Thank you to all of my reviewers! You're awesome! So, here's Chapter six! Voila! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Me? Owning Narnia? Hah! You're funny! Really, you should become a comedian!

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"Would you honor me with this dance, Lady Alexis?"

That's what Edmund said. Lady Alexis. She wasn't a Lady! Well, literally, yes, she was, being a girl and all, but she wasn't royal and never did anything to deserve that title.

"Of course, Your Majesty." She took his hand and he led her onto the dance floor.

The two moved slowly to the music, Edmund occasionally twirling Ali around. It seemed awfully awkward; usually the two would joke around and make fun of the whole situation, but Edmund seemed oddly serious. She couldn't bring herself to meet his eyes, but she could feel his boring deeply into her.

No, this isn't right, she thought to herself. This isn't normal. Why does this feel so strange? Oh, pull yourself together, Ali! Don't be a fool.

But she was still uncomfortable and didn't know why. There was just something strange about how he was acting towards her. Not that he had really said much to her all night, but just the way he was. Polite and quiet and almost embarrassed.

Twilight Zone! Punk'd! Candid Camera! That's got to be it. Where's that camera? It has to be somewhere! Without realizing it, Ali started looking around the room, searching for that tiny red light that was always hidden so well. Behind the thrones? Set up behind a guard? Or maybe hidden in Peter's crown? Or—

"Ali?"

She blinked and snapped back to attention. Edmund was looking at her with an odd expression on his face. Worry?

"Huh?" Ali said blankly.

"Are you okay? You seem a bit paranoid; you were looking around like you were looking for something…"

"Oh! Umm, no, I'm fine. Just, err…tired…? And I feel a bit dizzy too," she added as an afterthought.

"Well then, you'd best sit down for a bit. I'll get you something to drink."

"Okay…" She waited until he disappeared into the crowd before making her way out of the Hall. She nodded to the two guards and weaved between the mingling guests, moving towards the large doors. So far, the coast was clear; she hadn't seen anyone she knew, and if should could just—

"Ali!" Susan rushed over to her friend's side. "Where are you going? The party's in there." She smiled jovially, obviously having a good time.

"Oh, I know, Su. I'm not that thick. I'm just going to get a bit of fresh air."

"Alright, but don't stay out too long." She went in the direction of the Hall, and Ali sighed in relief.

She was soon out in the cool air and could taste the salt from the ocean. The moon glistened off the waves in the distance, which rippled silently and calmly. She remained unnoticed as she crept down the stairs and to the beach.

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Edmund looked around vainly, trying to figure out where Ali had gone. He had only left her for a minute to get her something to drink, and she had gone already.

"Girls," he muttered in annoyance. Then, "Ah, Su. Have you seen Ali?"

"Ali? You're looking for Ali?" Susan looked at him knowingly. "Why, yes, I have."

"Well…?" he said expectantly.

"Well what?" Susan looked at him innocently.

"Where is she?"

"Oh, yes. She went…um…somewhere….What was I saying?"

"Susan!"

"Right! I think she went outside. Why are you so keen on knowing, anyway?" She asked him slyly.

Grumbling and turning a slight shade of red, Edmund stalked away from her. Susan smirked, then went off in search of Lucy. Their theories had been proven right.

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Ali sat cross-legged on the beach, not caring whether her dress got dirty or not. Her shoes were tossed idly beside her. She watched the water lap up against the shore.

She was softly singing a song she had heard when she was a child, but she couldn't remember where. It was an odd tune and she didn't understand what it meant, but she liked it nevertheless. (A/N—Don't mind this awful randomness that I made up. It -kind of- goes along to the tune "A Ballad of New Scotland".)

'Try as I might I cannot see the stars up there,

wand'ring far through the ashes and dust in this place,

this lonely life I lead to here now,

this lonely life I lead here

is endearingly harsh.

Cross-mixed with spices and herbs of hearth,

how can a lark sing with a thorn in its heart?

A wild wind blows through the world,

but is there time for a cat to hear itself sing?'

