(no subject)
This is the second part of the LB AU I posted here the other day.
Again, it's based on this prompt:
I would adore a The Last Battle AU in which there is NOT a train accident. Jill and Eustace get to Narnia anyhow, they and Tirian save the country without Aslan declaring Game Over, and they are now too old and must go home to England forever. They and the Pevensies grow up and get jobs. Some of them marry and have children. (I'd love this to be a Jill/Eustace story, if possible.) Susan continues to drift away, though she may be reconciled at some point as she grows older.
Then maybe twenty years later, when the Friends of Narnia are together for a reunion, the adults overhear some of their children talking about a peculiar adventure they had in a country where animals talk, and there was a Lion... :-)
It's still a very rough draft, and I am really unsure if this part works. It's Eustace's POV, and at the time I was going to do a POV-section for everyone (Jill, Eustace, Edmund, Polly, Peter, Digory and Lucy), but now I'm thinking this would work better if it continued with Jill's POV. Anyway! Comments and suggestions welcome!
Narnia, 2555
In the end, the Battle of Stable Hill was over very fast. Eustace was prepared for it to be the last battle he ever fought - well, as prepared as one can be for such a thing. He had said his goodbyes, the best he could, to Tirian and to Jill and to the others, and he was aware that they were rather poor goodbyes.
To be quite honest, he hadn't wanted to say goodbye to Jill at all. Eustace had a rather vague idea of what he wanted his life to be like (after they got home from Narnia, of course) after school was over - he reckoned on some kind of career, but he wasn't sure of quite what, and maybe he'd go to university, like his father had, and he could see himself living in London, or maybe staying in Cambridge, or maybe even a nice town by the seaside (ever since his travels on the Dawn Treader, Eustace had been very fond of the sea) - but the one thing that Eustace always thought, when he thought about his future, was that Jill would be right there with him.
And when they said their goodbyes, Eustace made a promise to himself that he would tell Jill about his plans for the future, if by some stroke of luck they did actually make it out of the battle alive. Of course, he had to think of a way to tell her, and maybe Jill wouldn't be interested, because she had been awfully fond of James Glendon last term, but Eustace thought, if he could come up with the right way to say it, that Jill wouldn't mind the idea of being with him at all. After all, they were rather used to each other, and Eustace felt certain that Jill was just as fond of him as he was of her.
The whole time he was fighting, he kept trying to think of the right words to say. And when he caught sight of Jill during the heat of the battle, crying but still fighting so hard, Eustace's chest felt very tight and he wasn't sure that he could ever find the words to tell Jill what he felt. And then another Calormene soldier slashed at him, and he had stopped thinking about that, and just thought of how best to block the next stroke of the soldier's sword.
Then, almost before Eustace had time to realize what was happening, the tide of the battle changed. He heard a horn sounding, and voices calling, "For Narnia! For the King!" and he stared at Tirian, who looked equally astonished to see the Narnian army charging out of the woods and down the hill, coming to their aid.
But the true victory came when Eustace heard the Lion roar.
All the fighting stopped and everyone stared up at the stable roof, where Aslan stood, open-mouthed and roaring so loud it drowned out every other sound. And Eustace was no longer afraid, for himself or for Jill, or Tirian, or for Narnia. The Calormenes laid down their weapons, the hostile Narnians surrendered, and Aslan himself tore the stable to bits.
After the fighting was over, and the prisoners were under guard, Aslan walked with Tirian, deep in conversation. Jill went with Poggin and Puzzle to help tend the wounded, and Eustace found himself with Jewel and Farsight, speaking to the army commander and learning the news of Cair Paravel. Evidently the Calormenes had attacked the city, but some of the citizens had surprisingly and successfully held them off (the commander gave high praise to one of the noblewomen who lead the archers), giving the Narnian army a chance to fight back. And when news came in about King Tirian's problems, the general had dispatched this regiment to help, and the commander was just glad they had arrived in time.
Eustace privately thought that the army commander had cut it rather close, but kept it to himself, not wanting to sound ungrateful. And then Tirian and Aslan returned, and they had their own questions for the commander and he had more to tell them.
