Chapter 13
Walking away from Edmund was probably the hardest thing I'd ever done-no joke. I wanted to turn around and run to him in slow motion and beg him to forgive me and forget what I said.
But I really didn't want to get hurt if I have to leave him soon.
I spent a good twenty minutes in the food storage room ranting about my situation with him to the first person I could grab.
"And I really I care about him and I know I said that he would regret staying but if he doesn't I'll be heartbroken and THAT'S why the color yellow makes me sad I think . . ."
Eustace stared at me as if he'd never quite seen me before. I nodded importantly.
"When you dragged me in here I thought you were going to kill me," he said finally. "This is much worse." He jumped to his feet and fled.
"Yeah, well you're no picnic either!" I yelled after him, though he was out the door before I finished my sentence.
I muttered darkly before exiting the room as well.
Edmund was nowhere in sight, which was both a disappointment and a relief. I wanted to get my mind off him though, so I decided to go bug Caspian.
"'Sup broski's?" I greeted him and Drinian. They exchanged a look before Caspian shrugged and turned to me with a cheerful expression.
"Rose," he greeted me. "How are you doing?"
"Peachy keen," I said. I looked down at the deck and could see Lucy talking to Gael and Rhince, who was working diligently with his crew. "When do you think we'll arrive at our next destination?" I questioned.
"If the weather stays this nice, within the next few days, hopefully," he said.
I looked back to Lucy and with a jolt realized that Edmund had joined them.
"Yeah," I said softly, as Edmund looked up and his gaze met mine. "Hopefully."
Later that night while I was asleep I had my first nightmare since coming to Narnia.
A pale, blonde woman dressed in a long white gown was laughing at me, sitting on a throne made of ice. Her arm was around Edmund, who was looking at her in adoringly.
'Did you really think you could survive here, child?' she asked me mockingly. 'Or think that any of them could ever love you?'
'They care about me,' I insisted furiously. 'This is my home! Tell her, Edmund!'
He looked at me and scoffed, looking at me in disgust.
'I did once," he said. 'Not anymore.'
I felt my heart break.
The woman stood, leaving Edmund standing there obediently. She walked up to me, looking terrifying and beautiful all at once. She bent slightly so that she was eye level with me.
'This is my kingdom,' she said softly, with pure ice in her tone. 'Edmund is mine, Narnia is mine.' A sinister smile crossed her face. 'And so are you.'
Suddenly, a staff appeared in her hands and she thrust it into my stomach, watching me in satisfaction as I gasped in pain and sunk to the floor.
'No,' I said through gritted teeth, though surely I was dying. 'I won't surrender to you, not ever.'
She narrowed her eyes at me threateningly before shifting her eyes to something behind me. 'Finish her.'
I couldn't even scream before I was lost to the sound of snarling and the feel of sharp teeth ripping into my flesh.
I jolted awake with a loud gasp, my heart racing and tears streaming down my cheeks. I covered my mouth with my hand, but saw with relief that I hadn't woken Lucy or Gael up.
Without even pausing to think about it, I quietly climbed out of the bed and tip-toed to the door and slipped outside. The sea looked dark and beautiful, stars were sparkling brightly in the sky. I shivered in the cool night air. I had insisted to Lucy that the nightgown was too hot, so I had cut the sleeves and the skirt of it short. Now I wish I kept it long. I made it to the door and, as quietly as I possibly could, went below deck.
I looked around. Not surprisingly, there was a lot of snoring from all the men sleeping in their hammock beds, which explained how no one woke up when I opened and closed the trap door.
It didn't take me long to find Edmund, sleeping peacefully in his own hammock. He looked so angelic, I almost turned around and left, not wanting to disturb him.
But I didn't. I silently went to him and shook his shoulder slightly.
"Ed," I whispered. "Ed, wake up."
"Mm?" he blinked rapidly, trying to regain consciousness. When his eyes finally focused on me, he looked slightly cautious, as if thinking I was going to start screaming at him or something.
"What is it?" he asked, fighting off a yawn.
"I . . ." my voice trailed off for a moment, realizing how silly I was going to sound. "I had a nightmare."
He just watched me, waiting for me to go on.
I subtly tried to wipe the tear stains off my face. "And other than scarring me for life, I realized that I don't want to push you away just because I'm scared of where the future will leave us. I mean, it could all work out perfectly for all we know." Hot tears began to blur my vision." I buried my fists into my eyes, furiously trying to make the tears stop.
""I-I really don't want to lose you—and I never cry!" I choked out. "Damn you, Edmund!" My voice broke off as the tears fell thick and fast. Edmund took my hands and helped pull me into the hammock with him. There wasn't much room, but I certainly didn't mine. I don't think I'd ever been more comfortable in my life. I was laying in his arms, my head on his chest as he slowly rubbed his hand up and down my arm. Our legs were tangled together and I clung to him, not feeling cold anymore.
After a couple minutes, he spoke up. "It's going to work out."
"How do you know?" I asked, the tears having subsided.
He paused, thinking hard. "Because," he finally said, moving his hand to my back and holding me even closer. "Narnia hasn't failed me yet."
"That's reassuring," I muttered. "Try again."
He chuckled. "Okaaay, how about we just take one day at a time, and hope for a miracle?"
"I guess that's all we can do," I agreed reluctantly. I hated that plan, but I had been apart from him not even twelve hours and I was a mess.
Edmund presented me with a fist. "Come on, bump it," he told me, grinning.
A giggle escaped me as I did so. "I can't believe I taught you that. Well I better let you sleep, your Highness."
I started to shift to get up but his arms tightened around me.
"You can stay," he murmured. "What's the crew going to do? Make us walk the plank?"
"I don't know, I'm pretty sure Caspian has been plotting against us since the moment he caught us being lucky."
He fought to stifle his laughter. I glanced around the room, relieved that everyone was still fast asleep.
I stretched my neck to press my lips against his in a quick kiss.
"Okay, enough making fun of pretty boy. Go to sleep."
"In a minute," he said dismissively.
This time, he leaned down and began kissing me, at first slowly but then it became more urgent. Pleasure trickled through me and I eagerly deepened the kiss, loving how incredibly perfect his lips felt against mine. All I wanted was more.
Suddenly, he pulled away. "Alright, goodnight."
"And you called me a tease," I muttered, closing my eyes and snuggling into him. He didn't answer me, though I could practically feel him smile. He stroked my hair gently, lulling me to a deep, dreamless sleep.
Before I fell asleep, a question formed in my head. Who was the woman in my dream?
