Across the Ages - for ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
lauraandrews
Aug. 29th, 2012 06:51 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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narniaexchangeTitle: Across the Ages
Author: writeonkate
Recipient:lauraandrews
Rating: K
Possible Spoilers/Warnings: None
Summary: Some lessons never become too old, even if they come from thousands of years past.
Across the Ages
"Master Hywin! Come quick!" called a voice from deep inside the caverns. "Master!"
Hywin looked up anxiously from examining a shard of a plate that had been found with most of the royal crest of Narnia intact, placing his treasure carefully on the drop cloth in front of him. "Loras? What is it, my boy?" Hywin called back, his brows furrowing as he shuffled closer to the cavern's opening.
"I've found something, Master!" came the eager voice, followed by the sounds of scratching and stumbling as the eager young badger came scurrying up the tunnel.
Hywin sighed, beginning to turn away. "It's a dig site, Loras. Of course you'll be finding things," the dwarf grumbled as he took up his spectacles from their chain to examine a piece of parchment from the Golden Age.
There was a loud thump and then a slight groan before a final triumphant "Ha!" that rang across the series of caverns that had been dug deep beneath the ruins of the Golden Hall. "No, I mean, I think I've really found something," Loras said eagerly as he scrambled towards the aging dwarf, proffering a large bundle as one would a great gift.
"Loras, I've told you, things are bound to be... found..." Hywin said, stopping short as he turned to see what the young badger had brought him. With shaking hands he reached out for it, gingerly lifting the large box from the badger's eager hands. "The table, boy. Clear it away," Hywin said urgently. "No, don't bother putting things away, just clear a space..." he said as Loras quickly elbowed away the pile of scrolls and broken quills which had acumulated over the large trestle table.
"What is it?" Loras asked breathlessly as he watched his master lay the box of ancient wood on the table and gingerly pry open the lid. "Is it a treasure chest?" he added, unable to hide the boyish excitement from his voice.
The dwarf gasped when he saw the contents, and touched the cover of the ancient book reverently. "It is a treasure indeed, Loras," he said disbelievingly. "You have discovered one of the tomes of the Dawn," he said.
------
In the high valley, Queen Helen was holding court, her young daughters fanned about like leaves fallen into a river, held aloof yet safe in the embrace of a warm and quick current of conversation.
"Mama, why is Horfkin staring up at the trees?" asked one of the little princesses of Narnia, tugging on her mother's faded brown skirts.
"Master Horfkin is writing a history, dear heart," the queen replied gently, setting aside her mending to place a hand on her daughter's nut brown hair. "He is writing so that your children and your children's children know out world."
The princesses all giggled, and one of the dryads nearby added her own twinkling laugh to the mix. "Ah, it is a great responsibility to be remembered," she trilled as she wove in a new strand of grass into the cloth she was producing.
"Responsibility? Why ever would it be a responsibility? Master Horkin wouldn't make us seem ill-bred or stupid," responded the eldest princess, Brenna, rather primly. "Why, Papa would be furious if he told ill of us or ours," she added, gazing about the meadow gathering at the women who had gathered there in the Queen's court.
Helen smiled slightly. "You don't want Master Horkin to have to tell tales to make you sound like a proper princess," she chided gently as she put aside her sewing and pulled her youngest, Elyn, onto her lap. "Why, if we have Master Horkin telling stories, perhaps he'll turn you into bunnies!" she said with a bright laugh as she imitated a bunny's face before rubbing noses with Elyn.
"Mama..." Brenna said, beginning to role her eyes but laughing when Amryl, the she-rabbit, began hopping about with a crown of daisies on her head proclaiming herself to be the Princess Brenna.
As the sun began to set over the young land, Helen sat amongst her children in her chambers, stroking her youngest's brown hair quietly as he dozed in her lap.
"Mama? Is it true what Mycelle said today?" Brenna asked sleepily, moving slowly so as not to wake her sister Cassia who slept against her shoulder. "About being a responsibility to be remembered?"
The queen sighed quietly, reaching for her daughter's hand. "It is," she said slowly. As she watched the fear pass her daughter's face, so familiar, she squeezed her eldest's hand. "It is a responsibility, dear heart. But never let that responsibility weigh your heart so that you cease to be who you are. In those early days, I felt so trapped by the responsibilities. I had not even a child, but Aslan had asked me to become a mother of sorts to the whole of this fledgling country. It was a terrifying prospect," she added with a grimace of sorts. "Yet I dreamed one night of Aslan coming to me, and telling me the same words I give to you now: Your greatest responsibility is to yourself, for the Emperor in his wisdom has created you to be what you are meant to be, and the rest will fall into place, even your country," she added, bringing her daughter's hand to her lips to kiss it. "And I've found, my darling, that it is wise to take the Lion's advice in all things," she added with a smile that made her dimples show.
