Feeling that Peter was on his way back, the Neverland had againwoke into life. We ought to use the pluperfect and say wakened,but woke is better and was always used by Peter.

In his absence things are usually quiet on the island. Thefairies take an hour longer in the morning, the beasts attend totheir young, the redskins feed heavily for six days and nights,and when pirates and lost boys meet they merely bite their thumbsat each other. But with the coming of Peter, who hates lethargy,they are under way again: if you put your ear to the ground now,you would hear the whole island seething with life.

On this evening the chief forces of the island were disposed asfollows. The lost boys were out looking for Peter, the pirateswere out looking for the lost boys, the redskins were out lookingfor the pirates, and the beasts were out looking for theredskins. They were going round and round the island, but theydid not meet because all were going at the same rate.

All wanted blood except the boys, who liked it as a rule, butto-night were out to greet their captain. The boys on theisland vary, of course, in numbers, according as they get killedand so on; and when they seem to be growing up, which is againstthe rules, Peter thins them out; but at this time there were sixof them, counting the twins as two. Let us pretend to lie hereamong the sugar-cane and watch them as they steal by in singlefile, each with his hand on his dagger.

They are forbidden by Peter to look in the least like him, andthey wear the skins of the bears slain by themselves, in whichthey are so round and furry that when they fall they roll. Theyhave therefore become very sure-footed.

The first to pass is Tootles, not the least brave but the mostunfortunate of all that gallant band. He had been in feweradventures than any of them, because the big things constantlyhappened just when he had stepped round the corner; all would bequiet, he would take the opportunity of going off to gather a fewsticks for firewood, and then when he returned the others wouldbe sweeping up the blood. This ill-luck had given a gentlemelancholy to his countenance, but instead of souring his naturehad sweetened it, so that he was quite the humblest of the boys. Poor kind Tootles, there is danger in the air for you to-night. Take care lest an adventure is now offered you, which, ifaccepted, will plunge you in deepest woe. Tootles, the fairyTink, who is bent on mischief this night is looking for atool [for doing her mischief], and she thinks you are themost easily tricked of the boys. 'Ware Tinker Bell.

Would that he could hear us, but we are not really on theisland, and he passes by, biting his knuckles.

Next comes Nibs, the gay and debonair, followed by Slightly,who cuts whistles out of the trees and dances ecstatically to hisown tunes. Slightly is the most conceited of the boys. Hethinks he remembers the days before he was lost, with theirmanners and customs, and this has given his nose an offensivetilt. Curly is fourth; he is a pickle, [a person who gets inpickles-predicaments] and so often has he had to deliver up hisperson when Peter said sternly, "Stand forth the one who did thisthing," that now at the command he stands forth automaticallywhether he has done it or not. Last come the Twins, who cannotbe described because we should be sure to be describing the wrongone. Peter never quite knew what twins were, and his band werenot allowed to know anything he did not know, so these two werealways vague about themselves, and did their best to givesatisfaction by keeping close together in an apologetic sort ofway.

The boys vanish in the gloom, and after a pause, but not a longpause, for things go briskly on the island, come the pirates ontheir track. We hear them before they are seen, and it is alwaysthe same dreadful song:

"Avast belay, yo ho, heave to,A-pirating we go,And if we're parted by a shotWe're sure to meet below!"

A more villainous-looking lot never hung in a row on Executiondock. Here, a little in advance, ever and again with his head tothe ground listening, his great arms bare, pieces of eight in hisears as ornaments, is the handsome Italian Cecco, who cut hisname in letters of blood on the back of the governor of theprison at Gao. That gigantic black behind him has had manynames since he dropped the one with which dusky mothers stillterrify their children on the banks of the Guadjo-mo. Here isBill Jukes, every inch of him tattooed, the same Bill Jukes whogot six dozen on the WALRUS from Flint before he would drop thebag of moidores [Portuguese gold pieces]; and Cookson, said to beBlack Murphy's brother (but this was never proved), and GentlemanStarkey, once an usher in a public school and still dainty in hisways of killing; and Skylights (Morgan's Skylights); and theIrish bo'sun Smee, an oddly genial man who stabbed, so to speak,without offence, and was the only Non-conformist in Hook's crew; and Noodler, whose hands were fixed on backwards; and Robt.Mullins and Alf Mason and many another ruffian long known andfeared on the Spanish Main.

