<div style="text-align: center"><u><b>James Dameron</b></u><br/>
<i>Finding Neverland</i>​</div><br/>They fell, fell and tumbled into the endless dark churning waters below, James watched, astounded as Wendy reached upwards, arms held straight, like she was about to take off and fly. Instead his eyes found a pistol gripped between her fingers as they dropped closer and closer. She’d snatched Hook’s gun, his eyes widened with surprise as her finger squeezed, the trigger pulled back, the hammer slamming down, a loud<i>“click” </i>that cut through the sound of rushing wind that beat against his eardrums. He watched as she flung the pistol aside after it seemed faulty, yet he couldn’t stop himself from shouting, from reaching.<br/><br/>“No!”<br/><br/>James’s arms moved on pure instinct, for but a moment Wendy slipped from his hold as he fumbled for the pistol that turned and twisted in the air beside him. A quick snatch with his fingers but the gun slid away, slippery, a growl rumbled in his throat as he dove towards it one more time, this time his fingers snapping around the pistol’s grip, a grip that was wet, wet with… His eyes went wide when a dark crimson pushed through his fingers. Blood, someone was bleeding, he wasn’t hurt, he’d felt nothing, but then….<br/><br/><i><i>Wendy</i>…</i><br/><br/>A rock, James felt like a rock had dropped into his gut, she was hurt, he just<i>knew</i>it, what’s worse, he had let her slip from his grip.<br/><br/>“Wendy!” He shouted as his gaze frantically sought out those eyes of blue that reminded him so much of the ocean waters below.<br/><br/>When he did find them, it was only for a moment, her piercing gaze looking back up at him as water engulfed them, like the maw of a beast she was swallowed and gone beneath the surface. James followed mere seconds after, the initial impact a slap against his entire body, a vibration, a shock. His legs kicked frantically to find that surface as water pressed into his nose and mouth, the salinity stinging his eyes. Within moments he found that air, waves folding against his body as he fought to stay afloat, gasping, his lungs refusing to comply as the freezing cold started to lock up his muscle, his legs, his arms, the gun held tight in his frozen fingers.<br/><br/>“W- W- Wendy!” He shouted between coughs and waterlogged breaths.<br/><br/>His eyes scanned the horizon, or they would if it wasn’t for the water that twisted and curled before him, all darkened blues and frothing whites. James’s head bobbing above and below its surface over and over, his vision a blurry mess, his breath caught. His legs weakened and after no more than a few seconds of extended struggling he could feel his body truly lock up. Cramp jolted through his calves and up into his thighs causing James to cry out and go under. Those torrents swallowed him too, sucked him downwards, the sandy bottom laid out by white beams refracted from the perfect moon above. A trial of red caught his eye, crimson blood that laid out a path. A path to Wendy, her body and arms already gone limp, much like his own soon would too. A fin flashed by, a torrent of water following its wake, James’s vision and his attention to scampered to make out what had swum by so quickly. Then another, a long scaled tale that whipped and turned and another, another…. another… Sun kissed skin and a myriad of colored scales surrounded James and Wendy, long endless hair pulling behind these creatures. A face pulled into James’s vision, emerald eyes and golden locks, tied back and plaid into thick intricate patterns, her chest bare, scales teasing up her abdomen before curling into a strong and powerful tail, a tail adorned by two large fins at the end, fins with long curling tips.<br/><br/><i>Coralia</i><br/><br/>A name, her name, those eyes of green instantly caused for James’s memory to flutter. There was a sudden jolt in his body as it started to protest against the cold, against the lack of air, his eyes popped open as fear started to seep into him. Drowning, it was the last thing he wanted to experience, especially here, so far from home… Within Neverland... James was about to start clawing desperately when arms wrapped around him, embraced him, a soft warmth seeping against his chest as Coralia pressed herself around James. Lips pushed against his, a rush of air filled his lungs, desperation seeped away as he felt… calm. Coralia’s lips pulled away and she smiled, a beat of her tail and a sudden rush of water followed, it propelled them both through the darkened depths and away. She led them through spiky reefs and jagged rocks, through thickened kelp and past odd colorful fish and creatures. Until they had hit the nearby shore, the rocks replaced by glimmering whites, sandy shallows that sparkled brightly beneath the moonlight. James’s feet found ground at last, pushing him awkwardly to his feet, a stumble, a heavy step as water and cold still weighed him down. Coralia perched herself up, her tail coiling beneath her as the top of her body pushed free from the surface, gills visible around her collarbone, snapping open and closed as her eyes bore into James.