Peter's Lily (Sequel to Pan's Tiger)

Chapter 12: Consequences

Stinging, searing, bleeding flesh.

I ordered myself to stretch in order to take a breath. Finally I bobbed my head above the water and inhaled heavily. The waves lapped against me, pushing me back down into the water, which suddenly had much more power over me, like it was playing with me.

The moment the icy, blackened waves sucked me down once more, my muscles began to seize up and I forgot how to move. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't think. I could only sink as the water washed over my face, flooding my nostrils and commencing to bury me in a watery grave.

My heart seemed to thud heavily in my empty skull, beating slower...and slower... Until I was roughly dragged out of the water by two strong arms. Abruptly, I broke free of the chill, my body dribbling ice water as I zoomed through the sky, held aloft by none other than Peter Pan.

My mouth was open in an effort to gasp for breath, but my efforts were stilled, my lungs constricting painfully within me, as I stared into the black depths of Peter's eyes, colder than any water I had fallen into.

'Got you,' Pan hissed.

I found myself wishing for hell, wishing that death had dragged me from a lifeless body than Pan from a lifeless ocean.

My limbs shook violently in the feel of the frigid air against my soaked body, in fear, and in a surge of rage that swept throughout me. I had visited someone Peter had consistently tortured and brutalised and I was the one at fault? How dare he!

I glared at him as if he was devil! Everything that had happened, every terrible thing he had done, had driven me to see Oliver so it was not a result of my actions, but of his. He was responsible. He was the one who had started everything, and he was angry at me?

I grit my teeth, matching his glare with one of my own, making my gaze the fiercest I could muster. Pan's own glare deepened, his lips curling back in a snarl as he flew us back to land, flying into the shelter of the trees not at all far from camp.

'Bastard,' I hissed, the moment we touched the solid ground.

With a roar, Peter threw me from his tight grip in his arms, hunching over in fury as I rolled painfully across the floor. Spitting my wet hair from my mouth, I rose shakily to my feet, my lips contorted in a snarl of my own.

'You have no right to tell me what I can and can't do...' I began.

'NO!' In a flash, Peter had turned around in front of me, his magic holding my wrists in a death grip, 'I have every right! I own you! You are Tiger Lily, a native to Neverland. You belong to the island and you are staying on the island therefore you belong to me and me alone!'

'NO! I am not your property! I rescued an innocent boy, who was just trying to help me, that you had imprisoned!' I shouted back, trying to express to him that I wasn't a pathetic, stupid girl with little success. I was a strong, independent, fierce tiger who did this out of her own free will.

'An innocent boy?' A crude, humorless laugh escaped his lips, mocking me with his lack of morals and his cruelty. He continued spitefully, 'Did you not realise why he was there? Did it not occur to you that this "innocent boy" was in love with you and was going to ruin our plans, our lives, everything we wanted-!'

I growled under my breath, frustrated beyond compare. How dare he? How dare he suggest such a thing? I wanted to tell him, so badly that it hurt, that I love him. That my love for him was eternally.

'-It's just you-?' I objected harshly, glaring at him.

'-and you went to visit him, helped him and, worst of all, you DISOBEYED ME!' He roared before using some strange telekinetic power to throw me away from him.

I tried to keep my balance, but the uneven floor brought me to my side, gasping. I looked up at him through the wet strands of my hair, hatred etched into every line of my face.

I needed a way out... And fast. Vulnerability and begging for his mercy were both not options. The only way I could face Pan was by using my magic, even if I only had a small amount of magic to wield.

I flicked my damp hair out of my eyes, concentrating as hard as possible on Pan and trying to channel my anger. I had traded most of my magic to the Shadow to leave Neverland and then to gain eternal youth free from being reliant on Neverland for sed youth. This meant that I had very little left and it was no match for Pan, but I had to try.

I felt the tingling sensation in my hands, then began to drive them up my body. The power engulfed my senses, sending shivers down my spine. Slowly, but surely, the heat began to encase my body and my temperature rose until I felt as though flames were erupting from my body. The heat was dazzling, causing my body to smoulder in a blaze.

Grinning, I rubbed my hands together, generating heat in my finger tips. I held my hands out, gathering all of the energy from my deepest surroundings and rubbed my hands together. This generated kinetic energy, which I absorbed into my hands. I felt the power from the rest of my body centre at my hands, all my energy surrounding my palms until they shone a crisp gold, glowing in the glistening light of the sun.

I could sense Peter Pan's lingering stare on me. They were full of surprise, shock, amazement and bewilderment. They twinkled in the light, lost in astonishment at my miraculous power.

Just when the energy was at its optimum, before it dissipated, I thrust my hands forward, pushing all of my energy out into the air. I channeled it towards Pan's surprise, the weight and size of the air knocking him backwards.

He dived to the side, soaring upwards into the air and settling down on the ground again, as if nothing had happened.

'You are in so much trouble, Tiger Lily,' Pan said, his voice cold, harsh and sinister. I felt my body quake in fear and I took a nervous step backwards, realising I was too exhausted to use any more magic.

With a flick of his wrist, I was frozen. I felt an enormous force, no heavier than air, but pulling me forward more violently than a hurricane, dragging me forcefully towards him with ease. I staggered around, trying to resist it in vain.

'What? Are you afraid of Oliver, Pan?' I taunted him again.

'Never!' He shrieked with fury, yanking me forwards using his magic so that I was lying on the ground in front of him, struggling to keep my breathing level. 'Oliver is going to ruin my plans, he could make you turn against me and not help me in gaining the Heart of the Truest Believer.'

I laughed humourlessly and taunted some more, 'What? Is it that you are in fact afraid of death, My Peter.'

'Me? Death? Never!' He chortled, almost angrily, as he began to furiously whack his wave of air towards me. If I were to die right now, I knew it would be an accident. But something about his tone made me fear for my life. 'Death is the finale to life, the opposite. I can not fear this for I have been dead until I was born, yet I suffered no hardship or pain from it.'