Heart In A Headlock
Disclaimer: Oh God. Ugh. Grumble. Groan. Just shut up.
Chapter Three: Stranger Danger!
September was a poor excuse for a month, at least in Lucy Pevensie's humble opinion. Especially the September of the current year. It was still ungodly hot – almost as stifling hot as it had been in the very summer months of June and July – but the worst of it all was that she was now back in school and had to sit in a classroom with no air circulation whatsoever, at least fifteen other students, and to top it all off, a scratchy new school uniform. It had been almost two months since Edmund had broken his arm, or rather gotten his arm broken by another person, but as much as that one night had brought them together, the consequences of Edmund's actions had tore them apart once again. Because, and Lucy could now state this in a matter-of-factly manner, once their mum had discovered Ed's injury and the cause of it, he had been grounded and punished severely. Surely he should have known there would be consequences, but nevertheless he had blamed Lucy (it was not her fault her mother had been very persuasive) for his probation of constant chores and never leaving the house for the rest of the summer for a bit of leisure.
Lucy's attitude toward her brother only grew glummer as she was forced to sit in a classroom away from him for several hours during the day. She could not see him nor sit next to him just for the sole purpose of being close to him, even if he glared at her and muttered profanity followed by the word "snitch" under his breath.
As she sat in class she doodled on her paper, thoughts completely orbiting around her brother, she wondered how long he could really be mad at her. If she had not told her mother about his arm when she had, heck, his arm wouldn't be half as healed as it was now. Lucy nodded and smiled briefly. Her smile faltered when she looked down at her paper and saw her sketch of a heart now enclosed a certain name – Ed.
Bloody hell, school was really dimming the wits out of her. She needed to get out of here. She needed an escape. She used her class's lunch break as her one free opportunity and made a run for it once she passed the girl's lavatory and was out the front doors of her school. It wasn't until she was dodging cars and watching out for pesky neighbors around her house that she realized she was actually doing something very bad, something against the rules, something only her brother would do. Skipping school.
By the by, she continued her fast-paced walk down the street, round the corner, and up the path to the back door of her house, unlocking it with the hidden key. She froze as she closed the door quietly behind her and listened. It was a good thing her mother worked all day long.
Lucy dropped her books on the kitchen table and popped her shoes and socks off and let the cold, wood floor beneath her feet cool her. Why on Earth was it so damn hot outside? She stood in the middle of the kitchen and pondered. "What now?" she thought allowed. She had gotten what she wanted – she had gotten away from school, but Edmund was still there and she was here. She frowned. Finally all she could think of was to indulge herself with a good novel on the sofa in the den, and there she sat for the next hour, until she heard the kitchen door creak open.
Abruptly she closed her book and stood up, all the blood rushing from her head, causing her to feel lightheaded and off balance for an instance. She waited in silence, although she was almost certain whomever was walking into her house could hear her heart beating out of her chest. Was it her mother? Would she be found out? Would she be punished?
She narrowed her eyes against the dim light of her lamp to focus on the dark doorway from the kitchen. Why was it so dark in here? She glanced to her left. The curtains were closed. Mother, why have you drawn the curtains?
To keep the heat out, of course.
But bloody Scots, she couldn't see! A tall, dark figure emerged and froze in the doorway. Lucy's breath caught in her chest and she felt every muscle in her body tense. That was not her mother. Her eyes widened and her jaw fell open slightly. She parted her lips and did the first thing that came to her mind – scream (Because, as she was taught at school, if you are feeling threatened by an unknown person, the first thing you should do is yell for help, and then try to distance yourself from the potential attacker. Or did the distancing come first?).
"STRANGER DANGER!"
Suddenly the light overhead flicked on, and Lucy's panicked eyes met the pair of dark, confused eyes that belonged to her brother Edmund.
"What the bloody hell are you doing here, Lucy?" Wrinkles formed on his forehead as he deepened the frown on his face. "Did you really just scream 'stranger danger'?"
Lucy felt her face grow beet red. She swallowed and nodded her head. "I didn't know it was you, Ed. But I could ask you the same thing! Why are you skipping class?"
Edmund smirked momentarily and opened his mouth to dish a hot retort right back to his little sister but seemed to remember he was not supposed to be on speaking terms with her and narrowed his eyes. He closed his mouth again and ground his teeth together, setting his jaw in an angry manner. He exhaled loudly.
Lucy bit down her bottom lip and shivered. She did not like it when her brother looked at her like that. He looked like a menace. Scary. Creepy. Lucy rested her gaze on his shoulder instead of his face. "Still mad at me, then, Ed?"
