Sorry, no excuse for a delayed chapter…again. Thanks for the reviews yada yada keep reading blah blah blah sorry for any confusion read this chapter so things can clear up. Ok back to the story.

A falling star, least I fall alone
I can't explain what you can't explain
You're finding things that you didn't know
I look at you with such disdain

The walls start breathing, my mind's unweaving
Maybe it's best you leave me along
A weight is lifted on this evening
I give the final blow

When darkness turns to light
It Ends Tonight, It Ends Tonight
Just a little insight won't make this right
It's too late to fight, It Ends Tonight It Ends Tonight

-Second verse and Chorus of "It Ends Tonight" by The All-American Rejects

Trumpkin always being the open one blurted out as soon as they stopped "What is going on here? The high king and queen are alive and they didn't notice us, The Valiant Queen and Just King are nowhere to be seen, and to top it all off we learned that Prince Rilian ages backwards."

"Relax friend, all will be explained." The great lion calmed him.

Trufflehunter being slightly gentler decided to get at least a few answers out in the open. "Sire, how is it that we entered your country? Are we dead?" Caspian was anxious for the answer because if he was dead and so was his heir…well then things will just turn out like when the kings and queens of old left. But Aslan had specifically said that things never happened the same way twice.

"You have nothing to worry about. None of you are dead but many things need to be cleared before Rilian takes the throne."

"Haven't you revealed enough, Aslan?" Ramandu's daughter said in a bitter tone. Aslan may have been the overall ruler of Narnia but she still had hatred for him after nearly ruining the relationship she had with her family.

"I sense the anger in you. I suggest you let it go before it becomes your downfall. Had I not given Susan Caspian's child, her anger would have gotten to her causing her to forget and push away her memories of Narnia." Ramandu's daughter knew that that meant shut up with a lot of words in between. Rilian snickered at how his "mother" was scolded by Aslan in a way only Aslan could.

"What more is there that we need to know, Aslan?" Caspian thought to break up whatever tension that was already building between his wife and the all powerful Aslan.

"I know that you all have many questions and as I said before, here is where it will all be answered."

Everyone sat on the ground and got comfortable to hear what the lion had to say. One of Aslan's sides faced the edge of the cliff so that he would be able to stare into the distant and watch his son and daughter (Susan and Peter) play and dance merrily with their friends in Cair Paravel.

"It brings my heart joy to know that the two of them are finally in eternal happiness. It only saddens me that a part of them is still overcoming the fact that they broke Lucy and Edmund's hearts when they entered my country but they trust in me and wait for the day when all will be reunited." Aslan said while staring at the two dancing. No one knew where this was leading to just yet.

"As I told you before, I knew that Caspian would not have a blood heir with the daughter of the star." Caspian looked down, Rilian placed a hand on his father's shoulder, and Ramandu's daughter looked away. "This was not good for Narnia's fate so I did the only thing that I could. The only other woman who loved Caspian that way and the only woman in all of Narnia who was strong, understanding, and gentle was our High Queen of Old, Susan."

That part everyone understood. Everyone knew the traits of the queen and the relationship she had with Caspian. Aslan's reason for picking her weren't that hard to figure out. Why he did it also wasn't that hard. Why Susan and Peter were practically reincarnated was hard to figure out.

Aslan smiled and silently laughed at a small memory he had finally continuing with the tale. "Breaking it to her was actually pretty amusing. With Susan being the smart and clever girl, nay, woman she is, it was not surprising that she figured out the pregnancy before I had told her of my decisions. Peter had been surprised in a way only Peter could. By that I mean, that the instant he found out, conclusions entered his mind and he was ready to slay whoever had made his sister pregnant."

Caspian wasn't surprised by that. Peter rushed to conclusions many times when they fought in the revolution. His first decision was to plan an attack on the Telmarine castle which did not end well. Peter proved his strength in the one on one battle between him and Miraz. He also demonstrated his care for his siblings by comforting Lucy when she found out Peter and Susan were never returning and he did not stop Susan from enjoying the only moment she had with Caspian.

