When Lucy, Edmund, and a surprisingly pleasant-looking Eustace came tumbling in over each other into the dining room, gushing about Narnia, the first thing Peter and Susan did was escort them to Peter's office, where they could all speak freely. The second thing they did was get the whole story.

That was five days ago.

Needless to say, the elder Pevensies were extremely surprised that the three younger ones had been to Narnia again, and they had no clue that they had left. They were pleased to know that Caspian had been doing a superb job at running Narnia—"But of course he has, it's Caspian! He was marvelous at rallying together a band of misfit natives before we showed up." was Susan's remark on that matter—and it was wonderful that they had all gotten to see Aslan once more. The most surprising bit however, was the changed demeanor of Eustace. Or, Sir Eustace, as he went around reminding the siblings.

That only resulted in Edmund refusing to answer to anything but his full title for the entire day, something the other Pevensies were not enthusiastic about. After all, Edmund the Just, King of Narnia, Duke of Lantern Waste, Count of the Western March, and Knight of the Most Noble Order of The Lion was a bit of a mouthful. Eustace soon stopped reminding everyone, much to the pleasure of the inhabitants of Rosewood.

The manor was a very merry place after the younger three returned, and the spirit of Narnia hung in the air. It was like the old kingdom had come to life again. Every night the children regaled each other with tales and memories from their beloved land. Eustace was informed upon the history of Narnia that he missed, while Peter and Susan learned all about what the other three had heard from the sailors on the state of the land.

Overall, the four Kings and Queens were pleased with the state of their home, and while it hurt to not be able to actually be present while all was going on in Narnia, it was okay. The kingdom was in good hands; that they were all sure of. Caspian would do right by Narnia. He knew, as they did, what it meant to fight for your kingdom. To become worthy of the Narnian throne with your own sweat and blood. Caspian knew what it meant to sit on the throne that Aslan had ordained his, because he had seen and felt what Aslan was capable of. He feared Aslan, and he would rule Narnia with hands that praised the Lion. And really, that was all that the Pevensies could wish for.

One thing that Edmund and Lucy had briefly touched upon but never really dove into was the fact that they too had fulfilled their purpose for their beloved land. From the brief expressions that Peter and Susan had been able to see, they could tell that their younger siblings were heartbroken. Why wouldn't they be? The older Pevensies knew the sting that came from being unable to return to the one place that you had called home. Emotions of grief, abandonment, and self-loathing had run through their minds at one time or another before they had come to terms with it. That was what Ed and Lu were experiencing, and it broke their hearts.

Their siblings would be hurting for a bit. They would be broken. But Peter and Susan wouldn't let them go through it alone, and they would not let their mistakes be repeated. Peter had lashed out when he had been told that he would not be able to return to Narnia. For weeks he had been terribly angry, picking fights with schoolboys that got on his nerves, and just in general he acted like a prat. Susan had simply shoved Narnia to the back of her psyche, and deluded herself into believing that it had all been a game. And, well, that certainly didn't turn out in a pleasant manner. Either way, Edmund and Lucy would have the support of their siblings when going through this troubling time.

The biggest shock however, had been Eustace. Gone was the petulant child that had shown up with a list of dietary requirements four feet long, and an attitude to match. In his place was a young man who had seen things far beyond his self-centered world, and had allowed them to affect him. He wasn't just Eustace, now. He was Eustace the Undragoned, and his soul had been touched by the Great Lion. He was pleasant, kind, intelligent, and overall just much more enjoyable to be around. Susan had particularly enjoyed the company of her young cousin, and he would often follow her around in her daily duties and assist her whenever she needed something done. Growing up, Eustace had not been allowed to read such things as fairy stories or novels, and his mind had been filled with the stuff of science and medical textbooks. As such, he and Susan had had been enlightening discussions on a variety of topics that ranged from medicine that had been used in the Golden Age, to the discrepancies between the Narnian timeline and Earth's.

Yes, Eustace was much happier now that he had been to Narnia. It was not even just that he had been to that lovely land, but that he was now treated as an equal amidst his cousins. He was able to experience the bond within the Pevensie Four for himself, and he loved it. Being an only child had been lonely—especially with parents such as Harold and Alberta—and he had often yearned for the companionship that a brother or sister could provide. And now he had something similar to that level of friendship. It was something that he thanked Aslan for every day.

To be honest, he was almost dreading returning to his parents. They certainly did not approve of the Pevensies—the only reason his mother even shipped him to Rosewood was because there was literally no one left for him to stay with and the conference did not allow children—and his newfound behavior would not be accepted. With his cousins so far away, and no real friends at the Experiment House to speak of, returning to London would be difficult. He worried that he would be able to stand with his feet firmly planted in the love and mercy of the Lion, and not falter in the face of the attacks that he would face from all sides. It was a very difficult thing for the almost-eleven year old boy to face.

He had two-and-a-half weeks left at Rosewood, and Eustace was determined to make the most of his time left.

"Peter?"

