“That’s part of why the fairies are so worried. Along with the dying plants, the tree is no longer producing pixie dust.” Lily realized that was probably his biggest reason for worrying. What would happen to a land that thrived on magic if all of the magic dried up?
They finally broke through a thick brush and revealed a beach. Lily had expected it to look like a normal beach. Boy was she wrong. Everywhere she looked there were things. Kids things, adult things. Big things, small things. There were even a few ships.
“Where do you want to start?” Peter asked.
“Should we begin by breaking apart parts of the ship to take back for building?” Lily suggested.
“I think we should wait on the big stuff, until we have help carrying it back. With just us it would take days to get it all back.” Peter said.
It had never occurred to her that others would want to help.
After all, she was a strange girl invading their island.
Lily found curtains and bed linens and started imagining how beautiful her new home was going to be. She could picture it, up in the tree, safe from animals but easy for her to access, now that she was no longer flying. Peter picked up a ladder.
“What do you think of this?” he asked.
“Won’t the animals be able to climb up it?” Lily replied.
“We’ll make a rope that you pull to bring it down. That way nothing without arms can climb up it.” Peter laughed.
Lily loved when he was happy and carefree. He was always so worried and stressed that she felt bad that he never got to enjoy anything. He seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the building of their house, though.
“I found tons of blanket. They’ll need to be washed and hung to dry, but they are in good condition.” Lily announced, pleased with her find.
“We could give almost everyone in the village a blanket with that pile.” Peter laughed back. “For now, let’s put those under a tree until we have somewhere to take them back to.”
He helped her scoop up the blankets and drag them to the tree. By the time they were done they counted thirty six blankets. Lily wasn’t sure what they would even do with that many. But she was happy to have found them. They started to head back to their tree with the ladder and some rope in tow. The walk was slower with their arms full, but they were so excited that nothing could bring them down. They chatted and told jokes on their journey. Peter whistled a few songs. They made plans for all of the things their house would include. Lily felt hope and excitement and most important of all, she felt home. It wasn’t the orthodox type of home she’d always imagined. The one with her mom and dad and Toodles. But it was a home with someone who cared about her and that made her happy. She had to push down the thought of Toodles. It made her sad to think of his realization that she abandoned him. Worse, she was worried he was glad she was gone. After all, he had officially joined their cousins in ignoring her presence.
They reached the tree and dropped off their supplies.
“Let’s get going back to the village.” Peter suggested. There will be more celebration for Azalea’s upcoming wedding, tonight.”
Lily had so much fun with Tiger Claw’s daughters the night before, the thought of another evening of eating and dancing with them was exciting. She dropped her supplies off with Peter’s and they started the long walk back.
Again, she was completely engrossed in her surroundings. She didn’t think she could ever get used to the beauty that surrounded her. As they passed the herd of deer again, she desperately wanted to approach them. She wondered if the animals here were as skittish as the animals back in Boston. She started to walk near them slowly, quietly. They hadn’t noticed her, so maybe if she could get close enough to pet them, they’d know she was friendly. She was only a few feet away now. As she reached out she stepped on a branch. All of their heads shot up. 6 pairs of dark eyes stared back at her. Then one young doe walked toward her. She just froze and stared. The doe came right up to her, never breaking eye contact. She seemed eerily aware of Lily. She slowly picked her hand up and placed it on the doe’s neck. She stroked it softly. Soon the other deer gathered around her, wanting a turn at a back scratch. Lily had never seen a deer in real life before this, but she was certain this was not normal behavior. She could hear Peter laugh behind her.
“The animals here trust us.” he explained. “They know we won’t hurt them and often even seek us out.”
She loved the attention she was getting from the deer. It made her excited to experiment with a friendship with all of the other animals on the island. She hadn’t known it until this very moment, but she had always wanted a pet.
Lily and Peter got back to the village and made their way into where the festivities had already began. Lily found where the food was set up and was delighted to see a food she had never had. Neverland had brought out the adventurous side of her. The side that wanted to try new things and experience all this island had to offer. She picked up one of the sticks. On it were pieces of meat and vegetables. It smelled amazing. She grabbed several sticks and looked around to find Heather and Dahlia.
“Over here!” Heather called, waving her hands over her head for Lily to see.
Lily smiled and headed their way. As usual, they were sitting with their sisters. Lily sat down next to Heather and Rose Bud flocked to her side. The other girls waved and asked her how her day was. Even Azalea smiled at her. That was a first. Lily was pleased. She loved being accepted by Tiger Claw’s family. Well his daughters, anyway. She had yet to meet his wife. In fact, it hadn’t occurred to until now how weird it was that she hadn’t met her. She had met countless others in the tribe. She had even met all of the Elders. It now seemed very strange. She wondered why. She wanted to ask Heather and Dahlia, but was worried about their reaction. It was probably best for her to ask Peter first.
They finished their meal and Dahlia, Rose Bud and Lily joined in the dancing again, the way they had the night before. After an hour passed, Chief Tiger Claw announced that it was time for the evening to end. Lily was confused. The evening before had gone into the night. Peter came and found Lily, grabbed her hand and escorted her to their tree. They arrived at their tree and Lily was reminded of her new home, just waiting for her. She couldn’t wait to get started.
