Hey guys, so I got a message about grammar mistakes. Thanks to the person that sent the message, but I think everyone ought to know that by no means am I an english major, and I don't have grammar rules memorized. The only thing I really write are plays usually, and directors don't pay too much attention to when you use a comma. The only thing that was brought to my attention that I will try to fix (or have any idea of how to fix) is being more clear who is speaking. To the person who sent me the message, please don't think I don't appreciate your help, but I'm not a professional author. Thank you for your concern, though!

Chapter 24

CASPIAN'S POV

Caspian's face was white as a ghost, and his eyes burned with anger as he barked orders to his men.

"You two, move the body. I want two of you guarding the stables, and have the horses ready in case we need to move quickly. Everyone needs to be in armor and have their swords sheathed just in case. I need two guards at every entrance to the grounds and for my advisors to start planning an attack in the study, I'll join you after I see to a few things. We are not going to wait for them to strike again. We're ending this tonight." Caspian nodded as he was presented with bows, and then watched his soldiers scurry off to get to work. He looked longingly in the direction of Edmund's room, wanting to snatch Lucy up and hide her away where no one could hurt her, but he needed to be with Annebelle. Running as fast as his feet could carry him, Caspian shoved past anyone who got in his way in his path to her room, and he felt his heart stop as he heard her sobs from all the way down the corridor. Upon entering the room, he saw Annebelle tucked in a ball in the corner, fingers clawing in her hair and a waterfall of tears pouring from her eyes. Glenstorm stood a few feet away, lost for words. They all knew there was nothing that could be said. When he saw Caspian, the centaur gave him a bow along with a helpless look, and looked somewhat relieved when he silently excused him from the room. As Glenstorm walked past, Caspian mouthed "Lucy," telling him to go watch over her. When the door shut, and Caspian and Annebelle were alone, he walked cautiously up to her, kneeling down in front of her and placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Bella?" She sobbed harder, making Caspian jump as her head shot up, and she gave him the coldest glare that she could with her clear blue eyes.

"Leave me alone!" She spat, shoving him roughly and making him lose his balance and topple over backward. He sat back up, trying to figure out what he did wrong.

"I know it hurts Bells, but you can't push everyone away. We want to help," She shot up faster than he could take another breath, looking livid.

"You don't want to help! We all know what you really care about. The only thing you care about is Lucy! And this is HER FAULT!" Forgetting how sorry he felt, Caspian pulled himself up, trying his best to mask his anger at her words but failing miserably.

"How is it Lucy's fault?" He demanded, holding his hands in fists at his sides. Annebelle snorted and rolled her eyes dramatically, as if he ought to know, before continuing her accusation.

"The only reason this war is happening is because Nain wants to marry her! If she had never come back, then it would have never been a problem! Then Nain's men wouldn't have killed Andrew! You're being a selfish king! You don't go to war with a land because of one girl! You aren't thinking about how men Narnians will die because of this, the only thing you think about is Lucy!" Caspian growled. Surely she did not think he should just let that pig take Lucy away?

"I am not about to apologize for bringing Lucy back. I love her." Annebelle threw her hands up in the air as he finished, curling her fingers through her hair as if she would pull it out in frustration.

"I loved Andrew! But that doesn't matter, as long as your BITCH doesn't have to marry someone other than you!"

"SHUT UP!" Caspian lurched himself forward so he stood an inch away from Annebelle, towering over her and breathing heavily, his eyes shooting daggers at her. Of course she did not look the least bit threatened, and gave him the same look back. They both stood, staring at each other for a long while. Caspian tried his hardest not to continue yelling at her. Her fiance just got murdered. Of course she's going to say things she doesn't mean. I need to get out of here before I do or say something I'll regret. Although his mind screamed at him not to be sour with Annebelle, he could not hide the loathing tone in his voice as he spoke to her.

