2Jane woke the next morning feeling just as tired and worn out as she did before she went to sleep. At the rate she was going she thought she might die of sleep deprivation. She sat up and ran her fingers through her tangled hair, sweat dampening the roots. She needed to shower. With a sigh she threw the blankets to the side and let her legs dangle over the edge of the bed. She hadn't bothered unpacking the night before so she would have to find her shower things – and the bathroom. She thought she'd seen it at the end of the hall when Mrs. MaCready was showing everyone their rooms. So, once the bed was made and she'd gathered her things, she donned a house coat and headed to towards her bedroom door. She tried to stay quiet, considering the time of morning, but when she cracked open the door and peered outside she was reminded of just how big the professor's home was. She no longer worried about the noise – no one was going to hear her. She stepped into the hall and closed the door behind her, turning on her heel to head for the bathroom when she bumped into something, she steadied herself and immediately started apologizing, afraid it might be the professor or Mrs. MaCready.
"It's okay, it was my fault." The voice sounded familiar, and it was definitely not Mrs. MaCready or the professor. She glanced up and found the oldest Pevensie standing in front of her. Peter was his name, if she remembered correctly. They locked eyes and Jane found that she was lost in a sky of blue. Her heart was pounding and she finally had to pull her gaze away, clearing her throat and apologizing again. That's when she noticed she'd dropped her shampoo bottle and reached down to pick it up, only to bump heads with Peter just as he was bending over to do the same. They both yelped in pain and rubbed their heads but one look at each other and they couldn't help but laugh. Peter grabbed the bottle and they got back to their feet.
"I'm Peter." He returned the bottle and Jane took it with a shy smile.
"Jane."
"It's good to finally meet you. Susan said she stopped by last night."
"She did. She'd very kind."
"She can be."
Jane furrowed her eyebrows in confusion, but in realizing that he was making a joke at his sister's expense she gave a quiet chuckle and silence fell over them. They stood there awkwardly with both of them looking everywhere but each other.
"Pardon the intrusion, but Susan said you were having a bit of a hard time. How are you holding up?"
Jane bit her lip in thought. Truthfully, her nightmares had kept her up all night, she was still exhausted from the day before, and she missed her family. All in all, she wasn't holding up well at all. But he had other things to deal with, and they didn't even actually know each other. So she put on a brave face and smiled up at him, lying straight through her teeth, "I was able to get some sleep, so I'm doing better this morning."
He didn't believe it one bit, but he didn't pry.
"Susan tells me you all are planning on going out for some fresh air around the grounds later today." Jane said after a bit of silence. She was finding that she really enjoyed Peter's company and was reluctant to let this encounter end.
"Yes," he stated, a little over zealous in his response before clearing his throat and dialing it back a bit, clearly happy that she had found a way to keep the conversation going, "Lucy's feeling rather homesick and we thought a bit of fresh air and sun might do her some good."
"Oh, poor thing! I wish I could say I didn't know what she was feeling. Some fresh air sounds like a lovely idea."
"So you'll join us then?" he smiled.
"Yes, Susan invited me last night."
"Oh. That's great. I'll see you in a bit then?"
"Seeing as I don't have much else to do, I'll be there."
Peter chuckled and took his leave while Jane continued down the hall for her shower. Her heart was beating a million miles a minute and she couldn't stop smiling. Maybe it wasn't so bad here after all.
Jane heard the thunder just as she was finishing up with her hair. She jumped at the noise and ran to the window on the other side of the bathroom. It was absolutely pouring rain outside. No sun, no blue sky, no fresh air. She sighed, feeling bad for Lucy who was probably so excited for this. She moped back to the mirror to finish her hair, now dreading the day to come with nothing to do. She returned her things to her room started down the hall towards Susan and Lucy's room. Susan was the only one there and Jane hesitatantly knocked on the door to get her attention. She smiled when she saw her at the door.
"So much for some fresh air." Jane said sadly.
"I know. Not such a great start to our stay." Susan joined her and gestured down the hall, "Come on, everyone's in one of the sitting rooms."
"One of them?" Jane said in awe. Both girls chuckled and headed to join the other children. Upon entering the room, Jane was taken aback by the splender of it. This entire house was nothing like her family's back home. It was very dark, though she was sure if the sun had been shining it would have poured in through the large window that Lucy was staring out of and brightened the whole room. But she could hear the rain tapping on the window and she could feel how gloomy everyone felt just by stepping into the room. Peter turned from examining to the shelves of books at the girls' entrance and went to stand with Jane.
"Dreadful luck about the weather." He said.
"I know, I feel so bad for Lucy. I know she was really looking forward to this."
"Rain doesn't last forever. We'll go out when the rain lets up."
He nodded, "You, um, look very nice."
She was a bit taken aback by his comment, though she couldn't help the bashfulness that flooded over her, "Oh, thank you. This dress is a, um, old family dress."
They continued with idle chatter until Susan suggested a game that involved the dictionary and everyone was immediately put off by it, but she insisted.
