A/N: Helloo there! I'm back! XD Hope you all had fun waiting; And thank you all soooo much for reviewing!
Replies to My Reviewers
Queen Su: It's good to hear that you liked the chapter! I hope this one is even better than the last. :D
PippinBaggins: Yeah, chickens are great, aren't they? Unfortunately, the ones I have in this story are... ghosts! Well, kinda. It's just that, in real life, they all got eaten up by wild animals, and I don't have any more left. :( I'm really glad you are enjoying the story though! Say hello to Lloyd for me! ;)
King of Kings Daughter: Don't worry, I have no intentions of turning 'Eden' into a Marysue! ;)
justplaincrazy8: Lote! Cool word combination. :D And nope, she didn't hold onto a penguin, just a... Wait! I can't tell you, that'll spoil the story. XD
Queen Lani Kaulitz the Hyper: Hehe, I hope I posted soon enough; you aren't gonna hurt me now, are ya? ;) And, no, I didn't get the necklace idea from 'Harry Potter'. I have never actually read any of the books or watched the movies. So I literally couldn't have stolen the idea. :P
As if in slow motion, I felt the ice block we were on jerk forward and what seemed like a giant hand pushing me under the water. The ice cold river enveloped us, and I tried hard to hold onto the object that was anchoring me to the ice. This is the coldest water I've been in since Uncle Steve dared me to jump in the pool last December!
Suddenly, I was floating freely and I squinted through the water to see that I was no longer on the ice block with the others. I swam as fast as I could to the surface, fighting the strong current that was dragging me downstream.
Finally, I broke through the surface and gasped for air like a fish without gills. I pushed myself through the water, trying to get to land.
After a few minutes of unsuccessful attempts, I passed by a nice long tree branch that was conveniently leaning over the river and quickly grabbed it before I could float any further.
I pulled myself up onto the shore and tiredly lay on the ground, ending up terribly muddy in the process. So much for this being a nice, quiet, non-exciting day. Not to mention clean. I think I'm gonna change my mind and be happy that my MP3 player didn't come with me.
In an instant I sat up, wondering if the others were okay. I got to my feet, surveying my surroundings carefully.
I was in the middle of the woods, and oddly enough, there was very little snow left on the ground and even a few small patches of fresh, green grass were starting to grow. The same type of big oak trees that I saw near the lamppost now blocked my view of the sky, and flowers were poking through the leftover snow around them. But there were no Pevensies or beavers in sight. Oohhhhhh great. I must have floated farther down the river than they did. Either that or they didn't ever make it out of the river... NO! I will not think that. I just won't.
I crossed my arms stubbornly to ward off any other unwanted thoughts. So now what?
I noticed a shiny, black object lying on the ground, and I bent to pick it up. It was a boot! A very muddy boot that rather matched how I looked at the moment. It's Lucy's! So that's what I was holding onto when we were on the ice block... I guess that would explain why it didn't feel fuzzy and soft like a coat.
I threw it down, but then thought better of it and, whilst sighing heavily at my habit of unintentionally making things harder for myself, picked it up again. Who knew? Maybe Aslan's camp was in need of an extra boot.
But I don't think I'll be able to get it to them if I can't figure out how to get out of this forest. Unfortunately for me, the probability of it is highly unlikely... what, like 0.00009% chance?
A sudden idea popped into my head, and I cupped my hands over my mouth, shouting into the forest. "HELLOOOOO? IS ANYONE OUT THERE?"
Surprisingly, no one answered back. But that didn't stop me from yelling at the top of my lungs:
"HEEEELLLLLPPPPP!"
After repeating this process a couple of times (and ending up with nothing but a sore throat), I walked over to a clump of trees and unceremoniously fell to the ground in front of them, spreading my arms out wide.
You're supposed to stay in the same spot when your lost, right? Hmm... Somehow I don't think that's going to help me here in Narnia. But it's not as if I have any other choice... And somebody HAS to find me eventually.
I slowly moved my arms and legs across the ground, making a sloppy mud angel (Not that there is any other kind). Kinda like a lazy form of jumping jacks.
