Hi again! A little delay in updating this time, sorry about that. Hopefully you enjoy this chapter, and as always, read and review.
The next few days passed almost without incident. Rosalina and Caspian strolled around the castle, talking and flirting, the knights mostly kept to themselves, clearly a little bored, and Cassandra mostly followed Anna around the castle. She was particularly impressed when Anna mentioned that she and Ava would sometimes go flying. "Can you show me?" She asked eagerly, grasping Anna's hands. Anna found herself nodding as Ava readily agreed, glad of a chance to show off. Once Anna had returned to the ballroom in her male attire, a reasonable crowd of knights had gathered, including Sir Gawain, who Anna noticed had a rather pronounced limp suddenly.
"Alright, Ava?" She murmured to the dragon as she climbed up her neck and grasped her spines. "Cause I've suddenly gone all nervous," Ava tossed her head. "No, I think it would be more to do with the knights than the Princess," She said irritably. "Let's just get on with it?"
Ava beat her large wings, sending large clouds of dust billowing across the ballroom floor, then suddenly Ava and Anna were swooping over and around the ruined ballroom, Ava becoming more adventurous with the whoops and cheers of the knights and performing barrel rolls that made Anna feel almost as though she would fall. Once the ride was finished, Anna sat for a minute or two on Ava's back, regaining the breath that had been swept out of her body while the knights and Cassandra clapped appreciatively. Once she had slid off, Cassandra hurried forward and clasped her in a tight hug. "You are the bravest little thing I've ever seen!" She announced as she twirled her around. Anna felt the colour run into her cheeks and pride well up inside her as she was praised from every direction. The sensation was wholly new and very welcome.
A few nights later, Anna tried her best to argue that they should at least take turns sleeping on the floor, and was almost instantly shot down. "You're not sleeping on the floor. End of story," Cassandra said flatly, her arms folded, and Anna rolled her eyes.
"You're being ridiculous, my lady," she said. "I'm the servant. It's in my job description to sleep on the floor,"
"Well I'm the princess and I give the orders, so you sleep on the bed. Alone or with me I don't care which-," Anna rolled her eyes. "-but you are not sleeping on this floor. I mean it,"
"Why?" Anna cried, "There's no point to this!"
"There's every point to this! I want you to be comfortable!"
"What for? It won't kill me to sleep on the floor!"
"Why are you so eager to give up your own bed? Don't you want to be comfortable?"
"Well yes, but that-,"
"Then why is it more important for me to be comfortable?"
"Because I'm worth less than you!" Anna shouted exasperatedly. Cassandra froze with an expression on her face Anna couldn't place. "What?" She asked apprehensively. Cassandra gripped the back of her neck and looked into her eyes.
"You really believe that?" she asked seriously.
"Well… yes,"
"Why?" Anna struggled to answer for a moment.
"Well, because you are going to run a country one day-,"
"Not me, my brother,"
"Well-," Anna frowned, "Then because you are a member of the royal family, and you are going to be there in case something happens to your brother,"
"There are plenty of other people who could do that job," Cassandra cut in.
"Then because you will grow and marry a rich, handsome man you love and live a good life,"
"And you won't?" Anna paused. Truly, would she? An ex-victim of a curse, a serving girl with her whole life bound to the princess, a girl with no real talents apart from being friends with a dragon and precious little beauty? She cast her eyes down.
"It's unlikely," Cassandra let go of her, standing up abruptly.
"I see," she said in cool tones. "Goodnight then,"
"Goodnight, my lady," Anna said softly, wondering exactly what it was she had done to upset the princess.
"It's terrible, Anna!" Rosalina burst into Anna's room the next evening, just as Anna and Cassandra were getting ready for bed.
"What is, Rosa?" Anna asked, alarmed.
"I don't think he loves me!" Rosalina declared, before bursting into tears. Anna rushed over to comfort her and led her to the bed where she sat down, crying into Anna's shoulder. Cassandra remained a respectable distance away but was watching with interest.
"Rosa, tell me what on earth you're talking about?"
"He won't kiss me, he won't break the curse!" Anna's heart shot down into her toes.
"W-what? Did he say he wouldn't?" Cassandra leaned forward, looking concerned.
"That can't be right," she said. "He'd never do that, even if he wasn't in love with you,"
"He won't do it," Rosalina cried. "I don't think he loves me,"
"Calm down and explain, please," Anna begged her. Rosalina took a few calming breaths before telling her story.
"We talk all the time and I feel like we really connect and I had such high hopes that he would finally break the curse but he won't touch me. When we walk around the castle he won't hold my hand; when we sit in the hall of mirrors together he'll move away before I can put my head on his shoulder. He must think I'm repulsive!"
Cassandra burst out laughing.
"Well bloody hell, he's actually done it," She said to herself in awe.
"Done what?" Anna demanded as Rosalina clutched at her.
"Look, let me explain something Princess- Caspian was always a bit of a ladies man. He knew all the right lines, knew exactly what the wanted to be told and when… basically, he got a lot of women into bed," Rosalina gaped in horror at Cassandra while Anna openly glared. "But listen, this is the important part. When his friends asked him how he did it, he always said it was because he had no feelings for them that he could say those sorts of things with a cool head. Now that he's met you, he's finally fallen in love and suddenly he doesn't know what to do anymore. You should be grateful he still has the presence of mind to talk to you coherently," Rosalina looked up with big hopeful eyes.
"Really?"
"Truly," Cassandra confirmed with a warm smile that made Anna's insides melt.
