1916:

Peter finished putting in the coordinates in the Jolly Roger’s console. He always knew it would come back to this, but had hoped it would last longer than it did. But in Earth, time, he guessed it was a long time. The holoscreen in front of Peter’s face was asking if Earth was the final destination. With a sigh, he confirmed it.

The past few months with Wendy were just as he imagined. They went to all the places he used to love to go with her. Their days were spent roaming the galaxy wherever their hearts desired. Sometimes they spent swimming throughout all of Grottowia. Some days they would go to the market at Corinthia. On the lazy days they merely just stayed on the ship and went flying through a meteor shower. Pure bliss is what Peter felt.

But he wasn’t sure Wendy was feeling the same way. When her vacation first started, it seemed she felt just as happy as he was. Sometimes, even happier. She always talked about how she felt a massive weight leave her shoulders when they left the Milky Way galaxy.

But as the days came and went, she seemed less happy. Days went by and her mood dropped with each day. Peter wasn’t sure what was happening with her. He didn’t understand why she seemed less interested as every day passed by. In an effort to cheer her up, he came up with a massive plan for one of their days. He recounted the conversation several times, wondering if it was something he said, or if it was something he had been planning for a while.

She was sitting at the head of the dinner table in Peter’s kitchen. He had just finished slicing the fruit they picked on Grottowia from their swim earlier that day. He threw it in a few bowls and added a few spices they bought from Corinthia. Peter wasn’t much of a chef. In Neverland, he mainly grew up eating re-hydrated food, so he never learned how to cook. It wasn’t the best tasting food, but it was extremely nutritious and gave him the calories he needed.

But he knew Wendy didn’t grow up the same. She grew up every day cooking something new. He tried so much to cater to this and change his lifestyle. He put so much effort into the fruit, hoping it would bring her spirits up.

“And dinner is served!” he said to Wendy as he passed her a bowl of his making.

“Thanks,” she said with no emotion. She picked up a utensil and pressed the third button on it causing a fork to shoot out. Peter hoped she would dig in joyfully, but instead she picked at it slowly. By the time Peter gobbled his meal, she had hardly eaten two bites.

“So, I figured tomorrow we can have a full day,” Peter said with as much enthusiasm as he could without sounding mad. “I think we should start out by finding Tock. We can ride on her back throughout all the wormholes of the galaxy. We could go to an asteroid belt and play catch with her, then eat a nice lunch on her back.”

“Peter,” Wendy said, trying to get his attention.

“Then after that, we can hit up the Lost Boys. If they have a job, we can join them! Go on an adventure you know?”

“Peter,” she sighed getting restless with Peter.

“And then we can go to the moons we went to a few days ago. You remember those? I heard the sunsets are amazing!”

“Peter!” she shouted to him, causing Peter’s jaw to drop. She had never spoken to him like that before.

“Sorry, I just thought you would enjoy it,” Peter mumbled. “I heard the colors you see from them are amazing.”

“Sorry, it’s not that. Thank you very much for planning out this day. It’s very thoughtful,” she said managing a forced smile. “But I don’t think I can do it.”

“Oh, that’s not a problem. We can change the itinerary. I’m not attached to it at all.”

“It’s not the itinerary that got me upset.”

“Okay, well what do you want to do then?” Peter asked fishing for the answer. Wendy paused to recollect her thoughts and strum up the courage to tell him what was on her mind. The silence between them was nearly unbearable for Peter.

“I want to go home,” she said looking down at her fruit. Peter knew this day would come. There wasn’t anything he could do about it.

“Oh yeah, that’s not a problem Wendy.”

“Really?”

“Of course! You must be feeling homesick. Plus, John and Michael are there! You must miss them!”

“Peter, I need to confess something to you.” This took Peter by surprise. He thought she would be happy that he was fine with her wanting to return. But there was something in her tone that felt not quite right.

“I lied to you about John and Michael.”

“You said they got new jobs…” Peter perplexed. “Do you make that up, or did they ask you to lie?”