Suddenly, I realized what I was doing and shot up off the ground, taking my coat off carefully so I wouldn't get any mud on my already rather dirty outfit underneath. What in the world is wrong with me? Agh! My brain probably got half frozen or something.
I shook it out (The coat, not my brain) and draped it across a sturdy looking tree branch to dry. I sat down on a large log that happened to be laying next to me and sighed.
"Well," I said out loud, "I guess I'll just have to stay here till help arrives. I sure wish I had some company."
Grabbing the boot, I took it and looked at it carefully. Perhaps you can be my buddy, eh? Wha'dya think?
I drew a quick smiley face in the mud on the front of it, and set it down on the log beside me.
"Now all you need is a name." I said to the boot. I must be going insane, honestly... I'm talking to a BOOT!
I ignored that thought though, and continued to try to think of the perfect name for my new found companion.
"How about Darcy? Or Liz? Or Joe? Or Frank? Or Isis? Or... Murrrppphhy! Perfecto!"
I smiled brightly, and turned to Murphy.
"So Murphy, how's your life? You having an interesting day so far? 'Cause I sure am. In fact, the past few days have been nothing but a lot of confusion. Does that sound fun to you? 'Cause it sounds scary to me. But exciting too, don't forget exciting. If something is exciting that always makes up for the bad stuff about it. Except for going to the hospital. Yeah, that is NO fun. Like this one time when I went to the hospital because I had an ear infection and they thought I had some weird disease because my arms were hurting and my neck was slightly crooked from throwing up so much... That type of bad stuff cannot be made up for with excitement. Roller coasters too. Roller coasters are another definite exception. There is nothing good about going down a hill at a speed so fast it makes you feel like your head is gonna blow off. Have you ever been on a roller coaster? I wouldn't recommend it. I'm sure it can't be good for you... That's probably why I am talking to you right now! MY HEAD'S BEEN PERMANENTLY DAMAGED BY A ROLLER COASTER!"
I stopped for a breath of air and looked over at the boot.
Murphy just sat there smiling, seemingly unfazed by the rapid speed at which I was talking. I patted him on the back, and he promptly fell over into the dirt... dead as a doornail.
I abruptly started laughing like a maniac. I killed Murphy, I killed Murphy... I guess I'm in Talon's league now. I stopped suddenly though, when I realized what I was laughing about. I leaned back, trying to forget that I was lost in the middle of the woods, sitting on a log, and talking to a dead boot named Murphy.
I blinked as I tumbled backwards off the log and onto the ground. Now my favorite shirt is totally muddy too. Completely wonderful.
I stood up, and started to think. "So, what am I supposed to do?" I asked myself, figuring that the less time I talked to Murphy, the more chance I would have of getting out of there relatively sane. As sane as I was before, that is.
I pushed my hair out of my eyes, noticing for the first time how tangled it was. I combed my fingers through slowly, but it didn't make much of a difference. I really hope they have a brush in Aslan's camp. If I ever get there.
I put my hand to my chest dramatically, and declared in a loud, grief-stricken voice, "Oh, woe is me! My hair is uncombed and my makeup is most likely smeared and I am lost in the grand woods of Narnia with no idea where to go!"
Under my hand, I felt the necklace that Father Christmas had given me. I picked it up and no sooner than I did so, a thought knocked on my brain, demanding to enter. I opened the door for it and immediately flicked myself in the head, as soon as it came to me.
"No duh!" I exclaimed, and rolled my eyes at myself. That habit I mentioned earlier was sure getting a lot of screen time today.
I ran over to my coat, and grabbed LWW, forcing it into my pocket and unintentionally crumpling some of the pages. Sorry, C.S. Lewis.
I held the pendant tightly in my hand, and squeezed my eyes shut, trying to remember what St. Nick had told me.
He said to hold it in your hand (Check!) and think of where you want to be... But how am I supposed to do that if I don't even know where Aslan's camp is or...
My thoughts froze as a strange, tingling sensation spread throughout my body and I felt as if someone was pulling on my arm- hard. I had the weirdest feeling of suddenly becoming unstuck, and then it all ended abruptly. My eyes shot open and I wildly looked around.
