A/N my first ever fanfic, so be nice. Its a one shot, as you can see. Please read and review and i'll do the same to you. One Shot
Narnian sunsets were always beautiful, the sky was always on fire before night time, a mixture of reds and oranges and hazy purples, so Peter was no longer taken aback at the spectacle as he looked out at the ocean from his balcony on Cair Pavarel, but still enjoyed it none the less. He had been in deep thought all afternoon, and had missed both Dinner and supper, but he didn't care, he wasn't hungry, nor was he in the mood for company. He'd returned to reality, having been completely lost in thought, just as the sun first touched the horizon, and had watched the sunset whilst still taxing his brain over the problem that had troubled him.
The troubles began only that morning, during the morning session of court following breakfast. It had been a largely uneventful occasion, a few farmers were disputing over the right to grow turnips on land which neither legally owned, but had been promised to both their fathers by the local lord half a century earlier. He rarely had time for the pettiness of some Narnians, and so took little interest in what was being said, except for when the farmers had exchanged a few choice curse words which had given the excuse stand and release his furry on the poor water voles, yelling at them for being disrespectful and petty, and threatened seize the land so neither could use it. Then Susan, bad king charade that they often used to settle such matters, interjected a few kind words and suggested that they share the land, one growing their turnips one year the other the next. Both were too afraid to protest, but one did dare to ask who got the land first, to which Lucy answered with eenie meenie miney mo, and the dispute was settled without further dispute.
The siblings had developed numerous ways of dealing with various situations, Peter would play the menovelent high king, he could be terrifying, with a dominating presence which left peasant and king alike in gawping in awe, or a trembling wreck. Susan kind and intelligent, she would offer solutions and advice that was renown in it's brilliance. Lucy was innocent, she would sooth tensions and offer ideas that were inspired in their simplicity and ease. Edmund was very much the diplomat, behaving in a level headed, almost clinical manner and providing invaluable knowledge and understanding of any given circumstance.
Steward Tumnus was about to call the session to a close when a servant rushed in, a small brown hare draped in the royal uniform, red silk with a golden lion emblem. He was flushed from obviously running from one end of the castle to the other, yet still threw himself into a bow before the royal siblings with great vigor.
"What is it little one," Lucy asked kindly, her childish innocence always a great comfort to those who meet the four rulers for the first time.
"Forgive yer pardon, yer Highness's," the small hare said, his voice, which was that of a young teenager, was breaking and changed pitch at an alarming rate, "but I must inform you of something very urgent."
"Well out with it then," Edmund said impatiently, Lucy shot him a glare to say 'stop being mean', and smiled warmly at the hare.
"Your Highness's, a scout has reported that a small band of twenty Archenland riders are less than an hour from the Castle," the hare said with alarm, he paused, as though he suddenly couldn't speak, then tentatively, he added "Sires, they bear the Royal standard"
The four rulers were stunned by the news, the Royal Standard could only mean that a member of the Royal Family of Archenland was with the riders, they had received no warning of their arrival, and thus had no time to prepare. Panicked whispers from some of the courtesans broke the silence, which descended into a low murmur. The siblings were too shocked to move, they simply sat in silence. Finally, as the murmur decended into raucous, Lucy turned to Peter, her eye's questioning.
"What shall we do" She asked, and the others turned to him aswell. A Year as the High King faded in an instant and he returned to being a moody teen.
"Me, why are you asking me?" He said.
"Because you are the High King," Susan said "It's your responsibility to lead in times of crisis,I think this is one if those times."
He looked at each of his siblings, they were all had the same look of expectation and urgency. He began to panic, he had no idea what to do, he'd never planned for a surprise visit from a foreign monarch. Thinking back, that was probably rather foolish, but he couldn't change that now. He had no time to to ask for advice from any of their experienced advisers, no time to prepare a ceremony, they barely had time to change their clothes.
He pulled himself together, Aslan had chosen him to be High King and he needed to act like it, if he couldn't handle a visiting monarch, how could he be trusted to deal with war or times of famine. He stood and motioned for silence, slowly the court obliged, and looked at him, with the same look of expectation as his siblings. He stood motionless for several moments, before nervously clearing his throat.
"Steward Tumnus, have the servants prepare the grand dining hall, and tell the cook to prepare something fitting for the occasion." Tumnus bowed his compliance and hurried of to act act his orders. Peter turned to the tall Centaur, General Oreius.
