A Found Girl (on hold)

Chapter Eleven

^Song above is You're Crashing, But You're No Wave by Fall Out Boy. (It has nothing to do with the story...well, unless you count the wave part. ;D)

Freezing water rushed painfully over my feet as it eagerly ate its way further up my body. My limbs ached from being stuck in a single position for far too long. Salt water stung my eyes as it splashed higher and higher.

My world seemed bleak and harsh.

Pan and I had been tied to a half-submerged rock, crude jungle vines fashioned into ropes holding us in place. The sea rose swiftly, ardently awaiting the time when she got the chance to swallow us whole.

We were positioned just outside of a bay, close enough to an overhanging cliff that we could almost taste freedom, but far enough away that we could never reach it. At least, not before the ocean had exacted her cruel revenge.

On this cliff, stood the group of children from before, their stupidly brave ringleader hanging far too close to the edge for anyone to gather an ounce of comfort. She stared down at us, her dark hair blowing in an ocean breeze like a curtain of black silk.

I gathered no sympathy from her curious gaze.

The Indians wanted us to be punished, but for what crime, I hadn''t a single clue. I didn't dare believe that the entire island was out to kill me and my savior. Were there no allies for us? No one who cared whether we lived or died?

The water rose higher. Waves began to break across my midriff.

Tears filled my eyes. I didn't want to die! I was only nine, far too young to meet the face of death. Far too young to kiss this world goodbye.

Would that cruel horseman have me today? Or would he have Pan in his cold grasp?

My mind wandered. Would I be eaten alive by some unknown fish, or would the long-forgotten waves of some distance place have the pleasure of swallowing me? Would I suffer painfully? Or would my fate be swift?

I turned my head towards Pan, bent on destroying these disturbing thoughts.

He was stoic beside me, his blue eyes staring out across the waves while his normally wild red hair was slicked back into a salty mess of dingy, tangled locks. His mischievous eyes were smooth and calculating, a complete contrast from his usual state.

I opened my mouth to say something, but words refused to come forth and flit off my tongue. I was left stuttering over incoherent and worthless sounds, my brain not even cooperating enough to stop my unfortunate mishap.

Pan caught my movement, though, and, upon turning his attention to me, said in a quiet, somber tone, "You're going to be fine, Wyn. We just have to remain this way long enough for the tribe to think that we can't get free. Then we'll just slip away before they notice anything is wrong. Alright?"

I nodded. It sounded logical until I remembered that Pan himself was tied up. How was he going to free us both in a split-second decision? The waves would surely wash one us of away before he could!

I turned away from him as best as I could, anger driving my decision to ignore him. Maybe fate would be on our side today and save us both. Or maybe one of us would be in a bed of wet sand come this evening?

A few salty tears slipped free before they joined their brothers of the sea.

I hoped that the tears would wash away my whimpering fear. I had no such luck.

***

I ignored him for hours. The sun beat down on us harshly, but I refused to acknowledge that lost boy's presence.

And for his part, he didn't seem at all bothered by it. If anything, he was reflecting my treatment back onto me, so I was extremely aware when a change of pace occurred.

Pan moved beside me, his head turning to catch a glimpse of something far above.

The sound of shouting hit my ears with a frantic blast.

My head whipped around as I instinctively followed the source of the sound, my eyes taking the path that my red-haired companion's had just carved.

The culprits were the children on the clifftop. They shouted frantically to each other and gestured wildly to a small object hanging below them on the bluff face.

The object moved slowly and carefully as it reached out towards the children. Its movements tried to remain slow and calculated, but I saw the tremble in its limbs.

With startling realization, it dawned on me that the object was indeed the figure of a girl. It was their leader, and she was dangerously close to falling further! The only thing down below that would catch her was the unrelenting ocean waves.

Pan and I were helpless to save her if gravity decided to pull her down that path.

And pull her down that path, it did.

But before it got that chance, Pan was pulling my attention away from the foolish girl.

"Wyn."

I turned to him, my childish game forgotten among the salty waves.

Everything left my mind in that moment, all the words and thoughts disappeared and were replaced with absolute wonder.

While I had been debating the identity of the girl in peril's path, Pan had taken it upon himself to slip free. The red-haired man now sat atop the rock that had been our prison for the better part of the day like it was a lavish throne.

He slid a hand under my ropes, loosening them enough for him to slip his hands around my torso. With his grip on me solid, he gracefully drug me up beside him.

I rested on the stone, soaked, shivering, and bruised, but not in nearly as much danger as the girl on the cliff.

Pan pulled me close, his body warming mine as his blue eyes drilled into my brown ones. "Wyn, I'm going to have to leave you here so that I can save her. Okay?"

"Yeah, Pan." I replied softly, remorse clouding my throat at the thought of my childish pout. But there was no time for those silly resentments when a life hung in the balance.

"Alright," he confirmed before he rose to his feet. Pan whistled once, high and loud, before he launched himself into the air.

And in that single moment, the girl's support gave way. She fell, her limbs flailing as her lips parted around a booming scream.

Author's Note:

Hey guys! I am so sorry for the long wait! This chapter just refused to be written. It might take me a little longer to get updates out from now on, but I promise I'll try to get them out as quickly as possible!

I hope you all enjoyed! Have a great day/night! Thank you all so much for reading! You guys are amazing people!

-Anna