I was on the edge of the woods, standing on a hill overlooking a big, green meadow with rocky cliffs surrounding it. It was filled with many tents, and an uncountable amount of creatures were walking about. I laughed out loud, surprised at how easy it had been to use the necklace. I can't believe I'm here!
"Who goes there?" I heard a male voice say from behind me. I jumped and turned around quickly, raising my hands in the air.
It was a young guy in shiny armor, and he was holding a very sharp looking sword. At least that's what my first impression was. When he moved closed though, my eyes bugged out and I saw that instead of a pair of normal human legs, he was sporting a pair of goat legs! And rather long ears as well. Not to mention the horns that were sticking out of his head.
He must be a faun! I didn't know they were so funny lookin' though.
"Who are you and what is your business here?" The faun dude asked me, and I shrugged helplessly. He looked down at my legs and then at me suspiciously. What in Narnia's wrong with my legs? I thought, wondering if they had some rule about legs in Narnia.
"What are you?" He asked, still staring at me strangely, and I gathered that he hadn't met many humans before.
"I'm a human." I told him in a I'm-not-dangerous-so-you-don't-have-to-run-that-sharp-sword-through-my-midsection kind of voice. He looked surprised, but immediately lowered the weapon he was previously threatening me with.
"You are human? I suppose you do look like one." He mused, sounding awed. I frowned, blowing my hair out of my eyes and lowering my hands to my sides.
"Well, I sure hope so!" I said, joyfully sarcastic. "Anyways... My name is Eden, and I was traveling here when I got kinda lost. Um... Well, could you like... you know, take me to your leader?"
He nodded eagerly, "Yes, of course, Aslan has been expecting you. But where are the rest?" He asked, his face covered with the same amount of confusion as I was covered with mud.
"Um... I'm not really sure. They were with the beavers... They should be along soon though!" I said, trying to sound hopeful and to block out the fear that the Pevensies might not have made it to land at all.
"Well, come with me then, and I shall take you to meet with Aslan." He told me, motioning for me to follow him. We walked in silence for a moment until I decided that I didn't like walking with someone whom I didn't know very well.
"What's your name?" I asked, and he looked at me raising his eyebrows.
"My name? Why would you want to hear my name?" He asked me in reply, looking a bit surprised.
"Because I like to hear names?" I said lamely, smiling a bit too brightly. He looked at me like I was crazy, and I rolled my eyes.
"Look, why wouldn't I want to know your name? It's not as if I'm anyone important. And I thought you were only a soldier."
He stopped unexpectedly and I had to turn around and walk back to him.
"What do you mean you aren't anyone important? Are you not one of the Daughters of Eve from the ancient prophecy?" He demanded, and I realized my mistake.
"Whoops... I guess I kinda forgot to clarify that, sorry." I smiled and held my hands in front of me just in case he decided I was enough trouble to warrant taking his sword out again.
"No, I am not one of the Daughters of Eve. I was just traveling with them. I'm their..." I wanted to say friend, but I wasn't really sure if they considered me a friend yet. I mean, I had the advantage of reading about them far before they even met me... Or did I? I didn't quite remember anymore. Hmm... I'll have to look at that book in my pocket later to see if it'll open yet. "I'm their helper." I finished, not even bothering with trying to convince him. I guess it worked because he didn't look very convinced.
"Well... when we get to camp, Aslan will determine whether you are telling truth or falsehood." He told me at length. I sighed loudly and we started walking down the hill again.
"You never told me your name." I mumbled sulkily, but he didn't say anything, so I thought that he either wasn't listening or still didn't trust me.
After a few long seconds of just plain walking, the faun dude turned his head to me.
"My name is Kiremnus." He said, and it made me feel nice that he told me. I guess he doesn't not trust me completely.
We went on down the hill, and about halfway there I noticed that all the creatures throughout the camp were stopping their work and staring at something in the middle of the camp. I stood on my tiptoes and strained to see what they were looking at.
There were three figures walking slowly through the crowd, and two small, furry blobs waddling beside them.
Oh wait... Those aren't blobs, that's the beavers! And Peter, Susan, and Lucy beside them!
"There they are! They're alright!" I shouted, starting to run off, eager to be in the company of someone I recognized, but Kiremnus grabbed the back of my shirt effectively halting me.
