Chapter 3.
Acorn Kisses and Jealous Fairies.
The nightlights were still burning when Mr and Mrs Darling left the house.
But even a nightlight gets tired sometimes.
It is an awful lot of work, as you might imagine trying to stay bright and shiny all the time.
Wendy's light went out first.
It yawned, and yawns being contagious, the other two lights promptly yawned as well.
Then, before any of the lights could close their mouths, all three went out from the resulting breeze.
The children's room, however, was still not dark.
A strange, blinking glow came from within a water jug.
Inside was a fairy, no bigger than your hand.
Her name was Tinkerbell, and she was in the jug looking for Peter's shadow.
Peter appeared next.
Tink, he called softly.
Is my shadow in that jug?
No, Tink replied, emerging.
When Tinkerbell spoke, it sounded like bells.
It was a special fairy language that only Peter and his boys could understand.
Tink told Peter that she had just spotted his shadow in the chest of drawers.
Peter threw open the drawers, piling the clothes in a heap on the floor, and bound his shadow.
Grabbing it, he tried to slip it back on like a pair of pants, but it would not fit.
He tried to put it on like a hat, but it jumped off his head.
His shadow, it seemed, did not want him back.
Peter sat on the floor and started to cry.
His cries woke Wendy and she sat up in bed.
Excuse me, she asked politely.
Who are you?
I am Peter Pan, he said.
Who are you?
My name is Wendy Darling.
I live here.
I live second to the right, said Peter, and then straight on until morning.
That's a funny address, Wendy said.
I don't see what's so funny about it, Peter huffed, embarrassed.
Well, what do people write on the envelope when they send you letters, Wendy asked.
No one sends me letters, Peter said in a low voice.
Now he was not only embarrassed, but sad, too, about his lack of letters.
"'When your mother gets letters,' Wendy tried weakly.
"'Oh, I don't have a mother,' Peter said in a normal voice.
The funny address and the lack of letters had bothered him briefly, but mothers, he felt, were overrated.
For Wendy, however—
A funny address, no letters, and no mother seemed incredibly sad.
Oh, Peter, no wonder you were crying, she said.
She got out of bed and ran to hug him.
I wasn't crying about not having a mother, he huffed.
I was crying because I can't get my shadow back on.
Do you have any glue?
Wendy smiled.
How exactly like a boy.
You can't glue it back on, silly.
It must be sewn on.
I will do it for you.
Feeling very important, Wendy got her sewing kit.
Within minutes, the shadow was back where it belonged, even if it was a bit wrinkly.
Wendy wondered briefly whether she should have ironed it first.
Yippee!
Peter cried, twirling in front of the mirror.
Look at me and my handsome shadow.
A thank you might be nice, Wendy suggested.
For what?
Peter asked.
This made Wendy so mad that she got back into bed and covered her face with the blankets until Peter apologized.
I'll forgive you if you give me a kiss, Wendy said, turning her cheek to him.
She was of the age when she was starting to think about kisses.
Peter hesitated, confused.
Finally, he dropped an acorn button into her hand.
Realizing that Peter was not quite that age yet, and not wanting to embarrass him, Wendy politely thanked him and said that she would wear his kiss on a string around her neck.
How old are you? she asked.
I don't know, Peter said.
I ran away on the very day I was born, after I heard my parents talking about what I would be when I grew up.
Wendy asked.
I didn't want to grow up, Peter said simply.
Now I live with the lost boys and the fairies.
Fairies?
Wendy breathed, wide-eyed.
Immediately she began to ask Peter everything she could think to ask about fairies.
You see, Peter explained.
When the very first baby laughed for the very first time, its laugh broke into a million pieces.
Each piece then became a fairy.
This talk of fairy suddenly reminded Peter of Tinkerbell, who was being awfully quiet.
He rose to look for her.
Wendy jumped up, excited.
Do you mean to say there is an actual fairy in this room?
They both listened for her, but all Wendy could hear was the tinkle of bells.
Oh, that's tink.
That's fairy language, Peter frowned, and it seems to be coming from inside that chest of drawers.
Suddenly Peter laughed.
He realized he had locked Tinkerbell in the drawer.
She must have flown in when he reached for his shadow.
Oh, how she screamed when he let her out.
"'Tink,' he said, watching her fly around the room in a flurry.
"'Such language!'
What's she saying?
Wendy asked, watching the angry blur.
I do wish she would stand still so I could see her.
Will she be my fairy?
Tink, Peter said.
Stand still for a second, would you?
Wendy wants to see you and for you to be her fairy.
Tinkerbell clinked something angry in reply.
She says, you are a huge, ugly girl, and she can't be your fairy because she is my fairy.
Well, Wendy huffed, she is not very polite.
Peter had to agree.
Since Tinkerbell wasn't cooperating, Wendy turned her attention back to Peter.
She had so many more questions for him.
He told her all about the lost boys who had fallen out of their strollers when they were babies and had never been claimed.
"'I'm their captain,' he said.
"'What fun!'
Wendy replied.
"'But are there no girls on the island?'
"'Oh, no,' Peter replied.
"'Girls are too smart to fall out of their strollers.'
What a nice thing to say, Wendy replied, blushing.
Suddenly Wendy screamed.
It felt as if someone had pulled her hair.
That must be Tink, Peter explained.
She is certainly being naughty today.
Tinkerbell told Peter that she would continue to misbehave so long as Peter kept being nice to Wendy.
Just like Mr. Darling, it seemed, that the little fairy suffered from one enormous case of jealousy.
