distrust & pixie dust

She didn't feel as if the woman was a threat anymore. Her sense of judgement on that was already mediocre at best but she really felt in her gut that this woman was looking out for her more than she was trying to harm her. They walked in silence but that was alright with Wendy. It gave her more time to think about all she wanted to ask and how much information she was willing to give herself.

Eventually, she couldn't keep her thoughts to herself. "I'm sure you miss Neverland terribly," she said softly, glancing at her. "I hate that we have to meet like this...but I'm eager to know more....it's been a while since I've met someone new who knows what I'm talking about."

As the Snuggly Duckling came into view, the woman's voice broke the quiet. A heaviness grew around Zarina's heart like a dense fog upon hearing her words. The fairy pressed her lips together, attempting to suppress the emotional confusion that Neverland now caused her. The giddiness and wonder dripping from this strangers voice at the mention of her home. Zarina used to have it too, but now it just made her sad. For now, she decided to ignore the blonde's first comment. It was just an assumption on her part anyway. "I know you how you feel..."

Just as Zarina's hand rested on the bar's front door, she paused for a moment before turning around to face the woman. "Look, I'll be willing to answer your questions and share some more information with you about Neverland, but for me to do that I really need you to keep all of this a secret... and I'm gonna need you to go first. You are an outsider after all. Okay? Does that seem fair?"

He showed her to the kitchen, where his lone bag of dust sat on the table, glowing softly in the dim light. He didn't turn on the overhead light, instead letting the natural sunlight filter in through the windows. It was Terence's favorite feature about the apartment - the beautiful bay window in the kitchen to overlook the street below, just one block from Main Street.

He hurried over to the table, motioning for Zarina to drop her stuff on the table, scooping up his bag in one motion and idly tossing it in the air. Dust was a funny thing, both weighty and light at the same time. The faintest tinkle sounded when it poured, like grains of sand brushing against glass. It felt like a thousand shivers rushing over your skin, and just like when he'd taken to the sky with Dessa, the muscles around his shoulder blades twitched with anticipation, as though readying wings for flight.

"Do you have any?" he asked, holding up the bag for her inspection.

As Terence guided her to the kitchen, a familiar, golden glow immediately ensnared Zarina's attention. Her footsteps stopped seemingly of their own accord and a small breath hitched in her throat. Pixie dust... She really should have expected a fellow dust keeper to have some sort of supply, but even if she had, she was pretty positive none of these awful past few years could have prepared her for the sight of it.

His tossing of the bag snapped her out of her trance, and she slowly moved to place her things on the table. Even as she began to spread out her unkempt yet somehow organized (at least to her) research, Zarina couldn't control the flicker of her eyes as they kept being pulled back to the dust. "Huh? Oh— I, um— very little. Not as much as you. Even the talent dusts I made I only have a few grains left; but you probably don't want to hear about those."

Terence dragged his front door open, staring at Zarina standing on his doorstep. He swallowed hard, suddenly extremely unsure about this whole situation.

As soon as he'd found out Zarina was back in Evermore from... Wherever they'd all been, he wanted to find her and ask her to start working on the dust problem with him again. The issue he'd run into was that he didn't know how to contact her. It wasn't like they'd swapped digits or anything like that, and there wasn't a community of mail-talent fairies to help deliver messages like there was back home.

So he'd done some pro-level stalking and figured out her address from her library card and stuffed a letter in her mailbox before he went into work one day, his request and his number scribbled on a piece of notebook paper.

And he'd been truly surprised when he finally received a text from her agreeing to let him in on her experiments.

Terence cleared his throat, opening the door a little wider and sweeping an arm to invite her in.

"Hey Zarina. Thanks for coming."

Lately there were floating whispers around town of what some residents that disappeared had to endure. For Zarina, she was forced through two months of captivity. Two long months caged behind bars all while being taunted and pointed at like some poor animal or sideshow attraction. The brunette learned quickly enough that she could still hear them when things were too quiet; still smell the iron and feel the ache in her limbs. The situation wasn’t ideal for someone who usually only had her own thoughts for company.

Terence’s invitation, as out of the blue as it was, was a desperately needed distraction. In fact, ‘desperate’ was a vast understatement. 

Zarina knocked on his door a tad too harshly. Dark circles marred her under eyes and she couldn’t help but flinch at the sudden bark of a large dog passing by. She adjusted the messy pile of notebooks in her arms and the overflowing tote bag on her shoulder. The fairy bit the inside of her cheek when Terence opened the door. “You don’t breathe a word of my research to anyone but your shadow, got it?”