"Hey!" He exclaimed, trying to keep me still, and unfortunately for me, doing a good job of it. I didn't know fauns were so strong! Or maybe I'm just weak. Oh well, anyways...
"HEY YOURSELF!" I screeched, batting him away. I soon found out that it wasn't the smartest move as he drew his sword and held it right in front of my nose. I froze on the spot, and barely dared to breath.
"If you aren't going to comply, then I am afraid I will have to silence you." He told me seriously, but sounded a bit annoyed too.
I heaved a sigh and said, "Fine, as long as you put that sword away. And as long as I get to go down there and see my, er, the people I am supposed to be helping. Alright?" I asked, trying to make my voice sound tough.
He hesitated, finally nodding slowly and looking up at the sky as if asking Aslan for patience. You don't need much patience with me though, so I'm sure it only looks like that's what he's doing.
We walked down into the camp, all sorts of creatures flocking around us. Even few wild animals too; a cheetah, a grizzly bear, lots of horses, another cheetah (or was that a jaguar?), even a gorilla! I passed by another animal, and thinking it was a horse, turned to get a closer look at it.
"Hey theeeerrrrre..." I started to say, but then trailed off when I saw that the horse I was talking to was no regular horse. It was only half of a horse, completed with the head and torso of a fierce looking woman on top of it! Oh. My. Gosh.
I slowly backed away as she stared at me with clear blue eyes. I dearly hope I did not offend her. From what I've heard, offending a centaur is only something you do when you have a sincere death wish.
"S-s-sorry!" I squeaked out, and she gave me a small, amused smile. I smiled back, relieved, and continued on through the crowd until I was right behind the Pevensies and Mr. and Mrs. Beaver.
I followed them for a few more moments, and then stopped with the rest of the crowd when they came to a very big tent.
Peter drew his sword carefully, holding it in front of him like a banner. "We have come to see Aslan!" He declared in a loud voice to a huge centaur guard, who in turn, looked to the tent in expectation and bowed low to the ground.
Everyone else immediately started bowing too, and although I had no idea why they were doing it, I lowered myself to the ground anyway.
Though I couldn't see what was happening while I was kissing the dirt, I could sure listen! Thank You, God, for giving me good ears.
There was a momentary pause, and then I heard a deep, melodious voice say:
"Welcome Peter, Son of Adam. Welcome Susan and Lucy, Daughters of Eve. And welcome to you beavers; you have my thanks." The same wonderful feeling that I had in the beavers lodge was back now, full force. I knew that the voice had to belong to Aslan.
Aslan continued with a question I could have seen coming seven miles away, "But where is the fourth?"
"That's why we're here, sir." It was Peter talking again. "We need your help."
"We ran into a little trouble along the way." Susan's gentle voice said haltingly.
I felt someone flick me on the shoulder and I peered up to see Kiremnus standing, looking at me and motioning as if to say 'Get up already, will you?'.
I glanced around and felt my cheeks redden a bit. Everyone else had been standing up for a few minutes already, and I had been laying there like a fool with my face in the dirt.
"Our brother... has been captured by the White Witch." Peter said simply, but I could still hear a great deal of worry in his voice.
I looked over at where I had heard Aslan's voice coming from, and my mouth hung open in shock. He's a LION? I wasn't quite expecting that. But he is even more amazing than I imagined.
Aslan looked as if he wasn't totally surprised at the news of Edmund's capture, but very upset nonetheless.
"Captured? How could this have happened?" He asked, wondering aloud. Mr. Beaver shifted and I almost expected him to raise his hand.
But he didn't. Instead, he only replied in a solemn voice, "He has betrayed them, Your Majesty."
The centaur guard standing near Aslan looked as if someone had just called him a pony, patted him on the back, and force-fed him a carrot. In other words, he looked furious.
"Then he has betrayed us all!" He declared angrily, stomping one of his hooves onto the ground (Don't mistake this for a childish action like a baby stomping its feet; it was very serious and a bit scary too).
But Aslan just raised a paw and the big centaur immediately quieted. "Peace, Oreius. I'm sure there is an explanation." He said calmly, and Peter shifted a bit and glanced at Susan.