In the midst of them, the blackest and largest in that darksetting, reclined James Hook, or as he wrote himself, Jas. Hook,of whom it is said he was the only man that the Sea-Cook feared. He lay at his ease in a rough chariot drawn and propelled by hismen, and instead of a right hand he had the iron hook with whichever and anon he encouraged them to increase their pace. As dogsthis terrible man treated and addressed them, and as dogs theyobeyed him. In person he was cadaverous [dead looking] andblackavized [dark faced], and his hair was dressed in long curls,which at a little distance looked like black candles, and gave asingularly threatening expression to his handsome countenance. His eyes were of the blue of the forget-me-not, and of a profoundmelancholy, save when he was plunging his hook into you, at whichtime two red spots appeared in them and lit them up horribly. Inmanner, something of the grand seigneur still clung to him, sothat he even ripped you up with an air, and I have been told thathe was a RACONTEUR [storyteller] of repute. He was never moresinister than when he was most polite, which is probably thetruest test of breeding; and the elegance of his diction, evenwhen he was swearing, no less than the distinction of hisdemeanour, showed him one of a different cast from his crew. Aman of indomitable courage, it was said that the only thing heshied at was the sight of his own blood, which was thick and ofan unusual colour. In dress he somewhat aped the attireassociated with the name of Charles II, having heard it said insome earlier period of his career that he bore a strangeresemblance to the ill-fated Stuarts; and in his mouth he had aholder of his own contrivance which enabled him to smoke twocigars at once. But undoubtedly the grimmest part of him was hisiron claw.

Let us now kill a pirate, to show Hook's method. Skylightswill do. As they pass, Skylights lurches clumsily against him,ruffling his lace collar; the hook shoots forth, there is atearing sound and one screech, then the body is kicked aside,and the pirates pass on. He has not even taken the cigars fromhis mouth.

Such is the terrible man against whom Peter Pan is pitted. Which will win?

On the trail of the pirates, stealing noiselessly down the war-path, which is not visible to inexperienced eyes, come theredskins, every one of them with his eyes peeled. They carrytomahawks and knives, and their naked bodies gleam with paint andoil. Strung around them are scalps, of boys as well as ofpirates, for these are the Piccaninny tribe, and not to beconfused with the softer-hearted Delawares or the Hurons. In thevan, on all fours, is Great Big Little Panther, a brave of somany scalps that in his present position they somewhat impede hisprogress. Bringing up the rear, the place of greatest danger,comes Tiger Lily, proudly erect, a princess in her own right. She is the most beautiful of dusky Dianas [Diana = goddess of thewoods] and the belle of the Piccaninnies, coquettish [flirting],cold and amorous [loving] by turns; there is not a brave whowould not have the wayward thing to wife, but she staves off thealtar with a hatchet. Observe how they pass over fallen twigswithout making the slightest noise. The only sound to be heardis their somewhat heavy breathing. The fact is that they are alla little fat just now after the heavy gorging, but in time theywill work this off. For the moment, however, it constitutestheir chief danger.

The redskins disappear as they have come like shadows, and soontheir place is taken by the beasts, a great and motleyprocession: lions, tigers, bears, and the innumerable smallersavage things that flee from them, for every kind of beast, and,more particularly, all the man-eaters, live cheek by jowl on thefavoured island. Their tongues are hanging out, they are hungryto-night.

When they have passed, comes the last figure of all, a giganticcrocodile. We shall see for whom she is looking presently.

The crocodile passes, but soon the boys appear again, for theprocession must continue indefinitely until one of the partiesstops or changes its pace. Then quickly they will be on top ofeach other.

All are keeping a sharp look-out in front, but none suspectsthat the danger may be creeping up from behind. This shows howreal the island was.

The first to fall out of the moving circle was the boys. Theyflung themselves down on the sward [turf], close to theirunderground home.

"I do wish Peter would come back," every one of them saidnervously, though in height and still more in breadth they wereall larger than their captain.

"I am the only one who is not afraid of the pirates," Slightlysaid, in the tone that prevented his being a general favourite;but perhaps some distant sound disturbed him, for he addedhastily, "but I wish he would come back, and tell us whether hehas heard anything more about Cinderella."

They talked of Cinderella, and Tootles was confident that hismother must have been very like her.

