Fic: Second Star to the Left (and Straight On 'Til Tuesday!) - CHAPTER TWO
Title: Second Star to the Left (and Straight On 'Til Tuesday!)
Author(s): dazzling_icer
Chapter: [2/?]
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Luke and Noah (or other ATWT characters), nor do I claim any ownership over the legend of Peter Pan. Those rights belong to PGP, and to the orphanage that JM Barrie sold the rights to Peter Pan to a long time ago, I can't remember the name...ANYWAY. IT'S NOT ME.
Characters/Pairings: Luke/Noah, Natalie, Ethan, Maddie, Casey, and other various Oakdalians disguising themselves as Lost Boys.
Word Count: ~5.4K
Warnings: Umm...EXCESSIVE schmoop, under-age kissing (both boys are 16), pirates, Indians, and fairies.
Spoilers: None! Umm...unless you've never seen any Peter Pan movie ever, or ever read the novel.
Summary: Luke Snyder is a 16 year old boy who refuses to grow up. He would rather spend time with his younger brother and sister reading fairy tales or playing make believe out in the Snyder Barn, than be stuck inside playing crappy video games with people his own age. His favorite tale is that of Peter Pan, whose adventures he recites to Nat and Ethan every night in their nursery before bed. But what happens when Luke discovers that the legend of The Pan is not just a legend when a mysterious boy flies into his room one night looking for his lost shadow? And how will Luke react when he suddenly finds himself in Neverland with a boy who can not only fly, fight, and crow, but who also has the prettiest blue eyes he’s ever seen?
Master Post
~All this has happened before, and it will all happen again. But this time it happened in Oakdale…~
It was twilight, or as he liked to think of it “the time between the sun going to sleep and the moon waking up”. Neither of the great celestial beasts ruled the sky, and the boy liked to think that it was during this time where he did. That he pulled out his dagger and crowed to the heavens and chased them away...the ethereal orbs too chicken to face him in battle. He was the winner of this game.
The darkness brought about by the absence of the sun and the moon hid him away from sight as he hovered outside of the blond boy’s window. But the shining fairy flying next to him was threatening to reveal his presence.
“Quiet Mads!” he hissed at her, demanding her silence as to not wake the sleeping boy in the room. She huffed at him, causing a small puff of dust to waft in his face, and crossed her arms over her chest in annoyance. He smiled at her, never taking her moods seriously. It was just a game after all.
Noah chose this particular house because there were people inside who believed in him. In Peter Pan. And if not in him specifically, the idea of magic. The woman of the house believed at some time, he was certain. And even though growing up had changed her, she believed in the eyes of her children. Her husband…well, Mr. Snyder was a practical man. And the oldest daughter’s light was barely shining anymore. But the other three children, they were why he was here.
Specifically the boy asleep inside the window.
Checking to make sure that the coast was clear, he slowly stepped through the open window, and ducked inside, managing to barely miss hitting his head against the stop of the arched frame.
Noah knew that he was tall for his age. Or at least, he thought he did. He wasn’t quite sure what his age was anymore. Neverland had a way of making you forget things like that. But he was taller than all of the Lost Boys, and he was definitely taller than Maddie, so he concluded that he must have indeed been tall.
He looked around, making sure that the boy hadn’t awoken when he stepped inside. But he was still asleep, his features glowing from the lamp on his desk. Noah turned and looked back at Maddie as she awaited his instructions.
“You look over there, Mads,” he whispered to her, pointing to the opposite side of the room. “And I’ll look over here.”
Maddie nodded with a salute, and flew over to her side, leaving fairy dust in her wake. He turned back to the sleeping boy, checking again to make sure he wasn’t awake, before he began his search.
“Come on, Shadow…you have to be here somewhere.”
He quietly began searching through the room, opening chests and drawers in search of the shadow that he lost a few nights ago. He was listening outside the boy’s window, hiding in the dark of the night as he played with the other children, and was so enthralled with the story of the time that he cut off Hook’s hand and fed it to the crocodile, that he never even noticed that his shadow had gotten away from him. He had to get it back, he couldn’t lose it. The Lost Boys depended on him. Everything depended on him…
Suddenly a soft noise that sounded like music came from the other side of the room and he looked up to see Maddie fiddling with some black square thing with buttons on it.
“Maddie!” he whispered harshly, still rummaging through a drawer. “Stop playing! And help me find my shadow!” Maddie huffed, but did what she was told, pressing a button and stopping the music. She flew to a set of doors at the far wall, looking at them curiously before pressing her head against the wood. It wasn’t long before she heard a noise from inside, and her pointed ears perked up. Maddie turned to Noah and started gesturing loudly to get his attention.
“What is it, Mads?” Noah asked, flying quickly over to her. “Did you find it?” She nodded frantically, pointing both of her arms toward the doors behind her. Noah floated over to the handles, taking a deep breath before quickly opening the doors. He barely had time to blink before his shadow flew out and started escaping along the wall toward the window.
Noah wasted no time, slamming the doors closed without thinking and flying after his shadow. In his haste, he didn’t know that he accidentally shut Maddie inside the closet.
He toppled over items and drawers in his rush to catch his shadow, flying all over the room and completely forgetting about the sleeping boy at the desk. He circled around the weird object with the wooden blades on the ceiling a few times before finally tumbling into a small table by the boy’s bed and grabbing his shadow.
Noah clutched tight to his shadow, which was doing all it could to wrestle free from his grasp. He had to tie it on quick before it flew away again. But with what? He searched all around him, looking for something to hold his shadow together before his eyes finally locked on a small piece of what looked like rope over by the two doors where his shadow came out of a few moments ago.
He flew over to it, and picked it up in his hands. The material was really soft for a rope, cool to the touch, and it had a really odd shape, but Noah figured it would do just fine. He sat down in the middle of the room, tying his shadow to his left ankle the best that he good, but his shadow was moving around too much and he couldn’t get the knot tight enough to keep it on.
Noah tried and tried and tried and nothing seemed to work. His thoughts turned back to Neverland and the Lost Boys who would be waiting for him there. They expected him to come back with his missing shadow, and finally with an ending to Cinderella that he never got to finish, and they would be so disappointed if he didn’t. He was their leader, the one that they looked up to. He was Peter Pan…he had a reputation to uphold.
But all he felt was a complete failure.
He curled his legs in and wrapped his arms around them, tucking his head under his arms as he started to silently cry. The familiar feeling of fear and disappointment that he had known all of his life was at the foreground of his mind, and he released it with each choking sob.
Peter Pan wasn’t supposed to feel defeated like this. He was supposed to be feeling brave and adventurous, nothing could scare him away. But Noah felt like he could never live up to that, like he was always a step behind. He tried his best to hide his worries from the Lost Boys, but there was still that feeling in the back of his head that they were going to discover his secret one day and somehow leave him. He couldn’t let that happen. He couldn’t stop trying.
