Far from Shore

by Kiki Thorpe

  “Okay. But carefully,” said Tink. “We don’t want to end up on the wrong side of whatever is making that sound.”

  The group crept forward. They hadn’t gone far when they spotted Kate. She was standing with her head tipped back, looking at something up in a tree.

  Mia rushed to her. “Why did you go off like that? We have to be careful. There’s something out—”

  “Shh.” Kate cut her off. Look, she mouthed, pointing.

  A black panther was crouched in the tree. And facing him, on the same branch, was Peter Pan.

  Tink’s heart gave a little leap. Her old friend looked the same as he always had—merry and full of mischief.

  The panther and Peter stared each other down. The panther roared again. Peter grinned and roared back. The girls and Tink held their breath.

  Suddenly, the cat sprang forward. For a moment, it seemed that Peter would hold his ground. But his foot slipped and he plummeted from the tree. The panther sprang after him.

  Peter landed in the leaves and lay still. The panther sniffed him. Then, with a snort, it turned and stalked away.

  As soon as the panther was gone, Kate and her friends rushed to help Peter. But as she got closer, Kate began to feel afraid. What if he’s really hurt? she thought.

  The other girls seemed to have the same fear. They’d started out running, but now they approached him slowly. Peter lay on his back in the leaves. His eyes were closed and one arm was flung over his head. He doesn’t look hurt, Kate thought. If she didn’t know better, she’d have thought he was sleeping.

  Tink was the only one brave enough to touch him. She brushed his cheek gently. “Peter?”

  Peter’s eyes popped open. “BOO!” he shouted.

  The girls leaped back. Tink was so startled, her glow winked out for a full second.

  Peter sprang up, grinning. He turned a somersault in the air, clearly pleased with his joke. Now the girls got their first good look at him. He was a normal-sized boy, neither very big nor very small. Aside from his leafy clothes, the most striking thing about him was his laugh. It bubbled out of him like water from a fountain. It was the kind of laugh that made you want to laugh, too.

  “Peter, that was a naughty trick,” Tink said.

  “We thought you were dead!” Gabby exclaimed.

  “Me? Never!” Peter assured her. “But now and then I have to let the panther think he’s won. Otherwise, he’ll get low self-confidence.”

  Kate could tell by his plucky grin that low self-confidence was not something Peter suffered from. “Do you fight panthers often?” she asked.

  “Every Thursday,” Peter replied.

  Was he joking? Kate couldn’t tell. But she had a strange feeling he wasn’t. Peter was turning out to be even more interesting than she’d hoped. “I’m Kate,” she said. “I saw you before. In the forest.”

  She expected him to laugh, or say, “I know.” But instead, to her surprise, he bowed. “I’m Peter Pan,” he said formally.

  Mia, Lainey, and Gabby introduced themselves, and Peter bowed to each of them, too. Gabby giggled and curtsied back, holding the edges of her tutu. Peter even bowed to Tink, which Kate thought was a funny way to say hello to an old friend.

  But Tink just smiled and said, “It’s good to see you, Peter. We came from Pixie Hollow for a visit. These girls are my friends.”

  “Tink’s the best fairy, isn’t she?” Peter said. Tink’s glow turned orange. Kate had never seen her blush before.

  “You’ve all come just in time,” he said.

  “In time for what?” asked Mia.

  Before Peter could answer, there was a rustling nearby. Nibs and Cubby came crawling out of the hollow tree that served as the entrance to the boys’ hideout. As usual, they were dressed in their ragged animal furs. They stepped out of the tree, yawning and scratching their heads.

  “Hullo. You’re back,” Cubby said when he saw the girls. “What did we miss?”

  “Peter fought a panther in a tree!” Gabby exclaimed.

  “Really?” Cubby sighed. “You never wake us up for the good stuff, Peter.”

  “Where are the other boys?” Lainey asked. Slightly, Tootles, and the Twins were missing.

  “I sent them to the other side of the river. I planted a mango seed there, and I wanted to find out what was growing from it,” Peter told her.

  Mia smiled. “Wouldn’t mangos grow from a mango seed?”

