by Kara Swanson
She tips it, bringing it closer, and curiosity fills her face as she watches the gleaming silver liquid inside splash about playfully. It doesn’t quite float inside the lantern, but it’s not weighted either.
“What is it?”
Before I can answer, Crescent nudges Claire’s hand away, and the lantern swings back into its usual position. “Starlight.”
Claire lets out a nervous laugh. “No, really. What is it?”
Crescent’s eyes narrow as she towers over Claire. “I told you. It’s starlight from the heart of the island.” She glares at me. “You apparently haven’t told her much.”
With that, Cres steps off the lift and onto the main docking platform. She doesn’t even beckon for us to follow, just strides quickly toward the dangling bridge hooked to the far end.
“Guess that’s our cue.” Lily touches Claire on the shoulder and hurries after her sister.
I take Claire’s hand, and we quickly follow.
“What did she mean?” Claire asks. “How is it starlight?”
I lead her onto the hanging bridge. It sways beneath our feet, but I step across the interwoven, smooth planks of wood with assurance. There’s a hanging rope banister to hold on to, but I ignore it.
“Remember how I said that I created Neverland as a place to escape? A hidden world in the stars?”
She nods, her hand squeezing mine a bit hard while she clutches the rope banister with the other. Tootles eases past us to catch up with Lily.
“Well,” I continue, “Neverland is actually a star herself. It’s not just an island—it’s an actual star. Just like all the others you see. A magical one, but still a star. If you look close enough, you can see that the heart of the island still hasn’t forgotten that.”
I chance a glance down, unsurprised to find that it’s too dark to see all the way to the jungle floor below.
“So, they are able to use some of the starlight from the star at the heart of Neverland to light their village?” Claire asks. “Where is the star?”
We’ve reached the other end of the bridge and skirt the wide porch attached to a towering, four-story treehouse. Crescent leads us quickly around it, only pausing to wave and shout a few words at a couple peeking out their window at us, and then she takes us across another bridge which angles steeply upward.
Still holding Claire’s hand, I help her with the incline. “The heart of the star is actually smack dab in the middle of this village. It’s one of the reasons Lily’s people are so obsessed with stars. They believe that the same deity who created the star at the heart of Neverland also hung the others in the sky. They call him the Ever One. And they think he speaks to them through the movement of the constellations. It’s why they tattoo the star maps across their skin.”
Claire soaks in my words and every sight around her, at the ladders that lead from one roof to another’s doorstep and the children climbing through tree branches and playing tag. “It’s fascinating. Beautiful.”
We pass another wide, circular ledge that rims a row of houses and see Crescent climb up a hanging ladder. Lily has tucked her staff through the back of her shirt and is right behind her.
We all reach the top of the ladder to find another wide platform as Lily exclaims, “Oh! That’s right. Asher’s house should be—”
Her words are cut off as she freezes at the edge of the balcony, staring at a severed piece of rope hanging from the end. Across from her, over an eerily empty space of air, I can just make out a bridge that has been cut and is drooping limply off another porch.
She steps back. “What happened? Why is their bridge cut?”
“I told you the village was fragmented, Tiger Lily,” Crescent says. “Much has changed since you’ve been gone.”
“What?” Lily’s voice is shocked. “Asher and his clan just cut themselves off?”
“It was their choice,” her sister states. “And it was not just Asher’s clan. Several of the other families chose to as well. There was a lot of infighting when you left. Several of the leaders tried to challenge my claim to rule, and when I refused to play their games, they decided they would leave.”
Not even Tootles’s hand on Lily’s shoulder is able to calm the seething anger that fills her expression.
“And you let them? You let our clansmen just cut themselves off? Are they hunting alone now too? Rebuilding their portions of the villages alone? Do you know how dangerous that is?”
Crescent throws up her hands. “I didn’t say I liked it! They won’t let us get close anymore. They shot Darien for just—”
Lily practically screeches. “Now they’re warring? Our own people fighting each other?”
I’ve never seen Lily lose control like this.
Tootles tries to intervene, “Lily? Maybe we should—”
But she shrugs him off, storming after Crescent and shoving her backward. “Do you even see what is happening to this island? It’s dying, Cres!” Her voice is raw and choked with emotion. “This island is dying, and if we don’t do something, if we don’t band together, we’re all dead with it!”
Crescent stiffens. “Mother says we can’t get involved. We have a plan. If we just hunker down, we can weather it. The island will settle, or if we build boats, we can always sail—”
“So the plan is to bury your head and hope it gets better? Do you even hear how ridiculous that sounds? If we don’t do something this island is dead, Cres.”
Lily motions to the children playing tag through the branches, small lanterns attached to their belts. “Those children will be dead. And Asher and our family and the old woman who taught you to sew and Darien and—everyone.” Tears are streaming down her cheeks now. “Our people are dead if we cannot fight for each other.”
Crescent is ashen. Her bravado gone. She once again looks like the little girl with long dark hair who would scamper at her older sister’s heels, begging to be part of the adventure.
Suddenly, another voice cuts through the air. “How dare you speak to your queen that way? You have forfeited any kind of voice here, Tiger Lily.”