But they were all going to find out if he couldn’t get his darn shadow to just stay…
“Boy, why are you crying?”
Noah suddenly snapped up off the floor, his hands immediately moving to rest defensively on his hips. He looked at the blond boy, who was no longer sleeping, and was instead sitting turned in his chair, eyes on him in what looked almost like wonder. He opened his mouth to respond, but could barely form his lips around the first word before he was being interrupted.
“Oh my God, I’ve always wanted to say that!” The boy jumped up from his chair and bounced toward Noah, staring at his face with a bright smile. Noah tried to remember how to breathe.
“It’s you! I can’t believe it’s you!”
“What?”
“You’re Peter Pan!”
“I…”
“Oh, I just knew you would come one day! I mean, I believe in you for one thing, and I always left my window open at night even when my father told me not to. But there was always a chance, so I never listened to him. And you’re here! And I was right!”
The boy abruptly stopped talking and squinted his eyes at Noah, his gaze looking at him up and down. Noah felt uncomfortable standing there in his ratty green shirt being stared at like he had another head. He didn’t really like this game.
“Although,” the boy said after a moment, starting to circle around him without ever taking his eyes off of him. “You look a lot different than I expected. I mean, not terrible. In fact, you are still as handsome as I pictured you would be, probably more so, you just look…different.”
Noah continued to gape at him, noticing that the boy’s face had turned a little red, and the room got just a little bit hotter. He needed to go, he had to get back. He would just grab his shadow and just…
Oh yeah, his shadow. It was still tied haphazardly to his leg by that smooth rope he found earlier, and if he could just tie it tighter he could get out of there and back to Neverland before the Lost Boys even woke up.
But before he could do anything, the boy must have seen him glance down toward his leg, because he was already kneeling in front of him and talking again.
“Oh, Peter did you lose your shadow? Is that why you’re here?” Noah was starting to think that his eyes couldn’t possibly keep getting wider than they already were as he looked between the boy and the closet on the other side of the room. The boy must have caught his gaze, because when he next spoke, his voice was even louder. “I knew it! I knew I saw something move last night while I was writing! I’m not actually crazy! It was your shadow the whole time! Wow! This really is just like the stories! I’m not dreaming, am I? I mean, you look real, and you are standing in my bedroom and I don’t think I am dreaming…” Noah watched the boy pinch his arm and then look back up at him. “Nope, definitely awake. This is definitely real.”
The next thing Noah knew, the boy was reaching out and fiddling with the knot he made in the small rope thing to tie his shadow on. He was just about to protest when once again, he was interrupted by the sound of the boy’s eager voice.
“Oh, this won’t do, Peter! You can’t just tie your shadow on, it needs sewing! At least, that’s what the stories say to do.” He said, before hopping up and running over to a drawer, where he pulled some things out and ran back over to Noah. He sat down on the floor and grabbed Noah’s ankle, causing him to jump up in shock. He ended up just floating in the air, with the boy’s hand still firmly around his ankle, trying to untie the rope. He must not have noticed that Noah was still flying in the air, or at least it didn’t faze him, because the boy just continued to work on sewing his shadow.
“I have to say, I’m not as good a sewer as Nana,” he told him, now trying to thread the needle. “Nana’s my grandmother. She taught me how a little bit, so that I could patch up my brother and sister’s toys whenever they needed it. I do have to say that it has come in handy a few times, especially now. Even though I never thought that I would ever have to sew Peter Pan’s shadow back on, but I’m glad that I…”
“You talk too much,” Noah interrupted finally, resting his chin on his hand and still gazing curiously at the boy.
“Yeah, I do have a tendency to talk too much…wait, what?” the boy stopped the needle and looked up at him with wide eyes. Noah continued to stare back, sitting crossed legged and hovering in the air. The boy was looking at him with curious eyes, mixed with a little surprise, which Noah figured was due to his current position. He finally noticed that he wasn’t standing in that air anymore, and the look on his face caused Noah to smile. The whole flying/hovering thing still took a while to get used to for some people.
“Oh, I’m…I’m sorry. I don’t have to talk if you don’t want me, too.”
“No!” Noah protested, the word causing the boy to jerk back. “Please, don’t stop. I…I like hearing you talk. Always have.”
“Okay,” the boy said, returning his attention back to his shadow and the needle which were both still tight in his grip. He brought the needle and thread back to his foot, and began to carefully re-attach his shadow. Noah watched for a few moments, feeling a great level of intrigue, before the boy’s fingers suddenly stopped. “Wait…what do you mean you have always liked listening to me talk?”
Noah’s eyes widened at the curious look that the boy gave him once more, a look that Noah was starting to become oddly fond of. Noah smiled at him, his cheeks flushing at the thought.
“Your stories,” he told him simply, the smile becoming bigger on his face at their mention. “I love coming and listening to your stories.”
“You…what?” the boy laughed, like he didn’t believe a word Noah was telling him. “But…but they are all about you!”
“Of course! That’s why I like ‘em!”
The red flush that returned to the boy’s face made a funny feeling settle deep into Noah’s stomach, and that unfamiliar heat was back. He was liking that part of this game more and more.
“There, you’re done!” he announced after a few moments, and let go of his hold on Noah’s feet. Noah sprang free and flew over to the wall, kicking his feet out and causing his shadow to settle against the surface. He tested his newly re-sewn shadow by going through a few movements, watching as it perfectly mimicked every action with exact precision. He turned back toward the boy with a victorious grin.
“Ah, the cleverness of me!”
“Hey, I helped!”
“You did a little,” Noah relented, smiling at the boy, who in turn was smiling back. He liked that part of the game, too. “What’s your name?”
“Luciano Eduardo Grimaldi Snyder, but I usually just go by Luke…”
“Luke’s enough,” Noah said, cutting his speech off for once and flying off toward the still open window. He got about halfway out the window when Luke’s voice called after him.
“Wait, Peter!” Noah turned around to see Luke standing next to the window and looking sad. “Where are you going?”
“Back to Neverland. I have to get back to the Lost Boys.”
“Oh,” Luke sighed, and Noah watched his shoulders slump. He wasn’t very good at reading people, but he knew that he didn’t like Luke being sad. “Do you…do you have to go back right now?”
Noah cocked his head in confusion as he flew back down to stand on the window ledge. What did Luke mean? Was this a new game?
“What do you mean?”
Luke opened his mouth like he was about to say something, and then quickly closed it. Noah figured he was thinking about what he wanted to say, and whatever was going through his head must not have been good because Luke still had that sad look on his face.
