AN: Yes. An update. Already. I was on a roll; why keep it to myself? Thanks so much, Sedri, for the lightning fast beta job; you are the best! I would never get those capitals right without you! ::snort::

Thanks, as usual, to those who reviewed: Princess Lucy, acacia59601, (I came across it while researching WWII England. I didn't go very deep, just so that I knew enough to write about it. ::interested:: Why would you ask?), JollyElfDance554, garnetred (is this soon enough? ::wink::), Shining Friendship, Soweird66 (Ugh, you're right. I am. In my defense; I never saw any of them, so I can't really tell them apart...), melwa elena and emerald_teardrops (Happy dance? Is that something I might get to see? ::grins:: I promise I won't blow them up...too much. ::evil cackle::)

And just a tip: you might want to read this while playing 'The Blitz, 1940' from the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe soundtrack on the loop. It's how I wrote it.

Chapter 14: London Blitz

“Peter, there’s no time!” Susan’s voice sounded shrill in the night air, and Peter seemed to remember the danger his family was in. In a flash he pulled Lucy to her feet and held her close.

“Get off the road!” Caspian yelled.

At that moment the London sky lighted up with first bomb that hit the city.

The first flash of light was rapidly followed by a second, and a third. The loud drones followed with a slight delay. The air alarm continued to ring, pitifully and pointless, as if the city itself whined and complained about the blows.

Caspian watched all of it happen as if it were a dream; the flashes and the roars reminded him of a particularly bad thunderstorm. But when the fourth bomb hit much closer than the first three had, the dream-like sensation vanished instantly, and the fear and reality alike flooded back. The tube entrance now seemed much further - they could not hope to reach it before the planes caught up with them; not with an injured man and a terrified little girl. Still, they had to move; the bridge they were on was too exposed.

Lucy covered her ears as the ear deafening bang of the latest explosion reached them, but Peter grabbed her by the elbow and yanked her away.

“Come on, Lu! Run!”

And then they were running. Susan’s hair flew behind her as she went, her rucksack clenched tightly in her hand. Edmund crashed into the German man when the latter stumbled on a protruding stone, but helped him get back on his feet, and continued his dash for cover. Each step carried them further away from the tube, but Caspian did not hesitate. All he wanted was to get off the bridge.

All around them, the sky continued to light up brightly every time a bomb found its way towards the ground. The earth groaned and quivered and threw them off balance. Caspian partly registered a girlish shriek, but couldn’t determine whether it had been Lucy or Susan who had cried out.

Peter and Lucy were the first to reach the front of the white stone building closest to them. Peter dashed up the steps but found the door locked. He futilely threw his weight against it twice, before he cursed and rapidly descended the stairs again. Edmund tried the side entrance, but gave up quickly. He yelled in frustration, but his words were drowned by the fresh bang of the explosion on the opposite side of the river bank. Caspian was suddenly grateful they hadn’t chosen to run to the tube, but he didn’t stop to consider it for long.

The third door they reached was also locked, but collapsed under the force of both Edmund’s and Peter’s shoulder as they slammed into it.

“Quickly! Get in!” Peter all but threw Lucy inside and took a step back for the German man to pass. “Come on, hurry!”

Caspian grabbed Susan’s rucksack; she had been staring transfixed at the raging fire on the opposite side of the river, and the sudden pull yanked her into action. The strap of the bag slipped off her shoulder, but she clung to it as she dashed inside, Caspian hot on her heels.

Caspian’s first impression of the building was that it was some kind of library. Tall bookcases filled to their limits lined the walls. Caspian momentarily halted to take in his surroundings, but was hurried forwards by Peter, who slammed the door shut behind him.

“You broke the lock. They’re not going to be happy with that.” Lucy’s eyes were wide with fright as she looked at her oldest brother.

“That’s hardly our greatest concern right now, Lu.” Edmund put a hand on his sister’s shoulder and steered her out of the hallway. “Stay away from the windows.”

“I don’t suppose this store has a basement… or a shelter?” Susan wrung her hands as she looked around herself. “Somewhere we can hide?”

