AN: I know this chapter is really really short and I'm sorry. I still hope you like it though.

"Peter, would you care to explain this?" Mr. Pevensie pulled out the letter and handed it to him. It was fairly late at night, they were at home now and everyone else was upstairs asleep.

"Dad, I know you don't think it's right but, I'm in love with her." Peter said. He wondered how mad his father was going to be now but this was no time to water down the truth.

"She's only a child." Mr. Pevensie looked pleadingly at his son. "Don't you care about this family?"

"Of course I do." Peter said. He was surprised by his father's lack of anger. Perhaps the anger came only with the surprise and shock of the whole thing. Once the shock wore off, no more anger.

"Then why would you do this to us?" Mr. Pevensie asked still in low almost-mild voice.

"Do what?" Peter said. "I'm not hurting anyone."

"How can you say that?" His father said in a tone a bit louder but not much. "What are people going to say about this family when they find out?"

"Is that all you care about?" Peter said getting a bit fed up. "Isn't the more important thing what's best for Susan?"

"Of course it is." His father agreed. "And I don't think that sort of relationship with you is best for her. Peter you were raised as siblings, you're older than she is, it's just not going to work out. As your parent and hers I want to help you avoid unnecessary pain in life. Can't you just except that?"

"If it's the age, I'm willing to wait for her." Peter told him.

Mr. Pevensie looked a little surprised. "How long?"

"As long as need be." Peter said.

"You really love her don't you?" Mr. Pevensie asked.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you." He said.

Mr. Pevensie's face softened. "Look. Maybe I was a little too angry before. But you've got to see it from a father's point of view."

Peter nodded. "I know, dad. I just don't know what else I could've done different."

"You do realize that if you two became a couple, everyone will know where you really came from?" His father reminded him.

"Yes."

"And you're okay with that?" Mr. Pevensie asked.

Peter smiled and said. "Believe it or not, yes."

"Alright, who are you and what have you done with my son?" Mr. Pevensie joked, then with a slight sigh handed Peter back the letter so he could do as he pleased with it. He was giving in and this was his way of showing it.

Peter chuckled a bit at that. "I did used to be pretty dead-against anyone knowing wasn't I?"

"Yes, yes, you were." Mr. Pevensie laughed again.

It had been a while since the two of them had laughed together and had a conversation that didn't began or end in "I'm very disappointed in you". And it felt really good.

"Peter," His father said as he started to get up. "I never regretted taking you in, you know that don't you?"

"Yeah, I know." Peter smiled back at his father. Blood may have been thicker than water. But love it seemed was much thicker than either. From that moment on he decided that he was a Pevensie but not completely. and that was alright. He began at that moment to think of himself as Peter Burke-Pevensie. Somehow, being part Burke wasn't so bad after all.

Two days later, Peter was in the kitchen fixing lunch for Lucy when he heard what sounded like crying. "Lu, I'll be right back."

He walked into the front hallway where Edmund stood comforting a crying Susan. "Shh...it's alright. You're safe now."

"What happened?" Peter asked.

Edmund looked very worried and upset. "I'll tell you later." He mouthed. Susan was still crying. "Shh...it's okay...everything's going to be fine."

After Susan had calmed down, Edmund told Peter what had happened. "Someone tried to kidnap her." Edmund looked frightened and angry but his voice was calm.

"Who would do that, everyone in this town knows her." Peter said. Why would anyone try to hurt her? She was a favorite with the neighbors. Everyone in town loved her. And the gossip about her running away to get married had long been yesterday's news.

"I'm really scared for her." Edmund said. "I don't know who the person was and they..."

"They what?"

"They called her 'Mermaid', Pete." Edmund looked down at his hands. "I don't think our secret's just our secret anymore."

"How did they find out?" Peter was started to feel afraid too.

"Lion's Alive!" Edmund gasped looking down at the newspaper in front of them. "That's her!" he pointed to the photo of the reporter on the front page. "She's and some other guy are the ones that tried to kidnap Susan."

"I think we can deal with this, Ed." Peter said bravely as he memorized the face of their new enemy. "We wont let anything like that ever happen to Susan. She'll only end up in a lab over our dead bodies."

Peter and Edmund decided not to tell Lucy about what had happened. They felt they could handle this Ella Sting and whatever else life was going to throw at them. They were going to be okay. Life was in a way starting a-new. Both boys could feel it. They only wondered what it would really mean. Not just for Susan, but for all of them.

AN: There are going to be two more chapters after this then this fic is over. I wanted to let you all know that. The next two chapters will take place a couple of years after this one right before the trash crash.