THE GENTLE
Disclaimer: I don't own the Pevensie's but if I did I would make them bake cookies and sing opera.
Authors Note: I would like to explain why I'm writing this story. I know there are many Susan stories out there but they are always about the aftermath of The Last Battle, which Susan was treated very unfairly in (she is also my favourite character too!), so I decided to write Susan's story during the evacuation, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe, sometime during the Golden Age and a little bit afterwards. Susan has always been one of my favourite child hood characters, I thought she was perfect (I was five for the record) beautiful, kind and a Queen! I have always wanted to write about her adventure and how she became Queen Susan: The Gentle. I want to keep Susan in character as much as I can and I hope for those who are as fond of Susan as I' am, see that I have tried my hardest of keeping Susan and everyone else in character. Also once again thanks to everyone who read, rated, reviewed and all that jazz! Also thanks to everyone who has reviewed, I was so overwhelmed by how many of you liked it! So once again a HUGE THANK-YOU!
Episode Three: Hide And Seek Gone Sour.
Later that day Susan and her siblings sat in one of the many parlors, eating and drinking the biscuits and milk the kind chef had prepared for them, The Macready had told them that the only other room they were allowed to eat in other than the dining room was this parlor, which is where Susan found herself.
"I wonder what the Professor is like," Lucy said vaguely as she held a half eaten biscuit in her hand, Peter was sitting next to Susan and munching lightly on the biscuit and Edmund was sitting a little away from everyone.
"I think he will be very nice. We are meeting him at dinner." Susan said with a bright smile, truth being she didn't know what the Professor was going to be like, she could only hope he would be a kind old man that would let her use the library to read and prayed that he wasn't a nasty old man that locked them in their rooms all day and never fed them.
"I agree with Su, I'm sure he will be a nice old chap!" Peter spoke trying to sound as optimistic as possible but Susan knew he was thinking exactly the same thing she was 'we have to remain happy for Lucy, she needs it!' Susan thought with a brief nod of her head.
"Do you think maybe we could put the wireless in our room?" Lucy asked glancing over to the wireless, Susan looked at Peter who merely shrugged and nodded. Susan had been anxious to ask the same question but thought it rude to ask someone she hardly knew such a question.
"We will have to ask the Professor though, I don't see why not though." Peter replied, Lucy nodded and finished her glass of milk and stood up, walking over towards the window and sitting in the window seat and glancing out into the setting sun, Susan had been very eager to go out and explore the grounds, maybe she could find a stream or dam where she could get in some swimming, a sport she was very fond of.
"I miss Charlie." Lucy muttered lightly and Susan smiled sympathetically, she had remembered when she had parted ways with Charlie or Julie as she had called it, she had passed it onto Edmund on his tenth birthday, just like Peter had done with her. That poor dog had many names throughout the years, Peter naming him Fluffy (neither though he tried to forget it and said that he wasn't very masculine than), Susan had named it Julie, Edmund had named it Christopher, after their father and Lucy had named it Charlie, that small dog had been a large part in their lives and now he was in the hands of a stranger, Susan hated the thought that he/she could be getting torn to pieces or ruined this very minute, so she decided to not think such things.
"Well if you haven't have given it to that cry baby, you wouldn't miss him would you?" Edmund snapped before standing up and walking out of the room. Susan had the feeling that like herself, Lucy giving away that precious stuffed dog had touched Edmund's heart but in a different way.
Lucy sniffled guilty as they all heard Edmund's footsteps ringing down the hallway 'it wasn't her fault she was just trying to make the young boy feel better, I would have done the same thing, wouldn't I?' Susan thought as she heard Peter tell Lucy not to worry about Edmund and to think how happy that little boy was now that he had Charlie/Julie/Fluffy/Christopher Pevensie.
"We really should be getting ready for dinner, I don't want the Professor to think we are unpunctual." Susan said, Peter rolled his eyes but nodded none the less, he walked Lucy out of the room, leaving Susan herself alone to think.
