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"High King Peter!" Zakai's voice sounded from the dungeon door, up the short climb of stairs.
Edmund pulled away from him; he pulled his hood up and shrunk back into the safety of the shadowy cell.
"High King Peter." The minotaur was now just feet away from Peter and coming to a stop.
Peter looked up to the pestering guard with annoyance in his eyes. "The whole kingdom has been looking for you. I'm told that the High Queen wishes your presence."
Great. Now I'm in for it. "Did she say what for?"
"It's not quite clear, Sire. The other guards say that the kingdom is bustling with the word 'murder.'"
Peter felt his heart pang. Murder? He's gone for no more than an hour and there's already been a murder? He was almost afraid to ask, "Did- did they say who?"
Zakai shook his shook his big, thick, furry head. "The word is that it was a faun. Impossible to say who, though. I suppose you'll find out once you get to taking with Her Majesty."
Peter said nothing to reply. He gave one longing look back toward his imprisoned brother; he only wished that he could have given a proper goodbye before he had to leave. The hooded figure in the cell gave only a nod for Peter to leave. The smallest hint of a smile crept onto his face. That was all they had to say goodbye before Peter was gone.
PSELPSELPSELPSELPSELPSELPSELPSELPSELPSEL
"Peter!" Susan exclaimed as Peter entered the throne room, escorted by Oreius. He lumbered up the stairs and stood before her. "Where have you been?"
Peter just shook his head in reply.
Oreius, clearly not seeing the defiance in his king, answered for him, bringing Susan's eyes to meet his. "We found him at the dungeons, Your Majesty."
The Queen looked back to her brother. "The dungeons? What on earth were you doing there?"
Peter, still, said nothing; he just glanced nervously around him. Susan had an idea, though. "It's that slave boy, isn't it?"
Susan could see from the look on Peter's face that she was correct in her guessing. "Oreius, a moment of privacy, please."
The great Centaur bowed and left the two of them alone.
Susan was the one to break the silence. "I don't see what's so special about that boy."
Peter didn't answer.
"It doesn't matter, though; he'll be released soon, anyways."
Her brother's eyes immediately met hers; they held a tint of fear in them. "What's happened?"
Susan closed her eyes and heaved a deep sigh, then she looked back into Peter's fair face. "Nephtali is dead."
Peter's eyes changed from a look of fear to a look of shock. "Nephtali? Wh- what happened?"
Susan knew that Nephtali had been his faithful servant and friend ever since he had begun his rule as High King. The faun had carried out his duties with an uncommon contentment; he always carried on in an orderly fashion and even offered to serve Peter things he had never asked for. He was the kind of faun that Narnia needed more of.
"Peter," Susan began. She knew this news would be hard for Peter to hear, but it needed to be heard. "Nephtali is the one who poisoned you."
Peter's mouth dropped into a gape. "He- he poisoned me? He couldn't have. Nephtali- he was my friend."
Susan nodded. "He told me he did. I don't think he wanted to, though." She stared off in thought. "He was afraid of something. Nephtali said that somebody told him to do it. I believe there may have been a threat involved."
"Nephtali would never attempt something like that willingly. Who threatened him? Who must I deal justice?"
It was so like Peter to want to jump in so quickly. He had been betrayed by Nephtali, yet he still wanted to punish the one who would dare threaten one of his friends, even if that friend was considered a traitor.
"I don't know, Peter. He was shot dead before he got a chance to tell me. Shot dead with one of our own arrows."
Peter just nodded and cast his eyes away.
"Why do I feel that you are not surprised?"
Her brother just sighed. "I... suspected a traitor. We thought it was someone in the guard, though I suppose Nephtali could have sent out the letter if he had access to my study."
Susan just stared at him in confusion. "Peter, you're not making any sense. What letter?"
Peter seemed to shake himself to his senses. "Of course- uh- well, Judas was invited here by someone not ourselves. I suppose it could have been Nephtali."
"Then who is 'we'?" Susan rose her right eyebrow. "Is there someone else who thinks this, too?"
Peter looked stuck. It took him some time to answer her question; even then, it wasn't really an answer. "It's not important. It was all just speculation, before now, anyways."
Susan looked at her older brother, her rock, her king. "Your secret?"
Peter downcast his blue eyes to his boots. "Believe me, Su, I want more than anything to tell you, but I can't."
Susan clasped Peter's cold hands in her own. "You know you can trust me, right? You can trust me with anything."
The King nodded his head slowly. "I trust you, Su. I wouldn't keep this from you if I didn't think it was for the best."
It frustrated Susan, but she knew he was right. She wanted so badly to react the way she had before, but Peter didn't deserve that. She couldn't let her grief get the best of her, so she just nodded in understanding.
"Can you trust me, Su?"
Susan looked up into Peter's piercing blue eyes, eyes that said more than words could ever say. Everything in Susan's being wanted to scream out and demand he tell her, right away. She wanted to argue with him, and tell him that he was being unfair, that he was wrong to keep something from her, but she knew that Aslan wouldn't want that. Susan had to trust Peter to do the right thing. He would tell her on his own, when he was ready. Pushing for Peter to answer would only create a further rift between them than there already was. No. Pushing would be most wrong.
Patience, Daughter. All will be revealed with time. A voice said, though Susan knew it was only audible to her.
The great voice of Aslan was all Susan needed to get the words out. "I trust you, Peter."