A 10 minute bus ride later did they get off on the border of the city centre, Lilith continuing to lead them through unknown streets.
These streets made even her uncomfortable as she did her best to keep them rounded up in a tight group.
“Right.” She told them, turning to address the five. “In order for a place for us to stay on such short notice- I’ve an idea, but I’ve to ask... a friend for a favour. No matter what’s said or what you see just- behave. He’s not the best person, but we don’t have much choice. We’ll be in and out as quick as possible.”
"What friend?" Peter asked, wary as soon as he heard the 'he'.
"A guy I slept with." She told him bluntly and he hid his wince. "An absolute dick, who I despise."
Peter looked much happier after that.
"WHY are we going there?" Susan asked, suddenly wishing she had a coat on. She'd never been THIS exposed in public. Men’s and even some women’s eyes seemed to linger on her.
"You guys need a place to live. At least for a while." Lilith replied, beginning down a narrow street. "It's just past this alleyway."
Edmund and Sanya flushed bright red.
They made their way through the apartment block.
Ugh, how she wished she’d never have to see this place again.
She’d hit many lows in the past 2 years, but the weeks with him must’ve been at the very pit of even THOSE.
She knocked on his door, here goes nothing.
The door opened a moment later, “What? Oh. Lilith.” The boy- man (?) was clearly surprised, the corners of his lips turning up in a way that made her both want to punch him AND throw up slightly.
“Come for another-“
She yanked her arm out of his grasp as he reached for her. “DON’T even finish that’s sentence. And not if my life depended on it. Actually, I- we need a favour.” She spoke, glancing back at the Pevensies and Sanya.
“Hm. Who’re your friends?” He asked, yet his eyes were on Susan, incredibly indiscreetly as he looked her up and down.
Lilith immediately shoved him, her eyes narrowing as they met his mildly surprised ones. “Stay the fuck away from her, N. From all of them. We need a favour. One of your flats. I’ll give you £300 a week. Then we’ll be on our way.”
"I'll give it to you for 250, if you give me a night with yourself or-" he looked at Lucy "nah, too young- or with the silver eyed slutty one-" Susan shivered, her eyes daggers "or-" He raked her over Sanya's curvy figure "her. A bit fat but she'd do."
"Back off." Edmund growled violently, snatching Sanya back to him and for once, she didn't protest.
Peter hid Susan and Lucy behind him as well, face a mask of utter hatred and rage.
"Drop dead, N." Lilith hissed. "I give you 300, no hookups. Take it or leave it."
"All your losses." He leered at the girls, looking curiously at Ed's hands around Sanya's waist. "I coulda shown you a good time, darling, you'd have been screaming my name all night long."
Edmund and Peter gave a violent start but Sanya had stepped forward and hit his face, hard, with the entire box set.
He stumbled back, clearly surprised, his eyes darkening, as he lunged forward “Why, you little-“
“DON’T.” Lilith stood in front of him. She was NOT about to let him hit Sanya, nor call her friend what he’d been about to.
“You deserved it and a hell of a lot more. Now can we have the keys and go?” She asked, hardening her own eyes.
They NEEDED this.
He looked at the others in disdain.
“N- Nathan, please.” She tried again, he was clearly not budging and she let out a frustrated sigh. “Fine. 3 months rent upfront and we’ll- ugh. We’ll talk up an... arrangement at the end of it.” She spoke the last bit quickly, mostly so she didn’t have to register it.
“Deal.” He replied, clearly pleased with himself. “PayPal me it. Here, keys. Take number 23... oh, and I’ve got your number. I know where you live. I’ll be looking forward to the conclusion of our arrangement.”
And with that, he smirked before promptly closing the door.
“Twat.” Was all Lilith could mutter, but held the keys up, a slightly ‘didn’t go great but hey ho, mission accomplished’ expression on her face.
"You're not having sex with him, Lilith." Sanya had a very ugly look on her face.
She wished she could have beaten him up more.
Susan nodded resolutely.
"Absolutely not." Peter added, in complete agreement. "You're with me and I would never let you do something like that for m -us."
"It hopefully won’t be sex." Lilith shrugged, trying not to show how affected she was. "He might ask me to- he deals things, and often likes to let others make his deliveries."
Sanya raised her eyebrow. "The only way that helps anyone is if it's going to make the next Sherlock Holmes."
Lilith gave her a tight smile and they left that building, all of them breathing in the fresh air, even Edmund 'there's air inside' Pevensie.
"His flats are just the next building." Lilith said.
The flat wasn’t one of the worst, but it certainly wasn’t a cosy 40s family home Lilith decided, looking around.
She whipped out her phone, transferring him the money for the knowledge he was NOT one to be messed about with.
“It’s not-“ she sighed, turning around to see the look on their faces. “It’s a shithole, I know. I’m sorry. But I can’t think of anything else at the moment... there are only two bedrooms... but the sofas,” she peered over at said furniture “look manageable.” She spoke, feeling rather ill.
Oh, they deserved better.
“It’s better than nothing.” Lucy spoke with a smile, clearly trying to convince herself to see the optimistic side to their situation.
“Is it?” Edmund replied with a sceptical raised eyebrow.
Susan nudged him, hard, in the ribs, “Yes. Unless you want to sleep on the street. And you’re quite welcome to with that attitude.”
He made a face, but said nothing more.
"I can take the sofa." Sanya said, feeling sicker than ever. "You siblings can share the two rooms."
Were they in hell? Purgatory?
"But you can't sleep except in a bed." Edmund pointed out, trying not to show his worry.