“Just…this isn’t how I expected this would go.” Luke turned around and Noah watched him slowly walk to his bed and sink down onto it, holding his head in his hands. “I always pictured you would come here, teach me to fly, and take me off to Neverland with you. We would have our own adventures! Fight pirates, talk to mermaids, dance around with the Indians…everything. But you come here and look different and barely say a word before you just take off…”
Noah listened to every word that Luke said like a lifeline, trying to figure out what the boy was trying to say. Fighting pirates sounded fun, and he always had a good time telling stories to the mermaids. Luke wanted to do those things, too? Did they not have mermaids here for Luke to talk to? No pirates to talk to? That would just wouldn’t do!
“You can come with me to Neverland.” Noah told him, suddenly wondering why his heart was beating so fast. Luke’s head shot right up, his eyes wide and his mouth open like a fish. Noah thought he looked cute.
“You…you want me to come to Neverland with you?” there was hope in his voice that Noah could definitely read. There was just something about Luke that made things easier.
“You said you wanted me to take you,” Noah shrugged. “Let’s go!”
Noah could barely turn back toward the window before he was being jumped by Luke. The other boy had his arms tight around his neck, and he was squeezing him so tightly that he could barely breathe. Still, this was probably his favorite part of this game so far.
He felt Luke release him and then pull back to look at him, his smile was the biggest that he had seen so far. His eyes were shining, and when he looked deeper into Luke’s hazel eyes, he could see flecks of gold in them. For a moment, Noah wondered if they had fairy dust in them.
“Wow,” Luke whispered, still looking at Noah with a sort of funny look on his face.
“Umm…’wow’ what?” Noah wanted to take a step back, put some space between him and the other boy. But he found that he couldn’t move.
“Your eyes,” Luke said, reaching up to touch Noah’s face. “They are really blue.”
“Umm, yeah?” Okay, this game was now getting even weirder. Noah maybe wanted Luke to go back to that thing he did a minute ago with his arms where he couldn’t breathe.
“Oh, it’s not…it’s not a bad thing, Peter. It’s just…” Luke swallowed hard before continuing on. “…I can see why she wanted to give you a kiss. You’re beautiful.”
Noah was still confused. What’s a kiss? And who was “she”? He didn’t know, but he liked the idea that Luke wanted to give him something.
“What’s a kiss?”
“You don’t know what a kiss is?” Luke’s smile turned playful.
“I will once you give one to me.” Noah shrugged. This boy was confusing.
Luke laughed and then rubbed the back of his head, his eyes looking everywhere but at him. That red flush was back to his face, and it once again caused Noah’s stomach to feel like he was flying through the clouds.
Suddenly, Luke must have found the kiss that he wanted to give to Noah because he was leaving Noah’s side and walking across the room. He picked up the discarded smooth rope from before and returned to Noah, holding the fabric out to him.
“Here. A kiss for you.”
Noah smiled brightly at Luke, taking the kiss from him and studying it in his dirty hands. It was black, with small green and white strips diagonally along the length of it. Noah liked it. He took the kiss and draped it loosely around his neck.
“Thank you, Luke! I shall keep it forever!”
Luke laughed, the fairy dust once again sparkling in his eyes as he moved closer. “Here…wear it like this, though.” Luke took the kiss from around Noah’s neck and held it in front of him. “Let me see your hand.”
Noah held out his left hand to Luke, and the other boy stepped closer, immediately beginning to wrap the kiss around his wrist, tying it securely. Noah couldn’t take his eyes off of Luke as he worked. There was something about this boy that made him feel. Feel things that he had never felt before. Or at least, never felt before Neverland.
Luke made him oddly happy, which is partly why he kept coming back to his window at night to listen to his stories and watch him play. It was one of his favorite games, and games had always made him feel happy. But with Luke, it was a different kind of happiness, one that he had never felt from a game before. He wanted more of it.
“There,” Luke’s voice broke through his thoughts. “You’re all set.”
Luke lowered his eyes from his and then brought them back up, and Noah felt like he was being squeezed again. He rubbed his kiss-covered wrist and took a small step back, hoping the extra air will help him go back to breathing normally.
“Thank you,” Noah said again, inspecting the soft kiss tied against his skin. “I wish I had a kiss to give you in return.”
“Well, you kinda do,” Luke said, stepping forward and closing the small distance that Noah tried to create a moment before. He stopped just in front of Noah and closed his eyes, inching his face closer and closer to his. Noah’s face grew hot and his heart started beating faster and he didn’t know why. What was Luke doing? The only kiss that Noah had was the one that Luke tied to his wrist. Was this a game of make-believe? Was Noah supposed to pretend to give him a kiss back?
Luke was close enough now that Noah could feel his breath against his face, and he closed his own eyes on instinct, waiting for what was going to happen next. Noah was sure their lips were just about to touch when all of a sudden a loud bang was heard across the room and they jumped back from each other.
Noah looked over toward the closet, its doors swaying from being forced open, to see a very angry looking Maddie flying madly toward them and grabbing Luke’s hair.
“Ow!” Luke yelled, throwing his hands up to his head and trying to shake Maddie off. “What…?”
“Madd - er, Tink! Cut that out, now!” Noah ordered, coming out of his Luke-induced haze enough to stop her from hurting him. Maddie suddenly let go of Luke’s hair, and he went flying back, landing on top of a small table by the bed with the black music box from earlier, sending it flying to the ground with a loud thunk.
“Luke! Are you okay?” Noah flew to his side and helped him stand to his feet.
“Yeah, I’m okay,” he answered, rubbing the back of his head where Maddie had pulled her hair. “What was that thing?”
“Oh, that was umm…Tinkerbell,” Noah told him, the name feeling awkward on his lips. “She’s usually better than that, I swear! She probably just thought that you were attacking me or something. Tink!”
Noah snatched Maddie’s wings from midair, freezing her in place, and brought her up level with Luke’s face. “Apologize to Luke!”
Maddie huffed and crossed her arms, staring Luke down with a mixture of annoyance and anger. But Luke didn't seem upset by her attitude at all, greeting her with a big smile.
“Hello, Ms. Bell! It is wonderful to meet you! There’s really no need to apologize, you didn’t hurt me.” Maddie wasn’t charmed, she just turned her head and stuck her chin up at him, refusing to respond.
“Sorry, Luke,” Noah said, glaring at Maddie’s rudeness. “She has a hard time trusting new people.”
“That’s okay, Peter. I think she’s kinda adorable!” That caught Maddie’s attention, and Noah could have sworn he saw her glow turn vaguely pinkish before she shook it off, releasing her wings from Noah’s fingers so that she could go and sit at the end of Luke’s desk. Noah rolled his eyes at her, turning back to Luke and taking him by the hand.
