<div style="text-align: center"><b>Pan</b><br/>
<i>The true meaning of Shadows</i>​</div><br/>Pan had never in his life felt so free, so powerful, so unhinged. The very essence of having to be bound to another soul, for his magic, his shadow to be one with a living creature had always kept Pan from being truly free. When someone uttered Pan it always came with Peter, always, always Peter Pan. But now, with the glittering sparkle of gold his body was formless, he could shape it, turn it, let the shadows envelop him the golden glow of Tinkerbell’s magic giving each lash of shadow an edge, like the way the layers of the clouds they swum through day after day were framed the glow of the sun or the moon. He crowed, louder than ever, happier than ever as his gaze found two figures standing beneath his would be home of so many years past. The little tree in which they’d hidden and trembled from the raging pirates, from the forest’s wilderness, just boys and their nightmares. He’d given them all freedom, all of them. No more nightmares, only dreams, only power.<br/><br/>No boy had been afraid under Pan’s rule, no fairy was captured, no pirate strayed onto the shores of Neverland. They held absolute power and now, now this woman, Wendy Darling, had returned to ruin it all once more.<br/><br/>But Pan no longer carried the weight of Peter’s emotions, his fawning love for the creature, for Wendy Darling, nor for the man, once boy who stood beside her. He recognized his essence in the blink of an eye. His whispers and smiles had made Peter soft, too soft. They’d both go, the creature he’d summoned and the razor sharp blade both he and Tinkerbell carried would drive them deep into the earth.<br/><br/>Pan howled as he spun into the air, his fingers wrapping tightly along the hilt of a dagger without a blade, it sung a light hymn as he pulled it free, his magic infusing it with a shadowy form as he set his eyes on James Dameron. Tinkerbell would take care of Wendy, the raging red and gold she held, her colors so true to her nature a dead give-away at how delighted she was to finally find Wendy on her terms. Blade held close to his chest he spiraled downwards with a howl of fury that sounded maddening in under the discordant bells and roaring dragon beside him.<br/><br/><u><i><b>I don’t believe in fairies! </b></i></u><br/><br/>Pan roared in disbelief as those words echoed through Neverland, each syllable, each letter, the perfect pronunciation of each and every word that slipped through Wendy’s lips in a desperate cry. The implications of them hit Pan like a stone. He’d destroyed the Fairy kingdom, all those years ago when they’d captured Tink and held her prisoner, Tinkerbell, she was the very last… A sudden jab in his chest caused him to falter, the speed of descent slowed as he stumbled mid air. A gasp as he felt a sudden need to breathe, he gaped, tried with all of his might to inhale. But nothing came, his body refused, as the form of the dragon beside him faltered, as the scales fell to the earth of Neverland and bellowed into nothing he felt his own form fail too. The curling smoke no longer clung to him, the golden sparkle that held it all together, that flowed through his body like a renewed soul failed.<br/><br/>“N- No…” Pan hissed.<br/><br/>He felt it now, an odd sensation, one he’s given so many others but one he believed he’d never feel himself. Pan was immortal, Pan<i>was</i>Neverland. Yet, as Tinkerbell’s magic faded from his body, as Peter’s soul was no longer there as a binding fuel, drowned in his own shadows, Pan felt his essence start to fade, his heart slow with each and every beat. It’s thrum softer and softer, his breath still caught as he was unable to breath, the blade slipped from his fingers as his body went crashing down, plummeting towards the dirt packed floor of Neverland itself. He saw Neverland come closer and closer, and as he tumbled Pan realized for the first time since his essence had been brought into creation.<br/><br/>Pan…<i>was</i>.<br/><br/>Darkness as Peter’s powerless body crashed into Neverland, tumbling and turning like a ragdoll as bones snapped and limbs turned in a grotesque fashion. As Pan’s essence left the boy’s body and Peter had left so many hours before all that lay before both James and Wendy, was the body of their once beloved friend.<br/><br/>Peter Pan, eyes without life, staring endlessly up at the starry skies above them.<br/><br/><br/><br/><hr class="bbc-hr bbc-hr--3"/><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center"><b>James Dameron</b><br/>
