All I own is Jewel, nothing else.
"You found some new friends then?"
"Uh huh."
Jewel and Peter were sitting on a log at their campsite, surrounded by nymphs, dwarves, centaurs, fairies, there was a family of talking squirrels playing tug of war with a remarkably large nut, the giggling sprite behind them had probably enlarged it. Music as playing, there was singing and dancing, then Peter, Lucy and Conan had arrived, and the only things accompanying them were torn clothes and various other cuts and bruises from tripping over roots and falling into swamps.
"So did you three have fun?"
God Peter hated that smirk, it had to be Jewel's influence, Edmund hadn't been this sarcastic and annoying in months.
"Lots."
Huh, his little brother looked much better with a heap of slimy gunge dribbling down his face. But before he could add a pile of mud on the irritatingly shiny blond head Lucy stepped in.
Recognising the signs of her eldest brother about to completely snap, and Edmund about to fight back in retaliation for the gunge dribbling down his clean shirt, Lucy figured she'd better say something before she became an only child (Susan didn't really count as a sister anymore).
"I'm going to go out on a limb and assume that the two of you haven't just spent all this time enjoying yourselves, and that you have actually come up with a plan."
Uh oh. Those faces were never a good sign, embarrassed but not a bit repentant, mischievous, excited, and thoroughly evil.
"Are you completely insane! Wait, don't answer that!"
Conan's voice ripped out across the quiet night air, like a cannon shot, and he had to be violently shushed, the volume was so loud the guards across at the monstrosity disguising itself as a castle might have heard him.
"We never said it was a good plan."
"Just that it was a plan."
The old man snorted again and sat himself down on the ground with a thump, then it was Lucy's turn.
"I thought that you'd been working on a plan for ages, you were always off talking to yourselves and scribbling things down."
Her voice had the cutest bewildered tone in it; to be perfectly honest Jewel didn't know why she was so surprised. It wasn't as though she and her husband hadn't some up with worse plans over the years, admittedly not much worse, but a bit.
"That was for what to do after we get rid of Frewen, the plan for doing that we came up with about an hour ago."
"Do you honestly expect us to just be able to walk in, tell Frewen that we're the true rulers of Narnia and that we want him to leave, and actually expect him to just do it!"
Oh God, now Peter was getting involved.
"Of course not, and if you'd have let us finish we would have told you the rest of it.
Peter, Narnia answers to you as High King remember, the lands and waters themselves will answer your call. That's what we wanted you to do here, there has to be at least one scholar there who will know what that means, and if there isn't anyone with common sense will realise that staying won't be a very good idea.
But we came up with something better after we Odessa told us something. Frewen took the throne of the High King from Cair Paravel and has it in there, as his throne. All you need to do is call to the throne. Our thrones are almost sentient, they may be dormant but it'll hear your call. Anyone who hasn't run can be slammed in jail."
"We know it's a bit simplistic, but weren't you always telling us that less is more."
The couple flashed identical innocent smiles at their family, but the atmosphere they were going for as ruined by giggling nymphs behind them, making it very hard for Jewel to keep a straight face. The other three kept pointing out the flaws in the plan, basically uttering 'it's insane' every two minutes. It got very old, very quickly and Edmund finally snapped out.
"Well you lot can think of something better then. But if you can't were doing this tomorrow because this has gone on long enough. Good night!"
His last two words were practically snarled and tossed over his shoulder as he jumped to his feet, pulling Jewel with him, and stormed through the sea of onlookers that parted like water before him. His wife threw an apologetic look over her shoulder, but didn't try and turn back to them.
"Well?"
Those who thought the White Witch had been frosty had never heard Edmund when he was in a really bad mood with his brother. He knew he was over-reacting, had been told several times, but it wasn't going to stop him. And he was determined to make the embarrassed look on Peter's face last for as long as he could.
"Well? Did you think of a better plan?"
"No."
"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch you. What was that?"
Cupping one hand behind his ear Edmund leant forward, a look of immense concentration painted on his features, straining to hear what his brother said. Behind him his wife and their army were sniggering behind their hands/paws. But this had been going on for a while now and Peter had had enough.
"NO! Neither I, Lucy or Conan though of a better plan last night, so we're going to go with your crazy, insane, half-baked plan, and spend the whole time praying."
His face was bright red and the onlookers could practically see the steam coming out of his ears. In stark contrast Edmund was as calm and cool as could be when he spoke.
"Just checking."
Then he swung his arm above his head and shouted to those behind him.
"Form up troops. Lets go reclaim Narnia."
His roar echoed through the clearing and was answered by a resounding cry of 'Narnia' that came from ever creature in the glade, even the daisies and blades of grass. Although they weren't heard or seen obviously, everybody being too busy watching the royals.
"Ralan…Oi, Ralan."
"What."
"Look over there."
"Where?"
"There you idiot. Where do you think?"
"What in God's name is that?"
On the battlements of the castle two guards abandoned their posts completely, dropping all pretence of professional detachment and stared. Tridents fell from slack fingers and crashed to the stone beneath them, mouths dropped open and eyes grew wide. The sound drew the attention of other guards who hurried to their position, thinking there might be a problem, and soon found themselves in identical situations, tridents on the floors, mouths open, eyes wide.
The reason for their situations could hardly be missed. There was a large road that led to the castle's front gates, wide and sandy it's curvy path was followed faithfully by an avenue of trees, perfectly spaced and symmetrical on either side of the road. Unless a delegation was arriving from Arkenland, Calormen or another nearby country, or leaving to return home. The road was empty apart from sporadic messengers racing to and fro across Narnia, or small parties of visitors to Frewen's court. But no matter the size of those kinds of parties, none of them ever made an entrance like this.
