History Lesson

When you have nowhere to go and nothing to do, time passes in a dreamy blur. Within a couple of days of being discharged from the hospital wing Zia almost began to lose track of day and night. She was kept isolated from the bustle of the busy servants and the frenzy of citizens' various quarrels simply because none of it had anything to do with her. Occasionally, either Lucy, Alexandra or Susan found a short interval in their hectic schedule to provide her with some brief company, only to dash off again an hour later. Breejit remained constantly at her side - he had insisted on accompanying her back to Cair Paravel after Nina's funeral - but didn't offer much in the form of conversation. His large brown eyes seemed constantly narrowed in suspicion, as though he believed their hosts to be plotting some horrific evil scheme.

The Fox trotted sullenly at Zia's heels as she and Queen Susan meandered around the palace gardens. Lunch had just concluded and the afternoon sun was pleasant. Both Dryad and Human were dressed in light gowns, although Susan's deep purple with black lace attire was decidedly more impressive than Zia's simple, cream-coloured linen one.

"Why is it that your siblings departed so soon after their meal and you stayed to accompany me?" Zia asked. The formal speech felt strange in her mouth.

Susan gave her a sideways glance but didn't alter her easy stride. "Would you rather I left you to yourself?"

"Oh no, of course not," she replied hastily.

"But..?" Susan prompted.

"I always thought that you wouldn't want much to do with me."

The Gentle Queen laughed. "Do I intimidate you, Zia?"

In truth, Susan did exactly that. On top of her astounding beauty, the eldest queen carried about her an aura that commanded respect. Her lovely face retained a constant expression of pride, despite whatever else she might be feeling. When she was around her, Zia was struck with the sudden urge to run and hide.

Susan took the silence as an affirmative to her question. Her eyes grew very soft and she gently looped her arm through Zia's as they walked. "I know that my presence can be a little… overwhelming for some people. Peter often jokes that I should have been named 'Susan the Fierce' or 'Susan the Terrifying'." She laughed again, quietly and sweetly. "But Aslan gave me my title for a reason and that reason is this: My family are my first priority. I seek to care for and protect them above all else. I am like their mother. Do you see?"

The Queen's voice was so tender that there was no way Zia could doubt her words. "Then where is your real mother?" she inquired.

By then they had reached the marble fountain in the centre of the gardens. The magnificent ornament towered high above their heads. A unicorn frozen with its front hooves poised as though to strike the air spouted a torrent of water from its mouth into the pool below. It was on the edge of this pool that Zia and Susan now seated themselves. Susan took Zia's hand between both of hers. The Dryad immediately noticed how soft and delicate the Queen's hands were and how pale her skin was, but she wouldn't be fooled. She had seen those very same hands handle a bow and arrow with a level of skill that could have matched that of Sayalla herself.

"You already know that my siblings and I – and Alex, for that matter – are not originally of this world."

Zia nodded. She had heard as much from Tumnus, many a time. "Aslan brought you here from another world to defeat the White Witch and restore peace to Narnia."

"That's right. What you probably won't know is that there was a war going on in England - our home. Many brave soldiers were sent to fight against the enemy, much like what happened here. My father was one of those soldiers. To this day I do not know what has become of him, but I keep telling myself and Lucy that he is both alive and well. Why, sometimes I fancy that the war is already over and he is back at home with my mother."

"Does your mother know you're here?"

"No. We were sent away from our house to protect us from the enemy. Alex lived in the house next to ours so she came with us because her father was away fighting too and she had no one to look after her. We were all taken to an old and beautiful house in the countryside. A wise professor lives there with his housekeeper, Mrs Macready. She is rather terrifying, even I must admit! There are also three servant-women named Ivy, Margaret and Betty. They were kinder to us. One day, we were playing hide-and-seek…" Susan caught Zia's confused expression and proceeded to explain the rules of the game. When she understood, the Queen continued her tale.

"Whilst Peter was counting and the rest of us were hiding, Lucy suddenly came running in, shouting about a magical land that she had found in a wardrobe. None of us believed her and I'm afraid Edmund was rather beastly to her about it. Then Edmund found the wardrobe and came here, and he met the White Witch. To cut a long and rather upsetting story short, the Witch lied to him and turned him against us but Aslan rescued him from her clutches. It was easy to see he had learned his lesson - the change in him was incredible. He was at Peter's side as our army marched to battle at Beruna and that is where Aslan finally defeated the White Witch. Then we were all brought here, to Cair Paravel, and Aslan himself bestowed upon us the crowns and titles that we bear to this day.

"I wondered – and I think the others did as well – why Alex wasn't made a queen alongside us. Whenever I put forward the inquiry, she told me that Aslan had his reasons and not to worry, she completely understood her place. Although we are her closest friends, Edmund especially, she keeps many secrets from us. We know hardly anything about her past - about her parents and such. Her father barely left the house. We know her mother was born in this world and that she is often plagued by nightmares, but, beyond that, Alex is a mystery."

Zia wasn't especially interested in the Court Physician at that moment. She was repeating an earlier part of Susan's story over and over in her mind, trying, without success, to understand. Her bewilderment wasn't missed by Susan.

"Is something troubling you?"

"You said… you said the White Witch turned Edmund against you," she said slowly, disbelief evident in her tone. "You mean he... betrayed you?"

