Alrighty, this is my first CoN fic, so please be nice. I would love to thank my LOVELY beta/Co-Author XoChristineXo. She had a lot of fabulous ideas that I went with.
I'm trying really hard to make this a NOT mary-sue. if she turns mary-sueish please let me know. Now, ENJOY!
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The screaming. The screaming and the shouting; she always hated it. No teenager liked being yelled at, and Alzabeth was no exception. The 17 year old sat on her bed, knees pulled up to her chest and tears streaming down her face. There was yet another argument about dirty laundry, unwashed dishes, and dusty shelves.
Alzabeth was a typical teenage girl. She would much rather be out with friends, attending parties and whatnot. Her parents, however, had other ideas, and endless lists of chores awaited her every weekend, even though her parents were always away at social events and 'wine tasting' parties. They always had time for friends, and they had more responsibilities than Alzabeth. The final straw had been a backhand to the face from her mother.
Cheek still stinging, more tears rushed to the surface. She had never even been switched by her parents, let alone received a slap across the face. What had been the breaking point for them?
"Enough," she said to herself, glad her music was loud enough to provide necessary cover. "I've had enough.. I'm sick and tired of being their slave."
With fervor she grabbed her messenger bag from under her bed, throwing it open onto her bed and shoving as many clothes into it as she could. Tears burned behind her eyes as reason tried to sound inside her mind but she held them at bay. At least for now.
She couldn't stay if they were going to treat her this way. Honestly, she did the dishes with no complaint, even folded laundry that wasn't hers, and vacuumed everything. What more could they ask of her? She paused for a moment, a memory of good times flashing before her eyes.
Were the small good times worth staying? These arguments were nightly. Crying herself to sleep night after night was too much for her. She couldn't do it. Not anymore.
She stole out of her house quietly. It was almost frightening how easy it was. She was down the street in a few moments, her heart pounding as the glow from the streetlamp faded and she was engulfed in darkness. Breathing heavily, she pulled the hood of her sweatshirt up over her head, blending in with the shadows.
Walking off the street and into the forest made her heart beat even faster, if that was at all possible. She wasn't worried of being caught, there was no way her parents could notice her missing so soon. They most likely wouldn't see her until morning anyway. No, what made her heart beat wildly was the fear of the creatures in the forest. Alzabeth would never admit it, but she had seen too many horror movies where the heroine was captured walking through the woods at night, all alone.
She didn't know how long she had been walking, but she knew she could no longer hear the road. All she heard were chirping crickets, jovial squirrels, and other various woodland creatures. Did her small English town even have woods that went this deep?
A large structure loomed ahead and she stopped. It wasn't a house. Indeed, it was a natural structure. Caves, in Finchley? Shrugging to herself she stepped inside, casting one last glance to the dark sky above her. Rain was unpredictable where she lived, and she didn't want to chance being caught outside in the skywater. Alzabeth tossed her messenger bag aside, and sat against the wall of the cave. Sleep tugged at her eyes but her heart still thrummed wildly in her chest. Instead, she pulled her knees up close to her chest and rested her forehead on her knees.
Tears flowed freely from her eyes. Every child pretended to run away from home at one point. Alzabeth certainly had. But she had never gotten farther than the front door. She was surprised in herself that she had gotten all the way out here. How far was she from her house?
After sitting for what seemed to be ages, Alzabeth saw streams of sunlight pouring from the horizon. Now would be about the time her parents would notice she wasn't there. Getting up, she wiped her tearless eyes and retreated further into the cave.
Surrounded in darkness Alzabeth felt along the walls of the cave for direction. She knew her parents would be looking for her, and the further away she could retreat, the better. Her heart continued to thrum wildly as she had no idea where she was. A strong dip in her path made her falter, stopping for a moment to take a few deep breathes.
"I'm going to get lost, and die in this cave," she swore under her breath as she continued walking. "Fantastic."
A gust of warm air blasted her face, making her pause once again. Air shouldn't be hitting her face, much less warm air. If it was a breeze from the bowels of the cave, it should be chilled…
Uselessly she nudged her foot forward. It was met with nothing. Gasping she leapt back, falling onto her behind. A chasm in a cave, why hadn't she predicted this?
Off in the distance Alzabeth heard sirens. Panicked, she tried to hide herself between the chasm ledge and the cave wall.