"And besides," Anna told her, feeling deep relief that the dull throbbing in her arm would not kill her yet, "how could he not love someone as stunning as you?"
Rosalina gave a little laugh and threw her arms round Anna's middle. Anna smiled back and patted her on the head, but when she looked up to thank Cassandra, her smile disappeared at the look on her face. She looked truly sad, and panic that the story had been a lie froze Anna's insides. "Well!" she said, trying to sound cheerful, "we should probably get to bed, yeah?" Rosalina sat up and nodded, smiling through her tear-stained face. Anna gave her a quick kiss on the cheek before ushering her out of the room. Once the door had closed she leant against it with a sigh. "That story," She said, addressing Cassandra, "That story had better not have been a lie,"
Cassandra looked truly surprised and shook her head.
"It was the truth; I really believe he's in love with her,"
"Then why did you look so sad just now?" Anna demanded, her suspicious mind craving to dispel any doubt over her imminent recovery.
Cassandra smiled a smile so poignant and sad it brought tears to Anna's eyes and a strange tugging pain in her chest. "Just thinking of how much he's changed, that's all," she said, settling into bed. "Good night,"
As Anna lay in the dark, trying to sleep, she felt terrifying doubt knowing at her stomach.
It was dark, and there was an immense pain in Anna's left arm, shoulder and the left side of her neck and chest. The pain was so crushing, Anna could barely breathe. "Cassa- Cass- Cassandra!" She gasped out. "Please- ah! Help!" She couldn't turn her head to see if Cassandra was awake or not so she continued to gasp out her name. "Cass- Cassandra… Cassandra! Ah!" Waves of crippling pain crashed over the left side of her body, burning deep inside her muscles. Tears streamed down her face and Anna was certain she was dying. Suddenly, miraculously, Cassandra's worried face appeared above her own. "Please- help!" She gasped, then locked her jaw together as the pain flared up again. Cassandra knelt by her left arm.
"Should I touch it?" she asked, fearfully.
"Try anything!" Anna almost shouted desperately. Cautiously Cassandra began to massage Anna's forearm, loosening and warming the muscles.
"Is it working?" she asked quietly as tears slid down Anna's cheeks.
"Yes," She said, taking deep breaths to try and relax. Slowly and carefully, Cassandra massaged all of Anna's arm until the pain subsided to an aching in her bones that made her so tired. As he eyes drifted shut she saw Cassandra move to return to her bed. "Stay," She managed to say before she fell into blackness.
The next morning the pain in Anna's arm had almost gone but she failed to notice this on waking to find herself tangled up in Princess Cassandra's arms. "Well, good morning, sweetie," she had said, stretching casually. "What a night! Was it as good for you as it was for me?" It had taken Anna a few long moments of flustered panic to realise that Cassandra was joking, and to remember what had actually happened.
"Oh no," Anna murmured, absently massaging her arm. "It was in my chest. Do you think I'll go straight to my heart or spread everywhere else first?" Anna turned to Cassandra with true fear in her eyes, and Cassandra looked helplessly back. "God," Anna said shakily, "Your brother had better hurry up. I don't want to die yet,"
Getting up out of the bed, Anna still felt shaky and slightly sick, and then a sudden guilty thought overtook her. "Oh god! Rosalina!" She cried, and threw open her bedroom door, sprinted the up the stairs and burst into Rosalina's bedroom, Cassandra hot on her heels. Rosalina sat up sleepily. "Well, this is a turn up for the books," She grinned. "My maidservant waking me up. I have to say, it's very novel,"
"Rosa, are you okay? I'm sorry about last night I didn't even think of you, it just hurt so much and I'm truly sorry, I am-,"
"Last night?" Rosalina cut in curiously. "What about last night?"
"You didn't…" Anna asked taking a step back. "I don't understand. Last night my arm- I woke up and the curse was spreading. I thought I was going to die," Rosalina still looked confused.
"No… my arm feels fine. Well, I mean, it hurts but no more than usual. Did you dream it?"
"No," Cassandra told her flatly. "I was there, I saw it. She was in agony,"
"Oh Anna," Rosalina looked at her with eyes full of pity, and enveloped her in a hug. "You poor thing,"
"I don't understand," Anna mumbled. "It always hurts the same together, it's never happened like this before,"
"Maybe," Cassandra cut in, addressing Anna. "Maybe you're here for more than just looking after her. Maybe you were sent to… extend Rosalina's time? Maybe you're taking more on more of the curse's weight as it advances so that Rosalina doesn't have to?" Anna felt a strange, guilty combination of anger and fear flow through her as Rosalina squeezed her tighter.
"It would make sense, I suppose," She choked out, trying her hardest not to resent Rosa. She never asked for it to be like this, she reminded herself. She wouldn't want you to be in pain.
Rosalina burst out crying and clutched Anna very tightly, and Cassandra walked over to the bed and placed a warm hand on Anna's shoulder.
"Well," Anna said sitting up, determined to be strong, "There's no sense in crying about it, we might as well get dressed, now that we're up,"
"Yes," Rosalina said with strange forcefulness. "Yes, I need to get dressed. Quickly. Get me my red and gold dress, Anna," Confused, but more than willing to take her mind off things, Anna brought out Cassandra's best dress and laid it on the bed carefully.
"You two can go get ready," Rosalina told them. "I'll dress by myself today,"
I didn't really know where to end this one, so I settled for a bit of a cliffie. Three guesses what Rosalina's going to make Caspian do in the next chapter...
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