𝐌𝐎𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐄𝐀, peter pan

Chapter Thirty-One

In the next morning, Mara felt sore from the training yesterday, her legs mainly from all the running, she could barely lift them over her hammock and getting up. She stretched a little and James implied to take one of the medicine for sore and it should go away before they start their day.

The medicine James suggested tasted herbs and pine, it wasn't too awful but it wasn't the best thing she ever tasted. They said it would take a while to relive the sore after taking the medicine. As the morning went on, breakfast was long for Mara as Pan waited for everyone to finish breaking their fast.

Mara rarely seen Pan eating, he was eating this morning and seemed like the first she had seen him. The boy was quite mysterious, who doesn't seem want to share of his past even if he trusted her, a boy who can do magic and who knows what else. Mara herself was surprised to be intrigued of him and had a feeling of wanting to know about Peter Pan.

When morning grew late and every boy in the camp filled their stomach enough, that's when Pan announced that everyone is going for a run. Mara didn't like the sound of that.

"Hope you can keep up, arseling" said Curly, "Especially to the cliff"

"The cliff?"

"You'll see, that's if you make it up the hills" Curly chuckled.

Pan wanted Ace and his group to lead, followed by Felix and his group, then by Thomas's while Mara's tentmates went last.

It was more of a jog, up towards the north, toward where the mountain stood, she was behind Curly and Tootles behind her. She'd hear the clumsy boy's feet stumbling behind her at times as they'd run up the hill.

There was a long line of Lost Boys as she looked up, about twenty-five of them including behind her and herself. She heard every foot shuffling in front of her and behind her, no panting from them yet, she hasn't grown exhausted just yet, soon she will, soon her lungs and throat will wheeze and dry and pain will throb on the bottom of her lungs, and her heart will starting running quicker than her running.

The hills became steep and steeper as they jogged up higher on the hill and as closer they got to the mountain. That made the running harder and exhaustion fastened. It seems Mara was the only one who was growing tired while the rest weren't. They've all done this for a long time and countless times, they can run miles upon miles and perhaps they can run around the world.

"Running out of breath, girl?" James said who was behind her but with Tootles between them.

"I'm not the one who has been running for decades and has done this a thousands upon thousand times" she panted, "I'm no runner-- not fond of running-- hate running"

"Don't exhale, breath slowly and short through your nose, not your lips, makes your mouth dry"

"Could've thought of that before we started running?"

James laughed softly. "We're almost there to the finish line anyway"

"Aye" Tootles agreed, "when we say run faster, run faster"

"If I can" Mara couldn't speak anymore even when she wanted to ask where exactly they were heading to, Curly said about some sort of a cliff.

This might be the longest run she had ever took in her life, she had been chased by a knight, man, woman and child before but she'd managed to lose them and outrun them before her legs feel burn and her lung's breath shortened. She even started to slow down and James had to give her a slight push to get her running.

Mara had no idea if they were nearly there, it was until she noticed half of the boys in front of her disappearing from her sight, she heard them howling and whooping ahead. The boys in front of her began to sprint quicker, that was her cue to run fast.