Hello? Is anyone still out there? I know that I don't deserve a response after leaving you hanging for so long but I was on vacation and then lost motivation so for those of you who PM'd me and insisted I get back on the wagon I do appreciate it and this one's for you. CHEERS!

Edmund found Peter the next morning in the tallest tower of Cair Paravel. He knew his brother was avoiding the rest of them when he was missed at breakfast. There were few places that Peter liked to hide and the place he picked usually depended on how much he didn't want to be found. Seeing his brother in the cramped tower overlooking the castle below him he knew that whatever Peter was hiding from them would be bad….very bad.

"So…were you planning on telling us your little secret or are you just waiting for an ambush?" Edmund said lightly pulling off the gloves he had been wearing earlier while riding around looking for his brother.

The darkness in Peters eyes didn't alter. "Leave it alone Ed."

"Ah. So no denial at this point eh? Well that's good I wouldn't want to have to beat it out of you." Edmund said coming to stand next to his brother.

Peter actually smirked at this. "You really think you could?"

Edmund smirked back. Both he and his brother had become excellent in combat since arriving in Narnia and although Edmund was clearly the better strategist his elder brother had always managed to best him in open combat.

Edmund looked again at his brother. "Well I never said that I would fight fair now did I? Actually I was planning on having a partner in this one. After putting him in irons yesterday I'm sure it wouldn't take much to convince Caspian to take a shot at you and I must say after a week training with him I'm not sure which of you I would put my money on you or him." Edmund replied seriously.

Peters eyes darkened again at the mention of Caspian. Peter breathed deeply and looked back out over the people bustling about below him.

"I won't be able to help him." Peter said softly but loud enough that Edmund could hear him and the sadness in his voice.

Edmunds expression turned from playful and teasing to shocked in a matter of seconds.

"Excuse me? Please tell me we're not still talking about Caspian."

Peter shook his head violently. "I just don't think I can do it."

Edmunds emotions getting the better of him he nearly shouted "Why ever not? Peter if this is because of what you saw last night…"

"It's not about last night damn it! I just can't do this! He asks too much!"



Edmund looked at his brother as if he'd been slapped. In a steady and soft voice he continued. "Too much? Saving people you love is too much to ask for? I can't believe I'm hearing YOU say this. We've worked on nothing but this agreement since he arrived and there is nothing at all untoward about it. He is giving us mining rights that will help us with dwarf relations in return for farmland and some of our stores. In the end we come out on top of this. We CAN help him!"

Peter turned violently. "It's not that simple Ed!"

Peter was now pacing back and forth between the columns within the tower itself. He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. "Look. I should have mentioned something about this earlier but I'm not coming back to Cair Paravel alone. Things didn't go as well with our negotiations with the Culmorenes. I….I had to make some promised that I'm not very happy about."

Edmund looked at his brother skeptically sensing trouble. "What kind of promises Peter?"

Peter took a deep breath. "I gave them the concessions we talked about to bring about peace but they also made me promise to….to stay out of their way."

Edmunds eyes darkened realizing instantly what he was saying. The Culmorenes had been a power seeking people since they had arrived in Narnia fighting war upon war with neighboring nations to gain land and subjects. Peter had to their King to put aside the threat of war that had begun to rise along their northern border with the Culmorenes. Narnia was the larger power but the battle would stress their resources and greatly diminish the prosperity and peace that they had enjoyed during the last few years. Edmund did not need a map to know that Telmar was also a near neighbor of the Culmorenes and knowing of their growing starvation he had no doubt that an attack on Telmar was the situation that Peter had promised to "stay out of".

Edmund closed his eyes tightly going to the railing and clenching his grip against the cool stone. "How could you?" He asked quietly. His anger and indignation quickly rising to his voice he turned and shouted. "You've essentially given those monsters leave to take Telmar! Those people are starving and they'll not have a single chance to fend them off! You know they take no pity on those they conquer! You've essentially sentenced an entire people to death!"

Peter looked desperate and scared to his younger brother. "I didn't know they were starving! I would never have….I don't know what I would have done! I knew what monsters they could be! I couldn't let them attack OUR people needlessly! What was I supposed to do?"

Edmund glared back at Peter furiously. "Being uninformed is no excuse! Especially now! You know what those men do during war. You know they show no mercy! Are you still going to sit back and let them attack a defenseless people? Is Narnia going to bow down to tyrants? Once they have Telmar what do you think they will do eh? Their forces will be nearly equal to ours once they enslave the Telmarines!"



