Love in Neverland: Book 2 in The Neverland Trilogy (18 page)

And she had, once. Back when she was in London and Wendy had dared her to kiss John. She had kissed him straight on the mouth, probably traumatizing him for the rest if his life. But the feelings she was currently experiencing during this kiss was unlike anything she had ever felt before. Her whole body was attuned to the kiss, not just her lips, not just her mind.

This was what a kiss was supposed to feel like.  This was what a kiss was supposed to taste like.  It was beautiful and she did not want it to stop.

That was probably what scared her the most.

Chapter 18

The most difficult thing about being a fairy was trying to keep their anonymity while simultaneously feeding on everyone’s belief that they were, in fact, real.  Doubt, slander, and outright proclamations of certainty that were lies, caused fairies to lose their wings.  Suddenly, they were humans in a world filled with souls, and the only way to resume being a fairy was to find a living, breathing human who believed in their existence and make him fall in love.

Magdalena was thirteen years old when her wings were plucked from her.  In its stead were two nasty scars that ran up and down her back, revealing that fairies were real while taking away the beauty that made up her physical appearance.  Fairies usually wore sleeveless dresses that revealed their shoulders and arms.  The hem was short in order to help with their movement, revealing their legs.  If wings were plucked, their attire was completely called into question. 

Magda, like all fairies, was ashamed of her scars.  It was not her fault; this happened completely at random, and nobody knew why.  But it happened nonetheless, and the consequences were dire.  Should something as tragic as the loss of wings happen to a fairy, they were shunned from their world unless they found a way to reclaim their wings.

The feat was not impossible, and the shunning was not deliberate.  Wings were necessary to be part of a fairy’s world – it was how they traveled, how they communicated, how they defined themselves.  It was what set them apart from humans, or any other soul in The Neverland.  Without wings, a fairy was lost. 

Magdalena only had a younger sister, Cheree, and her mother.  The instant Magda lost her wings, her mother healed her wounds as best as she could.  Once Magda was stable, she set out to find someone to help.  At the time, Magda yearned for her mother to find someone, anyone, who would be able to reattach her wings.  Anything to be able to be her version of normal again.  Cheree cried the whole time, and while Magdalena understood her younger sister’s fear, she could not help but be bitter about it.

Be strong for me
, Magda had thought to herself as she waited in her bed.  She was forced to position herself on her stomach, as her mother’s homemade balm would seep into her skin and help ease the pain. 
Be strong for me the same way I would have been strong for you.

Her mother returned with tears and no prospects.  That was the moment Magda sealed her heart away.  She would not cry when she left her family.  They were doing enough crying for her anyway.  Instead, her mind started thinking about how she was to survive, not a fairy anymore, but not a soul either.

Rumors swirled that those who lost their wings made a good living selling their blood and bodies for a price.  Just because fairies lost their wings did not mean they lost their fairy blood, and that was something desired even more than money and pleasure.  Fairy blood had the power to render a soul alive once more.  It was something that was so desired by the occupants of The Neverland that many immediately dismissed it as impossible.  A select few knew the truth, however, and there was a market for everything in The Neverland.  A fairy found selling her blood was immediately shunned from their village, regardless if she lost her wings or not.  It was sacrilege, similar to prostitution, but much worse because sex could be found anywhere with anyone while fairy blood was so rare it was thought to be a legend.

Fairies who lost their wings and still sold blood were isolated.  There was a good chance they would never reclaim their wings since their lust for money and power overshadowed the potential love for another.  These particular types of fairies tended to love themselves more than they could ever love anyone else, and it was made obvious by their chosen profession.

What those fairies did not know was the shame it caused their family, and those left behind.  They were all but shunned as well, believing that something in a fairy’s genetic makeup predisposed her to a life of selling blood and isolation.  Magdalena’s mother’s closest friend had a daughter that sold fairy blood – hers and other fairies who had no wings and no prospects.

Magda could not believe the girl had turned out to be Elizabeth –

Nick’s Lizzie.

Magda bristled at the thought and tightened her hold onto herself.  She refused to think of the relationship the two shared – if relationship was even the most appropriate word – and, in turn, decided to focus on how she ended up where she ended up.  She did not think she could forgive her mother, even though looking back, Magda understood it now.

Three weeks after Magdalena officially lost her wings, her mother told Magda to dress warmly and assist her with picking strawberries.  At the time, Magdalena had not thought to question her mother and she was looking for any excuse to get out of the house and do
something
that she did not pick up on the inconsistencies of the day.  Things like Cheree’s hug lingering a little too long, the fact that Cheree would be staying home when she was more apt at picking than Magda was strictly because Cheree had much better patience, the fact that strawberries grew in fields always touched by a hint of sunlight, even at night, which meant there was no point in dressing warmly at all.  These things and a flurry of others were lost on Magda as she followed her mother out the door, a hand-woven basket over her forearm, empty and ready for the juicy red fruit to fill it up.

Her mother led her to the nearby strawberry fields.  She smiled at her daughter and watched as Magda filled her basket.  Magda did not understand why her mother’s eyes brimmed with unshed tears.  Perhaps she was emotional over her friend’s daughter and the scandal Lizzie had caused.  Certainly her mother knew Magda would never let anything like that happen to herself or her family.  Her pride was too strong to turn into a sangria whore.

Magda flushed at the mere thought.  It was a dirty word, a bad word punished by a good lecture or even a spanking.  It was the only phrase all but banned in the village.  She remembered her friend Milly dared her to go to the sunflower garden and whisper it in the petals three times.  Magda did, and she felt awful for the entire week.