  “You never know,” Peter replied. “I once planted a blackberry and a whole flock of blackbirds grew.”

  Kate laughed. This time she was sure he was joking. Almost sure, anyway. “You were saying that we’re just in time for something,” she reminded him. “What are we in time for?”

  “An adventure,” Peter told her, which was exactly what Kate was hoping he’d say.

  “What kind of adventure?” Gabby asked.

  “I guess we won’t know till we’ve had it,” Peter said.

  “Let’s go now!” Kate said.

  But Tink frowned. “We just came to say hello. We should start heading back to Pixie Hollow—”

  “But then you’ll miss all the fun!” Peter exclaimed.

  “Oh, please let’s go, Tink!” Gabby begged.

  The others joined in too, pleading with Tink to come, until she grinned and threw up her hands. “All right. But just one adventure,” she said, and everyone cheered.

  Peter rose into the air. Kate, Nibs, and Cubby followed him. Kate was so excited she forgot her friends couldn’t fly, until she heard Mia shout, “Wait!”

  Kate turned. Mia, Lainey, and Gabby were running on the ground after them.

  “Why don’t you fly?” Peter asked them.

  Two bursts of red appeared on Mia’s cheeks. Kate knew Mia didn’t want to admit she was afraid of flying.

  “It’s because they don’t have any fairy dust,” Kate said. Mia gave her a grateful look.

  “Well, that’s nothing. I’ll share mine.” And in a moment, Peter had blown fairy dust from his hand over each of the girls.

  At once, Gabby and Lainey rose into the air. But Mia didn’t move. Kate knew it was because she was thinking about falling. You couldn’t fly when you were thinking about the ground.

  Kate went to her and took her hand. “You can do it,” she whispered. “I’ll help.”

  Mia nodded, her lips pressed tight.

  “Don’t think about falling. Think about things that make you happy,” Kate told her. “Birthday presents. Ferris wheels. The sound of an ice cream truck coming down the street…”

  Mia closed her eyes, concentrating. “Chocolate cupcakes with pink frosting,” she murmured. “A new dress. A nest with tiny blue eggs inside…”

  They were rising into the air. The breeze tickled their faces. Mia cautiously opened one eye, then the other. “I’m doing it! I’m flying!”

  Kate grinned. “Fun, right?”

  “Just don’t let go yet, okay?” Mia said.

  “Don’t worry,” said Kate. “I’ve got you.”

  Lainey, Gabby, and the boys were ahead of them. Kate could see them darting around in the air.

  “Can you go a little faster?” Kate asked.

  “I think so,” said Mia. “I’m starting to get the hang of it now.”

  They sped up. As they got closer, Kate saw that her friends were playing tag in the air. Nibs was It. Peter was taunting him by flying around him in figure eights. Every time Nibs grabbed for him, Peter would slip just out of his reach.

  But on the next loop, Peter dipped a bit too low. His leg brushed Nibs’s hand.

  “Peter’s It!” Nibs shouted, sounding surprised at his luck.

  Kate’s feet kicked at the air. She wanted to play!

  Just then, Peter swooped toward her. “Tag,” he said, tapping Kate’s head. He darted away, crying, “Can’t catch me!”

  “Oh yeah?” Kate shouted. Without another thought, she let go of Mia’s hand and took off after him.

  Kate’s outstretched hand wa
s inches from Peter’s foot, when she heard a cry behind her. She turned and saw Mia paddling the air like a sinking swimmer. With a panicked look, Mia glanced down at the ground.

  “No, don’t!” Kate cried.

  But it was too late. Mia started to fall.

  Tink was floating on the breeze when she saw Mia suddenly drop.

  “Help her, Peter!” Tink cried out. But he was already diving through the air.

  Peter’s grace and speed were remarkable. He seemed to know it, too. He caught Mia just inches from the ground and flew an extra loop before setting her down.

  The others landed around them.

  “That was amazing!” Kate said.

  “That was scary,” Lainey said. “Mia, are you okay?”

  Mia nodded. “I just need to sit for a second, that’s all. Thanks for catching me,” she said to Peter.

  “It was nothing,” Peter said with a shrug.