An awkward silence filled the area, until Peter broke it.
"It's my fault, really." He said in a guilty and regretful tone. "I was too hard on him."
Susan looked at him sadly, and put her hand on his shoulder. "We all were." She confessed, and I felt horrible for them, but glad that Peter and Susan had seemed to resolve the anger that they had been spouting towards each other. Susan had told me the night before that she blamed Peter for what happened to Edmund. But it looked like she had thought about it, and now saw that it wasn't really any one person's fault.
"Sir, he's our brother!" Lucy pleaded desperately, and Aslan looked at her with big, sad eyes.
"I know, dear one, but that only makes the betrayal all the worse. This may be harder than you think." He said slowly, and I stepped a bit closer.
"You're the only one who can help us, sir." Peter said softly, and Aslan nodded, looking very serious.
"I will help you get your brother back, Son of Adam. Of that you need not worry." He said gently, and I was completely sure that he would do what he said.
Peter smiled a bit, but then his smile faded. "I'm afraid we have another problem, sir." He said slowly, and I wondered what else could have gone wrong.
The second I lose them and they're already making a mess out of things, I thought fondly, rolling my eyes. Lucy didn't lose her flower-juice stuff, did she? 'Cause that would be a real shame.
"There was another girl with us, but on the journey here we... were separated." He explained, and I gaped as I realized he was talking about me. They actually remembered me? Well, I guess it's not SO impossible.
"Is there anything we can do to try to find her, sir?" He asked Aslan, actually sounding a bit worried.
"Please, sir." Lucy said quietly, "She might be hurt."
"She's all alone – who knows what might happen." Susan added, albeit a bit hesitantly. Wow. I didn't think they cared about me that much! I guess I was wrong... HEY! Is Susan implying I can't take care of myself?
Aslan chuckled, "You may stop worrying, dear children. She is safe and sound; as you shall see for yourselves if you look behind you." He stared straight at me, his eyes smiling. I felt a warm feeling pour through me as Peter, Susan, Lucy, and the beavers all turned around.
I smiled sheepishly and walked forward. "Hiya guys... Miss me?"
"Eden!" Peter exclaimed, looking surprised. I was rather surprised to see relief on his face.
Lucy's eyes lit up. "You're alright!" She cried, smiling brightly.
"Where on earth did you go?" Peter questioned, obviously amazed that I was alive. I didn't go anywhere 'on earth', Pete, I thought semi-sarcastically. Susan stepped up beside him.
"How did you get here?" She asked, and the Mr. and Mrs. Beaver stepped closer too.
"We thought ya had drowned!" Mr. Beaver told me, and Mrs. Beaver came over and put her paw on my arm.
"I was so worried, dear!" She said, and I grinned. I can imagine.
"Well, it's a bit of a boring story, but basically I fell off the ice into the water and swam to shore. Then I... well, that part's not important. Anyway, I figured that it would have been a perfect time to use my necklace, so I did and that's how I got here." I told them, making sure to leave out the part where I went temporarily insane. But then a thought came to me.
"Oh wait! I forgot Murphy." I exclaimed, feeling slightly bad that I had forgotten Lucy's boot. The Pevensies and the beavers all stared at me strangely. Each resembled the following with frightening similarity : O_o .
"Who's Murphy?" Lucy asked, looking confused. I shook my head. I really need to work on that habit.
"Your boot... I named it Murphy." I tried to explain, and Peter raised his eyebrows.
"You named a boot Murphy?" He asked slowly, in a mixture of disbelief and amusement. I rolled my eyes.
"Please don't talk to me like I'm crazy... please?" I pleaded, and then shrugged."What can I say? I got bored and lonely just sitting there."
Everyone else stopped looking at me like I was insane (Instead, they shook their heads, obviously giving me up as an oddity without explanation), but I noticed Susan still staring at me a little funny, and I examined myself to see what she thought was so weird. Do I have a hole in my pants? Oh drat, I hope not. Or maybe it's my smeared makeup that she finds so odd. Hmm, I wonder...
"What's wrong? Do I have mud on my face or something?" I asked her, and she blushed a little.
