Alright y'all, I'm a bit nervous about this story for two reasons. 1) This is my first trip into the Narnia fandom, and 2) This story is very... different than other Susan/Caspian fics you may have read before. I love this couple, even though I'm well aware it wasn't actually in the books, and I like playing around with different endings for their story. Especially because I always felt Susan's fate was a tad cruel. This is a unique take on the pairing (as far as I know), and is bittersweet. Will be fluffy, angsty, and... well, good hopefully. Sorry if Susan seems a bit OC. Please let me know what you think! That being said, enjoy!

Beloved King

Caspian X, King of Narnia, was no fool. He knew he was dying. At long last, after years of loneliness and agony, he would finally be at peace. For so long he'd been forced to live in a world where she was nothing but a memory. But he'd kept the unspoken promise that had passed between them the day she left. Caspian had ruled Narnia with a just but firm hand, becoming the King she had known he would be. And now, as his life was drawing to a close, there was only one thing he wished for. Her. To see those sparkling sapphire eyes once more before he entered Aslan's Country.

Crossing his chambers with slow, measured steps, he reached up and wrapped his fingers around the ornately carved horn. Her horn. In the past, he had valiantly fought the temptation to use it, to see if it could once again call her to his side. There was no harm in it now. He had nothing to lose, and everything to gain. If he could see her just once more, he would die a happy man.

Taking as deep a breath as he could manage, he pressed his lips to the horn, and called to his beloved.

Susan Pevensie examined the wedding dress which she and her mother had completed just a few hours ago. It was certainly beautiful, there was no denying that. But it was nothing compared to the wedding dress of her dreams. It was not a wedding dress suited for a queen of Narnia. And James, though perfectly decent and respectable, was nowhere near the man she'd once imagined herself marrying. He was not Caspian.
They thought she forgot. Lucy, Edmund, Peter. They truly believed she did not remember all their adventures. But she did. Perhaps even more clearly than anyone. She remembered the way his lips felt pressed against hers, the way his dark eyes sparkled, and how safe she felt wrapped in his strong arms. She remembered everything about him. But it was too painful. She had to move on. Aslan said she and Peter would never return to Narnia. So she had accepted James' proposal. But now...

A knock on her door startled her. Peter poked his head in. "Hello, Su," he grinned.

"Peter!" she could not help but smile. "What are you doing here?"

"A week's leave for your wedding, you goose," he chuckled, stepping into the room, allowing her to see that her brother was dressed in his full military uniform.

"I only just arrived from the station. Lucy said you were up here."

"Oh," Susan said with an airy laugh. Of course he had come for the wedding. How had she managed to forget that?

"It's beautiful," he commented, nodding towards where the wedding dress was draped across her bed.

Susan shrugged, fingering the delicate lace. "I suppose."

Peter tossed his cap on her desk and wrapped an arm about her shoulders, pressing a kiss to her temple. "But it's no where near worthy of a High Queen of Narnia."

"Oh Pete," she whimpered, turning into his embrace.

Peter wrapped his arms tightly around her, rubbing circles on her back, holding her as she fell to pieces. "I can't," she admitted, a few tears burning her eyes and staining his uniform. "I can't marry James. I don't love him, and I never will. Peter, oh Pete, what am I going to do?"

Honestly, Peter couldn't say he was shocked by his sister's outburst. He knew, had known since the day they left their beloved Narnia, that she was in love with Caspian. He'd been expecting this ever since he received the news she was to be married. He knew Susan better than to think she had forgotten their true home. Peter stroked her dark curls, her head tucked beneath his chin, and whispered, "I know this isn't what you want to hear, but I cannot make that decision for you."

Susan gave a shuddering sigh, and they moved to sit on the bed together, Peter's arm still securely around her shoulders. Susan wiped her eyes, and asked softly, "How did you manage? How do you learn to live again?"