"I'm sorry about Andrew, but this is the end of this conversation. Lock your door, I'll send a guard to keep watch over your bedroom," His body was shaking with restraint, because part of him wanted nothing more than to scream in Annebelle's ear for referring to Lucy in that manner. He kept himself in check, though, and hurried out of the room before she could get another word out. A million thoughts were racing through his mind as he paced back and forth through the corridor, just outside Annebelle's room, waiting for her guard to arrive. He needed to meet with his advisors to discuss tonight's attack, but his heart was pulling him towards Edmund's room to see with his own eyes that Lucy was alright. He refused to take Annebelle's words to heart. I am NOT a bad King. I don't only think about Lucy. But I'll be damned if I'm going to let that pervert touch her just because of what Bella said. Guilt poured through him. Annebelle was going through a hard time, experiencing something that he could barely imagine. What if something like what happened to Andrew were to happen to Lucy? Even though he knew Nain would not have Lucy murdered, for she was the woman he wanted as his wife, the image of Lucy lying dead on the floor covered in blood creeped into his mind, and he had to put a hand on the wall to steady himself.

"Sire?" A cautious and slightly fearful voice invaded Caspian's ears, and he shot his head in the direction of the source to find Annebelle's guard giving him a wary look. I probably look frightful right now, he thought, just before giving the man hasty instructions to not move from Annebelle's door until she came out herself, and even then to stay by her side wherever she went. On an impulsive decision, Caspian decided to make a hurried stop by Edmund's room to see Lucy before going to meet with his royal advisors. As he made his way to her door, seeing Rynelf guarding it authoritatively, the sound of muffled sobs and a soothing voice could be heard, and he peeked inside unnoticed. The scene before him ripped right through his heart. Edmund seemed to have gathered some strength, and was standing, holding a hysterical Lucy in his arms.

"It's all my fault Edmund. I should have just gone with King Nain. Andrew would be alive if only I wasn't so selfish," Lucy said through her sobs, voice slightly muffled because she spoke into Edmund's chest. Caspian wanted to tear inside the room, pull Lucy to him and assure her that she is not to blame. Just as he was about to make his entrance, though, Edmund caught sight of him over Lucy's shoulder, and brought up a hand to stop him, giving him an apologetic look. He then turned his attention back to his sister.

"Shhh, Lucy. You know that isn't true. This is not your fault. Archenland and Narnia were already having problems with border disputes, and King Nain probably would have refused any of Caspian's requests to fix the situation, forcing Caspian to start a war to avenge the Narnians. King Nain is so pompous, this is probably how he accepts every war invitation. Other people's lives don't matter as much to him. There is a good chance something like this would have happened with or without you, so don't blame yourself Lucy." Edmund finished, smiling at her accepting look, and Caspian sighed in relief as well when he saw Lucy admit that Andrew's death was not her fault.Caspian watched Edmund whisper something in addition in her ear that he could not hear. Lucy turned around and saw him standing there, tears still held in her hazel eyes, walking slowly towards him. He held his breath, waiting for her to speak. Lucy stopped about a foot away from him, holding her head up high and with a look of determination in her eyes.

"King Nain will not get away with this. We need to start planning for an attack," Lucy stated firmly, and Caspian caught a glimpse of Queen Lucy the Valiant, the woman he fell in love with. In a time of anguish, Caspian could not help but grin and look upon her proudly, and nod at her in agreement.

"That is exactly what I was thinking." Caspian said firmly, taking a step forward confidently. Lucy turned her head over her shoulder to look at her brother.

"I suppose I should use that cordial on you, if you're going to help," Edmund agreed with Lucy's proposal, and reached forward to give her another hug.

"Come," Caspian held out a hand for Lucy, and gestured towards Edmund and Rynelf to accompany them. "We shall meet with my advisors to start preparations."

XoXoXoXo

"Sire, surely you don't think it wise to hold a surprise attack tonight?" Glenstorm asked critically. "They could be expecting it." Lucy sat up straight in her chair and gave him a hard look before speaking.

"That is not necessarily true. I suspect they are expecting an attack, but not so soon. They will probably assume that we will take a few days to plan things," Lucy finished, acknowledging the look of realization upon Glenstorm's face as he saw that she was right, before turning to Caspian. "So when are we leaving?"

