The wisp of cold air from the window has him rubbing his eyes, trying to wipe the cobwebs from his brain. He’d fallen asleep, he’s been doing that a lot more lately, dozing off at random times during the day. His bones crack as he stretches in an attempt to chase the sleepiness away, but he slumps back in the chair, closing his eyes once again when he hears the patter of tiny feet. A small hand tugs at his cardigan. He smiles. She smells like apples and cherries, she must have found the jam stash in the cupboard.

“Pawpaw,” a tiny voice tries to whisper (but fails) beside him. “Pawpaw, are you sweeping?”

He quietly laughs at her mistake but doesn’t open his eyes.

She tugs at his clothing one more time for good measure. He stifles a chuckle when a tiny body straddles his lap, and chunky hands grab at his cheeks, turning his head forward. He feels her breath on his face as she continues to try and wake him with loudly whispered words. He moves his hands slowly upward until they are by her side. Her giggles are like bubbles popping in the air as she laughs and wiggles, trying to escape the tickle attack.

“Did you just wake me up? You know the punishment for such a heinous crime, don’t you?” he says in his best pirate voice.

“Yes,” she laughs, “walk the plank!”

“Exactly.” He reaches out and pushes her bangs behind her ears. She reminds him of youth, of joy and innocence, and every day he's thankful that this is how his life turned out. He misses his past, but he wouldn’t change this ending of the story, not for all the fairy dust in the world.

She sits perched on his lap, her giggles and laughter having died down.

“Tell it again, Pawpaw,” she almost demands, tiny hands returning to holding his face forward.

He loves telling the story.

“Again? Surely you want a new story now, I’ve told this one so many times? You’re sure to get tired of hearing it.”

“NEVER!” she exclaims and he jumps, startled by the sound.

If truth be told, telling this story is his favorite pastime. It’s his story, although most believe it to be just a fairytale, an embellishment that he created to tantalize the ears of his listeners. He’s never corrected them, never stomped his foot proclaiming it to be the truth. He doesn’t need others to believe as long as he has his love and as long as they know, they remember. Because it’s their story and it’s beautiful.

He looks as his love walks into the room.

“Wendy, are you trying to get Pawpaw to tell you the story again?”

“Nae, Grandpapa, it’s the bestest story in the whole world.” The child stretches her arms as wide as they can go. “I love it this much.”

He watches as the love of his life graces the child with a most brilliant smile. A smile so bright it rivals the sun and melts even the coldest hearts (he knows this from experience).

“My that is indeed a lot of love.” His heart flutters a bit when the man sits next to them, even after all these years, you still make my heart skip a beat when you smile.

He turns to the man at his side. “She certainly has inherited your flare for the dramatic.” He’s not quick enough to dodge the thump on his arm. He laughs and settles the child on the seat between them. She giggles as she scoots closer, resting her head on his arm while playing with the hem of his cardigan.

“Alright Mr. Rodgers, tell your story,” the other man smiles at him.

“His name is not Mr. Rodgers Grandpapa, it Pawpaw Joon,” the child corrects.

“My mistake Wendy, you’re absolutely right, he just looks like Mr. Rodgers,” Jin says as he ruffles the child’s hair and then leans in to kiss to Namjoon on the cheek before whispering in his ear,

“Tell our story love.” Namjoon smiles and begins.

“Once upon a time, when the first baby laughed for the first time, its laugh broke into a thousand pieces, and they all went skipping about, and that was the beginning of fairies…”

London England 1841

“Jin, duck!” Taehyung yells from the behind the older boy.

Jin turns, a slight smirk on his face as he glances backwards, checking to be sure that Taehyung hasn’t been caught. He dips his head just in time and breathes a sigh of relief when the iron ladle goes sailing above him in the air just before landing on the ground with a loud crash.

“Just you wait till I get ‘me hands on the lot of yous.” The overweight Nun is breathing heavily as she chases the boys.

“You’d have to catch us first,” Jin says, reaching back to grab Jimin’s hand and pulling the younger man forward. “Run faster Minnie.”

The three boys break the corner, their escape eminent.

“Kim Seokjin! You stop this instant!” The woman’s voice always commands his attention, perhaps because she’s the closest thing to a mother Jin and the rest of his ragtag family have ever known.

“Yes, ma’am,” the boys say in unison.

“Can someone please explain to me why Sister Grace is chasing you all?” The Mother Superior looks at the boys who are each doing their best impression of a blind person as they try not to look at the woman.

She sighs audibly, and Jin looks up and is immediately caught, trapped by her disappointed gaze.

“I swear it was for a good cause,” he answers weakly.

“Jin, you are the oldest. You’re meant to set a good example, meant to be a leader.” Her tone leaves Jin feeling disheartened.

“But Chimchim was hungry, and he missed dinner because he was sick, and he said his tummy hurt, and sister Grace said that it was Jimin’s fault for being sick, and-” She holds her hand up, stopping Taehyung’s spitfire explanation.

She turns to face the chubby Nun who is standing behind her with the iron ladle in her hand.

“Sister Grace, is this true?”

“Ma’am they was stealing out of the pantry, ma’am,” the woman says defensively.

Again the older nun sighs.

“Jimin, are you hungry?” she asks the younger boy with the slit-like eyes which are now saucer sized with fear. The boy is hiding behind Taehyung who seems to be frozen in place. “It’s okay, you can answer truthfully,” she coaxes him.

