Quick note... the link to Jules' outfit is on my profile for if you want to see it :)
Chapter 12: Coronations, Goodbyes, and Sleepovers
Jules stood at the back of the throne room, five figures in front of her. It was the Pevensies and Aslan. The coronation had finally arrived. Aslan walked down the center of the aisle, centaurs holding their swords above him. Lucy and Susan stood on his right while Peter and Edmund were on his left. The four siblings were utterly unable to keep the smiles off their faces, even though the smiles probably looked silly and unbecoming of kings and queens. All of them had been nervous, there was no denying that, but apparently Peter was not the only one Jules had comforted. Apparently Lucy had been just as restless last night. Susan had apparently been shaking when her dress was revealed. Edmund had almost vomited before leaving his room this morning. But now, their nerves were practically gone, and it was all thanks to the smiling girl behind them.
Lucy was dressed in a light blue, almost silver dress that had billowing sleeves and seemed to be floating around her, adding to Lucy's innocent, blissful aura. Lucy's cloak was a scarlet color that resembled the color of the fire-flower juice in her healing cordial. Susan's dress was a dull blue, almost grey color and accentuated every curve of her body, making her more beautiful than ever before. Her cloak was a dark blue that resembled the night sky. Edmund wore a pale blue tunic with white trousers and black boots. His hair, for once, looked tame and his silvery cloak glided on the floor behind him. Edmund looked infinitely more mature and very fit to be a king. Peter wore a dark teal tunic with gold trousers and black boots. His gold cloak rivaled Aslan's soft coat and added endlessly to Peter's air of regality.
The Pevensies stopped right in front of the four thrones, each of them designed specifically for each of them. Each of the thrones had certain images etched into them. There was a cordial, a horn, and two swords. When the time came, each of them went and stood in front of their throne while Aslan stood in front of them.
"To the Glistening Eastern Sea," Aslan began, "I give you Queen Lucy, the Valiant." Lucy beamed and watched as Mr. and Mrs. Beaver walked up, each bearing two crowns, and as Mr. Tumnus walked behind them, a proud smile on his face and a new green scarf draped around his neck. The faun slowly picked up a silver crown that seemed to be weaved of leaves and Lucy knelt before him. Mr. Tumnus placed the crown on Lucy's head and the friends shared a smile.
"To the Great Western Wood," Aslan continued, "King Edmund, the Just." Mr. Tumnus placed the silver crown with leaves decorating it on the boy's head and couldn't keep the smile from making its way to his face.
"To the Radiant Southern Sun, Queen Susan, the Gentle." Mr. Tumnus placed the dainty, flowery, golden crown on Susan's head before bowing to her slightly. Susan smiled gently at the fawn and he returned it.
"And to the Clear Northern Sky, I give you King Peter, the Magnificent." Peter's beautiful, golden crown was placed on his head and he stood. Each of the Pevensies sat down in their thrones, but Aslan did not turn to look at them. The Pevensies followed his gaze and beamed as they saw Jules making her way towards them. She looked infinitely more composed than each of them had, but they knew that underneath the front, Jules was probably shaking with nerves.
The Pevensies knew Jules was rather against dresses and each of them had been a little surprised to learn that most everyone, including girls, wore trousers during her time. So they could understand why she felt more comfortable in trousers than a skirt. But seeing Jules practically glide towards them in her dress seemed to make everyone freeze. Every single gaze in the room was trained on her and never wavered in the slightest. Her beauty was just… hypnotizing. And what made each of the Pevensies smile fondly at her, was the fact that Jules most definitely had no idea she had this effect on everyone.
As she got closer, the Pevensies noticed she was wearing her usual necklace, but that she now adorned a black choker as well. Her hair was braided, as always, but it was a looser braid that allowed strands to escape and frame her face. And instead of falling straight down her back, the braid was draped over Jules' shoulder. Her dress was the color of medrah, or jade. Medrah, as the Pevensies had learned, was the substance that was swirled into Jules' weapons. It was apparently one of the rarest substances in Narnia, but when Jules had become the Guardian, it had seemed appropriate to use the substance as it was the same color as her eyes. When Jules finally reached the front of the throne room, she kneeled down in front of the Pevensies and Aslan.
