A Found Girl (on hold)

Chapter Seven

^Song is The Pirates of Kensington from (yay, you guessed it) Finding Neverland! :D

They descended on all sides of us, whooping and hollering their victory.

Their knotted white hair flew out in tangled masses as they swooped upon us. Their rotten breath was foul as it swept over my face and robbed me of my very breath.

One pirate's arms circled my waist in a tight embrace. What little breath I had left whooshed out of my lungs at his rancid smell.

I was jerked off my feet and into the frenzied air which was filled with the raging sound of battle cries and war-torn screams. Screams that were most likely all mine.

The Lost Boys were used to such encounters. 

My head was spinning as I desperately tried to find the individual boys within the fighting.

All I found was a flash of crimson, a dash of gold, and a whispering trail of brunette and ebony in a sea of white.

My frightened breath refused to fill my frantic lungs as panic became the very air that I breathed.

But all that rough tugging, disgusting smells, and limitless panic didn't take my breath away nearly as much as the confronting sight above me did.

Just above the tree line, as if floating on a sea of green leaves and brown branches, was the form of a great hulking ship.

It was floating in the air! Like a balloon set free from a child's hand!

The pirates had successfully swept all seven of us off our feet and had us hopelessly bound in the air, high above the unforgiving ground. If we were to be dropped, I don't think even Pan would be able to slip free in time.

Unlike the ship, we were not flying. The pirates were simply suspended in the air by long ropes which were secured around each of their waists.

I was held captive, my arms bound to my sides and my lungs still paralyzed with fear and struggling to breathe. I kicked my legs frantically, grappling with my captor as we rose higher and higher into the air, but it was without success. I was still as hopeless as before.

My world narrowed until all that was left was the fast approaching hulk of the ship and the driving panic that pushed me to continue fighting.

We continued moving higher. The wooden surface of the ship blocked everything from my view but the filthy rogue hanging onto me. Brown wood and dirty woolen fabric were all I could make out of my world.

It was all my captor could do to keep me from banging off the harsh railing as we were hauled overboard, that's if he tried at all. My head still skimmed across the wood, and my knees smashed against the railing.

I was released to the ground with a bone-jarring thud, uselessly thrown down like a sack of potatoes. My teeth banged against each other and my battered hands once again broke my fall. They would never heal at this rate.

I glanced up and found myself staring down a set of mix-matched eyes, one bright blue and the other a deep green.

The different colors were both full of malice as the pirate owning them harshly lifted me to my feet and shoved me towards the Lost Boys. 

I felt the air whip past me, following a wad of his spit which splattered at my feet. Stepping around it, I ignored the gross show of disgust. 

His eyes. They looked so familiar, yet so distinctly foreign. Like I had seen them in a time that was long past. Or a dream that lingered at the back of consciousness. 

The rugged white hair that threatened to block out his angry expression had a flash of recognition shooting through me.

Who was that man? Why did I seem to know him?

I stared at him for a moment longer, assessing his features for any familiarity.

He was young, barely even considered a man compared to the other pirates surrounding him. Even Pan made him seem like a young boy.

Yet, I still couldn't place his features. 

Josh clung onto my arm and pulled me away from the strange raider.

I shook my head, breaking loose the distraction so that I could focus on the boys and try to push down my rising panic.

We were huddled in a small group, the stinking pirates surrounding us on all sides, creating a circle around us like one would see during a school fight.

Pan faced a set of stairs, his chin lifted bravely and a fire lit within his cerulean eyes. He didn't spare the rogues a single glance or acknowledgment. 

Fin and Zac flanked him at his sides, their eyes just as enraged as his. The other three, Josh, Eli and Toby, stood with their backs facing the older boys, protecting them from behind.

Josh had me positioned between the ranks of the boys so that all of their backs surrounded me in a circle of their own. I guess it was the safest place for me to be at the moment. The boys could protect each other while also protecting me at the same time.

The pirates jeered at us from all directions, each taking their own turn to openly laugh and spit at us. Crude words spoken in a foreign language were hissed our way. The hatred within their hearts was enough to burn anyone alive. And it was all shot at us.

What had we done to deserve such harsh hatred?

Pan glanced over his shoulder at me, concern lighting his features for a minute. His eyes connected with Josh's and an unspoken command passed between the two.

I watched, heart in my throat, as Josh slid a small, crudely made knife from the sleeve of his shirt. The other boys followed his lead, each sneakily sliding one free as well.

But before Pan and Josh could give the signals to attack, a deep voice called out across the ship. "Peter! It's lovely to see you again, as always." The words were mocking and haunting all at once and caused Pan to stiffen.

"The same to you, you old Codfish!" Pan shouted back, a tiny bit of anger seeping into his words before he quickly quelled it into cool indifference.

Another concerned glance was cast my way.

If he was so concerned about me, then why did he bother bringing me on this ridiculous trip in the first place?

Author's Note:

Hey, guys! :D

Thanks so much for reading this far! :)

And what is going on with that strange pirate? I wonder who he is?

^Song is My Demons by Starset. :D It's the song I'm listening to right now. :D I wanted to post something that wasn't from Finding Neverland. Enjoy.

Thanks so much for reading! :D Have a great day!

-Anna