Caspian put a hand on her knee under the table. "Relax Lucy," his eyes flickered to address the rest of the men present. "We need to figure out who stays and who goes," he caught Lucy's prying eyes. "Lucy will be coming with us, but the rest of the women will be here. Therefore, we must have a plan as to how many soldiers we are taking." A soldier by the name of Jordan cleared his throat to gather the King's attention. He was eyeing Caspian as if he'd gone mad.

"Excuse me your majesty, but did you say Queen Lucy is coming with us?" Jordan finished as Lucy threw him a threatening look.

"I'm trained with a sword," she spat across the table, only relaxing back into her seat when Caspian rubbed her leg soothingly.

"Yes," Caspian answered Jordan simply, not wishing to dwell on the fact that he was letting Lucy anywhere near danger. "Anyway, the two lowest rank classes of soldiers will stay and guard the castle while the rest of us head on." Glenstorm stomped his hooves in disapproval.

"You're leaving our wives with the lowest ranks?" The centaur questioned angrily, as a few of the other men nodded their heads in agreement. Caspian raised a hand to silence the chatter.

"Just because they are ranked low does not mean they are not able to fight. It just means we have a very excellent high rank. Mind your place, Glenstorm," Caspian said, getting a hurt look from his friend at the last part. Lucy took his hand that had been resting on her leg, squeezing it gently. Caspian was in no mood to be criticized on his decisions at a time like this. Lucy piped up to help him fight his point.

"King Nain may be a lot of things, but he is not stupid enough to come back to Cair Paravel tonight after his men snuck in and committed murder just a few hours ago. Any king thinking logically would assume that there would be soldiers waiting to attack. And there will be," She finished, and the disgruntled centaur and men nodded and ceased to speak of the matter. "So we're off?" Lucy asked Caspian, who stood with a hand resting on his sword.

"We're off."

XoXoXoXo

The castle of Archenland was just outside the woods where Caspian, Lucy, Edmund, and the Narnian soldiers stood, in full armor and weapons in hand. Just before they were about to advance, however, Caspian held a hand up to stop them, turning to Lucy. He jerked his head to the side, telling her to join him to speak for a moment. As he looked upon her, sword held in her sheath and dressed in armor, he could not help but feel sick to his stomach. He sighed. Why did I have to fall in love with a girl who insists upon throwing herself into dangerous situations so often?

"You know I don't like you being here," he started, and she opened her mouth as if to give an angry retort, before he swept her up into his arms. All anger seemed to leave her body as he held her tiny form to his own. Caspian rested his head on her shoulder as he held her, turning his head to the side to kiss her neck affectionately. "Just stay close, okay?" He whispered against her ear. She nodded, pulling away and giving him an encouraging smile as she gestured towards the awaiting soldiers. Reluctantly, he let her go, turning to his men. He did not have much to say, their instructions were already very clear. He did add one thing, however.

"Leave Nain for me," he ordered harshly. "For Narnia!" He roared. Cheers filled the woods and fists went flying into the air as his words were repeated. Caspian drew his sword, pointing it forward at the castle and surging forward, Lucy running alongside him. The minotaurs were positioned in the front, and took out the two guards who were at the main entrance, before crashing through the closed gate with a loud crashing noise, alerting everyone in the castle. The Narnians poured into the front courtyard where they could see armed Archenland soldiers begin to rush out, prepared for the attack. The piercing clang of metal smashing together erupted the night air as both parties began their assault on one another, and Caspian took a moment to look around for his target. King Nain was currently no where to be found in the midst of the battle, and Caspian hoped he would eventually show himself so that he could finish what he really came here for. He would not be satisfied until Nain was dead. Lucy cried out to him in warning, and he turned just in time to block a blow from his first opponent. As he flung his sword about forcefully, a little too much so for the man he was taking on, he could see past the Archenlander's shoulder to where Lucy was having a fight of her own. The man towered over her exceptionally, but looked taken aback by the fact that he was fighting a girl, and seemed to be holding back slightly. That was a mistake on his part, Caspian thought as he watched Lucy plung her sword through the man's heart, withdrawing it quickly as he toppled to the ground, his eyes remaining open as he fell to his death. Caspian put his full attention back on the man he was taking on, ending the fight quickly as he slashed his throat, turning around to look for someone else. A few feet away, Edmund skillfully took out two men at once, and several minotaurs were having no trouble catching and crushing whoever got in their way. Caspian seemed to feel as if the attack was going alright, until he saw an Archenland soldier behead one of the centaurs, before turning and smirking to Lucy, who stood only a few feet away. Just as Caspian made to dash in her direction, Glenstorm flew past her, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her onto his back.

