Disclaimer: I own nothing except my own characters and plots. The original universe and everything in it belong to C. S. Lewis. All photos used of film characters belong to Walt Disney Pictures. The content I have written is fanfiction and its only purpose is to inspire creativity and to further immerse oneself in the universe C. S. Lewis has created.
"Isn't it funny how day by day nothing changes, but when you look back, everything is different…"
- C.S. Lewis, "Prince Caspian" (1951)
Chapter 8 – Going Home – August 2315 – Narnia
It was first mentioned by Edmund during an early breakfast gathering.
"I want to go back." He said casually, chewing on a piece of buttered toast.
Lucy looked up from her honey-covered porridge startled, and Susan's spoon stopped half-way to her lips in shock.
"What do you mean, Ed?" Peter asked cautiously.
"Hm?" Edmund looked up from his toast. "Oh, heavens no, I don't mean that!" He clarified as he studied the stunned faces of his siblings.
Lucy's shoulders visibly relaxed as she stirred her meal. "Then what do you mean?"
"I'd like to go back to the ruins of Cair Paravel of course!" Edmund motioned toward Caspian, who sat at the head of the table observing the conversation. "We discussed it last night, didn't we Caspian?"
Caspian sat deep in thought, when he suddenly noticed Edmund's expectant expression. Without missing a beat, he replied casually: "Indeed, we did. I've procured horses, and tents for a longer stay should we wish it."
"Is it wise for you to leave the palace at the moment?" Peter spoke up. "We've not yet dealt with the prisoners, or the issues surrounding the free settlement of all Narnians, and after all we are expecting Aslan to return at any moment."
"We are?" Lucy asked puzzled.
"Of course." Peter nodded. When he noticed the confused faces of his siblings and Caspian, he sighed. "Do none of you remember Aslan's speech at the end of Caspian's birthday celebration a month ago?" Peter turned his head to look at Susan. "Surely, you remember it Su? You arrived just in time to witness it."
Susan blushed slightly as she cleared her throat. "I was distracted."
Lucy snickered behind her napkin, and Caspian shifted awkwardly in his seat.
"Oh, forget it." Peter grumbled. "In essence what he said was that we prepare for his return. Amongst other things, he wanted us to have reached an agreement on how to handle the prisoners."
"A difficult topic to agree on in the King's council." Edmund added.
"The council is in good hands with Doctor Cornelius, Trufflehunter and Lord Percius, I assure you King Peter." Caspian replied friendly.
Lord Percius had grown to be a close ally of Caspian, and seemed to be the only Telmarine lord that had little trouble adjusting to the new King and countrymen.
"And besides, I've never been to that part of Narnia before, and a king should know every inch of his country before attempting to rule it justly." Caspian mused before he took a bite of a bright green apple.
"Not to mention I'm going mad from being confined behind these walls all day and night." Edmund huffed.
Susan rolled her eyes at her little brother's exaggeration. "I, for one, am happy to go an excursion to Cair." She said joyfully.
Caspian brightened considerably, and Edmund slapped Peter on the back. "Great!"
Lucy studied her eldest brother for a moment, wondering if his reluctance was in fact caused by more than the fear of leaving their responsibilities behind for a day or two.
Peter gave her a small smile and shrugged once he caught her staring, the look in his blue eyes weary and troubled. "Alright then. Let's be off." He declared resolutely.
And so, they set off the next morning with their saddlebags containing food, water and blankets. They decided to travel light, seeing as they could only afford to be away from court for a few days before their presence would be greatly missed.
All five of them were on horseback. Caspian on Destrier was in the lead with Lucy and her mare trotting alongside them. She was telling Caspian all about their journey from the train platform in England, to the events that would eventually lead them to the Dancing Lawn where they met him and Trufflehunter and all the rest.
Peter and Edmund rode behind them, their steeds carrying most of their supplies. The silence between them was familiar and comfortable. Edmund enjoyed the sun shining on his face as he greatly looked forward to exploring the ruins of Cair Paravel. The long days spent with the council, however exciting the politics was, left him in desperate need of fresh air and bodily exercise.