<br/><br/>“Wendy!” James coughed as he stumbled through the shadows.<br/><br/>“Ophelia has her…” Coralia purred.<br/><br/>James’s gaze was pulled to Coralia by the sweetened honey that was her voice. He felt that warmth seep back into his chest again and found himself smiling at her.<br/><br/>“Coralia, I remember you…” James croaked as his lungs forced up those last gulps of sea water. “I remember… I remember all of this… Neverland…” He whispered in disbelief.<br/><br/>“Of course you do silly!” Coralia hummed melodically as her tail pushed and brought her closer in a slither, curving and pushing like a snake through the shallows. “We missed you James… You’re looking good… big and strong… Say… You’re not a pirate are you?” Coralia whispered finally, the final words slithering into his ear like a song.<br/><br/>A song that caused James’s eyes to glaze over, a shimmer, a shroud that urged his mind to answer truthfully.<br/><br/>“A.. A scoundrel maybe, but a pirate? No, of course not.” James hummed.<br/><br/>“Good…” Coralia purred<br/><br/>A collection of loud penetrative laughter caused James’s thoughts to regain its focus, that song made by Coralia lost on him. His train of thoughts reorganized as he found the source. Nerissa, Aria and Ophelia, they were dragging something through the waters, pulling, pushing, playing by the looks of it.<br/><br/>“Look she’s dead soon anyway….” Ophelia hummed “I mean<i>look</i>at all this blood!” She announced.<br/><br/>Laughter followed, the mermaids squabbling amongst themselves as they dragged a figure dressed in a set of jeans and a darkened hoody through the shallows. Wendy, it was Wendy! A trial of crimson following her body as the mermaids pulled and prodded. James felt his body propel forward, his feet and legs pulling against the heavy waters, causing it to explode forward in bursts as he ran. The mermaids squealed and giggled as James approached, they curled and twisted around them, splashing water like this was all some sort of game. He ignored them however, he had to check Wendy, had to see how badly she’d been hurt.<br/><br/>“Wendy? Wendy! Can you hear me?” He growled in a desperate manner as he dropped to his knees beside her and cradled her up into his arms. The waters making her seem weightless in that moment as his eyes quickly scanned her for any sort of wound.<br/><br/><i>Alabaster.</i><br/><br/>Her already pale skin even more so under the dipping moon of Neverland, her darkened lips a stark contrast. Breath left her lips, her chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm. Alive, she was alive at least. It also didn’t take long for James’s fingers, holding up her head by the back of her neck to feel that crimson warmth seep through the cold waters. Her neck, somehow Hook had nicked her neck during the whole tussle and grab that had happened back in the realm of men and women. He quickly tipped her head sidewards to see the damage and frowned, feeling the stone in his gut grow suddenly even heavier.<br/><br/>“She’s dead… fish food.” Ophelia hummed.<br/><br/>James could feel their presence now, growing ever closer, colder?<br/><br/>“Wendy… come on, hang in there..” James hummed, as he ignored the gathering fins around him, the sloshing of water, the giggles and snarls.<br/><br/>“Wendy, Wendy, Wendy, Wendy…. Always Wendy!” Ophelia snarled.<br/>“She’s dead! Leave her!” Ophelia hummed.<br/><br/>Again James felt something harmonically seep through his body and for an instant, he felt like he could leave her here, it seemed like a perfectly reasonable thing to do. But then the cackling of Ophelia’s sisters broke that spell in an instant. Spell… that’s right, the mermaids always did have a way with words, pulling pirates into the depths, jealousy being one of the emotions that drove the wretched creatures. They’d always hated Wendy, they even hated Tinkerbell and Tiger Lily, anything that shifted the attention from<i>them</i>was deemed as a threat.<br/><br/>“Get back!” James snarled loudly as he swung around violently.<br/>He’d pressed Wendy against his chest, holding her close as he held the pistol in plain sight as well as he could.<br/><br/>“I’ll shoot! Stay back you hear!?” He snarled as his thumb pulled the hammer back with a click.