A/N: I haven't written anything in a while. I went back to school a few weeks ago, and I was a bit preoccupied trying not to drown underneath all of my coursework, but I'm back now! Also, thank you Deany-Elle for the review! My first review ever :))
So, they've found Narnia, and now the story begins for real...
Maisie's mouth falls open. She reaches out and gently touches a snow-laden branch above her, and it is just as prickly and cold as it looks.
Is she hallucinating? Is she dreaming? Perhaps she ate something strange?
Peter and Susan fall down beside her and let out twin gasps. Susan turns to look at Maisie, a look of astonishment in her eyes. "Impossible..."
Michael stands behind Maisie, a slow smile spreading over his face.
All around them, there is a pine forest, every surface coated in snow. In the distance, Maisie can see two beautiful icy mountains, rising above the land. Through the trees, there is a gentle yellow glow that seems to invite her towards it. "Looks like the Professor was right." she whispers.
Peter turns to Lucy, smiling ruefully. "I suppose saying we're sorry doesn't really cover it, does it?"
Lucy looks to Philip. "No..." With unexpected speed, the small girl scoops up a handful of snow and flings it at her brother, who doesn't even have time to duck. "But that might!" She giggles.
Peter laughs, and retaliates. A rogue shot from Lucy hits Maisie, and she jumps into the fight, managing to stuff snow down the back of Michael's neck. He lets out a battle cry, and throws a handful into her stomach, but only a second later is hit in the face with a huge snowball. Maisie and Michael look up to see Susan, the culprit, giggling at them, and then it's all-out war.
"Hey!"
The laughter trails off. Maisie turns to stare at Edmund, who is brushing snow off of his jumper.
The grin fades from Peter's face. "You little liar!" He moves forward. "Apologise to Lucy."
Edmund says nothing. His eyes flicker around the circle and settle back on Peter, defiant.
"Say you're sorry-!" Peter suddenly yells. Maisie blinks at him, surprised by his sudden outburst.
"Alright!" Edmund looks alarmed. He turns to the little ones. "I'm sorry."
"Oh, that's all right, Ed." Lucy smiles sweetly. "Some little children just don't know when to stop pretending."
Philip sniggers.
"Oh, very funny. " Edmund mutters, flushing.
"Well..." Susan looks wonderingly at the trees again. "We should get back."
Maisie is about to protest, when Edmund hastily interrupts. "Shouldn't we at least take a look around?" He glances in the direction of the mountains.
"I think that..." Maisie says, looking at the youngest of the group. "Philip and Lucy should decide. What would you like to do?"
They glance at each other, delighted, and Philip bursts out, with Lucy nodding enthusiastically beside him: "We'd like you to meet Mr Tumnus!"
"Mr Tumnus it is then." Michael shoots Maisie a quick smile.
"But we can't go hiking in the snow, dressed like this!" Susan, the ever practical, says.
Peter steps back into the wardrobe and emerges with armfuls of fur coats. "No, but I'm sure the Professor wouldn't mind if we borrowed these. And if you think about it logically," He pauses in front of Susan, grinning and holding out a coat. "We're not even taking them out of the wardrobe."
Susan laughs and pulls on her coat. Maisie smiles her thanks at Peter as he hands her a coat, and turns to Philip, who is swamped by his.
"I'm really sorry I didn't believe you, Phil."
He smiles at her as she kneels down and rolls up his sleeves. "It's fine. We're all here now."
Lucy and Philip dart off ahead. Maisie and Michael fall into step beside Peter and Susan. Edmund lingers at the back, clutching his girl's coat around him. Annie glances hesitantly around the group, and eventually drops back to walk with Edmund. He looks at her sideways, but uncharacteristically doesn't say anything.
There's something up with Edmund. Why would he tell them that he hadn't been to Narnia? What was the point in lying? And, most confusingly, why did he want to come back? It didn't make sense.
After a minute or so of crunching through the snow in silence, Annie is dying to ask him these questions. So she breaks her silence, and asks: "Why did you lie?"
"Don't know." He kicks a bit of snow.
"Well, why were you so desperate to explore?" She persists.
He gives her a look, but answers. "Last time I was here, I... saw something. I'd just like to see it again, that's all."
"What did you see?"
"Nothing! Stop asking questions!" He snaps.
"If it's nothing, then why do you want to see it so badly?"
"I'm not going to tell you, all right?"
They glare at each other for a second, and then Annie looks away.
"Fine. I'll find out eventually."
"Good luck." Edmund says darkly.
"I will. You'll see."
She speeds up her pace and walks away.
Philip and Lucy run through the trees. They weave in and out, ducking snowy boughs and tree trunks. Lucy is slightly ahead and she is shouting about tea and cake and biscuits and panpipes and a warm, warm fire. Her coat flies out behind her. Philip is laughing, his breath coming out in smoke, and his heart full of gladness.
