The sound of train whistles filled the air as the six Pevensies made their way across the station. Annabelle stood next to her younger brother, eyes filled with sadness but with a strong hand on his shoulder. She was not ready to say goodbye.
The station was filled with what looked like thousands of children and hundreds of mothers, all exuding the same sadness as Annabelle and her family. From the corner of her eye, Annabelle could see Edmund glancing around the station, likely hoping to catch the eyes of passing soldiers. She missed Dad, too.
The time to say goodbye came earlier than any of them wanted to. Helen knelt in front of Lucy, hugging her youngest to her chest. Little Lucy was trying her best to be brave and not to cry, and Annabelle nearly shed her own tears just watching the interaction. The middle Pevensie looked up, blinking rapidly to clear her eyes of the tears before they could fall.
"If Dad were here, he wouldn't make us go," said Edmund as Helen knelt in front of him, about to say goodbye.
"If Dad were here, it'd mean the war was over and we wouldn't have to go," said Peter with the tone he seemed to reserve especially for Edmund. Annabelle shot him a look over Edmund's head, her eyes clearly expressing the message. Now is not the time.
"You will listen to your brother, won't you, Edmund?" asked Helen, though she already knew the answer. "And you'll listen to Annabelle, right?" she asked, hoping for a different result. Edmund kept his face neutral, and Helen sighed before reaching up to hug her youngest boy. Edmund, however, turned away swiftly and Helen paused for a heartbreaking moment before simply kissing his cheek, moving on to her eldest, and pulling him in for a tight hug. "Promise me you'll look after the others."
"I will, Mum," said Peter as he squeezed his eyes shut, burying his face in her neck.
"Good man," Helen smiled tearfully as she released him, moving on to her oldest girl. "Susan," she whispered as she pulled her daughter in for a hug. Annabelle could see Susan's face over their mother's shoulder, and it was clear that the older girl was doing everything she could to not break down right there and then. "Be a big girl," Helen told Susan quietly and the 15-year-old nodded tearfully with a brave smile. Finally, Helen moved on to her last child. Her special little girl. "Anna, come here."
"Mum," Annabelle nearly whimpered, her fingers grasping at the back of her mother's coat. She was not ready to say goodbye.
"Listen to me," whispered Helen gently, but urgently. "Be careful. Remember, nobody can find out about you."
"I know," whispered Annabelle, her voice hitching just the tiniest bit. "They won't."
"Good girl," Helen smiled, squeezing her daughter one more time. "Take care of the others for me. And look after yourself." "I will, I promise," Annabelle nodded as she finally pulled away, a tear glistening in her eye as she mustered up a smile. Her mother smiled back at her proudly, and Annabelle knew that she was telling the truth. She would not let anything happen to any of her siblings. She would protect them, no matter what.
"All right," said Helen, smiling at her children whom she desperately hoped she would be able to see again. "Off you go."
The five Pevensie children gathered their luggage and, with one last glance at their mother, began to walk away. Susan led the group, making a futile attempt to hold Edmund's hand. Within seconds, his hand was out of her grasp.
"Hey, get off! I know how to get on a train by myself," huffed Edmund and Annabelle sighed quietly as she followed him. "Get off me!"
Near the train, the inspector was asking all incoming passengers for tickets. When the woman repeated herself, Annabelle realized that she was talking to them and looked over her shoulder at Peter, who had all five of their tickets. Her older brother was looking away, eyes dazed as he stared at a group of passing soldiers. Annabelle sighed sadly but quickly tore her gaze away from the uniformed men.
"Pete," she called quietly, reaching forward to gently pull the tickets out of his hand. That seemed to snap the boy out of his daze, and he watched as Annabelle walked to the front of the group to hand their tickets to the inspector. Upon approval, the five siblings began to make their way toward the train. Annabelle reached forward, placing her hand on Edmund's shoulder. She made a conscious effort to grip lightly, ensuring that the boy could pull away if he really wanted to. The two had a bit of a silent agreement, just between the two of them – Edmund would allow Annabelle to coddle him and rein him in when necessary, and in return, she would always listen to his concerns and would never dismiss him like Peter often did. The rest of their siblings did not know about their little pact, but that was of little consequence. In the long run, their arrangement kept the peace.
They were almost at the train when Annabelle heard a familiar whimper behind her. Turning her head, the girl's heart broke a little when she saw Lucy crying as Peter tried to console her. The older boy was nearly bent in half, making sure his face was on the same level as Lucy's as he whispered reassuring words. With her heart beating just a bit quicker, Annabelle dropped her hand from Edmund's shoulder and made her way over to her oldest and youngest siblings, crouching in front of Lucy and sending her a comforting smile.
