Relocation and Restoration

Hey! So, here I am, two in the morning my time, and I'm typing this up for anyone who is reading my story. You guys are lucky that I care. And that I got my second wind at the same time as my inspiration.

When this takes place:

In RA: after The Battle for Skandia.

In Narnia: after the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.

In LotR: you'll find out this chapter! ;)

Disclaimer: I do not own LotR, RA, or Narnia.

Chapter Two

Horace's POV

The first thing I became aware of as I eased into consciousness was the most stools in the air. It smelled faintly like a forest, but it was unlike any forest I had been in up to date. I groaned and sat up.

Realization number two: I felt... awkward. I wasn't comfortable in my own body. It seemed too big, too muscled.

Number three: I was in full armor, with my leather jerkin and chain mail and everything. There was a shiny helmet resting by my side, bright enough for me to see my reflection clearly in...

Which lead me to my fourth realization: somehow, I seemed to have aged five years. I no longer looked sixteen. I looked to be in my early-to-mid twenties.

Talk about disconcerting.

There was also something different about my face. It took me a second to see it in the warped reflection in the helmet. There was a scar tracing slightly down my left cheek, and my nose was slightly crooked, as if it had been bashed in one too many times. What the...

A groan from beside me drew my attention away from my appearance. Oh, gosh...

It was Will.

And he was bleeding to death.

I cursed. The arrow is his arm must have struck an artery. I needed to stop the bleeding. Bending down, I ripped the cuff of my pants off and tied a tourniquet around his arm, right under his arm pit.

I needed to find help. Fast.

Frantically, I looked around. I noticed a gleaming longbow resting besides Will. I picked it up and slung it around my shoulders. Will would want it if he ever recovered. I also picked up the full quiver that lay conveniently beside him. Twenty-four arrows, twenty-four lives, I thought vaguely.

I could be freaking out right now. I was in a strange forest, and my best friend was bleeding out right before my eyes. But I am a knight. I was trained for this. Gingerly, I picked Will up. I grunted; he too had undergone a physical transformation. He was a few inches taller, and there was more muscle to him, probably to account for the increased draw weight of the longbow verses his normal recurve. His cloak fell away from his side, revealing the double knife sheath that was unique to the Rangers.

Slowly, I started to pick my way through the forest with my best friend's life in my arms, only stopping when I finally heard voices.

Peter's POV

A green light filtering through my eyelids woke me up. I sat up, hearing a familiar chinking sound accompany the movement. I sat up, feeling uncomfortable in my own body. Making myself stand, I realized why.

Gone was my sixteen year old body. I now felt nearly the same age I was when we left Narnia. I had groan several inches, and the familiar corded muscle on my arms and back had returned.

I looked down at myself. I was wearing my old Narnian armor. The shiny chain mail gleamed silver, and the red surcoat with the golden lion of Cair Paravel lay cleanly against it. The sword that Father Christmas hsd given me that long while ago was sheathed by my side.

Had we returned to Narnia? I sincerely hoped so.

Movement around me drew my attention. Glancing around, I saw my brother and sisters starting to stir. They were all in their old Narnian garb.

Edmund, Susan, and Lucy had all aged as well. We now looked more like the Kings and Queens of old than English school children. Edmund was dressed like me, with his armor and sword gleaming. On his head rested his small silver circlet of a crown that had only one ruby for decoration. Reaching up, I found my similar circlet (gold with two sapphires flanking a diamond) resting on my head. It's weight there brought some semblance of comfort and familiarity.

Susan wore a deep blue dress with silver embroidery on it. Her bow, quiver, and horn rested beside her. Her delicate silver tiara, worked in the shape of twisting vines and leaves and laid with a single emerald, sat gleaming on her head. Her dark hair was pulled back from her face, and she looked stately and elegant.

