CHAPTER ONE

The Nursery

Wendy, John and Michael Darling live in a lovely house in London. They have got a big, sunny nursery. There are colourful pictures and a big clock on the wall. There are toys here and there. The Darlings are a happy family. Mr Darling and Mrs Darling love their children very much. Wendy is the first child, John is the second and Michael is the third.

The children's nanny is called Nana and she is a big Newfoundland dog! Her kennel is in the nursery and she is a wonderful nanny. She loves the children and the children love her.

One evening Mr and Mrs Darling want to go to a dinner party. They have their best clothes on.

'Nana, it's time to put the children to bed,' says Mrs Darling.

Nana goes to the bathroom. She turns on the hot water for Michael's bath. She puts her paw in the water to check the temperature. It's perfect!

'I don't want to have a bath!' says little Michael.

But Nana is a firm nanny and Michael has his bath.

Then Nana gives the children their pyjamas. Now they are ready for bed.

Mrs Darling comes into the nursery and smiles. 'Good work, Nana! I see the children are ready for bed.' Nana wags her big tail.

Suddenly there is a noise. Mrs Darling sees a young boy outside the nursery window. She is very surprised. Nana barks and shuts the window quickly. The boy's shadow falls on the floor. The young boy flies away. 'Who's there?' asks Mrs Darling. She opens the window and looks outside, but she sees nothing. Then she sees the boy's shadow on the floor and says, 'Poor boy, this is his shadow. Let's put it in the drawer.'

The children are in bed. Mr Darling takes Nana to the garden. Then he goes to the sitting room and waits for Mrs Darling.

Mrs Darling sings to the children and kisses them. She is a perfect mother. Soon the three children are sleeping. Mr and Mrs Darling go to their bedroom. They put on their coats and go to the dinner party.

CHAPTER TWO

The Shadow

The children are sleeping and dreaming. Suddenly the window opens. A small ball of light enters the nursery and flies around. It is a lovely fairy called Tinker Bell. She is looking for something. After a moment a young boy enters the nursery and says, 'Tink, where are you? Please find my shadow.'

Tinker Bell finds his shadow in the drawer and gives it to him. 'Now I can stick the shadow to my feet with some soap,' he thinks. He tries and tries again, but he can't. He is very confused and starts crying.

Wendy wakes up and sees the boy but she is not afraid. His clothes are made of leaves. 'Little boy, why are you crying?' Wendy asks.

The boy takes off his cap and asks, 'What's your name?'

'Wendy Moira Angela Darling. What's yours?'

'Peter Pan.'

'Is that all?'

'Yes!' says Peter. Then he thinks, 'My name is very, very short.'

Wendy looks at his shadow and asks, 'Can I help you with your shadow?'

'Yes, please!' says Peter.

Wendy gets her sewing basket and sews on Peter's shadow.

After a few minutes she says, 'Finished! Now you have your shadow again.'

Peter looks at the floor and sees his shadow. He is very happy and dances around the room.

'Oh, Wendy, you are wonderful!' says Peter.

'Do you really think so?' asks Wendy.

'Yes,' says Peter.

Wendy smiles and gives Peter a kiss on the cheek.

'Oh!' says Peter. 'How nice!'

'How old are you, Peter?' asks Wendy.

'I don't know, but I am young. I don't want to grow up. I always want to be a boy and have fun.'

Peter looks around the room for his fairy. He hears a noise and looks in a drawer. Tinker Bell flies out. Wendy is delighted to see a fairy, but Tinker Bell is afraid. She hides behind the big clock.

'Where do you live, Peter?' asks Wendy.

'I live in Neverland with the Lost Boys,' says Peter.

'Neverland? The Lost Boys? Who are they?' asks Wendy.

'The Lost Boys haven't got a mother or father. They are alone in the world and they live in Neverland. I am their Captain. In Neverland we fight the pirates. We also swim in the lagoon with the beautiful mermaids. Fairies live in the trees in the forest. The fairies are my friends,' says Peter.

'Oh, what fun!' says Wendy.

'I must go back now. I must tell the Lost Boys a story. They love stories,' says Peter.

'Don't go away! I know a lot of stories,' says Wendy.

'Then come with me, Wendy. You can tell us stories. We all want a mother. Please come,' says Peter.

'But I can't fly,' says Wendy.

'I can teach you to fly,' says Peter.

