03.1-CHAPTER 3 COME AWAY, COME AWAY! Part1-iv

CHAPTER 3 COME AWAY, COME AWAY! Part1 

For a moment after Mr. and Mrs. Darlingleft the house the night-lights by the beds of the three children continued toburn clearly. They were awfully nice little night-lights, and one cannot helpwishing that they could have kept awake to see Peter; but Wendy's light blinkedand gave such a yawn that the other two yawned also, and before they couldclose their mouths all the three went out.

There was another light in the room now,a thousand times brighter than the night-lights, and in the time we have takento say this, it had been in all the drawers in the nursery, looking for Peter'sshadow, rummaged the wardrobe and turned every pocket inside out. It was notreally a light; it made this light by flashing about so quickly, but when itcame to rest for a second you saw it was a fairy, no longer than your hand, butstill growing. It was a girl called Tinker Bell exquisitely gowned in a skeletonleaf, cut low and square, through which her figure could be seen to the bestadvantage. She was slightly inclined to EMBONPOINT（plump hourglass figure）.

A moment after the fairy's entrance thewindow was blown open by the breathing of the little stars, and Peter droppedin. He had carried Tinker Bell part of the way, and his hand was still messywith the fairy dust.

"Tinker Bell," he calledsoftly, after making sure that the children were asleep, "Tink, where areyou?" She was in a jug for the moment, and liking it extremely; shehad never been in a jug before.

"Oh, do come out of that jug, andtell me, do you know where they put my shadow?" The loveliest tinkleas of golden bells answered him. It is the fairy language. You ordinarychildren can never hear it, but if you were to hear it you would know that youhad heard it once before.

Tink said that the shadow was in the bigbox. She meant the chest of drawers, and Peter jumped at the drawers,scattering their contents to the floor with both hands, as kings toss ha'penceto the crowd. In a moment he had recovered his shadow, and in his delight heforgot that he had shut Tinker Bell up in the drawer.

If he thought at all, but I don'tbelieve he ever thought, it was that he and his shadow, when brought near eachother, would join like drops of water, and when they did not he was appalled.He tried to stick it on with soap from the bathroom, but that also failed. Ashudder passed through Peter, and he sat on the floor and cried.

His sobs woke Wendy, and she sat up inbed. She was not alarmed to see a stranger crying on the nursery floor; she wasonly pleasantly interested.

"Boy," she said courteously,"why are you crying?" Peter could be exceeding polite also,having learned the grand manner at fairy ceremonies, and he rose and bowed toher beautifully. She was much pleased, and bowed beautifully to him from thebed.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"Wendy Moira Angela Darling,"she replied with some satisfaction. "What is yourname?" "Peter Pan." She was already sure that he mustbe Peter, but it did seem a comparatively short name.

"Is thatall?" "Yes," he said rather sharply. He felt for the firsttime that it was a shortish name.

"I'm so sorry," said WendyMoira Angela.

"It doesn't matter," Petergulped.

She asked where he lived.

"Second to the right," saidPeter, "and then straight on till morning." "What a funnyaddress!" Peter had a sinking. For the first time he felt thatperhaps it was a funny address.

"No, it isn't," he said.

"I mean," Wendy said nicely,remembering that she was hostess, "is that what they put on theletters?" He wished she had not mentioned letters.

"Don't get any letters," hesaid contemptuously.

"But your mother getsletters?" "Don't have a mother," he said. Not only had heno mother, but he had not the slightest desire to have one. He thought themvery over-rated persons. Wendy, however, felt at once that she was in thepresence of a tragedy.

"O Peter, no wonder you werecrying," she said, and got out of bed and ran to him.

"I wasn't crying aboutmothers," he said rather indignantly. "I was crying because I can'tget my shadow to stick on. Besides, I wasn't crying." "It hascome off?" "Yes." Then Wendy saw the shadow on thefloor, looking so draggled, and she was frightfully sorry for Peter. "Howawful!" she said, but she could not help smiling when she saw that he hadbeen trying to stick it on with soap.

How exactly like a boy! Fortunately sheknew at once what to do. "It must be sewn on," she said, just alittle patronisingly.

"What's sewn?" he asked.

"You're dreadfullyignorant." "No, I'm not." But she was exulting in hisignorance. "I shall sew it on for you, my little man," she said,though he was tall as herself, and she got out her housewife, and sewed theshadow on to Peter's foot.

"I daresay it will hurt a little,"she warned him.

"Oh, I shan't cry," saidPeter, who was already of the opinion that he had never cried in his life. Andhe clenched his teeth and did not cry, and soon his shadow was behavingproperly, though still a little creased.

"Perhaps I should have ironedit," Wendy said thoughtfully, but Peter, boylike, was indifferent toappearances, and he was now jumping about in the wildest glee. Alas, he hadalready forgotten that he owed his bliss to Wendy. He thought he had attachedthe shadow himself. "How clever I am!" he crowed rapturously,"oh, the cleverness of me!" 

It is humiliating to have to confessthat this conceit of Peter was one of his most fascinating qualities. To put itwith brutal frankness, there never was a cockier boy.

But for the moment Wendy was shocked."You conceit," she exclaimed, with frightful sarcasm; "of courseI did nothing!" "You did a little," Peter said carelessly,and continued to dance.

"A little!" she replied withhauteur; "if I am no use I can at least withdraw," and she sprang inthe most dignified way into bed and covered her face with the blankets.

To induce her to look up he pretended tobe going away, and when this failed he sat on the end of the bed and tapped hergently with his foot. "Wendy," he said, "don't withdraw. I can'thelp crowing, Wendy, when I'm pleased with myself." Still she wouldnot look up, though she was listening eagerly. "Wendy," he continued,in a voice that no woman has ever yet been able to resist, "Wendy, onegirl is more use than twenty boys." Now Wendy was every inch a woman,though there were not very many inches, and she peeped out of the bed-clothes.

"Do you really think so,Peter?" "Yes, I do." "I think it's perfectlysweet of you," she declared, "and I'll get up again," and shesat with him on the side of the bed. She also said she would give him a kiss ifhe liked, but Peter did not know what she meant, and he held out his handexpectantly.

"Surely you know what a kissis?" she asked, aghast.

"I shall know when you give it tome," he replied stiffly, and not to hurt his feeling she gave him athimble.

"Now," said he, "shall Igive you a kiss?" and she replied with a slight primness, "Ifyou please." She made herself rather cheap by inclining her facetoward him, but he merely dropped an acorn button into her hand, so she slowlyreturned her face to where it had been before, and said nicely that she wouldwear his kiss on the chain around her neck. It was lucky that she did put it onthat chain, for it was afterwards to save her life.