Disclaimer: I own nothing except my own characters and plots. The original universe and everything in it belong to C. S. Lewis. All photos used of film characters belong to Walt Disney Pictures. The content I have written is fanfiction and its only purpose it to inspire creativity and to further immerse oneself in the universe C. S. Lewis has created.

"Some journeys take us far from home. Some adventures lead us to our destiny."

- C.S. Lewis, "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" (1950)

Chapter 1 – Evacuating London – September 1940 – England

A young girl, no older than sixteen, stood quietly while observing the people around her. Surrounding her were crying mothers, hugging siblings and other family members saying their farewells to the children of London. The Blitz had lasted exactly a month and the Germans had shown no mercy; every air-raid bringing more bombs and destruction to their homes. To minimize casualties, children, such as herself, were being shipped off by train to the countryside to stay with elderlies and families who could afford to feed a few extra mouths. No one knew how long the war would last, or how long these children would be away from their homes.

With all the hustle and bustle you would hardly notice the girl standing on the platform by herself. She was young, yet considering the grave circumstances, she appeared older. She was no taller than ordinary sixteen-year-old girls, had pale skin, childish, round cheeks and small, full lips. Her eyes were round and steel grey in colour. Her chocolate brown hair was lightly curled and pinned back by one of her mothers' flower hairpins. On her slightly hooked nose, courtesy of a broken nose acquired in a fist fight with her brothers several years ago, rested a pair of round silver-framed glasses. Her white blouse was neatly tucked into her high waisted grey skirt that flared out when it reached her knees. Her stockings were clean, and her shoes were shining. A train ticked rested neatly over her brown wool coat and a small moss green suitcase stood by her feet.

Her name was Philippa Copland. Born five and seven years after her older brothers Tom and Arthur, she was a quiet girl, always preferring to be a silent observer rather than the centre of attention. Her shy nature and habit of keeping her head down in a book deemed her dull and uninteresting by her peers. She hardly spoke to anyone at her school and kept mostly to herself, although that did not stop her fellow classmates from speaking about her and her family behind her back. Pippa had gotten so used to their whispers, it hardly bothered her so long as she was left alone. The only place she could truly find peace, was when she was singing and playing the piano with her church choir at the local church in Greenwich. Pippa loved to sing and play the piano, a trait she had inherited from her mother; Mary. She hardly sang or played these days though, and the church she was so fond of had been destroyed by the German bombs.

She took notice of a young woman desperately clinging onto her daughter. They were both crying and whispering promises of safe passages and returns. Pippa's heart wrenched thinking of her own family and how she wished they were here to say goodbye. Both of her brothers and father were stationed in France, trying to keep the Germans from occupying the border. They had not written in months, but every day there were news of casualties broadcasted on the radio. Pippa prayed every single night before bed that none of her loved ones would come to harm. Her mother was a nurse and had decided, shortly after Pippa's father left, to join the medical corps and travel with them to the border between France and Belgium, leaving Pippa to fend for herself. Luckily for her, Professor Digory Kirke, an old friend of her great-aunt Polly, had agreed to let her stay in his mansion until her mother or father returned, and London was once again a safe place to live. As loving and kind as her great-aunt Polly thought the Professor was, Pippa had never had the pleasure of meeting him in person.

Her thoughts of Professor Kirke were interrupted by a loud whistle nearby and children hastily boarding the train. The uniformed man who blew the whistle called out loudly:

"Attention! All boarding children must provide the proper identification papers and a valid ticket. Quickly now! Quickly!" The man in the uniform turned towards her and ushered her towards the train. As she approached the train cautiously an elderly woman with a kind face smiled gently at her.

"Right then, just you?" The lady asked, reaching for Pippa's ticket.

Pippa held out her papers and ticket for the woman to take. "Yes ma'am."

"Right, on you go. Quickly dear." The lady ushered and, without looking back, Pippa boarded the train.

The train station was crowded. Too crowded, thought Peter sourly as he looked around at the hundreds of families. Children and suitcases of all sizes were being stuffed onto a large train by their weeping mothers. The tall, sandy blonde sixteen-year-old boy fixed his grey coat and fiddled with the papers given to him by his mother. His two younger sisters, Lucy and Susan, stood on his left, fidgeting with the buckle of Lucy's suitcase while his mother paid attention to his little brother.