Peter welcomed the distraction that their excursion brought. He grew restless in the night thinking of Pippa, and sleep eluded him most of the time. The days at court weren't nearly busy enough to keep his thoughts from constantly wandering to her body resting in the stone tomb. He hadn't been to visit her since the burial, preferring to keep her death at a distance, knowing fully well that once they returned to England, he would have to deal with whatever awaited him there.
Susan followed a great distance behind her brothers with her bow and arrow slung across her shoulder. She had insisted on defending them as their rear-guard, but really it was just an excuse to let her horse roam more freely and let the others lead the way forward. Peter had rolled his eyes at Susan's soft spot for horses. During the Golden Age she had insisted on riding horses from Archenland, noting that free, speaking Narnian horses should not have to bear humans unless they wished it. Of course, most of the stallions in Narnian insisted it was an honour to bear royalty, but Susan did not relent. Edmund thought that if it weren't for the fact that she loved horseback riding, she probably would have given it up all together. Susan had scoffed at the idea, with Lucy joining in saying how utterly horrifying it was to be sat in a carriage for hours on end.
They travelled by the main road for quite a while, until the forest grew too thick around them and they needed to stray from their path in order to move forward. Through tall grass, steep hills and dense wood they rode on until they could smell the salt of the sea in the air, and hear seagulls caw in the sky. They followed the rush of a babbling brook until the brambles and thicket closed around them, and they were forced to abandon the horses.
"We must be close." Lucy said as the men drew their swords to cut away the thorns and thistles so they could move further into the impervious landscape.
"I think you're right, Lu." Susan agreed as she pointed in the air. A flash of bright colour in the green leaves had caught her attention.
"The apple orchard!" Edmund exclaimed as he smelled the sweetness that accompanied the ripe fruit.
Peter and Caspian had cleared away most of the branches, revealing some of the crumbling stone walls that once upon a thousand years had housed the royal family, and been the nucleus of the Pevensies reign.
Peter leaned on one of the walls covered in wildflowers and moss. Close to him was an archway that would lead them into one of the courtyards. The siblings had recognized it the second they saw the ancient scribbling on the curved stone structure.
"I'll never get used to seeing Cair this way." Peter spoke quietly, running his fingers across some of the carved symbols. "Abandoned and in ruins."
"But it's still home." Susan smiled sadly.
Edmund and Lucy soon left the others to go explore one of the remaining towers. The foundation stood taller than most of the nearby trees, and the steps seemed intact enough to try to step on. Susan soon followed them, worried that her younger siblings would fall or injure themselves.
Caspian had been silent for some time, simply content with drinking in the atmosphere and imagining the gorgeous palace before it was destroyed and left to disintegrate over the years. There was no roof to speak of, but plenty of columns and steps for him to envision what went where, even beneath the ivy and daisies growing wild.
Peter went to retrieve their saddle bags and ensure that the horses were content and tethered for the night that was soon upon them. Once he returned, he noticed that Edmund had gathered wood for a fire, and that Lucy were picking apples while humming a gentle tune. Caspian and Susan stood close together by an opening in the wall, revealing the stunning view of the Eastern Sea bathed in the last rays of sunlight. She was quietly telling him something, pointing here and there, and Caspian seemed consumed by her tale.
Peter watched his family for a moment more as he became achingly aware of how often he and Pippa would stand side by side observing the people they loved as they went about their business. He felt cold without her, her presence a constant and easy comfort to him. She hardly needed to speak, just the warmth of her could soothe his troubled mind easily. If he closed his eyes, he could almost feel her beside him. He couldn't help but glance to the left, and found that she was still gone. Not really a surprise, but a bitter reminder still. He was alone, and she had left him.
He cleared his throat as Lucy came towards him. He gave her an uneasy smile as she hugged him tightly. Lucy, bless her soul, did not say anything, she simply helped him with the bags.
They joined Edmund by the fire he was slowly building in one of the crumbled fountains in the middle of the courtyard.
"Oh rats, I think we forgot the tents!" Lucy complained as she looked around their supplies.
