A/N: These are little snippets of Lucy's feelings for Caspian on board the Dawn Treader, plus one post-voyage. This story was a Best Romance nominee in the 2009 Revolution Awards, and a big thank you to anyone who participated in the noms/voting. Cheers to my fellow Lucian-heads!
Disclaimer: Locales and characters original to The Chronicles of Narnia are trademarks of C.S. Lewis Pte. Ltd. This story was fan-written for no profit and no infringement is intended.
one.
She watches him. She sees his free and easy manner, his cheery laugh, his newly-born confidence. She sometimes thinks that this is what Peter would have been like, had he not been weighted with such responsibility all his life. Caspian is a merry king; she is glad that Narnia has his good heart to lead them. He is handsome too, but she pushes that thought aside.
two.
It never bothered her much before, having to go back and start again, to be the girl she has already grown out of. Here she feels the difference more acutely. Something in his smile and the sparkle of his eyes makes her long for the days when she was tall and shapely, when men called her more beautiful than the stars.
three.
"You might be gone tomorrow, and yet. . ." Caspian leaves this sentence unfinished. He looks very young suddenly, vulnerable, as if he does not understand the meaning of his own words. His arm is warm beside hers and she feels a strange compulsion to take his hand in her own. She knows better than to act on it. Moments pass, and his expression fades away. Her heart burns and she struggles, wanting more than ever to reach out to him.
four.
She should not feel this way. But she knows things, remembers things from a time when she was even older than Caspian. Memories flit through her mind: being twirled across the marble floor, gentle fingers that lace her corset, the taste of a man's lips on hers. Caspian smiles and her breath catches, but she checks herself. Only a girl, only eleven, only a child that knows nothing of love. . .
five.
"Lu," says Edmund, and she turns round again to face him. His eyes are wary. "I know you're hoping we might stay much longer this time, but we mustn't expect it to be anything. Aslan could choose to take us back at any moment. I know how badly you'd like to get to see Narnia again, and I think – I think there's another reason, too. But there aren't any guarantees. Just remember that, before you make any promises."
six.
Caspian comes to say good-bye, tears in his eyes. There is a long moment of silence, and then he pulls her into his arms with terrible finality. She wishes she could stay there forever. Suddenly she understands everything – how he feels, how she feels – and she realises, without a shred of doubt, that they will never meet again. It makes her bolder. She reaches up and takes his face in her hands: Their first kiss, and their last.
seven.
"He loved you, you know," Eustace says casually, unaware that his words pierce her fragile heart. "Asked Edmund's permission and all of it – he wanted a betrothal, until you were older. He harped on and on about it while you were upstairs at Coriakin's. And even though he wasn't too keen on the idea, Edmund agreed in the end. But Caspian couldn't tell you – you had to find it on your own, that was the condition. I suppose we just ran out of time."
A/N: I wrote these with a oneshot set around them, but the flow was off so I decided to trim it down and keep it focused in the moment. If you're interested, the original is posted in my scrapbook-story Odds and Ends. Thanks again to Synesthetic Glam, who was a massive stylistic influence here, and of course to Francienyc, whose story Caspian's Queen continues to serve as the foundation of any Lucian fic I write.