It’s a strange sight to see pixies and Fae mingling with pirates and the members of my tribe. Painting an odd picture before me, I can’t help but stare at the juxtaposition between clothing meant for sea, the rougher, efficient designs of my people, and the more extravagant designs of the Coven. And we all move together with one goal in mind: survival.
I’d already warned the Tribe about the rules of the Coven, but it had proven unnecessary. Tink told me earlier the old rules aren’t in effect. There’s nothing linked to the food, no enchantment that gives the Fae command over anyone, though it would have been before. The basics still apply—don’t touch anyone’s wings without permission and manners matter above all—but for the most part, mine and Wendy’s people are safe for now.
With bigger things at stake, the old rules are being bent or done away with.
That doesn’t mean we aren’t in danger of the blood magic the Coven deals with, however. It certainly doesn’t mean one of my people couldn’t find themselves sucked dry of either blood or magic if they aren’t careful, but the chances are far less than normal.
Each of us has lookouts and guards stationed around the Coven, and for once, it hadn’t been a fight overflowing with pride. It seems, with all of us in the same vicinity, the pride over our own warriors doesn’t apply like it had before, and there’s been no argument when we each placed our own men around the perimeter. It’s almost a relief to avoid an unnecessary fight in a time we should be closer than ever.
So far, nothing of note has happened, but I know it’s coming. I can feel it. Almost as if I can sense the change in the air, I know there will be an attack soon, whether this very evening or later on. The trees are whispering, shaking, letting me know that something is afoot. Is it the Croc and the Lost? Or is it Wendy’s friends from another world? Either can trigger the whispers of nature.
“What do you feel?”
I startle at the sudden voice and turn to look at the man standing next to me. Captain Hook and I get along about as well as the moon and the sun, in that, we prefer to avoid each other, but much of that is because we simply don’t care to deal with each other. In all our years in Neverland, we’ve never shared any sort of relationship passed living in the same world. I’m not drawn to men such as him, even though we share a darkness. I know at one point, Hook and Tink had been an item, the same as Tink and Peter had been an item. After so many years here, it’s easy to get lonely, to seek out companionship in those who understand, but Captain Hook has never had a heart to offer anyone but the Sea Captain he now calls mate. After years and years of dancing around each other, the two finally came to an understanding.
The threat of Neverland dying did wonders for them, at least. For the rest of us, we must face it alone.
“I feel a great many things, Hook. Which one do you speak of?”
He scowls. “Don’t be all profound now. I can see it on your face. You feel something is coming. I feel it, too.”
I study the hard eyes of the Captain of the Stars, searching for danger, but there’s nothing but honest curiosity.
“Something’s coming, but I don’t know if it’s the Crocodile or Wendy’s people,” I murmur, reaching down to pick a blade of grass between my fingers. I can feel the life inside it, the aching, the knowing that something is coming. “Is that what you feel?”
Hook nods. “Yes. Wendy mentioned feeling uneasy, too, and I think she would recognize the signature of her friend, at least of the one she calls White. She doesn’t recognize it.”
“So then we should prepare as if it’s the Crocodile.”
Aniya sits around the fire beside Bear, her smile lighting up when he hands her a plate of food. She looks so carefree, so happy, and I hope to keep her that way for as long as possible, no matter what Neverland brings. A child should be allowed to be a child, even if, as children, we were forced to grow up. She doesn’t have to have the same experiences I did.
I nod to Hook, leaving him to ponder over our conversation, and take a seat next to the little girl.
“What are you eating, papoose?”
“Berries! Bear found some for me, so I don’t have to eat the meat.”
I smile. The no meat rule is a new one, and one I expected at some point. It’s hard to eat meat when you can talk to the creatures you plan on eating. It’s hard to look them in the eyes with the knowledge. A month ago, Aniya stopped accepting meat altogether, but we’d at least been expecting it.
“Do you need more food? I can find some more.” Tink had offered the Coven’s food for us to eat, and while most of their food is too sweet for me, I know Aniya will like it.
But she doesn’t get the chance to answer. I frown, tilting my head, and then standing to better listen. A few eyes focus on me, on the tension in my shoulders.
“Get Anita to safety,” I tell Bear, meeting his eyes briefly. He wastes no time. My warrior drops his plate, scoops up Aniya, who purposely holds onto her plate, and carries her toward the buildings. The little birds and creatures that always seem to accompany her follow along behind them.
He’s coming, Daughter. They come. . .
The whispers of the trees grow in crescendo until my mind echoes with their words. I send up a hoot that echoes around the entire Coven, letting everyone know to be on guard.
Almost as if we conjure it, as if thinking the thought out loud, one of the lookouts calls loud and high, the hoot telling me exactly what it is approaching, even while the trees were vague. Seconds after, more hoots and howls go up, a few whistles, and everyone else rises to their feet, grabbing weapons in preparation for whatever is coming.
“It’s the Lost!” someone shouts, and I’m not surprised.
How could they act so fast after we merged our people together? We should have had a day at least to settle before the Crocodile attacked.