"If dad were here, he wouldn't make us go." Edmund, Peter's younger brother, a boy of thirteen, pointed out bitterly. His dark eyebrows were knitted together as he frowned and pouted childishly.

"If dad were here, it'd mean the war was over and we wouldn't have to go!" Peter retorted angrily. Helen Pevensie shot her eldest son an exasperated look before turning towards her youngest son.

"You will listen to your brother, won't you Edmund?" She insisted, pulling on the flaps of his coat, making him look her straight in the eyes. Edmund shrugged and turned his head away. Helen Pevensie sighed. After hugging her sons, she turned towards her daughters and squeezed them tight.

"Be good girls. Both of you." They nodded dutifully at their mother whilst tears were slipping down their cheeks. She turned towards Peter, giving him one last hug and whispered in his ear: "Promise me you'll take good care of them. You're the man now."

"I will mum. I promise." Peter blinked back his tears.

"Right then. Off with you." The four siblings picked up their suitcases and held each other tightly by the hand as they made their way forward to the old lady checking the tickets. The elderly woman had a kind face, Peter noted. With an outstretched hand she took the tickets and stamped them in one quick motion, not even bothering to check if they were correct or not.

"Hurry in. Quickly!" She stated. Susan pushed Edmund gently.

"Oy, I know how to get on a train by myself! Get off!" He grumbled. Susan just rolled her eyes and made sure Lucy didn't lose her footing on the steep steps. Peter was the last to board, slamming the door of the train shut behind him. The Pevensie siblings crammed their heads out of a window to wave goodbye to their mother as the train started to move.

"Goodbye! We'll miss you! See you soon!" They all shouted as the train made its way out of the station.

Pippa had searched for some time before finding a compartment with enough room for herself and her small suitcase. She said a brief hello to the two children already occupying the compartment, before she sat down opposite them and buried her nose in a book. She figured the less interested she was in them, the less interested they would be in her. She smoothed out her skirt and pushed her glasses further up her nose as they kept slipping off while she read. She was just about the reach her favourite part in the book when the compartment door was opened, and a blonde boy appeared in its stead.

"Is there room for me and my siblings? Everywhere else is full you see." The three children already occupying the compartment nodded. Pippa's grey eyes met the boy's striking blue ones for a brief moment before she quickly broke their gaze and returned to her book.

"Splendid!" He exclaimed. "In you go Lu. After you Susan. Edmund."

Pippa watched as the four children, two boys and two girls, piled themselves in the cramped space and began storing their luggage on the racks above their heads. Although they were different ages, Pippa could easily tell by their facial features that they were siblings. After they were all seated, Pippa returned to her book feeling comfortable and a little sleepy.

Hours had passed when Pippa awoke startled. She had fallen asleep, book in hand, to the steady rhythm of the wheels of the train on the tracks. She pulled her cheek off the window and looked around, absolutely frightened and more than certain that she had missed her stop.

"Where are we?" She asked the blonde boy. "Have we passed Coombe Halt Station?"

"Coombe Halt? That's where we are headed!" He answered, giving her a surprised smile.

"Will you be staying with Professor Digory Kirke as well?" The eldest girl asked, turning towards Pippa with an interested look on her face, completely forgetting about the book she was reading with her young sister.

"I will. He is a good friend of my great-aunt Polly." She explained shortly.

"Jolly good! I'm Peter." The blonde-haired boy said enthusiastically whilst extending a hand for her to shake. Pippa returned his handshake swiftly but was quick to let go. "These are my younger siblings Susan, Edmund and Lucy." Peter continued, pointing to each of them as he said their names. Susan and Lucy both gave her big smiles, whilst Edmund simply nodded, before continuing to sulk in his corner.

"What's your name then?" The boy named Peter asked politely.

"My name is Philippa, but I would prefer it if you just called me Pippa."

"Excellent! I think we should be arriving soon." Peter declared happily. He must've been terribly bored with all the traveling, Pippa thought to herself. Clearly, he wasn't aware that the Professor lived ten miles from the railway station and two miles from the nearest shops or post office. Pippa felt quite amused by that thought.