“Why did we have to leave so early?” Lily asked, once they were settled and ready for bed.
“Tomorrow is Summer solstice. Azalea will be getting married and the festivities will last all night. It’s tradition to go to bed early and wake late in preparation for the night.” He explained.
An all-night party? That sounded amazing to Lily. She’d never stayed up all night in her entire life. Aunt Emma was always very particular about early to bed, early to rise.
Lily was able to calm herself enough to finally fall asleep. When she woke up, it was still very early. She could still see the sun coming up from behind the mountains. She knew Peter had told her to try to sleep in, but she just couldn’t. Between going to bed early and her excitement, sleep wasn’t going to happen. She looked around and noticed Peter was gone. He was always gone in the morning when she woke up. She wondered where he went. Trying to climb down without him was always so hard. She decided just wait for him.
Lily watched over beyond the trees, toward the cove. She wondered if the mermaids were out. She had once questioned whether or not they even existed. Now, that seemed silly. With everything she had seen it almost seemed normal now. Of course mermaids existed. She shifted her gaze to the village. She looked for any sign that the tribe was starting to wake. Nothing. Not a peep or movement. Not even a dog wandering. It looked abandoned again.
A bird flew by then and landed on a branch above Lily’s head and started pecking. It was the brightest purple she had ever seen. Lily watched for a moment and then called to it. It slowly hopped along to the edge of the branch and then swooped down to her and landed on her outreached hand. She was thrilled, but tried to contain it, so not to scare it away. It slowly walked up her ar
m and to her shoulder. There, it tweeted away happily. Of course she had no idea what it was saying, but she listened anyway. Then it was her turn and she introduced herself.
“My name is Lily. I am so pleased to meet you.” She said. “I am new here and am looking to make new friends.”
The bird tweeted in response and she assumed that meant that the bird was willing to be her friend. They sat there together in silence, waiting for Peter. Lily was surprised at how quickly the bird became content in her presence. She started to doze off again, along with her new friend, but was startled when Peter landed in front of her. She heard him laugh when he saw the bird snuggled up in her hair.
“You’ve made a new friend, I see.”
She reached over and rubbed her friend on the top of its head.
“I suppose I need a name for you.” She told it. It was a her, she decided.
“How about Lavender?” Peter suggested.
“Not quite right.” She replied.
“Lilac seems appropriate, especially with all the flower names.” Peter said through a grin.
“That still doesn’t feel right.” Lily furrowed her brow.
“Well, here’s some breakfast for you while you think.” Peter offered, while handing her a basket of fruit. She pulled out some pears, bananas, and plums. She offered some banana to her bird friend. She stuck its beak up in the air to refuse. She continued to refuse everything Lily offered. Finally, she pulled out a plum and the bird started hopping in excitement. She pulled off a piece and handed it to her. The bird tore into the fruit, obviously famished.
“Plum!” Lily exclaimed.
Peter looked at her confused.
“We’ll call her Plum.” She repeated.
Peter looked at the tiny purple bird, as she continued to tear into her breakfast.
“I think Plum is the perfect name for her.” he agreed.
The village was still silent, so Peter hooked up a donkey to a wagon and he and Lily headed out to work on their treehouse. They headed to the North Shore where the lost things were. They gathered boards and planks and loaded them up in the wagon. Lily found a bag of tools in one of the cabins of a wrecked ship. Peter grabbed all of the quilts and blankets they had placed by the tree the day before. When the wagon was full, they headed toward their tree. After the long walk to the tree, they immediately started working on the foundation of their house. They didn’t have a lot of time today so they went straight to work and continued at a very fast pace. As the sun continued to rise, some of the tribe gathered to help. With everyone working, the house began to take shape sooner than Lily had expected. More people started showing up with beds and curtains and tables from the wrecked ships. Lily thought it was going to take days before she’d be able to live in her new home, but now she thought it was likely that she’d be in there by tomorrow. She was excited by her new home. It was turning out to be better than she could have ever hoped.
It was midafternoon when little by little the tribe started heading back to the village. Azalea’s wedding to Black Eagle was set for sunset and there was still a lot to do to prepare. After all the help she had received on her house, Lily felt like it was only right for her to help them prepare for tonight, as well. She and Peter were the last to linger at their house. They finished tying the ladder up to the rest of the house and followed behind the path of everyone else headed to the village. Lily grabbed a few apples as they walked and snacked on them. She was always surprised at how everything she ate here was better than the same things were back in Boston. She’d had plenty of apples there. Some were good, some were bad. It just depended on whether you got a good batch. But here, no matter what fruit, what tree, it was the best she’d ever tasted.
Chapter 11
Lily was eager to help with the wedding preparations. An elderly lady she hadn’t met yet asked for her help and she was so excited that it didn’t occur to her to ask what the help was. She followed her around a corner and saw several chickens pecking the ground beside a log. The woman pointed at the stool and told her to sit. She did as she was told. Then the lady handed her a basket. She wasn’t sure what in the world the woman wanted her to do until the woman handed her something covered in feathers.
