Tales of the Golden Age ~ Narnia one shots

I have to cross it

December 14th | Prompt: The ice cracks... 

Peter looked up at the sky, furrowing his brow when he saw that it was beginning to get dark. "Hey, Lu, I think we should head back now, it's getting late."

"Alright." the young Queen replied, turning to her horse, but then gasped when she heard a loud howl.

"What was that?" Peter wondered.

"It must be a creature from over there," she pointed to her right. "It sounded like it was hurt."

"Yeah."

"Come on, we have to help it." Lucy said, mounting her horse.

The two rode for a while, following the cries of the wounded animal until they came to a wide, frozen river. Lucy dismounted and walked to the edge, feet crunching on the snow. She sighed, wondering if they would be able to get across. When she heard another howl, she glanced up, shocked to see that the creature was a dog laying a few feet away from the other side of the river.

"It's over there! I have to cross it." she told her brother, motioning towards the dog, hand going to her cordial.

Peter glanced at the sheet of ice covering the water, unsure of how safe it was to walk on it. "Lucy, I'm going to cross it, okay? I don't know how fragile that ice is."

"But I'm lighter. I have a better chance of getting across without it breaking." she argued.

"But what if it does break and you fall?" he asked.

"I'll be super careful, Peter. It won't break." she reassured him. He hesitated greatly for a long time, before finally nodding.

Lucy took a deep breath then very slowly, very carefully, put one foot in front of the other. She made it halfway, then glanced back at Peter before she took another step.

Peter had just begun to let himself relax slightly, before he saw something under Lucy's feet that made his eyes go wide. The ice cracks... Lucy took another step before Peter could warn her, and the ice broke with a crack as the girl fell into the freezing water with a scream.

"Lucy!!!" Peter screamed. He instantly rushed to the edge, but then stopped, knowing he couldn't go near where it had cracked or else he might fall in too. Panicking, he glanced around for anything he could pull her out with. His eyes stopped on a long, sturdy branch, and he immediately grabbed it.

Lucy resurfaced with a huge gasp for air, struggling to keep herself up. "Peter!!" she screamed.

"Grab the branch!" he yelled, getting as close as he could to where she was and holding it out. He let out a sigh of relief when she wrapped her arms around it as tightly as she could, then pulled with all of his might. 

Finally, she had been dragged onto the solid ground, trembling from the cold. She slowly stood up, panting, then buried her face into Peter's coat. He wrapped his arms around her, taking deep breaths to try and calm his pounding heart.

"We need to get you back home, right now," he said.

"But, we still need to help the dog." she replied, teeth chattering.

Peter sighed, looking back at the dog, who was now standing after a long while of trying to. He had almost forgotten about it. "Look, it's going to be alright, and we can't try to get across again."

Lucy hesitated, watching the dog slowly limp toward a tree. She wanted to help it, but she knew Peter was right. It'll be fine, its wound will heal, she told herself. The King and Queen went back to Cair Paravel, Lucy almost turning blue on the way, but as soon as they got in, they warmed her up.

If only that dog had started walking away before she tried to cross the river, Peter thought.

****************************************