Born For Better (A Peter Pevensie/ Narnia Fanfic)

Chapter 19- The Ruins of Cair Paravel and A Dear Little Friend

Peter's POV

I walked up the crumbling stone steps leading up to the ruins. Trees and weeds had taken control of the area, but it was obvious that whatever had been here was huge. We reached the top, overlooking the wreckage. Lucy plucked an apple from the ground and bit into it.

"I wonder who lived here." She commented, looking out at the ocean. Next to me, Susan nudged something with her foot before bending down and picking it up.

"I think we did." She said, revealing the gold chess knight in her hand. Edmund walked up.

"Hey, that's mine." He said, taking it from her. "From my chess set." He added with a smile.

"Which chess set?" I asked.

"Well, I didn't exactly have a solid gold chess set in Finchley, did I?" Edmund retorted. I rolled my eyes and  crossed my arms over my chest, about to spit something back at him.

"It can't be." Lucy suddenly said, running off in the other direction towards and slightly raised platform.  

"Lucy!" I called, following her. Lucy stood up on the platform, looking at four crumbled piles of stone. She then whirled around to look at us.

"Don't you see?" She asked.

"What?" I asked. Lucy ran down the steps and grabbed my hand, leading me up to stand by one of the piles of stone, turning me around.

"Imagine walls." She instructed, grabbing Lucy next, placing her to my left. "And columns there." She pointed along the sides of the platform before leading Edmund up, standing him on my right. She then walked over to the last remaining pile of rubble, making sure we were all facing forward. "and a glass roof."

I looked out, trying to imagine what Lucy had described. And before my eyes, the ruins seemed to build themselves back up. Glass pieced itself back together, becoming a spotless roof. Behind me was a throne and before me was a cheering crowd of Narnians. Aslan smiled at me as a crown was placed on my head. Annabelle stood to my right, lacing her fingers with mine.

Then I blinked and it was all gone. Replaced with the reality of my destroyed home.

"Cair Paravel." I murmured. Edmund suddenly stepped forwards, off the platform and bent down to inspect the ruins. 

"Catapults." He murmured, standing up straight. I followed him down, Susan and Lucy close behind. 

"What?"

"This didn't just happen." Edmund explained. "Cair Paravel was attacked." I looked over Edmund's shoulder, noticing one part of the wall still standing and ivy growing over what appeared to be a door. Edmund followed my gaze and we ran over to it, clearing away the plant growth and kicking open the door. Stairs lead down into darkness. I stepped back and ripped the bottom of my shirt off before grabbing a long stick and wrapping the fabric around one end. 

"I don't suppose you have any matches in there, do you?" I asked Edmund, pointing to his bag. He opened it up and began rummaging around.

"No... but would this help?" He asked, pulling out his new electric torch. 

"You might've mentioned that a bit sooner!" I laughed, motioning Edmund to lead the way. As we reached the bottom, I spotted four large chests lined in a semicircle up against the wall. Statutes of all of us as adults were placed behind our respective chests. 

I can't believe it. It's all still here." I breathed. Edmund, Susan, and Lucy ran over to their chests as I picked up a dusty plate abandoned on a table. Lucy pulled out one of her dresses, holding it up to her.