Not long after, they found themselves standing on an abandoned platform in the middle of nowhere, nothing in sight except for large trees, green hills, a dirt-road and the railway tracks. The sound of a car horn had them all hurry down the platform with their belongings in hand, making sure they would be seen by the driver. The children looked at each other confused as the car passed without acknowledging them. Surely, the Professor must have known we were coming, thought Pippa, not at all amused at the thought of having to walk ten miles to his mansion.

"The Professor knew we were coming." Susan said uncertainly, voicing Pippa's previous thoughts.

"Perhaps we've been incorrectly labelled?" Edmund said, fidgeting with the identification paper fastened on his coat.

"Look over there!" Lucy exclaimed at the sound of hooves and carriage wheels and pointed excitedly toward the treeline. As the other children looked to where she was pointing a white horse pulling a wooden wagon appeared in view. A middle-aged stern-looking woman with small, round glasses and a brown floppy hat halted the horse, and the wagon stopped directly in front of them. The woman stared down at them with a raised eyebrow.

"Mrs. Macready?" Peter asked hesitantly.

"I'm afraid so." Mrs. Macready replied. "Is this it then? Just the five of you?"

"Yes, ma'am. It's just us." Peter confirmed as Lucy nodded firmly.

"Well then, no time to waste. Get in." Mrs. Macready replied. Susan and Lucy were the first to climb into the wagon, followed shortly by Edmund and Peter. Pippa was surprised to find an extended hand when it was her turn to climb aboard.

"Need a hand?" Peter asked with a friendly smile on his face. Although she was startled by the attention and his friendliness, Pippa accepted his extended hand and he pulled her up. After she had settled in the cart, she turned towards him, offering a shy smile as gratitude for his kind gesture.

"Thanks."

"Now. Professor Kirke is not accustomed to having children in his house, therefore we need to go over some rules that simply must be followed!" Mrs. Macready said with a strict voice. After more than an hour spent in the cramped carriage, Pippa was more than happy to stretch her legs whilst being shown around by the housekeeper and had no trouble keeping up with her fast-paced steps. Lucy, however, was tired and was therefore being pulled along by an impatient Peter.

"Rule number one: There will no shouting. Or running." Mrs. Macready said as the children followed her up a set of stairs. As they passed by a marble statue, Susan reached out a careful hand to feel the stone.

"No touching of the historical artefacts!" Mrs. Macready exclaimed horrified. Susan quickly retracted her hand with a sour look on her face as Edmund and Peter snickered quietly.

"Furthermore," Mrs. Macready continued. "there will be no improper use of either the dumbwaiter or calling on the servants." They were now walking down the carpeted hallway leading towards the library and the dining rooms that Mrs. Macready had already pointed out to them.

"And above all; no one shall disturb the Professor." Mrs. Macready raised an eyebrow once more as if to challenge them. "Ah, here are your rooms. Girls on the left, boys to the right. I will expect you for dinner at five o'clock sharp." Mrs. Macready said sharply and scowled at them for a moment before hastily retreating down the hall.

"Lovely woman." Edmund said sarcastically, before entering his and Peter's shared room.

After eating supper and greeting the Professor, the Pevensies and Pippa were all gathered around the wireless radio in the girls' room to listen in on the news from London. There was nothing new to report, other than the continuing German air-raid attacks all over Great Britain. Pippa was anxiously awaiting news about her father and brothers in France, and she briefly wondered if the Pevensies' father was a soldier too and if they were as worried as she was.

She looked over at Peter sitting by the window, looking forlorn, then she gazed over at Edmund sitting by a chair and Susan combing her dark hair by the tall mirror at the end of the room. They all seem like perfectly pleasant people, she thought. She wanted to get to know them better, however, her shyness always got in the way of her speaking up or asking questions. She was about to open her mouth to ask Peter if he was alright, when she heard small whimpering sounds coming from one of the beds.

"The sheets feel scratchy. And my pillow is prickly." Lucy complained. She had been crying for some time after dinner, mostly because she was so tired, but also because she was longing for her mother and her own bed. Nothing less was to be expected of a ten-year-old.