"It probably won't be that bad." Peter reasoned. "If we huddle together and keep the fire going, we should be able to sleep under the stars without much trouble."
"Unless," Edmund pondered. "Unless we sleep under ground? Perhaps in the treasure chamber?"
Lucy shuddered. "I'd rather not, it's quite eerie down there."
"The fire will keep us warm enough." Peter repeated. "You remember our first night here wasn't so bad, and many months have passed since then and its only gotten warmer out."
"Did you say treasure chamber?" Caspian interrupted as he and Susan joined them at last.
"I'll show you tomorrow!" Lucy volunteered happily. It was getting darker by the minute. "Oh, and perhaps we can climb down to the ocean and stroll on the beach!"
"Or explore more of the underground to see if some of the tunnels and secret rooms have survived?" Edmund suggested eagerly.
"Must you insist on being buried alive by rubble?" Peter teased and chuckled along with Caspian and Lucy.
Ever the sensible one, Susan looked to the ground with an apprehensive expression etched on her face. "He's right, you know. What if the tunnel is too unstable and it collapses? It's simply too dangerous to try." Susan lectured worriedly.
"Pah!" Edmund brushed her off. "Let's get some sleep, and if the ground hasn't caved in by morning, we'll have a go at it, right Caspian?" Edmund smirked as Caspian struggled for words under the exasperated look the gentle queen of old gave him.
"I wouldn't, I mean we should probably, I'll go… I, emh…" He stuttered and blushed.
"Oh, let him live Su!" Lucy giggled. She took Susan by the arm and led her to the other side of the makeshift fireplace where she'd laid out their sleeping quilts. "They're only boys after all." She giggled quietly. "You know they can't help being stupid."
Susan huffed and watched as her brothers and Caspian worked on the fire.
"I'd rather you joined me on the beach anyway to shed some light on what happened between you and the King on his birthday." Lucy whispered.
Susan's cheeks burned with such a redness she was sure Lucy could spot it even in the darkening light. "Shush! I've already told you what happened!"
"Yes, but you've failed to mention the specifics." Lucy whined.
"It's private!" Susan continued to blush.
"It's love is what it is." Lucy giggled once more as Susan nearly hid her face behind the blanket with embarrassment. "It's alright. You can tell me more tomorrow. There's no place to hide away here!" She teased before she went to help Peter with their supper.
Susan huffed again. Oh, just you watch me hide from you Lucy Pevensie, she thought vehemently. After all, hiding was becoming her specialty, she mused as she thought of her secret meetings with Caspian since his birthday celebration. She caught sight of him as he knelt by the timber to light it. Butterflies erupted in her belly as she studied his handsome face.
No matter what excursions were to be made tomorrow, Susan knew in her heart that it would always be a good day so long as he was present. With that though she settled down on her sleeping quilt, with contentment in her heart, ready for the next day to be upon them.
The next morning, after breakfast had been eaten, Peter, Edmund and Caspian ventured further into the ruins as well as below the ground. Susan couldn't bear to watch, and left with Lucy to tread the narrow path down the cliffside that would lead to the beaches below. The smooth, wet sand felt cool against the soles of their feet as they splashed along the edge of the clear water.
Further up the ridge, deep within the ruins the Kings could hear them giggle and shriek as they played in the water.
"They sound like they're having a good time." Peter chuckled.
Edmund was sat upon a rock, a sour expression on his face as he fiddled with his battery held torch.
"Still not working?" Caspian asked, still baffled by the light-making contraption Edmund had showed him some months earlier.
"No." Edmund's answer was clipped, and Peter shrugged as Caspian looked to him for help. "I suppose you two better find something else to occupy your time with, seeing as this might take a while." He finally said, as he tried using a fingernail to pry open the lid held together by small iron metal pins.
"Fine by me." Peter waved a hand and bowed. "Where to your majesty?"
Caspian chuckled at Peter's animated display. Where there once had been animosity between them, there was now a blooming friendship. Caspian had deep respect for Peter as a leader, whilst Peter had learned to see that Caspian was more than his Telmarine heritage and with time would prove to be an excellent king.