'Can you teach John and Michael to fly too?'

'Yes, of course,' says Peter.

'John! Michael! Wake up! This is Peter Pan. He's from Neverland. It's a beautiful place,' says Wendy.

John and Michael are very surprised.

'We can go there with him. But first we must learn to fly,' Wendy says.

Wendy, John and Michael are very excited. They try to fly but fall on the beds and on the floor.

'No, no,' says Peter. 'Here is some fairy dust.' He puts some fairy dust on their shoulders.

'Now try again,' says Peter.

'Look, I can fly!' says Wendy.

'I can too,' says John.

'Me too,' says little Michael.

'Tink, show us the way to Neverland,' says Peter.

They follow Tinker Bell and fly out of the nursery window. In the garden Nana looks at the sky and barks.

Mr and Mrs Darling return from the dinner party. They go into the nursery, but it is empty!

CHAPTER THREE

The Neverland

Wendy, John and Michael fly over cities, towns, mountains, forests and seas.

Finally they see an island in the sea below them.

'Look, that's Neverland,' says Peter.

'Neverland!' say the children.

In Neverland the Lost Boys live in the forest in a secret underground home. There are six Lost Boys: Slightly Soiled, Tootles, Nibs, Curly and the Twins. They are waiting for Peter.

Suddenly they hear the voices of the pirates. Nibs is very brave. He goes out, hides behind a tree and looks around him. He sees the horrible pirates. They are walking in the forest. They are big and ugly. Their pirate ship is the Jolly Roger.

The pirates' captain is James Hook. He is a cruel pirate and a very bad man. He's got black eyes, black hair and a black beard. He hates Peter Pan. He's only got one arm. The other is a hook! In the past Peter Pan cut off Captain Hook's right arm during a fight. A crocodile ate the arm. Now the crocodile follows Captain Hook everywhere because he wants to eat him. The crocodile has an alarm clock in its stomach! Captain Hook can always hear it.

'I know the Lost Boys live in this forest. We must find them and Peter Pan!' says Captain Hook.

'Tick, tock, tick, tock!' Captain Hook hears the alarm clock.

'Oh, no, the crocodile is coming to eat me!' says Captain Hook. He runs away and the pirates follow him.

Soon some Indians arrive in the forest. They are looking for the pirates. The pirates are their enemy. Tiger Lily is their leader. She is the beautiful daughter of the Indian chief. She loves Peter Pan. Tinker Bell and Wendy love him too. The Indians go away and the Lost Boys return to play in the forest.

Then Nibs looks at the sky and says, 'Look, there is a lovely white bird in the sky.'

'Is it really a bird?' the Lost Boys ask.

Tinker Bell says, 'Yes, yes, it's a bird. It's a Wendy bird. You must shoot it!' Sometimes Tink is a bad fairy. She knows it is Wendy, but she doesn't like her.

Nibs takes his bow and arrow and shoots Wendy. Poor Wendy falls to the ground. The Lost Boys see Wendy and say, 'She's not a bird! She's a lovely girl.'

Peter flies down with John and Michael and asks, 'Where is Wendy?'

Tootles says, 'Here she is.'

Peter goes over to her and asks, 'Wendy, are you all right?' Wendy slowly opens her eyes and smiles. 'Yes, but I'm very tired,' she says.

The Lost Boys are sorry. They decide to build her a little house.

When the house is ready Wendy says, 'What a lovely little house! Thank you.'

'Can you be our mother now? Can you tell us bedtime stories before we go to bed?' asks Nibs.

'Of course,' says Wendy. 'Come in and I can tell you the story of Cinderella.'

They enter, sit down and listen to Wendy's story. It is a wonderful story.

Peter Pan is outside the house with his sword. He wants to protect Wendy and the Lost Boys.

CHAPTER FOUR

The Mermaid's Lagoon

One summer evening Peter, Wendy, John, Michael and the Lost Boys go to the Mermaid's Lagoon. Beautiful mermaids live here and they are Peter's friends. They swim and play in the blue lagoon. Then they sit on Marooner's Rock to comb their long hair. They sit in the sun and laugh.

The children like the mermaids and John says, 'I want to catch one!' He tries, but the mermaid jumps into the water.

Peter says, 'It is very difficult to catch a mermaid.'

Suddenly someone says, 'Look, the pirates are coming!'

