A/N: I was watching 'The Voyage of the Dawn Treader' the other day, and the idea for this one-shot kinda just hit me. Really, that film is just an excuse for thousands of Casmund moments written off as subtext. Hope you enjoy it.

It had all started with the rain- and then before that, the Dawn Treader and even before any of that at all: a wardrobe. But none of that mattered anymore. All that mattered now was that Edmund couldn't sleep- his nightmares were driving him mad.

It had been fine at first; he could deal with the normal (usual) ones: Jadis and the cold, everlasting winter, blood spilt on the battlefield, all mingled with the taste of Turkish Delight. Then, they changed. They blurred and shadows loomed. There were screams.

Tonight, however, the shadows had cleared and the shrieks had vanished until one voice remained: Caspian. He was yelling, on the other side of a lake- how Edmund could see him at all, he didn't know- and then from out of nowhere there was a sword, pressing against the young King's back. The sound of rainfall, loud and repetitive all around. Caspian screamed his name (which echoed across the water) as the sword cut into him. Their eyes met. Caspian gave him a ghost of a smile, before letting out a final cry- 'Edmund!' And he was still.

Before Edmund knew it, he was being shaken awake, and Caspian was frantically whispering his name, barely audible over the sound of the raging storm outside. He opened his eyes, and saw the young King staring worriedly back at him.

'Edmund, are you quite alright?' Caspian asked, not removing his hand from Edmund's shoulder.

Edmund blinked the sleep away and sat up in his bunk, regretting the action when Caspian's hand fell away.

'Yes. Yes, I shall be fine,' Edmund replied. Then, because Caspian still looked concerned, he added: 'It's nothing I can't handle. Thank you for waking me up.'

This seemed to just about satisfy Caspian and he turned away, leaving Edmund to curl up in his bunk and try to sleep through the remnants of the night.

The following night it wasn't any better, and the night after that was the same. However, on the third night, Edmund awoke to find that he wasn't alone in his bunk. Caspian was sitting cross-legged at his feet, waiting for him to wake up. Neither of them said anything, as Edmund propped himself up, and their eyes met. Caspian offered him a small smile- not a sympathetic one, an offer of friendship- which Edmund returned. There was a rumble of thunder and a flash of lightening, the ship rocked and still they sat in silence.

'What's troubling you?' whispered Caspian, after a long time. Edmund shook his head, afraid to speak. 'Maybe I could help you?' Again, Edmund shook his head, still not looking away from Caspian. 'My Lord, please tell me.' Edmund took a deep breath, conjuring up every last drop of courage.

'I had a nightmare. That's all.' He told him, horrified that his voice cracked. He pulled his legs up to his chest and rested his head against his knees. Caspian didn't reply, and Edmund feared that he thought him a coward- it was blatantly obvious that the reoccurring nightmare had shaken him. He didn't want Caspian to die. He was his best friend, and he loved him-if only as a friend. Recently though, he had wanted more. He hated it when Lucy flirted with him, and when he laughed or bit his lip in concentration, he wanted nothing more than to pull those lips to his. He knew that Caspian would never return his feelings, but he could dream. He was dreaming, and because of these hellish dreams, Caspian would want nothing more to do with him. He was pathetic.

The hammock shifted, indicating that Caspian had left Edmund alone. He had probably realised that although Edmund was a higher king than he, he was useless. Edmund the Just, yeah right. More like Edmund the Cowardly Traitor. It wasn't like him to be so self-depreciative, but he was exhausted and more than a little unnerved. He stopped listening for the sound of Caspian climbing into his own bed, and hummed quietly under his breath to drown out the noise of the rain. Which was why he nearly yelled when a pair of arms wrapped around his waist, pulling him into a tight embrace.

'Ssh, Edmund. I'm not going to hurt you.' A hand was stroking his hair, whispering soothing words quietly. 'It's alright, Edmund. You're fine, you're safe.' Edmund buried his head in the man's chest, supressing a sob that threatened to tear him to pieces.

'I'm sorry, I'm so sorry.' Edmund clung to him, and relished the feeling of Caspian holding him. Edmund didn't know why he was going to pieces, the dream wasn't reality, and the fact that Caspian was here, and trying to comfort him was proof of that. It was the idea that Caspian would die that shook him to the core- he wasn't invincible, people died, even here in Narnia.

'It's alright, Edmund. Don't worry about it,' he smiled. 'No-one's going to hurt you.'

Edmund tilted his head up, to meet his eyes, horrified that his eyelashes were wet. There was nothing but kindness in Caspian's eyes, their faces so close that they were sharing the same air. In a sudden surge of confidence, Edmund reached up and placed his hand on Caspian's cheek. His breath caught as Caspian mirrored the action, moving even closer.

'Edmund-'

'Caspian.'

Time seemed to slow down and neither was sure who closed the gap, but suddenly their lips met and they were kissing. Both had kissed others before, but never like this. After an eternity and no time at all, they came up for air, grinning like a pair of fools.

'You have no idea how long I have wished to do that for.' Edmund blurted, and his heart surged with joy when Caspian kissed him lightly on the lips again.

'Me too.' He confessed, his face illuminated in the moonlight. They pressed their foreheads together, content to be in each other's company. Elsewhere on the boat, someone coughed and they both stiffened.

'We'd better get some sleep,' Caspian told him. 'Or else we shall be exhausted in the morning.' Edmund reluctantly nodded, and waited for Caspian to leave him. To his astonishment, Caspian lay down in the hammock, a mischievous smirk gracing his face. 'You didn't think I was going to go all the way over there, did you?' He gestured for Edmund to join him, and he did so willingly. They fell asleep intertwined together, listening to the rain and the sound of their breath.

And in the nights that followed, no matter how loud the storms were, or how many things went hideously wrong during the day, Edmund slept peacefully, safe in Caspian's arms.