- Chapter 31 -
A week later, Analiese, Avaline, Caspian, Lucy, Camden, Alfred, and Henrietta sat around a large table in the conference room in the private wing of the castle. Caspian and just broken the heartbreaking news of finding Edmund's crown and their suspicions on the disappearance.
"I'm so sorry," Henrietta said, reaching to her left to wrap her arm around Avaline's shoulder. "I'm sure that our kings and queen have had a better fate, though."
Avaline nodded through her tears.
To Lucy's right sat Analiese, who looked sickly skinny now that the extra weight had started to wear off. This was the first time that she had heard this news.
"You mean to say," she said with a shaking voice, "That Peter is... is dead?"
The only answer she got was when everyone looked away uncomfortably, their eyes dropping to hide their varying levels of despair.
There was a long silence in which everyone allowed her to grieve. Lucy leaned in to hug the girl tightly. Analiese cried into Lucy's shoulder, and her own shoulders shook.
Suddenly, the closed conference room door slammed back against the wall behind it.
"Your Majesty," Trumpkin said, walking in hurriedly. He was focused on Analiese. "Word has come in. The Calormenes have arrived in Narnia. And they know where you are hiding."
Analiese looked up at him. "Where I am hiding? Are they not wondering where the others are?"
Trumpkin shook his head. "No, my Queen. You are their main target."
Caspian raised his hand as if he were a student at school. "But why is this?"
"Because she just gave birth to the next heirs of the Narnian throne. What do you think the Calormenes main purpose in declaring war was in the first place? They want to take us down. And if they can find the High Queen, then they can find the heirs."
Lucy gasped. "They're not going to try to hurt the children, are they?"
"The Calormenes are quite similar to the Telmarines, your Majesty. They will stop at nothing to achieve ultimate power."
King Alfred clapped his hands loudly. He stood up from his chair and motioned to the guard standing outside the entrance to the door. "You! Make sure the other guards are on high security. I want every gate closed and every door locked. No one enters this palace without security clearance."
Camden spoke up just then. "Father, what if someone is disguised?"
"On second thought, no one enters or leaves this castle. No one. I do not have time for excuses. This is a matter of the highest urgency."
The guard nodded and went off to warn the other men.
"I think we must return to Narnia to fight in the war," Caspian said.
"I'd rather go down with a fight than die here by a bunch of Calormene hooligans," Avaline agreed.
Lucy interjected, "Gracious, you all just can't get past this mindset, can you?" Everyone looked at her in surprise. "It's just like our last war! All the options you all can think about are dying here or dying there. I personally don't find there to be an option."
"Exactly. So we head back to Cair Paravel in the morning," Caspian announced.
"No, I wasn't finished," Lucy stopped him.
"I haven't gotten a say in things, and it's my life that's on the line here," Analiese interrupted. "Peter wouldn't want us to fight in the war. The whole reason he wanted us gone was to protect us!"
"I think you're wrong, An," Lucy replied. "Remember when Peter sent that last letter to you? The one about watching your back, and how we wasn't safe? There was someone working inside Cair Paravel to hurt us. I should've thought it through sooner, but of course that person would have figured out we were in Durham and shared it. It's too late to go back to Narnia now. But it's not too late to catch the Calormenes off guard and meet them halfway."
All eyes were on Lucy. And as they listened to her speaking, the words began to sink in. She was right. They couldn't just stay, completely helpless, in Durham. But they also couldn't head back to Narnia in hopes of being safer. Their only option was to surprise the enemy.
"But we can't just meet them on the war front. They have men and weapons, and we've lost the best of our swordsmen," Caspian argued.
"But we have a new weapon," Analiese said quietly. "We have three children in our favor."
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At the meeting that morning, they had continued talking through their plans.
It had been decided that the kings and queens would act as if they had no idea the Calormenes were in Narnia, and would send word back to the palace that they were returning for the coronation and birth announcement of Kingston and Cathalina.
The night before the supposed ceremonies, Caspian, Camden, Alfred, and the Archenlander army would meet the Calormene army halfway to Durham. Twinklewing was to alert the Narnia army to follow the Calormenes to the checkpoint. If all went according to plan, the Calormenes would be blocked in and the war would take place in the open land between Archenland and the city of Narnia.
