. : Laura of Neverland : .

Never cross the barrier.

It had been beaten into Laura for over three decades. Pan had said it to her and had her repeat it the second she stepped foot on Neverland. She had held true. In the thirty-two years she had spent on the enchanted island, she had never set foot over the barrier.

She could see it from where she crouched, shrouded by shadows. It was glistening, almost as if it were wet. The magic that held it in place-- Pan put it in the year she arrived-- was deep green, and if one stared at it too long, it could play tricks on their eyes.

It made Laura uncomfortable to even be this close. She was maybe fifty metres away, tucked into bushes, and wearing loose clothes, a face covering, and a hooded cloak, with a thin dagger, tucked up her sleeve. The wind that wound through the woods and the chill that the darkness of night had brought in left her shivering. It was a side effect of her magic. Her internal reserves of magic were related to her internal temperature.

They had issued a counterattack against the soldiers only three days ago. It had been that battle that had pushed her enemies beyond the tree line and onto the beach-- the very edge of her territory. Even that had made her nervous about the barrier. That fight had been brutal on her magic. It required a lot of sharp moves and careful blasts to avoid destroying the dense foliage. She hadn't had the chance since to fully recover.

Thankfully, tonight was the final battle. She was certain of that. Laura had spent the last three days stockpiling as much magic as she could, yet it still hadn't fully recovered. If they waited much longer though, they would lose their advantage over the soldiers and chance of winning. It had to be now.

Laura and the rest of the Twilight Children hadn't been wanting to do it on the beach. The Havfrue soldiers and pirates had the advantage when it came to water. She would've preferred the thick jungle and trees, but they were so close to winning that she was willing to risk it. Tonight would be the night that the soldiers of Havfrue and the pirates they had allied with regretted the choices that lead them here. Tonight would be the night that they realized exactly what Neverland's Twilight Children were capable of. Tonight, they would make their last assault.

Almost a year ago, the soldiers of Havfrue, and their crown Prince had shown up on her island, her home, and demanded they turned it over. They believed the source of magic resided in Neverland and were foolish enough to attempt to take it. Laura had sent them home with burning ships and a threat, the alligator allies snapping at them all the way into the sea.

They were presistent and returned eight months ago, this time with an agreement with the pirates. Help the Kingdom of Havfrue take Neverland, and they could use their seaports to trade.

Unfortunately, they didn't quite realize what she was capable of.

They still didn't.

Laura narrowed her eyes, honing in on the bonfire they were having. She could feel the energy of it. It wouldn't be hard to reach out and squash it, leaving them shrouded in darkness and panic, but she had to wait until the mermaids gave their signals.

Usually, the mermaids stayed impartial, especially considering that the Queen of Havfrue was a former mermaid and a sister species to the Neverland mermaids. They had ignored the fight for nearly three months, until Laura had gone down to speak to them, and explained what Havfrue wanted. They had rallied so fast, Laura found herself questioning how long they had truly been ignoring the war.

Laura scanned the beach. The rest of the Twilight Children-- all bundled in thick fighting leathers-- lurked amongst the treeline, stepping in place with the shadows and its comfortable darkness. If she looked hard enough, she could see faint gleams of metal from their weapons.

Where was he?

A subtle splash rang up from the surrounding bay that could've passed for a fly fish, if they could live in the chilly waters of Neverland. Laura narrowed her eyes in the direction of the splash. One of the mermaids had sent that splash. That meant they were in position, and had spotted him.

Laura focused on the boat where the splash had originated. He should be on the boat, somewhere. Sure enough, seconds after the signal, he emerged on deck.

Crown Prince Sebastian of Havfrue. Royal Knight of the Most Nobel Order of Havfrue. Commander of the Military. Lord High Admiral of Havfrue.

Child butcher. Magic hunter. Expert at Disturbing the Cardinal Balance. Raging Asshole.

The last few were recent additions to his already ridiculously long title, given to him on behalf of a few disgruntled and slightly tipsy Twilight Children.

He could've been handsome if it weren't for the faint murderous gleam in his eyes. He had his mother's red hair, but the rest was entirely his father. Sharp features, dark eyes, and tall stature. He was the leader of Laura's enemies, and he was going to be lucky if he made it out of here alive.

Laura twitched her hand. The magic that had taken her over a decade to master protested as it rose to the surface. She aimed first for the bonfire, stifling and forcing it down until the soldiers vanished into the darkness. It was always harder to control fire that wasn't of her own making. The soldiers exploded in panic, shouts ringing out. A couple of torches were lit, but Laura stopped the fire on those too.

She slid from the bush, her movements silent as the darkness of night. She could see the figures of the Twilight Children moving from their cover, slim shadows weaving through the air. The Havfrue soldiers were good fighters; she had to give them that. They were well trained. Despite her unnatural affinity for fire-- and the Twilight Children being some of the best warriors in the Fairytale war-- they had managed to kill nearly half of the Twilight Children in the past few months.

There had been around thirty when she started the war, and now there were sixteen left.

Her second, Max, a tall lean girl with dark hair who had arrived seven years ago, was the one who had lasted the longest out of the ones still living. Her previous second-- Lexus-- was killed in the last siege on the centre of Neverland almost two months ago. He had been a companion of hers for seventeen years, and that had been Havfrue's most brutal attack to date. A room full of bloody bodies filled her mind, and Laura shook her head as she lost her focus. She needed to concentrate. If her magic drained too quickly, she wouldn't be able to fight anymore.

