The Never War

"Holland!"

A cackle lifted with the wind followed by the quick footsteps of a girl running free. Her chocolate brown locks ruffled behind her shoulders in soft waves while her hazel eyes danced along the shoreline.

"Holland slow down!" The young girl glanced over her shoulder quickly. Ignoring the pleas from the older girl chasing in her wake, Holland urged her legs to move faster with her instincts guiding her through the thick brush of the forest.

"Come on old lady!" Her voice was light and full of laughter. Her body was buzzing with an energy she hadn't felt in some time. Ducking to avoid a low branch her eyes widened when she broke through the final treeline. Digging her heels into the ground she stumbled slightly and felt her body tense when momentum pulled her closer to the edge of the cliff.

"Holland, I swear you're going to get us both kil-" the older girl didn't have time to finish her sentence before she crashed into the slim figure of her sibling. A yelp echoed into the sky as they both stumbled back, each grabbing for nothing but the thin air around them, and felt gravity take hold of their bodies.

When they hit the water Holland did her best to control the scream rising in her throat from the shock of cold. Clawing her way to the surface she took a deep breath when her head bobbed above the water. Treading she turned in a full circle in search for her sister but came up short.

"Harrow?" Panic rose the longer the absense of the older girl grew. "Harrow?!"

Gripping the ankle of the reckless teenager, Harrow tugged as hard as she could, satisfied with the muffled cry that followed. Letting out a laugh of her own once they had both resurfaced the older girl started swimming toward the far shoreline.

"What the bloody hell was that for?!" Holland screeched. Pushing some of her matching brown hair out of her face, Harrow couldn't stop the smirk from pulling at her lips.

"For throwing us off a cliff."

"I did no such thing. You trampled me."

"It's not like you warned me," Harrow pointed out.

"I was too busy trying not to fall off the edge."

"And yet here we are." Harrow ducked at the sight of water splashing toward her head only to return the favor. Holland scoffed, kicking at her sister to keep a distance between them in the sea, and grumbled the entire way back to the shore.

Wringing out their hair the girls let their gazes wander along the sandy beach, each studying something different, until Holland finally cleared her throat. "It's getting dark. We could set up camp here and head back in the morning."

"You mean I can set up camp while you sit and pretend to be doing something," Harrow half teased.

"You're the control freak when it comes to shelter. I'm not screwing with that again," Holland deadpanned. Harrow gave her sister a playful shove and let her feet carry her through the sand. "I'll find some rocks for a fire!"

"Good idea!" Harrow called over her shoulder. Once the trees shaded her vision she took a moment to braid her long hair off to the side until her vision was adjusted to the new lighting. Tugging the small knife she always kept in her right boot free the older girl began to cut away at the large leaves above her head. Losing track of time was easy and if the call of a night owl wouldn't have sounded, Harrow would've continued to search for the perfect materials to make a small teepee.

"I was starting to get worried," were the first words Holland muttered while pushing a stick into the ground just outside the fire she had started. But the grin on her face told Harrow she wasn't finished. "Was afraid I might find you regurgitated on my trek home in the morning."

"I'm glad you can picture me being mauled by a random animal," Harrow replied sourly. She dropped everything in her arms to the ground. "Pity you might have actually had to fend for yourself."

"I can take care of myself just fine. I made a fire."

"Would you like a cookie?"

"Do you have one?" Harrow kicked sand at her shins. "You offered!"

"I forget you are still as immature as a five year old." Harrow knelt down to gather the two large sticks that would be the main support when she felt sand hit her in the back. "Case and point."

Silence surrounded the girls once Harrow began to build the small shelter, the crackle of the fire soothing to them both. Neither girl would admit that they could not survive without the other though the thought plagued them daily. The world they were in was dangerous, much different from where they were from, and had their adaption of the land not been so quick, they wouldn't have lasted.

Holland glanced to her sister several times just to watch the way Harrow's mind and body worked together. She was always precise and measured when it came to working with her hands, something Holland was not. Harrow was two years older and though you could see sparks of her young age at times, she mostly held the aura of an adult. She was always protecting Holland, always finding ways to keep them going, and Holland envied her.

Harrow on the other hand was jealous. Jealous that she couldn't let go of that protective side and just live. Her eyes were always watching their surroundings, senses always on edge, and it was hard to remember she was still a teenager herself some times. Seeing Holland run free without a care in the world was what she wanted to be able to do but she couldn't.

Because while Holland was slightly oblivious, Harrow was attentive. Her eyes were narrowed in on the shadows melting into the trees that had been moving closer as she rounded the teepee. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end as she crouched out of sight, the handle of the knife secure in the palm of her hand.

"You wouldn't happen to have a rabbit or something we could roast?" Holland asked. Her question was left unanswered when her eyes fell on a boy dressed in greens. Scrambling to her feet she reached behind her back where the quiver of bows normally hung and instantly felt sweat bead on her skin. She was vulnerable.

"Hello there." She side-stepped his approach. Lifting his hands to show he was weaponless, the boy gave her a crooked grin. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Holland's eyes flickered to the teepee. Just as the boy craned his neck in the same direction Harrow tackled him to the ground. With the blade of the knife pressed to his throat the boy couldn't hold back his grin.

"Tell me why I shouldn't slit your throat right this very second?" Harrow growled. The blue eyed boy glanced to her sister.

"Because while I may not hurt her," his voice trailed off until the sharp sound of an arrow cutting through the night was silenced by the sand next to Holland's feet, "he will." Holland jumped back in surprise and let out a squeal when the fire licked her calves.

"Who are you?" Harrow hissed.

His blue eyes danced in the firelight. "I'm Peter. Peter Pan."