I don't own the Chronicles of Narnia
(Eva POV)
When I first came back to consciousness, the first organized thought that passed through my brain was that I was floating. Then the ache in my stomach intensified and I tried to curl into a ball.
"Stop moving or I'm going to drop you." A boy's voice admonished. I opened my eyes and saw Edmund's face hovering above mine. I blinked, and then tried to stand up.
"Let me up, I can walk to wherever we're going." All Edmund did was tighten his hold as I continued my struggle, ignoring the dull pain. "I feel better now, let me up!"
"You were able to move three steps earlier on flat ground, you won't be able to walk uphill." Edmund replied calmly, looking up. Craning my neck, I saw we were considerably closer to the castle on the cliff. And I realized Edmund was probably right. I huffed but didn't protest again.
"Whose castle is that? Your brother said you had friends up there." Edmund quickened his pace then glanced back down at me.
"I'm not sure; I don't know how long it has been since my last visit. Hopefully, Caspian is still king, and then there'll be people and creatures we know up there." I stared up at him, trying to make sense of his answer.
"What do you mean 'still king'? How long has it been since you were last here? Creatures? What do you mean by 'creatures'? Your brother seemed sure there would be friends up there, How can you be sure if you don't know who is up there?" Edmund remained silent for a minute as he navigated around a rock, and then started to answer my questions.
"Last time I was here Caspian was king, and it was a year ago for me. This world, Narnia, was first populated by creatures and animals before humans. And we'll have friends no matter up what there, because," he stared straight ahead, a blush starting to spread across his face, "my siblings and I were once kings and queens here."
I snorted derisively. "Yeah right. And I'm the queen of England." I stopped holding up my head and let it fall backwards so that the world was upside down.
"Excuse me?" Edmund said, confused. I smiled slightly at his confusion.
"Sorry, it's an expression me and my friends use a lot." I said, still upside down. "Wait, why does the castle look not done now?"
"That's because it's not. They're still working on it apparently. Most of it looks done though, just some of the smaller buildings around it. Although something is going on here though, if you listen you can hear voices above us." I stayed quiet and heard voices above me like he said, although we were too far away to understand them. Edmund was falling behind the other three, and I knew it was because he was carrying me.
"Can I please walk? If I fall on my face then you were right and you can carry me again but can I please try and walk?" I pleaded. The pain in my stomach had diminished slightly, and I felt well enough to try and walk again. Edmund sighed.
"Fine," Edmund gave in and gently lowered my feet to the ground. I gripped Edmund's arm as I gingerly put weight on them. Once I determined that I could hold my own weight I stood all the way up, still holding on to Edmund. We made our way slowly up the hill. I glanced up to see Edmund's three siblings waiting at the top of the hill.
"Hurry up!" Peter yelled down at us. My heart tightened as I looked at Nikki's body. I continued to trudge forward, my eyes returning to the ground in front of me. If I looked at Nikki again I was going to start sobbing, and I really didn't want to do that right then.
"You keep going; we'll be there in a few minutes." Edmund called back, and the three of them walked towards the castle.
"Are you alright?" He asked me quietly as we kept going up the hill, me leaning heavily on him.
"Fine," I replied through gritted teeth, Nikki continuing to flash before my eyes. "Just sore, that's all."
"You're missing your friend right now, am I right?" Edmund winced as I accidently dug my fingernails into his shoulder when I climbed slowly over a big tree root.
"Sorry!" I loosened my grip. I wasn't sure how to respond, surprised he had caught onto my thoughts so fast.
"There's nothing to be ashamed of, missing your friend." He told me, as we steadily approached the palace. "I've lost a lot of friends too." I looked at him in surprise, and he smiled faintly in return.
"You have? How?" I asked, only realizing after I should probably have not outright asked him how his friends had been lost. He didn't seem to mind though.
"Some of old age, I wasn't there for most of them though. I wish I could have been there. Others have died fighting."
"Like, fighting in World War Two?" I clarified as we reached the top of the hill. We seemed to have arrived at some sort of orchard. Apple trees were everywhere, and I saw through the trees a white stone wall with a wooden door. It was partly open and Peter's and Susan's voices could be heard coming from behind it. The two of us started towards it.
"Not exactly, no." Edmund said, and then I tripped over a root. I slammed into the ground, my hands barely making it front of my face before I hit. I didn't move for a minute as I tried to take air back into my lungs again.
"Are you alright?" Edmund crouched beside me. I looked up at him, my face feeling hot and I pushed myself up, letting my hair cover my face.
"Yeah, sorry about that." I answered quickly. The two of us were about halfway across the orchard. There was music and singing coming from above us. Edmund was staring upwards trying to figure out what was up there.