"And to all of Narnia and its people, I give you Lady Julianna, the Guardian of Narnia," Aslan said. Jules stood and turned to face everyone as a circlet appeared in the air above her. The Pevensies watched as it lowered itself and came to a rest on Jules' head. Then, the girl came to stand next to Aslan and they both faced the Pevensies.
"Once a King or Queen of Narnia, always a King or Queen," Aslan said gently. "May your wisdom grace us until the stars rain down from the Heavens." Then, Aslan and Jules turned back to the crowd and spoke in harmony with everyone else.
"Long live King Peter! Long live King Edmund! Long live Queen Susan! Long live Queen Lucy!" Then, something else was said and judging by Jules' reaction, she had not been expecting it.
"Long live Lady Julianna!" Jules managed to smile through her shock and Aslan looked at the girl softly while applause rang out through the room. Then, without another word, the celebrations began.
~)8(~
The Pevensies, up until this point, had never seen Jules join in on a celebration. She'd been too sad about Aslan's predicament to join in on the one celebrating Edmund's freedom from the Witch, and then too busy planning their coronation to join in on the ones celebrating the Witch's defeat. But, the wait was actually worth it. The Pevensies had never seen someone dance as beautifully as Jules did. Her moves were fluid and graceful, but crazy and silly at the same time. She made simply spinning in circles look like a professional dance routine. And then there was her singing. They'd heard it before, when she sang along with the birds and creatures of Narnia on their way to Aslan's camp, but this was different. Her voice and dancing combined seemed to hypnotize everyone, not just the men. Jules, though, was polite enough to dance with each and every one that asked her. Some of them had been rather dismal dancers, but Jules never seemed to mind. In fact, she looked like she was having the most fun out of everyone.
"May I have this dance?" Jules heard at one point. A smile grew on her face as she recognized the voice, despite the fake posh accent, and turned to face Narnia's new High King.
"Why of course you may, sir," she replied in an equally fake accent. Both of them bit back laughs and Jules placed her hand in Peter's outstretched one. Peter gently put his hand on her waist and Jules placed her other hand on his shoulder. Then, the next song began.
It was fairly upbeat, like a dancing-around-the-campfire song. There were several other couples and pairs dancing to the song, but Peter and Jules were in the middle of them. And their dancing was infinitely crazier. The moves didn't seem to matter to them and the two spun around like little kids. As the song progressed, the dancing couples had moved and made one large circle around Peter and Jules. Everyone was watching with smiles on their faces as the two danced, thinking about how they seemed like best friends. Admittedly, there had been rumors when the Pevensies had first shown up with Jules… there had been rumors about how she and Peter were close. Some had started bets on how long it would take the two to get married, but now, the Narnians could see it wasn't like that, and that it probably wasn't ever going to be like that. The two looked like a dancing brother and sister, or a pair of best friends while they were dancing, not a couple of lovesick teenagers.
Jules couldn't help but laugh almost the entire time she was dancing with Peter, and he was laughing just as much. Their dance moves really were crazy and seemed to have no real pattern. They were just doing whatever. To Jules, that was the best kind of dancing there was. Not a choreographed routine, but what felt right, no matter how silly it looked or felt. Eventually, the song began to end and as Jules heard the final notes, she noticed the mischievous twinkle in Peter's eye.
"Peter, no," she said firmly. He merely smirked and Jules' eyes widened. "No! Peter, no! PET-" Jules was cut off as he dipped her. If there was any kind of dance move Jules didn't like, it was dipping. Jules huffed slightly as Peter and their audience laughed at her reaction, but didn't say anything. The crowd soon began to applaud and Peter lifted Jules from the dip, mirth shining through his eyes. The next song began, but neither of them made to start dancing. Jules was glaring at Peter slightly, but it was playful. He opened his mouth to say something when Jules suddenly looked behind him. Peter followed her gaze and saw Aslan.