“How many?” Tink asks, her wings spread wide as she rises in the air. She looks every inch the bloodthirsty pixie, her nails suddenly sharper than normal. Her green dress flows around her like gauze, and though there’s no wind blowing through Neverland right now, she generates her own wind with her wings. Pink eyes glowing and battle ready, Tink faces the direction of the warning, never drawing her dagger.
“Too many,” one of the Fae replies, his eyes wide, which means there are enough to cause worry. Tink’s Fae don’t spook easily.
“Enough to take on all three of our communities at the same time,” I murmur, meeting Tink’s eyes. We nod to each other, understanding we might be fighting to the death on this one, that we might lose people if we aren’t careful. I don’t know how Wolfbane knew so quickly we’d merged our people—speaking to the land isn’t one of his powers—but he’s sending in the cavalry to stir chaos anyway.
I stroke my hand down the headdress I wear and feel the magic spread along my skin, the yellow power floating as it pulls me into the creature whose skin I wear. I’m not just a Chieftess, not just the leader of the Tribe. I’m Tiger Lily for a reason, and the vesper on my head serves as my weapon.
“I give myself to you, so we may walk together,” I rasp, closing my eyes while the change begins.
I hear some of my people whisper behind me, the act of transformation not one I make often, but there’s never a better time to let my other side loose.
“Skinwalker,” someone whispers, but I ignore them. I’m no stranger to the word, our legends speaking of them. I’m not the only Skinwalker to ever exist, and I won’t be the last.
My awareness grows as I transform into the creature of nightmares, until I expand into the giant bat-like creature rather than Tiger Lily. It’s a painful change but one I welcome as my bones snap and refuse, as fur sprouts along my skin like needles. My face morphs, great pointed ears elongating and allowing me to hear further in the distance. When my bones and skin settles, I flap my wings once, twice, and I’m in the air looking for a better vantage point. Everything in my vision paints yellow, and instead of my normal vision, I see from the sharp eyes of the creatur
e I wear. With a horrible shriek, I announce my presence, and fly right into the thick of Lost swarming up the protection walls, preparing to spill inside for their attack. Though I knock some of them off, though the blade-like wings I sweep through them maim some of them, I’m not looking for the Lost. I’m looking for their leader.
I find the Crocodile in the middle of the swarm, shouting orders to the Lost, but the minute he realizes I’m coming for him, he turns and begins to sprint away, back the way he came from. He must have known I’m in the Coven, that we all are, so why run now?
“Coward!” I shriek, my voice garbled and monstrous.
The Crocodile is fast, but I’ve always been faster when it mattered, and wings are always an advantage. As we draw away from the Coven, away from where the Lost attempt to gain purchase, I shoot past the beast below me and drop, blocking his path. To his credit, the Crocodile skids to a stop. He doesn’t try to dive around me, doesn’t try to run. He knows it’ll be pointless to do such a thing.
I can hear the others fighting in the distance, far enough away I know they won’t reach us before I have my talk with the Crocodile. They will have to get through the Lost first, and then come searching for me.
“Wolfbane,” I growl, my voice warped beyond recognition, but he hears. “Won’t you shift?”
For a moment, those strange eyes, eyes I recognize, stare at me, studying me. I’m not sure what he sees, or what he hopes to see, but eventually, the scales on his body begin to shift, and the beast that drains Neverland turns into a man. I roll my shoulders, letting my own skin drop, until I wear my own flesh again, the vesper safely on my head as no more than an ornament.
Long minutes pass with Wolfbane and I simply staring at each other. I’ve known him for so long, had called him part of my people before he disappeared, but here he now stands, more powerful than he’s ever been, a hardness to his eyes that hadn’t been there before he became more beast than man.
“Why won’t you stop this?” I ask, genuinely curious. Wolfbane is a coward; everything he’s done since he became the monster I see goes against the rules of the Tribe. But I want to hear it from his lips, why he pursues such a path, why he thinks its all necessary. I need to hear his reasons, so I can determine how I handle him from here on out. “You’re supposed to be one of us, Wolfbane.”
“Not anymore,” he rasps, and his voice is thick, as if he doesn’t use it as often as he used to. “I haven’t been since I made a pact with Neverland. My humanity for life. And you know that well, Chieftess.”
“Bane—”
“Stop, Lily.” My name coming from his mouth hits me straight in the heart and I nearly flinch. But I’m stronger than that, so I only meet his achingly blue human eyes. “I have goals now,” he continues. “And I will see them through.”
“Even at the death of so many?”
“I will kill anyone I have to if it gets me out of this fucking world,” he growls, his eyes shifting between the blue human to the toxic green of the crocodile. “Including you.”
I narrow my eyes and straighten my shoulders. If he thinks he can take me on and win, he has another thing coming. I’m a Daughter of Neverland, and though he may be stealing the magic of this world and he’s far stronger than I remember, he cannot hope to take me on and win. At best, we will be equally matched. He’s bluffing—I know he is—but still I raise my brow. “Then do it, Bane,” I goad, taking a step forward. “Kill me.”
“You can’t fucking die,” he growls, already hesitating. Coward, my mind shouts. Traitor!