The front of the party was obscured from their sight by a large cloud of dust, produced by the many feet tramping along the chalky boulevard. But on the two grass verges they could see creatures! There were at least four with human torsos but horns! and the lower body of a goat. Half human-half horse animals had their heads bowed in conversation with women who wore green dresses and danced around the group, a badger was walking upright! besides a very large snake. There were more, but somehow, even more impressive than the creatures of legend were the four who rode in front of them
Four horses, two black, one grey, one chestnut. These beasts walked slightly before the others, and each had a rider on their backs. There were two men; identical expressions carved onto their features, resolute, fierce, dangerous, straight postures, and firm eyes unerringly fixed on their destination. The other two were women, hair as black as midnight while the two men were dark blond. One was slightly shorter, and looked younger, she seemed to be talking to herself, but on closer inspection one could see the horses mouth open and close as in response to her, that revelation made one of the trainee lads faint dead away on the spot, but no one paid any attention, new kids were always too excitable. The other was paler, taller, more mature in appearance, two pools of sapphire blazed from the delicate face, but there was no doubt in anyone's mind that this woman, along with the two men would be extremely formidable enemies.
Although the procession wasn't moving at a particularly slow pace, it took them at least another five minutes to make their way to the gates. Unbeknownst to the guards on the battlements, not everyone in the castle had been rendered immobile by shock; the gates had been slammed shut and locked. But what served as a daunting reminder of Narnia's implacability to those who wanted to take resources from her, didn't even slow this column down. Several of the woman in green danced to the head of the cavalcade, making sure to keep ahead of the still walking horses. As the guards and many others watched they began to dance and play complicated tunes of wooden pipes, while they played the gates groaned and creaked. The wooden slats seemed to repel from one another, and then be pulled back together again. Then, right before the frightened eyes of the bewildered gatekeepers the two gatedoors split apart and then the individual slats that formed each side fused together. There was a tremendous screech and branches sprouted from the now cylindrical gates, leaves formed from thin air to the tune of wooden pipes. As the song died away the four horses stepped through the arch of the newly formed trees and rode through the courtyard, one of the human/horse things 'trotted'! up to them, waited while they dismounted and proceeded to lead them into the castle.
There was an interruption of course; everyone was in shock, but preventing unknown persons from entering the Royal Residence was ingrained, and the spears crossed in the path of the intruders on autopilot.
The tallest, and probably oldest male didn't waste anytime talking to the obviously frightened and confused guards. Instead choosing to just punch one of them, the ginger head snapped backwards and the guard collapsed on top of his partner, trapping him in a cage of slack arms and legs. That negligent display of ferocity was the trigger, those whose companions could turn a pair of solid oak gates that were a decade old into large, healthy oak trees were not going to be stopped by the mainly ceremonial court guards.
"Get out of my throne!"
The words thundered through the echoing hall, nicely accented by the previous slam of wooden door against stonewall. Frewen was lounging in the golden throne on the Narnian High King, one leg hooked over the arm, spotty face and limp mouse brown hair leaning against the throne's high back. The creep leered at a woman standing near by and then smirked at the rest of his surrounding court before turning his attention to the four intruders.
"Look here you…"
"I SAID GET OUT OF MY THRONE!"
Peter's second 'request' was accompanied by Edmund storming up to Frewen and bodily lifting him out of the throne and throwing him into a near by wall.
"There, was that so difficult."
Jewel's comment made her husband smile but no one else.
"Who do you think you are?"
The false monarchs voice was thin and reedy, and a little shaky but being thrown into a wall will make a person's voice a little unstable.
"I am Peter, High King of Narnia, my brother King Edmund and his wife, Queen Jewel, and our sister Queen Lucy.
Murmurs and whispers spread through the onlookers like wildfire at that declaration, normally Frewen would have laughed and tossed anyone who made a statement that ridiculous into jail. But he had been given reports about the procession that had entered his castle, at the time he had thought it was just good costumes and stupid guardsmen, but there was something about these four that made them seem as though they were telling the truth, something regal in the way they stood and spoke and threw people into walls.
"They died centuries ago. It's not possible."
When in doubt bluster your way out of whatever situation you're in. It'd worked for him so far; he had a feeling it wouldn't this time though.
This time Jewel responded.
"Haven't you noticed yet, we don't care what your small minded brain thinks. If you even had a remote sense of intelligence Narnia wouldn't be the way it is. It's natural creatures forced to hide in forests, driven from their homes by an ignorant King."
Her tone as blistering, you could practically see red welts forming as just the tone of her voice flayed his skin. But no one was really watching them, everyone's attention had turned to Peter, and Frewen's did too after he could look away from the angrily hypnotic blue eyes.
The High King was standing a few metres away from his throne, directly in front of it. His hand was stretched out, tracing the shape into the air before him. As he traced a part of the throne, the side or the back, the corresponding part of the actual throne started to glow a soft golden colour. Once the whole throne was illuminated a golden beam appeared from thin air above it, just as it had at the siblings' coronation, but it didn't end there, Peter moved to stand in front of his throne, facing the terrified crowd, and didn't blink an eye as his crown appeared and softly descended onto his head. He didn't bat an eyelash as the beam of light faded and as one the crowd screamed and ran away. The royal four were left standing in an empty throne room that echoed with the screams of court pansies, and in the ensuing silence Lucy's voice filled the air for the first time.
"Believe us now?"
I'm sorry it's been so long but I just haven't had a chance to update. This is a longer chapter than usual though so I hope that makes up for it. I really didn't think this update would be so long but I think it's all right, I just hope you agree with me.
Chuck: hope you liked it
Kimmy7: glad you like it so far.
Please review everyone; I love getting them :)