The house seemed very nice but rather eerie in a way, Susan was to afraid to walk around corners in case she ran into one of the servants (who all were rather frightening) and they would give her such a fright that she would fall dead than and there.
Susan hurriedly changed into a nice dinner outfit that she thought she looked rather nice in and met with Lucy, Peter and Edmund outside the dining room. They had all changed also, they obviously had been thinking the same thing she had.
"What are we all waiting for? I'm hungry." Edmund said with a scowl before walking into the dining room. Susan sighed and followed Edmund into the dining room where the Professor was waiting for them.
Later that night the two boys sat in the girls room, "we've fallen on our feet, make no mistake," Peter said as he sat at the end of Lucy's bed and Susan stood at the end, one knee propped up "This is going to be perfectly splendid. That old chap will let us do anything we like." he added when Lucy looked slightly doubtful, the Professor scared her his crazy white hair and wrinkly skin, Edmund had thought he had had looked funny.
"I think he's an old dear," Susan said smiling at Lucy 'he is nothing like the Macready, I'm sure if she had her way she would probably never feed us and make us sleep in that horrid stable she told us about' Susan thought distracted, not even noticing that Edmund had scowled at her.
"Oh, Come off it!" Edmund said, Susan turned and stared at him, she could tell he was tired but he was pretending not to be, that always made him particular grouchy, Susan thought, that perhaps she should send him off to bed, let him get a good nights sleep for their exciting day ahead.
"Don't go on talking like that." he added and Susan sighed as did Peter, who glared discreetly at Edmund 'I think I should send him off to bed before Peter does, that will resolve in a horrid shouting match and we will end up in trouble' Susan thought.
"Like what?" Susan asked "and anyway, it's time you were in bed." She added, Edmund glared at her.
"Trying to talk like Mother," Edmund replied back, Susan stared at him confused, she always talked like that. "And who are you to say when I'm to go to bed? Go to bed yourself!" he snapped. Susan placed her head down in shame, was she trying to hard to be the mother? Maybe she should let Edmund do what he wants 'maybe I should leave him alone for a little bit.' she thought.
"Hadn't we all better go to bed?" Lucy asked sensing an argument brewing, "there's sure to be a row if we're heard talking." she added and Susan nodded in agreement.
"No there won't," Peter disagreed and Susan tried her hardest not to roll her eyes "I tell you this is the sort of house where no ones going to mind what we do. Anyway, they won't hears us. It's about ten minutes walk from here down to that dining room, and any amount of stairs and passages in between." he added and this time Susan did roll her eyes, ten minutes? It was more like five.
"What's that noise?" Luck asked jumping in the bed lightly, Susan strained her hearing and heard it too, a small hooting, an owl. Susan couldn't help but notice that Lucy always jumped when something made a noise in this house, Susan understood that, it was large, it was frightening, it was dark and it was unfamiliar to her.
"It's only a bird, silly." Edmund replied sniggering lowly, Susan stared at him, why did he always have to tease Lucy? She had never seen or heard an owl before.
"It's an owl," Peter said turning his attention from Edmund to Lucy "this is going to be a wonderful place for birds. I shall go to bed now, I say, let's go tomorrow. You might find anything in a place like this, Did you see the mountains as we came along? And the woods? There might be eagles, there might be stags, there'll be hawks!" Peter said, Lucy smiled at the thought of animals.
"Badgers!" She said happily and Susan smiled at her enjoyment.
"Rabbits," She added, she had always been very fond of rabbits.
"Foxes!" Edmund added, he had always secretly liked foxes and Susan knew this small fact because she had once found a book about them underneath his pillow. Susan smiled as she watched the two boys walk across the hallway and into their room, shutting the door quietly, Lucy looked at Susan.
"We might be able to go swimming! Wouldn't that be positively splendid!" She said, Susan smiled and nodded, walking around and fixing the bed so Lucy was snug and warm, she smiled up at Susan.