"Wait for us!" One of the others shouts, but the two of them pay no heed, swirling away.
Eventually, they exhaust themselves and wait for their siblings. The group shortly emerges from the trees, Edmund trailing sulkily behind on his own.
"You walk so slowly!" Lucy says. Philip looks at her and they both breathlessly laugh.
"No, you ran off." Susan smiles at them. "Which way to Mr Tumnus?"
"This way!" Philip and Lucy once more lead the group, this time going at a more sedate pace. They turn around and tell their family all about Mr Tumnus and his home.
"And there'll be lots and lots of lovely food..." Lucy is saying, turning her head backwards. "And there'll be lots and lots of-"
Philip stops in his tracks. The door to Mr Tumnus's house is smashed in, an ominous darkness showing behind it. Lucy has seen it too, for her voice trails off.
He starts running, ignoring the shouts of his family, and slips through the gap between the door and the frame. He stops and stares around at the devastated room he remembers as being so warm and friendly. Lucy's footsteps come in behind him, and she moves to his side.
"What happened?" She whispers, sounding close to tears. Philip just shakes his head.
The others come in, and Philip turns to face them. They look around at the smashed plates on the floor and the scratches and marks on the walls, their faces confused.
"This is Mr Tumnus's house?" Michael asks.
"It was." Philip replies.
There is a sound of tearing paper as Peter rips something off of the wall. He clears his throat and begins to read something out.
"The faun Tumnus has hereby been arrested on suspicion of high treason and... consorting with humans..."
Philip turns around and sees Peter exchange an unreadable look with Susan.
"Signed, Maugrim... Chief of Secret Police." Peter drops the paper to the floor. "Long live the Queen."
"What does that mean?" Maisie picks up the paper and turns it over, examining it.
"It doesn't exactly sound good..." Michael says.
"No, I don't like it. Let's go back." Susan glances nervously into the dark corners of the room.
"Don't you get it?" Lucy says, her eyes really filling with tears now. "We're the humans. Philip and me. It's our fault."
"We have to help him." Philip adds.
There is a rustling from outside. Maisie goes to the door and then turns back to face them. "Did you hear that?"
Philip hears a sudden trill of birdsong and then, sharply and distinctively - psst. Something is trying to communicate with them.
They walk out onto the snow, Peter going first. Philip's heart is suddenly beating very fast, and he realises that he's actually scared. The trees continue to rustle, and the bushes to move. The group instinctively move together, and he can feel Annie's fingers closing around his wrist.
"Hello?" Lucy calls, her voice quavering.
Then - and Philip jumps in fright, then laughs at himself - a beaver jumps out of the bushes and looks beadily at them.
"It's a beaver!" Maisie says, sounding more surprised than relieved.
"We can see that." Michael says quietly. Maisie glares at him, and he grins back.
Looking very unsure of what he's doing, Peter bends down and holds one hand out to the beaver. "Here boy..." He makes a clicking noise with his tongue.
The beaver shuffles forward, looking from Peter's hand to his face and back again. It rears up onto its hind legs, and opens its mouth. For one wild second, Philip is sure that it is going to bite Peter, but what happens next is even more sensational.
"Well, I ain't gonna smell it, if that's what you want!"
Maisie squeaks in shock. Philip bursts out into disbelieving laughter.
Peter stares at the beaver, dumbfounded, before straightening up, muttering an embarrassed, "Sorry."
The beaver smiles around the group, and then focuses on one of them. "Lucy Pevensie?"
The girl stops laughing, and gazes at the piece of white fabric, clutched in the beaver's paw. "That's my handkerchief..."
The beaver nods solemnly. "Mr Tumnus got it to me just before they took him."
"Why..." Susan begins, but trails off when the Beaver shakes his head.
"Not here." He glances around. "Too many listeners. Further in." He beckons the children to follow him, and takes off through the trees.
Maisie looks about her. "What does he mean, listeners? There's no-one here but us."
Philip looks at Lucy. "Mr Tumnus said that some of the trees were on her side."
Lucy nods, worriedly.
"What are you talking about?" Michael asks. "The trees? On who's side?"
"We should go home." Peter says.
"But the beaver said-" Lucy begins.
"He's a beaver!" Susan says. "He shouldn't be saying anything!"
"Are you coming or not?" The Beaver has come back, and is staring at them.
Lucy shoots her older siblings a defiant look, and follows the beaver. Philip glances to Maisie and Michael.
"Don't you dare, Phil." Maisie automatically says.
Philip hesitates.
Annie surprises them by stepping through the group, tugging her coat around her, and walking away into the woods, without even glancing back.