"Thank you," Caspian murmured under his breath in relief. He wanted this to be a quick battle, hoping their element of surprise would give them an advantage, but Archenland seemed to be ready for them. As he watched about ten of his best men die before his eyes, Caspian felt the urge to retreat, and start planning for a more skillful attack. Just as he was about to make an order, King Nain appeared through a large stone door, dressed in full armor and looking just as boastful as ever as he watched a Narnian die before him, grinning widely. If looks could kill, Nain would have had a heart attack and cringe on the courtyard ground until he passed, for Caspian gave him such a glare that everything else seemed to stop around him. The conceited King did not notice, however, and Caspian followed his beady eyes to where Lucy was making overhead attacks on Glenstorm's back. Nain got an evil look in his eyes as he started for her, slaying anyone who got in his way, even if it was one of his own men. Caspian growled, darting towards Nain and stopping him in his tracks as he plunged his sword so the blade stopped barely an inch from the other King's face. Nain gave an evil smile.

"I'd hoped you would come. I am, though, surprised you brought the little vixen with you. As soon as I get my hands on her-" Nain's words were cut off when a flash of silver cut between the two King's, making them both step back in surprise. Lucy now stood beside Caspian, holding out her blade just as he did himself, and eyeing the man dangerously.

"That won't happen," she assured him coldly, boldly taking a step forward. "I'd be more worried about yourself right now." Nain gave an amused laugh, shaking his head in disbelief. Caspian heard Lucy growl at the King's misplaced pride, and watched as she kneed him in the stomach.

"Arghh!" Nain groaned as he leaned over holding his gut, leaving Lucy enough time to knee him once more, this time in the face. The King cried out once more, jumping up and holding a bloodied nose. He eyed Lucy coldly, before raising his sword to strike her. Caspian flung himself in front of her, blocking the blow and kicking Nain hard so that he toppled over against the wall, and his sword fell from his hands. Lucy rushed forward to retrieve it. "Stupid bitch," Nain spat, picking himself up off the ground and advancing on her once more. Caspian surged his sword through Nain's side just as he was an inch from grabbing Lucy. Nain roared in pain, but somehow supported himself while blood spurted from his mouth. Caspian grabbed Lucy's hand to pull her away, knowing that the King would die, but Lucy yanked it from his grasp and did something unexpected. She slashed the already dying man's throat, causing him to topple on the ground in a growing pool of blood. Silence filled the air.

"VICTORY!" Narnians shouted as they flung their swords in the air, while the remaining Archenlander's dropped their weapons in surrender without their King. Caspian turned to Lucy with a questioning gaze for her final actions. Her gaze lingered on Nain's dead body for a moment before she turned to Caspian.

"I don't care how awful he is. No one should have to die slowly if they don't have to," she said wisely, dropping the King's sword next to his lifeless form, and sheathing her own. As cheers of victory filled the air, Caspian drew his valiant Queen forward to catch her lips in a loving kiss, thankful to Aslan that she was okay.

XoXoXoXo

As to be expected, the ties with Archenland were diminished, but Narnia gained a full surrender from their neighboring kingdom. After reinforcing the border disputes and making it clear that never again were any of their men to step on Narnian soil, Caspian led the Narnians back to Cair Paravel. He rode back on Destrier with Lucy in front of him, facing him as she slept in his arms. He would occasionally steal glances at her, incredulous as to how healthy she looked, other than the few minor scars on her arms and face. Caspian brushed his lips against the side of her forehead, chuckling at the tired grumble that escaped her throat in response. Edmund and Glenstorm traveled on either side of him, both looking tired as well. Thankfully, the castle came into view, and cheers erupted the air as the soldiers were surprised to see their wives waiting for them, rushing forward to throw their arms around them. It was not entirely a happy reunion, for at least thirty men had lost their lives in the battle, and tears fell from the eyes of the men's families. Caspian halted his horse, tightening the grip he had on Lucy before speaking up.