"Come on, Lu," she whispered, placing her hands on the little girl's waist. "Hey," she whispered again as Lucy closed her eyes, her lips trembling. "Hey, look at me," Annabelle requested quietly and Lucy obliged even as her tears continued to pour. "It will be okay. I know this is scary but you're not alone. We're all in this together. Okay?"
Lucy stared into her older sister's eyes before glancing over at Peter, who sent her another comforting smile and an encouraging nod. Looking back at Annabelle, Lucy seemed to gather all her courage and she drew in a deep breath before nodding hesitantly. Seeing the small nod, Annabelle's smile widened just a bit before she stood up and held out her hand for the little girl to take.
"Come on."
And with that, all five Pevensies made their way onto the train. Peter and Annabelle exchanged a small look over Lucy's head, with the older boy sending his sister a grateful smile. He knew he was the oldest and therefore it was his responsibility to look after and take care of all of his siblings, but more often than not, he felt incredibly overwhelmed. And in those times when he felt like he was drowning, Annabelle was always there to provide a shoulder to lean on and a guiding hand, leading him down the right path. Even though he was the oldest, Peter often felt like his younger sister was the true savior of their family.
Upon getting on the train, the children all made their way over to the window, poking their heads out and looking around for one last glimpse of their mother. Finally, they spotted Helen in the crowd as she pushed forward to wave to her children, whom all waved back with teary smiles.
"Goodbye!"
The Pevensie siblings slowly made their way through the train as they searched for a compartment empty enough to fit all five of them. The trials and tribulations of having a large family.
Finally, they came upon a compartment with only two other children in it. The little girl looked to be about Lucy's age and the little boy looked a few years younger. Peter opened the sliding door to the compartment and Annabelle made her way inside first, sending the younger kids a small smile.
"Is this seat taken?" she asked, and the two children shook their heads. Sending them another small smile, Annabelle reached back to grab Lucy's hand again as she handed her luggage off to Peter, who also grabbed Lucy's luggage to put it in the overhead compartment. After placing his and Susan's luggage overhead as well, Peter attempted to help Edmund put his luggage away, but the younger boy stubbornly shook his brother off and performed the task himself. Peter sighed quietly to himself but said nothing, instead opting to sit next to the two strangers as his siblings all squeezed together on the other seat. Lucy ended up having to sit in Susan's lap, but they all eventually settled comfortably.
After a few hours, the train stopped at the station where the other two children got off. With the extra space, Susan made her way over to sit next to Peter, and the other three children settled more comfortably on the seat. Edmund looked out the window, seeing the little boy and girl being treated rather roughly as they met their temporary caretakers. Edmund swallowed nervously looking over at his older brother as Peter met his eyes. What if they would be treated like that, as well? Peter would protect them, right?
As Peter met his brother's eyes, he also glanced over at Annabelle, who had an arm around Lucy. She sent him a small smile and then reached over to ruffle Edmund's hair lightly. The younger boy huffed in annoyance, but the tiniest of smiles made its way onto his lips. Mission accomplished, Annabelle thought to herself as she looked out the window, feeling the butterflies in her stomach. The girl knew one thing for sure: if they ended up with people like that, she would do everything in her power to keep her siblings safe. And power was the one thing she knew she possessed.
After countless more hours on the train, the five Pevensies were dropped off at their final destination. Standing on the small platform that could barely be considered a station, the children looked around before quickly running down the wooden steps as they heard an approaching car. However, the car paid them no mind and continued on its way. It was not here for them.
"The professor knew we were coming," said Susan, confused.
"Perhaps we've been incorrectly labeled," suggested Edmund, picking up his label and flipping it around so that he could read it again. Before Annabelle got the chance to respond, a neigh sounded out from the open road. Craning her neck, Annabelle's brows furrowed as she saw a horse pulling a carriage atop which sat a strict-looking woman in her 50s. At first, Annabelle was sure that the woman would simply pass them and be on her way, but she was quickly proven wrong as the horse stopped directly in front of the five children. Peter and Annabelle exchanged a bewildered look, before looking up at the woman.
"Mrs. Macready?" questioned Peter hesitantly.
"I'm afraid so," the woman replied, her face not giving away even one emotion. Annabelle exchanged another bewildered look with Susan, as Peter and Edmund locked eyes. Only little Lucy continued to look up at Mrs. Macready. "Is this is, then? Haven't you brought anything else?"
"No, ma'am. It's just us," replied Peter as Lucy nodded emphatically.
"Small favors," Mrs. Macready smirked before jerking her head sideways, indicating that the children were to get onto the carriage. Annabelle's lips parted and she almost questioned the woman before stopping herself just in time. First impressions were everything, and Annabelle's first impression of Mrs. Macready was that she was not someone to be messed with. So, the five Pevensies got onto the carriage and continued their seemingly never-ending journey.