The boy nods but keeps his lips glued together.

“Sister Grace, can you please bring Jimin a cup of tea along with a slice of bread and jam.”

“But, ma’am-”

“We are here to help them, not chase them with spoons. Just because they're orphans Sister doesn’t mean they’re not human. Please do as I’ve asked.

The younger nun walks away with shoulders hung low as Taehyung and Jimin stick their tongues out.

“That's not very nice,” the Mother Superior scolds the young boys. “Jimin, please sit in the dining area and wait for your food. Taehyung you may join him.” She turns to face Jin, “You, come with me.”

Jin follows behind, shoulders drooping. He knows what’s about to happen. He’s been in the orphanage since infancy and has made this walk many times after one of his many fool-proof plans goes kaboom in his face.

The door squeaks as she opens it, and Jin has always found the sound comforting. It reminds him of home (or as much of a home as one can have in a church funded orphanage).

“Jin-ah,” her voice is soft as points at the chair, beckoning him to sit as she leans over the Pembroke table, turning the kerosene oil lamp to low to light the dark room. She pulls the chair from behind the cherrywood secretary’s desk before taking a seat and turning her full attention to him.

There’s a softness to the older Nun, a genteelness that’s in stark contrast to the rough, crass behavior of most of her uncaring faculty. The fact that the Nun sees the orphans as human and not “A waste of the air God gave us” makes Jin thankful that she is the one in charge.

“Jin-ah,” she continues “I understand your motives, but we have rules in place for a reason. The rules need to be followed, especially by you. You are their example.” She points to the door, but Jin knows she means the boys behind the dark oak wood structure.

“Yes, ma’am.” He doesn’t offer a defense; he knows it’s not what she’s asking for.

“You’re an adult now, no longer a child. You’re here because the Monsignor and I believe you are a good example for the boys. The children look up to you and follow your lead, and stealing items from the kitchen, and locking Nuns in Armoires-” Jin opens his mouth to defend the last statement (spanking a child for requesting a blanket deserved much more than being locked in a closet, in Jin’s humble opinion he was more than gracious) but is cut off, “no matter how much they might have deserved it, is not a good example.”

Jin closes his mouth and holds his head down once again. He runs his hand along his leg, the wool material coarse and scratchy, and it fascinates Jin that this is the first time he’s realized the material’s texture.

“I know it’s tempting,” the older woman continues, “wanting to stay young forever, but we all have to grow up at some point Seokjin, even you.”

“I know ma’am,” Jin replies, and it’s more murmur than actual speech.

The thing is that Jin is not ready to grow up, not ready to be responsible for others. How can he be when he’s not really sure how to take care of himself. It’s at moments like these, ones where he doubts himself, that he wishes he had a family, a real one complete with mother and father. But clearly they didn’t want him, not when they left him at two months of age at the front door of a church orphanage. He’d cry over his loss, but it doesn’t make sense since he doesn’t know what he’s missing.

“Okay, go check on Taehyung and Jimin, and please make sure they get to bed soon,” the Nun dismisses him. “Oh, and Jin-ah,” Jin pauses midway up from his seat, “thank you for taking such good care of Jimin. Next time though, try not to commit an actual crime while helping, okay?”

Jin smiles and nods his head vigorously, causing the newsboy cap to fall from his head. His eyes widen as he watches the hat fall, and at that moment it dawns on him he hadn’t removed the article from his head. He looks up at the Nun, shocked at his disrespectful behavior. How many times had she told him, A true gentleman always removes his hat in the presence of a lady, Jin-ah? As though reading his mind.

“It’s okay, I wasn’t offended. Go take care of your brothers. And, Jin?” He stops his movement. “Try to stay out of trouble this time.”

Jin bows then grabs his hat from the floor and swiftly walks to the wooden doors, to his freedom. He finds Jimin and Taehyung sitting next to each other, so close they look almost conjoined. Taehyung’s the first to look up, Jimin busy jam from his fingertips.

“Hyung!” The younger man gets up from the wooden table. “Are you okay? Did she whip you? Are you hurt?” the boy spitfires questions as he tugs at Jin’s tattered vest hidden beneath his jacket.

“I’m fine Taehyung.” He gently removes the boy’s hands. “Has Jimin eaten?” Taehyung nods his head, his eyes still reflecting worry. “I really am fine Taehyung. Mother Superior only scolded me with words.” He smiles and ruffles the boy’s head before making his way towards Jimin.

Jimin is older than Taehyung by a few months but feels like the youngest. Jin surmises it’s possibly due to the boy’s penchant for getting sick, and he worries because they have lost so many brothers to the likes of influenza and the plague. Jimin coughs and begins to nod off. Jin grabs the kerosene lamp from the table and coaxes Jimin to his feet gently.

“Come, let's go to bed then.” Jin beckons for Taehyung to follow and the boy obediently falls into step behind him.

Once the two boys are tucked in, Jin sits on his bed. The rusty springs squeak loudly under his weight. The large room is completely taken up with beds, at least hundred, possibly more but Jin hasn’t counted them, he doesn’t know how. Orphans are not allowed the same form of education as non-orphans. Instead they are taught a skill, something that will make them valuable, contributing members of society. He sighs heavily as he spins his body atop the rock hard mattress and lies down.

