𝙸𝚁𝚁𝙸𝚃𝙰𝙱𝙻𝙴. ➪ 𝙴. 𝙿𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚎

𝚝𝚠𝚘

"Where do you suppose we are?" Edmund asked, gaining the attention of the other five.
The problem with Edmund and Phillis was, that after they had numerously rendezvoused together back when they ruled over Narnia, they returned to England. Both 13 again, both had regained their innocence. Both were embarrassed to face each other after what had occurred in Narnia. Gradually, over time, they let their guards down and began speaking more. Virginia and Helen had been quite confused as to why Edmund and Phillis were suddenly getting along, but didn't question it. The two, now fourteen, had only redeveloped those feelings for each other. With each day, Phillis found herself missing what she had with him in Narnia more and more.

But now they were back where they first fell in love, it seemed like the perfect opportunity for some feelings to be admitted...

"Where do you think?" Elmer laughed.
"Well, I don't remember any ruins in Narnia," Edmund replied.
And Phillis noticed the ruins that sat peacefully atop the cliff. So, the teenagers decided to explore the chaos of the ruins.
Phillis ran her hands along the stone of the remains, trying to make sense of it all. The grass was lovely and warm on her feet. Her hair was wet and it had been pinned back, but now hung loosely around her face. Edmund couldn't help but think how beautiful she looked in the Narnian sun. "I wonder who lived here," Lucy said, biting into her apple.
"I think we did," Susan replied after picking up a glistening item.
Phillis approached her, curious as to what the object was. However, Edmund soon informed her of what exactly it was. "Hey, that's mine. From my chess set," he said as him and the older boys walked over to the girls.
"Which chess set?" Peter asked.
"Well, I didn't exactly have a solid gold chess set in Finchley, did I?" he replied, taking the chess piece from Susan to examine it further.
"Can't be," Lucy whispered, before hurrying off.
Letting out a sigh, the group ran after her.
"Don't you see?" she said.
"What?" Peter exclaimed as she placed him next to Elmer. She rearranged the six teenagers to stand in a certain order.
Edmund.
Elmer.
Peter.
Susan.
Phillis.
Lucy.
Then it clicked. Like placing in the final piece of the jigsaw puzzle, everything slid into place.

Cair Paravel.

"Imagine walls. And columns there," Lucy pointed. "And a glass roof."
"Cair Paravel," Elmer breathed, confirming her suspicions.
"How long have we been gone exactly?" Phillis said to no one in particular.
"A long time," was all Peter managed to squeeze out.
Sighing, Phillis turned to face her brother, watching as his face twisted into that of pain. His wife and children were gone. He was never to see them again. Ever. He was seventeen, and he'd already gone through more heartbreak than anyone should ever have to endure.
As they continued to explore their destroyed home even further, Phillis watched Edmund crouch down next to a large boulder. "Catapults," he spoke up.
"What?" Peter said.
"This didn't just happen. Cair Paravel was attacked," Edmund said.
Elmer gasped, only praying that it had happened long after Dariyah, Flynn and Reina were gone. The three boys pushed a large stone wall out of the way, to reveal a familiar wooden door. Peter managed to break down the brittle wood. He tore off some of his shirt and tied it around a twig, in an attempt to make a light source. "Don't suppose you have any matches, do you?" he asked Edmund, being the only one with a satchel.
He flicked it open, before pulling out a silver electric torch. "No, but would this help?"
"You might of mentioned that a bit sooner!" Peter said as they all laughed.
Edmund took the lead, walking into the dark passage. Peter sighed, allowing the rest of the group to follow first. Phillis made an attempt at squinting to help her see more clearly, but only hissed from the pain of the dark bruise covering her eye.
"I can't believe it. It's all still here," Peter grinned.
Statues of the six monarchs stood in the room, standing behind a golden chest of all their goods and treasures. Lucy ran towards hers. Phillis approached the statue carefully. She stood in a long dress, her crown perched firmly on her head. She stood tall with her hand clasped together in front of her, a gleaming smile on her face. She wore a belt, with two swords hanging by her sides, a flute tucked away behind one. Just as she always wore it. Phillis hardly recognised the woman to be herself, just merely a few years older.
She opened the chest nervously. She was curious as to what could of possibly remained after all of this time. Lying on top of it all, almost beaming up at her, were her two swords. Her most prized possession, the swords that helped her earn the unofficial title of the best swordsman in all of Narnia. She pulled them out of their sheaths, admiring the shine they'd kept. Her flute lay on top of a few books. Her old armour lay nestled in there too, along with other items from when she was a Queen. "I was so tall!" Lucy exclaimed, holding one of her dresses up against herself.
"Well, you were older then," Susan smiled.
"As opposed to hundreds of years later, when you're younger," Edmund said, wearing a helmet that was far too big for him, earning a laugh from the teenagers.
Moving the books aside, Phillis noticed a sketch. It appeared to be of her and a leopard. Cobalt. She remembered the day Mr. Tumnus had drawn this and gifted it to her. The girl and the leopard lay in between two trees, a book placed on the ground between them. The platonic love for each other evident on their sketched faces. A hot tear emerged from Phillis' eye, but she quickly wiped it away before anyone could see. But Edmund saw, and he noticed the sketch that she held so tightly.

Phillis turned to Elmer, giving him a tight hug as he held a dress of Reina's up to his chest. "They're really gone?" he whispered.
"They all are, Elm. We have to accept it and move on," she smiled slightly, hurting that she'd never got to see her niece and nephew turn into adults.
"What is it?" Lucy asked Susan, gaining the Opal siblings' attention.
"My horn. I must've left it on my saddle the day we went back," Susan replied.
They all watched silently as Peter unsheathed his sword. "When Aslan bares his teeth, winter meets its death," Peter began.
"When he shakes his mane, we shall have spring again," Lucy finished. "Everyone we knew... Mr. Tumnus, the twins, the beavers, Cobalt... they're all gone."
"I think it's time we found out what was going on," Elmer said firmly after everyone had given him a grim, sorrowful glance. He was trying not to show that he was hurting, but really he was. So, so much.