And finally, there was Lucy. Even in her sleep, she was smiling. Her white gown, decorated with gold embroidery, hung gently on her twenty year old frame. Her diamond cordial with the healing draught from Narnia dangled from its strap, right next to her silver dagger. Oddly enough, there was another, longer dagger dangling from her other hip. Her golden tiara that matched Susan's twinkled with its single pink diamond. .

All at once, they all three woke up. Groaning and rubbing stiff muscles, they eventually all stood up, and we formed a huddle of sorts. "Where do you suppose we are?" Edmund asked.

Susan rolled her eyes. "Narnia, of course."

Lucy shook her head. "I don't think so. This land feels different from Narnia. It feels..."

She trailed off, unable to find the right word. "It feels older," I supplied. Edmund nodded in agreement. "I think where we are is the least of our worries at the moment."

I glanced at him. "What do you mean?"

Edmund smirked. "I should think that you would be much more concerned as to why we had suddenly aged eight or nine years, or..." he paused, listening. "Or worried about the armored knight that is currently watching us." He pointed, and we all whirled around to see the spy.

There was some crunching in the growth below the trees, and then a tall figure in chain mail stepped out. He wore a silver helmet that concealed most of his features, but his armor gleamed just as brightly as mine or Ed's. In his arms was a slight figure of a man in a cloak colored with mottled grays, greens, and browns. The man was obviously injured, by the amount of blood on his clothing and the tourniquet wrapped hastily around his arm. He appeared to be unconscious. The armored man stepped forward, hesitated, then said, "Please, I need help. My best friend is about to die."

I heard Lucy give a small gasp. I knew her heart was wrenching with the desire to help this man. Lucy hated death, and she glanced at me to see if it was okay that she used her cordial to heal the man. I gave her a small nod, then turned to the knight. "Set your friend down. My sisters will attend to him."

The tension flooded out of the knight as if a dam had broken. He sighed in relief. "Thank you, my lord." I started; how did he know to address me? Shaking this off, I watched him as he carefully set the smaller man down gently so as not to disturb his wound even more. Immediately, Lucy raced to his side, pulled off the tourniquet, and poured some of the healing liquid into the man's mouth. I watched the way her eyes lingered on his face, and my eyes narrowed. The young man was handsome enough, I supposed, with warm brown hair and delicate, almost elfin facial features, but he was small, and quite obviously not a knight. Lucy would have to watch her feelings around him.

"Excuse me, my lords," the knight called, and Edmund and I turned around. "I was wondering if you knew where we are?"

I heard Edmund grunt. "We were hoping you could tell us that. We have never been here before."

The knight sighed. "Great," he mumbled to himself. He started pacing. "We get ambushed by Scotti on the border of Redmont Fief, Will gets shot, we wake up in a random land, and we are about six years older than I last recall."

"Hold on a second," Su called to him. "Did you just say that that you had aged six years?"

Stopping abruptly, the knight turned to look at her and took his helmet off. I heard Su's breath catch, and could guess the reason. The young man before her was ruggedly handsome, I suppose (I'm not an expert on male attractiveness. I like my girls beautiful, thank you very much) with clear blue eyes, dirty blond hair, strong features, a crooked nose, and a small scar on his left cheek. "Um, yes, my lady."

"How odd," Susan mused out loud. "It appears we weren't the only ones dragged into this mystery land."

"What? You mean that you got here by accident too?" the knight asked, looking almost hopeful.

I was about to answer, when the injured man heaved a gasp and sat up, choking. He looked around, bewildered.

"Will!" The shout startled everyone, and the knight raced towards the previously injured man, Will, I guess. The knight raced forward and tackled him in a bear hug. "Thank goodness! I thought you were going to die!"

Will choked. "Can't...breath...Horace!" The knight, Horace, let go immediately, blushing. He turned to Lucy.

"Thank you, my lady. I can never repay you! But how did you heal him?" Horace asked.

I heard Lucy's breath catch, much as Susan's had, and I saw her hesitate. "I am just gifted at the healing arts, sir."