Nights are his least favorite time because it’s quiet, because there is nothing distracting him and keeping him out of his head. In the dark silence he thinks about his life. He wonders why his parents gave him away. The Mother Superior’s words are replaying in his head, “I know it’s tempting, wanting to stay young forever, but we all have to grow up at some point Seokjin, even you.”

Growing up scares Jin the most. The word adult does not fill him with images of independence or hope as it should. Instead, when Jin thinks of being an adult, all he sees is loneliness, a life away from the orphanage, from the only family he’s ever known. Adult is the scariest word Jin knows.

He shuts his eyes tightly, trying to drown out the images filling his mind, those of him struggling on his own with no one to help. He falls asleep with a heavy heart and a wish to find a place where he’ll never have to grow up.

****

“Yoongi, yoongi wake up.” Sarang shakes his shoulder, causing his wings to flutter. The fairy hates waking up the most.

Sarang giggles as he grumbles his disapproval of the current situation.

Yoongi is a Dream Fairy, and while the name would suggest that he’s in charge of sleep and dreams (Yoongi curses the fairy Gods every day that it doesn’t), the title encompasses so much more. Dream fairies are the originators of the day, the champions of hope and belief in the unbelievable. Dreams Fairies inspire imagination and are the protectors of purity and love. They are the guardians of the realm and are the ones that summon the day into existence.

Today it’s Yoongi’s turn to summon, but really he just wants to sleep. Why does the morning have to start so early? (He asks this question a lot.)

“Yoongi, come on, it’s almost time.” Sarang’s voice is cheerful and bubbly, like a baby’s giggles or the first wave as it rolls to life from the ocean floor. Most fairies sound like Sarang, like the happiest sound you’ve ever heard. Most fairies, but not Yoongi.

Yoongi sounds tired and angry; Yoongi sounds like he just doesn’t give a flying (and on certain days he really doesn’t). His voice is deep and growly and has an edge that rings of something dangerous, something very, very unfairy-like.

The green fairy thinks his existence is a cosmic joke. It’s as though the fairy gods woke up bored one day and came up with a brilliant idea to screw over an unsuspecting, innocent fairy (him) who just ing wants to sleep and task him with the job of waking the sun. He stretches, causing his wings to flap more vigorously. Three things cause a fairy’s wing to flutter when not in flight:

1. Happiness - when the fairy is at its peak of euphoria
2. Contentment – at moments such as stretching, yawning, etc., when its body is content
3. Threats- a fairy’s wings will flutter rapidly, up to ten times faster than normal, alerting them to possible peril.

“Alright, alright, stop nagging,” he practically growls at the glowing lilac and lavender fairy.

“Now, now Yoongi, anger is very unattractive,” she says with a laugh. “Except maybe on you.” She winks at him and flies from his leaf.

He cracks a gummy smile and stretches more, enjoying the batting of his wings against his shoulder. He alights from the leaf with a soft swish and hangs suspending in air for a brief moment, collecting his thoughts. He slowly ascends, making his way up toward the sky to beckon the sun and usher in the morning. While Yoongi hates waking up, he loves sunrise in Neverland. The way the sun bounces off the greens of the trees and the golds, oranges, purples, reds and blues of the flowers that cover the landscape creating a rainbow hue always has his breath hitching in his throat. The sight is so stunning.

The flight up is refreshing, and Yoongi is thankful he’s not afraid of heights. He reaches the clouds and playfully works the cotton soft fluffs, forming them into the shapes of animals just to mess with the air fairies. He giggles to himself. He can already hear Suho complaining, telling him that cloud shaping is a crucial part of fairy business and that he should stop ing with clouds nobody wants to wake up to a hippopotamus stampede in the morning Yoongi.

Once he’s satisfied with his handiwork (this morning it’s a dog peeing on a flower) Yoongi flutters past the clouds to the door. He taps three times then scurries to get below the clouds as quickly as possible so he can enjoy the view. The sun wakes with a burst of brightness, and despite himself, Yoongi smiles. The dawn of a new day is indeed a glorious sight. His wings flapping against his back express the joy he feels at what he is witnessing as he dangles in the air enjoying the beauty of his home, of Neverland, a place where all things are forever beautiful, forever happy, forever young. He winks at the sun before diving straight down like a bullet, tiny smirk in his face (okay freaking gigantic smirk).

Time to wake up Suho.

*****

“This is not a good idea.” Kyungsoo’s big round eyes reflect clearly just how bad an idea he thinks it is.

“No, you’re wrong Soo. It’ good, so, so good.” Jackson claps his hands together in excitement causing Kyungsoo to roll his eyes.

Jin winks at Kyungsoo and slaps Jackson on the back in agreement. “Right! Now come on let's make a plan. It’ll be fun.”

“Heard that one before,” Kyungsoo says with a loud sigh before leaning into the huddle of boys. “There has to be an easier way to get past old man Seunghyun than this,” Kyungsoo tries reasoning one last time only to receive a disapproving “tut” from Jin.

“Trust me, nothing will go wrong. I swear.” Jin places his hand over his heart indicating the seriousness of his vow.

“Heard that one before, too,” the second eldest says under his breath.

