by Kara Swanson
She knocks the wind out of my lungs when we collide and hugs me tightly.
“Peter.” Tiger Lily pulls back, eyes gleaming with tears. “I heard about Nibs and your sister and . . . everything. I can’t imagine. I’m so sorry.”
I blink back the burn in my eyes. She’s been back in Neverland for what, five seconds? And her first thought is for how hard life must be for me?
Good ol’ Tiger Lily. “Lil. I can’t believe you’re here.”
She fondly flicks the side of my face. “Of course I came. But it’s not just me . . .”
She takes a step back, picks up her staff, and gestures behind her—and slowly two more figures step out of the mist.
Claire is first. Relief washes over me when she gives me a smile. I pull up short and quirk a brow at her. “Glad you came back.”
She comes right up to me and looks me full in the face. “Neverland may have chosen me to begin with—but I’m choosing it back.”
I restrain the urge to grab her and give her a hearty kiss but instead grin at her foolishly. Then I notice the lanky young man walking up behind her. Tootles is looking healthier than the last time I saw him—his eyes brighter, skin showing more color, and thick hair curling around his ears. He’s wearing a pair of dark jeans with scuffed knees and a long-sleeved dark blue shirt that highlights his sort of scrappy strength. As I greet him, he glances past me to Lily, and his face flushes a shade.
And from the way the princess looks away, she’s not missing it either.
I toss a smirk at Claire.
She gives a little smile. “Lily, why don’t you tell Peter what you told me about Jeremy?”
Lily’s fingers tap against her staff. “Oh yes! Of course.” She turns to me. “When Tootles found me, I was staying with the Darlings. Jeremy considered coming, too, but with Tansy having just given birth, he didn’t feel he could leave. Especially not if everything happening here”—she motions with her staff at the warped landscape around us—“somehow filters to Earth. They did give me some info, however.”
I squint at her. “Yeah? What kind of info?”
“Because Tansy was training to be one of our healers, she has read a lot of our people’s histories, especially those relating to the island. She said that if Connor is trying to gain control of Neverland, most likely he’ll eventually need access to the star. So, we have to make sure we do everything in our power to hold him back from it.”
I nod slowly, digesting her words. “Keep Connor away from the star. Check. Anything else?”
Tiger Lily fidgets a bit, tugging on her ear and sidling a glance at Tootles. “Sort of. It was more like a scrap of information. Tansy said that the ancient histories talk about three ways to form a connection to a Never Never Land.” Lily numbers them off. “One, by being the creator of that island.”
I tap my chest. “Like me.”
“Right.” Lily continues, holding up two fingers. “Secondly, by being born connected to the island by blood. A Blood Bond, of sorts.”
“Like Connor and me,” Claire says.
Lily nods, “Exactly. But Tansy also said there could be a third option called a Soul Bond.”
My eyebrows rise, and simultaneously Claire and I move closer to Tiger Lily. “Soul Bond? What does that mean?”
Lily dips a shoulder. “That’s where it gets tricky. Tansy said they’re very obscure and not much is known other than they come from some deep sacrifice that is intrinsically connected to an island and forms a deep tether. No one really knows how they’re made, or if the concept is even real.”
I purse my lips. “So . . . an elusive maybe-Bond. Not super helpful. I guess for now we just make sure that Connor doesn’t get anywhere near that star.”
We stand in that small huddle a few minutes in silence, then Claire speaks. “So, where to, next?”
“The one place where Paige and Connor haven’t gone yet but will eventually need to,” Tootles pipes up. “The hanging villages.”
Claire’s eyes widen. “Hanging villages?”
I toss a cheeky smirk at her. “You’ll see. And it’s a good thing we have Lily with us, otherwise they’d probably shoot us on sight.”
Lily nods and grasps her staff. “Yes, it’s about time I go home.”