<br/><br/>The Mermaids snarled, devilish sounds as their features malformed, their eyes bulging, more fishlike than beautiful, the smooth skin now ragged with scars and gashes, their mouths held wide at impossible angles, rows and rows of serrated teeth snapping as they all coiled back in fear. They tried however, as James shuffled back to shore they’d snap forward, arms swiping with vicious claws, only to shrink back as James swung their way. The screeches they made no longer honeyed, but painful, penetrative, causing James to snarl and growl as he made for the shore.<br/><br/>“Back!” He shouted again. “Don’t make me use this thing!” He continued, bluffing his way through the shallows.<br/><br/>“Give us Wendy! If she dies ashore you’ll never see her again! The shadows will take her forever!” Ophelia snarled.<br/><br/>“Wendy, Wendy, Wendy! Always Wendy!” Corallia shouted, her blonde hair now strange and awkward spikes that curled back from her skull and across her shoulders.<br/><br/>“You’re both dead now!” Nerissa announced as they watched James stumble onto the shore from the waters, as they watched him, their game and fun, being taken away.<br/><br/>Laughter ensued, a sickening laughter that haunted James far longer than he’d like to admit as he desperately stumbled into the nearby forest. He had to find a place to rest, somewhere to take a moment, to inspect Wendy. To stem this bleeding. But he had to be away from those witches, their song surely powerful enough to pull them back if he’d stayed close enough. It had taken every ounce of strength he had left, Wendy growing heavier by the minute, his feet dragging, snagging… curses and growls under his breath until he found a small pocket of earth tucked beneath a tree, the roots building a makeshift sort of roof. His teeth chattering loudly, his fingers cold and numb, shivers trailing over every inch of him he quickly worked to stem her bleeding. Fabric was torn from his shirt, binding, pushing, pressure… whispers, whispers telling her she’d be okay, whispers convincing himself she’d be okay. Then warmth, clothes were quickly and carefully stripped away, hung over the roots before tucking them both deep into that pocket of earth. The damp cold slowly seeping from their bodies as the tropical sort of humidity and the closeness of their skin started to push the ocean’s icy grasp from their bodies and muscles.<br/><br/>“You’ll be okay Wendy… I promised… I promised…” He hummed as he encased her into his arms.<br/><br/><br/><hr class="bbc-hr"/><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center"><u><b>Peter Pan</b></u><br/>
<i>Neverland</i>​</div><br/>Such beauty, Peter couldn’t deny that, the way Tinkerbell could fly, especially when she was like this, noone could ever fly as fast as her. Not even him, even now, as he felt the drag on his wrist, his own body trying to propel himself forward and past her it was impossible to sweep past her. So instead, he made himself weightless, allowed himself to be pulled along, not like a sail that held her back, but like sharpened steel, whizzing through the air, cutting through it. It allowed him to sail the stream she created. They’d be there far faster than expected, then they’d normally be. But this was good. Better, this was better, Wendy was there, he could feel it and so was someone else, a presence so familiar yet one he couldn’t quite place. A boy? No, his boys were now either shadows of himself or pirates in servitude to Hook. He hadn’t needed boys for some time now, it was one of the reasons he was so excited to find Fable, finally, having another soul to share in the laughter and adventure. He blinked for a moment as his mind pondered at that, would it be the same? Would Neverland be like it was now Wendy was there?<br/><br/>As Tinkerbell zipped them right through the gate however, that question was answered, Peter could feel the presence immediately. The darkness, the shadows, the need,<b><i>Pan</i></b>, the heart, it pushed and screamed inside him. Peter bit down on his lip hard, anger, this wasn’t how it was supposed to be.<br/><br/>Adventure. Play. Fun.<br/><br/>That was Neverland, that is what drove Neverland, not power, not this feeling of need, greed and gluttony. Yet those feelings still resided inside him once they descended on the island. That central tree growing to monstrous proportions, Pan’s castle. The darkened and grey wood ominous, the branches jagged and sharp, leafless, dead. Dead and dark like all of Neverland, a far cry from the beautiful lush place he remembered far off in memories<i>before</i>Wendy. Pan was overpowering, there was no denying him, even if Peter wanted to. He crowed loudly as Tinkerbell pulled him forward, crowed and twisted as shadows took hold of him once more. this time, the shadows burst from his being, they fell, fell like bombs, balls of darkness dropping onto the island below, diving, shrieking, seeking. Cries of anguish echoed as the shadows of his former Boys left Pan’s bodies.<br/><br/>“Find them my boys! Find Wendy and whoever has stepped onto my shores with her!” Pan laughed.<br/><br/>His eyes snapped up to Tinkerbell pulling him along and he smiled brightly, teeth flashing as the shadows crept into the white’s of his tattoos.<br/><br/>“Don’t worry Tink, the boys will find Wendy, we will find Wendy. As promised, we know what has to be done.” Pan growled<br/><br/><br/><hr class="bbc-hr"/><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center"><u><b>Hook</b></u><br/>