“Come on, it’s time to…”
“LUKE!”
Luke and Noah both turned to look at the two children that came bursting into the room. One was a girl, wearing a long, pink nightdress, and the other was a little boy, clad in his blue footie pajamas and carrying a teddy bear.
“Luke! Luke! Are you okay? We heard a crash in here!” the girl ran up to Luke, her sweet face twisted in concern. “Ethan said that you probably just fell out of your bed, but I said that you…whoa!”
The girl must have noticed that Noah was standing there, still holding Luke’s hand, and stopped whatever she was about to say. She stared up at him in awe, her mouth and eyes wide as she took in his appearance.
“Jiminy! You’re…”
“Peter Pan!” Noah tore his eyes away from the little girl just in time for the smaller boy to crash right into his legs, clinging to them tightly. “Have you finally come to take us away to Neverland? Luke told us that you would come one day!”
Luke giggled next to him, and then dropped Noah’s hand in favor of bending down and picking up the little boy and settling him into his arms. “That’s right, E! Peter Pan has finally come for us!”
“Hooray!” the boy - who Luke referred to as “E” - cheered, throwing his hands up into the air. Luke laughed again, twirling him around in a circle, and this time Noah felt that strange tingling in his chest. He watched them spin around a few times, before he felt a light tugging on the bottom of his shirt.
“Mr. Pan, sir,” it was the girl, staring up at him with wide, brown eyes that looked so much like Luke’s that it caught Noah off guard. “Does this mean that we get to go see the mermaids?”
“Umm…well…see, I…”
“They can come with us, right Peter?” Noah looked over to find Luke and the other boy standing next to him again. Luke had that look back on his face, that hopeful look that made Noah feel like he held the keys to all of Luke’s dreams. Noah was already finding out that he could not say no to that face.
“Umm…it’s just…who are they?” Noah’s gaze shifted from the little boy still in Luke’s arms, to the little girl standing at Noah’s feet, still holding onto the bottom of Noah’s shirt.
“Oh! I’m sorry, Peter! These are my siblings!” Luke held out a hand for the girl to come over and join them, and she went without a thought. “This is Natalie, my baby sister. And this little guy here is my brother Ethan. I call him ‘E’ for short.”
“And you can call me, ‘Nat’!” the little girl smiled at him, pointing her thumb toward her chest. “Everybody else does!”
“Oh, hi, umm…Nat,” Noah smiled at her before turning back to the boys. “And Ethan.”
“So will we get to see mermaids, Peter?!” Natalie asked him again, her face brimming with excitement.
“And pirates!”
“And the Indians!”
“Hey, guys…leave Peter alone,” Luke laughed at his siblings, setting Ethan down on the floor next to his sister. “He still hasn’t taught us how to fly yet!”
“Oh yeah!” Nat screamed while running up to Noah and tugging on his shirt again. “Will you teach us to fly, Peter? Please!”
“I already know what my happy thought is going to be!” Ethan told him proudly, hugging his bear tight to his chest.
“And you have a fairy to sprinkle fairy dust on us, right?!” Natalie asked.
“Umm…of course I do,” Noah answered, feeling a little bombarded all of a sudden. He looked over at Luke and saw the small smile on his face, and he instantly felt better. “But it sounds like you guys already know how to fly.”
“Faith, trust, and pixie dust, right?” Luke said, stepping closer to Noah and taking his hand. “And a happy thought.”
Noah swallowed. “Yeah…”
“Great!” Natalie yelled excitedly, running over to jump on top of the bed. “I got my happy thought, Peter! Now bring on that dust! I’m ready!”
“I’m ready, too!” Ethan crawled up onto the bed next to her, stuffed bear still clutched tightly in his fingers.
Now it was Noah’s turn to laugh. He had to admit, the kids had a certain charm about them. They seemed like they liked to play games. They would fit along with the Lost Boys just fine.
Noah cleared his throat, and then summoned Maddie over to him. She flew over to him, albeit reluctantly - the children awing immediately at the sight of her - and allowed him to take her by the wings once again. She flew up above Natalie and Ethan’s heads, and began to sprinkle a generous amount of the golden pixie dust atop of their little heads. Natalie still had a wide smile on her face, watching as the dust settled all around her, filling her with fairy magic. Little Ethan had his eyes shut tight, making sure that no dust got into his eyes.
When Noah was done, he turned back to Luke and did the same thing to him, covering him in sparkling dust that reflected in his eyes. His gaze never left Noah’s, standing completely still as he let the dust seep in.
After Noah was done sprinkling Luke, he released his hold on Maddie. She turned to give him a little glare, but said nothing, choosing again to fly away and watch from the desk. He turned back to the others, seeing that Luke had now joined his siblings on the bed.
“Well, uh…I guess you know what to do!” Noah gestured with his hand, the one that Luke had placed the kiss on earlier. “Think of the happiest things…it’s the same as having wings!”
“Cookies!” Ethan yelled, before jumping off the bed and soaring into the air. His laugh filled the room as he flew around, circling the other three and still holding onto his bear.
“My turn! My turn!” Natalie said, getting herself ready at the edge of the bed. “A beautiful mermaid lagoon! And singing with the mermaids!” Nat shut her eyes and jumped, opening them again only when she realized she never hit the ground. Her smiled brightened, and she flew off like an expert in pursuit of her brother.
Next it was Luke’s turn. Noah caught his gaze and waited impatiently for Luke to announce his happy thought. He didn’t know why it mattered to him so much.
But Luke never said anything. He just fixed his eyes intensely on Noah, gave him a soft smile, and rose from the bed. He hovered there for a moment, before pushing himself forward to join his siblings.
Noah watched the three of them for a few moments, laughing at their outbursts of “we can fly!”, before making his way toward the still-open window. He hovered in the frame, looking up at the star-filled sky. He could see Neverland, gazing back at him and calling him home.
It was time to go.
“Come on, everybody!” he turned back to the room and called toward the others. “Off to Neverland!”
More cheers from the little ones, and they were soon flying out the window, Ethan with his bear, and Natalie with him bright eyes and smile. Noah just had time to see Luke grab what looked like a book off of his desk and turn off the lamp, before he was joining him at the window.
They both hovered there for a moment, their faces lit only by the stars in the sky. Noah could see his smile, the smile that made his stomach turn and his chest tighten, and he couldn’t help but smile back at him. For some reason he couldn’t explain, bringing Luke to Neverland was starting to feel like an awfully big adventure.
Noah held out his hand for Luke, the other boy wasting no time before taking it and squeezing it gently. Noah threw him one more smile, and a wink, before turning to face the night.
“Here we go, Luke,” he said, readying his take-off. “Second star to the right…”
“…and straight on ‘til morning.”