Brenna could only smile back at her mother and nod. Although the weight would forever remain with her, it became now more bearable, especially with her mother's guidance.
And so it was that the princess learned the cost of royalty.
---
"Your Majesty, I believe we have found something that may be of interest to you..." said Hywin gravely as he approached the king and the young prince at the King's great desk.
"Hywin! What wonders have you brought for us?" boomed King Erlian with gusto as he looked up from the tome he was perusing with his son Tirian.
The dwarf made a motion and Loras came forward with the ancient box and, uncertainly elbowing a sheaf of paper away, placed the book with great reverence on the desk.
"What is this, then?" Erlian said, furrowing his brows. "You found this under the Golden Keep?" he asked Hywin quietly.
"Aye, sire. It is, it seems, one of the Tomes of the Dawn," Hywin said solemnly, gazing at the book with all the reverence he would pay his king.
Erlian frowned slightly as he reached a burly hand to touch the ancient leather. "Are you certain?" he asked as he gingerly opened the book.
"Father, what's a Tome of Dawn?" Tirian interrupted, standing on the chair to see the treasure the master historian had brought.
"The most ancient of the histories, Tirian," his father explained quickly, eyes wide in wonder. "Why... this tells of the first king of Narnia..." he paused a moment to look up at Hywin. "And you have checked? This is indeed...?" he let the question hang as he read the page.
"It is real, Majesty," the dwarf confirmed as Erlian looked closely at the page.
"Well? What does it say father?" Tirian begged, hopeful for a great story of clashing knights and battling giants.
Erlian looked at his son and sat slowly in his great chair, lifting his son up onto his lap. "It's a story of the first rulers, son. Do you remember their names?"
"Francis and Helen?" Tirian asked.
"Frank," the king corrected gently.
"Those are strange names," Tirian said, wrinkling his nose as the smell of the ancient book hit his nostrils.
Erlian laughed. "I'm sure they'd find your name equally as strange," he said with a guffaw. "This is a story about a piece of advice that Queen Helen gave one of her children... a rather good piece of advice, if I might say..." he said as he began to read, and the words came alive once more after their long slumber.
Original Prompt that we sent you: Book-Canon Caspian, with blond hair, post-Dawn Treader; Tirian pre-Last Battle; Digory and/or Polly returning to Narnia; King Frank and Queen Helen (either before or after Magician's Nephew).
Author: writeonkate
Recipient:
lauraandrewsRating: K
Possible Spoilers/Warnings: None
Summary: Some lessons never become too old, even if they come from thousands of years past.
Across the Ages
"Master Hywin! Come quick!" called a voice from deep inside the caverns. "Master!"
Hywin looked up anxiously from examining a shard of a plate that had been found with most of the royal crest of Narnia intact, placing his treasure carefully on the drop cloth in front of him. "Loras? What is it, my boy?" Hywin called back, his brows furrowing as he shuffled closer to the cavern's opening.
"I've found something, Master!" came the eager voice, followed by the sounds of scratching and stumbling as the eager young badger came scurrying up the tunnel.
Hywin sighed, beginning to turn away. "It's a dig site, Loras. Of course you'll be finding things," the dwarf grumbled as he took up his spectacles from their chain to examine a piece of parchment from the Golden Age.
There was a loud thump and then a slight groan before a final triumphant "Ha!" that rang across the series of caverns that had been dug deep beneath the ruins of the Golden Hall. "No, I mean, I think I've really found something," Loras said eagerly as he scrambled towards the aging dwarf, proffering a large bundle as one would a great gift.
"Loras, I've told you, things are bound to be... found..." Hywin said, stopping short as he turned to see what the young badger had brought him. With shaking hands he reached out for it, gingerly lifting the large box from the badger's eager hands. "The table, boy. Clear it away," Hywin said urgently. "No, don't bother putting things away, just clear a space..." he said as Loras quickly elbowed away the pile of scrolls and broken quills which had acumulated over the large trestle table.
"What is it?" Loras asked breathlessly as he watched his master lay the box of ancient wood on the table and gingerly pry open the lid. "Is it a treasure chest?" he added, unable to hide the boyish excitement from his voice.
The dwarf gasped when he saw the contents, and touched the cover of the ancient book reverently. "It is a treasure indeed, Loras," he said disbelievingly. "You have discovered one of the tomes of the Dawn," he said.
------
In the high valley, Queen Helen was holding court, her young daughters fanned about like leaves fallen into a river, held aloof yet safe in the embrace of a warm and quick current of conversation.
"Mama, why is Horfkin staring up at the trees?" asked one of the little princesses of Narnia, tugging on her mother's faded brown skirts.