The huddle breaks, and the boys scurry around in a slight chaos as they put their plan into action. Operation: Get past Choi Seunghyun Ajusshi and see what’s hidden behind the black curtain begins and ends almost as soon as it starts. In hindsight, as the five boys are kneeling with hands held high above their heads with a very irate Mr. Choi pacing back and forth before them, deciding their fate, Jin thinks maybe sending Jackson in to cause a distraction was possibly the wrong call.

“Do you know how much that glass vase cost?” Choi Seunghyun says in between pacing. The prominent vein on the man’s neck pulses each time he speaks and sends the right amount of fear and adoration down Jin’s spine.

Jin has always been somewhat fascinated by the older man, six years his senior. There is an air of elegance about the man, an air fitting of the dapper gentleman Seunghyun represents. The man’s tight frock coat is tailored to perfection, fitting each turn and curve his body makes as though painted there by a skillful artist. The man’s vest is low cut, showcasing the crisp, white, high collared shirt beneath it. The look is completed by straight leg black pants and black boots so shiny Jin can see his reflection in them each time the man passes.

As Jin watches the man, he thinks to himself that this is the epitome of adulthood, the standard one must reach to truly be a grown up. Jin’s hearts sinks as watches the man move about, because if this is the standard, then he’s doomed.

“What possessed you to jump about in a store filled with handmade glass items?” The man turns his dark gaze toward Jackson, and Jin feels guilty as he watches the boy shudder in fear.

“It was my fault,” Jin chimes in, coming to Jackson’s defense.

Choi Seunghyung’s razor-sharp jawline moves in his direction; not only is the man an impeccable dresser, but he’s also impossibly good-looking, and Jin wonders at the unfairness of life. The man is tall, a good two inches more than Jin, who is considered to be on the taller side. His face is chiseled with sharp lines and angled features as though sculpted by Michelangelo himself, adorned with dark, brooding eyes that twinkle with both mystery and danger. One glance and the man’s stare has Jin anchored in place like a boat in the middle of a tempestuous sea.

“I see.” The man’s words are slow as his eyes roam over Jin’s entire body, sending a shiver down Jin’s spine; the look in the man’s eyes is just too intense. Seunghyun tilts his head to the side and continues to look at Jin as though he’s considering something... something other than a punishment, something that has Jin’s insides curling with a heat that he can’t explain.

“I wanted to know what’s behind the black curtain. So I came up with a plan to sneak in, one that seemed fool-proof but clearly wasn’t. I’m sorry about the vase, but I will work hard to pay you back. Please don’t hurt my friends.” Jin pulls a Taehyung and punches out an explanation without taking a single breath.

Seunghyun’s lips curve into a smirk before he speaks, repeating his original phrase of, “I see.”

Jin drops his eyes to the floor, breaking the man’s brutal gaze, but he can still feel the heat of it burning holes into his skin.

“It may have been your plan originally, but all who participated should be punished equally.” He walks past them and returns moments later with brooms and cleaning buckets which he drops in a pile before them. “Today you will start to pay your debt by cleaning the cellar. Do you understand?”

The boys nod unanimously before reaching out to take items from the pile. At Jin’s turn he feels a hand on his arm, and he looks up straight into Seunghyun’s sinister gaze. “Since you’re the instigator, I have a very special punishment for just you later.” The tone and bite of the man’s words have Jin’s heart slinking down his spine, and he clenches his cheeks together to keep the organ from escaping through his arse.

He shudders visibly at the man’s words, uncertain as to why. The smirk on Seunghyun’s face grows wider as he gets up, leaving Jin near trembling on his knees. He finds his way on shaky legs (not due to extended time kneeling) to the cellar where the other four boys are.

“SATISFIED?” Kyungsoo’s I-told-you-so voice is the first thing he hears as he enters the room.

“Yes, I’m quite content, thank you,” Jin counters, and he can almost see the image of himself being slain with ninja swords coming from Kyungsoo’s mind.

“Why are you so obsessed with this store anyway? It’s just a bunch of crystal and glass figurines. I’d hardly call anything in here mysterious or exciting.”

“Dunno, really,” Jin’s voices almost to himself. “Something about this place feels like it’s calling out to me, like there is something here I need to find.”

“Like a treasure hunt?” Jimin asks shyly.

“Precisely Chimchim, like a treasure hunt.”

“Yay! Treasure hunt!” Taehyung yells, and the boys can’t help but laugh at the younger man’s sudden outburst.

Jackson raises his broom and uses it as a makeshift sword. “En garde,” he says as he waves the handle in Jin’s direction. “You will never have my treasure!”

The older boy laughs before brandishing his own broom. He hears Kyungsoo from somewhere behind in the distance, warning him that this is yet another bad idea, but Jin happily ignores the advice as he and Jackson engage in war. Kyungsoo continues to clean as Jin and Jackson romp, Jimin and Taehyung standing close behind the two boys, cheering softly (for Jin of course) so as not to alert the owner of the store.

When Jin steps backwards to give himself enough space to straighten his sword and lunge forward, he thinks for the second time that he should have listened to Kyungsoo —as he missteps and rams into a jumping Taehyung, sending the boy flying into the shelves that adorn the cellar walls. On impact, a box comes tumbling to the ground with a crash that has the lid snapping open and a crystal type ball rolls to the ground, landing at Taehyung feet.

The boy leans forward to look at the object only to kick it away in fright moments later. Taehyung jumps from the spot on the ground at the speed of light and buries himself behind Jin, before leaning around and pointing at the ball.