Aslan continued. "Like Lucy, I visited both her and Peter in their dreams. That was when I had told both of them my reasons just like I am to you all right now. I had witnessed her give birth to you Rilian. Both she and Peter were glowing with happiness at your birth. Peter was also relieved when Susan found out that Caspian was the father even before I told them." Aslan was staring at Rilian who was slowly tearing at how he lost a life with this amazing woman who he was proud to call his actual mother. Aslan's expression also held one of sadness. He stared at Rilian. "Your mother loved you very much which is why letting you go even though she didn't want to, was the hardest thing she ever did. It hurt her more than learning she could never return to Narnia or separating from your father. She was very strong which is why she let you go without a fight and now she lives in whatever happiness she can here."

Rilian was on the verge of sobbing on Caspian's shoulder. Caspian just looked at what Aslan was staring at which was Susan and Peter enjoying themselves in Cair Paravel's garden. Peter had left to talk with old friends leaving Susan to sit alone and enjoy the privacy and beauty of the gardens and Aslan's country overall. Susan took a deep breath and stared at the cliff high and far cliff Aslan was proudly sitting on. She only saw Aslan and blew him a kiss while he smiled at the how much she truly loved him.

With each passing second and each word spoken, Ramandu's daughter was getting angrier but was also being ignored. She hated hearing the story of her greatest secret kept. Every few times Trufflehunter or Trumpkin would stare at her and disapprovingly shake their heads. Caspian didn't even try to stop them from practically insulting his wife.

"I must admit, giving Susan a child at the time might not have been the wisest idea but since Narnia time moves faster, then the sooner I gave her the child the better. The two of them were already struggling since the deaths of their parents and from being separated from Lucy and Edmund. Edmund had almost gone into a depression after learning that his older brother was killed and his sister's body wasn't even found. Lucy and Eustace were barely enough to keep him from killing himself."

Aslan wasn't even close to finishing his story but Ramandu's daughter had had enough so she dared to ask against him. "You are doing nothing but ruining a family, Aslan. Why are you doing this? Why could you not have helped me bear a son? Why must it have been her? Because she is a queen of old?" Ramandu's daughter was filled with anger and hate. Everyone was a little shocked at her outburst.

"Enough, daughter of the star. Would you like to know your future had you given birth to Caspian's son? You will have a happy life but during a walk with your son, you would get bitten and killed by a serpent. Your son will run away to look for that serpent to avenge you but along the way, he will have 'disappeared' to Narnians. He will be put under a spell of an enchantress and Eustace would have returned with a friend to help find him. With you already knowing that Susan is Rilian's birthmother, you didn't give him the love and affection a mother should causing you to miss the walk through the woods. This prevented you from getting killed."

Everyone was shocked. Susan basically saved Ramandu's daughter just by bearing Caspian's child. Trumpkin snickered lightly at how Aslan's response was quick and calm. It was as if Aslan knew she would be challenging him. While Aslan continued with the story, Ramandu's daughter remained silent the entire time. Though her life may have been spared, she still didn't have to like any of the Kings or Queens of old.

Caspian looked to the distance to see Peter dueling Reepicheep and he remembered how much skill he had with the sword even when he was in disguise. Then he remembered the disguises. He felt foolish for not noticing Susan and Peter when they were actually living.

Aslan answered the question on the disguises as if reading Caspian's mind. "The disguises for the two of them were the least I could do. It wasn't fair to Susan to never see her son again so I had given her and her brother a new face so that they would have at least a small part in Rilian's life. The two of them created their own background information and history incase questions were asked and since none of you figured it out, I am guessing that it had worked well enough." Aslan gave a small chuckle. Rilian didn't think that his nurse/tutor and his swordsman teacher were really his mother and uncle in disguise.

"Question…" Trumpkin needed to know at least a small amount of information about his DLF. "Was any of this ever known to King Edmund and Queen Lucy?"