Analiese, Avaline, and Lucy were to stay back in Durham with Queen Henrietta and the kids. There was no doubt in anyone's minds that the plan would not be executed smoothly and successfully.
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It was the night before their plan went into action, and Lucy was walking back toward her bedroom after a long time of peaceful reading in the small library downstairs. It was late, almost midnight, and she certainly was not expecting to run into anyone.
"Queen Lucy," someone called out quietly behind her.
She turned to find Camden standing a few feet away. "Camden," she greeted him with a warm smile.
"I'm so glad I was able to find you," Camden said. He jogged over to catch up to her. "I was hoping to speak with you."
They began walking side by side down the long hallway. "About what?"
"Well, we've been friends for more than a solid year now, but we have lost touch, haven't we?"
"Yes, but my excuse was being so busy! I wish we had more time to spend together."
"I agree, but I would appreciate it if we could catch up now. How have you been? It seems as if all of your siblings have partners now."
Lucy made a confused face. "Susan doesn't."
"Oh, of course she does. Caspian has not stopped talking about how much he misses her."
She tilted her head to the side in thought. Yes, of course! How had she missed it? Caspian absolutely adored her sister, and why wouldn't he? Susan was perfect, and what's better, they were a perfect match.
"I suppose I hadn't noticed before," Lucy replied. "What was the purpose of your comment?"
"Well, I was curious to know if someone is filling your free time, too."
"No, and I couldn't be happier about that." She sighed, and they began walking up the long, winding staircase that led to the bedroom wing. "I mean, it is wonderful to see Peter and Edmund so carefree, but that's just the thing - they're not always happy."
"King Edmund and King Peter both have children now, and I couldn't imagine they would be any happier."
Lucy paused her walking and stared straight ahead for a moment. "You're right. If only they were here to see it."
Camden took a step forward and put his hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry."
She shook her head and continued climbing the stairs as if nothing had happened. "It's fine, I just-" Her voice cracked. "I just wish there was someone left that cares."
"What do you mean?"
"You know, someone who actually is bound to keep me safe. Cas, Avaline, Analiese... They're all great people, really. They are honorary members of my family, but they're not really my family. They're just friends. They're not bound to me in any way. If they get fed up, they have every right to leave me."
"Yes, but would they?"
"I don't know. But I wouldn't even have to ask that question if they were my real family. I just want to know that the people who truly love me are still out there."
"I love you," Camden said.
Lucy spun around to face him, her hand still holding onto the rail on the side of the staircase. "What?"
"I love you, Lucy. As a friend, of course. But love is love nonetheless, and I wouldn't dream of letting you alone without someone looking out for you."
A small smile spread across her lips. "Thank you, Camden."
She took several steps down the stairs to meet him, then hugged him tightly.
Her arms rested on his shoulders and his face pressed into her hair. He lifted his head so that his chin rested on top of her head, but kept his arms wrapped around her waist.
"I really do love you, Lucy," he said, then murmured quietly, "Maybe more than I should."
She didn't hear him.
Once they released each other from the hug, they took their time heading back to their bedrooms. Camden, in his usual gentlemanly manner, insisted on walking Lucy to her room. Partially because it was the good thing to do, but also to make sure that nothing like what happened the night before to Avaline occurred again.
When they reached the door to Lucy's room, she turned to face him. They stared at each other for a few moments.
"Promise me you'll be careful tomorrow, Camden," Lucy said, then laughed lightly. "I can't be losing you, too."
"I'll try." He chuckled. "But you have to promise me that you won't try anything stupid. No sneaking out to fight."
"What makes you think I would do that?" she said, a jokingly innocent look on her face.
Camden smiled at his friend and took a step toward her. Before either of them could comprehend what was happening, he leaned in to kiss her forehead. Lucy's eyes shut on instinct, savoring the sensation of his lips on her skin. Moments later when he pulled away, she could barely seem to open her eyes and return to reality.
"Goodnight, Queen Lucy," Camden said. Then, he turned and walked away.
After Lucy was dressed in her nightgown, had turned off the light, and had climbed in bed, she closed her eyes. Within minutes of this, she realized she wasn't going to get any sleep.