“I-it’s h-haunt-t-ted.” Jin can feel the boy shaking behind him.

Generally, he would ignore such antics as Taehyung is given to theatrics, but he can feel genuine fear emanating from the boy and knows Taehyung is not just putting on a show. He pulls the boy to stand in front of him.

“Did you see something?”

The boy nods in the affirmative and scurries back behind Jin, grabbing the older boy’s waistcoat tightly. Jin beckons Jackson over as he gently removes Taehyung’s hand and places the younger man behind the muscular boy. He ambles to the area where the ball has rolled, bending down to reach under the bookshelf and retrieve the item, but it has slid too far back for Jin to get to it.

“Kyungsoo, pass me the broom.” The doe-eyed boy does as he’s told.

Jin swipes the broom under the large wooden object and jumps to his feet once he sees the orb roll out and towards the other four boys. The ball rolls steadily and stops centimeters away from Jackson’s boots, and if Jin didn’t know better, he’d swear the round object stopped on its own.

He gets down on his hands and knees once again and crawls toward the object.

“Hyung don-” Taehyung is silenced when Kyungsoo, standing on his tippy toes, clasps a hand over the boy’s mouth.

“Do you hear that?” Jimin whispers.

There’s a buzz in the air, and the sound reminds Jin of a lingering bee floating over a flower. It doesn’t take them long to realize the noise is coming from the crystal orb. Jin leans in, reaching out to touch.

*****

Yoongi’s wings are flapping excitedly as Suho chases him through the trees of the Neverland forest in a vain attempt to catch the green fairy. Yoongi may look like he’s one yawn away from falling asleep on most days, but everyone in fairydom knows the fairy is as spry as a fox and as fast as one too.

Yoongi’s laughter and Suho’s threats of what will happen, “once I get my hands on you,” echo through the serene woodlands. They continue to wind through foliage, weaving among branches and twirling through leaves, both careful not to harm anything in their path. The number one rule of the fairy world is to preserve life, all forms of it. Yoongi zips upwards, hoping to lose Suho in the canopy of the trees (he’s a green fairy after all).

He stills his movements as he hovers in between the large green leaves. He can hear Suho’s approach, and Yoongi almost laughs audibly when he hears the Air Fairy curse under his breath.

Suho is very close when Yoongi has the brilliant idea of jumping out when the other fairy least expects and scaring him. The green fairy tiptoes on the air, angling his body as though getting ready to pounce, but at that moment his wings begin to flap excitedly. He glances up and notices Suho’s wings doing the same, and it can mean only one thing… danger is near.

“I think it’s coming from over there,” Suho points to the north end of the island.

The sky above the area had grown unnaturally dark. Unless it was nighttime the skies never grew dim in Neverland.

“Do you see that?” Yoongi asks as they get closer to the area. “It looks like lightning, but it’s not rainy season yet, and Sunggyu only uses lighting when he’s angry.”

As the two fairies get closer to the darkening skies, they realize the foreign light is indeed lightning, only it is unlike anything they’ve ever seen in Neverland before. The light glows black and red like burning lava and each strike shaking the earth beneath, and the fairies can feel the aftershock of each blast trembling in the air around them.

Yoongi moves in for a closer look. His hands fly to his mouth as he realizes why the strikes are causing such a ruckus, why the earth is so bothered by the unusual storm. He hears a gasp to the left of him and turns his head to find Suho next to him, eyes wide with disbelief.

Everything the dark light touches turns to crystal-like glass, and had the sight not been so devastating, Yoongi would have found it beautiful.

“H-how? W-what?” Suho is unable to complete his thoughts.

Yoongi is about to say he doesn’t know when he spots him, a man, a pirate? He’s not quite sure. The figure is dressed in black from head to toe, and there's an object in his hand, a round ball, which seems to be where the lightning is coming from. Without much thought of the consequence, Yoongi begins moving quickly towards the figure. Well, towards the ball.

“Yoongi, no!”

Yoongi vaguely hears Suho cry out as he plummets at light speed towards the round, glowing object in the dark-clad man’s hand. Upon impact with the object, Yoongi thinks for the first time ever, I wish I had listened to Suho, as he and all of Neverland gets into the glowing orb.

*****

Jin looks down, hand reaching out to touch, but he falls backward when what looks to be a face bucks up against the glass. He shakes off his fear, assuming that his eyes were just playing tricks on him, or maybe he had taken Taehyung’s reaction a bit too seriously. Jin once again reaches out a determined hand and grabs the ball. The contact sends an electric charge through the boy’s body as the orb bursts into a fiery ball of light, and for what seems like the hundredth time Jin wonders why he didn’t listen to Kyungsoo.

*****

After hearing a commotion, Seunghyun hastens to the cellar. He arrives just in time to see a flash of bright white light as both the boys and the orb disappear. He stands with mouth agape wondering what just happened?

PART TWO: NEVERLAND

“Are they alive?” Sarang’s voice is still somehow bubbly and singsong even when sandwiched with concern, and Yoongi is impressed with her ability to sound happy despite being worried that he may have unwittingly killed five humans.

“How should I know? Dream fairy, remember?” Yoongi would have rolled his eyes while giving the reply if not for the fact that he was equally nervous about the state of the five boys the entire fairy community is hovering above.

“How do we tell?” a fairy fluttering beside Yoongi asks.

