Chapter Seven: Susan's Diplomacy

"You never told us Archenland was this beautiful, Bri," Lucy commented. She planted her hands on her hips, turning towards Susan's lady-in-waiting with an accusing stare, footsteps sounding loud across the bustling courtyard as her boots clacked over the cobblestone lined path. Her footsteps echoed off the castle walls around the. Though it couldn't take over the smile that seemed to be permanently on her face. "I love Narnia, but Anvard is great. Everyone here is so nice."

"They're nice because they're not sure if they want to join our alliance," Susan replied diplomatically. "They can't get past what happened when we left Narnia. And I can't say I don't disagree with it, we left them in the lurch, and they had to move on without us." She lifted her chin, noticing Brielle and Lucy staring at her as they continued to stroll along Anvard's courtyard. "I'm just saying."

"No, you're just breaking the mood," Brielle remarked. She reached out, looping her arm through Susan's and gently bumped the queen's hip with her own. "The boys will tell us what happened when they come back. And you know how persuasive they can be. Caspian, especially needs to learn it as King."

"Yes, I understand that," Susan agreed. The tiniest of smiles came to her face, making Brielle and Lucy exchange tiny glances. "I'm just trying to prepare myself for the worst. We have to think of what would happen if King Nain and Queen Aria don't take the alliance we're hoping to forge. If there's another battle, another war, our numbers will be lessened. We won't have the means to bring anyone to our side and the rest of Narnia country knows that."

Lucy tipped her head, gazing at her older sister. "You don't know that," She reminded her. "Things could've gone well. Archenland may have been excited to want to form the alliance with Narnia once more." She shook her head. "You need to stop worrying over every little thing, Su."

"I'm not worrying, I'm being…" Susan trailed off, working to find the right word.

"A stick in the mud?" Lucy supplied.

"A pain in the arse?" Brielle added.

Susan shot them both a sharp look as they broke down into giggles. "Diplomatic," Susan remarked. "I'm being diplomatic. We all need to be aware that things may not go the way they're supposed to, and we must be prepared for it. Narnia was on its own for a long time and we may still be on our own. I just want all of us to be aware that the arrangement may last longer than we'd hope."

"We do understand, Su," Lucy said. She reached out and patted Susan's arm gently. Much more familiar than the sisterly whack that she would've given before. "And we're just as worried as you are. But you also must look at the other side, that there's a really good chance that our alliance will work. Archenland has been friends with Narnia since the very beginning, you've read the history books."

"Yes…" Susan agreed.

Then trailed off once more. She couldn't quite get Lucy to understand, could she? Despite them all having lived long lives before, they'd also reverted back to being children and had been children for a year before being pulled back to Narnia once more. Lucy was the most disappointed to be back in their real world, and had talked about Narnia often, but had also been the one to adjust a bit faster than the others.

As if their time in Narnia had been some sort of a dream.

It wasn't a dream to the others. It was too hard for them to get past the ones they'd lost, even the more innocent fox that had tried to help them escape the secret police. Then they were in Narnia once more, working to stop Miraz from taking over and lost more friends along the way. Hundreds of years had passed in Narnia, the Beavers, Mt. Tumnus, the army that had helped them in the fight against Jadis…

Their memories would all be for nothing if they were unable to restore Narnia to the peace it had been before. Maybe this is why Aslan let us stay, Susan thought, twisting her hands in front of her, brushing against the skirts of her long dress that ruffled with each step she took. Maybe he caught wind of the alliance that needed to be formed. Maybe he knows of something that's to come that he hadn't been aware of before.

"And there's no sense in worrying over something we shouldn't worry about yet," Lucy continued, as if Susan hadn't spoken. She turned, holding out her arms as she spun in a quick circle, hair flying as she went. "We're in a new land we've never been before and there's so much to explore. I want to meet the people and see the sights, go into town and look at all the merchant stalls."

Brielle laughed, tucking her hair behind her ears. "Why don't you start by going to the stables?" She suggested. She pointed with her finger toward the gates that were at the far end of the courtyard, hardly blinking when they clicked and slowly started to open. "I'm sure there are some new friends you can make there."

Lucy stopped spinning once more and planted her hands on her hips. This time she looked indignantly at Brielle with as much attitude as she could. "I may be small again, but I'm not a child." She lifted her chin. "I'm a queen and should be treated as such."