"Yes Eustace?" Peter replied in kind. His cousin had materialized at the front of his desk when he had been finishing up the last of his Latin homework for the day. Honestly, he spoke Narnian fluently, and that was a language that he had found was similar to the Aramaic, Phoenician, and Hebrew languages, with ties to the Etruscan language as well. Surely learning Latin was not to be at the top of his list. But no… If he was to be cultured, Latin it was. But wait, wasn't Eustace speaking to him?

"I was wondering, what was your everyday life like in Narnia. It was very…tumultuous on the Dawn Treader, and while you all informed me of the history of the land and its traditions, I had been wondering what it had just been like on a normal days." Eustace shrugged, plopping down in the chair in front of Peter's desk.

"On a day that we weren't fighting for our lives, you mean?" The older boy laughed when he received a nod in response. "To be honest, it was quite like it is here. Just, everything was nicer. Then again, I am more than a bit biased. We all had our own duties. Susan generally ran around making sure that the Cair ran smoothly when she wasn't forging alliances with ambassadors. She and Ed worked closely in that regard, as Lucy and I have never really enjoyed wallowing in the depths of politics like they do.

Lucy would hold court for hours every day, hearing the complaints of our people. That was always something that we had believed in; we wanted the Narnian people to have a voice, especially after so many years of being oppressed by Jadis. In the early years of our reign, it was generally Lucy and I who held court, with one of the Barons attending in case we needed a bit of support, which did happen a few times.

Ed always spent his days holed up in the library, browsing through the books of law. He wrote all of the treaties that we made, you see, and he took it upon himself to be the best protector of Narnia that he could be. Also whenever a dispute needed to be settled in court, he was the presiding judge. We did not have an expansive judicial system for the longest time in Narnia, and he often had to hear every single petty case, which took a load of time as you can well imagine. As for me? I often spent my time with the Barons, hearing their ideas to improve the nation, their complaints, and settling disputes amongst them. It was very important to keep peace within the Council. When I was not with the Barons I would visit the villages and towns, just to check upon our people. Not all with problems could make their way to the Cair, you see, and coming to the people was one way to hear their issues." Peter smiled fondly, as he remembered his days as the High King. They had reveled in the hard work of ruling Narnia. It was he and his sibling's life. They were married to the crown and country, and they threw themselves into the work of keeping the land safe.

"That's it?" Eustace asked. He had expected it to be a bit more glamorous. They were Kings and Queens, after all. They must have had grand adventures and parties, and a lot of fun. "That sounds like…work."

"That's because it was, and very hard work indeed. Now that's not to say that we did not enjoy our jobs, because we did. We truly loved our work, but it was certainly different than we had assumed. When we first were crowned, we had expected everything to flow easily. But rebuilding and maintaining a functional government was exceedingly difficult. We had to be on top of every little thing, all the time. We tried to space out our duties as well as was possible, but at times we were overwhelmed with it all, especially in the beginning. Sure, we had fun. We threw balls and set off to adventures. But it was never easy being a King, not even when we were relaxing. There was always something pressing on our minds."

Eustace was very surprised. Growing up, he had heard all about how his cousins were lazy and fanciful. And yes, his visit to Narnia had changed him and his perceptions of his cousins. But at the very core, he still had that belief in him that had been fostered by his parents since he was a child. What Peter had told him had shaken him, and the older boy knew it.

Eustace quickly left the room, muttering his excuses about a previous appointment with Susan, but Peter was aware that no such appointment existed. He let it slide, however. Peter knew the look of one who was struggling to accept all that which Aslan had to offer, for in his early days of believing, he had struggled with it as well. It was hard to accept that there was one who extended you all the grace, mercy, forgiveness, and love that one could ever need, especially when you had been self-sufficient for such a long time. It would be even harder for the boy, now that he had seen and felt the Lion physically, for it was much harder to have faith in something one could not see.

"May the peace of The Lion extend to him, and to us all." Peter said simply, before turning back to his Latin work. This was not Narnia, no matter how much he and his siblings yearned for it to be, and life must go on.

AN: I'M BACK PEOPLE! No seriously, the length that I let this story wait for an update in borderline ridiculous. My muse had gone into hibernation... Sorry. *ducks from the flying tomatoes*

Anyways, this chapter has been done for a few days now, but there was a reason why I chose today to update. It is the one year anniversary of Letting The Light Shine Through! One year ago today I published the very first chapter of this story, and I received a wonderful outpouring of support from the Narnia readers. Truly, you readers are what kept me going. When I was writing the beginning of Part Two, I would often go back and read all of the marvelous reviews that you have written for a bit of a confidence boost. This story was my first bit of serious writing ever, and it has been a marvelous ride thus far.

Now, we're only about halfway done with this story, and I have a definite arc planned. So there is much more to come!

Thank you all so, so, much for reading LtLST. You all are amazing, and it really makes me happy that you all seem to care about this story.

So thank you, and I hope that you enjoyed this chapter.

-Abi (Inky)