"It is with great pleasure that I inform you of King Nain's death, and the surrender of the Archenland kingdom. They are banned from our borders, and I doubt we will have further issues with them," Lucy stirred in his arms. "I have a heavy heart for the men who lost their lives, as well as their families. They were brave, and I could not ask for stronger or better soldiers. I want their wives and children to know that they always will have a home in Cair Paravel, and that I would never let them perish. If anything is needed, do not hesitate to ask me directly, for it is my pleasure to serve you." He dismounted his horse, allowing one of his men to take it back to the stables, and he carried Lucy through the crowd to put her to bed.

XoXoXoXo

EDMUND'S POV

Edmund gasped as he stripped of his armor and bloodied clothes and changed, a little beat up from the battle. He had a deep cut in one arm that he knew should be attended to, but could not find it in his heart to disturb anyone for help, as everyone was exhausted and much of the castle was in mourning. He decided that he should find a bandage and wrap it up himself, and tip toed out of his bed chamber and down the dark corridor. He jumped as someone bumped into him, and he heard a girlish squeal of fright.

"I'm sorry," Edmund whispered hurriedly to whoever it was, and squinted his eyes to see that it was Annebelle. He watched her eyes register who had bumped her, and she averted her gaze quickly to the ground and gave him a bow.

"Forgive me, your majesty," she spoke in barely a whisper, and Edmund could hear an unmistakable amount of sadness in her voice. His gaze softened as he put a hand under her chin to gently lift her head to look at him. Her clear blue eyes were slightly watery, and her pink lips were positioned in a pout. Edmund felt a little sick as he noted how pretty she was.

"Don't apologize. It's dark," he told her. She nodded, and looked desperate to change the subject. Mission accomplished, she spotted his arm.

"You need a bandage!" Annebelle cried louder with alert. Edmund laughed.

"Do I?" He asked sarcastically. "I thought I'd leave it," he joked, and felt proud when she rolled her eyes and gave him a smile.

"Very funny, your majesty," Annebelle shot back, and Edmund smiled for a moment, but his face fell when that familiar sadness came back to her eyes. She sighed heavily. "I'll get you fixed up, come with me," she led him through the corridor.

XoXoXoXo

LUCY'S POV

Lucy woke up feeling a pair of strong arms wrapped around her. She was in Caspian's bed, and he was holding her tightly to his body. Lucy peeked around without moving, seeing that it was still nighttime, and then looking up to see Caspian's brown eyes staring back at her warmly.

"You were amazing," he told her, making her blush. His words reminded her that Nain was dead, and that she never had to worry about him again. Relief poured through her body, making her warm. Caspian moved so that she was under him, and he hovered over her, supporting himself in his arm so that he didn't crush her as one of his hands moved to graze her cheek lightly. "So brave," he added, leaning down to place a kiss to her forehead. Lucy sighed at the contact, lifting herself to capture his lips in a brief kiss.

"I love you," she whispered randomly, feeling butterflies in her stomach as he grinned widely. He dipped his head down to kiss her shoulder before nuzzling her neck affectionately.

"I love you too," he whispered against her ear, placing a kiss just behind it and making her shudder. Only then did Lucy notice that she was clean, and that she wore a nightgown. A blush crept to her cheeks.

"Caspian, did you-?"

"No!" He answered hurriedly. "I had the nurse clean you up," he blushed just as she did, and pecked her lips quickly. He smiled as she yawned quietly, and moved himself so he was once more lying on his back, pulling her to rest her head on his chest.

"Sleep, Lucy-love," he ordered, his arms holding her to his chest as tightly as he could without making her uncomfortable. She agreed, yawning once more before turning her head slightly to kiss his chest through his shirt.

"I love you," she repeated. He smiled.

"I love you too."

I had a hard time writing this because I wasn't sure how to write the battle scene. I feel like I did poorly ):