" you'd be surprised what comes in short supply on an island of eternity." he jested, though the words came out dry and brittle like that of dried up sea sponges. " — there will always be limitations, it seems. odd, given as i once believed the world to be without them. " his tongue felt too large for his mouth, running uncomfortably along his teeth as he moved it to form words, as if canines had turned to iron spikes intended to cut him with every lie he spoke. james grimaced, the guilt swelling again, making him feel sick as he lowered his chin to his sternum. " i suppose that includes company but, yours may have very well proven itself to have been the exception . "

he wondered how far she'd stay behind him, how much distance she felt the need to preserve; if she felt the need to preserve any at all. his heart ticked away in his chest like a dwindling time bomb, dancing on the edge of eruption , but he didn't tell her the clock was winding down , a spark lazily consuming up a wick that would lead to the detonation of his dynamite soul . . . he was too selfish to protect her from the wreckage that would come in hopes that she'd hold his hand when it did. maybe her magic would be able to stop what his being lost had caused.

He was feeding the storm perpetually building behind his eyes. Zarina could tell. And even though his mind is where that storm presently remained, it seemed much louder than the lullaby in her ears. “Limitations are fickle things. I think it’s in our nature to push their boundaries. You and I, that is. Still, I’ve been warned a few times by now that doing so may not be very wise.” Warnings and limits be dashed, here she was… a fairy presenting a pirate with pixie dust.

For the first time maybe ever, Zarina felt her mind go completely quiet. The way James was looking at her as they talked about her dust… she’s never had anyone look at her like that. Anytime she ever tried to confide in someone about her alchemy, she was always received with glances of worry or even fear. But James — she could clearly see the wonder dancing across his eyes, just like it does within her own. It was all she’s been wanting for so long. All she’s been needing. Alright, maybe that wonder was just because he was a human, but she buried that thought as quickly as it arose. In that moment, she could have sworn her heart felt a bit lighter in her chest… as if he had dusted it himself.

“Don’t worry about my supply. I’ve been working on a plan to get more. If all goes well, then the whole entire crew will be swimming in pixie dust. There’s just a few more variables I need to get under control, but then I'll tell you everything. For now… I think it’s a bit of an injustice that someone like you hasn’t experienced the joy of soaring the winds.”  

Zarina stood up straighter, fingers curling around the golden dust as she jostled it casually around her palm with anticipation. “You’ve already conquered land and sea, but I bet you hold ambition in you yet for conquering the skies. What do you say, James — would you like to learn how to fly?”

"Where do you suggest we go to talk then?" she asked, still guarded. She wasn't just going to bring her to her place; that was a dangerously stupid idea. Wendy was aware that she hadn't answered her question about being Peter's acquaintance but if she wasn't going to answer all of her questions then Wendy was going to return that courtesy. "You're the one who was following me. What was your plan? To stalk me? To kidnap me? I would like to know why you want to know of my knowledge of Neverland if you want me to go anywhere with you."

“Look— I just—“ Zarina struggled to find the words to say. She meant well, her intentions protective even. The issue was that she wasn’t sure if she, or this girl, was the one who needed that protection. “Neverland is my home, okay? And I haven’t seen it for over eight years now; so you’ll have to forgive my impulsive curiosity and potentially backwards way of going about wanting to find out how a stranger in Evermore knew so much about it.” Once again, only half the truth fell from her lips— though there was more heart to this response than the last. Zarina wasn’t even sure if she could call Neverland a home anymore. Would she have anywhere to go if this cursed town ever spat her back out on that island? She certainly wouldn’t have anyone to turn to… Regardless, the fairy figured this was the safest answer to offer until she learned of this woman’s relationship with James.

“There’s a dive bar close by. Lots of regulars at this time of night, so you don’t have to worry about me trying to ‘kidnap’ you… Are you okay with that?” The Snuggly Duckling seemed like a good choice of relocation. It should be busy enough where they could both feel safe, but empty enough to also have a bit of privacy at a reasonable volume. That and— well the drinks were pretty cheap there.

closed starter: @pirxtefairy !!

the air of the sea stung his nose as he rested calloused hands on the edge of the jolly roger. the waves beneath churned lazil, clearly as exhausted as the sun given the ball of light had set in the west. its midnight counterpart hung in the sky, instead; cut in half, making it a half moon. james breathed deep, nostrils flared as the mist of the salted night breeze wafted into them. exhaling, tasting the sting on his tongue, the man slumped slightly forward and peered down at his reflection in the water.

