Disclaimer: I don't own The Chronicles of Narnia, but it's definitely on my Christmas wish list!!! :P

Hey everyone!!! How are you guys doing? I've been so busy lately... it's unreal! That's why I'm a bit late on updating this... sorry! This story is going by so quickly! I can't believe I'm already on chapter 10 and all of you have been following it! Thank you guys so much! It makes my day when I see how many of you have checked out my story.

kutlessgurl90- Thanks so much for your review! I love reading your input! It makes me smile! ---- :)

Okay well, here is chapter 10!!!

Chapter 10: Explanations

"Lu, if you don't want to talk about it, that's quite all right. But I was just wondering, how were you put under that curse?" I asked. Lucy looked at me; the expression on her face appearing to be ashamed. She sighed.

"It was the apple," she said in a low voice. "I thought it tasted exceptionally good, too good. After I finished my half, I knew something was rather out of the ordinary, but I didn't say anything because I figured it was just me. Come to find out, I had consumed a bad seed, which created all my problems. I was fine for the first few hours, but after it fully digested I began to change. During the night I was pulled away by that dark-haired Calormene. I didn't object, either. It was so strange, almost as if he had control over me. Anyways, he trained me to hate you all, and then when I saw you at the river…" She broke off, a tear running down her pale cheek. She took in a deep breath, continuing.

"I couldn't stop myself. I was supposed to kill you, Peter, and I thought I did. And I was happy about it. I was happy! I'm so disgusted with myself!" She trailed off, shaking her head.

"Lucy, don't treat yourself so harshly over this. It's in the past, and I'm alive. There's no use in fretting about it now," I declared. She nodded, wiping her tears on her sleeve.

"There is something you need to know, though. All of you need to know," Lucy stated. She stared at each of us with uncertainty in her eyes.

"While I was with the Calormene- his name was Arahdah, by the way- I heard many things that weren't so appealing now that I'm in my right mind. Arahdah was the leader of the group, the Calormenes and the Telmarines, I might add. Anyways, the two groups came together and were planning to take over Narnia. The first step in the plan was to lure you three to their headquarters; they thought they could defeat you. After they brought you all to the building, their goal was, inevitably, to kill you. And thanks to me they were way too close. I made it rather easy for them once they found me. You see, before they knew I would cooperate, they were just going to take us all by surprise the night they 'kidnapped' me. But instead, they thought it would be amusing to take me and see you all suffer for it.

"At any rate, Arahdah turned on me and then tried to murder me, and Peter came to the rescue. Fortunately you held him off, Peter, but then he smashed me into that wall. Then after Edmund gave me the cordial, I was normal again, thank Aslan. But the point is… there are more of them. The others will find out soon enough that you killed their companions, and they'll want revenge. We need to get away from here as soon as possible, before the enemy returns," Lucy explained.

A simple 'wow' was all Susan could muster out. I could hardly believe it myself. Calormen and Telmar wanted to take over Narnia? I just couldn't understand. We had never had any problems with these two countries before. We were going to have quite a battle ahead of us, especially if we were to run into those others. Maybe that's what Aslan was trying to warn me, I thought briefly. Then a startling pain inched its way up my injury. I gasped and clenched my teeth, also tightly closing my eyes.

"Peter! Are you okay?" Susan questioned with a twinge of uneasiness in her tone.

"Yes," I breathed out. I cautiously ran my hand up and down my side. This was going to be very difficult, I realized. I hadn't even moved and it was hurting me this much already; I didn't want to even think about how it would feel trying to sit.

"Oh, Peter, I almost forgot! Have you ever wondered why the cordial won't heal your ribs?" Lucy asked. Come to think of it, yes, I did find that strikingly odd.

"Yes, Lucy," I answered.

"Well, I heard the men talking and during the first ambush when you got shot twice, it was with poison arrows. They were dipped in the juice of some sort of flower that grows on the outskirts of the Calormene desert. Lakiyla, I believe the plant was called. Anyways, the poison is meant to counteract with the fire flower juice in the cordial. It was only strong enough to affect your bones, though. That's why the cuts on your skin still heal. I can't imagine how they could have found that sort of plant, though, seeing as though I've never heard of it," Lucy explained. Not exactly what I had been thinking, but it did make sense.

Wonderful, I was shot by poison arrows, I thought to myself. Just my luck, huh? Oh well, thank Aslan my siblings were unharmed and I could, though it was painful, still manage.

"We'll need to move soon, Peter. The horses are where we left them; a couple minutes away," Susan declared. I nodded, knowing it was unavoidable. Edmund shot a worried glance in my direction.

"Peter, are you going to be able to get up? You did get stabbed earlier, you know," he said. Leave it to Edmund to worry about me pushing my limits, which I would do anyways.

"Do I really have a choice, Ed?" I wondered. He sighed.

