"Gwendolyn! Do you have everything you need?"
Gwen skimmed through her luggage, popping her head out of the doorway of her rarely occupied room. "Yes, Aunt Ellen!"
"Well, get down here! The car is here!"
"Yes, Aunt Ellen!"
Gwen quickly grabbed her few bags that held her belongings and trudged down the stairs of her aunt and uncle's home, trying not to trip and tumble down the flight of stairs.
For the seventh year in a row, Gwen had prepared to leave for boarding school. Boarding school was the best place for her, or, so her aunt and uncle assured her. She was sent home during the summer, enduring the months that she lodged with her extended family.
Ever since her parents were tragically killed in a train collision when she was eight, Gwen was given the choice of being sent to the orphanage, or go live with her only surviving relatives. She chose her family, seeing as she believed that they would take her with open arms.
In the days ahead, she realized how wrong she had turned out to be.
The first year was less than mediocre at best. But, then, as time passed, life with Robert and Ellen Brookes began to decline. Yes, Gwen always had a roof over her head, shoes on her feet, clothes on her back, and food to eat, but, it was just for appearances. She knew because that's what she had been told for years.
Robert and Ellen Brookes didn't have children of their own for a reason. Outside, they were the almost perfect couple, living the perfect life, but the inside held much more. Hatred, bitterness, and selfishness were just a few of the things they both had harbored in their souls since they were children, hidden well throughout the years of their lives.
When Robert lost his brother, he was horrified because he knew he would be sentenced to take care of his brother's child. Ellen was openly opposed to it from the start, just as he had been. Many arguments had taken place over this fact, but in the end, their niece would come live with them.
No, Gwen had never done anything except love them, be good, respect them as she would have with her real parents. But none of that mattered to the couple. So, to avoid taking care of her, Gwen was shipped off to boarding school at age ten, only coming back during the summer. Life had been hard enough for the poor dear as it was with losing her parents and trying to cope with the grief. Then she had to deal with the cruel teachers and students at the school.
As her first summer without her parents approached, Gwen began to actually anticipate it. She looked forward to seeing her family again. When she came back to what she had thought she could call "home", it wasn't what she had anticipated. She expected a hug or two, only receiving a stiff smile from both and a condescending glare from her aunt. Maybe it was a bad day, she thought.
But as the days bled into weeks, then months, she realized it wasn't what she believed that day coming home from school. It was as bad as school; no, worse. She would get yelled at over the smallest thing. She would be spoken to roughly. She was never physically abused, no, but it was all piling up mentally and emotionally.
Hurt and other feelings only grew over the years. Despite it all, Gwen was thankful for all her family did for her and she tried to keep up her spirits. She would remind herself that she wasn't fully alone. She had the Pevensies.
The years had passed, and she had kept up with them, the friendship bond between her and the siblings growing as close as it could to resembling family. She was beyond grateful for them, not knowing what she'd have done without them.
"You're sure that you have everything? Because once you leave, that's it. You're not getting it until next summer." Ellen snapped.
Gwen looked down. "Yes, Aunt Ellen. I'm sure."
Ellen looked down her nose at Gwen as the driver put her bags into the car. "Alright. Well, you know the drill. Don't do anything to tarnish the family name."
"Yes, ma'am. Goodbye,"
Ellen pursed her lips. "Goodbye."
Gwen adjusted her skirt and walked out the door. She inclined her head toward her uncle that waited outside. "Goodbye, Uncle Robert."
He dipped his head and walked back inside his house without another word or action. Gwen smiled at the driver that had opened the car door and she slid into the car, not looking back.
~~~
Gwen began to settle into her room at school. She had already unpacked one of her suitcases, but still had two to go. She turned on the small wooden radio that was placed on a nightstand and let the music drown everything out.
One day, she thought, I'm going to go to a big ball and have quite a time and be with a handsome man who fancies me.
She sighed. "Yeah, one day, Gwen. Precisely, never."
She unpacked her bag of toiletries, heading to the bathroom to put them away. She walked into the bathroom and the door slammed shut behind her. She jerked at it, wondering why it had done that. She grasped the handle and twisted it, only for it not to budge. She tried again; it still wouldn't open.
"What in the world . . ."
The sound of wind blowing made her whirl around to the bathtub, wondering what was happening. "I must be dreaming," she said. It came stronger until the whole bathroom around her began to dwindle away.
Gwen cried out in fear over what was happening. She crouched down with her hands over her head to protect herself from the flying debris. But then it came to her. This was something like the Pevensies had told her about. How they had traveled to a magical land. Their tales reminded her of the bedtime stories Gwen's mother would tell her. Of course, she wanted to believe it was nonsense, but why would they lie to her? They were her closest friends and they never had before. Then, part of her wanted to believe it was true, she just hadn't admitted it yet.
Once Gwen opened her eyes again after the sharp wind had ceased, the bathroom shifted into a cave with a beautiful ocean in the distance. She gasped. Where was she?
"Gwen? Gwen Brookes?"
She turned at the voice, seeing the Pevensies.
"Peter! Lucy! Edmund! Susan! Is that you?"
"Yes!" She heard the familiar voice of Lucy. "It's us!"