Neverland
Despite the fact that the island has been torn into pieces, Tootles somehow still has the best sense of where we need to be going. He quickly slips to the front of our little gang, Lily close on his heels. Claire is beside me as we plod across the rugged landscape and toward the center of the island.
There’s an eerie kind of silence as we all trudge forward. We trek deeper and deeper into the jungle, toward the very center of the island. I notice the trees that were splintered and shriveled everywhere else get a little thicker and sturdier as we draw closer and closer to the heart of Neverland.
Maybe Lily’s village wasn’t hit as bad as the rest of the island.
“Wow,” Claire says in a hushed whisper, and I glance to see her looking up at the trees that rise on every side. If she thinks these trees are large, her eyes are going to pop out when she sees the mammoth trees where Lily’s people make their homes.
I speed up a bit to fall into stride with Lily and Tootles. They’re both scanning the jungle, ears perked.
“I haven’t been able to get this close in a long time,” I quib, “The last time I tried dodging in for a visit, Crescent almost shot m—”
Lily’s hand snaps out, slamming across my mouth. Her eyes narrow. “If you don’t want to get another arrow in your chest, I’d suggest you keep your voice down. They probably already know we’re here, and the only reason you’re still alive is because of me.”
Her calloused hand is still over my mouth, and I look at Tootles. His voice is quiet but firm as he nods toward Lily. “The princess knows what she’s talking about.”
Of course he’d take her side. Twitterpated chap.
Tiger Lily drops her hand, gives me one last look, and then continues forward.
Claire is walking next to me again, and she cautiously whispers, “I’m all for meeting Lily’s people, but how exactly will this help us stop my brother from injecting his shadow into the star?”
I glance down at her. “Their village is actually built around the star, Pixie-Girl. Lily’s people have a sworn duty of protecting it, and if anyone will be able to rally to our aid, it will be them.”
Claire’s eyes go round. “So, we’re close to the star?”
I dip a nod. “Fairly. I’ll show it to you once we get there.”
Tootles’s and Lily’s footsteps are eerily quiet. Suddenly, Tootles stiffens.
He moves closer to Lily, and I can just make out his whisper as he leans in. “Five to the right. Six behind us.”
She gives the faintest nod. “A handful in the trees too. A dozen bows at least.”
My heart thuds to my feet, and I lift my gaze to take in our surroundings. I can make out the flash of silver in the trees and maybe a dark silhouette or two, but I can’t find anywhere near the number that Lily and Tootles apparently have sighted.
Still, I’ll take their instincts over mine on this.
I shove my hands in my pockets, trying to appear nonchalant, but my hair is suddenly on end thinking of how easy it would be for an arrow to zing through the air and hit Claire as she walks beside me.
Steadying my breath, I move ahead of her and gently nudge Lily with a knuckle. “What do we do?”
Her voice is low. “Nothing. We let them come to us.”
She darts a glance at Tootles, and understanding flashes between them. The Lost Boy drifts back to fall in step with Claire, and he and I trade partners in this silent dance across the jungle floor. He whispers to Claire, and she pales.
Trying not to think about this whole blooming mess that I’ve brought Claire into, I turn to Lily.
“All right, what’s really going on here?”
The tribal princess continues to scan the foliage caving ove
r us. “Something feels off. They would usually have approached by now. I know they’re nervous but . . .”
Her voice trails off as there is a rustling in the foliage overhead. I gape as someone drops out of the trees, landing in a crouch directly in front of us. Lily stops abruptly, and I almost bump into her. The princess’s mouth rounds as the figure in front of us slowly straightens.
The younger woman throws her head back, long dark plaited hair clattering against her back, and forehead circled with a thin ringlet of silver. She’s taller than Lily, with muscular limbs and the same onyx skin and sharp cheekbones. Her eyes are almost the same shade as Lily’s, but instead of being smooth as a polished river stone, there is something commanding and fierce about the strength in the brown irises.
She crosses her arms over the woven, silver plates of armor covering her torso and clinging to her hips, leaving portions of her dark thighs exposed for better maneuverability.