  Tink thought Mia would be done with flying for the day. She was surprised when Mia said, “I’m all right now. Should we go on?”

  “Are you sure?” Tink asked. “You aren’t afraid?”

  “It’s like riding a bike, right?” Mia said, glancing at Kate. “When you fall you just have to get right back on.”

  Tink could tell that Mia didn’t want to miss whatever excitement lay ahead. She understood. She didn’t want to miss it, either.

  Peter seemed pleased. “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go!”

  They played Follow the Leader—or rather, Follow Peter, for he was always in the lead. When Peter banked left, the boys and girls followed like airplanes in formation. When Peter skimmed the trees, they did, too. Peter touched the pointed tip of each pine he passed, and one by one, the others did the same, surprising the birds and squirrels.

  They flew across the Never forest—seven children and one fairy in a long, snaking line.

  When they turned toward the coast, there was a headwind. Tink could fly fast, but she was much smaller than the boys and girls, so she tired quickly. She ended up riding on Peter’s shoulder, as she’d done many times before.

  It was lovely sitting there while Never Land rushed past beneath them. Tink wondered why she’d waited so long to visit her old friend.

  When they came to an emerald-green cove, Peter began to spiral downward. The girls and boys followed.

  They landed on a patch of white sand, surrounded by sea grass and palm trees. Nearby, a waterfall spilled over a cliff, pouring into the lagoon. To Tink it looked like any number of coves tucked into Never Land’s shoreline. But the girls flew around, marveling over everything.

  “Look at the waterfall!”

  “Look at the water! Have you ever seen any so clear?”

  “A dolphin!”

  “Sea turtles!”

  Peter stood by, grinning proudly, as if he’d invented it all himself.

  After the long flight, the water was inviting. The boys and girls jumped right in. Tink didn’t swim. She couldn’t fly if her wings got wet. But Peter knew one of the sea turtles—they’d met at a mermaid’s party, he said—and he convinced it to carry Tink around on the water. Mia and Gabby picked grass from the shore and piled it onto the shell to make her more comfortable. Riding on her turtle ferry, Tink felt as grand as Queen Clarion herself.

  On the beach, Nibs found a bubble of sea kelp the size of a baseball, and the boys and girls started a game of catch. Tink lazed on her sea turtle, sunning her wings, while the children splashed in the water, throwing the sea kelp bubble back and forth.

  At some point, Tink noticed that Lainey had come to stand next to her in the shallows.

  “Tired of playing?” Tink asked.

  “I’m not such a good swimmer,” Lainey admitted. “And no one was passing to me anyway.”

  Tink began to watch the game more closely. It seemed that every time Kate got the bubble, she threw it back to Peter. And every time Peter threw it to someone else, Kate intercepted.

  “Over here, Kate!” Mia cried, as Kate caught another pass. But Kate sent the bubble sailing back to Peter.

  Back and forth it went, the ball passing between Peter and Kate. Before long, Gabby came to stand next to Lainey and Tink. Then Cubby. Eventually, Mia and Nibs joined them, too.

  “It’s like she doesn’t even see us,” Mia said.

  “Watch this, Peter!” Kate said, throwing the next pass from behind her back.

  The throw went wide. The bubble sailed into the waterfall and disappeared.

  “I’ll get it!” Nibs cried. He seemed glad to have something to do.

  Nibs flew behind the waterfall. He came back a minute later, excited. “There’s nothing there!” he exclaimed.

  “You mean you couldn’t find the ball?” Kate asked.

  “I mean there’s nothing behind the waterfall,” Nibs said. “It’s just a big hole.”

  Of course, they all had to see for themselves. It was the kind of waterfall you could swim right under, so they did. Peter carried Tink cupped in his hands to keep her wings dry.

  Behind the waterfall, they discovered a cave.

  “Should we see where it goes?” Nibs asked.

  Everyone looked to Peter. “We could,” Peter said. “What do you think, Tink?”

  Tink peered into the darkness. She thought that there were probably bats in there. Tink didn’t want to have anything to do with bats.

  But then Peter added, “You’re the only one with a light, Tink. We’ll get lost without you.”