“I asked if they wanted to go and they chastised me for it. I wanted to leave when father died and they stopped me. They told me that I was using you as a chance to escape and put all my worries away. They didn’t want to come because they wanted to fix their lives, while I wanted to run away,” Wendy explained refusing to make eye contact with Peter. Peter was waiting for her to refute what John and Michael said, until the answer became obvious.

“You think they’re right, don’t you?” Peter asked.

“I didn’t want to believe them,” Wendy confessed. “Honestly, I think I lied to myself to convince me to go. I was so sure that I was leaving because I missed you, but I think they were right and I just wanted to escape how bad my life was for a few years.”

Peter didn’t think she knew what she just said, claiming not to miss him. Maybe he was lying to himself, but in that moment, he refused to believe her. She was distraught and nothing she was saying could fully be trusted.

“I remember I was at the cottage and told them my plan,” she continued. “When they said I was just trying to leave life behind because it was hard, I got really angry at them. There was so a lot of shouting and name calling. They claimed I wasn’t sacrificing enough for the family. They threw it in my face that I stayed at the manor while they went with mother to console her after father died.”

“Wendy, you can’t think they’re right about that. You found a way to sell my story. You sold all your furniture and lived bare bones in London to keep the house your father worked so hard to buy. That’s not selfish.”

“No, no the act isn’t selfish, but I think my intentions were.”

“What do you mean?”

“I really didn’t want to be in the country. I didn’t want to lose everything I had. I had already lost my father, I wasn’t about to lose my life!” Wendy balled up her fists in anger and slammed them on the table.

“Whoa, whoa! It’s okay,” Peter yelped. He cautiously approached her.

“No, it’s not. I wanted to leave Peter. I used you. Life has been so hard and I just needed a break and couldn’t figure out a way how else to do it,” she confessed.

“Wendy,” Peter began as he turned her face toward his. “I’m your friend. Friends need each other for support. And even if you saw it as using me for an escape, I see it as you needing a friend. It’s okay.”

“Thanks. But they’re right. I took off three years of my life. But now I need to go back. I need to live my life back on Earth. Neverland isn’t where I belong.”

“Okay. I’ll take you back first thing tomorrow,” Peter managed as big of a smile as he could and Wendy returned an embarrassed one.

He kept playing the conversation over in his head throughout the rest of the night. He couldn’t help but think she might have been right, that she was just using him. He quickly buried those thoughts. It couldn’t possibly be true.

Wendy was right about one thing, however. She was trying to live two lives and she couldn’t. She had to be on Earth. These Neverland trips would soon be a thing of the past. Pretty soon she’ll get a family and a new job and won’t have time for their adventures. And that was okay.

Their conversation made Peter reflect more on his own life than he had in ages. He got too attached to the Darlings and essentially put his life on hold until they wanted to come back. That couldn’t happen again, he thought. Once he dropped her off, he had to go back to living his life. Whether that be working more with the Lost Boys, or picking up jobs as a mercenary. He would go back to living.

The past few months he read Peter and Wendy multiple times. It might be vain, but he never had a book written about him so it was quite exciting. He loved how it captured himself. He was so optimistic and fun back in the day. He had to get back to that. That’s who he was, not the person who barely showered once a week. He grinned at how far he had gone off the wagon. He was absolutely ridiculous. That Peter would be put to rest, and the normal, more fun, Peter would continue to see the light of day.

It wasn’t long until they were reaching Earth’s atmosphere. They decided to arrive by day and park in an open field away from everyone. Wendy said it would make more sense for her to return during the day since trains typically didn’t operate during the night. Peter insisted on coming with her for support. He couldn’t let someone who just had a mental breakdown walk home alone.

“You ready to get back to your life?” he asked Wendy just as he put down the ramp.

“Can’t wait,” she said grinning. And it was very genuine, he could tell. They walked out to the gloom open field. He noticed it was a very quiet and foggy day in London. It wasn’t so much different from how it normally was, but something about it seemed off. He quickly shrugged it off, not wanting to bring down Wendy’s good mood.