“Not sure,” another answers.

Fairies from every corner of Neverland have gathered around the unconscious (hopefully) boys. The sound of flapping wings resounds, and an excited energy fills the air. Something has changed, something has happened (apart for from five possibly dead humans lying in the grass), and Yoongi feels it but is unsure of what it is. He separates himself from the colorful crowd and glides upwards, above the rolling rocks of Mermaid Lagoon, above the sails of the pirate ships in the Sailor’s Cove, above the peak of the tallest evergreen in the Neverland forest, and he flitters through the first puffy cloudy enjoying the softness. It’s not until he floats through yet another cloud that the light bulb goes off in Yoongi’s mind. It’s gone! The glass dome that has been covering Neverland is gone.

“Woo-hoo!” Yoongi screams as he darts straight down like a bullet focused on a target.

“It’s gone!” he yells excitedly as he crash lands into Chanyeol’s shoulder, causing the Water Fairy to stumble.

“Yay! That hurt you know,” Chanyeol says, rubbing the area with his unusually large hand.

Normally Yoongi would reply with a sarcastic comment about Chanyeol being so tall he thought he was a tree, but the dome is gone and he’s feeling generous so he does something that makes all the fairies in earshot stop and stare in disbelief.

“Sorry,” Yoongi says (and he may even mean it) to Chanyeol and turns around to find several pair of eyes staring at him. “What? I can be nice.” He rolls his eyes as he flies closer to where the sleeping (possibly dead) boys are; he needs to tell Sarang the news.

“One of them moved!” someone yells from above Yoongi’s head.

A collective gasp is heard as the five boys begin to stir, and Yoongi halts his movement, watching and waiting for the reaction of the five strangers. Yoongi observes with intensity the boys slow arrival back to consciousness, slight groans and moans coupled with a few rounds of ‘where are we?’ fill the air as boys clear the cobwebs from their minds.

A small boy with thick full lips, pudgy cheeks, and wavy black hair is the first to speak.

“Hyung. Hyung. Hyung!” The boy’s tiny slits grow wide as he stares dumbfounded at the hundreds of fairies looking down at him. “HYUNG!” the boy continues calling out for what Yoongi can only assume is help.

Yoongi swoops down closer.

An older boy lying on the ground groans a reply that sounds to Yoongi like, “What Jinnin?” No Jamie? Jimin? Yes, Jimin. The cherub looking boy turns his head and meets Yoongi’s gaze directly (something no Earth Walker, non Neverland human, had done before) and the fairy feels his face growing warm and wonders if maybe the boys are witches or spell casters (what kind of mystical power has Yoongi temperature changing?).

However, he has no time to ponder the how or why of such a reaction because the older boy named Hyung sits up, looks around, and then all hell breaks loose.

*****

Jin rolls to his side, stretching languidly. His movements are slow and he feels the slight burn as his muscles and ligaments come to life. He’s not ready to awaken; the bed feels so comfy he wonders if the Mother Superior had done something to the usually concrete-like cots to make them feel so soft. He feels rested, and his body is warm and cozy, and he might be smiling, but he’s not sure. He had the craziest dream about a face in a glass ball, and now he really is smiling (he thinks) as he slowly starts to wake up.

“Hyung.”

He hears Jimin calling to the left of him, and that’s strange. Jimin isn’t normally this close, and isn’t his bed by the door to my right?

“Mmmm,” he murmurs, not sure the boy hears.

“Hyung.” Jimin’s voice grows a little louder, and Jin is a hundred percent sure the sound is coming from his left.

“What Jimin?” His voice is a little louder this time but still almost a whisper.

“HYUNG!” This time there is real fear in the boy’s tone that Jin can’t ignore.

He sits up, instantly turning his head to the left to find Jimin. The boy is sitting up, eyes glued to something, and there is terror written on Jimin’s face. Jin follows the trajectory of Jimin’s eyes and blinks when he finds the boy’s target because clearly I’m still dreaming. He isn’t given proper time to comprehend before he hears squealing coming from his right.

“Oh My God! Hyung! Look! Fairies!” Taehyung screams as he springs to his feet in a flash like lightning and catapults his body toward the group of butterfly like people.

“Taehyung! No!” Jin yells at Taehyung, who tries to stop upon hearing the seriousness in Jin’s voice but ends up tumbling forward like a cannonball bursting forward towards the stunned airborne crowd.

For the second time that day Chanyeol is knocked out of place.

“Wow, you’re really tall,” Taehyung says as he stumbles into the lanky blue fairy.

Jin stands up, finally coming to the realization that this is not a dream, that the scene before him is very, very real. There was a face in a glass ball, and Taehyung just plowed into a bevy of fairies?, like a bowling ball rolling into a row of pins. He reaches out, trying to the grab the young boy in hopes of minimizing the devastation as he watches tiny winged creatures of various shape, size, and color-- tumble, flutter, and scurry in all different directions.

Jin successfully pulls Taehyung back toward him and the other boys, but the fairies have yet to regroup in an orderly manner. He watches awestruck as flashes of colors zip before his eyes as fairies try to regain their balance. Jin is still having trouble believing what his eyes are seeing. The tiny creatures are beautiful and colorful, and it feels as though he’s watching a rainbow dance. Each flick of the wings creates a ringing sound, like the dinner bells rung at the orphanage only not nearly as boisterous.

