Challenge: Spring / Invitation
Queen Lucy sat on her knees looking over the greenest pastures she had ever laid eyes on. At least, she thought they were… Then again, Queen Susan never shied away from reminding her she said that every other spring.
It wasn't like that though. No, it was a feeling deep inside her that made her think any previous pasture she'd seen before was duller, gray with something akin to sadness. Or war. Like a terrible and never ending winter.
When she thought about it she could sometimes here a distant sound like a deformed horn that didn't stop, or explosions of a magnitude unknown to Narnia.
Those things always slipped through her fingers though, like a dream.
Mr. Fox had accompanied her on her escapade with two guards, one of them a centaur and the other a panther. They walked far away from her so as not to disrupt her quiet time. Pity though, Mr. Fox had fallen asleep and she would've enjoyed the company.
The wind blew and it ruffled her hair and the grass and the flowers. Mr. Fox sighed in contentment and she smiled at that.
She looked at the pasture and the beautiful blossoms that where blooming at the touch of spring's time. These too, she thought, were the brightest she'd ever seen. Unbelievable shades of taffy pink, light blue and sunrise yellow.
As she picked a few flowers she stopped, lifting her head to the forest at the end of the greenery. The woods were shadowed, but pleasantly so, the canopy covered the floor and let the barest hints of lights through.
And from its leafy depths Queen Lucy felt something… a pull. Like the forest was calling her.
The wind blew, gently moving the treetops; a great ray of light fell though and illuminated the entrance of the forest like a path. Lucy could tell when she was being invited, so she stood up and walked into the woods, the flowers she'd picked still in her hands. She looked back a moment at her companions, but they'd be fine without her for a few minutes.
She walked the forest floor through the somewhat cramped trees, over roots and rocks. The Gentle Queen caressed the bark of the trees as she passed, and the spirits of the forest caressed her back with soft leaves that moved through the air. She smiled and nodded at their greeting.
The pull in her chest stopped. She'd reached a little bank of water that, while hardly impressive, was crystal clear, a deep shade of blue.
She stood beside the still water and gazed at it. Inside she could see the reflection of the trees above her perfectly. She frowned though, when she couldn't find her own reflection in the surface. As she looked around she noticed the trees also seemed a bit different than those inside of the little pool.
She looked at the waters again and the trees inside. There was a pleasant feeling in her chest as she did so, but it turned sour quickly and she couldn't tell why.
The flowers fell from her hands and into the water, sinking like they weighed more than they should, until she couldn't see them anymore.
The little pool was inviting, like looking at Cair Paravel after a long and tiring journey.
She took a step back and somewhere inside her she could hear her own self saying:
I'm not ready yet.
She was confused about this, but couldn't deny how true those words felt. Whatever it was, she was not ready. Lucy closed her eyes and sighed quietly.
She gave a slight bow to the waters.
"Thank you," she said truthfully.
She then turned around and went back the way she had come.
The shade disappeared when she reched the edge of green pastures again, and Queen Lucy breathed in the pleasant air, letting it fill her lungs.
"Your Majesty." Mr. Fox trotted towards her. "I thought you'd given the guards the slip without inviting me," he said with a mischievous grin.
"Do not worry about such things good Fox. I wouldn't dare to let you miss such an adventure," she replied jovially.
"I would hope not," he said as he placed himself beside her.
"Come, my brothers and sister will be awaiting our return for the spring equinox," She said as she began walking towards the guards.
As Mr. Fox commented on Mr. Beaver's annoying habit of eating all the food at any given festival, Queen Lucy thought back to the little pool of water in the forest. It sort of made her think of a lamppost in the middle of a snowy forest.
Strange.
What could a lamppost be anyway?
Abril: Another challenge with my dear friend Shadow_ying. To write a one-shot with one season and one object. Mine were Spring and Invitation. I feel the endings a bit off but I liked the thing all in all.
Have a nice day ya'll.