Older Peter Pan X Older Reader: Part 33

"Peter lying to me?" you gave a short harsh laugh, "If anybody is lying to me in this world it's you!"

Hook's steely blue eyes never left yours as he said simply, "I wish very much that, that were true."

You sunk down in your chair and crossed your arms over your chest like a rebellious teenager who was arguing with their parents over the dinner table. You turned your head to the left, breaking eye contact with him and pointedly looking at nothing you muttered under your breath, "I'll just bet you do."

“How old do you think I am pet?” He interrupted.

Confused with his odd change of conversational topics you peered at him out of the corner of your eyes. You took in his appearance from his voluminous, shining, coal colored curls, to his distinguished and virile face. There were only a couple of lines at the edges of his sharp intelligent eyes, but they made him seem wiser not older. You took in his lean athletic build that was dressed like the royalty of old, but he himself didn't seem old at all. He held the vigor and looks of someone who was still capable of doing anything he set his mind to and the tight lines on his brow only gave him the illusion of someone with enough life experience to do it.  
"About mid thirties?" you guessed.

Hook gave a small wry smile as his smooth baritone voice dipped and lilted like a song as he admitted frankly, "I am much older than that my love. I have been alive for well over two centuries now.”

You instantly balked at this impossibility, but he paid you no mind and continued on.“It’s true dear heart. Our boy Peter is just barely over 200 years old now. Have you ever wondered how he came to be?"

You had, but you didn't answer. It was best to keep all of your cards to yourself and you didn't want Hook to know that Peter hadn't really told you much about himself or how he had came to Neverland in the first place. It would be harder for Hook to try and manipulate you if he didn't know what you didn't know. Turning your head back towards Hook you allowed your eyes to meet as you tried to paste on a mask of casual indifference. Once again the words Ishtar had whispered in your ear just before you went to see the Faerie Courts repeated in your mind, "Don't show them any weakness, they will destroy you if you do. Stand tall and firm and don't ever take your eyes off of them!"

Seeing that you had no intention to answer him, the Captain pressed on, "He was once a normal little boy just like any other from your world, born in England he was, but one night he decided he would never grow up and his desire was so strong that he ran away to Kensington Gardens where he happened upon the lovely Tinker Bell, whom you have already made an acquaintance with." He stopped and glanced at the still sleeping pixie woman inside the glass lantern beside Mr. Smee. Mr. Smee looked to be dozing off a bit himself in the overly large leather chair. His eyes drooped behind his circle lensed glasses and his round graying head kept nodding up and down with his efforts to stay awake.

"Miss Bell found herself so enchanted with the young boy that she just couldn't stand the thought of being separated from him. Her poor tiny heart also broke at the thought of him having to grow up against his will. So she went to the Faerie Courts, not this one but the former one, and after a bit of sweet talking her grandfather," here Hook leaned in and lowered his voice as if divulging a great secret, "a faerie of quite enormous power on the council who doted on her as his favorite offspring and who could inevitably deny her nothing," he paused and then straightened up in his chair once more as he spoke normally again while holding his near empty wine glass in his one good hand, "they reached a verdict, apparently one which nobody seems to really recall anymore, and then returned to your world to find our boy and then they spirited him away here to Neverland. Peter has resided here ever since. He was designated by the pixies as a sort of goal keeper of the two worlds if you will. He is the only one allowed access other than Miss Bell to move freely from your world to this one."

You reached for your own wine goblet and took a tentative sip. It was too boozey for your tastes and you wanted to spit it out, but you forced yourself to swallow it. You had intended not to take seriously anything Hook was going to tell you, but you had learned more about Peter in the last ten minutes with Hook than you had the last week with Peter. You wanted to dismiss everything he said as lies, but he brought up the former Faerie Council, the one Kwoth had somewhat mentioned back at the Courts. Kwoth had told Rhiannon he was the only original council member left and that she and the others were all just replacements. He had also proclaimed that he was from the first generation of pixies, the ones that had originally made Pixie Hollow. Could it be Tinker Bell's grandfather was of the first generation too? What was it Kwoth had said about his power again? You closed your eyes and searched your brain for the memory..."Do not test me children, for my magic is a thousand times older and stronger than yours."

An involuntary shiver slivered it's way down your spine. If Tinker Bell's grandfather really was one of the original Court members then it would make sense that he'd have enormous power and political influence in the pixie world. And you recalled how when you had first met the Lost Boys they had tried to shoot you out of the sky. They wouldn't have done that if they were used to more people coming in or out from your world would they? Following that same thought track you decided to ask Hook, "What about the Lost Boys? How did they come to be here then?"

Hook was rather forthcoming as he explained in his crisply cultured voice, "Quite a few years after Peter had come The Lost Boys were brought here by Pan when they fell out of their prams as children. They had each been lost for seven days before Peter who had been visiting your world at the time found them all and one by one he brought them to live in Neverland with him. A young boy needs some companions to play with after all and curiously enough the Faerie Courts allowed it, though as I mentioned before no one really seems to remember why. It was so long ago after all and this newer generation of pixies seems to have forgotten most of their predecessors. You see my dear, Peter, The Lost Boys, and I are all forgotten relics from a time long gone by.”