"I'll be back," she said. Peter nodded and watched as Jules went to the Great Lion before re-joining the celebrations.
~)8(~
"You're leaving, aren't you?" Jules asked Aslan. The two of them had made their way out onto a balcony so they could talk in private. Jules spoke once she was sure they were alone. She had a feeling this was coming, but hoped it wouldn't be so soon.
"Yes, dear one," Aslan said confirming her thoughts. Jules nodded and couldn't help her feeling of disappointment. Before now, it had seemed like Jules had never left Narnia, that she had been there all along. But now, she was reminded that she had returned merely a week ago, and she had been with Aslan for even less than that. Now, he was leaving again.
"For how long?" Jules couldn't help but ask. Aslan had that look in his eye that told Jules she probably wasn't going to like his answer. And she was right.
"A while," he said. Jules looked away, trying not to be hurt. "This is the last time you will see me for a long time, Julianna." Jules suddenly thought back to the time she had gone two decades without seeing Aslan. She hadn't seen him, but she had felt his presence and there had been signs of him all over Narnia. Jules hoped this time would be the same. It was easier to go for years at a time without seeing Aslan as long as she was in Narnia and could feel him. Six months out of Narnia… without feeling him… without her connection to the Deep Magic… it had practically been torture. She couldn't go through that again.
"Will you still hear me?" Jules asked quietly, referring to the prayers she often sent to him.
"I am always with you, Julianna," Aslan assured her gently. Jules nodded and wrapped her arms around him, burying her face in his silky many. And when she pulled away, Aslan left. Jules didn't move. She stayed there on the balcony, watching Aslan walk along the beach, further and further away from Cair Paravel. The only thing that made Jules look away, was the sudden arrival of Lucy. The girl eventually saw what Jules had been watching and looked down, hurt and confused.
"Don't worry, Lu," Jules said wrapping an arm around her. "I'm sure we'll see him again someday." Lucy looked a little comforted at that and hugged Jules back.
"She's right," Jules and Lucy suddenly heard. Both girls looked back to see Mr. Tumnus standing there. Lucy suddenly beamed.
"Jules, I think it's time you finally met Mr. Tumnus," Lucy said. Jules smiled and nodded.
"You're right, Lu." Jules looked at the faun kindly and he seemed to be in slight shock. "It's an honor to finally meet you, Mr. Tumnus. Lucy's told me so much about you. All good things." Jules sent Mr. Tumnus a wink with her last sentence and he loosened up a bit.
"The honor is mine, my lady," he said bowing slightly.
"Oh, none of that," Jules said. "Call me Jules." Mr. Tumnus positively beamed and nodded before coming to stand on the other side of Lucy.
"When do you think he'll come back?" Lucy then asked gazing back at Aslan.
"In time," Mr. Tumnus replied. "One day he'll be here, and the next he won't. But you mustn't press him. After all, he's not a tame lion." Jules smiled slightly at the familiar words. She had told the Pevensies the same thing.
"No," Lucy agreed. "But he is good."
"Here," Mr. Tumnus said reaching up for something. He pulled out a white handkerchief and Lucy smiled a little at seeing it. "You need it more than I do." Lucy took the handkerchief and held Mr. Tumnus' hand. Then, the three gazed out across the beach. Lucy gasped a little bit. Aslan was no longer there. She looked at Mr. Tumnus and Jules, but neither of them offered her any words. Only small smiles. Then, the faun, the Queen, and the Guardian stood there together, gazing at the sunset and lost in their own thoughts.
