As she made her way to the Pevensie's funeral, Patty wondered what had become of Anton. She'd called him several times since that devastating day the accident had happened, but each time, Jemima had told her he was unavailable.

Arriving at the chapel at last, Patty saw that she was late. She scooted into the back row, which contained only a couple of strangers.

Patty could hear the minister's words but could see nothing but the backs of people's heads. She felt very out of place and wondered whether it had been a mistake to come, yet she knew if she hadn't, she would have always regretted missing her chance to say goodbye to Lucy.

At last the service drew to a close, and the congregation began to file past the closed caskets. Patty felt a pang of disappointment that she would never see Lucy's face again. She had no time to dwell on that, however, as her eyes fell on something that gave her a real shock.

Anton was on the other side of the chapel, with a young woman who was dressed all in black. His hand was on her elbow, as if he was supporting her.

Who was she? Could she be Susan Pevensie? How did Anton know her?

Mesmerized, Patty tried her best to keep her eyes on the pair but quickly lost them. Once outside, she saw them from a distance again. Anton was helping the woman in black into the passenger's side of his car, then getting into the car himself. As she watched him drive away, Patty got a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach.

Was the woman, whoever she was, a new love interest of Anton's? From all appearances, Patty would say it was definitely a possibility.

I can't believe it! she told herself as tears began to smart in her eyes. First I lose Lucy, and now this!

By the time she left to return to the university, she was crying so hard she could barely see where she was going.

Scene Break

"Thank you so much for escorting me to the funeral," Susan said to Anton and they rode along. "I never could have gotten through it alone."

"I was happy to help." Anton parked in front of Susan's flat. "I cannot even imagine what it would be like to lose your whole family at once." They got out of the car and walked into the building.

"I still can't believe they're really gone forever," said Susan. "I feel as if I'm in a dream, that I will wake up at any time and find out it didn't happen at all, that they are still here with me." They reached her door. "Will you please come inside with me?"

"Of course I will," said Anton.

Inside the flat, Anton sat down on the sofa while Susan put the kettle on. When the tea was ready, she took Anton his cup and sat opposite him with her own. "I feel so much better with you here."

Anton felt awkward, unsure of how to respond. He thought of Patty, but she somehow seemed distant. She'd just lost her best friend, it was true, but Susan had lost her entire family.

"Have you ever felt like you were completely alone in the world, except for one other person?" asked Susan.

"Yes, I have." Anton remembered the days he'd spent in the loft above the Bergens' garage.

"That's how I feel right now." As she slowly sipped her tea, Susan's eyes had a faraway look. "It was during the Blitz. I remember saying goodbye to my parents at the train station. It was the first time I would ever be separated from them, and I was so afraid I'd never see them again! But Peter, Edmund, Lucy, and I had each other...we always had each other..." She began to sob. "But now they're gone..."

Anton yearned to comfort her but couldn't find the words. He'd lost patients before, but there had almost always been other family members to comfort the bereaved.

"If I could ask, without sounding too forward..." the clear blue eyes gazed right into his own, "will you stay here with me awhile?"

Anton took both her hands into his own. "I will stay with you for as long as you want me to."

Scene Break

The day before the spring term started, a young woman Patty had never seen before arrived at her flat. She had shoulder length brown hair, blue eyes, and a friendly smile.

"Hi! My name is Violet Fields, and I'm to be your new flat mate," she told Patty.

"Hi, I'm Patty Bergen." She shook Violet's hand.

"You're American," Violet observed.

"Yes, I'm from Jenkinsville, Arkansas," Patty told her. "I won a scholarship to this university."

"You don't say!" Violet's eyes widened. "You must be quite clever, then."

Patty shrugged. "I guess the scholarship board must have thought so."

"How jolly splendid! I'm going into secondary education. What are you studying?"

"Journalism."

"We aren't likely to have many classes in common, then."

"Neither did Lucy and I," said Patty.

She arched one eyebrow. "Lucy?"

"The girl I used to room with. She - she died in a train crash over the holiday break." Patty began to sob, leaving Violet to watch helplessly.