The Way to The Birch Wood Tree

Pan sighed softly as he looked around, making sure everything was in place before sneaking away from the edge of the cavern. Bell sat at the edge for a moment, looking in towards the bottom, something about the ore felt familiar to her but she couldn't figure what that was. She snapped out of it when she heard Pan's voice.

Pan smiled softly and looked towards her. "Miss Bell?" He smirked playfully as he ran ahead. Bell glared at him and rolled her eyes, crossing her arms as she followed behind him. When Pan and Hook made a game of cat and mouse, Bell would always help Pan to trick Hook, mostly getting close. Her favorite part about the game was getting to play from both sides.

Sometimes she would shrink herself down and sneak onto Hook's ship, without Pan knowing. While she loved life on Neverland, travelling around on the seas was amazing! The salty air as it flowed through her wings, the only bad thing about the seas was the smell of the pirates after being out there for so long. Though she always kept a few Vidas on her, they were tiny blood-red flowers. They are wispy, curled petal flowers that grow in the mountains between Mermaid Lagoon and the Hangman's Tree.

They usually blow after heavy rains around what we know as Summer and Fall. They have a gentle fragrance and remind her of an Autumns day after the leaves had fallen and the cold had surrounded the lands. They seemed like they might be Hooks favorite flowers but she could never tell. After accidentally dropping one, Hook picked it up, a grim smile on his face before walking off to work, placing the flower into the lace on his hat.

That day had always been engraved in her head. It startled her but it made her curious, what was Hook's plan? That's what they had to try and figure out; quickly. On their way back, they went to collect food for dinner, gathering things like bowa fruit, garoni, cucur and cepa. Garoni were a tough oily vegetable that was the meat of the earth. Cepa is like an onion and cucur is a fleshy vegetable that looks like a sponge inside.

Though Bowa Fruit was the lost boys favorite because Pan loved to make them into pies, jams and even cakes. They eat that sometimes instead of the wild deer and hogs in the forest. Though with the way things were going, they would probably have to start eating them raw. The fires had started to signal where their location was to Hook and his men, and Pan couldn't lose another boy.

As they got closer to the mountains, they decided instead of climbing them, they would go through the valley, next to the river. It would help them stay hidden and they could collect some of the freshwaters since it hadn't rained in a few days. It looked like some of the plants around were starting to die off from the lack of rain.

The tipped balance of Neverland messed with what plants grew where. Curcurs used to sprout up near Mermaid Lagoon and now they grow near Cannibal Cove and grow up the river. Like the plants, most of the animals had moved around as well, most living closer to the Indian camp. Those who couldn't move to the North West side of the island, stayed in the forests close to Mermaid Lagoon, adapting to making sure that they were hidden. Making sure that they weren't going to be the next meal or new worker for Hook.

It was sad to see all the creatures that had fallen to Hook and all the ones who had friends or family stuck in the pit. Pan sighed softly and looked back towards Tink, who looked occupied. She was always thinking about something whether it be about her friends or what happened to Pixie hollow.

The tragedy of Pixie Hollow was what it was called, everyone from the East to the West side of the island had their own version of the story. Some thought that the massacre was started by Lord Milori, but it was actually started by Tinker. While Pan never heard the entire story himself, he had heard rumors from others.

The version he had heard was that people said Lord Milori had stolen most of the supply of Pixie Dust and left with fellow members of the council. Leaving the fairies to fend for themselves and even killing off most of the fairies. Tink had never said details but Pan knew was it was Tink, she had wanted to leave Pixie Hollow for some time.

Doing the same thing, day in and day out gets really boring, really fast. Which was one of the reasons why she spent most of her time with Pan and the Lost Boys. But she could never be out for long because she needed Pixie dust to fly, so she made a plan. She stole enough to get her through the first year, and had someone on the inside for a while to smuggle out a pouch of pixie dust.

Though they had been caught, Tinker Bell was exiled from Pixie Hollow. But once a fairy runs out of Pixie Dust, it's like coming off of a high. Like almost every addict, even though they try to quit, most go back to get the thing that gave them the high. She went back to Pixie Hollow in the middle of the night and raided the Pixie Tree.

What she didn't realize was the Tree had been going through tough times. The supply had been short and the fairies who were getting bags of dust for a year could only get for a few weeks at a time. She ended up draining the last of the Pixie Dust from the Tree, which ended up wiping out most of the fairies in Pixie Hollow. There were a few still around, who were nothing more than human.

All they could do was live with it, and besides, there were fairies who lived outside of Pixie Hollow who weren't affected. But Tink was one of the few fairies from Pixie Hollow left on Neverland. Though the fairies weren't the only species that were going extinct on the island.

The drought in Mermaid Lagoon made many of the sea animals on the Eastern side of the island die off, like the Mistri. Which were small cat-like creatures who lived in the seas or outcoves. Their antenna and tail looked like they were made of water. A small pod connected to the tail which helps them see in the deep waters they like to live in.

Since Mermaid Lagoon dried up they have been disappearing and they are hunted. They become brighter when dead, which is why Hook and his men have a few of these species' bodies hung up all over the cavern. They are also used because they are filled with a lot of sea magic, which could help fill a small pool, even though the creature itself is so small.

Pan looked around them, making sure there was no one around as they made their way down the river. Though, looking back towards Tink, since she was being so quiet. He sighed softly before finally breaking the silence. "Mind sharing what you saw in the pit?" He slowed down so he walked next to her. Bell looked towards him for a second then sighed softly before signing, "The ore felt wildly familiar, I just can't think where I've seen or felt that type of magical energy before..."

Bell looked down towards her hands for a moment then back towards Pan, curiously signing again. "Did you feel the magical energy from the cavern Pan?" Pan looked towards Bell curiously and shook his head as he spoke. "No, I was more focused on the workers and where everyone was than the magical energies... When we go tomorrow I'll try and pay attention..." He nodded and smiled softly, looking towards Bell.

Bell sighed softly and looked to the side as they walked along the mountains. They seemed to tower over them in an almost warm hug from the cold stones that could tumble down on them at any moment. She looked towards Pan as he walked in front of her, climbing over rock, and finally making it to the shallow part of the river.

Pan making sure Bell was still with him before they crossed to the other side, making their way towards the Hangman's Tree. But there were a few creatures they had to be wary of before finally making it home.