Author's Note: Thank you all for the reviews:D I'm glad you're all liking it:D If you're not at all bothered about the religious or non-ship romantic sides of things, then please, skip the over-long authors note (I'm paranoid about offending people and getting snippy reviews).
In response to jmcqk6's question (because it's relevant to more people that just him/her)… Huh? There's Christian Imagery? To clarify: I personally do not follow a religion of any kind but, (thanks in large part to my superb beta Binksbabe) the deeper Christian connotations were pointed out to me and, while I knew the obvious Adam and Eve images, it never occurred to me that there was anything deeper. I'd known that CS Lewis was in some way religious but not to the depth of it all. My lack of religion does not, however, change the fact that it is a key part of the Chronicles themselves and to fail to include them would simply be wrong, and insulting to Lewis himself (as an author). So – with the help of Binksbabe – I will do my best to remain true to it so please; if you spot any glaring errors let me know. At the same time please understand that because I'm not religious, let alone Christian, I won't be making any kind of religious statement, or taking it further than it goes in the books. I am not religious, but I respect that others are; y'all can interpret it in any way you like, though I'd rather you didn't interpret be insulting :D. Sorry to go on, but in my experience religion can be a touchy subject and I don't want to offend anyone.
On a lighter note… there will be some minor romance but it will NOT be ship. I'm clarifying this now because I've had people asking why I wanted to ruin things with romance or ship and it gets right up my nose, because there are notes that say that there will be romance/ship so there's no need to tell me that you don't like it because of that; I'm not asking you to read it if you don't want to. Also, there's nothing worse that wasting your time reading something only to realise that you could have been reading something you'd much prefer. :D
Anywho…a million and one thanks to Binksbabe for her help in all area's and I hope you all like the rest of it!
Congratulations to those of you who managed to get all the way through the authors note… :D
Their arrival back at the 'castle', Cair Paravel, was without pomp or crowds of concerned faces. It was witnessed by only four sets of eyes, all others closed blissfully unaware in the safety of sleep.
Rolling off of his horse in the ungainly, stiff-legged way of one who is long out of practise and yet hasn't had the time to re-acquaint his muscles, Jack handed his reins over to the young stable-boy, the gnarled old stable master taking the reins of the other two horses.
"My lord, there is food, and drink if you wish."
Jack looked up and squinted in the half-light of the pre-dawn confirming that it was Karrena's voice that he had recognised.
Corrin gave her a tired, grim smile. "You read my mind, Karrena."
Karrena gave him a flicker of a smile before boldly asking, "What news is there of the village?"
Corrin sighed and began a brief explanation before striding off towards the buildings, the faithful Captain Hirdan striding after him, leaving a grumbling Jack to follow in a stiff-legged John Wayne-style walk.
Limping into the kitchens shortly after the others, his mouth watered at the smell of a simple meat stew and fresh bread baking. Ushered to a bench at a large, rough table, he found a large bowl of the stew plonked down in front of him along with a hunk of bread and a glass of pure, clean water.
"Thanks," he said, diving straight in and missing the slightly puzzled looks that the word received from the kitchen maid who was assisting Karrena. Clearing the bowl with gusto, he had barely contemplated requesting more when his bowl was re-filled wordlessly by Karrena.
Slowing down slightly for this round, Jack finally noticed the speculative looks that he was earning from the King and his Captain. "What?" he demanded irritably around a mouthful of bread.
"How is it that someone so young carries the weight of one countless years his elder?" Corrin's voice held a far-away quality, as if he were speaking aloud rather than asking a serious question.
Jack looked down uncomfortably. "Just lucky, I guess."
Corrin raised an eyebrow. "I would hardly have thought it lucky to bear such a weight."
Jack shrugged and remained stoically intent on his food.
"You know of things far beyond your years; you know a battlefield better than many men in my army and your eyes tell a tale of suffering and yet, here you are, behaving like a boy just returned from a day of adventures with young wood-nymphs."
"Wood-nymphs!
Hirdan snorted. "You fool no-one with your poor attempts at changing the subject, boy."
Jack glared at the addition of 'boy' but bit back on his anger before replying. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
"You may find yourself surprised, Jack; many strange things have come from the mouths of those who serve Aslan and yet have we believed them."
