Chapter 20

Georgie and Edmund pulled away from each other ending their kiss, resting their foreheads together and keeping their eyes closed, both breathless from the kiss's intensity. "I suppose we should get out of here before people start to talk," Edmund chuckled lightly, pulling his head away from Georgie's and squeezing her tighter to him. She placed her hands on his chest and looked up at him.

"What people? We're all alone," she said, a playful look in her eye.

Edmund smirked and said, "I wouldn't count on it. Come on." He released her and grabbed her hand, leading her out of her room into the sitting room. As he expected, his siblings were waiting in there, each of their faces wearing wide smiles.

"Oh no!" giggled Georgie, burying her reddening face in Edmund's shoulder, feeling it shake from his laughter.

"Well it's about time," Peter snickered.

Later that evening at dinner, Georgie was seated at the long dining table next to Lucy, who was whispering to her about all their various guests. Georgie was only barely paying attention, however. Edmund was seated diagonally across the table from her, casting glances her way and smiling whenever he would catch her eyes. She would smile back, earning a wink from him, causing her to blush.

"Will you stop that?" Lucy hissed under her breath to Georgie.

"What?" asked Georgie, startled out of her glance at Edmund. Lucy smiled and laughed quietly before her eye caught a young woman seated near the opposite end of the table.

"There's that dreadful Lady Ida," she murmured. Georgie looked down the table and saw who Lucy was referring to. She was passably pretty, with honey blonde hair and a pointy nose. She was flirting with a man sitting next to her, placing her hand on his as she laughed gaily. He was tan-skinned with dark inky hair and very handsome. His clothing was like none Georgie had ever seen, shades of gold and red making up his outfit. He wore a white turban, a large gem, a ruby Georgie assumed, in the center of it.

"Who's that man next to her?" Georgie whispered.

"That's Prince Rishdamar, from Calormen," Lucy replied.

"I see," Georgie said, staring at the prince. He turned his head and caught her stare, raising his wine glass as if toasting her. Georgie gave him a small smile before returning her eyes to her plate. Feeling eyes on her, she glanced up and was met with Edmund's angry stare. Raising her eyebrows slightly, she stared at him questioningly. He shook his head before returning to his meal. This is not good, Georgie thought, inwardly grimacing over Edmund's reaction to her exchange with Prince Rishdamar.

When the meal was finished, the people at the table rose slowly, groups going off in various directions while others stayed seated, enjoying the festive conversation. Edmund and Georgie were two of those who stayed, sharing unsure stares with the other. Georgie was hesitant to leave the table alone, fearing it might add to Edmund's anger. Edmund was nervous he had scared (or angered) Georgie with his furious glance at her. He hadn't meant to stare at her like that; he had caught the prince's gesture towards her and was unable to control his reaction before Georgie caught him. Deciding it was up to him to make the first move, he stood and walked around the table to where Georgie was seated, saying, "Shall we?"

A nervous smile crept onto Georgie's face as she stood, placing her hand in the crook of Edmund's offered arm. He leaned towards her and whispered, "I'm not mad at you. You can breathe now." Georgie exhaled deeply, unaware that she had been holding her breath since he had walked to her. They walked out of the large dining room into the hall when Georgie asked, "Why did you look at me like that if you weren't mad?"

Edmund smiled sheepishly and replied, "I saw Rishdamar lift his glass to you. I was mad about that."

"But you said-" she began before being cut off by Edmund. "I said I wasn't mad at you. But him doing that made me see red."

"Edmund, you really need to learn to control your temper," Georgie admonished, shaking her head slightly.

"I think I'm in excellent control of my temper. I didn't skewer him, right?" he laughed.

The two found themselves on the cliff overlooking the ocean, the first time they had been there together since they were younger. It was a dark night, the moon only a tiny sliver among the tiny twinkling stars. The waves could be heard, crashing in the distance. Sitting, they stared off into the dark horizon for several quiet moments. "Are you excited about tomorrow?" Edmund asked.

"I think so," Georgie replied. "I think Susan may win the archery contest though."

"Why is that? Gotten a bit sloppy since you arrived here?" he asked teasingly.

Georgie laughed before replying, "I'm afraid I have! I haven't really practiced in a long time, while Susan apparently has practiced nearly every day. I forgot how dedicated she is."

"More like stubborn over-achiever," Edmund sniggered. The two laughed heartily at his joke, which was mostly true. When their laughter died down, Edmund turned serious and said, "Listen G, there's something important I need to tell you and I really need you to not argue with me about it."

"Okay?" she asked, suspicious of the seriousness of his tone.

"I know before I told you I had put you under guard because of Prince Rishdamar, but that wasn't entirely true," he began.

"What do you mean, 'not entirely true?' Are you keeping something from me, Edmund?" Georgie angrily asked.

