A/N
So … having returned to finish my shockingly and inexcusably delayed 'To Save the Saviour' story, I wanted to try this one – it's been knocking about in my head for a long time –
I've read and enjoyed a lot of fanfiction about girls coming from our world into Narnia and meeting up with the Pevensies.
But …
What happened to the humans who were living in Narnian before the White Witch?
Why were none of them found as statues during the war with and after the defeat of Jadis?
What if one was found years later … what would her story be and how would it tie in with the Pevensies?
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Exerts from The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe.
"To be sure, to be sure," said the faun. "How stupid of me! But I've never seen a Son of Adam or a Daughter of Eve before."
"… on one wall was a shelf full of books … they had titles like … 'Men, Monks and Gamekeepers; A study in popular Legend' of 'Is Man a Myth?"
"Everywhere the statues were coming to life. The Courtyard looked no longer like a museum."
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Prologue
Aria lay on the frozen ground and stared up at the wand that was poised to strike.
"Do it!" she grated.
"You have taken everything from me … now at least have the mercy to take my life. Turn me to stone … you may as well, for it makes little difference to me. I am already stone within … already cold and hard after all that you have done!"
The witch smiled coldly down at Aria where she lay on the snowy forest floor, unable to move, pinned down as she was by the witch's wolves.
"You think that it will be that easy?" she sneered. "That I will end your suffering that quickly? No! Your death will be the long and painful ordeal that you have earned. No quick stroke of my wand for you. No instant numbing. No fear that Aslan will find your statue and br …"
Jadis stopped suddenly as if aware that she had said too much. But looking at Aria, she realised that it was too late. There was a gleam in the young woman's green eyes as she looked up defiantly at the witch.
"That Aslan will what, Jadis?" she demanded.
"What can Aslan do if he finds my statue?
He can bring me back, can't he?
He can bring everyone back … all the Narnians that you have turned to stone … can't he?"
Jadis refused to answer and bit her lip until a drop of blood appeared, the only colour on her otherwise pale face.
Then she collected herself.
"That should not concern you!" she spat at the girl.
"For stone shall never be your fate. There will not be enough of you to piece back together when I am finished with you!"
Aria did not waste her breath replying to the Witch. She twisted under the wolves that held her, managing to free her legs despite the pain, and with a mighty last effort she kicked with all her might. Kicked at the White Witch, knocking her legs from under her. And as the Witch fell, Aria gripped the wand.
The last thing she saw was Jadis quickly pulling back her wand.
But too late.
For the last thing she felt was the stone that she was to become making its way, slowly but surely up her body starting with her legs.
She was glad that her face and head were the last things to turn, for it gave her one last chance to speak to the Witch.
"I'll be seeing you Jadis!" she promised before the stone took her and she knew no more.
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The foot
"It's a foot! A stone foot!"
"I know it's a foot Briggle!" sighed Thune, willing himself to have patience with the excited young dwarf, "but what I asked is – what is it doing there?"
"We don't know" inserted Dupple. "We just lifted some stone and there it was, peeking out among the rubble … Shall I ask it?"
The Chief Dwarf sighed again. He had had just about enough of these younglings. And it was all his own fault. He had volunteered to take the two of them with him, hoping that a day digging and lifting in the cold snowbound woods would go some way towards steadying them. After all, he had reasoned, it should have been a simple enough task. Clear the stone from the old watch tower and bring it back to camp to use in the repairs to the workshops.
But it had been anything but simple. The two youngsters had argued and joked and joked and argued their way through the task until he had been ready to hit them with the mallet that he had brought, to use it to knock some sense into their heads rather than to break up the stone. He would have been quicker doing the work on his own, he reflected. That would teach him to bring dwarves so young with him – next time he would make sure his work team consisted of dwarves who had at the very least reached their fortieth year.
Thune chose to ignore Dupple's impudent answer.
"Alright" he sighed. "As we're here digging, I suppose we may as well dig it out and see if anything is attached to it."
"Ohhh … like what?" asked Briggle.
Thune and Dupple turned slowly to look at the excited Dwarf.
"Like a leg, Briggle … and a body … the rest of the statue …. Wait… what else did you expect would be attached to a stone foot?"
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Edmund took a deep breath and willed himself to have patience with the excited squirrels. He had been on a patrol of the Western Woods with Oreius, his guard Lupa and a small group of soldiers when the squirrels had found them. Edmund had been hoping that the patrol would be a quick one. That he would soon be able to return home to Cair Paravel, to his loving family and the comforts of a roaring fire and a warm bed. He hated being in the woods when it was snowing. Hated that any part of Narnian could remind him of Her. Edmund shivered. He was never truly warm anymore. The cold from Her touch had never left him, even on the warmest of days and this winter's day, with the snow falling thickly around them, was far from warm.