"Wars don't last forever Lucy. We'll be home soon." Susan said, sitting down beside Lucy and pulling her in for a small, comforting hug.

"Yeah, if home's still there." Edmund said dryly.

"Oh, isn't it time you were in bed already!" Susan complained with a very motherly tone to her voice.

"Yes, mum." Edmund said, clearly mocking her tone of voice.

"Ed!" Peter swiftly cut off Edmund's complaining. Edmund rolled his eyes and retreated to his and Peter's bedroom, giving Pippa a scowl as he went past her.

"Don't worry Lucy. You saw this place, it's huge! No one will bother us, we can do whatever we like here!" Peter comforted by Lucy's bedside. "Tomorrow is going to be a great day. You'll see." His eyes turned towards Pippa, who had been listening quietly to the Pevensies conversation. "I'm sure Pippa is up for an adventure tomorrow, isn't that right?"

Pippa blushed instantly and gave both Peter and Lucy a small smile in substitute for the answer she couldn't think of.

"Great! That's settled then!" Peter said as he got off the bed. "Tomorrow we go on an adventure! Goodnight girls!"

After Peter had left the room, Susan and Pippa got ready for bed and changed into their nightclothes. Lucy had fallen asleep while they were brushing their teeth and was snoring lightly by the time Susan and Pippa were all tucked in.

"Goodnight Pippa." Susan said and turned off the paraffin lamp by their shared bedside table.

"Goodnight." Pippa replied quietly, carefully placing her glasses by the lamp.

Just as she was about to fall asleep, she prayed a silent prayer, the way she did every night. She prayed for the safety of her family and for the war to end soon. As she lay there, in the comfortable, silent darkness, she also thought of how lucky she was. She was safe and surrounded by people who seemingly meant her no harm. From what she had gathered from just this evening spent with the Pevensies, she thought she at least could make great friends with Lucy, Susan and Peter. She was still unsure about Edmund, he didn't seem particularly pleased about anyone or anything. Susan and Peter seemed nice as well, however, through this short amount of time, Pippa thought she could grow especially fond of little Lucy. She was such a chatterbox, with an endless supply of things to talk about, which Pippa found very reassuring. Yes, tomorrow could be a truly great day, she thought to herself, smiling as she finally fell asleep.

The next morning the rain was falling so heavily from the sky you could hardly see out of the windows, let alone go outside on an adventure. They were all gathered in the library after breakfast, completely and utterly bored out of their minds. Pippa found no interest in her book as she had a terrible headache from the lack of fresh air. She sat beside Susan on a plush, heavily ornamented sofa as she participated in Susan's newly invented guessing game.

"Gas-tro-vascular." Susan spelled out slowly from the thick-paged book resting in her lap. "Come on, Peter, Pippa. Gastrovascular?"

"Is it Latin?" Peter suggested, sighing heavily.

"Yes." Susan confirmed. "But what does it stand for? Anyone?" Susan added hopefully, looking at Pippa expectantly, who shook her head in return.

"Is it Latin for "worst game ever invented"?" Edmund said humorously, as he laid on his back under a chair making marks on the underside with a pocketknife. Pippa giggled at Edmund's comment and Peter sent Susan an amused smile. Susan, less than impressed by their mockery, rolled her eyes and slammed the book shut. Lucy jumped down from her place by the window to join them.

"We could play hide and seek?" Lucy offered with hope in her eyes.

"But that's a children's game!" Edmund protested loudly from under his chair.

"Please, oh Peter, please!" Lucy begged insistently as she pulled on Peter's arm repeatedly. Unable to resist his little sister's brown doe-eyed look, he gave her a big smile.

"One, two, three…" He began to count as Lucy dashed out of the room, looking for a place to hide.

"What? We're actually doing this?" Edmund groaned. None the less he quickly followed suit after Susan had left the room as well. Pippa remained on the couch reluctantly, but after some time debating whether to participate or not, she decided she at least didn't want to be found first and therefore took off in the direction of the upstairs loft. After running up several small stairs she found a pair of heavy curtains to hide behind.