he had aged quite a bit, at least twelve years, and after spending two hundred of the last two twenty as a teenager . . . it almost felt dysphoric. being an adult, being a grown up . . . something he always longed to avoid with the power of never at his fingertips. his jaw had sharpened, his cheekbones had risen, the bow of his lips was now ornamented by hair and everything about him just seemed darker. it didn't help that hatred seemed to constantly weighed heavy in his expression after a one peter pan had stripped the young pirate of all he had ever known. his hands felt heavy, weighted, the lack of magic pulsing through his fingertips a sensation he hadn't quite adjusted to yet. even after all this time.

time. . . something once so irrelevant to the man now the dominant figure in his life.

the lower deck sung with the champion cries of celebratory pirates, sea shanties ringing in the night air, making his skull throb. he pressed his hands through his hair, twisting thick, black tendrils around his fingers as he sighed forlornly at the life he was still morning well over a decade later.

Before her inquisitive nature could float her mind too far, her ears noticed a voice missing from the chorus of slurred songs and boisterous laughter. With a flicker of hazel eyes, Zarina couldn’t spot her first mate drinking amongst his crew or entertaining any of the usual ruckus. Instead, she noticed a lonesome shadow drifted astray starboard. With a tilt of her head, she rose from the barrel she was resting on and began to walk herself over.

The moonlight illuminated the emotion on his face as he stared at the water; his eyes occupied with the thoughts that rattled behind them. Thoughts she wished she could hear. Zarina learned behavior like this wasn’t uncommon for James. Every once in a while she found the man in moments of temporary isolation; plagued by his past just as she was. Zarina didn't want to pry, and she knew better than to ask. Her and James were similar in the fact that, if someone brought attention to a moment of troubling reflection, it usually made them close up even more. At least, that's what she thought. For now, the fairy decided to help in a way that usually worked for herself— a distraction. In fact, this particular distraction was something she’d been finally ready to share with him for a little while now.

Zarina walked softly up the creaky wooden steps, smiling when James’ eyes found her own. “I didn’t know that fresh air was in short supply out on the open sea,” she jested, hoping to help him lose some of the tension she could feel just by looking at him. Her head turned, observing the rest of the crew’s merry drinking before returning her attention back to James. “You know… maybe this is just a fairy’s word over a pirate’s, but I have something a bit more thrilling than a bottle of rum...” The corners of her lips lifted higher, gauging his reaction as she slowly reached into the small pouch that was always, always connected to her belt. Her hand stretched out between them, and she carefully uncurled her fingers. A familiar, bright, golden-yellow dust glowed in her palm like treasure found under the sun.

The stranger's question had her more curious than scared. Wendy had never seen her during her time in Neverland, but that hardly meant anything. There were all kinds of people that lived on that island. Meeting someone new from a place she thought she knew a lot about was thrilling. "I've been there," she said earnestly. There was something about her that made Wendy sure of disclosing that information. "What about you? I don't mean to sound accusatory or anything but I have never seen you in the time I spent there so I have to know what you know. Are you a friend of Peter's?" She seriously doubted she was on the pirates side of things. Not many people were.

"Pan is— he's an acquaintance. Are you?" It was a neutral response; truthful as well, although Zarina dodged everything else the girl asked. The fairy has had little one-on-one time with Pan, and most of it was in Evermore after her unfortunate run-in with James. If she was now on anyone's side of the infamous Neverland feud, it was Pan's... but Zarina wouldn't say they were friends by any means. She didn't truly have any of those to begin with. The brunette looked around, now suddenly aware of how out in the open they were. "I want to hear more about what you have to say, but I think we need to go somewhere more private." They were still far too close to the antique store for Zarina's liking; and it probably wasn't best to discuss sensitive information about 'fairytale' islands on a random sidewalk.

" 𝔡𝔢𝔞𝔡 (𝔴𝔬)𝔪𝔢𝔫 𝔱𝔢𝔩𝔩 𝔫𝔬 𝔱𝔞𝔩𝔢𝔰 . . . "

As she started to walk back to her home something in the air had shifted. She could feel something close by and she didn't think this was James. After their first encounter of him finding her in the dark she had made sure to be aware of her surroundings more. It wasn't wise to rush into something she might not like the answer to, but she would rather try to expose it now than later. "Hello?" she called out into the nothingness that was around her. She only saw a few trees, quiet shops with quiet homes not too far from it, and her shadow under the lights that lit up her path home.