Blood whore.  Sangria whore. A fairy who sold her blood to whoever wished to purchase it willingly.

It sickened her stomach.

Magda did not like to think about it.  Instead, she went over to her mother who offered to take the basket from her.

“Let’s head to the docks,” her mother said, and then slipped her arm through Magda’s.  “I love this sweater on you, Magda.  It brings out the color of your eyes.  Like the bottom of the ocean.”

“Thank you,” Magda said, because she was not sure how to respond.  Her mother was acting strangely, and she had no idea as to why.

It was all explained moments after reaching the sand, when a grand ship – a man-of-war – was anchored close to the beach.  She knew that ship.  Everybody in The Neverland knew that ship.

The Jolly Roger.

Captain James Hook’s ship.

She had heard rumors about the vicious Viking warrior and how strict he was in his realm.  It was the realm of torture, of pain, of nightmares and fire and brimstone and every awful and imaginable thing anyone could create.  She had heard rumors about how he lost his hand and by whom.  Her favorite one was that a crocodile snatched it up in one of his rare moments of vulnerability.  Proof that Hook was more man than myth, and not the other way around. 

Her eyes narrowed in on the infamous hook.  It shined brightly, which meant he kept it clean and took care of it.  It was silver, shining in the sunlight.  On anyone else, it would have been a simple hook and nothing more.  On him, it looked like the weapon was an extension of his body. It took place of his left hand, which was fortunate for him, since most people were right-handed.  Her mother whispered to her one night that Magda would have been left-handed had she not stop in and force her to use her right hand.  After this confession, Magda had burst into tears and told her mother she would never forgive her.  She had always wanted to have a quirk about her that was both subtle and unique.  Being left-handed might have caused some whispers, but she would have found it very useful.  Especially if she ever learned how to defend herself.

Yet, even Magda was stricken by his beauty.  She was only thirteen, but she knew he was beautiful, the type of man any sort of woman would be attracted to.  However, she still stood unusually close to her mother, seeking her protection.  Something was not right, but she could not put her finger on what that was.

“I must say,” James said, speaking for the first time.  His voice was softer than she expected it to be, and not as deep, but commanding all the same.  “I’m rather surprised you showed up.  I did not think you would actually do it.”

“Mother,” Magda said, keeping her wary eyes focused on the captain in front of her.  She had no idea why he was speaking to her mother as though he knew her, as though they had arranged this meeting together for some unknown reason.  But that idea was just plain silly.  Why would her mother want to meet with Captain Hook?  How would they know each other in the first place?  “What is he talking about?”

“Oh, she did not tell you?”  Hook seemed amused, his crystal blue eyes sparkling with mischievousness.  It was odd how something so beautiful could be so dark.  His eyes flickered over to Magda’s mother, clearly amused.  “That’s rich.  You bring her over to me under the pretense of what?”  His eyes narrowed on a basket of strawberries.  “Picking strawberries?”

“It is not your place to tell me how to speak to my daughter,” her mother said, with narrowed eyes and a tucked chin.  Her grip on Magda was tight even though her voice came out sure and strong.  She was frightened, but she did not want to show him that. 

“You should tell her now,” Hook said, his lips curling up into a smirk.  “She should hear it from you.”

And then, Magda knew.  It was like the pieces of some elaborate puzzle fell into place, and everything clicked together.  She yanked herself free from her mother, spilling strawberries everywhere.  She turned her eyes on her, the blue now ferocious and aggressive.

“You’re giving me to him?” she demanded.  For some reason, her breathing was ragged, though she did not know why.  “Like I’m something you can pawn off?  Why?  Why would you give me up?  Do I not please you anymore now that I do not have my wings?  Do I shame you?  Do you not want me to be your daughter anymore?”

Her mother’s tears started to fall fast and free, but at that point, Magda did not care.  In that moment, she hated her mother, more than feared James Hook, more than she was ashamed of herself for her lack of wings.

“She’s not giving you to me,” James corrected.  “We’re exchanging something.  You see, as a leader of the realm, I have abilities that would protect a select group of people from things they might face.  For instance, I can protect specific fairies from getting their wings plucked.  I can’t stop the thing from happening – it’s one of The Neverland’s quirks, and I don’t think I would stop it even if I could – but I can protect those that are at risk.”

“So,” Magda said, straightening her shoulders and clenching her jaw, “in exchange for protection for you and Cheree, you’re giving me to James.”  Her eyes narrowed at the realm leader.  “And what do you want with me.  I’m not giving you my blood.”

“Magdalena,” her mother admonished, but Magda paid her mother no mind.

“You do not get to tell me what do anymore,” she said, and then added, “Lyra.  Seeing as how you are forfeiting parental rights over me, you cannot suddenly reclaim them if I am talking out of turn.”

James chuckled.  “I like you,” he said.  “You’re spunky.”

“I do not care,” Magda said, and though she tried to stop it, her lip trembled just so.  “I hate you.”  She looked at her mother – Lyra – one last time.  Not even her mother’s tears would soften her heart.  “But, more than anything, I hate you, Mother.  For giving me up based on some fear of what I’ll turn into and how I’ll affect you and Cheree.”  She pulled away from her mother, spilling strawberries everywhere.  “May we go, please?  Since I have no choice in the matter, I would prefer we leave as soon as possible.  There’s nothing left for me here.”