The Dark Ascension Series by Lauren DeStefano

Author:Lauren DeStefano [DeStefano, Lauren]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Disney Press
Published: 2023-12-12T00:00:00+00:00

Tinker Bell kept an aggressive watch over James all morning. She did little to hide it, fluttering her wings as she trailed behind him but darting behind trees and brambles whenever James turned to look. James had observed that she was Peter’s favorite fairy from the way she always hovered around and doted on him, and his particular affection for her. He spoke to her, conferred with her. Her light was often seen hovering beside him when he walked alone.

James ignored her. For hours he labored, sleepless and determined, to build the invention he had sketched on the rock. He only stopped for Sam when the younger boy brought him various tools and forced him to drink sips of water that he gathered from the trickling river.

By late morning, sweat beaded James’s brow and his arms ached. He’d spent hours sawing branches and carving small bits of wood into gears. He barely had a prototype to show for his efforts. He’d crafted a frame that spanned the length of his height, and he could strap himself inside it. All the beams were connected by vines that served as rope. The wings bent at his elbows, as though they were an extension of his arms, but they were crooked. The foot pedal groaned loudly on its hinge, and the structure was far too bulky to glide.

He needed something that would let him fly on his own, without any pixie dust. Even if he was able to convince Peter or one of the other boys to help fly him to the island to get Marlene, which seemed unlikely, it was too risky. For all he knew, they’d drop him halfway across the sea. Besides which, James hated to ask for help. He saw it as a weakness, and right now, especially, he needed to be the one in control. The only person he could rely on was Marlene, and she was the one who needed saving.

“I-it looks nice,” Sam offered. Those were the first words he’d spoken since construction had begun.

“Nice?” James spat back. “Nice? What am I supposed to do with ‘nice’—ouch!” Something pinched the back of his neck. He swatted, and Tinker Bell went flying out of his reach. “Did she just poke me?”

Sam tried not to laugh. “She’s a bit protective.”

James regarded the wooden pieces laid out on the grass. “I’ll have to redesign this whole thing.”

Sam knelt beside him. “I think you’re being too critical. It will fly.” He crinkled his nose. “I—I think. Probably.”

James sighed. There they were, the only two on Peter’s infernal island who couldn’t fly, trying to build a pair of wings.

“Maybe if you use canvas,” Sam went on. “It’s thin. And it will catch the wind. I could bring you a blanket.”

“That might work,” James mumbled, distracted. “Maybe then I won’t need so many parts.”

Sam patted his shoulder sympathetically. “And perhaps a bit of sleep wouldn’t kill you, either?”

James shot him a glare, and Sam recoiled. “I’ll go find the blanket.”

“Yes,” James said. “You go do that.

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