Pan's Tiger

Chapter 25: The Heart of the Truest Believer

Hey,
Thanks for reading!
Because the previous chapter was short and not very good, I updated this one quicker and it is a lot longer and hopefully better too.
Anyway, Happy Halloween! I'm so excited for this weekend! 😈👹
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Enjoy,
Annabelle_the_reader
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My feet nestled into the ground, my toes curling as if to anchor myself into the ground. I swayed slightly, enjoying the feeling of security on the ground. I had never been so thankful to feel the earth beneath my feet.

Instead of returning to camp, I soared upwards, using the fairy dust I had acquired to carry me there. I went straight for the Shadow, knowing exactly where to find him. My heart hammered inside of my chest, wondering what he might say to me.

I landed with a thud, coughing slightly at the dust particles and my eyes scanned the room. The Shadow was nowhere to be seen, even in this dark complex. My feet travelled in tight circles, looking around me curiously.

'Shadow?' I called eagerly.

Suddenly, my eyes landed on an enormous hour glass in the corner of the room. I frowned, taking dainty steps towards it and narrowing my eyes. It seemed important, but also dangerous for the sand had nearly ran out, like a ticking time bomb about to explode.

'Yes.' The Shadow said behind me.

I spun around, my hair flicking around my shoulder with the strength of it. I looked the Shadow up and down, noticing the way he was expressionless, but very readable. 'Hello, Shadow. I wanted to ask you what the hour glass was for.'

'When Pan came to the island, he chose to become youthful again and stay here forever. As you have a heart born in Neverland, you can live here eternally. But Pan does not, however. Once all the sand in the hourglass timer runs out, Pan will lose his immortality and die.' The Shadow explained and I gasped, my eyes wide with shock.

I had never expected Peter's mortality would be threatened. He had always been so strong and ruthless, so to think of him as vulnerable and weak made me squirm. 'Is there not another way? Can we not save him or delay the timer at all?' I begged.

'It is impossible to be alive forever... Unless you are from Neverland like you and I.' The Shadow said simply and I shivered my heart breaking. Pan had loved me from the first time he saw me when he came to Neverland in a dream, until this point I had never thought of him gone. I couldn't imagine a world with life in it, but no Peter Pan in it.

'Are you sure?' I begged, tears rolling down my cheeks frantically. 'Is there nothing we can do?'

'There is only one way, as I'm sure you are aware,' The Shadow eventually said and my head snapped up, my ears pricking. 'You must find the owner of the Heart of the Truest Believer and he must give his heart to Pan.'

I thought for a moment, contemplating this. What would that entail for the Heart of the Truest Believer? Would they suffer? Would Pan hurt them? Part of me didn't care as much anymore, because I had found a way to save him at the expense of just a heart, which I assumed wouldn't harm the occupant or kill them.

'How do we find them?' I asked eagerly, taking a firm step closer towards the Shadow. My eyes shifted to the hourglass, realising it was a race against time. Time was chasing all of us to find the Heart of the Truest Believer. 'Do you know where they might be? Does Pan know?'

'Pan does not know who the heart belongs to, but he does have knowledge of it.' The Shadow said bluntly, his eyes never leaving me in curiousity. My eyes lifted and met his for a moment, biting my lip anxiously.