"I hear the sea calling." Peter added as another shout was heard from the girls by the beach.
Caspian mirrored Peter's bow. "Lead the way High King Peter."
As they walked through the ruins in search of the path leading down to the sandbank, a ray of sunshine caught the reflection of a single remaining shard of colourful glass in what had once been a window. The light spread out on the cobblestones, making the grey stone, lush ivy and white daisies glow strangely. The warm rays of the sun and the accompanying breeze from the ocean below cast an almost ethereal glow over the ruins.
The two men stopped to admire the lightshow. As Caspian began to walk again, he noticed that Peter lingered. His blue eyes studied the twinkling lights and the crease between his eyebrows grew deep with thought.
"Is something wrong?" Caspian asked cautiously as he approached him.
Peter said nothing for a moment, only a heavy sigh left his lips. "This is where she should've been buried."
"Yes, it is beautiful here." Caspian agreed. "Peaceful too. I'm sure lady Pippa would have loved seeing this."
"Yes, well…" Peter trailed off as he suddenly remembered a time when they had laid together in the grass in one of Cair Paravel's many secluded gardens. Her eyes had gleamed and her hands had been in his hair as they kissed. Her embrace was warmer than the hottest summer sun and her skin had smelled sweeter than the freesias surrounding them. Peter shook his head as the memory faded.
He turned to Caspian. "I thank you for giving her a place to rest next to your ancestors."
"The honour was mine." Caspian replied solemnly.
Peter nodded before continuing. "But," He walked toward what had once been Cair Paravel's throne room. "This was her home. Buried here in this light, amongst the trees, her body giving further life to the wilderness around these ruins. Her beauty would be eternal." He sighed once more.
The two men were silent after Peter's declaration.
"If I may be so bold," Caspian interjected after some time had passed. "This is a place for the living, not the dead."
"What do you mean?" Peter inquired. His heart complained as Caspian's words painfully reminded him that Pippa was gone.
"I apologize. I only meant that if I have my way, this place shall once again be the central part of Narnia." Caspian said elusively.
Peter's eyes narrowed. "Speak plainly if you will Caspian."
Caspian fidgeted, uncertain of whether or not he should spoil the surprise. Though he supposed it would be helpful that at least one of the four remaining people to actually have lived in this palace could help him in his endeavour. "I suppose I should tell you. But you have to swear to tell no one, for now at least." He added.
"How can I swear to something when I don't even know what it is?" Peter replied warily.
Caspian chuckled. "You sound like your sister."
"How do you know what Susan sounds like?" Peter raised an eyebrow suspiciously, knowing that such a statement could not be said about Lucy.
Caspian cleared his throat and ignored the question. "Once stability has returned to our court and country, I would like to rebuild Cair Paravel."
Peter only gaped at him.
"I've not yet found any actual maps of the palace, though Edmund previously mentioned books stored in the royal treasury beneath Cair Paravel, so perhaps I ought to start there?"
Peter continued to stare at the Telmarine.
"Now that you know, perhaps you could help me look?" Caspian continued. "Or better yet perhaps you could re-draw the floor plan from memory with the help of a map-maker?"
Touched, Peter echoed Caspian's earlier statement. "It would be my honour."
The pair exchanged a firm handshake.
"And," Peter added. "I shall swear to keep it a secret on one condition."
"Name it."
"When you rebuild this palace, you must increase the size of the library in the east wing." Memories of the many moments shared with Pippa in that library flashed before his eyes. He swallowed thickly before he continued. "Pippa would have loved a bigger library."
Caspian nodded. "It shall be done. Along with a garden filled with lily of the valley in her honour."
The shook on it again.
Peter clapped his hand on Caspian's back. "Now, let's go find out what the girls have been up to."
They stumbled upon the two queens a short while later as they roamed the beach in search of them. Lucy was building an elaborate castle made of sand whilst Susan sifted through the wet sandbank for decorations. Her palms were full of tiny seashells and fresh seaweed. Neither seemed to care that the wet bottoms of their skirts were filthy with sand or that they seemed quite undignified as they played like children.
