Loss Of The Shadow

"Cinderella flew through the air, far from all things ugly and ordinary. When she landed at the ball she found herself most impertanantly surrounded by pirates! There was Alf Mason, so ugly his mother sold him for a bottle of Muscat. Bill Dukes, every inch of him tattoed. And, cruelist of them all. Hook! With eyes blue as forgetmenots except when he clawed your belly with the iron hook he has instead of a right hand. At which time his eyes. Turn. Red!", Wendy says. As she is saying this she is making gestures with her hands to emphasize her words. She liked making up her own stories to go along with fairy tales already made. John and Michael were backing up at all the right moments. John grabbed a wooden sword and stood up. "Girlie, says Hook. We have come for ye glass slippers", John says wielding the sword. Wendy picks up her own wooden sword. " Who be you to order me about, and call me girlie. Take that!", Wendy says. She and John begin to swing away at each other. There was a boy trying not to be seen watching from the window. Nana the nurse maid dog saw him and was confused. The children however had no idea. "Hook came at her! Ahhhh!", John says. He lunges towards Wendy with the sword she ducks and his sword knocks down a few books on the shelf behind her. " What happened then!? What happened then!?", Michael asks. "Cinderella settled the matter once and for all. With her revolver ", Wendy says. "A revolver!?", John says. Nana barked at the window. But there was nothing there. Not a bird or a leaf. So the children forgot about it. For what troubles a grownup will never trouble a child. The cuckoo clock rang signaling the arrival of Aunt Millicent. "Oh dearest George, dear Mary. Oh what a journey i've had", Aunt Millicent says. They hear running upstairs. "Bath time", Mary says. Upstairs Micheal is running from Nana naked straight to the bath tub. Nana lifts him up on her back and gets him into the tub. " Not fair", Michael says. Not fair indeed but Nana was the finest nurse on four paws. Nana licks his cheek. "No I will not forgive you ", Michael says. There never was a happier simpler family. Mr.Darling was a banker who knew the cost of everything,even a hug. Mrs.Darling was the lovliest lady in Bloomsbury and had a sweet mocking mouth that had one kiss on it, that Wendy could never get. Though there it was, perfectly conspicuous in the right hand corner. And sometimes there was Aunt Millicent who thought a dog for a nurse lowered the whole tone of the nieghborhood. The song that Mr.Darling was singing finally ended. "Bravo George, bravo", Aunt Millicent says. "Wendy's turn", John says. "Wendy must tell a story", Michael says. Wendy gets up from her seat and stands in the middle of the living room. "Cecco, who carved his name on the governor at Gowa", John says. Wendy laughed. "Noodler, with his hands on backwards", Michael says. " Heavens", Aunt Millicent says. "Hook!", Michael says. "Hook!?", Aunt Millicent says. "Hook! Who's eyes turn red as he guts you ", John says. He shows her by using his hand and Michaels teddy bear as an example. "Oh my aren't children educated now a days?", Aunt Millicent ask. George shook his head no. "I'm afraid I'm not learned at all aunt, but i do know a thing or two about pirates", Wendy says. Aunt Millicent gasps. "My unfufilled ambition is to write a great novel in three parts, about my adventures", Wendy says. "What adventures?", Aunt Millicent asks. "I've yet to have them, but they will be perfectly thrilling", Wendy says. "But child, novelist are not highly thought of in good society. And there is nothing more difficult to marry then a novelist",Aunt Millicent says. " Marry", Wendy, George, Micheal and John says in unison. "But aunt. Wendy is not yet that either",Mary says. " Walk towards me dear that I may appraise you", Aunt Millicent says. Wendy walks up to her and turns for her till she tell her to stop. " Mmmm, yes it's quite as i expected. Wendy possesses a woman's chin.Have you not noticed? There. Hidden in the right hand corner. Is that a kiss", Aunt Millicent says. "A kiss", John says. "Like mother's kiss", Michael says. "A hidden kiss", Aunt Millicent says. Wendy touches her mouth. "But, what is it for?", Wendy asks. "Why it is for the greatest adventure of all. They that find it have slipped in and out of heaven", Aunt Millicent says. "Find what?", Wendy asks. "The one the kiss belongs to", Aunt Millicent says. "My Wendy. A woman", George says. "Almost a woman", Aunt Millicent says. The darling children were in the hall listening to the grown ups talk in the living room. They had asked them to leave. "She must spend less time with her brothers. And more time with me. She must have her own room, a young ladies room", Aunt Millicent says. "Leave the nursery", Michael says. John covers his mouth before he could give them away. "George the daughter of a clerk cannot hope to marry as well as that of a manager. You must attend more parties, make small talk with your superior's at the bank. Wit is very fashionable at the moment", Aunt Millicent says. "Wit", George says. In the nursery Nana and the children are fast asleep. A hand hovers over Wendy's lips, then pulls back. Wendy's eyes flutter open. There flying right on top of her is a boy. Wendy gasps. It startles the boy so he fly jumps back onto her wall. It wakes Nana and she comes towards the boy barking as he tries to fly out the window. Nana grabs onto his shadow pulling him back. Then the window shuts and his shadow snaps off. As Nana chases down the shadow into a drawer out in the hall, Wendy goes outside to see where the boy went. She grabbed a candle and walked out in the backyard. But there was no sign of a body, for none had fallen. Certainly she had been dreaming.