Lost (Peter Pan x Male Mermaid Reader)

2 - Let's Play

Y/N accepted the apple and savored every bite. He hadn't eaten for days, and the taste of any food at all was enough to make him grateful to his rescuer. He watched the boys quietly, studying them. Peter appeared to be their leader, as all the boys did as he said. During the night, Peter had fetched him some clothes, and now he wore his tunic from before beneath a leather vest, pants, and leather boots. A cloak hung from his shoulders, the hood down. Despite his help, he was wary of him. He had spent most of his life hunted, and he wasn't about to let his guard down now.

"Y/N." Pan motioned for him to follow him, so he pulled himself to his feet. "Watch, but do not interfere."

All around them, lost boys were discarding breakfast leftovers and gathering weapons. The air buzzed with an excited energy, and the boys whispered to each other; about the new boy, about the upcoming activity. This seemed to be a regular happenstance, as the boys moved swiftly until they were gathered around an open circle of earth, each of them holding some sort of weapon. Peter stepped into the center of the circle, and Y/N watched with narrowed eyes.

"Let's play a game." A wicked smirk crept onto Pan's face, and he locked eyes with Y/N who tensed in response. "James!" He shouted, and a dark-haired boy stepped from the crowd into the circle, a spear slung over his shoulder and a proud gleam in his eyes. "Devin!" Devin joined Peter and James in the circle, grinning with anticipation, a fighting stick he brandished like a sword in his grip. "You know what to do." Peter melded back into the exterior ring of boys next to Y/N.

"What are they-" Y/N began to ask but was interrupted by the violent crack of wooden poles crashing against each other. Peter smiled with satisfaction next to him. He watched with horrified fascination as the boys advanced, parried, and attacked each other.

Devin was beginning to slow. They had been fighting for a solid fifteen minutes. He was smaller than James and was struggling to block his blows. Suddenly, James swung his spear at Devin's legs, and Devin wasn't fast enough. Bruised and bloody, he was knocked to the ground, gasping for breath.

He held up his hands. "Please," he panted as Jack stood above him. "I need a break."

"Stop!" Peter commanded, stepping into the circle. He pulled Devin to his feet, eyes blazing with anger. "You are done when I tell you you're done. Not when you need a break."

Y/N watched with wide eyes as Pan exited the circle and gestured for the fight to continue. Shouts and laughter rippled around the circle as Jack attacked Devin, throwing punches to the boy who lay helpless on the ground. This was madness.

"Watch, but do not interfere." flew out the window as Y/N himself ran into the circle, pushing James off Devin, who was to shocked to fight back. "Stop!" He yelled, crouching protectively next to the injured boy.

Eyes darted between Peter and the boy who had yet to be introduced to the boys. Whoever he was, he was recklessly brave, to the point of being stupid even. Shocked silence fell as Pan strode forward, grasped the boy's arm, and pulled him up and away from Devin. The circle scattered, all eyes on them.

"What do you think you're doing?" Pan shouted, slamming the boy against the nearest tree.

He gazed defiantly up at him, not the least bit frightened by the position he was in. Something in the back of Pan's mind triggered, and he remembered grown men trembling in fear before him. And yet, there he was with the audacity to defy him.

"I know what you are," He growled. "And I can just as easily throw you back in the sea where you came from, fish. So," Pan's grip on his shoulders slackened slightly, but the rough bark of the tree still scraped his shoulder blades. "Remember who saved you. You owe me your life."