Youth Is Forever

"Nice you you to join us," Pan smiled. His voice was light, and sounded like he hadn't hit puberty. He had to be fifteen, maybe younger. John and I were both fifteen -no, we're not twins, our mother just had us in the same year- and even I seemed more mature. For someone who looked so young, his eyes gave off a feeling of agelessness.

"As if we had a choice." I muttered. On top of Pan's head was a golden crown that had vines of ivy wrapped around it. The crown leaned to the left side of his head, but didn't move as he stood. His smile quickly morphed into a smirk.

"No, I suppose you didn't." His eyes looked past us, seeming to be wondering something. "True children. They do not know to bow in front of royalty." James looked us, his eyes telling us to kneel before the boy, but Pan spoke. "I like that."

"Why are we here?" Wendy asked, her voice meek and soft. I was surprised that she had been the first to ask the question, but the again, I didn't ask questions, I only made snide comments. Wendy then put her arms in front of her, her hands clasped together, fingers intertwined.

"I have ruled this kingdom for much longer than you could ever imagine," He began. His deep red hair fell into his eyes, but it didn't bother the young king. "More than fifty years-"

"There's no way," I commented. If this boy was going to tell me he had been the ruler of Neverland for over fifty years, he had to make a convincing argument. He was still a boy and he didn't seem fit to rule this country- or whatever it is. Pan then frowned, yet his eyes sparked with amusement.

"There is. I am immortal. I will never grow up."

"You... Never grow up?" Wendy asked cautiously. Her brown eyes gazed over Pan's smooth pale face with curiosity. Her gaze stayed longer than I would have liked, or perhaps it was my imagination.

"Exactly. May I resume my story now?"

"You may."

"In my first years of life, when I used to live in London, I had terrible parents. They would yell at me when I was bad, put me to bed, tell me to stop playing. I got tired of it. I liked to tromp around my room, pretending I was a pirate and I did this often. One night, when I was pretending, my father came into my room. He told me to grow up. He told me, 'This is no time for youth.' As soon as he left, I muttered to myself, and jumped out the window."

Pan stopped, turned and sat down on his plush throne. He shifted to get comfortable, his body leaning to one side as his head resting on his fist. His eyes were no longer on us, but rather on the wall. He was avoiding eye contact, I realized. Pan coughed before continuing.

"Much to my surprise, I didn't fall. As my body hurtled toward the streets of London, my fall got slower and slower until I eventually was floating. I started flying that night, but it wasn't magic that had saved me. It was Tinkerbell. With her help, we flew off into the night. In the morning, we were in Neverland. I waited here for awhile, but eventually, these civilians saw that I fit royalty requirements. My reign has lasted fifty years, but do you know why I brought you here?"

"If we knew, don't you think we'd be a little kinder?" John asked. My brother also seemed to be amused by this immortal boy. He didn't show the shyness or curiosity that Wendy did, but rather respect and amusement. I showed only resentment and dismay. I didn't want to be here. Despite my parents being total jerks, I would give anything to be back home.

"I suppose you would have been. That's hardly the matter, though. I have a proposition for you." He stopped and his gaze shot up to the ceiling. A circle of yellow light was slowly fluttering through the room. A trail of faint light was left behind as the circle moved forward, the pitter-patter of tiny wings beating could be heard. Pan smiled and pushed his hair out of his eyes. "Right on time, Tinkerbell."

As if responding, the ball of light floated above Pan's head and circled his head a few times before landing on the ground next to him. From there, the ball of light grew bigger, blinding me. When the light died down, I glanced where the light had been- only to find a girl. She was about Wendy's age, tall, skinny with pale skin. This girl had deep green eyes that almost matched Pan's and her pale blond hair had tiny pink flowers woven into it. Out of her shoulder blades sprouted large, clear insect-like wings. She was a faerie.

"Everyone, this is Tinkerbell," Pan's words were cut short by the faerie girl.

"Please, call me Tink." Tink's voice was a little deeper than i expected and I was immediately drawn to her. Her rose red lips curved into something a little more mischievous than a smirk. In all honesty, Tink was hot.

"And Tink, this is everyone. Actually, I am now embarrassed. I am such a terrible host, I don't even know your names." Pan frowned.

"I'm John Darling." John replied, his eyes also on Tink.

"I'm Michael Darling." Tink's eyes met mine for a moment, but she broke the connection as the next person spoke.

"And I'm Wendy Darling. It's nice to meet you, Pan." Wendy's eyes were doing a terrible job trying to avoid the red haired boy's eyes. Her voice was light and shy, giving off the impression that Wendy found Pan to be attractive. Tink caught Wendy's eyes and her dark lips twisted into a snarl- clearly, Pan was her's.

"Okay, now that the introductions are over, can you please get on with why we are here?" Tink staring at Wendy with that evil glare was starting to make me nervous. Uneasy, if you will. Pan's cheeks flushed with color.

"Oh, as I was saying- I've ruled Neverland for a long time. Believe it or not, but there's something in this whole kingdom I don't have anymore. Can you guess what that is?"

"Not a clue." I muttered.

"Friends. I have no friends." Pan looked like he would continue, but for the first time since we stepped inside the castle, James spoke. James's voice was raspy and cracked, conveying anger or even resentment. His jet black hair fell somewhat into his eyes as he stood, his hands were clinched into fists at his sides.

"But, Pan!"

"Yes, there is James, but there is something wrong with him. I have known James since he was a child, but he did something no child taken from the real world ever does- he started to grow up. I took him from his family when he was about seven years old, but after a couple years he started to get taller, started to get more mature. He's still aging as we speak."

"Wait. Did you say taken from the real world? What's that supposed to mean?" I asked.

"I meant Earth, or the Land of Dirt as it has come to be known in Neverland. We call it the Land of Dirt because we consider aging to be a disgusting, filthy habit for people. Here, Neverland is considered Clean, for we only age if we chose. Though, I cannot age -even if I wanted to."

"What do you mean by taken?" I repeated half of the question. I could somewhat understand why these people considered aging to be disgusting- I hardly liked growing up either. But, to never grow up seemed like a punishment.

"Well, with Tink's help, I can travel from the Land of Dirt to Neverland. When I first came here, I got lonely, so I would fly back to London, and take children who were willing to leave their old lives behind. When they get to Neverland- those kids stop aging."

"But, James didn't?" James sighed, but let his king speak for him.

"Yes. He was the only exception to the youth. He is different, but he is still my friend."

"I thought you said you had no friends," Commented John. What an excellent point, I thought.

"Excluding James, yes, that is true. James will grow up and friendship is not the prime purpose for adults. I needed friends. That's why I brought you here."

"If you wanted friends so bad, why couldn't you get us yourself?" Pan looked down at his feet as I spoke.

"I have to protect my throne. If I were to leave Neverland- or my castle for that matter, someone will take my throne. There are people who actually despise me and all I stand for- which is fun."

"Oh my- I think I grasped why you brought us here," Wendy gasped. We all turned to her. Her face had grown pale. "You want us to stay here and be your friends. You want us to stay here and never grow up."