As if to answer, a large splash of water came from Phillip, and Sticky worked with Prickles to pull at Peter�s trousers.
For the first time that he could remember (and there were other times, but he had always chosen to forget), Peter Pan was caught off guard. And he fell into the lagoon with a hearty laugh. This was, alas, not the only thing that would today catch Peter off his guard. He suddenly felt embarrassed to have fallen for such a simple trick. Surely Peter Pan wasn�t so easy to conquer? For a moment he was dumbfounded by this�and while he could usually shake such an event off (even to the extent of forgetting it entirely), it seemed to hover about him, and put him in a dark mood. He couldn�t explain it, nor could he fully accept it, and forgetting about it was utterly out of the question. He removed himself from the play and floated in the air just out of the action.
The game was played thus: a lost boy would stand atop the rock, and all others would splash him with water and try and wrestle him down. Then, most often, there was a bit of residual struggle as the fallen boy would be dunked, repeatedly, by his fellows. All was in jest, and there was much laughter, but also much coughing and sputtering. Wendy worried that perhaps the game was much too violent. She wished that Peter would come and play, especially when it was her turn.
Time had passed as they played, and while it was fully day when she joined them in the lagoon, the sky was ablaze with the oranges and reds of sunset when Wendy took her turn on the rock. The boys pelted her with wave after wave of water. It sprayed in her face, but she bore it bravely, neither shielding herself nor squinting her eyes against the onslaught or scrunching into an unpleasant face.
She struck quite a figure�stark against the sky�and to Peter Pan, who watched her now, intently, it was as though the world slowed down. In slow motion, the water droplets caught the dying sunlight before they bounced off her smiling face, her long brown hair, and her wet, skin tight, near-transparent cotton slip. Every curve on Wendy�s body, however underdeveloped, no longer belonged to a child, but to a beautiful young Woman. Peter had never seen a Woman before. Yes, he�d seen them, but had never taken notice of their charms�they never registered in his mind. But Wendy�she wasn�t really his mother, he knew that, despite the constant make-believe between them. She was�something else. The sight of her exposed body in the pallet of sunset made her�. made her�. Peter couldn�t explain it or form words, and neither can we, alas. But one thing alone was certain: Wendy was a Woman.
And from this, somehow, Peter Pan became a Man.
Wendy�s strength was rewarded. She did not fall into the lagoon, and indeed was declared to be the winner. Each boy praised her and she fair glowed with pleasure. But ever a modest girl, she broke off the celebration in announcement that dinner would be soon, and they�d best all go inland and dry off before dark. There was much groaning and complaining, but all obeyed willingly, for all were famished from the excitement of the days play.
Still atop the rock, Wendy waved to Peter and called him by name. He, also, did her bidding and came to her.
�Peter?� Her eyes shone and she smiled. She was completely unaware of the sheerness of her clothes, �Peter would you mind it so very much if you�d fly me back to land?�
He wanted to do something with her�.
�Of course I will, Wendy!� he said, giving no indication of the inner thoughts that plagued him. Peter was a strong boy, and he picked her up with ease.
Peter Pan had never felt this way before when he held somebody in his arms. There was a thrill, a thrill filled with fantastic terrors that he�d never felt before. He wanted to keep holding her.
Upwards he took her and the whole while she giggled. Wendy loved it when Peter would carry her. She wasn�t a very good flier herself, anyhow. When she first went to Never-land with him, she had been frightened at his reckless falls and dives and flips. But he always performed each maneuver perfectly, and he was always so confident, that she couldn�t help but feel safe in his arms. She held tightly onto him, and watched as the Neverland got smaller below them.
Peter felt her chest press against his. He felt as though he were going to explode. Some-thing moved in his body, swelled and hardened. It was strange, but it wasn�t painful. He couldn�t explain it and it drove him mad. This close to Her, he could smell the scent of her hair, which had partially dried from wind and sunshine.