And just like that, they were off. Leaving this world far, far behind.
TBC soon!
Author(s): dazzling_icer
Chapter: [2/?]
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters of Luke and Noah (or other ATWT characters), nor do I claim any ownership over the legend of Peter Pan. Those rights belong to PGP, and to the orphanage that JM Barrie sold the rights to Peter Pan to a long time ago, I can't remember the name...ANYWAY. IT'S NOT ME.
Characters/Pairings: Luke/Noah, Natalie, Ethan, Maddie, Casey, and other various Oakdalians disguising themselves as Lost Boys.
Word Count: ~5.4K
Warnings: Umm...EXCESSIVE schmoop, under-age kissing (both boys are 16), pirates, Indians, and fairies.
Spoilers: None! Umm...unless you've never seen any Peter Pan movie ever, or ever read the novel.
Summary: Luke Snyder is a 16 year old boy who refuses to grow up. He would rather spend time with his younger brother and sister reading fairy tales or playing make believe out in the Snyder Barn, than be stuck inside playing crappy video games with people his own age. His favorite tale is that of Peter Pan, whose adventures he recites to Nat and Ethan every night in their nursery before bed. But what happens when Luke discovers that the legend of The Pan is not just a legend when a mysterious boy flies into his room one night looking for his lost shadow? And how will Luke react when he suddenly finds himself in Neverland with a boy who can not only fly, fight, and crow, but who also has the prettiest blue eyes he’s ever seen?
Master Post
~All this has happened before, and it will all happen again. But this time it happened in Oakdale…~
It was twilight, or as he liked to think of it “the time between the sun going to sleep and the moon waking up”. Neither of the great celestial beasts ruled the sky, and the boy liked to think that it was during this time where he did. That he pulled out his dagger and crowed to the heavens and chased them away...the ethereal orbs too chicken to face him in battle. He was the winner of this game.
The darkness brought about by the absence of the sun and the moon hid him away from sight as he hovered outside of the blond boy’s window. But the shining fairy flying next to him was threatening to reveal his presence.
“Quiet Mads!” he hissed at her, demanding her silence as to not wake the sleeping boy in the room. She huffed at him, causing a small puff of dust to waft in his face, and crossed her arms over her chest in annoyance. He smiled at her, never taking her moods seriously. It was just a game after all.
Noah chose this particular house because there were people inside who believed in him. In Peter Pan. And if not in him specifically, the idea of magic. The woman of the house believed at some time, he was certain. And even though growing up had changed her, she believed in the eyes of her children. Her husband…well, Mr. Snyder was a practical man. And the oldest daughter’s light was barely shining anymore. But the other three children, they were why he was here.
Specifically the boy asleep inside the window.
Checking to make sure that the coast was clear, he slowly stepped through the open window, and ducked inside, managing to barely miss hitting his head against the stop of the arched frame.
Noah knew that he was tall for his age. Or at least, he thought he did. He wasn’t quite sure what his age was anymore. Neverland had a way of making you forget things like that. But he was taller than all of the Lost Boys, and he was definitely taller than Maddie, so he concluded that he must have indeed been tall.
He looked around, making sure that the boy hadn’t awoken when he stepped inside. But he was still asleep, his features glowing from the lamp on his desk. Noah turned and looked back at Maddie as she awaited his instructions.
“You look over there, Mads,” he whispered to her, pointing to the opposite side of the room. “And I’ll look over here.”
Maddie nodded with a salute, and flew over to her side, leaving fairy dust in her wake. He turned back to the sleeping boy, checking again to make sure he wasn’t awake, before he began his search.
“Come on, Shadow…you have to be here somewhere.”
He quietly began searching through the room, opening chests and drawers in search of the shadow that he lost a few nights ago. He was listening outside the boy’s window, hiding in the dark of the night as he played with the other children, and was so enthralled with the story of the time that he cut off Hook’s hand and fed it to the crocodile, that he never even noticed that his shadow had gotten away from him. He had to get it back, he couldn’t lose it. The Lost Boys depended on him. Everything depended on him…
Suddenly a soft noise that sounded like music came from the other side of the room and he looked up to see Maddie fiddling with some black square thing with buttons on it.
“Maddie!” he whispered harshly, still rummaging through a drawer. “Stop playing! And help me find my shadow!” Maddie huffed, but did what she was told, pressing a button and stopping the music. She flew to a set of doors at the far wall, looking at them curiously before pressing her head against the wood. It wasn’t long before she heard a noise from inside, and her pointed ears perked up. Maddie turned to Noah and started gesturing loudly to get his attention.
“What is it, Mads?” Noah asked, flying quickly over to her. “Did you find it?” She nodded frantically, pointing both of her arms toward the doors behind her. Noah floated over to the handles, taking a deep breath before quickly opening the doors. He barely had time to blink before his shadow flew out and started escaping along the wall toward the window.
Noah wasted no time, slamming the doors closed without thinking and flying after his shadow. In his haste, he didn’t know that he accidentally shut Maddie inside the closet.
He toppled over items and drawers in his rush to catch his shadow, flying all over the room and completely forgetting about the sleeping boy at the desk. He circled around the weird object with the wooden blades on the ceiling a few times before finally tumbling into a small table by the boy’s bed and grabbing his shadow.
Noah clutched tight to his shadow, which was doing all it could to wrestle free from his grasp. He had to tie it on quick before it flew away again. But with what? He searched all around him, looking for something to hold his shadow together before his eyes finally locked on a small piece of what looked like rope over by the two doors where his shadow came out of a few moments ago.
He flew over to it, and picked it up in his hands. The material was really soft for a rope, cool to the touch, and it had a really odd shape, but Noah figured it would do just fine. He sat down in the middle of the room, tying his shadow to his left ankle the best that he good, but his shadow was moving around too much and he couldn’t get the knot tight enough to keep it on.
Noah tried and tried and tried and nothing seemed to work. His thoughts turned back to Neverland and the Lost Boys who would be waiting for him there. They expected him to come back with his missing shadow, and finally with an ending to Cinderella that he never got to finish, and they would be so disappointed if he didn’t. He was their leader, the one that they looked up to. He was Peter Pan…he had a reputation to uphold.
But all he felt was a complete failure.
He curled his legs in and wrapped his arms around them, tucking his head under his arms as he started to silently cry. The familiar feeling of fear and disappointment that he had known all of his life was at the foreground of his mind, and he released it with each choking sob.
Peter Pan wasn’t supposed to feel defeated like this. He was supposed to be feeling brave and adventurous, nothing could scare him away. But Noah felt like he could never live up to that, like he was always a step behind. He tried his best to hide his worries from the Lost Boys, but there was still that feeling in the back of his head that they were going to discover his secret one day and somehow leave him. He couldn’t let that happen. He couldn’t stop trying.