"Some sort of ceremony," he muttered. He quickened his pace and pulled on the wooden door until it opened enough for us to fit through. There was a set of stone stairs heading up, and the music was louder in the small area. Edmund started up the stairs, before turning back and motioning me to come up. The pain in my stomach was a quarter of what it was to begin with, which made moving easier. I followed Edmund up the stairs, falling behind as Edmund went faster and I got tired and moved slower. By the time I was at the top, Edmund was leaning against the wall waiting for me.
"Where are your brother and sisters?" I asked as Edmund lead me down a hallway and then down another. The music and singing was getting louder with every step we took.
"In front of us, somewhere." He responded before he turned another corner and started down yet another hallway. The music suddenly stopped and Edmund smiled slightly. "I think they found the celebration."
We turned another corner and two huge double doors appeared. They were extremely intricate, made of wood with gold designs around the edges. I had no idea how they were opened and closed, they looked ridiculously heavy. Lucy, Peter, and Susan were standing between them, and between them and the doors I couldn't see into the room they were staring at.
"What's going on?" I whispered to Edmund. He shrugged and stopped behind Lucy, who moved over to make room for him.
"All hail the kings and queens of old!" A voice proclaimed in the room, and it sounded like a thousand people fell to their knees. I pushed forward until I could see what was going on.
A huge hall greeted me, with dozens of marble columns in straight rows and a ceiling hundreds of feet up. A raised marble platform was at the back of the room had two thrones that stood in front of a glass wall that overlooked the ocean behind it. More glass and stained glass windows were in the walls around the room, filling it with sunlight. An area in front of the steps leading to the thrones was filled with people who had obviously been dancing before we had walked in. Now they were staring at us.
The two I assumed were the king and queen were in the middle of the dance floor. The man had a large gold crown on his head, studded with large gems. The woman had a gold tiara that looked like it had a pattern of flowers, but I wasn't sure.
"Rise," Peter said, and with a rustle of fabric everyone stood. Women were in bright beautiful dresses, while men were in long shiny robes. Most were dark haired, but the queen's was bright yellow. But there weren't just people though. There were half horse half people creatures that I thought were called centaurs. They wore armor not dressy clothes and most had swords strapped to their human waists. There were short people too, like really short. Most had long beards and food in their hands.
And there were animals! There was a bear walking on his back paws, with a stunned expression on his face, a badger that seemed bigger than normal badgers and was holding a bowl and spoon, and others. All had intelligent expressions and weren't attacking anyone. The room was about half and half, half people half, whatever everyone else was.
"Caspian!" Peter called, and the man with the crown stood and walked over. I nudged Edmund and he turned to look at me.
"Who's that?" I asked, and Edmund took a step back to be level with me.
"Caspian, he's the king of Narnia." He whispered back as the man stopped in front of us. He had dark hair like most of the people there, and was wearing intricate robes.
"Welcome Peter. How are you back in Narnia? And who is that girl?" he gestured to the Nikki. "She looks like she came from your world."
"Hello Caspian. I'm not entirely sure how we're back again. Is there somewhere I can place her? Maybe somewhere more private? She's…" he trailed off, looking like he wasn't sure how to respond. Caspian took a closer look at Nikki and realized what Peter was trying not to say.
"Of course. Come with me." He gestured for them to follow him as he left the room and walked down the hallway. I glanced back at the room of stunned people, and creatures, and then followed the King down the hall. I got lost fast, finally just following blindly until Caspian stopped in front of a door. He pushed it open and Peter walked in. It looked like a bedroom; there was a bed and a trunk at the end of it. Peter laid Nikki down on the bed and stepped back. Everyone was quiet for a moment, and I pushed forward until I was next to the bed. Nikki looked calm, something she almost never was when she was alive. She looked out of place in this new, formal world. Nikki would never fit in here. I felt a hand in my shoulder.
"We should go." Edmund told me, and I slowly backed away from the bed. Edmund closed the door, cutting off my view of my best friend. We started back to the hall.
"It's good to see you again Lucy, you too Susan and Edmund." Caspian turned towards me. I noticed him eye my clothes doubtfully, but he didn't comment. "And we haven't met before. Caspian the tenth." He held out his hand and I took it.
"Eva Harris." I answered. "What did we interrupt?"
"My wedding." He said simply. The four siblings turned to look at him in shock. He laughed at their expressions. "To Lilliandil. Edmund and Lucy, you remember her? Ramandu's daughter."
"Oh, I'm sorry for bursting in like we did." Peter said apologetically, and Caspian smiled.
"Don't be, you're friends. Would you like to change out of the clothes you're wearing? Then you can come and celebrate with us." Caspian offered. Lucy started bouncing up and down.
"Yes! Is everything where it used to be?" She asked excitedly, and Caspian laughed.
"Most likely not, considering no one here except you was here before it collapsed, but it's not that hard to navigate. All of the bedrooms are above us." Caspian had barely finished before Lucy had run by him. Susan glanced at Caspian before following Lucy. I saw her face fall slightly before turning a corner. Peter and Edmund followed their sisters and then it was just Caspian and me standing awkwardly.
