"You still haven't given it a name."

"Huh?"

Peter points to the helm where my hands rest lightly. We stood on the top deck of the ship, me holding position at the helm as I cast my glance out to the open water, dreaming.

"James, it's been three days since you dreamed this thing and you still haven't named it."

My fingers trace the ridges carved into the wood. "I haven't thought about it to be honest."

"Yeah," Peter beams. "We could name it something like The Black Doom or James' Curse!"

My eyes never leave the horizon. "Whenever I dreamed of this moment, I always had this idea in my head. This vision."

"What was the vision?"

I turn to face Peter. "I just thought that the ships of pirates are always named after something that implies their animosity. I don't want that. I always wanted a name that would deceive my intention, one that wouldn't alert you to impending doom before it's too late."

"That's uh," Peter says. "Pretty dark, don't you think?"

"Maybe." I turn back to face the water. "But there's no such thing as a noble pirate."

"So you don't want a happy sounding name? Something that doesn't give away your intention before you have a chance to strike?"

"Some pirates have their gold, others have their swords. I have my tricks."

"Okay so, maybe a name like cheery or joyous or-"

"I have a name," I interject. "The Jolly Roger."

"The Jolly Roger?" Peter questions, surprised. "Where did you come up with that?"

"Do you remember the day that storyteller came to the orphanage?" I ask. "He was dressed as a jester and danced as he told us stories?"

"Yes, why?"

"His name was Roger." I say. "I can't explain what it was about him exactly, but there was something he possessed that made you feel like you could trust him."

"Because he was happy?"

"Happy people are the easiest to trust." I say. "It's the reason why so many of them are able to lure you in. You trusted them because they didn't look dangerous. I always wanted a ship that could have the same effect."

"That's a little dark, don't you think?"

I shrug. "It's just what I thought."

"Well," Peter slaps the railing with a grin. "Let it be heard from every corner of the Earth, presenting Captain James of The Jolly Roger!"

Peter's lips curved into a wicked smile. "May he have mercy on you."

"Okay so," Ambrosio leaned against the railing. "You had the power to create objects out of your dreams. When do we get to the real story?"

"Oh?" I laugh. "I thought you wanted to hear all about how Neverland was created?"

"I'm more interested in how you and Peter Pan went from being best friends to being mortal enemies."

"It's complicated."

"Try me."

I sighed. "It started with discovering the dark side of Neverland."

Peter and I had managed to explore most of the island in our time being here. Yet to build a proper, stable shelter, we camped out in the trees at night for a place to rest.

For a forest, you would expect to hear nocturnal creatures going about their business at night, but the woods lay silent.

"Peter?" I said one night as I lay in on a large branch.

"Hm?" Peter said from his position above me.

"Do you ever feel lonely?"

"How? You're right here with me."

"No, I mean," I sit up. "Do you get the sense that we're the only people on this island?"

"Well, I'm yet to see any animals."

"Do you really think we're the only ones here?"

"Right now, yes."

Peter sat up to answer me but something behind him stunned my vision.

"Peter," I whispered in alarm. "Lift up your arm."

"Why?"

"Just do it."

Peter raises his right arm but the figure behind him doesn't move. My eyes widen in shock.

"James, what is it?"

"There's something behind you, Peter." I whisper, fear settling into my bones.

Peter glances behind him. "I don't see anything."

I did. A dark figure sat behind Peter on the branch, unmoving and silent.

"It's late James. You're probably just imagining things."

I shake my head vigorously. "No, I definitely saw something."

"Something or someone?"

My mouth opened to respond when suddenly my jaw snapped shut again. The figure behind Peter began to move until it was hovering in the air above my friend. I stared, too scared and too shock to move.

"What are you-" Peter began but looked behind him as he said it. He stopped. "Woah."

Behind Peter, a shadowy figure had risen to its full height and hovered in the air above the branch. White glowing eyes were the only source of light that came from the figure as it stared down at us.

