An Unexpected Romance

Chapter 2

"Well I didn't exactly have a solid gold chess set in Finchley, did I?" He replies, snatching the piece away from his sister.

Lucy seems to be piecing something together with her eyes as she views our surroundings.

"Lucy? What are you thinking?" I asked.

I've been trying to visualize the place the siblings described to me just minutes ago, but the place is in such disarray that I can't picture it.

Lucy dashes towards the center of the ruins.

"Imagine walls! And columns there! And a glass roof!"

She gestures above and around us. A look of remembrance and sad understanding comes over the Pevensies.

"Cair Paravel," Peter whispers.

"You four lived in Cair Paravel? With the high kings and queens?" I ask.

"Well, yes," Lucy says, pausing between her words.

"Did you know them well?" I ask her, in awe of the Pevensies' experience.

"You might say that," Peter says with a half smile.

We venture on, and Edmund kneels down.

"Catapults," he mumbles in disbelief. "All of this didn't just happen. Cair Paravel was attacked."

We all look at each other with concern.

"How do you figure that?" I ask.

"Look," Edmund says, gesturing to a round boulder on the ground, "that stone is too round to be naturally shaped that way, and based on the large dents in the remains of that wall over there, it was likely hit by stones this size."

I look at Edmund with a surprised look.

"I've done this before," Edmund says with a smirk, noticing my expression of disbelief, "you might say the High Kings and I worked very closely on battle strategy."

I narrow my eyes and shoot him an amused smile.

The boys open a door to one of the remaining structures. Peter begins to rip his shirt to make a torch.

"I don't suppose you have an matches do you?" He inquires of his brother.

"Mm-no, but..." he fumbles about in his bag, "would this help?"

He pulls out his electric torch and offers it to Peter. Susan, Lucy, and I laugh at the look on Peter's face.

"You might have mentioned that a bit sooner!" Peter says in an amused tone.

We make our way through the door and down into the big room below. The Pevensies seemed thrilled with the findings, though I only saw old statues of kings and queens.

"It's all still here!" Peter said as his siblings rushed each to a chest.

I watch as they open them. Peter pulls out a powerful looking sword. There's something inscribed on it, but I can't read it from where I'm standing.

"I was so tall," Lucy remarks as she holds a dress from the chest up to her.

She was so tall? I thought.

I knew they had lived here a lifetime, but this seemed like a memorial to the Kings and Queens of old they had told me about. Wait-

"Wait a minute," I put my hands up as all four of them turn towards me, "Do you mean to tell me that these Kings and Queens of Narnia, are you four?"

The siblings smile at each other. Susan nods at me.

"Why on earth would you leave that detail out?" I exclaim, "That's a bit of an important detail, you think? I'd like to have known I've been in the presence of high royalty all this time."

I was laughing but also in shock of what I had just pieced together.

"Well, we didn't want to come across as bragging," Peter smiled.

"I'll brag. I'm King Edmund the Just," Ed looks at me with a proud, teasing smile.

I smile back at him.

"Honored to formally meet you, your majesty," I say with a smirk as I pretend to curtsey for him.

"We might have to teach you how to curtsey properly, y/n," Lucy giggles.

"I would love for you to teach me, Queen Lucy," I say as I wink at her.

She gives me a precious smile.

Peter blows the dust off his shield. Susan searches through her chest.

"My horn. I must have left it on my saddle when we came back," she says with disappointment.

She's referring to the horn that St. Nick gifted to the High Queen, which, evidently, is her.

Peter reads the inscription on his sword; his sword bestowed upon him as High King of Narnia. No wonder his ego had grown a few sizes since he'd first been here.

"When Aslan bares his teeth, winter meets it's death..."

I get goosebumps at the mere words.

"When he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again," Lucy finishes quietly. "Everyone we knew... Mr. Tumnus and the Beavers...they're all gone."

A heavy silence fell over the room. Even though I didn't know these beings, I knew the importance they played in the Pevensies' story in Narnia. I knew they loved them deeply, and I felt for the Pevensies. I can't even imagine how exciting, strange, and sad this all must be for them. Peter's face hardens as he moves his eyes towards his sword and takes a deep breath.

"I think it's time we found out what's going on."