Horace seemed to accept this. "Thank you!" He turned back to his friend and helped him to his feet. "All right, Will?"

Will looked even more confused. "What happened to you, Horace? You look..."

"Older?" Horace supplied with a rueful grin. "You should see yourself." Horace held out his helmet, and we all watched in fascination as Will examined his new face.

"What the heck happened to us?"

I burst out laughing. "We would all like to know that. We all were plopped down here against our will and aged about seven years. We are just as confused as you."

Small grins spread around the circle, and soon everyone was giggling at our situation.

"Well," I said after I had recovered. "Now that we have laughed at our mutual odd situation, perhaps we could do introductions?" Everyone nodded. I hesitated, wondering if I should use our full titles, but then figured, what the heck, we were quite obviously royalty from our attire, and the two men seemed friendly enough. "I am High King Peter the Magnificent of Narnia."

The eyes of the two strangers widened immediately. They knelt on one knee before me and said together, "Your Highness."

I chuckled. "Oh, do get up. Your knees are going to hurt if you insist on bowing to royalty." They clambered to their feet, and I gestured to Susan to continue.

"I am Queen Susan the Gentle of Narnia," she said confidently. I saw both the strangers twitch as if to bow, but they held their position.

"I am King Edmund the Just of Narnia," Ed said, brushing his dark hair out of his eyes.

"And I am Queen Lucy the Valiant of Narnia," Lucy finished, grinning at the two strangers but mainly, to my surprise at the smaller man.

Will's eyes widened in surprise. "Horace, she looks just like-"

Horace grunted. "I know. Uncanny, isn't it?"

My siblings and I exchanged confused looks, but before we could ask them about their exchange, they moved on with the introductions. "I am Sir Horace of Castle Araluen, knight of the Order of the Oakenleaf," the tall blond man said, swinging his shield around so that we could see its white enameled surface painted with a green oak leaf.

The shorter man stepped forward. "I am Will, Ranger fifty of the Ranger Corps, Ranger of Seacliff." He jumped. "What did I just say?"

Ed looked confused. "You said you were Ranger fifty of Seacliff." Horace shared a look with Will. It seemed to convey that they would talk about what had happened at a later time.

There was a slightly awkward silence, which Horace broke by asking, "So, where is Narnia?"

Will's POV

Today was one of the weirdest days I have ever lived through.

And that is saying something. I've lived through quite a lot of odd situations.

I looked at my new companions. They were quite obviously royal. Even without their rich clothes and armor, I would have been able to tell. They seemed to radiate authority. I watched as they glanced at one another, pondering Horace's question.

"You don't have to tell us if you don't want to, your majesties," I said softly.

The High King shifted, uncomfortable. "It's not that we don't want to tell you. It's that we don't exactly know ourselves."

I was extremely confused. "How can you be rulers of a country and not know where it is?" I forgot the respect they were due, and Horace, quick on the uptake, gave me a glare and a cuff on the head. I grinned apologetically at the kings and queens.

The blond queen, Lucy, who looked remarkably like my... friend Alyss, in her white gown that resembled a Courrier's, have a tinkling, musical laugh. I felt that I could sit and listen to it all day. "Oh, its alright." She smiled at me, and it made my knees shake. "When we were young, we had an experience much like this, only we grew to be great leaders and warriors. The land that we were put in was Narnia."

I nodded; I didn't particularly understand, but I didn't want to disappoint Lucy. I heard Horace scoff beside me. I was prepared to send him a glare when something slung over his back caught my attention. "A bow!"

He looked at me, then put a hand to his back. "Oh right. I found this beside you when I woke up. Thought you might want it." He passed me the longbow and the accompanying quiver.

I grinned; it felt good to have my bow in my hand. In a matter of seconds, I had strung it, notched an arrow to its string, and fired it into a tree trunk with the unnerving accuracy that all Rangers possessed. My grin broadening, I hooked the quiver onto my belt, slung my bow over my shoulder, and went to retrieve my arrow, instinctively raising the cowl of my cloak. I paused when I heard a shriek behind me. Turning slowly, I saw Queen Susan looking about wildly. "Where did he go?"