"Peter." I whimpered but my friend was in a trance.

Before I could climb up to Peter, the shadowy figure did something bizarre.

Reaching down to Peter, it extended its hand like an invitation. Still in a trance, Peter began to reach for it. 

"Peter!" I exclaimed, alarmed. I was off my branch in a flash, climbing up the tree hurriedly to reach my friend before the shadowy figure harmed him.

Reaching Peter's branch, I flung my hand out to stop Peter when all of a sudden the shadowy figure turned to me, eyes boring into mine and I felt my body go still, my blood ran cold.

"James." Peter whispered, eyes trained on the shadowy figure as it stared at me. "Don't move."

I let out a slight whimper but the shadowy figure didn't back down. Gently rising on his knees, Peter held out his hand.

"What do you want?" he demanded, staring at the shadowy figure.

The figure's eyes switched to stare at Peter. It didn't move and said nothing. I swallowed nervously. 

"What are you?" Peter ordered.

The shadowy figure still did not respond and I began to feel uneasy. "Peter," I whispered.

Cocking his head as the figure simply floated above him, Peter gently reached out towards him. "James, I don't think he's here to hurt us."

As if responding to his words, the shadowy figure moved, a small gesture that implied agreement. 

"Is that right?" Peter asked the figure. "Are you here to hurt us?"

The shadowy figure shook its head once before gesturing to the space between Peter and it.

"James," Peter said, eyes wide as he stared at the space between them. "I-I think it's me."

"What do you mean?" I whimpered, still frozen beside him.

"I think," Peter extended his hand again and the shadowy figure copied his movements. "I think it's me. I think it's my shadow."

"Peter," I said. "We can only see our shadows in the daylight, when the sun is before us."

Peter shook his head. "I know but, it's like this is another version of me, yet the same."

The shadow nodded once and a smile broke out on Peter's face. He made a few more movements, all of which the shadow copied.

"This is amazing," Peter whispered as he stared at the shadow.

"If what you say is true," I start. "Why would you have a shadow of yourself? Why have we never seen it before?"

"Well, if you think about it," Peter replied. "We always have a shadow right, and Neverland has the ability to make things come to life. What if it created our shadow too?"

"What, giving life to a shadow so it has become a person?"

"I don't think it's a person," Peter replied. "I think it's just a different version of me."

The shadow made an approving gesture, its eyes glowing in the dark as it listened to our exchange.

Peter looked up at the figure before him. "What do you want? Where did you come from?"

The shadow gestured around itself.

"The whole island?" I asked. "Is that what it's saying?"

Peter looked to the shadow for confirmation. It nodded.

"What do you want?" he repeated.

A moment of silence passed until I said, "I don't think it can talk."

The shadow simply stared at me and I took that as yes. 

"I wonder what its purpose is." Peter said, watching the shadow for a response. It never gave one.

"Maybe," I cleared my throat. "Maybe you're supposed to control it? It is you after all."

Peter's gaze flickered back and forth between me and the shadow. "Go fly to the tree on your left and come back." he tested.

The shadow did just that and Peter gaped, his mouth twisting into a smile. "That's so cool! James you try!"

"Um," I said awkwardly. "Do a cartwheel?"

The shadow looked at me plainly and I shrunk under its gaze.

"I don't think those are the kinds of demands you give it." Peter laughed. "Try something simple."

"Um, go collect a rock a rock from the beach?"

The shadow looked to Peter for confirmation and Peter nodded. "Do as he says."

The shadow took off, whizzing through the trees towards the beach until it was out of sight. It returned a moment later, dropping a small rock in my lap.

"Woah." I breathed. 

"Yeah." Peter said.

"I wonder why we didn't see it until now."

"I don't know." Peter shrugs. "You don't seem to have one."

A quick scan around my area has me shaking my head. "I don't see another."

"Maybe yours will come later?"

