[Fic] "Winter in the Shade" -- Chronicles of Narnia
Summary: Years later, Edith still missed the crisp silence of that handful of days, the clear cadence of Jadis's voice as she talked about Charn, about law, about power. About magic. (Part of the As the Morning and the Night genderswap AU, 525 words)
Note: This ficlet was inspired by the 3/23/15 15_minute_ficlets word #224.
[AO3 crosspost]
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Winter in the Shade
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Edith returned to Narnia once on her own, after she followed Laurie and before all her siblings fell through the wardrobe into their fates. She never told her family about that trip, not outright and in plain words, but she didn't hide it either -- how else would she have had time to learn half the things she's admitted Jadis taught her?
Years later, she still missed the crisp silence of that handful of days, the clear cadence of Jadis's voice as she talked about Charn, about law, about power. About magic.
"All worlds run to their own writ, but the fundamental principle remains the same," Jadis said one morning as they walked the parapet of her castle, a fine glitter of snow sifting down through the dry, still air. "Magic is about connection. If you cannot grasp something, you cannot change it. In my old home, connection came easily; any fool with a grain of power could alter whatever she willed, had she the patience and the tools. Here the channels are constricted and require a deeper correspondence between the magician and the things she wishes to move."
"What sort of correspondence?" Edith asked after a long moment.
A strange expression passed over Jadis's face, fury and mirth and hunger mixed all together, before she stilled her features into the same calm smile with which she had greeted Edith two days before.
"A piece of the soul," she said. "You will hear it said that my soul is frozen, and thus I freeze Narnia in turn. This is not true, though the nature of my power is ice and stone." She stopped and turned to face Edith, held out her right hand -- slim and pale and ungloved despite the bitter cold -- and curled her fingers inward. When she opened them again, a jewel made of ice, the size of a plum and filled with a thousand shards of refracted light, coalesced from the air to hover over her palm.
Edith gasped, and tugged back her own hands when she realized she'd reached forward to touch without permission.
"Wise child," Jadis said. "Even through gloves this would burn you to the bone with cold. I have no interest in hearing your screams today, nor your tears for lost limbs tomorrow."
Edith swallowed at the dispassion in Jadis's voice. The words were very cold, but Jadis had just said her nature was ice. They were also honest, which was more than she could say for her own family's evasions and platitudes.
"My nature must not be ice," she said, rather than let herself flinch or cry.
"No," Jadis agreed. She clenched her hand; the icy jewel shattered with a high, singing chime and its remnants sublimed in a glittering puff.
"I could teach you to find your own power, if you wish," she added as she turned to resume their walk. Her voice carried the same clear dispassion with which she had talked of screams and wounds, as if Edith's acceptance or refusal was all the same. The lack of pressure was dizzying.
As they passed through the door into the watchtower, stepping from gray sunlight into ashy shadows, Edith said, "Yes."
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Inspired by the 3/23/15
15_minute_ficlets word #224: fade
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If you're wondering about the relation of the prompt word to the story, I will tell you that Edith's magic centers around shadows. :-)
Also, this bit of backstory took me completely by surprise, but upon reflection there really isn't time during the canonical plot of LWW for Edith to get really attached to Jadis, especially since Jadis wouldn't be interested in playing nice at that point, just in getting rid of all four children. So. Workarounds!
You can also read this entry on Dreamwidth, where there are currently (
comments)
Note: This ficlet was inspired by the 3/23/15 15_minute_ficlets word #224.
[AO3 crosspost]
---------------------------------------------
Winter in the Shade
---------------------------------------------
Edith returned to Narnia once on her own, after she followed Laurie and before all her siblings fell through the wardrobe into their fates. She never told her family about that trip, not outright and in plain words, but she didn't hide it either -- how else would she have had time to learn half the things she's admitted Jadis taught her?
Years later, she still missed the crisp silence of that handful of days, the clear cadence of Jadis's voice as she talked about Charn, about law, about power. About magic.
"All worlds run to their own writ, but the fundamental principle remains the same," Jadis said one morning as they walked the parapet of her castle, a fine glitter of snow sifting down through the dry, still air. "Magic is about connection. If you cannot grasp something, you cannot change it. In my old home, connection came easily; any fool with a grain of power could alter whatever she willed, had she the patience and the tools. Here the channels are constricted and require a deeper correspondence between the magician and the things she wishes to move."
"What sort of correspondence?" Edith asked after a long moment.
A strange expression passed over Jadis's face, fury and mirth and hunger mixed all together, before she stilled her features into the same calm smile with which she had greeted Edith two days before.
"A piece of the soul," she said. "You will hear it said that my soul is frozen, and thus I freeze Narnia in turn. This is not true, though the nature of my power is ice and stone." She stopped and turned to face Edith, held out her right hand -- slim and pale and ungloved despite the bitter cold -- and curled her fingers inward. When she opened them again, a jewel made of ice, the size of a plum and filled with a thousand shards of refracted light, coalesced from the air to hover over her palm.
Edith gasped, and tugged back her own hands when she realized she'd reached forward to touch without permission.
"Wise child," Jadis said. "Even through gloves this would burn you to the bone with cold. I have no interest in hearing your screams today, nor your tears for lost limbs tomorrow."
Edith swallowed at the dispassion in Jadis's voice. The words were very cold, but Jadis had just said her nature was ice. They were also honest, which was more than she could say for her own family's evasions and platitudes.
"My nature must not be ice," she said, rather than let herself flinch or cry.
"No," Jadis agreed. She clenched her hand; the icy jewel shattered with a high, singing chime and its remnants sublimed in a glittering puff.
"I could teach you to find your own power, if you wish," she added as she turned to resume their walk. Her voice carried the same clear dispassion with which she had talked of screams and wounds, as if Edith's acceptance or refusal was all the same. The lack of pressure was dizzying.
As they passed through the door into the watchtower, stepping from gray sunlight into ashy shadows, Edith said, "Yes."
---------------------------------------------
Inspired by the 3/23/15
15_minute_ficlets word #224: fade
---------------------------------------------
If you're wondering about the relation of the prompt word to the story, I will tell you that Edith's magic centers around shadows. :-)
Also, this bit of backstory took me completely by surprise, but upon reflection there really isn't time during the canonical plot of LWW for Edith to get really attached to Jadis, especially since Jadis wouldn't be interested in playing nice at that point, just in getting rid of all four children. So. Workarounds!
You can also read this entry on Dreamwidth, where there are currently (
comments)