Max had slid from the far end of the beach, effectively cornering the soldiers. She waved her hand in Laura's direction, and she nodded.

Raising her hands, she pulled as much magic as she could, setting the beach on fire. It acted like the walls to some sick arena. The dark figures of the Twilight Children stood just inside the fire, their fireproof cloaks protecting them from the heat.

"It's the damned Ingi!" Sebastian's voice carried through the beach. It was laden with the thick sea accent from the kingdom he was from. "Do not yield, we have more soldiers."

Laura laughed and waved her hand forwards. The majority of the Twilight Children shot into the air, a sparkling trail of pixie dust glimmering behind each of them.

They had restocked their vials earlier, the identical ones that every member carried. They were a failsafe, a way to get out in case things went wrong. The pixies that made the dust, in the heart of Neverland refused to get involved in the war-- they were the one species on Neverland to refuse, even after being asked-- but they had turned the other way when Laura had asked for allowance to refill the vials. They were under just as much a threat as the others.

Laura stepped forward, setting her hands on fire. The Twilight Children descended. The soldiers let out shrieks as they were sent to the ground. The clang of metal that filled the air was soon followed by the metallic scent of blood and a dying scream. Laura glanced quickly in the direction of the noise. One of theirs. Good.

"You." The noise was barely more than a hiss. "You're mine."

Laura narrowed her eyes. Sebastian had spotted her and was walking through the carnage, straight towards her. He was out of the armour he usually wore; they hadn't been expecting an ambush. Instead, he was wearing a loose white shirt and black pants. His gleaming sword, the hilt embellished with the symbol of a crab, was gripped in his right hand, his knuckles nearly white.

Laura raised a hand, flames curling along the fingers, and smiling under her mask. "Are you ready for a rematch? It's nice to see that burn is healing nicely."

She had grasped his wrist last time and burnt it. Nowhere near enough to kill, but more as a threat, a reminder of who he was dealing with. She wasn't lying, it was healing nicely. The burn had faded into a deep purple mark.

Sebastian snarled, swinging his sword towards her. Laura ducked, and pulled the long slim dagger out of her sleeve, dragging the shiny metal along his thigh, before sliding behind him and stepping out of range.

Laura had always found it funny. Their bodies were the same age-- sixteen-- but she had over thirty years of mental experience on him. It was obvious that he had been trained since he was young, his level of swordsmanship rare in a boy so young.

He let out a grunt, but to his credit, didn't fall. He swung back around, red hair falling into his face. He tossed his sword from hand to hand. "You are light on your feet, Ingi."

Laura took a deep breath, ignoring the slur. She had been called it for years, and she wasn't going to let this little boy get to her. "And you obviously don't have much experience fighting in forests. Were you too busy suntanning and hosting tea parties to train in different terrain?"

Laura laughed, and set a sharp ball of fire his way, straight at his face. Her magic groaned at the effort. His eyes widened, and he ducked, crouching against the sand. He nearly slipped when he stood, and Laura snickered.

He lunged towards her, his sword coming with him. Laura continued to step back, heading towards the ships. Once he was close enough, she gripped the dagger and swung it towards his neck.

Sebastian grabbed her wrist, stopping the dagger from coming close to his face, wrenching it out of her hand and flinging it into the distance. Laura gritted her teeth. She sucked at hand-to-hand combat and had her entire life. She had no chance of killing him if he took her dagger. She wouldn't use her fire to kill, never would again.

She had been focused on suppressing her rising panic and missed the way Sebastian swung his leg, driving them under her. She hit the soft sand with a groan, her head bouncing. He lunged on top of her. Laura lit her hand on fire and swung it into his side. He twisted away, and Laura shoved him off, flaming hands digging into his broad chest. She scrambled up, taking a few steps away.

Sebastian got up, only to stop and his eyes widened in surprise. "You're a girl?" He looked her up and down. "You don't fight like a girl."

She hadn't realized in the grapple that her hood had fallen down. Her long dark hair that had been braided had fallen out of her hood. Several loose strands dangled in her face, sticking with sweat. "I wasn't taught to fight like a girl. I was taught to defend myself and my home."

"You shouldn't be fighting, that's not a girl thing to do."

Laura paused, breaking out of her fighting stance to stare at his baffled face. Her hands dropped to her sides. "Didn't your mother take on a sea witch?"

Sebastian blinked, staring at her before he refocused, and the rage reentered his gaze. "I guess I will feel slightly worse when I kill you."

Laura laughed, and her fingers lit up with flames. "I'd like to see you try."

He lunged at her and she stepped back, towards the ocean. He kept swinging his sword towards her. She kept stepping back, dodging the sharp edge of the sword.

Laura glanced around. About five soldiers and three pirates had fallen. Her heart wrenched as she noticed two Twilight Children collapsed on the ground. She couldn't sense the life presence in either of them.

Sebastian swung his sword, and she slid back. She twisted her hand and sent fire at his ankles. Her magic was running low. She had to stop using it. He jumped over it and broke into a run. Laura's eyes widened. She stumbled backwards, as he grabbed her shoulders, and shoved her back, pushing her body back. She placed her flaming hands onto his, gagging at the scent of burning flesh.

Her left foot, the one she had been using to plant in the sand, slipped, and he gave her one last shove.

She slid beyond the barrier.