She was so concentrated on her own thoughts that she didn't notice the sound of light footsteps behind her. Only when Edmund sat down beside her did she come to her thoughts.

"Oh, um, hi Ed," she said quietly, slightly embarrassed. "I didn't hear you."

He didn't say anything for a bit, but then he said, "You have a lovely voice."

Ali snorted. "Sure. If you say so."

"No, really, you do. It's much better than Susan's. She's really awful, but don't tell her I told you so."

Ali couldn't help cracking a smile. "Well, it is true. Lucy has a good voice, though. So has Peter. I've never heard you sing, though."

"You don't want to."

"Really? That isn't fair, now is it? You've heard me sing, so it's only fair that I hear you."

Once again, Edmund was silent. But then Ali could hear him humming softly, staring up at the moon. He seemed to be thinking about something from his past. Then,

"The sun was setting in the west
The birds were singing on every tree
All nature seemed inclined for to rest
But still there was no rest for me."

Ali immediately recognized the tune and automatically started singing along.

"Farewell to Nova Scotia, you sea-bound coast
Let your mountains dark and dreary be
For when I am far away on the briny ocean tossed
Will you ever heave a sigh and a wish for me?"

"You know it too?" Edmund asked, turning.

"Well, obviously. I started singing too, didn't I? And you have got a nice voice too."

For a third time, the two were silent and Ali found the silence unnerving.

"Ed?" she asked tentatively. "Is there—is there something you wanted to tell me?"

He shook his head slowly, almost sadly, then sighed and nodded. "Yes."

"Well…?"

"Ali, Peter and I—well, we're—we're going out to," he stopped and closed his eyes, as if saying it hurt, "to war," he finished, barely in a whisper.

"When?"

"Soon. A week at the latest."

Ali stood and went to the water's edge, letting the waves dance over her bare feet.

War? They're going to war.

The word was almost too hard to process. That simple, short, three-letter word which never meant much to her, now held so much meaning. It meant death, hopelessness, dreams crashing down, her world falling down around her while she stood helpless.

Edmund came up behind her. "Ali, I'm sorry. I didn't want to tell you. Peter warned me not to. But I—I couldn't help it. You're my best friend. I couldn't keep that from you." His voice sounded like it was choking up.

"Who?" She was surprised her voice was so calm.

"The remainders of the White Witch's army."

"Why?"

"They're rebels. They're angry that we rule Narnia and not Jadis. They want us dead. I heard they're trying to bring her back from the dead."

Ali shivered. It just wasn't fair. Why should Ed and Peter have to go out to fight some stupid idiots who still honored a dead witch? She voiced these thoughts, and Edmund laughed hollowly.

"That's who they are, Ali. It'll be okay. We'll make it back. We've made it through other attacks in the past. We can make it again."

Tears stung Ali's eyes and threatened to fall and she angrily rubbed her eyes. Edmund noticed and sighed. "Oh, Al," he muttered, pulling her into a hug. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have told you."

"Ed, it's just not fair!" she cried into his shoulder. "What if you or Peter gets hurt? Or even…die? It's just not right!"

"'Course it's not fair. We're Kings. We've got to do things that don't seem fair because we risk our life for our people. The Narnians."

They stood there for a while, comforting each other. Finally Edmund broke the embrace and said in a rather choked voice, "We'd better go back. It's getting late."

Ali merely nodded and wiped her eyes again, before the two returned to Cair Paraval. Everyone was so happy and it seemed like Ali and Edmund were living in a different world.

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Whoa, fluffiness. And angst. Wasn't expecting that. It just kind of popped out. Anyway, my worst fear is that this is becoming too Mary-Sue-like. If it is, let me know. It seems like a cliché too, but that's just me. And it's also very random because I pretty much just typed whatever popped into my head. It isn't very exciting either, but I'll get to that in the next chapter…ish.

And yes, Farewell to Nova Scotia is a real song. Ballad type, Canadian thing. It's one of my favorite songs, along with Return of the Unknown Soldier (which I'll incorporate in one of my later chapters…you'll see why!)