"Master Horfkin is writing a history, dear heart," the queen replied gently, setting aside her mending to place a hand on her daughter's nut brown hair. "He is writing so that your children and your children's children know out world."
The princesses all giggled, and one of the dryads nearby added her own twinkling laugh to the mix. "Ah, it is a great responsibility to be remembered," she trilled as she wove in a new strand of grass into the cloth she was producing.
"Responsibility? Why ever would it be a responsibility? Master Horkin wouldn't make us seem ill-bred or stupid," responded the eldest princess, Brenna, rather primly. "Why, Papa would be furious if he told ill of us or ours," she added, gazing about the meadow gathering at the women who had gathered there in the Queen's court.
Helen smiled slightly. "You don't want Master Horkin to have to tell tales to make you sound like a proper princess," she chided gently as she put aside her sewing and pulled her youngest, Elyn, onto her lap. "Why, if we have Master Horkin telling stories, perhaps he'll turn you into bunnies!" she said with a bright laugh as she imitated a bunny's face before rubbing noses with Elyn.
"Mama..." Brenna said, beginning to role her eyes but laughing when Amryl, the she-rabbit, began hopping about with a crown of daisies on her head proclaiming herself to be the Princess Brenna.
As the sun began to set over the young land, Helen sat amongst her children in her chambers, stroking her youngest's brown hair quietly as he dozed in her lap.
"Mama? Is it true what Mycelle said today?" Brenna asked sleepily, moving slowly so as not to wake her sister Cassia who slept against her shoulder. "About being a responsibility to be remembered?"
The queen sighed quietly, reaching for her daughter's hand. "It is," she said slowly. As she watched the fear pass her daughter's face, so familiar, she squeezed her eldest's hand. "It is a responsibility, dear heart. But never let that responsibility weigh your heart so that you cease to be who you are. In those early days, I felt so trapped by the responsibilities. I had not even a child, but Aslan had asked me to become a mother of sorts to the whole of this fledgling country. It was a terrifying prospect," she added with a grimace of sorts. "Yet I dreamed one night of Aslan coming to me, and telling me the same words I give to you now: Your greatest responsibility is to yourself, for the Emperor in his wisdom has created you to be what you are meant to be, and the rest will fall into place, even your country," she added, bringing her daughter's hand to her lips to kiss it. "And I've found, my darling, that it is wise to take the Lion's advice in all things," she added with a smile that made her dimples show.
Brenna could only smile back at her mother and nod. Although the weight would forever remain with her, it became now more bearable, especially with her mother's guidance.
And so it was that the princess learned the cost of royalty.
---
"Your Majesty, I believe we have found something that may be of interest to you..." said Hywin gravely as he approached the king and the young prince at the King's great desk.
"Hywin! What wonders have you brought for us?" boomed King Erlian with gusto as he looked up from the tome he was perusing with his son Tirian.
The dwarf made a motion and Loras came forward with the ancient box and, uncertainly elbowing a sheaf of paper away, placed the book with great reverence on the desk.
"What is this, then?" Erlian said, furrowing his brows. "You found this under the Golden Keep?" he asked Hywin quietly.
"Aye, sire. It is, it seems, one of the Tomes of the Dawn," Hywin said solemnly, gazing at the book with all the reverence he would pay his king.
Erlian frowned slightly as he reached a burly hand to touch the ancient leather. "Are you certain?" he asked as he gingerly opened the book.
"Father, what's a Tome of Dawn?" Tirian interrupted, standing on the chair to see the treasure the master historian had brought.
"The most ancient of the histories, Tirian," his father explained quickly, eyes wide in wonder. "Why... this tells of the first king of Narnia..." he paused a moment to look up at Hywin. "And you have checked? This is indeed...?" he let the question hang as he read the page.
"It is real, Majesty," the dwarf confirmed as Erlian looked closely at the page.
"Well? What does it say father?" Tirian begged, hopeful for a great story of clashing knights and battling giants.
Erlian looked at his son and sat slowly in his great chair, lifting his son up onto his lap. "It's a story of the first rulers, son. Do you remember their names?"
"Francis and Helen?" Tirian asked.
"Frank," the king corrected gently.
"Those are strange names," Tirian said, wrinkling his nose as the smell of the ancient book hit his nostrils.
Erlian laughed. "I'm sure they'd find your name equally as strange," he said with a guffaw. "This is a story about a piece of advice that Queen Helen gave one of her children... a rather good piece of advice, if I might say..." he said as he began to read, and the words came alive once more after their long slumber.
Original Prompt that we sent you: Book-Canon Caspian, with blond hair, post-Dawn Treader; Tirian pre-Last Battle; Digory and/or Polly returning to Narnia; King Frank and Queen Helen (either before or after Magician's Nephew).
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