"Then I won't." Sanya said, not looking at him. "How are the bathrooms?"
Lilith brightened a little at that. "Oh, the bathrooms are small, but ALWAYS clean, some tenants sued him pretty bad, so he keeps them spick and span."
"Thank As- goodness for small mercies." Peter murmured, sitting on a chair and then hastily getting up when he heard it creak ominously.
"Thanks, Lilith." They all chorused some moments later, as they all met up in the living room after a quick tour of the place- Sanya had stayed on the sofa and had started the first book.
"Don't." She whispered. "It's the best I can do, but it's not what you deserve."
"We'll get jobs." Lucy said optimistically. "We'll be improving our lot in no time."
Her elder siblings shared a sad glance at her hope.
“You’ll need IDs making first...” Lilith spoke regretfully. “But that shouldn’t be too difficult. We’ll nip by some shops in a bit and pick you up some clothes... do a food shop, too...”
Would her savings stretch that far?
Jobs weren’t something easy to come by, and with none of them having any experience or references or-
Oh, she’d fucked them over.
Sanya had been right. This WASN’T how things were supposed to be.
The Pevensies were NOT meant to be stood in a grotty, 2019 flat with no money, no clothes but what they were wearing.
Yet the only tie they had to that time, was her.
She looked at them all. Lucy knelt, appreciating Goose’s presence. Susan and Peter talking in hushed whispers. Sanya with her head already in the first book and Edmund, his eyes staring rather emptily out of the window.
“I’ll be back in a moment.” She spoke quietly, turning and making her way into the hall.
They were going through this. She’d dragged THEM down to her shitty existence. THEY’D lost more than she could ever understand, and yet it was HER who had to leave to breakdown- and other such thoughts were what spurred on MORE tears.
"Should we leave her be?" Lucy asked worriedly. "I bet she's gone off crying."
"I don't know." Sanya poked her head up from 'Yer a wizard, Harry'. "In my personal opinion, people don't like being seen when they cry."
"Also, we tried." Peter sat down next to her gingerly. "Maybe she just needs some time to get- get over it."
Susan surveyed them, Sanya looking gaunt as she stared unblinkingly at her book, Lucy and her eyes shining with tears, Peter with a chip on his shoulder which seemed immovable as he touched the table and at Edmund staring out the barred window, as still and pale as death.
She too became overcome with emotion, and sat down on the chair Peter had vacated a few moments ago, past caring for it’s threatening creaks.
"We don't deserve this." She spoke out loud, startling them all. "But we have to make do with what we have here, like in Narnia."
"THIS is what we have!" Edmund burst out. "Not a castle or people like in Narnia, stop deluding yourself, Su."
"Shut up." Sanya told him roughly and put a comforting hand on Susan's thigh. "You're trying to help, and we appreciate that. But we can't be very pleased about it, not right now."
Susan thought she was right and blinked away her tears.
"Someday then." She hoped, giving a wobbly smile.
It was a few hours later when Lilith left. The day had been full of nothing but subdued silence and forced optimism as they tried- and failed, to think of a plan.
The shopping had been suspended until the following day, no one being in the mood.
Lilith had wanted nothing more than to stay, ‘home’ wasn’t any longer her parents’ but with those she sat round the small table with. But with cramped sleeping conditions already, and her having built up in her head that they all secretly hated her as much as they ought to, she’d decided to announce she was leaving.
“Goose can stay, if you want, Lu.” She added, standing from the table. “He likes you. And it’ll save him quivering on the bus like the way here.”
Lucy smiled, nodding, “Thank you!”
“There’s a small shop attached to the bottom of the building. You guys grab something to eat, I’ll be back in the morning.” She told them, digging in her pocket and leaving the rest of her change on the table.
She wouldn’t need money for the bus back, as that’s not where she was going.
She hadn’t missed Ben, not at all since leaving. But she hadn’t needed him and what they- had.
Yet now the idea of self destruction seemed as appealing as it had those 2 years, and he DID live in the same building as Nathan.
She glanced to Peter, feeling terrible.
But she didn’t deserve him. He should have hated her from the moment he awoke in her room that morning.
He should hate her after she’d practically made his family homeless, lost him his future career AND had no idea how to help them.
“I’ll be here at 9. Please, DO eat.”
"Go on, Lu." Edmund surprisingly spoke an hour or two after they’d devoured the sandwiches Peter had got for them- clearly far from fresh, but edible.
Sanya missed her mother's food. She missed her mother, father, brother, Peter and even her grandmother- and she missed and missed and missed everything.
"Huh?" Lucy opened her eyes blearily.
Edmund spoke softly, with the voice of a father. "You're practically dozing off, go to sleep. Do you want me to tuck you in?" He added half jokingly.
"I'm not a child." She said sluggishly but went nevertheless, Susan peering in the direction she’d left.
"Maybe we can talk for real now." Peter set down the remainder of the sandwich, his stomach churning. "About what we're going to do."
Sanya looked surprised.
"We weren't going to talk about all that with Lucy here." Susan explained. "She can't be upset more than I know she already is."
"Fine, talk." She dog eared the page she was on.
-
“Ben.” The redhead spoke his name as the tall brunet answered the door.
“Lilith.” He spoke back, mildly surprised. “No text as warning this time? Is everything okay? You don’t look great... well, I mean you look- fine- but I meant-“
She shook her head, expelling his queries before walking past him, discarding her hoodie. She pushed the door close before gripping the front of his T-shirt and pressing her lips to his.
“Long time, no see.” He spoke through the kiss, which he met with equal enthusiasm.
She laughed slightly in her head.
“You have no idea.”