05; Sleigh Bell Jitters

Emily slept restlessly as memories of her life back in her time plagued her thoughts. She wanted nothing more than to wake up home in her own bed with her mom making breakfast while her father watched the news. Her brother would be building a new Star Wars Lego set at her dad's feet while she sat in the window sill sketching.

It was the perfect Saturday. Her friends would arrive later on in the afternoon where they would continue watching their current binge on Netflix. However they would rarely pay attention to the Salvatore brothers running across the screen as they discussed their own boys at their high school. The three girls had very different tastes in men, but all strived for the same thing. They wanted companionship.

"What do you think about Ethan Alvarez?" Kayla asked, holding up the old yearbook.

Sienna immediately made an 'x' with her arms, "I'm pretty sure I caught him smoking pot in the bathroom."

"No way."

"Wasn't it in the girls bathroom too?" Emily asked.

Kayla scrunched up her nose, "This isn't making me look forward to high school."

Sienna shrugged, "How do you think I felt when I realized there was no dancing and singing during lunch?"

"High School Musical lied to me!" Emily yelled while dramatically placing her hand across her forehead.

She received a pillow in the face from Sienna, "Don't bring up the backstabbing trilogy."

The girls giggled at Emily's antics before they resumed looking at the idiots in their yearbooks. Later on that evening the mood turned sour as Emily came across a particular name. Sophomore year had been a learning curve for Emily as she had succeeded in getting her first boyfriend, Trent Goldstein.

The boy had been quite the catch at the time. He was one of the 'perfects' being in all AP classes and the quarterback on the junior varsity football team. Many girls wanted him, but he had set his sights directly on the loner art student with red braces.

Emily thought she was dreaming when he eventually asked her for her phone number. She didn't know how to respond and ended up giving him Sienna's phone number instead of her own. The girl had been mortified for about a week before he assured her it was fine.

The two were never officially announced as a couple until after a major win for the home team against their greatest rival. Emily, Sienna, and Kayla had been standing near the marching band talking about homecoming when Trent swooped in to steal her away.

The girl was caught off guard, but smiled as he lifted her up to twirl her around in his happiness. She had been happy in those moments where it was just the two of them in their own world. Sienna and Kayla would constantly tease her and come up with 'ship' names, but she didn't care.

Things didn't go south for the couple until the week of homecoming. Trent had been avoiding the girl like the plague and Emily couldn't figure out what she had done wrong. It wasn't until the night of homecoming that she realized he was avoiding her, because he had moved on to the class president.

Sienna and Kayla had done their best to comfort the girl, but in the end it didn't really affect her. If she was being completely honest she knew they were just prolonging the inevitable. However it was hard to see him go on to stay with the girl for the rest of the year.

"I feel like he has gotten uglier." Sienna said as she peered over her friend's shoulder.

Kayla snorted, "Don't lie. You're terrible at it."

"I was trying to be supportive."

"Well don't."

Her dream continued to change between good and bad memories of her friends and family. She wanted nothing more than to leave Narnia to return to what was familiar. It wasn't until a lion flashed by briefly that she remembered the prophecy. Her heart was the key to her true intentions, but the understanding of the organ was a fickle thing.

The next morning Emily never forgot her dream as she was awakened by Lucy jumping on her. The youngest Pevensies attempt was a bit ridiculous, but it reminded her of her brother. Joseph would always find creative ways to wake her, but sometimes he would use the old fashion trick of jumping on the bed.

"Rise and shine!" Lucy yelled.

"Nope! The sun doesn't want to see my face nor do I want to see it!" Emily said as she buried her head in her coat.

Lucy didn't take no for an answer and looked over at the others. Susan shook her head while Peter smirked. He had an idea. The next thing Emily knew Peter was tickling her relentlessly.

"Someone's ticklish!" Peter laughed.

Emily shot him a glare as she stood up with a huff, "You are going to pay for that Pevensie!"

Emily was quick to arm herself with a snowball as an all out war ensued. Emily was quick to snag Lucy for the team as she realized she had a wicked curveball. The two girls fired shots at the boy one after the other and soon Peter was soaked to the bone in snow.

"I surrender!"

Lucy laughed, "Girls don't believe in surrender."

"Have mercy."

Emily smiled while firing one last snowball, "Poor Pete. He has underestimated the powers of the dream team."

Lucy hugged Emily as she stuck her tongue out at her brother and said, "Better luck next time Peter."

"I'll want a rematch later."

"Promise?"

Peter looked her dead in the eye and placed his hand over his heart, "Promise."

