The Magnificent

Though it had been one of the kings of Narnia that he had run into, Aslan gave only a small nod as acknowledgement.  He had known the young man since he was half the age he was now and then had watched him grow into the king that he was now.  Peter had certainly earned the ex-lion’s respect by leading his people bravely and learning to work with Caspian… as well as other things.  “It is a unique experience having two feet now after so long on four.” he admitted with a smile.  He certainly was enjoying it and had been glad to change his form.  “I’m sure it’s something you humans don’t think very much about.”

“So, it had absolutely nothing to do with your pride, huh?” Caspian asked with a shake of his head. He highly doubted what Peter was saying because based off everything he had said, it did seem like it had to do with pride. “You may have been trying to show everyone how brave and wonderful and magnificent you are, but there was also a bit of pride in there. You can admit it. I’ve certainly done some idiotic things to show how brave I am and it also had to do with my pride. I’ve admitted it. Your turn.” He chuckled to himself, thinking about all the stupid things he had done on his ships and different ventures. “Now, enough about that, I think we need to get you warmed up before you get sick. I can’t let you get sick,” Caspian said. He leaned down and placed another fur around Peter. He’d seen many people come out of the freezing sea waters before and barely make it through, and the last thing he wanted was for Peter to regret his decision to jump off a waterfall. “First of all, you are going to need to get those wet clothes off. They’re the reason you’re still shivering and icy cold. We’ll get you into something dry and warmer.” 

Just because she was studious, it didn’t mean that he could go gallivanting off whenever he wanted and leave her with the day to day work of running the castle.  They were a team and they were supposed to do it together.  The others could handle that while they were gone.  “Well you know what they say about assuming, Peter.” she told him in that voice that he was bound to think annoying.  It was the same tone that she used with him or any of her siblings when she was frustrated by them and their general thoughtlessness.  “I could use the break from all that reading.”

❝oh all right,❞ lucy sighed dramatically, as if she was giving in, when really she would’ve told peter a story for free. she did like to make up stories- although she didn’t lie- and she’d thought about writing them out a time or two, but she never did. peter always liked to listen though. maybe it was because there had been a time when he didn’t listen, and now he thought it important, even when the worlds didn’t exactly have any value. 

❝come here then,❞ lucy added, holding open her arms. while susan would always be the best at nagging like a mum… lucy had always been rather good at comforting people, helping them, healing them. perhaps that was why aslan had given her the cordial all those years ago. lucy was filled with emotion and the desire to help and protect, and with that, she would save all she could. 

Peter shifted so his head laid on her small lap. From this position he was forced to close his eyes, the sun’s rays penetrating the pair of orbs. Her words would be better for it as he would mentally paint the picture his sister would most likely describe. Although the eldest of the siblings, he found comfort in his youngest sister’s touch. He recalled the most important story Lucy had ever told him; one about a wardrobe which led to a snow covered land and magical creatures were its inhabitants. Much to his own foolishness, he had written it off as girlish imagination. Time and time again, Lucy’s vision surpassed his own. It did not emasculate him. He found power in her beliefs. Many battles would have been lost had it not been for her form of bravery.

Her hands nearly went up to sit on her hips childishly, but she only just controlled herself and held her hands in front of her.  She knew that she could be relied on to handle things at Cair Paravel for the day, but she didn’t like they had assumed she would be happy to do so.  “That’s not fair.” she said with an annoyed expression, though that was hardly new for the oldest Pevensie.  Her siblings often remarked that her face was now cemented into that expression.  “Maybe I wanted to come with you.”

It had only been a few years in the lifetime of the humans that he had begun assuming his new form.  Most of the humans who had known him as a lion had taken to the change well while some others had been hesitant to accept him this way.  He had wanted to change because outside of Narnia, it made it easier to blend in with people as a lion walking down the streets of London was likely to raise more than a few eyebrows.

This body may not move as fast or impose as much terror, but he found that it had some benefits.  The looks from the females and even some males did not count.  It was the ease with which he could move.  Aslan was smaller and more lithe now.  He could hug people and dance with them.  Now as he moved through the halls of the castle, he spun on his feet to enjoy the movement and found himself crashing into someone.  “My apologies.” he told them with a bow of his head before smiling down at them.

