Haunted
By Serena Kenobi
Rating: T
Summary: She's got nothing left to live for. But perhaps he can change that. Lucian, dark Prince Caspian AU.
Author's notes: Inspired by the new Prince Caspian movie coming out!! SO EXCITED!! My Caspian will be based on him, from the upcoming movie - at least his looks. As for his character, I shall try to stay true to the amazing book by C. S. Lewis. If you want a trailer of the movie, go to Youtube.
Disclaimer: I don't pretend to own the amazing series by my one of my favorite authors C. S. Lewis.
Prologue
The young man stood upon the terrace of the castle, his keen dark eyes watching the sky, the trees, and the birds. Everything seemed just a little too quiet these days; and the aura surrounding the Telmarine castle was unfriendly and almost dark.
Caspian frowned, his dark brown hair blowing into his face from the almost bitter wind. There was a chill that swept through the castle more often than not, and he decided that he would never get used to it. He preferred the warm breeze near the sea – the sea that was supposedly haunted.
He snorted and shook his head. If his uncle, King Miraz, didn't believe in fairy tales, then why did most of the Telmarines believe that the sea was haunted? That ghosts lived in the woods where the castle of Cair Paravel supposedly existed all those years ago? His scowl deepened. His uncle might not have believed in fairy tales or talking beasts, but he definitely seemed to think that the sea was poison in some way.
"Your Highness!"
Caspian groaned. "Yes, guard?"
"Sir, the King requests your presence immediately in the Grand Hall."
Caspian turned to face the guard. "Very well. I'll be there presently." He turned back, and his dark gaze swept over the scenery once more. A sudden gust of wind raged past him, and he shivered instinctively. He heard a shrill scream of the hawk as it soared above, and it almost looked as if it were staring right at him with its intense eyes. Caspian watched, transfixed, as the hawk circled above him and then dove down into the trees. The spell was broken, but Caspian knew – no, felt – that something was going to happen. Soon.
In just a short time, his life would never be the same again.
Chapter One
She stared out of the train window with dull eyes. Her darkening hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and her clothes were drab and gray. And her foot was falling asleep.
Lucy glanced down and shook her foot to make the blood rush back in. When it did, she winced as her foot tightened up and hurt when she moved it even a little. The train suddenly slowed down, and it soon enough it stopped. Lucy looked out into the station, not expecting any welcome. She wasn't disappointed. It wasn't as if Susan would've come to greet her, anyway. No. Her older sister was only thinking about parties, boys, drinking, and having a good time.
More like wasting her life away, Lucy thought almost mildly. She hasn't been the same since… Lucy halted her train of thought right there and kicked herself mentally. She couldn't judge Susan for that when she herself had changed after… after… She couldn't even say it in her mind. The pain was still too near.
Lucy got off the train and hailed a cab to Susan's London flat. When she arrived, she stared up at the cold, distasteful stone building and sighed. But her place wasn't much different, so she wasn't that surprised. Everything seemed lifeless to her now. Lucy grabbed her one bag, paid the driver, and rang the bell. She heard laughter and heated whispering inside, but she didn't bother to peek through the door. Soon enough, the door opened to reveal her only sister in wrinkled clothing that looked as if they had been hastily thrown on. Lucy's eyes flickered with some imperceptible emotion, but they quickly faded back into the dreary orbs that they were before.
"Lucy!" Susan grinned. "Come in!"
Lucy gave a half-hearted smile and hugged her sister lightly, pulling away almost instantly. "Hello, Susan." Her voice was quiet and almost as monotonous as the sound of the train she had been on earlier.
"How've you been? How's your job?" Susan didn't seem to pick up on her sister's uncharacteristic behavior. So plagued was she by her own worldly issues that she didn't notice that her sister's fresh, beautiful innocence had been stolen away - faded completely until nothing but a mere shell of the Lucy she had known as a teen existed.
But then again, what would she know? Lucy thought. She's too wrapped up in her own little world to even think about someone else.
"I've been all right," Lucy said quietly. She followed Susan further into the flat, where she found listening to the radio and sitting on the couch a man who looked to be in his late twenties, smoking and drinking.
"Oh, Lu! This is Toby, my – my friend," Susan grinned. "Toby, this is my sister, Lucy,"
Toby leered at her. "Nice to meet you."
"Toby's staying with me for a few weeks," Susan explained. "He's a wonderful cook!"
Lucy had a hard time believing that. The stench of smoke and liquor filled the air with a horrible odor, but she didn't make any faces or complain. "Pleasure, I'm sure," she said, her voice flat. Turning to her sister, she said, "Do you mind if I take a nap? I'm pretty worn out from traveling." In truth, she didn't want to spend any more time around Toby than she had to, but she wasn't about to say that to her sister.
"Oh," Susan said, in a tone that was not quite apologetic, "I'm sorry, Lucy, but we're using the spare room as an extra entertainment room. I put a billiards table in there – I have guests over almost every night, so… would you mind very much to sleep on the couch?"
Lucy looked around. "What couch?"
Susan laughed – it wasn't a nice laugh. It seemed to Lucy that she was laughing at her. "Oh, silly! This couch!" She placed a hand on the couch that Toby was sitting on.
