Whisper’s chest pumped. “There, see? Who saved me then? Lyric and Bay.”
“And if they hadn’t?” Her other’s delicate brows dipped. “We can’t let our guard down like that in case they decide not to next time; there can’t be a next time. We already know that the people we’re supposed to trust the most fall through when it matters the most.”
“Can I hit you?” Whisper raised her fist. “Are you real enough to hit? I’m not normally an aggressive person, but I feel like I’m allowed to give myself a beating when I’m talking crap.”
“Is that really what she thinks of us?” I asked, my throat tight. How exactly was I supposed to step in? She couldn’t see me.
“Maybe they are things she’s thought of, but that doesn’t mean that they resonate as truth.” Skye looked at me. “This place preys on our cracks. Whatever it can use, it will. Sometimes passing thoughts appear when we don’t want them to. Recognizing the lies is important to overcoming them.”
My resolve hardened. “How do I reach her?”
Her other tittered. “Should we go back to our memories? Which time someone has failed us is our favorite?”
“I don’t want to hear it. I don’t want to see it. And I definitely don’t want to relive any more of it. I don’t care if it’s dangerous out there. I know it’s dangerous out there.”
Her other threw out her hands. “Then why are you trying to leave? I’m trying to keep you safe.”
“I’m strong enough to keep myself safe!” Whisper yelled, facing herself, tears gathering in her eyes. “I’ll get out of this by myself and deal with whatever happens because of that choice by myself as well.”
“You don’t have to deal with anything by yourself!” I blurted.
“Lyric—” Skye started, but I stepped in front of Whisper, ignoring him.
She stared through me, but I didn’t care. Maybe if I spoke enough, she’d be able to hear me. “All these years, we’ve been by each other. And sure, maybe I’ve failed you a lot, maybe I’m not as mature or smart or confident, but no matter what, we’ve promised. Again and again. We will never be apart .”
Whisper blinked, two crystal tears slipping down her cheeks. Surprise touched her expression, and she lifted a hand to her face.
“Lyric’s going to save the world. She’s destined to.” Her other exhaled, bored. “After that, she’ll be strong enough to go on the adventures she’s always dreamed of. You’ll become a memory in her life just like you’ve become one in your father’s.” She flicked her gaze up, smiling brightly. “A pleasant memory, of course. We’re wonderful.”
“Lyric is going to save the world,” Whisper said. “I believe that. I believe in her.”
Her other unleashed a booming laugh. “Oh, really? No, you don’t! You can’t even trust that she’ll make it back from her little Skyla adventures when you’ve asked her to help you plan something!”
“That makes me horrible then, not her!”
Her other’s smile was nasty and cruel. “I never said she was horrible.”
Whisper swallowed and turned back to the wall. She lifted her bloody hands. “Just go away. You’re annoying me.”
“I am you.” Her other sighed, leaning against the wall.
“No, she’s not.” I reached for Whisper, but she stepped away from me, searching the fortress for another handhold. My fists clenched. “How am I supposed to do this if she can’t hear me or see me?”
A scraping noise made me jump away from the walls. They inched closer together, and my stomach flipped. The other Whisper smiled calmly and continued to check her nails.
“Not again,” Whisper murmured, swallowing. Fear filled her eyes, and she gnawed her cheek, controlling her breaths as she placed her hands on the grey stone and tried to lift herself once more. Her moccasins skidded, and she couldn’t catch herself this time, falling flat on her rump. Wincing, she held her bleeding hands against her chest.
“Maybe you don’t want to leave after all.”
Whisper sneered at herself, but she remained seated on the ground, cradling her bloody palms close to her body.
“She’s not going to do this alone.” I looked at the walls, then lifted my hands. Something hit me, and my eyes widened. Air surrounded us. I could find myself as a part of it. I floated off the ground, and a buzz of magic lit beneath my skin. Holding onto that sensation, I wrapped my hands around the wind and sent it sailing toward Whisper.
Her hair whipped across her face and over her shoulders. She turned her head and tried to tame her locks, but she still didn’t see me.
“Maybe you can lift her out of this place?” Skye mused.
“My thoughts exactly.” I took a deeper breath and let it out as I clenched my fists.
The wind harshened, creating an updraft that tore at her clothes. Panic filled her gaze, and she scrambled away from the gusts. “What is this? What are you playing at now?”
Her other merely shrugged.
I cut the wind off and drew back, shaking my head. “I don’t have that much control, and I won’t risk hurting her.”
“Don’t doubt yourself now.” Skye flitted off my shoulder. “The only way we reach Bay is if we figure this out.”
I pressed my lips together and lifted my hands again before promptly dropping them. “No. This can’t be right. It’s all a test, and this isn’t my test; it’s hers. Before, in the other temple, the only way I got through was when I decided I would trust myself over what that thing told me. This time, I had to accept myself and believe in my own power.” Realization hit me hard and cold. My feet touched the ground again. “Neverland. It’s your home, the birthplace of pixies, creatures of belief. Everything here tests belief. The changelings and pirates try to shake your trust. The sirens and Nixies don’t appear safe to trust, but you have to believe in them because they hold the secrets.” I recalled Peter and Wendy. A child and a bright-eyed dreamer. All the pirates. Why did pirates end up in this place? Because they dreamed of something more? Because they believed in impossible things like treasure and ruling the seas? Because, at heart, they were confident explorers who believed in themselves? They believed in themselves to the point of destruction. Peter and Wendy believed in everything. “Only children and dreamers can find and master Neverland because children and dreamers have something in common. They either violently trust others or themselves. Whisper has never had a problem trusting herself.” I looked at Skye. “She needs to trust us.”
Skye’s face twisted, and he threw up his arms. “How? She can’t see us!”
I flicked my wrist, calling a swirl of wind to spin around her, teasing her hair upward. “Maybe not. But our efforts aren’t completely invisible. In the end, this is her test.”
Whisper narrowed her gaze at the sky, searching for something, some answer to my breeze, and I nodded at Skye. He huffed, skeptical, but circled above Whisper, showering her in dust. She blinked furiously when it fell into her eyes and tried to rub it away.
I caught her hands before she could.
“I love you.” I smiled. “You know that. You don’t have to do this alone.”