Jack stood up angrily. "Look, I didn't ask to be here; I don't have to listen to all this pretentious, condescending holier-than-thou crap and there is no way in Hell that I serve your hokey Goa'uld 'god'." Tipping the bench over with his sudden movement, Jack stormed out of the room angrily, know that he'd been way out of line and was over-reacting but nonetheless unable to calm himself, or bring himself to go back and apologise.
It was a good few minutes of fast, angry striding before he gave in to the fact that he didn't have a clue where he was, or which corridor would lead him back to ask for directions. Not that he would have, mind you…
Letting out a frustrated sigh, he turned and punched the wall, realising just how foolish it was halfway through the action and managing to pull the punch enough that he gained only bruised and tendered knuckles instead of broken ones.
"That was not the most intelligent action."
Jack turned and glared at Karrena as she stepped out of the gloom. "How long have you been there?" he demanded angrily.
"I followed you from the kitchens."
As annoyed as he was, Jack couldn't help but to raise an eyebrow, impressed that she could manage to follow him for so long without him noticing. "Wow. Any particular reason why?"
"Because Corrin will worry otherwise and because I knew you would never find the way back to your rooms alone.
"Come; it's been a long night."
Shaking his head and following silently, he repressed a frustrated growl as he found himself entranced by the pendulous way that Karrena's hips swung from side to side, making the long skirt of her dress swish pleasantly. Damned hormones!
Corrin sighed and for a moment he looked like a man twice his age, but in a flash the expression was gone and he rose to his feet, letting out an almighty yawn before patting Hirdan's arm. "Get some rest, captain; I'll send for you when your expertise is needed."
"Yes, my Lord," was the captain's only reply, though his frown made it clear that he was not happy about it. "I trust that you will rest, my lord?" His expression made it clear that he didn't for a second think that Corrin would, but he was duty-bound as both friend and servant to at least try to persuade him.
"I will rest only when I am certain that there is nothing more I can do for Narnia," Corrin replied, finishing with a small half-smile. "You already know that."
Hirdan sighed. "Only too well, sire."
There may not have been any great wars, or conflict since the last time a Son of Adam, or Daughter of Eve had visited Narnia, and Corrin had reigned for only a few short years, but he'd always been alert, and ready for action beside his father at the slightest hint of a threat, whether it be from the Seven Isles or the slow-witted but deathly violent Giants that occupied the land just past their borders.
Jack's arrival, and in fact his very presence boded ill for Narnia; Aslan sent Sons and Daughters of Adam and Eve only when Narnia faced its greatest threats.
Jack was awoken from his troubled slumber by a quiet knocking on his door. Shaking the faint dream images of a huge, golden lion from his head, he barked out a harsh, 'Come in.' Swivelling to drop his legs off of the edge of the bed, he grimaced and clenched his teeth against the pain; he'd suffered it many times and yet he'd never quite understood how something as simple as over-worked muscles could hurt so much.
The door swing open and, expecting to greet Karrena, he was surprised instead to see a young Faun who looked a lot like Lord Farringborne but on a two-thirds scale and minus the beard and grey hair. "Uh…hi?"
"Greetings. My Lord Corrin asked that I wake you; he wishes for you to come and attend a dinner with him, and visiting dignitaries."
Jack groaned. "Why does he need me for this?"
"Sir…? You are a Son of Adam…" The young faun spoke the comment as if it were an explanation in itself.
"So?"
"You were sent by Aslan himself!"
"Oh for cryin' out loud! I was sent by nobody! Hell, I don't even know how I got here."
The young faun looked so forlorn and chastised that Jack took pity on him. "Look, never mind, okay. I'll come with you." He glanced at the huge wardrobe, "So, you gonna help me figure out which frill goes where? The clothes…" he added at the faun's bewildered expression.
"Certainly; The King specified that I ensure you were properly attired this time. It would not do for a Son of Adam to appear half-dressed to the people of Narnia."
"Jack."
"Pardon?"
"My name is Jack; just stop all of this 'Son of Adam' stuff and call me Jack. My dad's name was Geoff, anyway… You got a name or shall I just call you 'curly'?" Jack asked, eyeing his tightly curled brown hair.