Peter was working himself into an angered frenzy. "Don't you think I know this?? I tried every bargaining chip we had but they clearly didn't want to deal with us. They promised to remove their forces from our borders in exchange for us leaving them to their own devices."

Edmund now laughed without a trace of humor in the sound. "Well they certainly played you perfectly didn't they? I doubt they ever had any real intention of going after our northern territories. They probably put up a great show just to get these concessions so that they could march right over Telmar!"

Peter stopped moving when Ed made his final assessment. His head dropped and his voice quieted to a near whisper. "I know. I realized too late that it was all part of their strategy. There was no negotiating with the King. He was very set in his ways. That's why I invited his son here."

Edmunds eyes widened again in shock. "You invited Fredrik here? Whatever for?"

Peter looked down at his hands again pain and worry coursing through every one of his features. "I think that he…." Peter couldn't look Edmund in the eye and Edmund found this more troublesome than anything else he had experienced this morning. "I think that there is something he wants more than land…more than war." Peter lifted his eyes slowly to meet his brothers.

Realization dawned and Edmund took a step back so that the wall of the castle could help support him. "Susan?" Edmund asked scared and breathless.

Peter closed his eyes and nodded.

Edmund rung his hands through his hair his mind a jumble of strategies and plans desperately looking for a way out of this nightmare. They couldn't attack the Culmorenes themselves without time. Their forces were spread out over huge areas and it would take months to assemble them to strike at a single point. The Culmorene forces were already gathered and would probably take out Telmar and enslave their people before a first push could be made. They would also have little that they could offer to Caspian to help the Telmarines if Culmar acted quickly. He had seen Fredrik in the castle leering after his sister on more than one occasion and Edmund knew that Fredrik saw her as the ultimate prize in the land. He would go about trying to possess Susan as his father had gone about trying to possess the lands he sought. But now the tactical play had been added to the courtship. All Fredrik could know at the moment was that Peter would try and prevent war with the Telmarines at all cost including trying to get Susan to agree to marry that man. However if he found out that Susan had fallen for Caspian Edmund knew there would be no hope for Telmar or Susan. If he suspected an attachment between the two Fredrik would probably promise not to attack the Telmarines if she agreed to marry him knowing that a refusal would bring a bloody attack that the Telmarines couldn't hope to win. He would probably also go against his word as soon as they were married. And if Susan refused him….Edmund knew enough of Fredrik to know he would not stand for a rival. Especially one he felt he could easily crush.

Edmund slid down to the bottom of the wall sitting now on the floor. He looked up at his brother. "She's in love with him." Edmund said as a statement of fact. One that he was sure of himself even if his sister and her Prince had not yet come to the same realization.



Peter just closed his eyes feeling the pain of impending doom settle over him.

Peter opened his eyes with sadness flowing through him. "I….I don't know what to do."

Edmund stood slowly. "They arrive tonight?"

Peter simply nodded.

Edmund nodded back. "We need to change the pieces. They've been controlling the board. We need to make our own moves now. I don't see how this won't end in bloodshed but the longer Fredrik is here the better chance we all have at surviving this."

Peter nodded. "Agreed. Do you have a plan?"

Edmund looked down sadness and regret filling his young features. "I don't have one that will let us win. But we are going to need to control the information around here. I think our best bet is for you to go explicitly against our sister's wishes."

Peter looked back. "You mean Susan of course."

Edmund lifted his eyebrow at his brother with a small smile on his face. "Actually I was talking about Lucy. She told you that you couldn't wake up and throw Caspian out of the Castle and now that I think about it…That's EXACTLY what you're going to have to do."

Sorry again for the VERY long wait. If I fall off the wagon again I hope that you all will remind me to get back on. Peer pressure is a very dangerous but motivating factor.

Speaking of peer pressure….I think you should all press that little review button now…come on everyone is doing it! Just kidding…I HATE peer pressure of that sort… I was always the one to do just the opposite. So for those of you who are like me don't you DARE press that button! He he.

The above plea was for all of you who think I'm completely deranged and most likely stalking Ben Barnes. Let me assure you I have yet to fall of the deep end or crossed the lines into criminal activity due to my appreciation of his fine features. I really just think we should clone him and hand the clones out instead of candy on Halloween.

Seriously I'm not this weird but I find trying to make people laugh usually gets more reviews ;) You gotta stick with what works! REVIEW!!