A year as a Narnian || 365 Narnia one shots (Part two)

277: The Sirens - Part One

October 4th - Prompt: Mermaids

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Edmund smiled gently to himself as he wondered along the shoreline, enjoying the peace and quiet and the slight warmth of the sun.

He was glad to get out of the castle for the time being, Susan was busy preparing for the Autumn feast, and Edmund would rather not be roped in to helping.

He glanced out across the ocean, but frowned when he saw movement in the water a little way away.

Maybe a fish or something?

He was about to continue walking, when he heard someone singing.

It sounded like it was actually coming from the water, and before Edmund had known what he was doing, he was walking towards thee noise.

He didn't remember anything after that, but after being dragged into the water, and after holding his breath for as long as he could, he eventually passed out, unable to hold on any longer.

☆☆☆

"Peter!"

Peter jumped and his head snapped up at the shrill scream from his sister as Lucy came bursting into the study, pushing the door so hard it thudded against the wall behind it, maybe even making Lucy jump a little.

Peter leapt from his chair, eyes wide as he caught Lucy by her shoulders. "What is it?" He asked, panicked. "What's wrong?!"

Lucy looked absolutely terrified, as well as horrified and worried, and this worried Peter beyond anything. "Ed - Edmund - Edmund!" She cried. 

Peter's heart was pounding. "What about him?" He choked, already fearing the worst.

Tears quickly made their way down Lucy's cheeks, even though she was clearly trying to keep them back so that she could just explain. "He - He was down the - the beach." She stuttered. "I saw him from - from my balcony. He - He was by the sea and - and then we was - was pulled into the sea-"

Peter shook his head. "Wait, pulled into the sea?" He questioned, before swallowing hard. "Take a deep breath Lu, you need to take a deep breath."

Lucy let Peter sit her down, before doing as he had said and swallowing hard. "He was walking along the shoreline." She whispered, managing to calm down a little, but the tears were still falling. "Just like normal, but then he started walking into the sea, staring at something in the water, and - and there was definitely something there, I saw something." She paused for a moment, noting the terrified look in her oldest brothers eyes, before taking a deep breath. "He carried on walking until the water came up to his waist, before he was pulled under - right under, and - and he didn't come back up again!"

The last sentence was said with a quiet cry, and Peter quickly pulled her into a hug despite his own pounding heart. "Shhh, it's okay." He murmured. 

"He didn't come back up!" Lucy sobbed quietly, clinging to Peter. 

Peter squeezed his eyes shut, taking a deep shuddering breath, before slowly pulling away. "Take me to the spot you last saw him." He murmured. 

Lucy stared at him for a while, before taking a deep breath and nodding, grabbing Peter's hand and leading him quickly from the room.

They made their way down to the beach and across the sand, until Lucy glanced back up at the castle, finding her balcony before nodding and stopping. "Here." She whispered, her voice shaking. "I think."