"If someone is here...I am no threat....And I don't have much to steal...I'm afraid I'm both an easy target and a wasteful one...." She stopped her walking and waited. If nothing was to come of it, she would keep heading towards home with her bag closer to her and a watchful eye.

Keeping her head low and her back pressed into scattered spots of darkness, Zarina had half a mind to wait. To let this girl walk away at least for a little longer. No. Her head and heart were moving far too swiftly for the rest of her to slow down and even fully realize a proper thought. Just as the girl went to turn back around, Zarina finally revealed herself; slinking out of the shadows in a way that somehow achieved both precision and awkwardness. There was a silent pause between the two as they stared at each other under the amber light of the street lamp. The flutter of a moth’s wings beat against bout of dead silence from above. Zarina didn’t know what to say… and it’s not like she had the most grace to begin with. So, with nothing else to lose, she just came right out and said it.

“How do you know about the second star to the right?”

character  development .

what is your best physical feature?

what are some things you fear?

what are some of your guilty pleasures?

what’s your biggest pet peeve?

an ambition for the future?

what is usually your first thought when you wake up?

what do you think about the most?

what do you think your best quality is?

what is your favorite color?

what’s your favorite animal?

what age did you lose your virginity?

do you prefer to be loved or respected?

do you prefer beauty or intelligence?

do you lie?

do you believe in love?

do you believe in yourself?

do you want someone?

do you ever think about leaving … (your home/town/family/significant other)?

have you ever … ?

have you ever killed someone?

have you ever lost someone close to you?

have you ever traveled out of your hometown?

have you ever hosted a party?

have you ever lied to someone you love?

have you ever been trapped in a tough situation?

have you ever gotten arrested?

have you ever cheated in a relationship?

have you ever broken a bone?

finish the sentence .

I love …

I feel …

I hide …

I miss …

I wish …

I hate …

I want …

I can’t …

would you rather .

be admired by all or loved by few?

have power or money?

never get angry or never be envious?

be poor but help people or become incredibly rich by hurting people?

die young with no regrets or die old with many regrets?

this or that .

fame or fortune

love or power

cats or dogs

tea or coffee

music or poetry

parties or chill nights

fruits or vegetables

sweet or savory

day or night

summer or winter

rain or snow

reading or writing

singing or dancing

true or false . * tweak these as necessary

you love  ____  .

you hate  ____ .

you want _____ .

you can’t live without ____ .

it’s an honesty hour week!!

Direct Message to Tambry.

peri's face fell at the stranger's sudden change in tone, hands drawing back and flying up to resemble that of surrender as confusion interwove itself on her features. ❛ woah — sorry, i was... i was just trying to help.... ❜ peri stammered, unsure of what the hell the other woman was going on about but taking it incredibly personally that she had shoved her. what gives ??

then she called her talia, and all the pieces fell into place.

Looking up at the blonde standing in front of her, Zarina's features twisted in confusion and disbelief. Talia's frustration seemed genuine, she could tell that much. Frustration was a friend of hers. But other than that, what the actual hell was she on about? "What, did you hit your head on the way out of Neverland or something? Come on, this is low even for you. I'm not interested in playing any of your games right now, so if this is your stupid idea for a joke you can shove it and go cry to those friends of yours that it didn't work."

@wildcstwinter

Seeing Zarina brought back so many emotions. He'd admired her for years, so dedicated to her work and a great dust-talent. The discovery of her experiments, such a taboo among other dust keepers, had only intrigued him further. He was ashamed to admit, however, that he hadn't stood up for Zarina, his desire for affirmation from the others too strong.

Seeing her here, now, when he was reaching beyond the boundaries he'd toed his entire life... it just seemed like fate.

"I need help," he explained, turning the book in his hands to show her.

The fairy's nails pressed into her palm, trying to will away the empathy she felt for Terence. She knew he must be feeling as lost as she was being a dust keeper talent in a dustless town. Well, at least the dust they were talking about. "I've been trying, too. But apparently that's dangerous for me, right?"

Deciding to tuck her arm safely back under the other, she shook her head softly. "So valuable, huh? Right then. Let's see how knowledgable you actually are. Pretend I'm Stan." At the mention of the Pines man, Zarina dropped her arms and stood up straight, performing Stan's usual stance when someone enters his shop. "Go on, try and sell that thing to me." A small, teasing smile tugged at the corner of her lip. It was half a test and half teasing.

@wildcstwinter