I’m unnerved just staring at her, but Lily doesn’t flinch.
“Took you long enough,” she says.
The other lets out a laugh. “Says the one who hasn’t even been on the island since the last starfall.”
I don’t like the edge beneath this warrior’s laughter. But there’s something familiar about her. I know most of Lily’s people, so why—
There’s a blur of movement, and the woman drops low to try and kick Tiger Lily’s feet out from under her. But somehow, the princess was already expecting this. Lily leverages her staff to jump over the warrior’s sweeping leg, and instead twists into a kick of her own. The tribal woman is knocked into a half flip from the blow and lands on her back, huffing for air.
“You’re still too predictable.” Lily stands over the woman and then reaches down a hand for her to grab. But the warrior ignores the hand and leaps back to her feet on her own. Instead of a scowl, I’m stunned when she reveals a row of white teeth in a broad smile.
“And I see your time off the island hasn’t made you any slower.”
They stand staring at each other, then Lily pulls the warrior into a hug. Only then does it suddenly click, just a second before Lily says it.
“I’ve missed you, Crescent.”
The young woman’s voice is muffled. “I guess I don’t hate seeing you, either.”
“Crescent? Little Crescent?” I stare at Tiger Lily’s younger sister, jaw dropped. “How did you get so tall?”
She pushes back from Lily and sends me a scathing glance. “Some of us actually enjoy growing, Peter.”
Crescent’s dark eyes drift past me toward the others. Her eyes narrow, and she turns back to Lily. “You’re really pushing it, bringing outsiders.”
“We don’t have the luxury of being choosy,” Lily tells her. “The island is dying, Cres. You can see that.”
Crescent sweeps a glance across the surrounding jungle, probably knowing where every warrior is hidden. “I’m just saying that it’s going to take a lot for them to let you back, let alone an otherworlder, a Lost Boy, and the Pan. Mother won’t be happy about this.”
Blast it. I was really hoping the old cow would have knocked off by this point. Guess not.
Tiger Lily’s mother, the previous leader of the tribe. She’s a piece o’ work.
Tiger Lily lifts her head, trying to regain a bit of confidence. This can’t be easy for her, coming back to this place.
But she reaches out and locks forearms with Crescent. The silvery constellation tattoos that spill down their skin seem almost interconnected. “I’ll make Mother understand. These people are here to help us, and they may be our last chance. The island is dying, so much of it is already laid waste. Our villages may be the last to go, but they won’t survive forever. And it is our sacred duty to protect the star, no matter who tries to corrupt it.”
Crescent nods. “If anyone could stand up to our people and make them listen, it would be you. But be warned, sister. The villages aren’t as you remember them. Our trees may still stand, but our people have splintered.”
Lily’s brow furrows, but before she can speak, Cres glances toward Claire and Tootles. “I’m not sure what use the rest of the humans will be, but you might as well bring them. They could be good sport if nothing else. Follow me.”
With that, she spins on her heel and puts two fingers to her mouth and lets out a shrill whistle. Immediately, the jungle begins to move, coming alive as lithe bodies detach from the trees. Over a dozen warriors spill out and stalk toward us, all wearing silver plated armor that matches the rhythmic flow of the silver tattoos over their skin.
They close in on us, surrounding us in such a way I gulp. “What do we do?” I ask Lily. She motions to Crescent, who now marches quickly through the jungle.
“We follow her.”
We quicken our pace, and when I reach Cres, I ask, “So, what’s with the royal guard? Whose orders are they under?”
“Mine,” she instantly replies. “I’m the queen of our quarter now. They’re under my orders.”
I almost choke on my own tongue. “What? So just like that you replaced Lily?”
Cres darts a look at me. “What did you expect? Lily forfeited her right to lead, and Mother had led far longer than most of our queens are meant to. It was only a matter of time. You both knew that when you left.”
I hear Tootles scoff behind me and share the sentiment.