Lucy only smiled innocently at the two men as they approached, but Susan nearly dropped everything in her hands as she straightened her skirt and stood up straight. It was mortifying that Caspian had to bear witness to her unkempt display. He hardly seemed to notice though.
"Peter. Caspian." She acknowledged them with a short nod. "Where's Edmund?"
"He's pretending his new torch isn't working so Caspian and I would leave him be. I think he wants to explore the grounds by himself." Peter admitted with a shrug.
Lucy shook her head as her hands formed another tower for her castle. "Typical. He wants all the fun and glory."
Susan raised an eyebrow in annoyance. "And you left him there? Who's looking out for him now?"
Lucy looked up from her sandcastle. "Yes, Peter, who's looking out for him now?" She asked with a mocking grin.
"Shush." Susan swatted at Lucy's head.
With her hands on her hips like that, Susan reminded him of mother. Over the years the stance had grown less threatening however. "I think he's able to look after himself, dear sister." Peter smirked.
"Absolutely not, I'll go look for him." Susan protested and gathered up her skirts to leave.
"My queen. If I may have moment of your time?" Caspian stopped her with a hand resting on her upper arm.
Susan stopped abruptly, her eyes widening as she stared at him. It took a moment for her to gather her thoughts, as the look in his dark eyes briefly caused her heart to stop beating.
"Ehm," She stuttered as she noticed Peter and Lucy watching them intently. "Of course, my king." She gently pried her arm from his grip and turned to her siblings. "We'll be right back."
"Take your time!" She heard Lucy cackle as she marched ahead of Caspian.
She stopped once Lucy and Peter were out of sight, temporarily hidden by an elevated sandbank.
"What was that?" She hissed.
Caspian grinned as he stared down at her. He'd never seen her in such a carefree manner. Her curly hair was moving freely in the wind, still slightly wet from the saltwater, her feet were bare and the freckles across the bridge of her nose had reddened from the time spent in the sun.
"What?" She asked timidly, his stare unnerving her.
"I just wanted to steal you away for a moment, my queen." His words were followed by an immediate embrace, his arms tightening around her waist as he drew her close for a kiss.
Susan sighed into the kiss, welcoming his touch. These were stolen moments that no one knew about, and for the past month they had been able to sneak around quite well, Susan thought. Well, Lucy knew to some extent, but she was fairly certain the secret was safe with her. Lucy never ran out of things to talk about, but she was surely no blabbermouth.
"We shouldn't do this here." Susan protested weakly as she broke their kiss.
"Let them see, I don't care." Caspian murmured against her lips.
Susan kissed him again, her fingers moving from his neck to his broad shoulders. What was one more stolen moment compared to the long hours she spent wishing they could be together always?
"Is something going on between them?" Peter turned to Lucy after Susan and Caspian had disappeared.
"Not that I know of." Lucy smiled innocently. "Won't you help me with my castle?"
Not usually known as a man that refused his youngest sister anything, Peter picked up Susan's discarded decorations, got on his knees in the sand and set to work, carefully placing shells around the structure as windows and doors for Lucy's castle.
They worked harmoniously together on the task for a while, the only sounds coming from the seagulls above or the water rushing calmly on the edges of the beach.
"How are you?" Lucy suddenly asked. She was still focused on fortifying the unstable foundation of her sandcastle.
"I've been better." Peter replied shortly. "I don't really want to talk about it, Lu."
"I know." Lucy retorted sadly. She greatly wished she could talk to Peter about Pippa. He wasn't the only one grieving her unexpected passing. "I just wish you'd tell me if you needed to talk." Lucy knew he talked to Susan sometimes, and even though she was happy he could share his troubles with someone, it hurt to be overlooked in that regard.
"I'm sorry Lucy." Peter apologized. "I swear it's not because you've changed into the little sister I once knew."
He looked at her with such sad eyes that Lucy instantly felt bad for bringing it up. "I know." She promptly decided to lighten the mood. "You know I don't really mind being young again. No one expects me to shut up or sit still, and my childish behaviour is easily considered charming." She illustrated her point by flicking sand in his direction with her right foot.