"Unfortunately, no. The two younger monarchs did not find out about Rilian until after the deaths. It was actually the news of his birth that King Edmund come out of his depression."

Flashback:

"I don't see why we can't just return to Peter and Susan." said Lucy in a bored tone. She was stuck doing homework over and over, literally. She had finished her weekend homework two hours ago but her aunt Alberta had forced her to do it over because of her "horrid handwriting." Lucy's handwriting wasn't as neat as Susan's, especially since Lucy was never the one to sign treaties in the golden age, but she didn't mind it. Edmund had guessed that Eustace became spoiled and mean since his parents were strict perfectionists.

"I miss them too, Lu but we have to wait until they both win our custody. We'll be together soon. Aslan wouldn't have brought us back if he knew that we would end up miserable like this." Outside, Edmund was speaking soothingly to Lucy as if he was the High King but on the inside he just wanted to cry because of the separation while Susan stroked his hair and relaxed him. He also wanted to have and actual chess game with his brother just like they used to. Beating Eustace at chess over and over wasn't exactly the mind numbing challenge he had in mind.

"Edmund's right, Lucy. Just trust in Aslan. He'll bring us all back together. Maybe if we're lucky, you might even come with me on my next adventure into Narnia. I don't want to go alone." Eustace had suspected that since the four of them had gone into Narnia more than once, he might be able to go back at least one more time.

"I just miss them is all." Lucy looked at a picture of all four of them when they were still happy. It was taken in front of the wardrobe. Lucy had insisted they take a picture with the wardrobe since that was where it all started. She was able to bring it from home before Aunt Alberta and Uncle Harold had taken them in. They were so happy at the time. They were all sitting in front of the wardrobe and the picture made sure that the design of the wardrobe was shone behind them.

"We all do but we'll see if fate brings us together sooner than expected." Edmund tried to be a little optimistic. In his mind he was trying to not only convince Lucy and Eustace but himself.

A week later:

Eustace had stayed behind in school to retake a test while Edmund and Lucy had gone back to their aunt and uncle's house. They were both lost in thought about what they would be doing now in Narnia had they stayed. They're happy thoughts about Narnia were ended short the second they entered the house.

Aunt Alberta had been sitting in a chair crying her eyes out while holding a telegram while Uncle Harold rubbed the side of her arms trying to calm her down.

Both Lucy and Edmund were confused. "What's going on?" Lucy was always the open one of the family.

Uncle Harold handed Edmund the telegram. Edmund read it fast since he was always a fast reader but as he read it, he thought he was reading wrong words so he read it again and reread it to make sure that this wasn't real. No matter how many times he read it, it always said the same thing:

"We are sorry to inform you but during the raid by the German Army, one of your family members and/or close friend, Mr. Peter Pevensie was shot and killed on that very night. We are also sorry to have to say that Mr. Pevensie's sister, Ms. Susan Pevensie, was also killed during this tragic event. Unfortunately, only the body of Mr. Pevensie has been found. We are very sorry to have to give this tragic news and we grieve for the losses. Please be sure to pick up any items from their home within the next three days. All of Britain mourns for this tragic defeat."

Edmund knew that the letter said that they were sorry for the loss but really they weren't. They probably wrote several letters just like this but with different names. He was too sad about the news of his brother and sisters deaths to be angry about any letter the government was writing. When they were back in Narnia, they had made sure to write separate heartfelt letters with love and actual care to each person who needed it. After the battle against the white witch, they had made sure to write a personal thank you letter to each soldier who fought and/or a personal grieving letter to the families of lost soldiers. Things like that were never written over and over again to say the same thing but Edmund could care less about that now.

After Edmund had read the letter a final time to confirm everything, Lucy had snatched it from him and read it herself. She didn't need to read it more than once to know the truth. Her eldest brother and only sister were dead and there was no more to say. Lucy only had to read it once to break down into tears while Edmund let her cry onto his chest while slowly holding back his own tears. They were the only "Pevensies" in the world now and though Edmund would never admit it, they were scared.