Michael huffs, and goes after her. A few steps forward, he turns and says, "We may as well just go. This beaver seems nice."
"He seems very suspicious!" Susan hisses. "Who knows what could happen?"
Michael shrugs, and disappears into the trees.
Philip is left with Maisie and the three Pevensies, all staring at the departing footprints. The former gives a sigh and looks at her brother.
"Let's get this over with then..."
By the time that they make it to the Beaver's home, the sun is setting, making the beautiful landscape somewhat frightening. Worst of all, Annie is freezing. Her fingers and toes are completely numb. Her dainty boots, which had seemed so lovely and elegant in London, have turned out to be completely unsuitable for snow.
They walk through forest for what seems like hours, every now and then emerging into rocky clearings. Annie's eyes are constantly drawn to two mountains, which they are getting closer to by the minute. She doesn't like them. The snow on their caps makes them look so dark and tall and forbidding that every time she looks to them, she feels a shiver on her neck.
But when they reach the top of a deep valley and see the glowing windows of the Beaver's dam, Annie feels all the cold roll away. It looks inviting, cosy, and - most importantly - warm.
The door opens, sending an oblong of golden light onto the snow. "Beaver? Is that you?" A distinctly female voice calls. A shadow appears in the light and another beaver steps out onto the snow, this one wearing an apron. "If you've been out with Badger again, I'll-"
At that moment, Philip slips and slides down the rest of the path, coming to a halt at the other beaver's feet. She stops mid-sentence and stares down at the boy on the ground. He smiles sheepishly.
"My wife." Beaver explains, grinning, before bounding down the rest of the path.
"Who's this?" The beaver's wife asks, still staring at Philip.
"I met some children in the woods." Beaver kisses his wife on the cheek. "You'll find out in a moment."
Mrs Beaver looks up and sees the other seven children. For a second, her mouth drops open, but she quickly composes herself, reaching down and helping Philip up. "Well, I'll get the kettle on, shall I?" She smiles at them all. "Come in!"
She bustles back into the house, and Annie is glad to follow her.
Once the door is shut, Beaver seats all of the children around the room. Most of them are around the table, but due to a lack of chairs, Annie and Edmund sit on the stairs to the door. Cups of tea are issued, and they all settle down.
Mr Beaver sits down and looks around at them. "You've gotta know why you're here." When no-one answers, he gapes. "Come on, you must know. The prophecy?"
They exchange blank looks.
The beaver turns to his wife. "They don't know the prophecy!"
She hushes him, and turns to the children. "There's a Narnian prophecy that goes, when Adam's flesh and Adam's bone sit at Cair Paravel in throne, the evil time will be over and done." She points to them. "You are sons of Adam and daughters of Eve, aren't you?"
"Apparently." Michael replies, wearing a bewildered expression.
"Well," Mrs Beaver presses on. "If you didn't understand, the prophecy means that when humans come to rule Narnia, the White Witch's reign will be over."
"Who's the White Witch?" Peter asks.
"The High Queen. Jadis." Mr Beaver interjects. "She's the one who took over Narnia and created the eternal winter. When she dies, it'll be summer again. See?"
Mrs Beaver hushes her husband. "I'd better start from the beginning, hadn't I?"
They nod.
"Well, as Beaver said, Jadis took control of Narnia a century ago. She's..." Mrs Beaver shudders. "She's evil. Most of the citizens of Narnia want rid of her more than anything. But when she came to power, two prophecies were made. The first, you've heard. The four thrones at Cair Paravel will be taken by humans. The second says that there will be four more humans, a perfect balance to the others. It will be their strength and values that make it possible for the war against the White Witch to be won." Mrs Beaver points to the children. "And here you are."
"There must have been some mistake..." Michael begins.
"There's something else." Beaver leans across the table, and whispers. "There are rumours that Aslan is on the move."
Annie sits up very straight. She feels suddenly both very warm and cold, all at once. It's a strange, indescribable feeling, and it stirs her bones. She feels a quiver of excitement in her fingertips, without knowing why.
"Who is Aslan?" Maisie whispers. Her eyes are wide.
"He's the true king of Narnia." The Beaver's eyes sparkle. "He's a great lion, with a flowing mane. His roar is so loud that it can be heard for miles around."
In the silence that follows, Annie sees movement from the corner of her eye. She turns her head, and sees Edmund gently opening the door and slipping outside. She looks to the others, who are oblivious. Edmund must have been very quiet indeed.
Making a sudden decision that she is sure that she will soon regret, Annie stands up and walks carefully up the stairs. She freezes when one creaks, but still manages to escape unnoticed into the snow.
The door shuts behind her, her coat lying forgotten on the floor.