  How could she refuse? “All right,” she said. “Let’s see where it goes.”

  Still at the mouth of the cave, Gabby hesitated. “I don’t think I want to go in there,” she said.

  “Come on,” Kate replied. “It’ll be fun.”

  “But it’s spooky,” Gabby said.

  “That’s what makes it fun.” Kate glanced into the cave. Their friends were disappearing into the darkness, unaware that Kate and Gabby had stopped.

  “Wait!” Kate called. But the rush of the waterfall drowned out her voice. Kate knew if they didn’t stay close to Tink, they’d never find their way in the dark.

  “Listen,” she said, kneeling down to look Gabby in the eye. “If we don’t go now, we’ll miss all the fun. You don’t want to get left behind, do you?”

  “No, but—” Gabby started to say.

  “Then again,” Kate said, pretending to reconsider, “maybe it would be better if you stayed here and waited for us, since you’re so little. Maybe just us bigger kids should go—”

  “I’m not so little!” Gabby cried. “I can do anything Mia can do.”

  Kate smiled and took Gabby’s hand. “Well, come on, then!”

  After the bright sunshine outside, the cave felt cool, like a cellar on a hot summer day. It smelled earthy and damp. As Kate’s eyes adjusted to the darkness, she saw that the cave was bigger than she’d imagined. She could see Tink’s light bobbing far ahead.

  As they moved away from the entrance, Gabby’s grip on Kate’s hand tightened. “It’s really dark—”

  Her voice broke off as something furry brushed against them. Gabby screamed.

  “Sorry,” came Cubby’s voice in the darkness. “I didn’t see you. It’s dark as a cave in here.” He chuckled at his joke.

  “I heard something growl,” Gabby said.

  “That was my stomach,” Cubby admitted. “I get hungry when I’m nervous.”

  “Come on,” Kate said, pulling them both forward. The cave was even spookier than she’d thought. She was relieved to see Tink flying toward them, their friends following behind. The group hurried into the dim circle of light cast by the fairy’s glow.

  “There you are!” Mia said when she saw Gabby. “I thought you were right behind me, but when I turned around, you were gone!”

  “Can we go now?” Gabby said. “I don’t like it in here.”

  “Wait,” said Peter. “I think I saw something up there.” He pointed toward the roof of the cave. “Tink, can you brighten
your glow a little?”

  “I’ll try,” said Tink. A second later, her glow flared.

  Everyone gasped. They were standing in a great cavern. Giant formations that looked like cones dripped from the ceiling.

  “Icicles!” Gabby cried.

  “Not icicles,” Lainey said. “They’re stalactites. They’re made of some kind of rock.”

  “Look how they sparkle!” Mia said.

  They stood with their heads tipped back, as Tink flew around, lighting up the cave. There were dozens of them. Some were so big they dipped halfway to the ground.

  “It’s like a castle,” Lainey said.

  “A magic castle,” Gabby agreed.

  “See? I told you this would be cool,” Kate said. She took a step forward and her foot struck something. Whatever it was clattered hollowly as it spun away.

  “Tink, can you come here?” Kate called.

  Tink flew over. Kate knelt down and saw that she’d kicked an empty glass bottle. “Where did this come from?” she wondered.

  “There’s another one here,” Lainey said, nudging it with her foot. Tink flew closer to the ground. In her glow they caught glimpses of empty bottles, coils of rope, and what looked like some old clothes. They’d all been so busy looking at the ceiling that they hadn’t noticed the cave was littered with objects.

  “What is all this stuff?” Kate asked.

  “I think we’ve found some pirates’ hideout,” Peter said.

  “You mean real pirates?” Kate said, looking at the junk with new interest. Their adventure was getting better by the minute!

  As Tink flew slowly around, the kids picked up things they found on the cave floor. “Hey!” Lainey exclaimed. “A compass!”

  “I found a biscuit!” declared Cubby.

  “Don’t eat that! It’s dirty pirate food,” Nibs said, knocking the bread from Cubby’s hand. It spun away into the darkness.

  “But it wasn’t even nibbled.” Cubby looked sadly at the spot where the biscuit had disappeared.