A/N: Hi again! So, this short little story tells us, as the story's name tells us, how Lucy met his dryad husband. This story is part of my Winter universe and happens few years before Edmund meets Winter.
I know I should be writing my other, longer, stories but as I got this idea from Not Ours Anymore and it wasn't going to be very long, I decided to write it and see if it would speed up my other writing projects that are currently progressing slowly. Everything is progressing slowly at the moment. –sigh-
Well, anyhow… I hope you'll like it.
How Lucy Met Shrinel
….
Part One
….
Lucy laughed happily as she spun around and around in the circle of dancing dryads, naiads and fauns in the rhythm of the cheerful music. It was the time of the Spring celebration and the people of Narnia gathered together to eat and dance and enjoy of the spring. Most of the people in Western Woods travelled to the Dancing Lawn to celebrate, but those who stayed home gathered to some bigger field or clearing to have some fun.
And Lucy loved it.
She was so happy that Edmund had taken her with him when he was heading for his yearly trip to the Western Woods. Of course he came here more often than once a year, he loved these forests, but spring time was special. He tried always to be present in the spring time. Lucy suspected it had something to do with the way the woods had changed when they had beaten the Witch. No matter how much they knew Narnia now, this had been the first place they had seen when they had come into Narnia. She supposed it somehow comforted Edmund that he could see the difference between the snowy woods of the Witch and this forest that was swarming with life, even at winter.
Now though, Edmund wasn't celebrating with the rest of them. He was at the Beavers Dam talking to Mr. Beaver about some robbery that had happened in the Woods. From the little she had managed to hear, Edmund hadn't wanted to ruin her fun, they suspected some bandits from the Western Wild. They didn't usually come to Narnia but it had happened once or twice.
"Oh, come on", Lucy said to Nara and Lessa as she stopped before them. "Come and dance."
"But, Your Majesty", Nara protested. "We have to keep watch. Something might happen."
Lucy rolled her eyes. "What could possibly happen? We're not close to the border, so the only ones who could make something happen are far away. Really, go and have some fun", she said. "It's dreadfully depressing to watch you to just sit here. I just think about how bored you must be."
The Lynxes eyed each other. "Well, this is a little boring, yes", Lessa admitted.
"But I'm still not sure-", Nara tried to say, but Lucy interrupted her and pulled her into the dancing circle next to a quite nice looking male Lynx causing Nara to mix in her words. Lessa and Lucy giggled. Lucy turned to Lessa looking at her expectantly.
"As you command, Your Majesty", she said giddily and headed towards the wrestling matches.
Lucy giggled happily and was about to join the dancers once again when she noticed the children a small distance away planning on something. She headed to them and was quickly next to them.
"What are you planning?" she asked from the children turned quickly towards her.
A little hedgehog stepped front. "We were planning on going to the fairy glade, miss Lucy-Queen."
"Oh really?" Lucy smiled. "What's in there."
"The bestest apple tree in the world", a young centaur named Noka said. "She has the best apples we've ever had and she only has them at spring."
"She always gives us all baskets full of apples", a small faun said. He shuffled his hoofs. "Would you like to come, too, Queen Lucy?"
"I'd love to", Lucy smiled. "Is it terribly far?"
Noka shook his head. "No ma'am. Just a few clearings away."
"We know how go there with our eyes closed", the hedgehog squeaked.
"Alright", Lucy said and turned to look for the Lynxes. "Just let me tell…oh, never mind."
She turned back to the children. As she had said to Nara, what could possibly happen. They were going to get some apples. Nothing, that could change into a dangerous situation anyway. Lucy and the children headed to the forest, the hedgehog, called Twig, sitting at the back of Noka and the faun Asre walking next to Lucy and holding her hand.
They were a happy little group, walking in a fresh spring air, laughing and talking. The little ones told Lucy numerous stories, that had happened in their part of the forest and in return Lucy told them some funny stories from Cair Paravel. Their favorite appeared to be time when Peter had gotten stuck in their pond with a punch of naiads and a dwarf.
When they reached the glade, Lucy gasped. She had been seven years in Narnia and still she found things that were more beautiful than she'd ever seen. The glade was in a small clearing where sun shone from between the branches of the trees. At the middle of the little pond was a tiny island where the apple tree grew and as the children had said, it was heavy with apples already.