It was raining the next day when Susan woke up, surprisingly she was the last one to wake, Lucy had already bathed as had Peter and Edmund. Susan had seen the look of pure disappointment on everyone's face and had taken matters into her hands to make the day more fun and what was more fun than a game of dictionary?
"Gastrovascular, come on Peter, Gastrovascular." Susan sighed as she stared down at the thick dictionary that laid out on her lap, Peter turned to her, a bored expression coming across his face.
"Is it Latin?"
Susan scanned down "yes," she said 'he will never figure out this one, no matter how smart he thinks he is!' Susan thought surely.
Lucy was sitting at the window seat, looking depressingly at the pouring rain that dripped down the beautiful window, Susan had been the only one who had been eager to play dictionary, a game she found enjoyable and had played it with her father before he went to war.
"Is it Latin for, worst game ever invented?" Edmund asked emerging from underneath table. Susan huffed and slammed the dictionary shut 'he didn't need to be nasty about it!' she thought as Lucy stood up from the window seat.
"We could play hide and seek!" She said walking over to Peter 'anything but that game, I hate it! It's to juvenile!' Susan thought as she watched Peter for his answer.
"But we're already having so much fun." Peter said glancing at Susan, who glared at him, she was just trying to make the gloomy day more interesting, why did they always tease her about things like that? It wasn't her fault she got joy in such games.
"Come on Peter please, please, pretty please!" Lucy asked giving Peter an adorable look that even Susan wouldn't have been able to resist. Both she and Edmund watched as Peter seem to think about it for a moment.
"One, two, three." Peter said smiling at Lucy who beamed and hurriedly looked around for a place to run to, Edmund look positively beastly.
"What!" He asked, Susan merely gave him a small smile before running off and looking for a place to hide as did everyone else, she had to find the best spot, she didn't want to be found before any of her younger siblings, especially Edmund who would never left her forget about it, that one day he beat her at hide and seek.
She ran down many flights of stairs and back up them again before she found a suitable hiding place, she smiled as she saw the trunk that laid underneath a window, she looked up the stairs to see if anyone was coming, they weren't. She hurriedly opened the top and tried to make herself as comfortable as possible 'I doubt Peter will look for me here!' she thought smiling in the darkness as she waited for Peter to count to one hundred.
A few seconds passed when she heard it, was it shouting, it sounded like Peter, Edmund and Lucy, she pushed the top off and got out of the trunk, stretching out her muscles that had already began to cramp. She searched for her three siblings and found Peter and Edmund staring at Lucy strangely 'maybe I have won, that was awfully quick!' she thought walking up to them, smiling.
"Does this mean I win?" She asked trying to make a joke, something she rarely did 'but of course no body laughs' she thought sadly.
"I don't think Lucy wants to play anymore." Peter said looking at Susan and sending a discreet look that only Susan knew, something had happened.
"But I've been gone for hours!" Lucy said, Susan stared at Lucy strangely 'hours? More like seconds Lucy, you really are becoming quite daft' Susan thought as Lucy saw that none of them believed her.
"I'll show you, come on!" She said taking Susan and Peter's hand and leading them towards a spare room, Susan exchanged glances with Peter who looked just baffled as she did, Edmund trotted slowly behind them. As soon as she walked into the spare room, she run up the wardrobe and swung it open.
"Now! Go in and see for yourselves!" She said as she flung open the door of the wardrobe, Susan sighed and walked with Peter and Edmund 'what on earth is Lucy talking about?' thought Susan.
She slowly stuck her head in but saw nothing, she smiled "why you goose!" as she pulled the old fur coats apart "It's just an ordinary wardrobe; Look! There's the back off it" She added.
Than everyone pulled the fur coats apart and they saw what Susan had seen, nothing but wood, nothing magical, just an everyday wardrobe that you placed your clothes in 'I wonder exactly what Lucy was talking about!'.