Peter felt an all too familiar pang in his chest. He knew exactly what she was referring to. When they had very first been to Narnia, he had been married for ten years to a woman from a neighboring kingdom named Annalise. He loved her with his whole heart, and he knew he always would. It was because of this that he knew when Susan was finally ready to talk about Caspian, she would turn to him, not Edmund or Lucy. But knowing hadn't prepared him. He sighed heavily and answered, "I had a terrible time of it when we got back, if you'll remember. Every night, I dreamed of her. I still do, quite often. But during the day I knew I had to put on a brave face, perhaps not so much for you, but for Ed and Lu. When we went back to Narnia the second time, it felt as though I was trapped in my very worst nightmare. To see the ruins of our home... to stand where we said our vows... to be reminded of her everywhere I went but not to have her there... it was enough to drive me mad."

Susan nodded in sympathy as she listened to her brother, leaning her head down on his shoulder. She and Caspian had mere weeks together. Peter and Annalise had been married ten years, which she imagined only made their separation more painful.

"I found her grave, Su," he said suddenly. Susan looked up at him in surprise and found his eyes wet with unshed tears. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I wanted to be alone, to come to terms with it for myself. I loved her so much, and that will never change. I can't tell you how to forget your time with Caspian, Su. Those feelings won't go away. But you never know what life has in store for you. Trust Aslan, and take it one day at a time. That's what I do."

He placed a kiss to her temple and picked up his hat. "I'm going to go change. Will you be alright?"

Susan nodded, offering her brother a small smile which he readily returned.

Peter was just about to leave when he turned back around and told her, "I love you, Su. Whatever you decide, we all just want you to be happy."

"Thanks," she smiled. "I love you too, Peter."

After he'd gone, Susan picked up her dress and held it close to her body, swaying back and forth in front of the full length mirror. Suddenly, it wasn't simply her own reflection staring back at her. The ghostly form of King Caspian X was beside her, looking exactly as he did the day they left. He gave her a small smile before vanishing just as quickly as he'd appeared.

With a small cry, Susan dropped the gown as though it burned her. She stared at it, lying crumpled on the ground, in horror. What was she doing? She didn't want to spend the rest of her life with a man she did not love. Could never love! Much like Peter and Annalise, her heart belonged to Caspian and none other. She could not marry James. It would not be fair to either of them. Opening her bedroom door to break the news to her everyone, she gasped at what lay before her. This was not her home in Finchley. This was the great hall of a grand castle. The castle of King Caspian X, and once of the Great Kings and Queens of Old. She closed her eyes, pinched her arm, and opened them again. The great hall was still before her. It was not a dream. "Cair Paravel," she whispered in wonder. "I'm home."

Heart pounding, she explored the strangely empty halls. Where was Caspian? Where were the guards? The attendants? During her rule in the Golden Age of Narnia, Cair Paravel had never been so empty. Finally, she spotted a familiar face. "Doctor Cornelius!"

The old man turned and gasped upon seeing her. "My queen," he bowed. She smiled and embraced him. Being part Narnian himself, he'd hardly aged at all since she had last seen him. "Queen Susan, I thought you would not be returning to Narnia."

"Neither did I, but it seems Aslan had other plans. Please, where is Caspian?"

Her old friend grew quite solemn. "In his chambers, milady."

"Has he been everything that was hoped for? Has he ruled Narnia well?" she asked, unaware of the doctor's heartbroken expression as she turned to gaze out the window over-looking her beautiful Narnia. "Has he... has he found a queen?"

"Not since your brothers ruled has Narnia had such a strong and just king. He has ruled Narnia well, but he has done so alone."
Susan smiled at this, a blush coloring her cheeks. "Will you take me to him?" she asked, turning to finally see Doctor Cornelius' sad eyes gazing back at her. "What is it?"

"My dear, you have been gone for just over fifty years now. Our king has not been well for some time," he sighed. "I'm afraid his days are numbered."

Susan paled, and for a moment was sure she would faint. But, squaring her shoulders, instead said with the authority of a true queen, "Take me to him."