~)8(~
Jules went to bed generally happy that night. The feast had been wonderful, the celebrations fun, and the music simply marvelous, but a small part of her was uneasy. She knew it was because of her talk with Aslan. She wasn't too keen on the idea of not seeing him for a long time, especially since she had just gotten back to Narnia. But before Jules could really dwell on what had been said, there was a soft knock on her door. Jules frowned slightly, but rose to open her door. On the other side of the door was a very tired looking Susan.
"Susan…?" Jules asked in shock. If any of the Pevensies were going to come to Jules' room, she would've predicted Lucy, or maybe Peter. Not Edmund and not Susan either. But there she was.
"Can I come in?" Susan asked.
"Of course," Jules said. She opened her door a little wider and Susan walked in. Jules softly closed the door and turned to see Susan crossing her arms around herself. Jules had to admit, their nightgowns were soft and very comfortable, but thin.
"Here," Jules said handing Susan a spare blanket.
"Thank you," Susan said. She wrapped it around herself slowly and looked at Jules nervously.
"What's wrong, Susan?" Jules asked softly. The girl bit her lip and seemed to be searching for the right words. Seeing Susan wasn't really finding them, Jules took her hand. "Come on." Jules quickly put on a pair of slippers and she dragged Susan out of her room. The two of them crept through the castle and Susan was wondering where they were going. She was about to ask, but it seemed they had arrived. Jules pushed open a door and Susan saw they were in the kitchens. Jules let go of Susan's hand and got to work. A few minutes passed and Jules was handing Susan a cup of steaming hot cocoa. Susan smiled in thanks and took a sip. The chocolate immediately warmed her and she began to feel better.
"Now, what's wrong?" Jules asked again taking a sip from her own cup. Susan took a deep breath.
"Lucy told me about Aslan," she said. Jules nodded and looked down. "Do you think he'll come back?"
"Oh, yes," Jules said with certainty. She truly did believe Aslan would return. The question was not if, but when.
"When?" Susan asked voicing Jules' thoughts.
"I don't know," Jules admitted. "I honestly don't. But, I can say that I believe you will see him again." Susan took some comfort in this and took another sip of her cocoa. Jules frowned a little as Susan bit her lip. There was obviously something else bothering her.
"You can tell me anything, Susan," Jules said gently. "You know that, right?" Susan nodded and decided to come clean.
"What do you think is happening back home?" Susan asked. Jules paused slightly. She hadn't been expecting that. "I mean, won't everyone be worried about us? What about our mum? What about Professor Kirke?"
"I believe I told Peter this," Jules said, "but time works differently between your world and Narnia. Time goes faster here. Honestly, I wouldn't doubt it if barely seconds have passed in your world while a week has passed here."
"Truly?" Susan asked in wonder. Jules nodded and then, she seemed to be the one contemplating what to say.
"I probably shouldn't tell you this, but…" Jules said. "I believe you'll find comfort in it." Susan frowned in wonder and Jules took a deep breath. "One day, you and your siblings will return to your world." Susan's eyes widened at that.
"What?" she gasped.
"It probably won't be for a while, but it will happen," Jules said. Susan honestly wasn't sure how to react. When she'd first gotten to Narnia, she'd wanted nothing more than to go back home. Then, she'd grown to love the place, and now… she wasn't sure she wanted to leave. Especially since she just became one of their queens. But still, a part of her did take comfort in what Jules said. Knowing she would return home to see her family one day made a weight she hadn't known was there lift off her shoulders.
"But, we love it here," Susan eventually said. Jules smiled softly.
"It's hard not to love it here," she said. "But it will happen, Susan. And I know part of you is relieved about that. It's like with Digory and Polly." Susan nodded, having heard from Jules that she had met to kids named Digory and Polly when she first came to Narnia. "They came and had their adventure here, but eventually, they had to return to their world. They will return again one day, but still not for a long time. You and your siblings are the same. As am I." The shocked Susan a little bit, but Jules continued before she could say anything. "You will return to your world eventually, and you may even find yourselves in Narnia a second time before you have to return to your world again. I am the same way. I will have my adventure, but one day, I must return to my family."