It was strange the way it would happen. Edmund would be walking through the hallways or a marketplace, casting a watchful but friendly eye over his domain. Then, out of the corner of his eye he would see a face and instantly be taken back. In the sparkle of a faun’s eyes he’d see his mother, or the sound of dwarf’s laugh would remind him of his father’s. He’d smell leather polish and be taken back to his father’s study from their house in Finchley. It was jarring and deeply depressing.

Luckily these moments were few and far between. Narnia had a way of making you forget. But when those moments did hit, and he was crushed by the weight of all he’d left behind, the young king would retreat to his rooms and refuse to see anyone. Except for a select few who would understand.

There was a knock at his door and he frowned from his place under his bed linens. “I do not wish to be disturbed. Please leave!” He shouted, his voice hoarse from crying.

She had barely registered the young king until the door to his quarters rattled the palace walls. Although it was not her place to pry, she couldn’t help but place a quiet hand on the wood and attempt to find out the reasoning for his abrupt return. Sorrow flooded her senses. The experience caused her to gasp while quickly retreating. She shouldn’t have meddled in circumstances that were not her own, but she always did find it her duty to nurse the royals back to peak wellness. That included their emotional health. As hard as she tried to ignore what she had felt before, the task proved impossible. Gathering her thoughts, she fluttered back across the palace towards Edmund’s room. 

❝of course, eu-❞ lucy practically laughed his name, bumping her hip against her much, much taller cousin’s leg, ❝do you even have to ask? it’s been ages since i’ve done anything quite so… exhilarating as flying. have you any new ones? dragons, i mean. i can never tell. but you can- it’s incredible, eu.❞ 

lucy hoped by now that she didn’t have to say it, but she was very proud of eustace, and she she was happy to see him happy. he had created something special of his own, and he had grown up a lot since his accidental trip to narnia with lucy and edmund. now, she would argue that they were very good friends. perhaps best friends. eustace had grown a taste for adventure as lucy had. 

His excitement was evident, the grin on his features growing rapidly. And to share such a moment with Lucy was even more spectacular. Years may have passed, but he would never forget that it was she who saved his life when he was cursed for his insolence and selfishness. From then on, Eustace held a special place in the crevice of his mind for Lucy.  “As you wish,” he gleamed, calling for one of his newer dragons in their tongue. 

Willow clapped her hands together when Eustace mentioned bringing a dragon down. She had never been near the creatures before. She tended to stick with her own kind in the forest and hiding in the trees from the world, but Willow was beginning to adventure outside of her realm. Her friends and family always told her she was the crazy, adventurous one and they always suspected she would do great things with her life. However, in her hundreds and thousands of years of living, she had never once been near a dragon. She’d seen them, of course, but only from a distance. She had always been a bit too terrified to go near them, but having Eustace nearby and taking care of the dragons made her feel a bit braver about the situation. “Oh, would you? That would be absolutely wonderful!” she said excitedly. She looked over at Eustace after she spoke and then back up at the sky, watching the beautiful beasts fly around in the sky. “They’re each so beautiful. I’ve decided I love all of them.”

lucy opened her eyes and squinted up at her eldest brother, faking a scowl. ❝i’ll never forgive you for getting so tall, you know,❞ she commented, a smile starting to tug at her lips, ❝for leaving me all the way down here. are you going to sit down, or are you going to stand up there looming over me like a rather ugly cloud?❞ now that lucy was older, she struggled less with teasing peter back. it felt good now, to be teased by him. it made her feel like his equal. 

❝and how many desserts are we talking, pete? what kinds? i don’t come cheap anymore- thinking is harder than it seems to be, you of all people should know that.❞ she felt rather smug, quite pleased with her quips. lucy beamed. 

“No matter how many years pass Luc, I’ll still be able to throw you over my shoulder,” he warned, a playful glint shimmering in his eyes. Her bark was impressive. The picturesque little sister who once spewed out an entire fairytale while Peter sat half-asleep on his bed was no longer as naive. It both excited and saddened him. Throwing his hands up in mock surrender, he stepped over her petite form and slid down to sit beside her. The waves crashed onto the shore a few time before he turned to face her. 

éile couldn’t quite remember a time when she’d used her gifts for anything. her mother had been a dryad, and her father a human, a lord. as such, éile was some kind of half-breed and possessed some… unusual abilities. 

she squinted out into the sky, concentrating as she plucked flower petals from the wind and fluttered them over to her swarm. it once had been very difficult to hold more than one petal in the air at once. now, éile was working on re-shaping the apple blossom petals into a new and unique sort of flower. 

she was so absorbed in her artistry that she didn’t notice anyone approaching. 