This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“C’mon! To Darling Manor!” he shouted as he raced down the ramp. He grabbed Wendy’s hand and took off!

Their travels eventually led them to the heart of the city. He noticed a different play was playing at the theater now. “Shame they’re showing that,” Peter gestured to the marquee.

“You can’t expect them to play Peter and Wendy every time!”

“Why not! It’s a great tale! I say we go talk to Barrie. I have a few sequel ideas!”

“Oh, I’m sure he would be so interested in how you only eat re-hydrated food!” Wendy said sarcastically. As they passed the marquee, Peter noticed it wasn’t as clean as it used to be. People didn’t seem to care since it wasn’t Peter and Wendy playing now, Peter joked to himself.

As they continued through the crowd, Peter noticed the crowd seemed to foil themselves from when he was last in London. Not to say that they had to be skipping with glee, but the people in the streets kept their heads down. Frowns were on every face and hope had drained from their eyes. It was also noticeably less crowded.

“Does something seem, off to you?” he asked Wendy. She shook her head. He noticed a paper boy and quickly swiped one without Wendy noticing and dug it into his knapsack. Something had happened in the past three years and he was determined to find out what.

When they arrived in Darling Manor, they found it incredibly cold and seemed empty. Wendy put her things on the ground and searched for anyone, expecting Nicholas to barge in wondering who was letting in more cold air. “Nicholas,” she hollered. Silence rung throughout the manor. They both shrugged and continued upstairs when they heard shuffling from the first floor.

Out came a completely exhausted looking woman with wiry hair. Peter couldn’t tell if it was from stress or being overworked. “Wendy Darling?” she asked looking up the stairs.

“Beatrice!” Wendy yelled as she pranced down the stairs and gave her a giant hug. This took Beatrice by surprise. Either it was the first time Wendy had done this or she hadn’t been hugged in ages. “How have you been?” Wendy’s ecstatic mood seemed to bother Beatrice.

“Wendy, where have you been? We thought you went back to your mother’s cottage. We were looking for you and your mother stated you weren’t there.”

“Oh, yes…I went there, but then my friend Peter took me to America where he works.” Wendy gestured up to Peter. He just nodded at whatever she said. He looked deeper into Beatrice’s concern. Something was off with her.

“Sorry about my absence,” Wendy continued. “I didn’t expect to be gone so long, but now I’m back! Why were you trying to contact my mother? Were my brothers not responsive?”

“Your brothers?” Beatrice asked. But it wasn’t really a question. It came out as more of a confused statement rather than a genuine question.

“Yes, was Nicholas trying to send them payment and it didn’t go through? Were they not responsive? So like Michael to push a favor for me to my mother. Where is Nicholas by the way? He should be off work now, right?”

“No, Wendy. He’s at the docks now. He was luckily able to pick up a late shift working a night shipment.”

“He works at the docks? What happened to his last job?”

Beatrice was still perplexed by Wendy’s questions. It seemed she wanted sympathy. Her tone suggested the last few years had been hard. “Work has been difficult these past few years Wendy,” she explained. “As I’m sure you’re aware.”

“What are you talking about?”

Beatrice’s face turned into one of shock. “Wendy, I need to take you to your room,” she stuttered as she led Wendy to her room.

“Okay? Peter, why don’t you just stay here. I’ll be out soon,” she said following.

“We were fine with sending payment to the cottage. Luckily, we were able to get by. There were quite a few late payments, but your mother was quite gracious allowing them,” Beatrice started. “But we kept getting letters and calls and we couldn’t get in touch with you about it. We left them all in your room.” Beatrice’s voice hushed away as she closed the door to Wendy’s room.

Peter had never met Beatrice, but something seemed weird about her. She was so cryptic in everything she said. Her general vibe was what Peter felt throughout all of London. He remembered the paper he swiped and quickly grabbed it out of his knapsack. Earth’s news was slow but perhaps he could learn something from it.

He unraveled the paper and his jaw dropped. He couldn’t believe the headline he was reading. ‘The Great War Rages On!’ with a sub headline reading ‘Britain’s Forces Still Strong’. His whole body went numb and he dropped the paper without realizing it. He tapped his com link. “Tink?”