"G," Edmund warned before continuing, "We aren't taking this visit from Calormen lightly. Years ago, when we sailed with Caspian and were captured by slave traders, Caspian made slave trading illegal and disbanded the slave market. Calormen didn't like that, as they were the ones who mainly profited from it, and since then has become increasingly irritated with Narnia. Also, as you know, Lord Brin recently escaped from Anvard and was thought to have headed to Calormen. It just seems too coincidental that visitors from Calormen show up, on the birthday of the woman who ruined Lord Brin's plans to murder Narnia's High King and one of its queens."

"I don't understand Edmund. What are you not telling me?" Georgie asked.

"I don't want you leaving the castle or even walking around it without being escorted by either a guard, Peter or myself," he said seriously.

"But-" she began but was interrupted.

"No 'buts' Georgiana," Edmund said, his voice sounding more kingly than she had ever heard it. "Until we know what threat we're dealing with, I'm not going to let you get yourself into a situation that could get you hurt." Georgie's lips drew together in a hard line and she let out an angry sigh. Knowing better than to argue with Edmund when he was like this, she reluctantly nodded in agreement. He let out a sigh of relief and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her close to him.

"Thank you," he whispered into her hair, kissing the top of her head. The two sat quietly for a long time, enjoying their solitude together. Georgie's eyes finally began to droop and she yawned deeply. Edmund quietly laughed and announced it was time for bed, standing and pulling her up with him. He wrapped his arm around her waist and the two made their way back to the castle.

Georgie laid in bed, thinking of all that had happened that day. When she woke up earlier in the morning, Edmund had been her friend. And now, as she went to sleep, he was- Well, what is he exactly? she thought. They had made no pledges, no promises, to each other, but somehow she knew that they had always been meant for each other, that they had belonged to each other. Forever, Georgie smiled.

A knock came from the back wall of Georgie's room, startling her. The large green tapestry that hung on the wall was pushed aside and Lucy poked her head from behind it. Although they never used it, there was a door connecting both Lucy's and Georgie's rooms. When Georgie had moved in Lucy explained that the connecting rooms were meant for a husband and wife and the door connecting the rooms allowed them access to their spouse's room.

"Are you finally back?" Lucy giggled, walking further into the room and hopping onto Georgie's bed.

Georgie rolled her eyes in the dark and said, "Yes. What are you doing in here? Shouldn't you be asleep now?"

"Probably. But I wanted to talk to you. Tell me everything!" Lucy said dramatically.

"About what?" replied Georgie, feigning innocence. It was Lucy's turn to roll her eyes before saying exasperatedly, "About you and Edmund! Did you really think I would let you not tell me?"

"But-but he's your brother," Georgie said skeptically, before Lucy's uncharacteristic snort cut her off.

"I'm well aware he's my brother. He has been for, well, I've lost count on how many years he's been my brother. But you're my best friend! We're supposed to talk about men, aren't we?" Lucy asked.

"Well, I suppose we are. Although I never have before," Georgie surmised.

"Susan would never talk to me about men. She kept it all to herself mostly," said Lucy. "Did you kiss? What was it like?"

Georgie laughed at Lucy's excitement before saying, "It was wonderful, really."

"Better than the first time you kissed?" Lucy asked suspiciously, causing Georgie to laugh again.

"Much better!" she replied. Lucy began a barrage of questions about Georgie's kiss, causing her to blush as she answered. The two women talked deep into the night before Lucy went back through the hidden door to her room, Georgie soon falling asleep afterwards.

The tournament began early the next day. Brightly colored banners representing Narnia and the many other countries and nations who had come to compete flew around the tournament field. The four Pevensies and Georgie were dressed similarly as they stepped onto the field, the women wearing deep red dresses, the men wearing similar colored tunics, all depicting a roaring golden lion. The gathered crowd cheered for the monarchs, the volume increasing as Peter announced the beginning of the tournament.

The Pevensies and Georgie were seated on a raised platform overlooking the tournament field when the first contest began. The morning of the tournament would be sword fighting. Contestants would face each other one on one, the winner of each pair going on to compete later against other winners. The final two winners would then face the two Narnian kings in a two on two match at the end of the day, the last man standing being declared the contest winner. The afternoon of the tournament would consist of several archery contests, one for men, one for women (at Lucy's insistence, who had been denied competition in the last tournament she had attended) and one for children. Susan and Georgie also offered, much to Edmund's annoyance, to have an exhibition contest between themselves, allowing spectators to challenge both the queen and princess to hit whatever target they chose.

The sword fighting competition was well underway as Edmund watched the duelers below. So far, he had not noticed any that were superior to him or his brother, but had noticed very different techniques some used. He studied their moves, mentally calculating how he would meet their blows or dodge their strikes. In his mind, he beat every dueler he watched. Smiling as he clapped for the winner of the current duel he was watching, he thought, This will be simple. I'll beat one, Peter will beat the other, then I'll beat Peter and win the tournament!