"Perfect." She smiled, making sure everything was hidden, including the tips of her shiny shoes. She only had to wait for a short time before she could hear Peter's voice loud and clear:

"… ninety-nine, a hundred! Ready or not, here I come!" She could hear Peter's heavy steps coming her way when he suddenly changed directions and swiftly returned the way he came. Pippa quickly realised the reason why as there suddenly was a great deal of commotion and sounds coming from below her and she could hear Lucy's voice shouting out:

"It's alright! I'm back! I'm all right!" Pippa left the room to seek out Lucy, wondering what she was on about. She walked in on Peter, Edmund and Lucy standing in the middle of a spacious room, seemingly debating the rules of the game.

"Is everything all right?" She asked curiously just as Susan came sprinting into the room.

"Does this mean I win?" Susan said with a pleased smile on her face.

"But, weren't you wondering where I was? I've been gone for hours!" Lucy exclaimed wonderingly.

"What on earth are you talking about, Lu?" Susan said, sharing confused looks with Peter, Edmund and Pippa.

"Come on, I'll show you!" Lucy ran ahead and led them to a mostly empty spare room, except for a beautiful, wooden wardrobe standing in the middle of the room. The door to the wardrobe was open, and Pippa could see, and smell, loads of fur coats and mothballs.

"I climbed into the wardrobe to hide, but then inside of it I found the magical land of Narnia!" Lucy said to her siblings and Pippa with a huge grin on her face. "There is winter over there. It's been winter there for over a hundred years! Imagine that! And there's no Christmas or presents or anything of the sorts!" She rambled on. "Oh, and I met a faun! His name is Mr. Tumnus!" She added, still grinning like a lunatic.

Peter was the first to check the wardrobe, making sure to knock on every surface to see if it was hollow. Susan, Edmund and Pippa also inspected every inch of the wardrobe, before having to admit there was no conceivable way this was anything more than an ordinary wardrobe. Even Lucy put her head in to see that the back of the wardrobe was made of nothing more than wood.

"There's nothing there Lucy." Susan said.

"One game at a time Lu. We don't all have your imagination." Peter said, smiling softly at his youngest sister.

"But I wasn't imagining! It really was there!" Lucy protested angrily.

"Well, I believe you." Edmund said from the corner of the room.

"You do?" Lucy asked hopefully.

"Of course, I do. Haven't I told you about the hidden swimming pool in the downstairs broom closet?" Edmund laughed at his own joke. Lucy looked absolutely devastated.

"Shut up Edmund!" Peter cried out in anger. "You always have to make things worse, don't you?"

"Who put you in charge anyway? Pretending to be dad when you're not!" Edmund shouted and pushed Peter out of the way as he stormed out of the room.

"Nicely handled." Susan said sarcastically and ran after her brother with Peter following hot on her heels. Lucy turned towards Pippa with pleading eyes. Pippa, who had been standing by the window since Edmund's outburst, found herself believing in Lucy. Well, what she believed was that Lucy believed it was there. There was no way an actual forest existed in the wardrobe. It made no sense.

"I wouldn't lie about this, I swear!" She said, her eyes filled with tears. Pippa put an arm around her small shoulders to comfort her.

"I'm sure you wouldn't." Pippa replied. She gave her a small hug, wishing to comfort the little girl. "How about we search the kitchen for some biscuits and tea? Would you like that?"

Lucy shrugged her shoulders dejected and said: "I suppose so."

TO BE CONTINUED.

Based on 'The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' (1950) by C. S. Lewis.

Based on 'The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' (2005) by C. S. Lewis (Andrew Adamson, Mark Johnson, Phillip Steuer, Walden Media and Walt Disney Pictures).

Songs for this chapter:

Evacuating London – Harry Gregson-Williams

Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny, Oh! – The Andrew Sisters

The Wardrobe – Harry Gregson-Williams

Lucy Meets Mr. Tumnus – Harry Gregson-Williams

Peter Pevensie – Born 19th of January 1924 (16 years old)

Susan Pevensie – Born 2nd of June 1925 (15 years old)

Edmund Pevensie – Born 6th of March 1927 (13 years old)

Lucy Pevensie – Born 25th of December 1929 (10 years old, turning 11)

Philippa Copland – Born 7th of July 1924 (16 years old)