"No," she whispered to herself. "I can't go back."
The sirens drew nearer and out of reflex she leaned forward. Her footing slipped though she managed to steady herself. She glanced back and felt her heart stop at the sight she saw.
A massive lion was standing in the mouth of the cave, looking at her expectantly. She had seen lions before, in the zoo. She had never, in all her years, seen a lion so huge. Holding her hands out in front of her, she inched backwards, not thinking of the chasm. All she thought of was keeping the lion in her sight.
The lion inched forward and then disappeared as the wind blew. Jumping out of fright, Alzabeth felt her feet slip off the edge of the chasm, and she began to fall backward. A scream ripped through her throat as she felt herself tumbling into the darkness.
A flash of bright light blinded her, and then she landed on soft grass. Alzabeth's world fell dark.
&
"--and dancing every night! Oh the parties that we would have, every Lord and Lady, human and animal and everyone in between. The Centaurs were so funny, trying to shuffle from side to side on four legs! Of course, Narnia wasn't all fun and games. In fact, there were a few small scuffles… I can't exactly call them wars because they weren't as massive as the conflict with the White Witch, but there were possibly one or two casualties... always a shame. Narnia was always so beautiful."
Alzabeth sat patiently while she listened to Susan tell her story. It was always about Narnia, this magical place of hope and wonder, and beauty in every stone. Alzabeth loved Susan's stories, even if they did sound a bit odd. The way Susan would speak, was almost like she had been to Narnia herself!
"A spell had to be cast for a little while, to keep it beautiful spring-like summer weather all the time. After a century of winter, and the fear that winter brought, we couldn't…"
Things fell silent for a second as Alzabeth looked at her best friend, cocking her head to the side. "Tell me more about Aslan."
Susan's face lit up, and she shifted on her bed, tucking her feet further underneath her as she went full swing into the story.
"Aslan is the most magnificent… beautiful… the way he would look at you wasn't at all condescending, and that's wonderful, for all the power he possesses, he looks at you like an equal, with respect…"
Alzabeth closed her eyes, letting her minds eye conjure up the image.
"He makes miracles happen. He killed the White Witch, and yet was so humble…"
&
Alzabeth slowly opened her eyes, the sun blinding her while spreading a blanket of warmth on her. Wait a moment… sun?
She sat upright quickly, looking about her. The sun was shining brightly, making every tree, every stone, every leaf, glitter in the light. Where on earth was she?
"Ow my head," she groaned, massaging her throbbing scalp. "How far did I fall?"
"Hello dear. Having trouble?" Alzabeth jumped at the sound of a female voice not far from where she sat in the grass.
"I--I--who's there?" she called out uncertainly when she couldn't rightly see the source of the voice.
"Pamona." Alzabeth looked wildly around. "I'm down here." When she looked down, all she saw was an abnormally large squirrel sitting at her feet.
"Where?"
"You're looking at me dearie."
Alzabeth's eyes widened when she saw the squirrel's mouth move as words came out.
"Oh no, you aren't...talking...great, that fall must have given me dementia."
"No, I am actually a talking squirrel. What's the matter dear? Haven't you ever been in Narnia before?"
"Narnia!" Alzabeth mumbled, the word having some sort of significance. After a second of thought she remembered. "Susan's stories! But they can't possibly be real…"
"Susan?" Pamona asked, and then her face lit up. "As in Queen Susan the Gentle? The beautiful lady who helped us win the war against the Telmarines?"
"I'm not so sure about the 'queen' part, but yes, my best friend Susan told me all sorts of stories about this magical land, called Narnia."
"Well if we're talking about the same Susan, then she is a queen and the most kindest yet. Well, aside from Queen Lucy."
Alzabeth couldn't help but gape at the talking squirrel. The talking squirrel she was having a conversation with. "Susan… a queen. And Lucy? Quite a difficult thing to wrap my head around, that is."
Pamona patted Alzabeth's hand softly. "Come now my dear, and rest for a while. You seem to be all in a tizzy. You can meet some of my friends as well, and enjoy your time in Narnia."
"Friends? Oh no, I really must be going..."
"Where to?"
Alzabeth paused a moment, trying to think. "I guess I don't know where," she finally mumbled, and Pamona beamed.