"She's beautiful!" Lucy exclaimed and the children smiled happily.
They led her to the edge of the pond and showed her where to step so that the island could be reached. A large amount of fairies were flying through the air, around the glade, some of them coming close to them to greet Lucy and give her flowers.
At the apple tree the children asked very sweetly if they could collect the apples, from the tree and the dryad of the tree gave her permission smiling. Lucy sat on a rock eating an apple the dryad had given her talking with the beautiful dryad.
"How come you have apples already?" Lucy asked and the dryad giggled. She looked like the other dryads did in the spring, her hair didn't have any leaves yet, instead it was full of apple flowers and she looked a bit pale for an apple dryad.
"The winter doesn't reach Fairy Glade, so my tree blooms and makes fruits two times a year", the dryad answered.
Lucy looked at her astonished. "The winter doesn't come here?"
The dryad shook her head. "It has something to do with the fairies."
Lucy nodded and was about to answer when she heard snapping sounds from the forest. She turned to look behind her but didn't see anything except a peaceful pond and the trees and bushes and undergrowth that belonged to the forest. Nothing unusual. Still, the sounds hadn't sounded normal. They had been too loud. Even centaurs or minotaurs didn't step that loudly in a Narnian forest.
Lucy stood up and stepped to the stones in the water to cross the pond. The children looked at her puzzled and Lucy motioned them to be silent. She reached the bank and jumped to the grass and walked soundlessly towards the place where the snapping sounds had come. She moved some bush branches out of her way and stepped next to a tree looking around her. When she suddenly saw six brutish looking men in a small path, she had to suffocate a small intake of breath that would have surely revealed her presence.
They needed to get out of here, she thought. And when they would be safe, she would need go and get Edmund and some back up. These were obviously the bandits, Edmund had been looking for. Lucy stepped backwards and bumped into something.
She froze.
There hadn't been anything behind her few minutes ago. She turned slowly around to find a seventh brutish looking guy smirking disturbingly to her.
"Hah! Guess what guys", he yelled to his companions. "I found a woman!"
The yell snapped Lucy awake from her stupor and lifted her knee sharply straight to the man's private parts and ran as quickly as she could. Oh, shoot!, she thought, Edmund's going to kill me!
The man doubled over and croaked to the other men to catch her. He seemed to be quite pissed. His companions took after Lucy, who was running quickly to the other way from the Fairy Glade. She couldn't lead the men there. The men were ferociously pursuing after her, but the interfering dryads made the chase quite difficult for them and Lucy started to feel hopeful. She just might get away. She really didn't want to get caught. Not, when she didn't have any weapons with her and she was alone. One young woman against seven men, not very good odds.
Lucy gritted her teeth, held her hem higher and ran faster. Unfortunately, as she glanced behind her to see if the men were gaining on her she ran straight against something. And as that something grabbed her by her arm, it proved to be the seventh man, who Lucy had kicked t the groin.
And he didn't look happy.
…..
Part Two
….
Edmund was in a magnificently good mood.
Despite the fact that there were bandits in his forest who still were running around freely, he still couldn't shake the happy feeling he had when he rode in the forests with Phillip and the Snow Leopard twins with him, watching as the world woke up from its winter sleep. Besides, the bandits didn't seem very good ones to him. Honestly, if he was a bandit he wouldn't go robbing in a place where every tree or animal could knock you out the minute you showed your face. Although, he had to admit that they had managed to stay hidden quite well in a place like this.
But no matter. Their tracks were quite obvious and it wouldn't be long until they would be smoked out, if not to their arms, at least out of Narnia and his forests. They would be caught in no time, and he could concentrate on celebrating.
He should have known that his good mood couldn't last.
The moment they stepped on the clearing where his dear little sister should have been dancing and playing with the other habitants of the Western Woods, he was accosted by number of people including Lucy's bodyguards Nara and Lessa.
"Your Majesty!" Nara cried out.
"It's Queen Lucy, Sire!" Lessa continued. "She's been taken!"
Edmund blinked a few times before his brains managed to process the info.
"WHAT!"
The Great Cats winced. Edmund could practically feel how his excellent mood crumbled. Lucy? Taken? How was it possible? Who would dare do such a thing? Edmund turned his gaze to the Lynxes.