"Oh!" Susan exclaimed, instinctively wrapping her arm tightly around Zia's shoulders. "You mustn't think he would commit such an act on purpose! Gracious, no! Whenever Ed talks about the ordeal – and he rarely does, the subject is still painful for him - he always goes on about how miserable he was and how he regretted wandering away from us almost as soon as he left. Aslan has forgiven him and so have we. It is all in the past now."

Zia wanted to believe her, she really did. Edmund had not only been forgiven by Aslan, but had been made a king of Narnia! Surely that was enough reason for his sins to be forgotten? Whether he meant to or not, he still sided with the Witch, the other side of her brain argued. Who is to say he won't return to the side of evil if the chance ever arises?

"Susan…" she began hesitantly. She was on first-name basis with all four of the royal siblings now, though she still retained the belief that Peter should at least be addressed as 'King'. "Do you remember the Summer Solstice four years ago?"

The Gentle Queen gave one of her musical chuckles and squeezed Zia's hand. "How could I not? Ed was so frantic after the dance; he flatly refused to come back to Cair Paravel until he had searched every corner of Narnia for you! We had to send Alex to calm him down and convince him to wait until morning before he began gallivanting around the country. You broke his heart, you know. He wouldn't be consoled. Even after we had all given up hope, he kept up the belief that he would find you or you would find him. I'd never seen him so serious about another person in his life. Why did you ask?"

"Well, you see, that's precisely the reason. He says he looked everywhere for me, and I heard Alex say the same thing, and now you. But when I went looking for him, I found him with a Nymph, laughing as though he hadn't a care in the world!"

Susan stared into her eyes for a long moment, her pretty features were solemn. Water continued to gush from the fountain, the sound seemed amplified in the silence. Finally, she murmured, "Why don't you ask him about it yourself?"

Following Susan's gaze, Zia turned and caught sight of the very topic of their conversation leaning against the inside of an archway. Even from a distance Zia could see the strain behind his relaxed posture.

"How long have you been there?" she demanded, leaping to her feet.

"Zia…" Breejit's warning was a throaty growl. All of his fur was bristling, his ears were flat against his head and his lips were pulled back over his teeth.

"Susan, would you mind?" His question was deep, soft and so quiet that his voice only just carried across the small distance.

Susan didn't have to be told twice, however Breejit was nowhere near as willing to leave the pair alone. He glared at the dark-haired boy with all the ferocity his small body could muster. The Human was totally unfazed; he returned Breejit's stare with a calm one of his own, as though they were having a normal conversation over afternoon tea. The Fox's growl caused Zia to whirl around.

"Bree, please!"

Looking hurt, Breejit sent one last scowl in the Human's direction and turned away.

Zia's heart followed Breejit as he slowly slunk away. She turned back to face Edmund but pointedly avoided looking directly at him lest he captivate her with his wide, bottomless eyes.

"Look what you did," she whispered, unable to manage the accusatory hiss she'd been aiming for.

"That wasn't me," Edmund replied flatly.

Her eyes narrowed even as she felt her shoulders sag. She sank wearily onto the edge of the fountain and rested her forehead on upturned palms. She tensed and shuffled away when he sat beside her, raising her head to look up at him.

"If you're going to say something, I'd rather you just get it over with," she said bitterly.

After remaining silent for a few moments, Edmund murmured, "I didn't come here to pick a fight, Zia."

She scoffed and looked away, causing him to sigh in exasperation.

"Do you not believe that I scoured the whole country looking for you after you ran off?"

"Then why didn't you find me? Every creature in Western Wood knows of the Grove and my clan. It should have been easy for you."

"I tried!" he cried, his voice breaking. "The Grove was the first place I looked, but you weren't there. I saw your Empress – I saw Nina, and she told me to leave you alone. She told me you never wanted to see me again. The only reason I continued searching after that was in the hope that I could talk to you and get you to explain why you ran away. I thought if I could see you face to face it would change your mind."

Zia wondered why Nina had been so protective over her whenever Edmund was involved; she hadn't been aware of half of what had happened between them. "What about Pelerine?" she asked. "You seemed happy enough with her."

Edmund's eyes went wide. "How do you..? Did you..?" Zia held his gaze levelly until he finally whispered, "Oh."

"I came looking for you. I found you with her. How do you think I felt then?"

No answer.

"Did you enjoy spending time with her?" she demanded, although she was sure she really didn't want to know.

"Well… of course she's beautiful - I think all Spirits are. She has a great sense of humour and she was a lot of fun to be around." His gaze was steady. He barely blinked as he murmured the words. Something crossed between anger, disbelief and despondence stabbed at Zia's heart like a white-hot blade. What was he trying to do?

For a moment she felt rooted to the spot, and then her whole being lurched as though she had fallen off the edge of a steep cliff and was now hurtling towards the rocks below. She stumbled to her feet, wobbling unsteadily. Edmund saw his opportunity and seized her hand.

"I wasn't finished," he told her calmly. "Can you just save storming off until I've finished?"

She frowned but didn't struggle against his hold.

"Pelerine is amazing," he said. He resumed holding her captive with his gaze. It was so soft and tender, reminding Zia of a similar expression she had seen on his older sister's face.

"Pelerine is amazing," he repeated, "But she has one major flaw."

"What's that?" Zia whispered when he didn't elaborate straight away. Soon she would be sucked right into the depths of those deep brown whirlpools. She was no longer even trying to keep her feet on the ground.

"She isn't you."

With this last whisper, the sky drifted down, wrapped Zia up in a velvet mist and carried her off the ground to float amongst the clouds. She didn't think she would ever come back down again.