Edmund turned his attention back to the squirrels whose names were Silver and Trixie (this was the only coherent information that he had gotten out of them). They were so excited that they could barely form a sentence. A task which would have been less difficult had they refrained from interrupting each other … repeatedly!
The squirrels were still chattering, but he couldn't make out a word that they were saying.
"And then the dwarf said …"
"And I said we'd go look for …"
"Because we'd heard you were in the w …"
"So, we told the dwarves we'd come and find you and tell you, King Edmund!"
At last, one of the squirrels, Trixie, Edmund thought it was, had managed to produce a full sentence. They looked at Edmund expectantly, but Edmund was still at a loss.
"Tell me what, friend Trixie?" he asked as mildly as he could, while the soldiers and even Oreius, attempted with various degrees of success to hide their amused expressions.
The squirrels looked at Edmund as if they suspected that he might be a little slow. (And in truth, in comparison to the speed of a squirrel's speech when they are excited, everything and everyone might be considered a bit slow).
"About the foot of course!" said Trixie.
"The statue" added Silver helpfully at Edmund's blank look.
And then they were off again. Amid their frenzied ramblings, Edmund was just about able to make out that a group of dwarves had been excavating an old watch tower in the woods and had come across a statue and had decided that one of the Kings or Queens should be told.
"Do you think it is one of Her statues?" Edmund asked as they made their way through the woods towards the dwarfs' excavations. They all knew who the Young King meant of course, despite his poor grammar. In the ten years since the defeat of the White Witch, Edmund had healed from many wounds both physical and psychological, but he still avoided speaking Jadis' name if he could.
"We shall have to wait and see, My King" answered Oreius. "I had thought that Aslan had restored all those who the White Witch turned to stone – but if this one was buried under the ruins of the tower…"
"I hadn't even realised that there were any buildings of that type in Lantern Waste, interjected Teller, the faun soldier who was on patrol with them. "I thought that all of the inhabitants in these parts preferred to build under ground or use natural caves or low-lying dwellings."
"They do" answered Oreius. "But this tower was not built for a Narnian." He glanced quickly at Edmund who was listening with interest.
"It was a watch tower built by the White Witch" he explained. "She built it here, for she knew that it was in these parts that humans first came to Narnia, and it was here that she feared they would return to fulfil the prophesy. Over the years, however the watch became less vigilant, and the tower was allowed to fall into disrepair and eventually ruin."
"When were these towers built?" asked Edmund.
It was Lupa, Edmund's wolf guard who answered. Lupa had been in service to the White Witch, although unwillingly when under the control of his previous alpha Maugrim. He had provided an invaluable source of information on the Witch and her followers in the first years of the Pevensie's reign when they had been seeking out the remnants of Jadis' army.
"The Tower was said to have been built shortly after Jadis conquered Narnia" he explained. "Some Hundred years ago I would guess My King."
Teller whistled.
"So, this statue, if it is a Narnian turned to stone, would be over one hundred years old?" he asked. "Imagine how pleased they will be that the Witch is dead, and her winter destroyed if we can wake them up!"
Lupa frowned.
"There is another possibility," he commented.
"Jadis was not averse to turning her own followers to stone if they vexed her!"
Oreius looked thoughtfully at his King.
"It would be best then, Your Majesty if you did not reveal your identity at first if we are able to revive this Narnian." he advised.
"Agreed General … Tamuil" Edmund motioned one of the soldiers closer, a tall oak dryad. "Can you have your fellow dryads spread the word and inform the dwarves who found the statue. Until further notice I am to be known only as 'Ed.'"
With a smile and a nod, the tall dryad bowed as he assumed his tree form and disappeared in a rustle of leaves.
It was not much longer before they arrived at the site of the dwarf's excavations to find a small group gathered around something on the ground. Even the squirrels were quiet for once as Edmund approached. The Narnians drew back at Edmund's approach, and he saw a statue of a young woman dressed in armour lying on the ground in their midst. Kneeling on the snowy ground to get a better look he found himself looking at what he thought was probably the most beautiful woman he had ever seen.
But she was stone and stone she would remain unless …
"Aslan" Edmund prayed "help us … help her! He leaned down and stroked the cold cheek of the statue.
Then, he felt rather than heard, someone behind him and smelt and heard a breath passing by his cold hand.
"Thank you, Aslan," Edmund turned around … but there was nothing and no one behind him save the Narnians.
Turning back to the statue, Edmund found himself looking into a pair of stunning emerald eyes.
A/N: That's it for now – Thanks for reading and I hope you like it, please review!