"Do you want to go find something else to change into? You can stay in those clothes if you want." He offered.
"How much would I be standing out?" I crossed my arms defensively. I didn't particularly like standing out. Staying in the shadows was easier, and made it easier to observe everybody else. Caspian looked at my clothes and grimaced.
"Only, a lot." He said, somewhat sheepishly. I sighed and started after the others.
"But I don't like dresses," I whined to myself, but I heard Caspian laugh quietly behind me before he started back towards his wedding reception. I turned the corner I saw everyone else go around and then stopped. The corridor branched off in three directions. The one to the right had a set of stairs that led down, so I assumed that wasn't the one to pick. The one on the left however, had stairs going up. Cautiously, I jogged up the steps and started down the hallway that followed. Rubbing my hands on my shorts nervously, I looked for Edmund in the dozens of rooms that lined the hall. It was odd how different the clothes were here. They all looked shocked at my clothes, although honestly, most of my friends wore worse.
Finally, I heard voices talking farther down the hall. Once I located the room, I knocked hesitantly and the voices stopped. When no one protested to my presence, I pushed the door open slowly. Lucy and Susan were holding dresses up to themselves and examining them in front of a full length mirror. A large pile of discarded dresses were sitting on the bed next to them and a smaller pile that seemed to be the ones they hadn't gotten to yet. Neither moved when I shuffled into the room.
"Um, hi." I said quietly. "I have no idea what I'm doing so…"
Lucy understood where I was going and she pulled me farther into the room and Susan ducked into an adjoining room to change. She positioned me in front of the mirror and turned to the smaller pile. As she searched through the dresses, I looked at myself in the mirror. Compared to this world, Narnia, I looked out of place in my green tank top and jean shorts. Susan came back with her stiff clothes in her hands, which she dumped on the bed. In her dark red floor length dress and her dark hair down and brushed, she was really pretty. My strawberry blond hair and blue eyes seemed dull in comparison.
"Susan, you look so pretty!" Lucy exclaimed. She held out a dress in my direction and shook her head. "No, that won't work. Try this one," she threw the yellow dress on the discard pile and held up a deep green one. "That might work. Susan, what do you think?"
Susan scrutinized the dress Lucy was holding. She turned to look at all the dresses on the bed and picked up a blue one. "I think this one will be better." She gave it to me to hold then looked at the two dresses. "I think the blue one is better for her. What do you think Lucy?"
"The blue one." Lucy grabbed the green dress and threw it on the bed. "Go change and then we'll head down. This is going to be so fun!" She pushed me towards the room Susan had gone into and then picked a pale yellow dress off the bed. I closed the door behind me and stared at the dress.
On principle, I avoided dresses and skirts as much as possible. But if I wanted to not be stared at too much, the dress was the best way to go. I quickly pull my shirt over my head and pull the dress over my head. I decide to keep my shorts on, it's not like anyone will notice. And I wasn't ready to completely leave Earth behind. The jean shorts felt more comfortable than the dress anyway. I twisted the ring on my middle finger as I stepped in front of the mirror in the room.
The dress was pretty, I'll admit. It was more comfortable than any of the dresses Nikki or Lily had ever shoved me into. It was dark blue and the bodice clung loosely to my torso before falling in folds to the floor. Bright silver thread outlined the edges of the dress, and the sleeves were loose three quarter ones. I pulled a lock of my hair onto my shoulder, twirling it nervously.
"Eva, are you done?" Lucy called. I smoothed the hair back down, and then walked back to the other room. Susan was sitting on the bed, her hands folded in her lap. Lucy was spinning in front of the mirror, her yellow dress fanning around her.
"Let's go!" Lucy grabbed Susan's hand and tugged her out the door back towards the ceremony. I trailed behind, not far enough that I would lose them, but not close enough to hear their conversation. They were chattering excitedly, probably about this place. They seemed to be happy to be in this world.
By the time we reached the throne room, the dancing and talking had started again. Lucy and Susan integrated seamlessly, but I hovered near the giant doors. Everyone in the room had something to do or someone to talk too. Lucy was talking with one of the short people, a man with red hair and a long red beard. Susan was dancing, and Peter and Edmund were talking with Caspian. People would constantly come up and greet the three of them. The queen, Lilly something or other, was talking to people too, she conversed with Lucy, who I think Caspian had said knew her already. When she tried to meet Susan though, Susan slipped to the other side of the room.
Not knowing what to do, I moved into the room, staying close to the wall and dodging groups of people and creatures. People gave me inquisitive looks as I moved past them, but they looked away when I glared back. There were simple chairs scattered near the edges of the room. Most people were up and moving around, so I had my pick of seats. I settled myself in one of the chairs near the back wall. The people, and creatures, in the room mostly ignored me, most flocking towards the Pevensies. They were treated as royalty, at least among the creatures in the room. The humans, at least I was assuming they were human, looked like they were polite to them.