“I don’t think so. But there’s a table over there.” It was the German man who had spoken—the accent was unmistakable— and he pointed at a sturdy looking wooden stable which had displayed several books on sale: the books had fallen off.

“Let’s get under there. It’s better than nothing,” said Peter.

The table was too small for their company of six. Susan held Lucy securely as they huddled up to make room from the German man and Caspian. Caspian had tried to object, offering the last space to either Peter or Edmund, but both of them insisted he take it; they would not letting anything happen to their guest while he was staying with them.

The room shook as they hid out from the bombings, and some of the books fell from the quivering cabinets. The bright flashes and deafening bangs continued mercilessly as they sat and waited for the violence to end. Nobody spoke for a while as they listened to the crashes, all of them lost in their own train of thought, and for the first time since he stumbled out of the wardrobe, Caspian wished he hadn’t left Narnia.

Their relative peace was short-lived. They had not been inside for three minutes yet when an explosion near their bookstore shattered the glass windows. The ground quivered as if it were a heavy earthquake. Even though they were protected by the table, Caspian shielded his face and Susan threw her arms around her sister to protect her from the rain of glass shards. Peter and Edmund ducked and made for the other side of the room.

Lucy began to cry silently. The Valiant Queen pressed her lips together in an attempt to stay brave, but there was no stopping the tears that had started to brim. Caspian looked up at the sound of her first sobs. Susan was faring no better, though she managed to keep her emotions in check; the tense set of her jaw showed that she was very shaken. It seemed completely natural that Caspian should take her and give it a comforting squeeze. Susan did not look at him, but took a deep breath and held onto him tightly.

“It’s alright, Lu. We’ll be okay,” Peter feebly tried to console his youngest sibling from across the room. “This will be over soon, you’ll see.” It didn’t help; a fresh blow nearby shook the earth before Peter had even finished. Lucy’s sobs grew louder.

“Tell me, little girl, what is your name?”

Three heads under the table turned to watch the man with the heavy German accent. His face, however, was focused on Lucy with a kind expression.

Lucy wiped at her spilling tears with the palm of her hand. “I’m Lucy Pevensie.” Her voice was weak, but clear.

“Nice to meet you, Lucy. My name is Anton.” He held out his hand. It was bloodied from the beating he had suffered earlier, but Lucy shook it nonetheless.

“Nice to meet you too.” Her voice broke, and she took a deep breath. “This is my family. She said, nodding towards her brothers hiding in a crouched stance in the opposite corner of the room. “Peter, Edmund, Susan… and Caspian.”

Anton turned his head and nodded curtly at Susan and Caspian. “I’d like to thank you-” he paused and ducked his head when the world crashed and shook outside, “for helping me on the bridge.”

“Why were they…? You know…” Susan asked.

“Because I am German.” Anton sighed. Caspian looked at Anton apprehensively. “Oh, but I am not one of them!” Anton said, looking up. There was nothing to be seen, apart from the table, but above the roof—above the clouds even—his fellow countrymen were dropping their deadly weapons. “I fled Germany almost two years ago. I wasn’t safe there.”

He could not continue his story. All four of the Pevensies and Caspian were temporarily distracted as they listened to Anton, but the loudest crash yet jerked everyone back to reality and suddenly everything seemed to happen at once. The ground shook heavily; plaster rained down from the ceiling, which was suddenly bent and on the verge to collapse; the thick wooden joists which supported the ceiling nearly broke in two and there were long, deeps cracks in the walls. But most urgently, Caspian saw some of the heavy bookcases wobble and fall over.

“Peter!” His hand was out of Susan’s in a second and he sprinted across the room.

Edmund, who had managed to avoid the tumbling bookcase by an inch, fell to his knees and threw aside the books scattered around his brother. “Pete! Are you alright?”

Peter’s face and torso appeared as he shoved books off himself. His eyes were wide and his face a grimace as he grunted, “Get it off me!” The bookcase had crashed on top of him diagonally and pinned his lower torso and legs to the floor. Peter pushed at the solid wooded obstacle, but it did not give an inch. “Get it off!”