She flipped over on her back and stared at the ceiling, which looked grey in the dark. Glancing out of the corner of her eye, she saw the thin curtains swaying gently. Her balcony door was cracked slightly open, which let in a nice, chilly breeze. The light from a full moon could be seen.
Try as she might, Lucy simply couldn't get to sleep. She couldn't stop thinking about Camden's goodnight kiss. He had said he only loved her as a friend, but that kiss had felt like something more.
In the end, she shook it off. After all, Lucy had never actually been kissed by anyone before. What would she know about the differences between them?
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Analiese stood over the two cradles located a few feet from her bed. In the cradle on the left was Kingston, and Cathalina laid in the one on the right.
Over the past few days, Analiese hadn't gotten to spend enough time around them, even though she spent a week on "maternity rest." Normally, a woman would rest for a few months, but not Analiese. Being the workaholic she was, she knew that she had to get back to being a queen as soon as she could. After all, Peter wasn't there to keep things sorted, so his work was piling on top of hers.
Anyway, Analiese was told that the twins had to be monitored to ensure that they were healthy enough, given that they were born prematurely. Ana had reluctantly given them up, knowing that if they were kept healthy now, she would have plenty of time to spend with them in the future.
Cathalina was still sleeping. Kingston blinked rapidly several times, then opened his eyes to stare up at his mother. The tiny baby twisted his upper body several times and turned his head from side to side, his hands moving a little.
Analiese leaned over to pick him up. "Aw, you're such a wiggle worm," she murmured, smiling.
She held him up to her chest, and was surprised at how perfectly the baby's head fit into the bend between her neck and her shoulder. He made a quiet whining sound, so she switched his position so he was laying in her arms the way most people imagine holding an infant.
Analiese hadn't had the time to pick apart every bit of each baby yet. This was the reason for her shock when she saw how much Kingston resembled his father.
Kingston had a small bit of short, fuzzy golden blonde hair growing on top of his head. As he looked up at her, his own striking blue eyes stunned her. She wouldn't go so far as to call him a chubby baby - Analiese had known many of those, Adela had been one - but he had teeny rolls of skin around his arms, legs, and stomach.
She could hardly bear to break her gaze from her son. The thought of her daughter being just as perfect as her son gave her the strength to, though. Analiese looked at her.
Cathalina was a small baby. Analiese had worriedly asked the nurse close to a million questions about her size. Was it normal, was she okay, was she going to grow to be average size? The nurse had assured her that the princess was fine.
She was petite, but she had the same rolls of skin as her brother had. Cathalina also had blonde hair, though Analiese couldn't tell whether it was hers or Peter's shade of blonde yet, as she only had a small bit of it growing. Her eyes were a seafoam color, a mixture of both her parents' eyes. Analiese was pleased to find that her daughter resembled her quite a bit.
Analiese snapped back to reality when she felt something tugging at her finger. Kingston was using what little strength he had to pull his mother's finger into his hand. Analiese fell in love with the concentrated look that fell over his face as he watched her finger intently. It as if it was a new toy; he was more than fascinated.
Seeing her son act so amazed by everything around him made her realize something. She would miss Peter. She wanted nothing more than for him to be here with his family. But if he really was gone, then maybe she would be able to handle it. Maybe she could cope, just her and the twins, who were both spitting images of Peter.
But after putting Kingston down for bed and climbing up into her own, she did just as she had every night for the past few weeks. She stared up at the dark ceiling and prayed.
Aslan, she said. If Peter is out there, all I ask is that you let him know we're here. If it's not in your plan, then he doesn't have to come home. I can handle that. But I need to know he's safe, and I want him to know we're safe. That we love him.
She thought for sure she was crazy, but before falling asleep, she thought for sure she got an answer. A warm, fuzzy feeling of relief had washed over her body once she finished her prayer, and unwelcomed thoughts of Peter returning to Narnia safely washed out everything else in her mind. The last thing that she experienced before sleeping was three words flashing through her mind in a peaceful manner.
He is safe.
A/N: I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! More is coming soon, and make sure you give me your theories on the Pevensies! Where do you think they are, and do you think they could be coming back? Also, are the twins adorable or what?! And tell me all of your thoughts on Lucy and Camden. I love their friendship and I can't wait to write more about them in the next story :)