The Queen Left Behind
Susan glanced back at Caspian, desperately striving to memorise the sensation of his lips on hers. With a sigh, she followed her siblings through the arch. They vanished into thin air, leaving her behind. She was falling, plummeting through the lightest air into a deep chasm. Darkness overcame her as ice cold water splashed around her.
Caspian hurriedly swiped a tear from his eye as he turned from the arch. How he longed for Susan to return. When first he glimpsed her, he had been astounded by her beauty but now that he knew her, he loved so much more about her. For a moment he considered begging Aslan to bring her back, but he knew that it would be pointless.
Aslan strode toward him, the bright sunlight making his thick mane glow like fire. His face held a gentle expression; he knew Caspian's heartache.
"Caspian, my son, these things must happen. Perhaps one day you will understand." Caspian nodded reluctantly at the regal lion. "Now I too must take leave."
The Narnian's gathered at the palace gasped as one as Aslan vanished before their eyes.
Susan dreamed of dancing trees and choirs of wood nymphs as she floated with the river, her skirts billowing with the ebbing of the clear water. Her consciousness had fled as she hit the water and now flowed unknowingly towards the sea. She dreamed of a young king, tall and dark. The current washed her onto a pebbly beach.
Peter, Edmund and Lucy emerged in the train station, which appeared exactly as they had left it. Lucy had a sudden feeling that something was wrong. Very wrong. Glancing around, she became enveloped with fear.
"Where is Susan?" she cried. She, Edmund and Peter stared at each other, fear and disbelief evident in their wide, round eyes.
"I don't understand," Peter puzzled. "She was right with us when we walked through the arch. Something must have gone wrong."
Lucy shook her head. "Aslan wouldn't make a mistake. Everything he does is for a reason."
"Perhaps…" Edmund began. "Perhaps this was out of Aslan's control. Perhaps she got lost."
The train pulled up and the three siblings were bumped and bustled through the doors into the stuffy, crowded confines of a tiny compartment. Their missing sibling weighed like a load of bricks on each of their hearts. Four had become three.
The trillups were a curious folk. They were few in number and rarely seen. Living by the sea shore, they collected all manner of shells for their stunning artwork. Nitera was a young trillup and this particular day she had been collecting numerous fair shells from an array of rock pools when she saw a strange figure wash up. Thinking that a small dolphin had become beached, she quickly gathered some of her friends so that they could assist the poor creature.
Nitera approached the figure cautiously and was immediately shocked.
"A daughter of Eve!" she exclaimed to her friends. "Perhaps she is dead."
Nitera pressed her ear to Susan's chest. "She has a pulse! Let us take her to the pavilion."
The trillups were quite small, but together they managed to carry Susan back to their pavilion. It was a fine-looking hall decorated with countless seashells and surrounded by the tiny huts where the trillups slept.
Susan was set upon the floor and the trillups immediately saw to the matter of her health.
Several months passed and still Caspian yearned for Susan, for one more kiss or even one more glance. He tried to distract himself by organizing the restoration of Cair Paravel. He kept Susan's horn on his belt at all times and often considered blowing it, just to see if it would bring her back.
Hopeful mothers paraded likely daughters in front of him. Their beauty was wasted upon him as he coldly ignored their approaches. He could not look upon their faces without feeling anew the pain of losing Susan. The Narnian's expected him to marry, to produce an heir but he could not bring himself to it. It hurt too much.
Susan wandered through the woods. She had to duck frequently to avoid scratches from the low coastal scrub. The last few months had puzzled her beyond all comprehension. She had been considerably shocked to wake up in the trillup camp. How could she still be in Narnia? Were Peter, Edmund and Lucy still here? If they arrived back in the train station did they wonder where she was? There were no answers to the questions that spun furious through her befuddled brain.
Only one thought was strong and sure: if she was still in Narnia then perhaps she and Caspian had a chance.
This thought had prompted her to thank the gentle trillups one last time before leaving their camp in search of Cair Paravel. The trillups knew nothing of kings and queens or the land away from the coast so she had no idea as to where she might be. She could follow the river back to the palace but she had floated a fair way in the sea before washing up and there were several rivers that flowed into the sea around the trillup camp.
She had no idea as to which one to follow so she decided to follow none of them.
"Why don't you hold on to it - you might need to call me again." Caspian stared at the finely carved horn, picturing her full lips forming the flirtatious words as she gazed down at him from the horse in Aslan's How. He loved the way she talked.