"My name is Tarron Farringborne," he replied, deciding rather wisely to ignore the peculiar 'curly' comment.
"Not by any chance Lord Farringborne's son, are you?"
Tarron's chest swelled with pride. "I am his youngest son."
Jack nodded and pushed himself to his feet, forcing himself to walk normally, if slightly slower than he would normally have. He knew that if he gave in to the urge to limp then his muscles would simply take longer to recover.
Half an hour, and much faffing later, Jack was finally dressed in the latest Narnian fashion and feeling, to put it bluntly, like a complete ponce.
Grumbling to himself, he followed the delightedly proud young Tarron down and into the Great Hall. Resisting the urge to glare at the announcer who introduced him as 'Jack O'Neill, Son of Adam,' he plastered a false smile on his face and allowed himself to be led to Corrin.
Executing a perfect, if stiff bow, he kept his face carefully schooled into a neutral smile. His earlier anger at Corrin had faded along with the fatigue-induced hormones that had escalated it. There was still a faint worry about Goa'ulds, and how and why he'd ended up here. Overlaying that was the now innate anger that he always felt at the knowledge of the slaughter of innocent people. It never occurred to him that he was over-reacting, or that his anger was misplaced.
"Jack O'Neill, you know Lord Farrinborne already; this is Lord Kinroth, and this is the exquisite Lady Sinere." Corrin indicated first a large, bespectacled owl and then a tall, slender young woman with long silver-blonde hair and an ethereal quality. There was no denying the fact that she was the most beautiful woman in the room and Jack just managed to stop himself from rolling his eyes at the obvious, and over the top flattery. Someone's got a crush! He sing-songed inside the privacy of his own head.
Every single occupant of the room was dressed in fine clothes, though he doubted, given the time they'd had to get there that they were their finest; it was an emergency meeting after all. Corrin had sent for them in the middle of the night, asking that they make all haste to arrive to discuss the organisation of areas to defend themselves. All of them were people that were well known and respected by the inhabitants of Narnia.
"It's a pleasure to meet you all," he ground out, silently wishing he could go back to his bed. He didn't miss the lines of fatigue in Corrin's face either, confirming that the young King had taken everything onto himself and not allowed himself to rest.
Despite the gratingly formal and over-polite atmosphere that grated on his nerves, Jack managed to keep the false smile in place throughout the mingling, and the long, many-coursed meal, and he finally allowed it to slip, adopting a sober expression as Corrin stood to speak.
"I'm sure all of you are aware of the reason for this impromptu gathering, and I hope that you all agree that we need to come to a decision on a strategy that will protect all of the people of Narnia against a repeated attack."
"My Lord, is it not possible that this was simply a one-off attack?"
Corrin grimaced at the question of a small, red-haired, chain-mailed dwarf. "It is possible, Lord Nickeldown, but I'm sure that none of us wishes to be caught unawares, and there is no doubt that there are other…omens…" The people at the table all looked unabashedly at Jack, making him bristle. "In addition to this, the Centaurs have been reading the skies and believe that there the future ahead is very uncertain."
A brief muttering went up at this and Jack gathered that it was unusual that the centaurs did not have some idea of what would happen.
Corrin waited for the muttering to die down before continuing. "I propose that we organise the inhabitants of each settlement into setting up a watch every night to warn people at the first sign of-"
"It won't work," Jack interrupted, frowning.
"And what would a mere chick like you know of these things?" grumbled Lord Kinroth, his feathers ruffled.
"A lot more than some old owl who's never seen a battle in his life," Jack bit back angrily.
Kinroth's feathers fluffed even more as he stretched himself to full height from the chair and glared across the table at Jack. "And I suppose that a mere sapling of a human like yourself has seen battle?"
Jack's face was a completely blank mask now, his lips a thin line of distaste. "More than you can imagine! Don't let this body fool you; I've been fighting battles for thirty years, not that that makes a difference to a single damn person!" By the end of the exclamation, Jack was nearly shouting, a sudden anger flaring up within him. "Excuse me." He bit out a final two words before turning and storming out, unable to stand the dozen or so sets of eyes staring at him.
Storming through the servants' door, he nearly knocked Karrena flying but managed to grab her arm to steady her, muttering an apology before stalking off again.