“He doesn’t look like a little boy to me,” you shot at Hook defiantly while you twirled the wine around in your glass.

Hook was not offended by any of your venomous outbursts before and he wasn't this time either. His pillowy lips did pull into a cheerless smile as if he was silently laughing at a joke that was made at his own expense. The cadence of his rich voice had deepened as he replied, “No, he and the other boys have aged, as have I. The aging process here in Neverland does not stop. Rather it just passes by incredibly slowly. We have all been here for at least two centuries and yet we have only physically aged a decade. I imagine you came here because you didn’t want to grow up?"

Your eyes must have betrayed you, because Hook's own glacial blue ones softened a touch in sympathy. His voice took on a gentler tone as he explained, "I hate to crush your dreams my dear, but there is nothing in this world or your world that does not eventually meet its inevitable end. As long as you stay here your body will age; at a snail’s pace granted, but it will still age. It will take a very long time, but you will grow up whether you like it or not. And Peter is well aware of this fact, yet he still promised you a lie anyways. Such a shame, you would think that after living for two hundred years he wouldn’t keep repeating the same mistakes.”  

“What do you mean by that?” you demanded as a feeling of foreboding began to wash over you.  

Hook transfixed the full force of those forget me not blue eyes on you and they were filled with such pity, "I'm afraid my pet that you aren't the first girl Peter has brought here to Neverland. I do very much hope though that you will be the last."

Your heart seized painfully in your chest. He brought another girl here? There was another? He had never mentioned anyone else. But then you remembered a specific conversation that had seemed strange during your trial at the Faerie Courts, Maibe had been speaking when she had said something that had confused you then. The words now came rushing back with perfect clarity, "A product of a fevered imagination from a lovesick human girl. Need I remind you all of what happened the last time we had one of those here in Neverland?" You shook your head, refusing for the moment to jump to any wild conclusions, but your heart was already feeling his accusation to be true. Part of you wanted to make a run for it, dive overboard and try your luck with the mermaids again, but now a more powerful part of you needed to stay. If nothing else than to prove that Hook was a filthy liar and nothing more than a common cad.

"That's funny, I've never heard of such a woman," you challenged him while making sure to give no hints of your already suspicious inklings.

His eyebrows raised high at that as he said, "Really? You've never heard of a pirate named Red Handed Jill?"

Your heart dropped and so did your nonchalant expression. The little book and hand mirror you had secretly stashed in the inner pockets of your jacket now felt heavier resting against your chest than they had a second before. Hook however seemed to be completely unaffected by bringing up a dead woman's name, especially when he was the reason she was dead in the first place. Getting frustrated and more confused by the second you quickly snarked, "You mean the woman you brutally murdered because she was becoming more popular with your crew than you? Couldn't have that now could we? This is a one man show after all isn't it? Why else would you be so desperate to kill Peter and The Lost Boys?"

You figured Hook would be furious or at least semi-upset, but you were not expecting what happened next. He looked at you with the saddest, most tenderest expression anyone had ever given you. You were somewhat taken aback by the force of sincerity in his manner. His voice was slow and very small as he said, "Is that what they told you?" He was still for a moment before letting out a resigned sigh. "Yes, I suppose that is probably the conclusion they would have to come up with. They would go mad otherwise."

"What's that supposed to mean?" you demanded masking your uneasiness with false bravado. You were getting antsier by the minute and you desperately wanted to be anywhere but there, but Hook just seemed to be quietly withdrawn in memory. You sat there for a handful of painfully long drawn out seconds. His eyes were glossed over seemingly fixed on the table, but you could tell he had gone somewhere deep into his mind's eye. You were on the edge of your seat becoming more and more impatient for him to just tell you what on earth he was getting at with all of this. You were contemplating throwing your half eaten apple at his beautifully curled head to make him talk, when his smooth cultured voice whispered, "Wendy."

"What?" you quavered leaning over the table to hear better.

His voice was louder this time and clearer as he visibly extracted himself from his memory. "Her name was Wendy. Wendy Darling as a matter of fact." Feeling like you were talking to the Cheshire Cat you threw up your arms and yelled exasperated, "Who is Wendy Darling? And what does she have to do with anything?"  

Hook never lost his cool gentlemanly appearance. He seemed entirely unperturbed by your bouncing legs and agitated glances. He just reached his long hooked arm out to slip it underneath the handle of the beer stein. He lifted it without much fuss and elegantly tipped it as he poured himself another glass of wine. This only made you narrow your eyes at him as you began to think about throwing the apple at him again, only this time just out of pure spite. As if he was picking up on your train of thought Hook began to speak again, "Before she became known as Red Handed Jill, her real name was Wendy Darling. And my dear pet, Wendy Darling has everything to do with me, Peter, this island, and even with you. She was the first person Peter had ever brought to Neverland other than the Lost Boys. She wasn't like them though," Hook locked eyes with you and flashed a dry smile, "Girls are much too clever to ever fall out of their prams. No, she was not a toddler when Peter decided to bring her here to live. She was a child just on the cusp of womanhood, old enough to think reasonably, but still young enough to believe in the unreasonable."