Brielle lifted her gaze towards the sky. "I didn't mean to mistreat you, your highness," she reassured, dipping low into a curtsey. Lucy giggled and stepped forward, placing a hand on Brielle's head in a regal gesture. Brielle grinned as she stood. "I just wanted you to know that the dog kennels were nearby." She looked to both Susan and Lucy as she added, "King Lune was always fond of hunting."

Lucy's eyes widened, a gasp escaping her lips. Even Susan couldn't keep the excitement from reaching her chest, making her heart flutter. How long had it been since either of them had seen a dog? They'd been in Narnia, facing off against Miraz for days, then stayed in Narnia for restoration efforts for…a few months by that point? Memories of their past life, of her life at school was starting to fade even quicker than ever before.

The first time they were in Narnia, she thought of her mother and father constantly, wondering how they were doing as they were on the countryside and then thrown into a world they worked to figure out how to get home from (before claiming their destiny). And as they grew older and older, she thought of them, wondered if they worried over their missing children before their travel back through the wardrobe proved that time hadn't passed. Their mother was okay, their father was okay, and they were still living with Professor Kirk.

Life moved on, they kept in touch with their parents through letters, went away to school, and was brought back to Narnia. And she still continued to think about her mother and father…but not as much as she used to. Sometimes, she found herself unable to remember what they or their past life looked like. Struggled to remember what Professor Kirk's house looked like. Struggled to remember what her old house in Finchley looked like. Struggled to remember the height measurements their parents dutifully etched into specific doorframes for each child as they grew taller and taller, remembering how Edmund would always declare he was catching up to Peter in height, only for Peter to haughtily tell him he was dreaming, remembered how Lucy would squeal with delight every time the ruler brushed against her head higher and higher as the years passed.

Seeing a puppy again excited her more than she thought it would. Reminded her of how human she was and that she wasn't quite Queen Susan all the time. Lucy took one look at the excitement on Susan's face and took off running, wanting to get to the dogs first. Susan quickly moved to follow her, trying to keep her pace to quick, but not too eager steps.

A queen was always supposed to be in control of her emotions. She'd watched Queen Aria all night at the party, she was older than Susan and Lucy, had been in Queen of Archenland for years, holding that knowledge and grace in the lines of her face as well as the way she commanded the room. She reigned Archenland with her husband, a true partnership that those in their presence were grateful to follow. She never saw Aria leap up in excitement when a particularly bouncy song would play through the night, like Lucy had done, dragging Susan and Brielle to the dancefloor with all the other Archenaldn women who seemed to enjoy the song as well.

Susan was happy, in that moment. She had fun swirling around with the others and not having to think about being a queen, in Archenland she was a guest and was able to act like a guest. And yet, she couldn't help but notice how Aria managed to command the whole room, even when she simply stood to allow her husband to start off a speech or another dance. As much as she enjoyed the night, Susan did wonder if she was embarrassing herself and Narnia for being less than regal.

Susan pushed the thought out of her mind, quickly changing the subject to Brielle, who strolled along beside them, suddenly not smiling. "I keep forgetting you used to live here," she remarked.

Brielle made a funny face. "I believe you've started the conversation of me living here in Archenland the same way each time, Su," She teased. Se clasped her hands in front of her. "Yes, I used to live here. I lived here as long as I could, to learn everything I could to become a lady-in-waiting for you and Lucy. Or whomever decided to have me."

Reaching up a hand, Susan brushed her hair behind her ear. "Were you truly to become mine and Lucy's maidservant? Or were you under study for Queen Aria."

Brielle hesitated for only a fraction of a second. "For Queen Aria," She finally replied. "Truth be told, yes, she was who I was originally going to be Aria's maidservant."

Susan blinked in surprise. Hadn't expected it as an answer, as honest as Brielle could be. There weren't many things that Brielle spoke about when it came to Archenland. But Susan hadn't expected something as big as that. Part of her understood it, intuitively, it made sense. A queen always needed maidservants, and those that were the most successful had a full team of them to fulfill off the duties of a maidservant.

Then what would she had wanted Bri for? Susan questioned, eyebrows coming together as they continued to stroll. If her team was already so big? The decision as made from the beginning that she would learn how to become a maidservant and then be brought back to Narnia.

"It was to strengthen the alliance," Brielle said, as if reading Susan's mind. "Between Narnia and Archenland. You were the Kings and Queens prophesized to take on Jadis, and return Narnia and the surrounding lands from winter. You had done that, and it was the alliance that would've made sure I was adequately prepared to become your maidservant through what I could be taught while at Anvard." Brielle took in a deep breath. "But something along the way made it so that I was brought back to you. I don't know the particulars, there were some political things I was unable to be privy to." Brielle frowned, eyebrows pinching together. She lowered her voice. "Between you and me, I don't think Queen Aria liked me very much."

