I'm ba-ack!

Well, I was watching Doctor Who with my two brothers – I don't usually watch it – I watched the series with David Tennant and Rose, along with the ones where she came back and a few of this series, but since the Doctor supposedly dies, I figured I'd watch it – and I saw a trailer for Merlin, which I thought looked very interesting and wondered to myself 'why didn't I ever watch it before?' and now it is added to the list of TV programmes that I'm watching on the internet (the others being Criminal Minds and Numb3rs) but that's beside the point. The point is that, for some reason, when I saw Arthur and Merlin I immediately thought of Peter and Edmund, and so I was inspired to write more of this story.

I hope you can forgive me for taking so long to update this – I'm a bit swamped with work – it's a big jump from GCSE to AS, especially when you start voice training and have to learn Grade V Theory in order to be able to enter for Grade VI Piano!

Also, I've been wondering. You see, I have two alternate versions of this plot – one set during 'The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe' and the other during 'Prince Caspian' – and I quite like both for different reasons. What I wanted to ask was, should I post both of them at the same time? It's just that since they both are based around the same basic idea, so if I post one first and then the other, anyone who has read this story will know what's coming in the other. So what do you think? Please let me know in either a review or a PM.

On with the story!

Chapter 1
A Dance 'Round The Memory Tree

Lucy POV

I finally managed to persuade Peter into playing something fun for a change – hide and go seek! Unfortunately, not everyone was as excited about this as I was – namely Edmund, and his way of getting back at me for it; shoving me out of my hiding place and claiming it for his own. Oh well, I eventually found a better hiding place.

Who would've known the adventures that would befall the four of us as a result of my curiosity about something as insignificant as a wardrobe?

When I saw that wardrobe, I just couldn't resist. I had to open it and see what was inside and besides, it was the perfect hiding place. As I crept through it, pushing coats aside as I went – was this wardrobe really this big? – I got a really strange feeling, almost familiarity. I was so busy pondering this that I failed to notice that I was no longer pushing aside coats, but snow covered branches.

That was certainly unexpected.

It was stunning, absolutely beautiful! Every inch of the forest, that really shouldn't have been there at all, was covered in pearly white snow. Then I came across the most shocking thing about the wood. In the middle of it, was a lamppost. The kind that were seen on the streets back in London, not in forests inside a wardrobe. I started to examine it but was soon interrupted by the sound of hoof beats coming from nearby. They got louder and louder, soon they were right behind me. I pivoted to see a man with a red scarf, an umbrella, many packages in his arms – and…were they…goats legs? – before he screamed upon noticing me, shocking me enough to scream too, dropping his packages and hiding behind the nearest tree whilst I hid behind the lamppost. I peeked out from behind the lamppost to see him doing the same thing. Well, if he was afraid of me… I stepped out and approached his packages and started to pick them up. This got him approaching me again, uttering "Uh, those are…mine." He trailed off as I handed them to him.

"Pardon me, but, what are you?" There was something about him that felt so familiar, as if I knew him from somewhere but I knew I'd never met anyone like him back in London.

"Why, I'm a faun, of course." He answered, as if a faun was a common thing. Perhaps it is, wherever I am. "My name is Mr Tumnus."

I held out my hand. "I'm Lucy Pevensie." He stared at my hand for a moment before I realised, he doesn't know what to do with it! "You shake it."

"Why?" I was about to answer when I realised that I didn't know.

"I-I don't know…"He shook my hand anyway before regarding me carefully.

"And what are you, some kind of beardless dwarf?" Beardless dwarf!

"I'm not a dwarf, I'm a girl! And actually, I'm the tallest in my class!" I announced proudly. He stared for another moment before asking hesitantly.

"You – are you a Daughter of Eve?"

"Well…" Something about that phrase seemed familiar but I couldn't figure out why nor what it meant so he elaborated.

"That is to say – you are actually human?" I was taken aback by the question.

