Disclaimer: I don't own Narnia or any characters you may recognize from the books or the movies, I wish I did but I don't...

Summary: In which a discussion is held between the Just King and one of the knights of Narnia...

A/N: This is set in my A Light in the Darkness universe, but this one shot can be read as a standalone.

Light in Darkness

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In order for the light to shine so brightly, the darkness must be present. ~ Sir Francis Bacon

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I jerked awake, fighting the restraints and shivering from the cold ice that had been my prison. It took a moment before I oriented myself enough to notice that I was in my own bed, the restraints were just my tangled sheets, and the cold... What cold? It was summer. I reached up and touched the round, hard scar that marked Jadis' attempt to kill me after I shattered her wand. I could just barely feel it through my light sleep shirt. I heard Peter turning over in his bed across the room and I nearly went over there, but tonight (this morning really...ugh, how do morning people stand getting up before dawn willingly?) I was too restless to try sleeping again...especially when I knew she was waiting in my dreams.

I carefully untangled myself from my sheets and got dressed. Peter was blissfully unaware as I slipped out and I hoped my big brother was having some truly peaceful dreams. I nodded to the guards on duty and began walking. Well, it was really wandering since I had no idea where I wanted to go. Cair Paravel had enough nocturnal residents that there was still a faint hum of activity from various parts of the castle even though it was so late that even the Centaurs had retired. My feet seemed to instinctively pick out a path that shied away from those areas, without any conscious effort on my part, but that suited me. I didn't want to talk to anyone.

When I finally became aware of my surroundings again, I was a little surprised to find myself standing in the middle of the training yard. No one else was out there...at least, that's what I thought.

"You know it is far too early for someone who's not a morning person to be up, right? I mean, it is too early even for the Kentauri to be up." I spun around to see Katerina Alambiel standing just far enough away that if I had had Shafhelm out, she would have been out of range. She tilted her head as she searched my face for...something...with Kat it was impossible to know what she was thinking until she bothered to inform the rest of us. She gave a slight wave, "Come on, Edmund, let's take a walk before Oreius finds out we're in his training yard. I, for one, am not actually supposed to be here since my ribs still haven't finished healing."

We slowly walked out of the training yard, meandering our way to one of the upper garden terraces until we reached a stone bench. Kat sat down and gave me a look that I could see clearly under the light of the half moon and stars. I sat down next to her and sighed. We actually didn't say anything for a long while, we just sat there, lost in our own private thoughts, until Kat broke the silence. "Tell me something, Edmund. When the world was created, did darkness or light come first?"

I blinked, "Darkness."

"Why?"

I stared at her, wondering why Kat, of all people, wanted to discuss the reason why darkness came before light when Aslan sang the world into being... But, I knew she wouldn't let me go without an answer, so I pondered the question. Kat didn't say a word as I thought about it and then slowly answered, "Because you can't really bring darkness out of light, but you can bring light into darkness causing the darkness to be dispersed."

"Why do we have darkness?"

I frowned as I answered, "Well, because that is the way things are and darkness has its purpose."

It wasn't one of my better answers, but it seemed to please Kat. She nodded, "Consider this, Edmund, when does the light appear brightest to our eyes?"

"When the dawn comes or when you light a candle in the middle of the night or when you leave a dark room and step into a brightly lit room."

She nodded, "Ah, so light is at its brightest when it is contrasted with darkness. The same principle applies to the light and darkness we experience in our lives as it does to the light and darkness of the world around us. Tell me, Edmund, why do Narnians celebrate spring with such fervency and thankfulness? Why do we welcome the brightness of day after the dark of night? Or seek the light of a single candle in the darkest of rooms? Is it not because we know how precious light and life is after experiencing darkness and death?"

Kat paused but I didn't have the words to speak, so she continued in a softer tone, "Did you not learn to hate injustice when you were in Jadis' keep? Narnia values spring and freedom all the more for having gone through a hundred years of darkness in the form of oppressive tyranny and endless, joyless winter. You and I know the touch of darkness and we understand what is at stake when we defy the darkness that attempts to claim our hearts, we have tasted the despair that the darkness of evil brings, and yet our lights still shine in the midst of darkness. Those who have never been touched by darkness are blessed, but is the light of hope, of life, of everything that is good and valuable in this world as sweet to them as it is to us? I do not know, but I do know that if we had not been touched by darkness, you and I would be very different people and perhaps our lights would not shine so brightly as they do today. We are quicker to recognize darkness because we know its touch, we fight harder to protect those we love from being touched by that same darkness, and we are wiser because we have been and are the light in darkness where others are the blazing light of day and are untouched by darkness."

My thoughts immediately drew the parallels between Kat's words and Peter and me. I could not deny the truth of Kat's words and as she looked at me, I could see the experience of an entire age in her eyes that made her seem world weary and as wise as any of the elders of Narnia. She smiled sadly, "Just King, darkness has left its mark on us physically, mentally, and emotionally. It haunts our thoughts and invades our dreams. It attempts to cow us into submission with these tactics, so that we allow our light to be covered or even smothered. What makes us strong is that we remember the light shall always banish darkness; we merely need to stand our ground. It will press in, but so long as our light burns, whether it is the equivalent of the sun or a single candle, the darkness cannot overcome us. Contrary to the intent of the evil whose darkness touched us, the darkness surrounding our single light causes the light to shine all the brighter."

I was struck with the reminder that Kat understood even better than my siblings how I had been touched by Jadis and changed by my experiences when I first came to Narnia, even though she didn't know many of the details. She was right; what Jadis had intended for evil, Aslan had used for good, my good and Narnia's good. I blinked as I realized dawn was already casting its light over us. Kat smiled as she stood before she leaned down, pressed a kiss to my hair, and whispered, "Just something to keep in mind whenever you have a sleepless night."

I followed behind Kat as she headed back for the palace. Oreius was standing at the entrance to the garden and I knew the General had been the reason why we had been completely undisturbed. I stopped beside him and we watched Kat disappear from sight. "She's not really insane at all, is she?"

Oreius chuckled, "No, I'm afraid she is not. And now, Sir How, you have training. Come."

I smirked as I followed him down to the training yard. The thought that stuck with me throughout training and the rest of the day was that I was able to be Narnia and Peter's shield because I had been touched by darkness and now I was a light in darkness. I slept well that night.

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A/N: Please Read and Review! Let me know what y'all thought about this one. I hope to have new chapters for Concealed and Don't Judge up in a few weeks.

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