Chapter 30; Disney Lied, Mermaids Are Vicious Man-Killing Beasts!

"Those who are heartless once cared too much."

~ Unknown

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Hunter's P.O.V

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    "Hunter, stop standing there and help us," Andrew whisper-yells, dragging an unconscious Ray.    "Get over here."    I make my way over to my brother and help him place the burlap sack over Will's head. Jerome ties the unconscious boy's hands together, a small precaution in case the poppy dust wears off.

    It was Jerome's idea to steal the poppy dust from Tinker Bell to knock the two of them out. Jerome grabs one of Will's arms while I grab the other, we then proceeded to drag him.    "Why are we doing this?" I whisper.    "Because Andrew asked us to," Jerome replies.    "It doesn't feel right to me," I admit.

    Believe it or not, I've always hated what the three of us do. If Andrew asked me to help him in these types for schemes when I was younger, I'd tell him to bugger off. Unfortunately, I can't say the same for my brother as Jerome, like Andrew, loves power. Power was, and still is, a drug to him. It started off when the two of us were just kids. Jerome would always pick on the neighborhood children.

    And I, being his brother, followed him blindly, adopting his ways. It was just harmless fun back then, the usual name-calling. But then he started beating up some of the younger kids. I knew I had to do something about it, but how could I? Our father had just passed away and our mother had caught a incurable disease. Picking on kids was the only way to help him cope. So I kept quiet.

    He stopped beating up the other kids up when our mother started getting better. But then, there was an unexpected turn of events. Mother started coughing up blood and she didn't eat as much as she used to. So we called for the doctor, but he couldn't help her. He pulled us to the side and told us that she had a few weeks left, a month if we were lucky, to live.

    Mother died three weeks later.

    The two of us were sent to an orphanage in the neighbouring village as we did not have any living relatives. And if I thought Jerome was bad before I couldn't be more wrong. He started hurting more kids, stealing, it wasn't just harmless name-calling anymore. I tried bringing the subject up, but he'd always brush it off, saying I was overreacting. But I knew better.

    Power was a drug and Jerome was now an addict.

    We met Pan's shadow few years down the road. And after a few days, we left the orphanage to go to a magical place called Neverland. Jerome started getting better, he had stopped hurting other kids. I think it was because of the new environment and people. We finally had a family. Jerome was his old self again. He was nicer and he stopped trying to find ways to hurt other people.

    That was until we met Andrew. You see, Andrew had been doing Pan's dirty work for ages. But at that time, Andrew was a loner, everyone feared him. Everyone except Jerome. He worshiped him. Andrew would sometimes ask Jerome to help him with some jobs that Pan had given him. Those jobs including the ones where he had to punish the younger Lost Boys. Jerome loved it.

    When Jerome started hurting other boys, I knew I had to intervene. So I reluctantly accepted their invitation to join them in carrying out Pan's punishments. After awhile, the three of us became inseparable. We became the Bloodlust Trio, Pan's favorite Lost Boys.

    And just like we were younger, I adopted my brother's sinister ways.

    "Don't be such a wimp," Jerome hisses.    "There's nothing wimpy about not wanting to kill people," I say, wiping the sweat from my forehead.    He looks like he's about to say something but Andrew beats him to it.    "Get over here," Andrew whispers.    I remain quiet for the rest of the trip, the only noise is the sound of our boots on the rich soil.

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Alice's P.O.V

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    "They left for a walk after training. Will told me that he wanted to catch up with his brother," Lewis tells me.    I attach my sword to my belt loop and decide to take another one in case. Who knows? We might need it.    Felix points at pink powder on the ground. "Is that what I think it is?"

    Peter takes one look at it and nods. "Poppy dust."    "What's that?" I ask.    "It's what non-magic folk use to knock people out," he explains.    "Where would the trio possibly take them?" I ask.    Felix looks at Peter. "You don't think—?"    "No," Peter shakes his head. "No, Andrew isn't that insane."

    "I wouldn't be so sure about that," Lewis asks.    The two older boys give him a look.    "What?" Lewis asks, innocently raising his hands. "He sounds like a psychopath to me."    The two boys fall into silence as Peter and Felix exchange looks, as if they know something we don't.    "What?" I ask. "Peter, what is it?"