Peter glanced at his younger brother and caught the look of satisfaction that was plastered on Edmund's face. He quietly chuckled to himself and leaned towards his brother, muttering low, "I wouldn't get so attached to the idea of winning this contest if I were you."

"Well, if you were me, you wouldn't be so worried about winning," Edmund countered, knowing his brother was trying to throw off his concentration. Edmund turned to Georgie to ask her how she was liking the contest so far, but stopped short when he saw her appearance. Her face was drained of color, her eyes wide, a mixture of shock and worry. He noticed her hands were clenching the arms of her chair so tightly that her knuckles were strained and white.

"What's wrong?" he asked, alarmed.

She slowly turned to him, her brow furrowing as she spoke, "You're going to fight those men?" Edmund threw back his head in laughter at her question, causing her to cry, "It's not funny!" They both earned pointed glares from Peter and Susan and a wide grin from Lucy. Edmund grasped Georgie's hand, bringing it to his lips and placing a kiss on it.

"G, it'll be fine," he whispered.

"You could be hurt! Or killed!" she hissed.

Edmund rolled his eyes and said, "I think I'll be okay. I've fought much more accomplished fighters than the men out there and have come out without a scratch almost nearly every time. Besides," he added with a wink. "I would think you would be more concerned about the two winners. They're more likely to get hurt than I am."

"This isn't a joking matter, Edmund," Georgie said stubbornly.

Edmund looked at her seriously and said, "I promise you, I won't get hurt. Don't worry."

Georgie huffed and pulled her hand from his, crossing her arms across her chest as she continued to watch the dueling below.

When the final two winners from the sword fighting contest were named, the air filled with applause as they bowed to the kings and queens. "Congratulations!" Peter called from the platform. "You have both dueled well and this afternoon we will have the final contest between both of you, King Edmund and myself. For now, rest and get prepared for your final duel!" The crowd applauded again as the two winners left for the large tent that was set next to the tournament to rest. A brief lunch was to be served between the sword fighting and the archery contests, the crowd breaking to find places to sit, eat, and enjoy the company of friends.

Susan, Georgie and Lucy left the platform to walk to the archery grounds to make sure everything was in order. Lucy was to compete during the women's contest and was anxious for it to begin. During the preparations for the tournament, she had pestered her sister and Georgie to work with her, to help her practice and perfect her shooting. They had helped, wanting her to perform well, but both had gotten quickly frustrated with the amount of time Lucy wanted to spend practicing.

After speaking with the captain of the archers, who was also acting as judge during the contest, and ensuring everything was ready, the three began picking targets for Susan and Georgie's exhibition contest, each target becoming sillier than the last. "What about that acorn on that twig up there?" Lucy giggled, earning her looks of exasperation from Susan and Georgie followed by peals of laughter from all three women.

Susan stopped, and winked at Georgie. "Here comes Edmund," she said. Georgie turned and smiled. Edmund was jogging towards them, his silver crown flashing as sunlight bounced off it. When he reached the three women, Susan said slyly, "We'll just go- well, we'll just go." She grasped Lucy's elbow and the two walked off, Lucy glancing back and winking at them.

"What was that about?" Edmund asked, confused at his sisters' odd behavior.

George laughed before answering, "I think they were trying to give us some time alone, although they weren't very subtle about it."

"Clearly not," he replied, joining in her laughter. "So who were you talking to last night in your room? I was in the sitting room and heard you in there laughing and talking, although I couldn't make out what you were saying," he asked.

"Oh, Lucy," Georgie quickly replied, her face turning slightly pink. "She came in through the door connecting our rooms."

"What on earth for?" Edmund asked.

"She, um, wanted to hear about, um, us," Georgie stammered.

"About 'us'?" Edmund skeptically asked. Georgie nodded before Edmund continued, "She was always a weird girl."

The two continued talking as the crowd began to gather around the archery grounds for the contest was beginning soon. While the surrounding sounds were still apparent to them both, Georgie and Edmund felt as though they were alone in their own happy world, just the two of them in the open field instead of being surrounded by a few hundred people. Edmund had just pushed a piece of loose hair behind Georgie's ear, moving closer to her, when their happy world seemed to slow down and speed up at the same time.

A nearly silent whoosh sounded almost simultaneously with cries of panic and screams as Edmund suddenly slumped forward onto Georgie, causing her to topple to the ground, and him landing on top of her. Her eyes widened as she saw a long golden-feathered arrow protruding from the top of his right shoulder, blood slowly seeping around the wound onto his deep red tunic, the two colors barely discernible. A scream began to build in her throat, but it refused to come out in her state of shock. "Edmund!" she mouthed, no sound escaping her lips.

"Come quick!" someone shouted. "The king's been shot!"

AN: Calm down...