A/N Can I just say how much I loved writing this chapter? I'm serious, writing about the Pevensies makes me so happy for some reason, and it's even better when there's no annoying teenage girl to cut in and cause drama. =D I absolutely LOVE digging into each sibling's personality, because they're all so fun to write about. That's really the great thing about the Golden Ages- it can go wherever the hell your imagination wants to take it (as long as it stays along some basic lines) which is why so many Narnia fanfiction writers like to write about it. Me? Well, this is just a major stress relief ;)

Enjoy!

Chapter 3

Full Disclosure

High King Peter was a very hard man to read. Much like his siblings, he always wore a mask of resolution, keeping his thoughts and feelings confined within his continuously calculating head. Just when you think he is about to go left, he turns in a complete circle, throws a dagger and keeps going straight. With only one look at his pale complexion, you instantly get a false impression of the man he gloriously portrays. High King Peter is a leader, he is a guardian, he is a king. When the Pevensies first arrived in Narnia together, Peter had almost instantly taken up his role, no questions asked. There was something about this world that felt righteous to him, an unknown force that had gently nudged him closer to who he was supposed to be. However, somewhere between protecting his family and vanquishing the Witch, the High King had lost his true self in the darkness of his arcane outer-shell. King Edmund was not the only one to suffer from wicked dreams.

"My lord, King Edmund has returned from the mountains." King Peter looked up as a close friend of the Pevensies, Mr. Tumnus, spoke from the threshold of the royal study. His intense gaze flickered away from the Faun towards the window to his right that supplied a steady stream of light over the documents he had been reading over on the large, oak desk.

"Splendid," Peter said with a nod, "inform my brother to meet me in the Solar room, and make sure some food is brought up- I'm sure he's famished." Mr. Tumnus nodded and turned to exit the room, his red scarf whipping around and hitting the wall lightly.

Peter gave himself seven minutes, figuring that his brother would take the time to make sure the patrol he had taken was settled and doing what they were supposed to do. Lucy was probably already down in the courtyard, welcoming Edmund home, and Susan would no doubt be making her way down there after she was finished making sure that their latest guest from Archenland, a professor interested in recording the event of the Battle of Beruna, was settled in his chambers. With a small sigh, the High King folded the aging papers and set them on the side of his desk. Placing his left hand on the sword Father Christmas had given to him, Rhindon, he slowly made his way out of the room and towards the private living quarters he was meeting his brother in.

When Peter finally reached the Solar room, Edmund was standing in the middle of the room, a ominous scowl set upon his dirty face. The fury in his brown eyes was barely smoldered by his greasy bangs as he stared at Peter. Lucy was sitting in a chair at the end of the table, a cautious expression shadowing her freckled cheeks. A few feet away from Edmund, the wolf agent, Nyra, sat with her ears pressed against the matted fur on her head.

"I take it didn't go well then." Peter said, carefully closing the door behind him. He didn't miss the clenching of his brother's jaw, something he was prone to himself.

"Were you trying to get us killed?" Edmund snarled, opening his right shoulder slightly to indicate the wolf behind him. Peter sighed and stepped around his seething brother towards the table where Lucy sat.

"Of course not, Ed." He spoke with the patience of an adult reasoning with a child, and that made the dark king boil all the more. Thankfully, the main door of the room swung open and Queen Susan drifted in. A small smile split her lips once she laid eyes on her grungy brother, and it didn't pass her sharp gaze that he was red with anger. Nevertheless, Susan walked over to Edmund and wrapped him in a small embrace.

"I'm glad you're home, Edmund." Susan said softly, but the King wasn't fooled by his sister's attempt to calm him down. Without saying anything more to Susan, Edmund turned back to his brother, who was inching towards the table to sit down.

"Did you know Ginnarbrik was the one leading the Black Dwarves?" Edmund demanded, his grip on the sword at his side tightening. Peter was silent, his fingers drumming on the back of a chair.

"Pete?" Lucy's quiet voice filled the gaping stillness.

"Did you know." Edmund's voice dropped dangerously low as he fixated his glare on the High King.