Peter knocked his knuckles on the back of the wardrobe to make sure that it was really and there was nothing there, "a jolly good hoax Lu," he said as he came out again and stared at Lucy who looked shocked.
"You really have taken us in, I must admit, we half believed you!" He said 'I did not believe her!' Susan thought trying hard to not say it out loud but instead stood with Peter. She, Edmund and Peter slowly went to walk out of the room but Lucy remained behind.
"But it wasn't a hoax at all" Lucy shouted, on the verge of tears "really and truly, it was all different a moment ago, honestly it was, I promise!" She shouted, Susan felt her frustration level rising rather highly, she turned back to Lucy as did her two brothers.
"That's enough Lucy!" She thought sternly 'she has taken this to far!'.
"Well that was nicely handled!" She snapped before storming out of the room, after Edmund who had was sitting sulkily on his bed, she walked in and stood at the end of the bed, not sure how to handle this, he glared up at Susan, she could see he had the picture of their father in his lap 'poor Edmund, he is just upset that father is gone!' Susan thought.
"Have you come to yell at me too?" Edmund snapped and Susan stared at him, taken aback for a moment before shaking her head 'of course I haven't, That's Peter job'.
"No of course not, I was just wondering, perhaps you may want to talk about it," she ventured and Edmund stared up at her "Peter didn't it mean honestly, he just doesn't really know how to handle this very well, he is trying to do what is best for the rest of us." She added and Edmund rolled his eyes.
"Why does everyone always take Peters side? Everyone think he is so magnificent, well he isn't'!" Edmund snapped and Susan immediately regretted her previous choice of words.
"I'm not taking anyone's side Ed, I'm just asking why must you always tease Lucy?" She asked and Edmund shrugged, not meeting her eyes 'Lucy has never been anything but kind to him' Susan thought when Edmund didn't speak.
"Everyone thinks she is so innocent, they always believe her and no body ever yells at her, I always get yelled at! Wether it's by you or Peter and even mother! It's not my fault!"
"Edmund you don't always get yelled at, only when the times comes for it and lately that seems to be a lot, maybe if you were more pleasant to everyone it might make everything better!" Susan suggested and Edmund glared up at her.
"Your doing it now, always telling me what to do! I can do what I want! Leave me alone!" Edmund snapped angrily at her, Susan sighed and shook her head sadly before walking out of the room, almost bumping into Peter.
"You should not go in there, he is being positively beastly!" Susan said and Peter nodded sadly and stared down at his feet.
"I have messed everything up, father wouldn't have!"
Susan placed a gentle hand on his arm and he looked up at her sadly and Susan smiled lightly "Peter your not father! You're the older brother, you don't always have to think 'what would father do' you should think 'what should I do'?" She said, trying to sound as wise and as grown up as she possibly could, Peter smiled thankfully at her.
Peter didn't say anything else to her, instead he walked off up the hallway, no doubt to go the library, she was tempted to follow him but instead walked into her room and saw Lucy laying on her bed, sniffling softly, turned away from the door 'poor Lucy, she was just trying to make the day more interesting for us and we scolded her' she thought as she sat on the other side of the bed and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Maybe you should have a small nap, or just rest here, you need it." Susan said softly, Lucy nodded her head but didn't look at her, Susan smiled and laid down next to her, as to let Lucy know that she wasn't alone and if she needed a cuddle, Susan was there.
'Maybe I'm not such a bad big sister after all!' she thought with a small smile.
Deep breath So what did you think? Did you like it? It is getting more interesting isn't it? I had a lot of fun writing this chapter for some reason.
As you can see I combined both the book and the movie and even mixed them both together at one point, I hoped you noticed I'm trying to stay as loyal as possible to both and trying to keep everyone as in character as much as I can, so yes, I hope you can see that.
Also once again thank-you to everyone for the lovely reviews I have been receiving and also just to the people who read the story, THANK-YOU hugs and kisses, amour Jesse!