Lucy swallowed again. "But – I can't sleep with you here. I'll just get in your way." And you'll disturb me to no end.
Susan shrugged. "No you won't, not really. But I suppose you can use my room – Toby's and mine, anyway. For now. But I'll need it later." She shot a coy look to Toby, who grinned back and took another sip of liquor.
Lucy fought the urge to hurl. "Right." She followed her sister into the bedroom, trying very hard to ignore the strewn about women's and men's clothing. Susan pulled up the covers and tossed a pillow onto the bed that had been lying on the floor.
"Enjoy." Susan shut the door.
Lucy looked from the floor to the bed and back to the floor. She took the pillow off the bed and the top blanket and sunk down to the ground, her eyes glassy as she tried to hold back tears. This wasn't how it was supposed to be.
But it was.
Lucy's eyes shot open as she heard screaming, laughing, and loud music. Rising to her feet and rubbing her eyes, she looked at the clock. I didn't realize I was so tired, she thought, and peered out through the door. To her horror, there were over fifty people dancing, talking, drinking, smoking, and doing… other things, in Susan's living room. The place was a mess, and Lucy started coughing from the smoke in the air.
"Lucy!" Susan shouted and came over, an arm around a young man (not Toby, Lucy noticed) and in the other hand a bottle of beer. "Come and join us!"
"Hey, sweet-cakes!" The young man said in a low, grating tone that made Lucy want to snap his neck. "Come on out and have some fun!"
Lucy looked to her sister, the man, and the alcohol. She stepped back into the bedroom and shut the door.
Susan and her friend heard the door lock the next moment. "What a party-pooper," Susan giggled.
Upon hearing that from inside the bedroom, Lucy hurled a small fist into the wall and drew it back. She didn't bother to wipe the blood that now poured out from that fist off her knuckles.
Lucy sipped tea in the small kitchen the afternoon after the night of the party. Susan eventually came in, stumbling around for something to eat.
"Have some tea, Sue," Lucy said evenly, pushing an extra cup toward her sister.
Susan smiled faintly and sat down across from her, taking a large gulp of the warm liquid. "Everyone gone?" She said, bleary.
Lucy nodded. "Yes." There was silence for a minute, but then Lucy's eyes turned suddenly sharp. "You remember Narnia, Sue?"
Susan straightened and set her cup down. She swallowed, paused, and said, "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Yes, you do."
"Stop it, Lucy," Susan lashed out, hissing. Her eyes had become dark. "Stop it. You're not a child anymore. We aren't children anymore. So stop playing your silly little games and grow up."
Lucy stayed calm, but inwardly her heart was clenched and tight. It wasn't breaking – oh, no; it had broken too many times for her to count. Her heart was too tired to break anymore. "They weren't silly games, Susan. They were real."
"No, they weren't!" Susan spat. "I can't believe you still thinkabout them! You know what your problem is, Lucy?"
"I know what yours is."
"Don't get off-subject!" Susan snarled. "Your problem is that you're stuck in another world. Your head can't distinguish anymore between what's fantasy and what's reality. Your mind is still a little child clinging to what your life was like back then. Back before Mum and Dad were killed. Back before Peter and Edmund went off on a bloody crusade to fight the Germans in France. Well, guess what, Lucy? This isn't a fairy tale. You're not a kid anymore. There isno Narnia. Grow up." She pushed herself out of her seat and stormed out from the kitchen.
Lucy knew then it was time to leave.
So that very day, she did.
Lucy took the train out to the country on a familiar route that sent chills running through her veins. She left the train at a familiar station, hired another cab, and found herself experiencing deja-vu as the taxi drove past familiar landmarks, over familiar bridges, and finally, up to a house that Lucy knew well. She stepped out, gazed up with those same lifeless eyes as usual, and slowly walked up to the house, still carrying her one bag. She noticed that the place seemed rather empty – almost too empty, in fact. Frowning, she knocked on the door. When no one answered, she did it again. And again. Finally, she turned the handle and found herself stepping inside. Nothing had changed.
Lucy stood in the front hall, silent as the hall itself. She looked around, unsure of what to do next.
"Hello?"
Lucy's eyes flicked to the open doorway, where an elderly lady was coming through. "Hello."
"If you're looking to buy, I'm sorry, it's not for sale," the woman said kindly. She had the feeling of a grandmother, Lucy thought distantly.
"No," Lucy shook her head. "I'm not here to buy. I'm here to see the Professor."
The woman's eyes became sad. "So you've not heard."
"Heard what?"
"He died just a few weeks ago. Heart attack. Horrible," the woman looked down, and Lucy thought she saw tears in her eyes. "But he's gone to rest with the Lord. I'm sorry you had to find out like this, dear. Did you know him?"
Lucy nodded slowly. "A little."
The woman came forward. "I'm Polly Plummer," she said, holding out a hand. "I'm keeping the house until the attorneys find the young girl in charge of this place."
"I don't follow."
"Digory – the Professor – left all his estate to a young woman that nobody can find – a Lucy Pevensie."
Lucy stared at her. "What?"
That's the first chapter. Reviews are welcomed! If I mess up any spelling, I apologize in advance.
- Serena Kenobi