"What happened?"
Their ears drooped. "After she had told us to go and have fun, she apparently went to collect some apples with a few children, Sire", Nara told him.
"Then, according to the apple tree dryad, she heard something from the forest and went to check it out", Lessa continued.
Edmund could have hit himself. Of course she did. His sweet little sister, who was always so curious. And now she was in trouble.
Edmund sighed. "Do you know who took her?"
The Lynxes nodded. "The apple tree dryad said that they appeared to be the bandits that had plagued the forest lately."
Edmund looked at them blankly. The bandits? Oh, swell.
Edmund sighed again. "How many was there?"
"Seven, Sire", Nara said.
"Seven?" Edmund muttered. "Wonder if that was all of them."
"This good dryad didn't happen to see which way they went, did she?" Phillip asked.
The Lynxes nodded. "Yes she did. She even followed them a little bit."
Edmund nodded. "Perfect. We're going after them", he glanced around him and spotted two minotaurs. "Would you two mind coming with us, I suspect we could use some intimidating figures?"
"Of course, Your Majesty", one of them said. "Just let us get our axes."
"Good", Edmund said.
…
Edmund stewed silently in Phillip's back. He really didn't like this. Really, he came here to relax and he had invited Lucy to come too, because he had thought she might have fun. Not get kidnapped by some bloody bandits.
Unfortunately those bandits had managed to acquire themselves a formidable advance. Apparently the dryads that had tried to stop them had scared the hell out of them that they had run back towards the border as quick as they had been able to. The dryads had apologized profoundly but Edmund hadn't minded. Served them right. Now they just needed to catch them. They had almost reached the border already, Edmund hoped that they would get them before that, but it would probably be too easy. Therren and Lessa were in the front following their scents followed by Edmund and Phillip with Shalang and Nara beside them. The minotaurs, Targos and Philos trailed behind them.
At least their speed grew the longer they travelled. According to Therren and Lessa, the farther away the bandits got, the easier it was to follow them. Apparently they weren't so careful in covering their tracks now that they weren't so far from the border anymore. A mistake, they were going to regret, Edmund was sure.
Edmund surveyed his surroundings as they came out of the forest. In front of them opened the Western Wild. It was mostly mountains, gorges, rocks and grass lands. Not very inviting. They were on their way past the first gorge in their journey, when Edmund heard it. A voice, muttering quietly in a frustrated tone from somewhere below them. Edmund, who had gotten off of Phillip's back, exchanged glances with Phillip and they both moved closer to the edge to see what was the cause of the noise.
They were quite surprised when they found an aspen dryad hanging from a tiny rock in a vertical gorge wall. Edmund blinked surprised, he knew that dryad.
"Shrinel?"
The dryad glanced up. "King Edmund, Your Majesty! What are you doing here?"
Edmund raised his brow. "The same could be asked of you. How come you are hanging there?"
"Oh, it's stupid really", Shrinel managed to give a laugh. "I mean for a dryad to lose his footing in a solid ground, but that's what happened."
"Well, that is unusual", Edmund agreed. "Wait a moment, we'll get you up."
"Thank you, Sire", Shrinel smiled and adjusted his grip.
After a few moments, Shrinel was pulled up from the gorge safely and he sat in a rock catching his breath. Edmund had decided that they could take a little break at the same time and so they were sitting around the dryad eating and drinking before they needed to carry on.
"So, how come you are in Western Woods, Shrinel", Edmund asked. "Isn't your tree in Cair Paravel?"
"Yes, but I have family here, Sire", Shrinel answered. "I came to spend the Spring celebration with them."
Shalang tilted his head. "You don't seem to be celebrating much?"
Shrinel furrowed his brows changing his face into an angry expression. "Well, no. I was following the bandits because they stole something from my family."
"What did they steal?" Edmund asked.
"A family relic", Shrinel answered. "I was cleaning it up when I got thirsty and went to have some water. When I came back it was gone, probably shouldn't have left it alone. That's why I'm here getting it back instead of someone else."
"Well, then you can travel with us", Edmund said. "We're after them too."
Shrinel looked at him. "Really? Why? I thought you had someone else after them, Sire?"
Edmund snorted. "Yes I did. But that was before they took Lucy. I'm a little angry at them for making this personal."
