A/N: Thank you to everyone who added my story to their Story Alert, or put me on their Favorite Stories, etc. It really means a lot to me. I don't own Chronicles of Narnia *le sigh*
Oh, I'm trying to come up with funny/witty titles for chapters. If you have-or haven't-noticed, I don't blame you for thinking I'm lame. Any suggestions would be rad..reviews would be too ;)
Reunion (Too Bad it's Not a Party)
Astrid woke up to the feeling of Edmund lightly shaking her shoulder and gently calling her name. "Wa's going on?" she mumbled sleepily. "We've stopped; we have to continue on foot from here." "Oh, ok then." But she made no move to get up. Edmund sighed as he slowly got up, laying her down in the boat. Soon Astrid jumped up with a cry of shock as the boat violently rocked to and fro, splashing water onto her. She hopped out of the boat, only to find her feet and the hem of her dress meet the riverbed. She glared and trudged onto the sand to see Edmund and Trumpkin laughing loudly.
"That isn't funny!"
"Oh I beg to differ." Edmund managed to gasp between laughs.
Astrid growled and turned away from them to ask Peter what they were going to do next. But when she turned, she saw Lucy walking towards a black bear. 'Something doesn't seem right about this." When she caught what Lucy was saying to the bear and saw the look it its eye, she knew they had to act fast. The others noticed and shouted at the youngest Pevensie to stay still. She did, but then the bear charged at her. Susan was trying to get a clear shot, but was taking too long. Lucy fell down; the bear was looming over her when a sharp twang sounded from behind Astrid. Trumpkin had shot his own arrow into the beast. Everyone ran to Lucy to see if she was alright. Peter held Lucy while she wondered aloud why the bear couldn't talk, why it attacked her. Trumpkin's gruff reply was, "You get treated like a dumb beast long enough, you start to act like one."
Once everyone was calm, they tried to figure out how to get to Aslan's How. "We'll just cross the River Rush, simple as that." Peter announced. Trumpkin disagreed, but Peter insisted they go his way. After walking through forests endlessly, Astrid began to think they were lost. 'Maybe I'll go on my own for a bit.' She called to Trumpkin, who was the nearest to her, and told him she'd be back.
"Where are you going?" he eyed her curiously.
"Just to look around, go ahead and find out where we'll end up." With that, Astrid dashed off into the trees. As she leaped onto a branch, she thought of something that made her stop. 'If the others ask, tell them.. I needed to sit down and I'll be catching up soon, not to worry.' She projected the thought to him, who just nodded in reply.
Once she was amongst the branches, Astrid thought about her dream. 'I was in my old body. I had my claws, sword, and powers. And I was undefeatable. I was in the Sengoku Jidai. ' Astrid was forced to stop as the next branch she landed on overlooked a deep gorge. She sat down and took in the sight of the plants and trees around her, a wave of melancholy and nostalgia hit her. 'I never realized how hard it would be without my sword and friends. I didn't think I would miss them so much.'
A warm breeze hit her, causing her hair to blow about. 'This hair is not mine. This body is not mine. How much longer until I can truly be myself? Until we get to wherever we're going? I need to know things will get better soon.' She leaned back against the trunk, closing her eyes as she felt the warm wind blow around her. After what seemed like a few minutes, Astrid opened her eyes to see that the Pevensies and Trumpkin were right below her. She quickly stood and jumped to a branch a few feet behind the group, careful not to tear her dress any more than she already had. Astrid didn't make a sound as she dropped down to the forest floor. She went up behind the others and tiredly said, "I thought I'd never catch up to you guys!" she saw the looks on their faces and whispered to Trumpkin, "What's wrong?"
"Peter's led us to a dead end. He says it used to be a river. Bah, my foot." He grumbled. Astrid peered over the edge. "Is there any way down?" "Not that we know of, no." Susan murmured. They were going to turn back and find another way when Lucy cried, "It's Aslan!" while looking across to the other side of the gorge. Astrid looked and her breath left her in a quiet sigh. Standing there in the sunlight was a magnificent, golden lion. It gave her a knowing look, its eyes full of wisdom and love.
'Are you..are you Aslan?' she slowly projected her thoughts to the beautiful lion.
'Yes, I am Aslan, the creator of Narnia.' He looked at Astrid, I know what you are, Dear Princess. I have felt your sorrow and longing for a familiar belonging from your own world. It is time you were reunited with Saiga.'
Astrid gasped in disbelief and wonder. 'I don't know what to say other than you, Great Aslan. Your gift of generosity will not be wasted.' She vowed in her thoughts.
His golden eyes held a smile. 'Do not think you have to make any vows or promises to me. Just use your gift to protect your beloved friends, and my Narnia.'
Astrid lightly bowed her head. 'I will do whatever I can to ensure my friends and the Narnians remain safe until this journey is over.'
Aslan beamed at her, and Astrid felt a warm feeling of love and hope fill her from head to toe.
'And do not worry, Dear Astrid, the time to reveal yourself will come soon enough. But when it does, do not let the reactions of those around you affect you. Be proud of who and what you are, Princess.' And with that, he vanished.
Astrid looked around and saw that the others had started to move away, all except Lucy. She stayed, staring at the spot Alsan had been standing until she turned around too and followed the others. Astrid was about to follow, when she saw a katana shining in the sunlight. Right where Aslan had been standing. Her heart swelled with love and excitement, and Astrid teleported to the other side. With a shaking hand, she picked up the sheathed weapon. Saiga pulsed in her hand, glad to be back where it belonged. She cradled the rusty sword to her chest, and then tied the belt it was attached to around her waist. 'Finally, we are together again.' She quickly released a flow of youkai through the hand that was touching Saiga, and saw as it surrounded the sword and her belt in a shimmering light blue before making both invisible.
She leaped across to the other side and joined everyone else again. Astrid was in a state of euphoria, often sighing in happiness, grinning like a fool whenever one of her friends caught her eye. It did not go unnoticed, as Edmund found it quite strange that Astrid was so intensely happy while everyone else was tired and distraught. "Why are you so happy when everyone else is miserable?" seemed like a bad way to put it, so Edmund opted for, "Someone's rather cheerful all of a sudden."
Astrid looked at him and said, "I just feel better than I have in ages." While sending him a lopsided grin.
He found it irresistible to not return her smile and asked, "Mind telling me why?"
She shook her head, "That, my dear friend is a secret." She winked, patted his shoulder, and walked on without looking at him again. Even though she had turned quickly, Astrid had not missed seeing Edmund's face turn red and his mouth open slightly when she winked. She could only hope he didn't see that her own blush spread across her face.
Astrid can teleport..did I forget to mention that..? Well, yeah. She can. Surprise! :D
If you found the Astrid-uses-her-youkai-to-conceal-Saiga confusing, I'll explain when she tells them what she really is, in due time.
So what do you guys think of it so far? Do you think there are any changes I should make; is there anything I could improve on? Any feedback would be fantastical.