"Why ever not?" Susan asked.

"The point of a lady-in-waiting is to be a confidant to the royal," Brielle explained. "Yes, there is importance in correspondence, wardrobe care, and keeping track of the servants. But first and foremost I am to be a friend to whomever I'm serving." She looked Susan in the eye. "However, Queen Aria kept me at a distance, as if there's something she knows about me that I don't. No matter how much I tried, she made my job difficult and I was unable to progress as I should have."

Then a brilliant smile came to Brielle's face. She grasped onto Susan's arm, excitedly leaning into her. "It wasn't all bad, I was then sent back to Narnia and able to become the lady-in-waiting to my best friend. I wouldn't have been happy here." They passed through the doors that led from the courtyard to the grassy area just outside the castle. Not far int the distance, they could see Lucy running towards the stables. "Though I never remembered so much security," she added with a wave of her hand.

The doors banged shut behind them, making Susan jump. She glanced over her shoulders to find knights following at an even pace behind them, watching the two intently. Every few seconds, their eyes would dart toward the doors of the castle that'd closed, and back to the two young woman.

"It is a practiced tradition," Susan explained. "Assassination attempts aren't unheard of when kings and queens visit differing countries and kingdoms."

"Mmm, maybe I should've thought of becoming a baker."

Susan nudged Brielle in the side and the two laughed quietly. "Can you imagine that? You a baker?"

Brielle pretended to think for a moment then shook her head. "I love to eat sweets and pastries, but I couldn't work like that. All that flour all over my dresses? No thank you."

"You fought alongside us to fight Miraz, worked through the grime and dirt to save Narnia, but you wouldn't want to get flour over everything?"

"I did that for you and for Narnia. I wouldn't do it for much else."

Susan smiled gratefully, feeling a surge of appreciation for her best friend. Even in their former life, Susan didn't have many people who were as close to her. It was always her and her family, and it was that, she supposed, that made her want to grow up a little bit more, stuck her in that motherly role longer than she'd like to have had it. She and Peter had both moved into the role of parentage as the war slowly started to break out, even before then. Their father had been part of the army as long as they could remember, gone for months at a time, their mother working hard to bring money back to the family.

She and Peter were pseudo parents as long as she could remember. And she often looked to the other girls her age, without a care in the world, hanging out after school, stopping by the local shops to buy new pieces of jewelry they paraded the next day, talking about the newest shows and films that premiered that neither Susan nor Peter could enjoy due to having to take care of their younger siblings. It became an even more engrossed part of her life when their father went to war, where she had to step up as the mother, as the mediator and stop any fights that may break out so that their mother wouldn't have to.

Then, becoming the Kings and Queens of Narnia, it was as if they were suddenly parents to large swaths of people. Having to make decisions that affected everyone beneath them. Brielle had been there since their first meeting, her wild, outgoing side, always up for a laugh and a teasing comment kept her laughing for hours on end, able to be a person rather than a queen at all times.

They entered the stables, finding Lucy running back and forth from one horse to another, speaking quietly to them and brushing their manes. The servants stood aside with smiles, watching over the young queen as she did so. Susan smiled, watching the horses gently paw at the ground and move into the touch of the young queen, as if excited to do so.

Excited by her endless spirit.

Susan stepped forward and dragged her fingers down the back of the horse closest to her. It neighed quietly, nudging her side with a gentle push of its head. Susan resisted the urge to throw her arms around the horse's neck and huge it tightly, suddenly remembering Phillip and the other magical beasts that'd been by their side through their life in Narnia. Felt a pang of sadness, wondering just how long they waited for the Kings and Queens to return.

Brielle looked down, almost glaring at a rabbit that bounced through the stables, it hopping over her feet as it went. She lifted her head, brushing her hair back from her face, almost shrinking from the horses that took interest in her. "What do you think'll happen if the alliance doesn't come to pass?" Brielle asked.

"It'd be a betrayal," Susan remarked. Brielle glanced at her. "Narnia and Archenland have been there for each other since the conception, the books of Old say so. If they turn their backs on us, it'd be the highest level of betrayal against Narnia. You know what's the sad thing about it? The fact that it never comes from an enemy," Susan remarked, rubbing her arms against the sudden chill in the air despite the sun burning brightly above. She turned, the skirts of her dresses catching the dusty floor, swirling the particles up in a cloud around her. "I can't help but worry about the treaty we're forging with Archenland.