After Lucy had calmed down, Edmund had hit his depression and fast at that matter. He didn't talk or eat for the next twenty four hours and he did nothing but sleep. He didn't try to comfort Lucy thinking that Eustace could do that or she could cry and mourn with everyone else, he didn't get up to eat thinking that it was only a step closer to death if he didn't, and he didn't care if his grades were going down thinking that he'll probably die before he had a chance to find a major college anyway. The Just King was losing himself to himself and neither Lucy's faith nor Eustace's kindness could save him.

Two days later:

Everyone was still mourning the day after they got the letter and Edmund still was in his depression nearly killing himself a day earlier, but since they only had three days to collect Susan and Peter's valuables, they sucked it up and tried to be strong enough to face the source of the deaths.

To everyone's surprise, the house was not torn apart as if someone was searching it. Edmund guessed that the German's only entered the house to find and kill the residents than to steal their stuff. Although he may have not been trying his best in school anymore, he was still the wise and Just King of Narnia. Another thing that was surprising was that Peter's blood wasn't all over the wall. Edmund, Eustace, and Lucy stayed up all night the first night to figure out how Peter was shot when Susan's body was never found. They came up with the conclusion that Peter died trying to help Susan run off somewhere else. Since there must have been several soldiers in order for Peter to die, since everyone knew he could fight and kill up to five people at a time if he wanted to, there was no chance that Susan possibly escaped and lived.

No one spoke as they looked around. Aunt Alberta and Uncle Harold stayed on the lower level to see if there was anything Peter and Susan kept of their parents while the children went to explore the rooms the two had once slept in.

The three of them didn't want to separate so they first explored Peter's room. It had looked clean, probably because Susan always nagged him to clean it, and all of his favorite things were there. There was a family photo, a bunch of clothes, his favorite books, and the sketch of him drawn by Susan. Susan had given it to him for his birthday and it looked exactly like when Peter was crowned high king of Narnia. Susan had painted the three of them from the night of the coronation and given it to them as birthday presents. They're parents were a little confused but thought it as their children's wild imaginations. Susan had made sure to get all the details she remembered of his outfit from the coronation and it came out beautifully. Peter stood tall with the golden crown on his head, standing in front of the throne, with Rhindon in his hand and on the top of the paper it read "To the Clear Northern Sky, I give you King Peter, the Magnificent" and on the bottom, it read "Once a King or Queen of Narnia, Always a King or Queen. May Your Wisdom Grace Us Until The Stars Rain Down From The Heavens." The bottom words were smaller than the title but it still had Susan's fancy handwriting. Lucy grabbed it and made sure that it wasn't wrinkled. Since that was all that seemed valuable to them from Peter, they checked Susan's room.

When they entered, they were surprised to see a lot of things that shouldn't be there. There were baby bottles, blankets, diapers, and infant toys that they weren't sure what it all meant. They knew that Susan sometimes babysat for money but they didn't think she'd go so far as to nursing them. Since Susan's room was slightly bigger, Eustace had checked to see if she had anything important inside her closet, Lucy looked on her dresser for any important pieces of jewelry, and Edmund checked her desk for a journal or letters of some sort.

Eustace only found some old dresses and decided to help Lucy since there was nothing of importance in the closet. Lucy was amazed by the only thing she saw valuable on the dresser. She found the first necklace Susan had in the Golden Age. It was a red diamond with a golden chain. She wore it only during explorations but any other time she wore the sun shaped locket Aslan had given her as a coronation gift. Lucy knew that she found it in Cair Paravel's ruins and wore it when they met Prince Caspian but she never thought that she actual brought it with her to England. Lucy guessed it was a work of Aslan when they had walked through the split tree. He must have put it in her pocket when they magically changed back into their ugly uniforms.