“More like your mother wanted any excuse to cut her out,” I mutter, and for a moment, I think I see Crescent’s expression soften, a glint of regret. But then it’s gone, and she’s back to being a stoic warrior princess.
I’ve been to the hanging villages countless times, especially when Lily and I were younger, but as we finally enter the village, I still can’t help an appreciative little smile. I quickly swivel to catch Claire’s reaction—and am rewarded by specks of golden dust drifting from her skin, lighting up those blue eyes as she gapes up at the village appearing among the trees.
The houses come into view like a collection of stars winking into the night sky, dozens of lights sprinkled through the trees. Here, at the very heart of Neverland, the trees reach for the sky like giants waking from sleep. Massive and bronzed and unwavering. Despite the fact that the bark is splintering in places and massive roots are upturned from the upheaval that has shaken this island, this portion of the jungle refuses to fall.
Probably because of what is at the very center of this place. The very thing that Lily’s people have protected for centuries. The reason why their houses dangle in the trees, set up in a specific array to mimic the constellations above their heads.
Crescent continues to lead us on, now toward the base of one of the trees where a dangling platform lifts up into the foliage.
As Tootles steps onto it, his steady movements remind me of all the times he used to visit here to see Tiger Lily.
I jump on to the lift and lean on one of the ropes, gesturing to Claire. “Your chariot, my queen?”
Claire joins me on the wooden platform and tips her head again, staring up at the intricate craftsmanship of the houses nestled in the trees above us. Small walkways run to and from verandas and thatch villas strung from the trees.
“Wait till you see it up close,” I tell her.
Lily jumps onto the lift, and Crescent takes her place at the front of the square platform. Crescent lets out a long whistle and glances at Tiger Lily. “All ready?”
She gives a quick nod, and with that, Cres flips the switch on the large crank attached to the front corner of the platform. It creaks and whines but begins to turn, wheels spinning, sucking in rope and slowly lifting the platform.
The lift rises at a good pace, and there’s something thrilling about leaving the gang of tribal warriors far below.
“This is gorgeous,” Claire murmurs, light reflecting in her blue eyes.
My hands shift on the rope so my arms encircle her. “Sure is.”
She leans into me, and I close my eyes. I can almost imagine that this is all there is. Just her
and me, suspended above the ground, the world right for once and nothing to tether us but each other.
Then I open my eyes, and the moment is over. But, just maybe, if we can actually pull this off—there will be other moments. If I can just manage to not lose the stardust girl again.
“How long have these been here?”
Claire’s words draw my attention back to the treehouses overhead. I can’t help but feel a wave of admiration as I take in the incredible architecture that went into creating this hanging village.
The houses are either nestled against tree trunks or suspended between particularly large branches. All shapes and sizes, no two buildings crafted exactly alike. Some have circular porches that rim the outside of the house and curl around the tree. Others are stacked several stories high. Some have flat, open roofs where tribal members can be seen cooking or patching up armor, while other houses are more like small, cozy cottages nestled among the leaves.
Hanging bridges swing from one house to another, intersecting and creating passageways between portions of the village. Children run and play across the swinging bridges, while other bridges host cranks and large mechanical devices which connect to lift platforms for vertical travel. Smoke spirals up from many of the houses, these villagers having learned long ago how to cook safely inside the wooden houses using handcrafted stoves.
But it’s the light that fills these dangling structures that truly brings the place to life.
The sky is overcast, the sun gone down hours ago, but the village is filled with thousands of hanging lanterns that are set on hooks on every porch, dangle at intervals across every bridge, and are carried in the hands of children or on the warriors’ staffs. The lanterns are studded into the rooftops or strung out like fairy lights across some of the doorways.
It’s not fire glowing and gleaming inside the lanterns.
It’s something far brighter.
There’s a vibrant, silver hue that shines from each one, and as our lift clicks into place at the top of a large landing platform attached to one of the trees, Claire leans out to take one of the lanterns dangling at the edge nearby.