"King Caspian, your audience is requested." Trumpkin's voice echoed though the glass-domed throne room, startling Caspian from his reverie.
"My audience?"
"The Telmarines are here to sign the treaty, as was organized, your majesty. Shall I bring them in?"
"Yes, please, Trumpkin." Caspian straightened in his chair as his advisor, Glenstorm, strode to his side.
"It will be a relief to have this treaty signed so that peace will reign once more." Glenstorm said to Caspian.
"Indeed," Caspian replied, still distracted.
Once the treaty was signed and all necessary ceremonies were taken care of, Caspian ordered his horse. He had to get out – he just felt so empty. He couldn't believe that one person could take up so much of his mind space and his heart. He nudged his horse into a gallop, headed for the low lands by the coast.
Susan had been walking for hours. The unchanging landscape made her feel as though she was wandering around in circles. The thick scrub allowed her few glances of the azure sky above. It was impossible to see the sun so it was likely that she had been simply retracing her steps all day.
She came upon a clearing that appeared suspiciously familiar. She glanced up at the scrubby trees. They did not wave their limbs in welcome, instead standing stationary and hostile. It seemed strange that no living creatures had stirred as she passed through the bush. This made her uneasy. Weary, she settled down upon a patch of carpet-soft grass and fell into a troubled sleep.
Caspian halted his weary steed in a small clearing. He dismounted and tied the horse to a tree. He caught sight of a dark shape out of the corner of his eye. He spun around and exclaimed quietly. There, upon the ground, lay Susan. She was as beautiful as ever she had been.
"This cannot be. My eyes must be cheated by some spell." Disbelief flooded Caspian's mind, filling him with panic. Caspian fetched his horse and galloped off into the night.
He was haunted by her peaceful, sleeping face. It must have been a trap, he thought to himself. Just like with the White Witch in Aslan's How. Someone was trying to trick me.
Susan awoke very early in the morning. Her sleep had been full of heavy hoof beats and strange thoughts. She shivered as a powerful gale whirled through the scrub, raising the leaves in a scratchy susurration. She noticed fresh hoof prints in the clearing. Tired of walking without direction, she followed the tracks. Often, she lost her way and was forced to retrace her steps. For three days she walked until she began to notice familiar landmarks. She was overcome with joy when she saw the snowy white towers of Cair Paravel rising before her. The palace had been skillfully restored, appearing just as it had in the days of High King Peter.
The Palace was quiet as she wandered through its expanse. She headed for her favourite balcony, but paused when she saw that someone was already there. It was Caspian.
Susan was filled with sadness as she search his heartbroken face. Tears fell freely from his eyes as he stared out over the wall, unaware of her presence. He clung to her horn.
Caspian was angered by the cruelness of his vision. How could he ever forget her when there were so many things to remind him? He did not bother to wipe away his tears as they pooled in his eyes before overflowing onto his cheeks. He turned to walk back inside and then stopped dead. How cruel. Another vision. How was he to live his life like this? A witness to an unending series of heart wrenching images of this bewitching woman.
"Go!" He cried. "Get out! Plague me no more! Do not tempt me with what I can never have!"
"Caspian, what's wrong?" She questioned him.
"Do not talk to me! Let me forget what I must forget!"
"What must you forget, Caspian?"
"You! You are only an image! Why must they conjure you?"
"I am not an image. I am here!" she reassured him, confused by his anger.
He strode toward her and reached one hand toward her face. He gently touched the soft flesh. She was solid, real.
"H-how…" She cut him off with a kiss that communicated her passion. He kissed her back, wrapping his arms tightly around her as though she might suddenly vanish.
"How did you get back here? How did you get back to Narnia?" he questioned her.
"I don't think I ever left. I didn't disappear like the others – I fell off the cliff instead. I floated right out to sea and woke up in a trillup village."
"Trillup?"
"They are a strange folk. I will show them to you some day. Right now, though, I don't want to do anymore talking." She smiled up at him. "I have missed you too much."
"Not as much as I have missed you, my queen." Caspian uttered softly.
They hurried into Caspian's bed chamber. They kissed, hands exploring each other as their tongues danced together. Caspian backed Susan toward the bed and they lay down, removing their clothes in frenzy.
"Wait," Caspian interrupted. "Are you sure that you are ready for this?"
"I've never been more sure in my life," she murmured.
Caspian entered her and they moved together until both were sated. They lay together, murmuring quietly to each other through the night.