Hook paused and brought the glass to his lips as if bolstering himself to tell the rest of the story. "You see this all took place, if I had to gander a guess, about a century ago. Peter wasn't the grown up man you know him to be, but rather a young boy who absolutely refused to ever grow up. He was brash, impulsive, and like most boys that age, believed himself to be completely invincible and without the slightest fault."

He stopped again and gave a slight chuckle. "He was such a cheeky lad back then... he even used to call me an old codfish!"

Hook's smile was slowly erased and his piercing eyes, a moment ago filled with merriment, became melancholy once again as he ventured on, "Peter despite being young was starting to desire something the island could no longer give him, but he couldn't quite understand what it was he was longing for. He eventually came to the conclusion that what he wanted was a new companion. So off he went to your world to find another Lost Boy. He ended up finding a companion however who was not at all lost and was not a boy at all. Her name was Wendy, Wendy Darling, and she was the loveliest child I've ever seen. She was no more than twelve or thirteen if I recall correctly, and Peter happened upon her one night as he flew by her window. She used to leave her window cracked every night, despite it being winter, and every night she used to tell wild bedtime stories to her younger brothers. She had a real gift for story telling. She could spin a tale that would manipulate your emotions without you even being aware of it before it was too late. She would reel you in with her genteel voice and then she would have you on the edge of your seat dying to know what happened next. No story was ever alike and all of them were filled with adventure, fantasy, horror, and romance. She had a natural talent with capturing people's imaginations, but even more so in capturing their hearts."

Hook's eyes softened in the fondness of the memory of such a little girl. His voice seemed to reverberate in the large intimate cabin. "She was a well-mannered, even tempered, and incredibly bright child, yet she was fearless and headstrong when her principals were challenged... Come to think of it she was a bit like you."

Hook meant it as a compliment, but the comparison only made your stomach heave. You didn't want to be compared to her in any way. It made you feel like nothing more than a repeat of this girl Wendy. "Needless to say she captured Peter's attention. He wanted her to come and tell him and The Lost Boys her tales every night. Thus he climbed into her window one night and promised to take her away to a fantastical land rife with dastardly pirates and savage Indians where she would never have to grow up. What little girl with an imagination like hers could resist? Especially when asked by such a charming boy? Without hesitation she agreed, but she did have wits about her enough to goad Peter into bringing her younger brothers along too. For his own part Peter didn't exactly lie to her. He wasn't aware at that time that he was actually aging all along. As I told you before time moves achingly slow here."

Hook reclined in his chair, his soft curling hair casting a dark curtain over his broad shoulders.  He was so gentlemanly and suave with a sophistication of manners that very few people in the modern world had anymore. Leaning in his high backed throne of a chair he was the very picture of deadly old world charm and aristocracy. His voice was so modulated and so well polished that it would be pleasant to listen to him speak, that is if everything he was saying wasn't like a dagger straight through your heart. You didn't want to hear anymore about this woman or girl or whoever she was, but you couldn't force yourself to tell him to stop. You had to know the mystery surrounding this girl. How come Hook's story wasn't matching up to Peter and Slightly's story? You would accuse Hook of lying, but he'd been kind of frank with you earlier and what would be his motive? He could have killed you several times over by now if he wanted. You sat and quietly bit the inside of your cheek to keep from crying or saying something you'd later regret. You noticed some plump grapes in a dish off towards your right and decided to pluck some onto your own plate. You didn't want Hook to see the storm of emotions he was conjuring up within you by his words so you pretended to be interested in eating.

"She found it beyond her wildest dreams at first. It was all one grand adventure after another. She fell in love with Neverland and The Lost Boys instantly took to her as well. They all banded together like a little family. Her two brothers were even officially adopted into The Picaninny Tribe. I believe the oldest one was quite taken up with Princess Tiger Lily at the time. But the thing with Neverland, that everyone comes to find out eventually, is that all of it's promises come with a terrible price. Our little Wendy and her brothers tragically found that out too late."

To be continued…

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Authors Note: Happy Valentine's Day everyone! Alas another chapter and a longer one at that. I would have preferred to spend my V-day with Peter or the Lost Boys but alas we are stuck with Captain Hook. At least he's good eye candy though right? And he is quite chatty although it kind of sucks that he talked about another girl all night. Maybe he's not such a great Valentine's Day Date after all lol. Many of you probably saw the Red Handed Jill part coming, but did you see Peter as the goal keeper of the two realms and Tinker Bell's grandfather perhaps being an original Faerie Court member? Ah, those pesky pixies they are always the cause of some sort of mischief aren't they? We will just have to wait and see exactly how they have had their hands in Neverland's history. I know bummer right? Guess we will just have to sit back and wait as it all plays out. Anyways thank you again for reading everyone! Stay tuned for the next chapter to find out what will happen next. Much love to you all!