Harry and I are in the forest, each taking turns working on our aim. Our target is a tree that's about 20 yards in front of us. I continually miss the target with the arrows, though I've been progressively getting closer and closer over the hours. Harry has been throwing his knife, either Gertrude or Judy, over and over at the tree, and he is yet to miss.

"How do you do it so well?" I ask.

"What, throwing Judy?" He asks.

That's the one.

"Yeah, I have no aim." I admit.

He shrugs, throwing the knife again. Hit. "When you do something for eight years you tend to get good at it. Knives are my primary, which is nice."

"Primary?" I ask.

"The weapon I'm best at. I've got good aim and I'm good with them for short and long distance. I prefer long distance though. I'm secondary with swords. I can use them, and I'm pretty good with them but nowhere near where I am with knife throwing."

"Why don't you use a bow and arrow?" I ask.

I raise it and aim at the tree. Miss.

"Too easy," he laughs. He's not mocking me, but the words make me grit my teeth. "Plus they are a pain to carry around, and they are slow moving to shoot. Nowhere like this."

He runs and grabs the knife, jogging back to me. He puts it in his belt gesturing to it for me.

"Three," he begins, "two, one."

He whips it out of the belt, pivoting in a circle, launching the knife just as he turns around. There is an immediate thunk in the wood. The knife has sunk deep into the bark, causing a deep split in it up the tree.

A powerful, immediate hit.

"That," he grins, "that is why I use knives and not that crup in your hands."

"It's not crup." I remember the old word. "It's just what I know how to use."

"You could use that dagger," he suggests, pointing to my cloak.

"I don't know how," I trail off.

He shrugs. "I wasn't born knowing how to use knives. I had to learn."

"I'm not going to be here in 47 days, I don't have time to learn." I tell him.

He looks at me oddly. Did I tell him about the bet?

"Pan and I are playing a game." I elaborate.

He winces. "Well, when that all inevitably goes wrong you may or may not want a back on plan with a weapon you can actually use in combat."

I roll my eyes but chuckle. Harry isn't condescending, so I can put up with his teasing. Alex however, he's another story.

"Besides, daggers are only a little longer than knives. They serve essentially the same use, except they are harder to throw. Better for up close combat though, still not as good as a sword. It's a happy compromise between the two."

"So if swords were pants and knives shorts, daggers would be capris?"

Harry laughs. "Essentially. I'll have to start teaching you tomorrow though if you are alright with that. It's almost dinner and I've promised a lot of different people I would bring them food."

"Deal." I chuckle.

I take one last aim at the tree, and hit it spot on. Where I had aimed and everything. Grinning I rush over to the tree. I grab the arrow and a few others that surround the tree. I yank out Harry's knife and chuck it back towards him.

It goes flying straight for his head. He manages to duck out of the way, laughing. I run up after him. He grabs the knife off the round and together we head back to the camp.

James and Alex still stand in front of the medic tent, both standing guard and waiting for the call that Wilbur has woken up. I wonder if either of them ever ran off to find Robert, but I doubt it. I doubt he has even finished his autopsy yet. How that boy would've managed to do an autopsy is beyond me, but he certainly seems capable of doing things on his own. He's very calm, and is smart but not condescending. Which apparently is a rarity.

I head to the table and sit down. Harry leaps over to the other side and puts down a large wooden bowl on the table, before grinning up at me.

"The food will be here any second now." He says.

"Have you had that bowl on you the whole time?" I ask. "Where did it come from?"

He chuckles. "It's best you didn't know."

I'm about to ask, but that's when I notice the appearance of food on the table, and Harry and I are reaching to grab it. Today's special is chicken legs and apples. I'm beginning to think eating around here is just a formality; how else do the boys move around on such poor diets? Watching his hands move, he grabs six apples, so I grab the same in chicken legs.

One falls from my hand as I stand, and I quickly snatch one up straight from the hands of another boy. He gives me a disgusted look before rolling his eyes and grabbing another leg.