    Felix answers for him. "We might have an idea as to where they might be."    "Well?" Lewis asks.    Peter shakes his head, pacing. "It's not possible. Andrew wouldn't go there."    "Go where?" I ask, but my question falls on deaf ears.    I grab the tall brunette by the shoulders and repeat my question.

    Peter stops pacing, giving me a solemn look. "Mermaid Lagoon."    "Isn't that the place where the—"    "Yes," Peter interrupts me. "It's the place where the bloodthirsty mermaids dwell. The very mermaids which the trio were named after."

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Hunter's P.O.V

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    I watch in silence as Andrew riles the mermaids up. He uses his knife to make a small cut on his finger, a small drop of blood pools on his forefinger. He then walks over to the edge of the waterfall and sticks his hand out. A single drop of blood falls, causing the water below to ripple. Not even a second later, the water below starts trashing violently, like there's a storm below.

    One by one mermaids start appearing at the surface. Hunger written on their faces. The surface of the lagoon looks like a field of flowers due to their colorful hair. A turquoise haired mermaid shoots up from the water, attempting to grab me. I'm suddenly thankful for the huge distance between the mermaids and the top of the waterfall.

    I gather up my courage and make my way to the raven haired boy. "Andrew, is this really necessary? Do you really have to break one of Pan's biggest rules for your pride?"    "Are you questioning me, Hunter?" he asks, glaring daggers at me. "The boy who took you under his wing when you first arrived here?"    "N-No. I just..." I trail off, shaking my head. I knew this was a bad idea.

    I head back to Jerome and stand next to him. Jerome gives me a look that.

    "What were you thinking?" he hisses. "In all our years here in Neverland, when have we ever doubted Andrew?"

    I shake my head. "Forget about it."

    "No," Jerome said firmly. "All this time we've been here you've never once disagreed with an order. First you refuse to kick Ray now all of a sudden you want out?"

    I sigh, turning to face him.

    "Andrew has been nothing but good to us, why now are you questioning him?" he asks, gesturing to raven haired boy.

    "Are you even listening to yourself?" I ask. "Do you honestly think that it's completely fine to kill innocent people just because Jerome said so?"

Jerome give me a humorless laugh. "Innocent? He almost killed us yesterday!"

    "He gave us a chance to leave," I remind him. "Do you not remember that?"    "He just said that because his brother was there," Jerome argues.    "So you're saying that murder is acceptable if provoked?" I ask.    "Yes, that's exactly what I'm saying!" he shouts. "Who cares if Andrew's intentions are bad?!"

    It was at that very moment when I realized that I had lost my brother to the evil ways of the world. The evil deeds we had done with Andrew had finally taken it's toll.

    I try to reason with Jerome but Andrew beats me to it.    "Hunter, Jerome, stop being so loud!" Andrew whisper-yells. "Do you want to wake the whole island up?"    We shake our heads.

    "You—" Andrew points at Jerome. "—stop bickering with your brother."

    "Sorry, Drew," Jerome apologizes. "It won't happen again."

    "It'd better not," he snaps.

    "And you—" Andrew narrows his eyes at me. "I don't have time to keep an eye out for you in case you're planning on sabotaging us, so are you in or are you out?"

    I glance towards my brother before looking back at Andrew.

    Who knows what Andrew would make Jerome do if I leave now. Sometimes there are things far worse than death, and I do not want to imagine what Jerome would do to the unfortunate lost boys if I am not there to stop him.

    Giving Jerome one last look I nod my head. "I'm in."

    "Good." Andrew throws me a small bag. "The poppy dust should've worn off by now. You know what to do."

****

    I make my way to the two unconscious boys lying against a tree. I could've sworn I saw Will move when I keeled down. Where do my loyalties lie? With Andrew? Jerome? Or with my morals? I have to make a choice. My brother is all I have left. I can't lose him too. But I know I've made up my mind as I pull out a dagger out of my pocket.

