Back in the Wardrobe

Prologue:

It was a clear, crisp autumn day in a country called England. Specifically, a community called Finchley, in 1949. The Pevensie family had stayed in the house their parents had owned for many years, that is, until their parents had decided to move to the country. So now Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy owned their home in this community.

The whole community was doing something. Everyone seemed as if they were celebrating, whether it be a birthday, a new child, or even the rain that was watering their plants after an usually dry spell. However, one family was celebrating an engagement, brought about by a messenger and a "king" meeting. The king, Peter, along with his new fiancée, Elizabeth, were glad they had met.

To understand this tale and all that happens, one may have to go a few years back to when the youngest of Peter's siblings, Lucy, discovered something within a wardrobe that would forever change the course of her and her siblings lives. However, that tale has been told before, a tale of four children stumbling into a land of winter, defeating a witch, and becoming kings and queens under the blessing of the land's creator himself and reigning fifteen joyous years before being returned to their own land, and therefore it is not the purpose of this tale to tell you of that, but rather tell you what has happened to these siblings since. 

Likewise, it is not the purpose of this tale to tell of of their second trip to Narnia, but rather to show the effects this trip had on all of them. For Peter, it showed him his crumbled kingdom and appeared to remind him of all the weaknesses he feared showing, learning the need to balance his life of Narnia and his life of England so as to learn to be better man and accept the things he could not change. For Edmund, it gave him yet another chance of redemption, letting him show how much he had learned from his first trip, how he had grown and matured and taken to heart all he had learned. For Lucy, it allowed her once again to show her valiant nature, and allowed her to reconnect with a land she had lived in far longer than she had England. For Susan... well, it taught her what true love was, taught her to value the precious moments with all those one cares for, for one never know when they will end. And end the moments with her love did, when she and her siblings learned they would once again be called to return to England. In the end, Susan kissed the now King Caspian, the man she loved more dearly than she had thought possible, in front of the whole kingdom before they had to go, knowing her heart was his and his was hers. He whispered softly in her ear that she was his true and only love as they embraced, words near vow with how sacred they sounded from his lips. Then the Pevensies left, knowing not whether Aslan would ever call them back to Narnia.

In 1945, just a year after their return to England, their world was shaken slightly by the arrival of someone from Narnia, come to tell them of words Aslan himself had shared with her. Her name was Elizabeth, a woman from Archenland who was quickly taken in by the Pevensie family, acting as if she were a student from their world that needed lodging so that the Pevensie parents were not suspicious of her. The words of the auburn haired girl were both warning and hope for the Pevensie siblings, stating to them with a most serious look in her hazel eyes that "time goes in Narnia as it does in your world. Be prepared for what you will see. You will be back." However, that was just a part of what she knew she was to share- the rest left her mind as soon as she appeared in the homeland of the Pevensies. It was quickly realized by the siblings that she would be with them until they returned, and as such they made sure to see to her getting an education, with Peter taking a particular interest in her needs. 

However, as time passed on life in England grew dull for the siblings. Only Lucy seemed to still be able to enjoy it, happy and faithful as she reminded them of faith and love until they remembered to be happy, to take to heart all they had learned and apply it once more in this world, which they did with a fervor. The four Pevensies and Elizabeth all worked to better themselves and the land in which they found themselves. Each had become someone they were proud of here in England, and each had their own story.

For one, Peter had taken over as head of household by the time this tale took place in 1949. He was twenty-two years old, and studying medicine with the hopes to one day become a doctor. He let his blonde hair no longer than it had been when visiting Caspian, and his blue eyes sparkled with joy constantly. Peter sought to do the right thing at all times, and even in England showed the very magnificence that he was titled for. His faith had only grown stronger as he learned of Aslan in their world, realized Him by His name there. All who saw him could see the faith in his heart, could see the work of greater forces at play in his countenance, making him appear as if he were not just of earth, but a part of something greater. 

Susan was twenty-one, and content to volunteer at local shelters when she was not in her classes, her gentle nature ever present. Most of the girls that had been in her classes were married, and she was still one of the only single women in her Literature classes, and one of the only women in said classes. Yet, to the surprise of all but her family and Elizabeth, Susan stayed single even with all of the suitors that came to call. She was waiting for Caspian, as he was waiting for her. Susan kept her brown hair in a long style down to her waist. Practical, motherly, generous, and sometimes a tad bossy, there was something regal about her people noticed, some of those she assisted wondering if she were some goddess or queen sent to assist them. How little they knew that the woman who was quick to make sure wrongs were made right was just that. 

Edmund was nineteen, and still figuring out exactly what he wished to do with the life before him. He was popular among the ladies, yet he showed little interest in all the 'fake' girls as he called them, those who wanted just to be married because they believed all girls should be or who were more interested in how they appeared than about bettering their minds. But it's no question why he was so popular with the ladies. His raven black hair was stunning, and his brown eyes could melt your soul. Edmund was always a tad jealous of Peter, and then a tad jealous of Caspian. But he soon outgrew that, and wished for just another moment in Narnia. While faith was still something he struggled with, he tried his hardest to do all he could to atone for the past, even though he had already been forgiven. Not a man who debated with him could match his wit and cunning with words, and some thought in a past life the man had to have been a skilled diplomat. 

Lucy was seventeen, and the most faithful out of all her siblings that they would once again return to Narnia. She had chestnut colored hair, and was the only sibling, besides Peter, to have a relationship in England. She and her boyfriend, Nathan, had been steady for a year now, yet Lucy always had a suspicion he was sneaking around behind her back. Sometimes she thought Edmund noticed her concern, yet he never said anything, and that made her feel better about it. She wanted to become a nurse, to heal as she had in Narnia and help those who suffered with not only her actions and treatments, but with words and tales. She had written and illustrated books based on their times in Narnia under a pen name, and when those who read her tales spoke happily about them, Lucy grinned. All who saw that grin, though they did not know what it was for, could see the kindness there, the old soul of a bright young woman in the body of one younger. 

Elizabeth, the twenty year old Archenland woman, had by this time settled into England quite nicely. She was more than happy to remain at the Pevensie home, studying cooking and baking from women in the neighborhood. She then would gift the food to those in the neighborhood who were too proud to to go local food banks for help, always stating that she had made too much and wanted to share. She knew they were aware of her charity, yet none complained when baked good and casseroles came their way. All knew that she was the perfect match for Peter, and the entire community was waiting to be invited to the wedding of two people who were so incredibly kind and goodhearted. 

With all the tales of those friends of Narnia shared, the tale that must be told can now begin, and it all starts with a celebration. But if it will end on such a happy tone, well, that is to be discovered along the way...