"Edmund, let's not jump to conclusions." Susan attempted, coming to her older brother's aid.

"Yes." Peter finally spoke, looking straight at Edmund with the same icy gaze, "Yes, I knew Ginnarbrik was leading the Black Dwarves." Susan's eyes widened only slightly, but she held her composure.

"Peter, why would you still send Edmund if you knew? They could have killed him!"

"It was a blunder, alright?" Peter said stiffly, "I honestly thought that they would listen to him." By now, Edmund had turned away from his siblings and was facing the eastern wall, eyes closed as he breathed deeply. The wolf guard sat rigid next to Lucy, wanting nothing more than to leave the room, but knowing her place was here to give her report to the High King.

"Why?" Edmund asked quietly, "Why did you think they would listen to me?" His voice grew more frigid with each word, "Because I was one of them? Because I'm a traitor to Narnia?"

"Edmund!" Susan's eyes flashed angrily in disapproval. The dark king swung around to face his siblings, face set in stone.

"You know you're all thinking it too." He hissed, "Why bother keeping the Witch's slave around the castle when he could massacre us all in our sleep?" Both of his sisters let loose outraged gasps and Peter's jaw jutted out to the side, his palms turning crimson against the back of the chair he was clutching as though it were his only line to reality.

"What's done is done, Edmund." Peter quoted through clenched teeth.

"Don't you dare say that to me." Edmund seethed. There was only one the dark king would ever permit to utter that phrase to him, and he had conveniently abandoned them again.

"Edmund, how could you even presume something so horrid?" Lucy asked quietly, her fingers having found themselves tangled in the wolf guard's fur beside her. For a moment, Edmund looked away, feeling nefarious for voicing his grim thoughts. Susan cautiously approached her brother, laying a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"We all love you Edmund, and I trust you with all of my being." Susan said, finally managing to calm him down, "Great Aslan, you're our brother! We're all in this together. Don't worry, we'll get through it- we always have."

Edmund turned his head away from Susan's probing eyes, reigning in his emotions. Without even having to look, he knew that Peter was already pulled together. A soft tap echoed on the wooden door of the room and a satyr poked his head in, carrying a tray full of food. Edmund took a deep breath and pulled away from Susan as Lucy smiled and called for the faun to enter.

"Why don't you sit down and eat something, Ed?" Susan suggested, walking over to an empty chair by Peter, who was still standing behind his own. Edmund stiffly nodded and made his way over to a seat between his sisters as the faun set down the food. Susan thanked the servant and Edmund plucked an apple from the platter of fruit, rolling it in his hands as he threw a nasty glare across the table towards Peter, but the High King wasn't paying him anymore heed. Instead, Peter had his eyes trained on where Nyra was sitting beside Lucy, the tip of her head peeking over the mahogany table.

"Forgive us, Nyra." Peter apologized, still standing, "Would you please give us you're report." The wolf nodded, but was cut off before she could even begin.

"No," Edmund said, squeezing the apple in his hand, "I'll tell you. Nyra, you're free to leave." Peter's jaw clenched again and his eyes flashed in agitation.

"Belay that, I want a full report from you." Peter said, before turning his attention back towards his brother, "Once she informs me on what happened, then you may tell us your side." The apple in Edmund's hands dropped back down on the table as he sat ridged in his seat, face burning.

"Nyra is my agent, so she is under my orders." Edmund deadpanned, entering another staring match with his brother. The wolf flinched and lowered her ears to the top of her head, familiar with the argument.

"I am the High King, so she will answer to me before you." Susan sighed and rested her head in her hands, rubbing the tips of her ears stressfully. Edmund jumped up from his seat and sent the wooden object flying back with a shrill scraping.

"Don't order me around like you're better than me! We rule this castle together."

"Well then, I don't have to remind you that your agents work for me just as much as they work for you."

"I'm sorry, but who trained her again?"

"Oh grow up, Ed!"

"Will you two stop already?" Lucy stood up, meeting her brothers equally. "It's obvious that since you can't settle things on your own, the women will have to take care of business." The youngest of the four siblings turned towards Nyra, not giving anyone else the chance to speak. "Nyra, it would be much appreciated if you told Susan and I of what happened."