"'Gastrovascular.'" Susan said, the largest dictionary the world had ever known laid across her lap. Jane was sat on the floor in front of Peter's chair, toying with the hem of her skirt, watching Edmund defile the bottom of another chair across the room with a knife. Lucy hadn't moved from her seat at the window and when no one responded to her word, Susan gave a defeated sigh, "Come on, Peter. Gastrovascular."
Peter was messing with a loose thread in his chair and gave an aggravated huff, "Is it Latin?"
"Yes."
"Is it Latin for 'worst game ever invented'?" Edmund sat up from his handiwork and they all chuckled, though Susan didn't seem to find her brother's comment very funny. She glared at him and slammed the book shut, discarding it on the couch next to her.
"We could play hide and seek." Lucy left her perch by the window and approached her oldest brother with hopeful eyes. He looked at her a moment before turning to Susan, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
"But we're already having so much fun."
Jane chuckled, earning a nasty look from Susan. She cleared her throat and looked down at the carpet she was sitting on, listening to Lucy beg her brother to play a new game. It didn't take long to convince him and his only reply was to start counting. With the biggest of smiles she took off to find a hiding spot. Edmund and Susan weren't happy about it, but they obliged and Jane followed on their heels. They all scattered about the house, Peter's counting fading in the distance. Jane turned a corner and saw Susan fold herself into an empty trunk. She continued circling the house until she came back to the sitting room and decided that if she was good and quiet she could hide right under Peter's nose. She tip-toed in, unknowing of Peter's good hearing and wandering eye, and tried her best to slide under the couch without making a sound. Once she was settled, she waiting for Peter to reach 100 and remained very still and quiet.
"Ready or not, here I come!" he shouted. Jane watched his feet head out of the room and she couldn't help but let out a little giggle once she thought she was alone. She started to crawl out from under the couch but she stilled when she thought she heard footsteps. It was quiet for only a moment when someone dropped to the floor behind her.
"Got ya!" Peter called. She yelped, rolling to face him and his beaming smile. After the initial shock she smiled too and he helped her out from under the couch to assist him in finding everyone else. They had just stepped out of the room and Jane swore she heard Lucy shouting. She led Peter down the hall and when they turned the corner they found Lucy standing in plain sight with Ed, looking very unamused, peeking out from behind a curtain.
"You know, I'm not sure you two have quite got the idea of this game." Peter approached them with Jane standing close by.
"Weren't you wondering where I was?" Lucy said. Jane furrowed her eyebrows at the young girl's question as Edmund came out from his hiding place.
"That's the point." He said, visibly frustrated, "That was why he was seeking you."
"Does this mean I win?" Susan joined them from behind with a big smile.
"I don't think Lucy wants to play anymore." Peter said.
"I've been gone for hours." Lucy said, obviously just as confused as the rest of them. Her older siblings looked at her as if she was crazy, but Jane had a funny feeling about the whole thing. Something told her to believe the youngest Pevensie.
"Well, where exactly have you been all this time?" she said. Lucy gave a small smile, almost as a thank you for at least trying to believe her, and led her to one of the spare rooms down the hall. There wasn't anything inside except a very large and very beautifully crafted wardrobe.
"So you're saying there's a snow covered wood in this wardrobe?" Peter asked, watching Edmund and Susan examine the piece of furniture after hearing Lucy's story of Narnia, the wood at the back of the wardrobe. The two knocked on the back panel, inside and out, but found nothing.
"Lucy, the only wood in here is the back of the wardrobe." Susan said.
"One game at a time, Lu. We don't all have your imagination." Peter looked on at her with an expression of pity. She was young and scared and probably just trying to cope with what was happening in the world around her. Jane saw a lot of her little sister in her and it made her heart ache. Peter, Susan, and Edmund started to leave and Lucy watched them go for a moment before stopping them.
"But I wasn't imagining!"
"That's enough, Lucy." Susan turned on her heel with her brothers, irritation rising in her chest.
"I wouldn't lie about this!"
"Well, I believe you."
Lucy turned to Edmund in shock, much like the rest of the children. Even after only knowing him for a half a day Jane could tell that he was the troublemaker of the bunch and this was unlike him. He had something up his sleeve and she knew it before the words even left his mouth.
"You do?" Lucy questioned.
"Yeah, of course. DIdn't I tell you about the football field in the cupboards?"
A look of hurt spread over Lucy's features and Jane wanted nothing more than to go to her. But this was not her family, not her place. She felt a little wrong for being here, knowing how hard this must be for all of them. But Peter stepped up, obviously done with his brother's antics, "Will you just stop? You just have to make everything worse, don't you?"
"It was just a joke!"
"When are you gonna learn to grow up?"
"Shut up! You think you're Dad, but you're not!"
He shoved past Susan and out of the room, leaving the rest of them in silence. The oldest siblings exchanged a look. Susan was not pleased, and she made sure to let Peter know before going after Edmund. Jane decided to go to Lucy for support, placing a hand on her shoulder first and when Lucy leaned into her she embraced her fully.
"But," she whimpered, "it really was there."
Peter turned to the two girls that were left, giving Jane the most apologetic look he could muster and not even looking away from her when he spoke, "Susan's right, Lucy. That's enough."