Mrs. Beaver began scolding the three along with Susan at that point. They were wasting time fooling around, but Emily pointed out that they were kids. If they didn't get their wiggles out now then they wouldn't shut up later.

Mr. Beaver took what Emily said to heart as they continued their journey. Every two hours or so he would let the kids be kids by letting them play in the soft snow. Susan would sometimes jump in to help Peter, but she mostly stuck by Mrs. Beaver.

As they walked across the mountain top Emily took in the scenery around her. The trees were covered in snow with long icicles hanging from the branches in delicate arrangements. The sight would have been beautiful had the cause been less deadly.

When the sun reached its peak in the afternoon it caused the sky to turn a light pink hue that Emily could only describe as breathtaking. The small group took in the view from what looked to be a rock bridge as they ate lunch. It was there that Mr. Beaver explained that they would have to cross a frozen river.

"Now Aslan's camp is just over there by the stone table just across the frozen river." Mr. Beaver said.

"River?" Susan asked, looking slightly worried.

"It's been frozen for over 100 years." Mrs. Beaver replied, patting her hand.

"It seems so far." Peter said staring off into the distance.

"It's the world dear, did you expect it to be small?" Mrs. Beaver inquired.

"Smaller." Susan and Emily answered before smiling at each other.

At some point during the long trek they had reached a big stretch of open area blanketed in snow. Emily tried to picture what it used to be, but could only assume it had once been a beautiful meadow. It saddened Emily greatly that such a beautiful time of the year was being used for something sinister.

Mr. Beaver was in the lead with Mrs. Beaver by his side and Susan following right behind them. Behind Susan was Peter, Lucy, and Emily that were cracking jokes as Emily sang some road trip songs. After awhile though Lucy had grown tired and was now receiving a piggy back ride from her brother.

"Come on before we're old."

Mr. Beaver said... again!

Peter glared at the beaver as he whispered to Lucy and Emily, "If he tells me to hurry up one more time. I'm going to turn him into a big fluffy hat!"

Emily laughed as Mr. Beaver answered right back, "Hurry up, Son of Adam! We don't have all day."

"He is getting kinda bossy." Lucy said, laying her head on Peter's back.

"Well you guys are meant to become King and Queen. So you say he's bossy, wait till you have to run a kingdom." Emily replied.

Peter was about to retort back when Emily shushed him and began to listen intently to her surroundings. She could have sworn she heard bells ringing in the distance. She waited until they grew louder and louder before she announced to the group what she heard.

Mr. Beaver turned around to look at Emily in worry before he shouted, "It's her! Run!"

Peter quickly let Lucy off his shoulders and grabbed one of her hands. Emily grabbed the other to help Lucy keep up and together the three set off to catch up with the others. When they entered the forest Emily spotted a large boulder with a crevasse big enough for all of them to hide.

"Down there!" Emily shouted pointing out the spot to the others.

Everyone was quick to hide beneath the ledge one after another. Once Emily was situated she grabbed what she thought was Lucy's hand only to discover it was Peter's. She tried to let go as her stomach did flips, but Peter held tight and pulled her closer to him. They stayed still and silent as they awaited their fate of being found or not.

After what seemed like hours but was probably only minutes Lucy asked quietly, "Is she gone?"

"I'll go have a look," Peter said.

He let go of Emily's hand and tried to get up, but was stopped by Mr. Beaver, "No, you're no good to Narnia dead."

"Neither are you Beaver." Mrs. Beaver said with a worried tone.

Mr. Beaver placed a kiss on his wife's cheek, "Thanks dear."

Peter sat back down knowing better than to argue with beaver and wrapped his arms around Lucy. Emily sent him a sympathetic look as she quietly grabbed a branch just in case. Susan sent her a warning look, but Emily motioned for her to lie low.

After a long pause of silence there was some shuffling above and fear coursed through Emily as she tightened her grip on the branch. If they were found out they didn't really have a good way of defending themselves. She could only hope that she was able to hold them off while everyone else escaped.

A moment later Mr. Beaver poked his head over the ledge causing Lucy to scream. Emily reacted on instinct and swung the branch narrowly missing Mr. Beavers head. The animal looked impressed by her actions while Emily felt ready to explode with anxiety.

"What the h-!"

"I hope you've been good, because there is someone here to see you." Mr. Beaver chirped.

Emily threw the branch away and let out a silent cry of frustration. She was getting really tired of being jittery all the time. The teen followed the rest of the group as they crawled out from their hiding place. When Emily finally saw who it was that scared them she felt ready to scream all over again.

"Merry Christmas, Sir!" Lucy squealed happily.

"It certainly is, Lucy. Thanks to you."