Shrinel looked at Edmund shocked. "They took Queen Lucy? Are they crazy!"
Edmund shrugged. "That's what I'd like to know. Come on, let's continue."
They travelled until nightfall when they were forced to stop as it wasn't any use to go on in a terrain they didn't know. Edmund's mood wasn't any better when they ate that night and headed to bed. He had hoped that they would've reached the bandits today. But now he had to hope that they'd stopped for the night. Although if they didn't stop, Lucy might be safer longer from whatever they had planned for her. He didn't dare think anything like that, otherwise he wouldn't be able to sleep at all. And he had to sleep, if he wanted to be in a sharp mood tomorrow. Edmund sighed and closed his eyes, waiting for sleep.
Apparently he had fallen asleep, because the next thing he knew was the sun that shone to his face brightly. Edmund stretched and tried to work out some cricks in his neck and rose up for quick breakfast before they would continue on their hunt.
As Edmund was mounting on Phillip, Targos pointed to the direction they were headed.
"Look, Sire."
Edmund looked to where the minotaur was pointing at and saw smoke rising to the air in a cliff from behind a rock formation that had covered the light of the fire on the previous night.
Edmund smiled grimly. "That must be them. And we have only a few hours journey between us."
His companions nodded. They headed towards the fire, Therren and Lessa eyeing the trails just in case but moving still faster than in the previous day.
They were going to get them today.
…
Part Three
…
Lucy sighed deeply.
Her wrists ached, for being bound for the last twenty four hours, her feet ached, for walking in little shoes that really weren't suitable for traveling like this and she was thirsty and tired of being dragged from a rope. At least they were moving more slowly now. Perhaps it wouldn't take so long for Edmund to reach them because of it.
Lucy muttered a curse as she nearly tripped, when one of the men tugged the rope a bit harder. Lucy glared at the shabby man, he was the one she disliked the most of the seven bandits. The man, called Carron by his mates, didn't talk much, but when he did, it was only orders usually speeded up with slaps. And when they weren't moving, he was staring at her incredibly disturbingly. It made her want to retch, it wasn't hard thing to guess what went through his mind.
The leader of the bandits, the one Lucy had kicked in his private parts, was called Frian. He was as tall as Carron, but leaner and seemed to know some manners surprisingly although he didn't use them too much. Then there were Riok, whose intellect rivaled with a boot, Harrock, big and disgusting man as his cousin Carron and Johnnik, who appeared to be some sort of food supplier with his meager skills of cooking, Lucy thought even she could make better food than he and she hadn't visited a kitchen since they arrived in Narnia. Lastly there were Torrin, a small and sleazy looking guy who desperately needed a bath and Mart, who had the best head in maths and was the unofficial book-keeper of the bloody lot.
Lucy adjusted the front of her dress as carefully and discreetly as possible. She didn't want them to notice anything odd with her even when the little object she had stashed away in her cleavage. Last night, when they had stopped, Frian had practiced his amazing manner and moved Lucy's hands in to her front from her back, still tied of course and attached to a tree sapling but much more comfortably than before. She had been made to sleep next to the other loot the bandits had collected in their trip to Narnia and she had noticed a round piece of amber peeking out from one of the sacks. When she had carefully taken it out she had noticed that it had an aspen seed inside. Lucy had been incredibly shocked when she had realized what she was holding. The dryads considered these amber-pearls as priceless family relics. There were very few of them and those families who owned one were highly valued. The seeds inside the amber came from the first tree of the family, in this case the first aspen tree that ever grew its roots on narnian soil.
When the bandits had been distracted with the awful food they had eaten, Lucy had slipped the pearl down on her cleavage.
They hadn't noticed its disappearance yet.
As they travelled deeper into the Western Wild, the day grew older and the sun climbed higher in the sky. Lucy was starting to get a little annoyed and impatient. She knew she really shouldn't do that since it was technically her fault that she was in this situation, but still. Edmund could hurry up a little. Her dance shoes were starting to be worn through completely, and the skin on her wrists was starting to bleed from the small wounds the rope had made. And she was tired of listening to the bandits talking of how much they would get from her.
It was just when the bandits had started to look for a place to eat near a another small gorge when Lucy noticed it. Everything was quiet. The wind was the only thing she could hear. Frian was the first of the bandits to notice silence and then man motioned the others to be quiet as well.