"Send out riders to meet the Royal party and escort them here." He said, he turned, but then looked back at the general, and quietly said, " see that they take their time on the way back"
The tall Horse-man bowed courteously, and followed Tumnus out of the door.
"We will go and get dressed for the occasion" Peter said to his Siblings "We will return to the Great Hall in an hour to greet our guests, whome ever they may be, before dining at noon."
The three royals nodded in unison and got up, sending the entire court to their knees in a bow. Susan led her younger siblings out to a side passage leading to their private quarters whilst peter addresses the court.
"There will be no further matters today, you are welcome to be in attendance during greeting ceremony" Peter said, he began to head for the door, before stopping suddenly "Oh, we will need the red carpet to be laid before the throne"
Several servants flew into action to carry out his orders, and Peter was content that all matters were at hand.
An hour later the four rulers of Narnia had dressed in their finest garments, gold and red silk tunics and dresses, embroided with jewels and precious stones. Both Edmund and Peter bore the royal crest across the chests of their tunics. Peter however, also wore a long robe over his shoulders as a symbol of the High King, making him appear more muscular and older. The four sat upon their thrones. Before them the royal court had swollen with Narnians eager to see a royal from Archenland. they stood in crowds flanking the long red velvet carpet stretching from the huge doors at the far side of the hall to the bottom of the steps below the thrones. The late morning sun shone brightly through the huge windows behind the thrones, casting the four royals almost in a silhouette.
The doors swung open, and tumnus and a band of trumpeters marched into the hall. Tumnus stopped just short of the steps, bowed to the royal, and turned to face the door. The trumpeters lined either side of the carpet, they raised their instruments before blasting a short fan fair.
"Your Highnesses" Tumnus said loudly, "May I present to you, Her Royal Highness, Princess Annabella of Archenland, the Third Daughter of the King of Archenland."
Peter clenched nervously as the young woman, about his own age emerged through the door. She was dressed in a long golden coloured gown, with her strawberry blond hair tied back. She was slim, with a slightly gaunt face, but was still pretty, having rosy red cheeks, luscious full lips and a small button nose making her look slightly childish, but she held an air of regality about her.
She stopped at the bottom of the steps infront of the Royals and curtsied expertly and stood facing them. She looked at each royal, from Edmund to Lucy, then to Susan and settled her gaze on Peter. The way she smiled at him made him nervous, he cleared his throat to speak but found he couldn't, fortunately Susan was at hand to civer for his sudden lack of confidence.
"To what to we owe the pleasure of your visit, fair Princess Annabella?" She asked politely.
"I come at the behest of my Father" The princess replied, maintaining her gaze on peter, making him more uncomfortable.
Susan frown slightly at being ignored, but continued her questioning.
"For what reason has your Father sent you here?"
"To be wed" She said bluntly, maintaining her vigil of Peter. At that his heart sank, he motioned to speak but found a lump wedged in his throat. He coughed and force words from his mouth.
"Wed to whome?" He asked painfully.
"Why to you, silly," She replied, both Lucy & Edmund's jaw drooped in shock, Susan brow burried itself in a deep frown, whilst Peter just sat wide eyed.
"Since when was this agreed" He asked, losing the royal grammar he'd been taught to use when attending court.
"My father believes that Archenland and Narnia should strengthen our relations" She said
"Our relations are fine" He retorted, he was quicker losing his nervousness and finding it replaced by anger, firstly at what he saw as the barbaric prospect of an arranged marriage, and secondly he got the sense that the King of Archenland was not treating him as an equal but a child, taking decisions without even bothering to consult him and assuming he would obey.
"My father believes that, due to your nature as young rulers without Royal decent" She said matter of factly, which annoyed all four siblings, "That you would benefit from his, tutelage, and his advice" Peter noticed the pause at tutelage, what she meant was his control. Peter's cheeks flared, he was right, the King did think he was their superior.
"You mean he wants to make Narnia a puppet state" He said, "He wants to rule over us"
The princess was openly shocked by his reaction, she took a step back and began to look flustered.
"Archenland and Narnia have long been allies, we have existed in harmony for many years, my father simply wants to ensure that that harmony is maintained."
"Archenland is a poor ally" Peter found himself saying without thinking, " Where was Archenland when the white witch took control over Narnia, when we fought for our freedom, your father had forgotten about our alliance when the cries of thousands of Narnian's rose up and begged for freedom."
The others now looked a him in shock, whilst the Princess looked at him flabergasted. Peter however was too angry to realise what he was saying.