Standing in front of them dressed in a red coat was Father Christmas. Emily had never stopped believing in the spirit of Santa Claus, but she thought he had died a long time ago. Now she knew he was just busy running errands in Narnia.

Emily couldn't stop the childish grin from spreading onto her face. He was just like she had imagined, with his rosy cheeks and big belly. Even the large sleigh with its reindeer and toy bag was just like she had envisioned.

"I thought there was no Christmas in Narnia." Susan started causing Emily to shake her head. She was always trying to be the logical one.

"It hasn't been for a hundred years, but now that the White Witch's power is crumbling." Father Christmas walked over to his sleigh and grabbed his famous red bag.

"Presents!" Lucy and Emily squealed.

The two older Pevensies shot Emily an odd look, but she ignored them. Christmas was a time to be young and remember her childhood. Her parents had made it their utmost priority that the holidays were always a time of celebration and cheer.

"What can I say? Everybody has their inner kid!" Emily said with a smile.

"Lucy, Eve's daughter. These are for you. The juice of the fire flower. If you, or one of your friends are wounded, one drop of this cordial will restore them.""

Father Christmas gave her a beautiful vial filled with a crimson colored liquid in a small leather pouch. The pouch had intricate designs of Celtic knots and a matching belt so she could tie it around her waist.

He then proceeded to hand her a small dagger with a lion's head at the hilt and added, "And though I do not expect you to use this."

Taking the dagger along with the sheath Lucy looked up at Father Christmas with a doubtful expression, "Well, I think I could be brave enough."

"I'm sure you could, but battles are ugly affairs." Father Christmas reminded her with a gentle pat on the shoulder.

He then turned back to his bag and pulled out a bow, quiver, and arrows. The handle was a deep red color with beautiful carvings tracing the inside while the bow itself was a beautiful chestnut brown with white tips where the string attached. The quiver was made of marble with initials "SP" carved into it along with a red leather strap and arrows with feathers sharing the same brilliant red color.

"Eve's Daughter, Susan. Trust in this bow, for it does not easily miss." Father Christmas said handing her the items and returning back to his bag.

"What happened to, battles are ugly affairs?" Susan asked but Father Christmas didn't answer but instead returned with something else.

"And, though you don't seem to have any trouble making yourself heard," Father Christmas trailed off and handed her a horn shaped like a lion's head. "When you put this horn to your lips and blow it, wherever you are, help will come."

"Thanks." Susan said admiring the details on the horn. Father Christmas nodded his head before returning back to his bag once again.

"Peter."

Father Christmas called the eldest Pevensie forward and handed him a sword and shield. The sword looked magnificent with its lion head at the hilt and impressive size. The blade had a name, Rhindon, etched into the brilliant metal and Emily felt it was fitting. The shield had an engraving of a lion on it as well with finer details of vines looping around the border of the metal.

"These are tools, not toys. The time to use them may be soon at hand."

Peter nodded looking down at the sword in his hand as Father Christmas returned back to his sleigh. Emily was too busy admiring the other gifts that she didn't notice the man approach her. She figured she would receive nothing for she wasn't part of the original prophecy, but she was wrong.

"Emily Rose." Father Christmas began hiding something behind his back. "You didn't think I would leave without giving you a gift as well?"

Emily gasped in surprise at the items before her. In his right hand was a sword like Peters, but instead of a lion's head there was a dragon's. She was stumped as to why, but had begun to understand that everything would be revealed with time. She smiled down at the engraving on it "Lady Emily the..." but there was a blank after the word "the" leaving her even more curious.

In his left hand was a dark black ring in the shape of a dragon that felt like leather, but wasn't. She slid the ring on her right index finger and admired it for a moment. The detail was exquisite and although it was just a piece of jewelry, it somehow felt alive as it tightened around her finger.

"Thank you." She whispered still in awe.

"You're welcome, my dear. I hope they aid you in your journey."

"I'm sure they will." Emily replied, giving him a soft smile.

"Bare them well!" Father Christmas smiled at her before climbing back into his sleigh. "I best be off, winter is almost over and things do pile up when you've been gone a thousand years. Long live Aslan!"

With one last wave to them he was off as the Pevensies and Emily shouted, "Goodbye!" and "Merry Christmas!"

When they couldn't see him anymore Lucy turned to her older siblings and stated, "Told you he was real!"

"How can you not believe!" Emily said, rounding on the two with a look of disbelief.

Peter ignored them and said, "Did you hear what he said? Winter is almost over. You know what that means?"

Emily thought about it before the light bulb went off, "Oh come on!"

"No more ice!"

Emily groaned, "Why can't things be simple?"