"Work hard, and do as you're told," Mrs

"Work hard, and do as you're told," Mrs. Pevensie instructed. "Who knows, the war could be over by the time you've finished training."

"It's only Dover," Susan attempted a positive air. Nonetheless, her face was as pale and tearstained as the rest. Edmund and Lucy remained woefully silent. Caity had been the only one successful at gaining permission to see Peter off at the train station. He insisted that he didn't want to put his family through the same experience as when they saw their father off.

Fierce hugs and kisses made their way around the little circle. Caity felt slightly removed from the situation; after all, she had not been present at the first parting, nor was she related by blood. Peter shared one last serious glance with his mother, and then finally carried his bags to the waiting taxi.

The ride to King's Cross passed in silence. Though Peter held tightly to Caity's hand, she didn't have the heart or the composure to look at him. Somehow she still hoped that this would never come to pass.

The station was as busy as ever when they entered. In no time, however, they were on the platform from which Peter's train was to depart. Steam already gave it a surreal look. No one was boarding yet, so Peter set his bags on the ground next to him.

"It's funny, isn't it? This is the platform where we first met," he murmured, his voice not entirely steady. Caity followed his gaze to the number 10 sign nearby, then finally looked him in the face. He seemed so young…

"Yes," was all she could say.

"I saw a group of soldiers leaving when we were evacuated during the air raids," Peter continued. "I suppose it didn't really sink in then that I could end up there as well."

Tears blurred Caity's view of the pristine uniform he now wore. "We don't know that. It's like your mother said: the war could end before you're called up, and you won't have to go at all."

"Maybe. But know that if I have to go, I'll go for the freedom and safety of everyone I love." He cradled her cheek with his hand. "No harm will come to you here."

Down the platform from them, the train's whistle blew.

"Promise me the next time I speak to you, it won't be at the hospital," choked Caity.

Peter fished around in his trouser pocket. He pulled out a ring with a single stone in it, and took Caity's left hand in his. "Mum found this for me; she said it was my grandmother's. I will come back to you. Don't you ever think otherwise." He slipped the ring on her finger.

The train whistled again, insistently. Caity threw her arms around Peter's neck as tightly as possible. "Don't go!"

"Keep me in your heart, and I never will," he answered. Their lips met in a desperate kiss, and then Peter had to dash to the train before the last carriage door was closed. He waved to Caity, now crying uncontrollably, until the train passed completely from sight. She had never felt so alone.

A vacuum seemed to envelop the taxi on its return journey. Caity wasn't sure if her mind was a racing blur or simply blank now, unaware of everything except the smooth handle of her cane, which she kept fussing with.

"I will come back to you…"

The reflecting of light off of the ring she now wore caught her attention. One thought finally penetrated the numbness—Peter had proposed to her. Despite the torn sensation she felt inside, her heart seemed to swell with the this revelation, as if it somehow ensured his return.

Aslan…you've kept him safe in Narnia, she prayed silently. Please, keep him safe now. Or at least let me see him in your country…

Mrs. Pevensie opened the door when Caity arrived home. Tears still stained her face, but she was smiling. She took Caity by her left hand. "He waited so long for the right moment. It was driving him mad." A moment hung between the women. Then, at the same moment, they burst once more into tears as they hugged each other.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

No past experience could have prepared me for such physical exertions, even ones as unique as mine, though I'm sorely reminded of the time I dislocated my shoulder. One has to wonder how we could have grown to want to kill each other so. I dare not mention the ways, for you would be all the more distressed at the state of the war, and I fear you will face the results all too soon. There is talk of the next deployment from camp, though who will be on it, we don't yet know. For nearly three months, I have been sustained only by my photograph of you, a gift from your father. This camp does not feel like part of England. It seems so foreign, so far from home. But I am doing well; don't fear for that. Keep your chin up for me, and remember, I love you so much, and I will always love you. Until that wonderful day when I see you again,

Your Peter

Caity carefully folded the letter into the tin where she was collecting her mail from Peter. Three months, already. Fall classes at the university were underway, but her schedule was adjusted to extra hours that she was to work as a nurse. The number of soldiers being treated at home was still limited, giving Caity one place where she was not constantly reminded of Peter's absence, at least for the time being. Longingly, she gazed at the ring on her finger.

"Caity!" Furious pounding on the front door echoed from downstairs. Caity hobbled to answer it as fast as she could, completely forgetting her cane. It was Lucy.

"I just heard the newspaper seller—all active troops are being m-moved out to the front! That means P-Peter's going to have to f-f-fight!" The young girl broke down completely on the doorstep. Caity sank awkwardly to her knees and pulled Lucy into a firm hug.

"He's going to be alright, you'll see. He's a k-king of Narnia," she barely managed. Her own tears were already coursing down her face. Training within the country had been somewhat bearable, but the front…they sat on the step, crying, until Dr. Miller arrived home.

"What's happened?" he asked, setting down the rations he'd bought. Caity threw one arm around her father's neck while keeping the other around Lucy.

"Peter's leaving…for the front."

Dr. Miller embraced them both. "Does your mother know?" he murmured softly to Lucy. She shook her head. "I know it's hard, but we're all going to have to be brave for him. Him and your father. Now, let's get you some tea and a handkerchief, before I take you home. It's getting late."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It may have been a trick of the late-afternoon light, but Peter thought the sky looked chillingly ominous. Winter seemed eager to arrive. Around him, many of the other Army trainees were shifting with restless energy at the Dover camp.

An officer stepped up front, his back to the rough English Channel. "Last night, you each received instructions as to which ship you are to depart on. If you could, please, make your way to your assignments in a quick and orderly fashion now. Godspeed, and God save the King!"

"God save the King!" echoed the soldiers. Peter strode grimly with Geoff down to the HMS North Star. Their regiment was a fair mixture of seasoned soldiers returning to duty and young draftees from the various colleges, including the two boys whom Peter had fought with so long ago. Most of the men boarded in silence.

They were not called together until supper, well after the ship was underway. It was then that they were told of their mission—one beyond top secret, heading for a narrow window of opportunity close to the Dutch-German border. The evaluations, the careful selection, the thorough hours of training that easily exceeded most of the camp, it all led up to this classified, daring mission.

"No one is to know of this mission, now, later, or a hundred years after this war," Major Price warned. "Success or failure, to the world, it never happened. But I will tell you that it is possible you could bring about the end of the war.

"We are to penetrate Germany's defenses all the way to Berlin, or as far as necessary. You have been trained to survive on anything, strike silently, and become invisible. Since the Nazis are far spread and Hitler's attentions are on the Soviets, now is the time to slip through the cracks. Once on land, the squads will split up for different routes that will rendezvous on the west side of Berlin. So use the next few hours wisely; there will be no communication with the outside once you depart this ship. Dismissed."

Whatever nerves Peter had managed to fight down boiled up once more to the surface. He only had hours left to communicate with his family and Caity. And what's more, he seemed to have been shortlisted all along for a suicide mission to take down Germany from the inside. Back in the soldiers' quarters, the mood was somber. There was nothing to do but wait…