"Smee, Smee!" The captain jumped out of his bed and ran toward a lamp in his room. "Smee!" In through the door rushe...

The Shadow

allthingsm4tt

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"Smee, Smee!" The captain jumped out of his bed and ran toward a lamp in his room. "Smee!"

In through the door rushed a tiny man with a large stomach that peeped out through his shirt. His hair had left his head years ago and now resided around his cheeks and neck . "Yes Captain." He said.

The captain grabbed him by the shoulders, "He is here Smee! He is here!" He threw the lamp at Smee. 

The little man shone it around the room. High and low, left and right. "Well he has gone now captain. You must have scared him off."

The captain stood up from behind his grand chair. He had the chatter of his teeth under control but his legs still wobbled. 

"I can't keep doing this Smee. I haven't slept since I killed that wretched boy."

Smee manoeuvred his belly as he checked the little nooks in the room. "Well like I said Captain, what you need is a holiday. Reward yourself for your hard work."

The captain walked back toward his bed. He was down off his toes and walking flat on his feet again. "What will that do Smee? The shadow will follow me everywhere, his shadow will follow me everywhere." 

"Somewhere sunny captain, shadows don't like too much sun you know." Smee raised up from the floor and dusted himself off. "The north of Neverland is lovely this time of the year."

The captain dropped on to his bed, "Then at night time, let his shadow ruin me again? I'm Captain James Hook. I defeated the crocodile, I defeated Peter Pan and now I'm running from a shadow?"

"Not running captain, vacationing, its completely different." During his search, Smee had noticed a piece of cake on the captain's dresser and slowly edged towards it. 

"No! I will get that boy's shadow and be rid of him. Bring me Tiger Lily, I think it's time she finally talks." The captain stood up, his resolve was back.

Smee, who was shovelling cake into his mouth, left the room. Alone, the captain looked around. The fear of a few moments before trickled back into him. He grabbed the lamp on the table. Cake crumbs were all over the handle. 

The captain picked up the lamp and shone it left and right, trying to keep everywhere lit. Left and right the light swung and and then he saw it. He froze like a mannequin in a shop window. On the wall, darker than soot, a shadow of a boy floated. His arms were against his waist and if he had eyes they would have been looking directly at the captain.

The shakes returned to Hook's body, "Leave me!" 

The shadow wagged its finger. It lowered down the wall, and cast itself along Hook's piano. Hook took a step back. The shadow fell further and slide on the floor. It waited a moment, which felt like an eternity to Hook, then crawled toward the back peddling captain. 

"Here you are are Captain. Princess Tiger Lily" Smee burst back in with a small girl over his shoulders. 

The captain turned toward Smee and then returned to the shadow, but it was gone. He looked around the room, he thrust the light everywhere he could but saw nothing. 

Smee threw Tiger Lily on the ground with a thud. The sound broke Hook's moment of worry and he remembered why he had wanted with the Princess.

"Prop her up Smee." Hook said.

Smee grabbed the tied princess by the neck and dragged her to her knees. Her mouth was gagged and her large eyes were blood shot. Her tattered clothes barely covered her filthy skin. However, she still carried herself like a Princess. Her head was held high and and her shoulders refused to slouch. 

Hook walked in front of the princess and looked down at her. "Tell me Princess. How does it feel to know that you will be my slave until the last gulp of air leaves your pretty little mouth?"

Tiger Lily gave no reaction. Her defiance elongated Hook's smile, it had been one of the reasons he had kept her alive. If she had ever begged for her life he would probably have slit her throat like he did to most prisoners. There was something about defiance in the face of death that Hook respected.

"Smee remove that gag." Said Hook.

Smee ripped it from the princess' mouth and gave her matted hair a tug. "You better speak up this time girl." He rattled her head more and then let her go, some of her hair remained in his hands, blooded and clumped.

Tiger Lily showed no signs of pain. Her nose pointed to the ceiling and she stared at Hook.

"Now I am reasonable man." Hook was still stood above Tiger Lily. "I hate seeing you like this." He lowered to her eye level. "Help me, help you."

They locked eyes, and Hook caressed her nest of hair. "Tell me how to get rid of Pan's shadow and I will set you free." 

The word free widened the princesses' eyes. The captain had seen that word change the countenance of a thousand faces and knew Tiger Lily was thinking about it. She flashed him a smile. Men had waged war over her beauty and at that moment the captain could see why. He flashed his crooked set of teeth back at her. "We have a deal?" He asked.

Her smile turned into a tiny giggle and then erupted into a violent grimace as she hurled a torrent of spit at Hook. She jumped up to her feet with her hands still tied behind her back. The captain fell back, stunned. Tiger Lily went to kick him, but as she raised her leg to deliver the blow Smee bashed her across the back of her head. She fell to the ground, unconscious. 

"Savages captain, absolute savages. I don't know why you keep her around, honestly." Said Smee. He pulled a tissue from his back pocket and handed it to Hook.

"Because she is the answer Smee." The captain wiped his moustache. "She knows how to get rid of that shadow, and I will keep cutting the throats of her people until she tells me!"  

About Post Author

allthingsm4tt

Writer of things, meme supplier, semi-occasional six string swordist, sporadic cinema goer and smiler.

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