"I will not be told when and who to marry by anyone,"He continued" just like I will not be told how to rule my Kingdom, return to your father and tell him Narnia will not be enslaved by Archenland, that it's rulers are more than capable"
"I can see that that is a lie, you are not fit to rule a straight line" She retorted in a shriek, " Rest assured I will tell my father exactly what has transpired, that the High King if Narnia insults the honour of his Kingdom and him personally,"
She turned stormed off back down the velvet carpet, before turning and pointing a finger directly at Peter.
"You would of made an appalling husband" She said teary eyed, before turning and running out of the hall sobbing loudly. The court was completely silent for several minutes, just staring at the Royals, or more accurately, Peter. He'd calmed down, and was now becoming aware of what he'd done. He sank back into his throne, wanting desperately to be swallowed up into it and get away from the scorns of his subject, and his siblings.
Susan stood and looked at her two younger siblings,
"We may as well have dinner, there is no point in wasting the fine food prepared by the kitchen" She said, and the three left Peter alone on his throne. The court had descended into a loud murmur as soon a Susan had broke the silence, and peter heard enough of the conversations to know how they felt. The word 'idiocy' was being used allot, and Peter fully excepted it's use. He finally got up and half ran to his chamber, he painfully noted that none bowed as he left.
He'd spent the rest of his day sitting on his balcony watching the sea. As the sun set he noticed a harsh chilly breeze and decided to retire to bed. He had found no solution to the mess he'd caused. At best he could expect his ambassador to the Archenland court to be expelled and several harsh messages followed by a lack of communication. At worst, war.
He could'nt help but expect that the latter was most likely.
He undressed from his regal clothes and put on his light bed clothes, white silk that hugged him comfortably. He was about to get into his bed when he heard a knock on the door. His heart sank again, all he could think was that it was Susan, he knew she wouldn't shout or yell, but would make him far worse, by being disappointed, something he knew he couldn't bare.
"Enter" he said, trying to hide any fear or nerves. The door crept open, but the slender for of is sister did not emerge, instead, a stout, hooded form shuffled in. The wise old Badger, Jumbleskin, was the wisest creature in all of Narnia, except for Aslan of course, and was the chief adviser to the siblings in everything from Etiquette to Narnian Lore. He always seemed to know what to do, but would never give his advice until it was too late and the Pevensies' had acted.
"My lord, if it is fitting, I will travel to Archenland and try too sooth the difficulties" He said, he was straight to the point, that was rare of Jumbleskin, Peter thought, the situation was worse than he imagined.
"You think you will be able to?" Peter asked
"I do not know, it is not wise to send a princess away in tears" He said slowly, Peter's cheeks burned, this time from embarrassment, "And less wise still to insult the Princess's Kingdom so harshly, but I may be able to avert any serious damage being done" Meaning war, Peter thought.
"If I may be so bold, I believe it best to put the incident down to adolescent petulance," He added " To the King, he would be more inclined to believe that."
Peter simply nodded, in many ways it may have been true.
"Very well, I will leave tomorrow morning, good night My lord, Pleasant dreams" The old badger said before leaving. Peter shut the door behind him and sat on his bed. He couldn't just let Jumbleskin fix the mess he'd created, he was the High King, the magnificent, he needed to do something to make up for his stupidity or he would forever feel that Aslan was wrong to make him High King.
He thought for several minutes, desperate to think of something. Suddenly he got up and walk over to his big Oak desk and took out a sheath of paper and a quill. He placed a piece of paper on the desk and dipped the quill point into a vial of ink. He began writing, not knowing what to say, just letting the words form on the paper.
'Your Highness, Great King of Archenland
It is with profound regret that I write this to you, you are no doubt aware of my foolish words, and I apologise absolutely for them. What I said stands completely against what I believe, I truly want our two Nations to remain allies, as we both depend on the other to remain prosperous and I do not want the millenia of friendship to end. I was childish, which is no way for a ruler to behave, I am aware of that now. I snapped back at the hand of friendship and took your good intentions as something perverse, and for this I am truly sorry.
I am only young, attempting to find my own way as the High King of a Kingdom I am not fully accustomed to, Aslan trusted me to rule, and whilst my actions suggest that this trust was misplaced, I still hope to prove myself worthy based on my own actions. Hopefully over time I will become a good are already such, and my actions may have offended you personally, which I am deeply sorry for. I was rash, and did not think of the harm my words could cause, I was unfair and unjust, and was not thinking rationally.
