Chapter 11-Cricket

"Sorry?"

"Cricket. Do you know how to play it?"

"This 'cricket' is a game? I thought it was an animal."

"Well, it's an animal too. But the game is really fun." Peter explained.

"Okay." Caspian said. "I'm up for the challenge."

Peter suddenly felt rejuvenated. He glanced at the clock in his room and saw that it was just past two. The doctor wouldn't be here for another couple of hours to check up on Lucy. They had enough time.

He led Caspian down the stairs where he found his brother in the library, listening to the radio.

Looking up, Edmund gulped, but Peter was smiling and looked a lot better than the previous time Edmund had seen him.

Hesitantly, Edmund asked, "Pete? You look…a lot better."

"I am." Peter admitted.

Edmund paused for a moment, then pressed his ear to the radio as he said, "Hey, Pete, listen to this."

But Peter was in a hurry and wasn't in that good of a mood to want to listen to the radio. Coming over toward Edmund, he clicked the radio off, leaving Edmund awestruck.

"What'd you do that for?" He demanded, standing up.

Peter lowered his voice as he said, "I'm going to show Caspian how to play Cricket. And I wanted to know if you wanted to play as well."

"I thought we were going to show him around." Edmund whined, obviously anxious to go to the exotic places they came up with in the confines of the British Isles, that is.

"We'll have time for that later. Besides, you said the doctor's coming today, correct?" Peter said.

"Well, yeah…"

"Then, I thought we could postpone the trip, take him out when we don't have a deadline." Peter was thinking ahead. He wanted to show Caspian sites just as much as Edmund did, but the time they had limited wasn't helpful in their planned expedition.

Edmund then muttered, "You didn't have to shut the radio off."

"Ed!" Peter was getting angry at Edmund's obsession with the radio.

"Well, you shut off my favorite program! What's this about teaching C—"

"Shh!" Peter hushed. He didn't want Susan, if she was around, to overhear them. He lowered his voice as he said, "I'm going to teach him how to play cricket and wondered if you wanted to bowl it."

Edmund's face immediately lit up. He almost never got a chance to be bowler since he learned how to play. Quickly, he ran to get the equipment and Peter brought Caspian out back where they could play.

While he and Edmund set the course up, Caspian watched with fascination. Edmund handed him the bat and suddenly Caspian became confused, "wait, I will not have to use my sword?"

Both Peter and Edmund started laughing and Peter said, "No, it's not a fighting game. You use this bat to swing at the ball that Edmund'll throw."

"Why would he throw a ball at me?" Caspian asked, clearly clueless about the object of the game.

"Just…" Peter came over to Caspian to talk to him directly. "Think of the game as if Edmund is your enemy and he's trying to hit you with that ball there, but this bat acts as a shield almost against him. If you swing at the ball, you then win, but if you miss, he wins."

"I'm not sure if I…"

Peter then assisted him by standing behind him and wrapping his arms around Caspian's, grasped the bat and helped the prince swing it properly.

"You just hold it like this and you swing when you see the ball coming."

Caspian asked, "If I miss, what'll happen?"

"Nothing. You just try again." Peter didn't realize how low his voice had become.

"So, you mean I don't lose?" Caspian clarified.

"You will never lose." Peter whispered into the prince's ear. Then, he bit his tongue again at the seductive tone in his voice. Caspian turned to look at him, and their eyes met. Peter's met the prince's dark brown ones and Caspian's met Peter's pale blue eyes.

"Pete!"

Dammit! Peter cursed in his head at the interruption and turned away from Caspian to glare at Edmund who called him. His brother was standing quite a bit away from them, but he was probably watching the entire time.

"What?" Peter snapped.

"Are we gonna play or what?" Edmund asked.

"Yes, we're going to. I was just explaining the game—"

"Then finish up."

Peter and Caspian turned around to find Susan standing by the back door looking somewhat disgruntled, but nonetheless wearing a smile.

Peter quickly let go of Caspian, as he was still holding onto the prince, blushing, but trying his best to hide it.

Caspian then said, "Susan."

"You didn't tell me you were playing." Susan said, eyeing Peter in particular.

"I figured you would have been too busy." Peter said, though truthfully, he didn't want Caspian to be distracted by Susan.

"I see." She said, clearly mad at him. She then noticed the positions. "Edmund's bowling?"

"Yes, I am," Edmund said proudly.

Susan then rounded on Peter. "But you always bowl."

"Not always. Sometimes you do too." Peter admitted. "Besides, I figured Edmund would like to have a go."

Susan looked at the set-up of the game again as she asked, "And Caspian?"

Peter backed up a bit as he pointed to the prince, "as you can see, he's batting."

"Okay. So that means you're in the outfield then?"

Peter laughed a little as he said, "no, I'm the wicket-keeper."

Susan then said, "No, I usually take up that role. You can be in the outfield."

"Can't you tell we're switching roles this time?" Peter cried.

Susan suddenly became quiet. Then, Caspian spoke.

"Actually, Peter, I would like it if Susan were the one behind me."

Peter wanted to cry out in jealous rage, but gave up and pouting, went to the outfield. He knew Susan would ruin his chance at getting close to Caspian. He couldn't help the fact that the prince, even though denied already, still had feelings for Susan. He tried to convince him otherwise, but he didn't really know how Caspian felt towards him. He had met his eyes more today than the other day, but that hardly meant anything. It could have meant just good friendship for all he knew. He didn't take it that way, but maybe Caspian did. Still, when this game was over, Peter would try again, more thoroughly this time. He knew there were more chances to come later even if Edmund were to interrupt them.