“Yes, Peter? Everything went okay with Wendy?” he heard in his ear. He walked away from Wendy’s door.

“Umm I don’t know. Listen, can you try to intercept any radio signals about, The Great War, and draft a report for me?”

“Is everything okay?”

“I’m not sure.” Peter thought certainly this must be a joke or a prank. Denial was something he always jetted towards rather than leaped. He heard Wendy let out a massive wail in the other room. He rushed over and ran into the doorway in time to see Wendy give out another sob, clutching multiple letters on her bed. Beatrice stepped away, not too sure what to do.

“I’m so sorry Wendy. I’m sorry you had to find out like this.” Beatrice limped over to Peter with a grim look in her face. She briefly made eye contact with him, then continued to head out.

“Wendy! What’s going on? What’s wrong?” he blurted out, rushing to her side. She immediately collapsed into his arms sobbing. Her crying was so intense she could hardly catch a breath. “Wendy? Please tell me what happened.”

“They’re dead!” she sobbed. A weight dropped in Peter’s gut. His throat became dry and he couldn’t catch a full gasp of air. His trembling hand went over to the letters she was grasping and slipped one out of her hand.

He held up the letter and saw that it was from the British army. They apparently passed a few months ago in something called ‘trench warfare’. Peter held Wendy close and joined her in crying. The two little boys he knew so well, were now dead.

Peter and Wendy passed out on the bed crying. When they awoke, it didn’t make it any better. They both didn’t know how to process any of this information. Peter would sit in silence, while Wendy just kept staring at the letters.

“Wendy?” he asked unable to sustain the silence between them any longer. His plea for attention did nothing to Wendy. He walked over to her and tried to push her to face towards him, but she adamantly refused.

“Peter, please stop it,” she sniffled.

“I’ll be on the roof if you need me,” Peter sighed.

Peter headed to the giant window and flew to the roof. He saw the gloom and dark clouds of the air set over the vast London area. He knew there was something different about this place. “Sir?” he heard Tink in his com link ask.

“Yes, Tink,” he asked, trying to hold in his sobs.

“I have that status report ready for you if you wish for me to read it.”

“No need Tink. I have all the answers I need.”

“Sir, I’m unsure of what you mean.”

“John and Michael are dead.”

“What!” she responded. “How?”

“I’ll explain everything when I get back.” He tapped his com link to stop transmitting. How would he recover from this? He was used to death in Neverland, but this hit differently. Earth wasn’t supposed to be this painful. It was full of book shops, art pieces, theater, live music. Something Neverland never would have. He guessed there had to be some sorrow to appreciate the finer things.

“Peter?” he heard Wendy say from the window. He glided over and met her inside. “I need to go see mother. Can we take your ship?” With a nod and a quick pick of her bags, they were headed back to the cemetery.

It took next to no time at all to head into the country, but time is all that mattered to Wendy in that moment. Peter was expecting to see fields of green and livestock everywhere, but once they arrived, he found it was mainly just dirt and sorrow. He could understand why Wendy wouldn’t want to come here after living in London all of her life. Her mother’s cottage was very small. Even without Wendy living there, it must have been extremely cramped. Once they landed, Wendy rushed out of her seat. “Wendy! Hold up!” Peter said as he unbuckled his seat belt.

“Stay here, this is a family thing,” she said heading toward the ramp. Peter felt a tad insulted and was about to come back with a heated response when Tink butted in.

“Peter, let her go.”

“Did you just hear-” Peter bickered.

“Peter!” Tink interrupted. “She just lost her brothers. I understand that you also felt like they were family, but in this instance, she has more say than you. Let her go.” Peter reluctantly stayed in his seat and opened the cargo hatch. They watched her run inside her cottage and slam the door.

A few moments of silence passed and then Tink said, “Peter?”

“Yeah Tink,” Peter said with an attitude.

“I’m sorry.”