So it wasn't until much later that Eustace actually had a moment to speak to Jill, and he found her sitting at the white rock at the bottom of the hill. She smiled when he approached and Eustace took that as an invitation to join her, so he sat beside her.
They were both still covered in dirt and blood, and tired and aching from the battle, but Eustace figured that after all that had happened and the promise he had made himself, he’d better say something now while he still had the courage.
He cleared his throat. "Pole?"
Jill looked up at him, her face was pale and drawn under a layer of dust and grime. "Yes?"
Unfortunately for Eustace, he still hadn't decided on what to say to her, to explain how he felt. So he mumbled, "Er, look, Pole…"
"What, Scrubb?" she replied, an impatient note in her voice.
Eustace reached out and took her hand (all bandaged up, he noticed, and made sure to hold it carefully) and cleared his throat again. "Jill, I… well. I just wanted to say…" But he trailed off without saying anything really, and Eustace was annoyed to find that fighting Calormenes was a lot easier than telling Jill Pole he loved her.
Jill's eyes widened and she stared at him for a long moment. And then Eustace reckoned that luck was really on his side that day, because first of all, he wasn't killed, and second, Jill knew. Because she smiled at him and said, "Yes. Me too, Eustace," and squeezed his hand, even though he could tell by the expression on her face how much that hurt to do with her injured one.
Eustace rather thought he'd like to kiss her, and he didn't think Jill would mind at all, but at that moment, Aslan and Tirian approached them, and it seemed like they would never run out of important things to discuss, so he didn't really get the chance.
But Jill kept hold of his hand until the moment Aslan sent them home. And she didn't let go once they got there either -- no, she held his hand when they reappeared in the meadow, and when they told the others what happened (she held it quite tight when they were talking about the battle), and she kept right on holding his hand, even when they all piled back into Edmund's car and drove back to Aunt Polly's house for a celebratory lunch. And Eustace didn't mind one bit, not even with the teasing from Ed and Peter.
Jill eventually did let go of his hand, so they could eat their lunch. But after the meal, the phone rang, and it was Eustace's Aunt Helen, calling to tell them all terrible news about a train crash and Susan. Jill reached out to take his hand again and this time, Eustace didn't think he'd ever let her go.
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Again, it's based on this prompt:
I would adore a The Last Battle AU in which there is NOT a train accident. Jill and Eustace get to Narnia anyhow, they and Tirian save the country without Aslan declaring Game Over, and they are now too old and must go home to England forever. They and the Pevensies grow up and get jobs. Some of them marry and have children. (I'd love this to be a Jill/Eustace story, if possible.) Susan continues to drift away, though she may be reconciled at some point as she grows older.
Then maybe twenty years later, when the Friends of Narnia are together for a reunion, the adults overhear some of their children talking about a peculiar adventure they had in a country where animals talk, and there was a Lion... :-)
It's still a very rough draft, and I am really unsure if this part works. It's Eustace's POV, and at the time I was going to do a POV-section for everyone (Jill, Eustace, Edmund, Polly, Peter, Digory and Lucy), but now I'm thinking this would work better if it continued with Jill's POV. Anyway! Comments and suggestions welcome!
Narnia, 2555
In the end, the Battle of Stable Hill was over very fast. Eustace was prepared for it to be the last battle he ever fought - well, as prepared as one can be for such a thing. He had said his goodbyes, the best he could, to Tirian and to Jill and to the others, and he was aware that they were rather poor goodbyes.
To be quite honest, he hadn't wanted to say goodbye to Jill at all. Eustace had a rather vague idea of what he wanted his life to be like (after they got home from Narnia, of course) after school was over - he reckoned on some kind of career, but he wasn't sure of quite what, and maybe he'd go to university, like his father had, and he could see himself living in London, or maybe staying in Cambridge, or maybe even a nice town by the seaside (ever since his travels on the Dawn Treader, Eustace had been very fond of the sea) - but the one thing that Eustace always thought, when he thought about his future, was that Jill would be right there with him.
And when they said their goodbyes, Eustace made a promise to himself that he would tell Jill about his plans for the future, if by some stroke of luck they did actually make it out of the battle alive. Of course, he had to think of a way to tell her, and maybe Jill wouldn't be interested, because she had been awfully fond of James Glendon last term, but Eustace thought, if he could come up with the right way to say it, that Jill wouldn't mind the idea of being with him at all. After all, they were rather used to each other, and Eustace felt certain that Jill was just as fond of him as he was of her.