I shrug. I really didn't know if I wanted this other version of me floating around. This 'Shadow', as Peter put it.

"This is amazing." Peter speaks from above me, clearly in awe of his Shadow. "Think of all the things we can do with this, James!"

"Yeah," I mutter under my breath. "And all the things that could go wrong."

"I don't understand." Ambrosio says. "Why didn't you have a Shadow?"

Setting the last branch down on the shelter's roof, I stood back to admire my work.

Hands on my hips, I grinned. "That should do it."

"James! James!"

Peter came galloping through the trees. He had left early for the beach this morning to try and catch some fish. I jumped, not expecting him back this early.

"What is it Peter?"

"I've just discovered the most amazing thing!" Peter cries in joy, breathing heavily from his run.

"What is it?"

Peter's Shadow burst through the trees, hovering behind him as it stared at me with its glowing eyes. I looked away.

The grin on Peter's face only grew as he exclaimed, "I was down by the rocks and that's when I had an idea. I asked my Shadow to fly to London as a joke and guess what happened? He got up and left! He actually flew over the sea to the horizon and left Neverland!"

"How do you know he actually left? I thought it was impossible."

Peter nods. "So did I, but then he brought back this!"

Peter tosses something at me and I barely catch it in time. Turning the item over in my hand, my eyes widen in realisation.

An apple. Peter's Shadow had brought back an apple, which means that he-

"He really left!" Peter says excitedly. "We don't have apples here, so he'd would've had to get it from somewhere else. I tried seeing if he could take me with him but he said he can't."

"Peter," I say, concern filling my voice. "This is bad."

Confusion comes over Peter's face. "What? Why?"

I toss the apple back to him. "Well if your Shadow can leave Neverland and we can't, how are we to stop it should something go wrong?"

"What would go wrong?" Peter frowns. "It obeys my command only and I would never-"

"I know," I interrupt. "It's just, you can't control everything. What if something happens and it's out of your hands?"

"Like what?"

"Well," I scratch my chin. "Off the top of my head, what if you sent your Shadow to London one day to get something and it comes back with something else? Or worse, someone else."

The air goes still and a bitter taste fills my mouth. My eyes widen in horror as I realise what I said. "Peter-"

"James," Peter whispers, life filling his eyes. "What if-what if we could bring someone else here?"

"Peter, no." I shake my head. "No, it's not possib-"

"We don't know it's not possible." Peter interjects as excitement becomes him. "Maybe we could bring more people here? More children!"

"Have you lost your mind?" I ask my friend. "We can't even get home, how would they?"

Peter murmurs something under his breath. "What was that?" I ask.

"What if they didn't have to go home?" Peter mumbles.

I take a step back in shock. "You can't be serious."

"Why not, James?" Peter challenges. "Think about how many more children there are in the world who are just like us. Who long for an escape, who long for a better life. Who never want to deal with the monotonous tragedy that is adult life. We could save them!"

"Peter. No. It's too dangerous. We don't even know how this island works. We can't subject other children to that."

"What if they wanted to be?"

I laugh. "If you ever find someone who's willing to come here, maybe then I'll reconsider but until then, please just let it go. We have to work on getting home ourselves."

Peter's expression is unreadable. "Peter," I warn and he changes to a smile.

"Don't worry James. I'll let it go, I promise."

"Thankyou." I breath in relief. "Now come check out this shelter I made."

"We didn't know it at the time," I say. "But the reason I didn't have a Shadow was because I had no need for one. Our Shadows were a way for us to travel outside of Neverland's realm but I only ever desired to go myself, not to collect things from other places."

"But Peter did. He found a way to bring things to Neverland from other places using his Shadow. It was like a transportation device. I never needed anything so I didn't have one but Peter did, and that's where things really started going bad."

Ambrosio frowns from where he's sat on the ledge. "I thought you said you used to be in love. Where does all that fit in?"

I smirk. "Trust me, we're getting there."