"No, I guess not," he answered. I could tell this was getting to him. He knew this was going to hurt me, and I didn't think any of them wanted to see that.

"Well, are you ready?" Susan asked. I looked into her eyes. They were cast with a tone of doubt, making an obvious distinction between her blue orbs and her feelings.

"As I'll ever be," I answered. I guess that was the truth. Edmund nodded as he sat down next to me. He leaned down and extended his arm around my back, right underneath my shoulder blades. With his other hand, he put my arm over his shoulders. And gently he raised me up. I hissed as a mind-blowing pain forced itself up my side. My breathing was harsh and quick-paced as I tried to focus on something other than the fire that blazed up my injury. I squeezed Ed's arm and fully leaned into him. The flame in my side was getting to the point of where it was feeling white-hot. I drew in a painful breath, and then Edmund stopped.

"You're up, Pete," he stated. Really? That was quick. Too bad the pain didn't end that speedily.

"You can open your eyes," Lucy put in. I hadn't even realized they were closed. I opened them and took in a breath. Suddenly the world was spinning around me. I closed my eyes again and drew in a shaky breath, putting my hand to my head.

"What's wrong, Pete?" Ed wondered.

"Dizzy," I declared. I could feel my heart beating rapidly in my chest as I breathed harder. Ed rubbed my back.

"I'm not surprised. You did lose a little blood, you know," he stated. I sat silently and waited for it to pass. This didn't occur for another minute or so. When I felt halfway decent, I opened my eyes and lowered my hand.

"You any better?" Susan questioned.

"Yes," I breathed. I must not have looked any better, though, for Edmund said,

"Why don't you rest for a few minutes before we do anything else? I think that really took a lot out of you."

I didn't object, I just nodded. I was still trying to catch my breath, anyways. Every intake of air, no matter how light it was, felt like a hundred arrows piercing my side. I had never felt this weak before, but I wasn't going to let it prevent me from a safe return. I would manage… somehow. I closed my eyes and leaned farther into Ed. I felt Lucy's small hand intertwine with mine. Susan put a hand on my shoulder. And for the first time all day, I felt relaxed, besides the obvious pain in my side. It didn't last as long as I'd wished, though; five minutes at the most. Then Susan said,

"Well, are you ready?" I looked at her.

"Yes, I'm sorry that took so long," I apologized.

"Don't fret on it, Peter. You're surely exhausted. You haven't had much sleep lately and you're injured. We understand," Susan declared. I nodded and scooted up, Edmund still bracing me.

"All right, I'm going to slowly stand, okay? Let me know if it's too much," he explained.

"I will," I assured. Susan pulled my arm over her shoulders, giving me a tender smile. I returned the favor. And then they stood up. I pulled my legs up and my torso followed. I lowered my head as I allowed a wince to cross my features. I held on tightly to my siblings; as much as I hated to admit it, I couldn't stand without them for the time being. I absolutely resented it when they saw me in the state I was in. I tried to disguise my discomfort, but it was nearly impossible to achieve. Then the lightheadedness settled in.

For not losing too much blood, this was utterly ridiculous! I let my air in and out slowly, trying to focus on something other than the numbing sensation taking place inside my head.

"What's going on, Pete?" Ed wondered.

"Lightheaded," I simply stated. Lucy looked concerned.

"Do you need to lie back down?" she asked.

"No, it'll eventually pass," I promised. Well, I hoped, at least. I took in a large sum of air trying to calm myself, but all I received was a burn in my side. I let go of Susan so I could rub my injury. For a moment I imagined myself back in the building, holding my side with blood flowing freely through my fingers. I could picture the sick man, Arahdah, as he laughed in my face, thinking he had given the blow that would end my seventeen-year-old life. But he was wrong, and he was dead, thanks to Edmund. No doubt these images would haunt me forever, but I couldn't let them phase me now. There was work to do. We needed to get back to the safety of Cair Paravel, where willing soldiers would bravely go to battle to save our beloved Narnia from our new enemies. My siblings and I needed to get back to our official work as well; we had been gone for a few precious days.

Only a few days, I thought. Goodness, it seemed like it had been months since we all had been treated to the comforts of our wonderful castle. I let the thoughts of home slip away as I put my arm back over Susan. I then realized that my lightheadedness had finally subsided, thank Aslan.

"Well, Peter, I'd have to say we have about half a day longer to reach Cair Paravel, am I right?" Edmund wondered. I did the calculations quickly in my head and nodded.

"Yes, but we'll only gain a few hours time tonight because the sun is already beginning to set," I pointed out, looking at our surroundings.

"Then we best start to get a move on," Susan declared.

A/N: I hope all of you liked this chapter and I hope it answered some questions you might have had. One of my personal favorite chapters next, so be on the lookout! Please Review!!! :D