Part One: Narnia Reborn
He had been waiting so long to escape – trapped in a world of desolation and despair. Amidst the misery grew an even stronger emotion: hunger. Not hunger for food but for revenge. Revenge against He who had trapped him here. He vowed to find a way to escape and when he did, he would wreck havoc against his enemy. He would destroy Aslan's Land.
. . .
"Do you see that apple? On that third tree there?"
"You mean that tiny, red dot?"
Eve rolled her eyes. "Just shoot."
Caspian raised his bow, dark eyes narrowed in concentration. Eve looked for something to correct in his form, but it was perfect, as always. The sound of an arrow slicing the air stirred Eve from her thoughts. Caspian had released the arrow. She watched its flight and was inwardly satisfied when the arrow missed the apple by a breath.
"So close, Caspian. Now let me try." Caspian narrowed his eyes but nodded, stepping back. Eve raised her bow and pointed the arrow at the apple. She squinted for a moment and then released. Seconds later there was a satisfying 'thump' as her arrow embedded itself in the middle of the apple, knocking it to the ground. Eve had to keep herself from exclaiming 'ha!' out loud.
"That's cheating, you know," Caspian retorted as Eve picked up the apple to show him. He pulled the red, feathered arrow out of the apple. "Queen Susan's bow never misses."
"Now that's hardly fair to accuse me of cheating. I don't think the arrow would have hit the apple if I had pointed in the opposite direction," Eve teased. "You just don't want to admit I'm better than you at archery."
Caspian furrowed his brow, looking almost angry for a moment. "Well, I suppose I get all the credit for teaching you, then." He couldn't keep the smile from forming on his lips.
Eve laughed and shoved his shoulder playfully, heading back toward her horse. Caspian caught her arm and pulled her into a kiss. It was innocent and lasted only a few seconds, but it meant everything to Eve.
"Good thing I can still handle a sword better than you," Caspian said after they had pulled apart. Eve smiled.
"For now."
The verdant green of early spring had spread throughout Narnia, enveloping the apple orchard in contrasting shades. The red apples and the green blades of fresh grass swayed together in the light breeze and the cloudless sky hung as a blue blanket over the world. Winter had come and gone peacefully, though Eve knew many of the stories about the White Witch and her one hundred year winter. Spring had crept into the frozen ground, thawing it and melting the snow. Birds had flown back to rejoice the changing seasons with their songs and the sun began to shine for longer hours.
Eve had lived in Narnia for nearly three years now. A day didn't pass that she didn't think about home. But Narnia was home now. London was just a distant memory, filled with pain and despair. Eve still had nightmares about the car crash. She would feel the fear and hear the screeching of the breaks and then the impact of the car as it hit the rocks hidden below the surface of the water. She missed her mother and father more than words could say and often woke up crying after seeing their faces in her dreams. She hid this from Caspian, not wanting him to think her unhappy, not wanting him to see the tears she cried. Eve was happy. But she wasn't whole. She had left a large portion of herself back in London. It had been brutally ripped away and she knew she would never find it again.
Philip seemed to be taking the change of scenery much better, or at least he kept his true feelings well hidden. Caspian had appointed Philip a position in the Narnian court, and Philip took the job seriously. He had learned to sword fight and became one of Caspian's best soldiers. Eve had insisted on learning how to handle a sword as well, though Caspian had protested. "Just because I didn't need a sword in the last battle doesn't mean I won't need one in the next battle," she had told him. "What battle? Narnia is finally at peace?" Caspian had asked. "You never know. You'll thank me someday," Eve had answered.
The wind whipped the Narnian flag around as if waving a greeting as Caspian and Eve returned to the castle. Cair Paravel stood perfectly against the azure sky. My castle, my home… Eve thought. She felt a trill of excitement every time she saw it. Caspian led the way on Destrier, riding through the gates and toward the stables. "There's a meeting this evening with the council," he called back to Eve. "We must decide what to do about the traveling pools. They may still hold some power, and we do not want anything else coming into Narnia."
"Understandable," Eve agreed, shuttering at the thought of the Black Witch who had traveled through the magical pools to invade Narnia. Eve had traveled into different worlds through the pools, trying to find the lost city of Charn. She remembered well The Wood Between Worlds, a desolate, still forest where time was inexistent and the sound of a dropping coin sounded like an earthquake in the utter silence.
Dismounting her horse, Eve handed the reigns over to a stable hand and followed Caspian up to the castle. He took her hand gently as they walked together. The silence was perfect, understanding and meaningful. The tension of war had long faded from the land. Narnia had prospered in its days of peace. Under Caspian and Eve's rule, the Narnians and the Telmarines had continued to live together without conflict. The bordering countries had been quiet and peaceful toward Narnia. Eve remembered the day of her coronation as if it had occurred just a week before.
