Of Story Books and Fairy Tales || E. Pevensie

I

Olivia opened her eyes, delusional and dazed. The dream she had just awaken from was still etched in her mind like a fuzzy memory. It was like those very vivid dreams, those realistic dreams that you can't tell if you are awake or not. Olivia had dreams like this one before, but they were never constant. When she sat up in her twin bed and looked around, she had almost forgotten where she was. She was in her aunt's house in the countryside, in the spare room. The sun shone in through the window beside the bed.

It was always a treat to see the sun shining and clear skies in the West of Ireland, especially on the coast. Olivia's aunt lived on one of the Aran Islands, Inisheer. It was the smallest of the three islands, only taking just under an hour to walk from one end to the other. In the summer, it was a top tourist attraction when the weather was lovely like this very day. However, the reason Olivia was sent to stay with her aunt was because of a bomb dropping in her home county, Wexford. Her mother thought it best to send her and her older brother to the rural west of Ireland, away from the conflict until the war ended. 

Olivia sighed as she forced herself to get up and ready for the day ahead. Knowing her aunt, she was probably gone out for work in the local pub. The morning was late, the sun above the horizon probably close to ten o'clock. As Olivia brushed her hair, she thought back on the dream, desperate to remember.

She remembered a stone balcony that overlooked a beach with crystal waters. There was someone next to her, their hand resting on her shoulder contently. Everything was peaceful, beautiful. She didn't see the face of the person next to her, but she could hear his voice. It was quiet, soothing. When he held her hand she got butterflies in her stomach. She remembered brown eyes gazing down at her lovingly. Olivia never really considered herself a romantic, but she'd be lying if she said she wouldn't want a man to be looking at her the same way this young man did.

After she helped herself to some jam and toast for breakfast and a cup of tea, Olivia grabbed her book, towel, and swimwear. The book was her personal favourite, Robin Hood. The book belonged to her father before he passed away. He was one to tell her many stories about medieval times and heroes and villains and dragons and witches. Unlike her older brother, Emmet, Olivia could sit and listen to the tales all day. Even now at age seventeen, she would enjoy any book that took her mind away from reality. 

Olivia reached for the front door as it suddenly opened. She jumped back a little in surprise to see Emmet, her older brother by four years. They shared similar looks, very light brown hair (almost blonde) and deep ocean blue eyes that at certain points in the sunlight turn a deep aqua green. 

"Heading off somewhere?" Emmet raised an eyebrow. 

"If I was up early to see you leave, I would've asked the same thing." Olivia retorted, crossing her arms. Emmet rolled his eyes and pushed past her.

"Alright. Don't say. Just be back before lunch, it's your turn to cook." 

"Oh wait!" Olivia called after her brother. "Was there any post from mam?" 

"Take a guess!" Came the reply, making the young girl frown. Letting out a sigh, she walked out the door to the cottage and slammed it shut.

The sun was high by the time she got to the beach for her morning swim. If there was one thing Olivia loved about being in the west was the amount of exploring she was able to do. She laid out her towel near the far side of the beach, near the cliffs and hills that surrounded the island. On the small island, there was only really one area that the population ever use for tourism and housing, while the rest of the island was used for farmland. It was on the deserted side of the island where Olivia swam her daily swim. It was peaceful and she didn't have to deal with tourists. However, the waves on the quiet side were a bit rougher, as they faced the open Atlantic Ocean.

Seagulls squealed above her head as they basked their white wings in the golden sun. The water looked almost a deep healthy blue, entrancing Olivia with excitement. Her plan firstly was to just sit and read, let her stomach settle after breakfast, but as the sea waved and overlapped itself playfully she couldn't help be seduced. 

Olivia changed into her swimwear quickly and soon found herself rushing towards the water. It was cold, no surprise there. Olivia sucked in a breath and took a step after step. She was about shoulder deep in the water when she stopped and closed her. Taking in a breath, she dunked her head under. 

She enjoyed the deafening sound of the ocean. It was like a portal into another world for her. The war, her neglecting family, everything just faded away. She stayed under for what felt like minutes but was only a few seconds. When she resurfaced, what she didn't expect was for a rough wave to hit her so quick. 

Since when did the ocean get rough so quickly?!

Olivia didn't have time to gather herself as another wave hit her. She coughed and wheezed between the water, no longer feeling the seabed beneath her feet. She whipped her head around, but couldn't find the beach. 

Where's the island?! How far was I dragged out?

Olivia's heart hammered against her chest as she found herself staring up at an enormous fifteen-foot wave. Her arms and legs flailed in the water, trying to keep herself afloat. When the wave came crashing down, she ducked under the surface, but was still hit hard and was knocked out.

~.~

"There's quite a storm coming," Susan stated from her seat by the window of Cair Paravel, book in hand. Lucy looked up from her own book by the fireplace. 

"Do you think the Era is angry?" she asked, catching the attention of her two older brothers. The two sat on the other side of the room, playing a game of chess with Edmund's gold chess set. 

"I think maybe it's just the weather, Lu." Peter smiled as he waited for Edmund to make his move. 

"Hopefully it'll clear up by tomorrow. Then we can go down to the shore as we promised." Edmund said, sharing a grin with his youngest sister. For days he had been putting off spending time with Lucy due to being too busy with training new knights. Only seven years being made a king and the work was still piled up for the second youngest Pevensie brother. So, that very day he had promised her to accompany her down to the shores by Cair Paravel. 

"Checkmate!" Peter smirked, making his younger brother frown as he stared at the board wide-eyed.

"Ridiculous!"