Chapter 10 – Little Again

Disclaimer: C.S. rocks Narnia. I don't. End of story.

Author's Note: I know that this chapter is several centuries late. I'm really sorry, I really am. Also, just a note: I know that Peter didn't carry out the raid on the Northern Giants until 1014. But no one ever said that they hadn't had problems with them before then!

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Narnia – November, Year 1010

-During the time in which Peter was 23, Susan was 22, Edmund was 20, and Lucy was 18.

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Fall was at its peak in Narnia. Red, orange, and yellow leaves fell from the trees, twirling in the wind in great circles before landing on the ground, which was strewn with brown pine needles. The leaves swirled across the ground in a flash of color, until a small foot came crashing down upon them.

"We need a big pile, Peter! Look at all these leaves. We could make a mountain of leaves, and then all jump in it! Wouldn't that be such fun?" Lucy asked her elder brother hopefully.

"Now Lu, don't you think you're getting a bit old for—"

"Yes, let's!" Edmund cut off Susan, immediately dropping to his knees to begin pushing the fallen leaves into a mound.

Peter smiled. "Come on, Su. Everyone should get to act little again every now and then," he whispered to his sister.

"Oh, all right. I suppose it can't hurt..." Susan finally agreed, and with a slight smile, joined her siblings in the construction of the giant leave pile.

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Walking back to Cair, cheeks pink from the cold and very windblown, Lucy smiled and look at Susan to say, "Thanks, Su. That was the most fun we've had in a long time."

Smiling in return, the older girl replied, "Well, everyone should get to act little again every now and then, right?" She threw her arm over Lucy's shoulder, and laughing, they walked back to Cair Paravel.

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"King Peter! King Edmund!" as the four siblings walked through the huge, grand double doors of the castle, a little faun called Erund called the Kings.

"Yes, Erund? Is there a problem?" Peter asked the faun kindly.

"Oreius and Irruk need to see the both of you in the main meeting room at once! They say it's an emergency!" and at this, the two Kings exchanged a glance and headed down towards the meeting hall, which was a floor up.

"Wait! Peter!" Susan called.

"We'll meet you girls in your room soon!" was all Peter had time to call before the boys had turned the corner in the hall and were gone.

Knowing that something rather important must have happened, Susan let the situation go. She took Lucy by the shoulders and led her up the stairs to Susan's room, where they waited for their brothers and whatever news they would bring.

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Dear Susan and Lucy,

The North is certainly cold. I know that that should be obvious, but Edmund and I certainly hadn't expected it to be as cold as it is.

Don't worry, Su, we've got plenty of warm clothing. And I doubt that there is any way to get a care package way out here anyway, so don't even try.

We really are fine. Please don't worry yourselves too much.

Oreius said that within the next couple days, we should be upon the Northern Giants. And this High King will personally make sure that they make no more trouble for the Narnians.

We hope that the two of you are doing well, as I'm sure that you are. Keep each other safe and happy for me, alright?

There's several inches of snow on the ground up here already. Luckily, we just missed last week's blizzard, but as far as I can tell, the storm is moving towards Narnia, so bundle up for me and drink some cocoa. It's a little early for snow, don't you think? I figured we had at least a half month left. But you never really do know with Narnia, do you? That's what I love about it. So predictable at times, and unpredictable at others.

Well, I suppose I'll stop babbling. But if the first snow of the year does come while we're gone, enjoy it for us, okay?

Edmund sends his love, but says he wouldn't have much to say in a letter anyway. Rather typical of him, don't you agree?

Love,

Peter

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"Su, Peter said a care package wouldn't make it up there."

"Lucy, at the age that you are, I am surprised that you have not realized some of these things about our elder brother. You see, a great deal of the time, he really has no idea what he is talking about."

"Susan..." Lucy said, exasperated.

"Utter nonsense. Of course a care package will make it…" Susan muttered under her breath, while pulling every article of clothing out of Edmund's dresser and into a large box on his bed. She had already sent a badger to the kitchen to wrap up some sweets for the boys, and she had a fox in the library picking out books that the boys would enjoy.

