Lazarus • Peter Pevensie

01 • Lucy Pevensie

The Narnian air was chilly and to none of its inhabitants surprise, it was snowing. Thankfully, today it was only a light snowfall and the cold was quite bearable. At least it was for Lazarus, though he did not enjoy the winter at all. He had never seen the light and warmth of spring. He only knew of the clouded sun and the harsh winter cold. His good friend, Tumnus the Faun, often talked to him about spring and summer and the lovely warmth they brought. He would speak about how happy the Narnians used to be, even during winter when they had Christmas and feasts. He would often speak about the great lion, Aslan, too and just upon hearing His name, Lazarus felt a warmth he had never felt before. It felt like hope and it brought him happiness.

It was hard to keep hope in these times, but talk about Aslan and the great prophecy always inspired the Narnians. Of course, like everyone else in Narnia, Lazarus knew about the great prophecy about the two sons of Adam and two daughters of Eve that would defeat the White Witch and end the terrible winter. He'd known the prophecy by heart since he was little, as it was always recited to him before bed for good night dreams.

Lazarus sighed thinking of how wonderful it would be if the White Witch was dead and he could finally see spring.

"Oh, quit brooding, Zarus."

Lazarus rolled his eyes at Tumnus' comment. He sighed dramatically once more, just to spite his good friend. They had been friends for quite a long time, although Tumnus was older than Lazarus. It didn't matter to either of them since they got along so well.

"You know Tumnus," he said to his friend walking beside him. "That I hate this dreadful winter and that I have never seen spring before."

"I know, Lazarus, you always remind me." Tumnus chuckled.

Lazarus rolled his eyes playfully. It was not long after, Tumnus dropped one of the many parcels he was holding.

"I have it." Lazarus said, dropping down to pick up the fallen parcel. He sent a sweet smile to Tumnus and started to walk again.

"Come on, then." Lazarus called over his shoulder to Tumnus.

He only heard a light chuckle in reply.

~

Soon after, Tumnus and Lazarus were once again walking side by side. They had been walking in a peaceful silence, when all of sudden it seemed Tumnus was stepping on every stick in the trail.

"Tumnus! What are you doing?!"

"Sorry that I'm not as light on my feet as you are!" Tumnus hissed sarcastically.

"Tumnus, you are stepping on every. Single. Stick. In the trail. How does one even manage to do that?!"

"They're everywhere! What do you expect-"

"Shhh!" Lazarus said, cutting Tumnus off rudely. He smelled something odd.

"How rude-!"

"Tumnus!" Lazarus said whisper yelling at him, somewhat desperately."Stop talking! Please!"

Tumnus huffed in response. They slowed down their pace and Lazarus strained his senses to detect something out of place. Nothing. He took a sniff and once again smelled the bizarre scent. It was pleasant, something Lazarus had never smelled before.

He finally heard a small noise, a delicate crunch in the snow. He stopped completely, Tumnus doing the same, but he did not hear the sound anymore. Lazarus frowned, strange, he thought. He could still smell it, but he could no longer hear anything. He looked back at Tumnus, who looked at him confused.