"Who are you?" A deep voice said from above me. I jerked forward, startled, and leaned my head back to see who was talking to me. It was one of the horse people, centaurs. He had long brown hair and had pointy ears. He was wearing armor from his human half and up, and like most of the other centaurs, his hand was resting on the hilt of his sword. I didn't respond.
"Who are you?" the centaur repeated, not hostile, just curious. His voice was calm and deep, he reminded me of the wise people in movies. He sounded older than he looked.
"Uh," I paused, "Eva Harris."
"Why are you here?" the centaur asked. I shrugged and leaned back against the chair again. The centaur didn't move, not even blink. It was unsettling.
"Wish I knew," I muttered and crossed my arm again. The centaur continued to regard me. "Who are you?"
"I am Glenstorm." He said, but didn't elaborate. We stared at each other for a couple moments as I didn't know what to say and he didn't seem to have anything else to say. "Are you a centaur?"
Glenstorm smiled slightly. "Yes," he looked like was going to continue, but Caspian called him over and he smiled politely at me before strolling over. He was taller than everyone other creature in the room, and people stepped out of his way as he went to talk to Caspian. I sighed as I scanned the room. Everyone else was having a great time, while I was sitting in the corner with no one near me. I was regretting changing into the dress, as nice as it was I was uncomfortable in it.
Two people walked past me back towards the main area. I turned to try and find where they could have come from. I was in the corner; there was nowhere to be coming from. A thin strip of light ended at me feet, and it entered from a door a couple of feet from my chair.
How did I not see that? I wondered, but got up and pushed the door open. The strip of light expanded until it was a rectangle with a shadow of me in the middle. Glancing behind me, I didn't see anyone look up. No one seemed to want to talk to me, so I stepped out and closed the door behind me.
I was standing on a small balcony overlooking the ocean. It was maybe ten feet long and five feet wide. A stone railing was high enough for me to lean on easily. The water was clear and amazingly blue, like the water in the Caribbean. Below me was the beach with light colored sand and the green tops of trees. The sounds from the reception were muted and the sound of the water on the shore mostly drowned it out.
I pushed myself up onto the rail and swung my feet out so I was facing the water. A strong gust of wind would probably blow me over and down the cliff, but I couldn't find the energy to care.
The landscape in front of me brought back memories of Nikki. The beach was her favorite place to be, and she always dragged Lily and me to the beach. The beaches in California were always crowded, but if Nikki was happy Lily and I didn't mind being there. Both Lily and I preferred the mountains farther north, where there was slightly less people and the temperatures were lower.
Nikki would swim and flirt with all the boys around here, which was a lot as all the boys flocked to her. Lily and I would watch and laugh at her suitors farther up the beach. There were street vendors everywhere, selling hot dogs, pretzels, cotton candy, corn dogs, and basically anything you could want. By the end of the day Lily and I would be stuffed, and Nikki would finally leave the water and come hang out with us before we had to leave.
Don't think about it. I rubbed my eyes before looking back over the water. I didn't want to think about Nikki or Lily right now. Nikki was gone and who knew if I would ever see Lily again. I gripped the railing hard and blocked off my memories.
A slight wind had picked up, and the once clear sky was gathering clouds. The party inside still seemed to be going strong. It had looked like it would be going on for several more hours, so I settled myself on the stone railing and watched the sea. The clouds slowly got bigger and darker, until small raindrops started to fall. I didn't move as the rain got heavier and heavier. I had always liked rain, even though half the time I got sick after sitting in it. I sat on the railing and tried to ignore the memories of Nikki as the rain fell around me.
So, hello after six, seven months. I didn't mean to disappear for so long, but I got a really bad case of writer's block, and then school started again and I sort of forgot. It's amazing how well procrastinating on my midterm studying really got me wanting to write again. Plus, I lost folder that held all of my fanfiction plots and stuff. I've searched everywhere in my room, but it hasn't turned up yet. Oh well.
Anyway, I've decided that I'm going to focus on only one of my stories. I'm not going to finish my Maximum Ride one; I hated Nevermore and never really had a plot for it anyway. I'll probably either work on my Inception one or this one. I haven't decided yet. Or maybe I'll switch off. And I've recently learned that I love the Lord of the Rings trilogy. And of course I have an idea for a fanfiction on that too. I'll ignore that for now, I'm going to try and finish the ones I've started.
How many if you actually read that author's note? Not that it really matters; it was mostly me talking to myself. Whatever. If you have midterms right now, good luck. Mine just finished, so we have today off so the teachers can start grading them. If you already had midterms, I hope they went well!
~Mutant Ninja Penguin