“You’re right,” I murmur, sensing the others getting closer. “I never thought you a coward before, Bane. But now, that’s all you are.” He flinches. “You’re a coward.” I take a step forward. “You’re a traitor.” Another step and he flinches backward. “And the more people you kill, the more innocent blood you spill, I’ll make you pay for every single one.” My face morphs with all my fury. “You will fail, and I will be there to watch you fall.”
“You weren’t there the last time,” he snarls, his body shifting, but before I can attack him, noise to my right draws my eyes just as a group of people slam through the trees, weapons raised, just as Wendy, Hook, and Tink break through from the opposite side.
And when I turn back to Wolfbane, he’s already gone, taking advantage of the momentary distraction. I curse under my breath, angry I missed my chance, angry I’d been interrupted.
“Who are you?” I snarl toward the strangers, but before I can confront them, Wendy is rushing across the clearing and throwing her arms around a man with white rabbit ears on his head. I realize who he is before she speaks.
“White!” Wendy exclaims, but I ignore them.
Instead, my eyes trace the path the Croc took, following the trail he chose to return to the Dark Side of the island, and I desperately want to follow, and treat him like the traitor he is.
The desire to take flight again is overwhelming, but instead, I turn towards the newest guests of my world, and glare at them.
Rabbits, a few humans, and a cat. Seriously? That’s all?
Chapter Seven
Two Hundred Years B.C. (Before Choosing)
“Come on, Lily! I know you can fight better than that!” Bane goads and it only fills me with more anger. He has a bad habit of teasing at the worst times, when I’m more tempted to lop his head off than knock his feet out from under him.
“If you’d hold still, I’ll show you exactly how well I can fight,” I growl, crouching low for the attack I know is coming.
Laughing, Bane spins the staff in his hands in a circle, attempting to draw my eyes but I know better than that. Bane should, too. We’ve been sparring long enough together, practicing, until we can both fight each other in our sleep. Right now, we’re evenly matched, even if I’m the Chieftess, but soon, I’ll be stronger than the infuriating man before me.
He spins and swings his staff at me, but I’m already prepared for his move. I twist and jerk backwards, swirling my fingers to coax the yellow magic in my veins to do my bidding. As I watch, a vine from the closest tree shoots out and wraps around Bane’s wrist, keeping him from swinging the staff.
“Oh, we’re using powers now,” he grins, jerking free of the vine and his own yellow magic seeps from his fingers. The bird comes out of nowhere, swooping down with claws toward my head.
I laugh, ducking just in time and urging the closest tree to reach out with spindly fingers to wrap around Bane, but there’s really no gaining the upper hand, not when we’re the same when it comes to strength.
“Do you yield, Lily?” he asks, a grin stretching his face.
“Never,” I laugh, but we both stop attacking each other. It’s our way. Neither of us will ever yield, and neither of us can win on brute strength alone right now. “Come on. Let’s go get some food.”
As we turn to head back towards the Tribe, the trees shake and whisper, their voices echoing to reach my ears. I pause, tilting my head to listen, some of the words too difficult to understand, but others, I know.
Destiny. . .turmoil. . .One of Two will turn. . .
“What is it?” Bane stares at me, knowing I can hear something, but he doesn’t know what. “What do you hear?”
One of Two will turn. . . Neverland will drown in blood. . .
I wrinkle my brows. The trees speak their truths, but though they’re strange words, it doesn’t make sense. Neverland already drowns in blood. How much more could bleed? The land is already darker than anything else.
“Nothing,” I say, smiling at Bane. “Come on. I’m starving.”
Bane frowns but follows my lead, trusting me when I say it’s nothing. It is nothing anyways, just words that have already happened.
. . .Neverland will drown in blood. . .
Chapter Eight
I move with the group of people, a mixture of our world and another, thinking about how strange it is to feel the contrasting powers. Because Wendy’s friends have powers of their own, strange signature
s across all of them. Wendy’s friend, White, feels powerful in his own right, and though the ears on his head should be more cute than intimidating, I can tell he’s just as savage as the most dangerous Neverland creatures.
And that doesn’t even begin to explain the cat.
He’s coiled bestial power, and though the ears on his head move constantly, it’s his eyes that seem dangerous. The woman beside him, the one called Cal, feels just as threatening. Even the red head grinning from ear to ear and nearly skipping in front of me feels deadly powerful.
Wendy has strange friends, indeed.
We make it back to the Coven in one piece, bodies of the Lost being moved into a funeral pyre. It bothers me, to burn the bodies in such a way, but I understand why we must do it.
We don’t have enough energy and manpower to bury so many, and the Coven believes the fire released the souls so they can return to the stars. Each of us has our own way of mourning the dead. The tribe buries our deceased, feeding the trees and the land, so death can birth new life. The Coven releases their souls through fire. I know Wendy and Hook both offer their dead to the sea, though Hook’s crew also believes in returning bodies to the stars. They are all beautiful in their own right. And though we’d gotten lucky this time and don’t have any of our own to bury, I know there will be more blood shed before this war is over.
Though blood calls to me, I don’t relish spilling that of our people’s.
Fierce as a Tiger Lily (Daughters of Neverland Book 2) Page 4