"They were tricked by the Claormens to feel Narnia as a threat and Narnia is still reeling from that betrayal. This treaty needs to work, they need to see that Narnia isn't to blame for all that has happened."

Brielle finally returned Susan's gaze, determination filling her eyes. "If you want it to be a success, it shall be."

"It has to be," Susan declared.

She didn't know what they'd do if it didn't come to pass. Didn't want to think about it. They had to stay positive, had to believe things were going to work out. Absentmindedly, Susan continued to run her hand along the horse then turned to find a servant come up next to her, a young boy with a face streaked with dirt, handing her a carrot.

"Thank you," She said gratefully. He smiled and bowed his head, stepping back, moving his hands to clasp behind his back once more. The older woman servant who stood beside him smiled down at him and he beamed back, lifting his chin higher. "Would you like to feed him with me?" She held out her hand.

The young boy stepped forward, placing his smaller hand in hers. She wrapped his hand around the carrot and together, the two fed the horse, smiling to themselves as it crunched loudly into the vegetable. The young boys squealed as the horse's lips tickled his fingertips. He yanked his hand away, wiping the saliva off on his grubby trousers.

"Did it get you?" Susan asked him.

"It tickled," the young boy replied.

"Yes, I believe it would." Susan smiled even wider, even warmer when the older woman took his shoulder and pulled him back to her side. "Thank you for helping me."

"So, which is the best one to ride?"

Susan whirled around, watched as Caspian strolled through the doors of the stables, coming to stand directly by Susan as he did so. He reached up and ran his fingers over the horse's flank. Though their hands didn't touch, she felt the warmth from him as if he'd burned her. "I don't know," she replied, her voice suddenly soft. "I think they're all ready to go if this one's any indication." She gestured toward the horse gently pawing at the ground.

"Then I think I'll choose this one," Caspian agreed. He chuckled, seeing the bits of carrot on the dusty floor. "Looks like he just got a good lunch."

"Just a carrot. I don't think that qualifies for a good lunch." She laughed to herself. "Edmund certainly wouldn't think so."

"I don't think Edmund wants to eat anything again after the buffet we had last night," Caspian agreed, laughing as well. "Very gracious hosts we have here. Very generous to let us use all their resources as well."

"I take it the meeting went well?"

"Can't say for sure, but it appears so." Caspian suddenly stood up straight, clearing his throat. He gave a regal gesture with his ar. "Would you care to come on a ride with me? It's never very much fun to go on a ride on your own?"

Susan opened her mouth to respond then closed it once more, hearing a soft giggle behind her. She didn't have to look to know Lucy was finding entertainment in the situation. Suddenly, Susan realized how quiet the stables were, how closely the servants were watching them despite facing straight ahead. Wondered what it would mean if it were to get back to King Nain and Queen Aria.

If what were to get back? Susan scolded herself. Still, she shook her head and said, "I have some things I need to take care of here. But thank you for the offer." She stepped back, allowing the servant to hand Caspian the reigns to lead the horse from the stable.

Caspian nodded, briefly glancing toward his feet. Then he lifted them once more and smiled toward Susan, one side of his mouth turning up. "Then I shall return soon. But…keep an ear out for your horn, in case I need to call you again."

A flush came to Susan's cheeks as she lowered her head, quickly catching on to one of the last things that Susan had said to him, before she'd thought she was no longer to stay in Narnia. She kept her gaze toward her feet as Caspian mounted the horse and thundered out of the stable.

Silence stretched between as Susan watched him go. She tucked her hair behind her ears, tore her eyes away from him, jumped when she saw Lucy watching her closely, standing right next to her. In her arms, she snuggled a hare; its ears twitched repeatedly, as if listening intently for something. Its nose twitched, feet rapidly bounded, making Lucy shift her arms to hold him tighter.

Lucy grinned.

"Oh, shut up," Susan said.

A/N: And now a chapter about the girls. I always wondered how each of them would've felt about going to and from Narnia and all that's changed, and it was something I truly thought about for Susan. Susan's been responsible for her siblings and then responsible for a country, it had to have hit her hard when she left. Plus, I like the idea of what may or may not have changed between them being in Narnia and being in England. And I had to throw some Suspian in there as well.

It's really interesting to see Susan's POV of Brielle and all that's going on with their friendship and faith in each other compared to Brielle's POV. I'm really excited to dive in further with their friendship and to see your reactions to it.

And, there's something about Bri that even she doesn't know about herself? Oooh!

Cheers,

-Riles