"You said that Digory and Polly would return someday," Susan said. Jules nodded.
"They will. As will you and your siblings. As will I. There will come a day after we have all moved on from Narnia where we will return one last time. But that is still many years in the future and you shouldn't dwell on it right now." Susan nodded in understanding and finished off her cocoa.
"Don't worry, Susan," Jules said. "Your becoming Queen doesn't mean you'll never see your family again." And with that, Jules summed up exactly what Susan had feared and had relieved her of that fear. Susan smiled in thanks and Jules returned it. Jules took their empty cups and put them aside to be washed before they snuck out of the kitchens. The two girls were about to part ways at Susan's room when they saw Lucy was standing in front of the door.
"Lucy?" Susan asked. The girl spun around in shock to see Susan and Jules standing there.
"Can… can I sleep with you tonight? Both of you?" Lucy asked biting her lip. Susan and Jules both smiled at her and Jules kneeled in front of her.
"You miss him, don't you?" she asked referring to Aslan. Lucy nodded and leaned into Susan's soft embrace. "Us, too, Lu. Us, too."
"Come on," Susan said. "Let's go to Jules' room. She's got lots of blankets and pillows." Lucy nodded and the three girls made their way towards Jules' room. Once there, the girls settled down in Jules' bed (after adding about 10 extra pillows to it) and made to sleep when Susan spoke.
"What's that?" she asked. Jules and Lucy frowned and followed her gaze. Jules sat up to get a better look and finally realized what it was. Out her window, across her balcony, and a little ways away, was Peter on his own balcony. And beside him was Edmund. They were awake as well.
"We should go get them!" Lucy suggested excitedly.
"Oh, then it'll really be a sleepover," Jules said in agreement. The other two girls giggled and they got out of bed before sneaking out of Jules' room. They didn't bother knocking on Peter's door, as they knew he and Edmund were on the balcony, and went up to the boys.
"Peter! Edmund!" Lucy said. The brothers turned in confusion to see the girls standing there. Their confusion only grew.
"What's going on?" Peter asked.
"It's sleepover time!" Jules said.
"No," Edmund immediately said. Jules merely grabbed his hand.
"Too bad," she retorted. She dragged Edmund out of the room and saw Lucy and Susan were dragging Peter along as well. Eventually, they all made it back to Jules' room.
"Come on, everyone," Jules invited while climbing onto her bed. "Hop in." Lucy and Susan immediately joined her, but the boys hesitated. Then, with matching smiles and shrugs, they got in as well. The five children curled up together on Jules' bed and after talking and laughing a little bit, they fell into a deep and peaceful sleep.
Hey all! Here's the new chapter, let me know what you all think! Literally, there is one more chapter and an epilogue left to this story and then it's done... AHH! But then we get the sequel with Caspian ;)
Reviews
Calyn: I almost agree with you... almost. I didn't have that entire paragraph at first but one of the things that upsets me often with OCs is that there is never any background on them unless they have a dark and/or secretive past. Now, Jules has dealt with some bullying, but her past is not necessarily dark or secretive. And I know some people share my sentiments so I tried to give some background on her... to make her seem and feel more real. That's what really makes a character. They can't just be a person... they have to be believable and feel like a real person. Not fiction. That's what we all feel like when it comes to our favorite characters and fandoms, right? It's real to us. Anyway, while editing the chapter, I went back and added all of that. I thought, based on her background, it would be the best possible place to squeeze in some information on Jules. I can definitely understand how you feel about that paragraph, but if I didn't want it or like it, it wouldn't be there. In the end, I thought it was a good addition. But I really appreciate your review and hearing your viewpoint of things :) especially when it comes to Narnia. This is one of my top fandoms and I've known Narnia longer than I've known Harry Potter (my other major fandom). It's very dear to me and I thank you for reviewing and telling me what you think :)
Cheerio!