Lucy held onto it since it was in perfect condition and an item from Narnia should never be ignored. After the vanity search, the two cousins looked at Edmund who had been staring at something on her desk for a while now. Edmund had found more than Lucy and Eustace had. They found her sketchpad with all of her amazing pictures of Narnia and its glory, her journal which Susan never put a lock on, and a letter addressed to Edmund and Lucy. There were dozens of crumpled up paper balls that everyone probably guessed that the letter must have been so important to have Susan write it over and over again.

Edmund took the envelope and put it in his inside jacket pocket while Lucy and Eustace grabbed her journal and sketchpad. For the first time in about two days, Edmund spoke but softly, barely above a whisper, and short. "Let's go." He walked out of the room trying to stop new tears from flowing while Eustace held on the Lucy who followed behind a little disappointed in only hearing a couple of words come out of her brother's mouth.

When they got home, the three children ran to one of the rooms and started to examine what they had found. It wasn't much but it was enough to make them cry and tear all over again. Peter's books were skimmed through, the family photo was put on the side table with all the other happy photos, and the drawing of Peter by Susan was carefully framed and put next to the carefully framed pictures of Lucy and Edmund all sketched by Susan.

Susan's things were carefully examined to see how their lives were after the separation. Susan's journal was read and was disappointingly ended several months ago. None of the information said anything about the baby supplies. Her sketches were kept inside the book but were all of Narnia including an unfinished picture of Aslan. Lucy nearly cried at how it was so sad that now Susan could never finish the painting. Lucy held tight to Susan's necklace as her good luck charm. She never wore it and yet she never left without it.

The only thing left was the letter. Edmund wasn't ready to read what was inside and instead just held on to it like Lucy with Susan's necklace even though it was addressed to both of them. Days went on and Edmund's depression had worsened. He stared at the letter everyday but every time he looked at it he just grew more depressed about thinking what happy and alive words Susan wrote in it. Lucy cried since she was losing her last brother to himself. Eustace had had enough of the "Just King's" solitude.

Early in the morning, Eustace had entered Edmund's room and pulled the covers off. Edmund groaned since he hadn't seen sunlight since the day his depression began. "I have had it with you!" Edmund tried not to listen. Eustace was mean at one point so he decided to bring that person back to help Edmund snap out of it.

"All you do is lie around up here. Sometimes I think that if we don't check up on you ever once in a while, you might be dead." Lucy tried pulling Eustace out of the room.

"Eustace please, let him rest."

"He's had enough 'rest.' It's time to get up and do something with your life." He was still yelling at Edmund but Edmund had put a pillow on his head to block light and sound. Eustace had snatched it off just as fast as he had snatched the blankets.

"Edmund, Susan and Peter wouldn't want you to throw away your life like this. It's not only affecting your life but mine and Lucy's too. You would know what Susan and Peter would want maybe if you just opened the letter." Eustace had said all that he could say and walked out, slamming the door with Lucy right in front of him.

Edmund decided to give his words some thought. He looked at the letter that still sat on the side table. Edmund slowly picked it up and took a deep breath. He carefully opened it to find a one page letter from Susan that only addressed Edmund though the envelope addressed both him and Lucy.

Dearest Edmund,

I have so much to tell you that it took me so many tries to write this letter. Knowing you, you're probably wondering why the letter is only addressed to you this time. Well, I guessed that you wouldn't have the heart to read this to Lucy in case things she shouldn't hear were in it. I'm probably right. Anyway, I didn't just want to write this letter to you for fun but for things that I know you need to hear. Ed, I know what might happen in my future. Peter's too. In case we never see each other again I want you to know that I love you so much and I am so proud of you. I know you were easily tempted by the White Witch since you hated Peter so much for him not saying this enough but I never stopped loving you, I never hated you, and I never looked down on you. You and I had something you and Peter or Lucy never had. Lucy and Peter had what we had but different. We were the complicated ones who brought balance to each other's lives. You told me when I was a pain and I told you when you were being stubborn. Ha ha, no but seriously we did have an unbreakable bond which not even Lucy or Peter possessed. Just know that I want you to grow old as one of the greatest minds the world has ever known. You were always the smart one even though I always tried to be. Don't give up your dreams if we ever part. I can't always be there for you physically but I'm always in your heart, aren't I? So if ever you feel like the world has given up on you, know that I haven't.