Gwen went running onto the shore to meet them, embracing them all after not seeing them in so long and in relief, after the ordeal she had just gone through.
"How are you here?" Peter asked.
"I don't know. I was in the bathroom at my boarding school room and then it changed to here. It was terrifying! Where are we?"
"We don't know," Susan said. "But we're having quite a bit of fun splashing around."
"Even if we are in our school uniforms," Edmund laughed.
Gwen and the others laughed with him. She looked down at the uniform she wore. The colors were close to Susan and Lucy's, but slightly different, signifying that she belonged to a different school.
"It's hot out here, isn't it?"
Peter nodded. "That's why we took off our unneeded layers. You can take your jacket off and throw it over there with ours if you'd like,"
Gwen hurriedly dropped her jacket and tie in the pile of the other now rumpled school uniforms. She pulled off her shoes and socks, dropping them next to the others. Then she went running to the water where her friends had returned.
They all splashed around in the water for a few minutes, enjoying their time together that was long overdue. After a little while longer, Edmund stopped and looked around at the surroundings.
"Ed! Ed?" Susan called.
"What is it, Ed?" Gwen asked.
"Where do you suppose we are?" Edmund asked.
"I don't know, but I don't care as long as I'm away from school," Gwen giggled.
"Where do you think?" Peter asked.
"Well, I don't remember any ruins in Narnia," Edmund said.
Gwen raised a brow. "Narnia? That's the name of the magical land you all told me of?"
"Yes. Oh, Gwen, you're going to love it here!" Lucy said.
Susan brushed some of her hair out of her face, tucking it behind her ear. "I know it's hard to believe, but--"
"No, it's . . . actually not. I want to believe it's all a dream, but somehow I can't."
"Well, we can assure you, it's not a dream, even though this is supposed to be quite impossible," Peter said. "But if this is Narnia, Lucy's right. You're going to love it here."
"Unless there's a battle," Edmund said.
"Ba--battle?" Gwen stuttered. The thought of a battle thrilled and terrified her all at once.
Lucy smiled. "Yes! Last time we were here, you remember, I told you of the battle we fought--"
"The Witch, yes."
"I wonder why we're here this time," Susan thought.
"Why am I here?" Gwen questioned.
"Maybe Aslan wanted you, too." Lucy offered.
"Well, let's find out if we are in Narnia. The best way to do that is to explore." Peter said.
They all stepped out of the water, not bothering to gather their belongings from the beach. As they walked, Gwen surveyed her surroundings. It was beautiful. The clear blue water that reminded her of glass, clear, cloudless skies, even the ruins above were pretty.
Gwen walked with Peter, looking around with him.
"So, how has life been?" Peter asked.
Gwen sighed. "As well as it can go."
Peter looked at her, wishing he could help the girl he called his honorary sister. "I'm sorry. I wish there was something I could do."
Gwen shook her head. "It's okay, Pete."
Peter took her hand. "Hey, we love you."
Gwen smiled, squeezing Peter's hand. "I love you all too."
Gwen and Peter walked around a bit more, catching up and ending up meeting up with Edmund, Susan, and Lucy again.
"Hey, that's mine." Edmund pointed to a figure in Susan's hand. "From my chess set."
"Which chess set?" Peter asked.
"I didn't exactly have a solid gold chess set in Finchley, did I?" Edmund took the figure from Susan.
Gwen looked at the figure in Edmund's hand. It was beautiful.
"Can't be," Lucy said, running off.
They all looked at each other and ran off after her. Lucy grabbed Peter's hand and pulled him onto a concrete slab.
"Don't you see?" she asked him.
"What?"
Lucy began to pull her siblings up with her to the slab. "Imagine walls. And columns there. And a glass roof."
Gwen stood before the siblings, seeing how they were lined up. They carried themselves like royalty, despite their current outer image. That was an element of the siblings she had never before noticed.
"Cair Paravel," Peter said.
"Cair Paravel? Is that where you all ruled?"
"Yes," Susan said, breathlessly.
"What happened here then?"
"I don't know. But I want to find out." Peter said.
They all looked around, searching for anything that could have told them how the beloved castle had been destroyed. They trekked uphill, and Edmund fell to his knees before a rock.
"Catapults," he said.
"What?"
"This didn't just happen. Cair Paravel was attacked."
The siblings looked at each other, trying to take the information in. Peter walked forward, pulling branches and vines away from a wall. He and Edmund pushed on the piece of wall, revealing a door.
Gwen gasped in delight. Peter punched through the door, the old and deteriorating wood falling to where he could open the door. He began to cut fabric from his shirt.
"What are you doing?" Gwen asked, almost horrified that he was ruining his clothes.
He picked a branch up from the ground, wrapping the fabric around it. "Don't suppose you have any matches, do you?" Peter looked at Edmund.
"No," Edmund looked through his satchel. "But . . . would this help?" He pulled a torch out and Gwen couldn't help but laugh.
"You might have mentioned that a bit sooner," Peter laughed.
Everyone smiled and, with Edmund leading, they all descended the staircase.
A/N: Hello and welcome to this story! Thanks for giving it a chance! Just a short disclaimer: I do not own Narnia, any dialogue from it, or anything of it. I only own Gwen and parts of the plot. Thanks again and I hope you enjoy!