My stomach twists. I lift my eyes to see a familiar formidable figure coming across the other bridge connected to the platform. She’s leaning heavily on a staff, her hair streaked with more gray than I remember, but her eyes are still every bit as cold and biting as always. Luna.
Lily moves away from Crescent, life draining from her.
“Well?” The woman steps onto the platform, only a few feet from Lily. “What do you have to say?”
Lily lowers her head. “I’m sorry, Mother.”
Everyone is silent. Beside me, I can feel Claire go rigid. My mind is racing, trying to find some way to help Lily, to stand up to her beastly mother, but I never really managed to before. Kind of at a loss now.
But Tootles isn’t.
He strides forward, past Lily, placing himself in front of her and meeting Tiger Lily’s mother’s eyes with a look of iron all his own.
“Actually, she’s not sorry. Your daughter is one of the strongest people I know, and we all had to fight through things you could never imagine to get here. All because she wants to save you and the rest of her people. So, no, she’s not sorry.”
At Tootles’s words, Lily lifts her head a few inches.
But her mother just gives a dry laugh. “And why should I care what you say? You’re just a lost little boy.”
Ouch.
You can’t talk to one of my Lost Boys like that.
Blood heating, I step firmly up beside Tootles, reaching back to grab Lily’s hand and pull her forward to stand between us. I glare at her mother. “You can’t scare us like you used to, Luna. Lily just wants to help. Why do you have to be so stubborn?”
Her eyes flash, and she lets out a few choice curses beneath her breath. Her gaze slides over Lily. “I see no daughter. Just a weak child who deserted her people to follow an overgrown boy who abandoned her when he found a new shiny toy. Without us, she has nothing—is nothing.”
/> I just laugh, shaking my head. I loop an arm around Lily’s shoulders and quirk a brow at Luna. “See, that’s where you’re wrong. Tiger Lily is not alone. Not by a long shot. She is more of a queen than you will ever be.”
Luna sucks in a deep breath, and if looks could kill, she’d have murdered the lot of us. “How dare you. I could have each of you shot in an instant.”
She raises a hand, and even in the dark I can see the gleam of bows drawn suddenly glint through the trees around us.
Crescent creeps toward Luna, speaking low. “Mother, maybe we should let it go for now . . .”
But Luna just shakes her head and whips her carved staff around, aiming the point at Lily. “How dare you and the scum you’ve brought with you speak this way? You have no authority here. You are not on the counsel, not queen, not—”
And then Lily moves.
She lets go of our hands and steps forward, head up. “Then I will fight for my right to speak. I challenge Crescent and anyone else claiming a position of authority to a match for rank. If I win, I am queen.”
Luna splutters, “You can’t do that!”
But Lily doesn’t waver this time. “It’s ritual, isn’t it? I am doing it.” She whips around to meet her sister’s eyes. “If you won’t protect our people, then I will. Either fight me and win, or get out of my way.”
Neverland
Taking in the breathtaking village dangling from the treetops around me, and the dancing silver light filling the lanterns, and the hanging bridges that sway underfoot . . . it’s almost too much. My eyes can hardly soak it all in.
But watching Lily with her family? The way her mother treats her?
That I understand.
I also resonate with the determination that fills every plane of Lily’s body as she turns away from her mother and toward Crescent.
Lily lifts her staff in one hand, overhead, aiming the point at her sister. “I challenge you, Crescent Star. If I win, I get my title back.”
For a long moment, there’s nothing but silence as the sisters stare at each other.
Luna is practically seething. “Destroy her!”
Instead, the younger girl slowly reaches up for the shimmering band woven through her hair. She unclasps one side and slides the diadem free. She extends it out in front of her and bows, presenting the diadem to Tiger Lily.
“I never really wanted this the way you did. And if you’re right and hiding here is going to only make things worse . . .” She looks earnestly at her sister. “You’re the warrior queen we need, Lily.”
Tiger Lily’s mouth has dropped open. After a moment, she reaches out and takes the diadem from her sister. She lifts the ceremonial band and clasps it into her own hair, across her forehead.
The sisters are in each other’s arms, a hushed exchange whispered between them. Lily looks at her sister with nothing but softness, and there is a shimmer of tears in Crescent’s eyes.
Luna is glaring daggers at her two daughters, but there’s a lightness in the way Crescent holds her shoulders now. Lily lets go of Cres and shifts her attention to the rest of us.
She picks up her staff and raises it high. There’s a new sense of authority in her tone. “Because Crescent Star has surrendered her position to me, I am now the reigning leader of our clan.” She gestures to the trees around us. “I’m also vying for the right to command our entire village. If there is anyone else who wishes to challenge that right and fight to maintain their portion of the clans, let them make themselves known.”
At that, there’s a rustle in the trees. Several warriors detach from the foliage. At first, I wonder if they’re here to challenge Lily, but instead she is nodding to them.
“Go! Carry the news!”
They take off through the woods, racing across bridges and scaling branches, weapons clattering at their sides. The official command has obviously shifted.
This whole thing makes my head spin. I stifle a yawn and realize just how late it’s gotten. Beside me, Peter leans in and playfully pulls at my hair. “Tired, Pixie-Girl?”
