Who: Rosalind Burke and Nathan Lazarus What: A king and queen return to their kingdom. Where: Nate's parents' basement, through the wardrobe to Narnia When: Saturday, January 6; afternoon Warnings: TBD, probably none
The wardrobe looked just the way that Susan had remembered it; even though they both should have been expecting that it still came as a shock. Things never looked the same as you imagined them, Rosalind had read about enough things that had disappointed her in reality to know that. This wasn't like that though. There was the movie anyway and Susan's memory was more solid than just imagining what a wardrobe might look like. For Susan it was that it hadn't changed no matter how much she had. It was still the same wardrobe that had taken them to Narnia the first time, the same wardrobe that had let her grow up and become a woman and a queen before it had spat her back out and she'd been trapped in a child's body again to have to repeat the whole thing over. The second stretch hadn't been nearly as long as the first but it had been enough to remind her of how much more they'd been in Narnia. It seemed like the wardrobe that had started it all should have been bigger or smaller or just different than she remembered it being.
If it cast her out this time then at least she wouldn't have to go through growing up all over again. Rosalind wasn't a girl on the cusp of becoming a woman the way Susan had been. Rosalind had turned twenty-five the day before, something she hadn't told Nate when she'd set the date for the two of them to try to make their way to Narnia. In a way this was a birthday present to herself—twenty-five was a milestone. A quarter of a century. She was past her early twenties and a real adult by anyone's standards now; she'd felt like an adult for far longer than the seven years she'd been one legally, honestly. Seven years an adult and two years a reincarnate and she wouldn't be intimidated by a piece of furniture or the lion who'd decided that a girl who was interested in nylons and lipstick and invitations didn't belong in his kingdom.
Makeup and pretty clothes were the only armor that Rosalind had ever worn and she'd made sure her armor didn't have any gaps today. Her makeup was flawless and her outfit was cute but practical, a peacoat over a sheer kimono over a sleeveless blouse just in case it was summer when they made it through to the other side, boots that were comfortable without sacrificing style in case they had to do a lot of walking. There was no reason that things that were pretty couldn't be functional too.
Rosalind pulled the last bobby pin she'd brought with her from between her teeth to finish securing her braid against her head. "There's a chance that this won't take us there at all." She was reminding herself just as much as she was reminding Nate. If she was a realist about it then maybe it wouldn't be such a disappointment when nothing happened and that little bit of magic was still denied to her just like it had been to Susan. Just in case, though, she'd still packed bottles of water and some meal bars in the bag she was carrying, along with anything else that they might need if they ended up stick in Narnia for longer thna the quick trip that they'd planned on. The horn was tucked inside it too, and Susan's bow and a quiver full of arrows were slung onto her back just in case they ran into any trouble. She'd practiced enough with the non-magical one that she'd left at home that it was almost comfortable to carrying this one now. Never something that she'd thought that she'd be comfortable with, carrying a weapon. She was glad that she had it now.
"Ready?" The smile that she shot Nate was small and tight and a little nervous no matter how much she told herself that she didn't care if they got there or not.