"No, it's just that... what are you wearing?" She asked incredulously, and I remembered the outfit I currently had on. I guessed that she hadn't really noticed it when we first met, otherwise I'm sure she would have commented like she just had. But it couldn't have gone unnoticed by all of them. No wonder Peter handed me that coat so fast! Whoops. I guess a girl wearing shorts would be considered rather improper in 1940's England.
I suddenly felt very awkward.
"Oh, well, um... These are my, um, pajamas... I think. Well, I did sleep in them one time, and I, um, er.. well..." I stuttered, having a bit of trouble thinking of a good excuse.
Aslan chuckled and everyone turned to him. "Perhaps you should all go and rest; you have had a long journey." He nodded to Kiremnus and the faun stepped forward.
"Kiremnus will show you to your tents, and I will see you in the morning." He told us, and although I didn't want to leave him, I couldn't argue with the idea of rest, so I reluctantly followed the faun along with Susan, Lucy, and Peter.
Kiremnus stopped in front of two tents not too far off from a nice little stream, and held open the entry way of the first one for Peter. "This will be your tent, my King. Tell me if you are in need of anything else."
After thanking Kiremnus, Peter nodded at his sisters and me. "I guess I'll see you three tomorrow. And remember, I'll be right here if any one of you needs me."
I mentally smiled that he had remembered me (Don't freak out, it was NOT a symptom of MSS (Mary-Sue Syndrome)). It made me feel happy that they seemed to be accepting me a little more and even treating me just a bit like part of their family. I wish my brother was here now... I wonder where he is anyway? I guess he's back home. Hmm...
Peter disappeared inside his tent, waving goodnight, and Kiremnus led me, Susan, and Lucy to the other one.
"This will be your tent, my Queens, and yours as well, miss. Tell me if you need anything else." He pulled the doorway open for us and we stepped in. Susan thanked him, and he left.
The tent was by far the most beautiful tent I had ever seen. There was a soft, wine red rug underneath my feet, and three hammock-like beds, one on each side of the large enclosure. The beds all had at least two pillows, which were each silky and of a shimmery golden color. Simple yet elegant comforters lay on the beds, and a wooden chest sat near the doorway were I stood.
Lucy sat down on one of the beds, and Susan walked over to the chest and opened it. I ran over and flopped onto the bed opposite Lucy, and looked over at Susan who was pulling something out of the chest.
"It's beautiful!" Lucy exclaimed, and I saw that Susan was holding up a gorgeous, olive green dress. If that's what we have to wear here, then I have absolutely no problem with it!
"It is very pretty, isn't it?" Susan agreed, putting it back, and closing the chest. "But we should really be getting to bed now, it's almost dark."
"You don't have to convince me!" I sighed, and pulled the blanket over myself. Susan walked over and sat down in the remaining bed, letting out her dark hair and laying down.
I snuggled deeply into the hammock, and immediately found I had a bit of a problem. Oh great. I shifted around and around, but couldn't seem to find a position where my toes weren't sticking at least three inches off the end of the hammock. Oh the joys of being tall.
I gave up and closed my eyes, dearly hoping that there wasn't any creature in Narnia that liked to feast on toes during the night. I foggily heard Susan and Lucy say 'goodnight' to each other and me, and before I fell asleep I managed to mumble out:
"G'night."
The last thing I heard that night was the tittering of birds.
ACK! I am officially done with editing. I am sure there were a million more things I could try to fix in this chapter, but I am so tired of reading through it that I am just going to be done with it.
WHOA! That was the longest one yet! It sure took a while to write. I'm not sure if I like the meeting with Aslan though. The characters just seemed off to me... Sorry if they were OOC! If you thought they sounded better than I did though, than please tell me! I hope I am just overreacting. ;)
Anyway, THIS IS AN OFFICIAL NOTICE:
I am going to be taking a break from writing this (and fanfic in general) for about a week or maybe half a week, cause (Strange as it might sound) I have been too preoccupied with this story, and I haven't been able to get my normal stuff done. Plus, I think my mum's getting kinda annoyed at all the time I have been spending on the computer. XD
In short, for my mum and myself, I am taking a small break from this story and I will most likely be back in a week!
Thanks, and feel free to Read and Review!
Eden54