This sound is calming. As the tiny bells ring and little wings flap, something akin to dust falls from each fairy. The dust is the same color as the fairy it comes from, and currently the air is filled with every color Jin can image and some he never could. The dust sparkles and is almost iridescent in nature, and if it weren't for that fact that he was scared less, he’d be in awe of how majestic the world before him looked. Feeling a vibration in front of him, Jin turns his attention toward Taehyung, who is clapping and laughing as though the circus was in town and he had front row seats.

“Are you okay?” he asks the excited boy.

“Fairies hyung, they’re so pretty.” Jin takes the boy’s response as a yes.

He looks around at the other three boys, and everyone seems okay. Apart from looks of extreme confusion all are standing upright and breathing, and Jin thinks that’s good enough for now. He turns his attention back to the creatures swarming around him like out of control flies, they seem to be regaining their order. As soon as the dust settles (literally) a tiny creature flies to hover just before his face, and he moves Taehyung behind him for protection (even though the boy was pleading to stay). She’s lovely. Her tiny face is long and slender and is almost entirely taken up by wide eyes that sparkle with life. Her color is one that Jin has not seen before. It reminds him of purple only much lighter (he later learns that the fairy has two colors lilac and lavender), and each flutter of her wings has her colorful dust floating in the air around Jin.

The fairy’s lips begin to move, but Jin hears nothing but the tiny ding of her wings as they flutter behind her. She must have registered his confusion because she makes an “o” with her tiny mouth and flies closer to him, so close that if Jin wanted to he could touch her with his nose. He doesn’t (Mother Superior taught him that a real man never touches a female without permission). The fairy points up and Jin’s eyes follow her until she is hovering directly above his head. She peers over her shoulder and Jin can’t be certain, but it looked as though she winked at him before fluttering her wings, allowing dust from her wings to land on his face.
She glides down, once again floating before him.

“Can you hear me?” her voice reminds Jin of bubbles, sunshine, and happy thoughts.

“Yes, I can.”

“Do you remember where you were last?” she asks.

“Yes. We were cleaning out Mr. Choi’s cellar as payment for breaking a glass vase. Taehyung stumbled and bumped into a shelf, and a glass ball fell to the ground. I reached out to touch it and, and, and… we all woke up here. Where are we, exactly?”

The fairy smiled, “You’re in Neverland.”

“Neverland? What is--”

“Hyung is she talking, can you hear her? How come we can’t?” Taehyung interrupts, sticking his head around Jin’s side and looking up. The fairy looks at Jin quizzically.

“He wants to know why he can’t hear you?”

“Oh, that’s easily fixable,” she says with a tiny laugh.

Jin turns as the fairy flies behind him and hovers above his four friends who are looking up. She twirls in the air as fast she can, like a tiny, light purple tornado, and Jin watches as a trail of lavender and lilac dust settles on the four boys.

“There, that should help.” She looks at Taehyung who is nodding vehemently, large boxy grin on his face. “Excellent! Hello, my name is Sarang. Our home, Neverland, the place you’re all now standing, was trapped in the glass orb that you accidentally found, by a dark magic, one we have never seen the likes of here. It seems that you are now stuck in the orb with u-” Sarang is interrupted by a green colored fairy that Jin recognizes as the face from the ball.

“I almost forgot,” the tiny green man glides to the side of the pretty fairy, “it’s gone.”

“What’s gone?” Sarang asks the tiny man.

“The glass wall, it’s gone. The clouds have no barriers. I was able to fly all the way through.”

“And the glass statues at the outermost part of the Never forest?”

“Everything is back to normal, you know, except for them.” The fairy turns and points to the lost boys.

“Are you a sorcerer?” Sarang turns to Jin, “Or maybe a Pan?”

“Me, a sorcerer? Oh, no, most definitely not,” Jin shakes his head firmly. “What’s a Pan?”

“Mmm, that’s strange.” Sarang, lost in thought, doesn’t hear Jin’s question.

“A Pan,” the green fairy answers, “is the most worshiped being in Neverland. Pans wield the power of Neverland and are the protectors of Neverland’s greatest power.”

“Which is?” Jin leans in, intrigued by the fairy’s charismatic yet sleep inducing tone.

“Protecting dreams,” Yoongi says proudly, green dust spilling as his wings flutter excitedly.

“Dreams?” Jimin says from behind Jin.

“Jimin, right?” The boy’s eyes widen when Yoongi says his name.

“How do you know his name,” Jin asks and stretches a protective hand to the side, shielding Jimin.

“You called him that when you first woke up.”The green fairy’s lips pucker in a curious manner as he angles his head to stare at the boys. “Are you Hyung?” the green fairy continues.

Jin laughs, “I am his hyung, like an older brother to him, but my name is Seokjin. Kim Seokjin, but most everyone calls me Jin.”

“Jin,” the green fairy repeats the name. “Mmm, I’m called Yoongi. I’m a Dream fairy.”

“It just doesn’t make sense,” Sarang flies back. “The orb has passed through many hands. It has been touched many times by Earth Walkers. Why was your touch different? What is your heritage?” the lilac fairy questions.

“I-I, don’t know,” Jin stutters the answer. “I’ve never met my parents. I’m an orphan.”

“You’re not an orphan hyung, you have us,” Jackson says from behind him.

“Orphan means you don’t have parents, dummy,” Kyungsoo corrects Jackson.