<i>In love with a Dragonslayer</i>​</div><br/>James had been terrified, the imagery above them, around them. The bombs of shadow, the formless boys that rushed at them from every side, the dragon that towered above them, it’s imagery impossible. The creature was huge, it’s presence alone terrifying. Each step sending tremors through the earth, the deafening roar, the endless toll of a cacophony of bells that exploded from the gleeful fairy within it’s gaping maw. A maw that came crashing towards them, black billowing smoke with veins of gold, Tink’s golden form held bright as she crowed her battle-cry. Yet that fear, that feeling that everything he knew to be was about to unravel, their destination unknown, afraid of the darkness that was to come, was swept away in an instant.<br/><br/>Fingers that pressed into his palm, at first James thought like him, out of fear, afraid of what awaited the both of them when those jaws closed around them. Except he glanced her way, finding her expression contorted, a raw emotion Wendy Darling hadn’t shown once during their short time together, not even when he traced back his memories from a time before, from when they were children, from when they were here, together, happy. He’d never seen Wendy angry,<i>this</i>angry. Color popped into her otherwise alabaster skin, the line of her jaw strong as her teeth pressed together, then she screamed, the words rung loudly, words that brought with it a wave of unexpected silence. It was surreal. One moment there were roars, screams, bells, feet that stomped, moved, ran, the crow of a boy, battle-cries, insanity, madness, wind that howled, thunder that cracked above in the sky and then there was Wendy, followed by absolute silence.<br/><br/>He could hear his heartbeat, it pounded, thrummed in an impossible rhythm. Warmth spread between his fingers followed by a sharpened sting, Wendy’s nails breaking his skin as she held fast, tight, yet he didn’t flinch, instead he watched.<br/><br/>Watched as the skies cleared, watched as clouds unraveled on themselves, as a creature impossibly massive turned to nothing, like it had never stood before them, the only proof, the gaping path it had left as it had strode towards them. He watched as veins of gold split, as glittering dust turned to blackened ash, he watched as someone fell from the sky, he watched as Wendy smiled, as she turned towards him, stepped towards him.<br/><br/>James stopped watching, as Wendy steadied against him he held fast, a frame that stood strong and provided the support she needed, he couldn’t help but smile, his gaze filled with something bright, memories flooding as their lips pressed together. A kiss, one he’d nearly taken himself so many times, the small walk between destinations within the sprawling little city below her homestead, or at the little club, over drinks and cigarette smoke, or even in the madness of it all, as they ran through back alleys and swam through impossible swirling seas. Yet here she was, on her own terms, a kiss, then another… a soft chuckle rolling through his chest, a warmth, his forehead falling against hers as she spoke. Fingers unfolded from hers as he reached up, the back of his nails tracing lightly across her skin, pulling aside the stray strands of hair, tucking them neatly behind her ear before he spoke with another soft chuckle.<br/><br/>“Guess I’m in love with a dragonslayer.” He hummed happily as a smile drew across his face.<br/><br/><br/><br/><hr class="bbc-hr bbc-hr--3"/><br/><br/><div style="text-align: center"><b>Hook</b><br/>
<i>Hook through the Veil</i>​</div><br/><i>Neverland needs us, she is dying.</i><br/><br/>Hook’s lips curled into a most vicious smile.<br/><br/>“How..” He asked in disbelief.<br/><br/>“How is it that everything I’ve fought for, everything I’ve tried, I’ve always failed. Yet, the moment I’m not there, that one moment where I am<i>not</i>fighting… I succeed?” He purred.<br/><br/>He could feel it too, like Tiger Lily, the rumbling bass of Neverland had gone silent. He sucked in a deep breath, his chest pressing outwards as he stood over Tiger Lily and stared through the window she had been looking out, he never really found a focus, instead he blinked as he felt the Jolly Roger sink in the distance. As the magic faded from Neverland, so did the magic that was bestowed on him to ferry the souls between the everlasting lies of Neverland, and the embrace of true death. He laughed softly, silently almost, a scoff as he turned on his heels, taking in the bedroom of the girl, the woman, whom had caused so much strife in his heart.