my king (peter pevensie)

s e v e n

We followed the beavers as quickly as we could to the river. Once we reached the edge, water roared past us. Pieces of ice were breaking off at an increasing rate each minute, and they were taken quickly by the fast current. A waterfall loomed to our left; small pieces of ice falling around us.

"We need to cross now!" Peter urged us.

"Don't beaver's make dams?" Lucy asked hopefully.

"We're not that fast dear." Mr. Beaver responded.

A large chunk of ice broke off the waterfall, creating a big splash in the river. "We need to do something, now!" I called to the others, making my way towards the edge.

"Wait! Just think about it for a minute Reya." Susan turned to me with worried eyes.

"We don't have a minute." Peter snapped. He pushed past me, shoving my shoulder. I managed to regain my balance before I stumbled too much, and scoffed at the moody boy.

"I'm just trying to be realistic." Susan tried to reason with her brother.

"No you're trying to be smart. As usual." Peter retaliated.

"Maybe you need some smarts." I muttered, and he quickly turned on me.

"What did you say?!" He practically yelled.

"You. Need. To. Think." I punctuated each word by poking his chest with one of my pointer fingers. His face was so close I could feel his warm breath on my nose, and I could clearly see his eyes that were flickering with pure anger.

"What's your brilliant plan then?" He spit at me.

I opened my mouth to respond when howls cut us off. "You two can argue later. We need to go. Now." Mr. Beaver said, making his way onto the ice gingerly. Every few steps he would slap the ice to make sure it was sturdy enough for us to follow.

"You've been sneaking second helpings haven't you?" Mrs. Beaver accused her husband.

"Well you never know which meal is going to be your last, especially with your cooking." Beaver managed to squeak out the joke before we began to follow. Mrs. Beaver was the first behind her husband, then Lucy, then Susan, then me, with Peter bringing up the rear.

"Hurry!" Susan called as the wolves burst from the trees onto the river. We tried to continue our way across the lake when more wolves appeared from the other tree line. We were trapped.

"Get back!" Mr. Beaver called, but a wolf quickly pounced on him, pinning him to the ground.

"Peter!" Lucy called, and Peter drew his sword, holding it out in front of him. While the boy tried to seem confident, his hands were shaking quite badly. He had been in grade school just a few weeks ago, and he was now fighting wolves in a land filled with magic.

"Put that down boy. Someone could get hurt." Maugrim snarled, making his way towards Peter. "Leave now while you can, and your brother goes with you."

"Peter stop! Maybe we should listen to him!" Susan, again, trying to take the easy way out.

"No." I said, stepping in front of Peter with my dagger raised. "We're not going anywhere with you." Maugrim licked his chops hungrily.

"Ah. The third daughter of Eve. Your story is still unwritten; come join the winning side." He smiled sickeningly, and made his way ever closer.

"Never." I snarled, gripping my dagger tighter.

"Reya just because a man in a red suit gave you a dagger, that doesn't make you a hero!" Susan called from where she was huddled with Lucy.

"The Witch could make you a hero." Maugrim continued. "You'd be the most powerful fighter in the land." I tried to keep my head clear, but it was quickly becoming muddled with thoughts. Why was the wolf trying so hard to convince me to join them?

"Reya! Peter!" Lucy called, and I quickly spun around as loud cracking could be heard above us. The waterfall was breaking, and we were standing directly under it.

"Hold onto me!" Peter yelled as he plunged his sword into the ice below him. His siblings run over to him, but I turn back to the wolf.

"This won't be the last you'll see of me. I'm not done with you yet, Daughter of Eve." Maugrim sneered as the waterfall let out one last crack.

"Reya!" Susan screamed as I was plunged into icy water.

*****

The air was ripped from my lungs, as the freezing water engulfed me. I was tossed head over heels, and I quickly couldn't determine up from down. I tried opening my eyes, but all I was met with was flashes of ice and occasional streams of sunlight. I gasped in pain as a block of ice slashed across my face. Trying to defend myself from the invisible attackers, I curled into a ball. Thrust along the river, I could feel bruises forming all over my body. My lungs were soon screaming for air, and I fought to the surface.

My head finally broke the surface, and I gulped down as much air as I could. "Reya!" I heard a familiar voice from the bank of the river. Looking over, I could see the Pevensies a few hundred yards away from me. However, the current was closing the distance fast, and I was practically on the other side of the river. Swimming as hard as I could, I fought my way towards the bank. They crowded to the edge, and Peter reached for me.

I pushed as hard as I could, stretching my hand as far as it would go. My fingers had just grabbed the tip of his when the current yanked me past. I cried out as I was swept passed them. I didn't have enough energy to swim anymore, and my coat was weighing me down. I took one last gulp of air before my head went under. I closed my eyes, and let the current take me. Maybe drowning isn't such a bad way to go.

Just as my lungs were about to burst, I felt a pair of strong arms around my waist. I helped them kick to the surface as much as I could, and we soon burst through to the air. Sputtering back to life, I realized it was Peter who had dove in to save me. A few butterflies ignited in my stomach at the feeling of his body pressed against mine, and I fought back a blush. He helped me swim to shore, and threw me onto dry land. He quickly followed behind me, and I was overcome with a fit of coughing. I could hear the others running towards us, and Lucy tackled me in a hug. I was too weak to hold myself up, and she smushed me into the ground.

"Easy!" Susan chastised.

"Sorry." The girl's smile quickly faded when she saw all the scratches on me. "Here." Lucy quickly offered me a sip of the elixir, and I could feel all of my wounds begin to heal immediately. The scratches on my face closed, and the bruises on my torso faded.

"Thank you." I said weakly. I turned to find Peter, but he was already looking towards our next path into the woods. The butterflies quickly fell silent. However, looking around, I realized there were very few trees with snow left on them, and some even had blooms.

"Looks like we won't be needing those coats anymore."