However, then it was already too late.
Mere seconds after the leader of the bandits had ordered his men to be silent, they noticed quite suddenly being surrounded by two minotaurs, two Lynxes, two Snow Leopards and a dryad and King Edmund astride on the back of Phillip. Lucy smiled happily.
"I would suggest that you don't even try", Edmund said while pointing one of his swords at the men. The Cats growled and the minotaurs gripped their axes tighter.
The bandits, after grabbing their weapons, froze at Edmund's words. There was a moment of utter stillness when nobody moved, hardly even seemed to breathe. Then, Lucy noticed being held by Frian, a sword on her throat. Edmund's eyes narrowed.
"Keep your weapons to yourselves if you want to see the little lady alive", the bandit said calmly. The little lady in question cursed in the back of her mind. This was not good.
The bandit barked some orders to his companions and started moving slowly sideways on the edge, his back towards the gorge. To get out of the ring, narnians had created, they needed to pass Shrinel who was frowning, looking frustrated and thoughtful. As Frian was nearing the aspen dryad, he glared at him suspiciously and with good reason as Shrinel suddenly grabbed the man's wrist with his other hand and the blade of the sword with the other. Shrinel yanked the offending arm with the sword away from Lucy, the bandit stared at the dryad wide eyed and paid from his distraction with a punch to his gut by Lucy, who ran next to Nara and Lessa the moment she was free of his clutches.
After that Lucy wasn't quite sure what happened. Everything happened quickly and after Edmund and the other narnians had charged forward, the two of the bandits was unconscious, four were hands in the air surrounded by the Snow Leopards and minotaurs and Shrinel was looking down at the gorge where the leader of the bandits had fallen looking slightly terrified.
Shrinel turned towards Edmund the sword still in his hands. "Sorry, I didn't mean to", the dryad said a bit distraught.
Edmund shook his head. "It's alright, he was standing near the edge, it is easy to trip even without a fight."
Shrinel smiled hesitantly and shrugged throwing the sword down as well shuddering as it went. He didn't like fighting much. Shrinel smiled fondly as his eyes caught the young Queen rushing to her brother who waited her arms open. As they embraced, Shrinel was reminded of his own family and the reason he was here. And so, he went to the bandit's horses and started digging through their loot.
And couldn't find their family treasure anywhere.
Shrinel sighed. His mother wasn't going to like this. At all.
"Lucy, are you alright", Edmund asked worriedly as he hugged his little sister.
Lucy pulled back to look at Edmund. "I'm okay, Ed. Just tired and aching", Lucy said and smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry. I know I shouldn't have gone alone."
Edmund looked at her knowingly. "Well, good. Then I'm sure you won't do it again?" Edmund raised his brow.
Lucy smiled and shook her head. "No, I'll be sure to stay with Nara and Lessa at all times."
"Good. You gave me a bloody scare, you know that? I was afraid that we weren't going to get them at all", Edmund said and shuddering as he remembered the previous day and night and the fear that had gripped his heart. He hugged Lucy tighter and Lucy tightened her grip as well.
"Sorry", Lucy apologized once more meaning it from the bottom of her heart. She hated worrying Edmund, although this time she was quite happy of it. Edmund always worried too much and she normally tried to avoid stressing her brother as much as she could. Lucy sighed and pulled away from her brother as her bodyguards appeared next to them and kneeled down to hug them and apologize to them as well.
Meanwhile Edmund looked around and observed his groups actions and noticed Shrinel digging through the bandit's loot unhappily.
"Shrinel, is something wrong", Edmund asked.
The dryad sighed. "I can't find our amber pearl from anywhere."
"An amber pearl?" Lucy stood up and glanced at their direction before picking something from her cleavage causin Edmund's eyes to widen. "You mean like this?" Lucy held the amber pearl she had found in her hand and held it to Shrinel. Shrinel smiled radiantly as he recognized their family treasure.
"Yes! Thank you", Shrinel stepped forward to take the pearl from Lucy and ended up staring at Lucy fascinated. Lucy was caught in staring as well.