<br/><br/><b>Wendy Darling.</b><br/><br/>“The Jolly Rogers is gone…” He said finally<br/>“I too feel a call, no longer needed after everything Pan has created crumbles to dust.”<br/><br/>He stepped away from Tiger Lily, pausing at the edge of Wendy’s bed, the back of his golden hook tracing across the snowy white bedsheets.<br/><br/>“But…”<br/><br/>His hook hovered above the bed now, it shook, vibrated, tugged, pulled towards a place without any guidance from the Pirate Lord.<br/><br/>“You have aided me, I do not leave a debt unpaid…. I think that…. Yes…” He growled as the very edge of his hook caught on something invisible.<br/><br/>“She had passed through here before, I have seen this place from the deck of my ship, and she’s seen the Jolly Roger from this very spot… I can get us back.” He announced.<br/><br/>The sound of fabric tearing echoed in the silence between them as his hook caught the frayed edges of the veil that separated Wendy’s reality from Neverland. Somehow, without even looking beyond the veil that fell, Hook already knew where it would take them. It would take them to Wendy, that link, it always did.<br/><br/>Without a word he stepped through, not even looking if Tiger Lily would follow, not because he didn’t care, but because he heard the desire in her voice to return, she would follow without a second thought.<br/><br/><br/><br/><hr class="bbc-hr bbc-hr--3"/><br/><div style="text-align: center"><br/>
<b>James Dameron</b><br/>
<i>The veil between them</i>​</div><br/>He hadn’t heard anyone approach, hadn’t felt his presence, hadn’t even expected the man to be here so soon. Yet his laughter was unmistakable, that rumble, that flair that followed.<br/><br/><b><i>Hook</i></b><br/><br/>The warmth he’d felt only moments before, the smile that had wrapped a thousand blankets around them both, the softness, that feeling of home, of belonging. It disappeared in an instant, tugged away violently by the laughter of<i>that </i>man.<br/><br/>“Well, well, well.” Hook announced as he stepped into view.<br/>“Hook.” James growled.<br/>“Ho there boy, I’m not here to fight, not anymore…” He chuckled.<br/><br/>James moved swiftly, automatically, his fingers still interwoven between Wendy’s in one hand, as his body curled around hers and he stood between her and<i>him. </i>Keeping her close at his back, but providing a wall between them. His gaze met with Hook’s, his eyes dark, dark and cold, yet a spark to them he’d only seen on rare occasions. No murder, no rage in his gaze.<br/><br/>“It’s true!” Hook said, his hand raised apologetically. “If anything, I should be thanking the two of you, even after all my plotting, my lying, my hunts, my endless search for the spirit of Pan. The two of you..."<br/>"Who would’ve thought, the two of you have managed to actually destroy it…” He purred<br/>“Destroyed… what?” James asked, a dread looming over him as he watched Hook's movements ever so closely.<br/><br/>“Neverland.” Hook whispered in a hiss as his golden hook traced to the air, leading James’s gaze to the body of Pan, sprawled into the earth but a few hundred feet from them, limbs at odd angles, lifeless.<br/><br/>As the word had left Hook’s lips, the earth beneath them shook, almost as if Neverland had given an answer, almost as if uttering it’s name right now caused the very soul of this plane to writhe in pain and disbelief.<br/><br/>James shook his head in disbelief, they hadn’t… had they? Surely another lie, another trick, surely… His gaze fell to Peter Pan, mischief himself, a grotesque visage drowned into the earth, then to Hook, the man lost in his own delight, his toothy grin unbelievably large, to the shimmering imagery behind him, a portal like the one before, ripped open between realms. Then over his shoulder, finding Wendy as he nuzzled her cheek ever so lightly.<br/><br/>“We didn’t… we did what we had to… Neverland… it’s always with us.” He said with a smile as he stepped back into her, causing their bodies to meet along the length of their frame.<br/><br/>A crack echoed as the ground shook once more, earth split all around them, wind started to howl, clouds emerged from nowhere, not those of shadows, of black and onyx, but clouds of deep grays, lifeless, emotionless as a drizzle of rain started to fall.<br/><br/>“Wendy Darling…” He whispered, as his fingers squeezed. “Do we stay? Or do we go?” He asked, his head nodding towards the shimmer behind Hook.<br/><br/>“Whichever it is, I’ll never let go, not again, never again.” James promised as his fingers squeezed hers.