The whole time he was fighting, he kept trying to think of the right words to say. And when he caught sight of Jill during the heat of the battle, crying but still fighting so hard, Eustace's chest felt very tight and he wasn't sure that he could ever find the words to tell Jill what he felt. And then another Calormene soldier slashed at him, and he had stopped thinking about that, and just thought of how best to block the next stroke of the soldier's sword.
Then, almost before Eustace had time to realize what was happening, the tide of the battle changed. He heard a horn sounding, and voices calling, "For Narnia! For the King!" and he stared at Tirian, who looked equally astonished to see the Narnian army charging out of the woods and down the hill, coming to their aid.
But the true victory came when Eustace heard the Lion roar.
All the fighting stopped and everyone stared up at the stable roof, where Aslan stood, open-mouthed and roaring so loud it drowned out every other sound. And Eustace was no longer afraid, for himself or for Jill, or Tirian, or for Narnia. The Calormenes laid down their weapons, the hostile Narnians surrendered, and Aslan himself tore the stable to bits.
After the fighting was over, and the prisoners were under guard, Aslan walked with Tirian, deep in conversation. Jill went with Poggin and Puzzle to help tend the wounded, and Eustace found himself with Jewel and Farsight, speaking to the army commander and learning the news of Cair Paravel. Evidently the Calormenes had attacked the city, but some of the citizens had surprisingly and successfully held them off (the commander gave high praise to one of the noblewomen who lead the archers), giving the Narnian army a chance to fight back. And when news came in about King Tirian's problems, the general had dispatched this regiment to help, and the commander was just glad they had arrived in time.
Eustace privately thought that the army commander had cut it rather close, but kept it to himself, not wanting to sound ungrateful. And then Tirian and Aslan returned, and they had their own questions for the commander and he had more to tell them.
So it wasn't until much later that Eustace actually had a moment to speak to Jill, and he found her sitting at the white rock at the bottom of the hill. She smiled when he approached and Eustace took that as an invitation to join her, so he sat beside her.
They were both still covered in dirt and blood, and tired and aching from the battle, but Eustace figured that after all that had happened and the promise he had made himself, he’d better say something now while he still had the courage.
He cleared his throat. "Pole?"
Jill looked up at him, her face was pale and drawn under a layer of dust and grime. "Yes?"
Unfortunately for Eustace, he still hadn't decided on what to say to her, to explain how he felt. So he mumbled, "Er, look, Pole…"
"What, Scrubb?" she replied, an impatient note in her voice.
Eustace reached out and took her hand (all bandaged up, he noticed, and made sure to hold it carefully) and cleared his throat again. "Jill, I… well. I just wanted to say…" But he trailed off without saying anything really, and Eustace was annoyed to find that fighting Calormenes was a lot easier than telling Jill Pole he loved her.
Jill's eyes widened and she stared at him for a long moment. And then Eustace reckoned that luck was really on his side that day, because first of all, he wasn't killed, and second, Jill knew. Because she smiled at him and said, "Yes. Me too, Eustace," and squeezed his hand, even though he could tell by the expression on her face how much that hurt to do with her injured one.
Eustace rather thought he'd like to kiss her, and he didn't think Jill would mind at all, but at that moment, Aslan and Tirian approached them, and it seemed like they would never run out of important things to discuss, so he didn't really get the chance.
But Jill kept hold of his hand until the moment Aslan sent them home. And she didn't let go once they got there either -- no, she held his hand when they reappeared in the meadow, and when they told the others what happened (she held it quite tight when they were talking about the battle), and she kept right on holding his hand, even when they all piled back into Edmund's car and drove back to Aunt Polly's house for a celebratory lunch. And Eustace didn't mind one bit, not even with the teasing from Ed and Peter.
Jill eventually did let go of his hand, so they could eat their lunch. But after the meal, the phone rang, and it was Eustace's Aunt Helen, calling to tell them all terrible news about a train crash and Susan. Jill reached out to take his hand again and this time, Eustace didn't think he'd ever let her go.
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