Your Inbox Will Never Be Empty

Amínah was already there at the top of the volcano by the time we reached it. She stood beside the heated cauldron with the chest in hand. "Be you ready, Pe-tah?" she asked in her thick Indies accent.

"Yes." He said. He grabbed my hand. I squeezed, comforting him.

I rested my head on his shoulder and we stood, waiting. When nothing happened, he looked to Amínah for an explanation.

"Pe-tah," she said, her eyes filling with sympathy. "You must be the one to do this. It is your heart."

Peter straightened. He became rigid with fear. He walked forward, and I made to go with him, but Amínah stuck her hand out. She held me away from him.

"No, child. He must do this alone." She rubbed my back as I shook a little. Poor, poor Peter. I hoped he could do this…

He stepped forward and stared at the chest. The heat rippled throughout the air – ash and soot blew up around us. The gushing sound of the bubbling, molten fire below us churned in my ears. He leaned down and fingered the handles, the lock, the wood. He leaned close to it, and whispered something. Then, he stood, and nudged it forward with his foot. Finally, after what seemed like forever, he knocked it off the edge of the cauldron and into the chasm below. We watched as it dissolved: the gold seemed to cling to the surface the longest, but eventually, it melted.

Peter's treasure was no more.

I stepped forward and embraced him against the heat. He hugged me tighter than I'd ever been hugged – this had really been hard for him to do. I'm sure he was crying, but the intense, dry heat swallowed up his tears almost as soon as they left his pretty green eyes.

When we finally parted, I smiled and said, "You're free Peter."

"Yeah," he scuffed his foot. "Free…"

Just then, Amínah screeched. "PE-TAH! YOUR SHADOW!!"

We all looked to the ground where our shadows were lingering beneath the dusk…all except for Peter's.

"Not again." Peter said. He began searching the ground, looking for any sign of his shadow. The longer it took him, the more anxious he became. "Where is it?" he asked frantically.

"Pe-tah," Amínah said, "What if…what if it wasn't lost just now?"

"No." he said.

"Peter, come to think of it, I haven't seen your shadow since yesterday." I didn't really understand the gravity of the situation.

"You don't understand!" He said. "I need my shadow! I'm not completely me without it!"

We both turned to Amínah, both of us expecting an answer; a solution. She smiled toothily and said, "Pe-tah, I tink you know what this means."

He cocked his head.

"Go on, you know what to do." She said.

Peter smiled and looked at me. "We should go back to the ship."

"But Peter, your shadow!"

"I know. I guess it's time for another adventure, then." And with that, the next great adventure of Peter Pan began.

The End