A few seconds later, Jack stopped and turned on his heel, glaring at a shadow. "Will you stop that!"
Karrena stepped forwards. "I am sorry. I just thought that you might like to talk to someone."
"I don't want to talk to anyone!" he snapped before spinning and waltzing off again.
Karrena's almost silent footsteps sounded behind him, and he was about to turn and chew her out for following him when he'd just told her he didn't want her there, when he found his arm being grasped.
"Come," was all Karrena said as she led him away, down dark, silent corridors.
After a few minutes of rapid walking, they emerged into the walled gardens and strode swiftly past the fountain of the wood-nymph spirit of a willow tree that Jack had first appeared by.
Leading him around a corner and past a large bush, they came to a much smaller fountain, mounted against the wall and enclosed by shrubbery. Although the actual fountain itself was a simply decorated pipe, and the whole feature was fairly small, it was mounted with the figure of a magnificent winged horse rearing into the air as if to take off.
"The horse is Fledge. The ancient legends say that he bore the children Digory and Polly to retrieve the magical fruit. The tree planted from the fruit kept the white witch at bay for centuries, but the magic eventually failed and that was when High King Peter, King Edmund, Queen Susan, and Queen Lucy were first called to Narnia. Since then, they have been called several times, though those four can no longer return. Eustace and Jill were the last to visit, in the time of my Great Great Grandmother, to rescue Prince Rillian from the Queen of the Underland."
Jack gave her a slight half-smile. "Bit of a history buff, are you?"
"History buff?"
"Uh…I mean, you like history, know a lot about it."
She smiled; a small quirking of her lips that was only just there. "I like to read, and I especially like to read the old legends and stories of the Sons of Adam and Daughters of Eve."
Before he could stop it, Jack's face flickered briefly into a pained, wistful expression but, ever perceptive, Karrena caught him out.
"What is it?"
"You just kind of reminded me of someone I used to know for a second there."
"Another…'history buff'?"
As she intended, her use of the slang term elicited another smile, albeit a small one. "Yeah. Why did you bring me here?" He asked the question suddenly, as if it had only just occurred to him.
Karrena shrugged and tucked a lock of dark brown hair behind her ear. "It's quite, calm, serene…completely the opposite to you."
"Hey!"
Dark eyes twinkled in amusement. "You are saying that you are not easily angered, irritable, rash, impulsive-"
"Well…I am in a teenaged body," he finally spluttered, regretting it the moment Karrena's expression sobered.
"With over thirty years' experience in battles?"
Diverting his gaze to the rippling water in the fountain's basin, he struggled with how he'd explain that. "So you heard that, huh?" The comment he finally settled on was lame, but he knew distraction was his best bet.
"Yes."
"I didn't think I was talking that loud!"
"Half of Cair Paravel must have heard you."
"…So I'm a little gobby…"
"Gobby?"
He was starting to find that half-amused, half puzzled look that his expressions elicited faintly endearing. "Loud, mouthy…don't know when to stop talking," he explained, slightly at a loss. It was one of those mysteries of life; it didn't matter whether or not you knew the precise meaning of a word, it was still really hard to put it into words and explain it to someone else.
"Ah, well then yes, you are more than a little 'gobby'."
"Gee, thanks."
"You are most welcome."
"I was being…Oh, never mind."
"Why would I mind it?"
"Gah! Now you're doing it deliberately!"
Her only reply was another vague smile before she smoothly rose to her feet . "Feel free to stay here as long as you like, and to return here whenever you need to calm down. When you wish to return to your rooms, just go through that door there, follow the corridor down, and you should recognise where you are. If not, then ask someone." She began to walk away but then paused and turned back. "And do not think that I did not notice you changing the subject either, Jack O'Neill."
Jack gave her an innocent, 'who, me?' expression before watching her until she was out of sight. Leaning back to lie on the floor and look up at the stars, he banished all thoughts from his mind and simply enjoyed the sight of strange new stars that shone so brightly, because on this world there was no real pollution to obscure the view, or dim the stars. It also confirmed that there was no way he was on earth; he'd studied enough different views of the stars on earth to know that none of these were the same.
Like, hate, really aren't bothered! Let me know please:D