A small boat with two pirates is coming to the lagoon. John, Michael and the Lost Boys jump off the rock and swim away. But Wendy stays with Peter. They hide behind the rock. Peter sees Tiger Lily. She is sitting in the small boat. Poor Tiger Lily is a prisoner of the pirates.

'Let's leave her on this rock. When the sea rises, she will die!' says Smee. The two pirates laugh. It is already night and it is very dark.

Peter wants to save Tiger Lily and thinks of something intelligent. He imitates Captain Hook's voice and says, 'Cut the ropes and let her go! Do as I say, you idiots! Let her go!' The two pirates are amazed.

'Can you hear Hook's voice?' asks Smee.

'Yes, but what do we do?' asks Starkey.

'We must obey him and cut the ropes,' says Smee.

They cut the ropes and Tiger Lily is free. She quickly jumps into the water and swims away.

Captain Hook sees everything and he is furious.

'That horrid Peter Pan! This time I must attack him,' he says.

He swims to the rock and fights with Peter. It is a long fight.

The Captain hurts Peter with his hook, but Peter fights courageously. At last, Peter wins the fight and Hook swims back to the Jolly Roger. Peter is now alone on the rock with Wendy.

'The sea is rising and we are in great danger here. We must leave this rock,' says Peter.

'Oh, Peter, I am very tired and I cannot swim or fly.'

He sees a big kite with a long tail. It is flying slowly over the lagoon. He takes the tail of the kite and says, 'Wendy, hold on to this tail and fly away with the kite.' Wendy flies away.

'The sea is rising. I must fly away,' Peter thinks. When he gets home everyone is happy to see him especially Wendy.

CHAPTER FIVE

The Underground Home

The Underground Home is a secret place. No one knows where it is. It is a happy, warm place. There is only one room with a big fireplace. Tinker Bell has her tiny room too.

Wendy is a perfect mother. She cooks and sews for everyone. She also tells beautiful bedtime stories. The Lost Boys are happy because they finally have a mother. John and Michael are happy because there is a new adventure every day.

Peter Pan is a perfect father. He brings home food and protects the family.

Wendy and Peter play with the children and laugh with them.

But one night something happens. Wendy tells the children this bedtime story:

'In the big city of London there are two parents. They are very sad because they cannot find their three children. Every night they leave the nursery window open. They wait and wait for their children to return. But they don't return. Poor parents! They are very sad without their children.'

'Oh, Wendy, this is the story of our parents,' says John.

'Yes, it is,' says Michael.

Peter listens and says, 'Sometimes parents forget their children and other children take their place.'

Wendy is very surprised. 'Oh, no!' she says! 'Perhaps there are other children in our beds! John, Michael we must go home!'

'Do we really have to?' ask John and Michael.

'Yes, we've got to return home.'

The Lost Boys are sad and say, 'Oh, Wendy, please don't leave us!'

'Don't be sad. You can come and live with us in London,' says Wendy.

'Oh, how wonderful!' the Lost Boys say. 'We can have a real family.' They jump up and down with joy. They dance around the room.

But Peter is not happy. He is very serious and says, 'I'm not coming with you to London. I don't want to grow up. I want to be a boy forever.'

Everyone says goodbye to Peter. Outside, the pirates are waiting for them! The children come out of the underground home and the pirates capture them. Then they take them to the Jolly Roger.

They don't make any noise. Peter doesn't know where they are.

He is sad without Wendy, John, Michael and the Lost Boys. He sits and thinks.

'Tap, tap, tap!' There is someone at the door.

'Who is it?' asks Peter.

He can hear the sound of little bells and opens the door. Tinker Bell flies in and says, 'The pirates have got Wendy, John, Michael and the Lost Boys! They are in danger. Let's help them!'

'I must save them. Come Tink, let's go to the Jolly Roger! This time I must attack Hook!'

CHAPTER SIX

The Jolly Roger

There is a yellow moon in the night sky. The folly Roger is in the bay near Kidd's Creek. The children are on the pirate ship. They are prisoners of Captain Hook and his cruel pirates.

Captain Hook looks at them and says, 'This time it's Peter Pan or me! You idiots! Peter Pan can't save you now.' Hook laughs and then calls Smee. 'Smee, get the plank ready!'

'Yes sir!' says Smee.

'Now listen to me,' says Hook. 'You must all walk the plank!'

'Walk the plank?' asks John.