Finally, I would like to apologise for the upset caused to your fair Daughter, whom was only enacting your wishes, and certainly did not deserve to be victim of my tirade.
With Profoundest Regret'
Peter Pevensie, High King Of the Kingdom of Narnia
With that he placed the quill to one side and waited for the ink to dry before sealing it in an envelope with the royal seal and lft it on the desk and retiring to slept soundly, hoping that his letter would go some way to repenting.
Peter woke early to the sound of a robin chirping outside his balcony. He groggily got out of bed and walk stiffly out to greet the tiny bird.
"Good Morning, little Robin" He said
"Err, Goo-good Morning Mi-my lord, I hope id did not wake you, I did not know this was your room" the Robin replied gingerly.
"Actually you did, and I thank you for it," He said with a smile, "I needed to get up early"
"Err, not a problem, sire" He chirped, "Sire, I don't mean to be rude or above my station, but is it true, what they say about how we might go to war against Archenland."
"I'm afraid that is a possibility, unless I undo the harm I did," Peter said solemnly "I've been a fool and a bad King, I'm beginning to think Aslan was wrong about me, that Susan would be a better High Queen."
"No, your brilliant, you stood up and fought the evil witch, you led our army, you united Narnia, you brought those that served the White Witch into the Kingdom and healed the divisions between us"
" That was all of us, all the Kings and Queens of Narnia did that," Peter replied
"But without you nine of it would be possible" The Robin said passionately, "Your leadership is what held it all together, your strength made the Minotaurs and Dwarfs listen to you all, it's what stops Narnia falling into chaos. Without you, and I mean no offence to the royal Highness's, they wouldn't be able to cope with the difficult problems you get everyday"
Peter was about to reply, but stopped himself, he smiled and stroked the bird gently under the beak.
"Your a wise little one," He said, before laughing "At least someone likes me"
The Robin chirped and gave what was the closest thing to a smile one can muster with a beak. Peter gave him one last stroke before going inside and got dressed.
Peter arrived at the Castle Gates an hour later, Lucy and Susan were bidding their farewells to the old Badger, whilst Edmund and Oreius were talking and what appeared to be the the centaurs that would escort Jumbleskin. His sisters gretted him with smiles, they were not as warm as usual, but it wasn't a scorn so he didn't mind.
"I see you are ready Jumbles," He said to the Badger," May your journey be swift, and I pray you can repair some of my damage."
He noticed his sisters' look at him a little more kindly, perhaps things wouldn't be as bad as he thought. He took out the envelope from his pocket and handed it to the Badger,
"Can you give this to the King, hopefully he will be more willing to be understanding if I apologise to him" He said, "I think it best not to meet him in person, it may make things worse, but I can explain I am repentant for my actions."
"As you wish Sire,"
The party prepared to leave, and they exchanged goodbyes. Jumbleskin was lifted onto the back of Oreius, who for once didn't seem to mind the idea of being ridden, and they set off leaving the four royals in the Courtyard. Pete felt a hand grip his arm and he looked to find Susan smiling at him, he returned the smile, happy to be forgiven by his Sister.
Three weeks past, no word had been received from Jumbleskin or Oreius, who should have arrived in Archenland two weeks before, but at the same time there had been no word of impending invasion or Narnians being exiled from the Kingdom so Peter had hoped things had gone well.
Finally, during a stormy afternoon, the old Badger returned with the centaurs, and were greeted by the Royals and several Courtiers in the Courtyard. Smiles from several of the Centaurs told them that things had gone well, and as Jumbleskin clambered down from Oreius's back, he explained what had happened
"At first I thought we were going to be tossed in the dungeon, the King kept yelling about how you had offended his honour and that of his Kingdom and that Narnia was doomed to fall under you, I attempted to persuade him that you were acting out of character but he wouldn't believe me, so I gave him your letter and tried again in the morning, only to find that he was far calmer." He said, he landed on the floor with a thud, and Lucy rushed to help him up." He said you reminded him of himself in his youth and that he may be willing to put the incident behind him if you apologised publicly with one of his Lords present to verify it. Whatever you wrote, it worked your Highness, oh, he asked me to give this to you."
He pulled out an envelope with the seal of Archenland and handed it to Peter. The group began to head into the Castle, Peter lingered behind before he took out a dagger and broke the seal to pull out the letter inside. He opened it up read the contents, his cheeks imeadiatly flushed as soon as he read it. It simply said;
'You are forgiven, my handsome future husband.
Annabella'
The End