White petals drifted down from the sky, pure against the bright blue sky. Cair Paravel shone brightly as if made from marble rather than stone. Birds soared overhead, landing upon the turrets to watch the coronation. Narnian streamers flapped in the wind, bold red with the emblem of a golden lion in the center. Every different creature you could ever imagine stood around the throne room of Cair Paravel: Fauns, dwarves, badgers, rabbits, foxes, wolves, minotaurs, centaurs, unicorns, griffins, and many other talking beasts. Eve and Caspian had walked down the great hall, toward the four thrones, rebuilt just as they had been when the four kings and queens had ruled years before. Eve had accepted the vows and had bowed her head for a curly-haired faun to place the crown on her. Aslan had placed his paw on her shoulder and had crowned her queen of Narnia. The crowd of Narnians, mixed with a few Telmarines, had cheered loudly, celebrating their new queen. Eve had beamed, especially at her brother, as she had accepted Caspian's hand and had sat down upon the throne to his left. "Hail King Caspian! Hail Queen Eve!"
Eve was distracted from her thoughts as she and Caspian reached the meeting room. They entered and found Trufflehunter, Trumpkin, Philip, and Reepacheap already assembled, talking amongst themselves. They fell silent when Eve and Caspian entered. "Sire, we were just discussing the pools. Do I have your permission to state my opinion?" he asked, standing up straight and bowing.
"Yes, of course, Reep," Caspian answered, smiling. "I always value and mouse's opinion."
Reepacheap bowed again and then began to speak. "I believe we should go through the pools at once and discover what other worlds lie there, waiting to be discovered. I will volunteer to join whoever we decide should go through as soon as the decision has been made. We cannot let such worlds go undiscovered."
"Thank you, Reepacheap. Do any of you have any other opinions you would like to state?" Caspian asked, looking around the table.
"I do," said Trumpkin. "I believe that those worlds should be left as they are. There's no need to be looking for trouble. We don't know what we might come across within the other worlds. We don't even know how many of them there are."
"I agree with Trumpkin," Trufflehunter spoke up. "We don't need to go looking for trouble and sticking our noses where they needn't be," he said calmly. "Narnia is at peace, why should we put that peace at risk?"
"Philip?" Caspian asked, turning his head to Eve's brother.
Philip looked surprised that Caspian had asked his opinion on such a matter. "I- well, I think that we should go through. I mean, we don't know what's out there. Maybe there's a threat to Narnia that shouldn't be ignored. Eve went all around those pools, and she's still alive. How dangerous can they be?" Eve wrinkled her nose, not knowing how to take his last remark. Caspian nodded slowly, though he looked slightly upset. "I didn't mean that to sound unfeeling, it's just, Eve wasn't exactly a soldier or anything back then."
"That's two against two. What do you think, Eve?" Caspian asked, turning to her.
"Well," Eve looked up at the ceiling, chewing on the inside of her mouth as she thought. "I think we should investigate them. How dangerous could they be? Philip is right, I did go all around, and I made it through. I think we can skip the endless desert and the dragon, though," she added, shuddering.
"I agree with Eve," Caspian said after a moment's pause. "I believe these other worlds should be explored. I do understand your thinking, Trumpkin," he added thoughtfully. "It could be very dangerous, but I believe we can handle it." He smiled. "The creatures in those worlds probably think ours dangerous and strange. They might even have discussed traveling into our world before, without knowing what lay ahead."
Trumpkin nodded. "I still don't agree, but I know how stubborn you humans are…" Eve fought back a smile.
"Then it's agreed! We will send out an expedition to explore worlds unknown!" Reepacheap exclaimed, twitching his tail with barely contained excitement.
The expedition was formed quickly. Caspian would lead it, and though he protested, Eve insisted on accompanying him. Reepacheap and Philip readily agreed to come along, and with a frown, Trumpkin joined as well. Trufflehunter would remain behind and therefore would regulate Narnia in Caspian and Eve's stead with the help of Ouranos, the centaur. Eve felt a trill of excitement along with fear as she thought of the journey ahead.
"Are you sure you want to come?" Caspian asked for the umpteenth time that night as he and Eve readied for bed. Eve just rolled her eyes. "I mean, you haven't exactly had a good experience there before," he said, sitting down on the large, four-poster bed. Eve huffed and sat beside him, pulling her thick robe closer.
"You know what my choice is and you know I won't change my mind, so you might as well give up," she told him. Caspian leaned down to kiss her head.
"I know," he said resignedly. Eve smiled and pushed his arm playfully.
"You'll need a warrior like me on your side," she said, yawning. She laid her head on the pillow and was asleep before Caspian could respond. He watched her for a moment, breathing deeply, expression tranquil, lips pulled up at the corners in a sleepy smile. Then he turned and blew out the lamp, lying next to her, cherishing her warmth. He ran a finger across her cheek, and then put his head back on the pillow, staring up at the ceiling above him for a long time until finally, he closed his dark eyes and gave in to sleep.