Edmund had read on while crying. He made sure that none of his tears hit the paper. He smiled a little at her news on the baby and Caspian and everything that happened with her as a new mother. But he cried when he found out about Aslan's visit with them. He reread the first paragraph over and over just to hear her voice one more time.

Remember Edmund, I will always be with you and I love you, my Just King.

With Love,

Susan, Gentle Queen of Narnia.

Now all of Edmund's hidden tears were finally out and when he could no longer cry, he ran down the stairs calling Eustace and Lucy's names. He embraced them both and told about his breakthrough. Lucy was overjoyed to finally have her brother back.

"So King Edmund nearly killed himself emotionally and Rilian saved him?" Trumpkin was slowly getting things. Caspian was a little sad at the story and so was Trufflehunter who always looked up the King Edmund. This subject was too depressing to hear for Rilian though he wanted to know more of his still living aunt and uncle but he couldn't bear to hear more about his uncle's miracle.

"Aslan, one more question." Rilian just needed to know this last thing. "Why is it that when I touched my mother's arm, my hand changed?"

Aslan knew this was coming. Aslan wanted to make Rilian happy and this was the only way he could. "Your mother has arrived in my country. In Narnia time, her age is twenty four while Peter is twenty five, equivalent to when you were about six years old so when you touched her, your hand changed into what it was when you were about six. It would be the same for all of you. If Caspian had touched Peter, his hand would have aged back to when he was about twenty six for that was also when you were six Rilian. It is my gift to you."

"How is that a gift if I turn into a child just by touching my mother or uncle?"

"I am allowing all of you to visit my country in your dreams. Only when all five of you are asleep at the same time will you enter. You will leave once one of you wake up. This will give you a small chance to be part of their lives just like when they lived part of your lives when they were in disguise. Mark my words though, consider what happened to you hand as a warning. If you hold onto them for more than you should, your entire body will change back to when you were six, Rilian. It will happen to all of you. If that happens, you will die in your world and completely enter my country. Susan and Peter will see you yet you leave Narnia. Once that happens to one of you, none of you will ever be allowed to return to my country in your dreams again. You will have to wait until it is your time. That is all I can say for now. Enjoy you stay because I will always watch over you."

The lion had now left them alone to explore his country. The only thing Rilian wanted now was to see the life of his real mother while Caspian only wanted the same. They were on their own until the break of day.

It's always times like these when I think of you
And I wonder if you ever think of me
'Cause everything's so wrong and I don't belong
Living in your precious memories

'Cause I need you
And I miss you
And now I wonder....

If I could fall into the sky
Do you think time would pass me by
'Cause you know I'd walk
A Thousand Miles
If I could just see you
Tonight

-Second verse and chorus of "A Thousand Miles" by Vanessa Carlton

This has got to be the longest chapter I have ever written. Again, sorry for the delay. I have absolutely no excuse this time. I have a few things to say though. I borrowed a few scenes or worked off of a few scenes from a few places because like I said, I have no creativity. Anyway, when Susan hugged Aslan, think of it just like in Disney's Pocahontas when, in the beginning, Pocahontas hugged her dad when he returned. The last thing I took was when Edmund had read Susan's letter while crying. If you saw "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2," the scene where Bridget reads her grandmother's letters and crying at the same time is a little the same. The last thing I have to say is the necklace Susan wears, which Lucy found, is actually in the Prince Caspian movie. She wears it with her purple dress. I don't know if I got all the details on it right. And lastly, the sun shaped necklace was taken off of my other story "The Gentle Queen's Return" because I was just really proud of it. Ok so that's all I have to say.

Read and review for the next chapter.

-tin2lo