Come Home - E. Pevensie [2]

5 - Aslan's How

Lucy caught up to Edmund and me as we walked with the Narnians to the How. She picked at the fabric of my sleeve, peering at my arm silently. I shared a glance with Edmund and smiled.

"What's the verdict, doc?" I grinned. Lucy looked up to me with a small smile.

"You'll live." She stuck her cordial back into her belt and sped up her pace once again to reach Susan.

Edmund threw his arm around my shoulders, sighing. "I suppose you are a pretty good swordsman-"

"Swordswoman." I corrected. He rolled his eyes.

"Swordswoman, if you were able to fight against a surprise attack almost twice your size and only leave with a scratched arm."

Edmund glanced at my face, looking back again with a growing smirk. He used the hand that wasn't around my shoulders and swiped it along my bottom lip. He turned his thumb, showing me that the pad was tinted red with blood.

I frowned before sticking out my tongue, my face scrunching as the familiar taste of copper filled my mouth. I pulled out of my daggers and looked in the reflection. Split lip.

"Guess not just a scratched arm." I pouted. Edmund laughed and bumped my hip with his.

"Still impressive." He said. I grinned and waved my hand in a bow.

"I told you, I'm the best of the best."

Ed shook his head and grinned this time. "I won't argue this time, but only 'cause you have a booboo."

I rolled my eyes and poked him in the ribcage before wrapping my arm around his waist. Our footsteps fell in line and we laughed as our feet occasionally stumbled over each other's, sometimes purposefully.

I felt the familiar tingle of butterflies in my stomach, but I quickly pushed them away. Just as I've been doing for the past sixteen years. I widened my grin, hoping Edmund didn't see it fall momentarily.

A few hours before dusk, we reached what the others called the How. From the outside, it looked only like a simple rock formation. Trees grew on uneven levels and vines twisted their way into the cracks of the stone. It looked ancient.

As we walked down the natural aisle lined with saluting centaurs, I felt Lucy giggle beside me. I turned to see her waving at a shy, young centaur who held his sword much too low. His father corrected it for him, to which I sent him a nod and a grin.

"It may not be what you are used to," Caspian spoke as he entered behind the Pevensies and me. "But it is defensible."

Peter nodded as we ambled around, saying hello to some Narnians or gazing up at the structure.

"Peter," Susan called from a tunnel near the back corner. "You may want to see this."

Edmund, Caspian, and I followed Peter into the tunnel lined with torches. Inside, the walls were covered in paintings. At a closer look, I could tell that it was us. Our story. From Lucy meeting Mr. Tumnus under the lamppost to a drawing of the five of us racing through the forest on our horses the last day we were here, it was all there. I brushed my fingers across a picture of Lucy and me dancing with the trees.

"Mae, come here." Edmund called softly from my left. I wandered over to see the picture he was pointing at. It was him and me, dueling with our swords.

I smiled and jutted out my lip. "Awe, it's us!" My eyes scanned over the drawing for a moment more before I jumped, shoving a finger in Edmund's face. "Wait! Haha! Look! It is quite literally written in stone. I taught you your moves! I win!" I did a small victory dance in my spot.

Edmund grabbed my hands to stop my horrible dancing, laughing. "All right! I give up. You're right. I learned everything I know from-"

"You guys." Peter interrupted. He had a slight smile on his face, mixed with a grimace. "You two might want to see this one."

He held his torch up to another drawing. Edmund and I walked closer. My pulse pounded in my ears as I looked over it. It was Edmund and I, or rather just our faces. In the painting, our cheeks were flushed, and our eyes sparkled. We looked... in love. Branches of green and brown twisted behind us into the shape of a heart.

I felt my face warm as I stepped back, my mind wheeling. Who painted that? What made them paint it? Who would ever think that Edmund and I were in love? I peered through my eyelashes to Edmund. He was staring at the wall in shock, his face likely as warm as mine with wide eyes.

Caspian walked up to us and smiled. "Ah, yes. Many stories tell of the infatuation between you two. Your relationship is a legend." He said. My jaw dropped and I quickly spoke, tripping over my words.

"Oh! Uh, Edmund and I never... Well, we weren't... We're just friends." I finally spit out.

Edmund looked down and rubbed his neck, most likely mortified. Great. Nothing feels better than seeing the boy you love to be embarrassed at the thought of a relationship between you two.

Caspian nearly dropped his torch in shock. "But...But the stories. The garden and your neck-"

"What is this place?" Susan asked, from behind Caspian, joining the group. I furrowed my eyebrows as Caspian replied to her.

Garden? I had no clue what he could have been talking about. Edmund and I never had a-

Oh. The Garden.

In the early years of our reign, Edmund and I spent a lot of time together in a conservatory in the castle. It was where he gave me my necklace, and where he would, in later years, surprise me again with an entire patch of Mayflowers. My hand raised to fiddle with my pendant as Edmund shuffled beside me.

Caspian said something along the lines of 'follow me', to which Susan and Edmund were quick to do. Lucy hurried to catch up and Peter hung back, holding a torch and giving me a sympathetic look.

As he walked closer I groaned, resting my head on his shoulder. He let out a chuckle and rubbed my back softly before urging me to follow behind the others.

When we reached the others, the Edmund situation was quickly wiped from my head. We had entered a large room with a large engraving of Aslan looking over a stone table. Not just any stone table. The Stone Table, the very same that he was killed on and resurrected from. Susan and Lucy each stood at an edge, frowns on their faces.

"He must know what he's doing." Susan said softly. My eyes pricked with tears at the familiar words and walked forward, holding Lucy tightly as she buried her head in my chest.

I looked up to the engraving of Him in the stone. Although only rock, I could almost feel his eyes looking back at me. I took in a deep breath and smiled, taking strength from the detail of His face. As I did, Peter spoke.

"I think it's up to us now."