    I place the dagger in Will's hand. "Get back to camp. You only have a few seconds until Andrew and Jerome realize that something's wrong."    "Why are you helping us?" Will asks, his voice no louder than a whisper. "You hate Ray."    "I don't hate him, and neither does my brother. Andrew brainwashed him into thinking that way."

    "Hunter!" Andrew shouts from the waterfall.    "I have to go," I say, standing up. "Good luck."    I empty the bag, dumping out the rest of the poppy dust on the ground, just in case Andrew checks the contents of the bag.    "What took you so long?" Andrew asks as I approach him.

    "Ray woke up," I lie, rubbing my arm like I've been hit. "I had to use the rest of the poppy dust on him."

    Andrew shakes his head in disgust. "I should've sent Jerome instead."

    That comment would've stung. If I actually cared. I'm not saying that I hate Andrew. He's actually grown on me over the years. If anything, I pity him.

    He might not have told me about his life before he came to Neverland but him being here tells me that it wasn't a good one. I think he might be an orphan like most Lost Boys. I've always wanted to know what made him like this. Was it an abusive foster parent? Or something worse? I'll never know.

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Alice's P.O.V

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    "Come on," Peter says. "Mermaid Lagoon is this way."    "What's Andrew going to do to them?" Lewis asks, catching up to the three of us.    "If I'm right, and I hope I'm not, Andrew's going to feed them to the mermaids," Peter says.    "But I thought mermaids were supposed to be peaceful creatures?" Lewis says.

    "In your world maybe," Felix says. "Here, mermaids are hostile creatures."    "What are you going to do to the trio when we find them?" I ask.    "It depends," Peter says.    "On what?"    "On whether or not your friends are still alive. If he killed them, I'll have to sentence him to death. Murdering another lost boy are against the rules."

    "And I don't tolerate rule breakers," he adds darkly.    I shiver at those words. What if I lose the game but refuse to admit defeat? What will Peter do to me if he finds out?    "Hey, I think I found something!" Lewis shouts, breaking my train of thought.

    I make my way towards him. The soil is uneven and there's a trail of footprints running up the hill. They must've knocked the boys out and dragged them.    "Come on," Peter says, walking up the hill. "Let's find them before Andrew decides to do anything drastic."

    The boys are faster than me due to their longer legs and I have to jog to keep up with their stride.    "What happened to Andrew to make him this way?" I ask.    "It's not my tale to tell," Peter says. "You'll have to ask him yourself, although I doubt he'd tell you."

****

    "Okay," I say, looking at the two older boys. "So what's the plan?"    They stare back at me.    "You don't have a plan, do you?"    Peter shakes his head. "We didn't say that."    "Well you didn't say anything either," Lewis retorts.    Peter narrows his eyes at him. "Don't talk to me like that."

    "Well, I just did. What are you gonna do about it?" Lewis challenges, standing up.    Peter stands up from his kneeling position and glares at Lewis. Lewis challenges him with a glare of his own. Despite Lewis being tall for his age, Peter towers over him by a few inches.    "Boys!" I exclaim, exasperated. "Now's not the time for petty arguments."

    "What are you guys doing?" a familiar voice behind us asks.    "Rescuing you guys," I answer.    Wait. What?    I turn around to see the two brothers.    "Ray! Will!" I exclaim, embracing them in a hug.    "How did you guys get out?" Lewis asks.    "Hunter helped us," Will replies.

    "Say that again," Peter says, although it sounded more like an order.    "Hunter helped us," Ray repeats.    I furrow my eyebrows. "But he hates you."    "Apparently not."    "So what now?" I ask.    "Now we confront them," Peter says.

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Yeah... I have writer's block again. I apologize for this chapter. It was awfully boring. I'll try to update another chapter when I get inspiration to write.

I'm not sure if I mentioned this before, but I'm also working on a TMR fanfic. It's called "The Boy With The Limp", it's a Newt fanfic (duh) It'd mean a lot to me if you guys checked it out and tell me what you think. Another thing you guys should know is that my writing was (and kinda still is) terrible. I'm not even kidding.

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Do you guys want me to write the next chapter in Peter's P.O.V?

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What can I do to make this fanfic better?

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Vote, comment, rate, do whatever you want <3

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Edited: 27.11.2017