He answered her question by turning on his heel and heading toward the stairs. Lucy hurried after him and called out, "Oh, c'mon, Edmund! You're being ridiculous! It was almost two months ago and you're fine now!" Edmund shot a dark look over his shoulder. Lucy halted for a brief moment but then continued her pursuit. "Besides, we both cut school today, so you should forgive me and we can do something fun!" She grabbed onto the railing of the stairwell as she climbed up the wood stairs after her brother.
Edmund stopped dead in his tracks and turned around on the stairs, an evil sort of grin plastered on his pale, freckled face. "Oh, I have all sorts of fun with your name on 'em, Luc. Like this, for example." He flashed another wicked grin at her.
She wrinkled up her nose in confusion. "What?"
He continued to grin. She cocked her head to the side. He titled his the opposite way and glared at her. And then, without warning, he put out a hand and gave her shoulder a hard shove, sending her backwards. She flailed about and screamed, "Edmund!" She felt her feet and legs give out, and gravity decided to let her land on her left hip. She let out a tremendous cry of pain but slammed her hands down on the wood stairs and forced herself back up again.
Covering her injured hip with her left hand, Lucy pointed at Edmund with her right hand. "I should have beaten you downstairs when I thought you were an intruder!"
Edmund rolled his eyes. "Beaten me with what, your bare hands?" He turned around and finished his trip to the top of the stairs. Lucy followed like some sort of lost puppy. "Yes!"
He laughed. She frowned. He continued to laugh in her face. She bit on her bottom lip in a pout. He stopped laughing and stared at her droopy expression. "I needed a good laugh today. Thanks, Lucy."
Lucy crossed her arms and made a disgusted expression. "I hate you."
Edmund's dark eyes widened a bit. "What?"
"I said I don't like you very much."
"That's not what you said."
"Yes it was."
"I hate you too, so don't worry."
Lucy gasped and glared up at his face, which was void of any real emotion. He glared back down his nose at her. He raised his eyebrows slightly to mock her and to challenge her to say something.
She blinked. "Fine." With that, she spun around, her long hair whipping him in the face, and headed for her bedroom, chin in the air.
Edmund squeezed his eyes shut as her hair whipped across his face. It smelled nice. Like raspberries. He opened his eyes and grabbed his retreating sister by the wrist, spinning her back around so that she was facing him, a dumbfounded look on her face. He stared down into her round face, her big eyes, and before he could stop himself, he pressed his lips to hers. Her entire body froze in his grasp and she stood there, eyes wide open, mouth covered by Edmund's and for the first time in her life discovered that her brain wasn't forming any real thought or response at all. Edmund moved his hands to her neck and she snapped out of her trance, willing herself to have a reaction. Her mind told her to tell him to stop, but the thudding in her chest and the sudden increase in body temperature told her otherwise. Finally she shoved him away and stared at him in utter shock and confusion. "I…I, uh, I…" she was feeling very lightheaded. She couldn't catch her breath. "Just, no." She turned sideways and couldn't decide whether to go down the stairs or to her bedroom.
Edmund licked his lips and swallowed hard – he was also a bit winded from the kiss as well. "No, no, no, no, no," he said and grabbed Lucy's waist before she could get away from him. His lips found hers once more. She returned the kiss for a fraction of a second, but then her conscience took hold of her and she stopped responding to the kiss when he rolled his tongue along hers, his mouth totally covering hers in this sudden moment of passion. Or lust. Ed really didn't know which it was.
Lucy didn't shove him this time, but just merely stepped backwards, stumbling a bit. She shook her head frantically, small tears forming in the corners of her eyes. "Edmund, we can't do…that." She hastily wiped at her eyes before the tears could stain her cheeks and she paused. Unable to meet his eyes, she stared at the floor and miserably muttered, "I'm going to finish my book." She descended the stairs very slowly, as if some invisible force were trying to pull her backwards, back to the top of the stairs where Edmund stood, staring after his sister.
Once she was at the bottom of the stairs and out of view, Edmund rushed across the hall and into his bedroom. He shut the door and leaned against it, sinking to the floor, head in hands. He began to hyperventilate. He was crying. Why? He had screwed it up. Somehow he had screwed it all up. Lucy probably hated him now. But he just couldn't…help it. He banged his head against the door.
Downstairs, Lucy sat on the edge of her seat on the couch, hands folded in her lap, staring unseeingly at the wall across the room. She licked her lips. Edmund's kiss had felt strange, strange indeed, but this rushing, swooping feeling in her chest was not strange to Lucy. It should have felt strange, but it did not. Which made the situation as a whole just simply one word – strange.
Strange. But without the danger.