I run off back towards where James and Alex are standing. Nodding at them, I offer them each one of the legs I am carrying. It's a struggle for me to let go of the legs, but I manage in a struggle that can only be called an embarrassment to human kind. Harry soon follows me and the two boys each grab an apple from his bowl.

Harry then takes two legs from my hands and hands me two apples out of the bowl. Now, we both have a meal for two people.

"Here, I am going to go bring these in to Jared. You know where Robert is right?"

I nod. "Yeah, I do. At Pan's house."

Alex scoffs. "House?"

"Bring these up to him, yeah?" Harry demands, ignoring Alex.

I should take a page from his book. Ignoring Alex is always the best option.

I nod to Harry, exciting the clearing and heading back to Pan's 'house'. After nearly fifteen minutes I reach his house. It's odd how every time I head there it seems to be a different distance from the camp. More likely, my perception of time is wrong. It couldn't be more than a mile, could it?

I manage to climb up the ladder with some difficulty; the bowl in my hands making the climb awfully difficult. It's even more difficult to open the hatch and enter the house. Climbing up through the entrance, I watch Robert pull a dark brown sheet over top of what I can only imagine is the body.

He walks over to me and helps me up through the ceiling. I'd rather not admit I need his help, but I'm grateful for it all the same.

"Hey Char, James send you with that?" He asks.

I shake my head. "He's been busy up with Wilbur. Harry did."

He shakes his head, before ploping down on to Pan's bed. He manages to disappear within the deep ocean that is Pans sheets. The bed creaks slightly under James' pressure. Mama bear would've loved this bed; so soft.

Robert is so casual with Pan's things. He's not scared at all. He's definitely calmer than anyone I've met here.

"Aren't you afraid of Pan?"

"Not at all," he chuckles. "Should I be?"

"I mean you were wrong, one of the boys died from the Hunt. You said it was a no death round."

"It was." Robert frowns. "Nick died of dehydration."

I guess we do actually need food and water here to survive. "That's still Pan's fault though."

"Not at all." Robert begins. "He's upset it even happened. Doesn't trust it, especially not since Nick's canteen was full of water. Thinks something fishy happened. I don't like it either to be honest. Weird things have been going on around here lately. Two deaths in only a few weeks is bad."

I shrug. "Maybe it all is an unhappy coincidence."

Robert laughs out loud. "This is Neverland. Something sinister is always afoot."

I roll my eyes. "Are you serious?"

"You can bet he is." A voice says from behind me.

All the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I turn around to see Felix standing in the doorway.

Felix is a boy unlike any of the others I've met here. He is much like Pan, only somehow he seems much more dangerous. I always seem to know Pan's motives. He's a big talker, but overall he's essentially a prop. Not very intimidating. Pan likes toying with people, but that doesn't mean he'd harm anyone.

I get the impression from Felix however, that Felix would love to hear me wheeze in pain as he strangles me to death. Not even as if he'd enjoy inducing pain, only that it would cure him of boredom.

"Charlie, how lovely it is to see you again." He grins.

Man does Felix give me the creeps.

"Would you mind leaving Robert and I to talk alone?" He asks.

I look over at Robert who shakes his head. He's gone pale but nods to me none the less.

"It's alright Char, go on." He nods.

I step back from him and walk towards the ladder, all the while Felix continues to grin the whole time. I can't decide if like Pan he is no threat, or he is the most dangerous thing I've ever met.

I bump into Felix, shoving past him with my shoulder. He says nothing. Like Pan I guess, not a threat.

~~~~~~~~

I mean, I'm beginning to like this length. It gives me time to edit, and time to prepare for further episodes. As school begins to dawn, I'd love to keep my Monday, Wednesday, Saturday schedule. The more chapters I can write in advance, the more prepared I'll be.

So, this chapter is a little lame, but don't think about it's events, but it's implications. Sinister, Felix, dehydration, hidden plot, a non-omniscient Pan. Maybe it's a weak chapter, or maybe it's heavy foreshadowing. Who knows?

If you liked the weakness, give me a heads up. If not, then I'll know what to do differently next time.

Remember to treat yourself and I'll see you Wednesday.