Peter chuckled and avoided another kick from her feet in the dirt.
"I can build sandcastles, run in the halls and get dirty without being frowned upon." She smirked knowingly. "And I can pretend I know nothing of what goes on between the handsome Telmarine king and my beautiful sister and everyone will believe me because I'm so innocent and naïve."
Peter's eyes narrowed. "Oh, well that's quite alright." He feigned disinterest as he studied the sand under his fingernails. "I can easily pretend I know nothing of the plans that handsome Telmarine king has for those ruins up there either."
Lucy did not take the bait and batted her eyelashes. "You think Caspian's handsome?"
Peter reached over and shoved her lightly. "I've got eyes." He joked.
Curiosity finally got the better of her. "So, Caspian's got plans for Cair?"
"I'll trade you your secret for mine if you want?" He tried to persuade her with a toothy grin and bear hug.
Lucy pushed him away and giggled. "Fat chance big brother. I'll work it out myself if I have to."
"Suit yourself." Peter returned to his task of adorning the sand palace with oddly shaped rocks to serve as guardsmen for the towers. A small piece of wood served as a gangplank over the moat Lucy had been filling with saltwater from the sea.
Lucy suddenly grew still as she watched the smooth waves of the ocean turn to froth and foam as they reached the shoreline.
"I spent so much of my previous life on this beach." She murmured wistfully. "Watching mermaids with Mr. Tumnus, searching for debris with Mrs. Beaver, and fishing for herring with Mr. Beaver…" She trailed off as the memories replayed in her mind.
Peter saw that she was lost in her own little world of memories for a moment. He sighed deeply. This place reminded them all of a life lived barely a year ago. It was unexplainably painful to see it wasted away and reduced to rubble, but truth be told, he wasn't sure rebuilding the castle would ever make it feel like before. They had lost too much since then for it to ever feel like home again.
"Peridan told me he loved me on this beach. Did I ever say?" Lucy confessed.
Peter wrapped his arms around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head. "I'm sorry you did not have the chance to live a life with him. I know you loved him too."
"At least I think I did." Lucy pondered. "I just miss him. I miss all of them, our friends and family." She confessed with a forlorn look in her bright eyes. "It's odd how long ago it seems. So much has happened since we left. Both in our world and here."
"Sometimes I wish we'd never hunted for that stag." Peter confided in her.
"It wouldn't have mattered. We were destined to leave Aslan said. I reminded you of that in the How." Lucy nudged him playfully.
"Yeah." Peter gave her shoulder a squeeze. "But that's the other part about being young again; no one listens to you." He laughed.
"I make them listen." Lucy stuck out her tongue.
"Yes, you do." Peter said gravely. "I'm sorry I didn't listen to you earlier. I promise it won't happen again. I'll even let you smack me if it does."
"I'll hold you to that promise, you know?" She giggled.
"I would expect nothing less my valiant sister." He gave her brow another kiss.
They sat together for quite a while after that, both reminiscing about their adulthood at Cair Paravel, until Edmund impatiently called out for dinner as he stood on top of a nearby cliff. They still had much to explore before they had to return to Caspian's castle and resume their duties. As the Pevensies and Caspian re-grouped around the campfire for their meal they could all feel it in the air around them; as soon as they left this place everything would change forever.
And so it would.
TO BE CONTINUED.
Songs for this chapter:
Aoibheann – The Sidh
Barefoot Adventures – Adriel Fair
Aurora in Faerieland – James Newton Howard
Dance of the Druids – Bear McCreary, Raya Yarbrough
Only the Beginning of The Adventure – Harry Gregson-Williams
Peter Pevensie – Born 19th of January 1924 (17 years old)
Susan Pevensie – Born 2nd of June 1925 (16 years old)
Edmund Pevensie – Born 6th of March 1927 (14 years old)
Lucy Pevensie – Born 25th of December 1929 (11 years old, turning 12)
King Caspian X – Born 14th of July 2296 (19 years old)