But they were all going to find out if he couldn’t get his darn shadow to just stay…
“Boy, why are you crying?”
Noah suddenly snapped up off the floor, his hands immediately moving to rest defensively on his hips. He looked at the blond boy, who was no longer sleeping, and was instead sitting turned in his chair, eyes on him in what looked almost like wonder. He opened his mouth to respond, but could barely form his lips around the first word before he was being interrupted.
“Oh my God, I’ve always wanted to say that!” The boy jumped up from his chair and bounced toward Noah, staring at his face with a bright smile. Noah tried to remember how to breathe.
“It’s you! I can’t believe it’s you!”
“What?”
“You’re Peter Pan!”
“I…”
“Oh, I just knew you would come one day! I mean, I believe in you for one thing, and I always left my window open at night even when my father told me not to. But there was always a chance, so I never listened to him. And you’re here! And I was right!”
The boy abruptly stopped talking and squinted his eyes at Noah, his gaze looking at him up and down. Noah felt uncomfortable standing there in his ratty green shirt being stared at like he had another head. He didn’t really like this game.
“Although,” the boy said after a moment, starting to circle around him without ever taking his eyes off of him. “You look a lot different than I expected. I mean, not terrible. In fact, you are still as handsome as I pictured you would be, probably more so, you just look…different.”
Noah continued to gape at him, noticing that the boy’s face had turned a little red, and the room got just a little bit hotter. He needed to go, he had to get back. He would just grab his shadow and just…
Oh yeah, his shadow. It was still tied haphazardly to his leg by that smooth rope he found earlier, and if he could just tie it tighter he could get out of there and back to Neverland before the Lost Boys even woke up.
But before he could do anything, the boy must have seen him glance down toward his leg, because he was already kneeling in front of him and talking again.
“Oh, Peter did you lose your shadow? Is that why you’re here?” Noah was starting to think that his eyes couldn’t possibly keep getting wider than they already were as he looked between the boy and the closet on the other side of the room. The boy must have caught his gaze, because when he next spoke, his voice was even louder. “I knew it! I knew I saw something move last night while I was writing! I’m not actually crazy! It was your shadow the whole time! Wow! This really is just like the stories! I’m not dreaming, am I? I mean, you look real, and you are standing in my bedroom and I don’t think I am dreaming…” Noah watched the boy pinch his arm and then look back up at him. “Nope, definitely awake. This is definitely real.”
The next thing Noah knew, the boy was reaching out and fiddling with the knot he made in the small rope thing to tie his shadow on. He was just about to protest when once again, he was interrupted by the sound of the boy’s eager voice.
“Oh, this won’t do, Peter! You can’t just tie your shadow on, it needs sewing! At least, that’s what the stories say to do.” He said, before hopping up and running over to a drawer, where he pulled some things out and ran back over to Noah. He sat down on the floor and grabbed Noah’s ankle, causing him to jump up in shock. He ended up just floating in the air, with the boy’s hand still firmly around his ankle, trying to untie the rope. He must not have noticed that Noah was still flying in the air, or at least it didn’t faze him, because the boy just continued to work on sewing his shadow.
“I have to say, I’m not as good a sewer as Nana,” he told him, now trying to thread the needle. “Nana’s my grandmother. She taught me how a little bit, so that I could patch up my brother and sister’s toys whenever they needed it. I do have to say that it has come in handy a few times, especially now. Even though I never thought that I would ever have to sew Peter Pan’s shadow back on, but I’m glad that I…”
“You talk too much,” Noah interrupted finally, resting his chin on his hand and still gazing curiously at the boy.
“Yeah, I do have a tendency to talk too much…wait, what?” the boy stopped the needle and looked up at him with wide eyes. Noah continued to stare back, sitting crossed legged and hovering in the air. The boy was looking at him with curious eyes, mixed with a little surprise, which Noah figured was due to his current position. He finally noticed that he wasn’t standing in that air anymore, and the look on his face caused Noah to smile. The whole flying/hovering thing still took a while to get used to for some people.
“Oh, I’m…I’m sorry. I don’t have to talk if you don’t want me, too.”
“No!” Noah protested, the word causing the boy to jerk back. “Please, don’t stop. I…I like hearing you talk. Always have.”
“Okay,” the boy said, returning his attention back to his shadow and the needle which were both still tight in his grip. He brought the needle and thread back to his foot, and began to carefully re-attach his shadow. Noah watched for a few moments, feeling a great level of intrigue, before the boy’s fingers suddenly stopped. “Wait…what do you mean you have always liked listening to me talk?”
Noah’s eyes widened at the curious look that the boy gave him once more, a look that Noah was starting to become oddly fond of. Noah smiled at him, his cheeks flushing at the thought.
“Your stories,” he told him simply, the smile becoming bigger on his face at their mention. “I love coming and listening to your stories.”
“You…what?” the boy laughed, like he didn’t believe a word Noah was telling him. “But…but they are all about you!”
“Of course! That’s why I like ‘em!”
The red flush that returned to the boy’s face made a funny feeling settle deep into Noah’s stomach, and that unfamiliar heat was back. He was liking that part of this game more and more.
“There, you’re done!” he announced after a few moments, and let go of his hold on Noah’s feet. Noah sprang free and flew over to the wall, kicking his feet out and causing his shadow to settle against the surface. He tested his newly re-sewn shadow by going through a few movements, watching as it perfectly mimicked every action with exact precision. He turned back toward the boy with a victorious grin.
“Ah, the cleverness of me!”
“Hey, I helped!”
“You did a little,” Noah relented, smiling at the boy, who in turn was smiling back. He liked that part of the game, too. “What’s your name?”
“Luciano Eduardo Grimaldi Snyder, but I usually just go by Luke…”
“Luke’s enough,” Noah said, cutting his speech off for once and flying off toward the still open window. He got about halfway out the window when Luke’s voice called after him.
“Wait, Peter!” Noah turned around to see Luke standing next to the window and looking sad. “Where are you going?”
“Back to Neverland. I have to get back to the Lost Boys.”
“Oh,” Luke sighed, and Noah watched his shoulders slump. He wasn’t very good at reading people, but he knew that he didn’t like Luke being sad. “Do you…do you have to go back right now?”
Noah cocked his head in confusion as he flew back down to stand on the window ledge. What did Luke mean? Was this a new game?
“What do you mean?”
Luke opened his mouth like he was about to say something, and then quickly closed it. Noah figured he was thinking about what he wanted to say, and whatever was going through his head must not have been good because Luke still had that sad look on his face.
