Three of the four members of the royal family were severely bored. They usually were, but now they felt that watching paint dry would have come as a welcome distraction. They sat on their thrones looking fed up and Lucy laughed when she entered and saw them like that.
Together they raised their heads and looked at her with exactly the same looks on their faces. She snorted.
"Nothing to do?"
"Give the girl a prize. Yes, Lu, we are extremely bored. Can you break the monotony?"
"Well, there are some new fabrics in so we can choose some new dresses and you boys could always go down and train. And there's the library, no end of books; very, very interesting ones too."
"How come we didn't think of those?"
"Because I'm brilliant…and my brain is far superior to all of my elder siblings."
Her siblings mimed falling off their thrones.
"Was that your ego we just tripped over?"
"Edmund!!!!! Come and train with me."
"With you, Lucy? But, you can't fight."
"Who says? I can fight just as well as you can. You just never give me the chance."
"I'd like to see this."
"You would? Then you will. Lend me you're sword Peter."
"What? Mine? It's too big for you."
"Fine, I'll borrow some from the yard. I like to fight with two. But I am pretty good with one as well."
"You're talking out of your bonnet again."
"I don't wear bonnets! Come on!"
Two minutes later they were all out in the training yard. Edmund and Lucy circled each other. She had two swords and he had his long one.
"You start."
"I won't go easy on you."
"I wasn't expecting you to, dear brother. And I will go easy on you."
"Bring it."
"Alright then."
Lucy lunged and caught her brother's sword in a vicious cross chop with both of hers. He had been completely unprepared and she laughed at the shocked look on his face.
She removed one of the swords and tripped him up with it. He knocked the sword out of her hand, and then the other. She back flipped over to the wall where there was a rack of spears. Taking one she lunged at him again and he dodged it, only to be hit by the end of the spear. She spun the spear and he eyed it carefully as it whizzed round.
Half heartedly he jabbed. She stopped spinning it just above his sword. In one fluid movement she had his sword and the spear and Edmund was flat on his back on the ground.
All her siblings felt their mouths dropping open. Lucy grinned at them before placing Edmund's sword on his stomach and turning and hurling the spear to one of the nearby archery butts. It hit the bull's eye and buried itself almost three inches.
"Wow, Lu. When did you get so good?" Peter asked.
"I have my own private training grounds. You really think I'm good?"
"I'd hate to be facing you on the field of battle."
"Can I join the battles then?"
"Let me think about that…no. Until you can beat me you are not going onto the battlefield."
A vein throbbed in Lucy's temple. Her eye began to twitch.
"Peter, get you're sword. We're going to test this."
"I can't fight you. I'd kill you."
"I beat Edmund."
"Yes you did beat me, but nobody can beat Peter."
"I think I can."
"Let's test this then." Peter drew his sword and Edmund hurriedly scrambled up and took his seat on the corn bags they used as crash mats.
"Don't go easy on me because I'm your little sister."
"I won't."
"Because I went easy on Edmund, like I said I would. And next to you he is the best fighter in the kingdom, isn't he? Does that mean that if I beat you, I become the best fighter? Because right now I'm second best."
"I suppose. But no one can beat me."
"Maybe if you're ego wasn't so big, you might be able to fight instead of talk."
Lucy had picked up the two swords again and as Peter lunged she ducked. She had grown since they arrived here but she was still a lot smaller than him.
Every time he attacked she ducked and dodged. Peter soon started to grow tired of this since he had yet to make contact with her swords.
"I see what she's doing." Edmund whispered to Susan. "She's tiring him out so he won't attack with much power and therefore won't do as much damage. Ingenious!"
Peter paused to get his breath back and Lucy patiently waited, smiling sweetly.
"I know what you're doing Lucy." Peter said.
"I'm using my head. Oh! And here's another use for my head." Ducking low she charged at him like a bull and her head made contact with his stomach and completely knocked the wind out of him. He fell backwards, his sword clattering to the floor.
"I knew I couldn't beat you in a regular sword fight, but I could beat you if I used my head. I know the way you fight, you see. You tend to act on impulse and you let you're muscles take over. My muscles may be small but fighting isn't all about brute force. Although in this case it worked. I beat you Peter. Which means I am the best fighter in the kingdom, without even breaking a sweat."
"How do you train?"
"I train by fighting. Imprisoned in the remains of the White Witches castle lie the rest of her army and the ones she had in reserve. I have been going there and fighting them. And that includes giants."
A carriage pulled up at the front of the castle.
"What's that?" Susan asked, as Edmund got down and held out his hand to help her down from their perch.
Together they walked through the archway to the front of the castle. A very fine carriage was parked by the front steps. Out stepped three people. An older man, a younger man, and a young woman. The older man was wearing a crown, the younger ones coronets.
"May we help you?" Susan asked kindly.
"Yes. I am King Pelinore. These are my children Prince Shah, and Princess Marietta. We have come to seek the hands of King Peter and Queen Susan in marriage."
Edmund caught Susan before she hit the ground in a dead faint. Peter was temporarily speechless. He tried to speak and resembled a goldfish in the process. Lucy tried to hide her giggles at his condition.
"Your Majesties are perfectly welcome to stay here at Cair Paravel while we decide. Ed, take Susan up to her room to cool off and stay with her until she wakes up. Mr Tumnus!" Tumnus appeared. "Would you please show our guests up to their rooms? You must be tired after your drive. Would you like some refreshment? I shall send some warmed ale up to your rooms directly. Perhaps Tanis should make you something else?"
"Who is Tanis, Queen Lucy?"
"He is our resident Gnome. He enjoys making quite delicious concoctions for us. And his cooking is also marvellous. Tonight I will ask him to whip us up something delicious. Now, if you'll excuse me I must see to my eldest brother."
Lucy curtseyed and pulled the stricken Peter back through to the training ground. She deposited him on the corn sacks and went to see if their guests were in the castle. They were. She went back and sat opposite her brother.
"Peter?"
"I have to get married? That wasn't part of the bargain."
"I know. But they are staying with us, and as High King, you don't have to do anything. Let's get to know them a bit. Also, we could set them a few challenges, see if their up to it."
"What did you have in mind?"
"How about introducing Prince Shah to the best fighter in the kingdom?"
"You?"
"Me."