'Yes! First you walk the plank and then you fall into the sea with the crocodile. It will eat you! Ha, ha!' laughs Hook. 'But I can save two of you. I want two young pirates. Who wants to be a pirate?'

The Lost Boys look at John. John looks at Michael and says, 'The life of a pirate is exciting. I don't want to walk the plank. I don't want to be food for the crocodile. Let's be pirates!' Michael looks at his brother. Then they look at Wendy. She doesn't like their idea.

Captain Hook laughs and moves his hook in front of their faces.

'Do you want to be pirates, yes or no?' he asks.

John and Michael say, 'Never!'

Captain Hook is angry and says, 'Then you must walk the plank and die!'

Wendy is afraid. She loves her brothers and the Lost Boys. She has tears in her eyes.

The boys stand near the plank and Wendy watches them. A pirate asks, 'Who is the first to walk the plank?'

At that moment there is a loud noise. 'Tick! Tock! Tick! Tock!'

Captain Hook's face is white. He says, 'The crocodile is here. He wants ME!' He runs to his cabin and hides there.

'Who is the first to walk the plank?' asks a pirate. 'Come on! Let's go! The crocodile is hungry.'

Suddenly Peter Pan appears on the pirate ship. Tinker Bell follows him. Wendy and the boys cheer. They are very happy to see their young hero.

Hook and his pirates are furious. Hook takes his sword and says, 'I want to fight you, Pan! Tonight you will die!'

Hook fights with his long sword and with his hook. Peter fights courageously. He pushes Hook to the back of the ship. It is a terrible fight. John, Michael and the Lost Boys fight the pirates. After a long fight they throw the pirates into the sea.

Peter and Hook move all around the big ship. Their swords make a loud noise. Suddenly Peter takes Hook's sword and pushes him into the sea! Hook shouts, 'OH, NO!' He falls into the sea and into the mouth of the hungry crocodile.

'Oh, Peter, we are proud of you!' says Wendy. She kisses him on the cheek. The boys cheer. Peter smiles and says, 'The Jolly Roger is ours now. Let's go home!'

CHAPTER SEVEN

Home at Last!

At the Darling home, Mr and Mrs Darling and Nana are desolate. They always think about Wendy, John and Michael. They look at the three empty beds and tears come to their eyes. Mr and Mrs Darling never smile or laugh anymore.

Mrs Darling sits in the silent nursery and cries. She thinks of her children, their games and their happy voices. Nana tries to comfort her, but nothing can make Mrs Darling happy.

One night after several months something incredible happens. Wendy, John and Michael fly in to the nursery. Mrs Darling is sitting near the fireplace.

'Mother, Mother we're home!' says Wendy.

Mrs Darling turns around and sees her three dear children.

'Is this true or is it a dream? I can't believe it!' she says.

'Oh, Mother, we are home at last,' the children say.

Wendy, John and Michael embrace their mother and kiss her.

'How wonderful to see you, my dear children! How wonderful to hear your sweet voices. Oh, let me look at you!' She calls Mr Darling. Mr Darling is very happy and surprised.

There is great joy in the Darling nursery tonight.

'Mother,' says Wendy, 'Peter Pan and the Lost Boys are here too. They are waiting outside.'

The six Lost Boys slowly enter the nursery. They look at Mrs Darling and smile at her.

'Mother, these are the Lost Boys. They haven't got a mother. Can they stay with us?' says Wendy.

'What dear little boys!' says Mrs Darling. 'Of course they can stay with us. And where is Peter Pan?'

Peter enters the nursery and says, 'I am here, but I don't want to stay here. I don't want to go to school and I don't want to grow up! I want to be a young boy forever. I must return to Neverland. I am happy with the Indians and the fairies.'

Wendy is surprised and says, 'But Peter, when will I see you again?'

Mrs Darling says, 'I have an idea. Wendy, you can visit Peter in Neverland every spring! You can stay there for a week.'

'Can I really go to Neverland every spring, Mother?' asks Wendy.

Peter looks at Mrs Darling and asks, 'Is that a promise?'

'Of course it is,' says Mrs Darling.

'Then I want spring to come quickly,' says Peter.

'Yes, very quickly,' says Wendy.

'Come on, Tink! Let's fly home and wait for spring,' says Peter.

Peter Pan and Tinker Bell fly out of the nursery window into the night sky. Their destination? Neverland!

- THE END -

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