“I know we don’t have parents, bug eyes. But it also means we don’t have any family. We’re not orphans because we’re each other’s family. Isn’t that right hyung?” Jackson looks to Jin for confirmation.

Jin smiles. “That’s right Jackson. We have each other so we’re not orphans anymore.”

“That could be it then,” Sarang’s voice has the boys looking up. “Maybe you’re a Pan, but you just don’t know. I need to think. Yoongi, you’re in charge of them. Set them up on the east end of The Never Forest, just outside of Fairy Bay.” With those orders, the fairy flies off.

“I’m sorry, when can we go home?” Jin asks as Yoongi beckons them to follow.

“The thing is,” Yoongi starts slowly, “it seems as though when you touched the orb you undid the curse, propelling Neverland back to its rightful state. It also seems, however, that the side effect of your action is you and your friends are, uhm, stuck here, maybe?”

“WHAT?” All five boys answer in unison.

******

“The boys all looked at the fairy--” Namjoon continues.

“No, Pawpaw, skip to the part where you and Grandpa meet,” Wendy interrupts impatiently.

“Are you sure? You don’t want to hear about how Taetae got smacked in the nose by the green fairy?” Jin asks pressing a kiss to the top of the child’s head.

“I’m swure,” she responds with a tiny giggle.

“When did you become such an impatient Patty?” Namjoon adds, leaning in and nuzzling his nose into the child’s neck, turning giggles into giant belly laughs.

“I’m not Patty, I’m Wendy, Pawpaw!”

“Oh, that’s right,” Namjoon says bumping his palm against his forehead. “I forgot. Okay Miss Wendy, let’s get to the good part.” Namjoon leans down, whispering in the child’s ear, “Meeting Grandpa is my favorite part too.”

Wendy’s happy laughter fills the air as Namjoon continues.

*****

“You sniveling scallywag are you trying to scuttle us?” The blonde adjusts the red tricorn on his head, fluffing the purple feather.

The shiphand stares at the pirate, lips parted and eyebrows drawn together quizzically.

“Why are you still standing here? Go clean the poop deck!”

The man shuffles off, a confused look on his face.

“The poop deck is in the other direction,” he calls after the man, who stops mid walk and turns, embarrassed expression on his face.

“What are you doing?” Hoseok’s voice has him turning around.

“I’m commanding my crew. It’s what I do.”

“Come with,” the man says with such authority Joon wonders who the captain of the Red Bullet really is. “Seriously Joon,” Hoseok states in exasperation once they’re locked behind the doors of the captain's quarters.

‘What?” the blonde asks, confusion coloring his tone. He thinks back over the past three hours; he hasn’t broken anything yet (he’s pretty confident the water basin is only slightly cracked).

“You know that using old pirate terms that no one understands doesn’t actually make you a pirate, right?”

Joon balks at Hoseok’s words.

“I’ll have you know I’m fifth generation born and bred, pure blood, pirate through and through. My great, great, great, great grandfather, was the fearsome pirate Captain Bang Yong-” he’s cut off.

“Yes, yes, I know fearsome Captain Bang Yongguk, the most fearsome pirate in all the four seas and Neverland. Bang Yongguk may have been a pirate, but you, you’re just brain in a feather hat yelling at the crew in some ancient language that no one understands.”

“But we’re pirates, and we’re on a pirate ship. Shouldn’t we talk like pirates too?”

“So you got terms like all hands hoay and hornswoggle from your heritage?”

“No, I got those from this.” He pulls out a leather bound book he’d hidden in his jacket pocket.

“Wait. Are you telling me you’re getting all this from a book?”

“I know right, isn’t it great?” Joon is genuinely proud. He’s always been a bit book smart.

“Namjoon, what the hell is wrong with you?”

“Don’t call me that. It’s Captain Joon. You know how I feel about that name. Only she called me that.” Namjoon leans against the large wooden desk in the middle of the room, seemingly broken.

The slightest memory of her is like a knife in his chest, twisting and gutting his insides. It’s been three years since the man in black took her life. Three years that Namjoon has spent scouring Neverland in hopes of finding the mysterious stranger.

“I’m sorry Joon, I didn’t mean to-”

“It’s okay, let’s just drop it, okay?”

Hoseok nods and lays a reassuring hand on his friend's shoulder.

“We’ll find him, Joon, I promise, and… he’ll rue the day.”

“You know that’s a pirate term, right?” Namjoon interjects.

“Seriously? That’s what you focus on? Not your friend of many, many years being supportive, getting you through a rough patch?” Hoseok responds sarcastically, a big smile plastered on his face, and Namjoon cracks a smile knowing it’s Hoseok’s way of lightening the mood.

“I thought the support was a two-pronged attack. You help me through my ‘rough patch’ by showing me how awesome pirate phrases really are.” Namjoon his head eyes twinkling with held in laughter. “You really are a good friend Hobs.”

“You’re an idiot.” Hoseok slaps him on the back as he laughs loudly, and the sound makes all the clouds filling Namjoon’s heart dissipate. “Let’s go before Mark steers us in the wrong direction again.”

“Remember when he took us to the third rock from the sun? Those people weirded me out.”

They walk out of the room reminiscing about the strange and exotic places they have encountered due to their directionally-challenged helmsman, trying to replace the sad memories with happier ones. Once on the b