It was only in Peter's absence that they could speak ofmothers, the subject being forbidden by him as silly.

"All I remember about my mother," Nibs told them, "is that sheoften said to my father, `Oh, how I wish I had a cheque-book ofmy own!' I don't know what a cheque-book is, but I should justlove to give my mother one."

While they talked they heard a distant sound. You or I, notbeing wild things of the woods, would have heard nothing, butthey heard it, and it was the grim song:

"Yo ho, yo ho, the pirate life,The flag o' skull and bones,A merry hour, a hempen rope,And hey for Davy Jones."

At once the lost boys -- but where are they? They are nolonger there. Rabbits could not have disappeared more quickly.

I will tell you where they are. With the exception of Nibs,who has darted away to reconnoitre [look around], they arealready in their home under the ground, a very delightfulresidence of which we shall see a good deal presently. But howhave they reached it? for there is no entrance to be seen, not somuch as a large stone, which if rolled away, would disclosethe mouth of a cave. Look closely, however, and you may notethat there are here seven large trees, each with a hole in itshollow trunk as large as a boy. These are the seven entrances tothe home under the ground, for which Hook has been searching invain these many moons. Will he find it tonight?

As the pirates advanced, the quick eye of Starkey sighted Nibsdisappearing through the wood, and at once his pistol flashedout. But an iron claw gripped his shoulder.

"Captain, let go!" he cried, writhing.

Now for the first time we hear the voice of Hook. It was ablack voice. "Put back that pistol first," it saidthreateningly.

"It was one of those boys you hate. I could have shot himdead."

"Ay, and the sound would have brought Tiger Lily's redskinsupon us. Do you want to lose your scalp?"

"Shall I after him, Captain," asked pathetic Smee, "and ticklehim with Johnny Corkscrew?" Smee had pleasant names foreverything, and his cutlass was Johnny Corkscrew, because hewiggled it in the wound. One could mention many lovable traitsin Smee. For instance, after killing, it was his spectacles hewiped instead of his weapon.

"Johnny's a silent fellow," he reminded Hook.

"Not now, Smee," Hook said darkly. "He is only one, and I wantto mischief all the seven. Scatter and look for them."

The pirates disappeared among the trees, and in a moment theirCaptain and Smee were alone. Hook heaved a heavy sigh, and Iknow not why it was, perhaps it was because of the soft beautyof the evening, but there came over him a desire to confide tohis faithful bo'sun the story of his life. He spoke long andearnestly, but what it was all about Smee, who was ratherstupid, did not know in the least.

Anon [later] he caught the word Peter.

"Most of all," Hook was saying passionately, "I want theircaptain, Peter Pan. 'Twas he cut off my arm." He brandished thehook threateningly. "I've waited long to shake his hand withthis. Oh, I'll tear him!"

"And yet," said Smee, "I have often heard you say that hook wasworth a score of hands, for combing the hair and other homelyuses."

"Ay," the captain answered. "if I was a mother I would pray tohave my children born with this instead of that," and he cast alook of pride upon his iron hand and one of scorn upon the other. Then again he frowned.

"Peter flung my arm," he said, wincing, "to a crocodile thathappened to be passing by."

"I have often," said Smee, "noticed your strange dread ofcrocodiles."

"Not of crocodiles," Hook corrected him, "but of that onecrocodile." He lowered his voice. "It liked my arm so much,Smee, that it has followed me ever since, from sea to sea andfrom land to land, licking its lips for the rest of me."

"In a way," said Smee, "it's sort of a compliment."

"I want no such compliments," Hook barked petulantly. "I wantPeter Pan, who first gave the brute its taste for me."

He sat down on a large mushroom, and now there was a quiver inhis voice. "Smee," he said huskily, "that crocodile would havehad me before this, but by a lucky chance it swallowed a clockwhich goes tick tick inside it, and so before it can reach me Ihear the tick and bolt." He laughed, but in a hollow way.

"Some day," said Smee, "the clock will run down, and then he'llget you."

Hook wetted his dry lips. "Ay," he said, "that's the fear thathaunts me."

Since sitting down he had felt curiously warm. "Smee," hesaid, "this seat is hot." He jumped up. "Odds bobs, hammer andtongs I'm burning."