A trace of a smile rose to my lips, and Horace looked to be barely concealing laughter. "Oh he's still there." Turning he looked right at me and winked. "Look that way." The kings and queens did. "Now, Will, wave at us, would you?" They gasped as my sudden movement revealed my position. I lowered my hood, got my arrow, and walked back to them. All the while, their eyes followed me, their awe apparent.

When Horace and I were once again standing side by side, they still were just gaping at me. Horace and I exchanged amused looks. "Go ahead, blurt it out."

"How did you-"

"What did-"

"Did you just-"

"Oh, shut it!"

That last one came from Edmund. He seemed to see the amused glint in my eye and realized that they were getting no where. He looked me square in the eye. "How did you just disappear?"

I schooled my face into a neutral expression. "Secret of the trade."

Horace rolled his eyes. Turning to Edmund, he said, "Rangers are a secretive bunch. Not only are they skilled at unseen movement, they also have uncanny accuracy with a now and arrow, as you just saw."

"Yes," Susan said. "We did just see a demonstration, didn't we? How long have you been shooting?" She directed this last question to me.

I shrugged. "Two or three years? I may look twenty two, or something like that, but in actuality I'm only seventeen."

The kings and queens all looked immediately impressed. "I practiced shooting for ten years and didn't get that good," Susan told me, and I allowed my eyes to smile a little bit.

Peter turned to Horace. "What about you? Any hidden talents we should know about?" The king raised an eyebrow.

Horace blushed. "Um, I'm pretty good with a sword your majesty."

I shook my head. "Pretty good?" I looked the king in the eye. "Horace is one of the best swordsmen in the kingdom, even at only seventeen."

Edmund smirked. "Let's see this skill, shall we? Wish to spar a little?" He drew his sword.

Horace glanced at me, as if asking permission. I nodded, and he too drew his sword. Stepping back, I pulled Peter, Susan, and Lucy back with me. "Best give them some room. Horace's style of fighting is very... unpredictable." Nodding with understanding, we all turned to watch the sparring match.

Edmund and Horace circled each other carefully, watching how the other moved, examining their strengths and weaknesses. And then suddenly, Horace lunged.

They moved so fast that I couldn't keep track of whose sword was whose. They were trapped in a deadly, swirling dance, made up only of action and reaction.

For a while, they seemed equally matched, but then Horace guided his sword with a little more force, and then more, and more, forcing Edmund to retreat, until, with the sharp ringing of metal on metal, he disarmed the king, sending his brilliant silver sword flying. Quick as a fly, Horace's sword point went to Edmund's neck, hovering in a killing stroke until, with a grin, Horace sheathed his sword. "Well done, your majesty. I haven't had fought like that in ages."

I rolled my eyes. "You mean, since you defeated one of the most wanted men in our kingdom's history in single combat."

Horace shrugged, as if to say, same thing.

Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy were looking at Horace in awe. "How did you..." Peter began, but he trailed off, shaking his head to himself. Horace grinned, then picked up Edmund's sword for him. "Here you go."

The sound of a branch breaking to my left drew my attention away from the swordsmen now babbling away about technique or something like that. Sliding my throwing knife from its leather sheath, I watched and waited. Seeing a Bush move against the wind, I threw my knife, knowing it would land about six inches from whoever was hiding. A man yelled as the knife struck a tree trunk by his head.

The sudden commotion drew everyone's attention and, in less than a split second, both Susan and I had an arrow notched, Peter, Edmund, and Horace had their swords drawn, and Lucy had pulled out her silver dagger.

"I command you to come out in the name of Peter, High King of Cair Peravel," Peter called out in a stately voice. Immediately, two figures rose from the Bush and walked towards us hands raised. I kept my arrow trained on them as I heard Edmund call out in disbelief, "Luke, Mark, how the heck did you get here?"