Caspian’s fingers curled around the wooden frame as he heaved. The case was heavy, and lifted slightly, but not nearly enough to free Peter. Then Edmund was at his side and a second pair of hands aided him. The wood protested loudly as the bookcase and lifted a little further. The pressure on Peter’s legs, however, must have grown exponentially in the process, because the elder Pevensie groaned, “Stop! Stop!”

Caspian loosened his grip on the frame, and looked around him wildly for something that could aid them. He faintly registered Susan saying, “Stay there, Lu!” and he turned to see Susan running over too.

“No, Susan, stay under the table!” he shouted over the sound of the crashes outside. What if it happened again? What if a cabinet fell on her?

Susan pushed Caspian out of the way and ran to Peter’s other side where she fell on her knees. She found her brother’s hand and gave it a quick squeeze. “We’re going to get you out of here,” she promised, and Peter nodded.

Anton took place on the opposite side of the wardrobe too and his hands gripped the wooden frame firmly and determinedly.

“Ready, and pull!” Susan voice sounded clear and loud and four sets of strong arms tugged on the case at the best of their ability. The wood protested again, but was lifted off the ground, so that it only rested on the ground on one splintered corner.

“Quick, Peter! Move!” Caspian barely managed to grunt with the effort of keeping the cabinet up. Peter shifted backwards, but seemed to have trouble using his legs. Caspian’s hands started to lose their grip on the smooth polished surface of the wood. “Hurry!” he urged. Next to him, Edmund panted heavily with exertion.

Then two small arms hooked themselves around Peter’s arms from behind, and Lucy pulled her brother backwards just in time before the bookcase crashed back to the ground and missed Peter’s toes by mere inches. Then she was in his arms, sobbing.

As Peter patted her head muttered comforting words in Lucy’s hair, a panting Caspian looked around to share a relieved look with Susan and Edmund. Then he noticed the thick layer of white dust and rubble that covered the interior of the store as well as it’s occupants. The joists had cracked and the roof was bent dangerously far. “We have to get out of here,” he breathed.

Edmund followed his eye and looked up too. “It’s going to cave soon,” he agreed. “Pete, can you walk?”

Peter looked up from Lucy to Edmund. “I’ll try…” Then he turned to his little sister again. “Come on, Lu, be a big girl. We need to go.”

Susan pulled Lucy from Peter’s arms and allowed her to cry on her jacket while Caspian and Anton helped Peter get up. Peter swayed on his feet, and blood drained his face. “I’ll manage.”

“No, you won’t.” Caspian seized the High King’s right arm and threw it around his should to support him. Anton quickly joined and took his left.

They didn’t manage to get to the exit a fast as Caspian would like. Any second he expected the ceiling to come down in a crash, and every second he was amazed that it hadn’t. At the front, Edmund kicked open the door to the street. Lucy, who was still crying on her older sister’s shoulder, did not complain about the door again. Instead, Susan ushered her outside to make way for the trio that progressed rather clumsily.

The city was on fire. Apart from the flashes from explosion that still occurred all around them, there were now several fires in the city that illuminated the sky also. The nearest, just two building on their left, illuminated their company as they exited the bookstore. Thick smoke burned in their throats and noses and Caspian covered his nose and mouth with his free hand as they stumbled over the streets. The smoke veiled their eyes and did nothing to speed up their process.

“Where to?” Susan asked, frantically.

“The tube!” Edmund said urgently.

“But it’s so far!” Susan looked up at the cloudy sky and tightened the arm she had wrapped around Lucy.

“It’s underground,” Anton argued from Caspian’s left.

Peter coughed and nodded. His voice was raspy when he added, “The tube… it’s the only safe place.”

Thus they started their way towards the bridge. Breathing became easier for Caspian once he left the thick smoke behind him, but Peter was a dead weight around his neck. Looking down, he noticed the blood soaked fabric of Peter’s trouser’s left leg. Peter’s face was deadly white, and his expression was contorted in a permanent grimace. Praying that his injury was nothing serious, Caspian firmly grasped Peter’s arm and lifted his king with renewed strength and focused only on reaching the tube. All else could wait.