"Of course!" What else would I be? He seemed pretty shocked at that, are there no humans here? It seemed so, given his reaction to me. He invited me to his house for tea, and though I was a little worried that the others would be looking for me at the Professor's house, I didn't want to be rude, so I accepted.

I learnt a lot of things at Mr Tumnus' house. A lot of the things he told me about Narnia – as I learnt this land was called – and the strange phrases he used sounded very familiar. Almost as if they were from a distant memory or a dream.

He took out a strange flute-like instrument, asking if I would like to hear a Narnian lullaby. When he asked, a sort of flare of…recognition, I think, shot through me. As if I knew what was coming, though unconsciously. As he began to play, I felt sleepy, very sleepy, and my eyelids felt so heavy that I couldn't resist, even though I knew in the back of my mind that I should really be going back, before the others got too worried.

Mr Tumnus POV

As I was nearing the end of verse one of the lullaby, her head fell back and her teacup slipped from her fingers. The fire, which had been showing images of dancing fauns, suddenly sprung into the shape of the Great Lion, Aslan, and he roared so ferociously that I dropped the flute and all of the candles went out.

What I had been doing finally sunk in and my hands began to shake. Even through the horror and regret, a thought wound its way to the front of my mind. I hadn't expected her to fall asleep that fast. The lullaby was one used by nannies and mothers throughout Narnia, to get their young ones to sleep, but it usually took the whole thing, not just one verse. I had only ever known one who fell asleep so fast…

No…it couldn't be… My eyes widened in horror as I glanced from the grate where Aslan's head had appeared to the sleeping girl. It couldn't be her. Lucy. She had said her name was Lucy.

I sprung from the chair and towards the chest of drawers, pulling it back to reveal the safe where I kept everything from before this terrible winter. It was protected by magic – the Deep Magic that is, not the Witch's horrible brand – so that only friend could find it. I pulled out the small portrait and stared at it, glancing at the sleeping Lucy and felt tears spring to my eyes. "Oh, Aslan… What have I done? What am I doing?" I heard her begin to stir and quickly hid the portrait again, but remained huddled in the corner, where she found me moments later.

I told her. I told her what I had been doing, what I'd been about to do, and she forgave me. I couldn't hand her over to the Witch. Not now. I don't think I could've gone through with it anyway.

She gave me her handkerchief, saying that she thought I needed it more than she. She even went as far as to say that she hoped I wouldn't get in trouble on her account. I stared after her as she scurried away from the lamppost, towards Spare Oom and War Drobe, in complete disbelief of what I had been about to do. No child deserves that fate. Especially not our 'Little Lucy'.

Lucy POV

I got back only to find that no time had passed at all, Edmund was still in the hiding place he had stolen from me and Peter emerged, seemingly just finishing counting. It was very odd.

None of them believed me about the wardrobe and Narnia, and when we went to check the wardrobe, Narnia wasn't there – just a wooden back. I couldn't understand it and it hurt knowing my own siblings didn't believe me.

I went back that same night and visited Mr Tumnus again, and on the way back I found Edmund wandering around, looking rather dazed. I told him all about Mr Tumnus and the horrid White Witch who calls herself Queen of Narnia as we headed back to the wardrobe, and I rushed to tell Peter and Susan, sure that Edmund would back me up.

But he didn't. And somehow, that hurt even more than Peter and Susan's refusal to believe. I had always felt more connected to Edmund than Peter and Susan, and when we were alone, we got along just fine, better even. It always hurt when Edmund mocked me or pushed me away in front of Peter and Susan, but somehow it felt like he was betraying me somehow, by denying Narnia's existence.

You may or may not have noticed, but I intend to use a title or some lyrics from a song from one of the Narnia soundtracks (the ones from the more recent movies) or the album of songs inspired by 'The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe'. So on that note, does anyone know what the lyrics used for the title of this story is from?

Anyway, what do you think? Please leave a review on your way out!