“Just…this isn’t how I expected this would go.” Luke turned around and Noah watched him slowly walk to his bed and sink down onto it, holding his head in his hands. “I always pictured you would come here, teach me to fly, and take me off to Neverland with you. We would have our own adventures! Fight pirates, talk to mermaids, dance around with the Indians…everything. But you come here and look different and barely say a word before you just take off…”
Noah listened to every word that Luke said like a lifeline, trying to figure out what the boy was trying to say. Fighting pirates sounded fun, and he always had a good time telling stories to the mermaids. Luke wanted to do those things, too? Did they not have mermaids here for Luke to talk to? No pirates to talk to? That would just wouldn’t do!
“You can come with me to Neverland.” Noah told him, suddenly wondering why his heart was beating so fast. Luke’s head shot right up, his eyes wide and his mouth open like a fish. Noah thought he looked cute.
“You…you want me to come to Neverland with you?” there was hope in his voice that Noah could definitely read. There was just something about Luke that made things easier.
“You said you wanted me to take you,” Noah shrugged. “Let’s go!”
Noah could barely turn back toward the window before he was being jumped by Luke. The other boy had his arms tight around his neck, and he was squeezing him so tightly that he could barely breathe. Still, this was probably his favorite part of this game so far.
He felt Luke release him and then pull back to look at him, his smile was the biggest that he had seen so far. His eyes were shining, and when he looked deeper into Luke’s hazel eyes, he could see flecks of gold in them. For a moment, Noah wondered if they had fairy dust in them.
“Wow,” Luke whispered, still looking at Noah with a sort of funny look on his face.
“Umm…’wow’ what?” Noah wanted to take a step back, put some space between him and the other boy. But he found that he couldn’t move.
“Your eyes,” Luke said, reaching up to touch Noah’s face. “They are really blue.”
“Umm, yeah?” Okay, this game was now getting even weirder. Noah maybe wanted Luke to go back to that thing he did a minute ago with his arms where he couldn’t breathe.
“Oh, it’s not…it’s not a bad thing, Peter. It’s just…” Luke swallowed hard before continuing on. “…I can see why she wanted to give you a kiss. You’re beautiful.”
Noah was still confused. What’s a kiss? And who was “she”? He didn’t know, but he liked the idea that Luke wanted to give him something.
“What’s a kiss?”
“You don’t know what a kiss is?” Luke’s smile turned playful.
“I will once you give one to me.” Noah shrugged. This boy was confusing.
Luke laughed and then rubbed the back of his head, his eyes looking everywhere but at him. That red flush was back to his face, and it once again caused Noah’s stomach to feel like he was flying through the clouds.
Suddenly, Luke must have found the kiss that he wanted to give to Noah because he was leaving Noah’s side and walking across the room. He picked up the discarded smooth rope from before and returned to Noah, holding the fabric out to him.
“Here. A kiss for you.”
Noah smiled brightly at Luke, taking the kiss from him and studying it in his dirty hands. It was black, with small green and white strips diagonally along the length of it. Noah liked it. He took the kiss and draped it loosely around his neck.
“Thank you, Luke! I shall keep it forever!”
Luke laughed, the fairy dust once again sparkling in his eyes as he moved closer. “Here…wear it like this, though.” Luke took the kiss from around Noah’s neck and held it in front of him. “Let me see your hand.”
Noah held out his left hand to Luke, and the other boy stepped closer, immediately beginning to wrap the kiss around his wrist, tying it securely. Noah couldn’t take his eyes off of Luke as he worked. There was something about this boy that made him feel. Feel things that he had never felt before. Or at least, never felt before Neverland.
Luke made him oddly happy, which is partly why he kept coming back to his window at night to listen to his stories and watch him play. It was one of his favorite games, and games had always made him feel happy. But with Luke, it was a different kind of happiness, one that he had never felt from a game before. He wanted more of it.
“There,” Luke’s voice broke through his thoughts. “You’re all set.”
Luke lowered his eyes from his and then brought them back up, and Noah felt like he was being squeezed again. He rubbed his kiss-covered wrist and took a small step back, hoping the extra air will help him go back to breathing normally.
“Thank you,” Noah said again, inspecting the soft kiss tied against his skin. “I wish I had a kiss to give you in return.”
“Well, you kinda do,” Luke said, stepping forward and closing the small distance that Noah tried to create a moment before. He stopped just in front of Noah and closed his eyes, inching his face closer and closer to his. Noah’s face grew hot and his heart started beating faster and he didn’t know why. What was Luke doing? The only kiss that Noah had was the one that Luke tied to his wrist. Was this a game of make-believe? Was Noah supposed to pretend to give him a kiss back?
Luke was close enough now that Noah could feel his breath against his face, and he closed his own eyes on instinct, waiting for what was going to happen next. Noah was sure their lips were just about to touch when all of a sudden a loud bang was heard across the room and they jumped back from each other.
Noah looked over toward the closet, its doors swaying from being forced open, to see a very angry looking Maddie flying madly toward them and grabbing Luke’s hair.
“Ow!” Luke yelled, throwing his hands up to his head and trying to shake Maddie off. “What…?”
“Madd - er, Tink! Cut that out, now!” Noah ordered, coming out of his Luke-induced haze enough to stop her from hurting him. Maddie suddenly let go of Luke’s hair, and he went flying back, landing on top of a small table by the bed with the black music box from earlier, sending it flying to the ground with a loud thunk.
“Luke! Are you okay?” Noah flew to his side and helped him stand to his feet.
“Yeah, I’m okay,” he answered, rubbing the back of his head where Maddie had pulled her hair. “What was that thing?”
“Oh, that was umm…Tinkerbell,” Noah told him, the name feeling awkward on his lips. “She’s usually better than that, I swear! She probably just thought that you were attacking me or something. Tink!”
Noah snatched Maddie’s wings from midair, freezing her in place, and brought her up level with Luke’s face. “Apologize to Luke!”
Maddie huffed and crossed her arms, staring Luke down with a mixture of annoyance and anger. But Luke didn't seem upset by her attitude at all, greeting her with a big smile.
“Hello, Ms. Bell! It is wonderful to meet you! There’s really no need to apologize, you didn’t hurt me.” Maddie wasn’t charmed, she just turned her head and stuck her chin up at him, refusing to respond.
“Sorry, Luke,” Noah said, glaring at Maddie’s rudeness. “She has a hard time trusting new people.”
“That’s okay, Peter. I think she’s kinda adorable!” That caught Maddie’s attention, and Noah could have sworn he saw her glow turn vaguely pinkish before she shook it off, releasing her wings from Noah’s fingers so that she could go and sit at the end of Luke’s desk. Noah rolled his eyes at her, turning back to Luke and taking him by the hand.
“Come on, it’s time to…”
“LUKE!”
