my king (peter pevensie)

f i v e

Standing outside of the Beaver's home, we all watched a small figure disappear through the gates of the White Witch's castle.

"Edmund!" Lucy called after him, but the beaver's quickly shushed her.

"They'll hear you!" Mr. Beaver chastised.

"We can't just let our brother die." Peter said, getting up, and moving towards the castle.

"Stop! Don't you get it? He's the bait. The White Witch is trying to draw the rest of you in. I'm sorry, but Aslan is the only one that can help your brother now." Mr. Beaver said to the distraught Pevensie siblings.

"This is all your fault Peter!" Susan exclaimed. "We should have left when we had the chance."

"Did you know this was going to happen?" Peter snapped at his sister.

"No I didn't but-" Susan began. 

"Your bickering isn't helping anything!" I interrupted. "If Aslan is the only one who can save Edmund, take us to him." I said to Mr. Beaver.

He nodded, and motioned for us to follow him back into the dam.

*****

We had just barely sat down around the table again when a horrible howl sounded from outside the house. "You're in trouble now." Mr. Beaver said, worriedly.

"What was that?" Lucy asked, her eyes wide with fear.

"The Witch's police. Wolves." Mrs. Beaver explained with a shudder. "We need to move, and quickly. Get as much together as you can."

We all scampered around the beaver's house, grabbing as much food as we could. "Do we need any jam?" I asked.

"Are you planing on having toast with the Witch?" Peter asked snidely. I glared at him, throwing a few jars in for good measure. After we had a few bags filled with assorted food, Mr. Beaver ushered us towards a tunnel.

"This will get us out safely." We all scrambled inside behind Mr. Beaver; the Pevensies and I having to duck our heads in the cramped space. We could hear the door being broken in, and howls sounding from above us.

"Hurry!" Mrs. Beaver called from the back of the line. We all moved as quickly as we could until Peter suddenly stopped in front of me. My momentum carried me forward, and I landed practically on top of him. I fought back a blush as I got off of him. I avoided eye contact, but I could feel him scowling.

"It's a dead end!" Mr. Beaver yelled from in front of Peter. "Up we go!" He leaped out of the tunnel to the ground above. Peter followed easily, but he had at least five inches on me, and there was no way I was making it up there without help.

"Let's go!" Beaver snapped at me. Peter seemed to notice my conundrum, and reached his hand down for me to grab. Before he could retract his offer, I reached up, and he pulled me out. As soon as our hands touched, my arm lit up with tingles. I felt my cheeks grow red, and I looked everywhere but Peter. He surely didn't feel anything, and I didn't need any more teasing. Peter released my hand the second I was out of the hole, reaching down for his other two sisters. Mrs. Beaver followed them, and we all stood, catching our breath before Mr. Beaver let out a cry.

The rest of us looked around, realizing that we were surrounded by stone statues of other animals. Beaver was standing in front of a badger, his face full of sorrow. "He was my best mate."

"I'm sorry dear." Mrs. Beaver said, walking over to comfort her husband.

"This is what happens to those who cross the Witch." A voice said from behind a hill, and in the next second, a fox appeared.

"You traitor! Don't take one more step." Mr. Beaver seethed.

"Hey, I'm one of the good guys." The fox retorted, still walking towards us.

"Well you certainly look a lot like one of the bad guys." Beaver argued.

"We can quarrel about my family history later. Right now you need to hide. Up the trees. Now." The fox ordered, and each of us began to climb up as far as we could go. I helped Lucy up one while Peter and Susan took another. Not a moment later, wolves came barreling into the clearing.

"Good afternoon gentlemen. Lost something Maugrim?" The head wolf, who I assumed was Maugrim, stepped towards the fox.

"Don't patronize me. Where are the humans?"

"Humans?" The fox scoffed with feigned surprise. "Here in Narnia?"

Another wolf pounced on Fox, and clutched him between his teeth. The fox whimpered, and Lucy began to shake beside me. The small girl was squeezing her eyes shut with fright, and I quietly pulled her into a hug. For how scared I was feeling, I couldn't even imagine how she felt. Lucy was one of the bravest people I had ever met. Only 10 years old, and she had discovered a new land all on her own. Then her siblings doubted her until they reached the land for themselves. Most children her age would have broken down in tears multiple times by now, but not Lucy. She was such a strong little girl. I held her tightly to me as the fox and Maugrim continued to bicker.

Finally, the wolf bit down on Fox so hard I was surprised he didn't snap in half. "Tell us where they are or you die." Maugrim told the fox, flashing his teeth.

"North. They went North." The fox whimpered. I let out a sigh. He didn't betray us.

The wolf cast Fox aside, and they took off towards the North. After a few moments, we made our way back down the trees. Lucy seemed a bit shaky with heights, so I helped her down. I looked around to see how the others were doing, when I caught Peter's eye. A blush crept up on my cheeks, but he quickly looked away. He'll probably make fun of my tree climbing abilities later.

Once we had all made our way onto the ground, we made our way to another clearing where we set up a fire. We each took spots around it, and I ended up beside Lucy and Mrs. Beaver. Mrs. Beaver was fixing up Fox's wounds, which drew many yelps from him. I snuck a glance at Peter, who was across from me, and my heart began to race. He was staring into the fire, and the flames gave his skin a soft orange glow. His ocean blue eyes had a reflection of red in them, and his teeth were clinched tightly. Why does he have to be so rude? I would be lying if I said I wasn't attracted to him; being locked in the house with the old professor and nagging Mrs. Macready left my options zero to none for boys. So obviously, I was quite drawn to Peter when he arrived. But then he opens his mouth, and my feelings are stuffed back down. Besides, it's not like he would ever like me anyways.

"R-reya?" A small voice stammered beside me, pulling me from my thoughts. I turned to my left, meeting Lucy's wide eyes.

"How can I help you Lucy?" I smiled.

"Well first, you can call me Lu. That's what all my siblings call me."

"Alright Lu." She smiled at the nickname.

"Second, do you think I could sleep next to you? I'm really cold." She asked quietly.

"Of course! Come here." I said, pulling her in front of me, closer to the fire. She laid down, resting her head in my lap. "Comfy?" I asked, stroking her hair.

"Yes." She smiled, closing her eyes. I rubbed her head for a few minutes before my own eyes began to close. I shifted Lucy from my lap as gently as I could, and laid down behind her. Wrapping my arms and coat around the girl to keep her warm, I rested my chin on the top of her head. I felt a pair of eyes watching me, but it must just be the trees. A few seconds later, my eyes began to droop, and I drifted off into a restless sleep.