White Raven

Chapter 1

My name is Avery Everson. I have white-blonde hair, pale blue eyes, two brothers, and a grandmother. I lived with her up until we moved back into my parent's house. When I heard my brothers' voices, I walked into the room silently and stopped. Tony and Bruce were talking in hushed whispers in the corner. We still shared a room, Mother and Father said it was easier to house guests that way.

"If we crawl out the window, Avery will notice us out of bed. She'll tell Grandmother and we'll be busted. We need to figure out how to get away to the party without anyone noticing," Tony whispered. They both glanced at the door, probably to check that no one was listening. Unfortunately, I was spotted. Tony, Bruce, and I are triplets, Tony is older than Bruce by two minutes, and Bruce is older than me by a minute. I strode over to them.

"You can't hide from me and I'm not helpin' you escape," I told them. Their faces fell.

"But you're so good at sneaking around!" Bruce could barely keep his voice down.

"I know, but since Mother and Father are going out tonight, I figured you guys could do this on your own," I whispered. "It'll do you some good," I muttered the last part so they couldn't hear.

"Speak up Avery, your Scottish accent combined with mumbling makes you hard to understand," Tony complained. He and Bruce had been raised here in England, I, however, had been raised in Scotland, mainly because that's where Grandmother had lived for a while. She and I moved back to my parent's home where I was reunited with my brothers.

"Sounds like a personal problem. Tonight I plan on listenin' to Grandmother's stories and warnings," I said. Tony rolled his eyes and Bruce whispered,

"You don't honestly believe Grandmother's stories, do you? Peter Pan is nothing more than a fictional character." It was my turn to roll my eyes.

"Have you looked at the evidence? Even Mother claims she was taken by Captain Hook when she was young. Peter Pan has caused nothing but trouble for the females in this family, and I intend to listen to their stories and warnings," I said. They just went back to their faulty schemes while I started to plan how to get them from going to that party. The time came for them to escape, and I put my plan into action.

"Hey guys, since it's dark outside, you might need a jacket or coat, but you'll need the two black ones, so you can blend in with the shadows," I casually mentioned. They looked at me with suspicion.

"I thought you weren't going to help us," Bruce said cautiously.

"And you aren't one to quickly change your mind," Tony added. I shrugged.

"Fine, when you get caught, don't blame me for tryin' to help," I said and started to walk off. They decided their pride wasn't worth the cost of getting caught and they quickly stopped me. I took them to the closets, not letting them see that they were already late. I had them look for a long time, and only told them it was hopeless, Mother and Father must have taken the coats to their party. It was a lie, I had hidden the coats in another closet, one that Tony and Bruce wouldn't think to look in. They spent the entire time the party would have taken up in finding those coats. When they finally gave up, I "conveniently" looked at the clock and expressed regret that they couldn't go to the party, all while masking my satisfaction. They finally realized I did it on purpose, but they weren't angry, they figured it was all for the best. We crept back to bed, but while passing Grandmother's room, I stopped. The door was closed, her light on, and voices were coming from inside. My curiosity got the better of my manners and I crept closer, melting into the shadows, listening to her conversation with the stranger. Tony and Bruce were right behind me.

"You can't just come into my home and ask for my only granddaughter!" Grandmother scolded. The other voice spoke,

"Wendy, please, I was wrong. I only went along with you and Jane because I thought it was right-" Grandmother cut him off,

"Avery is different, she has heeded every warning both I and her mother have given her. You haven't been able to visit the triplet's room because she has magic. She has used that against you and Hook for her protection." He sighed. I liked the sound of his voice, it was soft and sweet. It wasn't deep, but it wasn't shrill. He had a nice baritone voice that sounded pleasant. Grandmother's voice pulled me out of my trance.

"I will not let you take Avery, the Lost Boys will have to do with some other girl. And as for you, you will have to go somewhere where the name Peter Pan is not spoken with disgust." I then realized who the other voice was. I looked at Bruce, then Tony, both of which were just as shocked as I was. Unfortunately, Tony chose that precise moment of silence to bump the fragile vase by his elbow. It fell to the ground and shattered, the noise deafening. I quickly mended it and set it back on its stand. As I stood up to leave, Grandmother's door opened, flooding the dark hallway with light, Tony, Bruce, and I were caught. I couldn't melt into the shadows, and Grandmother had probably already seen me so I couldn't turn invisible, and I couldn't very well leave Tony and Bruce to face her wrath. I was her favorite, but that wouldn't stop her from punishing me very soundly for eavesdropping. When my eyes got used to the light- it didn't take long, only a second or two- I saw Grandmother, in her pink floral nightdress, her back bent with old age, brown eyes as piercing as ever. It was the figure next to her that caught my attention though. He was taller than me, with auburn hair, tan skin, pointed ears, and light brown eyes with a mischievous glint. His clothes were all green, and he had a little hat with a red feather. The belt that went around his waist had a sheath, which hid a dagger inside.

"Tony, Bruce, and Avery? I thought I raised you better than that, now go to bed at once!" Grandmother hadn't punished us, so I could only assume that she wanted us as far away as possible from Pan.

"It was Avery's idea to sneak around the house at night," Tony and Bruce said at the same time. Even their British accents were eerily similar. I turned around, glaring at them.

"Only because I was trying to keep you from goin' to that stupid party! You're lucky we aren't in bigger trouble as it is you-"

"Now now," a cold voice sent shivers down my spine. "Girls such as yourself shouldn't be speaking that way." We all turned around as a nightmare came to life.