Luke and Noah both turned to look at the two children that came bursting into the room. One was a girl, wearing a long, pink nightdress, and the other was a little boy, clad in his blue footie pajamas and carrying a teddy bear.
“Luke! Luke! Are you okay? We heard a crash in here!” the girl ran up to Luke, her sweet face twisted in concern. “Ethan said that you probably just fell out of your bed, but I said that you…whoa!”
The girl must have noticed that Noah was standing there, still holding Luke’s hand, and stopped whatever she was about to say. She stared up at him in awe, her mouth and eyes wide as she took in his appearance.
“Jiminy! You’re…”
“Peter Pan!” Noah tore his eyes away from the little girl just in time for the smaller boy to crash right into his legs, clinging to them tightly. “Have you finally come to take us away to Neverland? Luke told us that you would come one day!”
Luke giggled next to him, and then dropped Noah’s hand in favor of bending down and picking up the little boy and settling him into his arms. “That’s right, E! Peter Pan has finally come for us!”
“Hooray!” the boy - who Luke referred to as “E” - cheered, throwing his hands up into the air. Luke laughed again, twirling him around in a circle, and this time Noah felt that strange tingling in his chest. He watched them spin around a few times, before he felt a light tugging on the bottom of his shirt.
“Mr. Pan, sir,” it was the girl, staring up at him with wide, brown eyes that looked so much like Luke’s that it caught Noah off guard. “Does this mean that we get to go see the mermaids?”
“Umm…well…see, I…”
“They can come with us, right Peter?” Noah looked over to find Luke and the other boy standing next to him again. Luke had that look back on his face, that hopeful look that made Noah feel like he held the keys to all of Luke’s dreams. Noah was already finding out that he could not say no to that face.
“Umm…it’s just…who are they?” Noah’s gaze shifted from the little boy still in Luke’s arms, to the little girl standing at Noah’s feet, still holding onto the bottom of Noah’s shirt.
“Oh! I’m sorry, Peter! These are my siblings!” Luke held out a hand for the girl to come over and join them, and she went without a thought. “This is Natalie, my baby sister. And this little guy here is my brother Ethan. I call him ‘E’ for short.”
“And you can call me, ‘Nat’!” the little girl smiled at him, pointing her thumb toward her chest. “Everybody else does!”
“Oh, hi, umm…Nat,” Noah smiled at her before turning back to the boys. “And Ethan.”
“So will we get to see mermaids, Peter?!” Natalie asked him again, her face brimming with excitement.
“And pirates!”
“And the Indians!”
“Hey, guys…leave Peter alone,” Luke laughed at his siblings, setting Ethan down on the floor next to his sister. “He still hasn’t taught us how to fly yet!”
“Oh yeah!” Nat screamed while running up to Noah and tugging on his shirt again. “Will you teach us to fly, Peter? Please!”
“I already know what my happy thought is going to be!” Ethan told him proudly, hugging his bear tight to his chest.
“And you have a fairy to sprinkle fairy dust on us, right?!” Natalie asked.
“Umm…of course I do,” Noah answered, feeling a little bombarded all of a sudden. He looked over at Luke and saw the small smile on his face, and he instantly felt better. “But it sounds like you guys already know how to fly.”
“Faith, trust, and pixie dust, right?” Luke said, stepping closer to Noah and taking his hand. “And a happy thought.”
Noah swallowed. “Yeah…”
“Great!” Natalie yelled excitedly, running over to jump on top of the bed. “I got my happy thought, Peter! Now bring on that dust! I’m ready!”
“I’m ready, too!” Ethan crawled up onto the bed next to her, stuffed bear still clutched tightly in his fingers.
Now it was Noah’s turn to laugh. He had to admit, the kids had a certain charm about them. They seemed like they liked to play games. They would fit along with the Lost Boys just fine.
Noah cleared his throat, and then summoned Maddie over to him. She flew over to him, albeit reluctantly - the children awing immediately at the sight of her - and allowed him to take her by the wings once again. She flew up above Natalie and Ethan’s heads, and began to sprinkle a generous amount of the golden pixie dust atop of their little heads. Natalie still had a wide smile on her face, watching as the dust settled all around her, filling her with fairy magic. Little Ethan had his eyes shut tight, making sure that no dust got into his eyes.
When Noah was done, he turned back to Luke and did the same thing to him, covering him in sparkling dust that reflected in his eyes. His gaze never left Noah’s, standing completely still as he let the dust seep in.
After Noah was done sprinkling Luke, he released his hold on Maddie. She turned to give him a little glare, but said nothing, choosing again to fly away and watch from the desk. He turned back to the others, seeing that Luke had now joined his siblings on the bed.
“Well, uh…I guess you know what to do!” Noah gestured with his hand, the one that Luke had placed the kiss on earlier. “Think of the happiest things…it’s the same as having wings!”
“Cookies!” Ethan yelled, before jumping off the bed and soaring into the air. His laugh filled the room as he flew around, circling the other three and still holding onto his bear.
“My turn! My turn!” Natalie said, getting herself ready at the edge of the bed. “A beautiful mermaid lagoon! And singing with the mermaids!” Nat shut her eyes and jumped, opening them again only when she realized she never hit the ground. Her smiled brightened, and she flew off like an expert in pursuit of her brother.
Next it was Luke’s turn. Noah caught his gaze and waited impatiently for Luke to announce his happy thought. He didn’t know why it mattered to him so much.
But Luke never said anything. He just fixed his eyes intensely on Noah, gave him a soft smile, and rose from the bed. He hovered there for a moment, before pushing himself forward to join his siblings.
Noah watched the three of them for a few moments, laughing at their outbursts of “we can fly!”, before making his way toward the still-open window. He hovered in the frame, looking up at the star-filled sky. He could see Neverland, gazing back at him and calling him home.
It was time to go.
“Come on, everybody!” he turned back to the room and called toward the others. “Off to Neverland!”
More cheers from the little ones, and they were soon flying out the window, Ethan with his bear, and Natalie with him bright eyes and smile. Noah just had time to see Luke grab what looked like a book off of his desk and turn off the lamp, before he was joining him at the window.
They both hovered there for a moment, their faces lit only by the stars in the sky. Noah could see his smile, the smile that made his stomach turn and his chest tighten, and he couldn’t help but smile back at him. For some reason he couldn’t explain, bringing Luke to Neverland was starting to feel like an awfully big adventure.
Noah held out his hand for Luke, the other boy wasting no time before taking it and squeezing it gently. Noah threw him one more smile, and a wink, before turning to face the night.
“Here we go, Luke,” he said, readying his take-off. “Second star to the right…”
“…and straight on ‘til morning.”
And just like that, they were off. Leaving this world far, far behind.
TBC soon!