“Oh my!” Lily squealed. “It’s a dead chicken!”
And she dropped it on the ground. The old woman huffed at her.
“Pluck” she demanded.
Lily had never plucked a chicken in her entire life but she was sure she wouldn’t enjoy doing it. The woman stood over her, hands on her hips.
“Ok ok, I’ll do it” Lily muttered, regretting her offer to help.
She sat and plucked the chicken and gagged until it was completely bare. She sighed in relief when she was finally done. Then the old woman dropped another in her lap. It appeared that Lily was now on chicken duty. A task she would gladly trade for just about anything else.
After about 9 chickens she was finally released to go find a new job. She found Tiger Claw’s wife in a tent wrapping flowers. She was afraid to interrupt, but didn’t want to miss out on this rare opportunity to interact with her either.
That’s it.” She said to herself. “Now or never.”
She walked straight into the tent.
“Good afternoon, Sage.” Lily started.
The older woman looked up at her, startled, then went back to what she had been doing.
“Can I help you?” Lily asked.
Again, the older woman looked up at her. This time she smiled.
“Yes, of course. Thank you.” She replied.
Lily was surprised by the sadness in her voice. It was obvious that Sage wasn’t looking for a conversation, so Lily sat quietly with her and they worked side by side. After about an hour of wrapping flowers, they were done. There were flowers everywhere. The tent looked like a floral shop back in Boston.
“Where do we need to take these?” Lily asked.
Sage gestured for her to follow. Lily picked up one of the barrels she had been filling and ran to catch up. They placed the barrels out by the fire where there were tables set up and the 6 younger daughter of Tiger Claw all joined them in decorating the entire village. The marriage of the Chief’s daughter was a big deal. Peter had told her that the entire village had been nervous about who Tiger Claw would choose to be their future leader. And no one was disappointed, especially not Azalea. Black Eagle was handsome, strong and brave. Everything she could want in her future husband.
Once the village was properly decorated, Sage quietly urged her daughters to go clean themselves up. They were running low on time before the ceremony. Sage turned to follow them, but Lily stopped her.
“Thank you for letting me help.” Lily said to her and then pulled her into a hug.
At first Sage stood completely still, but as the hug lingered she softened and soon even returned the hug. After a few minutes she broke away and turned to follow after her daughters. Lily could have sworn she saw her wipe a tear as she left. She decided it was time to ask Peter what was wrong with her, but since the sun was going down soon, that would have to wait.
Lily joined Rose Bud and Marigold by the stream to wash off. Afterward, they took turns braiding each other’s hair. Lily wasn’t able to help with the actual braiding, since she had never learned how, so the other girls promised to teach her tomorrow, when life could finally go back to normal. As Lily walked back to camp with Marigold, a thought occurred to her.
“I don’t have anything other than this dress to wear.” She told the younger girl.
“I’m sure that’s just fine.” Marigold replied. “I’m only cleaning up because mama insisted.”
As they walked back through the village, Lily noticed that most people were clothed in the same things they normally wore. She kept forgetting that things were so different here. The only wedding she had ever attended before was Aunt Emma’s sister’s wedding and she was forced to wear an itchy, stiff dress that she could barely sit in. Aunt Emma had fused over her own dress for days
before the event. Lily remembered thinking how silly it was to put so much effort into what they wore to someone else’s wedding. The way of the tribe made much more sense to her. Everything here made more sense.
Marigold ran off to finish helping and Lily went to find Peter. She walked around, peaking around tents, wondering where in the world he could be. Then she heard great roaring laughter that would have scared her, with its volume and magnitude, if she hadn’t known who it was coming from. She followed it to a spot behind a giant tent and found Peter and Tiger Claw engaged in a seemingly humorous conversation.
“Aw, here’s our girl.” Tiger Claw announced, as he saw Lily approach.
“The Chief and I were just discussing you.” Peter informed.
“Is that so?” Lily inquired, afraid of what Tiger Claw could be saying about her.
“I was telling Peter how much my daughters have enjoyed your company. After having lived in the same village with the same people for their entire lives, it has been fun for them to make a new friend.” Tiger Claw explained.
“I have loved spending time with them as well.” Lily replied, relieved that their conversation about her hadn’t been a negative one.
“Well, I have a wedding going on in a few minutes. I had better go make sure everyone is ready to go.” Chief said as he stood and walked away.
“Guess what!?” Peter asked, obviously excited.
“What?” Lily asked. She was surprised by the return of his childlike excitement.
“I have a present for you.” He replied.
“Peter, you keep giving me presents and I never have anything to give you.” She complained.
“I love having someone to give presents to.” Peter explained. “I have been so alone for so long. I have never been part of the tribe. I have always lived on the outskirts. I don’t remember my own family. I have no memory of every belonging anywhere. You have given me a family. Nothing I give you will ever make up for that.”
Lily smiled, but was also sad for Peter. Her heart ached for the lonely little boy she pictured sleeping up in a tree every night. Never belonging. He had been just as lost as she had. But now they had each other. There was never a reason for either of them to be alone again. They had each other to take care of.
Lost Girl (The Lost Series Book 1) Page 6