"Wonderful. Would you like to come in for tea first? I'm afraid you won't be able to fit inside my tree, but we can sit outside and have a nice little chat."
"A chat with a squirrel. That's new," Alzabeth mumbled to herself. "I can't believe this is actually happening."
&
Pamona the squirrel turned out to be a lovely creature. They sat at the base of a large oak tree, while Pamona told stories of the Telmarine war, and how Susan, the very Susan who knew Alzabeth inside and out, and the other Kings and Queens of Old helped Prince Caspian, now King Caspian.
"Caspian," Alzabeth mused aloud. "Quite an interesting name that is."
Pamona giggled, a very odd sound to be hearing coming from a squirrel. "He's the best thing to happen to Narnia in 1300 years.."
"1300 years?" Alzabeth asked quizzically. "Susan said it had only been one."
Pamona paused, scratching her head in thought. "I suppose time doesn't pass here like it does there.."
The sound of hoofbeats made them pause, and Alzabeth couldn't help but look around in panic. Meeting a talking animal was confusing enough. Meeting Minotaurs and Fauns, and everything she thought was pure myth, frightened her greatly.
Getting to her feet Alzabeth whirled around, her vibrant red hair hanging in her face before she brushed it away haphazardly. The sound grew louder and louder as the group came into view.
Indeed, before her, stood three Centaurs and a fawn. Two Centaurs were a dark chestnut brown, their fur glinting in the sun as their hair, the same shade, spilled from their shoulders. The other a golden blonde, her eyes a more vibrant blue than the sky. The fawn, a small little redhead, blushed as he saw Alzabeth.
"Pamona, a human?" the redhead asked, inching forward slightly. "A Daughter of Eve, rejoining us at last?"
"She is a friend of Queen Susan," Pamona answered excitedly, her tail twitching with every syllable to annunciate this fact. "She has come in the queen's wake, Alixian. Isn't this wonderful?"
One of the Centaurs, the blonde, inched forward. "Pamona, the arrival of a Daughter of Eve signifies rough times for Narnia. This is an omen of bad things to come, not of pleasantries!"
Pamona turned harshly on the blonde. "Hold your tongue Autumn. Daughter of Eve had not come here intentionally, it was an accident."
"My name is Alzabeth," she cut in, not too pleased that the mythical creatures were talking about her like she wasn't even there. Dusting the grass off of her bottom she squared her shoulders, looking Autumn right in the eye.
"I am not an omen of bad things. I didn't even want to come here I just wanted to go back to England!" she cried out. She felt a small paw on her hand and she lowered her voice immediately. "Someone once said 'things never happen the same way twice'. Maybe my coming here is different."
The group fell silent and Alzabeth collapsed onto the ground. "Jeeze. Even when I get sucked into a magical land I'm screwing things up."
Each creature sat on the ground next to her, the Centaurs folding their legs neatly underneath him or her. Pamona cautiously scurried into Alzabeth's lap.
"What do you mean dear?"
Alzabeth sighed. "The reason I was in that cave in the first place, I was running away from my parents."
A chestnut Centaur reached out gingerly and brushed his fingers over her cheek, over the faint hand shaped mark that was blooming. "Is that who did this to you?"
She nodded faintly. "We had an argument. I always fight back, always have. My mother never laid a hand on me, ever. Not even to beat me as punishment when I was a child. But this time, she hit me. So I decided to run away. Something in her had snapped, made her reach out and hit me. I couldn't stay if things were going to continue to escalate."
The group fell silent, Pamona stroking the back of Alzabeth's hand almost lovingly. "Well dearie, we'll take care of you here. You can stay with us as long as you'd like to. I'm almost certain you'll enjoy Narnia as much as the Kings and Queens of Old."
Alzabeth looked at each face, trying to find some sort of malice or ill will. Sincerity was a hard thing to come by, especially in a strange land she wasn't familiar with, but it was there. Pausing another moment she nodded, thanking everyone. Everyone helped her make a little house out of tree branches and leaves, right under Pamona's tree. They said they would make it sturdier when they had the right supplies.
Curling up on her makeshift bed, Alzabeth listened to the sounds of the magical land she had found herself in. Owls cooed, crickets chirped, and the stars themselves seemed to sing her a lovely lullaby as her eyelids slowly fell closed and her dreams took off.