“Circe didn’t tell you what she did to us? If you wish to know Circe’s shame, she must share it with you herself,” Lucinda said. Her voice sounded hollow, and was not accompanied by laughter. James couldn’t imagine Circe doing anything that would bring herself shame, or hurting anyone she loved, and his regret for betraying her was starting to weigh on his heart.

“I see my daughter has beguiled you, James. It’s true she has the best of intentions. She is ruled by her heart, and does what she thinks is right, but we, too, have always done the same, and where did that get us? Trapped here, neither living nor dead. Don’t forget Circe is us, and we are her,” she said.

James hardly knew what to say. Intimate conversations made him uneasy, and he was having so many of them as of late, and he was starting to find these witches’ riddles and half-truths tiresome. He was eager to start his journey. He was growing tired of this conversation, and wanted to get to the point, but didn’t want to give Lucinda another reason to become angry with him.

“I suppose you’re wondering where we’ve hidden the magic that will take you to Never Land?” she asked. “All you have to do is reach into your pocket.”

“What nonsense is this?” asked James.

“The magic is there, in your pocket,” said Lucinda, her smile now returning.

James reached into his pocket and found a small glass vial, with a cork, that had sparkling dust within.

“This is all I need to get to Never Land? This?” he said, looking at the tiny vial. “And it’s been in the pocket of this coat the entire time? I almost bought this coat before we met.”

“We know. It’s been sitting in the shop waiting for you all these years, since we asked Blackbeard to put it there,” said Lucinda, laughing along with the faceless laughter of what James assumed were her sisters.

“What do you mean, you asked Blackbeard to put it there? Why didn’t he just tell me where I could find the dust? Why send me on this needless and maddening journey?” James found himself frustrated, as if he’d been ushered about since the beginning. And he felt the crushing weight of Circe’s warnings, and dismissed them and his fear at once.

“Blackbeard didn’t know the vial was in the pocket. He was simply completing a task in exchange for his wish. Had he known the dust in the vial could be used to travel to Never Land I am sure he would have told you. He loved you like a son, James, the son he always wanted and wished for, the son we gave him,” said Lucinda.

“What are you saying?” asked James, making Lucinda laugh her maddening laugh.