Caspian

Rain pelted the windows of the castle like they were trying to invade us, glass being replaced with streaming water, making it impossible to see the visible world outside. The only noise I could hear was the pounding of the water on the windows and the ceilings, which added to the ache of my head I've already had for nearly two days now. That, and…

Evangeline.

"King Caspian! King Caspian!" she called very loudly to me, running from the opposite end of the hall. I turned, stopping for her.

"What's going on, Evangeline?" I asked patiently. She halted to a stop, her breaths ragged as she spoke.

"Have you seen Lady Eleanor anywhere? I'm afraid I've forgotten to tell her about the ball tonight…"

"You haven't seen her all day?"

"Not yet, but I'm just worried because all the guests will be arriving soon and she will be caught in the midst of oblivion," she explained, between deep breaths.

"I'm sure you'll find her, Evangeline. I keep my eyes peeled," I consoled, and then we parted. Things like this happened more often than not with Eleanor, so it didn't even worry me that much anymore. Everyone seemed to forget where she spent her time the most.

"There you are," I drawled, entering the darkened library because of the storm outside. Eleanor was perched on the ladder, a stack of books in her hand, and Edmund was reading in a chair closely nearby.

I released a small laugh as I approached the two. Edmund looked up from the story he was reading and shot me a confused look.

"Guilty as charged," I said, looking at him. "You know about the ball. She doesn't."

He scrunched his nose and rolled his head back, Eleanor looking between the two of us.

"What ball?"

"Evangeline's been looking for you. There's a ball tonight and she forgot to mention it," I explained, having to tilt my head back to meet her eyes.

Her face turned to stone. "I have to go to a ball…"

"I'm afraid so," Edmund murmured dismally, standing up. Eleanor remained still for a long time, looking out into open space from the ladder, evidently not particularly thrilled about going either.

"C'mon, Eleanor," Edmund called wearily. "At least you're not alone in this. They're not my favorite either."

His voice seemed to knock her out of her thoughts, shoving the books away thoughtlessly and descending from the ladder.

I clapped a hand on Edmund's back as we heading towards the door. "Oh c'mon on, all the ladies love you…"

"Oh, shut it," he interjected quickly. Eleanor smiled slightly before bidding us farewell.

"I better go," she said. "If Evangeline's looking for me she's probably having a fit. Thanks for letting me know," she looked between myself and the floor, and then turned her back to us as she left the library. "I'll see you later!"

We watched her go, and once she was gone, I turned to Edmund. "Friendly with Eleanor now, are we?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" he asked earnestly. It seemed he didn't get what I actually meant.

"Never mind," I brushed it off, and he didn't say anything, so we walked in silence to the exit of the library. As we entered the hallway outside, both heading towards our bed chambers, I asked carefully, "So what's she like?"

"She's like any other girl, really," he simply replied. "But she likes reading, like, a lot."

"That's a bad thing?" I wondered.

"No, not at all," he said hastily. "Though Lucy thinks it is. She thinks she spends too much time in books but not enough time outside. I don't mind, though."

"Huh."

"Yep," he said a bit awkwardly, and then looked at me quizzically. "Why do you ask?"

"Just curious," I replied. Edmund looked down and shook his head. My skepticism of Eleanor had been altering with each and every day. I suppose because I wasn't from their world, I had a natural compulsion to not trust people who came from it as easily as everyone else seemed to.

It still seemed strange, however, at how fine she fit in here, and maybe with Edmund and Lucy seeming to get along with her so fast, that should show that something was off.

"You're wondering if we made the right decision, aren't you?"

I shot him an empathetic look as we turned a corner. "Sorry, Ed, but I do have to know. Has she said anything out of the ordinary?"

"No," he said quickly, making me raise my eyebrows.

"She's just any other girl from Earth, Caspian…"

"That's not true," I snapped, maybe a bit too harshly. "As far as we know, she's the only human who has been sent here since you and your siblings."

He looked away from my gaze, seemingly uncomfortable with what I was saying.

"I know you like her, and you're friends at all…" I continued, seeing his expression get more and more solemn. "I'm just saying, you have to remember there's a reason why she's here. If we are going to find out, I've got to understand what her motives are."

"Motives?" he repeated with doubt, face glazing over in disbelief. "Whatever, Caspian. I'll see you later."

And with that, he turned a different corner to get to his own chambers. Instinctively, I looked at the floor, fearing for him. If he got too close to her… I just couldn't picture any scenario where he didn't get hurt. Where is Aslan in all of this, anyway? With summer beginning, and the girl being here for over a month now, nothing had changed. She was still here, for reasons that were still disclosed, and He was not making clear of what we were supposed to do to find out.

My thoughts rushed out of me at a moment of impact, colliding with a figure that I couldn't take notice of as I had just turned the last corner towards my chambers. A flustered Susan looked up at me.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Susan. I didn't see you there…"

"It's fine," she brushed it off, politely and taking a step back. I couldn't help but stare at her for a moment. I still thought of her as beautiful, but I didn't hold the kind of feelings I had for her all those years ago that made me want to act upon those thoughts. It's like I grew out of them after all these years, and I didn't know if that was for better or worse.

"Well, I better go," she said, stepping out of my path.

"Yeah, sure. I'll see you at the ball," I managed, looking at the tiled floor beneath me.

She nodded, and when I looked up to return one last smile, she was already gone.

Author's Note: Thank you to aviyah for adding my story to their alerts! I hope you all liked this chapter! Review?