She had never seen anyone as cute or beautiful as the aspen dryad in her whole life. His silvery gray skin was smooth and glowing, his eyes were like to emeralds and the little, bright green aspen leaves that constructed his hair was looking soft and she loved those little catnips that peaked between the little leaves every now and then. As all dryads, his body was slim and well defined, and he was almost the same height as Edmund.
Edmund narrowed his eyes as he watched his sister and the dryad almost drooling at the sight of each other. Shrinel was a decent guy, but he wasn't sure how he could handle they fell for each other. Lucy was his little sister!
Edmund cleared his throat and stepped right next to them making them jump a little as they startled.
"Lucy, this is Shrinel. He lives near the Cair, I don't know if you've seen him before", Edmund said and frowned slightly as Lucy shook her head slowly, not taking her eyes off of the dryad.
"Shrinel, this is my little sister Queen Lucy", Edmund said, emphasizing his little sister hoping he'd get some sort of sensible reaction from the dryad.
Not likely.
"Nice to meet you, Your Majesty", Shrinel said slightly dreamily smiling down at Lucy.
Lucy smiled back. "Nice to meet you too, Shrinel."
Edmund frowned some more. Then he tapped the dryad on the shoulder.
"Shrinel, do you think you could go and help Philos with the dumb horses?"
Shrinel blinked and looked at Edmund. "What- Oh! Yes, of course."
He then turned back towards Lucy and smiled at her. "I- I'll go now. You're awfully beautiful. Thank you", he said and walked backwards to Philos. Lucy waved at him before turning to Edmund.
"Oh he's so cute I could die!" Lucy gushed like those daughters of the visiting dignitaries that Edmund got always to escape from. Edmund stared at Lucy wide eyed.
"He is?"
"And he said I am beautiful!" Lucy gushed some more and Edmund was starting to panic. What had happened to her sweet innocent little sister?
"You're the best brother ever!" Lucy nearly squealed and hugged Edmund tightly.
Edmund blinked. "Huh?"
What did that mean?
…..
Lucy sat at the edge of the Dancing Lawn and was telling about her adventure to Noka, Twig, Asre and a bunch of other young children. She was happier than ever of being back at Narnia, her home and with her family and friends. Even though it didn't show much, she had been left a little shaken from her experience. Nothing what a party and some time couldn't fix to her brother's relief.
It had taken them rest of the day and half of the next day to travel back, they had all been eager to return home. Edmund had had to leave to the Beaver's Dam almost immediately and start returning the bandit's loot to their respective owners. Lucy felt a little sorry for Ed, if this continued, he wouldn't be able to celebrate at all. Lucy had gotten to stay at the Dancing Lawn after having promised at least seven times, that she wasn't going to run off anywhere again and that she wouldn't leave anywhere without Nara or Lessa.
Shrinel had gone his own way after they had stepped inside Narnia's borders leaving Lucy a bit sad, but she had comforted herself with the thought that Shrinel lived near Cair Paravel. He had told her that his tree was on a small cliff facing the Eastern Sea not too far from the castle. He was planning on returning after the Spring celebration and Lucy had invited him to travel with them if he happened to be leaving at the same time.
Lucy smiled, Shrinel was most definitely the best thing about this whole adventure. She wasn't sure, what would come of them, but she knew she wanted to find out and the dryad seemed to want that too. She felt comfortable and safe around him and every time he would look at her in that certain way, she got this exiting warm and fuzzy feeling inside her. And he thought she was beautiful, even the thought of how the dryad had said those words with a mesmerized look in his face made her blush happily.
"And then you returned back home and lived happily ever after, right?" one of the children asked eagerly.
Lucy jumped a bit and realized she must have spaced out. Lucy laughed.
"Yes, exactly", she said and watched as the children thanked her of the story and ran to play.
Suddenly she felt someone tapping her shoulder and turned around. When she found Shrinel behind her, she smiled widely. She had thought that the dryad would come from the woods only when they were leaving. She watched as Shrinel smiled a bit shyly and extended a hand.
"Would you like to dance with me?" he asked and Lucy smiled as he didn't call her 'Your Majesty' as he had done half of the trip back here.
Lucy took his hand. "I'd love to."
Smiling she stood up and let Shrinel lead her amongst then other dancers. They danced through the night, continued the next night and eventually returned to Cair Paravel where they eventually fell in love.
fin
…..