Nightfall came when Wendy finally came out of the cottage. Peter rushed over to the cargo ramp to meet her outside. He arrived well before she did as they parked quite far to not draw any attention toward themselves. Couldn’t risk a few villagers seeing a random girl appear out of thin air.

When he got outside, the night air was chill. Not in a cold way, but more of a refreshing way. He looked up to the sky and found the moon was full. As he stood there, he realized, for the first time in the past few days, he was completely relaxed, despite the stress of what he learned the night before. It’s the little things after all that keep him grounded.

Wendy arrived she was much calmer than she had been. “They held the funeral a few months ago in London. They received honors, whatever that means.”

“Did you want to go back? To visit their graves?” Wendy shook her head.

“I think I should stick around for once. Mother had no clue where I was, and that took a serious toll on her. I can’t believe I did that.”

“You can’t blame yourself.”

“I know, it’s just hard not to. If I had been here-”

“Nothing would have changed.”

“Peter, I don’t think you realize the last conversation I had with them, was an argument about you. So please, don’t tell me nothing would have changed. I could have stopped them or made them come with you instead of join this war.”

Peter could tell she was more agitated than sorrowful at this moment. An idea popped in his head that she secretly blamed him for this. Peter didn’t know what to do.

“What can I do to help?” he finally managed.

“I don’t think you can. I need to stay here and help my mother.”

“You sure?” Peter hesitated and Wendy returned with a nod. “Yeah I think I should get back myself. I think the Lost Boys sent me a message about needing help with a gig or something,” Peter lied.

“Yeah, you should probably get on that,” she agreed. Something told him she knew he was lying. She went in and hugged him tight.

“Thank you, Peter. For everything.” He hugged her back, but she released quickly. “But I really have a life to lead here.”

“You’ll hit me up whenever you want to go back,” Peter said as he felt this may be the last time he would ever see Wendy. “Or maybe I can visit, whenever you’re back on your feet,” Peter replied hinting that he didn’t want this to be goodbye forever.

“Yeah, I’ll let you know. When it’s time,” she said vaguely.

“I guess I’ll be on my way then.” Wendy nodded and headed down the ramp.

“Tink, let’s take off, immediately,” Peter said as he headed back in. He got back to the main deck and looked out the window as they took off.

“Sir,” Tink said, “You should really be strapped down for this.”

“I know Tink,” he said still looking at the window. He hoped he would see Wendy looking to see the ship take off, but instead she was already heading toward the cottage. Please turn around, please turn around, he hoped. But instead she made it to the cottage and entered without looking back once.

“Sir, it’s very unsafe…” Tink warned. Peter nodded and returned back to his seat and strapped in.

It was a completely silent ride until they reached the second star to the right. “Peter?” Tink asked.

“Yeah, Tink?”

“I know this is not the correct time or place to tell you, but Wendy is right.”

“What are you talking about?”

“She was living two separate lives and she couldn’t keep doing that.”

“I know. She has another life to live. I’m fine with that. Can we please not talk about this right now?”

“It’s not just her though, Peter. You were trying to live two lives too.” Peter dropped all focus he had on navigating and listened to Tink. “The past few months with her and the ones without her, you weren’t yourself. It was as if you put everything on pause, similar to what she did.”

“I know,” was all Peter could say.

“So, we won’t be just hanging out in space from now on? I am a robot with access to all the information in the universe and even I was getting bored.” That made Peter smile and felt tears well up in his eyes. She meant well, and was right.

“Yeah, Tink. It’s gonna be different. I promise.”

“Thank you.”

“I do want to come back to Earth though.”

“Peter…”

“Not for Wendy. I mean yeah, I want to check in on her, but there’s a lot of things we’ve missed. The plays have gotten better and they have these things called moving pictures now.”

“Like a video feed?”

“Kind of, but like a play that’s recorded. You’ll see. I think we should check it out. We don’t have anything like that in Neverland.” Peter felt that if Tink could smile, she would. “Enough sob talks though! Let’s get back to fighting pirates and what not.”

“Forward on captain!” Tink excitedly yelled. Peter slammed on the accelerator and zoomed into the second star to the right.