They examined the mushroom, which was of a size and solidityunknown on the mainland; they tried to pull it up, and it cameaway at once in their hands, for it had no root. Stranger still,smoke began at once to ascend. The pirates looked at each other. "A chimney!" they both exclaimed.

They had indeed discovered the chimney of the home under theground. It was the custom of the boys to stop it with a mushroomwhen enemies were in the neighbourhood.

Not only smoke came out of it. There came also children'svoices, for so safe did the boys feel in their hiding-place thatthey were gaily chattering. The pirates listened grimly, andthen replaced the mushroom. They looked around them and notedthe holes in the seven trees.

"Did you hear them say Peter Pan's from home?" Smee whispered,fidgeting with Johnny Corkscrew.

Hook nodded. He stood for a long time lost in thought, and atlast a curdling smile lit up his swarthy face. Smee had beenwaiting for it. "Unrip your plan, captain," he cried eagerly.

"To return to the ship," Hook replied slowly through his teeth,"and cook a large rich cake of a jolly thickness with green sugaron it. There can be but one room below, for there is but onechimney. The silly moles had not the sense to see that they didnot need a door apiece. That shows they have no mother. We willleave the cake on the shore of the Mermaids' Lagoon. These boysare always swimming about there, playing with the mermaids. Theywill find the cake and they will gobble it up, because, having nomother, they don't know how dangerous 'tis to eat rich dampcake." He burst into laughter, not hollow laughter now, buthonest laughter. "Aha, they will die."

Smee had listened with growing admiration.

"It's the wickedest, prettiest policy ever I heard of!" hecried, and in their exultation they danced and sang:

"Avast, belay, when I appear,By fear they're overtook;Nought's left upon your bones when youHave shaken claws with Cook."

They began the verse, but they never finished it, for anothersound broke in and stilled them. The was at first such a tinysound that a leaf might have fallen on it and smothered it, butas it came nearer it was more distinct.

Tick tick tick tick.!

Hook stood shuddering, one foot in the air.

"The crocodile!" he gasped, and bounded away, followed by hisbo'sun.

It was indeed the crocodile. It had passed the redskins, whowere now on the trail of the other pirates. It oozed on afterHook.

Once more the boys emerged into the open; but the dangers ofthe night were not yet over, for presently Nibs rushed breathlessinto their midst, pursued by a pack of wolves. The tongues ofthe pursuers were hanging out; the baying of them was horrible.

"Save me, save me!" cried Nibs, falling on the ground.

"But what can we do, what can we do?"

It was a high compliment to Peter that at that dire momenttheir thoughts turned to him.

"What would Peter do?" they cried simultaneously.

Almost in the same breath they cried, "Peter would look at themthrough his legs."

And then, "Let us do what Peter would do."

It is quite the most successful way of defying wolves, and asone boy they bent and looked through their legs. The nextmoment is the long one, but victory came quickly, for as the boysadvanced upon them in the terrible attitude, the wolves droppedtheir tails and fled.

Now Nibs rose from the ground, and the others thought that hisstaring eyes still saw the wolves. But it was not wolves he saw.

"I have seen a wonderfuller thing," he cried, as they gatheredround him eagerly. "A great white bird. It is flying this way."

"What kind of a bird, do you think?"

"I don't know," Nibs said, awestruck, "but it looks so weary,and as it flies it moans, `Poor Wendy,'"

"Poor Wendy?"

"I remember," said Slightly instantly, "there are birds calledWendies."

"See, it comes!" cried Curly, pointing to Wendy in the heavens.

Wendy was now almost overhead, and they could hear herplaintive cry. But more distinct came the shrill voice of TinkerBell. The jealous fairy had now cast off all disguise offriendship, and was darting at her victim from every direction,pinching savagely each time she touched.

"Hullo, Tink," cried the wondering boys.

Tink's reply rang out: "Peter wants you to shoot the Wendy."

It was not in their nature to question when Peter ordered. "Let us do what Peter wishes!" cried the simple boys. "Quick,bows and arrows!"

All but Tootles popped down their trees. He had a bow andarrow with him, and Tink noted it, and rubbed her little hands.

"Quick, Tootles, quick," she screamed. "Peter will be sopleased."

Tootles excitedly fitted the arrow to his bow. "Out of theway, Tink," he shouted, and then he fired, and Wendy fluttered tothe ground with an arrow in her breast.