"Susan, I know you're just doing this because you're worried."

"Lu, I'm not worried, Peter said there was no reason to be worried—"

"I thought Peter had no idea of what he was talking about? Because he also said that a care package wouldn't make it up there, but here you are—"

"Lu, please, I need my concentration…"

"To decide whether Edmund would prefer the brown or black pair of summer sandals? Su, really. Why don't we just go?"

"Go where? Where is there to go, Lucy?"

"I don't know; anywhere. We could go to the library and find you a good novel, one with lots of romantic lines and descriptions of pretty scenery. Or we could go to the kitchen and get cocoa, like Peter said. Or we could bundle up and go for a ride. The snow is so pretty…"

"It's too cold, Lu; I won't go out there," Su said softly, glancing at the window, where snowflakes could still be seen falling, although not as heavily as the day before. The first snow that Peter had mentioned had arrived only several hours after his letter.

"Alright, but then how about—"

"But I will agree to the cocoa," Susan said with a smile.

Hand in hand, Lucy and Susan descended the stairs to the kitchen.

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"Alright, Lu, about time for bed, don't you think?" Susan said as both girls finished their second cups of cocoa.

Lucy nodded, and as they walked upstairs together, she said, "Su, do you think that maybe, for tonight, we could be 'little enough again' that we could have a slumber party?"

"I'll race you to my room," Susan said with a mischievous smile that was quite unlike her, and took off, Lucy in close pursuit.

Susan, with the head start, got to her bedroom first, and when Lucy came racing through the door, was bombarded with a pillow.

"Pillow fight!" Lucy giggled, and reached for the nearest pillow.

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For the first time in a long time, Susan and Lucy forgot about being adults, forgot about their responsibilities, forgot about being royal all together.

Lucy let Susan do her makeup and hair, and Susan let Lucy retell childish fairytales from when they were younger. They talked about suitors for awhile, until the topic led to a pursuer of Peter… and then the topic of their brothers came up.

It wasn't long before Susan had poured everything out to her younger sister.

"…I worry about them so much, Lucy. They've been gone nearing on three weeks now. I'm not used to the castle without them," she said softly.

"Oh, Su, me too, me too…" Lucy embraced her older sister, and for the first time in a long time, Susan began to cry.

"Lu, I'm sorry! I shouldn't… Rather childish of me…" she said immediately, trying to wipe her tears.

"Susan…" Lucy comforted her sister. "Really, now. Cry as much as you want. Everyone needs to every now and then. It's like you said, everyone should get to be little again once and awhile, and tonight is your night. Tonight, I'm going to be your big sister."

"Alright," Susan whispered, and allowed her sister to hug her and stroke her hair. And, for once, Susan allowed herself to be little again.

And for the rest of the night, and the next few days as well, Lucy took over the part of big sister and Susan allowed it.

Susan gave in to her sister's valiant attempts to cheer her up, and for once, let her younger sister act like the older one.

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Over the next week, watching her sister's little smiles and the little things she said to make Susan feel better, Susan realized something.

There was more than one reason that the Narnians called Lucy 'the Valiant.' It wasn't only because of her record in battle.

It would take a valiant person to do anything that Lucy did. Not many girls that were the youngest of four would decide to take upon themselves solely what Lucy had.

Susan admitted, it couldn't be an easy task to make an older sibling feel better and more confident when her two brothers were far away, defending their country, and they hadn't written in over two weeks now, and there was no news of how they were. Yet Lucy had done it. She had made Susan believe that eventually, everything really would be okay.

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Author's Note: No, I'm not just going to totally leave it like this and start the next chapter on a different idea. Chapter 11 is actually going to be like Part II of this… You'll see. ;)

I feel like this chapter was kind of weak, and like it had a weak ending… Let me know. If so, I'm really hoping that 11 will complete it more.

This is to be dedicated to yoo-hoo luver.wlegs because without her very kind, polite "please get your rear-end in gear" (no, she didn't really say that!) I would probably have put this chapter off until the next millennium. ;) Thanks!