The wolf nodded and Edmund clenched his fists, both men realizing how foolish they had been acting. With a slightly audible exhale, Edmund sat back down in his seat again, snatching his apple and taking a bite out of it. Peter remained standing for a moment, letting his cooling gaze linger over his brother for a second longer, before returning to his seat.

"As you are aware, we left approximately a week ago, on the fifteenth of July I believe." Nyra began, "It took a day to reach Owlwood, just outside the perimeter of the Black dwarves' territory, where we set up camp and remained for another night to observe from a distance. We met little resistance from the other remaining supporters of the Witch within the confinements of the forest- there was a hag who drifted too close to where we had set up base, but it was quickly driven away. On the morning of the third day, King Edmund, Phillip and I traveled the rest of the way through the mountains into the heart of Dwarf country to scout out their main encampment. Around midday, the King spotted the entrance to their main cave and sent Phillip to wander the surrounding lands and keep away from enemy swords. Just before the sun set, King Edmund and myself entered the enemy camp through their main entrance." Peter's hands slammed down on the table as he sat up and looked at his brother.

"You walked into their camp?" He asked in disbelief, "Are you crazy?" Edmund's jaw clenched, but Susan held up her hand before he could speak.

"Please, let her continue." It wasn't really a suggestion. Nyra shuffled her paws and flicked an ear before continuing on.

"At first, we were met with no fight from the dwarves, barely a soul in sight. There were no guards at the entrance, and none in the series of tunnels that led farther into the mountains, but their stench was there." Edmund nodded heedlessly in agreement. "After several minutes of searching for any sign of one of their leaders, a dwarf finally made itself known. King Edmund requested council with their elders for terms of peace, but they refused to comply. Then..." The wolf's amber gaze flickered uncertainly towards Edmund before she resumed.

"The Witch's personal servant, the dwarf by the name of Ginarrbrik, unveiled his position in the shadows. King Edmund requested a treaty once more before him, but Ginarrbrik refused, just like his people." Nyra paused, dropping her stare to the polished floor below. Edmund's jaw twisted to the side and he tapped his finger on the side of his chair, a cryptic message for the wolf to remain silent.

"And then the Black Dwarves attacked us." Edmund cut in, mere seconds after Nyra trailed off, "We barely made it out of the tunnels, and we might not have it not for Nyra's advanced fighting skills." The wolf kept her gaze fixed on the ground, not comfortable about not completely informing the other royals of what had happened. "After we escaped, we called Phillip and raced away from the mountains to where the rest of the patrol was waiting. The dwarves followed us, but we managed to shake them off near the river. And so here we are, back at Cair Paravel." Susan blinked skeptically, having not missed the short pause, but allowing it to pass for the time being.

"Thank you, Nyra," The elegant queen said, "you are free to go."

The massive wolf nodded and bowed before padding out of the room. The table was silent, each sibling leaning upon a hand and reflecting on the events that had just occurred. Now that the conflict of who was to report had been settled, a larger issue was at stake now. The threat of more battles loomed ahead of them, and neither side was prepared to yield.

"I believe we need to call court to discuss this." Peter said, his face at last returning to the mask of calm he perpetually radiated. "But first, why don't you get some rest, Ed."

The dark king's brown eyes scanned over his brother for any sign of superiority, but he found none. The High King stood from his chair and gave his younger siblings a weary smile before backing away and opening the door to leave the room.

So, yeah, that happened lol Sorry about the wait you guys, I had so much shit going on these past few weeks. Thank you to everyone who's reviewed and favorited/alerted my newborn story, it really encourages me to slap myself when I'm not focused on writing a new chapter. Also, if you don't know what a wolf looks like (O.o) or you want to know kinda what Nyra looks like (aka a wolf lol) then I have a picture up on my profile. Hopefully I'll get another chapter up soon, but until then, go do your homework.

Any questions, comments, or life threatening concerns don't hesitate to pm me!

~*~ Charli ~*~