows.
The satin and silk formed around the cat’s long frame, swallowing him up entirely.
The reddish hue of the fire covered the cat as he napped, the warmth just reaching Maggie and where she sat with the rest of the Lost Boys and their King.
“I dunno,” Twitch murmured as he held his hand up, inspecting the freshest layer of color Maggie applied to his nails. “Honestly, I think purple is just my color.”
Laughter ensued across the cozy space. The day’s events took a toll out of them all, though Maggie was sure she was the most exhausted.
After the last of the pirates were expelled from the town, and the townspeople were deemed safe and sound, Maggie was in a daze as she was led back to the treehouse.
Colors blurred by her as the drowsiness took its toll, desperate for her to collapse to the floor and give up right then and there.
But Peter’s hand never once left her, whether it was latched onto her shoulder or lingering around her waist. The King of Neverland was always there, guiding her forward and leading her to their quiet sanctuary.
Scamp picked up the bottle Maggie was using to paint their nails. Holding it high above his head, he watched the liquid inside glitter, sparkle, and change color, all depending on how the light hit it. “Where’d you say you got this stuff, anyways?”
“The mermaids sent it,” Maggie replied as she plucked it from his hands. “And you should hold still. I’m not done yet.”
With his long hair tied into a braid at the back of his head, Scamp pouted before handing himself back over to Maggie.
The Lost Boys willingly passed their hands over when Maggie expressed a deep desire to replicate things from her past, things she hadn’t done in ages.
The look on Scamp’s face, Maggie knew, was because he wanted to pet the cat.
They formed a bond Maggie never expected, and if Sunny wasn’t trailing at her own heels, he was seeking out Scamp.
The cat took his moment of solitude to lounge as much as he wanted – something Maggie often found herself to be jealous of.
Twitch stretched his arms behind his head before laying over the pillows, his legs crossed. “I’d say this has been quite the successful day,” he mused.
“Pirates… done and done,” Dash listed. “I’ve had my hair braided, my nails painted, and I’m about to eat as many snacks as I want.” He shrugged as the long french braid fell over his shoulder. “Job well done, I think.”
Maggie’s laughter filled the air as she finished painting the last coat of color over Scamp’s nails. He waved his hands around to try and dry it quicker, his eyes already excitedly landing on the snoozing cat.
Turning around, Maggie searched for nails that hadn’t been painted yet.
She wasn’t looking long, until Peter stuck his arm out and waggled long fingers in front of her eyes.
She grinned and snatched his wrist, pulling him closer to her.
The King of Neverland scooted across the layers of pillows, until he was directly across from her.
She took his wide hand eagerly, pausing for only a moment as she noticed just how much larger they were in comparison to her own.
She shook the bottle before the color landed on a deep sky blue, speckled with a slurry of silver sparkles.
“Ah,” Peter breathed as she began painting. “That’s just my color.”
She cracked a grin. “All this pirate business today got me curious,” she murmured.
“Curious about what?”
“Well, the pirates, of course,” Maggie replied with a shrug. “I don’t remember being warned about certain villainy on the island when I first arrived.”
Peter’s cheeks turned a rusty hue, the color surprising her until she realized he was blushing with embarrassment. “There are pirates all over Neverland, you know.”
“Sure,” she said. “Plenty of them come to the restaurant.”
“Those pirates aren’t loyal to Captain Hook,” Peter explained. “Good pirates who have an inkling toward uncovering priceless artifacts, drawing maps, or going on adventures often find an accepting home in Neverland.”
Maggie nodded slowly. “So what’s the big idea with Hook and his crew, anyways?”
Twitch laid out across the pillows in the same fashion as the snoozing feline. “There’s always got to be a bad guy, doesn’t there?” he teased with a short laugh. “Hook’s just a guy who wants more than he was ever destined to have. So, of course, he goes for the people who got it all.”
Dusty made a noise from in front of the fire. “The pirate’s a jerk,” he murmured, “but we don’t see him on shore too often. He sends his goons in every now and then, but the sea and faraway islands are Hook’s home.”
“Do you mean to say he isn’t allowed on Neverland?” Maggie asked.
Peter straightened but didn’t dare pull his hands out from within her own. “Let’s just call it an unspoken rule,” he said. “It never really mattered much in the past, especially since Hook never made it a routine to attack.”
Her brow furrowed. “What do you mean?”
“You saw what happened out there,” he explained, the corner of his lip already curling into a proud smirk.
“Unfortunately for Hook and his lot, they don’t happen to win very often.
Well, ever. It keeps them away for most of the time, until their captain gains enough confidence in a plan to try again. ”
The Lost Boys chuckled and laughed as they ruminated over Captain Hook’s tendency to rarely attack.
Maggie didn’t find herself as quick to join their humor, her mind stuck on what could have happened if she had remained within the treehouse.
Perhaps the captain fixed up a plan capable of letting him finally win, if only she hadn’t shown up.
Out of all the times before, Maggie was never there to be factored in.
Something in the back of her mind wanted to say that Hook could have succeeded if she was never in Neverland, but she shoved it away as fast as it entered.
After all, Peter and his Lost Boys had always succeeded without her before.
She drew in a deep breath and continued painting Peter’s nails absentmindedly. “I could never be a pirate,” Maggie murmured. “Good or not. It sounds like a downright terrible life, doesn’t it?”