I bat his hand away. “It’s got to be past midnight by now.”
“It is late.” Lily’s voice carries toward me. “And it will take some time for the news to spread across the village and for anyone to make their challenge known.”
She glances over her shoulder at her sister. “Cres, is there someplace safe we can stay?”
Cres slides a look toward their mother. “Our villa is spacious and has several empty rooms.”
At that, Luna lets out a small shriek. “There is no way I am letting—”
“Your queen requests it,” Lily cuts her off.
Luna gives a ragged shrug. “Do whatever you want with your half-breed ruffians. You will not find me there.” With that, she storms off down the nearest bridge, disappearing into the shadows.
Lily’s shoulders drop the minute her mother is gone, and she sags back against the tree. “I’m sorry about all of that. I know we’ve had the longest day.” She straightens and heads for a smaller, wraparound bridge that leads in the opposite direction her mother went. “C’mon. Cres and I will take you to our home.”
“Claire? Are you awake?” The hushed voice is followed by a gentle knock. I pry myself out of the comfortable, thick hammock and quickly open the door. Lily is standing on the other side with a tray.
“Mind if I come in? I have some food for you, if you’re hungry.”
She and Crescent had gotten us all settled in the large, several-story villa where Tiger Lily once lived. There are multiple rooms, enough that each of us have our own.
I step back to let Lily in, and we sit together on the lush rug carpeting the floor. Broad windows surround us, but airy curtains somehow manage to make the space feel private. Instead of a bed, there is the hammock strung in one corner and a large silver art piece scripted across one wall, copying a collection of constellations that Lily said represent courage and strength.
I yawn, but there’s a comfortable sort of tiredness, sitting here next to Tiger Lily. The newly crowned queen sets the tray of food on my lap.
I drink a cup of water and take an assortment of berries and some kind of smoky bread and then lean my head back against the woven wall behind me.
“Are you all right?” I ask Lily.
She arches a brow at me. “I should ask you the same. Tootles said you’ve been here for almost three months?”
I fiddle with the bread and nod.
Lily doesn’t speak for a long moment. “I really am sorry, Claire. For Connor. And Nibs.” Her eyes glisten just saying his name.
“I’m sorry that this is the Neverland you had to see. Not the beautiful, vivid place it should be.” She reaches out and places a hand on my arm.
A sob creeps up my throat and my mouth goes cottony. Trying to maintain my composure, I pop a berry into my mouth and focus on the tangy flavor.
I gaze at the tattoos swirling down Lily’s forearms and across her wrists like a starry map printed on her skin. I’m reminded of our conversation that feels like an eternity ago, on the steps of that London flat.
I clear my throat. “I’m sorry about your mother. I know a little bit of what it’s like to have family members that are . . . not as you wished them to be.”
She nods slowly. “It’s difficult when there are people that you love so much.”
I take a bite of the bread on the tray, surprised to find that it has a sort of warm, fizzy flavor. “I feel like sometimes I’m not even sure where the lies begin and end. Sometimes I wonder if I’ve lost my brother completely.”
Just saying it out loud makes my chest tighten.
Tiger Lily moves over to sit beside me and wraps an arm around my shoulders. She leans her head against mine, the texture of her braids pushing against my thick curls.
“You haven’t lost him quite yet. And if anyone could bring him back and help this island, it’s you.”
I gulp back the tightness filling my throat. “Peter said some
thing similar. But do you really believe in me that much?”
Lily’s lips quirk to the side. “You have more heart than anyone I know, Claire. Heart that has even brought Peter to life in a new way. You’ve never given up on Connor, and, despite everything he’s done, he needs someone to remind him that there’s another choice.”
A few specks of shimmering gold float into my field of vision. “To remind him that there’s still light?”
“Exactly.” She gives me a squeeze. “We all need that reminder.”
I smile at her. “Of course. You’ve done the same for me.”
Lily’s eyes twinkle, and she whispers conspiratorially, “Don’t tell Cres I said this, but I sometimes feel like you’re more of a sister to me than she is.”
I give her a shaky grin. “It’s an honor to be like a sister to a warrior queen.”
Lily’s eyes grow serious. “I really hope this works and that I actually can win if they challenge me.” She stops short. “Speaking of which . . . can I ask a favor?”
“Sure. Anything.”
Her eyes gleam a bit more. “Can I borrow some of your dust?”
I get probably the best night of sleep I’ve had in . . . well, a very long time. Once I finish eating and Lily leaves, I curl up in the hammock in the thatch room like a little cocooned butterfly and fall fast asleep.
Even though Connor—or Shadow Connor—is still out there claiming more and more control, and even though Lily has not fully taken command of this village, I haven’t felt this safe in months.
I finally wake, hours later, to sunlight streaming through the windows, casting dappled shadows across the floor. There’s a knock on my door, but this one is much more forceful. Peter’s voice echoes through the walls.
“Claire? Are you up? You have to come outside and see this!”
I swing out of the hammock, shove my hair out of my eyes, scrub the saliva off my face, and race to throw the door open. “What’s going on?” Has Connor attacked? What if Luna made good on her threats?