The taller figure immediately dropped into a low bow. "High King Peter, Queen Susan, King Edmund, and Queen Lucy. I am honored to formally meet you, Your majesties."

I almost burst out laughing at the uncomprehending looks on the faces of the four royals. "I'm sorry, who are you?" Susan asked blankly.

The man remained in his low bow. "Luka Stensfield, your highness. My close friend, Prince Corin, had told me much about you."

"If you know Corin, how did you end up on earth?" Edmund asked suspiciously.

"Umm," Luka shifted his position. "One day I was off... hunting... And these trees natural arch...And I walked through it... And I just happened to land on earth."

I surveyed the man, hoping I was emitting the same grimness that Halt, my mentor, seemed to radiate when dealing with situations like this. There were too many pauses in the man's story for me to be comfortable.

My musings were interrupted by a cry of, "Will someone please explain to me what the heck is going on?" It seems I'm not the young naive one in this group. This Mark seemed to have that covered.

Lucy's POV

Eventually, it was decided that we would all move together, as we were all lost in this strange land. The man Will, called a Ranger by his friend, found a game trail, and we set off.

The trail was just wide enough for two people to walk side by side, and, through some odd stroke of luck, I ended up next to Will. I stole a glance over to him, and hid a smile.

I found Will to be extremely attractive. He wasn't handsome by normal standards, but the combination of his light brown hair, intelligent brown eyes, and just general attitude that I found appealing. The way he carried himself seemed to ooze of a very quiet and subtle confidence, and his every move was concise, as if he had seen it in his head a thousand times before actually moving.

I gazed at him. Not wanting to be thought weird, though, I decided to start a conversation. "So Will, what does a Ranger do?"

He glanced at me and shrugged. "We are servants and representatives of the king. We look out for trouble and monitor the work being done in each of the fiefs. We are the king's eyes and ears, I guess you could say."

I continued to gaze at him. "What are fiefs?"

And so we got into the politics of his home kingdom. I learned about the fifty fiefs, each ruled by a baron who reports back to the king. I learned about Battleschool, and the Diplomatic Corps, and a great many other things.

"Baron Arald thinks that girls are better diplomats than boys because..." He trailed off, stopping in his tracks.

"Will?" I prompted, but he shook his head and called for Peter and Horace, who were at front, to stop.

Peter was perplexed. "Why should we stop?"

But Horace was already nodding. "Alright Will, you've got ten minutes before I come plowing after you."

Will have his friend a grateful smile before taking off at a deadly, silent run.

"Would someone please explain to me what just happened?" Ed asked from somewhere behind me. We all turned to look at Horace. He looked uncomfortable, as if he was used to relying on other people for answers. "Will is a Ranger," he said vaguely.

We all just looked at him. "So?" Mark prompted, not to kindly. He was by far the most put out by our current situation. No wonder, really, he had least experience with stuff like this.

"So Ranger's are trained to go with their gut. It's more often than not that they are right." Horace didn't seem to like answering questions.

We ask just stood there in an awkward silence for about six minutes, with Horace listening carefully for any signs of Will's return and the rest of us shooting each other confused looks, when suddenly Will appeared by Horace's side, seemingly out of nowhere.

We all jumped, including Horace. "How many times do I have to tell you not to do that?" Horace cried indignantly.

Will didn't smile. His face was cold, calculating. Turning to Peter, he said, "I hope you are good a swordsman as your brother."

Horace groaned. "Oh no, Will, what did you do this time?"

He looked at assembled warriors (if Mark and Luke count as warriors) before him. "I may or may not have seen a black, wraith-like creature chasing what looked like four children. I may or may not have stuck the wraith with an arrow, and it may or may not be trying to find me as we speak."

So, good? Thanks to the one person who reviewed last chapter. LOTRPJATO1313 or suffering like that. I think I really messed up that spelling... Sorry LOTR!

Anyways, please review! Love y'all!

~ Boogalee