Peter watched her quietly, the corner of his lip curling upwards.
“Crime, plundering, swashbuckling, hardly ever seeing land.” Maggie had her eyes focused on Peter’s hand as she spoke, her words falling into a murmur as her attention waned. Silence spread across the room, and she lifted her head, only to find all the Lost Boys transfixed on her. “What?”
Their lips curled into knowing smirks before they glanced around at each other, paying particular attention to Peter and his rusty red cheeks.
Maggie frowned and released her hold over the King of Neverland. “Why’re you all looking at me like that?”
Twitch shrugged as he sat up. “A pirate’s life seems like fun, doesn’t it?
” He watched the fire as if a different version of his life was playing within the smoldering flames.
“Never having a home to come back to, no obligations. Coursing the seas and looting whatever you find. Uncovering treasure and surviving the greatest adventure known to man. Not bad at all.”
“Do you know what I’d do if I was a pirate?” Dash asked, leaning forward as if they were revealing hushed secrets. “I’d have the largest booty in all of Neverland!”
Laughter ensued across the room. Dash waved their laughs off, his face burning a bright pink until it subsided.
“You know what I mean!” he sheepishly added.
“Sure,” Twitch teased. “And if I was a pirate, I’d have the strongest crew across the island. We’d outshine Hook before he even had the chance to throw his anchor!”
Scamp was far too occupied with Sunny to put in his two cents, running his hands along the cat’s exposed belly. Purrs vibrated through the air as Sunny’s paws flexed and unflexed in enjoyment.
Twitch nudged his elbow into Dusty’s side. “What about you, kid? What’d you do if you were a pirate?”
Dusty’s fiery red hair was as bright as the smoldering flame as he thought it over.
He remained silent for a moment or two, only the creaking and crackling of firewood filling the air.
When he lifted his head, he was already smiling, with an amused twinkle appearing in his baby blue eyes.
“I’d build my own pirate ship,” he said.
“One that outshines the Jolly Roger itself.”
“Really?” Twitch sighed. “Just that?”
Maggie reached for Dusty before he could retract himself. “I’m sure you’d craft a wonderful ship, Dusty.”
The Lost Boy’s cheeks hummed a pinkish color before he looked away, arms circling his torso in a solitary embrace.
“What about you, Magpie?” Dash asked.
Maggie pressed her lips together as she thought it over. “I suppose if I was a pirate,” she murmured, “I’d be…the greatest swashbuckling Captain the entire world’s ever seen!” She thrusted the brush to the polish forward like a blade, mimicking swordplay as the polish dribbled onto the floor.
“Well, what about me?” Peter whined. “No one’s asked me what I would do as a pirate!”
Dash waved a hand dismissively at his King. “No bother!”
“No bother?” he repeated.
“Well, sure!” Dash leaned back against the pillows nonchalantly.
“You can’t be a pirate with a girlfriend like Maggie.
No pirates for her, remember?” The corner of his lip curled mischievously.
“And let’s be honest: you wouldn’t want to be dating a girl who can sword fight better than you, would you? ”
Before Maggie could even think of anything to say, Peter’s eyes were already on her.
“No need to worry over that, Magpie,” Peter cooed. “I’ll gladly give up the pirate-life for you.”
The boys continued listing all the things they could do as pirates, leaving Maggie far behind in their dust. Her eyes were clinging to the side of Peter’s face, his nails only halfway finished.
The word “girlfriend” had been tossed around suddenly, and Peter hadn’t denied it.
Maybe he was only being nice, not wanting to embarrass her in front of the rest of the Lost Boys.
Maybe he could see the way it made her eyes light up, and he couldn't possibly do anything to make them go away.
But…
What was the chance that she was actually his girlfriend?
Her eyes flitted about the room. Not one of the Lost Boys looked weirded out or confused by the idea.
It was as if they knew about it before she even did, already far within the relationship.
But when was the last time she had a relationship like that?
Maggie could hardly pinpoint a specific time.
Sure, she wagered her heart more than she should have, handing it to men who’d rather see it on the bottom of the sea floor than within their grasps.
They’d leave more often than they’d stay, treating her horribly and masking it as love.
By the time they left her life, Maggie couldn’t remember what the good times even felt like.
With Peter, it was as easy as breathing.
Is that what a good relationship was supposed to be like?
As if she walked on air, as if she was weightless, as if there were only his hands holding her up.
Maggie chewed on her lip, so far in her thoughts that she hadn’t realized the eyes of the Lost Boys shifted back to her.
“Say, Magpie,” Scamp said in a small voice. “What’s going on with the moon coral? Do you still have ingredients left to find?”
Maggie blinked a few times, until the word ‘girlfriend’ faded into the air. “There’s one more item to collect,” she murmured, avoiding looking at Peter.
The King of Neverland eyed her shamelessly, the words left unsaid passing between them.
It was a simple question, one that was hardly intrusive, but Maggie suddenly felt as though her inner thoughts were being revealed to the Lost Boys.
The moment they uncovered the final ingredient, Maggie had every chance of going back to the human lands, of going back home, of ending all she had accomplished.
Maggie met Peter’s gaze.
Is that a chance she will take?