Past the mountains of the dwarves yet before the valley where the centaurs make their beds laid the forrest of elves. His home. Not much was known about the elves of Narnia for they were a more solitary folk. But they had surely made their mark on the public. He remembered the long debates which toiled over for months of whether or not the elves should involve themselves into the lion’s battle. It was Dragan’s father who ultimately decided he’d not waste their resources and refused to insert themselves on either side. Although the elves saw this as a victorious, the rest of the world clearly did not feel the same. Neither did the young prince -- he found their decision cowardly. He bravely entered Aslan’s army which, in turn, got him exiled from his community. 

Jezebel never enjoyed coming to Narnia. It was always the last thing she wanted to do. However, her father always expected her to visit the land and discuss treaties with these people. She was stuck here until her father called for her to return to the Eastern Sea. Jezebel was already daydreaming about returning home to her underwater kingdom where one day she would become queen of the Eastern Sea People. She was excited for this day, but instead she was on land with all these strange creatures.

Finding that she missed the water, Jezebel left her small lake cottage to swim in the lake. She quickly found herself swimming along different passes, into rivers and streams and places away from the cottage. She felt at peace even if she was alone in her swim. She wanted to enjoy this moment for as long as she could because soon she’d return to her temporary home and be forced to attend some dinner with the kings and queens of Narnia. She decided to take a short break before returning to the water and pulled herself out onto the shore. She stayed right next to the water with her feet dangling in the water as she laid down on her back and looked up at the sky. The trees were blocking parts of the sky and she found it to be absolutely fascinating. The land near her home had very few trees and whenever she looked up at the sky, there was only the sky. There was never anything blocking the sky. 

As she laid there, she heard the snap of a twig. She ignored it at first, deciding it was probably some animal, when she heard a few more snaps. Jezebel sat up and looked behind her. “Hello? Who goes there?” she asked. “As Princess Jezebel of the Eastern Sea People, I demand you show yourself!” 

They might as well have executed her as an example. Allowed her to burn into a pile of ashes instead of wasting her days trapped inside the palace. Palace being a bit of a stretch seeing she was confined to wherever the court deemed fit. Usually no where near the royal family considering Hasna wanted nothing more than to tear their heads from their moral bodies. She was becoming delirious, talking to herself when the guards remained abnormally still. It was worse than torture. How far the powerful had fallen since the sons of Adam and daughters of Eve sat on the throne. 

They’d never harm him -- his precious dragons. Nip perhaps, and if they were really irritated, puff smoke in his general direction. But they’d never hurt him. Had you told Eustace back in England that his job would be to tame dragons, he’d instruct one of his goonies to pummel you into the ground for being such a ninny. Yet as his eyes were raised towards the flying beasts, a large grin stretched from ear to ear. He understood dragons as they were simply misunderstood. If ignored, they’d become devils which terrorized whatever crossed their paths. But once shown what their powers can truly do? They protect like none other. 

it had been a very long time indeed since narnia had seen any ‘excitement’, as susan called it. while lucy certainly didn’t miss any of the wars, she did miss the excitement of having something happen. narnia was never short of fantastic things and places to explore… but lucy longed to go sailing again. to discover new places and new things. maybe even two sword fight a little. couldn’t there at least be some mildly irritating pirates to vanquish? 

lucy sighed and sunk into the sand, staring out at the ocean. she was getting restless, truly restless, and there was nothing she could do to fix it. and she was grown now… there would be no more suggesting games of hide and seek. lucy closed her eyes and tilted her face to the sun. then she, as she did sometimes, began to create a little story inside her head.

He gently stroked the scars that lined his hand; each crevice creating an intricate pattern. They claimed that under his siblings’ rule, Narnia had never known such a quiet peace.  Although people were not afraid, they did not gather in the streets chanting with passion; so much so that the walls of the palace would vibrate from their cheers. Instead the public went about its merry way and life became one of routine. Peter did not regret vanquishing their enemies, but he felt as if he had not lived up to his name. High King Peter; it held more weight than the crown which sat upon his head. Narnia was far too still for him to feel useful anymore.