Disclaimer: For once, I own everything! Except for the one obvious character. That one is C.S. Lewis'.

Thanks to: Tenethia, gypsevedius, and Sir-William at The Lion's Call for being my guinea pigs. (Reference unintended.)

At the opening of the door, a lone and lanky frame stirred in its chair, its thin neck raising an unruly mop of hair, which in turn revealed a drawn face and exceptionally bright, expectant eyes.

"If you'll follow me, sir."

The man licked his lips and leapt to his unsteady feet, then proceeded to follow his guide down the hall, up a flight of stairs, and down another hall. He felt so frightfully light-headed and dazed, he was certain that the only thing keeping him conscious was the frantic rubbing of his hands. So frantic was this hand-rubbing, he even registered the cracking of his knuckles.

His guide opened a door to the left and ushered him in. The last of his knuckles cracked and he stood stock-still. His eyes latched onto those of a beautiful woman with raven-black tresses. "Andrew, dear," she breathed. He licked his lips, but his mouth went dry. He tried to move his legs, but found them too weak to walk on. An attendant approached him, carrying a bundle. The parcel that spelled out his fate. He forced his hands to unlatch from each other and held them out. The attendant laid it in his shaky arms without a word. After a brief, apprehensive glance at the raven-haired woman, he looked down at the contents of the bundle.

His heart fairly stopped. His head grew lighter still. His vision swam. His hearing amplified of a sudden. His knees finally bent toward each other.

"Sir?"

He sank into his guide's arms while the bundle was taken from his own. He was laid on a settee. Voices swirled around him, but as loud as they were, he could not make out what they said. "Brandy," he gasped, "brandy!"

If he had been lucid, he would have seen three bewildered faces glancing at each other. If he had been conscious a moment later, he would have seen his dear wife relieve the nurse of her burden and heard her promulgate, "Very well, then. Her name is Brandy Ketterley."

Author's Note: This is what happens when I wonder why one of my cousins' parents decided to give her the same name as an alcohol... I also wonder if they realized that.

Thanks to: WillowDryad for pointing out the need for a little more clarification. :-)

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