<i>Losing Neverland</i>​</div><br/>Hook snarled as he threw his head to look down into the gateway, there he saw both James and Wendy disappear into the wretched blue depths. How Hook hated the water, the way it pulled at your legs, the way it chilled his bones, but most of all… A shiver ran up Hook’s spine, a pathway of goosebumps following its wake… Yes, most of all he hated the monstrosities it held. If there was one thing Hook knew for certain, it was that he wasn’t planning on jumping through this particular loophole into Neverland.<br/><br/>“Bloody hell…” His eyes shot back towards Tiger Lily as his lips curled up with anger.<br/>“And you! Doing what<i>needs</i>to be done? I’ll tell you what needs to be done!” Hook bellowed as he stepped away from this particular gate into Neverland and towered over Tiger Lily.<br/>“<i>You</i>should have grabbed the girl you nitwit!” He screamed as he stomped and shook, his arms waving angrily around him as he spun on his heels.<br/><br/>But what had he expected, deep inside he knew she was right. Tiger Lily had never really taken anyone’s side, even her father had been a neutral party. Even after Hook had managed to capture Tiger Lily all those years ago, they had never tried to invade Hook’s ship or murdered his men. That is, unless they had trespassed into the places they shouldn’t have been to begin with. Still, it was frustrating and right now, more than anything he was fuming. They had her! Right here! His eyes snapped to his hook and he snarled as he saw the crimson blood drip from it’s edge and spatter onto the pavement. Like a fish on a hook they had her and she still slipped from his grip. This time, not because of Peter Pan but because of<i>him</i>, James Dameron… After all this time he had not one… but two lost souls returned to Neverland. Although James seemed far more “whole” on this side than Wendy.<br/><br/>“Don’t be silly Tiger Lily, there is nothing more we need here. Come, come! Time to move.” Hook announced.<br/><br/>He took several steps northwards, his mind calculating and pondering that if, perhaps, he took these steps and opened another veil with his hook, they’d arrive on land instead. He smiled with a wolfish grin as he looked up at his hook triumphantly. This new tool he had found, this ability to switch between his realm and those of men and women, that surely would serve him well. He’d maybe even be able to build a second ship… or a third, if he travelled back and forth enough to gather more pirates surely. He harrumphed as he turned towards Tiger Lily again.<br/><br/>“Let’s return…. to Neverland..” He growled in a low hum.<br/><br/>With that, he raised his hook as before…. He felt that surge of adrenaline pulse through his body, stream into his muscle. As before he stepped and he swiped… he would feel his hook embed in something... His arm hissed through the air, except this time, he felt no resistance whatsoever, no tear, no cloth that fell open into the beyond.<br/><br/>“Wait…” He mumbled. “Again…”<br/><br/>Another swipe, another hiss of air, again no resistance, no portal, no tear. Another, Another, Another. Hook screamed, he yelled and stomped and swiped like a lunatic. He started swiping so frantically one might assume he was fighting an army of ghosts as he moved from left to right, up and down. His breath started to run ragged, his voice cracked, sweat started to gather on his forehead and run down his brow. He snarled again, howled with frustration before he stomped back over to Tiger Lily.<br/><br/>“How? How!” He echoed over and over.<br/>“How can this be!” He shook his head… then held up his hook to Lily.<br/>“You know what… no, don’t tell me, I don’t even want to know… The Jolly Rogers is still here… We’ll take my ship.”<br/>His hook dropped limply to his side as his eyes met Tiger Lily’s.<br/>“Since we’re still here then, let us fetch this thing you need… but! Next time we run into Wendy you grab her you hear me? No more escapades! She’s been running long enough, she deserves her rest Tiger Lily, even you must admit to this.” Hook hummed.<br/><br/>Another slow nod… Then he looked to the sky, now slowly starting to turn an orange sort of scarlet.<br/><br/>“Lead the way Tiger Lily.” He growled.