A/N: I am writing this fan fiction in Elecktrum's universe. You can find here references to her stories: I thank my two friends who read it first and told me that the story is good and I should post it, and I thank them for trying beta read it. But my gratitude for beta reading goes to Elecktrum, who put up with every mistake I made and corrected them. She also helped me to think out Lucy's coat of arms. And I thank Thalion King's Daughter who let me borrow her characters Jaer and Jaerin I hope you enjoy my fist adept of Narnian fan fict
Black Dwarfs, Blue River
Into the West
They Also Serve
Thole.
I hope I listed them all.
But most grateful I am to her that she let me use her universe.
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, they all belong to C.S. Lewis, Elecktrum and Thalion King's Daughter
A deafening silence had fallen over the halls and grounds of castle Cair Paravel even though it was the fifteenth birthday of young Queen Lucy.
For the past week the Cair had been the scene for every kind of festivities you could name to celebrate the joyous day. Royal guests had been hailing from all corners of Narnia.
For the first time in five years, King Lune had not been able to come; the raids of Calormen had been creating more problems than usual. Instead, King Lune's mother-in-law Princess Eo had come as his representative. She was beloved by all of the Narnian monarchs because of her pampering ways.
Despite all that, you could still hear a pin drop.
But the revelersjust had to raise their heads and gaze upon the four towers of the castle, and they saw the reason for that sudden silence. Instead of four flags, there were only three.
On the southern tower a dark green flag with golden swan on it flittered in the wind – the swan was beautiful and graceful just like the person whose symbol it was. On the eastern tower, the wind played with a golden yellow flag with a singing silver wren on it – the wren was always happy and musical like the person it portrayed. The western tower flew a dark brown flag with a silver fox – canny and clever like its bearer was. However, the northern tower was empty; the red flag with a golden lion – loyal and brave like the person whose coat of arms it was – laid upon the backrest of the High King's throne. The flag had stayed on the throne for a long time. The High King had briefly returned home from Archenland and stayed for a fortnight but he had gone back to help King Lune.
The three other monarchs were in the great hall: the Gentle one sat on her throne; the Just one stood at the entrance of the balcony and looked towards the beach, but the Valiant was pacing out of frustration. Few had ever seen Queen Lucy in such a mood.
"He promised!"
"No Lucy, he didn't!" Susan looked at her little sister.
"He wrote that he will try to make it home for your birthday," Edmund said with a quiet voice.
"But Sir Giles said that the campaign was almost over when he went to talk with Peter a week ago. I haven't seen him for six months now. Ed, you were with him for three months in Archenland and you Susan saw and spend time with him when he stayed home for a fortnight and I was on the Lone Islands. Moreover, the day I came to home, he had ridden back to Archenland to help King Lune against the Calormen who braved the Great Desert. I want to see him; I want to hug him."
"We know, Lu, as do we, but he is the High King, the Sword of Narnia. His duty is to protect her and her people."
Susan did not mean to be cold-hearted; she understood exactly what Lucy felt, but wished she understood by her fifteenth summer that life was not always fair.
Edmund turned and looked at his little sister. He sometimes felt sorry for his sisters because he was able to spend more time with Peter when they were on their campaigns. Even now he felt he should have been with Peter, but Edmund had fallen off of Philip and broken his leg so Peter left without him. When he later wanted to join his brother, Peter ordered him to stay home because he had everything sorted, he had order it even when he wanted his brother to beside him, that much Edmund could gather from the letter. Edmund would still have ridden there to be beside his brother had it not been General Oreius campaign reports confirmed Peters letters.
"Lu, you know Peter. He will do everything to make you happy. Believe me when I tell you that he tried to come home for your birthday, but something must have come up. You know how wars are." Edmund looked his sister. He didn't want to scowl her but right now he had no other choice.
Lucy nodded. She knew that she was behaving like some spoiled child and not like the Queen of Narnia. "I know that and I'm sorry, I just wanted him to be home for my birthday. He has never missed one. He has always been there and it feels so strange if he's not there."
Edmund went and put his hand gently yet clumsily on Lucy's shoulder – he wasn't used to being the comforting older brother. That was Peter's job. "We know, Lu, we know. And I believe you know that if Peter won't be home today, he will be tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, and he will be very upset that he missed your birthday."
"I know. Thank you, Ed, Su for trying to raise my spirits, I'll leave you now." Susan and Edmund watched as she left the hall.
"Where to you think she is going now?" Susan rose from her throne and walked beside her brother.
"To mine and Peter's room. She will take Peter's pillow, sit in Peter's armchair on the balcony and hug the pillow."
"Oh yes… The scent of just fallen rain, old books and cherries what lingers around Peter has always calmed her." Susan smiled sadly; it has always calmed us all. She added to herself.
Edmund looked at his older sister and saw the sight he had always feared: her gentle and caring sister was changing into a party organizing general and he knew it was time to run. "Cheroom wanted to talk to me about something, I must...go."
Susan knew exactly how her brothers hated helping her to organize parties. They had always been more into organizing attacks than picking the right flowers or foods or organizing the seating or…
"All right. Go and see what Cheroom wishes to speak to you about, but if you try to find an excuse for not attending your sister's birthday party, then I swear, good my brother, that "Gentle" won't be the name by which you shall know me."
"Yes, Mum!" and gone he was.
Susan sighed. The party was to begin in four hours but the preparations were not finished yet. So much remained to do and there was so little time. She had always known that she could not rely on her brothers to help her in those kinds of things – they always found some rubbish excuse to escape until the party started. She remembered well the strawberry incident before the second anniversary of the battle of Beruna: Peter was gone for three days.
This time she couldn't ask help from Lucy either because it was her party. Susan closed, her eyes wishing that Peter would return soon. He was the soul of this family. Lucy held them all together but Peter was the one who made them all happy. When he was home, Lucy was herself: happy, easy-going and smiling constantly, not the frustrated girl she had been in recent weeks. And Edmund wouldn't be so grave: he tried to hide it but his eyes told everything and sometimes he stood and gazed into the emptiness when he thought no-one was watching.
"Oh Peter please come home. We need you. I feel as if this family is collapsing without you," She whispered to the wind.
Alas, the Gentle Queen knew that when they had to choose between the safety of Narnia and the safety of their family, then every one of them would have chosen the first. As Oreius had said, they were Narnia, and Peter was the heart of the land – he was the sword, the warrior king, the protector of Narnia. Edmund was the shield, the diplomat, the safe keeper. They were the ones who kept Narnia guarded, side-by-side. They trusted and believed in each other, but without Peter, Edmund wouldn't have anything to keep safe. The shield would not function rightly when there was no sword.
Susan shook her head, this wasn't the time for grave thoughts – there was a party needed to be organized. The very moment she heard a joyful laughter coming from the beach and she realized who would be willing to help her – Jaer and Jaerin Peridansons. When the brothers saw their Gentle Queen coming towards them with the same gleam in her eyes that had frightened Edmund, they knew they were doomed.