Disclaimer: Story is mine, characters and world is property of C..

A/N: Um, this chapter didn't go as I expected, there is way too much of Susan and not enough of my beloved Edmund in this chapter (despite the fact that he wasn't in the previous one either). But, that said and despite the tremendous amount of swallowing that seems to go on in this chapter (that's not how it sounds) I am actually quite pleased. And hopefully when I get my mountain of A level stuff done, and get around to writing chapter 3 (if anyone wants it), I will finally get to write Edmund yay! Oh yeah, and sorry if this is OOC.

"And secondly, you haven't seen how terribly wrong things have gone for him."

Peter swallowed hard then, setting his face into a look of complete indifference turned to his sister. "What do you mean?" He asked, his voice quavering slightly. Susan blinked rapidly and turned away from him, trying to hide the tears that she couldn't stop from falling. "Su? Susan, what do you mean?"

"Peter, I..." She swallowed a sob and turned back to him. His eyes widened at the sight of her, the fear and helplessness but also the anger that was burning in his eyes took his breath away. Taking a deep, shuddering breath she said, "Peter, I promised him! I told him I wouldn't tell! He doesn't want you to know, he..." She broke off again, still struggling with her emotions. She gazed unseeingly out to sea for a long while, and then quite suddenly began speaking again. Quietly, as if speaking to herself rather than Peter. "He was so frightened. And when I reached out to him...he flinched. Oh, Peter he was scared! Of me, of...of Lucy!"

Peter thought back to when they had first seen Edmund again, how when Lucy had lunged herself at him, thrown her arms around him, he had jumped backwards. Of course, he had then wrapped his arms around her too but there was still that hesitation, as if he hadn't been sure what to do. Peter had put it down to the fact that it was so long since Edmund had allowed himself to be hugged and it had felt strange to him but perhaps, perhaps it was something more? That fragile, timid look that his brother had cast at the girls, he thought it was because he was ashamed or because he expected them to reprimand him but even after they had welcomed him back, hugged him, he had still worn that same look. He closed his eyes, willing his sister to disprove what he was about to ask.

"Su?...Did she, did she hurt him?" Susan gave a loud sob, nodding her head without looking at him. He swallowed, then trying to keep his voice light, unconcerned: "Badly?"

"Yes." Her voice broke and she leant over, burying her face in her hands. Peter gritted his teeth, clenching and unclenching his jaw, trying to keep his own voice under control. Then asked in a cold and detached tone,

"What did She do to him?"

She shook her head frantically, tears leaking out from between her pale fingers. Peter reached over and slowly removed her wet hands from her face, forcing her to look at him.

"Susan. What. Did. She. Do?" Susan let out a few gasping sobs, then shook her head. Peter, in an uncanny impression of their father, barked once "Susan!"

She threw her head up, sending tears flying everywhere and cried in an anguished voice "Peter, I can't! I promised him!" Peter studied her face for a moment, and nodded once as if deciding something in his head.

"Right." Jumping up, he began striding back towards the camp and Edmund.

"Peter!" Susan shouted after him, "Peter, wait!" She flew to her feet and followed him, catching up with him just as they reached the outer-most tents. "Peter, please listen to me. I'll tell you about Ed, but please, you can't just barge in there and demand to know what's happened. You'll frighten him to death!"

"Su, it's too late. I want to know what's going on and if you can't or rather, won't tell me, I'll go and see him instead." He shook off the restraining hand that was clinging to his forearm and continued through the crowded camp.

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The assembled Narnians began to mutter at seeing their future high king storming through their encampment with his younger sister, their future queen running to keep up with his long strides. As they drew near the king's tent which Peter and Edmund would now be sharing, they passed Mr and Mrs Beaver, and Lucy who was talking animatedly to them both but stopped short at the look on her older siblings' faces.

"Peter? Susan? What's wrong, what's happened?" She asked, running up to meet them, her eyes wide with fear of she knew not what.

"Nothing Lu. Everything's fine. Peter and I are just going to see Edmund," Susan put her hands around her sister's small shoulders and glanced at the beavers behind her, "Make sure he hasn't wandered off again." She added with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"Oh no, he's fine. I was just in there. He's not sleeping though." Lucy replied, putting her hands on her hips and frowning disapprovingly at the entrance to her brothers' tent. Susan smiled sympathetically at Lucy's concerned face and nudged Peter in the side with her elbow, he in turn gave their sister a grim smile and said as lightly as he could

"Well, you know Ed, Lu. He doesn't often do as he's told." Lucy's bright smile and small laugh at his half-hearted joke at Edmund's expense made Peter feel faintly sick. He glanced at Beaver behind Lucy's head and gave him an uneasy smile. "Lucy, would you stay here? Su and I want to speak to Ed alone if that's alright."

"Oh. But Peter, oughtn't we all to go and see him together? He must have missed us all terribly, just like we did him." The fact that Lucy was able to say that, knowing full well what their brother had almost done to them and to Narnia finally broke Peter.

"He didn't miss us at all Lucy! If he had done, then he wouldn't have run off in the first place! Why can't you see that? How can you even think that he cares about any of us after what he's done? How can you be so stupid?" Peter finished, breathing hard and suddenly very aware of how loud he had been shouting and how public his tirade had been. He glanced around, taking in the stunned faces of the creatures around him, Mr and Mrs Beaver's disapproving stares and Lucy's rapidly crumpling face as she turned from him and flung herself at Susan who pulled her close while glaring furiously at him. He thought suddenly, that he would gladly face hundreds or thousands of the Witch's army than his wrath of his sister right then.

Suddenly, Susan's expression went from narrow-eyed fury then slackened to a look of wide-eyed, pale-faced horror and shock at something behind Peter's left shoulder. Peter closed his eyes and turned slowly around with a feeling of cold, wintry dread.

"Edmund."